[b]"GET ON FUCKING BOARD!"[/b] As far as greetings go, this particular one appeared to lack tact and when addressing a Chrono lacking tact is the equivalent of genocide. For Ante Mortem this was indeed a common occurrence when they were less notorious, although after a few gruesome incidents very few individuals came to associate themselves with the demonic duo let alone insult them. This was particularly true for Rin, whose wrath could go from unfair to simply biblical or at least that is how her partner describes it. "Now Rin, I am sure that gentleman is slightly blind and he didn't see us, I am equally sure he is not suicidal. So let us not do something that will make your brother have to sit on a desk and fill mountains of paperwork explaining how we basically killed all the leaders of the Bloodlines." As Angel spoke his tone and expressions clearly showed signs of worry, a rare spectacle. One would consider the man to be afraid for the loss of innocent lives, however his fear was mainly directed to his apprehension towards the dreary tasks he would be obligated to perform in the aftermath. Even so, his attempts at appeasing the Chrono fell on deaf ear. Just by looking at Rin one could never tell the child is unhappy or angry; in fact associating any form of emotion would prove rather difficult as she hardly displayed any, other than her usual stoic expression. However if one looked at the ship which Rin slowly approached, they may notice the occurrence of a phenomena known as "sinking" and you wouldn't need Sherlock to deduce a very vexed Chrono was causing it. Mere seconds after the Asylum's "greeting" the very alchemic energy in their vicinity appeared to have warped, meaning one's alchemic drive was rendered ineffective. This coupled with the fact that with each step Rin took the force of gravity around the ship increased; it didn't bode well for those present aboard it. Not only did the passengers find themselves with an unstable alchemic drive but due to the Chrono's alteration of gravity, they found themselves rooted to their spots on a ship that slowly buckled under the pressure, beginning to sink. "It would be a safe assumption to say Rin is slightly irritated," Angel remarked as he brushed his stubble, his gaze shifting towards the Asylums present as if silently asking for aid. "I am guessing none of you are willing to stop her for the sake of the mission?" The silver Reaper continued, making the need for assistance a little more vocal. As he examined his subordinates through his silver spectacles a sigh escaped his lips. "Yes, I suppose I wouldn't want to be a blot on the floor either," the Lost Number concluded before approaching his partner with slight hesitation. "Now Rin, I know you are angry but can you avoid killing everyone on the boat?" Despite Angel's request the ship continued to sink, water beginning to breach it and the panic from within being made apparent through screams. Before the Blood Draped Angel could interfere, he found himself rooted to a spot as well through being subjected to the same treatment. "You are handful child; fine how about an addition to the Pandas present at Shangri-La?" As soon as Angel mentioned a very specific word, the ship seized to sink if only for but a few seconds. However the fact that Rin continued her onslaught towards the naysayer implied she wasn’t satisfied with the offer, with this knowledge the Lost Number couldn’t help but be amused. His crafty partner was no longer trying to sink the ship in order to punish the Asylum; this was now a haggle for a better offer. “Very devious little one, fine then I will allow you to keep one of your Pandas at the A.M.R.O head quarters we are residing in.” The smile slowly turned to a little chuckle as Angel observed the ship resurface before things could get life threatening. The Chrono no longer appeared to harbor feelings of genocide and instead followed her partner inside, her face shining despite a lack of emotion. ---------------------------Xx----------------xX--------------------------- Bloodlines Time: A few minutes before the sinking [u][b]Laofengs[/b][/u] As the other Bloodlines mingled and established grounds for ascertaining their allies and enemies, the Laofeng Patriarch merely indulged himself in expensive wine and the company of his ‘sister’. “To think they have already begun analyzing the situation before we have even started the meeting. Are they always this guarded?” Lei Gong asked his body guard with a polite expression on his face, clearly enjoying her company after such a long time. “I’m afraid they are bro- I mean Lei Go-“Before Ying could correct herself, she found her forehead being gently flicked as a form of punishment. “I don’t care about formalities, you are still my sister and as such I want you to think of me as your brother. That is if you don’t hate me.” The Patriarch replied, his tone laced with guilt. Clearly the thought of abandoning his siblings continued to haunt his gentle nature. “Don’t worry, you aren’t the brother I hate, I could never hate you. And yes, things are usually like this from the reports that I have read. Though it makes sense that everyone will be on edge, there have been a multitude of murders.” Ying continued, consoling her brother while also answering his question. “But you already knew that, isn’t that the reason a Patriarch from the Laofengs finally appeared.” She continued, suspiciously staring at her brother in order to tease him. However before they could continue their little chat, they found themselves grounded with the ship slowly shaking and sinking. Despite the distorted alchemic energy, it didn’t take much effort from the Lost Number to surround her brother and herself in a dome of impenetrable darkness. She was after all one of the two prodigies from the Old bloods, the Laofengs. There was also the fact that this level of energy distortion was relatively weak, as if specifically targeted towards alchemists and Asylums but not at the levels beyond. “So this is gravity manipulation, it must be that Reri. Her power is indeed terrifying, how exciting!” Lei Gong spoke, this event affecting neither his composure nor his cheerfulness. [u][b]Adesolas[/b][/u] “You know your father always adored that about. Your ability to stay positive, he often said that whenever he would look at you it would be like you were bathing under a halo of white light. I hope you never have to see heartbreak child, the world we are born in is a cruel world, it is the world that took your father’s life and I will be damned if it takes yours.” Gentle tears began to trickle down her face, it was quite apparent the woman was terrified of what would happen at this meeting and that too specifically for her daughter who