Through Darker Days (Mature)

Join date : 2013-07-22 Age : 31 Location : My house. ;o

Emilia had growled at Tiberius. What a jerk she thought. When Emilia had realized Darius pulled her away from the crowd she was frozen. "I have to do what I can to help." she said as she walked to Darius' side. "That guy, he's controlling everything. And he's harming people. So, let's just go into that city hall and talk to him." she said walking back to the crowd. People began to murmer. "Stop right there!" one girl yelled walking to Emilia.
Through Darker Days (Mature) - Page 4 <a href=

Through Darker Days (Mature) - Page 4 Animew10

Emilia froze seeing the girl. The girl dragged her off back to Darius. "You two should get out of here. You heard Tiberius, you've seen the city, it's all over now. There's no point in staying, let everyone learn on there own." the girl said crossing her arms. Emilia shook her head. "No way!" she rather declared. The girl held her hand up. "You will not get anything done. Tiberius isn't stupid." she warned. Emilia turned to Darius. "Neither are we." she said looking back to the girl. "You are a government official. Help us out." Emilia pleaded. The girl had sighed she turned to Darius and smiled. Her eyes were red too. "You must be very patient to be traveling with Emilia." she said with a giggle. The girl slightly bowed. "I am Natalia. I'm a government official here, although I rather stay in the shadows. Whenever something big like this happens, I happen to show myself for a bit. Til' things calm down." she said with a rather happy look. Emilia nodded. "Natalia, help us please?" she had asked. Natalia nodded. "Very well." she took the two and left back to the city hall building. The guards that were stationed at the entrance seemed suspicious but let them through. Natalia showed them to Tiberius' room She lightly knocked on his door. "Mister Tiberius, you have visitor's." she had said letting them in. Emilia had walked in with her arms crossed. Natalia quietly shut the door behind them and walked to Tiberius standing by his side.

Join date : 2013-07-20

Darius placed his hand on his forehead and sighed as the they descended. "I'm not even going to ask." As soon as they rushed to see what was going on, he found that Emilia left his side once more. He reached out to pull her back, but he was just a second too late. "E-Emilia! Stop!" He pleaded, but the girl was already chanting to the crowd. He tightened his cloak and tried to remain concealed amongst the crowd. Then, he look a close look at his partner's hands. Were there always scratches there? He wasn't even sure he was going to step out of the crowd when she mentioned that Darius and her would help the people. When the fires began to disappear around the town, the townsfolk looked horrified. Rather than praise their savior, they saw the girl as something different. Emilia was stronger than them. Who was this girl? And was she not just a ploy from the city officials to get the people to calm down? The crowd then began to fight with each other over what they believed in. Support Emilia, or burn her on the spot. Tiberius smiled. "You don't belong here, little girl. If politics were that simple, do you think I'd purposely stress the people enough to this? No. I wanted to get rid of slavery. The people want slavery. Isn't that quite ironic?" The muscular Tiberius walked back into the City Hall and the guards covered the door.

Darius quickly grabbed Emilia's hand and pulled her to the side, running until they found refuge in an alleyway. He was breathing heavily. "Emilia!" He shook her several times, before finding the healing potion to give to her. After things calmed down a while, Darius slid down at the side of the alleyway and lightly ran his fingers through Emilia's hair. "Geez, Emilia... You have a strong sense of justice. But, please don't do something dangerous like that again..." He sobbed, and with that pulled her in for an embrace. Darius hugged her tightly, just for a moment. "I... don't want to lose you..." As soon as Darius realized how embarrassing that sounded, he let go of her and looked way. He faked a cough. "So what now?" He tried to change the subject.

Join date : 2013-07-22 Age : 31 Location : My house. ;o

(Your fine, and I don't know your the one that made him take it! XD)

Emilia had watched as they flew overhead the city. "Darius! It's in flames!" she saddened as Ezra took to land. Once they got off she sighed. She put the cloak on and took Darius' hand and went through the city slowly extinguishing the fires that they came across. Once they got to the crowd Emilia heard the man's speech. This was chaotic. She had remembered when her father lived here, he was at one point highly respected in the city til' he died. She had memories here, and began to wonder if her mother was dead now, and shared ground with the other corpses. Her hands tightened into fists as the man ordered for the people to be killed. Immediately Emilia swiftly moved through the crowd appearing in front of the men and held her hands up. Light bursted making the men freeze in their tracks. Emilia hadn't realized it but her hands looked as if they were cut. They had begun to bleed. She threw the cloak off. There was no point in hiding it now. She turned to face everyone in the city. "Everyone! Calm down! You don't want to live in Poverty? That's fine! But that doesn't mean you have to be a slave to do so." she had said with a kind, yet serious tone. "I am Emilia, my father used to live here, and he used to tell me when I visited that this city would someday face a tragedy...I believe that this is what he meant." she turned to the man with the cloak. "Enough people have lost their lives today." she said her eyes were dark. She turned back to the people. "Please, Let me and my friend help you, were not a threat to you, and I can help everyone live in peace. You won't have to live on the streets, and you won't have to be a slave either!" she said holding a hand up. She seemed to be in pain but she managed to use her power to extinguish the rest of the flames in the city. She wasn't sure if it was safe to approach the people like this. But she knew she could help them. "Please! Let us help you!" she had rather pleaded.

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Darius was amused by Emilia's seriousness. "Come now, Erza can't eat everything." But he didn't expect a reply. Once Emilia made up his mind, he smiled. "I knew you'd say that." He went to prepare his bag and sort through the supplies. For a moment, his hand reached and found the green potion. The love potion! He reached into his bag and pulled out the pink potion. Cautiously, he looked around to make sure that no one, even Erza was looking. Once he found that he was alone, he began to wonder... what would happen to him? Just a sip. Just a sip. Every thought in his mind told him not to drink it. There were just too many risks. They needed to focus on their mission, not fall in love. And yet, the more his thoughts pushed him away from the potion, the quicker his hands went to open the potion. "Just a sip." Darius whispered to himself, and gulped down a bit of it.

