The Land of Chaos: Part III

Boreas was actually focusing more on enjoying flying than he was on trying to spot any infected creatures. He had suddenly found his new favorite thing to do. He wondered if he could incorporate wings into his other forms as well. It would be extremely difficult in his final form, but with his smaller, more humanoid form, it shouldn't have been too difficult. He paused when he heard Batsu tell him to wait. "Damn, you found one already?" he asked, sounding almost disappointed. He wanted to keep flying. He gave a small sigh. Oh well, maybe later, if he wasn't hurt too badly. Flying over next to Batsu, he hovered there, flapping his wings occasionally to keep him in flight. His orange eyes glanced around. "Where is it?" He didn't see anything.

Batsu nodded at the question. He'd picked it up rather slowly though because they'd been moving at such a fast pace. The grey eyed male frowned and then turned his head upwards when he heard something cut through the air. "Above us." He couldn't see it because of the clouds but it was there. He could smell it. Grey eyes narrow he glanced to Boreas. "It's above the clouds, let's go." He started off but paused. "And be careful." With that he started into the fluffy white stuff and came out above it to see a serpent with wings. It's wingspan was almost twice his own, but it was probably because it's body had to be at least twenty feet in length and needed the support. At least it's not as large as the others, but how convenient of it to have wings....

DK waved goodbye to Alice and the fell silent. He wanted to act a bit more like the others. They seemed serious and he wanted to prove he could be the same. When Cross said they were heading North-East, he looked around trying to figure out how the guy knew exactly where North-East was. He gave a small sigh and then stuck out his tongue with quickly pulling it back into his mouth. Like an adult.

Hunter walked in silence after giving a nod. He wondered how the others were doing. "Just a question out of curiosity. Do you want me to stay back while you and DK handle the creatures," he asked. "Considering I can destroy them and that was supposed to be a last resort that is." He was just a bit curious like he said. "Personally I don't need to use the sword, I am a former shinobi."

Boreas looked up when Batsu said the thing was above them. His eyes lit right back up. They could fight the thing in the air? That meant he could test his maneuverability and techniques and fly at the same time! He nodded in excitement when Batsu said to be careful. "You got it boss," he grinned, starting up into the clouds. His eyes widened when he saw the thing. It was...fairly large. Not as big as the wolf thing they'd seen when first leaving the Unknown, but it was still sizable in comparison. His eyes scanned over the creature. No feet. So, if it were on the ground, would it have trouble moving? Could it maneuver around with those gigantic wings if it was on the ground? As much as Boreas wanted a fight in the air, he figured it would be easier to overwhelm something like this on the ground. His ice bow forming in his hands, he pulled an arrow back, squinting slightly as he took aim for one of the wings, and loosed the arrow before the creature even knew they were up there. The thing was probably agile, which was why Boreas loosed two more arrows immediately after, one of the two aimed at the wing opposite. He didn't want to kill the thing, just immobilize it.

Cross looked to Hunter as he spoke of his curiosity. "If you can fight without the sword, then I'd appreciate if you did so," he said simply. He wasn't trying to be rude or sarcastic, but his blank voice might have made it seem as such to those unused to hearing it. He glanced around as they went. He felt like it would be simpler and faster if he could fly, but even though DK could as well, Hunter could not, so they were stuck to the ground.

The winged creature was very opposed to being attacked in such a matter. It was fairly disturbed by the ice that pierced its wing. When the second wing was hit the creature fell to the earth in a mass k of scales and feathers. With little hesitation Batsu went after it. His grey eyes narrow as he folded his wings back in order to get closer. When he was able to match on, he started to pull on the madness within. His efforts were cut short for a moment later the beast seemed to realize what was happening and knocked him off with its thick skinned tail. Batsu hit the ground rather hard while the creature regained its flying capabilities. Without a moment to spare our started to flee. "Follow it," Batsu called urgently to Boreas.

Boreas followed the thing as it thrashed around on the ground, but stayed airborne, drawing another arrow. He had planned on pinning the things wings to the ground, but Batsu was already on it, and a second later he got whacked off after a moment of thrashing. Boreas wasn't about to chance hitting Bastu. "You got it boss!" he called, starting after the thing. If he could get it pinned to the ground...The light brown haired male followed the creature. Wings, tail, and neck. Those would have to be pinned to the ground to prevent it from attacking, but the thing was fast. Now it knew attacks were coming. Boreas could just hope it wasn't smart enough to know to dodge. The orange eyed chakra followed close behind the creature, slowly catching up to it. He took his gloves off as he flew, stuffing them hurriedly into his pocket. As he got closer to the winged creature, the gloves fell out, going unnoticed as they did. Once he was close enough, he shot two arrows covered in frost at the creature's wing, hoping the frost would spread and freeze the wing entirely.

