Fantasy Code FERAL

[andujarprime]

As the rest of the group got themselves into the train, he opened one eye. He had felt a very strong presence, one that he had noticed only momentarily back in the briefing room. There it was, a regal white tiger sitting in the row ahead of him. He smiled in admiration at the large cat, only a few seconds before he felt Haku in his head. "Take a picture, it'll last longer" her voice was full of mock jealousy. Rin could only smile and shake his head at her. "Jealousy does not become you ya know" He whispered down to her closing his eye once more. He was beginning to relax, almost immediately once his eyes were closed and his meditative state was reached. Haku slid down of his lap and made her way across the seat, then over to the row ahead. At a safe distance from the large cat she raised herself a little. "Hello, master Laohu. I am Hakuji, and my human behind you is Rin. He can be a bit quiet sometimes, but we are honored to meet you. Although for him it migh be a little bit more starstruck with you." She said with a light tone, playfully joking at Rin's expense.


@crucialstar

 

[zCrookedz]

Simon boarded the train and looked around the storage and seating in the inside. He couldn't help but smile a bit at the progress of the train. It looked exactly as he had imagined it would when the plans had first been drawn up. As he examined the trains innards, he heard Leandra's voice and turned to her with a smile.


"Ah, its not that I'm embarrassed. If your not careful I might just talk your ear off about this train. Its just...despite things that happen in The Watch, there were a few good moments that I still enjoy remembering."


Simon's smile faded slightly before he turned back to the inside of the train.


He looked down the aisle and found a military issue bag labeled Jimbo and headed for the bag. He sat down and set his own bag that he had carried with him next to the seat as Jimbo came around and sat next to Simon. His head turned at the sound of the hyena talking about an iPod and Jimbo seemed to perk up a bit. He grabbed his own bag, which was pretty bulky and unzipped the top. After a few moments of fishing, he to retrieved an iPod and stuck the buds into his ears and began to fiddle with the dial.


Simon chuckled a bit at the gorilla before looking over the train once more. He smiled before turning back to Leandra and leaning back in the seat.


"I must say, its not often that there are so many Cryptid partners around. A phoenix is incredibly interesting, you two must have quite the history together."


@Lioness075

 

[deer]

Laohu sat on the outside seat, where the walkway was, not minding being on the outside. In a sense, he felt more comfortable sitting there than having others accidently hit Xiao Hui with their luggage or body. He wouldn't be too pleased or happy about the idea, even just thinking about it made his claws retract. At the moment, Xiao Hui had gone to wander around the train before it started heading off to their destination. He still didn't like the fact she decided to go, but there was no changing her mind. Where she went, he followed, always following her from behind or taking the lead, never dropping his guard for a moment. However, his ears perked at a slithering nearby him as his head turned away from the window to be greeted by a silver snake with blue eyes. Laohu's emerald green ones gazed into hers with curiosity, wondering why decided to stumble over to them. If Xiao Hui was here. . she wouldn't show it, but he knew, she'd jump out of her skin. Laohu wasn't prejudice towards the snake, not necessarily disliking or liking her, she hadn't done anything to harm him or Xiao Hui, so what's there to be wary about.


However, a soft voice came from Hakujin, if he remembered her name correctly, greeting him as she teased about her human companion's star struckness to seeing a white tiger such as him self. Laohu chuffed friendly, "Hello, Hakujin. Aku? If I may call you that." He said, saying a nickname he found to be endearing to her. "Although I love the sound of 'master'," he teased, "I'm sure Xiao Hui, my companion, wouldn't want my ego to get bigger than it already is." He chuckled slightly, letting a deep low rumble be resonate through his mane. His tail swished back and forth at the snake, as he tilted his head, curiously at her, "How are you faring, today, Milday?" He asked, speaking in the same polite and formal manner as Aku had addressed him before, keeping a joking and lighthearted atmosphere. Laohu decided to get to know the people he would be working with and what better way than speaking to the other animals?

@andujarprime
​

 

[DawnAntalios]

Zoe boarded the train, the words of the Agent still reverberating in her head. She did not particularly feel guilty about her outburst, nor did she regret it but she wanted to stay in the good graces of the Watch. The little civet - as annoying as she was - was correct: she was now but an agent, a tool in the hands of this powerful agency - they were her employer and thus she had to be obedient, no matter how irritating it was.


Sighing, she leaned back against her chair and was about to relax when she suddenly noticed a girl entering with a regal white tiger by her side. She was smaller than her but her determined face and surprising conviction was almost shocking - she emanated confidence and grace unlike anyone she had met in the room before. She remained silent as the girl greeted her and talked about... rather strange things. It was clear to her that she was not transparent, else others would have realized the reason of her hostility - this girl however seemed to see through her effortlessly... somehow.


" Perhaps. " she muttered " Perhaps we are just here to see who will survive this mission - and who will become the victim of the cold north. "


She watched as the girl gracefully left her quarters, joining the others and then a sudden, awkward silence has befallen the room. Eos walked up to her and smiled.


" She reminds you of her. " he spoke with a melodic voice. Zoe's cheeks turned slightly red then turned to him.


" Do not be a fool, Eos. " she replied with a mix of embarrassment and certainty " She just seems more capable than the others... perhaps she will be a part of this team in he end. "


The stag chuckled.


" So in short she reminds you of her. "


Zoe wanted to retort but the words died on her lips. She leaned against her chair and replied briefly.


" Yes. Yes she does. "


As she sat there the old stag noticed something on his companion, something which he thought to be lost forever. On the stoic, cold expression of Zoe he had seen something briefly, a mark of hope, something he had searched for for a long time.


He had seen a brief smile. With joy and hope rekindled within his heart Eos laid down on the floor and closed his eyes, meditating happily.

 

[Flutterby]

Beth looked down at Duik, her face relaxing out of its frown. But it was Totus that answered. "Ben was the sergeant we worked with in Seattle. His companion is a griffin, Xior." Totus said, while Beth blushed a little at his sly tone. It suggested much more than was there. "I cant imagine why he would invite Beth to dinner." Totus added. If he had been human, he would have smirked.


Beth looked up at Alec, and gave a small shake of her head. "Its fine. Its not a very interesting note anyway." She said, as she tucked it into the side pocket of the bag. Her hand sought the zipper, and she pulled it open. She really was unconcerned about its contents, Xior wouldnt send anything embarrassing.


