Another Horizon IC

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[BCOLOR=transparent]Utter disappointment, maybe even a slight hint of disgust, creeped slowly over the maid butler's face. It was a similar experience of eating a long sought-after piece of chocolate that, only after having tasted it, turned out to be dog shit. Well, just going after looks, the person Aresia mistook for Aiv didn't look bad or anything, quite the contrary. But still, he wasn't Aiv.[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]Though, then, he started to talk to her, going so far to actually know her name? "It's been a while..." The maid butler responded, forcing herself to a more friendlier face now. Just who the hell was he?[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]Aresia's friendlier face didn't hide her disappointment quickly enough, however it had little effect on Verek. Perhaps he had been mistaken for someone else. "It has indeed." he replied, less awkward now the surprise had faded, "I didn't expect to ever see you again after I left the maid and butler school. I guess your employer is travelling?" he asked trying to remain friendly. Hopefully she would excuse herself and move on quickly.[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]Maid and butler school? Aresia took a good, long, look at his face and then, it came to her. "Right! Now I remember! You were in my class! Verek!" This time around the black hair gave a rather warm and genuine smile. "Sorry, I mistook you for someone else. It has truly been a while, I would never have expected to meet you again. And indeed, my employer is traveling. Though, she gave me the day off, seeing how it is my first time in Cykes." It didn't look like she would simply excuse herself and move on, at least not for the moment.[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]She … had forgotten who he was. Aresia used forget, it's super effective against Verek's ego. He managed to avoid letting out a disappointed sigh, especially given her sudden friendly outburst. But it wasn't the best feeling. He also caught the stress she put on the word employer, he hadn't been quite sure how else to put it. [/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]Note to self, avoid that word in future[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]. "Are you finding your way around alright? The city can be quite confusing to navigate even for those who live here." Looked like he was stuck with her for now.[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]Oh look, did she find a navigator? But for what even? After all, the girl was just simply wandering around without any real goal in mind. "Yeah, the architect must have been permanently drunk." Maybe said architect was a relative of Alexa? "I doubt I would find my way if not for the fact I was just simply enjoying the sights...until a horde of noisy savages came along and ruined everything." Savages might have been the wrong word, but Aresia wasn't the person to beat around the bush nor trying to hide the maybe embarrassing fact like being kinda lost, well, as long as it didn't came to anything related to her current employer.[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]Verek cracked a small smile in response to her first statement, it was very fitting. She had a way with hyperbole that was sure. He wondered who those savages had been. "Yeah it's generally pretty loud in the streets, even in the night." He felt slightly stumped on what to say. "So … who did you think I was when you first tapped my back? And why did you think I was them?" Time to satisfy his curiosity.[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"Even in the night?" The black hair gave off an annoyed sigh, then again, by now, she was used to not getting much peace at night. So whatever. "I thought you were Aiv." Not like he knew who that was, no? Hah. "And because of your white hair." Gesturing to look around she continued. "That hair of yours is rather unnatural after all...not meaning it's a bad thing!" Not at all, Aresia really liked it after all. "It makes me wonder though, what are YOU doing here?" Wasn't he a butler too? Even after roughly a year spend together, in the end, she didn't really know Verek that much at all.[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]He could never remember hearing of a person called Aiv before. He reflexively moved a hand through his hair when she mentioned it, it was rare colour. If Aiv shared it he was sure he'd never heard of or met the man before. Before he could think too much on that she turned the questioning back onto him. "Oh, I'm here studying Runetech at Seyour University. I got a fair bit behind while I was at the training school so I'm trying to catch up before my father gets annoyed. He was reluctant to let me halt my studies at all." The man would have much rather kept him coddled up safely at the University with Ashe where they could learn more for him, greed ran in the family. But the talentium had been enough to convince him otherwise thankfully.[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"Runetech? I imagine that to be certainly interesting." Considering what she saw in the museum. "You don't happen to have one of those Runetech lighter things?" She didn't really expect him to, but wanted to say something at least, as mentioning his father and thus, family, just made her more bitter instead of enjoying her time here.[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]Aresia's quick subject change caught Verek off balance for a second, before he reached hand into his pocket. "I'm afraid I don't, but there is a short term solution." From his pocket he retrieved a pencil and one of the scraps of paper he carried around. A fire run was a simple thing and he quickly drew one onto the piece of paper. "Just put a bit of mana into it like casting a spell and it'll make a small flame. It'll only work once though." He handed the paper over to her.[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"Does it?" Did it? The maid butler had to confirm, right here on the spot, it was just paper after all. Thus, Aresia tried to activate the rune.[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]And indeed, it did work! Looking very pleased, she quickly relinquished the flame by crushing it with her palm without any need to worry regarding burns thanks to her Art. "Well, thanks, you don't happen to have an entire paper block full of those?"[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]Verek cracked a small smile at Aresia's reaction to the rune. "I think my hand would get sore drawing so many. But I could take you to a runetech shop where you could find a proper lighter instead?" Well, this conversation had gone very differently to what he had expected upon first seeing her. [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]A shop for them? Well, they certainly couldn't be that expensive, no? Aresia nodded in response. "Sure!"[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"Very well then." Verek replied. Taking some more tim[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]e to adjust his internal map he set off with Aresia in tow for a runetech shop.[/BCOLOR]
 
