Securing Survivors

Subject: Securing Survivors Tue May 17, 2016 1:09 pm

When Mae arrived on Penecia, everything was in total disarray. A literal mountain of a woman was towering over the island, seemingly reaching down over the circus area. Just like Sharaku had said earlier, this island had been hit hard by the demon invasion, perhaps even harder than San Malarus had, seeing as the barrier had been up for several hours now, while this island lacked that same protection. Shocked at the level of destruction, Mae only stood there, struck dumb by the scene in front of her. She eventually came to her senses. She had a job to do here. Finding Charles was her first priority. Now that didn't exactly stop her from looking for survivors as well. She had sworn to protect Azores, and it's people from any future threats back then, and she was going keep up that role, even though the rangers were disbanded a long time ago.

She started moving quickly around the island, looking for any and all signs of life. Maybe she would be fortunate enough to find a survivor who had seen Charles! She hadn't lost hope. She looked anywhere for survivors. Inside houses, public toilets, cars, everywhere one could be hiding, desperate for clues about the missing android.

Posts : 1664 Join date : 2014-05-22

This was definitely not what Eriko Kurosawa wanted to do in the middle of her shopping. But some things can't be helped, and even a frivolous woman knows there's a time to value life above money and youth.

"Oh, geez, Dad. I'm still waiting for an answer as to why you didn't order Alfred to pick us up soon in this mess! I can't be walking home on high heels!"

Eriko was far from pleased, and it was really hard for her to remain stunning in the middle of an apocalypse. Her father, Oujirou Kurosawa, just sighed. A distinguished and imposing man, the patriarch of a dynasty, he had better things to worry about rather than his girl moaning and complaining about futility and peddling. For example, to discover what the freaking hell Shunnosuke was doing since the morning he couldn't even return home or at least give some damn phone call to explain he was going to spend his whole day outside rather than helping him with the company. For God's sake, he was the heir! It was about time the kid should learn how to be responsible.

"Eriko...for the damn last time, do stay QUIET! I do NOT have time for this blabbering now, I can not think straight if you keep going on and on about stupid concerns! Alfred is locked in a traffic jam, haven't I told you before?? At times like these I realized I failed you as a parent. I should have been more strict! I should have punished you good when I had the opportunity! You and my grandson are nothing but the biggest disappointments in my life! Both of you!!"

Ironically, the man ranted more than his own daughter, who listened quietly, but not paying any attention to her father's complaints. You can't rewind time, after all, so if the old crank decided to be grievous and hold grudges over past deeds, so be it. She had decided to not give him any importance, therefore pouted in silence, crossing her arms while trying to keep some balance walking. Her predilection for high heels would be her demise eventually, she just didn't expect it to be sooner than later. — If I realize Shunnosuke is chasing over any other man, I'll disinherit him! Ban him from this family! It's one thing to exchange courtesies with someone such as Masahiko, a man of a distinct upbringing, a renowned family background, an empire to back up this...sin of his, I can even overlook that. However, if he has gone after some low class level, such as that redhead bastard who we were forced to take under our wings years ago, I tell you, Eriko, he's out of our family! And so are you, it's all your fault! All. Your. Fault! Like mother, like son!

Subject: Re: Securing Survivors Thu May 19, 2016 4:57 pm

Mae moved along at the same pace as before, moving around the the rubble and broken down cars, keeping her eyes and ears alert for any signs of life at all. Not seeing anything for a long while, one would think that she would've given up, but that was one thing she wouldn't do. And it looked like her vigilance was going to pay off in this instance, for she heard a couple of voices speaking quite loudly in the distance, sounding distinctly human. //Survivors!// Hope had returned to the girl, as her steps towards the voices increased in speed.

