Ghost Riders in The Sky[Mikhail, Natasha]

Ah, there was truly no finer blessing than being able to walk on her own two feet again. No longer confined to a hospital, free to operate at her ideal state of athleticism without impediment in her step, Natasha was incredibly eager to explore her surroundings.

After all, it wouldn't be long before she returned to the continent that left her injured in the first place. Theoretically speaking, there was no guarantee she would be able to return a second time, neither to the homeland she currently occupied nor the City of Lights, a place that, by all accounts, was her second home.

The vicious battle with that damned Vasto Lorde was certainly a cold reminder that nothing in life was guaranteed, even life itself, and so she was certainly prepared for the worst-case scenario as any good soldier would be. Even so, theory was the last thing on her mind.

What good would it do her to worry about that now, though? To hell with that lousy ol' bastard called reality and his partner, cynicism. Victory was her aim, first and foremost, and she was hardly a lady who enjoyed ruminating on this train of thought for any more than a moment or so. In a fit of fanciful whim, her bold spirit had drawn her back to where all her humble origins and memories - for better or worse - began----the Lone Star State.

Of course, she wasn't located in her specific neck of the woods. No, her current station was situated somewhere further away in a mountainous region in another area altogether. Civilian interaction, something often welcomed, was renounced in favor of enjoying the serene bliss of nature. The varied sounds of animals, the gentle breeze, a tranquil state of mind... Truly, if this was her last rodeo, this moment in particular would surely be etched into her memory forever.

Ah, how these hills reminded Mikhail of home! The heights, the lovely woods which overlooked sprawling plains, it was all so wonderfully serene that there was little more he could have wished for apart from a horse with which to travel. Oh, but to bring one on these countless travels of his would be far too great a hassle! Far too difficult indeed, and so he instead moved by foot. He walked through the mountain woods, and only upon sighting another traveler did he call out, his voice undeniably confident as it echoed.

"Hail, fair lady!"

There was certainly no sense of subtlety to his behavior, but he was, after all, a man with purpose, and there was little about his appearance that would suggest he might have been subtle to begin with. A well-equipped man, wearing fine attire still quite obviously made for combat and travel rather than mere appearance.

"I am Sir Mikhail of the Dance, a traveler questing on behalf of the Princess Nataliya. Pray tell, have you heard word of any villains plaguing these parts?"

After all, such a question was common form for any good and valiant knight to ask while traveling.

"Oh?"

The grandiose voice - boisterous as it was gallant - was an exceptionally comical way to end her temporary romance with the blissful tranquility of nature. What was once quiet was upturned in the blink of an eye with his presence, and his words, majestically matching his voice, were enough to curiously draw her gaze towards the man, a dumbfounded smile dancing across her lips. Now, wasn't he a curious sort?

There were as many speech patterns as there were people, so it wasn't entirely offputting to hear him speak like a knight who just stepped out of a grand tale, but it was interesting. Enough to elicit a light chuckle from the woman as she traversed the mountainous region, turning her hat upward to gain a closer look at the man. Well, wasn't that endearing? His appearance was knightly as his way of speaking.

"Not as far as I know, Sir Mikhail. Ain't no villainous entities plaguing this neck of the woods, at least not any that I'm aware of. Though, much like every place in the livin' realm, I reckon I wouldn't rule out the possibility, either. Name's Natasha Miller. Pleasure to make yer acquaintance, sweetheart."

Unsure of how to answer his question other than humoring the knightly fellow, Natasha bowed politely, a playful hum to her voice as she replied, her words, when compared to his own, were nothing short of a stark contrast, but that amused he more than anything else. Answering his courteous inquiry, she posed a question of her own.

"You a knight from a kingdom or somethin', sweetheart? Can't say I've ever seen someone like you in a place like... this."

Ah, fair lady indeed! Mikhail listened to the comely maiden's words intently, and looked faintly dejected at the notion that there was little to quest against in these lands. Well, he supposed that was only natural. Villainy always made itself clear to those knights on campaign, even if one needed often to ask the locals regarding quests to be undertaken.

"Ah, is that so? Well, it is good then that the people need not be protected! My blade and I can travel elsewhere, to find where we would be most needed."

