woah what a boona log without mer chaos

[broroona]

[Blades slice through the air with a whistle and get batted away easily. disappointing but still effective. The dog was catching on. In a way, that made it more fun. With a faint grin, Baroona follows up, darting under the glaive as it knocks the other blade away–his free hand snaps the cord back so the knife will return. With his other blade he stabs deep into the jackal's thigh and slices out. Tear some ligaments, muscles, something. By the way the creature howls and falters, it seems to have worked.

A snarl forewarns him–he looks up, the other side of the glaive comes down. Baroona leans back just in time. The blade enters his thigh–an eye for an eye–where it would've met his back. Fatal blow avoided, but he still barks in pain as the end is pulled out. It starts to swing down again; Baroona doesn't wait to move. Pushing off his back leg, he shoves the jackal to the ground in a tackle, wrestling and cutting with it until–with a knife buried in its throat–it stops moving.

With a heavy sigh, Baroona sits up straight, wiping the sweat from his brow and fixing the cloth around his face. On the corpse's armor, he wipes his knives clean, draping the cord around his neck as he pushes off its body to stand...

And promptly falls over into the sand. Great.

Frowning, he tries again; fails again. He keeps it up, if only because falling helps him close the distance between himself and the well nearby.]

Comments

whispers besties

[broroona]

I know.

[Not that he plans to. Two days, though short, is telling when things are like this. He'd half-expected Zelos to be gone after the first night and if not then, the second. Consistently he expected a betrayal and consistently he was proven wrong. There was merit in that–enough for a bit of trust. The amount required to keep each other alive. Maybe a bit more.

So long as Zelos stays asleep, Baroona stays on watch, fueled by gratitude–mostly–for not turning on him yet. If Zelos wakes up after four or five hours, he might see Baroona wilting, leaning against one of the rocks and trying to stay awake.]

super besties... back icons....

[luxuriant]

[Zelos stays awake for about the first hour, pretending to sleep and wondering why Baroona had insisted on watching first. Worrying that things might go wrong, as well. It seemed they both were defensive on that part-- but nothing happened, and eventually he let himself drift to sleep for a few hours of shut eye.

That was all his body allowed. Four hours-- only three of actual sleep-- and now he was awake and slowly shifting to his feet. When he finds Baroona against the rock like that, there's a bit of a pause before he steps closer, softly, and nudges him with his foot.]

Yo. We can switch now. [Looking like this and he still hasn't asked... Of course Zelos was going to suggest it.]

YEAH!!!! back icons unite

[broroona]

I'm good.

[It's true. Tired as he is, this isn't the worst he's been. Experience has built a sturdy foundation–he could easily last the night. Just... be tired doing it.] Go back to sleep.

WOOOO

[luxuriant]

Me? I'm not tired at all!

[And he certainly doesn't sound or seem it, if the way he nudges harder with his foot and places his hands on his hips says anything. That voice is pretty annoying, too.]

And you're about to pass out over here.

[broroona]

You're deaf. [smacking that foot away. Get that shit out of here.] I'm fine.

[He's been keeping watch the past two nights, there's no way only a couple hours of sleep will do him good.]

[luxuriant]

[He just laughs softly at that, dropping into a sitting position next to him, close enough so that their shoulders bump.]

Don't tell me you're worried about me, are you?

[broroona]

[wow cute but fuck off he's not looking at you]

Exhaustion slows you down in battle. [... Okay, fine. A glance his way.] I said I'm relying on you. If you're too tired to help out, you're useless.

[AKA yes, I was worried.]

[luxuriant]

Haha, good point, good point...

[He would be. He leans back, thinking on that (and how he's going to answer it) just for a moment before he nudges Baroona with his shoulder, pointing to his own chest. Namely the crystal in the center of it.]

You see this thing? [He gives him a glance, allowing his tone to be a bit more serious-- it's a tone he uses for explaining things. Facts, details...] It's not just for show. It gives me power ups so that I'm stronger in battle, and I need less sleep for it, too.

[It's a white lie. It does make him stronger and not need sleep... But of course the real issue is entirely more complicated. That's not what's going to help here, though.]

