Extraordinary Regularity

Logan tilted his head and gave the creature in front of him a baffled look.
"What...ARE you? And since when did people start gearing up mutant hippos for war?"
Just as the hippo was about to bring his sword down on him, Logan used his power to push himself high in the air, flipping backwards quite some distance away from the creature.
"And they tell me I'm not a people person. Let me give you a word of advice there, big guy; if you actually do manage to hit me with that over-sized kitchen knife you've got there, it's not gonna end well for you. But if you wanna try it, by all means, be my guest! It'll be freakin' hilarious to watch all five tons of you get launched through the air and slam right into a building."
He chuckled, a twisted smile plastered on his face.
"But that'd probably cause a lot of property damage and since you've got a serious hate boner for criminals, you might want to think of a plan B before trying anything funny with me."

He casually walked towards the hippo without a care in the world, looking around at the others gathered around as he did.
"Well then, since I was kind enough to give you a little inside info, maybe you could return the favor.
He looked up at the hippo, still smiling.
"What's an Exceptioneer and why shouldn't I tear you apart right here and now?"

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Gabriel nodded back to the man, still looking very timid and concerned. His fears grew even worse when they started fighting with one another-- nothing too serious yet, but it was escalating quickly. He was shaking all over, scared half to death that these people were going to hurt or maybe even kill each other. He looked up at John and Marie, hoping that mom and dad could take care of it like they take care of everything else that goes wrong.
"Mom? Dad? Can you please make them stop fighting? They might get hurt really bad..."

Marie hung her head low, looking almost as scared as her son.
"Gabriel...I don't think there's anything we can do here."

John nodded in agreement.
"We need to get away. It's not safe here anymore."

Gabriel looked to be in a panic now, trying desperately to think of a way to make the violence stop. An idea came to him; he looked up at Eldrich, eyes filled with hope and expectation.
"Mr. Eldrich, you're my knight now, right? Well, um...I've got something kinda like an order for you now, if that's okay."
He pointed to the others.
"Can you...can you make them stop fighting? Please?"

 

"Hey guys look at that!" Riley pointed to the massive group of people all in a fight. "What a lucky day, we get to see a fight. Did anyone bring any popcorn?"

 

Roy swiftly evaded the giant that was swinging a giant sword around. It missed him, but not by much. Roy and Vincent communicated.

"Yknow Vincent, why does it always have to be the crazy bastards we have to deal with, never a normal fight always mutated or extremely powerful, I'm starting to get sick of this shit."
"If weren't always training so hard for those scenarios we wouldn't be prepared for them."
"That's generally how we work, always be prepared, I'd love for Michael to actually be here so we can deal with this problem non agrressively, but we haven't much of a choice."

Once Roy was a safe distance away almost immediately he lifted the earth from under Bravado's feet. He only lifted it 3 feet, he was preparing to destabilize it into an earthquake and then a sinkhole.

"You shouldn't be trying to fight us!" He shouted. "If you'd let us explain everything I'm sure you would understand, I have a priest friend but he isn't here right now. Plus I know your group, Doesn't your leader listen to reason?!"

Eldrich finally came too and he noticed the fighting going on around him. He walked towards his sword and as he grabbed it he heard Gabe. He heard the child ask if he could make them stop fighting with a nod Eldrich pulled his sword from the ground and dragged it in between the fighting. He slowly lifted it above his head, anger was beginning to well up inside of him. Slamming it down in front of him launched pavement, dust, and debris up, along with creating a massive Shockwave disrupting the fight. Lifting the sword up again he prepared for a second extreme strike If need be.

"Bravado, Theraploferous. Newcomers. I request you all stop fighting for the sake of the Silverlight family that I Humbly serve, I wish not to fight any of you, but if I am given no other option then I will slaughter you all, not alone but at once. This is no jest, nor over confidence. It is fact that you will die by my hand if you continue your reckless behavior in front of a family that is mere civilian."

Eldrich was pretty adamant on fighting if he had no other choice but if he could spare a life or 5 he would.

Cinder returned inside of the mausoleum, though his corpse like appearance hadn't left him yet, he was starting to get muscle, flesh, and skin back. It was a slow regeneration process and he was noticeable as himself. He moved over back to his coffin and sat down atop his casket.
"Over 400 years ago, I knew of a man, this man was a great man, he slayed 30 dragons in a single night. I looked up to him when I became a knight, And I spent an entire year slaughtering every dragon in the world, So Hettem, now that you're back there are no more dragons. Only man kind and humanoid beast, tell me Hettem. Do you remember the name of the man who slayed 30 dragons in 1 night. Before I tell you about my deaths I wish to talk to you about personal matters."

