Altera Arcana IC

[PoetLore]

Their 'friend' was getting a bit defensive and antsy as they neared the town square. But something he said piqued her interest, "Why did you tap his shoulder?' she asked brow raised in suspicion. He started spewing out about how he didn't know what the explosion was about, and hadn't expected to get lost. "If you think Raymond was overreacting, why didn't you just explain that to him instead of running?" she asked.

As Calder predicted, there were not many people left wandering about now. That was probably a good thing, since they were manhandling Ace's minion a little bit. Luckily, the soot and smoke from the explosion had dissipated, and would hopefully not be a further problem for Calder. As they came to the main part of town, she saw a small group outside a building. She recognized a few of them from the gathered crowd earlier and wondered why. "I didn't expect anyone to be around after that blast...." She said to no one in particular.

The black dust from the explosion was all over the place making the street look like a cart of coal dust had been dumped on it. What had happened? Her boots were becoming covered by the black dust and she wondered what it was. She moved closer to the group that was gathered, "What happened?' she asked, "Was anyone hurt?"

 

[Effort]

Darius could see an Avian examining him, he could guess the thought process he was having and was slightly amused when he seemed disappointed in the lack of an angry mob. He wondered if these three had come to adjudicate the wrong doings of his work. Eh they were probably just curious. It did seem a little strange that the girl who he had heard mention looking for him directed her attentions to the priestess instead, although she was quite renowned in this area, perhaps she was just enthralled to see her. Perhaps.

There was now chatter about dreams and not only that but the new people coming in had to be caught up on what had already been discussed. Darius was beginning to feel a little crowded, and he closed his eyes for a moment to gather himself, overcoming the sense of being pressed in. It appeared the priestess and a couple of the others had in fact caught up the new people. "I suppose that may explain the unexpected variable in my experiment." Darius began saying in reference to Shireen mentioning how things aligned too coincidentally. "None of my calculations suggested it would have reacted that way."

The door to his lab had not yet been shut and to his keen ear, the sound of foot steps was plain. His head turned a little toward the door. Darius leaned nearer to Zito, saying "Six pents says that's more chosen ones walking up to my door" giving a little nod to the door, indicating the footsteps she may not even hear. Hoping against hope that maybe the gods wouldn't dump more people into his lap, and letting out a sigh as he heard a girl inquire about any possible injured.

@Greenie @AnimeLover_Princess

 

[Neobullseye]

Wait, what? They were supposed to go to the capital? But why? 'Because the Gods willed it' was not really enough of an answer for Alicia to risk her life on; she really needed more information before she made any sort of choice here. On that note, she really didn't like how she was losing control over the flow of the conversation, especially onsidering it had only just started. "You speak of a threat, yet I still do not know what kind of threat this is. Though of course I would not dismiss the reasoning of a priestess so easily, let alone those of the Gods themselves, I fear that I must ask exactly what dark forces would oppose us and what their goals would be, even if only so that we might recognize them should they try to interfere with us. Knowledge is key to survival, as they say", she spoke -- and from what she had figured, it was very likely that this journey would not be a calm one at all. Was she truly going to risk her life for this? But if it was indeed true that the Gods themselves asked this of her, that was the Chance of Chances! Not only was it plausible that they would get some kind of blessing, they would be praised all across the land as the people who... did something. Don't get ahead of what you know, Alicia. Besides, you still don't know if all of this is really true in the first place.

Her thoughts were disturbed when Shireen and Zito joined the conversation too, the latter one saying something about having a dream that apparently was very similar to that of Kiri's and the priestess' ones. Interesting... If that is true, then that would be a sign that there is indeed something special going on. I should see if I can learn anything about these dreams... But should I ask them that directly? No. Better to wait for it for now; maybe they will give this knowledge themselves, otherwise they might close up on me instead. After all, they haven't even met me
"Yes. Truly the Gods work in mysterious ways", Alicia stated in response to Shireen's comment, subconsciously rubbing the top of her head.

 

[Eru]

"I'm sure there's nothing to worry about, Roxanne," Raymond replied. "Just a bit of excitement in the square, yes?" He jostled his prisoner a bit. Moving forward, the group came across the site of an unusual number of people, outside a building that looked as if it had barely sustained heavy damage. Curious, Raymond thought as they approached the blackened plaza tiles. This must be what that explosion earlier was.

