[IC] Souls of Atlas

[Estylwen]

***

Heat waves rippled off the fresh impact crater of the comet. Dust and smoke spewed, spitting small rocks on the foliage surrounding the crater. The air took on a metallic taste as it tried to clear. Huge gusts of wind blew from above, flushing the smoke and debris. The crater, still steaming from impact, was about the size of a house, maybe a little deeper. 

You awake to a bright blue sky walled by steaming dirt. A number of other people lie around you, also struggling to move. You feel exhausted. Cold. Your memory is blank. 

At the very center of the crater a small white cat laid motionless, burn marks covering its face and paws. Its leather vest still smoked, and the small sword it carried glowed red. The cat's tail twitched, and it mewed softly. 

The land around the crater was ash and embers, but beyond that was a thick ring of forests with towering trees. To the right of the crater a large path of grass twisted into the  woods, disappearing among the bushes. Beyond that, the sound of babbling water bounced off the tree trunks. The air from the greenery was fresh and humid, a refreshing change from the stink of charred embers. 

[Andre Valias]

He slept in the midst of fire and chaos. When it seemed like all the world had broken and literally exploded, he felt it as clear as day. A heavy jarring at his side sent a shockwave of pain through his shoulder down, and then a few moments of feeling the thick air wash over him before he hit something hard and rough with a cry, then felt gravity pull him down to the earth's rather rough embrace.

Owie...

He awoke with tired eyes, aching and hurting all over. A young boy rose up to a sitting position with a few pained groans and breaking winces, a little aside from the steaming crater. He clutched at his right side and back which seemed to ache the most out of all his sore body. However, he looked physically fine. He sighed a little, not bothering to even try and stand up as he tried to clear his head. He looked out all around him when he no longer fault as exhausted and fatigued. He saw the forest, the grassy path, and most notably the crater billowing with steam. The boy looked up through the canopy of leaves, and saw blue sky daintily dotted with white wispy clouds. The sight somehow brought a smile to his face as he unconsciously reached up to touch the sky, but falling mortally short by a long shot.

[WrensthavAviovus]

The smell of singed fur and burnt wood was made the air almost unbreathable. I finally was able to prop myself on my elbows after several failed attempts from slipping on the long sleeves of the coat I was wearing. The four other people in this pit were also slowly getting up. We seemed to be assembled in a circle were a cat lay in the center. Well that answers the question of where the smell of singed hair was coming from.
I patted myself down, hoping to get some of the dirt and ash off of my clothes. Something didn't seem quite right while I was patting myself down; as if there was something that I should have come across but wasn't there. I decided to ignore that small detail since I couldn't remember what I was supposed to find. In fact, I am unable to recall anything before waking. I feel I should be more worried about this, but I have a stranger feeling that this may not be a new experience for me. Huh, well lets see what else I can figure out here.
I decided to run through the insides of the coat I was wearing. My gloved fingers ran across a bit of raised fabric. Opening up the side to investigate further, I was surprised to see that there was embroidery work done in orange thread on the inside pocket.

"Lent to Wrensthav Aviovus ... until debt is paid ... in full?" I mumbled under my breath. I don't know who this 'Wrensthav Aviovus' character was, but the bolder embroidering on the word 'FULL' seemed to be a a good indicator that this article of clothing had a story behind it. Since I couldn't recall my name, I'll borrow the one listed if anyone were to ask.

I took a quick glance up to see that the others where starting to get their bearings strait. The cat at the bottom of the crater seemed to becoming more active as well. I decided to stay where I sat and wait for the others to make a move.

[Dlayeth]

She awoke, curled up on the ground, her nerves afire with pain. She shuddered, and then shivered. She was freezing cold. Perhaps if she fell asleep, the cold would take her. How she knew cold could do that, she did not know, but it came to her as a piece of truth. She opened her eyes to a world hazy and shimmering. Even the stones and dirt before her eyes shimmered as if she was seeing heat waves on a road in summer. Heat waves? That can't be right! Heat waves were only in places that were warm, not places as freezing cold as where she must be. How she knew that, again, she could not say.

She watched her surroundings longer, and then noticed the smoke. At first she thought it had been a trick of her eyes. She was tired and cold and didn't know how long her eyes had been open. Perhaps her eyes merely had to adjust, she had thought. It seemed that her eyes had been honest for once. She saw smoke, she saw shimmering air, and she was lying in a pile of ashes. Maybe if I breathe them in, I'll die and everything can go back to the peaceful way it was. The idea startled her, she did not recognize it. She could not remember enough to recognize it.

Her mind and heart swirled with confusion, and she simply wanted to close her eyes and escape into blessed unconsciousness, but sadly, her terrified and confused mind would not allow it. She searched her mind for knowledge, but found nothing. There was an empty blankness in her head, and yet, she had known something, surely. After all, she had known somehow that heat waves were caused by heat, and that cold and smoke could kill her. But... when she tried to recall anything of herself, she could not remember a thing.

