Almost like a Fairytale

[Gwendolyn]

Stepping through that gate was a...different experience. Yeah, lets go with that. "Wow, this place is...incredible." I said, my voice hushed in reverence. Green fields heavy with grain stalks, a shining sun. I relished in the feeling of the sun on my face. My horse shook her mane and whinnied with impatience.

"Why you always rushing me?" I asked "You got somewhere you need to be?" I joked, stroking her mane. I chuckled to myself at the thought. I clicked my teeth and gently tugged on the reins once more. "You wanted to move, lets go." I set off on the road, the ground crunching under my feel and that of my horses' hooves.

What really spoke to me though was how similar this was to the fairy-tales Matera used to tell me. Lands with castles, Lords and Ladies, dragons and magic. Always full of adventure and wonder. I grinned excitedly at the thought of an adventure. "I wonder if there will be anyone here..?" I left the thought hanging. Of course there would be someone here. It's the Omniverse. He's probably plucked a lot more people than me from their own worlds.

'Probably has to be someone around here who can tell me something about this place.' I thought, looking around, squinting to see if there was anyone around. For some reason, everything looked empty. "Huh. Whaddya think we should do?" I directed the question to my mount. She started grazing. I sighed, " Stand here for a while it is."

[spoiler]Matera means Mother in ancient Greek.[/spoiler]

[Gwendolyn]

"Ugh. I'm bored!" I whined to nobody in particular. I got up from my sitting position in the grass. I looked over to my horse, who was looking at me with an expression that I swear said something like, If you ate grass like me, you wouldn't be such a whiny bitch. I glared right back at the horse. She made a snorting sound that sounded suspiciously like horse-laughter.

Being the extremely mature person that I am, I stuck my tongue out at the horse. Realization in 3...2...1... The sheer stupidity of what I was doing slapped me in the face. I put my tongue back in my mouth and looked around to see if anyone had seen what I was doing. Nope. Nobody here. I then looked up at the sky to try and gauge the time of day. Close to sunset. Damn. " I wasted a day of my life, that I'll never get back by the way, watching you eat grass." I said the horse, my face deadpanned.

I then shook my head and mounted the horse, determined to make it to the forest and try and set up a campsite before nightfall. " Lets go." I said tiredly. I pressed my knees into the sides of the horse and we took off at a stead trot. As we made our way to the forest, I took a few moments to enjoy the beautiful sunset. "WOw, you never see something like that at home." I said, almost wistfully...

[Corporal Light]

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Koal Lynch breathed in through his nose, smelling the lovely fall air as it passed through the trees. The sunset had just passed over the horizon, basking the area around him in a brisk twilight. The wind created beautiful whistles as it traversed the forest, with the clapping of his horse's hooves against the dirt path providing a tranquil beat to his journey. He felt like leaning forward, placing his cheek against the horse's crisp mane, and closing his eyes. Just so he could enjoy the peace while it lasted.

He didn't, though. His fingers remained firmly clamped on the reins of the horse, not willing to give up control just yet. As much as he liked the serenity nature provided him, he'd much rather appreciate it in the confines of a tent or some kind of hobble. Not traveling on horseback while his eyelids slowly caved into his skull. Lynch sighed, bumping his feet against the belly of the horse, trying to make it pick up the pace a bit. The saddle rocked up against his pelvis as he looked around the environment, trying to find some wide open area where he could set up camp.

Eventually, he noticed a clearing, about fifteen feet to his left, surrounded by tall pieces of grass. They shook in response to the evening breeze, but otherwise made no movements. One particular part of the grass was separated slightly, providing plenty of room to enter in a way that almost seemed to be beckoning. Past the entrance was a large tree, though not nearly as large as the ones around the forest. The tree itself seemed to shine the brightest out of any wood in the area, probably thanks to the generous amount of moonlight shining through the cracks of its branches. Lynch's eyes stared through the entryway, mentally noting how open it was, and how peaceful it seemed. It was the perfect place for a camp setup.

However, just as he was about to turn his horse to the left, a loud wail erupted from the tree. The sound bounced around the area, causing birds of various species to fly from their respective nests in the trees, and the horse to rear up onto its hind legs. The horse let out a loud neighing noise as Lynch swiftly patted its neck, trying his best to reassure it as he gazed in shock at the tree. A moment later, he noticed a new sight. One far stranger.

-----------------------

Ballad let out a loud yelp as he barely managed to catch himself from falling off of the tree branch. His gloved right hand dug into the brown bark as Ballad looked down towards the earth. His glowing eyes morphed into a shocked visage as his legs swayed against the breeze. Ballad let in a few quick breaths as he twisted his head up towards his hand, seeing it firmly gripping the branch. Ballad glanced back down towards the ground, having decided what to do next, and released his hand from the limb.

The resulting fall was... less than graceful. It wasn't too bad, but Ballad had grossly miscalculated where his feet should've touched when he hit the field. His legs seemed to collapse from beneath him, causing him to stumble onto his stomach and his arms to flail about before settling down on the dusty ground. Ballad let out a loud groan as he lifted his face up, raising his arm to wipe his nose clean of dirt before drawing it back, covering his forehead with his hand.

"God dammit.. what the fuck? What the fuck was that?" Ballad said to himself, his voice hoarse and clearly exasperated. What he had just experienced was, to put it lightly, intense. What was worse was what he thought it meant. He didn't know for sure what had happened, but to be honest, he didn't want to. It was complete insanity, was what it probably was.

Ballad hardly had any time to reflect on his nightmare before his ears rang with the sound of an approaching beast. He peered at the entryway he had created the day beforehand; his bisque eyes shining like the moon as they caught the sight of a tall man riding on horseback. Whoever he was, he wasn't the one he was looking for.

And it would've been that, if the man wasn't heading into--

The trap.

Ballad's eyes bulged out of their sockets for a good moment, the man's intentions striking true and quick in his mind. After that, he wasted no time. He hastily stood up, and just as the horse was about to cross, pulled out his revolver, and aimed it at the man.

