(It's alright. No problem. I hope you do well with your weird American GCSE things.)

---

"Well, I had to check in on Ember, see to see if she needed killing."

Ace cocked his head to the side with curious and bright eyes. "You know...I know Ember is not the most stable of women but I don't think...upon first impressions of course, that you are capable of being her 'carer'." He told him. The comment was not particularly meant to come across in any kind of way but the blonde could not stop his tongue rolling off a nasty tone. Well who could blame him? Sharde did just basically threaten to kill his close friend.

"And I, you. Although, unusual name as you don't seem like an Ace."

"Why not? Why am I not an Ace?" He chuckled lightly, once again rather curious to what he meant by this comment. "I can understand why Tyrant is wrong. I mean I'm not exactly a ruler of lands or a king am I? I own a cabin and a dog."

"Okay I agree with the pet name... Wild thing."

The blonde man scowled, taking the joke in a sexual manner before sending a chilling glare in the purple haired male’s direction. Cold enough the freeze the heart. Ace wondered if he was just being to sensitive about the whole ordeal as after all, Owsla was not a little girl anymore and he was not her brother.

"Gem-head?"
"You mean Mr. Amythest."

Ace burst out laughing to the point where his ribs were aching with pain and he was bent over clutching them. The Hall family sure did amuse him and make his life a lot more joyful. "I..I don't want any more thank..y..you!" He explained between stammers as he could not get over Sharde's new nicknames.

It was only then that Ace realized that both Ember and Jenn were missing. He recalled that the warrior had left to get some air but the raven haired woman never so much as mentioned where she was headed. He began to panic a little, fear growing on his expression before he forced himself to calm down. If he forced Jennifer to stay in the cabin she would feel like a caged bird once again, and after all she was most certainly not his visitor. "Champ!" Ace called his canine, to which the Shep obeyed without question. "Scout." He told him, before opening the door and letting the black creature slip out into the surrounding woodland. It would not be long till he found the pair, but he was only there to observe and protect.

"You know...I know Ember is not the most stable of women but I don't think...upon first impressions of course, that you are capable of being her 'carer'." Shrade stared at Ace and gave him a condescending smile. "Yes, and of course, you being such a naive Neco that's more like a Sapien have the right to say so... I mean she nearly did kill you down by the lakeand all... No need to think her unstable." A certain light got into his eye, but it quickly disappeared. No, he doesn't know how unstable she is... Such a blind, and obtuse idiot.

"Why not? Why am I not an Ace?" Shrade rolled his eyes, "You're very ignorant for someone who survived the wars... When we get a squad or team, our teamleader or teamleaders are called Aces or Ace but in order to be one you have the be the best of the best and earn the rank/title from a higher ranking officer. So for example, Ember, having been dubbed the Ace rank, she is an Ace...but more of half an Ace as her brother isn't around anymore." He looked Ace over, "You are hardly fit to be called an Ace."

"Gem-head?"
"You mean Mr. Amythest."

Shrade shrugged at this, taking it all in as a gentleman would.. Although he's not really a gentleman at heart. "I don't want any soup, or whatever that is..." He watched Owsla closely, a look of amusement crossing his face as he watched how the newly named Wild Thing conversed with her father...

(Is this rp over or what?)

June slept calmly on the moving train. With all the excitement of the past night, he went into a deep dreamless slumber. Still drowsy upon being woken up, he looked at Akira with sleepy eyes, listening to what she was saying, but only registering some of it.

"June I don't know where it stops!! Look its slowing down anyway. Lets jump? Is...is that a good idea? No? Yes? Fuuuuuucckk."

At first he lunged forward, but when she said it was slowing down anyway he eased back in his seat. Honestly, he didn't see what the big deal was. It was about to stop right? Only reason he could see for a train to slow down is to stop. He wasn't sure, but he stood up and let her lead his tired body to the last carrage.

