[color=#1A1A3B][b][u][h1][sub][sub][sub]Farren[/sub][/sub][/sub][/h1][/u][/b][/color]		    shifted slightly in place and raised his gaze, realizing that Ophelia was further away than he’d thought…not far, but up the path and in the now open doorway to the sole building in the Hunter’s Dream. Perhaps she hadn’t heard him, he hadn’t been terribly loud, hadn’t projected…and she was caught up in a frenzy of her own thoughts, it seemed. He understood that much at least.

Teeth still gritted, Farren exhaled sharply, then pulled in another breath as he forced himself to [i]move[/i], walking up the gently ascending steps laid into the hill until he was only a few feet from the two women. It might seem to them that he was giving them more space than was necessary even by social standards, but the reality was that he stood slightly further out because of his own state. He didn’t entirely trust himself just then, even if he wasn’t entirely sure why–though he did have hints. Before he had a chance to reiterate what he’d said a few moments ago, Gerlinde more or less did so, explaining that slaying the Vicar was not a wise option–or at least that it was one with drastic consequences.

Despite her off-kilter and sometimes manic nature, Farren was glad that someone else seemed to be on even remotely the same page as him. However, as Gerlinde mentioned something ‘gold’ having manifested and stretched towards Ophelia during their interaction with the Vicar, Farren found himself instinctually taking a step back.

[indent][indent][i]His mind itched, eyes peered out from angles at the periphery of his vision, and a sinuous tingling went down his back–almost as if something impossibly smooth had run itself down his spine.[/i][/indent][/indent]
Farren’s entire body stiffened, but he took a breath, then two, and relaxed again. Why had that elicited such a reaction? Had he ever seen anything like that before?

[color=#1A1A3B][b]“I…don’t like this…wh-whatever [i]this[/i] is,”[/b][/color] he said lowly, his eyelid twitching slightly more even than before. His chest felt tight, but he kept breathing, even though it felt like his lungs were constricting themselves somehow. Unlike anything they’d encountered since their awakening, it seemed that whatever was going on with the Vicar…or at least near him…truly frightened Farren. He’d felt fear since becoming a hunter, but not anything like this…not anything that he couldn’t tamp down or push through. Somehow, whatever was going on with… ‘the gold’ could just…brush away his defenses like they were so much chaff, leaving him naked and utterly exposed to its touch.

He hated it.

Farren latched onto that hatred, his jaw squaring as he found some measure of his more familiar confidence. [color=#1A1A3B][b]“That said…I…I need to know what it is. What this [i]‘gold’[/i] influence is…and how it can be combated.”[/b][/color] Though his voice had a slight tremor when he said the word, it was clear that he was resolute. They needed to know more…and he needed to find a way to shield himself, for [i]all of them[/i] to be protected from it…whatever it was.