Aether and Nina: A Fated Meeting in Bantia

It was a warm midsummer say in the country of Bantia. The sun sat high in the sky with not a cloud in sight to block its rays. On one of the country’s many small islands, a cottage sat on stilts near the treeline facing the beach. A staircase wound its way along the side of the stilts leading to the first floor, then continued around the back to a second story observatory.

A collection of junk hung from pretty much everywhere, crudely tied to parts of the wooden roof, each housing some sort of plant. Vines growing from a cut open water jug, fruits growing from a hanging planter, there was even a beer bottle with a flower poking out of the neck. It all gave the structure a very ramshackle appearance.

Leaning on one of the stilts next to the stairs, a woman with light purple hair watched the waves lap against the sand. She was just finishing the last of a stew she’d made, and when she was done she kicked off the post and picked up a bag of seeds that had been resting next to her.

A large grey bird landed on one of the windowsills, pecking at a small animal in its talons that was too mangled to identify. After picking over the bones, it gave a satisfied screech and flicked the carcass away. “Riba..." The woman scolded, tending to a batch of plants growing from a discarded knight helmet. “Everything has its usages. Bone marrow can be valuable.”

The bird fluttered its wings in defiance, but still hopped of the windowsill and collected the bones once again. It returned to its perch after a moment, and the woman continued collecting the leaves of the plant she was tending to.

"You are a hard one to track down," said a voice from behind her. She turned to see man in red, with blue skin, pointed ears, and white hair. He began walking up to her. He had arrived completely undetected, even avoiding the smell of the animals. "Hello, Nina Firart."

Nina slowly got to her feet, cautiously eyeing the stranger. "Who are you?" She hissed in an annoyed expression, stepping away from her cottage and toward the ocean. "What do you want?"

"My name is Alexius," He said. "My master has sent me for... Recruitment." he hesitated on the last word, almost as if he was irritated by the notion. "Apparently you've peaked his interest. You have certain qualities that we lack, and my master believes that your abilities would help us greatly to achieve our ends."

"I'm not interested." Nina crossed her arms, annoyed that her day had been interrupted. “If you know who I am, then you should know I prefer to live alone.” Ribba once again hopped from his perch and began circling overhead as Nina took another step towards the ocean. “I don’t know what you’re after, but you’ve wasted your time. So leave me be.”

"I'm not sure you understand." Said Alexius, as he walked closer and closer. "My master always gets what he wants. And what he wants is you." He walked right in front of her. "Perhaps you haven't heard of me, but due to the atrocities I've done for my master, they call me Blue Devil."

"I've never heard of you or your organization." A wave of ocean water washed across Nina's boot, and her eyes flashed a bright red color. "And I don't like being threatened." The sand below the water suddenly exploded, showering the area in mud and ocean water. In the chaos a massive crimson maw full of razor sharp teeth jumped at Alexius.

Alexius just stood there, but in a flash of blue light, once again he was gone. Above the creature that had just attacked him, he had appeared. He brought down his lightning-clad fist, aiming for the back of the creature, and hoping to defeat it in one blow.

The monster flopped back into the water, sending another wave high into the sky. Two rows of webbed spines flicked up on the creatures back, on either side of where Alexius landed, and it quickly flipped into a death roll hoping to catch him in the fray.

But after touching down, he once again disappeared in a flash. He appeared behind Nina. "You're coming with me whether you like it or not." He began to reach for her, with his hand cackling with Lightning, aiming to shock her into unconsciousness.

His hand met the flat of Nina's back, sending her rigid as electricity arced all over her. She wobbled for a moment, catching herself on Alexius's arm. The creature in the water finished it's roll, a massive crimson crocodile with two tails instead of one. "Azmos!" She shouted through gritted teeth.

A black blur shot through the window of Nina's shack, a saber toothed cat the size of a large dog, and shot at Alexius claws first.

"Lightning Dragon's Giant Hammer!" called Alexius as lightning gathered in his hand. He launched it forward in the form of a powerful punch, aiming to release the paralyzing lightning unto the tiger with enough force to send it flying.

Nina sprinted after the tiger, skidding in the sand next to where it had landed. Azmos was stunned, obviously in pain, but very much alive. Nina glared up at Alexius; despite outnumbering him, they where obviously completely outmatched. She was quickly running out of ideas.

Alexius began to walk over to Nina. Lightning was cackling around his body. "You're coming with me." Suddenly a blue flash appeared in front of Alexius. It quickly took the shape of a man, and delivered a powerful blow directly to his face. Alexius flew backwards, slamming through a tree. Despite the punch, he still managed to get back to his feet. "I was wondering when you'd find me."

