Deep in the forest called Gloomwood, Rianna sat, her back against one of the planar trees. The patch she usually wore across her eye was gone, revealing the icy blue iris, mismatched with the clear emerald green of her 'normal' eye. Not that it mattered - no one was nearby, and only the creatures of Gloomwood could see her clearly, just as she, with her expanded pupils, could also see them. It is good to be feline, she thought mirthlessly. Good, yes. Good in the sense that she could hunt better than most, and that she could see more easily in the darkness. This darkness, however, bothered even her, a woman of the shadows. It seemed to close in around her, stifling her senses. But still she sat, lanternless, lightless.

After a while, she dozed off, her breath coming in slowly, evenly. The blackness closed in around her, a comforting blanket that held her in her light sleep. Abruptly, what seemed, to her, to be only minutes later, Rianna jerked awake, her eyes flying open. The dream - a memory of her past - was lost. What had it been about? She sighed, trying desperately to remember. All that came to her mind was a dim lantern, a flash of light... and then it was gone; the memory, the dream, faded from her mind.

The mental image of a lantern was soon replaced by an abnormally large rodent that seemed to almost slither across the ground. Lian. The word rose to the surface of her mind, and she instantly recognized it for what it was - the name of the creature. But... she hadn't learned that since her return... had she? Frowning, Rianna watched the ugly creature as it left, ignoring her presence entirely. Lian. One of the creatures the umbra hunted in the wild. Umbra, of course, she already knew about. In many towns she'd passed through, they were the basis of all talk. Umbra had appeared with Balefire and Gloomwood. Of course, Rianna knew that, too. She'd awoken in Gloomwood that fateful day so long ago. Awoken to an umbra female, who'd watched her until the changed woman, scared and alone, not knowing who or where or what she was, fled the forest and stumbled across the city of lanterns.

Rianna sighed, shaking her head, and rose to her feet. So many memories of Balefire, more of Gloomwood itself. But before the first memory of Gloomwood... nothing. She could remember nothing. She knew her name only because she'd found an inscription with her things. Over the years, she had found out more about herself, from experience... but not enough. Not nearly enough. So now she returned to her 'origins', to see if any memories would surface.... any at all.

Vernon was not liking Gloomwood or Balefire very much. The city of Balefire was by far more less impressive that the city of Taras. At least Taras had the filthy bloodseal tavern, and slums. He didn't even have too many people out in the streets to pester. The darkness was very annoying. He could see somewhat in the darkness, but not as well as in the light. The city seemed to creepy with it's stillness, and darkness.

He doubted Gloomwood would be any better, but he was bored and felt liking looking over the place. He heard that if he could catch an umbra and tame it would fetch for a lot of money. He doubted he would be able to tame one let alone catch one, but his main goal was simply to explore thr woods.

Vernon walked into the woods without a lantern or torch. No source of light was needed or would even help much in the choking darkness. He brought little more than the clothes on his back and his backpack filled with rotten food that had a smell that almost could compete with his own. Despite what one would normally think of such a creature, Vernon's sense of smell was more or less sensitve. There were just few smells that he found offensive.

Vernon soon grew tired of the noises he was hearing near him. Whether it was his imagination or not something seemed to be ruslting through the grass every now and then. He would look around but see no trace of an creature. Vernon climbed up one of the twisted trees and decided to take a break. He rested on a thick branch as he leaned against the trunk. He rummaged through his bag and pulled out a hunk of cheesse the had been stale for the last few days. Mold grew along the side. Vernon stuffed the hunk of cheese into his mouth and crumbs rolled to the ground.

Rianna stretched her lithe form, arms pushing out to the sides, her back arching at what seemed to be an impossible angle. Several of her vertebrae popped, causing a sensation that was none too pleasant, though she ignored it, yawning instead, her tongue stretching out and curling in a manner all too familiar of a feline. After a moment, she rose to her feet, one hand shaking out her cloak. Dust and leaves filtered down to the forest floor, mingling with the undergrowth already on the ground. She watched another lian move through the trees. Her lips pulled back into a snarl, revealing her six very sharp teeth. The muscles in her legs bunched up as she shrank into a semi-crouch, and then she pounced, her long nails digging into the flesh of the rodent, which squealed and tried to run. It was fast, and amazingly strong, dragging her several feet before the wounds she was inflicting on its haunches affected it enough to stop it.

