Ain't A Hero

Season 7

Bryan Schuder

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ or send a letter to Creative Commons, PO Box 1866, Mountain View, CA 94042, USA.

Beta Release

Updated 02/04/2020

Ain't A Hero

Season 6

Dedications

Timeline

Episode 79

Episode 80

Episode 81

Episode 82

Episode 83

Episode 84

Episode 85

Episode 86

Episode 87

Episode 88

Episode 89

Episode 90

Episode 91

Dedications

First and foremost... A special thank you to all the crazy humanity loving folks over at /r/HFY ! Out of all the places on Reddit for writing, you all are the most accepting and welcoming bunch of them all. As long as humanity is involved some how and you want to write, /r/HFY will give you a place to call home. I was not only surprised to find people interested in this crazy tale, but people who repeatedly read episode after episode... And still wanted more. I will try to deliver more! Second season down, hopefully a third and more to go!

So, in an inconsistent arbitrary order of me looking through the series posts, thank you to these fine folks that provided commentary (both praises and criticisms) and those who subscribed. (Please let me know if I missed anyone!)

roflmaono
Attamark
Lithuse
KillerKolonelz
RougemageNick
Twister_Robotics
joe_wood
Fly18
Lurking_Reader
Waspkeeper
bontrose
carpkiller
KahnSig
Shactus
michael15286
Krynja
ProfessorVonSagan
Layxe
zarikimbo
Ryushimojii
atomic_cheese
Rand__Rahl
NinjaTurple
fatboy93
PhalanxLord
Slayalot
K2MnO4
zymurgist69
ChainsawNagitana
Eater_of_yellow_snu
Jonfirst
Nuke_the_Earth
Isitalwaysthisgood
Red-Shirt
WandererOfTheMind
ImperialForgeMaster
barely_harmless
Maxkenny09
Alphamole0
Random-Hats
Applepielord1244
Fieryfight
ccassidyx9
Ghrrum
Thatfurrykid
tipsy_topsy
DudeGuyBor
InitiativeTwentyOne
Sakul_Aubaris
antonthekiller
pie4155
ragnoraknow
nerdy_n_dirty86
RedTheReckless
Shiamu
ZeDestructor
Omega048
MavenDeviant
HardAtomicSmile
testicouille741
Deathcoolbro
SirSchmoopy111
Halefor
cochi522
Olindoga
smeik111
explosiveelephants
LIKE1OOONINJAS
Cyber_Reader
ruruwkzu
spaceminions
CSlade1
JoshXH
sic99
Leginp
Firenter
lazyviking3742
ryan_morland
SirIronTwig
ChainsawHalberd
elemental821
MaartenS16
RollSavingThrow
randommlg
GrayMatter01
Daevis43
Glaris
vittupaahan
Admiral_Sylvor
TRN42
Golddrake
Repeated_613
Voobwig
Dr_Acen
Honoris_Causa
nuacc2
sluglie
mortalnine
mheiszler
pennythoughtful
IntelligentDemise
Makyura
minkshaman
Fkn_Ra
WakelessTitan
BlessedPatrick
ikbenlike
maaghen
Shaeos
garrdor
wiggamail
allorigional64
DarkLordZargon
bracabrad
Stordabjornen
ubercaesium
kaloshade
LurchTheBastard
kumo549
splash_43
Meh12345hey
F0rg0tMy70gin
Dolduck
jaredzz
KorbenD2263
PresumedSapient
minicooper237
mudkip201
Netmantis
Kasaeru
UnholyReaver
Just_a_stae_of_mind
Khelbun
Ice_Man_Cometh
Havok707
Omenofstorms
zombieking26
Kiryln
JJdaJet
AMEFOD
TheBarbequeSteve
TW6173
_Skylos
A_Drunk_Ninja
Maravedis
Moonlitsif
vitalmoss
Brimicidal
o11c
Danr630
readcard
Deadlytower
Einhanderz
HarbringerOfMayhem
Zoutpeper
Tinkerbill93
p75369

-79-

A strong high gust wind blows through the large, leafy tree in the side lot of the ranch style house. With each wave of ambient air, leaves high above rustle in a gentle, droning chorus, while thick metal targets hang from stands sway slightly in the flow. In the shade underneath, Cideeda slowly lifts her chest up off the workout mat, gently curves herself backwards, and constantly pushes herself up with her arms. During the long stretch of her back, she eases her breath, tips her head of short, multicolored hair back, and flicks her furry ears to the breeze. At the extreme extent of her flexibility, she digs her claw-tipped fingers into the mat, and presses her limits cautiously with a hint of a grimace. She holds the pose as her tail flicks and toes curl to the building strain. Quickly, she relaxes from the position, and lowers herself to relax back up the mat. Turning her head to the side, she sticks her tongue out with a stressed sigh. “So... That’s how far I can take that pose... A bit of an extreme... But, it really helps to keep the back nice and flexible.”

Sotalia stares with blinking golden eyes, and gawks dumbfounded at Cideeda’s previous demonstration. Gradually recovering her composure, she dons a playful smirk and rolls her eyes facetiously. “I am not going to lie, girl... You completely lost me after you made a right angle with your back.”

She tosses her fiery orange, wavy hair back, cycles a few breaths, and grips her workout mat tight with her long, thick black nailed fingers. “If I can even get close to halfway of THAT, I’ll be happy.”

Gritting her teeth, she focuses the determination on her face, and gradually lifts her upper torso off the ground. Crudely mimicking Cideeda’s performance, Sotalia strains to right herself against her less flexible, laden upper body, and contorts her expression with the stresses. Peaking at a near upright point, she holds her shaky position as the maneuver clashes with her body’s present limits. With pride driving her, she struggles to maintain the position for a number of seconds, and finally releases to quickly plop down with a slight bounce upon the work out mat. Catching her breath with arms out upon the surrounding grass, she rolls her head over to face Cideeda and blinks in a mild daze. “Gods almighty, how do you that to yourself?”

A toothy grin appears on Cideeda’s light brown face, and her emerald eyes gaze smugly over to Sotalia. “Oh, because I’m just that good.”

Crossing her arms in front herself and resting her chin upon them, Sotalia huffs out dismissively, leads a stray lock of hair over one of her swept back horns, and snorts amused. “Yeah, yeah... I’ll give you that much when it comes to THIS. Gods... I swear it felt like I was going to break myself in two there.”

Twisting her ill-humored smile, Cideeda directs a quip to Sotalia in fvalian with a trailing snicker. Sotalia blinks her golden eyes briefly, pushes her arms down to lift herself up, and glances down at her chest. Tugging at the tight fitting top, she inspects the faded material and frayed stitching, and narrows a mildly amused smirk at the quietly laughing Cideeda. “Oh, you joke, girl. But, I’ve had this top a long time. Not the first outfit that THAT has happened to.”

Rolling over onto her back, Cideeda stretches out her arms and legs, flexes her clawed fingers and toes, and rolls her eyes at herself. “At least, you don’t have claws. I’ve lost count the number of gloves and socks I’ve ruined with these things. But, I can remember the times they’ve saved me.”

Gazing up to the brief flits of sunlight sneaking between the leaves above in the thick canopy of the tree, she stills herself and closes her eyes with a thoughtful, subdued sigh. Her face twitches with heavier thoughts that weigh down her breaths, and she grimaces fighting off the mood. Sotalia concentrates her gaze upon Cideeda as a swell of concern rises in her expression. “So, how are you feeling? Really?”

Cideeda opens her eyes as awareness returns to her, and tilts her head towards Sotalia. “Good? I guess.”

Sotalia lifts an unconvinced eye brow, and focuses her inquisitive stare upon Cideeda harder. “You sure? After all you’ve been through?”

Twisting her mouth, Cideeda sits up with the upswing of her arms, and eases an uncomfortable exhale through her teeth. “I mean... I guess? I’m alive and healthy... And, the whole world didn’t blow up. So, a that’s good outcome.”

Sotalia pushes herself up, shifts her legs forward, and crosses her arms with an examining stare upon Cideeda. “Okay. I just wanted to be sure. Don’t need you repressing trauma to haunt you in the future.”

Cideeda narrows a gaze at Sotalia with a sly smirk, perk her brow, and chuckles lightly. “Don’t want the competition?”

Briefly flashing a mock glare at Cideeda, Sotalia grins proudly, flits her eyebrows up, and laughs with a faux arrogant tone. “Of course not! I’ve done a lot of stupid things and endured too much to earn my emotional baggage. Like hell I’m going to let some upstart outclass me in that department.”

Softening her expression, she levels her genuine concern toward Cideeda. “Seriously, though... That was one of the worst moments I’ve had to experience in my life. And if it hit me that badly... Well... I want to know how you are handling it. If, I’m not prying too much, girl.”

Cideeda pauses in thought, and internally drifts through her mind as her emerald green eyes sort between memories. “No, you’re not. I just think I’m processing it as well as I can? It’s really weird.”

Resting her hands out to her sides on the workout mat beneath her, she grits her teeth, wrestles a flit of emotion on her face, and releases an uneasy sigh. “I mean... Most the close calls I’ve had, just happened so quickly. I really didn’t have a chance to even think about it that much. I just reacted to the situation, and got clear... or clear enough. And, then it was dealt with.”

Subconsciously pressing her finger claws into her workout mat, Cideeda’s tail wags with an erratic undercurrent, and she frowns slightly with an emerging sad hint in her voice. “This time... I had way too much time to think about... everything. A lot hit me all at once, after I made the decisions. Not used to that at all.”

Nodding sympathetically, Sotalia’s golden eyes meet Cideeda’s emerald green eyes, and she smirks compassionately with a gentle sigh. “Nothing is worse than being left with your own thoughts during the worst times. Take it from someone with way too much experience in that. You never quite know what’s going to show up from the back of your brain when you give it too much of a chance.”

She presents a comforting smile to her friend, sits up straight, and brushes back her fiery orange hair over swept back horns. She averts her gaze briefly with a knowing grin. “I know you probably know this... And, have heard it a hundred times. But, we’re all here for you. So don’t be afraid to talk to us. Good ahead and pester me all you want, girl. Gods know, I’ve had to do plenty of that post bad day thinking before, and often really wanted someone else around to help me through it all.”

Cideeda curls her mouth to an appreciative smile, nods slightly to Sotalia, and draws in a relaxing breath. “Yeah, I’ve heard it a lot. But... It’s... Good to hear it again. I think I should be okay. Just sorting through it on my own right now.”

She cracks a slight grin, and relaxes some of the tension in her shoulders. “If not, I’ll definitely hit you up.”

Glancing around the surrounding shaded grasses under the leafy tree, she briefly checks towards front yard, stares at the main road, and ponders out loud. “Well, Aristespha and Dretphi should be back from running errands and getting lunch soon. So, I think we can try one more stretch.”

Swinging out to her sides, she deftly moves her legs into side splits, cocks her head questioning, and eyes Sotalia uncertainly. “How good are you at the splits?”

Sotalia lifts an incredulous brow at Cideeda’s display, contorts her mouth against her pride, and chuckles confidently. “I may be a little out of practice, but I should still have some flexibility left in me.”

Cideeda stifles a snort, bites her lower lip, and unleashes a prodding comment in fvalian. Sotalia narrows her stare, musters up an evil grin, and articulates a comeback fluently in a similar fvalian dialect with a sly tone. Flitting her emerald eyes wide, Cideeda expectantly twists the expression on her face, and fights back a flush of embarrassed red in her cheeks. Pointing a finger at Cideeda, Sotalia snorts out a laugh, and shakes her head in amused satisfaction. “Ha! I figured as much. You would TOTALLY use it to your advantage.”

Squirming to recompose her pride, Cideeda shrugs her shoulders nonchalantly. She rolls her eyes at the herself with a sweep of her long tail, and curls a guilty smirk as her furry ears flick. “No comment.”

Sotalia turns her focus ahead, unfolds her legs in front of herself, and braces her body with her hands out on the ground at her sides. “Well... Let’s see how rusty I am.”

With careful progression, she gradually eases her legs sideways, and slowly guides them further apart. Cideeda observes attentively and studies Sotalia’s movement. Arriving at a right angle between her feet, Sotalia stops pushing any further, takes a deep breath, and holds the position with a slight grimace. “Gods, as much as I want to show you up... Damn... I think that’s about all I can do right now. Really don’t want to chance it any further.”

Cideeda nods respectfully, and rests her hands on the tops of her thighs. “Honestly, that’s really good. Especially, if you haven’t stretched them out like that in a long time.”

Sotalia starts to ease her legs close, shifts her weight slightly forward, and rest her hands on her legs. “Still, I used to be able to do so much bet-”

Beneath her form fitting workout shorts, a large inner-thigh muscle quivers visibly for a moment and sharply tenses. Sotalia’s legs suddenly pull closed, and she rolls over onto the ground. Gritting her teeth, she screams out in a mix of anguish and anger. “AH! FUCK! GODS DAMMIT!”

Cideeda scrambles over next to the curled up and cursing Sotalia, and grabs hold of her as she spews forth a litany of curses in an intricate fabric of languages. Fighting against the pained flailing of Sotalia, Cideeda maneuvers the wailing half-emin onto her back, secures the afflicted leg, and carefully secures the limb for inspection. “Calm down! Let me see what’s going on!”

Sotalia musters up a fraction of composure, tightly grasps her horns, and breathes loud and tense. “Oh gods! Fuck! Dammit! I can’t BELIEVE it’s THAT same spot! WHY NOW?! It hasn’t bothered me in YEARS!”

Cideeda quickly finds the issues, cautiously feels the contracted muscle, and slowly shakes her head. “That’s really locked up. What helped it out before?”

Cringing while gritting her teeth, Sotalia works through the pain and growls out. “Massaging it! Just needs to massaged. SHIT! FUCK! OW!”

Grasping around the inner thigh, Cideeda studies the tension and presses her finger tips cautiously into the leg. “I’ll see what I can do.”

Inside the living area of the ranch style house, Bach quickly steps into the middle of the area from the hallway archway. He searches around the room for a noise, and aims his confused stare out the sliding glass door. Slowly plodding on the floor barefooted, he pulls up his loose fitting shorts, and brushes off his baggy t-shirt. A loud, shrill noise cuts through the muffling glass, and grabs Bach’s attention. He steps up to the sliding door, swings it open, and charges out into the backyard. Blinking worried, he darts his alert gaze around searching for the prior source of the noise. Sotalia squeals out in a torrent of pan-cultural swears. “STOP USING YOUR CLAWS!”

Cideeda yells back with blatant frustration in her voice. “Then roll over! I might get a better angle to press into it.”

Bach runs off to the side lot of the property next to the house, rounds the corner, and locks his gaze towards Cideeda and Sotalia. He approaches fast, and then slows to halt. Fighting through a haze of bewilderment and awkwardness, he puzzles at the sight of Sotalia face-down, tightly gripping her workout mat, and groaning with both of Cideeda’s hands between her thighs. Bach glances to either side of him, and cocks his head to the side. Obviously perplexed viewing the scene, and he calls out uncertainly. “Okay... Um... What the hell is going on? I heard the screaming from inside my room.”

Sotalia lifts her forehead up from the mat and growls out. “A fucking cramp!”

Flashing a glare back to Cideeda, Sotalia grumbles loudly. “And the claws AREN’T helping!”

Shaking her head, Cideeda lets go of Sotalia’s leg and holds her hands up in the air with a roll of her emerald green eyes. “I can’t reach the right muscle to massage without poking her.”

Bach resumes a fast pace over to Sotalia’s side, and gazes between Sotalia and Cideeda. “So, um, anything I can do to help?”

Sotalia twists her head back to glance to Bach, winces as she fights off a surge in muscle tension, and energetically directs Bach with a point of her finger. “Grab hold of it and massage it! OW! FUCK!”

Bach blinks dumbfounded, shifts his attention to Sotalia’s posterior and legs, and freezes as embarrassment and awkwardness paralyze him. “Uh... where... is... the... cr-”

Underneath the surface of Sotalia’s tight-fitting workout shorts, an inner thigh muscle abruptly tenses in erratic twitching spasms. Sotalia growls out frustration and pain, and clenches her fists. “SHIT! Why won’t it just stop already?!”

Bach focuses his attention upon the spot, widens his eyes briefly in a blend of surprise and curiosity, and leans closer to study the muscle. “Wow! THAT is a cramp.”

Hearing Sotalia whimper out her frustration, Bach powers through the awkwardness and discomfort to grasp tightly and massage the area. Minutes of experimentation and guidance from Sotalia and Cideeda, Bach works a firm pattern of applying moving pressure to soothe the spasm crazed muscle. As the process continues, Sotalia stretches out of her arms in front of her and recovers from her exhausting, painful experience with each long, calming breath. Cideeda gently pats Sotalia on the back of the shoulder to comfort her. “I think it’s calmed down finally.”

Fluttering her eyes open, Sotalia slowly crosses her arms, rest her chin on top, and sighs. “Finally... It hasn’t done that in so long...”

Bach continues to work the area in longer sweeping motions. Regaining her situational awareness, a sly grin graces Sotalia’s lips. She shifts her golden eyes to the side, slowly shrugs her shoulders, and requests with an alluring tone. “You know, since you did such a good job there... I have a few tense spots around my shoulders that could use YOUR touch.”

Pausing in his task, Bach’s thought process jams up from the sudden assault of awkwardness and situational awareness. Cideeda gazes over at the surge of embarrassment fueled red flush in Bach’s cheeks, narrows a glare at Sotalia, and presses a claw tip firmly into the side of Sotalia’s butt. “I think YOU need to GO INSIDE and rest until Aristespha gets back.”

Squelching a reflexive yip, Sotalia grumbles to herself briefly. She pushes herself off the workout mat, steadies herself with the help of Bach and Cideeda, and stands up. “Probably a good idea. Let’s get-”

A twitch of the muscle stops Sotalia from taking another step, and she groans annoyed. “Gods, I had almost forgotten how annoying this thing could get... Okay, if I can just keep it still and limp it-”

Another visible spasm happens with Sotalia’s attempt to move forward. She halts, and she balances her weight between Bach and Cideeda. Gritting her teeth, she drops her head down with painful resignation. “Shit, it’s still touchy. Oh gods, maybe if I-”

Thinking a moment and judging the distance, Bach kneels down slightly, and readies himself. “Here. It’s not too far. Let me carry you.”

With a careful sweep underneath, Bach tips Sotalia back in his arms, lifts her up with a little strain of his body, and carries her towards the sliding glass door. “We better not chance it right now.”

Sotalia glances around in surprise as Bach securely carries her. She squirms slightly against the physique keeping her aloft, and smirks guiltily. Cideeda rolls her eyes with a snort, and slides the back sliding glass door wider to allow Bach and Sotalia in.

----

Inside the living area, Sotalia watches anxiously as Aristespha closely examines the previously spasm prone muscle on the inside of her thigh. Cideeda stands nearby with her arms crossed, shifting weight between either foot, and maintaining a mix of intrigue and scrutiny. Bach stands nearby, idly surfing through the different channels on the television, and glancing over occasionally. Aristespha twist her expression thoughtfully, sits back on her ankles at the side of the couch, and ponders out loud. “Nothing too serious. Just a very strong muscle cramp. There is some residual tension in the muscles and minor cramps trying to happen.”

She closes her violet eyes briefly, reopens them to a glowing illumination, and pulls back her long silvery-blue hair over her very long, pointed ears. “I can do a few muscle release magical flows, and it should disrupt enough to allow the region to go back to normal.”

Bach turns his attention away from the screen, focuses his curiosity to Aristespha, and queries further. “How does that work?”

Aristespha glances over her shoulder briefly, smiles intrigued, and gestures Bach over. “It’s similar to dry needling. The process triggers an interrupting stimulus that causes the muscle to release. In fact, sit next to me, I think this something you can learn.”

Stepping around the pulled out coffee table, Bach settles in to seat next to Aristespha and his curiosity battles down the faint swells of anxiety as Sotalia smiles at him. “Are you sure? That’s sounds really like a proper medical procedure that should be done by someone who know what they’re doing. With years of training and one of those specialist certificates?”

Aristespha turns her head to face Bach, lifts an incredulous brow, and shakes her head. “It’s a simple pulse of flow utilizing energies you are more than capable of handling. The key thing is the amount and finer variables.”

Tilting her head to the side with an amused smirk, she furrows a knowing brow at Bach, and motions to Sotalia’s leg. “Which YOU should be able to pick up. Now mage sight here and watch me, please. I need to do a contrast pulse so I can get a better idea of what muscles are affected.”

Sotalia’s apprehension swells and she grits her teeth briefly. Glancing nervously around, she chuckles lightly and squirms slightly while trying to play down her unease. “You sure something like a needle is the right thing? I mean, Cideeda tried that already.”

Cideeda cracks a toothy grin, flexes the fingers on her hand, and blatantly admires her claws. “Well, with some proper guidance, I could try again and maybe get better results.”

Aristespha stares distantly upward for a moment at Sebastian’s ethereal form hovering above, rolls her eyes while shaking her head along with Sebastian’s sigh, and calls out towards the kitchen. “Dretphi? Could you assist me, please?”

Dretphi leans her tall frame out from the kitchen, shakes a stray platinum blonde braid out of the way, and nods. “Yes. How can I assist?”

As Dretphi approaches, Aristespha points towards Sotalia’s feet and projects a warning tone. “Grab hold of her legs. Sometimes the contrast flow pulse can trigger other minor spasms, and I don’t feel like getting a knee to the face.”

Sotalia's golden eyes flit wide when Dretphi clamps down her grip on her ankles, and she braces herself uncertainly. Sebastian’s ghostly visage lands next to the arm of the couch Sotalia’s head rests upon, and whispers comfortingly in her ear. “Take it easy. You know she knows what she’s doing.”

With an appreciative sigh, Sotalia nods and grumbles. “I know... I know... But gods, I don’t want that cramp to go off again. That REALLY fucking hurt.”

Aristespha quickly gestures through a short incantation, flows energies to her finger, and gently presses the tip against Sotalia’s inner thigh. Bach blinks his eyes to a bright blue glow and observes the magical power at play. With exacting finesse, Aristespha releases a faint pulse of flow and narrows her examining stare upon the target area. As the energies propagate throughout the different tissues, faint tremors of muscle activity cascade out in fading spasms. The spectacle captivates Bach's attention and his awareness of the world wanes with his focus filtering out distractions. As the contrast pulse dissipates to its outmost range, Sotalia momentarily winces and reflexively grabs hold of Bach’s upper arm in surprise at the odd sensation. Jarring him back to reality, Bach glances over to Sotalia and puzzles. “You okay?”

Sotalia notices her grip, releases it slowly with a smile, and nods. “Yes. It just felt weird ,and I thought a muscle was going to go off.”

Bach presents an understanding smirk, and shifts his attention to study Aristespha’s procedure. Sotalia eyes over to Bach’s arm, and catches Dretphi’s gaze. She subtly points to Bach’s arm, gestures by curling hers, and mouths out her surprise to Dretphi. With a strong hint of pride, Dretphi grins faintly, and nods in confirmation. Minutes later, Aristespha blinks her violet eyes back to normal, sits back on her ankles, and rolls her shoulders to relax. “That should calm down the muscles in that region. I would still relax for a few hours, and avoid strenuous activity for the rest of the day.”

Sotalia reaches out towards the out of reach coffee table for the remote. Bach picks the device up, and passes it over. Sotalia nods thankfully, resettles upon the couch, and releases a long sigh. “Not a problem there. I just hope something is on.”

Bach ponders a moment, and turns his head towards Aristespha with an inquisitive tone. “In that one muscle group, I keep noticing a difference in flow. Like there’s was a rough patch.”

Aristespha nods in agreement, and explains with a matter of fact tone. “Very likely an old injury that’s healed over time. The amount and density of replacement muscle cells can create that type of flow phenomena.”

Blinking a moment, she aims an intrigued lift of the brow at Sotalia, and cocks her head to the side. “Old gymnastics or workout injury?”

Sotalia thinks a moment, rolls her eyes to stop to spark a glare at Sebastian, and snorts. “You could say that.”

Catching the familiar tone, Sebastian notices the visual insinuation, and remains silent with a goofy smile failing to hide past embarrassment. Aristespha shakes her head with a laugh, and stands up. “Well, those type of injuries can happen.”

Bach rights himself up, walks over to his chair next to the other side of the couch, and sits down. As the rest of the team disperses to their own tasks, Bach and Sotalia keep their attention on the television. After a commercial, a local news report bit pops up.

“Investigators have turned up more evidence of recent activity by the People for Dragon Rights group in the Amaranth Valley area. Along with previous disruptive activities in the mass release of fancy whelps at a show, recent antics have backfired during an attempt to free a small herd of pseudo-dragons from their pens. Attempts to push sleeping pseudo-dragons out of their stables, incidentally, tipped one over on top of a group member, temporarily pinning them underneath the irritated creature. Investigators are still looking for more information about these individuals, and urge anyone with information to please contact local authorities.”

Bach sneers his upper lip, groans out his disgust, and shakes his head. “Oh gods... THOSE assholes.”

Sotalia perk her brow, tilts her head towards Bach, and puzzles. “Huh? What do you mean? They seem well meaning... if really, really inept.”

Contorting his face into a few derisive grimaces, Bach grumbles out a sigh, and shrugs his shoulders. “There was a real big chapter of that group that hung out around High Alton. And, they gave me, Sebastian, Kaleb, and Shadeesa all kinds of hell because... we kept a dragon as a pet.”

Fighting an incredulous hoist of an eyebrow, Sotalia narrows a curious stare at Bach and pries for more information. “Really? They always seem to champion good things. How bad could they be?”

Bach hold up his finger to Sotalia to focus her attention, and directs his voice down the hallway. “Hey, Sebastian! Get over here! I got something to tell you.”

A few seconds later, Sebastian hovers into the living around through archway leading the hallway, and gazes down at Bach. “What do you got, bro?”

A sly smirk appears on Bach’s face, and he taps the tips of both hands of fingers together. “Guess who’s in town?”

Sebastian thinks a moment, focuses a suspicious stare Bach, and crosses his arms. “Who?”

Twisting a smile, Bach holds his hands out to his side, and darkly chuckles. “Our friends... PDR.”

Confusion flashes up on Sebastian’s ethereal form, and furious recognition slams the prior expression back into oblivion. “AH FUCK! REALLY?! SHIT...”

As Sebastian rubs his ghostly temples and wanders in frustrated circular paths in the open area, Cideeda and Dretphi rest down plates of food on the dining table, exchange stares, and look upon the scene. Cideeda crosses her arms, flicks her furry ears, and perk her brow. “What did those guys do to you two?”

Sebastian grumbles to a slow regain of his composure, mulls over the right choice of words, and twists his mouth. “They just constantly gave us shit for almost a year. It got so bad, we could hardly even take Lagi out for walks without scouting the area out first. And, the leader decided to get into an argument over dragon care with Shadeesa... AFTER, she was well into her exotic veterinarian program.”

Bach's blue eyes widen as a distant memory rises to the front of his mind, and grits his teeth. “Oh... Gods... I thought I was going to witness a murder that night.”

Cracking a sly grin toward Bach, Sebastian chuckles darkly with pride for his brother. “It wasn’t until Lagi learned a particular fire spell... SOMEHOW... That they finally kept their distance. They were CONVINCED to go bother other people after Lagi starting spitting fire at them.”

Sotalia furrows her brow, and focuses an examining stare upon Bach. “Really?”

Noticing the directed attention, Bach twists his mouth uncomfortably and tries to shrug off the guilt. “Turns out Lagi was a very observant little dragon, and really liked that fire marble spell... I was PRACTICING that one night.”

Sebastian hoists a partially accusatory eyebrow at Bach, and colors his tone with a mix of sarcasm and amusement. “Yes, the fire marble spell. That entry level, practice spell, often done by high school students in a basic magic course... That YOU... for some reason... desperately needed an all day refresher course on... in front of Lagi's attentive gaze.”

Sotalia draws a wide evil grin on her face as she gazes at Bach, thoroughly amused. Cideeda and Dretphi twist their expressions in a mix of humor and surprise. Aristespha peeks out from the hallway archway, and lifts an intrigued brow. Bach glances around at the attention, releases a defeated sigh, and shakes his head. “Yeah... Well, just don’t bring it up with Shadeesa. Please? I think she’s still... a little mad... still? I mean, she did lose some really expensive clothes that one time, because of Lagi using that spell.”

Pausing to catch a thought his subconscious tosses up, Sebastian directs a concerned voice to Bach. “Speaking of which... Bro, could you send both Kaleb and Shadeesa a message? Even though they’re not that close to here, we should warn them.”

Sorting through the menus on his aetherphone, Bach nods in complete agreement, and starts typing out a message. “Yeah, I’m on it. And as big as Lagi has gotten, he’s quite figuratively AND literally a big target for them.”

Dretphi hums in thought, and slowly shakes her head. “Did not think they were confrontational. Comically incompetent? Yes. Misguided? Yes.”

Sebastian rolls his eyes, shrugs his shoulders, and holds his hands out to the sides. “They just focus on the big, easy to see problems. Stuff that looks good and they get done quickly, so they pat themselves on the back afterwards. You never see them helping out at the shelters, or doing fund raisers for anyone other than themselves.”

He shakes his head and sighs. “The real solutions to the real problems take time, and aren’t glamorous enough for them.”

Bach’s aetherphone chirps out an alert, and he taps onto the on display pop up. Sebastian floats over next to Bach, and peeks to the phone screen. “Kaleb or Shadeesa?”

Holding up his aetherphone, Bach snorts with a crooked smirk. “Kaleb. His response... Oh, gods fucking dammit. And, I think he was using the voice to text function? Because, it might have caught Shadeesa’s response in background, too? These are emin letters, I think?”

Sotalia carefully scoots over on the couch to the other side, directs an expectant gaze to Bach, and hems. Bach notices Sotalia, glances at his aetherphone, and hands it over to Sotalia. With golden eyes quickly scanning the text, Sotalia blinks blankly, hands the phone back, and whistles faintly. “That is NOT a happy woman.”

----

A peaceful ambiance radiates throughout the dense forest. Thick patches of undergrowth soak in the patches of bright sunlight slipping through the thick canopy of competing trees. Powerful gusts of wind filter through the countless gaps between the leaves, and sound out a droning chorus of rustling below. Within a carefully arranged circle of rocks, a low fire singes the prepared carcass of a small game animal propped above it. A leather gloved hand reaches out, grasps tightly upon a leg, and secures the cooked limb. A sharp dagger with a glinting edge pushes into the connective tissues around the joint, and effortlessly slices the meaty leg free from the rest of the roasted body.

The lone evuukian man bites calmly into the cooked flesh, and grumbles lowly in a dialect of evuukian with a calculating tone to himself. Slowly chewing, he straightens his posture while sitting on a log, and adjusts leather armored outfit upon him. Noticing the build up of pollen and dirt, he brushes of the intricate details within the aged and worn suit, and slowly cleans the magically reflective emblems. Tossing his long, black hair back, he contorts his light-gray, green hinted face and narrows his distant brilliant yellow eyed stare. He continues munching upon the cooked leg, and turns his attention to a pile of equipment at his side. Sifting through the gear under the swaying, leafy shade, he carefully sets an elaborately designed, exceptionally crafted bow to the side, and slides over a handmade leather quiver filled with meticulously made arrows. Flits of magical light flicker off from nearly invisible flowing patterns inlaid upon the equipment as they rest upon the ground.

With a firm grip, the man hoists up a battered field radio unit, and sets it up next to him. Turning on the unit with a twist of a knob, he taps a number of buttons in a well rehearsed series of steps, and the device displays a fast changing series of numbers with sweeping indicators. The digits halt, the encoded contents play out through a speaker on the unit, and the man presses a button. Over the next minute, the process repeats, and the man sighs with tinges of frustration. Upon flipping to another band of frequencies, the device settles upon a channel and a broadcast plays out.

“In our ongoing coverage of the sudden GAA activity in Ark, public relations representatives from the GAA have released official statements about troop movements into the Ark river peninsula. From the official release, it seems a previously unknown facility, long abandoned, was discovered due to tips from the public describing strange activity in the area. During initial investigations, GAA specialists discovered a possible threat to the public and successfully dealt with problem before it could lead to endangering the citizens living in the area...”

Pausing right before taking another bite, the evuukian man slowly angles his emerging glare upon the radio, sneers his upper lip, and growls quietly to himself. Reaching into a nearby backpack, he puts his arm further in than he height of the container, and retrieves a long, rolled up document. Spreading out of the thick and aged paper of the detailed map, the man surveys the many markings of locations with extensive notes and symbology. He searches the information, and settles his gaze upon a circled spot in the middle of a river peninsula. Pulling out a marker from one of the backpack’s side pouches, he slowly drags an “X” out upon the paper with a low growl articulating his simmering frustration.

He pauses in thought and examines the map. He studies the many other locations, and scowls with a slow shake of his head. Narrowing his eyes upon another spot on the document, he nods to himself, rolls the map back up, and deposits it into the darker space of the backpack. Flashes of sunlight from above beam down through the swaying branches, briefly illuminate the greater capacity within the bag, and highlight a mix of old artifacts and collections of documents.

Pulling a strip of meat off the cooked leg, he grits his teeth in swelling anger and groans annoyed in a distant stare. Squinting in thought, he searches his own mind and grumbles in spiteful evuukian. At the apex of his quiet rant, he narrows a stern glare and flickers of faint white spark in the centers of his eyes.

----

A hard rain rolls out in sheets across the mostly empty parking lot. The droning patters of drops rush the front glass wall of the small restaurant, and spatter against the surface. Meredosia’s crimson eyes stare distantly out to the drenching winds, as waves drift across the wet surface of the pavement outside. After a minute of staring, the screen her battered aetherphone dims, and she blinks back to reality. Glancing down upon the display, she taps it back to full brightness, and idly scrolls through the text on an aethersite. Humming to herself, she rests the device down on the small table next to the kitchen entryway, and presses the link on the screen. After a weak flash on the horizon, muffled thunder vibrates the glass store front.

Meredosia brushes back her long, gray away hair from her ivory face, draws in a long breath, and stares at her aetherphone as light hints of annoyance slip out. Rolling her eyes at the loading indicator prominent on the screen, she watches dim illumination of the stormy afternoon through the vinyl “Fval Spice” on the glass front door. Seeing no difference in the weather, she shifts her attention to a worn, aged notebook, and flips to a new page. Picking up a wooden pencil off to the side, she taps on the blank paper and twists her face thoughtfully. Slowly, her left hand gracefully brushes the graphite tip, and sketches out rough shapes and shades. Her crimson eyes focus upon the developing picture, and a faint smile creeps out from the corner of her mouth.

Brushing his hands on his apron, Noyando steps out from the back of the kitchen, flicks the graying tips of his furry black ears, and contorts his light brown face thoughtfully. Pondering the weather outside, he glances over at to the wall clock, frowns slightly, and shrugs his shoulders plainly. “No more deliveries, today, Mera. To go and dine in only.”

Mera blinks back to attention, gazes over to Noyando, and nods with growing relief. “Oh. Thank you. To be honest, I really didn’t want to have to ride out in this.”

Noyando shakes his head and sighs with a jutting canine smile. “I would not want you out there right now. Anyway, you can help with getting ready for the dinner rush.”

As Mera agrees and begins to get up from the seat, Noyando holds his hand out and motions for Mera to stay seated. “Not now. It’s not busy, so I will cook your diner. What do you want tonight?”

Mera settles back down in her seat, thinks a moment, and decides with a happy tone. “Oh, I want to try that one dish you recommended. Please?”

A proud grin appears on Noyando, and he nods as he pivots into back into the kitchen area entrance. “Of course. I will start right now.”

Mera’s very long ivory ears perk up subtly under her gray hair, and she returns her attention to refining the sketch in her notebook. Glancing over to her aetherphone, she taps the screen back on, enters the security code, and resumes reading the new aethersite text. As Mera browses, a younger fvalian girl wanders out from the kitchen area with a battered tablet in her hands. She briefly frowns at the constant rain and gray skies outside, glances over to Mera, and steps over to a chair on the other side of the table. Sliding the chair out, the fvalian girl hops up into the seat, places her tablet on the tabletop, and idly searches through a partially cracked screen for a game on the menu. Mera shifts her attention to the child momentarily, quirks her brow, and resumes filling in the finer details of her sketch.

The fvalian girl presses firmly on the screen until it responds, watches a loading symbol appear, and frowns slightly. As the bar slowly creeps along, her black furry ears droop close to her shoulders, and she sighs impatiently. Idly kicking her legs under the chair as the seconds tick on by, her attention drifts around the room and searches for anything else going on. After exhausting the contents of the room around her and the same stormy gray outside, she settles her gaze upon Mera’s notebook and stares attentively. Her furry black ears perk up and her light brown eyes widen with curiosity. As Mera continues to glide her pencil skillfully over the evolving picture, the young fvalian girl unconsciously leans closer and closer over time, to the work in progress. She stares at in it growing wonder. Gazing her light brown eyes up towards Mera, the fvalian girl smiles brightly. “That’s really pretty. You’re really good.”

Mera blinks back to awareness, glances up to meet the fvalian girl’s eyes, and awkwardly smiles, hiding some embarrassment. “Oh, um... Thank you. It’s not done, yet. I still have a lot more to do.”

Thinking a moment, she tilts her head to the side and plainly asks. “I’ve seen you around here. But, I haven’t caught your name. What is it?”

Flicking her ears, the fvalian girl perks up and grins with sharp smile. “My name is Katelli. You are Mera. You are always taking food out. And riding the scooter.”

With nod, Mera chuckles lightly and cracks a small smile. “Yes, I am.”

Katelli quickly shifts her attention to a chime from her tablet, stares at it for a second, and sighs as it struggles to load the game. Mera squints her eyes at the screen, frowns slightly, and shakes her head. “Is it broken?”

With a mildly frustrated growl, Katelli rolls her eyes and shrugs her shoulders. “I don’t know. It’s just SO OLD. It takes FOREVER to do anything. The screen is all scratchy, too.”

Mera nods sympathetically, lifts up her aetherphone off the table top, and shows it to Katelli. “I know how you feel.”

Katelli glances over at the battered device, giggles appreciatively, and smiles. “Wow! It’s as old as my tablet. Does it take FOREVER to do stuff, too?”

Turning the phone back to her, Mera taps a new link on the aethersite, and places it back down on the table. Katelli slides her tablet over next to the aetherphone. Mera and Katelli watch as the devices progress bars gradually slide along their ponderous paces. Katelli leans over with her elbows on the table, snickers with a wide grin, and wags her tail. “Which one will win?”

With a humored snort, Mera rolls her eyes with a smile, and shakes her head. “I don't think either of them really win. They just don’t lose as bad as the other.”

Katelli giggles at the comment, and her attention drifts back to Mera’s sketch. She stares captivated at the details in the surrounding forest framing, the overlook into a huge clearing between massive trees, and the plant covered ancient buildings. She blinks and tilts her head intrigued at the two evuukians sitting next to each other and gazing into the clearing. Flicking her ears in thought, Katelli stares at her slow loading tablet for a moment, and glances over to Mera’s notebook and pencils.

Sitting briefly back down, she hops out of her chair, walks over behind the front counter, and almost disappears out of view. With Katelli’s tail wagging out, sounds of shuffling and noises of movement fill in the air briefly. Seconds later, Katelli reappears with a pad of order tickets and a pen. She rushes back over, slips back into the chair, and puts the pad down. With a happy smile, Katelli’s ears perk, and she starts putting the pen to the paper. “I’m going to draw something, too.”

Mera puzzles a moment. Watching Katelli start to scratch out the first lines on the pad of tickets, a delighted smile gradually emerges over time upon her face. In between filling in spots of detail upon her sketch, Mera pauses to follow the progress of Katelli’s drawing. As the storm rolls on across the parking lot, Mera and Katelli compare doodles and dysfunctional portable devices to the growing aroma of food in the small restaurant.

-80-

The side door to the long brick house opens up, and Shadeesa grips onto the handrail as she steps down the few steps to the concrete of the attached carport. After adjusting the apron over her looser fitting clothes and large belly, she hands over a small packet to a middle-aged emin and presents a smile on her light gray, white freckled face. “Here’s the official test results straight from the Dragon Sciences lab of High Alton, Mr. Frenzacia. Varan is a proper dragon.”

Mr. Frenzacia blinks his deep red on black eyes, glances down as he removes the paperwork from the manila envelope, and uneasily smiles. “Wow... I guess that Professor Blaureiter’s hunch was right. Huh... Um...”

He gazes over to a young teen-aged girl in with silvery, red tinted hair blowing the gentle breeze, and calls out with a nervous grin. “Did you here that, Fawna? Your little Varan is a genuine dragon. He’s probably going to grow really... big...”

Fawna pauses a moment from pulling a firm bristle brush along a small dragon’s amber scales, and smiles with a bright expression of joy in her blue on white and blue on black eyes. “REALLY?”

She barely contains her excitement, briefly shifts her attention to a thought while idly guiding stray hairs over her horns, and gazes back over eagerly. “How big is he going to get?!”

Mr. Frenzacia slides his distant gaze over to Shadeesa with an awkwardly smirk. “Vet Serania... What damage should I expect when that one grows up?”

Hints of future dread sneak into his stare over to the gigantic Lagi as the dragon spreads both wingspans out for Kaleb. Shadeesa lifts an eyebrow, and tilts her head of tied back dark green hair to the side. “Depends. How much land do you have? You’ve mentioned having a farm.”

Searching the top of his mind, Mr. Frenzacia’s eyes sort through mental figures, and he reports the results with a confident hum. “Just over a square kilometer between all my plots. I take care a few more of the family plots, too.”

Nodding at the figure, Shadeesa crosses her arms just over her pregnant belly, and smirks thoughtfully. “What do you grow?”

Mr. Frenzacia nonchalantly shrugs his shoulders and smiles. “Honestly, a little bit of everything. We have the usual vegetables everyone buys around here. Been trying to get an apple orchard going on a plot that’s not great for much else. And if all goes well, our frost avocados should fruit this fall.”

An intrigued spark lights up Shadeesa’s eyes, and she smiles reassuringly to Mr. Frenzacia. “You should be just fine. In fact, the larger Varan gets the more useful he’ll be on the farm.”

Cocking his head to the side, Mr. Frenzacia blinks curiously. “Really? Why is that?”

Shadeesa grins widely and chuckles amused. “Oh, let me tell you all about your new, growing garbage disposal unit.”

Out in the backyard near the carport, Kaleb walks around from the other side of Lagi into view. He pets Lagi on his large, armored head, and walks next to Fawna as she brushes the relaxing Varan. “Yeah, Lagi loved his stiff brush when he was that little. Enjoy it while it’s that simple.”

Kneeling on the ground slowly pulling the brush over the sedate Varan’s scales, Fawna gazes up to Kaleb with a bright smile. “Does it get harder to care for dragons?”

Turning to gaze at Lagi sunning his massive wings in the sun, Kaleb shrugs his shoulders with his arms out to the side, and indecisively ponders as he scratches his head of short blonde hair. “Well... Not harder, exactly? I think the right words are... More complicated?”

Glancing down at the completely enthralled Varan, Kaleb shakes his head with a smile and steps over to an open toolbox. He retrieves a pair of large pliers, directs his voice to Fawna, and gestures Lagi over. “Soon, you might be filing claw tips, shaping armor plates, and pulling out stubborn scales.”

Kaleb furrows his brow, points to a spot under a wing shoulder on Lagi, and inquires. “So, under there?”

Lagi narrows his green eyes at the spot, turns his body towards Kaleb, and scratches at the troublesome area of blue black scales. He speaks out in a complex series of clicks, snorts, churls, chirps, hisses, and growls. Kaleb nods his head, walks over to area, feels around the outer layer of the dragon, and taps on the odd scale out. “Yeah, it’s close enough to falling out, but just hanging on enough to be annoying.”

Kaleb rubs around the base of the thick skin the scale is attached to, clamps the pliers carefully onto the scale, and glances over to Fawna. “Now, the trick to is to be quick right after you’ve massaged the spot just enough.”

Fawna idly brushes the little amber dragon Varan, while she watches the dragon care lesson from Kaleb. Shadeesa draws a long breath in, sighs with smiles, and finishes her explanation. “So, really, Varan is going to save you A LOT of money on disposal of most of your processing leftovers. When his digestive track develops fully, there will be few very things he won’t be able to eat.”

She pauses a moment, perks her brow, and twists her mouth, hinting at past sour experiences. “Though, you will need to teach him he’s not allowed to eat from fruit trees without your expressed permission. Otherwise, you NEVER see a ripe piece of fruit on those trees EVER again.”

Stroking his chin thoughtfully, Mr. Frenzacia nods with growing relief and chuckles to himself. “Understood. I guess I can stop buying that gods awful expensive fancy whelp feed now.”

Fawna’s long, pointy ear tips twitch at her father’s voice, and she turns her unhappy stare at her father. “Dad! Varan LIKES that food a lot.”

With a waning sigh, Mr. Frenzacia rolls his eyes in defeat. Shadeesa quirks her face to smile, holds a finger to signal Mr. Frenzacia to wait, and walks through the side door to go inside. A minute later, Shadeesa carefully steps down with a large square of green and brown minced fiber in each hand. Mr. Frenzacia puzzles at the faint sheen on the objects, cocks his head to the side, and queries. “So, what are those?”

Shadeesa smirks slyly, gauges the gentle breeze, and intersects its flow towards the backyard. “Something Kaleb and I have been developing over the years for Lagi. It’s compressed fruit fodder and lard... with just a little peanut butter.”

The wind stirs around Shadeesa as she holds a large, thick rectangular treats in each hand. She allows the faint gust to blow across the fragrant slabs. Moments later, Varan stirs abruptly from his brush induced slumber, sniffs the air with confused chirps, and blinks his aqua eyes. Fawna puzzles at the sudden excitement from Varan, glances around, and meets Shadeesa’s gaze. “Huh, uh... What are those?”

Shadeesa carefully leans over, passes both treats over to Fawna, and grins as she stands back up with her hands on her back. “Treats for the dragons. Give one to Varan.”

Fawna sniffs the strange block, and scrunches up her nose reflexively. She eyes the strange square apprehensively, and glances down to a small pair of clawed dragon hands expectantly pawing at her arms. Varan alternates his attentive aqua eyed gaze between Fawna and the square treat. Fawna blinks, and holds the large treat in front of the small dragon. Varan quickly grasps hold slab of fodder, sniffs it, and bites off a chunk. Chewing the treat slowly, he halts suddenly. His eyes widen, claws grip the thick square tightly, and his full focus concentrates on the delicious creation before him. A loud series of happy chirps and purrs slip out between chews and bites, as Varan excitedly consumes the treat with reflexive tail wags and wing flaps.

Fawna gazes astounded, smiles brightly at the absolute delight plain on the small dragon. “Wow! You really must like it. I’ve never heard you make all these noises. Not even when I gave you your nice food.”

While attention remains on the small dragon’s reaction, Lagi’s green eyes fully focus onto the remaining treat in Fawna’s other hand she idly holds off the side. With slow, careful movements, Lagi purposefully moves quietly closer to Fawna under the distraction of Varan. Pausing often to study the reactions of Kaleb, Shadeesa, Mr. Frenzacia, and Fawna, Lagi maneuvers his massive frame forward in a collective mental blind spot, gradually threads his neck closer to Fawna, and slowly parts his maw. Easing out his long tongue, he extends the tip ever closer to the treat. The wind blows the faintest traces of taste upon Lagi’s tongue and his eager green eyed stare widens the closer to the goal he gets.

A powerful, loud snap of the fingers pierces through the air and halts the large dragon’s progress immediate with a swell of frightening familiarity. Shadeesa squares her stance, glares disapprovingly at Lagi, and commands. “LAGI! NO! YOU know better.”

Lagi shrinks back away guiltily, and shamefully adverts his gaze with whimper. Shadeesa rests her hands at her hips, points a finger at Lagi, and narrows her stare at him. “That’s very RUDE of you. Fawna is our guest. If you want the treat, you need to ask her nicely.”

After working through the embarrassment, Lagi meets Fawna’s gaze, regains his composure, and emits a series of chirps, clicks, purrs, and whines. Fawna tilts her head to the side, glances around to everyone else confused, and puzzles at the noises. Sharpening her stare at Lagi, Shadeesa sighs loudly, and shakes her head. “In Americ, Lagi. She doesn’t understand that language, and you need the practice.”

Lagi gazes pitifully at Kaleb and whines out a plea. Kaleb crosses his arms, stands sternly, and reaffirms. “You heard her, Lagi. I agree with her. You need to practice.”

A mumbling, disappointed grumble slips out from Lagi, and he sits up childishly defiant to the terms. He summons his resolve and presents a facade of disinterest to the treat in Fawna’s hand. Varan’s chirps and purrs of joy fill the silent moment as he munches upon a pocket of peanut butter within the treat. Lagi glances briefly over to witness the small dragon coiled blissfully around the partially eaten treat, and lapping up oozing, delicious mix in his clawed clutches. Each happy noise from Varan and playful toss of the savory square dissolves Lagi’s resolve, and his attention shifts back to the dragon treat in Fawna hand.

Drawing in a large breath of air, Lagi gazes at Fawna, contorts his mouth awkwardly, and flexes his throat in unpracticed motions to rough, approximate vocalizations. “May. I. Have. Treat? Please?”

Both Fawna and Mr. Frenzacia stare in surprise. Shadeesa smiles happily and claps her hands together. “There you go! Very good, Lagi.”

Kaleb pats Lagi on the side and smirks proudly at him. “See it’s not so hard. Just practice a bit more.”

Fawna blinks out of the stupor to a bright smile of astonishment and excitement, and offers the treat to Lagi. “Yes, you may, Lagi.”

Lagi licks up the treat into his maw, settles down on the grass, and slowly chews the treat to a moment of bliss. Fawna catches a random thought in her mind, glances to Varan, and her eyes widen with possibility. “Wait... Could Varan talk one day?!”

While the dragons enjoy their treats and Kaleb explains the dynamics of dragon vocalization, Mr. Frenzacia ponders a moment. He turns to Shadeesa, and casually inquires. “How stocked up on baby clothes and furniture are you?”

Shadeesa lifts entrepreneurial brow, and cracks a plotting smirk. “No where near as much as I should be.”

Mr. Frenzacia nods, strokes his beard, and crosses his arms. “My wife has been wanting to clear out the bonus room, and there’s a quite a bit of old baby clothes and a nice wooden crib... among other things.”

Turning her head towards Mr. Frenzacia, Shadeesa grins slyly, and chuckles to herself. “Well, I think an arrangement could be made. Plenty of advice to be shared and treats to be made.”

----

The overhead fan’s wooden blades gently spin and push a stream of air down into the middle of the room. A paper bag of corn chips wobbles upon a finely crafted wooden coffee table, and raps softly against an empty beer bottle upon a coaster. Thomas Blaureiter snorts loudly and settles back down as he shifts his head upon a couch pillow. He unconsciously tosses upon the dark brown leather couch, and scratches his thin, tight white shirt with his cybernetic hand. Softly snoring, he stretches out briefly, yawns, and reflectively cradles the game controller closer to his muscular chest.

Without a single sound, an athletic man appears in entryway leading to the nicely decorated living room. After tightening the belt around his house coat, he finishes tying back his slick, black hair, and scans the room with his amber eyes. He aims his gaze at Thomas, and cracks a humored smirk on his olive toned face, and slowly shakes his head. “Just one more level... Right...”

With a fluid grace, the man steps silently upon the old wooden floors, and his sleek, cybernetic feet deftly apply near-perfect pressure upon the finished boards. Swaying in purposeful motions, he continues to walk in complete stealth around the coffee table, and balances upon legs blending biology and technology. Standing in front of Thomas, the man reaches down and slips his fingers around the controller. After a few careful attempts, he manages to firmly but gently free the game pad from the tight clutches of Thomas’s cybernetic arm. With a swift pivot on the balls of his feet, the athletic man holds the device in his hands, and taps a button. The controller flickers to life, a game console lights up on shelf in a finely crafted, hand-made entertainment center, and the large television displays the pause menu of a role-playing game.

Quickly pressing buttons and moving the joysticks, the man enacts a well practiced series of commands, and glances back to Thomas with a loving smile. Another menu opens on the television, and the on screen highlight moves to a new save game slot in a long list. The man taps a confirmation on the game controller. Pausing a moment, he tilts his head to side, notices the very little playtime difference between saves. He ponders with a narrowing stare at the screen. Exiting the game, he swiftly flips through the large library of games on the system, and selects one in particular. He swiftly taps the mute button on the remote on the coffee table. The main menu appears upon a backdrop of a large dragon flying through a twisting course with a rider shooting targets. The man navigates to the high score list, and scrutinizes the entries. A bit of relief graces his smirking face when he reads “Albert” at the top and nods confidently.

Albert analyzes the many other entries below his name, shakes his head slowly with a smile at all the variations of Thomas’s name, and quietly giggles to himself. “Just can’t resist can you.”

With a humored grin, Albert glances over his shoulder at the sleeping Thomas, and sighs happily. “Keep trying, my dear.”

Holding a button on the controller, the console and television dim back to sleep, and Albert softly rests the controller on the coffee table. Without a sound from his footsteps, he struts across the old, wooden floors into the kitchen. Minutes later, the muffled sputtering of a coffee maker rises in the background of the living room, and the crisp, gentle trickles of coffee filling a glass carafe sprinkles into the soundscape.

After a few clanks of glass upon ceramic, Albert steps gracefully out of the kitchen archway into the living room with a cup of coffee in each hand. He stops next to Thomas on the couch, and wafts the odor of a mug of black coffee near his nose. Fluttering his light blue eyes open, Thomas groggily glances around room and develops enough awareness to notice Albert holding the coffee in front of him. “Oh... Shit... I really did mean to go to bed. I hit pause menu, closed my eyes, and... Well...”

Thomas scoots himself to an upright seat on the couch, appreciatively grasps hold of the mug of black coffee, and sheepishly apologizes. “Sorry... Didn’t think I was that tired.”

Albert leans down, kisses Thomas, and ruffles his head of swept-back, silvery gray hair with a smile. “Gods, as if I’m going to be mad at something I’ve been guilty of myself. Anyway, I saw you paused it right before that dungeon I wanted to co-op with you.”

A faint hint of blush colors Thomas’s cheeks, and he shyly smiles. “I also found a sword that might work for your dual-wielder build, too.”

With a well-practiced twirl, Albert grabs a quilt, flings it open, and floats it down upon him as he lowers onto the open spot on the couch. “Ooo. I can’t wait to try it out.”

Slipping his tan colored coffee, he lifts an examining brow towards Thomas with a playfully accusatory tone. “As much as I love the loot you keep finding, I think next summer you need to teach a class or work at a summer camp. I don’t think this much free time is the best thing for you.”

Thomas finishes up a long swig of his black coffee, narrows an apprehensive gaze at Albert, and grumbles to himself. “I don’t know. Maybe one summer course. But, they usually want you to teach a selected topics course... And, I really don’t know if anyone would be interested in them.”

Blinking blankly, his mind wanders to the other idea, and he grimaces uncertainly. “As for a camp? I don’t know if I’d be that good of a camp counselor. Children these days probably would think I’m old and boring.”

Albert narrows his incredulous gaze at Thomas, and rolls his eyes with a sarcastic drone. “Oh no, children. I’m sorry to tell you that your camp leader is Commander Blaureiter. You know, the guy who rode the dragon named The Night Terror and... Literally... Flew around and shot stuff with a blaster. His stories will probably bore you all to tears. Have your aetherphone games loaded and ready.”

Thomas quirks his brow at Albert, grumbles to himself, and sighs. “They don’t know who I am... Or, probably care. Anyway, I’d probably just have the parents angry at me because I unknowingly taught their kids something they’ll misuse. Gods, reminds me of all the random ways my Uncle Jimmy showed me how to make napalm and explosives when I stayed with him over summers.”

A mischievous smirk graces Albert’s lips, and he snorts with a snicker, shaking his head. “Don’t worry. I’ll just draft up a legal waiver the parents have to sign, and watch them TRY to go against me in court.”

Settling into the plush back of the finely-made leather couch, Thomas glances over to Albert with a curious tone. “By the way, any progress on figuring out anything on that Dragon’s Right group around Amaranth?”

Albert sighs, and shrugs his shoulders. “No luck, I’m afraid, dear. But, my sources haven’t found anything that links them with the group lingering around here. So far, the consensus seems to be that it’s just some half-assed copycat group. My friends are definitely interested in figuring out if there is a connection.”

Thomas nods in agreement, drinks another bit of his black coffee, and tugs at the corner of his mouth. “Damn. Well, that’s probably good news, since they’re not backed by anyone. Kaleb, Shadeesa, and Lagi will sleep a little easier. Though, I don’t think any group would be stupid enough to bother Lagi.”

Flitting his eyes wide with a spark of excitement, Albert smiles to Thomas and squirms eagerly. “Oh! I sent my suggestions for baby names for their son. I hope they decide on one soon.”

Briefly grimacing, Thomas rolls his eyes and sighs. “Me too. She’s due within two months, if I'm it remembering right. Ah, they’ll figure it out. If they can raise a dragon like Lagi, they’ll be able to manage.”

Albert and Thomas sit on the couch, enjoy their coffee, and idly listen to peaceful morning sounds. After a few minutes, Albert stretches his leg out towards Thomas, and gently but firmly pokes a toe into the outside of Thomas’s thigh. Blinking to attention, Thomas glances over, cocks his head to the side, and puzzles. “What?”

Albert furrows his brow, twists his mouth, and lifts an expectant eyebrow. “It’s your day to cook breakfast.”

Thomas tilts his head side to side, searches his mind, and wades awkwardly through his confusion. “Wait, what?”

Rolling his eyes, Albert releases a mildly annoyed groans. “By the gods, Thomas! It’s TUESDAY.”

Halting to sort through his memory, Thomas’s eyes widen in surprise, and he begins to lean forward. “Oh... Shit... It is.”

Standing up from the couch, Thomas’s heavy footsteps press onto the old, wooden boards, and creaks resonate out into the living room. He halts before crossing the threshold into the kitchen, and glances over to Albert with a grin. “And?”

Albert crosses his arms with a playful smile, and snorts. “Oh, you know what I want.”

Stepping into the kitchen, Thomas nods and directs his voice back. “Cute cat ears and whiskers on your pancakes?”

With a satisfied smirk, Albert wiggles down to relax upon the couch, and colors his tone with loving sass. “Of course! I mean, why else do I keep you around? It’s certainly not for your time keeping.”

Thomas quips back from the kitchen. “And, shoulder massages?”

A guilty smirk appears on Albert’s face. “Well, THAT, too.”

----

The members of the Flames of the Phoenix idle around the dining table. Chad stands up at the head of the table, surveys the team, and hems to get everyone’s attention. Veevi glances up with her dark pink pupil eyes, presents a manipulative little grin on her tan face from her seat next to Chad, and tosses back her head of long pink hair. Trakenthin straightens up his tall posture, gradually lifts his stare from his aetherphone, and patiently waits. Tassilda narrows her light blue on black eyes towards Chad, twists her mouth into a suspicious grimace, and raps her long, thick black nails upon the table top. Modoran blinks back to a mix of attention and consciousness, gradually assumes his typical nonchalant demeanor, and stretches his arms back. Deedri’s furry ears twitch and perk towards Chad, and she sits up attentively. Nearby in the kitchen area, Gerald leans upon a counter, balances the camera on his shoulder, and carefully aims the device for an ideal shot of the meeting. Just outside, another recording team slips in a camera lens and a boom microphone through an opening in the back sliding glass door.

Chad meets everyone’s eyes, stands up proudly, and addresses the group. “It’s about time for our team to undertake our next quest. To mix things up a bit and get more involvement from the team...”

Slight tinges of suspicion rise in the expressions upon Trakenthin, Tassilda, Modoran, and Deedri. Drawing in a long dramatic breath, Chad presents a bright, white grin to the team, reveals three packets from behind his back, and lays them out on the table. “We’ve been given three different missions for all us of to vote on and decide which one to take on.”

A wave of surprise spreads through the assembled team. They gradually show signs of genuine interest. Noticing the growing acceptance, Chad smiles and nods with a happier tone. “Well, you haven’t started to groan and grumble, so I’ll take that as you all being open to it.”

He slides the three folders into the middle of the table, and gestures for the group to investigate further. “I want each of you to rank your preference on the quests. Take some time to consider. I’ll need your votes by noon on Friday. And, we’ll be revealing our votes live Friday night.”

Tassilda lifts a wary brow towards Chad, leans over the table to drag the top folder over, and inquiries further. “So, what kind of missions did they see fit to burden us with now?”

Chad smirks slightly, crosses his arms, and motions towards the packets. “So, a quick summary. One quest is to escort a celebrity while shooting for his latest movie. The site is on the outskirts towards the west. And, we may get a chance to have parts in the film.”

Veevi eyes widen with an overtly eager grin, and she focuses her alluring gaze straight at Chad while reaching out towards the folders in the middle of the table. Chad glances briefly at Veevi, buffers an awkward grimace fighting against his grin. He summons back his composure, and continues his explanation. “The second mission is a survey and exploration operation across an area with multiple ruins that haven’t been checked out thoroughly in a decade. It seems pretty standard...”

Chad’s confidence trails slightly with his tone, and faint hints of unease infiltrate his body language. Trakenthin’s hazel eyes examine the subtle changes in Chad’s demeanor, and he lifts his muscular bronze skinned arm to point between the mission folders. “Which envelope for that mission?”

Veevi finishes examining the first page of a quest packet, sneers her upper lip, and turns up nose. “This one I think. Here. You can have it.”

She disgustedly dumps the papers in front of Trakenthin, stretches out across the table in her tight fitting clothes, and slides the remaining large envelope to her with a sharp grin. Trakenthin eyes over Veevi cautiously, picks up the paperwork, and studies the contents. Chad re-establishes his confidence, draws in a long breath, and presents to the group. “The final possible mission is a search and retrieval. Without getting into too much detail, it seems that a research group lost track of a scout drone near a small weird zone in the middle of the woods to the east. They’ve been able to narrow it down to a search area, and need someone on foot to try to find it.”

Veevi blatantly ignores the rest of the discussion with her full focus upon the document firmly in her sharp nailed hands. Trakenthin glances up briefly from reading the mission brief, motions towards the packet between Tassilda, Modoran, and Deedri. “Should contain that task.”