A man in black, with a white Dragon tattoo on his shoulder, yellow eyes, two swords, and a fierce expression had arrived. His aura, a vibrant blue, raged around him. "You're not him," he said calmly, "but you feel like him."

"You must mean Saul Peregrine," said Alexius. "I am his successor. I have surpassed him in strength."

"Have you now," said the man. "Let's put that theory to the test."

Alexius' aura changed. Instead of blue lightning, it turned black. "Change Mode: Black Lightning Dragon!"

"You really are exactly like him." In the blink of an eye the two were in combat. Their punches clashed, but despite the increase in power, Alexius still couldn't get an advantage over the newcomer. He punched Alexius square in the face, sending him crashing into the ground.

"How could he be this strong?" Thought Alexius. "Saul could fight evenly with him, and I'm stronger than he was. He hasn't even activated Dragon Force.  I can't lose to him.  I won't!" His hair stuck up as his body became covered in flesh-colored scales. His sclera turned red, and his aura increased in size.

"Dragon Force?"

Alexius began charging up an attack between his cupped hands, aiming it at the man. "Black LightNing Dragon's...!"

"This is just like my Plasma Dragon's Electron Cannon."

Alexius smirked. Suddenly he changed his target to Nina. "Dark Cannon!" He fired the blast of black lightning at Nina. Aether just barely was fast enough to block the attack with his body, striking him directly in the chest. He flew backwards from the blast, but quickly recovered. He flew ahead, punching Alexius square in the jaw, sending him reeling backwards. Before the man could unleash another attack though, he dropped to the ground, clutching his chest in agony.

"This woman is a lost cause," said Alexius. "But I'll be back in a few days to pick up your corpse." He flew off, leaving the man there, lying on the ground in agony.

Nina slowly stood up, with Azmos circling around her legs. It was a short but intense fight, so she wasn't about to assume that would be the last she'd see of Alexius. Choosing to ignore the other man, turned to the massive red crocodile and pointed at a tree that had fallen next to her cabin during the attack. "Tobi, assist."

The creature growled and slowly crawled up the beach, taking one of the bigger branches of the tree in it's mouth and began dragging the tree away.

The man laying on the ground looked at Nina. In his face was etched both pain and confusion. He hadn't expected her to be so callous. He didn't expect her to be very appreciative, her demeanor seemed to dissuade the idea of her ever thinking he had actually saved her, but a little courtesy would have been nice. He tried to get back to his feet, his aura flared the brilliant blue as he attempted to give chase, but suddenly his aura fizzled out. He coughed up blood into his hand. His vision blurred. And he found himself falling onto the ground face first, having lost consciousness.

Riba, who had been observing the whole event from the sky, landed next to him. It's dull grey eyes scanned over Aether's torso, then moved into the blood leaking from his mouth. He hopped up onto the man's chest for a better look, then flapped his wings and screeched at Nina.

"What?" She asked without looking away from what she was doing. "It's not our fault he rushed in without thinking." Azmos creped up to the stump of the fallen tree and Ribba squawked again, which began to annoy Nina as she stood up again. "He has nobody to blame but himself. We don't owe him anything."

Tobi gave a disapproving growl, and pushed Nina closer to Aether with one of his tails. Nina glared back at the beast, but Azmos began to mew as well before she got a word in. Ribba flapped his wings to get her attention again, and she found herself surrounded by her three companions expecting gazes.

With a long sigh, Nina pinched the bridge of her nose in frustration. "This can't be happening..."

Aether awoke, laying in a makeshift sleeping bag. He began to lean forward, but suddenly pain shot through his body, and decided against it. Where he had been hit by Alexius' attack, his body had been bandaged in white gauze. He touched the area of impact, it was still warm from the black lightning. "Where am I?" he asked himself as he began taking in his surroundings.

The bed he occupied was sitting in the corner of a small wooden room, illuminated by a yellow glowing lacrima hanging from the ceiling. The roof itself looked to be made of straw, and had many objects that most would have described as trash hanging from the support beams. The occasional flicker of sunlight made it through the wooden walls, and rustling leaves could be heard just outside.

What caught his attention most though, was a large grey bird perched on a dresser across the room. It hadn't moved since Aether noticed it, glairing at him with it's grey, almost dead looking eyes. Just as he began to suspect that the creature wasn't actually alive, it turned it's head to the side and emitted a high pitched shriek.

Before Aether could collect his thoughts, he heard the wooden floor creek and turned to see Nina watching him from the doorway. "You're up." She said without a hint of emotion.

"Where am I?" asked Aether. "Who are you? And what happened to me?" The various questions caused him a headache. He was thinking too much, despite the pain he had just endured. He had taken attacks like that one no problem. How come this particular spell had done so much damage to his body?

