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Under the Hill - Second Circle: Lust


Notus

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Ethic did as Annie Asked, grabbing hold of her other arm as she reached down to help the others into the trees, feeling a surge of what felt like raw power enter his own arms. he look up and out over the plaza beneath the tree tops, seeing nothing but the small path Byron had cut; everything else was the bodies of these Hell spawn.

as he assisted Annie, he had the feeling that merely climbing trees would not be enough to save them... not if these things were capable of communicating and managed to co-ordinate their actions into a single assault on the group... which he really hoped they would be to occupied with their... obsessions to be able to do.

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"Everyone, get to Annie now! I will cover you." shouted Byron. He needed to hold the path for them, that way they could get to the tree and at least have a chance to survive. He would hold his ground for now, firing off shotgun shell after shotgun shell.

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Kenny saw what they were doing, and then he jumped onto the ground, Charging as he fell. He landed right next to Byron, readied an Aura Sphere, glowing indigo in the process, and helped out by first parting the creatures with the Aura Sphere, and then creating two barriers right next to each other in the middle of the gap that he had cleared out, then pushing said barriers apart, creating a safe Pathway for the members of the group who were still on the ground to get to the portal and into the trees.

"Follow me!"

Kenny then jumped into his own Portal, geting a big headache in the process, but he toughed it out and kept the Barriers up and the Portal open.

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Rose look on anxiously as Annie, Byron, and Kenny first saved Ethic and then began moving others into the treetops. She hated feeling useless, like she was unable to do anything... But maybe she could. Thinking back to how she transported the shadows in the library to other places, maybe she could do the same here. Concentrating on a large group near Byron, she just started thinking, Anywhere but here, before calling out, "Teleport!"

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Phantom stood on one of the balconies as the sun set over the beautiful land. The place put him at ease. He had no memories save for that girl, and his desperate urge to bring her back. He didn't even remember why, or who she was to him. But no matter who she was, he needed to get to the bottom.

It was strange. He had no clue how long he had waited on the first circle before the others came, having no reason to push forward. However, his determination was set after the meeting with Minos. He would make his way to the bottom, and hopefully remember more about just who he was along the way. He looked up at the sky, having been lost in thought. The moon was a blood red, and the whole place had a sudden hostile feeling to it. He stood where he was as the bodies came from the ground. They were naked, and every touch they made to each other caused immense bleeding and pain. He drew his sword. It appeared he would not get any rest this night. No matter. These were the sorts of things one must expect in a place like this. He cut into the first of them that reached the top of the stairs. Of the few memories he did have, one was how to wield a sword. He cut through body after body, fighting from both sides. They were not difficult to slay. Their movements were slow and their reach was short. They swung clumsily at him, and he easily cut off the limbs before they reached him. However, he began to wear down not from the difficulty of the battle, but simply from their sheer number. Furthermore, he was still recovering from his battle with the panther. The wounds had scabbed over, but they were healing poorly. When he twisted to much, they broke open, causing pain and distracting his attention. He continued his fluid movements until he had a short break, resting before the other creatures reached the stairways.

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Ellaria

Ellaria listened to the whole scene from her place near Rose. Blind, she was spared of the hellish vision of the "loving dead"*, but her blood still ran cold from hearing their screams.

When the group started to move through the treetops she did nothing but to go along with them, feeling useless.

Not only she didn't find out her power - supposing she had any - but the ammount of noise on the place had to her the same effect of a smoke curtain to those who had eyes. Therefore, it was very carefully and slowly that she moved through the path and reached Annie and Ethic.

*((loved this name Ethic, it's oficial now XD))

Edited by Notus
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Rose snagged Ellaria's hand as soon as she was close to her. "Here, Ellaria," she yelled over the vicious screeching below, "I'll make sure you don't stumble." As she did that, Rose lost her own foothold, and in a flurry of hands and feet, began plummeting toward the ground. As she managed to grab a lower branch, she shrieked, "Son of a biscuit, someone help me!" closing her eyes as she desperately tried to keep her feet high enough and away from the loving dead.

