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[16] [6]

Postby Jaykobell » 06/06/2013 9:43 PM

While Xane's point was valid, Tiki being married really didn't guarantee her having any children. Especially considering that Akakios couldn't have any, if it hadn't been for time travel meddling with their lives, the couple wouldn't have any kids. "We're not quite sure on the time travel element, either. Still, if they really are our children, then we thought it only made sense that we take them in." It was sometimes awkward, however, as the children had seen very different versions of their parents. They remembered certain personality traits that neither Akakios nor Tiki showed at times. Overall, though, the kids could associate them to their original parents, and the time travel issue was rarely mentioned, if at all. It had taken a bit of time for both the parents and the kids to adapt, but ultimately, they found themselves to be a fairly normal family.

When Xane expressed gratitude for the kids finding them, in the end, that did make Tiki more comfortable about the topic. Initially, she was afraid that he would've ruled the children out because they were half-human half-Manakete, but he seemed to be interested in them, in his own way. "Well... We were fairly surprised when they mentioned being our children, yes. Three thousand years, and suddenly I had a child. We had also established that children were out of the question when Akakios and I got together, since he can't have any of his own... Although, seeing how alternate timelines had produced children, it did give us some hope that maybe we could make it happen in this timeline too," the oracle explained, although the somewhat hopeful thought quickly left her frowning. "But ultimately, it didn't work." It was a wonderful experience to have their two children from some alternate futures, but it was still a bit disheartening that the couple couldn't have a child from this present timeline. Despite them knowing that it wouldn't be possible, seeing their children from the future had sparked some small hope that maybe it would be possible if they tried.

Xane's last comment didn't fall on deaf ears, but Tiki did very little besides looking surprised and blinking at his words. It left the oracle thinking for a moment, but ultimately, she ruled it as the chameleon just considering her a sister, and nothing more. "Heh. Now that we're talking again, it reminds me how much I did miss talking to you. I wish you had stuck around more."

While the two Manaketes were talking, Akakios was still multitasking, and honestly wasn't paying much attention to Xane and Tiki, the same way they paid very little attention to him. "If you come over, we could just talk about it in person rather than you making noises at me on the phone," the tactician commented as he moved from one spot to another by the stove and counter, cooking one thing and starting another in the meantime. Pasta was probably on the menu, since he'd started boiling water and had taken out a bag of pasta. The soup was still cooking on a slow and low fire, and he stirred it occasionally to keep it from sticking. He also checked the oven now and again, so there seemed to be something cooking in there, too. There were times when he would stop moving for a few seconds so he could actually listen to whatever the other person was telling him. "We do have extra beds if you're that tired, and you can stay over. ... No, we're not having a pyjama party," the tactician flatly at the last comment. "We're not having a campfire either! ... No, you don't get to do whatever you want because you're the guest."

It sounded like the conversation was consistently strange, especially out of context.
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Re: [* Reunion After Millennia [P]

Postby Thunder » 06/06/2013 11:06 PM

This whole discussion was certainly interesting. It was strange to think that the same person could have a different fate in other timelines. How many events would have to change for that to happen? How set in stone, really, was the world? For a moment, Xane wished that he had seen more of the war with Grima just to know more about these time shenanigans, but he quickly dismissed the desire. Keeping himself out of harm and trouble was his top priority...unless, of course, he was the one making the trouble.

Xane wondered if he was any different in other timelines. Perhaps there was one where he had gotten involved in the war. What would happen to him then? If it was the one Tiki's kids came from, then presumably he would have been slain by Grima's forces too. Or maybe, if he had been there, could his transformation skills possibly have saved lives? And what if, he thought, there was a timeline where Tiki and I were...?

The shapeshifter cut this thought off, too. He couldn't keep thinking of that. Doing so would only make him more disappointed with his current life.

"Well then, maybe you should have told me you wanted me around more," he said, smirking at Tiki playfully. "I'm sure the annoying stubbornness you had as a kid would've made me too frustrated to leave!"

From Akakios, he heard something about pajamas and fire. Whoever the man was talking to, he was having a bizarre conversation indeed.
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[17] [7]

Postby Jaykobell » 06/06/2013 11:32 PM

While they were talking, Tiki had also managed to pick up on a few words and sentences of Akakios's conversation on the phone. She knew the woman at the other end of the phone: a tactician by the name of Negative that they had fought with during the war. Unlike the blond tactician, the woman — who happened to be an albino — was a lot friendlier and lot more social, and she was fairly eccentric. In a good way, however; mostly it was just to lighten up the mood. She didn't really have any weird or unsettling hobbies, although... she did have a strange husband who was creepy enough for a whole dozen of people. And so, the oracle agreed with Akakios when the tactician asked the other to please return the kids.

Xane seemed to have wandered off into his own head for a moment, but quickly the chameleon came back and reverted to his usual troublemaker self. "A... Annoying...?" Tiki echoed, a little surprised to hear him speak like that about her, but her tone had mixed feelings. "Was I... really that difficult?" She remembered giving him a hard time now and again, mostly when he kept copying her. That would really agitate her, and sometimes would even send her bursting into tears from the frustration. Still, she remembered fond times with him as well, so it was a little disheartening to hear him say she had had an "annoying stubbornness" as a kid. Then again, part of her felt somewhat bad, because she did remember times when she had probably driven the Manakete up the walls.

