GambolMuse

Dragon Ball: Legacy (Mogtaki and Vena Sera)

Haku supposed that made sense, how would a spirit feel pain? So whatever T'charrl had done earlier had scared it then and maybe it wanted to be safe near him. But why him? That was the one thing both he and T'charrl still couldn't understand, why was this spirit following him? He'd done nothing other than sit down here and surely that hadn't triggered it. With luck there would be answers soon enough, his head was spinning trying to sort out this mess himself.

"Well... What if you didn't do this then? What if I did something?" Haku suggested, giving T'charrl what amounted to a nervous smile. He didn't know how he would have managed such a feat, he didn't have the sort of abilities that his friend had. Hell, there wasn't a single remarkable thing about him really. He was plain looking, average for a Saiyan, even weaker than someone like Yumi. He had no special training in anything and hadn't really ever accomplished much of note, so how would he have been able to do this? Were he not standing there that very moment, the ghost like dog at his feet, Haku would be hard pressed to believe anything was because of him, but what other explanation was there?

Smiling apologetically at his friend the Saiyan rubbed at his neck, glancing around the area before sitting down again. "I'm sorry, I'll be sure to be quiet this time, won't happen again," Haku muttered, figuring his friend could simply settle down again and try sitting. To his right the creature let out what sounded like a whine again, and as he glanced over it padded towards T'charrl, stopping at the Kaesstrian's feet. "H-Hey, what're you doing, uh..." He hadn't named it had he? This was worrisome though seeing it go over towards T'charrl, he hoped it wasn't going to harm his friend.

Glancing up at T'charrl with white opal-colored eyes the creature tilted its head curiously, smelling something unusual on the being before him. They smelled like two people, why was that? Moving closer to him the creature sniffed at his leg, then proceeded to rub against it once before emitting a yipping sound. It seemed to be eager to be around T'charrl in spite of being threatened earlier, getting up on its hind legs and placing its front paws on his leg, its two tails wagging excitably. Again it yipped, appearing like it wanted something from the Kaesstrian.

-----

"You certainly did. And you came with those people, according to what my men saw. A decent act boy, but sorry to say it was over before you even started," the captain said as the sounds of fighting raged outside. He didn't seem much to mind it even as one of the walls was nearly broken through, courtesy of one of his men being slammed into it. There was only one way for this to end for Kiton and that was by fighting, and somehow emerging victorious for it. Posing that choice he smirked when the Frost Demon accepted it, letting out a short chuckle and nodding. "Not that you had much of a choice, we'd fight either way. How about we get started then?" None of that usual nonsense fighters seemed to had, blathering away and all that. Honor be damned, he wasn't some soldier living by a code. Once he'd pushed the desk aside the captain took one step forward and held his leg in the air for a split second, smashing it back down on the floor. The effects of his strike caused a fissure to appear in the rock below, the ground cracking and splitting as large stones jutted up, the fissure racing towards Kiton. Assuming he would dodge it the fissure burst right through the door, even partially blowing apart the wall to reveal the fighting on the other side.

"The captains in the fight! We've got this now!" one of the pirates cheered, promptly silenced as a fist connected with his jaw and sent him spiraling away.

"You haven't won shit, moron," Ricken growled, flexing his mechanical fist before glaring at Kiton, "Deal with him, we'll help as soon as we take care of these idiots!"

Watching his underlings be swatted like flies was humiliating, surely they could do better than this. "I'd appreciate you not calling my men idiots. Weaklings yes, but they're not idiots," the captain said with a shake of his head, sighing as he turned back to the desk again. Easily lifting it with one hand he turned back towards Kiton, taking a swing at the Frost Demon again and managing to smash it to splinters against the wall as it was avoided, extending a hand and firing off a Ki blast that blew apart the other wall, part of the ceiling crumbling along with it.

-----

"I just figured a nap might help you, that's all. Regain a little energy," Yumi answered uncertainly, not knowing what more she might suggest. Food might help but she doubted Viral had an appetite, not after all he'd likely eaten the last few days. From the sounds of it he only needed to rest out in the sun and regain his strength that way, something that even she could help him with. Glancing at him curiously when she was questioned she only offered a shake of her head in return, hardly planning anything. She just wanted to get him somewhere he would be safe and be able to relax, that was all, there was no ulterior or anything to it.

