vatheon | (no subject)

It had been a little while since Roxas had first arrived on this world, but it was still strange to him. It was hard to imagine his brother growing up here, in some isolated underwater city. Everything was so backwards, and most of the time he had to hide his powers behind a secret identity.

At the moment, he was at loose ends for anything to do, and just out taking a walk in the "normal" clothes he'd obtained. Although... they weren't bad, really. The checkers were kind of nice.

So far, she didn't seem to find someone whom she was familiar with. It was even more shocking that there weren't any Orerines whom she knew either. However, that didn't matter. She should find some shelter fi-

Suddenly, her eyes was one someone else. In the mist of her search, she didn't except to find a Ferines so quickly. It was a pleasant surprise as she made her way toward him.

"Excuse me, are you new here?" Time to get recruiting!

Roxas blinked, slowing his step to glance over at her. He hadn't seen the girl before, but he still assumed she was one of the local people. It wasn't like he'd made an effort to get to know very many of them.

"Uh, yeah. More or less."

"Then how familiar are you with this place?"

As said before looking around. If he was here, there should be many others.

"Are you the only one that's here?" Of course, she's assuming he's from her world.

He gave her a strange look at that, to hide the sudden feeling he had that she wasn't from this world either. People weren't supposed to know that.

"Of course not. The city's full of people."

"I see, then I suppose there aren't many like us are there?"

Or perhaps there are more. If there was a city nearby, it meant more of their kind. Although, she did have to wonder. Did he know who she was?

Perhaps he did; perhaps he didn't. Either way, Walter knew, and he was in near frantic search of her, as they had separated unintentionally. When he saw her from a distance, he saw, too, another person – someone with vibrant dark blond hair – and rushed on over.

"Shirley!"

And – Ferines boy, he presumed.

"...what do you mean, like us?" Roxas asked uncertainly. If she was from his home, he didn't know how she recognized him. And he didn't sense the same kind of power he had from her, so that wasn't it either. Maybe she was confused?

He looked over as another person joined them. A friend of hers, he guessed. He didn't see anything dangerous about being outnumbered, yet.

Before she could say anything else, she turned her head to said direction. It couldn't be...could it?

"Walter? Is that you?" She said before walking toward him. However, she hadn't forgotten about Roxas. Once she was by Walter's side, she turned to smile at him.

"That's right, have you heard the term Ferines before?"

Walter's attention quickly diverted from Shirley (having deduced that she was fine) to the youth. His gaze, though initially one of scrutiny, turned slightly less hostile but still firm when he heard her words.

He was aware of what Shirley must be intending, so for the time being, he kept quiet as a protective presence.

Roxas shook his head, looking from one to the other. If they both knew each other and weren't from around here, maybe that was just what they called people from their world?

"What's a Ferines?"

This was going to be a problem. When Roxas said that, that confirmed a few things. He wasn't from their world but that wasn't going to stop her from having him join her.

"Ferines are people from my world. They're being tortured and hurt everyday because...of other people." She gave a mumble. "More and more of our people are dying and we need all the help we can get." Oh how she wished that she could get her revenge on them but that was not the time.

"And I was wondering if you would be interested."

Of course he would be interested. He'd be a fool not to be.

Walter folded his arms, waiting for the boy's reply. Even if the answer seemed obvious to him, it was different this time around; for one, he apparently had no idea who the Ferines even were. That never happened. It was so simple.

Hm . . .

"That- sounds awful." But if she'd come to recruit help for people on another world, well... his place was with his brother. Maybe if he heard more about it, contacted home base, discussed with his team, then they could help. But he couldn't just fly off on a whim. She wasn't even supposed to know he had powers.

"But, I'm just a normal guy. Why me?"

"The answer is simple." She said before pointing to his hair color. "In my world, Ferines can be identified with blond hair."

It was on the darker side but still, nonetheless, it was still blond. She wasn't too sure if that was convincing enough.

"At the moment, we're trying to find as many Ferines as we can before the Orerines here can take over Vatheon and back home." And somehow, there's this tone of hate from her.

It should be convincing enough. It was a convincing argument for Walter, anyway.

"We're starting to reach the point where our strength equals their numbers," he said at last. "Few Orerines share the gift of our power. Just a little more, and we can overcome them with ease."

