The mental voices were many and varied as Dylan reached beyond the doors of his mind and the physical one that separated him from the forest. There was a dull rambling of beasts, primitive thoughts and instincts but no true intellectual voice, there were many but they quickly fell into the background as the humming of others overtook their presence. A few minds resounded with the low hum of intellectual thought, but still their mental voice was repetitive and weak. It was at this moment that he began hearing the twinkling of the most harmonious mind he had ever heard, sharp and vivid, but it was elusive and flirted in and out of his conscience.

Just when he thought he could bury himself into the unfathomable beauty of the source, hypnotized by its allure, it would fall silent. It was during this silence that he felt the presence of a few human minds, vibrant and alive with thought. Again the sweet melody of the evasive being began to sing to him, but in that instant he could tell that it was watching him with as much interest as he was trying to discover it. …but other than that sweet haunting melody he couldn’t feel any other mental powers being used beyond the door.

Dylan began to sort and sift through the various voices he heard in his mind. He pushed this way and that as he focused his attention on isolating and locating the being whose thoughts were as a layer of sound. He held up his hand to forestall any questions and to keep the group from moving ahead. They saw him tilt his head from side to side as he listened and shifted to locate the source.

As he concentrated on it he could sense that he could only detect it because whatever it was, was allowing him to do so. He knew this by the way it would flit in and out of his conscience. He knew for certain that it was behind the door, but he couldn't determine for certain where it was. He could also sense, that despite the alluring music in its mind, it was unreadable and he had no way of knowing whether it was as benevolent as it sounded.

Kitsune and Black Cat were working with Aodh, Ashutosh, and Blitz to determine what would be the best placement for each of them as they walked into the unknown.

Kitsune, naturally, appealed to their sense of logic in taking the point. "While I will admit that Hugh-sensei is a formidable opponent, and if we were to spar it would be an interesting contest, I respectfully point out that as of this moment I am the strongest of us, and the best armored. Certainly, I would like to get my hands on something and snap it in two, but I am not going to behave inappropriately.

"Besides," she continued with no small amount of charm, "since I am the shortest of us, I won't be blocking anyone's view."

Aodh nodded his head in agreement, "You are the shortest and that sounds logical. I'll bring up the rear."

Kitsune nodded in agreement, "You'll have to remember to... how did they put it in the movies? 'Check-Six?'" She laughed softly at that. "And you should be able to handle anything that might try to sneak up from behind."

She nodded to Black Cat, "And since you are our speaker, Neko-san, I believe it would be best if you were right behind me, in case we need to negotiate. Plus you are far better trained than I am in combat." She then looked to Nocturne, to see if he was done and ready to report.

"Hai hai, Kitsune-san," the Black Cat replied laconically. "Go on then, let's see if we can't find a bridge to cross, eh?" He held his grappling claw at the ready, and his wide-eyed countenance belied his soothing tone. This place was undoubtedly a nightmare, and anything that would frighten a man as dissipated as Jean Louis was something to be feared by anyone with sense.

Kitsune clasped her hands and bowed shallowly to Black Cat. "It would be a privilege and an honor."

Dylan focused on that sound, that voice, and began to move step by step trying to get a clear fix on the direction of it's source. It was as if he was playing a game of Mental Marco Polo.

Dylan paced in front of the closed door, from one side of the hall of mirrors to the other, his frustration mounting with each step when it came no closer to an answer. The harmonious mind would embrace his from all directions and then recede into complete and utter silence as though it was never there. The mentalist was aware enough to know that somebody could get lost in that mind, seduced by it's seemingly sweet embrace. Perhaps once he was within the forest he would be able to get a lock on it's position, but for now it eluded him.

Dylan swore softly under his breath as this game of mental cat and mouse unfolded.

"To the forest," he said to no one in particular. "I must get to the forest. We need to go there. Now."

They had never heard the kid this insistant before. Sure, he could be moody at times, but this was different. He had a purpose. A destination. He was going to get there.

Kitsune shifted her gaze to take in Nocturne, and wondered at his eagerness. "What do you sense, Nocturne-san?"

Dylan's eyes flashed momentarily as he tried to assimilate all that he was sensing.

"It's nothing...no it's someth...I don't know what the hell it is. I need to know and can't, and that's bothering the crap out of me. Look, can we please just get to the forest?" he asked with more urging.

Kitsune frowned to herself as she regarded Dylan, then sighed. The way Dylan was acting made her think of moths to flame for some reason, or perhaps... "Sirens," she said softly.

"All right, Dylan-san, we'll be going in. But please stay with the rest of us, and let us know what you discover." With that, Kitsune turned and walked over to the door, as soon as she put her hand on the door it creaked open. The lever was operational, but whoever had come in or gone out of that door most recently, hadn't secured it behind them.

