Atlantis: Age of the Guardians

[Adira]

Ariana watched Phineas walk though the metal sliding doors. His expression looked grim and Ariana could feel her heart racing and suddenly, this didn't seem like just another powers practice. Her legs didn't seem to move even as she pushed to walk towards the sliding doors of doom. Darmith seemed to understand and lowered his head enough to nudge his small guardian forward. "Go ahead little one, I'll be here when you come out" Ari turned her head to him and then with all her strength, pushed herself towards the doors. All while repeating "It's nothing, it's just another practice.." Once at the doors, the familiar "whoosh" of the metal doors opened up to her. As she walked into the room the white walls seemed a duller. The erie feeling hung in the air as she looked around the room. Phineas had both of his hands on the wall, refusing to turn around. She waited for the others and one by one heard the footsteps and the "whooshing" of the doors. When everyone was standing side by side, the silence hung in the air. Phineas turned around and ran his fingers though his hair and sighed deeply. "I'm.. I don't know how to tell you all this.. but.." Ari's breath caught in her throat as she heard the but. "Aria has been poisoned.. She's dead" Ariana's weight gave and she collapsed on her knees. Wanting to scream but not finding her voice. She curled into a ball and tried to breath in and out. "What the hell are we doing here.. That poor girl is going back to her family dead now.." She said looking up at Phineas. "I know this is awful.. But this is why you are here, to fight these demons. And protect your families and the world. We are looking for a human with the air element but so far we have yet to find another who holds the strength to bend air." Ariana sat up on her knees and sighed. "To protect the world.." Phineas nodded his head solemnly. "You are the guardians.."

 

[Raiden]

Desmond Giles.

"I'm.. I don't know how to tell you all this.. but.. Aria has been poisoned.. She's dead"

Desmond felt a pang of guilt as he remembered seeing Aria just earlier, full of energy as Philiea's words rang out with Ariana collapsing to the floor and curling into a ball.

"What the hell are we doing here.. That poor girl is going back to her family dead now.."

"I know this is awful.. But this is why you are here, to fight these demons. And protect your families and the world. We are looking for a human with the air element but so far we have yet to find another who holds the strength to bend air.

"To protect the world.."

"You are the guardians.."

Desmond's anger started to boil over as he turned his furious gaze over to the gold hair man.

"Three children have died in your 'guardian' training. Three kids, who could have impacted human history, died before our eyes. Two families, who will now have to bury their children, will never know why they died. Three kids died like dogs. All of this, because Atlantis can't get their act together to deal with the curse some god has put on them or the threat that they have known long before mankind even knew about space and you have the galls to even mention the word 'Guardians'. Choose your bloody next words very carefully Mr. Philiea because I was quite fond of her uplifting attitude and you are, very quickly, losing credentials." Desmond muttered calmly as a sword formed in his right hand.

A part of him hoped that Duke or someone would hold him back. All Desmond felt was the need to slice Philiea into a million pieces.

 

[Mundane Monster]

B I A N C A █ K A E L I


"What...?" Bianca felt bile rise into her throat. The twins had been different. She hadn't known those two. But Aria...She'd known Aria. And how the hell--How the hell had she been poisoned? Suddenly the wall that she had been leaning against, wasn't enough and she followed Ariana's lead and slid to the floor. Except instead of assuming a fetal position, she just pulled her knees to her chest, tucked them under her chin and stared at a random spot on the floor. She didn't really know what to say or how to feel. On one hand she wanted to burst into tears but on the other she wanted to fight somebody. The latter obviously wasn't a great option, but she didn't want to cry in front of anyone either, so instead she created a dome of stone around herself and silently cried inside of that.

* *
T Y L E R █ G R E G O R Y

When the Phineas guy called for all of the 'guardians' to meet up in the other room, he was surprised when Shula stepped in front of him quickly. We haven't finished! And even though the exclamation was meant to be a reprimand, Tyler saw that the dragon sounded and looked oddly needy. He jerked his thumb over his shoulder in the direction of where the others. "I kind of have to." He pointed out and the dragon quickly resumed her earlier position and sniffed. Well if you must.

After hearing Phineas' announcement, Tyler wasn't all that bothered. Well he was a little bothered but not in the way that the others were. He didn't know the Aria girl and therefore didn't give a flying fuck about her. What he did care about however, was that he might actually die here.

 

[Pyralithia]

Elektrisk Værge, #09db4b

Ash rolls her eyes at Duke blaming Spit for the smell as he pulls her up against him. She giggles lightly shaking her head at him "Uh huh, and whose the one that crawls all over him like a little kid playing on a jungle jim hmm?" She says back playfully as she gently pokes his chest with her index finger. "Funny, I dont see any horns....Just way too much muscle. Maybe he got roid rage?" She teases before pulling back slightly to look Duke up and down with an arched brow.

