Felarya and the Aeriales

Lucas was a young college gradual who felt like he had the whole world in his hands. He was a history major without a job coming out of college but that didn't matter to him. He had just been accepted as a Teachers Assistant to his favorite professor and a university grant to go to Egypt for fieldwork based on his senior thesis! Life was good for Lucas. He no longer needed money for classes because being a Teachers Assistant and doing research for the University. So Lucas decided to indulged himself for a change and wanted to use some of his student loans to buy a motorcycle. Nothing too crazy, he did have to pay off the loans afterall.

That didn't mean Lucas couldn't have fun while he was out. Lucas was 'test ridings one of Harley Davidson's top of the line cruiser down main street and was loving it. The roar of the engine, window blowing in his face, the radio blaring Hair of the Dog...Lucas lived for this kind of thing. The only thing that could make it better would be a ridiculously hot girl on the back of the bike in leather.

'Speaking of which,' Lucas thought to himself as he dove through Main Street. 'Where are all the people?' Lucas rode down the entire street without seeing a single soul. It was unsettling to say in the least. So unsettling that Lucas decided to turn back for the store encase there was something they might know that he didn't.

Lucas headed up Main Street towards the Main Street. As he approached the bridge, he noticed a thick cloud of fog rolling in. The fog made Lucas laugh on the iinside despite how unsettling it was. It reminded him of a Youtube video making fun of the intro to Rurouni Kenshin. "Wow this fog is creepy," Lucas said aloud, reenacting the Youtube video as he headed through the fog up the bridge. "I hope nothing bad happens that could launch a series..."

The fog was so thick that Lucas could barely see more than a foot in front of him. It must have disoriented him because he felt the arching bridge level off way too early while the downward slope never seem to come. Lucas cleared the fog moments later only to find himself in the middle of a jungle at the base of a huge mountain. Which reminded him of the very next ironic line of the episode as he put his motorcycle on a kickstand. "Of course..." The only thing that would make this more ironic would be if some woman started charging at him for no apparent reason.

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Hey guys, I am a big fan of RPing so my buddy Strong and I decided to start one here on Felarya. Let me make this clear right off the bat that this won't be a 'cannon' RP. The reason being that it will be featuring a species of Winged Neko I posted earlier on the board (Let me be the first to say that I am not doing this to spite/smite those who said it wouldn't be allowed. I was just inspired when I read up on Felarya to come up with them so why deny a good thing?). The rest of the universe will be Felarya cannon.

This story will focus around the survival of the tribe here in Felarya versus the numerous predators that Felarya has to throw at them. Please PM me before posting in here if you are interested in joining or want to know about the environment/setting. I will accept anything within reason. Here are a few ground rules:

1. Post at least a paragraph in a post
2. Story type RP, not scripted
3. Use spell check and proper grammar within reason(I know we are going to have at least one guy who is international)
4. No god modding (No all powerful badasses and remember that your character can, and probably will, get hurt. I reserve the right to smite anyone who does so)
5. Respect other people's characters (Don't post what another person's character is doing, don't kill them, don't say your sword hit them when you swing to attack. I will catch it if they are always auto-dodging an attack and take care of it)
6. Have fun

Briareos awoke with the first sunbeams of a new day as they shined through his wide opened window, right on his eyes.
He got up and first of all, stretched himself letting a few joints crack as he did so and yawned out loud. Then after he shook his limbs to get the sleep out of them, he went over into a corner of his room and grabbed an old rusty trainings sword he had “borrowed” once from one of the training grounds and trained the moves he saw whenever he delivered water to them.


"Ah that was good. A new day, a new...ah whatever." He said a little annoyed knowing what the day held ready for him then went to a bowl placed on a little table and washed his face.

“Briareos tell me one thing please.” He heard the voice of his spirit saying. “Why are you doing this every damn morning? I mean do you really believe that you ever get into a fight? You are a water boy so why all that, Briareos?”

“Ah come on Dwalin. I know Loki has chosen this path for me but I think that it doesn’t hurt to be prepared should it be necessary.”

“If there is any sign of a battle, is it the maidens and raiders who go into battle but not your kind.” Dwalin replied and stretched himself. “They call you only when they are thirsty or need some aid…but not for that.”

Briareos sighted deep knowing that he was right but didn’t say a word while Dwalin, his monkey looking spirit, jumped on the windowsill and sit down on it.

He grabbed his light Grey knee long pants made out of dridder silk along with a white long sleeved shirt and a dark blue vest while he found his red bandana lying next to the bowl along with his two rings he had made during the ritual. While the one he wore left focused on wind magic was his right, able to canalize fire.

A short look into his mirror, to check for any missed dirty spots, and then, he was good to go.



It wasn't even before breakfast as Briarios came back from the river into town with two big water filled vessels on both of his shoulders and placed them near a house of a sky maiden.

“One done, eight to go Briareos.” He heard Dwalin saying as the little monkey spirit jumped on a crate which stood next to the wall.

He was about to go as he heard some yells and screams coming from behind the house, which he investigated curious as he was while Dwalin shook his head. The monkey spirit didn’t try to stop him since he wouldn’t listen anyway and so made himself comfortable.

The show was simply impressive as he saw two of the sky maidens having a trainings fight in the air.

“Wow…” He said deeply impressed while he watched their movements. They were swift, precise and powerful. God what would he give to train with one of them just once.


“Briarios!” He heard a voice calling out his name which caught him completely by surprise and let him shriek up before he turned around to see Saga, a maiden walking towards him.
“Have you brought my order?” She asked stopping two feet before him and looking down since she was good two heads taller as him.

“Yes Madam its right before your door.” He said rather nervous in her presence. The maiden nodded but gave the smaller loki, a mischievous glance before she gestured him to leave.

Saga watched after Briareos until he vanished around the corner. She was disappointed about Loki’s decision which had put him into the job of a water boy since he had shown talent with a weapon when he had to gather the Dridder silk during his rite. But who was she, to question a god’s decision.

It was around noon as Briareos stood in front of the river in the forest while Dwalin sat on a already filled tone mug. He was half finished with the second as his long cat like ears caught up a sound coming from the deeper parts of the forest.

“Hey Dwalin, did you heard that too?” He asked his spirit.

“Nope, maybe just the wind.” The spirit replied.

But Briareos ears caught the sound again. He tried to locate the source and figured a slight course.
“Come on Dwalin lets check it out.” He said and grabbed the monkey spirit from the jar, before he could even think of getting away.

“Briareos…I swear one day your damn curiosity will kill us!!” He heard Dwalin saying before he placed him on his shoulder where the spirit grabbed tight at the vest while Briareos ran like mad.

Lucas stood out in the open in a complete stupor. It was slowly dawning on him that one of two things could have happened to him. The first was that this was some kind of weird dream he was having and would wake up soon in his own bed. Or the more likely scenario of him having passed out at a party last night and this was a really messed up dream he was going to wake up from completely naked on a mattress floating in the middle of a lake. Lucas assured himself that he was going to wake up either way and should even try to wake himself up now. He decided to attempt the stereotypical pinch of his arm only to realize that he could very well feel pain and he wasn't awake for some reason.

"Alright," Lucas said as he started taking a more serious look at his surroundings. "This isn't funny anymore." He looked behind him to see if the fog remained or he could perhaps see the route he took to get here. Unfortunately the cloud of fog was nowhere to be found. In fact, all that Lucas could see was a thick grove of trees behind him that were similar to those from Lord of the Rings. He was half expecting a few of them to spring to life and start stomping midgets.

SNAP!