Thinking about it for a moment, June was wondering if maybe he should have just waited for the train to stop. He decided to let it go, seeing as he was already up anyway, wrapped his arm around Akira and jumped down, skipping on the ground a little in order to prevent from falling. Now outside, June could see that they were about half a mile from the stop, though he didn't mention it to the woman because getting off early was a better idea anyway, considering ticket checks and the fact the town was closer to their current location. Like usual, the man began to smoke as he fixed the rest of his messy attire. "Come on," he said. If we go this way then we can reach town in two hours. I think."

Just as he was about to start walking towards the town, a ghastly scream came from the other direction. It was faint, but it was still wretched. "Did you hear that," He asked, looking around to see if any sign of location could be seen. It had seemed that he wouldn't have to look for long since the screams were getting closer and closer. June pulled out one of his pistols and pointed it in the direction of the screams, ready for whoever was running to come out with there antagonist behind them.

Once a man came out of the woods that lead into the valley, a monstorous feline predator with fur as white as snow bathed with black stripes and a striped main lunged after the man, roaring proudly in the air.

The man would have ran towards June and Akira if June hadn't been pointing his gun towards him. Instead, he banked a hard right and ran towards the trains destination. The Liger would have followed him if June hadn't shot a bullet into the sky, cracking the air and causing a loud shockwave around the area.

"Come here," he called firmly and gently.

The beast was to his face in moments, leading in with a growl that would make any man flinch, before licking June continuously on his entire face.

"Hey," June jumped, pushing the animals face away from his. "Be still. Be still. What were you hungry. I told you not to chase people when it's not part of a job. No dessert for you tonight. This is why I usually leave you home."

June scolded the Liger who wasn't looking towards him at all but at the sky, completely ignoring the man. June knew the animal wouldn't listen to him seeing as he wasn't its owner, but he thought it would at least behave enough not to attempt to eat humans.

"Galil, stay with me from now on. I can't trust you by yourself."

June looked towards Akira and was wondering if he should have said anything about the crossbreeded predator. He told her it was his friends pet and that he never usually uses it, but since it was a request he had to take him. "So yeah, he's a lion tiger cross breed I guess. He's not dangerous, but I'm not sure if he'll try to eat you or not, haha."

Sticking his hands in his pockets, June began moving forward, Galil at his side, growling.

Owsla and Oreron Hall

Between the feral necos that were Owsla and Oreron, the two often had their disagreements since their reunion. Were Owsla was curious and highly energenic, Oreron was slow and methotical. Oreron knew when to hold his toungue and Owsla...well...the most colorful phrases would come out of her mouth.

Owsla facepalmed at her father who continued to lap up the stew until his head was very well near the bottom of the pot. "I swear dad. I wonder how you even got along with your platoon." she said as she wandered off to the living room once again. If anything, she was bored. Safe, yes, she could only remember one incedent of bandits trying to break into his cabin. But that was very quickly resolved as she was young and her kills were messier. Much messier. However, since then and returning she realized that the one thing that bugged her had returned.

She was bored out of her mind.

She looked out the window, the one she had come in and out of for the better part of a summer and smirk. "A game of stealth tag wouldn't hurt." she muttered to herself as she held her arm out. The green skin from the night before started to creep quickly across her arm and body once more until she was covered and forced on all fours again. She bounded around the living room before slipping out the window, only catching the eye of Oreron for a split second as he had come up for air again.

Oreron knew her game. His cub wanted to play and he understood this as even he thought that the cabin could use a bit more life. After finally coming up for air, he walked over behind Ace and lifted him up by the collar of his shirt. 'surprisingly light this one' he walked outside with him and game a deep chuckle. "How about we play game? My cub is full of energy and it is up to us to find her. You feel up to that?" He said simply as he plopped him down back on his feet.

Yes. One could simply state that the sentiments felt by both the owner of the "Alexander": William Abrams, and the owner of the "Darius": Quinn Bradley, were similar in a marginal regard. Both seemed to have a strong desire to understand the nature of the "case" that was the death of their family. If both the Abrams and the Bradleys were to have fallen, one might assume it could have been a coordinated attack against the two families due to hostility from another group, or the desire to simply remove the two powerful arms dealerships for either political, economic, or social vendetta. A weapon distributor never seemed to get the best publicity in this regard.