"Viral! Oh thank goodness!"

A bit startled by the sudden shout Yumi glanced ahead, smiling seeing June barreling towards them, with Vegeta hot on her heels. Well this was nice, she was glad they had come out to see them. But how had they known? It was only then she noticed there was another energy nearby, blinking once and glancing towards the side of the road; stood against one of the trees, a knowing smile on his face was Aito. Of course he'd been around to watch over them, he'd done a magnificent job of hiding himself. Wait... He had been there the whole time, which meant...

June smiled broadly as she placed her arms around Viral, pulling him into a secure hug as tears welled in her eyes. "Oh Viral...! They said you would be okay, that you would calm down, but I was worried sick! You look exhausted honey..." She wanted so badly to bring him back home and let him lay down, make him something to eat and essentially baby him. Aito had warned her time and time again against doing such a thing however and she had to accept that both Viral and Vegeta weren't the little children she remembered. Still... A mother could worry couldn't she?

"Glad to see you're okay, being half-naked aside," Vegeta chimed in, standing just behind June as he watched the scene with a faintly amused smile, "And... Sorry it took so long. We wanted to wait, to make sure nothing happened, but we were looking after you the whole time."

"Vegeta did most of it really, he spent most of the time out there, just keeping an eye on where you were," Aito added as he approached the group, winking at Yumi teasingly before patting her on the back, "He really wanted to be sure you'd be okay, we're glad to see you back here in one piece. Welcome back Viral."

Dragon Ball: Legacy (Mogtaki and Vena Sera)

"W-Well... It sounded like it was whimpering, I think..." Haku muttered as he glanced at the creature again. Had T'charrl not heard it? He swore he heard it whimpering and he was sure he wasn't crazy, not if his friend was seeing it too. Something must be special about this spirit for it to be interacting with him right? From the sounds of it this wasn't normal, they could generally only be seen by T'charrl and no one else. So what did that mean? Why could he see it? The fact there was no answer to it worried Haku yet he was just as intrigued as he was uneasy over the whole matter. Getting up from his spot he tried moving away from the spirit only for it to follow him, sitting dutifully at his feet and lifting its narrow snout up to him, its broad tail beating against the ground.

"I mean I don't feel any different, I don't think you did anything. Maybe it just likes me?" Didn't make much sense, a spirit liking someone. If it were a living dog-thing then there'd be no questions, they would just move on with their day. But a ghost dog? That had him all out of sorts. Scratching at his head thoughtfully Haku moved towards T'charrl again, glancing back as the animal followed at his heels, stopping whenever he stopped. This was very odd, neat but odd. Smiling slightly amused he turned to his friend and lifted his shoulders in a shrug, "I guess I've got another friend, while we're here anyways. He seems to be friendly right? Nothing to worry about!"

-----

"Oh? Isn't that adorable, you're popular. I'm sure some "club" would love to have you as a member," the pirate captain replied in a snide tone, hardly buying into Kiton's supposed value. Being a Frost Demon meant nothing to him, it was results that he cared about and he knew nothing of the boy's accomplishments, or even lack thereof. "You're right, normally it would be idiotic to stage an attack like this. We don't have the resources for a siege nor do we have the man power to hold back a whole force of Galactic Police. So then why are we doing this? What possible reason could we have for attacking a town like this?" He'd let Kiton think on that for a moment and try figuring it out himself, it shouldn't be hard. Pulling a bottle of liquor from a cabinet behind the desk he broke the cork off with ease, taking half of the bottle down in one gulp before frowning. Weak drink, what good was this bitter pisswater?

Outside the room the sound of blasters firing would disturb the silence that had settled, followed by shouts on both Ricken and Sasha's parts. It sounded like they were getting into a fight beyond the doors, and a good one at that as the fighting quickly escalated, Ki blasts even being fired off in retaliation. "There's a lot of things I don't like, Kiton, and being underestimated is one of them. I don't know who you are but did you expect us not to recognize two rebels when we saw them? Or the rebel craft?" the captain asked, frowning as he sloshed the liquid around in his bottle, "I know exactly why you're here, and what you and your friends intend to do. And since I'm a very busy man I don't have time for these games, so..." Pausing the man took down the last of the drink, throwing the bottle aside and rising from his chair, pushing the desk aside into the wall. "How about we just get right to it? Beat me and the hostages go free, lose and you die, plain and simple."