On the top, was her favorite pair of running gloves, that she had forgotten at the precinct, and a length of rope. It wasnt anything fancy, but it was her go-to all-around single rope, and her favorite brand. Tucked in next to them was a stack of Seattle postcards, rubberbanded under a half sheet of paper with both of her parents addresses, and Ben's. These things made her smile, but what was underneath made her laugh out loud. The rest of the bag was filled with bags with beef jerky, hot chocolate mix, and sour gummy worms.


"I guess Xior has a sense of humor afterall." Bety remarked, still chuckling, mostly to Totus. The griffin had never seemed to pay attention to the two of them, but apparently he was attentive enough to notice Ben teasing them about several of their favorite things. She found a seat nearby, zipping the bag shut as she sat. "At least we have snacks covered," She said, and tried to mentally prepare herself for being stuck in traveling compartments for quite some time.


@SilverFlight

 

[Peaceswore]

Ash hadn't said a thing the entire briefing...not because he wasn't interested in the case (he is! Honest!) But because he was just dazzled by the men and women that were before him. All the complaining and yelling that was going on went through one ear...before stopping and taking a U-turn as he didn't really register the bickering. He just stood there with a charming smile on his face, soon he was forced to close his eyes as he knew that was the only way for him to actually listen. And when I say he was forced to close his eyes... Well I mean Fie hopped back over to him (still stuffing his face) and placed his tail over Ash's eyes so he would actually focus on the mission... Because if Ash had to ask him what was going on.... Well they were screwed.


When all was said and done Ash started to head to the train, Fie's tail finally away from his eyes. "Okay.... Fie, we have a problem." Ash said in a serious tone as he looked over at Fie who tilted his head. "A problem? Kehehe I guess this mission may be a bit odd for us since we are best at inflitra-" "There are two many eye candies here! How will I focus???" Ash said interrupting Fie. The monkey faced palmed...hitting himself a bit too hard as he ended up losing his balance and falling off Ash's shoulder letting out one of those loud money squeals. Though with his fast reflexes he remained unharmed (Ash caught him)! "Keheheh Ashy... I love you, but you are an idiot." "Says the idiot." "Idiot." "You just said that." "Well I'm saying it again incase you didn't hear me!" "Yes yes I hear you." "Kehehe Good.... Idiot." "You got to expand your vocabulary" "Gah! My vocab is perfect! I'm using simple words because they are easier to say!" "If you say so..." "I do say so!"

 

[Lioness075]

Hearing Agent Strong speaking about them getting outfitted, Leandra grinned and glanced sideways at Luness before saying, "I wonder what cool tech toys we'll be getting. Maybe they can just give us some stuff that reacts to fire. That could be fun."


Rolling her eyes, Luness then responded, "Perhaps I shouldn't have bonded with a pyromaniac."


Laughing lightly at this, Leandra retrieved her bags and then sat down before making room for Luness beside her on a bag so that Luness didn't seem abnormally short sitting beside Leandra.


Manjano raised an eyebrow at the mention of being outfitted, as he wondered what they'd be giving the team. Would it be anything specific to each individual or pair, or would it just be general items and tools?


Grabbing his bags and guitar case, Manjano moved downwind of everyone in the train, avoiding the snake man as well, though he appeared to be distracted by the woman with the white tiger.


Finding the far end of the train in seating, Manjano settled down with his two duffle bags at his feet and his guitar case hidden underneath the seating. The last thing he wanted was someone asking him to play a song or assuming he could sing. Falarion had been kind enough before to tell him that his singing only made him want to howl in pain.


Speaking of, Falarion suddenly came barreling down the train with his favorite ball in his mouth. His eyes were wide with excitement, as he'd dug up the ball before Manjano had moved his baggage. All Manjano could hear from him was, 'Ball! Ball! Ball!'


Alas, he wasn't paying attention to the tiger in the area and ended up tripping over one of its forepaws before tumbling head over paws into the closed door at the end of the train. Yelping when he struck the door, Falarion then opened his eyes to find himself confused, as he was upside down and his tail was in his face.


Sighing and covering his face with one of his hands, Manjano hid the fact that he almost smiled after Falarion's little incident. The wolf's clumsiness was certainly one of his better attributes in being humorous.


Scrambling back to his paws, Falarion then quickly picked his ball back up before sheepishly climbing onto the seat beside Manjano and curling up with his ball. Holding his ball still between his forepaws, Falarion then folded his ears against his head before looking up at Manjano and thinking, 'I didn't upset you with my clumsiness...did I?'


Lowering his hand back to his lap, Manjano leaned back in his seat in a relaxed manner before thinking back, 'It was mostly amusing, actually.'


Excited that Manjano wasn't upset by his act of clumsiness, Falarion suddenly leapt up from his seat and barked at Manjano before lightly bumping his head against Manjano's side while wagging his tail.


Ever so slightly, Manjano's mouth curved into a slight grin, as he glanced sideways at Falarion and scratched him behind the ear before letting him slump down with his head on Manjano's leg.


Hearing Simon speaking to her, Leandra quickly turned around to listen to him, nearly throwing one of her duffel bags at him in the process. Quickly pulling it back to herself while she turned a bit red in embarrassment, Leandra then stammered, "Ah, m-makes sense."


Wanting nothing more than to facepalm after such an embarrassing moment, Leandra almost missed it when Simon's smile faded after mentioning his past a bit. Interesting. He definitely has a history with The Watch.


Noting the military-styled bag that Simon had with Jimbo's name on it, Leandra found herself following after Simon and joining him in the seating, as she loved nothing more than to get to know people. Considering Simon's background, maybe he could shed some light on The Watch and how it operates.


Seeing Jimbo getting his iPod out like Duik had, Leandra raised an eyebrow in slight amusement at the sight of animals wanting to listen to music in a way that typically only humans would.


Seeing Simon shifting in the corner of her eye, Leandra returned her attention to him and cocked her head slightly, which Luness immediately copied, at the mention of her history with Luness.


Uncertain of how to approach the subject safely, Leandra decided to just be blunt about it.


