Varia - Exploration & Acquisition Services

[Kalista]

Plue, snow

Late Morning, Cafeteria, Second Floor, Varia HQ

It saddened Plue that Wade Roscoe was too intoxicated to respond this time. Plue understood though, and there were no hard feelings. The current focus of his mind though, was simply survival of this roller coaster ride. The girl's arm he clung to managed to slow down some when Cynder approached them. It came as a surprise to Plue when the serious woman that was Wade's partner offered her arm in assistance. Plue decided to take a chance and grabbed on. The arm remained still as he swung off it and landed onto a nearby table. The faerie sisters flew to him and settled down nearby, this time being more subtle in their approaches so as not to scare him.

Plue watched his companion Wade stumble around a bit and then ended up bumping into the pink-haired girl that Plue moments ago, was attached to. The pink-haired girl was startled at first, but then decided to aid him and guided him to a seat to rest. Moments later, the doors to the cafeteria burst open and a small girl maybe a little over twice as tall as Plue entered with a cow on her shoulder. Plue, Vayla, and Ritta were intrigued and watched as the scene between Cynder and the newcomer unfold.

Tiana and Raven left the dark hallways of the fourth floor and started descending. As they passed the third floor auditorium that Raven had shown her earlier, Tiana saw a man getting carried away in a stretcher. The unconscious man had slightly singed blonde hair and she wondered what had happened. Not fried enough to be fire magic... so thunder magic? Or did something explode?

They reached the second floor just in time to see an angry axe-bearing woman march off from the cafeteria towards the training area. Turning to Raven, she shrugged her shoulders slightly. "Hopefully she feels better before we have to meet."

 

[CrimsonMaiden]

Her offer was denied as Kendric got to his feet on his own strength. Nylau stepped back with a hand covering her mouth and nose. The smell was starting make her dizzy... She couldn't focus on any single thought but nodded to all he was saying. The creature was gone and for now that was fine, they could focus on the orientation once again. "Damn animal..." Nylau only just barely caught the unintended comment with her head swimming, but her ears were keen enough to do so.

She lowered her head and lead the way back to the stairs. She did not look at her partner when she stopped at the stairs. "If you...need to take a moment to yourself..." she paused. "I think... I may need a moment." She lept down the stairs, landing on all fours at the bottom then ran down the next flight to the second floor. As bad as it looked, yes she was running away. The Ferre just couldn't handle any more without taking at least a few minutes to herself.

Nylau stopped in the West hall on the second floor and closed her eyes. "Disgusting..." She turned suddenly and punched the wall. The pain in her knuckles and fingers was quickly ignored as she composed herself with a set of deep breaths. She had no real reason to be upset with him, if anything, she deserved the insult. At the moment she just couldn't stand to face him again; not until she had to. Hopefully it wouldn't be too soon. Nylau hurried down the hall toward the dojo much less focus than she would have liked, filthy weapons and all.

 

[Kalista]

Back to 1.c

Chapter 1.d, bisque

Late Morning, Training Area, Second Floor, Varia HQ

The clock struck true on the hour, and Risuna Tiolee sat legs-crossed with perfect posture. The dojo area had a small set of bleachers specifically for a modest crowd of spectators. Chatting idly with veteran members of Varia that were sitting around her, she hardly noticed the absence of a few recruits nor the presence of one that was not a recruit.

Theeto Baridan, or a crowd of Theeto Baridans, stood at the entrance guiding the recruits onto the dojo floor, which had been artificially expanded to three times its normal size. To give an example of its vastness, the average sprinter would require almost a minute to dash the length of it. Located and spread out in a systematic manner were double-sided mirrors the size of a full door frame. Each Theeto Baridan had been guiding the recruits to these mirrors with each duo to a mirror. There, the partners would split and one would be guided to stand on one side while the other to remain at the current side. Undoubtedly, there was confusion as well as speculation from recruits and spectators alike. Theeto remained nonchalant and Risuna merely replied with a sinister grin to any questions from the people around her.

Other than a minor delay due to the number of recruits being odd and an accommodation being made where a group of three surrounded their mirror, the dojo floor settled and the spectators' chatter started dying down to quiet curiosity and anticipation. Risuna then stood and announced that orientation will now begin.

"I hope you all had a fun morning exploring the headquarters, for this is where you will be living from here on... until death do us part! ...Just kidding, of course. By now you must be filled with suspense at what trials you must overcome, what dangers you must face... and whether failure is acceptable..." Pausing, she looked around at everyone present at the dojo.

"It is acceptable. Failure is allowed if success would cost you your life. Failure is allowed if success would cost someone else their life... if it would cost an arm or a leg, save your arm and leg so that you may improve yourself to succeed next time. As an organization, we value our members highly and while our missions requires sacrifice in the form of effort, dedication, and sometimes money... the one thing that is never to be sacrificed is... us. We are more than just a team, we are a family, and so without each other... we are nothing."

