GambolMuse

Adelon: Steeling the Faith [Open!]

The plan of attack might not be apparent just yet, but a few things were. For starters it was best Cecil didn't go on,board the ship, not like he'd go on regardless unless forced. With all that water about it was probably very daunting for him, no reason to put him into a stressful situation. Secondly Zander was no fighter, having him come along was out of the question, as was Amuné. Thirdly and most important was they had no clue how many bandits there were. At best they had three people to fight however many bandits there were, with Cecil only being able to fight on land. So that left him and Nymira to fight then, two on probably a dozen if not more. They did have magic on their side, yet for differing reasons both himself and the princess had no desire to use it to fight. So where did that leave them? With one heck of a mountainous task before them, and no real answer as how best to approach it.

"No, I think Wyth should stay here with you Amuné, he can help keep you safe," Ethan answered, "And yeah, burning the ship isn't going to work. I mean Lazlo probably wants his stuff back too right? And we can't carry all that, which means we need to find a way to make the bandits leave..." But how? They had the number advantage big time, and as experienced as Nymira might be she wasn't going to fend off a whole dozen or two of armed men. He could fight, but what were his chances against that many people at once? Without magic probably not great, and he really had no desire to use magic here. Furrowing his brow in thought he stared at the ship as Zander spoke, wondering if knocking some of them out would make it easier. Ideally if they could knock them all out and avoid a fight that would be amazing, but then that was asking for a miracle. So what then?

"It's going to be way harder to get the ship, but we need that to get the goods back, and the mead. So we have to beat all of those guys and kick them off," Ethan mumbled as he stood up, being mindful to use the tree above them to keep himself mostly hidden. "I hate to say it but we can't really avoid a fight here I don't think. If we fight them one or two at a time though we'll be okay, and we just have to knock them out," he added as he looked to Nymira, "So hit them on the head, or punch them in the gut, do something to put them under, but no killing, please?" Even Bandits didn't need to be killed like common farm animals, no matter what they had done. Should they be punished? Maybe, but that was what jail was for, not the blade. What worried him was how disdainful Nymira seemed to be towards criminals, and what she might do to these men if she was pushed.

Nymira gave Ethan a cross look before rising to her feet as well, pulling her hood up to partially obscure her face. "You say that like I'm a cold blooded killer. Relax, these men are thieves and they shall be dealt with like thieves." Maybe they would lose a finger or two, or have their tongues cut out, as was customary. Though that didn't seem to be a regular punishment here, she couldn't recall any of the low-lives from the other towns missing anything of the sorts. How bothersome that she'd have to simply knock them out, it was harder than it sounded when using daggers. Doable, but annoying. "Hmph... Take the lead Ethan, Cecil and I will be right behind you."

"Right... Uh... Stay low and keep quiet, we need to get as close as we can before we attack," Ethan whispered, putting a finger to his lips for emphasis. It sure would be nice if this were later in the day too, but of course it was right in the afternoon. Their one saving grace was the ship was beached at such an angle the shore was obscured from the landing site, meaning so long as they kept out of the line of sight they wouldn't be spotted. Waving his friends along Ethan snuck out from the bushes, slid down the slight embankment and began to creep along the shore. The wet sand beneath their feet gave little sound as they went, all they needed to do was be mindful of the sticks along the way.

Slowly but surely they made their advance on the ship, stopping in mid-stride every so often as the top of a bandit's head moved over the horizon, threatening to spot them out. Now that they were closer to the boat they found no way really to scale the sides, no ladders even windows to speak of. All that there was on the sides was a large wheel, one on both the left and right side of the ships. Ethan hadn't a clue what those might be for, though considering there were no sails on this ship it must be how it moved. Weird, he'd never really seen a boat like this before. With no alternatives the trio moved around the ship to where the plank was set, hiding in its shadow as bandits moved along it overhead. They had to somehow get on board and fend off the bandits there, but how was that going to work?

"Hey Cecil... I got an idea," Ethan whispered, grinning as he pointed to the spot where the board met the ground, "As soon as those guys get back down, give Nymira and me a toss. We'll surprise them!"

Sat in silence and waiting for their moment, as soon as the bandits set down their crate Ethan sharply whispered "Now!" Using his immense strength Cecil threw both Ethan and Nymira through the air, right towards their targets at the bottom of the ramp. Not expecting it in the slightest Ethan hit the first bandit, knocking him over and promptly punching him in the jaw and knocking him out. Nymira was a bit more graceful, kicking the man in mid-air, causing him to flip and land out cold as well. With that done Ethan waved their friend up to join them, though no sooner had he done so did the alarm sound.

"Intruders! We've got intruders!" a bandit shouted from the deck, cupping his hands around his mouth as he turned back, "We got intruders boss, two of em!"

Nymira gritted her teeth and grabbed one of her daggers, darting up the gangplank at a swift speed. Launching herself then off of her back foot she jumped up and twisted her body around, kicking the man in the head and knocking him over the side into the water below. What a mistake that turned out to be, as soon she realized there were easily a dozen men up on deck, perhaps even more beneath, all armed. With Ethan running up behind her she ran right at the nearest man, deflecting his sword with her dagger and kicking him unceremoniously right between the legs, using the hilt of her dagger then to smack him in the back of the head and knock him out as well. She sincerely hoped he had more of a plan at this point, they were very outnumbered here.

