Completed Ghost

[Kanri]

14th of Fall 512, Shortly Before Lunch
Ruined Aeries
(Starts in Glass Reverie but shifts quickly)

Scarlet. The color of blood. Blood that somehow remained coursing through her veins. Blood that had not drained from her body. She shouldn't be alive.

Kanri was working with scarlet colored glass today, perfecting the technique her mysterious teacher had given her. He had not spoken with her for days now but she did not need more of his instruction. She was still learning how to use what he had given her. As she cooled the ruby red glass at the end of her blowpipe, Kanri did not feel as though she was entirely there. She felt depressed and sad, a cold, muddled feeling inside her even though the hot shop was its usual, oven-like temperature.

Kanri looked at the bubble of glass and sighed. It still looked sloppy. I should be doing better than this! So she told herself. However, it was better than it had been all morning. After putting on thick, heat-blocking gloves, she placed her work in the annealer. She rolled out the stiffness from her shoulders. She had gotten her earlier than usual. She could afford a break. She headed out for some lunch.

Or rather, she said it was for lunch if someone asked. However, Kanri did not feel hungry. She might eat something mechanically later but she had no appetite for anything. Instead, she would wander for a while until she felt nervous and restless again. Then she would scurry back to the Glass Reverie to continue her work.

Suddenly, large, jagged rocks were underfoot and Kanri pitched forward, unable to regain her balance until she hit the ground. She woke up out of her mental fog and became frightened. Of what? She calmed herself down and took her hand off the hilt of her precious sword. "Don't worry, brother," she whispered to the sword. "I'm quite alright."

A shiver involuntarily ran down her spine. There was something there. The temperature of the room plummeted unnaturally and laughter danced through the air like a butterfly floating through a meadow. There was no detectable source. Kanri spun wildly. What was happening? She pulled out her sword, not that it would do any good because she was not particularly talented with it. However, she felt as though someone was holding her hand. Now where was it?

In front of her, the translucent outline of a little girl materialized out of a thin mist. She grinned wolfishly at me before blinking in and out of existence just a little ways away. Suddenly, a small rock was hurled at the back of my head. The rock was cold and seemed to be steaming slightly. The little ghost tossed two more at me.

“Stop it!” Kanri snapped at the little girl, realizing she wasn’t a threat and relaxing a little.

“Catch me if you can!” she sang, vanishing again.

How could she catch that?

[Farlen]

That afternoon Farlen had realised he was beginning to understand the layout of this city. He started to recognise individual buildings, even individual Inarta in the crowds. And with every day he would tell himself he would leave, he found something that would grab his curiosity and he would fallow it; and so days passed... weeks passed... and his heart would grow fond of this carved maze. Even his illness had lessened its hold upon him.
That afternoon, upon his seemingly ritual walk down to the Glass Reverie, he had come across something so alien to him, that even his instincts were of no use.
It all started with a girl who walked out in a daze. Normally he would have thought of nothing for it, but for some reason he could smell trouble on her. And this unnerved him. There was also something in her appearance that puzzled him... her hair maybe? Farlen could not quite explain.
Hiding in the shadows he followed her, a terrible habit, he knew. But there was something about this girl. Or was this just an excuse he would give every time he would fallow a stranger? Tying back his long blond hair and pulling the cape over his cat like eyes, he attempted to merge in with the blackness, which seemed to never be in abundance. Thankfully years in the forests had taught him how to successfully stalk his pray. In fact, a part of him had wished to shape shift into his lynx form right now, but a fear of loosing his possessions kept him from doing so.
The sound of laughter and cold, hard stone had ripped him out of the little conversation in his head. And before the girl was another form, an otherworldly form, blinking in and out of existence. A small girl perhaps? A ghost?
…. A GHOST!!?
All common sense aside, it was pure instinct that drove him now. As a Kelvic, instinct always prevailed over his brain. In an instant he became his lynx form, completely failing to conceal his presence. His clothing and back pack dropped to the ground, abandoned.

[Kanri]

Kanri looked around bewildered. Where would the ghost go? What was she up to? Was she dangerous? Kanri knew she should have immediately gone back to the Glass Reverie and gotten back to work. Avoid danger. Someone out there was trying to kill her. Maybe this ghost was a warning. Maybe it wasn’t an accident. But then Kanri realized she was being paranoid. Maybe she should loosen up… or maybe not. However, instead of being properly afraid, the tips of her mouth went into a smile. Sure, she could play with danger for a little while. Continuing to live, she was already in danger.

