User blog:Flamebiplane/A Shade of Orange

A cool breeze filled the air. The grass was a shiny green, almost as shiny as metal. The sun had recently made its leave beneath the horizon, leaving a black sky speckled with light. Despite the obvious signs of the natural clock, the hustle and bustle of the nearby emerald city still echoed across the land.

Along the path to the city, Spiga sat quietly on a wooden bench. Her eyes were set on the golden road itself, but her mind had one focus:  Where was she? There was no trace. Not a sound, a beat, a sign, nothing. As quickly as she was found, she vanished like the wind. Spiga only shook her head. The game seemed pointless, yet she played it. A lengthy game of hide-and seek it was. Except the rule was that the spot could change.

She was so lost in her vast ocean of thoughts that she did not notice her Jabberwock client plop down onto the bench beside her. Silently, the purple multi-mouthed dragon gave the lost Jinko a slight nudge, zipping her back to reality.

Spiga gave the Jabberwock a short bout of surprise before returning to her serious nature. "Again, I thank you for bringing my daughter back safely," the Jabberwock said with a grin of gratitude. "I am relieved that she is in your hands again, the place that we retrieved her from was a place of pure nightmares," Spiga said as she straightened herself and looked into the eyes of the pleased Jabberwock. The Jinko's eyes narrowed and her voice was strong, "Now, give me what you promised."

The Jabberwock placidly set her hands into her lap. Her two extra mouths, despite lacking any eyes, seemed to note the seriousness of the Jabberwock, straightening themselves out as she spoke, "The rumors came from a small monster-friendly village."

Spiga leaned back in the bench as the Jabberwock continued, "It was being attacked by an Order battalion.  Those that tried to fight them off were either overwhelmed or fled, from what I've heard, these guys were truly heartless, had not a hint of mercy anywhere in their souls."

The two ladies shifted in the bench as a wagon being pulled by a pair of oxen wheeled past and into the city. "They continued to lay waste to the village when she, the Flaming Jinko, appeared," the Jabberwock added. Spiga's anticipation grew as she leaned in closer to the dragon and asked, "What did she do?"

"She fought those Order soldiers with skills that would amaze even the most powerful of beings.  Combining fire with her fighting prowess, she had taken down almost all of those pious fighters as if they were minimum wage security guards.  None of them could lay a finger on her," the Jabberwock explained. "Almost?" Spiga inquired with an eyebrow raised. The Jabberwock nodded and said with a colder voice, "The one that stood up to her was a mighty Order captain, proudly bearing the emblem of his faction on his chest armor and wielding a glaive that glowed with the power of holy magic."

Spiga sat against the bench similar to an inquisitive student wanting to know more details about what happened in a historic, action-packed battle. "Those two went at it like it was their last days on Earth, the Jinko's flurries of fists and feet mashed against the equally ferocious but precise swipes of the captain's glaive.  Neither the locals of the village nor the downed attackers knew who had the upper hand until..." her voice trailed off.

"Until what...?" Spiga begged when the Jabberwock wasn't saying anymore words. "Until a powerful blow from the Jinko defender knocked off his helmet and sent him crashing to the ground unconcious," the Jabberwock finished adding with a chuckle, "The poor sap had the look of someone believing that his defeat was unthinkable from what I heard."

Spiga's eyes widened with hope. "What happened next?  Did she stay with the villagers?" she asked with an eagerness barely contained by her seriousness. The Jabberwock gave a simple shake of her head and said with a low voice, "Unfortunately, when the villagers ran out to thank her, she had already disappeared."

The Jinko's hope collapsed. Another opportunity left in the dust. She let out a heartfelt sigh and hung her head in sadness. The Jabberwock took notice and wrapped an arm around her shoulder, "Hey hey hey, it's going to be alright, think of it this way, you have a new path to follow, someone ought to have seen her leave that village."

Hope reignited in Spiga's heart as she looked up at the Jabberwock. "Where will I find this village?" she asked. The dragon scratched her head and replied, "I'm not exactly sure where it is, but I do know that it's somewhere in the southern mountainous region, ask around, I'm sure someone will tell you."

