[IC] Exodus

[SashaWindrider]

Azurael looked at Ari in shock before quite possibly setting a new land speed record in her hurry to get out of the infirmary. After going back to her station and calming down, Azurael noticed that she was feeling a lot less ready to barf up whatever food might remain in her stomach. She had to give the demons that, thier medicine was unparalleled. She sighed. She'd have to thank Ari later. But currently she busied herself with watching the blue orb they were approaching get closer. They were still quite a distance away though.

[Redthorn Anvil]

"Aha, miss Azurael has returned, and might I say, she's looking much more colorful and lively than she was previously. Ehehe." Grim was still there when Azurael returned, and addressed that comment to her, chuckling at his own obscure joke.
"I was just asking al'Talvor here when it was the last time he'd slept, because he seemed to me to be in rather irate spirits! But, he merely scowled at me and ignored my question! He's not much of a conversationalist, sadly. I think even ole Seph-boy talks more than this lizard!" Grim shook his head in mock disappointment.

[SashaWindrider]

"Dragon" Azurael gently corrected with a grin. "Lizards are not fearsome and growly. Dragons are, much like our beloved General."

"Don't worry, he's that happy with every-one. Our loveable, cuddly, happy General." Azurael said grinning. Her statement was an outright lie, but that was obvious.

"No offence meant Sir." Azurael said, directing this final statement at T'vor.

[Redthorn Anvil]

For once, Grim's mouth twisted into a dubious frown. "Hmm, I'm not sure, Azurael, al'Talvor might take 'fearsome' and 'growly' as compliments..." but his grin was quick to return.
"Hehehe."

"If you are well enough to spout nonsense, Stormy, then you are well enough to work. So get on it." T'vor told Azurael pointedly, seemingly ignoring her tease.

[SashaWindrider]

"Yes Sir." Azurael said and followed the given instruction. A small smile lingered on her face. Every so often she would banter with one of the Demons, but got her work done. Her shift ended on a rather happy note and she went to bed happy.

[Redthorn Anvil]

That evening, as was his custom, T'vor met with Lord Sephiroth to talk--not necessarily about anything in particular, but because the two of them were as close a pair of freinds as anyone you might find, and their duties often kept them both quite busy during the day. Most everyone was in bed by now, save for the pilots and crewmen whose shifts were at night, and the evening found the two of them sitting together in the rec room, talking in hushed tones that are common to people who converse at night, as if the sound of their voices would wake someone nearby. Both of them were dressed for bed, lounging casually on a sofa in pajamas and bantering with one another like brothers. After a while, there was a lull in the conversation.
"What time do you think?" The young lord asked the tall man.
"Hmm. Hard to tell in space. I reckon it's probably just past midnight, though."
Sephiroth frowned.
"I'm surprised at you, you're usually exhausted by now."
T'vor grimaced. "I know. I don't sleep well any more. The atmosphere is tense, and it's getting to me. I'll relax once we land."
"You worry too much."
"Maybe I make up for that that you don't worry enough." T'vor smirked at his jibe.
"Of course I worry. You know that."
"Yeah, I know."
"Hey T'vor, remember that one time you snuck into the palace' private quarters..."
"Hmm...which time was that? I recall doing that several times, because you wanted to sneak down to the kitchens to swipe food, and I was worried you'd hack it up."
"That time when you snuck in and then you got spotted by a palace guard, and they thought you were a spy..."
"Oh yeah, I remember that. First and only time I ever slept in a prison cell. It reeked like bloody hellfire."
The two of them laughed quietly as they reminisced.

[SashaWindrider]

Azurael had seen Sephiroth and T'vor louginhg together in their pyjamas the night before last. Azurael had had a fairly hard time getting to sleep and had decided to wander around until she was tired. Good tactic but it failed. She shook her head, still unable to believe 'The Dragon' could be so casual she was used to his much more formal grumpy persona. She concentrated on the controls in front of her, entry into Earth`s atmosphere was merely mintues away. All hands would be needed on deck.

She had also had a small chat earlier in the day to Sasha. The princess had apologised to her and would have likely said more, or that was the impression Azurael got, had other people not chosen the very moment to walk in on them in the rec room. Azurael knew some things she would never forgive the princess for and would never go back to Angel citizenship. She was interested in how things might further develope. Azurael pegged it down to Sasha wanting some-one to slave drive again, having not found luck. Azrael snorted, she definitely did nor want that again. She mentaly chastised herself for losing her full focus. She concentrated fully this time.

Damien was also at his controls beside Azurael. "Hull temperature increasing. Contact with Terran atmosphere" the Demon gleefully announced.