 

"Well then," Rid chuckled. "And they say we're insane... I think she'll fit right in!" He slapped his knee in mirth.
"Alright - where we off to now?" The others looked at Hema expectantly, waiting for orders - State was still unconscious.

The woman had wrinkled her nose when the corpse had gone, and she looked over at Hettem.
"Don't get any ideas," she said while Cinder had been outside. "We've still got business to attend to."
When Cinder had returned, Hettem stood firm. "I am no position to judge thee, sire. I am as always your loyal companion, despite the... somewhat awkward terms we parted on." He coughed.
"And ye, I remember Eldrich. A fine warrior if ever there was one."

Bravado was a soldier, and a soldier reacts on instinct.
When Kitty moved between him and Matthew, he instantly shoved her out of the way, sending her tumbling to the floor.
Bravado returned his attention to Matthew who had managed to straighten up again, and the man's eyes moved to Kitty. Seeing his chance, Bravado lashed out one more time - and Matthew's eyes blazed a vicious silver. Bravado felt every part of his armour seize up as though gripped by invisible hands and he was dragged from the ground to dangle helplessly in the air, struggling.

Matthew had to think very carefully about whether he should tell the kids to let Bravado go or carry him into orbit. Kaur moving behind him denied him the option, and the kids hurled Bravado into his teammate. The hybrid scientist lowered Bravado to the ground and he straightened up, and he and Matthew locked eyes. Both of them were now angry.

It was at this point Eldrich's shockwave hit and the three staggered around trying to stay on their feet. Theraploferous barely even noticed it, the impact washing over a shimmering aura around his body.
Bravado and Matthew looked at Eldrich, and then at the family. They both met each other's glares and seemed to mutually agree that while personally they would love to have a good crack at each other, here was not the place or the time.

"Theraploferous, stand down." The large hippo creature looked back at Bravado, but lowered his sword.
"Logan. Roy. No more." Matthew's voice was granite. He knelt next to Kitty. "Thank you," he said quietly. "You alright?"

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A voice sounded in the ear of the being commanding the pigeons. A sensual, kind, charming female voice.
"Ambition, power, the will to command it and the strength to withstand it. You really are a sensational being."
A vision flared into Neptunus's mind - a flowery grove, an ancient tree, and a lithe beautiful figure sitting on a bunched knot of wood.
"You will aid me. And in return, I will aid you." It wasn't a request, nor was it a command - rather, an agreement where permission was treated as given.

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"I will field your question," Kaur said politely. "The Exceptioneers are a group of... the word I would use is enhanced, beings who seek to CRUSH MY HATED ENE- I mean, better mankind. Teamwork and whatnot, hmm? And as for why you shouldn't kill us, well - I myself am not exactly what one would term easy prey. My more protected comrade is trained in more martial arts than officially exist, and as for the "mutant hippo", he's actually a deity of a distant alien world and completely invulnerable to conventional weaponry and abilities. I think the last thing that actually got through it was...?"
"A planet," the creature hmphed, "and it was a lucky shot."
"Of course, of course..." Kaur said smoothly. "Lord forbid the almighty Theraploferous was actually bested in skill..." The hippo's sword came up at the teasing. "Watch it."

 

Kitty nodded. "Y-yeah, I'm alright... He didn't hit me too hard." She slowly got up and dusted herself off. "What's going on Matthew? How did you get into a fight with them?"

 

Logan scowled at nobody in particular.
"Yeah, yeah, you don't have to tell me twice."
He briefly glanced over to the family that they were all concerned about.
"If we start too much trouble here, they'll get caught in the crossfire. I don't like getting civilians caught up in our fights any more than you do."

Logan laughed, seeming amused and maybe even genuinely intrigued.
"No kidding? I knew that there were a lot of others like us but I had no idea they were making their own superhero teams."
He walked up to Theraploferous, eyeing him carefully as if sizing up the competition.
"Hanging out with you guys might even be kinda fun. Especially you, I've never gone toe-to-toe with an alien god before. Or...I guess "toe-to-hoof" in this case, huh?"
He chuckled a little.
"But, the thing is...I've got some previous engagements."