"Well, we actually met when my brother and I got in the middle of a fight with some kids at our high school. My brother had gotten Falarion that morning, but I'd insisted on getting to school on time so I had to wait until after school to meet my spirit animal. Anyways, some kids were making fun of me for not having a spirit animal when my brother already had his. It was all good until they started making fun of my brother and so I tried to stand up for him by, well, punching one of the kids in the face. Anyways, the other kids had their spirit animals already and they attacked me. My brother rushed in to protect me when he heard the fighting, but then Falarion became under attack and my brother chose to help him. I don't really know what happened next because there was this blinding light and then when I could see again, Luness was on the ground in front of me, where I'd been laying, and she was protecting me from the kids, who were all running away. We've been inseparable ever since."


Luness ruffled her feathers a bit after Leandra finished speaking, before adding, "I was only doing what was right, dear. Those children and their companions were nothing more than a bunch of bullies. You didn't deserve on second of that."


Blushing a bit at this, Leandra scratched at the back of her head before saying sheepishly, "Yeah, well, that's our story. Anyways, how about you and Jimbo? How'd you two meet and bond?"


@zCrookedz @andujarprime @crucialstar

 

[zCrookedz]

Simon sat and listened to Leandra tell him about how Luness and her had met. As she told the story, Simon's smile widened as he played the scenario out in his mind. The two of them obviously had a fantastic memory to share and a bond that was extremely strong.


Then she turned the question around and Simon leaned his had back, his eyes growing a bit distant and his smile, a ghost of the smile he usually liked to wear.


"Ah, that would be because of my Pop's. It was a few days after I turned 15, I was actually scheduled to go to my ceremony the next day and pops decided he wanted to take us to the circus to celebrate. So we all packed up and headed off, and when we got there my mother wanted to show my sister Trisha the elephants. She was really little then, so they went off and pops and I went on our way. Well we actually ended up in an area we weren't technically supposed to be in, and found some of the other caged animals. There was a man, the animal tamer I suppose, he had Jimbo on one of those leashes they put stray dogs on, and he was trying to get him to fight a juvenile tiger. Pop's got so mad, he ran over and clocked the tamer in the jaw and pulled the leash off Jimbo. He brought Jimbo over to me, and it hit us like lightning. We bonded right there. After we reported the tamer, the head of the circus released Jimbo to us. We've been together ever since."


Simon had been mostly joyous about telling the story of him and Jimbo, up until he reached the part about the tamer. His voice got a bit quieter and he seemed to be off in another world talking about it. But afterwards, he perked back up and thumbed Jimbo on the shoulder with his fist after he finished.


@Lioness075

 

[Lioness075]

With her heart racing at having told her story, even if she left out some details here and there, Leandra put all her focus into listening to Simon's story, as she did her best to ignore the threatening flashbacks from her own story. After all, it had been a happy ending, but hadn't been a good memory for certain reasons.


Hearing the circus mentioned, and having never been to one herself since she thought it was awful how the animals were often treated, Leandra looked at Simon wistfully, her mind already beginning to imagine the scene unfolding before her.


Luness, equally curious about the circus, cocked her head at Simon, her beady eyes seemingly widening the further he got into his story.


Curious to know more about Simon's sister, Leandra bit her tongue to remind herself to patiently wait until Simon was done telling her the story of his bonding with Jimbo.


At the mention of Simon's father clocking an animal tamer, Leandra grinned and nodded, as she probably would've done the same thing without a second thought.


Luness cocked her head to the other side in a confused manner though, as she had no idea what 'clocked' meant. Instead of interrupting the story though, Luness held her tongue like Leandra had done.


Once Simon was done with his story, Leandra couldn't help herself and blurted out, "I absolutely despise circuses." Blinking in how adamant and possibly even rude such a statement had sounded, Leandra immediately followed up with, "Sorry, I'm something of an animal advocate. I just can't stand the sight of animals being forced to do things outside of their comfort zone and especially something they're not used to doing in their natural habitat. Granted, a bonded animal is most likely okay with doing some human stuff, but circus animals are never bonded while they're a part of the circus, at least not as far as I'm concerned."


Luness dropped her confused expression and mannerism, as she immediately began bobbing her head in agreement with Leandra. "She's right, you know. It's preposterous that humans would actually pay to watch animals do such things and get enjoyment out of it."


Sighing, as she realized they were getting a bit off-topic, Leandra changed the subject, as she said, "Regardless, that's an amazing way to have met Jimbo. I can only imagine how grateful he is that you met him that day and saved him from that horrid place."


Cocking her head again in a confused manner, Luness then followed up with a question for Simon, "What does the 'clocking' someone mean?"


Grinning at this question, Leandra leaned back in her seat and waited for Simon to explain it to Luness.


@zCrookedz

 

[zCrookedz]

Simon smiled at the approval of his story. It had always been one of his most treasured memories of his father, and of course his best friend. Simon looked down at Jimbo as Leandra talked about her not so much love for the circus and Simon noticed that Jimbo had taken out an ear bud and was listening to the conversation while he had his eyes closed listening to music.


"Place was a dump, and yea, they kept us all in cages and wouldn't let any of us bond with anyone. All of the other acts already had bonds so that their were no accidents."


Jimbo never opened his eyes he just talked to the small group. The way he talked made Simon envious. Jimbo would actually talk about the circus freely, he wouldn't hide things from people and didn't live in his past. Something Simon wished he could do that.


When the Phoenix spoke up and asked what the meaning of "clocked" is, Simon's smile turned to a look of determination and ferocity as he brought both his fists up and jabbed at the empty air before him with his right arm.


"Punched. Its another way to say Pops punched that bastard right in the jaw!"


Simon jabbed at the air a few more times before he lifted his arms above his head and flexed with a big grin. After a second, Simon's face lit up and he reached around towards the back pocket of his genes. He pulled out an old wallet and began to rifle through it pulling out an even older looking photo. He flipped it over and then handed it to Leandra and reached in for another photo.


"That's Pops. Most stubborn man you would ever meet, but the best father a boy could ask for."


The man in the photo was nearly identical to Simon. Tall, jet black hair pushed back with a beard much like Simon's. He wasn't as built as Simon, a bit more towards the round side, but still looked like a fierce fighter. After a second, Simon held out the other photo with a smile.


"That's the rest of the family. That's, me, Trisha in front of me, Kristie right next to her, Connor holding Ma's arm, and the little one ridding Jimbo is Jenny. The pigeon is Francis, mom's companion, and the rat belongs to my sister Trish."


