RPG The Hunters

[Ellerby]

[FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium][center][img]http://www.otakuboards.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=26241&stc=1[/img]
[size=2]A Claymore/Final Fantasy Hybrid[/size][/center][/FONT]

[SIZE=3][B][center]Prologue[/center][/B][/SIZE]

In a Steam Punk, Medieval world, a powerful race of Demon-like beings known only as the Yuma travel from village to village, often taking the form of those they encounter, and slaying those they meet, feeding upon their flesh to stay alive.

Little is known about the Yuma – the least of which is how to end their troublesome lives. The secret of their execution is known only by an organization with no name. The organization, thriving for nearly a century, raises children as Hunters, with the sole objective to hunt, and kill the Yuma. While sometimes accepting pay for their actions, there are many times when the Hunters must act in secret so as to complete their dangerous task.

The organization’s members are shrouded in mystery – to most, the only knowledge possessed is that they are referred to as Hunters. Most know that the Hunters travel in groups of three to six, but have been known to travel in less, or more, as the situation presents itself. They are known to enter villages, exterminate the Yuma encountered, and leave before being paid – someone from the organization always returns to collect the pay. To this day, no one is remembered to have not paid the organization.

Typically, most Hunters are treated rather roughly. They are feared by most villagers for there powers, but are constantly needed due to the ever-growing Yuma population. Physically, Hunters appear very similar to the average human being. However, there are minor differences – they have enhanced physical capabilities and sharper minds. As well, Hunter’s are categorized by their silver eyes, and small pupils. Very few know if this is true or not, but some believe that when a Hunter is in the midst of combat with a Yuma, their eyes change – they become a glossy white, and their pupils disappear.

[font=tahoma][color=dimgray]A dark hooded man dressed completely in black robes sat near a rock in the deserted plains. A tall young man with white hair and silver eyes covered in light armor stood before him. He was a Hunter. Leone.

"What do you think of them?" the dark-clothed man asked. Leone thought about the question and responded.

"If the organization has complete trust in these Hunters then so do I. I'll take them as soon as I witness their true powers." he replied. The dark man smirked and left. As he walked away and he said.

"They'll all be meeting in the farmer town of Hiroen soon. You can witness whatever you wish there."

[CENTER]-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+Back in Hiroen-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-
The 5 other Hunters have gathered in a small cabin when an old farmer walks into the room.[/center]

"You all have been gathered here by the town of Hiroen to take care of Yuma infestation in a nearby forest. In there is an old abandoned barn just crawling with large Yuma who occasionally eat villagers traveling in the woods. There are 7 of them. Please be careful." he finished. He went to grab a bag of coins from his sac when one of the Hunters, a broad man with tied back brown hair and a beard interupted him.

"A shady man in dark clothing will collect the money if we succeed. If we are to fail and die, you will not have to pay." he finished. Another Hunter, an elegant lady named Llyra Sol added to it.

"But that won't happen. I assure you." and she winked at the Farmer, walking out the door. The others followed her. As they got out of town they began to introduce themselves.

Joseph Crim, The Last Line Society, was the broad man with a beard that spoke earlier. He had a sheathed battle axe on his back and heavy armor.

Llyra Sol, a Mage Knight, wore a long ritualistic dress over her dark skin. She also had short black hair and a blindfold.

Ellemere, another Mage Knight, wore white robes with black edging. She had long black hair and held a long staff in one hand.

The final girl in the group, Melanctha Hurst, was First Offensive. She used to long swords and had an elf-like figure.

The last guy in the group, Kyzallis had two different sword at his sides. He had long shaggy jet black hair that contrasted with his silver eyes.

Now introduced, the 5 of them walk through the woods in search of Yuma.[/font][/color]

[Adas]

The woods were dark ? despite being early in the afternoon, the thick canopy of trees cut out most of the sunlight ? only the few small beams that made it through the dense foliage lit the five hunters? way. Kyzallis moved cautiously, his hand never straying too far from his blade. He had never hunted before with anyone else in this group, but on the other hand, he was still fairly new to the rank of Hunter, and had yet to hunt with nearly any of the other Hunters in the organization. It perturbed him to no end that in all likelihood, his rank was most likely close to 47, if not 47 itself.

His eyes darted around suspiciously ? the forest was far too quiet. The sounds of singing birds could not be heard, but that didn?t seem to trouble Joseph Crim. Crim lead the grim party forward across the forest path, his lengthy brown hair stirring slightly in the soft breeze. Despite a handsome face, his eyes were hard, and seemed to take everything in ? Kyzallis made a mental note not to get on the man?s bad side.

Kyzallis walked side by side with Ellemere ? or Ellie, as she had put it. Her face was blank, and hid all emotion? if she had any emotion. Unlike Crim, her long black hair only bobbed with her movement. Kyzallis glanced behind him and quickly spotted Llyra Sol and Melanctha bring up the rear. The two were engaged in a soft discussion, but their eyes displayed a wary alertness that rivaled, if not surpassed, Kyzallis?. Kyzallis sighed, and turned to look forward at the road once again.

