Stalkerkain

"I'm sorry too, if I had some more lead time in knowing that, I would have planned to introduce Snow at a better time," Magna said regrettably. She was aware of someone behind them eavesdropping, but whoever it was, was too insignificant to give attention to at the moment. "I don't know what the story behind that is, but you can tell me when you're ready. But for now, I want you to just have a little trust in me, okay? I'm two for two on recruiting amazing allies, right? My gut feeling tells me that it's going to be three, I know it. Just give me some time to sort some things out, and I'll show you that I'm right, okay?" Magna reassuringly patted Kagarin, and helped her stand to her feet. "If Snow's still too much to handle right now, you don't have to stay around her for longer than you want to. I'm pretty sure there's nothing for you to worry about. Though there is something more to Snow than I can initially see," Magna said. Gripping her scythe, she slammed the handle backwards into the door, making it apparent that she knew Kyle was behind it. After all, a soul in such close proximity cannot hide in her presence. "Also, it is rather rude to eavesdrop, my friend. Do show yourself immediately."

"Ah... looks like I did mess up...." Magna murmured to herself. Kagarin's body language alone was enough to convey how rattled she was. As comforting as a skeleton could be, Magna wrapped her arm around Kagarin and started to move her towards the outside. "I know we've just met and all, and pardon me for being terribly rude, but I'll have to excuse myself for a moment. I need to have a word with Kagarin here. Why don't you get more acquainted with Hellfire Knight? I'm sure she'd love the company~" Magna grinned, as she remembered her handshake with Hiroki. If her hunch was right, Hiroki would be in for another surprise. Of course, she hadn't confirmed such a fact yet, but she could always make sure at a later time. "Don't worry if Leon decides to start the meeting without us; just catch us up on the important details later, kay~?" With that being said, she tried to do her best to guide Kagarin away from Snow, and outside of the building to get some air. She ignored the little bit of weaponry that decided to nest itself on her head. In a hushed and quiet voice, Magna tried to reassure Kagarin. "There, there, it's all right. Everything's going to be okay," Magna said in an attempt to soothe her. In actuality, Magna had zero experience comforting people. What kind of Grim Reaper did that? 'Oh, my condolences, but you've passed away' wasn't going to cut it here. "What's wrong? You can talk to me, Kagarin."

(Ignore this)

"-Oh! There you are Kagarin~" Magna said in surprise. "You look... different! I probably didn't notice you because of how dazzling your new outfit looked in my eyes~" Magna envied her a little, how she somehow managed to score a new outfit in this town. Due to anatomical reasons, actual clothing wouldn't perform any function of any sort. "Well, I know for one fact that she doesn't seem to have a book on her," said Magna. If she had facial tissue, she would have frowned. "But she is indeed a lady in armor. Is there... a problem?" Well, from what little Magna could garner from their short conversation together, Snow didn't seem to have any alarming personality traits. At least, to her knowledge, anyway.

"Irregardless of whether or not you did, we're getting a new friend anyway!" Magna beamed, as she drew away from Hiroki's line of sight, to reveal Snow in her gleaming armor. "It's a flippin' knight in shining armor! Can you believe it? In my world, they don't exist anymore! Feel free to introduce yourselves! By the way, have you seen Kagarin anywhere? I don't see here around. It'd be a perfect time to meet our new ally!"

"To put it simply, you're one of the more rational ones. Of course, you wouldn't be the only one, but I've yet to meet the others yet. But from what I can tell, many of them are too hot-headed or carefree to be reliable," Magna said bluntly. There was no sugar-coating her words; Magna wanted to ascertain as soon as possible, whether or not Snow could be a potential ally or not. "Well, in the end, it's up to you how you want to read into it. I also want more allies because it's more fun that way~" "You don't have to give me an answer immediately. So do at least think it through," Magna encouraged. "I'll be heading on ahead to meet with Leon. See you down there~" (Feel free to have Snow interject here, and/or to follow me to the meeting place) Magna found her way back to the appointed meeting place, looking around to see if Kagarin or H.K. was there. She spotted H.K. sitting down, and Magna made her way over and sat beside her. "Hiya H.K.~ Make any new friends while I was gone?"