He glanced over to Matthew, then looked back at the two Exceptioneers.
"See, somebody's got to make sure that this guy doesn't get himself killed before I have the chance to beat the life out of him. It's complicated. But once that's all taken care of, I might just have to look you guys up. 'Course if I end up getting bored with the whole Exceptioneer deal for any reason, I'll be outta there faster than you can blink but as long as that's alright, maybe we could work something out."

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Gabriel smiled brightly while his parents let out a long sigh of relief.
"Eldrich, that was awesome!"
He ran to get a little closer to his knight.
"The way you walked right in there and laid down the law, it was sooo cool! You really showed them, didn't you?"
He laughed, throwing his arms in the air in victory.
"That's my knight! I knew you could pull it off!"

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A fairly normal-looking man slowly walked into the ruins of an ancient castle buried deep underground. He payed no mind to all the strange creatures around him-- skeletons, revenants, zombies and all other manner of undead creatures. He didn't seem the slightest bit concerned that he was the only living creature in this wretched place where dark magic and reanimated corpses were the norm. In fact, he didn't seem to care about anything at all. He simply kept walking forward with a blank expression, like a puppet on its strings.

He shambled into the castle and made his way into the throne room. There he saw a group of undead knights in full plate armor carrying large claymore swords guarding the throne. They stood guard all day and night, never moving and ever-vigilant to guard his royal highness. They were truly a group to be feared, as centuries of undeath and the layers of rust on their swords and armor did nothing to dull their fighting prowess or their devotion to their king. When the man approached, they recognized him as one of the king's servants and stepped aside to let him pass. The man approached the figure on the throne and knelt down in front of him, his eyes faintly glowing a pale, deathly green, clearly showing that this man was the king's thrall.

"Your majesty. I bring news from the outside world."

The man on the throne stood up. His clothes, ancient and tattered though they were, still gave him a regal, commanding presence. Despite being hundreds of years old, he looked no different from a man in his early fifties, showing a few streaks of grey in his long black hair and facial stubble. But it was all part of the illusion. His veins were empty of all blood, his organs had long since forgotten their purpose, even the eyes in his head that now looked down on his thrall were merely for show. He walked down to where the thrall was and stood next to him.
"Stand. What news do you bring?"

The man stood up as he was told and looked into the king's eyes.
"Your majesty...forgive me for bringing such a foul report, but it seems that he has returned. I speak of none other than the traitor Eldrich; he walks the earth once again, I have seen it with my own eyes."

OOT: Part two of this guy's intro coming up in the next post.

 

At the sound of the voice, the pigeons all start jumping about frantically, flapping their wings yet getting no flight, making a weird squarking sound as they did. Within moments, they all pulled together into Neptunus of which was trying to figure out where the voice was originated. Mind you, he was still exceptionally close to the previously fighting group - he hadn't bothered moving away. He thought, "So who are you?" Then he said it aloud, grunting at not being confronted.

She looked at Rid, sulking, "I'm not crazy..." Just as fast, her head popped back up, "What you name, anyway? Oh, and what powers do you have!? I bet they super duper cool!"

 

"Right. Hettem, you were just as good a knight as he. You raised your sword in defense and honor just as quick, now for explanations. The second time I died I discovered that althalos wanted to control every kingdom, this was 400 years ago. This was the little bit of information I knew at the time. I tried to thwart his plans, I damaged him well enough, alas I failed in stopping him as he toppled me. He was a wretched beast he was. You and Eldrich nigh know what he was, but you're going to find out soon enough. My will triumphed, or so I thought when I rose from a slumber that seemed to be forever. But I had a sensation for blood, though it wasn't anew. You see."

Cinder had paused to catch his breath, It was a slow and painful process to recover from 200 years of rotting. "My first death, I shall explain, I was tasked to kill a Vampire what I didn't know, was he was the king of all vampires. He named himself Dracul, He was a Russian man, his real name was something else, I don't recall. Anyway, he got a fatal strike on me. Upon doing so, I got into a perfect position and wrapped my sword around his neck and decapitated him. I was losing blood, and fast. I had enough energy to go over to him. In legend I heard if you drank the blood of a vampire you become one, and so... I wished for life. I drank a small portion of his blood before I passed out in his growing puddle, my heart stopped, I felt my body go stiff. I was dead. If you recall during the time of this mission the court was said to be in a frantic state as I hadn't returned yet. Around that time I awoke and made my journey back. Now for relevancy."

"First and foremost, you are undead, I had ordered our friendly mistress here to bring you back from your grave, my deepest apologies Hettem, but I needed someone with your prowess. You're one of the best knights I knew, and I need you to help me with Overcoming the Old King, I can promise you, if you wish to return to death I will allow it, though we do need someone like you."