"Nice one Nymira, that's how to do it!" Ethan cheered as he reached the deck, grinning despite the several sets of eyes glaring down on him and his friend. Smiling at the men gathered he took his sword out from its sheath and held it, blade pointed at the group. "This isn't your ship, stop what you're doing right now and return everything to its owner."

Kind of should have been expected that wouldn't go well, but Ethan didn't expect everyone to start laughing at him like that.

"Yeah right, like hells we're doing that!" one of the bandits roared, "You and what army kid?"

"Ey, I got a better idea! Let's kill these two, I'm getting bored doing all this lugging!" another shouted.

"Kill the boy, the girl's cute! We can keep her for later!"

Nymira's eyes flashed with a venomous gaze at the latter comment, pulling her other dagger free and charging immediately for the man responsible. Weaving to the side as he swung his sword at her she quickly moved her body back in, slicing at his calf with her dagger and bringing him to his knees immediately. Turning her body once more she tried to drive her dagger down into his neck, but instead was stopped when Ethan's sword intercepted her blow. Snarling angrily she wanted to snap at him yet instead let out an almost pitiful yelp as he pulled her away, another sword narrowly missing where her head had been.

"No killing! We went over this!" Ethan complained as he stepped away, letting out a sigh before shaking his head. Now they definitely weren't going to do this peacefully! No time to lament that fact though, they were being set upon by every man on the deck. Eyes darting around to try and spot the nearest opponent he stepped forward and caught a sword with his own, having to push it back and jump away as another missed his side by inches. Slapping away another with his weapon he found three men now converging on him, with another set going after Nymira. "Uh... Cecil? You sure you don't want to come up?" Ethan laughed nervously, deflecting another blow and then slapping a man's wrist with the dull side of his sword to knock away his weapon, "There's a lot of people up here that want to kill us, we could use a hand!"

Dragon Ball: Legacy (Mogtaki and Vena Sera)

"It's a figure of speech buddy, I didn't really mean it," Takeshi said with a smirk, watching as Shu bound around him hyper-actively. Never thought he'd miss that part of his brother but it really had been a long time since he'd been this wound up. Laughing at the enthusiasm he reeled it back a little, looking around for anything for them to do. For a moment it seemed like there wasn't a single fun activity, but then he spotted the slides up on a nearby hill. What luck that there was actually something out here to do! If they hadn't come across anything soon then Takeshi was going to have to fess up, and doing so meant disappointing Shu and getting him upset. This... Whatever it was looked like serious fun though, perfectly innocent fun at that. If it had Shu this riled up just watching it then he'd be all giddy once they actually started.

"Not bath time buddy, not everything with water is bath time," Takeshi teased as he ruffled Shu's hair, "And they're called slides... I think. You ride on them and go down the hill, on those... Board... Things." There was a word for them but he couldn't for the life of him think of it. Well whatever, that wasn't the important part here. If Shu was happy to do it then damn they were going to do it, for however long it took to make the little guy happy. Grabbing Shu by the hand he tugged him along up the hill, going to the top where a stack of the boards sat unused, just waiting for them to take. Seeing some parents go down with their kids in their lap he figured that's how they would do it, even if Shu might be a little large for that. Finding an open chute Takeshi set the board down, kicking his shoes off and leaving them there before climbing on and patting the spot before himself. "Sit right here and hang on buddy, unless you wanna go down by yourself?"

Finding a book that wasn't above both of their heads proved to be tricky, goes to show what finding reading material in a home full of scientists was like. Having found maybe the one book that they could even grasp it seemed like T'charrl needed a little bit of help with his reading; considering that he and Vegeta had only done a few lessons it wasn't really a bad thing T'charrl was struggling, it was kind of expected really. "You'll get it with practice, don't beat yourself up over it," Yumi encouraged, pausing in her reading as her friend spoke again. "Well I can keep reading if you'd like, and maybe now and again you can pick it up? We'll take turns." Might not be a bad way to teach him actually, then he'd have some idea of how words sounded by listening to her. There was nothing to this teaching thing! "Oh that sounds amazing, I never saw that part of your house..." Yumi muttered before blinking once, a sheepish smile passing her lips, "Come to think of it... I never saw anything except the entrance and the throne room," she added before turning to T'charrl, "When we go back I want you to give me a tour of your house! I want to see where you grew up, I bet there's a lot there we never got to see."

Legend of Zelda: Templar Ascension

So that was likely the easy part of this whole escapade wasn't it? Now that they had acquired their disguises the real challenge began, and they somehow needed to sneak into the heavily guarded Hyrule Castle. Easy, if they were invisible or had infinite power. With this ragtag trio of theirs getting even to the gates was going to be imposing, never mind all the way to the Princess. Before they could even plan the actual approach to Zelda they had go get within the castle grounds, no doubt using some manner of secret tunnel or entrance. Fighting was out of the question, especially with their numbers so low; Caelan had his water magic, Link his sword, and Regol? Truthfully he knew little if nothing about the man, nor could he even recall from the battle how he fought. Whatever the case was numbers were not on their side, a fight was absolutely unacceptable.

