TWO YEARS AGO, A CRIMINAL ORGANIZATION GOING BY THE NAME TEAM IMUM WRECKED CHAOS ACROSS THE LAND, DAMAGING CITIES AND KILLING THOUSANDS OF CITIZENS. While Imum itself has long since been disbanded, however, the region remains broken: entire towns have been laid to waste and the Association struggles to find homes for those who were lucky enough to survive the attempted genocide. Reconstruction trudges on as usual... but with three factions - the Association, the corporations, and the people - each wishing to take the rebuilding of an entire region down opposite paths, how long will it be before Lyeant's last leg gives out permanently?
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Post by JADEN ABADEER on Jun 26, 2014 16:26:45 GMT
[ TAGGED ] [ @open ]
MAYBE A NAP WILL SET LOOSE THIS TRAP
The sunlight was rather annoying as it passed over her eyes. The dark that she associated with sleep was interrupted and she grumbled in distaste. Eyes fluttering open, she held up one hand to block the sunlight as a means to refocus her eyes. What had happened? Glancing around, she was greeted with the grassy plains of the courtyard. Man, she must have been napping pretty hard to end up out here.
Sitting up, she yawned and stretched popping the joints in her arms and her legs before falling back to her spot in the grass. This was such a drag. Looking at her guitar which laid only a few inches from her fingers, she wondered why her muse was being blocked. She often used her memories to fuel but today she didn't feel much of anything. No malice, no hatred, not even the tiniest bit of wanting to bash someone's face in.
Maybe this was something telling her that a new inspiration needed to be found. She rolled over and grabbed her guitar by the neck and pulled it onto her lap. Lifting up, she gave the strings a few strums once or twice before narrowing her eyes. Now what could she just belt out to get this started.
"No offense but I'm moving on now. Living in the past isn't all that its cracked up to be. At times I wonder why I'm still alive. Why I'm trying so hard just to strive. Even though I'm the wolf living in the sheep's skin."
That sounded good so far. Though what came after that. Singing whatever came to mind often helped, but it painted a picture in her head. A picture that caused a little smile to form on her lips.
The mutant paused his trek and gave a soft huffing noise of irritation, he had as of late been rather fruitful with his hunts and because of this he was able to travel a little easier. Even in all of his frustrating searches of the local markets in his normal town he hadn't found the damnable treat that he so enjoyed. It was difficult enough when people stared at him, made him feel awkward and the like. Who liked being stared at like that anyways? Not many people that Raiven could list off the top of his head that weren't actors; though that still didn't bring him to as though why he had even bothered leaving that area. Past the fleas, past the rough weather he sometimes had to deal with there was blissful objects he was able to partake in. This particular one he had been able to have the rights of one large shipping crate that had fallen out of a truck that had been driving to the town. Now instead of turning in the crate the mutant had taken it upon himself to investigate and discover what would soon be one of his favorite treats.
Pocky.
Now the mutant had eventually run out of the treat, and while he still had plenty of other things that were hidden in some of his trees or hills [safely tucked away in capsules] he couldn't do the same to the sticks of goodness that he was only able to enjoy for a short time because of their make up. The mutant had thusly decided to see if he could procure them in the next town over which ended up being MUCH further than he had initially wanted it to be. He rolled his shoulders and sighed, though to be fair it's not like people exactly moved towns just to bother him or something that trivial. He must of just simply misjudged the distance- The mutant stopped dead mid though train and felt his nostrils constrict with a familiar scent.
What's this.... Gas, Exhaust fumes... some chipmunks or squirrels.... candy? this person muse be around them often... that's something you don't come across in my neck of the woods... And.... Kinda smells like that waffle bit on the ends of pocky... Can't be more than a box but...
The grass swayed silently in an unseen but felt wind, he heard some form of lyrics and felt himself blink in a mix of surprise and confusion. It wasn't anything that he had heard before so it was quite possible that it was just on the fly, there was a traveling guitar person in the local area of his town. He often heard them play something so he could tell that it was one. He put a hand to his head and checked the skyline. Still plenty of time before sundown... He wouldn't have to worry about losing his way even if the sun was getting close to setting. He just had to head back the way he came after all. The mutant spotted Jaden after a brief moment of scanning; the distance and the general shift in wind seemed right. He bit his lower lip in frustration; he wasn't much of a people person and dealing with new people always left him... antsy. He was shy and he couldn't help it, too much time alone would do that to some. It took him quite a bit of time before he started to trudge up to her. He wouldn't breach that bubble of ten or so feet though; new people always liked having larger bubbles when they met someone like him. Now there wasn't anything direct as for asking for pocky, but he definitely could inquire about the location of sweets or food. He started with a normal greeting of course which was a brief wave immediately followed by....
Hello, I am Raiven. I smell food, sweets here. You know location?
He paused briefly and shifted his weight before signing again, some people were rusty and some didn't know. If he got the "I don't know sign language" brow furrow or if they told him to shove off he'd have to search elsewhere. However if they were friendly and didn't know sign language he had a small worn pocket book he could ask with. He could feel his wings move a little bit in the wind, his ears somewhat leaned back as he heard the chipmunks chatter in the backround...