Edited by Rosesong
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SPLAT

That was the sound that the monsters made when a boulder materialized from a tear just below Miss Rose. It squashed the ones trying to get at her, and was big enough for her to use to pull herself back onto the branch.

Enya waved at Miss Rose from her perch, which had come to float-- eerily, as the iron beam appeared to be suspended from nothing but a chain coming from a small hole of static-- closer to the tree. The girl looked like her normal self-- save for the blood that stained her pretty blue dress and rusty meat cleaver that she held as she hugged her bear.

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Rose had to suppress a dry laugh as Enya seemingly materialized a boulder to appear underneath her, squashing the loving dead and providing her with a way safely back into the tree.

"Thanks Enya," she called to the younger girl, before taking a double take. Why was her young companion holding a meat cleaver? Deciding that she really didn't care to find out, and chalking it up to another one of the girl's abnormal traits, she shook her head and said, "Nice aim!" before scooting up the tree to Ellaria again.

Snagging a loose branch from the tree, and taking of her sarong to reveal a pair of black shorts, she quickly conjured herself a spear, yet again cutting herself in the process. Placing her sarong in her bag and rolling up her sleeves, she whispered so that only Ellaria would hear, "Stay hear, and if you can, focus your hearing around this tree-- feel the vibrations from around this tree. Call down to me where they come from if you can hear them clearly, please."

With that, Rose climbed back down to her lower perch and began to plunge her spear into the naked heads of the group's assailants, only bringing it up to free it of one head and sink it into another.

Edited by Rosesong
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Mr. Taylor kept firing wildly at the bodies coming at him, but they were closing in faster than his weapon could fire. "Damn it..." he muttered to himself as he shot through a young, dark haired boy. He looked back as the rest of the group seemed to be faring far better than himself as they had made an effort to get in to the trees. Unfortunately for him, he had been separated enough that he hadn't been able to reach Annie just yet. He looked on as a few more started approaching from the direction the rest of the group was, he had been totally cut off at this point and he knew it wouldn't be worth calling out for help. So he aimed his pistol once more and fired.

The first shot landed tearing right through the first bodies head. Then he took aim on the second one backing away slowly. However, before he could pull the trigger he felt something grabbing his legs. He whipped around quickly to notice that the creatures had gotten him from behind. He let out a scream in pain as the monster began to grab and shove him to the ground. He began firing his weapon wildly, but it was of no use. He was completely surrounded and pinned to the ground. However, he held his tongue, he knew he would die, but it wasn't worth getting the rest of the group killed trying to save him. He let his body go limp as the creatures closed in and made there move to start tearing him apart.

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Ethic had turned his head after something catching his peripheral vision from up on the branch assisting Annie...

He could see Muzzle flashes.. and a hat... surrounded by Loving Dead... he knew who it was firing off those rounds in the distance... that hat gave it away...

Mr.Taylor... Was the only thought that had time to surface before he saw the hat disappear abruptly and the Muzzle flashes stop...

He Cried out

"MR.TAYLOR!!!"

He could feel a torrent of familiar energy through him, along with a familiar anger...

The Wrath was back.

He stared at the spot where Mr.Taylor's hatted head had poked out above the crowd a few moments prior, the Loving Dead bending down in the area and beginning to go into a frenzy over something, a lot of them actually starting to fight each other... over it... small scawbbles had broken out in the area as a few of the stark nude individuals began to tussle with one another...

He tightened his grip on Annie's arm subconsciously as he watched as more of the Fiends began to kneel down and attack some poor unseen victim... but not an unknown victim, not to Ethic. he was sure that the Elderly man was dead... who could survive in that?

forcing himself to look away, he could see white flaring off him as it had several times before in the first circle... His thoughts crowded with Anger at seeing a Traveling companion, a friend, die so savagely... it was like something out of the "Walking Dead"...Something Ethic never expected to be possible...

he sent his energy into the cards as he yelled, not caring or even remembering that he would get no response from them.

"BURN, YOU FILTHY, LUST-CRAZED BASTARDS!!"