After some cheering and applause died down, Risuna focused on the recruits. "Today's orientation will be quite unorthodox and entertaining... hopefully for us all." Signaling to a staff member standing near some control panel of sorts, a lever was dropped and the floor of the dojo slowly started sinking down until even the best jumper would barely reach halfway with his hand outstretched.

"Remain still." Risuna commanded.

Suddenly, something massive was lowered. When it reached the bottom of the lowered dojo floor, the end result was a massive labyrinth in which partners were separated by the maze walls that reached three quarters of the height needed to reach the original floor. Chuckling, Risuna generated a ball of light in one hand and a ball of darkness in the other. Mixing the two, she crushed it and numerous rays of light and darkness shot out to the mirrors that had become part of the wall.

"You will have an hour to find your partner. Those that succeed will get a bonus on their first mission completion and also a full week of all you can eat and drink!" As she announced this, the mirrors started glowing and the person reflected in the mirror stepped out. Now, there was two of each recruit. Without warning, each of the copies dashed away into the labyrinth.

"You will have an hour to find YOUR partner... ah ha ha ha ha!! Begin!!"

At another signal from Risuna, another lever was dropped and small monsters started generating from the mirrors. While Risuna didn't mention anything, those monsters being generated were actually artificially fueled by magic and were commonly used by veteran members for training. The monsters are unable to fatally wound, but were allowed to knock targets unconscious at worst.

 

[Relish]

Mahina
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"Mmmmf... Not ash good ash mo'fer's..." Sharp fangs dug into a colossal piece of meat she clung to in her right hand. The portion sizing was massive, the chunk of meat on the bone was nearly the size of Mahina's head. Mahina hadn't the foggiest idea as to the identity of the meat and it was very bland to her, but meat was meat. Taking another mouthful, "Comm Mo'mle, She musve gon dishhway!" she proclaimed leading the calf to the cafeteria doors.

After she finished looting the cafeteria, she exited out into the hall. Periodically stopping to take another chunk of meat, Mahina ventured down the hall with Mo'nle in tow. Further down, a furred woman punched a wall. Under normal circumstances, Mahina would probably try to coach the woman on the proper wall punching technique but right now she was on the warpath.

'Who is she thinking that she is? "Little girl"?! Mahina has eaten warriors more of salt...' Mahina sought vengence for that "little" remark the armored lady said in passing. She could feel herself growing angrier with her body heating up slightly as a result. Any goal she had was set on the hypothetical backburner, this was about her pride! Kicking in nearly every door in the hall, Mahina eventually came to a huge crowded room. Was the armored Ha'nle in here somewhere?

Mahina pushed and shoved everyone in her way, still eviscerating the mammoth portion of food she held tightly in her right hand. Somebody was talking and giving a speech of some kind, even if Mahina cared about what was being said, she couldn't hear it over how angry she was. This woman would pay for the disgrace! All that was left was to find her...

Upon noticing her target standing by one of the several large mirrors scattered across the room, she approached screaming."AH-HA! THERE YOU ARE! MAHINA IS NOT DONE BEING FINISHED WITH YOU YET!" Was she waiting for someone or something? Grrr! It didn't matter, Mahina threw the cow over her shoulder again and sprinted the remaining distance. She came to a halt by the mirror side opposite of the Cynder, but no sooner had she done so a wall dropped between them. This only made her more angry; As far as Mahina saw it, the axe lady was now hiding.
"RAAAAAAGH! OF WHAT KIND OF WARRIOR HIDES BEHIND A WALL! ARE YOU THINKING THAT WILL STOP MAHINA?!" She dropped the calf and finished her meal in three massive chomps; bone and all. She slammed all of her strength into the wall as right fist made first contact. "MAHINA WILL BREAK WALL THEN BREAK HA'NLE!!!" She was not actually going to break the woman, she knew that would be bad. Mahonia was simply too infuriated to pay attention to the words coming out of her mouth. Mahina was in fact so absorbed in her own madness that she was unaware that there was a second
cow now standing behind as she unleashed her fury on the wall. Honestly, she was overreacting to the whole situation...

 

[Falcon]

Raven didn't know what he was expecting orientation to be. Whatever it was it had not been this. Standing in front of a third mirror that had been placed with a pair to account for their little trio, Himself, Tiana, and Gren. He had wanted to ask Gren what the fight had been about but his voice was working no better now than it had been since he had shouted. Instead he had found himself walking in silence with the pair and then positioned around the mirrors. And then the floor had sunk and the walls were brought down. Walls that separated him from his group.

