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    Into Places Unknown

    Vandrad Ragnos
    Vandrad Ragnos

    Quality Badge Level 1- Quality Badge Level 2- Quality Badge Level 3- Player 
    Lineage : Traveller of the Multiverse
    Position : None
    Posts : 791
    Guild : Fairy Tail
    Dungeon Tokens : 0
    Experience : 8,080,767

    Character Sheet
    First Skill: Energy Monarch
    Second Skill: Ark of the Dread Masters
    Third Skill:

    Into Places Unknown Empty Into Places Unknown

    Post by Vandrad Ragnos 6th April 2023, 6:50 pm

    There’s no fair or unfair in battle.
    ( There is only victory or in your case, defeat. )
    Into Places Unknown RJtajUnz_o


    The days had come and gone and soon enough, winter was in full swing, the frosted, frigid winds of January ripping across all of Earthland. It promised little warmth, running out days quickly with its icy grip so that the cold nights could maintain their dominance. Days, somehow, seemed to go slowly and yet somehow too quickly, though that may have been the ever ticking countdown to Genesis being taken off planet. Though Grubar had set a hard deadline for how long he could -- or rather, would -- be willing to wait to take Genesis in, he had been convinced a few times to delay. It wasn’t hard, being a creature that seemingly enjoyed the attention of others, especially women, and there were a handful of women that were more than happy to attend to him in exchange for more time. As much as he was a professional that wished to get his job done, there seemed to be a soft spot in his heart for the situation and the people wrapped up in it. Truly, it felt that he, too, wanted to be done with Maker and protect the tiny backwater planet full of humans.

    Progress was being made but it was slow and, perhaps worse, was just how careful and patient Maker seemed to be. While Mercury’s ‘clone’ had been awakened from its slumber under the guise of being controlled, Maker had done very little to include her in projects. He was careful about what he said to her and how to mention certain aspects of his goals, happy to keep her on the teetering edge of interest and curiosity. Worse yet was the fact that attempting to triangulate the positioning of his base was next to impossible, for one reason or another. In the end, it came down to the efforts of the outside forces working to locate him while Mercury and her clone sought to keep Maker’s interest and focus.

    Not that there was any evidence or information lacking to be told. In fact, there were some interesting, if not troubling, developments that required a full meeting to discuss. The sideways adventure of Scourge and Saffron had brought them upon a Rhaegarian, claiming to be working with Maker, though on what remained a mystery. He had claimed to be related to the former matriarch of the du Wolff family, which painted a very troubling path moving forward. They had arranged a meeting on New Rhaegar, to reveal and summarily discuss their discoveries and what it meant for their attempts at stopping Maker.

    Vandrad stood at the docks of the developing island nation, staring out at the sea beyond. He wore a familiar jacket, a bright green overcoat that he’d once worn on his first mission encountering Mercury. Though that one had been torn asunder by his own hands, he’d procured another one and left it away for some time. Now as he stood on the stony outcropping, overlooking the gentle bay in front of him, he found in it limited but comforting warmth. There was a look of deep introspection on his face, a glower that was not unusual to see. Vandrad was not one to walk around with a bright, warm and welcoming smile after all. But he seemed more pensive than anything as the cool wind whipped past him, drawing his hair back and waving it along the invisible ways of air.

    Two months at this point and they were no closer to confronting Maker. For a man that prided himself on getting results quickly and easily, it was frustrating. He knew that everyone was working as hard as they possibly could but that didn’t make the lack of results any less irritating. At this point, all he wanted was some kind of coordinates so he could glass the entire region, just to ensure the alien bastard was dead and gone. But somehow he knew it wouldn’t be that easy.

    “It never is,” a voice spoke from nearby. The former prince’s head twisted around to glance in the direction of the source… only to find nothing but air. Yet another troubling development that he had opted to keep to himself was the appearance of this mysterious voice. It had first spoken up the night that Mercury had gone on the mission to investigate Genesis with Scourge, Agatha and Ruzatz. Ever since then, it had spoken a handful of times, often barking some comment at what he was saying or thinking. No body ever appeared to take ownership of the words and Vandrad was left to stand and ponder, concerned that something was stalking him from beyond the veil. Usually he had no issues seeing specters and spirits, so whatever it was, it was beyond that.

    “You look spooked, nephew,” Simon’s familiar voice came from his other side, prompting Vandrad to turn the other way. His uncle had grown out his beard ever since their arrival at New Rhaegar, going for a more rugged gentlemanly look after seeing Vandrad and Gren’s own facial hair. His hair had grown out a bit more as well, which he carefully caked in pomade to give it shape and body. Truly, the diplomat of the Du Wolff family could make any look work and make both men and women swoon. “Don’t tell me Themmy purchased a haunted island?”

    "No, nothing like that,” Vandrad mumbled, putting aside his temporary concerns as he turned to face his uncle. “Are people arriving yet?”

    “Most likely, yes, though I haven’t been to the mansion -- palace? -- yet. I suppose ‘palace’ makes more sense, given the eventual rise of our king,” Simon said, a small smirk tugging at his lips as he met his nephew’s gaze.

    Vandrads scoffed and marched past the man. "Enough of that. There are far more pressing matters.”

    “Yes, yes, impending doom and all, I understand. But it never hurts to comprehend both present and future, issues and revelations. And even you must admit, Vandrad, the newly crowned king and queen taking down an invader from beyond the stars, saving the world from enslavement, is quite the boon when its comes to negotiating alliances and trade routes,” Simon remarked as he followed after Vandrad.

    "All matters that you’ll be in charge of, if I have anything to say about it,” Vandrad cast back.

    “That’s the fun part! You do have the say. Well you and Mercury but I think your darling wife-to-be has a few other positions in mind for me,” the flirtatious man said, eyes drifting upwards almost in fantastical contemplation. Chuckling at his own depraved fantasies, he moved a bit closer and clapped his nephew on the shoulder as they walked. “No worries, nephew, I’ll be here to help out in any way I can. But perhaps we table this conversation until after we have this ‘eye-opening’ discussion with Scourge and Saffron, as it was so well put. I certainly won’t complain about seeing that gorgeous woman again.”

    Vandrad snorted. "You’re barking up the wrong tree. Saffron isn’t like to take any interest in you that way.”

    Simon, once again, chuckled. “So I’ve heard. But when has that ever stopped me? Now come, let’s see who has arrived…”






    Words: 1491 | Tag: @Mercury Arseneault @Mythal Ragnos @Serilda Sinclair @Saffron Remington  | © marzia at shine & gs.


    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Mercury Arseneault
    Mercury Arseneault

    Quality Badge Level 1- Quality Badge Level 2- Quality Badge Level 3- Player 
    Lineage : Gold Rush
    Position : None
    Posts : 690
    Cosmic Coins : 0
    Dungeon Tokens : 0
    Experience : 7,126,000

    Character Sheet
    First Skill: Gunblade Master
    Second Skill: Mecha Primordial Slayer
    Third Skill:

    Into Places Unknown Empty Re: Into Places Unknown

    Post by Mercury Arseneault 7th April 2023, 9:07 pm

    Mercury Banner
    Cunning is the art of concealing our own defects
    and discovering other peoples' weaknesses.
    Life had certainly been eventful the last few months, for Mercury especially. Even for someone with a literal computer for a brain, she was starting to feel like she was burning the candle on both ends. Her research with Blade and Cillian was making some progress, and while they all whole heartedly felt that they were on the right track with utilizing Cillian’s knowledge of necromancy to traverse a road through Maker’s mysterious alchemy, they had yet to uncover anything truly concrete. One the one hand, it was nice for her to finally have a challenge… but on the other it was starting to get a little frustrating.

    Maker himself was an entirely different matter. While Mercury herself wasn’t actively controlling her clone or observing through it at all times, she did make it a point to review footage often and to ensure she was alerted to any important information. She was confident she could get to Maker easily enough – finding him wasn’t truly her concern. It was more wanting to make sure that they could close the deal once they did confront him. It was a scheme that would need time to unfold. Maker had yet to trust her with anything worthwhile, which was of no surprise. Luckily, in this regard Mercury had plenty of patience. The Silver Wolf mage was all too happy to play the reluctantly complicit captive that was supposedly biding her time for making a break for her freedom, and in a twisted way Maker was delightfully refreshing company.

    He certainly took her mind off of other, surprisingly more weighty matters…

    A proposition had been made recently to her and Vandrad by Themmy. The island of New Rhaegar had been growing and was on a rapid path toward needing to establish themselves as an official nation, one that would eventually need to immerse themselves within the rest of the known world in order to survive, and with that came a need for leadership. Mercury had known that being with Vandrad would ultimately result in her becoming some kind of nobility. Themmy had been a duchess up until their recent ejection from Bellum, which meant that eventually Vandrad would have taken over the reigns, as would Mercury by his side. It had made her more than a little nervous – Mercury not only had zero experience with leadership outside of her time with Silver Wolf, but she’d spent her entire life at the bottom of the pecking order as a slave. But, she’d been willing to overcome that to be by the former prince’s side.

    But becoming a duchess was no longer the plan. Now the plan was for Vandrad to become a king, and thus Mercury his queen. It was a logical path to follow. The island was composed of refugees both of Vandrad’s people and her own, and the marriage between them was absolutely a symbol and gesture of union for the two nations merging into one. However, that didn’t make the title itself – and the responsibilities that came with it – any less daunting to a woman that had only truly understood freedom for the first time a year or so ago. And after everything she’d done, all the lives she was responsible for taking… did she really have the right to assume such a lofty station?

    Her doubts hadn’t stopped her from agreeing. At the end of the day, all she wanted was to be with Vandrad, and everyone else around her insisted that she would do fine and that they would all be there to help guide her. But, that didn’t mean that she didn’t stop to worry and wonder about it and doubt herself during the quiet moments, which meant that she had to do everything she could to have as few quiet moments as possible.

    Luckily, today was going to be far from quiet. A meeting was being called at the island, one that was going to be going over quite a number of topics as well as introducing Blade and Genesis to the Rhaegarians. In fact, Mercury was on her way with Blade to pick up Genesis at O Palácio Flutuante. True to his word, the former assassin had been fully complicit with the demands of his bounty hunters, and to everyone’s surprise it was becoming easier and easier to convince Grubar to extend the length of the time limit he’d originally set for them.

    Since Mercury had access to her translocation ray, and she was already more than well acquainted with both men, she was the natural choice to bring them both to the island, stopping first at Silver Wolf to pick up Blade, and then popping over with him to the casino. She was mostly dressed for the winter weather, sporting a royal blue overall skirt on top of an off the shoulder black top. A matching pair of black leggings covered her legs with blue gloves on her arms, and her neck was wrapped in a long red scarf. While the overall look of the outfit was summer-ish, the materials were all made with thicker fabrics that had fleece lining and things to keep her warm, so in truth she was quite cozy.

    Having made such arrangements in advance, Mercury set the coordinates of her gun to drop them directly in Genesis’ penthouse in the living room area. The space had long since been cleared up from the rubble that their illicit tryst had left it in. Mercury was already fiddling with her gun to change the settings to take them to New Rhaegar, speaking up without really looking much about the room. “Genesis! Get that perfect jawline down here so I can give it a kiss. Oh, hello…”

    Her radars informed her someone had moved out into the room, but instead of Genesis she instead found herself face to face with an extremely attractive brunette with a scar on her cheek. The woman was covered neck to toe in a simple but high quality uniform like suit in various shades of blue with gold trim. Her translocator forgotten, Mercury approached the woman with a flirtatious smile, offering her a hand to shake. “You must be Dinah? I’m Mercury. Can I just say that it is such a pleasure to meet you. I’m a big fan.”

    Dinah didn’t hesitate to give the smaller woman a knowing smirk, her brown eyes twinkling with nearly as much mischief as Mercury’s often did. She took Mercury’s hand. “The pleasure is mine, Mercury. Genesis has told me quite a bit about you in… vivid detail. I’ll do my best to live up to your perspective of me.” Disengaging with the Xocili briefly, she approached Blade to greet him in a similar manner. “It’s good to finally meet you as well, Blade. And thank you both for letting me accompany you all to this briefing. It’s not often that Gensis leaves the palace, for obvious reasons, and when he does we usually insist that one of us captains come along to ensure his protection. That, and I am greatly looking forward to seeing Mr. Ragnos and Lady Serilda again.”

    Serilda Sinclair



    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Vandrad Ragnos
    Vandrad Ragnos

    Quality Badge Level 1- Quality Badge Level 2- Quality Badge Level 3- Player 
    Lineage : Traveller of the Multiverse
    Position : None
    Posts : 791
    Guild : Fairy Tail
    Dungeon Tokens : 0
    Experience : 8,080,767

    Character Sheet
    First Skill: Energy Monarch
    Second Skill: Ark of the Dread Masters
    Third Skill:

    Into Places Unknown Empty Re: Into Places Unknown

    Post by Vandrad Ragnos 12th April 2023, 1:27 pm



    Three Hunters
     To say that Blade was frustrated would be a vast understatement. But he was quite good at hiding it. Progress had been slow on the endeavor of stopping his brother and bringing his plots to an end before they could surprise any of them. Mercury had successfully infiltrated his organization but she couldn’t quite push her way to getting more information without tipping her hand. And everything that they, with the help of Cillian, had uncovered had been useful but not as groundbreaking as one would hope. They were running out of time and while Grubar’s patience had held out so far, even Blade knew the Scengar would put his foot down sooner rather than later.

    Yet it didn’t serve any purpose to get angry or lash out. Not that he could anyways; his own training had purposefully helped him hone his emotions so they could be dealt with, internally, in a non-damaging manner. Especially given how hard everyone had been working to come to a resolution. It honestly amazed him how the humans of Earthland had formed a tight knit group of camaraderie and shared knowledge, especially with those from behind the realms of their world. Most species were xenophobic by nature; as the alien and strange was often associated with new and frightening. And while he, Mercury, the other Xocili and the Rhaegarians resembled humans, Hosrius and Grubar were far from a normal humanoid. Nonetheless, they had been welcomed freely, treated as equal, both in an official capability and unofficial as well. He’d seen a warmth in the Scengar and Jirian’s faces that he’d never seen before; a happiness that perhaps had been hidden due to their occupations or perhaps something other than that. It was interesting to observe, if not altogether unpleasant.

    Luckily, Scourge and Saffron had made some kind of discovery worthy of deeper investigation and discussion. A call was sent out to gather on the island that had served as home to the Xocili and Rhaegarians to discuss the matter. Blade was picked up by Mercury on her way to get Genesis, using the opportunity to bring homunculus around the rest of the greater group and make proper introductions. Soon enough they were back in the penthouse that had been much more of a mess the last time they were there. Blade was dressed in his usual tunic, glancing around idly as they stepped out of Mercury’s portal. The Silver Wolf ace called out to Genesis, demanding that he come down and greet them properly before her gaze shifted to another presence in the room.

    Another woman had stepped into the room, one that he hadn’t seen before. She had a proper uniform and a scar over her cheek that did nothing to blemish her beauty. Mercury approached her and offered her hand, turning on her charm as easily as one would flick a switch on a panel. He turned to face the pair as Dinah reciprocated the greeting with the Xocili before approaching Blade and offering him a hand as well. He took it and gave it a shake, giving her a soft nod. “Same to you, Dinah. I have heard great things about your strength, bravery and ability to fluster Serilda Sinclair.” In his usual manner, Blade made a remark that others would most likely have made in a jesting, playful manner but he spoke straight and true, without even the smallest treble of humor. “I trust they are both looking forward to seeing you again.”

