Come and Go: The Storm Continues

The storm had continued for days now. Few people had been through here, even fewer stopping at the cave or taking notice of Yazuki. He continued to meditate and think of what he would do while enjoying himself here. This was the area he had fought the demon. He had visited the destroyed hidden village that he once stumbled through, remembering when the seal broke. The carnage that ensued was horrible. He reminisced about the moment he awoke in the cave he had currently been staying in. His magic had caused him to be unable to wear most shirts without feeling the cling of his own lightning.

Now he had his robes and Dharma on, he could actually stand to walk around clothed and he loved it. While he had a body that was in great shape, he rather prefered the armor his mentor had given him. Besides, it was waterproof. He stood a few minutes to the north of the cave, looking upwards at the sky, waiting for the next bolt to strike. It should be here any moment...

"EEP!"

Maya let out an exclamation as another bolt of lightning struck nearby. What rotten luck. She had just wanted to take a trip through the canyon. Why did it have to start raining? She was thoroughly soaked by the downpour; she had to find some shelter, and fast. At least, for her clothes' sake. With her body the way it was, she wasn't sure she could catch a traditional cold, but she didn't want to risk it. Fortunately, if memory served, this was around the place where she, Gisen, and Moto had encountered Kusanagi a while ago. There should be many caves around here, where she could wait out the storm.

It was difficult to find with the clouds and rain darkening the sky, but Maya did eventually find a cave. Wasting no time, the green-haired girl ran inside, taking refuge in the darkness away from the downpour outside. She could barely see anything in the cave, but Maya had a trick up her sleeve. Blinking a few times, her normally brown eyes glowed red, her Spellsight activating, only for her to recoil. This place was positively brimming with mana, enough for Spellsight to light the cave as if it were a bright day. The storm outside was definitely not natural. What could be causing this gathering of energies, though? Maya began searching through the cave, hoping that the answer to her predicament was somewhere within.

After a while, he had finally had his fill. He started to sniff the air as he began to head back to the cave. Sure enough, someone was in the area again, and he would put money on the fact that they were in his abode. Not a single day seemed to go by without encountering someone, but when he was here the weather always seemed to suit him: rainy with guaranteed lightning. Thunder storms seemed to find their way to him here, and he loved it. It helped him find new ways to do things. He started to let small amounts of electricity go, charging up his dharma so that when he went into the cave, he would basically be the light needed to see. He was becoming accustomed to the back plate that he had received as a gift from a passing by lightning mage. The shoulders he wore also seemed to house a lot of the same energies. As he entered the cave, he closed his eyes. He spoke sternly as he stood at the entrance, though it seemed like it had been rehearsed due to the amounts of times he had said it. He let loose a bolt of lightning on the woodpile, which he had gotten so used to lighting every day he was here that he knew where to strike without looking.

"There is the fire, blankets are to the back right corner. Food is on the shelf above. Your clothes dry faster when they are off and by the fire, so i suggest doing so and wrapping in the blanket to keep warm. You are welcome to stay for as long as you like but the storm won't break any time soon. I shall keep my eyes shut while you undress."

He opened his eyes to look at the girl. His voice softened as he noticed she looked a little different than most who had come through here. "Sorry, I have just had a lot of visitors lately."

As Maya was examining the cave, she only grew more and more curious. It seemed as though somebody had been living here for a while, among the unnatural storms and chaotic forces that roamed the canyon. Who would be here, among the lightning and downpours outside? Somebody interested in the magical properties of the storms, perhaps. There was certainly a large amount of magic in the area. Maya was glad for it right now, honestly; it made it easy to navigate the pitch-black cave.

A sudden zapping noise caused Maya's head to snap to the side, towards the now-lit logs to her right. She whirled around, only to come face to face with a man who was entirely too bright. If the rest of the room was well-lit, this man was the equivalent of a lighthouse beacon. Maya almost immediately cried out and averted her eyes, temporarily blinded as she desperately willed her damn Spellsight to shut off. It did (albeit entirely too slowly), and Maya slowly turned her gaze back up as she went from blinding light to just the light of the fire. Try as she might, though, her eyes didn't seem to want to work at the moment. Whatever that man had was enough to make the room seem pitch-black in comparison, even with the fire.

