Meta's bloody red eyes blinked. She looked around at her, into the darkness that appeared to be about as dark as she herself was, physically, and perhaps mentally, also, though only the former could only be made clear at first sight, of course. With great care, as she gazed about, she slowly put her fingers around the handle of one of the two swords that rested in sheaths, hanging by belts of brown leather, as pretty much most of her armour was anyways, around her waist. The blade scraped against the inside of the sheath, producing a soft noise, although probably quite audible should anyone be nearby to hear it, which probably was the case, as she concluded, as there had been a voice talking to her.

"Who is it that is speaking to me?" Meta said warily. "I prefer to talk to those who do not make a habit of concealing them within darkness and shadows, be it night or day."

"Fair enough," the voice replied. "I'd prefer to meet you face to face anyway."

He stepped out of the darkness toward Meta-melted into existence, maybe, from the darkness. He wore nearly all black, the end of his long coat nearly touching the rough earth. A gold chain hung around his neck, at the end a small cross that rested on his chest. His hair, short and bright blond, cropped his pale face.

"I am Malvettix." He smiled. "It's nice to meet you at last, Meta."

Meta's left arm stiffened, her fingers gripping the handle of the sword tightly as she stared at the man who had just appeared before her out of assumingly nowhere but the immense darkness of the night that had befallen the Earth. The blade had come out of it's sheath almost fully, but the tip of it was still hidden in the sheath. Meta let her eyes wonder over the newly arrived stranger's body, and took note of the small cross, and also how she found that the strange man appeared to be, to put it lightly, not an ugly person.

"Malvettix, huh?" She brought out after several rather awkward seconds of silence. Slowly, as the sound of metal scraping against metal filled the air again, she put the blade back where it was, although her fingers did not leave the handle. "I see you know my name." She said. "And why is it that you seem to have wanted to meet me for an unspecified amount of time?"

"You don't know it, but I have been following your campaign," Malvettix explained. "I couldn't make myself known until now because some of your companions are dedicated toward hunting creatures of darkness...like us." He made an offhand, languid gesture with his left hand, his other firmly behind his back. "I apologize for concealing myself until now, but you see, I've grown to appreciate your mission so much that I had to meet you."

"Oh really," Meta said, feeling somewhat intruiged by this stranger Malvettix' words, although still a bit wary. What he says about the need for concealing himself sounds quite reasonable, I, myself, am not really accepted in the group, anyways. But still...

"Why is it, then, I wonder, that you have come to appreciate my mission?" She asked Malvettix. "For that matter, why have you been following my campaign so far?"

Malvettix spread his hands slightly, taking a step foward. "Your ambition is incredible for someone like you. Child-slave-of some great force, but in the midst of this you carve your own path, seek to destroy the demons that plague this world in order to weaken him and crush him and claim your right to existence."

For a brief moment, he seemed almost sad. "It is a goal I also hope to realize."

Meta blinked, and she felt as if overcome with a strange feeling, one that she barely recognised to be a f*cking creepy feeling, as if she was the same as Malvettix in a way, aside from what he had said about the both of them being beings of darkness. Although her fingers of her left hand were still around the handle of the sword on her left hip, she had somewhat loosened her grip. "You..." She slowly, hesitantly spoke, "also seek to be able to live a life that you want to live, without having to worry about being stabbed in your back, or while you are asleep?" She asked.

Edited by Morphman on June 27, 2007 at 3:03:36.

Helena took the gem without caution and brought it closer, examining it.

"Be careful, that thing's probably radiated or something," Matt remarked. "Proves someone threw a radiator at it!"

***

Malvettix's expression became quite serious. "Yes," he said, a bit more quiet than before. "I desire to live the way I want to live. And so do you." He brought a hand to his chest in earnest. "I understand that I've just appeared to you, and that you don't have reason to trust me, but I want to prove what service I can be to you. We can help each other."

"Well," Meta spoke, as her expression became likewise more serious upon hearing what Malvettix had said, "that may be so, but in the position I have found myself to be in at current, I think that I could use pretty much any service of any kind." She said, in all truthfulness she could muster. "Although I would like to hear from you what you intend to do to help me, and what you expect of me to further your own goals."

(OOC: Y'know, Juno, you didn't have to nuke your whole post. You had posted on Dokuro in it, after all.)

R.D. raised an eyebrow at Matt's comment as he ate his own burger, this one cooked through his own power. After swallowing, he asked, "Do you even listen to yourself anymore, Matt? You made no sense at all."

"HEY!" Matt snapped, shaking his fist at Dokuro. "You cheap bastard, I demand retribution!" With this he promptly leapt at Dokuro, snagging the sandwich and attempting to wrest it from the other in a comical manner.