It appeared to be a woman who looked to be in her thirties, while the man seemed to be close to his sixties, maybe seventies even. Both were well dressed, looking very rich... so what were they doing out here in the open like this? She observed the two for a short moment, pondering on how to best approach them. Well, given how dire the situation was, she couldn't wait for long. After making up her mind, she'd walk up to the couple, with both a relieved and worried look on her face. "Hey! Finally, someone else who's alive here! Are you two okay?" She'd ask the two, completely forgetting that she still held her soulbound weapon in her hands... They seemed fine, but looks could be very decieving...

Posts : 1664 Join date : 2014-05-22

Eriko glanced the girl from top to bottom, deeming her someone who's not worth her time...and yet, she probably was a better company than Oujirou right now. It didn't help that she was highly irritable to react politely. — Honey, look at me. But look closely, look carefully. Have you looked? Now answer me: do I look to you like someone who's okay? Huh? Do I? Check how sweaty I am. Check how messy my hair is. Check my feet. Check the blisters I have from being forced to walk even though we have a family chauffeur because someone didn't want to give him a call! — The lady glanced back to her father with a glare that would cut him short, if he wasn't her father in first place, as exasperated and annoyed as her. To anyone who would know Shunnosuke, they'd recognize the attitude immediately. Like mother, like son, as Oujirou previously said. As for him, the old man rubbed his temples, trying to keep calm and think rationally. — ...urgh, there's no end to this... Excuse my daughter's behavior, little miss, I swear she was taught good manners, but somewhere along the way she seemed to have forgotten where she put it. We are...fine, and I appreciate your concern.
— Yes, I forgot my manners in my car! — Eriko rolled her eyes, who's her father trying to fool? Of course they were NOT okay! Plus, they have to reach home soon, contact Shunnosuke somehow, discover his whereabouts. What if he was...dead?
— Pay no mind to her... We're trying to reach our home and find my grandson, her son. He left home earlier today and still has not contacted us. I... — He quieted down, keeping further words to himself. If at one second he was damn angry to all hell at Shun, the next second he took to calm himself down, he realized that morning could have been the last time he would see his grandson alive. His heir. The one he chose to rule the empire he built for their future. The old man knew Shunnosuke, and despite his many flaws, the boy had willpower, the boy was fierce when he had to be. But what would those traits do against demons roaming around?

Subject: Re: Securing Survivors Thu May 19, 2016 5:39 pm

Now that... was an outburst she didn't expect. Mae only blinked at first, stunned momentarily. After gathering her composure, however, she scanned the woman from top to bottom with her eyes, looking for any potential wounds, or such. "You look perfectly fine to me. Considering the circumstances, you could be much worse off." The pink-haired girl stated calmly, crossing her arms. At least the older gentleman was being more rational and generally more pleasant to her, which was good. "Oh, don't worry about it!" She waved her arm as to bat away the apology as if it was a paticularly annoying fly. "Oh, your son's missing too?" She bit herself in the lip, thinking a bit about what to do next. Could she really afford to spend more time on this? Of course she could! As important as Charles was to her, she still had the safety of everyone in mind when she had taken on her job as a Ranger two years ago, and she hadn't changed at all in regards to that subject. Well, before anything else, Introductions were in order. Before she could do anything to help these two, she had to somehow gain their trust first, and introducing herself would be the obvious place to start. "I'm Mae Iharu." She offering a handshake to the older man. "Nice to meet you, mister...?" After introductions were in order, the next major issue would be their son... "...I'll help you find your son, Madam. Where was he going the last time you two saw him?" It was a start, if nothing else... Now they had to stick together. If any demons showed up, it was up to her to defend them, at all costs.

Posts : 1664 Join date : 2014-05-22

Eriko really considered coming back at this girl, Mae, but it was not worth her time. As for Oujirou, he looked to her hand carefully for some time before actually grabbing it and performing the handshake.

