Varia - Exploration & Acquisition Services

[spoopily]

"Raven? Raven..." Ophevla said softly, her bright eyes lowering. She didn't know what to make of the other. She, at this point, had no reason to be rude or make fun of the male, she was actually hoping for someone more dumb and slow. Those types of people suited her taste... She gazed off into the distance, her eyes lowered more towards the floor than the ceiling. She crossed her arms, but raised her right arm to gently press the tops of her fingers to the bottoms on her chin. "I wasth planning to call you Droller sthill justh to boil your watersth, but I sthrangely can't find in mysthelf to sthir that glubbin' sthoul of yoursth." Ophevla tapped her tip of her foot on the floor in a rapid pace, closing her eyes. "Blessthed be the stheasth(seas), I do not favor the feeling." She said airily, as if it really didn't bother her. No. That will not do. She hasn't encountered this in a while, and she can practically taste the negative emotions coming back to her.

"I do sthnatch any goodiesth I do find on my travels, so I guessth a Treasthure Hunter asth well..." Ophevla stated in a nonchalant voice. "Cartography isth my main thing, ya'know." Giving a small shrug, she quickly untangled her arms from one another and grasped her hips, tilting her head in a dark manner. This guy wasn't much of talker, was he? That could possibly be something she could build and torture him on, how fun! Great, so he wasn't a total waste of space. The Picsis did open her mouth to announce how she was going to annoy him, but decided to keep it a secret. He could be one of those 'shy now, wild later' kind of people, and revealing her potential fuse to the dynamite could backfire big time. "You sthould totally tell me the reasthon behind 'Raven', I mean, you ttoooottally look more like a Maxsssth (Max) or a Harleigh. You could be a Bob if you wanted to... Actually... Isth that a power of land dvvellersth? (dwellers) Stheriousthly, you all tooootally look like 'Bobsth'. Eh, can I call you Maxsssth?" Ophevla said, her smile more vicious than reassuring.

 

[Insidious Joe]

Throughout the orientation, Odehn was in another world, one wrought of complex alchemical equations and sciences few would ever fully understand aside from the odd little dwarf himself. He was by far the smallest of the new recruits to join Varia, standing at full height just beneath the kneecap of the average human male.

As such, it wasn't unusual for him to go completely unnoticed like he did to the others that had shown up to join the guild. His was an interesting case- he'd already completed tasks for the guild unofficially before being inducted, which allotted him a unique reputation as an experienced recruit.

Odehn came back to reality once Risuna had finished addressing those assembled and names had been marked for all to see. It seemed he was paired with a Sophia Gardinell. Typically he had worked alone, but he supposed he didn't have much say in the matter considering now that Varia was his employer, and thus his supplier for ingredients necessary in concocting his wares.

Most of the others had paired themselves up by now, leaving his partner to sit at the far end by herself. If he were interested in that sort of thing, he would consider her an excellent specimen, but he had another love in his work. Without much adieu, Odehn hiked up his robes and scuttled over to Sophia, gazing up into her face with glowing seafoam orbs.

"It seems we are fated together. I am Odehn. It is a pleasure." The dwarf was polite and matter-of-fact, his voice unusually chippy in tone. He did not have anything else to say after that, idly hovering nearby as he checked over his equipment, namely his portable lab and the impressive and literal hand cannon that he lugged around by a strap on his backside. Its size suggested it would be incredibly difficult to carry, especially for its current wielder that was less than half its size.

 

[Kalista]

Back to Prologue + Chapter 1

Chapter 1.a, bisque

Scenario: Faerie Trauma, snow

Morning, Cafeteria, Second Floor, Varia HQ



"So cute! So cuuuuteeee!" Vayla half-squealed in adoration.

"Kyaa! Such a cutieee!!" Ritta exclaimed along with Vayla.

The two were faeries, about the size of the average human hand. Glowing warmly, Vayla was a violet hue while Ritta a dark red glow. They were currently hovering around a very unique and scared individual showering him with affection. The individual of such attentions was currently indulging in sweet nourishment, and the whole spectacle had drawn the attention of most of the cafeteria. Some shook their heads solemnly while others laughed. Some were also feeling the same as the faeries and while they had more restraint, they wholeheartedly agreed with the two ecstatic flutterers.


A very scared individual (Plue of Rave Master)

"PUPUUN!" The little creature replied to the faeries while munching on his meal. This caused another onslaught of squeals and kisses. As more people had woken up and come down for brunch, a crowd started to gather around the table that the little creature was sitting on.

"What... is it? It's... cute" An onlooker said to another.

"I wonder where it came from, is it a pet?"