The fresh scent of flowers lingered invitingly around the door, and a scattered flat stone path about ten feet wide began at their feet and cut through the center of the dense vegetation. Their gazes were immediately drawn towards the domed ceiling of the indoor forest, that soared over one hundred feet in the air, panes of glass making up the octagonal room and providing ample light as the sun filtered through the windows.

Kitsune inhaled and smiled at the fragrance. The air was probably not any fresher here than it was anywhere else, but there was the psychological boost of both sunlight and the fresh scent of flowers. "Well, the path we are supposed to follow is a pretty clear one. The only way it could be clearer would be if it were made of yellow bricks."

Kitsune started walking at a steady pace, her eyes moving to spot anything coming their way, or anything interesting for that matter. She moved to the center of the stone path, and did her best to be aware of the world around her. A thought drifted to mind, and she spoke, "Hugh-sensei, you mentioned something about not having to eat, didn't you? Do you need to breathe?" She smiled, "I might be getting a bit paranoid, but thinking of the Yellow Brick Road also got me thinking of the Poppy Field. If any of us start to act strangely, speak up, please."

"Paranoia's probably good. If this is a path, maybe it isn't leading to anything good. Gotta stay sparky, right?"

"I'll leave staying 'sparky' to you, Blitz-san," Kitsune murmured, a smile in her voice. "At the moment, I'm going to have to stay grounded, unless I get a ride or a moment to shift."

Brian looked around, craning his neck and twisting as if to look over the shoulders of giants, when really his view wasn't that obfuscated. Still somehow, the instinct to look around, to be nervous and to play the role of slightly skittish prey was a heavy burden on his shoulders. As he looked around he saw the tops of some of the weeds to his left rustle as though something was milling about in that general direction.

The domed roof didn't bode well for him taking to the air. While it was quite high and quite out of the way, it put an unusually uncommon upper ceiling on his flight. He'd have to remember that, should the need to take to the skies arise.

Dylan immediately began scanning the area now that he was inside. He turned and turned again as he attempted to get a fix on the fleeting contact he had before.

Aodh looked at the door behind him as Kitsune began making her way down the path. "I will stay here to make sure that we don't get any unexpected company. Dylan can let me know if you need me up ahead. I'll rejoin you after I'm certain we aren't being followed." He offered them a look that indicated he'd thought this through and if they wanted a detailed explanation, he would be happy to expound.

Kitsune opened her mouth to speak, then paused a moment to assess this. She then nodded her head. "All right, Hugh-sensei, but please do not linger. I suspect you will be needed up ahead. But, you didn't answer my question about whether you are required to breathe or not. Is that too personal a question?" Kitsune radiated concern in her bearing as she regarded the massive scientist.

Kitsune walked down the path, and stepped onto the turn of the path. She stopped for a moment to look around, and to gaze down the path as well, trying to get a feel for this place. If I get another upgrade to the armor here, or another magical device to summon, I think I'd like something that helps my senses. A pair of binoculars would be rather handy, perhaps, or something to help with my hearing. She pushed that thought out of her mind to concentrate on seeing and hearing what was around her.

Now that Dylan was inside the forest he was able to discern much more than when he was on the other side of the door. The young psychic then sent some information across the network he had established with his group.

{Various minds in here. Some animal. Some human. Strong mental presence ahead and to right. Strong mind very alluring. Still scanning for more answers. Stay on path for now.}

"OK," murmured Ashutosh. Figures there's a something on my side, he thought wryly. Worse, it seemed they were essentially inside a giant greenhouse, and that meant humidity. And that meant his hair was going to get frizzy. My kingdom for some Paul Mitchell, he thought glumly as he peered into the forest.

Vincenzo looked around at the surrounding forest, noting all the defensive and offensive positions that the trees would provide for a man of his acrobatic talents. He listened for the people that Nocturne detected, eager to know about them before they knew about him. The scope of this indoor "forest" was large enough that the name was much more apt that he had expected. Vioncenzo had been expecting a somewhat lavish conservatory. This was a forest, only indoors.

The sun shone down through hundreds of lead framed windows of the massive glass domes above, and Vincenzo noted that this meant the fog did not extend so high. "Blitz, if you wanted to, could you get high enough to see out the side of those domes, and maybe get a handle on where we are? Don't go up there right now, you shine like a firework when you fly."

"I don't see why not," Brian noted. "It's not really the elevation that's the prob, see? It's the dome itself. But no reason I can't give it a buzz, if that's the verdict."

As Kitsune rounded the corner she saw the expanse of path continue onwards in front of her. Each side of the path was flanked with the dense vegetation, it was so thick that she couldn't see anything beyond the path.

"As do I," Kitsune said softly. She considered a moment, then sent a mental message to Dylan. {Can you locate the human minds more accurately, please? If the forest is as dangerous as we were told, we might need to rescue them.}

Dylan continued to play peek-a-boo with the higher intelligence that dwelled somewhere within the forest, but he kept with the others easily enough despite his distraction.

