The Dead and the Damned [Great]

[Sarah Kerrigan]

Raal pushed a thick tangle of vines out of his way with a grunt. How many of these damn tangles are there in this region?
All around him, the darkness of the foliage encased him and his companions in night. The only reason that he and Zul’kis were able to see at all was due to Ur’gash knocking over the occasional tree as he walked - though whether he kept running into them out of stupidity or sheer laziness, Raal would never know.

the groan and crack of splintering wood interrupted Raal’s thoughts as the bloated oaf demolished a once-sturdy Maple as he continued to walk. Raal considered telling the moronic ogre to exercise caution, but it would fall upon deaf ears. A sigh escaped his skinless maw, as he realized just what a burden he’d taken on by helping the moron. Stealth would be utterly impossible for now. “Zul’kis, have you-”
A shushing noise suddenly interrupted Raal, and his mild irritation quickly grew into proper concern. Young or not, the troll was an expert tracker and hunter, and very duty-minded. He wouldn’t quiet Raal over a minor detail.
Zul’kis spoke slowly and softly, foregoing a whisper for a simple low tone of voice. “I be smellin’... Ash… And blood. And somethin’... almost human.” the troll said with some confusion.


Raal considered this. a lone human was rarely a true threat to ones of their race, but that was only true so far as his original universe was concerned. Here, omnilium seemed to force balance between the races. Or, rather, a humanocentric universe…
Zul’kis was staring at Raal with a questioning look, and Raal shook his head. He was mentally rambling while there was a current situation.
Raal was unsure on just what the situation was… but he had two skilled warriors by his side, and his curiosity was piqued. In this world, his options were too limited to ignore potential opportunities to accumulate power in all its various forms….

“Zul’kis, lead us to this scent.” Raal stated. “...Ur’gash, remain here for nowt.” Raal added quickly, staring at the ogre with a look of disgust. He wasn’t sure if the ogre had heard him or not, but given the Behemoth was currently busy eating the remains of the broken maple tree, Raal assumed he was going to stay put regardless.
Zul’kis nodded, before making a slight motion with his axe. Raal followed on foot, dismounting from his skeletal mount. Investigation required caution, and his chosen steed was admittedly… Flamboyant.


-------

It was only a few moments before Raal was stopped by Zul’kis, as the two heard a faint sound. someone… Drinking.
Raal waved off Zul’kis, before stepping forward first. he was better equipped for any surprise attack that may appear, after all.
To his mild surprise, what he soon found was not a monster at all…
The woman staring at him with a look that seemed to imply she’d been caught off-guard by his appearance might have seemed human, at a passing glance. Indeed, she met all the standards for a classic beauty by her kinds standards…

With the exception of the ash trailing from where a normal human’s left arm would be, of course.
With the elongated ears and the pointed fangs, Raal would already be able to hazard a guess, but with the addition of the mystical senses he’d achieved through his journey into the world of magic, he could clearly see this Woman’s soul. She was as dead as he was, just less decayed, and stained with darkness that weakened just as much as it sustained.
Raal was quite interested in the story of this one.

“It seems Zul’kis was right. Ash, and blood. And so I find a girl... no, I find a corpse, injured, and hiding.” Raal stated, foregoing introductions to ramble. “The light itself marks you as an enemy, and you’ve decided to come to one of the brightest places within the Omniverse… After freeing yourself from the mortal cycle, you still gamble your life so foolishly?” Raal asked, curiosity cutting into his tone. What was a vampire doing here? The Pale moors was their favored place of existence - and for good cause, too. Had he met a suicidal undead for the first time? His curiosity was piqued - he had to know the story leading up to this discovery.

[Ruby Rose]

Crimson liquid trailed from Alice's lips like a scarlet string as she chugged as much blood as could possibly be contained in her dainty body. The sweet hemoglobin from that beast was certainly filling, and only a short time passed until she couldn't take another, tiny sip. The vampire's heart raced faster as birds scattered into the morning sky above, the sound of rustling bushes and foliage being crushed underfoot alerting Alice to approaching people... or animals... or something else.

The slim vampire cowered away, clutching her ashen arm. It was times like this when José would jump in to protect her, flourishing his nephilim powers and defending her at any cost. But now... she was alone, and she hated conflict unless it was for food. If whatever was approaching her was looking for a fight, she may as well have let herself cook in the sun. She pressed her chin into her chest and wrenched her eyes shut against the threat storming through the jungle.

And a voice resounded from the edge of the ditch. A voice filled with curiosity, somewhere in between stern and teasing. Alice's crimson eyes flicked up to the cloaked figure upon the verdant hill, some strange, emerald creature at his side. "W-who are you calling a corpse?!" Alice snapped back, until she noticed that the new arrival donned a skeletal figure underneath his robe. "Speak for yourself..." She responded, dipping her head low against her body.

The skeleton commented on her risking her life in such a sunny region, and she began to hiss back. "Hey! It's not my fault that I was yanked along here to try and find that Omni guy, and... a-and..." She couldn't bring herself to say 'left all alone'. Tears began to drip from her eyes and she silently sobbed to herself. "W-why... why now...?" Alice whispered to herself sorrowfully.

Soft footsteps swept across the jungle floor across the ditch in the jungle, and soaked, scarlet eyes crept upwards, as if magnetised to the eldritch being before her. "W-what do you want?" She sobbed, crawling backwards, away from the skeleton. "If you wanna kill me, just do it now... I-I can't survive like this..." She pleaded, tears steadily streaming from her eyes. "I've got nothing anymore! I-I have no meaning here!" She shouted, clutching herself tighter.

A movement was felt brushing against Alice's arm, and she cowered away. The goblin was getting close to her, curious eyes scanning her, but he seemed to host no ill intent. The creature skittered around in a circle, viewing her from all angles. After his brief survey, he clambered back to the robed newcomer and began to whisper to him.

"I see..." He mused, raising a hand to his ivory jaw, before thrusting a hand out towards Alice. The vampire's eyes widened in fear of what he was attempting to do. Was she really about to die?! Right there and then?!

[Sarah Kerrigan]

"W-who are you calling a corpse?!" Alice snapped back, until she noticed that the new arrival donned a skeletal figure underneath his robe. "Speak for yourself..." She responded, dipping her head low against her body.