"How... would such a thing keep you closer to me?" the oracle question afterwards, admittedly a little confused. If he'd found her annoying in that regards, how would it have convinced him to stay... if it frustrated him so? Then, wouldn't it have frustrated him to the point of leaving her behind? ... Perhaps she was thinking too hard about this. "Ah, well... If I had known where you were, perhaps I would have tried to find you. Yet, after the war with Prince Marth, you simply vanished from history..." And then she, herself, had tried to do just that as well, so basically, both Manaketes had left the other stranded, one way or another. "But... that's all in the past, now. Since we met again today, we should definitely keep in touch from now on. You're welcome here if you ever want to come by."

Meanwhile, Akakios was getting all the more frustrated and exasperated. He was rubbing the bridge of his nose and scratching his head with his free hand as he continued to talk on the phone. "Negative, because you're tired," he started with, his voice steadily growing to a frustrated tone, "doesn't mean you can exhaust me from the other end. ... Yes, thank you. Please do that." There was a loud, relieved sigh from the tactician as the phone conversation finally started to reach an end. And it was about time. "So far there's soup, pasta, and fish that's almost ready. I might make a pie if I have time, since Tiki got some fruits from th— ... No, you're not only eating the pie! ... If anything it's not for you!"

Or maybe not.

Meanwhile, Tiki turned to Akakios when she started to realize how agitated he was getting. It was rare to see him get emotional and expressive, since he was usually very passive, but the albino tactician on the other end seemed to have a knack for pushing his buttons. "Hmm... If she does come over, you might appreciate her. The woman he's talking to on the phone, I mean. She's a little like you: she likes to cause a mess wherever she goes."
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Re: [* Reunion After Millennia [P]

Postby Thunder » 06/07/2013 7:29 PM

Xane rubbed his head as he tried to figure out how to explain his word choice better. "Well, I mean, you were just a kid, y'know?" he said, hoping that Tiki hadn't been hurt by his jesting. "And all little kids get annoyin' at some point or another. I admit you drove me nuts sometimes, but would we be where we are today if you hadn't bothered me so?" He smiled warmly at the Voice. "Even those small clashes helped us bond more. That, and it was...nice to have another dragon to look after, especially after I lost my own dragon form. Gotoh might've told me to watch you, but I did genuinely care. And I still do."

With his spiel done, Xane glanced at Akakios and listened to what the man was saying on the phone again. Now there was some sort of dispute about pie going on. For all the awkwardness he had felt within this house, it sure was entertaining to watch Akakios get food shoved in his mouth and to overhear these snippets of conversation without context. He let out a little laugh and turned back to Tiki.

"Oh yeah?" he mused at her mention of Negative. "It certainly sounds...interesting over there on her end. I don't think I'd mind talkin' to her if you think we'd get along." Even though this lady was also probably a human, he certainly didn't have the same apprehension he had about meeting Akakios since obviously, Negative wasn't married to Tiki or anything like that.
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[18] [8]

Postby Jaykobell » 06/07/2013 9:07 PM

Xane's explanation did help Tiki understand his earlier words better. Now that she had children, even if they were older, she could definitely agree that they could get very frustrating and annoying. "Well... Yes, I can understand you better, now." That was an interesting question: what would've happened had the two not met? Or what would've happened if the two hadn't become friends? Maybe the war during the time of legends would've turned out differently, or maybe one or the other wouldn't be here today. Speaking of alternate timelines and dimensions, maybe a few of them explored the question more thoroughly.

Xane's talk about losing his dragon form did sadden Tiki. For his sake, the Voice wished she could allow him to transform again, but Xane's issue wasn't a simple Dragonstone problem: it sounded like he had lost his ability entirely, Dragontone or no. If only there were a way for the oracle to help her friend regain what he had lost, but despite being the daughter of Naga, Tiki was powerless to make such a thing happen. "I'm... glad it helped you, in a way. Like I said earlier, I'm glad you stuck by me despite my childish behavior: then and even now, you are one of my most treasured friends."

"Okay, so are you on your way out now? ... If so, why aren't you hanging up, already?" Akakios continued, still stuck in that phone conversation that appeared to be endless. "If you don't leave now, you won't be here before tomorrow morning, at this rate. ... Okay, I'll see you, then. Bye." There was the ring of the phone as it turned off, and then a long sigh from the tactician as he rubbed his head a little. "... Now I have a headache," he complained quietly, though he couldn't say that he hadn't expected it, considering who he had been talking to all this time.

"I was just telling Xane he and Negative would get along," Tiki pointed out after Akakios's conversation was over. "I can imagine them wreaking havoc all over town." Negative was especially fond of pranking and sometimes even liked to push people's buttons. That wasn't to say she wasn't clever or caring, but for the most part, she was troublesome, and she liked to be just that.

"She's bringing back the kids here right now, so you'll get to meet her," the tactician said as he turned around from the stove and looked back at Xane. "She tends to be overwhelming at times, and... somewhat ADD. I will have headache medicine ready just in case you end up clashing." Naga knew he needed some right now. What was that conversation even about, again? There was another sigh, and then the tactician rubbed his head again a little. "Anyway, we were talking about the war... Sorry for the interruption. Would you like me to continue?"
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Re: [* Reunion After Millennia [P]

Postby Thunder » 06/08/2013 4:03 PM

Xane mentally  breathed a sigh of relief when Tiki understood his explanation. He hadn't meant it to sound insulting, so it was good that they cleared it up. Now that Akakios was done with the phone, he expected that Tiki would want them to try to talk again, so he somewhat reluctantly turned back towards the tactician.

"O-oh, is she?" Xane said, trying to imagine what Negative and the kids were like. He was starting to feel overwhelmed by all the new people and information. Though he was good at remembering what people were like (a shapeshifter had to be skilled at that, after all), it was trying to figure out how to interact with all of them that bothered him. Perhaps he really would take some of that headache medicine.