A branch snapping to the right of the path made Kyzallis? head whirl towards the sound, his hand already on his sheathed sword. By the sound everyone else had made, he guessed that they too were prepared for combats. Kyzallis, straining his ears to their utmost, heard the next quiet sound loud and clearly. A footstep, softer than a feather. And then another? followed by another. Kyzallis wasn?t sure whether to smile or frown.

?They?re coming,? he whispered to the group. ?And there?s more than seven??

[Raiha]

[font=times][color=darkorchid][i]Llyra stopped right where she was and the others all formed a vague semi-circle behind her. Joseph paused and put a hand on her shoulder. She kept her eyes closed, even though they were kept behind her blindfold anyway. Adjusting it minutely, she slowly undid the pins holding her sleeves up. With a delicate sound, her long sleeves fell down around her sides, and her arms were held up, bare skin showing.

She slowly turned her body until she felt she was facing the right direction and then she opened her mind's eye. To the casual observer, nothing had changed, but both Joseph and the others could sense a subtle weakening of her own yoki power. The Yuma were still far enough away for her to do a quick sensing, and so she did. A third eye, invisible to all but Hunters and Yuma opened on her forehead, a burst of white and silver light.[/i]

"Two appear to be Voracious Eaters, and the other five are relatively weak. ...... ....we should split into teams to minimize the damage."

"Are the two big ones too much?"

"Not if we plan it out and take out the weaker first."

[i]Instantly, the pressure of reading so much yoki became almost painful and Llyra half opened one eye. She shut off the connection right after and turned, withdrawing her sleeves back to their normal position. She reached up to one of the nearby trees and wrenched down two twigs that had grown together, brushy with leaves and stem.

She turned, her blindfold covering her eyes once more, and slipped back behind the others, standing with Ellemere.[/i][/font][/color]

[OMNOMNOMALY]

Ellemere's grip tightened around her staff, ever so slightly. It was the only indication at all that she was preparing for battle, as her face remained calm as ever. As the group spread out in a staggered line in front of the bushes from which the rustling was coming from, Ellemere shut herself off from the outside world. Her body would react if the beast came out of the woods before she was prepared, but her mind was preoccupied. She looked inwardly now, and her eyes looked vacant to anyone who would have seen her in that moment.

Ellemere felt nothing, saw nothing and heard nothing. She was in her own silent world. This was how she always accessed her Yoki. Suddenly; she saw it. To her, it always appeared as a nearly transparent tightly wound ball of yarn. Ellie found the end of this "yarn" and tugged gently, willing it to come undone. It unwound slowly and without hesitation, as it usually did. She never needed to release very much, so although it seemed to take a long time to her, in reality, it took no more than seconds. Ellie felt this newfound energy rise within her, and snapped back to reality. The Youma had not descended upon them yet, and she was relieved. Although she trusted her body in times when her mind could not be there, it was certainly not the most wise decision to do this when up against a Voracious Eater, and especially more than one. Seconds was all that it took for these monsters to rip a Hunter apart, if they didn't train all their attention to the task of fighting.

Crim made eye contact with her.
[I]"Ready?" [/I]he asked, though he knew the answer. They all did. Each hunter felt the surge in Ellemere's power. She nodded.
[I]"Everyone else?"[/I]
More nods of assent from the group.
[I]"Spread out further. We'll branch off into groups and separate the Voracious Eaters from the weaker youma when they arrive. You know who you are assigned to be with. Take out the weak ones as swiftly and efficiently as possible. We need to train all of our attention on the Voracious Eaters."[/I]

[Riku]

[SIZE="1"][FONT="Tahoma"][COLOR="DarkSlateBlue"]Melan placed her gloved hands behind her back as she tightened her grip on the black hilts, her Yoki feeling the advancements of the Voracious Eaters and the other weaker ones coming closer and closer.

She tilted her head to the right and saw Kyzallis standing there, becoming ready with his swords in their positions. Seeing as everyone else had already sided with someone, she bounced backwards next to him and placed her back on his, causing him to become more secure knowing that he wasn't the one left out.

[B]"How about it, Ky?"[/B] Melan finally responded to his silent demeanor, already calling him by her own nicknames. [B]"You ready for anything that comes up?"[/B]

[B]"Sure,"[/B] he replied with a tough-tone of voice, [B]"as long as nothing eats me, I'll be fine."[/B]

Melan laughed a bit, her long-blue hair covering her smile. She then turned tense when she raised her head up and looked among everyone else, letting them know what she was thinking. Raising her swords out of their sheaths, she nodded Kyzallis and started walking up the forest path.

Snarls and growls could be heard a little ways from the path, Melans Yoki pulsing through her entire body as a warning that they were near. She wanted to fight off the two bigger brutes, but she knew Kyzallis probably couldn't handle two at once and the stronger ones, such as Joseph and Leone, would probably want to play the 'bad-boy' card and take them down on their own.

