A New Beginning [CREIA - OPEN TO ALL CARRIERS.]

[[*DOC]]

It felt strange to be out in the sunlight, as weak and subtle as it may be. The young woman skirted and dipped through the throngs of people with abnormal grace, her skirts never once touching another person, head inclined into her chest and her arms folded tightly, as if she didn't want to be seen. The woman was of a small, frail stature, but exuded an odd aura, that seemed so terrifyingly powerful that it could hardly seem real.

She was so used to the dark, subdued lighting that filtered through the stained glass windows of her castle, quite happy to sit in the darkness, or to occasionally light a few candles if things got too gloomy. Creia didn't like to be outdoors at the best of times, but an important cause had brought her here today, and she wouldn't be stopped by a small thing like minor agoraphobia.

Creia had come to the heart of the city to set her plan into motion; it was time to begin gathering Carriers, before the world could crumble around them much more... The dreary sight of the sun and clouds was enough proof that they were running out of time. If the sun had been stronger, it would have become apparant that the woman's shadow was not human, instead being a large Roman clockface that kept real time, quite obviously giving her away as something inhuman. Creia Tsumei was a Time Deity, a pawn of the Goddesses, created to - when the time came - help to save the world.

Settling herself gingerly upon the edge of the large fountain in the center of the Square, eyes scanning her surroundings, the subtle auras of humans surrounding her, searching and digging deeper to try and pick out Carriers amongst the crowd. Keeping her head low, her faded crimson hair casting a shadow over her eyes, she tapped gloved fingers against the corroded stone of the fountain's rim, knowing that - at the very least - her odd appearance would gather some attention.

She wore a long black blazer, pulled in at the waist by a metal studded belt, with long tattered coat tails at almost seemed to float with a mind of their own as she moved, underneath being a pale emerald lace dress, with black gloves on her hands and ankle boots on her feet with high silver metal heels, adding a few inches of height to her tiny frame. Upon one wrist was a thick black band, with an inlaid bright green jewel, seemingly too smooth and bright to be an emerald.

She could already feel the confused and judgemental stares of passers-by burning into her, but ignored the soul feeling, focused fully on the task at hand. There was no time to lose.

[kiddie]

Melting down the pennies of a wishing well into the bullets for a diplomat's heart wasn't Artisan's favorite job, but somebody had to do it. As impoverished passerby tossed a few coins, each filled with hope, into the town square's fountain, the young man would scoop them into a canvas satchel. It'd been his idea to melt down the coins into emergency bullets, but he hadn't assumed he'd be given the job. That was Lambda for you. Artie said one thing, the mere spark of an idea, and the next thing he knew...he was scooping money out of a fountain with his fingers. Forget about the bodies reported to be floating and forget about the sewer drains that were probablyleaking into the system. If Lambda gave him a job, Artisan really couldn't say no. It wasn't because he liked her, but merely because she was his boss and he had a debt to pay.

With a sigh, he plucked three copper pennies from the fountain. They'd been tossed by a small child, who'd closed their eyes and made a frivolous wish about getting a kitten for Christmas. To Artisan, it felt like he was waiting for a kid to leave the beach to destroy their sand castle. It was the indirect crushing of others' dreams. It made him feel sick.

As he bent over the water, silky brown hair falling into his eyes, he caught the reflection of a young woman. He followed her eyes through the ripple of the fountain, giving eye contact with his meticulous gaze. “Are you lost?” he asked, “Nobody really likes to sit at this fountain. The townspeople say bodies and sewage float in it. Nasty stuff. I can show you your way home if you're lost, that I can.”

His clothing rustled slightly, a loose white cotton shirt and pants, as he plopped another two coins into his satchel. That made five coins so far...almost enough scraps for half a bullet. Oh, he was on a roll.

[Echo]

People.. Oh, how he hates people..
Zaero works his way through the crowd, long ears pinned tightly down to avoid bumping anyone. All these smells, voices, sounds of their shoes.. They rumble around in his head like a ball of needles. With each shout or laugh, his icy blue eyes narrow and his lips curl.

Finally he makes it through to his favorite spot: the fountain. Though it smelled of death and waste, it was the most natural-smelling place he could find. A refuge from all the deodorants, perfumes, soaps. Not that he's a particularly dirty person - he just sticks to the basics and avoids sharp perfumes.

His thoughts halt and his ears perk up sharply as he realizes there are others at the fountain.. one of which digging in the water. He hesitates, bare feet shifting on the dirty ground, before finally working his way over and taking a seat on the edge, as far as he can manage from these strangers. Just in case these odd folks decide to turn hostile, the slightest bit of static builds around his fingertips - barely enough for even him to notice.

[Sky]

Skyelar winced as she limped through the crowd, her injuries from her fight with Sal a few weeks ago still pained her a lot, but she hated being cooped up all the time. She needed to get out and about at times too, not just sit around and do nothing. She knew that it probably wasn't good for her, especially since today her ribs were swollen again from the previous day, but she didn't tell Altair.