[BCOLOR=transparent]"[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]Astopol you say?[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]" The armor-clad man asked, offering a handshake. "[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]I'm Sir Elthrad of House Raske, Knight Errant.[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]"[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]Raiga looked at the so-called Elthrad's hand, being quick to give a long a firm shake along with a welcoming smile. Raiga wished he hadn't finished his drink so quickly, it'd be nice to share a drink with someone for once. Ah well, a conversation was more than he'd had in his previous years upon years of training nonetheless. [/BCOLOR]
[BCOLOR=transparent]"[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]Uh... yeah, nice to meet you, Sir Elthrad. Don't have any fancy titles myself, just call me Raiga.[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]"[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]Raiga[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]," he said, as if testing out the name. "[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]You don't look like a native to Astopol[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]?"[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]Oh, yeah... and I'm certainly not native to this... uhh... different... place. Although it ain't much anymore, I'm from the Archipelago. Barely anythin' there for me nowadays... wouldn't be surprised if you haven't heard of the place.[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]" Raiga said in a more open tone, visibly loosening up a bit. Raiga paused, able to get a closer look at the man's armour. Yeah… it certainly didn't look Dansilian, but that didn't make it unimpressive nonetheless.[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]You're right, I'm not familiar with it, but if it's in as dire straits as you suggest perhaps my quest will take me there one day,[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]" Elthrad replied.[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]Oh… uh… I wouldn't head to the Archipelago. There's literally nothing there nowadays… everything just… collapsed ever since the Wars began and that.[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]" Raiga mumbled, looking at the counter. [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]Sorry, where are my manners,[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]" the knight said, as if noticing he'd touched on a sensitive subject. "[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]You said you were here to slay rift-beasts? I'm sorry to say I'd be of little help, I just arrived in the city today, equally ill-equipped for Dansilan culture.[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]"[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]Heh… glad there's two of us, buddy. Turns out being shirtless isn't a tradition in many cities; at least you're wearing… something. Personally I'm just looking for some more difficult training. I train with an unarmed martial art, if you're wondering why I'm near to naked in terms of equipment… heheh. Mind if I ask what brings you here?[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]" Raiga ended with a half-nervous chuckle, looking around at some of the staring eyes a little self-consciously. [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]As a Knight-Errant, it is my duty to seek out the darkness and to shine the light of the Goddess upon it,[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]" he recited from rote. Reaching into his coin purse, he pulled out some silvers to pay for the drink. "[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]I plan on renting a room and depositing my armor, after that I would be glad to assist you in traversing the city. Three eyes are better than two, I always say.[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]" [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]Yeah, sure thing! I really should have got a map… heh…[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]" Raiga mumbled a little embarrassedly, rubbing the back of his head again. He wasn't really one for planning things out, just getting in there and doing them: a tactic he could see was having its weaknesses. "[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]I'll follow you when you're ready, then. I'll be grabbin' a room myself, if I can afford one. Anyways, I'm curious… you mind if I ask how you lost your eye?[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]" Raiga asked.[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]Hmmm, that is quite the story,[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]" Elthrad began, scratching around the eyepatch nervously. "[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]Suffice it to say... I got in over my head during training[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]," Elthrad pulled several more coins of varying denominations from his belt and turned back to the bartender, passing the coins to him liberally. "[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]A private room and key, if they're available[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]."[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]Raiga scrounged around in the pockets of his trousers for the few remaining coins he had:[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent] just [/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]about enough for a room.[/BCOLOR]
[BCOLOR=transparent]"[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]Uhm, same for me... if that's alright.[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]" He mumbled, passing over the coins with a fumbling manner and one at a time. He wasn't great at the mathematics involved in adding up the coin amounts, so this took somewhat longer than your average person.[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]Thank you.[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]" Elthrad said, taking the key from the bartender and turning to the direction of the rooms. "[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]I'll be in my room. Should you need me, the door number is eight.[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]" Elthrad told Raiga, proceeding to head up the stairs.[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]Meanwhile, Raiga still struggled to add up the sums of his coin, causing the bartender to look at him somewhat condescendingly.[/BCOLOR]
[BCOLOR=transparent]"[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]Erm… five… eight… no, wait… seven?[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]" Raiga mumbled. Now he was really embarrassed. However, he did manage to hear a conversation not too far away nearby. [/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]Picking out some of the useful information from the drunken banter and whatnot, Raiga heard something that surprised him: some rumour about pirates raiding around Illiserev… by airship. That was certainly new. Raiga would have to keep that in mind, even if it didn't help him get to his monster-slaying.[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]Ah… ha! There we go, here's the money.[/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]" Raiga said, managing to put two and two together with the money antics at last. The bartender gave him a look, before scooping up the coins and handing him his key. Room number ten. Wasting no time, Raiga headed up the stairs to the rooms. [/BCOLOR]

~ ~ ~ ~​

[BCOLOR=transparent]Leaving Raiga at the bar counting coins, it was a brief walk for Elthrad to the stairs at the back of the room. He kept his gaze turned to the right so that the fireplace remained on his blindside, and reflected on his fortune in meeting another friendly traveler at his first in. As he neared the stairs, something caught his ear, a name that he hadn't heard in a few months. He paused, one foot on the steps, and listened.[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]"-the lines are already forming, we'd never get in!" a young male student said to another. "Seyour University is packed with people waiting to see her."[/BCOLOR]
[BCOLOR=transparent]"But it's [/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent]the[/BCOLOR] [BCOLOR=transparent]Ellenil Esprit![/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=transparent] She's going to be right here!" at that moment, the two seemed to notice Elthrad's presence and he continued on his way up the stairs. Ellenil, here? That was news; he hadn't expected to see her again... at least not anytime soon. Brief memories of her fluttered into his mind as he ascended to the second floor, finding room number eight and inserting the key in the lock.[/BCOLOR]