"Don't you even FUCKING move!" he shouted at the top of his lungs, a hint of fear in his voice as the barrel of his gun lined up with the rider's head. His thumb rested on the hammer of his weapon; his index finger planted stiffly on the trigger. His eyebrows kept their frowning expression, and his eyes tore a bullet hole straight through the encroacher. Right where his own bullets would land if the man moved another inch forward.

[Gwendolyn]

" Don't you even FUCKING move!"

Those words tore through me with a force that resonated with my soul. I yanked back on the reins of the horse, causing it to rear up on its' hind legs. I kicked my feet out of the stirrups and jumped clear of the saddle. Turns out that the landing wasn't as clean as I'd hoped, but hey whatever works right. I grabbed the reins of my still pissed off horse and pulled it away with as much force as I could muster. The horse looked as scared as I felt.

Suddenly remembering what caused this situation, I grabbed the sword sheathed across my shoulder, I pulled it free, the sound of steel sliding against leather smoothing my raw nerves. 'Note to self. Grab some sleep after all of this is said and done.' I cast my eyes around the moonlit area, scanning for a sign of anyone. I caught sight of a man...holding a gun aimed at my head.

Images flashed through my head. I took a shaky breath, slowly raising my hands in the air. " Hello? Don't shoot." I said, my voice wavering a bit. As to not send any seemingly threatening signals I sheathed my sword. I stood there, my hands in the air. 'Your move.' I thought.

[Corporal Light]

Ballad remained totally silent as the man actually complied, watching him rear his horse back away from the entrance to the field. Ballad felt a cool wave wash over him, as if the man's obedience was lifting some kind of weight off of his shoulders. That, or the large gust of wind blowing through the area, creating an eerie whistle as the man hopped off of his horse. He wasn't looking at Ballad, most likely due to him being partially shrouded in darkness underneath the tree. He kept still in his position under the tree limb he had fallen off of; it was the only thing that didn't threaten to reveal his position to the intruder.

Thankfully, it didn't seem like the intruder would be much of an issue anyway. He had moved his horse a safe distance away from his trap, preventing anything catastrophic from happening to either him or Ballad. Ballad loosened his shoulders, pulling his revolver back towards his chest, only to snap it back forward as the glint of steel sliced the blackness. The man didn't appear to have the eyesight Ballad was blessed with, else he would've been spotted by now. The tree limb wasn't so wide that it could hide a man of Ballad's stature for long, and he knew it. He quickly scanned the area around him in the few seconds he still had, deducing that the man and him were at least similar in one regard: both preferred the company of no one.

Ballad kept his mouth closed, not letting even a muffle escape the confines of his red scarf as he took several steps forward. The man easily noticed Ballad as blue light shone against his coat, and flickered off of the metal of his revolver. Ballad's overall appearance was hard to distinguish, but the man could clearly see his glowing eyes staring straight through him with an intimidating glare.

That seemed to do the job. Ballad watched with caution as the man sheathed his sword and spoke with a wavering quiver. Finally, someone with working ears. thought Ballad as he stalked forward, his footsteps crunching dead leaves as he closed in on the man's position.

Ballad stopped just short of the entryway, keeping his revolver aimed at the man. The encroacher wasn't making any sudden movements. Only staring at the hole that was the end of Ballad's gun. Ballad caught a glimpse of the man's stare, smirking behind his scarf as he slowly crouched down. Ballad rolled his eyes towards the end of the grass-line, seeing specks of white crumpled up in a line all around the entryway. That was the trap.

Ballad carefully moved his left hand towards his blood-red scarf; his right thumb covering the hammer of his weapon. He unwrapped his scarf, displaying an array of sharp, yellow teeth as he gently set it down on the ground. His glove tasted like moist leather as he ran it against his tongue, covering it in sticky saliva. His eyes closed shut as he spit into the ground, letting out a disgusted groan. The man must've been very confused as he witnessed Ballad rub his hand against the white line. As he reached the end of the line, Ballad closed his fist, morphing the dust into a solid, wet ball.

His work complete, Ballad continued aiming his pistol at the rider as he slithered his left hand down towards his waist. He separated his coat, revealing another weapon within a brown holster before unzipping a single bag. He rolled the wick ball into the bag before zipping it back up again.

"Alright... you're not gonna die now.." Ballad said, his voice almost condescending before wrapping his winter scarf around his mouth. He pushed his left hand against the ground, looking back towards the man for another moment. He pulled his revolver towards his right side, sliding it into its respective holster. Then, without a word, Ballad turned around, and headed for the tree. Unbeknownst to the man, however, Ballad slowly slid a surprise down his left sleeve, ready to spring it out if necessary.

[Gwendolyn]

I remember this expression that Matera used to use all the time when she was in one of her paranoid moods..."Feels like someone's walking over my grave." Something like that. That's what it felt like when the man I've dubbed 'Sharkboy' on account of his teeth, had his gun pointed at me.

I released a shaky breath and closed my eyes, running a hand over my face. ' What the hell just happened?' I asked myself internally. My horse seemed to understand my plight, gently nudging me to give some small measure of comfort. " Just.. stay here, okay?" I half told half asked the horse. She snorted and shook her mane, seemingly agreeing that she would indeed stay here.

I cast a glace in the direction that 'Sharkboy' had gone in. I made the decision to follow him. " Wish me luck." I told my horse, my voice practically dripping with sarcasm. I quickly crossed the clearing, the blades of grass ruffling under his feet as he walked to the entryway of the tree.

I knocked on the hard bark of the outside of the tree, the bark scarping my knuckles. "Hello? If its' all the same to you, I would like a word." My voice had lost all of the fear its had possessed only moments before. " I wanted to know if I could ask some questions." I said, trying to put some steel and certainty into my voice to show this man I was serious. I leaned against the doorway and crossed my arms waiting for his answer.