Raven was even less pleased to find he was in a maze. A maze he had never seen before in sketch, or heard stories about from other explorers, or read about in old journal. Raven was good with mazes, but he was good with mazes he had prepared for. In a dry run like this . . .

Raven listened attentively to the instructions, but then something strange happened with the light.
A moment later he found he was looking at himself. Not his reflection, but a living breathing double.
Or was he the double.
Suddenly he was very unsure.

 

[CrimsonMaiden]

Nylau clenched her fists and took a deep breath. There was a task to complete now and it entailed her willingly finding the object of her distress. It had to be done, there was no point in trying to stall, so she crouched down onto all fours and sprinted into the maze. She would trust her nose as the best way to find Kendric and then she could decipher which was the real one when she saw them. Here it was, the first real challenge and she was already unfocused. I must concentrate on finding him. Clouded judgement will only lead to mistakes. Nylau darted to the right and disappeared around another left corner.

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Another left was taken and then Nylau was stopped by the presence of a monster that stood at her height when she stood on her hind legs. She took her knives from their sheaths and charged the creature, dodging a swinging, clawed hand and lept toward it. She sliced through an arm and deep into the throat then landed behind it. The creature disappeared and Nylau put her knives away then continued on all fours. At least the monster provided some relief of stress for the Ferre. Maybe this would be more fun than she originally thought.

 

[Relish]

"First thing's first," Kendirc thought outloud with an addled sigh, "...Gotta find Nylau." He had already put a good deal of distance between himself and the starting point. He wasn't sure what would have happened if he loafed around there long enough but he knew it couldn't be good. Still, finding Nylau was the utmost priority. Kendric was rather worried when she suddenly rushed off, he wanted to attribute that to the smell but he had his doubts. Failing a first test would do nothing but reflect badly upon his own ability. Luckily he had just the tool for this task, albeit it was a bit unruly but none the less it would do part of the job at the very least.

Taking the ether gem from his left hip, Kendric traced a small triangle over its smooth surface with his finger. A small holographic display appeared and hovered above the gem. A static mess was displayed on this screen. It was supposed to be a map, but it seemed all the enchantments in the building were interfering with most of the ether's signal. This wasn't useful, not that it would be without all of the magical interference; When things such as five foot cubes of gelatin appear on a supposed coherent map, the device's integrity comes into question. At least he could map with this manually with no fault.

Slightly disheartened, he took the first left he came across slowly mapping out the labyrinth as he walked.

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​

"First thing's first," Kendric thought outloud with a frustrated sigh, "...Gotta find myself." He had already put a great deal of distance between himself and the starting location. Hanging about at the start wouldn't solve anything, besides, if both he and he were moving the chances of him encountering himself rose substantially. Finding the other Kendric was the utmost priority. He was still worried about Nylau, but having an alternate version of himself could only lead to a lot of unnecessary confusion. Luckily, he had just the tool for the job, albeit it was a bit unreliable but it would not be without its uses.

Taking the ether gem from his belt, Kendric traced a small triangle over its smooth surface with his finger. A small holographic display appeared and hovered above the gem. It was displaying what appeared to be a map of 1/5th of the labyrinth. Normally, this would be useful but it seemed all the enchantments in the building were disrupting ether's accuracy. According to the map, there were four Kendrics and a five foot cube of gelatin moving around. This wasn't useful, not that it would be all that accurate without all of the magical interference. The five foot cube of gelatin was enough to call the device's integrity into question, there was no telling how accurate it could be. At least he could make corrections to the map manually.

Earnestly, he took the first left he came across, making sure to correct any mistakes his map made.

 

[Seth Bloodmoon]

All of the calm Cynder had managed to muster before entering the training area was crushed the instant she realized just who she was getting stuck with as a partner for this orientation event. Where the heck had that pesky girl even come from!? Somehow she kept herself from responding to the girl's screamed words. Still, one light blue eye was twitching as Cynder's features twisted into a foreboding scowl. There was a good chance she was going to fail in this 'mission'. Finding the girl in this maze was the last thing she wanted to do at the moment. A full week of free food and the bonus upon completion of their first mission, though... Bloody hell! The thought of those rewards was enough to get Cynder moving. She would find the obnoxious girl, put her over her knee, give her a good spanking and complete this event!

Upon rounding the first left turn she came across, Cynder found herself confronted by four gnoll-like creatures. They hefted their crude weapons and jibber jabbered words that were likely meant to be intimidating. They did not get the reaction they were expecting. A glimmer of mirth danced in the depths of the warrior woman's eyes as she began giggling in a strange manner. There was a chance others that happened to be near by in the labrynth could even hear the sound of it. As she hefted her great axe the gnoll-like creatures glanced at eachother nervously. In that same instant she launched herself at them, still giggling.

