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burndownthehousetonight · 7 years

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((Isn’t it great when you forget to do something as easy as posting text you already have compiled for several days? Anyways, this is the third chapter in this @blazerandfnds RP thread we’re doing. I just had to update the headers for my Fringe RP header, I keep forgetting to do that ‘3′))

The archer stopped in his tracks. They might have been the one with the bow, but Tetra was the one with the gun. There was a stare down between the two while Jersey stood off to the side. If it weren’t for the whimpering creature laying near them, the scene would have been deathly quiet. Even if he wasn’t the best negotiator, Tetra was clearly used to sudden danger, remaining collected and pointing his gun square towards the archer. His attention was only distracted slightly by the strange appearance. Everyone in these mountains had strange appearances, but he hadn’t seen anyone with what looked like a ruby embedded in their forehead. “State your name,” he commanded. The normally crotchety grit to his voice suddenly sounded bellowing and threatening as he demanded the name of their rescuer.

The hedgehog didn’t even seemed phased by the gun. He could tell that it would take him a few seconds to actually fire. He didn’t want to seem imposing and put his hands up. “Easy there officer, I was just hunting is all.” He sounded innocent enough and looks at the frog in front of him. The creature's whimpers had slowed down into more subtle groans as it started to lose it's grip on it's own life, the sound dying down in time with Tetra's initial reaction. Tetra didn't take both hands off of his gun, no longer poised to shoot in a moment but able to if necessary. To the side of the two, Jersey could only look on and worry if something else was going to happen to them. "Well, your hunting saved our hides," Tetra admitted, not sounding happy and skimming over the apology. "Good shot. How do we get back to the city?" That finger fiddling with the trigger made it clear he still wasn't keen on the stranger who saved them out of nowhere. The creature disappears in a puff of smoke as the shadows of the night move around it. Bullseye did not like the reaction of the frog but understood that he was trained that way. He puts his hands down and points forward. “The closest city is east of here.” His eyes pulse a bit as he talks. "Thanks," the frog said, nodding his head slightly as he spoke. He started to put his gun back in his holster, fingers still grazing across the handle. "You mind showing us the way back, in case anything else jumps us? Don't know these parts well." Jersey had only gotten more surprised and confused at everything that happened around them. Where had the corpse gone? He had no idea. Why did this guy have pulsing eyes? No idea. But lord knew either of these two could jump him if he stepped out of line, and the creatures of the woods would jump him without reason. All he could do was stay near the others and hope for safety. He shakes his head and puts his hands down. “No can do, I am on a much more important mission. You two should get a compass but just keep walking east. Not too far from here, you will see a river. Follow it up and you should end up where you started. It’s also pretty safe as most of the wild creatures think its sacred. I will catch you two later.” He walks away with his bow on his back. Tetra nodded as the hedgehog walked off. He reached around into his pocket, for a swiss army knife with a small compass card. If he didn't want his thanks, so be it. Tetra had more important issues himself. A quick nudge to Jersey's shoulders would break him out of his dazed state. "Come on, kid, we're leaving." They left through the woods, faster than they would have cared to admit. The frog's hand would never leave his holster band until they reached the town, believing themselves to be safe. The lodging itself wasn't hard to find on the main street, and even if they ended up sharing a room, they were happy to be out of the forest. Jersey, however, wasn't able to sleep as well as his superior, and through the night would find himself thinking back to their encounter with Fringe, screwing up with the princess, his first day as a temporary agent. And most of all, the strange hedgehog who showed up out of nowhere to save his life... Fringe slept fairly well, but was constantly on the verge of waking from fear as his worries from the day pooled into bad dreams. He was curled up and laying on his side, almost looking pained as he dreamed and drug his fingers through the edges of one of Dark's wings on the grassy floor. Dark was standing up and realized that he needed his wings trimmed as he felt Fringe’s fingers touch them. He awakens slowly as the morning came around. He turns his ears as he could hear the birds chirping in the trees nearby. “Hmm…” He thinks. The stress and anger flowing through Fringe's mind had him on edge, and feeling dark remove his feathers from Fringe's hand was enough to get him to wake up. Once he was finally awake enough, he stumbled to support himself on his own arms. It smelled like it had rained the previous night, but the simple cover they'd made had protected Dark from the rain. A lot had happened to them that previous day, and Fringe was visibly affected by it. His clear skin showed faint stress lines. "Good... good morning." Fringe said. The two took in their surroundings for a few moments. "Where do you think we should head towards?" He asked. "You said your home city wouldn't be safe, right?" He shakes his head. “Well no, but even so I would have to go back at some point. Hmm…my senses tell me that a danger has been brought here. They have never been wrong before but there is always a first for everything.”

He was thinking about Nightmare and the other hedgehog from before. He knew who they were but didn’t want to stress Fringe out further. "I see, then we should get moving," Fringe admitted. "Moving to... hm..." The two stood, and Fringe fastened the device back around his neck. He flicked the switch and shivered as the hologram reformed. "We should stay away from the northern city and the Sunshines, so we should leave the north, and your home likely isn't safe... you mentioned there are other clans, would either of them attack you on sight? Perhaps we could head towards one of their cities?" Dark nods. “Yes, it’s only a matter of time before the police catch me here. Where should we move? I think down South would be best. It’s the safest parts of the region for me…Although I fear that…nevermind. Let’s just head out.” He steps ahead.

Meanwhile while they were heading out, there was the hedgehog from before. He emerges from his shelter and heads towards the caves to get his his pet dragon. Bullseye meets up with him. “So have you found the prize yet?”

Bullseye looks at him and growls. “No, the best I got were some lost foreigners. They almost became food to a night wolf.”

The hedgehog looks at him. “Very well, but we do need some help. Maybe you could perhaps find them again and bring them to me. Something tells me that they could be of use.” But so far, these lost foreigners weren't with the hedgehogs or their hunting steed, in a cave on the outskirts of somewhere uninviting. And the foreigners weren't with Dark and Fringe as they traveled some lesser known mountain trails, through meadows and small forests dotted with all varieties of wildlife. No, the two were at the local police station. Sure, the footwork was more exciting to Jersey, but there was plenty of less engaging work to be done. Less engaging orders to get the force out and informing the citizens of the fugitives with the same wanted posters, still bearing the same picture of Fringe without his disguise. The boring work would be one thing, but he wasn't too keen on Tetra rubbing in the fact Jersey was his inferior by making him carry and show off papers for him while he did all the talking. His words seemed to have a better effect on the police than the average person. They were ushered out not long after they had arrived, but every second of Tetra's behavior stuck with him. He might have been a cop, but there was something grimy at the edge of his personality. Oh, well. He was his partner now, for better or for worse, and he had to follow his orders to get back to the portal rooms. In the distance, the dragon and his rider could be seen taking off. Some towns folks look in awe as they see him. Other don’t seem to care and go on with their day to day business.

As Jersey and Tetra were putting the last of the posters up, one of the the people run up to them. “Hey, I think I found who you are looking for.”

Tetra looks at him and his eyes light up a bit as he finally got the lead he was looking for…or at least it seemed that way. “Tell me what you know.”

He nods. “Well I last saw them far up North in the forest. I think that black furred hedgehog was kidnapping the mutant or something. I don’t know much but that’s what I got.” "They're still in the forests, huh? Where'd you see them exactly?" "It was this..." The mouse struggled to put his thoughts together. "Last night, I was picking up some carving wood. It was right there, by a small lumbermill. You could see the river from there, and... ..." One hurried map of the city later, Tetra was bolting for a way to get out of his city. He had his man, and Jersey was going to be just as happy to finally see these two get caught. Of course, the capture wasn't going to be so easy, as the two were still making their way down to the southern city. Fringe traveled in the river water for short periods, as was more natural for him. The hologram adjusted fluidly, but couldn't account for the water around him, and the water clipping through his holographic tail gave away that not everything was entirely right with this disguise. The tiny details of the disguise weren't important to the two just yet, and they spoke as they traveled over the plains. "I've never had too much interest in electronics. Water and blindness don't make things easy." He smiled and chuckled. "Magic though... I know I can't appreciate it right without seeing it, but it's incredible. How does it feel to use that kind power? That power you used when we flew this far, I mean?" Dark looks at him and smirks. “I can naturally fly and that is amazing within itself. Using magic is a whole other story. It feels hot for me but when it’s released, the feeling is like nothing else.” He explains as they travel.

Shortly after travelling for a bit, Dark saw it fit for them to set up camp again. They weren’t quite south just yet but they were by the river in the mountains. The place was more open than the caves where they came from but was still covered by the vast amount of oak trees and tall pine trees of the forest. “I think this would be a good place to rest and set up camp. The river is a good resource of water and there are plenty of trees and plants to keep the fire going as well as bring food.”

Meanwhile, Tetra and Jersey were hot on their trail as they found their previous camp in the mountains. Tetra was more confident about the mission but was disappointed when he didn’t see them there. “How could they have known we were coming?” He said out loud as their location was unknown yet again.

Jersey sighs and looks around he saw one of Dark’s feathers as it had been brushed off. “Hey, Tetra, you should check this out.” He says as he picks it up and brings it to him.

As this was happening, Bullseye wasn’t too far off as they were being followed. He was waiting for the right time to approach them. “Hmm…” Tetra couldn't have snatched up that feather quick enough. He ran his finger down the center. "Alright, what can we learn from this?" He said out loud, examining the feather. 'Nothing really' was the answer to that. "But that's good, we've got his friend's DNA. If they dropped this, maybe they got sloppy cleaning up!" There was a quick search of the campsite, but there was nothing the could have gone off of. All that remained of their stay was the rustled leaves and tiny fragments of feathers and cloth too tiny to be seen with the naked eye. Jersey gave in quickly, but Tetra was determined. He spoke commands into an outdated phone, in codes and terms his partner and the interloper didn't understand. "Let's call it in, we know they're here! We can do this!" He said, trying to pump them both up. Tetra put down the phone. "I know, that's why I'm calling this in," he said bluntly. For once, he spoke in terms they could all understand. "Have every inch of the surrounding area combed immediately. They aren't escaping again." Jersey taps him on the shoulder. “Um, I don’t mean to sound rude but don’t you think that the town won’t be too happy with a foreign police squad searching for a mutant and a weird hedgehog they know nothing about?” He asks hoping for a logical answer.

Tetra thinks for a moment. The experience at the temple was enough to get him guessing. “I guess the intern is right, but this is the closest we have ever got to these two felons. What else am I supposed to do?”

He thinks a moment. He wasn’t the brightest cat in the world but surely wasn’t the dumbest. “Let’s take the evidence we got to the station. Maybe their patrol officers would listen to us then.”

Tetra thought a moment and even he had to admit that plan was a good idea. “You know what kid, I think that’s a great plan. Alright, you know where to go. Off to the station." Jersey pumped one of his fists silently when Tetra was looking away. Even Tetra had to calm down once in a while, as crabby and awful as he could be. Tetra reached into his coat, and pulled out a plastic bag. He collected the very few things they could find into it, placing the large feather inside last. His fingers zipped along the edge and closed up the temporary evidence baggie, and they were ready to do something properly in this investigation. Tetra's speech was just slightly less intense, enough to get the other men to listen to him. "Let's get moving." Jersey said happily, as the two started the walk back to town. "And let's be quick about it," Tetra said. "If anyone's finding those Dark and Fringe kids, it's gonna be us." As they walk off, Bullseye takes a picture of them and sends some info to the dragon rider. ‘They found some info that would be of use. Change of plans.’ He keeps his stealth and hides in the trees.

After some time, the two agents finally got to the police station and explain everything to the records keeper. He looks at them and files some reports on their case. “Alright, we will bring it up to our elites to search the area if we find anything, we will let you know.”

Jersey sighs in relief. He was finally able to accomplish something for once. Tetra chuckles and looks at him. “I think you’re alright but we should keep ours eyes out. Anything could happen at this point.” He says as they head back into the town. Now that his suggestion had actually accomplished something, Jersey was feeling sure of himself. He could do this, he could find them. The investigation was progressing, and hell, maybe once Tetra stopped yelling, things would go smoothly! For just those few moments, Jersey felt totally serious. Fringe, on the other hand... "I didn't know the temple guards HAD those powers, let along that she was one!" Fringe had started to get lost in one of his stories. If he was going to have to travel with someone, the best course of action was to befriend them, and Dark was easy to get along with. "So the first time she used any powers around me, I thought I'd had a stroke!" He laughed and shifted how he sat, still smiling warmly. The hologram reflected all the movements of the muscles around his eye sockets into vivid, reminiscent expressions around his false eyes. "Of course, she always tells me that echolocation seems like a superpower, but that means nothing when there are people who can summon ice or fire from nothing." Dark didn’t quite remember what he had told him and didn’t remember talking about guardian powers. Maybe Fringe misheard him. “Uh…what are you talking about. I don’t remember talking about the guardians. Although I think it would be a good time to explain how powers work around here.” He says as he hears Fringe ramble on. Fringe smiled and tilted his head towards his confused companion. "Powers aren't unique to these mountains, you know. I've heard many stories about powers before. All powerful beings and their soldiers..." He could be seen almost shivering at the thought. "I don't know how many of the stories are tall tales, but I hope not many. They're too exciting." The words guardian powers seemed too specific to be an off-handed comment. "I suppose it's time I learn what's real, shouldn't I? I'm all ears, Dark." As Dark starts to explain, he turns his ears towards the sky as he could hear a dragon fly by. “Hmm…we must be closer than I thought. We are in dragon territory.” He steps close to the trees as a white scaled dragon glides over them with grace.

Meanwhile with Jersey and Tetra. The two approach their hotel to rest up for the night. They had a long day of searching the town themselves and still not coming up with any results. Jersey was getting frustrated and looks at Tetra. “So how long do you think it will take for them to get back to us?” "Three days, tops." He said. He looked like he was totally confident that they were going to get them. "The local police are swarming the forests and looking down every possible path, there's no way a couple of killers can escape us now." He laughed, feeling like he had already won. Jersey didn't look as excited. "You don't think so? You think something's wrong with that plan?" "No! No, not like that!" Jersey said, waving his hands in front of him. "I don't know- Not too much about these lands, but we know the wilderness is dangerous. Even forest trails can be dangerous. There are even dragons in the right places, they could be killed before we find them." "They'd deserve it," Tetra said, not missing a beat and shocking Jersey. Jersey shrugs, not knowing how to respond. He didn’t know much about the wilderness but knew that it was a dangerous place…at least to the residents. He wasn’t sure if they would even be found at this point.

The next day was coming pretty quickly as Dark wakes up at the peak of dawn. He stretches his wings and yawns. In front of him across the river, he could see a white scaled dragon drinking some water. “That’s amazing.” He thinks while keeping his distance from the dragon. Fringe was already up at that point, not paying too much attention to the noise of what seemed to be an animal drinking water. "Good morning," he said as he heard the hybrid mumble. The words "that's amazing" confused him. "Did something happen?" Fringe's first instinct was concern, but it didn't take long to realize that this was the happy kind of amazement. The sound of the animal drinking struck him, as he realized just how far the river was and how loud the lapped water was. Fringe couldn't see the massive dragon or his pearlescent white scales, but he knew to be humbled. This didn't seem to be a vengeful or horrifying dragon. In fact, it looked like a few mourning doves were flying with the dragon and bathing in the thin stream near it to stay safe from other local predators, like a court following their king. The dragon stops drinking and decides to rest on the riverside. The doves beside her were chirping and flying about. Dark smiles and pulls out a device to take a quick picture. He hears Fringe as he said good morning. “Morning, Fringe. Sleep well?” He says lightly as Fringe approaches him. "Yes, just fine." Fringe said. His attention was still focused on whatever was resting in front of them. Living underwater had stopped Fringe from hearing many bird chirps, and the peeping was a nice addition to the low sound of a massive being taking a chance to rest. "It sounds like a tremendous beast," he said, staying quiet and not wanting to attract attention. The large beasts in the ocean had caused him enough trouble, anyways. The dragon's eyes perked at the sight of some large fish swimming upstream. Her eyes pin pointed the source, and threw into the water, catching a snack for the predator. The sudden splash startled the bird and Fringe in equal measures, though neither was terrified enough to leave. "I'm glad I didn't go for a swim this morning," he quipped to stay in good spirits. Dark smiles and see the opportunity to befriend the dragon. She could be useful to them. He looks at Fringe and taps his shoulder. “Say, I think this dragon could help us on our journey. I am going to approach her and see. You can join if you like.”

The dragon hears them talking and looks over to them. With a friendly growl it starts to speak. “You two ought to know that I am able to speak.” Fringe stepped forward. The dragon's speech wasn't pitch perfect to normal Mobian speech, carrying an accent that was normal for normal among dragons but utterly alien to the loach stepping forward cautiously. What was he supposed to do, bow, kneel? "And you out to know I cannot see," Fringe told her, as though his lack of eyes wasn't enough of a giveaway. "So forgive me if I do something strange. My name is Fringe... I'm sorry, what is your name? How should we address you?" She smiles as she was amused. She could tell that her intimidating appearance was getting to him but she had no intention to harm him. After all, she was a friendly dragon. “You may call me Divine and how may I address you two?” She asks with a subtle southern accent.

Dark smiles and was amazed to meet a dragon that didn’t want to bite off his head. “You may call me Dark, miss Divine. Do you live around these mountains?” "I don't see where else," she said, smiling gently. "There aren't many other places that are friendly towards dragons. And the scenery here is beautiful." As she spoke, she didn't focus on the scenery, instead on one of the birds fluttering and bathing in the stream water, feathers fluffing out as it moved. "Tell me, why are you all the way out here?" "We got into a bit of a mess earlier," Fringe understated. "With two other mobians and a different dragon, actually. ...You are a different dragon, right?" She smiles and looks at him. “Yes, my home is way up north in the Artic region. I came here on a trip. Also I don’t know what you are meaning by the phrase “different dragon.”" She says a bit confused.

Dark thinking and looks at her. She seemed to know a bit about the area and seemed to be of use. Fringe nervously moved his feet. "The last time we went into the woods, we-" His tone went more serious over the course of those first few words. "I'm sure dark could give you the details better than I could, but we were fighting two other mobians, and one of them was riding a dragon as they fought, and I just wasn't sure..." He laughed nervously. "He said the dragon's name was midnight, or nightmare, or... something or another right? I'm sure I would have heard your rider if you had one, I-" Even small blushes were visible on his face, and this was not a small blush, this was being totally flushed with red. "I'm such a fool," he laughed. She looks at him. “Oh, the rogue dragon of the south. Nightmare, yeah I have heard of him…He was the first to get his mind stolen from him and hopefully the last. However you don’t have to worry about me, I assure you I am not controlled by some rider…”

Dark interrupts her as she rambles. “I hate to interrupt your flashback or whatever but what can you tell us about this area?” The sudden interruption caught Divine off guard, but she quickly recovered. "You're in the wilderness by the westmost cities, you must have traveled awful far to get here from the south." "We did," Fringe confessed. "We actually ended up in the north on accident, we've been trying to walk south ever since we arrived it's... I know I keep saying a lot has happened, but I can't emphasize enough how much happened during that fight." She nods. “I can understand how you feel. Do you need me to help you get back on track? I can fly you there if you need me to.”

Dark looks at her. “I wouldn’t want to ruin your vacation from your home. Are you sure that you would be willing to do that for us?”

She smiles and wags her long tail as she stretches her wings. “I don’t mind, like I said, I just came here for a quick rest.”

In the forest, an odd sound was heard. There was a much louder, mush stranger squeaking sound immediately after. Fringe stepped back after his yelp, furiously stepping away from a dove that seemed to peck him straight on the food. "Oh my stars, that-!" He smiled and laughed, hoping not to make any new enemies. Especially not one that had an affinity for seafood. "Your friends are fiesty, aren't they?" He joked, stepping cautiously and carefully sitting on Divine with Dark's guidance. He could just hear the doves preparing for takeoff yet again. "Uh... Your friends don't hurt people, do they?" She giggles and gives the doves a glare as they stop and settle down. “Nope, they can’t even if they wanted to.”

Dark chuckles and watches a dove fly onto his shoulder. “Well what would you like to do, Fringe. Do you want to stay a little longer or continue on south.” He says lightly. "We should head south," Fringe started, "If you think it's safest for us there, of course." The dragon moved beneath them, standing to her feet and getting wings into position. A few of the birds took into the air preemptively, as Dark sat firmly and Fringe clutched to the dragon like a frightened child. Dark chuckles and taps his shoulder to move up. “It’s more stable up here.” Divine stands and stretches her wings. Blue was showing on the underside of her white scales. “Is everyone ready.” She says. "Yes, I am." Fringe said, frightened of falling off, but at least this time he wasn't baarely clutching to the claws of a dragon. The birds fluttering around peeped and ruffled their feathers impatiently, as if to say, "let's get moving." Fringe gasped gently as Divine suddenly lunged into the air, wings spread and soaring through the air easily. If the scales of the dragon weren't so thick, Fringe's terrified death grip would have been at least a little painful. Dark smiles and looks out into the horizon as Divine flies them south. This was apparent as he saw more caves than mountains and they were getting closer to the plains. He looks at Fringe to check on him. “You okay there?” For once, he didn't turn back as he spoke. "Yes, I'm just slightly horrified of dying horribly." He said in all sincerity, gulping visibly. "It's nothing new." Fringe's discomfort hadn't gone unnoticed, and Divine's flight was slower and lower than she might have gone normally. The air was cold, sure, but not thin or frigid at this height, and the angle of her head streamline the air around her passengers. "Don't worry, I don't eat talking fish." She joked. This comment didn't make Fringe any more comfortable. Divine chuckles as she flies towards the plains. “I was only joking, relax I won’t hurt you.” Dark closes his eyes and meditates. His senses take in the surroundings around him. “Hmm…feels pretty safe.” That normally would have been tempting fate to do something horrible, but nothing of that sort was happening. The way divine flew kept her body stable, so Fringe and Dark weren't being flung around during the flight. Slowly, Fringe was starting to accept the situation. The air felt relaxing, Divine seemed trustworthy, and of course, they had a dragon to protect them from any danger. Dragon's weren't the most subtle form of transportation, or course, and residents of the towns and cities were starting to take notice of this unknown white dragon flying off in the distance. The towns around them were pretty much used to seeing dragons as they were a common creature of the area. The residents look and carry on with business as usual. Dark smiles as they fly over the village and towards the caves.

While they were traveling, Bullseye was getting more clues of their location. He was close but not close enough. The Sunshine police were also getting more clues at that moment, scouring the forest and getting more concerned as their trail started running cold. The chance that they would come across the fugitives's corpses was a horrible possibility they couldn't discount. The only person who wasn't concerned about a potential trail of cold clues was Tetra, who had left the police to their investigation as he followed up another lead. Not likely to b anything massive, but a lead that had been agging him for a while. "I heard rumors that he got into a fight," someone told the police. They were scattered accounts, but they were there. "I think there was a dragon?" "I heard a roar from the woods!" "There were a lot of people who could've fought him." But there was one name that popped up once or twice as a possible culprit. "Bullseye." And trails of questions had lead them to a slightly quieter side of the city, but still no firm location yet. Divine lands as they finally get south. “Here we are.” Dark smiles and looks at Fringe. “You ready to get off?" He asks calmly as the air changes temperature.

Bullseye was getting closer to their trail and manages to find their camp in the forest. "Hmm…they are pretty close.” One of the patrol officers staying near the scene caught sight of the strange figure, but didn't wave them off just yet. They had gotten their orders to report back and try to get them to stay close if they saw anyone matching the description. "Figure matching the description of Bullseye seen at campsite A2," she said quietly into her phone as she stepped out of earshot, "will try to stall him as long as possible." Tetra thanked the officer and turned back to the cat. "We're heading back to the camp, kid, we found our suspect." He ordered, motioning for Jersey to follow. Right back to the teleport up north. "Hey, did something happen?" Jersey said, noticing the way he almost stomped around and the grimace that hadn't left his face all day. "You're acting off." Tetra chuckles as he said that. “Don’t be silly, I am just fine. Just be sure to bring the reports back to my office kid. He says with a devious tone.

Bullseye could sense that he was being followed. He was not happy about this as anyone could get in his way. If it was a Sunshine, they would put him on trial for sure. If it was a G.U.N. agent he wouldn’t know what to do as foreign affairs were not on his list. He had one mission and that was to find Dark. He types on a device to call the hedgehog and let him know his status. “Looks like we would have to change plans.” He says as he closes it up. Oh no, it looked like they were planning to leave. She had to step in. "Hold it," she announce, walking down the short path up to the campsite. A G.U.N. officer, by the looks of it. "This is a protected crime scene, no civilians allowed. Do you want to explain why you're here?" How was she going to bluff him for long enough to have her superior arrive? She couldn't arrest him if he didn't fight back, there weren't many things she could say to some random person. Bullseye almost ignores her as she approaches him. Being aware she was there made his mission easier. He looks at her as he stealthily gets a dart that would put her asleep long enough for him to get away. He didn’t have a reason to kill anyone. “Oh I hadn’t known officer, but it wasn’t marked off.” He said hoping it would stall her.

She wanted to be stalled and walks close to him. “Uh, well I was coming to do so but I don’t want you to leave just yet. I would need to ask you for some questions…”

Bullseye didn’t have time for questions as he knew he was getting closer to Dark. She was in the perfect position for him to use his device on her. He moves quickly as he trips her and injects her with the substance. “Good night.” He says before darting away. She didn't even have time to pull out her phone and call Tetra. ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ "All signs indicate the two are moving towards the west," an officer informed Tetra and Jersey as they heard about the unconscious officer. "If he's searching for them, he'll be headed that way, but how certain are you that-" "Hundred percent," Tetra said, looking at the dart in the evidence bag. He'd seen this dart before. That archer from a few nights before had the same kind, and he matched descriptions of Bullseye perfectly. He grinned as he touched the feathered end through the bag. "He's got this same information, maybe we'll split the trophy with him..." "Aren't you scared? For the officer?" Jersey interjected. "He was evil enough to knock her out!" "Evil or crafty?" Tetra retorted. Jersey thought for a moment and shrugs. “Who knows but something tells me that this guy is not one to be messed with. Also rumor has it that he has a connection to someone who rides a dragon. Our forces don’t know how to deal with dragons."

Tetra glares at him. “Who is the boss? Me! You are in no position to tell me what’s what you dingy bloke! If anything we would get the information we need and no hedgehog is going to get in my way!

Meanwhile with Bullseye, he was hot on the trail of Dark and Fringe. Across the river, he managed to find evidence of Divine before she took off. He was excited but having the G.U.N. following him was going to be a problem. Dragon scales were almost like fingerprints. The point, the size, the color patterns, you could find the owner of a given scale without too much effort. This was going to require even less effort. This dragon's scale was pearlescent, they must stand out like a sore thumb. But what happened here specifically? Was this a friendly dragon, or a feral beast? Did this dragon take off with new passengers, or beat Bullseye to his task? The latter would give an anticlimax to the search, but the first would mean he was probably quite close. If he traveled all the way from the north and kept flying from there, they must have been heading...! Divine finally took to the ground a distance away from Dark's home city. The airflow around the dragon had slowed considerably, and the sudden drop in speed jolted the passengers slightly. "Thank you very much, Divine. Is it safe to get down?" Divine lays down and folds her wings back together. “Yes, but let Dark guide you down. You know I am quite large.” Dark nods and was holding his cane as he taps his shoulder.

Bullseye smiles and gets some evidence from the footprint. He did find it odd that a dragon would come this way as the trees weren’t a good place for a flying dragon. He shrugs the thoughts off and looks around quickly and moves off the location. That spot would only get one or two more visitors over the next few hours. Some of the few officers searing the alleged paths where Bullseye or the fugitives were supposed to be. Bullseye was definitely ahead of them in his investigation. "So why keep waiting here?" Jersey asked the agent as the waited around the station, filling out papers and awkwardly making small talk. "There's only one place they can reasonably be going, and even if they aren't going there, we can do all the same work in the south." He straightened his back and perked up, realizing this was actually a better idea midway through. "Even if they don't, what if Bullseye visits the south again? Isn't that where he probably lives?" "We're heading there right after we're done here, that's the plan." Tetra played off the good idea as a common sense solution. "You wait here and finish signing off, I need to grab some more supplies." Tetra didn't have too much clearance in the area, but he had enough to get what he needed. A new magazine for his pistol, twelve bullets in all. No matter what it took, those two weren't getting away from him again. With Dark and Fringe. Dark’s senses could sense that danger was coming to them. He knew something was going to happen despite their traveling but didn’t know when. As he and Fringe set up camp again, he thought about the need to prepare for a fight. “Hey, Fringe, I would need to talk to you about something.”

Bullseye was getting pretty close as he was heading southwest. He could see Divine as she was heading back home. “My guesses were right. Mavis would be proud.” He said as he prepares his camp for the day. Fringe was normally happy to help with setting up. Rather, he seemed totally adapt to setting up camp, gathering firewood excluded. When the serious conversation was brought up, though, he started to freeze, hands working slower after the words were dropped. "Is this about the men searching for us?" Fringe asked, feeling like he had a good idea what Dark wanted to ask about. He didn't want to say the words, but they would come out anyways. "Or do you mean the... charges.... against me?" He swallowed visibly at the words. Dark nods as he levitates the fire wood over to the yet to be started campfire. “Yes, I have a feeling that they are getting close. We can not run forever so I was going to ask if you were willing to fight. If yes, I think I can find a place for training. It would also benefit you to learn a bit more about dragons.” He could watch Fringe deflate in relief at the words. "I believe fighting is how we met, isn't it?" He said with a smile, hoping he was willing to forgive him for their first encounter. "I'm a much better fighter than you might think I am, I'd certainly be willing to fight." The last words caught him by surprise. "Dragons...? Oh, I suppose- Do you think we might have to fight Nightmare again?" Fringe fidgeted and held his legs to his chest. "Very well. Are they all capable of speech like Divine was?" He nods. “Yeah, theoretically dragons are like big birds around here. Some can talk but others don’t talk. Also, I believe we do have to fight Nightmare again which is why we need to train instead of run away." He notes. Fighting a dragon...? Would he even be able to pull this off? The last time they'd encountered, he was only able to avoid getting seriously hurt, what was he supposed to do here? He nervously shifted his position while he tried to think of a good response, trepidation obvious in every one of his actions. "I only came here to run away," Fringe admitted, not wanting to say he was terrified of fighting a real dragon. "We could always again, but I suppose... that's not an option. I presume that escaping these mountains isn't an option for us any longer." Dark looks at him and was pretty firm on his decision. “Look, I know you don’t want to fight a dragon but at this point, it is our best option to solve our problems. It may not be the most convenient thing to do but we an’t keep running to have them catch us with no defense. Am I making any sense?” "Yes." Fringe swallowed in nervousness. They were easy, logical points to come to, but that didn't meant he wanted to accept this emotionally. Fighting a dragon, how the hall was he supposed to pull THIS off? "How exactly do we train to fight a dragon?" He finally spoke his mind. "Divine already flew away, and I'm not sure any dragons would be willing to volunteer." He chuckles. “I am sure you are right, but I know a few secrets about dragons that could be used to our advantage. We just have to get to the south before I could show you.” He notes as a rustle could b heard in the bushes. "You said we're almost there, correct? I'd be-" He couldn't even lie to himself. "Well, I'm not going to be happy to have to fight a dragon, but I won't moan too much. It's inevitable." Somehow, it was inevitable. What had he gotten himself into with these new lands? He went over the shelter they'd set up for the night one last time, just to check stability. "I've been thinking that... these mountains may have been a mistake." He admitted gravely. "Coming to them was a terrible move, I should- I'm don't think I'm going to stay when everything has come to an end." He signed and turned his head towards Dark. "If I ever have to leave in a hurry.... you've been too understanding of me. Thank you, truly." Dark crosses his arms. He wasn’t upset with him but his attitude wasn’t going to help with the mission. He gives a harsh look to him and says, “Well would you rather go to the ocean again? I can’t work with someone who just wants to run away.” This comment got a strong shiver from Fringe, who crossed his own arms out of submission. "No, I..." A heavy sight. "I understand. This kind of life is so new to me... I'm terrified. I just want to go back to being happy, and having a quiet life, and getting a chance to relax...! How can you live like this? Is this what your life is always like? Diving down cliffs- I've never been the adventurous sort." The hologram version of himself picked up on all the subtle twitches of his face, reflecting them into a bemused but acceptant look of terror. Dark shakes his head. “No, my life is normally peaceful just like you want. Occasionally I will go on missions or in this case settle some business but I normally like to keep to myself. Maybe we can return to that but we need to do something.” "That we do," he admitted to himself. "I feel so-" Fringe only gave a quick cough and straightened his back. "No, I should stop making excuses. How far are we from the south exactly?" Dark looks up into the horizon. “I’d say only two miles away.” He says as he hears something in the bushes. "That's good," Fringe said. He would have smiled if it wasn't for that sound in the bushes. Every once in a while, a light rustle. On the shores hear his home, maybe it would have been a squirrel, or a deer, or a fox. But the creatures in these mountains were viscous according to Dark. Webbed fingers grazed over the pocket where he kept a small knife. "Should we... keep moving, do you think?" He shakes his head as he looks in the bushes. He knew that some of the creatures were viscous but not all of them. Shortly after, there was a small white wolf which appeared and gives them a curious look. His tail was wagging and his ears twitch a bit as he looks. “Looks like we got found.” "Found?" Fringe said. The tiny footsteps he could hear didn't sound like a large animal. Suddenly, that sniffing near his feet startled him and he fumbled back a few steps before he realized just what it was. It was... nothing. Most of the wildlife avoided them, and they did their best to avoid the wild predators. It wasn't a viscous predator or a terrified prey, but a calmer middle ground brave enough to approach them. His immediate thought might have been to turn to Dark for advice, but he seemed humored. The tail he felt touching his feet felt like... Well, it felt like a dogs tail! "Ah... hello there, friend." He said, still not sure what he was talking to. "Do you live here, or are you lost?" The little wolf barks and lays down in the grass. It seemed friendly but didn’t answer Fringe as he spoke. Dark looked at the wolf and slowly approaches him. “Can you speak at all?” There was another yip as the wolf laid down in the grass, but it didn't say anything. Fringe didn't know what quite to make of the small animal, but he did kneel down to get on the same level as it. There was a small growl, and a pounce. The wolf lunged forwards and right into the grass in front of Fringe, startling him back a bit as he went in for a prize - A cricket? Small white paws trapped the creature as he started to gnaw on his meal. "You don't think- The mother wouldn't be nearby, right?" Fringe asked Dark, hoping he knew this creature. It did seem friendly, but would it stay that way for them? He looks around as another wolf was present. This wolf was a lot bigger and was coming in fast. He looks at Fringe. “Oh! I see the mother.” He says tapping Fringe to let him know to move. The big wolf didn’t growl and went straight for the puppy. “Ah, there you are! You shouldn’t run off like that!” She says as the little wolf whimpers. The child could be seen moving its mouth to try and speak, but the best it could do was somewhere between babbling and barking. The wolf's voice sent shivers down Fringe's spine. Maybe it was a caring voice, but with an edge of power to it that told she could tear anyone limb from limb if she so wanted. "I'm- I'm sorry, I didn't know it was your child." Fringe said, stepping back. "I'm new to this area." He mentally fought the thought to ask her not to eat him. She sighs as he runs over close to her. Seemingly afraid of Fringe he hides behind her and whimpers. She smiles and wags her tail as he speaks to her. “Don’t worry, you’re not on the menu. You may call me Taegan. I am sorry for the interruption. Is there anything I can do to help you?” She asks in a calm and polite tone. Well, at least they weren't dead. Not yet, but still. "Your kid is very cute," Fringe said. He knew he wasn't the best person to go to for opinions on cuteness, but those little whimpers coming from him were utterly precious. "We're in a lot of trouble right now," Fringe said, understating the whole situation. He was shifting around on his feet nervously, about as uncomfortable as the pup but still trying to act polite. "I don't mean to be rude, but unless you're an expert on fighting dragons, I doubt there's much you could do to help." She looks at him and giggles a bit. “Well I actually can help you. I live in the south east with two other wolves. The little one was given to me by my cousin so he’s not my son I am just babysitting is all. Would you be interested in following me to my home?” She says as the young wolf hops on her back. Dark was amused by watching the two interact. Being able to see the young wold, he did agree with Fringe in that the kid was cute. He looks at Taegan a moment as he waits for Fringe’s response. Fringe kept turning back and forth, indecisive between asking Taegan or Dark. Was this a trap, or could they trust them? It wouldn't take long for him to realize that he was being put on the spot for an answer. "Yes, we've be happy to follow you." Though the answer belied his hesitation. The fish would only stick close to Dark as they followed, just in case this was a horrible decision. Dark hands Fringe his cane. “Alright Taegan, lead the way.” He says as they stroll off towards the river nearby.

