[ The desert at night  could be called beautiful, as illusory as that may be, with the moon casting a pale illumination onto the endless sea of sand.

In the darkness, it's difficult to see, but a man is trudging his way to the base of a sand pile. Reflected in the moonlight is a bottle of vodka, held tightly in his left hand. And with his right:

Zip, zip, zip--- yes, he's taking a piss. ]

Fate-damned desert.

And then--- a sharp cry cuts through the air, the cry of a monstrous-sized scorpion bursting right up through the sand. Not even having the chance to pull up his pants, Amory dives and tumbles to the side.  Clack, clack, clack goes the clicking of giant claws. ]

You got to be kidding me----

[ The monster goes in for another attack, this time with its tail, and it's only by a hair that Amory manages to dodge. He does so extremely ungracefully, twisting to the side and landing head first in the sand.

Amory's breath is quick, the sudden movement causing stars to blur in  front of his vision. He's suddenly lightheaded. Taking a moment to breath, he stretches a hand toward the creature and closes his eyes, just for a moment. A medium sized globe of fire flares up with a roar.... lighting his own hand on fire. That was not intended. You see, that was meant for the monster.]

Fuck, Fuck, Fuck-

[ Oh god it hurts it hurts it hurts. He buries his hand in a pile of sand to set off the fire, while trying to calm down the flames with his mind. But his nerves are running at a breakneck speed, so it's hard to concentrate on anything but panic.

The giant scorpion roars again, and with that, it raises another claw and sends it slamming into the sand below. Distracted by his hand, Amory is not quick enough to make a clean dodge, and he rolls away, leaving a streak of blood across the sand, shining red in the moonlight.

Crouching behind a large mound of sand, he  attempts to hides himself from the creature, one hand clutching his side as he breaths heavily.  ]
( ooc )

[Ken's not typically happy to begin with, but he looks far worse off than usual right now. And, why, yes! That's sand you see behind him. Totally left Glass City for Sand City, but he has no plans to talk about THAT. And he has yet to see Rita's latest post.]

Charlie-san? Doctor Brown? Estellise-san? Rita-san....

Where is everyone at?

And - [He turns to his side and speaks to someone(?) off screen.] You should back away so they can see you clearly.

[Ken turns the camera and you get this face on screen.]

It seems he - [PAUSE.] Are you a he? [No response, of course.] Well, this creature was trying to get into the desert, so I brought him with me. I think he has a companion in here he was trying to reach, to be that desperate.

[Ken is back in the frame.] So we're looking for any of the people I mentioned before, or anyone else I know, and this guy's companion. [Looks at Ba'ul again.] If he has one.

If not...I don't know what I'm going to do with him. Though he's very useful, and can fly.



[ooc: Ba'ul present with Judith-mun's permission.]

...I'm alive. Again.

[She's had a short time to compose herself, but her voice is still a bit thick. She really died back there...]

My blastia's still gone, so...I can't use any magic.

[She could probably use some help before more monsters find her. What's a mage to do without magic?]

( A Series of Unfortunate Deaths )

Day 006: February 19th:

[ the video feed clicks on, looking grainy and spotty, no voice discernible except for a few words to those in the Glass City. To those in the City of Sand, his voice comes over loud and clear, hesitant, shy, and full of awkwardness as his face flashes into view, hidden behind a gold and white veil. The rest of him is just as dramatically garbed as well. ]

Ah, I... don't suppose someone would be able to offer me a loan? It appears I cannot leave without paying ransom first. I can barter a pouch full of spice in exchange for the help, or, if you prefer to wait, I do have some savings in the city...

[ he cringed as he moved, little cymbals ringing all along his outfit. Yes, the Bedouins mistook Liam for a girl after his awakening in their tents. Would you not as well if at the mere sight of men you fainted? But, yes, our dear Liam is in a pickle and could use some mocking help. Please, before it's too late (and he ends up married to some chieftain's prince)! ]

Hey, I found a building! Or part of one, at least.

[Said cheerfully, as if this discovery were something amazing worth broadcasting to the world.]

I wonder if there's anything useful in here...or treasure, that'd be fun.

[A hoarse chuckle--he ran out of water today. There's the tap tap tap of someone climbing a flight of ruined stairs, the whoosh of a gust of wind...]

Wow, the ceiling's totally gone. And that wall, too...[Obviously this means he should move closer to inspect the nonexistent wall.] Heh, I think this is as high up as the classroom back at the libra--

[He's interrupted by the flapping sound of some sort of flying creature (a buzzard, maybe) going right past his head--followed by the sound of a certain someone losing his balance and falling off the building.

