Wide Eyed Wonder

Flash_Guardian has abandoned his wings from the other day, trading them in for, at the moment, a pair of fish gills. As an avatar, such a precaution wouldn't have been necessary for a prolongued underwater swim. No matter, really. A single powerful spell was all it took to give Flash not only gills, but webbed hands and feet that allowed him to glide and maneuver about the salty sea just as easily as any of the other fishes. A fair example of Flash's lifestyle since losing his guardian-hood ... everything works the same, just some things are harder. And the freedom. Gads, the wonderful freedom.

Flash_Guardian rolls over in the water, sending ripples and currents swirling away in all directions as his face turns to the ocean surface far above him. Legs quickly spring into motion, propelling him rapidly upward until at last he breaks the surface of the ocean, leaping up out of the water in the manner of a playful dolphin, only to fall back on his side to create a tremendous splash! His antics can easily be seen from shore, and would probably be considered rather comical to any onlookers.

Flash_Guardian has decided that he rather likes this new game apparantly, as he swims deeply once more, only to turn about and kick like mad for the surface again, breaking the stillness of the water with a bit more height ... though this time he doesn't simply flop to one side, preferring instead to tuck forward and dive back into the sea, hands in front in a graceful sort of swan dive. Another deep dive before he rebounds once more, heading this time a bit more in the horizontal and going for distance rather than height as he bursts forth from the waters. The whole escapade merely ends in Flash collapsing into the watery arms of the sea to float there, catching his breath in laughing gasps as he now just ... lays there motionless in the water, staring up at a bright blue sky.

Flash_Guardian lets out a joy-filled sigh, at last reaching an arm behind him and pulling himself through the water in a powerful backstroke, heading back for shore. Seems like he's worn himself out at the moment, and his oceanic explorations will have to wait. He quickly starts making his way back to the shore of the mainland.

Jaia-Asumoto moved onto the beach quietly, the sheathed Ichijmond, held firmly in her left hand. Her hair had been tied back enough to allow her ebony hair to fall about either side of her face in a fashion that would not obstruct her vision. Her kimono was its usual plain brown, and appeared to limit the steps she took. She slid her feet out of her white socks, and sandals and placed them aside, before making her way across the sandy shore. Near the seaside itself, where the water would rise and then fall back into the sea, would she kneel in the customary form of a Samurai paying her respects...or just sitting down. Her knees pressed against the ground while she sat back onto her feet. Her narrow eyes had remained half closed, her calm composed manner seemed to redouble as she moved into another trance-like state, much like the ones she would go into before meditation. There she would sit quietly, until disturbed by commotion in the sea before her. The waves did not appear to roar and crash, so the activities of --

Jaia-Asumoto -- one creature which her eyes could not make out at this distance. Placing Ichijmond, reverantly before her knees, she continued to watch the creature as it frolicked some distance from shore. Bowing her head lightly, the young samurai would quickly chide herself for stareing and return to the depths of her meditation.

[Flash_Guardian ] One arm after the other rises and falls as the halfway submerged form of Flash swims in with the tide. At last he reaches a point where the high waves make it too difficult for him to swim properly. He turns himself now to face the shore, preparing to catch the next wave and ride it as far as he can. His eyes quickly fall upon the honorable form of the samurai maiden, Jaia. His plans halt for a moment as he sees her there, suspended in a deep sort of meditation. For a moment he simply watches, trying to decide the best course of action. At last he nods, catching the next powerful wave and leaping along with it, kicking powerfully to try and make as much progress as he can, though steering himself to one side so as not to disturb the contemplative woman kneeling near the surf.