She thought awhile, then whispered towards Ky and made sure he understood her plan. Then, she looked around and locked eye contact with Ellemere's and spoke loud enough in which she could hear.
[B]
"Elle, me and Ky will sprint upwards towards the Yuma and surprise them with only the two of us. While we start to attack the weaker ones and occupy the Voracious Eaters while the rest of you sneak up from behind and do your damage there."[/B] She then shifted her head upward in a agreeing manner. [B]"That alright with you?"[/B]

Ellemere nodded and alert the others to do just as the plan stated. [B]"Just be careful and try not to get eaten alive."[/B]

Melan started upwards on the path as Ky trudged along with her, the elf giving Elle a thumbs-up.[B]

"But that's the fun in it... attacking on the brink of death."[/B]

Ellemere rolled her eyes. [B]"Oh brother... elves."[/B]

[CENTER]+ + +[/CENTER]
OoC: Hope it's okay I gave you guys nicknames. :3[/COLOR][/FONT][/SIZE]

[2010DigitalBoy]

[COLOR="Green"]Joseph Crim was ready for battle. No; he was ready for anything. He no longer needed to sense his opponents - they had gotten close so that their stench was reaching him. Joseph had traveled in many groups before, and he knew to keep tension to a minimal. In this situation where he knew little about the power of his teammates, he would need to see their strength in battle before he could formulate any way to strategize with them. The two weaker members of the group had planned to use themselves as a distraction to get rid of the smaller enemies first before tackling the voracious eaters.

A fundamentally flawed plan. If the other enemies were to wear them down, they?d be nothing to the voracious eaters, and besides if they were busy killing the smaller foes, the bigger ones could get to their weaker fighters easily. Joseph was thrown off a little by the poor foresight of his teammates, but he remembered that many hunters were far greater fighters than they were thinkers. Were these teammates to be lacking in both categories, he would be sorely disappointed.

Other members of his group seemed to be of high power and likely were planning to do just as he was. Using the fray to their advantage, a group of highly skilled fighters would easily pinpoint the more powerful attackers and overtake them while the weaker ones were distracted.

Joseph turned his eyes to the young woman with the blindfold and the girl clinging to her staff. Both were wielders of magic, but he knew nothing of their rank. He couldn?t tell if the dead expressions on their faces were from confidence in their abilities or an underestimation of the enemy?s. Before he could finish that thought, though, the first enemy appeared over the hill that their path continued on. It was a sole Yuma with a devilish grin spread wide across it?s face.

?You pathetic humans! We have killed all who stroll this path and no man, not even a hunter has ever overwhelmed us! You worthless warriors will be our meal!? The monster raised it?s head to cackle maniacally but stopped at the sound of approaching footfalls. ?Eh?? The beast beamed it?s eyes downward to see an axe lodged deep into it?s collar bone, blood shooting from the crevice. The monster knew only fear and pain as it?s consciousness slipped away.

Just as Joseph was dislodging his weapon from the beast?s chest, another demon?s hand shot through the dead one?s stomach and stabbed itself into Joseph?s shoulder. At this point, though, the other warriors had caught up to him.

?What the hell?! We had a plan!? Ky called as he rushed past the older hunter and drove his blade through the dead Yuma?s chest and into the face of the monster behind it. Ignoring Ky?s complaint, Joseph grabbed the wrist of the hand sticking into his chest and quickly pulled it out, letting the arm fall limp. With the other melee fighters at his sides and the long-distance warriors a bit behind, Joseph prepared for the approaching Yuma in battle position. [/COLOR]

[Raiha]

[COLOR="DarkOrchid"][FONT="Times New Roman"][i]Llyra fell back a few paces, Ellemere doing so as well. A stray Youma homed in on the both of them, and Llyra threw up her wand just as Elle straightened her grip on the staff she'd been gripping. Huge fingers flew towards them and were instantly repelled by Elle's air shield. Llyra placed a hand on Elle's shoulder and transmitted her thoughts in a voice and sensation so subtle, only she could hear it.

"He'll attack from the left to right, aiming for our shoulders. I'll try to deflect for now."

Sure enough, that's exactly what happened, only as soon as the fingers came remotely close to brushing the shield that had been erected around both Llyra and Elle, Melanctha came swinging through and removed the attacking arm of the Youma, swiftly dispatching the other. She leapt back in a light flurry of both steel and fabric and Llyra stepped forward, her blindfold still firmly placed over her eyes. She raised her wand with one hand and placed it flat across the palm of the other.

A rush of yoki washed over her body and her dress flared out under the gathering power. She concentrated it at the tip of her wand and whispered three soft words. White light completely engulfed the Youma's head, exploding it in a rain of blood and flesh that would've completely enveloped the three girls if it weren't for Ellemere's conveniently placed cover.[/i]

"I will never get over how gross and messy these things get."

"Stop whining, there's still three more to get, including the Eaters."