Consciously, she tried to dredge up some knowledge, even something like her knowledge of heat and cold, but it was futile. Perhaps she did not have the right concept of what she was looking for. Perhaps it was like putting in the wrong thing in a search engine. Again, another thing she knew but did not know! She wished to pound her fists on the earth and rampage to take her frustration out on something, but caution stopped her. She had to be sure of her surroundings first. Slowly, she sat up and looked around.

She lay in the bottom of a hole, a crater. The acrid stench of scorched earth and fire should have choked her, and yet it did not. Above, past the smoke, she caught glimpses of a brilliant blue, and through it, she could dimly make out the silhouette of trees and… something else? Through the smoke, she could see a tall figure, and it frightened her. It was a man. She froze at the sight. Her instincts warred with her mind. Something told her to go to him, to work her wiles on him, whatever they were. Something told her that if she did certain things, she would earn something necessary to survive. Perhaps he could even offer her protection. The other side of her, her instincts, told her to run. He was male, he was dangerous, he would hurt her, and he would amuse himself with her. She would be helpless.

She was so torn by these conflicting desires that she wanted to scream, or melt into the ground. To be honest, to become stone or melt into the ground were preferable to screaming. Screaming had never helped her before. Screaming only resulted in pain and horror and despair. She knew this. Somehow, she knew this. Her body, her mind, her instincts, all knew better than to let her scream. Sadly, melting into the ground or turning into stone weren’t options either. She wondered whether she should run or whether she should stay still and hope the man didn’t see her.

The despair she felt was much like if she was a trapped creature. If she stayed still, perhaps the smoke would hide her, if she ran, perhaps she would escape him. If she stayed still, perhaps he would still see her, if she ran, perhaps he would chase her and catch her. She had no wings to fly away with, no claws or weapons to fight with. She did not have the speed of a cheetah, not even of an antelope. She had no protection. She was human. She was a mere woman.

Then wind blew strongly whipping her brown hair about her face, and in the updraft the protective smoke billowed away. She wanted to cry out for the wind to stop, she wanted to conjure more smoke to wrap around her, protect her, and hide her from the man. She accidentally let out a small cry of despair when the winds ripped the smoke away and revealed both her form, and the man’s. Her wide-open eyes met with that of the man and she froze, mouth open in a little “O”. Then she saw another figure. The figure was slim, but she saw enough to know. It was another man, another male. That, and the lost protective cover of smoke decided her.

She scrabbled backward in the dirt, scrambled to her feet, and pelted away. She clawed her way up the sides of the crater and showers of dirt and ashes fell below her. He knew she was here now. They knew of her presence. Terror took her over. In moments she was out of the crater and sprinting away into the forest. She threw herself over bushes and ducked under low hanging branches. She never noticed the sights around her, or the purifying smell of clean forests and water. She was desperate, frightened, and confused.

All she knew was that she wanted to be away. She wanted to be gone. She wanted to escape.

[Estylwen]

[OOC: Prepare for a lot of dialogue. Your Charries will have much more to go off of now. Notice I mention what exactly you remember, it's slightly different from what I know some of you were envisioning. My apologies.]

***
The cat stirred, coughing. "...Is everyone okay? Did we all make it?"

She opened her eyes, the blue a stark contrast to the burns surrounding her face. Her gaze flickered, meeting the stressed expressions of the souls. They all looked confused, like they didn't even know which question to start with. 

She raised her head higher. "Hey, we're missing one. The one exotically dressed."

Most souls were conscious, only a couple still slumbered. They would have to be carried. And there was the fact of a soul runaway, she'd have to fill an extra vial of water from the oasis for the exotic soul. They'd likely catch her just outside the village, from what the cat could sense. 

She shakily rose to her paws. "Ugh, can't wait 'till we reach the oasis. One drink of that and the hand of The Lady heals all your wounds, physical, or spiritual. These places are sight to behold too, unlike anything you could *cough* ever imagine." She shook with coughing fits, tucking her head in her shoulder. When they subsided, she rolled her eyes and continued. 

"My name is Azula, I'm the one who brought you here. It's normally a much smoother ride than this, but I hit the dimensional rip wrong, got myself scorched in the process. I still got you all here safely, though. That's what matters. 

"I know you all have a lot of questions. And let me start by telling you where you are: Atlas. The world between realms -- invisibly sandwiched with the Underworld and Heaven. Atlas operates on its own, with it's own deity and such things, but offers to take in broken souls that don't have a home. This paradise of paradises is not as innocent as it looks, unfortunately. Along with fairies, elves and forest spirits, we also hold home to a host of villainous monsters, lurking in the darkness. I will show you how to be safe if we are to save you.