"Look at it chew the lollipop! Does it not know you are supposed to suck it??"

"Aw, he looks so scared!"

"Shh, let him eat in peace."

Scenario: Sleeping On The Job, snow

Morning, An abandoned office, Fourth Floor, Varia HQ

A bright flash filled one of the abandoned offices deeper into the dark portion of the rarely populated floor. There was a thud and groan as a staff member of Varia slowly stood up. He was one of the staff members assigned with the job of renovating the cursed floor and his equipment had exploded.

"Damn it! This one too..."


A staff member

Sighing, he went back into the hallway and sat against the wall. Picking up the nearby clipboard, he wrote an "X" on the floor plan, which was incomplete. With a deeper sigh, he looked sadly at the sizzling and blackened Spirit Reader sitting on the floor next to him. Ever since early morning, he had been checking the readings of each room one by one, marking down the rooms with low spirit readings and crossing out the ones with high spirit readings. As he got deeper and deeper into the floor, the Spirit Reader was starting to overheat. Now that it malfunctioned, the worker had a legitimate excuse for being delayed. Smiling, he turned and sprawled on the floor, fast asleep.

Nearby, there was sound of movement, but the worker didn't hear.

Faerie Trauma & Sleeping On The Job: Next

Morning, West Lawn, Varia Grounds, North Aristos

Risuna Tiolee stood facing the Varia Headquarters as if in a trance. To the onlooker, she was still and silent. Inside her mind however, a mental map of great complexity and expanse took up all of her focus. She truly enjoyed the vast openness of the unused lawn that extended quite a ways in all directions. The absolute peace allowed for her to mentally visualize the true floor plan of Varia Headquarters. As most would figure out after some exploration of the ridiculously large floors, the physical dimensions from the outside simply do not match with the inside. The truth was ancient magic fueled this possibility. As one of the higher ranking officers of Varia, she was granted privilege to have the map stored in her brain. Right now she was mentally calculating the amount of magical energy needed to prepare space in the building for "orientation".

While actual physical material is necessary to make permanent additions in the building, for temporary events, magic energy was enough to sustain the additions for the duration. She wasn't looking forward to after orientation, however, since she will be exhausted from maintaining so much magical energy.

Next -> 1.b

 

[Mistress]

Eva did her best not to burst at a man who had the ability to crush her in one swoop. No, she had kept her cool even when he had annoyingly tried to call her with just one either syllable. Eva's short enough as it is, she had wanted to tell him but bit her lip instead. She had also refused to tell him off when he dared suggest she was his mistress. Rather, she forced a brittle laugh as if to say he was a funny man. An awfully funny man. Even when he nudged her back, so hard that she bumped into one of the applicants-- a dreadful warrior lady with an equally terrifying axe-- she had simply backed away slowly, apologized to the scary axe lady and even to her bard friend, and shot Smith with the widest grin she could muster at that moment. "It seems you don't know your own strength, Smith," was all she could say.

It was quite unlike her to not make a fuss but Eva has her reasons. She wanted him to trust her and keep him off guard, at least, until she found herself some plants. "And as soon as I get the chance, I will sprinkle you with fire weed petals and burn your lovely blond hair off your head," she grumbled too low to be heard, but in case Smith asks, she would assure him that she meant the Axe Lady. Later, when she and Smith would exit the building and find the staircase down the hall, she would suggest going down in the hopes of finding a garden outside the building. "I can smell fine cooking below us," she would say. "It'd be nice to know what they have."​

 

[Relish]

Nylau wasted no time as she swiftly made her way to the staircase. That was a quality Kendric admired, just so long as haste was not confused for speed. After all, haste makes waste. Kendric briskly followed, as eager as he was he really didn't see the need to run. There was no rush, and besides, it's not like he could catch up to her if he tried. Heh, maybe if he went slow enough she would feel obligated to match his pace.

It was still surprising to him how she was able to move like that even in her armor. Still though, why did they need their armor and weaponry in the first place...? Kendric contemplated this as he continued to pursue the Ferre in a casual stride.

Her roughing up the goggles weren't too much of a concern. He had an extra pair he had packed up in his bags and the framework engineering goggles he used as a base were a dime a dozen. In the event all of his goggles were rendered nonfunctional, all he'd need to do is buy a new pair and spend half a day modifying them. This was a common theme for most of his devices, if he went entirely 100% custom on everything he'd be broke before he could finish a stable prototype! With all his devices, the small bit of crystal did most of the heavy lifting. Just so long as he had that, replacing equipment wasn't too much of a big deal.

