[color=black][b][h2]Flood Traversal[/h2][/b][/color]
It turned out traversing flood waters was far easier than Motley might have thought, considering his nature as a being whose continued breathing was vital to not disintegrating in the UV light that even now bombarded his form. For one thing, his ability to use the Ripple allowed him to simply stride over the surface of the liquid as if it were solid. At first, he'd needed to carry Erina on his back, much to her annoyance, but then he'd hit upon the brainwave that perhaps he could simply use his Stand's oily substance, combined with the additional bolstering of his Black Ripple, as a surface for her to walk upon. Though she protested somewhat at the notion of "being transported on the back of a ghost", she ultimately agreed it was better than "on the back of a vampire"; and so it was that the two walked across the fluid via what appeared to be a greasy stain on the water's surface, a few meters wide at the front, yet slowly dissolving like a teardrop at the back as they moved, leaving behind not a stain on the surface.

And on the other hand, that had proved to be the least of their issues.

[color=bc8dbf]'I am [i]soooo[/i] hungry!'[/color] the fox-girl- "kitsune", she'd pointed out the first time he'd mentioned it- complained for what was probably the third time in an hour. [color=bc8dbf]'Motley, we need to stop and find food, and also drinkable water!'[/color]

[color=black]'Why do you think we're walking?'[/color] Motley muttered, yet again. [color=black]'We need to find a building that has sustenance in it, and these peasant houses have demonstrated no such thing.'[/color]

[color=bc8dbf]'Well, it feels like you're going to walk me to death at this rate!'[/color]

[color=black]'I can revive you if you do,'[/color] Crue uttered, rather coldly considering he'd spared her life. Admittedly, it'd be a last resort rather than anything else, but he was nonetheless inclined to consider it a better option than just letting her die. [color=black]'Until then, take your mind off of it. Talk about something else, that is... let's see, what was your past life like?'[/color] The content of the question was less important than that it'd stop her complaining about an empty stomach and sore legs. She hadn't started on that yet, but he would not be surprised if he heard it sooner rather than later.

[color=bc8dbf]'Ooh, my past!'[/color] she exclaimed, apparently joyful to talk about herself so soon. [color=bc8dbf]'Well, you see, in my past life, I was beholden to a cruel tyrant of a teacher! He taught me everything I know, yes, but he also proved himself an utter bastard of a man, willing to beat me, to FLAY bits of my skin off... and WORSE...'[/color]

[color=black]'Like rape?'[/color]

[color=bc8dbf]'Yeah! I mean- uh-'[/color] The question threw Erina off for a moment, but she quickly regained her verbal footing, continuing confidently [color=bc8dbf]'No, yes, he did do that to me, awful person that he was! My saving grace was that he was but human, whilst I, good sir, am an immortal kitsune... heh, and what he [i]didn't[/i] realise was that once he was dead, he couldn't stop me from enslaving him to my will. Now he is [i]forced[/i] to do what I command, at risk of the geas upon him destroying his very soul.'[/color]

[color=black]'I see,'[/color] Motley mused, nodding as if the entire tale wasn't completely absurd. [color=black]'And this wouldn't happen to have anything to do with the spirit that possessed you last night, would it?'[/color]

[color=bc8dbf]'Oh, you can see- I mean WHAT SPIRIT, I don't have anything to do with spirits of that sort,'[/color] the kitsune tried to bluff, somewhat poorly given her slip-up. [color=bc8dbf]'No, nothing possessed me, ever. I do NOT allow ghosts to possess me, for that would be counter to my very existence.'[/color]

'At this point,' a voice from behind Erina stated quite matter-of-factly, 'it's worth noting that my master is a compulsive liar around anybody who isn't me.'