Raal laughed at the comment, a slow chuckle. "I am so much more than a mere corpse. You choose to see with your eyes alone. For a hunter, your perception is lacking." Raal commented, intrigued with the young girl. This... Alice, seemed to be quite a young undead to be speaking in such a manner. It was likely, he mused, that her real age was likely not much different from her apparent one.

Zul'kis stood by his side, quietly commenting. "She be havin' no allies I can see. The girl b' alone. I be smellin' blood on her, though." Zul'kis quietly whispered.

Raal raked his chin. His first instinct - to incinerate the whelp - was spurred on by the pathetic display before him. To beg for her life like this, with an utter lack of dignity... Pathetic. What lacking spirit. But his second, and most prevalent instinct took precedence.
Use every opportunity to your advantage.

So instead of burning the girl to a crisp, he carefully chose his next words. "You truly are a foolish girl." Raal stated with irritation wafting through his voice. "If I were intent on killing you, I certainly wouldn't wait for your permission. and if I planned on killing you slowly, such a childish request would be denied. I do not submit to the whims of weaklings with no will to live." Raal snapped sharply. "Demands are made by those with power." Raal stated.

This got a look of anger directed towards him, and Raal knew he had succeeded in at least avoiding listening to someone cry. Before she could speak, however, Raal pre-emptively cut over her. "The question left now is, do you possess even the will to ask for assistance... And to accept the consequences of making a deal with me. Or..." Raal trailed off, motioning to the sun in the sky above. "Do I leave you here beneath the blazing sun. Your choices are clearly outlined before you. Do you wish to make a deal? Or would you prefer to turn to ash within the light?" Raal asked, lifting one hand. "answer quickly. Before you begin to waste my time."

[Ruby Rose]

Alice's face was painted was nothing but bewilderment and frustration. "Who are you to say that?" She asked, struggling to act defiant while being so shy. "A-are you like the king of hunters or something? I-I'm sorry, your majesty, I didn't recognise you!" She taunted, her voice more of a growl. She was already fed up with the skeleton's judging, she'd much rather go turn into ash than listen to this inhuman for much longer.

Oh, how she wished José could be there to blast the asshole into smithereens... but that was not the case, and she was completely alone and defenseless; it was a three on one fight if she tried, and not to mention she had little experience in fighting people. She feared what he would do to her; torture her? Enslave her? The possibilities frightened her out of her wits.

But her fear was still overwritten by frustration at how much the skeleton kept on judging her and belittling her. She didn't respond when the creature talked down to her... not particularly out of fear, but because she knew he was right. He could have obliterated her right there and then if he wanted... but he didn't.

"Why are you-" She began to ask, but she was quickly silence when her 'acquaintance' spoke again. He was making a bargain; a bargain that could save Alice's life and let her complete her quest. As much as making a deal with the eldritch being may cost her... at this point in time she would go through anything to bring José back. She shut her eyes and let a single, sparkling tear fall down her cheek. "Please... please save me from this terror..." She pleaded, just about forgetting about the person with whom she was conversing. "I-I'll do anything... to stay alive... and finish what I need to do..." She cried, curling up into a ball.

[Sarah Kerrigan]

Raal exhaled in amusement at the “taunt” the girl had thrown at him. From what he knew of intelligent undead… an odd girl like this was the last thing he was expecting. Disappointing, certainly… “King of hunters?” Raal asked, his red eyes opening slightly in response to the comment. “I am not so plain. I am Raal Deathwind, a death knight of the horde.” Raal responded with a slight inclination of his head. He saw no reason to conceal his identity from this one - it was not the way of a future warchief.


As the girl begged for her life, Raal’s eyes grew thoughtful - not just at the girl herself,, he had already seen the likes of her in so many raids, so many conquests. It simply occurred to him then that he had not been in this position in a very long time. Many times before now, as a younger, more curious orc, he’d taken advantage of beings with looks like these… Though for a myriad of reasons both mental and physical there was obviously no chance of that occurring here.

this girl had some small value for research, but Raal doubted he’d learn much more of necromancy from the simplistic design of this girl’s body. Still… perhaps she had other ways of serving him… Raal’s thoughts went back to younger days, when numerous commanders and soldiers alike owed him favors, from the great to the small. all afforded Raal some form of unique advantage.

A girl like this… likely has some interesting connections. which are about to become my own. Raal thought to himself. besides… “anything?” The skeletal figure asked with a notable pause. “very well. Welcome to my service…” Raal realized he still didn’t have a word to call the girl underneath him. “state your name.” He continued, before setting his arm forward with a very sudden, jarring movement. Raw omnilium flowed from his body, and Raal immediately focused it, knowing in an intuitive sense how to guide its flows in order to reform the timid woman’s arm. a small part of him quailed against losing even such a diminutive amount of the empowering energy, but he knew the value of diversifying his investments.


He hoped the young vampire at least proved grateful for his investment in her.

[Sans]

damn... has it gotten dark already?

This was the thought running through Sans' head as he walked through the dimly illuminated forest. He had stopped running around like a maniac a good thirty minutes prior. It was admittedly stupid of him to be sprinting like an Olympics runner who forgot how to practice for marathons, but he had a hard time containing his happiness. The guard's words still rang in his ears, or they would have if he had any.

Head to Camelot. Find Princess Guu. I can find Papyrus through her.

What had happened during the long run was more or less a haze in his memories. He could only guess his excitement gave him temporary amnesia, and he'd regain them all back once the adrenaline ceased pumping through his bones. He was fairly certain he had accidentally knocked a guy into some REALLY big chickens, so he'd probably be in some trouble for that. Not like he could really do much about that, but hey. If he needed to, he'd do community service by selling hot dogs. I mean, who DOESN'T like buying hot dogs from someone like him?

It reminded him of Frisk, almost. He had gotten a good chuckle after giving him a "hot dog," which was really a water sausage in a bun. Then he gave him a "hot cat," which was a hot dog with cat ears on it. He apparently enjoyed them regardless, because he kept coming back for more. Frisk probably DID like hot animals... huh. It got to the point where he was literally placing hot dogs on his head because he couldn't afford the rest. He then fell face over heels onto the counter of his sentry station, laughing like he had never laughed before.

The hot-dog salesman glanced down towards the ground, shuffling his bony sneakers across the grass. He was having a pretty difficult time traversing the forest without a light source. Looks certainly didn't lie, as it certainly felt like it had changed from morning to evening thanks to the foliage hiding the sky from the land dwellers. He would probably have sat down and tried to make a torch from a branch, some parts of his jacket, and maybe flint and a rock, but that would've required a bit more effort than what he was willing to put forth into the project.