— I'm Kurosawa. Oujirou Kurosawa. And this is my--
— Eriko. His daughter. The pleasure is all yours. — Or maybe it wasn't anyone's pleasure at all. Meeting another person in these circumstances was far from pleasant.
— As for your questions, I...am afraid I cannot answer them. We know little about his decisions...
— You know little about his decisions. I was at home when he left, he did say something about visiting a friend at the Prison or whatever. I never told you because you would definitely freak out if I t-
— W-WHAT?? — Oujirou's eyes seemed like they were going to jump out of his otherwise composed face and explode. Lord, the man's mouth was almost FOAMING! — What kind of friends does Shunnosuke have in a prison, of all places? What kind of people is he getting involved with?? Eriko, for God's sake, he's YOUR son and you were at home by the time!! Do your job as a mother!!
— ...that's exactly why I haven't told you. Please, there's nothing to freak out. He's already 19, he's not a kid anymore. Besides, let the boy do some charity to a prisoner, it might even boost our family's name as a generous and benevolent family! — She shrugged, clearly paying no importance to the fact he visited the prison on his own.
— Don't you test my patience, woman, I've had enough with you, but it's not endless, I swear you... I'll edit my Testament and cut your name out of it if you keep up this act of yours! — The threat seemed to make Eriko's eyes widen in a bit of a surprise...or fear? — I'm flying back to Japan tomorrow, I can't be living with this horde of crazy, hallucinating people we call family, or I'll end up having a heart attack or two, I'm too old for playing with you and him... Too old, I tell you...
— Good luck then. If I were you, I'd give the airport a call right now and buy a ticket for the next flight. Oh wait, you can't do that, because you are a cheapskate who doesn't want to waste the cellphone's battery into giving a simply call to our chauffeur! — Up to this point they were both nervous and agitated by their situation, and Eriko's revelation did no good to keep Oujirou's calm behavior...calm. On the contrary, he was now out of himself, and would keep exchange bickering with Eriko should Mae not intervene.

Subject: Re: Securing Survivors Thu May 19, 2016 6:24 pm

Well, that certainly didn't brighten things up. The Prison was far away from here, and even then, he might not even be there anymore. And of course, these two would keep bickering like she heard them before... If it wasn't for the age difference, you could take them for a married, old couple at this point. "Hey... HEY!" Mae stepped between the two, glaring at them both. "Now's NOT the time to argue, Alright!?" These two... would probably be more of a pain than they were worth, but it's not like she could bring herself to ditch them now. "Aren't you two forgetting what's important here? Your Son! Your Grandson!" How could they lose sight of something as important as a family member in front of things like "Phone batteries" and who he hung out with? Couldn't they see that their lost family member was in danger? Did they even realise the danger they found themselves in?

"Now, let's calm down, and think about this rationally. Is there anyone or anywhere he would go to in times of crisis? Any friends, partners, other relatives?" She'd turn to the mother with this question, since she obviously knew her son better than the grandfather did, even if it wasn't by much, if Mae had to guess.

Posts : 1664 Join date : 2014-05-22

Mae's yelling helped quieting both father and daughter down, even if for a bit and contrary to their own will. As for Mae's question, Eriko raised her eyebrows a moment, thinking.

— His father. But we're divorced and he doesn't live in Azores anymore. Moved to England to live with some cow or whatever.
— Have some decency and don't go telling other people you're dishonored!
— Oh please, just stop! We're not living in the 60's anymore! I am divorced and hell proud of it! My life is soooo much better right now. Back to the point, other than his father...I guess no. I never knew about Shunnosuke's friends, I think he doesn't stay in touch with his former classmates anymore. The only one he could go to was Hyde, but he died...so no. — Eriko placed one hand in her collar, looking a bit mournful. She learned to like Hyde with time, and his cheerful disposition. He did make the house livelier when he lived there, albeit for a considerably short period of time.
— ...so no. We don't know where Shunnosuke is, we don't know his friends, we don't know what he went to the Prison for, we don't know anything about him! I wonder why do we insist in calling ourselves family. — Oujirou rubbed his forehead, his tone considerably calmer than before. Almost as if his stern façade gave up, as if he was lamenting rather than scolding. — What are we supposed to do at times like these...? What are we gonna do without him...? — The man leaned against an alley's wall, downed gaze. Perhaps he was about to cry out of sadness and impotence, and Eriko said nothing. They might clash here and there, but she shared the feeling. They needed to stick together, against all odds, and the possibility of losing Shunnosuke — not the son who assisted her with dressing, not the grandson who'd inherit the business and follow his steps, but the person Shunnosuke they grew to love at their own way — was more than they could handle. Both Eriko and Oujirou learned that, perhaps the hard way...