"You're confused you don't remember anything about your life, I know. You remember the information you learned, but personal life events just... Aren't there. Like knowing what a box is, but oblivious to the fact the box may be yours." A gloom coloured Azula's words.

"Meet my eyes, all of you. I'm going to tell you something that will quell all the doubts and worries you may be having right now. This story is universal for all of you. You were all once mortals on earth. You lived, you loved. You accomplished great things, terrible things, made mistakes, and suffered a great deal. 

"You died and suffered in hell a short time before I reached out to you. Had to verify paperwork and whatnot, office technicalities, really. You see, in the Underworld you felt true remorse and your soul started shredding to pieces. That's recompense enough, so we offer this kind of 'second chance' deal. The shredding of your soul will eventually erase your existence, but the only cure for this classified disease is from the touch of a divine. She's here, and I can help you find her. The trade-off was forsaking your old life, including the memories. I told you all of this then, and you agreed to come with me to Atlas. You knew you wouldn't remember anything, but you still trusted me.

"It's a lot to take in, I know. I'll let you chew that over for a bit. But you'll find my words ring true. 

" ...Now you can all stop drooling, it's totally natural I can talk. I'm not just your average cat back home, ya know. I'm a servant to the Divine, after all. The Great Lady herself." She winked. 

"Ah, but I don't want to confuse you completely yet." She coughed again, pawing at Wrensthav's foot. "Would you be so kind as to carry me to the oasis? These burns make it hard to move. It's to the left of us, following the twisted path into the forest."

"Everyone, let's stick together. Carry those who haven't woken yet -- you're stronger as a soul than a mortal, fun fact. We'll beeline for the oasis, then we have to chase down the one who ran away. Our next stop after is the Town of Bela, a quiet place not far from here. Perfect to get you some new clothes and explore. Emphasis on the clothes part -- you'll stick out like a sore thumb wearing what you have now. Is everyone with me?"

***
The group had been walking down the grass path for almost five minutes. Azula craned her head up, breathing in the water-heavy air. The trees and plants surrounding them looked more pristine and perfect than anything earth had to offer; not a leaf was out of place, the grass had no weeds. There were new types of vegetation that couldn't be given a name from how other-worldly and fascinating they appeared. From the sound of it, they were only another five minutes away from water.

She addressed the souls. "Since I don't want to resort calling you guys Soul 1 and Soul 2, we should trying picking names. Has anyone thought of anything?"

[Xiga]

Water. She could hear it flow around her and the cold streams of it ripple over her back. She could feel the pressure over her chest, and her back. All of her body felt like it was under the pressure of water. Ice cold and painful water.
At first it had been soothing, the water. But after a while it had changed. The cool water turned into icy waters. She started shivering more and more to the point that she could not control it. She desperately tried to fight the icy waters and her shivering, but her body didn't move. Her breaths became more and more shallow and rapid as the stream of water started to roar with life, more and more like that of a river. Soon the river overwhelmed her with roars, voices echoing behind it like it was screeching for souls as it battered her body.

Suddenly the ice cold flood turned to a boiling hot one. The voices amplified and she could feel pins and needles combined with the scorching pain of burns. She clenched her teeth together biting back a scream of agony as her body started to move to her will. It was only slightly, barely noticable, but she did, and as she did pains shot through her arms and up through her chest. And as it did, she awoke, shooting up from her lying position into a sitting one, her eyes wide in shock. She gasped for air as the roar of the river turned louder and morphed into a voices, voices all around her.

She looked around and saw figures. She could feel herself moving yet she wasn't the one moving herself along. A sense of panic shot through her and every fiber of her body urged her to fight or flight. She had to take action. Immediately she bit down on whoever was carrying her, hoping that the action would make the kidnapper drop her and attempted to dash away from the group.

[Nytem4re]

Slowly waking up, he quickly noticed that he was being carried. Strange. Usually when one wakes up they expect to be in bed, or at the very least, stationary. Trying to reorient himself,he simply threw himself out of the grasp of whoever was carrying him at the moment. Perhaps... that was ill advised. Hitting the ground with a solid thud, he grunted due to the sudden pain. His muscles were sore... perhaps from being asleep too long?

"Since I don't want to resort calling you guys Soul 1 and Soul 2, we should trying picking names. Has anyone thought of anything?"

Huh?

Didn't he have a name? Come to think of it.. He couldn't really remember. In fact, he couldn't even recognize his surroundings. He was in some forest, or jungle. And the strange part of it was, he didn't even know what environment he even would recognize. It was all just... a feeling. Instinct. Everything was just a blur.

He slowly propped himself up, brushing off the dirt he had accumulated tumbling on the ground. However, his hand recoiled suddenly as a sharp pain coursed through his right arm. After a while, it slowly started to subside, but lingered somewhat. Taking a second look at his right arm, he could see what looked to be a burn scar that started from his wrist and ended at his elbow. Where had he gotten that? Too many questions, not enough answers. Maybe he should just focus on what was going on right now rather than dwell on things that would just keep him thinking.