Lucas' head practically snapped as he swiveled around to where the sound originated. His eyes scanned the immediate area and but couldn't find the source of the disturbance. It was at that moment that Lucas became very aware of how alone he was in this alien environment. Lucas could hear the sounds of different animals throughout the forest that reminded him of a demented owl laughing at the hero just before he was attacked by the giant monster of death. A monster that was suspended above the hero in a way that only the shadowy figure of the monster could be seen. The monster would stay there waiting, watching the hero with its eyes that are looking down but still seem to reflect the moonlight. That way the audience could see just how truly menacing the monster of darkness was. Lucas quickly glanced above him. Nothing. He was safe for the moment. But that is always what the hero thought. The monster had actually ducked behind cover just in time to avoid being seen. There the monster would remain in hiding until the hero turned away to lower his guard. That was when the monster would slowly move itself in to position just behind the hero. More details would be made known to the audience the closer the monster came. Spider-like legs would carry the gigantic creature silently, despite the sheer size of beast. Demonic symbols tattooed on the skin and an unrealistic amount of horns would be protruding from surfaces that didn't even make sense as the monster positioned itself. Finally, the audience would see the pearly white teeth of the monster opening its mouth to strike. It would all be over in a second for the hero...

All these thoughts about scary monsters were making the hair on the back of Lucas' neck stand on end. It was almost like he was being watched. He was all alone in the middle of some prehistoric jungle after all. It didn't hurt to be on the safe side and double check. Who would blame him?

Rock....Bush....Tree... Lucas thought to himself as he surveyed the area once more until his eyes met something that completely mortified him. Directly above him was a shadowy figure sitting on a tree branch. More like crouching to be exact. It appeared to be human-ish. But this human had large ears and a cat tail swaying casually in mid-air. Did he mention that the shadowy figure's eyes were glowing? Piercing eyes like that of a cat stalking its prey. "Ah!" Lucas yelped as he made a quick 180 and ran for dear life. He was running as fast as his little legs could carry him but moments later he would see that same shadowy figure jumping from tree to tree out of the corner of his eye. That thing was gaining on him and quickly. He needed to make a plan and fast if he wanted to live. "Duh!" Lucas shouted as he slid to a grinding halt before making another 180. "Motorcycle!" He took off running once more, praying to all the gods he could think of to deliver him from evil.

The screams got louder while the Loki ran trough the jungle. His long strong legs made it quite easy for him to run with an incredible speed while Dwalin had his problems holding on Briareos vest.

“Cant you slow down man?!” The monkey spirit yelled up but Briareos didn’t answered.
Someone needed help and that fast, or sooner or later, would he or she being spotted by one of the many dangers here in this world.

He jumped over rocks and big roots like nothing until he stopped all of a sudden.

“What now.” Dwalin said looking over Briareos left shoulder.
“Something is near.” He said turning his ears at different directions and trying to locate the new sound.
There it was some rustling sound barley audible even for his sensitive hearing.
“We have to hurry.” He said and began to run again.

It didn’t took him so much longer as he saw through a bush the last person he would have imagined to meet here.

“Princess Soley what is she doing here? And what kind of creature is she holding against her chest?” He wondered before he heard a silent cracking noise again. He looked at the princes her ears scouting for the source of that sound until the bottom began to shake and Briareos saw a huge Tonorion about 50 feet tall crawling out of a bush not even a hundred feet away from them.

The young loki stepped out of his bush and sprinted over at the princess and her strange creature who gave him an scarred look.

The tonorion crawled along his long antennas searching for something to eat.

“Do you have a plan buddy?” He heard Dwalin asking him with a shaky voice while the little spirit holds onto his vest with an iron grip.

“Eh I’m working on it.” He said looking back and giving a quick nod to the princess.

The day had started off like it always had for Princess Soley, like a dream. Her room was bathing in orange light as the sun appears from just beyond the horizon. The sounds of bird chirping in the distance filled the room as a pair of the birds decided to perch themselves on her window ledge. Sausage, bacon, eggs, and all other sorts of morning breakfast smells filled the room to wet her appetite. This made her decision to leave the warm, silky sheets of her bed very tempting but she knew she would have to move quickly to adorn her robe. The open air at the peak of a mountain was frigid in the early morning. Princess Soley was made painfully aware of this when her bare feet skipped across the freezing marble floor to retrieve the slippers she so carelessly kicked off the night before. She then made her way to the windowsill where the birds were chirping after she covered her exposed body.

"My aren't we happy this morning?" Princess Soley said in a cheerful tone as she reached the two birds. They responded in kind by tilting their heads at her awkwardly and ruffling their feather. She couldn't help but laugh at the two birds before extending a hand with some bird feed. Princess Soley made sure to keep a little extra by her windowsill to feed her flying friends whenever they decided to drop by. "Well I guess you should be." She continued as the birds finished the feed in her hand and took a few hops back. Princess Soley used this space to sit upon the windowsill next to her friends. "You are here to share the morning with someone. Someone who you probably love with all of your heart." There was a tone of longing in the princess's words as she leaned her head against the wall and looked in to the distant horizon. She could see the white clouds that surrounded the base of the Palace. These clouds were specially shaped by the Tempests to support the building to make it a floating Palace, literally. Far below the Palace was the Loki necropolis of Fenrir. "It must be nice to have someone you want to be with..."

Despite the picturesque morning that Princess Soley was having, she was far from happy with her lot in life. She was the sole heir to the the Loki Tribe. That meant that she would become Queen should anything unfortunate happen to the King and Queen. That meant all sorts of pressure being applied from all over. She was the Princess and had to act properly in public and in private. Politicians were constantly watching her and trying to use her for their own gain while the line of suitors was longer than the male population of the Loki Tribe. Why you may ask? Because Princess Soley is a very unique Loki. One in six Loki are born without wings. This is typically a recessive trait thought to only be found in males but Princess Soley proved that theory wrong. She also happened to have a stunted growth compared to all the other Loki. She was a mere eight feet tall while those around her towered above her from ten to twelve feet in stature. This makes her on par with most common Neko and thus some of the more daring suitors come from across Felarya from various Neko tribes to try and win Princess Soley's hand.

All attempts until this point have failed. The sad thing was that nothing had changed for Princess Soley. It was her parents who changed. They had been patient for her to find a Loki she truly wanted to be with. They waited for nearly four years before her father decided to choose a husband for her. The suitor was the commanding general of the Loki Forces. It made perfect sense politically. The marriage would solidify the bond between the military and the crown for a continued existence but Princess Soley didn't love the Loki. That is why she ran away that morning. That is why she bumped in to him...

Princess Soley was making her way through the jungle when she noticed a thick fog emulating from seemingly nowhere. She had heard stories of this type of phenomenon. Strange occurrences like this were actually gateways in to other worlds. Loki himself had agents who traveled through these portals from Midgard to do his bidding. They were known as Elves and were said to grant wishes to those who could prove themselves worthy. And it just so happened that one slipped through the portal riding a metallic beast whose roar pierced the relative silence of the jungle. Princess Soley would expect no less from an Elf. A brilliant steed that announced its presence and greatness to challenge all those who would oppose Loki to step forward. This Elf was clearly not a man to be trifled with if he announced his presence so readily as he traveled to Felarya alone. The princess would bide her time and wait to strike at the opportune moment for a warrior of Loki not only proved their worth through strength, but cunning as well. However, Princess Soley could not help but feel that this Elf was not here of his own device the more time progressed. He appeared to be disoriented and possibly even in a state of shock. This Elf must have endured a great battle from which he had yet to recover from. It would be the duty of the Princess to protect this Elf until such a time had arrived.

No later had she thought that had the Elf turned to detect her presence and took off running. He must have thought her in liege with the enemy. This Elf was a lone traveler in a strange land that he clearly knew nothing about so this was not necessarily a poor decision on his part. Especially with the fickle nature of Loki himself. Princess Soley took off after him in an attempt to reveal herself to the Elf but was quickly thrown off by the Elf's sudden change in direction. He was clearly trying to deceive her of his true intention. That intention was made clear as he re-approached his steed. The Elf was preparing to ride in to combat once more. The Elf even would have succeeded but he stopped at his steed to search for what appeared to be a certain rune. A magic rune to activate the steed. Smart idea to prevent capture by the enemy.