The battle was over in within two minutes, and in the end the unfortunate creatures were left twitching on the ground, moaning. They were fortunate they couldn't be fatally wounded, otherwise they would have been laying about in bits and pieces. Without looking back, Cynder continued onwards and forwards, a look of satisfaction upon her face. She had come out of the battle virtually unscathed, save for a few minor cuts that had already stopped bleeding. Though, if those simulated beasties bled, she was likely covered in their blood. It would probably make for one hell of an intimidating sight.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

All of the calm Cynder had managed to muster before entering the training area was crushed the instant she realized just who she was getting stuck with as a partner for this orientation event. Where the hell had that damned girl even come from!? Somehow she kept herself from responding to the girl's screamed words. Still, one dark blue eye was twitching as Cynder's features twisted into a foreboding scowl. There was a good chance she was going to fail in this 'mission'. Finding the girl in this maze was the last thing she wanted to do at the moment. A full week of free drink and the bonus upon completion of their first mission, though... Bloody hell! The thought of those rewards was enough to get Cynder moving. She would find the damned girl, subdue her if need be, and complete this event!

Upon rounding the first right turn she came across, Cynder found herself confronted by three goblin-like creatures. They hefted their crude weapons and jibber jabbered words that were likely meant to be intimidating. They did not get the reaction they were expecting. A glimmer of violence danced in the depths of the warrior woman's eyes as she began laughing in a disturbing manner. There was a chance others that happened to be near by in the labrynth could even hear the sound of it. As she hefted her great axe the goblinoid creatures glanced at each other nervously. In that same instant she launched herself at them, still laughing.

The battle was brief, and in the end the unfortunate creatures were left twitching on the ground, moaning. They were fortunate they couldn't be fatally wounded, otherwise they would have been laying about in bits and pieces. Without looking back, Cynder continued onwards and forwards, a look of satisfaction upon her face. She had come out of the battle virtually unscathed, save for a few minor cuts that had already stopped bleeding. Though, if those simulated beasties bled, she was likely covered in their blood. It would probably make for one hell of an intimidating sight.

 

[Falcon]

Raven 1

Raven walked down the corridor he was in keeping an eye on every turn he could see. He'd already been ambushed twice by those training monster things and he had no desire to be set upon again. He lifted his bandanna up over his nose trying not to breath in the stench of monster blood that had splashed on his cloths, but it didn't help, the bandanna had been splashed as well. He really truly wished he'd had a chance to grab a cup of hot tea before this whole things started, but not such luck.

His right hand trailed along the wall. It didn't matter which hand was on the wall because he could shoot with both, but as he had started with the right hand on the wall he kept it there.
It'd been his experience that if one hand was kept on a wall one would always eventually find the exit, or at the very least keep from back tracking. The point wasn't to get out, the point was to find his team members, the correct team member really, but Raven had a thought that if he could find both then it wouldn't matter which was real because he'd still have found the correct one. He hoped. If only he'd been thinking he'd have grabbed his double and they could have worked together.

Raven 2

Raven walked down the corridor he was in keeping an eye on every turn he could see. He'd already been ambushed once by those training monster things and he had no desire to be set upon again. He untied his bandanna and let it hang loose around his neck trying to avoid the stench of monster blood, it only helped a bit. He really truly wished he'd had a chance to grab a glass of ice water before this whole things started, but not such luck.

His left hand trailed along the wall. His left hand was on the wall because he was right handed and he wanted that one free to shoot with.
It'd been his experience that if one hand was kept on a wall one would always eventually find the exit, or at the very least keep from back tracking. The point wasn't to get out, the point was to find his team members, the correct team member really, but Raven had a thought that if he could find both then it wouldn't matter which was real because he'd still have found the correct one. He hoped. It was a good thing he'd given his double the slip. He had to find the others first.

 

[Kalista]

"Wow, they just never end." Tiana wasn't sure if there was a limit to the amount of monsters the mirror could generate. There were numerous streaming towards her while others ran off into the labyrinth. They were small dark little imp-like creatures holding miniature spears, and so their strength was solely due to their numbers. Her magic staff, which was made of a strong metal with special properties, was sufficient to ward them off. Tiana swung wildly left and right in broad horizontal strikes that blasted them to the sides.

Nearby, Tiana saw her copy shooting some fireballs at the dark imps. True, I should do that too... but this is weird enough without me copying exactly what she... I... am doing too!!

Finally, the stream died down a bit and the mirror went completely black. A loud roar funneled through the mirror in a strange fashion, as Tiana couldn't "feel" the rumble of the roar despite the volume and proximity. However, from the top of the mirror, two glowing red circles dropped down as a pair. Then, a ragged furry arm blasted out of the mirror, completely shattering it, and the rest of the large monster struggled to fit through the constrained doorway.

Tiana fled as fast as she could.