[i]They straightened up, and Melanctha rushed towards her fellow warriors, leaving the two mages behind. Llyra dropped her head slightly and placed a finger to her temple, her eyes working behind her cover.[/i]

"And Joseph will need our help. If he's wounded by the Eater's he'll have to push his limits..."[/FONT][/COLOR]

[Riku]

[FONT="Tahoma"][SIZE="1"][COLOR="DarkSlateBlue"]Melan started toward the remaining two warriors while leaving the two mages behind to fend for themselves. Several Yoma had surrounded the two men, Ky trying to fend the evil monsters from eating him while Joseph still had some fight left in him even though his shoulder was almost sliced open and bleeding a vigorous amount of crimson liquid.

[B]"God dammit, Joseph!"[/B] Melan yelled loud enough so that the bearded fighter could hear the annoyance in her voice, [B]"we had a plan, dammit! Why couldn't you just have followed it without going on your own?!"[/B]

But just before she was able to help them out, a weaker Yoma jumped out from behind her and wrapped his slimy arms around her thin neck, yanking her back towards his body and holding her tight. Its monstrous mouth was open wide enough for her to see it's sharp fangs shimmering with saliva, inches away from her flesh.

[B]"It's too bad someone so captivating as you has to die in a horrible setting such as this,"[/B] it sneered, laughing at Melan's scrunched up face.

Suddenly, a loud yet metallic noise was heard impaling the flesh of the monster's head. Its eyes rolled backward and its arms were hanging over her shoulders, only being held by Melan's sword running through the Youma's brain. Melan then quickly took her right sword out and watched as the monster fell to the ground, blood oozing out of the head wound.
[B]
"Actually, I'm glad you died a gruesome death such as that,"[/B] she sneered, wiping the demon's blood off of her gleaming sword on the grass. She quickly turned around, her cape swirling around her, hearing a sort of yelling grunt come from where Ky and Joseph were, only to see Ky wounded in the right arm by that of a Vivacious Eater's stretching limb.

[B]"Crap... I almost forgot about those two,"[/B] she spoke under her breath. Melan then threw her left-handed sword towards the Yoma's limb that was impaled in Ky's arm, causing it to let out a devilish shriek.

She sprinted towards it and jumped upward, spinning downwards and landing just close enough to have herself on its shoulders. As it tried to fend her off with it's other hand, she stabbed it in the head with both hands on the sword's hilt. Jumping towards Ky as the monster landed, she took her sword out of the Yoma's head and walked over towards her wounded team-mates, also taking her other sword out of the dead Yoma's arm.

[B]"You guys okay?"[/B] she asked as she kneeled down and examined Ky's wounded arm and Joesph's torn shoulder.
[B]
"Yeah, I'm alright,"[/B] Ky replied as he nodded, holding the wound down with his other arm to slow the bleeding.

[B]"Ah shut up,"[/B] an annoyed Joseph called out, standing up again as if nothing had happened to him. [B]"If it weren't for me, you know just as well as I do that the both of you would have been more badly hurt than I am now."[/B]

Melan helped Ky up on his feet and put his left arm over her shoulders after she quickly bandaged his wound. [B]"Just shut the hell up and admit it already that we're not as weak as you thought we were,"[/B] she replied annoyingly yet cocky. [B]"I don't see me having any wounds on my b-"[/B]
[B]
"Melan! Watch out!"[/B] Llyra yelled quickly as herand Ellemere came running towards the three.

"[B]Huh? Wha?"[/B] Melan questioned confusingly, only to be answered by being pushed violently backwards towards a tree from huge tentacles that protruded from the body of a Vivacious Eater. As she slammed against a tree, Melan coughed up blood and felt as if she couldn't breathe anymore.

Her swords were sprawled out on the ground before her, so she was basically useless without them. Melan's body was tightly secured against the olden bark and her temple was pulsing from the pain as blood seeped out from her mouth and whatever other wounds she had just received.

[B]"Stupid cocky elf,"[/B] the monster bellowed, tightening its grip around her body, causing her to wince a bit. [B]"Thinking you could just beat everyone of us like that without even thinking of the consequences!"[/B]

Melan's consciousness was slowly fading, even though she wanted to kick this Yoma's *** just as easily as she did the others. Black was slowly surrounding her vision, yet she tried holding on to the bit of dignity she had left before Joseph could have the rights of bragging how right he probably was.

[B]"Dammit,"[/B] she whispered to herself, "[B]I don't want to be the first and maybe only one to get knocked-out by this lowlife..."[/B][/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]

[Adas]

?Melan!? Ky called out. Part of him was surprised that the Voracious Eater had snuck up on them ? the rest of him was consumed with rage. The wound in his right shoulder throbbed, and he knew that if he continued to fight the way he did than the wound would only grow deeper. Grunting, he tossed the sword to his left hand and charged forward.

He could feel the wind whistle through his hair as he leapt forward. He knew that his left arm wasn?t nearly as strong as his right, but that if he didn?t act then, then the party of five hunters would soon become four. He leapt into the air, and with a loud yell, descended upon the elongated fingers that held her to the tree trunk. With a flash of his blade, the fingers were severed from the Voracious Eater?s body and fell out of Melan?s body. Ky gathered her weapons and ran to her.

