Forgotten

[Ari]

It wasn't cold here.

It wasn't hot either.

There was no breeze but she could hear the sound of rushing water, thousands of gallons pouring over an edge, swept by gravity into some sort of lake, perhaps?

Slowly, The pink-haired girl's eyes blinked open, revealing the source of the sound. An enormous column of water, rushing down from what looked to be a giant, upside down copper basin. Except. It wasn't. Water spilled over the edges of the basin, creating another, hollow column of water. Where gravity kept the girl on laying on the ground, it pulled the water up, far beyond where her eyes could see, dozens of tiny flashes of rainbows decorating where lights reflected off the mist. But there was no specific light source, not here. Everything was white except for the copper basin and the water. It had a... clinical feel to it. Like a... hospital?

The girl felt small. Insignificant. She didn’t belong here. She wasn’t from here. Or.. Was she? Where was she from? What was her name? What was this place? The number of questions was overwhelming. Terrifying. Hot tears spilled over her cheeks as she withdrew into herself, curling up into a tight ball on the ground.

[Ezrihel]

Soon enough, and after a rather restful nap, the blonde man and his feathered dragon came through the Camelot gate and out into the stark whiteness of the Nexus. He breathes in the air deeply. It smells different here, clean, and sanitary, like a hospital. Every once in a while a whiff of some strange aroma drifts through the otherwise empty air, allowing the idling Primes and Secondaries to catch a brief scent based view of another verse.

Ezrihel looks out over the nearly alien landscape, his emerald green eyes keenly darting from one figure to the next. He would not be surprised if he could help it. He would not be ambushed and made a fool of. He spots and takes note of the various Kingdom scouts and Imperial Stormtroopers rushing in military squads to differing gates.  The sound of marching boots is nothing more than a faint tickle of the ears to most humans, but Ezrihel can hear each jingle of shifting armor, each impact of boot to ground, as if he were marching with them.

With a gentle thought, he beckons Noctem to go forward into the white realm. She shuffles her wings, attempting to adjust to this place. Giving a snort, she casts a concerned look back at her rider. Come on girl, it'll be alright. With his encouragement she steps forwards, the fleshy pads of her paws dulling the sound of her moving mass. The gradient hues of her fur coat have an unbridled vibrancy in the void of the Nexus, her colors pop out brightly, especially against the black and red of Ezrihel's inquisitor robes. The clicking of her talons against the hard floor echo hollowly in the emptiness.

Trusting Noctem to guide them to the correct gate, Ezrihel takes a moment to pull up the Dataverse Omail system. Society of Super Villains, he thinks, what a name. With the activation of his device, the minute and transparent wires spread from his temple and creep over the surface of both his eyes, projecting a tiny screen across the lens of his eyes. Motioning with his hands, he unfolds a piece of plasteel into a screen an activates the interfacers. A flat keyboard appears, it's letters incomprehensible to anyone not of his race. With nimble fingers he types in a search query for an email.

>Enter search query.
>SocietyofSuperVillains@omail.com
>Invalid search query: Unknown Name.
>SoSV@omail.com
>Invalid search query: Unknown Name.
>IP 192.82.10.1203
>Invalid search query: Untraceable Address.
>fearmastersc@omail.com
>Invalid search query: Unknown Address.

> . . . Please enter search query.|

Ezrihel stops typing and pinches the bridge of his nose with his left index finger and thumb; the finger of his right hand curl sharply before relaxing and attempting to brush through the dragon's mane. Noctem gives a glance back at him, sensing his mounting frustration. Why must things in my life become such trivial difficulties, my dear Noctem? Came his rhetorical question.

Ugh. I'll handle this later then. Just go to the fountain.

Then his inhuman senses pick it up. Soft crying, sobbing? Coming from his right. His eyes snap towards the sound like a predator stalking his prey.

There, a girl. A small girl with pink hair. He could smell the salt of her tears from here, feel the subtle warm flush of her puffy cheeks. Deep down within himself, he feels something stir, something dark, something destructive. Before him, curled into a ball, appears a weak and scared creature, human, from what he could tell.

He reaches his mind out, not touching her consciousness yet, no, he wanted to test the air around her at first. While doing this, he beings to unstrap himself from his riding saddle. He swings his right leg out first, then his left, climbing down Noctem's fuzzy blue arm and starting towards the girl with the grace of a feline. As he steps closer, her sobbing rings louder in his ears.

Weak.

Something curls up inside him, a building tension that went unseen on the surface. The creeping wake of the abyss within as it poised itself for the kill.

