Data Recovery For Mister Burke

Job Details:

Job Sign-Up: Page 8, Post Number 189

-Shirotsume, Mister Burke's Residence, 5:40 P.M.-

This morning Leona had gathered supplies and taken care of other needs for the next elemental stone search in a location she believed to be Fat Monsterland. She had finally bought some soup bowls so that she no longer had to eat it straight out of the can unless she wanted to for whatever reason. She had also rearranged the wardrobe in the Albatross to achieve a perfect balance of t-shirts, tank tops, and crop tops. Speaking of clothes, a quick shopping trip to Capital Crocus Mall had produced a navy blue tank top, olive green cargo pants, an olive green jacket, and two more pairs of khaki cargo pants for her wardrobe. After all of that the Wizard Saint planned to call it a day and set out for Fat Monsterland tomorrow afternoon, but fate had had different plans.

Around 2:00 P.M. Leona had received a message from her old client Mister Burke that her help was needed with a sensitive matter. She decided to postpone her trip to Fat Monsterland in favor of helping an old client and earning some money in order to get back what she had spent on shopping for clothes and supplies lately. Now she was in the meeting room on the third floor of Mister Burke's residence and was facing him as he stood behind a computer desk. Dressed in the olive green jacket buttoned up over a black tank top and olive green cargo pants with boots, Leona also carried her Scout Laser Pistol and Silver Longsword.

"I will dispense with the pleasantries and get to the point. Some sensitive data was stolen from my company less than a day ago and the tracker on the case containing the data indicated that it was taken to Haunted Castle. I need you to retrieve it." Mister Burke informed Leona of what she had been hired to do.

"Haunted Castle, huh?" Leona asked rhetorically. She suspected that she had been hired to go there because none of Mister Burke's other helpers could go there and stand a chance of returning alive, let alone finding the data they had been sent to retrieve.

"Yes. I suspect the thief took it there because few would dare to go to that location and even fewer would dare to actually enter the castle. That is where you come in." Mister Burke answered the rhetorical question with a confirmation of what she had suspected. Leona was fine with that. She had been looking for an adventure anyway and here was one being handed to her on a silver platter.

"I'll go there right away." Leona informed him that she was accepting the job. He stooped down, opened up a drawer, and pulled something out, then set the object on the desk for Leona to see. It was a small black device reminiscent of a smartwatch.

"Excellent. Here is a tracker for the tracking device that was placed in the case containing the data. It will help you find an approximate location, but be warned that it will not give an exact location in buildings. You will have to do the legwork necessary to retrieve the data." Mister Burke told her what the object was and warned her of its greatest flaw. Leona was not going to complain about the device's shortcoming. Some help was better than no help at all. Leona walked over to it and put it on her left wrist, where it immediately came to life and a green grid flashed on the screen.

"I'll head to Haunted Castle right away." Leona repeated. Mister Burke smiled.

"Excellent. Do be careful, Miss Jarnefeldt. I need not remind you of the dangers of that place." Mister Burke bad her to be careful while searching for the data.

"I'll be careful." Leona assured him. With that she turned and left the meeting room. Once she was out of Mister Burke's home and outside of Shirotsume she would summon Winged Lion and fly to her destination. Winged Lion was how she had gotten here and that was how she was going to get to Haunted Castle.

-Outside Haunted Castle, 8:38 P.M.-

Leona landed ten meters away from Haunted Castle on the back of Winged Lion. She climbed off of its back and dispelled the summon, then faced the tracker on her wrist. There was a red dot on the green grid and it was inside Haunted Castle. She had no idea where exactly in the castle the case containing the data was, but that was what she was getting paid to find out. Leona took a quiet breath and began to walk towards the castle as the night wind picked up, blowing cold air that almost punched through her new jacket.

Leona ignored the cold and walked until she got to the wooden double doors, then opened the right one and went inside. Once she stepped through the door shut behind her, leaving her standing in the castle's foyer.

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-Inside Haunted Castle-

Standing inside the castle foyer on a literal red carpet with gold borders, Leona looked ahead of her and the first thing she spotted was a large tapestry of an unfamiliar design hanging in front of her... there was a shield that was black and had two swords crossed diagonally behind it. She noticed four words at the bottom woven in black letters and read them silently.

NEMO ME IMPUNE LACESSIT

Leona did not recognize the language the phrase was written in and thus did not understand what the phrase meant. It was prominently displayed on the tapestry, so it must have had some special meaning that she was failing to pick up on. She did not know and was not going to waste time on trying to decipher it when she had work to do.

