towerofanimus | (no subject)

Character(s): Xellos and just about anyone.
Setting: ANYWHERE. Xellos is porting/wandering anywhere he can to get a "lay of the land" as it were. He could pop up anywhere you please, just please indicate where.
Format: Starts prose, will follow whatever.
Summary: Xellos exploring~
Warnings: Nothing yet.

This was troubling.

Of course, that was putting things mildly. Being unable to fall back into the astral plane was one of the first things the Mazoku General Priest discovered upon waking. Immediately following that, it became apparent to him he felt very... disconnected from things. This was not his own world. That was very clear.

The next thing was to attempt escape. Leaving behind the room he woke in hastily, he attempted the most obvious course of action. He tried to teleport outside.

Instead, he only found himself in a dark hallway, barely illuminated by emergency lights.

That would have been too easy, wouldn't it have?

So, he went on about his way, exploring his new surroundings. He did this for quite awhile, and one thing became clear pretty quickly.

The emotions of people, negative ones, were vibrant here. It was without much a doubt that he wouldn't have much of a problem surviving on at least that. What came with it, however, was another matter...

World destroyed, hmm? If that is the case, I think I will be VERY cross...

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

On a different Dorm floor, there was a familiar face sitting against one of the walls near her room and hugging her knees to her chest. Her gloves, cape and shoulderpads were tossed to the side, finding it far too hot to wear those.

Frustration, irritation, maybe even a bit of helplessness and despair were among the emotions coming off of her.

There was one odd thing, though - should Xellos try and sense them, the talismans Lina ~~stole~~bought from him were not there.

Come across her he did, strolling down the hall of this particular dorm floor after attempts at teleporting out proved fruitless. He paused a bit as he caught sight of her.

Well.

That was a happy coincidence, wasn't it?

"Well, well!" he said just loud enough to try and catch her attention as he approached. The Mazoku rubbed his chin. "Fancy meeting you here, Miss Lina!"

Something wasn't right, though. If he was to be perfectly honest, he was a bit disoriented trying to adjust to that "disconnection" he felt from obviously not being in his normal plane of existence. However, it wasn't enough to completely throw him...

Something was missing.

"Eh?" Lina looks up, and squints - there's not much light out here, save for the periodic lightning flash. So she opens one hand, calling up an orb of light, and sees someone...she's never seen before.

"Who are you?"

Xellos can be, most of the time, pretty unflappable. Not many things generally get to him, but this one certainly threw him for a bit of a loop. One eye actually quirked open for a few seconds and he stared down at the sorceress.

"Oh, come now Miss Lina, let's not be silly!" he replied, closing the open eye. "I do not think Mr. Gourry is rubbing off on you that much."

Then it hit him. What was missing...

The Demon's Blood Talismans. The power of Ruby Eye himself was in one of those talismans, and he obviously held a deep connection to that sort of power.

Yet they were not present on Lina Inverse's person that he make out.

Lina twitches at that comment, and quite visibly. It's been over a week since she had a proper meal, so she's not in the best place in terms of mood.

"I'm not being silly," she answers in an icy tone, though it's quickly replaced with an irritated one. "Now answer my question! Who are you, and what d'you know about Gourry?!"

For all intents and purposes, Lina seemed fully serious in what she was saying. Not to mention quite a bit snippy. And with a tone that, coming from Lina Inverse, would even give someone of his stature a moment of pause.

"...oh, this is possibly a dilemma," he mused aloud, placing a finger to his chin. "Tell me, Miss Lina... what happened before you came here? Humor me, and I may just have an answer for you."

For once.

And for once, he was actually quite serious.

Secrets weren't any good when he didn't know them, after all.

"I was in the middle of dealing with a clone of Rezo the Red Priest that had gone berserk," comes her answer, and particularly venomous. Learning of her apparently surviving that given that Filia knew her from events that hadn't happened had caused her to be less angry about that - but only a little.

And given her mood, well...

"So are you someone else that knows me that I've never met like that blonde lady?" She gives Xellos a judgmental stare, looking him over. "That color hair, being that polite... What are you, a cousin of Amelia's or something?"

Xellos gave a completely involuntary twitch and leaned back. Of all the people, of all the people to compare him to... Amelia Wil Tesla Seyruun was about as far from something he wanted to be associated with in such a way as he could think of.

"No, Miss Lina," he said, completely deadpan for a moment. "Miss Amelia and I are ... not associated in such a way."

He then composed himself.

If she was telling the truth, and Lina wouldn't have anything to gain from such a lie... There was some definite time displacement going on with this situation. He supposed that was entirely possible... After all, he dealt with things that were far beyond the comprehension of most mortals on a regular basis anyway. What was a little time travel?

Yet it would also mean she didn't know him. Certainly, if he wanted to he could play with that, if need be. However, at the moment, he was trying to deduce his own situation. Making an enemy of Lina Inverse would not serve to his advantage.

"Well, this is most unexpected," he went on, finally. "What would you say if I told you that I know you and your little band from a significant time after that? That I were an ... ally, of sorts?"

At times, anyway. That wasn't entirely inaccurate, it was just missing some key points.

Logic suggests that she should take note of that reaction, but given the state of things, Lina's not at her most logical right now. That, and...well, most anyone has that kind of reaction to Amelia, at least as a knee-jerk.

"I'd say that I've heard something like this before, though others have suggested I have a faulty memory for not remembering people I've never met." Xellos gets a brownie point for having a different idea - one that doesn't question her capability.

"I'd also say that's a relief, since things were looking pretty bad, last I recall."