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Post by SummerCrow on Sept 1, 2015 0:07:03 GMT -6
Jerid and Nalia are the first into the library. They take a quick look around, then make a beeline for the main counter, waiting just long enough for Hecate and Atticus to catch up. They flag down the first attendant that catches their eye, a young woman - still a teenager, most likely - wearing several decorative frills and bits of lace added to her uniform.
"Excuse me, we're looking for information about a guild, do you think you can help us?" Nalia asks politely.
"Oh... Um... I c-can try," the young lady says, hesitantly. "I'm kind of new, though. You're... in a guild, yourselves?" she asks, pointing out their stamps.
"Yep!" Jerid says.
"S-so... What guild are you looking up?" the attendant asks. "We've got... um... ledgers, records from tournaments, s-several books with basic information about various guilds - a-anthologies, that's the word. And of course a few books about... specific guilds. R-records, histories and accomplishments..."
"We don't know!" Jerid says, just as cheerfully as before. "We're here to figure out what guild we're going after!"
"We know it's a dark guild, at least," Nalia offers. "They kidnapped our friend, but one of our members caught a glimpse of their stamp, so we're here to find out whodunit, where to find them, and hopefully enough information to grind their sorry behinds into dirt!"
"I... s-see..." the lacy librarian stammers. "Sounds... complicated? Uh... L-let me just..."
A grey-haired librarian in an immaculately groomed uniform with small reading glasses dangling from a chain and her silver hair done in a bun steps in to save the day. "You look like you need some help, Stella?"
"U-um... W-well, these four are looking for information about a d-dark... guild... Because they want to... fight them? B-but all they know is w-what the stamp looks like..."
The elder librarian takes a quick glance at the group. "Alicorn Wing. So, you saw their stamp? Let's see it. I should be able to point you in the right direction."
Vallory turns at Rosa's voice, grimacing at the loud, cheerful greeting. "Good morning, Rosa. I'm sure you're ready to charge off and... beat up some kidnappers, as you say, but first we need to figure out who we're fighting."
"Still haven't heard from the guys up in Ambrosia," Sounders announces, channeling a simple spell to transmit their voices straight into Aldous' room.
"Yes, well, I had another idea about what could be done around here..." Vallory begins. "This started after the escort mission. Perhaps it's a waste of time, or perhaps we could learn something if we investigated the ship the team was on? We've no better leads, so... If nothing else, I'm sure everyone would prefer to be doing something that turns out fruitless than sitting and waiting."
"Eh... Let's hear what Aldous thinks. He was there, after all," Sounders says.
"Well, I seem to remember them mentioning the ship was being put in dry-dock for repairs after the... squid attack," Vallory adds. "Rosa, assuming Aldous is up for it, would you want to come with us, or stay here?"
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Post by Neo on Sept 1, 2015 16:02:45 GMT -6
Only one last loose end to deal with. That old fool... What utter arrogance. He will pay dearly for this insult.
Athena strides down the hall, her strides quick and furious, her anger crackling around her like a palpable force. But when she reached the end of the long hall, and the guest suite that lay there, her entire demeanor changed. The aura of fury disappeared, and a mask fell over the great Actress's features. She fell into her expected role so suddenly and so easily that it was terrifying.
"Milady, it's Athena," the goddess called out, knocking twice on the door. She counted to five, then opened the door and walked in, closing said door behind her and giving a low formal bow to the lone occupant. "My apologies for keeping you waiting, Milady. I'm sure you must be so terribly bored. If you would like something more... Active to do, I have an important mission that only one of your considerable power would be able to accomplish. Would that please you, Lady Thanatos?"
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Post by Neo on Sept 1, 2015 16:16:17 GMT -6
Her expression dark and unreadable, Zalia Grave looked out from the second story window of Ryner's bedroom. After a few moments, she turned back to her resting grandchild, and her expression softened. Since his injuries were healed and his condition stable, both she and James agreed that it would be best if he recovered back at the Guild, in his own room.
"Rest easy. You're home now. I have to go return the call of an old friend, but I'll be back soon."