Tassilda opens up the large envelope, slides out the packet, and holds it in view of Deedri and Modoran. “Interesting. What research group would fund a retrieval mission for something like a drone?”

Chad grins with a bright white smile and nods towards the team as he sits down. “I’ll leave it to you all to look over everything, and make your own conclusions.”

As Chad settles into his seat, Veevi scoots over to his side, eyes him seductively, and charms with a faint purr to her voice. “So... You do want to be a movie star some day? I mean, what better chance do WE have than THIS?”

She grins with a sharp smile, flexes her body revealingly to Chad, and flutters her eyes with a flick of her tail. “Those other jobs sound so BORING... I’m sure you’ll make the right choice for US.”

Chad hoists an apprehensive eyebrow at Veevi, contorts his face, and dismissively shrugs his shoulder. “Well, uh... It’s not my last choice.”

Deedri’s auburn eyes focus upon a line of text in the mission description, and her furry ears perk up with excitement. “Wow! This is a job from the Grand Library. There must be some important research purpose for that drone.”

Blinking back to focus, Modoran’s interest piques and he directs his attention to the document. “Huh. Okay. They probably narrowed down the search area to something that will be useful. We might actually find it.”

Tassilda sorts through a pile of photographs, maps, and schematics, and nods in agreement. “Yeah. Here’s the original flight plan, pictures of what it looks like, and... I think the log when it last reported in.”

Deedri, Modoran, and Tassilda examine the information before them. Trakenthin abruptly halts his reading, lowers the paperwork down, and slowly slides it back into the folder. A souring grimace forms on his face, and he slowly shakes his head as he pushes the packet back to the middle of the table. Tassilda notices the change of expression, cocks her head to the side, and narrows an inquisitive gaze at Trakenthin. “What’s wrong with that one?”

Trakenthin draws in a long breath, and sighs out his disgust. “Possible slime activity.”

Silence slams down upon the gathering, and all activity ceases. Veevi’s eyes widen in horror, and she stares at the folder gritting her teeth. Modoran stands up, leans over the table, and slaps his hand down upon the packet. “Let me put this where it belongs.”

He grabs the folder tightly, steps close to the back sliding glass door, and puts his hand out through the gap while grinning to the camera crew. “Excuse me.”

As the crew backs out of the way, Modoran slides the entry wide open, curls his arm back, and flings the packet out it the back yard with a spin. As he pivots back around, he halts to the nearby presence of Tassilda holding her hand out forward and pointing a finger at the flying folder. A mischievous grin grows wide on her face, and she quickly gestures out an incantation. With a simple flick of her fingers a small ball of fire leaves her palm, coasts across the backyard, and intercepts the packet in a fiery burst. She turns around with a small bow, and struts back to her chair. “I believe we’ve decided that.”

Chad releases a long sigh of relief, smiles appreciatively to the group, and nods. “Thank gods you caught that. I wasn’t allowed to say anything before you read the mission briefs. But... I REALLY didn’t want to do that one.”

The team shifts their focus to the remaining two quests, while Veevi states her obvious favorite with a developing persistence to convince others.

----

The door at the end of the hallway opens. Aristespha blinks her violet eyes, heavily plods across the hardwood floors, and sways slightly with each footstep. She runs her fingers through her long, silvery blue hair, stretches her neck while gritting her teeth, and shakes off some of the cloudiness from her daze. Brushing off her loose t-shirt and adjusting her baggy shorts, she sloppily pivots at the archway into the living area, and steps through. In a groggy state, she ambles into the room, navigates around behind the coffee table, and plops down upon the couch on her back. She blankly stares up at the ceiling and releases a long sigh.

Cideeda lifts an intrigued brow at Aristespha from her seat at the dining table, and directs her inquisitive tone toward the evuukian on the couch. “What have you been up to?”

Aristespha’s very long, pointed ears twitch, and she lifts her head up to gaze at Cideeda. “I just got done filing all the paperwork related to the last mission. Guild payments authorized to the party business account, expenses deducted, GAA contractor bonuses received, and processed everyone’s cut to your individual guild accounts.”

Fluttering her eyes as she lays her head back down, she sighs out her relief, and rests her hands on her stomach. “I think everyone will be happy with the payout. Very much on the high side.”

Cideeda cracks sly smile, retrieves her aetherphone from her shorts pocket, and taps out a security code. After navigating menus and opening a guild branded app, a wide, toothy grin grows upon Cideeda’s light brown face and her tail wags energetically. “Very nice, indeed. That will make the retirement fund very happy.”

Closing her eyes, Aristespha relaxes her body gradually with each breath. Her long, pointed ears twitch to nearby metallic clicks and whispered frustration. She props her upper body up with her arms and scans the room. Finally noticing Bach and Dretphi at the table, she focuses her curious stare at device both are paying close attention to. “Oh, hey... What are you two doing?”

Cideeda glances over briefly with an amused smile, and smirks pridefully to Aristespha. “Oh, they’re trying out a little trap puzzle I made for Bach. Figured he could get some practice disarming different kinds of trap mechanisms.”

Bach carefully wedges a metal pick between the thin crack between a plate and surrounding frame. Narrowing his stare, he attempts to gently wedge a thin shim into the divide and apply pressure. After seconds of gradual force, the pressure plate moves slightly and a buzzing alarm sounds out from the unit. Aristespha cocks her head to the side, ponders a moment, and curls mouth. “Okay, so THAT was the noise I kept thinking I was hearing.”

Bach taps a reset button the side of the square block, places the tools in front of Dretphi, and slides the device over. “Your turn. Damn, I thought I had the pick in there enough.”

Slowly lifting herself up from the couch, Aristespha steps over next to Cideeda and studies Dretphi’s attempt. “So, you made a practice pressure plate?”

Cideeda nods her head as she relaxes in the dining chair, and raps her claws tips on the table top. “Yeah. Simple enough and kind of entertaining to watch.”

Aristespha leans over slightly, squints to focus upon the practice plate, and tilts her head to the side. “So, the goal is to put those pieces of metal between the cracks?”

Nodding in agreement, Cideeda gestures to points of interest on the practice device with a claw tip. “Basically. You use the pick to not only wedge apart the gap between the plate and frame, but to keep the plate from going down by accident. Then, you slip in the metal shims to jam the plate along that edge. If you can shim up the four corners, you should be able to put a good amount of weight on the plate without tripping it.”

A sly smile graces Cideeda mouth, and her emerald green eyes light up with a mischievous glimmer. “But, it gets a little tricky when the shims stabilize the plate and start to work against what you need to do.”

Dretphi’s steely gray eyes keep constant focus upon her efforts, and she carefully slides in a metal shim in the gap near a corner. Guiding the pick point along the divide between plate and frame, she applies gradual force to widen the thin space a tiny amount. The pressure moves the trigger platform off slightly in the wrong direction, and a buzzer sounds out from the base. Dretphi snarls her face, mutters a few curses in grath, and grumbles out her frustration. Aristespha slides a chair next to Dretphi out, sits down, and faces her curiously. “May I give it a try?”

Dretphi glances over to Bach, watches him shrug to no contest, and slides over the device with tools. “Sure. Need a break.”

Bach nods in agreement and grimaces briefly. “Yeah, I think were fast approaching the obsessively stubborn point. Was getting too worked up to hold the tools steady myself.”

Examining the tools and materials, Aristespha feels out the balance in her hands, finds a comfortable grip on both pick and shims, and stretches out her arms and shoulders. Straightening her posture, she closes her eyes, breathes several calming breaths, and concentrates her full focus on the task before her. Using well-trained finesse, she cautiously explores the side gaps between the pressure plate and frame, and applies faint probes of force to feel out the mechanical dynamics. Sensing an entry, she gracefully works the pick into the divide and barely widens the space. Stretching and flexing her wrist off the side first, she deftly guides the shim close to the entry point, eases the thin metal deep into the gap, and withdraws her pick. Pondering a moment, she searches for another safe spot with exploratory applications of minute force.

Sebastian drifts in through the hallway archway, glances around the room, and spots the gathering around Aristespha. Hovering silently above, he joins Bach, Cideeda, and Dretphi as they all attentively watch the progress on the trap puzzle. With some visible difficulty, Aristespha manages to fit the second shim into another corner. Hints of concern and apprehension swell on Aristespha’s face, and she grits her teeth uncertainly. “There was not much give in that last corner.”

Cideeda crosses arms with a toothy grin, and nods in agreement. “It gets trickier with each shim. The shims jam the plate against a direction and apply pressure that works against you. If you aren’t careful, you could start to lift the plate up when you put another shim in, and end up triggering it.”

Rolling her shoulders and stretching out the tension in her neck, Aristespha draws a breath, and sighs out her nervous energy. Sebastian whispers from above and an encouraging grin. “You can do it, dear.”

Aristespha cracks a smile, regains her focus, and starts her attempt. After a number of retreats from forces causing unwanted movement of the plate, she manages to get a workable gap for a shim, and navigates the metal into the tight divide between plate and frame. The shim’s progress halts early, and Aristespha grits her teeth. With fine motions, she twists the pick to drive the gap gradually wider. The pressure works with other forces upon the plate. It lifts up... just enough... to trigger the buzzer. Aristespha’s long, pointy ears slightly droop with disappointment, and she draws in a long breath. She releases a mildly disappointed sigh, and settles back into her chair. “Damn. A lot less forgiving than most body tissues.”

Bach shrugs his shoulders and smirks. “Well, that's far better than what I’ve done so far. Pretty damn good, in my opinion.”

Dretphi nods in agreement and pats Aristespha’s shoulder. “Amazing for your first time.”

As the team reassures Aristespha performance, the sliding glass door opens. Sotalia steps through, closing the door behind her. She struts into the room and towels off her fiery orange, wavy hair. Letting the towel drape down her shoulders over her bikini top, she rests her hands at the side of the bikini bottom, and lifts a curious brow at the group at the table. “So, what have you all been doing in here?”

An evil smile appears on Cideeda’s face, and she points over to the puzzle trap on the table top. “Oh, just trying to see who can get the furthest on this puzzle. Want to give it a try?”

A competitive spark glitters in Sotalia’s golden eyes, and confident grin widens on her face. “Sure. What’s the score to beat?”

Sotalia swiftly sits down and Aristespha slides the device and tools to her. Cideeda recites a quick explanation of the process. With an eager zeal and the audience around her, Sotalia starts her attempt... and almost immediately triggers the buzzer. After initial laughter, Sotalia attempts again and again with minute progress between each short attempt.

Watching the fumbles and hearing the swears, Aristespha barely contains her giggling and shakes her head. Sotalia eyes over to Aristespha with tinges of annoyance. Aristespha sighs, waves off Sotalia suspicions, and smiles awkwardly. “Sorry, this reminds me of that one time Sebastian got that huge splinter.”

A wave of humored embarrassment washes over Sotalia, and she covers her mouth reflexively. “OH GODS. THAT.”

Bach turns his head curiously to Sotalia and pries further. “I sense a story behind this...”

Sebastian contorts his ghostly face, and groans ethereally. “It’s nothing. Really. Just got a really big splinter. Not much to say.”

Cideeda glances over to Sebastian, and shifts her gaze to Bach with a toothy grin. “In his ass cheek.”

Sotalia leans back in her chair, grimaces in ill-humor, and draws a long breath in. “Okay... Since it was kind of my fault I’ll tell it. Long story short, I was trying to put Sebastian and Aristespha in... situations so they would have nice, personal moments with each other. This was before they were together.”

Tilting his head to the side, Bach furrows an inquisitive stare at Sotalia, and glances between Aristespha and Sebastian. “Hold up. So, YOU were trying match up my brother and Aristespha?”

Cideeda rolls her eyes with a groan, and shrugs her shoulders. “In her defense, we all kind of were after awhile. It was well past endearing, and getting to that annoyingly and painfully OBVIOUS point.”

Sotalia works the playful guilt off her face, and fights against past embarrassment. “Yeah, I was trying to figure out way to... Um... encourage moments. And, let them hopefully arrive the horribly obvious, to the rest of us, conclusion. So, after a busy day of tracking down leads to find Noxian, we stopped for the night at a rest area. It was a nice, clear night with all the stars out. And, Aristespha was sitting by herself on a wooden park bench.”

Averting her golden eyes briefly, she glances over to Sebastian and motions over to Aristespha. “So, I told Sebastian that it looked like Aristespha was a little disheartened with everything going on, and maybe she needed to hear some encouraging words from the Chosen One.”

Bach blinks at sentence, slowly pivots his head to face his brother, and narrows a questioning stare. “Really? You can’t tell me that YOU didn’t pick up on this ploy.”

Pinching the bridge of his nose, Sebastian's ghostly form stands with a grimace, and motions his hand trying to defend himself. “I, uh... I just wasn’t thinking that way at the time, bro. It was different circumstances and... well...”

Widening his blue eyes at his brother, Bach’s jaw hangs incredulously open, and he cocks his head to the side. “Wow... The one time YOU weren’t thinking THAT WAY.”

Sebastian leans forward with an agitated stare at Bach, and throws his arms to the side. “Oh fuck you, I was TRYING to be better.”

Sotalia rolls her eyes, shakes her head, and directs the attention back to the story. “So... He goes over, sits next to her, and they seem to have a nice talk.”

With long, groaning sigh, she rubs her temple underneath her horn, and shakes her head. “Then, he slides closer to her... And, manages to impale himself the longest splinter from that wooden bench... That I have EVER seen.”

Dretphi lifts up her hands, catches Bach’s attention, and demonstrates a gap of over fifteen centimeters between either finger on each hand. Bach cringes and visibly recoils as the realization of the situation dawns upon him. He grimaces towards his brother. “Damn... Man... Ow?”

Sebastian winces as past memories rise up in his mind, and his ethereal form shudders. Cideeda snorts out a laugh, and shakes her head. “To his credit, they continued talking for an hour after that and he kept a straight face.”

Chuckling at the past moment, Aristespha smirks awkwardly and sighs with a gaze to Sebastian. “I was SO hoping he’d slide closer. I thought maybe he was just being respectful, or shy. I didn’t realize he physically couldn’t.”

She cracks a guilty grin, glances over to Sotalia, and rolls her eyes playfully. “But, I guess we still ended up having personal, quality time together.”

Feeling his pride vacate the building, Sebastian groans out a mix of embarrassment and disappointment, and crosses his arms defensively. “I really don’t think spending an hour with my pants down..."

He pauses a moment and closes his eyes hard with an uneasy frown. "Laid over a seat in the humvee, while you extracted that splinter, cleaned the wound, and use your magic to heal it... Counts as quality time together.”

Aristespha shrugs her shoulders nonchalantly, meets Sebastian’s gaze with a loving smile, and winks. “Depends on your perspective.”

Dretphi snorts, leans over the table toward Bach, and comments. “Next day was not fun. All the roads were bumpy. All day travel. Needed two pillows.”

-81-

In a small, single bed motel room, the bright glow of sun fills the area with a warm ambient light. An aged and worn television shows the Perimeter weather report with digital maps of the area. A fvalian woman directs attention to a number of smaller storms coming in off the western coast, and gestures a north eastern direction into a huge expanse of land with the simple label “PWZ”.

“We will experience a number of small, intense storms crossing over Perimeter and the surrounding territories throughout the day. With the summer heat warming coastal waters and the jet stream arching, this should continue throughout the week. These sporadic cells will continue into the PWZ. Speaking of the PWZ, here’s Tom with the Weird Zone activity report from the Alpha Observation Post.”

A large picture appears in the background as the fvalian woman steps off to the side. A hazy, distorted video feed shows a human man with faintly, uniformly glowing blue eyes in an all-weather survival suit. He calmly nods with a pleasant smile to the camera and draws in a breath.

“Thank you Diannee. I’m happy to report that present PWZ activity has been relatively mild, even in the more troublesome areas of the zone. While we expect the storm cells to be category one maelstroms in the zone, experts are not anticipating them having enough energy to last too far past the northeastern borders. But, for those that are in and around the zone, please keep your radios tuned to an Alert Network Station for up to date information about maelstroms, outbursts, and other dangerous phenomena. Back you to you Diannee!”

Isaac sighs on the motel bed, lifts up the remote at his side, and presses the mute button. He furrows his brow thoughtfully, and ponders out loud. “Okay, one thing going in my favor, at least.”

Brushing back his head of wispy, wild white and gray hair, he slowly sits up on the bed, and pauses with a wince to rub his neck and back. Settling his thin frame upright, he surveys the piles of supplies and other equipment surrounding him on the bed, and grumbles to himself. “Time to figure all this out.”

He reaches out to the nightstand, and grabs hold of a pad of paper and pencil. Glancing over to the small desk to the other side, his gray eyes flit wide. He leans out and stretches to grasp hold of a paper bundle. Unwrapping the sandwich, he takes a few bites, stares out distantly, and sighs after swallowing. A slight frown weighs his face, and he slowly shakes his head as his shoulders slump gradually. “Just not the same... even with the olives...”

Balancing between writing down notes and unsatisfied consumption of his meal, he sorts through the supplies and equipment on the bed and scattered in the room around him. Minutes of inspections and rechecks later, Isaac hums in thought, and twists his mouth uncertainly. He idly taps the pencil to the paper pad, narrows his distant stare, and processes the implications in his mind. Putting the paper and pencil down, he grabs hold of a worn folder, flips through a few sections of documents, and studies a list. Sliding a finger down the crossed out entries of names and contact information, Isaac mumbles to himself and shakes his head. “Gods, Emanuel, I hope you found someone I can work with...”

He lifts his finger away from the paper as he studies the remaining contacts and the unfavorable descriptions noted off to the side. “Really scraping the bottom of the barrel otherwise...”

After his eyes read the bad reviews, Isaac shakes his head, closes up the folder, and drops it off to the side on the bed. Pulling himself to the edge of the, he rests his feet on the ground, scratches his head with both hands, and groans out his frustration.

From the other side of the desk, an alert chirp sounds out from a battered, old laptop. Isaac blinks back to awareness, stands up, and walks curiously towards the desk chair. Sitting down, he swipes his finger on the screen, and the device's display lights up to a plain desktop filled with a cluttered icons. With quick familiarity, he taps through a number of menus and a program opens up. Scrolling through lists of messages, he selects the latest unread and a hopeful smile appears on his face when he reads the source address. After a moment, the system decodes the message, and Isaac narrows his gaze up on the text with growing intrigue in his idle nodding. Halting his reading, Isaac glances around the room, stretches over to the bed, and snags the notepad and pencil. Retrieving the writing tools, he focuses his attention upon the information within the message, and jots down a number of key terms while mumbling to himself. “Beckerin recommended... Lady Rhian’s Artifacts and Magics... Talk to Lady Rhian first... Get directed to Mavian...”

Isaac straightens his back, stretches his shoulders out, and releases a long sigh of relief. He glances over the new lead with a smile, and starts to nod with accomplishment. He stops. He blinks blankly, pauses in though, and contorts his face. Spotting his new Perimeter Road Map next to the laptop, he awkwardly forever unfolds the compact document, and taps open an aethernet browser. He types in the name of the location into a search site, and grumbles out hints of embarrassment. “Okay... Now where the hell is this place?”

----

Across the dining table from Bach, Aristespha examines a number of materials upon a clean, white mat in front of her with glowing violet eyes. She carefully picks up a luminous sheet of stabilized magical energy with both hands, rotates it around in front of her view by the edges, and narrows an analytical stare upon it. Seconds later, she cracks a satisfactory smile, and nods as she continues to inspect the flow fabric. “Nicely done. A very close approximation to what the normal spells and processes can manufacture.”

Rubbing his eyes into a pinch of the bridge of his nose, Bach blinks hard, stretches out of his neck, and rocks his head. “Cool. To be honest, it was getting little mind numbing doing all those little details over and over again. I think next time I need to figure some magical automation on those parts.”

Studying the last few details of the material, Aristespha lays it back down upon the large surface in front of her, and thoughtfully rests her chin on her hand. Searching her mind with her violet glowing eyes, she lifts an inquisitive brow at Bach and tilts her head slightly. “Would you like to try something a bit more challenging?”

Bach cocks his head, ponders briefly, and shrugs his shoulders. “Sure, I guess? What exactly is the more challenging thing?”

With an interested grin, Aristespha draws a long breath in, thinks about the right phrasing, and explains. “The magical medical materials you’ve been making are the more... common variety. Very useful for first aid and initial treatment of trauma. Their effectiveness wanes for more significant and involved injuries.”

Furrowing his brow, Bach nods in general understanding, but narrows his gaze curiously. “Yeah, I can see that. So, what’s the cutoff point for the types of injuries that stuff can handle?”

Aristespha tosses her long, silvery blue hair back, grimaces in thought, and gestures out the concept with her hands. “The materials we have here are great for mild lacerations, scrapes, covering burns, closing open wounds, and... Well... Preventing anything important from leaving your body.”

The mental imagery triggers a reflexive cringe and grit of the teeth from Bach. Nodding at the sentiment, Aristespha changes her pantomime to focus on the other subject. “These more advanced materials are used to remedy other types of injuries. They are extremely useful in the right circumstances, and can often mean the difference between life and death.”

She turns in her chair at the dining table, leans over to the side, and reaches into a large medical kit. Swiftly, she navigates her hand to a small, bright neon orange metal box, grasps it carefully, and lifts it onto the table. Gingerly, she releases the latches, pivots the box towards Bach, and presents its contents. “This is my stock of those types of materials. All these were purchased. The processes to create them require dedicated magical machinery manually flowed by trained medical mages with very specific spells. Now, that doesn’t mean they cannot be made without such equipment, but you can’t get the volume needed quickly enough otherwise.”

Sorting through the sterile packages of detailed information, she finds a sealed transparent packet containing a dimly glowing, translucent sheet, and pulls it out of the row. “This one is about to expire soon. It’ll be a perfect example for us.”

Carefully closing and returning the box to it’s proper home, Aristespha slides the pack of medical fabric to Bach, and smirks expectantly. Curiously, Bach takes the packet, lifts it close to his eyes, and angles the package to gaze at it. “So, what is this exactly?”

Aristespha smiles confidently and points to the material. “That is a tissue bonding sheet. Very versatile magical material. You can wrap it around a damaged artery. Put it between separated tissues. And even, with a little work, you can reconnect ligaments.”

With a violet pulse of her eyes and flit of flow in her hand, she cracks a calm grin and hints of excitement color her voice. “Then, with the right application of magical flow, you can activate the material to thread out around the very cells of target tissues to form a powerful bond that stabilizes the damage.”

Bach blinks surprised at the change of tone. He studies the package closer, closes his eyes, and reopens them to a glowing blue. “Okay, now THAT is actually really impressive... Wow... That is some detailed construction in that... Sheet? Wait...”

He draws the packet closer to his eyes and he squints tightly during his examination. “No... That’s a... That’s actually a mesh. A really, really fine mesh. Damn, that is fine detail work there.”

Aristespha nods at Bach’s discovery, and sighs with a roll of her eyes and twist of her mouth. “If you think that’s impressive, you should look at the price on the back.”

Bach flips over the material pack over, studies the information printed on the back, and halts. His eyes flit wide and he reflexively shudders with a wince. “Uh... Wow... That is REALLY expensive. But, I guess that makes sense for buying a box of a dozen or-”

Chuckling to herself, Aristespha lifts her eye brow with a reserved smirk. “They’re individually priced.”

With his mouth hanging open mid sentence, Bach shifts his awkward focus upon the packet, glances toward Aristespha, and cautiously hands the wrapped magical material back. “Okay... I think this is safer in your hands.”

Aristespha snorts as she grasps hold of the package, holds it in her hands, and smiles with a mischievous tint. “Oh, is it?”

With a defiant grin, she neatly tears the top off the packet. Bach tenses up slightly at the sight of Aristespha breaking the expensive seal. Shaking her head, Aristespha explains calmly with a smile, and expertly removes the tissue bonding sheet out onto the clean, white mat. “Don’t worry. It was too close to the expiration date for my comfort anyway. As much as I don’t like to waste materials, I am not going to keep questionable materials around, and risk anyone’s health needlessly.”

Bach works out the surge of unease with a few shoulder shrugs, and pauses as an idea rises to the front of his mind. “I mean, THAT is some really amazing magical material... But? Don’t medical mages have a whole set of spells to handle really bad injuries that they would use that stuff on?”

Aristespha ponders, nods with some reservation, and tugs at her mouth as she approaches the subject. “Yes and no. A good portion of the spells medical mages use focus on enhancing the body’s natural mechanisms to heal. Those spells unfortunately require time, energy, and preparation that is not always available.”

Processing the exceptions, Bach gradually forms an understanding, and presents a summation. “Oh... Okay. So, great spells when when things are more ideal than not?”

With a confirming smile, Aristespha shrugs her shoulders and relates with an amused tone. “For the most part. While I know spells to do intricate, near perfect repairs on your arteries and veins, you will have long bled out before those spells can work on a sliced open femoral.”

Excitement leaks out into her grin, and she works the tissue bonding sheet in her fingers. “Hence, this is why we have materials like this.”

She perks her brow, smirks mischievously, and gazes at Bach. “Would you like a demonstration?”

Bach gradually shrugs his shoulders nonchalantly, and glances over with an agreeable tone. “Sure. Wouldn’t mind seeing this in action-”

Aristespha quickly applies a medical glove, deftly retrieves a metal scalpel from a disinfectant bath, and searches around the vicinity. Bach awkwardly finishes his statement. “Without personally needing its services.”

Narrowing a brief incredulous glare at Bach, Aristespha shakes her head with an eye roll, and gestures out an incantation with her free hand. She directs a concentrated flow of energy upon the entirety of the medical instrument with faint crackling, and sweeps a waves of similar magic upon the area of the mat. Resting the scalpel upon the sterilized surface, Aristespha stands up from her chair, taps her ungloved fingers on the dining table top, and hums in thought. Her violet eyes widen briefly, and a clever smirk appears on her ivory face. She steps around the dining table, walks into the kitchen area, and opens the fridge. Searching a few seconds, her gaze finds the target, and she reaches inside. With a modest steak in her gloved hand, she returns to her seat and readies the meat for surgery.

Aristespha confidently picks up the scalpel, prepares herself, and directs Bach’s attention. “Now, depending on the type of cut, you have a number of factors to consider when using the tissue bonding sheet. For example, if the injury goes parallel with the muscle fibers...”

As Aristespha makes a precise cut into the steak with Bach observing, the kitchen door leading to the garage opens up. Dretphi steps through the doorway with an eager smile, walks up to the refrigerator, and opens the door. Searching the contents inside, she pulls out plates of mixed vegetables, potatoes, and bread, and arranges them out strategically on the counter top. She furrows her brow, stares through the door into the garage, and twists her mouth contemplatively while eyeing the large charcoal grill smoking in the driveway. Sorting the sequence of events with mumbles of grath, she shifts her attention back to the fridge and grabs hold of a large plate of steaks. She examines the cuts of meat with pride and abruptly puzzles. Studying the four cuts on the plate, she cocks her head to the side, shifting a few platinum blonde braids, and turns her full focus to the fridge. She places the plate down, and searches the inside of the refrigerator thoroughly with brief grumbles of perplexed grath.

Aristespha finishes placing a strip of the tissue bonding sheet inside the incision in the cut of steak. Pinching the meat together on both sides of the cut with her gloved hand, she gestures with her free hand and recites a complex incantation. Flows of magical energy condense around her gloved hand, and sink exactly into the closed divide. A faint, thin glow of prismatic energy fades, and she releases. The incision remains closed. Bach squints his glowing blue gaze at closure and leans closer. “Okay, that’s pretty cool. So, how well does that hold against being pulled apart?”

Aristespha smiles proudly, presses two fingers of her gloved hand upon either side of the sealed cut, and attempts to pry it back open. “Depends on the design of the material and its lifespan. But most of the time, you’ll cause another separate injury before you’ll ever be able to pull apart the tissue.”

Bach nods as his glowing vision narrows, and quirks his mouth uncertainly. “Amazing... Really wish I could get a better view of what going down at the microscopic level.”

Aristespha’s very long, pointed ears perk up, and she tilts her head curiously at Bach. Moments of thought later, she blinks to a realization and motions Bach’s attention to her eyes. “Oh... That’s right! You’ve probably never been shown how to use medical types of magical visualization. Have you?”

Shrugging his shoulders, Bach shakes his head. “Don’t think so. I can do some very small scale sight magics. But, most of the time I’m just feeling out the flows after certain point. So... I guess I’m not really SEEING what I’m... flowing around? Just feeling that there something the flows are going around?”

Lifting her head up, Aristespha rests an examining gaze upon Bach, and gradually nods. She points to her violet illuminated eyes. “I think I can show you one process that I’m using. It’s a combination of addon spells to your typical mage sight. YOU might be able to pick up what I’m doing and duplicate it.”

Bach nods and concentrates his full attention at Aristespha face. Blinking her violet eyes back to normal, she signals the start of the process to Bach. Her eyes flicker back to a strong glow. With slow, exacting precision, she recites through each stage of a combination of incantations and gestures. She pauses after each major phase, waits for Bach’s confirmation, and demonstrates the next steps. With faint warping of magical flows around her eyes, she finishes the last step and summons magical energies in her hand and places her fingers down upon an empty section on the white mat. With Bach’s understanding nods, she flutters her eyes back to normal and dismisses the energies. “That particular set of spells will enable you to do microscopic visualization of a volume under the influence of the flowed energies.”

She works through a grimace and narrows a concerned gaze at Bach. “Start with a very, very small area. It’s extremely easy to get overwhelmed. That’s why most practitioners start out with the least amount of magnification power. It can be a bit of an unwieldy spell combination, because all the various factors in each individual spell.”

Bach mentally reviews the last minutes in his mind, and his eyes sort through the processes in his head. Drawing in an apprehensive breath, he concentrates. His eyes pulse a brighter blue and threads of magical flow emerge down his arm into his hand. “Okay... I think I got the basic idea. Let’s see how far I get with this...”

As the energies stabilize in his hand, Bach places his fingers down upon a similar spot on the clean, white mat. The magical conduits pulse with different flows of prismatic color. Bach grits his teeth and he visibly cringes with a distant, disconnect stare. After a brief moment of facial twitches and hard winces, he closes his eyes hard, shakes his head, and waves off the energies. “OH GODS! Fuck me! Damn, I don’t think I got that right... at all...”

Aristespha barely quells a humored snort, shakes her head with a commiserating smile, and assures Bach. “No. That probably means you did it just fine. That is the same reaction EVERYONE who first attempts that spell gets. How are you feeling?”

Bach blinks, rubs his eyes with both hands, and shudders out the remaining discomfort. “Fine, I guess? Probably would have gotten a headache if I keep it up much longer than that.”

Releasing a sigh of relief, Aristespha smirks amused and laughs lightly. “Oh good. I still remember five people in my class getting really bad nausea and dizziness. One poor man vomited into the garbage can. So, you did just fine for your first attempt.”

She lifts a curious brow, narrows an inquisitive stare at Bach, and queries. “Were you able to see anything?”

Reviewing his recent memory, Bach eventually rocks his head side to side with tinges of uncertainty. “I think so. Brief glimpses. It was just a lot to sort through all at once. Felt really... Disconnected? Disjointed, maybe? It was weird.”

Aristespha smirks and agrees completely with Bach as she shakes her head reminiscently. “That sounds familiar. It’s a hard feeling to describe. It gets better when you are more familiar with the spells.”

A large, faint shadow contrasting the light from the kitchen casts itself up on the tabletop. A light shiver up Bach’s spine pushes his posture straight in the dining chair, and he eyes either side of him searching for something. Aristespha lifts her gaze upward to meet the sternly stoic expression upon Dretphi’s face. The imposing grath woman standing behind Bach narrows a glare at Aristespha, and points to the cut of steak on the white mat. “Still edible?”

Maintaining a calm collected smile, Aristespha nods confidently and motions to the meat. “Perfectly. Sterilized the surface and instruments. I needed an appropriate demonstration medium for Bach’s education.”

The edge to the stern stare upon Dretphi’s face dulls, and she focuses her firm tone upon Aristespha. “Are you done... preparing... YOUR steak?”

Aristespha presses a gloved finger onto the closed incision, and directs a dispelling burst into area. “I am now.”

After the incision opens back up, she picks up the cut with her gloved hand and Dretphi presents a small plate to place it upon. Dretphi takes the piece of meat away, and walks out into the garage towards the grill and cooking food. Bach eases out an awkward breath, as the looming emotional pressure systems deflates.

----

In the living room of the ranch style house, Sotalia sits on one side of the couch flipping the pages of a graphic novel, and her golden eyes sift through the imagery and dialog. Turning the last page of the book, she bites her lower lip with an excited smirk on her face, and places the book on the pile next to her. Leaning slightly over, she grins and whispers to Dretphi on the other side of the of couch, while pointing to the cover of the graphical novel. “So... Who do you think HE ends up with?”

Dretphi pauses from her reading, notices the particular book cover, and fights back hints of embarrassment on her face. She glances to either side of her, leans close to Sotalia, and quietly replies in grath. Sotalia shifts her weight away from Dretphi, dons a devilish grin, and tosses her fiery orange, wavy hair back over her shoulders. “Oh... Really? I... I hadn’t thought of it like THAT. Interesting.”

Working the pink flush out of her tan face, Dretphi shrugs her shoulders and stretches her faintly gray striped arms out. “My theory.”

Sotalia lifts an intrigued eyebrow and snorts her amusement. Brushing stray hairs over her swept back, black horns, she catches a glimpse of the muted television, and leans over to the coffee table for the remote. “Finally, they’re showing the weather report. Takes them forever to cycle back to it.”

She presses a button on the remote and stares at the display of an evuukian man in front of a digital map.

“Local authorities have put out a heat advisory for Amaranth Valley and surrounding areas. Presently the jet stream is pushing away storm systems from the southwest, along with any possible maelstrom activity. Unfortunately, we are in a heat bubble with very little wind for next few days. With the shifting of the front, we should get relief by Monday night. Until then, exercise caution with the heat.”

Sotalia taps the mute button the remote, shakes her head as she picks up another book, and smirks. “Oh well. Good enough excuse to catch up on this series.”

Sitting at the dining table, Cideeda’s tail wags side to side, and she slowly rotates a miniature between her claw tips. Narrowing her emerald green eyes, she tugs her mouth either side s she deliberates, and hovers an ultra fine paintbrush near a the tiny details of the figure’s armor. She pulls the brush away, mulls over a thought indecisively, and puts the figurine down. Bach spots the contemplation on Cideeda’s light brown face, and tilts his head of longer brown hair to the side. “Something wrong?”

Rapping her claw tips on the table top, Cideeda briefly grimaces and rocks her head to either side. “Nothing wrong... Just trying to figure out what type of Perimeter Defense Force unit would be better to have with my army. I think I got enough heavy armor units to be the front line... So, maybe having a few Deep Zone Rangers would be good.”

Bach sets a large mech miniature in the middle of the table, tweaks its pose, and ponders out loud. “Yeah. You can’t go wrong having a few units with high evasion, first strike, and that cover bonus.”

He points to the unit, and curiously asks. “So, is this the look you were going for?”

Cideeda turns her head, flits her eyes wide, and grins toothily at the mech figure as her tail wags faster. “Yes! That’s perfect. Now, if I can just get the paint mix right to capture that balance between ancient and rusty...”

Stepping through the archway leading from the hallway, Aristespha stretches her neck out to either side and extends her arms over her head. She puts her hands on her lower back, curls backwards, and grunts softly. “Gods... Sebastian, next time I try to write for that long... Please remind me to take a break to walk around.”

Sebastian’s ethereal forms drifts into view next to Aristespha, and he playfully rolls his eyes. He reflexively adjusts the loose pompadour of brown hair on his head, and smirks to Aristespha. “Of course, dear. You could also try writing in chair with proper posture... Instead of curled upon pile of pillows and blankets.”

Aristespha rests her hands on her hips, straightens her athletic figure, and twists her mouth at the truth. “I guess... It’s just hard to get in the right mood.”

Sebastian crosses his arms, leans his ghostly form close to Aristespha, and quirks his brow as he whispers. “As if it’s hard for you to get into the right mood for what you write.”

Shaking out her long silvery blue hair, Aristespha smirks confidently and giggles quietly to Sebastian. “Oh, but it takes a special state of mind for my best work to come forth.”

As Aristespha walks into the living area, Sebastian shrugs his shoulders and ethereally snorts while drifting behind her. “If what I’ve proofread so far is any indicator, I fear what might be lurking in your mind.”

An evil smile briefly emerges from the gray, blue, and violet hints on her ivory face, and Aristespha surveys the army of figurines upon the dining table. She crosses her arms, studies the miniatures closer, and directs her genuine tone towards Cideeda. “Next time you head out to the game shop for a tournament, let me know. It’s been awhile since I’ve seen a high point count match.”

Cideeda’s furry ears perk up, and she nods with an eager smirk. “Will do. Going to finally take the plunge?”

Aristespha waves off the idea, and sighs with an embarrassed grimace. “No. Not quite yet. I deal with balancing enough numbers and figures professionally as it is. Don’t really need a hobby that involves that, too.”

Accepting the explanation, Cideeda grins toothily and rocks a figure temptingly towards Aristespha. “Fair enough. We all be waiting for you...”

Suddenly an ambient drone in the room drops out into silence. The team quickly focus their collective attention to the inert air conditioning unit on the wall. Cideeda blinks a few times, and her furry ears search the soundscape. “The other units are off, too... And, I didn’t hear the thermostat turn off.”

Sebastian points towards the far end of the house, and hovers that direction. “Okay... Weird... I’m going to go check that big unit outside.”

Rolling her eyes, Aristespha shakes her head with a groan and walks back into the hallway. “Let me get the number for the leasing company, we’ll probably need it.

----

Chad walks into the living room carrying in a small decorated chest. He stands in the middle of the area, in front of the coffee table, and addresses the Flames of the Phoenix team seated around. Okay, everybody. Time to cast your votes.”

He glances down at the sturdy prop in his hand, shrugs his shoulders in his collared shirt, and rolls his eyes casually dismissive. “If you’ll excuse how it looks, this is what the show provided to store the ballots.”

Tapping his fingers on the wooden exterior, he smirks in slight amusement and rests it down on the coffee table top. “Surprisingly, it’s actually really well made. And, the lock works. Samantha said they found it in a local shop.”

He turns the key in the lock, lifts the lid open, and retrieves a collection of paper ballots and pencils. “Everyone gets a ballot, rank your three...”

Glancing around the room at Deedri, Modoran, Tassilda, Trakenthin, and Veevi, Chad snorts at the group’s ill-humored expressions, and shakes his head. “Well... Two real REAL choices from 1st, 2nd, and 3rd pick. Then, just fold them, and slip them through the slot.”

He travels around the room and hands out ballots and pencils to each member of the team. Veevi promptly stands up with a bright, saleswoman smile, and poses confidently. “Now before everyone makes their choices, I’d like to really point out that while we have a tough choice to make...”

A sly grins accompanies a persuasive glint to her dark pink pupil eyes, and she gestures her opinion with a dramatic flair. “We should really think about our futures and our team’s future. While some jobs can serve as paltry resume builders, very few can grant you the unique opportunity to get your foot in the door of a rewarding industry.”

She rests her hands on her hips, lifts an examining brow to the rest of the team, and shift her stance. “You all understand the value of doing small jobs to build towards a greater goal. I believe in that. But, I also don’t want to be doing small jobs forever, along with you. So, why not make the choice to pick a seemingly small part for a chance for something greater in the future?”

Chad steps up to Veevi, presents her ballot and pencil, and tilts his head to the side. “So, I guess you are really pushing for the movie set job?”

Veevi tosses her long pink hair back, sways her tan, brown striped hips, and widens her hungry smile at Chad, giggling out loud. “Oh my. Am I being that blatant?”

Shaking his head, Chad turns around, closes up the chest, and locks it. He finds a seat in a couch chair, and works on his vote. With obvious deliberation on his face, he taps his pencil on the ballot, and suspiciously eyes Veevi’s wandering gaze his direction. Trakenthin examines the ballet, quickly marks off three check boxes in the array, and folds the ballot up. He stands up, inserts the ballot in the chest slot, and nods towards Chad before he leaves the room. “Sparring practice for cameras in an hour?”

Chad nods with a muted smile, and a sigh. “Yeah, they want some last minute filler footage, for some reason.”

Trakenthin shrugs a similar sentiment as he exits. Modoran glances around casually, nonchalantly folds the ballot up with one hand, and drops it off in the chest. Tassilda and Deedri exchange looks, check their own ballots once more, and get up. Folding their votes up, they deposit the papers and head of to the dining area. Veevi springs up from her seat, steps towards the table, and slowly slides the ballot in the hole with a seductive smile at Chad. She struts past Chad, playfully brushes her tail along his chest in passing, and chuckles quietly to herself with an evil grin. Chad nods at her expression, and waits for Veevi to leave the room.

Standing up from the couch chair, Chad approaches the voting chest and holds his ballot while pondering. He takes the key, unlocks the box, and opens the lid. Staring at the folded pieces of paper inside, he contorts his face with an uncomfortable grimace. A minute passes, and an odd calm washes over him. He slowly exhales. Shaking his head, Chad unfolds his ballot, erases two check marks, and fills the opposite back. He closes the small chest, locks it back up, and slips his ballot through the slot.

----

The blades of the overhead fan in the living area spin around quickly and the chassis sways in short repetition. Within the strong draft below, Dretphi and Sotalia lounge miserably, sprawled upon the couch. Dretphi wipes a sweat droplets off her soaked brow with her hand, and tugs her undershirt away from her chest. She fans air through the damp garment, and sighs out her weakened frustration, trying to distract herself with the television. Sotalia groans out her disgust as her boredom wanders to gaze upon her frizzing fiery orange, wet hair. She tightly grips a towel nearby with her long, thick, black nailed fingers, and wipes the sweat off her face as she grumbles. Dragging the cloth down her body, she blots off the surface moisture around her shoulders, bikini top, and stomach. Aristespha droops her long, pointed ears lower, eyes the end of call message on her aetherphone in defeat, and tosses her head back. “Bad news or good news first?”

Sebastian surveys the fading morale on the couch, and smiles encouragingly to Aristespha with a hopeful tone. “Let’s go with good news, first?”

Aristespha rubs her eyes into a pinch of the bridge of her nose, draws in a long breath, and sighs. “Good news. The leasing agent was able to book a repair technician, despite the overwhelming demand right now.”

Faint signs of relief and hope swell in both Dretphi and Sotalia. Raising her fist up, Sotalia weakly celebrates. “Woo...”

Lowering her eyelids half mast over her violet eyes, Aristespha colors her tone with tinges of anger and deflates upon the dining room table. “Bad news... The appointment is tomorrow afternoon.”

Dretphi sinks into the couch deeply, drops her head back, and curses in grath. Sotalia buries her face in the palm of her hand, and grips one of horns in frustration. “Gods... Dammit...”

Gritting his teeth briefly, Sebastian hovers towards the other side of the house, thumbs over his shoulder, and reassures the team present. “It’ll be okay. I’m going to go check on Bach and Cideeda. I’m certain those two will be able to figure something out.”

He drifts through the wall away from the miserable crew.

Outside on the other side of the of the ranch style house, Bach kneels down next to Cideeda and grabs hold of another side of panel to a large air conditioning unit. He pants against the stagnant heat and the overhead sun, and assists Cideeda in lifting off the metal shell. Both Cideeda and Bach turn their attention inside the maze of wiring and metal tubing, along with years upon years of debris, funk, and filth. Cideeda sneers her upper lip, lays her furry ears back, and growls. “There’s no fucking way this has seen a yearly service this decade.”

Bach cringes at the sight, and glances down as the buildup of dirt and sediment crumble out from the bottom of the machine. “Shit... They probably just dropped it in and haven’t touched it since. To this thing’s credit, it was doing pretty awesome until now.”

Nodding in agreement, Cideeda picks off chunks of torn insulation around the copper lines with her claws, squints her emerald green eyes at the network of wiring and machinery, and smirks contemplatively. “Honestly, I’m going to have to clean this thing up first, before I can really diagnose what happened to it.”

Peering into the crevices between major components, Bach slowly shakes his head, and sighs out his waning confidence. “Yeah... Kind of hard to spot the soot of the blown out part... Against all the other dust and grime.”

Sebastian’s ghostly form phases out from the nearby brick wall, and he pivots to face Bach and Cideeda. With a hopefully smile, he pleads for good news. “So, any idea what we’re dealing with? Progress of any kind? Anything good to say?”

Cideeda lowers her furry ears and shakes her head with a defeated grumbles. Bach turns his head to face his brother, draws a long breath in, and explains uncertainly. “Well... We’re probably the first people to open this damn thing up in forever. It’s filled with grit and grime. And, fuck us if we have clue what this damned thing’s problem is.”

Pointing a clawed finger to Bach, Cideeda nods her head in sympathetic agreement as she inspects the air conditioner. Sebastian sags his shoulders, frowns slightly, and gives an appreciative thumbs up. “Okay. Well, you two do what you can. There’s a tech scheduled for tomorrow, so you don’t need to overhaul it. Just see if you can get it to last us through the night.”

Both Bach and Cideeda return the thumbs up, and start sorting the mess. Sebastian phases through the brick wall and drifts back to the living area.

Upon the living room couch, Dretphi sighs deeply, and her annoyance contorts her face. “Would shower. Does not help. Not cold anymore.”

Sotalia glances down at herself, growling lowly at the situation, and cringes. “Gods, even stripping this bikini off wouldn’t help at this point.”

Slouching in the dining room chair, Aristespha narrows her stare to the temperature on the thermostat, rolls her eyes, and sinks further into her chair. Sebastian hovers into the area, apologetically smiles, and attempts to imbue confidence in the team. “Bach and Cideeda are getting started on diagnosing the thing. It hasn’t seen service for a while. So... Hopefully, it might be a simple routine fix. But, they don’t know right now.”

Sotalia nods appreciatively against her doubts, reaches out to grip the edges of the couch, and sighs. “At least they’re on the case. I’m going to... Try the whole cold shower thing...”

Gripping tightly, she gradually peels herself off the couch, eases herself upright, and fights a squirming fit of uncomfortable disgust. Visibly cringing and awkwardly flexing her body, she glances down and widens her golden eyed glare at the wet outline herself on the cushions. Suppressing a reflexive gag, a surge of determination forces her arms defiantly up in the air, and she stomps over towards the sliding glass door. “FUCK. THIS. I’m fixing THIS. RIGHT NOW!”

Sotalia grabs hold of the door handle, powerfully throws the slider wide open, and stands over the threshold. “I’ll pay for the deposit we don’t get back. Clear the blast!”

Dretphi glances around, notices Sotalia gesturing out an incantations, and springs up from the couch into the hallway. Aristespha blinks quickly, follows behind Dretphi, and calls out. “Fuck the deposit. Do it!”

Summoning forth a mass of flows in her hands, Sotalia pushes her arms out to her sides, with one hand inside the house and one outside in the heat. Prismatic energies traveling along her arms illuminate brightly, and air swirls out in a projected vortexes from each hand. A cone of cold wind bursts forth into the living room and spills into the open spaces. Light refracting waves of heat erupt out from her other hand, blast forth into the yard, and up into the air. Nearly half minute of waning intensity later, Sotalia halts the flow. Stepping in from the foggy mist of cold air meeting outside heat, she closes the sliding glass door slowly, struts into the middle of the room, and breaths out a visible, relieved breath. “Much better...”

Aristespha and Dretphi peek out from the hallway archway, and quickly enter the room to enjoy the significantly lower temperature. Sebastian glances around the faintly frosted room, nods at the impressive display. “Not bad. I’ll go see if Bach and Cideeda want to take a break.”

----

Standing in the middle of the living room of the two-story house, Chad presents the small voting chest to the gathered Flames of the Phoenix team, and the surrounding camera crews at the edges of the room. He sets the wooden container upon the coffee table and announces. “It’s time to reveal and tally the votes.”

Unlocking the chest slowly for the cameras, Deedri, Modoran, Tassilda, and Trakenthin watch on with hints of apprehension and highlights of suspicion. Veevi grins confidently and poses for the recording crews. Chad draws out the ballots, unfolds each of them, and counts them. A genuinely proud smile graces his face, and he gazes over the team to address them. “Well, to be honest, I safely assumed the Chances of Smiles mission was not even in the running. So, the remaining choices are between the Movie Set Escort and Remote Drone Recovery quests.”

Eyeing over the votes fanned in his hands, Chad present his bright white grin, draws in a dramatic breath, and calls out. “The winner is... The Remote Drone Recovery. Five to one.”

A wave of surprise washes over the rest of the team. Deedri, Modoran, Tassilda, and Trakenthin collectively puzzle at Chad. Veevi’s expression abruptly drops to a blank stare, and simmers towards an accusatory, indignant glare. Gritting her teeth, she digs her sharp nails into the cushions of the sectional couch, and directs an insulted, muted growl towards Chad. “Don’t YOU mean TWO to four...”

Chad calmly pivots his head towards Veevi, narrows his resolute stare at her, and repeats plainly. “Five. To. One.”

Veevi balls up her fists, shoots up from the couch, and hisses at Chad. Narrowing a mean glare upon the rest of the team, she petulantly yells out. “What the fuck is wrong with you people!? A perfect opportunity to further yourselves, and you turn it down to go wander around in the woods looking for junk?! Am I the ONLY ONE with any kind of AMBITION here?!”

She tosses her pink hair back, turns in place, flicks up her long tail disgustedly. As she storms up the nearby stairwell, a small camera crew detachment scurries up the stairs behind her. Moments of awkward silence later, Tassilda lifts an intrigued brow at Chad, crosses her arms, and smirks. “So, five to one? Interesting.”

Chad respectfully nods. Between the assembled members, a quiet acceptance grows into a mix of appreciation and approval.

-82-

Gerald sighs and gradually rolls his head side to side on his pillow. He closes his eyes, stills himself, and drifts his mind away from the background conversation. Samantha paces down the middle walkway in the small upstairs bedroom, and draws a plotting grin across her face as pivots at the threshold leading to the balcony. “We’ve GOT to do something with this new strife between Chad and Veevi, Howie!”

A distant chuckle sounds out, and Howard’s voice resonates into the room from Samantha’s aetherphone. “I agree. I got the feeling this was going to happen at some point, but didn’t quite expect it now. But, we can definitely use this to our advantage.”

Samantha smiles with an evil tinge, lifts a plotting brow, and ponders out loud. “I know. We haven’t pulled out the usual tricks for triggering a little drama this season. I could do some tweaking on their lodging arrangements, and get two three person rooms instead of three two person rooms.”

She giggles with sinister glee, and steps with an extra spring across the room. “Veevi facing rejection with her emotional fragility... Let’s put her with someone who actively hates her AND someone she desires. That should lead to some show worthy moments.”

Howard speaks up from the other side of the call with an agreeable tone, and pushes forth suggestions. “Yes, and Chad might get some backing from the other guys to break off his relationship with Veevi. Hence...”

With an excited hop in place, Samantha’s tone squeaks out eagerly. “Ooo! Fresh exes having to work with each other AND live in close quarters. And, Veevi on the rebound?! Oh, that’s going to make things interesting.”

A sly smirk graces Samantha’s face and she tosses back her brown hair. “SO much potential there. But, it honestly might take some time for it to... cook... properly. In the mean time, any progress on the Modoran haters front?”

An uncertain hum sounds out from Samantha’s aetherphone, and Howard relays his findings so far with hints of intrigue. “A little. I’ve gotten the community forums people using their fake fan accounts to goad them to say more, and some are trying to get on their good sides. But, no solid information yet.”

He groans out a sigh over the remote conversation and the rap of fingers on a desktop peak out from the background noise. “Despite how much they despise Modoran, it seems the whole thing about keeping outsiders out of Evuukian House politics is still one thing they stick to. They are very tight lipped about any specific details. The forums people still don’t know exactly what Modoran did to piss them off. About the only thing they’ve come up with is that Modoran MIGHT have been a member of a house.”

Samantha’s eyes widen briefly and she cocks her head to side puzzling. “Really? If he was a member of a house, he certainly doesn’t advertise it like most the prominent house members do. But, that would explain quite a few things.”

Gerald slowly open his eyes, furrows his brow, and comments towards Samantha. “Yeah, that would. I thought it was REALLY weird the looks a lot of those evuukian nobles were giving him. Some nasty glares at the archery competition.”

Searching her mind, Samantha sorts through her memories and gradually nods in agreement. “Yes. I remember that. And, he definitely seems to know A LOT about evuukian politics. But, what house? There’s so many major and minor ones out there. I’ll have to dig deeper on that one.”

A contemplative twist colors Howard’s tone over Samantha’s speakerphone, and he puts forth a suggestion. “Yes... Actually, have the crew review all the footage with him in it and see if there’s any hints in what he’s saying-”

He pauses a long time, and Samantha narrows a confused stare at her aetherphone as the call time indicator continues to increment. After many seconds, a quiet chuckle grows to an evil, bellowing laugh that sounds out into the room. Drawing a long breath in, Howard’s voice adopts an ill-humored tinge, and he plots out loud to Samantha and Gerald. “Actually... I have a better plan. Let’s have a poll... An anonymous poll... One of those goofy ones...”

Gerald lifts his head up from his pillow and perplexes over the plan. “Okay... So, what’s the poll about?”

A verbal smugness exudes from the phone in Samantha’s hand, and Howard’s voice triumphantly calls out. “What Evuukian House would each member of the Flames of the Phoenix belong to?”

Gerald blinks out his confusion and sorts through the logic. Samantha quietly pauses, searches her mind, and grins ear to ear mischievously. “Oh... That’s good, Howie. A little fan involvement and definitely could make Modoran sweat.”

Howard ponders out loud and instructs the other two on his reasoning. “That’s part of it. There’s another part. While it will take awhile to get more details, I’m going to tell the aethersite and community team to require forum registration to submit a vote. And, while it’s publicly anonymous, we’ll track who casts which vote. I get the feeling our Modoran detractors will vote.”

Gerald blinks as the logic settles in his mind, and he nods in agreement. “Yeah, they probably would. Hell, that might work better than you could ever get asking them.”

Rolling his eyes dismissively, he groans out an incredulous retort. “Well shit, you might as well set up a fan poll about which crime each member would likely be guilty of while you are at it.”

Howard’s voice goes silent on the other side of the aetherphone call, and Samantha blanks the expression off her face in contemplation. After a few moments, Samantha pivots to face Gerald with a devilishly delighted grin, and directs her voice to the phone. “Did you hear THAT, Howie-”

A prompt reply sounds out and Howard chuckles eagerly. “Already on it! Thank you, Gerald. We could definitely use that and similar to help the researchers out.”

Gerald grits his teeth briefly, releases a regretful sigh, and turns his head way while rubbing his forehead. “No... problem... Anytime...”

He whispers to himself and grimaces. “Gods, I’m SO sorry, you guys...”

Gerald sits up on the bed, and slides himself onto his feet. He quietly escapes the room out onto the peaceful balcony, while Samantha and Howard hash out future polling schemes.

----

Flying underneath the scattered clouds above, Lagi’s front wings minutely adjust to the stirring air currents, while his back wings propel huge gusts of wind behind. With calculated movements, his fanning tail sways to stabilize himself and steady his position in the thermals above a huge parking lot below. Kaleb motions between a number status screens floating in the holographic display in front of him, and drums his fingers on the saddle. He leans forward, pats Lagi’s side, and sighs into the microphone in his helmet. “Just a little while longer. Took a lot of the really high resolution pictures and the client wanted them uncompressed.”

Lagi flutters his bright green eyes back to awareness, eyes back at Kaleb, and grunts out an acknowledgment with a purr. He closes his eyes, adjusts the facing of his armored head, and eases back into a chill trance upon the winds. Kaleb chuckles to himself, settles back securely on the saddle, and sorts through the different messages on translucent screen. A few minutes later, a final prompt flashes up, and Kaleb stretches his flight jacket covered arms out. He gestures upon the screen, and the holographic projection fades away. Leaning down upon the saddle, he grips hold of a pair of handholds tightly and calls out. “Finally! Upload is done and they just sent confirmation of receipt. Damn, that took long even being this close to an aether tower. Oh well, let’s head home!”

With a powerful downwards swing, Lagi breaks from his midair coast, and launches himself forward faster with each flap. Pitching down slightly, he trades altitude for velocity, and soars above the roadways of the small town commercial district. Flying with the afternoon sun to his back, he pilots through the air towards a familiar destination, and occasionally glances down upon the ground to study the landmarks.

An elaborate chime sounds out through the drone of the wind around Kaleb, and he taps the side of his helmet. “Yes, my love?”

Shadeesa’s voice sounds out in Kaleb and Lagi’s headsets with an inquiring tone. “I’m feeling like cooking a few my grandmother’s dishes for dinner tonight. What do you think?”

Kaleb shrugs his shoulders, leans over, and notices Lagi licking his lips in anticipation. “No objections here. We just finished uploading the photos for the guild contract and are heading back.”

Traces of concern color Shadeesa’s worried hum and she pries. “Oh, damn. How far are you from home? I want to do proper emin cooking, but I’m fresh out of the right seasonings. And, you know it won’t taste right if I substitute too much.”

With a comforting laugh, Kaleb pats the side of Lagi and directs Lagi’s attention behind towards a large super store. “Doesn’t matter where we’re at. For good cooking, we’ll make the trip. And, Lagi seems in the flying mood today anyway.”

Lagi tilts his body, gracefully swings around to reverse his direction, and cuts through the air with his wings and tail. A happy chirp sounds out in the air, and over the radio headset. Kaleb chuckles while shaking his head, and replies. “We just were near the super center in town. Just message me the list to my phone and I’ll go get it.”

Shadeesa’s voice warmly rises from the call as she delights. “Thank you! If they don’t have it all there, you might try the import shop. But, they can be a little expensive...”

Kaleb shakes his head and speaks reassuringly as he points out towards an open field next to the parking lot ahead to Lagi. “Don’t worry about that. We’re getting paid for this job, so we can live a little tonight.”

After a little pause, Shadeesa sighs lovingly and giggles softly. “Well... See you two soon. Love you both.”

Lagi purrs out. Kaleb nods. “Love you, too.”

Kaleb taps the side of his helmet, pats Lagi shoulder, and glances down at the empty field far ahead. “Okay, let’s head to the store. There’s going to be some good greasy pans for you to lick clean tonight.”

The large dragon excitedly chirps, and powers his wings against the air towards the vacant grassy lot.

In front of the large super center, a young man with slicked back hair wanders between entering and exiting customers with a pamphlet and bucket. He presents a concerned smile and shows flier to a passerby. “Hello, my name is Marcus, I’m representing People for Dragons Rights. Would you like to make a donation to our cause and take a free pamphlet about how you can help let these beautiful creature fly free?”

The emin man in overalls furrows a scrutinizing brow at Marcus, slowly shakes his head, and walks into the super center. “I’ll think about it while I’m shopping.”

As the emin man walks away, Marcus fails to keep a bright grin as it fades off his face. “Not a problem. Keep us in mind if you have change you don’t want after you’ve checked out.”

In the lull of foot traffic, Marcus slumps his shoulders and slowly plods towards towards an old van. He knocks on the sliding side door and sighs. The door opens up and a young woman with dark gray skin and braided red hair peeks her head out. “Hey, Marcus! Any luck?”

Slowly shaking his head as he pushes the van door fully open, Marcus sits down on the floor of the vehicle interior, and passes the bucket of sparse change over. “Not really. Gods, I don’t know, Cind. We might need to head back to Amaranth. Don’t think people here care about dragons at all.”

Cind pats the back of Marcus’s colorful t-shirt and smiles encouragingly. “Don’t say that. I’m sure people care.”

Rising from underneath a blanket, a young emin man with chipped and broken horns yawns, and greets the other two. “Yeah, man. Don’t count them out yet. They might just not have a lot of money to just give away...”

He scratches his shaggy beard thoughtfully, shrugs his shoulders, and ponders out loud. “I don’t know... Maybe we should really give merchandising a chance. Nothing big. Maybe some cool t-shirts and air brushing. We could totally get some cheap stuff, spray some cool looking dragon stencils on it, and totally get some money.”

Cind blinks to an eager grin and cranes her head around to glance at Marcus. “Kell is right! I mean, people might not give away their money freely. But, we could totally sell them on arts and crafts!”

With a long sigh, Marcus rest his chin upon his fist, and props his head up with his arm contemplatively. Rocking his head side to side, he huffs out his frustration and grumbles. “I guess. Dammit. I thought we were doing good when we released all those whelps at that show. I mean we planned it out, it went perfectly, and it got noticed! I wanted to do another big thing before we have to go back to college.”

Kell laughs with a goofy, reassuring grin, and stretches his arms out. “Aww, don’t beat yourself up, man. It’s been a fun trip. Kinda nice to know we can get it together this much. And man, you got to stop being too focused, else your chance might pass right by you.”

Marcus groans halfheartedly at the advice, and rolls his eyes. As his gazes briefly shifts upwards, a shadow casts upon the surrounding area and a low rushing, thump whooshes past. He blinks back to attention, quickly searches the area, and watches the dark spot upon the ground quickly grow and zip across the parking lot towards an empty field. Cind’s bright blue eyes widen, and she points up into the air. “Look at that!”

Marcus shifts his stare upwards and gawks at the large dragon quickly dropping altitude for a landing. Kell squints his purple on black eyes, grins happily, and nods his head. “Whoa... That’s a big boy right there. He’s got to be pushing a fifteen meter wingspan- Dude! He’s got the second pair of wings, too! Oh man, he’s a rare one. That’s too cool.”

Shooting up to his feet on the pavement, he glances back to Cind and Kell. “Well, it looks like he’s landing over there. Let’s check this out!”

In the middle of the open field, Lagi folds up his wings, kneels down, and tilts to the side. Kaleb unbuckles himself from the saddle, swings his leg over, and slide off Lagi onto the ground. He brushes himself off, stretches out his back, and pets Lagi on the side of his head. “Okay, you stay here. I’ll try to be quick. You want anything?”

Lagi narrows his eyes in thought, darts his gaze around his mind, and emits a series of clicks, chirps, and purrs. Kaleb scratches his chin, mulls over the request, and starts to walk away. “I’ll see what I can find. But, you are going to have to ask your mother if it’s okay for you have tonight.”