Her nostrils flared as the scent of fresh, warm blood reached her, and she shivered with pleasure, releasing the beast. Her eyes flashed as she watched the lian struggle to rise as she raised her fingers to her lips, her tongue darting out and licking the blood from her skin. Her eyes closed slightly, obviously enjoying the taste of the rodent's blood. Rianna sighed and allowed the thing to struggle away, not wanting to waste prey when she wasn't currently hungry. Besides, she might be able to follow it's scent and find it later, when she felt like a meal - that is, if another predator didn't get to it first.

It was only after the lian had gotten a fair distance away that she caught the first whiff of a rancid stench. Confused, she looked around, trying to find the source of the stink. It didn't work, as she couldn't spot whatever thing was exuding the odor, though she thought that it might be a carcass that another creature left unfinished. Showing her feline side in an unexpected way, Rianna dropped down to all fours and sprung forward in a pounce, following the scent. A moment of looking around and sniffing, and then another pounce, until she should have been right on top of the offending smell. But, to her consternation, there was nothing there. Frowning, she sat down, hands placed between her feet, her legs bent at the knees. Her head tilted to one side as she sniffed the air, still confused and trying to figure out what in the blazes was going on in Gloomwood.

Vernon took out a peice of meat he had been saving for weeks. He knew if he saved it much longer the maggots would have eaten nearly all of it. While the maggots did add an extra bit of taste to the meat, he would rather be eating rancid meat the just plain maggots no matter how plump and plentiful the maggots were. Vernon gave the meat a squeeze killing most of the maggots wiggling inside. Their juices mixed with the remaining juices of the meat rolleed down the meat. The juices dripped down onto Vernon's lap and the tree. The putrid juices rollled down the bark on the tree slowly making it's way down to the ground. Vernon took a bite the of the meat and let it sit in his mouth as he savoured the taste that was so glorious to himself. He sucked on it slowly chewing only every once. Vernon was not too happy to hear more rustling to disturb his "divine" treat. Vernon swallowed the peice of meat in his mouth and licked the rest of the juices off of the meat in his hands before putting it back in his pack.

Vernon then turned his attention to the sounds which seemed to grow louder as if something was appraoching. Vernon fingered his whiskers as he looked down at the approaching creature. Rianna pounced into veiw. She seemed to be looking for something. "Hey, there. What are you looking for?" Vernon asked after licking his fingers. His hands moved to his sling shot just in case she was not too freindly.

Rianna tilted her head to the side, and then looked up... and up... and up just a little bit more, until her odd eyes caught site of the... rat? She blinked. Her heavily booted feet slid slightly on the ground as she considered this new being. What was it? Or, more accurately... who was it? She rose to her feet and stood tiptoe, peering up into the tree. Her nostrils flared as she caught that aggravating scent again... and realized it was coming from this rat-like thing. "Well... I think I just found it," she replied, one corner of her lips twitching into a half-smile. She raised one hand and placed it on a branch of a nearby tree, steadying herself as she stretched her legs to their limit. "Uhm... who are you?" she queried, curiousity obvious on her face. It wasn't often that creatures such as this willingly wandered into Gloomwood.

The scent of blood floated up from her hands, and she paused, sinking back down to the ground, going back to cleaning her hands off, her rough tongue taking care of the blood left on her skin in little time at all. She ran her tongue over the back of one hand and then raised it to her face, wiping blood from her cheek. That done, she went back to her previous stance, her head cocking to the side, ears seeming to flick back. She caught the sound of movement in the brush behind her, but ignored it, wanting instead to speak to this new being... and figure out why i- he, smelled so... so foul.


