To Dance with Dragons [Open]

[Aerith]

The breeze smelled of earth, lotus blossoms, and death.

Kneeling, Lanying ran her free hand over the newest corpse her sentries had discovered. The peasant man's flesh was as unyielding as stone. Rigor mortis had just set in, the body already dropping dramatically in temperature. Her hand paused on his chest, right where his heart would have beaten. Should they cut open his chest cavity, she knew there would be nothing there. The aura of the Heartless polluted the air.

“My Lady Indigo.” One of her accompanying guards gently prompted her. He was masking his uneasiness well, though Lanying did not miss the slight tremor in his voice. “We should move from here. You are in danger.”

Lanying stood to her feet, offering silent parting words to this poor man. “You think the Heartless will return?”

“Do they not always?” The guard was casting his eyes warily about, possibly seeing Heartless where there were none. “Please, Lady. Let us return to the Imperial City.”

She stared off into the trees for a long moment, listening to the music of the wind sighing between the leaves. Something was tickling the back of her mind. “Go back to the main road and the horses.” She held up a hand when her guard tried to protest. “I won't be far behind, I promise. However, should I be gone longer than an hour, go get help from the Imperial City.” Without waiting to see if he would obey her orders, Lanying crept deeper into the trees, an arrow nocked to her bowstring. Whatever was out here made the hairs on her arms stand on end.

[Fate]

Nothing to Worry About Here...
Beyond the Wasteland

"What a pretty little world... too bad I have to destroy you."

Kadaj was in a good mood at the moment. He stood atop a hill overlooking the city, undoubtedly where the center of activity was in the world. Souba rested comfortably on his back, unused; if things went the way he hoped, then he would not need to use it. The Heartless, the otherwise useless peon creatures, would end up doing the work for him instead. This world, just like every other world he visited, was wrapped in the protection of light because of the keyblade master what's-his-face. He had to bring that protection crashing down.

There wasn't any time to waste. He started making his way toward the city, sending a few Heartless to scour around him and toward the city. He wouldn't send any there yet; the timing wasn't right. With a grin on his face, he kept walking and waved his hands, Shadows and Soldiers appearing around him. These creatures weren't that strong, though he doubted many in the city could take them down.

This was going to be splendid indeed.

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[Nothingness]

On the Road Again

Raen felt like he had been walking through this bamboo forest for hours, even though he knew he'd only left his ship slightly over half-an-hour ago. He made sure to be careful of where he stepped--there were some fallen stalks lying about, and if he broke any of them the resounding snap would attract more attention than he desired. Even though it had been a full week since his arrival in Twilight Town, and he had fully recovered, he wasn't in the mood to fight an enemy in such a disadvantageous area. Plants like these would distort his sense far too much, especially since he was used to fighting in more open areas.

He thought with distaste. "Ugh, maybe I should've landed somewhere a little closer to that castle. Oh well." Stopping for a moment, he took a deep breath. The smell of blossoms, dirt, and rain relaxed his nerves. He let his shoulders fall, but drew his sword, the tip of it near the ground. He wouldn't be caught off guard.

Ever since he left Twilight Town in a Gummi Ship made of salvaged and fixed parts from their crashed one, and cheap replacement parts, Zexion's words had been nagging at the back of his mind. Even after that a week, he hadn't decided on what he would really do yet. Figuring it would be better to visit a few worlds and see if he could get a better grip on the situation seemed like it would be the best choice.

He paused for a moment--something wasn't right. Holding his breath, he looked around. "I'm not alone." Crouching ever so slightly, he tried to see if he could get a better vantage lower to the ground. There was definitely another presence, but he couldn't identify its location in the slightest.

[Aerith]

Hello, Stranger

As Lanying wove through the underbrush, she couldn't help but notice there was a distinct lack of animal sounds. All of nature was holding its collective breath for something, some dread monster that was passing through. And she knew that the more oppressive the silence became, the closer she was coming to whatever spider was at the middle of this web.