To make their approach they could either blend with the crowd, or use their Templar disguises and pray to the Goddesses that they worked. Neither was foolproof and both had plenty of risk, it was a matter of deciding which risks they wanted to take. Caelan was doing his best to remain optimistic about this foray yet Link was borderline having a breakdown over it, and they hadn't even decided on a plan yet. "Okay so we won't have a collapsing bridge to save us, but something will happen. I've gotten out of dozens of sticky situations, this won't be any different." Except for an all-powerful woman who saw through magic might be after their heads, that was a slight change. Giving Link a funny look when asked about the Princess he very nearly replied with a sarcastic remark, biting his tongue before shrugging instead.

"I mean... A lot of the time the ruler's quarters are either in the center of the castle, or towards the rear. That's how I've noticed them in the ruins anyways," Caelan explained, itching at his cheek as his brow furrowed slightly then in thought, "I'll have to see more of the castle before I can make any guesses, but I'd imagine it will be towards the back. Especially if the Princess is being held against her will, it'd make sense to put her as far from the entrance as possible." Or she might be underground, if there was an underground to the Castle. All the more reason for them to use a tunnel if they could, perhaps look for cells before anything else. Hearing Link yet again voice his concerns the water mage rolled his eyes, looking around the bustling plaza before pointing towards an alley between two large buildings. "We go there, change then come out the other side, double around so no one sees us. And we should check the map again for a tunnel into the castle, there's got to be at least one," Caelan mused, grabbing Link by the sleeve of his shirt and urging him along, "An escape tunnel used by the royal family, anything will work. Anything on that map, old man?"

Adelon: Steeling the Faith [Open!]

How did a trip to recover a stolen ship involve a discussion on alcohol? Ethan supposed it was because of the cargo involved, and he was learning just how very different their viewpoints were. Nymira saw it as a weakness while he saw it as a way to relax, even if he himself never partook in it. Just another thing I and the princess don't see eye to eye on the Muran mused to himself, smiling and giving his head a defeated shake. Couldn't expect everyone to view things the same, the world would be awfully boring if that were the case. And by that stretch it only made sense that everyone had their own opinions on things, even if he didn't agree with those. Way of the world or something like that.

In their conversation of liquor Ethan had forgotten how they were meant to distinguish their ship from the rest. Certain markings? A name? A style of ship? Surely Lazlo had mentioned something before and yet now he couldn't bring it to mind. Furrowing his brow in thought it was Amuné who would give him the answer, feeling rather silly that she could remember it just fine. "Right, Aube Doré... I doubt they'll bring it into town," he mentioned in agreement to Zander, "Or they could be going there to sell them, I guess either way. We won't know until we spot them will we?" Provided of course they hadn't already passed the ship without realizing it. There was also a very real chance of it continuing up river, which if that were the case then they didn't have much chance of catching it. No, if they were going up river then it was against the currents, it would be traveling slowly regardless. They would find it one way or another, had to keep confident.

"We'll find the ship, we had better. I'm not on this errand to chase ghosts," Nymira commented testily as she looked towards the water, as though expecting the boat to materialize on command. "From what little I've seen so far your bandits are fools and arrogant, they're probably parading about somewhere dressed in absurd clothes like that merchant. All we need to do then is look for a band of roving buffoons and we'll have our men." Seemed straightforward enough to her really, just look for something that screamed ridiculous like Lazlo's outfit and they'd be on their way.

It didn't take long from there to locate the ship surprisingly, and what's more it would be easily accessible. Perhaps easily wasn't the right word, there was nothing easy about the five armed men at the bottom of the plank organizing crates. Nor was there anything easy about the several bandits still onboard Aube Doré itself, a headcount which they couldn't get from here. Sat in the crook of the river and braced up against a riverbank the ship was being unloaded one by one, its contents poured through and no doubt the more valuable items set aside. As if these morons would know what was valuable or not, Nymira reflected cynically. To them it was all cloth and nothing more no doubt; she hadn't any idea of the materials worth either, but at least she had the excuse of being from another land. Just a bunch of muscle-bound idiots looting what didn't belong to them, disgusting. Had they earned it in battle perhaps she could turn a blind eye, but they had stolen from a hapless, if eccentric merchant.

"So... How in the heck are we going about this?" Ethan asked curiously, furrowing his brow as he peered over the bushes in which they hid. It was roughly 200 meters from where they stood to the boat he'd guess, a lot of space for anyone to cover without being seen. No matter how you cut it a fight was probably inevitable, though he really wanted to avoid one if they could. "Is there any way we can sneak aboard? Maybe go up the shore or something..."

"Why should we sneak? We have to be rid of the bandits, its best to just launch a head-on assault!" Nymira retorted impatiently, one hand already on her dagger, "I can handle those five if we get a surprise attack, then we move up the board there and onto the ship. Between you, Cecil and I we can take them. I've yet to meet a bandit I couldn't defeat easily." And she'd had her fair share of troubles since arriving here from her own clan's land, more instances than she could count. One man had given her a bit of trouble yet she still came out on top, and since then everyone else had been a minor nuisance. Standing upright she tried to step through the bushes and simply charge for the ship, growling when Ethan grabbed her arm to hold her back. "What now? We're wasting time sitting like this!"