"You're in my cabin." She said bluntly, flicking a single braid of her otherwise straight hair off her shoulder. "You where knocked out after you stepped in on a fight between me and... Alexius, was it?" A rather condescending smirk appeared on Nina's face, which Aether found stanchly annoying. "You're quite the careless one, aren't you?"

"I got overconfident," said the man. "I had been tracking his magical signature for some time, it was the same as another man I had killed in the past. I recognize now that they are two completely separate entities. I had no idea he had increased the power of the Black Lightning Dragon Mode to such a degree." He touched his scorched abdomen when mentioning this. "What's your name? I'll need to show gratitude to the one that saved me. Even if you seemed reluctant to do so before I lost consciousness."

"Just call me Nina." She said, leaving to head into the other room. "And that won't be necessary. As soon as you're well enough, I expect you to leave. I really don't care for visitors."

"That's fair," said the man. "I could tell from your place of residence that you preferred to be left alone. My name's Aether by the way." He looked at his hand, and coated it in his magical energy. Pain shot through his body. His hypothesis was correct. He couldn't use magic.

Guessing at what he was doing, mostly by the pained grunt he gave, Nina said. "I wouldn't do that if I where you. Not for a couple days, at least." Aether glanced at her through the door as she sat down at a table covered in potted plants. "I don't know what it's called, but that man you fought seems to have infected you with some sort of disease that attacks your magic supply."

"It's like Magical Barrier Particles," said Aether. He laid back down onto his bed. "Some Guardian of Crocus I turned out to be."

For the first time since Aether woke up, Nina showed some hint of emotion. Dropping her guard just long enough to look surprised. "You're not a local?" Her cold demeanor reappeared almost instantly, but her tone of voice remained a bit less hostile. A small bit... "That makes thing's easy."

"No," answered Aether. "I'm from Fiore. Crocus, as you probably guessed.  I took a leave of absence from my guild to follow that man who attacked you." Aether trailed his fingers along his abdomen. "How much longer do you think it will take before my body heals? It will be a long journey home."

"I'm not keeping you hostage, you're free to leave whenever it suites you." She paused a moment, seemingly hinting at something. "But... I'd recommend resting for the next few days at least. Whatever you called it is still feeding on your magic. My treatment seems to be working, but I'm no expert on the subject." She took out a small pair of tweezers, and began trimming the leaves off a small flower. "You may experience some... Side effects."

"Side effects?" said Aether quizzically. He immediately brushed it asside however. "You seem to dislike most humans Nina, yet you helped me. Why is that?"

"Because you're all nosy." She snapped. Riba flapped his wings and began to caw, apparently disapproving of Nina's reaction, but she largely ignored him. "Enough questions, go back to bed and heal. I have to leave for a while, so don't touch anything either." With an annoyed huff, Nina stood up and headed into another room. Aether heard the opening and shutting of a door, indicating that he'd been abandoned for the moment.

Aether continued to rub his stomach wound. Periodically looking over at the bird. He had heard what Alexius had said earlier. That he'd "pick up the corpse later", and that didn't sit well with him. He thought, for only a second, that he was going to die.

Aether had been laying in bed for what felt like forever now. The pain he was in would come and go, but without a clock and him suspecting that he might have dozed off a bit, he had no real idea how much time had passed. Riba had continued to stand watch over him, occasionally plucking at his feathers or stretching out his wings, but had barely moved from it's perch. Growing both bored and frustrated, and wondering where Nina had gone off to, Aether slowly rolled out of bed to have a look around.

He rose to his feet, and looked around. He began to walk, but suddenly the pain shot through his body, and fell right back over into his face.

Riba screeched as soon as Aether fell, almost like it was laughing at him. Soon it lept from the desk and soared over his head and landed at the table Nina had been working at a little while ago, where it began watching Aether's progress anew.

Aether got back to his feet, and dusted himself off, shooting the bird a threatening look. He continued to look around the cabin, finding the items very intriguing. He began sniffing them, his Dragon Slayer senses helping to identify the different plants and other objects present.

For the most part, all he could really smell was antiseptic. An empty bottle ley on it's side near the edge of the table, but with a second whiff he began to pick out more things. The plant Nina was working on before she left resembled a fern, except for a spotted white and purple flower sprouting from the top. It took barely a glance to realise it was poisonous, let alone what his nose was telling him. Half the other plants gave him the same indication, and Aether moved on fairly quickly. A few jars of dried fruit sat on a shelf above the table, looking only a bit more appetising than anything else Nina seemed to have collected.

