Fantasy The Final Masquerade | Volume: ONE

[kjsprk]

Julian noticed that the person following...was indeed following him. He stopped walking and took a deep breath.


"You gonna mug me already? Or do you just like following people?" He joked and turned around. To his surprise, it was one of the girls that he first met. Hi face got red.


'Shit, you're on your own.' His conscious told him.


"Uh, hey! I didn't...mean- I don't consider you a mugger...unless you are...the thought had crossed my mind. But, you don't seem like one..." Julian began sweating internally. He began rubbing the back of his head, unknowing what to say next.

 

[IceQueen]

Akira smiled warmly and pulled off her hood. She grinned. "It's ok! It happens. Name's Akira, and no I am not usually a stalker. I followed you because you seemed angry, and well, I have nowhere to go." She said, with a sheepish smile. She rubbed her foot on the ground and looked up at him. "I didn't mean to scare you."

 

[kjsprk]

"You didn't scare me!" Julian had run into muggers in the past and was always ready to fight in defense."I just sold my shack that I lived in, I was on my way to find some park bench to crash on." Julian chuckled. He kicked a rock around slightly with his foot. "What gave away that I was angry? Is it really that obvious?" He chuckled again.

 

[keizerin]

Vivian hummed in amusement, her hand hovering over the one of the swords. "I see, I see." the girl said, feigning seriousness. The weapons truly were beautiful, and she couldn't help but admire them. Such a tease. she thought, saddened that Torre didn't allow her to see the full blade. Her mind snapped back to him when he spoke about lodging, and she remembered that they were supposed to depart.


"I hope you've brought some money for your big adventure, because the inns won't allow you to stay without some form of currency - trust me, I've tried." she told him, straightening her back and putting a free hand on her hip. "I can show you to the one closest to the docks, if you'd like. But, I don't know if it will meet the standards of a nobleman such as yourself..." Vivian's voice trailed off, and so did her feet. While lost in thought the girl had already started walking away, muttering something about being banned from the more extravagant hotels.

 

[IceQueen]

Akira raised her hands up in defense. "Ok, ok. I didn't scare you." She said. She nodded at the second part. "It was pretty obvious. Plus, the stupid man shoved you to the sidewalk. It was to be expected." She said, smiling. "I have never really liked other people anyway. There all to chicken to look me in the face. They just jump away and whisper my nickname among themselves."

 

[Numberfox]

He followed her, thankful that she was willing to guide him. "I do have some coin thankfully, though not much more than what an average person would have. Miss North, I cannot consider myself of nobility until I establish my own wealth, as is the tradition of my family. I amount to little more than a commoner right now. Fear not of the quality, for as long as there is a roof I can most definitely sleep within it," Torre replied. He recalled several late nights where he felt too tired to go to bed and literally fell asleep on the castle floors. Though frustrated, his mother did say it would help him sleep easier in the outside world if he continued such a practice. "The cheapest one would probably be the most beneficial for me at the moment."

 

[keizerin]

"I'm not one to argue," the girl said, now apparently out of her deep thinking, "but there are a lot of psychos outside of home, so be careful." Vivian said, seemingly concerned despite still smiling. He attempt at "being serious" must have been a joke to her. "You never know what could be lurking around these areas. Of course, I have no doubt those lovely swords of yours aren't just for show." She laughed, winking at him before disappearing behind a corner.


Up ahead was, undoubtedly, the cheapest lodging in town. The building itself was small and made of mostly crumbled stone while the wooden frames and porch was weak from years of rotting. A drunkard sat passed out in the front, covered in alcohol and bile. From the outside, it was definitely no castle, but overall it wasn't too bad. The inside was similar, except a dozen people were sitting around tables on the first floor, drinking their weight in cheap beer.


Vivian made her way to the owner of the inn, a middle-aged man who was sitting behind the bar. The girl retained her cheerful demeanor despite the obviously heated discussion she and the owner were whispering, and eventually waved Torre over after the man handed her a large leather bag.


"This is my friend," Vivian said to Torre, leaning over the bar to wrap her arm around the shoulders of the owner, "He'll give you a discount on the room." The man didn't speak; instead, he frowned with an obvious look of disgust, refusing to look the younger man in the eye. "Now you'll only have to pay ten instead of fifteen! Isn't that fantastic?"