Leona looked up and noticed that the area was lit by a brass chandelier with actual wax candles burning behind protective globes. She looked towards the tapestry again for a few moments and then looked to the left and to the right. Two paths lay ahead of her and both of them had a red carpet rolled out for her. Leona raised her left wrist and consulted the tracker, which showed her that the red dot was positioned diagonally up and to the right of her current location.

The Wizard Saint took the right path and began to walk down the right hall. As she walked she noticed masterfully made oil paintings hanging in frames that were placed on the wall along both sides of the hall at five-meter intervals, but their quality was not the only thing she noticed about them. She also noticed that all of the paintings had a theme of death.

The first painting she saw featured an hourglass sitting on a wooden table with a human skull to the right of it. The sand in the hourglass was almost all in the bottom except for a few grains that clung to the top half as if not wanting to fall. Despite its grim subject matter Leona found herself impressed enough by the painting to stop and look at it because of how skillfully painted it was. The light of the hall seemed to reflect off of the hourglass in the painting and the grain of wood on the table looked so realistic. After a minute or two Leona had to force herself to move on lest she waste valuable time staring at the artwork.

When Leona resumed her walk she looked up and noticed more brass chandeliers lighting the hall with a gentle glow from multiple candles behind polished glass globes. She looked at more of the paintings and noticed that on the left side of the hall there was a quintet of paintings that started with an infant with pale blonde hair in its crib. The second painting was one of the same infant now as a young child wearing a yellow dress and holding a doll that was wearing a tiny white dress. The third painting was of a young woman with blonde hair and green eyes wearing a white dress and holding a bouquet of flowers while looking towards a young man who also had blond hair and green eyes and was wearing a black suit.

The fourth painting was one of the woman in late middle age holding a young child with blonde hair and green eyes while the husband stood to her right. The sequence ended with a white-haired old woman lying in a bed with people who were presumably her family gathered around her. That was a subject that was too emotional for Leona to think about, so she looked right as she neared the halfway point of the hallway. The next piece of artwork that caught her eye was that of an ominous figure in a black robe standing behind and to the left of a smiling woman in a white dress holding a child in her arms. The figure was reaching out towards the woman's left shoulder with a skeletal hand and was only inches away from touching her.

Leona kept walking and did her best to ignore the rest of the artwork, which was not very cheerful. When she reached the end of the hall she looked at the staircase and noticed one last piece of artwork that was much simpler than the preceding pieces. It was a plain black canvas with a phrase painted in brilliant red letters that captured the ambient light.

MEMENTO MORI

Leona had no idea what that phrase meant, but she got the impression that it was a warning. She promptly headed up the stairs, being careful not to hit her head on the ceiling as she ascended the staircase.

-On the second floor, 8:53 P.M.-

Leona walked out of the stairs and turned right to find herself staring down another hallway that had a split. Again she had a choice between either left or right. Leona raised her left wrist and looked at the tracker for the direction she needed to go in and saw that the red dot was still to the right, so she would continue to head right. She began to walk down the right hall, her footsteps sounding on the bare wooden floor beneath her feet. There was no carpet here to muffle her footsteps, so she would have to be careful because someone or something might hear her.

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[Total Word Count: 1,746/11,000]

Leona tried to be as quiet as she could, but the wooden flooring was creaking with every step she took. She had reason to suspect that the choice of wood with no carpet to cover it was intentional, but there was nothing she could do about it. Anyone or anything within earshot would know that someone was heading down the hall, but she was ready for a fight if one came her way. Leona put her hand on the grip of the Silver Longsword in its scabbard on her left hip and kept moving down the hall, which had several disruptions in the light coat of dust that indicated that artwork once hung on the walls.

What happened to the paintings?

Were they the ones she had seen in the hall on the first floor?

Leona kept going and soon reached the halfway point. It was then that she felt the sensation that someone was watching her. The Wizard Saint paused in place and looked behind her to make sure that she was not being followed. She thought she saw the edge of something black dart down the hall to the branching hallway, but she was not sure that she really had seen something. Maybe she was just seeing things.

She lingered for a few moments longer before continuing. When she was satisfied that nothing was there she turned around and began to walk down the hall until she came across a staircase that led up. Leona lifted her left wrist and consulted the tracker... the red dot was just above her current location, so she was definitely headed in the right direction. Leona lowered her left wrist and began to climb the stairs.

-The third floor-

Leona emerged from the stairwell and found herself standing inside a rather large dining hall with bare wooden floors and a large rectangular table dominating the center of the room. Hanging in the approximate center of the room was a golden chandelier with candles burning inside protective glass globes, bathing the room in a soft light. Leona looked left and noticed several large tapestries hanging on the wall... in the center of them was a larger version of the same tapestry with the black shield with crossed swords she had first seen in the foyer. She wondered why it had been placed in the center of the different tapestries, but she did not have time to figure out the significance of its placement because her eye was drawn to the table.