A lone Heartless burst out of the bushes in her path, one of the slinking Shadows, its claws raking for her face. Lightning reflexes were the only thing that saved her. She ducked, then spun and watched the Heartless grunt sail over her head and straight into the nearest tree trunk. Not wanting to risk staying in place for too long, Lanying dashed as stealthily as possible away from the scene of her confrontation.

She was running half-blindly, which, to her dismay, proved to be a mistake. The trees suddenly ended in a clearing right at the bottom of a hill, and she nearly tripped over a lurking Soldier. Instead, she managed to leap out of the way and brought her bow to bear on the dark stranger who stood in the midst of the Heartless.

So much for subtlety. “Who are you?” Her voice and, more importantly, her aim was steady. She fixed the man with a demanding, yet cautious, stare.

[Nothingness]

A Bad Feeling

Hearing the sound of someone running through the trees, Raen raced towards where the commotion had come from. He stopped short of a clearing at the top of a small hill, and looked on at the scene that was unfolding. The woman had obviously been trying to outrun something, probably Heartless, but had stumbled on the source. The man she encountered sent chills down Raen's spine. He couldn't even see the man's face, but something about him paralyzed him for a split second.

Shaking off the feeling, he started to walk quietly along the tree line, getting closer to them. She was outnumbered, and there was no way he'd forgive himself if he stood idly by and watched. The closer he got, the more intimidated he was by the man. Raen avoided showing it, but inside, his heart felt like it was about to burst out of his chest.

[Fate]

Intimidation

It seems he had company now; how delightful. He grinned as he saw a short woman stumble onto the scene, her weapon ready and aimed at him. The grin remained on his face despite this. She must have followed the path of the Heartless straight to him. Kadaj was never known for subtlety after all; that was more of Yazoo's thing than his. This remnant liked being where all the fun happened; otherwise, he'd miss out on things like this.

"Wouldn't you like to know?" he told the woman who asked him his name, still smirking. "I'm just here to destroy this little world of yours. Is that a problem?" His words came off as casual as if he were asking the woman how the weather. The Souba came out of its casing and eased into his left hand, though he was not about use it at the moment. He may love the thrill of a good fight, but he always waited to start one. If she wanted to start one, then she would.

He looked away from her for a moment, glancing around to watch the Heartless continue to travel toward the city. The command he had given them had been basic and they weren't about to not obey it. Heartless were mindless creatures of darkness anyhow, not like him. He gazed at the trees for a moment, thinking he saw something or someone. He didn't doubt that someone else could have stumbled onto this little scene of his and no doubt could try to outnumber him alongside the woman. Kadaj didn't think too much into it; if they did, they would be in for a devastating surprise.

"Don't be shy," he called out to the person near the trees, the one he could not clearly see.

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[Aerith]

Duty is a Confusing Master

A slight chill traveled down Lanying's spine. Had there been simple hatred or cold calculation in the stranger's eyes, she would have released her arrow without hesitation. But when he had so flippantly stated his intentions to destroy her world, amusement had been, and still was, painted all over his face. She had never seen this man before, and so she could not begin to guess the reasons behind his words.

Meanwhile, the Heartless appeared to be ignoring her now, and instead they were continuing to move away from the clearing, toward the Imperial City. Lanying gritted her teeth in frustration. Two facets of her duty were warring within her. She needed to warn the emperor of the danger, but she could not let this silver-haired man walk unchecked through the lands she was sworn to defend.

The man had shifted his gaze away from her and into the trees. Apparently, he was seeing something she had missed. Or, she thought, this was merely an attempt at distraction. The moment she lowered her guard and looked at the trees, he would strike. Lanying would have none of that. She kept her arrow trained on her enemy.

Then, something rustled nearby, and she lowered her weapon to look.

[Nothingness]

Well, Crap

Raen walked out of the forest, looking at the man, then at the woman. He immediately saw that if it came down to it, he wouldn't be able to fight the man head-on and win, primarily due to his strange weapon. It was obviously meant to both create deadly wounds and to disarm--both of which were fairly bad in Raen's case. However, upon observing the woman, he figured if they both fought him, they might have a slim chance. She at least had the advantage of range with her bow. If Raen lost his sword, then the majority of his own abilities would be greatly reduced.

