Part 2 of Red and Blue! The plot thickens as more characters join the fray.

Hope you like it!


The uncomfortable smell of something burning tickled his nostrils. He moaned, clapping his gritty hand to his mouth as he retched violently, feeling the sand on his tongue. That was when the pain hit him. There was something heavy on his back, oppressing him, making it difficult for him to breath. As he struggled to escape the strange burden, various hurts registered in his mind. First, something in his chest moved, producing a grating sound, and he heard an unearthly shriek, strangled and breathless, slowly dwindling to whimpers. He realized that it was his own voice he was hearing. To continue, there were strange feelings all over his body, a sensation which made him think he was drowning in boiling water. Somehow, the prickling sensation was inside his skin, burrowing even deeper into his back.

Suddenly, consciousness returned in a flash. His eyes widened in pain and panic as he recalled the danger he had left behind. The village! He screamed soundlessly, the emotional and physical pain battering him back into unconsciousness.


Eliana almost ran right past the cactus she had knocked down just now in her haste to get to the burning village. Luckily, (for the boy) she tripped right over it. "Ack!" scrambling up quickly, she noticed something strange. There was a hand sticking out from under the cactus! Further inspection showed feet and a sandy blond head which would not have been noticed for it was the same colour as the ground below. Eliana panicked. She couldn't lift the heavy plant, and none of her skills would work for a situation like this. "Shadow!" she yelled, turning to the nu mou who had by now caught up. "Can you do anything to help?"

"Well, I could blow it up, burn it, freeze it, strike it with lightning, make it sick, or fix the cactus. Any of that help?"

Shadow asked.

"Hmm... Blowing it up, burning, freezing and lightning may hurt whoever's underneath... Making it sick would probably take too much time..." Eliana cocked her head in thought. "How're you going to fix the cactus?"

"Life."

Shadow said pointing his mace at the cactus. There was a flash of light and when it faded the cactus stood as though nothing had ever happened.

Eliana gaped. "Nice." Quickly, she knelt down next to the boy. "Looks like the cactus knocked him out..." she observed rather guiltily, "That's a pretty nasty head wound. Other than that and the cactus pricks, there seems to be some minor burns... He probably came from the place that is burning. Can you do something?"

Shadow turned to the boy and sat down next to him.

"Cura."

The boy's injuries quickly disappeared as Shadow put away his weapon.

"Great!" Eliana shook him lightly. "Hey... Can you hear me?" When the boy didn't respond, she felt rather discouraged. But he wasn't dead, at least, which was a relief. There were more pressing matters. "Hey, Shadow! I'll get a headstart to help stop the fire. Can you either stay with him here or carry him? Thanks!" And she was off like a bolt towards the smoke.

"What! What do you mean carry him!"

Shadow yelled after her. He groaned and lifted the boy onto his back before following Eliana.


Eliana neared the burning village. She would have charged right in if not for the men standing around the place. Skidding to a stop, she darted behind a cactus before anyone saw her. There were two options. She could either get rid of those thugs, or creep in using all her experience as a thief. Both were difficult. Either way, she unsheathed her knives in preparation.

Shadow reached the source of the burning and saw Eliana behind a cactus.

"How can you ditch me with a formerly injured and currently unconcious person in the middle of the desert!"

He yelled walking over to her.

"Idiot!" Eliana dragged him behind the cactus. "They'll notice you!" Too late, the guards were heading their way, looking for the source of the noise. No choice. Eliana jumped from behind the plant, pouncing on one, effectively disarming him. After dealing a hard blow with the hilt, she did the same with the other man. This was done in a speed that left her rather breathless. The polluted air was not helping. Thankfully, the smoke gave them some cover. "Hide him somewhere safe! I'm going in!" she yelled back at Shadow.

"Tch, Like I'm actually letting you go in there alone."

Shadow mumbled setting the boy down in a safe place and following behind Eliana.


Bianka felt her left eye twitch slightly. Something...unplanned...has occured. Swiftly she ran, feeling herself at one with the wind. Her destination was the centre of the burning village, where a high pole carved with strange wordings and faces stood. Upon reaching it, she continued her run to the top. Her scarf danced behind her, her hands tucked into the folds of her cloak, clutching the hilts of her katanas.

