Erm... Medieval Fantasy... there, I said it.

[dain]

Darius smiled as Akira lowered her hood.

"Ahhhh, there she is." He said, smiling.

He sat down and looked over at Jouta, who was enjoying the jerky. He smiled at that as well. THe kngiht had renounced his title, which was good as well. He poked Akira.

"Where is this person who put that curse mark upon you, Akira?" Darius asked.

[Señor Sunday Friday]

"Well, I dunno- but maybe if we coulda saved one of the knights you were so ready to kill we could question him or something." She looked at Darius with a half annoyed expression. "Seriously though, he doesn't stay in one place for long, ever. He's too smart for that in the least." She let out a long sigh as she sat down as well, her hand reaching into a pocket in her cloak and withdrawing a brown leather glove which she slipped over the curse mark.

Jouta looked over towards Akira, he didn't want to run anymore- didn't feel like it and he was already beginning to like Akira, she was nice. "I'm tired..." he said as he looked over at Akira. That was why he was headed back to the village- he had been playing with his friends but got left behind and eventually lost. He found his way back and was tired by that time, really tired and for the past few minutes he was running on an adrenaline rush- no more. He yawned as he looked at the adults, not really hungry anymore and the jerky left an odd aftertaste in his mouth that he wasn't used to at all.

As Akira sat there she just couldn't get over the whole thing with the jerky, 'dragon jerky, it HAD to be dragon jerky, didn't it?' her mind went as she looked towards Darius. Normally at such a moment when inquiry of her curse mark came up she'd talk about it over a nice caraffe of sake but unfortunately she didn't think she should do such a thing yet. The ground was comfy though... comfy ground... soft grass, very nice.

[Kim-la]

Reggetar was getting board but the mention of a curse mark or what ever it was perked his interest. Despite almost getting killed by the same people (or more like person) Reggetar seemed to have a short attention span and now finding this topic he felt compelled to stay and find more about it.

[Ladd Russo of the Russo Family]

"I could not imagine any blight upon your skin, which shines fair in the sunlight. What mark is plaguing you, Akira?" Lorien inquired. The flattery might have seemed a bit overdone, even like a bad pick-up line, but Lorien had no such intentions in mind. When you did not know a lady well, you talked to them as such; he had always been brought up so.

"I have an extensive knowledge of healing magic and could perhaps help you, if you'd wish it."

[Señor Sunday Friday]

Akira rolled her eyes as she removed the glove that she had just put on to reveal the scars on her hand that looked like rotted flesh the tips of the places lacking skin were singed in black. It looked quite horrible right now the teardrop shaped marks accross her skin glistened in the light and she showed it to Lorien for but a moment before she covered it back up. "Good luck trying, though it might spread to you, it's happened to others before." she said as she looked towards the stranger who'd taken quite the beating from Darius.

Jouta looked at the curse mark during the breif moment it was revealed and he felt sick, it looked like Akira was dead and decaying where the mark had taken effect and he wondered who would do such a thing to anyone. It looked quite painful just from it's look and he winced at the sight of such a thing, it looked like some plague or disease, when Akira revealed it you could smell it even, though that might have been only because he had hightened senses of smell now that he had been given his True Name.

Akira's cursed hand tightened at every muscle and tendon for only a moment as if seared with pain and though she made no sound of it or expression it was as if her aura was trying to suppress it as well, her aura being something only her friends were able to see. Her family having disowned her couldn't care less about it nowadays and besides they were long gone back in Nihon (THAT RHYMED!!) so that left only her friends, there was Makashi for a time but alas! He was dead.

[Ladd Russo of the Russo Family]

The knight's eyes widened and then narrowed sorrowfully, and his face creased slightly into a frown. Even more than he could see the evil wound, he could feel it. Malignant magic roiled off of it in sickening waves. It was beyond his skill to heal--or maybe anyone's, he felt.

"Who has afflicted you with this brand of death?" he asked gravely. Compared to the 'spy's' apparent injuries earlier, the pain that Akira's mark had caused made them look like less than a feather across the skin.

[Angelus]

Dikan reached up with his gloves and lifted his hood off his head when the knight mentioned the brand of death. He slowly walked over to Akira and grabbed her hand forcefully and looked at the mark that had plagued her. With his left hand, he removed his right glove. With his bare hand, he stroked the mark. It then began to glow. Dikan felt a wave of dark energy being released from the mark as it began to glow. "This mark," Dikan said, "I have seen this before, but I cannot remember where."

[Ladd Russo of the Russo Family]

Lorien glared sternly at the newcomer, very shocked at how roughly he had lain his hands upon her. A person did not merely grab a lady so rudely, and certainly not where she was injured by such a foul force. He put a hand on his lance but said nothing, for perhaps the man was uncouth and unknowing of his rudeness.

[Señor Sunday Friday]

Akira pulled her hand back, "Who the hell do you think you are!" she said as she put the glove back on her hand, yet again. She raised her other hand and smacked Dikan right accross the face and made extra effort to make it hurt though she could have done worse- she could have backed it up with fire.