<Sorry for taking so long. Wasn't at a computer for a coupla days.>

(It's okay)
Vernon took a better look at Rianna. She seemed Cat-like. Vernon had a dislike of cats. They were killers of his favorite spreaders of disease. They were killers of his favorite animals. Rats would spread diseases much more effeciently with a lack of cats, but every creature had it's predator, save himself, at least as far as he was concerned. Cats were not whole distestable though; there were ways to make them spreaders of disease, but it was far less efficent than the glorious rats who could plague town to their destruction in a week or less if let to do so unchallenged.

Vernon watched as she stood up. It was obvious by the flaring of her nostrils that she had been tracking him by scent. It was not a difficult task... if you had the stomach for it and most did not. Her reply did well to acertain his thought. Vernon was not one to read faces, but even he could see curioustiy set in hers. A few creatures he knew of would ask such a question before attacking. Surely it would not make sense to free your hands of blood only to redden your claws again. Vernon assessed that she did not mean her harm and his hands easied away from his slingshot. They soon found their way back to the large peice of meat that he was snacking on before. "I am glad you found what you were looking for. I am Vernon. May I ask who you are in turn?" Vernon smiled before taking another bite of his meat.

Her nostrils continued to flare as she leaned against the tree, standing on her toes, boot tips digging into the ground. Well, this thing was not dead, obviously, because it just spoke to her, and it even more obviously was not a lian, because, well... it just spoke to her. Her eyes widened slightly as she watched the ratlike creature for a long moment, amused curiosity flickering in her eyes. What amused her was the fact that a being that, did he not smell so terrible, would otherwise be considered prey.

She pulled herself up onto a tree limb and sat, one leg dangling down, peering up at him. "I am Rianna," she said slowly, watching Vernon with her eyes. Her right eye, pale blue, seemed to glow a little in the darkness, while her emerald eye looked completely normal."What's a being like you doing in a place like this? I would think you would dislike being here, what with the umbras and all." She tossed her head, flicking her hair back over her shoulder and out of her eyes. She blinked, her pupils forming briefly into tiny slits before they expanded again. She imagined Vernon wasn't worried about the umbra, though, for surely they would not like his scent. She could barely handle the odor herself, but she stomached it, if only just.

Vernon savored the taste in his mouth. It's taste was divine. Who would have thought one man's gaarbage one be the ambrosia for another or rather just Vernon. Vernon half heard Rianna's words. As he savored the peice of meat in his mouth her words seemed dream-like. Soon the heavenly treat could no longer be held in his mouth. He could not resist the temptation to swallow the rest of his meat. With meat on the way to Vernon's cast iron stomach, it's heaven;y spell was disppelled. Vernon looked to Rianna. She was no longer on the gorund, but sitting upon a limb of the tree. Perhaps his snack was too good to be snacking on at the moment when he was not entirely sure of his surroundings. Vernon returned the meat once again to his backpack, before returning his full attention back to Rianna and her words.

Vernon thought for a moment over her question. He could say he was out searching for an umbra, but it was evident that he hadn't given that much effort or he would have at least done something about his stench. Vernon put his hands behind his head as he rested against the bark of the trunk. The words, a being like you, were found slightly comical, for as much as he had traveled and as long as he had lived he had not seen a being like himself save when he saw his reflection. "I do dislike it, but it is still an intresting place to explore. Exploration is my motive for being out here. I have no fear of the Umbra. I hear creatures of darkness have other senses highlighted. What brings Rianna out into the dark woods?" Vernon replied. He wasn't exactly curious but merely returning her question.

She wrinkled her nose, watching him eat the foul, maggot-ridden meat, but managed to keep control of herself before she said something offensive. There was just no accounting for the taste of another being. Some, like her, preferred fresh, raw meat, sometimes cooked, but always fresh. Others liked it cooked only, salted and kept that way for a week or so. Others, like this Vernon... well... it seemed he liked his in various stages of decomposition. The rotten meat wafted a stench that nearly overpowered the rat-beings own, and she swayed on the tree branch, holding her breath for a moment and slowly counting to twenty. When he put the meat away, she nearly sighed in relief. What an awful odor! It was a wonder he could stand it, in her opinion - but, from what she could tell, he must have been smelling like this for quite some time, because the stench did not seem to bother him in the slightest.