Mikhail paused a moment, returning the bow he'd been offered in a more serious manner. That was only polite, after all.

"I hail from the highlands of Nartia! Known as the Pontic steppe, or the North Caucasus, in the more common tongues. As to my status, I am indeed a knight, though Queen Yekaterina has given me leave for extended campaign on behalf of Princess Nataliya."

"The highlands of Nartia, hm? North Caucasus... Ah! That's a region somewhere in Russia. Can't say I've ever been there before a day in my life, but it sounds pretty kingdomly. Well, Mikhail of the dance, yer currently situated in my homeland right here. Not this place, specifically, of course, but it's close enough."

Perceptive hazels gleamed the faint dejection at her initial answer. Did he revel in rescuing others out of the kindness of his heart? It was a reasonable assumption considering the demeanor he had displayed from their meeting so far. Natasha listened to his words with sincere intent, no less amused than she was before by his grandiose approach to conversation, truly striking her as a man who seemed better suited to valorous tales of myth than he was in the mountainous region of a place like this. It was more than portraying an image. He seemed to live and breath his beliefs to a firm degree.

"Well, aren't you every bit the image of a grand hero? That's pretty admirable of ya, Mikhail. There may not be much danger here, but ain't no harm in makin' sure that's the case, right? Ensure the evildoers aren't up to anythin' villainous, that is. Whaddya say you and I go explorin' the area a little more just to make sure? Hollows in particular could be anywhere here, after all. Temporary hero's journey."

In truth, that was precisely within her job description, considering her role within the Vandenreich. He bore no relation to any of that, but that nurturing spirit certainly couldn't resist the temptation of humoring the valiant young man in front of her. Plus, it could be an interesting way of tempering her talents before the big day in the event they ran into something. If nothing else, she was curious about observing him for a while. This was perhaps the most ideal worthwhile excuse she could come up with at the moment, and she hardly found much issue in running with it.

"Oh? If ya don't mind me asking... What set ya out on this campaign in particular, then, sugar? Are ya aimin' to get revenge on behalf of your beloved princess or is there somethin' else at play?"

Mikhail seemed to pause for the briefest moment as Natasha made her suggestion, though his demeanor didn't shift. A hand moved to rest on his sword, not threateningly, but rather an apparent change in how he perceived the current atmosphere. He had not, after all, considered that this woman might well be a fellow adventurer, and so now he did not act as if she were a gentle woman of the town.

"If you would wish to accompany me, Dame Natasha, then I would certainly not be opposed to the notion! A knight is at his best when fighting alongside fair companions. Few heroes are capable of slaying evil wholly on their own, after all."

His gaze shifted away from Natasha as she asked her question, scanning the land in the distance and taking up what could be generously called a bit of a dramatic air. His expression had grown a touch more severe, but his confidence remained.

"The young princess has remained under the influence of a grave curse for several years now, since the wretched spawn of hell were cast out of this realm. Though my father fought bravely for her and our homeland, he fell in battle, and it was only my own arrival, far too late to the battle, that prevented our home's total destruction. I seek to find the cure for what ails her, that I may finally bring an end to her ceaseless slumber."

"That settles that, then, Sir Mikhail. If but only for a day, I, Dame Natasha, sharpshooter of the south, shall accompany you on yer journey."

To match his gallantry even a moment, Natasha offered a similarly flamboyant response as she tipped her hat. The endearing charisma that encompassed his aura was a breath of fresh air compared to what was typically used to. Shifting her feet to match his pace the moment he was ready to resume his travel through the mountains, Natasha curiously cocked her head in response to his words.

"So by spawns of hell, I'm assumin' yer people suffered assaults at the hands of demons. Heh... those bastards were and still are the bane of my existence, too. It's a shame a noble guy like you had to endure somethin' like that. I commend you for maintainin' such a strong spirit up to this point, though. That takes some mighty strong willpower."

Shifting her gaze away from Mikhail, Natasha's expression grew a touch reminiscent. Recalling the days her own life had been upturned in almost the blink of an eye. Reflecting on what was lost, what led her to where she was now. Those memories were always viewed with a regretful disdain, but in a way, they were the stepping stones in constructing who she was today. She wasn't bold enough to assume that was the same for her knightly partner over here, but his words alone seemed to tell her that his experience had affected him to some degree.