Meanwhile Bullseye was getting closer to them. He looks in his binoculars and sees the new camp right after they left. "I'm telling you, I'm not here to play primadonna or nothing!" The voices were just barely somewhere below the sounds of the wild, caught somwhere in the ears of the prying hunter. "Look, you know there's a pattern." Jersey pointed at the air as if he was pointing to locations on a map. "They always follow rivers, the camps we've found move south. We'll have to find them this way!" "No way we'll find nothing like this, randomly crawling upstream," Tetra grumbled in response. Through his binoculars, Bullseye saw- Well, what a small world. Those two blokes he saved from a wolf attack before, stumbling across the same campsite he had just discovered. Judging by their expressions, they knew exactly how close they were getting to their prey. As Bullseye looks away to continue onwards, he sees the dragon and his rider flying towards him. He smirks as he gets ready for another attempt of capture.

Dark was staying close to Fringe as he follows Taegan and the kid. He looks around the place as the sounds of a waterfall could be heard nearby. It was only a small waterfall, maybe six or seven feet at most, coming from a river running over a short cliff. But it was big enough to make a small pond for the wolves to drink from and rest near. When Taegan arrived with their new friends, the few pups were nervous of the newcomers, and the mothers just suspicious. "Who have you found this time?" One of the wolves asked as the child Taegan was with rushed up to them. "Travelers," she said vaguely. "They're looking for help with fighting a dragon." Taegan’s friends Tundra and Kura were there and they smile as the child runs to them. “Oh, thanks for caring for him and bringing him back.” Tundra, the blue wolf says.

Kura, a red wolf looks at Dark and Fringe as Taegan spoke. “Dragons huh? Why would you need to fight a dragon?” She asks a bit suspect of them.

Dark looks at the ladies a moment before speaking. “We are having problems with a dragon rider and we need a way to get rid of him. Do you know how to deal with a dragon. Traditional methods don’t seem to work." Of course, traditional investigation methods had certainly worked for Tetra and Jersey. The path the two had left through the woods was faint but easy to follow, and they knew they were so close, they could almost feel them clicking the handcuffs around the two already. And traditional dragon riding was working out for Mavis and Nightmare. Where were they in the woods exactly, they couldn't say quite yet, but there weren't many places they could have been. The woods were thick, the paths were thin, and it was almost possible to see the movements of anyone in the forest from the sky. If the words 'traditional methods' hadn't made Fringe shiver, this strange looming dread might have. "Nontraditional methods?" Fringe said, not sure what to think. "You don't mean magic, do you? I've never dabbled in it." “Well I would recommend some magic but I don’t think you are nearly ready nor will get ready in time before your battle with this rogue dragon.” Kura says without hesitation.

Dark looks at her. “So what would you suggest we do? We can’t just run away from this thing.”

Taegan looks at him as he speaks. “Well I could tell that you can manipulate magic. Hmm…do you think we should take him to the training grounds, Tundra?”

She looks at her. “With Blizzard? I don’t know, it’s been a while since we did that." She says concerned. "If it's the only chance we have, it's what we have to do." Fringe almost sounded beaten up as he said those words. Magic... there was a whole world of powers he knew absolutely nothing about. He wasn't happy, he was ecstatic that they had a way to fight back, but... "Are you sure there's nothing I could do to help?" He added. His holographic lizard eyes were filled with nervous hope. "With using magic, I mean?" Taegan nods. “Yes, but you can help greatly. We would just need to equip you with something so you could harness something that can stop a dragon.” She says as she looks at Dark.

Dark thinks as she looks at him. “What exactly are you implying?” Fringe's distorted expression perfectly drew the line between abject terror and total acceptance of this just being his life now. "I suppose if we could be CERTAIN it wouldn't hurt me-" "I feel we must start moving." Kura darted her head towards where where the two came from. The sound was distant, but there was a chance a creature might have been following them. "Quickly now, boys." They almost didn't have a choice, as they started to shove the pair away from whatever kind of beast was roaming in the trees. Dark nods and looks at her. “Okay, Kura,take us to the training quarters.” He says as he touches Fringe’s hand for his attention.

Taegan, being a rather large wolf looks at them. “Need a ride? I can carry you if you need me too.” "Certainly," Fringe said, "thank you very much." Of course, he wasn't sure he'd be able to keep up with how fast the wolves were pushing them if he didn't agree. Soon, soft fur tickled Fringe's skin as he rode off toward whatever this training area was. The rush of wind was something he'd only felt twice, the two times he had flown with Dark. The newness, the excitement of it all was enchanting. The daytime forest sounds were much different from the harsh nocturnal wildlife, and only made that short but brisk ride more inviting. Indeed the ride was short as mere minutes passed by before the smell of the air changed. It smelled like campfires and the sounds of more wolves fill the air as they walk through. Taegan smiles as they head towards a temple nearby.

Meanwhile with Tetra and Jersey, Jersey’s belly growls. “We have been searching for hours and still nothing. I am starving and as far as we know they are dead.” He grumbles getting frustrated. "Quit whining!" The frog commanded. "We found the campsite, we're almost there. Do you want to get this case solved or not?!" "Well, yeah, but we've-" "Then follow me! Kid's blind, he's probably leaving some kind of trail." The 'trail' they could follow lead them to a small... waterfall? It looked like a spring, but as far as they could tell, only the forest wildlife used this recently. "Great. Great, the trail was a dud!" Jersey threw up his hands. "What now?!" "Maybe ours is cold, but..." Tetra thought out loud, staring at the sky. There was a dragon flying around, seemingly flying low and searching the area they were just in. In fact, it looked almost exactly like that dragon people said Dark fought, and whatever it and it's rider were looking for, they seemed adamant to find it. The dragon was flying towards them and was getting ominously close. Jersey starts to shake as the dragon comes towards them and lands with his rider, right in front of them. The rider gets off the beast and seemed unarmed to the untrained eye. He looks at the two before speaking. “You a part of the G.U.N.?” He asks already knowing the answer. "I mean, barely, but yeah." Jersey said honestly, taking the noncommittal answer. He couldn't stop staring at this dragon, it was hard to understand how large they were until he was next to one, and those feral eyes gazing at his fur weren't good for those feelings. Tetra wasn't intimidated. "It's my lifeblood," he said, silently proud. "You're Mavis, aren't you? Rogue who had a dragon fight with Dark and a fish before they escaped?" Just the same, he didn't need an answer. "So you want to help find him, or may the best man win?" He crosses his arms clearly not amused by the frog. He might have use for the kid as he didn’t seem like a threat. However he hadn’t come for a chat. He came for business and that was the two standing right in front of him. His dragon was awaiting his command as any loyal pet would do. “May the best man win? I would say the only man win.” He stares at Tetra and prepares to fight. Tetra's response to fight kicked in immediately, taking stance and placing his hand on his holster. Neither of the two made a move yet, but one wrong word and someone was about to. "What's going on, guys?!" Jersey shouted from a distance, not wanting to get into any kind of battle with a dragon. "You both want to catch him, right?" Tetra huffed. "But one one person's taking him as a trophy," Tetra said. His eyes seem disjointed, fingers tighter on the gun. All that Jersey could do was balk in surprise. Mavis kept his composure. He knew that as soon as he attacked he would fire. Despite his abilities of foresight, they weren’t enough to combat fast reflexes. Knowing this factor, he came prepared as he had a shielding bracelet around his wrists. He swiftly darts directly to him, shields ready.

Tetra, being well experienced with his weapon falls back and fires three rounds from his pistol to Mavis. Mavis’ shields work and absorb the bullets from the weapon leaving him unscathed. Following up, he gets on top of him with a tackle.

Nightmare growls and looks at Jersey. He didn’t attack him as he knew he would just surrender anyway. He was merely there to ensure he didn’t call for back-up. Tetra may have looked crotchedy and seemed incompotent, but his fighting was the big reason he stayed employed. There was no way to counterattack this tackle, instead trying to stop as he was pushed to the ground, gun kicked to the side by his attacker. One fist narrowly doged Tetra's face. And another. He just had to get one hand on his gun...! A quick knee to Mavis's stomach was his last hope, and the barest chance he got, he rolled out and dashed for the weapon. "Easy- easy there, big guy, I'm not- not gonna hurt you." Jersey said. The gunshots still rang in his ears. The battle was watched through the corner of his eyes, careful not to take his eyes off of Nightmare. Nightmare just looks at Jersey. He was behaving pretty tamely but was ready to attack if commanded. He also kind of liked Jersey and brought his big face and nose to give him a sniff.

Mavis was smart but not strong in the least. The kick to his stomach hurt a lot and he braced as he fell to the ground. He growls and sticks his hand out to eliminate the weapon with his powers.

Tetra was pretty strong but lost much of his speed and agility from his age. He stumbles along just barely grabbing his pistol putting him back into the fight. That burst of magic barely even brushed the weapon. The agent wasn't out to kill him, especially if he had information. Without a second to spare, the pistol was pointed straight for his leg. click He pulled back in surprise, pulling the trigger twice more. Nothing. That burst of magic had been enough to disable the gun, shocking the frog and giving the dragon rider an opportunity. Mavis saw his plan managed to work despite using the wrong ability in a panic as he was desperate. Taking advantage of the moment, he stood up and knocks the weapon out from Tetra’s hand. He had no intentions of killing these agents either but it was rather tempting.

Tetra groans like a distressed toad would and grabs his hand in pain as he hears the small but sturdy pistol hit the ground. Shortly after, Mavis turns him around and ties his hands up with special cables to prevent him from breaking free.

Jersey was shaking in his boots. At least he would have if he was wearing some. The dragon seemed friendly enough despite looking beastly but he was still intimidating as he sniffs away at him. Nightmare swings his tail as he hears his rider Mavis call him over. “Cap the cat and we can get out of here.” What was he asking of the dragon? Did he mean capture? That would make sense, given Tetra now laying in the dirt and screaming. It couldn't have been the sland meaning... right? All he knew was, this dragon was ordered to do something to him, and whatever it was wasn't good. "Now- H-hold on, buddy!" Jersey backed away slowly, doing his best to look relaxed and friendly. "I'm not- I'm not out to hurt you, I just wanted to bring them to the police, I didn't know- I'm not going to hurt you! Honest!" Nightmare was loyal, and didn't seem inclined to listen. In a second, he was right back into the forest, not worrying about trails or paths or anything, just running. It didn't take long for some long buried primal instinct to kick in, leading to him running on all four limbs like he was feral. The trees weren't too densely packed, but certainly not anything a dragon could cut through. Right? Jersey tried to run but fell over, and the ground shakes from Nightmare’s footsteps. He almost cried as the dragon looms over him baring his teeth. He looks up to him. “Well whatever you are going to do to me, make it fast. I already accepted my fate.” Nightmare yawns and blows a freezing wind encapsulating Jersey’s body, except the head, with ice to prevent him from running. Shortly afterwards he was lifted by the dragon and placed in a bubble.

Mavis smiles and hooks the blue bubble to a device which holds it to Nightmare’s side. He then carries Tetra up to Nightmare who lifts them both to his back. “Let’s take them in.” He says as they were taken away.

With Dark and Fringe, they were with the wolves and entering the temple. Fringe's large fingers felt along the walls carefully. He couldn't see the old murals eroded with time, but he didn't need to. The countless bumps in the rocky wall gave away the age of this place, and he could trace simple patterns carved into the walls. "This feels like where we woke up in the north," Fringe said. It took a moment to register, as they had barely spoken about it. "Didn't you say- do you still wish to visit the temple?"

Dark looks at him and nods. “Indeed I did, but we aren’t in the West anymore.” He notes as the temple had a more cabin-like aroma in it than the other temple.

Meanwhile with Nightmare and Jersey, it felt like a long flight as the two agents were flown away to who knows where. Nightmare starts to land as Bullseye was present. Jersey had been more complacent. He would have been terrified of the ice, but it didn't freeze him. In fact, he could barely feel it. It more just... vaguely existed. He could move his limbs and body just a little, so it wasn't totally torturous, but he still had virtually no control over his situation. Tetra was totally different, and seeing Bullseye didn't help one bit. "You...!" The old frog was totally done with everything that was happening to him, and tumbled and struggled his way onto falling to the ground. "You've been the one who's been after us, huh? What's your game, kid, what are you after?!" Bullseye looks at him and almost lets out an unamused growl. “My game? This is not a game! You two have been getting in my way and now it’s time to stop it.” He says as a spider-like bot comes onto the scene.

Mavis lowers Jersey down but didn’t break his ice shell. “I have something special for you kid.”

Jersey looks at him with fear and starts to shake. “What are you going to do to me. Let me go… I promise I won’t tell anyone about this."

#Blazerandfnds #Show's Over #There's A Melody Playing #Violence #Blood

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burndownthehousetonight · 7 years

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((Y’all know I always love finding new muses to RP with. Well, @blazerandfnds has 70-something muses, and one of his and Fringe are playing off of each other pretty well. I’m really interested to see where all this is gonna end up :D))

On the edge of the limits of a large park, a certain fish had taken shelter under a mass of trees near the gentle river he'd been traveling up for days.

"You're safe and alright... you're safe and alright." Fringe repeated to himself again and again. He was so far from home, no one would find him. He was so far from everything he'd known, and everything he'd started, and... everything. What he used to have didn't matter right then. He had a place to rest for the night, he had a good supply of food, and he had plenty of seeds for land-growing plants. He could start a new life wherever he wanted. He could even run back to a completely different ocean and start anew there! He was completely free.

Escaping like that was emotionally and physically exhausting. He would start a small campfire, rest for a few hours, and keep moving in the morning. He could do this.

But without vision, he didn't know just how bright his fire looked against the pitch-black night.

Flying in the night sky, there was a black furred hedgehog with wings. The night was pretty bright as there didn’t seem to be a cloud in the sky. From where the hedgehog hybrid had been was seemingly clear as he had some groceries in his hands.

As the hedgehog was flying, he had spotted the strange creature emerging from the river. He thought the creature was some sort of crystal monster taking a bath which was quite common to see up in the mountains at night, but didn’t think much of it.

As he got closer, his route would change as he was heading towards the mountain and not to the river. He would not be seen again until morning.

Fringe never slept for long. Was that five or six hours, at most? He couldn't say for sure, but there were still nighttime insects chirping and singing, he had his chance to leave before anyone had known he was there. Or at least, while he thought no one knew he was there.

The firewood was doused and left be. His makeshift cover from potential rain that never came was rolled up quickly, and everything was shoved back into his large bag. And finally, he covered himself in simple hiking clothes, covering his clear chest and see-through fins. He had to keep moving, and carefully ran out of the woods, following the river upstream once again.

As the early morning hit, the hedgehog was up as well. During this time, he would go on a daily workout routine. He stretches his wings and flies up into the sky towards the river.

He had noticed Fringe again as he was heading out. Oddly enough he was feeling pretty friendly and decided to greet the creature before he went out on his travels. He lands in front of him. “Hey, you new here?”

Fringe's first instinct was to panic. The flapping wings didn't sound like they came from a bird, they were too large, and the heavy flump onto the ground sounded much more grand. Had someone just landed in front of him for no reason? No, they must have had a reason, and with how long he'd been running for... he thought he'd been found out.

The first thing the hedgehog would notice was Fringe's eyes. Sure, he'd covered up most of his more noticeably ugly traits, but the eyes were unavoidable. He had none. There were two curved hollows in his face where his eyes were supposed to grow. Instead he had eye sockets, with skin thin enough to see the veins through. All his skin wasn't a light pink, it was transluscent, and the faint details of his muscles were visible from all angles. He looked like a monster.

Fringe reached for his pockets. He just had to keep moving, no matter what. "I don't want- I don't want any trouble," Fringe said in an almost princely way. But as he backed up, he pulled out a less-than-princely weapon - a common utility knife, well worn and very sharp.

Dark had no intention of hurting him. Fighting would be a terrible idea especially since Dark had abilities that might give him an advantage against such a creature. He looked at him closely observing all of his details.

Dark wasn’t normal looking either. His eyes were pretty large but looked almost human like. A few scars were on his body but were hardly visible under his jet black fur. He stretches his black wings momentarily and slowly retracts them back to their resting position as he stands in front of him.

He gets a bit defensive as seeing a knife pulled on him wasn’t an act of welcome. He speaks in a firm tone as he gets a feel of the situation. “I do come in peace, I was merely coming by to welcome you to the land. I haven’t seen any creature like you before.”

Even though he lacked the extreme expressions most Mobians could have, his face belied total confusion. And immediately after, regret.

"I'm- I'm very sorry," Fringe said, clearly meaning every word and folding his knife up. "I just- I'm so sorry." Whoever had taught him his manners had clearly done a good job. Even his head was bowed slightly in regret. "I've been traveling for quite a while, you understand. I'm not used to strangers approaching me so amicably." The knife was put back into his pocket.

"I'm sorry for the trouble," Fringe said, head tilted in the direction of the hedgehog's and eyes glaring blindly towards him. "Thank you for the welcome, I was just passing through the town. If you don't mind me asking... where exactly am I?"

He stands up straight and was glad to not have to fight him right away. He was still cautious from his previous reaction. He wasn’t used to seeing his virtually expressionless face but didn’t think much of it.

He nods understanding his situation. “Well I can’t blame you for being that way out here. I would say you have come far or at least have known where to look. This place is the Great West mountains.”

"Great west..." he reiterated to himself. Where had that name been in relation to...? It was far inland, wherever it was specifically, and that was all Fringe needed to know.

"I understand," he said. This explained exactly how he'd begun to feel. The strange lightheadedness that seemed to appear out of nowhere, he was traveling upstream after all. Water had to flow down from somewhere, and this must have been flowing from a high altitude. "Is this the end of the river? Does it continue much further? Or is this the end of the road?"

Dark looked at him and as he did it became more clear that the creature had a high interest in water. He shakes his head and points. “The river goes further North towards the Sunshine clan. However if you need to reach water more quickly, there is a lake not too far from this location.”

He looked back at Fringe. The blind eyes didn't react to his motioning, but there was still a relief to his posture and expression. "Truly?" He asked. "Thank the stars, I've been swimming for a while... Perhaps I should stop wander for a short while."

He looked up, his low-set mouth smiling gently. "Thank you, mister... Thank you. Would you mind showing me where this lake would be?"

Dark nods and signals him over. “Come follow me, there is plenty of room to swim, and it would rehydrate you if that’s what you need.” He mentions before walking to a cavern.

The walk avoided the more populated areas, and it was early in the morning, but Fringe could still hear those distant murmurs of random people noticing the strange fleshy kid - or mutant, if they were particularly rude - wandering around as though it were a normal occurrence. Even if he could cover his chest and legs, no one made webbed gloves or feet, and his strange appendages were left hanging out for the world to see. Yet the morning light was early, and the distance could make him look pink and otherwise normal.

A cavern. How appropriate, like his last home. Only this one wasn't underwater, it contained a large pond. Their footsteps echoed slightly and it was easy to hear that this was about as his small coast-side farm. The parts of the lake not contained in the cavern had small streams flowing down the mountain and into the tiny lake, creating ripples and stopping the water from being totally still. "Thank you," Fringe said, bending down and touching the water. "This is more than wonderful."

The most wonderful thing of all was the winged creature he'd met. He had no idea who he was, only that his reactions made no sense. "Are you not... scared?" Fringe asked, sounded frightened himself. "Of my face, I mean?"

Dark chuckles at his response. Being one to not only have lived in a world with dragons let alone fight them, seeing Fringe wasn’t scary to him at all.

The cavern was pretty spacious with the pool of water leading outside to the river. Indeed there were some other creatures who would freak out…maybe even arrest both of them on sight but none of them were nearby or awake during the time. "I am not scared of your appearance in the least. I can tell you that I have seen worse.” His expression was stern but not threatening. Fringe had heard many insults lobbed at him from far distances. Hearing the comment was threatening, and this creature didn't seem to be sarcastic or lying. Perhaps he could trust him more than he'd expected. He slowly began to dip into the water, both feet first. Chilly. He got accustomed to the water quickly and took off the cotton clothes he'd worn for days as he disappeared under the water for a few moments. Feeling along the floor, testing the depths and the soil... he would have to make some changes to make it work, but this was probably doable. No wonder the park didn't encompass this pond, was this saltwater? This high in the mountains? There must have been deposits somewhere nearby. He appeared shortly after. For the first time, the hedgehog could see Fringe's chest... and the organs underneath quite clearly. "You're a good person," Fringe said simply, clearly still somewhat wary, but at least he didn't have his knife drawn. "I'm sorry, I don't believe I've caught your name?" He smirks seeing him interact with the water. A light glow could be seen in his eyes as he was adjusting to the new lighting of the cave. "You may call me Dark. May I ask of your name?” "Fringe," he said plainly. He wasn't 'Fringe the blind cave loach,' that was far too demeaning in his mind. Not 'Fringe the loach,' it was just physical traits. And it certainly wasn't his full name, which he was tired of using. Just Fringe would be fine. Fringe, a nondescript fish with a hopefully nondescript life. Simple and easy. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Dark." He seemed more relaxed now. "I'm lucky you were out now... I thought no one would be awake this early. Is there any reason, or was this just happy coincidence?" Dark thought about his past a moment. It was exciting to say the least. This cavern was occupied by another clan but they would be protective of Fringe if he keeps his innocence. "Coincidence I assure you. Although I specifically found you and wanted to meet you.” "Specifically?" Dark wasn't the only one with a past. Fringe might have just looked surprised, but the subtle curl of his fingers and the slight speed up to his visible heart beat was enough to show that this though scared him. He SPECIFICALLY sought him out? He WANTED to meet Fringe? Was this some kind of a trap? Specifically meeting him. The imposing voice. The seeming lack of surprise or fear. It felt too good... because it had to be. "You're the police, aren't you?" Fringe said, his fearful voice growing more angry over just a few short words. He'd been tricked, and running clearly wasn't an option. He only had one way out of this. Fringe lunged out of the water with surprising speed. He didn't put on his old clothes, only rummage through them. Fringe was armed with his knife once again, and unlike his former passive stance, he was clearly ready to pounce. "I said stay AWAY!" He yelled, lunging towards the creature with both hands gripped around the handle and the point aimed straight for his shoulder. Dark saw his move coming from a long ways away. Not only that, he was super fast not in speed like Sonic but in reaction time. As Fringe lunged to him, he steps out of the way and hovered above the water. "I am not the police!”

His eyes were glowing as his abilities were stirring inside of him. Whatever it was, he was suppressing himself. The reason was not yet known. "Of course not," Fringe said. "You're lying AND you're the police!" His harsh words didn't quite fit his refined way of speaking, and weren't cruel enough for his primal fighting stance. He wasn't being caught, not now, and Dark was only making a target of himself with his foolish-seeming actions. Fringe lunged like he was moving to attack him, but his trajectory took him straight into the water and down to the bottom of the pool. He didn't know the pool that well, but water was still his element. The knife was twiddled around his fingers as he planned his next strike. He didn't want a fight, he wanted this to be over. He just had to stun him enough to make an escape, he just needed one strong hit to incapacitate him and disappear once again. As quickly as he swam to the bottom of the pond, Fringe rocketed to the top with his blade prepared. He breached the water violently and swing for Dark's wings, his main-seeming movement advantage. Dark was able to predict his movements once again. He knew evading would prolong the situation. He indeed was not the police but what he was was no pushover. He lands showing that his wings weren’t his best way to move.

As he lands, he ended up evading the fast attack but Fringe would learn that he was ready to fight. His eyes glow, he lifts a hand and launches a boulder into the water. An immense amount of water was displaced in a moment. Fringe's initial surprise faded quickly as he rode the water splashing out of the pond and stumbled a bit to regain his footing on solid ground. What on earth had he just done. He could feel the quick air displacement, it was like something massive was hurled through the air. Was something large heaved at him? Fringe never stopped moving. He had barely regained his footing before he rushed Dark once again... and failed. He could hear his footsteps, but they were too fast for Fringe. He'd need some kind of tricky maneuverability to have a chance at succeeding. All he had were a short-range weapon and damp, worn clothes. The blade sliced through the worn sleeve, providing Fringe a long enough piece of cloth. He grabbed a nice moderate sized stone near his feet and put it into a large flat knot loosely tied near the bottom of the fabric, giving him something to fight back with. He spun the rock around a few times, carefully listening to the footsteps and sending a stone hurtling towards his adversary. Dark didn’t intend to hurt him as the battle was eminent. He could see Fringe move to him with the knife. His attention was on it but as a new weapon was created, he had to respond.

Seeing the rock hurled at him, he dodged it with a bit of finesse as he flips. His eyes were glowing brighter as he looks to him. He was tempted to manipulate his mind so he would submit and spoke once again. “You should stop. This isn’t a fight you can win! I am not the police!” "Then who are you?!" Fringe shouted. He grabbed another rock, swinging it around in his makeshift sling but not aiming to hurl. "What are you, an agent? No one would just wish to speak to the skinned bottomfeeing ponce!" Another rock was fling, this time at the ceiling in frustration. "No one would just ignore my appearances and offer help to a fleshy monster from some abyss!" Another rock. The flint scratched against the ground and sparked as it disappeared deep into the cave. "No one would just- No one would just HELP me- me-!" The spinning began to slow again. the rock tumbled to the ground as the sling stopped spinning. Fringe seemed to be breathing heavy. His heart didn't race as his behavior changed, and as his anger seemed to divert more towards his own actions than Dark's. He tried to step away, awkwardly fumbling back and clutching at his head with that same angered expression. His own attempts to prove Dark wrong had only made him feel even worse Fringe wasn't sure if he was more angry at himself or Dark. He rushed the hedgehog one more time with no regard for his own safety, not caring at that point and just wanting their fight to end.

Dark would take him head on but he knew Fringe had a clear strength advantage. As the rock nailed the ceiling, one of them smacks against one if his wings breaking it. This angered him for sure but he was a tough one.

When Fringe lunged to him he had formed a rock wall in front of him hoping he would get stunned. At this point Dark saw him as a threat. It was out of nowhere. Fringe had no idea what had just happened, but by the time he'd hit the rock wall, it was too late. He was running full force, head first. Fringe was back on the ground clutching and cradling his head in his arms. He could feel the cut on his head and the blood falling out. Had he seriously lost because of some part of the cave? Was he so incompotent that he lost a fight with a rock wall? "Oh dear... Oh my stars...!" He groaned. In his mind, he didn't have the time to waste laying around, but his mind of overflowing with emotion and now bleeding. Dark's footsteps grew closer, and he knew that he'd lost the fight. In his mind, by his own inability to know his surroundings. "That was... embarrassing." He understated. He was too far from the water to hide, and Dark was too fast for him to run away. He was cornered. Fringe's breathing was ragged, as he seemed to try and accept his defeat. "Why did you chase me this far?" Dark’s left wing was broken which meant he couldn’t fly. He was pretty angry and willing to claim Fringe as a bounty. However he was feeling gracious and changed his mind.

The rock wall he formed did its job and released the rock back to where they were. As he approaches Fringe, he could see his angry face and feel his abilities active inside of him.

