Fantasy For my Family

[Cyrionessa]

Estelle took it wordlessly, weaving light rays into them as she worked. When she finished, she glared down at the man. "I don't want to see you back in here again, understand?" The anger in her eyes and voice were quite intimidating to someone who didn't know that she was at heart a gentle soul.


----


"....I....ummm......" Cerys blushed quite brightly. Her ears flicked back and her tail twitched nervously. "It's okay. I'm still.....processing.....all of this....." She had the urge to go off on another murderous rampage of blood. Had she ever been so intimidated in her life?

 

[Twizinator]

Mythia nodded. "Totally understandable," she said and gently patted Cerys's shoulder before rising to her feet. Their now-empty dishes were whisked away to the sink where they began washing themselves. "I'm sure you two have places to be. The tournament's just begun, after all. Feel free to visit anytime though!" she said warmly.


Ryrax rose to his feet, and raised an eyebrow at Mythia. "My normal clothes?" he asked. Mythia made a few gestures and they flew into the room they were in, flying straight into Ryrax's face. He shot another glare at Mythia but took them into the next room, and in seconds he'd changed back into his standard outfit. "...Sorry I don't visit more often. I'll make sure to come back sooner next time."


Mythia smiled at that and embraced him. "Take care you two," she said as Ryrax led Cerys back outside. "I'll be keeping tabs on the tournament, so behave!" she winked at Ryrax and shut the door.


Ryrax took a deep breath and sighed deeply as they walked down the path and back towards the main roads of the Neutral Grounds. "Sorry about that..." he apologized to Cerys, "Mothe- er, Mythia takes some getting used to."

 

[Cyrionessa]

Cerys nodded and walked silently behind him for a few moments. Finally, she stopped for a second and leaned against a tree beside the path. "....did you really mean that back there....?" She was staring at the ground, a slight glow on her face and her ears were perked forward expectantly for his answer. All of this confused her. She hadn't processed all of this. Cerys just needed to make sure that she was understanding all of this correctly.

 

[Twizinator]

Ryrax stopped too, as he realized what she was referring to. He collected himself and faced Cerys, taking a few steps to stand before her. "I'm sorry about bailing on you last night..." he began, and he clearly meant it. "I'll admit that, like you, I'm still processing...recent events. I'm not sure of much lately, honestly." He put a hand to her shoulder, and his face broke into a gentle grin. "However, I'm pretty sure of one thing, and that's that I love you, Cerys. I'm not gonna bail on you, not ever again. I promise."

 

[Cyrionessa]

It took all of a second for Cerys to go from a relaxed position to having her legs wrapped around his waist with her lips locked onto his. Her tail reached, curling back behind his head to force it to stay there. Not like he was going to move but still. That's all she needed to hear. That's all that she would ever need to hear. Her father was going to die of a heart attack if he found out, but she wasn't really worried. She doubted that Jaeger was following her around today since the tournament was going on currently.

 

[Twizinator]

Ryrax was caught by surprise, nearly falling backwards despite his psychokinesis when Cerys jumped on him. Not that he was displeased. Quite the opposite. "mmmhmmmurmmmhummm," he tried to speak but she was glued to his lips. He chuckled slightly at that before finally managing to pry his mouth free. He wrapped his arms around her waist to help support her precarious position. "I get the feeling you're pleased with my answer," he laughed softly.


-----


Oliver had watched Jyttera's fight and was searching for the unfortunate loser in that fight. He wanted to ask whoever was treating him about the wounds; he'd never seen an attack quite like what Jyttera had used. Something about it had seemed...different. That, and Themos was a Trevastos like himself. He wanted to be sure he was alright. He strode through the first aid area towards the cot that he'd been told Themos was on, and found himself approaching the back of the young woman he'd bounded over earlier. "Ah! It's you!" his voice boomed as he approached, and took a seat next to her. "Sorry about earlier, I was in a rush. I didn't know you were a healer. I'm always amazed by people with skill in healing magicks. I can't wrap my head around them for the life of me. I guess it's because I'm so good at more destructive magicks, hahaha!" he laughed. "Anyway, it's a pleasure to properly make your aquaintence. I'm Oliver Montacus Layfaire III of the Trevastos family," he offered his right hand to her to shake. His right arm was covered from fingertip to elbow in bandage cloth like always.

