[ShadowStitches]

 
Chester

Ovir

Layla

The motor of the old jeep stuttered and then went of completely. The young, pale man behind
the wheel cursed heavily. "is it dead?" Layla asked, who sat on the backseat, next to Ovir who looked worried. "of course it's not..." Chester growled between grittet teeth, trying to start the motor again.The only result was a strange, coughing sound from the vehicle and smoke coming from the cowl.Chester cursed even more and slammed his head onto the stiring wheel, sighing."dont dispair Ches..." Ovir said with his calm voice. The old man with the light grey hair shiftet slightly in his seat. "we have enough water with us for 3 days, and I can send Horus to Travis and Hannah." Chester looked at him, glaring into those strange, Ink colored eyes, and then jumped out the car. Layla stood outside already, holding a hand over her eyes to shield them from the blazing sun. "I guess we're not far from the old temple...I think it must be over there. Maybe 10 kilometers from here.we could be there in..." "no!" Chester cut the young, tanned woman short. "no, no no! we wont go anywhere!
we're stuck in a freakin desert, with a car thats probably damaged beyond repair. We Stay." with that,he whirled arround and opened the cowl. Thick, dark smoke flew into his face,
causing the black haired one to caugh violently. "oh man...that might take a while" Layla said, wiping her forehead. Ovir only nodded.

[SkyWolf11]

Kuay :: Level 6 :: 29 Posts

A lightly colored creature lay amongst the sand dunes in exhaustion.  It had been made clear to her now that after hours of walking, she was lost.  What had started as a simple task running errands among a few Wilt'no towns had become an endangerment on her life!  She sighed, blowing a groove into the loose sand beneath her chin.  The cantine strapped around her shoulder only held a meager amount of water, not more than a few days worth ... and that was only if she took limited sips!

"Curse this endless litterbox of a place!" she growled angrily, getting to her feet once again.  She shook fiercely to shake the sand from her fur.  The unrelenting sun was enough heat.  She didn't need the sands help as well.

She trudged onward with what little remaining hope she had left.  The last town she had visited was two days ago and she shuddered at the thought of backtracking that would surely take another exhausting two days.  All she could do was keep going straight and pray that another town would soon appear to save her.  

Climbing overtop a high dune, she spotted what would appear to be a ... jeep?  A jeep!?  Yes - she was certain!  What luck!  A huge grin appeared on her lips as she stumbled down the shifting sands to her saviors.  Wanting to save her water, she couldn't call out due to her parched throat.  Hopefully they would stay put long enough for her to reach them.  She increased her speed as best she could on the unstable landscape.

[30 = lvl 7]

[ShadowStitches]

Layla lay on the top uf the Jeep, eyes closed, and did not seem to mind the heat at all.
Chester cursed without an end, about the heat, the destert , the situation, the car, the sun,
the team, himself...the list went on and on. He did mind the heat, and took off his shirt.
Since he was really pale, this probably wasnt a that great idea, but the skinny, wiery fellow didn't
care. "Screwdriver..." he mumbeled, waiting for Layla, who hat placed the toolbox
next to her on the roof of the car, to hand it over to him. The young woman however was distracted by something else.The was something coming towards them, she just couldnt see what exactly. "Ovir?" she said,
pointing at the object that came towards them, now faster. Ovir changed into quad form, just because
he could see far better that way. "its...a Slynx." he said. Horus, his scarab, landet in front of him,
and looked at him as if he wanted to ask for permission to investigate. The old Imuet only nodded, and Horus
flew of.

He flew close to Kuay, circling above her, and then rushed off again, without any word
or explenation. Back at the group, he flew colose to the sand and performed what seemed to be some sort of strange acrobatics just above the ground. In fact, he was writing.
'Slynx needs help. Looks very thirsty."

"I'll go." Layla plainly said, causing Chester to growl annoyed. She ignored him, grabbed a bottle of water and made her way towards Kuay, leaving the two men behind.

[SkyWolf11]

Now in a steady run, Kuay was quickly drawing closer to the vehicle.  What looked to be two human forms around the jeep came into view along with another non-human one.  What was that third one?  She squinted, trying to gather the details.  Before she could make it out fully, a fast moving object startled her as it flew above her head.  She slowed her pace and eyeballed the tiny bug for a few seconds before it zipped back the way it had come.  'What was that?  A scarab beetle?'  Oh dear...  Where there was a scarab there was usually an Imuet not far away.  And canines she had problems with...