This time the safety feature would prove to work against the Elf for a Tonorion appeared as the Elf searched for the correct rune. Princess Soley had no choice. She lept from her tree branch for the Elf and managed to grab him just in time to avoid him being swallowed by the Tonorion. "My key!" She heard the Elf cry out as she landed several feet away from the metallic steed. It was then that Princess Soley noticed the presence of another Loki. She turned to see the Loki but could not recognize him. He had no wings and was only ten feet tall. Most likely apart of the lower class. Regardless, he seemed to know her as he gave her a nod. Princess Soley returned the nod to the Loki. "We must protect this Elf at all costs." Princess Soley said as she tossed the surprisingly small Elf towards the new Loki who arrived. "I will distract him." Princess Soley held her two hands out like she was holding something in each hand. She was using the bracelets she forged many years ago to channel wind magic in to each of her hands. This wind formed a sphere of razor sharp swirling wind that was highly oxygenated. It was this oxygenated air that was key to changing her spheres of wind in to spheres of fire once she flick her fingers. Both her index and middle fingers had flint rings that created a spark when she flicked them together that exploded in to violent fire when combined with the highly oxygenated air. Thus allowing the princess to specialize in wind magic while being able to cast 'fire' magic.

(Mind if I join this? Its ok if you say no. I just like RPs so much that I am always wanting to join them. But if you say no I will delete this post and It will be like it never happened )

Rumours. Rumours, rumours and more rumours. It seemed that Mort was always chasing shadows. He never had a confirmed lead and so, when he arrived at the rumoured location, there was nothing there. Just a waste of his time. But this time was different. He had heard rumours of a deity by the name of "Loki". Apparently, his followers were a tribe of large winged nekos. How odd. Regardless, Mort had set off in search of the rumoured tribe 3 days ago and had narrowly avoided being eaten by 37 different plants and creatures so far. He was beginning to think the whole story was another hoax, when sounds of battle up ahead distracted him.

He dashed towards the noise and was startled by the huge tonorion that came out of nowhere and attempted to swallow a lone human. But before it could, a female neko leapt out of the trees and whisked him out of harms way. She then put her hands out and was beginning to cast some sort of spell. Mort decided to sit and watch how this would play out for now. No need to risk his life so hastily.

OOC: Sure thing Mortis. Just do me a favor and PM me a character sheet when you get the chance (Basic stuff like bio-data, any special features/qualities, and maybe a few lines for background). Other than that, welcome aboard and please have fan!

P.S. I just wanted to let you know that Strong and I have been coordinating through AIM for our posts thus far in case you see anything that may seem like he is controlling one of my characters or vice versus. I consider the Princess and Lucas as actual characters and not NPCs so basic courtesies apply to both of them please.

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Lucas had drawn his keys from his pocket before he even reached his motorcycle. He instinctively twirled them around his finger before catching the group in his hand to flip through his keys. Lucas would have normally been able to find the key instinctively but he just had to attach the rental key to his key ring to make sure he didn't lose them. That mistake would cost him precious seconds he could ill afford. Apartment Key...Backdoor Key...Mailbox Key...Car Key...Trunk Key...Hitch Key...Girlfriend's Apartment Key...Parents' House Key...Parents' Backdoor Key. Why do I have so many keys?! Lucas wondered angrily as he finally found the rental key. "Ha!" Lucas shouted triumphantly as he held the key up in the air. He was only a few feet away from the motorcycle and knew it would only take a few seconds to start the bike so he could ride faster than he has ever ridden before.

"Ouf!" Lucas involuntarily shouted as all the wind was knocked out of him. He felt like he had just been tackled from behind by a freight train. The tackle was so hard that it took him a moment to realize that his key to salvation had fallen from his hand. Noooooo!!!!! Lucas' mind cried while his lungs were struggling for air. "My key!" But Lucas would only dwell on his loss for a moment as he became less and less disoriented from the surprise attack. The main reason was because whatever attacked him was still holding him off the ground. Lucas literally had nowhere to run. Whatever holding him was big, strong, and squishy...? He felt some rather soft flesh pressing against his back while he was being suspended in mid-air by this creature that was beginning to feel more and more human to Lucas. He didn't really turn to exactly see what was behind him and holding him up because his eyes were transfixed on the Praying Mantis-Centipede cross-breed. Lucas decided to dub this gigantic bug the Prayingpede. That bug had appeared out of nowhere and almost swallowed Lucas in a single swoop. Just like all giant, scary bugs in the movies. Which meant that whatever was behind him had saved his life. So he probably should thank whatever it was behind him.

There was little time for Lucas to try and find the words to thank it, whatever IT was, however. The presence of yet another creature was quickly made known. The creature appeared to be an incredibly large man with catlike ears and even a tail. The man was wearing fine silk clothing and had a rather imposing physical stature. Not to mention a trained monkey hanging around his neck. This man was clearly an impressive warrior from a prestigious position in society and he appeared to be nodding in Lucas' direction. That was when Lucas heard the sweet voice above his head. "We must protect this Elf at all costs." The statement caused Lucas to raise a questioning eyebrow and cheer on the inside at the same time. Yes! English truly is the universal language!

How or why these creatures were able to understand English, or who the Elf was were all questions boiling in Lucas' mind but were quickly cut short by the sudden acceleration of his entire body followed by weightlessness. He was sent flying through the air and was able to catch a glimpse of who was holding him. It was another large humaniod with cat-like ears and tail. She was definitely tall but nowhere near the stature of the man he was now racing towards like a rocket. Did he mention her luscious physique and ample...? "Ouf!" Lucas let out once more as he felt himself impact on the chest of the large man who appeared only moments ago.

"I will distract him." The cat woman said as she turned towards the Prayingpede. It was then that Lucas realized that she was calling him the Elf. Lucas was even about to say something until he saw two balls of fire form in her hands. I will be whatever she wants me to be. Lucas thought to himself as his eyes shifted back to the gigantic Prayingpede. As long as it keeps her between me and that thing. The cat woman shot the left fire ball in an arc at the Prayingpede at that moment as if on cue before charging the Prayingpede with impossible speed. The Prayingpede turned to the left to slash through the fireball thrown at it with the fire doing no visible signs of damage to the Prayingpede. However, the cat girl reached the Prayingpede at the exact moment the fireball did. She was merely using the fireball to distract the Prayingpede for her to close the distance unchecked. The cat girl lept high in to the air and made a successive jump off of the Prayingpede's body itself! The Prayingpede was turning back from deflecting the fireball at this point and right in to the cat woman herself as she landed on the top of its head. The Prayingpede tried to throw her off by rearing its head but this only caused the cat woman to latch on to its moth with her free hand. Her right hand then rammed the second fireball straight down the throat of the Prayingpede. The cat woman wasted no time with her next move as she jumped in to the air once more and, with an impossibly long hang time, rotated her entire body to deliver a roundhouse kick in the back of the Prayingpede's head that knock it in to a near by tree.

The cat girl then took off running in one direction as the Prayingpede quickly recovered. "Move!" She shouted at the cat man holding Lucas hostage while making a minuscule movement that was barely noticeable by Lucas as the cat woman passed a tree. He had little time to wonder what she did as the Prayingpede took off after the cat woman at blinding speed. It was clear that this thing would quickly catch up with the cat woman despite her own incredible speed. But that seemed to work against the Prayingpede because as it approached the tree that the cat woman flicked her wrist at, the tree began groaning as a clearly visible cut formed and caused the tree to come crashing down on the giant bug. Is it dead? Lucas blindly hoped but soon saw that the bug was still squirming. It was even beginning to roll the tree to try and get out from underneath it.

(Bio sent mate )

Wow this neko had some skills! Mort thought as the Tonorion was crushed by the tree. However, it didn't appear to be dead and was now chasing after the female with alarming speed. It crashed past him, smashing down anything that stood in its way. Mort decided to help. He unsheathed his sword and jammed into one of the huge cracks in the insect's carapace as it rushed past. He hung on for dear life as it continued its pursuit. Clearly it was too enraged to feel his sword. Slowly and carefully Mort climbed along the top towards the head.

Briareos watched after the princes as she attacked the giant centipede. He looked at the elf and thought first letting him use one of his magic spells to help the princess.
Right then, the princess hammered the giant thing into a tree with just a single kick

“Wow she is good.” He heard Dwalin saying “Why can’t you do such things.” Who looked deeply exited from his shoulder on which Briareos gave his spirit an annoyed look.

