(Just a heads up, I'm going to post the LAST ten to fifteen old posts on here a few at a time. I ain't gonna go through the whole RP and do that, sorry. ;~; But at least you have a GoogleDoc to look back on all the good times!)
When the old man had said, 'What happened in that village had been unfortunate. However, you are still seeing the events with ignorance.' He thought that it had been rather clear. Sure there were unknowns, but why worry about that now? What was important now was that everyone was safe and that included Izra. Then Master Midarah seemed to want Izra with them as well. 'Master Midarah, this isn't just some child who's been cursed or has more magic to deal with than normal-!' His eyes light up for a moment. Did they know, well more specifically did this old man know about his past? They were then shortly escorted out of the courtroom by one of the employees. 'I told you not to speak up, but it was necessary, Are you all holding up alright?' "Not speaking up in the past has showed me that it does not work out that well. I have a feeling they might know of my past," he said this with a worried tone. That was when Thea asked, 'They are going to let Izra go right?' "I do not know but she will be fine she is a fighter after all." He looked at Master Midarah, "it seems like the Magic Council are hiding something." That said they always seemed that way. With that said and done there was nothing to do but wait.
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Master Midarah lowered her hand and then knelt down in front of Thea, putting a hand on her shoulder. "When things like what happened in Murgate Village come to light, the Magic Council feels absolutely responsible for letting it go unnoticed for so long. They are supposed to protect the world, and when this comes out, the reputation of the Magic Council is at stake and people question if they can really protect the world from such horrible things. So they hold an iron fist to try to set things right again..." Master Midarah sighed out. "It seems cruel to us... But it's sadly necessary sometimes. Otherwise people much crueler than the mayor and some of the town's people will get away with more heinous of crimes." The young woman looked up to Zephyr when he punched the wall and then to Gavin when he began to speak. She frowned slightly and stood up, dusting off her kimono. "Not just your past Gavin, but Thea's. And another in our guild as well. They know most members of the Divine Rose, and know that they have become successful mages despite their circumstances." Master Midarah looked to Thea and smiled gently at her. "This is why I requested Izra's release into our custody."
The door opened, and a staff member bowed to the group. "Master Midarah, the Magic Council has reached a decision and wants to speak to only you."
The master looked at her guild members and nodded her head to them before looking back ahead. "Very well. I will be back..." With that, Master Midarah proceeded forward, the door closing behind her.
It was only a few minutes, but it seemed to drag on for hours while Midarah was in the courtroom alone. The voices inside were hushed, and hardly distinguishable. Soon afterwards, the door open and Midarah appeared to the group again. "Good news," she said softly to them as she placed her hand on Thea's shoulder. "Izra is coming home with us today. However, she will be under a 'house arrest' of sorts while the case is studied and the trial is underway. She will not be able to leave the guildhall unless I or an S-Class Mage accompanies her at all time. The others, Jack, Maliel, and Kyo will be taken to the place where the surviving children are being cared for to help out and be under close supervision as well. It's better than being imprisoned here though," she said with a brief sigh. "Izra will be waiting for us outside. The meeting with the Magic Council is over, so lets be on our way."
With that, Master Midarah led the group back to the outside world. The sun was shining lowly in the sky, and crows cawed somewhere in the distance. A carriage waited at the bottom of the stairs for the group, as well as four rune knights standing around a figure.
Izra was looking at the ground with heavy shackles on her wrists and ankles. They were nullifying her magic, making her feel more weak than normal. Her eyes had dark circles under them, her hair in front of her face as she stared at the ground. It didn't look like she received much rest since the time she seen the others.
Master Midarah approached the guards and frowned at the sight of the shackles on the girl. "That won't be necessary. Please remove those from her."
Izra hadn't noticed the others behind Midarah yet and kept her eyes down. The Rune Knights looked at each other and then reluctantly took the chains off of her. She did nothing to fight it, and didn't even move once the chains were removed from her.
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Lakoda's eyes brighten when she saw the others return from their mission as well. Samuel and Everette looked ran down to the ground though and she felt sorry for the lads. She signed back to Everette a greeting and to rest well before she noticed Conrad sat by the window by the piano. She smiled when he motioned for them to sit with him, and then she took a sandwich from Shawn. "Thank you. Let's go sit by Conrad," she suggested. She then went over to her dear friend and sat down beside him, giving him a side hug. "How was your mission?" she asked as she looked him over with slight concern. "Everette and Samuel looked so tired... You're doing okay?"
Everette too was exhausted, had he been the only one to snatch some rest on the train? Sure they couldn't all do it lest they miss their stop, but it surprised him a little bit. It didn't mean he was in as great a state as he held himself the mission had been exhausting, even without his body fighting off the poison for a couple of hours. "Sure thing, Everette, I'll mention it if I see her. Sleep well." Conrad said with a friendly smile. He'd probably go find her a bit later, if she was around at all. When Lakoda gave him a side hug he wrapped his arms around her in response. "It went... well all things considered." Conrad said hesitating a moment to find the right word, they had helped the village and resolved the problem but there had been some significant challenges thrown their way. "The two of them have been up a long time on the mission and used a lot of their magic especially Samuel in helping victims and devising an antidote. Everette fought hard against the serpent that was poisoning the villagers through their water. I too fought the serpent alongside Everette, but because I was exposed to the poison I had some time to rest up after the fight while the antidote was made..." Conrad explained. "I'm fine now though... thanks to Samuel and his antidote, maybe a bit tired from the journey, but I'm fine." He didn't want to worry his dear friend too much altough she knew that with Samuel with them he had been in capable hands. "How did your mission go?" Conrad asked before taking a bite out of his meal.
Thea nodded her understanding, but she still didn't like it. She was going along with what was said just for show more than her actually agreeing to it. She knew better than to spend too long arguing with Master Midarah. And when she spoke to Gavin, Thea shifted uncomfortably as happy as she usually seemed, Thea never liked talking about her past, or at least the part that brought her to the guild. She liked living out her high end life style that she had grown up with, but beyond that she tried to avoid most of the stuff about her past, she simply found it too painful to face.
And then like that Midarah was called away and Thea was left waiting with Gavin and Zephyr, who she chose not to talk to for the time being. She didn't know how much they knew but didn't want questions asked about it either. It was fortunate that Midarah didn't take too long before she came out and told them that Izra would be able to come back with them. She didn't care if the older girl was under house arrest, at least it was a good sign that she wouldn't be in too much trouble.
As they exited the building and Thea saw Izra, she got a little upset, the girl looked tired and not in good shape. "Izra! Areyou alright? You get to come home with us now! The guild is great, nothing like these grumpy old people. Come on. When we are back I will introduce you to Samuel and Everette, they are like big brothers to me. Oh and Nagata. She buys me a lot of pretty dresses." Thea went off before hugging the girl trying to make her feel better.
He stood there not doing much. Master Midarah then said, 'When things like what happened in Murgate Village come to light, the Magic Council feels absolutely responsible for letting it go unnoticed for so long.' "That did not seem to be the case in Airlenten 13 to 15 years ago," he said offhandedly. Then Master Midarah said, 'Not just your past Gavin, but Thea's. And another in our guild as well. They know most members of the Divine Rose, and know that they have become successful mages despite their circumstances.' So it was not just his past but everyones. "What happened in Airlenten changed me. It made me want to make a difference. What I did to protect Storm made a difference. I used magic to save him. Sure at the time I was only between the age of three and five but..." His voice trailed off. "As for being a successful mage I would not say that about myself. I help those that are in need. To make a difference in the world." He did not think there was anything special about what he did in Murgate Village nor anywhere else. The mayor got away and he was to slow to stop him. He did not know what that was but he would not call it successful. Master Midarah then told them that Izra was coming back with them. Izra was outside when they arrived with heavy shackles on her wrists and ankles. He did not think that was all that necessary. When Thea ran to Izra he could not help but smile. He tuned to Zephyr and said, "It is good to see her happy." He knew that when the news that Izra was coming back with them that it had to be Thea that went to her first. "It is good to see you Izra." He wondered what they did to the young girl.
He fallowed Lakoda to where Conrad was. He listened to what was being said. Conrad telling them bits from his mission, fallowed by him asking how theirs went. "You could say it wasn't a cake walk, but it was interesting, we learned a few interesting things." He looked over to Lakoda wondering how much they should really tell Conrad, telling him about Samuel's having an older sister, was one thing an other to tell him the mess with the dark guild Hydra's Claw, with the people/bird Reuben, Lytton, Jy, and the pendant of power thing they we for sure after, that was most likely in the cake that Lady Erin ended up opening and holding on to.
Zephyr hadn't said anything when Midarah alone had been called back into the room. He could guess why it was the case but said nothing to about it. Nor did he speak to Gavin or Thea while they waited. The minutes indeed seemed to drag on until Midarah had returned with good news. The house arrest aside Izra would be coming back with them at least and that was good. Same with Maliel and the others. Long as they weren't being left directly in the care of the Council.
The sight of Izra though was a different matter. She clearly had treated as a criminal and all for upholding the 'justice' the council believe in. None of it sat well with Zephyr, not at all. It made the fact that she was coming back with them all the better. A simple nod was what he offered to Gavin in response to Thea being happy before he too approached Izra. "We should probably get you some rest first when we get back."
Izra's head snapped up when she heard a familiar voice. Her eyes landed on the small group before her, shocked by their sudden appearance. "Th-Thea...?" Izra was suddenly hugged by the little girl, which made her stand their in stunned silence for a moment. The guards moved away from the pair while Izra stared down at Thea, not believing what she was seeing. Her eyes suddenly became cloudy with tears, and her chin quivered in a moment of weakness. Izra fell to her knees and brought the young girl into her arms, hugging her tightly as she was trying to get a hold of her emotions. "Thank you.... Thank you for coming for me..." She squeezed her firmly one more time before letting go and looking up at Gavin and Zephyr as they joined with the rest of them. "I didn't expect to see you here," she stated with a nervous laugh, sniffing and rubbing at the corner of her eyes.
"Here are the girl's belongings," one of the knights said as they pulled out a gunnysack with a few items and then an intricate black instrument case that had carvings of butterflies and leaves on vines. Master Midarah nodded as she took the things reverently. "Thank you... I assume we're free to be on our way?"
"Yes ma'am. You may leave at any time."
"Very well..." Master Midarah looked to the small group and smiled softly at the reunion. Despite for the reputation of the Divine Rose taking in "strays", she didn't mind it one bit. This was one of the reasons why she decided to become a master after all. "Come along then," she said to the group. "Let's go home."