His eyes were glowing white and a fire aura was around him. He looks at Fringe and growls before he spoke. “Listen here! I could take you in and lock you up, that is certain. Since you are new here and have clear trust issues I will let you go with a warning. Do not let this happen again! Grr!” The words stuck out to Fringe. He didn't know he broke his wing, but he definitely heard some kind of a horrible snap. And yet, he wasn't being arrested or taken in. The line about being 'new here' was what sounded strangest to Fringe. Slowly, he came to realize that even if Dark was the police, he was local. Whoever he was, he certainly wasn't from back home. Dark could watch the colors drain from Fringe's face. Whoever this was, they'd more or less spared Fringe's life, and he repaid them by breaking... something. He laid on the ground, getting more terrified the longer he waited for Dark to make some kind of a move and end the fight... or at least chew him out. Dark did nothing else but stood there silently. He would leave him there but didn’t want to risk the actual police to arrive and take Fringe for trespassing. He was in pain from his wing but he knew it would heal itself after some time. It just needed some help with some bandages and rest. Dark sighs. He didn’t want to hurt Fringe despite his attack on him. He looks at Fringe with his glowing eyes. “Look, let's get you somewhere safe, you don’t have this place yet.” Was he giving him a third chance? He was... somehow. Even after lunging at him several times with a knife, he still had a chance. Fringe didn't have anyone out here he could talk to. As used to loneliness as he was, he needed all the help he could get. And more than ever, he needed all the company he could get. Fringe slowly stood to his feet. "Just... give me a moment," he said. The fish ran to his clothes, and put them back on to cover himself. The strip of cloth was cut out of the sleeve, more or less looking ridiculous on his body. He was going to throw them away soon, anyways. He got closer to Dark, fidgeting nervously with his hands. "I didn't- I didn't hurt you too bad, did I? Are you going to be alright?" Dark nods indicating that he would be fine. Seemingly from nowhere he creates a temporary sling for him with using the environment around him. “I will be just fine. I heal very fast. I just need you to follow me.” Immediately, he wanted to try and help Dark walk as a desperate attempt at an apology. Yet his walk was normal seemin. His footsteps didn't seem delayed, and he couldn't hear any kind of grunting in pain. If he didn't know any better, he would have guessed that Dark was perfectly healthy. "Alright... I'll follow," Fringe promised. He grabbed his oversized bag and closely followed Dark's footsteps. Through soft grass and dirt paths, again with the occasional snicker or judgement from afar. Fringe tried to hide his already hidden face under his hood in shame, not just to hide himself from the others who lived here, but so Dark wouldn't look at him as much either. Dark was in pain, but he was numb in some areas since he’s been hit so much from previous encounters. He could hide his pain very well as Fringe could notice but his mind was more focused on the task at hand. He leads him towards a tent. One would think that was his home but it was merely a resting place from the crowds. As the day went on, the lighting became brighter and the town was awakening. While the hedgehog didn't directly tell Fringe any details, he was starting to infer that he didn't want to be seen in public for whatever reason. Frankly, Fringe didn't want to, either. He only helped out the best he could with any kind of first aid, and tried to clean off the old clothes he was trudging around with him. "I don't suppose you know where I could buy some different clothes?" Fringe asked. He didn't have much money, but his current rags were well past their best days. "I'm very sorry. Again." Fringe said, finally finding the humility to give an apology in cold blood. "These last few days have been very stressful for me. If I might ask, if you aren't a police officer, and if you don't want to be seen in public.... who are you?" Dark looks at him a moment as he asks him the question. He didn’t interact with a lot of creatures from the village since an incident that happened long ago. He brings him to the tent and gets him a cape to stitch the hole back up from Fringe’s previous garment. He speaks in a calm tone like when they first met. “I am Dark. That is all you need to know if you want to stay out of trouble with me.” The town was awake and Fringe would have to enter to get some new clothes. Many of the creatures were different than the Mobians but most of them were Mobians. The town was pretty small but well populated as the hustle and bustle of the crowds could be heard close by. His hoodie was now stitched up in a mismatched fabric, although he couldn't care about how it looked as long as it worked. Perhaps the vague answer wasn't helpful, but from the abilities he'd been shown earlier and the grave tones he'd previously spoken in, he wasn't going to argue with him. "Very well." Fringe said as they started walking through back roads and small paths. Fringe kept his head tilted towards he ground, trusting Dark's judgement. He hoped this little walk wasn't going to get either of them into trouble. Into the market area, out again, and hopefully no one would even bat an eye at them. Fringe could just tell that some of the creatures around him weren't normal Mobians. The sounds of their feet, the strange voices he heard, the strange energies he could feel, there was something unnatural against his idea of natural creatures. The more time he was spending in the town, he more he was coming to realize that many things here were anything but normal. As they were walking, Dark stops at the back door of someone’s house. The situation seemed sketchy but was rather innocent as a purple figure walks towards the door and answers it. “You rang.” Dark looks at Fringe hoping he wouldn’t freak out like last time and looks back at the door. “D.Luminus with a guest is here. I need to ask you of a favor.” He says as the door slowly opens. Luminous? As in, producing light? It didn't seem to fit with the first name Dark. But he knew just about nothing about him. For all he knew, luminous may as well have been a much more accurate name. The person behind the door seemed cautious to open the door. Was this not quite... legal? No, they'd only just met. He wouldn't do anything illegal for someone he barely even knew, right. Fringe silently followed Dark's footsteps inside and hope this was more legitimate than it seemed. It was legal. The figure that opened the door was indeed a hedgehog. He was pretty tall like Dark and had a red ruby stuck in his head. “Welcome, my name is Bullseye, come on in to get situated.” Fringe could feel the slight rippled pattern of the wooden floors. It was all very comfortable, whatever this building was. He just had to agree to go along with it. "Thank you," he said, tilting his head to face Bullseye's. "These clothes are old and awful, I can't wear them really anymore. But I don't want to stop at any big clothes stores because of my..." He motioned to his kin at those last few words, and but stopped himself from outright saying it. "I'm sorry, I can't see. This is a clothing shop, right?" The building was pretty relaxing as it was a cabin. Bullseye was not a clothes maker but he could access the markets without any creatures questioning his reasons. He looks at him and shakes his head. “Well no, this is the shed of my house. In here, I work on making arrows as I am an archer.” He says confidently, as the surroundings having bows and arrows brought his point across. 'Bullseye.' Of course, he should have guessed. He felt to the walls beside him, touching one of the arrows. He didn't know anything about whittling and couldn't judge the woodwork, but the points were sharp and quite well made. His hand pulled back, in case it hurt the thin netting between his fingers. Their reasons for visiting Bullseye were clear enough. "I don't have much on hand, but this should be enough to pay for something simple." The coins he pulled out were the regional currency, exchanged, traded, and even begged for at various stages of his trip up river. "I just want something that will cover my... everything. I tend to run small. Um... my chest is "35 30," I think that's inches? I'm sorry to ask this of you, but could you help us?" He watches him closely as he looks over the arrows. He chuckles a moment as he admires his work despite the arrows being displays of old works. He nods as he asks for the simple request. “Of course I can. What kind of clothes do you like to wear?” He asks. He sighed in relief and smiled gently. He didn't seem to react once to appearances. That was perfect. "I've heard a lot of ruffling from you both," Fringe admitted. "It sounds like you're both wearing cloaks... is that accurate? If that's the normal wear for this area, it would be perfect as long as it can cover my chest." He rubbed his hands together under the desk. "I'm sorry I'm asking such simple questions. Blindness makes many things quite complicated." Bullseye chuckles and nods. “Well we aren’t wearing any capes. That’s just Dark flapping his wings. However I would say you do look different from the other creatures in this town. Are you a foreigner?” "Yes," Fringe said simply, nodding for no apparent reason. "I'm from the ocean coast near... the "aquatic ruins," if that sounds familiar?" Aquatic ruins? As in, the temple ruins three hundred miles away, at least? "I suppose aquatic creatures are a rare sight on land?" He asked as what would barely qualify as a joke. "Don't worry, I can stay hydrated just fine." Bullseyes nods, having interest in what he was saying. “I know where that is but I do wonder what kind of species are you?” Dark looks at him as he speaks and relaxes his wings as well. “So how are you able to walk on land?” "Most ocean creatures can," Fringe said. "Have you never met an aquatic Mobian before? We all walk on two feet. Sometimes more, but as long as we can find water, we can certainly live on land." He seemed a bit uncomfortable at Bullseye's question, leaving it for last. "I'm a... loach. Specifically a 'blind cave loach,' but I don't like the term too well. It's just a species of bottomfeeder." He rubbed the side of his neck, the tiny nubs near his mouth of what must have been left of feeling barbels twitching in discomfort. "It's strange being tied to the ground. It's nice to relax and just... drift. Walking on land feels heavier somehow." Dark shakes his head and looks at Bullseye. “No, I have not. In fact this is my first time ever hearing about one. But I am glad to be hearing about you.” Bullseye crosses his arms as he hears him speak. “Well if I was called a loach, I wouldn’t like that either. Do you eat much at all?” "Oh, yes. I practically gorge myself." Fringe said. The moment set in as the two took in his thin body and absolute lack of sarcasm. "Er, well... I worked as a farmer, I need to eat a lot to stay in shape. There aren't many better ways to stay fit than to... ..." The nubs near his mouth kept twitching. Something was making him deeply uncomfortable. "You haven't seen an aquatic Mobian? Exactly... how far inland have I gone?" Bullseye looks at him but didn’t seem too concerned. “Ah, I see, but you seem a bit uncomfortable. Are you worried that you may have traveled too far from the ocean?” No, the further the better. He wasn't going home anytime soon. Or ever, hopefully. "I'm afraid-" he kept brushing his hands nervously. "I'm afraid I was just planning to go inland to search for a life, I wasn't planning to travel this far." He swallowed out of nervousness. "I don't know the first thing about life on land... Tell me, is there any reason we've been moving around so secretively?" He looks at him and doesn’t seem too interested in answering his question. “Right now we don’t have a reason, but Dark does not like the city crowds.” He says pretty plainly. "I understand," Fringe said, holding his hands together. "I'm not much a fan of them myself, either. I understand that I stick out a bit?" It was a very light way of putting it, but he wasn't exactly wrong. This whole situation still felt wrong somehow, but he wasn't going to press it. Maybe he was just imagining things. He had mistaken the flutter of wings for capes, after all. The words "right now," though... those stuck out, and he wasn't sure what that was supposed to imply. “That may be true but it’s not necessarily you that is the problem.” Bullseye quotes as he could be heard reaching for some tools. Dark looks at Fringe knowing that he was quite curious about their work. However the idea of admitting that he was a bounty hunter was a bit of a long shot. They did just meet and haven’t got to the point where he could trust him enough to say who he was working for. The answer he was given seemed to sit awkwardly in plain sight and fester. No... the longer he thought, the more it didn't make sense. "Mister Bullseye." Fringe said nervously, trying to keep his refined posture. "I appreciate your concern, but I don't- I don't think either of you are being truthful to me. If he just didn't like crowds, I don't see why you'd need to enter this home so secretively, and your answers are concerning." He bowed his head. "I'm not asking for a full story, it's clear you want to keep your lives private, but I just want some honestly. Are we in some kind of... danger?" He shakes his head as he was being honest. The things he was telling him didn’t make sense to Fringe because he didn’t know who they were. “We aren’t in any danger but if you want that to change, it can.” He jokes a bit as he was working on something in the background. He didn't sound ingenuine. Sure, he still had questions, but he didn't want to press any buttons. He wasn't in a position to choose his friends, and he'd just hurt Dark. He couldn't afford to pick and choose friends. So Fringe just waited quietly, for Bullseye to finish his work, and hoped they weren't going to be angry at him for all his questions. Dark works with him as well within the shop. Not much could be heard with the exception of machines. On the table was a black crossbow that looked new. As Bullseye finishes after a few minutes, he looks at Fringe and smiles. “Say, I could get you something a bit better than just another outfit.” The sudden talking caught Fringe by surprise. He was enjoying the ambient sounds in a bizarrely relaxing kind of way. "Yes?" Fringe asked. He still wasn't entirely sure if he SHOULD have been trusting them, but he didn't have much of a choice at that point. He had to trust them... and the more time he was spending with them both, the easier that was becoming. Bullseye walks up to him to ensure he was aware of his presence. He takes some gear from one of the walls, which was simply his quiver and bow which could fold into a backpack of sorts. “I said I could get you something better than a new outfit, but only if you are willing to go with me.” He hadn't noticed how relaxed Fringe's posture had become until he tensed up at the suggestion. It only took a moment's consideration before he began to stand, even pushing in the chair politely. "Yes, that would be just fine," he said, readjusting his current clothes slightly. "I'd be happy to go along." His head bent again, seemingly in embarrassment. "I may need you to lead me by the hand, if the town is too busy. Would that be alright with you?" Bullseye hands him a rod of some sort to help him guide himself along. “That won’t be necessary, but I am happy to hear that you are willing to go for a walk into the town with us.” The rod was carved with much smoother carving than that arrow he'd felt on the wall, this was probably a newer creation. He started to follow the two to the door, cane held in front of him and starting to feel around the ground. Yes, this was going to work perfectly. "I shouldn't see why not." Fringe smiled. "It truly means a lot to me, thank you both for your help." The city streets were now much more crowded as morning rose. There were fresh scents in the air from bake houses and street vendors, but strange scents Fringe hadn't smelled before out of land cooking. He held his head low enough only someone specifically trying to see his face could look at it, following their footsteps the best he could. This was the energy he could expect from street markets back home, but he didn't want to stay around for these people. He couldn't tell exactly what they were, but he knew from the footsteps and voices not all of the creatures around him were really Mobians. Bullseye smiles as he exits his house from the back. He looks at Fringe to ensure that he was staying close to him. “You are welcome, however would you like for me to tell you a few things about this town?” He says as they hit the streets. The town was pretty odd as their were creatures of all sorts their. Their were men and women within the town. The odd thing about the town was that different energies could be felt there. Many of the townsfolk seemed to possess some sort of power similar to what Dark had displayed earlier but at the same time many of them were normal. Could this town be a part of Mobius or was it something different? As they were walking, the townsfolk stay close to their homes and places of business. Something about the situation seemed a bit off but what it was was uncertain. To call the experience strange would be an understatement. Fringe knew nothing of life on land, he knew that it was going to be different from underwater life, so perhaps that softened some of the surprise. But even he knew that wherever he was, this wasn't a normal town with a normal society. Bizarre creatures, strange secrecy to how they were acting, and weird landscapes, if a saltwater lake was anything to go off of. "I wouldn't know the first thing about life on land," Fringe said, "and I presume this town isn't quite... normal. Anything you could tell me would help me greatly." Bullseye nods and chuckles as the citizens keep away from him. “This is Green Meadows village where I do most if my shopping and business. Nearby, there are some emeralds but those can be explained later as they are protected by the government. In front of us is the food market, to the left is the weapons shop and to the right is the clothing shop…” Dark nods and looks behind them. "Emeralds?" Fringe asked. He'd heard of the chaos emerald, in strange stories about bands of freedom fighters, or small clusters of random Mobians desperate to keep peace. Was one of those here, truly? He had no idea. It only struck him after he spoke that he didn't ask a proper question. "I've heard of them before... I suppose that would explain all these strange feelings," Fringe admitted. A chaos emerald... no, multiple, going off of Bullseye's words. Truly, was he this close to that much power? And speaking of close... why was he hearing people around them at all angles, but very few even dared to come close to his walking partners? Fringe quickly realized trying to find answers was only going to make more questions for him. "It feels like a lovely town," Fringe admitted, turning towards the clothing store. "Now, what exactly did you mean by 'better' than new clothes?" He wasn’t talking about the chaos emeralds but he did have access to them from the temples which weren’t too far off. Bullseye had a bad reputation around the town as he was known to cause disappearance among the citizens. He heads towards an alleyway. “Follow me, I am taking you to a lab where you can get a disguise and appear more normal.” The disguise part, that was perfectly fine. Hell, it was more than fine, it was just about perfect in his mind. A way to appear normal to other people, a way to not seem... horrifying. That was all he really wanted, and it was precisely why he wanted new clothes. The problem was the location. "Wait, um- A lab?" Fringe said, almost visibly shivering at the sudden pang of nervousness. "You aren't- you aren't about to experiment on me, are you?" A far-fetched conclusion, but most of his experience with the outside world did come through fiction. Dark chuckles and gets close behind him. “Yes, we are going to experiment on you but I think you would like this one quite well.” His voice sounds happy but very sinister for some reason. Bullseye could be heard typing into a keypad as some sliding door could be heard opening close by. “Come on inside, I have someone for you to meet, Fringe.” Everything started to make Fringe shiver. The imminent location. The laughs. The cold slide of the sliding door against the comfortable wooden sounds around the town. This was wrong. This was very, very wrong. He had to run, he had to get out of there immediately! Forget safety, nothing he could do would be safe! At least... he would have loved to. But Dark was faster than him, taller than him. Bullseye was a weapon smith, and he could most likely shoot Fringe no matter how far he could go. He only just realized how trapped he was, and in his own mind, came to the wrong conclusion about the civilians avoiding the two. But there was nothing he could do now. Maybe if he was complacent, they would let him go early... maybe... hopefully. Bullseye sighs and hears him walk inside in compliance. If he wanted to do something bad to him, this wouldn’t be too hard so he thought. The room felt more roomy as they enter a large laboratory. Other creatures could be heard working there as he approaches one of them. “Stay here a moment?" They weren't hurting him yet. Maybe if they stepped away far enough, he could find the time to run away. And yet... something was telling him not to run. This wasn't any worse than things would be back home. And at least this had a chance of turning in his favor. "Certainly," Fringe said, not wanting to agree but not having a choice. He had never been in a laboratory before. He had used technology, but hearing this much without any kind of other noise was strangely unsettling. Everything sounded and felt as fake as it was. What had he gotten himself into? And what were they planning to do to him? There were a few scientists in the room, but most of the ones who were working were inside of other rooms behind thick windows. Running away would be one of the worst things he could do right now as the place was pretty secure. After a few moments, Bullseye could be heard re-entering the laboratory and approaching him. As he approaches him, another character could be sensed. This character was a female dog. He could tell something was different about her as her steps were a bit heavier than Dark’s. “Is this him?” She says as she sees Fringe next to Dark. There was no one else the question could have been referring to. "My- my name is Fringe," he said, slowly walking forward and anxiously extending his hand. "I'm sorry about the clothes, I wasn't expecting to-" He sighed. "It's been a very eventful day for me," he understated. The lady smiles and shakes his hand happily. “Ah, well you may call me Mindi. I can help you with your cloths and maybe help you look more fitting in the town.” She says in a friendly tone while wagging her tail. She didn't seem malicious, either. Fringe was still on edge, of course, but hopefully that was just his nerves talking. "That would be lovely, although I'm not sure exactly what you could to," Fringe admitted. "I hope this isn't a rude question, but... what exactly can I expect to happen?" His tail was curled up and stiff in clear discomfort. Breath was held, stance was firm. He didn't want to know exactly what was planned, but not knowing was only going to make everything worse. This could either give him every reason to stay... or a perfect excuse to keep running. She was pretty friendly and willing to help him. Unlike Dark and Bullseye, she didn’t have a reason to sneak around and act suspicious like. “No need to worry, I won’t be causing you any pain. What I will do is create a cloak which can be activated with a device. However what I want you to tell me is how you want to appear.” It took a moment for the weight of her words to set in. "As in... I can change my appearance entirely?" Fringe said, surprised at the thought. He had no real point of reference for how he wanted to look, but he knew that whatever he was now, he was ugly. The same insults had been hurled at him before, so he simply decided to warp those around. "I'd like if I could have a proper set of eyes," Fringe said, motioning to the voids on his face. "I know you can't make me see, but... is there a way eyes can look blind? I would also like if my skin could be made... not transluscent? I don't want others to see through my skin, I understand it's hard to look at. Um, this is a fairly important part..." He unzipped the jacket slowly, showing off his transparent chest and the internal organs visible through. "I want these to be invisible," he said, seemingly sheepish at showing them off. "Could you help with that?" She nods and looks him over as he speaks. “Oh, yes, I can cover you for sure, that won’t be very difficult. Is there a specific creature you want to look like?” Bullseye turns towards him and sees his organs which were vulnerable as he removes his clothing. He was oddly attracted to his skin as he could sell it to the black market of the village. Despite this, he wanted to help him and knew he would get in trouble with Dark if he tried to hurt Fringe who was in good standing with him. Dark looks at the reactions of the lab workers around him. None of them seemed terrified or even shocked from his appearance. He wasn’t sure if it was because they were busy or if they were really bots. However he only cared about Fringe at this point. Fringe's mind was somewhat clouded at this point by nervous elation. If this wasn't a horrible trap, it was a godsend. He actually had a chance to be normal. God, for once, he could be normal! He so desperately wanted this to be real. "I just want to- Do you know what a loach normally looks like?" He asked her in return. "I'm not sure what to say... I don't want to walk around looking like a creature from a horror story, I just want to look normal." There was a slight crack to his otherwise princely voice. "It's exhausting, ms. Mindi." She nods as he talks to her. She was getting concerned as he sounds pretty exhausted when he spoke. “I honestly have never seen a loach but I do know when some creature needs some help. Are you ready for me to help you?" He certainly couldn't tell that Bullseye was thinking some dark thoughts, and in spite of the imposing feeling of the room, it did genuinely seem like all three of them were trying to help him.He knew it was probably foolish, but fringe pushed aside his doubt and bucked up. "Absolutely," Fringe said, willing to follow whatever instructions he'd receive. She smiles and touches Fringe’s hand to signify that he was going to be lead along. She leads him towards a machine which could be heard beeping and buzzing about. “Come follow me.” She says before bounding off. People didn't seem to be avoiding them as much in the lab. Perhaps... perhaps they were scientists on some secret experiment? Fringe was coming to wrong conclusions constantly and regularly about everything he was coming across. But if he was going to get some assemblence of normality out of it, he was going to try and go through with it. It felt colder here than it did outside. Subtly colder, but colder all the same. He focused on calming his breathing, hoping that maybe if he acted calm, he could actually feel calmer about the lab and whatever they were planning to do. The laboratory was metal on the inside and Mindi was the only one with Fringe at this point. As they enter the room, Mindi heads towards a computer. “I am going to need you to enter a machine for scanning, okay?" She says calmly. "Of course," Fringe said. He was lead forward, and felt the sides of the machine slightly. He understood the implication, and knew that he couldn't be scanned in his current state. He removed his clothes and stepped into the machine, transparent skin shivering at the chilled air and cool metal beneath his feet. He was putting a lot of trust in Mindi to stay this vulnerable, especially in these conditions. Both arms were held out straight, allowing the machine to scan his body fully. Mindi smiles as he went inside. A green light quickly goes across his body as the machine was activated. She types into the computer as the results come in. She was pretty intrigued as she had never scanned a loach before. “You okay in there?” Fringe did his best to try and stay still. His arms and legs would shift slightly, but nothing this machine couldn't easily adjust for. The green light circling his body and taking measurements buzzed quietly. He could almost swear he could feel where the light was hitting him. The entire situation felt surreal, almost like science fiction to him. He'd only ever lived in more rural settings. Modern technology of this sort was absolutely amazing to him. "I'm rather embarrassed and I feel as though I'm going to be shot at some point, but all things considered, I feel fine." Fringe delivered, no sarcasm intended. She smiles and nods as the machine finishes scanning. She could see his stats and some basic information about him on the screen as the buzzing stops. Her eyes look over the information as she takes some notes. “Hmm…fascinating.” The machine took the data collected and tried to make estimates on various bodily details. What percent was muscle and fat - easier to figure out on him, of course - relative strength, speed, and notes about any small small scars he might have had. The strangest part was the data on his strength. He was much stronger than his body would have belied, if the machine was to be trusted. Moreover, the estimates on his speed were fantastic. Of course, she hadn't seen him in action, so while this data might not have been surprising for someone as fast as Dark, to the layman this was quite impressive. Despite seemingly scrawny appearances, he was quite physically fit. His muscles just happened to be more functional than aesthetic. "Um, would I be allowed to get dressed again?" He asked sheepishly. As the doors open, Mindi brings him a lab coat to put on over his transparent skin. “Oh yes, of course, however I am going to need some time to create the cloaking device as your features are quite unique. Also are you willing to show us how you move about?” She asks with interest. The labcoat might have been designed purely for technical use, but it wasn't ragged and awful against his skin. He didn't want to take it off. "I'd be happy to." Fringe stood awkwardly for a moment, not entirely sure what to do next. "Er... Right here, do you mean?" She could almost see him wanting to slap himself in the forehead after saying that. "I'm guessing there's a scanner or similar you wish for me to use?" The lab coat was white but not transparent. It would fit loosely but it was better than his other rags. She smiles and looks at him. She wags her tail and hops around a bit. “Awesome, that’s great but we have a much roomier room for you to work in. Come with me so I can lead you there.” Things were going well. Stunningly well, given the occasional feeling that he was going to be sliced in half with a laser of some variety. Hand in hand, he followed Mindy through the facility again. But the longer he walked, the more the wondered... why was he being given this chance by Dark and Bullseye? They knew very little about him, Bullseye practically nothing, and he'd tried to stab Dark. The more he spent time away from him, the more Fringe realized that he couldn't stop thinking about who they were... and worry exactly what they were planning for him. He did stop worrying for just a moment when he ran into the door of the room he was being led to, stumbling back slightly and surprised at his own clumsiness. Dark had no malicious intentions. What Fringe didn’t know was that he had been in a similar situation as he had some political issues with the clans around the area. Bullseye was the one in question. Mindi walks him through the lab. She got some welcomed and unwelcomed looks from her co-workers. She was notably attractive and sometimes got some unwanted attention as one would expect. She catches him as she opens the door to the room. “I will be in here to watch you move around.” "Alright. I'll just wait here." Fringe said, nodding slightly as a kind of goodbye as she left the room temporarily. It was then that Fringe realized he had no idea what exactly he was supposed to do in terms of moving around. He was an aquatic creature, and there was no water. As much as he wanted to keep it on, Fringe knew the coat was going to get in the way, and folded it before leaving it on the ground. Without knowing exactly what he was supposed to do, he decided to follow some basic stretches he would try and do in the morning. Both hands extended above he head, leaning harshly to either side, swiveling his torso and working on his triceps. Basic weight training warm ups. His tail slowly swayed as a kind of counterbalance whenever he would lean harshly in one direction. Mindi stays where she was and takes notes on his basic movements as she was creating a profile of his mechanics. “Hmm…actually you’re doing a great job.” As he was stretching, Mindi was making some sketches that would fit his form for the cloaking device she was going to create. She was pretty excited as this would create a new challenge for her and possibly make a new friend out of this. Fringe wasn't quite as excited just yet. It wasn't the the prospect of having a device that could make him normal was anything less than a miracle, it was all of the negative emotions taht were coming attached to that. Mostly fear. Boatloads and boatloads of fear. Over how others would react, if he would know how to act... And at the heart of things, what was going to happen between him and Dark. He stretched as long as he felt necessary, walked around a bit to give them an idea of how his leg muscles worked. Quite frankly, he felt just a bit silly doing all of these basic exercises, and was happy to stop all his movements when he finally got the cue. There was something amusing about wearing something like a lab coat that wasn't cut to fit snug against the skin. Even if it was more or less a formality to receive one, it was a lovely gesture. While they were in the lab working, Dark was waiting with Bullseye. He was standing straight and had his eyes closed as he was in some kind of meditation. The scientists were minding their own business and some were avoiding him as he stood there. Mindi smiles and looks at him. “Oh, you can stop now if you want. I got everything I need for the experiment.” 'Experiment.' It was the kind of word that just sounded sinister. Even if everything else up to that point had been alright, there was a slightly dirty, sinister edge to that word that Fringe was finding more dreadful with each iteration of the word. "Alright," Fringe responded. He held his arms across his chest to hold the coat closed, just to feel the fabric against his skin. "Is there anything else I should need to do? You said you haven't worked with a loach before, correct?" Mindi nods and steps back. “That is correct, however I get the feeling that I am making you uncomfortable. Is there something I am doing wrong, or something you need from me?” She asks with a bit of concern in her voice. "It's just the newness of everything," Fringe lied. "It's just been a very strange, bizarre... strange day for me, to say the least. I frankly don't know where I am, but..." He smiled the best he could. "It's been interesting. You, Dark, and Bullseye all seem perfectly nice. I don't know entirely why you're helping, but thank you for helping me all the same." Mindi crosses her arms a bit as she disliked he dishonest tone. “Well I suppose I can’t be too upset since this is your first time here, although I wonder what the real problem is.” She asks, not buying his first response. Bullseye looks at Dark while he was meditating. Some strange black aura was around him. Not even he knew a whole lot about Dark but he could feel something was unusual about him. He could see something was different. “Hmm…” "Alright, I guess you caught me," Fringe admitted with a smile. "Underwater and land life are very different. I'm used to being clothed on land... it feels a bit immodest not to be fully dressed," Fringe admitted, even blushing a little. This wasn't a lie, just not the whole story. But his confusion about Dark was something only Dark could give him clarity on. "Is that all you need from me?" Fringe took back to his normal princely posture. Straight back, firm neck, head held high. In spite of his lack of clothes, he seemed adamant on keeping whatever manners he'd been taught. “Ah, well I can understand that. You know there is a reason for clothes.” She smiles and chuckles a bit, believing his story this time.

Dark was still waiting patiently in the lab room and he looks at Bullseye. Fringe had calmed down considerable as he was walked back to Dark and Bullseye. He was immediately hit by a strange coldness, emanating from Dark. He couldn't tell what it was, but it almost felt like he was absorbing heat and leaving the air around him colder. Fringe would have jumped for his hoodie immediately to warm up, but he hesitated. His dilemma at the moment didn't seem to be whatever strange thing Dark was doing or the bizarre, nkown situation he had been thrust into. "I presume you need the jacket back?" He said, a little disappointed at the loss. Dark sees him coming around the corner. He smirks a bit and turns to see Fringe as they walk. His wings were resting behind him.

Bullseye looks at Dark with a malicious glint in his eye. He was thinking about a way to keep him away from Fringe but knew that Dark would find him out.

Mindi smiles and looks at Fringe. “Oh, you can keep the jacket. We have tons of them to spare.” She says with a happy tone. "Are you-" Fringe couldn't even keep up the act himself. She was offering it, he wanted it, and for once, he wasn't going to play his normal games of rejecting the offer politely before accepting it. "Thank you, it feels lovely." Maybe not 'lovely,' but certainly better than his old clothes. Sure, it looked ridiculous to traipse around casually in a lab coat, but who cared? "Thank you very much for doing all this work for my sake, Mindi." Fringe said, smiling and bowing his head slightly. "It really does mean a lot to me." He turned towards Dark and Bullseye, bowing his head towards them both when he was finished turning. "And while we're here... thank you both as well. I don't know why you're doing this for a stranger, but it's more than wonderful." She smiles and nods. “You are very welcome and I hope you have a safe journey. However, I do request that you return withing a week so I can see if the device works." She says firmly. Dark looks at him and smirks. “Sounds like everything went well in there. Is there anything else you need before we leave, Fringe?” Bullseye stands up and remains silent. One could tell that he was up to something but it was uncertain at this point. Fringe was smiling genuinely. None of his normal small polite smiles, genuine sunny smiles. He was just happy that he was finally able to trust some new people. Maybe it was slapdash, sure. Maybe it was already a rough start. But it was a start that had some kind of promise. However far he'd traveled, he'd traveled somewhere he could make a home, and he already had a few friends to help him on the way. "Not at all," Fringe said with a smile. "She's helped me more than enough. Finishing some kind of clothes shopping would be more than enough. But thank you for the offer." He specifically faced between Dark and Bullseye to speak to them both. "I'll pay for the clothes myself, but anywhere you could show me would be fantastic." Dark looks at him and nods. He gives him a look of approval and smiles a bit. “So what did Mindi tell you about the experiment? Did she ever give you an estimate on how long it would take before you could get a cloaking device?” Bullseye looks at him. “Hmm…well the clothing shops aren’t far away. I guess it's time we head on over.” His gem in his head was glowing dimly as he spoke. "Mindi said that I should come back in... a bit under a week, I believe? Yes, within the week." All three were leaving the lab at this point, Fringe and Dark in the lead. Fringe was still holding the cane in front of him, but he already seemed to be focusing more on his memory than the cane for movement. "She said she hadn't worked with a loach before, but it was all basic work. Just a scan and some muscle exercised to see how I moved... It was fascinating!" The way he spoke was fueled with a restrained energy, some inner curiosity leaking through his mannered exterior. It was almost like a child excitedly describing any interesting fact they had learned. "She seemed interested in anything I did. I wish I knew how that research worked... it's so alien, but so...!" The air at this altitude was thin, but refreshing. Fringe used the sudden burst to calm down and collect himself. "Do you mind if I ask another question?" Fringe said as they approached the crowds of the area. "Where exactly... was that? You didn't mention a lab before." As soon as he asked the question, Dark’s expression changed a bit. He stops and turns to him a moment before giving him a serious look. “If I am to tell you, you must promise not to tell the townsfolks. They might think you are lying or freak out as technology is sparse around here.” Bullseye looks around and saw that the townspeople were taking notice in their conversation. He smirks as he saw this as an opportunity to capture Fringe as a bounty. “Say, I don’t mean to interrupt but I would need for this conversation to be taken to a more private place.” "Of course," Fringe said, not really caring one way or another. "To be honest, everything that's happened here seems strange to me, I understand." Fringe followed the two, running through everything that had happened in his mind. The initial run-in was bizarre, the pond was bizarre, Bullseye and Mindi were bizarre, this kind of confusion was normal to him. If Dark and Bullseye meant well and were willing to be patient with him, he was going to come along and hope for the best. Bullseye was walking them towards the forest. This area was quieter than the rest of the town but felt less friendly than the alleyway. Dark couldn’t tell something was up but could sense that this was an area where the monsters could be present. “Bullseye, you know this area is restricted.” He says as he turns to him. He smirks and secretly grabs a device to use on Dark. He managed to be quick enough where Dark wouldn’t hear him. “Oh yes, but it is away from the town and a good place to talk about the labs.” Nothing seemed too odd about the forest itself except the fact that it was quiet, not even the wind could be head within the place. A slight tremble could be heard as they enter further. Underwater life had accustomed Fringe to strange out-of-nowhere rumbles and silences. He was not underwater, and suddenly, these same normal sounds were unsettling in a subtle but noticeable way. Restricted? But Fringe slowly accepted the fact, knowing it was no stranger than stumbling across a random lab or a saltwater lake. "If this is a restricted area, we should be far enough away," Fringe said, blatantly concerned. "I'm sorry, but how far are we going into the woods?" He hoped that the others wouldn't quite notice his anxiety, but his attempts to hide it were utterly lacking, and it seeped through every action he made and word he spoke. Dark stops as he could recognize the sound. “Fringe! Take cover!” As soon as he had said that a bluish gray dragon runs across the field and roars. Bullseye chuckles as he gets on top of the beast. Another hedgehog could be heard in the forest as the scene was taking place

Who was the other figure? What the hell was massive enough to pass over them like that? Why was he CHUCKELING?! Fringe just knew he was in danger, and he huddled against the ground for his life.

Massive stone blue wings displaced air around Fringe and Dark. Dark might have been covered enough by foliage to hide, but Fringe's pastel pink skin and white coat stood out against the rich, deep earth. The dragon circled back around, seemingly preparing for another strike.

The other hedgehog was in sight as the 40ft dragon sweeps again this time, blowing ice shards to form a barrier. Bullseye readies a netted arrow for Fringe but before he could fire, Dark knocks him off the dragon and he not only misses but plummets to the ground. Dark runs to Fringe to guard him. “Bullseye! What is the meaning of this!”

Meanwhile, the other hedgehog commands the dragon to him and takes reign as the dragon lands ready to fight within the barrier.

"I- I don't know the meaning of- Of any of this!" Fringe stuttered, holding his hands together in front of him and looking entirely scared. All he could tell was Bullseye was shooting, had narrowly missed hitting him, and had fallen.

And Fringe made a terrible mistake.

"He- he must have been aiming for the creature!" Fringe rushed the best he could passed Dark, making a beeline for Bullseye. He squatted down on the ground and started touching Bullseye's shoulder, checking for any damages. "Is there anything that's going to stop you from shooting? We need to aim from a distance, right?"

A distance...! Fringe remembered exactly what had happened to them at the lake. He didn't want to ruin his new jacket, and his old clothes were at Bullseye's house. He patted himself down to check for anything he might be able to use to make another makeshift sling, leaving him totally distracted for just a few moments.

Bullseye was bruised from the fall but managed to not get anything broken. He looks at Fringe and pins him down before reaching for some rope to tie Fringe up.

Dark could see this but saw his friend/rival on the dragon in front of him. He needed some help if he was going to fight the dragon and the rider. Despite knowing his own strength, it wasn’t enough to stop him without some sort of strategy. “Fringe! No, he's trying to hurt you!” He darts over still unable to fly from the incident at the lake.

As he was going, the dragon and his rider move. The dragon roars and gets ready to blow another ice ball.

When it was called out, Fringe was already too late in. He was being forced down, and all of Fringe's suspicions piled up once again. The lab, the lake, the- everything. He was absolutely right not to trust any of them. He tried to move, but Bullseye's grip into his skin was piercing and every move magnified the pain. What the hell was he waiting for, what was he planning?!

The roar rattled him more than he already was. The charging blast cooled the area prematurely in preparation for the blast the dragon was charging. Fringe needed to just do something, anything!

His first few kicks failed to his Bullseye, but he finally succeeded in kneeing him in the center of his chest. Both hands reached out to search for something he could use to fight back. Twigs, leaves, weeds... a rock? It had done some damage before, and in a fit of anger, he grabbed the primitive weapon and swung it straight at the archer.

When Fringe kicked Bullseye's belly, Bullseye fell back and grunts. This brought Fringe enough time to escape from him. The swing from the weapon missed as he ducks.

Dark saw the dragon readying another ice ball and reaches his hand up to close the mouth of the beast. Oddly enough it had worked but the dragon was strong and roars in anger. Fringe didn't bother with staying. He had to get out of there, right then. He backed away quickly, heaving the rock straight towards Bullseye before making a mad dash. Bullseye was carrying his cane, and he didn't have the time to rummage for a stick. One wrong step, he'd faceplant into a tree and be shot. But what was there?! He couldn't run, he couldn't stay, there was just... The dragon's roar gave him an idea. A desperat,e last-ditch idea, but an idea. Air was getting displace again as the dragon soared close to the ground, and in a mix of bravery and stupidity, Fringe lunged for the dragons claw and clutched on for dear life as the beast carried him into the air and away from Bullseye. When Fringe grabs the claw of the dragon, it distracted him as he tries to shake him off. The ice walls that were formed earlier had melted away in the sunlight which formed a new escape route. Dark saw Bullseye with Fringe’s cane and brought it over to him with his powers.

Bullseye quickly recovers from the kick received from Fringe. His quiver of arrows were still on his back but his bow was on the ground. He runs to it as he saw Fringe grab the dragon’s claw.