Simon felt a swift kick on the boot and looked down to see Jimbo glaring at him.


"Vivi is a Chipmunk and you know it. Trish hates it when you call her a rat."

Spoiler

((I haven't had time to clean the image up on my computer or add color, but I wanted to put it in the post anyways ^^))


@Lioness075

 

[andujarprime]

Hakuji smiled at Laohu, it had been a long time since she had any sort of conversation with anyone other than Rin. Most people were afraid, or creeped out by her. And other animals tried to keep a distance, fearing for some reason that her venom would shoot out unwillingly. Then again, most of her time was spent helping Rin in his work for the watch, or his own research. "Please Lao, if I may call you Lao. Just Haku is fine. As for today, well today I am well. It has been an interesting morning for sure, but I am well indeed." She was a bit more relaxed now, her body was a little more loosely coiled to show this. "I am curious, where do you come from? We have been all over the world and have only laid eyes on a white tiger once. And even then it was by chance." She asked, genuinely curious. She wasn't sure what to say, but she didn't want to give up on the first bit of outside conversation she's been able to have in a long time. She was awaiting an answer patiently when Falarion tripped over Laohu's paws. The sudden commotion caught her off guard, she shot backwards and coiled herself tighter. Raising her head and hissing menacingly. Hearing his companion hiss Rin opened his eyes again "Relax Haku, no danger here" He said aloud to her, he knew what the source of the commotion was. In his meditation he was able to pick up and identify so much just by sound. He had heard Falarion running and tripping. He smiled to himself and shook his head lightly at Haku's reaction. He looked over to where the young twin, Manjano, that was his name, and Falarion were now. "You ok there master Falarion?" He asked genuinely concerned for his well being. Haku realized there was no danger, and within seconds of her initial reaction was back to normal. "Interesting day indeed" She said in a low voice.


@crucialstar @Lioness075

 

[StoneWolf18]

Vera entered the train and sat down quite surprised that this was underneath a hotel. As she settled, Malik rushed inside and landed upon her lap, burying his head in the pocket of the hoodie she had to throw on before they left. With a sigh, she asked the frightened dragon ”Why are you hiding?” He pulled his head out of its cocoon and replied weakly. ”I...um...well...th-that was a-a-lot of people and...and an-animals I ju-ju-just spoke to an…” Malik's eyes were practically popping out their sockets. Embarrassment and horror among other thing swimming within the blue depths. ”Your point being? No one is here strangling you so I think you did just fine. Stop worrying so much.” ”BUT WHAT IF THE PLANE CRASHES ON THE WAY TO CANADA??!!!!” The water dragon exclaimed in terror before breathing as if he were about to hyperventilate.


After calming him down, was laying across her legs, whimpering like a wounded dog. Stroking his back along his spine, he kept making his condition worse.


”But what if an engine catches fire?’


“It won’t because they’re checked before hand.


”What if...we crash into the ocean?!”


“We aren’t going over any land and you do remember that you can breath underwater, right?”


”Oh...right...um...OH! What if...what if the plane is hijac-”


“I’m pretty sure this is going to be a private plane.”


”Then that would be the perfect place to strike!


“Do I have to confiscate your murder mystery novels?”


This continued for some time until Vera finally interrupted him. ”How about we go meet some people? That might loosen you up a bit.” Ignoring the dragon’s cries of protest, she got up and made her way over to another part of the car. Looking to the two people who had paired with a phoenix and gorilla. As they finished speaking, Vera began whilst holding Malik by his torso. The dragon desperately trying to conceal himself with his wings, face in his webbed paws. ”Hello...I recall introducing myself after you two though names always escape me.”


@Lioness075 @zCrookedz

 

[Sleipnir]

Elsewhere, in the airport, a boy and a ruddy bear were hanging about.


Bael huffed, collapsing onto he floor where his bear lay against the wall. He glanced over at the beast, soft green eyes shaded with anxiety. "A whole day, and I still get lost in here," he told the bear.


The big head raised, a grin lining his tan muzzle. "Well, you're not used to buildings bigger than your hometown."


That much was true. The young former-keeper of the Grand Island Lighthouse had never left Michigan's upper peninsula, and certainly had never been in such a large airport. He was used to small towns and a few people, all of whom he knew by face at the least. And in the past day, since he was called, he'd been through Munising, Traverse City, Grand Rapids, South Bend, Indianapolis, Pittsburg -- it was simply too much to take in. He'd hated most of it except the lovely countryside, and couldn't help but wonder if he was really what the Watch wanted and needed: A light-weight boy from near-Canadian backcountry who couldn't even navigate an airport without getting hopelessly lost.


To be fair, it was a very big airport.


Bael released a breath, blowing it through his unkempt black bangs as he thought about the situation. He had to receive the letter by mail. A text wouldn't have made it through if Bael had had a working phone in the past week. If. The thing was, Bael didn't have one -- a week back, his had been lost to a strange situation involving a bird, one very big lake, and something about an alpaca doll.


That hadn't been a good day.


But the point was, when he got the news he packed and left, not certain what exactly to make of all of this. So here he was, sitting in the floor of the biggest, loudest building he'd ever been in, waiting for the agents of the Watch to show up. Just as he was instructed to do.

 

[SilverFlight]

Duik grinned at Beth and Totus as he leapt up onto a seat by Rin and Xiao.


"I've never been to Canada. Do people actually all live in igloos there? I doubt they do, but I've heard it."


He worked the headphones carefully over one ear, pulling on years of practice and with a gentle claw turned the dial to a song he liked.


"You music lovers?" He asked a little too loudly as the music began to play.


He had seen Jimbo's ipod and made a mental note to trade with him so he could see what the gorilla liked to listen to.


@crucialstar @andujarprime


Strong produced several manila file covers and handed them each a dossier for the mission. Calista manned the controls of the train. Most of the processes were automated and as the doors slid shut the train slipped forward so smoothly they could barely feel the acceleration.


Alec was listening to the conversation Simon and Leandra were having. He smiled at the thought that the bond was one thing they all had in common.


"You two met your animals in pretty unconventional ways." He remarked after they had swapped their stories.