Sitting upright, Lagi nods and watches Kaleb jog off towards the superstore. After a few moments, he sniffs the air as the breeze picks up over the tall grasses. He traces a faint smell close to the ground, and carefully steps around the field. Following his nose, Lagi pushes through the taller grasses, halts abruptly, and purrs contentedly. His large maw opens, and he clamps down upon a large mass of plant life with loud crunching.

Marcus, Cind, and Kell trudge through the thickening grasses and stand near Lagi in awe. Marcus glances over his shoulders at Cind an Kell, and plots. “Okay. The rider is away. Let’s see if we can get close, and get that saddle and gear off of him.”

Cind nods hesitantly, studies Lagi from a distance, and starts to approach. “Let’s see if he’s friendly. Looks like he’s eating something.”

Kell narrows his stare at Lagi and the riding equipment, and shrugs at Marcus. “Sounds good, man. But, there isn’t that much gear on him. Actually, it just looks like the saddle and a few other things. Probably got some kind of tracker and stunner gear underneath.”

Marcus leads the approach as the trio move closer to Lagi. In between stretches of munching on another mouthful of flora, Lagi’s bright green eyes dart back to observe the approach of the three people. He watches them attentively, then returns to sniffing the ground to hunt. Cind walks around towards the front of Lagi, and notices the mass of blackberry brambles in Lagi’ mouth. She grimaces uncomfortably as the dragon crunches down casually on the thorny vines, and puzzles. “Why is he eating blackberries plants?”

Dropping her gaze down, she finds a nearby patch full of berries and observes Lagi licking the mashed berry juice off his mouth. Cind gingerly picks a handful of fruit, and approaches the dragon. “Hey. You want the berries? Here! That way you don’t have to fight the thorns.”

Lagi’s attention shifts quickly to the hand of berries in Cind’s hands, and he steps close to her. Waiting patiently, he opens his mouth, and Cind tosses some of the fruit into his anticipating maw. Munching happily on the fruit, Cind distracts the large dragon, and sneaks out a gesture to Kell and Marcus. Both Kell and Marcus slink towards Lagi’s side. Kell directs Marcus’s attention to a few harness points. As the two try to reach out, Lagi side steps away. Backing away, Kell and Marcus cautiously approach, and make another attempt. Lagi’s wing shifts down and brushes the two away. Kell steps back, scratches his head, and shrugs his shoulders at Marcus. “I don’t know, man. He seems pretty against us touching that. And, you know... I’m not seeing a bridle anywhere. Or actually, like, any restriction devices on him.”

Marcus summons up his determination, dons a casual facade while gazing away, and peeks out the corner of his eye. When Cind tosses another handful of berries into Lagi’s maw, he rushes over to Lagi’s side and grips the support strap buckle tightly. A loud, reverberating growl echoes out into the area. Marcus freezes in place, slowly turns his head, and meets the glaring bright green eyes of Lagi. He slowly releases his grip, gradually steps back under the cold stare of the dragon, and holds his hands up.

Parting through the small crowd at the end of the field, Kaleb glances around with two bags of groceries in his hands, and squints at the three people around Lagi. Rolling his eyes, he shakes head while marching over and grumbles to himself. He stops short of group between him and Lagi, draws a long breath, and calls out. “Okay, what THE FUCK are you people doing to him?”

Marcus narrows his stare, puffs out his chest, and points to Kaleb. “WE are members of the People for Dragon Rights! And, WE are trying to LIBERATE this dragon from your slavery!”

Kaleb blinks, cringes visibly, and drops his head of short dirty blonde hair down. “Of course, they would fucking find me.”

Drawing in a long breath, he furrows his brow unamused, leans his gaze around Marcus and Kell, and calls out to Lagi with series of clicks, whistles, and growls. Lagi glances over munching upon another handful of blackberries, thinks a moment, and replies with a chain of purrs, chirps, whistles, and a particularly low growl. Kaleb nods in understanding, and sighs. “Listen, we got to go. I need to go home and help with dinner.”

Marcus crosses his arms defiantly, stands up straight, and narrows a glare at Kaleb while loudly calling out to the crowd. “Oh! So YOU get to go home and eat good. But, your poor dragon is left to graze the fields and munch on the pitiful scraps of vegetation!”

Kaleb cringes with an annoyed groan, glances up to the skies above, and shakes his head mumbling to himself. Focusing his gaze ahead, he notices Cind struggling to pick any more berries from the blackberry brambles, and Lagi’s drifting attention. “Lagi! You done getting fed organically grown blackberries? Ready to go home to eat nice home cooking?”

Lagi lifts his head up, sits up straight, and purrs while flexing out his wings. Kaleb quickly sidesteps wide around Marcus, snorts at the trio, and walks to the awaiting Lagi. Stowing away his groceries in the saddlebags at Lagi’s sides, Kaleb pulls himself quickly into the seat, and secures himself for flight. “Nice talking to you and all, but... WE really got SO many better things things to do.”

Excitedly unfurling his wings, Lagi stretches out his wingspans, fans out his long tail, and widens his stance. Halting mid process, Lagi coughs. Smacking his mouth, he hacks hard. Kaleb leans over to examine Lagi face’s, and rolls his eyes with a shake of his head. “Didn’t chew enough before swallowing. Come on, take a deep breath and get it up.”

Straining his neck and open his maw wide, Lagi repeatedly hacks and coughs in a long process that quickly grows wet, thick, and messy. In final gathering of strength, he draws in a large amount of air, and expels it. Turning his head sharply, Lagi releases a sticky, mass right at Marcus’s chest. The blob of sticky phlegm, sharp brambles, and dark purple berry leftovers splatter powerfully onto Marcus, and he stumbles onto the ground. Kaleb blinks in surprise, narrows an accusing stare at Lagi, and whispers. “Okay, now THAT was obviously on purpose.”

Lagi glances back, shrugs his shoulders with an indifferent grunt, and bounds off to gain escape velocity. With a few power flaps, he and Kaleb lift off into the skies. With the mix of the crowd’s snickers and cringes in the background, Cind and Kell rush over to check on Marcus. Both wince at the sight of Marcus covered in purple speckled, viscous goo, and painfully clingy, thorny bramble bits. Gradually, Marcus sits up as Cind and Kell attempt to carefully remove the sharp branches, and he huffs quietly to the two. “We are going to FREE THAT dragon.”

----

Plodding along the hardwood floors of the hallway, Aristespha rubs her eyes into a pinch of the bridge of her nose, and draws in a long breath with her aetherphone pressed to her very long, pointed ear. Twisting her mouth, she grimaces with the other side of the phone call, and gradually releases a long sigh. Regaining her composure, she rests her back against the wall, and blinks unamused while her tone remains positive. “I apologize, I know it’s hard work. We all appreciate your efforts and what you’ve done.”

A disheartened tinge leaks into her voice, and drops her head forward slightly, letting her silvery blue hair hang forward. “We were just hoping for a little bit more to go off of. But, what you’ve given me is still helpful. It will give us an idea of what to prepare for.”

Summoning up a bit hope, she straightens her posture she steps away from the wall, and walks towards the hallway archway into the living area. “Thank you, and we’ll try to be ready to act upon any more information you find out.”

With a final goodbye, Aristespha slowly shakes her head at the aetherphone, slips it back into her shorts pocket, and glances around the room. Cideeda narrows her emerald green eyes at the screen of her laptop upon the tabletop, sits back in her chair at the dining table, and taps the fingertips on both hands together. Her furry ears flick and perk with her plotting thoughts, and she grits her teeth briefly at the spreadsheet of statistics and unit points value calculations, with the latest rules errata open. Dretphi folds up a shirt, places it upon one of the few stacks surrounding her on the couch, and reaches into nearby hamper. A dramatic scene of a grath show plays out on the television, and she pauses as the tension peaks. The camera shifts for the surprise reveal, and Dretphi blinks in an incredulous shake of her head with frustrated mumbles of grath.

Aristespha’s violet eyes settle upon the empty, inviting recliner. She swiftly moves in front of the coffee table, plops down into the plush couch chair, and pulls the side lever. As the chair back tilts and the leg rest extends out, she melts in the cushions and sighs. Sebastian’s ethereal form drifts in from the hallway, floats above the couch, and lands next to the recliner. Kneeling down, he presents a comforting smile to Aristespha, and calmly inquires. “So... How did the call with Hackle go, dear?”

Contorting her face between different emotions, Aristespha settles upon an unsatisfied smirk and weakly shrugs her shoulders. “Not terrible. But... Not great, either.”

Sebastian chuckles lightly and rolls his eyes playfully. “So, about the usual for us, then?”

With a quick snort, Aristespha slowly nods and parts a gradual smile on her ivory face. “Yes, Sebastian. Typical.”

Lifting a curious brow, Sebastian releases a ghostly sigh and glances over to Dretphi and Cideeda. “Want to reveal the details?”

Aristespha stretches out on the recliner, sinks deeper into the cushions, and ponders a moment. “Of course, but I just wanted to relax a bit and collect my thoughts a little first. Plus, might as wait until Bach and Sotalia get done with practice.”

Sebastian glances out into the sunny backyard and nods in agreement. “Yeah. They’ll probably be in soon enough. Looks pretty hot outside.”

An ambient drone rises up in the background and the air conditioning hum speeds up. The gust of air from the wall unit spreads outwards and blows a few stray strands of Aristespha hair. With a twitch of her long, pointed ears, she closes her eyes and relaxes with a long exhale. Sebastian and Aristespha exist quietly next to each other, while Cideeda clicks a few keys on her laptop to study another set of figures, and Dretphi sneers at the developing drama on the television show.

Minutes later, the sliding glass door opens. Bach steps through with a guilty grin and a faint trail of frost mist wafting behind him. Sotalia follows behind, narrows an accusatory stare at Bach, and points to him. “Okay. You PURPOSEFULLY let those frost blasts hit you. I KNOW you can dodge better than that.”

Bach glances over his shoulder, shrugs simply, and reveals a guilty smirk. “Yeah... I lost the match... But, I totally won the war against the heat.”

Sotalia furrows her brow, rolls her golden eyes, and steps off to the side of the coffee table. She shifts into the breeze of the air conditioner, pulls open the neckline of her sports bra down, and tosses her damp, fiery orange, wavy hair in the cooling wind. “Well, you could have returned the favor at least.”

Bach pulls a chair out from the dining table, thinks a moment, and hides a humored grin. “Well, you said use your best attacks. So, I went with the ones that’d give you a challenge. I’m not the best with throwing elemental attacks around.”

Sotalia shifts her weight with a sway, rests her hand on her hip, and stares incredulously at Bach. “Right...”

A sly grin graces her face, and she lifts an examining eyebrow towards Bach. “Maybe you just wanted to see me sweat.”

Blinking blankly, Bach awkwardly averts his gaze away from light and dark skin tone patterns upon Sotalia’s perspiration coated back. He quickly sits down at the dining table, and shifts his focus to Cideeda’s laptop screen of calculations and rules. Sebastian glances over to Aristespha expectantly, and motions towards the rest of the team. Aristespha nods, resets the recliner back up, and stands. She stretches her back out, hems loudly, and addresses the group. “I got an update from Captain Hackle. There is some good news, but not as much as I would like.”

Bach, Cideeda, Dretphi, Sebastian, and Sotalia shift their attention over to Aristespha. With a mildly frustrated frown, Aristespha relays the news. “They are still tracking down Noxian. But, the few confirmed sightings of his vehicle put him heading towards Perimeter. They don’t know if that’s his final destination. He’s been avoiding the main highways, so they only have so much information to work off of.”

Sotalia crosses her arms with an annoyed sneer of her upper lip. Cideeda’s furry ears droop with weak groan. Dretphi snorts out a sigh and shakes her head. Aristespha draws in a long breath with a sympathetic smile. “I know. Captain Hackle is contacting Captain Hays, since he has more jurisdiction in Perimeter and the PWZ. The GAA authority runs thins out there. So, hopefully, they’ll confirm he’s at least been to Perimeter.”

Sebastian ethereal form nods appreciatively to Aristespha, stands up straight, and explains to the team. “I don’t think we should make a move until we at least confirm he was recently in Perimeter... Or, at least confirmed to be somewhere for some period of time. I think we’ve all had our fill of wild goose chases, and hoping on crappy odds.”

Around the living area, everyone musters their own agreeing expressions with hints of stale frustration. Sotalia rests her hands at her hips, sighs reluctantly, and shrugs her shoulders. “As much as I want to chase him down, Perimeter is really far to just randomly visit on a hope he might be around there still. Gods dammit...”

The collective mood dims in the room, and the team idles in disappointed quiet. Aristespha measures the morale, steps towards the dining table, and calls out with a grin. “I think we need something to cheer ourselves up. I want to try that dessert place down from the game shop. Anyone interested? My treat.”

Sotalia chuckles to herself and walks to the hallway archway. “I’ll take a little emotional bribery right now. Let me get into something more presentable... and less soaked.”

Dretphi perks up with a smile, finishes folding up a pair of shorts, and digs into the laundry basket. “Allow me to find socks.”

Cideeda flicks her furry ear towards Aristespha, grins toothily, and stands up. “Definitely need to stop by the game shop. See the latest units... Maybe price out a starter army for someone?”

Aristespha laughs and shrugs shoulders. Bach glances over to Aristespha with a thankful smile. “Hey, thanks for the treat. You sure you want to pay for all of us? I mean, I got my own money... for once.”

Gazing down at Bach in his seat, Aristespha shakes her head appreciatively, and rolls her eyes guiltily. “Technically, it’s the compliments of the Evuukian Territories government. My monthly citizen stipend finally got processed out of my government account.”

Bach ponders a moment, blinks as he remembers, and nods. “Oh, right, yeah... I forgot they have a basic income system. Always seems weird that such an oligarchic government would allow that to exist...”

Aristespha shrugs her shoulders, and sorts through her thoughts with her violet eyes. “It’s a complicated issue. But, it actually serves as a bit of an insurance plan for all the oligarchs. Citizens with money tend to spend it. And, when most of the houses are centered around goods and services, they see the returns.”

With a long sigh, Bach stretches his neck out side to side and grimaces. “Okay, that makes sense. Kind of wish other governments did that. Would have made it easier to handle rent and bills a number of times.”

Blinking at her memories, Aristespha crosses her arms, and nods. “It has certainly helped me. Along with the citizen credit system, I’ve stayed out of too much financial trouble. But, admittedly, since I’m not a resident in the territories or working a job paying territory taxes...”

She rolls her eyes, and tugs at the corner of her mouth. “It’s not THAT much.”

Bach lifts an inquiring brow and asks. “How much?”

Aristespha smiles with a chuckle. “Enough to take friends out to get a few treats. Or, a bus ticket back into the Evuukian territories.”

Narrowing a distant stare, Bach thinks for a moment, and shakes his head. “Still surprised that some politician hasn’t figured a way to screw it up.”

A smirk cracks out from the corner of Aristespha’s mouth, and she lifts an amused brow at Bach. “They occasionally try. Usually, it’s some new member of a minor financial house that proposes it. Doesn’t go much further than that. They usually get REMINDED of what happened last time a financial house was allowed to dictate any important policy.”

Bach furrows his brow, and focuses a curious gaze at Aristespha. “Which was?”

Aristespha chuckles lightly, shaking her head. “A massive crash of the economy. A bunch of financial houses cooked up some scheme, and it COMPLETELY backfired. The remaining houses forced the government to nationalize banking, insurance, and investment organizations.”

Blinking in surprise, Bach scratches his chin and narrows his intrigue at Aristespha. “I bet the financial houses weren’t happy about THAT.”

With a foreboding laugh, Aristespha rolls her eyes and rests her hands on her hips. “They weren’t. But, there weren’t many financial houses with active members left at that point.”

Sebastian drifts next to Aristespha and listens in on the conversation. Bach pauses in thought, and cocks his head to the side slowly. “Wait... Active members?”

Aristespha grins darkly and giggles. “Oh. Those living and willing to run the house. Turns out a lot of the financial house members quit, died, or just went missing. For very strange and suspicious reasons, too. Only pieces of some were found.”

Bach blinks, turns his head to face Sebastian, and slowly shakes his head. “Seriously, it there not a chapter of Evuukian history that ISN’T filled with sociopolitical strife and questionable events?”

Sebastian grits his teeth briefly, twists his mouth, and grumbles at a lost. “Uh, not really, bro. It’s pretty drama filled and crazy. It just gets deeper the further you go into it. There’s some crazy stories in the just investigations about even crazier things.”

Aristespha smiles wryly and flits her brow to punctuate the point. “We tend to season it with splashes of bloodshed and steep it in unsolved mysteries, too.”

Leaning closer to his brother, Sebastian contorts his face uneasily and slowly shakes his head. “Seriously, bro. I read up about this one trade union guy and NO ONE... STILL... knows what happened to him. Even stranger kinds of magic couldn’t figure anything out. It’s fucking creepy, man.”

Pondering a moment, Aristespha twists her mouth, and hums in thought. “Yeah. I still believe someone dumped him into the foundation of a government building somewhere.”

----

Sitting around the coffee table in the living room, the Flames of the Phoenix team sifts, sorts, and studies documents. Chad taps a pencil down a handwritten check list, paces around, and points to Tassilda. “Okay, Tassilda, any word from Daedrican?”

Tassilda nods, scrolls through the long message on her aetherphone, and narrows her light blue on black eyes. “Yes. It seems like that particular area is really close to where we got attacked when traveling with their patrol. Strange.”

She leans over from her seat on the couch, searches the map with a finger, and taps a spot. “The predicted crash site is here. And, we got attacked...”

Sliding her long, thick black nail down the printed out map, she stops at a spot along a road. “Here. So, not too far away.”

Chad grimaces out his concern, and inquires further. “Anything else?”

Searching through the message, a bit of relief appears on Tassilda’s face, and she pulls a reserved smile. “It seems that Appaland made sweep of the area after the attack. Daedrican doesn’t know any details, but rumors are they cleared out any trouble in the area.”

Nodding at the statement, Chad flicks the pencil for a check mark on a bullet point. He searches around the room, and settles his gaze upon Trakenthin. “Anything strange in the mission information?”

Trakenthin flips through a few more pages, rests the packet down next to him, and picks up a sheet of notes. “Significant mentions of spirit activity. Not surprising with weird zones in the area.”

Deedri’s furry ears perk up. She blinks to attention, and smiles eagerly, searching for her aetherphone. “If that’s a possibility, I know someone who could give us advice on such. At least, she’ll know what we need to read up on.”

Chad smiles appreciatively, and confirms. “Any wisdom they could provide would be useful. Please check with them.”

Navigating through a few menus, Deedri brings up her contacts, slides through the list, and taps open a new message with Aristespha listed as the recipient. Modoran stretches his arms out, settles back into the couch, and rubs his eyes. Chad turns his head to Modoran, and queries. “Um, anything new on your end, Modoran?

Modoran blinks back to awareness, nonchalantly glances over to the Chad, and shrugs his shoulders. “Nothing too exciting. Still trying to figure out the best way to get out there, and the supplies we’ll need. If we get lucky, we won’t be out there too long. BUT... If this thing went too far off course or got dragged off by something, we could be out there for awhile. I hope we don’t need to do a resupply run, but that’s a possibility. So, just charting out a few options.”

Chad hovers his pencil to the bottom of his list, writes out a few new notes, and nods. “Yeah, thought that might be a possibility. We’ll see.”

Surveying the room, Modoran glances to Trakenthin, Tassilda, and Deedri. He settles an investigative stare at Chad, and casually motions him over. “Hey, could you look at this route and tell me what you think?”

Stepping over next to Modoran, Chad kneels down and studies the highlighted roads that compromise a few possible routes. “Yeah, I think one of these could work just fine. I don’t think there’s too many options to get out there.”

Modoran nods in agreement, leans closer to the map, and directs a whisper out the side of the mouth. “Where the hell is Veevi at?”

Chad eases out a defeated sigh, rolls his eyes, and gradually shakes his head with a quiet reply. “She’s still fucking hung up on being voted down. Still refusing to leave her room for anything apart from show related shit.”

He works through the discomfort on this face, draws a long breath in, and presents a positive tone against waning confidence. “Maybe, she’ll be better once we are on the road... Maybe...”

Modoran glances over briefly at Chad, pats him lightly on the back, and nods. “We at least appreciate the effort.”

A weak smile emerges at the corner of Chad face.

----

Staring distantly, Nash eases back into his office chair with a long metallic squeak, and grumbles out a groan. His eyes scan over the long list of unread messages on his computer display. His attention wanders over to the stacks of paperwork upon his desk. His focus tries to escape from the impending work, and finds no relief upon the row of wall mounted monitors with scattered warning alert messages. He sinks into the seat further, and deflates at the surrounding, building work.

A knock sounds out from the office door, and the door opens. Harvos ducks his head down reflexively for his horns to clear the doorway, steps into the room, and surveys the scene. With an awkward smirk, he shakes his head and snorts with a commiserating tone. “So... You too?”

Nash slowly shakes his head in silence. Harvos steps over, pulls a rolling chair over in front of Nash’s desk, and sits down. Leaning back in the seat, he draws in a long breath and groans. “Good gods. Those investigators have been practically camping out in my department.”

Nash laughs, and grumbles. “Fuck me. If they keep on researching anymore of the databases, I might consider offering them residency. I mean, they’ve technically done more research than most of my graduate candidates.”

The two sit in silence for a minute and wearily idle. Harvos rubs his temple and inquires. “Relayed anything more to Aristespha?”

Shaking head, Nash rocks the back of his office in repetitious, faint creaks, and sighs. “Nothing really to say. Plus, at this point, I’m pretty sure the investigators know more.”

Harvos closes his brown on black eyes, rubs his forehand, and grumbles. The two quietly commiserate in the academic background drone of the office. A chime rings out from Nash’s computer. Nash squints his gaze at the screen, cocks his head to the side, and puzzles. He opens the message, reads the text, and flits his eyes wide in surprise. “Well, okay...”

Harvos gets up, steps around the desk, and leans to look at the screen. Nash clicks through a few programs, opens up a collection of maps and data dumps, and ponders out loud. “This is from my friend at the aetherphone network company. Since he got legal clearance, he’s been sorting through the rough data logs they collect. He found something strange...”

The two study a familiar map of the area with layered wide, color paths. Nash slowly pulls his head back at an uncomfortable realization. “Oh... Shit...”

Harvos’s confusion grows along with his suspicion, and he fights emerging discomfort coming from his subconscious. “There’s something unsettling here, what is it?”

Nash taps his finger on the screen, gazes at Harvos, and explains. “The logs don’t contain high resolution position data, just general area tracking. My friend tracked three phones. The two suspicious ones, and mine. Now the suspicious phones only came online when they got on campus. But, look at the areas they traveled.”

Harvos narrows his analytical stare upon the display, visually sorts through data, and gawks at a realization. “What the fuck? One of those phones followed almost the same route as your phone.”

Nash nods and taps an end point of the wide, general the path. “Yeah... We were riding with Dr. Dawkins during that trip.”

Blinking in thought, Harvos pulls over a chair, sits down, and ponders. He glances over to Nash worried. “You don’t think that Dr. Dawkins is...?”

Nash shakes his head uncertainly and mulling over the idea. “No... Not willingly. But, what if Isaac had been keeping tabs on his old boss? Maybe caught wind of him coming over?”

Slowly rocking his head as the theory develops, Harvos eases out an uncomfortable breath and processes the clues. “Yeah. Isaac sees the opportunity. Gets his accomplice to follow Dr. Dawkins and us. Keep an eye out. Isaac runs in, grabs the whatever he was looking for when no one is around, and clears out. A clean enough operation.”

Both settle back in their seats, work through surging unease, and grimace in unison. Nash blinks while shaking his head. “That’s so fucked up. Oh shit... We need to check on Dr. Dawkins. Maybe he’s noticed something weird at his house lately?”

Harvos nods quickly, and scratches his chin thoughtfully. “Isaac knows how to use a few our of old cracking tools. I wouldn’t be surprised if something of Dr. Dawkins has been compromised. He does live on the outskirts of town, so probably no one would notice Isaac spying on him.”

Nash studies the map again and grumbles. “Fuck, I wish they kept better logs for tracking data. It’s too big of a possible area to narrow down anything in this town. Oh well... At least, we didn’t run into Isaac.”

Blinking at the idea, Harvos cringes and shakes his head. “Gods, I wouldn’t know what to do.”

Lifting an amused brow, Nash snorts. “Fuck that, my fat ass would run. Probably have change my underwear afterwards, but I’d be alive to do so.”

Harvos nods in full agreement, and continues to stare dumbfounded at the data on the screen.

-83-

Aristespha’s violet eyes pick through her mind, and she furrows her disconnected stare. Tapping her finger on the back of her aetherphone pressed against her very long, pointed ear, she nods her head upon her pillow, and contemplates. “I’m trying to remember anything else to tell you.”

She sits up upon her bed, crosses her legs, and hums thoughtfully. “If you got the books I told you get, the first few chapters will give you all the basics. Most usually start with safety protocols and identification criteria. So, for what you will probably experience, that hopefully be enough. I’d make sure everyone on the team reads up the quick rules of engagement with spirits.”

Listening to the voice at the other end of the call, she snarls her upper lip, and rolls her eyes with a commiserating sigh. “Gods, I can imagine from what I’ve seen. You’re just going to have to be blunt with Veevi. Though... Given her behavior, even the basic three rules are going to prove difficult to get through her thick skull.”

Drawing a deep breath, Aristespha releases a long, exhale with an understanding smirk, while listening to the response. She cracks a smile, and chuckles lightly. “I heard. Well, I won’t keep you. Keep me updated, and please call or message me if you have other questions. I don’t think we are doing anything too demanding for now, so I should be able to get back to you quick.”

Saying a goodbye, Aristespha taps the phone screen to end the call and slowly shakes her head. “Gods... Be careful...”

She idly glances around the room, eases out a sigh, and watches the morning sun reflect off the green leafy trees out her bedroom windows. She leans over to the edge of the bed, reaches her hand out to the handle of the sword, and taps it with glowing violet eyes. A few moments later, Sebastian’s ethereal form materializes in front of her. “Yes, dear?”

Aristespha smiles lovingly, and smirks as she pokes Sebastian’s visage. “Nothing, Sebastian. I was curious what you were doing.”

Sebastian shrugs his shoulders as he drifts to a seat upon the bed next to Aristespha. “Well, I was getting a bit too absorbed in a grath drama Bach and Dretphi are watching.”

Blinking out her surprise, she pauses in thought, quirks her brow, and stands up. “Interesting... What’s it about?”

Hovering next to Aristespha, Sebastian crosses his arms and searches his brain for comprehension. “I was just figuring out the general story... But, I think it’s about a young grath woman getting proposed by multiple people to join their houses. Honestly, I think she’s just REALLY indecisive.”

Shrugging her shoulders, Aristespha opens the door to her bedroom and walks through hallway. “Well, I’m curious now.”

In the living area, Bach and Dretphi stare attentively at the television while occasionally sorting laundry. A young grath woman on screen sits on a park bench under the yellow tinted glow of an overhead lamp post. Flakes of snow drift through the light from hazy, speckled shadows surrounding. Sniffing with tears in her eyes, she tightens her arms around her heavy coat, and slowly shakes her head sadly. A male voice off screen speaks a concerned phrase of grath, and Americ subtitles appear. “Why are YOU Here?”

The camera pans over to a young grath man gazing with concern. He patiently waits for the young woman to glance up with a frown, and sighs sympathetically with eloquent grath, as the Americ subtitles struggle. “*Pulled* *Torn* Given -choices-? NOTHING to -choose-... (Still) Your decision. (Yet) -Never- your *options*... ...?”

Bach narrows his puzzled blue eyed gaze at the screen, cocks his head to the side, and leans a whisper over to Dretphi. “So, the three dots and question mark at the end were for that trailing tone?”

Lifting a curious brow, Dretphi sounds out a similar questioning shift of her voice and awaits Bach’s response. Bach thinks a moment, and puzzles visibly. “Yes?”

With a warm smile, Dretphi shifts her attention to Bach, and nods. “Yes. Explicit prompt to respond. Different variations to match intent.”

The camera zooms out to capture both the young grath man and woman, under the cone cast of contrasting light against the dim ambient mix of night and thicker puffs of snow. The young woman bites her lower lip uncertainly and shakes her head with sad frown and depressed grath. The subtitles attempt to capture the moment, questionably. “(Yes/No)? -*Hard*-! Why is THIS **difficult**? SHOULD be delighted with ANY. (Yet) ...?”

The grath man twists his mouth contemplatively, gazes up at the falling, thickening fluff, and shrugs his shoulders under his jacket and scarf. With a hopeful, slight smile, he gazes warmly at the woman with a simple grath response, and clearer subtitles. “*None* are -owned- by YOU? -*-”

With a graceful, slight bow, the grath man pivots, and calmly strolls down the crunchy, snow-covered sidewalk towards the distant light of a diner. The young grath woman’s eyes widen with each passing second, and she stands up quickly from the bench. Watching the man walk away, the camera focuses on her contorting face and the mix of emotion bubbling to the surface. Scratching his head, Bach pauses from sorting through socks, curiously eyes Dretphi, and inquires. “That last ending tone sounded different? The subtitles were different, too.”

Dretphi maintains her focus on her screen, and briefly comments out the side of her mouth. “Affection implied.”

Bach blinks briefly, snaps his gaze back to the screen, and narrows his attention. “Wait? What the hell is he doing now? I thought his role in the show was to drop advice occasionally...”

Agreeing with the same suspicion in her tone, Dretphi grumbles slightly as she unconsciously leans closer to the television. “What will she-”

The young grath woman lifts her head up, gazes at the young man with a smile, and rushes over to walk along side him. Seconds of silent, peaceful travel, she reaches her hand out for his. The scene fades to black as the end of episode sequences plays out. Dretphi closes her steel gray eyes hard and mumbles out her frustrations in grath. Bach settles back in his seat on the couch, and lifts his hands up in the air. “What the fuck? That’s just a rude thing to throw in at the last minute of the episode. Really?”

Dretphi slips out a few tight lipped comments. “They do this often. Frustrating.”

Aristespha uncrosses her arms, rests her hands on her hips, and nods. “Reminds me of a few Evuukian dramas. Always a secret heir for control of the house, or someone goes missing right at the end.”

Bach shakes his head, pairs up a few socks, and tosses them into a hamper. He glances over to Aristespha, and asks. “Did you get Deedri ready?”

Aristespha glances down confused, eyes Sebastian at her side until her mind arrives at a plausible explanation, and shrugs her shoulders. “I think so. Deedri should be fine. I don’t know about the rest of the group. At least, I think most should have the common sense to just keep their distance from spirits.”

Dretphi rolls her eyes, and snorts with a dry smirk. “Most.”

Contorting her ivory face, Aristespha sighs with dismissive waves of her hands, and glances upward mockingly. “Oh no... The pink one brought so much value to the team anyway.”

Pondering a moment, Bach gazes up to Aristespha, and motions towards the back sliding glass doors. “You think there’s anything out the forest next to us?”

Aristespha levels her head, darts her eyes around her mind, and searches the possibilities. “There’s always a chance, but... We are close to civilization, which drastically reduces the odds.”

Bach lifts an intrigued brow, and comments. “But, we are in the path of maelstroms occasionally.”

A memory springs up in Dretphi’s mind, and she points out. “We do have dire boars nearby. I heard spirits draw dires? Dires draw spirits? One of those?”

Crossing her arms, Aristespha rocks her head side to side, and deliberates out loud. “They’re still debating which it is, actually. It is still seen as a chicken and egg situation.”

She contorts her face thoughtfully and gradually nods. “Well, thinking about it... I would guess there’s a better than nothing chance, then.”

Sebastian’s ghostly form hovers next to Aristespha, and he parts an eager smirk. “It’d be good reason to educate my bro on the sword’s spirit detection abilities.”

Bach furrows a mocking stare at Sebastian and quips dripping with sarcasm. “Oh wow, a sword called the Sword of the Spirit Realm has spirit detection?”

Rolling his eyes, Sebastian shrugs his shoulders, and responds with an equally facetious tone. “I know, right? It’s namesake feature even. They totally put some time into implementing, I’m sure.”

He releases an ethereal groan and shakes his head. “I know, bro. It’s one of those things that requires YOU to be using it actively to work. It’s not running at full strength otherwise.”

Sebastian floats over towards the back sliding glass door leading to the partly cloudy morning scene, and glances back to Bach. “So, you up for an educational walk around the woods?”

Bach's interest piques, and he stands up from the couch. “Sure. Need to learn it at some point.”

He pauses a moment, glances to Dretphi, and asks. “You up for wandering around the forest?”

Dretphi smiles, lifts herself off the couch, and nods. “Yes.”

She sighs with a trailing, grumbling frustration. “Need it after that episode ending.”

Bach shakes his head and groans. “Tell me about it. I mean what the hell are they trying to do.”

Sebastian snorts and shrugs his shoulders. “I caught the tail end of that. Where did that guy even come from?”

Scratching his head of longer brown hair and shifting the white streak, Bach twists his mouth as he thinks about the topic. “I don’t know. It doesn’t seem to make sense. Does that guy just wander around parks at night dropping wisdom to women in troubled relationships? The fuck?”

Sebastian chuckles and perks an amused brow at Bach. “I don’t know... Seems like it’s working for him.”

Dretphi slowly shakes her head, crosses her arms, and grumbles in annoyed grath to herself. Aristespha rolls her eyes, pivots into the hallway archway, and motions down towards the bedroom. “I’ll get the sword.”

----

Down the long highway with forest bordering either side, a black, dented sports utility vehicle rolls down the worn asphalt. A few car length behind, a convoy of Next Adventurers of Nexus vans keep close to each other. In the driver’s seat of the SUV, Chad maintains a top grip of the steering wheel and stares distantly down the long road. Trakenthin studies a paper map and compares it against a similar digital version on the display of his aetherphone. Deedri glances over the text of a thick book with the title “Tobin” clear from between her clawed fingers, and gazes out drivers side window. Next to her, Tassilda tosses back her raven black hair, resettles into her spot on the middle row seat, and watches a random video on her phone with a stiff expression. Modoran squirms briefly while keeping a nonchalant, cool exterior, and eases himself against the drivers side window of the back seat. Veevi huffs audibly with crossed arms, narrows her pink pupil gaze at the back of Tassilda’s seat, and presses her foot into the seat slowly, repeatedly, and purposefully.

Trakenthin eases his hazel eyes away from the charts, and stretches out his neck. He taps through the menus on his phone, opens up the message app, and selects Modoran as a recipient. “Switch at next rest stop?”

Modoran blinks blankly as he feels his phone vibrate, retrieves the device, and sorts his way to the message. With a casual sigh, he types up a response and taps it the send button. Trakenthin checks his phone and watches the follow up message appear. “I’ll suffer for now. So far, so good?”

Trakenthin glances back briefly and gives a slight nod to Modoran. Chad stirs to full awareness, and notices a large sign indicating a rest stop services and distance. He summons up an encouraging tone, dons a smile, and directs his voice back. “Good news. There’s rest stop in another thirty minutes given how fast we are going. It’ll be a good time to eat and walk around.”

Deedri’s furry ears perk up and she gives an appreciative, acknowledging nod. Tassilda glances her light blue on black eyes up, rocks her head, and returns to her video. Modoran gives a quick thumbs up and eases back. Veevi focuses a hateful glare right into the rear view mirror, and concentrates her visible ire upon Chad. After a few moments of weathering the visual onslaught, Chad’s enthusiasm wanes, and he returns his attention to the road ahead. When Chad stops paying attention to the rear view mirror, Veevi grumbles to herself, pries out her aetherphone from her tight shorts, and opens up a colorful game. When the app loads up, the phone blares out the game’s music and sound effects, and startles everyone with the sudden contrast. In a mix of eye rolls, annoyed twists of faces, and sighs, the rest of the team tries to divert their attention away from the noise. Minutes later, a repetitive, shrill chime rings out from the game. Deedri’s furry ear reflexively twitches away from the source of the noise, and her face winces with each instance of the sound effect bouncing into her mind.

Drawing in a deep, calming breath, Deedri slowly turns her head around, aims a pleading expression to Veevi, and nicely asks. “Veevi, could you turn that down a little bit? Please? That one sound really hurts my ears.”

Veevi begins to form a defiant expression to the request, but allows it to fade when she notices Deedri as the source. After a few moments of thinking, Veevi presents an apologetic smile and turns down the volume with a cheery tone. “Of course, Deedri! I’m so sorry. I’m so used to keeping it loud when I’m in my own room.”

Deedri gives an appreciative nod, returns her gaze to the spirit guide book, and massages her ear. Veevi plays the game for another minute, sneaks peeks around the cab of the vehicle, and grows an unsatisfied frown on her face. With a weak huff, her attention drifts away from the game, and she ponders to herself. The vehicle hits a significant bump in the road and the shift briefly snags everyone’s attention. Chad calls from the front of the cab, and apologizes. “Sorry, everyone. The road is getting rougher. I’m trying to steer clear of the bad spots, but some sections are just... bad.”

Modoran visually follows a passing patch of road briefly, and glances back towards Chad. “Damn, they really give up on road maintenance after a point.”

Chad nods as he eases the wheel and pilots the vehicle around another section of road in disrepair. With a gentle lateral force, everyone swings slightly with the motion of the SUV. Veevi’s eyes flit wide, and a devious smirk appears on her lips. She eyes the space between her and Modoran, nods slightly to herself, and puts away her phone. She lets out a loud yawn, stretches her arms, and watches for acknowledgment. “I think I’ll take a little cat nap.”

Deedri pauses her reading, quietly exhales, and rolls her eyes. Modoran continues to look out the window and studies the passing scenery. Tassilda fights the urge to yawn back, and grits her teeth tightly. Chad checks the rear view mirror, watches Veevi settle for a nap against the back of the rear row seat, and enjoys some relief. Minutes pass on by with the bumpier roads, and Veevi sneaks a peek. She eyes the space next to her, and the distracted Modoran. Chad grumbles audibly, shakes his head, and eases the wheel. “Fair warning.”

The sports utility vehicle veers towards the best approach angle to the gravelly patch of highway, slows down, and navigates scattered dips in the road. With the swaying motions, Veevi’s body shifts too easily. Chad pilots the vehicle through the last section with final bump onto an intact swath of asphalt. Veevi’s form oddly breaks loose of her slumber position and accurately flops over to the side.

A guttural exhale of surprise sounds out behind Deedri and Tassilda, and their curiously piques with the trailing, high-pitch gasp following. Both turn around to gaze back at the rear seat. Veevi’s head nuzzles firmly upon Modoran’s lap, and she presses her cheek upon her draping pink hair down harder. Her hand kneads sharp nails upon Modoran's leg, and each squeeze eases her grip further up and inside his thigh. Faint fabric pops sound out from Deedri’s claw tips as they sink deeper into the top of the seat. Her glare focuses upon the pink haired half-fvalian, and a flush of boiling fury reddens her face. With ears lowering back and tail fraying out, Tassilda senses the imminent overload of rage forming in Deedri, and snaps a stare at Modoran. Holding his hands up and away, Modoran meets Tassilda’s gaze with utter shock upon his dusky blueish gray face, and silently mouths out pleas of absolute bewilderment.

Tassilda shifts her examining glare upon Veevi, and studies her antics as she continues to ramp up her "unconscious" fondling of Modoran. After a few moments, she notices the oddly playful wags of Veevi’s pink, short-haired tail, and aims her suspicions. With a series of quick gestures and quiet incantations, magical flow streams to Tassilda’s hand, and she reaches out to the end of Veevi’s tail with faint electrical arcs forming between her finger tips. Snapping her grasp closed, a series of loud crackles spark between Tassilda’s hand into Veevi’s tail. Veevi’s eyes fly wide open, the fur on her tail puffs out, and she rights herself upon the rear row seat. Directing a hateful glare to Tassilda, she snaps into a fit of rage. “WHAT THE FUCK TASSILDA?!”

Narrowing her analyzing gaze, Tassilda sneers her upper lip and snorts back defiantly to Veevi. “Whatever did I do? YOU were just SLEEPING? Right?!”

Modoran relaxes slightly as the snipping and arguing between Veevi and Tassilda picks up. He releases a long, stressful sigh, and attempts to explain the situation through his dismay and disgust. “I was just looking out the window, and she dropped right in my lap- And, I didn’t know what to do- And...”

Slowly regaining her composure, Deedri focuses upon calming breaths and tries to comfort Modoran. “I know... I know...”

Chad returns his distant stare from the rear view mirror to the road ahead, and slowly shakes his head in defeat. Trakenthin turns away from watching the verbal combat between Veevi and Tassilda, pauses a moment, and leans a whisper at Chad. “Leave her behind? At the rest stop?”

Thinking more than a few seconds with hint of genuine consideration, Chad groans mildly, and rolls his eyes. “No... That would be cruel to everyone else at the rest stop.”

----

Pillars of bright light beam down from the thick overhead forest canopy upon the small patches of brush and debris scattered upon the ground. Bach maintains a tight grip with both hands upon the sword’s handle, closes his eyes, and concentrates. With long, slow breaths, he relaxes his shoulders and remains silent in the natural ambiance. Seconds later, he reopens his eyes, shakes his head, and glances back at the rest of the group. “Nothing, yet. I think? Still getting the feel for this.”

Sebastian hovers up next to Bach, crosses his arms, and shrugs. “You’ll figure it out, bro. Once the basics are down, the rests comes easily... Except the return to hand thing. That... That one I never used much.”

Bach angles his view over at his brother, and lifts a wary, intrigued brow. “Why is that?”

Meeting Bach’s expectant gaze, Sebastian releases an uneasy, ethereal sigh, and averts his translucent blue eyes with a grimace. “It was always unnerving to have a sword fly right you towards your hand. Tip first.”

Bach lowers his uncertain stare upon the blade in his hand, glances over to Sebastian, and returns to his attention to the sword with a tightening grip. “Yeah... No shit...”

Sebastian rolls his eyes with a grumble, and twists his expression. “I mean, it always righted and placed the handle in my hand at the last moment. But, gods dammit, it’s just fuckin’ unsettling.”

Searching the flora around the forest path, Aristespha steps on by next to Sebastian, and flashes a wicked grin with a giggle towards Bach. “You should have seen the first time Sebastian tried using that ability of the sword.”

A long ghostly groan emanates from Sebastian’s form, and eyes over to his brother. “Free advice, ducking doesn’t help. It just goes for a second pass.”

Bach blinks blankly at the response, gradually accepts the advice, and focuses upon the faintly glowing sword. He pauses a moment, squirms his arms slightly, and glances over to his brother. “Does this thing always feel like it’s reaching... into you?”

Sebastian grimaces, nods slowly, and sighs. “Yeah. You kind of get used to it. But, that’s why I always activated it only when I needed it. Still unsettling, bro. No matter how long you’ve used it.”

Walking carefully forward through the leaf and brush covered passages between trees, Bach relaxes, and focuses his concentration upon the blade. Remaining silent, he slowly sweeps the blade in a pass in front of him, pauses, and exhales his disappointment. “Either I don’t have the hang of this, or there’s just nothing spirit wise around these woods.”

Aristespha stands up from a small patch of plants with colorful leaves, places a few samples in a small wax paper baggie, and stows the packet away in a satchel. “I didn’t quite expect anything like that to be out here. But, I am finding some useful herbs out here. Admittedly, a few I would never expect.”

Dretphi appears from behind the team with little noise, stands next to the group, and presents the contents of a metal bowl with a bright smile. “Got all I could!”

The team examines the nearly overflowing container of blackberries. Bach’s gaze slides over to scratches and pokes upon Dretphi’s hands, and smirks with a bit of concern. “Wow, looks like you had to fight those brambles for every last bit.”

Working through a little embarrassment, Dretphi attempts to casually play off the minor injuries and lessen Bach’s worry. “Nothing bad. This variety has huge berries. Huge thorns. A tradeoff.”

She retrieves a lid from her under her arm, snaps it securely over the top of the metal bowl, and tucks the valuable bounty under her arm. Walking to the edge of a small sunlit clearing, Bach holds out the sword with both hands, loosens up his shoulders, and settles into a readied stance. “Okay, I’ll give this one more try. Then, I’m good for heading back.”

Drifting into his own head, he releases a long exhale, closes his eyes, and waits with the blade faintly glowing and glinting against the sun. A gentle breeze blows overhead, canopy leaves rustle into a surrounding drone, and the beams of sun shift with the movement of small branches. Seconds later, Bach’s face twitches and he turns his head a little. Sebastian uncrosses his arms and searches around the vicinity. Gradually Bach pivots in place, aims the sword a direction, and opens his eyes with a faint blue glow. “I think... I think... There might be something over there? Behind those bushes? Might be nothing, but it’s the first time I felt this.”

Sebastian nods in agreement, floats up next to Bach, and points in the same direction. “Yeah... I’m feeling it, too. Something really small?”

Aristespha strolls up next to the forming line up, and starts gesturing out an incantation. With a sweep of her arms out, a pulse of flow travels out towards the edge of the clearing in question, and she narrows her violet glowing stare. “Let’s see if we have anything...”

She searches the area, visually scrutinizes the section of brushes, and points with a smile. “There IS something. It just floated away there.”

Aristespha leads the way, and Bach, Dretphi, and Sebastian follow behind at the ready. Traveling a few meters past the edge of the clearing, the group tracks down a small, faint glowing entity zipping towards a patch of similar plants. Once near the flora, the small illuminated being casually drifts between different parts of plants, settles upon one spot, and then moves to another. Dretphi furrows her brow curiously, and cocks her head to the side as recognition dawns in her mind. “These are male cannabis plants. Not certain of the species.”

After a few second, the glowing being darts away to another cannabis plant meters away, growing in a vertical corridor of sunlight. Aristespha ponders a moment as she tails behind the moving entity, and explains her opinion. “I believe this is a tender spirit. They’re a very low level spirit that simply seems to tend to the needs of certain flora. No one quite understands the criteria for choosing the flora. But, these spirits are usually responsible for the exotic and plentiful plant life you see in most weird zones. They’re harmless to animals.”

Dretphi studies the leaves of the plant closer, checking the structure, count, and arrangement. A mix of intrigue and confusion builds on her face, and she glances over to the rest of the team with a puzzled tone. “This is a hybrid. A strange hybrid. It is healthy. Better than the environment should allow.”

Sebastian floats behind the tender spirit, observes it leave the last particular plant in the area, and watches it dart right off. “Huh, where is it going so fast?”

Following Sebastian’s lead, the Aristespha, Bach, and Dretphi track down the tender spirit to its next destination. The team travels over the bush covered crest of a small hill, and gaze down in a slight, sunlit valley. Aristespha narrows her glowing gaze, and points to the tender spirit’s new location. The team notices the entity, then become aware of the flora the it hovers around. The group gathers around a huge female cannabis plant in the gentle sun next to a small drainage stream. Dretphi blinks in surprise, and studies the colorful, huge plant closely. “Impressive. This variety I have seen in specific greenhouses only. None this large. Odd to find it here.”

Aristespha smirks with chuckle, retrieves a few wax paper bags, and examines the cannabis plant carefully. “Well, we can’t let this go to waste. THIS is quite the reagent for a number of different medical compounds.”

Bach snorts briefly and meets the similar smirk on Sebastian’s face. “Medical... Right...”

Rolling her eyes with an amused shake of her head, Aristespha lifts a targeted brow at Bach and laughs. “Oh, what do you think that particular potion that knocked you out used as a base?”

Pausing in thought, Bach searches his memories, tilts his head to the side, and gradually nods. “Huh. Yeah, that would explain that.”

Sebastian snorts ethereally, places his hands at his side, and shakes his head. “Oh yeah. That tea Kaleb brewed was always the sure fire cure for post-exam stress for the both of us.”

Bach rolls his eyes, and chuckles to himself. “Well, and that one experimental batch of magically filtered wine. It was nice to have a biologist living with us.”

He gazes down as the tender spirit hover above patches of dirt with new sprouts, and watches it go through a rough patrol of the nearby plant life. “If you could somehow get these guys to a farm and train them right...”

Aristespha nods with sigh, and smiles as she harvests useful materials from large plant. “And, THAT is what spirit mages have been trying to figure out for years...”

As Aristespha and Dretphi study the flora, Bach and Sebastian continue watching the tender spirit go through its motions.

----

The finely-crafted door to a long, well decorated room opens, and Goff leans in briefly. He flips the light switch on, surveys the three beds, row of windows overlooking the nearby forest, and the large bathroom at the other side of the room. He steps back out into the hallway, bows, and motions for Tassilda, Deedri, and Veevi into the room. “It’s all yours, ladies. If anything is out of place, let me know and I’ll take care of it as quick as I can.”

He signals Chad, Modoran, and Trakenthin to follow, and quickly steps down the hall. “Alright guys, let me show your room. It’s the pretty much the same layout, but flipped.”

Tassilda strolls into the room with a small travel bag strap over her shoulder, stands in the middle of the area, and surveys the beds. Deedri hauls a large suitcase in one hand, lifts up a medical kit up onto a desk in the office area, and sighs while stretching her neck. “Which bed are you going to take?”

Drifting a black nailed finger over, Tassilda settles her point towards the middle bed of the row, and lifts an eyebrow. “I think for your sanity, I’ll-”

Veevi struts on into the room, cuts in front of Tassilda, and tosses her bags onto the middle bed. Tassilda rolls her light blue on black eyes, shakes her head, and groans quietly towards Deedri with a disgusted frown. “Never mind. They’re equally awful choices now.”

Veevi digs through a number of side pouches on her luggage, grabs a few smaller bags and toiletries, and marches straight to the bathroom. “I’m taking a shower. That car ride was SO awful. If Chad had a clue, we wouldn’t have had to make such a trip.”

She slams the door closed behind her, and the sounds of running water fill the background with a subtle drone. Deedri sighs, hoists up her suitcase, and gestures to the bed closest to the hallway door. “You mind if I take this one?”

Tassilda shakes her head, walks over to the opposite bed, and places her travel bag on top. “Not at all. As I said, it’s going to be equally annoying for the both of us tonight.”

Disruptions to the flow of water sound out with splatters and splashes from behind the bathroom door. After a few moments, Veevi’s voice sings out the lyrics to a few popular songs in contrast to the previously soothing drone. Tassilda firmly places her hands at her hips, sways her weight with a unamused sneer, and glances over to Deedri. “So... Any idea what the fuck the bitch was trying to do today?”

Deedri vainly tries to suppress a surge of anger spilling onto her face, draws a sharp long breath, and eases out a calming exhale. “I don’t know. She’s just really trying to stir something up. That’s all I can guess.”

As Deedri sits down upon the bed, Tassilda draws a sly smirk on her face, brushes a few black hairs over her spiraling horns, and walks over near Deedri. Dropping in a seat on the bed next to Deedri, she leans close with a devilishly curious smile, and whispers. “So... Her antics got you pretty angry today... Any particular reason why?”

The faint red tint colors Deedri’s fair skin, and drains briefly in the moment of surprise. Deedri twists her mouth uneasily, squirms slightly as her tail wags erratic, and fights against the swelling flush of light pink in her cheeks. “Uh, um. No particular reason. At all.”

Tassilda lifts an unconvinced brow, parts an eager grin, and chuckles to herself. “You sure? Nothing you’d like to tell me before the camera crew sets the cameras in here? Or... Should I guess?”

Deedri bites her lower lip, averts her gaze briefly, and sighs while undoing the braids in her long, multi-colored hair. “Gods... I hope it wasn’t... THAT obvious to the cameras.”

Down the hallway, in another three person room, Chad, Modoran, and Trakenthin each lay on their choice of bed. The television in the room displays a random channel that no one pays attention to. In idle background sounds and relative quiet, the men try to relax. Minutes of silent contemplation, they each progress on their own methods of decompressing, and remain fairly inert. Sitting up from the bed top, Modoran blinks in thought, swings his head towards Chad, and levels a thoughtful stare. Drawing in a long breath, he rolls his eyes at himself, and breaks the vocal silence. “Okay... Chad... What the fuck is up with Veevi?”

Chad blinks back to awareness, tilts his head on the pillow in the direction of Modoran, and groans. “You meet recently, or just in general?”

Modoran searches his mind, contorts his expression, and shrugs his shoulders. “Let’s start with recent.”

Trakenthin glances up from his aetherphone, and grumbles out. “Then general.”

Rubbing his face with both hands, Chad releases a bewildered, defeated sigh, and shakes his head. “I don’t know. I guess she wants attention... Or, to wreck things... Or, BOTH? She’s been keeping away from everyone. Now, she’s just causing trouble, just to do it, I guess. Or, she’s just taking out not getting her way on everyone.”

Studying Chad’s dismay, Trakenthin hums thoughtfully, and asks directly. “Why her?”

Chad glances over to Trakenthin, and meets Trakenthin’s examining stare. Seconds of visual scrutiny and mental deliberation later, he relents and shrugs his shoulders. “I don’t know. She went after me. I didn’t refuse. Honestly, I just thought she was just as ambitious as me. She seemed really supportive of doing this whole thing.”

Rolling his eyes at himself, he releases a long breath of disappointment and crosses his arms. “But... Fuck me... It’s really looking like she’s just out for herself.”

Contorting the uneasy emotions upon his face, he shakes his head and just grumbles. “And, she just sees me as a gods damned tool. But, I don’t know what to do about her. I was hoping she’d get better with training and experience.”

Trakenthin nods understandingly, summons up a bit of past trauma, and sternly relays the results. “What she IS does not get better. Can not if she does not want to.”

Chad blinks at the direct wisdom from Trakenthin, settles his head uneasily back on the pillow, and releases a long uncertain sigh. “Yeah... Yeah... But... I don’t know what do. I was hoping things would stay stable until the end of the season.”

Modoran sneers his upper lip, shrugs his shoulders, and holds his hands out to the sides. “Fuck it, man. Just break up with her.”

Groaning at the thought, Chad slowly shakes his head. “Gods, I guess I should. But, then she’d probably get worse.”

Narrowing his stare at Chad, Modoran rolls his eyes and snorts with a dry cackle. “What the fuck ever, Chad. She’s going to be a bitch no matter what you do. At least, have a little pride in yourself.”

Trakenthin thinks a moment, nods to the idea forming in his mind, and relays. “Give her an ultimatum. Her choice. She can work with the team together with you. She can stay at the house by herself.”

Chad’s brown eyes flit wide as the concept takes hold in his mind, and he slowly sits up. Turning to face Trakenthin and Modoran, he furrows his brow at an odd revelation, and gradually nods. “Yeah. We can’t throw her off the team, officially. But, I don’t think there’s anything against not taking her along. Nothing I’ve read yet. Might be worth a try.”

Modoran chuckles, and eases back to lay on the bed. “Hell, knowing those depraved assholes running this show, they’d love to film that drama. And, Veevi would get a camera crew all to herself. She would probably LOVE that.”

Shaking his head, Chad snorts with a wry smirk, and sighs. “I don’t think you’re wrong.”

Slumping his shoulders, he draws in a long breath and rubs his forehead. “After this mission, we’ll have to talk about this more with everyone else. I... I got to do something. I don’t want this to fail...”

Trakenthin nods with a stoic, respectful smirk to Chad, and returns to reading the latest post on Shayuri’s aethersite. “Understandable. I do not either. It can work. It can work well.”

Modoran begins to open his mouth to speak, sits up partly from his bed, turns towards the door nearby. He squints at the shadows under the door crack, waves a signal to everyone else, and directs a loud whisper. “Shit. Crews are here to spy on us. Save this subject for later.”

A knock sound out on the door. Modoran stands up, assumes a nonchalant demeanor, and steps up to place his hand on the door knob.

----

Mera carefully scratches out subtle details into the latest sketch in her notebook. Staring at the lineart of a evuukian woman from behind, she picks up a colored pencil and shades in the dark green shadows of the woman’s long braids. She studies the forested scene surrounding the central figure, grabs a dark tan to fill the face of the woman glancing back. Sorting through the odd assortment of pencil colors, she carefully blends a mix of blue and green upon the page to fill in the turquoise pupils of the woman’s eyes. Mera stares at the face, sighs out a sad longing, and gradually shifts her focus to the beautifully crafted bow sling over the evuukian’s shoulder.

Surrounding the table at Fval Spice, three fvalian girls of descending ages with black furry ears draw upon pieces of paper around Mera. Katelli pauses from her drawing, gazes upon the scene Mera stares at, and flicks her furry ears curiously. “Who’s that? I see you draw her a lot.”

Mera startles back to awareness, smiles at Katelli, and stumbles with sigh. “Oh, um... That’s a friend of mine.”

Katelli glances up at Mera’s expression, blatantly contemplates with obvious hints on her face, and hums out. “What’s her name?”

Pausing at the question, Mera searches her mind for a route of approach, and eases to a more comfortable smile. “Chel.”

The reserved fvalian girl next to Katelli, sits up in the seat, and leans over to glance at Mera’s drawing. “You draw her pretty.”

A faint hint of blush fills Mera cheeks, and she dons an appreciative grin. “Thank you, Natashalli.”

She gazes over at the rough dress Natashalli indecisively starts to color in before switching to something else. Picking up a few choice pencils from her scattered pile, she places them in front of Natashalli and smiles encouragingly. “Maybe one of these will work.”

Natashalli studies the assortment, lights up at a purple and pink pencil, and snatches them into her painted claw tip fingers. The youngest at the table cocks her head to the side, searches her mind with her light brown eyes, and furrows her brow. “Where is she?”

Mera glances over to the youngest fvalian girl, and flutters her eyes confused. “Who, Jesselli?”

Jesselli lifts a curious eyebrow, sits up on her knees in the chair, and leans over to place her finger on Mera’s drawing. “Her.”

Both Katelli and Ntashalli guide Jesselli’s hand off of Mera’s drawing, and Jesselli scrunches up her face at the other two before sitting back down. Mera gestures everyone to calm down, stares distantly into her mind a moment, and sighs. “I don’t know.”

Jesselli tilts her head to the side, flicks her black furred ears, and asks. “But, she’s your friend?”

Mera draws a long breath, grimaces, and tries to nonchalantly shrug her shoulders. “Yes. But, we aren’t... speaking right now?”

Drifting her attention to the stick figure drawings on her papers, Jesselli dismissively comments. “That's weird.”

Natashalli eyes over to the youngest sister, sneers her upper lip briefly, and whips her tail at Jesselli’s. The youngest sister narrows a mean glare at Natashalli, attempts to swing her shorter, fluffier tail over at her sister’s, and gives up after missing the mark a few times.

The door opens up with a chime, and Cideeda strolls in with Sotalia right behind. Noyando steps out from the back, and smiles happily at Cideeda and Sotalia. “Yes! Hello! So good to see you again.”

He steps up to the counter, places a paper sack on the counter, and checks through the other bags. “I think I have just about everything... Oh... One moment.”

Cideeda nods as Noyando walks back into the kitchen area, and glances back at Sotalia. “So, any thoughts on taking a small mission?”

Sotalia crosses her arms, sways her hips, and holds her hand off to side with her sunglasses. She gestures her deliberation. “I don’t know. I don’t want to take anything that’d be too long, in case we hear from Hackle. But, anything too light... The payout isn’t worth the effort, really.”

Resting her hands on her sides, Cideeda nods in agreement, narrows her emerald green eyes into her mind, and hums indecisively. “I know that feeling. Still, I like the break, but I don’t want to idle too long. My retirement fund doesn’t grow fast when we don’t get paid.”

Noyando returns with a small bag to add to the collection on the counter, and starts to type into the system. “There. Almost forgot. Let me bring it up...”

Cideeda inserts a card into a reader on the counter as Noyando types through a series of menus. With a few final taps from Noyando and a claw tip signature on the touchscreen by Cideeda, the system chimes, and prints out a receipt from small printer. Retrieving her card, Cideeda grabs hold of a few of the bags, and Sotalia grasps onto the others. Cideeda grins happily to Noyando. “Thank you. It smells amazing already.”

Sotalia smiles, sniffs one of the bags, and winces her watering eyes. “Gods, I think this one has yours. Wow...”

Noyando laughs delighted and bows slightly as they leave. “You’re welcome. Come back soon.”

Cideeda pushes the door open for Sotalia, and snorts out a comment. “Well, so long as the next mission doesn’t involve cyber-zombies, crazed security bots, weird giant blobs, or some secret nuke plant... I’ll be fine.”

Sotalia rolls her golden eyes, tosses back her fiery orange hair, and laughs as she clears the doorway. “Oh gods. Tell me about it.”

As Cideeda releases the door to close, she lifts an annoyed brow and groans out. “Oh yeah, let us NOT forget the whole giant dire wolf gol-”

The door seals up and the conversation outside cuts off. Mera halts drawing, blinks as her subconscious mind pesters her, and looks up. She searches around the lobby of Fval Spice, furrows her brow against her confusion, and narrows a stare at Cideeda and Sotalia walking to the humvee in the parking lot. Searching her mind deeper, Meredosia’s cheek twitches with growing suspicion. Jesselli lifts her up drawing in front Mera with a bright, missing tooth smile. “Look!”

Mera returns her focus to the now, gazes upon the drawing, and smiles encouragingly to Jesselli. “Very good. You’re getting so much better.”

Jesselli places the drawing down the tabletop, and explains at the random things happening to Mera, while her older sisters roll their eyes dismissively.

-84-

Dr. Dawkins steps up to the front door, and turns the knob. Pulling the door in, he smiles with delight at Nash and Harvos on front porch. “Gentlemen, it’s good to see you. Now, come in before we let nature inside.”

Nash steps through with a snort and brushes his nose with a grimace. “You’re telling me. These bugs must be waiting for anyone at the door around here.”

Habitually ducking his head to clear his horns under the doorway, Harvos moves to the side, and nods to Dr. Dawkins. “Sounds pretty out lively there.”

Dr. Dawkins closes the door, chuckles briefly, and rolls his eyes. “Oh, yes. Usually the bugs aren’t so bad, but all this rainfall has helped them.”

He motions Nash and Harvos to follow him, and directs his voice back as he walks. “One summer, I had some wild whelps hatch a nest. Those little ones got the taste for insects and scoured the outside of the house for everything they could fit in their maws. Best exterminators I ever had. Really wish they’d come back.”

He gestures towards the couch in his well decorated living room, approaches a wide table with a few fine bottles of liquor, and sets out some glasses. “Anyway...”

Lifting a curious brow, hints of confusion taint Dr. Dawkins’s voice as he addresses both Nash and Harvos. “Now, while I enjoy your company and having a proper excuse to drink, I’m a bit puzzled as to what you needed to talk to me in person about.”