"Well that would explain the smell..." She retorts to his supposed "fear" of water. But before she could make another comment Phineas motions for them to move into the practice room. Tilting her head slightly at the blonde she follows him curiously into the practice room, without even realizing she had done it she locked her fingers with Duke's at the same time.

The rest of the Guardians were there, well all but Aria 'Where Windy go off to...?' Unfortunately her mental question was answered within the next minute as Phineas announced Aria's death by poison. Ash just stayed frozen in place with a stunned expression, her hand slips from Duke's. 'What....What????? But....Aria was just here.....' The voices around her were a low hum to her as her vision seemed to darken. No tears shed from her eyes, that wasnt how Achera reacted to this stuff. Instead she felt a cold numbness inside that seemed to spread through her entire being, like her soul was aching. She didnt even realize she had been holding her breath until she exhaled softly, it felt like she had been had just been sucker punched and couldnt catch her breath

Custode Della Terra, brown

Birch followed Ariana into the practice room, he planned on working on his earth control. But Phineas seemed to have news so he decided to lean against a wall his arms folded across his broad chest while he waited for their leader to say his peace. What he didnt expect was the graveness of his announcement. Birch stayed silent as Aria's death hit the guardians around him hard, gripping his arms hard enough to turn his knuckles white. 'Poison....A cowards trick....' He felt a rage inside him building up, it was s potent that despite not saying a word or moving a muscle the aura around him darkened.

He'd been staring at the floor when Desmond started his rant, looking like he was gonna go on a rampage. His head snapped up to cut the Metal Guardian a cold look, he slowly walks over to the TV star, his arms hanging at his sides. Once he was within grabbing distance of Desmond, Birch suddenly strikes out with surprising speed for his build. Doing a sweep kick he kicks Desmond's legs out from under him causing the other guardian to fall onto his back if the kick connected.

"Cool it Metal head, ya this fucking sucks, but its not Phineas or anyone else heres fault. If you want someone to blame, if you want to take your anger out on someone, then blame the Black Eyed bastards. Their the ones that have killed 3 of us now. At least you'll be using rage on something useful then." Despite his reasonable words, there was a seething undertone to them, his emerald eyes seemed darker than usual as he looked down at Desmond.

After that he walks over to Ariana, kneeling beside her he hesitates, unsure of what to do with a crying girl, this was definitely not his forte. Deciding to trust his instincts he pulls the blonde girl gently against him, holding her as he strokes her back soothingly

 

[Adira]

Ariana watched the others reactions, ranging from rage to tears, it seemed like everyone had been affected by the devastating news. She leaned her head forward on the cold solid floor as the tears rolled and slid down her pale cheek. Dripping one by one onto the floor. IT was in this balled up position that she likely would have stayed in if not for Birch. Surpringnsly the earth guardian had kneeled beside her and taken her into his arms. Just like that, the shy boy was holding her and stroking her back, like he had known her his whole life. Ari, speechless, let her body take over. She wrapped her small arms around him and buried her head into his neck as she cried. His strong body was some what soothing to her, though the water element in her felt weak even just by his touch.

 

[WarriorHeart]

The Duke, grey

Duke smirks and watches the vivid blue eyes of Achera as she lightly teases him. He lets the comments slide along the way knowing it's all in good fun. It makes it easier seeing as how cheesy some of them are. He makes a face at her comment about roids. "Naw naw, princess. This body," Duke takes his arms up in a swing and brings them down in identical curled flexes which also causes his chest and abs to tighten. "…is 100% self-motivated hard work." He flashes an arrogant yet charming smile catching her eyes as they scan over his form. Duke was about to say something else, his body relaxing some while he dropped his arms to his side but was interrupted by Phineas. He rolled his eyes as Achera moved to the side to follow the blonde Atlantian. Duke was not prepared for the soft touch of her fingers intertwining with his.

Surprisingly enough, Duke was not one for holding hands. He followed along behind the small young woman staring at the tiny digits curled around his own. He seemed almost lost and yet strangely comfortable with the whole thing. Jesus, he thought, what the hell's going on here? Duke didn't have a great deal of time to begin analyzing the pattern of his relationships versus his current dealings with Achera. Phineas decided to drop a bomb on the group. The little air girl was dead from some kind of poison. Duke muttered 'Wasn't me' though it was scarcely audible. He looked to Achera as her petite hand disappeared from his clumsy grasp. He knew that the quiet girl who had been the Air Guardian was one that Achera and many others had gotten to know in the short time since they had all been assembled.

Duke turned and listened to Demond's rant. The professor was making some sense and Duke hadn't been too keen on Phineas since they'd arrived. However, the big brute was starting to see the point behind them all being here. It did seem awfully convenient that every time one of them was killed, another is mysteriously generated to fill in and take the place of a fallen kid. Duke saw Birch's approach and could smell the self-righteous stank coming from the man's pores. Duke smirked. He watched him take Desmond to the ground with a leg sweep. Those work on people who have chicken legs but the British fellow was still armed. Duke was silently cheering for a fight. It would give him a chance to see who else among the group had the heart to persevere. His initial assessment that most of them were kids was proving itself more and more true. Unfortunately, it was being proven by the deaths of three people who didn't deserve their fate. Duke stayed next to Achera and stayed quiet waiting to see what sort of elaborate wordplay Phineas was going to lay on them this time. Duke was also curious at how the other newbies were going to react.