He eventually managed to catch up to her at the staircase. They were currently in the third floor auditorium, so the fourth floor would be next logical step.
"Alright. Shall we continue to the next floor? If you don't mind particularly, I would like to lead. We wouldn't exactly be exploring together if you were thirty paces ahead at any given time would we? Oh, and let me know how those goggles work." With that being said, he made a small sweeping motion towards the stairs and took the lead upwards.

********
​

As the two approached the fourth floor landing, Kendric stopped. The fact that they all had their weaponry still bothered him. Logically, that meant they were intended to participate in some form of combat, but what? He had a few ideas, but wanted some validation. Was Nylau thinking the same? "Hmmm... Strange isn't it?" His words sounded less like question and more like a statement. Turning over his shoulder he continue, "...That they would instruct us bring only our weapons as part of an orientation, why do you think that is Ms. Nylau?" His question wasn't poised nor loaded. There was no intention of him baiting the question, all he cared about at the time was sating his own curiosity.

​

 

[Falcon]

"You sthould totally tell me the reasthon behind 'Raven', I mean, you ttoooottally look more like a Maxsssth (Max) or a Harleigh. You could be a Bob if you wanted to... Actually... Isth that a power of land dvvellersth? (dwellers) Stheriousthly, you all tooootally look like 'Bobsth'. Eh, can I call you Maxsssth?"

"Just . . . Raven." Raven answered the strange person in front of him. He would never be rude enough to admit it aloud, but he was having a bit of trouble understanding the strange way Ophevla was speaking. Still, she seemed nice enough. "And why . . . ." With a sigh he put his hat back on, fished his shades from his pocket, and pulled the bandanna up over his nose. He had a decently large nose to begin with, and the fabric of the bandanna puckered up and jutted out from the point in a somewhat beak like fashion. His black hair framed his face, and between the bandanna and his hat all anyone could see of his eyes was a faintly amused glimmer behind the sunglasses.

Raven tilted his head to the side and the lenses caught the light, glinting almost like his namesake's beady eyes. When one added in the way his large duster draped over his frame it was easy to see how he might resemble the bird enough that someone had given him the name. " . . . Used to wear black . . ." he added to his rather silent explanation.
A moment later he had put the bandanna back down and again removed his shades and hat.

A glance around the room showed him that the others seemed to be leaving in various directions and he looked down at his newest acquaintance.
"Explore?" he asked the question clear in his voice.

 

[CrimsonMaiden]

Nylau paused up a few stairs to wait for her companion. She stood and touched the goggles on her head. "No damages yet," she said under her breath. She put on a smile when Kendric finally came to the stairs. "Ah, there you are! I...apologize for running off like that. I become very excited when scouting new areas."

It was in her blood after all. Even living within the boundaries of the city it was exciting getting into every nook and cranny of the buildings and streets. It was something else that was not practiced within the tribe. They focused more on the area as a whole. Nylau loved diving into the mysteries of the land; the caves, the burrows, the rivers. She enjoyed having time to get to know the city very well.

"Alright. Shall we continue to the next floor? If you don't mind particularly, I would like to lead. We wouldn't exactly be exploring together if you were thirty paces ahead at any given time would we? Oh, and let me know how those goggles work." Nylau nodded. "Of course Master Kendric Silvers." She followed him up the stairs, holding tightly onto the railing. Most humans, she found, did not have titles. He had not made mention of it but she was starting to wonder if it may be an offense to refer to someone in title. It was an old habit however so it would stay for the time being.

She pulled the goggles down over her eyes, somewhat hesitantly. Nylau still held the crystal tightly in her hand so as not to drop it. The lenses brightened and words suddenly started to appear. She instinctively began to walk slower. Behind the lenses her eyes would seem very wide, catching all and any light.

"N-Naaa~? Strange to carry our weaponry? I don't find it strange at all-" She missed a step and tripped forward, luckily she held onto the rail. "This is, hm... I would find it strange if we were not asked to arm ourselves. We are expected to prove ourselves. Even the young warriors of my tribe had to stand trials, though none so torturous as this...madness!" Nylau took off the goggles and looked at them, brow wrinkled and her ears back apprehensively.

 

[Bard]

Ah, so she is a skilled warrior...

One of the few things known about bards is the necessity for word-play. Speech was an important part of the lifestyle, and there was a lot that could be learned from peoples' reactions. In the instance of one Cyder, he had assessed that she was indeed a very skillful fighter. Fighters must be tough, and female warriors even more so. They are unfortunate to unjust stereotypes, mainly "girls aren't as strong as boys". So, with that being the case, they must fight harder and prove themselves among others more-so than men. Personally the bard thought this to be ridiculous, but the world's thoughts weren't going to change to suit his opinion. That's just how it is. Her reaction to him calling her a lady was, as it seemed to him, to be slight amusement. That told Wade she had already proved herself and had the talent of battle. If she didn't, she would've tried to 'act tough'.

