Bond of Power (Private with Athena)

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Storm felt the beat of his heart in his chest as he walked. The desert sand felt unpleasant underneath his talons. It suck in between his talons and bugged him. Why did he even join the Ki'Sha in the first place? He had that thought a lot. It was in the literal worst place in all of Nuira. The desert. It was TOO HOT and made everything feel as dry as a bone. He just had to keep in mind that this MIGHT be temporary. He had to figure that part out once Daydris was gone and he had Sarah again.

Oh, his beautiful daughter. How he missed her. He tried not to think about her, but it was inevitable. It felt like a piece of his heart was missing that nobody could fill. He shoved the thoughts away that maybe she wasn't alive and kept walking. He searched the faces of the dragons in the tribe, trying to swallow his hope in case it was false.

There were rumors that a new dragon had joined the tribe. A pure white dragon. An ice dragon. Why would she join a tribe in the desert,
though? his mind nagged. She's more vulnerable to heat, since she is an ice dragon. He pushed his legs forward, wondering where she would be.

There. A flash of white. Was it her?

"Athena!" he called out, knowing that he would probably look like an idiot if it wasn't her. By this time his heart beat wildly as he tried to find her.

((Yeah))

The sensation of falling jerked Ayato back to reality, and he blinked his eyes open only to find that he wasn't falling at all. The grogginess he felt bloomed into a sharp bolt of panic when an unfamiliar scenery filled his vision, and he wondered where he had landed himself this time, before it all came rushing back, hitting him with the force of a truck. The panic he had initially felt was fast replaced by irritation - he hadn't meant to fall asleep, but he had anyway. What if the rogue had made her escape while all three of her captors were slumbering? Turning around to check, he found that she was still tightly confined within her bonds, and felt the tension ease out of his muscles.

Ayato looked up, gazing at the sky. The sun was still in the process climbing into its sky throne, and the sky still retained that deep blue of night. He probably hadn't dozed off for that long, he realised, and found reassurance in this. The sun had barely peeked over the horizon when his eyelids slipped shut - sunrises were something he rarely witnessed, because he valued sleep more - and the sky had been beautiful.The basin of black had been shot through with orange as the sky lightened to blue, the stars retreating and the moon fading away as the sun made its appearance.

He got up, stretching every stiff part of him, just as his stomach emitted a soft rumble. His tail lashed about, scattering grains of sand and sending them into the ocean, as he considered going to hunt without telling them. You know what, who cares? Glancing once more at the three, he spread his wings and shot into the sky, gliding above trees and skillfully avoiding mountains. All he saw were more trees and an occasional cave, and with a grunt of annoyance for wasting his energy, he turned and headed back. Hopefully someone had woken up, so he could go get some food with at least one dragon knowing where he'd disappeared off to.

Landing quietly on the sand, he started pacing around until someone woke up.

Stretching drowsily, Storm squinted as the rising sun hit his eyes. He just laid there for a while, pondering all that had happened over the past day. He looked over his shoulder at their capture. Vines were constraining her in multiple places. Her mouth was tied shut, wings bound to her sides, and talons wrapped together. Necessary, unfortunately, he thought tiredly.

Looking back towards the ocean, he realized that Ayato was nowhere to be seen. Athena was still sleeping peacefully. He wondered if the Ki'Sha warrior would be back. Reluctant to move, he watched the sunrise a little longer, enjoying the ambient, relaxing sound of the waves hitting the shore. The sky was a brilliant array of dazzling oranges and blues. He always loved watching sunsets, but he realized that sunrises were something he didn't get to see as often and he regretted it.

Walking over to the bound female, Storm checked her wounds. The bleeding had stopped and she seemed to be more relaxed now. He hoped she'd wake up soon. For one reason, they couldn't just sit around forever waiting; and second, he didn't think that it was a good sign if she kept sleeping too long. She might be in a more critical condition.

