Searching (Open)

[Freya]

From where she was perched on the bell tower of the church, the first three districts lay sprawled beneath her.

Freya Crescent wasn't much one for crowds or, more specifically, being in them-the market going on below in Traverse Town's 1st District certainly counted as one she'd prefer to watch than participate in.

On the ground it was a confusing hustle of people and merchants, with little to no private space afforded in the tightly-packed crowds. In the skies or on the rooftops, she had proper time to appreciate the site of this bizarre place.

It gave her a better chance to scan the crowds for any familiar faces but, like everywhere else she'd been so far, not one stood out from her memories.
Not even one of the many moogles bartering below matched the ones she remembered from Gaia.


It was a town like no other the Burmecian had visited, a strange mix and clash of different people and cultures and ideals that had no other choice but to stick together or fall into the darkness. The only place she could even half compare it to was the sleepless city of Treno, where smoke and coal fire belched out by factories kept the city and the surrounding area in a state of constant gloom, daylight being a precious commodity.
Here,the sky remained unsullied but constantly dark,the blue-black of the heavens painted with different stars than those of Gaia.
Where Treno was a disjointed place with decadent rich, starving poor and nothing in between, Traverse Town was a hodgepodge of pieces from destroyed worlds, glued together by a sense of unity she'd never seen in the sleepless city.

The church below her perhaps reflected this best; no-one she had spoken to knew exactly which world it had come from or what religion it had first belonged to, but whatever deities it had been built to honour had now learnt to share. Little shrines to numerous faiths were perched in corners and alcoves, on the altar and pews and sending wisps of scented smoke up into the rafters.
(Freya had lit incense for Reis earlier, but left before it could remind her too much of the temple in Burmecia with its shining golds and reds, one of the few things not washed out by the rain.)


Claws scratching against the tiles, Freya shifted her weight to her left leg, and prepared to jump.
(As interesting as this town was, she wasn't going to find her friends or her home by admiring the scenery.)
She leapt and,for one exhilarating moment before she landed on one of the 2nd District benches,Freya flew.

"Sir Fratley,Zidane...Where could you be?"

[Leon Durandus]

Leon had scarcely spent a day in the halcyon embrace of suburbia, and, already, he had grown weary of its tranquility. The pleasant stillness of it all did much to refresh his spirits after his abrupt awakening to the vastness of the cosmos, but the wandering swordsman was ready to lunge back into the fray. Heavy rays of orange cascaded down from the ever-setting sun, broken up only by the high reaching towers of brick and mortar raised in Twilight Town's initial construction. So, from those cobblestone sidewalks, the ex-SOLDIER looked up with wistful anticipation, longing for the day when he might return to his quest for enlightenment. As he walked in listless thought, Leon navigated the crowded streets of laid back denizens and rowdy teenagers alike. Some, in their daily rush or as an attempted show of strength, would bump into his shoulder as they walked past and, of course, be knocked for a loop by his enhanced physique. Leon would only smile apologetically, give a shrug, and return to his contemplation.

Unfortunately, the freedom of travel was not a luxury he could afford at the moment. Leon was on a mission, given to him by a woman whom he did not especially trust. Rather than arrive at Twilight Town of his own free will, Leon had landed there in pursuit of leads he had been given, searching tirelessly for a single man in the midst of this intricate, multifaceted Universe. He sought the bearer of a Key; to him, he would deliver a message that a certain individual wished to speak with him. Now, as mentioned, Leon gave little credence to her word. From her manner of speech and operation, it was clear that her motives were likely not entirely pure. Nevertheless, she was his employer, and so he would pass along her words -- along with some of his own. Yes, the Key's chosen master would hear of her shifty demeanor and be urged to proceed with caution. For this purpose - the safety of this young boy, Leon would not leave until a thorough search had been performed.

"What the-?"

Of course, though it was largely a silent place, no one had ever said that Twilight Town would be entirely without its excitement. Leon's sharp eyes were the first to catch the strange woman, her skin a pale, ivory blue, soar from her perch high above the streets. She landed with surpassing grace, scarcely disturbing the fragile bench on which she came crashing down. It was immediately clear that she was female, but her species was not one that Leon was familiar with. Certainly, she was not a native of this World. Incredible. That's not the sort of jump you see every day, not even in SOLDIER. Thought Leon, cautiously approaching the newly arrived creature. It's almost like she was flying. Are there perhaps Worlds where such skill is commonplace?

"Hello!" He announced his presence with a friendly word. "That was quite the leap you managed just now. Even back where I come from, we'd consider that sort of thing extraordinary." The ex-SOLDIER hinted at his own origins, hoping to coax a similar confession from the vaguely ratlike woman. "The name's Leon Durandus, by the way." He smiled.