So for now, he would be going in as blind as a bat. Or as blind as a skeleton without eyelids.

The comedian looked up from the ground, only to come uncomfortably close to a gigantic, ogre-like creature. He took in a deep breath, his pupils becoming as small as pin-pricks as he peered at the thing. It was easily more than thrice his height, and it looked greenish almost. It didn't seem to be paying any attention to the skeleton, seeing as he was gnawing on a tree like a dog would chew on a bone. It let out loud grunts, seemingly enjoying its treat.

"oh, grrdness..." Sans muttered, deterring a chuckle from escaping his smiling visage as he silently walked away from the creature, specifically past an undead horse mount that he paid little mind too. He was more focused on not getting eaten by a hulking mass of meat.

The blue-jacketed creature kept his hands in his pockets, keeping his eyes in the creature until he was far enough away from it. Roughly twenty feet or so. It still wasn't looking at him, either due to the darkness, its eyesight, or simply thanks to the tree. Sans sighed in relief, his shoulders relaxing.

Just then, to his bottom right, a flash of color reflected off of the ground, causing the skeleton to hop into the air a bit. He whirled around, seeing a rather peculiar sight. There were three individuals, one with a large glowing orb in its hand. The orb-wielder was virtually indistinguishable thanks to a cloak overlapping its head and back. Another, slightly shorter person stood next to him, and he couldn't even tell what he looked like. The only person who could even get a description from was the woman being held by the cloaked man. She had red eyes, and was curled up into a ball like some kind of toddler.

The stout skeleton stood there, staring at what was going on in front of him. One, more impulsive part of him wanted to intervene. Find out what was going on. But his other half begged him not too. It was best he kept moving. Find his brother.

He remained as still as a statue, mentally arguing with himself over what to do.

[Ruby Rose]

Wow, the bony bastard actually went ahead and answered Alice's rhetorical question. As much as he seemed serious and threatening... well, she guessed she didn't blame him for not taking a joke. She felt like snapping back with 'I frankly don't care'... but that might have been a death wish written in four words. She simply sat there and nodded, as though interested, but her loud sniffles displayed the lack of focus she had on Raal's words. Well, at least she learned his name from his ramblings of apparent greatness.

She hadn't seen anything like the robed, eldritch creature before. She'd experienced José's battles with demons and angels, as well as witnessing his expertise in dispatching Dracula's mindless pets, but skeletons? And not to mention skeletons with what she assumed was magic? Not particularly. Sure, there were many holy and unholy forces that she had seen and watched José utilise, but they were no more than mere supernatural forces, much like her vampiric shapeshifting she gained in the Omniverse.

Her sniffling suddenly stopped as Raal accepted her admission of defeat. She blinked once, twice, in complete disbelief that the skeleton actually proceeded with the deal. "M-my name... my name is..." She began as she felt the spectral material weave a new limb upon her ashen shoulder, much like a seamstress would stitch a sleeve onto a jacket. "My name is Alice." She finished, shutting her eyes against the blinding array of colours attaching itself to her like a parasite. As the brilliant display died down, her eyes eased open to the pale flesh of her new limb, devoid of the burn marks and scratches borne by its twin. A relieved yet sorrowful smile seeped into her visage, and she propped herself up to look to her bargaining saviour. "T-thank you..." She said, wiping glittering tears from her eyes.

But her breath hitched as she saw movement nearby; there was a spherical silhouette hiding in the looming shade of the trees. If it weren't for Alice's enhanced eyesight thanks to her vampiric nature, she may have thought it was a snowman. But from the humidity alone, even without her piercing glare there was no way it was a snowman. She raised a sharp nail to the figure, not saying a word, but hoping Raal may have been able to get the message.

Was it friend or foe?

[Sarah Kerrigan]

Raal saw the finger and took the point immediately. this was far from the first time he'd had to deal with eavesdroppers, after all - but he suspected the young woman in front of him wouldn't be partial to him baking the intruder until his molecules changed state from solid to gas without at least investigating their intentions. While Raal didn't exactly hold this girl's opinion in high regard as of now, she could be quite useful, and he didn't wish to sew the seeds of later betrayal while her loyalty was still so tenuous.

Moreover, Raal was currently no commander to a host of warriors, nor was he the powerful warlock he was in his own universe. this being might be stronger, or at the very least, able to dodge. No, opening with hostilities would be unwise.

More importantly: Why had Alice caught onto this while Zul'kis had paid no attention whatsoever? The troublesome youth was far from truly experienced, but he knew more than enough woodcraft to be able to catch an approaching enemy - certainly, before an emotionally unstable vampire who had just recovered from a meltdown. what was he-
Raal turned his head towards the young troll, and noticed his eyes were firmly affixed to Alice.. Eyes that spoke of sympathy and compassion.

Of course. Perhaps it was Raal that was foolish. Had he really brought a foolish hormone-ruled teenager to aid him in his quest to recreate the horde? Still, while he caught on slower than Raal, he, too, caught the hint Alice gave, and his grip on his twin axes tightened.

Raal blinked before turning, an unnecessary reaction he still had to new situations such as this, despite his lack of functioning pupils - let alone eyes that required cleansing. he slowly swiveled his head, his cloak silently ruffling as he looked in the direction Alice pointed. A blue and white blur suddenly escaped his vision, quickly, behind a tree. he wasn't sure exactly what it was, or if it was even trying to evade him, but he managed to see one clear, somewhat disturbing feature: a smile, one that could have been interpreted as overly friendly... or, perhaps, sadistic?

"...It's rude to eavesdrop, interloper." Raal stated simply, raising his voice to just below a yell. "I'm not really a fan of jokes like this. Show yourself." He stated simply. He kept his jeweled sceptre pointed downwards, but his grip on it was tight, and a noise similar to screeching wind seemed to emanate from it. He knew without looking back that Zul'kis had tightened his grip on his own axes, and his heightened breathing at least informed Raal he was taking this seriously. Thank god for small miracles.

"... And where is that gods damned ogre?" Raal swore.

