Scaling To The Moon

Scaling To The Moon
Date of Scene:	05 December 2012
Location:	Alexandrian Mountains
Synopsis:	Skoll Ulfang and Zia investigate a mysterious happening atop the Alexandrian Mountains.
Cast of Characters:	Skoll Ulfang, Zia

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Skoll Ulfang has posed:
Alexandria's wall is an amazing thing to behold within the World of Ruin. A massive thing that serves as a protective wall for the nation of Alexandria. And it is the mountain this massive wall is situated upon that Skoll and Zia find themselves upon today. The Shard Seekers had been requested to go to the mountain of Alexandria and look into a particular problem submitted by the kingdom itself; to investigate strange 'fires' that would appear now and again upon the mountain. They themselves could not spare the manpower it seems...

And when it comes to scaling mountains, there are only a few within the group that are properly capable of this task. It had been Skoll to take the job - but not before asking Zia if she could come with him. An airship to Alexandria later, and a small chocobo ride through the Mists at the base of its valley, the two are working their way up. Skoll us using the sharp-ended chains to work his way up, and is hoping for Zia's support in her wind abilities and her wings to safely make his way to the top.

"Wondering if I should risk a peacock feather-butt right now." Skoll calls out to Zia, having made his way half along the side of the mountain with her.

Zia has posed:
Normally, the somewhat reclusive gargress wouldn't be one to join in on the adventures of the Shard Seekers. Until recently, she would have avoided humans at all costs. However, being stuck in the World of Ruin for the time being meant that she had to depend on someone, and the group that surrounds Reize had been accomidating enough. They had fed her and given her a place to rest - the least she could do is tag along and lend a hand.

It does make sense to think of her when it comes to heading up into mountainous areas, since her kind are distinctly made for such environments. The claws, the wings, the strength to crush stone - it makes her distinctly suited for the job. The gargoyle had tolerated the airship trip, having found a place high up along the mast to hide out from those below, but there was no way that she would ride a chocobo. The big bird-like creatures had been quite skittish around her, and thus she'd had to use her wings instead.

For now, she lets Skoll lead the way, keeping a bit below him. As strange as her feet might seem on normal ground, they seem suited to the rocky turrain, and she has no need to worry over slipping or losing her grasp. "Ye should have said somethin before we got all the way up here. Ah willnae be tryin te do magic while hangin onte a rock face. Ye'll end up wi' worse than a peacock-butt 'n maybe end up like yer great bloody bird back there." She might be exaggerating - maybe.

"Makes me wonder wha yer 'Lords' think aboot ye commin te the ends o' the world for some boy 'n his groupa adventurers. Cannae imagine they wouldn't have better uses in mind." She's still trying to figure out that whole balance between 'servant of evil' and somehow 'not a bad guy' thing.

Skoll Ulfang has posed:
"I can do this." Skoll muses, grinning bravely to Zia. He feels that if he were to lose his grip, Zia would be strong and quick enough to catch him. "I just had not figured the rock-wall to be quite this steep. I've never been here before." He explains. That probably also explains his clothing - the very same thing he tends to wear. It's not exactly suited for higher reaches of mountains. At least the upper jacket is closed. His tail is floofed and remains close to his legs - showing that he is however, a bit cold.

"But - I think I will pass on the opportunity to become Skoll Ulfang; the magnificent rock-climbing Black Chocobo." He then adds, tearing a chain off from where he's climbed so far, and then violently thrusting it up and using the chain's magic to get the end to stab into the rockwall - so he might climb further up the chain. He's slowly growing more accustomed with this climb. He looks down for a moment, hanging down on the chain, and looks at the strong Gargess and notes the ease she is having with this climb.

"As for my Lords - they generally don't care that much what I do, as long as I am at their beck and call when they do need my assistance with something." He admits, sounding a bit unsure about whether this is an 'okay' thing. He just shrugs his shoulders through, and continues to climb further. "I could always just let you carry me." He then jokes. "It's not like I weigh much."

Zia has posed:
"Next time maybe ask the one wi' wings te do a fly-over before ye decide to go climin wi'out a net." It's not really that he's in any danger, though. Skoll is right - she's quick and strong enough to grab him if she has to, and somehow gargoyles seem to have that ability to make themselves fall faster than others - physics, what's that? She's not really trying to condemn his choices though. Getting to see the world like this - it's definitely an eye-opening experience for the girl who so rarely got out of her safe haven back in Manhattan.

She looks up, watching as he climbs with the chains, using her forearms to pull herself up an equal length with the crunch-crunch sound of her talons making their own way in the rock. "Ah dinnae know, ye may look quite dashin in feathers." She muses, seemingly in some good humor today. Afterall, there's no strangers around to make her uncomfortable, and nothing but the rock and the open air. "So, if they give ye a call when yer on the loo, ye go zippin off te them wi'out even hoistin yer trousers?" The mental image seems quite bemusing.