"Working at a clinic I see that process at least five times a day, but it never gets less impressive." As he said this he recalled the feeling. Then, Alec did something he did not normally do, he shared something of his past:


"I remember walking into a room. My father insisted I be bonded privately, not at a clinic..." He omitted the fact that his father had specifically chosen the animal species for characteristics he wanted to see in his son. Alec had been shown animals like crocodiles, vultures, weasels, anything that was efficient, deceptive or cunning, all the qualities he believed would make a good heir to the company.


"I walked past cage after cage, and then I felt eyes one me. It was a simple as that, as soon as our eyes met. Duik changed immediately, I could actually see the awareness filter into him, then, he spoke. He shouldn't have started speaking until the next day or even two days after but he did. It was just one word..." Alec stared at the floor, lost in the memory, but his eyes bright with it.


"He said; 'Bro'." Alec looked up at them both and grinned.


@zCrookedz @Lioness075


It was then Duik caught sight of the dragon. Seeing as the poor guy was so nervous Duik decided to try and make him feel better. He leaned over Alec, stepping on his lap to get closer.


“Hey, it was Malik right? You wanna know what I do when I’m stressed out?”


Alec groaned, he knew what was coming.


“I sing!” Duik then proceeded to launch into a peppy version of Bob Marley’s ‘Three Little Birds’, swaying his head in time to the rhythm of the words.


@StoneWolf18


They felt train slow. The whole journey seemed to take no time at all, how long were they on it for? Ten minutes?


Calista saw his confused look and grinned. “Mag-lev, zero resistance, maximum speed.” He could tell she was proud of the tech, though he decided not to ask just how fast they had gone.


The exit to the special train came out at the back of the gold-members’ lounge, well-protected from prying eyes. Strong led them through the terminal and was met by two men in dark suits who confirmed her identity and guided further on.


It was at that point Strong peeled off, the civet riding awkwardly on her small shoulder.


“Need to pick up another candidate, I’ll catch up.”


It didn’t take her long to find him, he was standing in one of the terminals exactly where his instructions had led him.


“Mr Lake, Cedar?”


She handed them the dossier. “My name is Agent Strong, if you’ll follow me I will explain on the way.”


Strong did her best to inform Bael of everything she had discussed with the others at the hotel. She told him of the potential rogue animal agent, a bear named Boris, and that a potential informant for the case was on the run in Kootenay National Park. They met up with the others soon after.


@Sleipnir


The two men with suits led them all to a secluded part of the air field. There, glinting in the noonday sun was one of the Watch’s private planes. It was big, rivaling the size of many of an intercontinental airbus but when they were let inside Alec found that there were only a handful of seats and many were built specially to fit animals of a smaller and larger size. The rest of the space was taken up by tables, computers fixed to them and a snack bar at the rear. Alec nodded, very much impressed. He hadn’t enjoyed this sort of style since he had disappeared from his father’s house.


“Heeey Jimbo!” The hyena sidled over to the large ape, his ipod between his teeth. “Twade wiff me, I wanna hear wha oo liffen too.”


@zCrookedz

 

[DawnAntalios]

Zoe watched, clearly impressed, as they soared through the land with the incredibly fast train. She was alone in her cabin, save for the meditating Eos who was now sleeping on the floor peacefully. The girl looked at her companion and her cold expression softened for a moment. Despite all strife, all pain and all anguish the noble stag was always by her side. He always protected her and fought for her - like a true friend. She smiled for a moment and stroke the fur of the slumbering stag gently.


" Thank you, Eos. " she whispered " Thank you for being here for me. "


She now sighed and perked her ears as she heard muffled noises from the other side of the train. She got up and walked to the door to see how much fun the others were having. She frowned as she turned away from the joyful sight, her hands clenching into fists.


She missed it. She missed all the fun and joy the others were having... but she also remembered the terrible price she had to pay when she once did the same. Her foolishness was the reason of her solitude and she will not repeat the same errors she had committed not so long ago.


The train stopped and she was glad that the first part of their trip was over. Waking up her companion Zoe walked in silence behind the others, carefully eyeing the merry bunch. True, it was their first time on the battlefield yet they still seemed to be determined. She wondered if their tenacity would last in the face of danger as well though.


They followed the two black suited man towards the special plane they had to board and Zoe was quite impressed when she spotted the monolithic plane.


" Well now, that looks nice. " she nodded " The last time we had to use whimsical portal devices created by some random crazed engineers, god knows how stable they were... this looks much more professional. "


Eos nodded.


" Truth speaks from you, my child. " he said as the walked aboard. He noticed that Zoe was about to sit to the back of the plane, once again to be alone in seclusion and he walked up to her.


" Zoe, I know that you still do not think this is a good idea but... should we not know the others better first? Like talking to them? "


Zoe's expression turned dark but firm.


" Their deeds on the battlefield will speak for themselves. " she said, shutting down the subject. Eos sighed and shook his head but sit down beside her nonetheless. He just hoped that somehow they could befriend someone who is not repelled by Zoe's harsh nature.

 

[Hel]

Wednesday got to work a few minutes lat, but about 15 minutes after she arrived one of her mentors told her there was someone looking for her.


Cerci seemed excited by this concept, and eagerly dragged Wednesday along to speak to the man.


When they got there, the pair was informed that Wednesday was to go to the JFK airport to meet someone, and given a discription of Agent Strong.


Thinking she was just being given a pointless meniel task, Wednesday sighed, and said she was on her way. Cerci seemed eager to go, though, as she hated being cooped up in little room that Wednesday shared with a few of the other interns to get work done.


"I wonder if she's anyone important, why are they sending us out to get her? This doesn't seem to have anything to do with your job..." Cerci said as they climbed into Wednesday's car.


The blonde shrugged as she pulled off towards the airport.


"Who knows, maybe someone else isn't here today?" She offered.


As they got to the airport, they showed up to the place where they were to meet the agent, only to see her walking off with some boy and his bear. Wednesday motioned back to Cerci, but the bear had already began a sort of loped run towards Strong and Bael. Wednesday followed in a rushed speed walk, not wanting to look suspicious to anyone, and for there as the woman was explaining their mission.


Cerci was quite surprised at this, and thrilled at the idea that she's be going to Canada! Wednesday, on the other hand, was not.


"Wait... You're agent Strong? The woman I'm to meet, yeah?" Wednesday asked, after she'd finished speaking, yet before Bael could get a word in edgewise.


@SilverFlight


(Sorry @Sleipnir but I gotta drag Wednesday into this, and the post I wrote last night didn't post!)