?Are you alright?? he asked, eyeing her wounds carefully. There were two wounds on her chest just below her breasts, one in her lower abdomen, and a fourth in her left shoulder ? judging by a hole in the bark, the Voracious Eater?s fifth attacked had narrowly missed her arm.

?Yeah, I?ll be ok?? she said softly as she picked up her swords. ?Thanks for that, by the way? she favored Ky with a smile, but began to stumble. [I]Damnit? she?s lost a lot of blood?[/I] Ky thought to himself. Ky grabbed her before she fell, and helped to prop her against the tree.

?Stay here until your wounds heal ? if you fight in this condition, you?ll surely die.? Ky noticed out of the corner of his eye that Crim was holding the Voracious Eater at bay with the help of Llyra and Elle. Sighing to himself, he reached down into his scabbard and pulled free his second sword. Despite being in the darkness of the forest, the blade still held its gleam, and the jewels in the hilt glittered fiercely. Melan tried to get up, but Ky rounded on her. ?Stay? at least until your wounds have completely heal ?? but he was cut off by a loud noise to his right.

Ky spun around, and saw the second Voracious Eater appear, pushing whole trees from out of his path. ?God damnit?? Ky muttered under his breath. He turned to Melan, and whispered ? the Voracious Eater was still far away, but Ky knew that they had excellent hearing. ?I?m going to hold it back until you can fight again? he told her. ?As soon as you?re ready, I?m going to need you?re help ? I don?t very much like the idea of being this bastard?s snack? he winked at her, and thought he saw a smile on her face. Turning back towards his new opponent, he readied his two swords, and charged once again.

[Ellerby]

[FONT="Tahoma"][COLOR="DimGray"]Leone sat cross-legged on the edge of a cliff that hung over the forest where his 5 future team mates battled bravely. He closed his eyes and concentrated completely on sensing the Yoki of the Hunters, making sure they weren't in trouble. Not that he would help them if they were.

If one of them happened to die here, he would be severely disappointed. [i]If they can't handle some Yoma and two Varocious Eaters then they certainly can't handle what's to come.[/i]

So far, though, they were doing fine. None of them were even pushing their limits. Although they were very unorganized and all of them seemed to be following different tactics.

Leone's thoughts were interrupted by a dagger whizzing towards his head. He narrowly dodged it and watched the blade fall to the forest. He turned his head to see a man dressed in dark green and crimson leather with three more daggers in his hands.

"What? How?! I didn't sense any Yoki!" Leone shouted, almost offended that such a person managed to catch him off guard. The man smirked and tossed a dagger into the air.

"You're not very smart, are you? If you can't sense any Yoki that obviously means I don't [i]have[/i] Yoki, right?" Leone grimaced in reply and cracked his knuckles.

"If it's a fight you're looking for, it's a fight you'll get." he charged forward and thrusted his fist into his opponents gut. The man went flying backward and smashed into a tree, falling to the ground. And he lay there. Lifeless.

[i]What? That's all it took?[/i] Leo thought to himself. Something suspicious was going on here and he hoped it was just a dumb test from the Organization.

When he looked back at the body, it was gone. And the marks and indents the man had left in the tree he hit were also gone. All the blood was gone. All that remained was Leone.

[i]What the hell just happened? ....a mirage?[/i][/COLOR][/FONT]

[OMNOMNOMALY]

"I've had quite enough of this." Ellemere stated, as her little group continued to battle the Voracious Eater. She had been staving off the barrage of limbs and various other extending tentacle-like things the creature had been sending their way. She felt her shields beginning to shake. Unless she unleashed more of her Yoki, these barriers would soon give way and leave them defenseless. She knew that the Voracious Eater could sense this, because as soon as it crossed her thoughts, the attacks were coming faster, stronger. Llyra also seemed to know what she was thinking, because she felt the Yoki of her fellow mage begin to grow. Crim grunted.
[I]"Do what you gotta do."[/I]
[I]"Yes."[/I] Ellemere replied. [I]"We are going to finish this quickly. I am going to switch from my defensive shields to my offensive attack. When I have the Voracious Eater unable to move, you know what to do." [/I]The filthy creature that was the Youma laughed at her.
[I]"Fairly confident, aren't you? Little *****."[/I] He spat, and licked his lips. [I]"It is you that I will enjoy devouring the most." [/I]he grinned, and Ellemere felt contempt rise in her throat, though she didn't bother to reply. The group felt her anger flare up for a second before she quelled it, her face had no trace of the fury she'd felt.