The dragon rider lost sight of Fringe as he hadn’t known about the crazy move he had done. “Where did you go you runt!" He pulls up to get a better view but couldn’t because of the trees. Fringe couldn't believe what he was doing, and the constant violent swaying wasn't helping. He could tell the dragon was circling around as whoever this dragon rider was tried to search for him. Before he knew it, the cane was in his hand. How had it gotten there? He knew it was dark, but didn't know how. All he knew was he suddenly had a weapon, he had a height advantage, and his frantic stumbling told him Bullseye's location. He wrenched the cane in his hands. Either Bullseye was going to shoot first and kill him, or he was going to miss. There was no way this would work, but it was his only shot. The dragon lowered and Fringe let go. holding the cane above his head and hoping to give him one swift bludgeon...! The dragon roars and and was forced to land due to the space of the forest. His rider commands him to stay as he was frustrated from the loss. “You can’t hide from me!” Bullseye could see the event happening and evaded to the attack. His bow was still too far from him to be used. He grunts as he saw Fringe close to him, which meant he was forced to go hand-to-hand; something he wasn’t planning on doing. He gets in a defensive stance ready to fight. Dark hears the dragon rider and knew that he would cause trouble when he finds them. He looks back at Fringe and sees Bullseye. “Fringe, let me take Bullseye. Get out of here while you can.” Fringe hesitated for just a second. Immediately after, he was off, cane in hand and desperately feeling the area around him as he heard some kind of struggle behind him. His life was as stake, and Dark could be trusted to take care of himself. He could... right? He didn't know exactly how adept Dark and Bullseye were at fighting. Would either of them survive? And what of this third hedgehog? He had no idea. All he knew was that he had no chance of living if he didn't run, and that he needed to hide somewhere. Not Dark's tent on the edge of town, not the lake they fought, somewhere inconspicuous that Dark would think to look for him... He slinked back to the park, disappearing into the river and back to his original camping spot in wait, hoping Dark would arrive to the secluded spot soon. Dark was fighting Bullseye. As Bullseye made a last attempt to go for his bow, Dark got in his way. His right wing was still broken from the previous encounter with Fringe. This didn’t put him at a disadvantage but flying away was not an option for him at the moment. Bullseye growls, clearly upset that Fringe was able to get away. He throws a punch at Dark to get him out the way. Dark dodges the move well although Bullseye had more experience with hand-to-hand combat than him. Taking advantage of his luck, he counters with a leg sweep making him fall. The purple hedgehog landed on his back and was pinned down by the mysterious force Dark could control. He grunts not knowing what Dark would do to him at this point. As Fringe ran away, the third hedgehog arrives on the scene. He saw what Dark did to Bullseye and decided to go for “the prize.” He gets back to his dragon and heads out into the open fields after Fringe. He didn't follow Fringe too closely, and he didn't seem to notice. Fringe avoided the center of town, not wanting to head into any crowds and slow himself down, but this only left him as a blatant target, leaving him highly visible as he ran through the large fields of grass. He could hear the sound of that dragon behind him. Crap, they weren't giving up easily. Was this other person after Fringe the whole time, too? Just what had he gotten himself into?! MAybe... maybe that camping spot would be too secluded to get to, yeah! That didn't work. He barely escaped the water as it grew colder and colder, eventually freezing entirely and missing trapping Fringe. The dragon was too close. He had no choice at this point but to raise his cane, try and rummage through his old clothes and attempt to find his knife... and pray the dragon didn't come too close. The dragon growls and blows another barrier around the fields. Having more room to fly put him at an advantage, but he needed to get close to let his master make the capture. As he swoops down for another sweep, the hedgehog shoots a grappling device to Fringe hoping that would pin him down. As he shoots, Dark was on his way towards the scene and was armed to Bullseye’s bow. Fringe let out a hollow gasp. The central point of the grapple pierced into his back with the claws wrapping around his back and ripped his coat to shreds. It took a moment to register, before every part of his body told him to stop running and heal. But there was nothing he could do. What was tugging the rope, the dragon rider, the gun, the dragon's movements? Whatever it was, Fringe was being moved against his will, and he didn't have time to plan an escape. He had to plan some last ditch attack He reached into his pockets as he was tugged along. Where was it?! He didn't drop his knife, did he? He was pulled higher and higher into the wair, until he could feel his body collide the scales of the dragon, having been fully pulled up towards the rider. It was now or never. He couldn't have waited another moment. In one swift motion, he pulled the knife out of his pocket and made a last-ditch lunge at the rider with the knife aimed for his chest. It was kill or be killed. As he lunges, the hedgehog and the knife hit the rope of the grappling device which broke it in two. The dragon was barely off the ground and was flying away, unaware that the device was cut. The rider grunts in disappointment as his device had broke. He grabs the reigns and commands his dragon to sweep Fringe up with his claws. As the dragon was circling for another sweep, Dark comes into the scene, ready to deal with the dragon. He couldn't find the adrenaline to get him to move. The stab into his back was too deep for him to try and keep running. He almost wanted to give up when he heard Dark's footsteps approaching, but when he finally came to the realization of exactly who it was, he felt hopeful. Not the barely clinging to anything he could kind of hopeful, genuinely hopeful. Dark was here, and Bullseye wasn't. He didn't want to know what he had done. Their hands grabbed together and Fringe tried to stand to his feet. This new hope had given him the energy to try again, perhaps a bit harder. He was clutching the knife the same way he had when he fought Dark earlier, unconcerned by the blood spilling down his back. The dragon was lowering to the ground, prepared to sweep the two. Fringe was ready. Dark was just strong enough to make one last attempt to escape. He saw the dragon coming in fast for both of them. He concentrates what little energy he had left to transform into his critical form which would give him a temporary surge of power but drain him black when finished. His eyes were glowing as he grabs Fringe and speeds him away, causing the dragon to miss. He was heading towards the caverns and managed to reach an abandoned temple before passing out from exhaustion. The dragon and his rider were too slow for Dark as his speed, strength and endurance were much more in his critical form to catch him and lose track of them s he ran. The rider grunts in anger and flies off back to where he came from. Fringe and Dark toppled to the ground. The fish could only take in everything that had happened in what seemed to be a few seconds. His back hurt with a pain he'd scarcely felt before. He'd just made a friend only to lose them in a matter of minutes. He was probably dead, if his suspicions were right. Although in his mind, Dark's sudden transformation overpowered them for just long enough. Where had be been brought? Was he going to survive? And most importantly... Who was Dark? When Dark would regain consciousness, he would find himself in some interior room of the abandoned temple. He was laid on a bed of large soft grass, clearly plucked from a small field visible through a hole in the old temple wall. Fringe slept quietly not far from Dark. His back had been heavily bandaged with hastily woven reeds. Now that Dark had a better look at him, he wasn't sleeping. It seemed like he was trying to force himself to sleep, but bad memories and worries were keeping him awake. As Dark awakens, Fringe could feel a new fire spark and tell his whole body was refreshed. Even his broken wing was fixed as he slowly sits up. He looks at him as he springs back to life… Well, at least it appeared that way. His aura of energy was completely gone and he wouldn’t be able to use his abilities for awhile. He looks over to Fringe. He had no idea what he was thinking. Was he scared of him? Wast he glad to be safe in the temple with him? These questions and many more were flowing within his mind as he slowly stands up. Fringe exhaled heavily and opened his eyes. "I suppose you didn't buy my 'sleeping,'" Fringe said, half joking through stress. When he sat up, Dark could see a new vulnerability to him. His reserved stance no longer looked refined, it looked terrified. The remains of eyelids over his vacant eye sockets were heavy, and the skin beneath looked as though he hadn't slept that night. dried blood caked the makeshift bandages, and his muscles all seemed paler with the blood loss. He held his legs and bowed his head. Those old clothes had been torn up and left in the corner of the room. "The claw ruined that old jacket, and... it's too small, anyways." His attempt at small talk didn't help, and he knew it. Heavy legs carried the tired fish to his feet, running his hand on one wall for support. "I'm sorry, Dark.... did I do something to Bullseye? I know it's early and we haven't eaten, but..." He inhaled to try and calm himself. "Why was he trying to kill me?" Dark looks at him and sighs. “Looks like you need some rest. I will explain what Bullseye was doing when you can concentrate a bit better. For now we should stay here and setup camp. It’s not safe to go out this late.” "Of course," Fringe told him. "I tried to set up some beds in here for us to use. Is this a... a ruins, or a temple of some kind? Would it be disrespectful to stay in somewhere like this for the night? We won't find better shelter than a stone structure." Fringe knew he needed sleep. "We should both rest and recover," he added. "I have no idea what's happening here, Dark. But... you've followed me after I hurt your wing." He crossed his arms and bowed his head, a bit bashful and ashamed from what he'd done. "Thank you." Dark nods and walks towards the beds. “It’s okay to stay here, this place…This place was where I was born!” His eyes light up as he sees remains of his family relics. “How…did you find this place?” Fringe was shocked at the words. Where he was BORN? He quickly withdrew his hand from the wall, as though he was going to somehow damage this structure. "You- You carried me this way!" Fringe said, not sure what else to say. "You were suddenly flooded with energy, and you carried me from the person who was attacking me! I simply carried you and kept running in that direction, and we came across... here. Are you sure you didn't mean to come across here?" He couldn't stare, only stand in awe and feel around as he tried to find something to cling to, maybe something he could learn about Dark through. "You're only going to keep giving me questions, aren't you?" Fringe asked, serious but a little amused at the circumstances. Dark couldn’t remember much when he was in his critical state. Being overwhelmed with that much energy was no good for his mind. He looks around the place. Every crevice, wall and artifacts from his childhood were withing the ruins. He walks around a bit faintly remembering his family. “What happened here.” He said out loud as he picks up a framed photo. The joke was at a bad time, and Fringe could tell. For then, he gave Dark his distance. These temples that were entirely foreign to Fringe, and he had the one person who seemed like they would know better than anyone. But Dark needed time to recover from everything. He felt along the wall closest to him to feel some of the things that had been left. There were many personal possessions, suck as clothes or jewelry, as well as more mundane items like lanterns and vases. Fringe was surprised to feel cold metal across his hand. Were those coins? Either whatever visitors this old ruins had declined to rob them, or the ruins were secluded enough to never receive visitors. He left everything where it was, scared to break anything. Webbed feet echoed down the floors behind Dark, stopping a couple of yards from him. "Are you going to be alright?" He asked quietly, not wanting to startle him in his current state. He puts the picture somewhere safe and took out a device to track down the co-ordinates of the place. “I don’t know how we got here but this is a major step closer to discovering my heritage. Fringe, forget what I said earlier, we should find another place to setup camp.” He says as he turns to him. "Absolutely," Fringe agreed. He almost didn't want to leave, but he was sure Dark and him could find their way back. For now, they needed to sleep. And in the morning, Fringe knew he was going to need answers.

#Blazerandfnds #Show's Over #There's A Melody Playing #Violence #Blood

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burndownthehousetonight · 7 years

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((Another chapter in this RP I’m doing with @blazerandfnds! A lot more focus on Jersey and Tetra this time, and some more insight into Fringe and Dark :D))

They managed to find another place of rest and had stayed there for the night. The night was pretty peaceful in the cave and Dark was sleeping upright and standing in a corner.

A makeshift fire pit made from a circle of rocks and some dried wood gave them ample heat. For a fish away from the ocean, Fringe seemed strangely comfortable on land. He also seemed strangely comfortable bundled up near the fire, sleeping more traditionally on the ground covered by a blanket of long wild grasses. He was warm, comfortable, and relatively safe.

Fringe woke before Morning came, his usual time. The fire was out, and it sounded like Dark was still sleeping. He left for a short while to look for wild foods. Fringe might have been used to aquatic and shoreline plants, so these inland mountainous shrubs were more foreign to him. There were little tricks he'd learned to know which berries might be safe to eat. Does it burn the skin, are they growing in clusters, do they smell bitter...

"Good morning," Fringe greeted when he reentered the cave area. his old clothes were being used as a makeshift pouch ot carry some wild berries and tube vegetables. He placed the bag gingerly on the ground. Things still seemed slightly awkward between them.

When he entered, Dark looks at him with a creepy stare; his eyes glowing white as he looks. He wasn’t upset with him as he always woke up that way. He slowly steps forward and stretches his wings and arms out before rubbing his eyes. “Morning, did you get a good rest?”

He looks around and sees the fireplace as well as the new bed. He didn’t remember them being there before he went to rest but didn’t question it. The fire from the fire pit felt nice although it was out. He walks up to it and puts his hands over the coals.

"Yes, I... I think so." Fringe said. "I'm sorry, I would have tried to weave something for you, but you were standing and sleeping and I didn't know what I could make for you."

Soon, the two of them were standing near the extinguished fire pit and embracing the heat. Fringe reached into the loose pouch and motioned Dark towards the foods. "I'm sorry it's not much, but I tried to find us something to eat. I have no idea where we are, I'm not sure if we're close to a town or..."

It still felt strange for Fringe. He bit his lip and forced himself to ask. "I hope you don't mind me asking... what on earth is going on?" Fringe said, letting his discomfort through. "Who was that attacking us?"

Dark concentrates and generates some heat to get the fire started again. “This fire here is more than enough, thank you. As to what is going on, it is hard to explain. I don’t know why Bullseye had decided to capture you but I know this won’t be the last time we see him. He used to be my partner to hunt bounty but that has all changed now…” He looks at the berries.

“Say, where did you get those berries from? I didn’t know there were any plants besides some trees around these parts.” His eyes glow dimly as he regains some energy from the flames. Bounty hunting? That line clearly set of some kind of fear in Fringe's mind. He didn't want to change the topic, but he certainly didn't want to ask any questions he shouldn't have. "They're- I'm a farmer. Before I came here, I mean." He might have been attempting to act casual, but just from his voice and actions, it was clear he was uncomfortable near Dark yet again. "It's not hard to find them... if you stay close to the edges of paths and low to the ground. I wouldn't know if there were any fruits on the trees, there weren't any growing low enough for me to feel..." They stood silently for a few moments. "You're... a bounty hunter." Fringe reiterated, like he was trying to process that fact himself. Dark looks at Fringe, having admitting some of his past duties. “I suppose you can call me that but I consider myself more of a rogue. I work with the lab we visited before all of this. My job is to find and bring in new specimens for them to work on and study. However now that you know, you didn’t hear it from me.” He looks at him a moment and sits calmly, seeing what Fringe would do now that he knew what he did. He didn’t think he would tell the town but having him know about his position was a risky gamble. It made sense. The evasive way he was when they were actually around the townspeople, the strange lab in a secluded location, even his socialization earlier. At the very least, it was out there. Fringe knew his motives for the most part. Yet even the phrase rogue made him uncomfortable. All he could hope for was that he was telling the truth. "And what do you mean by experiments?" His refined voice sounded strangely calm, how how scared he obviously was. He almost was hesitant to answer and his expression seemed pretty serious, even more so than its ever been up until this point. “The experiments are none of my business. All I do is bring in the goods, get paid, rinse and repeat. If you want to know more about the experiments you would have to find the lab supervisor. I won’t help you do that as that is not an option for me. However if you must learn more, asking Mindi might be a good start.” As he ends his statement, he stands and stretches his wings out. “I think now would be a good time for me to go on a flight and see if there are any more food sources available.” Fringe nodded. "Yes, that would probably be for the best." He let Dark leave him all alone in the cave, he needed the time to think. A bounty hunter, the last kind of person Fringe wanted to see. A creature whose mere presence seemed to ooze energy of some kind, in combat or not. And someone who didn't seem to know about himself either. Was it going to be safer to run away as he'd been doing this whole time? Or stick with Dark and hope this wasn't a long con of some variety? Either the fight with Bullseye and the dragon had changed something in Fringe's mind, or he was losing his common sense. But he wanted to stick with Dark. For now, he stuck very close to the entrance of the cave, searching for branches and sticks to help fuel the fire. Even if he wanted to run, Dark was too fast, too strong, too powerful for him to escape from. He needed all the allies he could get. Dark flies off into the country looking for a nearby city or town. The plains were pretty vast but full of life with animals, mobians and creatures of his world present. As he flies, he could see a temple nearby. This meant there was a town, which he looks West and sees. Happy with his findings, he makes his route back to the cavern. Inside of Dark’s mind was some pretty odd thoughts. Was Fringe really afraid of him? He couldn’t shake it off but was afraid that asking him would make him more afraid if nothing else. He just wanted him to like him at least somewhat. The fire inside of the cavern was being kept alive. Fringe still wore his grassy bandages, but didn't seem to want to use his normal clothes anymore, but they were still left to dry next to the fire. Fringe's knife was now being held in his bandages. Dark's arrival happened late enough that Fringe had had time to collect his thoughts and figure out his plan; stick close to Dark and keep his knife close at all times. "Is there anywhere close by?" Fringe was anxious for an answer. "And has there been any sign of the flying beast or Bullseye? Or..." His eye voids glared straight towards Dark. "Do you know the man who was controlling the beast?" Dark lands and walks inside of the cave. He indeed knew who the dragon was and his rider. “Yes, that was my partner as well. His name is Mavis. His dragon’s name is Nightmare. I advise staying far away from the two if you ever see them again. Mavis can manipulate minds and you know how fighting a dragon is like…Problems with being a rogue, you can’t trust anyone.” He pauses to think for a moment. “Hmm…there is a town where we could go, doubt anyone knows who we are over there. I also spotted a temple nearby, might be a good place to get us to and from the laboratory." "Lovely." Fringe's small mouth smiled lightly. "Let's go and see this town first, it may be a good idea to know where we've come to. Perhaps we can get a bearing on our location?" The line about the temple caught Fringe by surprise. "What do you mean, to and from the lab? Is there some way to travel through these temples?" Dark nods and smirks. “Yeah, I might be able to find us some portals or something to travel in. Also, I think it would be better to eat something here before going out, I am starving.”

He walks back towards the campfire and sits on the ground. He had many thought going through his head but remained quiet about them for now. Fringe was happy to have the company. He hadn't had a meal with another person in a long time. The two of them shared the foods fringe had found. The berries were just as they had been picked, but it looked like while Dark was gone, Fringe had wrapped the root vegetables in edible grasses and left them to cook by the fire. Not exactly a feast fit for a king, but given their situation, it was a pleasant meal. "I haven't been on land for this long before," Fringe said while they spoke. "I know the situations are terrible, but it feels... invigorating." He sighed and smiled. "Movement on land is so different from underwater. I thought it would be uncomfortable, but it's strangely nice. Have you ever traveled underwater, Dark?" Dark thinks to himself a moment. He had been underwater only two times in his life as far as he could remember. The first time was at a camp where he was doing some military training. The second was on a mission with Bullseye to capture a bounty. “Eh, I can’t say that I really have but my experiences with water have not been to pleasant.” He says as he eats some berries. Being a fire element didn’t help his situation. He really disliked water, almost even hated it. Besides drinking, he didn’t have an interest in talking about water adventures. "Oh, come now." Fringe said, doing his best to smile and act happy in their current situation. "I'm certain someone who can control fire would love the water." He smiled at his own little joke, before dropping the act. "It's a lovely place, once you get used to the currents. But I'm rambling about my own home. These "great west mountains" clearly aren't a normal place. What have I gotten tangled up in, exactly?" Dark chuckles and was rather amused by the remark. Despite his stubborn personality he did have a sense of humor. “Well I don’t mind using it to cool off every now and again.” He says as he enjoys the food. "The Great West mountains is an odd place as it is part of a region called "the clan region.” The place was a part of a chain of five clans, one of the most dangerous of them was within the caves but closer to the temple." Fringe patiently sat and listened to every word he had to say. Violent clans, bounty hunting, dragons and supernatural powers... these were dangerous, terrifying things he'd only heard about in rumors. Of course, there was always a band of freedom fighters living through these horrors. But there weren't any freedom fighters here, only Fringe, some lonely farmer from nowhere with few skills to his name, and some powerful Mobian who was gracious enough to protect him from those horrors. It was terrifying. It was terrifying in the most exciting way. Fringe had dove far too deep into a situation he knew nothing about, and he was thrilled to be there. "Is this a kind of gangs situation, where areas are ruled by these different clans?" Fringe asked, excitement beginning to bubble up. If he had eyes, they would be wide open and sparkling from entrancement. "Or are they more roaming nomads that clash whenever they encounter each other?" Dark chuckles as he asks him about the clans. “Honestly it is a mix of both. The clans around here have created a united government system. Of course each one has its own set of rules but it would take all night to explain them. What I can tell you is that there are five major clans.” He stops to think a moment. "And I'm guessing if you're a rogue like you say, you don't belong to any of them." Fringe seemed surprisingly invested for someone who was completely new to these concepts. "I suppose the most important question is, how dangerous are these clans? If they see the two of us doing anything... will they attack?" He was pretty relaxed. “Well I used to belong to one of them. Specifically a Shadow. This clan is known for being the most knowledgeable with portal travel. They will attack me if I am seen in the wrong part…specifically the North temples. You, they won’t have a problem with as you haven’t done anything.” Fringe nodded and exhaled in relief. "Okay... okay, we should be fine," Fringe said. "As long as this isn't a north temple, but I'm sure you would know if it was." If not details, he at least had a basic grasp on the current situation. He held his hands together and processed it all, before beginning to stand. "I don't think we're going to get any answers if we wait here," Fringe began. "We should start moving." There were definitely natural trails through the forests, even if they weren't perfectly defined. More the footpaths formed with a few chopped trees and constant walking. If Dark was right, this would lead straight to the small town. That was fine with Fringe, but the fish was happy to have a chance to relax and speak casually with Dark. To help them calm down, he was telling some stories about his home. "...I finally caught them and asked why they were trying to go through the caves." Fringe was telling the story of some underwater cave entrance on his farm, and the nearby toddlers who seemed fascinated with it. "It turns out they believed there was pirate gold in the systems somewhere. They even asked if I was a pirate myself!" Dark nods and smirks. “I guess going to the towns isn’t a terrible idea. But it has been awhile since I left the west.” He stands up and heads out of the cave with Fringe.

As he stands, he lightly flutters the dust off of his wings. “You are rather curious though. You explore often?” The area was pretty nice and the sun could be seen rising on the horizon. Dark had not yet identified the temple but knew he was outside of the western area. He was thinking if he should go back to the temple ruins so he can discover his family or stay with Fringe and get to the town. "I've been traveling for a while," Fringe admitted. "I'm a farmer, so I'm used to living in one place... but it's been exciting to travel and experience all these new places. Especially somewhere like this, where there's so much that's new, so much to learn." He thought to himself for a short while. He'd remembered everything that had happened that previous day. Everything that Dark had said, specifically. Even he didn't know where they were, and even he didn't seem to know quite who he was... "You want to go back to the temple, don't you?" The question came out of nowhere. Fringe didn't seem disappointing at all. "We don't have to visit the town first. I'd be happy to help you figure anything out." Dark looks at Fringe and shakes his head. “I don’t think you would be of help on the temple mission. I would rather do that solo. Here’s the plan, we go to the town and check out the scene. Perhaps we could find a place of use there.” He says pretty firmly. Dark didn’t want to sound mean but discovering his family was something he would rather do on his own. The town in his mind seemed to be the best option on their adventure. Fringe seemed a bit disappointing at first, but he understood. Drat, and adventure was that close to him! "Very well." Fringe said. "Let's try and figure out where we've come... and see if we can finally replace these clothes. Fifth time's the charm, right?" The streets of this new town weren't quite as busy as those where Dark lived. It was a smaller town for sure, but that was all the better for Fringe. No massive crowds of people to stumble his way through or dozens of stores to figure out on the spot. And it was easy to tell why this town was smaller. Wherever they'd gone was higher in the mountains. High enough that they could start to feel how thin the air was. Something that the residents would probably get used to with time, but not a pleasant experience. Dark tries his best to hide his aura. He indeed admitted that he was a Shadow in his past. This meant that he still carried that aura of that clan. He even had his marking to identify him as a member if one looked close enough. The territory was unfamiliar to him yet he knew he was close to a clan that would attack him if he was caught. The town looked much more inviting as there were a few more Mobians there. Still a rather sizeable town, it was a whole lot more welcoming. The people there were much more diverse and seemed to take notice of Fringe and Dark. But at it's core, they were a super powerful hybrid creature who was liable to be attacked at a moment's notice and what appeared to be a swamp beast with visible organs and muscles. They weren't going to judge others for staring. With a few questions, the pair would be on the city's main street, Dark leading the way and reading the signs aloud to Fringe. Finally, they were able to enter a store and actually get some kind of clothing for him hopefully. But upon entering, Fringe didn't immediately ask. The first thing he said was a completely unrelated question. "Where exactly are we?" Dark looks around the place. He did not know as he didn’t go away from his town much. “Not really sure, but this is pretty far north.” He looks around as a cat was there shopping. The cat looks at them and swings his tail. “Say, are you two lost? I have never seen you around here before.” North? But didn't he say... Fringe immediately stepped in front of Dark. Was it rude? Maybe just a little. But the more the cat and his customers focused on the transparent swamp creature and not Dark, the better. "Lost would be a mild way of putting it," Fringe said with his polite smile. "We wanted to try exploring the mountains we live by, and... well, we went off the trails to be adventurous, and have no idea where we've gone!" He smiled and laughed, not too convincingly. "Could you tell us where we are on the mountain... and help me find something new to wear? My other clothes are completely ruined." The cat was unamused. One could tell that he had some special training, although he didn’t have his gear with him. His expression was kind of cold but not heartless. What did Fringe, the strange creature in front of him have to hide? Who was the winged hedgehog behind him? These thoughts got him thinking as he analyzes the reactions in front of him. “Well I suppose an outsider like you ought to know that we are in the Rebel village. Is it safe to assume that you aren’t a registered clan member?” He asks rather bluntly. "Oh, no." Fringe didn't have to lie, at least. "I barely know the first thing about the clans, to he honest. The rebels aren't going to attack strangers, I shouldn't hope." As he spoke, Fringe started to enter the store. The first thing that struck him were how soft all the fabrics felt. Genuine shock came through his exterior as he felt the commonplace materials he hadn't felt before. "These feel wonderful...!" He seemed genuinely surprised, but his expressions deflated a bit. "I'm guessing these clothes aren't waterproof... but I suppose I wouldn't be wearing anything underwater. You don't have anything waterproof, do you?" He couldn't sent him a sign, only hope that Dark would catch on to not draw attention to himself. He chuckles and smiles. “You won’t have a problem with the police here unless you cause a scene. However this store does not sell any swim gear as it is a designer’s store. Clothing is also more expensive. I might suggest going to the thrift market on the corner to find what you need.” He speaks more friendly like. Dark tries his best to lay low. Fringe being seen wouldn’t cause a problem but for him…things might get rough if he was caught at the wrong place. Fringe seemed to be contemplating things. These were completely normal fabrics on land, but underwater, everything needed to be able to stand up to that kind of constant damage. Cottons and leathers and similar weren't feasible options. Of course, he could always take off these clothes when he wanted to go underwater, and this did feel lovely... "I suppose I'm looking for something for a hiking trip, aren't I?" Fringe smiled. "Could you help me find something to wear over my chest? Something that could stand up to the weather, preferably." He could only keep the attendant's attention for so long. He needed to get Dark out of sight, somewhere people wouldn't notice him, like... "Are there changing rooms here?" Fringe asked. "I might want to take off these bandages before trying anything on." The cat nods and points him to a shopkeeper folding the clothes in the back. “I think she would be of help.” He smiles and swings his tail. Dark was able to sneak away and get out of the shop unnoticed. It wasn’t so much that he was in danger but he could tell that something was different about the cat. He decides to wait for him in the back alleyway of the shop. Fringe himself wasn't associate with any clans, he was still a foreigner in the land, so no one had any problems with him just yet. Fringe was careful not to let anyone see him without anything covering his chest. From a distance, you could mistake him for a light pink. Not if they could see his organs, though. It didn't take too long for someone has enamored with everything as Fringe to get some clothes he loved. The usual shorts for the mountain residents and a light white jacket, a simple outfit of simple fabrics that felt luxurious to him. Maybe it was a bit more than he intended to spend on clothes, but he was happy enough with the find that he didn't care. Happy enough, that is, until he stepped outside, and realized that he didn't know exactly where Dark had gone. The blind fish wandered around, slightly confused. "Dark?" He asked. Even if it was only a few minutes, and even if he could take care of himself, the chance of Dark being hurt in the tiny frame was starting to worry Fringe. It was pretty common to dress in the town, especially for the men. As long as pants in the least were worn, one could fit in. The cashier smiles and waves him out as he leaves. “Have a nice day.” As Fringe walks outside, he could once again hear the town but not Dark.

Dark, however, was in the alleyway and spotted him as he wears his white jacket. He walks towards him as he calls out. “I am over here, Fringe.” He says confidently and in his usual voice. Fringe knew the thought was ridiculous, but the call still sounded oddly comforting. He at least knew Dark was alright for certain. Fringe smiled and following his cane as he approached the alley. The relief melted into his happiness with the purchase, and there was a vibrancy to his smile that Dark hadn't seen just yet. "I'm glad we stopped here... these feel lovely." Fringe gleaned. "Alright... Alright, it doesn't seem like anyone here knows who you are yet, that's good! I shouldn't get into any trouble on my own, right? Maybe I should be the one to talk to others unless we're sure it's safe for you?" He looks at him a moment and seems a bit surprised with his statements about talking to other people. “Eh, it’s not all that necessary for you to talk for me. I just don’t like people in general.” The cat from earlier walks by them not really noticing Dark, but he did see Fringe. He was thinking if he should approach him again or leave him be. He stood at a far enough distance that Dark didn't notice him among the other pedestrians. Pointed ears tuned in to the private conversation the two were sharing. Who was this fish, anyways? "I understand," Fringe admitted. "I... I'm very much the same way, honestly. That may be for the best here." Fringe wrenched his hands around each other, a bit of the enthusiasm gone but still happy. "We know vaguely where we are and we have everything we needed for the morning, maybe we should start heading to..." He looked down. "I'm not sure if Bullseye would still be hunting us back in your home town, but we can't stay here and risk anyone finding out you're a shadow. Is there any kind of clan-free sanctuary on these mountains?" He smirks and looks at him. “I am afraid this is the safest place for us right now. Bullseye probably went to the tent to look for traces of us. Although if you don’t want to stay in the town, we can venture off to my real home. Hmm…” He thinks for a moment. The cat turns to them and walks towards Fringe. “Excuse me sir but I feel the need to ask. Where are you from?” The cat caught Fringe completely by surprise, and his spin around was awkward and stumbled with how quick he tried to face him. "Oh! Uh..." Should he tell the truth? He couldn't have known who he was before coming here. "Oh, I'm from the western sea," Fringe started. "I had a small farm in a little gulf on the coast. It's very far away, I doubt you heard of the town. Austadt?" Once again, Fringe stood in front, almost like he was protecting Dark... or stopping him from answering. The cat stands back and was surprised by his reaction. “Well no, I have not heard of such a place. Although I do find it odd that a creature from the ocean would come this far in land.“ He notes and sees Dark. Fringe was getting more concerned by the moment. Yes, it was strange, but the way he spoke the words almost sounded like he knew exactly why Fringe had come in land. Maybe he could just play it off, pray it wasn't that case... right? "It's as I said, we wanted to explore the mountains we live... by..." Those words had bit him again. He couldn't live in the ocean and near the mountains. There was no doubt in the cat's mind that Fringe was lying through his teeth, and the fish was struggling to come up with a good response. "Well... I mean-!" He sighs. “Well like I said, I won’t hurt you. Exploring the lands is a good enough reason to be out here even if you are a water dweller…” As they were talking, Dark thinks a moment as he wanted to go back to the lab. “Say, do you know of any portals or labs nearby?” For the first moment, Fringe was relieved not to have to keep up his lie. The next, he was concerned that Dark was going to blow his cover. But he kept quiet, and listened. "Portals and labs?" The cat shifted his weight onto one hip, suspicious of the question. "That's a very specific request. Why are you looking for those, anyways?" Dark looks at him and was a bit intrigued by his change in personality. “That’s really nothing you have to worry about. It’s just that we need them to get home.” He says calmly. Fringe was nervous, and the cat wasn't amused. There was something very funny about the pair, but he couldn't place a finger on what exactly. Their motives were lies, but they didn't do anything to hurt him. All the clerk could do was try and piece something together, only to fail at coming to the right conclusion. "The few labs are right by the village cliff face," he told them. "The only portal I could think of would be the temple portal, but you would..." He was exasperated. "It isn't my business. You two travel safe... ..." The cat left, but they could tell he wasn't gone. In fact, he made a beeline straight for his store, and pulled out a phone from under the register, holding a hushed phone call and letting his suspicions of the two run loose. Dark could sense the suspicious behavior of the cat and grabs Fringe’s hand. “Let's fly out of here.” He spreads his wings to let him know they were about to go up. Fringe certainly wasn't about to object. He wasn't comfortable being in the north with Dark, anyways. He knew if they stuck around, it was only a matter of time. So he held on tight as Dark flew straight into the air over the town built into the mountain cliff face. By the time the cat came out of the shop, the two were already gone. He put the phone to his face. "They're gone," he said into the mike. "No, I'm not interested in- I don't know what they're doing together. Yeah... yeah, I'm certain." Dark didn’t fly far and lands in a park nearby. He puts Fringe down gently and hands him his cane. “Sorry for the rush, but that cat was up to nothing good. I don’t know why we can’t find a town without people acting so suspect. However we did get what we needed. The portals are in fact in the temple and there are some labs within the town…” He notes. Who was the cat? Fringe didn't know, and he was happy leaving it that way. "Let's lay low for a while," Fringe said, "and try and stay away from the main street. We don't know if he's dangerous or just suspicious." Fringe was rolling his hands around each other. Something was wrong. "I understand you wanting to see the portal and the temple... you said it's a step to discovering your heritage." He said, running through the thoughts to himself. "So why is it an option? Is there something to these labs I don't know about?" He looks at him and shakes his head. "Nope, but I promised Mindi that I would bring you back to her. She should be ready with the new cloaking device by now and you know a rogue doesn’t go back on his word.” Bullseye put a serious damper on that idea, but Manic understood the sentiment. He had pride, and Fringe could respect that. "Thank you... Yes, let's finish that quickly so you can get to your searching." When the cat said the labs were on the cliff face, he wasn't exaggerating. The local lab buildings were mere feet away from the cliff edge. They weren't shallow cliffs, either. The rock walls stumbled down steeply for hundred and hundreds of feet. If it weren't for the danger of it, the view of the surrounding mountains would be absolutely spectacular. The steel cliff also altered the air flow in the area, and weak winds pushing mobians away from the edge were almost always present. "Are you sure they should have the device here?" Fringe asked. "It is a different lab, after all." He shakes his head. “Actually I've never been to this lab before. I was hoping that we could have access to a computer to communicate with Mindi. I am honestly more worried about you than me at this point.” As they head towards the lab, he could feel the air get colder. Fortunately for Dark his inner fire would keep him and Fringe warm enough. He spotted some of the security and approaches one of the guards. “Excuse me sir.” The guards weren't heavily armed or incredibly strong, but they didn't need to be. They were serious enough about their jobs that they were imposing without. "You've got an appointment?" The alligator guard asked simply. "No... Actually, we're looking for a computer or something similar." Fringe's refined voice didn't waver. "We wish to communicate with a scientist at a different lab, we're working with her on a device and want to know how progress is going." Dark could see that the lab was brand new and for less complex research. His eyes look over to the alligator in front of him. He could tell that he wasn’t a local resident. “Yes, does this place have any computers?” The alligator grumphed at the question. "Does this look like a library?" He asked. "Entrance is for employees, and you aren't employees." "Go easy on them," the scarred imposing great dane scolded her partner. "We can escort you to a guest computer if you're only looking to make a call, but we can't let just anyone in. What lab are you here with?" He sighs, not wanting to show his badge to them but was forced to do so as he wasn’t known around these parts. He shows a card with his name and information on it. A silver badge was next to it showing that he was ranked highly regarding his employment. “Here, maybe this will shed some light on the subject. I am no ordinary resident and I request immediate entry.” The great dane in front of him looked oddly familiar and reminded him of Mindi’s co-worker. He remained silent as he waited for a response from the security. "Of course," the dog replied, stepping aside. "Come and go as you wish." The alligator stepped aside as well and grumphed again. When the pair had passed the guards, the dane reached over and punched her co-worker in the arm. The air felt different in here from the other lab. It wasn't as cold and sterile as the other, it felt just a touch warmer. Not cool enough to seem clean, not warm enough to be nice to be in. Just a vaguely uncomfortable building. A few workers turned to look at the pair coming in, and a few stares lingered at the unknown and hard to ignore duo. But no one explicitly said anything to the two. He smiles and puts away his badge. He was amused by their silly behavior and went inside with a light smirk on his face. He could feel the temperate air as he walks into the strange building. He was used to the strange vibe of the place as he frequently visits places like that. He could see a computer not far from them and ignores the odd stares from the workers there. “There’s a computer.” "Ah, lovely." Fringe said. Dark lead the way to the guest computers, and sitting down caused most of the curious stares to avert. They were just there to do some work. Fringe pushed the power button, but past that point, Dark was going to have to take over all the work. And while Dark started to try and contact Mindi, there was one other person concerned with communicating with the pair. A cat, on the other side of the small town. "And you're absolutely certain?" A uniformed frog asked the cat as they rushed to their destination. "We don't take bluffs lightly." "He's your man," the cat replied, totally confident in his findings. But nothing he knew about the two was going to matter much if he was wrong about the suspicions. "They're at one of those labs on the edge of the city, I'll call in some back up to help." The two remained blissfully unaware of their situation as the video chat software finally booted up and Mindi's face greeted them through the stuttering picture. Dark looks as the computer system boots up. While he was waiting, he was thinking about the strange cat from earlier. Should he become his bounty or was he not a threat? These questions circle in his head as his eyes were greeted with the light from the computer screen.

As Dark boots up the screen, he made a secret call to her. “Hey, sorry for the delay but I was reporting back to you about the status of Fringe…” Fringe waved at the camera and smiled. "Hello, Mindi." He said with a weak smile. "I'm sorry about the sudden call, but a lot has happened since yesterday." He tried to think of how to introduce the point. "I'm still not completely sure of how everything happened, but we're in the north now. Dark's looking for a way home, and he said he wanted to check on progress on the device?" Mindi smiles and nods. “That is correct, we have the device ready for you back here. When would you two be able to get here to receive your item?” She asks hoping for soon. Dark looks at her in the screen. “We shall arrive within a day. We have located a temple nearby and I suspect that there are portals within it.” "That's lovely!" Fringe said in response to both at once. What was his life going to be like when he looked normal? He had no idea, but it was going to be better than however he looked now. He even seemed to blush a little in sheer happiness at the news. The small band arrived outside of the lab. The cat approached with the frog again. "Excuse me," the frog said to the two guards. "We're lookin' for a hybrid hedgehog and a pink fish. You seen them here?" "Yeah," the alligator said, "They're in here right now..." Mindi smiles. “Alright, Dark, don’t let me down. Spectre will have it ready for you at the front desk.” Dark nods and ends the phone call quickly afterwards. He deleted the history of the call and stood up. “Lets go, Fringe.” The two stood up to leave... and Fringe immediately found himself ducked behind a wall as Dark moved him out of the way. Thankfully, even though Dark could see that cat, he didn't seem to see them, instead focusing his attention on the lab assistant who seemed utterly bored with talking to the two. "Do you know where these guests are?" The frog asked. The cat jutted his hip and shifted his weight onto one leg, impatient for the reply. "No," the lab aid said. "I dunno, they're guests? Maybe the guest area?" She shrugged. "You don't think they know about you... right?" Fringe whispered, hoping they were out of sight of the pair. Dark analyzes the scene. He had determined that the cat wasn’t a real threat and figured that he would win if they were to fight. He could see the cat and saw that he was a bit odd. He hushes Fringe as he whispers before slowly darting towards another wall. The two stood hushed and still, hoping for the best. Had Dark lead Fringe out of sight? He sure hoped so. "Excuse me, have you seen..." Seemed to be the prevailing question. Well, the prevailing question the two visitors were asking. There was a great deal of confusion from the scientists that tried to leave the lab. Apparently, the front door was locked tight, and a snapper near the door wearing a matching uniform was insistent that they all remain calm, only confusing the employees further. Something was seriously off. "Yes, I saw them when they came in," a goose eventually told the frog. He pointed towards the small computer area the two were hiding in. "They were using a computer in there just a moment ago." Now that the cat was getting closer, Dark could see he was holding some kind of a paper, maybe even a document. The door to the room opened with a slam. Dark walked out from behind the wall. He wasn’t scared of them, especially since they weren’t armed. He approaches the cat confidently. “You followed me here.”