[BCOLOR=transparent]It was a nice, sparsely furnished room. A single bed with a chest at its foot where renters could store their belongings, which made it perfect for his needs. He checked to make sure the chest locked before going through the arduous process of stripping of his armor and laying it in the chest with his as of yet unmentioned traveling pack. Free of the weight, he stretched before heading back downstairs to await Raiga's return at the bar.[/BCOLOR]

 
Charlotte shrugged, but not before making a wry smile at Raela's really bad vampire joke. She was fairly sure that whoever those bumbling stalkers were, they already knew where she and her companions made their lodgings. And since it was midday, she reevaluated her choice in heading back to the musty old inn.

"No, I just realized it's silly to head back so early. Alexa's probably out getting drunk, and my maid-in-competition is probably sightseeing and getting lost in the market quarter. You're rathered bored, right?"

"How'd you tell?" Raela touched her cheek, "Though being with you has stifled it a bit. Do you have anywhere else in mind, then?"

"I can tell the look of a bored face from a hundred meters away," answered Charlotte in jest. "Well, I don't have too much on my list, but getting pastries at that new cafe, going to that book signing, or going back and wrecking those stalkers were on the bucket list. Alexa and I were planning to do something about it, anyway." Truly, it was more of a nuisance than a worry, considering the fighting ability the three of them combined outputted.

"Book signing? By that Captain person, right? I've never delved into their works, but I'll accompany you if you'd like," Raela stated, "though I'm a bit more interested in beating on some folks." She punched her fist into her palm a couple times, smiling devilishly. Raela was certainly more than willing to get into a brawl; her skills were waning, and she needed something more real than commonplace sanctioned training. While fights weren't exactly welcome, Raela could always chalk the event up to defending an innocent young girl from disgusting human beasts~ Charlotte certainly looked the part, Raela thought.

"Just say the word and I'll lay down my life for you!" she joked.

"Truth be told, I already forgot the name of the person signing books," said the brown-haired girl, half in jest and half seriously. "But apparently the person was an ex-captain, who would be bound to have some interesting stories to tell." But that was markedly less interesting than going and beating up some wannabe spy kids. It was nice to get some proper practice in every so often, too. "Although, if you're up to it, let's go beat up some folks instead. There's more practice in that than hearing stories," she said, making a campy fencing parry and thrust.

"The hard part is going to be finding them again, isn't it."

"Well, unless your 'feeling' was misplaced, then they should always be nearby, right? We just gotta tempt them into showing themselves!" Raela suggested. Something along the lines of entering a dark alleyway 'all alone' passed her mind, cliche as it was.

"I think you give them too much credit," replied Charlotte, although she'd come to a similar conclusion. "Dark alleyway it is, then? Dark alleyway."
 
It could sense it, an existence much larger than itself, pulsating with the same blood that flowed from its own veins. It was a veritable mountain, an unmoving obstacle filled to the brim with life, confident enough in its own power that it did not move, even as the rift-beast got closer and closer. But the confidence was misplaced, for the 'blood' that flowed from its veins was muddied, and the strength that it held was unnoticeable.

It was beneath the monster's notice, an ant to a lion. But because it had the audacity to stand in its path, the rift-beast would do nothing but show it the same amount of respect as any of the others that once stood in its way.

The back of the beast cracked open, crimson light spilling outwards as a dark red obelisk extended diagonally, like a fang growing out from the mouth. The light swirled around the tip of the pillar, countless threads spinning and weaving and darkening, until it formed an ominous, black ball.

And then…

Raela and Charlotte, as they marched merrily to a dark alley, would notice something odd. For a moment, it looked like there were two Suns in the blue sky, one white, one red. No, upon closer inspection, it became clear that the red sun wasn't a sun. It was a comet, a falling star, a high-velocity object accelerated by gravity, capable of obliterating the impact zone.

And it was falling straight towards them.​
 
As much as their intended future was filled with punches and kicks, Raela happily trotted into the dark alleyway, clearly expecting something good. But as the sky fell into a dim red tinge over the normally blue and clear ocean it usually was, Raela looked heavenwards and immediately burst into action. With a firm grasp, she locked onto Charlotte's arm and wrenched her back out of the alleyway, urging her to follow suit. It didn't need explaining, she thought, so long as Charlotte could see the very same thing.

With something so large and ominous, Raela feared not just for her own life and Charlotte's, but for the cityscape itself. It was approaching fast enough, and seemed large and powerful enough to decimate a good chunk of the area they were in. Time was of the essence, and she hurried with her friend to try and distance themselves from the inevitable blast as best and fast as they could. Pushing past crowds, unsure of whether or not they saw the same doom, Raela tried guiding her friend to safety.
 
Like Raela, Charlotte marched into the quaint little alleyway, feeling quite good about herself, at least until she spied a red flare with her little eye. Looking to the sky, a dull meteor began to supplant the sun in size and light, such that it was becoming obvious that it was heading straight for their location. Raela was the first to react, pulling Charlotte away, and the two quickly made their leave of the alleyway, dropping any such plan of ambushing some spy kids.