 

[Ninja_Onions]

Gerza almost toppled from his stool as a rather boisterous man entered and boomed his name at Estelle. 'Wait, this is the distraction I've been waiting for!' Gerza's eyes sparkled as his train of thought caught up with him. Gathering his sack and grabbing his stave, he quickly ducked out of the way of eye sight and started back towards the arena the explosion had come from earlier. 'There must be some residual trace of that mana eruption, something that will let me figure out where it came from, and why.' He pondered as he picked up his stride.

 

[Cyrionessa]

"How'd you guess?" Cerys smirked. "I'm surprised that you had the state of mind to use your psychokinesis to keep from falling over, making my plan fail slightly." A slightly chuckle escaped her lips as her tail moved back to its normal position behind her, the tips of the fur brushing against his back muscles. "Maybe I'm not distracting enough....." Her eyes became quite contemplative as she thought, looking away off in the distance.


----


Estelle firmly shook his hand. "Nice to meet you. Would you remind your man here to be a bit more careful? Can't exhaust myself too much before the tournament gets into full swing." She turned back and noticed the missing Gerza. Mentally, she noted to give him a gentle beat-down later.

 

[Twizinator]

Ryrax shivered a little when the tail brushed against his back. "I'm not sure if I can handle any more distraction," he said jokingly. He twirled on his heel and sat down at the base of the tree, Cerys situated in his lap. "I'm also not sure how long we'll go uninterrupted," he mused, though he wasn't really worried about anyone coming across them at the moment.


-----


"Hahaha! I'll be sure to chastise him once he awakens," Oliver said boisterously. "Though I am curious about his fight, and I wanted to ask you about his wounds. What exactly did Jyttera hit him with?" Oliver cocked his head and had a puzzled expression.

 

[Cyrionessa]

"True." Cerys smiled and laughed. "My father is going to die of a heart attack. If Jaeger reports this back to him...." Her face grew a bit more serious. Would Jaeger do that? Of course he would. He was the family narc! "I'm not going to think about that right now." Her gaze returned to his. "The tournament is upon us and we're both expected to fight against several opponents. The Demon Cat has work to do...." The words "Demon Cat" made her face fall slightly.


----


"Jyterra hit him with mana burning flames." Estelle crossed her arms. "Tricky to deal with but no problem for me." She quickly reached into her pocket and pulled out a hair tie. One quick movement and her long, wavy hair was pulled back. She glanced back to him. "Why the interest in the man?"

 

[HilgenHoffer]

Odom was walking upside-down on the underside of the arena banister, oblivious to the ceiling of challengers milling about. He was sucked into his own head. He had seen many interesting warriors in this arena, but none had caught his attention quite like the wolf man had. What was it that was hidden in his eye? It spoke with the screaming voices of a thousand damned souls, and yet the scrap of cloth he wore atop it spoke not at all, but simply whispered the gentlest hush. He played the sounds over again and again in his mind. He was not sure what he had seen, but he knew that, above all, he wanted to fight that man.


-----


Rudd was leaning on his knees in the middle of the crowd, raking in heaping breaths of air. His chest rose and fell with the weight of a draft horse. Listening around, he gathered that some excitement had occurred, but he couldn't grasp quite what it was. A fight? But the tournament had yet to start. He'd run so fast that, somehow, he managed to make it in time. In fact, how had he done that? The distance was clearly far too great to make it in that time without a horse . . .


His train of thought was interrupted by an accusing finger. "You!" It bellowed at him. "I challenge you!"


Glancing up the length of the finger, Rudd found it to be attached to an arm, which was attached to a man with a rather unsightly face. His lips flapped beneath a salty black beard as he blathered more words. "Are you deaf, rat? I said I intend to fight ya!"


Rudd just stared at the man. " . . . I beg your pardon?"

 

[Twizinator]

Ryrax saw her expression darken and hugged her tightly. "I think it's safe to say a lot is going to happen, and a good portion of it will probably be unpleasant for the two of us," he said. "Jaeger's probably gonna blow a gasket. The Vejta's will have a field day - if Rudd gives me grief I swear I'll make him eat dirt - and word will travel fast. I'll die of shock on the day the Xevren's approve. We'll face many opponents in this pointless tournament that will likely hear about us sooner or later. We may even be forced to fight each other." He took a deep breath. "If my suspicions are correct, something strange is happening among the Fell Ones. That A-class the other day was a surprise to be sure. We've all got rough days ahead, but no matter what happens, I'm here for you."


-----


"His magic feels...different," Oliver mused, stroking his chin slowly. "I can't quite describe why, it just...is different. It bugs me! He's also a fair amount stronger than I'd thought he'd be." He blinked as he thought of something. "Speaking of strong, do you know what happened to Ryrax after that incident earlier? I know the Vejta head bound him in chains and disappeared.