Being a mutant along with basically being Jaden Abadeer, you get to see some pretty funky things. This wasn't anything out of the ordinary to be honest. She was just sitting here, minding her own business when a creature had came and was hand signing to her about the location of sweets. Now any other girl would probably be screaming at the top of her lungs, whacking him with her purse and then fleeing in the opposite direction. But for Jaden, this was the golden opportunity for inspiration and maybe having a little bit of fun.
She waited until he was done before a grin settled on her face. It must have been the strawberry flavored pocky that she kept on her that he smelled. She had to admit, it smelled pretty good. Often she smelled like some type of sweets due to the fact that it was primarily all that she had the habit of eating. Sweets were her life and if she wasn't eating some variation of a cookie or cake, something was wrong.
"Alright, so you want something to chew on huh?"
Patting herself down, she pulled out a box of pocky sticks before taking out at least three and handing them to him. There wasn't anything wrong with sharing candy especially if it was with a fellow pocky lover. She popped a few sticks in her mouth and began to chew on them with a smile. The flavored coating was nice along with the actual chewiness that ended in sweet sweet bliss.
Definitely friendly, didn't whack me with something or try to taze me.. Those blasted things sting like hell anyways...
Raiven accepted the offered candies with a toothy grin, someone smiled at you? Smile at them back, it was part of one of the books he was reading that helped folks converse more effectively. Though he was pretty sure if most saw him to begin with they wouldn't WANT to converse with the mutant. He stuck one of the pocky sticks in his mouth, the flavour blessed him for a long bit; he had a habit of sucking on candies and the truth still carried over this special kind of sweet. The other two sticks he put in one of the pouches on his belt, they wouldn't be there long since he knew without the box their flavour wouldn't last. He turned his palms upward showing he wasn't holding anything and then begun signing again. Some folks grew defensive when someone started messing with a pack or a belt so he figured it'd be best if he gave someone the courtesy of showing he wasn't going to stab them or something.
Much thanks, It is pleasure to meet Jaden. Trade?
He figured as for the pocky she'd no doubt want something in return, perhaps she might even offer up some more if he had something she might like. He didn't have much on him anyways, but who knew? He had information or just random chit chat that she might of been wanting? Raiven furrowed his brow and then sniffed again; the scents affirmed themselves. The sweets of candies, some form of cleaning solution [no doubt for the clothing] and the guitar had the smell of something well treated. Either by professional care or by the player; this thing no doubt had tales of it's own waiting to be played. The mutant had once considered picking up an instrument but with how he hunted and having the silence of the forest most days? It might just throw off a general groove that was there or it might draw the wrong type of attention. Blinking once or twice he figured he should probrably ask how she was doing, if only to be polite! He smiled again, the wings he had twitching from the muscle movement. No matter what he did with his facial muscles or ears they twitched. They fell under the same group of muscles that he controlled but he was never able to do anything with them anyways.
Jaden do well?
Maybe he didn't have to worry about humans much anymore, perhaps over the long years they had changed into something much more friendly? The mutant felt a small moment of curiosity, that or she just didn't care if one was human or mutant. There were some out there like that and he could count himself among those ones; they were all just people wanting to get by anyways! His blue eyes swept the courtyard and he felt his foot wear shift a bit. The high setting of the crazy sandals put more pressure on certain areas but allowed for him to keep himself light on his feet; though on loose packed dirt or grassy places they sometimes shifted uncomfortably. He went about taking them off, the few buckles holding them in place quickly allowing for them to come off....
This guy must really have a thing for candy if he was going to such lengths. Or maybe its the fact that he wanted to show her that he wasn't some intimidating monster. If you asked her, she'd probably be okay with him either way. Being a mutant, she could understand what it felt like to be different. However, she always liked different. Abnormalities made people stronger, and it set the apart from the people without powers. That didn't make them weird, it only made them unique. It was just the fact that humans couldn't accept change and their inability to accept it was going to lead to their downfall.
"Yeah, I'm doing pretty good Raiven. No complaints, what about yourself?"
The guy must not have had many interactions with people. Or maybe he did and most of them went badly. She noticed by the way that he held his hands up in the customary 'I'm innocent' sign. She knew how that felt. Coming into issues with the law very often would give you a fair share with using that little gesture. It was a good way to get out of being tazed. Ugh, being tazed. Having all those volts of electricity shoot through your body like rockets.
It was the worst experience ever.
"Nah, I don't want anything from you Raiven. But you could tell me, whats it been like for you till now?"
She wasn't in the mood to be snarky, and the guy seemed a bit more vulnerable than most of her victims.
Nothing to worry about... if I need to get out of here in a flash I don't even need to put these on..