But, there was the nature of Williams last comment.

The gold-haired man did not hide his eyes as he checked the woman out, and spotted the very reason why she would make that sort of comment. "If I had to guess, it is because your choice of apparel is rather lacking as of now." he said straight. He would admit she did rouse him in some ways, but he certainly wasn't about to get flustered over something like this. It just wasn't like him at all. "I assume you don't plan on going out like that?"

Her apparel was lacking? Impossible. Quinn was never so forgetful as to do something so disorderly. She could not contemplate what he meant by these statements. Did the son of Abram really dislike her apparel so much as to call it "lacking" or unfit for use outside". The nerve of some people, demanding that others conform to their view of "normalcy" in regards to clothing. Though it might not seem like it from first glance, Quinn enjoyed to keep up on fashion nuances and the like.

The nerves of this man. How dare he make fun of a woman's choice of clothing!

"I do take effort to keep up with fashion. I do not wish to get on your bad side, nor do you probably wish, most likely, to get on my bad side. I suggest that you do not make fun of my choice of fashion in the future again."

A bold statement for someone who had just chose to look at her choice of an "outfit", if it could really be called that.

Oh.

Oh god.

Oh god why.

Well, this situation was one that one might not wish to make in their life.

"Kyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!~" Quinn wailed in her embarrassment, leaving to change her clothing and make sure that "the Abram's boy" were to forget about this little, um, "incident", one might call it.

"Not a word," Quinn stated to William. She would not have a single word be stated about this conversation without getting a combination of annoyed and flustered. Never again.png

---

Akira clung onto him as they stumbled off the train and onto solid ground. It was always a weird feeling after getting off transport that you had been on for a while. It almost felt as though you were still moving in the world even though you could have been stood perfectly still. Personally it made Akira feel rather sick.

"Come on,"
"If we go this way then we can reach town in two hours. I think."

"But..." The raven haired woman started, holding up the blue plant she had clung to so dearly all this time. "I wanted to see Asher remember? His...grave is near by." She asked him, seemingly pleading for him to bend to her needs. "I promise we won't be long if its a burden to you. It's just I have not seen him in a while and he must be lonely." She explained, talking as though the man was still alive and fully concious. It was kind of depressing to hear.

"Did you hear that,"

The scream made her draw her handgun pretty quickly and fall still on the spot. The sounds were getting closer and closer and so Akira raised to weapon and began to aim, ready for as soon as anything unpleasant hit sight. She was quite suprized when it appeared that the horror was actually caused by a beautiful white feline, in fact it was the same one as before. Was she right to call it June's pet?

"Come here,"

Akira did not exactly seem to appreciate the animals presence and took a few steps away as it approached June and the sudden change of situation occurred.

"Hey," "Be still. Be still. What were you hungry. I told you not to chase people when it's not part of a job. No dessert for you tonight. This is why I usually leave you home."
"Galil, stay with me from now on. I can't trust you by yourself."
"So yeah, he's a lion tiger cross breed I guess. He's not dangerous, but I'm not sure if he'll try to eat you or not, haha."

"So you are a lonely cat guy? You need yourself a woman." Akira laughed taunting him with a sly wink, before letting out a slight 'oh' when he explained it was not his pet. "You could always adopt him? I mean if you wanted to have that responsibility, but you seem to have a lot of love for the animal." She told him with a soft smile.

"Lets head to Asher, he is just 5 minutes away. I promise I won't be long."
***

The tree was the largest one in the area and its leaves seemed to have grown greener than the rest. It over shadowed the area and the thick roots crawled up over the top of the dirt as though they wanted to get up and leave. It was a really nice area and seemed to be quite untouched by humans, that was apart from the great carvings of swirls and text in the trees bark. "Here we are!" Akira explained.