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Wow, so many... Tiana thought as she fired off a few more small fire balls at each of the dark imp-like creatures attacking her. Nearby, she saw her other self fighting them off as well. There was no time to pay attention to her copy, though. The mirror kept generating a stream of the weak but endless annoying creatures. If only I had time to make a really big inferno around here... am I allowed to hurt myself?? By "myself", Tiana meant her other self.

It occurred to her that the easiest way to keep her copy from beating herself to her partner was to first get rid of her copy. Tiana knew she was the real one. My copy... is she thinking the same thing?? Tiana saw that the other one was only using her staff, which made Tiana wonder if her copy was saving mana to ambush her after the dark imps were finished off.

After roasting the last few that ended the long assault of little imps, the mirror went completely dark and Tiana saw a large monster with glowing red eyes bust out of the small mirror, which now became a doorway.

Tiana fled as fast as she could.

 

[Relish]

A number dark blue flash filled the labyrinth corridor. "Warning: ETHER CHARGE LOW" Words flashed across the screen in Kendric's goggles. 'Under a fifteen percent charge, what a pain...' He thought as he shut down his eyewear as to not exhaust the last of power supply. It'd recharge in time but he would be lying to say it wasn't worth it. A trove of frozen goblins lay in his wake as he passed through. He would have to exercise heightened caution and judgement when using the precious little energy he had left. Maybe he could find someone else and team up with them, but he still had his own goal to accomplish.

A deafening roar tore through the hall up ahead followed by the trembling of the walls. The sound was monstrous, almost certain to attract anyone nearby. This was all against his better judgement but coming to the corner, Kendric crouched close to the floor and peered around. Kendric was almost stunned; he was expecting some sort of brutish monster, but he was looking at a small child and two cows? What was she doing?

Kendric stepped out from behind his cover to greet the child. "Hello, how did yo-" "RAAAAAAAAAAAAGHHH-!" Instantly, the girl reacted by ripping off part of the wall and threw it at him! Kendric ducked back behind the wall, narrowly avoiding the projectile. From the safety of his position, he called out to the girl. "What are you doing?!" With conviction, the voice responded: "Do not be sneaking up on Mahina like that! Mahina thought you a foe. Ha'nle can come out, Mahina will not be the fighting."

This child was a tad frightening, and this became plainly apparent as he got a good look at the sizeable hole in the wall. "Errm... Might I ask your name?" A mixture of concern and confusion filled his voice. With a smirk, the girl replied, "Mahina's name is Mahina, Mighty Tor'shuel! And that are my friends, Mo'nle and Mo'nle's friend. Stupid dumb wall came down and hiding Ha'nle lady and now Mahina stuck..."

Despite the girl's small size, Kendric could only assume she was here as a Varia initiate. Collaboration was always a welcome thought for Kendric, he figured might as well ask her to team up with him. He wasn't convinced she would be particularly helpful though. "I assume you're looking for someone..." Mahina's eyes lit up in astonishment. "I am looking for someone as well, what say you to working together?" "Funny eye man looking for armor Ha'nle too? Mahina say OK! Together we will CRUSH stupid dumb armor Ha'nle! Ahaha~!" IT seemed the girl had a different idea of teamwork... and of the task at hand. "Come Ha'nle, we go this way!" She commanded and took the lead.

____________________

​

Mahina was out of breath, she had been trying to blast her way through the wall for at least ten minutes now. She was tired, the wall had proven to not only be a worth adversary but also an effective punching bag. The small girl took a few deep breaths as she attempted to calm herself. "...Stupid... hahh... wall!" A few small droplets of blood trickled down her knuckles. "Hahh... Mo'nle... We will be needing to be finding anot- WHAAAAT?!" Mahina was in utter aghast; as she spun around to talk to her follower she noticed there were now two of them! "Mo'nle? Did you be bring a friend? Ah-haha! Another disciple for Mahina to be teaching!" She had no idea what had happened, but she was pleased with it.

After witnessing what she was doing to the wall with just her fists, any monsters that had emerged from the mirror had fled without her even noticing their existence. Mahina's ears perked up as she heard the faintest sound coming from turn to her left. 'Maybe it's that stupid armor Ha'nle...' She thought. No, it had to be the woman. 'Trying to sneak up on Mahina? The try is nice!" As the figure emerged, she loosed her loudest roar and pulled free part of the wall, throwing it without so much as a second thought. She wasn't about to be snuck up on by her foe...

"What are you doing?!" The figure called out. Oh no! Mahina almost hurt someone! She wasn't sure what she was supposed to do; it was embarassing, Tor'shuel are not supposed to make mistakes like that. Still, she had to roll with it, for a Tor'shuel it was even worse to go back on one's action. "Do not be sneaking up on Mahina like that! Mahina thought you a foe. Ha'nle can come out, Mahina not be the fighting." The man inquired her name, and she answered. He looked like he was afraid; good. He must know of mighty Tor'shuel! The man had some metal thing on his face. Mahina couldn't figure out what it was. Was there something wrong? And how did he know she was looking for someone? But he was looking for armor Ha'nle too, perfect! Now they just had to find her...