Helena barely held out a hand, feeling too uneasy to stop Matt. "Um, Matt, it's okay..."

"GIMME MY SANDWICH!"

***

Malvettix smiled again. "Do you know of Ziatoch?" He spoke quietly, only for Meta's ears.

Edited by The Helldragon on June 26, 2007 at 21:33:39.

"Vaguely." Meta had to admit. "I have heard his name before, and I have met a guy who seemed to be affiliated with him, although he disappeared not too soon before something hit the Earth and created this crater. Plus, I've heard some vague rumours that say that he seems to be in some sort of league with my father, although that is a thing I rather doubt, seeing as how my father tends to not really be a man of alliances."

R.D. looked up at Dokuro and sighed, then looked at Kouken. "What is he? My armor's scanner seemed to think he's undead."

"I'LL GET YOU NEXT TIME, GADGET!" Matt shouted upwards, shaking his fist.

"Will you calm down?" Hugo snapped. "You've got more."

"That's true." Matt reached into his pack and produced another wrapped burger. "Anyway...I don't think we've introduced ourselves."

***

"Ziatoch has access to many resources you could use," Malvettix said. "Anything you could conceive, he has. I will speak with him, and get you anything you require."

R.D. blinked at the banter between Awai, Juno, and Kouken. "Well, I'm R.D.," he started off, then motioned to each of his friends in turn. "This is Matt, Hugo, Helena, and X. We're about as misfit as they come."

R.D. looked about the plains of Sudan, and then north. "So what brought you guys out here, anyway?" he asked, "Last I checked, Juno, you were still in Kattelox."

Meta straightened her back, and again took a good look at Malvettix, as if to try and see if he was reliable enough to get into league with. She did not appear to see anything that aroused suspicion, be they body language of Malvettix' or otherwise.

"Okay, let's for a moment assume that it were to happen as you say, assume that this Ziatoch does want to help," She said with care, "then why is it that you want to help me? And why would you ask Ziatoch for things I need? What's in it for you, really?"

Electra... R.D. mused silently, thinking back on the name, Electra... I've heard that before. Where?

Things clicked, and he looked back over at the two Ancients. "We know about Sheena and Donovan already," he said to himself, his voice dripping venomously at Sheena's name, and then spoke louder. "Electra's one of the Seven Beasts you mentioned, right? So what do you mean by formerly?"

X attempted to scan the newcomer. While his systems were clicking away for a response, he mentioned to anyone that would listen, "I dunno about this guy. By working with him we may be making a deal with the proverbial devil. And if there's one thing I know about those deals, it's that sooner or later you pay the price."

"Hold the phone!" Matt interjected, raising his hands. "Now I'm gettin' confused. Let's just take care of one thing at a time. One!" He pointed his finger at Awai. "What do you want? Two!" He pointed at Juno. "What R.D. just asked about Electra. Three!"

He abruptly paused. "Actually, I don't have a three, never mind."

***

"I only ask one thing in return," Malvettix answered. "I must make sure that an artifact called the Omega Core never reaches the Eternal Sanctuary."

(OOC: X, if you have your character talking about Malvettix there, may I inform you that that is actually supposed to take place a good few miles away? o.O)

This caught Meta's interest, and though there was a feeling somewhere in her gut region, as if to tell her that she shouldn't ask further about this one thing, but she ignored that feeling.
"Why is it that you need to prevent this one thing from happening?" She asked Malvettix. "And if it must be prevented, why do you need my help to prevent it?"

Edited by Morphman on June 29, 2007 at 14:22:07.

"...okay," Matt said, after a pause in which no words came to him. "Well, we're hoppin' dimensions tryin' to find the Eternal Sanctuary and save us all from, uh, certain destruction."

"Typical save the world thing," Hugo added.

***

"This world is but part of a single dimension, among an infinite number of dimensions," Malvettix explained. "The Omega Core is bound to this, the Multiverse." His eyes narrowed. "It grants great powers to those who wield it, but at a terrible cost."

He moved in for the kill. "The Multiverse is slowly being torn asunder by the use of the Omega Core. And if it is returned to the Eternal Sanctuary, it will undo the Multiverse, and end existence as we know it."

"That sounds rather awful, and like quite the story." Meta said upon hearing about this bit about the Omega Core's abilities. "However, I would like to know what this Omega Core is capable of. Is it perhaps possible that it can be taken from it's current wielder so as to grant us the power to reach our respective goals?"

"Whoa, whoa whoa! Who says we should be using it? He said use of that Core is tearing the multiverse asunder. Last I checked, asunder was bad. And since I live in the multiverse, I'd kind of like to see it stay." X coughed

"Not that I'm trying to be selfish, mind you."

OOC: X, you're responding to what Malvettix said and he's not at the campfire.