Aether wished he could use Magic. His Green Magic would've been invaluable in this situation. He could've created some medicinal herbs, some food, or even something to cover his wound. But alas, it hurt to even try to use it. Aether sighed in disappointment.

Stretching up, Aether began looking for something else of interest and picked out a large black mass resting in the shadow of the next room. Suddenly part of the mass rose up above the rest, and a pair of deep red eyes flashed opened at him.

His first instinct was to fight, but the pain he was in dulled his reaction enough to realise that the thing was in fact the black furred saber cat that had accompanied Nina. Azmos slowly picked herself up off the ground and stepped into the light, licking her lips and purring at Aether.

"Hello there," said Aether to Azmos. Ordinarily he was very good wth animals; he himself, had a pet wyvern. He approached the beast, making sure to stay on guard. While he couldn't use magic, he still possessed a great deal of physical strength and was a martial arts master. He hoped that the licking of its lips was entirely unrelated to hunger, and if it was, was unrelated to eating him.

He reached out a hand to her, which she batted away with her paw. She didn't seem afraid, but it was more like Nina's personality had rubbed off on her. Aether moved to try again, and Azmos swung her head into his hand. Less a welcoming gesture and more of a "Leave me alone". She suddenly dove past him and hopped out an opened window next to the door, disappearing from sight.

Aether rose back to his feet, and walked over to opened window. Not entirely certain why, Aether hopped out the window as well, in pursuit of the creature. "I miss Winters," thought Aether.

He heard Riba squawk as he passed through the window, almost like a warning, and a single look told him why. There was no ground outside. Well... There was, but it was about forty feet straight down. Nina's hut was in fact a treehouse, and Azmos was staring back at him in amazement from a walkway that led to a door not two feet from the window.

"Well, I suppose I need to get my strength back up somehow," said Aether. He jumped to the nearest branch to follow Azmos, barely reaching it and pulling himself up. He began panting heavily from the minimal exertion of energy. He forgot that every little action requires some magic. He still decided to continue following Azmos however, following him on the treetops like a monkey.

Barely two steps into his trek however, one of the branches he stepped onto cracked loudly and dropped from under him, sending him plummeting to the ground.

"Oh crap!" Aether uncharacteristically shouted. Ordinarily he could've just flown himself out of this situation, but his magic was sealed. "Come on..." he said, as he removed his glove. The magic circle tattooed their glowed, and Winters the wyvern came forth, catching his master inches from the ground. "Thank you Winters. I guess that was a bad idea." He petted the avian lizard, thanking him for saving his life.

Riba soared down from the treehouse after him. he cawed to catch his attention, then swiftly jabbed the top of his head with his beak before gliding to rest on a near buy tree branch. Had Aether been a simpler man, he'd have swarn the bird was chastising him.

"I probably deserved that," said Aether, getting back to his feet. "Note to self: don't jump out windows." He looked around, trying to gather his surroundings.

Azmos joined them on the ground, gracefully gliding down a twisted array of vines and into a bush. She studied Aether and his new companion for a moment, before glancing into the trees behind them. "What're you doing you moron?" Nina barked, returning from her trek with a dead pheasant tucked under her arm. "I told you to stay in bed, not go for a walk."

Aether sighed. "I was never the kind of person to enjoy staying still," he said. "Besides I needed the fresh air."

Winters shrieked at Nina, as per the usual way he would introduce himself to people.

"Oh, by the way, this is my pet wyvern Winters. Winters this is Nina, she's been taking care of me for the past couple of days."

Winters shrieked again.

"Sorry, I was unconscious for most of it."

Another shriek.

"A dirty trick that's what." Aether touched his abdomen again, he briefly winced at the pain. Winters let out a consoling sound, and nuzzled his master.

Throughout their talk, Nina studied the wyvern, but the distain for having another uninvited guest was showing plain on her face. "If you don't rest, you'll die. Didn't I make that clear to you the first time?"

Aether smiled. "I appreciate the concern. Let's go buddy." Winters took his master onto his back and flew up to Nina's treehouse, this time going through the front door. He walked to his makeshift bed, and immediately collapsed onto it. He hadn't passed out, he just used up all his stamina on his "walk". "Man I hate this. I feel so pathetic."

Winters shrieked again.

"I supposed so. By the way, I could tell from Nina's face that she wasn't too keen on having another individual here.  Can you send yourself back? The guild should know where I've been.  I'll call you again if I need you."

Winters shrieked again, and in a flash of blue he was gone.

"That thing was a summons then?" Nina inquired, dropping her quarry onto the table with all the potted plants. "Why not call it when you where fighting Alexius? No doubt it would've helped." Riba cawed from the window, apparently taking Nina's comment as some sort of insult.