-----

Yumi couldn't stand there and explain love to Viral, it wasn't as though she were some love guru. Truth be told she didn't understand her own feelings entirely either aside from the fact she knew what she was feeling. She did love others too, her love for Viral just felt different. It was similar to what she'd felt for Choi for a period of time, only this was more... Intense? Real? Hell if she knew, it frustrated her too being unable to properly express her feelings. The fact Viral didn't react favorably to her admission either left her feeling a bit dejected too and not wanting to push the matter any more. Instead of keeping on that line of thought she grabbed his paw and pulled him along, wanting to be back to the house and getting him some attention he desperately needed.

"Right... Sorry, let's just focus on getting back, okay?" She didn't want to needlessly bog Viral down with any more baggage than he already had on him. That admission now in hindsight was awfully selfish of her too, wanting to try and make him feel better so she would in turn. That wasn't right, she should be trying to help him simply for the sake of helping him, not to benefit from it too. As they drew nearer to the home Yumi eased up on the pace a little, looking back at Viral every so often to see how he was doing. As soon as they stepped inside she figure he'd be swarmed by June and Aito alike, and Vegeta would likely want to see him as well. She hated to admit it put part of her wanted to keep him for herself for the time being, to try looking after him for a change. "Viral...? How about instead of going inside I take you out back? Unless you're really hurt you can lay down in the hammock and nap, I'll make sure no one bothers you."

Adelon: Steeling the Faith [Open!]

REVEAL TO ME YOUR INNER MACHINATIONS! >:O

Dragon Ball: Legacy (Mogtaki and Vena Sera)

T'charrl didn't understand him? Well to be fair he didn't understand himself or any of this for that matter. Here he was on a planet that was attacked by who knows what, a city lay in ruins and people and plants dead everywhere and yet some ghost animal was licking him. Haku expected a lot today yet not this, never in his wildest, nerve ridden dreams would he imagine this was what he'd get. "I don't know, I just... It felt like it was hurting. I mean you heard it whimper right?" He wasn't just imagining this thing which was good, T'charrl could see it too. Though if he was seeing spirits then what did that mean? And why could he only see this and not others? Glancing around the area to be sure he furrowed his brow at the emptiness before them, gasping when the creature nudged against his side, begging to be pet. Smiling nervously he placed a hand on its head and found it unusually cool to the couch. Stroking it felt a lot like stroking a broad leaf, kind of soft and slick at the same time.

"I... I don't get it, so why can I see this... And not other spirits?" Haku finally asked, having to voice his confusion, "If you did something then... Then I could see them all, right? There are other spirits here right?" Granted he had very little idea how T'charrl's powers worked, even less than T'charrl did himself. But why would his friend's powers reveal only a single spirit to him? Biting his lip uncertainly the Saiyan pushed himself up to his feet, wanting to test something as he took a few steps away. The creature as though it knew him for far longer dutifully nipped at his heels, sitting beside Haku when he stopped moving. Blinking a few times he let out a nervous laugh, reaching down and petting it again before looking at T'charrl. "I-I think it likes me... Oh wow... I've never had a pet before... A spirit pet... Thing..."

-----

"Hm... Is that right, Kiton? And you're wanting to get rid of the Galactic Police? That's adorable," the captain spoke, smiling amused as he folded two massive arms over his chest, "They're like roaches, just like we are. Kill one and ten more sprout up, getting rid of them isn't something we can do, no one can. Besides, if you know the right people and have what they want then most turn the other cheek anyway, bunch of corrupt sorts they are." Clearing his throat the pirate turned and spit into a nearby bin, walking closer to Kiton then and leaning over a bit, staring down at the Frost Demon.

"Let me guess... You came here thinking you could use that as a bargaining chip. Maybe we'd be afraid that someone will show up and try to take us out? And because of that we'd accept you into our rank? Well it's not the most original idea, you won't be the last to try it either," he pointed out, walking back towards the desk and sitting in the chair again, the wood protesting against his massive weight, "I know what you're capable of, Frost Demon, but we don't need your help. We have ways of avoiding capture and dealing with enemies, we've been doing this a long time. If they're after you then that's your problem, I'm not wasting any resources or any men trying to help you, understand me?"