"So, where exactly are these bloomin' flames o' yers? Ah havenae seen sign of them since we came up this way. Makes me think they got us out lookin' fer a wild haggis." As they get closer to the top, the gargress starts to move past him, easily scaling up to the height of a ledge above him and pulling herself over. A moment later, her hand reaches down, offering to pull him up the rest of the way. "An' wha' in the name o' Merlin do they expect us te do if we do find em'?"

Skoll Ulfang has posed:
Skoll Ulfang says, "'yer my net, Zia." Skoll comments, grinning down at her, and getting a nice look 'down'. They're making quite some progress even with the little bantering between the two of them. He takes a moment then, to enjoy the view. Alexandria's beautiful and massive castle in the distance, airships moving through the gate, the thin mist covering the forest. It makes the youth smile. His gaze then shifts, looking over Zia for a little moment. "It's not often I get time to look at beauty things like this." he then offers - though wether he means the panorama or the girl who is ready to catch him if he were to fall, is a mystery.

The werewolf makes for another grab at a chain, and uses his magic to make it fly up and stab itself into a rock, and then continues to climb up. "I dunno. they've never called me while I am on the toilet before. But it's not like I have to respond /that/ immediately. And... I think - though it may garner me a harsh lesson, I could probably refuse them if there was something more important happening at the time." So he hopes. "/AS for the feathers/!" He then changes topic. "I rather not be a featherbutt. It'd be crampin' my style. Plenty of feathers on me when I'm a werewolf.

He then looks back up ahead, and continues his climb further. "I don't know about the flames. But they did say they'd be visible at night, we still have a little while." Although the sun was gradually falling behind a mountain - behind the two of them. "Not sure what they are expecting us to do though. I hope they just require us to report in. But if it's something bad, we might have to 'do something about it'.""

Zia has posed:
"Oh, am ah now?" Zia replies with a smirk as she tugs the wolf up onto the ledge, looking at him with one raised brow. "Ah dinnae know if ah'm the sorta person ye should be puttin that sorta trust inte." It's hard to imagine someone putting their life in her hands, especially knowing the death that had already come at them. Besides, all it would take is just one slip - her reflexes not being quite quick enough and... well, it's a thought she'd rather avoid thinking about.

With the two of them having reached a safe enough place to rest, the girl leans back against the wall of the cliff, looking out at the sun as it moves towards the horizon. This isn't something her kind would normally get to see, but if Skoll knows that, he's never asked her about it. There is something very strange about the way that she doesn't turn to stone like the rest of her kind, or at least not often. It could always be chalked up to the fact that she's in another world, perhaps, but it seems like something other than that.

Her blue eyes search the horizon, oblivious to the fact that his comment could have meant her as well as the great expanse of Alexandria and the forest around it. "Aye? Well, maybe ye should. There's so much out here tha' ah never imagined seein. Worlds beyond imagination. Makes me wante travel it, but ah dinnae think ah would do very well on m'own. We arenae solitary creatures, gargoyles. At least back in New York, there were people, even if they woulda come after me with pitchforks if they knew ah was sleepin above their heads."

Away from all that, up here, it doesn't seem like such a frightening thing. Her gaze come back to him, musing as she reaches out with her tail, giving a playful swat at one of his ears. "Aye lad? But ye looked so fearsome as a wolf. Like somethin' out of a story, all feathers and magic and great bloody creatures comin out of the ether." She tilts her head back, looking up to where the cliff seems to end a short distance above them. "Oh, ye know it'll never be tha simple, Skoll Ulfang. Otherwise they wouldnae have bothered te fly us all the way out here."

Skoll Ulfang has posed:
Skoll had accepted Zia's hand when she offered to pull him up on the ledge, and feels her strength as she pulls him up. When he finally makes it onto the ledge, he smiles at her with a sly look. "I am quite certain you /are/ the kind of person to put my trust in." He counters her argument. Killer or not, He believes that she wants to see him alive. As for reflexes? It's not like he can't slow himself down if needed.

The youth pats off his pants and slips his chains back into his pockets and around his beltloops, before putting his hands into his pockets. He has not asked her about the whole 'sleeping at night' thing she once hinted at. When she looks out to the world along with him, the wolf nods. "Maybe we should travel it together. Traveling alone is kind of boring - don't you say? Not exactly the most solitary creature myself... werewolf and all that." He shrugs his shoulders.

He then looks away - over the mountain, and misses the tail coming his way. "Ow!" The werewolf whines jokingly as the tail swats his ear. "Heey." He complains, before grinning proudly. After all, she's kind of stroking his ego on the whole fearsome wolf thing. "Well, don't expect other werewolves to draw creatures from the 'ether'." He warns, before looking up at the next cliff.