This world is sick, these people are sick. Have they lost their minds?
I hate being alone. Silence can send people crazy.
I love you.
I spent 4 hours trying to hunt down this deer today, it was fucking hilarious! I wish you were there to see how idiotic I am Asher.
Thank you for always having my back!
You are right, guns ARE a girls best friends.
I saw someone who looked like you today, made my heart flutter a little. Not half as sexy as you though!
I have got to say my hands are not half as clean as they were.
I miss you so much.

The words on the trees probably said a lot more about Akira than what June actually knew, and realizing this she began to become uncomfortable. Despite this being Asher's place of rest it was quite triggering to read what was on the bark and remember how he was slaughtered.

---

"Yes, and of course, you being such a naive Neco that's more like a Sapien have the right to say so... I mean she nearly did kill you down by the lake and all... No need to think her unstable."

"I don't need anyone else tell me what and what I am not like." Ace spat, his blue eyes growing rather cold and losing their once homely glow. He also did appear rather hurt at this comment but put it in his best intentions to not display it. "Anyway, who is not to say that Ember is looking after you? You don't seem...stable exactly either." He told him, maybe stepping over the line a little. Ace did not understand why this man always appeared so odd and drunk. He almost seemed to have lost all the human part of him.

"You're very ignorant for someone who survived the wars... When we get a squad or team, our teamleader or teamleaders are called Aces or Ace but in order to be one you have the be the best of the best and earn the rank/title from a higher ranking officer. So for example, Ember, having been dubbed the Ace rank, she is an Ace...but more of half an Ace as her brother isn't around anymore."
"You are hardly fit to be called an Ace."

This time the blonde fell silent and just pressed his lips together tightly and clenched his fist. That was until he mentioned about Ember having a sibling. "A Brother? Did he pass away? How long ago? What's his name?" Ace began firing out questions as though he was a machine gun, clearly very curious about this and not willing to hide it.

"A game of stealth tag wouldn't hurt."

Ace heard Owsla mutter from a distance but did not think nothing of it until...

"How about we play game? My cub is full of energy and it is up to us to find her. You feel up to that?"

"HAVE I NOT HAD ENOUGH OF DEALING WITH THIS WHEN SHE WAS A KID. You honestly have no idea how sick and tired I got of pla-" Ace exclaimed at Oreron, explaining his past with Owsla in the cabin before he fell silent at the sight of her desperate face. He sighed heavily and rubbed his forehead as though it was giving him a headache already. "Alright alright...You know I'm not very good at this though...I'll only play if purple man does too."

He then waited till Owsla turned away before quickly whispering to Oreron. "You need to get her a boyfriend or something, maybe even just a puppy, anything to keep her from playing this." Ace sighed comically.

"It's only me, Ember," she said, trying to keep her voice steady and clear, "I'm not going to hurt you. I want to help." Ember heard the voice muffled by the pounding in her head. She moaned, trying to ignore the pain, to block it off.

"I'm not going to touch you if you don't want me to. I just want to try and ease the pain maybe, if I can." Ember was in so much pain, there was no ability to think, only mentally scream as the pain in her head built and built. The pressure was intense, closely akin to suffocation. Without bothering, Ember opened her eyes and saw red. A world bathed in blood. Followed by a shadow figure over her. Black on red. Shadow on blood. blood-blood-blood-blood-blood-blood... The red brought a memory, a memory so real it made her flinch back into the ground.

"Our world is bathed in suffering. Suffering, Battle after battle, death after death." Ember and her brother stared out at the bloody battlefield littered with bodies. The smell of burning flesh along with the sounds of mutated animals scavenging the carcasses of their fallen sisters and brothers.

Ember watched the sun fade in a glory of red. "We have to go." She dropped down into a hole in the ground....

Later, Ember was laughing at her brother's poor attempts to flirt with a superior officer, showing no signs of mourning for the death of her entire team, having been one of only two survivors.

June sensed the girls original nervousness about the beast had dwindled away and he answered her question with a grin on his face.

