Colin's posts

"...well then." Jack muttered.

"That was fast." he said.

"Lucky break we came here first, then." he said further.

"Question is... where IS she, exactly?" he then asked.

"And how do we get to her?" he inquired, looking around and peering from behind the stone.

"Because nothing's around HERE."

Savra cuddled up against Eke, and Ryker swore he saw them smile.

"Heh." he chuckled.

"Well, we'll find a place to get clothing." he said.

"And then we'll head home." he told them further.

"I'll find us some nice places to bed down for the couple night we'll need to rest, too."

Jack just nodded.

"All right then." he said.

The two of them were then wrapped up in a sickening darkness that almost seemed to cling to their bodies and suffocate them, causing the world to go dark... before it suddenly dissipated, and they found themselves behind one of the stones at Stonehenge, hidden from view.

"We're here." he said.

"Let's get to exploring."

Jake just sighed in relief.

"Good to know." he said.

"That's a bit of a load off my shoulders." he admitted.

"Heh." Jack chuckled.

"A spider-demon and a lizardman. Will wonders never cease." he commented.

Jake just rolled his eyes a little.

"Whatever you're doing, good luck with it." he told them.

"....I don't know." Hal admitted.

"But I saw a brief glimpse of what Madison can do. What she did in a fit of rage, as brief as it was... it scared me, Rylie." he told her. "I'm not even affected by necromancy, really, but I had this strange sensation... and the best way I can describe it is 'when one's soul starts to separate from one's body'." he explained.

"Not like it was being pulled away, like the Fyrane mana does, but like... a tether had been severed, and the soul was free to float away." he added chillingly.

"If there's anyone we can trust to keep that man in check, it's Madison." he finished.

Meanwhile, Jack and Madison had made their way to security, and Jack waved at Jake.

"See ya!" he said.

"Madison and I are off to die!" he declared cheerily.

Jack had almost been getting a bit of a freakishly excited look to his eyes, before it disappeared when Madison spoke up. At that point, Rylie got a glimpse of just how strong Madison was, if that was all it took to bring Jack back from teetering over the edge.

"If this works, we'll be dead soon." he told Rylie.

"As for where to go, there's a place where breathing is stupid hard, a place that's unreliable, or a place that might not even be a nexus." he then said to Madison.

"As it stands, our best bet from the limited knowledge we have is to head to Stonehenge." he suggested. "A necromantic rune was used to do this. Madison, you'll be able to sense it if it was used there." he reasoned. "Stonehenge is a smaller area for a potential nexus and/or rune, so we should be able to knock it out of the way quickly if it's not the location we're looking for." he added, before standing up.

"I assume you'd prefer us to teleport away outside the building?" he asked Hal.

"It'd be preferable, yes." Hal admitted.

"Let us be off then, my dear." Jack then cordially said to Madison.

"I don't think he's currently in the building." Hal told her.

"Guess we're going, then." Jack said.

"Provided this works, you'll have plenty of chances to talk to him in future. Whenever he decides to continue making a mockery of what I and the concept of death itself stand for." he went on with a smile... but one that had hidden malice in it.

"Same as that damned Fyrane phoenix." he continued, before pausing.

"...if only they'd been around when I was alive..." he said in a chillingly whimsical tone.

Hal nodded in response.

"I will certainly do my best." he told her.

"All right then." Jack muttered.

"Rylie, you have a man to get home to." he told Rylie.

"Madison, you have anything to do here before we go?" he then asked Madison.

"Anyone to say goodbye to?"

Jack was silent for a moment.

"Ahhhh..." he stammered.

"Maybe?" he said.

"Rylie's entire venture out was to investigate possible places where the ritual could have taken place." he told her.

"Our best guess is the possible nexus that is Stonehenge." he then said further.

"There's no proof of it being or not being a nexus, but if it IS, it's the one place that would reliably amplify mana enough to make death not applicable."

Hal just sighed deeply.

"Rylie." he said.

"I say this not as your boss, but as a friend." he told her.

"I don't want you needlessly risking yourself." he continued. "You're not immune to dark elf mana, and we both know that Vanessa has her ways of getting what she wants. Or WHO she wants." he went on.

"With you under her control, you could be used against us. Or Emerald." he then said further.

"Are you willing to risk that? REALLY willing to risk it?"

"She has a point." Jack told her.

"You're strong, but not immune to dark elf mana." he said.

"Mine's probably stronger than hers is, but you don't want either of us to control you." he told her.

"But realistically, she would stand a good chance to get you... and you do not want to risk being turned against your man." he warned.

"Madison and I are the only ones that could probably stand toe-to-toe with her right now, but we also have nothing to lose." he went on. "We're supposed to be dead and gone, so at this point, we may as well be reckless with this chance we've been given."

"I know." Sharp sighed.

"I won't try and stop you." he said.

"It's a fool's errand, and I know that." he lamented.

"Right." Jack muttered.

"I guess we're all going out on a journey, then." he told them.

"Because you do NOT want me here without her?" he warned Sharp, gesturing to Madison. "She and Rylie are the only ones that have the best chances of keeping me in check."

The three of them looked over to the one that was there, and Jack just sighed.

"Madison." he greeted her.

"And before you say anything, you KNOW she won't be held back." he then told Sharp.

Sharp just leaned forward and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"I know, I know..." he said.

"Have to say, dying didn't treat you too badly." Jack said to Madison. "You look as good in life as you did in the afterlife." he complimented her... mostly being an ass at the moment, but meaning what he said.

Sharp raised an eyebrow upon hearing that.

"Really." he said.

"All theories." Jack told him. "It probably happened at a nexus somewhere that isn't in North America." he said further.

"That would make sense." Sharp agreed.

"And if Vanessa is responsible for this, then chances are this was literally the biggest mistake she's ever made, in the most literal sense of that phrase." Jack then revealed. "As messed up as I was in life, I DID respect the natural balance." he told them. "I was just too violent and brutal, and wasn't doing the dark elves' reputation any favours." he shrugged.

"...that's fair." was all Sharp could say in response.