Cinder turned his head to look at the Maiden. "My Mistress, Tell me, What has become of the team of archeologist and excavators. Did they... meet their demise?"

Eldrich sheathed his sword, nodding towards the group of men that stopped, he was grateful to them all, theh considered the civIlians like any normal human should have. Turning around to Gabe, he kneeled.

"I am glad you are satisfied. However that Victory was a small one, but a large. I had no need to kill a single person, alas we shall drink to such later tonight. How about it boy?! A nice round of Mead for everyone tonight!"

Eldrich picked Gabe up and put him atop his shoulders walking over to his mother and father. Waiting for them to make their decision as to what to do.

"Thank god, I didn't want anyone to get killed on the count of us. I'm not really one for senseless violence you know? So Bravado, you said your name was, Kaur, and Theraploferous. What an odd group of people, then again, I can't talk. My best friend is a priest from the Vatican, and I'm hanging around with my old drinking buddies I haven't seen in a year or so. Anyway, were you trying to defend Penton?"

Roy wasn't trying to strike any nerves. So he stopped there and prepared to let Vincent speak if they wouldn't listen to him if they thought that he was going to slander or bash him.

 

Gabriel threw his arms in the air, smiling widely and laughing in excitement. He was having the time of his life sitting on Eldrich's shoulder listening to his knight go on about things he didn't really know about-- he didn't really care, he was just glad the Eldrich seemed to be happy about it.
"Sure, yeah, that sounds great! Let's go forth and get some mead, ha ha!"
He then turned to John, still smiling but with a slightly curious look on his face.
"Hey, dad...what's mead?"

John was trying to keep a serious face on, but he couldn't help snickering a little.
"It's something that you won't be drinking until you're much older, young man."

Marie narrowed her eyes slightly as she gave John a slightly disapproving look.
"I'm glad you're having so much fun with this, dear."
She looked at Eldrich and wagged her finger at him.
"Now, don't go giving my son any weird ideas about drinking mead and whatever else knights do that a little boy shouldn't be getting involved with. Am I making myself clear?"

Gabriel laughed awkwardly and whispered to Eldrich.
"I think the whole mead thing is a no-go."

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The king's expression, already stoic and grim, turned sour upon hearing a name that he never wished to hear again.
"Eldrich...and so the nightmare returns. Even in death he haunts my every step, looming like a shadow over me as he waits for his chance to bring everything I've worked for crashing down in ruins around me. I will not suffer such a man to freely walk the Earth."
He stepped out with his thrall following behind into what was once the beautiful courtyard of his ancient kingdom, now little more than an empty plain with rubble scattered around. He turned his head upwards and let out a loud, horrific wail, the sound of which could chill a man down to their very bones. After he did, many of his undead servants heard the call and gathered around him, awaiting his orders. He pointed out his thralls who were still wholly human in appearance, as they were possessed by him only recently. These thralls were part of an expedition sent to uncover the secrets of the Old King's tomb. They paid the ultimate price for their curious meddling.

"Go now. Find Eldrich the Accursed and see to it that he is laid low. But keep yourselves hidden as you do so; this knight is not to be trifled with and if he discovers that I have returned, he will direct his blade and his fury towards us in full force. Destroy him before he is aware of my presence, or else he will surely be on his guard."
The thralls set out to do as they were commanded. The king mused to himself as he watched them leave.
"To think that he could come back to the world of the living after such a long time. This is ill news indeed. There are only a handful of those born to men who could even think to oppose my rule; the greatest among them being Eldrich and--"
He stopped suddenly, his eyes widening in horror.
"Cinder...!"
He called another group of thralls from nearby.
"Where is he? Where is the corpse of the Lord of Slayers?"

The thralls remained silent. They had no answer so they neglected to respond at all.

With a booming voice and a gesture of his hand, he sent them out into the world.
"Find the remains of Cinder and bring him to me. He must not be allowed to return as Eldrich has, lest they work in unison to bring destruction to my fair kingdom once again. I will personally rend his body into pieces, crush his very bones into dust and purge whatever remains in fire and darkness."
The thralls set out to do as they were commanded, leaving the king and his legions of undead behind in the courtyard. The king slowly made his way forward as he looked out at his army, a single thrall still following behind him. At the place that used to be the front gate of the kingdom, he turned to his thrall, a troubled look on his face.