    “Yes, Dinah has quite the way with the ladies. She’s the worst wingwoman because she’s usually too busy getting game herself,” Genesis remarked as he entered the room, dressed in his usual alien carapace rather than anything humanoid. He strode over to Mercury and smoothly bent her down, giving her a deep and messy dip kiss while somehow still having the free hand to grope her quite literally all over. Once he raised her to her feet, he gave her ass a firm smack. “Miss me, hot stuff? I’ve turned down so many potential partners, hoping you would come and destroy my bedroom next.”

    “That seems highly inefficient,” Blade observed.

    “I’m just joking around, boy scout… well, about the turning down partners part. I would hate to fall out of practice,” he remarked, shooting Mercury a wink. “Also remind me to send you the details to my going away party. Figured I should throw a big shebang in celebration before my inevitable incarceration. Party doesn’t seem like the right word, is it? It’s a… fiesta? Bash?” he turned to Dinah, as if checking for input. “Orgy, it’s going to be an orgy.”

    “Sounds messy.”

    “Better be or I’ll be majorly disappointed.” Clapping his hands together, he rubbed his palms over one another. “Now then, shall we? I have been dying for this day for so long. Ask Dinah; I keep going on and on about my excitement.”
    ...one galaxy


    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Serilda Sinclair
    Serilda Sinclair

    Ice Queen


    Ice Queen

    Developer/GFX Artist- Main Account- Gain An Artifact- Quality Badge Level 1- Quality Badge Level 2- Quality Badge Level 3- God Of Ishgar- Ten Wizard Saint Member- Guild Master- Custom Slayer- God Slayer- Z-Rank- Y-Rank- X-Rank- H-Rank- S-Rank- A-Rank- Wanderer- So Extra- EXP Grinder- Job Creator- Working Together- Forever Solo- Christian Minecraft Server- Teaming Up!- Limited Edition- Hired Help- Unknown Powerhouse- Unknown Legend- Helper- Guild Creator- Achiever- Expert Achiever- Over Achiever- Buddy Buddy- Obligatory Beach Episode- Shipped- Dank Memer- Taskmaster- Richie Rich- Rich- Veteran Level 2- Veteran Level 1- Character History!- Magic Application Approved!- Obtain A Secondary Magic!- Get A Pet!- Character Application Approved!- Complete Your First Job!- Obtain A Lineage!- Join A Faction!- Tertiary Magic- Senior [500]- Novice [250]- 1st Place Event/Contest Winner- X-Mas Event Participant- Motor City Rush- Best GFX Artist Award- Player 
    Lineage : Scion of the Void King
    Position : Goddess of Conviction
    Faction : The Rune Knights
    Posts : 1426
    Guild : Guildless
    Cosmic Coins : 155
    Dungeon Tokens : 0
    Experience : 12,421,054

    Character Sheet
    First Skill: Voidwalking
    Second Skill: Sword of Wrath
    Third Skill: Cruorthurgy

    Into Places Unknown Empty Re: Into Places Unknown

    Post by Serilda Sinclair 12th April 2023, 5:20 pm

    Seri Banner
    Conviction never shames nor condemns us.
    It calls us back to who we truly are.
    It was certainly bound to be an interesting day. Serilda wasn’t sure at what point Saffron and Scourge had met and become mission buddies, but apparently they had. She’d been very surprised when the former Dread Master had reached out to her and Mythal to alert them to the presence of the underwater slaving hub that had been brought very nearly to ruin from the fight that had ensued between Scourge, Saffron, and an unknown assailant that had ties to Maker. Scourge had not said more at the time, insisting that it would be best to gather with the Rhaegarians, as well as Genesis, Blade, and the bounty hunters so they could go over everything together at once.

    She was eager for the details, but trusted that Scourge wouldn’t without important information without cause. So instead, she had done as he’d suggested and sent a unit of Rune Knights to the coordinates he’d provided so they could take over the relief efforts of aiding the wounded and the slaves, arresting any remaining slavers, and investigating the area from top to bottom. The liberated slaves had been moved into various safe houses where the Rune Knights were providing whatever resources they could spare to reunite them with any family they might have had left and getting them back on their feet. It wasn’t easy for most of them to adjust to lives of freedom, but she refused to let any of them be tossed out on the streets with no support.

    The underwater base itself had been horrific to behold, and not just because of all the wreckage. While Serilda hadn’t directly overseen the operation, she and Mythal had made it a point to see the area for themselves. It had been a place of baffling opulence, built on the treacherous back of human trafficking by a man that very clearly had thought himself a king. There was very little left of the central palace where Scourge and Saffron had fought for their lives. Despite how much war and death that Serilda had witnessed over the years, particularly the most recent ones, it was still disturbing to see what had become of it. And she wanted nothing more than to use Victoria’s abilities to gather more information on the attacker the pair had faced, but Scourge had been very clear that she was not to risk ingesting the assailant’s blood.

    Finally, the time had come for the meeting. Everyone at the Sinclair-Ragnos household had gathered to make the journey to New Rhaegar together, including Patricia who was interested in… well, a fair number of topics and peoples involved. The only one who didn’t plan on attending was Vriko. “You’re sure you don’t wish to join us?” Serilda asked as she zipped up her jacket. She didn’t truly need any protection from the cold, but she enjoyed winter wear. That, and this wasn’t the kind of meeting where she needed to worry about being in any kind of uniform or formal attire. The simple pair of dark tailored jeans and black turtleneck sweater she wore beneath the jacket would suffice.

    Presuming Vriko would re-iterate her desire to stay behind, Serilda would nod her acceptance. “Very well. I appreciate your offer to babysit.” Even before she had finished speaking, the field marshal was already depositing Alexia into the woman’s arms with only the barest of mischievous smirks in her eyes. “You be good for Auntie Vriko.”

    With that, she turned to the rest of the gathered group, which consisted of Mythal, Hosrius, Patty, Gren, Victoria, presumably Lux somewhere, and the two wolves. “Everyone all set?” A moment later, they were all stepping through a void portal and out into the front garden leading up to the entrance of the island palace. The gentle roar from the city below wafted up to their ears, the Rhaegarians and Xocili alike going about their daily routines. From where they stood she could see Vandrad and Simon nearing the rise, coming from the direction of the docks. After the typical greetings had all been made, the group made their way inside, following the future king and his uncle to wherever they had set up to hold the meeting.

    Serilda Sinclair



    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Mythal Ragnos
    Mythal Ragnos

    Knight VIP Status- Regular VIP Status- VIP- Quality Badge Level 1- Quality Badge Level 2- Quality Badge Level 3- God Slayer- Magic Application Approved!- Character Application Approved!- Complete Your First Job!- Obtain A Lineage!- Join A Faction!- Player 
    Lineage : Heir to Darkness
    Position : God of Sedulity
    Faction : The Rune Knights
    Posts : 1057
    Guild : Guildless
    Cosmic Coins : 50
    Dungeon Tokens : 0
    Age : 36
    Mentor : Nessa Cordelia Lux (Former)
    Experience : 11,070,431

    Character Sheet
    First Skill: Kami No Ken Sutairu O Taosu
    Second Skill: Kingdom Darkness Embodiment
    Third Skill: Soul Stone/Trickster's Illusions

    Into Places Unknown Empty Re: Into Places Unknown

    Post by Mythal Ragnos 12th April 2023, 6:24 pm

    LIGHT
    &
    DARK

    Mythal was haggard.

    The combination of the war with the majority of Ishgar, the reveal of Branwen’s true allegiance and the ever-impending threat of Faera and her forces had a profound effect on the Darkness Slayer. He still functioned in his usual day-to-day without issue but there was a distinct change in his demeanor and his look. His hair had gotten longer, hanging down over the sides of his face in a wild frame. Where he usually kept himself mostly clean-shaven, the darkening of stubble was almost always on his jaws. He had also taken up drinking again; not to the stretch of where he had been before and during his time in Fairy Tail but more than he’d had in a long time. Yes, Mythal seemed almost a different person as the weight and stress of the world pressed down upon him.

    But he hadn’t gone off the deep end. He still loved, cherished and interacted with his family and friends well enough. He had no issues completing his duties as the Director. The wear and tear seemed to be mostly in appearances and unfortunately, there wasn’t much anyone could do until something gave. Either the war would come to a screeching halt, Branwen would be discovered and defeated or Faera was miraculously wiped from existence. And since none of those seemed inclined to occur, he went on, protecting and caring for his loved ones while he continued to trudge through the sludge that was the danger in his life.

    Scourge had brought forth even more stress, as he forwarded Serilda and Mythal the location of an underwater slave base. It had been a mess; most if not all of the slaves and slavers were dead by the time the Rune Knights had arrived. It seemed like an uprising had taken place and neither side had come out the winner. Saffron and Scourge had just barely made it out with their lives, after having confronted the ruler of the kingdom and another enemy. Whoever had survived was taken away; the slavers locked up and the slaves to safe houses for the time being. Whoever the enemy was, he’d apparently drugged the slaves with his own blood and forced them to revolt while he fought Saffron and Scourge and the former Dread Master had made it very clear that the man was connected to Maker.

    As if they needed more trouble. Nonetheless, Scourge and Saffron suggested a meet up to explain what had happened and what they had discovered. As everyone gathered to head to New Rhaegar, Mythal stood near the rear with Serilda. He wore his heavy winter cloak; a fur-lined cape that was in far better shape than his flimsy red one. He wore his usual gray and red tunic beneath it, providing the perfect insulation against the frigid January air that would surely nip at them on the island. Seri was addressing Vriko, asking her again if she was sure she wanted to stay behind.

    “Yeah, I’m more of a ‘attack whatever I’m pointed at’ kind of woman. I don’t really need to know the plan, just need to know who I need to ki-...” the newest Ragnos stopped, glancing in the direction of the twin children before clearing her throat. “Who I need to stop.”

    Her offer to babysit had been more circumstantial; she was staying behind at the house anyway so it made the most sense to let her look after the children. She still wasn’t on board with the whole ‘being an aunt’ thing but she couldn’t exactly refuse now. The bastards had taken her in and now she was sharing a surname with her brother for the first time. It would have been downright rude to continue to be obstinate on taking care of her nieces. Alexia was handed off to her and, despite how cautious she was, she took the child rather easily. “Ah, they better be good. I’m not as nice as your father and mother,” she told the child in her arms. All Alexia did was laugh at her, completely undermining her authority in the most adorable way possible. “Say hey to Zemenar for me.”

    Once they were all set, the portal to New Rhaegar was summoned and they all walked through into the garden that served as the entrance to the island’s crown. Hosrius made a noise, wrapping his arms around his core and shivering.

    “Yes, it is quite cold, isn’t it?” Patricia remarked.

    “Jirian’s aren’t exactly built for the cold. Cold-blooded and all,” Hosrius remarked with a laugh. A moment later, Vandrad and Simon crested the lip of the road that led up, meeting up with the group. After they had all spoken their greetings, they all joined together in one large gathering that headed into the palace. Simon led everyone through the foyer and front hall and down a flight of stairs and then through two more hallways before they stepped into the grand reception room. It was a lavish setting, with a long multi-colored table in its center and chairs set along side it. Open archways served as windows and hallways to other parts of the palace and curving pillars rose up from the ground to a balcony overlooking the room. A piano was set on the opposite side of the room, alongside the statue of Bacchus du Wolff.

    It seemed most of their party had gathered, save for Scourge, and were sitting at the tables already. More greetings and a few introductions were properly made before they all took their seats. “He running late?” Mythal asked about Scourge.

    “That does seem to be the case,” Themesycia responded.

    “Well he does like to make an entrance, according to most of you,” Cyrene quipped with a chuckle.

    “Can’t start without Merc and Genesis either,” Grubar spoke up, set up on a medium-sized couch near the table. “Hopefully they didn’t decide to knock one out before heading over.”

    “Nah, she wouldn’t make us wait. She’d hold off ‘til after,” Gren added with a laugh of his own.



    STATISTICS
    HP: x/y
    MP: x/y
    Spells Used: list them here
    Abilities Active: list them and their effects here
    Weapons Equipped: list/link them here
    Monsters Killed: list here
    Other Notes: reeeeeee this should scroll if you type too much
    IVYLEAF33



    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Mercury Arseneault
    Mercury Arseneault

    Quality Badge Level 1- Quality Badge Level 2- Quality Badge Level 3- Player 
    Lineage : Gold Rush
    Position : None
    Posts : 690
    Cosmic Coins : 0
    Dungeon Tokens : 0
    Experience : 7,126,000

    Character Sheet
    First Skill: Gunblade Master
    Second Skill: Mecha Primordial Slayer
    Third Skill:

    Into Places Unknown Empty Re: Into Places Unknown

    Post by Mercury Arseneault 14th April 2023, 6:29 pm

    Mercury Banner
    Cunning is the art of concealing our own defects
    and discovering other peoples' weaknesses.
    At the mention of the woman’s history with Serilda, Dinah’s expression grew into quite a shit eating grin. While Blade may not have delivered the statement with much humor, it was a memory that she was rather fond of. She may have commented further but Genesis chose that moment to join them, teasing about how awful of a wingwoman his captain was since she was more competition than anything else. “Don’t worry, sir. All you need is a bit more practice and then we can graduate you to the big leagues with the rest of us lady-killing professionals.”

    Genesis wasted no time in strolling over to Mercury and dipping her back into an extremely passionate kiss, the Xocili giggling even as his hands briefly wandered her form. The exchange lasted only a moment before she was back up on her feet with a sound smack on her ass. “You know I’m always down for a little vandalism.” The homunculus quipped about giving her the details for his going away party, making an attempt to downplay the nature of it as something more respectful. It took only a single amused, raised brow look from Dinah for Genesis to just call it for the orgy that it was, causing his bodyguard to shake her head.

    “Sounds like fun,” the Xocili commented at the same time that Blade remarked about the affair sounding messy.

    And with that, the group was ready to go. Mercury finish resetting the dial on her translocator and opened a new portal, leading the way through. Dinah was right behind her, purposefully stepping through before Genesis – not that she expected any trouble on the other side, but procedure was procedure. In a matter of seconds, all four of them were standing in New Rhaegar, somewhere just down hill of the palace and just above the main town. It was quite a sight to behold, particularly during the chilly winter. “Thought I’d give you guys the scenic entrance. Welcome to New Raegar.”

    Dinah whistled quietly when she turned to see the palace just above them, impressed though perhaps not stunned. Given her line of work and the man who employed her, she had become used to a certain level of opulence, despite her position of often being involved in the nitty gritty and grime of anti-slavery missions. “You know, when you said ‘island’ I wasn’t picturing anything quite this big.”

    “Neither were we the first time the rest of us learned about it. Themmy – that’s my fiance’s mother – she’s got pretty extravagant taste. Wonderful woman, though. I think all three of you will love her. I’m sure we can give you guys a full tour later if you want, but I imagine everyone’s already gathered to get this party started. This way.” With a nod, Mercury put her gun away and led the way up the hill and into the palace, following the same route as the group that had gone in prior to them.

    They emerged into the reception room where a long conference table of sorts had been set for everyone. A quick glance around the table told Mercury that most everyone had arrived, though she didn’t see Scourge just yet. That was unsurprising. Much like Mercury herself, Scourge liked to make an entrance. The Xocili wasn’t too concerned about going around introducing the trio to every single person individually, as she was sure they’d all have plenty of time to make introductions throughout the night, but she did at least want to at least make a general introduction.