"Anyway, uh, yes, go on about the war," he replied. Speaking with Tiki for a moment had alleviated some of his stress, and he prayed that it wouldn't return yet again once Negative walked in with the kids. "You got up to...Emmeryn's sacrifice, was it? Tiki was tellin' me about Grima. Where does he fit into all of this?"
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[19] [9]

Postby Jaykobell » 06/08/2013 5:42 PM

"Yeah. She'd taken the kids for a little while because of her job. She's an emergency rescuer of sorts, so the kids were interested in that. I also... don't really fancy them staying at her house because of her... husband," Akakios explained, not feeling too awkward mentioning the kids now that Tiki had explained the whole thing. While the two Manaketes had heard a part of his ridiculous phone conversation, he had also heard tidbits of their own discussion.

At the mention of Negative's husband, Tiki frowned at Akakios. "Is Henry also coming here with them?" Much like the tactician, the oracle didn't quite appreciate Negative's husband. He was a decent and even kind man deep down, but the problem was that the "deep down" part was beyond just "deep", and often sounded more like "unreachable". Tiki couldn't possibly see herself with such a human, and yet, she couldn't help but agree that Negative and Henry — the husband in question — were a ridiculously well-matched pair. As odd as it was.

Fortunately, Akakios shook his head. "No, he's not."

That left the oracle breathing a sigh of relief. "That's good to know."

With that established and out of the way, Akakios figured he could go back to the story of the war. It would take some time for Negative and the kids to get here, since they really didn't live all that close to each other. It would probably be enough time to get through the whole war story. "Ah, yes, Emmeryn. Well, Grima was initially more of a subtle element. Plegia started the war solely for its own ambitions, which was to get revenge against Ylisse for the torture and bloody war that had happened between the two kingdoms almost a decade before that time. Ylisse had invaded Plegia and left most of the kingdom in ruins, so the Plegians grew resentful. The Mad King was after the Fire Emblem, but he never specified reviving Grima at the time: he was just after it to get revenge on Ylisse. After the death of exalt Emmeryn, the Plegian army started to fall into disarray because of the words she'd spoken right before giving her life for the Fire Emblem. The first war ended with the death of the Mad King of Plegia, and there was a certain period of peace after that for about two years." If he had to be honest, Grima hadn't been all that subtle at all, even from the very beginning. Still, that was more personal, so the tactician figured it wasn't all that important to mention.

"After that war, Ylisse got a notice from Regna Ferox that the neighboring continent, Valm, was becoming aggressive. Valm was originally a big compilation of a variety of states and families, but at the time, there was one powerful king who stormed through the small continents under the name of a unified conquest. With the continent of Valm conquered and under his command, his plan was to invade the continent of Regna Ferox, Ylisse, and Plegia. The three kingdoms — even Plegia, which was then lead by a new king — united in order to fight against the massive kingdom of Valm. It's about that time that the... future children appeared on the scene, as Tiki already explained. That was when we got a better understanding of the bigger problem, and that's when Grima became more of a threat, since they all came from the same future where Grima had been resurrected, and where the world lay in ruins."

"Using Plegia's naval fleet, we passed the sea between the two continents and reached the continent of Valm. We got together with a small rebel force when we arrived, one that had already heard of the exploits of the Ylissian army from the war with Plegia. They called themselves the Resistance, and they were a little all over the continent, working in the shadows in order to sabotage the conquest of the man they called the Conqueror, the one responsible for the new war. In order to rally the forces together in a unified army, that was when the mention of Tiki came up. Valm refers to her mostly as the Voice of Naga only, and they view her very highly as the oracle who can communicate with the Goddess directly. The Resistance lead us to the Mila Tree, which is where we awakened her. That was also where we realized the Fire Emblem was incomplete: while it had one of the gems, it was missing the others. With that in mind, we also set out to look for the missing jewels upon Tiki's suggestion, since they would be necessary in order to perform the Awakening, should Grima really be resurrected. From then on, it was mostly just our two armies colliding as we tried to make our way through Valm in order to find and defeat the Conqueror himself so we could end the war. That was eventually the case, and the war against Valm ended with the Conqueror's defeat in the capital."

"However, we were still missing one of the Emblem's gems, so we were on the lookout for the last one. That's when we got a request from Plegia for a parley, where they mentioned that they had the stone we were looking for. We all had a bad feeling that it was a trap, and while we had managed to get away from the Plegian forces trying to ambush us, the king stopped us and stole the Emblem right under our noses." The reason as to why that had even happened... Well, the tactician preferred to keep that under wrap. There was no need to mention this sort of thing, especially when the point of this discussion was only to give Xane a detailed explanation and story of the war, and not the very particular little kinks of it.

"We chased after the king and eventually came across the Dragon's Table, where we learned about Plegia's true intentions. They had landed funds and ships for the campaign against Valm, but no soldiers. It turned out that the Conqueror also wanted to stop Grima's resurrection, and ultimately, we'd defeated someone who could've potentially been an ally. When we reached the table, we learned about the process of reviving Grima, and how the God needed a human vessel in order to be resurrected." There was a pause here, as Akakios considered the importance of saying who the human vessel was. Of course, he knew who it was, and so did Tiki. Still, that, too, felt like something that was best kept under wraps.

"While we'd managed to stop the king from reviving Grima, our success was foiled by Grima himself. He had followed the future children back to our timeline, and he basically revived his power in this timeline afterwards. The events after that were a race against time to Mount Prism in order for Prince Chrom to perform the Awakening, now that we had retrieved the Emblem and its gems. Ultimately, it ended with us triumphing over Grima. ... And that's about what was the war was all about."