"I generally don't bring out Winters in direct combat," said Aether. "We grew up together, so he's kind of a softy. I've always been the one protecting him.  Besides, up until he hit me with that strange move, I didn't need any assistance.  He can summon himself to save me some magical energy, but only when my glove's uncovered and I reveal my seal.  At the time I wasn't exactly stable enough to manage complex techniques like that.  Speaking of Alexius, there's something I've been meaning to ask you."

"About the man who I've known for around five minutes?" Nina smirked. Aether was surprised, this was the first actual expression Nina had made other than barely hidden hostility. "This should be interesting."

"Do you know why he was here?" asked Aether, "I saw you in combat with him before I engaged him, but from what I can tell, he wouldn't come all the way out here to kill someone who's cut ties with humanity."

Nina huffed. "I don't know. I didn't care to ask for details either, I just told him to leave me alone." She thought a moment longer, scouring her memory for any detail she may have overlooked. "Though... He mentioned something about recruiting me for something."

"Recruitment?" said Aether. "Did he by any chance mention having a superior? Or was he the leader of whatever organization he's a part of?"

"He might have." Nina shrugged. "But I didn't really care enough to listen to him. My focus was just getting him to leave." She glanced at Aether and a rather condescending grin split across her face. "Something I'm having quite a bit of trouble with recently, as it would seem."

Aether smiled in return. "Sorry about that." He dropped his smile as he returned to thought. "His magical signature matches that of Saul Peregrine. And he said he'd return for my corpse. Does that mean that someone can reanimate the dead? No, more like use the dead." He was thinking out loud.

"You're thinking too much into it." Nina shrugged, dropping into her chair. "If you're their enemy, then it makes sense that they would want you dead. He was probably just counting on whatever he poisoned you with to do the job for him." Apparently growing tired with the conversation, she began plucking the feathers off of the pheasant she planned to cook. "I've got my own questions you know, but first we need to recover." She twisted in her chair to get more comfortable, but gave a shallow gasp and clutched her side, the place Alexius had hit her. "Dammit, not now..."

"Are you alright?" Aether asked concerned.

"I'm fine." She said quickly, returning to her dinner. After a few vigorous feather pulls however, the problem returned. She tried to hide her reaction, knowing Aether was watching her, but it was obvious she was in some degree of pain. Growing annoyed, she jumped to her feet and headed into the other room. "Don't follow me."

Aether was about to speak up, but stopped. He wished he could do something, but without his magic he was helpless.

Once Aether was out of sight, Nina let her coat drop off her shoulders, pulled off her gloves, and told up her shirt. A fairly substantial bruise had formed just below her ribs, which was now a sickening shade of purple at it's center. She gave a long annoyed sigh, then leaned into the other room. "Do you know how to clean that?" She asked, gesturing to the half plucked pheasant.

"It's been a while," said Aether, "But I think I can manage. Then again, I was picking the feathers off of flying fish."

"Just don't make a mess." She ordered, disappearing into the next room. She shook off her coat and unbuttoned the three lowest buttons of her shirt, then took a moment to look over her bruise again. Confident that she didn't have any internal bleeding, she folded a few crushed ice cubes into a cloth and pressed it against her stomach. Just as she did so, she heard a loud pop, followed by a splash, and glanced around the corner to see Aether with a handful of bird feathers in one hand and a splash of blood running down his chest. "What did I just say?"

"Well I did say it's been a while," said Aether, "And the I never even picked the feathers off of a bird." Aether continued to pick the feathers off of the pheasant, making sure to be extra careful he didn't cause any more problems.

Nina shook her head an massaged the bridge of her nose, not knowing what else to say. "Whatever, just clean up when you're done." She began rummaging through a cabinet and pulled a jar off the shelf containing a pair of small leaves. With a disappointed huff, she poped the lid off the top and tossed the mediocre contents into her mouth. "We'll have to go into town later. I'm running low on supplies."

"Sounds fun," said Aether, "I enjoy visitimg new places." He finished plucking the bird's feathers, cleaning up after himself. Not sure where to place the feathers, he removed his glove. Winters was discreetly summoned, given the feathers, and returned to Nidavellir.

"This isn't a game you moron..." Despite her tone, Nine seemed to be growing accustomed to Aether's nonchalant attitude. "I ran out of some things taking care of you, and I don't have time to gather more."

"Whoever said I considered this a game?" questioned Aether. "Guessing from your words I can tell you're not a big fan of humans. Which makes me wonder, why did you save my life?"

"Because they asked me too." She huffed angrily, nodding to Azmos sitting in the corner. The tiger licked her lips again, steering at the featherless bird in Aether's hand. "They thought I owed you, so I helped. That's all there is to it."

