Life finds a way (OPEN)

[gettahwun]

She had decided to go jogging, it was a beautiful day at the end of summer and she shouldn't waste it. The leaves in the town's park were changing, and a cold wind was rolling in. One might think the cold wind to be an ill omen, or some unwanted chill. In truth it was a welcome relief to summer's heat, a soft sigh through the trees. Zoe-Astra felt it travel over her skin, the hairs on her arms raising. She followed a foot path along, a spring in her steps as she went. 

In broad daylight like this it was prudent for Zoe to use her glamour, a normal human for all intents and purposes. Nevertheless there was something unnatural about her run, touching down toe-first each step and springing forward as soon as her heel made contact. It was a habit that had afflicted her mother and her aunt as well, a holdover from running in their true form. Zoe kept her breathing steady, trying to set a rhythm to her stride. Running like this can cause one to pick up speed they might not mean to, and it can be easy for a light jog to, pardon the phrase, run out of control.

As she jogged, her skirt flapping in the breeze, Zoe felt the ground shift under her. No, she thought, she'd stepped on a rock and hadn't gotten proper footing. It was odd to her, thinking on something like that in the instant before her other leg came up, trying to continue the run but her foot catching on the back of her other leg. She left the ground, letting out a short grunt as she tried to make a noise mid-breath. The pavement was unforgivingly hard, her momentum carrying her a good foot, maybe a foot and a half, before she ground to a halt. She was dazed, but it wasn't enough to knock her Glamour off of her. Nevertheless, the dull pain through her whole body after bailing down onto the pavement began to give way to the burning pain of how bad she had skinned her arms and her knees in the fall.

As she blinked tears from her eyes, something caught her eye; grass poking through a crack in the pavement.

[Drake White]

Ayanna had been walking through the park looking for any clues as to the whereabouts of the demon that killed her adopted father. The wound and scars of that day were still fresh on her mind. If only she was stronger, faster, more durable than she was already then maybe she could’ve saved her father from certain death. Ra insisted that there was nothing she could’ve done and that none of it was her fault, but if she hadn’t been there then that demon never would’ve gone into the church and killed Father Paul.

Ayanna had told Ra to wait in the car. She was a solo act for most of this. Ra was helpful with his visions and his knowledge of demonology and the likes, but when it came to actual battle he was somewhat lacking. Ayanna had her pistols in their holsters along her waist and was dressed in her trademark white tank top with blue jeans, black shoes, and a blue jean jacket over her tank top with the front buttons undone revealing the white tank top underneath.

As Ayanna walked she heard a grunt and then a thud. Looking over to her right she saw a woman who had just fallen against the hard pavement on the ground. And Ayanna was starting to think she was the only one here at this time of day. Not wanting to ignore the woman in need, Ayanna ran over to her and knelt down by her side.

“Hey there. Are you alright?”

[gettahwun]

"Yeah... Yeah."

Zoe started trying to get up, the dull pain through her entire body throbbing in protest as she tried to move. She inhaled sharply, wincing as the shredded skin on her arms and legs stung and flared. She grit her teeth and thought about her glamour, imagining a blue egg and using it as a focal point to keep her concentration. It kept the pain from breaking her disguise as she forced herself onto her side, rolling over and sitting up.

"Think I bit my tongue."

It wasn't that bad, all things considered, but it looked bad. White flecks and tatters of dead skin hanging from raw, red scrapes, pinpricks of blood raising from where vessels had been ripped open, the damaged tissue slowly enflaming as her immune system kicked in and saw to Lulu's immediate defense. The pain grew worse as signals finally reached her brain, getting another pained inhale from her as Lulu brought brought her right arm to her chest, holding it tight. She had got the worst of it on that arm, cushioning her head with it when she tripped. As a result, that arm made the most contact with the concrete.

The fall had rattled her and she had some nasty looking scrapes, but it was readily apparent she'd be fine.