Brian continued to monitor the movement that he'd seen, or thought he'd seen. He was fairly certain it was real and not his paranoia, but admittedly this place was enough to make anyone crazy. He thought he saw the movement again, keeping parallel to them as they walked, the tall weeds bending slightly and then rebounding as whatever it was passed.

Ashutosh could feel his hair begin to droop lifelessly about his face. The humidity making him hot and uncomfortable in his clothes. He heard the chirping of birds overhead and when he looked up he saw a pair of cardinals flitting about the high hedges, flying from one side of the path to the other. It seemed as though they were having a serious disagreement about something regarding the group that was making their way carefully through the path.

Black Cat kept close to Kitsune as she forged the way. His senses were alive with the smells and sounds of the forest. He was able to see the path open up in front of them as they rounded the first corner and then veer off to the right, in the direction that Dylan had indicated feeling the alluring mind.

Kitsune tried to maintain her attention on the area in front of her, but she was concerned about the lack of visibility from the sides. Her stride remained purposeful, and she maintained her readiness. I wonder if the Odachi of the Phoenix would be a better choice when dealing with the creatures here. Fire would certainly be a deterent, I'd say, but I would be concerned about it spreading.

The group kept close to Kitsune as she progressed down the path. After walking about ten meters the armor clad heroine came to a halt when she saw something on the path in front of them. Whatever it was seemed oblivious to the approaching heroes and was still another five meters away from them.

Kitsune frowned within her helm, and raised her hand to signal for the others to stay here. Ten meters wasn't really that far to figure out what something looked like, normally. Only a car length, but there was something... odd about this subject. And in this place, odd tended to equate 'dangerous'. "There's something ahead of us... although what it is I'm having a bit of trouble making out." Kitsune's voice broadcasted her puzzlement and concern loud and clear. "Are the rest of you able to do any better?"

She waited a moment, then nodded to herself. "Right. I'm going to approach it, cautiously. I'm the 'tank', after all." Her face split with a grin, although again, that remained hidden to the rest. "I'd appreciate it if you gentlemen would back me up, please?" With that, the small woman stepped forward to better examine this object. No rush to get there, and with hands slightly spread to attempt to show peaceful intent.

Dylan reached out and began to process all the myriad forms of awareness that drifted about the forested area of the castle. The young psychic zeroed in on the two that were most intriguing to him, and he locked in on them. {There,} he sent over his link with the others as he showed them where the girl was standing. He stripped away the facade that kept their minds from being able to see her clearly. {There is the human mind I sensed.}

Then, there was the other awareness. He refused to let go of that other mind he was connected to. He pushed deeper into it while sending forth his own feelings of gentle inquisitive curiosity.

Unable to get a good look at the woman, Ashutosh resumed his scrutiny of the nearby foliage. Could be a trap, he thought.

Blitz crackled audibly. He was looking around with attention, eyes narrowed. Up ahead, Kitsune was speaking to a new presence, but that didn't seem to be it. Somehow, Blitz couldn't shake the feeling that "up ahead" wasn't the only direction they were being watched from. His back shivered with ohms of crackling blue as he considered the millions of possibilities. Given this place, perhaps the billions.

"Dude," he said to Nocturne in a low whisper. "Man, maybe I'm just being a bit paranoid, but I'd swear there's something else around here. Over there," he noted, motioning with a nod of his head to the foliage in the left. "You said there were animals in here, right? Is there any way you can tell if that's what it is? Like, hopefully not a really small, stealthy, angry bear or something?"

"Dude?" the kid asked as much as replied. He laughed a moment, which was a rare thing for him, especially these last few days. "There are more beings in here with us, both human, animal, and other. Although I can't say for certain whether Booboo has moved here from Jellystone."

Kitsune shook her head and looked over the woman, now that she could see her clearly. There was still something odd about her, although she couldn't quite put her finger on it. {Didn't you mention that there were some human minds here, Dylan-san? If so, can you detect the location of any others in the area?}

Kitsune leaned down to examine the woman closely, and she spoke softly, so as not to startle the lady. "Hello? Are you all right?"

The Black Cat held a cat's paw in his hand, ready to bind the ostensible target without a second's hesitation. When he saw it was a girl, his hand fell slightly, but only slightly. He wasn't yet ready to trust things here to be as they appeared.

At the voice, the purply-black coils of hair resting against the girl's back rose into the air, swaying lightly in a way reminiscent of seaweed in a light current.

"Escuse us, miss?" he started. "You, uh, you OK?" What does one say in such a situation? Are you a ghost? A good witch or a bad witch? Seen any trolls around here? Looking for Grandma's house?