"Tell me something. In this age, do men still sing tales of King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table?"
"They do, my lord."
The king nodded.
"As it should be. This may sound strange, but I have always felt a certain kinship with the character of King Arthur ever since I read of his mythical exploits. We were both divinely appointed to lead. We carried the heavy burden of a ruler. We felt the cruel sting of betrayal's blade as it pierced our heart. We watched helplessly as our kingdoms fell into ruin before our very eyes. However, I have been granted a great boon that King Arthur could have only dreamed of."

His loyal army, still gathered around him on all sides, knelt down as their king's voice grew louder and more commanding than ever. The king looked out at all of them, his expression showing his absolute confidence that he was meant to be ruler of everything under the sun.
"I have been given the chance to rebuild. To make amends for past mistakes and re-establish my divinely appointed rule! Therefore, I discard my given title as the Old King and take up one of my choosing, for my reign is now reborn and will endure throughout the ages. From this day forward, I will be known to friend and foe alike as Althalos, the Endless King!"
He motioned to the thrall in front of him and a few others still scattered around.
"Find the next burial site! I must gather my forces while I am still able."

 

"The city," Hema said waving in the direction of the large metropolis. "We'll meet a contact and then meet with my employer. At least that's the plan." Making an exhausted sigh, she put a hand to her face and rubbed her eyes.
"I control blood." She said to the young girl.

"If we're going to go, we should get moving." Digging around in a pouch she pulled out a stimulant stick. Cracking it under her nose brought life back to her mind.

 

Matthew helped Kitty to her feet.
"A misunderstanding, nothing more. Now he's not trying to kick the hell out of me, I think we can have a civilised conversation before Round Two."
He checked Kitty over.
"He shouldn't have pushed you over. I'm sorry for getting you involved."

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The voice in Neptunus's head spoke again.
"My name is Thegai'Erhath. My identity beyond that is not your concern. What matters is the gift I offer."
Neptunus then vanished from sight before anyone bar Theraploferous picked up on him, and the next thing he knew he was standing in a beautiful forest glade. The sights appeared more pure and idyllic than any terrain on Earth, and even the air tasted sweeter. The woman sitting on the bough facing him was clad in a thin dress of leaves and vines, and her face was almost painfully beautiful.
"Hello, Neptunus." She smiled warmly. "Is this more personable?"

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The woman bowed.
"That they did, sire. Eldrich once again walks the earth."
Hettem looked at her and she nodded. "He has found his way close to us, not too far from here."

"So you're one of those anti-hero types?" Bravado asked. "Well, we could always use more help. And boredom isn't really one of this job's downsides... that would have to be the constant risk of death."
"Always a talented advertiser," Kaur rolled his eyes.
Theraploferous was looking towards the spot where Neptunus disappeared, wondering who he was and where he had gone.
Bravado turned to Roy. "I know Penton is a crook, but that doesn't make assaulting his tower any better. We can't stoop to their level."

Rid looked down at the little girl.
"You don't want to know, luv. Bit much for a little girl, eh?" He tried to ruffle her hair.
"So, onwards we march, madam, then."

 

Kitty shook her head. "It's okay, I shouldn't have ran in the middle of everything, I just wanted everyone to stop fighting." She sighed. "What now?"

 

Neptunus nodded, his hand tightly clutched on his cane now. "Aye, it is." He took a moment to look around him, taking in the extensive beauty of the place, "Where are we? And more on the lines of business, what do you have to offer and what's the catch on it?" He turned his head to the female, waiting for a reply.

Irene giggled as her hair was ruffled - it reminded her of a time before the running, before the hiding, before the death of her parents. Once the ruffling was stopped, she exclaimed, "Your power sounds amazing! I also have powers!" With that, she put her hand to the ground as it seemed to glow a slight green, the dirt and various other pieces from trees seemed to melt away at her touch. She pushed her hand in until her wrist, pulling it out and leaving a small hole the size of her hand. She giggled again, "C-Can I come with you? It gets cold at night and I haven't eaten properly in months."

 

Again, Seth stared at the girl before him for a moment before responding.
"And what, pray tell, do you expect to gain from becoming my 'apprentice'?"

 

"There had to be a reason for their assault, Regardless of such a matter I want to know how he is still alive, I was positive that he perished during the war. In case you didn't know Michael and I took him down during the war of the gods. If he has returned, as he has... I'm afraid his friend will too. Recently, there has been a lot of dark energy back in this city. It's quite discomforting when you notice it. But I'm bound here until that stuff is resolved."

Roy forgot his Manners and reached his hand out towards Bravado, smiling he was hoping that he could get a handshake from the man.

