Ain't A Hero

Season 8

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 02/04/2021

Ain't A Hero

Season 8

Dedications

Timeline

Episode 92

Episode 93

Episode 94

Episode 95

Episode 96

Episode 97

Episode 98

Episode 99

Episode 100

Episode 101

Episode 102

Episode 103

Episode 104

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

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

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Episode 10

Episode 11

Episode 12

Episode 13

Episode 14

Episode 15

Episode 16

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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

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Episode 29

Episode 30

Episode 31

Episode 32

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Episode 32

Episode 33

Episode 34

Episode 35

27

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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

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Episode 43

Episode 44

Episode 45

Episode 46

Episode 47

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19

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Episode 47

Episode 48

Episode 49

26

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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

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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

24

25

26

27

28

29

30

Episode 92

Episode 93

Episode 94

Episode 95

Episode 96

Episode 97

31

Episode 97

Episode 98

September 3017

Sunday

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

Saturday

1

2

3

4

5

6

Episode 98

Episode 99

Episode 100

Episode 101

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

Episode 101

Episode 102

Episode 103

Episode 104

14

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20

Episode 104

-92-

Late morning shines down upon the large, multi-lane highway, as breezes from the western coast stir up white sand around the shoulders of road. Rolling down the right most lane, the humvee navigates the gentle sways and curves of the roadway as it threads lazily through suburban patches and inlets from the large bays. Sotalia leans near her open window, smiles happily, and stretches as the draft stirs her fiery orange, wavy hair around her swept back, black horns. Bach peers out his partially rolled down window, surveys the mix of palms and coniferous trees filling the gaps narrow gaps of houses, businesses, and open stretches of beaches. Easing back into his seat, he quickly brushes his longer brown hair into some semblance of order, and flicks the stubborn white streak off his face. Angling his gaze over to Aristespha’s tablet, he ponders out loud. “How far inside the Perimeter territory are we? I don’t think it’s been that long since we went over the super bridge, and there’s a lot more civilization than I thought there would be.”

Aristespha hands the device over to Bach, combs back her silvery blue hair with her fingers, and slips a hair tie around the bundle. “We just got into Perimeter proper a few minutes ago. This is the outer circle of towns right now. We should start seeing the city core up ahead soon enough.”

Bach examines the display, visually compares a tracking blip upon a digital map, and zooms the view. “I keep forgetting how big this place really is. We’re not even in the city technically and there’s already so much.”

Dretphi peeks over around Bach’s seat, studies the map on the tablet, and smirks. “Our previous stops are poor comparison.”

Nodding at the comment, Bach passes the device back to Aristespha and stretches in his seat. “Phis wasn’t too bad. But, then again it was a major trade hub and station for the Train.”

Cideeda’s emerald green eyes scan the horizon ahead and read a number of highway signs. Navigating the humvee through the thickening patches of vehicles, she veers into newly formed off ramp lane, and directs her voice back with a perk of her furry ears. “I’m taking this exit and hitting a station. Figured we might as well fuel up, and I’ll see if there’s any good local routes to our hotel.”

Sebastian’s voice resonates from the sword resting in the aisle between Bach and Aristespha. “Sounds like a plan. I get the feeling this isn’t the town you want to run out of gas in the middle of the highway.”

Rolling her eyes with a dismissive smirk, Cideeda narrows a glare at a large truck aggressively weaving between lanes and grumbles. “You’re telling me, I’m pretty one of these assholes would ram you out of the way and charge you for the damages. Hopefully there’s a less packed back route we can take. This mess is reminding me of Anta traffic in the worst way.”

The humvee travels off the main highway and follows a gently curving ramp to an intersection. With the signal lights, the vehicle merges with traffic and soon rolls into the large parking lot of a huge depot. As the humvee slows to a stop in a fueling stall, the powerplant spins down, and the doors open. Sotalia hops out, stretches out her back, and turns to face a coastal gust blowing from the bay side beach nearby. Stepping out from the shade of the awning, she flips open a pair of shades and turns to soak in the nearly noon sun. She glances back at the approaching Aristespha, and grins. “We HAVE to try to hit up a beach.”

Sotalia examines the light tan and dark gray patterned skin on her arms, grumbles to herself, and sighs. “I really need to get some sun.”

Aristespha holds out her ivory skinned hand, checks the hints of gray and blue, and shakes her head with a smirk. “I’ll definitely join you for some sunbathing, at the very least.”

Bach waves to Cideeda and Dretphi departing into the depot store front, and steps up curiously next to Aristespha and Sotalia. “Okay, so, it’s true about Evuukians not being able to tan?”

Blinking her violet eyes, Aristespha shifts her attention toward Bach and nods plainly. “Yes. There are some exceptions in certain populations, but evuukian skin pigmentation very resilient to sun exposure. You never tan or lighten. But... You never burn.”

She rolls her eyes, rests her hands on her hips, and snorts. “Though, you should see the things that people will try. Each one more ridiculous than the next.”

Sotalia sighs, furrows her brow with past frustrations, and glances over the patterns on her arms. “They don’t realize how lucky they are. Try a sunburn on just one tone of skin.”

Bach eyes over the comparisons, holds his tan forearm up, and cracks a bit of confidence. He hooks a finger in the sleeve of this t-shirt. Previous confidence pales along with the stark shift to white upon Bach’s upper arm. A sly, humored smirk appears on Sotalia’s face. She steps along side Bach, and compares her arm against his. “I think we might be able to help each other out.”

Blinking his blue eyes blankly, Bach awkwardly chuckles and nods. “Yeah. Sure. If we get around to hitting a beach.”

Cideeda and Dretphi exit the store front. Cideeda wags her long, medium length haired tail, and smiles while enjoying her cup of bubble tea. Dretphi eagerly approaches Aristespha, Bach, and Sotalia with a pastry box in her hands. She opens the lid, presents a dozen cinnamon and chocolate coated buns, and grins. “Please have one.”

Sotalia’s golden eyes widen at the treats, and plucks one out with an appreciative nod. Aristespha studies over the collection, and picks one. “Thank you.”

Dretphi’s tall frame positions the box in front of Bach, and she smiles warmly at Bach as the breeze tosses her platinum braids. Bach pulls a bun out, sniffs it, and cocks his head to side with recognition. “I remember this smell. You got a bunch of these from that last station we stopped at...”

He narrows a playful stare at Dretphi, and smirks. “That you horded all to yourself.”

A faint flush of embarrassment fills Dretphi’s tan cheeks, and she averts her gaze briefly. “Yes. Had not enjoyed them for a long time. These are freshly made... You get to enjoy better.”

Bach laughs and shakes his head with a smile. “Well, thank you. This smells really good.”

He takes a bite out of the treat, pauses a moment, and nods while munching. “Oh, wow. It’s custard filled.”

Aristespha, Sotalia, Dretphi, and Bach enjoy their pasteries, and wander back over to the humvee. Cideeda removes the fueling nozzle, closes up the humvee’s panel, and hangs the handle on the pump. Tapping through a few menus, she waits as a receipt slowly prints out. After the printer trims off the paper, Cideeda snatches the receipt up with her claw tips, hops up into the driver’s seat of the humvee, and glances back to the assembling team. “So, just so everyone knows, they have bubble tea machine in there that’s actually really good. Even has protellow root flavor.”

Noting the flits of interest, she gives the receipt to Aristespha and shifts the topic over. “Also, I talked to the clerk who lives further in the city, and she passed along another route to try. We might get lucky to avoid a lot of the traffic, since it’s close to noon. But, if have to do a lot of city travel, we might want to check out a few other streets.”

Bach leans through the back passenger door, and lifts his brow. “So, what’s the plan of attack right now?”

Sotalia nods, and glances over towards Aristespha. “Any word from the anyone at the GAA?”

Sebastian’s voice emanates from the sword. “Not recently that I know of. Dear, did they send anything this morning?”

Aristespha twists her mouth, finishes up a bite of the bun, and searches her mind. “Yes, Sebastian. Nothing significant. But, once we’ve settled in to our lodgings, they will send over two investigators from the Perimeter Defense Force that have been following up on Noxian’s trail. They’ve confirmed a few areas he’s been around in the city.”

An ethereal hum resonates from the sword, and Sebastian’s voice sounds out. “I think we could probably help them figure out what he might have been up to.”

Bach grimaces uncertainly and eyes distant flits of phenomena southeast. “I mean, I think we can assume he’s heading into the zone. That’s kind of THE major draw to this place?”

Dretphi nods, lifts a curious brow, and sighs thoughtfully. “When? Where? Why?”

Drifting off in a mix of internal thought and staring out into the distant traces of the zone activities, Bach frowns slightly. “Yeah...”

Attentions gradually shift towards the southeast, and the team spots brief, colorful auroras, faint shifts of the sky, and sparks of movement in the furthest horizons over the Perimeter weird zone.

----

The indirect glow of noon fills the long living room, and a gentle breeze sifts through the front window and vents out the back door screen. A soft snore leaves Shadeesa nose, and the starts of consciousness twitch across her white freckled, light gray face. As she slowly rocks her head of long dark green hair, her green on black eyes flutter open into a post slumber daze. She lifts her head off the pillow upon the couch arm, and groggily scans the room. She spots a cooled mug of tea with the tea bag floating on top, and lifts up the aetherphone on her chest. She puzzles at the blanket neatly upon her very pregnant form, guides locks of hair over her upward swept horns, and focuses her vision upon the phone display. Reading the time, her green on black eyes widen in worry and she mumbles out emin curses under her breath. She quickly tosses back the blanket off to reveal her apron and a comfort-minded variant of her professional work clothes. She attempts to sit up, eases off the effort halfway, and grasps hold of the back of the couch. Resting her free hand on her belly, she holds position and weathers a moment of indigestion with slight wretch. She takes in a breath, ponders her situation, and gradually eases her self into position to get up from the couch. “Oh, my little boy. I’ll be so happy to have you in my arms... Rather than pressing against my stomach.”

Balancing herself up on her feet, she sweeps up the mug of tea, and walks towards the side door through the kitchen, while drinking the cold beverage.

Carefully stepping down the few stairs to the pavement next to the long brick house, Shadeesa walks next to Mr. Frenzacia and nods with an apologetic tone. “I’m so sorry, Mr. Frenzacia. I over slept for some reason. I thought I had set an alarm before I laid down for a quick nap. But, it did not go off.”

Mr. Frenzacia smiles with a chuckle, and shakes his head with a comforting voice. “Oh, not a problem, Vet Serania. I completely understand. And, there’s no real rush. Kaleb has been keeping the both Fawna and Varan busy with flight lessons. It’s been fun to watch.”

Shadeesa shifts her gaze towards Kaleb, and narrows a mildly suspicious stare with hints of warmth. A gust pushes through the large open backyard along a dirt runway. The wind breezes through Kaleb’s short, blonde hair and tosses Fawna’s long, silvery red-tinted hair around her curled horns. Lagi’s massive wingspans catch the air, and his large blue black scaled dragon form lifts up. He maintains a glide through wind and anchors himself with his front clawed hands in the dirt. Varan furiously flaps his small amber wings and manages a few hops into slow falls. The little dragon snorts and whines out his fits of frustration. Fawna kneels down next to Varan, and pets him behind the head with some encouraging words. “It’s okay. You got a lot higher that time. You’ll get the hang of it soon.”

Mr. Frenzacia crosses his arms, shifts his weight, and slowly shakes his head while watching Lagi’s massive frame coast in the wind. “Just amazing he can take off with just a strong breeze.”

Shadeesa grins, lifts a humored brow at Mr. Frenzacia, and motions towards Lagi. “Despite his size, he’s got similar flight characteristics of a biplane. Dragons like him can control their wing shapes, too.”

Glancing over to Shadeesa, Mr. Frenzacia lifts an intrigued brow and cocks his head to the side. “Oh, so he’s got his own versions of adjusting his flaps, ailerons, and elevators?”

With a nod, Shadeesa smiles and agrees. “For all practical purposes. Kaleb knows more about how all the function translates, but it’s the same theories.”

Fawna comforts the disappointed amber scaled dragon, gazes her blue on white and blue on black eyes up to Kaleb, and pleads. “Is there anything you can do to help Varan? He keeps trying so hard, but he can barely stay up in the air.”

Kaleb’s light brown eyes meet Fawna’s, and he kneels down. With an encouraging smirk, he points to the base of Varan’s tail, and motions to Fawna. “His wings haven’t grown quite enough yet. But... You can help help him out with the weight. Hold onto his tail, and get ready to pull up on the next gust.”

Fawna eagerly grasp hold of Varan, directs his attention to the distant wave upon the grassy field in front of them, and grins. “Okay, Varan. Get ready.”

The wind rushes by and Kaleb gestures to Fawna to lift up. With Varan feverishly flapping his wings, Fawna pulls up on the little dragon’s tail, and guides him swiftly up into the air. Varan blinks his eyes in complete disbelief, and quickly chirps out excitedly the higher and longer he maintains flight. A bright, happy smile appears on Fawna’s face, and she gently supports the little dragon in the flow of the wind. Kaleb glances over his shoulder towards Shadeesa and Mr. Frenzacia, and cracks a grin. “He’s getting the hang of it. Once his wings catch up with his body, he be flying on his own just fine.”

Mr. Frenzacia tightly smiles as traces of reservation leak out in his tone. “I’ll be sure the warn the neighbors. I get the feeling I’ll be talking to them a lot more in the future.”

Kaleb shrugs his shoulders, and points towards inside the hangar at a large industrial fan. “If you don’t want to scare the neighbors all the time and let Varan get some practice, one of those large fans will work great until he gets really big. Just make sure he has something solid to hold onto.”

Shadeesa twists her mouth, rolls her eyes, and sighs. She narrows an examining stare upon Lagi. The dragon glides effortlessly in the rolling strong breezes with his eyes closed and blue black wings reflecting the noon sun. Shadeesa furrows a suspicious brow, clears her throat, and calls out. “Lagi. You better have not fallen asleep while gliding, again.”

Lagi’s bright green eyes spring wide open, and he snaps his attention over to Shadeesa. Darting his gaze around, he awkwardly conceals tinges of guilt and lets out a reassuring series of chirps. Shadeesa crosses her arms just over her stomach, and tugs at the corner of her mouth unconvinced. “Good. We really don’t need you crashing into the hangar... Again.”

Mr. Frenzacia cocks his head and focuses his intrigue upon Shadeesa. “He fell asleep while... Flying?”

Shadeesa twists her mouth, grumbles with a shake of her head, and sighs. “Yes. On days like this where he coast with the wind in the sun, he’ll get drift off to sleep and let go. If we’re lucky, he just flops on the ground... Unlike the one time he crashed right into the original hangar doors.”

Briefly studying the cleaner outer doors of the hangar, Mr. Frenzacia nods and scratches his dark gray chin. “I figured something must have happened to the old doors. Did not quite expect a dragon crash.”

Rolling her eyes with flit of embarrassment, Shadeesa grits her teeth briefly. “Something to keep in mind when Varan practices flying.”

As the wind wanes in strength, Fawna leads Varan down gently to the ground and Lagi lands back gently upon the grass. Shadeesa neatens up her apron and working clothes, steps forward, and pulls out a stool. “Well, since I’ve woken up finally...”

With Kaleb supporting her, she eases herself down upon the stool and eyes him with a loving smirk. “Despite my alarm not going off...”

Kaleb’s light brown eyes meet Shadeesa’s green on black gaze, and he grimaces awkwardly as attempts to feign innocence fail. Shadeesa smiles with a light chuckle to Kaleb, and turns her attention to Varan and Fawna. “Let’s see how little Varan is doing.”

While Kaleb, Fawna, and Mr. Frenzacia watch Shadeesa perform her examination of Varan, an old van slowly rolls down the road, past entryway to the property. While a woman with dark gray skin, and braided red hair drives, a young man with slicked back hair focuses his attention upon Varan with a plotting grimace.

----

Pacing down the middle of the upstairs bedroom, Samantha rubs her temples and angrily spouts towards her aetherphone on the desk. “GODS DAMNED CHAD! The hell is that dumbass thinking he’s doing?! Howie, we HAVE to reign him in! We don’t need him going all noble leader on us and actually getting the group functioning!”

Wincing her hazel eyes closed, she pinches the bridge of her nose, draws in a long breath, and tosses back her shoulder-length brown hair. “Fuck... We don’t need this right now. Maybe in another month or two, we could start this... Gods, I can feel the future ratings dropping.”

Gerald lifts his dark brown eyed stare over his aetherphone, and shakes his head of dark blonde hair. “Samantha. It’ll be fine.”

Howard’s voice resonates into the room from Samantha’s phone speaker with traces of a sigh. “Gerald is right. We’ve worked with far worse situations. There’s still plenty of chaos in this group. So, there’s enough drama to work out of them yet.”

Samantha crosses her arms, pivots in place, and paces back down her previous path. Howard questions from the other side of call. “Gerald is she still pacing around?”

Rolling his eyes, Gerald groans out and nods. “YES.”

With audible sigh, Howard draws a long, deep breath, and calls out from the phone. “Samantha. Sit down, please.”

Snapping her head back, Samantha directs a defiant tone. “I CAN’T! We have to figure this out, and I’m too worked up.”

Howard’s voice adopts a calming cadence, and he slowly explains. “Samantha. You are keeping yourself worked up by pacing. Sit down. Take a deep breath. And, listen to me.”

Pausing mid stride, Samantha fights a grimace on her face, huffs out, and drops down to a seat on a rolling office chair. After a series of squeaks from the aged mechanical joints, as Samantha settles down, Howard exhales his relief, calmly draws in another breath, and carefully approaches the topic. “Good. The problem is that you are too focused on the bad of the moment, to see the good of the soon.”

Samantha narrows her hazel eyes upon her phone on the desk with swelling apprehension and fading confidence. Howard’s tone brightens and he continues. “Yes, most the group is trying to come to together to be functional team. A little bit more than we’d typically want. But...”

A darkening chuckle sounds out into the room, and confidence exudes from Howard’s voice. “Not everyone is onboard. We have still have Veevi. An agent of self centered chaos. Her pride and ego freshly wounded by what she perceives as betrayal and abandonment in her mind. Nothing has been going her way lately, and she won’t reason it’s her fault. And, most importantly...”

A grim satisfaction rises forth from Howard and echoes into the minds of Gerald and Samantha. “She’s all alone now. She’ll be left to her own devices for a number of days... Without anyone to stop her… And, plenty of reasons to seek her petty little revenges.”