A rare small grin formed on Spiga's face as the Jabberwock stood up. She remained seated and muttered, "Thank you."

The Jabberwock looked to her with a warm smile and said, "Don't mention it, oh, before I go, were you aware of the Red Road Syndicate?"

"Yes, I knew of them, she used to work for them," Spiga replied confused. The Jabberwock folded her arms and said, "They're gone now but, do you know of this Youko named Riza?"

Spiga shook her head slightly and muttered, "Only some, another former Red Road Syndicate member I presume?"

The Jabberwock nodded and replied, "Yup, she was one of their top officers, months ago, she was captured and sentenced to imprisonment within the void, but just recently...she escaped."

Spiga's face hardened as she stood up and asked, "Why are you telling me this?"

"I felt that it was important that you knew because Riza and the Jinko you're after were both very powerful as well as very close friends," the Jabberwock answered with a sigh. Spiga folded her own arms and asked, "Should I be concerned?"

The Jabberwock scratched her chin and gazed off toward the night sky before turning back to Spiga with, "I'm not sure of her intentions, but a part of me would say 'yes' because she's a known criminal, another part of me would say 'no' because I doubt she'd try to hurt her, but like I said, her intentions are very unclear to me."

"So...I should be a little concerned?" Spiga asked, even though she felt that she already knew the answer. "You can say that," the Jabberwock replied with a simple shrug.

The two ladies were silent for a moment before Spiga perked up and asked, "Is there anything else I should know?"

"The Flaming Jinko's wanted by the Order, which isn't a surprise to me, offering rewards of immense sums of gold for her capture.  She's really been giving the Order a lot of trouble if they really want to bring her to their skewed version of justice that badly," the Jabberwock answered. A chuckle escaped Spiga and she replied with a more cheerful demeanor, "Try as they might, they will find it extremely difficult to bring her down.  She has been trained intensely in the ways of the fire."

The Jabberwock raised a concerned eyebrow and said, "You don't seem too worried about her at the moment, don't you want to see her again?"

Not losing her smirk, Spiga replied, "Oh, believe me, I want nothing more than for her to be with me again, but my priorities are elsewhere for now, I promised my allies that I would accompany them on the return trip to the Naether, so therefore I have no choice but to place my trust into how well she'll use her abilities to protect herself and to help others."

The Jabberwock's face grew increasingly perturbed. "You're seriously going back in there again?  After you just came out?"

"We're Jinkos, warriors at heart, it's in our nature to be this bold and selfless," Spiga said, still retainining her smirk. The Jabberwock did an eyeroll and muttered in a robotic but mocking tone, "And I'm a Jabberwock, powerful yet lustful at the same time."

Spiga chuckled again and pat the Jabberwock on the shoulder saying, "I've been trained in the ways of the spirits, if I am ever in danger down there, then I will use them to protect me and my allies."

The Jabberwock looked down and let out a heavy sigh. She then looked up at Spiga and said, "You're right, bravery is your race's forte, if you're going down there again to do whatever it is you're going to do, then I bid you good luck, and I do hope that you find her again soon."

A portal to Wonderland opened behind the Jabberwock and she steps through. Before it closes, she turned back to Spiga and said, "And if I find anymore information regarding her whereabouts, then I'll move with great swiftness to let you know."

"Thanks, that's appreciated," Spiga said as she waved to the Jabberwock through the now closing portal.

Once again alone, the Jinko sat back down on the bench and held her paw out. A small gentle blue flame appeared and it extended outward. Eventually, the fire dissipated, and in it's place was a small, aged photo containing two Jinko cubs playing with their mother. Spiga's eyes focused on the one who appeared like she was getting ready to leap onto the Jinko mother. Softly, she placed a claw on that cub and she squeezed her eyes shut.

The soft but firm words that slid out of her mouth were, "I will find you again, and I will bring you home with me...my dear sister, I promise."

Her paw sealed around the photo. Silently, she raised it to her face, and gave it a tiny shake, wanting to remember all of the times they were together. The memories of their lives shifted through her, her heart becoming more committed to finding her...and bringing her home.

Her paw opened, and the photo was gone, vanished. Spiga stood up and strolled toward the city.