She did agree to let him tag along though, which she was grateful for. She couldn't fight anyways. She had already failed against the Damned, something that she had never done before. She had always either gotten away or killed the Damned, never had she been so close to death. Skyelar had also been thinking about the things she had said to Altair, how weak she had sounded at the time.

He had seen the inner girl in her, the inner girl that needs protecting. She hated it. When she had first woken up from her the ordeal in his apartment she had basically clung to his arm , begging him not to leave her alone. She didn't let him leave her side until she fell asleep, not wanting to be left alone. Then again she had thought she was close to death and had always feared that she would die alone.

Even now she was having trouble getting her protective barriers up, she just hoped that she could. She didn't want anyone else to see her like that again any time soon.

[[*DOC]]

It seemed she wouldn't have to wait quite as long as she'd initially thought... Already the auras were approaching here, thick and fast. Crossing one leg over the other, she laced her fingers together, resting her hands gently upon one knee, closing her eyes for a moment to concentrate.

First to approach was an Earth Carrier, no doubt about it. His aura seemed to flow from the ground itself, however dead and dreary it was, moving closer and closer until it stopped at the fountain side, sitting just as she had.

Then another, with a similar idea, but this time a... Lightning Carrier? Yes, she could feel the static rolling from his skin, seeming to exude from his every pore. She could also feel two Air Carriers approaching through the crowds at a laboured pace.

Perhaps not an ideal bunch, but... they would do. She first turned to the Earth Carrier who had spoken to her, a little thrown by his initiative to speak to her, having been mentally preparing herself to try and... talk to these people ever since she'd gotten here. Eyes now open, wide and confused, she gawped for a moment, before managing to stammer out rather a meagre, pathetic excuse for an answer. "I-I... N-n-no, I'm not l-lost, but... t-thanks anyway."

She swallowed the lump in her throat and sighed heavily, before trying again. "Listen... both of you." She directed this at Zaero too, looking directly at him to let him know she was talking to him as well.

"I-I... I know what you are. But I'm not a threat. I... need your help. And to prove I'm not just some human trying to trap you... you, sir, are one of Earth, correct?" She gazed up at Artisan, eyes still glimmering with a hint of social anxiety, but trying to do her job as a Time Deity as efficiently as possible. "And you... you are one of Lightning." She then turned her gaze to Zaero, noting his apparent tenseness and slight hostility to his surroundings. She'd need to be careful with this one.

Turning her gaze back to the crowd, she saw the two Air Carriers that she'd been expecting approach, a tall man seeming to be helping a green haired girl along, as if she were injured. Huh... chivalry. At least it wasn't dead yet...

Keeping on arm wrapped around Skyelar, under her arm to support her, but not tight enough to risk hurting her ribs anymore than they already were, Altair tried to move them through the crowd at an easy pace, using subtle gusts of air to stop anyone from bumping into Skyelar, instead taking the brunt of their shoved shoulders, hips and knees without a noise of complaint of discomfort.

"Maybe we should take a break? We can go sit at the fountain..." He began to manoeuvre them over to the fountain's edge, grimacing as he saw the state of the water. Well, as long as neither of them fell in... It would do for a rest, wouldn't it?

Altair was perhaps being even more protective of Skyelar than he had been previously, having seen a rare insight into who she was underneath, having practically pulled her back from the edge of death by saving her from that Damned. It had... scared him, honestly, to see her like that, clinging to him for dear life as if without him she'd surely die. It had pained him to see his companion, but at the same time, it had made him all the more attached to her, as if now he couldn't possibly let her go.

But he was sure that when Skyelar was rested and healed, there wouldn't be much stopping her... He just hoped he could keep up. Once he'd gotten them both settled, he noticed the other three people sat at the fountain's edge, eyeing them suspiciously for a moment, surprised to see a small, red headed woman stare right back, as if she could see into his very soul.

"And at last you have joined us, those of the Air..." She murmured upon their arrival, gaining a shocked, then angry look from Altair, keeping his arm wrapped around Skyelar protectively. "How... how do you..." He began, unable to fathom how someone could break their cover just by looking at them. Maybe she'd seen him use his air powers in the crowd...? But it was impossible, they'd been so finite and subtle...

"I am not like you, but then again, I'm not like any of them out there, either..." She motioned to the humans moving sluggishly around the town square, as if in a daze. "I only seek your help... But talking about it here in the open is too risky. I only implore you to trust me. Without that, we have no chance."

She rose from the edge of the fountain, before coming to stand before them, hands clasped in front of her. "My name is Creia Tsumei... I'm a Time Deity." She kept her voice low and quiet to avoid being overheard by any humans, but Altair's eyes still widened, unsure of just what a 'Time Deity' was, but certain that it was mostly likely something you shouldn't be saying so carelessly in public.