"Don't mind if I do then~" Magna said, as she took a seat on a rock. Aelia? Transcend? Great Encompasser? Such words escaped her, as it went through one ear and out of the other. Already, Snow didn't seem like she was a human. If she could interact on the level of the gods, then perhaps Snow was some sort of spiritual being. Humans had religion back on her world, sure. But she never knew anything about humans being able to interact with their god. Was she a demi-god then, perhaps? Magna really wished she had read her instruction pamphlet when she started. In any case, it didn't seem like there was anything out of the ordinary. All of them were just gathered without a moment's notice. Her eyes darted to Snow's visor, as some steam escaped from it. Steam? But it wasn't that cold outside. She hadn't recalled the dragon, nor the other humans emanating heat to their surroundings. Her eyes narrowed, as she studied Snow closely. "As for our company. Most I do not have an opinion on. They have yet to show their true colours therefore I cannot judge them. There are others though.. that I find undesirable. Ones that are close to being irredeemable. Ones that are perhaps more of a hindrance and danger to those around them than they are a boon." "I totally understand that~ The people here are so amusing!" Magna chuckled. But then her usual playful tone shifted to a more serious tone. "But then there are others of perhaps more... questionable motives. And until we truly figure out who is a friend or a foe, what would you say about forming a... temporary alliance? Of course, you may have no reason to trust me, and you might think an alliance may be unnecessary, but I think you might find it to be useful to have allies in unexpected places. Safety in numbers, and all that jazz." "What do you say?"

"Not to seem unfriendly, but do forgive me, as I don't do handshakes. I'm a bit of a germophobe, see," Magna said, as she pointed to her gloved hand. "But nevertheless, it is a pleasure to meet you, Snow." Magna surveyed the area around her to see if anyone was listening nearby, while making it seem like she was just stretching. "Though, I'm curious as to what you think about our current... predicament," Magna said. She was about to say adventure, but she was probably the only one who thought of their situation like that. "From what Leon has said, it seems that we aren't the first visitors here, nor will we be the last. From what I can tell, we were all gathered here, but there was no bias as to who was chosen. If I may ask, was there anything were you doing in particular, or did anything strange happen before you were brought here?" Perhaps there was some sort of correlation, some sort of clue that everyone had in common that might have triggered these chain of events.

"Hmmm... firstly, might need your eyes checked if you think I'm a man, but I get it a lot cause apparently I'm too rough to be a woman. "My apologies then, one could never be too certain~" Male, female, did it really matter? Perhaps Magna found that gender mattered less to her, especially since she didn't have any organic aspect to her for the distinction to matter. Secondly to what end do you speak? The entirely of this situation... or our... rather eccentric companions...?" "Both, either, or neither!" Magna beamed. She was a respectable distance from Snow, but she still couldn't see anything regarding her appearance. Odd. "Though, may I have your name first?"

"To become... a god? That seems a little... dangerous. But then again, I'm an embodiment of Death itself, so what's there to worry?" Magna chuckled, as she thought to herself. Leon had specified a place to meet when they were all ready to go. However, some of the party were already beginning to separate and act on their own, instead of preparing like Leon suggested. Even Kagari seemed to have an agenda of her own, so Magna supposed she would try and scout out potential allies in the meantime. Should the others decide to join Leon, then so would she. "The local townsfolk seem to be giving out potions to our party. H.K., would mind grabbing some for the three of us? Kagari seems to have drawn interest in the dragon." Of course, she had no idea if potions even worked on the undead. Restoration properties were always a strange gray area for her, as she found that some did, and some did not. At worst, she could just hand it off to either of her allies who could make use of it. In the meantime, there was one who caught even Magna's attention, back in the first battle together. A knight of considerable prestige, considering the condition of the armor. Normally, she would try and not associate with knights; often times they were associated with the Church, and divinity never boded well for her. However, something was different. It's soul, which burned fiercely, much unlike the other humans. Either this knight was someone of great accolade, or it was an entity of another kind entirely. Magna would never have considered it at first, but the existence of other sentience greater than humans caused her to think otherwise. Magna approached, her footsteps were light; for they didn't have the flesh to weigh them down. Alone, the knight was. And alone, was the perfect opportunity to approach. "Greetings Sir Knight, I hope you're free for some company to have a little chat," Magna began. Beneath the visor of the entity's helm, she could not see. What lay beyond the steel that encompasses? On that topic, what about the robes that conceal the body? Was there something that lurked behind a human form? Magna could only describe this as intrigue. She felt compelled to know. And, if she may be ambitious, she would penetrate past these disguises. "Magna Sigyl," she introduced. She paused a little before continuing, to see if Magna could draw out a reaction, perhaps a reply. "What do you make of the recent events?"