    Luckily that would be fairly easy, since most of the attention in the room turned to them, especially Genesis, once they entered. Mercury guided them to the head of the table where Saffron was sitting near Vandrad, Themmy, Gren, Mythal, Serilda, and a few others. “Sorry to interrupt, everyone. This is Genesis and one of his captains Dinah, and Blade.” Mercury gestured to each in turn. “There’s… far too many people in here to go down the line, but I’m sure you’ll get a chance to meet everyone. For now, this is my fiance Vandrad, and his mother and father Themesycia and Gren. And these two right here are Serilda and Mythal.” She wasn’t going to go around listing everyone, as trying to learn and remember that many names at once was a chore to anyone that didn’t have her ability to process and record memories perfectly, but she figured it was at least prudent to start with the primary nobility.

    Serilda had stood to give a more friendly greeting once the group had approached the table, presumably at the same time as the others that had been introduced. She waited her turn to shake hands with each individual and exchange pleasantries. Mercury watched with a small smirk as the noblewoman approached Dinah last, her proper demeanor giving way just the smallest bit to what the Xocili could best describe as bashfulness.

    Dinah gave Mythal and Serilda both a brighter and more familiar smile when they approached. “Mister Ragnos, it’s really great to see you again.” She gave him a firm hand to shake. When it was Serilda’s turn, her smile turned a bit flirtatious as she instead took the noblewoman’s hand and leaned over. “You are still as radiant as the day we met, Lady Sinclair.” The guardswoman placed a gentle kiss on the back of Serilda’s hand, causing the woman’s cheeks to erupt into a blush.

    Mercury leaned against Vandrad, watching the display alongside… well pretty much everyone. “I think I have a new hero. Not even Simon has managed to make Seri turn that red. Where’s tall, dark, and hunky?”

    “I’m sure he’ll show up any minute. Probably lost track of time admiring himself in the mirror or something stupid.” While Saffron hadn’t been included in the formal introduction it had felt weird to be the only one at their end of the table to remain sitting, so she’d stood up with the rest of them. The Bosconian gave her trademark nod to Genesis and Blade. “Sup. I’m Saffron.”

    Serilda Sinclair



    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Vandrad Ragnos
    Vandrad Ragnos

    Quality Badge Level 1- Quality Badge Level 2- Quality Badge Level 3- Player 
    Lineage : Traveller of the Multiverse
    Position : None
    Posts : 791
    Guild : Fairy Tail
    Dungeon Tokens : 0
    Experience : 8,080,767

    Character Sheet
    First Skill: Energy Monarch
    Second Skill: Ark of the Dread Masters
    Third Skill:

    Into Places Unknown Empty Re: Into Places Unknown

    Post by Vandrad Ragnos 15th April 2023, 4:40 pm

    There’s no fair or unfair in battle.
    ( There is only victory or in your case, defeat. )
    Into Places Unknown RJtajUnz_o


    After a little bit of back and forth between the group, Mercury used her gun to once more open a portal back to New Rhaegar. After a quick glance through before the rest of the party, they entirety of the gathered group stepped onto the chilly, windy ascent that led up to the palace. Genesis looked out in amazement, cupping his hand over his brow to admire the view while Blade took it in with his usual, neutral stare.

    “Yeah I was picturing more ‘island getaway’ and less ‘isle dominion’. It has a full city below us,” he pointed out as he noted alongside Dinah at what their expectations had been before. Mercury admitted that they hadn’t expected to see the grand scale of the island either but it seemed Themmy, Vandrad’s mother, had the taste for the grander things. The Silver Wolf mage insisted that they would love the woman and that, possibly later, they could get a full tour but at the moment, it was in their best interest to go and meet up with the rest of the group. And so they followed after her, heading into the grand palace that Genesis also commented on and complemented and down into the deeper depths.

    They arrived at an already almost-full reception room, everyone chatting amongst themselves why they waited. All the attention turned to the new arrivals as Mercury led them to the head of the table and apologized for intruding before introducing the homunculus, his captain and Blade. Rather than take the time to introduce every single person at once, as that would take more time than they probably had patience for, she introduced the closest people at the table.

    “My, my, what a handsome specimen,” Cyrene commented, eyes roaming over Genesis and then Dinah and Blade. “Are all the people that come into your life so attractive, Themmy?”

    “I’m just blessed that way, I guess,” the former duchess remarked playfully, even as she began to stand to offer her hand to the three. Vandrad, Gren and Mythal did the same, taking each of the offered hands and offering quick remarks.

    The only time Mythal changed demeanor, truly, was when he approached Dinah, the smallest of smirks on his face. “Hello Dinah. You can just call me Mythal. And it is very good to see you again. Ya were so fun the last time we saw one another.” And once he had made his introduction, he stepped aside and turned so he could watch the interaction between Serilda and Dinah with an amused grin on his face.

    They were all treated to a rather bashful display from the noblewoman, which was completely unlike her. Though Vandrad didn’t have anything to say in reply to Mercury, he snorted and flashed the briefest of grins. Serilda was a woman of poise, rarely if ever thrown by what she saw or encountered. But by now they knew the story of Dinah and Serilda’s first interaction and that made the re-meeting all the more humorous, even for the often unamused Vandrad. After a moment, Mercury’s attention turned to the missing Scourge and Saffron spoke up, stating that she was sure he would show up once he finished whatever frivolous, no doubt self-involved act he was partaking in. Vandrad snorted again, his smirk remaining.

    Saffron got treated to a nod from Blade and a wave and a ‘sup’ from Genesis, who was clearly trying to relate to Saffron with a similar vernacular. As the newly gathered trio went to take their seats, Blade paused a moment in thought, his head turning slightly. “Scourge is arriving.”

    “Scourge is arriving.” The mysterious voice spoke once more, parroting Blade’s words at the exact same time he said it. Vandrad’s head shifted slightly, his eyes looking away from the alien in search of the source of the voice. At the same time, Scourge did, in fact, appear, materializing out of thin air with his fingers still resting on his forehead.

    “Looks like I’m right on time,” the former Dread Master spoke as his hand came away from his face. He was wearing his usual black tunic but he had a long brown overcoat over it, the collar popped up, creating a frame for his face and neck.

    "You should have arrived when Saffron did, seeing as you both called this meeting,” Vandrad was quick to chastise Scourge, his eyes already turning back to the former Dread Master.

    “Well that’s because she’s a teacher’s pet. Hard not to be with how strict you are,” Scourge shot back with a smirk before giving a long wave to the entirety of the table. “Greetings friends and strangers. I’m Scourge, former Dread Master, infiltration and information specialist for the Rune Knights and generally the one getting in trouble.”

    "That much is true,” Vandrad replied with a scoff.

    Scourge did a quick head count before he continued, ignoring the future king’s reply. “Based on what I can see, everyone is here that needs to be here. Okay!” he clapped his hands together. “Mythal and Serilda already know a little bit about this but we left out some details because, frankly, it involves the du Wollfs, the Rhaegarians and our dear intergalactic friends as well.”

    “Saffron,” he said, turning to the blonde bombshell. “Why don’t you get us started? I just got here and could sorely use a minute to sit.” Giving her a playful grin, he pulled up to the closest chair and sat down, lounging a bit, jovial despite the tone of the story that was to come.






    Words: 928 / 3239 | Tag: @Mercury Arseneault @Mythal Ragnos @Serilda Sinclair @Saffron Remington  | © marzia at shine & gs.


    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Saffron Remington
    Saffron Remington

    Player 
    Lineage : Aspect of Pluto
    Position : None
    Posts : 269
    Cosmic Coins : 0
    Dungeon Tokens : 0
    Experience : 7,996

    Into Places Unknown Empty Re: Into Places Unknown

    Post by Saffron Remington 15th April 2023, 8:33 pm



    COME AT ME AND YOU'LL SEE
    I'M MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE

    --- YOU THINK THAT YOU'LL BREAK ME, YOU'RE GONNA FIND IN TIME ---
    Saffron was not a woman easily impressed by most things, or most people. But if there was one thing she’d learned about herself over the course of the past year, it was that she would never, ever get over the novelty of spending any amount of time with Themmy. She had grown up hearing stories of the Ashen Dread’s war accomplishments, and it was the Rhaegarian’s tales of daring-do that had sparked much of her adventurous spirit and her desire to join the military as soon as she was old enough. The blonde hadn’t really gotten the chance to Mark out the first time they met, if only because things were a bit dire with Vandrad missing, and then Mercury being kidnapped, but ever since then she’d had to fight back the giddy jitters that threatened to make her vibrate out of her skin every time her childhood hero addressed her.

    Thankfully, Saffron was quite good at keeping herself reigned in and playing things cool, so she was fairly certain no one had ever noticed. That didn’t stop the surreal feeling that came from sitting at a table near the woman and engaging in casual conversation like they were old friends. Her sister Cyrene was with them, as well as Grubar and Zemenar, the group of them merely passing the time until the rest of the invitees would arrive. It wouldn’t take too long. A literal wagonload of people from the Ragnos and Sinclair household walked in, escorted by Simon and Vandrad, the newcomers easily situating themselves around the table after greetings had been made. Only a few minutes later, Mercury also arrived with three strangers in tow.

    Saffron had heard of both Blade and Genesis at this point, though seeing as how most of her knowledge had come from Mercury all Saffron had really gathered was that both men were extremely attractive, and Genesis in particular was remarkably charismatic. The large, green, insectoid looking guy was definitely not what Saffron would consider for a romp in the hay. The blonde had very little interest in sleeping with someone that wasn’t her same species or at least relatively interchangeable with a human – such as the Xocili. However, even Saffron would be hard pressed to admit that he was pretty damn good looking. Blade carried himself with a bit more reservation, very quiet and level headed. He was shorter than she was expecting, but his hair was awesome.

    She didn’t know who Dinah was, but frankly out of the three of them she was the one whose eyes Saffron lingered on the most. Now there was a hottie, one that clearly swung in a direction that could potentially include Saffron, though clearly the feisty looking brunette was all eyes for Serilda. Ah well, she was content just admiring from afar.

    The blonde stood with the others on her end of the table, giving a quick greeting to the two aliens before taking an opportunity to throw a jab at Scourge while he wasn’t there to defend himself. Vandrad seemed to appreciate the comment, as did Mercury, both giving a smirk or a chuckle. Introductions were barely even finished before Blade somehow predicted the former Dread Master’s arrival, the man of the hour materializing before them all with his typical pazazz. “Yeah, I’m a real people pleaser,” was the dry remark to Scourge calling her a teacher’s pet, the slightest of smirks tugging on her lips.

    He wasted no time on getting things started, introducing himself as everyone took their seats. With only a brief and vague context to set the scene, he insisted on turning things over to her, claiming to need a minute to sit and collect himself. Saffron scoffed at him. “Seriously, dude? Don’t pawn everything off on me. This was your mission.” She rolled her eyes, though in truth she wasn’t all that bothered – or surprised.

    But what they had to discuss today was of extreme importance, so in a fashion that was very uncharacteristic of Saffron, she sat forward in her chair and got right down to business. “A couple of weeks ago, Scourge took me with him to go digging for some information at an underwater slaving racket. We’re talking a full high society city, practically its own civilization thriving off of black market human trafficking. He’d gotten word that Maker was potentially exchanging resources with the guy that ran the place, and wanted to see what he could uncover. A friend of Scourge’s that’s a reformed ex-slaver passed us off as her stock for a few days, and eventually we caught the eye of boss. As a result, we were brought up to the palace.

    “The plan was for us to beat some information out of the guy before destroying the whole organization and getting the slaves out. But before we could spring the trap, Scourge was recognized by another supposed slave that the boss dude was interested in buying. Long story short, he said enough for us to learn two things very quickly: He’s working with Maker… and he’s Rhaegarian. His name is Seberg Tiri…” Saffron elected to pause there. If Seberg had the reputation he claimed to have, the name would likely be all too familiar with at least Cyrene, who might need a moment to process that the Wolf Hunter was on Earthland with the rest of them.

    But aside from her, most likely wouldn’t know who he was, so Saffron continued. “He got a cheap shot in on Scourge and knocked him out of the building, and then he either knocked out or flat out murdered everyone else in the room that wasn’t me. He’s one of those aggravating assholes that’s obsessed with fighting people just to see how their strength measures up to his. He left me alive cause he felt like I could give him a decent fight, and he told me a few things while we were getting started. He said that he worked for Xavier on Rhaegar, and called himself the Wolf Hunter because he was single handedly responsible for killing nearly the entire remaining du Wolff clan. He was also apparently your mother’s brother.”

    Saffron panned her gaze meaningfully to Themmy and Simon for a moment. “He said that… Beatrix, was it? That Beatrix was the only person who he was ever loyal to, and… honestly said a lot of nasty things about you and your family.” The Fairy Tail mage shook her head a bit. “He fought like a wild animal. That’s the only way I can think to describe it. It was like he moved out of pure instinct, his body taking over and reacting faster than anything that should be possible, and the more my power grew from our fight, the more his own grew to meet – and exceed – mine. Even when Scourge finally got back up to join back in, he just… kept getting stronger and faster. It wasn’t magic, so I’m assuming it was his… whatchacallit. Blood Marker?

    “Anyway… the only reason we survived was because he was ordered to retreat. I can only assume by Maker. There was an android of some kind there with him that gave the order, and then he used an actual magical ability that he called Time Skip. He used it to beat us black and blue while we were frozen in time, leaving us helpless, before he disappeared like a fart in the fuckin’ wind.”

    At that point Saffron had done quite a bit of talking, so she elected to stop there, taking a drink of the glass of water in front of her cure the cotton mouth she was developing, and leaving a perfect opening for Scourge to speak up with any additional information or details she’d missed, and to wrap up the remainder of the tale.
    deltra of gangnam style

    WORDS: 1308 | TAGS: @Mythal Ragnos @Vandrad Ragnos @Mercury Arseneault @Serilda Sinclair


    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Vandrad Ragnos
    Vandrad Ragnos

    Quality Badge Level 1- Quality Badge Level 2- Quality Badge Level 3- Player 
    Lineage : Traveller of the Multiverse
    Position : None
    Posts : 791
    Guild : Fairy Tail
    Dungeon Tokens : 0
    Experience : 8,080,767

    Character Sheet
    First Skill: Energy Monarch
    Second Skill: Ark of the Dread Masters
    Third Skill:

    Into Places Unknown Empty Re: Into Places Unknown

    Post by Vandrad Ragnos 16th April 2023, 9:59 am

    There’s no fair or unfair in battle.
    ( There is only victory or in your case, defeat. )
    Into Places Unknown RJtajUnz_o


    Scourge flashed a grin at Saffron as she commented about her people pleasing ways, or lack thereof. After introducing himself with a flourish, the former Dread Master decided that he’d let Saffron take the lead in reviewing their mission for everyone. She complained, stating that he shouldn’t just throw things on her as it had been his mission. “Yeah but you were there for every part of it and I just came from a very exhausting mission. Have some pity.” Obviously, it was impossible to tell if he was lying or not but he hadn’t come bursting in on flame like the last time so it seemed unlikely he was telling the truth. Nonetheless, he remained seated and the blonde bombshell didn’t put up much more of a fight, wanting to unveil their information just as badly as he probably wanted to.

    She leaned forward and went over everything from the beginning; the premise of their mission, the possible link to Maker and his friend that had helped smuggle them as slaves. They had been appealing enough to catch the leader’s eye and had been brought before him. But there was where things had gotten jumbled and even Scourge stopped lounging and leaned forward as Saffron revealed that he had been recognized by a stranger and introduced himself as a Rhaegarian working for Maker by the name of Seberg Tiri.

    Cyrene, understandably, stiffened in response. Themesycia, Simon and Everance each had their own looks of confusion, the name ringing familiar but long forgotten for one reason or another. Saffron let that news sink in before she continued, outlining his attack on Scourge and his massacre of the palace denizens. He had left Saffron alive because he saw her as a possible challenge, the blonde bombshell explaining that Seberg seemed to be the kind of person that liked to challenge other’s in a game of strength. He’d apparently worked for Xavier on Rhaegar and had earned the nickname Wolf Hunter because of his actions of hunting and murdering members of the du Wolff family line. He was also Beatrix’s brother, per his own words.