[kiddie]

Why anybody would choose to sit by the disgusting fountain was beyond Artisan's comprehension, but what else could he do? If such a pretty little lady wanted to contract some disease from the revolting water, he wasn't going to stop her. Shrugging at her once, he went back to plopping coins or scraps of waste metal into his satchel. Every material that could be used as a weapon, no matter what condition the material was in, he collected. Lambda's funds could get them the pricier materials for top notch weapons, but the Crusaders had to be cost efficient. The better materials went to weapons during planned attacks, the gathered materials were collected for practice, training, or every day use. Trainees burned through bullets like little kids with a big allowance, always in need of more and more.

The jingle and clinks of metal made Artisan turn his head towards the crowds. An agile Capuchin monkey, a young one no doubt, darted in between people's legs and towards the fountain. An identical satchel to Artisan's dangled from his mouth, bulging with gathered scraps. Quite pleased with himself, the little monkey scampered up Artisan's leg, pulled himself up the boy's shirt, and settled on his shoulder.

“Nice work, Heinz!” congratulated Artisan, “If you keep working with such efficiency, pretty soon Lambda will give you my job, that she will!” He muttered a compliment to the monkey in Korean, rubbed the creature's head, and took the satchel. Coins, scrap jewlery, nuts and bolts, shreds of metal sheets, and more “useless junk” clattered inside the fabric. Artisan tied up the satchel and smiled, his brain already whirring with ideas for trinkets and bullets.

The smile dropped from Artisan's face like a deadweight when Creia revealed that she knew he was an Earth Carrier. Unlike other Crusaders, Artisan preferred not to carry weapons with him...except for the occasional gun or sword. His favorite weapon was the trident, but it was unconventional to carry throughout the city and thus remained polished at his work table. Today was a day Artisan hadn't brought anything to defend himself with and he knew... “Ai...I'm screwed.”

Heinz hissed at Creia, as if understanding such an accusation meant danger. Artisan rubbed the monkey between his ears to calm him down, shushing him slightly. The woman was still speaking and every word shocked him further. “Maybe I am, but there's no way for you to prove it,” he said, brown eyes glinting with skepticism, “I'll listen to what you must say, but I'm prefer not to be involved in the world's problems. If I die today, I die in debt...and you'll make Heinz an orphan, that you will.”

[Echo]

Zaero remains flat, though the small jump in the amount of static around his fingers gives away his surprise. This wasn't the first time someone had picked up on his abilities, but he certainly didn't expect it to happen like this.

He doesn't bother denying it - why should he? Instead he just nods slowly at her mention of being a Time Deity, and ponders over exactly what it is she would need of them. Speaking of THEM, Zaero's ice blue eyes nervously turn to the other newcomers. It was as if they were all drawn here unknowingly, and he begins to question his real reasoning for wanting to come here every day. Was he actually waiting for this day without any clue? Or is this all just an odd coincidence?

He shakes his hands gently, and the static disappears entirely. Tension would do him no good here, but it wouldn't take him long to charge back up if it's needed.

[Sky]

Skyelar nodded in agreement and let Altair guide her over to the fountain, where she sat rather slowly before realizing other people were there. She simply blinked at them all a few times, confused as to why so many people were there at once. Was there a meeting she hadn't been informed about? If so why would they be meeting while she was injured? It's not like she could move quickly or anything.

She winced a little as she tensed, pushing into Altair a little more, liking how comforting his arm felt around her. She knew that as long as he was around he would sure she would be safe. He had shown that already, she trusted him more then she had ever trusted anyone before. She had always been alone, it was comforting to know someone was there for her now.

"Altair, I have no idea what she is but this sounds important. I think we should follow."

[[*DOC]]

Creia shook her head with a faint sign, having gained rather a mixed response from this strange bunch. Agreement, defence, and even just plain silence. But it was a start...

"I promise you, I mean no harm to any of you. Please... follow me, time is of the essence. And honestly, we don't have very much of it now." With that, she strode swiftly away from the fountain, disappearing down an alley way, seeming to fade into the darkness of the shadows ahead.

Watching her walk away, Altair then turned to Skyelar, nodding at her words, albeit seeming a little uneasy about the whole situation. "Do you think you'll be alright, chasing that... strange woman to wherever she's going?" He asked, gently helping her up as he stood, knowing that they couldn't afford to wait around for too long. Skyelar did seem sure about this...

Setting off at a middle pace, not too slow as to lose her, but not too fast as to make things uncomfortable for Skyelar, he followed after Creia into the alleyway, able to hear her heels clicking on the cobblestones a little way away from them.

[kiddie]

“Don't you think people will be suspicious?” Artisan challenged, “Why would all these misfits group together in an alley? We're practically parading through the square, we are.” The Earth Carrier didn't have anything against Creia personally, but he'd fallen for one too many tricks by humans to believe in others so easily. If you went about the world assuming you knew nothing, then you had no choice but to delve for evidence, scrutinizing the details until you came to the truth. Artisan searched Creia's face, tone, posture—everything! If she was lying, he had to catch it early.

Heinz leaped from Artisan's shoulders, plopping to the ground and dashing towards Altair. The tiny monkey made faces at the man, detecting the exact opposite of Artisan's element coming from him and the green haired girl.

"Heinz! Get back here!" Artisan ordered in Korean, "Leave them alone! Now!"