Raymond still held tight to his prisoner as they approached the spot, now turning away from the direction of Ace's stage, so very close now. "Pardon me, Roxanne," Raymond told her, pivoting and beginning to walk in the direction of the stage. "If you'll take care of that trouble, I think Calder and myself ought to take our friend here a little farther into town. After all, we wouldn't want to keep him from his completely legitimate business worries."

 

[Turtle of Doom]

Seeing that there were plenty of helping hands surrounding the site of the explosion, Calder nodded toward Roxanne to indicate that he was going to be continuing on with Raymond. He slipped gracefully into the place Roxann had been occupying next to the man, contemplatively silent as they made their way across the square.

Several minutes passed when Calder stopped, grabbing ahold of Ace's man's arm and turning him toward him. The water coating Calder's skin, slipping around the man's arm as well, pulsing with the life of his magic, and the threat that it carried. He wasn't typically a bully of any kind, but this whole situation had him on edge, and he wanted some answers from this lowlife before returning him to his… employer.

"What exactly were you doing? What was your errand? If it wasn't anything untoward I do not see why it should be kept quiet." The water slowly snaked up the man's arm, spilling off Calder with ease as if it had a mind of its own. It was a bit uncomfortable to have his scales exposed to the air, but he could deal with it for a few minutes, at least. "You don't know where we're taking you? Does that mean you had plans to ditch your boss, or perhaps your business took you beyond meeting back up with him here?"

 

[Kagayours]

Derrick's fear continued to grow as the group moved closer to the square. He flinched slightly as Calder grabbed hold of him, but after that, his fear appeared to be somewhat… burnt out. He didn't have any panic left in him — at least not for what these two were capable of. As they got closer to Ace, it dawned on him that this day would end in one of two ways: either he would spill Ace's secrets, or he wouldn't. And knowing what the outcome of the first option would be, he realized that was the path he had to avoid, no matter the cost.

He avoided making eye contact as Calder continued to ask him about his 'errand'. "It wasn't anything important…" he replied. With the despair of his situation sinking in, he seemingly grew apathetic towards Calder and Raymond's interrogation by this point. All he could think about was Ace, and what would happen once his captors brought him to their destination. Just don't say anything. Don't tell them anything at all. he told himself. They know you're hiding something — it's too late to undo that — but don't spill anything… or else… his breathing grew shallow as they approached the square. The water moving further up his arm was clearly meant to be a threat, but he was hardly bothered by that anymore. Death-by-drowning was a rather attractive thought compared to the alternative.

"Huh? No, I didn't… I wasn't gonna ditch him." Derrick answered, a bit confused after Calder's "you don't know where we're taking you?" comment. Staring at the ground, he seemed to be spacing out a bit, too distracted to focus on what Calder was saying. "You're taking me to Ace. I know that. You asked where you would take me if Ace already left by now, and I said I didn't know, because I… I didn't think… I didn't plan for…" he trailed off, still avoiding eye contact as his breathing became more ragged. He sounded like he was on the verge of hyperventilating. What if it's too late? What if all this is bad enough? What if he's already made up his mind by the time he sees me? Derrick was holding back tears by this point. No, I just… I just have to… stay calm… make it look like I've got this under control…

"I was only going to head right back to him. I didn't think I'd get… held up… by this…" he replied, making a conscious effort to get his breathing under control, trying to hold himself together as they approached the square…

 

[PoetLore]

Roxanne nodded and moved toward what appeared to be the point of origin of the explosion, if the array of debris was any indication and in her ind it definitely was. she stepped closer and heard a few odd bits of conversation..chosen ones...gods working...

She stepped up to the door and tapped the tip of her boots to the frame of the door. They were completely covered in black soot of some undetermined kind. It would likely sound like knocking to those within but she didn't wait for anyone to invite her inside, she was pretty sure this was a shop of some kind, though she didn't remember what sort or even if it was a shop. Odd now that she was thinking about it. She came to town all the time. Why had this place escaped her notice?

She looked around at the people inside. A few of them she remembered from the larger group listening to Ace earlier, "Is everyone ok in here?" she asked, "Heard that blast clear across town...and the soot..wow...that went everywhere..."

She was itching to ask what they were talking about, but she figured if she was meant to know, someone would inform her.

 

[Kagayours]

As Derrick, Calder, and Raymond entered the square, all the stragglers from Ace's audience had just about dispersed. By this point, several humans — who seemed to also work for Ace — were disassembling the stage that Ace had used earlier and were carrying the pieces elsewhere. Ace was instructing them on where to go when he turned around and caught sight of Derrick and his captors.