Ellemere was back in her silent place now. She tugged again on the string of her Yoki with urgence, willing it to come undone faster. It obliged in mere seconds, and she was back in reality, facing off with the Voracious Eater. It was well timed too, because her shields were on their last legs. The youma roared at her, but it didn't matter anymore. It would all be over soon... A bright light engulfed her body, and a wave of yoki was unleashed. The shield she had been holding around the three of them quickly turned it's direction as if flipping outward. The Voracious Eater let out an angry scream as it suddenly felt the pressure of an invisible force bearing down on it. It tried to peddle backwards, but realized in frustration that there was now an invisible wall there, too. It was trapped, and it was even more furious. It unleashed many tentacles, far too many to count, but they all met the barrier. Ellemere knew that she couldn't keep this up unless she was to reach her limit. She grimaced as the creature threw it's body against the force.

Both Llyra and Crim spread out so they were on opposite sides of the Voracious Eater. All of it's attention was focused on Ellie now, as well as it's strength.
[I]"Hold... Hold..." [/I]They heard her shout, over the din the creature was making. They understood, and stood in ready positions. The youma thought she was talking about her barrier, and laughed a grotesque laugh.
[I]"It will run out sooner or later, little girl... and when it does..." [/I]a smile (or what looked to be one, atleast) broke out over it's hideous face. She too smiled at the creature, all tension gone from her face, she put her hands down.

[I]"Now."[/I]

Before the Voracious Eater could even leap at her, Llyra had cast her spell and Crim had brought his heavy axe down on it's neck.
[I]"Gotcha." [/I]she said, the smile still on her face as she watched the head fall down to the ground with satisfaction, blood squirting everywhere. It was even more satisfying to hear the crash the large body hit the ground with.

As soon as the youma had fallen, the group took off running to help their teammates with the second.

[Adas]

The wound in his right shoulder throbbed, but Ky kept slashing ? he knew that if he stopped, both he and Melan would surely die. He leapt in the air, narrowly dodging the Voracious Eater?s tentacle-like fingers, and flew down to the ground once again, neatly slicing off each finger. For a moment, he rested. Panting deeply, he eyed the Voracious Eater, who unlike Ky, seemed amused. A small smirk crept across the fiends terrifying features, and a deep, rumble of a laugh was emitted from its lips.

?You?ve put up a good fight ? I?ll give you that.? The laughing stopped, and was replaced by mock sorrow. ?Aww is that sweat? Are you getting tired, Hunter?? he spat the name. ?Perhaps, I?ll end your suffering? if you ask nicely enough. If you get down on your knees and beg, I?ll even consider eating you first?? his gaze was far too intent, and sent involuntary shivers up Ky?s spine.

Without warning, the beast lunged forward. Ky rolled out of the way, and leapt once more to avoid the Eater?s vicious onslaught of attacks. It was relentless, constantly attacking and never giving him a moments rest. However, Ky currently held the advantage ? as a member of the First Offensive, he had trained for countless years in how to avoid situations like this, where speed was the key to survival. Despite still carrying the swords in his hands, he switched from his own attacks to the defensive. Without worrying about attacking his enemies, he found it much easier to dodge. [I]Catch me now, you bastard[/I] Ky thought with a small smirk, as he once again jumped out of the way of yet another fatal attack.

Feeling worried about Melan, he afforded himself a quick glance at her, and was caught off guard. Before his head had even finished turning towards her direction, he felt an incredible pain in his chest. He looked down at his chest, and found three long, spear-like fingers protruding from his flesh. [I]Damnit? I was cocky? I was careless?[/I]. His cloak fell to the ground, a ragged, ripped and torn mess covering up the wet, crimson blood which now made the forest floor slippery. In moments, the cloak was also stained red, which looked almost black in the eerie moonlight seeping softly through the trees. The feeling was like nothing else he had ever felt before ? the area around his wound was burning hotter than the sun, while the rest of his body felt chilled to the bone. Things were starting to go black. His last site was of the Voracious Eater?s face, dangerously close to his, saliva dripping from its mouth, ?You look delicious ? I wonder if you were worth the chase?? [I]Fuck you, you bast?[/I]

Suddenly, his vision was restored. He was completely immobilized, and every moment was a struggle to stay conscious, but he could see. Death had not come for him this time. He could see Crim, rushing forward with his axe, flanked by both Ellie and Llyra. Crim was taking more hits then he was giving, but they barely seemed to faze him ? he kept hacking away until there was nothing left to hack, and then he found something else to use his axe on. Ky felt massive amounts of Yoki flooding out of Ellie, and the Voracious Eater was clawing at its own face, trying to remove some sort of invisible barrier. With a flash of his blade, Crim finished the Voracious Eater just as he had the first one. As the beast fell, he saw his allies rush over to him. [I]Damn? now I?m going to get chewed out by Crim? maybe it would have been better to die?[/I] Ky lost consciousness with a soft smile on his face.

[Riku]

[FONT="Tahoma"][SIZE="1"][COLOR="DarkSlateBlue"][B]"Ky!"[/B] Melan shouted as she got up from her sitting position and ran over towards him, kneeling down towards his level. She shook him a little, trying to wake him up, but he was knocked out from the wounds he'd just received. Her face showed a slight worried emotion, but she smiled a little, knowing that he would be okay.