She won't fight back. Look at that. Give in. She's just as helpless as Lilith~

He stands about five feet from her now. The emotional energy around her feels like torrents. Confusion is the biggest of these. Fear the second. Like a helpless babe she doesn't even recognize his presence.

The only truth is suffering, the only truth is suffering. It's okay to hate yourself, just lay still don't cry for help. Run, anywhere you can. It's coming, the suffering is here.

Ezrihel gives a soft exhale and drops to one knee.

I'm sick but I need my disease.

He extends his white gloved left hand out a bit, obviously offering it to the young girl. He pushes a stray lock of hair out of his face, putting it back into place.

I'm sick but I need my disease.

"My good lady, why are you crying? Did someone hurt you?" His warm voice carries easily, giving an air of control and gentle power.

I'm sick but I need my disease.

"I'll protect you. I won't let anyone hurt you, on my word as the High Grand Inquisitor."

No one is safe. No where is safe.

"If you so wish, you may come with me on my journey so that I may ensure your safety."

I'm sick. I'm sorry. I'm sorry.

Noctem dips her furry head down and brushes her fleshy, cat-like nose against the top of the girl's head. She gives a soft purr before nuzzling the girl.

"Oh, that's my Dragon, Noctem. She's a big push over for the most part, and it looks like she's taken a liking to you!" Ezrihel gives a quiet chuckle, genuine in it's amused and happy nature.

Surrender is your only hope.

"Do you have a name, young miss?" He asks with a soft smile. He's still down on one knee, offering a hand to the pink haired girl.

[Ari]

Someone was speaking to her. Spots of blue flashed before her eyes, but she fought them down. Whoever it was... Their voice was gentle and calm, making her feel a little bit safer.. I'll protect you. I won't let anyone hurt you. Cat looked up, tear stained face warily peering at the man next to her. Could he really be trusted? Was it really safe now? Did he know who she was? Her voice came out scratchy and rough, barely loud enough to be heard. 

"I-I'm scared... Where am I? What is this place? Wh-who... Who are you...?" 

Cat shifted, clinging onto Ezrihel's hand as if it were a lifeline. Something large and fuzzy touched her head and the girl shrieked, lunging forward and clinging to Ezrihel's chest. Cat was terrified, hiding her face in the man's shirt like a small child. The... Dragon, he called it, seemed enthralled with her much like a cat was enraptured by a mouse or a new toy. 

"I can't remember my name. It's just... Gone..."

[Ezrihel]

Her tear stained face looks up at him pitifully. Her hair is an absolute mess and her green eyes are red and puffy, swollen from her sobbing. He notices how her bottom lip quivers, almost teasing him, tempting him. His body is alive, nearly jittery in response to how utterly vulnerable she was. A fresh tear slips down her cheek, caressing her soft jawline before dripping onto the barren floor of the Nexus. His attention is drawn to her neck. Her skin is pale, it looks so soft and delicate, like the petals of a spring flower.

She swallows and clears her throat, trying to speak more clearly. Ezrihel twitches just a little, too subtle for most people to catch it but otherwise remains unchanged. His jaw tenses, keeping his tongue from licking his lips out of temptation. He too swallows but for a much different reason than the pink haired teen.

"Oh my dear, you have no reason to be afraid. You're in the Nexus, the so called 'hub' of the Omniverse. You must be a new Prime. Don't worry darling, being drug here is always a little bit traumatic."

She takes his hand, holding on to it as if were her only life line cast out in a vast ocean. A shiver runs up Ezrihel's spine and he adjusts to compensate, straightening his back out a bit more.  "My name is Ezrihel von Althaus, The Grand High Inquisitor of Aufsteingen Stadt, though I'm almost certain that means almost nothing to any person but myself-"

This girl screeched when Noctem touched her, flailing and practically crawling up Ezrihel's arm before finding her face pressed against his chest. With how close she was to him, she could likely feel the slow pulse of his heartbeat through his robes- not that it was abnormal, in fact, his hearts normally beat much slower than a human's.

He gave a few surprised blinks before wrapping his arms around her in a gentle embrace, softly patting her back. "Hey- hey, it's okay now. Noctem isn't going to hurt you, isn't that right girl?" The end of his sentence was directed at his mount, his words curling in a baby-ish tone as he reaches a hand up to pet Noctem's left cheek.