Pointing to the two glasses and waiting for acknowledgment from Nash and Harvos, he tips a bottle of amber liquor close to them, and inquires further. “Especially under the explicit context that you didn’t want to speak over the phone about it...”

Both Nash and Harvos spot the glasses and nod confirmations to Dr. Dawkins. Drawing a long breath, Nash glances over to Harvos, and grits his teeth briefly. Harvos furrows his brow, narrow his brown on black gaze, and sighs uneasily. “To be frank, Dr. Dawkins... We think someone has been monitoring you in some shape or form.”

Dr. Dawkins pauses pouring the alcohol into the glasses, and tilts his head to the side while facing away from Nash and Harvos. “Really? What makes you believe that?”

Nash scratches the side of his head, grimaces, and sorts through an explanation. “Well, I don’t know how much you’ve heard from which sources, but... To hell with it. Noxian- Well, Isaac snuck into the basement server farms. And, left with... Something?”

Dr. Dawkins’s green eyes flit wide briefly, and he grasps hold of the two glasses with a healthy portion of brown liquor in them. “I thought there was something stirring on campus. I hadn’t heard from a few of the old faculty still teaching there for a while. Wondered what has been keeping them.”

Stepping carefully with the drinks in hand, he presents the alcoholic beverages to Nash and Harvos, and focuses an intrigued stare at them. “Very interesting... Do they know what he took? And... Why he was even there?”

Nash shakes his head with a long exhale. He pulls a hearty sip from his drink, hums in thought, and nods thankfully with a lift of the glass to Dr. Dawkins. “No. To be honest, everyone is pretty clueless. Hell, the only reason we knew it happened was I because I was reviewing camera footage for something completely unrelated. Remind me to tell you THAT story later.”

Pouring some of the drink in his mouth, Harvos sighs, and gazes up to Dr. Dawkins. “We wanted to let you know sooner, but...”

Dr. Dawkins cracks dry smirk, turns around, and walks to the table along the wall. “Allow me to make an educated guess. Upon seeing the report, the higher ups collectively soiled themselves in abject fear, and panicked uselessly to try figure a way to handle it without alarming everyone else. And, while they’ve been flailing around they have told everyone to keep quiet?”

Nash and Harvos exchange glances, shift focus to their drinks, and both down large swigs. Nash draws in a mildly embarrassed breath through his nose, groans off the alcohol vapor in his mouth, and nods with a grit of his teeth. “Yeah. Pretty much. So other events have happened, too, and they’ve called in... People.”

Slumping his shoulders slightly, Dr. Dawkins shakes his head of short, well-kept white hair, and grumbles with tinges of annoyance. “By the gods, how many organizations are poking around the Grand Library now?”

Wrestling the words on his face, Nash frowns awkwardly and shrugs his shoulders while gazing at the liquor left his glass. “All the ones that matter and a few more that don’t.”

Pouring a very large portion of golden brown liquor from another glass bottle, Dr. Dawkins sighs while rolling his eyes with a grimace. “So, they’re at that point now. Gods help us all.”

Harvos places his half full glass down on the coffee table in front of him, thoughtfully puts his hands together, and directs his voice to Dr. Dawkins. “The most troubling part is that this seems like it was planned out. It happened just after we left with you to the buffet. We’ve gotten evidence that indicates that Isaac has someone helping him out. Even followed us.”

Slowly resting the bottle down, Dr. Dawkins places a tight grip around his glass of liquor, idly swirls the beverage around, and stiffens his posture briefly. “Really? That is concerning...”

Pushing through his nerves, Harvos draws in a calming breath, and proposes his theory towards Dr. Dawkins. “That’s why we had to talk to you in person.”

Dr. Dawkins cools as he slowly lifts his drink to his mouth, maintains his gaze away from Harvos and Nash, and calmly waits. Nash glances around the room, pauses to notice any communications device nearby, and loudly whispers to Dr. Dawkins. “We think you were... or ARE... Being watched, recorded... Something.”

Blinking as his mind processes the information, a sly smirk cracks from the corner of Dr. Dawkins's mouth, and he takes a long, relieved swig of liquor. Assuming a facade of concern, he turns around to face Nash and Harvos, and visibly puzzles. “Gods. Thinking about it... That was unfathomably convenient timing on Isaac’s part.”

Nash nods in complete agreement, and searches his own mind for theories. “That’s what we thought. I mean, Isaac has shown ability to use hacking software.”

Rolling his eyes partially at himself and shrugging his shoulders, Harvos grumbles with a guilty undertone. “Our department isn’t above utilizing a variety similar tricks to get access archaeological finds.”

Dr. Dawkins drifts off in thought, tilts his head to the side, and sighs. “That we aren’t.”

Nash narrows an inquisitive gaze at Dr. Dawkins, and mulls over the possibilities. “Have you noticed anything off around the house lately? Television not working right? Phone acting up? Computer crashing?”

Visibly searching his mind, Dr. Dawkins’s green eyes dart around and he pours some of the golden brown liquor into his mouth. Narrowing his gaze at Nash, he cocks his head. “My outdoor house lights have triggered on at oddest hours of the night this summer. They haven’t done that since the whelps left.”

Harvos sits up straighter, gradually nods, and proposes. “Yeah. That might be sign. Someone trying to figure how to get to the house and seeing if anyone reacts to the lights coming on...”

Nash scratches the beard on his chin. “What could have been done to this place? Maybe getting in the utility boxes?”

As Harvos and Nash exchange theories between each other, Dr. Dawkins rests his drink on the table, and points through an archway leading out of the living room. “Well, we probably won’t find anything sitting around. Let me check on my laundry, finish your drinks, and we’ll doing a little investigating outside before it gets too dark.”

Both Nash and Harvos agree, and focus on their beverages while debating. Dr. Dawkins calmly exits, travels around the dining room, navigates through the kitchen, and steps into the utility room with a washer and dryer. He locates a broom, pivots around quickly, and swiftly approaches the back exterior door. Reaching over to the dryer, he turns the dial to a set time, and presses the start button. As quietly as possible under the drowning drone of the machinery, he opens the back door, pushes out the screen door, and leans outside. Spotting a neatly closed utility box nearby, behind a large shrub, he slides the broomstick along the outer brick wall, catches the top latch, and expertly flicks it open. With a hard tap of the broom end, the box cover hinges down, and exposes carefully arranged wiring. Dr. Dawkins aims the end of the broomstick, thrusts the tip harshly into the cables, and roughly stirs the bundle into a mess. With deft precision, he positions the end of the broom under the box cover, drives it up to sloppily close over the wiring mass, and slams the top latch partially closed.

Slipping himself back inside, he allows the screen door to shut securely, closes the utility room door tightly, and places the broom exactly where it was. Arranging his clothing back neatly, he brushes his fingers through his hair, and grins sly and satisfied. Walking eagerly through the house into the living room, he calls out to Nash and Harvos. “Okay, gentlemen. Let’s see what clues we can find.”

----

A large, ornately carved wooden door swings inwards and passes under bell arm. As the chime rings out into the open, well-lit space, Isaac steps through from the outside dusk light. Allowing the door to close back, he walks slowly and surveys the area. Odd items and strange kitsch cover heavy tables within the center space of the shop. Down long side paths, selections of magical commercial products and unique offerings fill aisles of tall shelves. Isaac navigates through the displays of merchandise, stops for interesting items, and eyes them briefly. With a few other asides to survey artifacts, he notices the attentive, bright orange eyed gaze of an evuukian woman, and shifts his attention to the locked, glass display cases behind her. Presenting a proud perk of her brow on her light skin, the evuukian woman tosses back her long, flowing crimson and gold blended hair. She pulls an intrigued grin on her cheeks that graces the lines of color at the edges of her face. “Welcome to Lady Rhian’s Shoppe of Magic and Treasures. I am Lady Rhian. And, I can tell YOU are a discerning customer.”

Isaac cracks an amused smirk, brushes back his wispy, gray hair, and laughs lightly. “Maybe. How can you be so certain that I’m such a particular customer?”

Rhian smiles brightly, lifts a confident eyebrow at Isaac, and points towards the tables in the central space. “Well, you stopped and checked out the best items at each table. You looked at them carefully, but none interested you enough to actually pick it up. But, I saw how you reacted to...”

She steps to the side, waves out her hand towards all the strange artifacts in the glass displays behind her, and grins brightly. “The best.”

Crossing his arms humored, Isaac slowly nods at the deduction and tilts his head to the side with an inquiring gaze. “They are indeed very interesting, and any other time I would love if I could find out more about them. Unfortunately, I’m on a bit of quest at the moment, so I’ll have to stick to the mundane.”

With a playful, dramatic sigh, Rhian slumps her shoulders slightly, cocks her head, but maintains an eager smirk. “Oh well. I understand, but you are more than welcome to gaze upon them as long as you want. They MAY be waiting here for you next time you visit. But, I just never know.”

Shaking his head with a chuckle, Isaac glances over to the impressive stock of strange artifacts and crafted items, and shifts his attention to Rhian. “I just may. After business, of course. I saw you had some magic detection sticks on the shelves, but I was curious if you sold them in bulk? I’m planning a trip into the zone and need a good supply.”

Rhian straightens her posture, twist her mouth, and lifts an examining brow towards Isaac. “Ah... First time going into the PWZ?”

With a single nod, Isaac sighs out a little bit of his pride. “Yes. I’m not a stranger to weird zones. But, I have been told the PWZ is... More unique than most.”

Kneeling down behind the counter, Rhian sorts through the lower counter shelves, and directs her voice to Isaac. “Oh yes, it is. And, I have a few suggestions.”

From her right hand, she places down small, rugged metal box with a glass window lid on the counter. With a firm grip on a leather bag, she stands up, easily curls her arm, and puts forth significant effort to plop the sack on the counter. She slides the metal box in front of Issac, and pulls out a large metal nut with a piece of fabric tied through it from the leather sack. Isaac blinks blankly, alternates his curious, illuminated gaze between the two items, and cocks his head. “Interesting. I’m definitely seeing some enchantments on that hardware, and some very curious magic flows from items in that box.”

Rhian grins eagerly at Isaac conclusions. “Yes, indeed.”

Closing her eyes briefly, she opens them to a glowing bright orange, directs her attention to the cloth tied metal nut in her left hand, and presents it to Isaac. “As wonderful as mage sight is, we both know that keeping it going non-stop will put anyone under unnecessary strain, and tie up your focus from the many, many others things happening. And in the PWZ, you CAN'T be distracted.”

Tapping her finger on the metal box, she smiles, and blinks off the illumination in her eyes. “This is an anomaly detector box. Inside are containers with different materials taken from the PWZ that react to the different things you might encounter. And thankfully, they react well before you get too close to them.”

Tossing around the fabric wrapped hardware in her left hand, she glances over at the metal object. “Despite it’s looks, this a typically reusable investigation tool. Treated with mild enchantments to help identify what strange phenomena you might have found yourself near.”

Isaac pauses mid thought, and narrows his gray eyed stare at Rhian. “Typically reusable?”

Rhian smirks sharply, and laughs as her very long, pointed ears twitch. “Well, while most would be perfectly serviceable after certain anomaly investigations... Recovery in those situations is not... Advisable?”

From the back area, the door opens and man in worn adventuring clothes with wild, brown hair steps out carrying handled, cylindrical containers. He loosens the nicely knitted, green scarf around his neck, places the vessels on a sturdy table, and calls out towards Rhian before looking over. “Found a Sparkler, two Streamers, and a Glow Ball last night. Should make for some good trinkets-”

He spots Rhian and Isaac, blinks to an awkward silence, and mutters. “Oh. Sorry. Didn’t know you had a customer...”

Rhian turns around with a warm smile towards the man, motions him over, and presents an entrepreneurial grin towards Issac. “Allow me to introduce you to a reliable PWZ contractor, Mavian Rha-she. He will attest to how useful my finely crafted detectors and rugged investigation tools are.”

Mavian’s expression blanks briefly. He draws in a long breath, walks up to the counter with a mildly annoyed glance to Rhian, and rummages through a pocket. He reveals a detector of similar construction to the one on the counter, and a worn cloth wrapped metal nut. “I’ve used Rhian’s tools for years, and personally found the detector fragments used from the deepest part of the PWZ. These simple looking cloth wrapped chunks of metal have kept me from making some very bad mistakes.”

He focuses the faint overall glow of his green eyes at Isaac and speaks with a genuine tone. “If you are going into this zone, you’ll want both. Even with what I can see with my eyes, I’m not going to take anything to chance. Neither should you.”

Isaac scrutinizes Mavian’s appearance, studies his body language, and eventually nods in agreement. “I must say, that is indeed very convincing.”

He gazes over to Rhian with a smile. “I think you’ve certainly made a sale. I still wouldn’t mind a few boxes of the typical detector sticks.”

Rhian grins brightly, with a happy squirm in her body language, and nods. “Of course!”

As Rhian goes to a nearby register and swiftly taps numbers into the device, Isaac glances between Rhian and Mavian, ponders a moment, and inquires. “Does the name Beckerin mean anything to you two?”

Rhian’s expression lights up with a delighted smile as she glances over to Isaac. “Yes, it does! He’s been quite the reseller of my hard move artifacts, and always seems to drum up business for me.”

Mavian twists his mouth, and sighs with a begrudging respect. “And, he’s quite good at finding oddest leads to strange finds... How do you know him?”

Isaac blinks a moment, shrugs his shoulders, and plainly states. “I do not know him personally, but friend of mine who does says he recommend that I should find this place... And ask about someone to guide me into the zone.”

Hint of hesitance and tension slows down Rhian’s data entry, and she narrows defensive stare at Isaac. “Why do you need a guide into the PWZ?”

Sensing the change in the mood, Isaac draws in a long breath, and calmly explains. “Well, to be honest, I’m trying to find a fellow colleague who my friend and I haven’t heard from in quite some time. We believe he went to study some ruins out in the PWZ, but hasn’t sent any recent updates. So, I’m trying to find him.”

Rhian’s sternly protective demeanor fades to a softer, empathetic attitude, and she nods slowly. “I can understand that. Well, I can’t personally help, but Mavian could.”

Mavian crosses his arms, focuses a scrutinizing stare at Isaac, tilts his head to the side. “So... Do you have any specific locations you know to check, or any last whereabouts?”

Isaac shakes his head, sighs, and frowns. “Unfortunately not. I have some vague hints from his last update, but nothing specific.”

Searching his mind, Mavian grimaces, and slowly shakes his head. “I’m not one for wandering aimlessly in the zone. Do you have a name?”

With a plain tone, Isaac replies. “Dr. Malkav.”

Mavian’s faintly glowing green eyes dart around his memories, and after a few seconds a semblance of recognition dawns upon his light tan face. “I swear I’ve heard that name before. In conversations with other zone runners.”

He gazes at Isaac, slides a pad of paper over, and searches for a writing utensil. “Okay, here’s what I can do right now. You’ll want to head to Precipice. It’s the last thing you can call civilization in the PWZ before you leave the calmer part of the zone. Well, as calm as it can be at times. If your friend is still alive and well, he probably HAS to make visit there to get supplies. There’s not that many people in that town, so SOMEONE has to know him and have some contact with him.”

Rhian hands Mavian a pen with a warm smile, and Mavian writes out contact information on the paper. “I’m currently on a... break from doing guide work. But, I usually have a room at this inn in Precipice when I’m working. If you can find out any specific places to check for Dr. Malkav, try to find me in two weeks, and we’ll talk further.”

Isaac smiles appreciatively, shakes Mavian’s outstretched hand firmly, and retrieves his wallet with an expectant gaze to Rhian. “So, what do I owe you?”

Rhian recites an amount, Isaac hands over appropriate currency, and Mavian awkwardly figures out how to package up the purchased merchandise. Isaac leaves the store, and a bright chime sounds as the door swings open and drifts closed. Rhian stretches her arms out on the counter with a happy smile, and focuses her bright orange eyes towards Mavian. “So, what are you doing tonight?”

Mavian blinks blankly, stiffens his posture, and awkwardly stumbles upon his own surge of shyness. “I, uh, um... Nothing really. Just wanted to rest and catch up on the shows I missed while I was out.”

A sly smirk creeps out from the corner of Rhian’s mouth, and she pivots around to face Mavian with a slight frown. “Oh, I guess I understand. I wanted to cook something nice, but it’s just seems so wasteful when it’s just yourself. I wouldn’t want to impose on you catching up on your shows.”

Flitting his eyes wide, Mavian shakes his head, fumbles over his awkwardness, and softly replies while fighting a flush of embarrassment. “Well, uh... I can watch them after you get to cook something nice.”

A bright smile graces Rhian’s face. “WE can watch them after WE eat.”

----

Aristespha, Bach, Cideeda, Dretphi, Sotalia, and Sebastian sort through different descriptions upon tablet, phone, and paper. Bach collates a few packets, offsets the section titles from each other, and lays out the arrangement on the table top. “I think we can pull these off in a day.”

Cideeda narrows her emerald green eyes, flicks her furry ears in thought, and nods. “Probably. They don’t look too involved. But...”

She reads some text from her phone, writes it down on a blank piece of paper, and inserts the page between two sections in Bach’s stack. Pointing to mark on a map print out, she motions to two other points nearby, and grins with a scheming tone. “This one is along the way, and we could easily fit it in.”

Sotalia swipes through a list of different postings, sneers as she travels further down, and whines. “Gods almighty, what’s with this area and wanting people to check out deep, dark ruins this month? Half of these posts are for exploration and inspection of some underground, ancient, and/or creepy bunker.”

Nodding in begrudging agreement, Dretphi frowns and groans disappointed. “Would not mind something outdoors. Tired of finding terrible things indoors.”

Leaning back in her seat at the dining table, Sotalia stretches her arms up and curls her back with a smirk. “Oh, girl, I know. At least, if we run into something outside I can use the FUN spells to take care of it.”

Sneaking a guilty smile, Dretphi rolls her eyes at herself, and giggles. “Use the FUN gun.”

Sebastian glances away from peeking over Aristespha’s shoulder, snorts ethereally, and shrugs his ghostly shoulders. “I would not mind another nature hike in a park, even if it means running off another bratty teenager.”

Cideeda raps her claw tips on the table top, grins toothily, and wags her tail. “It was a little fun teaching her a lesson. Though I did feel... a little... bad that there was only cold water working.”

Bach glances between everyone, contorts his face, and dons a sly smirk. “Oh... The hot water worked just fine.”

A long silence looms in the room. Sebastian snorts out laugh. Aristespha blinks with an amused smirk. Dretphi covers her mouth in a mildly humored, surprise. Sotalia cocks her head with a delighted smile. And, Cideeda snickers and laughs. Shaking her head with a mix of approval and puzzling, Sotalia lifts an intrigued brow. “Bach Warwick... Really? And here I thought I was being a bad influence on you.”

Dretphi summons up a semblance of a disapproving frown towards Bach, and Cideeda narrows a playful glare toward Dretphi, pointing clawed finger. “Oh, don’t you act all high and mighty. You purposefully sprayed her up the back when she wasn’t expecting it. I saw the look on your face.”

Drawing a long breath, Dretphi rolls her steely gray eyes at herself, and awkwardly twists her mouth, mumbling. “Call me a brute...”

A faint chirp sounds out from Aristespha’s shorts pocket. She glances down, reaches her hand in, and puzzles as she retrieves her aetherphone. Sorting through the menus, her violet eyes read through a message, and she furrows her brow with suspicion and confusion. “Speaking of her... Pardon me, she wants a private video call.”

Amid exchanges of intrigue and curiosity between everyone else, Aristespha walks towards the hallway archway. She taps a few buttons and initiates the call. Stepping through the doorway into her room, she sits down on her bed and holds the phone in front of her expectantly. On the video feed, Valavera brushes her golden hair out her green eyed gaze, and huffs out an upset breath. She tries to smile. “Hey, Aristespha. Sorry. I really need someone to talk to.”

Aristespha smiles slightly, and nods to the screen. “I’m here for you. So, what’s on your mind?”

Valavera sorts through the words on her face, works through the thoughts, and pieces together sentences. “Well... While in summer school at the university... Which is going REALLY amazing and I really like it... Um... I... Met... Someone.”

A sly smile graces Aristespha's ivory face, and she focuses her attention upon the conversation with renewing interest. “Really? Do tell.”

Summoning up the courage, Valavera wanders around certain details and watches Aristespha’s reaction through the phone. “Well, we met in my botany class, and have been lab partners for a while. I asked him out to a show for a local band a friend plays in... And well... we kind of hit it off.”

Aristespha studies Valavera’s image on her phone, perk her brow inquisitively, and pries eagerly. “Okay. So, first, what’s his name?”

Valavera bites her lower lip, averts her green eyes side to side briefly, and draws in a cautious breath. “Alexander.”

An abrupt quiet stifles the call and surrounding room. The emotional pressure grows as Aristespha’s expression blanks. She tilts her head slightly, and creeps to an uncertain observation. “That name sounds very... Hu-”

Valavera interrupts. “Human.”

Aristespha’s violet eyes flit wide, she grits her teeth. “Oh. Oh, gods...”

Valavera snorts with a frown and turns her head away unhappily. “Fucking knew it. Damn it! I hoped you would understand.”

Pausing mid breath, Aristespha locks an uneasy stare upon her phone screen, and cautiously inquires in a serious tone. “Why would you think THAT?”

Growing more defiant and petulant, Valavera narrows a glare through the video feed to Aristespha and loudly rambles. “Because, you’re out there! In the world. More worldly? I don’t know! You just seemed more experienced and around more different people.”

Aristespha processes the explanation, eases out a moment of relief, but quickly contains a new swell of concern. “Yes. I am. And, I UNDERSTAND what you are going through. I really do. It’s just that you have consider the bigger picture. You are a daughter of a prominent house-”

Valavera tosses her hair back angrily, and spits out. “Fourth child. FOURTH! You should know that fourth children don’t receive anything worth mentioning.”

Pinching the bridge of her nose, Aristespha releases a long calming sigh, draws in a long breath, and refocuses her gaze to Valavera’s video feed. “Fifth child speaking here. Fourths get a little more. Okay. And, that’s why you have to be careful with this and conduct yourself-”

Riding upon a surge of stubborn angst, Valavera berates Aristespha over the call. “Oh, conduct myself as a proper Evuukian House woman?! What?! And, be some tag along to everything my brother and sisters get to do?! FUCK THAT! Gods, I really shouldn’t have call-”

Pulling a sharp inhale through her nose, Aristespha powerfully yells to her phone in an authoritative, motherly tone, and speaks a short commanding sentence of evuukian punctuated by Valavera Tala Erisa Verherin’s full name. Valavera reflexively seizes and awaits with a wide-eyed, spooked expression. Aristespha eases out an uncertain and uncomfortable breath as she holds a finger to signal Valavera to wait, and searches her feelings. As Aristespha contorts her face towards a conclusion, Valavera’s previous emotions fade to genuine concern as she watches Aristespha wrestle with something big internally. A smile appears on Aristespha ivory face, and she snorts with a slight shake of her head. She turns to face down the hallway, and calls out a warm, loving string of evuukian around Sebastian’s name. Valavera blinks blankly as the verbal communication fails to process in her mind, and stares perplexed.

Sebastian peeks his head down the hallway, notices Aristespha motioning him over, and flies into her room. Aristespha pats a spot on the bed next to her, waits for Sebastian to drift down upon it, and adjusts the aim of the camera to include both her and him. She points to herself, points to Sebastian, and repeats the motion awaiting Valavera’s reaction. After seconds of sorting through the implications, Valavera’s eyes widen in recognition and her jaw drops in utter shock as tinges of delight slip out. Aristespha grins slyly, and addresses Valavera. “Now, that you know I UNDERSTAND, would you like to be educated on how to navigate current Evuukian house society and maintain such a relationship?”

Valavera straightens her posture, brings her phone closer, and eagerly nods. “Yes. Oh gods... I’m really sorry for acting like that and all- But, please teach me. Oh! Is going to be like in the books and all?”

Narrowing her gaze, Aristespha rolls her eyes with a smirk, and waves the chuckling Sebastian away. “I would ask what books, but one thing at a time. So, tell me all about this boy.”

----

Sounds of the summer night fill the surrounding forest of the small clearing. A chorus of insects, small nocturnal animals, and calm wildness merge together into an evening ambiance. A dim glow radiates from a low fire, and illuminates the circle of different tents. Chad walks to the center of the camp, surveys everyone in the team, and hems. “Okay, everybody. Gather around.”

Deedri closes up a medical bag, and hops up. Modoran nonchalantly emerges from nearby shadows, and stands next to Deedri. Trakenthin finishes a page of a book, replaces the bookmark, and joins the center. Tassilda brushes her finger through her raven black hair, flicks away a stray leaf, and steps to the group. Veevi grumbles as she stands next to an open door of the black SUV, and stares at the still charge indicator on her connected aetherphone. Chad waits a moment, narrows a mildly annoyed stare at Veevi, and calls out to her. “Veevi. Would you please join us?”

Faint rustles of leaves sound out from the perimeter of the camp, and camera crews take aim for choice shots between Chad and Veevi. Flicking a pointed, fuzzy ear towards Chad, Veevi disdainfully sneers her upper lip, crosses her arms defiantly, and grumbles loudly. “I can hear you just fine.”

Focusing his glare, Chad rests his hands on his side, smirks, and speaks out. “You do understand if you don’t attend these meetings, you won’t know what we’re doing. So, you just might be left behind... All by yourself... In a strange forest, locked out of the SUV, during the summer heat, and with all the hungry forest creatures around you.”

Veevi’s pink pupil eyes widen as she weighs the degrees of discomfort in her mind, and huffs in disgust as she begrudgingly walks over. “Fine.”

Chad clears his throat, and addresses the group. “Okay. We’re going to start a deeper search of the forest tomorrow. We got a good start today with scouting the immediate area thanks to Modoran and Trakenthin. We’ll be going as one group, and keeping as alert as possible. Until we get a better idea of what this forest has, we need to be extra cautious. So, get a good night’s rest and we’ll start bright and early.”

All the team agrees, with one exception. They break towards each of their individual tents. Veevi checks her phone, slams the door in frustration, and quickly slips into her tent nearby. Camera crews retreat away, leaving remote monitors, as the activity dies down in comparison to the wildness around.

An hour passes peacefully. Stirring around her tent, Veevi peeks her head out, scans around, and slinks out. Creeping around the perimeter of the camp, she maintains a careful watch of the other tents, but focuses upon one on the opposite side. She sneaks to the best of ability around the site, and arrives. Kneeling next to the back entry, she pulls up on the zipper. It doesn’t move. Veevi tugs harder upon it, and strains slide it up the track. After many failed attempts, she snorts and huffs, and grumbles to herself. “The fuck is wrong with your tent, Modoran.”

A sharp snap echoes faintly across the camp site, and Veevi’s fuzzy ears perk towards the noise. She narrows her pink pupil eyes in the direction of her tent. Her bewildered gaze widens as she sees Modoran slip into her tent. Bewildered, she cocks her head to side, ponders the situation, and pulls an evil grin across her face. Swiftly, she slinks around the camp back to her tent. Donning a seductive flow to her body movement and loosening her top, she pulls herself into her tent expectantly. Inside she finds only her bedroll and other belongings. Sitting back on her legs, she briefly searches interior of the tent, spins around, and tries to slip back out through the flap. After feeling the tent fabric wrap around her face tightly, she pulls away, and puzzles at the closed zipper on the flap. Gripping the slide handle tightly, she pulls up expecting, and the zipper denies. Pulling harder on the mechanism, she mumbles out curses under her breath, and her anger reveals her vain, obvious efforts.

A young fvalian woman yawns, blinks her eyes, and tilts her head sleepily in front of a monitor. Walking quietly over, a young fvalian man holds a steaming cup of coffee near, and softly whispers. “Urdi, coffee?”

Urdi stirs back awake, turns her nose to towards the hot beverage, and appreciatively grasps hold of the drink with a smile. “Thank you, Radnae.”

Radnae settles into a chair in the van interior, and glances over another large monitor. He blinks a moment as the feed switches from another camera. Tapping a few control buttons, the screen switches back, and he takes control of the remote camera. While adjusting the zoom and aim, he mumbles out in surprise. “The fuck is going on here?”

Urdi shifts her gaze to the screen and tilts her head. “Is she... Oh my gods... No...”

She picks up a pair of headphones, slips them on, and dials in a volume knob. After a few moments, she twists her face in a mix of disgust and disbelief. “She really is. She’s bitching about it not opening.”

An ill-humored smirk grows upon Radnae, and he directs his voice behind him to a middle aged man in another seat. “Hey, Harris... You WON’T believe this. Check out camera three.”

Harris presses a few buttons on the control console, and studies his screen. “What the? Is that dumbass stuck in her tent?!”

Radnae snorts while shaking his head, and quips. “I think we found our first clip for next week’s show.”

----

Late afternoon sun shines overhead through the forest canopy, and projects swaying shadows upon the ground. Chad leads the team, navigates ahead through the forest, and investigates suspicious areas. Trakenthin surveys each new area, notices landmarks, and compares them against a paper map. Modoran carefully scouts out from the group upon spotting unusual evidence and when prompted by Chad suspicions. Tassilda monitors the magical activity in the area through incantations and detection tools. Deedri assists with sweeps for magical activity and studies relevant chapters from her guide book.

Lagging behind the team, Veevi follows along in a perpetual state of annoyed and petulant. She grumbles to herself, occasionally kicks forest debris, and searches the area with her hand on her holstered laser pistol. With each stretch of boredom, she retrieves her aetherphone, and stares at the out of service icons and dwindling battery meter. Glancing around, she notices the team far away. Her internal anxiety and fear surges and drives her rush back up to the group.

Behind and off to the side, various recording teams keep track of the Flames of Phoenix. Gerald aims his shoulder camera for a shot, and abruptly blinks when his viewfinder blacks out briefly. He records the shot, and inspects his camera. After initial checks, he shakes his head. Samantha glances over. “Anything wrong?”

Gerald shrugs, hoists the camera back on his shoulder, and grimaces. “I don’t know. A lot of weird little glitches happening too often. We might be getting close to something.”

----

Flicking her short hair tail full of frustration, Veevi eyes the traces of late morning sun hinting through the dense, gray cloud cover, and crosses her arms. “Are we seriously going to explore another part of this fucking forest for no good reason?! It going to rain!”

Chad rolls his brown eyes, curls his upper lip, and keeps his attention towards the game trail. “Yes. This is the last section near the predicted crash area before we have to expand our search. So, you better help find it. Otherwise, we are going to see ALL parts of this gods damned forest.”

The Flames of the Phoenix continue forward with Chad in the lead, Trakenthin, Modoran, Deedri, and Tassilda following close behind. Veevi trails behind, glances back to a small camera crew tagging along, and grumbles out her grievances to a captive audience. With the darkening skies, progress slows along rougher terrain, and traces of disappointment creep into the team. Chad halts, and scans his distant stare along the edges of his vision. “Where are we now, Trakenthin?”

Trakenthin steps up, holds out a paper map, and taps his finger on a rough area. “Here.”

Resting his hands on his sides, Chad twists his mouth. “Okay. Damn, I was hoping to see something...”

A strong gust blows overhead and filters into a brisk breeze through the trees. As the wind passes, Deedri’s furry ears perk up and sort through the noise. She darts her auburn eyes around, and spots unnatural debris rattling on the ground. Kneeling down, she cautiously pinches a jagged fragment of aluminum between her claw tips, and holds it up into view of the rest of the team. “I think we might be close.”

The team, including Veevi, gather close to examine the thin metal sheet. Trakenthin searches along the ground. “Out of place.”

Chad narrows his gaze at the material, carefully takes it from Deedri, and studies it. “This definitely came from some kind of aircraft. It looks just like the exterior sheets the machinists use when they make replacement panels for the planes and drones being restored at my dad’s garages.”

Narrowing her examining stare upon the metal, Tassilda furrow her brow and cocks her head puzzled. “I think I’m feeling magical leftovers on it.”

Processing the possibilities, Chad stands up tall, hands the piece back to Deedri appreciatively, and walks further down the path. “Okay, everyone. Keep an eye out. And, be careful. We don’t know exactly what brought this thing down. Let’s not chance anything.”

With renewed vigor, the team trudges forward. As they travel through the winding path, they find more metal fragments. Modoran and Trakenthin both notice broken branches high up in the trees and sheered bark on trunks. Minutes of travel later, the group arrives at a thick wall of brush and tall hedges surrounding a large area. Awkwardly probing the plant life, Chad pushes through a thinner section with assistance from Trakenthin and Modoran holding back annoying, obstructing branches.

After the rest of the team filters through and the camera crews fight rougher patches, Chad, Trakenthin, Modoran, Deedri, Tassilda, and Veevi gawk at the scene before them. Bright, vibrant flora around a small stream sways in the gentle breeze swirling in the vicinity. Carpets of flowering plants shift intermittently to unseen forces across the ground, and flits of colorful illumination spark around the area. With a weak gust, one of the four main propellers on the large drone spins with a barely audible whir, and the chassis rocks gradually upon the soft soil with the wind. An accomplished grin grows wide on Chad’s face, and he gazes back to the team. With a presenting wave of his arm, Chad brightly smiles proud and chuckles as he steps to the side of the team. “I think we found our drone.”

Deedri steps up, holds her hands up to the team, and motions them to wait. “One moment. There’s some really obvious signs of spirit activity. I’d like to try out a detection spell before we go any further.”

Chad blinks, nods in agreement, and motions encouragingly. “Of course! Please go ahead.”

Checking her Tobin book briefly, she slowly recites through the complicated incantation, and performs a chain of gestures with exacting motions. Summoning up magical flows, she focuses condensing energies between her palms, flings her arms wide, and releases a faint pulse. The wave travels a few meters before dispersing completely, and barely highlights a few translucent entities. Deedri’s furry ears droop slightly, and she frowns out her disappointment. “That was suppose to be a little more revealing.”

As the rest of the team watches the illuminated spirits, Chad smiles at Deedri, and reassures her with a proud tone. “I think that’s pretty good for a first try at the spell. It worked. Just try it a few more times.”

Deedri’s mood perks up and she summons up another attempt at the spell. The team cautiously travels towards the crashed drone. Deedri releases a few more focused spirit detection pulses to check the route leading to the autonomous aircraft. At the drone, Chad and Modoran investigate the large two meter wide and long machine. Trakenthin searches up into the trees and surveys area above them. Tassilda and Deedri use their aetherphones to document the drone, and often distract themselves with photos of the surrounding area and the animated spirits. Camera crews struggle to capture all the different things happening along with the team. Meanwhile, Veevi watches idle spirits resting upon different plants, and attempts to poke them when Trakenthin shifts his stern, disapproving stare away.

Minutes later, Modoran stands up, stretches his back, and shrugs his shoulders nonchalantly. “Except for that one side, this thing looks like it’s in great shape.”

Chad blinks thoughtfully, crosses his arms, and twists his mouth. “Yeah. I’ve actually seen worse looking things fly. So, probably some flight control system acted up and it... I guess, gracefully failed into a hard landing?”

Narrowing his eyes, Trakenthin slowly pivots to face Chad and Modoran, and sneers through his suspecting tone. “Quite successful for failing. There is a crude path through the trees that leads here. Broken branches confirm.”

Tassilda walks with Deedri, holds up her aetherphone, quirks her brow, and alternates between two images on the device. “Not to make it seem even more suspicious, but for crashing, this thing looks almost exactly like it’s profile picture.”

Lifting her toed boots to step to a rocky patch of forest floor, Deedri grits her teeth with a wary tone. “Also, as easy as it is for ME to push my boots into this dirt, I find it REALLY weird that a crashed drone this big isn’t sunken in.”

The team mulls over the observations, and contemplate together. Meanwhile, Veevi pesters a very tolerant spirit under the attention of a camera crew.

A loud, powerful rumble of distant thunder rolls over the area, and rattles the team back to immediate reality. Chad focuses gaze to the darkening skies, and sighs uneasy. “Okay. We found it, and I think that’s good enough today. Let’s double-time it back to the camp, and get ready to weather this storm.”

As Veevi reaches out with a stick to swat at small glowing orbs, the surrounding spirits disperse away from her, and quickly disappear. She cocks her head of pink hair to the side, stands up, and whines. “Aww, they all ran away.”

Tassilda glares over and quips derisively. “I guess your smell finally drove them away.”

Just as Veevi and Tassilda lock confrontational glares, Deedri’s ears flick around and hunt for a sound. Her frightened eyes widen and her tail fur puffs out. “What is THAT?!”

Quickly approaching from the distant woods, a brightly shining being of translucent, angular shapes and jagged energy trails flies towards the crashed drone. It abruptly halts short of the downed craft, swiftly shifts opposite of the team, and hovers up. It pulsates a reddish light out in the area. A growing cacophony of calculated acoustic wave forms floods local soundscape in a strange chaotic chorus. Deedri steps back uncertainty with fear blatantly on her face, and searches her mind frantically. Chad notices the obvious unease, motions slowly, and positions himself defensively with Trakenthin and Modoran in front of Deedri, Tassilda, and Veevi. In a surge of reflexive fear, Veevi fumbles for her laser pistol and tries to draw it. She winces at the harsh clamping of Chad’s hand on hers. She glares bewildered at him in a mix of fright and anger. Chad remains quiet and drills a grave, serious stare through her.

The camera crews attempt to record, but fight constant equipment glitches, crashes, and malfunctions. Deedri blinks as recognition rises in her mind, and she whispers to the team. “I think this is an Anima. It’s a spirit that tends to affect technological devices and seems very interested in such.”

Chad directs his voice back over to Deedri and inquires. “Are they hostile? Aggressive?”

Deedri bites her lower lip uncertainly, draws in an uneasy breath, and weakly shrugs. “The guide book said they are sometimes protective? Often territorial?”

Trakenthin darts his hazel eyes to the pathway in the trees, the anima’s position, and the drone. After a few grath curses under his breath, he sternly motions back. “Get away from the drone.”

The team pieces together the situation enough, and quickly arrive at the same conclusion. All step carefully back from the anima and craft. As the distance from the anima grows, the speed of team and crew retreat increases. A bright, jagged thread travels the dark cloudy sky in a lightning flash, and an overwhelming boom blasts down up the forest. The anima flickers chaotically, releases a distorted screech, and slams into the drone.

Everyone in the area freezes. The quad propellers spin to full power, servos articulate motors downwards, and the aircraft lifts into the air. Navigating the surrounding trees frantically, the drone slams hard into nearby trees and snaps through branches.

Blue white light floods the area. A spray of electrical arcs erupt out from the drone as a jagged run of lightning launches up into the sky instantly. The concussive eruption of air sends Chad, Deedri, Modoran, Trakenthin, Tassilda, and Veevi onto the dirt. Recording teams stumble upon the ground. A torrent of water drains through the canopy into a full downpour. Recovering from the blinding flash, deafening boom, and sudden soaking, the team struggles, and the crew scramble away. Chad, Deedri, Modoran, Trakenthin, Tassilda, and Veevi barely manage to recover enough of their senses to witness the anima infused drone roar out in an echoing, digital scream. It releases a spray of electrical arcs into burning trees, and charges in forth in flaming magical fury.

Everyone scatters in pure panic.

-85-

The thunderous, overwhelming roar of water ripping through the canopy fills the saturated air under the tall trees. Harsh jets of rain pound the forest floor and spray up into a thick, obscuring mist throughout. Darting out through a cloud of the damp haze, Deedri leaps over a large shrub, slides along the muddy game trail, and tumbles into a soaked patch of moss. She scrambles behind the wide trunk of a tall tree, and squeezes herself into a rain shadow. Pressing her back against the bark, she reflexively pierces her claws deep into the outer layers of the oak, and stares distantly in wide-eyed terror out into the curtains of rain and deep fog hiding the forest. Flicking her furry ears, she closes her eyes and sorts through assault on her senses from the deluge around her. Seconds of hunting later, traces of tension leave her body, and she slows her frightened panting. Glancing around the area, she inspects her soaked outfit, muck covered boots, and drenched long, multi-colored hair. She slides her large backpack off, carefully opens the top, and eases a sigh of relief as she confirms the contents. Pausing a moment to sort through her frantic thoughts, she draws in a long breath, lifts her head back against the bark of the oak tree, and whispers to herself. “Oh... Fuck...”

Gazing out aimlessly into the watery chaos surrounding her tiny reprieve under the barely sheltering tree, she frowns into a grimace, rests her face in the palm of her hand, and mutters fvalian curses at herself. Her furry ear twitches and perks around the tree. Carefully peeking around the corner, she secures her backpack, readies herself, and waits silently. Through the haze and noise, Deedri’s ears pick through the acoustic chaos and track new sounds.

Slaps of boots against mud, a splatter of water, and loud shift of wet rocks rise from the background. After a hard, large smack against unforgiving mud, a familiar voice mutters out a string of evuukian curses, and Modoran swiftly slides down a fresh stream of muddy water. The gravity sails him down the hill and the current washes him in the middle of a large trail. Laying on his stomach, Modoran remains still and grumbles out his pride with frustrated huffs. After a few moments, he pulls his arms underneath himself, pushes his mud covered self into a seat in the pooling water, and releases a defeated sigh.

With a growing smile on her fair skinned face, Deedri's auburn eyes flit wide, and she directs a loud whisper. “Modoran!”

Modoran’s long, pointed ears twitch, and he meets Deedri’s gaze and presents a relieved, awkward grin on his dusky bluish gray face. Blinking his dark blue eyes, he smiles with genuine relief, and weakly chuckles as he glances over himself. “Deedri... I hope you’re doing better than I am.”

Lifting a thick braid of her hair, Deedri squeezes the bundle tightly, and drains out a significant amount of water. “About the same.”

She walks over from the cover of oak, reaches out her hands to assist Modoran, and scans the vicinity. “Did you find any shelter better than a tree?”

Modoran graciously holds onto Deedri’s hands, pulls himself up, and pushes off the coats of mud on his pants. “Not yet. I’ve just been running around trying to find anyone else.”

Deedri nods, gazes out, and shakes her head. “I know. It’s just been crazy... I just now started to really think... How lost I am.”

With a comforting smile, Modoran chuckles as the sheets of rain blast layers of mud off his jacket and backpack. “You’re not the only one. But, there’s two of us now. So... I’m sure we can figure out a plan now.”

Nodding with a lighter expression, Deedri narrows her stare and points out towards a sparser section of forest. “I think there’s a clearing that way, maybe it’s worth checking out?”

Stepping up to search the distance in the same direction, Modoran agrees with a curious twist of his mouth, and focuses his attention downwards at an outline in the thick mist. “Yeah... Huh, that looks like a building... Maybe?”

Deedri lifts herself up on her toes, peeks over a line of tall shrubs obscuring her view, and glances back to Modoran. “Might as well see. Anything is better than soaking out here.”

Carefully traversing the slope, Deedri and Modoran climb down the slippery hill through the constant barrage of rain, and push through a wall of brush together. Looking over at the small stone building, the two rush around to the front facing a large clearing, and slip through the entryway. Out of the constant downpour, Deedri puzzles at the huge field within the haze and the barely visible silhouettes of trees surrounding the area through through the mist. “This clearing is huge, and look at these trees!”

Modoran narrows his stare and focuses through the sheets of rain and foggy air. “It looks like there’s other buildings, but I can’t see anything clearly.”

He turns around, stares down the dark, central hallway, and grimaces uncomfortably. “This place doesn’t seem inviting. Need to get some light...”

Deedri ponders a moment, holds her hands close together, and focuses. With a flicker of auburn in her eyes, magical flows condense around her clawed fingers, and she mutters a series of incantations with slight gestures. A small, floating orb glows brighter with the energy collecting inside of it, and flashes to a bright blue-white illumination. Modoran blinks as his eyes adjust and smiles appreciatively. “Nice. Much better than my aetherphone.”

Holding the glowing sphere in her hand, Deedri walks along with Modoran, and the two step warily down the long corridor towards an open heavy door. They stop midway through and notice locked side chambers behind bars. Deedri’s ears droop, and she grits her teeth uneasily. “Does this feel like a...”

Modoran nods with an uncomfortable grimace. “Jail? Yeah. Yeah, it does. But, I don’t think it’s been used in a while.”

Both arrive at the doorway. Modoran carefully inspects it, peeks through the opening for obvious trouble, and gradually pushes door. Deedri holds the light out, and both survey the room. Modoran shrugs his shoulders at the small space with a simple cot, and glances over to Deedri. “Honestly, a lot nicer than what I was expecting.”

Deedri pushes the glowing orb up and watches it float up to stick to the roof. She releases a long sigh, slumps her shoulders, and buries her face between her hands. “Gods, it’s just nice to be out of the rain.”

Modoran chuckles lightly, scratches the back of his head awkwardly, and shrugs. “Yeah. I think we should hold up here for now. I’m really not up for wandering around aimlessly in the rain.”

Deedri slowly rocks her head in silent agreement, and remains quiet in her thoughts and uncomfortable breaths. Listening to the slight shudder in Deedri’s sighs, Modoran takes off his backpack, rests it on the ground, and steps behind Deedri. Lifting gently on Deedri’s large pack, he politely asks and motions his head towards the wall. “Is it okay if I put this over there?”

Blinking her auburn eyes back to awareness, Deedri lifts her face up, thinks a moment, and nods appreciatively. “Oh... Yes... Thank you.”

Deedri slides out of heavy pack, and Modoran hoists the weight over to a spot next to the wall with a gentle drop. Brushing off some dust and debris from the cot, Modoran directs Deedri’s attention with a kind smile. “Sit down for a bit.”

Deedri glances over at the cot, studies her soaked clothing, and shakes her head. “Let me get these off. I don’t want to drench the only dry place to sit.”

Quickly finding the zipper to her top, Deedri loosens up the decorative garment, and slips out of it. Wringing out the excess water on her loose undershirt, she fans some of airflow down the collar of her light body suit, and holds the sopping wet top in her other arm. She notices Modoran stiffly facing the other direction, and extending his arm towards her. Modoran musters up his voice through flush hints on his cheeks. “Um, I know a spell or two to dry clothes if you want me to... Um... Dry them for you.”

After a moment of self-consciousness arranging her undershirt to be more presentable, Deedri cracks an amused smirk, and places the top on Modoran’s awaiting arm. She quickly undoes the fasteners for her long skirt, and unsticks her shorts off her leggings. Placing the bottom garment in Modoran’s arms, she lightly taps a claw on his shoulder, and cranes around his side with a smile. “Thank you for being considerate, but I’m decent.”

Modoran nervously laughs, nods as he finds a place to hang up the soaked clothing, and works the embarrassment off his face. “Oh, yeah. I’ll get these dried off for you.”

Quickly gesturing through an incantation, Modoran directs flows of magical energy to his hands, and methodically motions over the clothing hung on the heavy door, each pass guiding water off onto the floor. Deedri eases herself onto the cot, slowly breathes out her nerves, and drifts off into her mind. Minutes pass by in comparative silence, with Deedri searching through the her thought with frown and Modoran focusing his attention upon pulling water out of clothes. After finishing an initial pass with Deedri’s garments, Modoran glances over and asks. “I’m going to try to dry off my clothes if you don’t mind.”

Deedri blinks out of her trance, shakes her head, and refocuses her attention. “Oh, no. Go ahead.”

Unzipping his jacket and pulling off his pants, Modoran strips down to his damp shirt and shorts, and finds some old metal loops in the stone wall to hang the clothing from. Deedri's eyes drift over towards Modoran and she stares. After a few seconds, her conscious mind realizes the situation, and she redirects her thoughts with a question. “Um... So... How do you know these types of spells and tricks? Clothes drying, towel arrangements, and knowledge of resort booking?”

Modoran shrugs his shoulders nonchalantly, chuckles to himself, and glances over to Deedri with a grin. “A bunch of random stuff I picked up from part time jobs with my family’s businesses.”

Deedri blinks, searches her mind, and perks her furry, damp, tufted ears. “Wait, what businesses does your family own? I talked to your mother and sisters for hours, and they never mentioned anything to me.”

Rolling his eyes, Modoran snorts and shakes his head. “Not surprised. They were on vacation and happy to talk anything else. But... It’s a whole collection of different hotels, motels, and resorts. No central brand, on purpose. My mother and father know all them by heart. My older sister probably is getting there.”

The idea distracts Deedri briefly with an intrigued smirk, but other pressing thoughts quickly force a frown on her face. As she remains silent and staring blankly, her wavering breaths and shaky hands catch Modoran’s attention. Stepping over, Modoran glances down at Deedri with concern. “Deedri, are you okay?”

Deedri twists her mouth, droops her ears, and uncertainly fumbles over her words. “I don’t know. We’re lost... We’re separated from the group... There’s some gods awful spirit driving a death drone around after us. And... I’m supposed to be the medical mage out to help anyone who could be injured right now. But... All I can do right now is... cower in hole, scared and clueless what exactly to do next.”

Watching the distress grow apparent on Deedri, Modoran clears away his idle, nonchalant exterior, musters up his confidence, and kneels down in front of Deedri. Meeting her auburn eyes with his dark blue gaze, he smiles reassuringly and places a gentle hand on Deedri’s shoulder. “The best we can do is survive, so we can have a chance to help everyone else. There’s no point in us wandering around the storm. Let’s see if we can get our aetherphone radio transponders working. Meanwhile, we’ll dry out, rest up, and calm ourselves down so we can think straight. We can figure this out.”

Deedri gazes into Modoran eyes, and a hopeful smirk emerges upon her face. She shifts her attention over as she feels the faint trembling of Modoran’s hand on her shoulder. Placing her hand upon his, she smiles at him and holds onto his hand. Seconds later, Deedri glances over to the space on the cot next to her, and genuinely asks. “You want to sit down for awhile?”

Modoran blinks out of his trance, nods quickly, and eases himself onto the cot. The two enjoy the peaceful moments in the small room with the ambiance of the rain hammering the outside world. Deedri shivers briefly, wags her tail awkwardly, and grumbles as she feels the water logged fur. Pausing in a thought a moment, she bites her lower lip. “Do you have any spells that can help dry my tail out?”

An amused smile appears on Modoran’s face, and he nods slowly as he preps a spell. “I’ve got one that’s basically like a hairdryer.”

Deedri flops her damp tail up in her hands, and combs a bit of it out with her claw tips. “Gods, that sounds so nice right now.”

----

Rolling walls of water dump through the battered canopy above and pound the brush below. Tripping over a large tree root, Veevi slides belly first down a muddy game trail, and splashes down a long decline head first into a murky pool. Lifting her head up from the muck, she spits out a the dirt saturated water, and peels her soaked mop of pink hair out of her eyes. Panting in near exhaustion, she darts her spooked stare around the disorientating haze and constant watery onslaught at the thinning edge of the forest. Her gaze settles upon a large stone structure in front of her. Blinking to realization, she stumbles up to her feet, searches the area, and slinks towards the building. Standing under an overhang, she presses her back against the exterior wall, and breathes a few sighs of relief. Listening to the surges of rain blast the other side of the building, Veevi peeks around the corner and pans her glance across the open field within the obscuring mist and the front of the old, stone structure. Spotting an archway, she darts across, quickly checks the entryway, and rushes out of the storm before another blast of water washes over.

Inside the dark, she stands dripping in her tight fitting outfit, and nervously gawks into the shadowy surroundings. A distant slam booms out. A pink furred tail slips out of view behind an upturned table, and Veevi shudders in fright as her fuzzy ears twitch to the eerie quiet of inside against the rhythmic deluge outside. Tense minutes later, her pink pupil eyes uncertainly dart around the area, as the interior silence looms. Easing out a breath, Veevi eases the tension out of her shoulders and slumps behind the debris surrounding the toppled table top.

Summoning up the little nerve in herself over the eerie minutes, she quietly rises back on her feet, glances around, and ventures deeper down large central hallway. Faint sources of light from distant outside sources break up the surrounding darkness in the tall, echoing corridor. Veevi stops midway, grimaces, and holds her hands together. Mumbling to herself, she winces in concentration, strains her body, and focuses her gaze hopefully to her palms. Seconds later, faint flows of magic condense to form a dull ball of light that provides a modest amount of illumination. Gritting her teeth nervously, Veevi surveys the area around her. The dim glow projects a light to the scene around at the intersection before massive, broken doors. Shifting her gaze between shattered furniture, cracked bows, and random objects piled up, Veevi’s horror grows. She catches the glints of bullet and shell casings in stark contrast against blackened scorch marks on the floor and walls. She freezes in a surge of horror as she fights against recognizing the dried, morbidly shaped pools and smears scattered through the area.

A bright flash erupts from nearby windows and Veevi freezes in wide-eyed fright through the loud crash of thunder. In a panic, she runs through the double doors, frantically panting. In the barely lit, echoing chamber, she trips over a few steps and tumbles into a shallow, circular pit. Pulling herself back together, she forces herself to flow more energy into the dull glowing orb in her hand. With the extra light, she sits up in the middle of a round depression in the floor with surrounding, shattered steps. Veevi blinks in confusion at the crushed masonry, the deep gouges in the floors, and tool marks around shallow, circular pit. Her wandering stare surveys the huge chamber, desks of scattered papers, shattered magical equipment, and shelves of empty bookcases. Wrapping her arms close to herself, she notices a stairwell in the corner, and scrambles over in a surge of fright.

Quickly moving through the halls, Veevi steps around remnants of strange scenes. Fighting fear, she glances into a room beyond torn down doors, and halts at the remains of a master bedroom. Stepping over into the room, she carefully, awkwardly walks through the recognizable furniture in the mix of chaos and upheaval. Slowly exploring the upturned room, she finds elaborate, nature themed garments in the debris, and a mostly intact mattress with nearby sheets strewn over the area. Relaxing her breathing, she briefly puzzles at an empty compartment in the floor next to the overturned bed. Pausing in her thoughts, she feels her damp clothing as the wind blows into the room from an open window in the small connecting bathroom. She picks through the clothing in the debris and settles upon the mattress.

----

Slowly marching through the torrent, Trakenthin leans against a tree, lifts his large arm across his helmeted forehead, and shields the rain from the aetherphone in his other hand. Squinting through the harsh spray of water splattering on his visor, he watches an array of signal strength bars pulsate to different heights on his the display. Two reach near the highest point of the scale, and two others slowly rise with each oscillation. Trakenthin shakes his head, wipes the excessive water off his helm, and searches into the obscured clearing. He growls loudly, and fights a mix of frustration and worry as he continues staring out.

Two of the signal bars now pulsate to the top of the range with an alert beep, and Trakenthin glances down briefly. He lifts his helmeted head, and focuses all his attention to the horizon through forest and haze. After a few fruitless passes, two familiar voices sound out. Chad kneels slightly, braces against a tree, and holds his arm out back towards Tassilda. With a staggered glide across the loose, slick dirt, Tassilda catches herself upon Chad’s outstretched arm and backpack. She grumbles out her aggravation, releases a long stressed breath, and summons up a tired, appreciative tone. “Thank you. Sorry.”

Chad shakes his head with grimace, holds his shield up against the waves of rain, and turns to check on Tassilda. “It’s fine. This situation is fucked anyway.”

Taking the moment under the shelter of the shield, Tassilda pulls her soaked raven black hair back out her light blue on black eyes, and nods begrudgingly. She lifts up her aetherphone into view, checks a similar signal area, and flit her eyes wide. “Oh gods, I think we’re close to everyone else. Their signals just jumped up.”

Gazing out into the distance, Chad spots a tall, imposing, and familiar figure against the waves of rain. He cracks a hopeful grin, points Trakenthin out to Tassilda, and leads the way. Trakenthin stands tall his armor, and greets Chad and Tassilda with a reserved smile. “Good to see you.”

Patting Trakenthin on his shoulder, Chad laughs through his exhaustion. “Same. Any sign of Deedri, Modoran, Veevi, or the crew?”

Trakenthin shakes his head and twists his face. “Nothing from Veevi. No sign of crew. Deedri. Modoran. Must be near.”

Directing attention to the distance outlines of ancient stone buildings contrasting the mist and rain, he contemplates out loud. “Believe they are in these structures. Sharp increase in signal going over the hill.”

Tassilda nods in agreement, looks around the area, and motions towards a nearby mid sized building. “Same thing happened on my phone. Let’s check this one and get out of this rain.”

The trio navigate down the slight slope through perimeter brush, rush around to the front of the building facing into the clearing, and stand outside a busted doorway. With a bit of hesitation, they carefully enter the structure. Inside, Chad, Trakenthin, and Tassilda cautiously fan out, and explore the entry with multiple side rooms. Each pauses to investigate strange stacking of supply crates, upturned furniture, and broken debris. Discomfort grows as they find traces of conflict by impact holes, magical burn marks, and dark splatter stains upon the walls and floors. The group reconvenes in a large barracks in the back of the structure, and slowly rearrange cots. Chad pulls his helm off, shakes his head, and sighs uneasily. “Okay. I can’t be the only one that would have rather just found this place full of dirt, cobwebs, and bugs.”

Tassilda shudders as she slings off her backpack onto the ground, and releases her water logged cloak onto the floor. “GODS, NO. What IS this place, and... What THE HELL happened here?!”

Trakenthin grumbles with snort, rolls his shoulders, and studies the vicinity concerned. “Something BAD. Must tolerate it for now.”

Chad releases the straps of his breast plate, pulls off the damp under armor from his skin, and nods reluctantly. “Yeah. This is the first bit of shelter we’ve found. So, we’ll have to ignore the... history... for now.”

Tassilda lifts an unamused brow towards Chad, and rolls her eyes at the situation. “History. That’s a nice way to put it.”

Shrugging his shoulders, Chad pries out his aetherphone from his pants pocket, shakes off the water, and presses a button to wake the device. “Let’s see if the radios want to work now. I think that THING was jamming them or something before. Check on Deedri and Modoran, and see where they are.”

Chad presses and holds a button on a two-way radio app, and speaks clearly. “Deedri. Modoran. Deedri. Modoran. We detect your phone beacons. Where are you? Are you okay?”

The tense silence looms over the seconds as Chad, Trakenthin, and Tassilda wait. Chad’s phone speaker chirps a few key ups on the channel, along with the sound of fumbling hands and background murmurs. Deedri’s voice sounds out. “Chad?! Thank the gods. Modoran and I are fine. We’re near this really big clearing taking shelter in this... um, strange... small stone building. You heard from anyone else?”

A wave of relief washes over Tassilda, Trakenthin, and Chad. With a happy smile on his face, Chad presses the transmit button. “Yes. I’m with Trakenthin and Tassilda. We’re okay. Just really soaked. We took shelter in another building around a big clearing, too. Haven’t heard from Veevi or any of the crew. So... I don’t know. The drone didn’t chase us after a certain point, so it might have flown off and left everyone else alone.”

After a radio key up, Deedri ponders out loud, uncertainly. “So, what’s the plan? We’re a bit lost as to what to do next.”

Chad glances between Trakenthin and Tassilda’s indecisive expressions, thinks a moment, and directs his voice out to the group local and remote. “Well. We shelter until the storm moves on. Keep our transponders running, and take turns monitoring the radio and do a call out once an hour. And... Rest up the best we can. Sound good?”

Trakenthin and Tassilda nod, and moments later Deedri’s voice speaks after the radio key up. “Yes. Kind of how we felt.”

From the background of the far side of the radio broadcast, Modoran comments. “Good enough for me.”

Keeping the transmission going, Deedri sounds out from Chad’s aetherphone with an uneasy tone. “Not to make things creepier, but... Does this place seem weird to you?”

Chad eyes around the large barracks, narrows a stare to the front entrance, and nods slowly as he keys up his phone. “Yeah... Let’s not plan on staying here longer than we have to.”

----

Underneath a rocky overhang, Samantha, Gerald, and a dozen recording crew members hide as water splashes from over head. Gusts of wind blast rain upon the huddled masses. Samantha whispers loudly over the storm to Gerald with a grimace. “Everyone is accounted for, right?”

Gerald nods his head of wet hair, sighs, and stares out into the misty forest. “Yeah. A bit roughed up running through this forest, but okay.”

Contorting his face uneasily, Gerald groans, shakes his head, and glances around. “But, we got to find some kind of shelter. That fucking spirit drone thing is due to make another pass in this area, and I don’t think we have that many passes left before it narrows down where we are.”

Samantha grits her teeth, snorts out frustration along with spatters of water dripping down her face, and furrows her brow. “Gods dammit. Why the hell is it hunting us down?! Oh, never mind...”

She directs her voice over towards Urdi and steps closer. “Any luck on figuring out where those beacons are coming from?”

Urdi flicks her furry ears in thought, wrestles the indecision on her face, and points in a rough direction. “I think we need to go that way. The further that direction we've gone, two of the signals got stronger. Three other signals have settled to the same levels. So, they may have regrouped.”

A hint of worry rises in Gerald’s tone, and he glances over to Urdi. “Anything from Veevi’s aetherphone?”

Shaking her head, Urdi frowns. Radnae quips has he checks a readout from some equipment. “Then again, she probably couldn’t figure out how to turn the beacon on. And yes, there’s still too much interference to broadcast a clear radio signal out.”

Watching a sharp increase in activity on the monitor screen, Radnae waves frantically at everyone and loudly whispers. “It’s NEARBY. Everyone back HIDE.”

Gerald, Samantha, Urdi, Radnae, and crew duck and tuck close together under the overhang. Under the obscuring waterfall of drainage, they wait in nervous anticipation. In the distant haze, the powerful, sharp whir of rotors and crackles of electrical arcs rise above the sounds of the pummeling rainfall. The large drone soars through the trees in a wild display of awkward navigation, and charts an erratic search path. Occasionally, a powerful electrical arc pops into a nearby branch when it flies to close. A few minutes pass before its hunt leads it away, and it disappears back into the mists of the forest.

The assembled crew wait tensely. Gerald breaks the relative silence, points in the direction suggested by Urdi, and motions the rest of the group. “Well, we're not sticking around here.”

----

Curling up on the mattress under a pile of scavenged towels, blankets, and sheets, Veevi snores softly. The storm rages outside the open windows of the large, ruined bedroom, and the wind blows through the room across Veevi’s outfit draped over a chair. Tossing on the mattress, Veevi unconsciously stretches out in the nature themed clothes, and mumbles to herself in her sleep. Her fuzzy ears twitch to the sounds voices in the hallway outside the bedroom entry. A loud noise of something hitting the stone floor echoes through the corridors, and Veevi startles awake.