Well, that had taken a while. Hopefully Xane had managed to follow the whole story, and the Manakete hadn't been left wondering what in the world was going on.
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Re: [* Reunion After Millennia [P]

Postby Thunder » 06/08/2013 11:24 PM

Based on what the phone conversation had entailed, and based on Tiki and Akakios's reactions to him, Xane wasn't sure if he wanted to meet this Henry fellow. If humans were bad enough to him, then a human who other humans didn't quite like wouldn't probably hit off well with him. It was good to hear that this strange man wasn't coming, though, so he stopped worrying about it and focused on digesting Akakios's story instead.

It was interesting to hear that Grima hadn't been much of a factor early on, especially considering that apparently the whole latter half of the war was all about trying to stop Grima. It was also intriguing that Emmeryn's words alone could cause a whole enemy army to fall apart. If her sacrifice and speech had been that moving, then perhaps even someone who disliked humans as much as he did would want to meet her. "Emmeryn must've been pretty amazin'," he mused mostly to himself.

When the children were mentioned again, Xane got confused. "Wait, 'they all'?" he asked, raising an eyebrow. "You mean there were more kids from the future aside from...from yours?" It was still difficult to think of Tiki having children with this guy. "It must've been bafflin' to see them."

Of course, he was interested in knowing how Tiki got roused from her sleep after so many years. It seemed that her fame had been the thing to stop her from vanishing from history like she had wanted to. It made the Manakete a little sad to hear that Valm had only known her for her position, but then again, not many of its citizens probably got to know who Tiki actually was as a person. All the same, he supposed it was good that people revered her enough to push the war towards the heroes' favor. Then, the mention of the Fire Emblem's stones summoned a current of nostalgia within Xane. He had once helped Marth find the Emblem's stones in order to defeat Medeus, another evil dragon that had lived so many years ago. The situations were still quite different, but they were similar enough that he could imagine the events of this recent war well.

Xane had guessed that Plegia had other goals in mind; even if they had gotten a new king after their first was defeated by Ylisse, it seemed suspicious that an enemy nation would be so quick to ally itself with Ylisse for the fight against the Conqueror. The bit about the human vessel was interesting, though, especially considering that Grima was a dragon. To Xane, the dragon's need for a human body to be resurrected was quite unfortunate, but in a way, it was also similar to the divine dragons' predicament thousands of years ago. The Manaketes had essentially been forced to take a human form since otherwise, the gods would have made them sterile and stripped them of their intelligence, turning them into little more than beasts. "That's interesting," he commented. "I wonder who could possibly have a body strong enough to contain a dragon God?"

That, and his question about the children, were the only loose ends he really had after listening to the explanation. But he couldn't possibly be aware of just how personal the incident with Grim was to the tactician.
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[20] [10] [1] [1] [1] [1]

Postby Jaykobell » 06/09/2013 12:11 AM

Xane's comment about Emmeryn left Akakios silent. Yes: the former exalt had been an amazing and breathtaking leader. Initially, the tactician was actually a double agent within the army, one who had infiltrated the group in order to sabotage it from the inside. While he had no feelings towards Prince Chrom or even Negative, he had grown fond of them over the course of time. When it came to his order to assassinate Emmeryn herself, the tactician had found himself incapable of doing such a thing. Her words had resonated too powerfully with him, and it was starting that point that Akakios had really tried to become a real member of the army. It had proved to be difficult, however, since he was still tied up at the time, but everything worked out eventually. "Yes, she was truly amazing," the tactician answered simply, his voice carrying on that feeling of amazement and respect for the former exalt.

Akakios was a little surprised at Xane's question about the kids. He figured Tiki had explained all that to him already, but perhaps she had only explained their children, and not the others. "Ah, yes. A lot of our married soldiers found themselves with their children from the future. Negative, the other tactician in our army, also got a son from the time traveling factor. A major player of the war was also a young girl named Lucina, who is Prince Chrom's daughter. She's the one who started the whole resistance in the future with the children from that timeline." Arguably, if it hadn't been for Lucina, perhaps they would've never met any of the children. Maybe they would've all perished in the future timeline, and perhaps things would've played differently in the present, as well.

However, Xane's comment about Grima's vessel made Akakios's heart sink. He visibly frowned, and that was something he shouldn't have done, but it was hard to deal with that. It was something that concerned him directly, and something he wasn't proud of. It wasn't something he'd chosen for himself, but something he had been born with. Even though it wasn't his fault, he still felt responsible for just being born that way, and it wasn't something he could get rid of.

Tiki noticed Akakios's obvious change of expression, and immediately she felt bad for him. She knew what he was, and she knew how big of a burden it was for him. Still, it was something he couldn't change, and something that she couldn't help with, either. It didn't only concern him, either: the true, perfect vessel of the dark dragon God was not him, but someone else close and dear to him. Someone he had protected from the very beginning, and truly, it was his efforts that had prevented the true vessel from being tempted to accept the call of Grima.

"Ah, well... The vessels... They're human beings born with a specific genetic trait that Plegia calls the Heart of Grima. Having the blood of the dark dragon isn't enough for the body to be a host. There can also be... partial, or imperfect hosts that can welcome the power, but not indefinitely," Akakios eventually answered, although spitting out who the vessels was a completely different story. "The vessels..."

But as he was about to continue, something akin to an earthquake happened, seemingly just outside their house. A loud cry was heard as well, something that didn't sound human nor animalistic. It sounded more like...