Darius returned to Emilia and Erza. At first... he felt completely normal. Maybe the love potion didn't work? "Alright. Let's go." He said, and the two mounted the dragon to fly back to the slave town. "Bring Erza down a mile from the city. We don't want this stranger we're supposed to meet be suspicious." He explained, then reached into his bag and pulled out the Crow cloaks from the men they beat up. He tossed one over to Emilia. Darius smiled. "So... Emilia... I was thinking... What if we infiltrated The Crow?"

The Slave City, Salveria was set ablaze, even from afar. Fires ravaged through the market streets and smoke clouded the otherwise clear sky. Yet, for all the chaos going on in the city, not many voices were heard. Rather, each corner of the street was littered with all sorts of corpses. Children, men, and women. The remaining people gathered in the City Hall. Crowds of slave owners, slaves, and regular folks used pitchforks, swords, and brooms to beat their way towards the city officials.

"Don't you understand?! The slavery didn't choose me! I chose the slavery!" A thin woman screamed and launched a tomato at one of the royal guards. The royal guards formed a fort of wooden shields to push back the invaders. "No, you do not understand! This is a chance for people to live freely, and grow. How do you know you won't survive in the real world if you don't try?" One of the guards screamed to the protesting woman. One of the city officials stepped forward. He had a dark cloak on, and crow feathers decorated it. "Enough!"

"I-It's Tiberius!" Screamed one of the men. And like that, the invaders repeated their message across the city until the rioters calmed down for a while. "If you do not wish to have liberty and have this city as a slave-state, then you are all my slaves." Tiberius began to speak as though it was more of a speech than an actual threat. "I could order you all into poverty, and you would have to listen. But, that's not what you would do, would you all?! By disobeying the city's authority, you're going against your superiors, and indirectly fighting against slavery!" His voice thundered. "If you wish to live in a slave-state, so be it! I declare marshal law and absolute power over this city!" With that demand, the rioters re-lit their torches and charged at the man. "Guards! Execute them! Execute their heads!"

((Hope this isn't too dark, lol ._.
I'm not too sure what to do with the effects of just sipping the love potion?))

Join date : 2013-07-22 Age : 31 Location : My house. ;o

Emilia watched as the men had seemed surprised that she could use her magic. Apparently it was reported that she couldn't use magic when she and Ezra were separated. That was partially true. But Emilia's father was the White Mage. So she could still use it. It was just a little more dangerous. But she had normally ignored the danger of it. The girl nodded. They had seemed to just be guinea pigs for the Crows. She thought for a moment. "The Crow's?" she said thinking aloud. "That's why that little Crow was following us. He's their little spy...Ezra is going to make a snack out of the damn thing." she whispered angrily. She knew something was going on. She watched as Darius took the men away. And she had went to the middle-aged man and gave him the money for the stuff they took. Except the sword. She took it for free. It's casing was expensive looking, and the marking's were unique. She thought it was intriguing. And felt as if it called to her. So she figured she needed it more than the trader did. Emilia walked back listening to Darius. She had been petting Ezra. "So, we either continue for Everia...Or go back..." she had said thinking. "We only have one more day then we'll be at Everia...but The Crow's seem to know something that we don't...So..." she sighed. "If we go back Everia may not have any information, and the Dark Mage may have been through there...we could get his whereabouts...but then again the Crow's could just take us right to him..." Emilia had probably weighed every possibility. "Let's go back...We can figure out what's going on then." she had said looking to Ezra. "I know your Tired Ezra, but we need to go back." she said As he lowered himself so that the two could mount him. Once they got on Emilia hung onto Ezra. "Let's go." she said as he began to lift off, and take off back to the Slave City.

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The men took a step back at how quickly they were disarmed. It was... definitely not was written on the reports. "Y-you're Emilia, aren't you?!" One of the men cried out. "The reports said you were virtually powerless when you weren't around the dragon..." Darius grabbed the set of fire bottles and followed Emilia out. "Hey... nice job out there." Darius raised his fist for a knuckle touch from Emilia and the two headed out of the post to talk to the men. He had no idea where the middle-aged man was.

One of the men smiled slyly, as if he was expecting this question. "Ah, yes. We are The Crow. We designate who is next to die. And it just so happens you two are searching for a master of ours." The other man began to speak up. "Sadly, we can't give you any information. The Crow is very locked up and breaching any of it is near impossible." Darius spat on the ground and kicked one of the men and he ended up rolling back. "Fine. I'll just have to do to you what everyone else does that doesn't answer." Darius' shadows began to dance, showing that he was going to use his demon powers. "We have no information. We don't even know where the base is. You're getting nothing for beating us!" The man roared. Darius gave a sigh and looked back at Emilia. "You should tend to the Dragon. And can you give this to that horny man?" Darius gave her a few silver coins to pay for the fire bottle. "I'll come to you when I'm done. You... might not want to see what I'm going to do to these guys." Darius dragged the men as far from sight as he could. Occasional screams whistled in the wind.

Darius returned to the post to talk to Emilia. "So, it was true. They don't know... anything." He gave a sigh. "Though I found out that they were going to meet somebody else who's in The Crow in that slave town we were just at. We could get information there, or we could keep going. You know, since we don't know how much longer Erza has. It's up to you."

Join date : 2013-07-22 Age : 31 Location : My house. ;o

Emilia began to listen as the two talked. Both men seemed annoyed with eachother. Emilia heard that the man wanted to "borrow" her for the night. How dare he disrespect her! She became furious but Darius handled the situation. She smiled at him when he joked about it afterwards. Though it made her wonder. Were the two dating? Or not? She really didn't consider them dating. And really didn't think that it was a good idea for them to. So maybe she could just leave it at that. She walked into the back area of the storage to see a bunch of antiques and what not. But they were given a few select items. She decided to let Darius decide and went through the Trader's other items finding a long sword that seemed to call out to her. "oooh this is beautiful!" she had said picking it up. When she turned back two men just charged at them with swords. "What did we do?" she thought. Emilia jumped forward. "I'm tired of games!" she yelled and held her hand in front of her. A radiating light shone from it and blasted forward to the men. Shattering their swords. Emilia seemed furious. She kept the sword with her and ran forward taking the case of the sword in her hands and knocking the handle part of it into each man's stomach making him go down hard. She nodded seeming satisfied with herself at the fact that she didn't break any of the man's wares and cleanly finished the men off with no troubles. Except now her hand hurt from the sudden burst of magic. It never did that before. She wondered if it was her or the mage that was sapping her powers' doing. Emilia had dragged the men to the entrance of the Post and Ezra lowered his head looking at the men. He lightly grabbed the men with his claws holding onto them. Emilia wasn't sure if they could cast magic but Ezra holding onto them they shouldn't be able to now. Ezra lowered the men still holding onto them, but lowered them to the ground so Emilia and Darius could talk to them. She walked over sitting up on the desk where the Trader was still holding onto the sword she was obviously fond of. "Who are you two? And why are you attacking us?" she asked with a serious tone.