“Thanks…you are really a helpful spirit” He replied until he heard the loud cracking noises of wood splintering and a second later laid the whole tree on the tonorion.

“Move!” Yelled the princess while Briareos looked at her agile movements as she jumped onto another tree.
But the huge thing freed itself and screamed after the princess before it chased her again.

“Come on move man. Didn’t you hear her?” Said Dwalin hanging in front of the loki’s face upside down.

“I would second that if you don’t mind.” He heard the elf saying with a shaking voice.

“She is the princes do you two believe that I let her risk her life for us?” He said and began to run after the tonorion.

“She said protect the elf! So protect me!!” He heard the elf saying in a whiny tone while the young loki jumped over a larger root.

“Tell me you have a plan pal.” He heard Dwalin saying.

“No not really but if I’m right she heads to a cliff.” He said jumped on a stone, from their on a root and then hammered his left claw into the periderm of the tree to give him some support before he jumped away and landed on the bark of another tree where he repeated the game again.
“And that tells you what?” Replied Dwalin between a jump to a tree

“At the moment only that she heads there. But I work on a plan.” Briareos said with a grin in his face grabbing on a vine and swinging to the next tree.

“You know you don’t need to carry me just place me somewhere.” Said Lucas as the ground passed by good fifty feet under his legs while the big cat thing said something about a cliff.

“No way elf. We maybe need your magic skills if the princess is in danger.” He heard the big cat saying sharing a grin down at him while Lucas got a very bad feeling in his stomach.



He didn’t needed much longer to catch up with the big beetle and the princess while he had to admit that she was pretty fast.
First now he noticed someone walking on the back of the beetle and it looked just like another elf. As much as he wanted to get a closer look but he had to make sure that the princess knew about the danger before her.
He had to run like mad to keep on her tail even if he was still good sixty feet behind her.

“Princess! Princess! Watch out your running at a cliff its not so far from here anymore!” Briareos yelled out loud but wasn’t sure if she heard him.
“We have to get closer.” He said to himself while the elf and Dwalin gave him their protests.

The Loki leapt from a trunk and caught a vine in his fall using the swing to pass the tonorion and landed just behind her

“What are you doing here?!” She asked angry as the male loki appeared behind her. “I told you to move away.”

“Yeah I know.” He replied.
Was he just dumb? She thought at herself.

“I’m deeply sorry princess for that and I hope you can forgive this humble idiot here…” Began his monkey spirit, until Lucas yelled between his sentence. “Bring me away from here!!”

“It’s just that you ran straight at a cliff and I didn’t knew if you knew that. Plus the there is a second elf on the back of the tonorion.” Briareos said just as the jungle ended right before them.

“Cliff!!!” Screamed everyone, as the two lokis landed on the last tree trunk, not even ten feet before the abyss.
Briareos noticed that the princess was about to fall forward since her body was still in full pursuit while he made it to stop which was pretty hard since he carried the elf.
He quickly grabbed on her tunic and holds her tight while his feet began to pull him forward.
The loki bite on his teeth while his claws slashed trough the wood until he finally stopped, her upper body hanging upside down from the trunk now.

She saw the big tonorion in the last moment and let out a loud yelp until she saw that second elf and grabbed him before the whole beast fell down into the abyss.

Briareos felt the added weight on his arm and heard a silent ripping noise coming from her tunic. He thought for a moment that it was his arm who was about to rip off while he pulled them up and finally released his grip from her tunic which had a big cut where he had grabbed her.


“This was absolutely crazy!!” Yelled Dwalin from his shoulder. “Let’s do that again!”

“Help…” Said the elf silent his face pale white.

Walking his way excitedly. Briareos began to smile, thinking that she was going to thank him for saving her.

Briareos wanted to say something but was cut short by the Princess. "Here," She said as she grabbed the elf from Briareos and replaced it with the one she had rescued from the Tonorion

The Princess began holding him tight and pressing him tight against her breasts passing the loki on her way.“Ah well at last we made it. Right, elf?” Briareos said to the second elf and set him down on the wood before he laid flat with his back on the wood panting deep in and out from exhaustion.

The Tonorion was proving to be a very fearsome foe for the Princess. She knew that her fireballs would do nothing more than superficial damage at best. Even the roundhouse kick she augmented with her wind magic would feel like nothing more than a jab in the face for the Tonorion. She was a minor annoyance for the creature but that was apart of her plan. She wanted to insight anger in the Tonorion so the primitive beast would chase after her. She would lure it away from the Elf she just rescued to ensure his safety. That meant stringing along the Tonorioin because the Loki she entrusted the Elf to was unwinged and would be unlikely to outrun the beast for quite some time. The Tonorion were incredibly fast for land creatures after all. Though she had a faint hope that she wold be able to crush it with a tree that she sliced using a razor sharp blade of wind. Seconds later would prove her hope misplaced as the Tonorion exploded from the debris relatively unscathed and further enraged. Perfect for her initial plan she guessed.

Stringing the Tonorion along was going to be difficult. She wanted to present it an appealing target for the creature so she decided to take to the trees and take off running as fast as her legs could carry her. She knew that the Tonorion would be able to easily catch up with her from the ground but it would be forced to try and pick her off as she landed from tree branch to tree branch. The Tonorion would have to stop every time it attempted to pick her off and climb a tree to get just enough height to attack her. This pattern of starting and stopping allowed Princess Soley to always stay just one step ahead of the Tonorion while making it think that it was just a matter of time before she slipped up. But Princess Soley had a trump card she could play should the situation call for it. She had her wind magic that could give her the extra boost she needed to get out of harms way. That was how she was able to stay suspended in air for slow long earlier when she roundhouse kicked the Tonorion in the face. She only had to wait long enough to make sure that the Elf was a safe enough distance away...

At that moment, the Loki who she had left in charge of taking the Elf to safety swung pass the Tonorion and landed just behind her Princess Soley was in utter shock at what she just saw after everything she did so carefully to ensure that the Elf was the furthest person away from this Tonorion. “What are you doing here?!” She hissed angry as the lower Loki. “I told you to move away.” The pair leapt to another tree branch as she awaited his answer. “Yeah I know.” Was all that the Loki replied with a slightly embarassed look on his face. Princess Soley was completely dumbfounded at his response. 'Yeah, I know' That was it? He didn't even have an explanation for his actions? Seriously?!

“I’m deeply sorry princess for…” Began the Loki's monkey spirit but it was drowned in Princess Soley's mind. She was in the middle of trying to calculate her next move to unscrew this mess. “Bring me away from here!!” Protested the Elf. At least somebody knows how to follow orders... Princess Soley thought as she continued to think. She knew full well that it was too late to try and separate the two from the Tonorion. Chances are that it would choose the less nimble of the two targets to attack. “It’s just that you ran straight at a cliff..." Finally came the explanation from the Loki who had followed her against her wishes. Cliff? Princess Soley thought to herself as the gears in her brain began turning. If she continued running at 'full speed', she might be able to lure the Tonorion off the cliff with a swan dive and then save herself at the last minute with a blast of air magic. It was a simple plan that just might work. Just a little further...

" Then there is a second elf on the back of the Tonorion.” The Loki said to catch Princess Soley's attention once more. Her eyes quickly glanced back at the Tonorion to see a human riding the back of the Tonorion. He was native to Felarya judging by his clothing and weaponry. Clearly not a traveler of the gates like this human was. She wouldn't have believed it had she not seen it for herself. But Loki was not known to discriminate and had agents of all shapes and sizes. He even road a steel chariot that fit the numerous descriptions in the legends that have been passed down from generation to generation unlike the one riding the back of the Tonorion. That man was simply human...