-----

Yumi didn't really know why she had just done that or what prompted her to. It had come without any thought on her part and even after moving away she was just as confused, maybe even more. This felt so alien to her even with having been with Choi, yet this was completely different for her. When she told Viral what it all meant he was completely lost, and she couldn't help herself but groan and place her head in her hand. "Why... Why does everything have to be explained to you men? I swear..." she moaned, shaking her head before smiling slightly amused. She couldn't seriously be mad at Viral for this, she knew it was strange coming from her. Hell, she didn't even really know what she meant or was feeling right now, her head was aflutter with dozens of thoughts and she felt short of breath yet she hadn't a clue why.

"I mean exactly what I said Viral. I love you. I care about you a lot, I want you to be safe, I want to help you. I don't get why it's so complicated," Yumi stated matter of factly, her face reddening again as she had to look away. Clearing her throat awkwardly she rubbed at her arm, not sure if she really should commit to this whole business now. She couldn't just walk away now after pulling that and expect Viral to be okay with it though, she did owe him answers. "I... I don't know really, I'm just as confused as you are. And who cares about 'my own kind'. That doesn't keep me from loving someone. I love Shu and Takeshi too, and Kai and Choi and Kabocha, and T'charrl and June and Aito... I just love you differently. I don't know! This isn't exactly stuff I'm really used to either, I don't have all the answers."

"Everyone just wants you to get better Viral, and be there with us. It's nothing huge really is it?" No one had grand expectations or assumed that he would do anything, nor did anyone assume he'd do nothing. Whatever Viral did was fine, however much or however little, that was his call. To say people expected from him or wanted from him wasn't fair, it made it sound like he was just a means to an end. Letting out a sigh Yumi slapped her own cheeks before smiling, grabbing Viral's paw to lead him along as she started walking again, wanting to get back to the house now and over this awkwardness. "All you need to know is that we'll get through this bump together, I'll be there the entire way. So don't feel like you're alone on this, and if you ever feel lost you have me to fall back on. That goes for everyone else too, you don't have to struggle by yourself."

Adelon: Steeling the Faith [Open!]

Beats me :P

Adelon: Steeling the Faith [Open!]

Nymira doesn't know about what Ethan did for one, she came later :P And yeah but no one knows he's from the Church, including Ethan who is at least somewhat aware that the Church is TAKING Magi. Plus you're talking about a woman who has largely never been outside her clan, she doesn't know how much operates let alone the Church.

Adelon: Steeling the Faith [Open!]

Ethan did feel badly for abandoning Amuné to the others yet someone had to chase Cecil. What Nymira had said must have upset him greatly if he was trying to way and no way in good conscience could that happen; they all had goals to complete and see through, Cecil was no different. If he had to be left on his own again there was a serious concern what might happen to him, it was always safer to travel in a group. Were he not so adamant about chasing his friend he'd not have launched himself in the air as he had, nor would he have made such a "graceful" a landing as that. Saints it had stung but he was up here, now he just had to convince the Machina not to run away.

"What do you mean its not your name...? It's what you told us your name was, so it's your name," Ethan pointed out, wincing as he nursed a bump on his forehead gingerly, "Or... C-X 00, whatever you want to be called. To me you're Cecil though, so I'm going to call you that." Taking a deep breath the Magi got to his feet, surprisingly stable despite being exhausted and taking the blow to the head. "Cecil, what Nymira said, I'm sure she didn't mean it. She said herself she's not used to this kind of thing right? So uh... Maybe she just needs time. She was wrong too, because you and I are friends, and... I know Amuné is your friend too still, and Zander and Geoffrey could be your friends. There's a lot of people here who don't want to see you go."

Nymira hadn't a clue why her words had turned into such a big ordeal. Of everything they had to be concerned about this was what split them up? These people had thinner hides than she'd thought. Rolling her eyes at the nonsense she continued to pick at her meal, taking pause only when Zander questioned her habits. "There is nothing to worry about. Cecil will see reason and return, as will Ethan and Amuné. I don't care if we're not the best of friends, what I said was the truth of the matter. I'd prefer being honest than to fill their heads with pretty lies about camaraderie and friendship." They were allies in arms and fellow travelers with most of them owing their lives to Cecil now in some way or another. Debts didn't make friends though, more often than not debts made enemies. They would travel for convenience as she'd said and debts would be repaid, everyone would go their separate ways and move on with their lives, simple as that.