Lafiel sits, leaning against a tree, staring into the waters, seemingly not noticing the presence of the others, though she's very well aware of them. she takes a deep breath and sets her bow on the ground beside her, still looking at the water

Omenis pauses on the sandy grass of the dunes...looking down along the shore to the water that seemed to be lapping itself upon the land almost as if swallowing it peice by piece before deciding to to retreat leaving just the sign it had reached so far. She glance down at her feet noticing how they seem to sink into these small granules of beings....crouching down scooping a handful as she holds it up slowly letting it trickle through her fingers feeling its texture her eyes upon it and when but a few grains remain in her palm she holds her cheek to them closing her eyes

Flash_Guardian blinks for a moment, the waters at last reaching the correct depth to allow his currently webbed feet to touch. He strides out of the water, fighting the undertow which pulls at his legs, begging him to return to the carefree cradle of the sea. His gaze now sweeps from side to side, catching sight of another pair women, the younger of the two appearing to be playing in the sand in some fashion. He shakes his head, grinning and half-collapsing onto the sand, breaking his fall with his currently webbed hands and feet. He falls to his back, the sands beneath already beginning to cling to his wet outfit. Thankfully he isn't wearing his cape at the moment ... that would have been a disaster to clean, let alone to swim with.

[Flash_Guardian ] As a side thought, Flash quickly closes his eyes and focusses for a moment. With a simple wave of his hand, he negates the magic altering his form. The gills blend back into his neck once more, fading from sight, and the webs between his fingers melt away and disappear. His webbed, bare feet offer perhaps the strangest sight as his feet shrink away to a more suitable size and take on a more leathery complexion, his feet returning to normal yet also clad in his split-toed ninja boots that he seems so fond of. Eyes open once more, and he lays there breathing more steadily.

Omenis lets the last of the few grains trickle through her fingers as she holds her hand away now from her cheek finding out that which she could from such an action..her eyes fall upon empty shells...her hand reaching out as she carefully picks the small objects up marvelling at their different shape and size....head tilting as she turns them over intently studying each in turn...once more she holds each to her cheek in turn her eyes closing ..

Lafiel watches her animal companion play in the shallow part of the water. she slightly smiles at this, while picking up handfuls of sand and dropping them again absently

Omenis pulls and holds the shells away from her cheek eyes opening as fingers seem to carress each even holding each up to let the rays of the sun catch and reflect from each object her lips softly smiling...one seeming to be half opened..long and dark a shimmering perhaps of blue reflected....the other far smaller circlur in shape with indictation of swirling ridges upon it pale in colour with just a tiny opening at one end

Flash_Guardian seems to have caught his breath after a few moments, at last rising to a sitting position, the sand of the beach still clinging to the back of his outfit. No matter, he would clean it in time, as always. Seeing the presence and actions of the three others, he breaks into a most audible sort of laughter, smiling interestedly. A slight pause, and then he calls out into the air for all to hear. "And here I'd thought to have found someplace remote and undiscovered!" he shouts happily over the crashing of the surf, chuckling. "I guess such a thing is too much to ask in a place like this." He watches the two-tailed fox playing in the smallest of the waves with amusement as he awaits a responce.

[Lafiel ] "did you want to be alone? i can leave if so"

Flash_Guardian peers in Lafiel's direction, ever smiling as he shakes his head. "So far as I know, this beach belongs to no one. I am just as welcome here as any other." He gestures to the sand and water with a wide sweep of his arm. "Plenty of beach for us all."

Omenis head comes up attention taken from these small objects she held.....to what?.....opulent eyes coming to rest upon the speaker..yes there was another someone she hadn't seen eyes moving to the female by the tree.answering the male lingering upon the female and thus in just this simple action her eyes alight on yet another form of being here one that had been as quiet as she..

Lafiel nods "alright" she returns to watching Dakin, making sure he doesn't get himself into trouble

Flash_Guardian nods to Lafiel, turning now to face the younger woman who now appears to be gazing at Jaia with mild interest. Pushing himself up to his feet, he briefly dusts the sand off of his clothing as best he can and makes his way over to Omenis, looking down at her with mild concern and curiousity. "And what brings you here, little lady?" he would ask her, though not so loud as to disturb Jaia as she meditates nearby.