Instead, Maya took a seat right where she was, waiting for her eyes to finally adjust. She was suddenly aware that the man was talking, giving a spiel that sounded as though it had been rehearsed many times. It didn't seem particularly friendly, either. Maybe she wasn't welcome here? When his voice softened, however, she relaxed. He was just on edge, was all. That was something Maya could certainly relate to. "Don't worry, I probably won't stay too long," Maya responded once he was done talking. "Don't worry about my clothes, either. I'm pretty sure I can't get colds at this point. If it's okay with you, though, I'm gonna sit right here for a bit. I might, uh, be temporarily blinded by all the magic around here."

He had seen her before but from where...

"No worries, the storm may intensify though. My form of magic was gifted to me in this very canyon. The residual effects only seem to affect it when I am here." He looked out the cave entrance then back at the girl. "Blinded? Are you ok? I didn't amp up my dharma too much did I?"

He looked back at his dharma and laughed. He hadn't pumped too much into it. Then it finally hit him. He had seen her at the Valentine's Day event. He looked completely different now, so it would be easy to test the waters on something that came to his mind.

"I remember you. You were at the Ball on Valentines Day right? What did you think of the idiot running around without his shirt?"

"Oh, so you're the reason why the canyon is so stormy right now?" Maya asked, her curiosity coming to the surface. "Interesting. And no, no, it's not your fault I currently can't see. If anything, it's my fault for being dumb." She didn't know who this man was or what exactly he looked like at the moment, but talking to him was pretty comforting. He seemed very different from her, but for some reason she couldn't help but compare him to Gisen. Something about the aura they gave off was very similar to one another. Maybe they had similar magic?

When he brought up the Valentine's Dance, though, her eyes widened. "Oh god, you saw me there? That was horrible. I only went there because my Guild Master told me to. I wanted to die the whole time I was there." She was silent for a moment. "As for a shirtless guy, I vaguely remember somebody like that being there. He looked like a total dingus. Why are you asking? Are you looking for him?"

He grimaced for a moment. Well, there he had it, but he was sure she didn't know why he was shirtless. He then let out a small chuckle, sitting next to her. He now had long red hair instead of black, and he was dressed in his robes, plus his new scar.... she wouldn't notice it was him unless he told her. His aura even felt new, his emotions heavily changing his whole dynamic.

"He is a lightning mage who was cursed. He usually goes around not wearing a shirt because it clings and he hates the feeling. Hard to find a good cloth that doesn't stick with the problems he has." He looked over at her for a moment, then grabbed her wrist and allowed the regen to heal her eyes, grasping tight enough to where he knew she couldn't draw away. If she wanted to go, he wasn't going to hold her back, but he actually enjoyed her company. "Give it a second this will regenerate your sight appropriately."

He looked at her for a moment then back at the flame. "This place is where i go to get away from everyone," he spoke, then closed his eyes. "It's nice to meet you finally. I was busy that night. Much has changed since then though. I go by Raijin for now... It's nice to meet you."

Maya sat there and listened to Yazu talk, nodding her head as she heard of the shirtless man's tale of woe. "Sounds like he got a rough deal," she responded thoughtfully when he was done. The thought of having to go around topless everywhere sounded absolutely horrible to the green haired girl. It was bad enough that her green hair and sometimes red eyes grabbed glances; to be stared and ogled at as she walked down the street would be far too much. Granted, she should be glad that she didn't have any grisly surgery scars. The one good thing she could say about the man who'd put the Lacrimas in her is that he was very good at leaving no trace of the surgery.

She started slightly when the man grabbed her wrist, but soon relaxed. He was just healing her, was all. She blinked a few times, her eyes slowly returning to their original eyesight, the cave lit by the flickering fire a short distance away. She made a mental note to be more careful with her Spellsight in the future, so that she wasn't blinded like that again. She turned over to inspect the man who had saved her. Long red hair and a scar across his face. He looked vaguely familiar to Maya, but she couldn't put her finger on it. She'd probably seen him at the dance and not remembered it. She smiled at the man. "Nice to meet you, Raijin. I'm Maya, a mage for Lamia Scale. Thanks for letting me stay in your hideout."