"We don't know how many there are, we can't just go charging in," Ethan whispered as he pulled Nymira back down, "Come on, that boat's huge! There might be twenty, thirty even. We need to be safer about this." They had to think not only about Amuné's safety but Zander's as well. Not to mention Cecil was probably not thrilled with getting on a boat, being surrounded by water and all. It might be easier to somehow lure everyone off the boat, though then they could end up surrounded. Think Ethan, think... There's got to be a way to do this... Their only way to sneak on board was probably to move down the shore, even through the water if they had to. Being wet again really didn't sound pleasant but if that was their only chance...

Up on the deck of the ship the bandit leader stood at the edge of the deck, watching as his men unloaded crate by crate to the ground below. "Faster you louts, we need to get this done before the guard show up!" he shouted in a gruff voice, waving his hand impatiently, "You drop any of that in the water and it's your head, you hear me? Now get moving!" Scowling as a pair of men fumbled a box but managed to save it he rolled his eyes, turning and storming back into the cabin. Eyeing the woman sat upon the bed he stopped right before her, a smirk on his lips as he reached down to pull her to her feet. "And you, it's time for you to earn your paycheck, Naga. If any guards show up you deal with 'em, hear me? If I have any spare men I'll send one or two down, but that's it. Don't go dying on us, I'd hate to not pay you."

A Grimm War [Vena Sera & Scout]

So this was an exciting way to end their first day, becoming perverts by wandering on on their female teammates. As if anyone could have expected that to happen, Soren questioned why they were even bathing at a time like this. Yes they were dirty by now, but with still two days to go washing up tonight was a moot point. On top of that they were going to have to deal with being cold and wet for some time, which risked catching a cold. There wasn't much he knew, but being outdoors and trying to live off the land was one of the few things he was well versed in. Far be it from him to tell the others how to spend their time though, he'd do what he knew was best and leave them to their devices.

Grabbing one of the boar carcasses he dragged it a ways from the camp, withholding his groans of protest as his arms and back ached from the day's events. Swinging his sword around and manhandling Grimm might look easy, but both took a fair amount of effort to pull off, and he'd done quite a lot today. "Complaining won't help us any, best to just do it and move on," Soren commented with a slight roll of his eyes. It was unfortunate sure but there was no changing it, and really he wouldn't ask the girls to do this job anyways. It was disgusting, that fact never changed, you only built up a tolerance for it over time. Sure enough as they were gutting the animals and tossing aside the remains he swore Owyn looked ready to pass out, though to his credit he never did.

---

At last, the end of the third day. Tired, sore and stressed from the events of the Initiation students began to pour out of the treeline, reaching the safety of Beacon grounds once more. By this time several teams had been formed, with team SOUL one of the foremost of those leaving the forest. Notably there were less students than when the testing had begun, whether due to withdrawals or something else was unclear. When all was said and done roughly a dozen teams stood before the Headmaster and the professors, ragged and nervous but triumphant. Having overcome the Initiation and survived in a forest teeming with Grimm surely now they had earned their place among Huntsmen? Surely now, with all of that said and done, they earned the right to enroll in Beacon Academy.

"Well done students, I am pleased to see that you did not become a Grimm's lunch in the past three days," Ozpin finally spoke, standing upon a stage at the forefront of the gathering spot. A small swathe of field just on the edge of Beacon grounds, with pillars lining the area bearing a banner for each of the major cities, a sign of union despite Beacon's home in Vale. "A few students decided the test too trying and withdrew, but all of you here have overcome the challenges and risen to the opportunity. First of all, I would like to congratulate each and every one of you, for doing something that not many in our history have been able to do."

Pausing briefly Ozpin coughed into his hand, straightening himself out before stepping closer to the podium at his feet. "And secondly... I wish to be blunt with you. This only marks the beginning of your training, and no doubt the road ahead will be even more arduous than what you went through these past few days. But unlike when you entered the Forest you are not alone. With you now is your team, people who you've no doubt formed bonds with through life and death. So as your Headmaster I share this with you: Look ahead to the challenges before you and embrace them, do not back down. Remember that with your team at your side you can overcome any obstacles, so long as you work hard enough for it. From this day forward, students or otherwise, you are officially Huntsmen. Make your kingdoms, your families, and your team proud."

"The remainder of the day is yours, students. But come tomorrow we begin class immediately, regardless of how you might feel right now. The life of a Huntsmen is rarely an easy one, and just because you are no longer in the Emerald Forest does not mean you can now relax. There will be opportunities to rest I assure you, and depending on the effort you put into your time here at Beacon it could be an easy ride. But know that how you do here may well reflect on how well you do out there. I suggest you take your time here seriously, you never know which of your lessons might save your life one day. With that out of the way you are all dismissed. There is food in the hall just behind me, feel free to help yourselves if you wish. You will be shown to your quarters in roughly an hour, so do not stray too far from here."