 

[andujarprime]

Rin smiled at the Hyena. He was definitely one of the more eccentric animals he had met that's for sure. "I do indeed enjoy music master Duik." He said while flashing an ipod out from his vest pocket and lifting the wire of the blue tooth earbud that was hidden by his shirt collar. "Nothing sets the mood for the moment, or the day really like music can." He managed to say before the train came to a stop. He stood up and stepped out lightly, grabbing his rolling luggage and standing outside the train. He took the folder and went over the information. He made a mental check of everything they packed, to ensure that Haku would be okay in the cold weather. Not that he didn't trust the watch's gear. On the contrary the train was similar, if not the exact model his family had. He could only imagine the other advances they had made in tech. But the sleeve he had made Haku was special. It made sure she didn't lose too much heat, didn't want her sleeping all day, or her senses dulled. Haku would come out when she was done with Lao, he wasn't too worried about her trailing behind.


@SilverFlight

 

[Sleipnir]

Bael had been nodding carefully, listening to everything Agent Strong had to say. He was a bit excited by the prospect of going to Canada but it was mixed with an intense fear of being on his own so far out. And then, this could all be extremely dangerous. He just had to do one thing before making a decision.


Are you in, Cedar bear?


I'm in.


The so am I.


The opinion of his level-headed fried meant a lot to Bael, and he wasn't likely to make a major decision like this without Cedar's input. He opened his mouth to respond when he was interrupted by Wednesday, at which point he slowly just closed his mouth again and sort of watched where he was walking. It seemed a bit late to ask that question; after following and listening to information like that, which seemed highly sensitive, you gotta admit, you'd probably be roped into whatever situation was being discussed, regardless of whether this was Agent Strong or not.

 

[Lioness075]

Falarion's tail hitting Manjano in the face while being overly excited.


Hearing Jimbo's opinion of the circus, Leandra frowned slightly and then said, "I'm sorry that you had to go through that, Jimbo. No animal should ever have to suffer through something like that."


Luness nodded in agreement, though she was instantly distracted when Simon explained when getting 'clocked' meant. When Simon suddenly jabbed at the air with his fist, Luness jumped backwards while flapping her wings in surprise, slapping Leandra in the side of the head and leaving a feather in her hair.


Surprised by Luness' actions, Leandra dodged to the side in case Luness flapped her wings again and then began giggling before pulling the feather out of her hair.


"As you can tell, Luness doesn't handle surprise all too well."


With her feathers all fluffed up from the surprise, Luness mockingly glared at Leandra before she went to work smoothing down her feathers and saying, "I believe I understand what it means now."


Amused, Leandra returned her attention to Simon in time to see him stop his punching and flex. Rolling her eyes and grinning at him, Leandra was pleasantly surprised when he suddenly pulled out an old photo and handed it to her.


Looking over the photograph, Leandra smiled softly, as Simon explained that the man pictured in it was his own father. It amazed her how similar the two appeared, though Simon was clearly more muscular than his father.


Trading out the photograph of Simon's father with the one of his entire family, Leandra broadly smiled at the seemingly ragtag collection of people and animals in it. Was that what it was like to have a real family?


Listening to Simon explain who was who, Leandra felt a tear form in one of her eyes before she quickly swiped it away, hoping nobody had noticed it. Why didn't she and her brother get the chance to experience a family like this? Did she do something wrong to upset her birth parents? Why had she and her brother been so readily given up for adoption at a young age? Leandra could only vaguely recall certain parts of her past here and there. It had been so long ago.


Hearing the mention of a chipmunk brought Leandra back to reality and she faintly smiled to appease whatever joke had been said before handing back the photograph and saying softly, "That's really cool, Simon. Honestly."


@zCrookedz


Hearing his name, and having been completely oblivious to upsetting Haku earlier, Falarion scrambled away from Manjano and shot to his paws before eagerly scanning the train for whoever was trying to get his attention.


Seeing the sword man looking at him, Falarion could only assume that was who had asked him if he were okay.


Grinning, Falarion let out an eager bark before saying, "I'm great! I'm on a train and I have my favorite ball!"


Wagging his tail in excitement, Falarion forgot that Manjano was still in the seat behind him and so began thwacking Manjano in the face with his tail.


'Falarion-Stop!'


Surprised to hear Manjano shouting at him in his head, Falarion suddenly halted and then lowered his head while flattening his ears before tucking his tail between his legs and looking backwards at Manjano. Afraid that he'd truly upset Manjano, who looked a bit bewildered after being attacked by Falarion's tail, Falarion let out a low whimper.


Sighing, Manjano glanced wearily at Falarion before thinking, 'It's fine, really. Just be more careful next time, okay?'


Anxious, Falarion nodded eagerly at this and then sat down on his rump before his tail tried to attack anyone else.


@andujarprime


Hearing someone approaching where she was sitting, Leandra glanced up with a forlorn look on her face before realizing it was the woman with the water dragon companion.


Mustering up her social skills and masking her expression quickly, Leandra then responded with a faint smile, "Hi there. I'm Leandra and this is Luness, my companion who also happens to be something of an albino phoenix."


Glancing over at Luness, Leandra nodded at her and Luness responded by stepping up to the edge of her seat and curiously peering up at Malik. Cocking her head slightly, Luness then said, "What a curious little thing you are. Seeing as you are a dragon, what can you do?"


@StoneWolf18


Receiving his dossier for the job, Manjano silently read it over and then thought to Falarion, 'Hey, when this stuff starts to get serious, you need to do so as well, okay? No messing around when there's a possible danger or even a possibility that someone may get hurt.'


Glancing up at Manjano from where he was now lounging on the ground with his ball, Falarion happily barked at him before thinking back, 'Of course! I won't leave your side, ever!'


Pausing uncertainly, Falarion then added, 'Unless someone takes my ball. Then I'll have to fetch it.'


Resisting all urges to facepalm, Manjano thought back, 'Mate, you're a wolf, not a pet dog. You don't really fetch anything.'


'But I love to play fetch!' Leaping up excitedly, Falarion danced about in front of Manjano, suddenly wanting to play fetch.


Sighing, and seeing there was nothing better to do at the moment, Manjano leaned forward and picked up Falarion's ball before tossing it down the rows of seats.