"I see." Said Aether. "I suppose my gratitude should rest with your beasts."

"Think whatever you want." Nina shrugged in disinterest, and the lack of reaction from both Azmos and Riba made it clear that they shared her sentiment. "Anyways, hurry up with that bird. We're leaving after we eat, and I want to be back before it gets dark."

Aether finished plucking the feathers. "I haven't had to cook in a long time. How do you normally prepare this kind of bird?"

Nina stared at him from across the room. No annoyance, no contempt, just pure dumbfounded now. "How have you lived this long without learning to cook?" Aether just shrugged, snapping Nina out of her shock. "God, what's the world coming too?"

"I've generally only eaten foods prepared by my Green Magic," Answered Aether, "A mostly vegetarian diet. After Luke joined Dragon Gunfire however, he started cooking for the entire guild. I don't think I've tasted anything better than what he's made." He said that last part as if it was a sort of challenge.

"Whatever..." She mumbled, tying a cloth around her stomach to hold a wet sponge against her bruise. She really didn't' want to have to cook anything, considering she was in the middle of patching herself up, but her confidence was beginning to weaver. "Take off the head, then pull out the organs. Can you handle that?"

"Alright," said Aether. He unsheathed one of his swords he cleanly cut off the head of the bird, and began removing the organs.

"Next the feet. They're way too bony to have any nutritional value." Riba squawked at Nina's comment, making her correct herself. "For us at least, you can give them to noisy over there." She said, gesturing to Riba.

In another quick slash, the feet were removed. They rested lightly on the side of his black katana. He then made a quick slashing motion and then went towards Riba, landing lightly in front of her perch. He wasn't showing off, just practicing.

Nina wasn't paying much attention, reorganising the shelf she had gotten her medical herbs from, as well as taking stock of what she had left. "When your done, there's a fire lacrima outside I use to cook with." She ordered, clearing up the table of old bandages. "And try to use the door this time. Alright?"

Aether chuckled. "That would be a wiser decision," he said. He walked out the door and to the lacrima. He proceeded to cook the pheasant over the device's flame.

Nina followed him outside after about a minute with her arms crossed, apparently steering out into space. "So... You don't have anyone who'll be looking for you now, do you?" She asked, almost sounding concerned. "We're not going to run into some friend of yours in town, are we?"

"We shouldn't," said Aether. "I already told my guild mates I'd be out n a mission, and with me sending back Winters, they'll know I'm safe."

"If that's the case..." She stopped to take a deep breath, looking like she was having trouble thinking of the words. "Then I'd appreciate you not tell anyone about this place." She stopped a moment, shuffling uncomfortably and readjusting the bandage under her shirt. "We've only been here a month, and I don't want to relocate again."

"Of course," said Aether. He could tell she preferred to be on her own, but decided not to press for the reason why. He assumed he wouldn't get an answer. "I know a thing or two about privacy."

Nina shrugged. That wasn't really the point, but she didn't feel like correcting him. "Thanks." She spun back into her hut, returning later with a pair of water bottles and tossed one to Aether. "Well, hurry up with that, we should leave soon."

A few hours later, the two of them set off for civilisation. Well, in fact there where actually three of them; The massive red crocodile Tobi paddled across the ocean carrying Nina and Aether on his back.

It took barely an hour, and soon the beast crawled onto a landmass that was only a small lump on the horizon back when they left. The two of them hopped off his back, then Tobi crawled back into the water. "Stay around here." She mumbled, just as the crocodile sunk below the surface.

The two walked along the beach for a few minutes before coming into the town proper. The journey had been mostly without incident, although a few times Aether had grabbed his chest. Nina sunk closer to him as they passed through a boardwalk café, looking annoyed at the mear sight of other people. "You going to make it?"

"I'll be fine." answered Aether. "The pain's been decreasing, and the attacks are much less frequent than they had previously."

"Less frequent and fine aren't the same thing." She crossed her arms in annoyance, sidestepping a waitress and stepping into the road. She snatched a newspaper off of a table of a customer that wasn't really paying attention to it, and flicked it opened and began to read.

"Any interesting news?" asked Aether.

Nina ignored him are first, taking a few moments to briefly skim over each page's headlines. After closing the paper again, she tossed it aside to land on a bench. "Nothing that I care about. Some gathering for the rich and famous in Lowindel, but not much else." She stopped a moment to scan around the shops, digging a list out of her pocket. "We should work fast. I don't want to be recognised by someone."

"That would be a wise decision," said Aether. He pulled his scarf over his face.