Suddenly, a large grayish, speckled cat slunk out of the shadows. How had a predator that big crept into Wind Reach? There was no way it could have come through the gates! And everywhere else there were cliffs! She reached for a talon sword, hoping maybe a few swings and a loud noise would chase it away. Then, it struck her. She had heard of the mysterious shapeshifters before but never met one firsthand. This cat had to be a shapeshifter of sorts. “Kelvics” they were called. It wouldn't make sense for predators as large as this to sneak into Wind Reach and wander about unnoticed. An Endal would have taken care of the cat already if it were here uninvited.

"Hello, cat. Did you see the ghost too? Do you want to help me find it?" Kanri asked, the strange cat with black tipped ears drawing out a happiness in herself she had not found lately. The cat reacted to her voice, looking at her even more intensely. They were the sharp, observant eyes of a hunter.

Kanri was careful to keep an eye on the cat. However, the ghost presence had left the room. She would have to kept moving in order to find it. She nodded to the oversized cat and started to search the adjacent rooms.

[Farlen]

"Hello, cat. Did you see the ghost too? Do you want to help me find it?" Said the girl. Farlen looked at her with human understanding in his feline eyes. His round head nodded, a sign that he could understand her, that he was human beneath this flesh. Or rather, that he was a lynx beneath human flesh.

The girl diverted her attention from him and began to search adjacent rooms. This was a moment in which he could turn back, without causing problems with his naked human body. In a blink of an eye, he was his pale blond self again. Slipping back into the shadows and quickly pulling his clothes back on he thought to him self, You can't just shape shift every single time you get scared Farlen.

Within moments he was dressed again and reappeared by her side. He quite honestly was not trying to scare her. Perhaps he was just looking for trouble. Out in the wilderness there's trouble around every corner. He missed it. He thrived in troubled situations.

[Kanri]

Kanri crept through the broken down rooms, neither seeing nor feeling any sign of the little girl at first. She stopped for a moment in one of the doorways and looked back. Was that a flash of distorted light in there? No, it had just been her eyes. She wondered how far a ghost could go when they disappeared. And could ghosts interact with this world when they disappeared? She sighed and turned to continue on her way.

A tall, lean man stood just behind her, startling her. She jumped back a little. He had been dangerously quiet as he approached and his eyes were keen and sharp. He could be dangerous. Then, she noticed his eyes were the same as the cat's eyes. So, he was going to help her. Taking deep breaths to calm herself, inhaling dust from the unused rooms, she spoke with the cat-man, this time getting a response back.

"You were the cat, right?" Kanri asked, looking up and smiling remembering the large cat. The cat had made her happy for some reason. It made her feel more upbeat. But she knew she should be more wary, even as she smiled. “My name is Kanri.”

Before the man could answer, another small rock smacked uncomfortably into Kanri’s back, followed by snickering, mean laughter. It sounded sweet and cruel at the same time. Kanri glowered at the floating figure. She had her hands on her hips.

“What do you want?” Kanri asked the sassy girl.

“Pay attention! We’re playing Hide-And-Seek!” the little ghost’s voice echoed. She disappeared again before continuing. “If you won’t play with me, then I will hurt you!”

Kanri turned back to the cat man. “I’m sorry about that. We should follow her. She seems a little lonely… Oh, and your name is…?”

[Farlen]

Farlen never quite believed in the existence of ghosts up until now. Then again he grew up on the road, in a place where wild animals and bandits were much more likely to eat you, than ghosts. And as yet another rock was hurled at the girl, a wave of guilt sweeped over him. Back when he was only a kitten, he was used to protecting his master. But her he knew not how to protect.

Quickly gathering up his thoughts, he stuttered a little. Nari wasn't his preferred language and though he could speak it well enough, he had not enough time to think, he just spoke. "Yes... umm... forgive me, I didn't mean to startle you... Farlen... That's my name, I mean. And your name?"

The words of the little ghost played back in his mind. “Pay attention! We’re playing Hide-And-Seek!” the little ghost’s voice echoed. She disappeared again before continuing. “If you won’t play with me, then I will hurt you!” What did she mean by "hurt"? She was already throwing stones? How much evil can one little ghost do? An ominous thought indeed...