Omenis watches the female unsure what this one is doing only really half listening to the other two if at all...startled a little dropping the smallest of the shells as she looks up to see the male towering above her...and as she had seen others do whilst here she stands...smiles " Hello..." her gaze resting on him as her fingers hold onto the long dark shell she was looking at

Flash_Guardian looks to one side, blinking, then back at the girl. A rather polite response, if completely uninformative. "Hhiii ..." comes the half-bewildered reply. Gazing down into the girls hands, Flash notices the seashells she holds. Perhaps that was it. Collecting seashells. What else would bring a child to the beach of all places? He chuckles warmly, his mind more at ease now that the puzzle is partly solved.

Omenis smiles noticing his gaze dropping to her hand lifting it up as she opens her palm...holding him it out to him....." Is it yours....I'm sorry..." the smile appearing warmly looking at it as she holds it out...." What is it?"

Lafiel lays on the sandy ground, using her arms as a pillow, staring up into the brilliant blue sky. concentrating on a cloud, she narrows her eyes and the cloud changes shape. having a bit of fun, continues to manipulate the cloud, changing it's shape and moving it slightly, though not much

Flash_Guardian blinks again, one brow raising as the once solved puzzle remains a mystery. "Ummm ... no, it isn't mine, it's no one's," he explains, running a finger over the shell's rigid surface testingly. He tilts his head to one side, regarding the young woman with a look of amusement. "You mean to tell me that you've never seen a seashell before?" The notion wasn't so hard to believe, simply rather unexpected.

Omenis tilts her head thinking of the question he poised....as well as the information he had imparted upon her....repeating the word slowly " No...I dont think so.." eyes dropping watching as he fingers it much as she had done minutes before stepping closer believing she knew the next step he would take she held it lightly against his cheeks expecting his eyes to close as he senses...

Lafiel breaks her concentration on the cloud, no longer able to control it. her power level wasn't strong enough for long periods of time. she closes her white eyes, wondering what the significance was of a seashell

Flash_Guardian is startled by the strange gesture, a seashell being held to the side of his face. Perhaps to the young girl this was some form of profound gesture ... but then again, sometimes a seashell is just a seashell. Choosing to walk the middle path, Flash simply brings his right hand up to the side of his face, holding the seashell in place and appearing rather thoughtful at the experience, though his eyes remain open. "Ummm ... thank you?" he tells the girl, unable to think of any other polite words to fit such an unusual situation.

Omenis smiles though he had not closed his eyes perhaps this was his way....the smile reflected in the warm glow of colours in her eyes...." Can you feel it...sense it?" her voice eager.as she watches him intently

Lafiel looks at the young woman oddly for a moment then closes her eyes again, the warm sun tempting her to sleep but, while she may look asleep, she's wide awake

Flash_Guardian 's forehead wrinkles at these new words. He could feel the hard, rough surface of the shell against his cheek, its smoother underside against his palm ... in a way, that was sensing. Though somehow Flash got the feeling that she was referring to something beyond the standard five senses. "Uhh ... I'm ... not sure what you mean ... exactly ..." Flash informs the girl, wanting to find some answer that he hoped wouldn't crush her excitement. The actions of the woman laying elsewhere in the sun behind him seem to now be lost on Flash as he struggles to understand the girl before him.

Omenis tilts her head a little....a little disappointment shown fleetingly in those eyes...though her voice still held the eager excitment of a new discovery...smiling .." Perhaps you need to close your eyes as I do.."

Flash_Guardian ponders for a moment. Closing his eyes might not be the answer, specifically ... but meditation might. "Hmmm," he ponders, stepping back and slowly seating himself upon the sands, legs crossed in proper fashion, back straight. "Maybe like this ..." Cupping his hands together, he allows the seashell to rest lightly upon his palms. He inhales deeply, closing his eyes and raising his chin. Flash makes no further motions or sounds, save the slight wrinkling of his brow at his focus.

Omenis steps back almost immediatly he had made to move to settle in the sand she puzzled as to what he was doing though the way he sat reminded her of the other female she had spied here was she too sensing. As she watches she reaches for the other shell the one that had slipped between fingers when he had first approached her ..waiting for him to do what he seems he must..