"Oh ho ho~ It looks like I was right about what I said earlier, Kagarin~" Magna's skull chattered, as if to mimic laughing. "The others have already come to some sort of disagreement. I may have seemed a little too overcautious when it comes to trusting people, but it wasn't without reason~" Magna had been more or less listening to Leon's conversation, and grasped the gist of what was going on. From the way he described it, occurances of otherworldly travellers were not something new. The mention of getting their group "offworld" also worried her. She took the way it was worded as being unable to return them to their original worlds. Meaning they would continue hopping worlds, at best. "A vacation it is! I've always wanted to go on an adventure!" "Anywho~ What were you two doing before you got dragged into this mess? I was trying to enjoy a nice cup of tea and catch up on some reading, and the next thing I knew, I woke up here! And I don't sleep, so that's pretty weird!" Magna was aware she was babbling on, but it was simply a farce. In truth, she was also studying the others. With the presence of the Heartless being an active threat, it would be good to have allies to fight alongside. Typically those who hadn't formed groups yet would be easy to approach, but usually the seedy or the eccentric made the best allies. "By the way, H.K., are they any supplies you would need from the shop?"

"Oh... my..." If Magna had eyes, they would have narrowed in on Kagari. Instead, the glow of her eyes narrowed to the same effect. Although she was still gloved, she could see and feel the texture of Kagari's hand change into something different entirely. It seems that she wasn't the only one trying to masquerade as a human being. "That is quite... something." There were so many newcomers in this area alone, it was difficult to keep track of who was where. At least, some were moving to the next area. She didn't know what spurred everyone in motion so suddenly, but she supposed it was a good thing. "Everyone else seems to be moving on. For the time being, we can get you acquainted with our other ally, Hellfire Knight." she suggested. Magna turned to head over to H.K., assuming that Kagari would follow. "Hey H.K., I found us a new friend! Come and say hello~"

"And how, pray tell, are you so certain of that?" Magna mused. "It was certainly... convenient that we were able to band together back there. But what's to say that won't change in the future? All these different people, different backgrounds, different philosophies... Who could say what might happen? But I digress." "It is rather convenient, yes. It does save me a lot of time back home," Magna replied. As to doing what, she didn't explain further. It seemed Kagari was one of the more observant ones; Magna had assumed the people at the vanguard would be too pre-occupied with battle to notice. "In any case, if you could keep that little bit of information a secret for the time being, that would be lovely~ I can't have everyone knowing the cards in my hand immediately~" It was still too early to be outed; she could reveal herself later at a more appropriate time. "Yes... Magna Sigyl," Magna introduced herself. Odd, she had only mentioned her name once, and that was when she introduced herself to H.K. who was alone at the time. Already, Magna was amused. She met Kagari's hand with her own. Despite being gloved, Magna believed Kagari would figure out her the nature of her anatomy immediately. "Charmed. I look forward to working with you too~"

Where was she? Ah yes, she was going to go find the singer, Kagari. There was something about her voice that granted restorative properties. For someone like Magna who didn't like getting up all close and personal, Kagari seemed like an ideal ally to fight with. Kagari certainly had her... fighting quirks, but Magna wasn't really one to talk. There was something early on in her undeath about scythes and how important "iconography" was, but she wasn't really listening by that point. In any case, Kagari wasn't that hard to find; no one else had swimwear on by default. "Hello Miss Singer," she greeted. Magna already knew her name from her introduction earlier, but there was nothing like a proper introduction to get acquainted. "I saw how well you fought back there. With all the uncertainty of what's going on and all the strangers, I think it'd be a good idea to form a... temporary alliance while we get things sorted out. What do you say about teaming up with me and Hellfire Knight over there?"

Just as Magna's hand had made contact with H.K.'s, she had immediately rescinded her grip. It was followed by a strange crackling sound that would have been deafening had it not been for the fact that her hearing didn't work the same as a human's. As if almost anticipating her reaction, Magna let out a laugh. Not a vocal one, but rather the sound of her skull clattering. The sound echoed hollowly, hopefully only within distance of just H.K. She had forgot how fun surprising humans were. Back in her world, she wasn't allowed to interact with mortals outside of work, and would always get scolded for doing so. But that was neither here nor there. This truly was a vacation! "Apologies if I... startled you. I figured if we were to team up, you should know-" Just as Magna was about to finish her sentence, another unearthly shriek pierced the air. What was it now? Another enemy encounter? She really didn't miss having eardrums. "What in Death's name was that? An attack?" Whatever it was, it seemed to have settled down. Had one of them been attacked? Perhaps the others would go and investigate. Looking around, she wondered who else she could potentially be willing to team up. For the moment, someone who could heal wounds. There were two whom she recalled fit the criteria. She decided to go for the singer, as she had stopped talking to the dragon, and could possibly bring her aside to talk with. "By the way, H.K., you don't mind I enlist more people do you? Of course, I wouldn't mind if it were just the two of us either~"