"What in..." the tactician mused as he narrowed his eyes and went on to walk all the way to the door to see what had caused the ruckus, and he had a good idea as to what it could be.

"That..." Tiki mused quietly, following Akakios to the front door, having an idea as to what could've caused the small quake and the cry. It was very reminiscent of a Manakete.

When Akakios opened the door, the couple's doubts were confirmed as they both gasped at the sight of a transformed Manakete just outside their door, with a few people sitting by its neck.

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The dragon was less dragon-looking than Tiki, but the Manakete blood was still obvious in the dragon's veins. His white hide was a dead giveaway to is relation to Tiki, and his shifting scales was also a theme from the Manakete princess. "How fast was that, huh?!" the Manakete boasted, sporting a confident smirk on his maw and speaking in a masculine voice, proving that he was a male.

He also wasn't speaking to the small crowd down below, but rather to the people that were sitting on his back.

ImageImageImage

There were three people sitting on the Manakete's back: two albinos, one a woman around Akakios's age, and the other a young boy, and the third person was a girl with Manakete-like features, proving that she had dragon-blood in her veins like the white dragon that was carrying the three passengers.

"That. Was. Great!" the albino woman screamed out as she stretched her arms in the air as if she were on a roller coaster ride. "This was a beautiful idea, hahah! We got here in record time!"

"I'd never flown on a dragon's back before!" the albino boy commented afterwards, latching onto the albino woman the whole time. "I'm just glad I don't have vertigo."

While the two albinos seemed to be overly excited and satisfied with their trip, the last passenger seemed a bit more disturbed. "Urk... I could've passed, to be honest..." she complained weakly, and while she didn't look pale, she certainly looked like she hadn't enjoyed her trip.

But the enthusiasm of the three — two? — was interrupted by the voice of the angry blond-haired tactician. "Negative!"

"Hahah, Kee!" the albino woman replied, reacting to the one who had said her name. "What do you think? Didn't expect us this fast, am I right?" And then the two albinos high-fived, showing that there was some sort of particular connection between the two — if this was the albino tactician Akakios had spoken of, then was the boy her future son?

And if so, were the transformed Manakete and the Manakete girl the two future children of Akakios and Tiki?

"Hah, I totally thought of this idea!" the dragon spoke again, puffing his chest out proudly and putting a clawed hand to his chest. "I fly as fast as the wind!"

"Okay, time out," Akakios called out as he put one of his hands to his face and used the other to ask the small group of four to keep quiet for just a moment. "Milton, please transform back right now. Negative, please don't use my kids as your personal jet planes for convenient travel. And finally, can we just start over from the beginning? We have a guest, and that's far from being a good first impression."

Well, there went the first impression for just about everybody. When Akakios had said that Negative could be overwhelming, this was the best example as to why.
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Re: [* Reunion After Millennia [P]

Postby Thunder » 06/09/2013 6:58 PM

Xane had no idea why Akakios had frowned at his mention of the vessel. Perhaps something traumatizing had happened during the war regarding him and this person? Even if he didn't like humans, Xane knew it was rude to pry and didn't ask anything more about it, though the tactician went ahead and explained a bit further anyway. It seemed that after all these years, the chasm between dragons and humans was growing ever closer and closer...

The chameleon was startled when he felt the shaking and heard the roar. That sound was unmistakable- it was the cry of a Manakete. Nervousness started to well up within him again. Could that be Tiki's children arriving? He followed Tiki and Akakios to the front door, not sure what to expect.

What he saw made him feel a little sick.

It was a Manakete all right, a male, though somehow he didn't appear as dragon-like as a full blooded Manakete. The shimmering colors of his scales proved his relationship to Tiki. But that wasn't what made Xane feel weak. It was the sight of people riding on the dragon's back that bothered him. He supposed that he shouldn't complain if the Manakete had willingly given a ride to these people, but all the same, it seemed rude to use a Manakete as a mount to him. He had to agree with Akakios on this- dragons weren't personal jet planes.

He tried to push the sight out of his mind and proceeded to study the riders. Two of them were albino, and they looked similar enough to be related. One was a woman- a very energetic woman- which appeared to be the woman Akakios was talking to on the phone, Negative. If that were the case, then maybe the boy that was clinging to her was her son. The other passenger was definitely a Manakete, for she had pointed ears and long green hair like Tiki did, so presumably this was Tiki's daughter. The resemblance was so striking that Xane had to do a double take for a moment.

After such a ridiculous entrance, Xane really didn't know what to do. He was now more dumbfounded than anything. So he simply scratched his head, grinned awkwardly, and waved his hand a little. "Uh...hey. I'm Xane. Nice to...meet you?"
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Postby Jaykobell » 06/09/2013 9:20 PM

Akakios's passive-aggressive orders went right over Negative's head. The tactician rolled her eyes as she grinned, attributing it to the other tactician's inability to be relaxed. Akakios had always had a hard time with letting loose and just being funny and pleasant. He was more of a silent and reserved type, often too preoccupied by what people would think of him to really let loose. That was fine: Negative could help with that!

While the albino tactician hadn't been bothered by Akakios's words, the Manakete felt pretty bummed. He rolled his eyes as well, and he frowned at the human tactician down below. "Pops, chill! I'm the one who offered to fly us over here! I just didn't want to get stuck on the train forever and get here late," the white dragon explained, although he knew Akakios probably wouldn't take that for an answer.

Still, if they had a guest over, then they had to behave accordingly. The dragon grumbled as he let the three passengers down from his back, and once he was free, the dragon focused for a moment until a flash of bright light turned the Manakete back to his human form. With that done, the small group approached the three friends waiting by the door to the house, giving Xane a better view of everyone.