Samantha blinks blankly as the a series of thoughts twist and warp the expression on her face. Gerald shifts his glance over to Samantha’s growing contemplation. With a sly roll in his cadence, Howard finishes his explanation. “And, I’m quite certain... YOU... could spare a dedicated camera crew to give her all the attention and motivation she’ll need during this fragile phase she’ll be enduring.”

A devious grin ignites on Samantha’s face, and she barely contains an eager giggle. “Why... Of course, Howie! I’ll make sure she receives all the attention she needs.”

She squirms in delight, snatches over her clipboard, and flips up to a clean page with pen in hand. “Okay. I know the right crew for the job. They work together really well, and will keep out of her way just enough to allow her... qualities... to shine.”

Gerald grimaces uneasily as Samantha feverishly jots down notes and charts out diagrams. He settles his head back down on his pillow, and refocuses his attention to his aetherphone. Samantha pauses in thought, glances over to her phone, and directs a plotting tone. “This is really good and all... But, I think we need some kind of catalyst to really kick it off. Veevi has been a petulant, whiny bitch in her room the past day. We need something to really push her out of the gate.”

A sinister laugh resonates into the room from the aetherphone, and Howard speaks after the distant reverb from his end of the fades. “That’s the beauty of it all. After that last episode reveal, I’m pretty sure that someone else very close to Veevi will be taking care of that. I’ve made sure to drop some hints to that the one person Veevi will listen to, and suggested that she give her a much need pep talk and coaching session.”

----

Entering into a sparsely decorated living room, Nash’s heavier frame flops over the back of an old, worn couch, and he bounces himself up upon a few cushions. With a quick motion, he secures a bottle in an opener mounted on the crude coffee table in front of him, and pries the cap off. After a long swig of the beverage, he settles a contemplative stare at the large television, and eyes he remote on the table top. Snatching the device in hand, he turns on the display, flips through a number of menus, and twists his mouth while sifting through the options. After minutes of indecision, he shifts his attention to a game controller, stretches to reach it, and taps a central button. A few lights blink to life in the dark shelves near the television, and a startup logo appears on screen.

Nash clicks through numerous game titles, and mulls over each possibility. With a long groaning sigh, he settles upon one, and mutters to himself. “Gods, I shouldn’t... I mean... But... Just a few more turns left on that one game from last night-”

He pauses in thought, searches his mind with his pale blue eyes, and scratches his head of long, graying hair. “This morning... Yeah... Can’t do an all nighter... Fuck...”

Twisting his mouth, he pours back another long dousing of his beer down his throat, and snorts out his boredom infused frustration. A synthetic tune plays out, and Nash rummages around the large side pocket of his shorts. Retrieving his aetherphone, Nash reads the contact info, perks up with a smirk, and taps on a menu button. The television flickers, and Harvos appears on the screen. Nash waves from the couch, and nods toward Harvos. “How are you doing on this fine Sunday?”

Harvos blinks his bright brown on black eyes, shrugs his shoulders, and sighs. “Not bad. I was curious as to what you were up to.”

Nash glances around the room, hoists up his beer, and gestures to himself laying on the couch. “Pretty much what you see. I was thinking about playing Kingdoms of the First Period... But...”

Cracking a humored grin, Harvos leans close to the camera on his side of call. “Are you actually trying to be responsible and not stay up all night before work?”

Lifting an intrigued brow, Nash chuckles to himself, and sighs. “What? Can’t a man try? Anyway, I’ve only got a few turns left on that one game, and you know...”

Nodding understandingly, Harvos tugs at the corner of his mouth and rolls his eyes. “Yeah. Just enough to get you in the zone. Then, you start a new game, because you think you can totally just do a few turns.”

Nash cracks a smile, and groans. “You know it. Anyway...”

He narrows an inquisitive gaze at the screen with Harvos’s image, and cocks his head to the side slyly. “I’m surprised that Malva let you free from the basement dungeon. Awfully nice of her to give you some free time to rest and recover.”

A flush of red tints Harvos’s light gray face, and he blinks quietly while quelling his embarrassment. “It’s nothing like that.”

Nash drinks more of his beer, cracks a grin, and wags a finger at the screen. “Oh! She’s not there right now. So, she doesn’t know you’ve escaped the bedroom.”

Harvos rolls his eyes, fails to grimace off the awkward expression on his face, and grumbles. “Fuck you, Nash.”

Shrugging his shoulders nonchalantly, Nash chuckles out his ill-humor, and waves off the subject. “I’m sorry. I’m just happy you two are hitting it off really well. I mean, for the longest time, it’s like you were completely ignoring all her hints. Blatant. Obvious. Hints.”

Stretching his muscular arm to rub the back of his neck, Harvos sighs and laughs. “Uh... Yeah.”

He narrows an inquisitive stare through the television at Nash, and ponders. “Anyway, I’ve been thinking... The whole Noxian stealing something from data center?”

Nash pulls himself up to an upright seat on the couch, tilts his head to the side, and furrows his brow. “Yeah. What about it?”

Harvos twists his mouth, works through shades of uncertainty, and puzzles out loud with a proper cadence. “I feel as if I have completely over looked something. Some part of my mind won’t let me close the matter, and I don’t know why. There just something missing.”

Settling into the cushioned couch back, Nash searches his mind, rocks his head side to side in thought, and lifts an intrigued brow towards Harvos. “Like what exactly? I mean, so far, it seems pretty straight forward. Noxian wanted something that was hidden. He figured out a window of opportunity by watching Dr. Dawkins, and executed a pretty tight plan.”

With a snort, he rolls his eyes and laughs. “I mean, if it wasn’t for students, quite literally, fucking around, we would have never known about it.”

Easing out a rough sigh, Harvos combs his long, black nailed fingers through his short, bright brown hair, and groans. “Gods, I know. It is just that... I have this hunch... I guess... That I have missed some detail and it is really important. I don’t know how to best explain it. I keep feeling as if there’s an empty space, where there shouldn’t be one.”

Nash swirls around the remaining beer in the bottle, shifts his gaze towards Harvos on the television, and smirks. “And, that’s why you went into Archaeology and I went into Computer Science. So, what's your plan and what do you need me to do?”

Harvos blinks his surprise, and awkwardly stumbles to an explanation. “Well, I mean... I was going to ask for your help. I don’t want to impose on you, but I’d really appreciate the help.”

Resting the near empty bottle on the crude coffee table, Nash laughs, stretches his arms out on the couch, and smiles. “Hell, you are going to need my help at this rate. Those investigators have pretty much dropped us completely out of the loop. I’ll admit, I wouldn’t mind knowing the whole story, since it happened in my department. And... If you are willing to start turning over stones and dig up stuff, I think could help hold the shovel for you.”

A wave of relief washes over Harvos, and he breathes out some tension. “Thank you. I’m going to do a lot of... um... off the records research and do some unofficial cross referencing.”

A mischievous grin appears on Nash’s face, and he chuckles. “Oh man, you want me to go back to my delinquent undergraduate roots don’t you? Can’t say I haven’t been wanting to revisit our misspent youth. You got the muscles to really work crowbar now.”

Narrowing his bright brown on black eyes at Nash through the call, Harvos lifts an unamused eyebrow and sighs. “I guess. Let’s hope it doesn’t quite come to that.”

Nash nods in agreement and sneaks out a sly smirk. “Yeah... And... it’d be really awkward for you to have to explain to Malva why you are REALLY good at popping locks off.”

He averts his gaze with a snicker. “But, she might get suspicious at how you escaped your hand cuffs so easily.”

Harvos blinks blankly, rolls his eyes, and snorts. “Oh, gods, whatever. And may I remind you who else benefited from that particular skill?”

Nash meets the accusatory stare of Harvos on the display, and Nash chuckles loudly. “Oh no. I know. Don’t worry. I have NOT forgotten. I just hope that security guard had the good sense to not report the whole incident, especially after how badly we made him look like a complete idiot by escaping.”

A smug grin appears on Harvos’s face, and he laughs with a shake of his head. “Despite that unfortunate infraction at the end... That was a really fun ruin to raid. There were really neat artifacts in there.”

Nash snickers and shakes his head as old memories rise up to the front of his mind. “I can’t complain. Found those old pristine game consoles and working games. And, that old collectible computer tech totally paid for food for that whole summer.”

Harvos sighs reminiscently and smiles. “That corner store clerk could never figure out how a bunch of idiots like us had the money to buy so much junk food.”

Rubbing his large stomach, Nash searches his thoughts, stands up from the couch, and laughs. “Shit, now I’m hungry. I’ll be right back, I got some ice cream sandwiches I need to finish off.”

Glancing to a point off camera, Harvos twists his mouth, hums in thought, and licks his lips. “Yeah, Malva did leave a few liters of specialty ice cream in my freezer.”

Nash’s voice sounds out from the kitchen above the din of rummaging frost and boxes. “Man, you better carb up. When she gets back, she might be ready to go for round, what, three or four?”

Harvos slowly tilts his head while glaring at the camera, angles his pair of large, straight horns, and grimaces between begrudging pride and stale embarrassment.

----

Late afternoon sun glows into the room from the closed horizontal blinds on the window. Sitting on a bright-colored bed spread pattern of cartoon characters, Veevi concentrates her pink pupil eyes on her colorfully decorated aetherphone, and huffs out her annoyance. Tossing back her long pink hair, she sits up straight, stretches her thin, tan and brown-stripped legs, and flicks her fuzzy, upright ears. Crossing her legs, back she settles back into a seat on the bed, curls her short-hair tail around her lithe frame, and snarls her upper lip petulantly as she aims an ear towards the door of her room.

A few firm knocks sound out from the door, and Chad’s voice calls out from the other side. “Veevi. Are you going to come down for dinner? You can still eat with the team.”

Furrowing her brow, Veevi grits her teeth as a swell of fury raises the hairs on her tail, and snaps her infuriated glare at the door. Pulling her lips back, Veevi directs her rage towards Chad’s voice, and spits out a growling tantrum through her sharp teeth. “GO FUCK YOURSELF, CHAD! If I’m SO welcomed at the dinner table... then why THE FUCK AM I NOT WELCOMED ON THE MISSION?! You think about THAT? DUMBASS! If I wanted to listen to a tiny dicked betrayer, I’ll go knock on your door.”

Drawing a hard, harsh breath through her nose, she blurts out her abject anger with blatant contempt. “Go join the rest of YOUR TEAM, you worthless shit! And LEAVE ME ALONE!”

After a few silent moments, a worn sigh resounds from the other side of Veevi’s bedroom door, and Chad’s voice drifts away. “Okay. If that’s how you feel.”

Veevi maintains a petulant, pouting glower at the entryway, and flicks her fuzzy ears listening. Seconds later, she slightly cocks her head to the distant, muffled sounds of wooden creaks from the stairwell. Snapping her gaze back to her front, Veevi fights a range of grimaces while her mind visually obsesses over numerous thoughts. Gritting her teeth, she sharply hisses in a breath, and snorts out a disgusted, indignant growl. Her tail whips erratically side to side, and hairs on the back of her neck spring up. In a surge of spite, she snatches up a small bed pillow in her sharp nailed fingers, and flings it wildly across the room. It impotently fluffs against a pop style poster of herself holding a stage mic. She narrows her stare upon the image, sighs into a frown, and flicks her ears back. “Fucking should have just worked on another album instead of this bullshit.”

As her eyes linger upon the other promotional images of herself, a sad taint colors her frown, and faint, depressed whine infiltrates her breaths. Idling a distant gaze down towards her bed spread, she wraps her arms around her tight fitting shirt, and her ears droop slightly. In the silence, her pink pupil eyes wander through her thoughts, and her grip on her brown-striped, tan arms tightens with flits of winces on her face. Guarded breaths slip through her mouth, and waves of discomfort shake her form.

A melodic ring sounds out from her aetherphone. She flips the display into her view, and reads the caller information. Her eyes light up, a genuine smile graces her lips, and her voice wavers. “Momma...”

Quickly tapping the answer button on screen, the call connects and the video feed appears. On Veevi’s aetherphone a middle aged human woman with a tan face of makeup, carefully styled pink hair, and pink pupil eyes perks her dark pink brow. “Baby?”

Veevi sniffs up some tears and smiles weakly. “Hi, Momma.”

Veevi’s mother releases a long sigh, presents an understanding smirk, and cocks her head. “How are things, my baby girl?”

Wrestling a cringe, Veevi shrinks a little as she tightens her grip on her phone, and whines. “Not good...”

Her mom shakes her head, twists her mouth, and gazes at Veevi through the call with a comforting voice. “I know. I saw, baby. Momma loves you and is here for her little girl. You know you can always call me. You don’t have to wait for me.”

Veevi nods her head, sighs into a sad frown, and runs her hand through her long pink hair. “I love you, too. And... I know. I just... Wanted to handle it myself...”

Her mother perks her brow, cracks an amused smirk, and chuckles. “Oh baby, you know you don’t have to do that. You don’t need to be tackling these things all by your lonesome. What kind of mother would I be to let her little girl fight off these snakes in the grass by herself?”

Veevi’s frown lightens into a tentative smile, and she wipes welling tears out of her eyes. “I know. I just didn’t want to disappoint you.”

Cocking her head to the side, Veevi’s mother unconsciously checks her hair style with her long, painted nails, and furrows her brow. “As if you could. After all the talent shows you won, the way you showed them on the Next Star of Nexus, and going on all these adventures... You have made me so proud.”

She narrows her examining stare through the video call, hoists up an inquisitive brow, and tugs at the corner of her mouth. “Now... The question is... What are you going to do next?”

Blinking blankly, Veevi squirms uneasily, sighs out her frustration, and grimaces. “Gods, momma, I don’t know! The other show was so much easier. I was the only star and I didn’t have to deal with others, and all these rules. It was so simple to charm anyone who was difficult to do what I want. This is just SO HARD.”

She frowns, and grumbles while rolling her eyes. “I’d just rather work on my next album. To hell with this show, and fuck these people.”

Her mother’s voice peaks up from the other side of call, and a commanding glare meets Veevi’s surprised gaze. “Don’t you DARE give up now! There’s no way I’m letting my little girl quit so easily. That’s the not the Veevi I raised, all by myself!”

Veevi’s fuzzy ears droop to the sides, and her pleading face quivers. “No! I don’t WANT to give up! I- I... I just don’t know what to do now. This is so different. Nothing is working.”

A warm, compassionate smile radiates from Veevi’s mother, and she shakes her head as she comforts her daughter with a motherly tone. “I know, baby. This is a different game than the rest. You’ve done really good with using your tricks.”

A sly grin parts her lips and she tilts her head to the side with a devious highlight to her cadence. “But, I think it’s time for momma to teach her little girl some new tricks. I’ve been wondering when I’d have to bring out the advanced lessons.”

Veevi’s fuzzy ears perk, her tail flicks up, and flit of intrigue lights her eyes. “Really?! Oh, you know the all the best things, momma!”

A smug, prideful smile appears on her mother’s face, and the middle aged woman soaks the praise with a giggle. “Of course. And, I think I need to pass them down to you, so you can survive in this crazy world like I’ve had to. So, first things first...”

She cocks her head to the side, brings the camera on her side of the call close, and smirks. “All this that has happened... is a great opportunity for YOU.”

Blinking through her confusion, Veevi puzzles over the statement. “How so? I’m just going to be here all by myself, while they go and adventure without me.”

Veevi’s mother grins devilishly and laughs darkly. “Exactly, baby. They’re going to leave you all alone in that house, and they won’t be around. So, for a few days, you have full run of the place... And all their stuff. Who knows what you’ll find?”

Flickers of realization glint in Veevi’s eyes, and she ponders out loud. “I mean... Yes... But... I think I know what you are getting at. But, they keep their bedroom doors locked.”

Narrowing her gaze around a sinister spark in her eyes, Veevi’s mother giggles with an eager smile and shakes her head. “Oh, please. Those are interior door locks, they won’t be able to stop you after I tell you a few of my tricks.”

Veevi’s tail wags side to side in anticipation, and she brings her phone close with an excited grin. “Oh, please, teach me, momma!”

Her mother draws in a long breath, settles down in a seat, and picks up a glass of wine from off camera. “Okay, baby. Listen good. We’re going to make sure they will think twice before they EVER try to put you off the team.”

----

A sliding glass door slowly opens, and Bach slips out onto the moonlit balcony of a two story hotel. Easing the handle, he gradually seals the door, and steps carefully away towards a metal mesh chair. He settles down into the seat, slumps his shoulders, and stares distantly out into the faint aura glow in the eastern horizon. Rubbing his blue eyes, he brushes back his brown hair, and releases a long sigh. He props his elbows on the chair arms, and rests his hands on his stomach. After moment, he pulls at his looser fitting t-shirt, and puzzles while pantomiming missing personal mass. Briefly lifting an amused brow, he shrugs his shoulders, and smirks. With a long draw of breath, his attention shifts to emerging thoughts in his head, and he sighs deeply with an uncomfortable grimace. Shaking his head, he sorts through his mind, and twists his mouth uncomfortably. Pinching the bridge of his nose, he props his tilted head up by his arm, and grumbles to himself. “Damn...”

Phasing through the sliding glass door, Sebastian’s ethereal form emerges from the interior of the hotel room, and steps out onto the hotel balcony. He glances around, spots Bach, and whispers. “Hey, bro. What’s up?”

Bach blinks out of his introspective stupor, and settles his gaze upon Sebastian. “Nothing really. Just couldn’t fall asleep right now.”

Nodding understandingly, Sebastian drifts down into another similar metal mesh chair, and hovers roughly in place on the seat. He shifts his attention to Bach, and sighs with a ghostly reverb. “Nothing else bugging you? Anything you want to talk about?”

Bach pauses in thought, mulls over a few ideas while rocking his head side to side, and shrugs his shoulders. “I mean... Nothing new. Well, no new topics. Just updated versions of the same things.”

Sebastian cracks a smile over to his brother, and motions to him. “Like what? Throw it out there, bro.”

Letting his head tip back, Bach rolls his head, blows the stubborn white streak of hair out of his face, and ponders out loud. “Shit... Well, there’s always the usual existential dread. The constant worrying of what Isaac, Noxian might be doing right now. Wondering if we are making any real progress towards stopping him.”

He darts his eyes around his head space, and grits his teeth. “I mean, what the hell is he even planning? It can’t be anything good. And, the lengths he gone to... I mean... At this point, we can’t ignore it now.”

With a long sigh, he slumps down in the chair, rocks his head forward, and awkwardly smirks to Sebastian. “Then there’s...”

He roughly motions to himself and shakes his head dismissively. “Me. I mean... Fuck, man. I wield power that every Dark Lord has ever wanted to have. I went from hiding it and avoiding it for YEARS... Now, I’m using it to do insane things. In a few months.”