"No, it's never simple..." He whispers. That next ledge probably leads to the trouble they need to investigate.

Zia has posed:
"If ye says so. Ah think ye'd be better off wi' a harness 'n bungee cords or somethin." The gargress shrugs, her wings moving with her shoulders. It's easy to see how they might get mistaken for a cloak, and it isn't like she doesn't usually keep them hidden. Up here, there isn't much need for that. "Ah'll never understand what it is with ye off-worlders 'n high places. Maybe if ye were meante be lurkin up on rooftops 'n mountains, ye would have been made with wings."

Of course, Zia has never seen the likes of some of those from the World of Ruin who seem to have that strange ability to defy gravity by leaping huge distances and generally doing things that would seem almost more fantastic than her magic does. when he suggests traveling the world together, though, her eyes settle on him for a time. She's remembering that girl from the dormitory. "Would it nae be be'ta te travel wi' one of yer own kind? There's tha girl tha's livin with the Shard Seekers. Pre'ty thing. Ah thought ye said ye were the last, but it seems like there's one close 'nuff to home."

It's partially a deflection of the offer, but also her own way of seeing if he even knew about the werewolf girl that Reize had found in the desert. Cocking her head slightly, the gargoyle's ears tip down, "Oh? So the magical zoo isnae a common thing among yer kind? Ah certainly havenae seen someone able te do tha before. We dinnae have tha sorta magic in m' world."

She doesn't need to say anything else when it comes to their task. Both of them know that this is likely to turn pear-shaped pretty quickly. So, rather than dwell on it, the gargress turns towards the rock wall, testing it with her talons. "Come on, it's not tha much further." Then, she's off climbing again.

Skoll Ulfang has posed:
"Defying nature is what a lot of us are all about. Even if we were not born with wings that doesn't mean we can't dream of flying one day - or climbing massive mountains like these. And as you see - we /can/ do it." Wing just made things easier, and quicker... et cetera. The werewolf turns aboutface so he might get a better look at Zia, and grins like an idiot. "Can you blame us? For dreaming?"

That smile disappears though, when she comments about the travel. "Me own kind?" He asks, accidentally mimicing some of her accent while thinking she is refering to Hati at first. Avira had told him about her being around in Fluorgis at some point. He just figures that Zia is confused - since she is saying she is certainly not 'living' with the Shard Seekers. He'd recognize her, surely!

But the way Zia talks about it, it... doesn't seem right. "There's a girl of my own kind with the Shard Seekers?" He gives her this obvious 'confused' look. He moves a hand to his hair and just slowly shakes his head. "Probably just a demi-human from Lindblum or Alexandria." The werewolf looks out over the city of Alexandria. A bit of a downer at the moment, ain't he? "You'll have to introduce me though." He then points out, "But for now, traveling with you is what I do."

The werewolf shifts his weight and puts his hands at his sides and looks back up to the rest of the mountain they need to climb. Indeed, they were close. "Nah, Summoners are pretty darn rare. Especially within the worlds under the Gaudium Lords' rule. It takes a special kind of... 'person'... to summon such creatures. And not all of them are good. The one who destroyed mine supposedly..."

he trails off and decides not to put that weight on Zia's shoulders - he remembers mentioning Kaze to Avira, and that had gone terribly wrong. "Let's." He says, throwing a chain up to the air and guiding it to stab into the rock-face again, and begins climbing further up, increasing his rate of climbing now that he knows he's close - no longer needing to 'pace' himself.

Zia has posed:
Zia's claw hesitates on the rock, not pulling herself up just yet, but giving the wolf a strange look. There is something behind those eyes - like a leaves casting shadows of some greater darkness. "Ah know all aboot dreamin, Skoll Ulfang. But it's one thing te dream about things ye can hold in yer hands, an another te dream of things that simply cannae be." No amount of dreaming will ever bring back her parents - she burned them both, and no amount of dreaming will ever give this wolf real wings.

Still, it isn't the sort of thing that she wants to dwell upon. Part of her strength is having learned to live in the moment, because the past is not really a place that she wants to be - not anymore. Her claws crunch into the stone as he's pondering the wonder of another of his kind, and the gargress shakes her head. "Ah'm nae fool enough te mistake one of yer sort with some other wolf. She had 'er mirror all covered 'n turned all red 'n flustery when ah mentioned turnin inte a great bloody wolf."

With only the short distance above them, Zia takes the lead this time, expecting that Skoll will be able to handle this last part on his own. She's up and over the edge in a matter of a minute or so, proving that going at his pace certainly had slowed her down quite a bit. "Ye can introduce yerself sometime. After this, ah really should be findin m'way back to Manhattan. Ah dinane feel right leavin m'spell books behind." There is a bit of warning in her voice, as if they weren't exactly the sort of thing you'd want random humans stumbling upon.