-----

So that was there commencement ceremony then? A few words of wisdom from the Headmaster and a verbal pat on the back? Just as well, Soren didn't particularly want any extravagant or ridiculous showing for what they had done. Just as Ozpin himself had said this was simply the beginning of their training, celebrating now would be silly. Even so there was certainly an air of excitement and self-gratification among the students, and even he allowed himself a smile as he thought about what they had done. They had made it through combat school, and in his case anyways had learned to fight for survival, just as they had done over these last few days. While in long terms it may mean little it was an accomplishment nonetheless, and the fact his team hadn't imploded during the time in the forest bode well for their future, or so he hoped.

"Fantastic, I am so very glad to be done with that trial," Ulyssa moaned as her shoulder sagged slightly. "If we never have to go into those woods again it'll be too soon." Amazing how different her experience was when her parents were not present. She'd fought Grimm before to be sure, but more in a support fashion than anything. Front line fighting, personally striking the Grimm, those were all new things to her and it showed. Her teammates hadn't said anything yet she felt like she'd performed inadequately to say the least. Tomorrow though they would begin classes, book work, meaning she could show in some way what she was truly capable of. Intellect was something she most certainly did not lack in and she'd rise to the top of her class in marks, she was positive of that.

Rubbing one of her shoulders to try and rid it of soreness Ulyssa turned to face her friends, smiling despite her own exhaustion. "Well done by the way, we performed like true Huntsmen out there. I'm certain we'll finish our time here among the top of our class. But that of course means we have to apply ourselves the entire way," she began, placing a hand on her hip and pointing between the three with her other, "That means studying, training, learning everything you can about Grimm, we can't possibly spend one day slacking. I expect all of you to but your all into everything you do here."

"Yeah, of course..." Soren muttered with a sigh, rubbing at his head as he shut one eye, "But even Ozpin said we'll have off days, and I'm not spending those with my nose in a book, sorry." There was that glare of hers again, and that weird smile too. Looking at Ulyssa as she glowered at him he finally put his hands up defensively, seeing there was little chance of her backing down on the matter. "Okay... Okay, I'll spend a little time each day regardless, but I'm not spending all day doing it. We'll burn out if we do that." Or I will, he thought to himself.

Dragon Ball: Legacy (Mogtaki and Vena Sera)

"I mean from before, but I'll stop and let you rest. Sweet dreams Viral," June replied softly, parting with a smile before disappearing into the house. Once inside she peeked briefly into the living room to see the others splitting up and going about their own business, leaving her with time to check in one Aito and Vegeta. No doubt they were still working and she was curious to see how they were coming along with whatever it might be. Hurrying up the stairs she moved through the hall to the master bedroom, albeit a room which no longer remotely resembled a bedroom; monitors, tables with vials and containers of medicines, a small hospital bed and several file cabinets were all that decorated the room now. Aito was sat behind a desk pouring over documents while Vegeta... She wasn't completely sure what he was doing, sat over the counter with a screwdriver in hand, goodness knows what he was building. "I'm not interrupting your playtime boys, am I?" June asked teasingly.

It seemed like by now all of Viral's genetics should be in place, the cell therapy had been working. Excellent, now that simply left his mental well-being to be seen to. PTSD, to a minor degree, as well as a feeling of inferiority brought on by his perceived weaknesses, all of that could be reversed if he was given chance enough to change it himself. There was Shu as well, clearly suffering from PTSD at the hand of several traumatic instances, and as Aito assumed even more that had never been brought up. A lot of work to be done with him as well, they would need another session to try and figure out what bothered him though. Glancing through both medical dossiers he glanced up at the sound of his wife's voice, smiling slightly and closing each before shaking his head. "Of course not, in fact you came at a wonderful time," he answered while pushing himself from the desk, "I wanted to ask how the afternoon went with Viral, how's he fairing?" Seeing a look of discontent from June he put his hands up defensively before she could even snap, knowing exactly what she was bound to say. "I have no intentions of testing or anything, I'm simply wondering how he did out and about."

"Well... I can't say he was all smiles and laughs, but he didn't seem to be completely hating it either. And at one point he and that Takeshi boy brought down a building. Er... For demolition, before you ask, they were asked to by some of the locals I suppose. After that he became tired, and now he's trying to sleep outside, but you knew that part already."

Takeshi sure hoped Shu wasn't growing suspicious and catch on, he really hadn't anything in mind yet. Wandering around the city they were bound to find something for him to do though right? "Well we wanted to say goodbye to our friends, and make sure Viral was okay right? And besides, this was on the way anyways," the older boy explained, pausing to wave goodbye to Yumi and T'charrl before leaving the house, "Just you wait buddy, you'll like it." Whatever it was though he hadn't figured it out yet. Once in front of Shu his face scrunched up slightly with a nervous smile, eyes darting around to try and find something, anything his brother may enjoy doing. If there were a bunch of kids out and playing then they could do that, but he didn't see anyone. Most of it was adults going about their way to work or fix things, people relaxing in their homes or the occasional shop, not exactly fun for an excitable Shu.