He forced every once of power he had circulating through him into the card for the Magician Arcana, his arms growing a bit weak for a moment as he screamed in fury, intending to invoke and set fire to the Crowd below him indiscriminately and end this Horror feast...

but there was no response... it seemed as if his energy had actually been Rejected by the Card, and Ethic felt it flooding back into him, searching for a refuge as it had failed in reaching it's assigned destination. he remembered the situation with his ability at this point, and also realized how loose his grip on Annie's other arm had slipped, and tightened it again, saying to himself as he shoke with unchecked anger, even more infuriated that he couldn't take immediate vengeance.

"I'm going to burn you all... every last one of you that rises from this garden... even if I can not Invoke... I will find a way to make you burn in a fire more fierce than you have ever seen before... even in the pits of hell..."

Edited by Stratos
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Rose heard some commotion and looked around on the ground instantly, abandoning her current activity of stabbing loving dead. Over where she couldn't quite reach, she saw a very familiar hat go to the ground, along with the man who wore it. "Mr. Taylor!" she shrieked, startled that the older man had gone down so quickly. It seemed this enemy was not to be underestimated.

Pulling her spear up, she called out "Teleport!", breathing a sigh of relief as the creatures attacking her friend momentarily disappeared. "Mr. Taylor," she called, beyond caring if the loving dead could comprehend her words, "get into a tree, and shoot them from above!"

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It seems those lustful creatures are endless and keeps on coming from every corner with their eerie moaning and god knows what they're doing to each other. Flanking the unlikely duo of Marcus and Ixidor as they hold their ground.


If this keeps up will be dead by dawn. get us out of here! ditch the psychopath and let's go... I don't care just go!

shut up! shut up! you're not helping. Ixidor trembles wildly with fear and can't think straight trying to draw something to get them out of this infestation.


"ahh. screw it" He close his eyes as he finish his jumbled drawing. A burst of light comes out from his pad, A Manticore appears as it leaps its massive body above Ixidor and Marcus pouncing on one of those things as it devours it and swings its massive scorpion like tail wildly, spreading its bat like wings knocking some of the loving dead. It glides towards the artist and his killer companion as it forcefully snatches them on its huge paws.


"Eiiiiik!" I'm so sorry." said to Marcus as their feet was off the ground and the dangerous beast flaps its wings and takes flight into the open sky.


crap it was supposed to be a lion, well at least we're safe for now. he thought to himself with his eyes close the entire ride as the two boys were being carried, dangling on its paws from an altitude. The Manticore flies across the blood moon as it releases a mighty roar through the night.



((I feel like i've just bunnied you a little.. sorry about that; feel free to disembark or land somewhere on this ride.))

Edited by typhlosionrulez
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Annie's arm, extended so far it hurt her, grabbed Mr. Taylor and pulled him back into the trees, with such force that if she hadn't dug her feet into the tree, she would have fallen off the tree. She dared to look at him.

Cuts. Blood everywhere. Bits of clothing and skin missing. Biting her lip and holding back a tear, she laid him down gently behind her. She still had to get the others. Drawing her hand back, she stopped to hold it out to the little girl. She didn't know her, but she couldn't leave her. She just hoped the girl would trust her.

Turning around to Ethic, she began to speak softly.

"I didn't know the man very much, but I believe that nobody should be left behind. Nobody, even if they have done something unthinkable, there has to be some shred of good in them. And there was still the chance he would survive. But... if he has survived through something like this, he's not even human in my eyes. More like some kind of immortal god." A small, sad chuckle escaped her mouth, and a tear fell down. "He was important to you guys, and in my perfect world, if they're important to someone, they've done something worth saving."

With that, she turned around to the little girl with the bear.

"Listen! You may not know me, or trust me, but I know Rose and Ethic, and others that I'm sure you will know! You can hate me and not trust me later, but now, you need to grab my hand and trust me!" Annie quickly looked down, and saw with utter shock, one of the loving dead attempt to jump up and grab her hand, and she only barely got her hand away in time - a small growl came out that only Ethic could probably hear, as the tip of it's finger had caught hers. "Please, hurry and make your choice!"

Edited by Alatreon
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Ethic Watched as Annie's arm somehow extended beyond what was humanly possible and grabbed Mr.Taylor, dragging him out of the fray of the Loving Dead and up into the Tree with them.