"The Church? No, they seem to be the one single thing not trying to kill us," Nymira joked bitterly, smiling as she chased a piece of steak with her mead, "Rogue Magi? Void beasts? Wild animals? I've had the pleasure of being attacked by all of those but not the Church. And I would prefer that it stay that way. Fighting the Church would only create a rift between my people and yours and we're trying to build alliances, not make enemies." She avoided conflict where she could for that reason and yet the Murans had an insatiable taste for causing trouble with her. To be fair the number of decent people she had met far outweighed the bad yet the bad tended to stick with her more.

"And the reason I have no guard --" Nymira had began to speak when the door was thrown open and Amuné ran back inside, near barreling over Geoffrey and passing several patrons on her way towards the stairs. Baffled by why the girl was so upset she watched her little form retreat to the rooms above, wondering what had happened with Ethan. That buffoon babied the girl so much she was astonished he wasn't there with her, almost wanting to get up herself and go see what was happening. The care however quickly faded at the smell of her meal, being reminded of the hole in her stomach she had still yet to completely fill. Shrugging it off then for now she cut into her steak once more, going back to eating again.

"The reason I have no guard, simply put, is they're dead," Nymira shared through a mouthful, wiping at the corners of her mouth before looking to Zander, "I had four guards with me when I first set out. One died to a pack of wolves, another took an assassin's arrow meant for me, and I don't know what happened with the other two. An enemy clan attacked us on the border and they gave me time to escape, we were sorely outnumbered. I can only assume they're dead as well." For a moment there almost seemed to be a pang of regret on the Dimuran's face as her features crumpled, though as quickly as it had happened it was gone, replaced with her generally emotionless visage. Pausing to take a swig of her ale she let out a sigh, staring at the liquid inside thoughtfully. "So that's why I was traveling alone, without guard. None of the others know about that, consider yourself special."

Adelon: Steeling the Faith [Open!]

Ethan literally befriends everyone ;A;

Dragon Ball: Legacy (Mogtaki and Vena Sera)

"W-Well why is it happening then, huh? What does it mean?" Haku asked hectically, glancing around from behind T'charrl to look for the spirit. He still couldn't see anything, now this was creepy! Biting his lip as his friend began doing something he moved back a bit, trembling slightly from nerves as he waited for the situation to be resolved. Something he could see was one thing, being wholly unable to see what was touching him was much too unsettling. For a moment nothing seemed to happen, everything as silent as it had been moments before. When a whimpering noise caught Haku's attention however he became even more confused than before and had to look around, wondering where in the world it was coming from. When he spotted a strange almost transparent animal nearby, its head hidden under its front paws, his eyes widened in shock; that thing, whatever it was, had to be what had been touching him. It looked like one of those dogs back on Earth, only this one had a lot of really long, broad things on it, he had no idea what it was. It looked harmless though.

"Wait, wait, I think you're hurting it!" Haku said as he moved over slowly, still quite a bit uneasy about getting close. When T'charrl finally stopped the creature seemed to stop whimpering, lifting its head from its paws and glancing at him curiously. Well this was very weird, he was looking at a ghost right now wasn't he? Smiling timidly he continued moving along, stopping dead in his tracks when the creature began moving towards him. Despite his trembling Haku stayed put, watching as it came right up alongside him, sniffed at him and then licked his cheek. So it really was like a dog wasn't it? Laughing nervously he sat down on his rear, reaching out and trying to touch it, startled and withdrawing his hand when he actually felt the creature. "No way... It's... It's a spirit right?" he asked with a glance to T'charrl. "So why can I touch it?"