"Believe me when I say what I have planned is going to blow your socks off Shu, it's going to be so much fun!" Had to keep trying to sell it, even if he was technically lying right now. By this time Takeshi was becoming visibly nervous, rubbing his hands together as he kept looking about for something to do. Seriously wasn't there anything fun to do in this city? It was huge, there had to be at least one little thing for them. Two blocks later though and they still had yet to see anything, and by now he was almost ready to just admit he'd been leading Shu on. Stopping in his tracks he let out a sigh and turned to make the confession, but as he opened his mouth the sound of children laughing and screaming drowned him out. Glancing to the source he saw kids racing down a nearby hill on what looked like some big piece of plastic covered in water, ending up in a small pool at the bottom. There were a lot of those slides too, plenty of room for even more people to join if they wanted. "T-There! See, I told you I had something in mind," Takeshi said quickly, grinning as he pointed to the hill, "Want to go try those?" Oh please say yes.

Reading aloud would help both his speech and reading skills, Yumi remembered that much from her own early education. Unlike her though T'charrl wouldn't be reading in a classroom full of his peers, worrying about whether or not he sounded stupid in front of his friends. She hoped that made it easier and yet his reaction when given the assignment was anything but confident. Waiting for him to give it a few tries it was clear he was having trouble, and when he asked for help she nodded, moving closer to see the pages more clearly. "Of course, I'll read nice and slow, just so you hear how each word sounds okay? And don't feel bad if you don't pronounce everything exactly the same as I do, everyone talks a little differently." Now where had he been? Skimming the page with her fingertip she found the passage, smiling as she began to read along. "They paid for their goods and gathered them in a sack, leaving the store prepared for their adventure. Cecil had little idea what most of them were, but he felt confident the items would help them." she read, silently wondering who in the world read these kinds of fantasy books. Probably Vegeta's now that she considered it, he could be such a nerd sometimes.

Adelon: Steeling the Faith [Open!]

That wasn't fair of Nymira to say that, suggesting towns were filled with criminals. Sure she'd had a bit of a bad run of things so far, and as far as they knew every place she'd been had involved some kind of crooks, but that wasn't the truth of it. A lot of the smaller towns out west were plenty peaceful, the worst crimes there being someone being a bit belligerent in public from alcohol. Ethan was sure there was a handful of bad folks out that way too, but to say towns were full of them was pushing it.

So who was this anyways? According to Nymira he was a liar, but then she hardly was the kind of person you generally went to for opinions on people. Much as he tried to find light in her attitude towards others she genuinely seemed to think herself above those around here. Giving Zander's hand a friendly shake he began to turn to leave, blinking in confusion when it was snatched back. "Er... Something wrong?" Ethan asked with a smile, glancing down at their hands a bit awkwardly. How did he know about the poison? True he still felt slightly ill from it, but it was nearly out of his system by this point, or so he thought.

When Zander had mentioned he was a healer it was assumed perhaps he was a doctor of sorts. He had a pouch with him, most likely carrying some kinds of herbs or other medicines for his practice. So as the green aura began to cover Ethan's body his eyes widened and he glanced down at himself, watching it move all over him and turn a slightly darker hue as something was pulled through his skin. It was so weird, it felt like sweating only he wasn't warm, making him squirm a bit in place. Only lasting a few seconds the green aura retracted and suddenly he felt much better, the congestion and sluggishness that had been pervading his body now gone. Amazing, just like that and it was gone, where was he yesterday? Grinning broadly Ethan flexed his hands and hopped on one foot before nodding in appreciation to the other boy. "Thanks, and don't you worry, you're in good hands with us!"

Of course Ethan would befriend this clown, he'd befriend a damned stump if given the chance. Nymira was not a fan of Zander's whatsoever and the fact he could heal them did little to better that. Narrowing her eyes sharply when he teased her the Dimuran dug her nails into her biceps, resisting the urge to smack him with all her might. "I'll cauterize my wounds if I must, I don't want your hands anywhere near me you rat," she hissed, an eyebrow twitching as he laid it on even thicker. He was pushing her buttons purposefully, she knew he was, and yet it was driving her insane. Where was the respect? She might not hold actual authority over him but she was still nobility, that had to count for something. Scoffing when Zander even gave Cecil a suggestion Nymira rolled her eyes, following behind Ethan as he began walking off. "Wonderful, he's able to help Cecil too, we are just so fortunate to have someone like you along..."

---

Finding the boat shouldn't be difficult. It was a boat after all meaning it had to be on the water right? And given the single river that ran along East Orosi Ethan assumed it would be easy to find their quarry. Despite his sentiment however the general consensus was they ask around first, no use in chasing a ghost or heading in the complete wrong direction. To this end they went to the piers, and after asking around about a merchant who had lost their ship they happened across the man in question, tucked away in his shop right along the waterfront. An eccentric gentleman by the name of Lazlo, garbed in an assortment of clothing that looked just as ridiculous as it did excessive. Apparently a merchant dealing in fine fabrics and exquisite silks, some of which worth an admitted fortune, he also divulged another part of his haul; hidden in the ship were two crates of a foreign liquor, strong potent stuff usually not allowed inside the kingdom. He'd smuggled it in as part as a huge deal and now desperately wanted it back. With no one in the group being an official he saw no harm in telling them, only earning a reprimand from Nymira.