"Suck - it - up - Kuay!" she huffed to herself.  Now was no time to be picky of potential rescuers!  

She did her best to put on a smile through all the gasping as one of the persons started towards her.  Her run became a soft trot until finally it turned into a walk.  "Hello there!  ... thanks so much ... for ... not ... leaving!" she managed to say.  She flashed a wary glance behind the girl at the Imuet.

[31]

[ShadowStitches]

"Hello!" Layla greeted back, smiling. "No problem...actually we cant really leave, our
Jeep broke down. Oh, You must be thirsty. Here" She handet over the bottle of water
to Kuay. She always was exited to meet new people, and thus always friendly.
Speaking of being friendly. The woman quickly changed into her Rexxel form,
feeling that it was a little disrespectfull and harsh to be human arround quad creatures.
she didn't really know why, she just felt that way.
"I'm Layla by the way" She introduced herself, and nodded over at the two figures
at the Jeep. "Thats Ovir, and mr.Grumpy over there is Chester"

Ovir Gave Kuay a warm, re-assuring smile. He knew that a lot feline creatures
where...carefull around canines, so he wanted to show her that he wasn't that bad.
Watching Layla interact with the Slynx made him feel...Proud in a way. After all
the poor girl went through, she never dropped her hearty, open aproach to strangers.

//jeaaah shure, give the stranger all our water...// Chester only gave Kuay a fast,
hostily glance, and  waved half heartedly, before he continued to fumble arround on the
smoking Motor. His mood just dropped from annoyed to angry.

[SkyWolf11]

Kuay relaxed as she realized that the girl was indeed a Rexxel.  Felines she could do.  "Oh yes, I am quite parched but I do have some water left in this old thing." she said, holding a paw up to the dusty cantine around her chest.  She hoped that the decline hadn't been taken as rude.  She just didn't want to use up what little water they might have left for themselves.

She glanced over at Chester who was working away on the broken-down jeep with slight disappointment.  She should have known that it wouldn't have been that easy to escape this blistering place.  "Oh my, where are my manners!  I'm Kuay, it's very nice to meet you all!" she purred politely, giving each a quaint nod of her head.

However, the two canines didn't put all of her insecurities to rest with just their smiles.  Actually, Chester hadn't even smiled at all, only a angry glance and a partial wave.  That certainly put her guard up.  By the looks of him, and of the Rexxel's words, he was the grumpy sort.  She knew those types all to well.  They weren't easy to be around most of the time.  She turned back to Layla with slight concern.  "Does my presence upset him?"

[32]

[ShadowStitches]

Layla looked  annoyed at Chester, then turned back to Kuay. "Oh, please ignore him.
He's just acting childish because his favorite toy broke, and he hates the heat..."
"I heard that! and I'm not childish, I'm just not interested in random people who come by"
came an angry snarl from Chester, who all but climbed into the space between
the Motor and the  engine hood."Ches! Just be nice and friendly, is that really too much?"
Layla hissed, followed by a snort of the Man.
While the two of them bickered away,
Ovir bowed his head slightly "Welcome,Kuay. As Layla said, please dont take Chester too serious.
But allow me this question...what where you doing all alone in the desert?"  

[SkyWolf11]

Kuay's ears flattened as the two started bickering amongst themselves.  'I shouldn't have said anything.'  She inwardly cursed herself for causing the arguement.  Her attention quickly shifted to Ovir as he spoke.

"Oh yes, well, that's sort of a long story.  But to make it short, I was chosen to run some errands between a few of the local villages around here."  The story was a long one indeed, including how she'd got roped into doing such a strange job.  "And now I've seemed to have ran off the path to the next one.  Some messenger I am, huh?" she half-heartedly laughed.

"But enough about me.  What brings who all out to such a dry and barren place?"