The most eccentric of the group was, of course, Negative, the albino tactician Akakios had spoken of. Being an albino, her white hair and red eyes weren't surprising. She was wearing a somewhat formal-looking black outfit, complete with a black, grey and red tie. The right sleeve of her blouse was rolled up to her elbow, just about, and she also wore a single glove on that right hand, similar in style to Akakios's fashion choice. The only other striking characteristic about her was the long scar that went across and between her eyes. If anything, it was a miracle the tactician wasn't blind.

The small albino boy, who was arguably Negative's son, was similar in appearance to the tactician, if only because he shared the white hair and the red eyes. His slightly long hair was tied in a small and short ponytail, and he wore glasses, unlike his mother. He was dressed fairly simply, just wearing pants and a regular t-shirt for a top.

The two Manaketes definitely shared certain traits, like their hair designs, the yellow ring around their necks that was akin to Tiki's, and a long, flat red band that was in their hair, much like Tiki's. Both kids wore glasses like their father, and the boy bore a striking similarity to Akakios, whereas the girl looked a lot like Tiki. The boy was wearing some shorts with a leather jacket and a pink scarf that matched Tiki's pink ribbon around her waist. The girl wore more feminine clothing, including heels, just like her mother, as well as the same ribbon, only hers was positioned differently and showed behind her back rather than by her waist.

"Hey, you gotta admit, it was pretty clever! And I didn't even have to think of it," Negative said as she reached Akakios and Tiki, giving the two upset parents a grin.

"Hi, Mr. Akakios, Mrs. Tiki!" the albino greeted, and Xane would probably pick up on the fact that he'd called Tiki by the official title for married women, instead of the regular "miss". Still, just from that single greeting, one could tell he was just as happy as the albino woman.

Still, the words and happy faces of the two albinos hadn't really managed to sway the two parents. Akakios was still questioning why he had even agreed to let Negative come over, and Tiki hadn't been too pleased to see her son using his power so carelessly. It wasn't the fact that he had offered a ride to the others, but more the fact that he had used his power so carelessly.

"I told you it wasn't a good idea, but you wouldn't listen to me," the female Manakete whispered to her brother, looking at him with a look that looked insecure and anxious.

"Please, my idea was genius," the boy argued, crossing his arms at his sister, and clearing packing more attitude than she did. "Pops just flips at every single little thing."

"What was that?" Tiki interjected as she glared at her son, her voice stern and commanding.

"E-eep," the Manakete squealed as he jumped and turned to his mother right away, his attitude going from arrogant to submissive. "N-no, that's slang, mom! That means he's totally groovy! ... Y-you know?" The answer was followed by a sheepish and awkward grin, and there was a sigh from his sister right next to him.

Akakios sighed as he crossed his arms and looked the group over. "Well, now that everybody is here... Xane," he spoke as he turned slightly to the red Manakete, "this is the people you were talking about. The woman here is Negative, and she was a tactician during the war. The boy is her son, Mark, one of the children from the future, who is also an aspiring tactician. The other two are my and Tiki's children from... the future," he introduced as he pointed to every person as necessary, but there was a certain hesitation when he introduced the children. "The girl is Morgan, and the boy is Milton," he continued, pointing at both children to show which one was called what.

"Talking about? I'm glad, did you miss me that much?" Negative asked teasingly, grinning at Akakios, but getting only a hard stare in return.

"And everyone, this is Xane," Akakios continued to introduce, ignoring Negative's comment.

"He is one of my very old Manakete friends from my childhood," Tiki added, establishing her connection to him right away so everyone was on the same page, including Xane's species.

"Ohh, ohhhh! Manakete!" And like a child, Negative went up to Xane excitedly. "It's always exciting to meet one!"

"Oh, wow! I love Manaketes too!" Mark piped up as he walked over with his mother to take a better look at Xane, the two albinos now looking over the chameleon excitedly.

There was a reaction from both Manakete children at the mention of Xane being a Manakete just like their mother and themselves. Morgan seemed to be genuinely curious, but too shy to really initiate a conversation. Milton, as for him, narrowed his eyes questioningly at the red Manakete, and one detail did stand out. "If you're a Manakete, how come you don't have the ears?"

Well, it seemed like Xane would have to deal with the introductions before anyone got anywhere.
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Re: [* Reunion After Millennia [P]

Postby Thunder » 06/10/2013 6:25 PM

As Xane watched Milton revert to his humanoid form, he felt a bit of envy crawl into his heart. The fact that a half-Manakete could transform while he himself could not was saddening to him, but he tried not to let his face show it. Tiki could probably deal with the fact that he was not completely comfortable around her human husband, but when it came to her children? For the most part, mothers were extremely loving and protective of their kids, and Xane knew it would only break her heart if he was strongly opinionated against Milton and Morgan's mixed blood. At the very least they were half-Manakete, so he told himself that he'd make a greater effort in not letting his biases run rampant.

He took in all of their appearances and did not fail to notice that Negative, like Akakios, only wore one glove. It was strange since they were both tacticians and participants in the war. Furthermore, he also detected an odd aura coming from the albino woman that was nearly identical to Akakios's. Were the two connected somehow? He didn't feel that he was in a position to ask on the subject, and since only Manaketes could detect the aura, all the humans (and perhaps half-humans) here would be confused if he brought it up...unless, of course, the tacticians had an inkling of why he was getting that sense from them.