"Oh? What's going on here?" Ace asked innocently, walking towards the trio. "I see you two found one of my workers," he continued. "Any particular reason you felt the need to… escort him to me? Seemingly by force?"

Derrick kept his eyes on the ground, too fearful to even make eye contact with Ace. Still, he tried his hardest to maintain a calm and not-completely-terrified expression. Gotta make it look like I have this under control… or at least sort of under control… Derrick took a deep breath before answering. "This guy caught me as I went by." he told Ace flatly, gesturing slightly towards Raymond. "I never told him anything."

Ace narrowed his eyes skeptically for a moment, but his expression soon relaxed into a mildly amused grin. "Interesting…" he cooed.

Ace's gaze then turned to Calder. "And what about you, then?" he asked. "What's your business in all this?"

 

[Turtle of Doom]

Calder's gaze fell on Ace and he gave the man a quick once over, not bothering to hide the look of contempt on his face. "I do not trust you. You're obviously a snake in man's clothes and as a byproduct, I don't trust him. He's right, he didn't tell us anything about what he was up to, but he's obviously more afraid of you than he was us, and that," he paused, bringing a webbed-fingered hand up to his chest. "Tells us plenty."

His upper lip drew back from his teeth in a snarl and one finned eyebrow arched. "Really, what kind of man needs to lord over his underlings in such a way that they obey through fear rather than respect?" A small shake of his head followed the question before he went on to answer it himself. "No kind of man I'd ever look to to lead."

Calder's hand fell off of the minion's arm as he pushed the man toward Ace. "So, I'm guessing that you're not willing to tell us what you're really up to either, then? No matter, I suppose. But curious minds, and all that."

Crossing his arms, Calder leaned away from Ace and his cronies, waiting. Waiting for what he wasn't sure, but he was waiting. The one thing he did know was that he didn't want to turn his back on the man.

 

[Kagayours]

"It is no mere coincidence." the Priestess said in response to Zito's question. "It is the will of the gods." Then, Alicia asked to know more about the 'dark forces' that they would all be up against. "As I have said, the threat is the man who calls himself Ace Dominyx. I do not know much about his goals — only that he does seem to be headed towards Tarocchi." she reiterated. "In addition, I have been led to believe that he is a very dangerous figure — perhaps he is not even mortal… but, that is mere speculation on my part." she continued. "While I see the use in obtaining more information about Ace, I must urge you to be cautious in how you go about obtaining it…" she told Alicia.

Then, addressing the group as a whole, she said, "While I wish I could say more to help, I am limited in both knowledge and time. As such, I shall state my last two points without further delay: First, I urge you all to be ready to leave by tomorrow morning." she stated. "I know this leaves you with little time to prepare, but, Ace likely only plans to stay here for a single night before moving on to the next town. And if you wait too long to follow after him, it may be difficult to catch up." she explained. "Secondly, I must remind you all: my only role in this was to bring news of the task that is being asked of you. After you leave, I will not be able to provide further assistance. That said, I do not believe that you will be left with no guidance at all. If the gods have taken a special interest in you, then they will surely leave more signs for you to follow — if you are mindful enough to notice them." she told the group.

"Now then — I had hoped that everyone would arrive here, as all of you did, but we are still missing a few members, and it seems I may have to search for them elsewhere. As such, my work for today is not yet done — and I have limited time remaining with which to complete it." She explained, pulling up her hood as she made her way to the door. "I'm sure you still have questions, but I can't stay to answer them." As she stepped through the doorway, she paused, turning to the party of adventurers once more, and said, "Good luck, and may the protection of the gods be with you." And then, she hurried off…

 

[Effort]

Great! The priestess was finally wrapping everything up and people were going to get out of his lab. Then he could move on with his- "[bcolor=#000000]Tomorrow[/bcolor]?!" all the experiments Darius had had in preparation flew through his mind. Shoving his hands through his blackened hair he recounted the scraping together of resources, all the jobs he had done just to pay for his supplies and materials. He had even found a den of small magical creatures he had yet to identify. Nothing really important, just some magical tiny mammals, but still!

His hands running down his face, leaving his hair a wild dark mess, and unlike his hair he began to compose himself. "Well that's all splendid! I can't wait to be reimbursed for my time. As for now you all heard the priestess, time to scoot!" he said, beginning to usher people toward the door "No more reason standing about crowding my lab. Unless you wish to pay for a service I can provide. See you tomorrow!". Excluding Shireen and Zito from his dmismissals, he addressed them directly "Except for you two, if you'd still like to stay and help. That would be quite fine, just the papers if you would. If not, make sure to pull the door a little on your way out, it gets stuck sometimes."