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"Hmmm? Don't tempt me now." He laughed and ran off when Emilia teasingly asked him to jump back into the water. It was surprising how both of them... despite everything that happened could still be quite happy. The three then headed out to the trading post.

"Hello, there ma'am." The man said in a rather monotone voice. He looked up in front to see the dragon... and just stared at him for a while. Though many would expect the man to jump and hide behind his desk, he nonchalantly tilted his head down and continued on his paperwork. Darius slammed his hand down on the desk. "Excuse me, sir. We were looking to buy a few items." Darius demanded. "Mhmm... You do realize this is a trading post, and not a marketplace, right?" The man played with the pencil in his hand before continuing to scribble down a few numbers. "Sir. We need supplies. And I'm sure there's a few trade carts running this way."

The man dropped his pencil and looked up. He looked like he was about to blow off. "Very well. I will sell you some goods I have in back. In return, you let me borrow that girl for the night." He creepily moved his fingers. Darius moved his arm in front of Emilia before she could blow off on the man. "That won't be necessary." He said sternly. The man gave a sigh. "Very well, but there won't be an discounts." The man grumbled and walked into the back. "You better not leave me for that guy." He chuckled.

In back, there seemed to be a lot of antique things. Many things useless. The man manuvered through much of the junk. "Uh, excuse me sir... We're just looking for adventuring supplies. You know, food, tents, all that good stuff." Darius pointed out. The man turned around and stared at Darius, clearly frustrated. Maybe it was because he wasn't going to get with Emilia any time soon? "Indeed. I will sell you those too. Though, I am generous enough to offer more of my wares."

On one table were some particular items. A ring that, once every day, would allow the magical capabilities of an individual to flow right out for a mere minute. A whistle that, when used would allow someone to call up an animal if their bond with the animal wasn't strong enough. A set of seven bottles that when thrown and broken, would ignite a large flame in a general area.

"You may only pick one. Originally these items were going to be picked up by a merchant but I am here to sell you one of those." The man left the two in the back and headed to the front where we continued his report, writing viciously on the paper.

A few men appeared in black hoods and covered in crow feathers, though these men appeared to be grunts compared to be the ones that chased Emilia and Darius down at the beach. They appeared before the man, whispering and asking if the man had seen the two they were looking for. After a few head nods and an exchange of coins for the man's "service", the three hooded figures walked towards the storage room where Emilia and Darius were at.

"Ah, there you two are." The men drew blades and charged at the two.

Join date : 2013-07-22 Age : 31 Location : My house. ;o

Emilia watched as Darius dragged her off the beach and they had moved to higher ground. When he asked how many could possibly be following them the girl shrugged. "I don't know...But we can't let them find us." she said as they had begun to leave back to Ezra. Emilia punched Darius' arm after he asked about Sylvia the mermaid. "If you liked her so much then why don't you just jump back in the water for her." she had laughed a bit. Everia was half away across the country and the trading post wasn't too far from Everia. But Ezra had been tired from the flying so Emilia and Darius had no choice but to head to the trading post. Emilia saw the man that handled traders and made a weak smile. It was odd. Seeing two young adults walking what seemed out of no where, and oh yeah...The giant dragon who looked as if he was hungry all the time. "Hello sir." Emilia had said greeting him as the three got closer. The girl brushed her hair out of her face and held a friendly smile.

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Darius lightly laughed like a school girl for a second when he was flocked with girls. He shyly bit his tongue with a smile when the mermaid asked to stay with her. "N-no, I don't think I can." Though from the tone of his voice, it was a completely different answer. Once the mermaids were scared off, Darius let out a sigh of relief. He looked over at Emilia with a smile. "Aw, come on. If you want me to be yours, Emilia. You gotta be more assertive. Should've kissed me in front of all of them." He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and was able to knuckle her head playfully, until the dragon went berserk. And boy, did he go berserk. Quickly, he was swept up in the current and were back at the beach as the dragon took in a gulp of fresh air. They dismounted, and just like that, they were given another city to visit. Darius was sure that Everia, by legend, was far away from here. Halfway across from the world, even. And judging from what the two had gone through, Darius was sure that the trip to Everia wasn't going to be a pleasant one.

Then, he noticed it too. Darius looked around the shoreline to see many... many footsteps. "We need to move." He demanded with great urgency. "We need to move now. I don't know if they actually saw us or just ran by, but the fact that someone was so close to this isolated place..." Darius couldn't finish his thoughts because he didn't know what was going to happen. "Erza can stay here and rest up a bit from the strange attack. Emilia. You come with me." He said, and even a bit forcefully grabbed her hand to pull her along.

The two traveled up the side of the cliff to see if they could get an aerial view of the beach, but there was no one found. Darius' spine tingled quite a bit. "T-there can't be that many people chasing us, right?" Darius' hand tightened around her fingers. He then looked at Emilia. Poor girl. She had lost a lot of her magic potency. How did she plan on defending herself with an injured dragon? "Well... I'm not too sure whose chasing us, but it seems like whatever we're getting into... we're getting into this together." Clouds seemed to have slowly devoured and filled the skies, and the waves began to slash heavily against the shoreline.

"Uh, by the way... what was that mermaid's name again?" He asked with a teasing smile. "Ah, alright. Let's go. Erza must be ready for us. I've heard that we can stop by a small trading post there. Maybe we can catch some traders and buy a few supplies from them."

---

The humble post was nearly a small one-room building. It had a counter and sat at the side of a road. The post sat on a large plain, with only grass for as far as a mile. In it, was a middle aged man handling a trade cart that had just driven by.