 

[Numberfox]

Torre thought that Miss North must have had quite the diplomatic skills to convince the owner of the establishment to drop the price by a third. Perhaps she had done some good deed for him, and now the owner was repaying the favor? Torre felt honored if that were the case. "Thank you for referring me to this establishment, Miss North. And thank you for housing me and giving me such a discount, good sir," he thanked, bowing to both of them.


"If I may ask, are you also planning to lodge here Miss North?" he asked, wondering where she would stay.

 

[keizerin]

Vivian shook her head. "Noooo waaaay! Georgie here wouldn't like it if I stayed here longer than I had to. Right Georgie Peorgie?" she said boisterously, grinning as she pulled the owner closer, feeling him flinch from her touch. The man grumbled in response, making the girl snicker. She turned back to Torre, releasing the man from her grip. "I sleep a couple blocks away, close to the town square. It's easier to get to work from there." she said, gesturing to the general direction of her hammock.


"You'll be sleeping upstairs." the older man said to Torre, his voice deep and gravely. "If you want me to feed you, you'll have to pay for that individually."

 

[animegirl20]

Terra said good bye to her new friend. Now she had to fine some where to sleep for the knight. She took a look around and saw there were a couple a inns around. "Good thing I swiped daddy's bank card." She headed to a inn to stay for the night.

 

[Numberfox]

Torre wondered why Sir Georgie wouldn't want Miss North to stay if they were friends, but he did not question it. "I see. And I understand, Sir Georgie. I am willing to pay for those services in addition to my lodging in order to have food. Thank you for offering it in your establishment," he thanked, bowing again. He turned to Miss North.


"I have a request for you, Miss North, if you would indulge me. I am embarrassed to say that I still require assistance to be woken up in order to be anywhere in a timely manner. Because of this, I ask if it is possible for you to assist me in the morning so that I do not oversleep and miss when we are to meet the group again tomorrow," he asked Miss North. Torre did not want to burden Sir Georgie with the request because he had already provided him so much when considering the discount as well as food. He also trusted Miss North more since she was going to to be a traveling companion.

 

[The One Eyed Bandit]

Silas was headed towards an inn, he'd finished his job and gotten his pay, one bullet, one life and around 100 coins in pay, the going price for someones head in this day and age. On his way to the inn Silas noticed one of the women that had been at the docks earlier, presumably with a similar goal in mind, he decided to introduce himself, approaching her he called out "Hey, you're part of Greys crew right? I saw you at the docks earlier" Moving in and walking alongside her as he spoke.


@animegirl20

 

[keizerin]

The owner only grumbled while Vivian nodded, giving Torre a thumbs-up. "Of course, of course! I won't let you down, Torre." she said, sitting down at the bar, much to Georgie's dismay. "You can count on me. For now, though, you should probably get some rest. It's getting late, and you wouldn't want to be groggy in the morning, right?" she told him. "I'm going to have a little chat with my buddy here, but I'll see you first thing tomorrow."

 

[animegirl20]

She turned head to the person who was talking to her. "Yah I am and I think I saw you too. The names Terra." she smiled.

 

[The One Eyed Bandit]

"Silas, pleasure to meet you Terra." Dusting off his hand and offering her a handshake while he talked "You looking for somewhere to sleep? I know a half decent place, cheap beds, cheaper drinks" Placing his spare hand in his pocket after he finished.

 

[animegirl20]

She his hand. "Well price isn't really an issue for me but sure alright." She always stayed at fancy places she wouldn't mind staying somewhere different for a change. She stretched out her arms smiled ands said "alright lead the way."

 

[The One Eyed Bandit]

"Follow me then, who knows if you're well enough off you just might be able to buy the place". After a short walk they came to a tavern, a man passed out near the entrance covered in his own vomit, "Ignore the uh.. furnishings, the rooms are nice enough" Entering he spotted a few other people he'd seen at the docks, not particularly surprised that a few other folks were looking to save some coin "Looks like we weren't the only ones with this place in mind" Speaking to Terra as she followed him through.

 

[animegirl20]

She followed him to the tavern. When they came up to the entrance. They saw a man covered in his own vomit. She cringed a little. "Right" They went in and saw some people that were at the docks. "Yah seems like it." She followed him on through. She looked around the place. It didn't look to bad. She began to wonder what the rooms were like. This was her first time in a place like this.