had forced herself to come. Her gentle expressions however suddenly turned to horror, her eyes widening as she felt herself falling to her knees along with her daughter. The bones in her body ached as if a mysterious force was slowly crushing them; it took all the might she could spare to vengefully stare at the others to make sure this wasn’t a ploy for assassination. What made this situation even more abysmal was the fact that her alchemy wasn’t responding, making it impossible to contact the beings of nature around her for protection. “Nothing will harm my child!” the woman screamed in pure hatred and anger. [u][b]Laveaus[/b][/u] “How lovely, two of the most irritating family members together and discussing peace.” Clair scoffed, as her eyes glared at the mal-creation of humanity that was Willem. “Here is the amusing aspect of this conversation, while Dante has influence over Vatican City we all know the Pallidinos are pansies, they don’t have the balls to start a war. The Steins are a different story, obeying rules has never been your forte. You lot broke the rules before and were brought to extinction; I highly doubt your lunatic sister and you have learned your lesson. We all have skeletons in our closets but even Dante’s god would tremble and what you people try to fuck around with. Before she could continue insulting the two Bloodlines she hated the most, she noticed the bloodline members in her line of visions being brought to their knees along with her included. Despite the slap to her ego, watching the two pretentious bastards kneeling as well brought some comfort to this precarious situation. “Since you two idiots are in the same boat as me, I guess someone else is doing this. I really hope I don’t get to die next to you two.” Clair muttered as she felt pain surge throughout her body, she was prepared to face opposition just not this early. “This will be war, you are all dead!” The woman had made her declaration of war against the bloodline that had dared to oppose her. [u][b]Queen Anne[/b][/u] [i]“Hi Apate and Dolos, it has been a while since I saw the two of you. How are you guys? Are you waiting for the Asylums too?”[/i] Dolos happily greeted Antonia and Rosella, behind his smile his twisted mind working how to overpower the Palladinio family. What made them a thorn in his side was the fact they associated themselves with religion and that gave them a very unique form of influence. Religion isn’t good or bad, its nature is based on how it is perceived and uses. So a morally respected person may use religion for great things and a manipulative bastard may use it for unleashing havoc. [i]“It is best to keep up good appearance with them until I can go for the jugular”[/i] Dolos thought as he entertained the kids. “Same ol’ same ol’, work is slow and we are just as bored as you too,” the boy joked. “I hear a lot of Asylums will be coming this time, won’t it be fun if a fight breaks out! We will get to see them in action; I hear if they get angry they can kill you with just a stare.” As he spoke, Dolos couldn’t help but stare at the two Pallidino children in a friendly attempt to scare them. However soon enough he found himself pinned on the floor, his widened eyes staring at the others. Adrenaline had kicked and perhaps for the first time the heir felt his life truly in danger, such ecstacy. It is this thrill the Queen Anne live for, to face death and to escape it with a smile. “Sister let us bet on who will die right now,” Dolos replied with a smile despite his voice stuttering from the pain. [u][b]Steins[/b][/u] “This is unfortunate,” Cassandra thought as she found herself on her back, preferring to lie down rather than kneel and fight the force of the gravity. “I didn’t calculate opposition this early, it does put me at a disadvantage. But this couldn’t be one of the other bloodlines, they don’t have such power and surely A.M.R.O won’t risk losing us as long as we prove to be valuable tools.” The Stein Matriarch contemplated as she stared at the sky above her. “I hope my brother has finished working on the project we discusses, else his death is an inconvenience.” ---------------------------Xx--------------------------xX--------------------------- Just when things appeared to be at their worst and many of the Bloodlines had accepted their fate, the ship suddenly began to resurface along with the gravity returning to normal. For but a brief moment an aura of relief and joy brimmed the ship that is till the Bloodlines realized this was clearly an act of war and someone had made the first move. The expressions of relief, in a blink of an eye, turned into paranoia and anger as many Bloodlines began to either take a defensive or offensive stance. Alchemic drive was being activated by almost all members in preparation of an all out war and this time everyone was ready, now it all rested on who will throw the first shot. Silence loomed over the ship as families regrouped, patiently waiting for the fight to start. It was a stand-off and almost every person present had their fingers on the trigger. The Stein’s had prepared sigils, the Laveaus were gently muttering as if preparing a chant, the Queen Anne children had already begun plotting a counter attack. In terms of aggression the Adesolas were leagues ahead; ravenous eagles circled the ship on high and sharks from below. However the Laofengs were possibly the least aggressive and while Ying’s barrier of darkness had subsided she maintained vigilance to strike down any who approaches her brother. Luckily before disaster could break the silence, the sound of claps did so instead. It was none other than Angel casually walking with the Chrono beside him and the Asylums behind him, his hands slowly clapping not only to appreciate the foolhardiness of the Bloodlines but also so they may get their attention. But in all honesty, the Lost Number merely enjoyed making a dramatic entrance. “I do apologize for that little prank; we merely felt it necessary to show you your betters. I do not care for you; my partner does not care for you and what that means is if you irritate us we won’t be there to protect you from these other Asylums. Just one of them can kill you with a stare!” As Angel concluded he slowly tilted his face towards Dolos, who at that exact moment decided to cover his face. After Dolos he gave the very same stare to the man who had greeted Ante Mortem so rudely, accept this time it was different. Even though Angel’s eyes lay veiled by his spectacles, it almost felt as if the Lost Number was staring into the very soul of Dancer, followed by a telepathic warning to their team. “I enjoy breathing, so must you too?” “We will now depart,” with Rin’s official orders the Ship instantly set sail.