Smiling, she left him to sleep and strode downstairs, into her office. Closing the door, she set up a soundproof barrier over the room and took a seat at her desk, reaching for her communications lacrima. The image in the orb shimmered as she activated its magic.
I hope you aren't calling about what I think you are.. Then again, I never could guess what was in that empty head of yours.
"Sounders. Long time no see," Zalia greeted, smiling friendly, as the holographic image of a man appeared in front of her. "To what do I owe this pleasure?"
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Post by Deleted on Sept 1, 2015 17:31:05 GMT -6
Thana sits comfortably, one leg over the other, whilst leaning to the side, propping her head up in boredom as she waits for something to do.
Thana eyes Athena disgustingly. Such a weak, despicable human. The notion of speaking to her was repulsive. Still, she was bored.
"Indeed. A more active role is excellent for aging bones. So,do tell. However, nexttime, I would prefer you simply tell me what it is you would expect if me. Now go on, I'm listening."
Thana leans forward from her chair.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 1, 2015 18:28:36 GMT -6
Atticus drew the stamp from his jacket, showing it to the librarian. "Here. Here's the stamp I managed to write down. Can you tell us if you've seen this before? It's really important." He said.
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Aldous came downstairs like a ghost...he was quiet as he sat down and made himself breakfast. Then, he looked at everyone gathered. "I was just about to suggest that. Is it not odd this happened after we went on the escort mission to Rosebud? Barely three days after we returned; yes, that's enough time to set things up." He mused aloud, drinking his orange juice.
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Post by SummerCrow on Sept 1, 2015 19:46:03 GMT -6
The old librarian reaches into the aether and pulls a book from her requip space. She slips her glasses on, looking at the doodle with a sharp "tsk." She flips through the pages for a few seconds.
"Basilisk Wattle." She puts the book back, then pulls out another one. "Here you go." She points to a small room protected by a sound barrier. "Discussions in that room only, please. And that book stays in the library. Understood?"
"Yes, ma'm!" Jerid answers, taking the book.
"That was amazing!" Nalia tells her. She skips off towards the room and drops the book on the table. "So? Who wants to read it? It'll be easier if we do a little storytime."
"Excellent," Vallory says. "It is indeed fishy. I'm not sure we'll be able to find anything definite, but still... Rosa, are you staying or coming with us?"
Sounders looks off into the distance. "Oh. If you'll excuse me, you guys can work this out 'mongst yourselves. Happy hunting, you guys."
Sounders bounds out of his chair, strolling to his lacrima crystal. "Maybe there's some good news comin'," he thinks to himself.
Zalia Graves flicks into view. Not what Sounders was hoping for, though news will come in sooner or later. In the meantime, the more people on the case, the better.
"To what do I owe this pleasure?" Graves asks. What a charmer.
"G! What's happenin', sweet thing? Got a little problem, hopin' you an' your kids can give us a bit of a hand," Sounders tells her.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 1, 2015 20:10:28 GMT -6
"Well, Jerid seems eager for it, so my votes goes to him. "Atticus shrugged.
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Post by Neo on Sept 1, 2015 20:14:53 GMT -6
Zalia grimaces a bit. "Got a bit of a problem on my end, so don't expect too much. One of my kids got himself severely injured on a job, and Jurian is MIA. Most of the kids have already left on a rescue mission, and a couple more are out on different jobs, so only Lucian and Rhys are still here with me. But I'll see what I can do. What's wrong?"
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After finding a good deal on a couple rooms in Ambrosia, Senna strolled out into the city on a late night shopping trip. She picked out a few necessities and bought their train tickets for tomorrow, then returned to the Inn. She slept restlessly that night, but a restless sleep was better than none.
The next morning, she and Gareth were on the first train north, heading to the mountains. She got them a Second Class cabin with two bunks, so they wouldn't stand out, but could still travel in relative comfort.
She sat on the edge of her bunk, across from Gareth, studying a map she had bought last night. "Hmm... I want to try and stay a good distance behind them so they don't notice us, but not so far that we can't reach them if they need help... Unlike Cenric, or most Seraph Knights, I'm... Not so good with teleportation. Do you know who Master Zalia appointed as leader?"