"Yes, yes. Do proceed with caution though. I hear there's been a storm coming up North." The man waved off the trader and awaited the next trader. Though, he would soon realize his next guests... weren't quite traders at all.

Join date : 2013-07-22 Age : 31 Location : My house. ;o

Several of the mermaids With Sylvia leading them had entered the domain Swimming straight to Darius. Sylvia was pretty much all over him. "Why do you have to be with Emilia? I think you should be here with me." the girl suggested with a smile. Emilia sighed. "Hey, Sylvia, Ezra thinks mermaids taste good." she had said happily. Ezra turned to the mermaid with hungry eyes. "Eep! Well, Okay I'll leave for now..But next time promise to stay a little longer okay?" Sylvia asked Darius and gave him a quick kiss before swimming off. Emilia had looked to Darius seeming upset then turned back to Valerie. "We should really go now, Ezra can't-" before she could finish her sentence Ezra cut her off. A sharp pain seemed to come out of nowhere And he roared as loud as he possibly could. Emilia leaned forward holding onto him. "Ezra no! Calm down!" she cried. Valerie moved away as the Dragon seemed to lose his calm and in pain, and anger had rather showed his rage. His tail swung powerfully hitting pillars thankfully, they weren't completely knocked down. Valerie called out. "What's wrong with him?" she asked to the couple. Emilia was worried. "He's poisoned, and he can't breathe underwater he's losing air!" Valerie had seemed shocked. "Vaati!" she called the Water Dragon had swam over to her. Valerie climbed on and the two moved over to Ezra. "We need to get you to the surface before he runs out of air." Valerie had said before laying her hand on Ezra's nose. Immediately he calmed down. But seemed weak. Valerie held her hands up. It seemed as if she created a current. Because the three were immediately swept out of the throne room and forcefully taken to the surface. Valerie stayed by their side with Vaati until they made it to the surface. Ezra gasped for air and Emilia hugged him. "Oh Ezra! I'm glad your okay." she had said hugging him. Valerie had smiled. "So, your Dragon is poisoned? Can you heal him? Or is that why you are looking for the Dark Mage?" Valerie asked. Emilia shook her head. "My powers are no longer strong enough to Heal Ezra..I need to reverse the Dark Mage's power sealing, so I can help Ezra." she explained. Valerie nodded. "Well then-" she jumped off Vaati moving to Darius and Emilia taking the Dragon Scales from them. She moved to Ezra and rather forced them into his mouth making him swallow them. "That will help for awhile. I hope you find that Dark mage...I think your next stop should be Everia, the elders there are very smart...maybe they can help you." Valerie had suggested with a smile. Emilia nodded. "Thank you Valerie. We'll go visit Everia." she said as Ezra began swimming to the shoreline. Valerie nodded. And Moved back to Vaati who dived back into the water. Once they got to the beach Emilia untied the rope from Darius' ankle, then hers. She slid off the Dragon who collapsed exhausted from holding his breath so long and all the swimming he did. She saw foot prints on the sand. It wasn't there's...Ezra had made sure to blow the sand everywhere so it wouldn't show. She stood up and staggered to the foot prints. "Darius!" she called looking to him. "Some one was here while we were gone." she said worriedly.

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Darius felt a bit out of tune when the two began speaking. It was strange. Emilia claimed she was rejected by all sorts of people, but that didn't seem quite true. It seemed more so that she was only rejected by ordinary people. Instead, she was greatly accepted by anybody who had some sort of magical affiliation. Bailey Bones. Valerie. This Dark Male Mage. He finally looked up when he heard his name being called, and heard that Emilia wanted him out before the mermaids could get their hands on him. He looked at the window, and winked at the girls before walking off with his partner. "Awww... And I thought we came here to relax... and maybe meet a few people." He said in a rather happy, and joking tone. "I didn't know I would be such a hit for the mermaids. Maybe I should come back here some time." Darius smiled.

At this point, the poison slowly seeped deeper into Erza, causing an immense, but only momentary pain for the dragon.

Join date : 2013-07-22 Age : 31 Location : My house. ;o

Valerie had listened carefully and nodded. "Well, I'm afraid I don't know too much." she had said seeming sad to deliver news that wasn't exactly what they wanted to hear. She had begin swimming around the room. "But." she started. the girl had moved in close to the two. "I have heard that this Dark Man visited the city called Everia. It's popular among Elves. And now they have been stricken sick." she had said with a slight worried look. "I guess that's why I'm happy that I'm living underwater. He can't visit my people." she had said with a look of accomplishment. Emilia sighed. "Yes. The Elemental mages do have it special." she said with a laugh. Valerie had smiled. "Oh now Emilia, You are an Elemental Sage. Have you forgotten?" she had asked with a concerned tone. Emilia sighed. "I guess I have." The girl sighed her eyes became cold. Valerie sighed. "Aye, Well...another bit of information I have is just what I think." she had said to the couple. "The mage may be from the village You and I grew up in Emilia." Valerie rather suggested. Emilia seemed shocked. "That's possible...But...He uses Dark Magic...I don't remember anyone that used Dark Magic." Emilia wondered. "Neither do I. But I believe he has a dragon. And that is our cultural way...at once." Valerie informed. Emilia nodded. "That's good enough...We are only learning slowly about this Dark mage-" she had said looking to Darius. "-But We are learning important things about him." Emilia had said with a relieved tone. Valerie nodded. "Yes, well, I will have my mermaids keep an eye out for anything suspicious. I'll find a way to let you know if anything happens." she said with a smile. For someone that you'd think was intimidating she seemed to be rather sweet. Ofcourse Emilia was on her good side. So maybe that's why she seemed harmless. "Emilia, maybe you should ask the other Elemental Mages? Surely they would know something? Well, maybe if you run across one you can ask." Valerie had said smiling. Emilia nodded. "We should get out of here. Before these mermaids try to Keep Darius Under water..." Emilia said peering out to the window seeing a group of the mermaids including Sylvia looking through smiling at Darius. Only when Emilia's Dragon Ezra turned growling at them did they quickly swim off trying to avoid being a snack.