He stands pretty close to the cat as if telling him to back off. He eyes pulse and his wings rest behind his back as he looks at the cat in front of him. Oh, the cat was scared, and clutched to the paper as he hesitantly stepped back. The frog sure wasn't, and stood even closer to Dark, glaring him down... and looking straight past him. The cat pointed towards the wall at Fringe's tail, barely visible from behind the partition. "That's him." With one rough hand, the uniformed frog tugged on Fringe's arm. "Fringe, blind cave loach?" The frog almost spat the words at him. "You're under arrest for the murders of-" The frog let go for just a second, stumbling to the ground and clutching his solar plexus after a rough hit. His feet moved quicker than expected, zipping across the tables and speeding straight towards the cat who had been following the pair. In a moment, he was thrown against the wall back first, stumbling to the ground as the frog got up to rush Fringe and the confused Dark. "Come on, we've gotta go!" Dark assumed that Fringe knew who they were and looks at the frog coming at him. “Stop! This is your only warning!” He says before preparing to fight them. Fringe ducked behind Dark. He could handle fighting a dragon, he could fight some schlub, right? The cat took the chance to stumble out of the room and rush towards the front door, leaving the frog to fight on his own. "Don't protect the fugitive!" The frog yelled out in a deep, glottal voice. He pulled a taser out of his pocket. From this distance, Dark could see the emblem embroidered onto the officer's hat, the logo for G.U.N. Dark couldn’t remember who the G.U.N were as he rarely traveled between worlds. He saw the taser. He had been hit a lot with those in the past and had grown some resistance to them. He still hated the effect of paralysis from them. He stretches his hand out ready to pull it away from him. “Look, you’re not worth the fight for me. You should leave now.” "I'm not leaving until we've caught-" The fight was clearly worth it for Fringe, who lunged head first towards the agent. His fists were stopped mere moments from making contact with the frog's skin, and the taser was held against the fish's flesh. He instantly froze up, the muscles of his back tensing and his body falling to the floor. Arms and legs twitched in a desperate attempt to make another attack, but Fringe was already out, and the G.U.N. agent was starting to turn his attention to his companion. He could hear the cat reenter the building. At the front door, he could see him enter again... with two local clan members. Dark was going to have to think of something, and fast. He immediately grabs Fringe and darts towards the entrance. He could have struck the frog but he knew he was after Fringe. The clan members he saw were rebels and not his rival clan. That was good for him as he didn’t want to get captured again. He approaches the door and towards the cliff’s edge ready to fly away. The initial fury of the rival clan members quickly faded as they saw their targets. He was just a Shadow, they weren't- They slapped the cat on the arm, wondering exactly why he told the wrong clan about a shadow being in the area. But the cat still stared from a distance. Fringe was regaining control of his muscles, but that wasn't going to help with the small collection of G.U.N. officers outside of the building. Fringe could hear the guns clicking in aim at the two stangers being forced to back away, towards the cliff face. The cool updraft from the cliff face and the rustling of Dark's wings made Fringe's stomach drop. "You aren't thinking-" Dark smirks. “Hang on tight!” He jumps the cliff and flies off into the horizon. The cool wind could be felt by the two as he makes his escape.

On the lab side, the two G.U.N. agents were in trouble. The United Rebels or the U.R. did not take being lied to lightly. Regarding Dark’s status, the North most clan, the Sunshines, would have a problem. Fringe was having a bit of a problem himself, clinging to some hybrid for dear life as they plummeted hundreds of feet. Even if Dark was a strong flier, this was entirely different from speeding through ocean currents. Fringe could stop wherever he wanted in water. There was no such security in the sky. Fringe didn't know where he was being taken. All he knew was that if Dark fumbled and dropped Fringe, he would doubtlessly plummet to his death. It was a good thing he couldn't see, or he would have been utterly hyperventilating at this point. That didn't meant Dark couldn't see the blatant fear as he clung to the hybrid, the pair elegantly surfing over the steep rock walls with what looked like little effort. Dark takes him to the cave where they set up camp and places him on the ground. “It’s okay, we are on the ground now.” He looks around hoping they wouldn’t follow. Something shook the cave grounds shortly afterwards. The area they landed was a wild forested area near a river. It wasn't secluded, it was in the middle of countless miles and miles of unclaimed land. Even if they were searching, they wouldn't be able to zero in on such a specific people in such a vast area. "Alright... Alright, we're safe." Fringe said, still in shock and breathing heavily to calm his nerves. His feet dangled into the large river running past. He stopped his heavy breathing, and fell face first into the water. Fringe didn't swim, just staying in the water and gently swaying his fins. He was back in his element. He was safe. This place was safe. Dark looks out into the horizon towards the Sol temple. Meanwhile with the frog and cat, they were getting approached by two lizard like creatures. These creatures had long tails like cats and lemurs but skin like lizards. One of them was black skinned with a red fire symbol on his chest and the other was white skinned with deep red eyes. “You two, come with us.” They almost didn't have a choice, and their chances to speak were met with commands to stop talking. The creatures were dragged through the area, long past the town and the areas they were used to, until they had reached... "Oh, no!" The frog almost screamed out, pointing his finger in the face of the being attempting to throw him into a dungeon. "I'm a G.U.N. agent, I'll have you know! One finger on me, and the whole bureau-" The creature leading him grabbed his finger and bent it until it snapped. He gripped his hand, clearly in pain but fighting it. He tried to play it off as mere anger, or even annoyance. The cat, however, was utterly horrified. "It's- It's-" the blubbered out, trying not to totally panic and already failing. "The posters said to- if we saw the dark guy, we'd tell the local clan! I thought- You are the local clan, right?!" He yelled in protest, but didn't try to escape the cell. "I didn't even know this old frog!" The white skinned creature and the black skinned creature watch as the police officials get in their way. The officials wore some light gear resembling they were the police. They all had badges as one would expect but not all of them were openly armed. As they were in sight of the dungeon, they were greeted by a white furred hedgehog with wings just like Dark’s. He was indeed a Sunshine. “Hold up! Maybe they are on to something.” The officials stop what they were doing immediately and bow. Something about this hedgehog resembled some sort of authority. But to what degree? He walks over to the two and looks at the cat who appeared smarter than the frog. The frog grumphed at the gesture. Did his title mean nothing to these creatures? "I'm..." The cat was struggling for the right words. "There are always those posters about warning the clan if we see anyone with the marks of a Shadow." He looked for something to help him act calm. "And there were wanted posters for the fish... I was just doing my job! The posters said to report the fish to G.U.N., to report the Shadow to the clans! Did I-? You aren't the right clan, are you?" "Don't listen to these loonies, kid." The frog rebutted. "Ya did the right thing." The hedgehog stands up straight, his white fur was shining in the light as he did so. “Hmm…let me see those documents.” He looks at the guardians as they let the cat go to him. His eyes were blue and seemed much different than the other clan members. As the day moves on, Dark and Fringe’s status was slowly becoming more apparent. The first document was a fairly normal wanted poster for the area. Not even a wanted poster, more of a sheet of basic information, warning of associating with the Shadow clan, the distinguishing markings, and with the ever present command to "inform the local clan or police if you ever should spot a member." The second was a more stereotypical wanted poster. There was a picture of Fringe's profile, unmistakable. Numbers on the papers directed to local and general G.U.N. hotlines, with the suspect wanted for "assault with a deadly weapon, murder, unlawful escape," with large reward figures circled in red marker by the cat in question. "I'm Agent Tetra," The frog introduced himself while the papers were read over. "I didn't call your backup, that was all the kid here. I'm only after his fish friend." The cat turned around and glared at the agent, horrified at the comment. "N-no, I swear! You get my mistake, right?" The hedgehog smiles and hands him his paperwork back. “Well these files are pretty legit, but now I need to request a favor of you, cat…I need you to tell me more of the status of this Shadow; find more information on his whereabouts. As for Tetra, you have a choice to help him.” The clan police look at him and seem ready to put him on trial. The punishment seemed to have changed in its severity when the hedgehog spoke. "Ain't no choice to helping him," Tetra said briskly. "I'm finding that fish, and I'm taking in his friend, too!" "His friend is named Dark," the cat informed the hedgehog. "And my name isn't 'cat.' It's Jersey. I'm not sure how I would find him again." "I sure as hell do." Tetra said. "But you need to keep your men in check, punk!" He pointed his hand at the hedgehog, letting his broken finger bend unnaturally the whole while. "Any officer that breaks a finger for no reason's a shitty officer, and if the chief finds out what you did to an agent-" He glares at him almost as if he was going to smack him across his face. “You ought to know who you are talking to, Slippy. I will let you slide by excusing your punishment. As for you, Jersey, you keep your friend in check before he sees someone worse than me. Also, these are not my men but they know to respect me…Now carry on and don’t come back until you gotten that info back.” He says before stretching his wings. The guardians walk away as if told to do so and nothing else. The two could only stand in place for a moment. Jersey brushed the fur on the back of his head back in anxiety, wondering what these leaving men were planning. Nothing, apparently. They walked away quietly, and left the two alone. The two began their walk back to the city, unsure of what they were supposed to say. Jersey held out his hand to try and check on the agent's finger, but it was swatted away. "I'll handle this thing," he insisted. "You go back to your store, I've gotta hedgehog to find." "No." The cat insisted. The frog turned his attention to his partner, almost in shock. "No, if they did that to you for just- I'm helping." He insisted. "I need that reward money, and I don't know what they'd do if I-" He was shut up by a firm slap on the back. "That's the spirit." Tetra said, happy to see some bravery out of the cat. "Now, let me show you the ropes of... ..." Jersey had a new job now, even if he wasn't entirely jazzed about it. And deep in the wild forests, Fringe was going to have to put together a plan with Dark about how to get back to his home, even if he wasn't entirely jazzed about going back. Dark looks at Fringe as they were sitting by the campfire. He circulates some heat from within the fire and within himself and was in some sort of meditative trance for a moment before opening his eyes to look at Fringe. “You appear to have something on your mind?” He asks sounding a bit concerned. "I'm scared," Fringe said quietly, huddling both arms around his curled up legs. "These men came out of nowhere to find us, and now we're running from the law. Your own friends turned on you- You're too calm." Webbed hands clutched at the fabric of his new clothes for something to grasp to. "It seems like everything we've been doing has just been to avoid death." Fringe's mind kept drifting back to that river they landed by. "I almost want to swim down this random river and see where I end up," Fringe admitted. "It worked to make me disappear once, why wouldn't it work again?" He sighs not knowing what to say to him. He wonders if he would ever see his family again. However, he was still more concerned with Fringe and his situation. He thinks long and hard before closing his eyes. With Jersey and Tetra, as they walk through the town, they could see a large house-like building in the distance. "What do you mean, you don't know this place?!" Tetra yelled at his cat companion. "I've barely lived here!" He protested. "But I know this place is some sort of clan building. The Sunshine Capitol, I think? It should have some answers for us about the Shadow clan, right?" He wasn't entirely sure himself, he was completely new to any kind of investigation. The Sunshine Capitol building was somewhere Jersey had seen from a distance, but never gotten close to. It was a tall, imposing structure, but strangely elegant in it's own way. The 'sunshine' in the name was reflected in the exterior, decorated in bright yellows and brilliant golds radiating visual heat. This visit was partially for Jersey's own curiosity, but he knew this mission came first. As they enter the city, they knew something was drastically different than the previous town. There was a divine energy that could be felt within the town and its people. A lot of them had white fur like the hedgehog seen before and they notice the two as they stroll along. A young hedgehog walks over to them and smiles. “Welcome to Sunshine Capitol. Is there anything we can do for our world travelers?” Jersey stood silent and took in the scenery while Tetra took charge and spoke to the stranger. "Agent Tetra, G.U.N." He introduced himself, lazily holding up his badge with his good hand. "We're working with the Rebel police. A Shadow's helping a fugitive hide in the area, and we're trying to find him. You know somewhere we could learn about that clan?" She looks at him and at Jersey. “Well, looks like you need that hand taken care of first. I am a local healer. Also the rebels…our allies…hmm, you would need to go up to the local headquarters or visit Luminus." She spoke pretty fast but seemed to know what she was talking about. With Dark and Fringe, Dark stands up and looks at Fringe. “I am heading out to that temple to see what we can do about finding our homes. Is there anything you need from me when I return?” "My home..." Fringe seemed hesitant again. He knew enough about Fringe to know why he left his old home. "I'm not going back to the ocean," Fringe protested. "And that lake isn't even mine yet. We only have to worry about you, Dark, I don't have a home yet. I'll travel and find a new one when you're safe." Dark had taken the situation far too well, but Fringe wasn't going to complain. "Could you tell me if there are any wanted posters, or signs? Dark looks at him. “Sorry, I admit that I worded that wrong. Do you think the lake where I met you could be your home?” He speaks and starts to head out of the cave. Fringe just sat still and listened intently as Dark left the cave. "I don't think I'm safe staying there anymore... I don't know." He sat close to the fire and worried about everything that was going to have to change yet again. He wasn't just a fugitive, he was a fugitive yet again. He waited as Dark left, needing time to be alone and think things through in private. Meanwhile within the town, Tetra had his hand treated by the lady. “There, there, I got you all patched up.” She says with a sweet smile. Jersey looks at her and slicks his smooth fur back. “Alright…miss, who are you and how did you do that…” The townsfolks look up towards the sky. "I'm just the tour guide," the hedgehog introduced herself, leaving out suspiciously too many details. "Now, I believe you wanted to know about-" "We want to know who you are," the agent cut in with. "You aren't a normal rodent, tell us who you are." She was offended when he said the term rodent to refer to her. It wasn’t illegal to use but it was pretty insulting to use around the area. She puts her hands on her hips and huffs. “Well excuse me sir, that is no way to talk to a lady. I ought to slap you across the face but I am a nice lady. You may call me Clairissa. If you want further help, you should go to the temple up the hill.” Jersey might have been as straight as a circle, but he knew how he looked. And he knew how to use that to his advantage. He slapped Tetra on the arm. "Don't insult her!" He scolded the agent, but he responded to his glower with a wink out of the eye Clairissa couldn't see. Jersey turned back and brushed his hair back, just enough to show off an attractive jawline. "I'm sorry about his behavior, Clairissa. Clairissa..." He seemed to be contemplating the name. "It's cute. It fits you. But we are pressed for time here, Clair- can I call you Clair?" He stepped forward slightly, to make sure there were no doubts about what he was pretending to insinuate. "If you can help us, we can get this dumb job done sooner. If it's done soon enough, I could see you without old Croaky here. That sound nice?" She wasn’t buying the display he was putting on in the least. Being in a relationship herself she had no interest but she played along a bit showing off her sexy curves and beautiful face. “Well I suppose I can help but I don’t think we can see each other tonight.” She says with elegance and a fake smile on her face. Dark flies over the town hoping no one would notice him. He was planning on how he would get by the guardians of the temple. He knew these guards were way more serious than the ones at the lab. He lands in a tree nearby. "Perhaps you could...?" "Ask me again later..." "You can leave your post..." The cat and hedgehog threw fake flirts back and forth at each other, pretending to be interested in the other person and neither of them buying the other's act. It took 'old croaky' stepping in to break up the lack of sexual tension between the two, and get her to agree to follow them. She seemed to know the clans well enough, and she was just about to get off her shift anyways. If it would help this old toad and the obviously gay guy with him get off her back, she was fine with helping them a little. Dark's tree was far enough away from the Sunshine's temple that he wasn't going to be spotted through the foliage, but he had a clear view of the entrance. Not just the entrance, but those two agents walking up to the building, with some kind of a third helper. The two boys weren't dressed totally normally for the mountain, but this girl leading them and talking to the guards was definitely a local. He wasn’t deterred upon seeing them but knew his adventure to the temple would be that much more challenging. He thinks for a moment. “Hmm…maybe I should get some disguise before I go any further.” He looks down and spots some hawk feathers and a gem nearby. They could have been dropped by a lost traveler but he didn’t have a choice. Clairissa was let inside by the guardians. She gives a subtle wink to one of them as he was her boyfriend and enters the bright temple. “Alright, Slippy and Mappy cat, here is where you would find Luminus. This temple holds some secrets so be cautious of where you stray off too. If you have any questions, ask the front desk." Clairissa was off, not at all tricked by the cat and leaving them to find their way around on their own. The receptionist was happy to give them directions. Fortunately for Tetra, he was the first person who seemed to know what G.U.N. was. Unfortunately for them, he was the first person who seemed to know what G.U.N. was. "Ahahaha!" The camel was trying to repress his laughs at the name and deathly serious way he showed off his badge. "Are you seriously- Mmmph!" He snorted out. "Does this look like Station Square, do you think that two-bit off-brand police force has ANY power here?!" His teeth almost sank into his jaw, with how hard he was biting to try and suppress the giggles. He gave in, bellowing loudly to the slightly emasculated frog. "Just go- Go down that hall!" The camel motioned down the hall door to his side. "He's the fifth door on the right-! Pfffthaahaahaaah!" Sure enough, the two were buzzed into the main area of the building. Sparce but strategically placed guards made sure no one unauthorized went towards the more secretive areas of the temple. The two cautiously walked towards the room Luminus was in, but even if they were allowed to meet with him, the chuckling from down the hall made it clear they weren't in a position of any real power. The reception desk surely had some fun as the G.U.N. frog was the joke of the day. The guards inside the temple looked a lot more serious. Some of them had a weapon on their hip but others appeared unarmed. What a strange scene it was. On top of that many were hedgehogs but a few of them were a strange lizard like creature with a long cat like tail. Close to Luminus the gem, there were two winged guardians holding spears. Although appearing like statues, one could tell that they were the strongest beings there. As they approach the gem room they could see the same white furred hedgehog from before. He lands and the two guardians salute to him as he walks around the giant 35ft tall rock. Another door before the gem room was approached as the short 4ft tall lizard looking guardian greets them. “You two come to see Luminus?” Jersey was a bit nervous as the small but fiesty looking creature looked at him. He gives a light chuckle as he looks down towards the creature. “What am I supposed to be scared of you? I could kick you across the room if I wanted, smalls.” Tetra wasn’t laughing as the creature gave him an irritated glare. Even he knew not to play around with this guy despite knowing his own strength. “You idiot! That was one of the worst things you could say…um…hi…” The guard glared back. The threat wasn't making him inclined to let them in, and the fact this other man had some kind of an official looking emblem wasn't helping. There were several unsavory organizations that might have wanted their hands on the Luminus gem, or any gems of that sort, and these guys weren't making themselves look good. "We're going to need to see your authorization to be here." He said, almost growling the words out. "Are you here with an organization, or as visitors?" "We're here representing G.U.N." Tetra held up his badge with just a little bit less confidence. The name wasn't helping the guard's suppositions. "The Rebel clan's asking for our help with something. Let me... ...here we go!" There was a crumpled piece of paper in the cat's pocket, some copy of official paperwork proving their association with the clan. This four-foot guard glared at some of the others in the room, and motioned them over. "Follow me," he ordered. Suddenly, there were a few more of these strange lizard-like creatures keeping a close eye on the rude visitors.

The creatures were pretty close as the guard slides the stone door open. His long tail swings behind his as he does. He leads them to a room where they could see the large gem. A small pedestal was next to it which had some information. The guardians closest to the gem stood upfront and wouldn’t let them get close. “Sorry but viewing has been closed at this time. Please return later.”

Jersey was getting frustrated. He could see the gem but he wanted to get the information he needed. “We didn’t come to see your gem, we came to let you know that we spotted the hedgehog and he’s with a fish!”

The guardians partner looks at him and the other guard signals him to stay calm. “Well you came to the right place, but do you have the proper permissions to report to princess Sophia?”

Princess. Jersey had lived in the area for long enough to know that there was some kind of a royal family, but he had no idea who they were. Tetra had barely just been told, but he seemed to accept the idea pretty quickly.

"We have the permission of my men AND that local clan!" Tetra shot back, getting impatient with everything. "We've been hunting this boy for weeks, and if you don't like us, that's fine. But the quicker we get him, the quicker we'll leave your land. And don't you trust your own guards?! Any guards worth their salt'd be able to fend off some ponce of a cat and an old frog. You do trust your men, don't you? Act like a leader and let us see her now!"

Jersey looks at the hedgehog in front of him. He was not amused. “Great, now who’s the idiot… Excuse my friend here, but we do have the proper permissions.” He says as he shows him a badge given to them from the offices they had visited earlier.

He looks them over and nods. He looks at his partner and they both turn to them. “Have us escort you to the portal room. I will have to be making some reports of this behavior I saw today.” He spoke pretty sternly before heading towards a black door. As he did so, Dark managed to make his way in. He used the bird feathers on his arms to mask that he was a hybrid, making him look more like a regular hawk. Assuming the gems were probably stolen, he brought them to the offices and they paid him some money. When he managed to get to the gem room, he saw the portal door opening. This was his chance to get to the lab. The two were given the briefing on protocol for using the portals. Tetra's eyes got suspicious with everything he was saying, mentally comparing this to warp rings and wondering if these portals were actually legal. Jersey just seemed entirely confused and had no idea what was going on at any stage anymore. But Tetra seemed confident, and hell, he wasn't a wimp! The warp finished opening, and the others motioned for them to enter. Tetra nodded and entered, not sure if these lizard creatures were going to give them the boot if they stayed any longer. Jersey held his hand out to the swirling colors and put his hand through. Feeling no danger, he slowly stepped through and onto the other side. "Alright, start closing it!" One of the guards commanded once the two were through. Dark sneaks over and makes it just in time before the doors seal shut. He hides in the darkest part of the room as the guardians open up the portals. The lizard-like creatures wait outside the door as they were viewing a castle like structure. “Enter quickly.” It wouldn't take long before Dark was through the portal, and into... where was this, anyways? The two agents walked down the makeshift hall with Dark at a distance, quietly watching as they made their way to some kind of a front check-in desk. "Excuse me," Jersey said, flashing his smile to the receptionist. "We're here to talk to the princess?" A white furred hedgehog was walking to the desk. She was different as she was wearing elegant clothes and was very good looking. She walks over to the agents as they ring the bell on the table. “Oh, hey you two…I am the princess you are looking for.” She says pretty boldly. Dark sees the guardians close up the portal as they enter. He watches as they activate a strange looking mechanism which draws power from the other gems. They walks out and he smirks as his patience payed off. “Now that they are gone, things should get easy for me.” He thought. Hitting on a royal... no, there was no way that would work. He just had to try and look attractive, and not push anything. "My apologies, I should have known." Jersey greeted. We're G.U.N. agents working with the Rogue clan police-" "AGENT." Tetra corrected pointedly. "A G.U.N. agent and a temporary assistant. We've been told to keep an eye out for a member of the shadow clan? He's escaped with a fugitive we're looking for. We've got their names and pictures here." Tetra nudged his companion, who reached into his jacket coat pockets. They had the photo of Fringe from his wanted poster and a security photo of Dark, both of which were handed over to the princess. "They're menaces," Tetra started, "And if we're gonna stop 'em, we need to know everything about this 'shadow' clan." She almost chuckles at him but understood his request. "I think the local police would have work just as well for the fish but the situation about the clans is a serious matter. We shall talk in private. Come with me.” She steps away as she approaches a guarded room. Doors closed behind the two and guards stood out front. They were in private, for now at least. For once, Dark couldn't listen in on their conversation. The two handed over the blurry security photo again. Even though the photo's weren't crystal clear, they weren't going to need to be. "The fish boy has see through skin," Tetra said, "you can see his guts through his stomach." Jersey stood near the princess, just enough to see the photo again. "But the other guy, he didn't look like a normal hedgehog, not at all. He was some kind of hybrid, I think." He did his best to make his concerned glare to the princess look attractive. "Do you have any way of finding out who he is? And what should we know about the Shadows before we start searching for them?" She gives him a stern look when he asked about the Shadows once again. She takes a seat in a chair across from them as well. “You shouldn’t concern yourself with the Shadows. They play with things that most don’t understand. As for the hedgehog, it is pretty common to see hybrids as you probably saw some while entering here. However that hedgehog is no mere citizen. I suggest keeping your distance and if you run into him again, report where you found him.

Another creature could be heard coming their way as she was talking to them. "We'll be sure to report anything," Jersey asked. "But what do you mean by, 'no mere citizen?' If we're going to protect you from these two, we have to know everything about them." He put on his charming smile yet again. "We want to keep you safe, your highness." Tetra didn't care about the flirting. His attention was drawn to the sound of an approaching stranger, letting Jersey's bad attempts at flirting take over while he diverted his attention. Were they being listened in on? She was amused by his sad attempt to seduce her. She found it rather comical and kind of had a thing for it. She smiles and keeps her composure. “Well I am glad we are speaking privately but he’s a clan reject. I won’t tell you the reasons why as that is outside my duties…oh, I hear the apprentice coming.”

The hedgehog from before appears and looks at the two. “Ah, I see you have made it here. Not that that surprises me, brought the information I requested of you?” "We did." The frog seemed relieved it was a familiar face, even if it was the one that dragged them into this mess. He spoke firmly and hoped that he would forget all about threatening legal action. "And we're telling the princess what to look out for. We can get you those papers if Don Juan's done hitting on the royal family?" Jersey actually blushed a little at the comment. Just a little. The documents were folded and kept in his pocket, and handed over to the hedgehog hybrid. "There's everything you wanted. Fringe's arrest report, security footage, access to..." The list was self explanatory, and he let the words peter off. He was left to stand around and try to act calm after being entirely called out on his flirting. He looks at the papers seeing that they were the same. “I told you to pin point his location. These are exactly the same!” He said frustrated before the princess looks at him. “Don’t get upset with them, they really are trying their best even if they are a little slow. I am sure we can figure something out, Nova.” She winks at the cat hoping he would give them mercy. Meanwhile with Dark, he analyzes the portal in front of him seeing how they work. He remembers what his former clan told him about operating the device and types in some coordinates. Jersey smiled at the wink, surprised the princess was actually amused by his nonsense. It probably wasn't going to last, he knew he shouldn't let it get to him. But he was definitely going to let it get to him. "Our men are on it right now, you can't expect a result in four hours." The frog retorted. "They disappeared into the wilderness, there's nothing but nothing north of where they are. We'll have them in a week, tops." They didn't realize that dark was close, of course. A few rooms away in fact. The machine seemed like it wasn't accepting the coordinates at first. Did he do something wrong? But learning to operate something for the first time always took work, and before long, the portal was opened again. The hedgehog glares at the frog in distaste. “You are in no position to speak to me that way but I need your help so I will spare you once again…” The princess taps his shoulder. “Excuse the interruption, but I think I can handle this.”

The hedgehog nods and looks at her. “I am sorry, Sophia…I will let the princess do her business. How rude of me to interrupt.” As the portal opens again, an alarm goes off and the guardians start to rush in immediately. Dark could hear them but they were too late. He flies into the portal leading him to the lab and it seals up behind him. “Hehe, made it.” He looks around as he was in the alleyway. There was no sign of Bullseye. There was no sign of Nightmare or his dragon, either. But Dark was going to have to be out of there quickly. They had only escaped a few hours tops, but that was enough time for wanted posters to start being printed. And especially since this was his home, he was going to have keep out of sight at all costs. He was into the lab shortly. The air was just as cool as ever, the workers the same familiar faces. As sterile and detached as this kind of place could feel, it was comforting at the moment. Halls and short walks would lead Dark to where the device was going to be, and soon enough, they would lead him to Mindi. While Dark was in the lab, Sophia was talking with Jersey and Tetra. The hedgehog leaves as he was dismissed. “I…I will be at the headquarters.” Sophia nods and looks at Tetra. “Now what were you saying about this hedgehog?” "Well, that's the last we had to say about him," Tetra admitted. "He's in the north wilderness, he'll have to come out soon. If we don't find him, he'll try escaping through here. But he's with a dangerous fugitive. Make sure every single person in this town knows who they're looking for. "And make sure you stay out of danger yourself," Jersey added. "We understand you can't tell us anything else about him, as it's... what did you say, out of line? I'm sure it wouldn't be out of line to tell us where we could learn more information about the Shadows?" That smile came back, and Tetra mentally rolled his eyes. "And be sure you don't tell us where we could learn any of these things you said you couldn't tell us. We certainly wouldn't want to hear any of that, would we?" Her mood changes as she didn’t like Jersey’s fake sultry tone. “Well I can tell you that the town does know what they need to know. If you must truly learn more about the Shadows, I suggest heading south or becoming one of my citizens. Also, your attempts to seduce me are falling short. Try not to make it so obvious when you are just trying to get what you want. But now I must be off to my duties. Carry on.” She speaks calmly as a guard appears behind them to escort them out. Oh, Tetra glared. He glared the whole while as they were escorted out of the castle. He glared the whole while as they went looking for some way to get out of the area. Jersey already knew he'd screwed up his chances, even it it was with someone he wasn't interested in. But with a royal? It would have stung even if he wasn't be stared down by an already crabby frog. "Alright," he said to try and distract himself from bombing twice already. "Let's see if they'll let us use that teleport again." He looked back at the building they were just escorted out of. And back to the toads unending glare. "You stop that." ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ Fringe didn't leave the camp they had set up for too long, but the idea kept crossing his mind. He was swimming further and further down the river before swimming back, teasing himself with the thoughts of escape. Could he pull this off? Would this river lead to any kind of settlement? If anyone here was safe, it was Dark, but one of his other friends had already backstabbed him. He needed some kind of friendship, but Fringe needed a new life, and sticking with Dark was only bringing his old life closer to them both. What to do... He wasn't too far from the camp when he could hear the familiar flapping of Dark's wings high above. Fringe climbed out of the river and reached down to grab his clothes while Dark landed. "How was the situation up there?" Fringe asked in greeting. Dark smirks and lands with the device in his hands. “Well it was pretty easy. I got nothing more than a few odd looks but no one questioned who I was. I even brought you the device." He puts it up to him so he could know that it was there.

As the cat and the toad were escorted outside of the castle, the guardians look at them. “Alright, we will take you back to the temple but after that, you are on your own.”

Jersey nods. He felt bad for failing several times. At this point he wasn’t even sure if they would let him speak without dismissing him or threatening him. He looks at the guardian and attempts to redeem himself one last time. “Alright, I tried being nice but that’s not working. Look we simply request to know a bit more about these so called Shadows, that’s it. We shouldn’t have to pull teeth to get that. Now take us somewhere where we could get that and we promise to get what you want…that hedgehog!”

Tetra was a bit surprised by his change in tone but it was the best thing going for him. He remained silent as bringing up the G.U.N. wouldn’t help the situation. The guardians didn't act moved by the comment, but it was their job not to. This change of character was welcomed. It was certainly better than the lover man crap he'd been playing the whole time. "And what do you need to know about them." One of them asked in response. "Everything," Tetra admitted as coordinates were typed. The stare was gone at this point, his way of telling Jersey he was fine for now. Another portal opened and the two were ushered through, wondering where exactly was the best place to learn. Jersey looks as it leads them back to the temple. He looks at the guardians. “Wait, can you transport us south? That’s where the Shadows are, correct?”

The guardians nod. “Yes, but we must warn that it may be dangerous to go there especially since the rouge hedgehog lives around there. We know this from our most recent report.” "We know," Tetra informed them. "That's why we're going." He reached into his holster, pulling out a pistol. "And we're gonna capture that crook somehow, they ain't hiding from us." In fact, the two did have ways to hid from them. Back at their campsite, Fringe was fastening the device to himself, a small device that attached to his neck like a choker. He carefully adjusted the width, until it was snug around his neck. "How exactly does this device work?" He asked, a bit wary of the technology. With Dark and Fringe, Dark watches Fringe as he adjusts the device. He smiles and looks at him. “So are you ready to look normal?” The device was pretty comfortable to wear despite looking like a collar. "Absolutely," Fringe said. He worried slightly as the device was activated in Dark's hands... was this going to hurt? He couldn't see the results, but he could feel the heat from the device and a strange tingling as his body appeared to chance. Slowly, his translucent skin was covered in slightly damp-seeming scales, with light beige going down his chest and his back and limbs covered in a brilliant golden yellow. The voids of his face were filled in with rounded eyes fitting the holes to a T, complete with faux eyelids and gentle brown eyes. The hologram built it's way down his body and eventually ending at the tip of his tail, even tinting the normally translucent white tail of his. "Did it-" Fringe seemed hesitant to ask, after all the hard work that must have gone into this device. "Did it work?" Eyes blinked naturally, expressing the subtle expressions of his face as natural eye movements. Dark nods as he looked like a normal lizard. “You look normal to me. How does it feel on you?” He asks as he looks him over.

"It feels like... nothing." Fringe admitted. The tingling from the hologram's appearance had subsided. "It feels like I'm just waking around like normal. Are you sure it works properly?" He dipped one of his webbed hands into the river to test. The hologram even reacted to the water to make the fake hand look wet.

Dark nods as he saw the device reacting as planned. “Yep, it’s working just as planned. Just be sure to take it off before going to bed. That’s what Mindi told me to tell you.”

"I'll be certain to," Fringe said, starting to smile. Maybe he couldn't feel the effects yet, but the effects were evidently there. He was hidden...! He was hidden!

Meanwhile with Jersey and Tetra, they were transported to a cavern. It was pretty unusual as many lizard-like creatures were roaming about as well as some wolves. The place seemed a lot darker than the castle they had just come from. Jersey looks around. “What is this place?” "It's a cave," Tetra said. Jersey couldn't give Tetra enough of a glare of disbelief at the "smart" comment. A few of the lizards walking around the area seemed surprised by them not knowing where they had warped, but said nothing. "Wherever it is, it's where we need to be." Tetra announce. He pulled aside one of the lizard creatures walking through the cavern at random. "You, boy! Can you tell us where we are?" Tetra quickly realized that he made a bit mistake. As soon as he touched the lizard, he was met with a swift claw to the face. These lizards were a lot more wild than the ones at the temple. He growls and whips his tail before darting off.

Jersey shakes as he saw the lizard react so savagely. “….Uh…you okay, Tetra?”

"Stupid kid..." Tetra grumbled, brushing off the scratches. "I'm fine, I'm fine, don't let some cheap intimidation work on you." Jersey looked around, but couldn't find any indication of which way would leat to the entrance to the cavern area. "We can find out wehre we are later, we should walk around and find the-" Tetra motioned towards a different random passerby, this time for one of the wolves in the crowd. "Hey, you! Can you tell us where the exit to this place is?" The wolf was just as wild as the lizard. He was pretty feral using all fours to move about and wagging his tail as well. He had gray fur and dark blue eyes as well. “The exit? Well why do you need to leave so soon?” He says. The same marking that Dark had was on his paw indicating that he was a Shadow. Jersey balked and stepped back instinctively. What had happened to this guy? Any normal creature would have instinctively learned to walk on two legs, but he didn't look normal. His limbs were just slightly wrong in shape and size, his irises large and taking up much more of his eyes than a normal creature. Whoever this was, he looked like he was half feral, or even barely anthropomorphic. Tetra must have seen something like this before, or he was just great at acting unfazed. But he noticed the marking on his paw, and formed a better idea. "We didn't mean the front exit, we mean to the clan officials. We need information about a certain member, it's for your own safety." A few lies here and there, but not anything that some random person could prove wrong. The wolf chuckles a bit as he was a clan official. Specifically he was a watcher and he was on patrol within the area. “Looks like you two have met an official. You can call me Onyx. I am a lead watcher of the area. May I ask who you wish to see?”