Flash_Guardian focusses on the shell, his spirit moving to embrace it, his senses opening to the stories it has to tell. From the depth of his concentration, lips move and words form. "I can feel ... a missing presence, something lost ... and now the sea ... and the motion of the waves ... I hear surf crashing ... and sand sliding ... and the light and heat of the sun." At last he opens his eyes, rather unsurprised by what his meditation has told him. He gazes back to the white-haired girl in the blue cloak. "Is that what you sensed?" he asks her curiously.

Omenis tilts her head thinking of what he had said....some she did not know what he meant..." Did you sense the life it once contained..?" her voice edging on excitement..she wanted to know so many things...so many to things to discovery and feel..

Flash_Guardian frowns slightly, shaking his head. "I only felt the loss, the severed connection at the poor creature's passing." Flash shakes his head. "Not the life itself." The mystery of the girl deepens in Flash's mind. Her manner of 'sensing' was clearly different from that which Flash had just used. Flash recalls the sand that she had brought to her cheeks moments earlier, and still managed to see a few flecks lingering there at the side of her face. "What about the sand?" he asks, hoping her answers would provide another kind of clue. "What did you sense from it?"

Omenis blinks...puzzled not knowing to what this male was referring to the puzzlement and uncertainty clearly shown indeed she seems as open as a book crouching down in front of him now " What is..this..sand ?" eager eyes upon him..

Flash_Guardian blinks, part of the picture at least becoming clearer to him. Still seated, he holds the shell in his left and definitively pats the small grains of the beach with his right palm a couple times. "Sand," he says, for emphasis.

Omenis eyes follow his action watching him pat the soft grians she had been holding.....a smile slowly spreading as understanding dawns upon her...her own hand gathering particules of the substance....." Sand.." happily parting the information as she lets it trickle out...looking up at him...." This....is sand"

Flash_Guardian nods slowly, a smile spreading over his face. "Right." Despite her appearance of a young woman, Flash was quickly suspecting that her intellect and understanding of the world around her was slight and underdeveloped. A mind full of questions, and seeking answers is what he sees. In Flash's time, he has seen much ... who better to answer the girl's questions, then? Another question is asked, one that would hopefully open the floodgates of knowledge to her. "What else do you wish to know?" he asks timidly, silently, bracing himself for whatever the girl's responce would be and, quite frankly, expecting a flood ...

Omenis tilts her head there was indeed much that she wanted to know but where first does a person begin....perhaps one step at a time would be best..." Why is the sand here?...how did these " holding the shell in her hand and nodding to the one he still possessed" How did these come here...what are they doing here..?" oooh just a small peeble in an ocean of questions she wanted to ask..

Flash_Guardian nods appreciatively, the amount of questions manageable, at least. He does his best to answer each in turn, as plainly and as simply as possible. "The ocean," he says, pointing out to the waters nearby, "made the sand from rocks." Lacking an example of a rock, he simply continues. "The waters wore away at the rocks for a long time, and the pieces that became worn away were brought here ... sand." He pats the surface of the beach once more. "The seashells," he says, raising the one he now holds, "used to be part of creatures that live in the ocean. I suspect those creatures ... passed away some time ago and left their shells behind. The ocean's waters must have picked these up and brought them here, much like the sand." He finishes at last, looking back to the young woman and waiting patiently.

Omenis follows his waving towards the water she had seen swallowing the land up to release it as it moves back....head tilting a little as she frowns unsure about a rock yet gazes down to the small grians she still held...thinking deeply her fingertip seemingly rubbing over the grians....before looking up at him..." Then this.....ocean is a vast thing...?...this rock you speak of...is it living...perhaps a different level of life?"

Flash_Guardian nods yet again. "The ocean is immense, yes - a gigantic pool of water constantly in motion. As for rocks, no, they aren't alive. Think about rocks this way ... the ocean breaks apart the rocks to make sand, so if you were able to put enough bits of sand back together, you'd have a rock." A simple enough explanation, surely.