    That’s when it hit the three elder du Wolffs, their eyes widening almost in tandem as they heard the news and were reminded of their forgotten memories. He’d told Saffron that he only cared about Beatrix and didn’t have anything pleasant to say about the du Wolffs as a whole. He’d been manic in their fight, more of an animal than a real fighter and it allowed him a competitive edge against her ability to get stronger every time she was hit. She knew it hadn’t been magic so she assumed it was the special ability that Rhaegarians had. When Scourge had returned to the fight, it hadn’t turned the tide in their favor in the least and it seemed the only reason they survived was because Seberg had been told to leave. He’d revealed the magic he had, called Time Skip, and had finished the fight without them having any kind of means of protecting themselves before he took off.

    It was a lot to take in and Scourge had been listening but mostly he had been watching the reactions. It had been Cyrene’s reaction that had been the most visceral and though he’d never met the woman, he could practically feel the fear ebbing off of her in waves. “He claimed that his blood had some kind of… controlling effect. The man that he used as his cover, and wound up being a fucking android, had slipped his blood into… I don’t know, water and food, I’m guessing. The slaves came under his control and rebelled. Violently. Serilda and Mythal can confirm that a lot of the slaves had been killed in terrible states. Men, women and children that had fought against armed guards and despite being injured or debilitated, they kept fighting. It was… horrendous.” Scourge always did his best not to come across as rude, especially to people he felt were allies, but he couldn’t help but gesture towards Cyrene. “Madam, you look like you’ve seen a ghost. I’m guessing you know of Seberg?”

    “Seberg is the one that slaughtered my family and the du Wolffs,” she said softly, nodding solemnly. “He was called the Wolf Hunter because he had a twisted desire to kill off anyone related to Bacchus or… Themesycia,” she admitted softly, glancing at Themmy out of the corner of her eye. “Xavier’s hatred for the betrayal against his father enraged him so that he was more than willing to let Seberg hunt as he saw fit. Only a handful of us were captured alive, as Xavier wanted to keep some in prison as a reminder to anyone else that thought about rebelling against him.”

    “Mother didn’t speak of Seberg very often,” Everance spoke up, a look of pensive conflict on her face. “We knew of him but father stated that Seberg had been vocally against Beatrix marrying him. When she had done so against his wishes, he had gone off. Safe to say that hostility didn’t temper over time or conflict.”

    “I’d never heard of his blood being… controlling. Perhaps that’s another one of his magics that he gained here?” Cyrene asked.

    “It’s possible but… could it be part of his Blood Marker as well?”

    Cyrene shook her head. “No. Seberg’s ability is called Apex Hunter. It allows him to constantly overwhelm his opponent's, increasing his strength, speed and mental processing to unthinkable levels. It’s why he lays down challenges; I’ve seen dozens of my people try to take him down. Men and women that had their own enhancing Blood Markers that normally would have granted them victory. But each and every time, Seberg flew past their limits and crushed them.”

    Themesycia sighed softly. “Between that and his new ability to control people via his blood, this spells immediate danger. Allying with Maker with such abilities could allow Maker to take control of large groups of people, forcing them to serve him through Seberg. Entire cities could become slaves to his goals, whatever they may be.”

    "Then we hunt him down and kill him ourselves,” Vandrad spoke up, offering his own brutal answer to the problem.

    “That seems the easiest answer, Vandrad, but it may not be as easy as you present it. If his Blood Marker truly makes him a superior fighter, then it’s safe to say that whichever one of us he fights would only serve to make him stronger.”

    "Not if we hit him with everything we have before he knows what’s happening. Locate him and unleash our strongest spells without his knowledge. Blood Marker or not, he would hardly be able to survive such an onslaught.”

    “A very good point. I’m inclined to agree with Vandrad here. The problem is that we have no idea where Seberg is.” Scourge glanced over to Mercury. “Has Maker made any mention of Seberg while your clone has been around? Anything that may hint to where he is or what he’s doing?”






    Words: 1173 / 4412 | Tag: @Mercury Arseneault @Mythal Ragnos @Serilda Sinclair @Saffron Remington  | © marzia at shine & gs.


    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Serilda Sinclair
    Serilda Sinclair

    Ice Queen


    Ice Queen

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    Lineage : Scion of the Void King
    Position : Goddess of Conviction
    Faction : The Rune Knights
    Posts : 1426
    Guild : Guildless
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    Character Sheet
    First Skill: Voidwalking
    Second Skill: Sword of Wrath
    Third Skill: Cruorthurgy

    Into Places Unknown Empty Re: Into Places Unknown

    Post by Serilda Sinclair 16th April 2023, 4:04 pm

    Seri Banner
    Conviction never shames nor condemns us.
    It calls us back to who we truly are.
    Serilda and the rest had really only sat down for a few minutes before Mercury and her small entourage arrived. The Voidwalker did her best not to stare directly at Dinah, who really seemed to have come into her own since the last time they’d seen one another years prior. She stood to her feet along with the rest of their end of the table when the general introduction was made, taking the time to formally greet Genesis, who was… uncomfortably attractive, even to her. Then and only then did she finally turn to Dinah, gracing the woman with a smile that was both softer and noticeably more shy than the noblewoman was typically prone to being.

    There was no avoiding the elephant in the room, so to speak, and unsurprisingly Mythal did not wait very long to start with the teasing. Both women smiled with humor, but soon enough Serilda’s cheeks were beet red as she found herself on the receiving end of a very charming kiss on the hand from the woman she and Mythal had once saved. Despite this, she remained otherwise composed. “You’re too kind, Dinah. Serilda is fine, no need for the pomp and circumstance. It really is good to see you again. You certainly seem to be doing… quite well for yourself.” The princess’ eyes barely flicked away from the brunette’s, but anyone who knew Serilda would probably be shocked by the comment – even herself. It was nearly outright flirtatious. She cleared her throat. “Needless to say we were shocked when we realized you were working for Genesis.”

    Dinah chuckled a bit, classily choosing not to call Serilda out on the bashful behavior. At least, for now. “Well, I have the two of you to thank for that. After everything that happened, I was inspired. I knew that I never wanted to be in that position again, helpless to do anything to protect myself, but I also knew that I wanted to keep it from happening to others as well. I did briefly think about joining the Knights, but… some things are easier to get done as a civilian. Less red tape, if you catch my meaning. I did reconsider it when you two took over, but working for Genesis is a better fit for me, I think – though I like to remind him constantly that the option is always there if he doesn’t keep me happy.”

    There were grins all around. “Well, we’d always be more than happy to take you off his hands. If you’re ever free some time, we’d love to have you over for dinner to catch up.”

    “I’d love that, thank you.”

    It was about all the time they had, as there really wasn’t enough for a full blown conversation. Scourge had arrived and almost immediately the meeting was being called to order with everyone taking their seats. The former Dread Master gave some brief background before inviting Saffron to take over, claiming it made more sense for her since she had been there through the entire tale, and with only a moment of complaint the blonde got right into it.

    The Rune Knight leaders had at least gotten part of the story, though perhaps not too many details. As such, she was eager to hear the rest of what had gone down. Most notably, she wanted to hear more about the mysterious foe they had encountered, and thankfully since that was the point of this meeting they wouldn’t have to wait long. Saffron revealed that not only was this person working alongside Maker, but apparently he was Rhaegarian. The name of Seberg Tiri obviously meant nothing to her, but she did not miss the more visceral reaction from Cyrene, who remained silent as the Fairy Tail mage informed them of what she had learned from the Wolf Hunter himself.

    Knowing there was such a vile member of their own race that had dedicated himself to wiping out the du Wolffs was bad enough, but to learn that it was Themmy, Simon, and Ever’s uncle was gut wrenching. And the way Saffron discussed the killer’s abilities was… well, frightening. It was like he had been custom built by nature to be unbeatable, and the fact that Maker, of all people, had managed to put such an asset in his pocket… And that was before Scourge revealed the most terrifying part: Seberg was able to controlled anyone that ingested his blood. Serilda visibly blanched at the information, casting a meaningful look toward Victoria who was deep in thought. “Well.. That explains why you didn’t want me using my magic to get any additional information.” Serilda wasn’t sure if the man would be strong enough to control her and Victoria like that, but… better not to risk it.

    All eyes turned toward Cyrene as she described a bit more of what she knew of Seberg, and why Xavier had tolerated the psychopath’s employment. The voidwalker remained silent through the entire following exchange between the Rhaegarians as they discussed the man’s past, and what kind of power Maker stood to gain by allying himself with him. Vandrad’s solution was about on par with what one could expect from the future king, and while Serilda agreed with Themmy that it would be much more complicated than simply overpowering him, Scourge seemed to agree with Vandrad for once, insisting that the most logical approach would be to overwhelm him quicker than he could adapt to protect himself.

    Unfortunately, they had no idea where he was. When prompted, Mercury shook her head. “No, not a word. This is the first I’m hearing of it, either from his own mouth or from the very, very little I’ve managed to dig out of his own databases. I have to take my infiltration slow so he doesn’t catch onto me so quickly, and I haven’t gained enough of his trust yet for him to reveal something like that to me. But now that I know about it, I can certainly keep an eye out for any sign of Seberg, or for any research or projects that may be related to any abilities he has. I’m sure Maker has been doing quite a lot of experimenting with that kind of blood, and probably with the other Rhaegarians he’d managed to capture and steal away before we were able to rescue the others.”

    Serilda turned her attention back to Cyrene. “Is there a reason he detested Bacchus and Themesycia so much? I understand, rightly or wrongly, why Xavier developed such a grudge… but it sounds like Seberg had a chip on his shoulder even before Beatrix married Bacchus. Is there some kind of history there, or was he just being overprotective of his sister..?” A grudge that deep didn’t just come out of nowhere, and it was hard to believe that he could be such a heartless killer when he clearly cared a great deal for his sister. Then again, Serilda had noticed before that there were plenty of homages to Bacchus in the new island palace, including a statue in the room in which they currently sat, and yet there was next to nothing about Beatrix. In fact, she wasn’t sure any of the du Wolffs had talked about the matriarch up until this moment, ever. It was odd to say the least.

    Serilda Sinclair



    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Vandrad Ragnos
    Vandrad Ragnos

    Quality Badge Level 1- Quality Badge Level 2- Quality Badge Level 3- Player 
    Lineage : Traveller of the Multiverse
    Position : None
    Posts : 791
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    Character Sheet
    First Skill: Energy Monarch
    Second Skill: Ark of the Dread Masters
    Third Skill:

    Into Places Unknown Empty Re: Into Places Unknown

    Post by Vandrad Ragnos 16th April 2023, 6:40 pm

    There’s no fair or unfair in battle.
    ( There is only victory or in your case, defeat. )
    Into Places Unknown RJtajUnz_o


    Mythal didn’t have a whole lot to get excited about in recent days but seeing Dinah and Serilda’s reconnection was definitely worth the wait. Despite all the preparation that his future wife could make for the meeting, it was still impossible for her to speak evenly and without a slight stumble. She spoke with full composure for the most part but added what could only be considered a flirtatious comment at the end of her greeting. It was hardly anything large by most standards but for the Voidwalker, she may as well have looked the woman over and licked her lips. She pushed on, refusing to let anyone, most likely Mythal, jump in and point out her comment as anything more than friendly banter. But it was good to hear that saving Dinah had inspired her to go out and protect other people from the same shit she’d had to endure. Apparently she had considered joining the Rune Knights but also understood that some things were better handled outside the law. A fact that even Mythal could agree with, to a point. Nonetheless, Serilda certainly wished to have the woman over for dinner, which the captain agreed to.

    Soon enough, Scourge had arrived and the true reason for their meeting could begin. Saffron went over the details of their mission, going more in depth than what Serilda and Mythal had been informed about. They learned about the reason for their travel to the slave ring and what they had intended to do but, more importantly, they learned how it had all gone wrong, notably at the hands of a rogue Rhaegarian named Seberg Tiri. The name caused quite the reaction in Cyrene, Themesycia’s sister. It didn’t take an empath to feel the terror that ran through her spine. Saffron continued, outlining what Seberg himself had told her about his history. Cyrene revealed the nature of his ability, Apex Hunter, and the details of it were… unsettling. It seemed he could continuously increase his fighting capability by fighting strong opponents, which meant that, theoretically, he could become nigh undefeatable if he were to fight someone immensely strong. Worse, he possessed another magic that allowed him to take control of people if they ingested his blood. Scourge had warned Serilda not to attempt to take the blood in the slave city and analyze it using her magic and it seemed it had been a good idea.

    Cyrene opened up a bit about Seberg’s reputation on Rhaegar and how Xavier had used him to take out his enemies. Seberg was a terrifying warrior from the sounds of it and the fact that he had aligned with Maker made matters all the more troubling. Vandrad, of course, suggested they wipe out Seberg quickly and efficiently and while Themmy didn’t believe that was possible, Scourge seemed to agree that using the full force of several spells would overwhelm his ability to adapt. It sounded good in theory but there was still the matter of finding him. Scourge turned to Mercury, asking if she had learned of Seberg during her clone’s time undercover. Unfortunately, it was the first time she was hearing about it. She had to be careful on how she infiltrated the system, not wanting to blow her cover, and he didn’t trust her well enough to reveal all of his plans and schemes. But now that she had a bit more information from the outside, she would be able to listen and look for clues regarding Seberg or any research that may be related to his abilities. It was understandable that Maker probably had taken blood and other specimens to analyze and investigate, based on his history. Plus there was still the matter of the other missing Rhaegarians that he’d taken away.

    Serilda spoke up then, asking Cyrene about Seberg’s hatred towards Bacchus and Themesycia. She understood, based on the words of the Rhaegarians and Vandrad, why Xavier had developed a deep seeded hatred but Seberg sounded just as scornful as the former God-King before the pairing of Bacchus and Beatrix even occurred. “He never told anyone of his reasons or, if he did, none of them survived to tell the tale. I don’t even think Xavier truly knew,” Cyrene admitted with a small shrug.

    “Not that Beatrix herself was the best person,” Themesycia spoke up. “It’s possible that they just… had different approaches to torture. Seberg was more up front, while Beatrix could be more subtle.”

    “Torture?” Mythal asked, raising a brow.

    “She made my life while I was growing up hell. She degraded me, insulted me, treated me separate from Simon and Everance, who were her actual children. It was only thanks to Bacchus that I got any kind of education and Simon and Ever were always loving and caring, unwilling to let their mother’s hatred infect them.” She reached out for her adoptive brother and sister’s hands, taking them in her own.

    "That is not all she did,” Vandrad spoke up.

    Themesycia met her son’s gaze. “Vandrad, you don’t…” she started to protest.

    "It’s fine, mother,” he stopped her gently. He knew that what he was about to tell was something that only a handful of people knew, understandably . "She abused me. She upgraded from the way she treated Themesycia. She would… use her magic to cut me, slice my skin and make me bleed. And then she’d let it heal and scab, only so she could cut me again. I have dozens, if not hundreds of scars across my body and they are all from her. She also murdered Yuna, my mother’s former fiance. That was the final straw that caused me to snap and kill her. I was six years old but she had hurt me for years before that.” Inhaling softly, he glanced about the table. "She is no different than Seberg from what I’ve heard. And, like her, he should be put down hard, fast and without hesitation. Maker may believe he has a resource, maybe even an ally, but if he's anything like Beatrix, Seberg has his own agenda that he is using Maker for.”