Storm slowly trudged over to the water, letting himself get deeper until it was at his chest level. The saltwater felt amazing in between his scales, and he liked the squishy feeling of the sand beneath his talons. Schools of minnows minnows swam around his scaly body and around his legs. I wonder if there are any eels around here, he thought with a small giggle at Athena's previous reactions to seeing eels.

Suddenly, something pinched Storm's talon. he let out a small yelp of surprise, before grabbing whatever it was and holding it up above the water level. It was a small, reddish orange creature with a round body and eight legs. It had two small, beady, black eyes that came out of the top of it's body. The most interesting part, though, was that it had two huge, sharp pincers. It's whole body was covered in hard plates.

Storm marveled at the little creature, never seeing one before. After all, he never spent too much time by the ocean, even back when he lived on Pyyrhia.  He very clumsily and ungracefully splashed his way back to the shore, placing the little creature gently on the sand and laid on his stomach to watch it. To add to his surprise and awe, it walked sideways! He wondered how it could move so swiftly and fluidly.

Just as the small crustacean found its way back into the frothy waves, Ayato landed on the sand in front of him. "Ayato!" Storm exclaimed, but not too loud so that he wouldn't wake the females, "Where have you been?"

"Athenie?"

A high pitched voice made the hatchling grimace. She opened her pale eyes, which had not yet attained their proper color, and peered up at the slightly smaller dragonet that perched on the corner 'pillar' of her bed. Her pale wings were tucked into her sides, and her head was ducked, an expression of guilt and shame on her face."What is it?" she mumbled, voice slurred. "The candle's out and I don't want to wake Mama. Can I sleep with you?" she whispered timidly, tail curling around her two legs.

Athena groaned inwardly. Hera was always like this. She hated sleeping by herself in the dark. She herself preferred her own bed, but it seemed she'd have to give in, yet again. "Sure," she uttered, turning back onto her side. Hera yipped in delight and hopped down onto the soft duvet, creeping over to her and slipping beneath the covers. "Thanks," she whispered, nuzzling into Athena's feathers, which had just sprouted from her back. They were tiny, but she was proud of them. How bright they were! And soft!

The two sisters lapsed into silence for a while. Athena was just starting to drift off again before Hera's voice shattered the illusion of piece. "Athenie," Hera said. She grunted, tail flicking in annoyance. "Do you ever wonder about leaving?" her sister questioned. Athena's feathers stood on end. "Whaaa?" she turned over to meet her sister's eyes, which were pale, like her own. "Don't say such treasonous things! You know Uncle Daydris won't be happy!" she hissed, hitting her gently. Hera yipped and shrugged, looking sheepish. "But... But-" she started. Athena shook her head. "We can't leave, the tribe will fall to pieces without us. You know that. Besides, Deeogon is the best rank you can get! It's an honor!"

Hera sighed and turned away from her. "It's an honor I don't want..." she whispered.


I wish I'd listened to you...

Sunlight burned against her eyelids and forced them awake. Athena didn't turn her head, just scanned her surroundings with her eyes. The sand was almost blinding, it was so bright, contrasting sharply with the cerulean heavens, which were dotted with wispy clouds that drifted across the sky.

Storm was crouched near the water. Athena squinted. Something was scuttling along in front of him... Oh. It's a crab, she realized. Her bemused expression was replaced by a look of amusement and affection as she watched him observe the creature in awe. She'd seen them a few times during her time as a rogue. Nothing special. They were rather tough to eat and didn't have much flesh. Still, Storm was staring in wonder, as if he were a hatchling staring at his first snowflake.

Hearing soft wingbeats, Athena raised her head and looked over her shoulder to watch Ayato soar into view, touching down on the sands. She tried to ignore the slight jump her pulse gave at the sight of him. While Storm asked him where he'd been, Athena glanced at the female. She was still as a rock. Almost too still.