“Cliff!!!” Princess Soley heard everyone around her scream simultaneously. She had been so focused on determining whether or not the other human was an Elf or not that she failed to keep a steady watch of her surroundings. That didn't matter though, Princess Soley was about to perform her swan dive off the cliff to draw in the raging Tonorion. Here goes nothing... Princess Soley thought as she leaned forward in preparation for her dive, only feel a sudden counter-force oriented around her neck. She gagged audibly as the Loki behind her pulled on her silk shirt to prevent her from diving off of the cliff. There she would dangle upside down like a tasty morsel waiting to be eating by the Tonorion. It even was so bold to leap at her and try to swallow her in a single bite. Not today! Princess Soley thought as she used some of her wind magic to swing herself just far away enough to avoid being swallowed whole by the Tonorion and watch it plummet down the cliff side. So was the human riding the Tonorion if Princess Soley let him. Her instincts told her to reach out and grab him when that split second decision arose. He had tried to attack the Tonorion after all. He didn't deserve to die for trying to help.

RIIIPPPPP!!!!

Princess Soley's eyes went wide as the sound of her tunic ripping echoed off the cliff walls. For that brief second she was worried that she really was about to fall to her doom if her tunic tore completely. That fear was quickly laid to rest as Briareos hoisted her up to safety moments later and practically collapsed on the ground next to her. “This was absolutely crazy!!” The spirit guardian was shouting as he jumped up and down on his master. “Let’s do that again!” Next came a rather horse call for help from the rather pale Elf. The Elf! Princess Soley thought excitedly as she rushed over to Briareos. She was so happy that the Elf she had rescued was still alive after the Loki disobeyed direct orders and messed up her plan twice. But what more could she expect from a naive commoner who was eager to help?

"Here," Princess Soley said giddily as she grabbed the Elf out of Braireos' arms and filled the void with the human she had rescued. A fair trade in her opinion. She saved the human's life so the human could show a little gratitude to her by serving the lower Loki for some time. Besides, the Loki thought the human was also an Elf so why would he complain? "I am so glad your safe!" Princess Soley practically squealed as she gave the Elf a big hug and started nuzzling her nose against his head. The Elf tried to protest, something about needing to breath, but the words did not reach the Princess' usually sensitive ears. This Elf would be the answer to all of her prayers if the legends were true about him being able to grant her the favor of the gods and a single wish. But what would she wish for? Finding her true love in life and marrying him? To be blessed with wings like the rest of her people? How about increased stature? Both were considerably embarrassing problems she was never allowed to forget as the Princess.

Lets not get ahead of ourselves, Princess Soley told herself as she tried to bring herself down from her euphoria. One step at a time... She took a deep breath and finally released the Elf from her grasp and set him on the ground. The Elf took in a huge breath of air and began panting as he practically purple face began to regain its original color. "Tell me Elf," Princess Soley began to say as she lowered herself to bring herself eye level with him. "What is your name?" The Elf was still breathing heavily and rubbing the area around his throat as he looked up at her. "L-Lucas..." Princess Soley was still beaming at the Elf when she heard his response. "Elf Lucas, traveler from Mdigard, do you fight for Loki?" Lucas gave Princess Soley a hesitant look and appeared to be considering his options. Princess Soley thought this may be because she was so forward. She pulled back from the Elf and regained her Princess composure. He still seemed uncertain of what to say. Perhaps he thought he was being threatened? "I assure you that you are among friends here. No harm will be brought to you." This seemed to only slightly calm the Elf as he responded. "N-No," He began to say. The Elf was shaking so much his teeth were practically chattering. "I do not fight f-for Loki." The Elf swallowed hard as he felt Princess Soley's gaze upon him. "I-I am the Keeper of the Lore. F-for Loki that is."

That would explain his inability to fight and timidness. Princess Soley thought. But she knew just how important such a task must be for Loki. Not just anyone could be a Keeper of the Lore for the gods. One could say that this Lucas was a cut above the rest. "A Keeper of the Lore," Princess began to say slowly, making sure to pause there for dramatic effect. She could see the Elf trembling where he stood for her to pass judgment. "Is always welcome in Fenrir." She then turned to the human who had ridden the Tonorion through the forest. "As are those who would fight along side the Loki. Please, tell me your name." Then she turned to the Loki who had done everything to screw up but somehow ended up saving her in the end. "Both of your names."

Mort had been snatched from plummeting to his death by the female neko, so he thought it best to comply. But before he did, he quickly wriggled out of the arms of the other neko and scanned the rest of these people. There was a male neko with what looked to be a monkey next to him. And also a frightened little human who must have been mistaken for an elf. How odd.

"My name is Mort. I don't know who Loki is but I consider it an honour to fight by his folowers." He brushed some dust off his armour. "So, tell me more about this Loki. Is he your diety?"

He had his own reasons for attacking the Tonorion, but it seems that he was in luck as followers of Loki stood before him. The rumours were not lies this time. This time he was onto something. Mort was genuinly interested in knowing more about Loki. If Loki was their god, maybe they posessed powerful artifacts, created in his name. Maybe, Loki had given these Nekos a a gift worthy of the gods. If it existed, Mort wanted it. He told himself that he wanted it because it could bring him closer to the truth. But deep down, he knew there was another reason, a dark and terrible reason that made him shiver. There was no denying Uraels interest in a possible object of the gods. But why was Urael so interested in a godly artifact? Mort knew.

His gaze fell to the trembling human who called himself Lucas. He was clearly not from Felarya judging by his clothes and his timidness. Stuff like that only gets you killed faster. As for the male neko, He was fairly common looking, with a pet monkey. But the female, she was quite clearly royalty. Its easy to tell if a person is a royal simply by looking at them. Her clothes were of greater quality and she stood in a way that commanded authority.

As soon as Briareos had caught his breath, he began to get onto his feet again and not too late as the Princess asked for both of their names.

He listened to the second elf as he introduced himself as Mort. “Strange name for an elf.” Thought Briareos but on the other hand, well maybe it was a common name since he had never seen an elf in his life before and now, he stood here on the trunk, not only with two elves, but also with the princess of the tribe.

She looked over at him and he felt a slight shudder crawling up his spine as her eyes meet his.

“Ah my name is Briareos, princess Soley. And that’s Dwalin my spirit.” He said and bowed down before her.
Dwalin stood before him and did the same since spirits had to follow the same rules in front of the royal family.

The human introduced himself first as Mort. It was a name that made Princess Soley feel was all too bland or common. It just somehow felt dirty for that name to escape her lips. But who was she to judge the culture of another? Besides, this human has a few qualities that clearly made him unique. The most obvious of which being his eyes. One was typically blue while the other actually had been tainted red. Perhaps he was born blind in that eye or had an accident from long ago. Princess Soley could not be sure but she was not one to pry information out of a person she had just met. Royalty and politics had given her much more finesse than that to get what she wanted out of people in due time.

Next to respond was the male Loki she encountered in the forest just by chance. He called himself Briareos. It was a name that felt familiar to Princess Soley but she could not quite put a reason as to why. It was a point that would rather irritate Princess Soley because she always made it a habit of remembering everyone she met and heard of. This was a habit forced upon her by politics but has proven very useful to her over the years in her personal life. Remember the names of all those who have come before you and those who helped you get to the top were always something to remember. This Loki called Briareos should have been more memorable to her. He was a male which was a dead give away that she should remember him. He didn't have any wings to further alienate him from the rest of the Loki. And yet he has the physique of a warrior. He was most likely a Seraphim, riders of the Viraxo. Perhaps he had distinguished himself in the line of combat some time since past. He certain displayed the wholeheartedness of a young man enlisted in the ranks.

"Mort," Princess Soley repeated the human's name. "It is a pleasure to met you." She then turned her attention to Briareos. "As is it a pleasure to meet you Briareos. Both of your services today shall not be soon forgotten." Princess Soley then turned towards the mountain that seemed to reach up in to the heavens and beyond. "I ask that you all accompany me back to Fenrir so that I may thank you appropriately." This would afford Princess Soley the opportunity to learn more about the random encounter with these strangers and the Elf. Besides, who would say no to getting out of harm's way in the forest? "We can discuss Loki along the way." She said, looking back at Mort before shifting her gaze to the Elf Lucas. "Perhaps you could fill in anything I neglect to mention Master Keeper?"