[Corporal Light]

Ballad hadn't even gone three feet up the tree when he heard footsteps approaching from behind. It was pretty obvious that the man had decided to follow him to the tree, though his reasoning for doing so was lost on the green-colored gunner. He shook his head in disbelief as his hands gripped a pair of twigs hanging off of the tree; his foot slowly curling up towards a smaller limb a few inches above the one he was already standing on. Despite the young man clearly violating his right to his own personal space, Ballad didn't pay much attention to him. Ballad did, however, keep his surprise safely tucked in his left sleeve as the man advanced.

Ballad climbed back onto his favorite limb: a roughly three to four foot wide branch that stretched ten feet out into the field, swaying every so often when a particularly strong gust passed through the leaves. It was the only one that was even remotely comfortable enough to sleep on and still be large enough to house someone like Ballad. Sleep was looking pretty good actually, especially since Ballad had wasted an entire day traveling through his little nightmare verse. He probably would've gone to sleep if not for the man further annoying him with incessant knocks.

Ballad eventually let out a loud groan, having endured two minutes of the cacophony. He had tried to get some sleep to wait out the night by lying himself against the base of the tree and closing his eyes, pretending the hammering was part of nature's natural audio. After that failed, he then tried to tighten the clasps around his hat to muffle out the noises, turning to his left to face away from the man below. But alas, nothing ground his gears more than a very determined individual who just wouldn't leave him alone.

Ballad decided to satisfy the man and whatever he desired, twisting all the way to his left before peering out from the limb. He easily caught the man leaning against the tree, the twilight casting a large shadow at his position. Now that he was closer, Ballad was able to get a better look at his physical appearance. His form didn't impress Ballad, even though he seemed to have the muscle mass of someone who hit the gym regularly. Ballad simply scoffed at his leather jacket, jeans, and converse shoes. Ballad could only assume the man was trying desperately hard to appear "cool," or at the very least look intimidating. But Ballad had never bowed down to people just because they had flashy or "cool" outfits. If anything, the flashier the outfit, the less of a threat they were to him. And Ballad had already assumed the man wasn't a big threat to begin with. He brushed aside a pair of leaves blocking his vision to glare at the man, finally speaking up.

"What the fuck do you want?" Ballad shouted, an annoyed tone of voice evident with each word.

The man looked up towards the top of the tree, seeing Ballad's glowing eyes poking through the darkness of the leaves. His own violet eyes held no hint of surprise, though Ballad could make a good guess that the man might've been trying to hide some sort of insecurity behind a downright serious stature. It wasn't working too well, but he could appreciate the effort.

"I just want to ask some questions, if you don't mind." the man replied, moving his cupped hand to his mouth to project his voice up to him.

Ballad remained silent, his secret surprise still hidden in the cover of his own coat sleeve. Might as well do it. he thought to himself before shouting back down to the man.

"If it gets you out of my hair, then fine. What do you want?"

[Gwendolyn]

Koal internally grinned at the annoyed tone of the mysterious figure. Chuckling he shed his leather jacket, exposing his black t-shirt, the jacket wouldn't do anything but hinder him anyway. He grasped a low-lying branch and quickly and gracefully climbed the tree. The man didn't seem like the type to like people in his space , so he halted his climb up the tree on a branch positioned just across from the one the other had claimed.

His closer proximity to the man gave him some idea as to what he looked like, although he was covered mostly by his winter-clothing. It reminded Koal of the Siberian traders who would pass through his part of town every now and again. He had glowing yellow eyes and, as he had seen earlier, sharp yellow teeth. This man was someone not to be trifled with. He settled himself on the tree, positioning his sword in a way that he wouldn't be able to grab it easily, trying to show the man that he didn't want to fight.

" I want to know if you know where we are." Koal started off hesitantly. He had never been to good at speaking. He had been raised to speak Greek, so he didn't start off speaking English. Whenever he did so now, his voice had a lilting accent and a slightly musical undertone. He had always been bullied at school for it. " And, if its not too personal... I would like you to share your story of how you ended up here. In the Omniverse." Koal almost cringed at his own request. 'Of course its a personal question you idiot' I internally yelled at myself.

" I mean I-I just wan-." He abruptly stopped. He cleared his throat, trying to dispel his stutter. It only ever came up if he was really stressed nowadays. " I just mean that I wanted to compare our stories, see if there are any similarities." I started again, my tone low and my voice becoming deadly serious." I want to figure out why I'm here. So I'll make you a deal, You share your story, I share mine."

"Deal?" My violet eyes making contact with his.

[Corporal Light]

Ballad's left hand yearned to pull out his pistol and shoot the asshole as he was climbing up the tree. He didn't exactly give direct PERMISSION for him to go up and talk to him or anything like that, so he couldn't understand why the man decided it was a good idea to come up to where he was. Especially since he already knew he was armed and pretty fucking dangerous. The only thing keeping Ballad from making good on his thoughts was the fact that the man hadn't even bothered trying to attack or otherwise act hostile towards him despite all that he had said and done.

Confusion raced through the inner workings of his brain as he stared at the man, who was just about to climb up. He had taken off of his jacket, revealing a black shirt that matched perfectly with the shadows of the night. The wind had finally stopped blowing, allowing an eerie quiet to sap the landscape as the man started climbing up the tree. Ballad couldn't help but notice how the man seemed to expertly slither up the bark of the tree, especially on tree limbs that even Ballad had a hard time keeping steady on. Ballad seemed to nod in an appreciative manner before promptly shaking his head, as if to knock the view out of his mind.

Ballad removed his head from its resting place within the leaves as the man neared his position, turning away as he slowly shifted to his left. He crossed his arms, begrudgingly waiting for the man to take a seat next to him. Thankfully, the man had decided to finally keep some distance from him, as Ballad managed to hear him slowly latch himself onto the branch across from his own.

Ballad sighed, leaning backwards onto the cold bark of the tree as the man started to talk. Only it was practically gibberish from Ballad's point of view, and Ballad made it obvious from the start. He moved his right hand onto the tree, making sure his grip was as tight as the scarf around his mouth as he pulled himself towards the edge of his tree limb. He leaned to his right, his right arm not feeling very comfortable in its position as he found himself face to face with the man. The man had already finished his sentences, and was fully expecting a response from Ballad. However, Ballad's eyes must've been conveying a good amount of confusion, as the man simply repeated his words in a language he could understand. As he continued talking, Ballad slowly felt his chest cave into his body as the man talked about offering to share stories. He diverted his eyes away from the man, inconspicuously looking down towards the earth before quickly adjusting them to look back at the man. The glow in his eyes seemed to grow less intense, as if something had flipped a switch and dimmed their lights. Before the man could comment, however, Ballad made clear what he thought of the deal.