And much bloodshed, if something were to awry, which he wouldn't tolerate.

"And the Orerines are... everyone else?"

This was sounding questionable now. He hadn't heard these terms before at all in Vatheon, so he was pretty sure the war they were talking about didn't exist here. Any true 'Orerines' had to be few or non-existent, and yet, it sounded like everyone they saw who looked like one, was one in their minds. Would that include his brother? Most of his team?

"I'm sorry. I don't think I can help."

Suddenly, Shirley's expression turned from happiness to worry.

"Why not?" She asked before looking at Walter. "Why don't you want to help us in an attempt to save everyone here?" She was mostly talking about Ferines but now she was starting to panic. She needed to find someway how to convince him or else.

"Do you realize what would happen if you don't join us? There's a chance you could be killed!" Does he know what what kind of danger Roxas is facing?

He exchanged looks with Shirley, but a part of him was not surprised, even if the other part of him would admit to it. People seemed . . . different. But that difference wouldn't excuse them of their crimes.

Walter glanced back at Roxas, observing his response. Shirley was getting desperate, already, and if the boy continued to reject her – that thought alone made him impatient, and he glowered.

Killed? Who was going to kill him? Roxas shook his head.

"I don't- think the people here are in that kind of danger... There's villains and criminals, but I don't think they're these Orerines people."

Shirley wasn't usually the type who would lose her calm nature but she was willing to make exceptions and especially when she believed her people would be in grave danger. Can't he see that he's being manipulated by them?

"But they are, can't you see that? You and all the Ferines will be in danger! They think they're feeling at ease because those Orerines are tricking you!

You will get killed!" Now she was starting to tug Walter a bit. She was almost asking to help her with this.

That was his cue, and with a quick glance at Shirley he refocused his attention on the boy.

"The majority of this city's population are Orerines," he said, his voice low. "Why? That there are so many Orerines but so few Ferines . . . If anyone's a villain or a criminal, it's them. They will never accept what's different from them. Persecution doesn't end with one world; it spreads like fire."

Roxas shook his head, taking a step back and reaching for where he'd tucked his wand. There was definitely something wrong in the way these two were thinking. Maybe it was like that where they came from, but it wasn't here.

"Some of those 'Orerines' are my friends, they're not going to hurt me. And I'm not going to let you hurt them either."

When Shirley noticed something was off, she quickly mumbled to herself before looking around the area. If they were near the forest, it would mean that there would be water. She had to think of something fast. She looked at Walter before getting into a fighting stance.

"I'm afraid that we don't have a choice then. It's a shame but those Orerines aren't your friend, they're your enemies. If we must use force, we will have do."

Suddenly, behind Shirley, there was a large ball of water aiming toward Roxas. What will he do now?

As if they wouldn't.

As the large sphere of water appeared from behind Shirley, Walter, too, fell into a combative stance. His power was of no use in this environment, but he had his hands and feet. Not that he meant to dish out much hurt – simply a more physical means of taking.

"They always do," he started, his hands curling into fists. "In the end, you'll be betrayed if you continue to stay with them."

His move.

Roxas did the only thing he could do: he pulled his wand out and raised it high, initiating the ~~magical girl~~ super senshi transformation. Hopefully it would be complete in time for him to do something about that water.

"I call on the power of Light!"

Brilliant light swirled around him, obscuring his figure. When it faded, his wand had lengthened almost into a staff, and his outfit had changed to a uniform of white and black and... was that a skirt? Shorts? Maybe a skort.

He swung the wand, an arc of light cutting through the water, parting it so it passed to either side of him. He stumbled though. He'd done that just in time.

"Please try to understand!" She shouted before trying to get the large bubble to surround Roxas before he was able to do anything else. "We just want to help!"

However, just as she was aiming it toward him, there was a flash of light. It appeared that Roxas wasn't what he was. Of course, she wasn't expecting him to be ~~a magical girl~~ to have some strange power. No matter, she'll still try to convince him somehow.

"Walter!" She shouted before aiming once more! "Please cover for me!"

. . . skort.

