"Hey you know better than I do Kensen, whatever you say," the woman uttered as she laid Cecil out in the back of the cart. "No clue why those kids are so bent out of shape over it, or why the hell they even named the thing. Never seen anyone so connected to a machine like they are." Then again she'd never seen a machine quite like Cecil either, so lifelike that she might mistake it for living. Combat model or not whatever this Machina was clearly wasn't a regular unit, it was like someone had gotten a special order made. Did it belong to them? Odd since none of the kids seemed to have money really so chances of that were slim. A bunch of young Magi being hunted by the Church, an unusual Machina and a Ydran child. What in the world had they wandered into this time?

"Hey! I got here when I could you little twerp, be glad the rest of you ain't dead too! Show a little fucking respect will you, it's not like we knew this was going on!" Rolling her eyes as Amuné broke down into sobs she rubbed the back of her neck, giving a shake of her head before walking over to one of the horses. Definitely spooked out of their minds even now as they stood almost petrified, their nostrils flaring and their hooves still stomping uneasily against the dirt. Probably useless to try getting them to move now, so with a reluctant sigh she reached up and stroked the horse's mane to attempt and soothe it. "Besides kid he's not alive like you and I are, he's a machine, not living. He'll be fine, few new parts and he'll be good as new," she added, glancing back at Ethan and Amuné, "So quit acting like it's the end of the world will you? He'll be fine once a machinist takes a look at him."

That was an understatement if Nymira had ever heard one. They were lucky that the Vazra had been kept under control, otherwise contending with both them and the slimes would have been an utter nightmare. At least Asta wasn't so prideful that she couldn't acknowledge her own mistakes and for that she would have to give the Ydran some credit, even if she'd still tried to overstep her boundaries. "Yes, well... A Thistrun might have been a bit much, we're lucky we weren't set upon," the Dimuran reiterated, "In the future do be mindful of [i]what[/i] you bring into battle, will you? I'd prefer not to have to kill your summon and fight our enemy at the same time." 

"We should get moving... Cecil needs repairs and we're all worn out, staying out here is dangerous." It didn't need to be said of course when everyone was feeling the fatigue of their encounter and it was all some could do not to collapse. Unsteady on her own legs as she tried to stand she arched an eyebrow at Asta's astonishment over Cecil, nodding and heading towards the carts. "Yes, the worst kept secret in our group. Perhaps only second to the fact we're all bloody Magi," the Dimuran added with a thin-lipped smile, "Like us he seems to be pursued for some reason or another, so try keeping that secret between us will you? As if we need more cause to worry..." 

Where did they go from here? What should they be doing? Moving on and trying to find Amuné's parents was important, as was his finding Cedric. Then there was Nymira and her mission to find allies for her clan, they couldn't overlook that either. No one was still certain why Asta had tagged along but if she had something to accomplish then it was only fair they try and help her too. And then Cecil- He had to be repaired. Everything else was placed on the back burner in light of their friend's injuries, injuries which Ethan couldn't help but feel solely responsible for. Why was the Varuna so adamant about attacking them? What had they done to incite his anger? So far they had so many questions and no answers and were bumbling about blindly, running to and fro trying to complete whatever goals they had set for themselves. Clearly something more had happened and they had offended the wrong people in some way and now were paying for the price for it.

No... [i]He[/i] had done something. It had to be his doing since he couldn't imagine anyone else being responsible for all of this. Nymira wasn't even from these lands and probably had no reason for the Church to pursue her so long as she hadn't done anything serious since arriving. Amuné was a child and hardly a threat to anyone given her magic was nothing more than Sight, leaving her out of the equation too. Asta had only just joined so it couldn't be here, they had been attacked before. Cecil was the only other person left and he had trouble believing that the Machina was worth all of this trouble. Or rather, he had trouble believing that Cecil had done anything to warrant all of this. So that left him, and with that acknowledgement a wave of guilt crashed down over Ethan. For all the fatigue in his body this weight was far worse, and after setting himself and Amuné down in the cart he all but collapsed, his chest rising and falling as he fought to hold back tears. Was this because he was pursuing Cedric? Had something happened with his teacher, and now chasing after him had somehow made him a criminal? It was no secret the Church was pursuing Magi but those were only Magi acting violently or causing trouble, they'd done nothing aside from the encounters with the Church. So it had to be him, there was no other explanation. And because he refused to kill even in self defense, because he'd refused to kill to protect his friends now Cecil might be injured, or worse. What if he'd tried killing the Varuna earlier? Cecil wouldn't be hurt and they wouldn't all be running on fumes. Or back on the ship, none of that would have happened either. Everything that was wrong seemed to lead back to him somehow and it was smothering him with a blanket of guilt. 

"Hurry up and get on kids! We've got to get moving before that bastard decides to come back and try finishing the job," the woman shouted, gesturing for Nymira and Asta to hurry, "If you can't ride the horse then get in the cart, we'll get your asses back safely." If they hadn't been attacked by a Church Magi then she'd just as soon leave them on their own, write it off as a bandit attack and not give it a second thought. Yet they'd been very specifically targeted and she wanted to know why, clearly there was something among these kids that made them special. Why else would the Church waste time sending a Magi after them? "Kensen? Take the cart with the horse and follow in the back, make sure they're not harmed alright? I'll lead, just in case that Varuna comes back." Watching as Nymira struggled to perch herself atop the lone horse she rolled her eyes, walking over and giving the Dimuran a push in the back to help her up. "You've all got some explaining to do when we get back, but for now just shut up and take it easy alright?"