It wasn't too long until Cross started hearing something out of the ordinary. He held his hand up for the group to wait while he singled out which direction the noise was coming from. If one thing was to be said about Cross, it was that his hearing and eyesight were above that of a normal human's. "There's something that way," he told them, starting off quickly in the direction he'd indicated. Whatever it was, it was big. As they got closer to whatever it was, the ground shook with what sounded like the steps of two large feet. And then it stopped.

Cross stopped as soon as the sound did, only to hear it replaced with another, quieter sound. The thing knew they were near. And this new sound was like...slithering. From Cross's side came a giant lizard-like creature slithering quickly towards him, two giant fangs positioned to strike. Even though the thing clearly had two front arms it could walk on, its back was like the tail of a snake with one large stinger on the end, and it seemed as though the thing could slither about silently. Cross's wings immediately took him backwards and just out of range of the bite. The thing had venom dripping from its fangs, and it was so large it was a wonder it could move through the trees at all, even though the trees were spaced out quite a bit in this part of the forest. To Cross, this thing looked more like a mythical dragon without wings than a lizard.

DK had been playing around with a leaf as they walked. He had become a bit bored with walking in silence. No one seemed to want to talk so he'd found himself a bit of entertainment. It was only when Cross signalled for silence did he stop playing and let the leaf drop. He wanted to ask what was going on, but the sound of large footsteps made him change his mind. The tiny dragon blinked when the steps stopped and a slithering sound took it's place. It was only when he saw the two armed lizard did he make a sound. "What is that!" Turning tail he took off running in hopes to keep his life. Not only was the lizard huge, it had a scary tail and venom filed fangs.

Hunter was not as fearful as DK. Being a formal ninja as well as an immortal, stuff just didn't surprise him anymore. Without hesitation he found his way up a tree. Drawing a kunai he attached an explosive tag into it and aimed at the nearby tree. The goal was not to kill, but to immobilize it so Cross could take away the madness.

The serpent moved at great speeds to avoid capture. Not sure as to how it got outside of the Unknown, let alone it's location, it had no intentions of surrendering. When more arrows came its way the thing retaliated by turning on its attacker. A hiss escaped it as its tail lashed out.

Batsu was not disoriented after being knocked to the ground in such a way. He wondered if the others were having as much of a hard time as he was. With grey eyes glowing he took to the air again. This time coming around the front of the creature to stop out. He failed when the thing turned and weren't for Boreas instead. If he'd been any less sane he would have grabbed the tail, but he wasn't that crazy. Forming a fireball in his hand he threw it at the creatures back. "Corner it," he told Boreas.

Cross said nothing about DK taking off, but was grateful for Hunter's help at least. This creature didn't seem like it would go down easy. He'd taken down creatures this size before, but by killing it, not by keeping in contact with it for extended periods of time. He wished they were in a space without trees surrounding the creature. It would be easier to get things done that way. But now wasn't the time for wishful thinking. Once Hunter took it upon himself to make a tree topple in the direction of the large creature, Cross moved to get the thing's attention by flying down just in front of it and throwing a knife at it. The scales on it's forehead were tough enough so that the knife only grazed it before bouncing off, even despite how hard he'd thrown the weapon. On the bright side, it did get the thing's attention, if only for a moment. Cross's jade eyes widened when one of the creature's limbs moved to whack him and he was too close to move out of range fast enough. He ended up getting hit, and flying into the tops of one of the nearby trees. His wings got entangled a few times as he fell through the tree top. His hand grabbed onto the last branch he could before it would've been a straight drop to the ground, and he pulled himself up just in time to see the large snake-like lizard catch the falling tree and rip what was left of it off the ground, only to throw it at the tree that he was currently trying to get back onto. Though Cross didn't see it, its tail went swinging in Hunter's direction.