Objects gleamed in the light and the Wizard Saint's curiosity compelled her to investigate. She carefully walked over to the table and looked closer at it. It was a table made out of dark wood, but it was not a mass-produced table like one she could find in a furniture store. It looked like it had been made by hand and had been crafted with great care. She did not see any rough spots or tool marks anywhere on the table, which meant that someone had went to a lot of trouble to avoid damaging the piece of furniture during its creation.

Leona looked on top of the table and noticed plates that were made out of a metal that looked like actual silver. She looked down at the plate closest to her and noticed that it had been carefully cleaned... it was so clean that she could almost see her reflection in it. She reached out to touch the plate when the hair on the back of her neck stood up and she got a strong feeling that she was being watched. Leona quickly drew her hand back and spun around to look for anyone in the area.

Her right hand went to the grip of her Silver Longsword as her pulse quickened. She looked everywhere in the area behind her but was not seeing anything. Leona then looked up at the ceiling in case something was trying to literally get the drop on her, but there was nothing on the ceiling except the chandelier chain and its support. The Wizard Saint lowered her head and turned back to face the table and spotted something lying on its side on the ground about two meters behind and to the right of the chair at the head of the table.

It looked to be a square object, possibly a briefcase. Leona raised her left wrist to look at the tracker and the moment she saw the red dot in the direction of the object she knew that she had found what she was looking for. Leona lowered her left wrist and walked briskly over to the object, which was indeed the briefcase containing sensitive data. It was a black one with silver corners and a small metal combination lock with four small dials to turn. She quickly set it upright and grabbed the carrying handle with her left hand, then paused and looked down at it.

Leona was tempted to open the case and make sure that its contents were inside so that she was not hauling an empty case back to Mister Burke, but then she decided against it. He had not given her permission to open the case, even to check its contents. However, she did not know the combination, so she could not check it even if she wanted to. Not wanting to anger the client by tampering with the case in any way, Leona abandoned the idea and looked up to face the stairwell she had taken to get up here.

Now that she had the case in hand it was time to go.

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[Total Word Count: 2,682/11,000]

-Shirotsume, Mister Burke's Residence, nine hours and twenty-seven minutes later-

Aside from feeling a strong sense that she was being watched Leona had not encountered any difficulty leaving Haunted Castle after getting the case she had been hired to get. Now she was standing inside the meeting room on the third floor of Mister Burke's residence and was facing the man himself. He seemed pleased to see the case clutched in her left hand.

"I see that you brought the case. Excellent." He said to Leona. Understanding the unspoken request, Leona walked over to the desk and set the case down in front of him, then took a step back. She watched as the client turned the combination lock towards him, then moved the dials until a soft CLICK sounded. He opened the case and looked within for a few seconds before closing it and gently moving it aside.

"Everything is inside the case, Miss Jarnefeldt. I am surprised by that, but I will not question it." Mister Burke told Leona that the sensitive data was still in the case. Leona was also surprised by that. While she had not thought about it at the time, there was a chance that the case could have been emptied of its precious contents, closed again, and left behind to deceive whoever was sent to find it into taking an empty container back to Mister Burke. Now she knew that that had not been the case... no pun intended.

"Even though you were not hired to do so, I want to know something. Did you manage to find the thief?" Mister Burke asked the Wizard Saint. Leona shook her head.

"No, Mister Burke. I didn't find them." Leona told him. His facial expression did not change in the slightest.

"I see. Well, that does not matter now. The important thing is that you retrieved the sensitive documents and brought them back to me. Had they been delivered to the wrong party things could have gotten... complicated." He told her without really elaborating on what he had meant by "complicated." Leona got the impression that he was not going to explain any further, so she did not bother asking. Instead she would listen to him to see whether her services were still required or if she could call it a job and return to Silver Wolf Guild Hall.

"You have done your part for the time being, Miss Jarnefeldt. However, I will be contact with you very soon. Please keep an eye out for any messages I might send you because there might be more work for you to do." Mister Burke informed her that she could call it a job for today and also informed her that more job opportunities might be in the future. Leona would take her leave and return to the guild hall to plan her trip to Fat Monsterland and try to find the elemental stone that might be there.

"All right, Mister Burke. I'll be going back to the guild hall now. You know where to find me." Leona said to him. Mister Burke waved a little with his right hand.

"Goodbye, Miss Jarnefeldt." He bade her. With that Leona turned and left the meeting room to begin her trip home. Once she got home she would try to finish planning for the trip to Fat Monsterland... there were still a few details to work out such as whether or not she would take the Albatross there and whether or not she would take Ancient Knight or PG-13 for support.