As the ball bounced past several people and then rolled underneath Vera's legs, Falarion suddenly bounded forward, letting out an excited bark.


Luckily, Leandra knew what the ball meant and leapt out of her seat in time to stop Falarion from knocking Vera down.


Her joyous nature returning in this humorous moment, Leandra held Falarion back and said in between giggling, "Falarion, stop it! You can't recklessly chase your ball in here of all places."


Luness quickly flew past Vera and picked up Falarion's ball before flying back to Manjano's area and landing near him. Immediately, Falarion bounded after Luness, eagerly jumping up and down to try and take the ball from her.


@StoneWolf18


Relieved to have avoided that collision, Leandra sat back down in time for Alec to join the conversation.


Hearing Alec mentioning their unusual ways of meeting their companions, Leandra smiled wistfully and said, "Yeah, it was definitely not at all how I'd pictured it unfolding."


Hearing that Alec worked at a clinic, Leandra grinned, beyond curious to know what it was like to work alongside animals for hours on end. It had to be amazing, right?


Before she could ask about working at the clinic though, Alec's eyes seemed to become distant, as he began recalling his own bonding moment.


Cocking her head slightly to the side out of curiosity, Leandra quietly listened to the story and was intrigued to know why his father insisted on the bonding to be a private matter. Did Alec have wealthy parents or something?


Hearing how sudden the change had been, Leandra smiled and then burst out laughing when Alec told them what Duik's first word was. It made perfect sense, which made it all the funnier.


Shaking her head in amusement, Leandra then asked him, "What was it like working at a clinic then? Especially getting to see so many bondings happening around you. Did you enjoy watching them happen?"


@SilverFlight


Feeling the train already slowing, Manjano quickly stood and put a duffle bag over each of his shoulders before picking up his guitar case as well. Refusing to ask anyone for aid of course, Manjano then exited the train and began following Strong, with Falarion excitedly following alongside him, his ball in his mouth after he had gotten it back from Luness.


Wagging his tail the whole way, Falarion constantly was whipping his head back and forth, as he tried to take everything in at once.


Seeing that they'd arrived, Leandra quickly gathered her bags and then waited for Luness to land onto her shoulder before she paused to wait for Alec. After all, she'd just asked him a question and it probably wouldn't do any good if she rushed off before he even had the chance to reply.


@SilverFlight


As they exited the inside of the airport and approached the private jet, Leandra found herself gaping. Not that she loved planes or anything, but it was so big!


Meanwhile, Luness grumbled to herself, "It's really uncomfortable for a flying animal to be stuck in a plane. It just doesn't feel right."


The second Falarion saw the giant jet ahead of him, he shouted excitedly, "Wehh! It's suh beugh!" Of course, he forgot that he still had his ball in his mouth.


Rolling his eyes, Manjano ignored Falarion's antics at the moment, as he too admired the size of the jet. At least there'd be plenty of room and he'd no doubt be able to get the privacy he truly enjoys.

 

[zCrookedz]

Simon looked back to Leandra as she handed him the photo. She seemed sad now for some reason and Simon was about to ask if something was wrong when he heard footsteps aproaching.


Simon looked up to see Vera walking over with a very visibly nervous dragon. The dragons worries about their travels were pretty amusing making Simon chuckle a bit.


"Simon, and the fur ball is Jimbo. Its not everyday I get to hang out with a dragon and a phoenix. Its our lucky day Jim."


He gave Jimbo a nudge, but the gorilla had gone back to fiddling with his iPod and replaced the bud in his ear. Simon rolled his eyes as he looked back back up to see Alec had been listening in on the conversation. As he spoke, Simon leaned back in his seat and listened to the guy tell his story. Simon was interested in the whole "private" ceremony, sounded like something rich folks would do. But the few times that Simon had encountered the upper class, they didn't act like Alec did.


"That's a great story Alec."


About that time, Simon barely felt the train coming to a stop and he looked over at Jimbo stuffing his wallet back into his genes and scooping up his bag.


As they exited the train, Simon watched Strong peel off from the group to go and fetch what sounded like another member of the group. Simon just followed with the rest of the group and when they exited onto the airfield, Simon nearly dropped his bags. The plane before them was beautiful in every way shape and from, and Jimbo nearly had to slap Simon to get him to pay attention to where he was going. As he approached the stairs leading in Simon couldn't help but take them two at a time and looking back to Jimbo.


"I wonder if they already have a pilot for this baby or not?"


Jimbo shook his head and ducked his head into the cabin


"I doubt they are going to let you fly this Simon, not after happened with the last plane."


Simon looked around the inside of the cabin a bit before making his way to the cock pit.


"That was different Jim, besides, I brought the plan down mostly intact. We still had the port side wing."


As Simon went off, Jimbo sat in a chair that seemed to be fit for a bigger animal and was just about to put his head phones back in when Duik came bounding up to him with his own iPod in his mouth. Jimbo vaguely recalled Simon saying to try and be more social with the other animals. So he sighed and held out his hand for Duik to drop the iPod in and held out a ear bud for Duik. Thumbs made things so easy.


"Yea sure, hope you like classics."


Jimbo hit the play button, and Spirit In The Sky began to play.




((I hope the soundcloud is the right one. can't hear it at work ))

 

[Flutterby]

Beth stayed mostly quiet for the rest of the trip, watching as many of the others as she could. Luckily, they seemed to be interacting well now. Except for Eos's girl, Zoe, who preferred to be called Ghost, who had secluded herself in another car. People were talking about ow they bonded with their companions, and Beth tried to look like she wasn't eavesdropping. But they had such interesting stories, and hers was so plain. Well.. the initial bonding was. Beth flinched away from the reminder, and Totus turned his head to look at her. He had gotten a little sleepy, as a nocturnal animal, and settled on top of her lap for a nap. He would probably sleep the entire flight.


The dossier was passed out, and Beth looked it over critically. There wasn't a whole lot of concrete information, but it seemed like they would have everything they needed to be as comfortable as possible in the Canadian winter. And before she could keep looking through it, the train stopped.


Beth pulled her backpack on and strung the duffle across her, and carefully guided the sleepy Totus onto her arm. She followed close behind Agent Strong, ending up next to the silent twin. She glanced at him once, and smiled a little at his fun companion, but otherwise ignored him. She gave him plenty of space, too; it seemed like thats how he wanted it. As they neared the jet, she woke Totus up a little.