 

[CrimsonMaiden]

Nylau had encountered two other monsters as she ran through the maze, pausing occasionally to sniff for Kendric's scent. She stood and looked at her surroundings. This maze was quite difficult to navigate. She wasn't really sure where to turn or whether she was just plain lost. "I'm sure Master Kendric isn't having such a hard time," she sighed. Then she began to ponder a time limit. How long had she been running in circles? "I must find the real one but I won't know if he is the true Kendric without seeing both of them... Then I should be hunting both men." Nylau nodded then proceeded at a slower pace. She turned a corner and took a long sniff with her nose in the air. She could smell something reminiscent of metal and some foul stench. That had to be him. She sprinted in the direction the smell had seemed most strongest in.

_________________​

"He may very well locate me before I manage to hunt him down," Nylau thought aloud. Really, there was no doubt in her mind that he would find her before she found him. He seemed to possess that kind of skill. She paused again and lifted her nose to search for his scent. She hoped the foul stench wasn't coming from her, as she hadn't washed off the evidence of the skirmish in the hall. There was still the smell of metal mingled with the scent so that was what she decided to focus on. The Ferre was still thinking over how she would approach the inventor when she found him. She was still a little upset about everything though the assignment had taken top priority. It was a negative thought and thus one she did not want to dwell on. It would all have to wait until she found him. There probably wouldn't be any time for such irrelevant matters when they found their partners anyhow.

 

[Falcon]

Raven 1

Band, Bang, Bang.
Raven fired off yet another round at the horde of small monsters that had assailed him. His back was pressed against the wall his right hand hand been up against only a moment before so he wouldn't forget which wall it had been. The monsters had been coming at him in small batches from the start, but as he'd walked on they'd grown progressively more frequent and come in larger groups. It was what he wanted, what he had been looking for. The monsters spawned from the mirrors which meant that for them to come in the larger numbers he had to be getting closer to one of those mirrors, a place where another orientation competitor had been standing. It was his hope that said competitor might had taken the direction towards himself, that the person in question might even been one of those he'd been looking for.

But finding them based on the monsters posed a problem. To find them based on the monsters he had to face the monsters, facing them meant fighting them and he only had a limited supply of amo. He had to make each and every shot count, had to use each bullet fired to take out the most possible. That meant calculating angle, trajectory, and how many each shot could get through before it slowed down.

Raven 2

Raven had been moving steadily away from the monster spawn, or as steadily away from the monsters as one can in a giant maze. His untied bandanna flopped about on his chest as he moved. He knew the monsters were spawning from the mirrors, the starting points for each contestant, but he also knew the people participating would be moving about the maze as well, away from their mirrors. He took care of the monsters as he came upon them, using as little amo as possible, but the sudden surge in the hallway he'd just entered took more than he had anticipated. Still, they were dispatched rather quickly. The surge however indicated he was going towards another mirror though which was not what he had wanted.

Raven started away, first walking then jogging. Somewhere up ahead he could swear he heard a cow mooing. Who in their right mind brought a cow to the orientation ceremony?

 

[Raiden]

OCC: First official post into the rp. XD

IC:

Eile Olain: Officially lost.

The sounds of bells rang out as the owner looked around the Northern Outskirts of the city of Aristos. Her Fox ears twitched as it picked up random noise from the environment. The green dress fluttered in the wind as her tail swung side to side. In the cursed right hand of the Kitsune, a letter from Varia was unfolded as well as a very crudely made map that looked like a three year old baby made it. Needless to say, Eile Olain was officially lost. It also didn't help that her letter came in the same day as the orientation, hence her current situation.

"Ohh. I knew it was a mistake. Taking that map from that drunk. I can barely make it out and I most likely missed orientation." Eile muttered quietly as she looked at the badly made map again.

Three seconds of looking at the map later, Eile sighed before crumpling the 'map' up and tossing it into the air. Eile glanced at it once and snapped her fingers. The map instantly burst into flames, quickly incinerating the piece of paper and reducing it to ashes that blew away with the wind. Eile smiled a bit before wincing in pain. She felt the curse from her arm reacting and her own magic rebounding onto her as a minor cut on her right fore finger appeared. Eile sighed again as she placed said digit into her mouth and sucked on her own blood for a few seconds. The urge was too strong and her frustration was at it's peak. No one was around. Time to indulge on the frustration.

"WHERE IS THIS VARIA!?!?!"

 

[Kalista]

"WHERE IS THIS VARIA!?!?!"