Jersey was still surprised by the strange looking wolf talking to them. He wasn’t a very smart cat but knew that this was a bit strange…or at least it was in his own world. He kept his position as Tetra spoke. Rather, as Tetra balked. He bought the bluff, sure, but what else was he supposed to say? He had to come up with something quickly! "Registration," he said, dancing around not knowing any names. "There's a certain member that was rejected from the clan, and we need to know if you still have information on him. Can you show the way, or do you have to keep patrolling?" He looks at him as he spoke of the rejected members. “I can show you around, sure but you don’t need to concern yourself with the banished ones. Are you in need of a tour?” He asks as one could see that he was quickly losing his patience.

Jersey could see this. He shook his head knowing that Tetra wasn’t smart enough to get them anywhere important. He speaks before Tetra could respond. “Well yes…I suppose showing us around wouldn’t be a bad idea.” Being lead around by someone who seemed halfway feral was strange, to say the least. Whoever these other lizard like creatures or feral-seeming wolves were, they weren't as compliant or pleasant as all the other pedestrians they'd met. The strange animals and cavernous setting made the whole area feel imposing for the new visitors as they were given the grand tour of the various locations in what seemed to be a Shadow run area. Was it worth it mentioning his name? Why exactly had he been banished? The two didn't want to cause a panic, so they kept their mouths shut despite their curiosity as they learned the general layout of the area. Jersey was almost embarrassed at how quickly he was getting impatient. He wasn't sure if he was learning from Tetra anymore, or if Tetra was going to have to learn from him. The wolf stops back at where they were. “So now that we have gone through that, do you have any questions?” He asks pretty calmly as he sits down gracefully, just like a regular dog.

Jersey looks at him and was still stumped with how he was so much different looking than anyone he met before. “Well…what exactly are you and who are these lizards running around?” He asks trying to sounds as polite as possible.

Tetra was a bit nervous. He felt that a question like that would get them in trouble or at the very least offend Onyx. He gets ready to punch Jersey in the arm but was getting an answer before he could think about it.

“Oh them. They are called drakons. Don’t mind them, they are merely our neighbor clan called the Darkites. Just keep in mind that they are pretty protective of their jewels as they share mining trades with us and other clans.” "We'll be certain to," Jersey assured him. "Thank you for the tour, Onyx, it's helped us a ton. And uh..." He seemed bashful to say the final words. "That question came out wrong. Sorry." Onyx's tail wagged a bit, not seeming too offended. Hell, he didn't see offended at all. "You aren't the first person to ask," he said. "Good luck with finding your man." Tetra and Jersey left in the opposite direction of Onyx, heaving back towards the records area they saw and hoping they could get access. If he was a reject, maybe they would be happy to let the police have their way with Dark. Both silently agreed not to mention the Sunshines at all while they entered the records room. The Shadow's record keeper was another hybrid hedgehog with fur growing in such strange thick, rounded patterns. It almost looked like feathers, or even scales. "Can I help you?" He asked, blatantly suspicious of the duo. The duo looks at the hedgehog. At this point they were used to seeing hybrid hedgehogs and they both nod in unison as they were asked. “Yes, we would like to find the records of the banished ones.” Jersey says as he answers the question.

The strange hedgehog didn’t like the request at all and crossed his arms. “Are you two signing a death wish or am I not seeing who you are. Only the high chieftess and the esteemed are allowed back here. Unless you are one of those, you will not get access.”

Upon his response, they could tell that he was a new member. He was so new that he didn’t even show a marking resembling that he was a Shadow. Jersey thought to take advantage of this and steps forward. The duo looks at the hedgehog. At this point they were used to seeing hybrid hedgehogs and they both nod in unison as they were asked. “Yes, we would like to find the records of the banished ones.” Jersey says as he answers the question.

Upon his response, they could tel that he was a new member. He was so new that he didn’t even show a marking resembling that he was a Shadow. Jersey thought to take advantage of this and steps forward. "Do we not look like the esteemed?" Jersey tested the waters with the hedgehog, immediately getting a wary glare from the hedgehog. "Well, good, cause we aren't." A laugh was stapled on to play it off as a joke. "But this is information the queen needs. Tetra, you wanna explain?" Tetra flashed his badge quickly. "One of the banished is helping a dangerous fugitive, and the queen got us as outside help. We're requesting these files for the queen, she said she wants to know more about the fugitive in question. Problem is..." He scratched his head. "No one has a name for the bloke yet. We've got a good visual on the kid, though." He passed a copy of the security photo to him. "We're gonna need files on anyone who fits his description." “Mhmm…I don’t remember getting reports from Merridian on the subject. Although you two have peaked my curiosity upon knowing about the banished. Hmm…I will tell you this, since you are foreigners, I request you to register at least so we can know to trust you…”

Jersey saw his plan work somewhat. They didn’t have the time to register let alone become a so called “esteemed”. He was surprised that Tetra’s badge had no effect on this hedgehog. He couldn’t tell the gender…he thought but flirting wasn’t an option. “…Um…well we were lead here by Onyx…sir…”

The hedgehog looks at him with a bit of surprise. He seemed to change mood when he mentioned the name Onyx. He looks at them. “Hmm…Onyx eh? I think I can make an exception to at least tell you about the banished…There have been few records that I know but the most recent was of Dark the Hedgehog. He’s dangerous and only elite patrol members can look for him. Other than that, I don’t know much else.” "Dark the Hedgehog..." Tetra thought out loud. "The kid's definitely a hedgehog, definitely dangerous, could be him. Are you sure you can't give us the file for Merridian?" Rejected. "We'll be back," Jersey assured him, "thanks for the info." They were out of the room again, Jersey already hatching a plan in his mind. Where was Onyx, and was he an ELITE patrol member? He was certainly the least imposing person he'd met so far, and was a little cute. If he was more anthropomorphic, he would probably be attractive, and if he was more feral, he would just be a cute wolf. To be perfectly blunt, Jersey was going to be happy to see him again. "Onyx." Tetra said as he spotted the wolf yet again from down the hall. "We need your help getting a record, having some trouble getting the information. He turns to looks at Tetra as he spoke. He was a complete anthro wolf like expected. His tail wags behind him as he was brought to attention. “What information do you need?” He seemed to be heading somewhere and was in a bit of a rush.

Onyx was an elite patrol member but his duties mostly involved keeping the portals stable meaning he didn’t have much interest to seek out Dark if he was asked about him. Jersey stepped forward. "You know that records room? Only elite patrolmen can get into certain files, and the guy in there needs you there." He stayed quiet for just a second, remembering the lie they were already pulling with the records keeper. "We're getting this information for the queen, we can't come back to Merridian empty handed." "He says he has the file, just doesn't wanna show us it," Tetra grumbled. "You know anyone named Dark?" He was a bit suspect of them. Dark had not been around the Shadow clan for years and suddenly he was getting a question about him. His tail rests behind him as he gives a dissatisfied growl. “Why are you so concerned about that hedgehog mess of a hybrid? He left on his own accord and he is the least of Chieftess Merridian’s concern.”

Dark didn’t offend the Shadows in the past as far as they were aware of but he did offend the Sunshines. The Shadows know the most about him but believe he has served his sentence on their side. The lies they were making almost seemed like they were growing naturally, and the details they'd told to the Shadows seemed to homogenize into a detailed tale. "Look... we get it, he's banished, he's long gone. We wouldn't want to think about him either." Jersey admitted, acting concerned for the sake of the tale. "But he's posing a danger to everyone. Not just to the Shadows, everyone in these mountains, but you especially. He's travelling with a murderer, and he's escaped capture once already. We have good reason to think he may be planning... revenge for his banishment. He's not a reject the Chieftess wants to know about, he's a menace that needs to be stopped before he hurt anyone in your clan." It wasn’t just mere denial that they didn’t want to bring up Dark. It was pride and law. Onyx almost bares his teeth but understood that they were foreigners on a different mission. “He’s never escaped capture…in fact, he came upfront with what he did to us which is why he left. I don’t know who told you otherwise but that is it. We no longer keep tabs on him. If he did seek revenge he would be stupid to come back as we would execute him.” "No, you wouldn't execute them, he would kill YOU." Tetra butted in with. "There's no good reason to team up with this kid he's traveling with. The kid beats his victims to death viciously and tosses them to wild animals. All his deaths are long and painful. If Dark wasn't looking for revenge, he wouldn't team up with a killer whose crimes are that personal." Jersey patted his shoulder to calm him down. "Everything he's done is stupid." Jersey added in. "We think he's planning to attack clan members, and we need to know the names. We need to know who was involved in his banishment, we need to know all the details. We know you think he wouldn't be able to do this, but we need to make sure he doesn't." Onyx growls as he heard their response. His civility was quickly turning to savagery as his blue eyes flickered black. “I am afraid that you two are very wrong. If you can prove what the kid has done, we will apprehend him and execute him. Dark knows not to take revenge on us but I suggest you two get on with your mission before my grace runs out.” He walks away clearly irritated with there propositions. Something seemed off about the wolf as he seemed to have more power that couldn’t be seen. "Crap, he seemed really nice, too." Jersey admitted. "Maybe let's cut our losses here for now and try again later. We have to tell them to keep an eye out for the fugitives. Anyone could have seen them." In fact, there were people who were seeing one of the fugitives, in fact. But it wasn't anyone who could identify them, even if they did know. One of the few straggling villages out in the northern wilderness, tiny little farming towns with no more than a few dozen people each. It was time to test out this device. Dark watched from a distance as Fringe tested his new skin. He walked towards an elderly mare in front of her home, moving mason jars filled with crushed fruits and sugars. Preserves in the making, apparently. "Excuse me, ma'am." Fringe asked from a few yards away. "I seem to have gotten lost, do you know how to get back to the main city?" The fake eyes focused on the woman, blinking occasionally. The woman smiles and looks at him. “Oh yes, if you head far east, you will get to Central City.” She speaks calmly as he looks at her fruit cart. Dark walks over towards Fringe as he saw the crowds shrinking as most of the town was closing up their shops and preparing for the night. “How’s it going?” He asks curiously. Fringe rubbed his hands together nervously. "It's going perfectly." No, it definitely wasn't, and Fringe knew that Dark could tell. It feels so alien to be treated this... normally." Fringe admitted. "No snickering or special attention, I just feel like a normal person." The fear in Fringe's face started melting away. "It feels incredible." The corners of his mouth started twitching into a smile. Then, a large grin, as large as he normally smiled. His face flushed and his tail started swaing happily, and the hologram was certain to project all of this for Dark to see. "This device is a blessing...!" Fringe almost felt silly doing this, but he didn't care. He threw himself at Dark and gave him an excited hug. "Thank you so much, Dark." Dark didn’t move and looks at him as he hugs him. The cart lady giggles and didn’t understand what they were talking about. However a new event was emerging as some odd howls were heard in the distance.

Meanwhile, Jersey and Tetra saw that it was getting late. Jersey yawns and looks at Tetra. “We need to find a place to stay.” "I know," Tetra almost groaned. Where were they? They could infer that this must have been the general area where Dark once lived, but did he still live here? Was he there right then? The one thing they knew was there right then was fatigue, and a lot of it. Jersey stretched his arms above his head and stifled a yawn as the two walked under the evening colors. It wasn't night just yet, and they didn't know if these lands were dangerous in the dark. The path they took away from the Shadow temple was the wrong path. The long path, in fact, that seemed to move towards the city before disappearing into the woods. They were dangerous enough in the day, and the true predators came out at night. Jersey's cracked skin and Tetra's heavy body didn't go deep into the forest, but still ended up lost. A hedgehog practicing his archery in an open field would hear two voices from the woods as they walked within earshot. "...we can search for that shadow tomorrow!" Jersey yelled. "I get you're all business, but we need sleep! I'm not an agent, remember, not sleeping's just gonna burn me out!" "Well, where are we supposed to sleep?!" The frog bellowed back. "We can't find a town, let alone- Wait." The two figures in the darkened woods stopped. "Did you hear that?" Silence, followed by a rustle. A feral wolf stepped out from the bushes... no, that wasn't right. This didn't look like a normal wolf. It was bigger, more distorted, more like a caricature of a wolf than the true animal. It's eyes were beady, mouth snarling and showing off many of it's yellowed teeth. The archer watched from a distance as the wolf moved closer to the pair slowly backing away, resisting the urge to book it. The wolf lunged, fangs bared and fueled by pure bloodlust. The wolf was very unusual. It wasn’t a regular wolf or even a werewolf, but what kind of wolf it was wasn’t important at the moment. The wolf was way faster, stronger and even bigger than a regular wolf. Jersey could hear the snarling of the wolf creature as it was quickly moving in for a kill.

Right before the wolf could get its paws on him, it was immediately struck in the heart with an arrow. It wasn’t dead but was badly wounded as it lays and whimpers on the ground next to Jersey and Tetra.

Jersey was too shocked and scared to even move. Was his life flashing before his eyes or was he just miraculously saved. His answer to the question was soon evident as the archer came onto the scene.

Tetra was even shook up as he couldn’t believe what he just witnessed but it wasn’t time to relax just yet. He knew the resident here was just as savage as the wild animals in the area. He reaches for the gun in his holster just in case there was a reason to use it. “Hold it right there!” He yells. The archer stopped in his tracks. They stared him down. They might have been the one with the bow, but Tetra was the one with the gun. There was a stare down between the two while Jersey stood off to the side. If it weren't for the whimpering creature laying near them, the scene would have been deathly quiet. Even if he wasn't the best negotiator, Tetra was clearly used to sudden danger, remaining collected and pointing his gun square towards the archer. His attention was only distracted slightly by the strange appearance. Everyone in these mountains had strange appearances, but he hadn't seen anyone with what looked like a ruby embedded in their forehead. "State your name," he commanded. The normally crotchety grit to his voice suddenly sounded bellowing and threatening as he demanded the name of their rescuer.

#Blazerandfnds #Show's Over #There's A Melody Playing #((Did anyone call for a cliffhanger ending with a side order of serendipity?))

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burndownthehousetonight · 7 years

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RP Text Compilations

I realize that having a tag that’s loosely for all of the text compilations is a bit of a bad idea if I want to have ongoing stories people can read through, so this is sort of an organizational post cataloging all of the RPs I’ve finished with other people. If you wanna catch up on any of them, here’s an easy way to do so! :D And be sure to check out all the original RPers, I wouldn’t RP with someone if I didn’t like them. They’re all cool people!

Dawn Hedgehog 555

‣ Part 1 ‣ Part 1 (nsfw ver)

Last of my Bloodline

‣ Part 1 ‣ Part 2 (nsfw) ‣ Part 3 (nsfw) ‣ Part 4 ‣ Part 5 ‣ Part 6 ‣ Part 7 ‣ Part 8 ‣ Part 9 ‣ Part 10

‣ Part 11 ‣ Part 12 ‣ Part 13 ‣ Part 14

‣ Offshoot 1 (nsfw)

ImpureRoyal

‣ Part 1 (nsfw) ‣ Part 2 (nsfw) ‣ Part 3

Tiny Red Artist

‣ Part 1 ‣ Part 2 ‣ Part 3 ‣ Part 4 ‣ Part 5 ‣ Part 6 ‣ Part 7 ‣ Part 8 ‣ Part 9 ‣ Part 10

‣ Part 11 ‣ Part 12

Striped Shade

‣ Part 1 (nsfw) ‣ Part 2 (nsfw)

Jack Rabbot

‣ Part 1 (nsfw) ‣ Part 2 (nsfw) ‣ Part 3 (nsfw) ‣ Part 4 (nsfw) ‣ Part 5 ‣ Part 6 (nsfw) ‣ Part 7 ‣ Part 8 (nsfw)

‣ Part 1 (Royal rabbot AU, NSFW) ‣ Part 2 ‣ Part 3 ‣ Part 4 ‣ Part 5 ‣ Part 6

Oxide the Hedgehog

‣ Part 1 (80s HS AU)

‣ Part 1 (70s punk AU) ‣ Part 2 ‣ Part 3 ‣ Part 4 ‣ Part 5 ‣ Part 6

Wolves Bots Etc

‣ Part 1 (Rob) ‣ Part 1 (Dante) ‣ Part 2

Mobian Scrollkeeper

‣ Part 1

Misfit 6uardian

‣ Part 1 (nsfw) ‣ Part 1 (Fringe)

IslandFlowerFox

‣ Part 1

BlazerAndFnds

‣ Part 1 ‣ Part 2 ‣ Part 3 ‣ Part 4

Pandemonium In Purple

‣ Part 1

Unfinished

‣ Misfit Guardian ‣ MobianScrollkeeper ‣ King Of Moxbius

#Show's Over #All posts

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burndownthehousetonight · 6 years

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((This chapet of this @blazerandfnds RP has another one of those twists neither of us expected frankly but is gonna define this whole story. So yeah a lot happens.))

"This- I am not comfortable with this."

If the words had been delivered any more awkwardly, it still wouldn't have described exactly how uncomfortable the loach was. His hologram was down to save energy on the device, and the pink loach was now standing behind a podium and holding some kind of stone. The sides felt smooth and cool to the touch, probably a crystal of some kind.

But it wasn't the crystal that was concerning him. It was that he was supposed to be the target for an attack that could take down a dragon.

Dark looks at him as he holds a sol crystal. “Kura, what can you tell us about these gems?”

Kura wags her tail and smiles. “You asked the right wolf. The gems here are embedded with fire essence which can be controlled. Like we mentioned earlier, I will be teaching you two how to use them. Also for Fringe, he would need a device to tap into their essence magic.” With Jersey and Tetra, Mavis approaches him and looks into his eyes with his purple eyes. “So much knowledge in there but hindered by weakness.” He says with a chuckle.

Jersey shakes more as the ice begins to melt. “What do you mean?” He says nervously. The ice was melting and cracking like true ice would, but it didn't chill or freeze at all. Actually, it felt warm as it turned too liquid and melted to the ground. He was slowly starting to regain some movement, bit by bit, but he was still kidnapped and imprisoned by someone who could control a dragon. "I'm- I'm not even an agent, really." He said. "I took it cause I wanted them to get arrested, I'm just- I'm just a tailor, I'm not a threat!" Speaking of threats, the angrier one certain toad got, the worse it was going to be for them all. "What are you doing with the ass frog?" Perhaps not an elegant delivery, but not an inaccurate one either. Mavis does not even answer the cat and looks at him. “I will tell you this, if you volunteer to become a part of my team in the woods, I will make it worth your while.” He says, letting the ice melt even further.

Bullseye looks at Tetra as the strange looking bot lifts him into a bubble. “Take him to base 9 and report him to Central.” He says as the bot beeps and takes him away. Whatever that bubble was made of, it was strong enough to keep them from hearing any of Tetra's normal blathering, and the screaming frog was out of sight. Something Jersey might have normally been thankful for, but not here. "Promise you aren't going to hurt him, alright?" The ice was melting. They wanted him specifically. That was good. Maybe a little too good. "What do you mean, make it worth my while? Do I... have a choice?" “Of course you have a choice but my patience wears thin. Is it going to be a yes or no?” He ask more firmly.

Bullseye looks at him as he walks over to the scene.

Dark and Fringe were within the plains preparing for training. Dark had the sol minor crystal in his hand and was awaiting instruction from Kura. “We are awaiting your command miss Kura.”

She looks at them and wags her tail. “Hold on Dark, you may be ready but your friend is not. We would have to go to the shops to get the items we need to prepare him for training.” "Okay, let me turn this back on. We can't risk anyone seeing me," Fringe said, fiddling with the device. The lizard hologram formed around him with a feeling he was getting used to the more he used it. "What exactly is my role here?" Fringe asked. "Am I just supposed to divert this power? I know I probably can't attack the dragon myself, but there has to be something I could do! Right?" “Divert the power? To your device, sure, but you would still have to use it at some point.” She notes as they head towards another building. Dark’s ears twitch as he hears a familiar sound in the distance. “Hmm…is that what I think it is?" Fringe could hear it too. Not having sight heightened all his other senses, his taste, his touch, his smell. Yet even to him, that sound wasn't quite something he could put. A low sound, something in the air. Something in motion. "It almost sounds like... Oh! Has Divine come back?" He said, smiling a little at the thought. "Oh, I think this is a friend of ours, we aren't here to fight her!" Dark looks at him almost forgetting that he was blind. “No, Divine is up north. This dragon may be an issue.” He says as the wolves step out and look up into the sky. Fringe had heard right, it was a dragon, but it didn't have Divine's pearlescent scales, instead bearing a dull greyish blue coat. This creatures was hovering low above the trees, gazing through the trees and sniffing wildly in search. It follow an invisible winding trail that seemingly curved at random. "If we stay inside, we should be fine. Wild dragons shouldn't be too much of an issue." Kura moved to step inside after that, but not everyone was so inclined. Tundra stood where they were and squinted at this dragon. "He doesn't look wild. I think I see someone..." Nightmare was in sight but oddly enough he didn’t see them nor had an interest in landing. He flies right on by missing Dark and Fringe as they go under his wings.

Dark was surprised that Mavis would pass them by like that but he didn’t question it. He hears a badger emerge from the ground shortly after. “Who goes there!” Fringe stood dead still. Most of the people they'd met unannounced were dangerous, and in some part of his mind, he thought no one could notice him if he stayed perfectly still. More ofthen than not, this would only leave him as a sitting duck. But slowly, his hand reached for his knife, in case this creature was in some way dangerous. But the sight of the dragon gave the wolves a vague idea this might have been who they needed to fight. They had to lie somehow. "We live in this forest," Tundra said. "We're guiding these historians, they wanted to explore the temple for themselves." Taegan shushes her quietly. “No need to say a thing to him.” Tundra backs down as she knows Taegan is an alpha.

The badger in front of Dark and Fringe gave a quick brush of his face before sniffing the air. “Surface at last…and guests?” He squints a bit as he wasn’t accustomed to the light. Surface? Perhaps he didn't know exactly what kind of animal this newcomer was, but as a fellow reclusive dweller, there was an immediate kind of kinship. Just a little, just enough to relax him. "Yes, I'm sorry if we're intruding." Fringe apologized. "I wasn't aware this was private land, but we were invited onto it." He chuckles as he heard his response. “Oh no, this land is not reserved to me…I just enjoy meeting newcomers is all. But who am I hearing?” He asks looking kind of distantly.

Dark looks at him and smiles. “Well my name is a Dark and my friend there is named Fringe. We have come here to train.” "Weren't you historians a few answers ago?" The mole clearly held no hard feelings, judging by his impish little smile. "Well, um-" Fringe could sound convincingly calm, but his behavior belied all, and what would have been a faint embarrassed blush was bright and warm on his face. The wolves kept an eye on Nightmare. They were still sniffing around, but they definitely weren't gone yet. "Should we move before it sees us?" Tundra was careful to ask, not making calls alone this time. He wasn’t exactly a mole but more of a badger. The badger looks at Kura and Tundra as they sniff around. “Say, you seem to be in need of something. Are you in some sort of trouble? Also you may call me Flicker.”

Dark nods. “Why yes, but that is none of your concern…unless you think you can help us with some training.” He says rather firmly.

Taegan looks at Tundra. “Well I don’t think that is necessary. However, Kura, being the most knowledgeable one on this topic, should get us started.” The immediate connection he felt with the badger made Fringe more inclined to stick with him. But what could he really say? They seemed inclined to brush him off as well. "We won't know if he can help unless we tell him something, right?" Fringe said. There were, of course, many details he would be happy to gloss right over, making his story sufficiently brief. "To make a long story short, I don't know what I said, but a dragon rider has been hunting for us. Dark said the dragon is a blue-grey, if you know what that means? We want to get some things to try and fight back, but we can't risk being seen. Perhaps you..." Fringe could almost slap himself for not seeing it before. "You can tunnel through the ground!" “Well I can offer some intel but fighting is not my specialty.” He says as he hears the brief story. "No, you don't-" Fringe was starting to smile at the news, and his hologram took this as a sign that his tail should start to wag. "Well, intel would be wonderful, but we need to get to town unseen. Could you- is there any way you could tunnel us there? Oh my, this is perfect!" He looks at him and moment and gets low to the ground. “Going places unseen is my specialty. Where are you two headed?” In no time at all, the three were leading the way back to the city where the two first met, to hopefully find those devices the wolves had asked for. It seemed that the mole had a few tunnels he used regularly, wider than the one person wide tunnels he dug into the ground. Fringe and Flicker were used to dark environments, and if he really needed to, Dark could make a spark or fire to light the way for him. "It truly is very kind of you, thank you again," Fringe said, unable to properly express his gratitude. "I hope this isn't too much to ask, but you said you could offer intel? Do you know anything about anyone named Bullseye? Or a dragon rider named Mavis?" Flicker stops as they were in a good area to resurface. It was round and marked so he could tell that it would lead to the city. Dark gets there and shakes the dust off from his wings and feathers before looking up. “So this takes us to the city?” He says.

Flicker nods and looks back at Fringe to answer his question. “Bullseye and Mavis? I am quite familiar with those names but the latest information I have about them is that they signed with another business. Don’t know much else but I can find out.” The badger says with his claws in front of him. "That would be wonderful," he said with a smile, "anything we lean could be invaluable." There was a tiny flicker of fear in the back of his mind. Didn't that frog say he was with G.U.N.? There wasn't any way... no, that was ridiculous. But if he'd been told he would be fighting a dragon rider, he would have found that just as unbelievable... Flicker was the first to leave, Fringe second. Fringe took a moment to sense around them, realizing there was no one nearby. "It's clear," Fringe informed him. The exit hole wasn't in town, but just outside of the city. "Do you have any way to keep yourself hidden while we get the devices?" Dark nods. “Yes, but we won’t need our disguises as they know who we are around here.” He notes as they enter the city.

Meanwhile with Tetra and Jersey, Tetra was still struggling to escape his bindings as the bot that took him there stops. He looks around the place as it was dark and in the middle of what looked to be a forest somewhere. “Where the heck am I!” He yells as a black furred fox with a red “X” over his mouth appears in front of him. "Are you deaf, boy?! Where are you taking me?!" But the fox didn't say anything. What was this X over his mouth? Was that his mouth? Was it some kind of a seal, or a muzzle? Maybe his mouth was even... stitched shut? "Don't think you can torture any secrets outta me," Tetra warned him, only baiting fate. "I'm loyal! When they find out you kidnapped an agent, they're gonna-" The fox glares at him and he quickly shuts his mouth. Where ever they were, it was isolated from the other parts of the land. Tetra was afraid but he tried his best to hide it. The strange fox tapped the ropes as they retract into a ball.

Tetra normally would have tried to escape but he had no clue where he was nor if anyone would find him. The fox signals him to follow him inside the building and he reluctantly follows. Something was up with this place as it seemed to only get darker as he went in.

With Jersey and Mavis, Mavis looks at Jersey as he was waiting for an answer. “Well what will it be?” He says as Bullseye stands by his side. Yes, the option to opt out was technically there. Whether or not it was his imagination, though, there was a threat to that option he couldn't ignore, like saying he didn't wish to join them would have a dire, dark consequence for him. Needless to say, he crumbled. "Fine... FINE!" Jersey's exclamations were less in anger and more in confused fear. "I don't have any idea what's going on! I don't know who this fish murderer is or what the hell G.U.N. is up to..." It felt as though he was making a horrible mistake, but it was a mistake he had to go with. No words were necessary, and he tried to calm himself down on his own. "I'll... help. What do you need me to do?" Mavis smiles and grabs the reigns of Nightmare as he agreed to join them. “Come with me and I will show you.” He says to the cat.

Bullseye looks at him and thinks. “You want me to go solo again.” He says as Jersey walks to him.

With Tetra and the fox, Tetra starts to shake a bit as he struggles to maintain his composure. “Where are you taking me? What happened to you face? What is this place?” He asks all at once not knowing what to do.

The fox remains silent as he approaches a door with a keypad. Some more creatures with the same mark on their faces appear and surround them both. It felt like a horror movie in it's own way. Kidnapped to a strange place by a strange race undergoing some terrible mutation. But the difference was, horror movie characters would run away screaming. Tetra was not a quitter, and he would fight to his last breath rather than run away. Even fear had to get to him at some point, and he had to back down a little, hold back his anger as he assessed the situation. "Can any of you speak? Anyone?" The creatures look at him and stand at attention. The first fox he saw looks at him as the other creatures make ambient hissing sounds. The fox turns to him and reaches to his mouth. Time seemed to stop a moment before the fox reveals a fierce face of sharp teeth and a mouth opening wide taking up three fourths of it was in view. The red X on his face disappears as it was some part of a uniform. Tetra would have ran away at this point, even this was too much for him to see. Whatever these creatures were, they seemed like they would eat him, kill him or do something far worse than he was willing to put up with if he tried to resist. He steps back a bit as the huge door in front of him opens up to reveal some lighting. The fox looks at him and speaks in a monotone voice. “Test subject 1 in on route. Proceed with operation X-9.” He says as a dark figure comes into view. "What the hell are you trying to do?!" He reached for his holster, only to find his gun conveniently missing. And once more to his jacket, his combat knife equally gone. Somehow, this robot must have stripped him of all his weapons, as well as anything that could have been used as a makeshift. His keys, his pointed badge, even his belt. If these beasts had any weapons at their disposal, he was going to be completely defenseless. "You keep your- don't you dare get any closer!" He tried to yell in fury, but the screaming was terrified enough that no one could have been fooled. "Stay back- No, no...!" The fox frowns as another creature looks at him. “Test subject 1 is hostile. Proceed with delay.” He looks at him as some purple steam fills the room.

Tetra was holding his defensive stance as the steam fills the room. Quickly he starts to feel relaxed and falls asleep. “L-let me out…zzz…”

After he had fell asleep, he was taken away.

With Jersey and Mavis, Jersey looks around and was a bit nervous as to what was going to happen to him next. Home was the place he wanted to be but getting there was proving itself to be more and more difficult as time passes by. He was sad but was relieved that he spared some fate. Mavis looks at him as they land. Needless to say, it was obvious that Jersey hadn't ridden a dragon before. "HURGH-!" Knees buckling and crouched over a bush, he vomited into the bushes, something he had held back the whole ride so he wouldn't anger this dragon or his rider even more. "Are you sure you don't have a saddle? Or something to hold onto?" He turned around and wiped his mouth, frankly just relieved to be back on solid ground. "You aren't just gonna drop me off puking and leave," He said, green almost visible on his face. Nightmare didn't seem to dislike the cat, but standing next to a maw that could snap him in half with one bite still wsasn't helping his mood. "What do you need from me?" Mavis smiles and slides off Nightmare as he flies away. “Trust me, it gets easier from here.” He says as he walks up to him. "Wha-" The sight of the dragon flying away was confusing to Jersey for only a moment. A dragon rider could surely call their steed back, there was no way they were just going to be left abandoned somewhere. But the thought of having been left alone with Mavis terrified him. Jersey was a little taller than average, so he wasn't used to being dwarfed by anyone. Even if it was just him standing on higher footing, knowing who Mavis was only made him more intimidating. "W-where do we start?" Mavis was about the same size as he was. He gets close and looks into his eyes. “Well come with me inside and I will introduce you to my team. You can handle that can’t you?” He says to him as he turns to a tall building.

Jersey nods and tries to look a bit more confident than before. “Please, I am not as much of a scaredy cat as I look.” He says trying to impress him. This comment was met with Mavis turning around with a gaze that just oozed with the message, 'You're a scaredy cat, don't act like you aren't.' This only made the scared cat even moreso, but he'd already agreed. There was no backing out now. Jersey had plenty of reason to be afraid, too. He was a tailor, and a fairly well to do tailor at that. It showed in everything he wore, too, and wearing rich clothes in these kinds of rogue communities was just begging for some kind of mugging. Mavis had already pretty much forced him into a job he didn't want to take, but if he was with the dragon rider, at least he wasn't going to get attacked. Right? Mavis smirks. At this point he was not trying to appear intimidating and was just being himself. He turns to him and says, “Scared or not, I need to know what kind of skills you have.” He looks him over as he speaks in that low intense voice he had.

Jersey at this point was starting to get used to him. Maybe he wasn’t as much of a monster as he thought? He thinks but was still very uncomfortable being around him. “I uh…make clothes.” He says looking down towards the ground.

Meanwhile with Dark and Fringe. Dark was looking around the town for any sorts of labs that may be nearby. “Hmm…now where did she say to go?” He asks being lost for once. Even though he was in disguise and more familiar with the city, Fringe walked with that same stance. Mostly refined, but with his hands together in a subtly fearful position. Backroad after small path, they went through the town to try and find their way to a lab they weren't even totally sure of the location of. "I'm sorry if I'm a little nervous," he said with a quiet laugh at the start, "but the last time we were here, things didn't go to well for me. Or... anyone else involved, really." His holographic lizard tail drooped on the ground, much of it's normal sway and happiness gone. His arm was extended to touch the walls of the buildings, just to help him feel his way around. "I hope everyone else here is doing alright." Webbed fingers traced over a piece of paper hung to a public wall. If he could see it, he would have seen a mass of fine print and contact details overshadowed by an unfortunately familiar face and three massive words; MISSING - Jersey Goldwork Dark looks and sees the sign. “Looks like the agents went missing. You think they ran into some trouble on their search.” He says seemingly unsurprised. The town folks look at them but most keep to their business as they observe the sign. "Oh dear..." Fringe was concerned for them individually, certainly. But there was pressure taken off by the idea of them going missing, even despite the grim implications. They hopefully hadn't run into any more of those wild beasts... or any dragon riders. That music sounded familiar, and those smells certainly caught his nose as well. "I think... We must be near the lab we entered before," he started. "Would we be able to find the supplies there?" “Hmm…sure, I would certainly think so.” He says as he walks with Fringe towards and alley way.

With Mavis and Jersey, Mavis smirks as he hears Jersey’s response. He was glad that he wouldn’t have to use him as a mere distraction. “Very well, I think I have some materials for you to work with.” He says as he walks towards a house. He balked. Would he really be of some use to the dragon rider? It was a niche skill... no, he didn't have to present it as a niche skill! "T-that's good!" Nervousness quickly faded into his more confident working side. He'd done this for his whole life, he could handle a job. "I mostly do high end items - I specialize in intricate embroidery patterns. But! I can make casual clothes, or even anything out of cloth! It's all application! What do you need... and where are we?" That word 'materials' didn't sit right with him. Hopefully, he wasn't a sicko or anything. Hopefully, he would have a totally serendipitous stash of high end silks, gold threads, beads, and clothing patterns that he just couldn't find a use for. He smiles upon hearing this. Clothing being his specialty would be of use although it was not quite written in the plan. “I could show you some pf the wats of the lab. You will be working with high class materials like diamond and if i like your services, maybe some more important.” He says well pleased.

Meanwhile with Tetra, he wakes up strapped onto a bed of some sorts. He groans a bit before opening his eyes to see a dark room. “Where the heck am I now!” He yells before getting approached by one of the foxmen. His eyes were still struggling to adjust to the dark. His last memory was a brightly lit room, not this stark darkness. The after effects of that mist weren't helping either. "Cripes, feels like a hangover," he grumbled while he tried to break the bonds. No such luck. "What are you doing?" Tetra was too exhausted, hungry, confused to even bother with proper anger anymore. That one scream took a lot of energy out of him. "And don't act mute, I know that X is a muzzle." Even in the face of some kind of horrors, he didn't cave in to the pressure. He was better than his base instincts. The fox wags his tail as he looks at him. His face of teeth look as creepy as ever. “Don’t be afraid subject. You are in good hands. May I service you with some food?” He asks seemingly stalling for something else. Tetra definitely didn't need to say anything. However long he was knocked out for, it was enough to leave the old frog debilitatingly hungry, and the occasional noises his emaciated stomach would make only hammered that point home for both of them. "Lemme see the food," Tetra said. He wasn't dumb, it could very well be poisoned, or at least laced with something. "Who are you people?" The fox nods and shows him some soups and well prepared snacks. His tail stops wagging as he hears him ask the question. “We are a people.” He says in an emotionless creepy tone one would hear from an alien or robot.