[Freya]

ooc: Um,I think they're in Traverse Town...

bic: "Ah!"
The world righted itself around her a moment after she landed, but a noise to the left of her had Freya hefting her spear forward into both hands, moving her feet backwards across the bench to give better balance.
A moment later and she realised her mistake, lowering her spear. Not one of those shadow monsters, but rather a human.

A warrior, if the large sword was anything to go by, and years of training and forms and finesse were built into muscles layered on a tall frame.
The faint glow around his eyes was perhaps something to note, though Freya simply put it down to a peculiarity of his world.

"I apologise," She started, hopping down from the rather worn-looking bench,"The monsters of this world have put me rather on edge as of late."
Not the best first impression, though she had made worse.

The dragon knight rested one end of the spear on the ground and extended a clawed hand. "Lady Freya Crescent, and thank you. I take it Dragon Knights do not exist on your world?"

Another dead end,then. If he had not seen someone Jump before, it was unlikely he had seen another Burmecian, let alone Sir Fratley.
Still...He certainly seemed nice enough, another off-worlder in this lamp-lit world.
What was the harm in trying to make a few new friends,after all?

[Zidane Tribal]

Zidane was quite through with this.

He kept getting lost!

"Seriously, Lindblum is less complex..." he whined, letting out an exasperated sigh. He looked up, however, just in time to see, in the distance, a form practically fly into his view, then land somewhere in the distance. He only knew of Dragoons being able to jump like that... and something in the back of his mind stirred.

"H-hey! Wait!!" he called out futilely. He then began to run towards the shape, scaling a building and running along the rooftops, coming to a stop before kneeling at the edge of a townhouse. He peered at the forms now conversing, but couldn't tell who they were just by seeing them on the dim, cobblestone street. He needed to get closer.

He quietly scampered down the building, stealthly moving behind a merchant's stand, and peeked at the two. His heart skipped when he saw Freya. If she's alive... then the others are! He almost jumped into the air and shouted, but he wanted to see who this other guy was. He let off an almost inhuman air, which made the hairs on Zidane's tail stand on end. He also eyed the sword, and the man's unassuming position. Who is this guy?

Zidane, after a moment's thought, decided to make his presence known, standing slowly, then stepping out of the shadows.

"Fancy meeting you here." he said, grinning widely at Freya. His left hand rested on the handle of one of his daggers, casually, but, defensively. If this guy decided to wig out and attack them, Zidane would have to quiet him quickly before he could land a blow with that sword... He only hoped that this was one of the good guys.

[Leon Durandus]

((OOC: Darn, you're right...My fault ): ))

The years were kind to Leon's reflexes. Though his heart held steady its rhythmic beating and his blood kept to its typical rate of travel through his veins, the ex-SOLDIER reacted to the spear's flashing edge with haste to spare. In the corner of his softly glistening, blue eyes, he caught sight of the fell pole-arm, its blade sharp enough to split the hairs of a Behemoth's flowing mane. This sky-faring warrior, however briefly, brandished her mighty weapon and held it nearly to Leon's throat, but, by the time it drew near, he had backstepped gracefully across the cobblestone street. From his nonthreatening and thoroughly thoughtless stance, his muscles had fluidly carried him as far from the spear's deadly tip as could be managed with a single lunge. His cold steel flashed in the pale moonlight as he wrapped his strong, agile fingers about its grip and pulled Naegling from its sheath. Though it weighed far in excess of Leon's own body, he effortlessly drew it forth in a restricted arc with naught but a single arm.

Dark, blue hair was thrown about by the sudden movement, but it relaxed with his sinews as Leon saw that his would-be rival had stayed her hand, moved only by the errant breeze sweeping through the labyrinthine streets of Traverse Town. The woman lowered her spear, and he, in turn, laid down his blackened blade. At word of her apology, Leon merely smiled and let out a bemused chuckle. Of course, he could never fault someone for being cautious, especially in so dangerous a place as Traverse Town. "Oh, it's no trouble at all." He replied with a nod of affirmation as Naegling was returned to its sheath across the length of his back. "But, I suppose this means you're a traveler, as well." Said Leon with a knowing grin. It seemed this World was populated largely by those who had lost their homes to the darkness; the perfect place for a wandering do-gooder to stop in his travels.