Glancing over her list, Nina began to think aloud. "Antiseptics, sedatives, bandages... A pharmacy should be our last stop..." She continued down the list, ordering the items by their importance. "Ok, I need some Lacrima cells. They usually have a stash of them near the shipyards, that'll be our first stop."

"Alright," said Aether. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see two individuals talking, looking in their general direction. He put his hand on the hilt of his sword. "We're being watched," he whispered to Nina.

Nina didn't look herself, doing so would probably just add to their suspicion, but she did begin to look concerned. "Do you recognise them?" She stole a small glance over her shoulder; not enough to make out anything, but didn't want to risk checking again. "They're not from the council, are they?"

"I haven't seen these men before," said Aether, "but judging from their attire and smell, they probably aren't affiliated with the Council. If they have anything to do with them, they're probably bounty hunters."

After taking a deep breath, Nina gave a low, annoyed groan. "Oh... That's not any better..." She abruptly turned down another side street, dragging Aether after by the sleeve. "Come, they shouldn't reignite me. They shouldn't even know I'm here."

"There is a chance they're not here for you." said Aether. "They could just be here for me."

Nina chuckled, actually chuckled. "Right; in a land where nobody knows you." She continued on, looking almost happy, if not for the stern look persisting in her eye. "We should get moving. I've got someone on lookout for us." She gestured to the sky, and Aether heard the tell tail click of Riba's talons grasping at a flag pole on the top of a nearby building.

Aether smiled. "I feel safer already." he said, not sarcastically. He suddenly gripped his abdomen in pain as he began to cough loudly. After that resided he began to wheeze.

It took a second for Nina to respond. First she looked around to see if anyone was following them, not realising the sound had come from Aether. They where off the crowded street, but there where still plenty of people around and some of them began looking at them. "What is it?" She said quietly. "What's wrong?"

Aether dropped to his knees, still coughing as black wisps came off from his body. "Sorry..." he said between coughs. "I'm probably drawing too much attention." The men that were watching them began to engage. They were each incredibly tall, at least 6 foot 5, but the strange part, as they got closer, each of their faces looked identical.

"Just act natural." Nina ordered, quickening her pace only slightly. "You're sick, we're here to buy medicine. Nothing out of place about that." She didn't look back, but her instincts told her that their pursuers where still following them. "But... If we're going to fight, we should get somewhere out of sight first." They where drawing farther and farther away from the marketplace now, and the gaps between some of the taller buildings made a tempting place to lay low.

"Lead the way." said Aether between coughs, following Nina through the town.

Together, the pair of them weaved their way through the town. Neither one of them looked back, but Riba's cawing every once and a while was all they needed to know they where still being pursued. They kept a brisk pace, despite Aether's failing health, but finally Nina spotted the perfect place to lay low as they entered the northern edge of the town.

A rundown building, six stories tall, stood on it's own surrounded by construction tape. A sign that read CONDEMNED, hung over the gated entrance, and the complete lack of people in sight meant that she'd be able to slip inside unnoticed. One kick was all it took to break the rusted lock on the gate, and within seconds the two of them where inside.

Nina didn't stop there however. Practically dragging Aether by now, she ascended up to the third level before finally assuring herself that they'd be adequately hidden. It was also the only floor without rooms, so the light coming through the mostly broken windows allowed her to check on Aether again. "So how is it?"

Aether's coughing died down, allowing him to finally catch his breath. "Better now." Aether sniffed the air. "They're coming up here. The strange part is though, they don't smell human."

"Good." Nina jumped up and slid off her coat. She flexed her arms and headed for the staircase. "Then I don't have to worry about the authorities."

Suddenly, hands broke through the ground, aiming to grab both Aether and Nina. A third individual jumped through the window, and threw a magic nullifying chain at his target.

"Dammit!" Nina roared, attempting to jump out of the way. She was partly successful; her opponent was only able to grab onto one ankle. She fell back, ironically out of the way of the third holding the chain. She kicked the hand off her ankle, spun up to her feet, and began to glow. "Take Over; Panther Soul!" She sprouted claws from her fingers, and purple fur sprouted from her arms. Her eyes changed as well, turning a feline yellow color that glared at her opponents.

The men came out of the ground, meeting their targets face to face. One threw off the jacket he was wearing, revealing he had four arms to match his large physique. Another brandished his chains. The other kneeled to the ground. He froze the floor they were standing on, causing it to become very and break under Aether and Nina's weight.

In he short period before they landed on the floor below, Nina sprung off the chunk of rouble where she was standing towards one of her opponents. She twirled in the air, bringing a wide swung kick down on his head while the pair of them where still weightless.

The Ice Mage slammed into the ground below. But he got back to his feet as if nothing had happened, despite the crack in his head. The four-armed Mage attacked Nina from above, aiming a barrage of punching, incredbily fast relative to his size.

