Family, Falls, and Broken Bones

[Gunnar WindStar]

"Mother! I told you! Just leave the damned thing alone! IT'S DEAD!" The forest trees blotted out most of the suns light, letting small, warm beams dance on the forest floor as the wind blew the limbs of the oaks and pines. "Gunnar Apollus WindStar! You know better than to yell at your mother." A giant, yet, middle aged man chuckled a bit as his sons 'courage'. "Oh, shut up, Nicolae!" Another, younger yet slightly wrinckled woman yelled in return to her husbands reply. There was a dead ox that had fallen in a clearing of the woods, not to far from the forests edge.

"Look, mom... Pop... Just let me do this okay?" "I can't see WHY we can't just take it him and cook it over a fire!" his mother replied. "Because mother! I need to practice..." Her husband turned away a bit as he whispered to himself, "Pluss your cooking isn't that good..." Instantly rewarded with a fist to the stomach. "Ooof!" "Mom, pop... Just... Stand over there... Alright?" Gunnar looked around through his spectacle, searching for the wondering soul of the dead ox. The body was fresh, and maybe with some medicine and a bit of magic... He could bring it back. "There it is...." He said staring at a blurry form about fourty yards away, "Just stay here..."

Gunnar slowly eased his way toward the glowing figure that hovered about four feet from the ground, walking left, then right in a repeated process. Once Gunnar was close enough, he beckoned it to follow. The large, bright orb stopped in it's movements for a moment as Gunnar grew closer. "Come on, now... Nothing to be afraid of here... I'm trying to help..."

The orb stood still for a moment as Gunnar did. Silence grew in the air. It was still a good thrity yards away now, and there was no possible way he could capture it... Even if he could get there... He had yet to make a device that did such things with the world of the dead... But one day... One day

"Come on..."He slowly began to draw closer to the being, shutting his normal eye to see more clear into the world of the dead, but it seemed with every step, it stayed in at the same distance the whole time. Gunnar desided to move his feet a bit more, walking normaly, keeping his eyes on the orb. "Come on, you stuborn ox... I'm just trying to help-" Gunnar felt himself cut off as he found and empty spot in the ground and after opening his eyes, he relized it was bigger that he though. A massive mouth to an underground cave was where he though the ground used to be... And now he was falling fast. Thinking a bit quickly, he used his Lo'tha magics to try to propel him upward, but the wind only broke his fall, slightly.

He heard a 'snap' on impact and instantly screamed in pain, his cries echoing around him. A few moments passed as he relized where his pain was coming from, he saw the bone popping out from the skin, blood flowing down into a small puddle at his feet. "Gunnar!? Are you okay!?" Gunnar grew irritated, not from his mother. Just the fact he couldn't used to the pain that coursed through his body. "No MOTHER... I'm NOT alright!"... "Alright, son... I'm coming down, just hang on..." "Are you crazy!?" His mother exclaimed. "Your older than Margus himself! How do you expect to get down there... SAFELY..." "Will you two quit bickering and go get help!?" Looking down below, she cried out once more. "Just hang on, baby! We're going to get someone!"

He laid there for a moment, hearing his parents wonder off... How he hated his family dropping in on afairs of his... But they weren't there today... He would be there, with no on knowing... He gave a sigh as he tried to move his bone back into place... A crack, then a scream roared through the forest, birds and animals flew and scurried away from the animalistic roar of pain. Vampires were known to have faster healing abilities... So why couldn't I have been and blood sucker?

[Arumi]

"Your very presence makes the forest agitated."

Arumi sighed. He hadn't been within either of the forests in a long while - years, to be sure - and to be told that upon arrival he disrupted the entirety of the trees and creatures within them just with his aura... It made him miserable, and caused him to feel severely degraded. The northern reaches of Lo'Gregah had been his home as a child, and he had loved it. Then they moved to the Wicked City, and while it was not an uncomfortable place to live, he had missed the freedom of being able to walk out the front door and have leagues upon leagues of land to roam for himself without having to worry about meeting up with anyone else. Myraal, though... he had only visited on occasion. It was not as old, or as sentient, as Lo'Gregah, so perhaps it would welcome him a little more easily. Not that he could sense the forest - he was no I Quen mage. Far from it.

