Just Keep Swimming~ [Open]

[Crash]

CRASH! and BURN.

It was nice to get away from the Carna for a bit. The beta meandered quietly through the park, crisp blue eyes staring up at the clouds. The weather was particularly nice today, and Crash felt that he should get out for some fresh air. He needed it really… As of late, the tall, well-muscled, green-haired man had been consumed by his anger and aggression. Perhaps the war had gotten to him, or maybe the Menagerie had finally taken all the good out of him, but Crash refused to believe either. He knew he’d never again be the person he had been when he’d gotten here, but he hoped to at least gain some sense of normalcy again. He couldn’t snarl at and fight with every person he met, especially with his high rank— He had to be a symbol of power and strength, yet in control; the beast restrained.

The Carna Beta had recently acquired something that he hoped would help him sort things out. In his hands he carried a glass bowl, full of water. In the clear liquid, which was cleaner than any water many Menagerie inhabitants got to drink, swam a goldfish. It seemed to be enjoying itself, moving in circles around a tiny plastic castle that was rooted in the colorful pebbles that lined the bottom of the bowl. Crash smiled down at it, though the jagged scar across his face made the gesture almost frightening. Still, Swimmy the goldfish didn’t seem to mind, and Crash loved him for it.

It seemed silly, the 6’3” man who weighed almost 180 pounds, walking around carrying a goldfish-in-a-bowl. Yet Crash couldn’t see what was so funny! Couldn’t a man take his pet for a walk? Okay, okay, so that sort of activity was normally reserved for dogs, but Crash had never been one to conform to standards anyways, as was evident by his shaggy bright green hair, and rebellious-looking army jacket. If anyone could take their goldfish for a walk, it would be Crash.

“Nice out today isn’t it, Swimmy?” He questioned, the phrase sounding ludicrous coming from his mouth in his growly voice. It wasn’t too deep of a sound, instead just about in the middle. Crash made his way over to the nearby playground and sat himself down on one of the old swings, holding Swimmy’s bowl in his lap. He used one leg to push himself back and forth half-mindedly, not really paying attention to what was going on around him. Crash was just trying to find some peace… He needed desperately to put the beast inside back into it’s cage. As he swung, small amounts of water sloshed out of the bowl, and sent Swimmy into a frenzy. The little fish sped up his circles, but Crash paid no attention.

They were quite the interesting sight together…






Ooc: Lol, happy Crash and Swimmy! XD It’s open peeps. ;D

[Royce Raider]

Clearly I am the passerby,

It was summer. Obviously. What was it like 95 degrees outside? Royce used to love the summer sun. Used to love to look at it from his bedroom window. It made him feel as free as he thought he would ever be. But now it was different. The sun irritated him, gave him massive headaches. The sun was bright, and beating down mercilessly on everything outside, including the little barn owl flapping easily through the sky. The sun illuminated the light browns and greys on the owl's back, and he flew with his head down, as to not subject his eyes to any more direct sunlight than necessary. Still, he soared fluidly in the air, trying to ignore his sprouting headache, and willing it to go away. He tried to concentrate on other things. He tried to concentrate on flying.

His time at the Menagerie so far had not been a very entertaining one. He spent most of his time exploring the vast area of the Menagerie, and observing other shifters from convenient places in nearby trees, bushes, or buildings. And now, he had the ability to really observe and spy on people. But that ability didn't come without. . . headaches. With his eyes on the ground, Royce let out an owl-ish sigh. He blinked, and concentrated on the feel of his wings pumping in a perfect, consistent rhythm. He concentrated on the cold feeling of the passing wind under his empty feather slot on his left wing, and the same for a small cut on his right wing.

His missing feather. He really did miss it. Ever since he lost it, he had lost that much more blood. Ever since he lost it, he had to flap his wings that much harder to get airborne. Ever since he lost it, he had to feel that much colder. Royce would never admit to it aloud that his feathers meant that much to him, but really, they did. Royce kept flying high in the sky until he came to a place that he had never really got to explore before. Delica Park. A place so contradictory to everything else in the Menagerie. Royce thought that Delica Park was pretty much the embodiment of innocence, despite it's wretched location. Maybe he would fly down and have a look around.