Yazuki smiled warmly. It was actually nice to have company, and she seemed sweet. He looked down for a moment... There was someone he had left behind just to be a memory, who right now didn't know where he was or what he looked like. At this point she was a distant memory. His eyes brimmed for a moment, then he rubbed his eyes, smiling.

"Yeah, its nice to see you again. You looked a little out of place at the ball, I figured it was best to give you your space." He paused for a moment, looking over into her eyes for a moment. "Maybe it would have been better to approach. You seem like a kind soul."

She seemed like she was ok with the fact he had grabbed her, so he dismissed the situation. Finally, he got up and went over to grab some food. "Hungry? I have plenty of food. Also, I do have a spare cot, so like I said, you are welcome to stay. I am just recovering from the Soul-Scar across my face. Figured I would change a few things since my face has a new look. New eye color... Longer hair... Red hair... New look new me. And polarized robes. Can finally wear clothes again."

He stood, shocked that he let that one out. He just identified who he was... Hopefully she would overlook it or not notice. Quickly he changed the subject. "So you don't mind having your clothes wet? Strange, you are the first one to not dry your clothes in the past couple days."

With her ability to see restored, Maya settled into a more comfortable position without fear of knocking something over. Not like there was much to knock over, but it still soothed Maya's worries. She listened to Raijin talk, smiling when he mentioned that she was a kind soul. She certainly didn't feel like a kind soul, but hearing him say that put her at ease a bit. As he went about the cave, Maya realized that this was rather pleasant. Maybe it was his aura's similarity to Gisen, but it reminded her of what she always heard about having an older brother. Not like Dylan, who was consistently creepy and absent, but an actual, kind older sibling.

When the lightning mage offered her food, she shook her head. "Thanks for offering, but I don't need food. Not anymore, at least. Don't need the cot either, although it might be nice to lie down for a bit." When he went through his next section, however, her eyes widened in recognition. "So you were asking about yourself?" She muttered, amused, before suddenly realizing something. "I'm so sorry I called you a dingus! I really shouldn't have said something like that about the one who helped me."

Her mood dampened, she looked at the spot on her arm where Raijin had grabbed her, when another thing occurred to her. "Hey, sorry if I'm intruding on something, but how did you heal me?" She asked, holding up the arm he had grabbed for emphasis. "I'd check myself, but given what happened last time I tried something like that, it didn't exactly end well." The last thing she wanted was to force him to heal her again.

He chuckled at her comment about checking herself, realizing that she used a magic sight earlier. That was actually a rather unique ability he hadn't come across yet.

"I met a man named Raijin. He is a god of Thunder and Lightning. Showed up while i was in this canyon after I came here to meditate last week. He gave me this lovely back plate and shoulders. They allow me to use my lightning to heal if I so choose it to now. Makes my lightning much more versatile as now i can heal or harm, all at my discretion. It also regenerates and heals my whole body in a way that I can't even fathom. But this scar.." He touched the scar on his face. He needed to distract himself...

He pondered why she had apologized. She had been honest with him, not realizing that he was actually was the same person that he had inquired about. He smiled at her for a moment, then began to eat the jerky he had picked up.
"Don't feel bad about what you said. I asked for it remember? I am trying to change my ways. I was only trying to find someone to experience life with. Hearing confirmation that I wasn't doing it right might just help." He spoke as he chewed his jerky, sitting next to her again.

Maya cocked her head to the side slightly, a quizzical look on her face. "You met a man named Raijin? But aren't you Raijin? Unless that's a fake name." She shrugged. "I won't pry if you don't want me to, though. I know from firsthand experience how annoying it is when somebody pries into your personal stuff." She readjusted her position again, laying down and feeling the wetness of her hoodie pressing into her back. "Healing lightning though, huh? That's really cool. I can do some healing myself, but it's nowhere near as cool-sounding as that." She looked back to see 'Raijin' touching his face, more specifically the scar. It seemed like there was quite the story behind the scar. She wouldn't pry if he didn't want her to, though.

She sat up as he approached her again, stretching lazily as she did so. "Changing your ways, eh?" She muttered, rifling through her bag and pulling out one of her hard candy-esque Lacrimas. "I've had my fair share of that recently, although it was as much out of necessity as it was desire to change." She popped the Lacrima candy into her mouth, savoring the 'flavor' of the magic as she let it lay on her tongue. "So, is this hideout part of changing yourself? Separating yourself from old habits and all that?"