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Lakoda blanked out during Conrad's explanation, blinking her eyes as she absorbed as much information as she could. Snapping out of it, she folded her arms and stuck out her bottom lip in a pout. "Aw! You got to go monster hunting without me?!" She scoffed and turned her nose in the air. "No fair..." She then looked at him and gently nudged him in the shoulder. "At least it went well, and you're not dead. I would have brought you back to life just to kill you again if you died on a mission with or without me." She then glanced at Shawn, and she smiled before her shoulders shook. She was giggling, but of course no sound but the air escaping her nose could be heard. "Sort of... We were delivering some cakes and cookies to a baby shower... We got ambushed by these pesky mages from a dark guild I believed. They thought we had an artifact on hand and... turns out we did." Lakoda scratched her cheek in thought and took a bite of her sandwhich. The joy of not being able to speak was to have a necklace doing the talking for her while she could eat. "Did you know that Samuel has an older sister...? Apparently she was the one we were delivering the cakes and goodies to... The artifact was something Samuel's older brother made? Some kind of protective talisman... Did you know he had an older brother, too...?" Both her and Conrad had been in the guild for a while, Lakoda longer than him by five years. Both of them knew of Samuel, but Lakoda was stuck in her own little world for a while due to unusual circumstances. In the past years of being in the guild, she had flourished into a more confident young lady; no longer shy of her inability to speak like everyone else.
Conrad listened attentively to what was being said he raised an eyebrow at how vague Shawn was putting it almost as if he wasn't allowed to know what had gone on if Shawn thought that was necessary for this mission Conrad wasn't going to argue just another thing they couldn't talk about. He turned his attention to Lakoda who was pouting at him for having gone on a monster hunt without her, as it was a thing they usually did together. "Well Lakoda I seem to recall having given you the chance to come along and well furthermore it didn't exactly say we were going to hunt a giant serpent." Conrad said with a smirk that quickly changed into a broad smile accompanied by laughter as she poked his ribs and claimed to raise him from the dead just to send him back herself for dying on her. He was familiar with her soundless laughter and was glad to see her laugh. "You really thought I would die like that? Oh no it takes more than that to be rid of me and know that the same goes for you, missy" he added with a grin on his face. He fidgeted with his hands surpressing the urge to sign along with his speaking because of the awkward situation it had lead to that morning.
As Lakoda gave an explanation for what happened on their mission Conrad simply listened while taking a bit from his food, his breath caught at the mention of a Dark Guild and he stopped chewing a good thing too as more rather shocking things were revealed and he controlled himself enough to chew and swallow before speaking up. "I never knew... he never mentioned them to me, I mean I guess there always had been the possibility of him having siblings but I didn't know..." Conrad said rather surprised at the news of Samuel's siblings. The mage and him got along rather well and even helped each other out, but he had never spoken of them. "So are you going to tell him about it all? You know him becoming an uncle and all? I won't breathe a word of this to him unless you want me to." Conrad if he were in Samuel shoes would want to be told but he wasn't Samuel, but he still thought he deserved to know what was going on with his family. "Those mages from this Dark Guild, did they mention a name or did you see their mark?" he was merely curious as he had had a run in with members of one in the past.
He sat there as Lakoda and Conrad talked, Lakoda mentioned what happened on there mission. She talked about how they were attacked on the way to the baby shower. He wasn't sure to begin with if they should tell Conrad, but guessing what he had to deal with it seemed he had just as much trouble as they did. He decided as this point he might as well tell him everything. "They are called Hydra's Claw, with people and a bird, there names were Reuben, Lytton, and Jy. The bird had egg magic, one of them had shadow magic and the last had speed magic. The guild mark had three heads on it of I'm guessing a hydra in a shape of a circle, kind of like the heads were following each other, and linked in the middle. We still don't know why they wanted this artifact, but then again why would a dark guild want anything. I'm assuming the baby is a mage of some short and the artifact is to help protect the baby. As for telling Samuel, about everything I think someone should, he seemed tired though and I thought it would be nice to let him rest for a bit."
"Why wouldn't we come for you? You are my friend? Besides it was unfair that they just took you away before I was even awake and able to defend you, so the moment I was on my feet again I came here for you and now you get to come home with us!" Thea exclaimed excitedly as Master Midarah tried to usher them to start leaving. "Come on. You can even share my room if you need a place to rest right away. I don't mind. I was just sleeping for a while so I am not all that tired." Thea continued to babble on towards Izra as they started off, clearly the entire encounter not dampening her spirits in the slightest, even if for a brief time the magic council made her very uncomfortable. Izra hadn't seen that so hopefully she wouldn't have to explain, it was never easy to explain. She was more than willing to try, but she couldn't deny that it bothered her to some extent.
At first Irza seemed to be in shock to see them. He just stood there letting Thea have her moment with Irza. Then Irza said, 'I didn't expect to see you here.' "I seem to remember you saving our lives back at the village and we could not just leave you here." At this point Master Midarah seemed to want them to go and he did not blame her he did not want to be here any longer then he had to be. Thea had said something about sharing a room and he just smiled at her not know what to say. "Well we should get back to the guild hall." With that he stood by waiting for the others.
"You helped us out, least we could do is to return the favor." Zephyr said, smiling as his hands found their way into his pockets. He was starting to feel a bit more at ease about this whole thing. Even if the trial was something that they would have to deal with, later on, it was still a ways off and not the prime concern right now. There was still something else on his mind though, something he would likely bring up later on with Midarah. At the very least I should tell her about it. For now, such thoughts were cast aside until they actually got back to the guild hall.
Yukyo had gotten off the wagon as it arrived back to the Guild Hall. He had started stretching a bit before walking back into the Guild Hall. Lakoda and Shawn had walked off to converse with the others. The young man looked around before seeing Everette and Samuel walking off, looking quite exhausted. It was then that he remembered a certain trick he had found out earlier during the mission. A small smirk ran across his face as he started planning a "relaxing" way for them to de-stress. He walked outside for a moment to begin his little trick.
After several minutes, Yukyo walked back inside and walked up to Everette. "I'm home~!" He slapped his back as he had announced his arrival. "It's good to be home!" He took a step in front of Everette. They kept walking as Yukyo took a quick glance at the window. "So! I found out something pretty interesting while I was gone. One of which has to do with our dear dear Sammy!" He smiled as put a hand on his hat. He immediately took a few more steps back before revealing his other finding. "The other this is..." He paused before letting out the sound of a cat. In the next few moments, several cats had jumped through the window, pouncing on Everette. More and more cats continued to jumping through the window, burying Everette in cats. "I can call animals and have them do stuff for me! Yay!!!" He clapped as his smile continued to shine on his face.
Izra smiled kindly at Thea, and then looked at the other two boys. Without much of a word, she approached them and gave them both a quick hug before backing off and bowing her head to them in respect. "Thank you again..." The small group loaded into the carriage, Izra sitting in the middle by Midarah and Thea. They were soon off, and well on their way back to the guildhall.
"I believe we have an extra room prepared for you," Master Midarah commented to Izra. "That way you don't have to give up your room, Thea." The woman chuckled and folded her hands in her lap. "Did they tell you the conditions of your release...?"
The light in Izra's eyes faltered and she looked down at the floor. "Yes. That I can't leave the Guild Hall unless I'm with you or an S-Class Mage...?"
"We might make other arrangements down the line," Master Midarah said with a slight smirk on her face and winked at the young mage. "After all, you did save my guild members... They're like my family to me. And, well, I just met you today, but I have a feeling you will be made apart of our family... If you already haven't," she said, referring to Thea.
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"I think I will tell Samuel he's an uncle later... Who knows, he might already know about it?" Lakoda listened to Shawn's explanation, and then glanced around a moment. There was a paper napkin on the table, and Lakoda had a pen in her pocket. She pulled it out and drew three dragon like heads, all facing counter-clockwise and had frills on their spine. They all connected in the center and Lakoda pushed the napkin towards Conrad. "Kind of like this..."
"Oh yeah. Thank you for saving me Izra. I am sorry if I scared you." She said quietly knowing how worried people looked when she woke up. She wasn't quite sure how much that she missed during the time she was out. She had missed Izra being arrested and the end of the battle, she couldn't only assume that Izra helped her out again. It was at the very least a polite thing she could do. Thea sunk back into her seat, leaning against the wall of the carriage. She was very tired still, and didn't want to rest before coming here, now she was worn out. She thought she was just resting her eyes for a moment, but next thing she knew she was fast asleep. Everette was just about to open the door to his room when Yukyo pushed his way in front of him and into the doorway to his room. Yawning Everette was going to push past him when Yukyo mentioned something about Samuel which made Everette concerned. "Fine, Fine I will bite, come-" As he tried to call Yukyo in, Yukyo summoned a bunch of cats to flood his room and attack him. Everette while often trying to at least enjoy people's jokes he couldn't keep himself awake enough to enjoy this. Trying to push the cats off, Everette looked at Yukyo. "Please call the cats off and just tell me what you learned, please." He didn't want to sound rude, but his head was pounding and the only thing he could think of was sleep.
Zephyr waited til the current conversation had come to a close before speaking up himself. "Hey Midarah, can I speak with you in private when we get back." The ominous warning that the spider demon had left them was still on his mind, which at the very least was something Midarah should know about. That said, when he'd it aloud he wouldn't be surprised if everyone was wondering what it was now. Even still there wasn't much that could be done about that. Zephyr still sat by awaiting his answer.
When Izra had hugged him he was a bit surprised. "You saved us we should be thanaking you," he said with a smile. He watched as Thea got into the carriage and fall asleep. When Zephyr had asked to speak to Midarah about something he did not think to much about it. Zephyr did have a mystery about him.
Yukyo put his arms behind his head as he smiled while the cats kept pouncing on Everette. Everette struggled but managed to continue pushing the cats off him. "Please call the cats off and just tell me what you learned, please." Yukyo looked over to Everette and saw exhaustion written over his face. He sighed before telling the cats to hold off their strike. "You're no fun but whatever. Take five guys." He decided to help Everette up to his feet. "Oh well. Might as well explain myself." She shrugged his shoulders before going over to Everette and putting an arm around his shoulders. "Well dear Eve. It seems that our dear Sammy Sam is..........." He paused for a dramatic effect before continuing. "Is...." He paused again before letting go and standing in front of him. "VERY LOADED!! And~!! He has a sister!! Did ya know that??" Yukyo raised his arms into the air fro an added effect as he explained what he knew. "I was very surprised to hear about that. To think dear Samuel was loaded!!! And has a sister!! Very interesting!!" Yukyo put both arms at his hips as he nodded his head.
"Annnnddd......" Everette waited for the big important news, but then realized that it wouldn't be coming. He just found out about Samuel and was making a big deal about it. Tired and irritated Everette wasn't going to wait until he convinced Yukyo to leave before heading for his bed. No he took off his shirt and threw it on the floor as he laid back. "You made it sound like there was some big deal to come with Sam. Now if you excuse me I have been up all night and plus some. Today has been exhausting." He said closing his eyes, waiting, hoping that Yukyo would take the hint to leave him be and let him sleep.
Conrad listened tentatively to the information he was receiving, he was visibly shocked by hearing the Guild name as he had a run in with them several years ago, a run in which had lead him to this guild. He looked to Lakoda for a moment and took a moment to calm down and gather himself while listening to Lakoda pitching in and looking at the picture she had drawn. "I agree, we ought to let Samuel rest for now and he can be informed later." Conrad said, looking at the picture again, it was exactly like the mark he had seen on the giant serpent and now that he had a name with the mark it explained why he felt like he had seen it before. Because he had seen it before, but the memory had been buried beneath newer ones and he couldn't place it. "I saw that mark on the back of the serpent... it may be pure coincidence, but I am sure I saw that mark too..." Conrad said, he wasn't going to mentioned recalling the name or now recognizing the symbol that lay before him to just about anyone. He needed to swap some thoughts with Lakoda on the matter later, perhaps even bring this to Midarah's attention.