Tetra looks at the food presented to him. It seemed pretty safe but knowing his situation, he thought it might be poisoned or something however he really didn’t have a choice at this point and could feel his straps being loosened slightly but not enough for an escape. “What do you mean," he says as the fox walks over to him. There wasn't an answer. They were definitely a people, but that was all he was getting, apparently. The only thing he got was more or less an order to eat from the various foods in front of him. No meats, no cheese? He would have understood that, he was a prisoner, he wasn't supposed to get expensive foods. The problem was, he was being served expensive foods. The vegetables and fruits looked fresh, and the soups looked well prepared. The more he sniffed and examined the snacks, the more he realized that these were the same few foods, served in many different ways. They wanted him eating a very specific diet, and all he could do was guess why. "Let's try something else." A newly freed hand was quick to take some of the skewered vegetables. "Why am I here? What are you trying to do here?" The fox shows his teeth and wide circular mouth as he lets off a yawn. “Well you will find out soon.” He says as a blue figure walks into the room.

As soon as that happened the fox turns and licks mouth all around. “Oh, looks like the master is in. We are going to have some fun now.” He says happily as he walks towards a computer. "Master?" Tetra said. Was this some kind of leader of these strange foxes? The unfamiliar sounds that the fox's computer was starting to make weren't making him any more comfortable, now were his adjusted eyes, giving him full view of what was in this cramped little room. "Hey, why'd you chose me for this?" Tetra asked, maybe his best way to get information. "Why'd you wanna experiment on some old fat fart?" The fox presses enter on his computer and walks back to him. “Hee hee, I guess you should know that we want you to be our next soldier. Your willpower is just too valuable to ignore.” He says with a hint of crazy in his voice.

Tetra’s eyes widen as he managed to almost choke on the veggie skewer he finished eating. “Soldier…did you just say soldier…” As he was finishing his sentence, more foxmen appeared and hiss in the background. "Calm down," he was instructed. "You're eating this, whether you like it or not. Anything else would cause horrible reactions with the chemicals." "WHAT chemicals?!" Tetra knew he wasn't getting an answer, especially when his jaw was held in place by one iron grip and a bowl held to his face. "You don't drink these, we'll cut you open and pour it right into your stomach." Tetra couldn't do anything about his bonds, his current situation was dour, and he had no choice. He silently complied, eating more of the food as he worried about just what was happening here. The fox closes his wide drooling mouth. The red x appears on his face as he does. Tetra could not close his mouth as the iron dental tool was placed there. The patience had clearly worn off from the fox and he was getting tortured. Before the fox could shove anything into his mouth, the door opens and the figure appears. “Cease operations X-1, I can take over from here.” He says as the fox backs down.

Tetra was starting to feel lucky but not very comfy as his jaw was spread open almost as wide as the mouth of the fox men. He almost chirps as the figure approaches him. His face looked strong as ever but his mind was thinking. “What did I get myself into this time!”

Suddenly a rather normal looking face appears to him. The creature was a hedgehog hybrid like Mavis but looked oddly different. The device was loosened and gently removed from his mouth. The mysterious creature looks at him with his green eyes. “Excuse my assistant but I would like to know a little bit more about you, Tetra toad.” "Just Tetra," he was informed. "Don't like the full name." He was already back to his old defensive habits. 'Knowing more about him' probably entailed pressing him for sensitive information. Perhaps X-1 and his whole gallery of lookalikes were just there to further intimidate him. He hoped. Maybe he could play it dumb, give basic information? "52," he started, "got a wife and one kid off at school. Worked for G.U.N. since I was 18, never looked back. Been a field agent, then an interrogator. Head of my department now." The hedgehop listens to him as he speaks. He starts messing with some tools of torture and tools of science. Tetra was getting more nervous as his speech was becoming increasingly vague. “Yeah…and I uh was in training. A student named Jersey was assigned to me and yeah, that’s pretty much it." He says keeping his composure.

“Fascinating…” Says the hedgehog as he brings up a syringe. “Now I can tell you exactly what’s going to happen since I have heard of your reports stating your intentions. I am going to take a sample of you. It’s best to do it now while your blood is fresh and untainted. Then very quickly you are going to take a nap. When you awaken, we will be putting you through your real testing.” When he said that, the syringe goes into the toad.

Meanwhile with Jersey and Mavis... "Are- You're sure you want me to use these in embroidery," Jersey said, gazing at the rocks in his hand. "Positive." He didn't know much about jewels at all, but even he knew these diamonds were worth a lot individually. Maybe not big enough for a solitary ring, but he'd certainly seen smaller accent stones in jewelry. He wasn't even entirely sure how to react to having what was essentially a fortune thrust into his hands. But he had his needles, his thread, his handy tools that were always kept right in his shirt pocket. It was just a small box of materials, and he was used to gems. He could do this. "What do you want me to make with these... You're certain?" Mavis almost smacks him in the face. He was getting annoyed with the cat’s insistence on questioning him. However despite his patience wearing thin, he knew that working with the cat would be worth his time. “I am very certain. Now I do say to get to work on it. I don’t have time to be wasted.” He says as he crosses his arms. "Alright, just... making sure." Those last words came stapled to a grimace. Jersey himself wasn't really sure, and he was willing to show it, but he was going to be doing his job. Knuckles cracked, needles threaded, patterns drafted. He was ready to go. The cutting, sewing, it all came naturally to him. Hands glided through the fabric, actually assembling the piece not at all a challenge. Adding the details was his slow point, and it was obvious he was a perfectionist. Measuring everything multiple times to make sure it was centered, aligned just so, at the right angle. It wasn't really a job that required his embroidery, but Jersey wanted a chance to show off his talents. Something small but impressive, a small detail. Mavis was a dragon rider, and the choice was obvious. So on his own volition, he went to a small bit of fabric, easily covered, and flew through a tiny emblem of a black dragon head. Not 100% similar to Nightmare, but impressive for a small emblem. He didn't even bother putting a gem in it's mouth, not wanting to waste something that precious. "Alright, this look good?" Jersey said, showing off his creation. Mavis was mildly impressed with a smile forming across his face. He takes his creation of a bracelet to be looked at more closely as he notices the dragon design within it. “I’d say you have done well. Now what would you like for me to do for you.” He asks wanting to give him his well deserved reward. "That's... very solicitous of you," Jersey said with a bit of a chuckle, joking to try and keep himself calm. What DID he want out of this? He had a job he liked and was good at, what else could he really want? "Maybe... Hey, can you tell me something about Tetra?" As time passed, it became clear that he never quite got an answer on what was happening to the frog. As much as he disliked him, he still wanted an answer. "Is- he's not gonna get hurt, right?" He looks at him and gives a slight chuckle. “Are you asking me about him? I can show you where he went if you are that curious.” He says as he heads towards his house.

Jersey was a bit uneasy from his response. But he still followed him towards his house. At least he seemed to like Jersey's work. That was good, if he was useful, he wasn't going to get hurt by Mavis. And at least the dragon didn't seem to want to hurt him, either. But the way he casually took tetra, the way he intentionally didn't reveal his fate, it was terrifying. Whatever was in that house, he wasn't going to like it. If it didn't feel like he was being walked on a leash inside, he would have balked before entering. He knew he didn't have a choice. Mavis leads him inside of his house. The place seemed pleasant, not showing off anything dangerous inside. As they walk in further, Mavis leads him towards a door with a black coating over it. “Come inside.” He says as he opens it.

Jersey nervously enters the room. It had two computer monitors in front of him. It looked like an old security room. As Mavis walks by and closes the door he turns on the monitors. It was pretty pleasant in Jersey's eyes. Well kept, nice decorations. He had expected something worse, something more evil. Was he keeping all his evil in a closet somewhere? Ah, right there, the ominous black door, that's where it was. "What are we looking at here...?" He said, trepidation obvious in every part of his voice. The screens buzzed on, some flickering immediately, some taking a moment to register. Where was this, and where was Tetra supposed to be? He could see the strange foxmen and the hedgehog experiment on the toad. Oddly enough, Tetra was putting up little resistance as he seemed to be held down by some strange influence. Mavis smirks a bit as he knew what was going on. “May not be my prize but surely they will reward me.” He says softly.

Jersey was a bit shaken by the sight of all of this. He didn’t like the frog but he did respect him. He takes a step back from the computer and looks at Mavis. "He's- not like this." Even if he didn't like staying around him, he knew the basics of his personality, and he was the most stubborn idiot he'd ever met. He seemed susceptible to every small motion that they did as the pulled out syringes, blindfolds and ropes, even sharp tools he couldn't quite recognize through the monitor. He didn't act brave and strong anymore he acted weak, hazy, like he was tired. Like he was... ...drugged. "What are they doing to him?!" Anger was masked by confused fear. What had he agreed to get involved in? Mavis growls a bit as his personality shifted a moment. He closes his eyes and manages to keep his composure. “They are seeing how much he could stand. That is all.” He says calmly as the monitors flicker.

Jersey was very unsettled by this. He dared not to ask another question as he might anger Mavis. Oddly enough Mavis seems to be hiding something else not seen before. Was he indeed a monster?

Meanwhile with Dark and Fringe, Dark hands Fringe the device. “Here, this should be of use for the gem training." It was a small round device that came attached to a pair of straps, something meant to be worn across his chest. His fingers felt down the industrial straps and slick metal, taking in every little sensation these materials brought. Not comfortable or anything, but strangely satisfying in how sturdy the setup was. "That's wonderful, I'm sure it will work great." The hope in his voice was a little forced. "I'm not sure what this is or who made it or how it's going to protect me from a dragon killing attack, but I'm sure it's going to be lovely." Not a single drop of sarcasm was present in his honest, gentle voice. Dark smiles and sees a slot in the device which appears to be able to hold a gem of some kind in there. “Oh yes, this was created by Mindi. I find that quite odd as I didn’t know she made these type of things.” He says while thinking a moment. Thinking was going to have to happen on the move. They needed to get back to their burrow to the temple, and without being seen. For now, the device was worn on his chest, Fringe's hologram adjusting to let the lizard apparition wear it. His main concern wasn't the device, it was that waned poster. "You don't think they got hurt, do you?" There was one thought crossing his mind, but one that even he thought sounded too dangerous. "We shouldn't- Maybe we should send someone to find them? They might be hurt, right?" Dark looks at him. “I actually know where they are. However I don’t know anyone who would be able to go over there and come back.” He says with a serious tone in his voice.

With Jersey and Mavis. Jersey looks at Mavis and steps way. Alright, he had two options. He could get angry, tell Mavis off. He immediately scrapped that as an option, knowing he was likely to be flambéed if he did anything like that. All he could do was stare back, confused but trying his damndest not to let ant shred of terror creep through. He seemed worried, confused, but terror was hidden at least. This only left one option. "What are you... going to want me to make?" Compliance. If he complied for long enough, maybe he could find a way to get Tetra and himself out of this. Mavis lets out a low deep growl loud enough to shake the room. He clenches his hands as he does seeming like he was resisting something inside of him. One of his eyes turn from its green hue to a dark burgundy color. He closes his eyes and relaxes once again. “I need you to make something to help me.” He says with a serious expression on his face. Jersey's ears were pressed to his head, his confident stance broken through. As if that wasn't enough to show how terrified he was, his tail stuck out almost perfectly straight. Yet he had made his choice. If he was useful like this, he wasn't going to be hurt, not yet. "What do you- Do you need me to make?" He seems calm enough not to growl and stands up. “I need you to make me something comfortable for my wrist. However the materials you will be working with are dangerous.” He says as he pulls out a strange white crystal. Jersey went to reach a hand out towards the dangerous crystal, but immediately balked. He could feel a strange energy, almost a heat emanating from it. Whatever this was, it just oozed power. Was it dangerous because it was a lot of neutral energy that could be used for bad, or because it was intrinsically evil? "Is this going to be a bracelet?" A gulp. "Or maybe... a weapon of some kind?" Mavis holds onto it with a bit of confidence. The crystal didn’t seem to hurt him or manipulate anything at the moment. His eyes flicker a moment before he speaks. “Indeed, I will show you how to handle this light crystal. It won’t hurt you but it is extremely fragile. Now I will also require something else of you. When you are handling this gem, I advise you to use your utmost confidence.” He says pretty clearly. Confidence? He was quite afraid of everything that was happening, but could that really be a cause? He took a deep breath, trying to clear his mind. Fragments of fear still existed, but the calmed fear meant that this energy coming from the stone wasn't quite as strong. But what could this energy do when he wasn't confident? He didn't dare ask. "If it's in clothing making..." He was trying to crack a joke through his nerves, lighten the mood for himself just a little. "There's nowhere I'm more confident than there, I should be fine. If you have a pattern or a vague description, I can make it." He nods as he hears him speak. “I want a band that goes halfway along my wrist. The pattern I would like would be of a diamond back cobra and I want it all in black with the stone in the middle.” He says hoping he would remember that. A simple enough request. It barely took a second for him to already have his tap out and take mental measurements of his wrist. "You get me a picture of a diamondback, and I'll get you your band." Jersey barely sketched out a few vague lines before he was off, already stitching the snake into what was soon to be his new employer's wristband. Most of it was easy. As far as snakes went, the diamondback had some interesting patterns that incorporated well into the black monochrome scheme he was using. But that easy work was done far too quickly. Before he knew it, he only had one part left to do - setting that stone into the fabric. Confidence fluttered as he mentally prepared to work with the stone. Mavis could tell just by the looks of his eyes that he was not as confident with the stone as he was with working with common materials. His purple eyes glint in the light as he refuses to let him touch the stone. “…You’re not ready.” He says with disappointment. No. Jersey had never failed to finish a project before, not in his years as a seamstress. "I can do this!" The shout was just as much to reassure himself as it was for Mavis. And with that, Jersey forced himself to move, grabbing that crystal with barely a second to spare and getting down to business. Acting confident wasn't the same as feeling confident, and the stole still felt hot. The heat was only getting worse, in fact, with every stitch he hurriedly flung through the cloth. The sizzling of the flesh of his paws was almost audible, but he had to finish this. For his own pride. For his perfect record. And most of all, to avoid whatever punishment was implied by that disappointment. Whatever was going on with the energy, whether it was unstable or perfectly focused on confidence levels, it was doing its damnedest to leave some marks before Jersey finished setting the stone into the metal clasp for it. The bracelet fell to the table. It was complete. Jersey held his paws dangling in the air, now a deep red from his rush of self pride and fear of Mavis. "Do you- Do you have any bandaids in this place?" He asked, not bothering to bring attention to the garment. "Or ice? Or a hospital?" Mavis concentrates and Jersey’s hands start to glow as they heal before his eyes. Jersey’s eyes lit up with excitement and a bit of his usual fear as he just witnessed something other worldly. He didn’t know what to say but knowing who Mavis was, this wasn’t that big of a surprise. “Uh…” He shakes a bit.

Mavis chuckles. He figured he would react this way and just went with the situation. “Yeah, I don’t like to admit it but I was born with Sunshine blood in me. I got it from my great grand mother who was a rare healer. In case you didn’t know, I can also read minds which I get from my father now…” He thinks a moment as he takes a long pause. Jersey desperately hoped he wasn't trying to read his mind right then, as he would have gotten an internal monologue of, "Whhaaaaa- There's no way that's true- right? I guess he rides a dragon and has magic healing powers. Alright, fine, it's totally possible he has mind reading powers. Fine. This is just fine! Or chaos, this guy isn't reading my mind now, right? Like, I'm still alone up here, right? ...What the hell is a sunshine?" Paws held together, he couldn't feel any shred of the pain that was there before. Great, now he was actually indebted to Mavis. "Is this going to work?" Jersey asked. He only picked up the piece by the clasped ends, but he could still feel the heat far from either hand. "How is this supposed to work?" Mavis looks at him and grabs the bracelet from his paws. He tries it on feeling the leather across his fur. He did indeed have powers like he told him but they never came without a cost. Using a heal spell on Jersey weakened him but he felt it was worth it as he got his reward. “Well I think you do a heck of a good job making my bracelet. Is there anything i can do for you now?” He asks as he clasps the thing around his wrist.

The choice was obvious. Whatever was going on with Tetra, it was something that he was being forced into. Drugged into, even. The thought of him, the most stubborn, strong willed person he’d met, being broken so easily was terrifying. He just had to know what had happened to him, what had been done to destroy the man.

“I want to see Tetra again.” Jersey said simply. “In person. I want to- to make sure he’s healthy.” He nods and looks at him. “Yes, but you must be aware of some things before I take you there. I can not risk having you go missing.” He says as he steps to the door. A nod and a subtle gulp were his replies. "Yes, sir," Jersey said, not intending it to sound sarcastic or submissive. "Frankly, I can't risk myself going missing, either." Humor. It was all he had left, a chance to laugh. What was he supposed to say? 'I am terrified of everything that is occurring and frankly just want to go back home to bundle up in a pile of warm blankets with a cup of milk because I am, in fact, a cat?' That was all true, but it wasn't going to help. He could only try and stay in as good spirits as he could. "What- what do you need me to know? Mavis gives him a stern look. “There isn’t a lot but stay close to me, do not touch anything unless permitted and your interactions with Tetra will be brief.” He says rather bluntly before heading outside. Jersey stayed quiet and followed obediently. He was being allowed closer. That was pretty much all he knew. But where were they going, what was Tetra's condition like? He didn't deserve anything like this, no matter how crass he seemed. Hell, he didn't even know the anything Tetra was facing, and was terrified to get an answer. The walk was long. Longer than expected in fact. Every minute that passed was unbearable, he just wanted some security that he was going to be fine. Mavis even struggled taking him to this place. A long time ago he had been a victim there, however telling Jersey that would be a bad idea. They walk through the forest and see the strange building that Tetra had seen. Mavis types into a keypad as the metal doors open to reveal the long creepy hallway of the place.

Jersey felt uneasy with the situation. He looks around and feels the intense darkness of the place. It was chilling without being cold and creepy without being scary. Was this place another world? He thought as they were soon greeted by the foxes with a red “X” on their faces. "Uh... Hello." He said, voice trailing off with the extended o sound. "Wha- Who are you?" There was no response, only vaue glares in his direction. Their cool lack of emotion felt worse than any glare of anger could. Was that a clamp or a muzzle, or something even worse? "We're here to see the subject, Tetra." No, he wasn't handling this anymore, he had no idea if he was going to get shot for saying the wrong thing. "Uh- Mavis?" Mavis looks at the fox and makes a sign with his hand. It looked like a X just like the one on the fox’s face. The fox nods and signals him back the same way before they were lead back into the lab rooms.

Jersey shook but remained alert as he saw more of the creatures at work. The rooms were virtually silent and oddly enough most of the subjects being tested had the red “x” on their faces. “Where’s Tetra?”

Mavis keeps going as they approach a computer. “Subject X-1 to test T-9.” He says to the fox who types on the computer which opens another door. “This way, you made it this far.” He says to Jersey as he walks to the door. The foxes weren't attacking him, and he knew logically that he wasn't going to be attacked if he was with Mavis, but his emotions still curdled at the sight of these creatures. Were they scientists? Slaves? Whatever they were, they had captured Tetra. And at last, he was going to be able to see him in person. It wasn't long, either. The strange interview room, or even interrogation chamber, already had two occupants when they entered. There were two guards standing close to Tetra in case he toppled or fell over, because he was blatantly drugged up. His stance was firm and his eyes were focused and determined, but all with an underlining weakness. Like behind his rugged exterior was a hollow lab rat being zapped of all instincts and emotions. Tetra mumbled at the sight, but the words weren't cohesive. The two guards looked like stone. They were the foxmen from before but the stance was a bit different as they were stiff and looking at Jersey and Mavis with those red eyes. Mavis approaches them as they disappear a moment.

Tetra was resisting the urge to fall asleep on the bed. The drugs in him made it very hard but whatever they were going to do to him had been done. His breathing was pretty slow and he had a red X on his face just like the rest.

Mavis looks at Jersey as he saw him. “Is this the one you wanted to see?” He asks him. He didn't even have to ask. He was utterly petrified at the sight, what had happened to him? What was GOING to happen to him? He had to come up with something, anything to get him out of this situation! But... what could he do? One step forward. And another. Jersey slowly walked up to the old frog who mildly gazed in his general direction, head rotating limply. "Hey there, Tetra, how are you... how are you feeling?" He squatted down to get on his level, hoping he would say something of not. But the X muffled his speech. Momentarily forgetting his orders, he moved to sit next to Tetra and stopped mere centimeters from the mattress. Those frightened eyes glared back at Mavis, silently asking his permission. Mavis nodded as the red X disappears from Tetra’s mouth. The drugs seem to wear off somewhat as the frog was now able to talk a bit.

Jersey awaits for him to say something. Even if it wasn’t pleasant, hearing his voice once again would convince him that he was healthy. He was a bit surprised that Mavis would do this for him and siezed the opportunity as much as he could. "How's... you catch the... the murder fish and the emo?" Jersey grinned a little. And laughed for once. This was a horrible, horrible situation, but... "You're never gonna change, man." He said, at least happy to see some of his personality still intact. Even if that intact bit was his insults. For what he was going through, he needed some good news for once. "Yeah. Some patrolmen captured them trying to sneak back to his house. They're in custody." A total lie, but it wasn't like Tetra could tell. Tetra smirks a bit and breathes slowly still affected by the drugs that were inside of him. “You done well kid…zzz” He says as he slowly goes back to sleep. Jersey sighs and stands up as the foxmen wearing the X’s on their face stare at him eager for him to slip up.

Mavis taps his shoulder and signals him to follow him back outside. “Never talk about this place in public, okay?”

Meanwhile with Dark and Fringe. There was a tiny green light on the edge of Fringe's new device, just to indicate that it had power. This just barely provided some illumination for Dark, crawling behind Fringe. Flicker didn't have any information for them just yet, but Fringe was starting to get suspicious. Like he wasn't getting the full story. "I thought you said you knew they were signed with some kind of business?" Fringe asked Flicker, voice wavering as he tried to be assertive but still well mannered. "And you mentioned- you know where Jersey might be, right? Is there something you- something you don't want me to know?" It was pretty clear that Fringe was not going to be satisfied with mere silence. Flicker pauses for a brief moment and looks up to him. “Well my friend, I would like to share more but it is…unwise to put it in the kindest of words.” He mentions as he digs at the ground. Dark on the other hand had an odd feeling. It would be best for something to peak his interest at the moment. The silence was almost deafening to Fringe, he had to know a little more! "I'm broken my friends wing, and I'm crawling through the ground with a stranger. With all due respect, nothing I've done this whole time has been wise, this isn't the time to start." The resulting pause was only confirmation that they didn't want to give details. "Are they in serious danger? Do you think- Will they be able to escape?" Dark sees another area where they could resurface and goes there as fast as he could. The dust on his wings was starting to get to him and Fringe being worried wasn’t helping the situation. He looks at Fringe and growls a bit. “And what do you mean by start?” He asks clearly wanting an answer. "I mean- I mean start being wise, I'm-" Fringe's words were suddenly jumbled - whether or not he could tell Dark was glaring at him was anyone's guess. Whatever it was, he was starting to crack. "This whole journey has been... It's insane I've gotten to this point. I'm simply running along with anything, and fighting for whoever helps me, and... ..." Deep breaths. He had to breath deep, as while he acted calm, he couldn't keep that up forever if he was only acting. "I'm terrified about everything that's going on... and I'm worried I'm responsible for what's happening." Dark looks at him a moment. He was angered but mostly because he was tired and couldn't fly. He did not mind dark places but being restricted for so long drove him crazy. “Well as soon as we get out of here, we can have a better conversation.” "I understand." He didn't add anything else onto that statement, he couldn't think of anything that would make things better. He knew that he had hurt Dark, brought in G.U.N., gotten a random clerk kidnapped or even worse. There was no reason to justify his actions to Dark when he couldn't justify them to himself. The tunnels weren't too deep, and the vertical climb up towards where they had first entered was more than manageable. Flicker helped Fringe through the hole, and both helped Dark out. Once out in the field, though, Fringe was silent, guilt obvious in every part of his body. Wanting to ask, but not wanting to anger Dark even more. Afraid for all of them, and worrying if Flicker would get caught in his spiral of bad decisions just by being near him. Dark sees him and was getting a bit concerned with the fish as they finally leave the tunnel that he was cramped up in. “Hey, mind sharing with me what’s on your mind?” He asks as he dusts his wings off. Saying everything on his mind would take him a long time. But he could cut it down to a few brief sentences and get the basic gist. "If I hadn't swam up that stream, none of this would have happened," he said. "You shouldn't be going out of your way for me, but you're still protecting me. And I feel like I've just been mooching off of your generosity, I need to do something for someone else." The words were going to sound stupid, but he needed to say them. "I don't care how dangerous it is, I want to save them from wherever they are." Dark nods in understanding. “I get what you mean but think about it this way. If you hadn’t found me, would you be here or captured by someone else? It honestly could be way worse.” He says with a stern attitude. "I don't care if it's best for me if other people have to suffer," he said without missing a beat. "I know it's corny, but if they're in trouble, I want to save them. They haven't done anything wrong, they're just doing their job." His webbed fingers folded together nervously. If the hologram was off, he could have watched Fringe's heart racing in his chest. "I'm... there's no reason you should be helping me, but you are. I shouldn't saddle you with my issues, you've done so much for me already... I should be more thankful than I am. But thank you." At this point, he wanted to end the moral argument, and carry on with the lot in life he forced onto himself. "Should we get to training?" Dark looks at him a moment but suddenly their conversation was interrupted by Nightmare once again. He was seen flying across the skies and appeared to be looking for them as he flies without his rider, Mavis. Dark thinks for a moment. “Hmm…that’s pretty odd.” He says as he guides Fringe to the back alleyway. With Tetra, the scientists there had put him to rest a bit. No longer exposing him to the vapid drugs that kept him calm. He slowly starts to awaken just noticing the red “X” on his face from a reflection of the metal doors in front of him. His instinct was to touch this strange mark on his face, feel what it was. It felt metallic, but a bit flexible. Despite that, he could barely wedge one finger under what felt like a strange mask, and didn't find any way to remove it without a pair of bolt cutters. Adrenaline kicked in, it's first chance since the drugs had first entered his system. A vain attempt to speak to himself only ended with muffled words behind whatever this mask was he was wearing. He couldn't see any way to activate the door from the inside, and what he had at his disposal was minimal at best. A simple bed. A sink and toilet. An old radiator. Perhaps it looked nicer than a jail cell, with more space and a side table, but that didn't change how little he had at his disposal. He had to think, fast. There was no way out but the door, the vents were tiny and high on the ceiling, and the camera on the ceiling didn't look... How groggy was he? That wasn't a camera, it was a smoke detector! He acted fast. He grabbed one of many disposable pencils off the side table, and bundled it in toilet paper. This was deftly slipped low to the ground, near the valve of the radiator, and the pencil was pressed to a pillow he never used. Maybe he could play it off as the pillow being too close and catching fire as a stroke of bad luck? All he had to do was act like he was still drugged, curl up in that thin blanket, and wait as the fire from the paper spread to the pillow and set off the alarm. The embers from the reaction from the graphite of the pencil to the electrical currents from the machine started causing a fire as it lit the papers slowly.

Smoke was building within the lab room but as luck would have it, the fire was put out as it slowly died from suddenly getting to the pillow.

Tetra groaned as that was the best plan he could come up with in his state of mind. What surprised him was that no one was trying to stop him. Surely the smoke from the attempt at making a fire would have drawn some attention.

He sighs and manages to sit up from the bed. The pencil was still smoldering from the heat. He thinks a moment and could see some tools that the scientists left behind. He once again touches the “x” on his face and slowly stands up. What were most of these tools? Small medical and general tools of medical grade metal. Not flammable. Not sharp enough to cut, although a few came to points that could suffice. He was going to have to think of a plan as he hid the evidence of his failed escape plot. The pillow was back on his bed, the crisps of the pencil and paper flushed, and some simple idea readied in his mind. There was some kind of a latch on the back of this X device, but it wasn't a standard shape. Hell, it felt complicated, maybe a symbol, or even just a bizarre factory error. Whatever it was, there were enough tools that there must have been something the could fit. They couldn't expect an incapacitated captive to be able to find the right shape and have the maneuverability and thought process to fit a tool into that space after all. He tried to pry the unusual clasp holding the muzzle onto his face but the more he tried, the harder it got. He groaned as it clenches tighter almost hurting his lips a bit as it does. “How in the world did these bloody foxmen deal with these things!” He thinks to himself. Before he knew it, a foxman wearing the same type of muzzle walk into the room. He looks at Tetra and glares at him with his blood red eyes. Tetra was a bit used to them at this point but still felt a sense of dread within the place. The fox approaches him as he picks up a strange cube-like device from the table. His hands were quick when he heard the door open. He might not have been drugged up, but he could sure act like it, holding the tool he was trying to unlatch his clasp with and some awl-like implement in either hand. Every action was slow and simpler than normal. No words, just slow motions to act like he had no idea was these were and was curious. If he was so drugged up normally, he could play off watching the use of this cube device as basic curiosity. Or... was this the device that was supposed to drug him? Whatever it was, the door was opened, as temporary as it was, and he wasn't going to get a chance this perfect again. He had to act fast. In a moment, the blunt butt of what he hopes was an unlatching device was slammed straight across the fox's scalp, and he was out in the hall. He didn't have time to grab another tool before the fox woke up, only rip out a piercing that looked like an identification device. This was confirmed when he held the device to a small panel outside his room, resulting in a beep, a closed door, and a trapped, muted fox creature. He had to be on high alert from here out. It wasn't sharp, but this awl was going to have to do for a weapon.

The foxman was too dazed and confused to understand what this land frog was doing until it was too late. All he could see was the device on the floor and the frog dashing towards the metal door using what little adrenaline he had left to escape his situation.

The fox’s vision started to clear as he sees him mere steps away from the exit. Tetra did not turn back as that would only slow him down and possibly put him in a worse situation. Thought of how it could be worse were thrown out the window as he manages to get closer to freedom. His footstep outside the door brought a sense of hope and confidence that he could make it out. However, this dream was short lived as he could see the fox creature appear from the shadows and throw a kick to his face.

He was not out quite yet and witnessing this foreign technique made him nervous. He quickly moves out of the way, dodging the swift movement. Holding on to his makeshift weapon, he knew that fighting was his only option. He readies himself as he once again sees the monstrous teeth of the fox in front of him.

The wonderful think about teeth was, no matter how terrifying a jaw might have looked, they were essentially loose bundles of nerves that could incapacitate the right creature in a second.

He had one tool in either hand, and the butts were swung straight for the fox's mouth at the same time. Even if he closed his jaw, he couldn't bite at Tetra. Of course, he moved his head away his head at the sight of the awl swinging... and that unlatching tool smashed straight into his jaw. That incapacitation was enough for him to get two more quick swings out, in total leaving three incisors and two canines smashed out or barely hanging on.

One more blow, that awl headed straight for the stomach. This was life or death, he had no choice, and the awl pierces straight into their solar plexus. The screech came as no surprise to the sudden burning nerves and bleeding spot in the center of his chest, and Tetra immediately rushed with however much time that injury was going to give him. There was no doubt that the others were aware now, he would have to find a weapon soon. Adrenaline was making him act faster, think clearer, and he found little difficulty getting that muzzle off of his face as he came to his senses.

The fox holds his hand to his chest. His teeth growing back quickly. Tetra could see the light as he makes it outside of the lab. He did not stop as he heard the hissing of the fox men following him. He needed help and fast.

The alarms didn't just sound from inside the lab, but all the way back to Mavis. He had to rush to the lab, with Jersey chasing along to make sure no one was in danger. But someone very much was. That cat didn't even need to look at the dragonrider to know fury was building behind those eyes, and what little makeshift training he had came out with his claws.

There was a sharp pain to Mavis's arm, and two more to the back of his neck shortly after. Even Jersey was stunned that he was willing to slash into claws at someone's neck like that, but he barely had any time to pause. The wounds weren't fatal at all, and he had to move. That bracelet was tumbling to the ground, and whatever power it was, Mavis was likely to use it against Tetra.

In a second, Jersey was carrying the bracelet in his mouth like a cat would hold a kitten, the gem hot against his tongue and his run a feral four-legged sprint straight for Tetra. Hope that it might help him began to fizzle as he got closer and the gem seemed to cool down... although, didn't Mavis say this only reacted to confidence? With his stance and skills, Tetra seemed totally confident in his ability to fight his way out of this situation. Maybe, just maybe, he could make use of this device.

Mavis growls. He was furious at this point. Having Tetra escape and now this cat betrays him after a reward. The blood on his hand lit his inner flames of rage as he turns to the cat and frog.

Tetra saw him and stood right in front of Jersey. He thought it was pretty dumb but he wouldn’t let Mavis have his way. Before he could speak a strong force hit him and made him fall to the ground.

This sudden pain was punctuated by something light hitting his arm. Was this... a bracelet? The pain from the magic attack was so consuming, Tetra was having trouble concentrating, but this was definitely whatever Jersey was carrying. "What are you doing, kid?!"

"That's our last chance!" It wasn't burning him, maybe he was still confident he could win this? The fox men were closing in, and they had to do something fast. "Whatever that is, it's a weapon, you've gotta... be confident! Be confident and activate whatever power that has, it's all we've got!"

Tapping into magic was something that needed years and years of training to do without risk. Tetra didn't have any training, but he did have a thick skull and a drive for self preservation. It wasn't like there was anything they could arm themselves with to free them, so he played along, trying to stumble to his feet and focusing his energy to this stone. There was no burning, not even a speck of heat, but the stone felt as though it was being overcome with an odd power...

Mavis knew the power of the stone and knew how dangerous it was. He, not being physically strong even compared to Jersey, knew to keep his distance. His powers weren’t dependent on the stone oddly enough and a blue glow was emanating from his body as he sticks his hands out towards Tetra.

Tetra was confused as he didn’t charge him like before. What kind of ritual was he doing when he stuck his hand out to him? Suddenly his thoughts left his mind as it was soon clear what Mavis was doing. Mind control, and Tetra was the victim.

Jersey did not understand what was going on as he watched the frog’s eyes go from brown to blue. He backs up a bit still holding on to the gem as he managed to put it on his own wrist. Suddenly he saw Tetra rage and attack him with his makeshift awl he stole from the lab. Cat blood dripped onto the grassy knoll. Jersey was in so much shock, he could barely comprehend that the point had been driven straight through his shoulder, the pain so intense that it almost felt like it wasn't even there. And Tetra was going in for another stab. He worked fast, almost mindlessly, paw reaching for that bracelet loosely attached to Tetra's wrist. He didn't know why the world felt slower, why it felt like time has slowed almost to a halt, but he only had one purpose in his mind - regaining control of that gem, for he didn't know the true power such a thing could create. The more he defended himself, the more he realized getting close to this gem wasn't hurting him. His mind was in such a state of shock, he didn't have the time to feel scared, vulnerable, anything. Only work towards an end goal. The heat from his wound was getting more intense with his resolve. By the time he was finally close enough to pull loose the loose knot Tetra had secured the band with, the gem felt energized and yet ice cold. He could just feel that he had control, that he could do this, that he just had to focus all his energy on his stone. The sudden stabbing pain to his ribs pushed him further into concentration, this new pain only making him clench harder onto this stone, and...! The sudden burst was visible from far away and audible for miles. By the time they came to, they all had to assess damages. Virtually everyone watching on was burnt to some degree, some of the fox men nearly critically. What was once healthy grass and gentle wildflowers was nothing but a black, ashy field, waiting for more crops to fill it. Even the outsides of the lab building were scorched, although such a possibility was prepared for. Mavis could only watch through the burn mask that now covered his face. Jersey had disappeared, having summoned... speed? Teleportation? Whatever it was, the gem had granted him an opportunity to leave, and the young cat was nowhere to be seen There was no way he was incinerated in the burst, as Tetra was very much there. Sprawled on the grass, clothes burnt to nothing, damp skin now dried and black... the burnt corpse of an agent, fighting to his last breath. Mavis clenches his hands as the cat was suddenly teleported away. He summons Nightmare again as he had to return to his search for his real prizes, Dark and Fringe. Surprisingly enough, he leaves the toad laying in the grass. Whatever purpose he had for him was already done and he no longer needed him. The foxmen surround him and wipe Tetra’s memory as Mavis flies away.