[Sans]

“alice...” Sans whispered to himself, sounding vaguely interested. His left eye narrowed a bit as the woman's smoke-covered arm regenerated from its shoulder. The cloaked man appeared to be a healer, judging from his delicate reconstruction of a formerly disintegrating limb as well as the odd looking scepter in his hand. Or perhaps he was a king in disguise, seeing as Asgore had done similar shenanigans. Or maybe he was just an old man who used a regal staff as a cane and had mysterious, and rather colorful, healing powers. So many possibilities for something as simple as an object some people happen to possess. It might have been paranoia blowing straight through him, but he couldn't help but soak up every little tidbit he could of the trio. It came naturally after months (or was it years?) of practice.

The girl, thankfully, was easy to identify. Her face sparkled, though not of happiness, but of something more negative; from pain or from fear the skeleton couldn't tell, but he did know she was grateful for the man's efforts. The comic slid his bony fingers into the pockets of his winter coat, leaning forward across the bits of shrubbery scattered out in front of him to poke his skull out. He probably should have been thankful the grass was forgiving for a creature of his stature, since it allowed him an acceptable glance at the trio.

Just enough to see the finger pointed straight at him.

uh oh... Sans thought to himself as he quickly made a sharp dive to his left, just behind a large tree. He scrambled up onto his feet, taking in a few breathes as he planted his back against the brown bark. It was only then did he realize how thoughtless his action was. He closed his eyes, silently cursing himself for being so indiscreet. He didn't entirely know what the hell was going on, but he did know one thing: the woman was scared or at the very least in pain. Him concealing himself wouldn't help her recover in any way, and he knew from experience that that never boded well for anyone involved.

And apparently the scepter-wielder knew that, as he had called out his actions a few seconds later. When he talked, however, Sans had to do good not to suddenly squeak. The figure spoke deeply, but it sounded as if multiple people were talking at the same time, and it had an odd, almost impatient tone to it. It was similar to how most stereotypical specters spoke, or at the very least godlike beings. The skeleton's first instinct was to start running away from whoever this guy was, but he dug his sneakers into the ground, a whiff of dust rising as a sound of crushing gravel echoed. Dirt clogged the soles of his gray shoes as he clamped his digits around the sides of the bark, the tension in his bones so thick it could have been sliced with a knife. Sans took a deep breath, trying his best to get the memory of knives out of his head as he slowly shifted himself to his right, letting a part of his round skull protrude from his hiding spot.

“i, uh.... i'm sans. sans the skeleton. was just passing by when i saw a, uh...” He croaked, his tone unnaturally goofy, “a big thing, if you can believe it. i was trying to not make it eat me when i saw you guys, you know? didn't mean to disturb you any, but you know, it happens right?”

The monster shut his mouth, his smile completely stationary as he glided back behind the tree. His left eye twitched, glowing bright blue. He cautiously stuffed his skeletal fists into the compartments of his coat. He twiddled them against the fabric as he constantly lifted himself up onto his tiptoes, waiting for a response from the man or woman. He could make a good guess that the ogre, or “big thing” in question was owned by the doctor, so the last thing he wanted was to be besieged by it unprepared.

[Ruby Rose]

Alice could only hope that pointing out the figure wouldn't lead to a violent encounter. It was a likely chance with Raal, but hopefully the skeletal mage had some mercy for the eavesdropper. The young vampire had no wish to watch the silhouette, who may be innocent for all they knew, be obliterated by her now apparent master. Please give them a chance, please give them a chance... she pleaded inwardly, slowly easing her eyes closed in case a sudden outburst sprung forth.

However, before she could shut them, she picked up on a face pointing towards her. Her lids sprung back open and she set her crimson spheres on the troll, staring into his own dark, murky pools. They held some emotional glint... Alice wasn't the best at figuring out expressions through one's face, but it seemed almost like he felt sorry for her, and he looked somewhat caring, holding her gaze for quite some time. Before long, the young female turned away and back to the altercation going on at the rim of the bowl.

From where he was, Raal was likely able to tell how the figure looked, but Alice was still in the dark about their company. Raal's low, smooth, booming voice resounded across the jungle, almost shaking Alice and certainly rattling the bones of whoever hid behind the tree. Phew, at least his first plan wasn't to obliterate the person. Both creatures seemed to be ready to attack at any moment, however, and just the thought of a possible massacre sent a shiver down Alice's spine.

'Rattling the bones' of the being was certainly correct; another skeleton, except the expression glued to this one's face was a wide, gleeful smile, and a pair of dark, curious eyes. He mentioned a 'big thing', whatever that may have been, Alice had no clue, but was certainly against running into it, if at all possible. He seemed rather upbeat and polite at the same time, pretty well the opposite of Raal... well, Raal was kind of polite, but more grim than upbeat.

Before Raal could respond, Alice took her chance. "S-Sans." She called across the dip. "C-come out." She requested, her tone soft as she gingerly peeled herself from the jungle floor and crept up towards Sans and Raal. The round-headed skeleton peeped out from his cover for a moment, and the vampire dropped to a knee at the shrubbery so her eyes descended to his level. "Do you mind if I ask why you're here?" She asked, smiling sweetly to him. Maybe she could finally get a friend in this place... one that doesn't give her the creeps.

[Sarah Kerrigan]

Alice spoke before Raal could say a word, and Raal had to muse at the various problems and possibilities this created. Alice wasn't the most loyal so far, or at least she did not seem to be. having a different route to take might waste all of Raal's current work while exposing his profile more to the omniverse at large. a waste of an opportunity. He had to be careful in handling this... wait a minute, what did the rotund intruder say?


"Big thing..." Raal responded, narrowing his eyes instantly. "Of course... Why would I suppose he'd be useful for anything requiring even the slightest amount of brainpower!" Raal spat, before raising his arm in Sans' direction. Immediately, a Rock flew from the ground near Raal's feet and away... but not at Sans' position. Instead, the rock flew past the skeleton and into the darkness, before a distant but very loud "Ouch!" rang through the forest. "Ur'gash!" Raal yelled at the same time, and a thundering sound of feet running was soon accompanied by a tan, clumsy, and very distressed looking ogre running to Raal's side, with choruses of "Boss!" echoing from both heads.

"Imbecile! Do you not understand the basics of standing guard, or were you simply too busy stuffing your overweight-"
"Boss!" "Boss!"
"You allowed someone to sneak right by you! You've done sentry duty before, I-"
"Boss!" "Boss!"
Raal's hands vibrated as the buffoon insisted on interrupting his rant.
"What, fool?" Raal finally allowed.
"A rock hit me in the eye!"