She said that she was tired of being a sell-sword. Wade didn't blame her. He knew he wasn't putting his life on the line for some merchant or high-blood for a small purse of coppers. No matter how good you are with a sword, you have to sleep sometime. He felt the life of a bard was the best. Free meals and free rooms, music and gold without the bloodshed. But, fate deals the cards as they say.

"Aye, Milady. There's a distinct difference in fighting for someone, and fighting with someone." He was about to say something else, but another of the initiates bumped into Cynder.

She wore matching clothes and had light pink hair. A Fay-blood, he noted to himself. Wade smiled as she apologized to Cynder, and him as well. Wade noticed that others were leaving the room, no doubt to explore the building. He adjusted the strap of his lute's carrying case, as it was starting to dig a little at his shoulder.

"I wonder if they serve mead here?" He asked Cynder. He had left his rations in the lobby, and was starting to get hungry. He was willing to go anywhere, though, because there clearly wasn't anything to do in the auditorium. If she chose to lead a direction, he was sure to follow.

 

[Seth Bloodmoon]

Cynder would have agreed with his assessment of her. Unfortunately she had no real assessment formed of him yet. He was a bard, and preferably one that told good tales. That was where things stood in her mind for the moment. Though he did look like a man who had seen far more of the world than she had. Oh sure, she had traveled a fair distance on escort missions and such. However, she had never allowed herself the time to take in the new locales they had journied to. Oh well, that was her own fault.

When Wade called her 'Milady', a hint of mirth danced in the dark blue depths of her eyes. She was in the midst of nodding in agreement with his words when someone bumped into her. It barely budged the warrior woman, and if she had been properly braced it wouldn't have budged her at all. Shifting some, Cynder turned her blue eyed gaze to the pink haired girl. She allowed herself a half-smile as the girl apologized and backed away slowly, "It's alright, no worries," the response offered in neutral tones.

With that little encounter done and over with, Cynder shifted the haft of her great axe to the opposite shoulder, noting the other pairs were beginning to wander off, presumably to explore the headquarters. The only exploration she really wanted to do involved finding out how rooming worked in this place so she could get settled in properly. Oh well, she'd just have to be patient.

Then Wade mentioned something about mead. A hint of a grin graced her lips as she glanced towards him once more, "I don't know, but I think we should find out. I wouldn't mind a drink, perhaps a bite to eat as well," then her mind returned to the moment he had called her 'Milady', "Also, feel free to just call me Cynder. I am far from being a lady," grinning a bit more with those words.

Then without wasting another moment she strode towards the auditorium's exit at a steady pace, though she would slow down some should Wade end up lagging behind. The cafeteria was her destination, mead and food on her mind. It really would be a good idea to find out the quality of such things offered by Varia, right? Of course, if something should catch the bard's eye, Cynder would likely be willing to check it out.

 

[Relish]

Kendric took note as his partner slowed her ascent. She seemed primarily focused on trying to maintain balance as far as Kendric could tell. The Ferre had clung to the rail most of the ascent. This was probably Kendric's fault wasn't it? She was walking perfectly fine before she put them on. In his eagerness, he had neglected to account for the possibility of human and a Ferre's eyes being structurally different. Perhaps she was still wearing them to be polite? He didn't want to embarrass the girl. It wasn't until she started talking and nearly tripped that Kendric did anything.

Kendric descended a few stairs to give her a hand. He gently held her right shoulder to help her regain her balance as she spoke. Why did she keep referring to him as "master?" If she kept doing that it would bound to ganner a few looks from others. Kendric did not know if this was customary where Nylau had come from, and he certainly did not wish to offend. Kendric resolved to confront this at a later time.

She didn't give an answer he was hoping for, and he looked a bit crestfallen at her disdain for his tool. He took the goggles and ether from her hands and spoke, "...Here, I'll take those." Disappointment resounded in his voice, not for her, but for himself. "You have my apologies... I failed to consider the fact that number, position and density of light-sensitive rod cells may be different in ferre eyes..." His voice trailed off at the end. Kendric gave a small but humble bow as he released Nylau.