"Raijin is the name of the god that gave me these," he said, "My real name... I rather not speak of. But he told me I would be his embodiment on this plane of existence, so for now, I just tell people that's my name. Also my change is because of my disfigurement..." he trailed off as he touched his scar again. He didn't feel the same about himself since he received it. He had felt like he was ugly, and would be shunned for it.
"I used to be a huge flirt, thinking I could find someone to spend life with like that, however that never got me anywhere. Now I don't have the face for that. Also, it never worked anyways. If i ever find someone it would have to be because of who I am now. This scar is hideous and is across my whole face. I am not quite as confident as I was back then..."

"So you're not Raijin, but you're also Raijin's embodiment on the physical plane?" Maya responded, aimed as much at herself as it was at Raijin to try and wrap her head around the whole deal. She was never great at figuring out the whole 'multiple worlds' thing. "Well, I'll just call you Raijin then. It's not a bad name." She turned to look at Raijin's face, particularly his scar. "Speaking of things that aren't bad, I don't think that scar is nearly as bad as you're making it out to be. Yeah, it's a scar, and yeah, it's on your face, but you still don't look too bad. Plenty of girls dig scars in the first place."

Maya shrugged as she finished draining the mana from the Lacrima in her mouth, feeling the crystal crumble to dust in her mouth. "Learning to not be a playboy is a good goal, though, so maybe I shouldn't be giving you a confidence boost." She smirked slightly, showing that she was joking. "I consider myself experienced with body confidence issues at this point, and believe me, that scar's not bad stuff compared to what some people have to go through." She absentmindedly ran a hand through her green hair, flashing back briefly to a time when it was brown. Before she was thrown into the world of mages.

Yazuki listened to her words and blushed. He barely heard a word she said after the fact of her comment about his scar not being that bad and him still looking ok. He just wasn't a playboy type anymore. He looked at her as she played with her green hair with her last comment.
"Exotic is attractive though. Green is a beautiful color. Reminds me of the forest i grew up in... and calms me." He shook his head, almost sure he was flirting with her. She seemed so kind. He didn't want to chase her off. "A scar like this proves my incompetence. Worst yet, I got it on a job i remember nothing about. I must have made a fool of myself."
He took a bite and chewed it around for a little bit, enjoying the spices and the full beef flavor of the meat.
"Confidence is a hard thing to boost when I am sure that I disappointed my mentor. I also plan to find someone to travel with. I need to be more conciderate and less... flirty. It's not that i wasn't a caring man back then... Maybe its just better to show it..."

Maya recoiled a bit, retreated into her hood as Raijin complimented her hair color. "It's not beautiful," she responded, trying to hide in her soaked hoodie. "It's terrible. Unnatural. A representation of what's wrong with me right now." She sat in her little shell silently for a moment before continuing. "I'm sorry, I really shouldn't be doing this. It sounds like we have a similar issue." She pulled her hood down and sighed. "Your scar, and my hair, are both symbols of failure. Of something that we weren't able to stop. They're baggage that we'll have to carry with us for a while, if not forever." She leaned back, looking up at the ceiling of the cave. "Not the greatest thing, but hey, it's good motivation."

She rifled through her bag, hunting for another Lacrima candy. "Anyway, enough of that downer stuff. Not good to dwell on the past too much. If you're a caring man, it's best to show it. Ladies love a sensitive man, or so I've been told." Maya found another candy and promptly ate it, wondering whether or not somebody like her was fit to be giving a guy relationship advice. It wasn't like she'd ever had a girlfriend before, after all. She was just parroting what she'd heard from her friends back in Magnolia and pop culture.

He looked at her endearingly for a moment, then laughed lightly, looking away. She must not have had much experience with relationships either. He stood up for a moment stretching. Walking over to the makeshift beds he had made the last time he had a visitor, he tried to make it more comfortable by fluffing up the skins. He cleaned them whenever they started to smell, so he wasn't too ashamed to have company over. After all, he was in a cave, the least he could do is make it look respectable. He looked up with his guest with a smile. She seemed to think her hair was a scar much like he had across his face. He walked back over to her and sat down in front of her facing her. He reached a hand out to touch her hair, hesitating for a moment.
"How is something so beautiful a curse?" His words quickly coming to his realization, a look of shock came across his face. "I.. I am sorry I really didn't mean to flirt or anything, I am so sorry I just... I guess I need to work on my delivery method still."