The little barn owl glided down toward the border of the green grass, near where a lone, deciduous tree stood. He flapped frantically for a moment, getting himself inside the tree and on a branch without being entangled in the full, green leaves. He looked around, moving his head. What a nice little place. Royce thought to himself as his eyes scanned every inch of the little place. Then, his eyes fell on the rusted playground. Instantly Royce felt a pang of panic in his chest, because there was someone else here. That alone would scare him. But what was worse, is that this said someone just so happened to have green hair.

Royce had heard all the conversations, and all the rumors of almost everything in the Menagerie, from his endless days of following random people in hiding. He knew that this person was not any random person. The green hair - he had thought before that when people said green, it would be more of a subtle green, but no - was unmistakable. This has to be. . . Royce didn't let himself finish the thought. This had to be Crash, the Carna beta. Oh, he was in for a world of hurt. He just knew it.

But I'll find a place to stay.

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Ooc: Sorry for not posting fast enough. -_- Haha. But yea, Noxx, you said to post anyway, so I did. Allyson, sorry for making you delete your post. Or not. Whatever you all want to decide to do.

[apollo]

Apollo

Oh, hello there.
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Apollo had been following this owl for a bit of time now. There was nothing else for her to do--no one else to follow. Who better though, than the person that her rank reported to? She wasn't following him to get more experience, just to follow him. To do something. She was sure that he was sick of her by now, following him for hours, never saying a word of getting closer than six feet to him. Observation was what she did, she was always just watching--creeping in some corner and knowing more than she ought to know. It wasn't terrible for her though, it wasn't like she had any friends to tell all the secrets to. Most people thought she had some mental disorder and steered clear of her. It could be true, most certainly. It would definitely explain a few things, but all thing said she was in a perfect frame of mind. No diseases, no disorders, just one very strange child.

Apollo really hadn't minded the switch into this place much. She didn't have to worry about money to buy things, it was all just there if you could find it. She didn't have to worry about people too much--this place wasn't at all as crowded as the Chicago streets could be. All-in-all she was doing just fine here. Aside from the lack of fish vendors, Apollo was perfectly happy to stay here. She was still outcast from society, but this place was easier to be like that in. She wasn't completely outcast, though. She did belong to a ring and that Alpha, Legend, had taken some interest in her--finding her "intriguing" as he had put it. She couldn't help but smile at that. She would listen to him, certainly, take orders, though she didn't think he'd be one to give out direct orders in the way she was used to. He seemed nice--interesting as well. Someone that Apollo would certainly take the time to observe.

From the short distance behind the much smaller owl, Apollo surveyed his moves and moved with him as he floated downward, but she didn't land. Something else had caught her eye. A familiar shape--albeit smaller than she liked, but still that shape, that smell. Her eyes grew as she saw the small fish in the bowl. She beat her wings and rose again, silently as her species flew, before going in for the snatch--it would be tricky, and hopefully she'd be able to get the man to spill the bowl so she could grab the fish from the ground. That was her aim on the first dive anyway. Her feet outstretched, Apollo aimed for the bowl, but she had miscalculated and caught a foot on the man's arm and was sent tumbling to the ground where she promptly shifted and sat there in a sort-of daze while she gathered together what had happened. Her gray eyes made their way to the green-haired man's and she gave him a rather perky smile that faded quickly to a rather expectant look as she just sat there on the ground, her bag askew to the side and her hands at her lap. What would he do? She had gathered he was a Carna--she'd heard tale of the Beta having green hair. She wondered what Royce would do to her after this too--surely the man would be even further annoyed, or perhaps he'd just leave her to fend for herself. She really didn't quite care.

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L i k e - a - r o c k e t .

[Crash]

CRASH! and BURN.

Crash jumped as a bird suddenly dove at him, feet outstretched. It actually hit him, and he almost dropped the precious bowl that held his new best friend, but managed to just barely hold onto it. That dirty bird had tried to snatch Swimmy! Crash suddenly snarled, pulling the bowl to his chest and holding it close, possessively and protectively. So, this thing thought it could just swoop in and steal his fish? Cold eyes glared at Apollo as she shifted back into her human form on the ground.