The rush of air always calmed the demon. And so, given the sense of having something vile hovering about his body from the reaction of Lo'Gregah, he had taken to the skies in the hopes of cleansing it. Flying had not come easily to him, but once the young demon - an angel at that time - had mastered the ability, it was even more natural than walking. His light weight made it so even the calmest breeze could sustain him, and warm updraughts sent him soaring up with a rush of adrenaline and speed. Placed next to a swallow, he could make the tiny fluttering things look clumsy and uncoordinated.

The lush expanses of Mydraal spread out below him, filling his senses. The western forest was warm and close to tropical, beconing a stay to even the most rested of shen, while much of northern Lo'Gregah was evergreen and shrub, the more southern tree types unable to stand the harsh mountain winters. Breaks in the canopy were showered with warm sunlight, and Arumi was thoroughly content to soar for the next hour or more.

Until a scream wrenched him from the comforting sound of the beat of his wings. It was horribly close by, and as he back-flapped to draw to a stop in the sky, another scream wracked his bones. Part of the demon told him to fly - and fly fast - away from the sound. Someone could have been attacked by one thing or another, that could potentially fly, and prove to be an untimely demise to Arumi should he linger. The other part - the more sadistic, demon part of him - suggested he could investigate. Perhaps he could find some interest in the pain of another shen with currently less fortune than the young demon. Another, miniscule part of him whispered that the other shen was obviously hurt, and possible in danger, and he should go help. Arumi's lip curled up in the hint of a smile, the tip of a canine showing as he ignored that tiny voice. He flapped once, the pulled his wings up and back into a dive that sent him rushing toward the forest canopy. Pulling up at the last moment, he skimmed the tree tops, peering through them as well as possible, then dropped down below the leaves. The trees grew too close together to for flying, so he took to his feet, scenting for fear and pain - while he could not detect a specific race by their smell, he could use his nose as a guide for many of the less-enjoyable emotions as they permeated almost as thickly as the scent of sex and desire.

His mismatched eyes skipped around as he drew closer to the smell of pain, and his sight fell on that of a large, dead animal. That was not the source. Turning his gaze beyond it, he walked for a minute before finding himself at the edge of a hole in the earth. Peering down, he spyed the form of a dark-haired humanoid. Interesting... now why the screams?

Squatting, he put his chin in a palm, elbow rested on his knee. He was silent for a while, watching the shen, before eventually speaking softly. "Were you the one who screamed? You are in pain."

[Gunnar WindStar]

The blood poured down his leg and through his trousers as he 'waited' for help to come... Of course, by now, his parents were either: arguing to the point they were at one anothers throats... Probably over directions... OR, they were already on their way will some sort of aid. Either way... He'd be sitting there for a while. The pain had slightly diminished, though the throbbing still caused pain for his entire leg. The nurves and tendins were completely torn and he knew if he didn't get it fixed soon, he probably wouldn't be able to produce anymore blood from that leg anylonger.

A smell filled the air, strange, but the forest was filled with all types of animals and beasts. But he had a slight hint on what this scent was, but did not act or thing anything of it and continued to wait. His goggle saw once again another orb. "Your the reason I'm in this mess..... Stupid ox... I guess if you wouldn't have fallen over right up there... You would have fallen in here!" Gunnar shook his head, his bright green eye closed for a moment as he rubbed his head for a moment before hearing a voice.

His eye shot up to see a boy on the ledge and at this point, his heart beat faster with the hopes of being rescued. "Oh! Yes! Could you please help me?! Or send word? My leg is busted open! I see the bone and I would be stupid to try to stand on my own!" Indeed, a demon. But who cared? He needed help and just like himself, this being had a heart to. He knew not all demons were cruel and hateful, they even morph into one of the most beautiful beings that have walked the realm. So maybe this one would be trying to get his white wings...

"Please! I cannot stand on my own. If you are unable, atleast give company!"