Boreas stopped in midair when the serpent turned on him, aiming its tail at him. He had a better idea than cornering it, but Batsu was in charge here. The ice chakra's hands frosted over as the tail came closer, and when it hit him, he grabbed onto it, flinching since the thing had struck him hard in the midsection. He didn't know how he could corner the thing in the air, so he'd just keep its focus on him. Icicles forming on the tips of his fingers, Boreas dug them into the thing's tail so that he could hold on even if it thrashed. In addition, his frost started creeping up the creature's body and freezing over. He only wanted the frost to reach the creature's wings, but this was his first time using it in battle, so he wasn't sure how fast it would move, or if he could even stop it in time to prevent it from getting to the creature's head.

(Delayed no longer!)

Generally DK could handle his own, but this seemed to be a whole new ball game. He was honestly scared, but as he watched the other two fight, he tried to work up the courage to help out. He bet that if Boreas was here the guy would be making fun of him right about now. Telling him how he was a scaredy cat even though he was humongous dragon. Sucking in a sharp breath he ran at the lizard headfirst and turned into that same dragon that had fought the wolf creature. With claws extended he aimed to swipe across the lizard's face and draw him away from the others.

Hunter flinched when he saw Cross get hit and then reacted with a counter attack for when the tree was tossed at the raven haired male. He sent two bomb tags towards the tree to blow it up before it could cause Cross any damage, but at the same time he'd failed to see the tail. It knocked him across the ground with enough force to break bones, but thankfully those bones were spared. If it weren't for the fact that he was a patient person, he would have destroyed this thing with the blade.

Batsu couldn't have been more grateful for Boreas at that moment. With the guy holding onto the serpent, he could get a grip as well and draw out the Madness. He took hold and pulled, keeping his eyes on the ice that was covering the entire length of the creature. Honestly he didn't want to get frozen over by accident. Feeling the familiar rush of Madness flowing through him he kept still. There wasn't as much as he thought, or maybe it was just a fluke. Whatever the case, this wouldn't take long.

To say that Cross wasn't relieved by Hunter's intervention would've been an obvious lie. He'd already been thrown into a tree, he didn't need a tree thrown into him. When he saw DK attack the draconic creature, he dropped down from the tree branch he was hanging from, but his feet didn't touch the ground. Cross beat his wings down and shot up into the air. Once he was above both the beast and the trees, he dropped down, pulling out one of his knives as he went, digging it beneath the scaly armor so that he could have something to hang onto if the creature decided to thrash about.

The beast let out a deafening roar when DK attacked it, the winged dragon's claws leaving a very visible mark on the side of its face. It went to swat the white furred dragon away, and when it felt the smaller winged being drive something into its back, the pointed tail struck out, piercing Cross's wing and shoulder.

Boreas kept his hold on the serpent's tail, but kept his wings beating. He didn't want to drag the serpent down now that both him and Batsu had a hold on it. He hoped that this wouldn't take long, because he didn't know when he should stop spreading his ice over the thing, and he didn't want to freeze Batsu. Deciding it would be better to not take the chance, the ice spirit ceased in spreading the frost. Unfortunately, he stopped a little too early, and the wings of the serpent remained untouched by his ice, allowing the thing its continued aerial mobility.

It was a mistake to allow the serpent to keep it's wings. Immediately after the ice stopped all spreading it took a nose dive into a nearby lake, dragging Batsu and Boreas with it. As it thrashed on the water attempting to break free of the ice, it once more dislodged Batsu from its body and attempted to snap powerful jaws at the winged male. The assault was successful, staining thewater with blood.

The pain that shot through Batsu's side was unbearable. The fangs that held him were powerful and unkind. For a brief moment the grey eyed male was willing to give up and die, but something pushed him towards survival. Eyes turning red he dug his nails into the creatures face and drew on the madness once more. Instead of letting go, the creature tightened its grip going to tear Batsu in half, but as time flowed, the creature began to weaken.

DK was fighting out of fear. He didn't want to die so he would fight. When he saw the mark he had made he fought even harder, pausing only when Cross got injured. At the same time Hunter came with his sword and aimed to slice the tail clean off. DK used it to his advantage and clasped onto the shoulders off the beast to hold it down.