    “No doubt Maker believes and is operating the same way. Allies are not something he considers as long term investments, even if they are useful.” Blade finally spoke up, offering his own bit of knowledge that he had concerning his brother. “And I am deeply sorry about the trials you have suffered.”

    "It’s in the past,” Vandrad dismissed the condolence, as he had with almost everyone that had done the same thing in the past. "We must focus on the future of this world. We are running on limited time and we may need to make a move first, if only to utilize the resources we have on hard without losing them.” His eyes snapped to Genesis briefly in recognition. "If we can’t take out Seberg in one shot, then we need another alternative for his ability and his magic. Does anyone have any ideas?”






    Words: 1165 / 5577 | Tag: @Mercury Arseneault @Mythal Ragnos @Serilda Sinclair @Saffron Remington  | © marzia at shine & gs.


    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Saffron Remington
    Saffron Remington

    Player 
    Lineage : Aspect of Pluto
    Position : None
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    Experience : 7,996

    Into Places Unknown Empty Re: Into Places Unknown

    Post by Saffron Remington 17th April 2023, 5:10 pm



    COME AT ME AND YOU'LL SEE
    I'M MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE

    --- YOU THINK THAT YOU'LL BREAK ME, YOU'RE GONNA FIND IN TIME ---
    Once the story was out and done with, there really wasn’t much more for Saffron to do except to sit back and listen. She was more or less caught up with the vast majority of the details of… well, everything. But she hadn’t been involved as long as everyone else had, and there was very little she felt that she truly had to offer. That was one of the whole reasons she’d run off with Scourge in the first place: so she could feel even just the littlest bit useful to her vastly more important, powerful, and influential friends.

    Cyrene gave a little history to fill in some gaps and Serilda asked if there was any reason why Seberg detested the du Wolffs like he did. Cyrene didn’t seem to know of one, claiming that Seberg had never told anyone. At least, no one who had lived to talk about it. In fact, she was certain that Xavier himself probably didn’t even know why. “Probably not,” Saffron chimed in briefly. “He made it clear to me that he had no loyalty to Xavier. He just liked that Xavier let him do what he wanted.”

    Themmy continued the conversation from there, enlightening nearly all of them with the revelation that her adopted mother, Beatrix, was not so dissimilar from her psychopathic brother, describing her as a different type of tortuous. Saffron furrowed her brows in confusion even as Mythal voiced the one word question that practically all of them wanted to ask. Themmy revealed that Beatrix had verbally abused her for most of her life, neglecting her and segregating her from her siblings. It was only because of Bacchus that Themmy had received any kind of education or healthy parenting, while her siblings were also thankfully loving and supportive.

    But that wasn’t the end of the story, and all eyes turned to Vandrad when he spoke up to say there was more. For a brief moment Themesycia tried to assure her son that he didn’t need to say anymore, but he cut her off and insisted it was fine. The news he had to reveal dropped a whole new kind of weight down on the room rendering the place silent as the grave as he admitted to everyone that Beatrix hatred of Themmy was so great that she had extended her abuse to Vandrad as well – except it was more than just verbal. The events that he described were horrific, and while most of the rest of the room managed to keep their looks of shock and concern mostly controlled, Saffron’s face was fully stunned.

    “Bro, what..?” She wasn’t about to shower him with pity – Saffron knew he wouldn’t appreciate that, nor would it do any good. But as she’d explained to Scourge and Vandrad both in the past, she was terrible at hiding her emotions and thoughts, mostly because her eyes gave her away most of the time anyway. As a result, she’d just steered into being the type of person that wasn’t going to shy away from saying what was on her mind or having a genuine reaction. The comment had been rather quiet, more under her breath than anything else so only Vandrad and the couple of people sitting nearest to her end of the table could hear it. Aside from that, the room was dead silent for a couple seconds before Mercury, in a surprising display of subtle class, gently took Vandrad’s hand in support and encouragement.

    The former prince continued, affirming that Beatrix and Seberg were torn from the same cloth, and because of that he was convinced that the only course of action to the man was to kill him immediately, without remorse, hesitation, or mercy. In fact, he believed that not even Maker was safe from Seberg’s schemes, a sentiment that Blade agreed with. Saffron listened to the rest of the exchange, but took a moment to force herself to get her anger under control over what she’d learned. It wasn’t enough for her eyes to turn color from the emotion, but the knowledge that Beatrix had been the type of woman to harm and abuse a child, her own grandchild, had stirred something in her. Saffron loved children, and she had exactly zero tolerance for child abuse of any kind… but she couldn’t linger on that. It wasn’t the topic at hand. So with a slight shake of her head, she let it go and tuned back into the conversation, with perhaps just a slight sharpness to her mood.

    “No ideas at the moment. Not any solid ones, anyway. He wasn’t happy about using the time magic; it was a cheap win for him, and he only did it because he was told to end the fight and leave. The only things I can think of for now is that we either need to find a way to cancel out his time magic, or cancel out his blood marker. Or both. I’d imagine some other kind of time magic might be the most useful, but that shit ain’t exactly common. I’m planning on taking a trip to the Oak Town library to see if I can find anything useful there. I’m one hundred percent confident that he’s going to track me down again – probably Scourge, too. He was showing signs of having a really uncomfortable and unhealthy fixation with the both of us by the end of it. He’ll go out of his way to find us again, if we don’t manage to hunt his ass down ourselves first.”

    She didn’t bother sharing a glance with Scourge, but she knew the former Dread Master felt the same as she did, and anyone observing her would know that this fight against Seberg had become personal for her. She was dead set on taking him down, despite knowing that he was far out of her league. He’d made things personal by revealing who he was and what he’d done to the du Wolffs, and Saffron had every intention of following through with her promise to take vengeance for her friend’s family.

    Mercury nodded. “I can have the Scholars at Silver Wolf run through our databases too, see what kind of shit we can drum up out of the archives.”

    “We can do the same with the Engineering records with the Rune Knights. Our stores probably aren’t as vast as Oak’s or Silver Wolf’s libraries, but maybe we have something useful hidden away that we haven’t really looked at before.”
    deltra of gangnam style

    WORDS: 1087/2395 | TAGS: @Mythal Ragnos @Vandrad Ragnos @Mercury Arseneault @Serilda Sinclair


    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Vandrad Ragnos
    Vandrad Ragnos

    Quality Badge Level 1- Quality Badge Level 2- Quality Badge Level 3- Player 
    Lineage : Traveller of the Multiverse
    Position : None
    Posts : 791
    Guild : Fairy Tail
    Dungeon Tokens : 0
    Experience : 8,080,767

    Character Sheet
    First Skill: Energy Monarch
    Second Skill: Ark of the Dread Masters
    Third Skill:

    Into Places Unknown Empty Re: Into Places Unknown

    Post by Vandrad Ragnos 18th April 2023, 7:36 pm

    There’s no fair or unfair in battle.
    ( There is only victory or in your case, defeat. )
    Into Places Unknown RJtajUnz_o


    Vandrad made it very clear that he didn’t want to linger on his trauma. He was merely elaborating on Beatrix, so people understood that her and Seberg were cut from the same cloth, though their hatred was still unexplainable for the most part. Mercury held his hand gently, showing her support and it was well appreciated, though he would never say as much to her in front of anyone. With that out of the way, Vandrad laid down the opening for anyone to suggest some kind of plan or idea to how they could better handle Seberg’s superhuman abilities.

    It was Saffron that spoke up first, stating that she didn’t have anything completely solid. She knew that the Rhaegarian had been disgusted for having to use his time magic, considering it a cheat. But he still possessed it and between that and his Blood Marker, he seemed an insurmountable mountain to transcend. She theorized that some other kind of time magic could be used as a counter but they didn’t really have access to that easily. She wanted to go to Oak Town library to read up on some tomes and books there, in hopes of discovering something to help them. Especially because she firmly believed that her and Scourge were going to be his prime targets; Seberg having displayed a near rabid focus on the former Dread Master and blonde bombshell. That meant her and Scourge were the perfect bait… so long as they could come up with the perfect way to stop his abilities.

    “He didn’t understand Saffron’s magic but he knew that it had potential to make her stronger and, in turn, make him stronger. And I think he just appreciated that I don’t die as easily as he thought,” Scourge remarked, a dry comment that lacked his usual humor.

    Mercury spoke up and said that she could check with Silver Wolf’s scholars and have them comb through their database for a counter magic and Serilda jumped on the idea of doing the same with the Engineering records of the Rune Knights. “I know it’s not time magic but I also have managed to master both Crash and Nullification magic. It gave me a fightin’ chance against Faera, though these old aching bones didn’t,” Gren remarked with a chuckle as he gestured to his body. “Dunno if it’ll mean anythin’ to the guy’s Blood Marker but Nullification might be useful against his time crap. Countin’ that yer able to use it before he traps ya.”

    “Actually…” It was Patricia’s turn to speak up. “Sorry to interrupt but could I…?”

    Themesycia waved at her, inviting her to speak. “Thank you,” she said, standing up. “Saffron, you possess a branch version of Energy Monarch or, rather, I theorize that you have a magic that is part of a greater whole like Energy Monarch. I hope you don’t mind but Vandrad explained a little bit about what your abilities are, as I, too, possessed a clone of Scourge’s Energy Monarch for a time and have dedicated a good amount of time to studying it. Now your physical form takes damage and the energy that is used to hurt you is then transferred to your own magical core, thereby enhancing your latent physical abilities. In theory, you should be able to absorb the kind of magic used and be able to… utilize it yourself.”

    “Wait,” Scourge chirped up, leaning forward. “You mean like the Ark?”

    “Similar function but not as specialized. The Ark, from what I’ve been told, is more of a compendium of godly or demonic magics, with a core centering around an anti-magic particle that has been called ‘dreadether’. Dreary name but moving on. Saffron’s magic draws off of the ethernano of a spell or the force of a physical attack and reinforces herself. Hypothetically and with enough training, she should be able to temporarily absorb and recalibrate a magic spell used against her. That’s, of course, if her variation of Energy magic reacts in the same way that Vandrad and Scourge’s does.”

    "It’s an idea,” Vandrad admitted, leaning back with his arms crossed. "We’re only just begun to help her master utilizing the energy to bolster herself. I imagine trying to go in this new direction would take time as well.”

    “And that’s counting that he even feels compelled to use the time magic against her. It seems he’s only willing to use it without any other choice. The main problem is the Blood Marker.”

    “Unfortunately Blood Markers are not something you can just… cancel out. They are as natural to our forms as an actual organ. To use your verbiage, one would need a self-reinforcement magic that could push the person’s limits in an even race against his ability. That or taking him by surprise before he has a chance to adjust.” Cyrene added. She knew the best about Blood Markers and, frankly, what Seberg was capable of. It was just poor luck that she hadn’t added anything truly helpful, despite her wanting to.

    "Like I said, it’s an option, at least for the time magic. We’ll cross the bridge of his Blood Marker when we get to it. I doubt Saffron will leave him much time to adapt next time anyways.”

    “And what’s most important is that we draw him away from Maker. Separating them forces them to fight a battle on different sides without the aid of the other. And if we can counter his time magic, Seberg won’t be able to go running back to him.” Themescia added in.

    “Then we can put that bastard down once and for all,” Grubar spoke up out of the corner. “And I can collect my reward.”

    Blade nodded. “So we keep working. Trying to decipher what we can and finding out Maker’s weaknesses. I don’t imagine it’ll be much longer before we’re able to strike.”

    “Good.”






    Words: 979 / 6556 | Tag: @Mercury Arseneault @Mythal Ragnos @Serilda Sinclair @Saffron Remington  | © marzia at shine & gs.


    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Mercury Arseneault
    Mercury Arseneault

    Quality Badge Level 1- Quality Badge Level 2- Quality Badge Level 3- Player 
    Lineage : Gold Rush
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    Posts : 690
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    Character Sheet
    First Skill: Gunblade Master
    Second Skill: Mecha Primordial Slayer
    Third Skill:

    Into Places Unknown Empty Re: Into Places Unknown

    Post by Mercury Arseneault 21st April 2023, 5:57 pm

    Mercury Banner
    Cunning is the art of concealing our own defects
    and discovering other peoples' weaknesses.
    It was… interesting to hear Saffron speak the way she was about Seberg. She was calm, but there was a determination and passion, almost a darkness to her, when she opened up about her next steps to deal with the rogue Rhaegarian. It honestly reminded Mercury a lot of how she spoke and felt about Maker. It was a behavior she could see coming from Scourge, who wasn’t exactly the most moral of people to begin with, but it was a different side to Saffron that the Silver Wolf mage hadn’t really been exposed to before, and she didn’t really know what to make of it. Just like she didn’t know what to make of the unlikely team that Saffron and Scourge had managed to form with one another out of seemingly nowhere.

    The surprise from all of that paled in comparison to Vandrad’s choice to open up about the truth of his grandmother in front of an entire crowd of people. She was as shocked as Themmy when the conversation started to turn in that direction, but Vandrad insisted and Mercury was nothing but proud of him. So she’d silently taken his hand, so as to give him her support without making a big deal out of it, knowing he would need her consistency to ground him amidst the vulnerable admission. Thankfully, no one lingered on it for too long and soon the conversation was continuing on.

    He opened the floor for suggestions on how to deal with Seberg, and at first there weren’t a whole lot of concrete ideas. After all, how exactly does one fight a supernatural ability that quite literally puts you at the top of the food chain and makes you practically impossible to beat? Saffron at least had a few ideas of where she wanted to start looking, both figuratively and literally, and Mercury and Serilda both spoke up to offer their assistance with their own resources. Gren even offered up his knowledge of crash and nullification magic, both certainly more than powerful in their own rights.

    But then Patty of all people spoke up, drawing attention from the room back to her with a polite request to speak. She had a decent understanding of Vandrad and Scourge’s magic, having used it briefly herself, and was aware that Saffron’s power was related to Energy Monarch. Apparently she had been doing some thinking and theorized that due to the specific nature of Saffron’s strain of ethernano manipulation, she could potentially learn to use it to absorb not just kinetic energy but the magical energy of the attacks she took in order to utilize the magic herself. Scourge, Saffron, and Mercury all leaned forward with interest nearly in tandem with one another, their gazes fixed on the doctor as Scourge compared the suggestion to the Ark.

    Patricia admitted it wouldn’t be as specialized, as the Ark served a very specific function with a very specific origin and presentation. But in theory, with enough practice, she believed Saffron could learn to perform similar feats with her own approach – depending on how similar it was or wasn’t to Vandrad and Scourge’s magic. Saffron’s eyes flicked questioningly back and forth between the two men whose magic she shared, almost eager to see what they thought of the idea. Vandrad admitted it would take time to master it, potentially time they didn’t really have, but it did seem like a possibility.

    However, as Scourge pointed out, such an ability would rely very much on Seberg actually using his magical abilities, which he was reluctant enough to do last time. There was no telling if a skill like that would work with his Blood Marker, which wasn’t actually magic. Cyrene chirped up to state as much herself, reminding everyone that there wasn’t any way they could block out or remove a Blood Marker’s abilities. “That we know of, at least,” Mercury added. “But just because it hasn’t been done before doesn’t mean it’s impossible. In fact, it’s possible that Maker has already given us a hand up in that direction.”

    The Xocili looked around the table. “I still have the replica of the sword Maker made, the one Sabine used to destroy Vandrad’s magical core. I know it’s not an exact replica – it’s missing something, something that I suspect has to do with the strange alchemy that Maker got his hands on – but that doesn’t mean we can’t use it as a base starting platform. If anyone can find a way to adapt it to destroy a Blood Marker, it would be the collection of minds we have in this room. Not to mention Maker himself may already be working on such a tool. He’s not an idiot. He’ll want a failsafe of his own to deal with Seberg when the time comes. He may already have something. If I can find what he’s working on, I’m sure I can steal it… and probably improve on his design.”