Subject: Re: Securing Survivors Thu May 19, 2016 7:10 pm

Well... Her words certainly did have some effect, alright. They wre still bickering a little, but it was tolerable. At least they kind of agreed in the end, did they not? So, she succeeded in her goal to unite their efforts somewhat. "Eh...? Hyde... As in Hyde Mizumi? A red-headed guy?" Please... don't be Hyde... please don't be him of all people. They could see her saddened expression when the name of her late friend was mentioned. Obviously they had no way of knowing that Mae had been friends with the guy, but this may have given that away to them now.

Not that it made her none the wiser... //Ugh... I can't deny that this looks bad...// She thought to herself. "Oh, don't say that. The fact that you still obviously care for him, albeit in your own way, shows family ties. No matter how much you twist it, he's still your grandson." She gave the older man a pat on the back. "What's important right now is to not lose hope. He's out there, still alive and kicking." Her tone was reassuring, and in a way, perhaps confident even. "...Let's check your home first. Maybe he's there..." It was not much, but at least it was SOMETHING, right?

Posts : 1664 Join date : 2014-05-22

— Uh? Yes, that's the one. Why, is there any other Hyde in these islands who acted like a big child? — Eriko smirked when Mae asked about him, though noticing the effect the mere mention of his name had on the girl made her change the mocking tone to a more serious one. They were talking about the dead, after all. — He lived with us for some months. Shunnosuke took him inside because the Zela Dorms had some problem, or at least that's what he says. I'm sure it was an excuse to bring him to his room and have s-- — Okay, perhaps not so serious.
— Eriko, shut this garbage can hole you call mouth for once, for God's sake! — Oujirou lifted his head just in time, glaring at his daughter furiously.
— ...fine, fine. It wasn't an excuse, sure... — Eriko tried to look apologetic in her own way. The least they needed was another argument. Oujirou regained his posture, gently grabbing Mae's wrist and stopping her "tap on the back". The girl might be kind and all, but he never allowed her to touch him in such manner as if they were old friends.
— You must be right. He's probably alive. Messing up with these creatures, giving quite a beating at some others with this magic witchery he does. Ha, my weakling of a grandson giving someone a beating... — The thought of it was amusing, to an extent. Of course they were perfectly aware Shunnosuke had a Persona, though the exact extension and the name of his powers are unknown to his family. The old man was no dumb. The sudden disappearances everytime something bigger occurred, the excuses, the inexplicable disappearance of Hyde as well as his mysterious and sudden death right after Standasen's atmosphere cleared, the time Shunnosuke's full name appeared on the broadcast, and not because of some high-class scandal... Definitely, the old man was not dumb, regardless of the youngster's attempts to keep it a secret, but the thought of it was still chuckle material. Even Eriko couldn't help but giggle under her breath at her father's assumptions. — Well, then. "Hope", you said? Sure, I can do that. Absolutely. Nonetheless, I highly doubt he's at home already. My wife would have notified me should that be the case.

Posts : 6498 Join date : 2013-07-06 Age : 29

As they spoke, they could begin to hear commotion down the street, and were they to look, they would see a strange Demon hopping over several of the vehicles. They hadn't noticed the group yet, but they were busy rummaging through a recently destroyed car, impaling it or anything of use or interest. One of the group may have recognized it from a glance, but who knew if it was any similar to what they knew?