Join date : 2013-07-20

Darius felt a bit more comfortable on the dragon and thought they were going to fly off some place else. Then, he noticed that the dragon rose and appeared to descend. "Wait... Emilia..." His lips were dry. "Wait. Wait, wait! Wait-wait-wait-wai-" Despite his constant pleas, the three dove straight into the water. He first thought about trying to get free of the dragon but the ropes were tied. Geez, was Emilia really going to kill him?! He could've sworn he was choking on the water but realized after about a minute or two he just looked ridiculous. He tried to breathe, and he was able to! What sorcery was this? "Are. you. serious? An actual city behind here? Emilia, how do you just seem to know any mystic being and place in the world, I may never know." Darius looked at the city, conflicted if it was a sunken city, or if it had actually been built underwater.

Wow. His face completely flushed when he saw the mermaid who called him very cute. "T-thanks... you... too?" He said, rather embarrassed. Then, the mermaid said they would talk later. He gulped, and looked at Emilia after the mermaid left. "Uhhh... That hair looks good on you?" He awkwardly complimented her, hoping she didn't get too jealous of the mermaid.

Darius could feel the immense power of Valerie as soon as they entered into her domain. He would have been shaking (if he wasn't in water) from the fright he felt from the woman. Darius didn't even bother to joke when Valerie said he was Emilia's boyfriend. Really, what were the two? He looked at Emilia and zoned out for a bit. What... did she think about him? He slowly reached to hold onto her hands from behind, but then was interrupted when Emilia turned back at him. Flustered, he withdrew his hand. "Ma'am. We were looking for a sort of male mage that had the potency to seal Emilia's magic, as well as placing a curse on my town. We discovered he tried to help Bailey Bones escape her well prison, but we dealt with her. We don't have any leads at all, so that's why we're searching for somebody to tell us. Surely, the lady of the Seas has heard gossip from roaming marine life of this strong wizard?" he asked.

---

Several men arrived on the same beach Emilia and Darius were on. They all had a dark hood that covered their faces, and feathers coming from their cloaks that seemed to come from crows. Without saying a word, they looked at the footprints left in the sand, the large amount of displaced sand (perhaps a dragon?), and then the group stared into the ocean.

"Damn. They'll be out eventually. Let's go." A male voice said, holding his hand up. The cloaked men left, and following the man's orders were not only the group, but also a single crow.

Join date : 2013-07-22 Age : 31 Location : My house. ;o

Emilia had smiled as Darius seemed to think that he was so great. she had laughed lightly. "Oh Darius your cute, but you aren't irreplaceable." she had said. Setting up camp she heard Darius mention Valerie. "I don't know if she would know anything about it. She stays under water most of the time." she had informed him thinking about it. Laying down she heard his questions. What would they do after they finished this Quest? Would they go there separate ways? Would she and Ezra find out secrets that they had been searching for. She turned to see that he had fallen asleep and frowned. "I guess you'll find out when it happens..." she had whispered and soon she too fell asleep.

Emilia was rudely awakened by Darius. He playfully smacked her cheek. The girl jumped up and turned as if she was about to beat him. And Then realizing it was Darius she calmed down. "An adventure?" She asked yawning.

After eating Ezra growled. He seemed to be feeling a little bit of pain. But brushed it off as he stood up. Emilia had a grin when Darius asked her how they would find Valerie. and his next joke about the underwater city. "Well funny that you say that." she had said getting the rope around Ezra and climbed on the back of the mighty dragon. Ezra leaned his head down and gently picked the boy up and then dropped him on his back behind Emilia. She had the rope wrapped around Ezra's neck once. She wasn't worried, his neck was too strong for the rope it couldn't choke him. She tied one end of the rope to Darius' Ankle and the other end to her ankle. "Okay, Ezra...let's fly." she had said. Emilia hung on to Ezra tightly. "Hang on." she said to Darius. The Dragon Shot off the ground at a great speed blowing much of the sand away. They had flown higher than usual and flew over the water until it was deep...Extremely deep. Ezra began flying in a circle. "Okay...Dive." Emilia ordered. Ezra followed. He lowered his head and shot straight down. The wind rushed by as the sea surface kept getting closer, and closer until they completely ripped through the water it seemed. Ezra dove deep into the water and continued to go deeper. Emilia probably should've told Darius this but he hadn't needed to hold his breath. The water dragon scales allowed them to breathe. She forgot to mention that. Once they got to the ocean floor it just seemed barren. Except for a school of fish that Ezra had happily swallowed whole. Emilia looked around and began swimming away from Ezra She made it to the sea floor and held out her hand a light shone and shot forward. The floor began to rumble and any nearby fish swam away in a hurry. Rising from the Dunes was what seemed like a crystalized castle. Emilia swam back to Ezra and he moved forward to the castle. It was mysterious, somehow beautiful and so unreal. Emilia wondered if Darius even knew that this kind of stuff existed.

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As they Entered the castle it became more of a city. It was amazing. Emilia sighed. She had seemed to become annoyed as a figure approached them. "Hello." the girl had said. "I am Sylvia. A servant to Lady Valerie." she had said happily. The girl seemed to have a fish tail. Yes. She was a mermaid. The girl swam over to the couple. "You are very cute!" she had said to Darius seeming playful. Emilia sighed. "Sylvia, We wish to speak to Valerie." Emilia rather enforced her voice. The mermaid twisted in the water seeming aggravated by the girl. "Yes, Yes, I know you want to speak to her." she mumbled. "We can talk later." she had whispered to Darius giving him a wink before swimming off. The doors to the throne room opened shortly after she left and Ezra swam forward quickly entering the room. As they entered the first thing you would notice would be a water dragon that seemed to slither around the room.

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And a girl who was beautiful sat at a chair waiting for the three. As they moved closer the water dragon moved behind the throne chair and stayed by it's owner.

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"Emilia!" the girl exclaimed happily seeing the group. "My you've changed SO much, is that your boyfriend?" Valerie asked happily. She moved to them swiftly giving Emilia a hug, who hugged back in return seeming happy. "I'm surprised to see you here. In my home. Not to be rude, but you kind of are out of place." The girl said with a light laugh. Though she hadn't seemed to mind it. Emilia had nodded. "Well for starters, I haven't changed that, much. and This is Darius. We're traveling together until we've found what we've been looking for." she had said with a serious tone. Valerie nodded. "Okay. And what have you so kindly visited me for?" she had asked with a smile. Emilia had turned to see what Darius would say. "You should ask her." she suggested.