[Arumi]

He tilted his head a fraction when the creature in the hole finally looked up, the scent of hope filling Arumi's nostrils. What a curious shen, to be so suddenly encouraged by the sight of another shen - and a demon at that. How did he not know Arumi didn't mean to eat him? A tiny, wry smile twisted at Arumi's lips. What a wretched idea.

He was torn, though. He could leave, and not have to worry about this shen whining to him for help, or he could try to help, or he could stay and talk... torment... encourage.... the possibilities were endless. Well, one decision won over at least. Arumi knew he was not going to be the center of attention, as it was the other shen who was in a predicament where he had no choice but to be pestered.

Rubbing his nose thoughtfully, he lifted his gaze and looked around the area surrounding the other man's hole before turning his mismatched eyes downward again. "There is no one else around." He spoke plainly, without inflection or suggestion. Were he to go search for help, he'd probably get leagues away and forget where the shen was trapped even if he did find someone. He was too intrigued to go wandering, anyway.

He fell silent for a few minutes, musing over his options, letting the other shen conjure up his own misconceptions of what Arumi might do for him. Eventually, the demon stood, still gazing down the hole. "I cannot help you out. I am not strong enough to lift someone such as you." With that, he wandered away, out of the sight of the other shen, but remained in the area. He wanted to know how he could play with this shen's emotions for the moment.

[Gunnar WindStar]

((Gotta do this quick, baby duty! Hahaha!))

He pondered at the demon for a moment, listening to him. "Well... Your around!" He said with a winced smile, the sun beeming down on his face. His leg throbbed a bit as he tried to move a bit on his own... No use... Gunnar paused for a moment before reaching into the pocket on his other leg and pulling out a sharp dagger. He leaned up off his arm and began to gut away at his trousers, slowly, removing the cloths around the open skin and sharded bone. There was still weight on the leg, but he bared down hard, fighting it off and out of mind until he was able to see his whole lower leg.

He looked up again as the Demon spoke again and left without another word. "Wait-!" There was no use... This Demon was obviously the same old Demon that the realm had grown used to. He gave a sigh as he rested his head on a large rock behind him. "This is what I get I guess... Figures... Trying to move forward in the world has their downs... And this one... Is WAY down..."

So now he would sit and wait for his parents... And now... He was leaning a bit toward the fact they were lost.... "I'll be here a while..."

((Sorry so short... Can't type with a baby in my arms XD))

[Arumi]

((oh my, baby duty! Don't let it drool on you. xP))

Arumi didn't go far - he could still see the gaping hole in the earth, and could still smell the emotions of the dark-haired shen. He had never found someone trapped in such a way before - by his own stupidity, and not someone elses' hands, by the looks of things.

There was one thing that fueled Arumi's actions more than anything else, though. In all situations, his actions created reactions in whoever he was around. His presence couldn't be ignored, even if they tried to ignore them, or he tried to blend in. The more he tried to dissapear, the more conspicuous he became. What a strange life. Blending in as an angel - fading into the shadows - had been so much easier. Now Arumi's curiosity and watching of other shen always drew attention to him.

And this man, trapped in the earth... he didn't sound or smell hopeless. His emotional scent was fading dramatically now that the young demon was out of visual range though; the scent of blood was becoming more predominant. I suppose I can't really let him bleed to death while I muse his behaviours and feelings of my dissapearance when he'd expected me to help him.

Arumi stood up from the log he'd been sitting on, one leg crossed over the other knee. What a bother. But it wasn't as though he had anything better to do with the day.

Wandering back to the lip of the hole, he gazed down at the shen just long enough to know where he was sitting and positioned, then leapt down and landed in a half-crouch next to him. Once his balance and comfort were returned, Arumi turned his mismatched eyes for the first proper look at the face of the other man....

...and immediately reeled back at the artificial eye, his wings flaring in surprise and brushing the sides of the dirt cage. Arumi moved back to a comfortable position, forcing down the shock of the strange eye, and took in a full look of the shen. The broken leg immediately caught the demon's attention, and he sat back on his haunches.

"D'you fall, or someone push you?"

((Salem "LONG... until becoming a babysitter" Valentine??))