"I didn't know the man very much, but I believe that nobody should be left behind. Nobody, even if they have done something unthinkable, there has to be some shred of good in them. And there was still the chance he would survive. But... if he has survived through something like this, he's not even human in my eyes. More like some kind of immortal god." A small, sad chuckle escaped her mouth, and a tear fell down. "He was important to you guys, and in my perfect world, if they're important to someone, they've done something worth saving."

Given his nature, Ethic didn't much agree with that bit about not leaving people who had done awful things to others behind, but he chose not to voice this given the current situation. what mattered to him right now was that this women had just saved Mr.Taylor's life...

And that combined with the rest of her speech was enough to convince Ethic he could indeed trust Annie as he trusted Rose and Mr.Taylor and the others. he watched as she called out to Enya, who was still out hovering on some strange steel bar above the crowd, and as a Loving Dead jumped up and tried to attack, but unable to hit Annie as she extended her arm. Acting quickly, Ethic tore Man Without Honor from it's sheath, the blade glowing an eerie red in the light as he rushed forward along the branch and lashed out with his knife, catching the Loving Dead as it fell from the apex of it's jump, leaving a deep slash wound across the things neck as it went limb in the air and tumbled back down into the crowd below, the Loving Dead there going into a frenzy and beginning to tear at the body of the thing as it lay there on the stones, bleeding from the Gash across it's trachea that Ethic had inflicted.

Ethic looked over to Enya in the distance

"It's Alrgiht, Enya!" He called out

"You can trust her!"

Edited by Stratos
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Rose sighed in relief as Annie seemed to unnaturally stretch and grab Mr. Taylor off the ground, out of harm's way, and began to focus on Enya, who appeared to still be on her floating perch. Scrambling back up the tree, spear clutched tightly in hand, she took hold of Ellaria.

The girl, deprived of her way to sense the world around her, seemed scared and uncertain of herself. "Ellaria," Rose said over the loving dead, "we need to get closer to the others. Let's go." Taking her hand, she gently pulled the girl to her feet, giving instructions on where to put her feet as they made their way to the unofficial base.

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Byron noted that all the others were safe for now. He focused, deeply the Green aura now almost blazing. He started yelling at the top of his lungs, and sent forth all the pent up energy. Green Lighting Flew in all directions, killing countless of the Loving Dead. at the end of it Byron started to collapse, blood starting to drip from his nose. "I bought you guys some time, hopefully that is enough. He fell to the ground, Unconscious.

Great shrills of laughter could be heard in the far distance. As Quincy was slaying the Loving Dead near him. He reviled in ripping them to shreds, and hearing their screams of torment, he could be seen in another tree across the way. He had killed countless of the creatures, as he was too nimble for them jumping from tree to tree while reloading his copy of God's Hand. He however got curious. Having gained Lightning powers, he wondered what things he could do with them. He remembered the Lodestone he had possession of. Wondering if he could use it to amplify his own power, he knocked off a piece. He placed it in an empty shell casing, and placed it into his God's Hand. And Fired. A surge of Crimson lightning flew out the end, and enveloped numerous of the loving Dead. However the surge of power caused the wound on his nose and several new ones to open up. He didn't seem to notice the pain, he was in to much ecstasy of the murder he was sewing. "Oh, yes......this will do nicely, I can kill many with this." he laughed to himself.

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Kenny saw Byron fall unconscious, and moved the lower End of the Portal under Byron, teleporting him into the treetops near Kenny. Kenny then used his Healing Power on Byron, glowing turquoise and getting a headache in the process. He still toughed it out, but the strain of keeping them safe was starting to wear him down. The Portal and Barriers then Collapsed, letting a Torrent of the Loving Dead surge towards the Tree.

Edited by K_H
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As Kenny's barriers went down, and the loving dead came flying toward the tree, Rose told Ellaria, "We should be safer, stay here." With that, she leapt down to the lowest branch she could find and began stabbing at the stark nude assailants with a newfound fury.