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"T-the White Mage?" Darius could barely speak after he heard it. There were legends about the man, but many of them were banned from speaking about for some odd reason in his town. It was like the man was famous... but no one knew what he was famous for. "Well, great. A village that raises dragon tamers and to top it all off, they can cast magic." He laughed, though he was a bit jealous. Well, who wouldn't want to ride a cool dragon while casting magic? ...Maybe not Darius, because he didn't know if he was ever going to not get sick riding the dragon. He watched as Emilia handed him a beautiful scale. Sure, he wasn't too sure what he was going to do with it, but if Emilia told him to hold onto it, it must be important. He put it in his bag.

Darius looked up at Erza after Emilia left and gave a shy smile. "...So, do you like fish?" He asked sheepishly. Then, a sudden embrace from behind. His fingers reached up and lightly grasped hers, glancing at Erza to see if he got any approval for doing this. He gave a please-don't-burn-me face to the dragon. "It sounds a bit sad, but since the people I've grown up with sort of deserted me, you're the only one I have. Well, you and Erza." He chuckled when she said that she was going to bury him. "Oh please, Emilia. I'm too graceful to get caught by you." He turned his head to face the girl. "Besides. You wouldn't kill something this handsome right?" He closed his eyes and lightly planted a kiss on the girl's lips as if they were already a couple and turned back to the fire as though they shared these sorts of moments all of the time. Of course, that wasn't quite true.

"Let's set up camp. I want to see this Valerie chick tomorrow. you think she has any leads?" He thought for a few moments. "I hope we're not going in circles, and we can actually figure this out..." He began to set up sleeping bags and when everyone was settled in, getting ready for bed nearly two hours later, he blew out the fire. Darius found himself quite snug in his sleeping bag, and rolled around for a while. "Hey. What's going to happen once this is all said and done?" He turned towards Emilia. "I mean, you get your powers back and I'm not victimized anymore." Darius asked this last question, and found himself slowly drifting off to sleep.

---

Darius was the first to wake, and searched the tropical trees to find a few coconuts that they could eat and drink out of. He was cautious to not wake them up. The sun was still rising by this time. When he thought Emilia had enough sleep, he leaned down to lightly rub her cheek, then playfully smacked it. "Wake up, sleepy head. We're going on an adventure." He said with a large smile.

Darius tossed Emilia and Erza some of the food he savaged from the wild, and waited until they were done. He stood by the shoreline. "How are we supposed to find this Valerie? I hope she's not living in some sort of underwater city or something." He said half jokingly, half seriously.

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Emilia made a weak smile. She wasn't the kind of person to.tell an autobiography. But she liked the idea of being a mystery. Though she didn't really know why. When Darius kissed her forehead.the girl had blushed completely. She followed him out of the water. She had stayed near the shore for a bit searching for something. When she found what she was looking for she left to Darius and Ezra. She heard his question. She and Ezra exchanged looks. Emilia had smiled. "Since birth. See, My dad was the greatest mage in the land. The White Mage. And in his town everyone was paired withe a domesticated dragon. Yes, Ezra is domesticated but he still acts wild at times." the girl said with a laugh. She walked over petting the Beast. "Ezra and I were paired together. And we have been close. Closer then any other friendship I have witnissed. Ofcourse the Village I lived in is long gone now. And no dragon breeders exist anymore..." the girl had said leaning against her friend. "My culture has perished along with that town. For many reasons. Some were the same reasons that made you poison him." Ezra curled.his head around to Emilia rubbing against her he had seemed to giving her attention. Emilia had smiled. "Oh Ezra! I love you." she had said hugging him. The girl walked over to Darius and knelt down. "Look at these." she had said holding her hands out. In her hands layed two dragon scales that were a very bright blue and even seemed to shimmer. "Valerie, who is an water mage lives very deep in the waters of this beach...She has a dragon. Shes beautiful and her name is Nami. These are a couple of scales.shes lost. You should keep one. Its very good luck to have a elemental dragon's scale." she explained handing him one. The other she had taken to a bag where she retrieved more clothes and put the scale in it. She had ran back to Darius falling on her knees behind him. And wrapped her arms around his shoulders. "All in all...Im kinda glad I met you...But if I.cant help Ezra you will be buried right.beside.him." she had said so lovingly.

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Darius listened to Emilia while she told her tale. It must have been hard surviving. "Well, I can't say people really knew who you were. Because if they did, they'd like you as much as I do." He tried to lighten the mood. "Though, I feel like you're not telling me all about your past. You're quite a mystery, Emilia."

Darius didn't seem to flinch but rather talked as if it was nothing strange about the entire topic. "Who knows. I sure don't. Back in my village, it was believed that I was born from an incubus mating with a whore. They... found me on the streets." He glanced up at the sun before it blinded him. "But, I've got red eyes and I can control shadows. So I guess I am one?" Darius spoke with uncertainty. He wasn't too sure what she meant by the fact that he fought like a demon. "I've never seen a demon. Not too sure I even want to get near one. Heard they're mighty scary."

Darius smiled. Once he was done with the girl's embrace, he looked her straight in the eyes and leaned in slowly. He closed his eyes and it appeared to lean in for a kiss. Instead, he planted a kiss on her forehead. "I'm curious as to what that is." Darius lightly flicked her nose with his fingertips. "Now come on. I'll make us some dinner."

He left the water and began to set up a small fire where he had a few vegetables from his garden and a bit of meat. They would eventually have to find more food, but for now, it wasn't an issue. Darius poured these ingredients into a large bowl that he cooked over the flames, faintly illuminating the entire beach. "So, how long have you Erza known each other?" He asked, though his eyes were steadily focused on stirring the soup.