In terms of personality, both Negative and her son seemed extremely cheery and energetic. Based on how the two greeted Tiki and Akakios, Xane felt that Mark was probably more polite than his mother was...if he excused both of them for riding on a dragon and ignored the wince that came with calling Tiki "Mrs.". Morgan, Tiki's daughter, seemed particularly anxious, quiet, and cautious, and Xane had to give her some points for being seemingly uncomfortable with flying around on her brother's back. And last but not least, Milton appeared to have a rebellious streak, though he was quick to shrink back from his mother's scolding. He also had a way of talking that was weirder than Xane's- what on earth did "groovy" mean?

Of course, Xane's thoughts on all of them grew rather soured when they all acted so excited to the fact that he was a Manakete.

"Wha...h-hey, slow down!" he cried, backing up and raising his hands as if he were under arrest. "One at a time!" A bead of sweat trickled down his face. He wasn't used to having so many people...fascinated with him. "I may have a few interestin' tricks up my sleeve, but I'm no circus attraction! So please don't stare so...intensely."

As soon as he felt he had put a comfortable amount of distance between him and the crowd, he addressed Milton's question. "I...dunno, to be honest," he replied. That was an honest response; he wasn't sure he if never had the pointed ears or if he had lost them with his transformation powers. At any rate, his ears were often hidden by his medium length red hair, so he didn't really pay attention to them even while looking at his reflection. And of course, there was the fact that he spent quite a bit of time looking like other people.

To Negative and Mark, he let out a little, nervous laugh. "I don't suppose you're fans of Manaketes because of Tiki? She's quite somethin', but not all Manaketes are as great as her...or as nice." The way he spoke seemed strangely self-derogatory.
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Postby Jaykobell » 06/10/2013 8:39 PM

It seemed like the excited and eccentric reactions of the two albinos had left the red Manakete a bit edgy. Mark retreated quickly to give the boy his space, but Negative just scratched her head, and she didn't look too fazed by Xane's reaction. "Eh, it's just great to see another Manakete! Well, ones that look like human adults, I guess. Tiki was really the only mature-looking Manakete around during the war. The others all looked pretty young. Plus, if you're a friend of hers, then that makes you a friend of ours too!" Social was right, because right away the albino tactician had seemingly adopted Xane, despite him being a complete stranger to her.

"Oh, any species interests me. I'm okay with Taguels and Manaketes and humans and anything in-between," Negative answered to Xane's question, where he asked if her liking of Manaketes came from Tiki alone. "Although I know non-human species don't really fancy humans much... if at all," she added, scratching her head sheepishly, her expression changing to something akin to confusion. "Not that I don't blame you, I do know the history between us. Still, I hope that we'll grow closer with time. A few in our army crossed the species bridge by marrying off, just like Kee here," the tactician added as she gave the other tactician a hard pat on the back, which left the blond tactician clearing his throat, seemingly from embarrassment.

"Your skills to describe the obvious are terrifying," Akakios replied flatly, his sarcastic tone matched with a hard stare aimed at the albino tactician that requested that she change the subject immediately.

But the passive-aggressive reaction of the male tactician went right over Negative's head, and she simply rolled her eyes as she continued to grin.

Meanwhile, the children were hanging together, Mark having retreated close to Morgan and Milton, since Xane had asked for them to stop invading his personal space. Morgan seemed curious about Xane still, but she was avoiding eye-contact with him and seemed too shy to say anything. Milton looked a little curious as well, but in a different way. He found it strange how Xane lacked the Manakete ears, but he figured that was just a detail that mattered very little. If his mother knew him from millennia ago, then obviously he was a divine dragon; how else would he have lived for so long, while remaining so young? The compliments had made his mother also left the boy with a strange feeling, but it was but a passing thought. He wasn't sure about how he felt towards that red Manakete, but he figured he had to give him a chance. To be truthful, he hadn't meant a full-blooded Manakete outside of his family and the army during the war. There was no telling what Xane thought of them because of their mixed blood, so Milton figured it best to stay quiet for now to find out what kind of guy this new Maneket was.

With a sigh, Akakios eventually turned to Xane and the others. "Well, now that everyone is here, I know it's rude to leave, but if we're planning on eating anything at all, I need to go back and continue preparing the food for tonight." He still had a lot of food to prepare, and if everyone also wanted a pie, there was no telling if he would be able to finish everything on time.

"Ohh, I wanna watch!" Negative said as she jumped at Akakios and latched onto his arm, which left the other tactician to cringe at the physical contact. "To be honest, I could probably learn a thing or two from you."

"Argh! Negative, get off!"

While this sort of close contact might've sent anyone else flying in a blind rage, Tiki seemed unfazed by Negative's sudden need for physical contact with the Manakete's husband. Instead, the oracle turned to face her children, and something stuck out to her. "Milton, are you all right? You look pale."

When he was spoke to, the male Manakete blinked, and upon closer inspection, the child did look pale. "Huh? N-no... I'm okay," he answered a bit hesitantly, and while it wasn't anything strange to those who didn't know the boy, his mother knew that her son was acting fairly apathetic.

"How many times did you use your Dragonstone?" Tiki asked, giving the boy a stern look that said the oracle wouldn't accept any lies for an answer.

"B-barely," Milton answered, raising his hands over his chest defensively. "I used it for a bit maybe once or twice, and then to fly over here," the son explained, sounding a bit indignant at being questioned about the subject.

There was a pause afterwards, and eventually Tiki simply sighed. "Maybe the journey was just tiring, then. Morgan doesn't look much better."

The daughter jumped at being mentioned, and she straightened up immediately. "I-I'm a bit tired, but it's from the rescue. I didn't use my Dragonstone at all." Although she was a Manakete, Morgan had a certain dislike of her dragon form and used it sparingly. It wasn't that she didn't like being a Manakete or having the form itself, but rather something that stemmed from a different source.

