07-06-2015, 12:24 PM
Zack had made himself somewhat comfortable sitting on a small boulder, looking out at the now radically different terrain. They had been driving mostly downhill, and the landscape showed it, with more lava streams and pools all over the place, since it had to flow somewhere. They had learned that Bowser's kingdom was mostly subterranean, so it made sense that they were now seeing more of his people and outposts as they descended. Soon, more entrances to the underground would be apparent, but as he saw all this magma he couldn't help but feel a little reservation about going below the surface. He shrugged and tossed a canteen towards Miranda, knowing that hydration was going to be an important thing to keep an eye on.
He glanced over for a second as she disassembled the metal pieces that would actually allow her to drink the water. It was obvious she had some pretty serious injuries, but she had so plainly tried to hide them as best she could that Zack had decided the most respectful thing was to simply say nothing. Still, he had seen some pretty serious injuries in his many days on the battlefield, but this was a pretty extreme one to have to live with. Zack shook his head and dismissed the thought, looking over just in time to catch the returning canteen. He took another sip himself before putting it away, then gave a half-hearted chuckle when he heard her snap at Mayor Orange.
As the Mayor approached him, he gave another glance over, studying the odd fellow for a second. The guy was a bit of a mystery, and hadn't fully explained himself. He wasn't exactly contributing much, either, but apparently he was looking out for his village. It was strange, but Zack was fine with another traveling companion for the time being. The man sat near him and asked a seemingly harmless question, so Zack was content to shoot the breeze with the guy for a few minutes.
"I did a little farming when I was younger," Zack answered his question with a simple shrug. "But I've been a warrior most of my life. Got good at swinging this sword around by...well, swinging this sword around."
Mayor Orange simply nodded and stared for a second, obviously looking for the next piece of conversation. Zack thought about asking him to talk about his village for a little bit, but instead looked over at a small explosion of lava, not too far off. He waited for a minute to see if another geyser might emerge, but they seemed alright for the time being.
"Kind of strange that a friendly guy like you and a hardass like her are traveling together, don't you think?" Mayor Orange broke the silence, oblivious to the possible danger Zack had been analyzing.
"It's the Omniverse, man. Anything's possible," Zack joked as he glanced down, observing the mayor tightly gripping his orange case. He tilted his head in curiosity before making another lighthearted comment. "Hang onto that tight. You might lose it."
The mayor glanced at Zack, definitely not getting his joke. It was obvious because he actually found a way to grip the case even tighter. Zack laughed out loud, and the confused mayor looked at him for a second as tried to figure out why. Zack just shook his head apologetically. The poor guy was getting enough grief from Miranda, he really didn't need to egg it on either. He took another glance at Miranda and smiled for a second. He hadn't really considered her general attitude. Between Sephiroth, Tseng, and sometimes even Cissnei, when she had her business face on, he was pretty used to working with stoic types. It had come to teach him that different personality types could work together just fine.
He stood up and stretched for a second, and the mayor stood up as well.
"Better get a move on," Zack decided, making his way towards his motorcycle as he called over to his other traveling companion. "Miranda! All set?"
He then glanced over his shoulder, intent on asking the mayor if he needed anything before they started moving. It surprised him a bit to see the mayor was already sitting in his car, waiting for them to be ready. He just shrugged and climbed on his own bike, as well.
He glanced over for a second as she disassembled the metal pieces that would actually allow her to drink the water. It was obvious she had some pretty serious injuries, but she had so plainly tried to hide them as best she could that Zack had decided the most respectful thing was to simply say nothing. Still, he had seen some pretty serious injuries in his many days on the battlefield, but this was a pretty extreme one to have to live with. Zack shook his head and dismissed the thought, looking over just in time to catch the returning canteen. He took another sip himself before putting it away, then gave a half-hearted chuckle when he heard her snap at Mayor Orange.
As the Mayor approached him, he gave another glance over, studying the odd fellow for a second. The guy was a bit of a mystery, and hadn't fully explained himself. He wasn't exactly contributing much, either, but apparently he was looking out for his village. It was strange, but Zack was fine with another traveling companion for the time being. The man sat near him and asked a seemingly harmless question, so Zack was content to shoot the breeze with the guy for a few minutes.
"I did a little farming when I was younger," Zack answered his question with a simple shrug. "But I've been a warrior most of my life. Got good at swinging this sword around by...well, swinging this sword around."
Mayor Orange simply nodded and stared for a second, obviously looking for the next piece of conversation. Zack thought about asking him to talk about his village for a little bit, but instead looked over at a small explosion of lava, not too far off. He waited for a minute to see if another geyser might emerge, but they seemed alright for the time being.
"Kind of strange that a friendly guy like you and a hardass like her are traveling together, don't you think?" Mayor Orange broke the silence, oblivious to the possible danger Zack had been analyzing.
"It's the Omniverse, man. Anything's possible," Zack joked as he glanced down, observing the mayor tightly gripping his orange case. He tilted his head in curiosity before making another lighthearted comment. "Hang onto that tight. You might lose it."
The mayor glanced at Zack, definitely not getting his joke. It was obvious because he actually found a way to grip the case even tighter. Zack laughed out loud, and the confused mayor looked at him for a second as tried to figure out why. Zack just shook his head apologetically. The poor guy was getting enough grief from Miranda, he really didn't need to egg it on either. He took another glance at Miranda and smiled for a second. He hadn't really considered her general attitude. Between Sephiroth, Tseng, and sometimes even Cissnei, when she had her business face on, he was pretty used to working with stoic types. It had come to teach him that different personality types could work together just fine.
He stood up and stretched for a second, and the mayor stood up as well.
"Better get a move on," Zack decided, making his way towards his motorcycle as he called over to his other traveling companion. "Miranda! All set?"
He then glanced over his shoulder, intent on asking the mayor if he needed anything before they started moving. It surprised him a bit to see the mayor was already sitting in his car, waiting for them to be ready. He just shrugged and climbed on his own bike, as well.