The girl dangles her legs over the edge of the cliff, looking calm as can be - not even worried about the wind that kicks up behind her. It's a stark contrast to the wolf climbing with his chains. "Ah can imagine. Tha sorta power is the kinda thing the dark wizards o'm'world would lovete get their hands on. Best it stays somethin they cannae reach, otherwise, ah think there'd be great bloody Wurms circlin 'round the Eyrie building."

Skoll Ulfang has posed:
Skoll meets her eyes when she gives him that strange look, and immediately knows he said something she must not agree with. The wolf nods his head already when she begins to speak once more. "There's some things that might have seen impossible in the past though, and can now be reached. But that is not to say that all dreams can be fulfilled... or even 'should' ever be fulfilled." He may never be granted real wings, but as she'd offered; a spell to fly one day... it is not like the dream to fly is impossible.

The human werewolf continues to climb his way up, amazed in the Gargoyles easy of climbing. He'd chosen well in desiring her for this little 'mission' of theirs. But half-way, he has to stop for a moment. A mirror? The werewolf can be seen biting his lower lip for a moment, but then continues to climb in quiet until he finally reaches the ledge and climbs his way up - potentially with some assistance from Zia again.

When he's reached the top, he huffs for a moment, taking a deep breath. Air was thinner this high up after all - but he makes sure not to start hyperventilating. "I guess I must." He then whispers. "I can't believe I've missed that. I guess - after so long a time - I just gave up on looking... and must never have realized a scent like mine. Or maybe it's all the puppies there." He places one hand to his hip and his other above his eyes - the sun further descending over the horizon and creating a beautiful red hue.

"Need a help getting there?" He then offers, reading into the whole 'spellbooks may contain bad stuff' thing - or at least that they have importance to her. A nod then follows this. "And yes, that /would/ be bad." He then turns around and looks along the length of the mountain, before he kneels besides Zia as the sun finally makes for its final moments at the horizon. Thanks to their climb, they've 'outrun' the fall of the sun so far. But now...

Zia has posed:
The gargress doesn't bother pressing the matter about dreams, and which ones can be fulfilled or not. It's been a long time since she's really had a dream for herself. For the longest time, her dream had been freedom. Then when she had it, she had no idea what to do with it. Just another lost soul wandering the highways between worlds.

It's hard to tell if she notices the way that his expression shifts when she talks about the werewolf. It had come as quite a surprise when she first saw the sight of wings over Manhattan, and yet she'd never once reached out to the Manhattan clan. That's a story in itself, perhaps. Still, with the sun setting, it appears that the gargoyle is more suited to her namesake at the moment, those blue eyes reflecting the last hints of gold and red as the world falls to sleep.

The moment the sun touches the horizon, her body seems to tense slightly. It's just a breath - a quick shiver down her spine, a red flash of those blue eyes. Then it's over. Even with the magic that keeps her from stone sleep, the reaction to the setting sun still is the same - the pounding of her heart, the urge to roar and split free from stone.

"M...maybe." She stutters, trying to push off the strange feeling. "At least enough te make sure tha ah dinnae end up wi' another of Reize Seitlan's maps." Zia casts one more passing look at the now darkening sky, then over at Skoll, "Ah dinnae know wha it is, but ah feel like ah've been gone too long. Wi' the worlds fallin, ah'm afraid mine won't be there te come back te."

Of course, as if just waiting for nightfall, another light begins to show. Behind them, the flicker of something that could easily be mistake for a fire...

Skoll Ulfang has posed:
Skoll's gaze shifts, his body along with it, when the girl tenses and shivers - and that red flash comes up. He can see the 'shadow' coming over her body as the sun descends and light finally fades over her body to let night come. "Are you alright?" He asks, especially since the girl whom he'd never heard stutter - just stuttered. "You feeling ill?" He adds, reaching a hand out to her in order to feel her forehead.

A roaring laugh then follows; "Ah yes, Reize's maps. Rubbish things - but not as rubbish as their navigator at... well... navigating." The youth retreats his hand and sticks it back into his pockets. "But no, I know that feeling. I am lucky - I have the ability to go wherever I want in the blink of an eye... I can tell if the places I love are still there... from a distance." He can't portal directly into the Shard Seekers HQ after all. What would they think!?

Then, his attention is caught by the flicker. His tail poofs up and his heckles raise. Clearly, he's sensing something bad.

There, quite a few yards away from them, is a group of Bombs. But they are not alone. An unknown man... creature... wrapped in a black uniform is trying to capture them using a gigantic net and...

*ZAP*

Some kind of stunning weapon.

Zia has posed:
For all that she might try to hide the subtle shift in her body that comes from that instinctual reaction to night and day, the girl does seem a little surprised that he noticed. Her ears tip, and Zia quickly shakes her head to dismiss the concern. "Ah'm fine. The wind musta given me a shiver." This, from the girl who only wears a coat during the coldest times of the year in Manhattan. Still, she moves on quickly, hoping he won't have a chance to catch her in the lie.