-Silver Wolf Guild Hall, Leona's Room, five hours and twenty-one minutes later-

After going to the outskirts of Shirotsume and summoning Winged Lion to fly back to Silver Wolf Guild Hall Leona was home. Now that she was back in her room at the guild hall Leona had changed into a casual outfit of black tank top and green, white, and gold skirt. She was now sitting at her desk while going over what she would need for the expedition to Fat Monsterland. After doing a little thinking Leona would not need a whole lot because the problem boiled down to whether or not she was going to take the Albatross so that she could transport Ancient Knight or PG-13 to her destination.

Taking the Albatross would ensure that she would not be fatigued by the time she got to Fat Monsterland. Not being fatigued would allow her to fight through the area's denizens with greater ease. She would also be able to transport her chosen companion with greater ease and speed since they could ride in the cargo bay or one of the Passenger's Quarters.

However, one major problem kept her from hopping into the Albatross and taking off with her chosen companion in tow. That problem was that the aircraft would take time to board because the cargo ramp needed to be lowered first. That was nothing to worry about if the coast was clear, but if Leona encountered one seriously tough opponent or a horde that was too large for her to handle and was chased back to her transport she would not be able to quickly board the Albatross and escape. Related to the main problem was the possibility that she would acquire some unwanted passengers if she was being pursued while boarding.

It went without saying that Leona would need to think the matter all the way through before committing to taking the Albatross to Fat Monsterland.

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-Leona's Room, 12:07 A.M.-

Leona was sitting at her desk and absentmindedly drumming the fingers of her right hand against the top of the desk while she tried to make a decision as to whether or not she took the Albatross to Fat Monsterland when the time came to search for the elemental stone. Both options had their advantages and disadvantages and she was carefully weighing them both before she made her choice. Either way it was going to be a tough call.

She could make that call later, though. For now she needed to sleep. Leona got up from the desk, pushed her chair in, and walked over to her bed, then sat down on it. She swung her feet over to the foot and reclined, then turned over and stared at her wall until she went to sleep.


-The next day, Silver Wolf Guild Hall, Leona's Room, 1:00 P.M.

After sleeping for much longer than she had intended Leona finally rolled out of bed but must have been sleeping too close to the edge because when she rolled over she hit the wooden floor with a THUD. She quickly recovered and stood up, then brushed herself off. She smoothed out her black tank top and green, white, and gold skirt, then looked towards the door to her room and took a quiet breath. She was going to have to do some paperwork today to make up for not doing any yesterday.

-Leona's Room, 8:23 P.M.-

As it turned out Leona had more than just "some" paperwork to do. She had a whole lot of it to do... four giant stacks of paperwork were waiting on top of her desk in the office. She had taken her time doing each one because she wanted to make sure that she got everything right before declaring one stack finished and moving on to the next one. Now that she was finished with her administrative duties for the day Leona entered her room and found a folded sheet of white paper lying on the ground in front of her feet. Wondering if it was a message from Mister Burke, Leona bent down, picked it up, and held the bottom in her left hand while opening it with her right hand.

When she opened it she began to read what was written.

"Miss Jarnefeldt:

I need you to come to my residence immediately. Bring your best weapons because I will need you to travel somewhere dangerous." Mister Burke said in a simple message. Leona put the message away in her desk, then went to gather her gear and pick out some clothing. The wording of the message hinted that she would not have much time to spare, so she would need to move fast.

-Shirotsume, Mister Burke's Residence, 11:43 P.M.-

Wearing her olive green jacket over a black tank top and olive green cargo pants with boots, Leona was also packing her Scout Laser Pistol and Silver Longsword along with Ses Revanche in her right boot. She stood before Mister Burke, who wore a rumpled grey suit with black tie that had not been straightened... it was obvious that he had dressed as quickly as he could and did not have time to make himself more presentable. His hair was also disheveled.

"Hello Miss Jarnefeldt. I apologize for calling you here at such a late hour, but I need your help with another important matter." Mister Burke greeted Leona with an apology for summoning her to his residence a short time before midnight. Without waiting for a response he continued.

"Some more sensitive company data was stolen less than fifteen hours ago and it was taken to Sombras Manor. I will provide you with a tracker to give you an approximate location of the case, but that is all the help I can give you." The client told her. Leona did not need much more help than the tracker. She had been to Sombras Manor several times and knew what to expect and she also had a Silver Longsword with which to deal with any supernatural entities she encountered.