Hale Kridurin observed the source of the disturbance, noticing a very noticeable Kitsune. She was dressed in mostly bright green, with the exception to her right arm. It was the right arm that made Hale Kridurin stop mid-stride and stare at it. Hm... Yes, yes... Definitely something unholy here... Varia? A recruit?

He took off his glove and shoved it into a secret pocket in his cloak. Lately, Hale had been wearing it too much and started forgetting what it was like to have two hands available for general use. Of course, it wasn't that he was planning to do anything with his hands. However, having been on a prolonged mission with lots of combat, Hale hadn't taken the glove off for a long while. Even now, his left arm was intentionally held apart from the rest of his body, as if dangerous to himself.

Hale approached the frustrated Kitsune with a reserved and sagely demeanor, as if pondering some deep meaning of life.

"What you seek... it is not far... only far in distance..." With a solemn smile, Hale introduced himself and gestured in the direction of Varia Headquarters. "Follow me, if you wish to complete your current journey, and start the next."

 

[Raiden]

Eile Olain: Varia's helper.

"What you seek... it is not far... only far in distance..."

Eile jumped, snapped out of her frustration and quickly turned to the source of the voice. It was a man with some prayer beads. She noticed that the man pointed in a direction as Eile smiled turning to look at the direction the man pointed out. She was going the right direction. The man soon introduced himself as Hale Kridurin.

"I'm Eile. Eile Olain." Eile replied with a smile as her tail swayed a bit.

"Follow me, if you wish to complete your current journey, and start the next."

"Ok." the fox girl replied as she started to follow the man.

Curiosity started to bug at her like a fly as she decided to start asking him question to hopefully pass the walking time to Varia.

"Are you a recruit to Varia? Where did you get those beads? Can I get one?" Eile asked shooting the questions quickly out of her mouth as her curiosity took control. The only sound heard besides the rustling of the grass as the wind blew through it was the tinkling of the bells on Eile's outfit.

 

[Seth Bloodmoon]

An unfortunate kobold-like creature cried out in agony as a large ax came down on it's skull. It was the last of a group of five that had tried to jump Cynder. Their morale had quickly broken as two of their number were dropped almost immediately by the giggling warrior woman with murderous, light blue eyes. The remaining three had tried to flee, going so far as to throw their weapons down in their panicked retreat. For a moment she had almost let them go, knowing she had a mission she needed to complete for orientation. Yet, in the end she had chosen to relentlessly hunt them down. Why? Because why not!

Placing one booted foot on the creature's back, she tugged the blade of her great axe free of its head, stifling another giggle as she turned to stroll down the long corridor she was currently in. It was time to focus on finding her partner. No more distractions... well, maybe a few more couldn't hurt. It definitely felt good to wade into battle against whatever monsters the mirrors spit out. Especially after the hectic chaos of the cafeteria.

A few right turns later, and she still hadn't come across the one she sought. Hell, she hadn't even run into any of the other new comers. Then a brilliant idea crossed her mind as a crooked grin played across her face. Then, in a sing song voice, she called out, "Come out come out wherever you are, little girl!"

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Stepping over several defeated monsters, Cynder slung her great axe casually over one shoulder as she watched a couple of the beasties flee around a corner. For a moment she toyed with the notion of chasing them down. In the end, however, she decided against it. There was no point in wasting her time. Even if it was a wonderful way to vent her frustrations from earlier in the day. She needed to find that damned girl and get this orientation over. The sooner this was finished, the sooner she could spend the rest of the day at a tavern. Well, if Varia was done with them for the day.

Several left turns later and the sound of several gun shots being fired off had caught her attention, causing her to pause in her steps. Surely that was one of the other recruits dealing with whatever the mirrors might be spitting out at them. Unless the mirrors started sending out gun toting baddies. That could prove to be a little awkward. Oh well, she'd just have to be sure and cut them down before they could open fire on her.

Making a decision, Cynder choose to head towards the sound of gun fire even with the chance of it being possible enemies. If it turned out to be another recruit they could, perhaps, join together and hunt down their respective partners. Now she just had to hope the maze's layout wasn't just causing sounds to travel in a strange manner. She supposed she could call out, but refrained from doing so. Just in case it turned out to be an unfriendly. So she readied her weapon, just in case, as she strode onward and forward.

 

[Relish]

Kendric crept quietly through the corridor. A small mechanical hum emanated from the weapon held tightly in his hand. He knew he had to be ready to take the initiative for any situation, especially considering the fact his copy may be looking for him... And as much as he'd rather not admit it, a frazzled Nylau worried him to the same extent his copy did. It was a bit unsettling that his friend was one of larger concerns given the situation.