She gets to her feet, tail twitching to adjust her balance as she smirks, "Aye. The lad wandered inte the girl's dorms when me 'n tha wolf-girl Sasseral were in there. Poor boy needs a good compass or somethin." She only glanced at that hand of his before it's returned to his pocket, wings shifting like a bird who has had it's feathers ruffled. "So if ye can just go 'poof' and go wherever ye want, how aboot doin a lass a favor 'n takin her home, eh?"

No, Zia has no idea why it might not be a good idea to travel by such means. Even if she wanted to ask, her attention quickly gets disrupted by the flicker of light, then the sight of those floating fire orbs, and then the man in black trying to... capture them? "Ah would say tha's the source of our trouble." She notes, looking to Skoll. "So, wha's the plan? Ah can probably disrupt his weapon for a wee bit, but after tha..." Gargoyles were known more for their direct way of handling things - which usually meant punching robots in the face.

This isn't a robot, and somehow, she has her doubts that punching one of the fireballs would be a good idea - at least if she wants to keep her fingers.

Skoll Ulfang has posed:
If Skoll noticed that she was lying, he doesn't let it be known. He just nods his head. "Well, be careful. If you get too cold - I might have to give up my jacket to you." And then what'd be be wearing? A measily shirt out here? Yet, it certainly seems like the werewolf has no trouble with generating warmth up here. He takes a few quicker steps when she moves past, in order to keep up, and then comes to move at her pace.

"I can do that." Skoll tells her, figuring that a single trip won't do much harm. After all, its corrupting properties were somewhat mild. He then quiets a little again, and then whispers; "Sasseral..." As if tasting the word on his lips. He doesn't recognize it - she must be from a far away clan. "Anyhow - well, I sometimes think he does it on purpose. It happens a bit too often with him."

His gaze then skips back to the floating fire orbs. "Bombs..." He mutters. He then gives Zia a bit of an odd look, "Strike first, ask questions later type huh?" He offers, though he can't exactly blame her. As they get closer, they see that the man is indeed succesfully capturing bombs. The man looks up for a moment. They can tell, now closer, that this man is hunched over. Another spark - the long prodding stick strikes a bomb and 'puts it out'... before it's put into a metalic net.

"Leave this place!" The man then suddenly shouts. The bombs quickly wobble, surprised by this sound, and 'grow bigger' all of the sudden. "They're mine!"

Zia has posed:
"Dinnae worry yerself. M'kind tolerate the cold a wee bit be'er tha yers, I suspect." The gargress gives him a curious sort of look, and then a smirk quirks up at the corner of her mouth into a half-smile. "Except fer maybe when yer a great walkin carpet." For all that she sometimes talks about his wolf form, Zia hasn't actually seen it up-close. It's just something she remembers from the distance, in a circumstance where she was far more worried about saving her own skin than worrying about what creatures were fighting the Heartless with her.

She doesn't have time to worry about either his offer to take her home, or his pondering about the wolf-girl's name. It's clear that the whole reason that they were sent up here is now set out in front of them, and it's time to get to it. Again, the girl gives one of those wry smiles as she shrugs, accepting well enough how straight-forward her kind are when it comes to dealing with things. She is a mage, though, so the girl usually doesn't go clambering right into the heat of battle.

When the man finally starts to notice them, her attention shifts, ears honing in on his voice, eyes peering in the darkness. Like most creatures of the night, gargoyles have excellent night-vision. "'N just what in the name o' Merlin do ye think tha we'd be wantin with those things?" She asks, her hands moving down to her sides. Skoll had seen her use her magic before, sometimes in the most subtle of ways, but those twitches of her fingers are just one element of her spellcasting. "Wha is it tha ye think yer doin' wi' those beasts?" She isn't attacking just yet, but the gargoyle is ready to deflect the spark from his weapon should he try to use it again.

Skoll Ulfang has posed:
"Probably." Skoll admits, shrugging his shoulders a tad, "We're not exactly the kind of folk to go and live up in the mountains usually - though there /are/ some that do." He pauses for a moment, then adds; "Or did anyhow. Still, when I'm walking around as a 'great walkin carpet' - as you so put it - I do tend to be warmer." He doesn't really consider the fact that she hasn't had much interaction with him as a true hulking and honest to god werewolf, like she would know it from the 'stories'. Minus the whole full moon and silver thing.

Attention moving forwards again, the raspy voice grates on his ears. Zia could probably see that this hunched over man is wearing a strange mask covering his face. Brownish black, with a huge nose that seems to cover more than 'just' his nose, and a set of goggles that cover its eyes. "Fireworks! They will make for a beautiful bang for 'her'!" The man smirks widely.