"I'll help you look for the ghost." he added. "But what happens if we find it? Will it throw more stones, or is it gonna go for your throat instead?"

[Sphinx]

I just want to play. The ghostly voice of the girl rang out from somewhere... Was it just ahead, around that corner? She sounded close, wherever she was, and the two hopped at the sudden noise. Farlen couldn't summon another shift into his animal form even if he tried at that point. Transforming so quickly, and over nothing to top it off, had wearied him. He would need to eat something to have the energy to turn his particular trick again.

Come on. Aren't you going to look for me?

The room temperature suddenly seemed to lower and a faint sound, something like child laughter and song, haunted the very edge of the hearing of the two. Was it their imagination, or was the ghost doing this to them?

A sudden shock touched Farlen's bare neck. Like fingers stroking along his nape, leaving a chill like frost on his skin and nearly causing him to panic. Not long after, Kanri found her hair fluttering, pulled by faint hands behind her, but when she turned to look, the ghost girl was gone, having blinked herself a few feet away.

Standing there, fully materialised, she stook out her tongue and blew a raspberry.

Come and get me, or I'll get you! She sang, turning and running off.

[Farlen]

His fingers grasped the handle of his little dagger. Though perhaps it wasn't the wittiest of moves as he knew not how to fight ghosts. Bah! He had never even believed in them until now. Should he turn back into his animal form, he might have been able to escape, but exhaustion and hunger swept over him at once. He would not be able to transform for a while yet. Besides, it went against his very nature to leave anyone at their time of need. Within his chest beats an honourable heart after all.

A sudden shock touched Farlen's bare neck. Like fingers stroking along his nape, leaving a chill like frost on his skin and nearly causing him to panic. Never being quite as scared as in that moment, he cried to the ghost girl "Who are you? State your business!" Part of him wanted to run off after the ghost, he hoped that if he tried hard enough he could catch up with her. But old habits die hard. He looked towards Kanri, hoping for her leadership.

[Kanri]

Kanri felt cold, faintly existent fingers run through her hair. She whirled but the girl had already blinked away. A chill went down her spine. The little ghost was so powerful! It was frightening. She nodded to Farlen, her new ally. He did not notice because he was going through a shock himself.

"Who are you? State your business!" he shouted, seemingly instinctively. Then, he looked to Kajin, a questioning look in his eyes.

"It's okay," Kanri said nervously to Farlen, forcing a smile. The cold pull on her hair seemed too close to harm for Kanri to feel comfortable. She had no heavenly idea if it was okay or not. "Alright, little one. You want us to play with you. We will. Just DO NOT touch us! It's not fun for us and we will go get... a ghost murderer if you keep that up!" Kanri didn't know any ghost hunters so it was an empty threat. But she did NOT like the feeling of those faint, chilly fingers streaming through her hair.

The little girl laughed and vanished again, only her voice remaining. "Okay! I am going to hide! Come find me!"

Kanri tried to shake out some of the tense muscles in her body as she turned to Farlen. "Do ghosts leave a trail of some sort you can follow? If not, I'd say we first check around the abandoned Aeries and then... we can check elsewhere."

Kanri hated to think what would happen if she had gone into the Aeries in use. Neither of them were Endal, as far as she knew, and were not permitted to go into the Aeries. Not that going in was specifically against the laws, but it was just one of those things you just didn't do. It showed respect for the higher caste to stay out of their clique.

[Farlen]

"Do ghosts leave a trail of some sort you can follow?" asked the Inarta girl.

Farlen sniffed the air but no scent other than his own and hers reached his nostrils. He wasn't particularly fond of that which he could not smell. As a lynx, his nose was the tool of his trade, but in this care it was useless. He felt as in he was blinded and then forced to walk through a maze. A similar principle applied for the ghost girl. Solemnly he shook his head, his eyes narrowing into nothing more than little slits.

"If not, I'd say we first check around the abandoned Aeries and then... we can check elsewhere." she added swiftly after.

"How does one exactly go about finding a ghost. They can disappear after all. How do we know she isn't playing a cruel, never-ending game with us?" he asked, fallowing Kanri obediently.