"No." he said, disgust in his voice as he moved himself back behind the base of the tree, out of sight and into the comfort of darkness. He placed his back up against the tree, his finger's wrapped around each other as he slid himself forward until his head was practically the only thing still connected to the tree. The moonlight seemed to crack through the leaves above the man's position, casting him in a blueish-white light, though it did not do the same for Ballad. The wind began to blow again, causing several leaves to fall down onto Ballad's green coat, almost melding with his coat as if to cover it up completely.

[Gwendolyn]

Koal went still for a few moments, his mind processing what he had just heard from the other. He shook his head in understanding, if the man didn't want to talk, Koal couldn't make him. Koal very quietly descended the tree, trying to make as little noise as possible so he wouldn't make the other figure angry. Well, any more angry than he already was.

When his feet hit the ground, Koal immediately went to pick up his jacket. It wasn't cold, but if he wasn't careful, he could get sick from the chilly night air. he put it on, adjusted his sword and started to walk across the clearing again. He stopped and hesitantly looked back at the man, who still was facing the tree. Koal shook his head and set off to retrieve his horse. It didn't take long, she was still where he left her. She snorted and looked up at him, her dark eyes shining with light from the moon. Koal stroked her glossy black mane, just waiting for something, anything to happen. Koal sighed, then grasped her reins and tugged, clicking his tongue against his teeth.

" We've gotta find a place to set up camp. Not in the clearing, he's probably had enough of me for today. But somewhere close." Koal whispered, half to himself half to the horse. Then it began. The hunt for a campsite. Koal had to have covered half of the forest in a span of two hours before he found a suitable spot for a campsite. It was a smaller clearing with short grass, perfect. Koal took about half an hour trying to summon a tent, his tired mind not focusing very well. He finally got everything set up, a small fire crackling. He left the tent flap open and clambered in and passed out... 'I guess I'll try again tomorrow. he thought.

[Gwendolyn]

. Dream
Everything was pitch black at first. The darkness had a sort of weight to it, almost as if you could feel the darkness. It stayed that that for the longest time, nothing happening, nothing ever changing. But that soon changed. Everything exploded into color and light flooded his eyes. Koal sucked in a breath, wincing as his pupils adjusted to the sudden change in light. Well, sudden appearance of light. Koal cast his gaze around, his eyes squinted.

His violet eyes widened in shock. It was his house. His house. "What the he-" his words were interrupted by a loud, shrill scream. It sounded familiar... The door to his mother's bedroom was violently thrown open, splinters flying through the small house. Two Nazi soldiers came our of the door laughing whilst dragging Koal's mother between them. They had obviously beaten her. Her beautiful features were marred by black bruises and deep, bloody cuts. Her violet eyes seemed dull and she barely had the strength to walk, her feet stumbling and her knees buckling every few steps. Her black hair was matted with blood.

Koal's eyes flashed red and he lunged at one of the guards, but Koal just passed through him. Almost like he wasn't even there. It only served to piss Koal off even more. He punched a wall. His fist actually connected with it. Koal bit back a scream as he felt his knuckles break on contact with the concrete wall. It didn't work."SON OF A BITCH!" Koal screamed, cradling his injured hand. He shook his head, trying to clear the haze of pain.

"What's going on?" Koal asked himself, his eyebrows knit in confusion, his eyes closed, " I don't understand..." That was as far as Koal got before he heard chuckling. "That is the question isn't it? the other voice said, it's voice filled with an evil kind of mirth. It sounded kind of familiar to Koal. As he thought this, a figure walked out of a shadow in the corner of his house. Koal drew in a sharp breath. "Seraph..." Koal breathed out.

Seraph smirked, almost arrogantly. "So you do remember me. I was starting to worry." Seraph said. He stood at the same height as Koal. Actually, everything about Seraph was like a twisted mirror image of Koal. except for the eyes. Unlike Koals' violet eyes, Seraph owned a pair of blood-red irises.

"I thought I-" Koal started
"Got rid of me when you were brought to the Omniverse." Seraph finished." Well, bad luck there, friend." Seraph said, mockingly. "Lets take a walk, me and you, see what happens to mother dearest." He then proceeded to grab Koal by the throat and haul him off his feet, and throw him through the door. Koal hits the ground rolling a few feet landing by someone's feet. Huffing, Koal slowly and painfully pulled himself to knee, and from there to his feet. He wiped the dust and dirt from his eyes to get a better look a what ever was around him.

He quickly found something. The two Nazi soldiers pushing Mother to her knees. The one on her left took out a short piece of paper and started reading off something. Koal only caught a couple words, they were speaking German. Crimes. Sentenced to death. Oh god. Oh God .

Everything went dark again. But as everything was fading, Koal heard a single gunshot ring out over the silence of the square. Then, Nothing. It was all dark again. "So sad" Seraphs' voice was right beside my right ear, a rasping whisper. "And it's all your fault." And with those words, Seraph began to laugh. It started out low, but as the seconds ticked it grew into a maniacal sound.
End Dream

Koal shot awake, screaming. In the back of his mind, he registered that it was still indeed dark out, and that anyone within a ten mile radius probably heard it, but Koal didn't care. He cried. For his mother, for himself, for the injustice of it all. And after that, He just sat there,numb. Not daring to go back to sleep.

[Corporal Light]

Two hours prior

Ballad kept his arms crossed, rolling his glowing eyes towards the center of the tree as the man descended. He made no real movement to indicate he had seen him, though he did let out a sigh of relief as the man touched the ground. He waited until the man had left the field before turning his head to look at him. He saw the purple-eyed rider back on his horse, galloping away from his clearing.