(OH GOSH THIS IS SO SHORT)

You two and your long posts... --

On his way back to "base," (Ayato using the word with no small amount of amusement) he wondered whether their prisoner would be cooperative. Would she provide them with the information they needed without kicking up too much of a fuss - would there be a need for torture?  Her tough, rebellious face came to mind then, and he concluded that she would likely fight until her last breath. It was admirable, but in this situation, it would just trouble them further and things would get messy. There would probably an argument about using physical methods to get her to spill, Athena ruthlessly suggesting that method and her pacifist friend being against it.

She was beautiful, though: blue-green like the sea, she had silvery grey washing across her scales. The last time he'd seen her, those beautifully coloured scales had been crusted over with dried blood and littered with both old and new scars. She was a formidable opponent indeed, skilled in controlling her magic and undoubtedly no less deadly in physical combat. The cluster of trees below him thinned as he neared shore, and he began a gentle descent. The sky was a lighter shade than when he'd left, and he cast his gaze down to find Athena blinking awake, the other dragoness still asleep, and Storm somewhere. He wasn't sure, and he didn't really care, honestly.

Too late did he realise his intended place to land was almost right next to Storm, who had been hidden by a tree leaning in such a way that it had blocked the male. Turning now would likely end up in Storm being smacked very hard. Heaving a silent sigh, his claws met sand, and he hastily turned his back on Storm. I don't see you, you don't see me, he thought as he walked away, eager to put distance between them. Unfortunately that was not the case, evident when Storm spoke to him. With a huff, he said without the usual bite in his voice, "Nowhere too far." He paused, then offered, "If you're hungry, I can get some food for you. And Athena."

//Sorry for not replaying aaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhh!

"If you're hungry, I can get some food for you. And Athena," Ayato told Storm.

He pondered for a moment, wondering what would be best. He glanced over at the female, who was still asleep by the fire. Concern came over him once again. He didn't want her to die plus he wanted to get moving and get this journey through. That is, if Athena was up to it. Even if she isn't, she will go anyway, he thought with a touch of annoyance, knowing his IceWing friend's stubbornness.

Storm flexed his front claws, as he usually does, feeling the grainy sand beneath him. "We can catch some fish while travelling," he finally decided, turning back to Ayato. "We need to find some way to wake her, though," he said, referring to the wounded female. "That way we can get the information we need and be on our way as soon as possible. We need to make as much of the daylight as we can."

Walking back through the sand back to what was left of the fire, Storm saw that Athena was awake. "Good morning," he said with a quick smile, before walking past her to the captive. He looked at her, not sure how they should get her to wake up. Because she was hurt and unconscious, would there be a way to wake her up without her doing it naturally?

// Sorry for the short and probably sloppy-written post.

Ayato offered to go and catch food for them, which mildly surprised the wyvern. Then again, he probably didn't want any of them dying of starvation or exhaustion and having to explain it to the Ku'za. That would be an unpleasant conversation, with an even more unpleasant end for Ayato. Storm said no, and her feathers relaxed.

At his latter words, her cold eyes flew to the sleeping female. She was so still. Is she dead? She wondered, gaze travelling over her body. She felt a tad bit of disappointment when she noticed the slow, steady rising and falling of her chest. She was still intent on giving her at least a good punch when she woke up, but she would probably have to do it when Storm wasn't looking. She glared daggers at the unconscious girl, spikes on her tail flexing dangerously as she pictured all the satisfying ways she could kill this creature. You're one of them, she thought darkly. You're a killer.

Noticing a purple blob out of the corner of her eye, the dragoness turned her head and made eye contact with Storm as he strode past. "Morning, Fluffy," she responded, offering him a tiny smile as she said his nickname a bit more quietly so Ayato wouldn't hear. The last thing she needed was his comments on their nicknames for each other. She stiffened as Storm approached their captive, talons curling into the sand. She observed, silently, as her friend gazed down at her, casting an occasional glance at Ayato.


"Try pouring water over her head," she suggested. Perhaps now that her body had settled, she would wake up when she got into contact with water.