Balanced precariously at the top, Bianka awarded herself with a brief glimpse of the inferno that was her surroundings. Cottages on fire, flames leaping into the air, walls collapsing, villagers weeping. And somewhere...a thief and a sage, judging by their garments. Nothing to do with her. Her lips curled in disgust as two clansmen were felled effortlessly by the thief. If it were not for her Master's orders to recover the Ayvuir Blades, she would not have followed this unsavoury clan of thieves. Unsavoury and unskilled, she corrected herself. Burning villages, humph. How crude. She sniffed in disdain, as she descended. Perhaps she should go to their aid. They are, in a twisted, unwholesome sense, her allies.

Bianka tilted her head as she considered. Something below caught her eye. A fighter was blocking the entrance of a house, preventing a human woman with a babe in her arms from escaping. A bloody grin flickered on his face as he drew his blades. The woman screamed, her arms wrapped all the more tightly around the infant as she shielded the now crying child with her torso. Shock raced across the ruthless fighter's face a few seconds later as his arms disappeared, disconnected from his body by a pair of blades. His eyes rolled into his head, and he fainted.

Bianka sniffed, wiping the blood off her katanas with his body.


Shadow heard a woman scream and ran through the rows of burning building towards the voice.

Shadow stopped near the village center.

"Hello! Is anyone here!"

He yelled over the fire's roaring around him. He squinted and spotted someone crouched over a body next to one of the houses.


Eliana dashed through the blazing village, attacking several thugs who were terrorising the villagers. "Go! Quickly! Before more of them come! Get as far from this place as possible!" she yelled at a bunch of women and children before setting out on a run again. She had to save as many people as possible. Too many had been lost in the fire already. Her fists clenched. If she had the time, she would have given those jerks the beating of their lives. But the priority now was to help the villagers. She darted forward with new determination.


Nearby, a group of six were drawing their weapons.

"Cyril Band has not only infiltrated Clan Nutsy's turf, but harmed many lives. We have to stop them," yelled the blond-haired leader over the din.

"Let's go." The other five- black mage, ninja, sniper, elementalist and white mage - dashed in after him.


Elvos cut down an enemy with one katana and countered another with his other weapon, defeating two in one go. The other members of Clan Nutsy were giving it their all as well, with Stanz healing them with his white magic.

Cyril Band. He had worked with them once, when he had just arrived in Cyril. But he quit the clan for he couldn't stand their ways. Suddenly, he spotted a familiar face. A face which he would have rather not seen ever again. "Rayton..." he gripped his katanas tighter, and set out after him, even though he knew that doing so would take him out of Stanz's range. The man was dressed as a villager, but there was no mistaking the face of the leader of Cyril Band. He moved closer, one weapon raised in preparation of attack.


Eliana ran through the inferno, felling the criminals left and right. That is, until she spotted an all too familiar face. "Elvos...?" Even though many years had passed, she had no doubt that the brown-haired teen was her brother. And he was attacking a civilian.


"Rayton." Elvos stood with one katana resting next to his enemy's throat. Even though the other ninja appeared to be weaponless, he knew that Rayton specialized in throwing daggers. Numerous daggers were more than likely hidden in his clothing. Any movement would probably result in both of them dead. True to belief, a dagger appeared in his hand, almost unnoticeable if Elvos had not been alert for any movement.

Eliana had not seen anything of that sort. She dove towards Elvos, knocking his weapon from his hand. They both fell.

In his shock, Elvos almost missed the small blade released from Rayton's hand. Recovering his senses before his sister, he quickly flipped her over and the dagger pierced him instead of her. Another dagger soon followed. Wincing, he ruthlessly yanked them out, sending them straight back into the flesh of their owner. Rayton collapsed, but Elvos knew that it was not fatal. What was important was to get away from him. He dragged the stunned Eliana towards the edge of the village, when they were almost there, he blacked out.

Eliana moved as if in a trance, just following her brother's lead. She still couldn't grasp the fact that Elvos was part of this riot. As she was still an amateur, she hadn't seen the lightning-fast exchange between the two ninjas, and was shocked when he collapsed halfway through their run. Belatedly she noticed the blood seeping through her brother's clothing. "Elvos! Crap..." She managed to move him to a safer area where nothing would soon topple down nor anyone likely to run over him. "I'll get my friend, he can heal you! Hang on!"

She ran towards the place where she had left Shadow previously, which was thankfully not far. To her dismay, all she found was the unconscious boy. "For Mateus' sake!" Dashing back into the village, she headed for the center. It would be easiest to start searching from there.


Review~!