Well, maybe he should ignore the talking cat too then for a bit. Other than that, there were a few more people around him, all walking on the same grassy path. Following a talking cat.. seemed strange, but then again, he couldn't even remember what was normal anymore, and the fact that they were souls, at least according to the cat's words, seemed more urgent right now.

Or maybe figuring out a name would be nice too, but quite frankly he had no idea where to even begin with that.

[Estylwen]

The moment the dreadlocks lady attacked her carrier and dropped to the ground, Azula materialized on her head. The cat peered upside down at the lady, staring at her golden eyes. 

"Boop!" Azula pawed the lady's nose, causing a stability reset of the emotions, slowing down the heart rate, removing the panic that clouded her thoughts. "That's better. Do you feel better? You should. We're on a quest to find water, and I imagine you're exhausted. My name is Azula, and I guarantee you things will be explained as soon as we reach water."

She turned her gaze to the other soul who'd woken up, black hair with grey edges and emerald eyes. A very pretty mix, to be honest. "That goes for you too, Green Eyes. If you can walk, walk with us. You're safe here."

Azula appeared on Wrensthav's broad shoulders again. They stepped past the trunk of an impressive tree, and stood at the beginning of a fairy tale clearing. The water of the oasis itself was a sight, glittering blue-green and as clear as a sheet of glass. Pearls and smooth gems covered the bed of the oasis. Pixie lights rose up from the water, illuminating the smooth rock shores in bright spots of pale colour. Divine wildlife was in abundance as well, fish both flying and swimming in water, fauna playing at the water's edge. Colours they couldn't name gave flourish to the picturesque view, complimenting the greens and blues of the oasis.

"Welcome to paradise. Please, drink up. Rest a while. This water will heal you from anything, including your soul shattering away on you. Of course, it's not permanent. But that's why we're going to sip on this occasionally while we find the Lady.

"If you follow this path for another ten minutes, you'll fall right on the gates to the Town of Bela." Azula said, pointing a paw down the grass path that continued on into the forest. "I trust all of you can do this without my help, so I will meet you at the gates. Could you fill in the two sleepers as well? I'm sure they're mighty confused. Feel free to say hi to anyone in town -- they know you're coming. I need to find the one we lost, and I can do it a lot faster if we split up."

She patted Wrensathv's shoulder. "Thanks for carrying me, I was in pain."

With lithe agility seen exclusively in cats, Azula vaulted off the soul's shoulder and landed silently on the stone shore, dipping her face in the water. Her whole body glittered for a moment as she drank, and the burns glaring on her fur receded to nothing. 

"Heehee, they tickle when they heal." Azula rubbed her damp face. "I'll see you all in town."

A white shadow raced into the shrubs, and the hum of the oasis was undisturbed once more.

***

The sixth sense of being able to view one's surroundings internally in a kind of GPS was a gift Azula still depended heavily on. Each different creature she picked up on her senses had a different feel to it. It only took a little bit of searching around to find a soul, shattered too. Picking up speed, the cat took low to the ground. Quickly catching up, Azula popped out from under the bushes, stopping just ahead of the runaway.

"Stop, I'm a friend. My name is Azula." said the cat. "I know you're lost from the crater, and I'm here to help." She eyed up the exotic soul, judging her fear levels. The runaway seemed level-headed at least, so she continued. 

"You're the first soul I've seen in almost 400 years to just run like that. Last time it was for fear of being buried alive, but I don't think that's the case for you. May I ask what scared you?"

[Dlayeth]

The exhaustion hit her like a hammer. She slowed to a stop. Now, with all this distance, she felt silly for running. She didn't even know why she had been so scared. She knew what she was scared of, but she wasn't sure why she was scared of him. She remembered the man, and shivered a little. Something about the sight of him, about what he was, terrified her. Her fear had to be based off the knowledge she had lost. Had something happened to her? Was she sick? Why couldn't she remember anything? Her brain supplied the name of her ailment— "Amnesia." The word came with a little tag of knowledge. Amnesia was a lack of memory, caused usually by physical or psychological trauma. Psychological trauma was when something terrible happened and the mind took some sort of damage? Was it something like that?

She slowed down to a stop and looked down at herself. Perhaps there was some sort of clue as to what caused the damage, but there was nothing really. Just a few unrecognized but familiar marks on her arms, pretty much a part of her, and a few scratches too that she didn't recognize. The clothing she wore seemed a bit strange, she didn't exactly recoil from it, but there was something about it that made her uncomfortable. Her clothes were strangely revealing. If there were other clothes she could have worn, perhaps something that made her feel less vulnerable... well, there weren't, so there was no point in dwelling on it.