"Good riddance..." Ballad muttered to himself, slipping his hat over his eyes. He backed up a bit into the tree, bending his legs as he dozed back into a slumber.

Present

Ballad snapped awake as a loud scream shook the forest, his hat preventing him from seeing what was going on. He lunged forward, grasping the branch he was laying upon in a desperate attempt to prevent his fall. Some leaves fell down from the limb as his foot skidded across it, fluttering down onto the ground. Ballad remained steadfast on his platform as he slid his hat above his eyes. It was still dark out, though there was some extra activity. Both in the air, and on the ground.

The air had become populated by birds, flying away from the loud noise echoing across the forest. A deer had passed through the entrance at some point, but had quickly dashed off through the grass. Ballad caught a glimpse of the animal as it leaped over the blades, exhaling a deep breath as he noticed the wick lines were untouched. He looked back towards the wood he was on, pondering what to do. Suddenly, what was at first a feeling of shock soon gave way to something else.

"That fucking- that's it." The gunsmith grumbled, twisting his waist so that he was hanging off like a monkey. He gazed down towards the ground, letting go before plummeting downwards like a rock tossed towards the ground. Unlike before, his feet struck true, landing firmly on the ground and crouching a bit to absorb the impact.

"Don't even care. Killing this bastard..." the gunner said as he stuffed his left hand into his coat, marching towards the entrance. He pulled out his revolver and thumbed back the hammer as he passed through the parted grass, his weapon raised to fire. The forest had grown silent again, with the echo finally subsiding. It was still rather dark outside, though this hardly inconvenienced the inventor. He held the weapon high, looking down towards the dirt as his eagle-like eyes caught a pair of tracks in the ground. He lowered himself down onto his knee, inspecting the footprints. They were large, roughly a few inches wide, and what appeared to be horseshoe marks where cloven hooves had pressed into.

Ballad remained silent as he followed the trail given to him, his finger clasped against the trigger of his revolver.

Two and a half hours later

Ballad slowly walked forward, his revolver hanging off of his finger by his side as he looked back down towards the ground. The tracks were still there. He had to have been close by that point. He brought his left hand up to his face, letting out a tired groan as he slid it back down, gripping his cheeks as his fingers traced by them. His eyes drooped every so often, and his stomach occasionally rumbled. His steps were becoming more of a zombie walk, rather than an alert soldier.

But he pressed on. He had a feeling he was close. It had gotten noticeably brighter since he had awoken again, as there were sun rays passing through the barrier of leaves up above. It gave off a faint, yellow glow across the forest, which made sight a whole lot easier. He had noticed that the dirt was mushier, as if a mist had come through during the night and sucked itself into the ground. The environment had gotten livelier as well, with birds calling to each other every few seconds as well as the rustling of something lurking in the bushes.

Eventually, after what felt like an eternity, he found him. He had no idea how long it had taken him, but at that point he couldn't have cared less. The swordsman had found himself another field to call his own, only he wasn't really doing much with it. He was just rocking back and forth, his eyes wide open and bloodshot, easily noticeable with the open tent flap. A campfire had been placed a short distance away, only it was practically ash and not so much a fire.

The sharpshooter's eyes widened as they spotted the man, smiling behind his red scarf. Maybe today wouldn't be so bad after all... he thought to himself before moving forward, passing through a bush before advancing towards the tent, revolver cocked and ready.

[Gwendolyn]

Koal shook his head for the hundredth time that night. Wait, no, morning. It was morning now. The deep black sky lightening to a dark purple and orange. Koal stretched, his joints making that satisfying cracking noise. But Koal got the sense that he wasn't alone. At least, not anymore. He quickly walked out of the tent and cast his narrow-eyed gaze around the clearing. A couple a bushes rustled lightly to his right. He turned his head to the left.

That man again. Great. "Here to kill me, sir?" Koal said mockingly. "Cause' if you are, just go ahead and do it." Koal was facing him now, walking toward the man slowly. Koal stopped just short of five feet away, planting his feet firmly in the ground. "And if you're not here to kill me, what the fuck do you want?" Koal's voice started to gain a raspy quality."Well? You gonna say anything?" The other stayed silent.

Koal snorted and turned back to his tent and quickly ducked inside grabbing his leather jacket and sword. He sheathed the blade over his right shoulder and walked back out. Koal cocked an eyebrow and his eyes were searching the others' for an answer.

[Corporal Light]

Ballad grimaced with every word spoken by the wannabe gangster looking kid, his fist clenching tightly around the handle of his gun. A part of him couldn't believe the kid was as criminally incompetent as he looked, especially since he had the gall to challenge him when he CLEARLY had a revolver in his hand. The gunsmith had already deduced that the world he was in was way behind his own in terms of technological prowess, but he was fairly certain that even the goat farmers of the current one held the universal idea that guns equal superiority. Which counted double for someone like Ballad.

In just a few short hours of studying and listening, the sharpshooter could make a fair estimate as to whom this guy thought he was. He certainly thought he was humble, but that was merely an act. The kid was cocksure, haughty, and pretty damn brave. That, or we was really cranky when he didn't get his beauty sleep, just judging off of how he had strutted up to him like he owned the damn place. Guess we all have to show our bad side every once in a while.

Ballad stood in the middle of the field, watching the kid head back to his tent, probably intent on grabbing a weapon or two. It was uncanny how much the green man had rubbed off on the kid, as he couldn't remember anyone else confronting a gunner like.... well, him. Unlike the kid, though, Ballad always won or at the very least put the idiot down before he himself got too injured. He did occasionally lose, he had to admit, but those were rare occasions. Even the other ones. Those were moral victories.

All of a sudden, the intentions ran like a pickaxe through his brain. The green miner quickly snapped his revolver upwards, aiming it at the gangster's stomach as a look of surprise washed over him. He gave off a threatening growl, clearly not allowing the swordsman to take another step forward.