Hearing the voices getting closer, Veevi’s eyes widen in bewildered panic, and she scrambles around. After fumbling around, she finds her laser pistol, scurries behind a pile of debris, and shakily trains the weapon at the broken entry doors. Her fear drives her frightened panting. She shudders nervously and the pistol trembles in her hand. The muffled voices grow louder. The rainfall surges outside in drowning, disorientating cacophony. Veevi’s grip tightens on the pistol.

In the midst of a chorus footsteps outside the bedroom door, a voice speaks up. “Okay, let’s what we got in here-”

A bright green flash floods the bedroom and hallway. A laser beam pulses into existence out the doorway and scorches the wall across. Immediate silence seizes area. A surge of bravado drives Veevi up to her feet, and she angrily screams through panic. “THERE’S MORE OF THAT IF ANY OF YOU MOTHERFUCKERS COME IN HERE! I’LL BURN YOU ALL TO A GODS DAMNED CRISP!”

Over the frightened muttering of a man's voice, Samantha yells back into the room in an absolute, seething rage. “VEEVI! IF YOU DON’T PUT THAT FUCKING PISTOL AWAY, I’LL SHOVE IT SIDEWAYS UP YOUR PINK FURRY ASS, AND KICK THE SHIT OUT OF YOU UNTIL IT FIRES! YOU DUMB BITCH!”

Veevi’s pink pupil eyes spring wide open as she immediately recognizes the voice. She quickly lowers the pistol to her side, shrinks her posture back down into hiding, and meekly replies with drooping ears. “O-okay... Well... Sorry?”

----

Beams of early morning sun angle down into the large clearing in the middle of an ancient tree perimeter. A series of watery footsteps sound out into the area, and two sets of footprints form a fading trail across the soggy soil. The depressions into the grasses appear, and water oozes to fill them quickly afterwards. Leading into the mid sized structure, two pairs of boot prints stamp watermarks onto the stone floor of the entry. Modoran and Deedri gradually shift to full opacity on top of the watery outlines. Deedri blinks with an intrigued smirk and whispers to Modoran. “I REALLY need to learn how to do those spells.”

Modoran grins nonchalantly and shrugs his shoulders. “Yeah, they have their uses.”

The two slowly step in, and cautiously inspect the entryway. The growing morning highlights the signs of past, messy strife. Modoran spots Chad down the hallway, and leads the way through the leftover chaotic clues. Deedri shudders upon recognizing the old bloodstains, and rushes through that corridor section. Chad waves the two in, and sighs with relieved smile. “Good morning. I hope you two got some rest. We tried our best here.”

Modoran twists his mouth into a grimace, and shrugs uncertainly. “We dried out and took turns getting a few hours of sleep each. Not the best sleep I’ve ever had.”

Sneering her upper lip, and uneasily squirming out her disgust. “Didn’t help that we stayed in some makeshift jail cell.”

Chad flits his brown eyes wide, frowns slightly, and glances around the room. “Gods... Yeah, this place has some... history... I don’t want know about right now.”

Tassilda finishes brushing out her long raven black hair, pulls it back over her spiraling horns, and dons a relieved smile. “Yes, but it seems like everyone is safe enough.”

Deedri’s furry ears perk up, and she gazes between the group. “Really? The crew and... Veevi?”

With a wry chuckle, Tassilda stands up from her seat on a cot, stretches out her arms, and rolls her eyes. “Yes. The crew followed our aetherphone beacons, and they found Veevi for us. She hid in some bedroom in the big building at the other end of the clearing. Nearly blasted Gerald’s head off when the crew tried to explore the room.”

Pinching the bridge of his nose, Chad slowly shakes his head and grumbles. “Need to take that pistol away from her.”

Trakenthin groans in agreement and nods his head sternly at Chad. Modoran pivots in place, studies the layout and contents of the room, and queries the assembled team. “Any theories about what this place is?”

Chad rests his hands at his side, puzzles at the environment, and ponders out loud. “Maybe some kind of base? This place looks old. But, all the furniture looks like it was kept up until recently. So...”

Leaning over to a corner of covered supplies, Trakenthin lifts up a cloth wrapped bundle, steps up to Modoran, and presents it. “You may know about this. Found it while clearing out space for camp.”

Modoran takes hold of the loose package, unwraps it, and tilts his head back in surprise. Carefully gripping the finely crafted wooden bow, he meticulously examines the inscriptions and magical channels carved into the structure. He cocks his head of short, grayish white hair to the side as astonishment and worry blend together on his dusky bluish gray face. Searching his mind for conclusions, he exchanges glances with the curious team, and inquires. “Did you find any quivers or arrows?”

Trakenthin nods, points to the corner of supplies, and directs Modoran’s attention to a quiver of three well crafted arrows with magical markings. With a blank expression Modoran mumbles out a phrase in Evuukian, and draws an awkward breath in. Chad narrows his gaze at Modoran, tilts his head intrigued. “Anything we should know?”

Modoran shrugs his shoulders, resumes his nonchalant exterior, and sighs. “It a wonderful magic imbued bow, and nicely enchanted arrows. I’m a bit worried about who made them. But, I get the feeling they’re not here anymore. So, I’ll hold on to them, if no one objects.”

Chad searches the rest of the group for opposition, then nods in agreement. “Go ahead. You’re probably best one to use it from what I’ve seen.”

Staring outside and focusing her furry ears to faint sounds of Veevi’s voice, Deedri directs a question to the team. “So, what’s the plan?”

Noticing the attention upon him, Chad draws in a breath, searches his mind a moment, and plots. “We’ll regroup with the crew... and Veevi. First order of business is to figure out where that drone is. That way we can try to be where it isn’t. After that, we double time back to camp, load up, and get the hell out of here. I think we have enough evidence to show that the drone is not exactly... Um, recoverable? Currently in use? Shit. I don’t know. But, I hope that’s enough of explanation.”

Tassilda rolls her light blue on black eyes, and smirks sarcastically. “From what I’ve heard about the Grand Library, they’ll probably send a team to try to study that thing after we’re gone.”

Nodding at Chad, Modoran slips the quiver onto his back, holds the bow at the ready, and motions towards the exit. “Let’s see what the crew and Veevi are doing, then. So, we can get out of here.”

The group assembles, and walks to the entryway. Upon stepping out, they notice Veevi in front of the largest ancient structure, standing boldly in front of the entrance, and soaking in the attention of cameras in her revealing adaptation of her new clothes. The team halts their progress, and reluctantly watch. Modoran squints his eyes, grits his teeth into grimace, and cringes. “Ooo... That’s a lot they’re going to have to fix in post.”

Tassilda sneers her upper lip, places her hands on her hips, and snorts derisively. “Oh please, she’s shown far more in far less before.”

Shaking his head, Modoran draws an uneasy breath through his teeth. “Yeah, but those are Terra Priest symbols on all that.”

Before the team processes that new information, an unfortunately familiar whir of rotor blades creeps out from the background noise of the surrounding forest. The sound surges louder and louder, until the drone slowly navigates through an open section of cleared branches between two ancient trees and passes the perimeter into the unoccupied part of the large clearing. It hovers menacingly over the small jail structure, and starts a slow scan of the area. The team ducks back into the their building, and hides out of sight. Chad whispers to the group and grits his teeth as he thinks out loud. “Okay. We know where it is. But, we have to deal with it. I’m thinking if we can disable it. At least so it can’t fly well enough to follow us. Umm...”

He eyes the bow in Modoran’s hand, and smirks. “Modoran, you think can do some damage with that?”

Modoran pulls an arrow out of the quiver, checks it over, and nods tentatively. “Oh yeah. I’m not familiar with these arrows, but I know I can put it through the hole in it’s side if stays still.”

Lifting a finger as an idea springs forth in her mind, Deedri points over to Tassilda. “I got something, I think. Spirits can be influenced by mind affecting magic. That’s how they are often controlled. At least, what I've read... So... Maybe...”

Tassilda cracks an eager grin on her gray face, lifts an eyebrow, and flexes her hand of long, black nailed fingers. “A charged up sleep wave?”

Deedri’s auburn eyes light up and smiles. “Yes! And, I can boost up a hold spell to try to immobilize it.”

Chad nods at the forming plan, glances over to Trakenthin, and smirks. “And if it goes down, Trakenthin and I will close in to chop its wings.”

Trakenthin nods affirmatively, dons a stoic gaze, and readies his sword. Chad sorts through the process and outlines the plan. “Okay. Deedri immobilizes it, and Tassilda sleeps it. Modoran sends an arrow or two inside it. If it goes down, Trakenthin and I try to keep it from flying again.”

The assembled team relays their agreement. Chad twists his face, ponders a moment, and grumbles. “We need a distraction-”

A loud, bold yell echoes out into the field, and a series laser blasts cast bright green light into the entry. A single dull, metallic ping rings out, and rotor hums flares up. Veevi screams out over the sound of the laser pistol firing. “You’re not so tough! A few good shots will take you down!”

Chad blinks blankly, and releases a sigh along with the dismay of the team. Trakenthin quips while rolling his hazel eyes. “Asked. Received.”

Outside in the clearing, in front of a line of gradually retreating crew members, Veevi takes shaky aim at the drone hovering distantly and pulls the trigger repeatedly. A few bright green beams flash past the looming machine, and it slowly pivots in place as it’s rotors adjust. With a few arcs across its fuselage, the huge, airborne anima infused aircraft shifts its propulsion and coasts towards Veevi with sparks drifting off of it. In a growing panic Veevi jerks more wild shots off her weapon, and sends random shots off roughly in the drone’s direction. It gains velocity with intent obvious.

With a loud roar of rotors spinning up to speed and blades grinding through air, the aircraft pitches its nose sharply down, and fans out arcs of electricity. The crew instinctively scatter out, and panic back into the huge ancient structure. Veevi shakily keeps her laser pistol pointed towards drone, glances back to the frightened people running, and stares in absolute terror at the visibly aggravated machine. She freezes in horror, shakes in her boots, and shrinks in hopeless awe.

Shimmers of energy jet up from the ground, quickly envelope the drone, and stiffen into a thick translucent cloud. Sputtering out a quick few fvalian curses just outside the stone barracks structure, Deedri digs her finger claws into the soggy dirt saturated with magical flow. She glances over with a wince to Tassilda and growls out. “NOW! I don’t know how long- I can- stretch this out-! Never meant for THIS!”

With a flash of light blue glow in her eyes, Tassilda cracks a confident smirk, presses the swirling magical flow between her hands, and aims the palms of her hands to the struggling drone. With a flex her of upper body and arms, the energies surge to a focal point, and erupt out in a narrow cone at the anima controlled craft. The nearly transparent flow engulfs the drone and washes through the entirety of the chassis. Moments later the rotors spin down to an idle maintenance speed, servos lethargically level out, and the craft hovers still in the air. A fast sigh of relief leaves Deedri’s lungs, and she recovers her composure while panting. “Oh gods... It’s not fighting back now. I think I can keep it steady.”

Modoran nods with concern to Deedri, steps up front with the bow in hand, and nocks an arrow, glaring determinedly at the drone. Pulling back the bowstring, he draws in a calm breath, and lines up his shot to the hole in the fuselage. Flows of magical energy swirl around his arms and sink into the bow and arrow. The markings on the bow glow brightly, and a misty illumination vents off the head of the arrow. When the drone drifts just enough to expose itself fully and the bow and arrow light up to their brightest, Modoran releases the arrow. The bowstring snaps forward immediately, and the arrow disappears into a blue-white streak across the clearing. The trail zips inside the chassis of machine as fiery ball of energy.

A fast succession of loud metal slams pound inside the body of the drone, with each impact loosing volume and leaving a smaller dent on the outer hull. The final crash sizzles to a loud expulsion of smoke, and the aircraft flops down on a shallow puddle. As Chad and Trakenthin charge out, Modoran draws another arrow from a quiver, examines in closely, and quips in a bit surprise. “Huh, so that’s what that enchantment did.”

Chad takes the lead with his shield forward and Trakenthin right behind, as the mechanic beast roars out a confused, pained cacophony of synthetic chaos. Narrowing an examining stare at the struggling drone, Chad yells out to Trakenthin. “Try to break the blades on the rotors! Even a little damage will make them useless. Then, jam the mounts!”

Trakenthin nods, splits off from Chad, and the two rush to opposing sides of the drone. Carefully stepping forward, Chad grits his teeth as small arcs of electricity spark out from the drone, and he gets near a spasming fan. With his shield up, he holds his sword downwards above the chaotically spinning blades, winces his head back, and spikes his weapon in. With a loud shatter, fragments ping off his shield, and Chad struggles to maintain his grip on the sword as the rotor grinds to a harsh halt. Trakenthin narrows his focus, waits for the arcs to wane, and crashes his large sword into the metal chassis surrounding rotor unit. The drone jerks at the sudden of stop from blades carving the intake manifold. Another furious blast of of electricity follows shrill, electronic cries of rage. Both Chad and Trakenthin retreat back quickly, as the aircraft fights against damage and physics to rise again.

Modoran readies another arrow, starts flowing his energies into it, and glances between Tassilda and Deedri. “Can you two give me another opening?!”

Deedri grits her sharp teeth, strains her body, and stares at the drone with glowing auburn eyes. As translucent forces locks the machine onto the ground, Tassilda steps up, aims her hands, summons up another burst of energy at the grounded aircraft. Modoran takes in a deep breath, takes aim, and yells out. “STAND BACK! I DON’T KNOW WHAT THIS WILL DO!”

The arrow zips across the clearing, through the hole in the fuselage, and plants itself inside. Everyone watches expectantly for seconds, while Deedri strains to keep the drone locked down. A high pitched whine rings out from inside the machine, and a powerful concussive burst explodes out. Silence overtakes the area. The drone remains still. The electrical arcs wane to nothing. And, the last signs of life fade from the rotors and servos.

Chad and Trakenthin regroup with the rest of the team. After a minute, Chad looks over the team, presents a proud, bright white grin, and chuckles. “I think it’s done. But... we’ll keep back and...”

Chad’s voice trails off with the bewilderment of the team, and they watch Veevi strut triumphantly up next to the drone. With the camera crew recording from a distance, Veevi dons a prideful grin, assumes a revealing pose, and poses with her laser pistol. Tassilda glares spitefully as her knuckles cracks from clenching her fist. “That little fucking pink bitch...”

A faint glow pulsates inside the hole in the drone, and a small entity of brightly shining, translucent, angular shapes, and jagged energy trails leaps out. The being merges into the laser pistol. The weapon electrocutes itself out of the Veevi’s hand, and lands on the ground. Veevi stumbles onto the soggy soil, dramatically clutches her hand, and whines out in pain. The camera crew shift their attention over to the gun. With a few faint sparks, the pistol rights itself on the ground, pivots its aim, and fires wildly. While the crew ducks and scrambles away, Chad hoists up his shield and growls out loudly. “Enough of this shit!”

Trakenthin stands defensively in front of Deedri and Modoran. As Chad approaches the laser pistol, Tassilda rushes up behind him and pats his back. “Get me close. I’ll see if what a dispelling blast does to it.”

With pulses of bright green beaming out across the clearing, Chad and Tassilda approach slowly and carefully. In a final push, Chad moves up to the chaotically firing weapon. Tassilda swings her arm out from behind Chad, and flings out an orb of magical energy. The ball of disruptive flow moves through the flailing pistol, and the anima flees the weapon in a high-pitch electronic shriek. With a chitter of synthetic panic, it darts around the clearing, and flies off into the forest.

Chad steps up cautiously to the motionless weapon, picks it up, ejects the power cell, engages the safety, and holds the discharge button. Shaking his head, he grumbles out his blend of frustration and relief. “I’ll be holding onto this.”

-86-

With a powerful kick of his boot, the physically imposing Trakenthin shoves the beaten and battered drone grinding across the stonework floor of the large hallway. After he leaves the tall entryway, Chad and Modoran close massive exterior doors on the huge main building at the edge of the clearing. Trakenthin drags over a large log in front of the doorway, and guides it in place with the help of Chad and Modoran. The trio stand back, rest and stretch out their bodies. Chad glances over to both Modoran and Trakenthin, shrugs ambivalently, and grumbles. “Well. We found it. Mostly in one piece, but I don’t think they specified what condition we were supposed to keep it in.”

Modoran snorts with an ill-humored tinge, crosses his arms, and smirks. “I don’t think they’ll care. I mean, I think they were expecting us to report back with pictures of the fucking thing crashed in a burnt crater.”

Lifting a dryly amused eyebrow, Trakenthin slowly shakes his head, and sighs as he rest his hands at his sides. “It resembles that now.”

Drawing in a long breath, Chad works off a grimace, pivots around, and rolls his eyes. “Yeah. Hopefully, stuck in there, it won’t be taken for another joyride by a crazed spirit, or whatever else.”

As Chad leads the group towards a larger gathering in morning sun of the clearing, he eyes Trakenthin inquisitively. “You have any trouble calculating the coordinates to this place?”

Trakenthin rocks his head slightly from one shoulder to another, twists his mouth, and ponders out loud. “Land transponder signals are weak here. Enough to get a rough location. Refined with our route from camp today. Confirmed with landmarks. Should be enough. This large clearing would be hard to miss.”

Modoran nonchalantly strolls next to Chad, gazes across to Deedri, Tassilda, the crew, and Veevi, and pries for details. “So, what’s the plan today? I think we’ve gotten everything under enough control for now. You got any desire to explore this place further?”

Chad grits his teeth briefly, uneasily sneers his upper lip, and shakes his head. “No. Not at this point. Sleeping at camp knowing this place was nearby was hard enough last night. I think I’m okay with spending tonight at Goff’s Inn. We’ll leave this place to the Grand Library.”

A smile appears on Modoran’s dusky bluish gray face, and he releases a loud sigh of relief with a trailing chuckle. “Oh, good. Fuck this place. I’m ready to just have to deal with Veevi on the ride back.”

Trakenthin cranes his glance over to Modoran, and sympathetically smirks. “I could sit back with her. Our route back is charted already. I do not need to navigate.”

Modoran shrugs his shoulders with an indifferent attitude, and snorts. “It’s fine. If she tries anything again, I’ll just let Tassilda handle her and keep her distracted.”

Shaking his head with a mild cringe, Chad brushes his brown hair with his fingers, watches Veevi hog the camera crew attention, and eyes either side at Modoran and Trakenthin. “Speaking of which... Would one of you want to use the laser pistol? Thought I’d ask before keeping it myself.”

Modoran searches his mind a moment, and waves off the offer. “Nah. Honestly, that bow seems powerful enough for me. Also, it can be quiet and harder to track back if I need to fire it from hiding. So, it works for my tactics.”

Nodding in agreement, Chad glances over to Trakenthin and expectantly awaits an answer. Trakenthin shakes his head, pats a side compartment on upper leg section of his armor suit, and smirks proudly. “I have a suitable weapon.”

Both Chad and Modoran snap their attention towards Trakenthin, and puzzle at the new information. Chad cocks his head curiously to the side, blinks in thought, and narrows an examining gaze at Trakenthin. “Really? Why haven’t you used it before?”

Trakenthin frowns slightly, and sighs with a disappointed groan. “Not as proficient with it. Would not have been effective against enemies we faced.”

A smile appears on his dark bronze face with a warm tone. “My house mother made it for me. I am careful with how I use it. Not for trivial tasks.”

He pauses a moment, eyes the unconvinced expression on Chad and Modoran’s faces, and sighs with an embarrassed grumble. “The ammunition is expensive.”

Both Chad and Modoran nod understandingly. As the trio close in on the rest of the team and crew, Chad shakes his head and grumbles. “I’ll just keep it for now. Probably best that way.”

He steps forward of Modoran and Trakenthin, clears his throat, and calls out to the team and crew. “Everyone. The drone has been stowed away safely in the big, main building. Once we get a good signal, we’ll inform the Grand Library where to pick up their property.”

Tassilda lifts an ill-humored brow, rests her hands on her hips, and grins slightly. “Or, what remains of it.”

Chad glances over to Tassilda, rolls his eyes at the situation with a smirk, and shrugs his shoulders. “As Modoran pointed out, they were probably expecting a pile of parts in a crater. I’d like to think we delivered a little more than that.”

A smiles creeps out past Deedri’s professional exterior, while Veevi tosses her pink hair back petulantly and sneers at Chad. Summoning up a bit of pride and posing for the attention of the cameras, Chad announces. “As far as I am concerned, The Flames of the Phoenix delivered, and went well above and beyond the call of duty on this one. I think we’ve honored our contract. And we certainly deserve a proper victory celebration...”

He grits his teeth, darts his eyes around the ancient trees surrounding the massive clearing, and stiffen his upper lip. “After, we get far, far away from this really creepy place. Right? I think we’ve learned enough about this place for one mission.”

A chorus of agreeable voices sound out from the rest of team and crew in the gathering.

----

A lone evuukian man stands in front of aged, weathered signs, and glares at them disdainfully. Focusing his yellow eyes at the various warnings in different languages, a mean smirk pulls across his light-gray, green hinted face. Drawing back his boot, he angrily punts the sign post from underneath and sends the placard tumbling through the air, the reflective GAA logos shimmering in the noon sun. Stepping through the overgrowth the of the forest, he slowly navigates down a narrow passage through the thick, old trees. Minutes later, he arrives at a simple clipped top, pyramid building, and stiffens his posture. Brushing the debris off his leather armored outfit, the evuukian man tosses his long black hair back, and eases off his backpack. He carefully approaches the decaying, concrete exterior of the structure, and maneuvers closer to a large metal exterior door.

Narrowing an examining stare at the entryway, he notices a newer locking hardware on the building, and focuses his glare upon a device welded to the door and frame. Sneering at the keyholes, keypad, and display on the front of the locking block, he lifts his hand in front of the mechanism and concentrates. With a slow, purposeful breath, faint flows of prismatic magical energy swirl down his arm, condense in his palm, and sink into the GAA branded device. Seconds later with the growing energies, the display on the system flickers to life with a warning message beeping loudly. As more flow pours into the locking block, the alert grow distorted, strained, and warped. With a faint spark of white in the evuukian man’s glowing yellow eyes, a surge of magical energy forces into the device. A loud shrill beep screams out, crackles of electricity arc inside the system, and a large plume of smoke erupts from the joints in the chassis. The display goes dark from the soot soaking through. An orange-red glow radiates from inside the unit as the torrent magical energy rips into the system. Moments later, the block drops unceremoniously to the concrete patio, and specks of solidifying molten metal splatter out.

The evuukian man kicks the smoldering mechanism out of the way, and turns his focus to another metal box. Lifting the lid up, he studies the old, worn keypad under the layers of dirt and grime. He brushes off the collected debris with his his leather gloved hand, and firmly wipes off a series of numbers and letters in the lower corner of the panel. Resting his backpack down, he rummages his arm deeper than the length of the bag into the space, and retrieves a ragged binder of paperwork. Eyeing the uncovered letters and numbers, he flips through vastly changing types of notes and documents, and stops at a technical printout. Tapping thoughtfully upon a long, highlighted series of numbers, he reaches a hand over and carefully types in the code. With the final digit entered, he presses a confirmation button.

Seconds pass in the quiet of the surrounding forest. A groaning beep sounds of from the panel, and a low hum of machinery resonates. A crunchy grind sounds out from the large metal door, and puffs of crumbling rust vent out after hard thunks vibrate the door frame. With a final chunk, the heavy closure releases and drifts slightly open. A satisfied grins appears on the evuukian man’s face, and he sweeps his up his backpack. Gripping tightly on the door handle, he slowly pries the old door open, and slips inside.

Wandering through dark hallways with a simple illumination spell in hand, the evuukian man studies the different signs. Following old architectural blueprints, he finds a route through the ancient base. Eventually, he arrives at a dusty room with multiple computer stations, and a large, full wall window into a very dark space. Hunting around the room, the man locks his yellow eyed gaze upon a series of large switches on the wall, reads the labels in the dim light, and notices power meter needle vibrating at the ready. He draws in a hopeful breath, and pulls the large arm of the main breaker. The faint hum of electrical activity resonates through the window from the space beyond. Through the glass wall, a series of loud thunks echo out, and over head lamps flood sections of a concrete floor far below. A sly, plotting grin widens on the evuukian’s face as he steps over to witness the final lights clack on, and studies the massive warehouse of bipedal robots standing on marked platforms. His gaze shifts down upon a console, and he wipes the eons of dust off a faintly glow screen. A menacing taint colors his smile as he watches the status scroll listing active units and equipment load outs. He slings off his backpack next to a chair, settles in the seat, and places a binder near the console.

----

Peeking over the tree tops, Sebastian’s ethereal figure surveys the area, and he squints his eyes into the distance. He slowly hovers down from the top of the canopy, and flies towards Bach down a path. Keeping just below larger branches in the thin woods, he halts above Bach, crosses his arms, and glances through the wide gaps between trees. Bach stops in the shade of a tree. Gradually pivoting in place, he stares out into the furthest reaches of his vision, studies the forest, and shakes his head. He reaches into his pocket, retrieves his aetherphone, and taps through a few menus. Hearing mumbling below, Sebastian drifts back down to ground and lands next to Bach. He cranes his head over Bach’s shoulder, eyes the digital map on the phone, and inquires. “So, what are you trying to figure out, bro?”

Bach twists his mouth as he contemplates, shrugs his shoulders unsatisfied, and sighs. “Trying to make sure we’re on the right path. Because, I haven’t seen any signs of something that could be tearing up the park.”

Sebastian searches around briefly, nods in agreement, and contorts an uncertain expression on his ghostly face. “Yeah... From what they were describing in the brief, you’d think there was some kind of terror lurking and haunting the woods.”

Scanning the vicinity, Bach waves his hand out to the surrounding woods, and gazes a Sebastian puzzling. “I know, right? But, this looks like any normal park path to me.”

Grimacing as he sorts through his thoughts, Sebastian lifts a quizzical brow at Bach, and points to his aetherphone. “Anything from the others?”

Bach swipes through a few screens, selects a messaging program, and reads the latest texts from Aristespha, Cideeda, Dretphi, and Sotalia. “Yeah, and they’ve haven’t found anything worth mentioning either.”

Sebastian scratches his chin and ponders out loud while he stares distantly. “The night watch reported seeing strange lights, the sounds of trees being taken down, and a lot large things moving around.”

He twists his mouth indecisively, rocks his head side to side, and hovers in place. “Maybe that’s spirit phenomena? That would explain strange lights, but the other weird noises... I don’t know. Aristespha wasn’t so certain either.”

Bach shrugs his shoulders, glances down the path in front of him, and motions that direction. “Well, maybe we’ll find something up ahead.”

Sebastian nods and floats along side his brother as the two continue down the path. Minutes of quiet walking and scouting pass on by. Bach blinks as a thought rises to the front of his mind, and aims a curious gaze at Sebastian. “So... I’ve been meaning to ask this... When did you and Aristespha decide to be become a serious couple? I mean, when did you think she was the one for you?”

Sebastian’s hovering slows, and he blinks blankly at Bach. With his transparent, blue eyes darting around for pieces to a proper answer, he grits his teeth and stumbles out a rambling response. “Well... Um... You see... I- We- Um- Well, we just came to a conclusion after so many other events that... we might actually have something worth pursuing.”

Narrowing an inquisitive stare, Bach trains his attention upon Sebastian, and pushes the question. “Yeah, but what was the moment? The key event? The thing that made you finally realize it?”

Contorting an uneasy expression on his face, Sebastian tries in vain to keep the slight squirms of discomfort from creeping into his posture. “I wouldn’t say there’s was A event. More like a series of smaller events that built up over time. And, I’d like to think it just eventually became recognizable as a relationship... And, we came to acknowledge that fact and...”

He shifts his averting gaze back to meet Bach’s unconvinced glare, and sighs out his defeat. “You ain’t accepting that bullshit, are you, bro?”

Bach slowly shakes his head, and grumbles. “Fuck, no.”

Sebastian slumps his shoulders, lifts his head up to stare at the afternoon sky, and groans as he rolls his eyes. “Fine. I was trying to dress it up, and make it sound like either of us had a clue. But, really, bro... We were doing all kinds of couple things, really. But, the both of us were just in active denial of the possibility.”

Stopping abruptly, Bach lifts a bewildered eye brow at Sebastian, and cocks his head to the side. “You, actively avoiding relations with a beautiful woman?”

Crossing his arms defiantly, Sebastian narrows an annoyed stare at his brother, and ethereally sighs. “First. Fuck you. Second. Yes. Okay...”

He rolls his eyes at himself, slowly shakes his head with tinges of embarrassment, and grimaces. “In case you haven’t figured it out by now, Cideeda and Dretphi heard about our group by my unprecedented failures at flirting with them. And, Sotalia is my ex. Where I seem to fail romantically, I oddly succeed at recruitment.”

Bach blinks his blue eyes a few times, turns his gaze away contemplatively, and processes the information. He gradually aims his curiosity back Sebastian, scratches his chin, and twists his mouth. “Wow... I mean, I had some suspicions, but I didn’t want to inquire and... Now, I REALLY don’t know how to approach these new subjects.”

With a humored snort, Sebastian holds up his hand to Bach with a calm smile. “Sotalia and I were decent together in the short term. But, we realized that long term, romantically... We’d eventually tear each other apart. So, we decided to ease it back. Stay good friends and adventuring partners.”

Nodding at the explanation, Bach pauses, draws in a long breath, and inquires further. “Okay... Still doesn’t explain the active denial thing.”

Sebastian pinches the bridge of his nose, and eases a long ethereal groan. “Long story short, bro... I just decided to not pursue any kind of romantic relationships for the time being. I mean, you know my track record up to and including college. My failings thankfully got together a really great team. And, with Aristespha... I just was not looking. For once, I decided to focus on other things. I mean, it just didn’t dawn on me that it was a possibility.”

Bach chuckles, shakes his head, and smirks. “Figures. When you aren’t looking, it happens.”

He thinks a moment, lifts his head up at a revelation, and gazes at Sebastian. “Wait. So your ex played matchmaker with you and your current girlfriend.”

Sebastian blinks, awkwardly grins, and shrugs his shoulders. “Yeah, bro. Yeah... A bit weird. But, I can’t really complain. And thankfully, Aristespha and I figured we should try being a couple when we did. Otherwise, I think Sotalia was plotting to somehow lock us up in a room and until we fucking figured it out.”

Narrowing his distant stare, Bach searches the top of his head, sorts through the possibilities, and gradually nods in agreement. “You know... I could see her doing that. Yeah... That is in the realm of what is she capable of.”

A chime rings out from Bach aetherphone, and he glances down at the new message prompt. “Huh, Cideeda and Sotalia found something weird down their path.”

Sebastian pivots in place, searches the park paths nearby, and motions towards the possible directions. “So, where do we go?”

Bach checks his phone, brings up a map, and points towards a passage at the next intersection. “That one should take us where they’re at.”

Sebastian hovers along side his brother, and the two pick up the pace down the route. During the quick walk, Bach directs his voice to Sebastian. “So, you never answered my question. When did you and Aristespha figure out you were couple?”

An amused, awkward grin appears on Sebastian’s face, and he fails to contain the humor in his voice. “Well, honestly, it was somewhere after she’d yanked my shirt off and her taking her shirt off that it dawned on me that we might have something.”

Bach shakes his head in humored disgust. “Really, man?”

The brothers travel down a long park path, and arrive at a picnic area. Sotalia stands with her hands on her hips, tosses her wavy, fiery orange hair back, and waves at Sebastian and Bach. “If this isn’t something, I don’t know what is.”

She points over underneath the shade of a large, old tree, and watches Cideeda examine a large patch of turned up dirt. “Something has been digging up the place. Some small trees were knocked down and the bark was all scratched up.”

Cideeda digs through a patch while sniffing the air, grabs hold something in her clawed fingers, and pulls up a small dark fungal mass. Studying the roughly round ball, she glances back over to Bach, Sebastian, and Sotalia, and presents her findings. “I think something was trying to dig up these truffles, maybe?”

Aristespha and Dretphi arrive from another path, and join the gathering. Dretphi steps over to Cideeda, holds her gauntlet covered hand out, and curiously inquires. “May I see that?”

Cideeda hands it over, stands up, and brushes off her body suit. Dretphi closely examines the fungus, lifts her visor up on her helmet, and carefully smells the truffle. “It is a truffle. This variety can be found in this area.”

Aristespha lifts a sly brow, and smirks. “Well, that’s certainly a little bonus for this job. I wonder if there’s any more left.”

Cideeda grins toothily, perks her furry ears, and slowly walks near the different patches of up turned dirt. “Let me check.”

Dretphi pauses in thought, lifts her head up from studying the truffle, and surveys the ground in the area. “Has anyone seen tracks?”

Sotalia motions over to the edge of the forest nearby, and waves her hands out to a muddy section of dirt. “Yeah, but they’ve all been trampled over so many times. And, I don’t know what I’m looking for.”

Quickly stepping over to the patch, Dretphi kneels down, and glances over the deep split hoof impressions in the soil. Her steely gray eyes widen, and she sits upright, searching the area. “Wait. These are...”

Cideeda’s furry ears perk to a noise coming from stirring brush, and she points a claw tip over. “Hey! Over there...”

The team readies themselves, and awaits the confrontation. From the bushes, a small dire boar casually pushes through, walks out onto the pathway, and sniffs the air. After a powerful snort, the dire boar looks right at the team, trots over wagging his tail, and constantly grunts out a series of low, happy oinks. Everyone else lags behind Dretphi’s immediate recognition of the dire boar piglet, and she holds her arms out to the large creature. The massive piglet walks up to Dretphi, and enjoys the petting and scratches. In between the attention, he sniffs blatantly around Dretphi’s side pouch. Bach cocks his head to the side in astonishment, and blinks dumbfounded. “Holy shit, that’s the same dire boar piglet?”

Sotalia cautiously approaches, leans forward to study the creature, and slowly shakes her head. “Gods, he’s gotten big. His spines and tusks have grown a lot.”

Dretphi retrieves a bag of trail mix from her side pouch, pours some into her hand, and watches the large piglet easily gobble it up. As she pets the mane and back of the young dire boar, she smiles happily and explains cheerfully. “Yes. The mother is doing an excellent job at raising them. Well fed. Well cared. Well protected. He is growing fast.”

Sebastian’s expression blanks a moment, and he slowly eyes the area with growing suspicion and unease. “Speaking of the mother... Where is she?”

An emerging wave of concern washes over the team and they start to eye the outskirts of the area. A loud, echoing crack sounds out, and a large protellow plant in the distant forest topples with a peace shattering crash. Through the dense trees on the horizon, a magical glow illuminates the outline of a gigantic creature and several other smaller critters surrounding. After the dire boar piglet finishes up the trail mix in Dretphi’s hand, he perks up his ears, and sniffs the air. With a final few happy grunts, the large piglet trots off enthusiastically towards the radiant figure in the forest.

Sebastian nods slowly, points a thumb over to a path, and awkwardly grins. “You know, I don’t think we should intrude on this family outing.”

With a similar consensus, the team regroups. Cideeda plucks out a few more truffles and rushes over with an entrepreneurial grin. Dretphi empties out the rest of her trail mix in a neat pile, gazes happily at the dire boar piglet going to his mother, and rushes over to the rest of the departing team.

----

Swiftly sneaking across the grass in a small gaps between trees, Deedri darts behind a large tree, presses her back firmly against the trunk, and waits. Her furry, tufted ears flick around the serene background of the surrounding forest, and she closes her auburn eyes to concentrate. After a minute, she eases out a long sigh of relief as her ears droop down. Stepping out from the cover of the large tree, she stares down the path she took, squints down the distance, and slumps the tension out of her shoulders. Drawing in a long, relieved breath, she slowly shakes her head and mumbles to herself. “Lost them...”

The transparency coating Modoran fades off, and he smiles with a nod. “That you did.”

The other voice spooks Deedri, and her tail puffs out with her tensing shoulders. She pivots reflexively around and glares right at Modoran. Her expression warms quickly as she recognizes Modoran. She relaxes and exhales. “Thanks the gods, it’s just you.”

Modoran grits his teeth briefly while holding his hands up, and awkwardly smiles with an apologetic tone. “Sorry... I didn’t mean to scare you like that.”

A sly smirk appears on Modoran’s dusky bluish gray face, and he perks his brow with a chuckle. “You did pretty good at losing them. Once the camera crew lost you, I lead them the opposite direction with one my illusions. They still haven’t figured out how to tell the difference yet.”

Deedri’s ear droop lower and she slumps her shoulders. “Good. I just had to get away from the constant interviews, and them asking every question in the world... again... and again... and again...”

She derisively rolls her eyes at the idea, and visibly cringes as she shakes her head. Resting her hands on the waistband of her shorts, she gazes at Modoran curiously and pries. “What are you doing out here, by the way?”

Modoran blinks briefly, nonchalantly shrugs his shoulders, and glances around at the scenery. “Well, it was a nice day, I decided to sneak out. When I saw you doing the same thing, I decided to help out. And well, now I’m here. So, haven’t really thought about it much further than that.”

An uncomfortable curl at the corner of his mouth twists his smile to Deedri, and he plays off the nervous energy. Deedri smirks at Modoran, and laughs lightly. “Were they pestering you about that bow?”

Modoran rolls his dark blue eyes, rubs the temple of his head, and nods begrudgingly. “Yes. I don’t know what part of, I just found and it used it, they don’t understand. I just needed to do something other than wait for some crew member pester me for action shots with it.”

Deedri rolls her eyes, twists her mouth, and groans. “Well, at least Veevi is distracting them for the most part with her new outfit. Have you told them about the Terra Priest symbols on it?”

With a tight, guilty smile, Modoran shrugs his shoulders, and grins with a playfully dismissive tone. “Nah. They’re big time show producers, I’m certain they know all about the current Evuukian political environment and will be able to plan the episode accordingly. There totally won’t be any blacklash.”

Lifting an ill-humored brow at Modoran, Deedri smirks and keeps a snicker to herself. “Oh, I’m sure...”

The two stand in the small, shady avenue between dense patches of trees in the peaceful quiet of the forest. A minute passes, and Modoran squirms out some discomfort, and raises his voice. “Hey, um... Deedri? I got a question to ask you.”

Deedri meets Modoran’s gaze, perks her furry, tufted ears up, and blinks with a smile. “Sure, what is it?”

Mustering up his will against a surge of awkward tension as he looks to Deedri, Modoran partially grins, and tries to maintain his nonchalant exterior. “After our show contracts are over at the end of this season... I was wondering if I could spend more time with you? Go out and do things together. Maybe share nice moments together? Especially ones that aren’t in the middle of bad situations...”

Blinking blankly, Deedri tilts her head slightly as her eyes wander though the thoughts in her mind, and a puzzled expression emerges upon her fair skinned face. A surge nerves shakes up Modoran’s confidence, and he squirms slightly during his verbal backpedal. “Uh, um- If you’re not- Um, ah...”

The sudden realization crashes into Deedri's mind. Her auburn eyes flit wide, her furry, tufted ears perk up, and she reflexively gasps. Keeping her composure against an overwhelming wave of excitement, she smiles brightly, gazes right up into Modoran’s dark blue eyes, and fights back against the disbelief. “R-Really? I mean, I didn’t think you’d- Well- Ah...”

Hearing the delighted surprise in Deedri’s voice, Modoran watches her voice shy away as she blushes at the new attention, and smiles warmly. “Didn’t think I’d what?”

Biting her lower lip, Deedri averts her gaze briefly in embarrassment, and eases out a guilty sigh. “Well, I’m a fvalian and-”

Modoran softens his gaze at Deedri, and smiles with a genuine, assuring tone. “That doesn’t matter to me.”

Deedri straightens her posture, anxiously holds her hands, and cocks her head at Modoran. “Really?”

Stepping forward, Modoran lifts his hands underneath Deedri’s, and smirks as she eases her grip onto his fingers. “Yes. Not all the houses support that dated ideology. In fact, my family tends to support it as part of their business. In an unadvertised capacity.”

Lifting an intrigued brow, Deedri cracks a slight grin and tightens her hold of Modoran’s hands. “In what capacity is that?”

Modoran fights a goofy smile and snorts lightly. “Well, my family owns a bunch of different motels, hotels, and resorts... That unofficially specialize in unofficial couples wanting their privacy. Especially, from the prying eyes of other evuukian houses. Or, their own. We don’t judge. Hence, why there’s no central brand to identify them.”

Deedri’s mood brightens with Modoran’s words, she gazes warmly up at him. She ponders a moment, curiously lifts an eyebrow, and flicks her ears thoughtfully. “Okay, so how do you know all about this stealth stuff?”

Modoran grins with a nonchalant shrug, and chuckles. “I learned all that from my dad. He was with a mercenary group that specialized in remote surveillance and spying. Turns out his skills were very useful in keeping tabs on people that would bother guests, and convincing them to leave.”

A flush of shyness fill his face, and he struggles against his awkwardness to put a sentence together with an endearing tone. “Anyway... I mean, really... How could I not love the beautiful young woman, the accomplished medical mage, and the wonderful, strong personality before me?”

Firmly grasping Modoran’s hands, Deedri gazes at Modoran, perks her ears, and slowly wags her tail. After moments of a quiet exchange, she works an eager question out of her lips. “So, how long have you felt this way?”

Modoran presents a sly smirk. “Well, it started right after you threw me onto the grass.”

Deedri’s furry ears spring up, and she puzzles. “Really? But, why didn’t you say something sooner?”

Wrestling down embarrassment and pride, Modoran releases a long thoughtful sigh. “I don’t know. I didn’t think you want anything to do with a house-less evuukian that’s practically an ex-con.”

Shifting her grip upon Modoran’s forearms, Deedri smiles with a sly twist, meets his gaze, and presses her claw tips gently as she pulls down. “That doesn’t matter to me. I’m a public school medical mage anyway.”

Focusing upon each other, Deedri and Modoran’s faces gradually move closer as Modoran leans down. Standing up on her toes, Deedri closes the remaining gap and presses her lips against Modoran’s. The two move their arms into an embrace of the other, and hold the kiss tightly. The simple affection heats up, and the two shift to maintain the connection as it grows more intense. Modoran rests his hands behind Deedri’s waist, while she grasps behind his shoulders. In midst of the passion, Modoran puzzles when Deedri’s hand slips onto one of his. He puzzles when Deedri slides his hand down upon the backside of her shorts. Modoran barely manages a guilty flit of his brow, before his expression blanks in surprise as five claw tipped fingers grip firmly onto his butt and an eager giggle sneaks out from Deedri.

Eventually the two ease their faces away from each other, both panting in a daze. Modoran summons up enough composure, smiles at Deedri, and chuckles quietly. “Well... I definitely think we have something we should both explore...”

Deedri wags her tail slowly with a lazy sway, and lovingly gazes up to Modoran with a guilty smirk. “Uh huh...”

Grinning slyly, Modoran shrugs shoulders nonchalantly and sighs. “Well... We'll take it at our own pace, when we are able. I think we can manage that somehow.”

Nodding in agreement with with tinges of disappointment, Deedri cracks an hungry smirk. Stepping up upon a large tree root, she pops up on her toes, tightens her hold on Modoran, and press her lips against his for another kiss. The sudden momentum shifts her balance upon the moss covered tree root, and she slips. Deedri tilts backwards and pulls Modoran down with her. Reflexively, Modoran twists himself under and shifts Deedri over him. The two land upon the thick grasses with an unceremonious thud.

Deedri blinks back to awareness from the post tumble confusion, and finds herself safely in Modoran’s arms. She tilts her head up, watches Modoran shake off the stun, and asks concerned. “I’m so sorry, are you okay?!”

Modoran lifts his head up from the grass, smiles nonchalantly at Deedri, and chuckles. “Yeah. Soft landing really. Are you okay?”

Pushing herself up, Deedri gradually realizes her current positioning, and resettles with a devious grin forming on her face. “Yes. Are you comfortable?”

Lifting an intrigued brow, Modoran glances to either side of him and rubs his back against the ground. “Yeah. This patch of grass feels nice.”

Leaning down, Deedri allows her multi-color braids to fall foward, and rests her hands on Modoran’s shoulders. “Good.”

Kneading her claw tips gently, Deedri lowers her face close to Modoran’s while her tail unconsciously brushes on his leg. “Are you still comfortable?”

Modoran smiles as he gazes into Deedri’s auburn eyes. “Yes.”

Tilting her head and closing the gap for kiss, Deedri mutters. “Good.”

----

In the living area of the ranch style house, Bach eases back into his dining room chair, and rubs the fatigue out of his eyes. “So, how did that one turn out?”

Aristespha narrows her glowing violet stare upon a tiny, thin sheet of magical cloth, and carefully adjusts it on examination pad with a gentle flows of energy from her fingertips. After studying the material, she gradually nods with a satisfied smile, and directs her voice over to Bach. “Very well done. I would have to test it further and properly sterilize it, but I think I could put this to use.”

Bach winces his eyes firmly closed, flutters them open to a faint blue glow, and shudders his head. “That’s good to know. But gods dammit... That just takes so damn long to make.”

Blinking out the illumination in her eyes, Aristespha quirks her amused brow, and smirks at Bach. “Now you understand why they have dedicated enchanted tools and other devices to make it easier. Even experts in crafting these magical materials with assistance have to take their time. Hence, why it’s so expensive.”

Stretching out his arms behind his back, Bach rolls his neck around, and yawns to a groan. Relaxing his shoulders, he tilts his head to focus on a spot on the tabletop, drops his hands on either side of the area, and grimaces indecisively. “I think I got one more in me. Just really wish I could figure out to the trick to do this. Feels like I’m missing something.”

Aristespha carefully lays out the small energy sheet upon a treated wax paper, and layers a protective film on top of it. “Possibly. But, I truthfully don’t know what it could be. A whole industry has been trying to refine those processes for years. Even as slow as it is, it is unbelievably better than what it was.”

Drawing in a long breath, Bach sighs out an agreeing tone, readies himself, and narrows his brightly illuminated blue eyes. Wisps of flow travel down Bach’s arms, and condense in a slowly forming, tiny magical matrix. Aristespha rests the packaged magical material in a metal medical container. Watching the sluggish progress on the forming, diminutive sheet of energy, she glances over to find the pressure plate puzzle resting near the corner of the tabletop. With an intrigued grin, Aristespha tosses her long, silvery blue hair back, pulls the device over, and focuses her attention upon the challenge.

Concentrating on the energies swirling through his hands, Bach briefly grits his teeth through fits of frustration, and sighs out his disappointment. The magic solidifies upon the growing, thin sheet one miniscule section at a time. Cocking his head to the side as his brightly glowing blue eyes stare out distantly, Bach’s fingers slightly twitch in reflexive patterns. Streams of flow split from the main paths, and form into complex mechanical shapes around the task. Minutes later, the progress continues as tedious as before, and the magical machinery dissipates when Bach frowns with an annoyed grumble. Squinting tightly at some ethereally distant target, Bach’s intense expression eases as hints of discovery rise to the surface. Lifting his head back slightly, an uncertain intrigue overtakes Bach, and his attention refocuses upon the condensing flow between his hands.

Bach’s concentration turns fully inwards, and his face distances itself from awareness. The magical flows surge down his arms, and sections of the energy sheet materialize simultaneously. With each second, the magic solidifies faster than before. Bach’s brightly glowing blue eyes dart rapidly and sort through intangible chaos.

Moments later, Sebastian’s ethereal form phases swiftly through the wall behind Aristespha, and he glances around concerned and bewildered. He turns his attention to Aristespha and relays his worry. “Um, dear? You aren’t doing any weird magical tests or anything? The sword is resonating with something strange nearby.”

Aristespha pauses from tackling the puzzle, lifts up her head, and glances around confused. “No, Sebastian. Bach and I were just working on making the same magical materials we’ve been-”

Settling her gaze ahead, she lowers a scrutinizing stare upon the rapidly forming magical sheet, and widens her violet eyes in a mix of astonishment and fright. “That’s way too fast- Bach?”

Bach continues without acknowledging Aristespha. Craning her head low to the table top, Aristespha peers up into Bach’s blank expression. “Bach?! Are you listening to me-”

Her concern spikes sharply as she watches faint sparks of white flash in his centers of his brilliantly, blue illuminated eyes, and faint prismatic energy veins spread around his eyes. Without hesitation, she grasps hold of both of Bach’s wrists, and yanks them away from the forming magical material. Moments later, Bach’s eyes flutter and dim to normal. Gradually, he pulls himself out of a groggy, hazy stupor, and recovers to some semblance of consciousness. He meets Aristespha’s stare, and verbally fumbles, dumbfounded. “Huh... What... Oh, shit... Did something happen?! Is everyone okay?!”

Wincing in pain and bowing down his head close to the table, he mutters out. “Oh gods, what did I do...”

Aristespha releases Bach’s arms, eases out nervous breath, and firmly inquires. “What do you last remember doing?”

Rubbing the temples of his head, Bach cringes, squirms in blatant discomfort, and collects himself for an answer. “I... I was just focused on forming the flows... As fast as I could. Then, I thought about trying to do the process in parallel a few times.”

Pausing to breathe and wince, Bach holds his head and rubs his eyes. “It seemed to work... After a while it felt easier. Things were... easier to follow?”

A flood of worry appears on his face, and hints of panic trickle out. “Oww... I hope I didn’t do something really stupid. Did I fry myself out or something? Fuck, my head hurts.”

Looking him over with glowing violet eyes, Aristespha shakes her head with a gentle smile, and steps around the table with a reassuring tone. “No. You just pushed yourself way too hard, in a way you, strangely, haven’t done before. We’ll have to talk about this later, but first...”

She grips the back of Bach’s chair, pulls it back with his cooperation, and helps him up. “Let’s get you over to the couch, and put on some mindless show on TV. I’ll brew something that will help.”

Leading Bach to couch, Aristespha eases him down, flips through the channels, and pauses on one show. She glances back to Sebastian and motions his attention to the screen. Studying the show briefly, Sebastian gives a quick nod as he hovers closer. Bach blinks hard, shakes his head, and mutters through the pain. “Oh gods, I’m sorry. I should really be more careful with stuff like that. Shit, I’m such a moron, should have known that was a really bad idea... Fuck...”

Sebastian focuses his worried gaze upon Aristespha. Noticing the unease in Sebastian, Aristespha glances between the brothers, presents a calming smile, and shakes her head. “Bach, you will be just fine. You just found some limits to observe and new pit falls to avoid.”

Aristespha gazes loving to Sebastian as she leaves through the hallway archway, and mouths. “He’ll be fine.”

Wading through a wave of relief, Sebastian floats over next to brother, and coaches Bach through the emerging regret and self-doubt. “It’ll be okay, bro. We just got to be a little more careful next time. And well, you know what to avoid next time.”

Bach aims a weak glare over to Sebastian, and groans out his defeat. “Fucking hell of a way to find out. Couldn’t have read something to avoid this. No, had to go head long into it like a dumbass.”

A wry grin appears on Sebastian’s ghostly face, and he chuckles ethereally. “Well, I remember someone saying that about me a bunch of times.”

Narrowing his meek aggravation, Bach sighs loudly and rolls his eyes. “First. Fuck you. Second. You TOTALLY deserved hearing it the many, many times I told you that.”

Sebastian maintains his ill-humored expression, and shrugs his shoulders to accept the fact. “Oh yeah. No arguing with you there. But, it’s good to know we have so much in common.”

Aristespha walks in from the hallway with a bottle in one hand and paper packets in another. She stops next to the couch, smiles comfortingly to Bach, and sighs. “So you’ll stop beating yourself up, most medical mages experience similar issues. With the detailed, fast, and complicated processes required to work magical flow for our purposes, pushing yourself too hard is almost expected. Every medical mage will brush against that limit at some point.”

She lifts an accusatory eyebrow at Bach, presents a stern expression, and lowers her voice. “But most medical mages don’t know the variety of strange magical tricks that can accelerate them right into the proverbial wall face first without knowing it.”

Bach grimaces, releases an embarrassed whine, and averts his gaze. Aristespha shakes her head, resumes her smile, and dons a gentler tone. “I have some ideas of what exactly transpired, and we’ll discuss them. But, I’m going to brew this remedy. And, you need to watch something mindless on TV to distract you.”

Nodding in agreement, Bach settles upon the couch, eases out a breath, and directs his voice to Aristespha. “Thank you, Aristespha.”

With a simple acknowledging wave of her hand, Aristespha walks past the dining table into the kitchen area. Sebastian turns his attention to the screen, and points out the start of a crafting demonstration show to Bach. “Huh, I always wondered how those were made.”

Bach and Sebastian idly listen to the theme music and narration upon a backdrop of industrial assembly videos.

-87-

A lightly armored patrol cruiser rolls down the long, paved road between quiet businesses, and the Perimeter Defense Force logos on the vehicle reflect in the late morning sun. The car slows down to a stop outside large, sparsely graveled lot. The older officer in the driver’s seat narrows a stare over to the small, glassed walled building in the middle of the lot. He glances over to his partner, nods this head towards the location, and laughs with derisive hints. “And, right THERE, is where you start when the reputable places are dead ends.”

The woman’s very long, fuzzy ears twitch towards the rusty metal sign in front of the chain link fence surrounding the property. She narrows her aquamarine eyes, reads the text, and sneers her upper lip to reveal a sharp canine. Grimacing her blue hinted, tan face, she uncertainly grumbles. “Trusty Tony’s?! Are you sure about this? I’ve seen this fvalian’s ads when filing out late night paper work. I could smell the sleaze from the television screen.”

Rolling his brown eyes, the older human man cracks a humored smirk, turns off the sedan, and releases his seat belt. “Yeah. You could probably change the oil in this car by squeezing a picture of him into the spout.”

He draws in a long breath, and releases an unfortunate, accepting sigh. “If someone like what the Borderland Rangers and GAA described came into town, Tony either has dealt with him... Or, knows who did.”

Aiming an unconvinced gaze at the older officer, the younger woman lifts an examining brow, and groans. “Okay, Calvin. But, do you honestly think he’ll tell us anything? It’s Trusty Tony.”

Calvin laughs loudly as he opens his car door, swings his legs out, and stands up next to the squad car. “Don’t worry about it, Treevianna. Trusty Tony and I go back. He doesn’t give all the details. But, he gives just enough information to speed up our investigations. It’s a bit of a balancing act.”

Treevianna’s long, pointed fuzzy ears droop, and she shakes her head of long, braided multi-color hair. She slips out of her side of the sedan, brushes off her plain clothes, and starts affixing her badge at her waist. Calvin walks around the front of the vehicle, shakes his head at Treevianna, and steps towards the gateway in the fence. He gestures subtly at the badge. “Keep the badge ready, but not out. If it’s out, he’ll go on the defensive.”

Nodding slowly, Treevianna slips her badge wallet into her pants pocket, tightens the belt around her lithe figure, and rushes up next to Calvin. Her ear twitches, and she glances down at Calvin’s leg. “It sounds like that bearing is getting worse.”

Calvin frowns his bearded face, draws in a long breath, and grumbles out. “Yeah. I’m just going to get a whole new leg. This thing has been rebuilt over three times, piece by piece, over the years. And... the Perimeter Health Department really would like me to get new one. It’s getting hard for them to find people to work on it.”

Treevianna shakes her head, sighs with a smile, and muses wistfully. “That old cybernetic leg of yours has been the department mascot for years. Still won’t forget when you detached it and dropped it on the table as a bet for the department card game.”

As the duo steps across the intermittent patches of gravel upon the mix of sand and dirt in the large lot, Calvin pulls a wide grin on his aged and tanned face, puffs chest, and chuckles. “Glad I won that hand, too. We’ll still have it around for our fun. Anyway, I’m saving up for NICE realistic bionic like Lady Rhian’s.”

A spark of intrigue lights up Treevianna’s eyes and she glances over to Calvin with a delighted smirk. “Oh, those are nice. So realistic you can barely-”

She blinks blankly a moment, mentally picks through the last few seconds, and puzzles eagerly. “Like Lady Rhian’s?! Wait! She has bionic limb? Which one?”

Calvin laughs lightly as he grips hold of the glass door to the small building of window walls. “Her left forearm. You should see her shell pecans. Fuckin’ humbling.”

Treevianna follows behind Calvin through the doorway, surveys the age upon the furniture and interior, and keeps next to Calvin. Strutting up to the counter and resting his muscled arms on the top, Calvin leans his weight forward, and eyes the area with a mischievous smirk. He notices the bell on the counter top, slides it over under his hand, and pats out a jingle. “Trusty Tony’s, trade your old way, and for new ride today.”

From behind a sun damaged, old cheap wooden door, sounds of activity muffle out. The door opens slowly. An older fvalian man steps out, straightens out his cheap business attire, and spots Calvin. Pulling a wide, chipped fang smile at the older man at the counter, Trusty Tony enthusiastically greets Calvin, and stands pridefully across. “Ah, Calvin. That was a good ad run. Might have to bring that one back.”

He narrows a curious gaze upon Calvin, and combs his sharp claws through his graying, slicked back hair. “Am I so lucky today, that I might have you as proper customer? You’ve always been such a dedicated browser of my wares.”

Calvin straightens his posture of his large frame, lifts a humored brow at Tony, and slowly shakes his head with a smirk. “Not today. Maybe after I get my new leg, we’ll see what the money situation looks like.”

Nodding respectfully, Tony maintains an entrepreneurial grin, and eases a slight sigh. “As long as the new leg keeps you coming here, I’ll keep hoping.”

He shifts his gaze over to Treevianna, lifts an intrigued brow, and bows politely. “Oh, where are my manners. I am Trusty Tony. And, I am pleased that Calvin has brought you here to my fine business. What is your name?”

Treevianna stiffens her stance, slows the wags of her long, short-haired tail, and acknowledges the greeting. “Treevianna.”

Tony smiles with a chuckle, and narrows an inquisitive stare. “A very lovely name, matching a very lovely lady.”

He eyes Calvin briefly, darts his gaze around the room, and gestures the two plain clothes officers to follow him. “Let’s tour the lot. You might find something you might like.”

Leading the duo out the back doors into the sand speckled, huge back lot, Tony gives a general tour, and motions to a number of different vehicles. When they near the mechanic shop at the corner of the property, Treevianna spots a green sedan on a lift inside a garage bay. She subtly taps Calvin on the shoulder, motions towards the vehicle, and whispers. “I think that might be it.”

Calvin nods in agreement, and catches a brief glimpse of Tony’s furry ear flicking back forward. He dons a sly smirk, steps up to the side of Tony, and points over to the green sedan on the lift. “That’s interesting car right there. When did you manage to get that?”

Tony’s expression cools, and he faintly stiffens his posture. “About three weeks ago. It was sold to me.”

Narrowing an examining stare upon Tony, Calvin walks near the green sedan, studies the vehicle from a distance, and twists his mouth. He squints his eyes at the back window and trunk, and frowns slightly at the intact glass and untouched metal surface. Tony eases behind the two, summons up an uneasy smile, and observes. “Something you might be interested in?”

Calvin nods, scratches his bearded chin, and hums thoughtfully. “Maybe. It’s similar to something I’ve been looking for.”

Treevianna glances down at her aetherphone, quickly reads a paragraph of description text, and focuses her hard stare upon the back end of the car. Sniffing the air, she eyes the edges of the very clean back window, and concentrates a comparing gaze between the trunk lid and surrounding body panels. Tony uncomfortably taps the claw tips of his hands together, and directs a polite inquiry to Calvin. “So, are you more interested in the vehicle, specifically?”

Calvin calmly elaborates. “No. Just curious about WHO would drive such a vehicle to Perimeter.”

Hint of relief spreads through Tony, and he nods in agreement. “Yes. But still, a customer’s business is their own.”

Calvin nods respectfully. Treevianna searches her mind, ponders the right encoding, and questions Tony. “Did you have to do any work on this car?”

Tony pauses a moment, cracks a wide grin, and chuckles lightly. “Well, yes. I couldn’t very well sell such a fine vehicle with blemishes on the backside. Things like HOLES are very unsightly.”

A proud smirk appears on Calvin’s face when he glances over to Treevianna. He lifts an inquisitive brow at Tony. “You mind if we get a closer look at this fine vehicle? You’ll probably sell it before I get a chance to buy it, but I’d like to get a feel for it.”

Tony presents a prideful, chipped fang grin, combs back his slicked back hair, and chuckles. “Of course. Let me go in and get the key to unlock the lift.”

When Tony departs, Treevianna leans close to Calvin, and sneaks a hushed tone. “So, what’s the next step? Seizing the vehicle will take some legal paperwork...”

Calvin shakes his head, smiles satisfied, and motions his head towards the road. “Won’t be needed. We need to figure out where this Isaac guy went. This vehicle just confirms he was here. And, this long road only has to two main outlets. Both happen to have?”

Treevianna thinks briefly, and grins slyly. “Traffic cameras.”

----

Aristespha, Sotalia, Bach, Dretphi, and Cideeda sit around a collection of cards, tiles, tokens, and chits. With a smug, toothy grin, Cideeda repeatedly stacks her collection of golden tokens between her claw tips, and greedily eyes the assets in front of Aristespha, Sotalia, Bach, and Dretphi. She props her head up with an arm on the tabletop, flits her emerald green eyes open, and flicks her furry ears between the other players. “Well, well, well... Look at all these wonderful things that require so much money to maintain. I’m sure someone might like a loan with a FAIR interest rate and the MANDATORY non-aggression pact.”

Dretphi narrows her cool glare at Cideeda, rearranges her military tokens neatly, and silently waits. Bach uneasily sorts the cards in hand, glances down at the text upon different cardboard tiles, and rehearses through different scenarios by moving chits in from of him. Cideeda’s gaze settles upon Bach, and he uncertainly meets her plotting stare. He glances between Dretphi, Sotalia, and Aristespha, and points over to Aristespha, with a worried tone. “Go bother Aristespha, she’s got all the research going. I’m just finally getting this process working right.”

Aristespha flashes a frustrated glare at Bach, rolls her eyes, and scrunches up nose. “Oh please. You’ve actually got something over there in that mess. I’m barely able to get the funding to get these projects off the ground...”

She slowly pivots her head, and focuses her sarcastic glower with a dismissive snort towards Cideeda. “Because SOMEONE got lucky and horded every money producing tile in the game.”

Cideeda playful shrugs off the guilt with toothy grin. After a few seconds, she narrows a suspicious stare at Sotalia, and sternly prompts. “Any more event cards you need to play?”

Sotalia finishes peeking at the top few cards of the deck, plucks a card from her hand, and rearranges collection face down on top. She slides the pile back to the center of the table, smiles contentedly, and eases back into her chair. “I’m done. It’s your turn Aristespha.”