"I come here because this is where I first awoke. At least, as far as I remember. Gloomwood is my home. I, too, have no fear of the umbra, but possibly for different reasons. I've not yet tried to capture and tame one, though." She paused, considering that for a moment. Why hadn't she done that? Would it be possible? They were cat-like in their own ways, and she was good with animals, generally speaking. Perhaps it would be possible for a cat-daemon like herself to tame a young umbra... if she could find one. "I come back here when I tire of the land of light. I've just recently returned from traveling, and will likely leave again in a day or so." The glow in her blue eye faded slightly as it returned to a normal shade. Rianna scooted forward on the tree limb, closer to the trunk, feeling the end bend a touch. She was heavier than it could handle that far out, it felt, and she did not particularly want to fall onto the ground beneath.

When she was first awoke? What was this girl talking about? Was she speaking of the first place she could recall being? Such thoughts were frivilous to hold on to, Vernon could certainly not even recall the time he 'awoke' as he understood the word to be. It required think back further than he wanted to, which wasn't much in the first place. Vernon wondered how anyone could call this place home, but knew that many wondered how anyone could call the marshes home. Vernon's attention was caught when she spoke of catching an umbra. Perhaps with her help he could catch one, but he didn't really feel like going out to catch an umbra at the moment and he doubted that it was likewise for her.

"You call Gloomwood your home. I'd rather the marsh any day of the week. It's too dark, and dark all the time. I take it by your reference to the land of light, that that is not something you worry so much about," Vernon Laughed. "Two questions if you don't mind, What exactly did you mean by 'awoke' and where will you be headed when you leave again?" Vernon asked with slightly more curioustity than the last question he asked.

(Eek.. sorry its short)

She shook her hair out behind her and leaned against the tree trunk, turning her attention briefly to the area around them. No sign of movement as far as she could tell, but that wasn't saying much. There could be anything down there that would be hard to spot, even with her eyes. There were certain types of darkness that her daemon eye could not penetrate. She smothered a yawn and turned her attention back to Vernon, mentally closing her nostrils against the smell that wafted toward her. "The marshes are okay. A touch too wet for my tastes, though."

Rianna paused, considering the darkness once again. "Oh, the darkness is stifling here, I agree. But I'm used to it. I can't see too far, sadly, but one day I hope to learn how to see further and better. From what I've heard, however, it can't possibly be as dark here as it is in the Underdark." The Underdark. A place she wouldn't mind visiting, just for the adventure of navigating the catacombs and underground rivers. She wondered how the Drow survived as well as they did, and imagined they had their own ways of seeing in the darkness. But she didn't know how to get into the Underdark... yet.

Now she listened to his questions. He was prying, it seemed, but she didn't care overmuch. "Well... I remember that, a few years ago... I woke up from what I thought was a deep sleep. I found myself here, in this forest, under one of the trees, with an umbra staring at me. Before that... I don't know. I remember very little. All I know is that I was here in Imythess... and then I was sent somewhere, and then... I woke up." She sighed, shrugging slightly, not sure of what else to say on that matter. On the other, however... "I'm not sure where I'd like to go next. Perhaps the mountains or something. Yourself? Where do you plan to go next?"


<Don't worry about it. Nothing wrong with being shorter than normal on occasion>

Sephiroth rode Artix slowly through the dark forest. He was wearing his cloak as he usually did but had no need to hide his face in the forest and so the top of the cloak wasn't hiding him as it usually did. His body was surrounded by a black aura which made it difficult even harder to see him in the dark. His undead army which was always with him followed closer than they normally did so that they wouldn't get lost in the darkness. Many of the undead where carrying torches that but their flame didn't seem to reach more than a few feet in front of them. Sephiroth stoped and cut a branch from a tree with his sword. Then he put his hand over it and a spark shot out from his hand almost instantely setting the branch on fire. "This should keep me from running into anything unexpected."