He watched as the Heartless continued to head towards the large city in the distance, much to both his dismay, and it was apparent, to the woman's also. Raen could tell she was conflicted, but, given the circumstances, couldn't do much about that. Especially since he was stuck in the same situation now.

Stopping just within range of using Ice Fang, he smirked and gave a little laugh at himself and the situation he found himself in. "Well, looks like you found me. Not that I'm surprised." Acting calm didn't really help his anxiety.

[Matt]

An Elementary Assignment

Vexen looked down at the Imperial City. He had never visited the world before, but combined with the information he had to start with and that which he was collecting it wasn't taking long to formulate a considerable understanding of it. And that was his mission: performing reconnaissance and, more importantly, survey the heartless population. It was a rather menial assignment, but it had to be done. Besides, the Organization was a bit undermanned as of late. The additional missions were almost bothersome enough to make him desire the recovery of more imbecilic neophytes to do the work. But not quite.

The city looked quite large and elaborate. Nothing particularly impressive, but it would be worth investigating later. In the mean time, there was the matter of the heartless to attend to. So far, there hadn't been many of the creatures to be seen. He was completely aware of the effect the Keyblade Master had had on the balance of the worlds in his absence, but even still things were quieter than they ought to have been. Most likely, something was drawing their presence to a specific location. But what? That he was curious to find out...

It was then that he noticed the stream of heartless that appeared to be advancing towards the city. That was odd. Heartless didn't usually move in such a linear fashion. They were wild, mindless creatures that were completely incapable of doing anything in an organized manner. Clearly someone had to be directing them. But who? Perhaps it was that witch, Maleficent. Regardless, the situation was worth checking in on. It was likely that the Superior might be interested to learn of whatever it was that was going on here. And it couldn't very well be ignored.

[Fate]

Some Business to Take Care Of

She didn't fire her weapon, which was a bit surprising to Kadaj. One would think that if he told someone he was going to destroy their world, the immediate reply would be to start battle to defend said world. That's how it usually worked wherever he went and he definitely did not mind a good fight. Though, that usually got him a bit sidetracked and he occasionally forgot his original purpose. This time he could focus on getting into the city and finding the heart's world so he could destroy it. The darkness was back and it was here to stay.

Another came out of the trees, a man that didn't look quite native to the world. The woman did; there were no questions about that. Though, just because he was an outsider didn't mean he would not fight for the world. Outsiders usually only had two purposes when they came to a world: defend it or destroy it. Kadaj was obviously in the latter category, but he couldn't quite place the other man's intentions. It didn't matter too much anyway. He wasn't going to stay long.

"So nice of you to join us," he said to the man, "Though, I'm afraid I have to end this little get-together. I've got work to do." He still sounded casual in his manner of speech, his words coming out at an average pace. He glanced to the Heartless now that were still making their way to the city. He doubted that the number he sent would be enough. With a quick flick of his wrists, he summoned several Shadows around him. He didn't need to control these ones; they were tenacious enough without his help.

"Have fun now." He started walking toward the city more, Souba still in his left hand. If they decided to fight, he'd be ready. He sort of wondered what they were going to do now. They wouldn't do well if they decided to fight him, that was for sure. Maybe they knew that though. Maybe they would fight off the Heartless then. Who knew?

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[Aerith]

If You're Not Against Me...

The new stranger who appeared out of the trees was as much of an enigma to Lanying as the man controlling the Heartless was. Though, she noted, he didn't possess the same foreboding air. Whether or not he would prove to be an ally or an enemy remained to be seen. She needed to distract the obvious enemy before he could further threaten the safety of her people. But something told her she wouldn't be able to handle him on her own.