The moment the serpent started downwards, Boreas knew he'd fucked up. However, upon seeing the lake, he thought, maybe this would be easier. He could freeze the creature into it. That hope snapped in half when he was taken underwater with the creature's tail, since his claws were buried into it. The next moment the water was stained red, and the blood, he was sure, wasn't his own. Shit, he thought, now in a slight panic. He prayed that wasn't Batsu's blood. Retracting the ice claws from the creature's skin, Boreas swam backwards to avoid the creature's thrashing. He couldn't see Batsu from where he was. He had to make a choice here. He couldn't screw up again, because a pitting feeling in his stomach was telling the ice chakra that the red in the water wasn't from the creature. This time he wouldn't fuck up. He'd freeze the entire lake. Batsu was of the fire element, so he could free himself and thaw the creature enough to suck the Madness from it. Curling up in the middle of the lake, ice started spreading rapidly in spikes from Boreas' body, and from those spikes the surrounding water began freezing; maybe too quickly. Several of the spikes pierced the serpent to keep it in place, one narrowly missing Batsu in the process. It took less than a minute before the small veins of ice were spread throughout the lake and freezing it over. But the lake was large enough that, for the moment, the ice was still thin and moveable, almost like slush.

Cross could hear Alice now, complaining on how he was always fighting so recklessly. The tail of this creature had actually gone through his wing and the pointed tip was causing his jacket to tent, which told Cross that the stinger had actually gone through his shoulder as well. Ironic how it didn't pierce through the front of his jacket of all things. He held back the urge to scream, it was so often that he had to fight that urge to stay silent that it no longer became a fight, but rather just an ignoring of an itch one had to scratch. Instead the black winged being continued pulling on the Madness within the creature. It was only when the thing's tail was cut off that he paused, his eyes widening lightly. The tail was...really heavy. If Cross had been any other person, he would have fallen off the back of the creature from its weight. Now that the beast no longer controlled the tail, it seemed it was sinking further into Cross's arm and wing, pinning his wing to the back of his shoulder. Flying wouldn't be an option for a long while after this. Not unless he wanted to look like a bird who'd just had its wings clipped on only one side.

The dragon-like creature decided, instead of focusing on the insignificant bug on its back, to turn its rage upon the two other bugs attacking it. Once its tail was cut off, black-tinted blood spurted out and what was left of the tail swung to hit Hunter, only to thrash in a different direction once it was held down. The large creature thrashed under the weight of the dragon, its mouth biting at the air as it tried to get a hold of its attackers. A futile attempt, for the longer it was held down, the weaker it got. It seemed to shrink in size with every minute that passed, but the stinger in Cross's shoulder remained the same size. After several minutes that seemed like forever, the creature looked like a red and black common garden snake with legs; albeit a large garden snake with legs, close to the size of a python.

Batsu was heavily bleeding out, but it was pushing him to fight harder. Eyes glowing a bright red he managed to get loose the moment Boreas froze the lake. With a bit of effort he made it to the surface and took in as much air as he could muster. Flapping his wings he made it to the shore. He knew he didn't have time for a break but still. Signing he set his wings ablaze and dove back into the water. It was so cold. Burning a hole through the ice he made his way to the creature and latched on again. Within a few moments he'd managed to withdraw all the madness. Wrapping his arms around the creature he hurried back to the surface and into the land. He hated the cold. "Boreas, it's finished," the red eyed male said. He then laid back and closed his eyes. He was so tired and in a lot of pain.

DK was happy to take down this thing. When the creature shrunk so did DK. He gave a soft sigh and looked to Cross. "Hey, your shoulder!" He hurried over and flinched. "It looks like it hurts." The purple eyed child looked to Hunter. "Help him."

Hunter was not thrilled about this task. He walked over to Cross and examined his shoulder. "Be still," he told him. With a swift slice he cut the larger half off. And then examined the rest. "You'll have to pull that out yourself. Did it have poison on it?"

Boreas kept freezing the water, trying to feel if the winged creature was becoming sluggish in its movements. However, soon, he saw through the dispersing red that the creature had shrunk and was no longer in the water. Batsu didn't seem to be in the water either. At that point, the orange chakra stopped freezing the water and rose to the surface. His breathing seemed normal enough, for, as he'd found out, as long as he has ice around him, breathing doesn't matter. Like the cold substance was his oxygen source. Making his way to the shore, Boreas's hair matted over his head and he swiped it to the side so that he could see, starting over towards Batsu. "Shit man, that looks bad," he frowned. He glanced around. "Where the hell's that healer chick when you need her," he huffed, before looking back to Batsu. "Want me to stop the bleeding?" He figured he could freeze the blood coming from the wound, just enough to stop the bleeding. It would be uncomfortable, but it would hurt a hell of a lot less than burning the skin to stop bleeding.