Sephiroth continued forward at a slow pace being carefull not to go to fast for his army to follow. They stoped every now and then to make sure that his army was still their and none of the undead had strayed from them. If he had his way he would have burned down the entire forest long ago but he had already angered the gods and didn't want to make his situation any worse. He suddenly heard a voice from his head.

(Zeratul)"Why did you bring us here? There is no reason for us to be here we should be assulting Cascadia not getting lost in a pitch black forest."
(Sephiroth)"The Umbra here are very valuable and can be trained to fight being a demon you should have known that." the voice was that of Zeratul a great demon of the underworld who fused with Sephiroth.

They continued on through the forest for hours until he could here voices from the shadows. Sephiroth stopped abruptly and the entire army almost fell over trying to halt before they smashed into him. Sephiroth turned around and glared at them he was his anger could be seen in his eyes even with the small light that guided them. He turned around and motioned to one of the undead who came up next to him riding an undead steed. He whispered into its ear as or what was left of it as quietly as he could "Have the men put out their lights, and not another sound or i'll have your head. The soldier nodded and silently rode back into the ranks. Almost immediately every torch was put out and the forest seemed darker than it had been since the first entered inside. Sephiroth krept down from the back of Artix and moved toward the voices as silently as he could. Sephiroth was close he knew that but with everything so dark he could be standing on top of them and wouldn't even know it. He thought about coming out and revealing himself to them but couldn't "What if the voices are from one of my enemies? What if they are from Aeri?" his thoughts kept him in the shadows he needed to know who these peaple where before he told them he was here.

"It is the wetness that makes it so glorious. Mosiqutoes and other blooksuckers breed rapidly in the swamp waters. Leeches. Mosquitoes. not to mention it is a good place for fungus to grow and spread," Vernon smiled in response to her comment upon the marshes.

Vernon doubted her validity. The darkness of the underdark was not magical. it would hinder their natural darkvision. While there was no source of light down there it at least did not belittle any light that came into it. "The Underdark, you mean the place where those stupid stuck up drow come form. I don't have a liking for them. I have had a bad run with them many a time," Vernon frowned.

Vernon could smell the faint smell of something delicous in the distance. A spell that few aside form himself could appreciate. He did not yet take full notice of it. It was still to faint to recognize. "Weird. I'm not much of a fan of the mountain's but I wouldn't mind a vist there myself," Vernon replied.

The smell was groowing steadily more powerful, but yet he could not recall what it was. Vernon sniffed the the air a few times before he went to answer the her question. "Myself, I inted to go b..." How could he have forgoten this was the glorious scent of the dead. Unfortunately for it to be growing so quickly they had to be the walking dead and in a large Qauntity.

Vernon took in a deep sniff of the air and turned his head in the direction of the upcoming army. "Rianna, the dead are walking. Care to join me a find out why?" Vernon asked as scrunched his nose and wiggled his whiskers. Without waiting for a reply, Vernon made his way through the trees. He did not want to take the risk of going on fooot.

"Being feline, I don't much like wetness," she muttered. For his comment on the Underdark, she shrugged. Having never been there herself, she could speculate only based on what she'd heard from travelers, most of whom had likely exaggerated on all of their tales. One thing she was sure of, though - it had to be as dark as Balefire, if not darker. She watched Vernon for some time, her head tilting to the side as curiosity got the better of her. Was he smelling something? She sniffed delicately, her nostrils flaring. She smelled blood first - that damn lian had found its way back. How it was still moving, she couldn't know. Under that warm, fresh blood scent, she could vaguely discern a faint, faint odor of rotting flesh, much like that Vernon exuded. That would explain why she'd not noticed it until he said something.