"Don't think you can just walk up to me just because we talked for a total of two minutes and expect not to get shot, understand kid? I dunno where you lived before this place, but back where I came from, I constantly pulled this shot and been on the receiving end of a shooter as well. Difference? I'm a whole lot better at it than you." The gunner said pompously. The gangster kid kept still, not wanting to incite any more anger from the revolver-wielding gunslinger.

"To top it all off, I invented this thing" Ballad ranted, twisting the gun to his left while still pointing it at Lynch, "I know how it functions. You don't. So don't think you can simply get close because you think you know how this thing works. The fire rate, how long you have before a shot could be fired, how many shots I have. You know NOTHING about it, and you know NOTHING about me. You'd be better off wrestling a snow cat than fucking with me right now, kid."

The rider had had his hands help up in a surrendering motion the whole time, and was slowly dropping them to his side as Ballad continued his rambling. He started off with insults, then personal achievements, and then a minute or so later was instead talking about how the kid shouldn't have been screaming in the middle of the night while he was trying to rest. Each accusatory word stung as it reached Lynch's ears; he balled his fists as he closed his eyes, rage overcoming his emotions.

"Now that I AM awake, I feel more like hell than when I first GOT HERE. I'm thirsty, my stomach feels like it's gonna cave in at some point because I got no damn food, and now I'm TIRED because YOU can't sleep without waking everyone up in the forest! I mean-"

"I SAW MY MOM GET KILLED, YOU ASSHOLE!" Koal shouted at the top of his lungs, catching the gunner completely off guard. The green man took a step back, his index finger almost pulling back on the trigger. Ballad glared at him, though his eyes held a hint of surprise as the conversation became dominated by the apparently orphaned kid.

"I had a nightmare where I saw my Mom get dragged out into a street and SHOT," Koal yelled, tears forming in his eyes "And I did NOTHING to stop it! I COULDN'T do anything... it was all my fault..."

Koal looked down towards the ground, tears flowing down his cheek before splashing into the dry grass. A loud whimper erupted from his throat as he brought his hands to his face, as if to hide from the only man around to hear him. Ballad gazed at the crying man, still reeling from the effects of what had just been said to him. He lowered his revolver to his stomach, his eyebrows continuing to frown, but the black dots in his bisque eyes appeared to dilate, turning glassy-eyed. He did not dare say anything else, simply allowing the kid to weep. Weep for whomever he was weeping for. But this time, he didn't, nor couldn't, muster the effort to interrupt.

[Gwendolyn]

As tears carved their way down the rough terrain of Koal's face, his crushing depression gave way to something cold and dark. An anger he hadn't experienced before, yet it was familiar. Thoughts raced through his head, his brain scrambling to figure out why that cold feeling felt so damn familiar. It didn't take long.

Distant memories, echos of screams of doctors and nurses, running for dear life from the very demon they had created. Red tinted vision and splatters of blood on a stark white floor, the sterilized smell of the lab become tainted with the copper stench of blood. Koal shook his head violently, desperately hoping that it would do something to banish the scenes running through his head. He let out a whimper, the images just kept coming, pounding his head like waves on the shore.

"What did I do to deserve this?" Koal whispered brokenly, his voice breaking at the last word. He must have said it loud enough for the green gunsmith to overhear him. Said gunsmith looked confused as to why I was asking myself that question, but he didn't comment. Koal's earlier words must have somehow touched his seemingly non existing heart. The images slowly went away, fading into meaningless background noise in Koal's head.

The earlier words that the gunsmith had said suddenly registered in Koal's head. He swiveled his gaze upwards, looking the other in the eye. "Y'know, you're an asshole. I know what that is in your hand. It's a revolver. I've been staring down their barrels every time a Nazi would walk over and question me." Somewhere in Koals' subconscious, he wondered if this man even knew what Nazis were. But Koal was on a roll. " And despite what you might think, I don't think I'm all high and mighty. I definitely don't have your holier-than-thou bullshit attitude. I've been told everyday of my life that I'm not even worth the air that I breathe. So how about you go fuck yourself, alright?" Koal finished, narrowing his eyes into a hard glare.

Koal just hoped that his mini-speech would cover up the breakdown he just had in front of a complete stranger. But he didn't think It would. And even if it did, Koal was pretty sure it would cause the green gunslinger to shoot him. But at the moment, Koal wasn't sure that he would mind. " And you don't know a damn thing about what we're capable of." Koal and Seraphs voices overlapped each others for a short moment, Koal's eyes flashing red and then going back to violet.

[Corporal Light]

Ballad remained perfectly silent, having lowered his revolver within the short time it took for the kid to finish his rant. Part of that was probably due to the fact that the kid had just spoken with two voices. Something that he was certain was due to some kind of magic he didn't know about as of yet. Though the other part was due to the fact that the kid had more or less identified the gun in his hand. He had snapped his head down to look at his weapon when he heard the gangster kid call it a revolver. He could swear the kid noticed the shock in his eyes when he did that.

But it wasn't just that, or was it? The gunsmith registered that the kid had been through a whole lot. Lost his parents, been persecuted numerous times by Nazis (whatever the hell they were,) and had practically been living through pain his whole life. Part of him wanted to shout at him for interrupting him so rudely, but the other half- the stronger half, kept his trap shut. He didn't understand why, but the way the kid talked to him. About, well, everything.. reminded him a whole lot of-

Ballad clenched his eyes shut, not daring to think about it. He shook his head several times, raising his revolver again. The persecuted person was facing the ground, though the gunslinger could see flashes of violet through the locks of his night hair. Tears were still streaming down his face, though he made little noise aside from the occasional sniffle. The green man kept his grip tight on the gun, pointing it at the kid. His index finger started to pull back on the trigger as an almost evil look crossed Ballad's face. However, before he could even get close to pulling the trigger, his hands started to shake like they had been afflicted by frostbite. He looked away from the kid several times, only to glance back, with each movement failing to subside his shudders.

Eventually, he squeezed the trigger, a loud bang erupting from the field and traveling throughout the forest.

--------------------------------------------------------
Koal Lynch had closed his eyes as soon as he saw the gunner unsteadily re-aim his tool of destruction, pointing it at his head from a few feet away. He let in a sharp intake of breath, bracing himself for his demise.