Cross drew his knife across the grass to get off the blackened blood from having been lodged between the beast's scales. He'd made sure to pull it out before the creature became too small to withstand the wound, so the thing wasn't dead. In fact, it was laying on the ground with its tail swishing, the tip of it still cut off, though it didn't look like it would have had a stinger normally. He found quite quickly that he couldn't move without a searing pain shooting through his side. He hadn't gotten hurt on his right side, but the pain in his shoulder spread down his body the moment he tried to move. Figured that he'd get wounded on the same side as the arm that was already shredded. The raven haired male sat on his knees, since he'd already been kneeling, grateful that DK had told Hunter to help him. He glanced blank faced at the two of them, tensing once Hunter cut the tail in half. After that, Cross took a breath and grasped what was left of the stinger with one hand. He clenched his teeth and slowly withdrew the thing from his shoulder and wing. It felt like it was bone. He didn't know what else he should have expected it to be, but to feel that the thing lodged in his shoulder was actually bone surprised him. He tossed it to the side, his wing slowly moving away from his shoulder. It visibly drooped in comparison to his other wing, which was held firm and uninjured on his left side. His wings were attached to the area just below his shoulders, so it shouldn't have been surprising that Cross couldn't hold the wing up. "I don't know. Maybe." He could tell that there was a burning sensation in the right side of his body, but he wasn't sure if that was from the wound or venom. He slowly picked up the python-like creature, whose legs seemed to retract into its body when it didn't want to walk, and the creature curled itself over Cross's shoulders, causing the winged male to flinch lightly. "Let's just get this thing to the Unknown," he mumbled, his emerald eyes nothing short of emotionless as he stood up and started walking with the tip of his right wing trailing along the ground behind him. He hoped not all of the creatures would be this challenging. It wouldn't be so hard if he didn't have to preserve the lives of these creatures. But from what Cross understood, Batsu had made his existence worthwhile by directing these creatures to the Unknown. Which was something that the raven haired messenger couldn't ignore. He wouldn't make the existence of another creature obsolete by taking away its purpose.

Batsu was starring up at the sky. He had had better days before. His eyes narrowed lightly when he heard movement, but it was only so he could see who it was. When Boreas door he sat up. "It's fine," he said with a shrug. He glanced down to the little creature because him. It was no bigger than twice inches with stubby little legs and even stubbier wings. "So much trouble." Standing up he took the creature with him, but didn't move farther than that. "You know what, I think I might take you up on that offer." He slowly say back down. There was so much blood that he was curious as to whether or not it was all of his.

DK nodded when Cross said they should go to the Unknown. "You can get healed there too," he informed the wounded male. He glanced to Hunter. "I hope the others are doing better than is," he sighed. Crossing his arms behind his head he followed behind the group. Secretly he was proud of himself. He'd held down the lizard without trouble. Wait until he told Boreas!

Hunter let his mind wander as they got on the trek to the Unknown. He didn't understand why Cross acted so emotionless. The guy could have been Felix's brother. With a small sigh of his own he tried to ignore how similar the two were. By remembering Felix he remembered Serenity and that hurt.

Boreas frowned, but nodded when Batsu told him that he was fine. Or rather, that the wound was fine. There was a shit load of blood, so he hoped that the winged male wouldn't pass out on him. He was glad when the guy changed his mind and sat back down. Boreas went over next to Batsu and sat down too. "Maybe you can have Silence fix you up when we take the thing back," he mentioned offhandedly, hovering one hand over the worst part of the wound. A frosty mist started flowing from his hand and over the wound, freezing the blood and sealing off the wound. He did that for the rest of the injury before withdrawing his hand. "You want me to carry it?" Batsu had enough shit to worry about without having to worry about carrying the thing that nearly tore a chunk of flesh out of his side.

Cross only nodded when DK said maybe Silence could heal him. Yeah, he wouldn't mind that too much. He had wanted to shrug instead of nod, but shrugging right now, especially with that legged python around his shoulders, was not a particularly attractive action to him.The closer they got to the Unknown, the shittier Cross started feeling. He hadn't thought about it before, but how much blood was he losing out of his shoulder? His wings didn't bleed so much, they just lost feathers (which his wing was doing a lot of right now), but that stinger had gone right through his shoulder. Looking down, Cross saw that the front of his jacket on the right side was matted to his shoulder and tinted red. It was probably the same on the back of his jacket. His emerald eyes blinked a couple times. How had he not noticed that before now? Maybe his mind had been focused on the pain, but that wasn't usually like him. He glanced to Hunter and DK. What was hanging around other people doing to him?