The carriage ride back was peaceful enough, with all the excitement of the day winding down. Once they arrived at the Guild, they were met by Nagata who had returned from a mission, and carried Thea to bed. Izra was shown where she would be sleeping and was given a change of clothes, pajamas, basic hygiene products, and a warm meal to fill her stomach. Everyone had officially settled in for the evening, and Master Midarah had retired to her office to speak with Zephyr.
Conversation with Master Midarah and Zephyr:
The young master had her rabbit in her arms, stroking its fur gently as she offered a place for Zephyr to sit in a comfrotable dark cherry-wood chair with red pillows on the bottom and the shoulders to make it more comfortable. "Now," the master said as she sat down in a matching chair herself right across from the teenager. The desk was right by her, for she liked to keep an open space between her and her guild mates as much as possible when speaking to them. "What would you like to discuss with me?" Master Midarah inquired as she rhythmically pet Artemis.
Once Midarah herself had gotten situated, Zephyr took the time to sit down in the seat offered to him. It took a bit for him to get comfortable, but that also could've been because of what it was that he wanted to get off his chest. He finally sat still and turned his attention in Midarah's direction. "It's about the Thea, Gavin and I went on. How much about it were you told by the magic council?"
"I was told all that had transpired from the report that was given. That your mission was not what it was written to be, that children had been sacrificed for some time in that village..." Midarah spoke grimly as her heart felt heavy from the circumstances. "And for some reason, the message that was said to have been sent several times to call for help didn't reach their ears. They were afraid there were dark connections afoot, and the Mayor and his people were not acting alone. Thus is why they were reluctant to let Izra go... Though it appears she had completely severed her own ties to the Dark Guild she was previously aligned with. What is on your mind?" Master Midarah coaxed again, looking up at Zephyr while still holding her pet.
As Midarah had recap everything that had occurred on their mission, Zephyr himself was further collecting his thoughts. Though it was really more mental preparations for what he had to say. Part of him still felt unsure about telling this to anyone, least right away and at the same time he knew he'd feel worse should something happen as a result of his silence. Moments passed and Zephyr let out a sigh, ready to continue. "After the demon was dealt with, she'd left a warning of sorts to me. Someone or something is looking to attack the guild, to attack us!"
Master Midarah frowned and stopped her motions, causing Artemis to lift his sleepy head to look up at her. "Zephyr, did she said who or what would be preparing an attack on us...?" she asked calmly. She wanted to hear her guild mate out and not to brush things aside. The Divine Rose had very few enemies as far as anyone was aware, but it was better safe than sorry to be on the cautious side.
"She didn't," Zephyr said. Her words had been dancing about in his head since he was first told them. He'd remember if there was a certain name mentioned. "She only said that they would pluck us off one by one." Repeating those words had caused Zephyr to shift uncomfortably in his seat and what really had him on edge.
Master Midarah could see that her guildmate was troubled by this, and her heart went out to him. She practically raised him since his arrival here, along with some other guild members. She arose from her seat, carefully setting the rabbit down before approaching Zephyr and crouching in front of him. “We will handle this,” she assured him. “It could be an empty threat, or it could actually mean something. Whatever the case may be, we will keep watch. It’s too soon to say anything, but that doesn’t mean we will brush it off.” She placed a hand on Zephyr’s shoulder and squeezed it lightly while trying to give him a reassuring smile. “The Divine Rose will handle whatever threat will come... rest assured.” She then stood back up slowly, and then glanced to the outside window. “It’s close to nightfall now... will you be able to sleep alright?”
The reassuring smile and comforting squeeze to his shoulder did ease some of his worries. It was the actions he'd imagine a mother giving to her young which was fitting given that Midarah was the closest thing to a mother he's had. He appreciated this, all of this from the bottom of his heart. "I know." Zephyr allowed the ease to remain with him as he spoke once again. "I'll be fine, thanks."
“Alright...” Master Midarah smiled gently at him and nodded her head to him. “Then go wash up and rest well, young one. If you need to talk to me or you have trouble sleeping, you know where to find me.”
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The forest itself created a lonely spooky vibe to it. More so with the rolling, evening fog and the sounds of nature echoing here and there; a hoot of an owl, a howl of a lone wolf, sounds of bugs and frogs echoing off of each other.
Three cloaked figures stepped through the forest, meeting in the middle. As they approached, the forest seemed to grow eerily still.
There were sounds of clumsy feet pushing through the brush and snapping the twigs under heavy feet. The figure on the farthest right was about to step forward when the one in the middle raised up a hand. All looked to the direction of the thickets that were swaying and rustling erratically as someone stumbled through.
Mayor Nudgav’s chest heaved up and down as he tried to catch his breath. Twigs and leaves were sticking out of his curly, grey hair, his clothes were ripped and torn in various places, and he was splashed in mud and swamp water.
“To think you would be brave enough to show your face here…” The one on the left darkly stated.
“It was not to be this way!” the mayor spat as he regained his bearings and stood on his feet. “You promised the demon would be strong enough to sustain my town and kill all trespassers.”
“And she served her purpose well,” the one on the right responded with a sly grin. “There was nothing in the contract of our demon stopping guild mages. The child that was causing your sacrifices to slow was the product of your own doing. Not ours… You were to rely on the demon or seek to destroy the rat yourself.”
“Your foolish job almost had us exposed.”
“Enough,” the one in the middle finally spoke up. “You’re giving this poor man a hard time… He surely deserves a drink after the rough day he had.” They then produced a water pouch with a silver goblet, filling it up and handing it to the mayor who took it and drank it up hungrily.
“Th-thank you,” the Mayor gasped between gulps. “I will fix this somehow. It will all be forgotten about.”
“Oh, you’re right,” the one in the middle replied. “It will be forgotten.”
Just then the mayor began to gag and hold his throat. He was unable to breathe and reached out in agony to those in front of them. They looked on, uncaring, amused, or stone-cold. “You’ve done enough damage, old friend. It’s time for you to rest now…” As the mayor sunk to his knees and then fell face forward to the ground, the one in the middle looked to the others. “And what of Rezit? How did their mission turn out?”
“The snake perished, my lord. A guild by the name of Divine Rose took on the job and slayed the beast.”
The man in the middle tilted his head in curiosity. “The Divine Rose you say? Hmm… Most curious... And you. What have you heard of the amulet? Was it retrieved by Jy, Reuben, and Lytton.”
“No my lord,” the one on the left responded. “They were stopped by mages of... er... I believe it was also the Divine Rose?”
“That guild name again…” The man let out a laugh, grabbing at his head and shaking it. “Ah, the Divine Rose… Such fond memories of that quaint place.”
The mayor was gasping out his last breaths of air as vines suddenly erupted from the ground, covering the mayor’s warm body and pulling it into the fog. The middle man chuckled darkly and placed his hand on his hip. “I’ll be damned… It’s only fate we met them of all guilds. Tell the others to keep an eye on them. They are no threat to us so far, just mere nuisances. As for the traitor… She’s in the hands of the Magic Council now.” He gritted his teeth and turned to face the full moon. “That’ll will have to be taken care of in due time. For now, we carry on normally…”
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A few days had gone by since everyone returned from their missions. All reports should had been turned in by then, and Master Midarah had been reviewing them. It was quietly in the abode, rather chilly too. Fall was around the corner, and it was still a little too warm to light the fireplaces. Still, the rooms stayed comfortably cozy to say the least.
Lakoda walked down to the Main Hall, yawned soundlessly while stretching her arms above her head. She then smacked her lips and followed her nose to the smell of breakfast. She went to grab a bowl of bacon, eggs, and hash browns when she noticed the job board. "Oh, new jobs..." Lakoda walked over to the board with her bowl in hand, picking at bits of bacon and nibbling on them. She scanned over the ones that were sitting up there; one of them was oldish, two of them were surely new. She scrunched her nose at the fishing job, seeing how much jewels were offered. She nearly spat out her breakfast and did a double take. Guild mates would be set for life on rent!
But then another mission caught her eye. She read the first few lines, and then suddenly felt her blood grow cold. She placed her breakfast down on the the table, reaching to the job and gently tugging it off the board. Her eyes read and reread the mission over and over again until realization settled in. Food forgotten, Lakoda gripped the job in her hands and beeline out of the Guild Hall to go find Conrad.
He got into the carriage, which was a peaceful enough ride back to the guildhall. He silently watched as Zephyr and Midarah went off to talk. We stood there for a moment and wondered why he was not invited to join them. Then they thought that everyone had a secret came into his mind. No one seemed to have noticed that Maidarah had gone off with them. Entering the guild hall he noticed that the other two groups were back from there mission. Not really getting a chance to talk to them about what happened on there missions. He knew that what happened on the mission he was just on would get out. There was also a new person in the guild and they could not hide that fact. The one thing that could be hidden would be the fact that Izra was apart of a dark guild. He did not see telling the others going over all to well. That said he did not see a reason not to tell them. All he knew was he was going to leave it up to Izra to tell people. If she wanted to tell people then that was fine and if not that was also fine. He did not bother looking at the jobs when he entered the guild hall as he looked at it when he had left to go get Izra. There was one about a pet and another one about fishing that had a lot of Jewels attached to it. The amount of Jewels seem rather odd and screamed trap to him. With everyone talking to each other or off by themselves he figured that it was time for bed. The first day went by fast with nothing to note but the odd dream he had that night. He could not remember mach about it other then he was someplace dark. He woke up the second day and had the same dream but this time he could see trees. Everything was pitch black. There was some figures that he could not make out and he felt the need to run so he did. he went through where ever he was only to see another person in the shadows. This time he was able to make out that the person was female. He got the sense she was looking for something or someone. That see needed help but then he woke up and did not thing much more about it.
He stood by his desk with a black sheet of paper laying on it. The only thing visible was the words Divine rose. Putting the paper way and walking over to the window he wondered what he should do. The last two days nothing really happened and he was staring to get board with not doing anything. He knew of the job that he was going to take the only problem was finding people to go with him. At this point he thought about joining Zephyr in the training hall. After the last mission it would not hurt to stay on top of things.
Thea finally managing to rest for a few days and was back on her feet, eagerly looked at the job board. She was tired of sitting around doing nothing in particular besides spending time with Izra and healing up properly. She spent a lot of time bothering Samuel and Everette as well since the last mission had left her so shaken. She didn't want to tell anyone, so instead she spent her time with whoever would put up with her around. Thankfully most people were used to it by now, but she wouldn't touch her magic for days afterwards. She remembered the golden flames, how spectacular they were and how devastating they were. She didn't know what to think of that attack.
Finally Thea looked at the board and found a rather nice sounding mission. She didn't want anything too stressful this time, no big scary monsters trying to take children. Pet sitting sounded nice. Slowly Thea took down the poster for that mission and looked around. "Um, does anyone want to do this with me?" She asked glancing around feeling like no one would want to work with her this time after what happened last time. There was no real reason for that feeling but she was still nervous, hopefully someone would come with her.