Having learned that he was upriver at the time of the attack it seemed fitting to go that way. Given its path it shouldn't be heading too fast, Lazlo argued, and they were bound to be landing soon to unload the cargo. It was highly possible they had already done so, but he urged the group on with great urgency to save his, as he put it, "precious clothes from the filthy ne'er-do-wells". Fine way to phrase it. With their direction now set they followed the pier all the way to the edge of Orosi, and from there made it onto the road heading north out of the town. Somewhere up ahead would be the boat in question, hopefully they managed to reach it in time before the cargo was stolen.

"You know... I never really got why people like alcohol so much..." Ethan mused aloud, tilting his head to the side as his face scrunched up in confusion, "It tastes and smells really bad, and it makes you act like an idiot. I tried it once back home and I got sick, I'd never want to drink it again. You couldn't pay me enough to drink it." Yet taverns were always full with people enjoying their beers and there were even breweries in some of the larger towns he'd been told, massive buildings where all they did was make beer. Now what was the point of something like that? Why did anyone need that much liquor?

"Some people enjoy the high it gives them, others use it to steel themselves. Many Dimuran warriors drink before they go into battle, it helps to calm nerves," Nymira said with a shrug, "I for one never partook in it, I'm not a coward. But if it allows a warrior to fight without fear then it's perfectly fine, if a crutch." Yet there were the sort in towns who drank simply to be drunk, the types who just wanted the high. Those were the people that she and Ethan could perhaps agree where there was no point to it. She even knew of a man or two who drank to drown their sorrows, but again it just seemed like a weakness to her. You had to face those kinds of problems head on otherwise you risked showing your failings before those under you, and it made you vulnerable. So she'd been told anyways, a lot of good it had done thus far with these people.

Ethan didn't know if he'd go as far to call people cowards, and he'd never known anyone to drink to make themselves braver. Some guards back home drank in celebration, or when it was a quiet day he remembered a handful would sit at the tavern and enjoy drinks together, laughing and sharing stories. He didn't care for the drink but he loved listening to them, that aspect maybe was worthwhile if not the beverage itself. "Also do we have any idea what this boat is even supposed to look like?" he asked, changing the subject with a scratch of his head, "I mean... The town is a merchant town or something, right? So there's tons of boats coming in and out I'd guess, how do we know which is ours?"

Adelon: Steeling the Faith [Open!]

Can we also bear in mind that Amune is in fact a child, and may not be aware of some worldly things? Just saying, I know a child her age isn't borderline ignorant, but she doesn't have to know what every little thing is :P

Dragon Ball: Legacy (Mogtaki and Vena Sera)

With the hammock all set in place and the weather cooperating there was no longer a reason for Viral to not sleep outdoors. Everyone else was away to give him privacy, he wasn't going to be disturbed until it was time for him to wake up, whenever that might be. "It won't collapse, I was promised it wouldn't. With all that rope there I bet it could hold a few people. Uh... Let's not test that though." Would be a big waste to have them break the hammock after she'd built up this plan of hers. Waiting as Viral inspected the hammock she cringed inwardly as he just threw himself into it, praying silently that it wouldn't collapse like he'd said. Exhaling with relief when it didn't come down she smiled at Viral cheerfully and clasped her hands together with a nod. "I told you it wouldn't, now just take it easy and relax, you've earned it," June said as she stepped closer to the hammock, leaning over it and gently stroking Viral's hair just once before laughing, "I'm sorry, I know you hate that but it's a force of habit. I'll leave you alone so you can rest." Resisting the urge to give him a kiss as well she waved before heading back to the house, giving him one last glance before disappearing inside.

"Heh... That's right squirt, I tricked you, no surprise!" Takeshi laughed before taking a playful swipe at Shu's nose, "I've got something in mind though, just you wait!" Heh, as if he had some plan in mind, what a lie. Rubbing at his neck he watched his brother bounce around in circles, smiling slightly when asked what they would be doing. Should he just come up with something on the spot? Or maybe they could go for a walk and he'd come up with an idea as they went. Yeah, probably best to do that. "Well for starters it's not here, we need to go somewhere else to do it, so we're leaving again," he declared as he placed an arm around Shu's shoulders, "The surprise is back out in the city, we just need to get to it." That should give him plenty of time to find something for them! Giving himself a mental pat on the back Takeshi headed then for the door, holding it open for Shu and giving both Yumi and T'charrl a wave goodbye. "See you guys in a bit! Don't do anything too nuts," he joked, letting Shu out before following after him. Since they kept going right out of the house, why not see what was left? Motioning for Shu to tag along he started down the street, silently hoping he actually found something soon.

So it was just her and T'charrl for now then huh? Vegeta and Aito were both busy with work so that left just the two of them to their own devices, not such a bad thing. Seeing as he was wanting to learn more Yumi figured she could help with his lessons, however marginally that might be. Despite her lack of any sort of training he readily agreed to go along with her plan, smiling cheerfully and nodding as he decided to read. "Okay, I can do that! I'll grab us a book and we can get started." There was a bookshelf right in the room that had some books in it, some from the owners of the home and others that had been taken in from the ship. A quick glance at the local books told her the languages were well beyond them, no sense in trying those. Browsing through the books from Earth Yumi smiled sheepishly as she read the words inside, finding most to be scientific in nature and well beyond her. "Let me see, there's got to be something here..." she mumbled as she began throwing books to the side, sorting through at least a dozen before finally finding one. It was a novel, some fantasy novel about who knows what, she didn't even bother to read the back and only went off of the cover. Deciding it was their best bet she brought it back to T'charrl and sat beside him, offering it to him eagerly. "Maybe if you read out loud then you can work on your speech too? If you want to."