Ayato was certain that Athena was shamelessly eavesdropping on their conversation. That she was blinking in surprise at his rare display of concern. Storm, though, seemed completely oblivious to his efforts (as usual), and annoyance tugged at his lips. Much to his satisfaction, he managed to keep a straight face as his offer was politely declined, and he swiveled his head back to look away from Storm. He pointed out coolly, "You think the prisoner will be so willing to give away information? That she would instantly submit? Athena will take a while to extract the information from her, and I would rather utilise the time to replenish my energy instead of having to stop and fish in the middle of our journey. But it's your choice." Idiot.

He shared his thoughts with no one as he once again went into flight. Instead of sweeping higher into the sky, however, he stayed close to the trees, a slow glide that barely rustled the leaves crowning the trees as he searched for a clearing to land in. It was more likely that he could pick up a scent of any herd right in the middle of the forest than at the borders. To his surprise, the trees were not clustered so close together as he would have expected - if he squinted hard enough, he could see through to the ground. If he wasn't in such a rush, not wanting to keep Athena waiting should the prisoner acted contrary to his guess, he would have gone down to admire the forest. He'd been in one before, but that was a long time ago, when he was a child with a mission.

His claws met land and right away his nose picked up a faint scent of moose, and he followed them until the herd came within sight. They were asleep, some of them stirring as the warm sunlight warmed their hides, and Ayato swiftly darted in, snatched the ones closest to him - not giving a thought as to whether their absence would have affected the herd - and burst through the trees, which rustled noisily. The four moose awoke and, finding themselves lifting higher into the air and being held by a massive being, begin emitting sounds of fear as they thrashed, hooves kicking wildly. They were quickly silenced as their neck snapped.

He landed, now with only two moose left, and he looked towards the prisoner.

//Sorry for taking so long to reply! Kinda lost track of time + life

Storm smiled to himself as Athena called him his nickname. For a second he was back there. Him, Athena, Atrex. The good old days. He had grown a lot since then. He had become a deputy of a whole tribe, even though he wasn't one of them, adopted a daughter, and got teleported to another world by Athena's psychotic uncle.

Snapping him out of his flashbacks, Ayato said in his usual passive aggressive tone that he should go hunting while they got information out of the female. Storm bit his tongue, resisting the urge to snap back at the obnoxious Ki'Sha. "Fine, than go hunt, if that's what you think it best," he responded in an equally cool tone, the only thing showing his annoyance being a small twitch of his tail. "But I am going to try to talk to the captive first. Athena is the second option."

Storm listened intently to Athena's advice. Walking back over to the water, He cupped his front two talons and let the water fill them up. He waddled over on his two back talons to the unconscious female, who still hadn't stirred, being careful not to spill the salty liquid. He crouched down before pouring the water over her head, wondering if she would wake up.

Athena wasn't trying to hide that she was listening. They were standing less than twenty feet away from her. Besides, it wasn't as if she was eavesdropping on a personal, private pep talk between the two. She highly doubted they'd be pouring their feelings out to each other anyway. Ayato clearly didn't care for Storm, and she had an inkling that the feeling was mutual from her purple friend. They were polar opposites; Storm was warm and friendly, Ayato was cold and standoffish. Storm was more 'cute and cuddly' looking, whereas the latter was constantly scowling and looked about as snuggly as angry Satan.

Athena's tail lashed when the dark blue male addressed Storm. She knew her buddy was practically grinding his teeth together, having caught the subtle movement from his tail. She huffed when Storm referred to her as 'the second option.' Her eyes darted to their sleeping captive. Well, don't be afraid to ask if she's being stubborn, she thought cheerfully, talons flexing and digging deep grooves into the sand.

While Ayato went off to hunt, Athena watched intently as Storm took her advice and retrieved some water from the shore. She arched a pale brow as he began moving back towards the girl, waddling like some sort of penguin. The image was rather amusing, and a tiny smile appeared on her face. "You look like a penguin," she commented, not unkindly, as he lowered himself down to pour the water over her head. The wyvern became very still, pupils thinning as she watched the female's every move.