Yukyo sighed as Everette responded to his exciting news. He crossed his arms in disappointment before letting out an exaggerating sigh. "Well that's anti-climatic....sigh...Well there goes my fun." Yukyo shrugged his shoulders before starting to make his way out of Everette's room. "Well....enjoy your rest, Sleeping Beauty. Come on guys, we gotta find a new target. Unless some of you guys want stay with Sleepy over there." Yukyo exited Everette's room along with some of the cats while 2 or 3 of them stayed behind. Once Yukyo closed his door, he tried to think of another plan. Another idea had struck through him. "Alrighty my feline friends....Your mission.....Roam through the guild hall!!" Yukyo pointed his finger up to the sky as he placed on hand on his hip. The cats nodded their head as they ran off into different directions. "It's fun being me sometimes but it can be so exhausting but it's worth it..." Yukyo felt his tail swish from side to side as he made his way to the Job Board. He glanced over it and saw one job was filled to the brim. "Well that's not happening....Oh well." He shrugged his shoulders before over-hearing Thea. "Um, does anyone want to do this with me?" The young man looked over and saw the job was to pet-sit. He shrugged his shoulder before ruffling her hair. "Why not? Shouldn't be too hard..."Yukyo then recalled his last job before quickly knocking on wood. He decided to take the pet-sitting job and join Thea for said job.
His conversation with Midarah did help him feel at ease, the underlying concern he felt was still there and not going anywhere anytime soon. Zephyr managed to distract himself from it over the coming days with a variety of things. His usually training routine with the occasional new thing thrown in there to help with his magic, plus speaking with Izra. All this had made it so his worries were not at the top of his mind, but unfortunately, there were still there, leaving him with little to do beyond trust in Midarah's words and not dwell on this.
Now, however, Zephyr found himself in a new predicament, he had no idea what to do right now. He didn't feel like training right now, nor did he wish to visit the library. He'd ponder on this as he walked towards the main hall and stopped upon hearing a small mewl in front of him. The reason being that there was a little kitten in front of him, staring at him. Zephyr stared back at the kitten, then the latter walked up to his leg and rubbed its head against him. Crouching down, Zephyr picked up the kitten and it very quickly found its way to his shoulder and perched up there. This seemed like something Yukyo would know about this.
The stray kitten had effectively given him something to do as he made his way down to the main hall, he spotted Yukyo by the job board next to Thea. He still needed to get a look at those anyway, but first thing first. "Hey Yukyo, you have something to do with this?" Zephyr motioned to the kitten that was still comfortably perched on his shoulder.
Knowing what job he wanted to go on he figured that it was time to look for someone to go with him. Pet sitting would be a nice relaxing job or so he hoped. With the way things happened on the last mission he would not be the bit surprised in something happening. He knew that some sort of animal magic might be helpful on this mission so he figured that he should ask Yukyo to go with him. Leaving his room and deciding on going for a short walk around the castle would not hurt. He wanted to stop by the training hall anyways to see if Zephyr was there anyways. Walking out of his room and down the hall he felt like he did not sleep for a few days. He could not help but to think about the dream he had the last two nights. He wondered what it all met but then the thought of it was just a dream came to his head and he continued on his way to the training hall. Once there he saw that he was completely unused and empty. In fact it liked like it was not used in at least a day and a half. He did not think Zephyr would miss a day but he figured that he should just go ask him when he saw him. He was bound to run into him at some point. He continued on his way and headed towards the job boards.
He got there and saw Thea, Yukyo and Zephyr standing by the board. Glancing at the bored he noticed that two jobs were missing one of which was in Thea's hand. This met only one thing at that was there was a third job at some point and he wounded what it was. He turned to Zephyr and asked, "Is everything alright? I stopped by the training hall and did not see you there. In fact it looked like it was not used. If you want to talk I am here." He did not know what else to say at the moment. He then looked at Thea who looked to be healing alight. He did not know what to really say to her. "Hi Thea good to see you." He then gave Yukyo a simple nod to say hello. Then he waited for something to happen.
He had been doing nothing for a few days with Midarah finally back he could talk to her, but given what they just learned it was highly possible she didn't know anything at all so he decided to wright her a letter:
letter:
In my mission,we ran into two people and a bird, there names were were Reuben, Lytton, and Jy. They are from a dark guild named hydra claw. Conrad mentioned that the mark from that guild was probably on a serpent he fought on his mission. Wanted to see what other information you could gather from this information ~ Shawn
He ended up putting the letter in MIdarah office where she would see it. He didn't feel like mentioning the fact that they already had a member of this dark guild inside there guild with information spreading like wildfire. He walked to the job board passing everyone there reading what was there with the pet sitting one gone which was probably in Thea's hand. "I'll go with you Thea if that's the pet sitting mission." He really didn't feel like saying much of anything else.
Conrad had some more food with Lakoda and Shawn, that evening Conrad had asked Lakoda if she had a moment and since the two of them were partners since Conrad had gotten here she could talk to him. He told her about the mark and how it had been there four years ago with the mages he fought. Why the mark had been familiar when she had drawn it and the name tying it all together. Following her advice Conrad went to Midarah with the information. It wasn't the first time he had raised his concerns with the Guild master and like before she listened and put his mind to rest. Not long after Conrad himself took his well-deserved rest.
Over the next several days Conrad busied himself with making up his report leaving out no details, he also spent his time training and studying the book that Shawn had given him, there wasn't too much useful information in there but he still went over it as the subject intrigued him. Conrad had slept in a bit that morning due to having stayed up late studying the tome. He freshened himself up and got ready for the day. Leaving his room to head for the main hall he ran into Lakoda she seemed a little shaken. "Good morning, Lakoda. Is everything alright? You seem a little shaken." Conrad asked her, he saw the paper she was clutching in her hands, she had been on her way to find him by the looks of things that meant it was going to be important.
Yukyo looked over to see Zephyr with a small kitten perched on his shoulder. He refrained himself from laughing as he spoke. "I see you made a new friend." "Hey Yukyo, you have something to do with this?" Yukyo remained silent for a moment as he tried to come up with a response. "I feel offended good sir!! Wounded truly. Why in the world would I have anything to do with this? Absurd really." Just then, a few cats went over to Yukyo, rubbing against his legs. "Ummm.......I can explain." Yukyo then looked at the job board again until one word stood out to him.....Fish....It was as if his eyes became stars as he just stared at that one word. "FORGET THE PET!!!! WHERE ARE THE FISHES AT?!?!?!" He looked at the board again before seeing he would need at least one other person with him. He immediately looked at Thea before composing himself. He bent down to Thea's level before speaking. "So Thea, how would you like to go to the ocean with me for this job? We'll get to see the ocean, see the pretty water, see some tasty- I mean pretty fish. Would you like to accompany me on this job?" He smiled at her to try and convince her to join him.
Lakoda was grateful to run into Conrad. She immediately handed him the slip of paper and began to sign without using the charm to translate what she was saying. "It's her. I know it is. After all the searching, this HAS to be her." Her eyebrows were furrowed, and her hands moved with vigor behind the words. "The words, how they're describing what's happening, 'voices of loved ones but not finding them', 'a maiden singing'... that has to be my voice!" It was about ten years ago her voice was taken from her, and her life turned completely upside down. The only ones to know her true story were those who had been in the guild the longest, one of them being Conrad. She rarely opened up about that night to those just coming in. It took her years to feel included within the guild and to be trusted with everyone else besides Master Midarah, Samuel, Everette, and a handful of others.
After a few days of resting up and recovering after the stress of last mission Everette supposed it was time for him to show his face around the guild hall more and get involved with everyone again. He had spent most of his spare time trying to write up a recollection of what happened for his report, as well as journal for himself. It helped him keep track of things on hard days, writing it down cemented it into his memory better. He got Sam to fill in a few blanks for him, but even with that Everette tried to keep himself distant from Sam, give his friend time to relax. It was hard sometimes, for Everette to ask for help with things, especially when it came to his memory. There were a few older members of the guild that looked down at him for it. One even was convinced that he shouldn't be an S-Class, despite earning it the same as anyone else, even with his disability.
Emerging and heading towards the main dining hall, he caught Lakoda and Conrad talking off to the side. A little curious, especially with Lakoda's frantic movements, he began to approach slowly, catching just bits and pieces of what she was signing. As he approached he placed a hand on her shoulder to make sure that she knew he was there before signing to her "everything okay?" He had a feeling from the way she looked, that it wasn't alright, he just hoped that he could help.
"Hmmm. Is the boat going to be big? Like Daddies Yacht? That might be nice? It might be relaxing too." Thea pondered then thought about it for a bit more. "Hmmm. Can you turn into something fuzzy that I can ride there? Like a bear? That would be really cool!" Thea exclaimed. She honestly didn't care what she did as long as it wasn't as scary as last time. "Come on, come on lets go tell Mom- Uh I mean... um... Master Midarah." Thea urged. She was ready to ride a bear to a grand yacht. It would be great!
Lakoda turned to where she felt the hand on her shoulder, seeing Everette being there. She bit her lower lip, wondering how to answer him. She was hopeful this was the hag that took her voice, but she was also skeptical and frightened this could actually be it this time. She pointed to the paper she handed Conrad and began signing again. ‘There was a job posted this morning. It sounds very close to the hag, that awful creature who took my voice and murdered my family.’ Her hands began to shake as well as her breath as she realized she finally found the thing that she had been searching for years. It was too good to be true, but this description of this creature couldn’t have been more close to the hag than the other jobs she and Conrad took up in the past. ‘I have to take this job. This could be it. I could get my voice back.’
When she handed him the paper it soon proved him right. This was important, he followed the signing that she did and read the job posting again and she was right the descriptions seemed in line with what she said and the story she had told him four years ago after their first mission had gone so wrong Midarah had to come get them. "It most certainly seems to point in that direction, Lakoda, this is the best lead we have had since we started our hunt." Conrad signed, Everette joined them asking what was going on. "I am going with you on this mission, there is nothing you can say or do to change my mind about that. I promised you I'd go with you and be by your side when confronting her, remember?" Conrad remembered the promise he had made Midarah too, it was the same he had made Lakoda, that he'd be there with her to find that hag. It had lead them on a few missions together, all false leads. He had silently sworn bloody vengeance on the hag for what she had done to Lakoda and if he closed his eyes he could still see her tired and tear-stained face as she had knocked on his door in the dead of night. "I understand completely Lakoda, I'll go with you, no doubt about that. Everette will you join us too?" Conrad asked continuing to sign, he knew Everette was another person in Lakoda's circle of trusted friends and he figured they could use the extra manpower here. The day was finally here then, he had alays remained optimistic about getting Lakoda's voice back and now they had a real chance at it, deep inside of him he felt something stir in anticipation, but Conrad wasn't going to make use of that power unless absolutely necessary.