Joseph wiped the Eater's blood off of his blade and slung it over his shoulders. [B]"What a wimp,"[/B] he finally replied, only watching as Melan bandaged Ky's wounds.
[B]
"Just shut up, Joseph,"[/B] Ellemere fumed as she slightly bandaged his own wounds, almost annoyed at his prideful attitude. [B]"You know just as well as I do that he was a bit better than what you took him for."[/B] When she finished, she slapped him on the back as a gesture of annoyance and letting him know that she was finished.

[B]"Feh,"[/B] he scoffed, walking over to a little area by himself.

[B]"Everything okay here?"[/B] Llyra asked Melan, wanting to help in anyway she could. Melan slightly nodded and continued bandaging his wounds. Llyra then walked over to Ellemere and whispered softly in her ear.
[B]
"What the heck is up with her?"

"I dunno,"[/B] Ellemere shurgged, crossing her arms, [B]"...maybe it has something to do about love or some sort?"

"Whaa? Eww,"[/B] Llyra shuddered, not taking a liking to the word at all. [B]"But she barely even knows him."

"It all depends..."[/B] Ellemere lightly smirked, [B]"find a hundred different people, and you find a hundred definitions of love."

"Yeah, sure... love is sick."[/B]

After Melan finished bandaging Ky's wounds, she sighed a little bit and smiled as he slept. [B]"Thanks for... saving me,"[/B] she thought in her mind, moving his hair out of his face and bandaging his forehead. She really was thankful because if it weren't for him, she'd probably be dead long ago.

She smiled again and looked around to see if anyone was watching, then lightly kissed him on his cheek.
[B]
"Thanks again."[/B]

[CENTER]+ + +[/CENTER]

OoC:LOLOLOLOLOL Romance ftw! BD And sorry this is so short, I just don't know what you want to happen next, White.[/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]

[Ellerby]

[FONT="Tahoma"][COLOR="DimGray"]It seemed as though the short fight had taken more out of him then he though because Leone had passed out after seeing the mirage and didn't wake up until all the Yoki in the forest below had been suppressed and all the Yuma were dead.

He bolted up and wiped some dirt of his clothes. Making sure his possessions had not been swiped by a lucky traveler, he turned around and jumped off the edge of the cliff, sliding down the wall with the heels of his feet. Because this took quite a bit of Yoki to do, the group of Hunters that Leone had been observing felt his presence.

"Someone is coming." Llyra said to the other Hunters, who also felt the incoming Yoki. All the Hunters except Ky (who had only just woken up) and Llyra (who could tell it was another Hunter) readied their weapons. Leone emerged from the underbrush of the thick trees.

"Sheath your weapons," Leone laughed. "I'm not here to harm you." The Hunters did so and one even let out a sigh of relief.

"I was afraid more fighting was going to take place." Melan said, sitting down beside Ky. Crim smirked and folded his arms proudly.

"Me too, I was getting a little excited." he chuckled to himself and Melan glared at him.

"Aha, alright. You're probably wondering who I am so I'll explain it to you. You've all been being observed and studied for the past year or so and the Organization Leaders have decided to make you guys, under my leadership, an Awakened Hunting Group." Leone was interrupted by Llyra.

"Hmm, I haven't been on one of those escapades in quite a while. This should be fun." She smiled to herself and leaned against a large oak.

Leone pulled out a piece of paper with random scribbling and notes all over it. His eyes darted around the writing and locked on a name. "Llyra Sol, number sixteen, it's a pleasure to meet you." Llyra nodded in reply.

He then read the rest of the paper. "And we also have here Mr. Joseph Crim, number twenty-four and Ellemere... no last name, number twenty-seven. And then we have two Hunters here who have not yet battled Awakened Beings before."

"Melan Hurst, number thirty-three and Kyzallis, number... forty-five." Leone closed his eyes and thought about that for a minute. Then opened them again a couple seconds later. "Alright, we have our first mission. We're to traverse to the other side of this mountain and in the cave there is an Awakened Being, or a Yuma that has taken complete control of a Hunter, that keeps tormenting the village below. Let's get this over with while the sun is still high."[/COLOR][/FONT]

[Raiha]

[COLOR="DarkOrchid"][FONT="Times New Roman"][i]Llyra smiled to herself once more, vaguely remembering the last Awakened one she'd touched upon. He was powerful, but so were her team mates, and with her heightened yoki sensing abilities.... ....The Awakened one became so flustered and frustrated that he'd ended up leaving himself more open for attacks and in the end...it'd gone well. Better than the organization had expected. Better than even Llyra had imagined it would go.

She stood, pulling down the sleeves of her dress and replacing her blindfold. With a turn of her body, she began to walk forward along with the others, her fingers feeling the tendrils of leaves trailing down from trees. Reaching upwards slightly, going by touch and a very vague extrasensory perception, she jerked down three slender twigs, and clustered them together, long leaves twining around them. With a rush of magic, she felt the life of the tree augmenting her own power, creating a wand pulsing with life and energy. Elle stepped down next to Llyra and looked at the freshly made wand, so bright against the softer ash colored skin of her fellow Hunter.[/i]

"Why do you insist on using wands instead of a staff or glaive?"