Calypso, oblivious to the voices and not sensing any danger, continued to stubbornly pursue her sight of the woman up ahead. Nearly there...The newcomers saw one lock separate from the rest and snake around toward the woman's front. First they heard a light brushing noise, as if the hair stroked against skin, then a moment later a sound more closely remembling that of a riding crop on a horse. "Bloody fecking 'ells, wotcha do that for, I nearly had--oh." During this bit of profanity, the woman came around to face them, though it looked more as if she were being turned. She jumped back into a crouch, a strangely graceful gesture, the hair standing up in a living lion's mane around her as she surveyed the group. Now that she had stopped moving and was mostly facing them she appeared a small, slender girl, maybe 20 years old. She had pale gold skin, large light amber eyes and delicate, almost fey features. Coupled with her wild hair, which now could be seen to be ornamented with beads, small strips of fabric, feathers, and the like, she looked rather like a living fetish doll. As she remained defensively crouched, her eyes narrowed as if puzzled.

"Ye' can see me. An' yer no' runnin."

Kitsune involuntarily smiled at that, but fortunately it was well hidden from her face. Her voice, however, did nothing to disguise it. "I typically run toward things rather than away, but that's part of the job." The first thing Calypso probably noticed about the figure was that it was covered from head to toe in black armor, resembling onyx more than anything else. A red fox emblazoned the chest of the armor, which also hinted as gentle curves beneath as well.

The girl (yes, she was definitely a girl from body language as well) probably stood about five feet tall in her stocking feet and might have weighed ninety pounds soaking wet. But she moved with considerate confidence, as if she were more worried about breaking the environment rather than the opposite. "But yes, we can see you, although it wasn't too easy at first. But that's a discussion for another time, I guess. I'm known as Kitsune, at least when I'm in my work uniform." She gestured to herself. "Are you all right?"

The young woman cocked her head, and her wild hair seemed to relax, settling a bit closer around her. Brave, and apparently friendly. Calypso hadn't come across such since she'd ended up here. Aside from her armor and her warriorlike confidence, the other woman didn't seem threatening. "Aye. An' Calypso, that's me." After a moment of consideration, she continued, "Most ones as can see me, they think I belong here, and they run, jus' like from those trees, ya? You see me clear, an' yer not runnin. Or swingin' at me," she added as an afterthought. "Why?"

"Because it's between you and Babu of Jellystone," smiled Ashutosh. "Frying pan, fire, hey na?" He tugged on his blue shirt, which was starting to stick to his skin. "But if you don't belong here," he continued more seriously, "where do you belong?" He tried not to stare at her swaying hair.

The look of confusion he got in return made it pretty obvious the reference was lost on her. Instead, she ignored it and simply answered his question. "London. London Below."

"London Below?" the actor replied. "I grew up in Southgate but I never heard of any London Below. Is it an estate? It's not a neighborhood."

"It's...there." Calypso gestured vaguely. "Sou'gate, tha's London Above. London Below...'s rooftops and alleys and Tube tunnels. 'S wotcha don't see, ya?" The more Calypso spoke, the more apparent it became that under the coarse Cockney-esque street argot of London, there was a hint of another accent, more fluid and graceful.

"It is also no way to greet a lady," the Black Cat said. He affected a small formal bow, cupping the throwing star in the palm of his hand as he did so. "I am the Black Cat, from Chicago most recently. Tell me, as far as you are aware, what year is it?" It felt like such an odd question to ask when one hoped neither interlocutor was mad.

Kitsune frowned to herself, then mentally shook her head. Something about what Calypso said reminded her of something, but of what she was unsure. Later, perhaps later, when I have time to think of it. At Black Cat's words, she smiled again, then added apologetically, "There are reasons we're asking, of course. Our colleague, Professor Positronium, has been working to discover the nature of this place, and how to get out and away from it."

Calypso was somewhat taken aback by both the Black Cat's bow (kinda like the Marquis, she thought, when she'd seen him from a distance) and his question, and her resultant blank look was not altered by Kitsune's explanations. "Dunno." After a few moments of consideration, she looked back at the Black Cat curiously, and asked, "Ol' Li Fu, he wen' on about the year o' the cow or the frog or some rot. Go on abou' one for a bit, then next market it changed. Y'mean ye name years like tha'?"

Kitsune replied with that vocal smile of hers, while her eyes kept flicking to the translation display, just in case Calypso's English wandered. "Well, not us, no. That's China and their Astrology and Calendar. Most everyone just uses numbers. When we left, it was 2007. I think on the Chinese calendar it would be the Year of the Pig."

Calypso nodded. It didn't make all that much sense that people would do that, but she understood the concept. Just numbers? At least Li Fu seemed to think there was some significance to what he called things. Calypso wondered briefly if he decided what animal he liked whenever he thought it was time to change, and tried to make it that animal's time. With a mental shrug, she turned back to the matter at hand.

Brian turned his attention back and forth between Calypso and the bushes to the left. That sensation of being watched wasn't fading, even though a new person had entered the fray. Somehow, it wasn't her, and that unsettled him. Could've just been a squirrel. A little mouse, even. Could've been anything, really.

That too unsettled Brian.

He stood up straight, and rubbed the back of his neck.

