The ride the human party had on the catbus was far from pleasant, yet different individuals were at a different distance from "pleasant". The majority found it to be a harrowing experience, the side effects of which would surely require months of therapy to heal.As for Hakuren, he could not care less whether the vehicle was upside-down or not.
Positioned comfortable in his seat, he had stretched his legs forward on the ground, leaned back and placed his hands behind his head, subsequently holding his hat whenever there was a sharp turn or a loop. With his eyes shut and expression positively happy, one would think he would truly be purring, if he were a feline. Whilst everyone else screamed and clung for their future grandchildren's sake, the young man in the midnight green coat did not even bat an eyelid at the happenings around him. The seat belt properly fastened around him, the howls of terror and fear were only elevator music as he thought about the many opportunities his new power offered, as well as the numerous methods of utilising its potential.
An ability, the basics of which was to tap into the world around oneself to a molecular level, in order to decrease the pressure and lower the temperature, reordering the structure of hydrogen and oxygen atoms, perhaps of other elements as well, seeing as this was Nowhere, was truly marveling in theory. Ice. It could be morphed into anything. It could have any thickness. Place enough energy into one single snowflake and that innocent little piece of white could flutter at your command to your unsuspecting enemy and freeze them in place. But there might truly be no need for it. After all, every living being had water in their system. The requirements would be to simply concentrate hard enough on the target and ice could form, halting them from the inside out. Their own body could become their own icy prison.
Alas, this would not be done with ease and the lad knew this well. Regardless of the countless ideas stirring in his mind like a wild snowstorm, magic this dangerous would not yield without a fight. It would take some time, if it could be metaphorically assumed that such existed in this dimension, before he would be able to attack accurately. Without a doubt, there will be a need to exercise and get accustomed to casting spells in action. Practice makes perfect. Figuring this out, the boy wondered in his thoughts:
‘We’ll reach the border and simply get escorted to the castle. Where’s the fun in that? I doubt there will be any chance to practice before clashing with the more problematic opponents. It’s been awhile since something out of order happened. If anything would happen, it should happen right about-’
At that very moment, the catbus halted in midair.
‘now?’Out of fuel and our of sight, the fluffy giant lost altitude rapidly, dropping like a rock, it’s head towards the ground. The critter let out yawls of displease as it fell from grace so quickly, yet its pleas were not heard, for the screaming of the humans inside were louder than a room full of sewing machines. Harper had grasped a hold of Leon and Jasper, someone was trying to yell something to the rest, but the words got lost in the wind, and the only thing that made Hakuren uncomfortable was the thought of that short ponytail of his getting out from his clothes and waving like a white flag, as well as for his dear hat, which was now under threat of being swept away by the current.
“Oh no, you don’t.” he mumbled as he used both of his hands to keep his fedora on and hair concealed.
Unfortunately, this would prove to be a bad decision.
The impact was rough, yet did not end with a mere crash. The bus rolled downhill, turning its insides into a pot, which was being stirred. Hakuren’s seat belt could no longer perform its duties and broke, and, due to the fact that his hands were occupied, he was sent into the whirlwind chaos of the car. Several times he slammed into Leon, who had also lost his balance. Not uttering a single sound, the black-blue-haired person kept his eyes closed and arms around his head. It would end eventually. Until then, he would have to be a bowling ball and roll with the rest of them.
Harper said
"I...I can't believe we're alive."
Those were the first words that broke the painful silence. The catbus’s journey had inevitably been cut short after it slammed into a tree. They were now at the border between what looked like a dessert fairy tale and an ordinary forest. Grouching and moaning, the Lost Souls rose to their feet, but were neither in shock, nor shivering in fear. This was, after all, a normal field trip to them. Such unexpected occurrences were actually rather common and, for their sake, it was best that they got used to them.
“I’m fine.” Hakuren said with a smile when his name was called by Riddle. He was still on the floor, but managed to push himself up to a sitting position with some effort. The catbus’s surface was so soft and comfortable. It would be one of the fines beds, if used for sleeping.
Riley said
"You guys okay?"
The new girl asked, offering him a hand. The young man did not reject the offer.