"And I suppose you are right about having to prove ourselves," He started trying to change the subject. Kendric put his hand on his chin as he turned his green gaze to the ground and instantly lost himself in thought. "Do you recall what that Risuna character had said? She had said all the other officers were busy and 'Normally we would conduct orientation one-to-one...' We only have our weapons and the orientation is normally done one-on-one. I am confident you can put two and two together..." A cold worry seemed to work its way into his voice. It was clear the thought of a duel between himself and his companion filled him a sizeable degree of dread. He hadn't known her for more than fifteen minutes, but he already knew she'd outmatch him physically and she didn't seem to be the type to hold back. Holding back was a luxury that Kendric didn't have... Due to the nature of using a firearm, he would be primarily limited to body shots out of fear of a direct hit to her head being fatal. There had to be something else, a duel with her could only end poorly for him one way or another.

 

[CrimsonMaiden]

Nylau released his eye wear back to him in a huff. Her curiosity had most definently been satiated for his technology. She nodded to his bow. She returned to her normal pace though she still held onto the railing. Stairs were not a regular thing in her day-to-day life. "I did not want to...offend," she said as they continued their ascent.

Now that her focus wasn't on walking, Nylau thought earnestly on the question he had asked. No, keeping weapons on them was not a strange occurrence to the Ferre as she had hers on herself most of the time anyhow as well as the domain they were trying to get into; it checked out fine. The mention of the magic woman's words was a little concerning. "Normally... we would conduct orientation one-to-one...orientation will be quite unorthodox today. " Her expression became contemplative as she also began to think over the possibilities.

"You worry that we will be made to meet each other in battle," she stated calmly. Nylau folded her arms. That did seem to be where all of this pointed. The idea brought a sparkle to her eyes. A match with this man would be quite interesting. She would be serious, no doubt, but there was no need to worry much about harming him; surely he could give her a decent run with his fascinating technology. If things did come to that then she hoped he would also be serious with her.

She cleared her throat loudly. "Naah! To be anything but serious in a match, duel or battle would be an insult to both you and your opponent. I have only known you for a short time, but I feel...I sense that you would be worthy of my fullest efforts." She gave a reassuring smile. "Now, think no more of it! We need to scout this area, correct?" She pat his shoulder and gave it a firm squeeze.

 

[Bard]

The best way to learn about someone, is to share a strong drink with them. Or ten. Most people put up a front, not willing to let someone learn how they really feel or think, but when ingesting the fine spirits one's defenses melt away. She had said she was 'far from being a lady'. He grinned.

"No, lass. Just because ye don't waltz around in fluffy and expensive dresses doesn't mean ye're not a lady. Ye just chose to live thoust's life in the real world, like me."

Wade loved to drink, and loved it even more when in the company of those who drank. The more people drink, the more gold they threw at him. Most of the time, anyway. Sometimes, it resulted in more steel-like objects getting swung at him; but Cynder carried herself like a woman that could hold her own liquor.

He followed Cynder to the center of the auditorium, where a staircase was located. They walked down to the second floor where the cafeteria was. Upon reaching the cafeteria, Wade wasn't surprised at how large it was. But, he was still impressed. He'd been to the houses of royalty before, and they did not compare to this place.

He spoke as he followed. "This place is large enough to feed an army." Silently, he wondered if he was the only one to question Varia's intentions with this place. Those who had money and power usually wanted more. But, all this was falling under his 'second rule of traveling'. Never trust the wealthy. He could just be grabbing for something that's not there.

When they got their orders, Wade downed one mug of mead before ever starting on his whole chicken. He ate like he was starving, because he actually was. And, the chicken was the best thing he'd ever ate in his life.

 

[spoopily]

Gillian was oblivious to Eva's swirling wrath, ready to pounce but holding back for better reasons. But he was rather pleased when she laughed at his joke, he loved making people laugh, especially pretty little ladies such as herself. He felt that this was going awfully well for the both of them and was smiling to himself. He chuckled heartily when the sorceress bumped into a warrior with an axe. Oh... The warrior looked awfully strong and interesting, he was looking forward to working with her, or even going against her. Strong people who knew how to work weapons or just raw tank control did spark a fire in him, his chuckled increased when he was given a wide grin from Eva.

This was going better than he thought it to be... He was so lost in his accomplished feelings, Gillian didn't even hear a cent of what Eva said except something about the smell of fine cooking. He nodded, wrapped a strong arm around her waist and pressing his cheek against the top of her head. "You smell rather delectable yourself..." Gillian purred to her, his deep voice becoming a little... Suggestive. He suddenly let go of her, looking ahead as if nothing just happened. He ran a hand over his stubble.