"Let me show you." He then adds, as he grabs for the insides of one of the pouches he has on him, and takes out a stick that looks like a piece of firework... which he then points at the pair and lights using a zap from his staff... what follows is the firework flaring towards them... and making for a /huge/ explosion where they stood!

Zia has posed:
Her? There is only a split second of wonder at who the identity of this mysterious person might be, and then something bright flying at them at high speed. There isn't really time to dodge, so Zia shifts, crossing her arms in front of her and trying to shield her eyes from both the hot flecks of the firework as it comes past, and the debris that flies into the air afterwards. It's easy to feel the heat as it comes wizzing past her, but the force of the explosion seems to hit far closer to where Skoll is standing.

If this were anyone else, she might have shouted his name, but using such things doesn't come naturally to Zia - as he might have noticed her continued use of his full name. Thus far, no one had ever corrected her speaking like that. Instead, the gargoyle just looks towards him, checking that the werewolf is alright. A gargoyle's first instinct is to protect, and even if Skoll doesn't really 'need' such a thing - and the idea of the thin looking mage offering much of a defense is laughable - she still reacts that way regardless.

"See wha ah mean aboot actin first 'n askin questions later?" She shouts over the lingering sound of the explosion. With the strange, hunched man throwing fireworks at them, the gargoyle does what comes naturally to her, which is to launch herself skyward. Up here, she can utilize the wind to keep herself at speed and make it just that much more difficult for him to land a solid hit. She's not really used to fighting with someone, and much like the first time she had faced someone with Skoll, the girl tends to act on her own rather than waiting to move with the group.

That spark is the key. Zia hovers, holding the delicate balance where the wind still holds her upright. Her fingers reach out as if grabbing something, and in a quick motion, the staff begins to shoot out sparks in all directions, obviously malfunctioning. In the mean time, a thin layer of water is starting to form, solidifying just at the tip of the staff. For one who doesn't know about her sort of magic, it might look as if the gargoyle is doing nothing at all, but like any storm, Zia's powers start more subtlely.

Skoll Ulfang has posed:
Skoll tries to roll out of the way the moment the fireworks come his way, in an attempt to place himself closer to Zia... forgetting that the girl can take perfect care of herself. The foolish werewolf just ends up placing himself into the middle of the firework's path, and a bang and a throw later, the werewolf is standing a few meters further back; claw-tracks dug into the ground and looking a tad singed - arms before his chest.

"Yeah, I see what you mean. But... you know... he could have been a nice old man!" Skoll calls back, before getting into an offensive stance. "But this is no nice old man. You had your chance!" Skoll moves one hand forward and one hand along his belt, and whips out one of the chains. With a loud crackle of purple sparks, the chain thickens and lengthens to become more like a whip!

His other hand goes down, grabbing the whip, and he 'pulls it apart' into two chains. It's very obvious that these things are enchanted heavily. After having stripped them into two whips, he flings them forwards, one by one, stabing through the man's foot with one, and slam down on his head with the other! The man tries to retaliate with that sparking staff, but he finds immediately that he electrocutes himself a little with the first attempt!

"Ez-ez-ez-ez-ez-ez!" The man clatters, smoking a little, before he smashes the staff to the ground to try and work off some of the ice before throwing the staff forwards and letting loose a massive wave of electricity. The bombs nearby in the meantime are getting more irate - growing bigger again!

Zia has posed:
Sometimes, Zia's suspicions prove to be quite accurate. People are rarely the sort to stop doing some dark deed and talk it over. In fact, Skoll is probably the only exception to this rule that she's ever encountered. From her position above, it's easy to watch the movements of the bombs as well as the two ground-based fighters. It isn't as easy to avoid the backlash of electricity that comes sparking off of the staff, though. One bolt lashes into her, stunning her momentarily and causing a sharp decent.

At the last moment, when it seems the gargress might just slam into the ground, her wings open and she glides upwards again, sweeping past. "Ah dinnae know wha those things are, but ah dun think tha they're lookin too friendly." She's trying to get Skoll's attention to the bombs, knowing that he had recognised them from earlier. Maybe he has some sort of idea of what will happen if they keep getting bigger, but it doesn't take an expert to guess that it would be bad.

As she comes down low to shout to Skoll, Zia seems to be trailing the man's own lightning behind her. While she certainly isn't immune to it, the girl does seem to be able to twist it to her will. So, just as she comes by, a rush of wind and the force from his own staff is sent spiraling downward towards the old man, trying to sweep him up into the air, and then back slam him back down into the ground.

Funny, how it just looks as if the gargoyle is just flying past, but the simple gesture carries with it a quite unexpected amount of force.

