Phoenix Tears

[EquinoxSol]

Failen looked to Clyde uncertainly as he was told to run back to camp. He could run back, but that wasn't the problem. He didn't want to leave the hunter, didn't want to let him be hurt by the purgatory hunter. He clung to the man, but as he spoke to the other, he realized that he was only in the way. Biting his bottom lip, he ran towards the blanket and picked it up, barely avoiding a bullet as he ran in the direction of camp.

Eventually, he made it to camp, running into the arms of one of the hunters, out of breath. All he could get out was, "Clyde needs help!" in between gasps for breath. Still, he wasn't looking too good either; he had scrapes and cuts from running through the forest, the cut from the knife, and the cuts from the bramble bush.

"He needs help!" he cried.

 

[Muffyn]

Merlak and Jase were busy packing up their items when Failen suddenly burst out of the forest and ran straight into Merlak.
"Woah there!" Merlak said as he tried to calm the shaken child phoenix. His face grimaced when he heard what Failen had to say.
Merlak's serious face now looked at the child before him. Failen was out of breath and he seemed injured as well.
"Jase!" Merlak turned to look at the other hunter and motioned him to come over, "Take care of Failen. I'm going to check on Clyde!"
With that Merlak grabbed his knapsack filled with potions and other concoctions and his staff and ran off in the same direction Failen had appeared from. He didn't like the gut feeling he was getting and increased his pace.

"What happened?" Jase asked Failen as he crouched before him, placing his medic sack next to the injured phoenix child, "Where's Clyde?"

---

Clyde had exchanged a few gunshots with the standing purgatory hunter, he himself receiving a few scraps and grazes. He didn't like the idea of having purgatory hunters out this far in the vast lands. If they were expanding their territory it meant that they were starting to put their plans into action. Clyde reached into his pocket and pulled out the old smudged photo of three children, their faces barely recognizable from the wear and tear of the photo.
His eyes narrowed as he looked at one of the smiling faces of the children, "Don't worry...until I find you, I won't die."
Clyde leaped into action. He jumped out of cover and ran towards the area where his two flame-shaped chakrams were stuck onto the ground. The chain gauntlets around his arms started to glow a faint blue as he got closer to the chakrams. Once close enough he threw one of the chains towards the chakrams and as if the chain itself was alive and a part of the hunter, it curved and grabbed hold of both chakrams before returning back to Clyde. Once he had retrieved his melee weapons he ducked for cover once more, behind another tree and peeked over his shoulder.

"So...what are you lot planning?" Clyde called out as he looked at his arm that threw the chain, the chain was still glowing a faint blue and the other end of it was slowly assimilating into Clyde's arm.
Crud, not now! Clyde thought to himself as he saw the skin of his arm slowly weave around the chain links.
"Hunting phoenixes and other hunters not enough for you that you want to start hunting every single living thing that doesn't comply to your 'laws'?"
Clyde started to unwind the assimilating chain from his arm, a few of the chain links were already buried under his skin but before it could go any further he tugged the chain out, the sound of snapping bone echoed followed by the sound of a falling chain.
His arm had a small hole where the chain had assimilated onto his skin, but it was slowly regenerating, there was a bit of blood but no bleeding.
Of all times for that ability to start working again... Clyde grumbled as he picked up the chain and started to wrap it around his arm again after it had healed. Making sure that the chain wasn't being assimilated into his arm again, he let out a sigh and reloaded his pistol.

"Why so quiet?" Clyde called out, making sure his voice was clear and mocking, "Don't tell me you already died?"

 

[EquinoxSol]

There's purgatory hunters in the forest!" Failen said, shaking slightly. "Two tried to get me, but Clyde was there, and he's attacking them..." He felt tears stinging his eyes, praying that Clyde was safe. "It's not safe for us here... We need to get Clyde back and go!" Amongst all his fears, being killed was one of the more pressing ones, and he was terrified that he would die right along with Clyde and the hunters he had come to call his friends.

-----

Meanwhile, the hunter was locked in a stalemate with Clyde, though the fight was swiftly turning towards Clyde's favor, as the purgatory hunter was running out of bullets. He too was suffering from scrapes from his adversary's bullets, but he knew how to hide it well, and one could hardly tell he was injured.

He answered none of Clyde's taunts, instead focusing on getting straight shots off. Once he was out of bullets, though, he hid behind his cover, catching his breath. He'd definitely need reinforcements, and more bullets, especially if there were more regular hunters about. Judging by the sound of footsteps approaching, that chance was getting bigger and bigger.

After the final taunting remark was made, the purgatory hunter grabbed his partner, hauling him up, and took off in the opposite direction, vowing to return with company, and more bullets.