One of the newly-summoned Heartless made her decision for her. In its ravenous, uncontrolled state, the Shadow sank into the ground and shot toward her. Like a fish breaking the surface of the water, the Shadow emerged from the damp earth and swiped a clawed hand at her leg, seeking a hold it could use to reach her coveted heart. Lanying danced backward and shot a glare at the second stranger.

“Now would be an excellent time to let me know if you are friend or foe!”

[Nothingness]

...Then You're With Me

"As far as I'm aware," Raen began, but was cut off by a Shadow's lunging claw swipe. With a smooth motion, he dodged the attack and ended up behind the creature. Within a split second, he flipped his rapier in his hand so that it was held in reverse, and stabbed it straight through the top of the Shadow's head. "I'm your friend!" Ripping out his sword and flipping it back, the Heartless vanished in a burst of darkness.

As more of the Heartless began making their move on them, Raen watched as the mysterious man continued walking towards the walled city. Cursing under his breath, he quickly moved next to the woman. "The name's Raegan, but just call me Raen. Let's take of these guys quickly before that man gets to wherever he's going."

Truthfully, he was doing this not just because he knew that he had to help her, but because if he did, he might get a chance to meet with whoever was in charge of the world. Or at least get some information about this place. He'd rather not start making enemies before he had too.

[Fate]

Late For an Important Date!

Well that was no fun; they weren't even going to try to fight him, instead dealing with the Heartless. The silver-haired man sighed, a bit of his fun taken away from him. He wanted something interesting to happen, but nothing did. They were just going to fight the Heartless and not fight him. He wasn't about to provoke the fight either; he liked it better when the fights came to him. Though, he kind of doubted that this was going to be the last time he saw either of them. They'd be back.

He focused on the city again, still keeping his sword in hand. Now something had to be in there or, more importantly, someone. There had to be someone running this whole world just like there was in every other world. Maybe it would be a good idea to have a little chat with them, talk to them about some things like how Kadaj wouldn't stop until the world was destroyed. That would get the leader's attention; that was for sure. He started running quickly toward the city, the Heartless following him slowly.

The city was in pretty decent shape, he had to admit. It was nice looking in its own way, but it was most certainly not his style. He liked a little bit more darkness than what was here. A few people seemed to notice he was here, a couple running away and a couple of guards getting ready to do battle with him. Kadaj stood his ground, grinning the entire time. Once they made their moves, they couldn't take them back.

"Come on now, I don't have all day," he said with a cheerful tone. It then became eerie and softer, his green eyes looking straight at the guards. "You'll fall with this world. Want to see?"

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[Aerith]

Urgency

Finally, a name. Lanying already respected Raen more than the man hellbent on her world's destruction. She had always respected everyone, no matter their allegiance or personal convictions, but she simply could not abide unbridled arrogance. Providing your name to your allies and opponents was the first step in establishing mutual regard. The silver-haired man had violated that.

She took aim at a nearby Shadow and released her arrow at last. It pierced the Heartless through the head and continued its flight into a nearby tree. Nothing remained of the Shadow except a faint wisp of smokey darkness. Offering an appreciative look to Raen, she said, “My name is Lanying. I need to reach the Imperial City before that man does. The emperor must be warned.”

She paused for a breath and just long enough to send another arrow into the head of a Heartless. Since most of the Heartless were following that man, only a scant few had been left in the clearing. Lanying reduced that number to one with a third arrow. “The last one is yours. Hurry. I know several shorter routes back to the city.”

[Nothingness]

Not a Moment to Lose

"Well, it's nice to meet you Lanying, although I'd wish it weren't under these circumstances." As he was saying this, the remaining Shadow leapt into the air and was rapidly descending on him. Lifting his unarmed hand a visible pulse of icy air quickly punched through the air, canceling the Shadow's momentum and suspending him in mid-air for just a moment. As soon as gravity took hold of the creature, it was ripped to shreds by small ice fragments that whirled about Raen. Turning back towards Lanying, he said, "Lead on--I'll take care of anything following us."

[Raen used Winter's Howl, three posts until next use]