[Redthorn Anvil]

"Don't lose your wings, lover boy," T'vor said briskly to Damien, "this is the most dangerous part of our trek." It appeared that T'vor was back to his normal 'formal grumpy persona' that everyone was accustomed to. His head snapped around to face someone else.
"You there! Get back to your bloody station!"
"Y-yessir--!"

This morning found an unlikely pair walking in stride towards the mess for breakfast. Rather, one of them wanted breakfast, and the other was following along as the two of them conversed.

The very unlikely pair just so happened to be Sephiroth, walking alongside Grim. The former's typically stoic attitude was in stark contrast next to the jovial, albeit peculiar personality that the Grim was known for. And today, the Grim seemed more upbeat than usual, energetically spouting at Sephiroth while the other listened calmly and offered his opinions bluntly.
"In any event, I was so surprised at suddenly seeing--" Grim was saying, but he cut himself off abruptly when Sephiroth thrust his arm out in front of the Reaper to stop him in his tracks. Though, he didn't offer and explanation, for he was staring at someone else with a hidden expression.

Grim looked up at what Sephiroth was staring at with a puzzled look, but he just as quickly replaced the face with a broad grin.
"Oh, my apologies, princess! I didn't realize you were standing just there! Hehehe." Grim apologized. If Sephiroth had not forcibly stopped the reaper, he would have barreled straight into Sasha. He continued to say nothing, but Grim continued.

"Oh, are you on your way to breakfast too? Come join us!" And without waiting for a reply on her part, he shepherded the young princess along with him, but he paused when he realized that Sephiroth had not followed. He was still standing there, but his expression had changed into a mild frown, and his eyes were closed as if in thought.

"Oi, Sephiroth!" The Grim attempted to get his attention.
"You said you were hungry, remember?"

Sephiroth opened his eyes again, and once more he was devoid of expression. He nodded silently, then continued walking with them.

Grim then continued his thought to Sasha. "I was telling Sephiroth here how I died!" He told her enthusiastically, as if that were a very normal thing to talk about. He then caught himself. "Oh yes, but I haven't properly introduced myself yet, how silly of me! I'm the Grim Reaper, it's a pleasure to meet you in person, Sasha! Did you know, I knew your great ancestors!" He continued to relate stories about her lineage. All the while, Sephiroth continued to remain silent, though he was no longer staring at her.

[SashaWindrider]

Sasha just looked at the creepy angel, totally gobsmacked at his attitude. Sasha was not astute enough to realise who was talking to her until he introduced himself. All she could think of saying was "Y'know, I think a suit wpuld look better than that cloak, and it would look more friendly."

Sasha looked at Sephiroth and appeared to be mulling over something. She said in somewhat of a small voice "I am truely sorry for how I have acted. I shouldn't have been such a brat."

It appeared Sasha was going to exceed Azurael's expectations and actually attempt to mend her ways. It seemed what her Royal Brattiness needed was a short sharp shock.

[Redthorn Anvil]

Grim laughed. "Hehehehe...You're probably right, miss Sasha, but I'm afraid that this robe is my uniform--part of the job, you understand. Besides, if I wore a suit, then I would have to show my face, wouldn't I?" His grin formed into a smirk. He waited for Sasha to finish speaking to Sephiroth, and his smirk broadened.

Sephiroth didn't react for a moment, then he blinked and his brow furrowed as if he'd just realized she'd spoken to him. He turned to look at the young princess with the same expression. He seemed to be contemplating her. Then he seemed to disregard her apology.
"No leader is born knowing how to lead. Your skill will improve with practice and instruction. I suggest you find someone to teach you, if you are truly sincere of your apology."

Grim's smirk twitched painfully. "A little harsh, don't you think?"

Sephiroth turned his gaze to the reaper. "A ruler cannot afford to make mistakes. The fate of the people are in the ruler's hands. I know very well the consequences of rulers that make mistakes. My father was one of them, and I despise him for it." His eyes narrowed, and he turned his gaze back to Sasha. "I admit that I should not have interfered, your Highness. However, your naivete cost you your personal bodyguard. How does that reflect on your actions? Apologies will not fix your mistakes, young princess. Words are meaningless unless you act upon them. If you cannot act upon your words, then I cannot trust you."
His eyes were rutheless.
"Therefore I make this suggestion to you, your Highness. If you truly wish to apologize to me, then you will act on that apology. And if not for my trust, then for the sake of your own people. Show them that you are worth their loyalty."
By the end of his reprimand, his expression had softened somewhat. He was far from irritated or angry, rather, he saw this moment as an opportunity to potentially help her open her eyes to the bigger picture, that it was her decisions that would decide the fate of her people. Truly, he had the inborn dislike for angels that all his race shared, but that didn't mean they deserved a ruler like his father, or worse.