She reached up, grabbing a branch above her, and stood, peering through the branches of the tree. Nothing. She could see nothing. At his question though, she dropped back down, clinging to her branch with hands and booted feet. "I'm not sure it's the best of ideas, but why not? They always say curiosity killed the cat. This just might be my day," she said, mostly to herself, smiling wryly, dry humor lacing her voice. She waited until the rat-beast had disappeared, and then she dropped down to the ground, crouching on all fours. She followed his scent forward, whispering across the ground. She paused only briefly to wiggle her toes in her boots, and then moved onward once again, falling deliberately behind Vernon, not knowing what to expect.

Sephiroth listened as the two voices suddenly stoped. "Could they know I'm here?" Sephiroth started back for his army staying behind the tree trunks to stay out of sight when he realized their was something above him in the trees at the same time he heard something fall onto the ground, both were going streight in the direction of his army. Sephiroth could tell now that no one he knew was here since none of them except Ahren could have survived a fall from these trees and he would never have to a place like this. Sephiroth had to stop whatever was in the trees from reaching his army before him but that would be impossible on foot. He formed two fire balls in his palms and powering them with create spark he threw them into the trees. the plants immediately burst into flames and the entire forest around him lit up. Sephiroth turned around to see the creature that had fallen on the ground, it was cat like but no cats he new of looked like this "Could this be an Umbra?" he thought as he watched the creature move towards him.

Sephiroth turned his attention back up to the trees he could barely make out a figure in the tall branches.
(Zeratul)"Well is this what you dragged me all the way through this forest to find? What can we do with two cats? You are waisting time turn around and go back."
(Sephiroth)"I'll go back when i'm ready their must be more Umbra somewhere and if these are Umbra they may be able to lead us to more of the cats."

Vernon had to agree with her. It likely wasn't the best idea, but it was better than just sitting around ignorantly. Curiosity killed the cat, but at least they had nine lives. Vernon hoped that things didn't get too bad. Having no sense of smell or taste the undead were immune to his powerful stench. There was a good chance though that their master was not undead as them. There was still the question of why so many undead would be wandering amiss Gloomwood.

Vernon wathced as sephiroth sparked two fireballs in his hands. He quickly scampered across the tree braches when he saw the man's intent for them. Vernon was just out of the light of the fire, but He could get a good veiw of Sephiroth. Vernon quickly pulled out his slingshot and aimed at Sephiroth. He had been waiting for an excuse to put his new and improved bullets to work. The crossbow would take to long to load and was not as reliable a this distance.

Was this man the master of the undead? Was he the reason why the rotted walking treats fouled the woods? Was he someone trying to put an end to the undead? He could not shot and ask questions later. "Stop where you stand, intruder! Who are you to foul these lands with those who should have eternal rest? Answer of suffer a fate worse than theirs," Vernon demanded. He hoped Rianna would catch on and play along.

She blinked, cringing away from the sudden flash of light in the darkness. Her pupils slitted and then expanded again as they adjusted to the light the flames gave off. Rianna let loose a roaring growl directed at the man who had set the trees to fire. She tilted her head to the side, her ears flicking back slightly, and began to pace back and forth, her features elongating slightly, forming more into the shape of a cat. Her green eye shone in the firelight, reflecting the colorful flames, while her blue eye remained eerily dark. It was this one she focused on the man, narrowing it slightly in anger. "You bring death to the trees of Gloomwood with your flames! Have you no lantern to show you the way?" she snarled, her teeth glinting as she pulled her lips back. Her comment was sarcastic and ridiculing, to say the least, as this man obviously felt he needed light to see in the deepness of Gloomwood.

She looked up at Vernon, giving him a feral smile, and then faced the newcomer again. She had an idea of what the rat was doing, and she could play along, to a certain extent. Rianna tossed her head, her hair flying out behind her, an ebony mane. She loosed a gravelly laugh that seemed to fade into the forest, disappearing into the stifling darkness. "You bring the undead who disturb this forest. We have no need for the likes of them here!"