------------------------

Lamina had been having a pleasant time, sitting in the silence of her own mind. Soft greys and blues danced in and out of view in a relaxing rhythm. Utter quiet. Nothing stirred. No noise. Just quiet. Then, she felt a rather unsettling chill rush through her mind, as if something cold were touching her. Her dark world faded into white light.



The sunlight burned her eyelids, and Lamina mumbled protests against it. Wonderful. Another day of training, another day of preparing for the Deeogon's return. Oh yeah, I was trying to kill her allies five minutes ago... she thought numbly, turning her head away from the sun. She opened her mouth to yawn, but she couldn't part her jaws.

Wait. What?!

Her eyes snapped open. Grimacing as the light blinded her, Lamina looked around wildly, giving out muffled yelps of surprise. Where am I?! What's going on?! Where are my friends?! She wanted to demand, but her mouth was bound by something wet and sticky. Giving a muffled bellow, Lamina tried to stand up, but her legs and wings too, were wrapped in something! Panic began to set in as she realised she was trapped.

As her vision cleared and her senses opened, she realised she was lying on sand. Waves crashed down on the shore. The sky was stained orange at the edges. Breathing heavily, Lamina turned her attention to the three dragons near her.

There were two large dragons. A dark blue male with a purple scarf, -an odd choice of clothing, if you asked her- and a white female with several nasty scars, who was watching her with a fierce glare on her face. Not yet recognising her as Athena, Lamina looked at the dragon closest to her, a purple male, around her age, with intense green eyes and a red amulet resting on his chest.

"Unbind me, dragon!" she tried to snarl at him, but her mouth was bound so it came out as 'mfmf mf, mfmf!' which was rather embarasing. Lamina settled for glowering at the small dragon with all the anger she could muster. Her mind was still foggy, trying to remember what had happened. How long have I been knocked out?

A taunt in every breath. A challenge in the glint of his eyes.

Ayato was deliberately goading Athena's purple friend–

–and it was working. The traitorous tail-twitch didn't go unnoticed by Ayato, and he pulled a mocking smile that bared his teeth. Continuing to poke at Storm's fraying temper, he widened his eyes, and said sweetly, "Oh yes. I do think it the best option for poor old me. Now, go interrogate the prisoner, and don't have too much fun!"

He whirled around and took off without waiting for a response. The childish nature in Ayato demanded that he get the last word in, and so he would ensure that.

He returned with two moose, dumping their lifeless bodies onto the sand before moving over to join Athena. It seemed that he'd made the right choice to hunt; Athena hadn't even started on the questioning yet. His tail coiled loosely around a hind leg as his gaze rested on the angry female, now awake. He managed to catch the gist of her words and huffed. "Hardly. I wouldn't want to have my eyes clawed out."

Storm felt his annoyance rising as Ayato goaded him. Shoving it down, he ignored the dragon as he flew off. Childish, he thought with an exasperated sigh. He closed his eyes, letting his frustration melt away. He wanted to be calm for what happened next.

When he was walking back to their captive, Athena commented, "You look like a penguin." Storm stuck his tongue out at her, amused by the joke. As he poured the water over the female's head, she stirred drowsily. He let out a sigh of relief. It was good she was waking up for a few different reasons.

It took a few moments before she realized that she was bound. When she did, though, a look of anger came into her eyes as she looked at Storm, snarling. Ayato landed close by, carrying two moose in his claws, and he was slightly annoyed that he had been able to hunt that fast.

Ignoring Ayato's remark to the female's growling, Storm stood beside her with not unkind eyes and said, "We can't unbind you or let you go until we know you aren't going to escape or try to attack us. Now if you tell us what we need to know without any problems, I promise you, I will let you go." He said this with complete honesty in his voice while looking into the girl's eyes, trying to show that he was telling the truth. Hopefully she would take it. He did not want Athena to come in and make things... Ugly.