Batsu nodded when Boreas suggested that Silence might lend a hand and help him. That would be nice. The red eyed male flinched when he felt the cold of the ice in his wound. He truly did not like the cold. When the healing was complete, Batsu got up and handed the serpent to Boreas. Batsu had nothing against the creature, but less weight would be easier on him, even if it was just a little. Slowly the winged male started for the Unknown. "Thanks," he said to Boreas as they continued forward. He was glad to have him as a companion. Looking to his side he tried to ignore the discomfort, but it was to obvious to ignore. He supposed he'd be better one they found Silence.

DK was eyeing Cross considerably. The guy was bleeding everywhere. He glanced to Hunter then back to Cross. Was he going to bleed out? Boring his lip lightly he hurried to the older male side. "You're bleeding everywhere. I can fly you to the Unknown if you want. It'll be faster than walking." Purple eyed were wide with worry.

Hunter watched DK go to Cross. That child was always moving and talking. To think he'd wanted kids at one point. What has he been thinking? He wondered how Boreas managed. As DK offered transportation, Hunter took a study glance around. He swore he'd heard movement, but maybe it was just him.

Boreas gave a small grin at Batsu's flinching. "Hopefully you won't have to get used to it," he joked lightheartedly, taking the creature when Batsu handed it to him. Yeah, it was easy for him to joke when he wasn't the one hurt. He took into consideration that the winged male was hurt this bad because he didn't know how to control his ice. He'd hesitated and this was the price they had to pay. The brown haired male gave a small sigh. Next time I freeze it whole. "No problem," he replied with a light grin. "You're gonna be able to make it to the Unknown, right?" From what he could tell, the place was a good ways away. But they were at least closer to it than Cross and his gang.

Cross blinked when DK came over to him, telling him he was bleeding everywhere. "I hadn't noticed." Okay, so maybe sarcasm wasn't his thing, because he wasn't capable of putting a sarcastic edge on his voice and a sarcastic look on his face when he said things like that, so it just came out sounding like he really hadn't noticed. Surely Hunter would catch the sarcasm though. He paused though, a slightly surprised look on his face when DK offered to give him a ride. The very next moment his green eyes went from surprised to alert, and he straightened up some, a small flash of pain crossing over his face. From the look on Hunter's face, he'd heard it too. "What was that?"

DK didn't understand why Cross was looking so surprised. It wasn't like he'd offered to carry him on his back in human form. Wrinkling his nose when Cross turned away with a different look he stuck out his tongue. "Meanie...." The young dragon hadn't heard the noise. With a small sneeze he rubbed his face and then blinked when he heard a small throaty growl. "What's that?"

Hunter looked to DK and frowned. "Hush," he demanded in a quiet time. He didn't want to fight again. Cross was far too injured and DK was just a child. With a frown he turned back to the noise as another growl sounded. It sounded big. Drawing the sword he prepared for combat, only to blink as a tiny little squirrel like creature came out of the bushes. Its fur was spiked and it's ears where long and pointed while its eyes glowed red. "It's so small...." He looked to Cross and DK. "Why can't they all be this size?"

Batsu was sure he could make the journey. Although he was in fact tired and the discomfort was making him feel extremely bothered. He would have suggested flying, but that would be a bit of a hassle. Without the wound it could have been easy, but that was not the case. "Let's get lunch after this," he suggested. Batsu was hungry despite the 'meal' he'd had last night. It wasn't like he needed to constantly eat like when he was evil, but he had a taste for meat and the madness inside was craving it. The hunger would probably disappear after they met with Silence but still.

Cross stood ready to pull a sword of light out, despite his injury. He'd been hurt worse than this before and had continued to fight. He'd fought with bones shattered in an entire arm before and he'd still fought. Though the bones in his shoulder probably weren't in the best condition, he'd force it to move if he had to. He didn't want to make Hunter have to kill these creatures because he was too hurt to move. His form almost relaxed when he saw what came out, but he immediately tensed again. There was no way that little thing had made all that noise. With the legged python still around his shoulders, Cross moved forward towards the little creature. His movements said casual, but he was being cautious. Very cautious. What if the thing could change its size? He didn't trust it. He didn't get too close before he knelt down in front of it, almost sitting on his feet. He wanted to wait for the creature to make a move before making a grab for it. His right arm might've been injured, but his left was fine, and it could move just as fast.

