The Wastelands

*With no hesitance, Whip scoops Mana from the fall into his arms and worriedly holds her*
Whip: Mana!

Mana: *her eyes are closed and she gives a small groan* Don't freak out... Just... Dizzy... *opens one eye slightly and glares accusingly at him* You made me sprint.

Whip: You sprinted the whole way!?
*Whip shakes his head incredulously and uses one hand to pull out a small, circular canteen. He gently offers it to Mana*
Whip: Drink. And Breath.

Mana: *follows Whip's instructions, and judging by the amount of water she drinks, it's obvious she ran herself ragged chasing after him*

*Whip forces the canteen away from her for a short second in a scolding manner*
Whip: Slowly. You'll overdrink and get sick.
*Ignoring his own transgressions, he gives her a hard stare*
Whip: You should'nt have come at all, let alone wasting your energy like this.

Mana: *counters his stare with a scowl and dark glare* Well you shouldn't leave the cave like a thief in the night!

*Whip's gaze breaks from Mana's*
Whip: ...I was going to come back....

Mana: *continues to glare at Whip but there's something vulnerable in her gaze* That's what I thought too. *moves out of Whip's grip and dusts off her dress* But we both know better now, don't we?

*Whip doesn't respond directly, but stands up completely and looks into the ruins*
Whip: I thought it would be quick. I was just going to find an answer.
*His voice drops an octave*
Whip: But it doesn't matter. They're not here.

Mana: *exercising her wrists with a smaller scowl decorating her face from the jolts of pain* Well, do you want to find them?

Whip: ....I did, but...
*Whip begins to turn to Mana whilst he talks, but stops speaking when he notices Mana's wrist motions*
Whip: .....What're you doing? Did you hurt yourself?

Mana: ... *stares at her wrists for a moment and then her hands, but after a few silent seconds of contemplation, she shakes her head* I'm fine. *turns around to stare in another direction* ...If you want to find them, I could lead you to one of their bases.

*Whip doesn't drop the issue lightly, but focuses on the more pressing matter anyways*
Whip: You can't come. Not the way you are now...
*Whip shakes his head*
Whip: You're still hurt, it'd be too dangerous.

Mana: *crosses her arms and glares at Whip* ...Okay, three things. *holds up one finger* One, you're being a hypocrite right now and it's pissing me off, because, like I said, you're more hurt than I am. *holds up a second one* Two, like I also said earlier, you don't know what might and might not take off these damn bracelets. *holds up the third finger* Three, *moves to place her hands on her hips and smirks at Whip* you're forgetting who you're dealing with if you think a simple "Go home" is going to make me listen.

*Whip takes Mana's points in and contemplates with his eyes closed and his arms, crossed. When he reopens them, he's smirking as well*
Whip: I don't have a choice then, do I?
*As if signalling his change of heart, he begins playing with his bangs*
Whip: So, what makes you sure you know the way then?

Mana: I have an invite~ *flicks her wrist forward with her palm up, as if expecting something to pop up, but, embarrassingly enough, nothing does* ... *repeats the motion with the same result* Agggh! *repeats the motion forcefully with a very concentrated expression, and to her delight, a ball of orange energy pops up in her hand* Ha! *holds it out to Whip proudly* This is the invite. It has directions and everything. *despite her words, the ball of energy is pretty much blank to Whip*

*Whip examines it for a few moments*
Whip: ...It's...and impressive ball of light, but how is this going to lead us?

Mana: *holds the ball close to her and winks at Whip* Watch~ *tosses it into the air and the magical ball of energy... drops to the ground with a plop* ...RAAAAGH! WORK WITH ME MAGIC!!! *kicks it into the air, and this time, it gives off a brighter glow and floats into the air and begins to gently guide them in a certain direction; however, Mana doesn't begin to follow and instead smugly crosses her arms* I showed that thing who's boss.

*Whip watches it float on intently*
Whip: ...When did you learn this spell?

Mana: Umm... *rubs the back of her head sheepishly* It's not exactly a spell. It just needs some energy from me to make sure I'm the one using it and not some creep who stole it from me.

Whip: .....
*Whip becomes very suspicious*
Whip: ....What is it, exactly?

Mana: *sighs* I tooold you! It's an invite! *watches it float around as she crosses her arms* That Descendant girl... Blaze, I think? As you know, she offered me to stay with the Descendants, but I refused the offer. *tilts her head in contemplation* Still... She gave it to me, saying it would guide me to their current base if I ever changed my mind. *frowns* Which is weird, considering she sent Set and his goons after me not long after.

*Whip continues to watch the light contemplatively*
Whip: ....It was probably a trap. You ignored the call, so it came calling back.
*His snarky demeanor diminishes into a weak fury, his eyes still locked on the orb*
Whip: ...I doubt she expected you to survive long enough to use it against her.

Mana: *smiles darkly* Well, she's obviously wrong. *looks back at Whip* Ready to get going?

*Whip nods*
Whip: Alright.
*As he continues on ahead of her, it's hard to tell if his next sentence is serious or not*
Whip: But no sprinting, okay?