-----

The pirates seemed to tense up slightly at that claim, that blasting Kiton would do no good. It was true that none of them knew what he was or had ever heard of "Frost Demons", and goofy though he may have looked earlier up close he was somewhat intimidating. No one was brave enough to openly admit that though and they remained silent, ushering the boy inside where two more pirates awaited him. As the doors were shutting behind them Kiton may catch glimpse of two figures swooping in, Sasha and Ricken respectively as they made quick work of the guards, ready to move in after him at a moment's notice. Those escorting the Frost Demon would be blissfully unaware that as the doors shut behind them their compatriots were now lying out in the dirt unconscious.

Where there were a few pirates stationed intermittently outside here in the building they were plentiful. Some rooms were full of them sitting around, enjoying food and drink and having the time of their lives. Others lounged about, and now and again a room would be passed, doors sealed and closely guarded. Doubtless if there were indeed hostages that was where they would be hidden. They moved directly past those rooms and continued down the central hall, passing through two sets of doors before stopping at a third and final set. A sign designating this room as the mayor's had been crudely scratched out and hanged from a single bolt, four more pirates stood outside of this room, all armed and lined up against the walls.

"Here's the boss kid, you'd better be quick, and don't say anything to make him mad," one of the pirates warned, stepping back and gesturing for the door to be opened, "Whatever you are it ain't nothing compared to the boss, so don't go thinking you're something special. He'll kill you in an instant if you try anything."

The doors were parted, and the room beyond was revealed to be heavily cluttered, all kinds of personal belongings stripped from homes and shops littered around the room. At the head of the room was a massive man in what looked like well worn Saiyan armor, his massive blue toned body straining the malleable material around him. His hair was a deep grayish-blue, long and unkempt matching the beard that hugged his jaw and chin, covering most of his face. When the man glanced up from the device in his hands only one eye looked at Kiton, the other hidden behind a patch. Silently looking at the newcomer for a moment he smiled slightly, setting down the device and rising up from his chair.

"A Frost Demon... And here I thought your kind extinct," the pirate mused, rising to his full height of just over two meters, well towering over the diminutive Kiton. "I expected a lot of people to appear here. The rebels, the Saiyans, the Galactic Police, but you? What reason could one of your kind have for coming here?"

-----

Yumi couldn't keep flying, not with how upset the conversation was making her. After setting down back on the solid ground she kept an arm around Viral for support, moving slowly as not to strain his tired body. What more could she say about this? She'd made her stance clear and so had he, they were two completely different positions and neither was going to back down. She knew this and she should respect that yet she couldn't. Viral was too ready to let himself be the victim, to be hurt, for something he had no control over. That wasn't fair to him, or her, or anyone, she wouldn't allow it. Yes maybe things would be easier if they brought him down during those rampages, maybe trouble would be spared everyone if he was just knocked out or beaten. But that was far from an ideal solution, it wasn't something they could do every single time.

She wanted the conversation to just be dropped, she couldn't keep listening to it. Proposing that he be hurt or worse to spare others trouble, it was unthinkable. Yet here it came again though Viral sounded more confused than anything now. It was painful to hear him speak this way as though he were a burden on everyone when he really wasn't. Shu had troubles, T'charrl had troubles, even she had some, everyone did and yet no one else saw anyone as a problem; with everyone else's struggles not being a huge deal why would Viral be any different? Not to diminish his struggles, Yumi would never do that, but she just thought it shouldn't be made into a big deal. Making a huge deal made it seem worse than it was, like that was all the person was, a problem to be fixed. She didn't want that and she was sure no one else did too.

Everyone is just so accepting and I don't understand why... Those words felt like a shot directly at her heart as they were spoken, Yumi stopping in her tracks as a result. Why couldn't he understand? Was it really so hard? Swallowing nervously she turned to Viral then, and when doing so placed her hand on the side of his face. Without so much as a single thought on her part she rose up on her toes and placed her lips against his own, closing her eyes and holding that embrace. It only lasted seconds yet it felt much longer than that, and when she finally pulled away her face was red as the scarf around his neck.

"Because we love you Viral, because I love you..." Yumi muttered, putting on a smile as she tried to cheer up her friend, "We've said it before, you're like family to us, and to others you're even more than that. It's what friends and family do for each other, we help each other and we accept one another for who we are. Just because you have some trouble doesn't mean we'll abandon you, we'd never do that. No matter what happens we're here for the long haul," she explained, giving his cheek a stroke with her thumb before pulling her hand back too, "Nothing will change that, no matter how you might change or what you say, we'll all always be there."