A loud bang shook his ears, but he felt no pain. No sharp prick of burning, hot lead puncturing his skin and into his organs. He reopened his eyes, coming across a peculiar sight.

The sharpshooter was simply standing there, eyes closed with his face pointed downwards. In his right hand was a smoking gun, which was pointing upwards into the morning sky. The man was totally silent for a good minute or so, and Lynch did not dare move an inch from where he was standing. Eventually, the man looked back up towards the kid, the glow dimming from his eyes as his eyebrows seemed to raise up a bit from their stationary position.

"I'm sorry, kid. I.. I didn't know." croaked the winter soldier, before slithering his gun towards the inside of his jacket, turning around to prevent Lynch from making any real eye contact with the man in green.

[Gwendolyn]

Koal's head stayed up, his tears all but gone. His sorrow was spent. For now at least. But that's not what he was worried about right now. His attention had zeroed in on the gunslinger who had his back to Koal at the moment. Koal might not be the smartest person, but he was good at reading people. It was how you survived in the Fringe. You had to know how to read between the lines so that you could decipher what people really meant when they spoke. And right now, the man in front of him look downright crushed. He apparently had some demons of his own.

Koals' fingers started twitching, itching to grab the sword slung over his shoulder. But Koal also sensed that the man in front of him wasn't any danger. Not yet. But emotions are volatile, very manipulative. They made you do things that you wouldn't rationally do. So Koal tread lightly. 'I don't even know this guys' name! The thought almost made Koal laugh. But laughter wasn't the most appropriate action right now. "Guess I might as well tell you my name." Koal was talking in a neutral tone, as to avoid another confrontation. " I'm Koal. Koal Lynch."

When the man made no effort to move or even speak, Koal shook his head. Might as well try to get something productive done. Koal sat down on the ground and drew out the rainbow-hued ball of Omnilium. He closed his eyes and concentrated. He conjured up an mage of one of his favorite dishes that his mother used to make. The loaf of brown, grainy bread that was served with every meal they ate. A platter of cooked chicken, coked to a beautiful golden-brown color. Koals' mouth was beginning to water at the thought.

About 10 Minutes later

Koal opened his eyes and was greeted by the wonder sight and smell of his mother's cooking. Koal gave himself a small mental pat on the back and prepared to dig in. But then Koals' thoughts returned to the green gunsmith, who was still standing a few feet away, deep in thought. Why can't I just be selfish? Koal complained to himself.

Koal stood up and approached the other. He tapped him on the shoulder. The other man jolted at the touch and whirled around to see who would even think about touching him. His eyes held an unimaginable amount of anger and pain. Koal held up a hand to stop the rant that was undoubtedly coming. Koal gestured to the food sitting close by on a thick blanket. "Since you were bitching about being so hungry earlier..." He figured he let the other finish the thought.

[Corporal Light]

Ballad was pretty much trying his best to ignore the think smell of brimstone and cooked meat as he looked down towards his hands, having pulled his revolver back out of its holster. This time, however, it was laying sideways on both of his hands as if he had picked up a stray cat that hissed a lot. It was black as night, with a perfect steel finish that was worthy of its own award. The gunsmith stared at his creation, working over something in his mind.

This revolver fired .480 inch bullets; six of them, to be exact. Up until his arrival in the Omniverse did it fire as fast as one could pull the trigger, which complimented its impressive accuracy, stopping power, and damaging qualities. Now, it was something different, and not in ways Ballad would really enjoy it. More recoil...single-action...fire rate completely ruined. It sometimes felt like a completely different weapon. But in the end, would possessing a totally different weapon be a bad thing or a good thing?

Back in the land of eternal winter, the gun was among the deadliest weapons known to their species. It was powerful enough to kill anything in a single shot, could penetrate three fully grown men, and the introduction of the gun bomb made it the most popular weapon ever to be invented. Pretty much every single man, woman, and child in that world learned how to use one and use one well. But, as the old saying goes, with great power comes great responsibility. Those people weren't.... very responsible.

A single man, knowledgeable with the aforementioned weapon of mass destruction, was negligent. He used his unbelievable power to destroy the fragile peace and prosperity that the world had been so desperate to keep hold of for so long. All it took was the destruction of a church and fifteen burned alive. Cries of despair. Cries of Rage. Battle Cries.

Ballad closed his eyes, drooping his fingers slightly so that the revolver nearly slid out of his hand. He still remembered what had happened that day. Fifteen dead church members. A blazing inferno erupting around the remains of the building. The bright glow of orange around melted metal; smoke rising from the scene to forever plague the earth. The crackles of flames only masked by the crackles of a mother's voice as she wailed for her lost son. So many people who felt so sorry for what had happened whom eventually would come to see it as the spark for eradication.

....Idiots..... all of them.

The gunsmith sighed, sliding his revolver back into his coat just as he felt a tap on his shoulder, practically leaping into the sky in response. The damn kid sneaked up on him! Ballad opened his mouth, raising his right hand in a slapping motion just as he saw the kid gesture towards some food on a blanket. His eyes traveled to Lynch's deadpan face, blinking only once before glancing back at the food.

---------------------------------------------------

"You know, you could be saying thank you right about now."

"Thanks.." the miner said sarcastically before bringing his gloved left hand down towards a single piece of chicken, bringing it up to his sharp-toothed mouth. He quickly began chowing down on the meat like a wolf, which would probably disgust the more polite and mild-mannered one. Ballad had sat himself down on the blanket, which didn't appear to have much in terms of color. The carpet was rather itchy, like it was made of wool, especially around his buttocks. He didn't plan on scratching it though. He wasn't THAT much of a caveman.

"So..." the gunsmith said, setting what remained of his food back down on the blanket, his hands covered in grease and flavoring, "I didn't, uh... catch your name last time. Who are you?"

"Koal. Koal Lynch."

"Interesting name." the green man wisecracked, albeit in a seemingly uninterested tone of voice, "I suppose I should be telling you my name, just because you told me yours. Given what has transpired, I deem you worthy enough. It's Ballad."