<Sorry for the delay. Been moving back into my dorm ^^; >

Sephiroth looked over at the cat like creature that was staring at him and watched it look up into the trees but it wasn't in the direction of the fire, the cat had looked up at something else most likely the second creature whatever it was. The Umbra he had heard about whih were the reason for his coming here were, from what he had heard, cat's and did not have the inteligence to talk. "I don't know who you are and I didn't come here to fight you but if it's a fight you want....." He stoped before finishing and grinned darkly, leaping back into the shadows he waved his hand into the air. Immediately their was a blinding flash of light that lasted for only a few seconds but it was more than enough time for him to slip into the shadows of the forest. Sephiroth created a fireball in both his hands and threw it at the creature standing on the ground, then ran through the forest in a circle around it so that if it tried to attack him it wouldn't know where he was. Unfortunately because of the tactic he had chosen to use he no longer knew where the beast in the trees was but for now it wasn't a threat, as long as he kept moving and stayed in the shadows it wouldn't be a danger to him. "You havn't seen anything yet, if you thought those simple balls of fire were dangerous then just wait becuase I have plenty of tricks that you'r going to love." Sephiroth used create spark on a small bush behind the cat then hoping she would mistake it for a fireball he was preparing to throw at her he ran through the forest again staying out of the light but close to the creature.

Vernon had seen many arogant jerks, but this one seemed to top the cake. It was evident that either he had not heard what they had said or that was obviously the master of the undead or atleast affiliated with them. Vernon was very angry with this man. He didn't even answer his question. The man's own reply had nothing at all to do with anything eiither of them had said. More so the man contridicted himself. It was obvious that this fool came looking for a fight or else he would attempt a more reasonable means of interaction. The man did not stop there in infuriating Vernon. Rather than charging Rianna like a fool he casted a blasted spell that was to say the least annoying. Vernon's green venomous eyes found Sephiroth after the fool coonjured another ball of fire to throw at Rianna. Vernon's aim followed him even when Sephiroth had no fire to light his way. Unlike Sephiroth, Vernon had darkvison. Vernon wondered at the Man's foolish tactic of running around in a circle. He wasn't exactly the most steathly person. He could have almost tracked the man by sound alone and was sure that Rianna's hearing was better. The man was atleast smart enough to stay away from the light of his own fires, but to dumb to know that his tactic availed him little good. Sure it was possible for him to go out of sight, but with both Vernon and Rianna, he would be in sight for most of the time. When Vernon saw the man stop, he decided it was time to act upon this pathetic maniac. His aim did not go for Sephiroth, but the branch above the crazed man. Vernon released his bullet. Not only would the splash of acid from the bullets contact hurt sephiroth, it would hinder the fire he made on the bush. "You could use a bath," Vernon called out feeling the need for a smart remark.

Rianna rolled her eyes and conjured a globe of darkness, leaping out of the way of the fire and settling down to watch the maniac. She absently patted out a fire on her cloak and sighed slightly. It was getting more and more worn all the time. She really ought to retire it. "I do hope you weren't planning on finding umbra, because the way you act, none of them would pay you any heed at all!" she laughed, washing her face with the back of her hand. She watched as he ran in his circle, her head tilted to the side, one eyebrow raised slightly. He truly was an idiot. Did he really think that she or Vernon would be in this forest without lanterns if they couldn't see in the darkness? Besides, the crunching noises he made were so loud she was certain a blind and deaf person would be able to find him with no problem.

Did he really think that she'd wanted to fight him? She yawned and moved off into a darker part of the forest, still in her globe, and sat down to wait. Obviously he wanted a fight, and she, disinterested, was not going to give one to him. It seemed Vernon was more than happy to intervene, however, and for that she was glad. It wasn't exactly easy to fight someone with a sword when trying to maintain spells so that she could hide and still see. Her grasp on magic was feeble at the most, though she'd been practicing for some time. She laughed at Vernon's remark and added one of her own. "Yes, you could use a bath. You smell worse than he does, and that's saying something, most assuredly!" Rianna allowed the globe to dissipate, satisfied that she was far enough away from the fire and could hide fairly easily now, and then pinched her nose with her forefinger and thumb, her nose wrinkling with mock disgust. Imbecile, she thought, shaking her head. No wonder he brought so many undead with him. No one would think him a credible foe otherwise.