    A few more people added in their own thoughts, with Themmy emphasizing that the important thing would be to separate Maker from Seberg so that neither of them could help the other. Saffron nodded toward Blade’s resolution. “I’m more than happy to see what I can do to develop the skill that Patty’s suggesting. I don’t know that Seberg will give me enough time to learn something like that, but that doesn’t mean I shouldn’t try. And if I manage to find anything else that could help, well.. Then I’ll try to learn that, too.”

    That seemed to be the end of the conversation, or at least of that particular topic. There wasn’t much else that could be said for the time being without everyone taking some time to follow through with their research. However, the meeting itself wasn’t done just yet. Once it was clear that they had reached a comfortable stopping point, Serilda cast a meaningful look to Blade, the silent question in her eyes obvious as she wordlessly asked if he was ready for the next part of the conference.

    Presuming he indicated that he was, the Voidwalker would adjust herself to sitting a bit more upright. “I suppose now is as good a time as any to steer into the other reason why we are here. A couple weeks ago, Scourge, Mercury, Ruzatz, and Agatha all traveled to a high end casino that Mr. Genesis owns in order to look into him.” Serilda gestured politely to the homunculus. “Mr. Genesis has his own connection to Maker, one that I will let him explain to his own level of comfort. However, shortly after his introduction to Blade he brought some additional information to light, one that we thought should be shared with some of the others here as it was… rather shocking, to say the least.”

    That was all she would say, giving the two men a gentle nod to encourage them to take over from there.

    Serilda Sinclair



    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Vandrad Ragnos
    Vandrad Ragnos

    Quality Badge Level 1- Quality Badge Level 2- Quality Badge Level 3- Player 
    Lineage : Traveller of the Multiverse
    Position : None
    Posts : 791
    Guild : Fairy Tail
    Dungeon Tokens : 0
    Experience : 8,080,767

    Character Sheet
    First Skill: Energy Monarch
    Second Skill: Ark of the Dread Masters
    Third Skill:

    Into Places Unknown Empty Re: Into Places Unknown

    Post by Vandrad Ragnos 22nd April 2023, 12:21 pm

    There’s no fair or unfair in battle.
    ( There is only victory or in your case, defeat. )
    Into Places Unknown RJtajUnz_o


    The matter of specializing Saffron’s magic was a new and welcome revelation and hardly anyone would probably be surprised it came from Patricia. After all, Patty had proven herself an avid ally in opening all sorts of doors when it came to magic function and its allocation among the gathered people. It also helped that she had spent a decent amount of time with a manufactured version of Energy Monarch and worked under Maker as a researcher. If anyone was going to have thoughts and ideas that were outside the norm, it was the good doctor.

    And it did present a useful alternative to counter Seberg’s magic. If the blonde bombshell could use her branched version of Energy Monarch to absorb and dismiss the time magic, it would keep the Wolf Hunter from stopping everyone and getting away. Unfortunately, that didn’t present much advantage against his Blood Marker, as Scourge and Cyrene both spoke of lamentingly. But before they could move the topic to a natural conclusion, Mercury spoke up with her own thoughts. The attention of the room turned to her as she stated that just because a Blood Marker hadn’t been countered before didn’t mean it was wholly impossible. She even believed that Maker himself may have created a jumping off point for them. She continued, referencing back to the dagger that had been used to damage Vandrad’s magical core. Though she didn’t have the exact copy and was missing a key piece of material, Mercury theorized that they could alter the purpose for their needs. She even believed that Maker would most likely be working on a similar means, as he needed something to counter Seberg when their alliance reached its conclusion. With that in mind, Mercury had a direction in which to alter her search and snooping while staying under Maker’s ‘control’.

    “You may be correct,” Blade added, nodding. “Based on the analysis I did on the blade, it did seem to possess a strange ability to deactivate specially activated muscles and organs within a body. It had been crafted with a targeted purpose, though its activation material is still missing. Mercury and I have been working with another wizard, Cillian, to try and locate the source but to no avail so far. But I believe with her; this might be a true means of stopping Seberg from surpassing anyone he fights. With that in mind, we will have to redouble our efforts.”

    “A part of me feels concerned about the possibility of erasing a person’s Blood Marker. But as you said, Maker is probably working on the same idea. I’d much rather the people in this room come up with a use for it and utilize it for good means rather than him. All I ask is that it is destroyed after it is used; I wouldn’t want it to fall into the wrong hands after.” Cyrene provided her own thoughts. Though she understood the usefulness of the weapon, it was evident that she was concerned about their being something so powerful to hold over her people.

    “A fair request,” Themesycia added with a nod.

    Saffron opted to speak up then, stating that she would be happy to try and develop her magic in the direction of Patty’s suggestion. She didn’t believe that Seberg would wait long before trying to get to her again but, as she saw it, it was still worth trying. Vandrad gave Saffron a firm nod of agreement.

    It seemed they had reached a natural conclusion for that part of the conversation and Serilda looked over at Blade, wanting to initiate the second reason for their gathering. He gave the Rune Knight Field Marshall a nod in return before she adjusted her sitting position. When she spoke up, she reviewed the fact that a good portion of the gathered group had embarked on a mission to the gambling establishment that Genesis had inherited. The homunculus grinned and gave everyone a small wave as she continued, explaining that he was connected to Maker but, more surprisingly, he had revealed a rather shocking piece of information that needed to be shared.

    “Much obliged for the introduction, Lady Sinclair. And you can all just call me Genesis; I’m no sir or mister, not even really a gender, in a way. I mean I possess all the means of a man and can absolutely use them to give men and women--”

    “I don’t think your ability to procreate is getting called into question, Genesis. If anyone needs additional information, they can ask,” Blade interjected before Genesis could go too far down his rabbit hole.

    “And I hope they do,” Genesis remarked, giving Cyrene a wink, which earned him an amused smirk. “Anyways, I am what you would call a homunculus. I’m an artificial creation of Maker’s own imagination. After he had devastated Teras Prime, Blade’s home, he used the combined knowledge of Blade’s people to create me…”

    “Combined knowledge?” Cyrene asked with a furrowed brow.

    “Oh yes, it was a whole thing. Some kind of multifaceted ritual to absorb all the knowledge of the planet into one person. Anyways, he was hoping to use me as a bodyguard because he couldn’t keep all of the knowledge in his own body, meaning he had to purge it. So he created me and Knowhere; a kind of receptacle that he could keep all of the knowledge and access it. He used Knowhere to educate me, teach me about the universe I lived in. What he didn’t expect is that I would very quickly grow disinterested in being a petty bodyguard. So I escaped and went traveling. I went from world to world, learning what I could, making ton of money and making a lot of men and women very happy. I also may or may not have come to blows with policing establishments a few times. I eventually came here and took up residence in O Palácio Flutuante, becoming its owner once the previous one unfortunately passed.”

    “But!” He continued, gesturing to Blade. “I learned, while being educated by Knowhere, about legends and tales from the Terran’s past. That included a story of how they came into being, after a goddess arrived and laid the groundwork for the Terrans. Apparently she came from another world, one that was called Rhaegar.”

    “Wait, what?” Cyrene asked, sitting forward. Themesycia, Simon and Ever also sat forward, eyes widening in surprise. “Did you say… Rhaegar?”

    “Yes ma’am. I didn’t think it very important at first; origin stories are always varied and hard to prove, especially since Terrans firmly believed in natural evolution. But when I told Blade the story, the look of shock on his face was enough to tell me that I had struck something interesting. It wasn’t until later I learned that your people came from a planet called Rhaegar. The likelihood of that merely being happenstance is… well, very low.”


    “As far as I know, the du Wolffs are the only ones that ever left Rhaegar. But with so many people on a planet, it would be impossible to quantify the chances of someone escaping before,” Themesycia said, rubbing her chin lightly. “Plus your people had fully evolved into a space-faring race. That would have taken thousands of years of evolution. If someone came from Rhaegar, they would be… ancient.”

    “There are always tales of people disappearing but they are legends, fairy tales,” Cyrene said, nodding softly. “It’s understandable why others may classify us as ‘gods’. We are immortal and do possess our Blood Markers, which gives us unique abilities. But anyone that old… I can’t imagine many of them are still alive. Most of our people, though blessed with long lives, only live a few millennia at the maximum before something ends up taking us. Disease, war or what have you. And I’ve never heard of a Blood Marker that allows a Rhaegarian to create life.”

    “Once I had been told more about the Rhaegarians, it did seem a bit unlike, save for the Blood Markers. But there’s no denying that the name of your planet and people have been recorded in the Terran’s history. Somewhere there’s a connection and it seems to be this mysterious goddess.” Genesis continued. “Unfortunately, there wasn’t much more about her in Knowhere. Or, if there was, I was never educated on it. It’s possible there’s more but I would need access to the device to check. And Maker has that stowed away.”

    “No doubt by now, Maker has made the connection. He did capture and take away several of the Rhaegarians, including Seberg. Perhaps he is trying to find the connection as well?” Blade asked rhetorically.

    “Based on what I’ve learned about this Maker, I’m sure he is. He seems desirous of more power and knowledge and a mystery like this would be too hard to ignore. Which means we will have to catch up and beat him to the punch.” Cyrene stated with a firm nod as she looked at Blade. “If there’s a connection between our two people, we must find it out. For who knows what other secrets we may uncover about our beginnings.”






    Words: 1526 / 6556 | Tag: @Mercury Arseneault @Mythal Ragnos @Serilda Sinclair @Saffron Remington  | © marzia at shine & gs.


    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Mercury Arseneault
    Mercury Arseneault

    Quality Badge Level 1- Quality Badge Level 2- Quality Badge Level 3- Player 
    Lineage : Gold Rush
    Position : None
    Posts : 690
    Cosmic Coins : 0
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    Experience : 7,126,000

    Character Sheet
    First Skill: Gunblade Master
    Second Skill: Mecha Primordial Slayer
    Third Skill:

    Into Places Unknown Empty Re: Into Places Unknown

    Post by Mercury Arseneault 22nd April 2023, 3:43 pm

    Mercury Banner
    Cunning is the art of concealing our own defects
    and discovering other peoples' weaknesses.
    Blade seemed to agree with Mercury’s train of thought, both that they could use Maker’s weapon as a starting point for something that would give them leverage over Seberg, and also that Maker was likely already looking into something to use against the Rhaegarian when the time came for them to part ways. The Terran explained a bit about their working with Cillian in trying to recover answers about Maker’s tricks, and while they so far had not unveiled anything useful, he was sure they were on the right track, and that they needed to keep pressing forward.

    Cyrene was, understandably, a bit uncomfortable with the idea of crafting an item that could destroy or nullify a Blood Marker. Mercury had known the suggestion might be ill received, but desperate times called for desperate measures. The Xocili was a child of war, and no stranger to doing the dark and dirty things that needed to be done to survive – morals were a luxury, nothing more. Still, that didn’t mean she didn’t wish they had a better option. Luckily, Cyrene seemed to feel the same. She wasn’t naive and knew that Maker was likely already developing something along those lines, as Mercury suggested, and agreed she’d rather such a device be in the hands of people she trusted in order to wipe out an enemy that was too dangerous to leave alive. Her only request was that it be destroyed once its use was over.

    There was a gentle pause from Mercury even as Themesycia remarked it as a fair request, not so much a hesitance from the future queen as a… consideration. “I… don’t think I can guarantee that it would ever be fully erased from existence, I’m afraid. Not that I wouldn’t be willing. It’s simply the nature of my biology from my own people. I would always have the schematics in my head, and thus could always make another one without much difficulty, I’m afraid. But I can promise that I will only allow a physical copy of one to exist for only as long as it is needed to defeat Seberg, and I will never – under any circumstances – craft another copy unless it is with the knowledge and approval of the Rhaegarians. Assuming, of course, that we can even craft such a tool in the first place.”

    Mercury didn’t want to lead Cyrene along under any false pretenses that destroying the weapon would be the end of the matter. The simple truth was that once it existed, Mercury would always be able to make another – and given her magic, she could likely do it with a great amount of ease. She needed Cyrene to understand that Mercury couldn’t simply wipe it out of reality once it was made, and this was not one of those situations where it would be wise to simply omit that truth and leave the woman ignorant. All that would do is leave the door open for mistrust down the line, should it ever come to light. But equally, she wanted to assure Cyrene that Mercury would never, under any circumstances, allow it to be used or accessed unless the people that could be the most harmed by it agreed that it was necessary. She loved the Rhaegarians probably more than she loved her own people, and Mercury would never have suggested something like this at all if she felt they had any other viable options.

    Hopefully, Cyrene would trust her.

    With that conversation over, Serilda turned things over to Genesis and Blade. There was a brief moment of distraction as Genesis started to go on a tangent about his sexual prowess, a tangent that was cut short by Blade interrupting him even as Dina kicked Genesis from under the table. Still, she was smirking and shaking her head even as nearly the rest of the table chuckled with amusement; at the very least, just about everyone here could appreciate the humor of the situation. Even Zemenar was smiling a bit, though he was still clearly learning to adapt to the high strung libidos of the other race on the island. The only person that seemed wholly disinterested was Saffron, who didn’t say anything… but anyone looking at her at the right time would have seen a mild, but humorous, look of repulsion on her face at the idea of anything to do with Genesis and sex together.

    Genesis continued, giving a brief overview of his history and creation, and thus his connection to Maker. It wouldn’t take long for him to get to the point of what he had come to reveal: that Maker, Blade, and their people had been birthed by someone that claimed heritage as a Rhaegarian. The information caused nearly every such Rhaegarian at the table to sit up in shock. Even Saffron looked startled, sharing a quick glance with Scourge before turning her focus back to the aliens.

    The conclusion of the discussion that followed seemed to be that as unlikely as it was for the claim to be the truth, it was infinitely more improbable that it was a coincidence. Even more concerning was the thought that Maker had already put the connection together and was trying to find a way to exploit it for his own gain. “I’ve been keeping an eye out for anything that Maker may have already uncovered in that regard,” Mercury chimed in after Cyrene affirmed that they needed to uncover the truth. “So far I haven’t found any additional details, but as I said before, I’m being patient and cautious with what I do. Maker expects me to snoop, and I’m sure he suspects I’ve already gotten myself into some of his work – which I have. But I don’t want him to think I’m looking for anything specific, otherwise he’ll become suspicious and the whole operation will be jeopardized.”

    From there, the conversation became less focused. It was no longer much of a meeting about Maker and Seberg, but rather a gathering of people getting to know one another. Naturally, there was much curiosity between Blade, Genesis, and the Rhaegarians, who sought to establish a rapport with one another with which to operate together in the future. Serilda made it a point to exchange contact information with both Dinah and Genesis, expressing an interest in visiting O Palácio Flutuante at some point in the near future. Serilda wasn’t necessarily much for gambling, seeing it as a general waste of money, but sometimes it was prudent to play the part of what people expected of nobility. Plus, now that she knew that Genesis and Dinah both used a large portion of the funds toward upturning slavery in places that she and Mythal couldn’t reach… well, it seemed like a worthy place to blow some cash.

    Before long, it was time for everyone to part ways. Serilda, Mythal, and their house guests gathered up to return home, minus Gren who elected to stay on the island a bit longer. Likewise, Saffron was eager to get started with her own work, pulling Vandrad and Scourge aside to discuss a game plan of how they wanted to tackle her foray into experimenting with her magic. While Scourge wasn’t her mentor, this was unknown territory for all three of them, and she had a feeling it would be best to approach the work as a unified group rather than just with her and Vandrad alone.