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Ezra had seemed happy with himself for pushing Darius off. Emilia had laughed a bit as the boy began splashing her and she had done the same to him. She had hugged him back and watched as he floated. His last comment made the girl laugh. "No." she had said with a smile. "I'm shunned. I am not welcomed in most cities. and almost everyone knows who I am." she had said as she lowered into the water. "Not many people were fond of my father. And my mother lost her powers and became a slave. People think that I am just pure evil. or bad luck." the girl had said watching the small waves. The water glittered in the light. It seemed so beautiful. She had moved closer to Darius. "While you were in the well...the auctioneer met me. He said that you were the one I should be worried about...He said that you were half demon or something...Is that true?" she asked him. She quietly moved her arms around his shoulders. "Your eyes are crimson like one...And when you fight...you seem like one..." the girl had said as she moved her hands and placed them on his cheeks looking in his eyes. "I guess...maybe I should be afraid of you...but Im not...there's something about you that I really like." she had said blushing a bit.

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Darius quickly looked at Emilia to see that she was just tired and needed something to lean on. He quickly stepped forward, clearly angered that they weren't getting information. "Well, maybe if I knock you up a bit more, you'll actually remember something!" He yelled, but then found that he had to calm down. He listened, though a male mage didn't really help at all. There were perhaps millions of male mages out across the world. Then, came information about his drain magic. "That's ridiculous!" He said, wondering if the mage could do the same and drain any magical essence out of Darius. "Well, I guess we should head out then." He said, and left holding the girl's hand. And was he glad to get out of that well.

There weren't many words exchanged between the two, but he figured that Emilia was going to do something. He didn't have to wait long, and saw the dragon completely burn anything inside the well. The distant crystals that were previously lodged in the cavern could be heard shattering- or at least an echo of them being shattered. "You're so hot." He said plainly, lightly ruffling through her hair with his hand. Darius had meant hot by the dragon's breath, but it was completely up to Emilia as to how she interpreted it. The two mounted the dragon, and Darius tried to show that he wasn't scared- but he was.

He wasn't too sure how hard he gripped the rope, but he was sure that his forearms completely stung after the dragon dismounted near a beach. "I-Is there a dragon that can... fly better?" He asked, and received an answer of the dragon once he flew off and nearly backflipped off of the dragon. His landing... not so elegant. "Ezra! What the heck!" He probably deserved it. Darius stood up and dusted the sand out of his attire, as well as any sand in his teeth. "W-wait. W-what?!" Darius was confused, but he wasn't sure if it was Emilia's statement or just the fact that he was tossed off the dragon. "I don't even have anything to swim in!" He complained, and completely flushed up when the girl began stripping away her layers. Soft, smooth skin. Curvy, too. Dang it. He thought, and finally gathered the courage to take off his shirt and find a spare set of shorts he could use as trunks.

Darius headed into the water, and immediately he could feel how cold the water is. "A-ahh!" He nearly jumped. But eventually, he got used to the water and began splashing Emilia with the water. When the sparkling water splashed on her, Darius took a quick glance or two at the girl, hoping she wouldn't catch him looking. He was a gu, what else was he supposed to do? Then, he suddenly jumped lightly tackled the girl into the water. The two emerged out of it, and he was hugging the girl, though more so in a friendly way. He reached up and brushed the hair out of Emilia's face. After letting her go, and casually floated against the water. "Wow. You like swimming too? Geez, I bet a lot of guys would kill to go out with someone like you." Darius said playfully.

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Emilia had watched Darius take the woman down. For a moment what the Auctioneer had told her before she leapt into the well had rang through her head. But she ignored it. The girl stood up and walked to Darius and Bailey. She lightly held onto Darius to make sure she wouldn't fall down. The Old woman said nothing. She seemed to rather die then give information. Emilia had sighed. "Bailey Bones." she had said the name somehow with a kind tone. "Are you the one who cursed the village not too far from this well?" she had asked the old lady.
"I did not curse The village that you are talking about."
"Really? Then...did you have something to do with the...kidnappings?" she asked in response. Bailey shrugged. "I have a hard time remembering, after an elder gets punched by a bratty demon-child..." Bailey Bones had said looking to Darius. Emilia had made a weak smile. "I believe you know very well. Someone has been feeding you. And I know very well what your diet is...Someone's been kidnapping people from that village for you." she had said to Bailey, knowing the truth. The woman had slowly nodded. "Yes, for a month now. I have been finding my kind of food being dropped in the well. I thought I would be dead...but he has been so kind as to help me in my time of need." the woman said with a small laugh.
"He?" Emilia asked.
"Aye."
"Who is He?" The girl asked curiously.
The woman shook her head. "The Mage you two are after no doubt." she had responded. "He's a very powerful man, or atleast that's what I felt from the Aura he gave me." she had said with a smile. Emilia had looked to Darius. "So..." Emilia started and had knelt down to Bailey Bones. "This...Mage...Has he ever spoken, to you?" she asked. The woman had nodded. "He had came to the well one day, and said that he would be leaving for awhile to take care of errands. He said, that He would give me extra food, so I could get my powers back, and get out of this well. So I could do a favor for him, and if I did do the favor for him, in return, he wouldn't take my powers from me." the woman explained. Emilia stood up. "He drains people's powers..." she turned to Darius. "My magic is probably weaker because I'm in his territory, If we meet him he can physically take them away for good." She had seemed nervous now. "What was the favor?" she had demanded from Bailey Bones who in response shrugged. "He did not say." she had answered. Emilia sighed. "Let's go. We got all the information we need from her." Emilia had said As she turned leaving Bailey tied. She took Darius' hand and left back to the entrance of the Well. "Ezra, pull us up." she had said taking hold of the rope and made sure Darius was holding on to it as well. As they were pulled up Emilia climbed out of the well and helped Darius out as well. Emilia sighed. She took Darius a distance from the well and snapped her fingers. The Dragon had stood. He inhaled as much as her possibly could. And moved his mouth over the well and exhaled. Fire spiraling crazily down. It engulfed the whole well and cave. Emilia stood with her arms crossed. The Dragon finally stopped. And walked towards the two and lowered his head. Emilia pulled the rope from her bag and slid it under the Dragon's neck. When the two climbed on Emilia had put both ends of the rope in Darius' hands. "They don't make Saddles for dragon's so I figured this would be the next best thing. " she had said as the dragon lifted off the ground. While they flew Emilia leaned back resting her head against Darius. "Well, it's getting late. We should rest somewhere." she had said as Ezra made a sly turn. They soon found themselves landing on a beach shore. It was hidden well as they were on lower ground and the sight of woods had discouraged anyone going near the edge of the cliff to see the Beach. Emilia slid off the Dragon taking the rope rolling it up, and placed it in the bag. Ezra had turned it's head to see Darius and blew air at him making the boy fall off him. Even though it seemed mean Ezra had seemed to be playful. Emilia had looked to the water and smiled. "Darius, swim with me." she had said as she began to take her clothes off. To where she was wearing her under clothes only. The girl ran into the water jumping in once it was deep enough. After a moment her head popped out of the water. "Come on!" she exclaimed with a smile.