Dragon Ball: Legacy (Mogtaki and Vena Sera)

One second he'd been sitting still perfectly fine and the next something had brushed up against him. If he wasn't mistaken something licked him too. Yet when he'd opened his eyes to look around there wasn't anything in sight; if T'charrl had licked him, which he doubted, it was impressive for someone sitting almost two meters away. Scrambling back to try and get away from the unseen threat he looked around nervously, hearing his friend's stammering over the pounding of his own heart. "What d-do you mean how is IT touching me? What is it?!" Haku asked in a panicked voice, cracking a bit as he looked around. Again something brushed against his side, and while it felt soft having something you couldn't see touch you was too freaky. Letting out a yelp he crawled away towards T'charrl on all fours, hiding behind him and trembling. "C-Cmon... Wh-what's going on? Make it stop!"

-----

"Heard about it? Who'd ya hear it from huh?" one of the pirates asked, narrowing his eyes right back, "One of those idiots from out of town go running to you? Supposed to be some kinda hero?"

"Hey, shut up, if we just go randomly blasting folks the boss will be pissed," another interrupted, reaching out and pushing his comrade's arm down and the blaster with it. "Look kid, we don't just let anyone inside, got it? And what reason would the Saiyans have for coming here anyway, huh? This world ain't nothing special, there's no reason for those sorts to come here."

"Well we're here for their people, the Saiyans could do the same," a third spoke, seeming a bit unsettled moreso than the others, "We can't be the only ones who want these folks right? Maybe the kid has a point..."

The men seemed to consider that for a moment, turning away from Kiton and silently discussing among themselves. If word had indeed gotten out then the Saiyans could well show up and if they did anything they had here was forfeit. Getting out seemed like the ideal way to go about things, yet they hadn't gotten a single bit of pay for their captives yet and leaving with a few people hardly seemed worthwhile. If they didn't leave though and the Saiyans showed up... Well, they had best hope their boss could fend them off.

"Alright kid, we'll let you in to see the boss, but no funny business," one of the pirates explained, ushering Kiton forward before knocking on the doors. At once they were pulled back and the way inside revealed, two more pirates beyond the entrance ready to escort the newcomer, "Take him to the boss, says he's got some knowledge that he may wanna know. If he tries anything shoot him then and there, got it?"

-----

"So you think running off on your own is safer than fighting with us? Really?" Yumi wasn't even attempting to hide her disbelief, rolling her eyes and letting out a barely muted groan. "Viral... I know you don't want to fight near us and hurt us, I get that. But do you stop and consider what the things you're wanting to do end up doing to us? How nerve-wracking it is to think you fighting alone? Getting hurt? Dy-" Her voice cracked at the last word and she bit her tongue, clearing her throat and shaking her head. It needn't be said anyways, Viral had probably thought about it a dozen times himself before she'd ever brought it up. "Maybe it's selfish but I can't let you go fight alone, and I don't think the others can either. We're your friends Viral, none of us could live with ourselves if you ended up hurt or worse because we weren't there to help."

Having taken flight to get home sooner Yumi ignored Viral's protests, knowing full well how he felt about it. He may need immediate attention for all she knew and so taking a casual stroll home just wasn't going to cut it. As if Yumi wasn't already nervous enough about everything now Viral was bringing up his well being again, namely whether he was unstable or not. She hated this conversation and it shouldn't even be up for discussion, yet here they were going over it again. The idea just tore her to shreds inside, she could never do such a thing. Yet he was persistent and insisted it was inevitable, that it might have to be done.

"Just stop it! Please just stop it!" Yumi shouted, shaking her head before staring down at Viral tearfully, "I won't silence you, I won't hurt you, I definitely will not kill you. I don't care how bad it gets, I'll... I'll find another way to stop you. I'll restrain you or I'll... I don't know..." Damn it, she always hated this. He was supposed to be getting better, happier, not asking to be put down if he went a bit out of control. Closing her eyes to force back any tears that might fall she took a second to compose herself, gradually dropping towards the road now that they were closer. Tentatively setting down on her feet she eased Viral onto his own, keeping an arm around his waist to support him. "Let's just get you home, okay? We'll worry about that stuff later..."