"I'll head there right away." Leona informed the client. She walked over to the desk just as Mister Burke set the tracker down for her and took the device, then attached it to her left wrist and powered it on. She then turned to leave the room and started walking when the client called out to her.

"Good luck, Miss Jarnefeldt." Mister Burke bade her. Leona turned around.

"Thanks." Leona said simply. She then turned around again and left the room.

-Outside Sombras Manor, 3:03 A.M.-

Having flown on Winged Lion's back from Shirotsume to Sombras Manor, Leona climbed off of her summon's back and dispelled it. She was now outside Sombras Manor and felt a cold wind blow as she looked at the building. Leona supposed that the thief thought they would find refuge in the manor until they could deliver the stolen case of sensitive information to their client, but just like with Haunted Castle they would not be able to stop her from tracking down what was Mister Burke's and reclaiming it. Leona took a quiet breath and approached the building and when she got to the door opened it, then went inside.

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[Total Word Count: 4,478/11,000]

-Inside Sombras Manor, the first floor-

Leona shut the door to the outside behind her and turned around, then stopped and listened out for anything unusual. She did not see anything right away, but she was not going to assume that she was alone here. She peered down the dark hallway ahead of her and her natural night vision took effect, allowing her to see clearly. Ahead of her on both sides of the hallway were suits of plate metal armor on display stands and along the baseboards of the bare wooden floor were quite a few dust bunnies.

She did not see anything dangerous ahead of her, so she took a few steps forward and stopped before looking down the hallway to the left. Unlike the one in front of her this one was empty except for dust bunnies along the baseboards, so she faced forward again and consulted the tracker on her left wrist. The red dot was straight ahead, but she did not see a case at the end of the hallway, so she knew that she would have to go up.

Leona lowered her left wrist and began to walk down the hallway while keeping her right hand firmly on the grip of her Silver Longsword. The bare wooden floor creaked with each step, making any attempt at stealth futile. Leona continued to walk while keeping an eye out for danger and when she approached the first suit of armor on the right its right arm suddenly dropped inches in front of her at chest level, causing her to jump back and draw her sword. The Wizard Saint felt an adrenaline surge as she prepared to fight for her life, but she did not see anything other than the suit's arm barring the way.

Was something trying to warn her to turn around and leave while she still could?

If something was indeed trying to warn her Leona was not going to heed it because she had no choice but to continue her mission. Leona took a quiet breath and walked around the metal arm, then proceeded down the hallway while eying each suit of armor. As she approached each one she expected another arm to fall down in front of her, but nothing happened. She passed by them all and soon found a staircase to the right and put away her Silver Longsword, then began to climb the stairs.

-Sombras Manor, the second floor-

Leona emerged from the stairs and looked straight ahead. There was a hallway with a few old wooden chairs positioned at odd intervals and several doors on each side in front of her. To the right was another hallway with a few gold-framed paintings hanging on the walls. Unsure as to which direction to go in, she decided to consult the wrist-mounted tracker and lifted up her left wrist. She looked at the screen and saw the red dot positioned to her right.

Leona walked to the right and soon came across a painting on the left that had to do with farming. The subject was a simple farmhouse sitting a short distance away and to the left of a field of what might have been wheat. Leona could make out individual plants in the field and could almost see the individual boards of the farmhouse. She wondered who the artist was but decided against moving the painting to find out... it was best for her to keep moving.

Leona walked away from the painting and continued moving down the hallway, passing by a detailed painting on the left of a verdant forest sitting at the end of an open field of grass that was painted like it was waving in a gentle breeze. The next painting was on the right and showed a herd of horses running free in a prairie. Finding them to be less compelling than the painting of the farmhouse, Leona moved swiftly down the hallway until she reached a staircase on the right and began to ascend it.

-Sombras Manor, the third floor-

Leona emerged from the stairwell and looked around her. Unlike the previous two floors there was only one direction to go in this time... straight ahead. The hallway was barren except for a few wooden chairs like the one on the second floor. Leona noticed that there was an open doorway straight ahead and to the right... she drew her Silver Longsword and began to walk towards the door and when she reached it she peered inside the room to find a library with wall-to-wall bookshelves, a rectangular wooden table in the middle of it, and a carpet beneath the table.

Deciding to investigate for any signs of the data thief, Leona walked into the library.

-Inside the library-

Leona stopped a few steps away from the door and looked around the room. The bookshelves she had seen were so tall that one needed to use a rolling ladder to get to the top. They were also liberally coated with dust, but Leona was not here to browse at the books or clean the bookshelves. She was searching for the thief.

Putting away her Silver Longsword for the time being, Leona began to search the room for any signs that her quarry had been here.

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[Total Word Count: 5,360/11,000]