"Explore?"
Ophevla placed a hand to her chin and tilted her head the other way in thought. She then shrugged, giving a predatory grin. "Sthure, why the glub not? They better have sthomething in sthore for you and me, I feel asth if we'd have the besth of adventuresth together!" She chimed, clapping her hands together as she walked ahead. She didn't wait for him, and being naturally quick on her feet, she ended up bounding or skipping away whilst blabbering out loud. "I feel like you're justh the coolesth for no exact reasthon, your name isth Raven and all them bubblesth (aka. 'all that jazz'), you even wear sthome sthort (sort) of bird get-up or whatever, but hey, I'm the fisth with sthcale (scale) armor!" ​

 

[Relish]

"Am I truly that transparent...? But yes, it would be wrong to object your claim. Facing you is a concerning prospect." He said with a sigh. A feeling of heavy self doubt had worked its way into his voice and posture. Well at least seemed confident in him. Now if only the feeling were mutual. She was definitely taking the idea too well. The look in her eyes made it even seem she were thrilled with it, and that was more than a little unsettling to Kendric.

The fact that she wore armor no matter how light was problematic for him. Normally light armor would be a non-issue, he could easily amp the power of his weapon to pierce through or find another target area all together. The problem lay in the strength of his weapon. If he did boost it to deal any damage through her armor, if he were to miss or if she moved the wrong way, he could potentially land an instantly fatal blow to her head.

He wanted to inspect her armor for weaknesses in more detail, but it just seemed uncouth. At first glance, he himself appeared completely unarmored wearing just simple dress clothes, but underneath that he was wearing a thin undershirt woven of synthetic mythril. It wasn't an effective of a material as plate metal, and if she tried hard enough she would most likely be able to penetrate it.

He tried to summarize the situation in his mind. If they were to fight, he'd be starting with a handicap. He had it in his mind that non-lethal force would not be enough to subdue her, and anything more than that would put her at risk. This was not even considering the vast experience gap the two most likely had. Kendric had plenty of theoretical experience and could most likely ace a written exam on combat, but he lacked any applied combat experience. How would he be expected to best an opponent who not only outmatched him in every way physically, but also he couldn't fight to his fullest extent?

His face twisted with worry and he turned away to hide it. It was a dreadful feeling, trying to puzzle out another's downfall as you stood in front of them. It wasn't as if though he didn't think she could handle it, but rather the whole notion of battling a comrade seemed distasteful. Kendric was the type to avoid a fight if when at all possible, and he really did not wish to harm Nylau.

'Wait... Could that? Yes... yes, I suppose that might work... Naturually I'd need to do it smart as opposed to hard...' He thought to himself. His body language seemed to explode with a newly found confidence. If he had been facing her direct, she may have noticed a small smirk work its way over his face. That was precisely the line of reasoning he needed. Suddenly the idea of dueling her not longer was an insurmountable task. Of course, the environment would ultimately be the determining factor for what he had planned.

Kendric let loose a confident sigh. "You're right. We shall cross that bridge should it come up. I do recommend that you and I both do our best to prepare for anything..." He said as he met met her hand on his shoulder. "I think I can see the end, come, let's go."

 

[Falcon]

Raven followed Ophevla, his long legs easily keeping up with her skipping stride, though he let her take the lead. Having only known her for a few minutes he had no idea if she were actual mocking him, or if she actually meant what she said about thinking he was the "coolesh." If the former it didn't matter. If the later he would have to do his absolute best not to let her down.

He followed her around for a while, not quite sure where they were going, but content just to follow. It seemed that after a very long time wandering about the world alone he had found someone who might be, dare he say it, a friend. Raven found he liked this odd person, much more once he had gotten the hang of her odd way of speaking, and he was very much looking forward to continuing their acquaintance. He too hoped they would have a great many "adventuresth" as she had put it. It seemed their first was to be this orientation.

As they walked his mind drifted and he found his brain latching one to the specifics of the orientation speech, on one bit in particular. After a short time he chose to voice his thoughts.
" . . . Bringing weapons only . . . a test? . . ."

 

[CrimsonMaiden]

"Am I truly that transparent...?" "Perhaps." Nylau replied with a smirk. She really felt no need to continue on the conversation. Either they would do battle or not. Worrying over uncertainties kept one too open to confusion, which could cost the eventual battle. She had been taught to only spend time thinking on the certain guaranteed consequences. It wouldn't do to be stressed before the next part of the orientation regardless of what it meant.

"You're right. We shall cross that bridge should it come up. I do recommend that you and I both do our best to prepare for anything..."
She nodded. Yes, she was a little excited at the idea of facing Kendric in battle, if things went that route. The human was the most cunning of species and this one was the most intelligent she had come across. He held much promise. She hoped dearly that they would not have to, but if the objective was to face one another then she would hope for a good fight. Nylau was a little annoyed by the distractions when they had a task to complete but he was a thinking type- she was not.