 

[Xytheus]

Alex sat inside the long, silver Greyhound bus as it bounced along the road. It was supposed to be on its way to San Diego California. He kept his mind blank as he slowly drifted to sleep.

He woke with a jolt. He was in a capsul in a metal room. Blinding lights hung from the ceiling. This definately wasn't the bus. He Stood up and hit the door as it opened with a whoosh. A green haired girl stepped inside. Her clothes were an odd shade of colors. He was about to demand she tell him where he was but she spoke first. "Alex Pike." She started. "16 years of age, Male. Future guardian and ice elementalist. Follow me." She walked out the doors. He followed her, matching her pace. It was hard to walk, he was dizzy like he had had a blood transfusion. They walked down a hallway until they reached another door. It led to a room was made of glass. It looked to be underwater. A man appeared from an opposite door. "Where am I?" He said demandingly to both of them. "You are in Atlantis. You are late." He said with a disapproving look.

 

[Beatrix]

It had been about a year since Solana graduated high school, and here she was not doing anything with her time except working minimum wage at a fast food establishment with no real plans for the future. And, if she was honest with herself, she did not have any plans to speak of except to get a new job. She felt more at ease living day to day and for that day, not for the future, yet she cannot help the feeling of being stuck.

It was nearing two in the morning and with the slow flow of customers this late party evening, the manager had ordered that they will close early. Brittney had been sent home early, that lucky bitch. She was always in the back with the manager, sucking up to him -- Or sucking him up. Solana's face scruched up in disgust before breaking out into a smile of amusement at the image of it as she was putting the chairs on the tables. She was the only one left on the clock legitimately working with the other minimum wagers standing around having a raucous conversation while they should be cleaning the grills.

A knock brought her out of her reverie as she looked to the glass doors to the noise. It was a man, and he appeared to be above the rowdy rancor that prowled the streets at this hour to find some cheap and unhealthy snack to soak up all the alcohol or to fill their recently emptied stomachs. After placing the chair in her hands upside down on the taable, she strode over to the door. She was able to get a closer look at him with the flouresent lights illuminating his visage.He was tall and lean with a simple pair of slacks and a dark dress shirt adorning his frame. Such attire was something that always got Solana to look, and she bit the inside of her lip for an instant. Her eyes trailed up to his face, and all the excitement left her just as quickly as it had flooded her. His eyes were cold and distant, displaying nothing in which she could read.

"Sorry, we're closed," she called to the man before turning away to continue her duties. After putting up a few more chairs, she turned back to the door fully expecting to see him still there, but he had left. She was perturbed but pushed it from her mind so that she could finish up to head home.

* * *​

Her work was done, and she was glad for it. The two in the kitchen appeared to not give a damn about anything, just like the manager. Before heading out the door but after clocking out, she knocked on the office door. "I'm done with my work and I'm heading home." She received no response from the other side. Solana shrugged and went out the back door into the cold December night. The sky was clear, but the wind easily bit through her flimsy jacket. She drew it up closer to her little frame as she briskly made her way to her old but reliable car. She reached in her pocket for her keys, and as she was about to unlock the door, the man from earlier was in the reflection of her window.

"May I help you?" she asked, as she shifted the keys in her hand to have one protruding from between each of her fingers while balling her small hand into a fist and turning to face him. The man before her said nothing, remaining still and silent and standing tall and erect with his hands behind his back. Solana was unsure how to proceed in this situation, not wanting to make the first move against him.

He made the first move to reach out to grab her. She ducked and threw a punch with her right hand, the hand with the keys towards the man's abdoman. In blinding speed, he seemed to be able to shift his momentum easily, grabbing her right wrist with his left hand, twisting it . He spun her around and pressed her back against his front and placed a cloth over her mouth and nose. In shock, she inhaled sharply. The drugs on the cloth entered her system, and in a matter of seconds, she found herself slipping into the abyss of sleep, falling, falling, falling...

* * *​

Solana's eyes opened slowly, and her vision was blurry. She found herself in a strange place in something that resembled a tube. A tube... Her eyes snapped the rest of the way open with a start, and she started pounding on the glass. The man who was at the fast food restaurant was standing before her, his bright blue eyes as unreadable as they were before. In this light, she was able to get an even better look at him. The glass lifted and she fell out of the capsule onto the ground on her hands and knees. Slowly she came to rise to her feet as he began speaking. "Solana Reid. 18 years of age. Female. Future Guardian and Air elemental. Please, follow me." He had extended out an inviting hand to her and flashed a twinkle of a smile to her. "Welcome to Atlantis.".