'Calm down,' he reminded himself, before turning his attention intentionally away from the bushes up ahead and towards the conversation of the group.

Dylan looked at the girl from his position behind the others. He then stepped out and she could see the handsome young psychic. He no longer wore his mask, and she could see he was in his late teens.

"My name's Nocturne," he told her with a voice slightly accented with a New York lilt. "Or Dylan if you prefer. Why do you think we would want to hit you?"

Calypso nodded at his introduction, risking a small smile. She shrugged. "Ones as can see me in here, some's the dodgy sort, like what lives in 'ere," she gestured out at the forest around them, "and some's folk like you, an' they think I'm dodgy." Her nose wrinkled at the insult. "No' so friendly, eh?"

"I can pretty well assure you that you have no worries about us. If you are from London, then do yo know how you came to be here? We are playing a little Wizard of Oz, ourselves, and looking for a way out. In keepiing with the story, you are more than welcome to join us."

She shrugged, her hair rippling softly around her. "Dun' rightly know. Was after a job, we ran into the alley gap same's always. Nex' thing we woke up in this cocked-up place." Not feeling any threat from these people, Calypso rose from her defensive crouch, revealing herself to be about 5'6" and whip thin. As she stood, a lock of hair gently moved to wrap around her wrist, almost as if reassuring the girl.

Stories, Kitsune thought to herself. Something about stories. I know there is something here concerning Calypso-san, but I'll be further damned if I know what it is. That's bothering me about as much as that 'Siren' that seems to be so distracting to Dylan. Her comfort with her fellow captives had grown a bit, so privately within her mind she would just think of their names without the honorific. Of course, she'd never think of addressing them that way.

Kitsune shifted her thoughts toward her Author, frowning softly. So, Otaku-dono, are you playing games with my thoughts here as well as the other sort, now? I know that I should recognize what Calypso-san is saying, but I can't focus on it. Would you be so kind as to illuminate my thoughts, then? It was likely that her Author would just laugh at her, and perhaps deliver a taunt as well, but he has been known to make changes to her and her gear for her benefit, like the translator widget. Or just the changes in her body when she transformed into her current appearance.

I really wish I knew more, Kitsune thought to herself. I didn't realize just how dependent I was on the Internet to look things up. I'd just go home and bring up London Below, and see what Google and Wikipedia had to say on the matter. There's always otaku out there willing to share their knowledge. Or at least what they think is their knowledge, anyway.

The Black Cat was briefly perplexed but tried not to show it. She's not even aware of the Gregorian Calendar, she could be from anywhere and any time. So it goes. "It is no matter, Bella Donna, the important part is that we are safe with you and you are safe with us, and together we would all rather leave this place than stay. Yes?" He flashed a smile that was known to buckle a woman's knees from time to time, and hoped the strange medusa would both understand him and agree.

She managed not to laugh, but only barely. Most of a lifetime around men who were almost exclusively cons and charmers, some of whom were actually competent at it, had innoculated her against such things, though she did appreciate the effort. Why he called her a poisonous plant, however, was beyond her reckoning. She grinned impishly back as she replied, "Aye. Strange lot ye are, though. Call me poison then smile so fair? Dodgy, but I like ye."

Kitsune observed that smile, and it worried her a bit. She didn't consider the Fex to be competition, not really, but Calypso-san was another story. Still, she didn't hold a grudge here, since they had just met the girl, and they knew nothing about her. That smile might just be his way of being persuasive and disarming. I would have to admit it works, too. She is also quite beautiful and exotic, in her own way, and I doubt she would have the same troubles I would have were she to lie with a man.

Kitsune mused quietly, But she might have all sorts of different problems, if her hair took a dislike to a lover, perhaps. I don't know, but... I feel a sort of kinship with her. It's nice to not be the only woman here, and perhaps the eyes will be more drawn to her and I can stay in the background a bit better. Her hair and its odd coloration, not to mention the differences in eye color and skin tone, it's like she's walked out of a Marvel Comic Book. Although I doubt she's been exposed to Terrigen Gas and lived on the moon. But you never quite know, do you?

Ashutosh looked away for a moment, afraid his amusement showed on his face. A single night of club-hopping in Milan had disabused him of the notion of Italian gentlemanliness, and he felt inexplicably glad that this strange - homeless person? - saw through the act. But he had absorbed all the unspoken rules of the film fraternity, and he wouldn't show any disrespect to his seniors.

Kitsune decided she had had enough wool gathering. "Who was it that said, 'If we don't all hang together, we shall surely hang separately?' I want to say Shakespeare, but I'm pretty sure he hadn't said *everything.*" Kitsune them did a graceful bow to the girl. "Be welcome with us, Calypso-san, please. What can you tell us of this place? It sounds like you've been here for much longer than we have. We only arrived yesterday, ourselves."