Sebastian hovers next to Aristespha, watches her quietly grumble over cards, and cranes his ethereal form over to gaze at her. “Uh, it’s your turn, dear.”

Aristespha glances up from studying combination of tiles, chits, token, and cards in front of her, grimaces with a sharp breath through her teeth, and hisses out a sigh. “I know, Sebastian. Let’s see the event card.”

She reaches her arm over to the deck of face down cards, pulls one off, and reads it. Sebastian’s ethereal form smirks, and he playfully narrates. “She’s drawn the card. She has read it. What will the event for her be?”

Perking a suprised brow, Aristespha places the card down on the table, sighs her relief, and picks up a small stack of golden tokens from the center reserve. “Small research grant. Not a lot of gold, but that should pay off a few projects.”

Quickly sorting through her cardboard accounting, Aristespha finishes up her turn, and indicates the end to Cideeda. “Your turn.”

Cideeda slowly pulls a card off the top with a confident smile, and her emerald green eyes sift through the text. She furrows her brow, lifts her stare towards Sotalia, and cocks her head curiously to the side. Laying card down, she reaches back out towards the deck of cards as her confidence wanes into uncertainty. “It comes in threes. Draw three more event cards and use them immediately in the order drawn...”

Sebastian blinks upon remembering, and coasts over behind Sotalia. With a tightly hidden smile, Sotalia fans out her cards into Sebastian’s view. Sebastian adopts a similar expression, and the two wait in growing anticipation. Cideeda plucks the top card off the deck, studies the text, and sharply frowns into a twisting grit of her teeth. “Privateers Attack... Any player may sacrifice military units to attack you and capture gold equal to difference between attacker and defender power...”

With the hanging silence from Cideeda, Dretphi perks an intrigued eyebrow and attentively listens for the next words. Cideeda draws in a breath, sighs with tinges of pain, and recites. “This attack is... NOT... affected by non-aggression pacts...”

Blinking at the reveal, Dretphi glances down quickly with her platinum blonde braids sliding, and examines her ordered units. She begins to slide the entirety of her units over to Cideeda. With wide eyes, Cideeda grimaces, and sputters out a protest. “Hold up! Um... You still NEED to keep enough to defend yourself from everyone else.”

Dretphi studies the desperate smile upon Cideeda’s light brown face, ponders a moment, and nods in agreement. She checks the military in front of Bach, Sotalia, and Aristespha, slides off a modest portion from the martial mass in front of her, and moves the rest towards Cideeda. After a barrage of dice rolls and cards, Cideeda finishes sliding over a few stacks of gold tokens over to Dretphi, and settles uncomfortably into her chair. Sebastian hovers back down to the side of table, examines the exchange and nods. “Well, that was a fight. Now... You still have two more cards to draw.”

Cideeda twists her mouth, and a soft growl rumbles under her breath. She reluctantly draws another card, and starts reading the title text. Her tail swiftly frays and fluffs out. Her stare widens, and she grits her sharp teeth. She slaps the card face down on the table, hisses in a gulp of air, and forces out an uneasy sigh. “So... I’d like to take a quick break... To think what I need to do... Please?”

Sebastian glances between the rest of the group. With no objections, the team leaves the table for the bathroom, fridge, and couch. After a few minutes, Bach, Aristespha, and Sotalia settle near the television. In between channel flipping, Bach leans over and whispers to Sotalia. “The hell did you do?”

Sotalia smiles slyly, tosses back her fiery orange, wavy hair, and giggles to herself. “What the card said. Rearrange the top three cards of the deck, in addition to one of your own.”

Bach grimaces at the thought, and stops at a channel with a familiar show on the screen. “Oh, yeah. It is Friday. I think this latest episode of The Next Adventurers of Nexus. I wonder how their mission went-”

The eerily recognizable forest seizes the full attention of Aristespha, Bach, and Sotalia. As the trio watch, Sebastian drifts over curiously, glances over at the television, and freezes. Dretphi finishes preparing her snacks, deposits the plate at the dining table, and notices the looming discomfort across the room. As the audio of the events breaks through the stunned silence surrounding the screen, Dretphi walks over, and stares at the screen. Cideeda appears from the hallway archway, peeks at the events transpiring on the show, and remains silent.

The team settles uneasily around television, and watches the immediate familiarity of the landscape, architecture, and the huge clearing surrounded by old, giant trees. Frowns appear on faces, and cringes briefly wince out in between expressions of dismay and worry. Aristespha pulls out her aetherphone, quickly taps up a message, and waits. Sotalia glances over at Aristespha, finds her phone, and types out to another recipient. Attention briefly shifts away from the events on the screen when alert chimes ring out from both Aristespha and Sotalia’s phones. Both quickly read through the responses, and nod assuring smiles as a wave of relief deflates the tension in the room. During a cliffhanger commercial break, Sotalia pushes out a long sigh, and flutters her golden eyes. “Tassilda said they’re all okay. It was absolutely insane, but they pulled through.”

Aristespha nods, and blinks hard. “Deedri apologized for not contacting me sooner. But, she just finally got time to process it herself. She... thanked me for the spirit guide advice. Said it helped them stay safe.”

Sebastian smiles comfortingly at Aristespha. The show drops back into the action from commercial break. After the futile attempts from Veevi, clips showcase the rest of the Flames of Phoenix coordinating the efforts into a triumphant victory. When the action wanes, another commercial break slips in. The team breaks free from the hold of the television, and they migrate back to the tabletop. Cideeda grits her teeth, and droops her ears as she settles into her seat. “I’m glad they’re okay. Gods. Appaland really fucked that place up.”

Bach shudders at a though in his mind. “Yeah, I’m glad we got that girl out of there. And, I hope all those others got clear.”

He twists his mouth uncomfortably, but smiles with a snack offering from Dretphi. Sebastian sighs with a ghostly reverb, and dons a brighter smile. “Well, the team is okay. When things are better for all of us, we need invite them to something.”

Sotalia lifts a curious brow at Sebastian, and crosses her arms. “Please tell that doesn’t include Veevi.”

Squelching an ethereal snort, Sebastian shakes his head with a laugh. “Hell, no. I’m nice, not crazy.”

Cideeda flexes her clawed fingers upon the table, rolls her shoulders, and prepares herself. “Okay. Back to the game. Now, I’m suppose to draw all three of the cards, first. So, before I do this one, let me see-”

Swiftly yanking the card off the top of the deck, she grits her teeth, grimaces in anticipation, and eyes the card. Cideeda’s eyes spring wide open, and her tail frays out as it wags fast and erratically. She furiously plops the card upon the table, and growls in frustration. Sotalia fails to hold back her devilish glee, as she catches of glimpse of the title text. Her snorts break through into a cackles of laughter, and she maniacally flexes her long, thick, black nailed fingers. “Oh, that’s too perfect! I didn’t know what that card was going to be, but it turned out... SO GOOD.”

Pointing a claw tip at Sotalia, Cideeda motions down at the collection of four drawn cards in front of her, as her furry ears draw back. “SOTALIA?! WHAT. THE. FUCK?! Which one of these is YOUR card?!”

----

Three figures slink away from an old van and into the brush along the side of the road. Each attempts some semblance of stealth to middling degrees of success in the dark. As the trio approach a large metal hangar near a long brick house, the leader peeks his head above the clipped top of a large shrub. Marcus shakes off a few leaves in his slicked back hair, and glances back at the young, dark gray skinned woman, and emin man with chipped horns behind him. “Okay... This HAS to be the place. Big open area and that huge building, right around where we keep seeing the dragon drop altitude.”

Cind peers her dark knit cap covered head out of hiding, and glances over to Marcus with her bright blue eyes. “Make sense. This is one of the few houses on this road. So, what’s the plan?”

She tucks a few stray braids of her red hair back under her hat, and waits expectantly. Kell scratches his shaggy beard thoughtfully, casually plucks off a spider from one of his horns, and places his down on a tree trunk nearby. With a growing series of nods, a goofy smile appears on his face, and he narrows his purple on black eyes at Marcus. “Shouldn’t be too hard to get into that place. If they’re expecting to keep a dragon that big in, probably don’t worry about the small doors or windows.”

Marcus contorts his face contemplatively, and raises his hand to signal the other two. “Follow me. Let’s check those doors and windows, first.”

Leading the trio, Marcus navigates through the remaining brush, while Cind and Kell file in behind. They keep a low profile in their approach to hangar at the end of the makeshift dirt runway near the long brick house. The small team investigates the side door carefully, and find no access. They quietly walk to a window, and fail to get it to open from the outside. Checking around the back side of the large metal structure, they find a shallow gravel ramp leading up to a garage door. Combining their efforts, the three strain to hoist up the gate, and eventually surrender to the locked entryway. Marcus pants out his mild frustration, and shakes his head. “Okay. So, they are pretty thorough with locking everything. Cind, you might have to do some of your magic on the locks.”

Cind nods uneasily, and sighs reluctantly. “Simple cage doors are one thing. These look like decent locks. I might have to try to cut them open.”

Kell blinks a few moments, scratches a notch in one of his horns while lost in a thought, and hums. “Hey, maybe... we should try the big door in the front?”

Marcus narrows an incredulous stare at Kell, and cocks his head. “I... guess? We didn’t try it, but if they’ve locked everything else...”

Shrugging her shoulders in her black turtle neck shirt, Cind glances over hopefully. “It’s worth checking. I mean, everything else about this dragon has been a little off.”

Stepping forward around the corner to side of the building, Marcus slinks down low, and gestures the rest of the team to follow in a low voice. “Sure. At least, we can say we tried... But... Really?”

The trio sneak around the side, dart quickly around the corner, and scurry to the front of the tall, wide hangar door sections. Marcus quickly surveys the front, steps up to the middle divide, and grabs hold of a handle. He glances over to Cind and Kell, shrugs his shoulders, and pulls. The door segment slides effortlessly to the side, rolls smoothly along a metal track above and supportive wheels below. Kell grabs the other half of the setup, and glides it along. Cind remains in the middle of the gateway, and her bright blue eyes widen as the mix of exterior night lamps and faint moonlight cast upon the blue and black scales of a particularly large dragon. Lagi’s maw opens into a quiet yawns, and he stirs upon a bed of blankets and bulk cloth. As the dim light creeps upon his face, he curls his neck away, and tucks his head under an arm and wing.

Cind’s initial worry fades as she watches Lagi faintly snore, and directs a whisper to Marcus. “Aww... He’s asleep.”

Marcus cracks smirk, puffs up his chest, and sighs. “Well, I guess we’re going to have to wake him up. You have the berries?”

Slipping off a worn and kitsch adorned backpack, Cind searches through the contents and retrieves a burlap sack with spots of purple staining. “Yes. I’ll to wake him up and lead him out.”

Kell walks up next to Marcus, squints as he cranes his head around to inspect the interior of the hangar, and lifts a questioning brow. “Man, I don’t know. There’s nothing here that looks like he’s been restrained or locked up. A lot of places usually have at least a collar and chains. I don’t see any of that.”

Marcus crosses his arms, hums to himself, and grumbles. “I don’t know. Maybe he’s just been so indoctrinated that he doesn’t know any better yet.”

Scratching his beard, Kell nods a little, and sighs. “Yeah. I could see that. That’s pretty rough to be raised to believe that.”

Cind tip toes near the sleeping Lagi, stops meters away, and opens up the burlap sack. Swinging the bag side to the side, she moves air around and towards the slumbering dragon. Moments later, Lagi’s nostrils flare open, and he sniffs the aroma into his nose. His head sluggishly traces the scent back. His consciousness catches up, and he drowsily opens his bright green eyes to stare at Cind and the bag. Cind tenses up as Lagi’s awareness grows, and he focuses his attention upon her. Studying her for a moment, he sniffs the air, shifts his gaze to the sack of berries, and crawls forward to stretch his open maw towards the bag. Cind steps back, motioning with her other hand, and encourages Lagi. “Come on. Follow me, and I’ll give you this whole bag of berries.”

Groggily, Lagi crawls up into a slow walk, and follows Cind’s backpedaling through the hangar doorway. Peeking his head out, Lagi blinks out enough sleep, and notices Kell... and Marcus. Narrowing a halfhearted stare upon Marcus, a low growl reverberates from Lagi’s throat. Cind grits her teeth briefly, reaches into the bag, and pulls out a handful of berries. “Hey, here you go. You’ve done really good so far.”

Lagi diverts to the distracting offering, and lowers his open maw in anticipation. Kell pats the stiff postured Marcus on the back. “It’s okay, man. Probably just a little defensive from last time. I’m sure he’ll warm up to us.”

Cind tosses a handful of berries into Lagi’s mouth, and watches the dragon enjoy the brief snack. Lagi purrs out softly, munches on the treat, and sneakily eyes the burlap sack. Cind glances over to Marcus and Kell with a smile. “I think we just need to take it slow and-”

In a sudden blur of movement, Lagi leans his head out towards the bag, wraps tongue around the sack, and yanks it out from Cind’s grasp. He pauses a moment chirp appreciatively at Cind, and swiftly retreats back into the hangar. Lifting back on his hind quarters, he leans with a clawed hand out to one section of the sliding doors, pulls it along, and then repeats a similar motion with the other side. The trio watch dumbfounded as the hangar doors close shut, and a mechanical clank sounds out.

Marcus, Cind, and Kell blink blankly, and puzzle. Marcus steps forward, grabs hold of the door handles, and pulls. The doors do not move. Turning away from the doors, he stares at Cind and Kell. “He... locked the doors.”

As Marcus plods off towards the van confused and defeated, Cind and Kell offer comforting words.

----

Gerald narrows his glare at the television from the couch in the clutter strewn living room. He plucks a beer can off a stack of equipment cases, and pours the last remnants into his mouth. With an over arm fling, he tosses the can across the room into a large, trash filled garbage can, and belches loudly. He lifts the remote off the equipment covered coffee table, and aims it at the screen. As the channels flip on the screen, Samantha slowly steps down the stairs, leans down to peek under, and directs her voice to her phone. “I found him, Howie. But, I don’t think he’s in a very talkative mood... Right now...”

Gerald focuses his dark brown eyes at Samantha, and narrows the brunt of his attention to the aetherphone in her hand. “OH. Hi, HOWIE.”

After a brief swell of silence, and Howard’s voice sounds out over the speakerphone with a reluctant tinge. “Oh gods... He’s calling me Howie... He’s not happy...”

Rolling his eyes with a disgusted sneer, Gerald growls out his boiling irritation and rips another fresh beer from a cardboard case. “What brilliant fucking insight gave you that idea? You have so many possible things to choose from. The murder drone, the night running for our lives, the creepy, blood-spattered ruins... Or, the pink bitch nearly taking MY head off.”

Samantha freezes in place as the wave of tension stiffens her, and glances down at her phone. A long breath distantly sounds out from the other side of the call, and an uneasy sigh follows from Howard. “Yeah... First, I’m glad everyone is okay. Really. I am. Second, I just thought it would be a simple retrieval mission. Monsters and sites of bloody battles were NOT part of that plan.”

A sharp cracking hiss echoes in the large living room from Gerald’s beer can, and he quaffs defiantly. Samantha slowly steps down to the landing of the staircase, and approaches the couch Gerald rests upon. “We know that, Howie. We’re all on edge at the moment. And, a lot of us are not in the mood to record that much.”

Howard groans through the speakerphone, takes a deep, audible breath, and relays an understanding tone. “I get it. I was thinking of an easy episode or two. Domestic stuff, aftermath, and that kind of thing. Maybe a small local mission doing real routine stuff. Or, a short notice appearance nearby.”

Samantha grits her teeth, and thinks through tinges of worry. “An appearance? We usually need more time to prep those. But, we might be able to do something...”

From the other end of the call, Howard ponders out loud. “Now, the criminal alter ego poll results came back, and we got some interesting info from Modoran’s fan club. There might be something we can arrange. But, we’ll have to see.”

Gerald rolls his eyes, flips through a few more channels, and tips back his beer. “Whatever you say. But, I’m using the telephoto lens for that confrontation. I’m not getting close to that shit show.”

Donning bright smile, Samantha leans forward, tilts her head of shoulder-length brown hair to intercept Gerald’s stare, and nicely begs. “Um, I REALLY need you to coordinate recording reactions this afternoon when we release those poll results.”

She twists her mouth, uncomfortably squirms, and sighs sadly as she gazes at Gerald with her hazel eyes. “No one is listening to Howie... Or me... for that matter right now.”

Gerald narrows stern glare at Samantha, and tries to maintain the intensity upon her. Seconds later, his resolve weakens from growing apathy, and he groans demandingly. “Fine. And, that’s all we’re doing today. Nothing extra. We got a movie night planned tonight.”

Howard’s voice rises appreciatively from Samantha’s phone. “Thank you, Gerald!”

Snorting out his cooling anger, Gerald growls out. “Go fuck a hornet’s nest, HOWIE.”

With a loud sigh, Howard bargains for peace. “Would a gracious expense account authorization for your movie night even things out?”

Gerald searches his thoughts, mulls over the possibilities, and gradually nods with a tentative smirk to Samantha. “A very good start... Howard.”

A wave of relief radiates out from Samantha’s phone, and Howard eases out a long breath. “Good. I’ll arrange for some easy episodes for you all. Before I go, anything interesting happen lately?”

Samantha blinks when recent memory jumps to the front of her mind. “Yes, actually. One team was following Deedri, who some how lost them.”

Gerald nods as he remembers. “Yeah, and then they chased after one of Modoran’s phantoms going the opposite direction.”

After a long pause, a slow chuckle resonates from the speakerphone, and Howard’s amusement fills his voice. “So, Deedri AND Modoran were off in the forest together? Oh... THAT is... INTERESTING. Please, keep an eye on them. I think we might have something happening now, but I want a little confirming evidence.”

----

Widening his stance upon the sun lit grass, behind the two story house, Modoran rolls his shoulders and tightens his grip around the finely crafted bow. Raising the bow up, he takes aim at a large shrub towards the corner of the property, draws the tight, strong string back, and holds the weapon at the ready. After a few moments, he carefully eases the bowstring forward, and adjusts his handling of the bow. Deedri smiles warmly towards Modoran, and calls out to him from her seat at the patio table. “Learn anything else about it?”

Resting his arms at his sides, Modoran glances over his shoulder with a happy smirk, and shrugs. “Maybe. It’s REALLY well made. I’m trying to figure out who may have made it. I swear I have used something similar before, but I can’t remember where.”

Tassilda shifts her observant light blue on black eyes between Deedri and Modoran, blinks at a chime from her aetherphone, and taps through a prompt. Sorting through the menus, she uses a link to open an aethernet site, and a sly smile grows. “Well... They’ve released the results of that what our criminal alter egos would be poll.”

Pulling her attention away from watching Modoran, Deedri blinks back to awareness, picks up her aetherphone off the table top, and explores a similar alert. “Oh, yeah. Um, let me get there. I’m actually kind of curious.”

Modoran directs his voice back to Tassilda and Deedri sitting at the metal mesh patio table, and nocks a wooden practice arrow. “What’s the results?”

Tassilda taps her long, thick black nails on the screen to a result graph, brushes a lock of her raven black hair over her spiraling horn, and lifts an intrigued eyebrow. “Well, first is Chad. Bank Heist Leader. That actually makes some sense. And, people really think Trakenthin would be some kind of hitman?”

Deedri furrows her brow, and frowns. “Oh. He’s too nice for that.”

Nodding in agreement, Tassilda scrolls the listing up, and continues to read. “I know. But, I guess no one thought about a librarian barbarian. Oh, here I am... Blackmailer and Extortioner?!”

She twists her mouth initially into a defiant scrunch of her nose. The expression wanes as she mulls over the thought and sighs. “Well. Gods. I guess it’s more likely than not.”

Deedri’s furry, tufted ears droop, and she grits her teeth with an indignant grumble. “Illegal medical experimenter?! These results make it sound like I’m some kind of mad mage.”

Tassilda covers a reflexive snort, draws a wide, evil grin across her face, and giggles. “Oh, I think we can agree on the next one. Veevi... Prostitute.”

Biting her lower lip and cocking her head to the side, Deedri slowly nods at the sentiment with a sigh. Modoran steadies his footing, readies the bow, and takes aim towards the overgrown section at the corner of the plot. He calls back with a smirk as he stretches his arms, draws the practice arrow back, and feels out the bow. “Okay, I got to know. What are they saying about me?”

Tassilda’s eyes read the entry, tilts her head to the side, and perks up an intrigued brow. “Huh. Not quite what I thought, but I could see it... Artifact Thief.”

Deedri’s auburn eyes flit wide, Modoran briefly startles, and the bow launches the arrow on a high, long trajectory towards a ranch style house. The nonchalant exterior dissipates quickly on Modoran, and he grits his teeth. “Shit!”

He quickly rushes off, hurdles over an overgrowth covered fence, and disappears in a sprint into the woods. Tassilda snickers at Modoran’s folly, and Deedri covers her mouth with her hands in surprise. The two sit quietly a moment, and exchange sympathetic glances. Tassilda leans over the patio table top, props her arm up, and guides a whisper with her hand. “So... What’s happened between you and...”

Deedri spooks a moment, darts her eyes around, and subtly directs Tassilda’s attention to a camera crew with recording equipment pointed at them. She draws in a careful breath, dons a concerned expression, and purposefully projects her voice slightly louder. “Yes, Tassilda, that could be muscle strain in your forearm. Why don’t we go upstairs to my room, and I’ll examine it closer?”

Tassilda blinks, shifts her eyes over to the crew, and massages her wrist as she slides back in her chair. “Yes. Let’s do that. I think I may have strained it during our escape, and stumbling through the woods.”

The two quickly depart back into the two-story house through the sliding glass door, while a few members of the recording team watch suspiciously. But, comparative apathy wins out when Veevi’s irate shriek muffles out from an upstairs window. “PROSTITUTE?!”

----

A patch of brush parts and reforms. Boot indentations form one after another into the grass plot on the side of the ranch style house. The lengthening path leads towards a wooden practice arrow laying on the dirt. As a section of the lawn flattens out, the arrow rises up from the ground with a transparent shimmer wrapped around the shaft. A disembodied sigh of relief escapes, and faint distortions outline a transparent figure kneeling, and holding the arrow. A loud hem startles the man.

Aristespha narrows her violet glowing eyes, crosses her arms, and lifts her chin sternly. “Why, hello. I guess that’s your arrow I heard hitting the roof.”

Modoran stands up into a nonchalant shrug of his shoulders, and smiles awkwardly as transparent coat around him fades away. “Uh, yeah. Sorry about that. Testing out a new bow, and turns out it’s a little more powerful than I expected.”

He chuckles lightly, and sighs. “Also, I apologize for sneaking around. But, if I had known, I would have called, and asked you to throw the arrow back over.”

Cracking a mildly amused smirk, Aristespha steps forward towards Modoran, and focuses her curious stare to the finely crafted bow slung on his back. “You are right. That bow is an odd thing for you to have found.”

Modoran slides the bow free, holds it with both hands, and shows it to Aristespha. “That it is. I can’t shake the feeling I’ve used something similar before. But, this feels different. Really different.”

He cracks a sly smile, quirks his brow, and levels an intrigued gaze at Aristespha. “You’re probably the best person around here to ask about it, Lady Aristespha.”

Rolling her eyes at the honorific, Aristespha shakes her head, and examines the bow closer. “Truthfully, my skills aren’t what they used to be. But... I’ve learned far more about history and magic, since my archery competition days.”

She squints her violet glowing eyes, lifts the bow out of Modoran’s hands, and cocks her head. Twisting her perplexing face, she lifts a puzzled brow at the finely crafted weapon, and ponders out loud. “This IS a strange thing to have found. Even the physical construction is odd. And how the enchantment was integrated...”

Overtaken by interest, she deftly handles the bow, switches into a well rehearsed stance, and draws the string back into a ready position. Showcasing well aged expertise, she performance a number of practice maneuvers with drilled ease, and contemplates how the bow handles with each step. Modoran cracks a smile, crosses his arms, and laughs. “I think you could match your old records, if you wanted to. Probably, even break them.”

Aristespha halts her practice motions, twists her mouth, and returns the bow to Modoran. “Maybe. But, my competition years are long done. It was fun when I was much younger. Don’t have that desire anymore.”

Modoran shrugs his shoulders nonchalantly, and inspects the bow closer. “Fair enough. But, you are more than welcome to just fire it for fun.”

Scratching his head of grayish white hair, he tugs at the corner of his mouth, and sighs hopefully. “So, you have any idea what the deal with it is? There’s something more to this thing.”

Aristespha blinks out the glow of her eyes, rests her hands on her hips, and nods. “Yes. I have a few possible theories about it. But... There’s a question you can answer for me, first. It’s something I’ve been curious about.”

Modoran receptively awaits. A curious smirk cracks from the corner of Aristespha’s mouth, and she narrows an inquisitive stare upon Modoran. “Do you actually have any real lineage to the Dark Evuukians, or did you say that for show drama?”

Modoran blinks at the prompt, snorts into a chuckle, and averts his eyes. “Well, yes and no. My ancestors were the people that got out when everyone that started believing that crap moved in. So, from that area? Yes. Part of that crazy cult? NO. My ancestors helped get other people out before it got REALLY bad there.”

Aristespha nods contemplatively, and searches her mind. “That’s right. There were a few exodus waves before the Dark Evuukians secured their power in that region. Interesting.”

She shifts her focus towards the bow in Modoran’s hand, draws in a long breath, and grits her teeth uncomfortably. “Before I go into too much detail about that bow... I really need to tell you what I know about those ruins you found in that forest.”

Modoran trains his full attention towards Aristespha, and nods in agreement. “Yeah. What was going on there?”

----

Captain Hackle leans back into a simple office chair and stares at the monitor on the desk, while status indicators show the progress of a call connection. Settling into the utilitarian seat, Captain Hackle adjusts his posture and allows his tall, thin frame to find a comfortable position. The screen flickers and a pixelated video plays through fits of distortion. Furrowing his brow, Hackle narrows his brown-eyed gaze at the image of Captain Hays, and smirks underneath his graying mustache. “Hays.”

Nodding his wide brimmed hat, Captain Hays returns a similar greeting with a twist of his bearded mouth. “Hackle.”

Hackle glances around the small office space, and perks a humored brow at the screen. “I got your message. Apologize about the delay, but it took a while to find a secure enough room.”

Nodding understandingly, Hays angles his camera’s view slightly to showcase the surrounding wilderness, and shrugs his shoulders. “Not a problem. Took my team a while to find a place where I could get a decent signal.”

Squinting as the video fidelity increases slightly, Hackle watches the reddish purple sky of a finishing sunset in between the framing of two forest sections. He smiles with a jealous hint, and sighs. “Very nice. Send me pictures. It’s been a while since I’ve had the luxury to observe a peaceful sunset.”

Hays shifts the aim of the camera back to him, and draws in a breath. “Well, I’ll cut to the chase, then we can both enjoy the view. Isaac was definitely in Perimeter. Perimeter Defense Force investigators located his green sedan.”

Hackle leans forward with his intrigue and thoughtfully rests his chin against his propped up hands. “We all suspected as such. But, it is good to get some confirmation. I assume he’s no longer using that vehicle?”

After a quick nod, Hays grimaces and grumbles. “Yeah. Unfortunately, he traded the thing out three weeks ago. So, could have gone many places, but I suspect the PWZ. The PDF investigators are checking traffic cameras to get anything more telling. Once I get information one way or another, I’ll tap a few contacts I have.”

Hackle searches his mind, twists his face in thought, and hums contemplatively. “If nothing else, I think we need to inform our friends that they might want to go to Perimeter.”

Hays nods simply in agreement. “Makes sense. At this point he’s either operating out of Perimeter, or he’s in the zone. Either way, Perimeter is close to their target now. It’ll at least put them in a position to respond when any of us gets more information.”

Hackle eases back into the chair with a slight squirm against the spartan padding, and sighs. “I do hope we get something actionable. Thankfully, with the Grand Library cooperating fully now, I can authorize more upfront and actually provide proper support. Don’t have to go through the guild as a proxy.”

With a slight grumbling tone, he shakes his head and frowns. “One less annoyance I have to deal with.”

Hays narrows a curious stare through the video call, and tilts his head to the side. “What are they having you deal with now?”

Twisting his mouth between different grimaces, Hackle ponders out loud. “Strange reports of activity in a forest around an old ruin site. Along with odd radio transmissions. Very strange since that site should be locked down and off records.”

Focusing a scrutinizing gaze, Hays hums thoughtfully. “Not unheard of for sites like that to get stirred up. But... What’s bugging you about this one?”

Hackle leans close to the monitor, and directs a calm, cool whisper. “I’m worried that there’s a common thread between recent events. I wonder if there’s a single agitator behind these incidents...”

-88-

Gathered around the dining table, Aristespha, Sebastian, Sotalia, Bach, Dretphi, and Cideeda listen to Captain Hackle’s voice sounding out from Aristespha’s aetherphone. Audibly drawing in a breath from the other side of the call, Captain Hackle releases a long sigh. “So, that’s the most up to date information I have. Isaac was in Perimeter. The Perimeter Defense Force is following up on leads, and checking what they can for more information. And, Captain Hays is tapping his resources, too.”

Sebastian’s ghostly form darts his blue eyes around his mind, and hums with an ethereal reverb. “I’m guessing most bets are on him going into the zone.”

Easing out a light chuckle, Captain Hackle contemplates. “That’s my best guess. Given what Isaac, or Noxian, has been interested in, the Perimeter Weird Zone is about the only thing that makes sense. If he wanted to disappear and lay low, there’s a number of other places I would have gone to before Perimeter.”

Sotalia crosses her arms, sways her weight between her feet, and perks her brow. “So, are we going down there next? Seems like the place to go.”

Twisting her mouth, Dretphi processes the logistics, and studies a digital map on her aetherphone. “That will require planning. Not a simple trip. Days to get near. If all goes well...”

Bach grimaces briefly, and releases an uneasy sigh as he shrugs his shoulders. “Well, I mean... That seems like the best place to at least hang out. I guess...”

He leans to peek over at Dretphi’s aetherphone, and mulls over the options. “There’s not much else going on in Sippiala Peninsula. So, if he’s not in Perimeter... I agree that he’s probably in the zone. Somewhere in that... huge thing. Gods, I keep forgetting how big that thing is.”

Pointing at Dretphi’s phone screen, he squints at the image. “Does scale say a hundred kilometers?”

Dretphi glances over with an equally amazed expression and nods. Cideeda’s furry, pointed ears flick with her thoughts, and she idly raps her hand of claw tips upon the dining table top. “Yeah, my money is on him being in the zone. Else, why would he have sold the sedan and probably gotten himself a new ride? He’s getting something he can drive in there.”

Hackle’s voice rises up from the background noise on the other side of the call. “That’s been the consensus from both Hays’s group and my own team. Why go to trouble of a shady auto dealer if you aren’t going to stick around? If he wanted to leave for another country, he could have driven up to one of the Train stations and traded in the vehicle for credit with them.”

Rolling her eyes with a smirk, Cideeda chuckles as she crosses her arms and wags her long tail. “Exactly. It’s not like the Train has problems with equipment having bullet holes and questionable pasts. Hearing stories about them from my dad, the old engineers think its bad luck if your vehicle is too pristine anyway. If it already has holes and dings, then the bad stuff has already happened to it.”

Aristespha wrestles an uneasy, nervous tinge in her voice, and rests her head upon her hands. “I definitely believe we need to get down there. But... That is quite the trip, and we will need to book a number of places to stay along the way. We will need to buy a lot of provisions, and...”

Gritting her teeth briefly, her shoulders slump slightly, and she leans onto the back of her chair. Working though the uncertainty, she combs her fingers through her long, silvery blue hair, and sighs out her reservations. “We really don’t have that much familiarity with Perimeter and all the surrounding territories. All THAT is going to be a lot to contend with.”

A reassuring, calm tone resonnates from the speaker of the aetherphone, and Hackle provides a bit comfort. “You won’t be on your own completely. With the recent cooperation of the Grand Library upon this matter and the fact that Aristespha is an official enough representative of the Grand Library, your group will have direct contractor accounts from the GAA, Borderland Rangers, and even the Perimeter government.”

He chuckles out his amusement, and continues. “As it turns out, Isaac’s behavior lately has made a lot of people very nervous about what he’s planning on next. So, they’d like to make sure the one team that’s had luck finding and flushing him out has some funding for this venture. As part of the deal, we’ll put you in contact with trusted groups that’ll help you navigate Perimeter and it’s massive weird zone.”

Narrowing a suspecting stare upon the phone on the table top, Sebastian grimaces momentarily. He searches his mind, and directs an inquisitive tone back to Hackle. “So, what’s the requirements for all this funding? We can’t exactly guarantee bringing Isaac in, at the moment. What’s the more immediate goal here?”

Hackle draws in a breath, and explains. “Well, more or less some kind of assurance that someone is making sure he isn’t left alone. Everyone has agreed to fund your efforts to find and flush him out of Perimeter, at the very least. Personally, I’d be happy to find out what he’s exactly planning on doing next. He’s done very specific things lately, and they indicate he’s got some kind of plan. If we can get enough information to narrow down what that is, the GAA can see about putting some obstacles in the way. And, hopefully that might be enough for you to stop him completely.”

Sebastian crosses his arms, nods his head thoughtfully, and glances over the rest of the team. After a few moments, he cracks a bold grin with the reassuring expressions of the rest of the team. “Well, I think we’re willing to give it a go. It’ll be a lot easier to manage with the funding, and some local knowledge. I’m not going to promise too much right now, Captain Hackle. But, I think we can keep the heat on Isaac and not let him get too comfortable down there.”

Captain Hackle’s voice brightens with the acceptance. “Very good. I’ll get the paperwork and relevant information to you. Meanwhile, we’ll be trying to get you a clearer picture about what he’s has been up to in Perimeter. If we are fortunate, you’ll have a clear direction to take once you get down there. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got said paperwork to put my signature to. You all have a good day.”

Aristespha grabs hold of her aetherphone off the table top, and smiles with hints of relief. “I understand. Thank you for calling and helping us out, Captain Hackle.”

Tapping the end call button on the phone screen, Aristespha slowly shakes her head and briefly laughs. “Not a completely unexpected surprise, but still a surprise.”

Sotalia grins eagerly, and rests her hands on her hips. “Wish it was more narrowed down, but I’ll take it. At least, he’s probably there for a good reason and won’t be leaving any time soon.”

Bach blinks a few times, drifts his gaze into his mind, and hums in though. “I wonder what’s driving him down there... Things keep getting stranger.”

Aristespha perks her brow, and gazes over the team. “Speaking of strange things, I was able to find out some intriguing information from Modoran yesterday... When he was retrieving an arrow he accidentally shot into our yard. There was a lot more going on at those ruins than what we even thought.”

----

Leaning against the large washer machine in the utility room, Modoran grits his teeth briefly, hisses out the discomfort, and crosses his arms. “So, that’s what the other team dealt with when they went to those same ruins months back. Pretty fucked up in my opinion.”

Trakenthin blinks his hazel eyes, frowns, and slowly shakes his head as he stands near the door. “That is concerning.”

Pinching the bridge of her nose, Tassilda winces her light blue on black eyes closed, twists her face, and grumbles. She tosses back her raven black hair back over her swirling horns, and groans. “By the gods, GAA and Appaland KNEW about that place with that Terra Priest group... And, just let it sit there? What were they thinking?”

Drooping her furry, tufted ears low over her shoulders, Deedri briefly covers her mouth as she slowly processes the information, and cringes. “I just can’t believe that all was happening there. All those people following that... crazy ideology.”

Modoran smiles comfortingly to Deedri, and shakes his head and shrugs. “Tribalism is a hell of drug. The whole Terra Priest movement has been around for a LONG time, and just keeps showing itself every generation. And, it just gets fucking worse with each incarnation. They used to just be isolationist naturalists that didn’t bother anyone unless you wandered too close to their territory.”

Searching his through his thoughts, Chad slowly paces in the middle walkway between the team, and gradually sways his head in disbelief. “All THIS explains a lot. A lot more than what I’ve got in my head right now.”

He steps over towards the door, cracks open a gap, and listens carefully for a few seconds. Trakenthin leans his tall frame over, aims his ear to the annoyingly familiar sounds of Veevi soaking in the attention of a recording crew. Chad rolls his eyes and groans through swelling disgust. Trakenthin shakes his head dismissively. “We have minutes left.”

Chad shifts his brown eyes over to the wires hanging loose from a small overhead camera, and nods in agreement. “Yeah. The crew aren’t paying that much attention right now, but they’ll start to get suspicious if this thing remains disconnected for much longer.”

A stifling silence holds the conversation still for nearly a minute, and recent memory press down the mood of the gathering. Chad pulls in a breath, and gazes up to the team resolutely. “In the future, we demand as much information as we can get upfront. I mean, admittedly, this was outside everyone’s expectations. But, I don’t know...”

He fights back a guilt-ridden frown, and stiffens his upper lip. “Still, I’m going to try to make an honest effort to prevent this type of stuff from happening to us if I can. I need to do my job right for once. So, I’m also going to try to deal with Veevi.”

Attentions shift towards Chad, and the other members wait intrigued. Chad works through a few uncertain expressions on his face, and addresses the team. “I’m putting Veevi in timeout. She doesn’t get to go on the next mission. Period. Give her time to think about whether she wants to be on this team or not.”

Trakenthin crosses his arms, blinks in surprise at Chad, and slowly nods. Tassilda cocks her incredulously to the side, shifts her weight on the counter top, and props herself up with her arms behind her. “Do you honestly believe she’ll do anything different than what she’s done before? I will fully admit I’m glad something is being done. But, please understand if I think it’ll do nothing other than piss her off.”

An encouraging smile appears on Deedri’s face, and she gazes approving to Chad. “It’s worth a try. Maybe something drastic like that will be just enough to work? I think we can say, from experience, that gentle, subtle measures don’t work with her.”

Chad smirks at the commentary and eyes Modoran. After a few moments, Modoran glances back to Chad, nonchalantly shrugs his shoulders, and sighs apprehensively. “I appreciate the effort. I don’t know if it’ll work on HER. But, I wouldn’t mind going on a mission without her... Because...”

He wrestles down a surge of awkward embarrassment, and snorts. “Between us... I think we got a pretty workable group. Just might need a chance without that agent of chaos fucking it up all the time.”

A genuine smile appears on Chad face, and the team’s mood brightens as they exchange glances. Chad nods at the idea, and chuckles quietly. “Well, be prepared. I’m going to spring this on the higher ups and her when they announce the next mission. I think its fair play after all we’ve been through to surprise them back. But, they probably won’t be happy.”

Dismissive eye rolls and groans from the rest of the team fill the room. Chad rests his hands at his waist, and perks an inquisitive brow at Modoran. “Anyway, did Aristespha mention anything else?”

Modoran’s expression blanks, he eases in a careful breath, and twists his mouth. “Somewhat. Since we’ve been to the place, she told me everything they knew directly related to the ruins. But, there’s a few things she has been informed of that she wasn’t sure she could give out. But, she stressed two things.”

The focus from the group turns onto Modoran’s next words. After mulling over the phrasing, Modoran relays the key points from memory. “She told me to pay attention to the timing of when we crossed paths... And...”

Maintaining a calm, neutral expression, his eyes await the reactions from the rest of the team. “They were trying to force that one girl to work on golems.”

Puzzling silence floods the room, and Chad, Trakenthin, Tassilda, and Deedri ponder the two major hints. As thought processes turn towards uncomfortable possibilities in others, Tassilda’s posture stiffens and she reflexively gasps as she covers her mouth with both hands. Her light blue on black eyes widen in past horror, and her hands unconsciously drift away from her face, trembling. The stark reaction suddenly cements the answer for everyone else. Trakenthin cranes over to check on Tassilda and gazes with concern. Deedri grasps onto one of Tassilda’s hands, and rubs her back comfortingly, while Tassilda focuses on calming herself back down. Chad arrives at the realization with a long, stressed exhale. “Oh, holy fucking shit. Gods damn it. That makes sense now. Fits too perfectly.”

Modoran grimaces and fights through a flurry of emotions with a shake of his head. “Yeah. It’s the same fucking conclusion I arrived at, too. Was really hoping it would just be my wild theory, rather than the one everyone arrived at.”

----

Stepping through the hallway archway, Bach lugs a heavy, metal container over towards the coffee table, and lowers the handled box next to Dretphi. “One box of caseless ammo. It was tucked all the way in the back corner of the office.”

Sitting cross-legged on the floor, Dretphi twists around, slides the crate over in front of her, and opens it up. She inspects the contents, glances up to Bach with a warm smile, and nods appreciatively. “Thank you. You want to help me load magazines?”

Bach shrugs his shoulders, steps over to the other side of the box across from Dretphi, and plops down to a seat. “Sure. Kind of want to sit down anyway. There were a lot of other heavy in the way of this box.”

Dretphi sorts through a pile of empty rifle magazines, stacks a few up in her hands, and gives them to Bach. She motions for his attention, holds a magazine in one hand and a round in the other, and demonstrates putting the round in the magazine. Bach nods understandingly, sets aside the rifle magazines in his hands, and retrieves a smaller cardboard box from the large ammo crate. Carefully, he inserts rounds into a magazine, and occasionally peeks over to Dretphi to watch her. After a few minutes, he notices collection of survival rations ordered near Dretphi, and lifts a curious brow. “We have enough meal packs?”

Dretphi blinks to attention from her work trance, glances over at the roughly sorted pile of packaged food, and shakes her head. “Not enough to feel comfortable. This is a significant trip. We may fall short of our planned stops. Need to be ready.”

Bach nods thoughtfully, drifts his gaze over to the large map bordered by paperwork and tablets, and studies the various pencil and highlighter marks. “Yeah... That does seem like it could happen.”

Aristespha leans forward from her seat on the couch, rests a pencil over a section of highway, and marks out a shorthand note. She slowly shakes her head, stares at her tablet screen, and briefly grits her teeth with an unconvinced curl of her upper lip. “I swear these places get more questionable the further away from civilization you get.”

Hovering upon the couch next to her, Sebastian’s ghostly form blinks hard as he rests his chin upon the palm of his hand, and sighs ethereally in disbelief. “Dear, I’m just amazed these places have working phone numbers. Even if they don’t answer them.”

Rolling her violet eyes, Aristespha guides a few stray locks of her hair over her very long, ivory pointed ears, and grumbles out her distaste. “To be blatantly honest, there are places that might prove worse than staying in the humvee, Sebastian.”

Nodding agreement, Sebastian shifts his attention to the large portion of the map with territory and political area indicators, and narrows his stare at the scattered mix of roads and regions. “Gods... I always forget how big and spread out Perimeter is.”

Bach twists his mouth and shakes his head. “And, it’s still tiny in comparison the Perimeter Weird Zone. I can’t believe enough people live in there for roads and towns to exist.”

Sebastian smirks with a sarcastic tone. “I don’t know, bro. You were living in a town that has less of a reason to exist.”

Pausing a moment in though, Bach gauges his brother’s statement, and eventually cocks his head to the side with tentative agreement. “Yeah... Actually, yeah... You could take Tullachester off the maps, and I don’t think people inside or outside of that town would notice.”

Sotalia steps out of the kitchen, casually struts over to Bach, and holds a vial down next to his face. “Taste this.”

Bach pivots his head over to the small container, and gradually narrows his blue eyes upwards to Sotalia. “What is it?”

With a smirk, Sotalia snorts and shakes her head. “Just water, food coloring, and flavoring. Making sure I got the potion flavoring right before I mix it with the batch. I’ve been trying to come up with some different mixes to mask some of the more potent potions’ aftertastes.”

Smacking her mouth, Sotalia grimaces and scrunches up her face while licking her tongue hard against her teeth. “Last thing I attempted still hasn’t gotten out of my mouth yet, so I need you to check this one for me.”

Bach grasps hold of the vial, sniffs the air above it, and drinks he clear, orange liquid. Searching his mind for the right word, Bach blinks calmly, feels the sensation, and hands the empty vial back to Sotalia. “Mango?”

Sotalia lifts an intrigued brow, narrows her golden eyes at the vial, and hums thoughtfully. “I was going for peach. But, mango works, too. Thank you.”

With a quick pivot, she walks back into the kitchen galley, and returns to a variety of beakers, flasks, and pots. Pulling a fresh ball-point pen from an open pack, she jots down new notes into a book, and raps her long, thick, black nails on the counter top. In the kitchen area, the door leading to the garage opens up. Cideeda carefully presses her elbows against the door, slips through the gap, and walks through with her grease covered hands in front of her. Passing through the living area, she calls out to the group. “Could someone with free and clean hands add pumice soap to the list of things to get from the store? We just ran out.”

Sotalia leans out from the kitchen galley, holds up a bottle of dish soap, and smirks. “Kitchen sink is all yours, girl.”

With sigh of relief, Cideeda follows Sotalia to clean up. “Thank you. Paper towels alone do nothing for this grease.”

Stacking up round filled magazines, Bach diverts his attention back to the map, and closely examines the details. “Still amazing how Perimeter exists so close to that massive weird zone.”

Aristespha nods in agreement, and smirks. “The Perimeter Weird Zone draws in a lot of people for one reason or another. Despite how big it is now, Perimeter started out as a campsite just outside the safest entry point to the zone. Once a few new artifact types were found and extracted routinely, everything build up from there.”

Sotalia calls out with an excited and eager tone from kitchen. “If we go into the zone, I’m allowed to keep things I find, right?”

Aristespha glances around to the rest of the gathered team, draws in a reserved breath, and eyes Sebastian. Shrugging his shoulders, Sebastian responds back. “So long as it doesn’t have the ability to kill all of at any given moment.”

A humored, facetious giggle sounds out, and Sotalia sighs. “Fine. But, those are the FUN ones.”

Aristespha rolls her eyes and smiles amused. Bach analyzes the size and scope of Perimeter and the sparsely populated surrounding region. He studies the visual differences with Amaranth Valley. “We really are going out into the wilderness this time.”

Sebastian dons an intrigued smirk, and asks. “So, bro, you excited or scared?”

Furrowing his brow, Bach blatantly deliberates between the two emotions on his face, and shrugs apprehensively to Sebastian. “Um... Both?”

Nodding his head understandingly, Sebastian smiles comfortingly to his brother. “Yeah. That’s what you should be feeling.”

----

Leaning all his weight into a pry bar, Chad torques the heavy steel of the black sport utility vehicle’s bumper closer to its original shape. The solid suspension flexes as the chassis rocks with each hard heave Chad pulls upon the tool. He stands back up straight, studies the fractured metal edges, and contemplatively stares. Scratching his head of light brown coiffed hair, he kneels down, inspects the narrowed hole in the bumper, and nods as he reaches for a heavy hammer.

Aiming her aetherphone at Chad and the vehicle, Tassilda taps an onscreen button, and waits for the confirmation prompt from the camera app. She pivots around as loud metal slams ring out, pushes through the front door, and quickly taps up a message into an ongoing conversation with the image attached. Shifting her focus away, she climbs up the stairs to the second floor, and walks towards her room. Noticing Trakenthin’s room door open, her curiosity leads her quiet approach.

Turning her head, Tassilda aims her pointed ears towards a woman’s voice coming from inside. Peeking around the corner, she observes Trakenthin laying on his bed. With an open book upon his lap, a video playing on his aetherphone captivates him fully. Fighting a balance between curiosity and stealth, Tassilda observes the happy smile gracing Trakenthin’s dark bronze face as he watches a young woman delve into the details of the latest book’s glaring plots holes. A genuine chuckle emerges from Trakenthin, and he nods sympathetically to the elaborately described drab middle chapters slog. Tassilda blinks in surprise, and pulls a sly smirk. With a soft hum of her aetherphone vibrating, she swiftly retreats away from Trakenthin’s doorway, and slinks down towards her room. Checking her phone, she sees the latest picture message of Daedrican standing in front of a strange, tattered bipedal robot hanging from a crane. Fascinated by the image, Tassilda finally comprehends the text below and flits her eyes wide. She giddily rushes through the phone menus and taps the call icon under Daedrican’s contact entry. Slipping into her room with her aetherphone to her ear, she greets the other side of the conversation with an elegant dialect of emin.

Down at the other end of the hallway, Deedri’s bedroom door opens, and Modoran casually walks out. With a happy smile, he stretches his back out, pivots around, and bows towards Deedri in the doorway. “Well, thank you for thoroughly inspecting those pains in my lower back.”

He sneaks glances out the corner of his dark blue eyes at opportune angles, and surveys the camera coverage. Putting forth a professional facade, Deedri nods appreciatively and smiles. “Of course. It’s understandable. We all got a little roughed up from that last mission, and it just took awhile of those strains to finally ache enough to be noticed.”

When her auburn eyes meet Modoran’s dark blue eyes, Deedri aims a sly smirk, bites her lower lip, and drags a claw tip lightly down the door frame wood. “If you notice any other issues, please let me know. It’s best I treat them as early as possible.”

Modoran’s nonchalant exterior fails to obscure his growing goofy grin, and he nods appreciatively to Deedri. “I will do that. I’ll be very observant tonight and see if I feel anything else.”

He glances towards his room, points his thumb over, and departs with a chuckle. “Well, I need to catch up on the latest Evuukian political dramas... and do laundry.”

Deedri eases back into her room, flashes an eager smile to Modoran out of view of the hallway, and winks to him right before her door closes. Stepping across the hallway to his bedroom door, he pushes into the room, and turns his attention to the tall, overflowing pile of dirty clothes in the hamper. Muttering a few evuukian curses, he prunes off the overflowing clothes onto the floor, grabs hold of the basket, and hoists it up. Passing through his door way, he navigates down the stairs, slows down as he approaches the bottom landing, and sees Veevi exit the dining room.

Veevi pivots towards the stairwell, spots Modoran’s descent, and cracks am evil grin. She struts up with an energetic skip to her step, tosses back her long pink hair, perks her fuzzy ears, and whips her tail up at the ready. Modoran deftly guides his body with the downwards momentum, pivots tightly around the wooden banister post, and pardon himself as the hamper brushes close to Veevi. “Oh. Sorry, Veevi. Wasn’t paying attention.”

A start of a response leaves Veevi’s lips as she licks them. “Don’t worry about it-”

Drawing in a breath through her nose for the next part, she abruptly halts. With Modoran swiftly putting the distance between her and him, Veevi's pink pupil eyes flutter in surprise, and she sniffs the air repeatedly. Sifting through the smells, she rests a hand upon the square banister cap, and stares at Modoran absolutely bewildered. As the seconds pass, the shock fades into comprehension and recognition. Sniffing the air, Veevi’s upper lip snarls slightly, her confusion gives way to volatile mix of frustration and fury, and she clenches her jaw. Flecks of wood curl away from the surface of the banister under the tightening grip of Veevi’s sharp nails.

----

Gazing out the humvee window, Bach views the town attractions along the side of the main city road. He settles back into his seat, and his attention drifts forward. Furrowing his brow, he puzzles at Sotalia in the front passengers seat methodically checking at hand written list. Leaning his head to the side, he narrows his curious gaze when Sotalia pauses, taps a pencil at the end of the list, and scribbles out another item. Bach cranes his head around the Sotalia’s chair in front of him, and carefully pries. “What’s that list for?”

Sotalia blinks her golden eyes, pivots her head at Bach, and smirks with a giggle as turns the list away from him. “Well, the ingredients for tomorrow’s dinner.”

Bach lifts his head back, and debates between reservation and intrigue. “Okay, what are you... cooking?”

Focusing her accusatory stare at Bach, Sotalia lowers her eyelids halfway with a playfully insulted twist at the corner of her mouth. “If you keep that tone up, you can try your luck with one of those old rations. I can cook a meal just fine.”

Tossing back her wavy, fiery orange hair back, she straightens her posture defiantly in her seat, and averts her glance away with a roll of her eyes. “It's just that what I like to cook takes a lot effort and planning.”

Bach retreats into his seat, grimaces awkwardly, and stumbles to an apologetic recovery. “Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean anything like that. It’s I’ve never seen you cook food. Potions, yes. So... What do you like to cook?”

He shifts his attention behind him, and questioningly eyes Dretphi. Sneaking a point towards Sotalia, he silently inquires a second opinion from Dretphi. Reading the body language and expression, Dretphi smiles reassuringly to Bach, and nods. “It should be good. Involved preparation. Filling results. Nice for occasions.”

A hopeful spark lights up Dretphi’s steely gray eyes, and she leans forward and directs her voice towards Sotalia. “Malva pudding?”

Sotalia peeks around the corner of her front seat, and winks with a playful grin to Dretphi. “Of course. That one is a given. The rest are surprises.”

With a satisfied smile, Dretphi sits down on the back seat and smiles contentedly.

Bach crosses his arms and curiously pries. “Surprises? Well, how about a few hints? There might be something I might not like?”

From the sword at Aristespha’s side, Sebastian’s voice calls out Bach. “Oh bullshit, bro. I KNOW what you’ve eaten before. You ain’t picky when you’re drunk or hungry enough.”

A flash of embarrassment fills Bach cheeks, and he flashes a scowl at the sword. Sebastian chuckles out ethereally from the blade. “I don’t even need to check to see how you are looking at me. Anyway... It’s good eating. Hate that I’m only going to be able to smell it.”

A sympathetic smile graces Sotalia’s light tan face, and she sighs encouragingly. “Well, YOU are welcome to hang out in the kitchen the whole time, then. Everyone else has to stay out.”

A sly grin grows out towards the dark gray patches below her ears, and she chuckles. “Part of the fun.”

Rolling her golden eyes away from the inquisitive gaze of Bach, she shrugs her shoulders as her attention returns to the paper list. “I figured it be a nice thing to do since we probably won’t have a chance to eat nice for a while.”

Aristespha cracks a smile, and snickers to herself as she studies a shopping list on her tablet. “And you want remind yourself how to cook it all?”

Sotalia blinks, bites her lower lip guiltily, and twists her mouth honestly against her pride. “Yeah... Not going to lie, my grandmother on my mother’s side has some amazing food, but it’s REAL easy to get end up with a different dish if you don’t pay attention to exact ingredients and preparation.”

Bach quirks his brow, cocks his head, and puzzles. “Really?”

Snorting as she shakes her head with a smirk, and Sotalia lightly groans. “Well, there’s so many minor variations on the same dish that each have a different name. For example...”

She quickly recites through different names in a variety of emin dialects, mentions the differing traits, and compares them to each other. After numerous examples, she sighs, cranes her head around the chair, and whispers to Bach. “And don’t get me started on the other side of my family. I have almost seen blood drawn between my great aunts at whether something is technically a burrito or an enchilada.”

Bach blinks out his surprise, slowly nods, and gradually attempts to process the litany of terms heard in the last minute. “Huh.”

A twitch flicks up Cideeda’s tail briefly as the humvee slows down to stop in front of a red light. Her emerald green eyes shift over to stare towards Sotalia, and she focuses upon the brief glimpses of the paper list tilting into view. Sotalia pauses a moment, catches Cideeda’s spying, and hides the list against her chest while staring at Cideeda. “What are you looking for?”

Cideeda smirks as she raps her claw tips upon the steering wheel. “Just checking to see if see all the ingredients for what I want are there.”

Sotalia presents a stoic front, nods slowly, and hums to herself. “We’ll see...”

----

Gerald places his hands on his lumbar, leans, and stretches out his back. Walking over to his bed, he plops down, and eyes the store brought, insulated paper cup in Samantha’s hands. He maintains his reservations as he grips it. Bringing it in close to his nose, he sniffs the air above it. After pondering briefly, he lets out a begrudging sigh, and slowly shakes his head. “Gods damn it. Well, thank you, Samantha, for the spiced chai latte.”

Slowly tipping back the beverage, he draws a long swig, and exhales. “Okay, since I’m being bribed with my favorite drink in the morning, let’s figure out these next episodes.”

Samantha smiles happily, pulls a chair over, and presents a series of notes upon her clipboard. “Good. First, I think we have plenty for a domestic episode with some mixed in highlights for tomorrow. But, I’m trying to figure out how to prep for next week’s episode.”

Continuing to sip his drink, Gerald nods as he listens, and motions with his free hand for the pitch. Flipping over some papers on her clipboard, Samantha taps a pen upon a guild mission brief, and smirks. “Something honestly simple and local. We’ve got series of straight forward update survey jobs on a bunch of quiet ruins. It requires internal exploration, but the last yearly sweep was clean.”

A sly grin parts her lips, and she perks her scheming brow. “But, plenty of dark places and quiet tension over dusty, scary ruins. With a little editing and hopefully a few dramatic shots, we can play up the thrill and danger just enough.”

Gerald narrows his gaze upon the page, and allows his eyes to sort through the literature on the document. After a few seconds, he begins to nod thoughtfully. “That actually could work out. Stage a few cinematic shots for added effect, and let the sound crews have a little fun with the audience... Probably drum up of the spookiness. Don’t think crews would have any major objections.”

A flit of joy sparks on Samantha’s face, and she sifts through her notes. “That sounds great. Maybe if we’re lucky some rodent will jump out and scare them. Without that laser pistol, Veevi is going to be a lot easier to spook.”

A dry smirk pulls across Gerald face, and he chuckles with a sinister tinge. “My money is that she tries to mend up her relationship enough with Chad to use him as a shield to hide behind.”

Nodding at the notion, Samantha rolls her eyes, and halts her page flipping to another section of official paperwork copies. “Now, Howie is finishing up the details, but we think we’ve secured a smaller appearance event with a twist.”

Gerald abruptly halts tipping back his spiced chai latte, gradually levels it, and furrows his unconvinced brow at Samantha. “Oh, really? What inane idea has he tried to pitch now?”

Samantha grins wide, and turns the clipboard papers towards Gerald. “Invitation only appearance. And... Run a contest for the invites.”

Searching his mind, Gerald rocks his head side to side weighing the possibilities, and ponders out loud. “Huh. Okay. THAT could prove to be an interesting twist. Get more of the... dedicated fans out. Plenty of potential for awkward and awesome fan interaction moments. That could drum up the ratings, especially if you make it require watching the episodes closely for some hidden phrase or other piece of information. No... That could work out.”

Writing down the suggestions, Samantha deviously giggles and nods. “Oh, especially when Howie rigs a few of the winners to be from Modoran’s not so adoring fans.”

Rolling his eyes blatantly, Gerald mutters and starts tipping back the beverage in hand. “Gods fucking dammit, Howard. Should expect shit like this at this point.”

----

Bach slumps down on one side of the couch, rests his head back, and yawns. “I think that’s everything.”

He pauses a moment, tilts his head to the side, and faces Sotalia. “Is that everything?”

Sotalia cracks her eye open, stretches her arms out upon the other side of the couch, and grumbles. “Gods, I hope so. I’ve brewed fresh batches of most of the potions I know how to make. And, I’ve gone through my pouch belt inventory, twice.”

Slowly sitting herself up from the floor in front of the coffee table, Dretphi rolls her shoulders and rubs her back. “Should be sufficient. If not, we have other problems.”

Aristespha rests her head upon her crossed arms on the dining table, grumbles out a tired sigh, and groans. “At this point, if we need anything more along the way, I’m perfectly fine with buying it and sticking GAA with the bill. I’ll figure a way to categorize through their system.”

Sebastian surveys the stacks of paperwork and scattered tablets of contract literature upon the tabletop, and smiles reassuringly to Aristespha. “I’m sure you can... somehow...”

The kitchen door to the garage opens up, and Cideeda steps on through. She brushes off her hands, walks up next to the kitchen table, and pulls out a chair. “Well, the humvee is packed and ready to go tomorrow. Nothing is obviously wrong after the third inspection. So, we should at least make it to Perimeter.”

In the lull of domestic quiet, the team idles peacefully in the living area as the afternoon sun radiates in through the sliding glass door. After a few minutes, Bach rubs his stomach and queries the room. “Anyone else hungry?”

Sotalia nods, slowly her pulls her self off the cushioned back of the couch, and rubs her eyes. “I am...”

A sly smile appears on her lips, and she eyes Bach with a playfully accusatory gaze. “I’d suggest my yam shepherd's pie, but SOMEONE devastated that for breakfast this morning.”

Bach darts his blue eyes to either side of him, averts his gaze away from Sotalia, and conceals his guilt. Sotalia shifts her amused stare to Dretphi, and rests her chin upon the top of her wrist. “And someone else annihilated the leftover malva pudding all by herself.”

She chuckles to herself as her pride beams out with Dretphi's sigh of admission. Sotalia swings her glance over towards Aristespha and Cideeda. “And, the lean clean up crew made the rest of the mutton and potato enchiladas vanish. I distinctly remember someone drinking the last bits of the sauce.”

Exchanging looks with Cideeda, Aristespha rolls her eyes and smirks defiantly. “I’m not apologizing.”

Sotalia fluffs back her fiery orange, wavy hair, crosses her legs, and rests her feet on the table satisfied. “Of course not. I take it as a compliment...”

Furrowing her brow, she twists her mouth and sighs. “Still... I’m hungry, and I’m too tired to cook.”

Dretphi nods in agreement, lays herself back down on the floor, and exhales her fatigue. “I concur. Want to rest before tomorrow.”

Sebastian’s ethereal form studies the team, and hums. “So... Delivery it is. But, what?”

A spark of inspiration appears in Cideeda’s emerald green eyes, and her furry ears perk up. “Fval Spice. It’ll be a while before we can enjoy it again.”

Bach blinks a few times, cranes his head over towards Cideeda, and puzzles. “I think we’re pretty far outside their delivery range.”

Cideeda pulls a sly grin across her face, pulls her aetherphone out of her shorts pocket with one hand, and rests her other hand confidently on her hip. “Oh, I think I know a trick for that.”

Sliding through the menus, she taps a contact entry from the list, and the calling sequence plays out on her phone screen. Pressing the speakerphone button, Cideeda holds the device out in front of her and waits. Noyando’s voice sounds out from the other side of the conversation. “Fval Spice. Pick-up or Delivery?”

With a confident smile, Cideeda presents a business inquiry in a dialect of fvalian. Noyando states the current policy in kind, and wanders towards a curious tone. Cideeda proposes an exception to those guidelines, and tints her voice with a graceful, hopeful plea. Uncertainty and deliberation grips Noyando’s apprehensive reply, and he remains unconvinced. A toothy grin forms on Cideeda’s face. Directing her voice at her aetherphone, she carefully explains a generous percentage, and significant monetary amount in an entrepreneurial coloring of fvalian. A long pause from Noyando follows, and he pardons himself. His voice momentarily sounds distant as he converses with another woman in fvalian. Immediately after he relays the percentage and amount, the woman calls back in an encouraging, insistent on voice. Noyando’s voice rises out of the speakerphone with an agreeable tone.