Nina landed on all fours, throwing herself sideways as the four armed one pummelled the concrete floor. She landed but a few feet away, and sprung forward in a flying knee kick.

The four armed individual easily caught her incoming attack, and threw her quite a distance away. It was quite evident by then, that the other two were targeting Aether, who were charging the weakened master.

Nina sprung off her hands to lighten the impact, then slid about a foot before crashing into a wall. After taking a moment to catch her breath, then sprung back at the four armed one again. Three on one where proving too difficult for her to deal with on her own, so she needed to finish this one off now while the other two where distracted. Until then Aether was on his own.

She began to run circles around her opponent, springing off the walls in an attempt to be hard to track. "Riba, blind!" She roared. The bird soared in through one of the windows at lightning speed, talon's poised to tear at the four armed man's face.

The bird's talons sunk into Four Arm's face. But he showed no sign of pain, not even hesitating when he brought his fists into the ground, generating a massive shockwave that cracked the ground beneath them.

Acting quickly, Nina leapt in the air over her target, her feet just barely touched the roof, and she grabbed hold of her opponents head. Just as she began to fall, she twisted her body sideways, aiming to twist the four armed man's head clean off.

She succeeded, but no blood came out. And the man seemed to not even be deterred in his abilities, aiming to grab Nina before she could retreat, and crush her to death.

Nina gasped in disbelief, kicking off the man's shoulders to get out out the way. She was too slow however, as one of his hands gripped the end of her long tail. She grunted as it threw her across the room, colliding with the wall and collapsing to the floor. "Dammit..." She cursed, griping the base of her tail and pounding her fist into the floor. "I miss fighting regular humans."

The four-armed beast began to charge towards her, when suddenly, it was crushed underneath a white wyvern. The beast screeched as ice began to creep up onto it, freezing it completely. Aether walked up beside his pet, stroking the beast on the head. "Good job Winters." The wyvern screeched in approval. He had already defeated the other two.

Nina pushed off her knees and back to her feet, taking a moment to catch her breath. She was still injured after all; and all the jumping around she'd been doing would probably hurt the second the adrenaline wore off. "I thought you where suppose to be dying?" She said in an annoyed tone.

"It comes and goes," said Aether smiling. "Besides, he summoned himself. That doesn't use any of my magic power, so it didn't cause any pain to me." Suddenly Aether began coughing again. Winters came to his aid, helping him stand up. "Good boy." he said in a raspy tone, scratching the bottom of Winter's chin.

A bright flash lit up the room for a moment when Nina undid her takeover spell, brushing a few locks of hair over her shoulder. "So you're telling me all that back in town was all for show?" She huffed in annoyance, but found she lacked the energy to really keep an argument going. She refocused her attention on their attackers, noting how difficult it was to take down just one of them. "And what the hell are these... Things?"

Aether looked down at their assailants. He leaned down a picked up a piece of one of their flesh, smelling it. "This is clay." He said tossing the piece over to Nina. "They're not even organic."

"So... what?" She questioned, catching the piece and inspecting it for herself. "Golems? Homunculi? Some kind of earth magic?" Her mind raced for a moment, but ultimately she narrowed her questions down to one single point. "How do we stop them?"

"I don't know," began Aether, "but I realized something about these guys. While their magical signatures are each different, they all smell like that Alexius guy that attacked us a while back.  Chances are that they're not just hollow golems.  They're each sentient beings."

"Wonderful..." Nina moaned. "They can think, and they're hard to kill." She reached up and felt around her back. Being thrown against the wall agitated her old wound from their first fight with Alexius, and it was beginning to ach now that the adrenalin was leaving her system. "We should hurry up. People are probably wondering what all the commotion is about."

"Right," said Aether. He got to his feet as Winters was desummoned. Aether followed Nina out of the complex to return back to their errands.

The two of them continued through town at twilight, slowly watching the lights from the shops light up the streets one by one. This time though, it was Nina who slowed them down. She had developed a bit of a limp, and Aether could have sworn she grunted with every other step. Three times she'd snatched a small parcel, or a bundle of leaves off one of the opened stands, only to have to stop not twenty feet away to catch her breath.

After her forth nearly failed attempt, she ducked into an ally to catch her breath. "Dammit..." She cursed, clutching her side. "Why does this keep happening?"

"Is something wrong," asked Aether, sincerity in his voice. "Don't tell me you're injured too."

With a long, pained huff, Nina stood up straight. It appeared that she was trying to tough it out, or trying to play it off; Aether really couldn't tell given her personality. "I'll deal with it..." She tried to push him out of the way, but lost her breath the second she tried to exert herself.