[center] [img]https://i.imgur.com/xPZoDGJ.jpg[/img] [h2][color=silver]Ferrin Astra[/color][/h2] [/center] Okay. Ow. Pain blossomed on Ferrin's cheek. He watched the kid's reaction unfold as if in slow motion. He vividly saw the kid lock up upon seeing Ferrin. He saw the emotions flash across this kid's face: Rage, Pain, Fear, Hate. He saw the blow coming, but the shock and surprise at the sudden and violent reaction left him unable to avoid it. It exploded on his face with tremendous force, snapping his head to one side. He tasted blood and he could smell burnt flesh and hair. Burning pain clawed at his face briefly, followed by a tingling numbness. His combat reflexes kicked in. He flinched away from the blow and rolled with the punch. He also staggered backwards as his metal right arm swept up in a defensive position to ward off a follow up blow. Even through the pain, he kept an eye on his assailant, ready to react if necessary. His other hand reached out. Ten heartbeats later, the familiar weight of Shiden fell into his grasp. Electricity crackled along the blade and the air filled with the smell of ozone. He pointed his blade at Karn, and barely kept himself from releasing a deadly bolt of lightning. Meanwhile, his mind scrambled to analyze the type of magic he has just been hit with. [color=silver][i]Slayer magic.[/i][/color] Images of a blood-soaked figure laughing on a blood-drenched field flashed through his mind. On his chest, a scar from a long-healed wound throbbed. He gingerly touched his face and winced and the renewed pain broke his mental suppression. [color=silver][i]Burns.[/i][/color] He thought. [color=silver][i]Some kind of fire element. Solar energy?[/i][/color] Followed by [color=silver][i]I have just been punched. Ow.[/i][/color] Ferrin kept the kid at blade's length as he tried to figure out how he was going to handle this. As the shock wore off, anger flared in it's place. What in the hell was that for?! A bad joke?! But then, he remembered. He remembered the look in this kid's eyes and the emotions write large on his face. They were gone now but the memory was there, vivid and bright. He knew that look, that expression. He had seen it in the mirror. Something else was going on. Ferrin seized his anger and strangled it. Flying off the handle wasn't going to help right now. He cupped his injury with his metal hand, while keeping an eye on Karn down the length of his blade. [color=silver]"Good morning."[/color] He grunted. [color=silver]"That is one way to wake a guy up. Are you always so heavy handed?"[/color] A wisecrack, that was a good sign. It meant he wasn't going to kill anybody. Probably. His expression grew grim. [color=silver]"I have no idea what you are talking about. You, however, have ten seconds to explain yourself before I lose my patience. Ten."[/color] His sword was pointed menacingly at Karn while lightning crackled down it's length. [@Silver Fox]