She raised her head and began to check her surroundings. Suddenly, she was feeling so very self-conscious in her revealing clothing. She didn't want to be seen like this. She was on a path now, when she had stumbled upon it, she didn’t know. First things first, get off the damned path you stupid bitch! She was startled by the vicious thought that appeared unbidden in her mind, but she obeyed it. What kind of person had she been to think like that? To think and talk at herself like that, especially when she was an amnesiac, was strange. How well-worn were those paths of her mind that she still had such thoughts?

Admittedly, she didn’t know much about Amnesia besides the basic definition. Maybe it was normal to still have some strong thoughts seem to appear out of the blue? Maybe it was normal to think and instinctively act a certain way? Whether it was normal or not, she didn’t know, and she doubted she could find out in the middle of wherever she was. So, as she pushed her way through the foliage, she reflected on herself and her thoughts.

The sudden appearance of such a vehement thought was a bit disconcerting. After all, these odd thoughts were appearing out of nowhere and they were a bit vicious and tinged with something unpleasant. She couldn’t quite put a finger on the reason though. There was some sort of tinge of bitterness and anger in her thoughts. More importantly, her thoughts in general seemed to tend towards a negative side. Did she just like being a pessimist? Maybe not, the feelings were a little too strong for that. So what was it? Why was she like this?

She tried to puzzle through her thoughts and emotions for a short time, but couldn’t come to any conclusion. The exhaustion she felt further destroyed her will to explore her “self” and find out what she truly thought. There was something there, something buried in her mind. Her only clues were her thoughts that would come and go whenever they wanted, just like a cat. “Women and cats will do as they please, and men and dogs should relax and get used to the idea” her mind supplied. There were strong overtones of irony in that quote. Clearly, her past self disagreed.

Again she couldn’t help but feel that instinctive terror of men when she thought of them. Perhaps she had a good reason to fear men. Something about them put her off. Something about them made her feel tiny and weak and helpless. It was an unpleasant feeling to say the least. The tiniest little whims of men could make her or break her, she knew this somehow. She needed them as well, as terrifying as they were to her. There had been something in the past that had helped protect her. It was something, she remembered, that made her feel better and made the terror easier to bear.

She missed it desperately. The feeling of safety and comfort it offered her, that senselessness, that peace… She couldn’t remember what it was, but her knowledge told her that it was there, and it existed. She wanted to get it in her hands. Her fingers twitched with the thought of it, even if she couldn’t remember the shape, or appearance, or what it was. If it could offer that… she didn’t care what it would do to her. Since she’d woken up, all she’d felt was confusion and terror and frustration. It was enough to make her long for something that could give her peace of mind. Perhaps… perhaps it was something she could find here.

She began to pick up her pace when suddenly a cat in a strange little vest shot out from the underbrush. She skidded to a stop in an effort to avoid tripping over the creature. The fact that it was wearing clothes was strange. It was stranger when, it began to talk. According to her knowledge and instincts, this was a very strange situation indeed. Cats did not talk, but again, she wasn’t sure how she knew that. So, she eyed it and tried to keep her jaw from dropping. Something about a talking cat was suspicious, but for an odd reason, she felt a niggling sense of familiarity. Had she met this cat before? Had she seen a talking cat before? Nevermind, it didn’t matter. She doubted she could figure it out so easily, and she was not in the mood to puzzle over this until she had a headache. She dismissed it from her mind and chose to accept this strange situation at face value.

Due to the distracting thoughts in her head, she almost forgot to answer the cat. Though why she had to answer a talking cat was beyond her. Then it dawned on her, she really didn’t have to. She almost said it was none of the cat’s business, almost, but then she remembered that it seemed to know something about her. It must have been at the crater too. It had managed to catch up to her, so would the man follow the cat? Would he catch up to her too? There was no guarantee that the cat had been with them in the crater after all, or that the men knew of the cat. But… that didn’t mean that she was safe. Urgently she questioned the cat, though she kept a tight reign on her rising terror.

“Did the men at the crater follow you?”

[WrensthavAviovus]

Well one thing is for sure, the short amount of time since arriving here on 'Atlas', as the talking cat cat claimed this world was called, was very eventful. The one thing that surprised Wrensthav, was that only one of the person who woke around the crater who up and ran was the lady with the exotic clothing. To her credit, she did awaken before the cat Azula could calm her down with her warm but authoritative presence.

Even though he hadn't uttered a word to anyone; the cat seemed to take a liking to him.

She must see me as a mobile tree. He thought to himself as he lead the group along the path that she pointed out to the oasis. A tree or a good flag pole for people to follow in this forest.

He forced himself to take a drink from the oasis pool and did note that the water did heal with a tingling feeling that eased the burns away. It took a lot more effort to do so for some reason. He wondered if he suffered from rabies before he was transported here or if there was some other reason why he had to will himself so hard to even get close to the pools edge.