“Yah, no worries.” he responded in a friendly manner. The red-head’s face was lovely up close, her hair was a flame, just like her amulet, and her eyes were a light blue, like a winter sky, yet did not have the chill he was looking for. The one who had it was not there and he was partly glad. Having someone so bluntly remark his actions in a negative way was not to his liking. Not in this dream, at least.
Up on his feet, Hakuren headed for the window, but rather than leap down when on the frame, the youngster grabbed hold of the fluffy wall on it’s outer side and hastily climbed upwards. Without any difficulties, he reached his destination and sat comfortably on the catbus’s roof. If one becomes stranded, it is best to look around from a high point and establish one’s location. Albeit he did not see a road or the like, the lad did spot something peculiar. Slimes. Indeed, creatures exactly the same as the ones from video games approached them in great numbers. From the safety of the roof Hakuren observed as the rest of his comrades took action or rolled around in cowardice with a slime on their face, such was Harper’s case. Lying in his chosen spot, it was as if he was watching a gameplay video.
Vincent established his role as a beserker by bulldozing his way through the animate half-liquid army and entering a one-on-one battle with what appeared to be the boss of this newbie level, the giant slime. Typical for his class, the blondie didn’t think twice before he acted. No, he didn’t even think once. He simply jumped in head-first into the arena that had quickly formed, using his mere fists for weapons. Despite the fact that his amulet was meant to give him massive amounts of strength, it did barely anything against this creature, which was not made of a hard substance. The man got stuck before landing a proper attack on the thing and would have been devoured, were it not for Leon, who came to the rescue and barely pulled his comrade out of the way. They reminded the viewer of Timon and Pumba, the famous troublesome due.
On the sidelines, Ace and Riley were doing a splendid job. Gracefully dancing with flames, they burned and sliced all that came in sight. It pleased the eye, especially Ace, whose size was bigger and flexible. No wonder they had red hair. Now, if only they wore something a bit more suitable. Surely, they felt torrid in those clothes. Something that revealed more skin, for instance. It needed to breathe as well. What Mado had found back in Yonder would have been perfect for them.
Immersed as he was in his thoughts in what kind of attire he would like to see the ladies in, what did manage to divert Hakuren’s attention was the loud ‘plop’ sound, which had been made by the giant slime. The leader had spit a green substance all over Vincent and Leon, which attracted the little ones towards them. While those poor unfortunate souls had become the main targets of the monsters, Hakuren had placed a hand over his mouth, trying to silence the laugh that was already making him shake. This was hilarious. Feather would be absolutely revolted to have goo practically everywhere on him. He was no queen, just a silly princess.
The slime gag was a good one. It was enjoyable while it lasted, but the situation got serious when the boss headed straight for the soaked humans with an alarming speed and might. Rage burning in its eyes, it certainly wasn’t preparing to give them a bear hug.
Letting out a sigh, Hakuren rose from the comfort of the catbus roof and stood on his feet, watching the scene before his sharp green-blue eyes.
“Just when it got interesting.” There was a light smile on his face, but what exactly did it mean, no one could ever be certain.
“Usque ad caelum et ad turrim surrexit.”Where did the incantation come from was not a question that bothered him. The point was that he knew of it and was sure would work.
Ice quickly formed below Vincent and Leon’s feet, yet did not freeze them. Instead, it built up, layer after layer, becoming a huge pillar, which elevated the two boys before the giant slime reached them. How the two were going to get down was none of Hakuren’s concern.
“Pluviae et lacrimae. ”Several enormous icicles fell from the sky, ready to pierce all that was below them. Once a slime got struck, it would become frozen in place, but if there ground were to be the landing point, then ice would spread and freeze what was in the close perimeter. A good attack it might have been, but the youngster was shooting randomly and had no firm control over what exactly his needles of ice would hit or what would be frozen by their touch. It all depended on how fast those close by were.
He didn’t consider it a great flaw, though. From his perspective, his groups was doing nicely, although he didn’t know how well the catbus would take the cold that was now present upon its back.
“Get a move on it, Harper. Or do you want me to freeze you in ‘time’?” Hakuren joked as he continued sending ranged attacks. The liquid in his amulet had reached its half and was dropping below that marker.