To Walter, "please cover for me" translated to taking action against the offending figure rather than standing by Shirley; he leaped forward as Roxas stumbled, intending to tackle the boy to the ground with his weight.

It might have seemed foolish to spectators, but he knew well the level of control Shirley had over the water. He was confident she would find a way if he gave her the time.

To Roxas, 'cover for me' did not translate to tackling, so he was completely unprepared for the action. With a yell of surprise, he tumbled to the ground beneath the taller boy.

He'd managed to hold onto his wand, but the angle was too awkward to get much use out of it, so he tried to shove at Walter to get out from under him. He couldn't see what Shirley was doing but he had to be ready for it.

Roxas and his magical skort.

"Thank you, Walter, I'll take over from here! Be careful!" She shouted before the ball of water went over Roxas. While she knew that Walter was able to take care of himself, she still had to aim the water where he wouldn't get hit.

Despite that worry, she had no idea what Roxas was capable of and all the more reason to be careful. As she threw the sphere, she had to get ready for an attack.

What will you do next, Walter?

He heard the sphere before he saw it; the second he was sure it was close – very close – he rolled off to the side and moved to a crouch, intending to expose Roxas to the brunt of the attack before he could react. He had avoided the sphere just in time, and he could owe that to all the times he had been with Shirley prior to arriving in Vatheon.

Their teamwork wouldn't fail.

Roxas didn't have the time to get out of the way. Almost as soon as Walter was off of him, the water was splashing into him, surrounding him, cutting off his air. He could hold his breath pretty well underwater, but not forever. Frantically, he swung the wand from within the bubble, sending another arc of light in Shirley's direction. Maybe if he could disrupt her concentration...

Just when the water hit the younger boy, she gave a small smile but more importantly, it was only for Walter. After all these years of spending time together, she couldn't believe that she doubted him for a second.

However, just before she could take another step toward her ~~guardian~~ boyfriend, Shirley had lowered her guard.

"Ah!" She shouted as she took a step back. What...where did that light come from? While the barrier did falter, it wasn't by much. If anything, there wasn't as much water as before.

"Was...was that from him?"

He was alarmed to see the arc of light speed toward Shirley, doubly so when she made a sound. The fact that she had been targeted made him seethe with anger. Just how foolish was this Ferines boy?

In increasing rage, he sped toward Roxas and plunged his arm into the thinning sphere of water, aiming a fist at his face. Pressure be damned, he still managed to build up some force before he made contact with the watery membrane. The sooner they subdued him or knocked him out, the better.

Roxas tried to dodge the punch but between his growing need for air and the light distortion of the water, well, it didn't entirely work. The fist struck his cheekbone and his mouth opened in pain, letting some of that precious air escape. The blow didn't knock him out as maybe Walter had intended, but a weakness was creeping into his limbs, and dots swam in his vision.

It wouldn't be long now. What would they do with him once he passed out? Or did they mean to kill him for siding with the 'Orerines'?

"Ah, wait! We shouldn't do that, I think we shouldn't intend on harming much more than that!" As ruthless as Shirley could be, she was still as gentle as she could be. "I don't think we need to use anymore force than necessary."

She said as she stepped closer to the older blond to lower his fist. "Are you okay, Walter?"

However, her attention was on the younger boy. What could she say to him? No matter what she said, he would always side with those people. Instead, she'll give a small smile to him. "Relax, it will be over soon. You don't have anything to worry about, you'll be safe with us."

She said they shouldn't do that, so he restrained himself from pulling back for another strike. The touch from her hand was enough to calm him, and his shoulders almost seemed to heave from an internal sigh. Walter didn't believe that there had been much force behind the gesture. He had simply returned what the boy had sown for attacking her, but if Shirley thought differently . . . he would defer to her.

He let his lack of a response speak for itself as he trained his sight on Roxas. While Shirley gave him a small smile, what Walter gave was far more critical, though it wasn't quite a frown. The boy was misguided, after all.

Safe with them? Maybe they weren't going to kill him, but nothing about this encounter made him feel like they were safe for anyone to be around. They were going to go after his friends... He had to get away and warn them, somehow.

His expression was defiant as he looked out at them. At least, it was defiant until the lack of oxygen finally made him lose his grip on consciousness, and he slumped inside the bubble of water.