Boreas took Batsu's response as a yes. He hoped he wouldn't have to carry the guy. "Yeah, sure," he said with a shrug. They walked in silence for a few moments before the ice chakra spoke up again. "I wonder how the others are doing," he pondered. "What do you think?" He grinned. "I bet you the first thing they come across, that purple haired brat's gonna take off running," he joked, grinning at Batsu. He knew DK's name, but he just liked referring to him as a purple haired brat.

DK blinked when Hunter told him to hush. "Who died and made you leader," he muttered under his breath. Why did everyone think they were the boss of him? He was older than all of them, who cared if he was in a child's body. With a sniffle of disgust he stuck his tongue out at Hunter too. When the squirrel creature came out DK frowned. "It's ugly," huge commented. He didn't hesitate to follow Cross over to it. "Madness isn't all that vicious," he chuckled.

The squirrel creature leaped at Cross, tiny paws outstretched as the male approached. It's growl was fierce, but it's bite was fairly weak. Bristling like there was no tomorrow, the little rodent clawed and scratched until it had exhausted itself. DK snickered. "Can we keep it as a pet?"

Hunter ignored the childish acts of DK. He swore that Silence had been trying to annoy them with the purple haired child. "We're lucky it's not as dangerous as it sounds. We should go before something bigger shows up." He looked around and then went to the creature. "I'll carry this one."

Batsu smiled as Boreas made fun of DK. "He's braver than he looks," the winged male said. His wings ruffled behind him. He was still capable of reading people. It was nice to have. It had helped with Serenity, even though she had sold out her so called friend. "Regardless I hope they're having better luck than us." He didn't wish that kind of fight upon anyone. "I'm sure they're fine though. Cross isn't one is image to lose."

As soon as the squirrel leapt at him, Cross swiped the thing up by the scruff of its neck, immediately pulling on the Madness, even as DK spoke of keeping it. "I think it would be more of a hindrance than a help," he spoke simply. He wasn't sure if the kid had been joking or not. He had a habit of taking everything seriously. "Thanks," he said, handing the creature to Hunter once it was drained of Madness. He was glad the guy was willing to carry it. He stood up and took a glance around, nodding at the brown haired male's suggestion before starting off. He was in no condition to fight right now.

"Yeah," Boreas laughed. "I'll believe it when I see it." He didn't know much about the dragon thing, other than that it was certainly annoying enough. "Heh, me too. Let's hope their monster wasn't as big and bad as ours," he said. He looked towards Batsu at his statement about Cross, though. "Hey, now that I think about it...what's with that guy? He kinda freaks me out." Turned out honesty was a trait Boreas didn't put limits on.

Batsu smiled when Boreas laughed. He remembered when they'd first met. Boreas had asked if he could use fire jutsu and Batsu, being injured wanted nothing to do with him. It had been one hell of a fight, but in the end everything had turned out okay. Batsu's wings rattled behind him once more and then he flapped them to keep them from getting stiff. His eye were turning back to grey, but they were swirling with red. He was consuming the Madness into his system a lot quicker than before. It was almost like gaining immunity to it. Batsu didn't care for immunity, he just wanted to save those souls. Souls that the Onihana had abandoned. The thought of it made him bristle with anger. He'd told Kymin that he'd leave the Clan alone, but just the thought of them made his blood boil. Batsu had barely managed to hear what Boreas was saying until the last bit. "Huh? Oh...I'm not sure myself. I lived in his body for 12 years and I don't recall ever having access to his memories or anything of the sort. He was just vessel and in person, it's kind of the same thing. It's like he doesn't really have a purpose, but he's got a one track mind." Batsu shrugged. What did Cross live for? Was it just Alice?

Hunter nodded when Cross thanked him. "No problem." He looked down at the little squirrel who was still bushy, but less vicious. Walking on, he wondered if DK would offer Cross a ride again, but the purple haired child seemed disgusted with being ignored. It was obvious from the way DK marched ahead of them as though he knew exactly where he was going. Not to mention the mumbling that seemed to be more of an endless rant. Hunter had to keep from telling him to shut up, for that would be rude.