Rubbing the temples of his head, Bach gazes over to Sebastian’s ghostly form, and cracks a smile. “It’s really fucked up when you think about it.”

Sebastian snorts ethereally, smirks with a chuckle, and shakes his head. “Yeah. It’s all pretty rightly fucked up, bro. I mean just over half a year ago, I was chasing down Noxian. Almost had him. He was cornered, weakened, and almost at our mercy. Really thought it was going to be that perfect chosen one victory over the great evil dark lord.”

With a sharp wince, he weathers a cascade of painful memories, and frowns. “Then, he caught me off guard, blasted my dumb ass, and that gods damned sword revealed this weird preservation function? I don’t even know what to call my present state of existence. Fuck...”

Bach watches the mix of muted pain and aggravation creep across Sebastian face, and sighs. “Totally had it all figured out, and then something completely unexpected happens. And what spared you from one fucked up situation... Puts you right in a whole new fucked up situation.”

Sebastian presents a commiserating smile, gazes into his brother’s eyes, and laughs. “I totally get it now. Sorry, I didn’t try harder to reach out to you all those years ago.”

Shaking his head, Bach waves off the notion and grins appreciatively. “Shit, don’t worry about it. It’s not like I was in the right state of mind to even process any of it, or even accept help. We’re handling shit now, and I’m just glad for that.”

Sebastian nods at Bach, glances out towards the eastern horizon, and surveys the dense, low city sprawl. “Same here. We’ll figure all this out. Just happy to have you along, bro.”

The two brothers watch colorful weird zone phenomena glow out in the distance in a long, silent lull. Minutes later, Bach blinks back to awareness after noticing to sound of the city at night. He quirks his brow at Sebastian. “Not that I don’t appreciate the company, but you think your ghostly self should be out right now?”

Sebastian searches his mind, shrugs his shoulders, and points to the weird zone glow off in the horizon. “Honestly, I think the locals are used to far weirder crap.”

Bach scratches his beard, yawns, and nods in agreement. “Yeah. Point taken.”

-93-

Trakenthin inspects the tightly packed back of the sports utility vehicle with firm pokes. With a satisfied nod, he closes the back hatch door, and pushes down to a secure click. Wandering his hazel eyes up at the partly cloudy, morning skies, he walks up to the open front passenger door, and hops in. Chad adjusts his driver’s seat, pushes back his light brown, coiffed hair, and turns the ignition key. Tassilda settles into her middle aisle seat, and taps out messages on her aetherphone with a delighted smirk. Deedri leans back into her seat, angles her auburn glance over her shoulders, and sneaks a loving smile towards Modoran. Stretching his dusky bluish gray arms out along the length of the back bench, Modoran maintains his nonchalant exterior, despite the distracting, playful brushes of Deedri’s tail tip against his leg.

Chad gazes towards the porch of the two story house, and ignores the numerous recording crew littering the front yard. His wary stare gravitates to the front door. Crossing her tan, brown striped arms, Veevi concentrates a harsh, disgusted glare at the vehicle. She notices Chad, stiffens up her posture, and snarls her upper lip. Nearby camera crews quickly refocus, and train recording equipment on both Chad and Veevi. Working through a grimace, Chad eases out of a stressed sigh, and waves towards Veevi. Twisting her mouth, Veevi summons up a petulant toss her her long, pink hair to the side, and promptly spins around. With a defiant flick of her tail, she shoves through the front door. A loud, muffled slam sounds out, and members of the Flames of the Phoenix notice. Chad shakes his head, puts the black, dinged and dented sports utility vehicle into reverse, and backs out on the main road.

Inside the house, Veevi peeks out the gaps between blinds, and narrows her pink pupil gaze. She watches the chaos of Next Adventurers of Nexus vans rolling out after the Flames of the Phoenix, and other crew members scrambling. From the kitchen archway, Urdi aims a directional microphone, Radnae trains a camera towards the front door, and Harris maintains a watchful eye over the scene. Veevi turns around and slowly steps towards the couch. She punctuates her dump upon the couch with a long, dramatic growl, and frowns out a clashing mix of disappointment and irritation. Her attention shifts to the remote on the coffee table, and she swipes the device between her sharp nailed fingers. Minutes of idle, apathetic surfing pass, with her fuzzy ears perking towards the front door. As the sounds in and surrounding the house grow stagnant, a sly smirk creeps out, and her eyes sneak towards the camera crew waiting in the kitchen.

Veevi springs up from the couch with a defiant, sharp grin, and her long, short-haired, pink tail flicks up into an eager wag. Stepping out into an ideal camera angle, she struts with a sinister giggle straight to the kitchen archway. Harris guides Urdi and Radnae out of the way and into new positions. Veevi skips into the kitchen, and springs up towards the refrigerator. In one swift motion, she yanks the fridge door open, and slowly surveys the contents inside. Her eyes narrow suspiciously, and she leans forward while reaching deep inside. A devious smile springs wide on her face, and she slowly works her arm out. She perks a curious brow at the brown glass bottle in her grasp, and puzzles at the grath writing on the label. Shrugging her shoulders, she jams the top of the bottle underneath a drawer handle, and pries the cap off. Sniffing the aroma from the lip, she shrugs her shoulders pours back a long swig. Pausing thoughtfully, she ponders her impressions of the brew, and quirks an intrigued brow. Her attention gradually shifts up to the upper cabinets above the refrigerator. Placing the grath beer off to the side, she crawls up upon the counter top, and searches the top of the fridge. Finding a clear space, she opens up the upper cabinets, and peers inside. Digging through the random kitchen fodder, her hand pats around the recesses of the space. Her growing frustration halts, and her eyes spring open in delight. She angles her arm through the mess of random dusty boxes and cans, and retrieves an elaborately decorated cardboard box.

Easing herself back to the floor, she studies the container’s elaborate construction, the fanciful emin script, and the enticing imagery of chocolate, caramel, cream, and red fruits upon tiny cookies and cakes. A sinister grin sparks an evil glint in Veevi’s eyes, and she slowly lifts the lid. She draws in long breaths through her nose as the surrounding air mixes with the bouquet inside. With the lid in her other hand, Veevi licks her lips as she greedily studies the nearly untouched selection of treats. Resting the bounty upon the counter top, she plucks her choice from the gamut. Swiftly popping the cookie in her mouth, she giggles in shameless delight.

Savoring the moment, she rests the lid back upon the finely crafted box, sweeps up the grath beer, and marches towards the kitchen archway. With Urdi, Radnae, and Harris following behind, Veevi walks confidently up the stairs, and scans the upstairs hallway. She examines Tassilda’s bedroom door, grips door knob, and twists. The door remains securely closed, and Veevi hums in thought. She drinks down long swig of the beer, blinks in surprise at the flavor, and settles her attention back at the door. Kneeling down, she carefully turns the knob. Her fuzzy ears perk to the faint mechanical sounds, while her eyes watch the hints of movement in the gap between door and door jamb.

----

Aristespha, Bach, Sotalia, Cideeda, and Dretphi stand outside a busy cafe. Aristespha glances down at her aetherphone, eyes the decorative signs, and nods. “The Sisters Cafe. The PDF investigators said to meet them inside.”

Shrugging his shoulders, Bach pushes pushes a door, and holds it open. “Well, let’s find them, I guess.”

As the team walks into the entry, each scans the arrangements of tables, chairs, and booths. Locals converse between each other, enjoy a variety of beverages, and eat sandwiches with eclectic sides. A pair of fvalian women with similar dark orange eyes, freckled faces, and burnt sienna, furry ears coordinate themselves within the tight space behind a long counter. One pauses at an archway, calls out in a dialect of fvalian, and waits as the air flow to the kitchen flutters the tufts of her pointed ears. An identical style of fvalian yells out over the ambient din with a trailing grumble. Rolling her eyes, the fvalian woman at the doorway, hoists up a tray nearby, and balances herself over to the register with a forming line of customers.

Cideeda and Sotalia exchange glances and quietly share snickers as the sassy fvalian conversation bounces between the two fvalian women in front and the voice in the back. Bach whispers between Sotalia and Cideeda, and furrows his curious brow. “What’s going on over there?”

Cideeda shakes her head of short multi-color air, and glances her emerald green eyes up at Bach. “Nothing. Just a bunch of sisters bickering at each other.”

With a reminiscent giggle, Sotalia crosses her arms and smiles at Bach. “Reminds me of my sisters. Gods, I would never think of working with either of them. We’d tear each other apart before the day was out.”

She narrows her golden eyed gaze towards the counter, observes the fvalian woman, and listens to the conversation with her pointy ears. “I think the older one is running the register.”

Gradually nodding, Cideeda smirks, and glances up to Sotalia. “Yeah. She is ordering the other two around.”

Aristespha studies her aetherphone, reads a message, and overlooks the layout of the cafe. Her search locates a separate dining area through a set of double doors. From a large table inside, an older Perimeter Defense Force officer waves towards the team, and smiles through his bearded face. Signaling the direction to the rest of the group, Aristespha navigates down the walkway between tables and booths. “Found them.”

Aristespha, Bach, Cideeda, Sotalia, and Dretphi weave through the busy and cramp layout of talking patrons and locals idly staring a tablets and laptops with fanciful mixes of tea and coffees. Sotalia spots an elaborate, colorful concoction in a large mug, and mutters to herself. “Oh. That one looks too good.”

Dretphi glances between the different entrees, sides, and treats, and ponders out loud. “Good selection. Simple. Well made.”

Her steely gray eyes focus upon a few desserts, and she eagerly smiles while covering her mouth. “They have those...”

Filing into the side dining area, the older officer stands, and motions the team to chairs surrounding a long table. “Well, you all look the parts from your guild descriptions. Have a seat.”

He points to himself and chuckles with a smirk as he waves casually to his badge. “Officially, Perimeter Defense Force Senior Investigator Calvin Savage. Please, just call me Calvin.”

He gestures towards a woman with very long, fuzzy ears, and long, braided multi-color hair. “This is Investigator Treevianna Murimakti.”

Treevianna bows slightly, gazes over the group with her aquamarine eyes, and presents a pleasant smile on her blue hinted, tan face. “As with Calvin, Treevianna is perfectly fine.”

The rest of the team introduces themselves around the table before everyone takes their seats. Sebastian’s voice greets the officers from the sword at Aristespha’s side. “Calvin, Treevianna. Just to get this out of the way... I hoped you’ve been informed of my state of being?”

Calvin blinks blankly for a moment, recovers from the initial surprise, and laughs lightly. “I have. But, I didn’t really know what to expect.”

Treevianna suspiciously eyes the sword as Aristespha props it up in an empty seat, and twists her mouth. “We’ve been told you can project yourself?”

Sebastian’s voice resonates from the holstered blade. “Yes. But, I try not to do so if I think it might upset bystanders. One less thing we need to explain. And, far less drama.”

Treevianna nods, and Calvin resettles into his seat. Tugging his leg back to a comfortable position under the table, he stretches out his back with a smile. “So, straight to business first, and then we can enjoy our lunches?”

Aristespha motions her head towards the busy cafe through the doorway, and lifts an intrigued brow. “To be honest, we are a little curious about meeting at a cafe. Any particular reason why?”

Calvin grins with a snort, and shrugs his shoulders. “A few. I’ve helped the sisters who own this place over the years, so they don’t mind me using this private party room during off hours. It’s secluded enough for most conversations I’d have at this level.”

He chuckles and rolls his eyes. “And... Truthfully, with the people I have to deal with most the time, a promise of a nice lunch here gets them to show up more often than crappy coffee at the head PDF office.”

Treevianna sighs with a reluctant smirk, and shakes her head. “It has proven quite effective.”

Reaching towards the floor next to him, Calvin hoists a satchel into his lap, and opens it up. “Well, let’s get the business out of the way. We’ve been tracking Mr. Isaac Huxley indirectly by where his new ride has been seen on the traffic cams.”

As Calvin arranges folders, printouts, maps, and data drives on the table, Treevianna glances over the team. “It has been a slow process. While we don’t know the exact places he has been, we have been able to narrow it down to a few areas he has visited for significant amounts of time. We investigated possible sites in some areas we could easily determine and verify. Hence, we have checked his motel room and locations he visit for meals.”

Sebastian’s voice resonates from the blade with a hopeful tone. “Any chances he’s still somewhere in Perimeter?”

Sliding the collection of documents and data to the awaiting team, Calvin grits his teeth briefly, and sighs with a shake of his head. “Wouldn’t count on it. Good news, we haven’t caught any video of him hitting the docks or leaving out any northern routes. There's only a few routes to those places, so I think he hasn’t left back north or tried to leave by sea.”

He draws in a long breath, and frowns slightly as he signals to the patient Treevianna. “But... Despite that...”

Treevianna straightens up her posture, and addresses the team in a serious tone. “The border area between Perimeter and the Perimeter Weird Zone is mostly unrestricted. While there are official exit gates upon main roads, there are plenty of side routes that have no monitoring.”

She frowns sternly, and interlocks her fingers in front of her upon the tabletop. “He nor his vehicle have shown up on city traffic cameras or monitoring stations for the last few weeks. We assume he has left Perimeter for the PWZ. But, we cannot confirm how or where.”

Sebastian’s ethereal sigh sounds out from the sword. “Makes sense.”

Studying a map Dretphi unfolds upon the table between the team, Bach twist his mouth in thought and cocks his head to the side. “Well, it’s also one of the major draws to this area. Isaac goes to strange magical places. And, the biggest weird zone around sounds like something that might be on his list, I guess?”

Cideeda curls her claw tips under an enlarged picture of a blue all terrain vehicle, scrutinizes the details of the image, and flicks her tail with her thoughts. “He wouldn’t have traded out his sedan down here for something designed for off road, UNLESS he was going to use it.”

Dretphi leans over to study the locations of traffic cameras and visually traces the major routes between intersections. She angles her head over to the conversation and comments. “He came here for a reason. The zone. He could have gone other places to escape. Could have abandoned his car.”

Unplugging a data drive from her tablet, Aristespha retrieves another storage device, connects it, and gazes her violet eyes over to both Calvin and Treevianna. “He retrieved something from the Grand Library, stopped in Amaranth Valley, and immediately headed here. We are assuming some connection.”

Bach passes a smaller map to the curious Sotalia, and eyes over a printout. “Yeah, and despite the fact we practically ran him out of town, he came straight HERE. So, something important is down here. But... We’re still trying to figure out exactly what.”

Calvin and Treevianna nod in agreement and watch the team study the materials. Sotalia’s golden eyes narrow upon a circled section with timestamp notes, and she taps a long, thick black nail upon the label on a business location within. “What’s this Lady Rhian’s Shoppe of Magic and Treasures?”

Quirking his brow, Calvin tilts his head to the side and smiles. “Lady Rhian deals in a lot of magical curios and supplies. She’s fairly knowledgeable about what comes out of the zone, and knows a few runners.”

Aristespha, Bach, Cideeda, and Dretphi notice the blatant interest piquing on Sotalia’s face, with looming trepidation. Treevianna glances towards the smaller map in front of Sotalia, and nods as she explains. “Isaac was extensively in that area a few times. But, there’s a large open market in the middle of the surrounding commercial buildings that cater to people who deal with the zone and adventurers. Without context to Isaac’s motivations, we held off investigating that area, until we met with all of you.”

Dretphi glances over the team. “He had to resupply. We left him no opportunity.”

Sebastian’s voice sounds out from the blade. “I agree. We’ll definitely need to check that area out tomorrow.”

An eager grin sneaks out onto Sotalia’s face, and she taps info into her aetherphone. “Oh, we need to stop by Lady Rhian’s Shop.”

A wave of quiet fills the room, and faint suspicion focuses Aristespha, Bach, Cideeda, and Dretphi upon Sotalia. Moments later, Sotalia meets the attention from the rest of the team, rolls her golden eyes, and groans defensively. “If you are going to the zone, why not talk to someone who has experience with what comes out of the zone. Who am I going to go to for special supplies? Some random street merchant, or someone doing well enough to have proper building?”

Cideeda tugs at the corner of her mouth, crosses her arms, and shrugs her shoulders. “She has a point. If you are unfamiliar with the market in the area, you’re better off going to someone established, than someone who can pack up overnight.”

Calvin nods in agreement, and smiles reassuringly. “Also, Lady Rhian knows Mavian, and he has extensive experience going deep into the zone. So, if he’s around, he’d be a good one to talk to.”

Bach surveys the amount of information on the table top, and directs his voice towards the sword. “So, I guess that’s definitely a place to visit tomorrow. I mean, there’s a lot here we need to go through.”

With a hearty chuckle, Calvin shakes his head. “Yeah. I don’t envy you all. It was hell to compile that much. But, hopefully, we’ll have a few more useful leads once we get done sorting through the last clues we’ve found. We’ll finish that up tomorrow and compare notes later.”

He glances out the doorway, spies a few fresh entrees emerging from the kitchen, and addresses the group. “I know I said business first... But, you all against getting our drink orders in?”

The team exchange quick glances, and show no contest. Sotalia snaps her glance out at a familiar beverage freshly made upon the counter, and directs Calvin and Treevianna’s attention. “Speaking of, what is THAT? I think I want one.”

Treevianna spots the drink, cracks a smile, and nods to Sotalia. “You do. It’s wonderful. Calvin got me hooked on them. They’re called-”

She speaks out an elaborate term in fvalian. Sotalia and Cideeda perk up, and both ask questions between gestures about the ingredients and creation of the treat. Bach, Dretphi, and Aristespha glance at her each, and curiously watch the conversation between Cideeda, Sotalia, and Treevianna, while Calvin snorts and shakes his head.

----

In the far corner of a large super-market parking lot, Marcus paces in the open field near a run-down, old van. He combs his slicked back hair with his fingers, and sighs. “We just got THIS week left. We NEED to do something!”

Cind crosses her dark gray arms, shuffles upon the cab floor of the van, and draws her legs back through the open side door. “I don’t know. We REALLY need to get back to High Alton. It’ll take us a few days to get back up there. Then, we have to get ready for classes once we get into our dorms.”

Shrugging his shoulders, Kell scratches his shaggy beard, twists his face into a grimace, and furrows an uncertain purple on black eyed stare towards Marcus. “Yeah, man. I think our chances of doing something big have dried up. But, I mean, it’s not like we haven’t tried. And you know, it’s been kind of cool overall. Got to see one of the biggest dragons up close, and it seems like he’s treated pretty good.”

With an agreeing nod, Cind smiles reassuringly towards Marcus. “Kell is right. I mean. We can plan something during our Fall break. Or, maybe the we can work with another dragon rights group and join them on a demonstration.”