Seeing her smile only made him angrier. Well, so much for taming the beast! It seemed that no one in the Menagerie was going to make it easy for him. Crash was beginning to wonder whether or not it would just be best to embrace the anger. “What are you smiling at?!” He roared, stepping up in front of her and glowering down from his height of 6’3”. Crash was a pretty big guy compared to most, and he wasn’t afraid to use his strength against anyone. He usually didn’t prefer to hurt girls, but for someone who’d just attempted to eat his friend, Crash could definitely find it in his heart to make an exception.

Her scent drifted towards him and he recognized it immediately. So, she was a Fulsi! Even better. “You know, we’re not in anyone’s territory, yet I still feel the urge to tear you to shreds. Weird, huh?” He growled, placing Swimmy’s bowl on the ground behind him. It was too burdensome to try and hold onto the thing and fight at the same time, so Crash felt it was best to set it down and keep an eye on it. After all, he had his opponent on the ground in front of him.

“I suppose technically it would be wrong to kill you, under whatever moral code we’re following these days…” The green-haired man glanced around for a moment, checking for anyone else that could be there. His eyes, of course, didn’t spot the little owl watching them from the trees. “But there’s no one around to save you, is there?” Crash questioned with a smirk. Ooh, he was breaking all of the rules now— but who would punish him? Perhaps the Fulsi and Fallen Alphas would find what he was about to do terribly wrong, but they had no power over him! Just the thought of this silly little Fulsi capturing him mad Crash laugh.

“I guess it’s true what they say— Carna don’t play fair.” Crash cracked his knuckles and stood over Apollo, the beast taking over once more. The lion wanted blood for her feeble attempt to murder Swimmy, and Crash intended to get it.

[Royce Raider]

Do you know what it's all about?

As Royce alighted on the branch and noticed the green haired man on the swing with a bowl of water in his hands, he noticed that the Carna beta looked happy. This, Royce could not believe. How could someone so devoted to this demented place be happy? For a split second, Royce thought that he may have been wrong about people in the Menagerie. But what happened next bitterly reminded him that he was right the first time. The man on the swing's moment of joy was short lived, for as long as Royce saw it, because a gigantic bird came out of the sky and basically attacked the man. Royce was startled, because he had no idea what was going on. He watched closely as the large sea bird fell to the ground and shifted into a brunette girl. Royce tilted his head to himself in the tree. What was this?

Royce began to get nervous. It didn't look like the Carna was very pleased with the girl. The little owl winced when the man started screaming accusations at Apollo on the ground. Royce footed around on his branch, watching anxiously, not knowing what was about to happen. Would Crash try to harm the girl? His mental question was answered when the green haired man spoke something about tearing the girl to pieces. Oh no. Royce wouldn't be able to let this happen. He couldn't sit here in this tree while someone was getting torn apart, especially someone that's on his team. Could he? But there’s no one around to save you, is there? Royce froze up. No there wasn't. Yes there was.

Royce started silently pacing around on the branch, debating with himself whether he should save the girl or not. And even if he attempted to, he would probably fail. He would probably be the one torn to pieces. Sacrifice one for the good of the greater, right? Royce let out an owl-ish sigh, breath running through the tiny holes in his feathered beak. Would he stop observing from the side for once? Get out there and try? No he couldn't. Yes he could. I guess it’s true what they say— Carna don’t play fair. At the sight of the Carna brooding over Apollo, Royce didn't have time to fight with himself anymore. His instincts to fight overtook his instincts to flee, which was rare in itself, and the little barn owl flew out of the tree he was previously perched on, toward the two behind the swing set.

The owl made the trip from the tree to the swings in less than three whole seconds. His heightened speed made him even more agile in the air, and he appeared out of nowhere over Crash and Apollo, and shifted in the air to drop next to the girl on the ground. The long and lanky teenage boy stood as tall as he could, to distract one from looking at the fear hidden in his grey eyes. But this effect didn't last long, for as soon as he thought of speaking, his shoulders slumped slightly and he wrung his hands together at his stomach. "Um-" Royce started unsurely, and his voice cracked. He swallowed quickly and closed his eyes tight for a split second before looking through Crash with his penetrating gaze and saying, "I-I'm here to save her." His voice was weak, but still held the odd, dreamlike quality that was ever-present in him. His gaze never faltered from the Carna's eyes.

Are you brave enough to figure out?