She gave her his hand as a show of good faith, and, though initially shocked at its gleaming claws, he shook it with scarcely a moment's hesitation. She was right, of course; Leon was not at all accustomed to her species, whatever it may have been. "No, I can't say we do." He said, an apologetic tone just barely audible on his breath. "We've got legends about the Dragoons, though, and I'd say they fit your description pretty damn well." Leon continued with a laugh, supposing it rather charming that he run into a creature so similar to the ones he would read about as a child. "'Mighty warriors,' they said, 'who took to the skies to fight the dragons on their own terms.' Anyway, I'm digressing. It's nice to meet you, Lady Freya."

However, the instant pleasantries were exchanged, the two were joined by another visitor, this one seeming to have a rapport built up with Lady Freya. This one was an agile young man, spry beyond the limits of a normal human and with a tail to match. He kept his daggers at the ready - Leon could sense a hint of mistrust. He supposed he couldn't blame him, for his blade perhaps did not look the part of a hero's trusted arm. In truth, it seemed fit for a barbaric lord of visceral combat. "Don't worry, friend, I mean you no harm. The name's Leon Durandus. And...it seems you two know each other?"

[Freya]

She laughed. "Likewise, and simply 'Freya' will do or I shall insist on calling you 'Sir Durandus'.
I haven't been called 'Lady' for a rather long time,I'm afraid..."

The title had always been one she was uncomfortable with, especially after she had failed both Burmecia and Cleyra. After returning home from the Iifa tree, it seemed that everyone bar Puck had been attaching the title to the front of her name, her failures to protect the kingdom somehow forgotten in the wake of saving the world.

She had tried not to dwell too much on such matters, but with her comrades so far away and reminders of Burmecia's fall around every corner it would gnaw at her insides if she didn't keep a watch on it.
Her search for her comrades kept it at bay now, when her world was lost to her-but she tried not to stay sedentary for too long.
It tended to attract unwanted shadows.

"Well, I can't say I'm not glad that we're regarded so highly on other worlds," She mused, "But legends tend to be far kinder than the truth..."

Someone spoke to the left,and Freya's ear flicked in recognition. She knew that voice...

Her head whipped round, eyes wide and hope blooming fresh in her heart.
"Zidane!"
Relief spread across her face in a smile as the genome stepped into view. Why,he hadn't aged a day since she'd last seen him in Alexandria,sporting the same blonde mop and wide grin, almost as characteristic as the tail or daggers by his side.

The same training that kept her from embracing Sir Fratley when she met him at Cleyra's cathedral and following him when he left now kept her from wrapping her arms around Zidane and never let go.
She almost couldn't believe her luck;to be searching for her comrades for so long, and have Zidane run into her...
By Reis, she didn't think she'd ever miss that terrible flirt so much. She had always regarded him as one of her closest friends, admiring him for his ability to turn complicated situations into the simple, among other things.

Freya knew it was a little too much to ask for any of the others to be here too, but her eyes still flickered around, searching the area for a flame-haired hulk of a man to be lounging in the shadows,or the flash of a smile and a glittering pendant against orange behind him.

"I should have known that I'd find you in such a shady place,monkey-tail..." She teased.

[Zidane Tribal]

"Yeah, we know each other." Zidane said with a 'matter-of-factly' tone, still eyeing the guy with slight, but waning suspicion. He crossed his arms, hands leaving his daggers (although he could have them out quicker than a blink if needed), and sighed. "Any idea where this is? We've been all over Gaia and I've never seen this place... or any place like it." his concern for Garnet grew, as well as his concern for the rest of his friends. Vivi, Steiner, Tantalus... if Freya was here, shouldn't everyone else be here too? He hoped that maybe they were all holed up, or even roaming the town searching for each other...

But, he knew better.

"Was anyone else with you when you got here? Vivi? Garnet? Hell, I'd even be happy to see Amarant's face... not that I could ever really see it..." he then addressed the new guy, prepared to pluck him in the throat if he invaded Zidane or Freya's personal space. The guy didn't seem bad. Friendly, for sure, and easy going, but Zidane couldn't get the uneasy feeling that this guy just oozed power. After run ins with Kuja and others like him, those with power almost certainly abused it... sometimes. Still unsure of the new guy, Zidane decided that being friendly would be the best course of action, as opposed to shanking him and going along his merry way.

He awaited a response from the new guy, and also from Freya, still hoping he'd get a laugh, and a "Sure, they're all waiting back at the Pub!"