"Dunno when we got here. Was keepin' track but the lock gave away me sticks." She darted a reproachful glance at some of her hair. "Anywhich, been wanderin' a while now. If ye don' go too far in 'ere, it's not so frightful, bu--'Ey, leave off!" Taking advantage of her distraction, a curious lock of hair had snaked out to investigate the lad who called himself Nocturne, and Calypso swatted it down impatiently. She looked apologetically at him. "Sorry."

"No, that's ok," Dylan replied with a smile. It was nice to finally meet someone that wasn't all put-together and cardboard. He understood outcasts, misfits. He had been one. "I don't mind."

Calypso couldn't help but flash a smile back before focusing on the discussion at hand.

Focusing back on Kitsune, she continued. "Fresh water here, stuff to eat if ye know 'ow to look, beasties if ye stray. An' don't hurt the plants, they hurt back. Out o' here I dunno so much, figgered once of got 'ere I'd keep to the halls I already been in." As an afterthought, she added, "And those ghosty gits, they dun' see me." Seeing. Bloody hells. The woman. "'S a girl up there, past the bloody big trees, I was watchin' 'er when you lot came. Most ones as even get that far, somethin' scares 'em an' they run righ' back into the trees and get proper fucked. Was watchin' 'er to see what's round there. She en't come back yet."

Could the Black Cat even begin to explain why a poisonous plant was originally an early form of make-up? Was it even worth attempting? He decided there more important issues, like a different damsel if Calypso could be so regarded, possibly in actual distress. "Another girl went around that corner? Alive or a ghost?"

"I'd conjure she's live, as she could almost see me. An' scared she was. I was only watchin', ye see, so's if she run back through maybe I could help? The trees, they paid her no mind, but this time they notice me."

"And you mentioned the plants hurt back." Kitsune looked toward the trees, frowning. "Could you tell me about the trees, quickly? If there's another person ahead, walking into a trap, then we've got to help them." The armored figure nodded, "I'm not a heroine for the hours and the dental plan, after all, and if the plants want to hurt me, they'll see I can definitely hurt back."

"The plants? Damn," Brian noted, looking again as the bushes rustled out to the left. That did it. Paranoia was one thing, but preparedness was another altogether.

"Okay, now I know I saw those bushes move. Or something in them. Or both. Whatever. Guys? Can we please take a look at this, it's freaking me out."

"Ya, somethin' was moving there earlier, I jus' walked away from it looked t'be goin'. Now we're loud an' all, an' whatever-it-is is a nosy git."

Kitsune nodded her agreement, "I would suggest taking to the air and seeing what you can see from above, Blitz-san." Kitsune turned to Nocturne, "You might want to pass along a message to the Professor that we will require his help."

Ashu peered at the foliage on his side, and then upwards. Where had those birds gone? If they had flown away, did that mean a predator was coming?

"Girl in trouble ahead folks, no time for chit chat," the Black Cat said, all charm and wit replaced by urgency. His eyes were wide and took in the world around them with an unblinking readiness. "Kits, you and me up there first. Blitz, you and Nocturne go over the trees, and keep an eye on them. Ashu ... follow along with our new friend here and water anything that looks too dry."

"Main anari tu khiladi," Ashu murmured without rancor. I'll be Saif to your Akshay. That movie had a happy ending. He turned his attention back to the new arrival, automatically giving her the grin that said 'Yeah I'm a movie star but it's embarrassing.'

The Black Cat strode ahead, brushing a hand across the smooth shoulder of Kitsune's armor as he did. Kitsune reached up quickly and gently squeezed his hand in a silent, reassuring reply. He sheathed his throwing paw and took his grapnel claw off his belt. He made for the corner, walking as fast as he could without breaking into a run.

"Hold." There wasn't any room for debate in Calypso's tone. "Stan' ready, but offer no harm. The forest is bigger'n you folk, an' if you hurt it first, I dun' think it'll fare well for ye. Defend, but do no' provoke."

Kitsune turned to face Calypso, and nodded her agreement. "While I am quite willing to fight in our defense, I would prefer not to have to do so. However, if there is someone else in jeopardy from the denizens here, then I would have to step in. I've no desire for anyone to be made into plant mulch."

Kitsune regarded the actor thoughtfully. "Ashutosh-san, didn't you say something about your ability being easier here? Would it be possible to use it as a weapon, then, or as a means of putting out fires? Because if that's the case, I think I have an idea..."

"Uh..." was all the befuddled actor could manage. It was all happening too fast.

Dylan watched the assembled group beging to move off to investigate things that they might have no idea what. {WAIT!!!} His mental voice was loud this time. Loud enough so that they might have thought he shouted at them. {Where are you going? There are things in this forest we know nothing about, and there is at least one strong psychic presence here that I can sense. Are we just going to blunder ahead? Let me try and get us more information before the wrecking balls go at it.}

{All right kid, ten seconds. Find the girl up ahead and tell us how she's doing. If I save my tail while she gets the Evil Dead treatment I'm not allowed in the good guy's club anymore.} The Black Cat's tone of thought was not hostile, but it was agitated. The situation was not as anyone would prefer it, but they didn't seem to have the luxury of time to consider what was best for themselves.