Instead, they flew down the main street, shoving crowds of people out of the way in an effort to clear any blast zone such a stellar projectile might leave. Indeed, if an astronomer were killed by a meteor, it would somehow be quite poetic. But Charlotte was not in a mood to be poetic at all right now. Because right now, even if they cleared the crater it might make, the shockwave or the raging fires it might produce might spell their doom as well.

Pushing through a smaller crowd, she noted a particularly low building. If they leaped from building to building, they clear more distance in the short time they had. Jumping on this idea, she pointed out this escape vector to Raela. Hopefully they weren't going to become the victims of a one in a billion disaster today.
 
All eyes were on the sky as the blazing comet descended, an ominous harbinger of complete destruction. Lives flashed before the eyes of those that stared upwards, while others tried to outrun the potential explosion and shockwave. For a moment, in the face of nature's wrath, people could only say their prayers, hoping for a quick death.

Then, they remembered.

They were no longer weaklings, bound to the rules of nature. They held the power of Talentium, capable of taming storms and quelling hurricanes. And, in the face of the comet, one man drew his sword, the silver blade flashing with white energy.

"Blitzkrieg Style: Thunderclap!"

An arc of lightning cracked through the air, striking the comet dead center. With a roar that could be heard throughout the whole town, the swordsman smashed the flat of the zweihander against the falling star, shattering it into a million harmless pieces. Spinning from the momentum of his swing, Lucius Courtright landed on the top of a building, his leather clothes still crackling with electricity. The muscular man shook out his right hand, still numb from the blow, before grimacing at what he saw in the east of Cykes.

This was not a natural phenomenon.

Something was causing it, for there was no way a natural falling star could be so weak.
~~~
As the skies cleared, the rock dust blown away by the wind, the atmosphere turned from fear, to relief, to an odd sort of elation, people applauding and cheering as if they had just seen a marvelous performance. It wasn't to last though, as the runes of all buildings glowed, turquoise circuits tracing up and down the walls. A communications rune was activated, city-wide, and a smooth, self-assured voice sounded, bearing ill news that did not fit the calm tone of the man's voice.

"Students, staff members, visitors. That is not the end of the attack on Cykes. Through surveillance magics, we have confirmed that this is the doing of a rift-beast, somehow capable of long-range bombardment magic. All graduates with combat experience, head to the Glass Building of Seyour University immediately, if you wish to volunteer for this event. Everyone else should evacuate immediately to the underground shelter, the Burrow. Red runic lines will lead you there."

There was a small pause, as if letting everything sink in, before the announcer finished, "The operation will start in five minutes. All those who cannot make it to the Glass Building by then should assist in evacuation."
~~~
Escellar sighed as he finally shut down the communications rune, feeling drained. Falling onto the padded chair with a thump, the green-haired man looked about. The Glass Building was, as expecting made out of glass, which was structurally the best material to inscribe runes on. Didn't leave much space for privacy, but then again, it wasn't like one needed it here. Surrounded by dozens of runes, all floating on the glass windows, he looked around and saw that one of the people leading the operation was already going for the door.

"Leaving already, Seyour?"

"Of course. Can't have Courtright one-up me, after all."

"Get me a souvenir then."

"Fuck off."

And with that quick exchange, there were only two others from the Sidosa Board left, a crotchety old man with a crazy white beard, and a middle-aged man, with scraggly stubble and a priest-like outfit. Upon noticing Escellar's one-eyed gaze, the old man chuckled. "Don't worry, Esc my lad, me and Eldren aren't gonna leave you all alone, yeah?"

"Dammit, I was hoping for the opposite," the rune tech inventor quipped, good-humoredly.​
 
Ashe continued on without the hindrance of tag-a-longs. She was half glad that she was able to make pace without either of those two getting lost behind her, yet still half sad that she had to cut the time with her friends so short. Such is the life of a young, independent adult, Ashe supposed as she stepped within the threshold of Seyour University.

She was a sweaty mess, more so than she had been after leaving the airfield. The girl hoped that Escellar wouldn't mind, but knew he wouldn't; the girl was meant to be working, not performing in a beauty pageant after all.

She made her way to the discernible Glass Building, named for the eponymous material which made its floors, walls, and roof. It was quiet the sight to any of those unfamiliar with the materials needed in the construction of the society-engulfing runetech, but the the techie who had been working there since she was still in school, this was nothing more than what could considerably called normal. It was only due to the strange composition of this building that Ashe was able to get a glance at the falling comet. She tensed at that moment, seeing that a large projectile was hurtling at the city with no alarm to warn them. Yet in that same moment, a clap of metal of electricity had buzzed and struck the indiscernible object from the sky. Ashe let out the breath she had been holding in a huff; she still felt rather silly seeing as this city was full of what you could call superhumans. She took one last deep breath before moving on.

Ashe listened to the familiar voice of her supervisor over the hum of the communication relay; her chest puffing with pride in knowing that she had been one of many to have helped install the system all over the blasted city. Quite an undertaking, but one the entire lab had performed with gusto in proving the uses of the technology they were pioneering. Granted, this was a rather high opinion to have of herself given she was only an intern, but she had to take pride in the bigger picture, dammit!

Ashe, after having asked a bustling assistant as to Escellar's presence, entered the room where the three men had settled. Ignoring the other two, she approached Escellar in a more forward manner than she ever had before, and bowed. "Is there anything I can do to help with the situation, sir?!" This sentence was stiff and somewhat awkward in tone; a fact which perhaps matched the noticeable blush plastered on her face.