Sephiroth looked into the forest but had lost sight of creature while he was trying to find it something hit the bush he had lit on fire and the flames were gone but something else landed on his shoulder and buned strieght through his clothes to his skin the sting of which was almost unbearable. "What was that? I'll have to be more carefull." Sephiroth walked out so that he was in plane sight from the light given off by the flames, since the creature on the ground seemed to have left their was no more need for him to hide in the shadows. Sephiroth looked up in the trees for whatever had fired that bolt at him. "Show yourself I don't need to see you to hit you." If he had to Sephiroth would burn down the entire forest to kill these creatures whatever they were. By this time Artix had come to see what was happening and Sephiroth got up onto the mares back and looked up for the creature in the trees waiting for it to show itself. Still interested in what had happened to the beast that was on the ground he looked around the forest to try and see where it had gone but even with the light of the flames he couldn't even see footprints on the ground it was like it had never even been their. "I will burn this forest to the ground if I have to but I will find you one way or another come out and show yourselves." Sephiroth looked around and waited for the two to show themselves.

Surely if the man were to have a working nose he would know Rianna's comment to be a nasty insult. It was possible that the man worked so much around the undead that Vernon's stench did not seem so bad. Ususal some would have commented on it by now in the form of an insult. This man was obviosly a fool. He had no reason to beleive his tactics were working for him. Even though he have the nightmare it would not help him much. He was fighting against two creatures which could easily be assumed as to well adapted to the terrain and darkness. Vernon knew that Rianna cared about gloomwood. He could have given Sephiroth Hell, but instead he would prevent the flames from spreading. Vernon fired two bullets at the first two fires the bafoon had made. The splach of acid after impact was enough to oust both of the fires. Now only one small fire remained. He could safely leave that one alone for a while and focus his the man who proved to be more a jerk than Vernon considered himself. "Idiot, do you think you can burn the forest without burning yourself. More so why do come here acting as if you hold power? As if you are some Lord or god. We have been light on you in hopes you may have been taken over by temporary insanity. As you may have seen we are masters of this realm, Foolish intruder. I shall give you one last chance to act peacfully, Fail to comply and I shall finalize the words I stated earlier," Vernon yelled out to Sephiroth. It would be nice if the man heeded his words, but he doubted that would happen.

Rianna sighed and shook her head, rolling her eyes at this strange man. If he set fire to the entirety of Gloomwood, it would surely spark an anger that would spread through Balefire. Gloomwood was the home of the umbras, among other creatures, some of which had perhaps also come from the shadow plane. Besides, who was he to say that he would find her or Vernon or anything else for that matter, even if he did set fire to the forest? They had their own tricks, and could quite easily escape if the need for it arose. For now, though, she was content to sit and watch Vernon at work. He was really quite an interesting creature, and seemed to have picked up an interest in protecting Gloomwood easily enough. She climbed into another tree and crawled silently along a wide branch, staring off into the new clearing where the man was. “Do you really think we will allow you to raze my home to the ground? Do you think this is the way you capture creatures of this land? You are sorely mistaken. We who see in the shadows need not light to see where we aim. You should give up now before you give up your life,” she growled loudly before leaping to another tree, purposefully rustling the leaves of her previous perch on her way out. It was a ploy, designed to make him think she was somewhere she wasn’t.

After a moment of cleaning, she moved to another tree, and another, circling around until she was closer to Vernon. At least, she assumed she was closer, because his distinctive smell had grown sharper. For a rat, he isn’t half bad, she thought, smiling slightly. Her dark hair fell into her eyes, half-covering her face. Her blue and green eyes stared through the limbs of the trees, narrowed sharply in an anger that she barely kept controlled. This man dared to come into her home, threaten her, threaten her home, and thought he had the right to do so. It was no wonder she was enraged, and more of one that she was actually managing, for once, to control it before things got out of hand.