"As yer fellow adventurer for the afternoon, I can hardly promise I'd be of much help in the long term, but hey, if we manage to keep in contact after our travels here, I'd be willin' to assist ya on yer journey to cure that princess of yers. Since I'm a sucker for happy endings, I believe you will succeed, brave knight. For now, we can be of potential service to others who might be in danger."

Moving along the trail with a beat in her step, Natasha raised her wrist upward to look at her enhanced mobile device, using it as a spiritual radar of sorts to evaluate the environment. Hollows were bold creatures at times. Even if their presence wasn't noticeable at the beginning, they were bound to run into a few simply by merit of their sheer presence alone.

A sharpshooter? Were they not currently on the campaign trail, Mikhail might have challenged her to a test of accuracy, for any good man of the highlands knew his way around both the bow and the rifle. But, for now, they had traveling to do, hollows to look out for.

"A good and honorable knight always maintains awareness of his virtues and fights for righteous causes, no matter the struggle he faces. It would certainly be a disappointment to the young princess if I were to grow despondent in her absence."

Unlike Natasha, Mikhail simply looked around the environment for any signs that there might be Hollows present. Though they certainly were not savages in his homeland, they nevertheless trained in more fundamental ways, more rudimentary forms of tracking that could be applied in any circumstance and without any aid but one's own capabilities.

"I would of course welcome any assistance from a fellow knight in my campaign. I have traveled long, and imagine that I still have longer yet to go."

"M'sure she'd be mighty proud, sugar. That determination's pretty remarkable. I can see why it's carried you for so long."

Surveying her surroundings, Natasha maintained proximity to the brave knight. Since they were effectively, albeit temporarily, partners for the afternoon, Natasha intended to ensure his safety. Truthfully, outside of the radiant aura, she wasn't bold enough a woman to assume the man was some symbol of strength.

That was not to say, of course, she doubted he had any, but due diligence was always her topmost priority in situations regarding groups. For all she knew, the brave fella might outclass her in overall strength. It was simply something to keep an eye on as she kept moving further into the trail, her sharp eyes evaluating the area for any discrepancy.

"Any form of assistance, eh? Well, I'm not sure if someone like you keeps track of contacts and modern-day modes of communication like phone calls, but if ya ever see me wanderin' about, don't hesitate to request my assistance, then, alright? I could use the adventure."

Finishing that sentence with a playful wink and upraised thumb, Natasha's expression was a touch more stern after a few moments passed. Her prediction about there being no hollow had been incorrect. Something was coming. It was time to lock in and get prepared to face it.

"Anyway... it seems like we've found something. I reckon I spoke too soon about their bein' a lack of hollow round' these parts. Eyes up, Mikhail. We've got company."

Suddenly, as though matching the woman's revelation on cue, a horde of various hollows stammered down through the trail like a stampede. Each resembled a grotesque version of known animals, and further off in the distance, there was one large enough to force the average warrior to question their mettle. A grin played across her features as her spirit weapon manifested in the form of two modified pistols. Owing to her proclaimed title as a sharpshooter, she released a numerous array of compressed reishi bullets to halt their charge.

"Let's get down to business, partner! Time for the hero to show me what he's made of, eh?"

"Hm? Why of course I know full well how to utilize a phone, Dame Natasha! What do you take me for, a man lost in ages past?"

However, Mikhail's attention turned quickly to the Hollows that had appeared before them, and his chipper smile quickly changed into a faintly more serious expression, one fitting of a proud knight as he drew his sword from its sheath. The blade crackled with energy for a moment, before Mikhail stepped toward the beasts, the characteristic blue sparks under each footstep making it apparent that he was utilizing steigen as he moved.

Upon closing in on his quarry, Mikhail kept in motion, his blade pointing toward the nearest hollow as several spear-like arrows, burning white hot, formed behind him. Each in turn fired off, streaking through the air like a bolt of lightning to pierce into the monsters before him.

“Die, monsters! You don’t belong in this world!”

For all the embarrassment any normal person might have felt saying something like that so brazenly, and so loudly, Mikhail simply said it with full, unbridled confidence.