Kell smirks while he picks at a chipped section of one of his horns. “Yeah. I’m all for a good cause, but I think we’re looking in the wrong place.”

Marcus closes his dark brown eyes tightly, rubs either side of his nose, and groans. “Maybe- I- Well- Dammit...”

He draws in a long breath, stops pacing while straightening his back, and address the duo sitting out the open van side door. “We’ll never do anything big with the People for Dragons’ Rights, if we don’t do something worthwhile. I just wanted to check out something before we head back.”

Kell and Cind glance to each other, and settle their attention upon Marcus. Cind tosses her braided red hair to the side, and blinks her bright blue eyes curiously. “Okay... I mean, I think we should have time for one thing?”

Contemplatively, Kell furrows his brow, and eventually shrugs his shoulders. “Yeah, I guess? We still need to get enough donation money to fill up the van for the trip back, and stock up on some noddle packs.”

A hopeful smile forms on Marcus’s face, and he rubs his hands together. “Good. Okay. Here’s what I think we should do. We need to check on that small amber dragon, and do a home visit.”

Kell lowers his brow tightly over his purple on black eyes, and focuses a suspicious, unconvinced stare upon Marcus. Cind flits her bright blue eyes wide open, sours her face into an uneasy grimace, and slowly shakes her head. “Uh, Marcus? I don’t think that’s the best idea... like... ever.”

Crossing his faintly purple tinted, light gray arms, Kell searches through the surges of hesitation in his mind, and scratches his long black nailed fingers through his unkempt black hair. “Yeah. Seriously. Really? I mean- I’m all for dragon rights, man. But, I think that one is being treated pretty nicely from what little we saw driving by those few times. They were teaching little guy how to fly. It was pretty nice.”

Working against the conflicting moods, Marcus dons an understanding tone, and organizes his plan. “Yeah. That’s what it looked like from those small, brief moments we saw. But, we don’t know. And, since we are still in the area... We should check it out.”

Cind wrestles with the notion visibly, squirms uncertainly, and grumbles out her reservations. “I guess. I would feel bad if we didn’t make sure and the little thing was being mistreated. But! I don’t want to do anything more than that. If there’s nothing wrong, then we head straight back to High Alton.”

Kell nods in agreement with Cind, and narrows a stern stare upon Marcus. “Yeah. And, I don’t know. That amber guy was pretty small to be a dragon. I think he may be a really big whelp.”

He grits his teeth briefly, and eases out an undecided groan. “Man... I don’t think we’ll have the time to, like, find where they live. It’s Tuesday, and classes start next week on Monday. It’ll take us two days to get back to High Alton. Cutting it close, my friend.”

Marcus nods understandingly, waves down the rising concern, and draws in a long breath to a confident grin. “Totally understand. Here’s what we’ll do. We’ll spend the rest of the day collecting donations, and be on the look out for the father. I’ve seen him a number of times and that same truck. He seems to stop by here for stuff a lot. If he stops by today, we’ll tag behind him, and find out where he lives.”

With dramatic waves of his arms to the sides, he smiles reassuringly with a nonchalant tone. “Before we head out to High Alton tomorrow, we sneak nearby, make sure the little dragon is being treated right. Then, we continue on our way. We’ve done our due diligence, and can drive back happy.”

Cind tugs at the frayed edges of her shorts, processes the plan between shifting grimaces, and releases a marginally sated sigh. “Okay. That’s sounds okay. If we can, we check, and then leave. I can do that.”

Marcus adjusts his gaze towards Kell. Loosening his firm resolve, Kell’s exterior relaxes and a smirk appears on his face. Brushing some of unkempt hair around his broken horn, he shrugs his shoulders and chuckles. “Okay, man. I’m good with that. If the girl is treating him good all the time, I’ll be pretty happy.”

Clasping his hands together, Marcus loosens the tension from his back, and nods appreciatively. “Great. Thanks. Now... We got some donations to collect.”

----

Flicking her tail side to side, Veevi wedges the unraveled end of a wire coat hanger in the tight gap between frame and door. Gritting her sharp teeth expectantly, she narrows her pink pupil eyes upon the locked door, and her fuzzy ears twitch with each mechanical noise. Holding back her swelling frustration, she concentrates and observes the door’s rattles against the scarred up jamb. Shoving a plastic card into the divide, a soft clunk sounds out, and the door shifts inwards. Blinking in surprise, Veevi gently leans her shoulder into the door, keeps the card and coat hanger in place. The door slowly swings open into the room and reveals an orderly space with bits of finer decoration.

Veevi carefully steps into room. She notices the desk with organized tomes of magic, neatly arranged stacks of recipes, and collections of packaged reagents. Walking further into the space, she wanders towards a vanity with an array of nail and horn care products. With a curious perk of her dark pink eyebrow, she picks up a few glass bottles, squints at the emin script, and puzzles. She swirls one container, and studies the darker polish inside.

Bracing upon the door frame, Radnae angles his camera inside Tassilda’s room. Urdi sneaks a boom microphone through the archway. Meanwhile, Harris points out Veevi, and quietly hand signals his instructions. As the crew readies themselves, Veevi finishes carefully brushing a coat of black polish on her pointed thumbnail, and observes. Seconds later, the fresh coating solidifies to an even, clean covering with a muted sheen. A satisfied smirk appears on Veevi’s tan face, and she caps the chosen bottle, and pockets the prize in her tight fitting shorts.

Veevi pivots in place and scouts out the rest of the room. Her gaze shifts between finely made cloaks upon a coat rack, pictures upon the dresser, and the intricate pattern of the bed spread. Stepping up to bed, Veevi brushes her sharp nailed fingers along the surface of the sheets, and furrows her brow. She feels the material more, and cocks her head. With a hop up, she lands down up the bed, and stretches out upon the comforter. Sliding up to the many pillows, she settles down and gazes up at the ceiling. She drifts off into her own thoughts while her eyes hunt around the different points of interests in the room. Sneering her upper lip, she squirms upon the top of the bed, fidgets uncomfortably, and rocks side to side puzzling. She sits up, glares down at the bed, and presses down hard in different places. Dropping off to the side of the bed, she reaches between the mattress and box, and her fuzzy ears flick up. She pulls out a plain, leather bound book. Slowly opening the thick tome, her eyes widen at pages upon pages of magical script and handwritten notation. A sinister grin parts her lips, and she giggles her dark satisfaction. Tucking the book under her arm, she steps quickly out the room, as the camera crew parts.

Veevi rushes off into her bedroom, and emerges out moments later. Gauging her interest between the other doors, she snatches the wire coat hanger and plastic card outside Tassilda’s bedroom, and skips over towards Trakenthin’s door. With a surge of confidence, she goes through similar steps, and promptly bypasses the bolt of the older, worn lock. Pausing briefly, Veevi tilts her head to the side in genuine surprise, and pushes the door open. With the camera crew following behind her, she glances around at the functional layout, sections of deliberate chaos, and modest organization scattered throughout. Veevi idly wanders around the room, picking though clothes, checking out practice gear, and tapping the keys of a secured laptop. Her suspecting gaze slides over towards the underside of Trakenthin’s bed, and an evil smile appears. She drops down on the carpeted floor, and peeks underneath the wooden bed frame. Reaching underneath, she slides out a metal ammo container. Unlatching the lid, she furrows her brow bewildered, and reads a label on a smaller box inside. “Two millimeter... electromagnetic cartridge...?”

Veevi blinks in surprise, and hunts excitedly around the area with a wild, eager glint in her eyes. “Trakenthin has a gun?! Where?”

She rummages under the bed, wiggles deeper underneath the frame, and scrambles around. Minutes later, she backs out through scattered piles of paperback and hardback books. She sits up, crosses her arms, and huffs out a disappointed frown. Her pink furred tail whips side to side, and she grimaces while surveying the mess around her. Settling her attention upon an ornate, thin wooden box, she slides off the lid and stares at a collection of paper pads. Flipping through the sheets, she cocks her head at pages of prose, notes, and space themed sketches. Resting the lid back down, she sits pondering the box in front of her. Moments later, a sly smirk cracks from the corner of her mouth, and she grips hold of the wooden container tightly. She bolts out through the camera crew, and into her room.

Strutting out into the hallway, she marches down towards the end, straight to Modoran’s door. With coat hanger in hand, she readies the mangled tip of the wire, and drives in it. The metal gouges the wood of the frame and flush fitting door. Veevi gawks incredulously, leans close to the door lock, and twists her mouth. Glancing at the other entrances, Veevi puzzles at the stiff, immobile door knob, and the door secure and tight against the jambs. The camera crews draw in closer, and focuses upon the futile attempts at Veevi to twist, pry, and jimmy the door. After a few minutes scratching the surfaces, Veevi snorts out her begrudging defeat, and steps back. Pivoting in place, she pauses her gaze at Deedri’s bedroom door.

An uncomfortable grimace creeps out from behind Veevi’s prideful facade, and her stare at the entry softens. Shifting her eyes briefly at the attention from the camera, she steps up to the door, positions herself to hide her hesitance, and carefully slips the coat hanger tool into gap next to the door lock. With a halfhearted effort, she dramatically wiggles the wire around the jamb and bolt near the knob, and grumbles out loud. “Damn, this lock is just as bad-”

The coat hanger end catches between erratic jiggles, the wire tip yanks the bolt clear, and the door slides inwards. Veevi’s eyes flit wide in a surge of shock, and she sneaks a peek at Radnae, Urdi, and Harris closing in. Mustering up her resolve, she projects her confidence, and pushes into the room. As Radnae and Urdi move forward, Harris hold both in place by their shoulders. “That’s as close as we can get to this room.”

Veevi steps slowly into the room, and squirms uneasily. She drifts her gaze around the area, spotting a desk of neatly organized files and records, a table top of spare medical supplies with reference books, and a plain, simple bed. Glancing over her shoulder at the crew, Veevi wanders aimlessly around, respectfully examining random items out in the open, and acting unimpressed. With deliberation on her face out of view, she kneels down behind the bed, and glances underneath. Easing a nervous breath out, she searches underneath carefully and purposefully slow. Knocking her hand loudly against the frame, and shuffling items around for the noise, she mutters incoherently and acts out a fruitless search. After a few minutes, she neatly places everything back, and starts to get up.

Her eyes spot a large accordion folder hidden between the wall and base of the headboard. She grimaces uneasily and stiffens her expression against waves of hesitation. Reaching out as her resolve crumbles against curiosity, she slides out the thick, treated cardboard container. Unwrapping the binding cord, she flips up the flap, and spreads open the individual sections. Sorting through, she slowly pulls out a piece of thick stock with intricate design work encompassing fanciful calligraphy. Veevi’s eyes trace the official wording across the document, the list of titles, and the array of certification seals. Her gaze softens and hints of a smile sneak out as she returns the degree. Walking her fingers along the folder divisions, she lifts up a large bundle of paperwork. Moments later her eyes widen as the monetary amounts, interest rates, and payments schedules visibly shake her. Dropping the promissory note back in the pocket with disgusted shake of her hand, she reaches down into to the last section, and pulls up a bundle of photographs. Veevi rests her eyes upon an image of Deedri proudly holding up a document while wearing a graduation gown. Behind Deedri, an older fvalian woman sharing similar features, smiles with her arm wrapped around lovingly. A genuine smile breaks out on Veevi’s tan face and she sniffs a few times. She plucks out a smaller picture hanging out from the bundle, and studies it. Her gaze softens, her eyes water, and a frown weighs heavily on her face. Her fuzzy ears droop to the sides, and a long, pained sigh sneaks out of her breath as she stares at the image of Deedri in the same gown, shedding tears while hugging an older fvalian man with similar auburn eyes.

Veevi’s ears perk up at the sounds of Urdi, Radnae, and Harris whispering. She replaces the items, rebinds the accordion folder, and gently hides it back. Working off the sadness in her expression, she musters up a bold demeanor, and springs up with a brash, dismissive tone. “Good fucking gods! There’s nothing, but medical texts and other nerdy shit. My head hurts just from looking at that.”

Strutting straight towards the exit, she pushes through the camera team, pivots sharply, and walks down the stairs with her expression wavering. “I think I need a beer and few more chocolates.”

----

People walk along the sidewalks between tall store fronts. Groups of people wander between advertising displays. And, traffic flows up and down the street. The distant drone of open market trading and discussions waft over the surrounding buildings, and drift down upon the team. Aristespha, Sotalia, Cideeda, Dretphi and Bach walk along the pavement. Bach glances up to keep his bearings while keeping pace behind Dretphi. He rolls his eyes and listens to the aetherphone against his ear. “Yeah, dad. I’ve tried a few of those spells. But, I’m still a little rusty on those bigger ones... Yeah- I- Yes. I tried that.”

He pinches the bridge of nose, angles the end of the phone away, and draws in a long breath. Rocking his head side to side, he grimaces briefly, and returns the mouthpiece close. “Okay, I’ll give it a try. I’m just taking it slow, and working my way back up to those again. And, I’m kind of focused on getting Sebastian back to normal.”

With snort, he grins and chuckles. “Well, as normal as he’s ever been. But, we’ll see how close we can get. Hell, it might even be an improvement.”

Sebastian’s voice resonates from the sword at Aristespha’s side. “I fuckin’ heard that, asshole.”

Nodding at the conversation, a spark of relief graces Bach’s face and he laughs. “Totally understand, dad. We’re about to do something, too. I’ll let you go do that. ... Yeah? ... Okay, I’ll let him know. ... Love you, too. Bye.”

Peeling the aetherphone off his ear, Bach shakes his head and grumbles. “Good gods, he must have been saving all that up for him to talk for that long. Rarely goes longer than fifteen minutes usually.”

He direct his voice to the sheathed sword at Aristespha’s side and snorts. “Sebastian, dad wants you to give him a call whenever you can arrange it.”

Aristespha shakes her head, and twists a frown with an annoyed grumble. “He has THE most unique ability to call at the worst times. And, when you return the call, he never answers!”

Sebastian’s voice sounds out with a humored tint. “Whenever you are eating or shitting. Never any other time. And, I swear he must turn the phone off after he makes a call. That’s the only explanation... Gods...”

Sotalia points towards a hanging wooden sign, and gazes upon the decorative lettering with a glint in her golden eyes. “There it is! Lady Rhian’s Shoppe of Magic and Treasures. Oh! I can’t wait.”

She darts ahead of the pack, pivots to stand in front of the large, ornately carved wooden doors, and smiles brightly. She pushes through the doors, and a faint chime rings out from in the shop. Aristespha, Cideeda, Dretphi, and Bach follow behind seconds later. Inside, Sotalia ambles ahead and gawks. She glances over the odd items and strange kitsch covering heavy tables in the middle areas. She scans down the long side paths of commercial products and unique offerings filling the tall shelves. Moving forward, her path wanders between the draw of colorful magic displays, and the allure of unlabeled artifacts behind glass. As the rest of the team comprehends the contents of the shop, Bach leans towards the middle of the group and whispers while motioning to Sotalia. “I think we’ve made a mistake...”

Aristespha smiles tightly and nods as she draws in breath through teeth. “It was either this or the open market today. I don’t know which would be the greater evil.”

Shifting her emerald eyes between the products, Cideeda tugs at the corner of her mouth and rests her hands on her hips. “May the gods have mercy upon her bank account.”

Bach glances around. “Maybe I should stay with her to-”

The team notices Sotalia’s absence. The group spreads out slowly, scanning around for signs of fiery orange, wavy hair, swept back horns, or a cloak zipping around the corner. After minutes of slow progression around the middle tables of magical merchandise, Dretphi lifts an unamused brow and points towards the back of the store.

The group walks up to the counter behind Sotalia. While organizing her freshly shopped pile of magical knickknacks upon the counter, Sotalia grins happily at the prominent display cases filled with strange and unique artifacts along the back wall. From around an archway, an evuukian woman with long, flowing crimson and gold blended hair appears with an attentive, bright orange eyed gaze assessing the situation. With particular interest towards Sotalia, she approaches the counter, and grins. “Hello, everyone. Welcome to Lady Rhian’s Shoppe of Magic and Treasures. I am Lady Rhian. And, I can tell YOU are a discerning customer.”

Sotalia glances over to Rhian, and smiles. “You could say that. I’m definitely interested in hearing all about your more unique selections. I have nieces and nephews that are depending on their aunt to bring them the best wonders of the zone.”

Rhian smiles confidently, and shifts her gaze to the rest of the group. “I definitely can assist you in that quest. Now, what do you all desire? I’m sure I have it.”

Aristespha furrows an examining brow, straightens her stance, and taps on her aetherphone. “We wanted to ask a few questions.”

Resting her hands on the counter, Rhian focuses her attention upon Aristespha, and tilts her head to the side. “Of course. What questions do you have?”

Aristespha presents the screen of her aetherphone toward Rhian. “Have you seen a man by the name of Isaac Huxley, lately?”

Cideeda’s emerald stare narrows at the faint hints of recognition upon Rhian’s face. Rhian’s smile flattens, and she shifts her weight back as she crosses of her arms. “I’m not one to talk about any who may, or may not, have entered my shop. Without GOOD reason.”

Sotalia frowns, draws in a long breath, and glares at Rhian. “What if the Dark Lord Noxian walked right in here?”

Rhian’s eyes flit wide and she squints incredulously at Sotalia. “What?! I think I would know if THE recent Dark Lord wandered into MY shop!”

Bach sighs, gazes at Rhian, and explains. “He doesn’t wear that mask like he did in the news anymore. Um, listen, did you see an older man with white hair, wearing blue scarf around his neck? Spoke like he has an academic background?”

The stoic facade on Rhian’s face crumbles a bit, and worry leaks out. Bach draws in a breath and scratches the back of his head. “Maybe he mentioned going into the zone, looking for something?”

Rhian blinks as her mind visually juggles facts and memories, and her stubbornness shields. “Plenty of different people want to go into zone. Your point being? It's not my business to discuss other people's business.”

Bach calls down to the sword at Aristespha’s side. “Hey, Sebastian, can you help us here?”

Sebastian’s voice resonates out. “Yeah, bro. I was thinking about it, too.”

The ethereal visage of Sebastian materializes out into an empty space in front of the counter, and he bows towards Rhian with a bold smile. “Sorry for the surprise, but I think this might provide a good reason quicker?”

Rhian’s jaw drops and she slowly nods her head. “Uh... Um... Actually, it does... Oh gods... You’re Sebastian Warwick. The chosen one? Of the sword... I remember seeing you in the news months back. I thought you were killed!”

Awkwardly grinning, Sebastian shrugs with a comforting laugh. “Well, so did I. But, long story short, that wasn’t the case.”