He looked away blushing as he was more embarrassed than he had been in a long time. "Why would you compare it to my scar if you don't mind me asking?" He asked as he looked back at her.

I picked a strange time for a walk out of my desert, however serendipitous it is. I thought to myself as I moved around a canyon somewhere east from my desert. Lightning struck every few minutes on the massive limestone walls of the canyon, sometimes even striking down here, alongside the slow-moving stream that casts its cadence to an unappreciative natural audience. I spent a while walking along a path, when I came to an eventual fork in the road. I traveled one that was earthier, the path that had more life to it. The path itself branched southward, from the path that first took me east, and continued quite a ways, and for sometime. I traveled this path, and someways down the path, a rainstorm erupted into existence, as though it stopped only a short time earlier. I ducked into a cave on my right, only to shock me with voices on the further interior. It took me little time to adjust to the different light that emanated from the center of the cavern, and on the interior, was a man with a scarred face, and a familiar face... Meletzo. They seemingly fell silent on my entrance, and I looked faintly embarrassed. "Sorry, I don't mean to intrude. It's been a while, Meletzo, nice to see you. I'll not bother you, I'm just rather unwilling to get wet right now. I'm Aera, sir gentleman that I don't know, and it'd be nice to learn your name, but I'd rather not intrude. I'll sit somewhere away, if it pleases you."

Fernus perched on a nearby ledge, looking down on the trio of wizards, he had travelled to the canyon after tracking Yazuki to the secluded area, he supposed it fit for a criminal to be hiding so far away from civilisation. As the wizards continued their conversation, Fernus observed, watching and waiting for a moment to strike. He wasn't sure what these light mages were doing with a criminal, nor did he care, he would simply wait for them to leave and make his move once Yazuki was alone. As he waited, Fernus thought about what had happened to him up on the peak of Terra Ignis. He remembered what it felt like to gaze into Yazuki's soul, it felt cold, like a void with nothing but the truth inside, Fernus had no clue how he did it, but it sure would prove useful if he could master it. "Hm, I wonder..." thought Fernus for a second, but dismissed the thought before it could have any impact on his performance. This was Fernus' first time hunting such a powerful individual and he planned on succeeding in his mission, no matter the cost.

Upon the new arrival entering the cavern Yazuki realized he may have been a little too focused on the girl in front of him and his feelings. He stood up and walked to the entrance of the cave, then looked back at her. "You can stay as long as you want. I only have 2 beds though, and it seems like she may not need one so at the moment, you have the last hotel room," he said in an amused tone. He sniffed and listened as the storm raged... Something smelled... off. These two he could smell plain as day, but it almost smelled like there was someone else in the area. He looked outside the cave, then thought about a better idea.

"If you guys will excuse me for a moment, I have something I forgot to do today outside. I will only be a moment."

He stepped outside the cave to sniff without as much smells to distract him. This smell was familiar but he couldn't place it. He looked around and thought he saw something, but in the storm, it was hard to tell. "YOU ARE WELCOME TO COME JOIN US, DON'T NEED YOU GETTING A COLD! I HAVE A FIRE GOING SO YOU CAN DRY OFF IF YOU WANT. FOOD TOO IF YOU ARE HUNGRY," he bellowed. He turned back around and headed towards the entrance of the cave, leaning his back against the rock near the entrance. Whoever this was, they were close enough for him to feel.

As Yazuki exited the cave, Fernus got ready to make his move. Fernus didn't care that Yazuki had discovered his presence, it didn't affect his plan. As Yazuki turned his back and rested against a nearby rock, Fernus made his move. He leapt out from behind his cover and ran to Yazuki's location. "Hello there, Raijin, or should I say, Yazuki!" shouted Fernus over the noise of the storm, "Did you really think you could hide your identity from me?" Fernus drew his sword and pointed the flaming blade at his enemy, "Come quietly and nobody has to be hurt, wouldn't want your friends here to find out your name, would you? After all, I doubt they'd trust you, considering the fact that you're a wanted criminal!"