I bet I could beat you if we spar how you are right now.

[broroona]

[It sounds like bullshit but so did magic, gods and everything else that Zelos had. Baroona was starting to learn that a suspension of disbelief was required for understanding, so he pauses every voice that tells him that there's no way this "gem" is responsible. He accepts it, even if it's a struggle and takes him a couple minutes to comprehend.

Especially when he's just been confronted with a challenge.

His eyes turn sharply towards Zelos, a frown pulling at his lips.]

You're underestimating me.

[A calm warning.]

[luxuriant]

No. [He relaxes by bringing both arms up behind his head, grinning.]

You're underestimating me. I'm not the one who needs sleep right now.

[broroona]

[With a twitch of a frown, he resists the urge to stand up. He's not so weak as to take the bait that easily. Crosses his arms instead.]

I'm used to this. It's fine.

[luxuriant]

Oh yeah?

[He shifts his gaze up. There's not really a sky down here, even if there had been a sun earlier... So there aren't stars to count. Hm. That wasn't really his style anyway.]

Then I'll just keep you company.

[broroona]

[Not the answer he was expecting and it shows–he blinks in surprise at Zelos before easing into a small smile. Pushes into Zelos' shoulder, light enough that he hopefully won't notice. Beyond that, he stays quiet, watching the sand shift slightly under the wind.]

Think our clothes will be dry by tomorrow?

[luxuriant]

If they don't, it might be a nice coolant for how hot it's gonna turn again.

[He points this out without a comment on the shoulder bump, even if he did notice it. It's just relaxing to have the company and to sit back, not spending the whole night to his own dark thoughts for once.]

[broroona]

[Baroona snorts, leaning back.]

You've never had to do it before, have you?

[Stretches out one leg while he curls up the other, resting a wrist on it.] It's painful.

[luxuriant]

What are you trying to say? Just because I'm a noble doesn't mean I haven't been through stuff myself. [Which he knows, coming from a noble, must sound laughable when no one knows what it is he's done.]

The cold bothers me more than the heat does.

[broroona]

Yeah?

[There's a touch of intrigue to the inclined look Baroona throws him, but beyond that: nothing.] Why don't you just use that magic if it bothers you?

[You know. The fire one. It's gotta be applicable for stuff like that, otherwise–what's the use?]

[luxuriant]

[He laughs at that, slowly raising one of his legs so he can use the knee as an arm rest. It's not the cold so much as the memories that bother him, but...]

I can't just go around setting everything on fire! Besides, my mana is limited, and those spells I know are mostly for the offense.

[broroona]

That's stupid. [Wow, blunt.] Why don't you learn more practical ones?

[Half-spoken through a yawn, he curls forward.]

[luxuriant]

They're not stupid! [He shoots his eyes over to Baroona as he says that, though his tone is a little softer than the usual arguments.] They're plenty practical for fighting monsters when I can't get close enough. Besides, I have healing spells, too.

[broroona]

[Ugh, don't get him started on the healing spells. But no, hunched over, curled around himself, he looks up at Zelos, studying him. Slowly going through what other types of magic he could possibly have while keeping in mind the gem on his chest. How else could that help him?

It's out of curiosity, in all seriousness, that he asks:] Can you fly?

[luxuriant]

Huh?

[The question surprises him enough that his expression falters into shock. He blinks a few times, trying to understand the train of thought, but not quite getting it. And then he laughs lightly, shaking his head.]

No... Where'd that come from...?

[broroona]

[Baroona shrugs.]

Magical people can always fly in stories.

[The like. Three he knows. He didn't exactly have a warm childhood.]

[luxuriant]

[Oh. He relaxes a bit in his posture, laughing at that.]

I'm not some character in a book. I'm not even a full magician. I'm a magic swordsman! ...So basically, I mainly rely on my sword, but my magic is there to back me up if I need it.

I don't really think I've heard of most magicians being able to fly, though...

[broroona]

I didn't say magicians. I said magic people.

[Another yawn.] Gods. Humans aren't allowed to have magic or something.

[He never really listened when people told him about this stuff. Fictional stories had never truly interested him so much as true ones.]