Though when it came to the topic of adoption, June looked at the big cat beast and shrugged his shoulders. "If I let Galil follow me around everywhere, then all my pets would want to. Trust me, nothing blows your cover like a parade of wild animals following you. Also, I can't let Cortez stay by himself in this hell of a town." He petted Galil as it growled at it's owners name.

"Lets head to Asher, he is just 5 minutes away. I promise I won't be long."

June nodded and followed Akira, wondering why she felt the need to ask him to go. He was wondering how he came off at times, though he realized most of his words are empty and carry no feeling for someone to see who the real him is. One second I'm a lonely cat person, and the next I'm a tyrant who doesn't let people see their loved ones on a trip around the world. The more he thought about it, the more he didn't see how she would think that way about him, if she hadn't felt that way about someone else first. The hardest time to trust people is when you live in a world like this one. A world where no one is safe and, thanks to June, not even the wealthiest of people were safe. not to mention, he completely forgot they only met just yesterday. Thinking about it like that, the man took a load off himself with a sigh. Maybe in the future she wouldn't feel the need to ask.
.................................................................


Upon there arrival, June shot glances all around, initially looking for signs of ambush, then pausing to read what was on the tree that, by the look of it, was the mans grave sight. June read the words quickly and turned away as soon as he was finished. At first he wondered if she was really the one who wrote that, until she said, "Here we are!"

June looked around more calmly now and said, "Not a bad place. It's nice and green, and no one would come here to dig up a grave." His thoughts were on other subjects so the most he could do was pace, though after a while he stopped looking over his shoulders towards Akira and her message. He believed that in just that moment he found out more about her than anyone in such a short time. The thought that maybe she was just like him passed his mind for a split second. That was before he realized that they were probably more different than he even thought. After all, this was the first grave June had been to in six years. Or was it longer? He didn't remember anymore. He couldn't stop reading the writing on the tree over and over.

June stopped thinking of himself, for he knew that if he was feeling bad just by the air of the place, then she must also feel something deep inside. Something that maybe she has held onto for a long time. He pulled out a cigarette and lit it up before connecting his hand in prayer. Though he managed to also stay silent while doing so, June let out a line of small whispers and opened his eyes.June let a good ten minutes pass after that before he decided to break the silence.

"So, a bear huh?" His words were calmer than normal, carrying less of a manly girth, which he compensated for by making it as soft as he could. Though in order to do so he had to bring his voice just past a whisper. "You know, when I found Galil, way before giving him to Cortez, he was but a cub. I was about fifteen at the time and I was just trying to find some food for me and my...." He paused for a second to take a drag of his cig and also get his words in order. "...my family, my new found family, I didn't know a Neco's crap about hunting. So I was gone for about a week, surviving off of plants and tree leaves. I guess now that I look at it, it may have been a test. Well anyway, I came across a ligre, much larger than Galil. He was fierce and untamed and had sent me running with the rip of my clothing between my legs. I was probably more scared that day than I had ever been, which I thought was weird. So, I let it get to me. I told myself that I wouldn't be afraid of some animal. No, not after what I had already been through. So I went back out, which was against Maya's... and the small towns people's advice. I don't know. Maybe I just wanted to let loose something. Looking back on it now, it was idiotic, but still, I wandered back. I had a knife and went for the beast with everything I had. It was then I realized that it was better hunter, for it had not only allowed me to live, but also followed me around. I suppose since it just had cubs it was trying to protect them from me, but now I realize it was looking out for me. That's where the bear comes in. It was some mutation or something. Truly it was just huge. Though I had never seen a bear before, there it was in all it's glory. Must've been hungry too seeing as it attacked me. I didn't stand a chance. Escaping the bears jaw area was all I could do. It was apparent that I was going to die, but then that damned ligre came in with all its might. It was a rough fight, but in the end we each left with half of the bear. Ever since then, the day I met Galil's mother I became imprinted on him I guess. He remembered me even when he became the big boss of the wild and as a token of friendship I handed him to Cortez. Wait until you meet him."