Yazuki gave Fernus a blank stare. He looked at him for a moment contemplating what to do, but ultimately he burst out laughing.

"Wanted criminal? Have you seen me around Fairy Tail recently? Have I blown up a building? Have I killed someone illegally? Please state my crime friend, besides offering you shelter, food and warmth? Sound like a criminal to you? The only crime I can admit to is at one point i was a horrible flirt searching for love, so I have done NOTHING wrong my friend. Tell me the charge, and I will laugh in your face. All you legal guild mages are the same when it comes to hunting someone down. You don't seem to know your head from your ass. I have committed no crimes..... well except for going overboard and destroying some natural areas but that's not illegal, its just a little sad that there may have been animals that lived in those areas. Tell me... What am I," he took his pointer and middle fingers making quotes, "GUILTY of? Until you can tell me, I am not going anywhere, and even then, I have guests to attend to and you will have to wait."

After a series of extended, loud outbursts, I grew annoyed. So, I decided to walk out of the cave's mouth, and looked upon a scene where a strange person held up a flaming sword, pointed at my unknown host. I heard the strange man say as I reached earshot distance: "Hello there, Raijin, or should I say, Yazuki! Did you really think you could hide your identity from me? Come quietly and nobody has to be hurt, wouldn't want your friends here to find out your name, would you? After all, I doubt they'd trust you, considering the fact that you're a wanted criminal!" I blinked for a moment, and after a long winded retort, I stepped forward, and glared at this outrageous man. I straightened myself, and spoke: "You'd really think that your so called "Justice" serves any good, misled paladin? I believe you follow someone else's ideals, and use your vehemence to enact upon another's ideas. I follow the letter of the law myself, as I'm from a legal guild myself. But I don't willy nilly hunt out those who are wanted. First, you're a fool for thinking you can tackle another mage alone, second, get the measure of the man first. If this "Wanted Individual" Does what they think is right, does no harm to another, and does his own business, I think he should be able to do as he wants. This man is not a criminal. His only "crime" is associating himself with those he holds dear. You, monsieur, would disrupt the letter of his law, just because he is part of an illegal group? I spit on you. You yourself are perpetrating a crime, called Vigilantism, and while it can be sanctioned, something tells me that you took this upon yourself. Take your petty law elsewhere, layman. We require no peons in this zone. If you are willing to put aside your desperado, and if our host is still willing, you are welcome. If you're not, leave."

"Your words won't save you Yazuki, neither will the girls, so if you're not going to come quietly, you're going to have to die!" Fernus rose his sword into the air, ready to strike, but before he could attack, a bolt of red struck him in the back, he recoiled from the hit and turned around to see his attacker. "You!" he said as he saw his assailant: Fernus, the real Fernus. The impostor's disguise faded as his eyes turned green, his hair turned black with lime streaks and his skin turned pale grey, the colour of a corpse. "I'll... k..kill....you...." whispered the impostor with his last breaths, and as his skin flaked and he turned to dust, he drifted away into the storm. The impostors gear fell to the floor, a bolt of lighting struck the ground and Fernus jumped down from the overhang he was standing on to speak to the wizards. Fernus wore casual clothes, not his usual attire, he picked up the impostors gear and put it on, he then placed his sword in it's sheath and explained the situation to the wizards. "I don't know who the hell that was, but it sure wasn't me. It seems he isn't a big fan of me or you, Yazuki. I never planned on killing you by the way, I was simply following your trail to bring you to justice, I know now that my sense of justice was misplaced" Fernus walked into the cave, prompting the other wizards to follow him. "I awoke this morning to find my clothes and sword missing, my mind instantly dashed to you. I thought you were the thief and flew here instantly to find you, I instead found my impostor. I believe he wanted you dead to get to me, but that's all I know of my doppelgänger. Fernus greeted the green haired wizard and sat down to contemplate what had just happened. Things had been strange recently, first he had met Yazuki, then there was the strange feeling in Fernus' soul as he somehow figured out the truth about the lightning wizard. Now there was this, who was that man and why did he look so much like Fernus, even without the disguise? Fernus had a terrible feeling that his troubled past may be catching up to him as he felt the distant memory of a terrible fire. With that memory, Fernus drifted off to sleep.