"Loki is one of many gods that we believe in." Princess Soley began to say as she started walking through the forest. "In fact, he isn't even considered the strongest of the gods like the famous Odin and Thor are. But Loki looks for more in a warrior than strength alone. He favors the cunning and the bold." Princess Soley held back a branch for the others to pass through as she elaborated. "Those who outsmart their enemies as much as they outperform their enemies. That is why Loki has favored the Loki Tribe." She continued walking after the last person made their way past the tree branch. "Long ago the Loki tribe used to live at the base of this mountain as regular, wingless Neko. Then one day the mother of all Loki's ring was stolen from her by a Viraxo. This Loki chased the Viraxo by climbing up Mt. Hoy but eventually reached a point where she could go no further. It was then that the Viraxo revealed itself to be none other than Loki himself to taunt the Loki for her weakness." The group was quickly approaching the base of the mountain. "However, the mother of all Loki tricked Loki in to shapeshifitng once more for her to study carefully. She then grew a pair of her own wings and continued to pursue Loki up Mt. Hoy and finally caught him at the peak." Priness Soley stopped at the base of the mountain. "Loki was so impressed by her strength of will and ability to adapt and over come that he returned the ring to her and granted his favor to all Loki. Which is why we serve him faithfully today." Having finished her little story, the Princess looked at the wall then over to Briareos expectingly. She even covered an 'Ahem' with a cough as if to imply he is supposed to do something here.

Briareos and Dwalin. Odd names, but then his own name was fairly odd too. Mort followed the princess as she walked towards the mountain and listened intently to the story that she told. Clearly, Loki was indeed their deity. Good, he was on the right track. When the princess mentioned other gods, even stronger than Loki, Mort was even more interested. It looked like this trip was going to get results after all. If the Loki did not worship the other gods, maybe they wouldn't mind if he "borrowed" some godly objects. They might even LET him take them. That ring she spoke of seemed particularaly interesting. If the neko wanted it that badly then surely it must have some hidden abilities.

But doubt still filled his mind as he followed the princess further. What right did he have to steal a divine object and keep it for his own? Sure, it could unlock some of the mysteries that clouded his mind, but at what cost? To suffer a gods wrath just to answer some burning questions. But that wasn't all that he wanted from such an object. A far more sinister force inside his head wanted it for another reason. Urael wanted to corrupt the object and draw power from it as if it were some sort of an evil storage tank of energy. So why comply? Why not just ignore the object and prevent the demon from aquiring it? Mort could not. He had been fused together with Urael for almost a century, and demonic energies were corrupting his mind, hardening him to the pain and misery of others and causing both of their goals to intertwine.

Urael already had enough power to topple buildings and to kill a man in ways that they couldn't even imagine. But he wanted more. He always wanted more. Mort didn't know why Urael was so hungry for power. He had asked him in his nightmares several times before, but Urael would never answer his question. Maybe he was just power mad? But Mort knew Urael better than that. He wanted the power for another reason. But what?

He ended his bizzare train of thought and continued to follow the princess. She never did give him her name.

The group made its way through the jungle while the princess told the story of the tribe to the two elves. He had heard the story of Loki and how the mother of all Loki, had chased the god, to the peak of Mt. Hoy until she found that it was Loki himself and at the end.
His dad had told him the story nearly every night in his childhood while his sister and her friends had played their games after the story. The relationship with his mother was another thing since she always rejected him because of the lack of wings and the unfortunate destiny that Loki had given him as a water boy. But he had learned to live with it.
He followed the princess and couldn't stop to look at her wonderful tail and her nice ears. She was truly a eyesight but to be true how could it be less. She was the princess of the tribe after all and must have hundreds of admirers from noble heritage and who was he, a simple Loki, with the lowest status in the tribe.
They reached the wall with one of the hidden entrances who lead straight into the city and while Briareos still daydreamed about her, shared the princess a long look at him and then to a massive rock which blocked the entrance.
She even covered an 'Ahem' with a cough as if to imply he is supposed to do something here.
But he still didn’t responded until Dwalin slapped him light and told him to move the rock for Loki’s sake.

Briareos nodded smiling and scratching the back of his head while he walked over to the big rock.
The thing was nearly double his size but the young neko knew that it looked heavier as it originally was. Dwalin jumped from his shoulder at the rock while Briareos stemmed himself against it and began to push. He pushed and pushed flexing his muscles while he blinked through his half closed eyes noticing the look she gave him.

“Briareos stop kidding around, and open the entrance you showoff.” His monkey spirit said looking down at him.

“Yeah yeah yeah. Stop nagging around.” He replied and then really pushed the big rock aside and gave away the entrance to the princess and the two elves.

He waited next to the entrance while princess Soley, elf Mort and Master Keeper Lucas passed him until he grabbed the cord on the backside of the rock and pulled it back to close the entrance.

Oh sure, Lucas began taunting himself inside his head. Look at me! I am the great Keeper of the Lore for Loki! Why don't you ask me some questions I have no idea about? It will just make things that much easier to figure out that I have no idea what I am talking about! He was walking a thin, dangerous line and he knew it. On the one end he could be 'appreciated' by the cat-girl with her smothering hugs of affection. On the other end was the realization of his deceit and a most unpleasant demise. He didn't know the first thing about the place he was now heading. Sure, he was able to determine that the giant cat-people had a culture similar to that of old Germanic and Norse tribes. One that revolved around the ideals of courage and valor. It was pretty obvious when they started speaking of elves, Loki, and Midgard. But just how similar was their culture to that of Earth's remained a mystery to Lucas. Was Loki some how a more powerful deity in this new world? Were there other groups of giant cat-people who catered to other Norse gods and constantly jockeyed for supremacy? What about the elves that traveled the way of the gods? Were there others like Lucas out there? Did a few of them actually know how to harness the power of these rifts for their own use?

And how exactly was that cat-girl able to use fire like that? Magic didn't actually exist as far as Lucas knew. It was a scientific impossibility. And yet, here he was in another world, looking at an eight foot tall cat-person who shoot fireballs for fun. How much did that affect their Germanic/Nordic culture? Ah well, lets just hope they don't ask me any questions...

"Perhaps you could fill in anything I neglect to mention Master Keeper?" The cat-girl said to Lucas. Crap! Lucas thought to himself as he gave the cat-girl a nod with a slight smile. Is she trying to test me? He wondered as he followed behind the impossibly tall cat-people. He would do his best to listen to her story about Loki and pick out common elements between their beliefs and the history beliefs of Earth. That way he could expand upon them and use them at a later time to cover his own butt. Fortunately, there seemed to be a great deal of similarities between the lore here and traditional Germanic/Norse lore. The most obvious similarity was the fact that they believed in more than one god. Gods, such as Odin and Thor were considered stronger than Loki while Loki sounded like he was still a trickster in all regards. Lucas hoped that this would work in his favor because he held knowledge of the 21st century. If the Loki valued the ability to outsmart enemies then the knowledge of the 21st century would prove vital to his continued survive. Who knows? Maybe he could revolutionize their primitive culture with his superior knowledge as Keeper of the Lore. That is, until he saw what was behind the giant rock that a single cat-person moved on his own.

Lucas was thoroughly impressed by the sheer volume of muscle that bulged from the arms and chest of the ten foot cat-guy called Briareos. The stone seemed immovable at first and Lucas could see why. It was easily twice the size of the cat-guy and three times as wide. Then the talking monkey slapped him on the back of the head and told him to quit fooling around. Wait, talking monkey?! Lucas suddenly realized after all of this time. What other surprises are waiting for me in this new world? He wondered as Briareos finally gave the boulder a good push to knock it out of the way to reveal a tunnel entrance. The tunnel was lit by torches and the sounds of metal striking rock echoed from inside.