    Mercury, on the other hand, approached the ones that she would need to escort back to their respective residences. “Shall we?” Once Genesis, Dinah, and Blade were ready, she used her gun to transport them back to the homunculus’ penthouse. After a very physical goodbye with Genesis – and also exchanging phone numbers with Dinah – she finally made her way back to Silver Wolf with Blade in tow, both of them stepping through the portal and into Mercury’s quarters at the guild.

    “I’d say that went relatively well, all things considered.” The Xocili stretched her arms above her head, releasing the tightness that had built up from sitting for so long. “Can’t say I’m thrilled to know that Maker’s had an ally of Rhaegarian caliber tucked away up his sleeve all this time, but better we learned about it now than never. At the very least it’s something else to look into, something that we’ll maybe be able to make some actual progress on.”

    Serilda Sinclair



    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Vandrad Ragnos
    Vandrad Ragnos

    Quality Badge Level 1- Quality Badge Level 2- Quality Badge Level 3- Player 
    Lineage : Traveller of the Multiverse
    Position : None
    Posts : 791
    Guild : Fairy Tail
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    Experience : 8,080,767

    Character Sheet
    First Skill: Energy Monarch
    Second Skill: Ark of the Dread Masters
    Third Skill:

    Into Places Unknown Empty Re: Into Places Unknown

    Post by Vandrad Ragnos 22nd April 2023, 6:10 pm

    There’s no fair or unfair in battle.
    ( There is only victory or in your case, defeat. )
    Into Places Unknown RJtajUnz_o


    Mercury, understandably, didn’t immediately agree to Cyrene’s request and Vandrad knew she wouldn’t. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to but even he understood that such an ask was near impossible for someone of her capabilities. The Xocili waited a beat before she explained that she couldn’t keep that promise, as the plans couldn’t be erased from existence. She didn’t go into too much detail about the biology of her people but she verified enough that the plans for a weapon of that caliber would always be there, stored within her memory banks. What she could promise was that the only physical copy that would be made would be used for Seberg and she wouldn’t allow the crafting of another unless it was approved by the Rhaegarians, counting that they were even capable of achieving its realization in the first place.

    Cyrene did not need to wait to give Mercury a gentle nod. “That is more than acceptable. I know I was asking a lot and I appreciate you being honest with me. I trust you and your people and I know you’d never seek to use such a weapon against any of the Rhaegarians without reason.” She gave Mercury a meaningful smile and then, seeking to lighten the mood of the room up, the smile turned into a playful smirk. “You’ve got a good one there, Vandrad. You better be careful we don’t try to steal her. I have no problem sharing her with Themmy and Gren.”

    Vandrad simply rolled his eyes as the room gave a small chuckle, a small alleviation of the tension that came with such meetings. With the topic settled and handled, Serilda turned the attention over to Genesis, who continued to air the room out with humor, inadvertently aided by Blade as well. Still, he carried out his explanation and dove right into the matter that needed to be discussed; the seeming connection between the former Terran people and the Rhaegarians. To say that he dropped a bombshell was putting it lightly; all of the Rhaegarians looked like the rug had been pulled out from underneath them and even a few of the Earthland natives were as shocked.

    It didn’t quite make sense; from what they had gathered, Rhaegar was located in an entirely different realm and travel between that world and the one they resided in was not easily managed. Vandrad had done it by some sheer, unexplainable power, as had the rest of the du Wolff family long ago. There was also the hiccup of a Rhaegarian possessing the ability to bring forth life from a wasteland, blessing a planet that would eventually evolve into a thriving society. It was yet another wrinkle in the curious histories of both civilizations and without much in the way of providing answers. What they all seemed to agree on was that Maker, undoubtedly, had picked up on the connection, one way or the other. Mercury said that she had been keeping an eye out but so far there wasn’t anything she could feasibly track and follow. Granted, she was having to work at a slower pace; making sure she was staying within or just past the parameters of her ‘override’ that Maker could view as ‘acceptable’ behavior. If she pushed too hard or even hinted that she was trying to find something specific, he would most likely figure her out.

    That meant that whatever they hoped to find, they had to work a bit harder… and be more patient. Hosrius, who had remained quiet since their arrival, had been listening intently as information passed around the table quickly. It was when this conclusion came to a head that he lifted his gaze to look over at Grubar. The Scengar wore a… pensive look, which was odd to see on the alien. But he didn’t seem all too upset by the matter. That or he was trying to pretend that he wasn’t hearing the insinuation that they would be continuing to work slowly, so as to have possible deniability. After all, if the Organization caught wind that they had located their target and hadn’t acted… well, it was best not to think about that.

    With the heavy topics out of the way, the group was able to relax and provide a few more introductions. Blade hung close to Cyrene, talking with her in matters surrounding the Rhaegarians. Soon enough, the meeting was winding down, allowing people to take the opportunity to head home. Before they departed, Saffron took both Vandrad and Scourge aside to decide on a path on how to best begin her training.

    "It wouldn’t hurt to get Patricia involved in some manner. She’s the one that suggested the idea; she may have an idea of how to execute it. Beyond that, I believe we’ll need an outside magical source to see how well you can replicate and counter. I doubt using our own versions of Energy Monarch will provide you the ample room to begin your training,” Vandrad commented, his arms folded over his chest.

    “I can bring Rogier to Fairy Tail. She has a new look so she’s less recognized and she can also use Water Binding magic. Nothing better for learning to adapt to something than a binding-type… plus I doubt Saffron would complain about being tied up by Rogier,” Scourge added with an impish grin, ignoring the glare from the future king.

    Vandrad decided to ignore the second part of his comment. "Arrange it. We can begin immediately.” With that decided, the rest of the group bid their farewells and headed out. Scourge rained platitudes on the gathered company and waited until no one was looking to flash Saffron a flirty wink before he was off, claiming he had to see a man for some information. Vandrad would remain on the island as Mercury took her gathered party home, watching as she disappeared into her portal along with Genesis, Dinah and Blade.

    “She’s about to have a really good time. He won’t though.”

    The voice spoke once more and when Vandrad turned, instinctively, to search for the source, he saw… something. It was brief and was gone almost as quickly as it had appeared but for the briefest of moments, he swore he saw someone sitting on the edge of the table, right by him. He hadn’t even had time to make out any features before they were gone.

    He narrowed his gaze at the fleeting sight, though he remained silent about it. His concerns were growing but he couldn’t share them, not until he was sure of what was happening…

    Meanwhile, Mercury had dropped off Genesis and Dinah. The homunculus had made a compelling argument for her to return after dropping off Blade, which apparently involved three other strippers from the casino and a jacuzzi filled with champagne. At the very least, he made her promise that she would come by soon to visit, even saying he would rope Dinah in to come and hang out with them, which earned him a square kick in the shin from his captain.

    Soon enough, it was Blade and Mercury alone in her quarters. She remarked about how well it had gone and admitted she wasn’t pleased about Maker having a weapon in the form of a Rhaegarian. Though it was better to know of it now and frankly, it provided some kind of clue for them to run off of rather than emptily working with no progress alongside Cillian. Blade nodded. “Yes, it is troubling. Maker has seemingly acquired more knowledge and dangerous allies than I expected. He continues to prove how cunning he is but with this information, we have a new path to follow. Just… not tonight.”

    He turned and looked at Mercury. “We have worked ourselves to exhaustion over the past few weeks, with very little rest. And while this meeting was a good reason to step away, it didn’t provide as much relaxation as we have earned.” He paused as he formed what he was trying to say in his head. “I am aware of the… ambiguity of your matrimonial promise to Vandrad. Rather, I understand that there is, what’s it called… ‘wiggle room’ for other partners. I know you have heard of Norkan IV and the Nowana people, so you are probably aware of their practice of haiestrimony or, to put it in Earthland terms, ‘passionate release of stress’.”

    He held her gaze without fluster or concern. “I believe it might serve us well if we were to practice this, with one another. It would allow us a release of tension that I believe has been present since our meeting and would focus our attention away from our studies. The most progress for such tiresome ordeals is often made when not committing to it fully with one’s mind. If you would rather not, I understand -- I didn’t want to overstep any bounds but I felt that we had a connection and with your relation being so free, I saw no reason not to make the suggestion.”

    While Blade was putting forth quite the offer to Mercury, hundreds of miles away, Scourge was reappearing after teleporting. But as his consciousness took in the surroundings, he frowned. He’d locked onto the correct magical signature but all he found was… darkness. He turned around and found a single light hanging in the middle of the room, illuminating the cement floor that looked aged and unkempt. “Not exactly where I was expecting to find you,” he spoke out loud, expecting to hear the voice of his contact.

    “Nor I,” a voice spoke up out of the dark. Scourge’s gaze flicked to the source as it stepped into the light, his eyes widening in surprise as Maker became illuminated by the light. “Imagine my surprise to find you here.”

    “Well it must be my birthday!” Scourge said with a smirk as he thrust his hand out, looking to summon his blade of magic. Yet… nothing came. As he looked towards his arm, he noticed an odd wristband attached to his arm. It didn’t look advanced at all but rather a flimsy piece of metal. Yet when he grabbed at it, it wouldn’t budge. In fact, it seemed to dig in deeper to his flesh.

    “Pesky, isn’t it?” Maker spoke up, pulling Scourge’s attention back to the alien. Maker stood before him, his own hand held up and showing the band attached to his own wrist. “Now then,” Maker continued, smiling as he crossed his arms behind his back.

    “What say you and I have a discussion?”






    Words: 1765 / 8321 | Tag: @Mercury Arseneault @Mythal Ragnos @Serilda Sinclair @Saffron Remington  | © marzia at shine & gs.


    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Mercury Arseneault
    Mercury Arseneault

    Quality Badge Level 1- Quality Badge Level 2- Quality Badge Level 3- Player 
    Lineage : Gold Rush
    Position : None
    Posts : 690
    Cosmic Coins : 0
    Dungeon Tokens : 0
    Experience : 7,126,000

    Character Sheet
    First Skill: Gunblade Master
    Second Skill: Mecha Primordial Slayer
    Third Skill:

    Into Places Unknown Empty Re: Into Places Unknown

    Post by Mercury Arseneault 22nd April 2023, 8:54 pm

    Mercury Banner
    Cunning is the art of concealing our own defects
    and discovering other peoples' weaknesses.
    “Wait.. what?”

    “Shh…” Mercury had been relieved by Cyrene’s understanding of the Silver Wolf ace’s position. She certainly didn’t want her, or any of the Rhaegarians, fearing that she and her people would one day turn into tyrants and use the tool they were discussing to keep a controlling hand on them. However, it seemed that Themmy’s sister trusted Mercury’s determination to not make that the case, despite the fact that they really hadn’t known each other for all that long. It probably was because Cyrene had spent so much time with Vandrad on Rhaegar. While Vandrad had never mentioned it to her, the other people that Vandrad had attached himself to during his time on his home planet had been extremely eager to meet his fiance upon arriving to Earthland, and many of them had let it slip to her that Vandrad had talked about her quite a bit, and not always in his typical dismissive way. In that manner, Mercury supposed, these refugees had been able to build a trust for her through Vandrad long before she had even had a chance to meet them.

    She returned the woman’s smile with a grateful one of her own, which quickly turned into a cheshire grin as Cyrene complimented her to the future king and threatened to worm her way into the threeway relationship Mercury had with Gren and Themmy. Zemenar had been more than aware at this point that his daughter slept with Gren, but somehow he had missed that she shared a similar relationship with Themesycia. The poor man’s lightning fast brain was doing everything it could to keep up with the realization, his question bumbling from his lips faster than he could think to stop it, only for Mercury to derail it by reaching out and gently covering his mouth with her hand with a gentle shush. “Don’t ask questions you don’t want to know the answers to.”

    Soon enough, the meeting was over and it was time for everyone to go their separate ways. Saffron had a brief huddle up with Vandrad and Scourge in regard to their next steps. The Fairy Tail ace suggested having Patricia involved with the training since it was the doctor’s idea, and as such she may have some suggestions about how to go about the training successfully. However, he felt the biggest thing they would need is someone for her to spar with that didn’t utilize Energy Monarch. Scourge suggested bringing Rogier in, stating that the former slaver had access to water binding magic which would be a great place to start. Saffron grinned back at the former Dread Master when he suggested that she might not be against getting roped up by the other woman. “I do owe her.”

    Vandrad was all too content to ignore the comment, instead instructing Scourge to make the necessary arrangements so they could begin as soon as possible. That seemed to be the end of the matter. The former Dread Master made his round of polite goodbyes, and before he left he found a chance to give Saffron a flirtatious wink. The blonde rolled her eyes so hard that Vandrad would have been impressed, the woman shaking her head – even as a rebellious smirk tugged on her lips and a slight blush rose to her cheeks.

    The trip to the casino was brief, despite the intricate thesis Genesis had composed for convincing her to return after dropping Blade off. Mercury was all too flattered – and all too tempted – but insisted she would have to take a raincheck. Though, she did happily agree to at least coming to visit soon, whether it involved sex or not.

    Then, it was just her and Blade. He shared her sentiment in regard to the alliance between his brother and the wayward Rhaegarian, expressing his surprise at how quickly and easily Maker was able to forge allies of frightening caliber. But at the very least, it gave them a new path to explore… on another day.

    Mercury wasn’t sure what she was expecting Blade to say when he turned to face her fully, but what came out of his mouth certainly wasn’t on the list. He worked his way up to his point carefully, explaining how hard they had both been working with very little reprieve, and very little results. Her brows furrowed briefly when he mentioned the open status of her relationship with her fiance, and her knowledge of the Nowana and their customs, the Xocili’s eyes widening in earnest surprise as she quickly put together where he was taking the conversation. It was certainly the most polite way that anyone had ever offered to bed her, practically more of a business exchange than anything else. Not that that made the proposition any less enticing.

    “And here I thought the reason you hadn’t jumped me yet was because you were too focused on everything with Maker..” Mercury flirted with Blade all the time, so it wasn’t exactly like her willingness to sleep with him wasn’t simple to deduce. That and the fact that she was, as Vriko would say, a slut. But Blade was a bit different than the average person, his sense of humor and… well, entire personality a bit… dry? Dry wasn’t the right word, but still. She had expected that he would wait until after they’d dealt with Maker once and for all before he finally made a pass, if he ever made one at all. “You don’t have to ask me twice.”

    She sure hoped he had been ready for her to accept immediately, because now that he’d put the offer out there Mercury wasn’t planning on waiting for the follow through. Taking him by the hands, she pulled him back toward the bed. Without laying down right away, she rested against the edge of the structure and pulled him gently against her, giving him a kiss that started off almost sweet as she got a taste for him, her arms wrapping around his neck. It wouldn’t take long for things to become more heated from there, the both of them all too eager to let out all the built up stress and the increasing sexual tension that had been budding between them over the last few months. This wasn’t exactly how Mercury had expected to end her day…

    But she certainly had zero complaints.