All the eager to please him, eh Ashe... A voice in the back of her head said.
 
Before Aresia and Verek made it to the runetech shop the meteor appeared in the sky, hurtling right towards them all. The sight of the flaming rock made Verek freeze as fear overcame him. It would flatten the city if it hit, and how would anyone stop it? As futile as he knew it would be he dropped the few pieces of paper in his pocket onto the ground and began scribbling earth runes upon their surface, hoping to form some kind of defensive shield. Before he could finish there was a flash of light in the sky along with a massive roaring sound, and the meteor was shattered into harmless fragments that were blown off in the wind. The light drew his gaze upwards and he stopped his frantic writing as he saw Lucius descending to a rooftop.

Hearing the following announcement by Escellar it was an easy decision for Verek to make. Scooping up the papers, unfortunately now limited in use but faster to use, he turned to Aresia. "I know you're only visiting but," it was another rather painful blow to his ego as he said the next words, and if Aresia was paying her full attention she might tell they were a little forced, "you're a good fighter. Your assistance would be helpful." Not waiting around for her answer given the strict time limit Verek took off running towards the glass building, leaving Aresia to follow him or not.

***

A few minutes, and a bit of luck, later Verek arrived at the Glass Building and made his way inside. There were already a fair few graduates there milling around and waiting for the operation to start. Dismissing them he looked around for his sister, who he guessed would probably be here as well, but couldn't see her even with the glass walls of the building. He started walking through the building in his search, slightly hoping he wouldn't find her there. Given her lack of fighting ability he'd prefer she was safe in the Burrow rather than exposed here. But he did soon find her, with Escellar as he had guessed she would be. Leaving them to discuss what they needed to he waited nearby for when they were done.
 
And there it was, a giant boulder falling from the sky, or otherwise called a comet! Fear would have been one option of how the maid butler could react, that is, if she was completely helpless. Not to mention that she highly doubted that an important city like this had no defensive mechanism to deal with such threats. Regardless, there wasn't much time, and Aresia had a few safe bets how she could counter this thing on her own, though considering that there wasn't much time it left her only with the more annoying one. Not making much of a fuss the black hair jumped on a roof-top and fixated her eye-sight on the thing.

"Ice Ban-" "Blitzkrieg Style: Thunderclap!"

And there, as she anticipated, someone else took care of the thing. Giving off a small sigh she was actually happy, because even if it was worse than it looked. A comet was a strong threat nonetheless. Jumping down to Verek she was all ready to continue their way as if nothing happened just to be interrupted by an announcement.

An attack? This thing? From a rift beast? In the one years worth she was traveling with Alex she had never met, or heard, of any kind of rift beast with some sort of long ranged attack. 'Well, again, there would be enough talented people out there to take care of this thing, so no need to bother' would have been something Aresia would have liked to think, alas, there was a very high chance that Alex was about to get herself into trouble again. And if the maid butler wouldn't find her at the glass building, that was reassuring enough too.

Following Verek to nullify even the slightest of chances of getting lost, they arrived, and him being in a hurry, Aresia finally said. "There are enough capable people around here, no? I am only looking for my employer, she likes to get herself into trouble." Yeah, so much for her day off.
 
As the meteor descended, Alexa stopped in her tracks to stare at the oncoming ball of death alongside everyone else in the city. For a moment, her hand dropped to her sword as lightning started to crackle around her body. With enough speed and force behind her blow, she might be able to shatter the rock coming down on the city. As the tension of the moment increased, Alexa grinned, eagerly anticipating the rush of the life-or-death moment. She crouched down, hand on the hilt of her sword as she prepared to leap up towards the meteor.

"Blitzkr-"

"Blitzkrieg Style: Thunderclap!" A different, but familar voice cried out before a man leapt up, shattering the meteor with a thundrous cleave. Alexa only widened her grin as Lucius Courtright touched down on a nearby rooftop. With a flash of lightning, Alexa leapt up to join her favorite teacher, barely noticing the city-wide announcement. Even if they wanted all those with combat experience to head for the Glass Building, it didn't particularly matter to her. Besides, Lucius was probably going to get involved in all this, so she was probably better off sticking with him anyway.

Landing behind Courtright, Alexa rose to her feet, raising her hand in greeting.

"Afternoon, Professor. Thought you and Seyour would be too busy sniping at each other to do anything." She snickered, giving the man a jab at his "friendly" rivalry with Fion Seyour.
 
It couldn't have been more than a few moments later, but before Araki could really explore the marketplace his eyes were drawn up towards the sky. As the air around it burned bright aflame, the red star soared down towards the city and his eyes widened in surprise and worry. Even as his hands slipped down to grasp the twin bucklers on his belt, Araki's eyes sought out shelter amidst his surroundings. Decent fighter he may have been, but all he could do against the crimson meteorite was hope someone more skilled took care of it or weather its impact as best as possible. It wasn't quite time for him to hide away though as a man soared upwards to meet the falling piece, and, with a great boom that he felt upon his skin, the chunk of rock was vaporized to little more than dust in the wind.

He blinked away the stars in his eyes as the figure fell back towards the rooftops, just in time to catch the thrum of energy that rushed through the city's architecture. As expected of such an event, news was quick to follow through the city-wide communication network. There was only a moment to think on the announcement before the crowd around Araki surged into motion and the younger boy jumped for higher ground to avoid being swept away. With a sigh, he dismissed the notion of running and hiding away into the Burrow, packed in with the other citizens. All things considered, he'd probably be just as safe if he returned home; it wasn't hard to see how his mother had gotten into her line of work after he'd lived with her family for a while.