Searching her mind, recent memories flood her thoughts and Rhian gasps in shock. “Oh gods, Mavian! Oh my gods, I can’t believe- I’ve got to try to contact him and-”

Aristespha cranes her head around and focuses her violet eyes right at Rhian’s bright orange eyes. “It’s okay. Very likely, Isaac will not harm your friend. Despite his goals and motivations, he’s shown great regard for the safety of others and is very reluctant to harm anyone. Your friend should be safe.”

Sebastian presses his mouth shut, crosses his arms, and maintains an even tempered expression. Rhian slowly collects herself, and musters up her composure. “Okay. Sorry. A lot hit my mind. But, you are right. Isaac seemed very nice. Mavian knows how to handle himself.”

Pressing her hands firmly upon the counter top, she straightens her back, and draws in a long breath. "And last, I heard him a week ago... He hadn't seen Issac in Precipice yet. So... Okay..."

Gathering her thoughts, she returns her attention to the team before her. “So, what do you need from me?”

Sebastian glances over the group, and asks Rhian. “Information, first off. Anything you remember that could be useful in finding Isaac.”

Rhian swallows hard, and flutter her eyes. “Done. I just need to calm my mind a bit, then I’ll work on remembering all I can. It’s been a number of weeks, so the details are hazy right now. I do remember he got zone running supplies.”

Dretphi cocks her head to the side in thought. “We may need similar.”

An entrepreneurial smiles gradually recovers on Rhian’s light face, and she chuckles. “I have plenty in stock for sale. And, I exactly remember what package I sold Isaac.”

Cideeda perks her furry ears, wags her long tail, and cracks a toothy grin. “A friendly discount might assist us.”

Rhian shifts her gaze towards Cideeda, evaluates her, and smirks intrigued. “I’ll consider it.”

Bach lifts a curious brow and speaks with a appreciative tone. “Rhian, could you get us in contact with Mavian? So, we can see if we can warn him and check on him?

Her expression softens, and Rhian gazes at Bach. “Yes. He is in the zone. It’s hard to contact him from here. I might get lucky if the relays are working properly and he just happens to be in range. Chances are the best I can do is leave a message he might pick up at some point. But, if you are going into the zone, you might be able to contact him sooner.”

Bach smiles to Rhian and reassures. “I mean, we’ll definitely try to get in contact with him, and make sure he’s okay.”

Relief calms Rhian, and she relaxes. “Thank you. I do appreciate the effort. He’s hard to contact at times.”

She shifts her stare over to Cideeda, and wrestles between grimaces. “Twenty percent discount on the supplies. The best I’ll offer, with the condition you contact my- um- Mavian, and let me know he’s okay.”

Nodding appreciatively, Cideeda smirks satisfied. “That’s fair. I'll see if I can convince him to call you.”

Rhian rests her hands on her hips with an appreciate nod. She shifts her attention to Sotalia, and surveys the merchandise on the counter. “Now, let me collect my thoughts as I make some sales, and we’ll talk more.”

Sotalia studies the bounty of trinkets in front her, frowns, and crosses her arms. “Do you have any means of shipping these reliably? I want to make sure they get to my little ones.”

An enterprising grin widens across Rhian’s face, and she tosses her hair back confidently. “Why, of course! I actually offer a gift wrap, packing, and shipping service... for a modest fee.”

Cideeda analyzes Rhian’s demeanor, and thinks with the flicks of her furry ears. A spark lights up emerald eyes, and she smiles slyly. “Could the fees be waived with adequate trade of marketable artifacts?”

Rhian slowly pivots, studies Cideeda, and twitches her very long ears. “Possibly? What do you have to offer, that I don’t have?”

Bach startles, glances down at his forearm, and feels five claw tips lightly pull him over. He steps over next to Cideeda, and narrows a suspecting stare at her. Cideeda grins toothily at Bach with a pleading gaze, and gesturing out a cup. Rolling his eyes, Bach shakes his head with a smirk, and holds his hands together as faint flows of energy condense down into a forming shape. “So, start with some wine glasses? Maybe a tea set? I’ve gotten much better with plates lately.”

-94-

In the middle of an overgrown courtyard between old stonework structures, Chad surveys the quiet, serene area. A transparent figure emerges from the tall brush, and gradually grows more visible. Modoran nonchalantly steps up next to Chad and crosses his arms, reaching full opacity. “So, nothing to report on the perimeter. Just animal tracks.”

Chad glances down at his aetherphone, scrolls through a long checklist, and taps a box. “Good. No recent signs of intruder activity. That’s one less thing to worry about, and less paperwork.”

He straightens his back, eyes the recording crew nearby, and directs his voice to Modoran. “Just need to check with the others and, hopefully, we should wrap this site up.”

With an amused smirk, Modoran narrows his dark blue eyes, and tilts his head of short, light gray hair. “Yeah. Mission is going smooth so far. I mean, just routine and... normal.”

Chad nods, grimaces slightly, and sighs. “Yeah. It feels a little weird, but... Not in a bad way? I mean to put it nicely.”

Resting his hands at his sides, Modoran chuckles softly. “I know the feeling. I’m sure something will come up with one of these sites, but... This... This is nice.”

Gritting his teeth briefly, Chad cringes and twists out his guilt. “I know. Really wish I’d done what I needed sooner. Would have made a lot of our previous missions easier.”

Modoran shrugs his shoulders, and holds his hands out to the sides. “Oh well, it’s getting fixed now.”

In the distance, Deedri, Tassilda, and Trakenthin form up, and navigate through the high grass and ruined piles of stonework towards Chad and Modoran. Deedri waves over, points to her aetherphone, and gives a thumbs up. Chad glances down, scrolls through the checklist, and taps another item. “Looks like they got updated pictures. Nice. Moving along schedule.”

Sliding through images on her phone screen, Tassilda brushes back locks of raven black hair over her swirling horns, and drifts off into her mind. She shudders, and frowns uncomfortably. Trakenthin glances down, and tilts his head curiously. “Are you okay?”

Tassilda blinks back to awareness, and smiles. “Oh, yes. It’s just a weird feeling I’ve had today. Everything is fine. But, I can’t quite describe it.”

Deedri flicks her furry, tufted ears, idly taps her claw tips on her phone case, and nods slowly. “It has felt a little strange today. I guess we’re... um... Not used to everything going so well?”

Trakenthin snorts out a brief chuckle, and rolls his hazel eyes. “Explains it.”

Tassilda sighs, straightens up her posture, and dons a smirk. “Oh, THAT definitely explains it. It’s just so nice. I’m sure it’ll make for an awful episode.”

A sarcastic curl twists the corner of Deedri’s mouth, and she hides a sly grin. “Oh... Their poor ratings... Whatever shall they do. I SO pity them.”

Tassilda squelches a snicker, Trakenthin shakes his head with a short smile, and the trio regroups with Chad and Modoran.

----

A drowning chorus of energetic conversations, merchandise moving, and money exchanging reverberates through a sprawling, diverse open air market. People weave through scattered vendor stalls upon the white sand glazed, brickwork. Food, weapons, armor, artifacts, and domestic goods share equal footing within the expansive entrepreneurial arena. Dretphi stands near a booth, and gazes over the crowd at the collection of stuffed animal dolls. Her fiscal restraint wrestles the temptation before her, and the fight plays out upon her tan face. Biting her lip slightly, she briefly distracts herself playing with one of her large, platinum blonde braids, and sneaks out a sigh. Glancing down at the pair of swept back horns and fiery orange, wavy hair at her side, she hides her desire behind a neutral front. Sotalia darts up golden eyes at Dretphi with a sly grin, and pats her back lightly with a tempting tone. “I would totally buy the black velvet dragon. He’s soooo cute with the big blue eyes.”

Dretphi strains out a grumble as she crosses her arms up close, and conceals the eager smirk with a hand. “Yes. They all are. Do not know what I want. If I should...”

A mischievous grin grows across Sotalia’s lips, and she chuckles encouragingly. “Well, I think your dire boar on your shelf needs a friend.”

Drawing in a long breath, Dretphi slowly pivots and steps away to save her weakening will. “This is the first shop. Need to focus.”

As Dretphi and Sotalia rejoin Aristespha, Bach, and Cideeda, Dretphi whispers with a guilty smile. “Will know before we leave.”

Sotalia smirks, and giggles with a nod. “Of course.”

Bach stands up straight, peers over the crowd, and scans the area. “Huh, this isn’t much different than vendor halls at a convention. Same chaos. And, oddly, the same themes.”

From the sword at Aristespha’s side, Sebastian’s ethereal voice sounds out. “Yeah, bro. But, I get the feeling weapons and armor are VERY real here.”

Nodding at the sentiment, Bach spins around to the gathering and scratches his head. “So, what’s the plan?”

Aristespha twists her mouth uncertainly, and rests her hands on her hips. “Well, it’ll be impossible to cover all of this thoroughly. And, there’s no guarantee that anyone who could have been here to encounter Isaac is still here. So...”

Dretphi ponders out loud as she watches the flows of foot traffic. “Split up? Scout. Discuss over lunch?”

Cideeda brushes her clawed fingers through short, multi-colored hair, and hums out thoughtfully. “Probably the best plan we got right now. Split up, and focus on finding anyone selling supplies that could be useful to someone running around the zone. Then, after we eat, we get serious.”

Bach laughs, cracks a grin, and rolls his blue eyes. “So, just like exploring the vendor halls at an adventuring convention.”

Cideeda gazes up to Bach with her emerald eyes, and smirks confidently. “Exactly. Plus, it’ll be less likely to tip off the shadier ones if we actually look like we’re shopping, and not investigating.”

With a dramatic pivot, Sotalia’s eyes widen toward a distant stall filled with various trinkets, and steps away from the team with a wave of her long, black nailed fingers. “Sounds good to me. See you all later. I’m off to play my part.”

The rest of the team watches Sotalia strut away, without surprise. Aristespha rolls her violet eyes, tightens her smile, and shakes her head. “I’ll follow her. Someone needs to be her fiscal conscience.”

Cideeda snorts with a twisting curl of at her corner of mouth. “Good luck there.”

Following the path in the crowd towards Sotalia, Aristespha mutters. “How does she keep finding these things...”

After Aristespha departs, Bach glances around, shrugs his shoulders, and squints through the rows of vendor booths. “Well, I guess I can start looking that direction-”

He gazes down at the toothy grin upon Cideeda’s face, and notices the familiar five claw tips lightly upon his forearm. Lifting an eager brow, Cideeda straightens up her posture, pulls Bach over to her and Dretphi, and smiles. “Let’s stick together for a bit. I think there might be a few good opportunities for our combined experience and abilities to shine in this market.”

Bach nods slowly, and seeks a response from Dretphi. With a hopeful, warm smile, Dretphi gazes her steely gray eyes at Bach. “You are an expert at magic. Understand our equipment. We would appreciate your help. If you want?”

Blinking through the swell of pride and hints of embarrassment, Bach awkwardly shrugs his shoulders and attempts to play it nonchalant. “Uh- Um. Sure. I can do that. It’s what I know.”

Cideeda’s furry ears perk, her tail flicks up, and she flexes her clawed fingers expectantly. “Good. Let’s see what we can find around here. I’m certain we can shop for both goods and information easily enough.”

Dretphi nods happily, follows behind Cideeda next to Bach, as the trio merge into the traffic flow.

Cideeda, Bach, and Dretphi weave through the different stalls, booths, and displays. Following the winding routes down the worn brick paths, the trio stop to survey wares, engage in small talk, and ask cursory questions. They gather in a wide, open intersection between branching routes, and discuss their impressions. Through the surrounding din and drone, Cideeda’s furry ear flicks over towards the source of a voice. She blinks her emerald eyes. Recognition contorts her face, and she slowly pivots her head. Narrowing a glare through the gaps between people, her stare locks onto a fair complexion, wiry man with wild black hair. A sly, toothy grin parts her lips, and she chuckles darkly. “Ralado... Of all the people to see...”

Gazing up to Bach and Dretphi, Cideeda smiles eagerly and intertwines her fingers together with a pleading tone. “Okay... I’m going to need some help here.”

Bach darts his eyes around, shrugs his shoulders, and blinks out his confusion. “Sure? What do you need?”

An entrepreneurial glint lights up Cideeda’s emerald eyes, and she subtly motions over to the table with Ralado. “I need a little assistance convincing HIM to make some good on a refund, he has yet know he owes me. But, I don’t expect THAT much from him.”

She holds up a clawed finger, and smirks with a chuckle. “I do KNOW he keeps some quality stock in the mix, whether he knows it or not, that I think WE can... convince him to discount.”

Bach awkwardly mulls and stumbles on his words. “I, uh, guess? I mean, who is that guy?”

Cideeda grits her teeth briefly and hisses slowly. “Ralado. A supposed provider of quality parts, when he feels like it. There’s a matter of some sear springs I need to bring up with him.”

Dretphi firms up her expression, snorts lightly, and nods. “Understood.”

Noticing Bach’s reaction to her sudden tone change, she leans close, and whispers. “Portray yourself tough. Dangerous. Ralado gets nervous. Becomes cooperative. Otherwise, he remains stubborn.”

Nodding out shifting degrees of acceptance, Bach straightens up his posture and mimics Dretphi’s stoic front. Cideeda stretches out her shoulders and neck, adjusts her body language, and confidently approaches Ralado’s table.

Swiftly sweeping change off the table top to a lockbox below, Ralado smirks as a pair of faint footsteps stop in front of two pairs of heavier boot falls. He slowly lifts his head up, sits up on his stool, and grins with glints of greed in his bright yellow eyes. “Hello, prospective customers, how may-”

His grin wanes to a sharp smirk, and he focuses his attention upon Cideeda with an elaborate greeting. “Cideeda! Of all the places to see you! I’m SO happy to have someone of your grace before me. What can I ever do for YOU?”

Cideeda maintains a quiet exterior, studies a number of items on display, and twists her mouth. Scrutinizing the merchandise, she quirks her brow and releases a disgusted sigh. “While it does please me that you see me as such a good customer, I’m having some trouble bringing myself to be your customer again.”

Ralado chuckles as his bold facade conceals tinges of suspicion. “Why whatever would be troubling you so? And, more importantly, how can I resolve your hesitations?”

Cideeda’s furry ears gradually pull back, her lips sneer slightly to reveal her pronounced canines, and she inspects her sharp claw tips on a hand. “Well, there was this batch of sear springs I got from you that just were NOT up to your... advertised standards?”

Ralado maintains a firm exterior, sighs out his faux sympathies, and shakes his head. “I’m SO sorry to hear that.”

His gaze quickly darts to key points on Cideeda, Dretphi, and Bach, and a sly smirk curls at the corner of his mouth. “I am, of course, happy to accept a return for store credit... if you HAVE the items to return with you.”

Cideeda rests a hand on her hip, focuses her unamused stare upon Ralado, and waits. Ralado shrugs his shoulders and holds his hands up. “I understand where you are coming from. But, I have a business to run, and I can’t possibly give refunds to items I don’t get back.”

Cideeda grins toothily, aims her examining stare upon Ralado, and chuckles lightly. “I know. We’re both merchants in our own ways. But, I was thinking that you could smooth things over with a little courtesy discount on your QUALITY items.”

Sitting up straight, Ralado waves his arms out dramatically to the items in his stall, and presents a slick grin to Cideeda. “I don’t understand, Cideeda. ALL my items are QUALITY. And quality demands a proper price, which I know you understand all too well. You can’t very well expect me to cut my own throat, even if it is for one of my favorite customers.”

Cideeda glances up to Dretphi, shifts her gaze briefly to Bach, and leans forward to glare at Ralado. She furrows her brow, cools her expression, and sighs. “A little bit of goodwill goes a long way, Ralado.”

Ralado squints, and shifts his stare over to Dretphi. Crossing her arms, Dretphi puffs out her chest, flexes her upper arms, and sternly glares down. Ralado tugs at the corner of his mouth with a slight twitch, and nods. “I see you are doing well, Dretphi. It’s nice to see you, too. Always the stoic one.”

He turns his head up to Bach, pauses a moment, and tilts his head slightly. “And, who are you, sir?”

Cideeda smirks confidently, tilts her head towards Bach, and laughs with a dark tint. “Oh, that’s our new mage, Bach. He’s got a really SPECIAL way of handling magic. Stuff you could never imagine possible.”

Ralado lifts an intrigued brow, cocks his head, and chuckles out his amusement. “Really? Well, I’m always interested in the magical arts. Maybe I have something you’d be interested in.”

Bach stiffens his upper lip to hide his nerves, searches the table in front of him, and points to a metal armor plate. “Maybe. Can you tell me about this?”

Ralado grins eagerly, and motions to the plate. “Why yes, of course! It’s a metal plate from a very nice set of armor that was salvaged just recently. While, I don’t have the whole suit, that plate can be incorporated into so many different things. It’s solidly made of a high tech alloy from a reputable manufacturer.”

Nodding slowly, Bach quirks his brow and taps the plate calmly. “May I inspect it?”

With a gracious bow, Ralado smiles wide. “Yes, go ahead. See where it can fit to protect you best.”

Bach picks up the plate with one hand, flips around to different sides, and holds it along an edge. As his eyes glow blue, threads of magical flow condense into his hand and form into a translucent, golden handle. Gripping hold of the base, the energies solidify into a thin edge, and Bach brings the magical blade to the metal plate. Ralado starts to open his mouth and abruptly halts. The golden, solid flows gradually slide through the metal plate. Bach tenses his muscles as he carefully carves a long slice through the armor chunk. Constant, slow progress ends with a loud thunk as the edge portion of the plate drops upon the table top. The blade dissipates in a plume of magical miasma, and Bach studies the layers inside the metal. Lifting a curious brow, he hands the plate over to Dretphi and grumbles roughly. “Doesn’t look solid to me.”

Ralado’s jaw hangs open as his shock shifts between the cleaved metal strip on the table top, and the unamused sneer of Dretphi studying the cut plate. Returning the plate to Bach, Dretphi shakes her head, and growls. “Poorly laminated.”

Bach plops the metal unceremoniously down, and crosses his arms. Posing confident, Cideeda grins toothily, grips her hips proudly, and concentrates her emerald stare upon Ralado. “Well, if you are just going to pawn off crap so blatantly and not even attempt to make amends, then I guess I’ll just have to take my business elsewhere. And, I’ll HAVE to post a warning on a few guild forums about your business practices-”

Ralado holds his hand up, twist his mouth uncomfortably, and groans. “Fine. I’ll make good on the sear springs... as a discount upon something I have right NOW.”