Princess Soley was the first to walk in to the tunnel and Lucas quickly followed suit. Anywhere had to be better than the cursed jungle where giant bugs tried to squash humans for a change. An audible THUD caused Lucas to jump and look behind him. It was just Briareos pulling the boulder back in place behind them. The boulder then seemed to merge in to the rest of the rock around the tunnel entrance. The look of shock must have been written all over Lucas' face because Princess Soley spoke soon after. "The entrance is magically sealed so that only Neko may gain entrance." Lucas turned his head to inquire what a Neko actually was but was caught speechless once more with what he saw. The tunnel opened up in to a massive chamber that spiraled higher and higher in to the mountain. Each spiral supported what looked like an aqueduct system from a large source of water that must be at the top of the mountain. An ingenious design because having all the water stored at the top of the mountain would provide constant pressure for all lower levels. Pressure that was obviously being used by the miners to haul up rocks, metals, and precious stones from below using hoists powered by the water pressure. Meanwhile, an intricate system of lines and pulleys criss-crossed across the open chasm. It was used to deliver equipment from across one level to another. Lucas even saw a cat person leap in to the air and hook themselves on to one of the lines and zip across the line to get to another level quickly.

"Ho-ly..." Lucas began to say in complete shock. So much for showing them a thing or two about modern technology and being hailed as the bringer of light. He thought to himself as Princess Soley laughed. "These are the Neko of the Mountain. The tribe from which the Loki originated from." She put her hand on Lucas' shoulder as he stood there, completely stupefied. "They seem to get by just fine without Loki's blessing, wouldn't you agree?" It took a moment, but Lucas managed to nod in agreement. "Come now," Princess Soley said as she moved towards one of the lines. "We really should be going."

(Sorry for not posting but I bought a sweet new game yesterday and I became a little obsessed. )

Mort followed the group deeper into the mountain, and gasped in awe at the sight that he now saw. A tribe of nekos had made this mountain their home, and they used simple yet engenious pulley systems to move all the gems and other equipment around the mountain. He saw one neko leap across the chasm and then hook onto a zip line, reaching the other side safely. He peered over the edge and gazed into the dark abyss below. If you fell from this height, your friends would be scraping up your remains with shovels. He shuddered at the thought. Mort had seen some gore in his time but it still bothered him. He had seen things that would cause any other person to go insane. Why has he not cracked yet? He didn't know. Maybe he had, and Felarya was just a figment of his insane imagination. But it felt too real to be his imagination. Too real.

Gore never bothered Urael. Not a suprise really, but it was frightening. Mort could remember 46 years ago back on Vaun, he was forced to let him take control in order to defeat yet another regiment of the king's royal gaurd. Unfortunately, he did not regain control for nearly 3 days. In that time, he came across a young man travelling alone in the woods. He was being attacked by a pack of vicious dogs, which were quickly killed by Urael. The stranger was so grateful he offered him a business partnership and stook out his hand. Urael smiled coldly and shook his hand. But then, he grasped it tight and sent demonic lightning straight into his body. The man screamed in pain and shock, and tried desperately to break his vice like grip. Urael sent the energy to the man's head, where it gathered and gathered until his head exploded in a fountain of gore. Blood, chunks of flesh and other unimaginable things erupted all over himself and the nearby area. He continued to smile, firmly shook the corpse's hand and said in an deep, emotionless voice:

"Partnership accepted."

Mort shook the horrible thought from his head and kept on following the others. He hoped that no such horrors would befall his companions should the worst happen.

Lucas started walking towards the lift that Princess Soley was standing on but was cut short by one of the Mountain Nekos rushing past him. He had to spin around to avoid bumping in to the six foot tall cat-girl and started walking backwards towards the lift as his eyes fixed on the cat-girl. Lucas was busy comparing this cat-girl to the two cat-people that had rescued him. This Neko was a good four feet shorter and a lot more human looking. Human looking in the sense that they don't have the elongated legs or the robust pectoral muscles. Her frame appeared to have a much more evenly distributed amount of muscle, like her clearly defined back muscles that pulled her pale skin taught. This was obviously a result of a life spent inside the mountain working the mines. Lucas thought of these Nekos as the Dwarf Nekos in comparison. Which was kind of scary because six feet tall was still considerably tall in Lucas' opinion.

The Master Keeper felt the change in stability as his foot struck the lift's wooden panels and decided to pivot. Unfortunately, Lucas' pivot would cause him to run face first in to Princess Soley. Lucas was obviously caught off guard and stumbled back from the impact while Princess Soley remained in place. "Uh," Lucas said as his face flushed red hot from embarrassment. He had just done the typical walk backwards only to turn around and smack in to something hard. Except what he smacked in to wasn't that hard. "Sorry." Princess Soley casually adjusted her silk tunic to remove the wrinkles before giving Lucas an almost motherly smile. It was actually pretty unsettling to Lucas because it reminded him of a female trying to be nice while secretly smiting you. "It is alright Master Keeper." Princess Soley said in a sweet voice. "I know how enchanting the Neko of the Mountain can be. They are our predecessors after all." Lucas felt his face get even redder than before as he walked over to the opposite side of Princess on the lift. "That's not why I was looking." He finished the statement by crossing his arms definitely while Princess Soley merely smiled. "Of course Master Keeper." Lucas rolled his eyes as he turned his back to the Princess and began looking out of the lift at the amazing sight before him. Her comment sounded more like modern day sarcasm in his opinion but what did he care? He had more important things on his mind.

"So where does all this water come from?" Lucas asked as he felt the lift unhook from the ledge and gently shift towards the center of the chamber while rising ever higher. "It comes from the Palace of course." Princess Soley replied before explaining further. "the Palace's wells dried up many years ago and the whole community faced a horrible drought. It was at this time that we relied heavily on our Water Boys. They were the bringers of life to our people. But the strain obviously became too much for the water boys to handle. So the Queen called upon the greatest Tempests to remedy the situation." Lucas looked over at Braireos at the mention of the Tempest but thought better than to ask. "The Tempest went to the East well and struck the ground with enough force to split the ground. And from that split flowed a geyser that quickly turned in to a river that could sustain the Loki people for many generations to come. The same ritual was carried out in the West well to assured a prolonged and secure existence for the Loki." "Which you then used built the aqueducts to assist in mining operations." Lucas commented aloud as he surveyed the chamber. "Judging by how the circumference of the aqueducts gradually increase the further down they go, I'd say you must have build these mines from the top down. This way you could use the constant pressure of the dirt from the outside to maintain the cone shape of the chamber. Otherwise this type of structure would have collapsed in on itself a long time ago." Lucas looked over to the Princess to see a smile creep up on her face. "I did not know the exact reasons why, but your theorized order of events is correct." Thank you South American history! Lucas thought triumphantly while Princess Soley added. "I can see why your a Keeper of the Lore." Lucas made no comment as he turned down to look at the Neko of the Mountain. "I'm just a little curious as to your current relationship with the Neko of the Mountain is. Its obvious that they could provide you with precious metals and building materials, but what do you provide in return besides a water resource that also provides mechanical power?" Princess Soley moved over to the edge and gestured towards a lift that was slowly moving lower and lower. "Besides water and mutual defense, we provide them with staple foodstuffs from our gardens."

"Hanging Gardens?" Lucas asked just as the lift peaked past the top of the chamber and bright sunlight blinded his vision. He had been so used to the dark light of the chamber that it took him a few moments to adjust to pure, unfiltered sunlight. But Lucas was once more completely amazed at what he saw when his vision finally did refocus. Before his eyes could only be described as a living version of the hanging gardens. Stone pillars surrounded by water supported a grid like aqueduct system where dozens of plants were growing from while water colorful lilies lined the water ways. It almost reminded Lucas of the Aztec civilizations where they had long boats to navigate miles of water ways that supported untold amount of plant life. And in the center of it all was a city made of white marble that tried to reach out to the heavens themselves. What was more astonishing was the 'Palace' that actually did reach the heavens. The Palace was literally floating on clouds high above the city as bird-like creatures could be seen flying back and forth from the city to the Palace.

Briareos followed the group a little behind. The keeper of the Lore, seemed deeply interested and amazed by the whole mine which was understandable.
The whole construction was a masterpiece made by the elders of the tribe and build from the best handyman the Loki and Neko tribe had to offer.

The large neko greeted some of the smaller exemplars while they went over to a larger lift. The second Elf Mort, seemed rather unimpressed or if he was, he didn’t showed it.