Raal's whole body vibrated with rage. "Have you actually lost intelligence since coming here, Ur'gash? I didn't know it was possible to subtract from zero!"
Ur'gash's faces fell at the insult - Which failed to bother Raal in the slightest, though he was mildly shocked the insult registered at all in the fool's poor excuse for a braincase - which allowed enough quiet for Raal to hear a slight snort from behind him. He didn't know if it was Alice or Zul'kis, or both. Evidently, those buffoons found this amusing.

Raal closed his eyes at the insult, before adding. "He'll only eat you if I tell him to. Which will only happen if you decide to be a threat to me, or my plans. Simple enough to understand?" Raal stated bluntly, perfectly expressing the stranger's current position. "I've no quarrel with undead. Unless they happen to garner a quarrel with me." Raal stated, guessing at this "Sans" person's nature. To be truthful, despite what he'd seen of the creature's appearance, he wondered at just what sort of creature made a skeleton that... rotund. it almost seemed like a cartoonish exagerration of a human body. most importantly, he could have sworn he noticed that the creature was more than a little overweight... despite being skeletal in nature. A physical impossibility, or at least an implausiblity.
There was more to this creature than it appeared - at least physically speaking. Mentally the being seemed no great intellect or threat at the moment, if his cowardice was anything to go by. still, that level of speed was... troubling.
Raal's hands brushed the tomahawk hidden in his robes, as he pondered just how this being might influence the death knight's own immediate plans.

[Sans]

Sans had to quickly switch his targeting eye to its normal color as he heard footsteps approaching. It had occurred right after he heard a feminine voice call out from across the forest. As his sockets started glowing white again, he leaned off of the tree, turning around to face the shrubbery as the footsteps halted. He was fairly certain that the voice belonged to the 'Alice' that he had seen being treated by the cloaked specter-like man.

The skeleton looked upwards, noticing a shadow slowly duck down until only a very small portion on the top part of it was visible above the grass. The same voice gingerly whispered towards him, requesting him to come out. He glanced around, silently pondering as to how he would proceed with what was presented to him. Whoever the 'Alice' was, it was perfectly clear that she held no ill intentions for him. It was her helper that worried him. He did not seem like the guy who enjoyed his presence in the slightest. Normally, this would be enough for the comedian to want to avoid the situation altogether, but this was a more... abnormal situation. Him running away would not bode well for him at all, especially if it could prove the cloaked man's suspicions correct. So, the only logical choice was to play along and hope he didn't get attacked. If he did, he'll probably crack a joke or two before high-tailing it and maybe try to get the girl out of there if things got messy.

Sans took in a deep breath as he stepped forward, poking his skull through his cover to look at the figure. Thankfully, he did not have to crane his neck to see who it was, which caused him to be taken aback for a second. It was the 'Alice,' and now he could see her without darkness impeding his vision any. A good thing, too, as she was, in all honesty, a very pretty individual. She had golden hair that rose like a crown, with elf-like ears and pale white skin. The most surprising bit about her, however, were her sharpened canines visible within her mouth. It didn't require a genius to figure out that she was a vampire, which would've explained why the man was trying to heal her. She must have walked underneath a spot in the forest where the light shown through and it had burned her arm clean off. He felt like asking her why she was in a place that could kill her like that in the first place, but it wasn't exactly the right time or place for a question like that. He also noticed she was smiling, as if she was meeting a long lost friend.

The skeleton quickly looked towards the ground, feeling a little warm and fuzzy all of a sudden. He closed his eyes, his cheekbones blushing blue a bit before reopening them, chuckling a bit. It was at that point that he realized he still had not answered her question. The skeleton hopped a bit in his spot, sliding his left hand up to his forehead as he started to stammer a bit.

“i'm, uh... i'm looking for my-”

His sentence was cut off as he saw a whoosh of motion, followed by a loud noise erupting from a ways off behind him that proceeded what sounded like a stampede to his immediate left.

"uh oh..." he muttered as he sprinted forward, crashing into the vampire as he impulsively pushed into her, accidentally knocking them both onto the ground, with the undead monster on top of the vampire. He quickly held his hands up, slipping right off of her chest as the two-headed ogre tore past them a few feet away, thankfully safely away from the skeleton. Sans pushed himself onto his feet, staring at the giant as it ran up to its master: The cloaked man. He took a moment to give his apologies to the woman before looking back towards the ogre.

Both Alice and Sans bore witness to the insults spewing forth from the man's mouth as he yelled at his servant, who was too busy yelling back to really respond to them. The event was, in all honesty, rather hilarious. He kept his hands in his pockets, glancing up towards the vampire's face to see how she was handling the situation. She appeared to be fairly shocked, which made sense. Meanwhile, however, the monster was trying his best not to start laughing uncontrollably.

He didn't do a very good job, as a loud snort emerged from him, which he quickly stifled with a closed hand. The man did not appear to react to it, though his body language was evident. He was not very happy with what he was doing, and he would rather prefer not getting laughed at.

Naturally, that must mean more laughs were in order.

His mind went to work, pulling every single joke, pun, and anything else he could muster from the inner workings of his brain. He managed to obtain a few of them by the time the man started talking to him. As the robed man spoke, he waited for an opportunity to crack a few. When he asked if he understood what he had said, he closed his eyes, moving his hands behind his back before stepping forward. The vampire looked at him like he was insane as he confidently stood in his spot, opening his eyes to say a single sentence.


“i understand. i ain't...boneheaded.”

Budum. Tzz.

Sans held his hands out in the air near his sides, shrugging his shoulders as he peered at the man. He did not seem to respond to his joke, though he could imagine he was trying his best not to let loose a barrage of annoyed grunts and unintelligible words his way. If that was what was happening, it would have made the situation a whole lot funnier. If the lady was reacting to it, he hardly noticed; he was far too focused on what the man was going to say next.

The comedian shut up for a few moments, allowing the man to speak some more. Instead of answering, however, he instead narrowed his eyes a bit. The robed man was asking him a rather peculiar question in the guise of a sentence. Apparently, he suspected there was more to him than he let on. He was half right, but he probably could've worked on his technique. Then again, not everyone really knew how to guess how many times one person had died just by reading the looks on their faces. Or the practice to get to that level. He had plenty.