Dragon Ball: Legacy (Mogtaki and Vena Sera)

"And you'll figure out how to do that eventually, you will! Some things take time, if you're okay with that then you can do anything," Yumi said confidently before smiling back at T'charrl, "With how fast you've picked things up so far I bet you could learn anything you wanted to, I really do. If you're going to be taking it easy for the next couple of days why not learn some new things?" She could instruct him for whatever that was worth, or Vegeta might be able to if he wasn't too busy. Heck everyone had something to offer him if he just asked, it all depended really on what it was he wanted to learn. Getting up from her seat Yumi stretched herself out, smiling at T'charrl when he decided to remain seated. "Well then I'll help you, you don't have to walk on your own," she offered as she extended a hand, "Come on, it's just around the park, it won't be that long of a walk. A little exercise might just be what you need."

Yes yes, everyone knew Shu liked fruit. In fact if he left Shu to his own devices he was sure the little guy would surround himself in a mountain of fruit if given the chance. There was liking something and then there was really liking something. Fruit would have to wait anyways as they had just eaten lunch, and much as Shu might like it they weren't going to spend all afternoon eating. With Viral apparently being all down and out of it too it seemed like they were going to be helping him out somehow, June taking charge in that regard. "It's a surprise buddy, if I say anything at all it's going to spoil it, you know?" Takeshi asked with a smirk, ruffling Shu's hair before getting out of his seat, "Like I said it'll be a surprise, that's all. You'll find out when I show you, that's how a surprise works." Now he had to somehow come up with a way to tackle Shu's problems without making things worse, something he'd never really been good at before. Clicking his tongue thoughtfully Takeshi gathered up their plates and dumped them all in a nearby bin, wiping his hands down on his pants as he rejoined the others. "So we leaving now? Where to?"

Viral just seemed to try and find a flaw in everything she suggested, so this was depression then? That's what Aito thought he had, though it just seemed like pessimism. Were those interchangeable? June didn't know enough to guess, but anyone could see that her son was expecting the absolute worst out of every situation. While he hopefully slept back at the home maybe they could figure out some way to make him happier? Smiling sympathetically at how exhausted Viral was, June walked over and without a word held one of his paws in her hand. "If you're exhausted I can try and give you a piggy back ride home," she offered with a small laugh, "You aren't as small as you used to be, but we did it a few times when you were younger. I'm happy to give it a try if you're tired."

-----

It may come as a disappointment to Viral that when they did arrive at the house there was hardly a cloud in the sky. Indeed the beautiful, clear day that they had been enjoying so far was going to continue on, meaning he could enjoy his time outdoors. No sooner had they arrived at the home too did June disappear inside, leaving the group standing in the front yard while she nagged Aito to help her fashion a hammock for Viral. A bundle of heavy string later and some thick sheets and they had managed to do just that, setting it up between two trees just on the edge of the property. Triumphant June returned and fetched Viral from the others, eager to see if her plan for him would work or not. Who could resist the allure of sleeping outdoors on a beautiful day like this? "There! I told you I'd make you a hammock!" June declared with a bright smile, letting go of Viral's hand and standing beside the makeshift bed, "Or... Aito made it, but that doesn't matter. Why don't you give it a try?"

Not too sure why Viral was being led off like that, but boy did the guy seem tired. June seemed to want to get him to relax, to which he could only say good luck with that. In the meantime he needed to figure out exactly what he was going to do with Shu. Bringing up his problems seemed like the most direct and proper way to do this and yet he couldn't come up with a way to do so. If he couldn't help his brother confront the problems then what did he do? Scratching at his head in thought Takeshi deliberated before letting out a sigh, turning to his brother and putting on a smile for him. "Alright, ready for your surprise buddy?" he asked, walking closer and leaning down. "For the rest of the day... We've got the day off! We're going to play, relax, explore, whatever you want to do, okay? Just you and me, we'll have a fun day with just the two of us." There was at least half a day left, surely that was enough time for Shu to do what he wanted to? Instead of trying to do something he had no knowledge of, Takeshi decided, he'd just do what little he did know and try keeping his brother happy.

Since it seemed like Shu and Takeshi were doing their own thing now, and Viral had been taken off with June, that left Yumi and T'charrl without plans. She hated to leave her friend alone after he'd just gotten out of the hospital which meant the two of them should do something... But what? Tapping at her chin thoughtfully for a moment Yumi glanced to her friend sitting on the steps, a smile crossing her lips as she walked over and crouched down before him. "I guess that leaves you and me, how about we work on some of your lessons?" She wasn't sure what her instruction might be good for, and she certainly wasn't going to be able to teach him things like proper grammar or sentence structure, if he was wanting to learn their language more. At the very least she could just talk to him and help with his speech, even if she couldn't exactly explain why something was the way it was. "I can help with with letters, or some basic math, or... I can help you read, whatever you want to do."