DK was in fact disgusted. It wasn't fair! "Who are they to ignore me like I'm not apart of this team," he grumbled. "Why couldn't I have gone with Batsu and Boreas, at least they acknowledge my existence!" DK kicked the nearest rock as hard as he could. It went flying into a nearby tree, but that wasn't enough. "I basically saved them. Had it not been for me they would have been lizard food....stupid people thinking that just because I'm small I'm insignificant. What a bunch of nobodies." DK gave a sniffle of annoyance. "I should have stayed home with Fara and Alice if they thought so little of me...."

Boreas looked to Batsu curiously when the guy said he'd lived in Cross's body for twelve years. He'd forgotten about that. Actually, maybe he hadn't really known. Now that he thought about it though, Batsu's old form had looked a lot more like Cross than his new form did. Only, Batsu's old form was a lot more slight than Cross was. Hell, if Batsu hadn't had sharp ass teeth and red eyes back then, the guy wouldn't have been intimidating at all. All Cross had to do to be intimidating was continue to sport that blank stare. "One-track is right. I'm surprised he even came with us." He paused. "It's weird, ya know. Him and that girl are like complete opposites. He's dark and brooding, and she's bright and chipper all the time," he mused. "Gotta wonder how something like that came about." Another pause. "Ya know. I almost feel bad for the guy," he grinned lightly. "It's gotta be exhausting being that emotionless all the time."

Cross watched the small purple haired boy storm ahead of them, mumbling angrily. His eyes were just as blank as ever; only exhaustion seemed to show through them. His shoulder hurt something fierce. And his wing, which was once more dragging lightly on the ground. The little creature hadn't contained much Madness, but that little bit had been enough to make him feel the effects of the Madness that the snake around his shoulders had once contained. After a minute or two of DK's mumbling, Cross decided to speak. "DK," he called. His voice almost sounded hoarse, but it was more from the lack of speaking...and the fact that he was feeling fairly thirsty right now. He waited for the kid to either look at him or acknowledge the fact that he was being called, and was silent for a moment afterwards. "Thanks. For earlier." And he left it at that. He'd honestly much rather have had a noisy happy child than a pissed off mumbling one.

Batsu looked at Boreas as they walked. He didn't recall having such a conversation before. I've where he wasn't taunting someone's life, or reading them like a book because of their weeping soul. Batsu couldn't recall what color Cross's soul was. Surely not colors like him own. "Maybe it's because opposites attract," he commented. "And I agree, it must be exhausting. Maybe when he's around Alice he acts a bit more human." Batsu shrugged. "Who knows."

With each moment that passed DK was starting to feel more and more unappreciated. How could they disregard him in such a manner. When his name was called he turned with nature purple eyes. "What?" He went to say more but Cross spoke first. DK was silent for a moment before he turned away. "I just did what anyone else would," he said trying to sound mature out tough. Although he was grinning with happiness.

"Yeah, maybe," he shrugged. The orange eyed chakra looked to the winged man beside him. "How's your side feeling?" He was sure that it wouldn't be much longer until they got to the Unknown. "The ice isn't melting, is it?" He didn't want Batsu bleeding out if it did melt. He didn't think it would, since his ice was damn cold, but the thing was, blood was hot, so he didn't know how it would work out.

Well, at least DK wasn't grumbling anymore. Cross gave a tiny sigh and kept walking, silently wondering how far from the Unknown they were. He was still bleeding, and he was half tempted to ask them if they could take a quick break. He was...unusually tired. It was strange, because they'd only been walking for about thirty minutes now. He wished his wing hadn't gotten so badly injured, because then he could have flown there. The raven haired male's eyes were half closed as he walked. It was becoming a struggle to keep them open. His shoulder burned, though he didn't think it was from the effects of any kind of venom. His emerald eyes glanced at the snake creature on his shoulder. It was just relaxing there. It hadn't moved much since he'd picked it up, so he knew that the thing hadn't bit him. Under normal circumstances, the weight of the snake would have meant nothing to Cross. But now it just felt like it weighed a ton. He didn't know what was wrong with him. He'd been injured far worse than this before and had been able to make it home on his own from the Unknown, which was a much farther distance than it was from here to the Unknown. However...even as tired as he was, the winged male didn't stop walking. His goal right now was to get to the Unknown, and get there he would.