Omenis nods slowly looking up and over all the small grians of sand there is here.....looking back at him a soft small upon her lips..." A very large object indeed....that or many small objects...why does this....ocean do this?"

Flash_Guardian chuckles, his smile very broad indeed. "Sorry. You've reached the limits of my own understanding. I don't know why the ocean behaves in the manner it does ... perhaps for many reasons, none of which I am aware of." He tilts his head to one side. "But if the ocean didn't erode the stones, we wouldn't have this lovely beach to sit upon, now would we?" Flash laughs, his mind forming a question of his own. "Do you have a name?"

Omenis nods slowly understanding there is always limits to ones knowledge.....that smile appearing though it had not been far ..at least she knew the answer to his question having been asked it before " Yes...I do"

Flash_Guardian draws his head back and looks at the girl sidelong. Perhaps a verbal trade was in order. "My name is Flash," he offers, raising his eyebrows expectantly as he awaits the girl's reply.

Makuto throws a dagger towards Flash_Guardian with power and precision

Flash_Guardian thinks Makuto can do better than that. Care to try again?

Makuto jumps up to the top of a large tree, unsheathes his katana and dives down holding his katana in front of him falling in a spiral motion

Makuto walks away never to be seen again leaving only memories of his prescence (and hopefully a wound)

[Flash_Guardian ] ((Wasn't what I meant, but okay.)) Flash senses motion at the fringes of his awareness, speeding towards him. Quickly, wordlessly, he reaches out to take the girl's by the wrist ... calling upon his inner training, he begins to rise from his seat, only to disappear along with the girl just before the blade strikes. Flash and the young woman reappear among the trees a short distance down the beach, hidden safely from the unprovoked aggressor. "Sorry about that," he says, quickly releasing his hold and bowing his head. Just why he had decided to take the girl with him in his abundant step, he wasn't certain.

Omenis eyes widen as she feels her body transform into nothing to gather substance a distance from whence they last was...letting her hand driop as he let it go...bewilderment showing upon her face ...." Why.....why did he do that...was he frightened of you?"

Flash_Guardian sighs. "I have no idea what his motives for attacking me may have been. It doesn't matter, though." He shakes his head, a rather grim look on his face as opposed to his helpful smile from moments earlier. "All that matters now is that he is gone, and you and I are safe." Flash suddenly seems very concerned for the well-being of this young woman who knows so little of the world around her. "If you were attacked by someone like that, would you be able to protect yourself?" The question may have been a bit much, but Flash had to know.

Omenis head tilts something he would recognise betraying when she is thinking about something...." I...don't know...why would someone want to hurt me?" she looked at him intently...defintely not used to this sort of action...

Flash_Guardian lets out a long sigh, eyes closed and head drooping before looking back to the still nameless girl. "Not everyone has or needs reasons for their actions. People can be some of the most unpredictable creatures that you will ever meet." That same grim, protective look covers his face as he looks at her. "Thankfully, not everyone is like the man we just saw. But it's because of people like him that it's important to know how to defend yourself. If nothing else, if you're ever attacked by someone, just run away and scream for help. Hopefully someone like me will hear you and come to your aid." Flash bites his lip, noting the position of the sun in the sky. "I'm sorry ... I should keep moving. I still have more places to explore." He tilts his head. "Unless you'd like to come with me?"

Omenis looks around quickly still so much to see....to touch....to know....eyes going back to the male...now known as Flash...." Would you mind if I stayed....there is sooo much.." she smiles at him...unsure about the danger but noding if it pleased the man...." Travel well ......Flash"

Flash_Guardian nods deeply to the woman. "So be it. Just be careful ... miss. And if ever there's no one to answer your questions, you can always listen to your heart." With that, Flash takes his leave of the beach and the mysterious girl in blue to travel further up the beach in search of something ... what it is, he still isn't quite certain.