"I suppose I should be flattered by your concern," she said suddenly. "That means you also see my strength." She crouched down to continue up the stairs on all fours. "I do hope that we will be comrades and not enemies, Master Kendric." The title was beginning to grow on her. "This place has many ridges," she said as if just noticing the amount of stairs.

They stopped at every floor and then another lead up to the next. She was not tired by any means, but it felt as if they were walking and getting nowhere. Nylau sprinted up to the next floor then stood once again. Something about that area made her anxious. "There is something odd about this place... Let us proceed quickly, I sense an...otherwordly presence here." Her ears flattened and her tail twitched agatatedly. "We should not dawdle here..."

 

[Seth Bloodmoon]

Cynder would have readily agreed with the sentiment of sharing strong drinks and learning of other people. Especially when the other person was buying. That always made things better, in her opinion. There was a half-smirk for his words, "I suppose you have a point there," though she would never consider herself a lady, despite varying opinion on the matter. This, of course, had disappointed her mother, who had wanted a frilly dress wearing, doll loving, tea drinking daughter to fuss over.

As for holding her own with, she definitely could do that quite well. She'd out drunk a couple of mountain dwarves in the past. Despite that victory, she had regretted it the following morning. It had been pure hell! She hadn't quite felt like herself till half that day had come to pass. Even then she had been fairly sluggish for the remainder of it.

She moved down the stairs to the second floor, with Wade, at an unhurried pace. The building was massive indeed, but she wasn't over awed by it. At least outwardly. Inwardly she was rather impressed. Also, she thought to herself, if they could build this massive of an establishment, Varia better pay well, damn it.

Cynder gave a nod of agreement as they moved through the massive cafeteria, "Aye," her only verbal response. She really didn't wonder at Varia's intentions. She looked at joining the place as just another job, albeit a far more exciting job. As long as she was treated well and paid handsomely she would be content.

As she placed her order she took note of a commotion in the cafeteria. Something was garnering a great amount of attention and had people making all kinds of cutesy sounds. She wondered what the heck was going on over there, but her train of thought was interrupted by the arrival of her food and drink. First things first, then. Perhaps she would nose about after she'd enjoyed her meal. Unless, of course, said phenomenon interrupted it!

She drained half her mug of mead in one long drink, savoring its taste and murmuring, "Not half bad, good quality," then plucked up a piece of maple bacon off her plate, popping it into her mouth. There was no way she was going to pass up breakfast foods seeing as this was brunch time. Based off of this little sample what Varia had to offer, Cynder was quite pleased.

 

[Kalista]

Faerie Trauma & Sleeping On The Job: Previous

Scenario: Sleeping On The Job, bisque

Morning, An abandoned office, Fourth Floor, Varia HQ

"...zzzzz....zzzzzz.....zzzzzzz....zzzz......zzzzzz....hrmm....zzzzz....hehehe.....zzzzzz....no..no....zzzzzz"

The staff member was smiling in his sleep when he felt some tugging at his feet. Still not fully awake, he was half dreaming about someone special trying to drag him onto his bed, legs first. It was when the pain jolted up his spine, that he screamed. The sound echoed down the hallway towards the stairs while the worker was sitting up paralyzed with fear. The figure in front of him was blocking the way to the stairway, and in sheer panic, the staff member ran deeper into the floor.

"Oh Malia, what the South Aristos was that(wtf)?!!?! What the S.A. was that??!!"

The hallway reached an intersection, and the staff member dashed to the left. Choosing one of the empty offices, he slammed the door shut and cowered in the corner.

Back at the location where the staff member was sleeping, the figure that had horrified the staff worker so much drifted forward soundlessly. Behind it lay the burnt out Spirit Reader and the worker's clipboard:



A rancid smell lingered behind, emanated from the figure.

Scenario: Faerie Trauma, bisque

Morning, Cafeteria, Second Floor, Varia HQ

Upon finishing his candy, Plue(of Rave Master, guest star for this role play) stood up and ambled down the long table. Fluttering not too far behind, Vayla and Ritta whispered to each other as if observing a rare phenomenon. Standing on the table, Plue was about the same height as an average human sitting down. If compared from the ground, he would barely reach their knee. Because of this, he could easily walk down the table without physically disturbing other's plates. However, the two faerie paparazzi-types were giving off faerie dust, Vayla's caused drowsiness while Ritta's caused feelings of euphoria. This led to quite the unique situation where one side of the long cafeteria tables started dropping off in sleep while the other's started chattering away incessantly and some even started dancing.