    Serilda Sinclair



    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Mythal Ragnos
    Mythal Ragnos

    Knight VIP Status- Regular VIP Status- VIP- Quality Badge Level 1- Quality Badge Level 2- Quality Badge Level 3- God Slayer- Magic Application Approved!- Character Application Approved!- Complete Your First Job!- Obtain A Lineage!- Join A Faction!- Player 
    Lineage : Heir to Darkness
    Position : God of Sedulity
    Faction : The Rune Knights
    Posts : 1057
    Guild : Guildless
    Cosmic Coins : 50
    Dungeon Tokens : 0
    Age : 36
    Mentor : Nessa Cordelia Lux (Former)
    Experience : 11,070,431

    Character Sheet
    First Skill: Kami No Ken Sutairu O Taosu
    Second Skill: Kingdom Darkness Embodiment
    Third Skill: Soul Stone/Trickster's Illusions

    Into Places Unknown Empty Re: Into Places Unknown

    Post by Mythal Ragnos 23rd April 2023, 10:13 am

    LIGHT
    &
    DARK

    “I don’t see how jumping on you would affect sexual relations of Maker… wait.” It took him a moment to put the pieces together. “The vernacular of ‘jumping’ in this context means to make a move on. In all honesty, I would have said something sooner but the timing or the situation deemed it inappropriate.” Once he had finally caught up and attempted to explain his stance and really his delay, Mercury had already made the decision that it was happening right then and there. Not that Blade would have complained or vetoed the idea but before he could even understand what was happening, she was taking him by the hands and pulling him towards the bed. Luckily the Terran was quite adept at adapting to most situations and before her lips met his, he was already prepared. A hand went behind her back and pulled her close in a gentle hold as they kissed, the other holding onto her hip with the same calm but still desirous pull. It wouldn’t be long for them to both become more impassioned, giving into the desire and finally confronting the tension that had been there since their meeting.

    Back at the joint home of Mythal and Serilda, the homeowners and their guests were just arriving back. And the house was… strangely quiet. “‘Ey, we’re home!” Mythal called out to the house, expecting to hear the giggle of their daughters or some kind of filtered curse from Vriko. But there was nothing. His senses filled the house and in the living room, he could pick up on three different figures joined together on the couch. He waved for Serilda to follow him, with Hosrius and Patricia following after curiously. As they arrived at the living room, what could only be described as the most adorable sight appeared before them.

    Vriko sat in the middle, sprawled out and half falling off the couch. She was fast asleep, her hair a bit of a mess in comparison to its usual controlled self. Magic markers had been used on her face, round pink ‘spectacles’ drawn over her eyes and half a black mustache just over her upper lip. Alexia and Naomi had snuggled up against her on either side, laying against their aunt while her arms were wrapped around them, holding them close. There were a few toys and the guilt markers on the table and ground in front of them but, overall, there wasn’t much of a mess to clean up.

    Mythal had seen plenty of things he would define as ‘cute’ in his lifetime, most notably his infant daughters and Grappa and Jellisha when they had first hatched from their eggs. But this was well and truly adorable; the scornful woman who had once told him that they wouldn’t be doing the whole ‘family’ thing was now cuddled up with her nieces, soundly snoozing like it was the best thing in the world.

    “Never in my life have I ever felt the flutter to spawn children… until this moment,” Patricia whispered, her usual studious tone replaced with one of awe at the sight of the cute display. She snuck past Mythal and Serilda and picked up the black marker laying on the ground. She popped off the top and then slowly, carefully, leaned in and gently drew a matching mustache line to mirror the original on Vriko’s face. After capping the marker back, she stepped back towards the group, meeting their collective gaze. “What? They may be adorable but I can’t suffer an incomplete project,” she said with a slight shrug.

    Meanwhile, at an unknown location, Scourge and Maker had come face to face with one another, apparently lacking the ability to use their magic. As if he wanted to hard test the potential of the entrapment, Scourge once more attempted to draw from both Energy Monarch and the Ark to no avail. “As I insinuated, these baubles seem to be capable of blocking our abilities. There is no need to continue trying to overwhelm them.”

    “You’ll excuse me if I don’t believe you. You do have a history of lying, cheating and deceiving, after all,” Scourge remarked, hissing between his teeth in frustration. “I guess I’ll just need to beat you to death with my fists.”

    “How uncivilized of you, Scourge. I thought you were more considerate of your situation than to simply resort to dumbfounded violence without a second thought. You have been spending far too much time with Vandrad du Wolff, I believe,” the Terran mocked with a mischievous smirk.

    “My situation can be resolved once I’ve splattered your brains on the concrete,” Scourge snapped back before leaping at Maker, his fist already drawn back.

    When the first came forward, Maker smoothly moved to the side to avoid it, holding up a single hand in front of him, palm facing out. “You and I can trade blows all we want after we have solved the mystery of our being here. We two are the only ones that have been trapped, so you must understand what that means.”

    Scourge was already wheeling around to throw another punch… but stopped. His eyes, glaring at Maker, began to soften slowly with realization. “The Dread Masters,” he said.

    Maker nodded. “What remains of the organization must have taken great offense to your betrayal and my splitting from their goal. No doubt this is a prison of their own making.”

    As if speaking of them was the key, more lights flicked on down the length of the room, showing just how large their prison was. The lights were of the same make, creating circular areas of illumination while the rest of the room remained in pitch darkness. At the very end, a larger light flicked on… and a figure appeared from out of the dark. A cloaked figure stood near the wall, wearing black robes that were both ornate and armored. A looming black hood covered its face in its entirety, though the direction of the void seemed to be pointed at them. In its right hand was an intimidating black sickle, the very tip of the blade glowing and releasing a steady stream of gray smoke. In the left it held a crystal of some sort, also billowing out smoke. A matching sickle was attached to the figure’s belt on its left side.

    Everything about the sight rang alarms in Scourge’s mind. He hadn’t seen it before but something, deep within him, knew what they were looking at. “Son of a bitch…”

    “The rumored Dread Lord. The true leader of the Dread Masters.” Maker replied, also looking as shocked and… fearful as the former Dread Master.

    The Dread Lord did not move itself. Instead, from the darkness under its cowl, blobs of darkness emerged, flowing down the front of its robes and splattering onto the ground. Several black masses began to twitch and expand into shapes until they took on their full, monstrous forms. terrifying creatures, snarling with salivating teeth and bearing arms made of blades, snarled at the two former Dread Masters.

    Their wrist bands audibly clicked and fell from their wrists. In one swift motion, both Maker and Scourge summoned their magics, twisting towards one another and bringing forth magical blades from their hands; one pink, the other purple. Each blade made connection on the other’s neck… but found no purchase in their skin. Instead, it was like the blades had hit a wall, the magic sizzling loudly against both Scourge and Maker’s flesh but refusing to injure them.

    Maker chuckled. “It seems our wardens wish to kill us themselves. Robbing us of the chance to end one another. How incredibly selfish.”

    “Well, it is the Dread Masters. Why let us kill one another when they can tear us to shreds themselves?” After a moment of considering one another, they pulled their blades back. “So you did give yourself a manufactured version of my Energy Monarch. And here I thought you were more original than that.”

    “I seek to utilize all powerful instruments I have access to. Energy Monarch is simply too useful to pass up,” Maker dismissed the notion as he turned to face the Dread Lord and its minions.

    “Well then,” Scourge turned as well, taking a defensive stance. “It seems we have no choice than to tear down what remains of the Dread Masters before we tear one another apart.”

    “Indeed,” Maker agreed, taking a half-defensive stance before glancing at Scourge out of the corner of his eye. “Do try and keep up, human.”

    “As if you stand a chance of keeping pace with me.” In one swift burst of magic, Scourge had ascended to his Empowerment. That was the signal that the creatures needed, all of them rushing forward, disappearing and reappearing as they charged through the barely illuminated prison towards both Scourge and Maker.



    STATISTICS
    HP: x/y
    MP: x/y
    Spells Used: list them here
    Abilities Active: list them and their effects here
    Weapons Equipped: list/link them here
    Monsters Killed: list here
    Other Notes: reeeeeee this should scroll if you type too much
    IVYLEAF33



    _____________________________________________________________________________________

    Serilda Sinclair
    Serilda Sinclair

    Ice Queen


    Ice Queen

    Developer/GFX Artist- Main Account- Gain An Artifact- Quality Badge Level 1- Quality Badge Level 2- Quality Badge Level 3- God Of Ishgar- Ten Wizard Saint Member- Guild Master- Custom Slayer- God Slayer- Z-Rank- Y-Rank- X-Rank- H-Rank- S-Rank- A-Rank- Wanderer- So Extra- EXP Grinder- Job Creator- Working Together- Forever Solo- Christian Minecraft Server- Teaming Up!- Limited Edition- Hired Help- Unknown Powerhouse- Unknown Legend- Helper- Guild Creator- Achiever- Expert Achiever- Over Achiever- Buddy Buddy- Obligatory Beach Episode- Shipped- Dank Memer- Taskmaster- Richie Rich- Rich- Veteran Level 2- Veteran Level 1- Character History!- Magic Application Approved!- Obtain A Secondary Magic!- Get A Pet!- Character Application Approved!- Complete Your First Job!- Obtain A Lineage!- Join A Faction!- Tertiary Magic- Senior [500]- Novice [250]- 1st Place Event/Contest Winner- X-Mas Event Participant- Motor City Rush- Best GFX Artist Award- Player 
    Lineage : Scion of the Void King
    Position : Goddess of Conviction
    Faction : The Rune Knights
    Posts : 1426
    Guild : Guildless
    Cosmic Coins : 155
    Dungeon Tokens : 0
    Experience : 12,421,054

    Character Sheet
    First Skill: Voidwalking
    Second Skill: Sword of Wrath
    Third Skill: Cruorthurgy

    Into Places Unknown Empty Re: Into Places Unknown

    Post by Serilda Sinclair 23rd April 2023, 3:33 pm

    Seri Banner
    Conviction never shames nor condemns us.
    It calls us back to who we truly are.
    Truth be told, Serilda had expected the house to be full of chaos when they got back home. Vriko wasn’t used to being around children, and Naomi and Alexia could be quite the handful. So it was quite a surprise when they all came through the portal to find the house eerily quiet. Mythal called out to announce their presence even as Serilda also reached out with her own senses to see where everyone was. She, too, felt the presence of a larger adult body with two child sized ones nestled close to it.

    The entire group shifted into the living room and the sight they beheld caused Serilda to have to literally bite her lips to keep from making any noise. Vriko was sprawled on the couch, her hair a bit mussed and her face covered in marker drawings. The two young girls were snuggled up on either side of their aunt, a small array of toys and markers strewn about the place. All three were  out cold. It was an image that was both unbearably wholesome in a way that was extremely out of character for Vriko, and also utterly hilarious. The hilarity was only increased as Patty deviously picked up a marker after admitting that this was making her want children, only to lean over and finish the facial marker hair on Vriko’s face, causing Serilda to choke back a snort of amusement.

    The Voidwalker, shaking her head with a massive smirk on her face, put an approving hand on Patty’s shoulder before stepping up to the couch. But before she disturbed anyone, she pulled out her phone and took a picture, careful to leave the flash off so it wouldn’t wake anyone prematurely. Pleased with the final project, she quickly sent a copy to Gren before putting the device away and kneeling down. “Hey… We’re home.” Serilda’s voice was quiet, the noblewoman putting a hand gently on her future sister-in-law’s knee in an effort to wake her without waking the girls.

    Luckily, children had an easier time staying asleep even while they were being moved. Serilda picked up Naomi even as Mythal took Alexia, freeing the girls from their aunt. Giving Naomi a hug, she passed her off to Mythal as well, placing a kiss on Alexia’s forehead and letting her fiance take the girls upstairs to bed. In the meantime, Serilda stayed behind to help pick up the small mess of toys with Vriko. “Well, you look like you had a good time. Zemenar sends his greetings back to you.”

    Once the toys were put back, she gave Vriko a small smile and offered her a box of enchanted facial wipes. “You uh.. May want to clean up your face.”

    Meanwhile, Saffron elected not to hang around on the island. It was tempting to stay and socialize, but she was far too focused on the journey that now laid before her in terms of training. They weren’t going to start in earnest until tomorrow, and unfortunately that was leaving her feeling restless. She knew she had to do something productive or else she’d be going crazy all night, so she opted to make her trip to Oak Town to visit the library.

    The building was always open to the public, though this late at night there were very few visitors. The blonde made her way over to one of the computers and did a search for anything related to encyclopedias of magic, looking for anything that might give her ideas for things that could be useful against Seberg’s blood marker or his magical abilities. Once she located a few books she wanted to start with, she wrote down the section they were in and made her way over, pulling them off the shelves and finding a spot to sit that was relatively free.

    Research wasn’t exactly Saffron’s strong suit, so it didn’t take too long before her patience began to wear thin. Finding any types of magic that could be helpful against their foe was like trying to locate a needle in a haystack, and nine out of ten times the things she found that held promise were also magics that were either ancient or forbidden. As such, there weren’t a lot of books available on the topics, and anything that was available was locked up in a restricted access section.

    “Is there something you need?”

    Saffron wasn’t even fully aware of how much noise she’d been making, her grunts and groans of frustration and loudly slamming books shut having caused some irritation to the other woman sitting nearby. The blonde shot a glare over to the source of the voice, finding a set of striking blue and purple eyes staring evenly back at her. She had black hair that faded into white at the ends, and wore a set of Iceburgian armor that left on display a set of tight and bulging biceps that Saffron couldn’t help but envy. In her hands was a leatherbound tome that was titled in a language that Saffron didn’t recognize.

    “Excuse me?”

    “Perhaps this is your first time in a library. Usually the idea is that you’re supposed to be quiet while utilizing the facility. So please, if there is anything I can do that will help you abide by that common courtesy, tell me.”

    Who the hell was this bitch? Saffron could only stare at the surly woman, her instinct rising to tell her to mind her own business, but something caused her to hold her tongue. The Fairy Tail mage wasn’t intimidated by a lot of people, yet something about this mysterious woman caused her hackles to raise. Though the woman certainly wasn’t acting or speaking with any intent of threat, Saffron’s intuition was pumping the brakes hard on her usual sass. Whoever this woman was, the Boscan couldn’t shake the feeling that she was extremely dangerous.

    Finally, Saffron scoffed in annoyance and looked away, stacking up her useless books. “Not unless you can get me into the restricted section.” The muttered comment was more rhetorical than anything else. Honestly, Saffron had decided it just wasn’t worth it to stick around, ready to resign for the night and head back to the guild. However, she was rudely interrupted by the woman standing to her feet, grabbing Saffron by the back of her shirt as she walked past and pulling her along with very little effort. “Hey, what the hell? What’s your problem?!” Saffron attempted to resist, but in truth she was too surprised to put up much of a fight, and what little of a fight she did put up was light flailing her fists against a steel wall. As such, she was dragged halfway across the room to the nearest librarian behind a counter, who was giving them both a bit of a stink eye.

    “What can I help you with?”

    The dark haired woman waved a hand slowly in front of the librarian. “This woman is allowed access to the restricted section.”

    Saffron was about to call the woman ten kind of nuts, but her eyes caught sight of something strange happening to the librarian. The older woman’s face went a bit slack, her eyes almost vacant like she was in a trance. “This woman is allowed access to the restricted section,”[/color] the librarian parrotted. Then, she reached down and pulled out a passkey, offering it to Saffron, who stared in disbelief for a moment before taking it. Something had clearly happened, but Saffron would never have known it unless she had seen it with her own eyes – she’d sensed no use of magic.

    It was so baffling that the blonde had all but forgotten her annoyance. “Wait, how did you…”

    “Nuh-uh. You got your restricted access, I get my peace and quiet. That was the agreement. Good luck.”

    And with that, the woman went back to her seat and her book, leaving Saffron standing there in stunned silence even as the librarian seemed to come out of her trance and go back to work like nothing had happened. “Uh… thanks,” the Fairy Tail mage murmured. She was beyond confused, but wasn’t about to look a gift horse in the mouth. With one final wary glance at the strange woman, she made her way over to the restricted area to begin her research anew.

    Serilda Sinclair



    _____________________________________________________________________________________


      Current date/time is 14th October 2024, 9:14 pm