A proud smile emerges upon Cideeda’s face, and she announces out to the team. “What does everyone want? And order extra for tomorrow, I promised a big order.”

----

A modern gray sedan turns into the driveway leading to the ranch style house, and parks behind the humvee. The car’s running lamps illuminates the surrounding grass and pavement with a slight highlight against the summer's early evening ambient light. Noyando exits from the driver’s side, and opens the back door. Standing up from the passenger’s side door, Mera quickly access the rear door opposite, and checks through a list. Both Noyando and Mera read off items from the list, separate marked paper bags from the collection, and divide up all between themselves. With a satisfied smile, Mera crosses off the last item on the stack of papers, and nods to Noyando. “That’s everything for the this order, and that should be last of the orders for the run.”

Noyando motions towards the trunk, perks his black furry ears, and asks. “Nothing in the trunk?”

Mera shakes her head, slips her arms through the rolled paper handles of the bags, and smiles. “No. I moved everything up here two deliveries ago.”

After a long sigh of relief, Noyando hoists up his share of the cargo, and grins appreciatively to Mera. “Thank you for helping. It is very hard to keep track of so many orders, and deliver quickly, too.”

The two navigate around the nice, gray sedan, and walk up swiftly to the front door. Noyando balances the weight of the bags of food, and manages to knock on the door. Mera levels her arm, and presses a finger against the old doorbell button. Both Noyando’s black furry ears and Mera’s very long pointed ears twitch at the sounds of movement up to the door and activity behind it. Cideeda opens the door inwards and greets Noyando in pleasant fvalian. Sotalia quickly notices all heavy loads in and on the arms of both Noyando and Mera, and starts plucking off bags from Mera. “Let me get those.”

After a transfer, Sotalia rushes back into the house towards the dining table. Mera takes a moment to flex and stretch the fatigue out of her arms. Her attention drifts and she studies the ranch style house, and idly glances around the area. Sotalia returns with her arms ready, and Noyando hands over a few heavier bags. After freeing up his arms comfortably, he produces the receipt from his pocket and presents it to Cideeda. Checking the total, Cideeda deftly sorts through a bundle of paper currency, and counts out a generous sum. She splits off the collection of bills and hands them over to Noyando with a toothy grin. “As promised, the total with an appropriate tip to compensate you for your time and effort. And, thank you so much for making an exception for us.”

Noyando passes over the final bag to Cideeda, inspects the money, and nods graciously with a slight bow to Cideeda. “A fair deal. You called at the right time. Any later, I would not be able to leave.”

A humored smirk appears on his face, and he signs with a laugh. “Also, my wife insisted I take the order after she heard your offer.”

With a wave and smile, Noyando motions towards his car, and nods respectfully. “If you excuse me, the dinner rush is soon. My wife will not be happy if she has to handle it alone.”

Cideeda smiles back understandingly, and gestures to rest of the team sorting through the food. “You two have a good night. I need to claim my food before someone does it for me.”

After the front door closes, Noyando turns to Mera and swiftly pulls a calculated sum from the cash in his hands. “Mera? Here is your share of the tip.”

Mera blinks her crimson eyes back to awareness, pivots around to Noyando, and notices the sum of funds. She grabs hold of them and flits her eyes wide in surprise. “Oh, wow. Um, are you sure?”

Walking towards his car, Noyando nods gratefully, and chuckles. “Yes. You earned it. By myself, I would not have been able to figure out the best route. And, you made sure all the orders were right.”

As Mera slowly steps down the front steps, a glint of head lamp light draws her attention away from the money her hands. She pauses mid-step, angles her head, and squints her eyes into the contrasting darkness of the open garage. Her expression blanks as she spots familiar crystals piled on the concrete floor around a box of golem parts. Her mind fights back a surge of stark recognition. Shifting between grimaces and cringes, Meredosia mentally wrestles back memories, past desires, and old ambitions. Noyando calls out from his sedan. “Mera? Is something wrong?”

Mera blinks back to the present, shakes the thoughts hard out of her mind, and pivots to face Noyando with a smile. “Um. No. Sorry.”

She sprints over to the passengers side of the car, slips into the front seat, and chuckles off some embarrassment. “Sorry, I thought saw something weird in their garage. I didn’t mean to pry, but I couldn’t help it.”

As Noyando puts the sedan in gear, he laughs with a nod. “I understand. Adventurers are strange to me. They have a habit to collect the oddest things.”

Mera partially agrees with the sentiment, but her stare lingers upon the darkness of the garage as Noyando backs the car out onto the road.

-89-

Long dense forests border both sides of the long highway as the humvee rolls at a steady pace. Sitting in the front passenger’s seat, Sotalia glances over to the side, and squints at a passing road sign. “Well, only a few hundred kilometers till we reach Phis.”

Blinking the early morning drowsiness from his eyes, Bach stretches out his neck and shoulder against his seat, and fights against a yawn. “Are we actually going to try to make that in one day?”

Flicking her furry ear back from the comment, Cideeda flutters emerald green eyes, and grumbles with a frown. “As much as I’d like to, I don’t think so. Roads are getting rougher, and I don’t want to push it too hard. I just got everything running nice. Really don’t want to knock the alignment out hitting a pothole too fast.”

Dretphi glances up from studying a road atlas, and ponders out loud. “We should travel past the halfway point today. Then, a comfortable trip tomorrow to Phis.”

Tapping through a number of messages on her tablet, Aristespha sighs as she sorts through the junk mail, and plays with her silvery blue hair between her fingers. “Depending on how far we get today, I have a few places we can stay. Thankfully, since this is a main highway, there are actually decent motels to stay at. I figure we should take our time in Phis, and relax. Enjoy the stay.”

An eager smirk appears on Dretphi’s face, and a flit of excitement wiggles up her body. “The barbecue. Hard to choose which place.”

Sotalia cracks a sly grin, gazes towards Dretphi around her seat, and shows her phone screen. “I know! We’ll have at least lunch and dinner to choose a place to eat. Maybe after breakfast the next day, we can get some fresh to go for lunch later on.”

Picking up her aetherphone next to her, Dretphi leans forward on the far back seat after tapping to an aethersite, stretches her arm out, and shows Sotalia her phone display. “Have you seen this one?”

Quickly reading bit of text from the screen, Sotalia returns her attention to her phone, and navigates through to a different menu. “No... I’ll check that one out.”

Cideeda shakes her head with a smirk, gradually adjusts the steering wheel, and stares off into her mind. “I hope we get a good view of the big Train Depot there from the hotel. It’s amazing how they run that whole operation and keep those land trains running.”

An entrepreneurial, toothy grin graces her face, and she narrows her stare with a quiet chuckle. “And the deals that can be made...”

The humvee cruises down the wide highway, gracefully navigates around rougher patches of road, and follows the gradual curves in the path. Minutes later, the vehicle slows down into a short line of traffic condensing behind a number of Chrome Crusader trucks. Cideeda narrows her glare forward, and groans. “Gods... What’s going on here that Chrome Crusaders would be out for?”

Aristespha blinks her violet eyes, twists her mouth, and squints down at her tablet. “I don’t remember anything about this... Sebastian, do you remember if we read anything about this?”

From the sword resting between Bach and Aristespha, Sebastian’s voice resonates out with a puzzled tone. “No, dear. I don’t remember hearing or seeing any bulletins about this. Maybe some weather advisories, but that’s not for another day or so.”

Studying the flow ahead, Cideeda rocks her head side to side, shrugs her shoulders, and comments calmly. “Well, it seems to be moving. Looks like they’re just taking turns sending all the traffic down to one lane.”

As the humvee rolls up to a uniformed Chrome Crusader with a stop sign, Cideeda rolls down the her window, and waits. A young man steps close to window, tips his hat respectfully, and points down the way. “Sorry for the hold up, everyone. But, after this next batch of cars, we’ll get you through. It’s only a few kilometers, and then you’ll be in the clear.”

Nodding appreciatively, Cideeda lifts an intrigued brow, and motions over to the number of armored up Chrome Crusaders in the distant tall grass of on the right side of the road. “Thank you. So... Is there anything we should be careful of? Maybe, keep an eye out for?”

The young man glances over in the direction of the soldiers, awkwardly smiles, and stumbles to a reassuring tone. “Oh, um… Nothing too bad. We’re here for a precautionary measure. Probably nothing will be happening around here.”

Cideeda nods to the man with a smile and cheery tone. “Well, thank you for keeping us safe.”

The young man bows slightly, and walks down the forming line of traffic behind the humvee. After Cideeda rolls up the window, she pivots her head, and frowns slightly with a suspecting color to her cadence. “Yeah... Something is going on somewhere nearby.”

She points a claw tipped finger between a large metal figure hunching low in the brush, and grumbles. “I don’t think they’d have that anti-armor mech at the ready, hiding over there, if they didn’t expect nothing to happen.”

The rest of the team peers through the windows. Each quickly spots the humanoid robot within the natural shrubs when it gradually sweeps the aim of a large caliber arm cannon towards the forest. Bach quirks a surprised brow, and glances over his shoulder to Cideeda. “If the models of yours I’ve seen are accurate, that’s a thirty millimeter autocannon.”

Dretphi slowly nods at the information as her recognition grows. “Yes. Not a weapon to have ready for no reason.”

Shifting her attention towards a group of uniformed Chrome Crusaders, Sotalia hums in thought, and searches the scene. “Maybe we can pester one of them to tell us what’s going on... Who looks to be in charge-”

Her golden eyes widen, and an evil grin graces her lips. She rolls down her window, rests her elbow up on the door, and props her head upon her hand. Drawing a long breath, her gazes falls upon a middle aged man with short graying hair, and she shouts out. “OH, QUINCY!”

The man freezes in place, tenses up his shoulders, and slowly pivots towards the source. He searches around the vicinity, and settles his gaze upon the waving Sotalia. Blinking a few times, he musters up an awkward smile, waves back to Sotalia, and slowly walks his way over. Sotalia twists her mouth at the corner, and chuckles darkly as the man gradually navigates the road block. Directing her voice with her hand, she lets out a strained quack. The man startles, sprints into a run, and stops right next to Sotalia’s door. “For fuck’s sake, Sotalia! Keep it down! That duck is STILL alive and well.”

Easing back into her seat with a blatant grin of satisfaction, Sotalia giggles and sighs with a smile. “What’s the point of having a little blackmail if I can’t use it. So, what’s new with you, Quincy?”

Quincy briefly grumbles, draws in a breath, and snorts out a laugh. “The usual. Trying to keep recruits from embarrassing themselves and making sure the convoy doesn’t accidentally leave any behind. Or... On purpose, despite how tempting it is.”

He peers into the vehicle, and politely waves to the rest of the team. “Hello, everyone. Um, so, if you don’t mind me asking? Where are all of you going this time?”

Sotalia perks her brow, tosses her fiery orange, wavy hair back, and grins. “Perimeter.”

Quincy blinks a few times, and nods impressed. “Damn. That’s a run and half. Hope the trip is easy going. That route isn’t nice even during a good week. I think we stopped taking contracts going that way simply because we got tired of pulling trucks out of the muck the roads turn into.”

Pointing out to the forest, Sotalia narrows a prying stare at Quincy, and curiously inquires. “What’s going out here? You all usually don’t have that much fire power just waiting for something.”

Glancing around briefly, Quincy studies the surrounding personnel, leans upon the humvee, and directs a whisper to the team. “Well... I don’t know all the details yet. Still waiting to talk to the front line guys. But, my guess is something stirred up a place with a bunch of autonomous robots. Weirdest fucking thing really.”

He stands back up, listens to radio chatter in his ear piece, and motions the team towards a woman with signal flags. “Wish I could talk more, but your group is up.”

Pausing a moment in thought, he smiles to Sotalia and nods. “Send me a message tonight, and I’ll see if I got any more info by then.”

He lingers a moment, and lowers his voice towards Sotalia. “Is Sebastian still... in a sword?”

Sebastian ethereal voice resonates loudly from the blade on the floor of the cab. “Yes, Quincy.”

Quincy blinks, thinks a moment, and slowly shakes his head. “That’s so fucked up, man. Hope they get you out of it soon.”

Sebastian appreciatively sounds out from the sword. “You and me both. Let us know if anything weird happens around here.”

----

Stretching out his back, Bach steps along the sidewalk, flexes out his tension, and stands in the afternoon sun. A gust of wind blows the scent of distant sea spray across the hotel parking lot, and sways the canopies of deciduous, coniferous, and palm trees in the area. Aristespha, Cideeda, Dretphi, and Sotalia stream out from the front automatic glass doors of the building, and the team gathers around. Sotalia compares the aethersite on her phone with the site upon Dretphi’s phone display. “So, is your choice or mine closer? Because, I really don’t feel like sitting in a car right now.”

Dretphi scrolls down the list information, reviews a small map, and glances back to Sotalia. “Yours. Mine is sea side.”

Sotalia nods in agreement, taps the route finding button, and points in a direction. “Yeah, this is just a walk down the main road on this side of the bay.”

While the team travels down the street, Cideeda perks a curious brow over to Aristespha. “Not a bad place you found. A little cheaper than a hotel along the Azure Sea?”

Aristespha nods, and relaxes with the wind blowing back her long hair. “Oh, yes. Same features, but just over a kilometer away from the main beach made all the difference. If we were here for the beach, I might have gone with another choice.”

She rolls her violet eyes, and briefly grimaces. “I also figured, since it’d be the last good place to overnight, we’d try to enjoy it. All the reviews mentioned that bay side hotels were significantly more peaceful and quiet. But, close enough to walk to everything.”

From the sword at Aristespha’s side, Sebastian comments to the group. “Yeah, not going to lie, we’re going to be roughing it for the next few days.”

Sotalia rests her hands on her hips, grins, and struts down the sidewalk. “Sounds like justification for a little indulgence to me. I wonder what their drink specials are like.”

Bach furrows his brow as the wind tosses the white streak in his brown hair. He searches his mind with his blue eyes, and glances between the other members of the team. “I don’t know. I’ve only heard of Phis for their barbecue, music, and trade. Don’t remember anything unique in the way of alcohol. Maybe some local breweries?”

With shrug of her shoulders, Cideeda snorts with a toothy grin, and gazes up to Bach. “You don’t need to have your own, when you can easily get your hands on all the different liquors out there. Big trade hub, so a big selection.”

The team continues down the main road, and pass by different shops, bars, clubs, and other local establishments. While the group admires the sights, a long convoy of large multi-axle trucks roar on pass, and plow through the air. Stirring wind pushes past the crew, and Cideeda furry ears flick off strands her shorter multi-colored hair. She watches the heavy haulers roll fast onto a massive bridge, and traverse over the bay to the other side. Seconds later, another series of large trucks run down the main street, and follow the same route as the previous. An excited smile appears on Cideeda’s light brown face, and she recognizes the logos and color-coded flags. Bach notices Cideeda’s interest, and directs his curiosity. “What were those?”

Cideeda shifts her focus up to Bach, and smirks her amusement. “Oh, those were Train local haulers. I’m guessing those were biggest vehicles they have that can fit through these streets. I think they are heading to the Train Depot on the other side of the bay.”

Bach nods and follows Cideeda pointing finger to distant industrial structures on the other side of the bay and a large chain of buildings in the background. The team follows Sotalia’s aetherphone guidance to a shoreline, open air restaurant. Their eagerness swells with each aroma packed wave of cooking smoke that the coastline gust guides to them. After the host seats them at a large table with a clear view of the bay, the crew scours over the menus at the table. A minute later, an emin waiter addresses the team with a bright smile and cheery tone. “Thank y’all for coming down to Bay Side Ribs. My name is Erdin, and I’ll be taking care of y’all tonight. You got any questions before I get your drinks?”

Sotalia grins towards Aristespha’s smirk, and inquires eagerly. “Any drink specials going on?”

Erdin grants a quick nod, deftly whips out a pamphlet from his apron pocket, and places it between Aristespha and Sotalia. “Oh, plenty. We also have a few menu items for just this week, since it’s a special occasion here in Phis.”

Bach furrows his brow, turns his head, and puzzles at Erdin. “Huh. So, what’s the occasion? We just got into town.”

With a delightedly slick smile, Erdin motions with a wave of his hand across the bay and explains eagerly. “Well, y’all are just lucky then. Land Train number five just arrived last night is slowly doing its loop through the depot. And Bay Side Ribs is happy to offer the freshest cuts of meat from the west, smoked to perfection. For just this week, we have menu items you won’t enough get to taste for another few months if y’all are lucky to visit us again.”

The group’s attentions shift across the bay. Between squinting and searching, a grin appears on Erdin’s face, and he gestures a hint for the team. “Keep your eye on the big stuff in the background... and watch carefully. What you see isn’t want you think it is.”

The scrutinizing stares of Aristespha, Bach, Cideeda, Dretphi, and Sotalia at the table join the hidden visage of Sebastian under the deck peering out. As the team concentrates and carefully observes, surprise sparks in each of their faces. They watch the long series of buildings in the background behind the industrial structures gradually, constantly shift over time. From the side of one of the moving masses, a large robotic arm drops out of sight from a resting position at the top. Seconds later, the heavy crane hoists up a large local Train hauler and brings through opening bay doors near the top of a massive land train segment.

----

Bach gazes off into the darkening skies west, narrows his eyes, and blinks at the flashes of lightning arcing between the clouds. He turns his head towards Cideeda with uneasy smile, and taps his finger upon his window. “Looks like a storm is coming off the sea.”

Easing her foot off the accelerator, Cideeda deftly turns the wheel to carefully steer the humvee around a large dip in the cracked and worn road. She grumbles to herself, droops her furry ears briefly, and sighs. “Yeah. And, these roads have taken a beating lately. No one has been out to repair these in months. We’ll be at a crawl if we have to drive these in the dark and a storm.”

Aristespha squints her eyes and peers out ahead through the front windshield, checking passing road signs. “We should be close to the place I found for the night. The town is called...”

As she searches her tablet for the exact information, Sotalia furrows her brow, focuses her stare ahead at a rusted, damaged sign, and smirks out a sarcastic tone. “Wino?”

Blinking to attention, Aristespha notices the partial lettering, and rolls her eyes. “That’s part of the name.”

Turning his head track to the broken signage, Bach snorts out a chuckle, and shakes his head. “Yeah, probably more fitting, if they don’t even bother to fix the town sign.”

Cideeda navigates the humvee down a highway off ramp, and slows to a stop at a desolate intersection. “Okay, so where is this place?”

Peering out the side windows, Dretphi leans from one to another, squints her steely gray eyes, and frowns at the darkening clouds choking out the late afternoon sun. “Not much around.”

Aristespha checks the digital map on her tablet, orientates herself from quickly inspecting the landmarks, and spots a distant glow of artificial light down the eastwards. “There. Make a left here, it should be up ahead.”

The humvee rolls through the turn and speeds down the rough, almost gravel road. Minutes later, the vehicle pulls under a large, aged stained metal awning in front of a run down, long motel building. The team directs their attention to the dark, quiet structure, and wait. Over the idle seconds, expressions slowly sour, and apprehension fills the cab. Concentrating his scrutinizing stare into the still, dim glass of the lobby, Bach lifts a reluctant eyebrow, and twists his mouth hesitantly. “Um... I’m not getting the feeling that this place is open.”

Sotalia’s golden eyes dart around between the dark, empty windows, and she curls her upper lip into a sneer. “Yeah. None of the main lights are even on. Is this place supposed to be open?”

Focusing her frustration upon the tablet, Aristespha grumbles out her irritation. “Everything I read up said it would be open... I even called ahead...”

Sebastian’s ethereal visage materializes in the middle aisle just behind Aristespha’s seat, and winces at the chain of evuukian curses muttering out. “Well, we could just knock on the front door and see if anyone is in there.”

Everyone momentarily glances over to the eerily still, rundown motel building. Each watches the gloomy, blackened storm clouds drift overhead and eastwards behind the structure. Distant bright flashes of lightning from the west cast unnerving shadows into empty rooms. And, gusts of wind stir up dust, sand, and debris around the cracked brick walls. Attention gradually pivots back to Sebastian’s ghostly form, and he releases an unamused sigh with a long roll of his eyes. “Or... I guess I can just phase in there and check... and really complete this whole theme going on...”

An appreciate smiles graces Aristespha’s face, and she nods with an assuring tone. “Thank you, Sebastian. I’ll see if I can call anyone.”

Phasing through the roof, Sebastian flies up to the front, lands, and walks through the front door. He cautiously inspects the empty, unlit lobby, the flickering display of the snack machine, and the vacant front desk area. A harsh chime of an old phone rings out, and Sebastian’s eyes dart around the to a few wooden doors. After a long series of rings, silence returns to the dated motif, and Sebastian slowly shakes his head. Quickly sinking his head through the few doors, he rolls his eyes and fades away. Reappearing in the aisle of the humvee cab, he hovers down to a seat on the floor, and crosses his arms with a frown. “Nothing. The phone rang, but I didn’t hear or see any signs life. I bet someone ditched work early.”

The ambient roar of rain surrounds the humvee, and waves of water spray underneath the overhead awning onto the gravel lot. Cideeda shifts the vehicle in a park, shuts down the powerplant, and groans. “Well, we can hang out here for a bit and let the storm pass over...”

A sly, toothy grin appears on her face, and she gazes her emerald green eyes across the team in the cab, while tapping her claws tips together. “Or, I can... gain access to a few of the rooms for the night?”

Aristespha lifts a judging brow, Sebastian mulls over the thought, Dretphi weighs the option, Bach grimaces uncertainly, and an evil grin grows upon Sotalia lips. Cideeda gauges the reactions, smiles pleasantly, and shrugs her shoulders. “Of course, I’ll make sure the owner is compensated at market rate...”

She mumbles under her breath, lowers her furry ears, and averts her eyes while flexing her claw tipped fingers. “... after a significant discount for lack of service...”

Sebastian dons an amused smirk, and sighs. “Yeah, probably not the best idea.”

Aristespha grumbles to herself and settles back into her seat. “It is also very troublesome to itemize expenses predicated upon multiple counts of breaking and entering.”

Tapping upon her phone screen, Dretphi studies an animation loop of weather radar data, contorts her face in thought, and cocks her head to the side. “This is a small storm cell. A break after this passes. Other storms afterwards.”

Moments after a bright flash overhead illuminates the world below, a wave of thunder vibrates the humvee, and the droning rain falls in obscuring sheets across the area. Sebastian briefly watches the gust of wind sends sprays of water against the sides of the vehicle, and shrugs his shoulders. “Well, I say we wait an hour or so, and figure out what to do after that.”

The team settles in to their distractions. Dretphi quickly adjusts the pillows on the back bench seat, and opens up a graphic novel to a bookmark. Aristespha eases back into her seat, notices Sebastian watching her tablet over her shoulder, and adjusts the aim for him with a loving smile. Cideeda retrieves a small piece of golem crystal from a pack under her seat, and concentrates upon it in the palm of her hand. The small chunk of magical mineral gradually, shakily moves as faint flows brush against it. Bach glances up from his aetherphone, smirks at the progress, and directs his voice to Cideeda. “That’s pretty good. You want to try something a little challenging?”

Cideeda’s ears perk up, and she cranes her head around the front driver’s seat eagerly. “Sure!”

Bach points to the crystal curiously. “You have any more of those with you?”

Quickly reaching down under seat, Cideeda retrieves a few similar chunks of magically reactive rocks, and gives one to Bach. Her emerald eyes blink as Bach positions the crystal in the palm of his hand, and she watches expectantly. With a faint blue glow in his eyes, the small, cylindrical chunk rights itself upwards upon a point. Bach smiles and gradually tilts his hand as the golem crystal maintains the angle relative to his palm. “A lot harder than it looks, and really great practice.”

An appreciative smile grows upon Cideeda, and she quickly shifts her full focus upon keeping the righted crystal in her hand, with Bach occasionally catching mineral when it escapes. Half an hour later, Sotalia blinks her golden eyes, twists her mouth, and rolls her shoulders. Over the minutes, she sits back up in her seat, squirms uncomfortably around, and crosses her legs with a straining wince. Cringing briefly, she glances back towards Aristespha, and awkwardly questions. “So... Does this place have any other numbers you can try calling? Maybe another location the owner might be at? Um... Anything?”

Aristespha looks up from the show playing on her tablet, cocks her head to the side, and puzzles. Slowly shaking her head, she frowns slightly and sighs. “No, I didn’t find anything else...”

A blatant wave of unease colors Sotalia’s pleading expression and she carefully breathes out her discomfort. Aristespha lifts up an intrigued brow, studies Sotalia’s body language, and notices an empty, extra large drink cup in the holder on Sotalia’s side of the center control. Rolling her violet eyes, she pulls an amused smirk across her mouth, and chuckles. “Really, if you need to use the bathroom, just say so. I’ll accompany you if feel that uncomfortable.”

Sotalia blinks hard, glances briefly over at the eerie gloom looming around the empty motel, and reveals her objection towards Aristespha. “Thank you, but... Where? I hope you’re NOT suggesting outside, around HERE?”

Aristespha dismissively shakes her head, and motions towards the dark motel. “There’s obviously no one here, it’s not that-”

A bright flash from the storms above brilliantly contrast stark shadows along surfaces and into the rooms of long, empty motel. Fighting against her own failing courage, Aristespha grits her teeth and mumbles. “...scary...”

Bach scans over property, glances over to the team, and frowns uneasily. “Yeah... Um, I have not been adventuring that long. But, I know I have been to far more welcoming ruins than this place right now. At those places you have certain expectations. This place? I'm getting body in the ice maker vibes.”

Cideeda narrows an investigative stare out the front windshield, rocks her head side to side in deliberation, and shrugs her shoulders. “I think it has cleared up enough. I'm up for leaving this creepy place.”

As she starts up the humvee’s powerplant, she aims her voice back. “Is there a rest area close, down the highway?”

After a few moments of sorting through aetherphone, tablet, and map, Dretphi locates a point of interest with Aristespha’s help. “Yes. Twenty kilometers.”

Nodding as the humvee’s console status lights flicker through a nominal pattern, Cideeda puts the vehicle into gear, and secures herself in the seat. “I can manage that much. Buckle up.”

Aristespha grumbles as she glares over at the motel. “Try my best to arrange everything, and still these things happen.”

Sebastian smiles comfortingly to Aristespha, and shrugs his shoulders. “Don’t worry, dear. If they’re this bad at staffing the place, I’d hate to think how bad they are at cleaning the rooms.”

Blinking blankly a few time, Aristespha shudders off the thought. “Um, good point, Sebastian.”

----

Groggily rolling his head away from the beams of mid morning sun shining into the humvee, Bach fights against the persistent desire to snooze off in the quiet cab. He flutters his eyes back to consciousness, and searches the space for the source of a snore. Glancing to the front and back seats, he settles his attention to his side, and watches Aristespha slumber with growing volume. Under an uncombed, messy cover of long, silvery blue hair, Aristespha unconsciously balances her head upon a hand propped against the humvee window. At the apex of a long, loud snore, she snorts, squirms in place, and exhales lazily. Sebastian’s ethereal visage forms in the humvee aisle, and he narrows a humored gaze upon the sleeping Aristespha. Leaning close to Bach, he whispers with an amused smirk. “She’ll never admit this, but when she sleeps like this... She sometimes drools. Bad.”

Bach squelches a snort, and shakes his head at this brother. “Oh, I bet she’d never admit it.”

Sebastian glances over to Bach, rolls his eyes with a smile, and widens a gap between his thumb and forefinger. “Seriously, bro. I’ve caught her with spit stains this big on her shoulder, and she’ll flat out deny it.”

Pondering out a smirk, Bach lifts an intrigued brow and motions to his aetherphone. “Have you tried recording it?”

Gritting his teeth, Sebastian averts his eyes, and contemplates the repercussions between rocks of his head side to side. “Yeah... I’ve thought about that. But, I didn’t think it was worth the war of calling out our bad habits that might start.”

He settles a loving gaze upon Aristespha and sighs quietly with a longing tinge. Muffled conversations from familiar voices surround the vehicle. The front doors open up, and Cideeda hops into the driver’s seat. Sotalia slides up in the passenger’s seat, balances a tray of different rest stop beverages in her lap, and sorts through the labels. “Okay, I did my best to mix up your orders from what they had available. Hope my misspent teenage years at a coffee shop pay off.”

Cideeda draws a long sip from her cup, licks her lips, and shrugs her shoulders while placing the beverage in her side’s cup holder. “It was a surprisingly good selection.”

Sotalia pulls up one drink, reads it off, and extends her arm out back towards Aristespha. “One black tea and coffee for the sleepy girl.”

Sebastian and Bach glance over to notice the alert and awake Aristespha rigidly sitting up, and calmly accepting the beverage. Aristespha dismissively rolls her violet eyes, and slowly sniffs in the aroma of the drink in the insulated cup. “Sleepy? I was awake before you this morning.”

With a tightening smile, Sebastian catches Aristespha’s attention, motions to his face, and traces a path out from the corner of his mouth and down his chin. Aristespha puzzles, blinks blankly, and flits her eye wide when a flush of embarrassment overwhelms the blue and gray hints on her face. She awkwardly sneaks a wipe of her hand, and dries off a patch of spittle off her mouth. Sebastian confirms with a nod, and playfully weathers the faux glare from Aristespha.

Bach opens his door, hops out, and slides his seat up. He holds a large, full paper sack for Dretphi as she slips through into the humvee. Once inside, Bach passes back the bag, and sniffs the lingering aroma while moving his seat back in place. “That actually smells really good.”

Sotalia presents Bach’s beverage once he settles into his seat, and dons a guilty grin. “The finest rest stop food we could find. We MAY have gone a little overboard... But, they totally had everything you could think of there.”

Cideeda leans over her seat, points to the paper sack before Dretphi, and grins excitedly. “You can tell we’re near a port, because you never find this stuff inland.”

Dretphi unpacks the huge bag and arranges the different packaged snacks into the view of everyone. She hands off a few items to those that show interest. She quickly secures a bundle of treats with grath lettering, and hides it off to her side. While the team distributes the variety of snacks and drinks, Sebastian gazes between the group. “So, a bit of late start today, but I think it’s workable.”

Dretphi finishes a bite into a partially unwrapped pastry, savors the moment, and joins the topic. “We are not far. We could arrive at Perimeter today. Late night. Possible.”

Aristespha breathes in the moist vapors off her hot tea and coffee, and blinks back to awareness. She glances down at her tablet. “Oh, yes. The place I made reservations at in Perimeter is fairly flexible. Especially, since I paid a deposit. And, I think we’re out of the lodging dead zone now. There’s a number of small local inns and motels that will work depending on our progress.”

Fighting off a yawn, Bach contorts his face, stretches in his seat, and shrugs. “I’m up for a long drive. Honestly, the storms last night kept me up so much that I’ll probably just doze off on the ride. Just hope the roads aren’t awful.”

Pressing the sequence of buttons upon the control console, Cideeda starts up the humvee’s power plant, and grimaces along with her growing suspicions. “Yeah... I’ve been reading a lot of reports about a lot of road debris, flooded areas, and washed out sections. So, we might be in for a slow roll through some parts.”

Sebastian crosses his arms, nods at the information around him, and dons a bold grin. “Well, we’re not going to find out anything here, so... Let’s hit the road!”

The team secures themselves in their seats with treat and drink aplenty, and the humvee rolls out of the parking space towards the highway on ramp.

----

The humvee’s headlamps illuminate the rough, pavement ahead in contrast the fading evening light. Cideeda blinks her emerald green eyes hard, winces a worn frown, and groans as she steers the vehicle. Sotalia sighs long in a yawn, shudders through her fatigue, and shakes her head at the road ahead. Aristespha idles her stare upon a movie playing on her tablet, while Sebastian’s ghostly figure hovers watching. A gentle snore sounds out from Dretphi, and she stirs lightly. With a slight turn upon the back bench seat, loose pastry wrappers slide off her chest upon the floor of the humvee cab. Bach gazes out to the distant setting sun, as the remaining specs of direct light disappear below the horizon.

The humvee crests over a small rise and banks around a turn between thick forest into another straight stretch of road. Cideeda’s eyes flutter to attention, and she squints. Moments of her furry ears flicking in thought, an annoyed grimace appears and frustration tinges her mood. “Oh gods... What now? Don’t tell me another section of the highway is washed out.”

Sotalia swings her attention ahead, pulls back her fiery orange hair over her swept back horns, and groans. “I REALLY don’t want to have to move another fallen tree out of the way.”

Cocking her head, an uncertain expression dwells on Cideeda’s face, and she raps her claw tips upon the steering wheel. “No... They’re redirecting traffic this time and... have it blocked off.”

Aristespha pauses her movie, taps back to the main screen, and navigates to an aethersite. “I’ll see if there’s anything posted, somewhere.”

The humvee slows down into the barely mobile line of traffic, and joins the staggered jam of occasional movement. Minutes later, the vehicle arrives the front of the queue. A number of Perimeter Defense Force vehicles block off the highway leading to a massive bridge, uniformed officers patrol the perimeter, and scattered groups of armored personnel cautiously sweep the area. Sebastian scans the scene, ducks down behind Aristespha, and fades into the sword at her side. Moments later, his voice sounds out from the blade within the scabbard. “Try to find out what’s going on here. Seems like they are doing some serious work out here.”

Cideeda’s ear flicks forward, and she rolls down the window. Leaning slightly out, she concentrates her stare upon one of the officers, and waves to her. The woman approaches the vehicle, and greets Cideeda with a nod. “Sorry about the trouble. But, the five five route is closed until cleanup crews secure the bridges.”

Lifting a puzzled brow, Cideeda directs her inquisitive tone at the officer. “What kind of clean up are we talking about?”

Drawing in a long, weary breath, the dark haired woman sighs tired. “Maelstrom. Short lived, but dropped a lot upon the five five’s bridges.”

Wrestling the irritation away from her tone, Cideeda presents a hopeful tint to her expression, and motions towards the highway past the blockade leading to the large bridge. “So, what time frame are we looking at for the cleanup?”

The woman officer grimaces, stands up straight, and pivots to gaze at a distant pair of armored personnel in hazardous environment suits. One glances down at a device in hand, looks up, and points to a spot on the roadway a dozen meters ahead. The other nods, rolls his shoulder, and ready himself for a pitch. With a grip upon a large metal bolt in hand, he winds up a pitch, and flings the piece of steel accurately towards the questionable patch. As the projectile flies within proximity of the spot, the fabric tail tied to the bolt suddenly ignites into flames. Bright orange-yellow light radiates out in stark contrast to the surrounding night, and a towering pillar of flame blasts meters up into the air. The spouts of fire swirl in place into flaming vortex, and a loud roar echoes out in the vicinity. Seconds later, the flame wanes back down into a charred, blackened spot on the highway. The two suited personnel exchange looks, and one picks up a three meter pole with a large piece of chalk. Carefully approaching the spot, the armored person cautiously extends the pole out, and marks warning arrows in bright neon orange chalk from a safe distance.

Cideeda, Sotalia, Bach, Aristespha, Sebastian, and Dretphi gawk in sheer, dumbfounded silence. Blank expressions fail to conceal their emotions as flits of shock, surprise, astonishment, and fright twitch through the thin exteriors. The sound of boots slowly twisting upon rough pavement snaps Sebastian out of his daze, and he quickly disappears out of sight just as the officer turns around to Cideeda. With a strained smile, she groans out lingering frustrations. “Yeah... It might take a while. I assume you are heading to Perimeter. There’s no easy routes from here. But...”

She points towards the nearby off-ramp, and explains. “Your best bet right now is to head to Yazoo. It’s a town on the coast, but they should have lodging. They’re at the start of route four nine, which runs directly into Perimeter, too. It didn’t get hit that badly, so it should open up tomorrow if all goes well.”

Cideeda blinks back to awareness and nods to the officer sympathetically. “Uh, yeah. That’s probably the best plan we got then. Um, thank you. We’ll do that.”

The officer nods understandingly, directs them with a hand wave, and awaits the next vehicle in the line. The team stares out to the long, large bridge as the humvee rolls down the off-ramp onto another highway. As the vehicle speeds away, strange flits of light flash out distantly, and odd, unnatural noises crest above the background night ambiance.

----

A short order cook works the grill, and balances his efforts between different orders of eggs, hash browns, bacon, and hamburger. A waitress in a Pancake Shed outfit, slips behind the main, counter to a row of coffee machines, and changes out the glass carafes. With scattered customers in the larger dining area, Aristespha, Bach, Sotalia, Dretphi, and Cideeda occupy a large, booth in the corner of two window walls with a view of the beach. Aristespha pours back the remaining quarter cup of coffee, and hungrily reaches out to the metal carafe at the center of the table. Dretphi slowly works on a cheese steak omelet. Cideeda rubs the sleep out of her eyes and leans back in the booth seat to soak up the near noon sun radiating in. Bach groggily watches the waves roll in on upon the white sand beaches, and observes the coastal traffic near the long docks stretching into the sea. Sotalia fights back a yawn, examines her plate of food, and secretly eyes the bacon on Bach’s platter next to hers.

Glancing over towards Bach briefly, Sotalia’s fork drifts over into the airspace above Bach’s dish, and slowly eases down upon the target. When the tines of the utensil hover over the bacon, Bach casually grips the edges of his plate, and smoothly rotates the dish. Sotalia withdraws her fork quickly away from the moving target, and returns her attention to her food with an amused smirk. Bach hides a satisfied grin behind his hand propping his head up.

A fvalian waitress with green hair walks up to the team’s table, and smiles brightly as the sun reflects the embossed “Lucida” in her name tag. “Well, I hope everything has been good. Is there anything more I can get you all at the moment?”

Bach’s attention shifts to a thought, and he turns to gaze at the woman, with worn smile. “Um, could I get a glass of milk? Need something to balance out all the coffee.”

He narrows his blue eyes at Sotalia, snorts quietly, and smirks. “And another order of bacon. Just feel like I might need more of that.”

A sly smile sneaks out the corner of Sotalia’s mouth, and her expression warms. Lucida nods at the request as she writes it down with a wag of her green, short haired tail. She cracks a humored grin, and perks her brow at Bach. “Would you like chocolate in that milk?”

Rolling his eyes at himself, Bach chuckles lightly and eases out a bit of childish embarrassment. “Oh, why not. Thank you.”

Lucida giggles, and surveys the rest of the group. “Anything else for anyone?”

Aristespha slides the empty metal carafe across the clear middle lane of the table, and taps the lid. “More of this flavor. Please.”

Lucida’s rounded tip ears flick up under her green hair, and she blinks in surprise. “Of course. If you don’t mind me prying, but I get the feeling last night was not that kind to you all?”

A collective agreement rises out from the fatigued team around the table. Cideeda flutters her eyes to attention, and straightens up from the sun spot. “Yeah. We were planning on going to Perimeter using route five five. But, it’s closed off right now.”

Dretphi sighs and nods, guiding back her platinum blonde braids. “Rerouted here. Nice town. Pleasant. Just not our original goal.”

Nodding understandingly, Lucida rests at hand upon her apron covered hip, and shrugs her shoulders. “It happens more than anyone likes, really. But, I’m not one to complain when it brings in business for us. You all are welcomed additions to all the shipping crews, that aren’t always the happiest to be here.”

Bach thinks a moment, and glances out the wall window to the dozens of ships moored at the long docks. “It seems like you do a lot of shipping here.”

Twisting her mouth, Lucida crosses her tan arms, and sighs. “Well, not as much as we’d like around here. We’re just a convenient stop before Perimeter for smaller shipping companies waiting to get clearance into Perimeter. Not much actual shipping. Though, I believe we could easily handle it. I mean, route four nine starts with us.”

With a roll her eyes, she sighs with a small shake of her head. “But, they don't ask my opinion.”

Bach narrows his stare, and points out to a huge barge docked along a long concrete wharf in the distance. “I mean, it looks you can handle big ships like that easy enough.”

Lucida steps to the side, cranes her yellow eyed gaze to the right angle, and frowns slightly. “Yeah. Still don’t know about that ship. They’ve been there for a week. A little strange.”

Sotalia lifts a curious brow, and grins conspiratorially to Lucida. “So, what’s your take?”

With a sly, gossipy smirk, Lucida giggles quietly and directs a whisper to the team. “Oh, I think they got spooked by customs and are trying to offload... through other channels... Probably trying to find a new buyer or something the can’t get into Perimeter. But... That’s just my fun theory. Probably just paperwork hold ups.”

Standing upon the large barge docked along the long concrete wharf, a tall muscular man in a loose, long sleeve jacket scans the vicinity. After a few passes, a hint of satisfaction appears on his stern, scarred face. Checking immediately around him, he walks over to the end of boat, and enters the wheelhouse. Kneeling down slowly, the muscular man lifts up a floor hatch to reveal a ladder, and slips down below. Stepping through a narrow passage, he reaches a bulkhead door, knocks a timed sequence upon the frame, and waits. The metal door handle rotates, the locks release, and the large door swings in. Walking inside, the man’s heavy boot steps clang against the metal floor of a large hollow chamber within the core of the boat. He quickly strips of the jacket, and tosses it to the side. A soft, echoing chorus of hydraulics, servos, and metal contact fill the background drone of the hidden space. A dozen men and women with bulky, intimidating cybernetic limbs, implants, and enhancements idle and prepare. Racks of weaponry line the walls of the makeshift barracks, and people inspect a few small, light assault vehicles. A gigantic man stands up straight with a hydraulic hum, hoists up an industrial lifting arm, rotates the modified claw, and clamps it through a solid bar of steel. Another woman with a cybernetic eye and head rig, slowly cleans the barrel of a bolt-action rifle, and smiles with a scheming satisfaction tinging her battle worn face.

A sinister grin emerges out of the dark expression on the muscular man, and he laughs to himself with a grim confidence. From his pants covered legs, faint sounds of hydraulics and servos resonate out as he stretches out of his arms and upper body. Breathing in the looming mood, he wipes the sweat off his arms. He eyes the Red Gear symbol tattoo on his shoulder, and gazes out to the similar logo upon weapons, vehicles, and people in the secret hold.

-90-

Street lamps reflect off binocular lenses, and a man settles down prone in the tall grass. Under the cloudy night, another man crawls up, and whispers quietly. “Anything new?”

Shaking his head, the man with binoculars grumbles. “No. But, no one has come out for a while.”

Nodding, the other man adjusts his face mask and helmet. “Well, something is up with that barge. The more the head office pokes the paperwork, the more holes they make.”

During relative quiet, the man lowers his binoculars and ponders. “What do you think?”

The other man mulls over a few thoughts. “Smugglers. Always smugglers. But... What are they smuggling?”

Lifting up his binoculars, the first man peers down to the large barge along a concrete dock. “Yeah. Good point.”

Loud, muffled clanks resonate out from the huge vessel. Large, armored men emerge from hatches on the deck, pull off a concealing tarp, and leap onto the dock. From under the cover, and a metal ramp unfolds onto the walkway. With the roar of engines, a dozen armed soldiers in red logos and black outfits rush out around the barge, and military quads take off with troops. Quickly fetching his radio, the man with binoculars blinks in shock. “Guess it’s fucking maniacs!”

----

Outside lights slip through the blinds into the two bed motel room. Echoing cracks vibrate through the window. Upon a pullout couch bed, Cideeda’s furry ear flicks as a series of distant, sharp snaps drift in. Turning her head of shorter multi-colored hair, she fights against sleep and groggily opens one of her emerald eyes. Another chain of muffled reports bleed into the room, and wake Cideeda abruptly. Shooting up, her ears sort through the noises, and she hops to her feet over to the window. Peering cautiously through the blinds, she watches a flurry of activity. Cars and trucks speed off in a panic down the main roads, straight to the highway away from town. Locals on foot hurriedly reach the streets and rush away from town. Noticing other motel patrons loading up, Cideeda freezes when the layered sounds of far off gunfire enter her furry ears.

Cideeda darts between the two single beds, shakes Dretphi awake by her shoulder, and grabs hold of Bach’s forearm. “WAKE UP! Something is happening in town!”

Dretphi sits up sorting through her platinum braids. Bach rolls over and groggily props himself up. Cideeda rushes over to her bags and swiftly pulls up a pair of shorts under her nightshirt. Another volley of distant weapon fire alerts Dretphi. “Gunfire? Where?”

Cideeda steps over to the door, wrapping her laser pistol holsters around her waist. “Don’t know. But, it sounds like a real fight. I’m going to see if I can find out where it’s coming from.”

Bach nods, listens to a chain of muffled gunfire, and hops out of bed to his luggage. “Wake the others. We’ll get ready.”

With an acknowledgment, Cideeda carefully cracks the door open, peers out, and slips into the chorus of far off firefights. Swiftly slinking up against the motel walls, she pauses occasionally and allows her furry ears to sift the noise. Reaching the corner of the building, she peeks around the corner, quirks an ear, and narrows down the direction an echoing barrage. Dipping back, she quickly darts towards her original room, halts a door short, and knocks firmly. Aristespha opens up, motions Cideeda inside, with the traces of lingering sleep. “What is going on?!”

Cideeda points roughly in a direction, and grimaces. “There’s huge gun fight going on towards the docks. Or, that’s what it sounds like to me. A LOT of small arms fire and some big stuff, too.”

A low rumble passes over the motel building. Sotalia exits the bathroom, adjusts her shirt, and sweeps up a remote from the nightstand. “Okay, the fuck is going on here? There’s GOT to be something on the local bulletins.”

The television flips on, and Sotalia surfs through the channels. Aristespha sits down on the bed, picks up a tablet, and taps through menus. A few knocks sound out from the door. Cideeda peeks out the window nearby, and opens up for Dretphi and Bach. Dretphi stands with her sub machine gun slung down upon her pajama shirt and shorts. “People are evacuating. I think we should.”

Bach glances out through the window, and shakes his head. “Yeah. Something bad is going down. The locals don’t think it’s worth sticking around.”

Sebastian phases in from the ceiling and lands in the middle of the team. “You ain’t kidding, bro. I can’t quite make it out from there, but things are burning. People are just fleeing.”

Sotalia halts her channel hunt upon a dark red screen with white text, and an emergency chime rings in through the speakers. Her golden eyes sort through the scrolling text, and she grits her teeth in surprise. “Bandit attack?! They’re telling everyone to clear out of Yazoo immediately, and avoid the docks and surrounding areas.”

In tense silence, Sebastian nods in agreement and grimaces uncomfortably. “Well, I’m not one to argue there. Okay, everyone. Pack up and let’s get moving as soon as possible-”

A shrill, pulsing alert erupts from Aristespha’s tablet as a guild emergency pops up on the screen, and she taps the prompt. She reads the message, draws in a breath, and gazes up to the team. “It’s a guild Emergency Broadcast for adventuring groups to assist in the Yazoo evacuation and containment of the threat.”

Sebastian thinks, and stands silently with the rest of the team. Searching through the expressions, he straightens his ethereal visage, and proposes. “So... Head out? Or, see what we can do to assist?”

After some internal deliberation, Bach shrugs his shoulders with an awkward grin. “I feel we should at least do something to help out. Don’t think it’s smart to go into town, but...”

Dretphi smiles warmly to Bach, and nods in agreement. “Agree. Defend this location? This seems to be a main route.”

Peering out the window, Cideeda surveys the area outside, and notices the growing traffic leading onto the highway. “Yeah, it’d be bad if someone jammed this up. And, I don’t see any police or PDF. Either they haven’t gotten here, or are tied up in the fighting.”

Sebastian glances over to Sotalia and lifts an inquisitive brow. Sotalia gazes back, cracks an eager grin, and rests her hands at her hips. “Let one of those bandit fuckers try to get past me. Yeah, I’m all for holding the fort.”

Smirking confidently, Aristespha taps through the guild program interface, opens up the information block of the emergency request. “I’ll contact the local police and PDF office, and let them know our location.”

She gazes up lovingly to Sebastian, and he nods with a bold grin toward the rest of the team. “Okay! I’ll watch over from above. Bach and Dretphi, get geared up first. Cideeda and Sotalia, keep a watch of the main road and highway. Aristespha will contact the authorities...”

He glances down at Aristespha, and sighs ethereally with a tense tone. “Dear, you will probably need to be ready to treat some injuries.”

With simple nod, Aristespha acknowledges. Sebastian gradually hovers up to the ceiling. “Okay. After we’re all geared up. Let’s rotate watches to free one of us to help load up the humvee. Let’s help, but let’s not stick around long enough to need it.”

----

Behind large crates on the dock, a muscular man, cybernetic giant, and grungy woman keep in cover from the chaotic battle. The woman snarls her scarred up lip, and aims her cybernetic optics into an angry glare at the muscular man. “Okay, Boss, what’s the plan now?! The grunts aren’t making any headway past the docks.”

Aiming a smug smirk at the woman, Boss flexes his shoulders, cracks his neck, and chuckles darkly. “Still working to my plan. I didn’t expect these thugs to get that far anyway. The grunts distract, and the interceptors go and shutdown the main routes into town.”

Pivoting his heavily scarred, gray face to Boss, the cybernetic giant growls. “So, the fuck are we suppose to do? Watch these idiots get fucked? We could do that on the other barges far from this cluster fuck.”

Boss points sternly at the metal plated man, and cracks an evil, sinister grin. “Mech... I did not forget about you, my fine Red Gear veteran.”

Glancing around the corner of the crate, he smiles menacingly. “Right now, all the defense this town has got is concentrated on these morons. WE are going to cause a few more distractions, and divide their attention. And, when the interceptors do their job, our reinforcements roll on in.”

The grungy woman inspects her rifle, spits off to the side, and snorts. “Hope those interceptors of yours pull it off. Doesn’t help us if everyone in the town runs off and PDF swarms in.”

Boss rolls his eyes, and nonchalantly shrugs his shoulders. “Well, Snipe, that’s why we have backup plans. The interceptors fuck up? We don’t bring in the reinforcements. We three get away, while the fodder keeps the locals occupied. Wait a week or two, and hit them when they’re weakened and unexpecting.”

He alternates an eager gaze between Mech and Snipe, and grins maniacally. “Either way, we’re going to accomplish far more than what our dipshit leaders could manage here. Am I right?”

Mech nods, pulling a cruel smile across his scarred face. He hosts up his hydraulic claw and snaps the sharpened blades shut. Snipe draws an evil tinged smirk as her cybernetic eye optics light up. She tightens the grasp on her rifle. Boss slowly rises up with the sound of the servos in his legs, and dramatically gestures with a hand towards the town. “Let’s give these people something other than the docks to worry about.”

Snipe slinks away into the shadows. Mech hoists up his steel plated body, stabs his opened claw into a metal container, and stomps with it into the fray. Rolling his eyes with an amused smile, Boss surveys the area, and spots a dock meters away. Kneeling down, he springs up from a sprint, and launches into a powerful long jump. Landing on the remote dock, he deftly pivots, shifts his momentum, and speeds off into the town.

----

Dretphi stands in her red plated armor, and motions another truck towards the highway. Bach stands nearby at the corner of the motel building, keeps searching down the night filled street, and holds his plasma pistol at the ready. Dretphi walks back into the shadow of the building next to Bach. “Anything?”

Bach shakes his head and sighs. “I think that truck was the last of the batch, for now. Gods, half the dock area must be on fire right now. You can see the smoke rising in all that glow.”

Dretphi stares out to the coastal horizon, watches the reddish orange haze in the distance, and follows the contrasting plumes of black smoke. Shaking her head with a heavy sigh, she side steps in front of the motel, and waves to Sotalia at the opposite motel building corner. Dretphi directs her voice to her helmet radio. “Anything?”

Sotalia shrugs her shoulders, and shakes her head as her voice echoes upon the team’s radio units. “No. We haven’t seen many coming down, but I think this leads to another part of the town away from the docks.”

Searching in the inky haze behind the street lamp light, Bach reaches his hand back and taps Dretphi on the shoulder plate. “Something is coming.”

Sebastian’s ethereal voice calls out from the roof above, and motions toward a small group of people. “It looks like a few escaping from the fight. One might need help.”

A trio of people rush down the street towards the motel, a man and woman support either side of a wounded evuukian man limping. Both Bach and Dretphi wave to the people, and motion them over. When the trio get close, Dretphi and Bach rush over and help carry the wounded evuukian man. Bach assures the people. “We’ve got a medical mage. She should be able to patch him up, and we’ll see about getting transport out of here.”

The human man and woman, and the evuukian man, express their relief. Aristespha steps out of the motel room door, and directs Bach and Dretphi to lay the evuukian down on the motel bed. She immediately notices the dried blood drenching the leg, and quickly examines the wounds with glowing violet eyes. “Definitely gun shot wounds. And, thankfully, they’ve missed any major veins or arteries.”

She sits down in a chair next to the bed, and pulls an end table of medical instruments over. “We’ll worry about proper removal of the slugs later. Right now, I’ll stabilize the wounds, give you something for the pain, and we’ll radio emergency services to send an ambulance.”

Both the human man and woman nod understandingly, and wait on the other side of bed to calm their friend. Bach and Dretphi quickly depart, and rush back over to the corner of the motel. While stepping over, Sebastian drops down from the roof in front of them, and holds his hands up with concern. “Hold up.”

He points around the corner as Bach and Dretphi press against wall of the motel, and whispers with a ghostly resonance. “I back tracked where those people came from, and I heard few people on an ATV. Seems like they were following the blood trail of that guy, and they don’t sound friendly.”

Dretphi nods resolutely, and readies her sub machine gun. Bach musters his courage, and raises his plasma pistol. “What’s the plan?”

Sebastian glances over his shoulder as the engine sounds of a quad grow louder. “I’ll go up, and we’ll see how they react. You two watch and be ready to... Return the favor.”

Bach and Dretphi nod. Bach speaks into his helmet microphone. “Sotalia, Cideeda. We got trouble probably coming up on our side. We’re checking it out, so be ready.”

Cideeda’s voice faintly crackles over the comm units of the team. “We’ll be ready.”

The roar of a small engine echoes out from an alley way, and a quad with three armored people skids out in a hard turn onto the main street. One points towards the sidewalk. The driver nods and revs the ATV up. Sebastian casually walks out into the middle of the street. He holds his hand up, stares at the trio on the quad, and waits. As the quad slows down, Dretphi and Bach peer out from cover near the corner of the motel building. Bach focuses, tightly grips his plasma pistol, and whispers to Dretphi. “How do we proceed?”

Dretphi narrows her cool stare ahead, scrutinizes the situation, and calmly explains. “If they attack, shoot the vehicle. Aim for weapon wielding arms. Attempt to capture from range-”

An armored man hops off the quad, walks up cautiously to Sebastian, and passes underneath a street lamp. In the downwards light, the red and black Red Gear logo tattoo reflects brightly upon the man’s exposed forearms, along with the traces of cybernetic enhancements. Dretphi’s steely gray eyes flit wide under her visor, and her expression chills. Her stare searches and locks onto similar logos upon the other two, and the ATV. During the Red Gear’s approach towards Sebastian’s visage, she snaps up her sub machine, levels her aim, and flips the weapon to fully automatic. The Red Gear begins to lift his arm up with weapon in hand.

Burst after burst of rounds roar out from Dretphi’s sub machine gun. Projectiles rip through the outer layers of armor upon the Red Gears, and sprays of blood mingle with cascades of sparks. Slugs pound solidly into the heads and chests of the three armored men. Barrages burrow through protective plating into flesh. The driver slumps off the quad into a wet flop spilling crimson. The passenger stumbles onto the ground and rolls into a motionless heap. The man in front stands against the onslaught of lead, as sparks and plating fragments spew out. Staggering back in the eerie lull of gunfire, he struggles to comprehend the last moments of projectile peppering. Dretphi methodically ejects the magazine from her sub machine gun, swiftly draws, and deftly locks the fresh ammunition into the weapon with cold precision. The remaining Red Gear regains just enough composure to lift his head up, and receives repeated controlled bursts into his face and chest. He topples over on the road with a crunchy thud.

Sebastian blinks blankly in utter shock. Bach remains frozen in place with his plasma pistol at the ready. Dretphi grips Bach’s shoulder tightly with a stern voice. “Follow me. Cover me.”

Dretphi keeps her weapon trained upon the downed Red Gear troops. Bach summons his courage and maintains his watch. Sebastian regains his senses, snaps his head over to Dretphi, and loudly whispers. “Why?”

Pointing out to the logos upon the perforated people, Dretphi coldly explains. “Red Gears.”

Sebastian shudders his head, pivots it sharply to stare at the bodies, and drops his jaw as he spots the emblems. “The fuck?! Out here?! In force?”

Dretphi pauses near the bodies, draws in a careful breath, and directs her voice to Bach. “Need to confirm. Red Gears are tough. Tricky. I will secure each. Watch over me.”

Bach nods and alternates his aim between the fallen Red Gears. Cideeda's voice crackles on the radios. "Is everyone okay?!"

Bach stares hard at the downed troops and nods. "Yeah. But, head over here just to be safe."

Dretphi kneels down, and cautiously inspects the body in front of Sebastian. Tossing aside pistols, knives, and a sub machine gun, Dretphi confirms the kill. When Dretphi checks the driver’s body, Bach trains his plasma pistol upon the heaped over Red Gear. Loud gunfire echoes sharper and less muffled than before. Bach glances around briefly to search for the source. The Red Gear heap slowly moves, the man gradually positions his changing arm at Dretphi, and blue white light emits from the opening end. Sebastian’s visage stiffens, and his eye widen. “BACH! LOOK!”

Bach snaps his head down, locks onto the charging arm cannon, and leaps onto the Red Gear. Quickly wrapping his hands around the weapon, Bach strains his muscles against the groan of cybernetic hardware, and wrenches the aim clear of Dretphi. A blast of plasma jets out and soars into the night sky. The Red Gear growls in a digital hybrid of anger, and Bach wrestles the man. With a flash of blue in his eyes, Bach tightens his grip on the arm cannon, and a swarm of magical flow embeds into the weapon. He twists his body and slams the arm cannon upon the asphalt. Upon contact, tendrils of magical energy sink into the ground, constrict around the cybernetic device, and securely root it into the roadway.

Bach glances up to see Dretphi over him with her machete drawn. In a mix of experience and instinct, he blinks in surprise, and rolls quickly off the Red Gear meters away. With a glint of red ire in her steely eyes, Dretphi raises the machete high, and slams it down upon the upper arm of the Red Gear. The blade digs partially into the metal reinforced limb, and electrical arcs erupt within sprays of oily fluid. The Red Gear screams in spiteful rage when the machete slams down again, and fully severs. Bach wills cords of magical energy out from his arms, and ties up the Red Gear entirely.

From around the motel corner, Cideeda and Sotalia sprint out at the ready. Cideeda trains her laser pistols at the two motionless bodies, and scans between everyone else. “Situation?!”

Sebastian ponders summary out loud. “Three bandits on a quad. Bandits are Red Gears. Dretphi took them down. Upon confirming the kills, one tried to blast Dretphi. Bach stopped it and subdued it. Dretphi severed its cybernetic arm.”

Sotalia holds her hand out with forming electrical energy cracking, and aims it at the bound up, struggling Red Gear. “Keep that shit up, and I’ll fry every circuit you got.”

Dretphi steps over to Bach, reaches her hand down with a warm smile, and softly speaks. “Thank you.”

Bach holds onto Dretphi’s hand as she hoists him up, brushes himself off, and releases a tension filled sigh. “Thank Sebastian, he let me know. So, what now?”

Dretphi takes moment to exhale through her thoughts. She surveys the scene, and collects herself. “I need to contact my house. They will know who to contact further.”

She turns her machete up, rotates the blade, and sternly stares as the lamp light reflects off the roughened edge. “Time for the flow blade.”

----

The muscular form of Boss lands solidly from the top of the brick wall, and his cybernetic legs dampen the impact into a slow crouch. He springs up back, and surveys the darkened alley between shore side buildings. His radio chirps from a series of repeated key ups. Lifting the device up from his belt, he turns the dial, and listens to the familiar, angry growls of a woman.

“Boss?! Gods damn it, BOSS! Answer your fuckin’ radio you bastard, we got PDF rolling in from somewhere!”

Boss grimaces his annoyance, presses the button on the radio. “Snipe, how the fuck is that happening? There’s shouldn’t be any PDF this far out to reinforce this town this quickly. And, how the fuck are they getting in?”

Upon an audible backdrop of gunfire, Snipe yells out. “Well, one of YOUR interceptor teams didn’t do their jobs. OBVIOUSLY.”

Shaking his head with a frustrated roll of his eyes, Boss paces next to the alley dividing wall toward the white sand beach. “Well, I guess YOU and Mech will need to pick up the slack! Call the psycho, and the two of you figure out what the fuck is going on! I’ll make my way over after I find a landing site for the reinforcements.”

Releasing his finger from the call button, he snorts out an infuriated growl. “Fuck me, how can they fuck up this much.”

Seconds later, Snipe’s voice crackles out from radio. “Fucking fine! If he answers his radio, and we’ll go finish what your losers couldn’t. Over and out!”

Boss disdainfully eyes the device, lowers his hand, and sighs out his overwhelming frustration. “Gods damned unstable dipshits. If you weren’t useful for these things, I would...”

Pinching the bridge of his nose, he pivots his gaze out towards the shore, and distantly stares out at the churning waters. Slowly breathing and relaxing his shoulders, he opens his eyes. Glancing up, he spots fast moving aircraft flying low overhead. His eyes emit faint hints of electrical light, and he watches jets sharply bank to circle back. A surge of dread spreads out on his face, and he grits his teeth. “Fuck... How the... Why are...”

Gazing out to the open sea, he hoists up his radio, and dials in frequency. Keying up the device, he sternly speaks. “Abort. Abort. Abort. THE WOLVES are here. I repeat, the wolves are here. Send single pick up to evac location two. Full radio silence. Run dark.”

A roar of jet engines echoes out faintly over the water in the distance. Two military jets fly across the water, slow their speeds. Clipping the radio back onto his belt, Boss turns the device off completely, and sighs disappointed. Glancing over his shoulder at the panic in the far off streets, he reaches into a large pants pocket, pulls out a crude bandage, and conceals his Red Gear logo arm tattoo under a wrap. Hopping out onto the beach, he orientates himself, pivots southwards, and halts a moment. He places his hand on his radio with a frown. Sorting through the possibilities, he removes his grip from the device, furrows his brow, and smirks with ill humor. “Good luck you two. Keep them busy for us.”