He bent over the water when it stilled to get a better look at his face. There in the mirrored pool, was the face of what looked to be jaded, thin, and annoyed; which could be considered threatening, or, at the very least, intimidating. A long scar still marred the right side of his face. That's odd, I thought this pool was supposed to heal all wounds He reflexively traced the outline of his disfigurement. No wonder why the other lady left in such a fright.

Figuring he spent enough time gazing at his own reflection, Wrensthav stood up and addressed the conscious members of the party.

"It would seem we have been given a couple of suggestions to go on before our official guide returns. Has anyone thought of what they would like to be called? I myself am rather fond of the name Wrensthav Aviovus. Has a nice ring to it."

[Estylwen]

[OOC: Posting Xiga's perspective tomorrow.]

Azula could plainly see the gears working away in the exotic soul's mind. The worries and confusion tossing this way and that in a catastrophic display behind her eyes. She could almost pick out words, sentences. And no, Azula was no mind reader. But she was over 700 years old. Observing and understanding behavior was something she picked up along the way.

"Did the men at the crater follow you?"

Azula gazed at her innocently, leaning back on her haunches. "A valid question, of course. But if I knew you didn't like them, would I bring with with me? No. I'm here for you."

She padded closer to the soul, big blue eyes staring into hers. Something pulled and twinged inside the exotic soul, as though some unseen thing was trying to get a better look. "Do you feel it inside you? The weakness, the fatigue. The void inside the shreds of your soul, slowly tearing you to pieces? You're dying, Exotic one. Piece by shattered piece."

She blinked, coming back to herself. Every time she tried to See further into anything, like a soul, a tree, deities, it made her eyes sore, even after all those years of practice. It was a good 30-second skill to verify the wellbeing of anyone, but that was about it. Examining the exotic soul's soul-body, Azula could already tell the first thing she wanted to help the exotic soul with was get some real clothes. The skimpy black lace and things didn't do her justice. But little priorities would have to wait. The exotic soul needed some major consoling. 

"I can make it stop." Azula said, ducking her head to the pouch in her vest, pulling out a tiny crystal vial filled with clear liquid. She held it loosely in her teeth, offering it up to the soul.

[Dlayeth]

Unfortunately, she couldn’t help but make an incredulous expression when she heard the cat’s reply to her question. The talking cat is here for me. Riiiiiight! She couldn’t help but be skeptical. Sure the talking cat felt strangely familiar, but that was it. How could she trust a talking cat she had just met. She didn’t know a thing about it. A little quiet voice inside her was telling her that she shouldn’t just believe everything a talking cat said, but her current experiences were null. Sure that little something inside her was saying that she shouldn’t belief the talking cat, but at the same time it felt familiar and it didn’t tell her just why she shouldn’t trust the cat. God, if this was how amnesiacs felt, she pitied them.

Almost unnoticed, the cat moved closer to her while her instincts and reasoning were playing tug of war with her thoughts. Suddenly she realized she was staring right into the cat’s eyes. Somehow she couldn’t take her eyes away and it was as if she was falling into a sea of sapphire. Absentmindedly, she felt something inside her. The sense that something was seeing all that she was intensified, but she sense no malice or judgement. She possessed enough sense to wonder why she wasn’t panicking, before it dropped away, or maybe it was her that had fallen out of its gaze. She blinked at the creature before her, confused.

What the hell just happened? What did that cat do to me! The sense that something had seen into the deepest part of her unnerved her and her fear warred with indignation. What the hell did that cat just do to me!?! Her temper started to flare, but stopped just as quickly. Like a wind blowing out a candle, her exhaustion blew out her anger. Instead she sighed. So the cat had done something to her, seemed to have peered inside of her, what did that change? Well, clearly that was digging into someone else’s business, and she wasn’t sure she wanted anyone being able to know that much about her. It made her feel insecure. She wanted to feel upset and suspicious but she was too tired now. She was too tired to really argue with herself at least. She might as well give up and resign herself to arguing with herself all the time.

Sure she had conflicting emotions, and sure that was uncomfortable as hell and made her upset. Sure she felt like she was starting to get a headache, and this whole confusion business was starting to make her sick. But what could she do? Too bad I can’t just knock myself out and get some rest. Hell, I’m tired. If my brain and instincts would just shut up for a few minutes, maybe I could just lay down and sleep. All her energy at the thought of getting some of that stuff that protected her from all the fears and troubles drained out of her. Offhandedly she thought to herself that she wouldn’t care if a man found her now. She was so damned tired. He could do whatever he wanted so long as she could rest, that was the measure of her exhaustion.

She considered just walking off into the bushes near the path and just falling like a felled tree behind them. That grass was starting to look so inviting. The cat’s words drew her out of her contemplation of the grass’ quality as a sleeping spot. There was something that could make it stop? Make what stop? The exhaustion? The confusion? Did it matter? She took the crystal vial from the cat and examined it. Was it water? Was it some kind of medicine or drug? Was it poison? Did she really care? Not really. If it was poison, she would be able to rest in death probably. She didn’t really believe in an afterlife or gods or anything. Life is bad enough. If there’s an afterlife then I must be in hell. She only spared a moment to examine the thought, but all motivation to discover herself vanished. Was it a drug? If so what could it do to her. A myriad of images and knowledge followed that thought and she almost threw it away. She looked at the vial warily, and then forced her body to move.