His thoughts drifted toward the two he'd just met prior to this, but the two were dismissed almost just as quickly. While Ashe wasn't exactly combat proficient, she did have her own nifty set of rune-tech gadgets that should be able to keep her safe. That aside, he didn't think she'd simply head towards the laboratory with the city under seige and frankly he wasn't going to be able to find her in the mass evacuation. So where to then…

In the end, Araki settled for Gael's building as his destination as he flowed over the rooftops. It was a sizable building and as far as he knew, it wasn't all that well protected. If the next few strikes weren't completely destroyed like the first, it was a fair possibility that it and its residents would be in danger. As he dropped into the courtyard, it became quite clear that the residence had already been cleared out by Gael and a glance at the hustling crowd revealed no familiar faces. With a relieved sigh, Araki leapt back onto the rooftops and turned around to head back home.
 
[fieldbox="Elthrad Raske, seagreen, solid, 10, Times New Roman"]

Meanwhile, beneath the wooden ceiling of the tavern Elthrad awaited Raiga at the bar, oblivious to the blooming chaos outside. Screams caught his attention and his brow furrowed in confusion, and he noticed a strange cast to the light coming through the windows, grabbing the hilt of his sword he rushed to the door to discover what was happening. A terrible time to take off my armor, dammit.

As he grabbed the door handle, the thunderous report of a powerful impact washed over tavern, stopping him in his tracks and inciting some panicked screams from the patrons. He hesitated on the threshold for a moment, trying to decide between rushing out and returning for his armor, when some sort of magically projected message made his decision for him.

A rift-beast attack, Raiga would be happy to know where to go. I need my armor, with that thought he turned and bolted past the patrons to the stairs. He expected to see Raiga coming down them, but the martial artist was nowhere to be seen, so he assumed he had already left. He took the steps three at a time in the rush to his room. Damn, damn, damn! Five minutes is too little time! flying through the door, he sank to his knees and quickly unclasped the chest. There he hesitated. After a few more moments of staring at the clasps and straps, he sighed impotently. He locked the chest and left the room.

Out on the street the common folk were fleeing along the glowing routes to safety, running alongside a nearby commoner he shouted over the roar of the crowd. "Glass Building?! Where?!" The woman, seeing the falchion at his belt and his large size, pointed down a street and he quickly bolted. Every few streets he yelled to someone else for directions until, finally, he saw others running in the same direction and followed them to what was quite literally a glass building. Cursing his poor timing, he joined those waiting to attack and started looking around for Raiga.[/fieldbox]
 
Raiga was just beginning to get used to his room. To most, it was a common kind of thing, but to Raiga - this was pure luxury. A soft bed, sturdy walls, and even lockers to put your own things in. Not to mention pillows! He hadn't rested his head on a proper cotton pillow for ages. Putting his hands behind his head, having this room to himself made Raiga feel rather royal all of a sudden. He wondered if there's be room service as well- egh, even he knew he was thinking bullshit at this point. He needed to get up; Elthrad was waiti-

"-Huh...?"

Raiga must have not been paying attention to something important, for various dramatic sounds followed by the screams and shouting of citizens roared from Raiga's open window. Peering outside, Raiga noticed most of the civilians were looking either frightened or amazed, and then... CRACK! The sound of lightning. Raiga's window clearly wasn't facing in the correct direction for him to see what just happened, but it sounded dangerous. Elthrad completely slipped Raiga's mind as he slid open the window, hopping onto streets below.

Wind flung back Raiga's mess of shoddy black hair as his body accelerated into a powerful sprint, every footstep causing a huge 'THUD' against the pavement due to his Talentium Boots. He needed to know what the hell was going on here. And then, as if his desires were answered, an announcement soon came through that explained the situation. To be honest, he didn't really know where he was running anyway.

...


"...Rift beasts." Raiga hissed through clenched teeth after the announcement was over, balling his hand up into a tight fist. The bastards that had put his honoured father out of battle... and reduced his home to nothing. Those monsters were the reason for his mother's tears and the starving bellies on his home island - damn them! How were they getting intelligent so quickly? It didn't make sense. Either way - damn right he wanted to volunteer. This is the opportunity he was waiting for.

"Hey, you there! Where's this glass building at?" Raiga called across to a random lady. The citizen looked bewildered.
"W-what? How can you volunteer? You don't have proper armour, or even a weapo-"
"Just tell me!"
Resentfully, the citizen pointed Raiga in the correct direction, and Raiga's muscular legs broke into sprint once more.

It was then he realized. Crap! He'd forgot about Elthrad! Raiga winced a little with guilt at the fact that Elthrad might still be waiting for him, but there was no time to go back now. Surely Elthrad would just volunteer for this, too? He certainly looked like he'd be able to fight effectively, with the Talentium equipment and all. If all the combat-gifted were heading to this glass place, Raiga supposed he could regroup with his companion there. For now though, he wanted to arrive as soon as he could - being shut away in some bunker was the last thing he wanted. Being sure to look around for Elthrad on the way, Raiga dashed on whilst calling out the noble's name now and again.

Man... what a first day in Dansila.
 