A few electrical sparks jumped from muzzle of his weapon as the inventor brushed up against the wall. He thought he saw some movement from around the bend. Was it a friend, or was it a foe? Yes, it was definitely something. It was substantially larger than the other monsters he encountered up to this point. Kenric pressed himself up against the wall. Having to face off an enemy alone in such a space wasn't particularly favorable of course assuming this was an enemy. 'How am I going to do this...?' he contemplated for a moment. With his goggles, he could see that the figure was at least humanoid in shape.

There weren't too many options. In this situation it would be preferred if he were the one approached, he was not about to make the same mistake twice in the same day... Still rooted to his position, he called down the hall. "Hey, is anyone over there?" In his mind, he had already concluded that if he got a verbal response than the figure was a friend, if there was no response he would assume it a foe and fire at the first sign of movement. Kendric gripped his weapon tighter as he prepared for the possibility to act.

 

[Falcon]

Raven 1

He'd finished the last of the monster horde that had attacked him and moved on in the direction he hoped that mirror was, still keeping his hand on the wall. For what seemed a long time, though was only a matter of minutes, everything was silent. Still, Raven kept moving, and then he slowed. He heard footsteps in front of him but there was a bend in the corridor and he couldn't see who or what was up ahead. He debated his options for a moment and then decided that since his guns had already made enough noise, and what was up ahead did sound like human footsteps and not more monsters, he might at well take the risk.

"Hello?" he rasped, wincing at the way the echo of his voice croaked in the maze, and wishing it sounded stronger. There was no help for it now. "Hello?" he tried again hoping for an answer.

Raven 2

As Raven continued to work through the maze his ears centered on the sound of the cow. He knew the person he was looking for probably was not there, but the sound of the animal provided a point from which he could get his bearings and as he worked his way through the maze towards it, hand still on the wall, his brain worked out a rough map in his head of where he had been in relation to where he thought he was going.

 

[Kalista]

Hale Kridurin, snow

"Are you a recruit to Varia? Where did you get those beads? Can I get one?"

Hale Kridurin's new companion seemed quite excited and he smiled when she couldn't seem to hold her curiosity in any longer. He was a bit surprised she would so easily trust a random stranger without some form of verification, but it could also be confidence in her ability to stay safe... Not that Hale was a danger though. "Eile Olain... I once was recruited as well, however by now... I am no longer a recruit."

Removing his hood, the wind refreshed Hale as he took a deep breath. "Once we get to Varia, I can get you some... These are home made."

Glancing at her exposed arm, which resembled fresh lava cooling, Hale wondered if he had agreed too hastily. His beads were made to absorb the element of darkness to a certain extent, and depending on her arm, the beads might weaken her a bit rather than help. He decided it was best to use a different material should she still want one later on.

"How did you come about joining Varia? I hope you are prepared for some... wild times..." Hale thought about all the crazy incidents that had happened in Varia during his time. He remembered one time when some new recruit was possessed and ran around the headquarters completely exposed. The way he was possessed was contagious, and this led to a widespread pandemic that was finally stopped by Risuna Tiolee.

They reached the edge of the city where the vast plain surrounding the headquarters greeted them, and the lone wide path stretched off into the distance to where the figure of the headquarters stood. "It's a long walk, but we are nearly there..."

Oh no... where am I? Tiana Veyliss had escaped from the large monster that was no doubt prowling around the maze now. In her panic, she failed to remember her surroundings, and completely lost her bearings. Looking up at the outer walls of the labyrinth, she saw that she was near the middle now. It's crazy how much room they have in this place... I wonder what else they are hiding...

Having built up a lot of fire affinity, Tiana was ready for action. However, it seemed there was no action to be found. Reaching the end of a hallway, the path opened up to a large room. What Tiana saw caught her by surprise. Located at the edges of the room, were several stands full of fruit. Bustling about were little shadowy creatures, some eating and others serving. There was a constant chatter and the little monsters seem to be speaking some strange language.

Ducking back, Tiana wondered what the meaning of this kind of situation was. Would they attack me if I showed myself? They don't seem to be armed...

"H-hi... everyone..." She decided to try anyway, as she was confident she could escape. "How are you all?" Strolling forward, Tiana saw the room go still before a few of the creatures hopped towards her and beckoned her to a table. They were all excited and started piling fruit in front of her. "Oh... why thank you..."

Surprised at the hospitality of her presumed enemies, Tiana started indulging in the sweet fruits in front of her.

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"Come out come out wherever you are, little girl!"

Tiana Veyliss had been resting nearby after escaping from the large monster that was no doubt prowling around. She had caught her breath by now, and was simply wondering where to go next. Then she heard a woman taunt her. "Who are you calling little girl??"

Tiana rested her staff on her shoulder as she answered back. Unfortunately, she failed to notice the shadowy snake that was slithering towards her feet with astonishing speed...