"Almost forgot to formally introduce myself. I am Roy. A frequent drifter of this city, I have friends and family that live here so I stop by from time to time when I have the chance. I am interested in the history of the exceptioners and wouldn't mind joining your group, even if it's only temporary."

"It is quite unfortunate they had to die. Knowing Eldrich it was a mostly painless death. Just a terrifying one, and a bloody one. I digress though." Cinder got up from his sitting position and bowed towards his mistress, and Hettem. "You two should meet up with Eldrich, I am unpresentable currently, keep my life and location secretive, by now Althalos has already caught wind that at least one of us is alive. He is ignorant of my location and I wish for it to remain that way. I will make an entrance when I look less like a corpse and more like a human"

Cinder cared little that he had guests in his mausoleum, he kicked his stone coffin to reveal a cave entrance, after doing such a jumped down it, into a narrow and lengthy hallway. After a few miles of travelling his headquarters were found, coffins lay all across the wall, where knights lay, vampires slumber, and some remained alive. Cautious to every movement, Cinder only need speak "Light the candles." And so the once dark room turned vibrant with color, though underground it was a Gothic hideout. With occult relics everywhere, a dining hall dressed with chalices on the table and more. As Cinder made his way through this place he found his study, where he had laid out plans all those many years ago. If everything was accurate, Althalos will be sending people to search the earth. Within a few hours Eldrich would be found.

When another vampire came in he realized his mistake, however Cinder wasnt mad. "You, come in." And so he did. "What is your name?" The man spoke "Johnathan." Cinder smiled towards him. "Pleasure to meet you, friend. I need to you to go out into the world, John, and spy on Eldrich and Hettem. Do not blow your cover, and do not engage anyone. You may use self defense it need be, but I don't want you to be harmed. Understand?" John nodded and made his way out.

Cinder prepared finishing up his documents walked to the armory, standing in the doorway of it he looked over his weapons, he was preparing for war.

Eldrich tried to speak as lowly as he possibly could, but was likely still audible to gabes parents. "It's okay Master, I will sneak you some mead when your mother and father aren't looking." Thinking Eldrich was being sly he smiled towards them as if he said nothing. Though he could see their expressions change. "Never mind Gabe. They wouldn't be too happy with that."

Eldrich walked towards John and Marie, and kneeled giving the opportunity to let Gabe down from his shoulders. Even when kneeling he was near the height of John and Marie. He was a ginormous figure, and a terrifying looking one too.

"I am ready to go to your home whenever you are. My lord and lady"

 

"Sure you can come." Hema said with a smile, feeling more alive than ever before for the moment. "I have some friends in the city. They'll be more than happy to take care of you."
She'd leave the girl with Say and the others. Without knowing the employer, taking the girl with them to the meeting would be too dangerous.

 

"Yay!" She went to hug the elder girl, a happy and loving gesture. Finally, no more creepy crawlies during the dark. A warm place for her and Flu-, "But wait, can Fluff come?"

 

"Of course." Hema said

 

Seeing that it was apparently time for proper introductions, Logan curtly spoke up.
"Name's Logan. That's all you need to know until we start filling out paperwork or however you guys do it."
He chuckled, a slight smirk noticeable in his expression.
"So I'm "one of those anti-hero types," huh? I think you're giving me too much credit. But hey, I'm not afraid of dying in the slightest because I know it won't happen, so I'm sure I'll fit in just fine."

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Marie and John looked at each other, still seeming unsure about the whole idea. They then looked over to Gabriel, who nodded with a wide smile as if to say "Everything will turn out just fine!" They looked back at each other and Marie was the first one to speak up.
"So...we're really going through with this."
"Well...yeah, I guess we are."

Gabriel quite literally leaped for joy and laughed triumphantly.
"Thanks, mom! Thanks, dad! You won't regret this, I promise."
He cleared his throat and tried his best to look mature and responsible.
"I'll do my absolute best to make sure Mr. Eldrich doesn't get into any trouble. Okay?"

John sighed, but he was smiling faintly.
"Okay. We're gonna hold you to that, Gabe. Let's go home."

Gabriel was practically beaming as the family, with Eldrich in tow, started to make their way back home. True to his word, Gabriel was already trying to think of ways to help Eldrich blend in. He turned to the knight with a quizzical look.
"So, um...how should I put this...how good of an actor are you? 'Cause we need to make sure you can blend in with other people and it's gonna blow our cover if you go around swinging swords and shouting knight stuff."