Skoll Ulfang has posed:
Skoll whips around about as limberly as those chains move, even as they are removed from the 'man' - which doesn't seem to at all be halted by the stabbing attack. He moves out of the way of the lightning, sprinkling small chains into the air and to the ground here and there to lead the lightning away from him, before he ends up moving closer to Zia again - in case she would not be able to brake and stop herself from slamming into the ground. The movement, the readiness... it was all there, but this time he is more careful;

He doesn't get in her way, though the Gargess might have realized what he was doing. He doesn't seem to mind getting hurt for her. But then, isn't he that way for any 'lady'? Skoll turns around again and follows Zia for a little - making sure to be out of the way of the trailing lightning, and the moment she tries to sweep the man up and slam him into the ground again - skoll lunges his chains once more! He's tossled a little by her attack, but the landing doesn't seem to do quite the damage it should.

This time, they wrap around his neck, and he throws him into the air while he keeps running forwards. And then, the moment he gets close to where the man had once stood, he janks on his chain, slamming the man into the ground with a loud and painful... yet metallic groan... and then literally kicks him away with a 'darkness' behind it all, that has the man rolling far along the mountainside... until he finally halts.

Then, it slowly stands up, twitch, smoking, tattering with a metalic clicking noise... "If I can't bring fireworks to 'her', then nobody will!" It calls out, before stabbing his staff into the ground and bringing a massive wave of electricty throughout the area, touching the Bombs. Each bomb suddenly grows to its largest size. "If they get too big, they explode!" Skoll suddenly shouts, running towards Zia in order to try and stop her from taking the brunt of the blast...

And then, a massive explosion...

Zia has posed:
Sometimes, having a person trying to play the hero can be convient, other times, not so much. In the quick sweep past the unknown man, Zia hadn't had time to really see if she'd managed to hit him with his own lightning. She flaps her wings, using the wind to let her hover in a way that most gargoyles wouldn't be able to manage. Those blue eyes follow the downed man, expecting that that would be the end of the fight, but instead... he gets to his feet. "Balls." She curses under her breath.

There isn't that much time to react between him setting off the wave of electricity, and the bombs exploding. For all that Skoll might have been trying to keep her safe, he ends up actually slamming into her, knocking her to the ground as the two of them roll to a hard stop on the ground, bits of flying earth and fire falling around them.

The gargress coughs, "Ow." She mutters, "Yer heavy, ye know tha?" Trying to clamber out from underneath the wolf, Zia shakes her head, looking towards where the man had been standing. "Wha do ye think he was talkin aboot?" She coughs again, shifting, wincing, showing a few cuts and burns from the explosion, but she doesn't seem too badly injured. "Just who is 'her'?" She's looking to Skoll, as if he might know more about this world, since she certainly doesn't.

Looking at the rubble left behind, she shakes her head. "Ah dinnae understand people who'd throw their lives away like tha..." After spending so much time trying to stay alive, it seems foolish, afterall. She shoots him a look, then, too. "An' the same goes fer you, mister wolf. Don't ye be goin out of yer way te protect me. Ah saw that." She aims a talon at him, "In a real fight, yer nae gonna be able te run around tryin te save m'hide." When she tries to move again, there is a wince, but Zia manages to get to her feet, shaking off the worst of it. It's nothing that a day's sleep won't fix.

Skoll Ulfang has posed:
Indeed, Skoll ends up knocking into her. But at least it saves her from something far worse. When Skoll pushes himself up from her after that confusing tumble, he staggers a little and then suddenly pulls out a large piece of metal... from his back. "Tssk... don't think it was a 'person'." Skoll points out, glaring at it as if he recognized the handiwork, and then throwing it sharply to the ground. That kind of large item, it should have him bleeding profusely...

Yet, he seems to be fine, though trembling a little, and looking a bit worse for wear. "Also, /I'm not that heavy/." He adds in complaint. He then slowly turns around, letting her see the 'wound' that is there, just... 'being there'... "I am not sure who 'her' may be refering to. There's too many people in this world." He adds, before sticking both hands into his pockets.

And then she goes and shoots him a look and points at him. "Hey - a Lady needs protecting. It'd be bad on me if I let you get too hurt for something /I/ dragged you into." After all, he'd asked her to accompany him. "Also... this was a real fight." He adds. The little wince from her however, has him properly turn towards her again and offer a hand. "Are you okay?"

Zia has posed:
There is a brief moment where she finally catches sight of the shard of metal sticking out of his back and her eyes widen. Something akin to panic - some memory from a time before the priest and the mage flashes in that instant across her eyes. And then he goes and pulls the thing out, easy as you please, barely showing a hint of blood for all his trouble. "How in the world..." She asks, and then shakes her head. This is the man who had given her a potion that miraculously cured wounds, perhaps he has some sort of special magic of his own.

She tries to shake that moment of dread, "Oh, ye'll nae be tellin me yer a lightweight. Ah'm the one who got landed on." Looking over the worst of the cuts, none of them are bleeding particularly badly, and most have already stopped on their own. There are a few smears here and there, but she otherwise looks fine. Gargoyles are hearty creatures. "Besides, ah'm nae a lady, ah'm a gargoyle. Ladies are fer human lasses in dresses wi' their nobility 'n their titles. Ah can take care of m'self, Skoll Ulfang."