The group entered a large lift which began to rise as soon as everyone was on board. Briareos enjoyed the ride while the princess explained where the water came from after the master keeper had asked her about it.
The elf looked over him as the princess came to the point on which the tribe had deeply relied on the Water Boys a few years back.
The elf then looked over at Briareos who still enjoyed the view and did not notice the glare from the small elf.
She continued her explanation and soon the Keeper joined in. They talked about the aqueducts and about water pressure…simply said he had no idea what they talked about.

But everything changed as the lift reached the surface and the group saw the wonderful city. The palace was the eye catcher and Briareos couldn’t refuse to look at the deep impressed face of The Master Keeper and also elf Mort seemed impressed by the view of the city before them.

“Home sweet home.” He said and grinned to The Master Keeper and Mort.

"Hmph" Grunted Mort as he looked at the magnificent city. It was truly a beautiful sight. However, The gleaming marble reminded him of the Great Library back on Vaun. This palace was good, but he felt that nothing would ever surpass the library, with its 200ft high shelves and floors so polished you could see yourself in them. He supressed his smile and went back to his usual blank expression.

"So are you going to give us a tour of this city of yours Miss? Or are we going to stand here and stare at it all day." He glanced at the princess. "And this Loki that you worship. Do you have any objects he may have gifted to you? I'm somewhat of an antique enthusiast."

He walked towards the city without waiting for the princess to reply. He wanted to get this over with. Besides, this city of theirs was quite a sight.

"Hmph.......Is that everything this little elf has to say over our city?" Thought Briareos and looked to Mort.

The elf gave the princess a strange glance, that Briareos didn't liked while the elf left the platfrom at first and not at last like the etiquette told it since a member of the royal family was with them.

"Has this elf no manners?" Whispered Dwalin silent but Briareos didn't answered on that while he waited for the Princess to leave the platform until it was his turn.

He noticed the piece he had ripped on her tunic and wondered what consequences this would have for him. Well he had saved her and two elves as well from a Tonorion...this had to count for something.

"Actually," Lucas heard the cat-girl say in response to his remark about the hanging gardens. "The gardens of flowers you see above you are there for medicinal purposes as much as aesthetic." A fact that once again impressed Lucas at the ingenuity of this city and wonder just how advance their civilization truly seemed to be. The look on his face must have given away his beaming approval because he could see a smirk forming on the Princess' face as she walked over to one of the water lilies. She grabbed the lily by the flower bud and pulled it up out of the water to reveal a vine full of berries that reminded him of grapes. "These are one of our main food staples. They can grow up to ten times this size with enough space year round." She informed Lucas and made perfect sense to him. It had a constant source of water and probably nutrients from the lake and was protected from the elements by being underwater much like potatoes were back on Earth. But just how much water? Lucas began to wonder as he walked across the marble pathway to the ledge to get a better idea and stopped dead under the open archway looking all around him. Below him was a lake that seemed to stretch for several miles in all direction while the horizon was surrounded by cliffs that gave Lucas an eerie reminder of a caldera. Did the Loki actually build their city on top of a formerly active volcano? And how long ago was the last eruption if they had?

But that wasn't the only thing running through Lucas' mind. He had also noticed that they were pretty far above the surface of the water below them. Probably because they were standing on the fifth terrace from of the structure from what Lucas could gather. The fifth terrace of a structure supporting aqueducts by marble columns forming archways that stretched about twenty feet high for each level with each level had a wider base than the one it was supporting. Lucas figure this was probably not only structurally sound but also to accommodate the cone shaped chamber below the lift and structure. A structure that was completely isolated from the city except for a single bridge and what appeared to be an extended section of the structure to provide a covered dock for boats at water level. He was only able to discern that much by seeing a boat exiting the protected dock and headed towards the city. A city that seemed to be accessible by land or sea as canals seemed to criss-cross the city alongside the main city streets. Great for transportation of goods and protection from invasion forces. Not to mention giving access water for public baths and large areas for agriculture based on the food staples Lucas had seen. Enough to support this necropolis hidden in the mountains.

"Home sweet home." The tall cat-man named Briareos said with a grin. Lucas turned towards the cat-man and returned the grin as he heard Mort let out a grunt. "So are you going to give us a tour of this city of yours Miss? Or are we going to stand here and stare at it all day." Lucas turned to try and read Mort's expression but his face was expressionless as he looked towards the cat-girl. Was he not impressed by what he saw? Were floating palaces common around here? "And this Loki that you worship. Do you have any objects he may have gifted to you? I'm somewhat of an antique enthusiast." While Lucas tried to wrap his head around this statement, he failed to notice the somewhat shocked expression on the cat-girl's face. "Miss?" Her voice sounded astonished and slightly offended until Lucas heard her say "Oh!" and her face flush red with embarrassment. "I apologize for not introducing myself earlier," She said as Mort started walking towards Lucas' direction. "I am not accustomed to having to do so. My name is Princess Soley Penna and heir to the throne of the Loki tribe."

"PRINCESS?" Lucas blurted out loud for his complete ignorance. He felt like he might actually get a heart attack if he had any more surprises today. "Your a princess?!" "Not A princess," The talking monkey said as he shifted to the closer shoulder of his master before anyone else could answer. "She is THE princess." Strangely comfortable with the remark from the talking monkey, Lucas immediately turned towards Princess Soley and gave her a slight bow. "My apologies Princess." Princess Soley shook her head to dismiss Lucas' remark. "No apology is necessary Master Keeper. It is I who should bow to you, the Keeper of Loki's Lore." She bowed towards Lucas who immediately got up form how position and walked over to the cat-girl. "No please," He said as he helped her to her feet. "This is completely unnecessary." Lucas was beginning to feel ashamed of the lie he made to survive and wondered just how big of a hole he was digging himself.

When Princess Soley returned to her feet, she turned towards Mort. "We have several gifts from Loki. In fact, the Guardian of the Lake is one of them." Princess Soley walked towards the ledge next to Mort and Lucas to look out towards the water. "She was instructed by Loki himself to protect us from the predators around us when we were first starting off as a young tribe and still does to this day. We provide her with food in return and fellowship. We even have assisted her in several occasions against much more dangerous foes." The sound of marble sliding against marble could be heard behind the group as Princess Soley continued to talk. "There are others that Loki has blessed us with but I will show you those in good time as I show you the city." She turned towards the source of the noise. A hole in the center of the superstructure that was not there previously. "We must first navigate through the garden maze." Princess Loki stepped stepped in to the doorway and would lead the group through a series of sliding doors and walls that seemed to shift at random. One of the many devices used by the Loki to keep unwanted intruders out. But it wouldn't take long for the group to make it to the bridge and start heading towards the city.

"Princess Soley huh? I kinda gathered you were royalty by the way you look down your nose at everyone." Mort followed the group through the maze and listened to the princess speak about a gaurdian of the lake. He listened with interest until he realised she was talking about a person. It was objects he was looking for. Corrupting a demi-god's soul would be impossible. They emerged from the maze after a while and came to the bridge that would get them across to the city.

As he neared the city, Mort started to doubt why he was here. He came here for selfish reasons. But now, after looking at the splendour of this city and the princess's hospitality, he wasn't sure he could go through with it. Normally, he would hunt notorious criminals in order to obtain these objects of power. He felt no remorse for them. But these "Loki" are innocent. What right did he have to take what was not his?

"Guys.... Stop a second. I need to tell you something." He looked at them all with a guilty expression. "I... I... I... ca..." No matter how hard he tried he couldn't form the right words. "Never mind..." He rushed off ahead of the group, a lone tear falling down his cheek.

"How could this guy dare to speak to the princess like that." Briareos thought while the group continued its way trough the maze and stopped near a big lake while she told her two gueasts about on of the tribes protectors.

He head heard the stories so often but he never got tired of them until he got the strange feeling that he had forgotten something but he couldn't point with the finger on it.

"Ah it can't be important" He said more to himself as the group moved on until Mort stopped and seemed to say something.
He tried it several times but then said "Never mind." and ran off.

"A really strange guy." Briareos heard Dwalin saying from his shoulder but hushed the little spirit. "Something isn't okay." He said while the elf run ahead of them.