[Leon Durandus]

Leon's lips curled into a subtle, fleeting smile as he stood in silence before the two reunited friends, powerful arms folded patiently across his chest all the while. From what little he gathered, it seemed they had been tragically separated - a story not seldom told on the streets of Traverse Town. Their hearts must have skipped a beat when they found that even one of their comrades had made it to the ever-growing community. This was, after all, a place for those who had lost their homes to the crawling darkness from beyond and who had the pure conviction to cling to life despite the primordial forces threatening to rip them apart. Had their own World met such an end? The young man with a monkey's tail and agility to match, known to Lady Freya as "Zidane", spoke as though he knew scarcely a thing about their plight. At the same time, he showed clear concern for the rest of their friends, listing off the unfamiliar names of an unfamiliar World while the swordsman from Midgar looked on with slight concern.

"Well...I'm afraid those names don't mean much of anything to me." Leon admitted. He leaned back on a nearby lamppost, basking in the soft glow of its eternally lit candle. Unfortunately, those who hailed from the World of Freya and Zidane seemed to have no single, defining characteristics save for their sheer diversity. Though his own iteration of Gaia was home to no small number of creatures, humans were among the sole intelligent species, joined only by an increasingly rare breed whose very existence remained shrouded in myth. Zidane and Freya, meanwhile, were of radically different origins; if Leon had seen one of their friends, he likely couldn't have identified them as such. "If you could give me a description, I'd be more than happy to help you two search."

Come to think of it, the fact that Zidane's World shared a name with his own did little to set his mind at ease. True, Leon's home was known largely as "The Planet", for lack of a better term, but those who saw fit to give it a specific name called it "Gaia" as a general rule. Did this mean that they shared a corner of the universe? If the home of Zidane and Freya had been taken by the great darkness, did this mean his own land was targeted for consumption at its hand? He quickly cast such thoughts from the front of his mind, though he did not discard them entirely. All said, it was unlikely that having similar names bore any real implications, for they had been named independently by their own populations. Still, it was a valid reminder that Leon should check in every now-and-again.

[Freya]

“Zidane...” Freya hesitated, not entirely sure of what to say. Zidane was strong-he'd suffered much worse, she knew that, but... well, knowing him, it would only strengthen his resolve to find the rest of their comrades.

“It seems the two of us are the only ones so far,then.We'll find them, Zidane. I've...had no luck so far, but the others are strong, you know that.” The Dragon Knight turned her head skywards,resting her spear against the cobblestones.
“The stars match none I know from Gaia, and there is not even a single moon. I daresay we've found ourselves quite a distance away from all we know."
Her face crinkled into a smile. "Amarant is probably looking for a new way to beat you right now, and I doubt Steiner would let the Princess travel alone." She frowned. "Though I do almost pity whatever place Quina has landed on..."

Wherever that world was, she sincerely hoped it wasn't populated by frogs.

It was more reassurance to herself than him, if Freya were to be honest. She could only hope that wherever their friends were they were safe, or at least together. She'd failed yet again to protect what she held most dear, though how she could have prevented it,she didn't know.
Fratley had left Burmecia to gain the strength to protect it all those years before,but not even that was enough to stop what had happened

Freya half wondered what was.
She blinked,ending her musings and turning to her new acquaintance. It was refreshing, to say the least, to find a person on these streets who didn't look at her as an oddity-despite all the misfits that made the town's population, Burmecians were still considered out of the norm.
Maybe it was the spear?

"Any assistance would be much appreciated,Lean." She said,smiling. "What could you tell us about this...Traverse Town?"

[Zidane Tribal]

Zidane's heart plummeted, though, looking at his face, you wouldn't be able to tell. Only a slight flash of fear, then worry in his eyes was evident, then, one again, back to his façade of being the happy go lucky thief. He nodded slowly to Freya, and looked up as well when she addressed the stars. If Freya didn't know where they were, then it was a completely new place... He looked back at the Leon guy and crossed his arms again, his tail leisurely swaying left to right as he listened to the exchange. He then let out a small sigh, and began looking the area over as they spoke. the buildings... the streets... even the air he breathed seemed alien. He closed his eyes and thought about what Freya said. Sure, they both ended up here, but what if "here" was the only "here" there was? Then everyone else had to be here. Right?

He abandoned the thoughts for the time being, addressing the Leon guy again. He deemed this guy trustworthy, but only to a certain point.

"We'll find them... and I appreciate you wanting to help." Zidane said quietly. "There are several friends... a small mage named Vivi... a little girl named Eiko... Big guy named Amarant... I dunno what the hell Quina is... A knightly fellow named Steiner, and Pr- ... Garnet. A lady named Garnet." Last thing he needed was this guy trying to cart off Garnet because she was a Princess... he had decided to leave that little bit out for now, and looked at Freya, nodding slowly. "Let's go see if we can find them." he said quietly, looking up to Leon with a grin. "Wanna tag along?"

((OOC note: Been a long day. Will try to get better posts out soon.))