By this time Ezo had his hands full with stripping the swoop. His arms were full with various parts and pieces. Spitting out a few screws he held in his teeth, he looked at the metal ball Lia juggled. "I know, but that isn't the point. I'm pretty sure we can carry more supplies with us using this." Shaking his head, he dropped everything and made a small circle with his fingers. "I really wasn't clear when I first asked you to melt it, huh? Sorry, but I'll need about ten flat disks about this size. Could you do that please?"

She nodded, looking at the piece curiously, without voicing a reply to Ezo. Not knowing what else to do, she found a surface that wouldn't melt with the heat of the metal and then placed it down. Focusing her energy, she began to melt the metal with what humans had once called magic. Moving fast, she scooped the metal up and tried to form it into a bar while it was cooling, and managed, somehow to make a metal ball out of it. Juggling it from one hand to the next, so she didn't get burnt since it was still cooling, she walked back over to the swoop and asked Ezo, "Is this melted down right? Oh, you know me and Nakia could just carry you and Kammie, right? We'd probably move faster than that thing."

"I think that voice may have told the truth!" Ezo laughed as he entered the huge basement. Walking over to the far wall, he pressed a button, and it opened. The swoop vaguely resembled a suped-up tractor, minus the wheels. Instead it had silvery, metallic plates the size of frisbees all over the bottom surface. Ezo inspected the machine, nodding every once in awhile, and kicking it in a few places. After he was done with his inspection he stepped back, muttering to himself. holding a small metal object, he tossed it to Lia. "First off, I need you to melt that down. It's useless since it's broken, but we don't have the material to just throw it away. I'll strip the swoop and clean out the engine alright?"

"A little voice in my head is saying, in a voice very much like Kammie's, 'mayday, mayday, you're gonna regret what you said!'...should I believe the voice?" Lia teased as she followed him down the stairs. She had no clue how to do anything that he had mentioned, but she was a fast learner and would probably be more of a help than he expected of her. He'd just have to show her how to do things first.

Ezo smiled, he was happy Lia wanted to help. Though he wasn't going to tell her that. Giving a careless shrug,, he began to descend the staircase. "Whatever. Suit yourself. First off, I've gotta fix the swoop. It's the vehicle Kam and I will be using to get around, so i gotta make sure it's in top shape. Some of the parts may be a little rusty so I'll have to replace those, plus, I've gotta check the treads and see if they're still good, the engine might have dust rats in it so I'll have to clean that........" Ezo read the list off the top of his head, counting the items off on his fingers. He looked back up at Lia, beckoning her to come down. "Come on girl, we've got alot of work to do."

Lia had stood up to follow him, leaving the blanket on the floor, and watched while he worked to get the door open. Part of her wanted to move forward and just rip it open, it was so fragile it would have been a breeze for her, but she waited, letting Ezo work on it alone, respecting him in the only way she knew how. When he turned back to her, she wondered if he was startled that she was so close, but didn't ask as she replied, "Yeah, I got all that. I'm not as stupid as I look. I'm breathing aren't I? Well either way, what are you doing and can I help? I don't feel much like sitting around while you work. I don't need sleep...or to eat for that matter, so feel free to abuse my fortitude." She smiled at him, hoping he'd relax a little if she joked around.

Ezo nodded thoughtfully, tapping his finger on his leg. He noticed that Nakia was gone. "It's been a long day." Ezo yawned, covering his mouth with his hand. As must as he wanted to sleep, he knew he had to get alot of things done before they could be ready to leave in the morning. Forcing himself up off the couch, he walked over to the kitchen, splashed a little cold water on himself, and shook his head to clear it. Returning to the living room, he handed Lia a blanket. "It gets really cold down here around this time. There's more blankets in the closet by the bathroom though. If you want, you can go upstairs and sleep with Kam in my room." Ezo moved toward the steel door near the kitchen, quickly unfastening the locks. "If you get hungry in the middle of the night, theres a small pouch of some weird candy Kam gave me." He stopped for a moment, thinking of something. "Anyway, I think they're called "jellybees" or somethin'. Apparently they're impossible to make anymore, and they seem to preserve pretty well, so they should still be good. I don't really like 'em so feel free to have as much as you want." Ezo finally got the door open, and he looked back at Lia. "You got all that?"

While Ezo had been thinking, Nakia had returned to her post on the roof, unconsciously positioning herself above young Kammie. Never before had the demoness has someone to protect, let alone two someones, and not until much later would they realize the strength it gave her, but when do you ever learn what is needed until almost, if not, too late.

"I haven't known Kammie that long, but I'm certain that she is tough and for her, I think home is just with you, wherever you are," Lia replied comfortingly. She curled up on the floor, her tail covering half her face, and she looked at Ezo, quiet and thoughtful.

Ezo chuckled at Nakia's comment. Her jovial attitude helped him to relax. He blinked, and then was back to his old self, hopping onto the couch and sprawling out on it. "I'll need to make a few preparations.........we should have a least a little food to last us for a few days while traveling, but it really isn't much. Concerning the issue about shelter, during my travels on the surface I've seen a few places we could use. If for some reason they're uninhabitable, we'll just have to keep going until we can find a suitable location........." Ezo trailed off as he organized his priorities in his head. He looked up at the ceiling, and as he stared at the fading blue paint, a thought came to him. "Kam.....I'm not sure how she'll take this.....this place is the only true home she's known. Before this, it was just gutters and old sewage pipes."

"You don't need to thank us," Lia said, the same time elbowing Nakia in the ribs for laughing at Ezo's bow. They both knew that it was a great respect to receive a bow from him, such a proud person, so they returned it, Nakia curtsying since she wore a dress and Lia bowing since she was wearing pants and it was more comfortable to her. The two moved with grace that said that bowing was a mannerism that had been pounded into their skulls, Nakia learning it slower than Lia. Nakia piped in, "I'm doing it for the food!" and suddenly both girls were laughing.

Ezo's eye twitched at Nakia's reaction to his attitude. He wasn't that easy to anger........was he? Brushing the thought aside, he walked over to the living room wall, studying one of the many holes in the rusted metal. "Tomorrow? That's fine I guess. We need to leave soon anyway, this place isn't really in the shape to be a shelter." Turning to the sisters, he smiled warmly at them. "I....really appreciate all you two have done. If it wasn't for you guys, me and Kam wouldn't have survived this long. And now, you guys are even warning us about your father. Thank you...truly..for everything you've done." This left Ezo feeling a little embarrassed. He nervously looked around, taking care not to make eye contact with either Nakia or Lia. Moving a little stiffly, he bent his upper body forward in what must have been a bow. The effect was nothing short of entertaining; his movement was so out of character and awkward, it seemed downright unnatural.

The two sisters looked dumbstruck and Nakia couldn't help it as she asked, "That's it? No scream? No shouting? No raging?" "Eleie, shut up and get on with it," Lia snapped at her sister, and the dark hair girl nodded, before continuing, "They are clearing the surface, which will be done in about two days. So we should leave tomorrow if we can."