((Collab Post between Letter Bee, BrokenPromise, and/or Seirei no Hai.))

Flame kept wandering around, quickly getting himself lost as the trail of those Warrior Monks faded away. Though he had a passport, it was clear that he didn’t know where he was and where the [i]others[/i] were. And since Ashton had given his phone to Wisp, plus the fact that there were no cell sites, there was no way to contact them either. 

As he kept walking at random, Flame somewhat hoped there would be a reset or that he’d encounter someone who can help him and his group… Flame's random exploring had taken him into the grocer's side of the golden quarter. 

[b]”Hmm.”[/b] Gris scratched his chin. [b]”I have everything necessary for tonight's preparations, but those mushrooms look good.”[/b] His hand moved down onto his hip. [b]”Even if we don't use them today, they would go well with tomorrow's breakfast!”[/b] He pulled a few coins out of his purse and put them before the stall owner. [b]”Keep the change, it's hard enough for demis to get along out here.”[/b] As soon as Gris was done, he took a step backwards and bumped into flame. He didn't say anything initially, but when the boy tried to walk away, Gris reached out and put a hand on his shoulder. [b]”Hold up.”[/b] He immediately checked his pockets. [b]”Alright, you're not a pickpocket.”[/b] Gris folded his arms. [b]”You should consider paying a bit more attention to where you're going, young man.”[/b]

Flame nodded, all the while knowing intuitively that this… Oni (?) was a good candidate for the ‘person who could help’. So the boy said, “I’m sorry, sir; I didn’t mean to look like a Vagrant - I do have a passport, by the way.”

He held out the passport Mono had given him just last hour. Then, taking a moment to take the measure of this man, this Demi-Human that had somehow managed to obtain wealth and perhaps noble status, Flame carefully measured his next words. “That said, I am looking for help; my group and I split apart some time ago, but did not think of how to get back in contact with one another. Some of us went to get passports - and succeeded - while others of us went to pursue dubious job offers. While I know that telling this to any noble of any kind is dubious, I am both desperate plus surprised that you’d give me the time of day after I so thoughtlessly bumped onto you.”

Flame’s right hand wandered to his pocket, where he had his own phone. “And yes, I do have something I can give in return.”

Gris raised an eyebrow. [b]”Dubious job offers? You seem like you're in alright clothes.”[/b] When Flame pulled out his phone, Gris's other brow went up. [b]”Now wait just a second! I can understand how a beggar got into some nice clothes, but when does anyone hand off a media to someone less fortunate?”[/b] He sounded more surprised than angry at the revelation.

Flame pursed his lips and said, “Perhaps because I am not a beggar [i]yet[/i]? There are ways the high fall low just like the low can rise high.” The first sentence was slightly arch; cynical enough to intrigue but not to the point of provocation. The second was to demonstrate learning beyond what the poor of the city showed. “And as to how I am less fortunate, well, I lack the local money and money changers do not recognize the currency I and my group use due to… Logistics. It also does not help that said group decided to split up, as I said, and have no dependable means of meeting up again, except in death.”

That last part was technically true, considering the resets. “We’re also being hunted down by… Factions who got it in their heads that we have precognitive powers; and furthermore, we have not solved the mystery of why we were brought here in the first place.”

He looked at the Oni, made eye contact for a moment. “For all I know, I could be endangering myself by telling you this, but I am desperate.” [i]Plus I can always rely on a reset.[/i]

Gris chuckled as Flame’s story came to an end. [b]”Relax kid, no reason to get so bent out of shape!”[/b] Gris patted Flame's shoulder as he walked by. [b]”I'll be honest, I don't really understand your situation. But I was exiled from my home so I understand the feeling.”[/b] He handed Flame one of the bags he was carting around with a mile. [b]”We'll find your friends. Just remember that it was a demi that helped you. Some day you'll need to repay that favor.”[/b] He continued to walk, expecting flame to keep up. It looked like he was carrying quite a few goods himself. It wouldn't be wrong to say he looked like a white Santa clause, only fit and muscular. [b]If they got jobs, there are only so many places for them to work. We'll find them in no time.[/b]


Flame took the bag without complaint and accompanied Gris, feeling a twinge of wariness at how the Oni was so ready to help. But he understood the concept of equivalent exchange, and knew that he’d be able to repay the favor due to the guy in no time. 

Despite being lost in thought, he kept up, before saying his next words, “I recall three friends going towards one Doctor Donovan’s clinic, while another one is helping another Demi-Human clean houses. Yet another went with me to get passports, but then went off because he had ‘other plans’. He might come back, though. And the worst part is that the rendezvous point we agreed to meet up again with is unsafe; that’s why I said that the only reliable way to meet them again is to die.”

Another technical truth.

[b]”You're nervous because you're alone in an unfamiliar environment.”[/b] Gris eyed flame. [b]”Having said that, nobody likes a whiner. We'll find them if you can keep your head on your shoulders.”[/b] Gris didn't look like he was going to move any faster than he was currently going.


Flame smiled, “How else do you think I’ve survived for so long?”

[center][h1]Ashton Andrews[/h1][/center]

Ashton was caught off-guard by this latest realization, that the house was probably Fritzi’s. His first thought was to search the place for documents and stuff related to the ‘Demi-Human Liberation Front’, but he knew that it’d sacrifice needed time for him to get reinforcements, as he knew that even with magic, he wouldn’t be able to affect the outcome of any battle. So the best bet was to wait for a reset. But, considering the improving survival chances of the group, he couldn’t count on that either.

Then he realized: He can just kill Hiro himself, or ask him to die; the latter was more moral.

Going to the kitchen and ‘borrowing’ two paring knives (Fritzi was probably the type to keep her kitchenware in order), before going to the wardrobe to ‘borrow’ four silk handkerchiefs. Wrapping said hankies around the paring knives as makeshift sheaths, Ashton held their handles in a reverse grip; impractical in his world but not so much in a fantasy world with Anime physics.

Then, with another quick “Jiwald,” the boy zoomed towards Doctor Donovan’s clinic, ready to help.