"Wonderful, I'm glad we could come to an agreement," as she said that, Magna's mask almost seem like it formed a smile. Or was it merely a trick of the dark? In any case, she extended her hand for a handshake, clearly disregarding her earlier statement of being a germophobe. If she were to have H.K. trust her as a potential ally, then Magna felt that she could give up a secret or two to do so. "As for my capabilities... if you hadn't seen earlier, then you'll find out soon enough. It'll be a pleasure fighting with you, H.K.~"

"Well then, H.K.," Magna said, deciding on a whim to give Hiroki a nickname. Talk of favor and gods eluded her, and would no doubt mean nothing to Magna as a whole. "What do you make of all, this?" she asked nonchalantly. She performed a vague gesture with her hands, referring to all the strangers gathered here. "From where I come from, all this? Doesn't exist. I don't ever recall people being able to evolve their capabilities this far, even with the technologies available at the time. I suspect that you nor I are familiar with this place, or these people. Which brings to me to the conclusion that we were gathered here. From different worlds." "The question is though, for what purpose?" Magna thought to herself. "I've rambled on for a little too long now, so let me cut to the chase," Magna said. "I've seen how you fight, and I think that you're quite strong. What do you say about forming a temporary alliance?"

"Oh don't be like that! Everyone's special in their own way. You just don't realize it!" Magna beamed. And they were, but everyone literally just doesn't realize it! Because she doubted they could see souls! "Let me introduce myself, my name is Magna Sigyl, occupation- well- I'm actually unemployed right now. Pardon me for not shaking your hand; I'm a bit of a germophobe, see," as she pointed towards her other gloved hand. That wasn't remotely true, but if Hiroki were to shake her hand, she would find out that Magna's hand is awfully bony. "I overheard your name earlier, but I hope you wouldn't mind introducing yourself once more?"

"So lady with the glowing eyes; do you have a name? And are you one of those vaguely evil necromancer types?" As if that were any way to introduce one self. The fact that the person had the audacity to just walk up and ask that made her question his sanity. "Don't say such ridiculous stuff," Magna scoffed. She wasn't quite keen on wanting to trust the others yet, as they had only just met each other perhaps an hour ago. The fact that the cloaked person had already discerned her ability was bad enough. "There's no such thing as a 'necromancer', at least not in my world. The only thing I rely on is the steel of my blade." With the terse comment being said, she sped up her pace, to get away from the hooded man. The chances of others overhearing is high, and she would prefer not to have a conversation regarding her anatomy or occupation in such close quarters. The arachnid she had been talking to seemed to have disappeared. Pity. For the ones that cannot talk, tend to be good keepers of secrets. The corridor opened up to a more open space, where there seemed to be more signs of life. There were, however, more bodies than there were souls, indicating that there were two non-humans among the group. There was a particularly large soul that consumed up most of the space. A being of myth, a dragon. She knew she shouldn't be surprised at other oddities like herself, but it was massive. She bet its soul would taste delicious. Yet again, everyone seemed engaged in friendly banter. It seemed as though the situation were just surreal to them, despite not knowing each others' intentions. Already some were splitting off from the main group and observing from afar. She determined it would be wise to do the same. If she were boring. This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for an adventure! Except for the fact that she was already dead. But that never stopped her before! There were already people splitting off from the main group, and they seemed to be perfect candidates for making 'friends'. In particular, the person who identified themselves as 'Hellfire Knight' had already started branching off after introducing themselves. She had a tiny soul, from what Magna could tell, but it burned as brightly as anyone else. "Hey cutie~" referring to Hiroki's soul, as Magna addressed her. "What are you doing all the way over here?"

"Grah," she grunted, as the larger creature began to target her. While she didn't feel conventional pain like the living did, she was acutely aware of the physical damage done to her vessel. Everyone else had finished up their business, clearing out the rest of the strange creatures. They seemed to be gone for good, as they remained permanently dead. As if reacting to the other Shadow Beasts dying, Magna recalled the souls she had trapped in her summons, to make it seem like they died alongside their comrades. In turn, she then absorbed the souls into her own body to heal herself. The corpses slumped to the ground, the light from their eyes disappearing. As much as she'd like to keep her minions around, remaining low about her abilities would help her out in the long run. None of them had reason to trust each other yet, and there was no promise that they would remain allies. Shrugging her shoulders, she looked towards the path that was now clear. A restorative ability started being applied to Magna, as she leapt back a little. Most healing with divinity properties would harm her, but it appeared that the girl's healing wasn't of the sort. Despite not needing the extra healing, Magna was going to thank her, but Hikari had already run off to treat the next patient. "Despite not knowing me.... what a strange mortal," Magna mused. As if that weren't the end of it, another one of them began singing, being able to feel the quality of Kagari's voice even through her bones. Strange abilities they had, that was for sure. "The path seems to have opened up for us. We can chat as we walk, as there isn't much point to hanging around here much longer," said Magna, as she started walking towards the exit. She could hear the faint sounds of combat in the distance. "Though, it appear we'll be having more company soon. Shall we move on then?"