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"The more you know, the more information I'm going to get once I beat you to a pulp." Darius cracked his knuckles and smiled at the woman in anticipation of the battle. He was happy to see Emilia, though was unsure of what, or how she was beat down so easily. "Hey! Get off of her!" He roared, elbowing the woman in the neck, then picked her off of Emilia. He leaned down and lightly hugged his partner. Then, he looked up. "No one hurts my Emilia." After setting her on the ground, it seemed as though he began to fade into a shadow until it looked as though he faded completely out of existence. Then, the shadows behind Bailey Bones materialized into a figure. But, it was too late. Darius sucker punched the woman the moment she could even turn around. "Stupid witch. Couldn't even use any magic." He said, seeing the witch slowly fade out of consciousness. Darius made sure to tie both of her hands together to prevent her from escaping.

"Emilia!" He then turned his attention to the woman and ran over to help her up. "What were you doing there? Letting her beat you down like that?" He said with a smile on his face that told her that he was more happy that she was alright rather than angry. "Now, let's go interrogate this witch." He walked on over to the witch and slapped her a few times to wake her up. "Hey. Hey. Wake up you old coot. We need information. And from what you told us before you got defeated, was that you had lots of it."

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Emilia watched as the man had dismissed himself. Why would he tell her that? She had sighed. Kneeling down she had jumped in the well quickly slamming her palms against the stone of the well. Emilia quietly climbed down the well.

Bailey Bones had growled feeling the punch of Darius. She had gotten back up. "You underestimate me." she hissed. "I have more strength than ever and I know more than you think." she had told the boy with a cackle. Emilia had finally climbed down the well. She walked along it until she heard the echoeing of Bailey Bones. She ran to the two and stood behind Darius. The woman's eyes widened seeing the girl. "You!" she had hissed seeming so furious. Emilia silebtly stood there Her eyes were cold. She had nothing to say. "It's about time you joined me in this cell." the woman had seemed happy. Emilia had turned away. "Either give us the information we need or This will definitely be your Grave Bailey!" she threatened. The woman became angry. "Why you little brat!-" she roared and lunged forward dragging Emilia down. The girl shreiked. "G-get off!" the girl cried. The old woman had angrily hit Emilia against the rocks. In response Emilia had cried out from being stabbed practically from the sharp edges. The woman stood up leaving emilia on the floor. "You are next." she had informed Darius. Standing up straight Suddenly, she hadn't seemed so weak anymore

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Darius seemed to not move an inch as the old woman emerged from her hiding spot she seemed very weak, if anything being old, but anything magical had to still be dangerous. "No, not quite. But you can have my fist as your meal." With that, he quickly sprinted up towards the woman and allowed his shadow to cover around his fist, forming brass knuckles that he used to hit the woman in the face. "You are obviously not the person I am searching for. Though I'm sure you might want to share with me some information." He said with a determined calmness. His own shadow began to shift around him once more. He meant business. The woman was old and harmless. If she was down here for so long, she couldn't have any leads. "I'm looking for a folk as low as you. One that can weaken magic. The other can create diseases. Now, talk." He said, cracking his knuckles.

---

The former slave auctioneer tipped his hat and walked away in silence. Similar to how humans often shared the trait of being compassionate, demons shared the trait of being merciless. One day, the auctioneer was sure, Darius would become cold-blooded. And maybe even too cold-blooded for that girl. But, who cared about those two? He had a revolution to attend to. With his dismissal, the man tossed the cigar on the ground and promptly stomped it out.

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Emilia had tied the other end of the rope to Ezra to make sure there would be no accidents. "I'm sorry Darius, I'll be down too in a moment." she had said as he decended into the Shadows. Emilia heard a voice and turned to see the man from before. She seemed cautous, she wouldn't let her guard down this time. Hearing the man she shook her head. "I do not care." she had replied. "Darius and I are meant to travel together, so we can help eachother, you would be wise to go back to your city before My Dragon makes a snack out of you." the girl threatened and turned back to the well. She leaned forward and held a hand out. A ball of pure light formed and seemed to drop to the bottem of the well. She could see the entrance to what she guessed was catacombs, or something like the underground railroad. Though she couldn't tell. The Orb of light moved to where Darius had stood and lightly sinked into the ground. As it did the crystals that were in the walls and floors began to radiate very slowly fading back to their normal light.

As Darius had summoned Bailey Bones He could hear a woman cackle. It was uncomforting. The raspy voice of a old woman could be heard echoing through the elaborate well. "Bailey Bones, Bailey Bones, Bailey Bones, Bailey Bones!" she yelled. The woman had moved out from behind a rock. She had seemed so old, Her white hair was withered like a plant. And her eyes were such a light blue, you would think that the woman was blind. She was practically dressed in rags and seemed filthy. "You...are no kid, but I am hungry and I have not eaten in a good few days." she had said with a disturbing laugh. Few? She was locked in there for a month, someone had been feeding her. the woman saw Darius' eyes and her grin became even wider. "You must be a demon child, not loved by no one are you?" she had asked stepping closer. A dark feeling just radiated from this woman. She began to move to Darius slowly. "Why have you come for me? A helpless old witch, with no future but to hear the silence of stones, or hear the echoing of the water that drips from the ceiling...Why have you come here? Are you my meal?" she asked crazily.

Emilia had heard voices. She seemed scared and nervous. "Ezra, if you hear Darius Scream you make sure to pull him up." she had said as she helped her self up on the well. She was getting ready to jump down it.