Akakios sighed as Tiki reviewed the two kids, grumbling a little as Negative remained attached to his arm like a persistent child. The albino tactician didn't have any family besides her husband and her future son, and at the beginning of the war, she had adopted Akakios as her older brother. Being an amnesiac, she had been ecstatic to meet someone she actually knew and remembered, and it hadn't taken much for the blond tactician to earn a special place in the albino's heart. "You're free to come back inside if you wanted to learn more about the war, Xane," Akakios invited, though he figured he would probably feel more comfortable staying with Manakete-blooded people rather than humans. "Otherwise, I'm sure the kids would be happy to talk with you."

"Eh, you guys were talking about the war? I hope you remembered to say that we won," Negative pointed out, and again all Akakios could do was stare down at her and grumbled quietly as she grinned up at him.

Somehow, they were friends.
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Re: [* Reunion After Millennia [P]

Postby Thunder » 06/11/2013 11:09 PM

The others? So it sounded like more Manaketes than just Tiki had fought alongside Prince Chrom. Xane was shocked to hear that these dragons had also married with humans, and he didn't know what to think anymore. Was his kind becoming uncaring of the age old tensions between Manaketes and humans? Or was he simply being left behind in the dust, a foolish dragon who couldn't ditch his biased beliefs? At any rate, he was glad that Negative, for all her apparent oddness, recognized the struggles the two races had in the past.

Seeing Negative leap onto Akakios snapped the chameleon out of his thoughts. He blinked at the two tacticians before turning to look at Milton, whom Tiki had called out. All the children were clustered together, and Milton indeed looked rather pale- though obviously not as white as the albino boy. Xane remembered those days where he had to watch the use of his own Dragonstone; though dragon forms were powerful, they drained a Manakete's energy quickly if one wasn't used to transforming. Older Manaketes like him and Tiki did not encounter this problem as often, as they were more experienced.

He figured he had heard sufficient detail on the war, and Akakios had accurately guessed that he would rather be with the other Manaketes, so he decided that he'd stay outside and get to know the newcomers some more. "Eh, I'll stay here," he replied, trying to be as polite as possible. "I won't bother you if you're cookin'. Uh, and thanks for tellin' me 'bout the war."

With that, he looked back at the new arrivals and studied them a little more. "I guess you all met 'cause of the war, eh? It must've been rough on you kids, particularly. Akakios and Tiki told me about it."
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Postby Jaykobell » 06/15/2013 7:48 PM

Part of Akakios was relieved that Xane didn't want to hear more about the war. Since the discussion had ended with the topic of Grima's human vessels, the tactician was happy that he would get to keep that under wraps for a little while longer. He always hated talking about this particular detail of the war, so being able to avoid it made him all the more happy. "I'll see you guys again later tonight once the food is ready, then," he said as he turned to go back inside the house, with Negative following him very closely, just to make sure she didn't lose sight of him.

Seeing her father go back inside left Morgan wishing that she could follow him, but with Xane asking questions and Tiki staying outside, it would be rude for her to walk out on a guest. She hesitated for a heartbeat about what to do, hesitating between staying outside or going inside, but she quickly settled for the former. She was looking at the house a bit dishearteningly, but only for a brief moment before turning back to the conversation at hand.

Milton didn't really think twice about anything, but he was a little wary of Xane. He had never heard of this guy — either in the present or in his original future timeline — and yet he was one of his mother's most precious friends? Maybe it was also the fact that Xane didn't have the Manakete ears: Milton had never seen a Manakete without them, and he and his sister were only half-blooded. Why did the chameleon lack them? That, and the added factor that he didn't know this guy as a person also added to his quieter behavior.

It was also worth noting that all three kids had a similar feeling and power to them as both Akakios and Negative, albeit in a much smaller quantity.

While the two Manakete kids seemed to be a bit quiet, the third child, Mark, looked nothing short of social and friendly. Since the other two kids seemed to be a little preoccupied, the albino boy didn't hesitate one moment to answer Xane's statement. "Yep, that's about it! Originally we were all alone, but we eventually met up with our parents as the war went on. Everything went pretty smoothly after that, but initially it was pretty hard," the white-haired child explained, that smile of his never leaving his face as he spoke. He was similar in behavior to his cheerful mother, but a little bit calmer. "I guess you know the part about us being from the future and all, right? Actually, we don't all come from the same timeline, either. I don't... remember anything prior to me ending up in this time. And despite being siblings, Morgan and Milton are from two different timelines, too. We were all scattered around a little bit, but the majority all came from the same future timeline that predicted Grima's resurrection. I think that might've been the original timeline that started the time travel element. I guess whatever ritual Naga had planned to prevent Grima to be revived picked up all the kids it needed or wanted, regardless of alternate timelines? Or maybe it was something akin to fate; like bonds tying us together across time and—"

"You might want to breathe there, Mark," Milton pointed out as he cut the albino's explanation abruptly, leaving the human boy to look back at the Manakete, blinking.

"Sorry," the boy said with a smile, grinning a bit sheepishly. "Sometimes I get carried away. It's confusing, but I find this whole time traveling experience really fascinating! My mother first thought the factor that determined which kids got picked depended on their parents, since the majority of the children that came from the future had all lost their parents. But then that couldn't be it, because I remember both of my parents from my own timeline, and my time wasn't in ruins, either, so that couldn't be—"

"Can't you just say it was all magic?" Milton asked as he patted Mark on the back, again interrupting the albino boy. "The guy asked a simple question, and you've just derailed into time travel mechanics."
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