Raiven had finished the first pocky that he stuck into his mouth over the course of a little bit and had already put the second in, he did really like the taste. It wasn't so much him cramming them down as knowing if he had to get out of somewhere fast they'd likely break. So he was enjoying the taste as of now and saving the issue of wanting more for later. He stretched a little bit and felt his shoulder pop a bit; he was still sore from the amount of traveling he had done in such a short time but he figured that it wouldn't take long for him to to get used to it. He couldn't stay in the forest he had forever, so trips like this were probably better for him than anything. When she asked how he was doing he blinked again and started signing; he felt flustered no one really asked him how he was doing. They either shot at him, screamed in terror, or fainted. The last one out of that batch always surprised him but regardless of which one they did he was forced to leave quickly else he'd have issues. A small furrowed brow broke his smile as he signed, he actually had to seriously think of how he was. That's how rare the question was to him; he should really get out more...
I am fine, little worn, happy that I find someone friendly.
At the little end bit the mutant smiled, the teeth he had were sharp and it made the mutant's smiles much more feral than they probably needed to be. Raiven blinked again at her asking how things had been like for him. Was she meaning with how he looked? It would bring more attention that most would like. Most mutants could hide their powers easily since there was very little past this or that that would show upon them. Full fledged physical mutations like Raiven would be easily spotted... His smile ended quickly and he started signing again the brow furrow bringing his eyebrows together. The scar on his muzzle ached, he had gotten that thing years ago from some barbed wire and the damn thing always acted up at the weirdest of times. How could he phrase this in a simple enough term so he wouldn't have to sit here all night and sign the world away? He paused for a moment before nodding to himself, the cut off more dramatic than he intended.
Wandering, Finding food, Living in forest for... Fifteen tree rings? Maybe more, cannot really remember when learned about that method. Hunting for town for them to keep away from forest. Worked so far.
The last part the mutant almost didn't share, he had paused for even longer before signing that part. He didn't want others to push into the forest he was living in. It might disturb the balance he had set there, he would have a tough time feeding more than just himself and that might just cause problems down the line... He blinked a few times and then started signing again, his hands a flurry unlike the last few times. He was certain asking this question was the right thing to do. His ears flexed back and forth causing the wings on his body to extend outwards a bit before coming in close to his head. His jaw line set in a rather bold fashion; he was curious about other things too but this one seemed probably the best to ask at the moment.
If there was one thing that she could reason with that didn't have a witty comeback or one liner attached would be fear. Constantly, she lived in fear of hurting others or seemingly being a monster. However, she covered the fear up with her snarky attitude and allowed herself to be a bit obnoxious so that no one could see the scared child underneath. Sometimes, she wondered why she tried so hard and eventually the self-loathing behavior emerged that slowly regressed into slight agonizing then evaporated as the days went on.
Looking towards Raiven, it must have been hard for him. Most mutants were merely people that gained superpowers but his entire form was changed. Humans were a race that continued to evolve but they hated change and adaption wasn't one of their strong suits. To them, Raiven was simply a freak that they should put down before something terrible happened. To her, he was an amazing person who just needed a little bit of guidance. She didn't like to play the "good guy" but she had to stick up for the guy.
"Nah, I'm not afraid. You're a really swell guy, Raiven."
She gave him an encouraging smile before taking out another pocky stick and popping it into her mouth. Chewing thoughtfully, she thought back to all the faces and the people who yelled and screamed at her or turned away from her because of the things that she did. She remembered the feeling of being lonely and the rage that followed along with the loathing. But all those feelings didn't match up to the loneliness which remained until she became older.
"Don't worry. If you ever need to get someone off your back, just tell me. I'll look after you. Besides, we're friends."
Those two words stunned the mutant; put him in a place he wasn't even sure how to deal with it. He tried signing the word, nothing came to mind. He couldn't even recall the base movement required for what one would make as that sign. He knew dozens of different signs for day, night, sleep, hello and the like but he couldn't off the top of his head remember how to sign that one word. Raiven looked stunned; his hands moved awkwardly as well. He struggled to open one of his pouches and eventually was able to open it up; inside of it lay a pen and what appeared to be a very worn notepad. Scrawled on the cover of the notepad was R.D. The D however had several symbols crossed over it in an effort to censor out the letter. The mutant flipped open to a unused page and wrote the unfamiliar word; he misspelled it almost three times before getting it right.
Friend?
The mutant put an extra emphasis on the question mark, his ears had lowered a little bit and a curious look was on the mutants face. During the course of a few moments the mutant sat down instead of standing. He was eye level with her for the most part; he felt flustered. There wasn't anything off about this moment either. The mutant once he figured that she had probrably read the word put it back into the respective pouch and went back to signing. His hands didn't move as quickly because the sudden use of the word had thrown him off. His wings twitch sporadically and anyone could tell that he was nervous. His tail started swishing after a little bit and made what sounded like loud cracks every now and again.
I... Have never had one.
Blue eyes closed for a moment and the mutant let out a heartfelt sigh. There was a brief moment where the mutants shoulders deflated visibly and a hand came up to wipe his face. No tears had come out but it looked as though he was just clearing his vision. Maybe the mutant felt like he was going to cry? No one really could figure since Raiven never shared if he could or not. The mutants hand signs were still slow, but they weren't as confused as before. He figured sharing a little wouldn't hurt especially at this point.
Animals can only be so much for one such as me... They growl and run, they are afraid. Like humans but worse.