"Yes." Everette replied before even thinking. "Yes I will come with you. I won't let you guys take on such a mission on your own. It isn't that you are capable mages, but if it is this same hag, then the extra experience and people might be of help in the mission. If nothing else.... I won't let my little sister walk through this alone." It wasn't a mystery that he thought of a lot of the members of the guild like family. Lakoda was one of the closer people to him, he wasn't fond of how some of the older members treated her, so often tried to defend her. This was no different, he just wanted to protect Lakoda, he was too worried to let her go alone, or even with Conrad. Three would be better with such a situation, maybe more, but he could understand if Lakoda didn't want too many people around, he would respect that even if it made him a little uneasy.
“I didn’t doubt you for a minute you are coming with me,” she signed with a small smile. She then looked to Everette when Conrad asked him if he would come along with them. His response caused her to tear up, and she immediately hugged him tight. “Thank you,” her charm rang out as she kept him close to her. Everette had been with her since the beginning of her journey here in the Divine Rose. He even opted to learn sign language along side her, giving her a person to talk to as well as be her voice the first couple years here. When she became strong enough, he found her the charm she wore around her neck so she could “communicate” to others without worrying about them not understanding her. Not everyone was eager to learn sign language like Everette was
Lakoda finally let go of him and wiped away her tears before hugging Conrad as well. “Thank you,” her charm said again. “Both of you... I wouldn’t be able to do this alone.” She let go of him and looked to each of them before stepping back. "I'm going to find Master Midarah to approve us for the mission. As soon as that happens, I'll pack up and be ready to leave soon afterwards. She couldn't afford to wait another day to go by with this monster on the lose. Especially if she was still wrecking havoc. "I'll come find you in a moment."
With that, Lakoda bounded off back to the Guild Hall to find Master Midarah. When she came through the double doors, she realized the Master wasn't sitting at her usual spot by the fire. Perplexed, Lakoda turned to leave, wondering where the master could be at... As she was wandering down the hallway to figure out where to go, Lakoda spotted a familiar face. "Maria, have you seen Master Midarah? I'm looking for her to approve for a job," she said with her charm as well as signed.
Zephyr saw no reason to respond to Yukyo once the small group of cats had appeared and rubbed up against him. He did smirk though at the evidence that had conveniently shown itself. He was however surprised by Yukyo's sudden outburst of fish and how casually Thea said she wanted to ride on a yacht. Sometimes he forgot that she was rich. "I appreciate the concern, but I'm fine." He assured Gavin, then glance over to the pet sitting mission. It sounded easy enough and an easy mission would be appreciated right now. "If that's the case, we can take that mission off your hands." He offered.
As there was nothing urgent that needed her attention, Maira had just been lingering around up until Lakoda had run into her. Even though the charm had done the job of greeting her, she still attempted to figure out Lakoda signing it to her. She never picked it up despite her many attempts at trying to do so. Alas, the attempts ended with little success. "Hmm, she should be in her office last I checked. What mission did you choose?"
There was a tug on Shawn's jacket. When he turned around, there would be... Thea? There was two of them?!
"I'll still go on the pet-sitting mission with you!" she exclaimed and then clutched on his clothes while blinking up at him with big, innocent eyes. "Pwetty pweaaaaase?" She then looked at Gavin and Zephyr with a big smile. "You can come too!" Other Thea looked over to the Thea talking to Yukyo and waved a little. She then smirked and closed her eyes, smoke going around her before she grew a couple of feet and stood a little taller than Shawn. There was a hint of a smell of roses and violets, making the woman seem rather alluring for some reason.
"Ah, that was fun," the tall blonde said with a mischievous smile. "But seriously," she rested her arm on Shawn's shoulder, leaning comfortably close to him. "I'm bored. I wouldn't mind tagging along and get out of the Guild Hall for a while..."
Lakoda hestitated for a moment, debating whether or not to tell Maria what was going on. After some thought, Lakoda didn't see a reason not to trust her. Maria, like Everette, had been with her in the beginning. Although the girl never learned how to sign, she enjoyed reading Lakoda's notes she wrote to her and the conversations they would have through that. Maria was patient to sit for hours on end to have a slow chat with her to make sure she didn't feel alone. "This might be the monster that took my voice," her charm said for her as she handed the job to Maria to look over. "The very reason why I kept having horrible nightmares all those years while in the guild and why I can't talk or make a sound. Conrad and Everette want to go with me." It was a known fact for guild members that had been here the longest that Conrad had been on monster hunting missions ever since his arrival in the guild. Sometimes it was to follow on a hunch of a possible description of the hag, other times it was to help others out. "We're going to check it out. This is the closest any job came to describing the hag."
Zephyr had said he was fine but he could not help but feel something was off. "It just that you did not train this morning and I was concerned." If Zephyr did not want to talk there was not much he could do about it. "Well if you want to train or do something or simply talk I am here for that." Shawn had offered to go on the pet sitting mission with Thea and shorty after Zephyr said he was going to go. Shorty after that Nagata flirted with Shawn and wanted to go too. With so many people wanted to go on pet sitting he was not sure what to do. He walked away slightly watching whatever was going to happen unfold.
With Everette on board they had a solid team to do this especially since Everette understood what he was getting at. His extra experience and the skills of a well-trained and experienced mage would be very helpful on a mission like this. The man didn't even hesitate when answering and Conrad appreciated that, the willingness to help her was nice to see but Conrad hadn't doubted for a moment that Everette would help them out given the fact he had gone out of his way to find a working charm for her. Lakoda hadn't doubted for a minute that he himself would come along to do this with her. And Lakoda hugged Everette first and then hugged him, Conrad wrapped his arms around her to hug. "It's nothing." Conrad said as he hugged her. When she left he was left with Everette. "Thanks for helping us Everette, you hit the nail on the head by saying your experience will do well on this mission, I figured extra man power couldn't hurt not on a mission this important." Conrad said kindly. "I think between the three of us we ought to be able to pull this off. Just like our last one."
Wrapping his arms around her, Everette embraced Lakoda in a big hug as she thanked him and hugged Conrad too. "No need to thank me, I am always happy to help." Just as they had always been happy to help when he found himself confused and forgetful after stressful day. "I look forward to working with you again." He said as he placed a hand on Conrads shoulder for a moment before moving past. "I hadn't planned on going out today, so let me gather my things, I will meet back in just a moment." Everette said, eyeing the breakfast table at the same time. If he went out on a mission without eating, surely Sam would murder him for it when he inevitably found out thanks to whatever spies he must have had reporting to him.
Grabbing a danish from the table, Everette then retreated to his room to gather his thins that he might need, all the while stuffing his face with the danish, and glancing over a book of new combat maneuvers. He knew it would be easier to just watch someone else do them, but since becoming S-class he found asking people to train him a little harder when he usually was supposed to be someone people looked up to. Still he did his best with what he had. Slinging a small pack over his shoulder Everette then rushed out to meet Lakoda and Conrad, ready to head off whenever Lakoda was.
Nagata had transformed back into her self, asking them if she can join them, while she was being her usually self. He moved slightly away so her arm was no longer leaning on him. Nagata always seemed to be like this so it was to no big deal with her acting this way. Everyone sure was used to her well strangeness by now. It could be useful to have an illusionist to have on this mission if hydra claw showed up again. "Sure why not", what do you guys think?" he asked Gavin and Zephyr.
The sudden appearance of another Thea, rather Nagata, was surprising for a bit until the reveal itself had been made. He had forgotten that Nagata could actually do that with her magic. Zephyr didn't have much to add beyond a simple shrug to Shawn's question. "If she wants to, she can." And she did state that she wanted to come along with them. Keeping that in mind, Zephyr noted who actually would be tagging along. Nagata, Shawn, Gavin and myself, that makes four. That was an interesting composition for a group. He nodded in affirmation and said, "That leaves letting Midarah know about this."
Maira had taken the job and almost instantly the laidback smile on her face faded. Between the key points on the mission and what Lakoda had told her, it was easy to see what she was referring to. In fact, it wasn't surprising to hear that both Conrad and Everette were going along with her. The two of them had been with her for just as long as she had, possibly even longer. Maira then proceeded to smile, then placed a hand on her shoulder. "Count me in, let's get your voice back."
With Zephyr more or less to himself right now he figured that it was time to go find Midarah and let her know the mission they were heading out on. Nagata, Shawn, and Zephyr were going on a mission. it seemed like this was going to be a interesting mission. "We should go then." The then begain to walk with the group towards where Midarah typically was at.
Yukyo kept thinking about the fish he would encounter on this job. His train of thought had been interrupted when Thea had spoke. "Huh?" "Hmmm. Is the boat going to be big? Like Daddies Yacht? That might be nice? It might be relaxing too." He was a little lost but tried to keep up his smile. So she's a rich girl....greaattttt...Thea had asked Yukyo something a bit odd but he wasn't too surprised. "Hmmm. Can you turn into something fuzzy that I can ride there? Like a bear? That would be really cool!" He sighed as he rubbed his temples for a moment. "Ummm I rather not....I literally spent my wagon ride back as a cat.....Wait....I probably should've kept quiet about that......welp." He scratched his head before Thea called out to him again, only this time she was near Shawn. "Huh?.......Wait a second....Why are there two Theas??" Before Yukyo could say anything else the scent of roses and violets wafted through the air. A woman had rested her arm on Shawn's shoulder. His expression was blank as he put his hat back on as he approached the woman. "I do beg your pardon, milady. I believe we never met. My name is Yukyo. Yukyo Alvaric. What might yours be beautiful lady?"
Well that was no fun and now Yukyo was walking away from her, heading for Nagata after she turned out of her form that looked like Thea. Letting out a sigh Thea marched over. "Nagata stop distracting him. Come on Yukyo we have to talk to Master Midarah and get approval to go on this mission. I don't want to wait around any longer." Thea nagged as she grabbed Yukyo's hand and tried to drag him away despite her much smaller form. She was getting impatient and didn't want to wait for the only person going on this mission with her to flirt with the girl who was way out of his league.
"My, such a brave and handsome fellow," Nagata cooed to Yukyo. "My name is Nagata... It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance... I'm sure it's a name you'll want to forget, eventually." She then looked to the boys and stretched her arms above her head, causing her midriff to show a bit before she lowered her arms and rolled her shoulders. "To Master Midarah we go? I'll follow you," she said as she walked off with them.
Lakoda gave Maria a sudden hug. She knew people would be her support when the time came, but she was still grateful to their help. She let go after a moment and smiled broadly. "I will go tell Master Midarah that we're taking this job. We're planning to leave soon. Meet us in an hour."
------------Time Skip to a Little Later that Day-----------
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Conrad, Everett, Maria and Lakoda journeyed about four to five hours, most of it by carriage ride and one point a ferry. After the ferry, they walked on foot to New Cresthill where the job was posted. The group walked through what it seemed like a tunnel of trees with thick brush on either side of them. Some wild black berry bushes grew here and there on the side of the road, which Lakoda would probably take a bite of any other day. Her stomach was churning, eyes darting back and forth between the walls of trees. Perhaps it was the mission in mind that was making her feel so antsy all of the sudden, the memories long ago trying to reach the forefront of her mind.
Soon the group passed over a babbling brook, and came on the village of New Cresthill. It was a gorgeous setup with rows of cottages, stone and wooden fences, and greenery all around. The smell of freshly baked bread wafted in the air along with the smell of grass, running water, and farm animals. A girl with a gaggle of geese walked past the group, using a river reed to keep them in line as she walked to a pond nearby, a donkey pulled cart carried barrels of apples and sacks of berries. The village was bustling with life, so much so it almost looked like nothing was wrong.