[SashaWindrider]

It was true Sasha was out of her depth. She did not have her parents, nor did she have any of the other Twelve to help guide her. She looked at Grim for a second or two, then thought better of it. Sasha decided to ask the only other person she that had experience leading a kingdom of living people - Sephiroth. "If you would be willing and able, would you be able to mentor me. I am vastly inexperienced, having been thrust into the position of Ruler quite suddenly, I was not told until near departure."

Sasha saw an offered opportunity and was going to grasp it with both hands. She knew she was inadequate but perhaps this Demon King might help her. She would be willing to follow his mentoring to the best of her abilities should he give aanswer to the affirmative. Sasha was willing to also put aside the mutual dislike the two races seemed to of each other. She thought for a moment. "I also would like to make a proposal that would benefit both of our races, tech and magic wise."

[Redthorn Anvil]

The same contemplative look that he'd shown earlier crossed his face again, and he stroked his chin with a mild frown.
"I am willing to show you what I know, if that is what you want." He replied after a moment.
"We can discuss this further over breakfast." He added as they entered the mess. He was hungry.
"Grim, why don't you snatch a table?" He suggested to the reaper, who grinned at him.
"Easy." And the tall man with the scythe strode off.

[SashaWindrider]

"Let`s hope he doesn`t actually carry a table away. I wouldn`t put it past him and his sense of humor" Sasha rmarked watch Grim go off. Her tummy gave a rumble. "I think breakfast is a good idea."

Sasha gave voice to another thought "We should be landing on terra firma soon"

[Redthorn Anvil]

Sephiroth seemed to consider her words. "I should have considered that..." he looked around for Grim with creased brows.
"Well, we can always have him take it back where it belongs if he does." He decided after a moment.
"He's an odd one." He looked at Sasha as she spoke again concerning the landing.
"Indeed, I believe we are already nearing Terra's atmosphere, if we are not already blazing accross it. More than likely, we will experience a few jolts. After breakfast I mean to help work in the engine room. I have a feeling that they will be hard-pressed to keep her cool while she's running overtime, so extra hands can't hurt."
He replied, picking through trays of breakfast food until he'd gotten all he wanted. There was a barely noticible hint of amusement in his eye.
"It must sound strange, for a noble to do menial labor." He commented almost as an afterthought, though, whether or not it had actually been addressed to Sasha was not discernable. He waited beside the stand until she got her food.

[SashaWindrider]

Sasha picked out her food. What was on her plate was the Genisis equivalent of lamb sausages, accompanied with peas and scrambled eggs. Sasha made no effort to return a comment to Sephiroth's observations, except for his one about Grim.

"I was going to ask where Grim is, but loking for the highest concentration of creeped out people seems to work just as well". This was not entirely wrong.

[Redthorn Anvil]

"Indeed, he's not a difficult one to spot with all the attraction he gets. It's a little disconcerting, really." Sephiroth looked mildly uncomfortable as he spoke. It appeared he wasn't fond of crowds. He gestured to one corner of the room.
"There."

Sure enough, one could clearly see the Grim's dark scythe poking up out of a crowd of other angels who seemed to be rather unnerved at its presence.

Sephiroth sighed in resignation, though he chose not to elaborate. He led Sasha through the mix to the table that the deathly angel had chosen.

"Aha, there you are! Sit, sit!" Grim grinned at the two of them, which broadened when he noted Sephiroth's expression.
"Come now old boy, surely you're not frightened by a few of my own kin?" He teased, gesturing at the tables around them. The magority of the tables' occupants were also angels.

Sephiroth scowled openly at the reaper.
"You're lucky I have the patience to tolerate your jokes." He muttered, then seated himself.

Grim laughed with a devilish smirk.
"Hehehehe. Oh, I forgot. People are almost as scared of you as they are of me! That's quite a feat you accomplished! But then again, I supposed you didn't even--"

Sephiroth cut him off, his voice was cool.
"If I didn't know better, I'd say you were trying to irritate me on purpose. Are you so obsessed with your job that you resort to manipulation to collect more souls? And these here are angels, no less, like you. I'm surprised that anyone of your kind could be so rutheless, Grim."

Grim bared his pointy teeth in a deceptive smile.
"Well, they don't call me the angel of death for no reason. But at least I don't go about massacring whole cities full of innocents simply from irritation at not having breakfast at the proper time."

Sephiroth stared at him with a blank expression for a moment or two. So was pretty much everyone else around their table.