Still a little fuming he began to gather up some of the various small objects that had fallen over. Strange candles, thick jars containing things anywhere from dirt to "Baby's Laughter", odd looking tools with strange appendages. All the experiments would have to be put on hold and his logs were scattered about. "Really should have found a paper gathering spell after that last whirlwind experiment..."

As Darius continued to tidy up he could occasionally be heard stomping on the floor and then checking under his boot, or kicking out as if at a small creature. But there was nothing there...

 

[Greenie]

Leaving by tomorrow morning was not a big deal for Shireen. In fact, she was quite raring to get a go on; she'd never been here because she wanted to, it was a necessity. She'd have to go to her room and see what sorts of things there were to pack up. Not much, she reckoned, perhaps enough to fill a backpack. If she was lucky, maybe even less, and she could carry about a satchel.

She wondered about the others. How much did they have to carry? How much did Darius plan on taking along with him?

The thought reminded her that she had been doing something before the priestess had come about. "Gatherin' papers, gotcha!" She gave a little salute in his direction before resuming her work., listening to the odd grumble here and there. Well, she could sympathize. It wasn't every day someone's place of residence exploded and was littered with not just the contents that were inside, but people from outside handing out quests. While she was thrilled, it was easy to see why others may be less enthusiastic.

Once she had a large enough pile, Shireen headed over to place the sheets of paper upon the desk she had been using earlier. She paused, looking in the direction of the man, eyebrow raising when she noticed his odd actions. She looked to the floor but couldn't for the life of her see any sort of bugs.

"Uh, so whatchu smashing there?" The curiosity was rather obvious in her voice.

@Effort

 

[AnimeLover_Princess]

Zito was a little annoyed at the priestess dismissing them. She believed in the god's but she didn't really have blind faith in them. despite that fact she really didn't want to just blow off what the priestess was saying, especially after the weird dream she'd had. she watched as the woman left and Darius started shooing people out of the door, excluding her and Shireen, who he finally turned to and asked to help clean up, namely picking up all the papers scattered about.

it took her a second , before she remembered that was why she'd came there in the first place and she said "Right! tidying up, I'm here to help." and she started bustling about, picking things up, gathering a pile of papers in her arms. she was a little impressed with just how many notes Darius seemed to have when she noticed his rather odd actions, stomping and kicking a little at the air. Shireen questioned it before she could so she stopped and looked at him, trying to figure it out herself.

 

[Neobullseye]

Alicia nodded, then once again formally bowed as the priestess took her leave. "Thank you for offering some of your time with us, priestess," she spoke. "We shan't let it go to waste. Farewell, and may the gods guide your feet."
After the priestess left, Alicia tried to think everything over -- which wasn't easy due to all the chatter around her, but she didn't want to leave yet either. There were still people around she could ask questions to, and leaving only to come back later would very likely be deemed strange -- especially considering the whole reason she came here originally was to figure out who was the cause of the earlier explosion,likely the owner of the laboratory. ...Said owner quite rudely confirmed his own identity by shoving Alicia and most of the others out of his den, into the public street. Not good. There are way too many people here to have a private discussion. Change of plans; find a quieter place, and while looking for it also look for a better source of information. After mentally adding Darius to her list of people she didn't like, Alicia started to walk in the general direction of her home, making sure not to take the shortest possible path so that she both had more time to think and so that others couldn't track her path too easily.

In all honesty, Alicia still wasn't quite 100% sure if she was actually going to join these people on their quest for whatever it was, but it wouldn't do to annoy the person in charge of it all before she made her final decision, especially considering she was actually leaning towards saying yes. Still though...She needed more information, and obviously the priestess was either unwilling or unable to give it to her. Which left only one other path; she needed to find another source, the most obvious alternative being Ace himself. Of course, it wouldn't do to walk up to Ace's face and ask 'hey, dude, are you possesed by demons, by any chance'? No, that was out of the question. Some amount of secrecy was in order here... Of course, answering the question of what not to do didn't answer the qestion of what she should do. Okay, go back to the basics. First things first, find out what your target's background and base of operations are. The latter is easy enough; just get someone to track him, then report the result back. This should be done as anonymously as possible, but there's nothing money can't buy when it comes to that. The former will take a bit more time and effort, and time in particular is something I lack. ...Maybe I should make the search party travel towards Tarocchi after they get the information I want. Of course, this does require me to actually join the Priestess' party, but it seems that that cannot be avoided anymore.
Ugh, she hated being pressed for time like that; it always got in the way of careful planning. ...No matter; there was no sense in worrying over that which could nod be changed. Rather, one should just accept it and adapt to it. Nodding to herself, she turned around the corner, entering a nearby store to buy some stationery. She was not foolish enough to give her instructions directly to people who might be captured; rather, she would use seeded envelopes, each new envelope telling the reciever to pass on the next envelope to another person, the last of which would do the actualy info-gathering. No, even if Ace managed to catch the infiltrators, they would only know that someone wanted information on him, not who or why. Inversely, others would not be able to track her actions down back to her either, so that she would not suffer any negative repercussons from her rather unladylike actions.Even the messengers would not know anything; the first messenger simply was told to deliver the letter to another messenger, and the last messenger did not know who the original message, only what to do. It was about as good a cover-up as you could get through purely non-magical means.