[33]

[ShadowStitches]

Ovir nodded understanding. "The desert is a very confusing place. It's not your fault
that you got lost on the way. But the people or the person who sent you on this task
are very irrisponsible. One should never travel alone in the desert. And even then..."
He smirked and motioned with the head towards the jeep. "Well, you see what happened"
Layla came over again, obviously frustrated. Her mood lightened up however when
Kuay asked what they where doing here...or wanted to do.

"We are explorers or...well, some might call us treasure hunters." She obviously did not like
the word, but continued "Somewhere arround here is an old temple with some
very important artifacts in it. Today, we wanted to just take a look at the temple, and if it
was accessible...but...well, the car broke down." Layla's eyes gleamed passionated when
she talked about her job and the temple, but looked sad again when she came back to reality.

Chester's head appeared from behind the car when Kuay told about her task and the villages.
"Jah, beautifull..." he butted into the conversation, slowly coming towards them. Still in human form,
his pale skin was burned by the sun already, but he didnt seem to care about it.
He could not run arround in quad form. first, because he needed his hands, second, because he would dehydrate in minutes because of his black, thick pelt.  
"you...ahm...girl.whatwasyournameagain...Kuay. You said that you run errands between villages,
right? how far is it to the last village you where?" His tone still was harsh and cold, but he seemed
to have an idea.

[SkyWolf11]

She chuckled and nodded at Ovir's words.  He did make a good point, and it took some of the embarrassment away from her situation.  

Her ears shot up in interest as she heard the word explorers.  'How interesting...' she thought with an inward ear-to-ear grin.  Who wouldn't be interested in hunting for the unknown treasures of this great wide world?  She could empathize with the passionate Rexxel about having been so close to something just to have more obstacles block it from your reach.

"I'm sure you'll wind up there eventually.  You just got to stay optimistic!" she mewed, trying to lend some helping and lifting words.  Her attention then shifted to Chester as he began to question her.

"The last village, you ask?  Let me see ..." she furrowed her brow and looked at the ground, trying to calculate an accurate distance.  "Well, it's been close to two full days since I last saw it..." she purred before taking a few seconds of silence to think again.  "...so maybe ... 50 miles at least?  I'm thinking, but I can't be too sure." she frowned.  Running around in the desert for two straight days had turned the poor Slynx all around.  The only thing she had been thinking about was the next village and where it would pop up.  She wished she could have been more helpful.

[34]

[ShadowStitches]

Layla grinned a little. "jeah I know...We've been infront of a lot bigger problems
before, its just..frustrating sometimes."

Chester looked at the direction Kuay looked at, and bit his lip.
"hm...50 miles...thats still a lot." "but less then the village we came from...
that must be about 90 miles away" Ovir said. Layla looked concerned at the
Slynx //two full days?! two days alone in the desert? wow.//. She however
turned back at Chester who now chewed his bottom lip, looking very concentrated.
"why where you asking?" He didnt respond emidiatly, wich caused the Rexxel to
move closer to him, mewing angrily "C'mon you're making your thinking face.
Tell us." Chester turned back at all of them, a slight, uneasy smirk on his face
"Weeeeeeel...I cant promise anything but I "fixed" the motor. Very VERY badly,
but at least he should start again.
I just dont know how long it will work. Wich means...50 miles might be
managable. give or take a few, we maybe have to shove the old lady for a mile or so..."
a snort from Ovir "...but we at least can get away from here and fix it properly.
That is if the Motor really survives that long, and nothing else comes in the way."  

"Thats great!" Layla said, beaming at the others, but looking concerned again
"But what aout you Kuay? We'll just bring you back from where you came from."
Ovir chuckeled softly. "I'm shure Chester wont mind to drive her to the next village
once the car is fixed" "What?!" "Oh Ches, that's so nice of you!" Layla purred, shooting him a
glance that told him that she would tear his head off if he said no. "Wait...uh...aw man.
Okay whatever." Chester said, his amber colored eyes gleaming danerously. "lets just get going"

[SkyWolf11]

A disappointed looked spread over Kuay's face as she listened.  '90 miles ... wow...  '  She drifted further into her thoughts, oblivious to the ongoing conversation the others were having.  'I wonder if I could make that trip with the water I have ... no.  No, that'd be too much...  darn...' she bit her lip at the predicament.  

