[color=0072bc][h3][center]Ciel[/center][/h3][/color]

Ciel separated from the main crowd as soon as possible, quickly diverging through the crumbled alleyways and weaving through people to keep distance before he got migraines from the sheer number of people. The walls were decayed and mossy from the age, but stable enough for Ciel to scale a fallen building along the main inroad. From on top of the walls, Ciel slowed down to watch the procession of people meandering through the gates. Most of them looked like adventurers from the plains, much like those he had escorted. But mixed in were still more from foreign countries with exotic clothes and strange looking get-ups, even with someone trying to wrestle a horse through the packed crowd.

[color=ed1c24][i]None from Praxim.[/i][/color]

Tch. It was a shame. Ciel had no qualms with the Praxim people, but he had seen a hint of the accursed black and red uniforms of the Crown... No. Ciel had lagged behind, and with the number of adventurers and merchants alike, it was probably adventageous for him to pull ahead. But as Ciel turned to scout out another route without people, he saw a pair of explosions ring out from the distance, towards the interior of the ruins. Like a muscle spasm, panic jolted through the procession and erupted into chaos. Within seconds, the air was saturated with bolts and spells mingling with screams.

The Naravinan acted quickly, being familiar with city riots. He had heard far too many confused cries as people unwittingly got caught up in battle, seen too many panicked spells rip through buildings without reason. Ciel reflexively cast his camoflaging spell, all but disappearing from view. He didn't care if anyone was targetting him, as he knew no-one DID care if anyone was targetting anyone. It didn't matter who or what caused the whole panic, or even if there was any point or sense of it all; the only thing that mattered was that Ciel had to keep calm and get himself out of this vortex of insanity.

Ciel ducked under a fireball that spat embers at him as it crashed into a nearby limestone wall as he tried to navigate his way past the battlefield, adrenaline pumping as he squinted to see the source. Ciel couldn't spot them from the smoky debris before he had to scamper away from another firebolt, which instead hit an Imperial guard behind him. Arrows were pouring in from the outer walls, and as much as Ciel would like to get away from the ruins, he doubted that his camoflague will be enough to keep him from being pin-cushioned by saturation fire. So there was only way out - in. As Ciel narrowly dodged flak from the ground and paused to retie his bindle, he spotted a set of adventurers taking refuge in an alleyway. Oh, and there was even the horse lady with them. They looked strangely calm compared to the others, one even trying to get through self-introductions through the din of battle right next to them.

Ciel dropped down from the safety of the second levels and crept up close to the group. They clearly managed to hold onto reason, at least more than those who were blindly kneecapping anyone who came near (or was trying to introduce oneself in the midst of a riot a sign of insanity? Ciel would have to debate that later). Perhaps they were the instigators, or perhaps they knew more about how to get out of here than he did. Either way, Ciel leant into the opposing wall to eavesdrop their conversation.