 

[Effort]

Seemingly satisfied with the nothing under his boot, Darius went to go back to straightening his lab when he realized Shireen, the strong looking one, had asked him a question. "Well..." Darius contemplated how he would explain this. Zito seemed curious as well but he could judge they wouldn't have the knowledge they would need to fully understand the phenomena he was experiencing. "To simplify, it is an invisible bug, but I can see it. I have wards up to keep them out but everyone else barging in with their chaotic energies has disrupted the barrier and now some of them are crawling in." Darius huffed a little as he looked at the invisible ward around his lab. "I'm going to have to repair the blasted thing before we leave or they'll be everywhere when I get back. Again!"

It would be evident now that Darius was in fact a spellcaster. This might explain the strange and sometimes scary items around the room, and behavior. It was still left to the individual to determine whether Darius' methods were unorthodox or not. They totally are though.

@AnimeLover_Princess @Greenie

 

[Kagayours]

Calder told Ace that the henchman's fear of him spoke volumes about his character, even when Derrick had technically kept his mouth shut. Hearing this, Ace's friendly smile began to falter slightly, as his gaze slowly drifted towards Derrick. "…Is that so?" he mused, keeping his voice level for the time being.

As Ace looked down at him, Derrick's fear became even more outwardly apparent, especially as Calder let go of him and pushed him in Ace's direction. Not even finding the courage to stand, Derrick curled up in a fearful ball at his master's feet, only looking up to meet Ace's eyes for a brief moment before averting his gaze again.

Ace said nothing more to Derrick, only looking down at him with a mildly unamused expression before returning his attention to Calder and Raymond. He walked around Derrick as he stepped closer to the two of them, with that transparent smile returning to his face again as he continued to speak. "Listen, this is… a bit of an embarrassing situation for me, to be honest." he told them sheepishly. "At this point, I'm not going to try to change your mind about my leadership abilities. In fact, you can consider this a victory over me, if you'd like."

As Ace spoke, a few of the other humans who worked for him were still present on the scene, listening in curiously from the sidelines, much like a child who eavesdrops on what their parent is saying when they know that their sibling is about to be scolded.

"And, perhaps I would've had time to listen to your constructive criticism, if… this hadn't come up," he continued, gesturing vaguely to the sad heap of anxiety on the ground that went by the name of Derrick. "But now — well, it appears I'm a bit crunched for time." he told them. "For one thing, I know I'll have to alter my dinner plans, if I want to find time to deal with all this…"

Hearing this, the color drained from Derrick's face. The remaining henchmen only made a "well, shit" expression before putting their heads down and scurrying off. Derrick knew he was doomed, and there'd be no changing the boss's mind about it. "Kill me." he whispered to Raymond. Calmly at first, but, his tone soon escalated to panicked begging as he crawled desperately towards his former-captors. "Please, please kill me!" he begged, reaching out to the two of them. "Or else he'll-"

One of the Avian bodyguards seemingly materialized out of nowhere, restraining Derrick and clasping a hand over his mouth. "Get him out of here!" Ace hissed as Derrick struggled in the Avian's grasp. The Avian nodded, scurrying away as fast as he could manage while maintaining his grasp on Derrick.

With a stress-filled sigh, Ace returned his attention to Calder and Raymond. "Now listen," he growled. "You two are getting yourself involved with events that you do not want to be a part of." Ace spoke sternly, completely dropping his friendly facade as he stepped closer to Calder and Raymond. "I strongly recommend that you both hurry on back to your own lives, stay out of mine, and pretend that none of this ever happened. And if you refuse — well, I can't guarantee your safety." he threatened. "Do I make myself clear?"