[color=bc8dbf]'Aw, Bend, why would you tell him?'[/color] Erina pouted, turning to an ethereal form that, to all eyes, appeared to be a balding man in the beginnings of his decline into old age. [color=bc8dbf]'Now he knows I do that.'[/color]

'Master, he's keeping you around as an ally,' the ghost called Bend explained, arms folded over his stomach. 'You'd be caught out sooner or later. You might as well be honest from the offset, about the fact that you lie if not about the topic itself. I'm certain he's perceptive enough to figure it out on his own anyway...' For a moment, the ghost's vision flickered over to Motley before returning to Erina's face, the gaze quite familiar, as if emulating the vampire's own visage in the mirror. 'I can tell from his eyes. He misses very little.'

[color=black]'Whilst I appreciate the compliment, Bend, I wonder if it's not misplaced,'[/color] Motley retorted, quite aware of his own lie when it came to his sensory perception. [color=black]'My vision isn't that grand.'[/color]

'I imagine all of your senses are better than my own, and not just because you're physically younger than me. Don't think I haven't heard your conversations about your undead nature, or that I didn't notice the energy you emitted as you beat my master unconscious.'

Motley stopped walking at that, giving Erina a moment before she paused. So he had been around for those events... but where, exactly, and why? He didn't seem to be manifested at the time... ah, but he probably had, at least in the latter case - her change in demeanour late in their duel was probably not a mere bipolar disorder if Bend had anything to do with it, and if he'd felt that, he'd likely felt his inhuman strength as well... but what else, what else could he have done to listen on any of the occasions that Motley's undead nature had been mentioned...

[color=black]'Do you know what a Stand is?'[/color]

'No.'

[color=bc8dbf]'Obviously I do! I'm not going to explain it if you don't know already, though, since it is REALLY obvious.'[/color]

That ruled that out then. Or...

[color=black]'The basic concept of a Stand is as the manifestation of its user's soul. Typically, this is manifested as a figure representing the person themselves, including a sort of supernatural ability, like a psychic power if you will.'[/color]

'That doesn't apply to me.'

[color=black]'I wasn't done,'[/color] Motley continued, a slight hint of malice entering his tone, his hands curling just so, before returning to normal, monotonous cadence. [color=black]'I was going to say, though you aren't a Stand, you are perhaps similar in one way... that is, it is sometimes the case that a Stand might be embodied by a physical object carried by a person.'[/color]

'Pardon me. That description may apply to me after all.'

[color=black]'What object?'[/color] Even as he asked the question, he could imagine what was most likely - not the embodiment of Erina's spirit, but of Bend's, and since she'd used the sword to attack Motley later on... sure enough, the samurai simply pointed, most gracefully for an old ghost, to the sheathed blade at the kitsune's side.

[color=black]'Good to know. I'm glad I could teach you something about my world. Perhaps in time, some of my wisdom shall rub off on you both,'[/color] Motley uttered, making what he figured was actually quite a clever joke. After all, he was... what was it, a hundred, hundred and twenty years old? Certainly beyond the years of any normal human...

[color=bc8dbf]'Pfft, more like the other way round. You know I'm, like, ten thousand years old, right?'[/color] Though this was uttered with a slightly superior smirk, as if she were absolutely accurate despite the clear lie, Motley couldn't help but feel this time that perhaps there was a ring of truth there. Just a hint.

'Not quite so many years as that,' Bend explained, his voice surprisingly cold. 'Try centuries, rather than millenia. I am older still than her. You yourself may be old for your world, Motley Crue, but we are not of your world.'

After the unnecessary putdown, the silence stretched out for a bit. At some point during this, Motley began to walk onward again, still considering how to reply, letting himself cool down to maintain his even breathing before any rash decisions were made. It was surprisingly difficult, though.

The eventual decision was to let the perceived insult go, rather than tearing- or at least attempting to tear- the specter a new one, verbally or otherwise. The Book Keeper prided himself on being morally superior to other vampires of his kind, so what good would it do him to try and eviscerate a known ally? Even so, he would probably bring the point up again later on, especially if Bend kept making it clear that he held age over beauty, so to speak. "Pearls before swine" would be the least reply he could expect, if he kept that attitude up. After all, only one of them had died before.