Cideeda nods slowly in agreement, and draws a long breath. Her gaze darts between the number of items on the table top, and sorts through the nearby merchandise on display. Her tail slightly wags and her ears flick while her mind evaluates the inventory. She glances up to Bach and Dretphi, and traces their attentions. Upon a crate behind Ralado, both Bach and Dretphi eye a pair of high tech pistols. Cideeda’s eyes faintly widen, and she smiles as she points to the weapons. “Those.”

Ralado blinks, turns around, and locates the items. He curls a smirk, and presents them before Cideeda. “You always have the eye for quality, Cideeda. A fine pair of compact multi-stage coil guns. Which also command a fine price-”

Cideeda snorts, leans in, and smiles. “If anyone was buying them. You don’t put anything behind you if you think someone is actually going to buy it.”

She leads with a low price, and Ralado quickly dismisses it with a high counter. Cideeda shakes her head. “Do you even have ammo for them?”

She pitches forth another low price. With a dry chuckle, Ralado reaches behind him, plops a box of two millimeter electromagnetic cartridges in front of him, and pushes a high offer. Searching her mind, Cideeda studies Ralado’s expression and body language, twists her mouth, and ponders out loud a middle figure. Eyeing the merchandise in front of him, Ralado rocks his head side to side, deliberates while his eyes drive the calculations in his mind, and holds his finger up. “I will accept that. But, that’s factoring in most of your... Discount.”

Cideeda bows respectfully, smiles at Ralado, and chuckles. “I guess that’s as fair as I’ll get from you. For the rest of my discount... Maybe a little information from you?”

Ralado cocks his head to the side, lifts a genuinely intrigued brow, and hums amused. “Really? Well, I’ve been known to know things. What do you want to know?”

Sorting through her aetherphone, Cideeda presents Ralado with a picture of Isaac and smirks. “Seen a man by the name of Isaac Huxley?”

Narrowing his stare at the phone display, Ralado turns his head slightly and nods slowly with traces of recognition springing up. “Yes... A few weeks back. He stuck out to me for some reason. Just didn’t feel like one of the typical customers. I didn’t sell anything to him.”

A smug grin grows on his face, and he stretches his arms out with a shrug. “But, my memory is a little hazy. I think I saw him buy things... Somewhere? Maybe? I don’t know...”

Bach glances over to Cideeda, picks up the two pieces of the metal plate, and stares at Ralado. “Would putting this back together, help piece those memories together?”

Ralado ponders a moment, tilts his head, and crosses his arms with intrigue. “Possibly. If nothing else, such a spectacle just might amuse me enough to think about future possibilities and get me in the... remembering mood. So to speak.”

----

Sotalia struts through the open walkway between the aisles of commerce surrounding her, and stops to pull out her aetherphone. Tapping through menus, she glances around at notable landmarks, and types out a response. Afterwards, she casually scans the moving crowds and shifts her attention between the main routes. Her gaze wanders to the stonework pedestrian bridges over a channel and part of a waterway side plaza visible on the other side. Bach weaves through the dense crowds, and frees himself into the pocket of space between the forming lines of browsing customers. He brushes himself off, and walks over to Sotalia. “Wow, it’s really picking up around here. I thought the morning rush was bad.”

Sotalia smirks and surveys the scene. “I know. So, any luck?”

Rolling his blue eyes, Bach chuckles and combs back some of his longer brown hair. “Yeah. Cideeda was able to shake down Ralado and trade a refund on some bad parts for some info. Ralado saw Isaac, and mentioned who might have sold him stuff. We did an initial check, and most of the vendors he mentioned were there and seemed like they sold the right stuff, too.”

He shrugs his shoulders. “So, some possibilities to check out.”

Crossing her arms, Sotalia shifts her weight and visibly contemplates. “Better than what we found. A few people looked like they were selling zone gear. But, it’s picked up too much to really get their attention long enough to ask questions.”

Bach glances around, and puzzles. “Where’s Aristespha?”

A sly grin graces Sotalia’s face and she chuckles brightly. “Oh, I may have convinced her to buy a few things for herself. I could tell she found a few wants, and I think I finally got her to loosen the wallet, just enough.”

She gazes at Bach, and smiles softly with a calm tone. “After all we’ve been through, I think we should enjoy the little things a bit more. Despite what we’re actually here for.”

Bach snorts, ponders a moment, and finds no objection in his mind. “Yeah. A little frivolous spending never hurt anyone.”

Sotalia nods with a wide grin, rests her hands on her hips, and poses confidently. “I agree. I certainly wouldn’t rely upon it, but there’s nothing quite like a little impulse buy to reward yourself.”

Gesturing over towards a far off booth, Bach wrestles with his fiscal wisdom and grits his teeth. “Well, if that old copy of The Ur-Quan Masters cartridge is still around after lunch, I might take your advice...”

Just as contentment hints grace Sotalia’s face, she blanks completely. She angles her head slightly, aims her pointed ear through the surrounding drones, and freezes. Through the ambient din of the market place, voices crest over the threshold, and Sotalia’s golden eyes spring wide open. Gasping in a reflexive breath, she darts her frantic glances in the direction of the voices. Slowing down her hunt, she keeps finding normal crowds. But, as a group of people move, Sotalia’s entire body tenses. She watches a large man with a sword on his back, an emin woman with a scar across her dark face and pistols at her sides, and a thin, hooded figure with a sleek outfit emerge from the foot traffic. Her eyes grow huge with terrified recognition, her complexion pales, and she winces in fright. As her breathing labors, she grips her upper chest, and frantically searches for escape.

Bach halts mid sentence, and pivots around perplexed. He notices the panic in Sotalia’s watering golden eyes, the uncertainty in her movements, and her trembling hand. “Uh, Sotalia, are you okay-”

Sotalia darts off in a hurried walk down a side street along the decorative channel stone railings. She grimaces through short, fast pants, rushes around people, and hops out of sight behind a stack of crates. Blinking through his bewilderment, Bach quickly follows the route after Sotalia, and locates her tightly against the corner between the wooden boxes and a building wall. Studying her body language, sparks of recognition open Bach’s blue eyes, and he directs a calming, concerned tone to Sotalia. “Hey, what do you need?”

Sotalia shakily lifts her head, gazes through her fear into Bach’s eyes, and musters up a pleading tone through her stammering voice. “Uh-um- J-j-just need- Some where out of sight. F-f-for a bit. Please...”

Bach reassuringly nods, and glances around the vicinity. He spots a stone stairway leading to a waterway side plaza, and notices advertisements for an open air cafe. Stepping close to Sotalia, he holds her trembling hand, and calmly whispers. “It will be okay. Let’s go down to the waterway. There’s tables and chairs out the way, and out of sight of there. Sound good?”

Tightening her grip on Bach’s hand, Sotalia nods quickly with a gasp of breath. “Yes.”

Bach leads Sotalia towards the stairs, keeps close to her side, and darts his stare around the area worried. Going down the stairs, the Sotalia sweeps her gaze across the number of nicely made tables and chairs upon the decorative plaza tiling. She locates a table off against the retainer wall with chairs and a large opened, obscuring umbrella, and guides Bach along. Swiftly taking a seat, she slumps her crossing arms up on the table top, and hides her face. Bach sits next to her at the table, and patiently waits as her breathing slows between shudders and coughs. He cautiously places his hand on her back and gently rubs her shoulder. “Anything else you need right now?”

Sotalia shakes her head. “N-no. Just need a moment. Work through this.”

Bach waits patiently, maintains supportive vigil, and watches over. Over the minutes, Sotalia gradually eases into some semblance of calm, sits upright her seat, and pieces her composure together. Drawing in deep breaths, she rubs the tears out of her golden eyes, and smiles weakly to Bach with a meek voice. “I... Um... Thank you.”

Bach nods, eases out a concerned breath, and smiles back. “Not a problem. I’m familiar with those. Um... Can I ask what caused that attack?”

Sotalia pauses a moment, contorts her mouth uncomfortably, and stares at Bach. After a few moments, she pulls in a long breath, and grits her teeth briefly. “Yeah... Yeah... Gods... I, um... Saw members of my old adventuring group... In the market...”

Bach tilts his head to the side perplexed, and searches his mind. “Okay. Do we need to call the-”

Visibly swallowing her pride, Sotalia shakes her head of fiery orange, wavy hair, and nervously grips one of her swept back horns. “No. No. It’s nothing they’ve done. It’s all MY issues. I...”

She closes her eyes, concentrates on breathing against the flood of shame, and gazes at Bach. “As I’ve said... We didn’t part on good terms. I was an absolute, irredeemable bitch high on my own pride. I was an arrogant asshole. I just manipulated and controlled the group to my whims, thinking I was the best in world.”

Rolling her eyes at herself, she wrings her hands tightly and grimaces as painful as old memories rise up. “I thought I was SO irreplaceable and unique. Oh gods. Things I felt justified in doing.”

She winces, rubs her belly, and sticks her tongue out in disgust. “Thinking about it again just upsets my stomach.”

Slowly lifting her gaze back up, she settles her attention to Bach and fights against her guilt to muster a smirk. “Really, the fact they didn’t get fed up and leave me in an unmarked, shallow grave is fucking amazing. They’re really good people to only just ditch me in a decent town with a note explaining it all.”

With a sharp frown, she works through a few breaths and shakes her head. “It took me so long to realize what I had become. And, well... The guilt really tears you up. Gods, sorry for dumping all this on you. It’s hard to hold it in sometimes.”

Bach nods slowly, keeps his concern upon Sotalia, and ponders out loud. “It’s okay. Really. Well, I mean, have you tried to contact them, um, indirectly? Make some attempt to apologize?”

Sotalia rocks her head side to side, grits her teeth, and deflates. “The best I could manage was an apology letter. I mean, it was really, really long, and I put everything I could into it. But... I know it’s not enough. So, I just decided to try to keep out of their lives as much as I could. It’s the least I can do for them.”

Thinking a moment, Bach scratches his beard on his chin, and mulls it over. “Yeah. I mean, you want to be respectful. Um, did you ever get a response to your letter?”

Sotalia blinks a moment, and tugs at the corner of her mouth. “No. I was moving around so much, and didn’t really keep track between hopping around guild missions. But...”

A genuine smile appears on her face and she flutters her golden eyes. “What difference would it make? Why bother them with the past? I occasionally read up on them. They’ve got an amazing mage that really meshes perfectly with them now.”

The joy wanes quickly upon Sotalia’s face. She shrinks as she wraps her arms around herself, and averts her gaze away from Bach. “Anyway, it’s not like I’ve got it together enough to actually face them. You just saw how badly it hit me...”

Bach cranes his head, aims his blue eyes to gaze into Sotalia’s golden eyes, and smiles with a comforting cadence. “Well, it sounds like it was a lot to deal with at once. That’s not easy. It’s not fun to have a lot of your past jump you all at once. I can understand that.”

Sotalia blinks, gradually smirks, and awkwardly chuckles. “Yeah, I guess you do understand. Well... Thank you for understanding.”

An honest laugh sneaks out from Bach, and he grins at Sotalia. “Anyway, how about I let the servers know we’re over here, and we can get something to eat and drink?”

Perking up in her seat, Sotalia blinks and bites her lower lip with a bit of embarrassment. “I guess we did rush in here. They probably didn’t see us.”

Bach stands up from his seat, and shrugs his shoulders. “Yeah. Oh, message the others. This looks like a good place for lunch.”

Sotalia retrieves her aetherphone, and smiles appreciatively at Bach. “Yeah. I mean, we’re already here. And, I really need to eat something now.”

As Bach departs and Sotalia composes messages, the thin, hooded figure in a sleek outfit watches from a shadowy vantage point above, lifts an intrigued brow, and steps away, back towards the market.

----

Finishing off a long swig of beer, Veevi wipes her mouth, and sneers her upper lip at Chad’s bedroom door. She grumbles out her agitation, kneels down to the floor, and rests the bottle off to the side. Picking up the plastic card and coat hanger, she furiously assaults the lock, and indiscriminately digs into the wood of the door jamb. Rolling up a growl into her throat, she rams the tools harshly into the divide between door and frame, and shoulder the checks the door. Slamming her weight against the door with a hollow thump, the thin wood flexes. A loud click sounds out into a quick metal scrape, and the entry springs open.

Narrowing her pink pupil eyes menacingly, Veevi stands up with a proud grin, and flexes her sharp nailed fingers. With a shove of the foot, the door flies open and clashes against the wall door stop. Veevi struts into the room with a mean glare dragging ire across the area. Urdi, Radnae, and Harris cautiously approach the entryway, and maintain a defensible position from the door frame. Stepping up to a dresser, Veevi layers disdain upon the random collection of items, and rests her arm upon the edge of the surface. With a sloppy sweep of the arm, she clears the off the dresser top and scatters the contents into the room. She walks over to a desk, grits her teeth at the different books, documents, and notes on the desktop, and curls her fingers. Swiping angrily, paper rips fill the air, flutters of pages sound out, and patters of random stationary resonate. Flits of dissatisfaction flood Veevi’s tan face, and she curls her sharp nails into drawer handles. Yanking her thin frame back, she flings out drawer after drawer in a growling fury, and dumps out the contents chaotically behind her. She kicks over a desk chair, pulls down nearby posters, and settles her attention upon the bed. Gritting her sharp teeth, she steps up, tightly grips the bedspread with one hand, and sinks her sharp nails into the fabric. Straining against the cloth, she rips and cuts through comforter, shreds the sheets, and carves out handfuls of the foam mattress. With each layer, another stream of incoherent curses hisses from her lips, with Chad’s name punctuating passages of insults.

Harris guides Radnae and Urdi back as fodder topples near the doorway, and the team leans back when half a pillow puffs out its stuffing against the wall. Working into a furious scream, Veevi claws onto a bed post, summons her rage, and wrenches the bed frame back and forth. The cheap framework cracks and pops, and the foot board flops onto the carpet. As the end drops down, contents underneath the bed spew forth, and Veevi rummages through in uncaring swipes. A metallic glint catches her eyes, and she finds an older sheathed sword. She grips tightly and draws the blade out. With a vengeful grin across her face, and she glances around the room. Slamming the weapon down, she chops into the desk repeatedly, and chucks off wood with each slash. She runs over to the other side of the room, sweeps the tip of the sword along a collection of posters, and gouges the drywall. Stumbling around, she regains her balance and steadies herself. Brushing her long pink hair back, she grumbles out between pants, weakly spikes the sword into the floor, and steps over to the bed.

She scrounges through Chad’s belongings from under the bed. A brief spark of evil ignites her eyes when she grips hold of package of energy cells. But her drive wanes when she fails to locate what they power. After a spree of dumping through boxes, she grabs hold of a wooden, decorative box, and curls a mean smirk. Wrapping her sharp nailed fingers around the lid, she pulls the top off, and narrows her glare inside. She stills herself, and her stare softens gradually. Her eyes settle upon the top most picture underneath a few trinkets, and the rage dissipates. She examines the picture of Chad, an older man, an older woman, and a woman younger than Chad together. All share similar traits between each other. The young woman nervously smiles in scrubs, as Chad, the older woman, and older man hug her encouragingly outside a medical center. Blinking away from the image, Veevi squints at a bit of writing in the margins of the print.

“First day of residency.”

Veevi frowns as her head hangs down, and she averts her depressed stare internally with a sad sigh. Her fuzzy ear perks up at the sound of the camera crew approaching. She drops the box down, flashes a mean glower at Radnae, Urdi, and Harris, and grips the other half of a pillow. Flinging the gutted cushion at the trio near the door, Veevi charges out of the room, sweeps up the beer bottle on the hallway floor, and dumps the remainder back. She marches towards the stairway, summons up a surge of rage, and pitches the grath beer bottle onto Modoran’s door. With a loud crash of glass and splatters of left over foam streaking down the door, she stomps down the stairs and the small recording crew follows.

----

Ducking under a low branch, Marcus weaves through a patch of densely packed trees, and pushes through brush. “If the maps are right, we should be close to that field behind the house.”

Cind steps carefully around a shrub, and glances behind with her bright blue eyes. “I hope so. We did park really far away.”

Kell casually ducks below low hanging branches, shrugs his shoulders, and smiles. “Ah, it’s a nice hike before we have to stay in a van for most the day.”

The trio navigate through the thinning undergrowth and reach a division of the forest. Marcus follows the formations of the woods around a large field, and scratches the back of his head of slicked hair. “Well, didn’t see this from the other road. Um...”

Kell blinks his purple on black eyes, traces the edges of the tree lines, and points out the possible paths. “Looks like there’s three branches. One big one there. And, there’s this one that splits again.”

Studying the paths, Cind crosses her arms, tilts her head of red braids, and shrugs her shoulders. “Um, we can split up. Keep an eye out for a bit. Just message each other if anything happens?”

Kell and Marcus glance at each other, shift their attention to Cind, and agree. Marcus breaks off down the long singular path, and Kell and Cind travel down forest run to the secondary split. Minutes later, as Kell and Cind gravitate towards a worn game trail, they both stop and duck down. Both sneak to a large bush, and peer through the forest into the field.

Fawna runs through the large field, and Varan bounds behind her, between hops to glide down. Turning around, Fawna waves a brightly colored ball in front of Varan and gets his attention. With Varan’s eyes focusing upon the toy, she pivots, readies her arm back, and pitches the ball. Varan pounces forward, running in between springs up into the air, and hunts down the ball. The small amber dragon disappears into the tall grasses. Moments later, he hops up with the ball in his mouth, and bounds back over to the waiting Fawna. With a bright smile, Fawna kneels down, hugs Varan, and pulls the ball out of his mouth. “Very good! You’re getting really good at this. I’ll throw it really far for you now.”

Both Cind and Kell enjoy watching Fawna play fetch with Varan, encourage him to use his wings, and toss rewarding treats to him. Cind glances over to Kell, and smiles. “I think she’ll take good care of him.”

With a goofy grin, Kell chuckles quietly and nods. “Oh yeah, that little guy is happy as can be. He’s got plenty of food, and a big open field. And, it looks like they got shelter for him if he gets bigger. They seem like good people.”

Cind nods, eases back further into the woods, and motions to Kell. “I think we can get on the road.”

Creeping along quietly, Kell joins up with Cind and smirks. “Yeah. But before we do that, I think I saw some berry bushes and young protellows. You want to pick a few?”

Flitting her bright blue eyes wide, Cind nods eagerly and pulls out her aetherphone. “Yes! It’ll be something nice to eat between the noodle packs. I’ll let Marcus know and tell him to head to the van.”

As the two depart, Fawna halts in the field, waves the ball, and snags Varan’s attention. “Okay, Varan! Get ready! I’ll throw this one as hard as I can!”