"Gods!" Raela cursed, huffing from having run so quickly and for so long. Pausing at Charlotte's side, she took a kneel and caught her breath. "Wouldn't have expected anything other than some valiant warrior to intervene, know that I think about it retrospectively. Why even run?" she laughed to herself before gasping and continuing her game of physiological catch-up. As the announcement came over the city, Raela's ears perked up. As tired as she was, the prospect of true-grit battle caught her attention. A minute prior they were thinking of counter-mugging some stalkers in an alleyway, and now they had the opportunity to take on a cheeky rift beast!

JUmping to her feet, Raela grabbed Charlotte's shoulder vigorously and urged her on, "This is our chance to have some fun! Strut our stuff!" She smirked and faced her friend head-on, "And to get a break from your stalkers! What do you say Charlotte? Are you itching to do something less mundane?!" A few shakes and Raela already seemed geared to run off to the 'Glass Building', her hands clenched and eager to fight.

Ever since she had graduated from university, Raela knew that one day she'd have to return to search for her father, and that meant she'd need to be capable in more ways than one; she'd certainly need more than a true heart to change the feelings the general world had towards her kind. Optimism could only get one so far against bigotry. She needed to be sure her combat skills were up to the challenge.

The challenge to take on an entire country's customs.
 
"Hu… Hu… Huh, I didn't know they had such a system." Like Raela, Charlotte had to catch her breath after making an ultimately unnecessary mad dash for cover. Her mild fascination with the citywide communication system was quickly overshadowed by the contents of the announcement. Blowing out air just short of a whistle, she shot a glance at her fellow former classmate. It looked like another job was about to be ripe for the taking. Charlotte was a bit more reserved in her enthusiasm for combat, but indeed agreed with Raela. Of course, her intent was less to sate boredom than it was to actually, you know, save the beautiful city that she'd lived in for a couple years.

"Right behind you," said Charlotte, pulling alongside the hyped up vampire as she made a beeline for the glass structure. "It would probably be prudent to meet up with Alexa and a few other friends, too." After all, she was sure that her good friend would not shirk in the defense of Cykes, and her butler meido girl was paid enough to do the same. One thing did strike her odd, though. Of all the rift beasts they'd fought, never did one ever use any sort of ranged attack.

"Doesn't this strike you odd, though? A rift beast with a siege weapon?"
 
Being amongst the first to arrive, what Ashe would have noticed was that there was a surprisingly small amount of people actually present in the room. While it was clear that more than two minutes had passed since the announcement, only a few other students were around. The lack of volunteers didn't exactly seem to phase Escellar though, and the one-eyed man smiled warmly at the sight of Ashe. "Glad you could make it," the rune tech innovator said, standing up to offer a handshake, "And as a matter of fact, I need someone to observe and examine this new type of rift-beast. If you don't mind taking a more passive role in this operation, it'd be greatly appreciated, Ashe."

"And Verek, was it?" Escellar turned, nodding to acknowledge Ashe's half-brother. "Still as pasty as ever, eh? Guess you'll be blessed with the time-honored task of taking care of your sister. How's your jetpack going anyways?"

"Enough small talk," Eldren interrupted, the priest-like man standing up and motioning towards the group of seven that had reached the Glass Building in time, "Five minutes passed."

Escellar shook his head slightly, bemused by the rift-beast professor's punctuality, before clapping his hands together to get the attention of all who had entered the transparent room. Placing a finger on a marble sphere, the green-haired man activated another rune, this time a telescopic surveillance spell. While observation spells in general weren't the most developed field of magic, it was still strong enough that one could clearly see a black pillar rising from the forest, a strange black 'mud' converging above it.

"Corinkarus," Escellar said with a bow, "Take it away."

"Good day to you, kiddos~ If you're here because your parents told you to be, just leave now, because we'll be having you signing your life away on a contract if things go south, yeah?" The bearded man rose from his seat, drawing out a stack of papers from within his gaudy purple robes. Placing it on the table and motioning for them to come forth and sign it, he continued, "Anyways, onto the operation itself. The rift-beast in question is situated a kilometer or two away from us, east of Cykes. It's capable of sending out projectiles from the black pillar you see there, with enough destructive force to probably level a portion of the city if it lands. Because of that, most of our more combat-ready professors are occupied with the defense of the city."

Pointing to Charlotte, Corinkarus then said, "Eldren, she your student?"

"Never met her," the man replied, loosening his stiff collar, "But she makes a fair point. This is the first rift-beast that both has specifically targeted a single area, and has used a ranged means of attack. That's why, if it exhibits anything else out of the ordinary, it's imperative that you retreat immediately. Most rift-beasts are simple creatures, and we're hoping that the only thing out of the ordinary for this particular monster is its ability to fire off powerful projectiles, but…"

"…never discount the possibility of another factor, was it?" Escellar interjected, before removing his finger from the marble. Another explosive crack could be heard in the distance, before he said, "Head to the east gate and go straight from there. The distance is only a kilometer or two, and you're all Talentium users. Should be fine, right?"
~
The raven haired man turned to face his student as she greeted him, shrugging at her little quip about their rivalry. "Fion's been stuck in the university all day. Gotta take this chance to do some politics," Lucius responded, rolling his shoulder as another 'comet' arced through the sky. Higher up, it was clear that the comet was being sent from the east, instead of simply falling through the sky. Though he wasn't able to see what had sent it, it was pretty clear that the 'enemy' was headed in that direction.