"I despise flying in those metal boxes." He mumbled grumpily, and Beth caught the sound of Luness making a similar comment.


"It's fine, you can eat a little jerky and sleep the whole way." She murmured in return, as she boarded with the others. Inside was just as large as the outside. Everyone else was excited about it, but it only left Beth wondering where in the hell she should sit. Totus was already nodding off again, so she was without a clue.


(sort of @Lioness075)

 

[SilverFlight]

Alec smiled at the question Leandra had asked. "In my opinion, its the best place to work. I not only help evaluate candidates for their bond pairs, I also teach people how to care for their specific animal. Each species has a unique physiology, diet and exercise requirements. Duik here should be getting more than he does." He talked more about the clinic as they walked, Duik shooting him a glare at the exercise jab. Alec described watching the bond happening and he couldn't keep the smile off his face when he did. Animals and especially the bonding were his favorite topics in the world. Duik regarded him as traded his own for the proffered ipod, pinning the device expertly between his wrists and using his teeth to plug his headphones into the jack. It was unusual for his partner to open up so much to strangers, Duik approved.


"Hope you like everything." Duik countered happily, but his eyes lit up when the first few notes of Spirit in the sky began to play.


@Lioness075 @zCrookedz


"No, you can't fly it." Amber didn't hear Simon's question, but the look on his face told her enough to hazard a guess.


"Admit it Simon, you miss the toys." She have him a half smile as she walked past.


@zCrookedz


Duik caught sight of the two new people boarding the jet behind agent Strong and waved a paw in a friendly manner.


"Bears!" He shouted over the music no one else could hear. "Cool guys! You'll fit right in where we're going!" He held up his paw for a high five.


@Hel @Sleipnir


((gonna wait for Crucial and Peace etc to reply before moving on to the basecamp in Kootenay))

 

[zCrookedz]

Simon had just reached the cockpit door as he heard Amber's voice. He had hopped to make it to the cockpit unnoticed and at least see it before she got back, but sadly hadn't been fast enough. He sighed before turning around, and for the first time since he had arrived and first seen her, Simon smiled at Strong as he headed towards the seats in the back.


"There are a lot of things I miss about The Watch Amber. The toys being one of them."


As he said her name, Simon shot her a wink before nudging her with his shoulder and heading for the seat behind Jimbo. Duik was currently occupying the seat beside the gorilla so Simon sat behind and placed his and Jimbo's bags down on in front of him.


Jimbo plugged his head phones into Duiks iPod and looked up just in time to see Duik holding out his paw to high five the new members of the group. Jimbo nodded towards the new comers as he scrolled through song after song until he found one he recognized and pressed play.


@SilverFlight

 

[Lioness075]

Leandra eagerly listened to Alec's response, genuinely interested in learning more about the clinic workplace and beyond curious about the different animals that Alec had been lucky enough to see and be around. Just imagining all of the unique animals spanning their world, mythological ones included, Leandra found herself smiling while listening to Alec explain everything.


Luness felt herself growing rather sleepy though, especially after seeing Totus nodding off on Beth's shoulder. Deciding to politely take her leave before falling asleep on Leandra's shoulder while Alec spoke, Luness flew on ahead and joined the others on the plane.


Hearing the jab at Duik, Leandra giggled and then quickly covered her mouth when Duik shot Alec a glare for his remark. Whoops.


Returning her attention to Alec, Leandra soon excitedly asked him, "What kinds of animals did you get to see while working there? Did you see any other mythological creatures? Oh, wait, did you see any big cats or even little cats there?"


Realizing she'd just asked three questions at once, Leandra blushed slightly and grinned wistfully before saying, "Heh, sorry, I should probably slow down and ask one question at a time."


Scratching at the back of her head out of embarrassment, Leandra then glanced back at Alec while waiting for his response.


@SilverFlight


Walking past his overly excited sister chatting with Alec, Manjano felt the slightest pang of jealousy at how easy his sister was able to make friends. She made it look so easy, despite it being the hardest thing for Manjano to do.


Sighing, Manjano whistled at Falarion to join him and then boarded the jet before dumping his bags off in a far corner of the cabin area. Preferring the corner than the seating, Manjano slid down with his back against the wall of the cabin before he rested one of his arms on one of his duffle bags.


Falarion, unusually calm upon realizing that Manjano was becoming a bit upset, padded right up to Manjano before setting his ball on top of a duffle bag. Moving around to Manjano's open side, Falarion then walked in a circle a few times before curling up and resting his head on Manjano's lap.


Putting his hand on Falarion's head, Manjano glanced down at Falarion and seemed to relax slightly.


Even without any words or thoughts being exchanged between the two, Falarion understood how Manjano felt due to their deep emotional bond and he whimpered before nuzzling against Manjano in a comforting manner.

 

[Hel]

Cerci was thrilled at all of this: especially when she heard they would be going to Canada! Though, she noticed that Wednesday did not seemed nearly as thrilled about this, and as she realized they'd be with a fairly large group of humans her own zest began to melt away.


Soon they were boarding the plane, and she heard Duik greeting the group. Now, Cerci had a small problem in regards to her enthusiasm- sometimes she would forget the strength she had when she was excited about things. The dark bear swatted at Duik's paw, giving quite the aggressive high five. The smile on her face was fairly toothy, a look she'd learned from humans to attempt to look more friendly, instead it gave an entirely different impression.


Cerci's voice, however, did not sound nearly as angry as her actions and expression may have suggested, though she also didn't realize the two in front of her couldn't hear her.


"I'm Cerci!" She said with a cheerful tone, "Who are you two?"


"Cerci, you do realize that other people are trying to get on the plane after you, right? I can't get around you when you take up the whole area like this." Wednesday's voice was mildly annoyed, though Cerci knew she should have expected that to be the case.


"Oh, right, sorry!" Cerci said before moving out of the way of the others boarding. "Oh! I meant you three," She added, remembering the other boy's bear as they passed.


Wednesday pushed past, looking for somewhere she could sit without being utterly surrounded. Her compainion was acting so weird, and Wednesday wondered what had made her so... cheerful. With a sigh, Wednesday settled for a seat at one of the tables. She had packed virtually nothing, but never actually pointed that out. Maybe the calls this morning actually were for her... weird.


@SilverFlight @Sleipnir