Rosalvya's encounter with the soldier left her wounded and out of breath. She felt that she was wearing down, her movements becoming slower. But if the others were still fighting strong, so would she. The next set of enemies were still a distance away, so she had time to do some first aid on herself. She moved closer to Anna, and began applying the Vulnerary to her wound. It stung like always, but it's restorative properties had never failed her before. It sort of made her wonder what went in them. As she neared Anna, she decided to keep talking with her, as there was still time before the enemy arrived. "What about you, Anna? Have you always been a merchant?" she asked. "The reason I ask, is, um-, well, you seem awfully well-versed in combat." Move to V5 and use Vulnerary

Felis scratched his head, as he received a lecture from Rame. He had immediately jumped to the worst conclusion, and assumed that Rame was going to lose control. He didn't regret his actions, however, as the situation could have escalated much quicker, especially with everyone gathered in such close proximity. "It does matter... what you feel. If you lose your... temper... the others could be... in danger," he said. Felis dusted himself off, clearing the excess debris off his garments. His eyes then shifted to the two on stage; the two entities that held an aura about them that deceived what they seemed to be truly capable of. As if distance were irrelevant, he stared straight at them, not letting his eyes off them. While still addressing Rame, he raised his hand, pointing to the Coerators. "Who... are those... two?"

As soon as the dust settled, Felis could feel all eyes being focused on him. From the looks of it, everyone had assembled in the auditorium already. His eyes scanned the room, locating the two strange presences he had felt earlier. He stood impassively, staring straight at the two on the stage. At first glance, they looked to be normal people. One of them even looked to be their age. But it was clear to see that they held a different air about them. While he sensed no sense of hostilities coming from them, that was no reason for him to drop his guard. Meanwhile, there was a ball of hostilities right in front of him, finally drawing his attention to Rame. "The door was... too far away. This was... closer. I had... a feeling you were... angry, and got... worried," Felis said in a neutral tone. He clearly seemed uninterested in the attention he was drawing. "It seems I was... right. You are... angry."

According to the block of wood they had received, 10:30 was the appointed time. Well, he was ten minutes late. Despite receiving the summons to the assembly hall ahead of time, his morning meditation had caused him to lose track of time. Nevertheless, Felis had no sense of urgency, as he was already running late. What's a few more minutes? Looking around for the appointed meeting place, he suddenly stopped in place. Water began to rise from the fountain, and into a building. Undoubtedly it was the work of someone's Lumen, but he wasn't aware of anyone in their camp being able to manipulate water. Perhaps one of them was holding back the entire time? The flow of water soon changed it's course backwards, flowing back into the fountain. There were no disturbances in the water levels after it settled. Whatever happened, it was coming from one specific building. As Felis approached closer, there were several presences of note. Three of whom, he recognized as his instructors. They were on a class of their own, having mastered their Lumen already. There were two others whom he couldn't seem to recognize, and seemed to exceed even their instructors. Why would there be stronger presences, when their instructors were the ones overseeing them? Alarmingly, he suddenly detected Rame's presence, as the bloodlust emitting from the building was unmistakably hers. Was she going to lose her temper? Wasting no time, Felis rushed around the side of the building, where the bloodlust was coming from, and began to channel his Lumen. With a mighty swing of his greatsword, he cleaved an opening in the side of the building, before using his body to burst through the wall with sheer willpower.

"I- I see..." she said, still a little startled by Ian's sudden appearance. He had left as quickly as he had shown up. "I've asked him to teach me that trick before." Anna pouted crossing her arms. "His answer was 'No Anna, you'll surely use it to do evil things.' Can you believe that? How could a young and beautiful woman like myself ever hurt a soul?" "Ahah... I wonder why..." she said with an unassuming tone. "Anna, you clubbed a man to death out of spite. I don't think Ian's concern was unfounded." "Was Ian always... a merchant?" she asked Anna. She had to wonder, because if all blind people were like that, she would have to be more wary.