[Gwendolyn]

Koal smirked and cocked his head to the right. "Ballad? Isn't that a type of love song or somethin'?" Koal was intentionally teasing the now dubbed Ballad. Our not-so-mysterious man was tearing into the food like he hadn't seen it in months. But Koal could relate, he had been there, done that, and done got the tee-shirt. "Nice to finally put a name to the face of the man who keeps pointing a gun in my face." Koal said with mirth. The swordsman lifted a silver water canteen up to his mouth and took a short swig, clearing his throat so he could continue talking.

"Sorry you had to witness that little breakdown earlier." All of the earlier playfulness drained out of Koal's face, leaving a more serious and slightly haunted expression. "Lets just say I had a REALLY bad nightmare last night, and leave it at that." Koal stood up and brushed off his pants, getting rid off some food bits and some dust. He walked to his left to grab the black backpack he had manifested last night with the rest of his campsite. He began folding his tent, preparing to pack up camp in general, really.

"I was raised to never stay in one place too long. It attracts unwanted visitors." Ballad almost looked offended. "Not you, of course," Koal quickly amended, " Bad people, like, people who reaaaally want to kill you." The green man then cocked an eyebrow and smirked. Koal groaned in frustration. "You know what I mean." Lynch huffed out, starting to get aggravated. He stuffed the now compact tent into the bag and zipped it up.

He turned to face the other occupant of his campsite. " But, yeah, sorry again for disturbing you. That wasn't my intention." Koal rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. " I would totally understand if you're still pissed, but please refrain from blowing my face off."

Koal brushed his raven locks out of his eyes so he could see the other man better. " But I figured I would stick with you. I would give you your space, but I feel like having two of us together makes others less likely to fuck with us."

[Corporal Light]

"Ballad? Isn't that a type of love song or somethin'?"

"Don't ask." The gunsmith muttered, his left hand reaching for the red scarf he had placed in the grass. He started to wrap it around his neck, making sure it was tight enough that no one could pry it off. He probably should've made it clear that he didn't exactly choose that name, nor understood why the hell he was given it to begin with, but the kid could figure that out himself.

"Nice to finally put a name to the face of the man who keeps pointing a gun in my face."

Ballad let out a soft groan, rolling his eyes nonchalantly as Lynch commented. He moved his right hand up to his head, placing his elbow on his crossed knees before leaning onto his hand. He looked back towards Lynch, whom was just starting to pack up. He didn't really bother getting up from his spot, preferring to just watch the gangster kid work his ass off.

"Sorry you had to witness that little breakdown earlier." "Lets just say I had a REALLY bad nightmare last night, and leave it at that."

"Don't remind me..." Ballad said to himself, an ostensibly apathetic tone of voice, the lights of his eyeballs diminishing. He half wanted to ask if they could both just take a nap before doing anything else, but when he thought about it a bit more, he decided not to. Didn't want to scare the kid into another nightmare.

Yeah, that makes sense.

I was raised to never stay in one place too long. It attracts unwanted visitors."

His red scarf fell straight off his neck, landing on the ground. His eyebrows moved back to its usual frown, staring at Lynch in an offended manner. He probably would've felt angrier if the kid wasn't trying so hard to cover his screw-up, which painted a smirk on his green, bumpy face. And with a huff, he shushed up.

I would totally understand if you're still pissed, but please refrain from blowing my face off."

Ballad remained silent, staring at Lynch as he reached back down for his scarf. He pushed himself back off of the blanket, stepping into the grass as he wrapped his scarf back around his neck and mouth. After a few seconds, he gave a sharp tug, sighing in relief when he was certain the scarf was secure.

" But I figured I would stick with you. I would give you your space, but I feel like having two of us together makes others less likely to fuck with us."

He honestly should learn how to hide his emotions better.

The sharpshooter glanced back towards Koal, his eyebrows cocked and a look of confusion in his eyes. Lynch got the message rather easily, as he stammered "I-I, uh.... I see.. I'll just... get going.." before proceeding to walk past the winter miner.

"Hold on a sec." Ballad proclaimed, holding his left hand out in front of Lynch's path, lightly pushing forwards once his palm connected with his chest. He closed his eyes, deciding not to observe the embarrassed look on 'Purple-Eyes' face.

"Kid, I really don't understand where you get these assumptions from. I don't. You should've figured it out by now, but I don't exactly tolerate people getting into my business and then proceed to want to follow me around wherever I go. Just because I told you my name and didn't shoot you the moment you started bawling doesn't change that. I don't simply WORK with others just because, alright?"

Koal Lynch took a step back, frowning behind his locks of hair. The gunner lowered his right hand down to his side, staring straight through Lynch. The gangster opened his mouth, proceeding to speak.

"That being said," Ballad interrupted, crossing his arms across his chest "something tells me you don't exactly know what you are doing or where you are going or ANYTHING about this place. Because if you did, you'd realize that you pretty much NEED me just to survive."

"I-I don't understand?" Lynch questioned, still in a state of bewilderment.

"Then I'll spell it out for you. I'm the least of your worries, believe it or not. There are teenagers that can predict your every action, kids that are murderous and can turn into tentacle beings, and probably plenty of other weird shit. Be glad I know all about this through first-hand experience, because that makes them all the more easier for someone like me."

"What are you suggesting?"

"I'll be blunt, runt. They'd eat you raw. No doubts there. So, if you WANT to live, I'm basically your only real option. But, as I've already mentioned, I don't just simply GO with people. You're gonna have to give me an incentive."

"What kind of incentive?"

"Oh, I don't know" Ballad said, shrugging his shoulders in a mock attempt at thinking. "Maybe, say..... paying for all my expenses at the village I'm heading towards? Or at the very least for rent at a tavern?" Ballad smiled devilishly underneath his scarf, slowly walking towards Lynch, as if impatient enough to try to force the answer out.

OOC: Btw, it's perfectly fine for you if you want to write Ballad's dialogue as well. Just be sure it fits his personality. TY!