@Turtle of the Tired @Eruantien

 

[Eru]

"So, what? You treat your own cronies in that manner, and you have the daring to ask this town for aid?"

Raymond's tone was suddenly different; more rumbling, more thunderous. He'd been silent while Calder held the focus of the conversation, but having seen what just took place before them, this would not stand. The very air seemed to fluctuate between humid and arid within the space of a few short seconds, as Raymond's fists clenched and opened over and over again.

But then, Raymond grit his teeth and ceased.

"You-- I... I rest my case. Your actions speak louder than your voice ever can. If these people cannot see what lies within you, then they deserve to part with their possessions."

With an apologetic glance toward Calder, Raymond took a step back from Ace and whirled about, beginning to stride away.
Obviously, Ace was a sham of the lowest caliber. Raymond wasn't about to let him escape so easily, but he felt that remaining in the square would only lead to unnecessary conflict. Instead, he decided to approach the place Roxanne had been traveling toward; the site of the previous explosions down a nearby street.

@Kagayours @Turtle of the Tired

 

[Luma]

Kiri listened in silence and left when urged, in the trance of her own thoughts. Had her dream really tapped into something more significant? She'd imagined this sort of thing before, but with it all but confirmed, the implications were flowing in very slowly. So that Ace guy was supposedly some big-time villain and they were supposed to stop him by.... stalking him? What? Besides, her dream implied he only got scarier over time, so why wait?

Kiri snapped out of her trance as she brushed sides with a few people leaving the crazy guy's house. Right, a doorway wasn't the best place to space out. With a quick gust-jump, she sat atop the roof and smiled at the sky. Rooftops really were comfy. Windy and private. Great places for thinking and daydreaming.

So.... murder. Killing was almost beautiful in a story where two great warriors meet in battle. Slitting someone's throat on the other hand.... less beautiful. Especially if there was nothing to prove he was actually evil.

The sky sure was beautiful today. Very blue.

Today was just plain unreal. Like she'd suddenly been sucked into one of her stories. Here she was, on a day like this, contemplating murder. Out in the distance, Kiri noticed a quick movement, only to notice a mysterious avian abducting some guy.... right beside Ace of course. Welp, so much for him not being evil. Kidnapping was pretty darn bad.

Standing, Kiri made a graceful leap down, landing right beside Tawny. "I don't know about you, but I don't like this 'waiting' at all. Are you interested in planning an ambush for next morning? I mean.... I just saw him kidnap someone, so who knows what else he could do by the time we get to Tarrochi." Gosh, what was she saying....

@Kagayours

 

[Kagayours]

"A-an ambush?!" Tawny echoed. This whole thing about a "quest from the gods" sounded like a real ~mystical adventure~ at first, but, with Kiri suggesting that they ambush and murder Ace, well… the whole thing sounded less like a ~heroic quest~, and instead felt a lot more… dark. "I… dunno if that's the best idea." Tawny said hesitantly. "I mean, the Priestess said we should leave by morning, and that we're supposed to be following Ace — and if all that's true, then, wouldn't Ace be gone by morning?" she argued, although she didn't sound very sure of her own conclusion. "And… wait, did you say he just kidnapped someone?"

"I don't care what Ace is up to." Clay butted in. "You are not planning an ambush while I'm not around." he told Tawny, while also shooting a 'don't give her any ideas' look at Kiri. "Now, I still have things I need to do today — and I can't believe I've wasted as much time as it is… So, we'll discuss what we're supposed to do about this whole… mystical quest business later tonight." he told Tawny as he got ready to leave. "Until then… please don't ambush anyone." he stated flatly, walking away from Darius's lab.

 

[Greenie]

"Oh I see," Shireen replied, taking what Darius said in stride, believing him about invisible bugs, even though most people would have been rather skeptical about it. Well, after talks of prophesies that we're busy sending them all off on an adventure, it wasn't too difficult to believe in anything.

"I've never seen anythin' no one else could." She chuckled a little. "Well, I've never really done anythin' magicky, though I've seen others. Like when I was still on my father's ol' ship, there was Jainus, he could help a little with the wind..."

Shireen stopped when she realized she was talking about the past. It was time to return to the present. "What are y'all gonna do?" She looked at both Darius and Zito. "I mean... If you both don't really believe her, I don' think there's anything stoppin' you from stayin' back. I'm going but I don't have anythin' here that'd make me wanna hesitate."​

@Effort
@AnimeLover_Princess