 

[Cyrionessa]

"Rudd will probably have to get past the shock first." Cerys chuckled a bit. "I'm more interested in what he thought of Estelle, honestly. She took quite a shine to him. Though....". Cerys shook her head ruefully. "She's too oblivious to things of that nature that involve her."


----


"He was carried out of the arena and I felt his power dissipate." Estelle sighed heavily. "I see that you're another one vying to fight him. Well, take care that you don't end up in here like your friend here." She glared at the man on the bed again before going to the window. Her eyes roved across the landscape filled with people. Was that....off in the distance..... was that Rudd?

 

[Ixidor92]

The announcement boomed out through the grounds that the tournament was officially starting. Several preliminary matches began to kick-start the excitement. Those with keen eyes would notice that a number of the arenas were empty currently, as a few of the preliminary fighters were out of commission--at least temporarily. The door to the infirmary ward was swung open, though only voices could be heard through it initially.


"Father, I'm just a little drained. I'll be fine as long--"


"Let those whose job it is to see such things be the judge of that. I have duties to return to, return to the arena when your finished. I'll see you whether you join me amongst the heads or go immediately back to the arena."


There were a few thumps that could be recognized as the footsteps of a very large man walking away before anyone entered the ward. The white hair and cloak were unmistakeable--it was Valk.


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


Aatron stood at the far end of the arena, gazing calmly at the man in front of him. He used the term 'man' rather lightly. The person in front of him was clearly from the Xevren family, as he had black scaled claws and eye ridges.


"Begin!"


As soon as the shout came, a single blade of wind was thrown at the man-beast in front of Aatron. By the time the man had dodged and jumped to Aatron's location, he had already blown himself to the other end of the arena.


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


Jaeger let out a loud sneeze


"Brother? You coming down with something?"


"No . . . I get the odd feeling that someone's talking about me though."

 

[Twizinator]

Ryrax laughed but then sighed. "Rudd is just as oblivious, if not more so." His eye got a gleam of deviousness and his mouth curled into a grin to match. "Looks like we might have to do a bit of matchmaking."


-----


Oliver followed her gaze and noticed who she was staring at. "Hmm...isn't that Rudd, of the Vejta? Looks like he's just been challenged to a duel!" Oliver smiled widely. "I've got to see this. He was quite the fighter when those Fell Ones showed up the other day. I wonder how he handles himself against a fellow mana riser?"

 

[Cyrionessa]

Estelle looked back at Oliver. "...if you wouldn't mind, report back to me on how he does. I'm quite interested myself to see how he handles this sort of barbarism." She then noticed the form of Valk in her doorway and her eyes narrowed. Not too long ago, she had separated him from Ryrax. The problem was with the way that it seemed Ryrax's mana worked, any injuries would be internal most likely. He probably was still so juiced up on adrenaline that he didn't realize any pain.


"Valk. Take a seat wherever you wish. I'll be looking you over in a moment." Estelle turned back to Oliver. "Go watch the fight, then report back to me if you would be so kind."


----


"Matchmaking? Estelle would kill me! She's always talking about duty to her family and such. Last night was the first time I've ever seen her happy and letting go. And it took dancing with that boy for it to happen....." Cerys' crinkled with mischief. ".....let's do it....but first...." Her full attention turned back to him. "The tournament awaits for both of us. I'd say Estelle would want to look you over before you get back into the arena."

 

[Twizinator]

Rryax groaned but conceded that she was probably right. He reluctantly stood up, displacing Cerys from his lap, and made for the healer's area.


-----


"Sure," Oliver nodded. He was a little curious as to why this woman was so interested in Rudd, but he didn't ask. Then he saw Valk. "Well, I have to say that was the most invigorating beginning to our tournament in years," he said referring to Ryrax's incident. "I'd avoid fighting him if I were you. He's not your average mana riser. He and Jyttera both are...unique in how their artes work. I'd bet money on that fact. Oh, speaking of Ryrax, I've got his sword," he pulled the blade out of his waistband. he'd wrapped the blade in a rough cloth to cover the blade. "I need to give it back to h-"


At that moment the weapon launched out of Oliver's hands and flew to the doorway, where Ryrax caught it deftly and stowed it in it's sheath. "Thank's for holding that for me," he said, clearly not actually appreciative. He didn't even acknowledge Valk's existence. Instead he turned his attention to Estelle as he plopped himself down on a seat across from her. "Cerys insisted you'd want to take a look at me so here I am, let's get this over with."