With Dark and Fringe.

Hours seemed to pass as they were browsing the shops. Dark’s senses were once again picking up. He felt something went terribly wrong yet again and he looks Fringe’s way as he thinks. "You feel it too." That cold glare perfectly matched that strange chill he felt. "Like something terrible is about to hit." They weren't clairvoyants... or at lease, Fringe assumed Dark wasn't one. With everything he had seen, he wouldn't have been totally shocked if everyone on these mountains were. The explosion was not triggered by earthly science, but something supernatural. The fire affected a very precise area, but the radiation from that magic rippled through the fabric of the mountain downs and far into the wilderness. No one could tell what was wrong, but everyone knew something had just happened. Jersey most of all. The teleportation tapped into his mind, returning him to his idea of safety; his home. He could only grab a few things before he bolted as far as he could carry himself, which was not far. All he was able to do was buy a cheap hotel room, open the window to the quiet street outside to let in some air, and restrain his tears and shudders. He was now a murderer. He had no right to look for Fringe or Dark anymore, he was as guilty as they were, and G.U.N. would find out what happened and look for him. He had nowhere to turn. Nothing to do but hide and wallow. His restraint felt more restrained to himself, and the duo trying to find something at an outdoor market was unable to ignore the constant sniffles and sobs from nearby. Dark could hear the whimpering of the cat nearby. His couldn’t ignore his good instincts as he starts to head towards the hotel to see what was happening. “Fringe, I am going to go check his out.” He says before walking off.

Jersey did not know it, but the crystal had became a part of him as he could still feel its power. He looked down trying to find the band on his wrist but alas it was gone, He sighed a bit thinking he had gotten rid of that curse of a gem. However he couldn’t shake the feelings of guilt, pain and oddly enough power. He sobs at the edge of hotel window as he thinks about everything that has happened to him. Fringe was no less concerned for this person, but he didn't wish to barge in on a private matter with a stranger. His hands just moved over the bolts and supplies in front of him to delay himself, but he couldn't ignore it. Especially not with the comments from pedestrians talking about "a blubbering kid who left his window open" and other graceful remarks. Wet feet slowly walked towards a nearby building, following the wall until he came to what must have been the source. Through the window curtain, Jersey was unable to see the fish, and their brief encounters hadn't left either able to identify their voices. Fringe and Jersey, for those moments, were total strangers. "Excuse me... I don't want to intrude, I will be quick," He said into the window after three quiet taps on the window. "But you seem to have left your window open, you may want to close it. ...Is there any way I could help, or would you like me to leave?" Jersey looks down at them as Fringe speaks. He jumps back and quickly closes the window thinking it was the police. Dark sees him and recognizes that it was the kid Jersey from previous encounters. “Hey, it’s the intern.” He says to Fringe.

Inside, Jersey was freaking out. He didn’t know if he should leave or stay. Even if it was not the police like he thought, going outside was the last thing he wanted to do right now. "The inter-" Fringe wanted to freak out too, but confusion was taking over instead. Something wasn't right. "You said you thought he couldn't escape where he was. And that no one could help him." These thoughts only got more and more grim as he went on. Sure enough, he wasn't calling for backup, he could still be faintly heard sniffling and snotting behind that window. "You don't think they did anything to him, do you?" Whatever happened to Jersey, he was beyond chasing them, and suddenly they felt the need to talk to him. "He's looking for us, maybe we should get him to see us." Dark nods. “Yeah, we totally should. Whatever they did to him traumatized him quite a bit. I would never wish that on anyone.” He notes as they head inside of the hotel.

Jersey relaxes a bit as he didn’t hear any sirens nor that old toad yell at him. He musters up enough energy to stand and turn on the television when he suddenly hears a soft knock on his door from Dark. The only thing keeping him grounded in that moment was the faint sound of the television, some game show with fuzzy reception. Someone wanted to see him...? They weren't violent knocks, it could have just been that person from outside. Maybe it was just someone making sure he was okay? A desperation for some outlet was driving him to go against logic and open the door to his room. There stood dark and Fringe, the two people he had been spending the last few horrible days working his guts out trying to find, standing placidly and hoping to help him through the trauma of murdering a person he had grown to respect in a few days with an otherworldly power that was now forever imbued in his cursed body. "Oh." The door was closed again. Jersey just stood still and accepted that this was happening. He killed a man, it was only appropriate he should be killed off. But by their hands? He didn't even close the door completely, only rushed to the curtains. The rope chord was long enough for a noose, right? Dark opened the door almost intrusively as he felt the need to help the cat. This was a pretty bold move but he was desperate to help him out. he sees the noose and uses his powers to disintegrate the rope in fire. “Whoa! Hey, easy there!”

Jersey shakes in shock. He would have used a gun but he didn’t own one yet have any access to one at this present time. He stood in surrender as he sees the black furred winged angel-hog in front of him. "Please make this quick.” He says with his hands up in the air. There was something wrong. In spite of the summoned fire, that fish he had been chasing didn't seem anything other than confused. He only let his hologram down so he could identify him, so the extreme expressions the hologram gave off were back to his subtle muscle movements. "Make what quick?" Fringe's words were quiet and sincere. Another look. They weren't armed, unless they intended to hit him over the head with the various items they had been shopping for. Dark's aggression was only in that moment with the fire, now both back to their casual stances. And Fringe couldn't tell what had just happened with only ears. "I thought you were-" The words got lost somewhere between his throat and his mouth. "We aren't here to hurt you," Fringe offered. "We... if there's anything Dark and I can understand, it's what those men are capable of and dealing with trauma." Not that he knew who 'those men' were, that was all Dark. "Are you in any danger? Do you need to hide?" Jersey didn’t realize that he couldn’t see as he crosses his arms. “Well look at me, what do you think!” He said sounding a little desperate and conflicted with himself.

Dark looks at him. “Well, cat, we came to help you out. I have no idea what happened to you but…where is the frog?” He asks sounding a bit blunt. He even let out a meep at the words, scrunching up until his knees knocked. If he didn't feel tiny before, he sure did now. But what was he supposed to do? Push them out and go back to loneliness? Bring them to gun and have to explain what happened to Tetra? "We tried escaping, but- we- It's a very long story." The door quietly closed. "We have all the time we need to speak," Fringe said as the television was clicked off. "Perhaps you should sit down first, you sound weak." Voices were hushed and the words came out slowly. But at least in a hotel like this, they had some kind of safe spot. Somewhere they could face their fears and ignore the outside world in. So they let time pass, listening to all the details of their detainment. Jersey shivers as he finally built up enough courage to start speaking again. “Well I didn’t enter the place but saw these fox like creatures. Mavis was trying to get me to make him a weapon of some sort…”

Dark nods as he listens. The place sounded familiar to his ears but he didn’t want to worry Fringe. It was a long hike through his experience. Starting with their capture and working through everything he had witnessed and done. The trauma was still fresh in his mind, and when he reached his fight with Tetra, his voice was beginning to break. "His eyes changed colors, and he- he stabbed me." One hand was being gently held over the wound on his side, but the bandages on his shoulder were in plain view. "I thought that this gem could help me, so I grabbed it, and it didn't hurt me for once. Then I got stabbed again, and I think I... There was an explosion." His voice had gradually shrunk as he spoke, tears now beginning to swell as he prepared for the worst. "Mavis lived. Tetra... burned to death. I murdered him." They could see his throat jolt as he tried not to cry, but it was too last. The tears were starting to flow, and his words went clunky and drowned in gasps for air. "Everyone wants me dead, I'm- I'm finished. I'm done." Dark looks at him. He knew that the gems were powerful but not deadly on their own. If Tetra had died from the cause Jersey claimed, it would have been induced. Although Mavis is the bad guy here, he would want him alive as he was still needed. “Well after an hour of that, I think it’s safe to say that you need a break.” He says with a smirk to brighten up the mood a bit. The smile didn't do much. He was still sitting there depending on the very people he had tried to imprison, finally opening the floodgates and letting his tears pour. He wasn't going to feel safe, not for a long time. IT might have been easy to mock Fringe's appearances, but he was terrified by the sight of Dark even more. He looked surreal yet grounded, etherial and dark, the way he had always imagined the specter of death looking. As if he needed anyone to rub salt in the wound anymore. He didn't just want a pat on the back at that moment, he needed support. So when he felt Fringe try to comfort him, he went in and rested his head on his shoulder, desperately clinging around him. The tears didn't last long, but the trauma was far from over. "You're going to be alright." Fringe only spoke while the stream of dears had weakened until it was almost gone. "We've all committed these kinds of crimes, we can help you." Of course, he wasn't even sure if Dark was guilty, but he hoped he would understand it was just to comfort their new acquaintance. "Running won't change your emotions. You need to make peace with his family, give them some peace of mind. And also... This may sound crazy, but you need to make peace with his spirit. Whatever the other side is may be very far from our realm, but... it is possible. With the right location and a great mass of chaos or other powers, you may be able to meet him briefly once again." Jersey smiles and hugs him for a long moment. Dark looks at the two and slowly closes his eyes to think . “Hmm…well this may be an odd time to ask but what do you suppose we do now?” When the hug was broken, the two adjusted their positions so all three were sitting close together. "Mavis and G.U.N. are after all of us, I think we need to stick together." Fringe said. "If that's okay with Jersey, of course." Jersey didn't respond immediately. "Also... maybe we should learn more about that gem you got. Can we see the bracelet?" Jersey sighs and looks at him as he was asked that question. “Well I would show it to you but the crystal is gone.” He notes still feeling the odd sensations of having the power inside of him.

Dark sighs as well knowing what had happened. “Looks like it chose you.” He says as Jersey finishes speaking. "Chosen?" Fringe wasn't sure what that word meant, but that wasn't a normal hug. There was some bizarre energy to it, something that didn't feel natural. Could that have been a result of... whatever happened? "Okay, what's going on?" Jersey said, tears dried but back into fear. "It 'chose me'? How does a stone choose someone? What the- what the hell's going on?" He could only sit despondently and stare at the bracelet. Sure enough, the stone was gone but nothing was cut, like the gem had vanished into thin air. Those diamonds that were embroidered in were glittery enough to distract his mind just a little bit. Dark looks at him and almost chuckles. “You have a lot to learn about magic, kid. The stone chose you because you activated it. When you went to save Tetra, you initiated a light essence frequency which triggered a sequence causing the stone to glow. Since you have shown you had a strong enough reserve of the energy, it decided to become a part of you.” He says as he looks at him. "So what I'm a- a rock person now?!" Jersey's confusion immediately went to panic, he was far too scared to be angry. "How does it become part of me?!" That wasn't Fringe's first question. "Light essence... you aren't just a normal Mobian. You've had powers you haven't told us about, right?" He never thought so, at least. "I'm just a tailor! I'm a tailor, what's happening to me?" Terrified eyes stared down at his hands. This energy he could feel felt otherworldly, supernatural, but not uncomfortable. That chaotic burning wasn't present anymore. As strong as it was getting, it didn't feel totally unfamiliar, either, like he had always felt something like this in some way. Dark looks at him. “You are still yourself. However because of your situation we would need to get you to a healer of the north. I can get you there but can’t enter the temples.” He says not really sympathizing with the cat. "Are we talking about the stab wounds or the rock?" Jersey, on the other hand, couldn't care more about his situation. "I- I really don't care, if he can help, I'm going." Jersey was already up, holding his arm still as he walked so he wouldn't agitate his wound. The bag he was going to grab was filled with many normal sewing supplies, a wallet... and that was it. He wasn't planning on having to pack up and leave, that was obvious. "Wait... in the NORTH? How are we getting there?" Dark looks at him and smirks. “I could fly us there, but there is a subway station nearby.” He looks up a moment as the sky was clear.

Jersey nods when he heard him. He was still very self-conscious of the deep cut in his arm. He didn’t think the stone did it, but he cold still feel the tender skin underneath his paws. Where was the subway? It was a bit of a walk away, and Jersey sure didn't know about it! But he had no reason to leave the city before, and the outerlands were dangerous. For as cozy as the town felt, any kind of technology on this level was startling. Heaven knows how he would react to the labs present on the mountain. He would shortly, as he watched in total fear while the hologram around Fringe reformed. "Wha- okay." His shock immediately turned to acceptance. This was fine. Dark chuckles. “Come with us and see our side of the story. I promise you that it’s not too bad.” He says as they walk out of the hotel room.

Meanwhile with Mavis and Bullseye.

Mavis was back at his home and Bullseye was there with him. He looks at him and seemed furious. “He betrayed us.” Bullseye had one unfinished arrow in his hand, still chiseling out the point to calm himself down. "That cat wouldn't be a problem if he didn't have that stone..." he pondered. They needed to get revenge against him... well, somehow! 'Somehow' came in the form of a very simple, overlooked solution. "G.U.N. still wants to be big boys, let's let em have their fun. Jersey burnt an agent to death, maybe they'll be competent with a personal case." Bullseye looks at him as he finishes a new arrow. He wets the tip with a paralyzing poison before putting it up to dry. "Hmm…maybe.” He says as he stands up.

Mavis nods and growls showing a bit of his dark side once again. “But for now we have a cat on our list.” Bullseye looked to his side, to the foxmen that walked about silently. "None of your men ran forward? Not even the dumber ones?" He didn't seem surprised, but definitely disappointed. "Though theyd've been fried too. Guess you don't make any fools." He picked up the pile of new tranquilizing arrows still in need of the small decorations needed to keep them flying straight. "I can always start hunting," he said, "But what are you planning to do with him? Tranquilizer's nice, but don't you want him to suffer start to finish, put a little extra on to make it really sting? We could always also go straight for the kill from the start." Mavis grows a tail having trouble resisting his primal instincts. “You know that would be too easy and you surely remember the contract we made with Molem. We can’t kill them without proper screening.” He says as he stops resisting and transforms a bit gaining claws and dark black skin.

Bullseye growls and the red ruby embedded in his forehead was glowing. “I hate it when you are right but getting Dark out of the picture is the real challenge.” He notes as Mavis nods.

With Dark and Fringe. It was very much the old style of train interior. Small tables sitting next to a window, watching the scenery go by. Two benches on either side of each table. The wood was old but sturdy, as though this train had been around for decades running the same loyal routes. Service wasn't modern or luxury, but they could at least get coffee and tea. Drinks werent on the agenda, even if coffee was given to all three. Instead, Jersey placed the bracelet on the table so Dark could see it and Fringe could feel the shapes. "These are lovely materials!" Fringe said in total sincerity. "And your stitching is wonderful!" "He wanted specific shapes," he said, motioning for the figures with a few diamond decorations. A pebble had been loosely wedged into the spot where the old gem was, a placeholder until they could find something that fit better. "Do these mean anything to you?" Dark looks at the strange shapes and seems rather intrigued. He was sipping on some black coffee as he was served by a restaurant waitress. “May I take a look at that I think I might know what he was trying to do.” He says as he turns to Fringe. "Certainly," he said, handing it over with a big smile. "It's a lovely bracelet, Jersey, your craftsmanship is incredible." He needed something to keep him teathered to reality, and sometimes, grim humor was all he had left. "Thank you, it almost killed me." "You're welcome," Fringe said sincerely. Dark looks at the bracelet closely as they talk. Something about it was odd but he wasn’t quite familiar with the shapes in front of his eyes. “Hmm…this is quite odd indeed.” He thinks to himself. The shapes looked almost like sloppy pictures, but there was a delicate border around the edges, swooshes and floral symbols all small, detailed, and immaculate. There was no way he could get those correct and screw up on the main pictures. They didn't really look like pictures, the forms they could see were meaningless stretches of the imagination. But they did seem to have strange grounding to them. Alchemical symbols, the geometry of a veve, and symbols from god knows where... In a second, it struck. These weren't sloppily aligned, they were following a very careful pattern, with every 'random' angle carefully calculated and perfectly placed. Infused with elements of so many forms of magic, there was no doubt this was a sigil. But whatever it was supposed to do for the stone was lost in the archaic markings. Dark seemed intrigued as the markings were some type of written language. “Oh, this is an old design.” He says before putting the bracelet down on the table. "What does that mean?" Would he really have an answer, Jersey wondered? "If it's old, we could find an old book, or a- a historian of some kind?" Fringe was back to holding the bracelet, but now tracing his fingers to feel the shapes of the pattern instead of the materials. There were a few shapes that he could identify. A triangle with some bar below to indicate the bottom, and a curved arrow with a dash down it. "I've... I know these shapes!" He began. "These are alchemy symbols, I- My old boyfriend taught me many things." He seemed scared, even ashamed of this knowledge. "I think this shape is fire," he began as he indicated the triangle, "but I'm not certain. But this one here, this arrow... this is decay. I don't know what this means, but I don't like it. Dark thinks. “Well regardless, the gem has chosen Jersey and now he has abilities he has yet to understand. Jersey, do you think you would be able to handle having so much power?” He asks almost randomly. "Like hell I can, I can't handle a clothing store! I can't handle an electric sewing machine, how am I supposed to wield anything like this?" He half chuckled, making light of his situation as he simultaneously doubted all of his abilities to control anything that was happening. Him and Fringe reached for their cups at about the same time, sipping as they pondered. Fringe spit his out immediately, covering his mouth daintily and putting down the glass as fast and gently as he could. "Oh my- this is almost boiling!" "Hm?" Jersey didn't seem to notice, but smoke was billowing off the top as hot and as quickly as the other two cups. To him, it tasted normal, even pleasantly warm. Dark shrugs as he drinks his normally. He was used to heat and could almost touch fire without getting burned. “You okay over there?” He asks as he looks at Fringe’s reaction. "I'll be fine... Excuse me!" One finger was held up to motion for the waitress. "Do you have any slightly cooler coffee?" Sure enough, when she would go to pick up the cup, it would hurt her hands, too. Jersey and Dark were still holding their cups, looking confused at their reactions. It struck Fringe first. "Don't you- Can't you control heat, Dark? Does that mean-" Dark looks at him funny and chuckles. “I may be resistant to heat but I would be talking out of my head if I claimed to control heat. Although I could in some instances.”

Jersey’s expression was different. He was impressed with himself that he could stand the heat of the beverage. Being hot enough to burn not just one person but two was enough evidence to him that something was different. Rides through the mountains were destined to get chilly, and the cheapest way to heat the various cars were radiators. It seemed foolish, but he had to try, and Jersey walked over to the tall pipe radiator he could just hear trying its hardest to give off heat. One paw was pressed to the burning metal, and... nothing. Comfortable once again. As he spun on his feet, his expression could be seen warping between different kinds of surprise. Had he actually developed a resistance to extreme heats? Perhaps this is what the 'fire' symbol stood for, if Fringe's reading was correct? "...Hell yeah." Dark looks at him as he witnessed what he had just done. “Don’t get too excited, these new abilities do indeed have limitations.” He says with a firm expression on his face. He made an annoyed noise with his mouth. "I'm not sure I haven't lost it already and I'm not imagining things," he had to admit. This was not normal. Not even the tiniest bit, and after everything that had occurred, he was starting to lose a grip on what was plausible anymore. "If we want to figure it out, we should look at the bracelet, right?" Fringe was zoning in on certain symbols he almost felt like he recognized, tracing them time and time again to try and jog his memory. "Is this- this feels like a triquetra, doesn't that symbolize unity? Maybe it's unity between... Jersey's body and heat? Do you know any more about these symbols?" Dark looks at him and shakes his head. “Not a clue…looks like you would have to take it to a student or a master.” He says with sigh. "Yeah, that's probably a good idea, I don't know what's going on." Fringe relaxed a little in his seat after Jersey's comment. "We should do that soon. The only other option is to flail at random and try to summon dangerous powers we know nothing about. We could either do things safely or discover them the exciting way..." They sat in a silent moment, all of them aching to say the words touching the corners of their minds. Fringe did it first by failing to surpress a chuckle, somber expression cracking a small grin. Jersey looked back knowingly at Dark, having come to the same idea. "Where's the next place we can try 'flailing around at random?'" Dark looks at a them as they speak. “ Well I don’t think it’s too wise to go around messing with things that aren’t well understood.” He says rather bluntly looking at the two.

Judging by the situation at hand, Jersey would have to endure some training which would take quite some time which they did not have. "I figured as much..." Fringe wasn't broken up, still excited at the thought of figuring out these powers by simply having Jersey try everything. Jersey wasn't as accepting, downtrodden but not too surprised. Trying to find reasons to laugh or enjoy himself was the only thing keeping him from breaking down in the moment. A chime played over the trains crackling speaker system. "Attention, passengers, we will be arriving at the north peak station in approximately ten minutes. North peak station, ten minutes." "Of course we're going to a mountain peak." Jersey smarmed, still trying to joke. "We can handle extreme heat, not extreme cold." "Yes... 'we'." Fringe's fingers were steepled, head turned sheepishly away as he smiled. "If you- you can use my sweatshirt if you want, I'm very good with the cold." Dark nods and let Jersey take the sweater. He knew how to control the heat of his body from within, so cold would not be a problem for himself. His ears turn as he hear the rattling of the train tracks as they were closing in on their location. Jersey smiles and puts on the reasonably thick green sweater that Fringe had on his back. He looked pretty good in it as it went with his black fur. “Hehe…how do I look?“ He asks trying to stay in a pleasant mood. "It looks wonderful on you." Jersey could only glare down Fringe's face. Fringe didn't need to have eyes to look like he was overflowing with self amusement as what had turned into one of his favorite jokes, and Jersey wasn't sure if he should have felt stupid or insensitive for the question. But he couldn't be angry if he was taking it lightly. He turned to look at Dark, nodding and smiling with a thumbs up like Fringe's comment was the best approval he could have gotten. Dark chuckles as he looks at the two interact. The train arrives as he gets on ready for the long ride northwest. “There’s our train.” He says as the passengers get off. Jersey turned his head, still smiling but definitely concerned by the comment. "Another train?" "Yes... I thought you knew?" Fringe was more or less playing packmule for their bags, not that he minded. "We did tell him, right?" "How long is this train ride going to be?" What was the number again? Fringe flapped the tickets in his hand as he struggle to remember. "Was it fourteen or fifteen hours...?" Dark looks the tickets over as Fringe was holding them in his hands. “Actually it’s only about ten hours.“ He says as the last passenger comes off of the train. Meanwhile, there seems to be someone else was watching them in the distance. This would have been normal for the most part. They were a striking black winged hedgehog, a skinless fish, and a cat unprepared for this kind of cold climate. A few glares was just to be expected. But they weren't just glaring, they had been carefully watching. Waiting and expecting this little group to come this way, and they turned a corner before they could be spotted again. Communications had to be quick, they needed instructions before the train started loading passengers. Thankfully, and agent like him was able to lower that strange X-like muzzle that normally covered his mouth. "They arrived," the fox-like creature said, voice raspy but happy to be able to use his mouth. "Can't go unnoticed. Train's leaving in ten, no stops for refueling, next station is too busy to do any work in. Awaiting orders." As the foxman looks, another creature with the same “X” on his face was there. It was the mysterious hedgehog from before. Mavis’ nightmare and Dark’s rival. Who was he exactly? “Standby on 1D.” He says as he turns away from a passenger looking his way.

Dark’s senses were starting to act up again. He felt trouble near yet didn’t see it. He hasn’t been wrong yet he thinks but why now. The train starts moving down its tracks. The ten hour train ride was starting at ten in the evening, and they were thankful enough to have tickets for an economy sleeper room. It was tiny and cramped with only two beds for the three travelers, but they didn't seem bothered. "I'm a light sleeper, and I was planning on relaxing in the lounge anyways." Fringe admitted. "You'll each get a bed." "Good." Jersey played it off as a joking good, but he was going to need some kind of space on this train. If there was one thing he knew, he wasn't getting sleep that night. Dark looks at them both. “Honestly you two can have the beds. I naturally sleep standing up…or more often than not, not at all.” He notes as he sits on an available seat on the bus. Jersey thinks a moment as he looks at Dark. “Interesting, do you suppose that I myself do not need rest since we are basically the same now.” He asks Dark before looking towards Fringe. "Well, do you feel tired?" Did he? No... No, he felt perfectly fine. "A little cramped from sitting for that long, but no. I didn't even-" He looked down at his own body, cutting himself off halfway through his thought. He didn't look any different, but these new powers were definitely present. "Well, maybe you should talk about your powers with Jersey more and see what you can figure out. I will see if I can make out the symbols on this bracelet and take a quick nap." Soon, the tiny room's door was locked. Fringe stayed in bed, racking his memories for what these symbols could have meant. Jersey and Dark sat in the public lounge car surrounded by few other awake passengers also being offered dinner. The train began the trip through the long tunnel passage as the elite fox creature from the station prepared in an unsold sleeper room, everyone on board blissfully unaware of the plans in store. Dark looks at Jersey as they were riding the train. His gaze was as firm as ever but in this case, it was non-threatening like when he first met Fringe in the mountains. He thought about his questions that Jersey had asked for a moment before answering in his chilling but reasonable voice. “Honestly I am the first of my kind to not require rest. Reasons being are unknown…it may be because I am cursed but even curses rest…who knows.” He says as Jersey ‘s eyes open wide in awe. There was much more there than he knew from his short stay on these mountains. More to the magic powers, more to the mystical properties he'd only heard of in rumors, and he had someone here able to tell him everything. There was so much to say, so many places to start. "Cursed?" Perhaps that was a good place, he figured. "What, are there vengeful witches or wizards now too? How much don't I know about these mountains?" Dark shrugs and looks at him as he stands up. “Well I am not quite sure, I don’t think wizards even exist within these mountains. However there are curses and those are indeed very very real.” He says as he stretches his wings. "You can't say that and not give details." He was far too interested in this curse idea... or maybe scared of being cursed. "So what did you do? Lose a bet with a witch? Or is this a 'Tomb of Tutankhamen' kind of curse?" To him, not having to sleep sure as hell didn't seem like any kind of hindrance. Dark looks at him and sighs. “Well since you saw the worst of the mountains, I can share some of my secrets…but not on this train.” He says as he crosses him arms. Jersey wasn't buying it, not with the small number of people around and with how many were half asleep. Making a scene wasn't going to help either, though. "Then how about you tell me about the fire?" Vague, but the point was clear. "I was fighting with-" He chocked on the name. "We were fighting, and I just felt... I felt like my body was draining into my hands, like they were painlessly superheating. Is this what it's supposed to feel like?" Dark nods understanding exactly what he meant. He did not want to leave Fringe out of the picture but he knew that Jersey would not rest without knowing the truth and nothing else. He sighs. “The fire you are feeling is alive. It’s a part of you just like a heart…” He says as he closes her eyes. Like a heart? Like fire was being coursed and pumped into every part of his body? He wasn't denying the possibility. Frankly he was in such disbelief he was willing to buy anything. "So it was basically... bleeding out fire. Kind of." It explained the feeling, but he knew there wasn't literal fire running through his body. He hoped not, anyways. "And the radiator... so, how high can you handle the heat? I'm not planning on jumping in any volcanoes or anything, but still good to know." Dark looks at him after his brief session of keeping cool. He turns his ears as he hears the question. “You can handle any heat you desire but only for brief moments. The higher the heat, the less you can handle. Don’t be afraid, you are just like any other Mobian on this planet. The only difference is that we can access the ability to withstand more heat.” He says making his point quite clear. Suddenly the train stops as the squeaking of the rails were heard. If the passage between cars was opened, they would have heard a chorus of confused groans from the sleeper car, but the few woken passengers were certainly confused by what was happening, Jersey included. All of a sudden, paranoia over what he'd done was striking again. There wasn't anyone here to arrest him, was there...?! But when he'd open the curtains to the small window next to where they sat, there wouldn't be any police in sight. Not even the room for them to be present, as the train was coming to a stop on a thin cliffside patch of rails. Unless the police planned to drop on the train from above, they were safe. The view would have shown them a stunning view of a great crevasse any other day, but as it stood, it was just a particularly dark patch on the nightscape. "You think something's on the tracks?" From the speakers, an announcer spoke. “Greetings passengers from all over the land. We have run into a serious emergency as one of the passengers is suspected to have a highly contagious parasite. Please remain calm as there will be a brief search of the cars and passengers. Once that is done, the train ride will resume.” The announcer said with the click of the radio. Dark was a bit alarmed at this. “The fox! He followed us here…but where is he.” He says as more of the passengers were waking up and shivering from being nervous. "Well, let's grab Fringe, we should keep him safe-" But the cat was already stopped before he went through the door to the sleeper car. A guard was standing between them, firmly between the only entrance to the next car. "Sorry, sir, all passengers are to stay in their car to prevent any kind of spreading. Conductor's orders. The disease can only spread so far if they don't leave where they are." These thoughts were shared by Fringe, who was still wracking his mind for what some of these loops and shapes meant. 'If I just stay in here, I won't get infected,' he reasoned, keeping his attentions firmly on the stitch work in his hands. Suddenly the guards eyes turn red and he turns around before falling to his knees. The familiar fox creature was present and holding a strange device. “Don’t you move, cat.” He says in that creepy voice like before. Dark springs into action as the passengers freak out and try to escape. He pushes them out the way as the fox was his only target. “People, sit in the car! He only wants me.” He says to them as they shiver and watch. "Don't give yourself up for me." The cat said. He tried to stand perfectly still, truly, but his body shuddered and shivered at every chance. Not here, definitely not now! He had to do something, something to stop this, but if he couldn't move...! Oh, he was forming a plan, and as the creature moved in on his target, Dark could watch his fingers twitch subtly in an attempt to summon his powers. At this point Dark did not care if the cat knew what he was doing or not. He knew the most about these foxmen and was getting tired of playing defense. If they had the means to follow him, it would be likely that this was a scout and not a true foxman. He rages on as everyone was safe in the cart behind him. The creature looks at him and to its device. “FD threat X.” He says with a bit of worry in his voice before he takes out a pistol from his belly. Dark’s eyes light up as he prepares to attack before Jersey nervously interrupts as a fireball whizzes by his face. Gasps and yells of terror erupted from the onlookers as the flame exploded at the edge of the car. A momentary but powerful explosion, enough to leave a sizable hole in the floor, the edges of the flame so hot they left no flames, only burnt linings around ashen hollows. The bright light was immediately followed by a cold darkness, only interrupted by the barest flicks of moonlight from the windows and sparks from the floor. The fireball had damaged the electricity through the cars. A sudden explosion and confusion from other passengers about a lack of light? Upon hearing the confusion from the surrounding sleeping chambers, Fringe was up and leaving the room. Something was horribly, horribly wrong, and it couldn't have been a coincidence. Dark was furious. His energy had been building up from not having to fight for so long and from his emotions was getting to much to bear. He had to release. Using his sense, he had pushed Jersey with his levitation ability to the back of the sleeper car behind him. The crowd would have scattered if the door were not locked from all sides but the front. The energy from the explosion dazed the fox man as he was on the floor struggling to get up. Before he could, Dark was on top of him and was getting hotter by the minute.

Jersey could not believe what he just did. If he was not nervous already, he sure was now. Not only did he do an attack more powerful than he could imagine but he caused a lot of chaos just from that one accidental spark of fire. He would have tried to stop Dark but the throw slowed him down as he hits hard against the back. An alarm sounds from the train and some guards were being sent their way as they were on top of the cliff side. Immediately after the crash, Fringe could hear Jersey stumbling but staying on his feet, and a scuffle from the main car. Jersey was in no danger, but whoever was fighting in the main car was. Years of sensitive hearing left him knowing how to move quietly. Whisper quiet, even, the noise from his steps so faint it couldn't be heard over one's own breathing. These steps sped, until he was standing through the door. Those grunts were Dark, no doubt, but who was in control of the situation? When a figure was kicked across the room and Dark made a noise against the far wall, Fringe hopped in to hold down whoever this assailant was, sneaking up silently and feeling them shudder as damp hands suddenly straddled him from behind. "Who are you, and why are you here?" The fury was back, that fury from Fringe's first fight with his travel companion. As the assailant was grabbed, Dark could hear the train security coming their way. There was no way he would let them take him to the dungeons. He had to think quickly as time was not on his side. When the foxman was grabbed from behind he opens his wide jawed mouth which would bite through bone if he could successfully land the blow. He hisses as Fringe furiously pins him down. It was less a calculated pin and more a shapeless strugled to grab around his chest, just to stop him from moving correctly. Dark was doubtless in charge, he was just there to help him along. ...Was he? If he wasn't wrong, he sounded- not scared, but shaken. Ragged breaths, rattling in place, and it had to be because of those strange approaching footsteps. They just needed to keep whoever out for a while. "Jersey... Jersey!" He yelled out, receiving no response. "Dark, find- get Jersey in here, and use your powers to weld the door shut, we can keep them out... whoever they are!" Dark growls and shakes his head. “No, the guards would surround the cart and we would all be in trouble…I can’t go back!” He says as the foxman was working his way free from Fringe’s grasp.

Jersey was in too much shock to think straight, let alone with what he just did moments ago with the fireball. When he finally got a grasp of the scene he thought it was best to do something inside the box…He heard a guardian with those remarkable badges resembling their status among the temples and oddly enough he went out to him. “Wait, wait!” Dark looks at the cat and was surprised that he was acting so strangely. He knew he was nervous, but he also knew that the cat wasn’t dumb. “What the heck is he doing!” He thinks as he spreads his wings. That was only going to be punctuated with a horrific jaw clench from the creature, loud and echoing but barely scratching Fringe as he pulled his arm away. "We need a muzzle...!" He yelled out, feeling around the adjacent area. Nothing, nothing... a tieback for one of the window curtains? Could he at least restrain his wrists with that? Jersey stood blissfully unaware of what exactly was coming after Dark. Not exactly blissfully, more relatively less terrified. He was barely distracted by the loud flapping of Dark's wings and the throngs of train passengers confused grunts and statements. The guards look at the cat. Since he was not affiliated with any clan nor were they ware of his affiliations with Dark, they stop and talk with him. “Sir, this is a high risk scene, we request you leave the area.” They say as they approach the train. Jersey steps back and nods as they run past him. Dark was still inside of the train cart with Fringe. The creature growls as he struggles to fight Fringe’s grasp. Dark manages to grab a device he had. It was obtained from a shop he went to with Fringe earlier. He gets in close and and flashes a light in the fox’s face which cause him to fall limp. “Fringe, drop him. We got to go!” When the figure went limp, Fringe didn't ask questions. He could still feel him breathing, but whatever he had to resort to couldn't have been good. "Where? Where should we go?" His voice was quiet yet frantic. "Should we hide or get off the train?" The footsteps were approaching fast, they had to act quickly. "Leave Jersey aboard, we can meet him at the station! We have to run!" He tugged on the door opposite where the footsteps were coming from. They just needed to find a door to outside the train, a latch, a window, anything! He didn't know who this was, but if Dark was this concerned, it wasn't the time for questions.

#Blazerandfnds #Show's Over #There's A Melody Playing #The Water's Fine

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