She snapped back as she heard her name mentioned.  "Really!?  That'd would be so great if you could!" she purred happily.  It was certainly better than her risking the longer trip to the next village.  "I really appreciate this." she thanked, giving a genuine thankful smile to the makeshift mechanic Chester.  "I'll be happy to help with anything that you may need of me." she offered in return.  It was the least she could do.  Hopefully she wouldn't be in the way of any of them.

[35 = lvl 8]

[ShadowStitches]

Chester's annoyed and maybe even angry look in his eyes flickered, turning to somewhat soft and
...sad when she smiled at him. She remindet him so much of someone he hoped to forget a long time ago.
He blinked it away in seconds, shaking his head slightly.
"Eh. Don't get too exited girl. We have not even started jet, let alone got to the other village.
With our luck, we might get eaten by mummies on the way or something." That most likely was his
way to say 'You're welcome'

Ovir just looked at her with a little concern in his eyes.
"I think it's enough to know that you get there healthy and alive.
oh. And please dont let yourself talk into a that dangerous
job again"

Layla jogged over to the car, changed to human form and opened the door for Kuay.
After the Slynx got in, she climbed in herself. Ovir placed himself on the frontseat,
next to Chester who started the engine. It certanly did not sound...healthy, but it started.
"ladys and gentlemen, we're now starting our ride to 'village-with-no-name'. In the most
likely case of an emergency, please stay calm and jump out of the car as fast as possible.
Life west's under your seat, enjoy your ride." Ovir gave him an disaproving glance,
and Layla leaned over to Kuay. "Uhm...It's not that dramatic but his driving style really
is...er...a little unusual. But dont worry, I dont think the car can go that fast now."
Just in this moment, the car made a little jump foreward, and with that, their little journey
began...

[SkyWolf11]

Kuay turned to Chester shocked.  Eaten by mummies!?  Oh dear, she certainly hoped not!  How was someone going to explain that at her funeral?

She hustled into the jeep and gladdy took her seat beside Layla.  "I will try not to, Ovir, but I can't make any promises." she answered the kind Imuet.  For such an unfortunate Slynx like herself, uncommon mishaps were a daily occurance.  For some reason she was cursed with an unusually high bad luck streak.  And being the guillable, pushover she was never seemed to help her much either.  She was always easily roped into doing things like this.

She smiled at Chester's words with hidden worry.  Jumping out of a moving car seemed a little too hazardous ... and this cat didn't always land on her feet.  She turned and nodded to Layla, slightly reassured of her safety.  The hard jerk of the car worried her.  She could just imagine it falling to pieces.  She clenched her teeth and shut her eyes tightly trying to chase away the thought, worried about jynxing it.

"So, just for curiousity's sake, what other treasures have you all found?"  She was interested by their seemingly exciting lifestyle.  Not that she'd be fit for such a thing, but she loved to imagine the possibility!

[36]

[ShadowStitches]

"Hm...Well Ovir is much longer in this 'Business', and certanly can tell you a lot more.
But for us as a Team, The 3 most exiting discoveries where: The old tomb we found at
the Tengle rainforest. That might be the most 'romantic' finding we made, since there
was lots of old gold and interisting artifacts. It also had all sorts of...nice little
surprises, Including a snakepit. Historically however, the things we found there wherent that
interisting. Much more so was another Tomb, about 3 levels beneath the Nu'san temple.
No gold there, but incredibly old scrolls and writings over the walls. Not even the
monks knew about it. It indeed was very fascinating. Oh, and of course the discovery at the
Basanth shrine." "Oh, was that where Travis nearly died because he decidet it was a great idea
to jump arround on that thin floor and broke in?" Chester asked innocently. After all that optimistic
babbling he thought that a little more...realistic side of the jobs they did couldnt hurt.
Layla glared angrily at him "He did not nearly die, he just broke his arm and 2 ribs...and his collar bone.
anyway, we're not quite shure what exactly it is, but we think that we might have found a very important puzzle piece in the legacy of the Three fallen Seraphim...maybe we'll finally discover what really is true behind that story." While Layla told all this, the car made several bumps and hops on the sand, making metallic screaching noises and shook the passengers heavily. However, the car seemed to hold through
at least it did not fell apart yet...