Lakoda stayed close to her comrades, looking at the people that gave them curious looks but still greeted them with a wave or a nod. They wandered in what it seemed like the village center with a well and various shops set up. Some in wagons, others in actual buildings. Sellers were calling out their wares to anyone who past by, trying to get anyone's attention. "Perhaps we should ask around for Levimu Drove," Lakoda's charm piped up. "Since the job came from them..."
The town was quaint and lively, a nice break from the last he had gone to. Everyone seemed friendly and there was no clear sign of problem so far, which only mean that things wouldn't be as cut and dry as he would hope, not that things ever were with this guild. "Well asking around can't be too hard." Everette pulled out a few jewels from his pocket and spun them in his hand before walking over to one of the many market stalls, this one seeming to be selling candy. "Excuse me, may I have a bag of toffee bon bons, and one of salt water taffy?" Everette handed over the money and while the shop keep got him what he had asked for he continued with casual conversation. "While I am here, my friends and I were asked to come here and take a job, but we don't know where to find the guy who has the job for us. You wouldn't happen to know where we can find a Mr. Levimu Drove, would you?"
Yukyo was radiating with his usual charms as the woman cooed at him. "I try my best sometimes. Other times...it's usually pure instinct." He smiled at the woman before she introduced herself. "My name is Nagata... It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance... I'm sure it's a name you'll want to forget, eventually." He picked up her hand before shaking it gently. "With a beautiful name like that.....I rather not forget." Yukyo's tail swished baack and forth slowly as Yukyo spoke again. "If you're not busy later, why don't you and I ha- HEYY!!" All of a sudden, he felt some tugging him back away from Nagata. "Nagata stop distracting him. Come on Yukyo we have to talk to Master Midarah and get approval to go on this mission. I don't want to wait around any longer." "HEY!! Hold on!!! I was in the middle of a conversation!!" He tried to pry his hand away from Thea but she would not let go. "Damn kid has a good grip." He whispered to himself. He looked back at Nagata before yelling out. "Hope I..uh.. see you around!!" Yukyo followed the child as he sighed in disappointment. "Ever heard the saying 'Patience is a virtue'? Look it up." He dropped his head as Thea continued to pull him.
"Likewise." Conrad said as Everette placed a hands on his shoulder, the mention of packing things reminded Conrad that he too hadn't exactly planned to go out today and Lakoda had caught him a little by surprise. He left for his own room and gather his things as Lakoda had gone to Midarah to get the mission approved. With an ease of familiarity he gathered the things he might need in the field and quickly grabbed something to eat, he'd eat along the way as they travelled it was easier that way and they could get going sooner. He waited for the others to arrive and they all headed for the village that had sent out the request for help. Conrad ate during the carriage ride and when they walked Conrad stayed beside Lakoda, in a way to remind her that she didn't have to do this on her own.
Arriving in the village made Conrad smile a little bit, it looked significantly better than the last village he had been in for a mission, it even looked rather pleasant were it not for the threat of the Hag being out here somewhere. The fresh apples looked delicious and the smell of fresh bread made Conrad feel a little warm and fuzzy inside causing him to smile. He listened to the name mentioned by Lakoda and as Everette headed for one of the shopkeeps Conrad figured asking one of the people browsing the Market Stalls. He approached a lady, Conrad would hazard a guess that she were a farmers wife but he could be wrong, but at the bery least if she were a local it didn't matter that he was. "Excuse me, Madam would you be so kind to help a stranger out? I am a mage and my friends and I were here about a job and we are looking for Levimu Drove, would you perhaps know where we may find this fine gentleman, so that we might help your lovely village?" Conrad asked, showing the Guild Mark on his hand when mentioning the Guild, as he spoke he tried to remind himself that this village was dealing with the monstrosity that had destroyed Lakoda's life, and that at first glance it looked nice there was a monster nearby with all the consequences.
Maira was quick to take in a breath of the fresh village air. The atmosphere here seemed different and was something he enjoyed. If only they had actually been here for fun and games, she might've taken the time to enjoy all this a bit longer. They were on a job and information gathering was the first thing to do, so Maira had strolled over to another market stall which, unless the candy selling one that Everette had walked to, was selling trinkets and such. "Oh, that one looks nice, how much is it?" Her eye had caught sight of a necklace that was adorned with a singular jewel in its center.
Lost Voices
"Heh? Mr. Levimu Drove? Oh, you young whippersnappers are here for that one job, eh?" The old man kept the pipe in his mouth while he made up the bags of candy for Everette. "Terrible it is... We just had another attack yesterday. Poor family... Lost one of them boys. One of them miraculously survived. Mr. Drove should be with him now at his family's place. Just up the road here at the inn. Family don't feel safe out on the farm anymore..." The old man shook his head and clicked his tongue. "Poor souls." He then looked to Maria, since he was also selling jewelry along with candy and smiled. "That one there will cost ya 10,000 Jewels. The jewels come from Starfall Mine. Apparently a beast was guarding the jewels. Why, they twinkle like stars don't they? And that'll be 1,000 jewels for the candy young man. 500 jewels each bag."
The woman that Conrad approached did happen to be the Farmer's wife. She looked tired, maybe a bit ragged. "You don't need to flatter me, son," she said as she turned to him with a basket of food on her hips. "Funny you asked me. He's with my boy right now just up the road. We were attacked last night by the beast that seems to be prowling in the woods. I can take you to him if you need to speak with him," she said with a sigh.
After taking the candy and handing over the jewels Everette gave a quick look to Maira almost like to tell her to hurry up a bit before turning back towards where Lakoda waited for them. He tossed her the bag of salt water taffy, taking a bon bon for himself as he looked up the road, getting a general feel for where they had to go. "So the gentleman over there said we should be able to find our man in the in up the way there. Apparently there was an attack just last night and a family lost a kid. It doesn't sound good the way things have been going here so we better get this figured out quick." After just coming back from a mission where he watched a little girl almost die, he had enough with things hurting children It was unfair and they needed to stop it however they could. He had seen enough children hurt he didn't want to see more if he could help it, but he knew that it was unavoidable. "When Conrad and Maira finish, we should head up to the inn, I am sure that they will be glad to see us."
Conrad had found a way to the person they were looking for, the lady he approached cared little for the flattery, the hag was getting personal for her as it had attacked her family directly. "I am sorry that we didn't arrive sooner, Madam. We intend to rid you of this beast." Conrad assured her. "That would be much appreciated, let me gather my friends so we can go." Conrad said as he turned away from the woman to rejoin Lakoda and Everette, the latter of the two just explaining what they had discovered. Conrad came to a rather sad conclussion that he had just spoken to the mother of that lost child... He felt bad for what he had said... "The woman I spoke to said that our contact is with her boy, they were attacked last night... she's willing to lead us there." Conrad said his tone a little more quiet than normal, if they had arrived sooner then perhaps they might have been able to stop that attack, deep down he knew it was pointless to think like that as it changed nothing, all they could do now was avenge the child and Conrad already felt like they were here to rain vengeance on the hag that had destroyed Lakoda's life. This would be the day where all the hurt that had been done to her would be avenged, he could still remember the moment she had told him what had happened here and the anger he had felt at the injustice. They would help Lakoda drive the blade that was forged by the hag's own hands home.
10,000 jewels weren't too much for her and she was quick to dig through her pockets to find the exact amount and hand it to the man. She returned the look that Everette had given her with a simple smile and carried on with her shopping. Said shopping really only being accepting the bag with the necklace and thanking the clerk. With nothing else, she returned to the other with her bag in hand. "See, that didn't take too long."
Lost Voices
Lakoda caught the bag of sweets that Everette passed to her. It was then her smile fell when Everette relayed the news about someone losing their life. Her hand instinctively went to her throat where her charm hung over the x shape scar. Flashes of violence and screams entered Lakoda's mind briefly and she blinked away any tears that came to her eyes. She perked up when she heard Conrad relaying the same message, gripping at the heart charm to ground herself back in reality. If she had her own voice, it would have shook when she spoke. Instead, it was the same monotone. "Let's go to the inn then," the heart sounded out.
It didn't take long for the farmer's wife to lead the small group to the inn. The group was invited in, and they walked to one of the larger rooms of the place. A young boy around ten was sitting on the bed, one of his legs wrapped and propped up on a pillow. A man sat on the edge of the bed, speaking lowly to the boy with a hand on his shoulder.
The woman cleared her throat, which made the man turn his head. "Ah, Martha. I didn't expect you to come back so soon."
"Yes, well, these mages here said they were looking for you."
"Mages...? ah, yes, you're here for the job aren't you?"
Lakoda hung back behind the group. If she learned anything from missions it was to let the others speak first. She wasn't sure if her signing or her charm speaking for her would bother these folks and so she waited patiently for the others to answer first.
Conrad saw Lakoda's reaction to him relaying what the lady had mentioned, as they walked to the inn, Conrad stuck to her side and offered his hand as reassurance. He remembered the time she had been so wounded she thought the healer helping her had been the hag and he had taken her hand to remind her she wasn't alone. He hadn't thought of it too much in the moment other than make sure she was alright. The innroom they were lead into was rather spacious as far as innrooms went, it was bigger than the one they had treated Renza in. The farmer's wife gave them the short introduction and Conrad stepped forward. "Yes Mister Drove, we are mages from the Divine Rose Guild here about the attacks of a mysterious entity." Conrad said. "I am Conrad, and these are Everette, Maira and Lakoda. What can you tell us about the attacks. How frequent do they happen? Do they all happen in the same place? Are they limited to a specific time of day?" Conrad asked, maybe something could help them find a way to find this mysterious entity they suspected was the hag that had stolen the voice of their friend. The only plan other than searching these woods systematicly would be laying a trap but the villagers probably weren't going to be too inclined to cooperate with that and understandably so, maybe they could ask the boy what had happened to him as well if asking their contact proved fruitless.
Maira's first act had been to wave upon being introduced by Conrad before falling silent as the first batch of questions were asked and thought about what sort of info each one could provide. A time frame sounded like it could be the most helpful in this situation. "Who were some of the villagers that ended up vanishing?" In the same vein, knowing who had vanished could reveal a pattern of sorts that they could use in their search.
Everette nodded his thanks to the woman before looking to the man who was seated there. Before Everette could speak up, Conrad did introducing them. Everette gave a bit of a wave before shoving his hands in his pockets, listening for the answer. He gave Lakoda a quick look, staying near her just in case. She seemed nervous so he didn't want to leave her alone. He had caught her touching the necklace that she had gotten her years before. Everette reached one hand over and just took Lakoda's in a reassuring manner before turning back to the man that had hired them. "As much information as you have will be helpful, even if it seems insignificant." He added to Conrad's questions.
Lost Voices
Lakoda was grateful for the support her friends were giving her. She took Conrad's hand on the way to the inn, only to let go once they were there. She remembered well how Conrad would comfort her in her greatest times of need. As the questions were being asked, another hand took hers and she looked down to see it was Everette. She smiled a little and squeezed it back, waiting for the explanations.