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Post by empireoffire on Sept 1, 2015 20:28:33 GMT -6
Gareth bounced a green-tagged glass ball on his hand as he sat across from Senna. "Orion," he answered. "Apparently, he fought the flying lizard for an entire day before. Claimed to know it's lair, hunting grounds, and general fighting style, as well as being familiar with the mountain area."
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Post by SummerCrow on Sept 1, 2015 20:34:20 GMT -6
"Well, isn't this just wonderful?" Sounders asks sarcastically. "Wish we could help, but we're already all hands on deck, y'know? Leone got got. Some teleporter snagged 'er right off the street, in broad daylight. Smacked down two of our others, too. Takes some serious balls to pull a stunt like that in a town like this. We've got people checkin' out their stamps in Ambrosia's library, and I'm asking anyone who hears anything to give me a shout, dig? And lemmee know if there's anything we can do to help ya out."
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Post by Neo on Sept 1, 2015 20:42:30 GMT -6
"Claimed?" Senna asked curiously. "You don't believe him?"
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"Blizzard Wyverns are generally known to be weak to fire," Orion answers. "Green Wyverns don't have a specific weakness to speak of, same as Red Wyverns. Lightning magic tends to work very well on all three types, but unfortunately, we don't have a Wizard who can use Lightning Magic. I wish we did. Normal Wyverns also generally have a softer underbelly and a softer throat, so a good rule of thumb is to aim for the white spot. I don't know if Lightning magic is effective on the Wyvern King however, and it definitely doesn't have any physical weaknesses."
He motions to the sword at his waist. "This sword is very powerful, and was made by an extremely powerful Enchanter. An Enchanter even better than I. And yet, this same blade bounced off the Wyvern King's scales like it was made of cardboard."
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Post by empireoffire on Sept 1, 2015 20:58:17 GMT -6
"Nothing like that," said Gareth, "it's just that one can't exactly prove they know all of that until they're thrown into the fire, so we just have to take his word for it. He seemed pretty confident of the fact, though, for what that's worth. We're talking about something that sounds dangerously close to being a suicide mission. A sane person would lie to stay out of it."
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Post by GX1997 on Sept 1, 2015 21:26:31 GMT -6
"Where's our Lightning Dragon when we need him?" Eden mutters as she leans over to peer down at the map, her back slightly hunched, clearly exasperated. "Raiden cares just as much about Jurian as any of us. If he knew what was happening he'd be here. Those two are very much like family, more so than most of our members, and that's really saying something."
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Post by Neo on Sept 1, 2015 21:46:13 GMT -6
Zalia's eyes narrowed and her expression darkened. "A Dark Guild? Can you describe their emblem to me?"
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A spark of recognition lit up Orion's eyes. "... This Raiden wouldn't by any chance happen to be a tall, bronze skinned fellow with silver hair and a dragon tattooed on his arm, with an ego larger than a continent, would he?"
Velia shoots him a surprised look. "Oh yeah, that's him alright. The world really is a small place. How do you know Raiden?"
Orion chuckled. "I stumbled across him in my travels a while back. He had just wiped out an entire fort of bandits singlehandedly, and was really angry because one of them had managed to land a lucky hit on his arm. I healed his wound for him."
He motions to Eden, smiling. "That's how I recognized Eden's guild emblem when we first met."
Velia gives a derisive snort. "At least he hasn't changed. It's good to know there are some things still right with the world."
She turns to Eden, and softens. "But you know, Eden... Raiden isn't the only one very close to Jurian. You are too. Jurian cares for you like a daughter."
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Post by GX1997 on Sept 1, 2015 21:52:01 GMT -6
Eden remained silent long enough for the others to begin wondering if she had some issue with Velia's statement, but she did eventually reply, in a very soft voice. "...I know. And that's why we have to make sure this rescue mission ends successfully."