Ayato was seriously getting on Storm's nerves. She knew him almost as well as she knew herself. He was growing more and more annoyed by the blue dragon's subtle jabs at him. The mocking smile, the sarcastic comments. By now, she'd have turned around and shot her tailspikes at him had she been in Storm's shoes. How he was reining in his temper was beyond her.

In his efforts to have the last laugh, Ayato turned and flew off after yet another remark. Athena bared her teeth beneath her lips. What's the matter with him? Did a seagull take a dump on his head? she wondered. Her eyes moved to the dragon sitting next to her. His green eyes were shut, he was trying to calm down. She opened her mouth to say something, but words failed her. She said nothing.

She wasn't sure how she felt about the whole thing. She had had a funny feeling the boys wouldn't have gotten along from the start, but had pushed such thoughts to the back of her head. After all, they were as polar opposites as any two dragons could be. Storm was a healer, killing dragons as a last resort, with a heart big enough to encompass everyone and everything in the world. Ayato was a trained soldier who only saw the dragons he killed in battle as targets standing in his way... She was in between. They were going to fight sooner or later, hopefully just verbally.


Wait, why should she care about what Ayato thought of her best friend? His opinion had no impact on their lives.

The answer chided at her from the back of her head, but she very quickly shoved it down.


Noticing Storm stick his tongue out at her, she returned the gesture, now that Ayato wasn't around to see. "Childish," she taunted, even though that was a hypocritical insult, as she sprayed a bit of sand with her tail in his direction a second later.

When Larmina began struggling, she stayed back, lest she see her. The last thing she wanted was another slimy Sikka clan member grovelling at her feet or 'praising her' as a gift. She watched carefully, however, tail swishing back and forth like a cat waiting to pounce.

She noticed Ayato return from hunting and flicked her tail in his direction as he approached. She felt the heat from his scales as he stood near her. She sat up straight, watching with hawk's eyes the girl's every move. Her feathers stood on end, feeling like Storm was way too close to the dangerous dragon. Her talons tapped a rapid rhythm, her subtle body language betraying her anxiety. At the blue dragon's response to the female, she inwardly sighed.



------


Lamina's heart was racing, she could hear it pounding like a drum in her ears. Her ears were tucked in, displaying her fear. She shied away from the purple dragon, hissing like an angry cat as he moved a bit closer, standing next to her with warm green eyes. He was definitely her age. She hadn't met many other dragons in her age group. The group hadn't produced many eggs years ago.

He responded with a strange accent that she couldn't place. He seemed so kind, gazing at her with complete honesty. Her ears started to rise, the whites of her eyes disappearing as she stared intently at him. He's not so bad, she thought. I can trust him. Then, Deoogon Daydris' voice shattered the illusion of kindness the male wore.

It's a trick! he's just using you to get information on us! Do NOT betray our clan! she thought she could hear him roaring at her from here. Her eyes narrowed to slits and Lamina tried getting away from him, but she was immobilised. "I'll never betray my clan," she growled, although the words were very muffled. "They'll come for me, watch! And you'll be punished for your sins!" she tried using her wind powers, but her wings were tied to her sides, meaning she couldn't direct it at all. She could use her ice-based abilities, but the other two dragons would be on her in an instant, and though she was skilled, she couldn't take them all on without help.

She was stuck. With a resigned sigh, she turned her face defiantly away from the purple dragon and shut her eyes. I won't talk. He's just a weak con-artist.