As an example of that, he himself took a mental note as to who this guy might have been. For starters, he had about three companions: Alice, the vampire, Ur'Gash, the ogre, and some other guy who's name he did not know. He had most likely found the woman near the area they were standing on, and had left the ogre on guard duty while they checked her out. Given his attitude and his rather...ambiguous phrasing, however, he was beginning to suspect he did not do it out of the goodness of his heart. What perplexed him the most, however, was what he meant by "plans." Traditionally, whenever someone said "plans," they usually meant something like vacation. Like a day at the beach or a trip to the kings castle or something like that. But that obviously wasn't what the man was referring to. Hell, he could make a bet it was something far worse than that.

But like hell he'd let him know that.

Instead, he decided it was time to crack another good one.

“i think you misused the term 'coral' there, mister. isn't that kind of a, uh... under sea plant thing?” The skeleton replied, keeping his tone upbeat, with little sense of sarcasm. He had read that the best kind of comedy was the one where, no matter how stupid the comic acted, he always said it as seriously as possible. So as to prove his own stupidity, making his insane logic seem even funnier because he believed it himself. Now, all he had to do was wait for what would happen next. He slid his hands back into his coat pockets, his smile immobile and his pupils bright and upbeat.

[Ruby Rose]

Alice gasped loudly as she watched the mage launch a stone from his feet towards Sans. "H-hey! W-what are you-!" She cried out, but halted as the missile shot past Sans, and seemingly hit something else instead, as denoted by loud exclamation of pain that roared out. Alice grimaced as the horrid, two-headed creature trampled its way out of the shadows of the forest, and began to argue with Raal. It was actually quite amusing, and the young vampire had to bit her finger to refrain from laughing...

But when Sans snorted at the final comment by Raal, Alice broke into a massive, almost roaring giggling fit, and she just couldn't stop, no matter how hard she tried. She could tell all eyes were on her, but she couldn't care less. It had been too long since she last had something to laugh at this hard; she wanted to savour it. "I-I'm sorry!" She cried between her giggles. "I-I just can't s-stop!" Contradictory to her statement, Alice's laughing slowed down, and soon she was breathing normally once more. She was simply happy no one attempted to stop her.

Raal began going on about how he would only make an offensive move if Sans were to do the same, and Alice swiped her newly reattached wrist across her forehead in relief. Good... She told herself, now much more relaxed. No killings will be happening this day... I hope... She squeaked inside, still fearful that the shit could still hit the fan. Raal's posture seemed... uncomfortable, or, at least, wary. Alice couldn't help but let the scene of a lightning bolt cast from the mage's hands piercing Sans fill her head, and she did her best to shake it away.

Before long, the rounded skeleton cracked a pun; something José had done often in the past. She attempted to stifle yet another giggle, but the struggle was too much and she released the high pitched vibration in her vocal chords like some small explosion. "S-sorry!" She apologized again, blushing and looking away. Now she was beginning to become embarrassed by her outbreaks of laughter. She could feel the cartoon creature's desire to lighten the mood and, particularly, cheer Alice up. She wanted to thank him, but with Raal and his goons laying eyes on her, it would be quite awkward, at least for the time being.

Little time was left in between her resting and another giggle, though, as Sans shot a snarky retort to Raal's use of the word 'quarrel'. Of course, they all knew that's what he had said, but Sans seemed to want to pick on the mage some. She could only hope Sans wouldn't push his buttons too much. "T-that was q-quite... humerus, Sans!"

Oh great, now the vampire wanted to join in on the fun.

[Sarah Kerrigan]

Raal’s body started shaking as he listened to the two exchanging pun after pun, his eyes seeming to glow more and more with each joke or chortle, reaching the point where the view directly in front of him seemed to carry an eerie red glow.. He was a former general, the leader of an army of orcs, yet here he was playing the role of the prop in their comedy. A younger Raal would have burned the two to ashes, then and there, but the specter that served as his continued existence was able to be just calm enough to analyze the situation.

This Sans, whatever he was, seemed relatively harmless despite his jokery - at the least, he was far less intolerable than Ur’gash - and had managed to reinvigorate the vampire girl - Alice, Raal quietly remembered - into a reasonably functioning mortal with his shenanigans. Despite the inane nature of the situation, he could potentially use it to his advantage.

Nonetheless…

“Enough!” Raal yelled, a ball of burning flame appearing from one hand and bathing the land next to him, causing a sudden choking to the laughter that had been all around him until just half a second ago. “...Now that I’ve hellfire to work with, I can put an end to this sunlight problem. I’d rather not wait until nightfall for you to be able to travel.” Raal stated with a quieter tone. Though he’d never admit it, his own self-control was less than perfect, and to be goaded into yelling over childish jokes was just mildly embarassing.
It seemed Alice was again looking much quieter to Raal’s view, the youthful vampire’s eyes darting from him to Sans fearfully.
Sans on the other hand… Well, difficult as it was for Raal to pin an expression, it looked like the skeleton was studying him back, just as intently.

Perhaps he was a shade smarter than Raal had initially pegged him.

Still, Raal had a more immediate task. He hadn’t wasted his impressive talent in warlock magic just out of annoyance. “With Omnilium, I’ll need to recreate…” Raal muttered with a brief pause. “...Hide of a Felhound, soul shard of a swamp hyena, The runes of Al-zereb the wise, the essence of a voidwalker…” Raal continued listing off another few dozen different ingredients with a quiet mutter, as Tendrils of bright green energy extended from an outstretched, skeletal hand, and into the fire. the glow of the warlock’s eyes grew dimmer as he worked, his calm concentration counteracting his normal state of constant irritation.

“I trust you’re not so vain as to refuse to wear a cloak.”

Raal asked, half-looking at Alice,, as cloth seemed to begin to knit itself together in the fire, Omnilium beginning to trail from Raal’s hands as the fire began to burn a shade of pink. slowly, a black, hooded cloak took form, it’s most glaring feature being that of the embossed steel clasp, the image of a curtain of burning flames with an orcish war axe behind it carved into the front of the metal clip. Several, icy blue runes glowed even within the firelight, producing an odd contrast as they formed, seemingly burned in by the flames that birthed them.

“These enchantments will ensure that, so long as you wear the cloak, sunlight shall not sully your body, regardless of what angle it appears from. so long as you keep the cloak clasped around your neck, you shouldn’t feel the sun’s searing burn even were the hood to fall.” Raal explained, seemingly half-aware.

“Well, isn’t that a sunspot of good luck.” Raal heard a slightly hesitant, but recognizably amused voice immediately reply, and the death knight groaned in response to the skeletal buffoons wisecracking.