She plants her feet, readies herself, and winds up the pitch. With fast throw, she arcs the ball high into the air, and nearly stumbles when she loses her balance. Varan tears off through the grasses excitedly. He builds up momentum, bounds up into the air, and runs faster. As the ball pierces the forest canopy, Varan summons up his determination, leaps up into the air, and plows through the bordering underbrush. Fawna blinks in surprise, jogs over to treeline, and listens to the distant rustling of debris. “Varan! Don’t go too far. Stay with mommy!”

Peering into the forest, she cocks her head to side, notices the silence, and uncertainly pushes into a shrubs with a concerned tone. “Varan? VARAN! Where are you?!”

----

Wiping down a section of the long wooden bar, Aggie narrows her brown eyes at stubborn stain, and scrubs her cleaning rag harder. After a few passes, she huffs, tosses her curly black hair back, and slowly shakes her head unsatisfied. She shifts her attention out into the quiet main room, and surveys the few patrons in different degrees of awareness watching the television. Foot falls faintly creak on the stair case leading upstairs, and a light gray, blue hued emin woman rubs the sleep from her bright violet on black eyes. She groggily navigates behind the long wooden bar, and instinctively gravitates towards the coffee machine. Aggie smiles lovingly at the woman, presents a coffee filed personal mug, and wraps her arm around her. “How’s my sleeping beauty?”

The emin woman grasps the cup with both her hands, immediately pours back a long sip, and exhales. Guiding her dark blue braided hair over coiling horns, she leans close to Aggie, and kisses her. “Awake, now.”

Aggie rubs the back of the emin woman’s work shirt, and furrows a curious brow. “Dear, how late were you up?”

The emin woman groans, sips her coffee, and twists her mouth. “It was four in the morning before Jackson got done celebrating his big haul.”

She glances to a table, narrows her gaze, and smirks. “Right, Buford?”

A man cringes up from his slump over a large mug of coffee, and directs a wavering tone. “Yes, Elissia. Not so loud, please...”

Aggie shakes her head, and eyes Elissia. “You didn’t have to keep the bar open for THAT long for them.”

Elissia lifts an eyebrow, smirks, and plucks a book from under the counter. She opens it up the last filled page, places it in Aggie’s hands, and taps a long, black nail upon a total. “Oh, I had a good reason.”

Aggie quickly analyzes the data, slowly nods with a growing grin, and sneaks peck on Elissia’s cheek. “Even got them to tip good, too.”

The large wooden door to the opens wide, and a young human boy with curly black hair rushes in excitedly. An emin boy with long, dark blue hair follows a few seconds later, timidly slipping around the door. Both human and emin boys pull themselves up on the bar stools in front of Aggie and Elissia. Elissia smiles at the two, reaches out, and ruffles hair. “How are our boys doing today?”

The human boy groans and rolls his eyes. “Bored. Ms. Reena is giving us a bunch of homework to do.”

Aggie shakes her head, and narrows her gaze. “It’s school, son. That’s what they do.”

Elissia smiles lovingly at the quiet emin boy, squints her eyes, and taps the tip of one of his curved horns. “Did you paint your horn tips?”

The emin boy blushes and sheepishly admits. “No. It was Suzie.”

Elissia and Aggie exchange amused glances. Elissia pivots around, lifts up an apron over her head, and ties it behind her. “So, what do you two want for lunch?”

The human boy grins wide and excitedly calls out. “Cheeseburger with extra bacon-”

Both Aggie and Elissia snap their attention, and focus their combined mother voices. “NO.”

Crossing his arms, the boy pouts and frowns. “Why not!?”

Aggie furrows her brow and stands firm. “Cedric. You’ve got to eat SOMETHING else before your mother is going to cook another cheeseburger for you.”

Cedric grumbles, contorts his face, and huffs. “Fine. I’ll get a sandwich like Ryos gets.”

Elissia nods respectfully to Cedric, and gazes over to Ryos. “Ryos?”

Ryos glances up, shyly darts his eyes around, and summons up his voice. “The, um, club sandwich.”

As Elissia turns and steps towards the door, Ryos leans over to Cedric, and whispers. “Get extra bacon.”

Cedric blinks, grins at the suggestion, and calls out. “Extra bacon on mine!”

Elissia halts mid step through the door leading into the kitchen, and twists her mouth with a grumble. Aggie pats her on the back, and shakes her head. “It’s still progress in the right direction, dear.”

With a trailing sigh, Elissia slips into the kitchen. Aggie narrows a stare between to boys, and points up upstairs with a command. “Hands. Wash them. Please.”

Ryos swiftly hops down with Cedric trailing behind. The boys move past Mavian and Isaac going down the stairs. Mavian checks a list written on a pad of paper, and nods towards Isaac. “I think that’s everything.”

Isaac smiles and steps along side Mavian towards the bar. “I believe so. The vehicle is loaded with all the equipment and supplies. And, I don’t know how much more planning we can do to the route.”

Mavian slides upon onto a bar stool, and shakes his head. “After a certain point, it’s useless. We’ll just have to go there, and see what’s actually there. We’ll deal with it then.”

Settling up in a seat next to Mavian, Isaac smirks and rests his binder of notes upon the bar. “I agree. So, lunch?”

Mavian perks his brow, and laughs. “Lunch. We’ll be dining on rations tonight, so lets get one good meal in.”

Aggie steps up in front of Mavian and Isaac, and grins. “Okay, sweeties, what are you hungry for?”

Mavian stretches his back, and crosses his arms on the counter. “Cheeseburger with extra bacon.”

----

Easing through the perimeter of the forest, Cind and Kell step out upon the roadside shoulder. Cind holds the bottom part of her shirt up in sling and contains a bounty of blackberries. Kell carries out a stack protellow leaves, seeds, and tubers. The two walk towards an old van, and notice Marcus. Cind smiles brightly and nods down to the collected fruit. “Plenty for the road!”

Kell glances down at the collection of ingredients and chuckles. “If we find a good spot to camp out, I totally can cook some awesome wraps for us.”

Marcus squirms against the side van door, awkwardly grins, and laughs nervously. “C-cool. So, uh, I guess we’re ready to go, right?”

Kell steps up towards the van, and lifts a curious brow at Marcus. “Yeah. I guess? Don’t think we got anything else to do here.”

Cind approaches the side door, and gestures for Marcus open the door. “Could you open the door, please?”

Marcus twists his mouth, contorts his body language, and hems. “Um, about that. I- Uh- Need to tell you something-”

A shrill, annoyed growl sounds out from inside the van. Thumps and thuds resonate against the metal walls of the vehicle, and angry snarls reverb from inside. Marcus begins to open his mouth when series of loud fabric rips tear into the soundscape, and higher pitched roars shriek out from in the van. Loud flaps and skittering scrapes of claws interrupt each attempt for Marcus to explain.

Kell’s purple on black eyes widen in twitching shock. Cind glares at Marcus, straightens her posture, and demands. “What did you do, MARCUS?”

-95-

Cupping her hands around her dark gray face, Cind pulls in a strained breath and closes her bright blue eyes hard. “Oh. My. Gods. Marcus, what THE FUCK were you thinking?!”

She exhales through her fingers, slowly slides her hands down the side of her purple berry stained shirt, and tensely balls of her fists. “The plan was to check, see, and leave! YOU said it!”

Uneasily shifting weight between his feet upon the grassy shoulder next to the road, Marcus rubs the back of his neck, and starts to open his mouth. He halts as another chain of shrill growls sound out from the old van behind him. Grimacing briefly, he nervously chuckles. “Well, it just happened so fast. He literally ran right towards me. I just... took the opportunity.”

Kell narrows his purple on black eyes, tilts his head of unkempt black hair, and frowns sharply. “What opportunity, man? What was your game plan? What the end goal? This doesn’t make sense.”

Crossing her arms, Cind straightens her posture, glares harshly at Marcus, and calls out. “Wait, was THIS your plan the whole time?! WAS IT, MARCUS!?”

Marcus blinks quietly, averts his gaze uneasily, and awkwardly smiles with blatant guilt leaking out. Cind’s bright blue eyes widen, and she grits her teeth with a growl. “What are you thinking?! Oh gods, we’re suppose to heading back to High Alton now. We didn’t need this!”

Summoning a scrap of courage from within, Marcus crosses his arms, puffs up his chest, and sternly stares. “Yes, we had to! We’ve got NOTHING to show for everything we did this summer! The most significant thing we did was free a bunch of fancy whelps at that one show. And... Nothing else! All of our donations went to feeding us and fueling up the van. What were we going to bring to the People for Dragons Rights?”

Leaning forward to glower right at Marcus, Cind jabs a pointing finger, and directs her infuriated tone at him. “I don’t know! Certainly not a little dragon we stole from a little girl who has been taking great care of him!”

Gritting her teeth, she winces through a surge of rage, and yells at Marcus. “It’s ALWAYS your ambitious bullshit that ruins good things! Everything was going just fine until you just HAD to push it TOO FAR!”

Marcus narrows a glare at Cind, frowns defensively, and growls out. “Well, if it wasn’t for my ambition, you’d be sitting around High Alton trying to sell lame t-shirts no one wants and waiting tables at that one dive bar.”

As the pressure swells between Marcus and Cind, Kell closes his eyes, grumbles under his breath, and steps forward between them. Grabbing both by a shoulder, Kell exhales calmly, and sternly addresses the two. “STOP. This is NOT fixing a damn thing. We are NOT taking the little dragon.”

Marcus shifts to protest, and freezes as a chilling glare from Kell’s purple on black eyes focuses upon him. Kell searches his mind, twists his mouth, and sighs resolutely. “We are getting the dragon back to the girl.”

Cind fidgets out her worry, and visibly ponders while she twirls a braid of red hair. “How do we do that? It’s going to be weird to try to drop off a dragon in the van. I don’t think it’s going to go well to say we found a random dragon and find the exact house on the first try.”

Nodding his head understandingly, Kell sorts through the possibilities in his mind. “Let’s get him out of the van... before he destroys it... Then, we can carry him back to the house. The little girl is probably looking for him. We run into her, we act like we found him on hike to pick berries and protellows.”

Cind glances down at her stained shirt, smirks with hints of relief, and mulls over the plan. Marcus thinks through the idea, rocks his head side to side, and sighs. “And, if we don’t find the girl?”

Kell shrugs his shoulders, and smiles comfortingly. “Then, we get close to the house, aim the dragon in the right direction, and let him run back home. He seems smart enough to know what home looks like. We wait until someone comes out, or he goes inside.”

Cind nods with an exhale and rolls the tension out of her shoulders. “That’s sounds good to me.”

As Cind narrows an accusatory stare Marcus, he grits his teeth, swallows his pride, and grimaces uncomfortably. “I agree. That should work.”

Confirming with the other two, Kell rolls his eyes, releases his grip on Cind's and Marcus’s shoulders, and sighs. “Good, good. Then, we get in the van with our berries and protellow pickings, and get the fuck back to High Alton. We chalk this up to being really... REALLY... fucking stupid. Okay?”

Cind concentrates her glower at Marcus and waits for him to nod his head in shame. Marcus stretches his neck and shoulders, pivots around to face the old van’s side door, and grimaces uneasily. “Yeah. Okay. Guess I’ll get him out. I put him there, so I should get him out. And, he’s already mad at me anyway.”

Marcus steps slowly up towards the vehicle. He waits a few moments, carefully leans his ear up to the metal body, and blinks bewildered. “Huh... Must have calmed down or tired himself out.”

Gripping the side door handle, he unlatches the lock, and gradually slides panel open as he glances over to Cind. “Alright. He might be a bit more agreeable. But, maybe have some berries ready to keep him calm.”

The sliding door fully open, Marcus surveys the clawed, ripped, and torn interior, and blinks blankly in surprise. Kell and Cind peer around Marcus, and gawk in shock at the extent of the chaotic redecorating. The trio gaze inside the cab of the old van, and notice the small dragon missing from view. Marcus leans his head into the interior, visually scans the cab, and puzzles out loud. “Where the hell is he?”

Just as Marcus settles his attention forward, a pair of aqua eyes peer from the shade beneath a shredded sleeping bag among the chaotic debris. The furious intent and righteous anger glares through Marcus’s very existence. Terror grips Marcus and he barely mutters out. “Oh shit...”

Flinging out his amber scaled wings wide open, Varan bellows out a shrill, deafening battle cry, springs his back legs against the van wall, and lunges out with maw and front claws at Marcus. Varan clamps his front claws into Marcus’s shoulders, snap his mouth onto a clump of Marcus’s slicked back hair, and growls in sheer indignant rage. The impact overwhelms Marcus’s balance, and he topples over flat on his back upon the road shoulder grass. He barely manages to hold back Varan’s snapping maw. The little dragon clamps down his back claws onto Marcus’s stomach fat, beats his wings on either side of Marcus’s face, and whips his tail down upon Marcus’s groin. Cind and Kell gawk aghast in absolute awe at the terrifying display of fury. With screams of anguish from Marcus, both Cind and Kell attempt to approach the brawl, and fail to find way to apprehend the dragon attacker. Pausing his assault, Varan snorts his disgust, glances around, and notices Cind and Kell closing in. Narrowing glares between the two of them, Varan growls, leaps back with a powerful flap of his wings, and scrambles up to the roof of the van. He searches the area, grumbles his confusion, and watches Cind and Kell check on Marcus. With a final hiss, he picks a direction away from the trio, powers down his wings, and leaps off the van into the air. He swiftly clears to the other side of road, gains altitude above the tree tops briefly, and coasts down out of sight.

Slowly standing up with the help of Cind and Kell, Marcus covers his groin with a hand, coughs in between deep breaths, and inspects his ripped shirt and scratched up body. “Ungh... He was totally... waiting for us to... open the door. Oh gods... My balls.”

As the three quickly regain their collective composure, each becomes aware of Varan’s escape. Cind and Kell rush out to chase down the dragon, while Marcus awkwardly stumbles to catch up.

----

An evuukian woman with long silvery hair wraps her arms around Fawna, and strokes her silvery red-tinted locks comfortingly. She gently hugs Fawna, holds her tight while the two sit on the couch, and calmly speaks with a reassuring tone. “It’s going to be okay, my little girl. We’ll find your Varan. He could not have gotten too far.”

Fawna sniffs up her tears, hides her face in her mother’s embrace, and mumbles through sobs. “I- I... looked everywhere... He was right in front of me, momma... I don’t know where he could have... I checked everywhere... Called for him...”

Curling close, she lets go of a large, worn flashlight, weakly clings to her mother, and cries. Her mother gazes her blue eyes down at her daughter tear soaked blue eyes, and smiles while picking leaves off the girl’s hair and twigs stuck in her overalls. “You did what you could by yourself. We’re going to get some help, and do everything we can. Your little dragon will be found safe, and be home soon.”

Nodding against her mother, Fawna staggers out a few sobs, eases out a sad sigh, and wearily stares out the front window into the moonlit evening. Mr. Frenzacia paces in the front entry with aetherphone in hand, twists his dark gray face, and gazes his concern over to Fawna. “So, that’s what we know so far. I apologize to call you so late, but we could really use some help.”

His red on black eyes rest upon Fawna as her mother clears the hair out of her face and over her curled horns. His attention shifts to the voices on the other side of the phone call, and he nods as his mind processes the information.

On the other side of call, Shadeesa and Kaleb gather close to an aetherphone on the coffee table. Shadeesa gradually leans as close her pregnant belly with allow and sighs as her light gray, white freckled face contorts. “Okay... Dragons have great hearing. So, one thing we can try is to drive around nearby roads and call out for him. He’ll probably go to any voice he recognizes. Even if he doesn’t show up immediately, it might guide him in the right direction if he’s lost. If we can lead him out of the woods, that will help our chance in finding him.”

Mr Frenzacia's voice sounds out from the speakerphone. “That sounds like a good plan. We at least know he isn’t near the house right now. Fawna checked that.”

In background of the phone call, a little girl’s sobs echo faintly. Kaleb glances out the back screen door, and catches the glints of moonlight off of the back yard’s grass. He stands up from the couch, leans down to kiss Shadeesa on the cheek, and grins boldly. “There’s enough light tonight. Lagi and I will fly out and search from above.”

Shadeesa smiles lovingly at Kaleb, nods, and directs her voice at the aetherphone. “I don’t know if you heard, but Kaleb and Lagi will be looking from above.”

A spark of hope lightens Mr. Frenzacia voice, and he speaks louder into the room on the other side of call. “Thank you. I’ll let Fawna know. Fawna. Mr. Kaleb and Lagi are going to help look for him from the sky. Don’t worry.”

Fawna’s tone brightens and she calls out. “Thank you!”

Kaleb rushes back in from the hallway, quickly donning his riding suit and securing bits of equipment. He pauses briefly in his awkward approach to the back door, and glances over his shoulder to Shadeesa. “We’ll be up in the air in a few minutes.”

Shadeesa gazes at Kaleb, and blinks her green on black eyes. “I’ll call you. I’m going to go over there and keep watch there.”

She pauses a moment, picks up the aetherphone off the coffee table, and grimaces with a bit of embarrassment. “If that’s fine with you, Mr. Frenzacia. I believe Varan is familiar enough with me to go to me if he sees me. But, I don’t think he’d recognize my voice like you, your wife’s, or Fawna’s.”

Mr. Frenzacia chuckles lightly on call. “Perfectly fine. Makes good sense to me. That’ll free us up to take the car out, too, and cover more ground. Thank you so much, Vet Serania. We owe you.”

Shadeesa eases herself up from the couch, straightens her back, and smirks with determination. “Let’s find Varan first.”

The back screen shuts after a long hiss of the pneumatic door closer, and Kaleb quickly walks along the long brick house and yells out to the hangar. “Lagi! Wake up!”

Lagi rolls his blue and black scaled body slightly, cracks open a green eye at Kaleb, and grumbles out in a series of grunts, hisses, and groans. Kaleb sighs, nods his head understandingly, and marches over. “I know! I know! But, this is an emergency. We got to get up in the air now.”

A curious chirp resonates from Lagi, and he lifts his head blinking. Kaleb crosses the threshold of the hangar entry, stands next to a large, wheeled saddle stand, and pulls it behind him. “Varan’s gone missing. We think he’s lost in the woods, and they need our-”

Lagi’s bright green eyes spring open. He springs up from his bedding, swiftly guides his huge form in front of Kaleb, and lays low waiting. Kaleb grins proudly, grips hold of part of the riding gear, and flings it over the anticipating dragon. “Thank you. You’re a good dragon.”