---------------------------


Athena leaned in towards Ayato, not taking her eyes off the pair. "She won't talk," she stated, not loud enough for Storm to hear. "Unless Storm can somehow bite into everything that's been shoved down her throat all her life in a matter of minutes." She paused. "Then again, I wouldn't be surprised if he managed that. He has a tendency to surprise me every day." A brief, fond sparkle appeared in her eye, then it was gone. Back to the matter at hand. Her gaze hardened once more.

oh no, late post. Made this one longer, think of it as an apology XD --

Ayato had... considered some things during his flight back to the shores on which Athena, Storm and the prisoner were located. They were perhaps already beginning on the interrogation, but his hunt had been swift, speedy, and so would his flight back be. The sound of wind ripping past him was soothing, and it seemed to have triggered something, as he headed back towards "camp" with an oddly tight feeling gripping his heart. He shouldn't have baited Storm like that, he thought as he sped through the air, yet it brought along an feeling of savage satisfaction that he relished.

It was a heavy feeling that Ayato attempted to shove aside as he swooped downwards and landed, sand puffing up around him in tan-coloured clouds, eerily similar to the landing he had made in nearly the same spot about half an hour ago. Deja vu had him rolling his eyes, and he let go of the moose he'd been holding. He threw an apathetic glance at their still forms and headed over, where he tried to mask his discomfort with light words, avoiding Storm's gaze. Athena hadn't even started the interrogation yet. Slow.

"Hardly. I wouldn't want to have my eyes clawed out." he'd said, sounding a little bit distracted, his gaze not resting on one place for long. Darting to the sand, to his feet, to the female. Repeat. Until he caught movement in his peripheral vision, a white body shifting towards him, and his gaze lifted to Athena. He cast her an amused look as she slanted her body closer to him, dropping her voice to a pitch to speak words that Storm would not be able to catch. Wondering what she wanted to say, Ayato did her a favour and angled his head towards her as well, curving an eye ridge upwards in a silent question.

"Well then, let's hope he manages to surprise you again, commented Ayato. "It'd help us. A lot. Do you think we'll need to use brute force?" His eyes flitted back to the dragoness, who had her eyes shut tight, intent on ignoring them. Rolling his eyes, Ayato stepped forward and said bluntly, perhaps a bit haeshly: "You don't want to betray your boss, even when stranded on an island with no one but enemies around you. How brave you must be - yet I don't see any of that in you right now. What kind of warrior closes her eyes and pretends that her captors aren't there? You might die. And at least meet death with open eyes."

Storm felt slight annoyance well up as the female wouldn't give them information, knowing that Athena and Ayato were watching. She said some angry garble that he couldn't understand since her mouth was bound, before turning her head and closed her eyes.

He thought for a moment, thinking of what he should do. Then Ayato took another stab at her, basically calling her weak for closing her eyes and turning her head. Gosh, Ayato is just intent on making this situation worse. Storm turned his head toward him. "Ayato, Athy, could you guys go fly or something for a bit? I don't think your presence is helping. He looked at Athena with a pleading glance. Obviously he mostly meant Ayato's presence.

Storm turned to the female, trying to squish his annoyaance. Going back to a soft tone, he started again. "You don't have to be afraid of me, I really don't want anything to happen to you. You can leave as soon as you tell me what I need to know. I give you my word." He watched her face, looking for a reaction.

He wanted his way of getting the information to work for multiple reasons. For one, he wanted to prove to Athena and Ayato that they didn't have to use fear or torture to get what you want. It drove Storm crazy how heartless they could be sometimes. In the very few times that he had to kill, they plagued his dreams and saw their faces long after he killed them. It took a huge toll on him. He just couldn't stand taking a life. Yet Athy and Ayato seemed like they could do it without a second thought, and it shocked and angered him. He never wanted to reach the point of not caring.

His second reason was that he felt a strange bond with the female. Maybe it was because she was around his age? Or maybe because she seemed like she was just trying to be loyal to her clan, which was something Storm could relate to, even though it was an evil clan she worked for.

Whatever the reason, he hoped his judgement wasn't being clouded. But he couldn't let the two A's(OOC: Like that nickname? XP) torture her. And they were probably starting to hate him for it.

"Please," he implored, turning his attentions back to the girl.