The man stroked his long beard, trying to figure out how to answer all the questions at once. "The attacks, as you say, have been happening on the outskirts of town for about two months I want to say, at night when there's hardly any moonlight. First it was just passerby's or travelers on their way here, being picked off randomly. The stories were the same though. There was always a maiden singing in the woods right before the attacks... only a few managed to survive. Some say they saw skeletal figures, others say spirits. No one has gotten a clear look. The attacks started to move towards our town a few weeks ago. People would hear singing, children laughing or crying, people calling out for help, and then when they go out, they disappeared. Gone..." Mr. Drove looked over to the boy who was picking at the frills of his blanket and gestured to him. "Felix has been our first to actually escaped. Said he saw an old lady in the woods before being chased by skeleton monsters. We've lost at least seven or eight of our own so far..."
Mr. Drove looked to Lakoda and narrowed his eyes. "How about you missy. Do you have any questions?"
Lakoda wasn't expecting to be put on the spot and straightened to attention. She quickly shook her head no with a polite smile.
"What's the matter, can't talk?"
Her smile faded and her grip on Everette's hand tightened.
When Lemivu singled out Lakoda and asked whether she could speak or not Conrad stepped up, standing half in front of her, placing himself between Mr Drove and his dear friend. "No, but she is a very capable mage, she saved my life a couple of times. Either way it is inconsequential." Conrad simply said before going over the information provided in his head. Hardly any moonlight, clever after all you can't really defend against what you can't see coming, so she definitely would attack with the new moon... either that or when it was cloudy enough. Conrad didn't believe it was merely random, the victims perhaps but the man had provided them with a pattern, a fairly clear one at that. "So the attacks come in the dark at a cloudy night or with the new moon when there's little to no light in the woods, clearly this isn't just one creature from the descriptions and the victims are lured into a trap... what happens when the singing or voices are heard and no one goes out?" Conrad asked, he seemed more and more convinced that this was the monster that had ruined Lakoda's life, all the evidence pointed in the direction, the pieces never seemed to line up as well the other times they had gone out and hunted this vile fiend. "How did Felix escape and what exactly transpired during that attack? It might help us formulate a good strategy to rid you of whatever it is that is out there. And the voices are they always the same?" Conrad asked, he tried to draw Levimu's attention away from Lakoda who had seemed to have gotten a bit uncomfortable with the scrutiny. What had happened to her was bad enough, she didn't have to pay an even higher price dealing with all this.
Skeletal figures, spirits, old lady, Maira made note of all of what they were told in order to put it to good use later on. Fortunately, Conrad had spoken up after Lakoda was put on the spot, which allowed Maira to save her 'she's just shy' card for another time. She didn't have much else to ask, so she just kept an ear out for anything Drove might say in response to Conrad that would be helpful.
It was up to Lakoda to tell him what she wished. As much as Everette wanted to jump in and say something to defend her, it wasn't his decision to make, this was something she would have to face herself. Conrad tried to defend Lakoda, but Everette doubted it was a sufficent answer. As long as it kept him off their backs for a while however he would be happy. Everette felt Lakoda squeezing his hand and held her firm, not willing to let go, not when she was clearly so shaken still over this entire ordeal. "Perhaps I can make a mirrored copy of myself to follow this voice next time it is heard. We can spy on it from a safe distance and there will be no harm done, but perhaps a chance to glimpse what this is." It wasn't a full plan, but it was at least a start of one, and they always needed a starting place. Information was good, but at times it could be ill remembered, getting a little information themselves would also prove beneficial to their goals.
Lost Voices
Mr. Drove eyed Lakoda a moment before looking at Conrad to answer his questions. "The voices aren't always the same. Sometimes it's someone we have lost and we have gone after them, only to lose someone else... It's only recently we heard a maiden's singing voice along with the ones we lost as if its been taunting us..." He then looked at the boy on the bed who looked back up at him and then Mr. Drove hummed out while putting his hands behind his back. "His older brother thought he heard a voice of a friend last night and went out to look for them. Felix went to follow, only to lose his older brother in a fog near some woods by our village here by the farms. According to him, these skeletal figures came out of the shadows and ran after him. He twisted his ankle but made it back home to his mother. His older brother wasn't seen again."
The man looked to Lakoda once more, seeing how one boy was holding her hand while the other one stood to her defense earlier and was standing halfway in front of her. "So, what's your story miss? Your friends seem to be awfully protective of you..."
Lakoda looked to Everette and then sighed out quietly as she let go of his hand. She didn't want to create mistrust with the client, as he seemed to suspect something was up with her. She put a hand on Conrad's shoulder and stepped forward, looking to the woman that brought them here in the first place before looking to Mr. Drove. "My name is Lakoda..." She was letting the charm speak for her as it glowed around her neck. "I cannot speak without this charm around my neck because I had my voice taken from me at a very young age by a hag. She attacked my family on the road and slaughtered them with a skeletal army... I escaped because a group of mages stopped by and scared her and her small band away. She escaped without a trace. When I saw the mission, I wondered if it was the same monster that destroyed my life. That's why we are here. We want to help any way we can and give your village peace once more."
"I see..." The man stroke his beard a moment and then finally spoke. "There's going to be a feast tonight at the Town Hall, to celebrate our harvest despite these trying times. Why don't you come, and there we can discuss strategies of taking this monster down once and for all?"
Lakoda let go of his hand, and Everette stepped back. She could talk for herself, as much as he wanted to protect her, he couldn't always. Listening to Lakoda speak stirred a sort of old anger in him. He had always wanted to track down this hag, and even though they got to now, it still didn't feel like it was soon enough. The idea of talking about it over dinner didn't sit well with him either. Perhaps if it was a private dinner, but a feast meant to celebrate. Shouldn't the mayor celebrate with his people instead of planning with them? "Thank you for the offer, but perhaps the festival best be celebrated with your town instead of talking with us. If there is a quiet place for us to go, we can spend the evening planning, you can go ahead and celebrate with your people, if you so wish to." Everette suggested.
Master Midarah approved the mission and sent them on their way. It didn't take long for the group to get to the farm. The farmer, Mr. Marroc, greeted them all with a smile and a warm handshake with dirty hands (which Negata politely refused to touch). He then lead them to the back to meet the pet they were to be sitting. There, standing before the group, was a rainbow, buffed out, six feet tall, alpaca. It seemed to look at them with harsh judgement as it chewed its alfalfa.
"This here is Fluffkins," the farmer introduced. "She's a one of a kind Horned Rainbow Mastiff Alpaca. She needs her wool groomed everyday with a special perfume to help her smell good," Mr. Marroc walked over to a large cabinet next to the pen, opening it to reveal sheers, a large rose colored perfume bottle with a hand pump, brushes and combs, and a huge nail file, and tools to clean out the hoofs. "Her hooves have to be cleaned and shined everyday, fed these here treats," he pointed to a bag next to the cabinet that had rainbow star-shaped pellets in them, "played with (mostly chase and playing with that large ball there), massaged, and have gourmet food handmade every day with various herbs and hay," he finished, pointing to a huge pile of fresh hay and a few barrels mixed with various good smelling herbs. "Her wool has magical properties that can change color to what the wearer wants, deflect most harmful magic, and keep the wearer dry, cool, or warm depending on the weather. Only way it can be at its prime is putting all of the extra effort to take care of her to make sure she stays happy." He patted his special pet on the nose, which made the alpaca close her eyes and nuzzle into the farmer. "I'll be sure to leave written instructions here. I should be back in three days... This is the first time I'm leavin' this girl behind. Y-you sure you can handle all of this? She can be mighty stubborn, but once she warms up she's sweet as apple pie."
After the mess that was last mission, Thea was perfectly happy with the idea of just going to watch a fluffy animal for a while. She loved animals after all, and with Nagata and Zephyr there to do all the hard work, she could just play with the animal. When they arrived, Thea was overjoyed to see the Alpaca. It was so colourful a fluffy. She couldn't get enough of it. While the farmer spoke, Thea eagerly nodded and pretended to listen to the instructions, but she was really just itching to pet the thing. It looked so soft. Thea was nearly bouncing in place waiting for the man to leave so she could run up and hug it without being rude. "Don't worry Mister. We can handle it! No problem." She couldn't remember half of what he had said, but as long as she played with it and gave it treats, it would be happy, right?
His bid to keep the attention of Mister Drove on himself worked for a little bit before he turned to ask Lakoda about her story. Conrad went over the answers he had received from Lemivu they definitely fit with the story Lakoda had lived through. Skeletal figures, singing maidens and familiar voices. Lakoda gave the man the sumarised version of the story she had lived down which lead to an invitation. Conrad was a little surprised that they were invited to the feast in the village. Everette spoke up about it and Conrad chimed in. "We really appreciate the offer but do not mean to impose, especially with these trying times we wouldn't want to take from your stockpiles even with the harvest coming in. Furthermore the faster we can act the better it is for your village." Conrad wasn't opposed to celebrations at all, but they were here for a job it felt a bit wrong to celebrate before they actual got anything done.
Eventhough he was still listening to the instructions that the farmer was giving them, Zephyr couldn't help but stare at the Alpaca that they would be watching. It was already his first time seeing an animal like this, so throw in the fact that it was rainbows was an additional surprise for him. Not to mention he got the feeling that the Alpaca was glaring at him. Zephyr knew that dogs didn't like him for whatever reason, but he didn't think that it would extend to Alpacas as well. Maybe he was just imagining things. "We've dealt with far worse, I'm sure we'll be fine."
Izra wasn't sure about this whole job thing at first, but after Zephyr and Thea convinced her it was better than being cooped up in the Guild Hall (and Nagata was going on the silly adventure anyways, so she could keep an eye on her) she decided to give it a try. In all honesty, she wasn't expecting to watch something so... rainbowy? She couldn't help but to stare at it before it looked at her and seemed to glare at her, which caused her to raise her eyebrow. This thing had a weird personality... "Um. Is there anything else we need to know about? Maybe what she's afraid of or what she doesn't like?"
"Well she ain't a fan of spiders. But who is? And she don't like cabbage. I guess it's the smell," he said as he scratched his cheek. "No one has tried to bother ol' Fluffkins. That's why I trust to leave her with mages. Wish I could take her along, but I wouldn't be able to pay much attention to her like she likes while I'm selling the crops at market. And you guys can sleep here outside, or in my cottage. There's a guest bedroom in there. And a comfy couch you can make into a bed. Lemme see if there's anything else I'm missin'..." The farmer paused briefly, seemingly double-checking his own instructions before shaking his head towards the group. "Nope, just follow my instructions and you'll be fine. Now I really must be going and I do appreciate ya'll going to all this trouble for me. " With a wave to the group and a kiss blown towards Fluffkins (who actually grimaced in return), the farmer had left.
Lost Voices
"Nonsense, I insist you come. Besides, you can get to know the townsfolk better and maybe get some better insight on this monster than any of us can. Those who have been affected will surely be there." He looked to the boy's mother who nodded her head in agreement and then went to go sit on the edge of the bed by her son. The boy had been quietly watching the mages the whole time, mostly eyeing Lakoda after she "spoke"."It'll be around sunset around the Great Hall. Come join us if you wish. We will look forward to you being there."