[Sans]

"ohohoho! a pun that didn't suck as much as i thought it would."

"I knew that joke would tickle your funny bone!"

"i suppose that means you're pleased to eat me?"

"Nah, you're just skin and bones. No blood on you."

The vampire and the skeleton continued exchanging jokes of similar caliber to each other, not even caring about the increasingly impatient mage being driven crazy in front of them. Rather, Sans was having far more fun having the little contest with Alice, whom he was naturally surprised to figure out she shared a fondness for his favorite jokes. She reminded him of Toriel almost, though he wasn't sure if she was a parent. He WAS certain, however, that she wasn't a goat.

The resemblance would've been uncanny if she was a goat.

He immediately refocused his attention to the present situation at hand: the contest. He continued, rapidly firing off as many puns as he could think of, reaching far back into his memory and looking around his environment to do so. It was at this point he noticed the color of the area had changed.

Everywhere from the grass beneath him to his normally blue jacket to Alice's golden hair was cast in a freakishly crimson glow. He slowly turned his head back towards the cloaked wizard man, chuckling hesitantly. The vampire seemed to have stopped laughing altogether though he thought he saw a small smile on her face. Maybe he did do his job correctly.

The first thing he noticed was that the source of the glow was coming from the man's eyes, as they were as bright as stage lights. He was shaking, his fists clenched as the luminescence grew brighter and brighter. He looked ready to pop if any more jokes were made on his watch.

"you know, i once red that a lack of comedy in one's lifetime can... can..ca-"

He snorted, closing his eyes as he allowed a huge howl to escape. It was a deep, hearty chortle quickly followed by a string of giggles from the vampire lady. For some inexplicable reason, the skeleton found it nearly impossible to stop himself from laughing; each time he tried resulted in an even harder fit of laughter. It seemed nothing could stop him.

Nothing besides a very, very, very salty undead mage.

All sound disappeared entirely as the area around him glowed from the fire in Raal's hand. He swiftly brought his attention to the cloaked man, feeling even more uneasy about the situation. It only took a single glance towards the girl to his left for him to realize just how royally he might've screwed up. What was particularly bad was that he should've seen it coming too. All the signs were there, yet he ignored them for the sake of a joke. His legs tensed up, readying himself for the hellfire to be unleashed upon him.

Thankfully, Raal apparently had something else in mind. He talked of a sunlight problem, which confused Sans initially before he realized what exactly he was talking about.

oh yeah. vampire.

He looked towards his left, seeing the 'Alice' dart her eyes back and forth between him and the mage, a look of shock painted on her face. She looked like she expected this to end in a fight, and one the comedian may or may not win. He wasn't averse to combat exactly, but he'd much rather not go through the trouble of fighting people unless he had to. It wasn't something he liked doing.

He looked back towards the mage, seeing his eyelids narrow as if studying him. Sans stared back, trying to assess the situation. From what he now knew, the mage was in control of some weird form of fire magic, was a skeleton of some form, had a large ogre named Urgash that wasn't too bright, some green-skinned individual he hadn't introduced, and was healing Alice before he had arrived. However, he was suspicious of just what exactly the guy wanted and what he intended to do. If his general attitude and ill temper wasn't enough, he talked in a manner that reminded him of Papyrus, only nowhere near as enjoyable to be entertained by (and he was fairly certain Papyrus never learned fire magic.) Not to mention his "plans," and threatening to have the ogre eat him if he got in the way.

Whatever it was he was doing, it was safe to assume it was bad.

Normally, he just wouldn't have anything to do with it and let the situation sort itself out. After all, time could reset at any moment, so if he got lucky, whatever this guy wanted to do would fail solely on the fact that his progress would get reset. Sadly, three things prevented the situation from being what he would consider to be normal.

For starters, whatever was going on, he was already much more involved in it than usual. It was impossible to just walk away without risking his own life, which was part of the second reason. The second reason was that, for all he knew, he would be sent to some other place upon death or even be sent into a land of total darkness like how he had first arrived. Dead forever, never to get the chance to see his friends again.

Thirdly, he had to find Papyrus, assuming he was also in the world verse place. If he ran at that moment, and if he was correct in assuming that the man would try to kill him, and if he succeeded, then...

He forced the thought out of his mind.

Thankfully for him, he was able to refocus on the present situation, which involved some kind of ritual. The man was holding his hand out, a sphere of several different colors curling around the tips of his fingers. He was chanting something in a low whisper, with the skeleton only catching a few key words.

  
   

..Felhound, soul shard of a swamp hyena, The runes of Al-zereb the wise, the essence of a voidwalker…

If the comedian had eyebrows, he would've cocked them.

Pretty much everything he was saying was completely foreign to him, and knowing what he already knew, was probably nothing good anyway. His mind wandered towards what had happened before he had gotten there, sending shivers down his spine.

He slid his left hand into his pockets, fishing for something. He eventually managed to pull out a small scrap of paper, apparently the remnants of a mattress tag, and a half-broken pencil with a dull, lead point.

He hurriedly scribbled down some words, though not the ones Raal had used exactly. He figured the man would have a huge problem with him writing whatever he was saying down, so he decided the smartest thing to do was write them down in code. Specifically, ingredients for a hamburger and general food stuffs. If he asked, he could just say it was a shopping list.

Fulhound's code word was Hot Dog, for obvious reasons. He didn't know what a swamp hyena was, but he figured swamps were green, so he put down Pickles for it. He misheard "runes" as "ruins" in his thoughts, and promptly put down Ribs in its place. As for the voidwalker, he just put down Ketchup. He honestly didn't know why he put down ketchup.

He quietly stuffed the note in his coat pocket just as the man finished what he was doing. He was going to have to hope the man did not take notice of that, or if he did, didn't really care. His pupils drifted towards the cloak he had made, listening to the explanation of his functions. Before he knew it, he was cracking another one, albeit more cautiously. The man reacted the way he expected, so he decided it was time to stop and at least, act somewhat serious about the affair.

"alright, alright, i'll stop." He quickly said, chuckling some more before clearing his throat, "so, uh, i suppose the cloak would do just fine. i mean, umbrellas also work, but they aren't, ya know, all that convenient either, so i can see why you made it. real nice of you, dude. which actually leads me to an important question for the lady."

He quickly whirled around, turning to face the vampire. She took her eyes off of the man, evidently curious as to his question.