For every head that Rose plunged her spear through, it seemed as though two more creatures came, each shrieking and howling unintelligible things. The cut that she had made in making the spear bled at a slow, steady pace, and a headache was threatening to overcome her. "Enya," she called to the girl, "Can you come this way? We need to stick together!"

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Annie made Mr. Taylor lighter, before putting him on her back, giving him an almost piggy back ride.

"C'mon, Ethic. Hold Enya and jump to the trees. Or she can go herself if she's brave enough. We need to get back to the others." Annie jumped, neatly landing on the next branch. She took a deep breath, before jumping again to another, and working her way back to the group. However, on the final branch, she heard an almighty crack, and only barely managed to jump off in time, landing barely on to the first tree where the group was as the branch fell to the floor. Her breath was erratic, and fear coursed through her.

The branch was broken. She stared over at Ethic, who still had to make his way. Shoving her hair behind her ear, she began shakily.

"I'll catch you, Ethic. I swear it." She whirled round, put Mr. Taylor on the next branch, making a mental note to check how he was, before turning round. She dug her teeth into her hand once more, and dug her feet in. She held her arms out, and extended them, making them reach as far as she could, which still wasn't far enough. She had to catch him. She knew the others would help. Right?

"Guys, I'm really going to need your help." she said to them.

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((You meant to say "Ellaria" instead of "Enya", right?))

Ethic watched as Annie made her way through the canopy to the next tree, turning to Ellaria, whom rose had just dropped off

"you ready?" he asked the young women, oblivious to the fact that she was actually blind.

He jumped and landed on the next branch, stopping in preparation for the next when he heard a cracking noise and saw Annie barely jump off the branch she was on in time to avoid falling to the ground below with it. he looked as it tumbled through the air and hit a Loving Dead square on the head below, killing the thing as it's skull caved in a little and it fell to the stones, blood beginning to leak from it's injury. Ethic looked back up at Annie, her arms were outstretched.

"I'll catch you, Ethic. I swear it."

He noticed that Mr.Taylor was on the branch behind her. he took another leap, landing on the next branch, then another, and then he was at the gap that the branch's breaking had created...

Well...guess I have no choice but to jump...

He was about to make the leap when Lucian called out in his mind with urgency

"Don't do it... you do, and you'll both end up dead."

Ethic stopped and called back mentally to him

"What are you going on about now, man?"

"That branch she's standing on... it's just like the one that fell just now... I'm sure of it..."

Ethic was getting tired of this conversation already... they didn't really have the time right now to talk

"how do you know this..." he asked lucian "I thought your expertise was fire... not trees..."

"Yes, that may be true... Trees aren't my area of expertise... but as someone who's learned not to trust their eye's for everything, I've trained how to use other senses... you've seen that a few times now... like how I was able to tell that your friend was an aura manipulator. add to that the fact that I'm far more observant than you... and well, maybe you should just listen."

Ethic was beginning to get irritated now

"Just tell me how you know this." he demanded

"Whenever you leapt to a branch, it gives of a sound... a cracking... so tiny that your ears couldn't even pick it up... with most branches, that means they can support a person on them... if they can't, well obviously the cracking sound is much more audible and your ears can hear it... like with that branch that just fell. Now then, you weren't paying close attention when Annie jumped to that branch she's on now... with both her's and Mr.Taylor's combined weight, the thing gave off a louder crack than it should... no body but me probably heard it because of all the commotion below... but if it was silent here, your ears would've been able to pick it up.... that and I saw how it bent a little when she still had Mr.Taylor on her back."

Ethic was actually starting to get a little angry that lucian wouldn't just skip to his point

"What's your conclusion then, oh mighty scientist with magic ears who can apparently hear things that no one else can?" he said sarcastically in his mind

"Hmph... funny... but I'm not bullshiting you here, Ethic. why would I in this situation? My point is, that thing barely held two people for a few moments... now then, if you jump, and assuming that she does in fact manage to catch you, we have to factor your added weight to the branch and the momentum of your jump adding onto the force acting on the tree branch, which will have to be pretty substantial to even get you across that big ass gap... alot more than Annie's shorter jump had. That thing will break if you try it. I'm sure of it."

"Quick question, Lucian... where the hell did you learn physics?"