After a moment, Sephiroth replied, "no? A pity. You should try it sometime, Grim. It really calms the nerves." His cool tone had not changed.

Then the neaby tables began clearing out, as if everyone there had suddenly all finished eating at the same time. Sephiroth began eating as if nothing had happened.

Then Grim burst out in a genuine laugh. "Oh that was priceless! Did you see the looks on their faces? Ahahahha!" He clutched his stomach in his laughing fit.

"Hmm." Sephiroth replied uninterestedly. He seemed quite devoted to his food at the moment.

[SashaWindrider]

Sasha sat down with the other two. "You didn`t really massacre innocents because your meal didn`t come when you wanted it, did you?" Sasha asked. "Any-way, doing that is not conductive to gaining respect or allies. I, at the very least, know that much."

"You frown a lot, you`ll get wrinkles if you aren't careful" Sasha casually observed.

Sasha thought for a moment "Grim, don't you dare incite Sephiroth into a murderous rampage. In fact don't incite any-one into a murderous rampage."

The space-craft began to shudder lightly. The vibrations were barely noticeable, they were akin to that of a cellphone.

[Redthorn Anvil]

Sephiroth awarded Sasha with a wry look.
"No, it wasn't because of the lack of breakfast. Though it is true that breakfast had been late that day." He replied, though, he hadn't denied the massacre part. He offered no more clarification on the matter, however.
"You can be assured, your Highness, that I wouldn't willfully harm your people. And you are quite right. It isn't good for such display amongst potential allies."

Grim made a clearly over-exaggerated pout. "But Sasha!!! Destruction and mayhem are so much fun!!!" He carried the tone of a disappointed child. Then he grinned again and laughed devilishly.

"I really don't see how you are related to the Angels, Grim. You just don't fit the personality type." Sephiroth commented.

[SashaWindrider]

"I agree with Sephiroth. You...just...well, I don't think you would even fit in with the demons. Even they don't have your same bloodthirst." Sasha said as she gave the Reaper a dark look. "Should you incite any-one into even the tiniest rampage, I'll see to it you don't sit comfortably for week" Sasha growled good-humoredly. All the same, she didn't need people dying because Grim thought it would be funny.

She mused over what Sephiroth had said, he hadn't denied murdering people. She hadn't heard reports of the now Demon ruler murdering a bunch of Angels, so that incident had to have occurred over the Demon side of No Man's Land. Either way she felt she would at least want to be somewhat wary around Sephiroth.
---------------------------------------------------------------
Azurael, had in the meantime, just finished giving Damien a clout to his left ear.

The demon laughed rubbing his now sore. "What was the for?" He asked still laughing.

Azurael responded "Even though I may hate them and they are probably dead, you need not insult my parentage." With which she, quite hypocritically followed up by insulting Damien's own parentage in a low enough voice that only he would hear. She got quite inventive with the insults. Damien laughed.

"Get back to work" Azurael told him, now speaking in a normal tone of voice. She was quite absorbed in the controls. "Dammit" Azurael muttered. "We can't alter trajectory now can we? We have what looks to be a Supercell cloud forming right where we need to land."

Damien also became absorbed in his controls. He began typing furiously into his control panel. "I don't know."

[Redthorn Anvil]

"Steady there, lover boy, don't kill the keyboard." T'vor told Damian. He leaned over Azurael's shoulder to see what she was looking at. He frowned.
"Set underside thrusters to half power, alter angle by minus...point zero eight three. Turn us about fifteen degrees starboard. We can't change the trajectory, as you pointed out, but we can alter the angle that we come in to minimize hull damage."
He triggered the ship-wide com radio. "Attention all on board, this is the general. Due to Terra's erratic weather patterns, we'll have a rough landing. Landing procedures are commencing as of now. Recommending that all passengers secure themselves in a safe area. There will be no further warnings for the duration of this procedure."
He shut off the com and sat himself down in one of the pilot's seats before strapping himself in.
"Buckle up, ladies, you heard me." He called to the rest of them.

---

Sephiroth looked up from his food at T'vor's announcement, then afterwards, he sighed. "Right in the middle of breakfast..." He muttered.
Immediately, the whole room swiftly cleared out as people hurried to follow the general's instructions. Sephiroth stood up.
"Grim, see the princess safely out." Then he turned and strode off.

Grim chuckled.
"Even after our conversation, you'd trust me with Sasha's safety? Either you're a fool, or a bloody genius!" He called after the white-haired demon, who didn't respond.
"Come, Sasha! You're the only royal Angel on board, so we can't let you get hurt!" Grim gave her a toothy grin, then beckoned for her to follow.