"so, uh, this'll sound weird, i know, but what kind of vampire are you? i mean, there's dracula, and then there's the... twilight one, whatever it's called. cullen? maybe a cullen? or are you like, ya know, the classic nosferatu?" He asked, trying his best to sound like he wasn't asking these things for shits and giggles and more like he actually thought they were important questions.

[Sarah Kerrigan]

As Sans spoke, Alice calmly replied with a relaxed look. ""Dracula I'm the closest to, but he's a dick. I have no idea who this 'Cullen' is, and Nosferatu... I dunno, not familiar with the guy." she said with a friendly smile. Sans seemed to relax slightly, or at least he appeared to, but before he could respond to Alice, a cloak was thrown directly for the undead woman's face, the completely black fabric hitting her in the face with a soft thump.

The pair looked over to see Raal hurriedly putting away what looked to be some mix between a skull and a cell phone. "It appears I must rush this next part." Raal stated, as Alice gazed towards her. "My time here is far more limited than I expected. For now, I require only communication and persistence from you.”
Raal studied Alice’s face to see it blank of understanding and filled instead with complete confusion. With a sigh, Raal explained.


“You owe me your fealty. What I will ask for as your current task is simply communication and surveillance. I need to know more about the tangled green than is possible from my current resources and time… it will be up to you to expand that knowledge for me. You have a communicator and a dataverse device, I trust?” Raal asked, though he did not even look at alice before continuing. “If you do not… the onus is on you to obtain one. Do not make me find you.

Focusing on my unique signature through that cloak should allow you to find my unique signature - enough for you to figure out how to connect to my communicator. I would explain the intricacies of leaving such a mental thought pattern within garb of that nature… but for now, I’ll simply inform you… It’s a magic cloak.”

Raal stated the last statement with a droll tone, and the mocking nature of the comment was clear. Still, it was obvious that Raal was in a rush by his tone and his pace - gone was the slow, carefully placed sentences and words, and in it’s place were the clipped tones of a man on a very strict time limit. “I must go… for now, live as you like… and keep in touch.” Raal stated, stressing the last part of the sentence. “I will have orders for you at a later juncture.” He stated.

“Orders, huh?” A familiar, curious voice asked from behind the death knight. A small part of him wondered when the annoying skeletal creature had gotten behind him in the first place.

“As for you… Sans.” Raal said, thinking the word over in his tongue. What an interesting name… “Without.” In the tongue of the humans. While the skeletal figure was a bit of an enigma, and dodged his questions with the skill of an artisan… Raal doubted he had much to fear from him. He seemed more dedicated to making jokes and hiding from threats, than actually being one himself.

Besides, Raal had to admit, doing anything to hold him seemed like more trouble than it was worth. The creature was fast, whatever it was.

“...You are free to do as you please. I can certainly claim no dominion over you or your doings.” Raal stated with his best approximation of a relaxed tone. “I shall remember your name from here on.” Raal stated before angling his horse away from the two. “I also apologize - My companions and I have undergone strife recently. It was not my intention to cause you real harm.” Raal stated, lying through his teeth. Even truth had to give way to formality, and it was the essential way to resolve their current relationship, before Raal left. “However…” Raal trailed off, looking to Zul’kis and Ur’gash. “We must be going.” He stated finally, giving a very communicative glare to both Zul’kis and Ur’gash. “At great speed.” He stated.
The skeleton stayed quiet during all this, though he could swear that when he looked at Sans’ face… a trick of the light? Raal shook his head. Alice, on the other hand, seemed more than a little overcome by all the information. Raal didn’t give either much time to process anything, before climbing onto his noble deathcharger, and riding off into the distance.

[Ruby Rose]

This tiny, spherical skeleton... how did he do it? How did he manage to bring Alice from a cowering, weak mess and build her into this giggling, jesting woman who had no cares in the world? She felt so happy and jubilant; she had only ever experienced such glee in the presence of José. She made a note to thank the skeleton later on when things calmed down. Sadly, the moment of laughter and jokes was cut short by a skeletal, magical asshole.

An expression of bewilderment contorted Alice's features as Raal began 'chanting' some really strange ingredients, weaving Omnillium into the flame his skinless palm carried. Sans seemed to be writing something down, keeping track of Raal's list, perhaps? The vampire could only wonder what the two skeletons were doing, until a magical-looking cloak, much like something a mage would wear, materialized from the flame and into Raal's ivory fingers. "Vain? Of course not!" The vampire retorted with a slightly acidic tone, hurt someone would even think she would be vain in the slightest.

Her focus was brought to Sans as she answered his question, and then snapped back to Raal - or more so the cloak as it hit her in the face. "Mrrf! Mrf!" She growled into the mass of magical fabric, tearing it from her head and taking in a breath. "Thank you, but I rather you not try to suffocate me!" She called to the mage, beginning to become slightly pissed by his negligence and carelessness. "Yes, I realize it is magical. Hard not to gather that from the little blue symbols and the method with which it was made." Alice acknowledged smartly, annoyed that Raal was treating her like some unintelligent being. "And... I do not have either of those things. I have no idea what they even are." Alice said in response to Raal commanding her to get the device and communicator or whatever.

The blond girl wrapped the cloak around her and clasped the strange metal insignia at her front, a strange cooling sensation washing over her pale flesh. "Hm. Seems it works. I swear, if I find one speck of ash on me-" Alice began to threaten the mage, before realizing it would be an empty one, as there was nothing she could do if she did find Raal had lied about the gift. She cut her threat off and peered down to the vines at her feet. Her crimson eyes perked back up at Raal's mention of 'orders'. Orders? Alice asked herself, still getting used to the fact she was technically a slave. So, for now she had to find out stuff about the Tangled and tell Raal about it, but otherwise she was free until a later point? She hated being wrapped around his fleshless thumb.

The vampire girl watched as Raal mounted his steed and rushed off into the jungle, the two strange creatures following after swiftly. Alice stood rigid for a moment, before relaxing, letting herself drop to her rear, then her back, laying peacefully on the matted floor of the jungle. Her eyes were shut as she processed everything that happened in the last hour or two, before she opened one and peered at her skeletal friend. "Guess that was... a grave situation?" Alice asked with a cheeky grin, before hauling herself back to her feet. "Right... we need to explore, joke a bit, then haul our asses out of here, capiche?" Alice planned stretching her arms towards the sunny sky above. "And I can test if that douchebag's cloak actually works." She shrugged, turning to face Sans.