"PUPUUUN PUUUUUUN!" Plue exclaimed at this. Spinning wildly, he also took part in dancing, however his sharp, heavy nose soon got him off balance, and he fell right onto some plate with some maple bacon. Looking up, he saw a serious looking woman. Shivering, Plue didn't move and wondered what would happen next. Ritta, the faerie who gave off the euphoria dust started arguing with Vayla, since Vayla had started complaining about one of the wild dancers almost swatting her like a fly. Soon they started hitting each other and this caused large amounts of faerie dust to spray everywhere. A large amount of euphoria dust fell onto a nearby drinker. That drinker was none other than the bard, Wade Roscoe.

Faerie Trauma & Sleeping On The Job: Next

 

[Mistress]

Eva blushed horribly when Gillian scooped her up in his thick arms. Either from anger, discomfort, downright embarrassment, or all of them at once, she screamed in her head. Not once! NOT ONCE has anyone intruded my personal space!

She knew she was a fine, young lady. One look in the mirror told her so. Back home, she was used to dealing with men who made minor passes at her, but her independent and cold nature made them all wary. After all, she was a sorceress! Born into a long line of strong element binders! Eva Folchart, the twenty-year-old glared at the man next to her with such hostility, is not to be trifled with!

As fast as Gillian had let her go, Eva took out the metal canister in her sling bag and poured a pinch of ground lightning clover on her palm. She didn't take her fierce blue eyes off him. The nerve! He's acting like nothing happened! Quickly, she rubbed her hands together until a fine buzz of sparks crackled on both her palms. With the ginger ale still in her system and heightening her reflexes, she instantly reached for his back and fried him with her lightning. Normally, a blow like that would drop a grown man unconscious for hours. But Smith is so full of himself, he might wake up in minutes, she thought furiously.

"Hmph." With a satisfied smirk, she brushed off the remaining sparks on her palms, leaving the lightning clovers fizzling on the floor and some on the strands of Gillian's hair. Mother would be proud, she told herself as she climbed down the stairs without waiting for her partner.

Inventory:
2 vials of dragon balms (fire bombs)
1 tiny canister of lightning clovers (80% full)
1 flask of lily essence (weak healing abilities) (100% full)​

 

[Relish]

And there she was using that "master" title again... Did she not realize the number of negative connotations that word could carry? Anyway one looked at it, having anybody call you "master" within the first hour of meeting seemed unsettling. The given context didn't make it any better. With him being a human and her being a ferre, it just added another potential meaning to the word. He really should consult her about that...

The two continued on a ways. Kendric had to practically force himself to stop actively strategizing against his new friend. It'd be one thing if combat was assured, but the word "unorthodox" kept resurfacing in his mind. After seeing the sort of spacial expansion the facility was capable and the amount of energy to maintain it, Kendric had it in his mind that "unorthodox" could literally mean anything. Pah, he was probably just stressing out about nothing. Even if they did have to fight, it wasn't as if he were still without a plan of attack...

Every so often Nylau would sprint ahead. For someone who was struggling a few minutes ago, she certainly seemed better once she started on all fours. When they reached the next landing, Nylau seemed to freeze up. "There is something odd about this place... Let us proceed quickly, I sense an...otherwordly presence here." She said. Kendric sighed in response. Somehow, he doubted that they had the same meaning for the term "otherwordly." He almost seemed disappointed as he slipped his goggles back on.

"Now, I am going on the assumption that your use of the tern 'otherworldly' refers to the spiritualistic definition..." Exasperation gradually weaved its way into his tone as he spoke. "And if that is the case, then I can assure you there is no such presence simply because it cannot exist. Things can exist physically, magically or theoretically. There is no spiritual existence Ms. Nylau." As he went on, his voice became more and more condescending. It was blatantly apparent he was adamantly opposed trivial superstition. "While I can confirm that undead do exist, they can easily be explained by magical means, with spells required for reanimation understood well enough for the art to warrant it's own school of sorcery! But the idea of ludicrous things such as earthbound spirits or specters is one impossible even by magical standards! And To adopt such an idea as a substitute for general theory or as a basis for religion is not onl- Did you hear that?" He abruptly ended his lecture as a scream seemed to echo from down the hall. It was probably better for both of them that he stopped; he was on a tirade and just a hair's breath away from making the assertion that her entire religious belief was incorrect.

Long rants were not uncommon for him, especially when the rant revolved around spirituality. It was no longer the time for debates, looking at Nylau, he was certain she had heard it too.

"Someone could be in trouble! I'll take point." He drew the weapon at his side and cautiously took the lead down toward the source of the sound.