Oliver furrowed his brow. " 'Cerys'?" he said, mulling over the unfamiliar name. He looked to the cat-eared girl. "I assume he's referring to you, miss?" Without waiting for a reply he bowed and extended his right hand like he'd done with Estelle. "Oliver Montacus Layfai-"


"Please for the love of God stop saying your whole name with every damn introduction," Ryrax cut in, annoyed.


Oliver brushed him off. "Come now, Ryrax! The Layfaires are a noble lineage, I merely mean to honor my family by citing them as my kin! Is that so wrong?" He returned his attention to Cerys. "As I said, I'm Oliver Montacus Layfaire III of the Trevastos," he said as Ryrax rolled his eyes behind him. "A pleasure to make your acquaintance, miss."

 

[Ninja_Onions]

For one of few times in his short life, Gerza was dumbfounded. 'I was correct that there was residual mana, and quite a bit of it, but it lacked a distinct signature, almost like it was just raw power...like if mana had emotions.' While that worried him more than he would prefer, he had a secondary reason to worry, and that reason walked past him and into the medical area while he was on his way to the arena. The two mana signatures matched up perfectly, which wouldn't have been an issue if it hadn't belonged to the man who he had spoken with the previous night. 'Oh for the love of... of course it would happen like this.' He thought as he shook his head. He hardly knew anything about the man, aside that according to this mana explosion, he was powerful, volatile, belonged to the Vejta family, and that he was standing there with Cerys, which wasn't th- His features twisted into a confused and dumbfounded expression. 'Wait, what.'

 

[Cyrionessa]

Cerys raised her eyebrows. "Likewise." She turned unceremoniously to Estelle. "Make sure Ryrax didn't do any damage to himself, please. I've got challenges to go answer." She smiled inwardly; many women of the other families thought that beating a many Xevren was easy. Cerys enjoyed proving them completely and totally wrong. "Ryrax, do whatever she says, please." There was a little smile on her face as she walked away.


".....whatever you did to that girl...." Estelle's eyes had a far away, lonely look in them. "She's happy. Now, take your behind over to that bed and stay there till I get to you." She glanced at Valk, then to Ryrax, then back to Valk. "And if I have to separate you two again, you're going to find out that this light doesn't always heal; it can burn the living hell out of you."


Estelle walked over to Valk and began examining him. She could tell where the problem areas were and sighed. ".....don't try to act like a man and please tell me if what I'm doing hurts. Can't stand for men to act like tough behemoths when they're in pain." Her fingers pressured certain spots on his chest that she knew were definitely going to be problem areas.


-----


Outside, Cerys was whistling a little tune when a Vejta woman came up behind her. "You. You're the one who brought in that girl who was dancing all night with Rudd."


Cerys turned on her heel with a raised eyebrow. "Yes....I'm Cerys Xevren. The "girl" is Estelle Naejor. Can I help you with something or are you here to state the obvious and waste my time?"


"Rudd is a Vejta." The woman looked distastefully at Cerys' ears and tails. "He belongs with a Vejta, not some Naejor tramp."


"....excuse me....." Cerys' eyes slightly shifted, a slight red glow at the center of the pupil that the other woman did not notice. "Who the hell are you to call a woman a tramp?"


"Karza Vejta." The woman put her hands on her hips. "Rudd belongs to us."


"I didn't see him dancing with you, lady." Cerys mirrored the movement. "I saw him dancing with the most beautiful woman in the room, which just so happened to be my friend. Get your facts straight before coming around me." She turned and began to walk away.


"Keep that Naejor wh*** away from Rudd." Karza said.


Cerys stopped in her tracks. Okay the woman had pushed it at the word "tramp." But saying that Estelle was a "wh***"..... "Karza Vejta." Cerys growled out, turning around with her eyes glowing an eerie red.


"...what...?" Karza took a step back, not really sure what to make of those eyes.


"I challenge you to a duel. I win, Estelle goes where she pleases. You win, Estelle will never be around Rudd again." Cerys hissed. "Those are the terms. Do you accept?"


Karza stared at her for a moment before strengthening her resolve. "I accept."


Cerys turned on her heel and made her way to an empty arena. "Judge. There's been a challenge."

 

[Ninja_Onions]

Gerza's stave halted it's fiery glow the moment Cerys issued the challenge, to match his temper as it stopped flaring. Even having hidden in an alleyway to try and figure out how to proceed, he was able to hear all of the confrontation. "No one talks about Estelle like that." He grumbled under his breath. "I hope that Cerys puts that Vejta down, permanently.' He huffed before striking his staff on the ground to snuff out the remaining embers and left the alley to get a good seat to watch. 'The man beast can wait, this is a matter of personal pride.' He thought as he walked briskly to the arena while pulling up his hood, cloak billowing partially from his stride.