Jouta looked up at Akira with a wide eyed gaze of suprise and he shifted his sitting position slightly as he looked at the newcomer, it was somewhat rude of him to come over like that actually now that he thought of it.

Akira's eyes narrowed, obviously she had developed an instant disliking to Dikan quite quickly, nobody should ever just walk up to her and start analyzing the curse mark, she had some other things she would have yelled at Dikan but there was a child present and it didn't seem like such a good idea. She took a few breaths to help herself calm down before turning back to Lorien, her eyes warily sticking on Dikan for a few moments, "Aroroth..." she muttered her tone suddenly pained and sad, "He used to be my friend before well, he went on a journey to learn a spell- there was a drought that was getting assuredly devastating, when he returned he had changed for the worse." she said, her voice obviously recalling some pretty nasty things, "Otherwise I would have never left Jouta like I did." she said as she looked down at her son, the love of a mother in her eyes.

Jouta was assured by that face, it couldn't recall the memories back to his mind but it certainly recalled the feeling of his mother cradling him in her arms so long ago and the soft sound of her voice singing the sweet lullaby so he could fall asleep. He hugged Akira, his hands clutched the black fabric of her cloak though he refused to cry now. He never cried in front of his friends or anyone in his life, he'd always wait till he had some moment alone if he really needed to cry.

(HUZZAH!! I HAVE NOW BLENDED TWO, HEAR ME!! TWO!!! SEPARATE POSTS TOGETHER- THE FIRST ONE THAT DIDN'T WORK WITH THE SECOND ONE THAT DID!!!)

[Angelus]

Dikan's face instantly turned red as it flew back-wards in the direction that Akira's hand had forced it. Dikan bit his tongue in this action and his mouth began to fill with small amounts of blood. He glanced over towards the knight that seemed to back away from him as he spat the blood from his mouth. "You fear me?" Dikan asked the knight, "do you think I show no respect for women...I bet that is what you think of me?" He wiped his bloody mouth with his sleeve as he turned to Akira. "I once had respect for women like you. But my respect for them was lost a long time ago."

"I was only trying to help you. My memory is weak, but I have seen this mark before. I can take some time to try to remember, but all I know is that nothing good came from that mark. You can either accept my help or walk away with that mark still on you."

[Ladd Russo of the Russo Family]

"Betrayals made by those close to you are the worse," he agreed, thinking of his own predicament, though it was not nearly as severe as hers. To lay such a burden on someone so fair, it did not seem fair that Akira should suffer so and not him. Suddenly he smiled, his face unclouding immediately.

"You are with him now, though!" he observed happily, glad for her. "I am sure that together all of us can overwhelm your friend and banish his evil inside him." Ah yes, blinding optimism. The worst thing was that Lorien wasn't even aware that we did it. Lorien felt that the newcomer was still shockingly rude, but even though he was aware of his rudeness, he seemed to mean no harm.

[Señor Sunday Friday]

"Listen, I appreciate your help but you must understand that it's dangerous even for you- for Darius even!" these people obviously didn't understand the properties of such a curse mark, "It spreads thtough contact and when it does he can controll your actions, upon fighting the curse which in the first place would be quite the impossible task the curse mark would spread. As it spreads it tears apart muscle to the point where it would be nearly impossible to repair." she said in a sullen tone, her good hand rested atop Jouta's head. Jouta of course had no idea of what was going on so he decided to remain quiet at the time.

[Ladd Russo of the Russo Family]

Lorien's smile was gentle, and his hand gripped his lance, placing it into the ground in front of him.

"It pains me to see you in such a profound state of hopelessness, but let me assure you that hopelessness isn't helplessness, Akira. Even if Darius cannot accomplish the task, nor I, nor the spy, nor the newcomer, nor even you; if we attempted your freedom together, I do not doubt that we could accomplish it. You have the greatest paladin on life at your side," he said modestly, his eyes shining. Trying to explain 'hardship' to Lorien was quite impossible when he was like this.

[Kim-la]

Reggetar felt his stomach tighten as Akria reveled her curse mark. The pain she must be fealing must be overwhelming yet she showed none. He admired that. It took much strength to do that. As well as the temporary loss of her child could only add to it. Reggetar had no children so had no idea how she felt and could only imagine her pain. As for this ‘Lorien’ fellow, Reggetar had no such admiration.
“I have a name,” Reggetar said quite angrily “Its Reggetar. Use it. And for another thing, I’m not a spy, so stop calling me one.” Just because he was spying at the moment dose not mean he did that all the time. Reggetar removed something from Zephyrs saddle and attached it to his belt. It was hard to tell what it was but it looked briefly like a dagger. He sat this behind him where it would be easy to reach. He did not like people popping up everywhere.

[Ladd Russo of the Russo Family]

Lorien grimaced at the tone of Reggetar; there he had gone again, spreading offense when he had meant none...

"I apologize, Reggetar. I spoke in haste, and had no name to go by. You are not deserving of being called a spy, and I suffer for my error," he said, hoping that he would be forgiven. Lorien silently added a note to find better names for nameless people in the future, but his mind never read its mail anyway. With Memory insolent and Mind neglective, he wondered if his whole brain was in one large conspiracy against him. Lorien sighed.