 

[SkyFilms]

Though most of the group had passed leaving with small farewells to those they had spoken to Ellion still sat there. Her back hunched forward as she leaned onto her knees her heart beating fast with excitement. She couldn't wait for the coming day, she couldn't wait for the land of wonders. The brunette scuffed up her hair attempting to get out it out of her face before pulling down her goggles and pushing herself off the crate and onto the dock with a thump. The tip of her cloak skimmed the wood as she strode back into town prepared to get something at the market but was halted by the not so familiar man who clapped a hand roughly on her shoulder,


"Remember me?" The man questioned as she stared blankly at him before shoving his hand off and nodding no becoming annoyed.


"The match earlier today was a mess up we hadn't set ground rules." Ellion snorted at his statement finding both him and the reason to he ridiculous.


"Listen pig, there aren't any rules that's the prime reason to watch and experience these idiotic brawls along with the cash it brings in." Ellions eyebrows knitted together her fuse lit by his words. "If you where experienced like you said you where you would've known that. Now don't waste my time, most people have something to do nowadays." She growled before beginning in the markets direction once more staring through her dust coated goggles.

 

[Numberfox]

Torre felt that was a good idea. Who knows what they could be doing tomorrow? "Thank you for your concern; I shall do just that. Have a good night, Miss North," he said, already feeling the tiredness from walking all the way to the town square that morning. He bowed again out of respect, and headed up to his room. Once he got in, he immediately laid down on his bed, and wouldn't wake up unless shaken.

 

[MisfitGhoul]

Sage saw the band of people ready to leave for the homes, she sighed softly and walked herself and the large robot home quietly.


"Guess we'll have to meet them tomorrow eh DeathBot?" The girl had put a voice chip inside the robot so it responded to the person whom asked a question. "YeS, SaGe," it spoke out in a somewhat robotic tone.


Hopping out when they got to the garage, she powered off the robot, grabbed a pillow and blanket and slept in the robot's core(where she controls it).

 

[keizerin]

Vivian waited for Torre to be completely out of sight before turning inwards, laying her hands flat on the table. “Sweet boy, that one. He’s much too naive to be in a place like this.” She smiled up at Georgie, who seemed to retreat to get her a drink. “Oh no, not tonight,” she told him, waving away the glass, “I’ve got a big day tomorrow.” As the owner turned to put it away, the girl leaped forward and grabbed the back of his shirt, yanking on it and forcing his head to collide with the bar. He yelped in pain and the whole inn went silent for a moment before eventually deciding to ignore the incident.


“That was very rude of you, Georgie,” Vivian said, her tone of voice flat and cold despite her cheerful image. She settled in her bar stool again, tapping on the table with her nails while the owner stood from the floor, a thin line of blood leaking from the back of his head. “Now, I know being a sourpuss is sort of in your nature, but you could have at least acted polite. He is your guest, after all.” Vivian shook her head, clenching her fists. “God, I want to kill you right now. Do you know how that feels, to want to kill your own friend?” She stared at Georgie for a moment before grinning. Chuckling, the girl stood from her seat, picking up the bar stool and carrying it out the door. No one dared to stop her.


Back at home (a.k.a. a half-burnt down wooden shack with a broken hammock), the girl managed to break apart the bar stool and use it as firewood to keep herself warm while she spent an hour fixing her hammock. Clutching her sword, Vivian laid down once it was ready and eventually fell asleep to the sounds of crackling wood.

 

[kjsprk]

Akira raised her hands up in defense. "Ok, ok. I didn't scare you." She said. She nodded at the second part. "It was pretty obvious. Plus, the stupid man shoved you to the sidewalk. It was to be expected." She said, smiling. "I have never really liked other people anyway. There all to chicken to look me in the face. They just jump away and whisper my nickname among themselves."

"Yeah, It happens a lot." Julian sighed. His hands found their way to his pockets again. He didn't want to hate the people in this town, it wasn't his fault they were being tricked.


"What nickname?" He asked lightly. "Little Red?" He snickered to himself. "It's better than Julia, or Juliana, or Jules, or Julie, ...or traitor." he snickered again. He knew it probably wasn't funny to her, but it was to him.

 

[IceQueen]

"Little Red, The Red Hood, there are many names. But I prefer Akira." She said, smiling. "In fact, I like my nicknames, they have character." She said, smiling. "Though I am more like the Sadistic Red Riding Hood with my mask on." She said, gently lifting the mask that was hanging at her waist. She smiled at him.

 

[kjsprk]

"Right." he chuckled. His mind shit back to his father's mask, he hadn't even put it on yet. 'I'll get the chance' He thought.


"So, you were following me? Did you have a question? Or am I just that irresistible?" He joked with her.