Boss sprints down the empty beaches under the cloudy night sky above, and speeds away from town.

----

In the motel room, Sotalia brushes off a pile torn open medical wrappers, and drops off supplies next to Aristespha. “This is all I could find in the way of bandages.”

Aristespha glances over her shoulder, nods at Sotalia with a stern appreciation, and snatches a roll of gauze. “Thank you. That should be enough to finish up.”

Sotalia motions towards the door. “Should I tell the truck to hold on?”

Assessing an older emin woman’s heavily bandaged arm, shoulder, and neck, Aristespha nods firmly. “Yes. She needs to leave as soon as possible. And, we can’t risk waiting for another truck trip.”

Sotalia confirms, and sprints off into the parking lot outside the motel. Waving her arms in the air, she calls out to Bach helping a wounded man up into a large medical transport. “Bach! Tell them to hold up! We have have one more.”

Bach snaps his head over, nods understandingly, and finishes getting the man into the vehicle. He quickly steps around the truck, and gets the driver’s attention. Minutes a later, Bach and Sotalia carefully carry the emin woman to the awaiting medical transport in a crude gurney. With assistance from civilians onboard, they secure her in the vehicle, and signal the driver to drive off. Sotalia glances over to Bach and cracks a weary smile. “How are you holding up?”

Bach shudders his head. “I don’t know. I’m here. But, I think we’re pushing our luck at this point. These have to be last few people evacuating. Fuck, I have no clue. It just feels like the calm before something bad happens.”

Sotalia draws in a long, uneasy breath, and stretches her arms out nervously. “Yeah. I know. I hope this was the last group, so we can get out of here.”

In the motel room, Sebastian drifts down from the ceiling, lands next to Aristespha, and gazes at her with concern. “How are things holding up, dear?”

Aristespha surveys the chaotic mess of used medical supplies, and shakes her head. “Sebastian... I am about out of everything. I don’t think we can handle anything else. We may be endangering people by directing them here rather than somewhere else.”

Sebastian calmly nods, and smiles understandingly. “Yeah. I’m not seeing any more people coming this way. What fighting I heard is getting louder. We need to head out.”

With slight bow of the head, Aristespha sighs deeply, stiffens her upper lip, and straightens her posture. “I agree. I hate to abandon the post, but by all logic we are spent.”

Sebastian’s ethereal visage frowns, and he gazes lovingly at Aristespha. “I know. Well, call that we’re clearing out. I’ll round everyone up.”

Cideeda stands near the motel corner along the main and her furry ears perk up. An armored PDF transport rolls down the road and roars into the town. Sebastian’s ghostly visage flies next to Cideeda. “Load up. We’re getting out of here. Nothing more we can do.”

Cideeda, Dretphi, Sebastian, Bach, and Sotalia gather around the humvee. The group quickly goes through last minute checks, and settle into the vehicle. Aristespha methodically gathers up remaining supplies, and systematically packs up a large satchel.

Her aetherphone rings out upon the nightstand, and Aristespha taps the speakerphone on. “Mage Orienden speaking.”

A female voice sounds out from the speaker. “Yazoo dispatch. I know you are leaving your position. Is it still possible for you to handle a medical emergency?”

Aristespha pauses, slowly faces her phone, and sternly answers. “Nature of the emergency?”

The dispatch officer sounds out into the room. “An officer and fvalian woman are assisting a seriously inured grath man. From what the officer has said, the grath man has suffered a traumatic amputation of the right arm.”

Widening her violet eyes in surprise, Aristespha blinks through the swell of dread, and grits her teeth. “The patient is still mobile?”

The dispatcher’s grave tone resonates into the room, and trembles. “Yes. But... I don’t think for much longer. Your last reported location is very close. Can I- I direct them your way? Please? They’re being pursued by a bandit, and your group was able to handle some.”

Aristespha slowly stands up as she wraps her fingers around her aetherphone, wrestles with her mind, and grits her teeth. Glancing out to the humvee, she fights against a flurry of emotions upon face. She winces in pain, and draws a sharp breath through her nose. A cold, neutral expression coats her, and she starts to open her mouth. Her words halt short of leaving her lips, and pained cringes squeezes tears out of her regretful eyes. Mustering up her composure, she blurts out. “One moment.”

Rushing through the motel doors, she opens the humvee door to her seat, and addresses the team. “I’m sorry to ask this you all, but can we hold here for one more emergency. We are the closest, and I don’t think the patient will make it to another location. The patient and people aiding him are being chased.”

The team quickly exchange glances, settle their gazes upon Aristespha, and each offer their support. Sebastian smiles confidently, and reassures. “What do you need, dear?”

A thankful smile appears through a wave of relief, and Aristespha directs her voice to her aetherphone. “We will assist. Direct them our last location. Dispatch a medical transport.”

----

Lucida frantically glances around the intersection, darts her panicked stare around, and points a claw tip down a long alley way. “This way! It’s close.”

Slowly rounding the corner, a police officer supports a young grath man under his remaining arm. “Hang in there, Ralthinen. We’ll get you patched up, and get the hell out here.”

Ralthinen winces, fights for each step, and grunts a nod during the struggle. Lucida’s furry ears perk, and she glances down the path behind with looming terror. She shudders out of the trance, rushes up in front of the officer and Ralthinen, and rests her hand on Ralthinen’s chest. “We’re almost there, Ralthie. Stay with me.”

Ralthinen lifts up his head slightly, dons a stoic smirk, and nods to Lucida. “I will.”

Lucida musters up some warmth against her fear. She glances over to the bloody towel bound by belt around Ralthinen’s right shoulder, and faces his blood splattered purple shirt. Diverting her attention from the empty space right of his chest, she quickly scouts forward. She slinks halfway up the road when Cideeda’s voice calls out. “Over here!”

Lucida shifts her attention notices Cideeda waving from a building corner and Dretphi standing next to the motel. A wave of recognition and overwhelming relief washes over her, and she frantically signals them over. Cideeda trains her shotgun down the street behind the group, and maintains a vigil. Dretphi hoists the weigh of Ralthinen off the worn human policeman. The officer stop next to Cideeda, points his pistol down the dark road, and pants. “Some fuckin’ cyber freak has been hunting us down this whole time. I hope you all have some fire power. My pistol does nothing.”

Cideeda nods, directs her voice into her vest mount microphone, and calls out. “Did you all hear that? Something bad is coming this way.”

Stepping through the motel room door, Dretphi eases Ralthinen down upon single bed, and inquires in grath. While Aristespha diagnoses the remains of his right arm and Lucida holds onto his left hand, a defiant, proud smirk cracks across his face. He speaks a few grath phrases with a nod. Dretphi returns the gesture, and a bit of pride slips out from under her stoic facade.

Above the alley, Sebastian hovers and searches the area. “Not seeing anything.”

Cideeda’s furry ears twitch, and she pivots her head to scan the air. “I HEAR it. It’s close.”

Bach and Sotalia settle behind piled up garbage cans and debris. The ambient sounds of distant gunfire wane, the background noises fade out, and a heavy silence presses down. A growing cacophony of heavy ground impacts, hydraulic strain, and electronic mechanisms echo. From the intersection, an enraged Mech stomps out, and slams his regular cybernetic arm into shattering brickwork. He turns his freshly bloodied, clawed up face, and hatefully glares with his remaining cybernetic eye. Faint sparkles of shorting circuitry illuminate an ooze of dark red from the combat knife embedded into his other eye socket. The fluid coats over the exposed metalwork underneath his torn open face. Underneath the scars, a twisted, evil grin warps his face. In the dim street light, he slowly hoists up his powerful hydraulic arm, and rotates the blood soaked, bladed claw. Light reflects off the slick sheen, and contrasts the red soaked purple fabric hanging off. Drawing in a large breath into his massive, cybernetic frame, Mech bellows out. “WHERE ARE YOU HIDING GRATH BOY!? YOU STILL GOT ONE ARM LEFT TO FIGHT WITH!”

Bach, Cideeda, Sebastian, and Sotalia exchange glances, and shift their full attention upon Mech. Bach and Cideeda open fire. Sotalia quickly gestures through a complicated series of incantations. Sebastian dives down and zips around Mech. Blue laser beams drag across the metal shell, and plasma bolts burst open upon reinforced joints. Mech stomps ahead, wields his large claw arm up as a shield, and smirks amused. A loud hum resonates from within, nodes upon his cybernetic frame illuminate a blue-white glow, and an enveloping haze projects out. The laser beams and bolts dissipate upon the surface of the barrier, and Mech cackles throatily. “Must be fuckin’ amateur night!”

Sotalia narrows a hateful glare upon Mech, thrusts her arms forward, and sneers. “If you’re fuckin’ here it is!”

Swift flows of energy swirl around Sotalia’s arms and condense into crackling vortex of power. Filling the dark streets with light, a massive arc of lightning threads out and explodes into a web of electricity upon Mech’s barrier. Seconds of chaotic sparks streak over the energy shield, and sink violently into the rough pavement below. Cutting off the spell, Sotalia watches uneasily as Mech simply smiles back. Bach, Cideeda, Sebastian, and Sotalia watch in fearful awe as Mech resumes his march. From back of Bach’s mind a surge of determination and stubbornness erupts forth, and he grits his teeth. “FUCK. THIS. GUY.”

He calls out the rest of the team and grins. “Keep him busy for a moment... I got something for that shield.”

Placing his hands close together, a torrent of prismatic energy swarms off his body and swirls into layering, tightening ball of energy as spinning rings whine out a high-pitched roar. Mech slowly steps forward, slams each foot into the crumbling pavement, and flexes his claw menacingly towards Sotalia. “You’re next magic bitch!”

Sotalia smirks defiantly, quickly gestures out an incantation, and swings her arms forward. “Next to kick your ass!”

A warping wave of energy erupts, impacts the barrier surrounding Mech, and envelops the shield tightly. Mech fights against the forces, and slowly trudges ahead with a chuckle. “Neat trick. How long can you last?!”

Sebastian drops down in front of Mech, jumps around him mockingly, and grins derisively. “Longer than you can!”

Mech glares at Sebastian, struggles to swat at him him with his power claw arm, and closes his eyes at the bright diffusion of blue laser light upon his barrier. Cideeda carefully aims, and alternates laser pistol pulses towards his face. Mech holds position at the junction between the side street and back building alleys, while he sorts through the forces and distractions. “You’re some annoying shits! It’s going to be that much better when I slaughter you all!”

Bach stands up from cover, narrows his bright blue glowing eyes, and positions the D-Ball in his hand at the ready. Summoning up a surge of flow, he flings the prismatic orb of destructive energy ahead, and concentrates as faint threads of magical energy trail behind the ball. Sebastian darts out of the way, Cideeda stops her attacks, and Sotalia eases her hold. The D-Ball zips down the street, and flies straight to Mech.

Cocking his head curiously, Mech dismissively furrows his brow, pulls his power claw arm back across his chest, and smirks. When the ball gets close, he swings his arm out powerfully against the orb of energy. The shield encased limb and orb collide in a violent deadlock. The spinning vortex of energy rings carves into the barrier, sloughing off jets of plasma and magic. Glowing blue-white nodes flicker and spark upon Mech. With the D-Ball diminishing in size as it shreds through the barrier, Bach draws in a breath and tenses his body. A wave of prismatic energy swirls down the magical threads, contact the D-Ball, and spread through Mech’s shield.

The barrier blows out and nodes on Mech’s frame go dark in eruptions of smoke. Mech’s eye widens in utter shock as the D-Ball continues into his power claw arm, rending solid metal into a billowing cloud of dust. He reflexively side steps out of the way. The orb curves after him, but drills through a concrete power pole behind. Blinking bewildered, he mutters loudly. “The. Fuck.”

Crackles seize Mech’s attention. A bolt of lightning contacts Mech’s cybernetic chassis, and violent electrical arcs cascade chaotically across his metal frame. Flashes of blue-white light, bursts of yellow-orange fire, and shadows of smolder project into the night. Moments later, the lightning halts, and Mech drops down to a knee. Steam and smoke vent from him. Bach leans against the nearby brick wall, Sotalia braces herself along the motel corner, Cideeda readies her pistols, and Sebastian carefully approaches. As Sebastian’s ethereal form nears Mech, the cybernetic monster stirs and cackles. “N-n-not bad. It’ll take a little more than that to take me down. Just give a moment...”

Sebastian grimaces sharply, then stares down the alley way. Over radios and out from the alley, Dretphi’s voice calls out calmly. “Keep your distance. Cover me. I will subdue him.”

Sebastian nods understandingly. Mech pivots his head around and snarls his upper lip confused. “The fuck-”

From the alley way, a red glow swiftly pours through the flow channels of a large blade, and the long edge brilliantly illuminates a bright crimson. In a split second, red ethereal fire erupts and blazes out, highlighting the tall, red plated form of Dretphi. Stepping forward, Dretphi drives a cold, calculating stare through the cyborg. Mech’s eye springs open in abject terror as recognition chokes his words. “Y-y-you! WHY ARE YOU HERE?! YOU’RE RETIRED- There’s NO WAY! Wait- You’re not... Oh.”

Swift sweeps of blazing crimosn precisely slice effortlessly though shoulder joints and upper legs. Mechanical limbs flop upon the ground, smoking from their molten incisions. Dretphi kicks over the dismembered torso of Mech, glowers down upon his horror, and backs away carefully.

The team in the alley regroups, and keep their weaponry trained upon the crippled Red Gear from a distance.

Inside the motel room, Aristespha maintains cool exterior as her brightly glowing violet eyes dart around the severed end of Ralthinen’s right arm. She keeps her gloved hand flowing stabilizing magical energy against torn major arteries and veins, and glances into her medical kit. Sifting through the contents with her free hand, she grabs hold of a bright neon orange box. Popping open the metal box, she sorts through the empty wrappers, and finds one remaining film covered, treated wax sheet with a familiar sheet magical medical fabric. She pauses moment, thinks briefly with a slight smile, and takes it. In minutes, she extracts material, preps it, and seals torn veins and arteries with it. Concentrating powerful flows on the wounds, she carefully dresses the injuries and secures protective bandages. Blinking out the violet illumination in her eyes, Aristespha draws in a long breath and addresses both Lucida and Ralthinen. “I’ve stabilized everything for now. You should be out of immediate danger. Wait here for the medical transport.”

Lucida smiles thankfully with tears welling in her yellow eyes, and grips Ralthinen’s left forearm tightly. “Thank you, so much.”

Ralthinen musters up an appreciative nod through his mental haze. The police officer glances out the motel door, and direct his voice at Aristespha. “I think your group actually took down that bastard. Holy shit.”

Aristespha stands up, takes off her gloves, and quickly casts a cleansing incantation while walking to the door. “Good. One less thing to worry about. Stay here, I’ll check on them and see if I can find some other supplies in the humvee.”

Slipping cautiously through the door, Aristespha travels to the humvee. Sebastian notices Aristespha around the vehicle, and flies over to her. “Everyone good, dear? We dropped the cyber psycho.”

Aristespha nods and sighs out her tension. “Yes, Sebastian. Just waiting on the medical transport. Then, we can get out of here. Thank you.”

Sebastian smiles lovingly to Aristespha and chuckles ethereally. “Well, I don’t think any of us would have felt right ditching anyone in this mess.”

From a nearby rooftop, a grungy woman pops up from behind a low wall, and rests her rifle upon the brick top. Searching the vicinity, she peers through her cybernetic optics and rifle scope. The crosshairs scan around between obstructing buildings towards the front of the motel, and halt near the humvee. A wry grin cracks across Snipe’s face, and she shifts her aim between two targets “Medic or stealth guy... I guess... Must be some new cloaking field. Yeah, better take you out, so I don’t have hunt you later.”

Aristespha brushes back her silvery blue hair, and smiles. “Well, I’ll get everything loaded up. Gods knowing I’ve gone against my more logical judgment enough for today.”

Sebastian’s visage briefly distorts around his head, a hard metal impact shatters out, and Aristespha’s head bobs down. A loud report echoes into the area.

Sebastian glances over to buildings, then snaps his head in horror hearing Aristespha panicked pants. Watching her clutch a flow of crimson from her under her left jaw, Sebastian’s transparent visage pales and he yells out. “SNIPER! ARISTESPHA GOT HIT!”

Dretphi charges out with energy shield up and sub machine gun at the ready. Sotalia quickly side steps out with her hands out projecting a magical barrier with Cideeda and Bach behind. Aristespha clambers onto the humvee, and drags herself into cover in front of the vehicle with a red soaking her shoulder. After Bach and Cideeda get into cover, Sotalia slips down while releasing the barrier and immediately checks on Aristespha. “Oh gods! Shit! What do you need me to do?!”

Fighting against panic and for consciousness, Aristespha concentrates on her instructions. “Shrapnel. Feel it... Find hematologic sealing agent... apply... stabilize.”

With Sotalia scrambling pass the motel room door, she shifts her fading gaze at Bach, struggles with her words. “Out of tissue bonding... sheets... make... one...”

Sebastian stares in horror as the life drains from Aristespha face, his visage warps and shudders. Cideeda waves to Sebastian, glares at him sternly, and commands him. “Help us find the sniper.”

Fluttering her eyes, Aristespha drifts off into unconsciousness as Bach swiftly applies pressure on the crimson flow behind her slipping hands. Bach gawks in shock, and overhears Sotalia cursing as rummages around inside. Feeling the crimson warmth drain through his fingers, the fear upon his face solidifies into resolve. A bright flash of blue erupts into his eyes, and he positions both hands around the gushing injury. A surge of magical flows and threads swirls around Bach’s body, and rush to the palms of his hands. Energy condenses, and thin conduits sink into to the site of the wound. The flows of red slow to gentle oozes as golden layers surround a pulsating copper shard. Drawing a long breath, Bach drives his full focus and winces at the strain as magical mechanisms materialize off to the side. The energy machinery operates sluggishly and a fine magical mesh forms row by row at a ponderous pace. Gritting his teeth, Bach pants with the dimming of blue in his eyes, and curses under his breath. “Fuck... not now... I got to have a little more somewhere...”

With the fading blue in his eyes, courage from within pushes a determined, distant stare upon Bach’s face. He closes eyes, grimaces, and reopens them with points of white spreading out from the centers.

Cideeda crawls under the humvee while Dretphi orbits carefully around. Dretphi calls back to Sebastian. “Stand where you were.”

Cideeda adds on. “Act like you are looking for the sniper.”

Filtering out all other thoughts, Sebastian steps cautiously over while pretending to search around. He stops at a spot. “Here. I felt it go through my head. I think it hit the humvee. They’re probably trying to figure why I’m still up.”

Dretphi notes the spot, glances up to Sebastian, and pivots her stare to a fresh dent on the vehicle’s body. She calculates, and glares through her full face visor. “Third building south from east road? Flat roof. Likely location.”

Cideeda trains her emerald eyes out and pricks her ears forward. In the lull of background noise, her furry ears detect a noise, and a pair of reflective glints sparkle. “Confirmed.”

Opening the motel door, the officer peeks out. Sotalia slips out, and scrambles quickly over to Bach and Aristespha. “I found some, but I don’t know if it’s-”

Around Aristespha’s injury and between Bach’s hands, a magical medical fabric materializes rapidly, increasing in size, threads of flow connect to thin golden barriers, and the copper shard slowly backs out of the wound. Immediately, the freshly made tissue bonding sheet floats into the injury and surrounds the damage within. Bach’s fingers constantly twitch, his hands tremble, and his white glowing eyes dart rapidly around to distant places in his mind while white magic flow splinters out on his face. Sotalia blinks in disbelief and remains quiet and hopeful.

Sebastian grits his teeth, readies himself, and calls out. “One... Two... Three!”

Sprinting out into the open, Sebastian yells out and gestures rudely into the area. “FUCK YOU! YOU MISSED ME! CAN’T HIT ME!”

Dretphi notices movement on the rooftop, snaps up her sub machine, and sprays burst after burst. In the flurry of suppressing fire, Cideeda aims her shotgun, places her finger on the secondary fire trigger, and squeezes. A projectile launches out of her under barrel of her weapon, coasts in the night sky, and drops down on a business building rooftop. Fiery orange bursts out. Cideeda quickly reloads another round, takes aim, and fires again. Another blast of flames bellows out upon the rooftop. Cideeda’s furry ears flick forward and trace a distant scream. A fire coated figure tumbles off the top of building, and falls.

Bach focuses upon the task between his hands. A sheet of tissue bonding material closes the cut in Aristespha’s ivory skin. He shakily rests his hands down upon the ground, sways unsteadily in place, and continues to stare blankly at the ground. He manages to mutter with a strained, weak tone. “hope... that... works... Don’t know. I... tried...”

Sotalia feels the other side of Aristespha’s neck for a pulse, and listens close. “She’s g-got a good pulse and breathing... S-s-so, that’s really good.”

Fluttering her violet eyes open, Aristespha groggily mumbles back into consciousness and searches around. “...then allow me to-”

With a surge conscious thought cascading back into Aristespha’s mind, she blinks her eyes hard, glances around worried, and struggles through her confusion. “W-w-what happened? How am I alive?”

Sotalia smiles happily as she holds her shoulder. “Bach. He patched you up with the stuff you asked him to make.”

Sorting through the probabilities and feasibly, Aristespha squints through her drowsy haze, and flits open her violet eyes. Her stare finds the faint traces of elder energy flow surrounding Bach’s eyes and the fading pinpoints of white in his dim blue pupils. She reaches her hand out, tightly grasps Bach’s trembling arm, and calmly asks. “Bach? How do you feel?”

Bach barely lifts up his head, cringes sharply, and weakly mutters. “Not... good...”

His arms buckle. Curling up, he clutches the sides of his head. Aristespha winces, carefully lifts herself up with Sotalia’s help, and tends to the pain overwhelmed, whimpering Bach.

-91-

A rolling wave of overhead thunder echoes through and reverberates under the old, dilapidated overpass. Dretphi stands observant and searches through the rainy haze to the specks of activity in the distance. Watching the subdued chaos of nearby civilian gatherings and Perimeter Defense Force encampments, she eases out a stressed sigh under her visor and blinks the fatigue from her stare. Minutes later, she sweeps her gaze along the horizon, pauses briefly, and turns away. Navigating around piles of old rumble, she walks towards the humvee parked near the retainer wall, underneath the overpass. She glances over to Sotalia standing idly and waits a moment. Sotalia meets Dretphi’s inquisitive gaze, twists her mouth uncertainly, and concentrates her concern to Aristespha sitting on a fallen concentrate pillar with Sebastian’s ethereal visage nearby. Dretphi nods understandingly, softens her pace as she approaches the humvee, and slides off her helmet.

Cideeda’s emerald green eyes gaze upon her aetherphone, while her furry ears constantly flick and sift through the ambient noises. She resettles herself quietly onto the edge of the humvee cab floor, stretches her legs out the rear passenger door, and props her feet on the removed seat upon the ground. Her attention shifts over towards Dretphi, and she smirks weakly with a soft tone. “Anything happening from the evacuee camps?”

Dretphi shakes her head with a frown, and then shifts a worried gaze to a large pile of blankets laying down the middle aisle of the humvee next to Cideeda. “How is he?”

Gently lifting her long, furry tail away from the bundled up figure, Cideeda carefully pulls some covers down from Bach’s hidden face, and sighs. “Sleeping right now. Vitals are still good on the monitor. But, he’s just in and out of sleep.”

She smiles to Dretphi with hint of relief upon her face. “He not complaining about his head hurting anymore. Just seems tired and loopy.”

Dretphi eases her the tension out of her shoulders, lowers herself down into the removed seated next to the humvee, and places her helmet to the side. “Good. I will watch him.”

Cideeda nods appreciatively, slides out silently, and stretches her back. “Thanks. I’m going to walk around a bit, and clear a spot for tents. I don’t think we’re getting into town tomorrow- Today?”

She glances down at her aetherphone and reads the very early morning time as her weariness swells. “Today. Hopefully, just today. Gods...”

Turning around, she gently pulls the corner of a blanket up to cover Bach’s ear as he sleeps on his side, and combs back some stray brown hairs out of his face with her claw tips. Dretphi nods to Cideeda as she steps away. Slowly she eases off her boots and pulls off her gauntlets, and flexes her digits in the storm stirred air under the overpass. Cautiously eyeing the surrounding areas with tinges of suspicion, she leans back into the seat, breathes out her stress, and closes her steely gray eyes. In the minutes of relative quiet, a bright flash strikes down in the distant sea horizon. Seconds later, a muffled crack of thunder rolls overhead. Stirring under the blankets, Bach’s blue eyes crack open, and he weakly peers out and groggily looks in front of him. The dazed, aimless search drives a growing tension, until his drained gaze settles upon the platinum blonde braids of Dretphi. With slow breaths, he grimaces briefly and visibly concentrates. “Dretphi?”

Dretphi opens her eyes, pivots her head around, and catches Bach’s faint smile from under the shadowy sheets. “Bach. How do you feel?”

Bach pauses in thought, and sighs meekly. “Headache is gone. But... Still... Swimming... Um... Hazy? It’s... weird...”

He flexes the fingers in his hand out upon the humvee cab floor, and draws in a deep breath. “Feeling better... Each time I wake up.”

A warm smile hides the worry on Dretphi’s face, and she nods. “Good. Anything you need? Want?”

Briefly closing his eyes, Bach smirks weakly. “No. Not right now.”

In the idle moments, his stare drifts off into his mind and he settles an apologetic expression upon Dretphi. “Sorry... I froze up.”

Dretphi cocks her head to the side, and puzzles as she furrows her brow. “Froze up?”

Bach averts his eyes, sighs uncomfortably, and twists his mouth. “When you shot those Red Gears on the ATV. I should have fired at them, too. Backed you up.”

Widening her steely gray eyes briefly, Dretphi reaches her hand and rests it upon the top of Bach’s head with a comforting smile. “You did back me up.”

Hazy confusion swells into on Bach’s face, and he searches Dretphi for an answer. “But... That one tried to shoot you... We were lucky Sebastian spotted him... Otherwise... I don’t know. Maybe if I had shot him, too... He wouldn’t have gotten the chance...”

Gently stroking the white streak of hair on Bach's head, Dretphi smiles calmly. “That was not your fault. You followed Sebastian’s plan with what you knew.”

Bach groggily searches his mind, and frowns slightly with an unconvinced tone. “Still... I... After you started shooting, I hesitated. I froze. I shouldn’t have thought...”

Drawing in a long breath, a warm smile appears on Dretphi face and she meets Bach’s eyes. “You did not hesitate when it mattered. Brave to arm wrestle a Red Gear.”

Witnessing the indecision upon Bach’s darkened face, she releases a long sigh, frowns slightly, and averts her gaze. “I acted upon my experiences. I followed my house’s lessons. I choose the option I felt was safest for those I care for. Was it right?”

She shakes her head, visibly contemplates, and exhales. “I do not know.”

Glancing out to Cideeda, Sotalia, Aristespha, Sebastian, and the evacuee camp through the haze of the rain, she stares stares out stoically. “I can accept the results.”

Leaning her head closer, she warmly smiles at Bach. “I am happy you have restraint. Think about your actions. Try to navigate the situation with care.”

Settling back into her seat, a grimace of past pain trickles into her expression, and she breathes out a uneasy breath. “My previous group stopped showing hesitation. Restraint faded. Put into situations to make choices I did not want to. Their actions disturbed me.”

Bach gazes to the faint winces upon Dretphi’s tan face, and he wrestles a surge guilt. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to bring up anything bad. Ungh... I’m sorry. My has mind keeps racing one minute... and then blanks the next... So tired... and... not at the same time.”

Patting Bach on the head, Dretphi smiles with a brighter, reassuring tone. “Sleep then. We will watch over you.”

Searching his mind, Bach slowly nods, sighs out his stress, and eases his blue eyes close. “Yeah... I don’t know why I’m fighting to stay awake. Just feeling so weird right now. Thanks...”

Dretphi watches Bach drift off, and lifts her hand away from his hair. A muffled chorus of thunder rumbles around the area. Bach stirs, and his open hand trembles slightly. Dretphi gently places her hand in Bach’s, and softly grips. Moments later, a flicker of lightning light reflects off the sky, and Dretphi feels a slight tightening of Bach hand.

Nearby upon the fallen concrete pillar, a violet glow in Aristespha’s eyes fades as she removes her hands from the bandage and gauze around her neck. Sebastian’s ethereal form crouches down, and he cranes his head to gaze into Aristespha’s distant stare. “How are you doing, dear?”

Aristespha blinks between wandering glances in her mind, and fights off nervous facial twitches between uneasy breaths. “Bach’s vitals are good and have been. I should have plenty of doses of sedatives and Sotalia has few potions that should calm him if he needed. My neck wound is stable and I’ve applied the next stage of healing. No immediate or near future issues. I will need to see a doctor to verify everything is healing properly and to check for any other tissue damage. And... Um...”

Stepping closer to Aristespha, Sebastian focuses his concern upon Aristespha’s frantic expression on her ivory face, and meets her darting gaze. “That’s good. Aristespha. How are YOU doing?”

Mustering up a smiling facade, Aristespha winces when her head tilts to side and draws in a wavering breath. “Fine, Sebastian. Bach did a wonderful job sealing up the artery and closing up other tissues...”

Sebastian frowns as he maintains his worried gaze at Aristespha. Meeting Sebastian’s eyes fully, the front upon Aristespha’s face crumbles. Tears form in the corners of her eyes, her mouth quivers, and her hands tremble through her attempts to hide them. She slowly bows her head down, shrinks as she wraps arms around herself, and squelches a sob sneaking out with her exhale. Aristespha’s stray strands silvery blue hair drift over her face, and she fights against every impulse to cry with an awkward grimace. Witnessing the surge of pain and fears upon Aristespha, Sebastian unconsciously attempts to brush the stray hair out of her face. The hands of his visage pass through effortlessly without disturbing a strand. When his hand drifts pass Aristespha’s shoulder as he tries to hold onto it, a wave of despair shatters the strong front, and he frowns painfully. Summoning up his strength, he briefly glances away to salvage his composure from the emotional devastation.

Standing meters away, Sotalia’s mood sinks witnessing the loss upon Sebastian and watching the shaking form of Aristespha. Hearing the sobs of Aristespha within the surrounding, ambient drone of rain, Sotalia steps quickly up to Aristespha and Sebastian. She promptly sits down next to Aristespha on the fallen concrete pillar, wraps an arm around her, and grasps hold of her trembling hands with her free hand. Feeling the tensing of Aristespha’s form, Sotalia whispers softly, rubs her shoulder comfortingly, and pulls her close. “Come here, girl. It’s okay. We’re all here for you.”

Putting up a fleeting resistance against Sotalia, Aristespha attempts to muster a stoic front, and then cries. She follows the gentle guidance of Sotalia, and leans upon her shoulder. Sotalia picks up some of her heavy cloak, and drapes over Aristespha, and rubs her back. “Let it out. You’ve held it in long enough.”

A slight wave of ease washes over Sebastian’s form, and he thankfully gazes at Sotalia’s golden eyes and nods appreciatively. In the sad minutes, Sebastian struggles to keep a strong smile before Aristespha, and averts his gaze in lulls of will. After sneaking out a depressed sigh, Sebastian eyes widen in brief surprise when he senses a hand upon his face. He slowly pivots his head, and meets the weak smile of Aristespha and her dimly violet glowing eyes. Noticing the faint magical flow of upon her ivory hand, he smirks with a loving chuckle and ethereally sighs with hints of hope.

----

Fluttering open his eyes, Bach awakens awkwardly into consciousness. Idly staring above to a drywall ceiling, his conscious mind begins to crave answers, and he stirs under the sheets of a single bed. Slowly tilting his head to the side, he squints his blue eyes, and studies the common motel furnishings of the room. Drifting of into his mind, he sorts through memories upon his face, and hears advertising peak the volume from the room television. Faintly under her breath, Aristespha slips out a few evuukian curses and mutters while aiming the remote at the display. “...accursed loud ads...”

Rolling his head over to the other side, Bach gazes up to Aristespha sitting in a chair next to the bed, and cracks a tired smirk. “It’s okay. I’m awake... I think.”

Setting the remote immediately down on the other bed, Aristespha quickly turns her head and smiles to Bach. “Well, good morning. How are you feeling right now?”

Bach slips out his arms from under the covers, rests them upon the top of sheets, and ponders. “Uh... Tired. But... Clear? My brain isn’t racing through every thought in the world anymore. And, it’s not hazy. Still piecing together my memory for the day-”

He briefly pivots his head towards the bright morning coming in through the window blinds, pauses with a puzzling grimace, and inquires uncertainly. “What day is it?”

Aristespha grits her teeth briefly, and plainly explains. “Friday. You were out for most of Thursday.”

Bach flits his eyes wide, settles his astonished stare towards the ceiling above, and sighs. “Oh, shit. That explains why I feel a big gap in my memory.”

Aiming a comforting smile to Bach, Aristespha shrugs with a chuckle. “Well, and I gave you a blend of medications to keep you sleeping through the storms yesterday. You were going back and forth between consciousness and unconsciousness too much for it to do you any good. So, I hope it helped.”

Nodding his head, Bach draws in a long breath, and rubs the sleep out from the dark circles under his eyes. “Yeah. It did. The bits I remember... I just remember feeling scared. It wasn’t all that fun. Thanks for saving me from a lot more of that.”

Aristespha cracks a humored smirk, lifts an amused brow, and laughs lightly. “Your welcome. But, I should be the thankful one here.”

Bach narrows his eyes momentarily, and opens them wide when memories spring up to the front of his mind. Shifting his arms to his side, he pulls himself up to seat on the bed, and stretches his back out. He assures Aristespha with wave when she reaches out to assist, and smiles with tinges of embarrassment. “Thanks. I’m fine. Just want to sit up. Think I’ve laid down enough for a while.”

He focuses upon Aristespha’s neck, and awkwardly stumbles to the subject. “Um... Is everything okay with you neck? Well... I guess I didn’t do too shitty of a job, since you’re here and all. But... Uh... Sorry about the rush job?”

Perking a stern brow, Aristespha sneaks a smirk through a very clinical explanation. “Truthfully, it was a little on the sloppy side, but serviceable. The severed artery was appropriately sealed, and surrounding tissues were brought back together. I was able to stabilize it properly after we had reached a safe area. Yesterday, a PDF field doctor was able to get the critical repair work finished.”

Bach nods his head, and bows forward in relief with a sigh. “Good. I didn’t completely fuck it up.”

Aristespha reaches out, places her hand on Bach’s arm, and leans close. When Bach turns his head, she gazes into his eyes, and smiles appreciatively. “With limited training, you manufactured incredibly difficult magical materials, applied them appropriately in a combat situation, and mended an injury that would have killed me in under five minutes.”

Blinking out welling tears in her violet eyes, Aristespha sniffs, and praises proudly. “You did absolutely. Fucking. Amazing. And, I am still here, because of you. So, thank you so much. And, NEVER discount what you did.”

Averting his eyes awkwardly away from the intense compliment, Bach nervously chuckles and shrugs his shoulders. “Well, uh, your welcome. Just couldn’t sit there and not try.”

Glancing around the room, he furrows his brow and puzzles. “Where is everyone else?”

Aristespha settles back in her chair, and motions outside with a wave of her hand. “They all went out to get food. Probably hitting up the Pancake Shed, since not much stops them from opening.”

Noticing the Sword of the Spirit Realm in its scabbard on the other bed, he points to the sword and gestures around the area. “Where’s my brother?”

Aristespha glances upwards briefly, and smiles with a long inhale. “Sebastian is keeping watch up on the roof of the building. He’s been on self-imposed lookout duty since yesterday. Everything happening has put him on edge. But, he should be down soon to check on you.”

Nodding at the answer, Bach halts in thought, mulls over an idea, and poses a query to Aristespha. “So... Can I ask you personal question?”

Aristespha crosses her arms, lifts an intrigued brow, and awaits in anticipation. “Certainly.”

Bach narrows an examining stare with a slight smirk at Aristespha, and cocks his head to the side. “Why my brother? I mean, what do you see in him?”

Lifting her head back, Aristespha searches her mind, bites her lower lip, and fends out flits of embarrassment as she smiles. “Well... He’s confident, but not ridiculously so. He does have honest talent. He’s bold when it is time to get things done, and is really encouraging. And, genuinely cares...”

Focusing his inquisitive gaze, Bach presents another inquiry. “So, when did you... Know he was the one for you?”

Aristespha flits her violet eyes wide, twists her mouth, and glances away. Wrestling the embarrassment on her face, she fights down a flush of red in her ivory, and gray, blue hinted face. She nervously strokes one of her very long, pointed ears back. “Well... Uh...”

Feeling the calculating stare upon her from Bach, Aristespha rolls her eyes at herself with a sigh, and idly combs her fingers through her long silvery blue hair. “I will warn you, it is a bit of a story.”

She pulls in a large breath, and explains. “We had tracked Noxian down to an old observation post built into a steep mountain side. After a drawn out confrontation, the foundation started to give away and the structure began to collapse. In the chaos, he escaped and we ran for our lives. Running down the main walkway, I was lagging behind because the sword sheath I had broke and kept coming loose.”

Grimacing through the past tension on her face, she shakes her head. “The main part of the building broke free, and toppled down the mountain. It ripped most the support cables for the walkway out and damaged the anchors. Everyone else had just gotten clear, and it was just Sebastian and I left. The platform dropped out from under me, but I grabbed hold the next section’s ledge. And... Sebastian immediately dropped down and grabbed hold of my arm.”

Wincing through a surge of embarrassment, she grits her teeth and buries her face in her hands. “Oh gods, it hurts to remember how gullible I was, and how much I fell for the whole chosen one and magic sword bit.”

She mutters a few evuukian curses to herself under her breath, musters back up her composure, and continues awkwardly. “But... During the fight, Sebastian and I had swapped swords around to confuse Noxian. So... I had THE sword... Dangling at my side... Slowly sliding free off my belt. Of course, I kept a hand on it to secure it.”

Her violet eyes stare into her memories, and a reminiscent smirk graces her face. “Sebastian was arguing with my stupid, stubborn self. With the destruction happening so quickly and my ideological tunnel vision, I hadn’t realized how weak the remaining walkway was. I kept focusing on getting the sword to him more than anything else, but he was focused on my safety. Of course, he proposed having me take his hand, so he could get a better grip with the other, and allow me to safely retrieve the sword.”

She gazes over to the humored Bach with an amused smile, and rolls her eyes at herself while tossing her long silvery blue hair back. “And, of course, that was one of his ploys. The moment I agreed and grabbed hold of his hand, he yanked me right up into his arms, and ran as fast as he could off the walkway.”

Glancing over to the bed with the sword, she grits her teeth, shrugs her shoulders, and laughs. “The sword slipped right off, dropped down the mountain side into a mess of rubble, and was buried under a few tons of rock and collapsed building.”

Eying over to Bach, she tightly smiles and averts her gaze guiltily. “So you know, that’s not the original scabbard. And... I have yet to inform the Grand Library officials the original has been lost. We’ve been avoiding that detail.”

Bach slowly nods, lifts a brow at the sword, and smirks. “I mean... It’s a magical sword. Who know what it could do to its scabbard? It just may have disappears one day, or transmuted into that one. Crazy old magic, you know?”

Aristespha cracks a small sly, appreciative grin. Shifting his attention to Aristespha, Bach crosses his arms and tilts his head to the side. “So... How pissed off and angry were you at my brother?”

Pinching the bridge of her nose, Aristespha groans at her past and resumes her tale. “After the initial shock of seeing just where we were seconds ago tumble into a valley... Somewhere between absolute rage and psychotic conniption fits. I am so glad he did not understand much evuukian then, and that Sotalia hasn’t told half of what she understood.”

Straightening up her posture, she chuckles and carefully shakes her head slightly with a faint wince. “So silly now, but that experience opened my eyes to a lot. We eventually found and retrieved the sword with significant help from Dretphi’s scouting, Cideeda's senses, and Sotalia's telekinesis magic. It took a week. But, it gave me a lot of time to think things out... And, really see Sebastian... for Sebastian.”

Pondering the story, Bach gradually nods and smiles at Aristespha. “That’s a good story to know. Thanks for sharing it.”

Aristespha shrugs her shoulders and sighs. “Well, it was the starting point. A lot more embarrassment and awkwardness happened after that.”

Seconds of calm silence later, Sebastian’s ethereal form re-materializes next to Aristespha and he whispers softly to her. “So, how’s he holding up, dear-”

He snaps head towards Bach, and smiles in a flood of joy and relief. “Bro... Oh man, it’s good to see you up. How are feeling?”

Bach darts his eyes around, and gauges his mood. “Among the living? I'm feeling normal enough now. But, it’s been a really strange experience all around.”

A playful grin cracks out from the corner of Sebastian’s mouth, and he holds up a few fingers. “How many fingers am I holding up?”

Rolling his blue eyes, Bach snorts and shakes his head. “Not quite enough to put up your ass.”

Sebastian laughs into a relaxing sigh, and slowly nods. “Yeah, you’re doing okay. But... Seriously...”

With a tremor in his voice, Sebastian gazes upon his brother proudly and thankfully. “I’m so glad your okay... And... Thank you for saving Aristespha’s life. I mean, I don’t know what more to say. I’d totally hug you if I was a bit more tangible, bro. Really.”

Aristespha smiles lovingly to Sebastian, and turns her attention to Bach. “I’ll handle that.”

Leaning out, Aristespha wraps her arms around Bach tightly, and embraces him with pat on his back. “Thank you again.”

Bach returns the hug and sniffs. “Well... I just couldn’t let you two end like that. Especially, not after all we’ve done.”

After the quiet moment, Aristespha glances over to the side of her thoughts, and sighs through flits of guilt. “Oh... While I’m thinking about it, let me apologize for ALL the times I’ve been a total bitch.”

Bach chuckles and smiles. “It’s fine. I wasn’t exact a shining example at times either.”

Sebastian laughs with an ethereal reverb, and shrugs his shoulders with tinges of regret. “Yeah... Yeah... Count me in there, too. A lot.”

Aristespha releases Bach, settles back in her seat, and firmly grasps Bach shoulders tightly. She narrows a hard glare right into his eyes, and directs a stern voice at him. “That said... DO NOT DO THAT AGAIN. Please. That was... SO dangerous for you to do.”

She brushes tangled strands of Bach’s white streak out of his face, and smiles. “Please, don’t fry your brain on my account in the future. We want you around and able.”

Bach blinks and grits his teeth into grimace with an awkward laugh. “I wasn’t trying the first time, and I certainly won’t be trying anytime soon after this whole experience. Gods, can’t believe it’s Friday.”

The motel door opens up slowly, and the golden eye gaze of Sotalia peers in with a hushed tone. “Hey Aristespha...”

Spotting Bach sitting up in bed, Sotalia swings open the door with a renewed excitement, and approaches with take out boxes eagerly. “Hey, Bach! You hungry?”

Bach ponders a moment, and nods quickly. “Yeah. Actually, yes. Now that I’m thinking about it, I definitely could eat.”

Gleefully, Sotalia takes a seat on the bed, slides up next to Bach, and hands him the bigger take out box. “Good! I got your usual, and it’s fresh and warm. We made sure to order right before we left.”

As Dretphi and Cideeda peek in and notice the awake Bach, he waves over to them and opens the container for inspection. His eyes scan over the contents, and counts the correct number of bacon strips. Cideeda lifts an inquisitive brow, and grins warmly. “Feeling closer to normal?”

Bach shifts his attention to Cideeda and struggles against a long yawns “Yeah. Still a little tired. But, definitely feeling like my usual self. So, anything new in town? We’re still in, or near Yazoo, right?”

Dretphi nods as she closes the door to the outside. “Yes. It is quiet. Still tense. Clean up is happening. People are attempting to resume life. Pancake Shed was open. A good sign overall.”

Sotalia cracks a sly smirk, nudges her shoulder against Bach’s, and presents the smaller take out box to him. “Oh, and our new favorite Pancake Shed employee, Lucida, gave us all a little extra with our meals for free.”

She aims a humored lift of the brow to Cideeda. “Thanks to someone working your efforts a little.”

Cideeda rolls her emerald eyes, twists her mouth, and snorts dismissively. “Please. It was a light exaggeration. She was exceptionally thankful for Aristespha keeping her Ralthie alive, anyway. So, it wasn’t much of even a hint to have her work her employee discount.”

Dretphi steps through the gathering, places a large take box out onto Aristespha’s lap, and holds out a huge insulated paper cup. “No cost. She remembered your order.”

Aristespha opens the lid of the cardboard container, and surveys the excess of food in awe. “Wow. I think she doubled everything.”

Bach shifts his attention to the take out box from Sotalia, lifts the bulging flap, and studies the pile of bacon crammed inside. “Gods. There’s a few sides orders of bacon in here.”

Sotalia swiftly pulls in the tail end of a bacon strip into her mouth, attempts to stealthily munch on it, and nods in agreement. “Oh yeah, she had the cook working that grill.”

Finding a plastic fork in the larger box, Bach picks it up, rests the package of bacon down, and shifts his attention to his meal. “This looks so good and smells amazing.”

He hovers his fork over the bacon part of his main dish, halts, and puzzles as he recounts. His eyes slide suspiciously over to Sotalia, and cracks an amused smirk. Cideeda crosses her arms, stares at Sotalia, and shakes her head. Sotalia glances between the two of them, and dismissively deflects with an innocent tone. “What?”

----

Crews angle recording equipment around the entryways into a large living room, while Samantha stands by with clipboard at the ready. Gerald hoists up his camera, sets up his shot of the Flames of the Phoenix team sitting on couches around a coffee table. Chad stands up from a chair, moves in front of the team, and picks up some papers off the table. He arranges the paperwork in his hands, clears his throat, and surveys the surrounding crews. Drawing a long breath, he glances over Trakenthin, Tassilda, Deedri, Modoran, and eventually Veevi. He straightens his posture and addresses the assembled team. “I’m sure we’ve all enjoyed the rest and break from the last mission, but we need to get back to adventuring. After reviewing a few presented options, I’ve chosen a series of smaller, simpler quests to enact the annual inspections of old ruins. I figured it would be a welcomed change of pace.”

Gesturing to the coffee table, he points out four packets of documents in front of Trakenthin, Tassilda, Deedri, and Modoran. “I’ve printed out copies of the information provided by the guild about the different locations for you to review and discuss.”

Veevi tosses back her pink hair, flicks her long, short-haired tail, and furrows her puzzled brow at the empty space in front her upon the coffee table. She stretches her legs, crosses her tan, brown striped arms impatiently, and narrows an expecting glare upon Chad. The rest of the team each reaches out for the packets, begin to inspect them, and start discussions between themselves. Veevi frowns her growing annoyance, flexes her sharp nailed fingers, and perks her fuzzy ears back. Chad pulls calming air into his lungs, exhales slowly, and pivots his attention towards Veevi. Eying the papers in Chad’s possession, Veevi holds out her hand and awaits with a petulant sneer. Chad glances down at Veevi’s anticipating motions, frowns sternly, and sighs. “You won’t be needing an information packet, Veevi.”

Veevi blinks her pink pupil eyes, lowers her dark pink eyebrows, and cocks her head to side. Chad stiffens his upper lip, and reprimands in a firm tone. “Veevi, as the leader of the Flames of the Phoenix, I believe you need to sit out these missions.”

Veevi’s eyes flit wide, her fuzzy ears flick back, and her tan face twitches. Chad crosses his arms, straightens his posture, and chills his stern voice. “I have NOT been happy with the behavior you have demonstrated lately. You consistently have shown a disregard for other team members, and refuse to properly work with the team. And make no mistake, this has been demonstrated between multiple missions and many occasions outside of missions.”

Veevi’s mean glare forms harsher shades of contempt, and her lips pull back to a grit of sharp teeth. As Chad mains his ground and focuses his brown eyes upon the visibly shaking Veevi, the surrounding record crew exchange bewildered expressions. Samantha blinks to full awareness of the situation, squints in disbelief, and tilts her head to the side with whisper. “What. The. Fuck... is going on here?!”

An amused grin splits wide from the corners of Gerald mouth, and he aims his camera expectantly with a quiet chuckle. “Oh... Just a spine growing three sizes...”

Chad slightly bows his head down, narrows his stern stare upon Veevi, and calmly explains. “I believe you need to take some time to think. Take some much needed time to review what you can do to work better with the team. Think about whether you really want to be part of this team.”

A pressuring silence absorbs all other noises in the room. Trakenthin, Tassilda, Deedri, Modoran, and Chad keep their full attention upon the reddening face of Veevi. Seconds of louder pants end in a furious snort, and Veevi springs up to her feet with her full ire aimed at Chad. After an enraged growl, Veevi points accusingly at Chad. “THE FUCK ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?!”

Veevi summons up her vitriol in an angry hiss and screams as the fur on her tail poofs out. “YOU! YOU! Are you trying to put ME in TIME OUT?! You’ve GOT to be FUCKING KIDDING ME! I want to be part of this team?! You don’t have a team without ME! No one gave a damn about this team until I arrived! YOU traitorous, worthless sack of shit! How dare you even consider putting ME to the side line. You are a complete dumbass if you think this is going to fly with the producers!”

Shakily flexing her fingers of sharp nails, Veevi glares a face full of twitching hatred upon Chad, and huffs out infuriated hisses as the hair on her body raises. Tassilda rolls her eyes in absolute disgust, leans forward from her seat, and points to Veevi. “SIT. DOWN. For gods sake! Calm down, and stop acting like a childish drama queen. Do you even think that this might be ONE of the MANY reasons you are in this situation right now?! It’s just for one set of boring missions anyway. Get over it.”

Chad glances over his shoulder, grimaces uneasily, and motions with his hand for Tassilda to hold off a bit. Seizing the opening, Veevi swiftly rears back her arm, and tenses her muscles to guide her sharp nails towards Chad. Trakenthin flits his eyes wide open, lunges out swiftly, and launches his long reach towards Chad. He grips tightly around Chad’s belt, and firmly yanks him back. Veevi’s flurry of clawing swipes slice through the air left behind as Chad’s body shifts sharply backwards. Recovering from the misses Veevi regains her footing, hisses out an incoherent mess of insults, and steps toward Chad. Just as Chad raises his arms up to shield from the next attack, a couch pillow flies solidly in to Veevi’s face.

The mass and power behind the cushion impacts the side of Veevi’s head, tilts her firmly off balance, and sends her stumbling backwards and to the side. A few cameras trace back the flight path of the pillow, and Modoran nonchalantly resettles into his seat upon the couch, obscuring the empty spot between other couch back cushions. Veevi balances herself back out, feverishly whips her tail side to side, and tenses her thin form defiantly. Chad cautiously stands back, while the crews keep recording. Noticing the attention around her, the Veevi pants out her rage, hisses out her disgust, and steps forward. She fails to find an easy target and settles upon dramatically flipping the coffee table over with growl. She promptly pivots around, storms up the stairwell, and disappears upstairs. After a loud slam of a door, muffled screams of rage echo out, and a group of recording crew rush up.

Chad regathers his composure, shakes his head, and steps to the middle of the group. Deedri springs up, and inspects his face carefully. “Chad, are you okay? It looked like she got real close to you.”

With an appreciative nod, Chad smiles thankfully to Deedri. “She missed me...”

He turns to Trakenthin and bows slightly. “Thank you, Trakenthin.”

Trakenthin nods simply. Tassilda covers her mouth and fights through the guilt and regret. “I’m so sorry, I shouldn’t have said anything. I didn’t think she’d do THAT.”

Trakenthin shakes his head and sighs. “Not your fault. She was looking for an opportunity.”

Chad smiles in agreement and eases Tassilda’s concern. “Don’t worry, I’m a bit surprised myself.”

He shifts his attention over to Modoran, and cracks a humored smirk. “Nice shot.”

Modoran shrugs his shoulders, and laughs. “Well, I was trying to be nice. I didn’t think kicking her legs out was warranted... yet.”

Sighing out his tension, Chad scratches the back of his brown, coiffed head of hair, slowly shakes his head as he processes the events, and chuckles with tinges of sarcasm. “Well, that actually went a little better than I expected. I mean, it could have gone worse.”

Tassilda twists her mouth uncomfortably and crosses her arms. “At least she doesn’t have that laser pistol anymore.”

Chad flits his eyes wide briefly when mind processes the thought, and grits his teeth. “Oh, gods... Glad I remedied that mistake.”

He gazes over his team, smiles humbly, and sighs. “And, I hope to fix more as I am able.”

----

Mera adjusts the pillow on her single motel bed, slides up against the headboard, and stretches her legs out. Easing out a long breath, she glances around the outdated, dingy room, and frowns briefly. Turning her attention to a battered and worn aetherphone, she taps through a number of menus and slows down to scroll through lists of apartments and rental houses. She stops at one listing, and shifts her gaze over to a piles of bills and coins upon the bed next to her. Sorting through the money, her crimson eyes search her mind, and she eventually nods at the possibility. Finishing up through the current selection, she rests her aetherphone upon the nightstand next to the bed. Pausing a moment, her hand drifts over and picks up a piece of paper off a loose stack. Holding the page in front her, a happy smile emerges and she gazes upon the crayon drawing of three black eared figures and one with longer ivory ears. After enjoying the art, she rolls over and props it up against the desk lamp.

Grabbing the remote, Mera turns on the older television on the opposite wall, and flips through a number of channels. She fights back a yawn, stretches her arms out, and continues surveying the entertainment landscape. Stopping upon one channel, she idly watches the commercials play out and the main programming resumes.

“Last time on the Next Adventurers of Nexus...”

Mera lifts a mildly amused brow, sets the remote off to the side, and settles up against the bed pillow. Clips of the prior show episode flip up on the screen. A segment shows Modoran lifting up an elaborately decorated bow. Mera crimson eyes widen as she remains still. Modoran draws back the bow, takes aim, and expertly releases an arrow to a target. Meredosia’s stare narrows, and focuses upon the details. Her full attention notices the faint traces of magical energy, flowing in a familiar way. Her breathing quickens as her body tenses. The clip disappears under a swipe cut to another segment about Veevi. During the distant, disconnected stare, Meredosia’s ivory face twitches as she begin to angrily grit her teeth.

With a sharp wince, Mera covers her face with both hands, gasps for air frantically, and curls up painfully on the bed. Panting through the surge of remorse and guilt, she shakes her head hard, and opens her frantic eyed gaze. She nervously grips her very long ears, squeezes the tears from her eyes, and rolls over to her side. Cringing through memories crashing to the front of her mind, and she clenches her jaw and hisses strained breaths through her teeth. Seconds of struggling, she reopens her eyes and settles her panicked stare upon the crayon drawing.

Mera reaches out for the artwork, gently runs a finger across the page, and sniffs up the tears. With each slowing breath, she gradually reassembles a semblance of calm.

----

A large blue all terrain vehicle rolls up into a gravel lot, and parks between crudely painted lines in the noon sun. Isaac opens his door, locks it, and closes it. Stepping around the vehicle, he glances out at the open town center between a mix of different buildings. Slowly surveying the land, he pauses his examining stare at wooden and tin roof fronts, concrete block bunkers, brick and metal sheeting structures, and a few weathered aluminum sided buildings. He narrows his curious gaze towards the middle of the area, and walks out into the patch of grass and a few older trees. Searching down long gravel roadways branching away, he squints down the dusty rough passages, and reads off signs to himself. He eventually notices a larger two story structure, and studies the name on the sign, “Precipice Inn & Tavern”. Shrugging his shoulders, he steps forward towards the building.

Opening large wooden door, Isaac slips into a large, noisy main room, and stands to observe. Slowly scanning the room, he shifts his focus between numerous tables surrounded by an eclectic mishmash of chairs and filled with a diverse collection of patrons. Conversations in many different languages collide together in the tall air space to form an ambient background drone. Isaac darts his intrigued stare between tables of rough characters in complicated survival suits, mercenaries in heavy plated armor, local merchants in plain clothing, common workers in dingy uniforms, and few younger adventurous types. Isaac’s curiosity follows an animated robotic humanoid in worn protective gear, and the machine’s enthusiastic attempts to pawn off a number of different maps. When the pitch fails, it still hangs out and eagerly chats about news and events.

Shaking out of the fascinated trance, Isaac pivots around, spots the long wooden bar, and walks over. He brushes off a cracked leather seat, checks down either side of the bar, and lifts a hand towards the bar tender. The rough, middle aged woman goes down the line of other patrons, checks on them, and finally arrives in front of Isaac with a smile. “Hey there, what can I get for you?”

Isaac surveys the collection of alcohol upon a variety of shelves behind the woman, contemplates while rocking his head side to side, and smirks kindly. “Well. I’ll definitely start with a beer to cool down, first. And, we’ll see where that leads.”

Lifting an amused brow, the bar tender nods, side steps over to a chest fridge, and pulls out a brown, unlabeled bottle. With deft handling of bottle opener, the cap pops right off, and she places the beverage in front of Isaac. “So, sweetie, you hungry? The kitchen is open for lunch right now. We got a few good specials you might like.”

Searching his mind, Isaac smiles, grasps hold of his beer, and hums thoughtfully. “I think I could be convinced to eat. But, actually, first... I’m looking for someone.”

The bar woman cocks her head to the side, leans in, and glances around. “Who are you looking for?”

Pouring back the beer, Isaac gulps down the drink, sets the bottle back down, and uncertainly replies. “Mavian?”

Rolling her eyes, the woman snorts, shakes her head, and grins. “OH! Yeah, I’ll be right back with him. Probably not answering his phone, right?”

Issac blinks, nods in agreement, and grimaces politely. “I mean, if he’s busy, I don’t want to be rude or anything.”

The bar tender laughs, waves down Isaac’s concerns, and walks towards a flight of stairs. “Oh, sweetie, it’s a not problem at for me. Gods know he needs to wake up and work some decent jobs to keep paying me rent.”

With an awkward, thankful nod, Isaac lifts his beer back up, sips the beverage, and gazes over the activity in the main room. Minutes later, a man in a green scarf sit down on the stool next to Isaac, and starts rubbing the sleep out of his faintly glowing eyes. “The hell, Aggie? Scared the shit out me.”

Aggie steps back behind the bar, shakes her head, and rolls her eyes. “Should have answered your door the first few times.”

Isaac pivots around in his seat, glances over Mavian, and politely extends his hand to shake. “Good afternoon, Mavian.”

Mavian shakes Isaac’s hand, narrows his examining gaze, and blinks as recognition fumbles back into his head. “It’s... Ian- No. Um... Ivan- No... Isaac! Yes. Sorry, it was a long night.”

Waving off the trouble, Isaac smirks and shrugs his shoulders. “Perfectly fine. I was a little worried when you didn’t answer your phone.”

Twisting his mouth uncomfortably, Mavian rolls his faintly glowing green eyes, and sighs. “Yeah. Sorry about that. I was up really late with some couple wanting an Adventure Tour of the Zone. They were really into it, so I took them to a few places for them to collect some of the more colorful, harmless, but totally useless artifacts.”

Isaac lifts a humored brow, and tilts his head. “I hope they tipped you well.”

Mavian give an entrepreneurial smirk and nods satisfied. “That they did. They were nice.”

Gritting his teeth briefly, and Isaac pulls in a guilty breath. “Before we talk much further, let me apologize for being a week late. Getting out of Perimeter and traveling the roads was filled with some unexpected delays. Quite a different experience from other zones I’ve been in, to be perfectly honest.”

Shrugging his shoulders, Mavian picks up a beer that Aggie drops off in front of him, pours some into his mouth, and nonchalantly explains. “Don’t worry about. Not a problem, really. Anyway, the fact you are here means you are serious about finding your friend.”

He smirks slyly, and adjusts his green scarf. “In fact, your timing is not that bad. Been asking around about your friend Malkav. It turns out he was here over a month ago to load up on supplies. Now, I haven’t found out much more yet, like where he is. He seems to be vague about where he’s been going.”

An eager grin emerges upon Isaac’s face. He sits up straight on the bar stool, and tosses back his white, wispy hair. “I actually have some maps and info that might help narrow that down... With your help and expertise, of course.”

Nodding slowly, Mavian chuckles. “Of course. Lunch first?”

Isaac smiles. “Of course.”

Timeline

March 3017

Sunday

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

Saturday

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

Episode 1

Episode 2

Episode 3

Episode 4

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

Episode 4

Episode 5

Episode 6

Episode 7

Episode 8

Episode 9

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

Episode 10

Episode 11

Episode 12

Episode 13

Episode 14

Episode 15

Episode 16

23

24

25

26

27

28

29

Episode 17

Episode 18

Episode 19

Episode 20

30

31

Episode 21

Episode 22

April 3017

Sunday

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

Saturday

1

2

3

4

5

Episode 23

Episode 24

Episode 25

Episode 26

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

Episode 26

Episode 27

Episode 28

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

Episode 29

Episode 30

Episode 31

Episode 32

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

Episode 32

Episode 33

Episode 34

Episode 35

27

28

29

30

Episode 36

Episode 37

Episode 38

May 3017

Sunday

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

Saturday

1

2

3

Episode 39

Episode 40

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

Episode 40

Episode 41

Episode 42

Episode 43

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

Episode 43

Episode 44

Episode 45

Episode 46

Episode 47

18

19

21

22

23

24

25

Episode 47

Episode 48

Episode 49

26

27

28

29

30

31

Episode 49

Episode 50

Episode 51

Episode 52

Episode 53

June 3017

Sunday

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

Saturday

1

Episode 54

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

Episode 54

Episode 55

Episode 56

Episode 57

Episode 58

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

Episode 58

Episode 59

Episode 60

Episode 61

Episode 62

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

Episode 63

Episode 64

Episode 65

Episode 66

Episode 67

23

24

25

26

27

28

29

Episode 68

Episode 69

Episode 70

Episode 71

30

31

Episode 71

July 3017

Sunday

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

Saturday

1

2

3

4

5

Episode 72

Episode 73

Episode 74

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

Episode 74

Episode 75

Episode 76

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

Episode 76

Episode 77

Episode 78

Episode 79

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

Episode 79

Episode 80

Episode 81

Episode 82

27

28

29

30

31

Episode 82

Episode 83

August 3017

Sunday

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

Saturday

1

2

Episode 83

Episode 84

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

Episode 84

Episode 85

Episode 86

Episode 87

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

Episode 88

Episode 89

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

Episode 89

Episode 90

Episode 91