“Thanks.” she said and then forced her sluggish body to move. She had wasted too much energy on her emotions. For now she was going to go find a relatively safe place, somewhere off the damned path. If she was going to go fall down from the drugs or water or whatever it was, she was going to at least do it in a better location. The drug could make something stop. Was it her exhaustion or was it her emotions or something else? Perhaps her fear of men? Well, it didn’t matter. She wouldn’t know for sure until she tried it, and she was far gone enough that she was willing to give it a go. When she’d found a good area with soft plush grass and a thicket, she examined the vial again. It only took her a moment to get up her courage this time. She quickly opened the vial and downed whatever was in it.

On her tongue the water was clear, crisp, and somehow cold. It was refreshing, and she felt as if energy was bubbling into her body and mind. It’s fizzy like soda bubbles she thought to herself, but she wasn’t referring to the water. She was referring to the energy she was starting to feel inside of her. The haze of exhaustion disappeared and she wished there was more. She was feeling far more alive now. Her sincere wonder at this sudden change calmed her mind and soothed her. For a moment she forgot about worrying or danger and simply revelled in this feeling. A thought intruded on this peace. If it only takes this much water to make me feel like this, how would it feel to have more? She turned her head to look for the cat. She had to find that cat. She needed more of this. She didn’t want this feeling to fade.

[Estylwen]

***
Xiga -- Dreads

Calmness. She never thought it could be so blinding. But the moment Azula appeared on her head, she simply couldn't panic. The shear amount of tranquility overwhelmed her senses, so much so that she almost forgot to ask the question: what caused her panic before?

Oh right. She didn't know where she was. She didn't recognize anyone here. Her mind couldn't come up with anything conclusive, not about her situation, or anything before. Who she was, her name, her age, her friends and family, nothing was ringing a bell. It was as though the paths to those memories simply no longer existed, there was no way to reach the dark parts of her mind.

This place she was in now, it was beautiful. More so than anything she had seen before. But she couldn't let that distract her. She was surrounded by enemies! Um, strangers. The Calmness in her system still had a hold, she was in control of any anxiety that fought to break free. 

Against her better judgment, she simply followed the group, eyeing the other people up just in case they tried something. The foliage parted, and she beheld the oasis along with Azula and everyone else. Again, beautiful. But what about some answers?

The water was delicious. She was thirsty anyway, and the shiny stones at the bottom of the pool really tempted her to dive in and maybe take a few. She remembered them being precious stones in another world. The oasis water, in particular, worked like magic. Her fatigue and clouded thoughts dispersed, replaced with a sense of well being.

Azula left as quickly as she came, and the dreadlocks soul wondered why it had to be a cat, of all things, to lead them through this... World? Place? Alternate universe?

"It would seem we have been given a couple of suggestions to go on before our official guide returns. Has anyone thought of what they would like to be called? I myself am rather fond of the name Wrensthav Aviovus. Has a nice ring to it." 

His height was what she noticed first. Like a human tree. The single bang arcing down to his back was an interesting feature, a style she'd never seen, uh, before. Whenever before was. 

Names. He was suggesting names, gave one to himself. Wrensthav. She committed it to memory before even trying to decide one for herself. A good place as any to start would be her appearance, she supposed. A look in the clear pool showed her the most golden of eyes, a gruff face with hints of feminism, and dreadlocked hair. It had a few feathers tied into the strands, but they seemed faded and in need of replacing. Her clothes were different earth tones, loose layers with a desert-ish feel to it. Honestly, she thought it looked outlandish compared to everyone else, but when did she care about strangers' opinions? 

"...Tilith. Tilith Dreads. That's what I want to be called. And can someone please explain what's going on here?"

***
Estylwen -- Azula

I wonder how much of that she caught. Azula wondered as the exotic soul accepted the vial and wandered off to somewhere a little more private. Azula counted to ten before she followed, crossing her claws that the exotic soul would partake and find some comfort. Up to that point the soul had shown little enthusiasm to cooperate, still very preoccupied in her own thoughts in trying to make sense of things. But it would soon pass, the uncertainty and suspicion. There was an energy required to keep up that kind of negative defense, and Azula could only hope that the exotic soul would calm down on her own soon. 

What was free will if not to indulge it? 

From her spot in the underbrush, she watched as the vial was emptied. The transformation in the exotic soul was instantaneous. Lights shone in her eyes, her body relaxed, and the tension and worry left her. As soon as she looked like she was searching, Azula knew that was her cue.