 

[Twizinator]

Ryrax strode over and stretched out on the bed, putting his hands behind his head. Estelle's lonely gaze hadn't gone unseen by someone so familiar with solitude, and he knew that he and Cerys had some serious work to do.


"I suppose I'll leave you to it, Estelle. I won't be much help here, hahaha!" Oliver laughed. "I will go watch Rudd's match and tell you about it later!"


Ryrax bolted upright. "Wait, what?!" he exclaimed, "Rudd has a match?"


"Indeed!" Oliver replied as he made for the door, "He was challenged, from what I could see."


Ryrax snarled in frustration. He really wanted to go watch but between the 'don't you dare leave' look he got from Estelle and what he knew he'd get from Cerys, he begrudgingly resumed his horizontal position, silently fuming as Oliver strode out and left after Rudd and the black bearded man. Then something Oliver said registered. "...tell you about it later...?" he muttered. He smiled in taunting humor as he watched Estelle work on Valk. "Quite interested in my little bumpkin, eh....?" he muttered under his breath.

 

[Ixidor92]

Valk grimaced slightly as the woman in front of him poked his chest experimentally. A few wisps of electricity flew out of his hair subconsciously in reaction.


"Yeah, so it hurts a little. I'll be fine, I just need to recenter my mana before the next bout."


This was irritating. The longer he spent in here, the less time he had to fight. The less time he could fight, the more battles he would end up fighting against people of no stature or strength whatsoever.


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


"Winner! Aatron!"


Aatron let out a slow breath and released his grip on the sheathed katana. His opponent had been quicker than anticipated, and required the use of more potent wind artes. As evidenced by the series of cuts in the arena before him. The young man casually walked off the raised platform, allowing himself a brief moment of victory before heading to his next challenge.

 

[Cyrionessa]

"If you sass me one more time...." Estelle's eyes glowed a slight gold. "I'll make sure you stay in here all day. I'll take care of the muscle damage. But after that, you're laying there until I feel that your mana is recovered enough. And if you give me any lip...." She stared eye to eye at him, the light in her eyes getting brighter. "I'll keep you in here longer, understand?"


She got to work on the slight muscle damage from Ryrax's odd mana wounds. Estelle didn't care what the man did right now; she was a woman on a mission. There was also the fact that there was not going to hear news about that fight for a while. It was curious to her that she even cared about the fight.


----


Cerys and Karza stood, facing off in the center of the arena. People were wandering in curiously. Whispers of the "demon cat" flooded the outside of the arena and soon many, many people were there. Good. Cerys smiled to herself. That's exactly what she wanted. She had no information on her opponent. No idea what she could do. Cerys analyzed her quickly. Her physical body was not in perfect physical shape, so she probably focused more on her mana than anything. No discernible weapons, so she probably fought purely through mana.


This was going to be easier than she thought. She wasn't dubbed the "Mage Killer" by her kin for nothing....


The judge's words were generic and normal; all it took was a nod from both sides to silence him. As soon as the judge started the match, Karza leveled off a cone of fire in Cerys' direction. The only problem was, Cerys wasn't there anymore. In fact, Karza couldn't see her. She squinted around the arena, looking for the cat.


The only warning that she had was a yowl that was directly behind her in her ear before she felt the first blow. And it was one hell of a first blow. All that most people would see was Cerys seeming to materialize behind Karza. Those with better eyes would see the blur that was Cerys running at inhuman speeds behind her with glowing red like blood.


Cerys smirked to herself. Too bad she wasn't allowed to kill....

 

[Twizinator]

Ryrax laughed: he was honestly impressed with Estelle at the moment. He didn't think she could be so forceful, yet here she was threatening Valk. He relaxed in the bed, absentmindedly watching Estelle work.


-----


Oliver made his way into the stands of the arena Rudd would be fighting in when he heard the sounds of another duel nearby. He leapt upon the very tops of the stands so he could peer over to the arenas next to this one and he found Cerys's duel just in time to witness the first blow. He gave a low whistle, impressed, but was a bit conflicted. It wouldn't be easy to watch both fights...not to say he wouldn't try.

 

[Ixidor92]

Valk let out an irritated sigh but remained still as Estelle did her work. Once she was finished he threw his cloak back and stood up off the bed.


"Thanks. My mana should be recovered in about twenty to thirty minutes, I'll fight once that's done."