{She's scared}, Dylan sent back. {Scared but trying to talk herself into something. Into doing something. We need to be very careful. I don't think she means no harm, but I don't know what she is steeling herself for...or against. I can't go deeper into her conscience without her knowing.} And it is just wrong, Dylan, he heard Anna's voice in his own mind.

Calypso looked perplexed at the abrupt pause in the Black Cat's charge, but she held her tongue.

Kitsune nodded to herself, and mentally prepared herself and the request she planned to make of the Four Gods. This time I'm going to do things differently, but it should work, in theory, and will give me the tools to be a real powerhouse. She concentrated a second, exhaled softly, then started her dance to trigger the transformation effect. The motions were graceful and freeform, with the air of improvisation.

Softly, she spoke in Japanese. "Byakko, Tiger of the West, Genku, Turtle of the North, this servant thanks you for the gifts given by you in her battle for justice. Now, I ask Byakko of the Autumn and Suzaku of the Summer to grant me your blessing, the Strength of the Tiger and the Shield of the Innocent along with the Odachi of the Phoenix. Grant your servant the tools to bring justice to the world!"

At the end of the impromptu ritual, Kitsune elevated into the air, and she appeared to be nude, eyes closed and blue hair flowing in a breeze that smelled of both a hot summer's day as well as the hint of the harvest behind it. Her costume reappeared quickly, and then her hands glowed with white and red. The White Gauntlets with the tiger striping reappeared on her hands, but the onyx armor did not. In her right hand a large sword coalesced, its blade glowing a dull red, while along her left arm appeared a white framework with straps and a grip that hinted at what could be a shield's skeleton, if it only had such a thing.

The warrior nodded to herself, and spoke again with a phrase in the language of her ancestors. "Hikari o kudasai." At the last syllable, the gods gave their essence to the frameworks, and the meter long blade burst into flame with a flash of heat rippling from it. The frame on her left arm glittered for a second, then the holes were filled with a white glow, reminiscent of an aura or halo that covered her from head to toe.

Calypso watched bemusedly as the diminutive warrior danced around, floated naked, and ended up in new stuff. The nakedness didn't bother her, nor did most weirdness, these days. "Thas handy," she remarked to no one in particular.

Still, she caught the attention of the man in blue, who had turned away from Kitsune when she began her transformation. "Sorry, I didn't introduce myself," he said swiftly. "I'm Ashu."

Once more that fey, lively grin appeared. "'Ey, Ashu." A few locks of that wild hair waved, as if in greeting, and if he looked closely, Ashu might notice that several of them seemed to be holding sharp stones. He smiled back, but with much less wattage.

Brian was the first to hear the rumbling growl that rose from the dense vegetation on his right, finally confirming that there was something out there. Before the first growl ended another one joined in the chorus, but whatever it was, continued it's slow steady pace towards the heroes. The roars seemed territorial in nature as they continued to bellow their challenge at whatever strange creatures were defiling their forest with the smells of humanity.

It didn't matter if it was on instinct or not; Brian sparked to life, taking on the form of Blitz, hot blue electrical energy washing over him until he was covered in it. Long tendrils of instantaneous energy snapped to and fro as the shape took hold, long crackles ringing out in the humid sounding air.

Dylan opened his mind further to the forest, searching among the denizens to locate the human in front of them. As he did so he felt a curious thought that wasn't his own brush softly into his mind. {Your heart is heavier than your youth. More sadness than fear dwells within you, but fear will serve you better in this place.}

{Who are you?}, the young psychic sent back to the other presence that had contacted him. {And what should I fear?} There was no immediate response but he could feel the presence was lingering in his mind, there was a palpable curiosity that defined it.

Kitsune murmured to Black Cat, "Get ready to move everyone, Neko-san. I will distract the approaching beasts and try to scare them off." Kitsune moved to the edge of the path and began to slap her shield with her sword, letting the violent deflections fill the area with frightening sounds, sparks, and flames. "Leave while you still can!" Kitusne shouted. "If I must destroy you to defend my people, then I will do so and gladly!"

"'Ey, uh, Kitsune? The critters, if ye stay outta their way, they dun' look for ye. They're..."she searched for the word,"..terr'torial? Yer no' there, they dun' want ye." Calypso looked to Black Cat, as he seemed more or less the leader of this odd group of folk. "Fool's fight 'ere, skerred skirt up ahead. Ye fancy one o'er t'other?"

"I've been known to chase a skirt or two," he said with a sudden wink. This strange woman was unrefined, which frequently equated with fun.

"I know, Calypso-san, which is why I've not left the path here." Kitsune nodded toward the approaching beasts. "All I'm doing is 'roaring' back, trying to convince them to go wander somewhere else, and giving the rest of you time to slip away. The girl ahead is more important, of course, but I think that Dylan-san is trying something." Or at least I *hope* he's trying something.