As soon as the farmer left Thea ran forward towards the rainbow alpaca trying to hug it and pet it. "It is so cute a fluffy. Have you ever seen anything this cute? I wonder if Yukio could turn into something this cute. He is usually a cat which is cool too but nothing like a rainbow al-a- alpico?" Thea struggled to really know what this animal was, because she had not been exposed to it before now, but she was trying. "Do you think I could ride it?"
"Very well. We appreciate the hospitality, we will join you for dinner, thank you." Everette nodded with respect. He then looked to Lakoda and Conrad. They had some time before they had to go to the dinner, so he wasn't sure what they wanted to do. Giving this family space was probably best though. "We will be out of your hair now ma'am. Thank you for the information you and your son have provided." He then turned and was ready to leave.
There had been a noticeable shudder at the mere mentioning of spiders. Time had definitely passed since that mission, but in that time his dislike for spider had only grown. The farmer soon left though and it was time to get work...kinda. "We do need to play with her so I don't see why not." No sooner than he said that, Zephyr could've sworn that that Alpaca just smirked at him. He seemed to be staring off into the distance by Zephyr looked to confirm this.
Maira had been pretty quiet throughout that entire exchange, taking in all the information. Being invited to dinner was nice and all, but she wasn't sure that they should just impose on them like that. Though he did insist so it would be rude at this point to turn down the offer. So as Everette left, she turned to the family to give them a polite wave, then turned to leave as well.
The man insisted they join them, so they might gain a better insight and meet the locals to get some better insight in the monster, but unbeknownst to the good Mr Drove Conrad had more insight than he let on, the stories Lakoda told him and the descriptions of nightmares Lakoda had given him he had a decent idea of what to expect or so he thought. And now that Everette agreed there was no turning back was there. "Very well, Mr Drove. Is there anywhere we might quarter until the feast? We've had a long journey and might use the time to make ourselves presentable." Conrad asked he looked to Lakoda with a soft smile, between Everette, Maira and himself they had enough magic standing between her and the hag. Conrad politely bid the family farewell and waited on Lakoda to join them before he left.
"I'm going to have a look at the cottage," Nagata said while stretching her arms above her head. "You all have fun. I'll come check on you in a moment." With that, she waved a hand at them and walked away, swaying her hips as she made her way to the humble abode.
Izra watched Nagata walk off, crinkling her nose at her before she looked over at Thea who seemed really excited about the whole animal thing. "Alpaca... I dunno if it'll let it ride you. It's worth a try."
Lost Voices
"Ah, a place to stay, of course. This way." Mr. Drove walked the mages down the hallway of the inn, turning a corner and opened two doors, each room having two beds in them with nightstands by the bed, windows, dressers, bathrooms with mirrors, and pictures of forest creatures on the walls."Here you are. One for the girls and one for the boys."He chuckled and then he waved to the group."I'll see you at sunset then."And with that, Mr. Drove wandered off.
Once Mr. Drove rounded the corner, Lakoda sighed out in relief and relaxed her shoulders. "I'm sorry about that... Seems like we almost lost our job because of me." She walked in one of the rooms and placed her bag on one of the beds, sitting down heavily on the edge. "I really think this is the hag though... The one that took my voice. After years of searching... it has to be her. The description never sounded so close to it."
With permission from her friends, Thea immediately started to grab onto it's fur as she attempted to pull herself up and onto the back of the alpaca that stood before her. While not trying to be rough, Thea wasn't particularly gentle with the creature either. She had ridden horses when she was younger, but usually had someone helping her into the saddle, this didn't even have a saddle to sit on. Soon however she was on it's back, gripping the fur of it's neck as she looked to the others. "Look, I am riding it!" She proclaimed before she ever even had the chance to move anywhere.
Everette thanked Drove for the rooms before looking at Lakoda and placing a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "You didn't almost lose us the job, and even if you did, who cares? It wouldn't have been a big deal. Don't worry too much about it." He assured her before she mentioned she thought it was the hag. Everette remained by the door as Lakoda sat down, seeming to think about it. "Then it is about time we deal with that hag. The chance is here, and we will do everything we can to make things right. We need to make a plan, and rest for a bit. The real work may very well start tonight. "
Mr Drove escorted them through the hallway showing them to a pair of rooms that he man had arranged for them and then left them. The rooms were nice enough to stay in. When Lemivu left again Conrad bid him a polite farewell. When he was out of earshot Lakoda spoke up apologizing. Everette already told her it was fine but Conrad joined his voice in support of his guildmate. "It's okay Lakoda, you don't need to apologise. In the end it doesn't matter we still have that job and that's what matters and honestly I don't think they have much of a choice if it's such a pressing problem." Conrad said with a soft smile, signing along with his words almost absentmindedly.
When she spoke up about the hag voicing her concern that it really was the hag. They had come to the same conclusion then. He stepped closer to her and placed his hand on her shoulder and his expression darkened a little, something unusual for Conrad, and said. "Then we'll destroy that hag, take back your voice and rid ourselves of her. We're all here to help you with that." Conrad said, he agreed with Everette that tonight might be the night he was more than ready to fight. "Sounds good Everette. Any ideas? I mean wandering the forest is too risky and in a group she might not show. Maybe once voices are heard move out as one?" He said not really having much of a plan right now.
The alpaca didn't appear to be bothered by the tugging of its pristine fur by the little girl as she attempted to climb onto its back. A task she did succeed in and was currently acting as if she had earn the right ride her. This certainly wouldn't do. At first, Fluffkins decided to play along, trotting at a fairly decent pace before getting to the point where she was running around the farm. This wasn't er full speed, but it was still fairly fast to be taken all at once.
"There are those skeletons that Mr. Drove had mentioned if we can find one and follow it maybe it will lead us right to the hag," Maira suggested. It was a long shot as the fog would obscure their vision, thus making it harder to find the skeletons, let alone follow them. It was still a plan and, at the very least, something to work off of.
Izra kept a close eye on Thea as the alpaca began to move. There really wasn’t a saddle to hold her in place, just a bunch of rainbow fluff. When it started to move faster, she started to get more worried, realizing that Thea didn’t have any reigns or means to control the animal. "Uh, Zephyr, should we slow it down somehow?"
Lost Voices
Lakoda was grateful to everyone stepping in and already formulating a plan to catch this beast as soon as possible. The darkness surrounding Conrad caught her attention for just a brief moment before Maria spoke up. Lakoda’s eyebrows furrowed in concentration and she tapped her chin in thought with her knuckle. "Seems like we need more insight on how she moves. Otherwise we’re going to walk in there blindly." She sighed out and shook her head, looking up at the others. "Why don’t we go take a look at the forest now while it’s daylight? That way we won’t lose our way at night. Since Mr. Drove said the people who were affected by the creature will probably be at the celebration tonight."
Lakoda seemed to perk up a little with their support of both himself and Everette, she had a very good idea now that she mentioned it. Going in blind was a bad idea and having knowledge of the terrain prior to when it counted was sensible. It would have made a very big difference on his first mission. "That sounds like a good idea, getting a decent idea of the lay of the land before darkness falls and whatever else hinders our sight. And maybe we can find tracks." Conrad agreed it also gave them something to do until the celebration other than wait or wander this village in endless circles. Maira had suggested finding a skeleton and following it back it was a good enough idea it just came with the added problem of trying to find one of those skeletons. And if Mr Drove was to be believed that would have to wait until dark so for now it was a better idea to go out there. "While a sensible idea, Maira I doubt those skeletons would show during daylight or the villagers themselves might have tried it, sure we could be lucky and catch one but we ought to get out there first in that case." Conrad said, he definitely wasn't the one in charge just offering his perspective on the matter at hand and what matter most was that they destroy that hag once and for all how they got there didn't matter too much to him.
Perhaps it was because it was an Alpaca and the limited knowledge he had that allowed Zephyr to think that letting Thea ride him would be harmless. At first, it seemed to be like that as nothing of note happened, then it started getting faster and faster and Zephyr too had started to get concerned. "Yeah, before it gets to fast and Thea gets hurt. Can your magic help with this?" He knew her magic could manipulate shadows and that could help to slow Fluffkins down. More so than anything that he could think to do with his magic.
Lakoda had come up with a much better idea than her for reasons that Conrad had pointed out as while she had remembered to account for the fog, she'd forgot to for the time of day it currently was. Oh well, she knew it was a long shot, to begin with. "Good point and if we find tracks, it could lead to something helpful."
As the Alpaca started to run, Thea started to scream. She was not prepared for the sudden pick up in pace, and she was reaching for anything to grab to stop the animal, but all there was was fur. "Stop it! Stop it!" She yelled doing her best to hold back her tears as she continued to get scared. That wasn't the only thing that she was trying to hold back though. Her magic naturally reacted to her fear, and Thea knew that she could not let that happen. She had to keep at least that under control. Looking down, Thea felt like it was a long way to fall, she didn't dare. Her knuckles were white with effort to hold onto the fur as she looked to the others for help.
Lakoda suggested that they go start looking now, and while it wasn't a bad idea, Everette still thought that it might be a long night and that they should attempt to get at least some rest before the festivities. That being said, with this being so important to Lakoda, he wasn't going to deny her the request. It wasn't like it wouldn't be useful either. "Alright, lets see what we are facing. I can send a mirror clone ahead just a bit. If there is a trap, anyone watching us or anything, they will see that first, though it doesn't have enough physical mass to set anything off, so you might want to watch your steps." Everette suggested. He would wait until they were outside before summoning the mirror clone since it followed his exact movements, just in another place. He would have to be sure that it would be effective as he piloted it from a distance back.
Thea's desperate pleas for help reached Izra's ears and she could feel the panic welling inside of her. Her first mission on the guild and Thea was already not having a good time. "Yeah, but I don't want to hurt the alpaca. Oh wait, maybe I can try this!" Izra quickly brought her flute up to her lips and began to play a soft, lullaby-like melody, drifting in the wind. Those around her would be unaffected by it, but she was staring intently at the alpaca. If the alpaca heard the notes, it would hopefully start to feel a little calmer, maybe even drowsy and slow down enough to let poor Thea get off of the thing.
Lost Voices
Lakoda nodded her head and stood to her feet. "Right then, let's get a move on before nightfall..." She led the way out of the bedroom, down the hallway, and out of the inn. Villagers were bustling about, putting up decorations with flowers and colorful flags on lamp posts and buildings. It seemed as if people were still trying to carry on as if there was no threat to be had. Vendors were trying to beckon others to come to their stalls to buy goods, the smell of fried food wafted in the air, and children ran around the streets without a care in the world. As they walked farther out of the village, the life seemed to disappear. It became quieter, with only a few people passing by on wagons with goods in them, or stray merchants with wares on their backs. The massive forest loomed ahead of them, trees knotted together, and crows cawing out. The main road was cleared away well, but the trees were arched overhead, blocking out much of the sunlight, creating an eerie feeling. Lakoda looked around, keeping her guard up as she walked. "I don't know if we'll find anything on the main road,"she said to the group, putting a hand on her headphones just in case