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Subject: Re: Securing Survivors Fri May 20, 2016 10:57 am

So they knew Hyde too, huh...? She had gotten over it for the most part, but still... there was this gaping hole inside her that Hyde had left behind after dying. Sure, she might've not been as close to him as some other people, but it still affected her. "Hyde... wasn't the only one who had to move out that day. I was forced to do the same." It wasn't just some odd excuse for anything really... but what did they know? How could they possibly understand everything that had been going on two years ago?

"That's the spirit." She replied to Oujirou with a faint smile. Hope was not lost just yet. They had to believe that this Shunnosuke was still out there, alive and well. "Oh, I see... Well, I guess I'll have to take you two with me. I'm looking for someone as well, you see. Well... that's part of the reason why I'm here. I was involved with everything that happened two years ago, and with demons running about, I can't leave you two unprotected." And that's when she saw it. The white steed in the distance, with a single horn portruding from it's head... It couldn't be... No... Qilin was with her, no? And besides, her persona had blue flames instead of red hair. It had to be another demon. She couldn't take the risk of it attacking the other two. Her grip around her Naginata tightened, as she bit her own lip, focusing her gaze on the horse, before she started looking for a safe place to hide her two new "friends" from the demon. No such thing in sight, aside from a car not too far away. "Mind backing off a little bit...? We've got company..." She directed their attention towards the demon. "Remain calm, and find a place to hide. I won't let it hurt you." A small, blue card appeared in front of the girl, waiting a bit for the other two to back away before she grabbed the demon's attention in full...

Posts : 1664 Join date : 2014-05-22

Okay... It was just a horse, right? Right. Sure, it has a mustache larger than Oujirou's, and a horn protruding from its face, but it was definitely a horse. A horse jumping from one car to another and making one hell of a noise, however, but still a horse...doing what no other horse would do, as a matter of fact. Echini were good animals, lovely animals. They rarely do harm to humans, right?

...or at least Eriko and Oujirou wanted to believe that. The rather common appearance of this demon surely made their sense of startlement controllable. If it were a more alien-like demon, in appearance, they'd definitely be freaking out and screaming at this point. Oujirou managed to stay composed, dragging Eriko close to him and placing one hand at her mouth firmly, just in case his daughter decided to break the silence with shrill shrieks, even though the patriarch himself was trembling out of fright.

— ...c-can you handle this thing on your own? Are you one of those people, like my grandson?? — His voice came out considerably low. He took some time to process the suggestion, but eventually, the man nodded and retreated carefully a few steps into an alley, bringing Eriko with him. That blue card...it was definitely witchery, the same witchery Shunnosuke probably had in his abilities.

Posts : 6498 Join date : 2013-07-06 Age : 29

The Demon seemed to notice the azure light like a sore thumb, and looked at it with a strange glance. It suddenly galloped over the top roofs of the cars up until it was only several cars from Mae. It neighed proudly as it stared at them intensely.

"To what purpose do you have here? I sense you have strength...I suggest you leave now and let me tend to my matters, lest it get bloodier..."

Subject: Re: Securing Survivors Sun May 22, 2016 8:38 am

This one was certainly more civil than the last demon Mae had encountered. It's intentions didn't seem completely hostile, and it carried itself with pride. These demons... were inviduals too, with their own personalities, agendas and history, much like humans. They were strikingly opposite to the regular shadows she had been used to fighting uptil now. Perhaps this one could actually be reasoned with. It was worth a try, if nothing else.

"I'm afraid I can't leave just yet... I'm looking for survivors of my kind. I'm wish to avoid any unecessary bloodshed." Mae said, giving the demon a quick bow. "What's your buissness here then? You seem... more civil than the other demon I've seen." She hoped that it wouldn't come down to a tussle between them, but should it be necessary, she was ready for combat.

» Debriefing (Team Survivors)
» Leave No Survivors II [Fishing Thread]
» Leave No Survivors I [Fishing Thread]
» Leave No Survivors III [Fishing Thread]
» Halloween Special! [Team Survivors/Invite only]