For a moment June smiled until he remembered how eccentric the man was. 'Yeah... this should be really fun.' he thought. He crushed his cigarette in his hand not wanting to liter on the grounds so close to Asher's grave. June realized he didn't know anything about the man and thought maybe it would be better for her to talk about him. He wasn't one to talk of his past and the people in it, at least if it wasn't something goofy or funny, but he had always thought himself a good listener. "So, uh.... Was Asher teaching you how to hunt while he was alive?"

June wondered how long had it been since the war had a widespread end. He was in the dark for almost all of it, kept inside a place where war is just the same as breathing. Or rather, the violent part of war. It led him to think if there was any good part to war. It surely was apparent that it did bring a lot of hate and pain through people. Human evolution inside itself was enough to do that. However, June had just realized that until he met the girl, he was still living in his own little world. Still living in the dark.

"I don't need anyone else tell me what and what I am not like." Ace spat, his blue eyes growing rather cold and losing their once homely glow. He also did appear rather hurt at this comment but put it in his best intentions to not display it. "Anyway, who is not to say that Ember is looking after you? You don't seem...stable exactly either."

Shrade was highly amused by this man-boy, or he was until the poor man mentioned his... stability. His head snapped up and his posture completely changed. His shoulders were no longer loose, his muscles were taunt and the silly look on his face was gone. His eyes conveyed that of a completely sane man ready to kill someone in the blink of an eye. A very dangerous person to aggravate indeed. Remember your training, Ranger.

Very quickly did he change again at that thought. He was once again the silly and lazy looking man again. Instead of insulting Ace furthermore or killing him, Shrade instead smiled, "Well, it seems both of us aren't exactly stable."

"A Brother? Did he pass away? How long ago? What's his name?"

Shrade raised in eyebrow, "Yes, a brother." He gave no further information.

"-I'll only play if purple man does too." "Purple man?" This nickname, unlike Mr. Amethyst or Gem-head, appeared to pain him greatly.

Oreron and Owsla Hall

"You need to get her a boyfriend or something, maybe even just a puppy, anything to keep her from playing this."

Oreron rolled his eyes as he placed him down outside, the look of slight irritation on his face. "She'll have a mate when she wants one. Besides, she's told me that she thinks of you as big brother." he grinned as he patted the blond on the head. "I would guess that makes you my son in a way."

With that, his own armor slid into place over his body, forcing him to all fours. That familiar blue light glowing as the armor's system came online with thermal vision replacing his own. "Come. You need the training anyway." Oreron declared as he trotted off into the forest.

Owsla was far ahead of her father and Ace, crawling along the tree branches to keep herself hidden among the leaves. This forest had been her home for at least a year, but she knew these trees, every root and had set up booby traps in at least some of these trees. She could feel something wasn't right. Someone else was here, someone she didn't recognize. Cuts in the trees conformed this as she crawled down the side of the trunk and carressed the wound. It was deeper than it had any need to be, like a fight went on here. White hair was also stuck in the cut as well. Owsla shivered as she climbed back into the tree. The feeling of being watched was never a good feeling.

---

The odd and sickening smile that hung on Sharde's lips had always made Ace uncomfortable, but when it fell from his space it was quite modest to say he was afraid. His whole body tensed up and he looked ready to pounce and kill. Sometimes the blond wondered why he even decided to anger people due to the fact if they attacked him it was unlikely that he would be able to do anything about it, quickly leading to the end of his life. If Sharde attacked him, what would the people in his cabin do? Would they even save him? After all he was pretty useless considering how human beings were. They could just take all his supplies and leave him for dead. It made sense.

"Well, it seems both of us aren't exactly stable."

Ace seemed to flinch a little as he spoke but was pleased at the lack of physical aggression. He looked incredibly depressed. He was unstable in a completely different way then what people like Sharde were, but still, he was very unstable and it was not hard to see that at all.

"Yes, a brother."

The man seemed to be leaving the amount of information there, earning a scowl from the blond. He wondered if it was worth bringing it up with Jennifer later.