"I prefer the natural, what I can touch and feel and connect to. I've never managed to connect with any wooden staff that I couldn't manipulate or channel equally well with the wand."

[i]Elle shrugged and trudged on, Llyra stowing her wand back in the folds of her kirtle and skirts.

In time, she began to sense the pulsing, wildly waving yoki of an Awakened being. A Hunter playing unwilling host to a youma, full of conflicted emotions, riotous bloodlust, and near insanity. They would never recover the Hunter's human heart. ...inwardly, Llyra wondered how the others would take the news. And how quickly they could recover from their current battle wounds, that would begin to take a toll.[/i][/FONT][/COLOR]

[2010DigitalBoy]

[COLOR="Green"]Joseph?s expression and demeanor were placid as he strode along with a feeling of boredom and irritation. An animosity toward him was very evident among several of his group members, which bothered him. Such childishness is not the kind of thing becoming of a warrior. Perhaps it was merely that their youth and lack of experience hadn?t hardened them or shown them what a battle was all about. Emotions and mistakes were one and the same, and both should be avoided in the heat of combat.

It was no surprise to hear that said members of the group were of lower ranks, and Joe was less than pleased about having to deal with them. While he didn?t blame them for not knowing what they were doing, he proffered to be dealing with professionals rather than children he?d have to look out for. Already he knew that there would be conflict between them - those who think rationally and those who let their emotions get in the way always have difficulty together. Still, he was ready to try and keep his mouth shut as much as possible. If they screwed up, he wanted to make sure they knew it was their own fault, and he?d be ready to sweep into fix whatever errors occurred. Until then, though, he?d let them have it their way?[/COLOR]

[Adas]

Ky winced as he began to walk with the others ? his wounds still hurt like hell, but he refused to use any Yoki to heal himself. Dark clouds began to gather on the horizon, their black masses indicating a coming storm. The trip started off miserably, every step bringing on a new wave of pain, each more unbearable then the last. [I]Serves you right, you moron[/I] he cursed at himself. [I]Serves you right for acting so emotional? maybe next time, you should act more rational, and practical, like Crim.[/I] The thoughts themselves left a sharp sting in his mind ? it was at that moment that he realized Crim had been right all along. Ky kicked a small stone out of his way, but the sudden shift in movement only made his wounds hurt more.

The march was long, the foreboding silence of the group only made the trip feel longer. No one spoke. Not even this [I]Leone[/I], who had not only come from out of nowhere, but was apparently supposed to lead them. The man didn?t seem bad to Ky, but something about him felt odd? perhaps it was that he knew everyone?s name and rank, and yet all they knew about him was his name. Addressing these feelings as misplaced, Ky continued on, confident in his trust of the man ? despite having more questions then answers, Ky somehow knew that he could be trusted, and was fairly confident that his number was close to a single digit, if not a single digit itself.

The initial hours of the march seemed to drag on and on, forcing Ky to remember his wounds at every step. However, with enough time, he began to grow used to the pain, and soon enough, the pain began to go away. Just as the pain had nearly left his body completely, the dark clouds, which had threatened rain for so long, finally released their wet charge upon the earth. Within minutes, Ky was thoroughly soaked, as was everyone else in the procession, yet Leone who led them never stopped. Reaching into pack, Ky found what he was looking for, and produced a slice of bread. Gently ripping it in half, he quickened his pace until he was side by side with Melan. She looked up at him and smiled, to which he replied with his own smile and the larger half of the bread. ?Here,? he said. ?Take this ? you?ll need your energy if we?re to fight when we arrive, and I doubt we?ll be stopping to eat.?

?Thanks? Melan took the bread, and ate it hungrily. Ky continued to walk beside her, but didn?t eat his. After she had finished, she turned to look at Ky, and noticed his uneaten food. ?Why aren?t you eating?? she asked.

?Oh, I?m not that hungry. Here,? without waiting for an answer, he pushed the rest of the bread into her hands. She looked as though she were about to put up a fuss, so he interrupted her before she started. ?Don?t worry about it ? if I get hungry, I?ll eat. Now please, eat it? he smiled at her. Sighing, she finished the bread. Ky continued to walk beside her. After some time, he spoke again. ?How are your wounds doing?? he asked.

?There not too bad ? I was almost done healing before we left.? She replied. ?How are yours? I saw you limping when he first started.?

?Oh I?m alright? he replied, but before he had a chance to continue, Leone halted the group.

?We?re here?? despite having said so little, it was enough. Without even realizing it, Ky noticed the tree line broke ahead, and there before them was mountain.

?Guess we?re climbing up that, then?? Crim asked, surveying the landmass in front of them.

?No guessing about it? Leone flashed him a smile. ?I?ll go first.?

The rain refused to let up.