Taking his black zweihander in both hands once more, he narrowed his eyes and tightened his grip on the sword, magic pumping into the sword once more. It pulsated with energy, and then…a horizontal tornado struck the flaming boulder, slowing and then stopping its flight. Invisible forces drew it to the smirking Fion, who spun around him like a moon in orbit, before saying, "Oh hey there, Lucius, nameless student. Sorry, but Escellar needs this as a souvenir, so…"

"Are you screwing with me, you drifter-cunt?" With a flick of his sword, Escellar sent a blast of lightning towards the black rock, melting it into slag.

"Hey, if you want to come at me, feel free to…" Fion trailed off, before a shit-eating grin appeared on his face. "Oh wait, I'm sorry," he apologized, not a single bit of sincerity in his tone, "Forgot that I beat you 10 times out of 10 in a proper sword duel."

"And I can just fry your ass while having my afternoon tea," Lucius replied, flourishing his sword in a display of wasteful skill.

They continued their back and forth, seemingly endlessly. It was clear to Alexa that she probably would just end up doing nothing here, with the Storm duo of Dansila having an ego-boosting competition in the vicinity.
 
Ashe wasn't aware of much else until Escellar stood. The sudden, in her eyes, movement jolted her from the reverie she had unknowingly fallen in to. The girl took the hand offered to her and shook it; tentatively at first, and then with a vigor that gave off the impression that a person would if they were unaccustomed to physical contact with another human being.

"I'll do it!" Ashe said with as much urgency as someone who was calling for emergency personnel would. It was startling to the girl that she lacked any sort of self-preservation while before the man standing in front of her, yet, despite realizing this, her voice held no less conviction.

Perhaps too startled, and only the least bit envious as Escellar turned his attention to the lingering presence which lurked behind her, Ashe leered, only to find it was her brother. The runetech witch smirked -- a teasing, malicious thing -- as Escellar gave the request for him to accompany her.

The same expression was soon wiped clean as the priest raised his voice in perturbing alarm. The meeting then proceeded, with the old man whom Ashe was only nominally antiquated with, and only because of his rather extreme and sympathetic stance towards people such as her. They went back and forth as the few gathered went about signing the waver they were directed towards; Ashe being one of the first to do so. With much of this being of little concern to what essentially was going to be a recon team, the girl paid little attention. Instead, she was thinking of one of the lab's gadget -- essentially a telescope with an array of magnification runes; each with their own variable power -- and where it might be in all this chaos.

At the end, when the group had all been dismissed, Ashe approached Verek and gave him a friendly pat on the shoulder. "Ready for some adventure, brother? It will just be like old times! Except for the small threat of death, of course..." Ashe smirked. "Let's make a small pit stop first, yeah? That way we'll only have to venture a few hundred meters or so from the wall."
 
"Not really, but that's a discussion for another time. Come on we've only got a few more minutes!" Raela urged to Charlotte. As the two hurried for the Glass Building, Raela joyfully skipped into the meeting, a clear grin spread across her face as she listened intently. While excited, the discussion by her peers served to ground her expectations a bit more realistically; retrospectively, Raela thought she'd been almost too eager. The Rift-Beast was sounding more dangerous by the second.

While they continued to talk, Raela leaned in towards Charlotte's ear. "About that question earlier," she whispered, "I'm not too surprised a Beast could develop something like artillery. They're all... mysterious and stuff, right? Why couldn't they get a little trickier, or a little smarter?" As she moved back, Raela mumbled half to herself.

"Maybe they're evolving..." She frowned at the thought. When the group was dismissed Raela immediately took the chance to ready her weapon, despite the kilometers of distance between her and the target. It'd been awhile since she'd used her warscythe, Scolo, and holding it in her hands and swinging it around properly needed some good skills and better muscle memory. Waiting to have it in her presence... she couldn't wait the entire trip.

With a flourish, the Talentium scythe manifested in her hands, enormous in stature and breadth. She almost wanted to pet it tenderly, were it no for the presence of others.

"Ready?" she said, turning to Charlotte.
 
Upon seeing the martial artist, Elthrad nodded to Raiga, but refrained from saying anything as Cykes' military leaders began apprising them of the current situation. The need for a contract surprised him, but he imagined it was more tailored towards the students involving themselves in combat than a knight-errant such as himself. The thought of his father pressing charges against Cykes brought a smile to his face as he stepped up to the table to sign a contract alongside the others. His father would still have chided him for not taking the time to read what he was agreeing to, but if this 'Corinkarus' was to be believed then time was of the essence.

A rift-beast that could attack from afar? The thought was rather discomforting. It seemed difficult enough to deal with just one of this new breed of monster, what if several of them spawned within range of the city? He supposed the humans would still have the advantage of numbers, and cohesion. Even with this unexpected turn of events, it seemed they had rallied in time to prevent any damage to the city. If the beast's attacks had landed, he imagined there would be a significant difference in the morale of the room. Thinking of human ingenuity brought an idea to the fore of his mind.

"Have we considered drawing its attention away?" Elthrad asked, speaking up. "I saw an airship pass overhead earlier, if it could be used to draw the beast's attacks away from the city… no, I suppose that wouldn't prove useful at the moment," He narrowed his eyes as the thought fell apart. He realized that the blasts would cause more damage to the landscape if the city's talentium users did not destroy them before they could land, but it might prove and interesting line of inquiry in future encounters with ranged beasts.

Turning to the strangers he would be fighting alongside, he introduced himself. "I am Elthrad Raske, Knight-Errant, and am ready when you are."
 
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