"She'll have a mate when she wants one. Besides, she's told me that she thinks of you as big brother."
"I would guess that makes you my son in a way."

"Hey that makes it sound like I'm planning to date her!" Ace exclaimed with a childish huff before his mouth fell open at Oreron's last comment. Did he really mean that? His heart began racing fast in his chest and he felt kinda warm and fuzzy inside. Still he was unsure if he was being sarcastic or not but it still hit him hard. "D..Do you really mean that?" He stammered, feeling completely honoured to be labelled in this manner. Of course even as a child Ace's father had never really respected him.

"Come. You need the training anyway."

"This game is definitely going to end up being very biased." The neco sighed, pointing out the clear and obvious strength differences between himself and Owsla. "So what are the rules? What have I got to do?"

---

"If I let Galil follow me around everywhere, then all my pets would want to. Trust me, nothing blows your cover like a parade of wild animals following you. Also, I can't let Cortez stay by himself in this hell of a town."

"Hm..." She hummed, holding her tongue for a few seconds with a thoughtful expression before speaking again. "You say you can't leave your friend lonely, yet aren't you almost always alone June? You could do with company just as much as Cortez does. I know better than anyone that loneliness can drive you utterly insane." She told him, her voice low and seemingly careful before suddenly trying to cheer up the conversations tone. Akira seemed like she wanted to cut the topic of loneliness right there. "Maybe you could do with a little house cat for at home? I know your a softy underneath."

"Not a bad place. It's nice and green, and no one would come here to dig up a grave."

Akira began un-potting the blue Rena flower that she had been carrying with her and buried it along side the tree for it to grow and flourish. It looked a little out of place with all the surrounding greenery but she thought maybe one day it would spread and smother the place. "If people dig up bodies in their spare time I feel sorry for them." She chuckled lightly..

The raven haired woman turned to see that June seemed to be praying which warmed her heart greatly. Akira did not know if a God existed or not and who could blame her, the world had not exactly been all too kind to her. The fact that June prayed for him displayed he had a lot of respect. She did truly hope that Asher was happy some place else. The girl too did pray for a while but mainly just sat in the dirt, stroking the ground with her finger tips and holding back tears.

"...He remembered me even when he became the big boss of the wild and as a token of friendship I handed him to Cortez. Wait until you meet him."

Akira said nothing but smiled at his story, her eyes blazing with emotion. She then raised to her feet and turned to the Liger and slowly held out her hands which trembled a small amount before meeting with the felines ears, rubbing softly behind them. It was quite clear that she was afraid of the beast and she did not doubt that it was not likely to tear off her arm at any second, still she put her faith in the creature.

"Is he hot...I'm sure I'd love to meet him if he is hot..." Akira explained with a smirk, visualizing in her head and appearance and attitude that were rather unlikely to be correct. "Fitter than you?" She flirted turning to him, eye lids low and seductive before finishing with a soft round of laughter. "So he is a friend of yours? A colleague?" She questioned, now rather curious about this man.

"So, uh.... Was Asher teaching you how to hunt while he was alive?"

The girl fell silent for a second, feeling her heart beat quickly in her chest before swallowing to force out words. "I guess so. I was never bad with a gun but killing bad people and hunting animals are two completely different things. Me and Asher were actually rivals at first. Our town made a defence group against Necos trying to exterminate Sapiens and me and him were always the best and most competitive in training. One day, he found one thing he was better at than I and never let it go. Hunting required patience and I had none of it. So I pleaded him to start teaching me and it was round about that time that I fell in love with him. I started asking him to go hunting with me when we did... we did not really spend time a lot of time hunting..." She giggled softly before tears began absently streaming down her cheeks. It appeared like she did not actually know that she was crying at all and so just continued with conversation.

"T...They stole a good man from this world and I will never forgive them for that." Akira hissed, clenching her fists so tightly that her nails began to cut open her palm. Visions of the burning houses of her town and the horrid stench of metallic blood began to over whelm her senses. Akira always got a little triggered when visiting his grave but it was even harder to talk about it. She found herself slowly moving towards June before dumping her head on his chest in self pity. "I'd give anything at all to have him back..."