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Post by Golurkcanfly on Sept 2, 2015 19:19:36 GMT -6
"And for our own sake..." Grigori looked at Eden carefully.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 3, 2015 15:09:46 GMT -6
"Psst Rosa if you can focus for just one minute, are you staying," Conker whispered to Rosa.
"Oh hell no, why stay here and do nothing," Rosa shouted to Conker. "Staying here would be soooooooo boring, come on let's go," Rosa said marching towards the door.
"Wait, wait nobody left......," Conker called out. "Sigh I wonder," Conker sighed.
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Post by Neo on Sept 3, 2015 22:14:34 GMT -6
"All stop for Nevilletown, all stop for Nevilletown! Next stop, Midway Station! Next stop, Midway Station!"
Orion looked up as the intercom outside the room blared their current location, and the train gradually slowed to a stop. Nevilletown, huh... It's been a while since I last came through here. Nice little town, big on antiques, especially trains... The museum here is very nice. If only we could afford a few hours... Well, maybe on the ride back, when we have Jurian with us. Everyone will need some downtime then.
The train's horn sounded twice, and then again, and they slowly resumed moving. Orion looked carefully at those gathered around him.
"It will still be a couple hours before we reach Midway Station. Take it easy and get as much rest as you can until then."
One by one, everyone stood up, and began to file out. Eden was the last to stand, but before she had the chance to leave, Orion rose to his feet and quickly pulled her into his arms.
"We'll get him back," he whispered softly. "No matter what. I promise, Eden."
He pulled back to look down at her and smiled, tenderly brushing a stray bang away from her face. "I have an idea. Why don't we go take a walk around the train? The Imperial Express is very large, and there's everything from a public sitting room to a gift shop to a coffee store."
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Post by SummerCrow on Sept 3, 2015 22:32:58 GMT -6
"Well, Atti's the only one that saw it clearly, and he's not exactly an artist..." Sounders admits. He pats himself a few times, then produces a slip of paper from his pocket. "Yeah, it looked kinda like this, he said," he said. |
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Post by Neo on Sept 4, 2015 15:11:19 GMT -6
Zalia stared at the image closely for a few moments, then sighed and shook her head. "I don't recognize it. But Lucian might. He knows most of the known Dark Guilds by name, and can pick out the correct emblem from a mile away. Hold on a sec. Let me get him."
She stood up and stepped away from the crystal and moved to open her office door. "Lucian, could you spare a moment? I need your help with something."
He looked up from his seat at the table, where he was reading and having a light breakfast, and nodded. A couple moments later, Zalia returned to her desk, this time with Lucian. "Do you recognize it?" She asks, as the holographic form of Sounders holds the image up again.
Lucian's face darkens immediately. "... Yes, I do. It's a Dark Guild called Basilisk Wattle. What happened?"
When Sounders filled him in, Lucian's face darkened even more. "This... This is bad. Really, really bad. Guildmaster Sounders, I don't think you understand what you're up against. Basilisk Wattle is a known member of the Nebilim Organization. Do you understand what that means?"
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Meanwhile, back on the airship Zenithra...
To the goddess's credit, she showed no trace of anger or annoyance. Ever the perfect actress, she instead smiled warmly. "Of course, milady. I will be more straightforward next time. Now, as for the mission, have you heard of a mythical artifact known as the Dragon's Eye? According to legend, it allows its wielder to see both the past and the future with perfect clarity. For centuries, it was thought to be only a myth. But we have not only discovered the Eye is real, we have discovered its location. The Eye is located on a lone island off the northeastern coast of Aselia, resting deep in an underground ruin from a bygone age. However... When we tried to retrieve it ourselves, we were met with... Considerable resistance. The Eye is guarded by a fearsome creature, unlike anything we've ever seen. I am ashamed to admit it in front of you, milady, but... We were defeated and forced to retreat. But you, milady... Your power is far greater than anything we could ever hope to achieve. If anyone could claim the Dragon's Eye, it would be you. Just think of the glory, milady! With the Dragon's Eye in your possession, the whole world would tremble at your feet!"
Athena gave a low bow, and while it looked like it was a gesture of respect and subservience, it was really to hide the grin she couldn't suppress.
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