"Good, maybe you'll take me a little more seriously now." Azula said, padding out from under a shrub behind her. "That vial didn't contain any ordinary water. It's oasis water, blessed by the Divine. The reason you feel infinitely better is because your soul is healed. And no, I can see it in your eyes already. The amount of water doesn't change anything, and if there's nothing to fix it does nothing except calm your nerves."

The rest of the other souls in her care had Azula slightly worried. They still hadn't left the oasis. It wasn't a big deal, she knew, but she certainly hoped they weren't harming each other or the oasis -- Her Ladyship would kill her. She considered the fact that the exotic soul would feel uncomfortable around the male souls, but with time and patience hopefully she'd know there was no need for fear of souls here. 

"Exotic soul," Azula said, a kitty grin tickling her nose, "We need a name for you, anything you want. The other souls are biding their time at the oasis, the same place I got that vial of water. There is a town not too far from here, with baths and fresh clothes, and the kindest townsfolk. It's up to you where you want us to go."

[Dlayeth]

Take things more seriously now? I thought I was taking things seriously. After a moment of thought, she concluded that the cat had been talking about its words. Well, perhaps its words held truth at times, but just because it had been truthful now didn’t mean it would be truthful later. Or perhaps it was referring to the warnings about her soul. Personally, such an abstract concept didn’t really bother her. So what if her soul flaked away into nothing? The thought wasn’t frightening to her. Frankly, she was attracted to the thought. Something about that situation seemed to offer a kind of peace, an eternal one.

If she had a soul, then clearly there was something like an afterlife or another life, though she didn’t remember it. Maybe that was the real reason she didn’t remember anything. Unexpectedly, the thought of having a soul and an afterlife did not give her comfort or happiness. If anything, the idea did the exact opposite. Some part of her truly hated the idea of living on and risking hell. Life sucked, so why prolong it? Wasn’t a simple peaceful oblivion, an end to self and suffering, so much better? The reasoning behind these thoughts were unclear, but even without her memory, she still thought this way. She’d just woken up, found out she was a soul, was terrified out of her wits shortly after she woke up, ran like a fury into god knows where without a plan, chatted with a talking cat, and nearly died of exhaustion. If this was a life, she really didn’t need it.

Even worse, in this life, the best thing she had was this “oasis water” the cat talked about. The pinnacle of her current life would be drinking fresh water from a clear spring in some mountain somewhere. It sounded like an advertisement. Maybe that’s all this was. Regardless, this peace she felt was temporary, would not get any better than it had been a moment before, and was probably very valuable. All things came with a price, and she wondered what sort of hefty sum came with this. Nothing was free, so what did this cat want her to do? To some degree she slightly regretted drinking the water. Now she had a taste for it, a thirst for it, she would be doomed to running around searching for it and doing her best to get her hands on it. This process seemed familiar too, but well, it was too late. If it cleared her mind and calmed her down, there was no way she could stay away from it.

“A name…?” She thought about it. A name was something to identify a person, something to call them. What would her name be? What could her name be? Loss? Sorrow? No, those weren’t names. Serenity? The word “serenity” drew her, but at the same time, she was repelled by the thought that the name was not suitable for her. She was anything but serene. She was nameless, she was no one… perhaps nemo? The word supposedly meant “no one” in some old dead language, but it was apparently also the name of some orange and white fish from a movie. Immediately with that knowledge, the name was rejected.

She thought about her experiences since she awoke. Fear? Despair? Those were emotions, not names, so those were rejected as well. She thought about her thoughts, the conflicting desires she’d had from the start. The need for that terrifying creature known as a man, but also that overwhelming fear. Conflict? Fracture? Contradiction? Those still weren’t names. Confusion? Frustration? Exhaustion? She didn’t know any words that could mean that and be a name. Chaos? For some reason that left the impression of being a guy’s name. So, what was there to call her? Did it matter? In the end, a name was just a name, and thinking one up was too troublesome. Perhaps she’d leave it up to the cat? Then again, the cat might choose a terrible name. Perhaps it would be better if she thought up one herself. Well, it probably wouldn’t hurt to try to get some suggestions from the cat.

“What do you think I should be called?” she asked. “—and can I choose neither?” She didn’t want to go to the oasis where the man was. She also did not want to go into the village where there was bound to be men. It’s not really like she had another option though. She didn’t know the land, didn’t know how to get around and survive here. The idea of going to the oasis with all that water tempted her, but the threat of the man’s presence was enough to give her some serious hesitation now that her need was satisfied. As for the village, she glanced down at her clothes. Well, she wasn’t interested in getting all those stares and possibly deal with the fallout from the womenfolk who would likely look down on her. Of course, that was only one excuse. Even if she had been well-dressed she would have felt ill-at-ease strolling into some strange town with a strange cat at her side when there could be men anywhere. The thought of being in unfamiliar locations with men made her anxious.