Anyone :C

June King

June stayed silent as the woman went on about how he might have needed some kind of company. He didn't want to say much on the topic, neither the one about Cortez being hot. "I-I don't know," the man said feeling a little awkward towards the question. "He's looks good for his age I suppose."

Listening to her recollection of the past, June began to feel bit of empathy for the girl. She had lost everything she had, which was much more than he could ever dream of having. She lost not only her family, but her home as well because of the war. He wished he knew more about it. Deep down, June even wish he was able to experience it. Only six years had passed since imprisonment and the world changed in so many different ways.

She had been trying not to let her tears go, but the man knew it was probably only a matter of time. While she talked to him, the tears were already forming in the corners of her eyes and June automatically felt like he was suppose to console her some way. Soon he realized she was leaning against his chest and he could feel the wet tears through his shirt.

"I'd give anything at all to have him back..."

There was nothing June could really say. He didn't have any type of way to bring people back to life. Nor did he have words that he was sure would make her feel better. He wouldn't be a hypocrite anytime soon and until he figured out his own problems he wouldn't be able to offer much solace. Still, June felt the need to help her feel better. So, he put his hand on her head, and patted her softly as if he were brushing her hair with his hand. The memory of his parents came into his mind, for they would also hug him and pat his head when he was sad. He figured most children's parents did. Either way, it was the least he could do at the moment.

Like most times June didn't know what to talk about, he talked about something he was comfortable with sharing with people. "Cortez had been in the prison longer than I. He saw me when I killed the prisoner to save the kid. Hehe. The man's first words to me were, 'Are you crazy?', but I knew then. I knew he was a good person. I never did find out what Cortez was in for and I never asked. I think him and I are okay with that. Anyway, he watched me after I got out the reformation chambers. Watched over me when I stopped talking, and even became something like a father to me. I learned a lot of great things from that man. Needless to say, some of those things had to do with self defense."

He ceased his words there and looked down towards the woman, who's face was hidden over his shirt. "You okay," he asked calmly.

Ember was completely weak, feeling her body ache as if she were no longer breathing. "You... are beautiful." The memory of his voice whispered faintly at the back of her mind, sending chills down her spine. Slowly, the real world fell away, giving room to that one thing in a life that never changes, memory.

"So beautiful." His knuckles grazed her cheek, "yet, I could easily crush you." His fisted his hand and pulled it back. Ember gasped as she readied herself for the blow of his fist meeting her cheek. Nothing but a buffet of air touched her cheek. "I can't kill you so easily, not when you should suffer for your..."

Time fell backwards...

"She-wolf." Ember jumped up from her desk, "huh?" She looked across at her twin, only to be met with a book hitting the back of her head. "Did you not hear me when I said no resting in class?" Her purple haired instructor stood behind her, a black textbook in one hand. Stubbornly, Ember glared fiercely up at him "Sir, no sir! I couldn't notice your words over your distracting hair! And if I may add, I suggest you cut it!" Her words were met with detention after the class ended, having to hold up two textbooks flat on her palms straight out in front of her while standing completely still, never allowed to drop her arms no matter the agony.

---

---

Shrade watched as the blonde bumbling buffoon of a Neco began to take part in a game with his two savage companions. Such a dopey little country boy, he mused, wondering how Ace was able to capture Ember's attention. Thinking of Ember... He walked out of the cabin, following Ember's tracks.

As he walked, he contemplated a promise. A fatal promise. "Uhhh," the moan of someone in pain caught his attention as he changed direction. "Wha-" He cursed loudly, taking in the sight of his former student lying on the forest floor. "Ember," he chided as he quickly narrowed down the reason for her being so. "Going so long without your armor when you haven't been pacing yourself is dangerous!" He leaned down to pick her up and carried her back to the cabin to lay her down on Ace's bed.