Calypso opened her mouth, shut it, and just nodded, turning away before she allowed herself to roll her eyes. It was not the time to explain common sense, not that these rotted warrior types seemed to get it anyway. Her hair rippled restlessly as she grumbled to herself, "Ya, but if ye jus' move AWAY it does the same thin', an' ye don' attract every other bleedin' thing in the wood. Oy."

The alluring presence remained in the background as the heroes determined their course of action. It allowed Dylan several moments of uninterrupted thought for him to respond to his companions. {I've been known by many names. You may call me Anna, if you like...it's like a song in your heart. My true name isn't something you could comprehend.}

"NO I WON'T LIKE!!!" Dylan said rather loudly and angrily as he whipped around to the direction of the nameless faceless presence. {I DON'T THINK YOU SHOULD USE THAT NAME AGAIN EVER!!!} he shot back at her forcefully. {Now who are you and what do you want from us?} Dylan pushed harder into her mind to try and learn what she was hiding. What she wanted.

As Dylan became forceful the presence retreated again into the back of his mind. Her elusive retreat took her back into her world of song and when he pushed into her mind for answers he felt a formidable wall there. Despite the wall her well of emotions ran very deep and he could feel a sense of solitude and lonliness from the being, what she wanted, if anything was not something he could tell.

"THAT'S NOT FAIR," Dylan shouted in the direction of the unseen presence. "If that's the way you wanna behave, then fine. You want some music, I'll give you some music. How about a little of this?" The kid then pushed bits of various Rush songs from their earlier days at her mind. The songs were full of driving rhythms and screeching vocals. Dylan then began to move in her direction.

When the presence spoke again it was quiet in his mind, barely a whisper as it fell completely away from his conscience. {I don't want to fight with you. Stay your anger.}

As Calypso observed Nocturne's outburst, she cocked her head, an expression of curiosity rather than dismay or fright across her features. As he was closest, a lock reached out and tapped Ashu on the shoulder as Calypso leaned towards him, asking quietly, "No' mad, is 'e?"

No more than the rest of them, Ashu thought to himself, a tiny bit of flippancy that did nothing to stem his rising dread. This was all going to shit. And it should have been the least of his worries, but it was freaky being touched by Calypso's hair.

"Dylan's a telepath," the Indian man explained. "He's talking to, uh, somebody we can't see from here." But who? And where the hell is he going?

Ashutosh took a few swift steps after the young psychic and gently put a hand on his shoulder. He'd heard you should be careful waking up sleepwalkers. Maybe the same idea applied to distracted telepaths. "Dylan," he said softly. "Dylan. Stay with us, bhai."

"Something's not right with her," Dylan pointed in the direction he was heading which was not towards the newcomer or the girl the newcomer had been following. "I don't know WHY she would call herself that. She has NO right to call herself Anna." None of them had any idea who he was talking about. "I need to see her." Dammit I wish you were here, Anna. "I need to know who she is."

Kitsune nodded her agreement with Ashutosh's statement. "Wandering off would mean trouble, since there are territorial animals here, as Calypso-san has pointed out. We need to move forward, so we can rescue the girl ahead. Are you done with searching yet, Nocturne-san?" Kitsune nodded to Calypso, "The honorable Calypso-san has a point, we need to 'save the skirt'. You know, 'Save the cheerleader, save the world'?"

Then the words that Dylan had said sank into her thoughts, and she shook her head. "No, Dylan-san," she said respectfully, but firmly, giving her full attention to the young man. "We need to save the woman in distress, first. Afterwards, we can perhaps go to check out this other person who has... misidentified herself, perhaps. But to rush into that situation as agitated as you are would be trouble incarnate, since we have been warned by everyone we've spoken with about this place as to how dangerous and deadly it is. Please stay with us, Dylan-san, for all of our sakes."

Kitsune turned to regard the beasts again, shifting her attention back to their threat. "Neko-san, we need to go, and quickly. But not recklessly."

"OK, come on," the Black Cat said, wide eyes, scanning the path in front of him. "Assume she's being forced to be bait. Touch nothing that doesn't touch you first, and step lively. Nocturne, we'll get to your contact next, I swear, but now's no time to follow a siren." The Black Cat moved down the trail, close to the center, taking the lead in spite of Kitsune's superior armor. There was no consistent way to save one skirt while hiding behind a different one.

Kitsune smiled at that as she hesitated a moment to let the others of the group pass before rushing to catch up. "It is better if you do the speaking, anyway, Neko-san. I am a blazing torch at the moment," she nodded to her sword and shield, "and I'll no doubt appear to be sufficiently strange for anyone. Adorable, perhaps, but definitely not the norm." Kitsune followed Black Cat at his flank, giving him a bit of space to move freely while ready to jump in and support as needed.