Oops?]

Yo, Arya. You out there somewhere? Tell me your uh, deal is done by now. And where's your little bro?

[ Oh, right. She's got other people to try to hook up with, too. ]

Buffy, we meeting up somewhere? Guess the processing at the safety zone is garbage. Thinking we need to get a patrol going outside it, maybe?

I haven't had attendance matter this much in quite awhile. Perhaps those of you familiar with me might do some checking in?

And any of you that have attended class and might be able to copy some runes, I wouldn't mind your assistance. This safe wall looks ominously un-so. I think a little fortification is necessary.

audio;
Dean. I've got the last rescuee almost to the safe zone.

open action;
[ Castiel's been scouring the sand dunes for recognizable or savable faces, so he's a little worn out and beat up. The girl he's got with him now looks properly scared, but she's moving along at a good clip -- as the safety zone comes into sight on the horizon, the sand between it and them begins to swirl and suck downward into an enormous sinkhole. He shoves the girl behind him, ordering her to run.

Out of the hole arises this ugly thing, and Castiel moves toward it, a speck to its behemoth size. Anyone within a few miles of the battle may see flashing light in the dark sky and hear the great wailing bellows as the fight progresses. He wouldn't say no to a few more hands. ]

[Peter stands in the middle of the desert, a glass in one hand and a big bottle of vile-looking green liquid in the other. He looks around and blinks.]

Fuck. How much of this shit did I drink?

[He takes another glug. It's not like he can get more drunk, right?]

[ When the device clicks on it's in a tumble of sand and when it rocks to a stop lodged in a convenient dune the scene is like this:

At first there is Roxas, BESET BY DEVIOUS GREEN CREATURES that look a lot like cacti with faces - creepy, yes, they know. They seem to be attacking him, since that's how they roll when they're not running away.

But lo, the sand stirs wildly and it seems there may be another foe to deal with until the sandworm in question snakes right past the blond to devour all three cactus creatures in one fell...bite. ]

Roxas! Hey, are you okay?!

[ Baffling, that voice, considering the worm's mouth is not moving, but then... ]

Up here!

[ The device doesn't have a wide enough view for Sora who's out of camera shot at first, until the sandworm bends what serves as its neck and brings itself face-to-face with Roxas as Sora beams over its head and grins. ]

Or down here. Hi. Roxas, meet Jiminy Jr!

[ Jiminy Jr has more slits than apparent eyes...but they do seem to twitch at the blond, not quite able to blink. Sora, for his part, keeps beaming.

Roxas stares back. U n s u r e. ]

[voice/action]

[ Surprisingly, Toph's device is still working, despite sand abuse. She's sitting around near the camp when she feels some familiar footsteps... not particularly close. ] Wait... is that idiot really wandering around the desert on foot? [ She shouts: ] Hey, Tyr! Stay put. [ Who knows if he'll hear her. ]

Char, Bad Jokes, Runaway, Bitey... the rest of you I don't have nicknames for... I've got to go rescue somebody. I'll be back later.

[ ooc: Okay, so Toph is leaving her lovely caravan to find Tyr and a few other people... Rita, Riou, basically anyone who wants to join in! Feel free to have your own threads and threadjack and mingle, etc. She'll meet back up with the caravan group later. ]

It's been days now— I suppose it is safe to say that this is not simply a regular curse. I hope that everyone is well, or as well as can be expected. [ A beat. ] It helps to travel in groups.

[ And then another, longer pause. ] Will. Are you all right?

[One Doctor James Wilson has arrived in the safe zone, checked in to help with the injured, gotten his bearings, and is finally taking a moment to try to find a space outside of the overwhelming crowds to sit for just a moment.]

Well, it is preferable to the open desert, but there's a lot to be said for having room to breathe, or a moment's quiet to think. Still, it has walls - something I doubt I'll ever take for granted again.

[As he shifts, he pauses a moment.]

Crowded is an understatement, though; it's a bit of a challenge to find individuals in the masses, and it would be nice to know who's here - who's safe, who's still out there. And the other city... all I can really do is hope everyone there is holding up all right.


[Private to Penny]

This does feel a bit like cheating at "looking for you", but... if you're here, I'm sure I can take the time to see you.


[ooc: open to action if you like]

[ — and then two figures fall through the portal that leads from the desert city to the glass citye, disoriented for a moment before catching themselves.

Except. ] Rory!?

[ Cue Amy looking around frantically. ] Rory— Rory didn't make it? [ Turning. ] We have to go back.


[ ooc; Yeah. Rory's gone home ;; ]