But deep down, deep deep down, he feels a disgusting satisfaction from the situation. Step into my parlor... He draws in a deep breath, taking in her scent and committing it to memory, before letting out a sigh. He tilts his head back, obscuring his face from her as his eyes roll back and close. He, in every way to the girl at least, appears to be contemplating something, something that was likely inconsequential. Her scent is delightfully succulent to him. It was almost to good to be true; a weak creature drawn to him so easily he hadn't even had need to put in effort.

For a long moment he cradles her fragile frame in his arms and reassures her that all will be better some day. Like a small child she clings to him and nuzzles her face into his chest. He can feel her small upturned nose pushing against his skin as she seeks an escape from her worries.

She whimpers about her name being lost to her, her slender fingers bunching up his clothes as she holds him tightly. "A name is a very troublesome thing to lose indeed. However," he pauses for a moment, his arms moving to fully support her weight as he stands up, scoping her up and holding her in the process, "you shouldn't worry too much about it. The Omniverse allows you to become whatever you want to be, so it may be much more fitting for you to choose a new name for yourself."

With little delay, Noctem senses his command for her and she lays on the floor, spreading her right forearm out. With the grace of a jaguar he scales the dragon's arm with the girl in tow. Reaching Noctem's back, he places the girl down easy in the black leather riding saddle. "Now, it is most clear that you would like my protection. Tell me young miss, do you remember anything from before you came to the Omniverse?"

He reaches over to one of the saddle bags and unzips it. Quickly he locates one of several of his travel blankets. This one is made of thick black wool, very soft and trimmed around the edges with red and silver dyed wool. The design wicked moisture away from the user to keep them both dry and warm, a rather important detail for high altitude travelling. With a tender touch he wraps the woolen blanket around the girl as he sets to buckling her in. "You should try to stay warm. The wind will make you pretty cold without something to cover up with."

He zips the bag back up and climbs into the saddle, sitting directly in front of her. He straps himself in, making certain that all their straps are firmly secured as he does so. Feeling his mental desire to get to moving, Noctem stands. Being so used to flying, this sudden upward movement didn't even phase the blonde man. He gives a backwards glance to the girl, huddled deep in the large blanket. "You might want to hold on to something Miss, take off isn't the most gentle for those with no flying experience."

And with that Noctem's haunches tense, her rump sinking as her wings pull in close to her sides. Suddenly she launches up high into the air, her brightly feathered wings unfurling to catch unseen air currents as she carried the both of them towards the Pale Moor's gate.

[Ari]

Ezrihel. Ezrihel would keep her safe. His heartbeat was slow and steady as she clung tightly to him, gently calming her own on some biological level. His arms tightened around her and as he explained that the dragon meant her no harm. Still, she stayed within the warm confines of his torso, gently leaning against him as she calmed. It was safe. He was safe. Noctem was safe. Everything would be alright. She heard him sigh, and reluctantly pulled away slightlywhen her heartbeat was even and steady. She didn't want to be left behind for being a burden, or for angering him with her incompetence. Especially not when he was her only hope.

"Ch-chose a name... For myself? I don't... Know where to start with a name. I... Could... You do it?"

The girl looked up at Ezrihel with wide eyes full of innocence, already heavily relying on him despite having only just met him. She liked being swept up and carried like this. Having warm, strong arms around her as she was pressed against his chest. It felt safe. Like the circle of his arms created an impenetrable barrier around them. She nodded enthusiatically in response to his comment about needing protection, the vigourous head-shaking changing direction to a no when asked about her past.

"it's... All gone. Most of it. I remember that seven times eight is fifty-six, and how to synthesise the smell of winter-green mint, but... I can't remember a family or a home..."

The girl was settled into the black leather saddle, and her eyes immediately returned to their moist, fearful expression. She trusted Ezrihel, but that didn't mean she wanted to be away from them, even how he wasn't more than a foot away from her. She wanted to be close, held tight and hidden from the world agian, but she'd settle for the blanket, eagerly snuggling in as he secured her to the saddle, like seatbelts on a car.

Ezrihel took his seat infront of her, which signalled to the dragon that it was time for take off. The rapid ascent from lying down to standing made her shriek, clinging agian to his robes and pulling the blanket over her head. She was more than content to remain here for the remainder of the trip, hiding from the reality of flying, even when he suggested to hold onto something more stable. She was scared, but she could avoid distracting Ezrihel incase he might crash the dragon in distracrion.

"I like the ground better. The ground the ground the ground."

She only started mumbling when they had leveled out, gliding through the air with ease despite the person hidden beneath the blanket.