The girl has her own kind of pride - she'd fought her way free from the sorcerer who kept her, and she's managed to stay free all this time on her own. It's been a very long time since anyone has tried to protect her. "Ah'm fine. Nothin a day willnae fix." A day? It's a strange notion, but maybe she heals quickly, herself. "Yer the one who looks like ye had the rougher parta it. Ye sure ye don't need one o those potions, or a trip te the ER or somethin?" There's an urge to poke at him and see if he'll fall over, but she manages to restrain it.

"Still." Walking forward, the gargress toes at a bit of shrapnel. "If it wasnae a person, then wha was it?"

Skoll Ulfang has posed:
"I am not like others." Skoll answers her when she shakes her head, and looks away from her as he says this. He always did try to avoid eyecontact when too close to someone, but this was a bit more. As if he were ashamed of this somehow. The youth looks down at his pockets and makes sure his chains are well locked on his belt, and then looks back to the girl gargess.

"Race doesn't matter. And our people didn't have humans dressing in dresses... well, not often anyhow. Doesn't mean a woman isn't a Lady." He then looks back up tot he moon that has come out now that the sun is no longer stealing the spotlight. "Still, I know you can take care of yourself. It's... instinct I guess. My honorcode. The thing that is me."

He steps along to the edge of the mountain and looks down, before turning back again. "A day huh?" Not as fast as he 'heals', but still... a day isn't normal. He shakes his head again. "Don't worry about me, I'll be fine. Besides, I still owe you a leap through a portal, don't I?" he offers, before a dark gate opens behind him, reeking of darkness.

The shapnel she toes remains inanimate, but Skoll does eye it. "Robot, I think. They're rare, and not very smart. Probably with some very basic program doing a single task. Who knows if there's more, hunting for Bombs."

Zia has posed:
"Ah see that." Zia replies, still giving that wound a wary look. Still, she can see the way that it seems to make him uncomfortable. "Nae like there's anythin wrong wi' bein different. How many white gargoyles ye think there are runnin aboot? Ah'm nae exactly normal m'self." She tries to offer him one of those shy smiles of hers, but it comes off looking a bit worried. She doesn't really understand what it is about him that makes him able to walk away from such a wound, or to be able to pull monsters from nothing. That wary part of her nature is still watchful - just incase he turns out to be dangerous.

"We should report this te the Alexandrians. They'll want te know what's goin on up here. 'n we'll wante look inte it later." She's no tracker, although she does have a sneaking suspicion that Skoll might be able to find his way to wherever the robot had come from. "These are a fair bit different from the robots we have back home." She abandons the remains of the 'man' who ahd been trying to capture those bombs, and instead steps a bit closer to him.

And then he opens the portal. Seeing it is enough to quicken the pace of her heartbeat. Something instinctual is warning her away from it, but if Skoll manages to move through it safely, then perhaps it isn't so bad? Oh, she's certainly not going to go leaping through them randomly - she'd learned her lesson about that. "So this'll take me back te New York?" She asks, one arm kept against her chest. She'd probably injured it in the blast, but just as he's trying not to show his injuries, she's keeping hers as well hidden as she can manage.

Looking back into the forest, the gargress weighs for a moment the feeling that she needs to get back to Manhattan with the knowledge that something dangerous is going on here as well. In the end, her own world, her own spellbooks and her home are more important. Call it selfishness, but that's just the way it is. "Alright." It's hard to tell if she's talking to him, or herself, but after a moment, the gargress straightens, and then walks right into the portal.

Skoll Ulfang has posed:
"I wouldn't know. You are the only gargoyle I've ever met." Skoll answers, grinning brightly at that shy smile of hers. Still, he can see how she be worried about him. "Just don't worry. It'll take quite a bit to kill me. Definitely a lot more than /that/." The mysterious werewolf continues his attempt at being mysterious, and remains standing at the eedge of the portal while she moves towards it.

"This will take you to Manhattan. I will report to the Alexandrians about this little mess here, and then I'll join you in Manhattan." Skoll then moves a hand out and lays it to her shoulder. "Be careful. I shouldn't be long." He then adds, "And be safe." He looks her up and down, then reaches into one of his pockets and pulls out a little 'string' with a series of potions on it. There's twelve total. "Take this with you just in case. It'll help you get rid of the pain at least until tomorrow?" After all, she said the wounds would be gone tomorrow.

Zia has posed:
There is only a brief hesitation as Zia stops to grab the potions. She won't need them. Who knows what time of day it is back in Manhattan, but she can certainly last until sunrise without needing them. "Alright. Fair winds te ye." And then the gargress is gone.