"I'm an old soul... I've had a long time to learn a lot of things, now are you gonna take my advice and not jump, or are you suicidal now?"

Ethic let out a sigh, knowing that Lucian had a point... if that last branch had broken so easily... who's to say that one wouldn't as well?

He looked over to Annie at the other side of the branch

"Sorry," He said "I'm pretty sure that thing will break if I try to jump to it and you do manage to catch me."

He turned and hopped to the branch behind him, making his way back to Ellaria while calling out to Annie

"You go on with Mr.Taylor! I'll take Ellaria and find another way around!"

Edited by Stratos
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Rose jumped and climbed her way up to Ethic, hearing the last part of his conversation. "Actually, I may have a way around going separate paths," she puffed, out of breath from all the tree climbing. Quickly digging in her jacket, she pulled her trick rope that she used to fool people into thinking it never changed length.

Making it into a sturdy lasso, she threw it and looped a tree branch above, pulling the knot tight. "Try this," she said, and placed Ellaria's hand in Ethic's. "She needs to go with you," Rose whispered softly. Bringing her voice back to it's normal volume, she added, "Toss the rope back across please, so that I can get there."

Edited by Rosesong
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Ethic took the rope in one hand and Ellaria's hand in the other... wondering why she would not to go with someone.. did she have trouble with vision or hearing r something?

he simply went with the flow for now and looked back to Annie.

"Nevermind!" he said

"Rose came up with a solution, but you'll need to get off the branch before we can try!"

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Ellaria

Ellaria was scared and confused as never before and constantly hearing the howls of pain of the Loving Dead was making her dizzy. She did not know how much time had passed since this hell (literally) broke loose, nor did she know how long she would be able to endure this.

Through all the scene, she tried to remain quiet with her hands covering her ears. This was madenning. In her dark world she never saw light and could rely on her other senses, and now all her hearing told her was pain, and all her nose could perceive was blood. She wanted to stay down, to stop hearing, to stop smelling until all of this passed, and she could bear no longer.

So, when Ethic caught her hand and screamed to Annie it was almost automatically and without thinking that she screamed back, snatched her hand away from his, covered again her ears and curled up in the branch.

And disapeared.

=======================================================

Group 1 (Rose, Ethic, Annie, Enya, Ellaria, Mr. Taylor, Byron)

All the while the Loving Dead kept closing in, more and more of them. The situation was starting to get critical, since now there were so many of them that they threatened to bring down the trees. All the group could hear the cracking of the roots, and they all understood they needed a miracle to escape.

So, it was with utter surprise that they heard someone scream "Back off!" and the monsters start to do exactly that.

A path started to open between the mass of Loving Dead, and by it passed a young and very handsome man, well dressed in a polo shirt and black jeans. The dead seemed to make way for him, and none made any movement to try to touch him.

He looked up for the group over the trees with a puzzled expression. "Oh, hi. I don't think I've seen you around yet, are you new here?" he asked as that was the most natural situation in the world.

Edited by Notus
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Ethic was perplexed when he felt Ellaria snatch away her hand, turning but yet not being able to spot her...

He looked to rose, about to ask where Ellaria had disappeared to, when he noticed that the crowd was growing larger below... he turned, staring at them... then grabbing hold of the tree's trunk as he felt them shake it, causing leafs to fall...

We're all screwed... he thought to himself Where's Jesus when ya need him?

He had actually begun hoping that some type of higher power, or even a lower power for that matter, would intervene and help them... and then he noticed as a voice echoed through the air... young sounding, like his own did...

"Back off" it said, and surprisingly, the Loving Dead did just that, and as the crowd parted in what seemed to be a mix of fear and... respect actually, he could see who the voice belonged to...

a young man in a polo shirt and black jeans... he called up to Ethic and the Others

"Oh, hi. I don't think I've seen you around yet, are you new here?"

Ethic looked at the others, stealing quick glances then back at the young man on the ground... he spoke, not caring about security or trust or anything like he would've just a while earlier... this guy had just saved their asses, and Ethic figured that pegged him good enough.

"Yes." He called from the tree

"We just arrived here a short while ago, actually... while the sun was still up."

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