With a simple nod and confirming snort, Lagi’s front clawed hands assists securing the straps and latches in well rehearsed unison with Kaleb.

----

Underneath the shadowy forest canopy, Varan wanders around through underbrush. Weaving through the darkness of midnight, he pauses within the patches of moonlight beaming through gaps in the leaf cover above. Unfurling his amber scaled wings, he focuses his aqua eyes upwards, glances over to a tree, and darts up the trunk. Flapping his wings furiously, he leaps off into the air and strains to gain altitude. After seconds of struggle, he slowly descends despite his best efforts, and flops on to the ground. With each pant, his face twists out frustration and desperation. After catching his breath, he folds up his wings, stands up shakily, and stares out into the surrounding darkness.

The sounds of the night flood into the vicinity. Leaves rustle with the occasional gusts, chirps of insects echo around, and a chorus of faint activity surrounds the little dragon. Backing into a tree, Varan darts his eyes around the area and cowers against the looming fear pushing in. Freezing a moment, he lifts his head up and widens his aqua eyes. Searching in one direction, he summons up his courage, and rushes off through the brush and forest. During the journey, he pauses, listens carefully, and refines his direction. Minutes pass and the little dragon wanders forward. Varan halts, scans the area carefully, and waits. As the seconds pass, his puzzling turns into despair. His attentions drifts to his surroundings, and he cowers down against the darkness and ambient noises of the forest.

The pressuring night pushes Varan down onto the ground, and a faint whimper accompanies every breath. A cool breeze blows through the forest, and the drone of leaves against the wind fill the air around Varan. In the silent lull, Varan’s eyes flit wide and he lifts his head up. Carefully he aims his stare in a direction, and waits. Rocking his head side to side, he grumbles uncertainly to himself and snorts. The wind blows around him, and he sniffs the air. He curiously samples the scent more and more, and stands back up. Licking his lips, he cautiously sets out, darting between patches of brush and rushing through patches of moonlight from above.

Voices muffle through the surrounding layers of trees and undergrowth, and Varan wanders closer to the source, smelling the air along the way. As he gets close, he sniffs the air and hears the voices with clarity. He halts, slinks low behind a bush, and peeks out cautiously. Standing in a patch of light from the almost full moon above, Marcus, Cind, and Kell slowly scan the perimeter. Marcus grimaces, slowly straightens out his sore body, and sighs. “How much ground could he have covered?!”

Kell slowly shakes his head and frowns. “I don’t know, man. Little guy was able to glide and keep level flight for a bit. So... Who knows?”

Cind grits her teeth briefly, tightens her grasp around a purple spot stained canvas bag, and groans. “Oh gods, he must be so scared out here all alone. We have to find him.”

Crossing his arms against a bit of pain, Marcus twists his mouth, and snorts. “We could be out all night looking for him.”

Narrowing a mean stare at Marcus, Cind snarls her upper lip and grumbles. “If that’s what it takes, we ARE doing it.”

Marcus cowers back, swallows his pride, and nods in agreement. When Cind pivots back around sharply, a number of berries fall out of a hole in the bag onto the forest floor. Varan’s aqua eyes widen and trace the fruit bouncing upon the ground. Shifting his gaze between Cind and berries, he readies in wait as a faint growl sounds out from his stomach. During the discussions between Marcus and Kell, Cind turns around and steps towards the other two. While the trio peer out in an opposite direction, Varan slinks out from cover, glides along the ground, and creeps up to the fallen berries. Quickly snatching up the berries into his maw, he greedily munches each of them down. He drifts off in delight.

Cind nods at a comment, pivots around, and glances down to her surprise. Hearing the reflexive gasp, Varan glances up to meet Cind’s bright blue eyes. Tensing his body, he readies himself for escape. He continues to stare up to Cind, and focuses upon the blue eyes and half moonlight shaded face. In a surge of familiarity, Varan cowers down and cries weakly with each breath. Cind immediately drops down to her knees, and comforts the trembling little dragon. “Oh gods! There you are. Don’t worry, we’ll get you back home.”

Marcus glances over wearily as Cind works her arms around the shivering Varan, and exhales his relief. “Good. Finally. Let’s get him close to his home, and get out of here.”

Kell smiles, and glances over to Cind. “How’s the little guy doing?”

Cind scoops up Varan into her arms, rocks him comfortingly, and grimaces. “Scared out of his mind, but he looks okay. He just wants his mommy really bad. Don’t you...”

Varan pants out pitiful whimpers and whines. Kell searches around the area, points in a direction, and motions to the rest of the group. “Cool. Okay. Let’s start walking back.”

The trio set off into forest. Minutes later, Varan halts his crying, perks his head up, and darts his gaze around. Cind stops, and puzzles at Varan. “What’s wrong?”

Varan’s aqua eyes widen in recognition, he aims his maw up into the air. Drawing in a large breath that pushes against Cind’s arms, he bellows out a piercing shriek into the sky above. Cind blinks in shock as she dodges her head out of the way. Both Marcus and Kell stop abruptly. Marcus spins around and cocks his head. “The hell is he doing?”

Cind shrugs her shoulders, and shakes her head. “I don’t know. It’s like he’s-”

Kell’s purple on black eyes widen, and his worried gaze drifts up to the thick canopy above. “He’s calling someone.”

A rumbling, overwhelming shriek reverberates from the skies above. Powerful thumps of air sift through the canopy above and rattle the upper branches of the trees. Something large above completely briefly blots of the moonlight filtering onto the forest floor. Varan pushes out another piercing shriek excitedly. Marcus eyes widen in terror and he harshly whispers. “Cind! Shut him up!”

Nearby, all moonlight fades from the large gap in the canopy. Downward gusts rustle the leaves violently, and small branches snap under the force. A huge figure flows through the opening and forces through effortlessly. Large branches bend under the strength, old tree trunks sway away against the might, and underbrush collapses under the weight. The large form folds up two pairs of massive wings, sniffs the air, and weaves through the forest with terrifying speed. Cind, Kell, and Marcus remain still in fright as the gigantic, imposing figure arrives next to them, and peers down with a pair of glowing green eyes. The analyzing stare drastically shifts to a cold glare, and the huge dragon rumbles out a deep growl as he lowers his head down. A powerful spot light shines down from the rider in the saddle, and Kaleb calls out while assessing the situation. “Sorry if we startled you all, but Lagi is a bit excited at th- Oh.”

Kaleb flips up his helmet visor with his free hand, reveals an irritated sneer, and growls out. “It’s you three.”

He stows the spot lamp, rests his hand on his holster particle blaster, and directs a stern tone. “DON’T. MOVE. I’m going to call a few people, and we’re going to wait here until everyone arrives. And, we’re going to sort this all out.”

Marcus glances around, crosses his arms, and hems. “Hey, I don’t know what's happening exactly. But, we were just trying to find our way back after hiking a bit too far into the woods. So, we are really glad you are here. If you can point us in the right direct to the road-”

Kaleb narrows his stare upon Marcus, shifts his attention to Varan in Cind’s arms, and focuses his inquisition. “Why do you have the little dragon?”

Cind sorts through her mind nervously and starts speak. Marcus steps forward calmly with his arms out to the side, and lays down a placating tone. “Oh, we found him on our hike. He must of have been following the smell of the berries we picked. He looked really lost, so we picked him up and were going to try to help him find his way home. He looks well cared for, so he probably is owned by someone.”

Grimacing hard at Marcus, Kaleb grumbles a few chirps, growls, and whistles to Lagi. He draws in a long breath as he taps out a few commands on his holographic saddle display. “Yeah... Right... I am NOT in the believing mood right now. So, we’re all going to stay right here until I make a few calls. Then, we’ll figure everything out.”

Cind and Kell remain silent and uneasy. Marcus hides an irritated curl at the corner of his mouth, chuckles lightly, and gestures towards Varan. “Listen, this seems like a big misunderstanding. If you know where the dragon’s owners are, please take him home. We were planning on taking him to the authorities as soon as we found our way out of here. So, this just makes it easier for all of us.”

Varan blinks his aqua eyes, and watches Marcus plead his case. He cocks his head side to side as fragments of understanding glint in his eyes. He narrows his unamused stare at Marcus, turns his head towards Lagi, and staggers out a jumbled series of chirps and chitters. Lagi blinks to attention from watching the trio, and focuses upon Varan with another chain of clicks and snorts. Varan pauses a moment to think, swings his head to glare down Marcus, and snorts out growls with his teeth bared. Rumbling a low growl, Lagi concentrates his ire right at Marcus. Kaleb ponders a moment, and draws out his spot light. Shining the light upon Marcus, Kaleb narrows his examining stare upon the torn shirt and scratches, frowns sharply, and shakes his head. “Yeah... No. No. You all are going to stay right where I can see you. And, I’m going to call the sheriff, too.”

When Kaleb holsters his spot lamp, Marcus blinks his eyes hard, crosses his arms defiantly, and puffs up his chest. “What for?! We were going to try to return the little dragon! You have no right to just hold us here for no reason. Listen, we’ll leave the dragon here since you want him so bad, and we’re just going to leave. Whatever you’re planning, you can leave us out of it.”

Cind and Kell exchange nervous glances, quell reflexive grimaces, and eye Marcus sternly. Kaleb perplexes at the defensive front from Marcus, rolls his eyes, and grumbles out. “Listen. Kid. You’ve got some guts, but I think you are lacking a whole lot of situational awareness right now. So, I’m feeling a little generous right now. So, I’m going to educate you.”

He leans forward in the saddle on Lagi, cocks his head to the side, and grins darkly. “You and your friends are out in the middle of the woods, in the middle of nowhere, and no one knows you are out here. Your constant stream of bullshit has kept me from calling anyone to let them know any different. And, I bet no know else knows you are out here right now.”

As Marcus’s confidence wanes, and Cind and Kell move close to each other. Kaleb sits up his seat, smirks smugly, and laughs. “So, whatever happens out here... Will only ever be known to all present, and more important by those who will leave here. And, if you didn’t know, dragons can have a slightly different take on justice and morality. That’s not exactly...”

He draws out the phrase, and mulls over the thought with ill humor. “Agreeable to your typical modern sensibilities. Yeah... Something like that.”

Craning his gaze around to make eye contact with Lagi, he smiles and gestures out to the forest. “Lagi, pick a tree you don’t like.”

Drawing back his lips to a wide, sharp grin, Lagi’s green eyes glow brightly. Slowly opening his maw, torrents of magical flow swirl from his body, and condense into a bright blue-green orb. The brilliant glow reflects off of Marcus’s dark brown eyes. Lagi snaps his glance over to a tree with a thick trunk further into the forest. A blue-green beam darts off through the forest. The magical energy threads between other trees, sharply turns, and impacts the target tree. In a flash, the plasma billows out between splinters of wood, shards of trunk, and thick plumes of ash. The upper of section of tree drops through the remnants of the charred middle, and crashes upon the newly formed stump. After a few seconds of silence, the tree tilts in one direction and topples over, dragging it’s upper half through the overhead forest canopy.

Cind and Kell watch in absolute awe. Marcus remains paralyzed from terror. Varan blinks his aqua eyes eagerly, tilts his head thoughtfully, and open his mouth to mimic. He puzzles after each attempt, chirps to himself, and concentrates on another attempt as his aqua eyes flicker.

Lagi levels his head with Marcus’s face, and snorts hard to blow Marcus’s slicked back hair astray. He shows his bright white teeth as faint traces of magical miasma vent off. Sitting upright in the saddle on Lagi, moonlight back lights Kaleb’s form, and an evil grin grows wide on his face. “Since, you are all interested in dragons... I’m sure you know that dragons are extremely omnivorous, and sometimes like to... aggressively... maintain a balanced diet.”

Kaleb pats Lagi’s shoulder. Marcus’s dark brown eyes widen in horror as Lagi’s maw opens wide in front of him. Kell pushes through the fright and sputters out. “H-H-Hey! L-l-let’s talk about this!”

Cind holds onto Varan while shuddering and pleads. “Yes! We’ve made mistakes! B-b-but, please! He doesn’t deserve that-”

Lagi swiftly closes his mouth completely around Marcus’s head. Cind screams out and Kell winces. Marcus freezes completely. Seconds later, the tension stales and bewilderment replaces fright. A mischievous smirk curls at the edges of Lagi’s mouth, and Kaleb cackles loudly. Marcus’s arms move, his hands feel around Lagi’s face, and his fingers touch the dragon’s teeth that are gently pressed against his chest and back. His voice muffles out from inside Lagi’s maw. “What... the... ?”

Lagi coughs, and a mix of saliva and phlegm oozes down onto Marcus’s shirt. Opening his mouth back open, Lagi releases the coated Marcus and sits down. Kaleb smirks smugly, and crosses his arms. “So, are we going to sit and wait patiently now?”

Cind finds a nearly log, and settles down upon in while unconsciously petting Varan. “Yes, sir.”

Kell promptly drops himself down next to Cind, straightens his posture, and nods. “Sure, man. Sounds great to me. Best plan I’ve heard tonight.”

Marcus blinks through the mucus coating over his head, plops down upon the forest floor, and sighs. “Yeah... Yeah... No, that’s good.”

Kaleb reaches out to his holographic heads up display, and starts working through a few menus. “Thank you.”

While the trio sit and wait quietly, Lagi smacks his lips, wipes his tongue against the bark of a tree, and grumbles out in disgust. Varan glances over to Marcus, sticks out his tongue briefly, and chirps back to Lagi.

----

Thomas rests a pencil down upon the array of blank schedules on the small dining table, leans back in his chair, and shakes his head. He chuckles, glances out the large window to the late morning light upon the lawn, and directs his voice to the aetherphone off to the side. “Well, it sounds like you had quite the night.”

Kaleb’s voice sounds out from the speakerphone, and he laughs with a drifting sigh. “Yeah. I think Lagi and I scared them enough as it is. When Mr. Frenzacia showed up with his shotgun and the sheriff, that Marcus guy didn’t have any shred of fight left in him.”

Albert twists his olive face with a frown, sips on his cup of coffee, and hums thoughtfully. “Well, it shows the child has some sense somewhere in his skull. Shame he didn’t find it sooner.”

Thomas shakes his head of short, silvery gray hair, and snorts while rolling his eyes. “Yeah. That always seems to be last thing you find after all the dumb. I should know. But... anyway...”

He drums his cybernetic fingers lightly upon a pile of paperwork, and smirks at the aetherphone. “So, I take it Varan got returned to Fawna?”

From the aetherphone, Kaleb reaffirms with a lighter tone. “Yeah. It was a little awkward for those three. But, once Varan saw Fawna, he fluttered over to her and clung to her the rest of the time Shadeesa and I were there. So, a happy ending for them. But, I don’t know what’s going to happen to the others.”

Albert quietly steps over close to the dining table, glances down at the phone, and twists a stern expression. “I’m certain Mr. Frenzacia is pressing charges, as he should?”

Kaleb sighs with a conflict in his voice. “Yeah... Yeah... He wasn’t too happy. I’m fairly certain that shotgun of his wasn’t for show. Probably shouldn’t have said anything about them possibly stealing Varan, now that I think about it. I don’t know.”

Thomas narrows a concerned gaze at his aetherphone, and pries further. “Sound uncertain there, Kaleb.”

With an indecisive groan, Kaleb ponders his feelings out loud. “I don’t know. I mean, they’re pretty stupid to be even doing what they did. Two of them weren’t on board with what that one guy did. And, to their credit they were honestly trying to make it right by finding Varan. So, I don’t know. Plus, I mean they’re High Alton students. I’d hate for their education to be completely wrecked over some dumb mistakes and misguided intentions.”

He mumbles into the call and sounds out his guilt. “Plus, I think they got enough of a reality check from Lagi and me. Jail time down here might be a little overkill? I don’t know... May something like community service?”

Thomas nods in agreement, twists his face contemplatively, and sighs. “Yeah. I was pretty stupid as a kid, too. There’s a few things I did that probably should gotten me a few weeks in jail. Maybe the system down there will have some mercy?”

Albert searches his mind quietly, tips back his mug of coffee, and darts his dark green gaze within his thoughts. Kaleb hums hopefully over the phone. “Yeah, maybe. So, anything new with you two?”

Thomas laughs with a smirk, and shakes his head. “Just trying to get ready for the semester. Got student worker schedules to fill out, and graduate assistants to assign to areas. And, I’m still trying to figure out a fair way to give out THE crappy jobs. No one wants to do that stuff.”

Lifting an intrigued brow, Albert silently steps behind Thomas, peeks over his shoulder at the empty schedules on the table, and draws a devious grin across his face. “Oh... Oh, do I ever have a solution for you two.”

Thomas glances over his shoulder at Albert, and cocks his head to the side. “And that would be?”

Kaleb’s voice sounds out from the aetherphone. “I’m listening?”

Albert narrows a curious stare. “First, who is the district attorney down there?”

From the other side of the call, muffled shuffles sound out and Kaleb mumbles. “Um, let me see here... I think I got his card around here. Had to file a report to him a few times before while on guild missions...”

Seconds of drawers opening, and papers shifting later, his voice perks up. “Ah! Found it! It’s Gordon Fairlight.”

Albert smiles smugly, chuckles confidently, and hums thoughtfully. “Oh! I know HIM. THIS is going to work about so nicely.”

He raps his fingers around his mug of coffee, sips the warm beverage, and giggles excitedly. “I’m going to solve so many problems.”

Thomas blinks curiously, and glances around to eventually refocus upon Albert. “So, how are we going to do this?”

Straightening his posture, Albert draws in a long breath of air, and grins brightly. “Well, first, I still have a few friends that wouldn’t mind talking to these students about certain groups they may have had interactions with. So, that opens up a bit flexibility for transferring their sentencing up here. I know Gordon from a while back, and it won’t take much to convince him to work something out. Also, I’m certain these children will be pretty agreeable to continue their education and avoid jail time. And, once Mr. Frenzacia hears what they’re going to be doing, he’ll be quite satisfied.”

Searching his own mind, Thomas puzzles and tilts his head to the side. “What would that be?”

Albert leans down, gazes into Thomas’s eyes, and kisses him. “Well, a semester or two of working the worst jobs you have to offer in the university stables. Solves your whole problem with finding workers those jobs, doesn’t it?”

Moments of silence pass on by, and Kaleb snorts reflexively from the other side of the call. “Oh, gods. All the mucking duties. Oh shit, that’s a little cruel and unusual. But... That would probably satisfy everyone’s sense justice down here.”

Thomas cracks a smirk, flips through the stack of papers, and pulls out an empty schedule. He studies it, rocks his head side to side, and grins. “Three dedicated people would cover all the stall cleaning jobs. And, I have plenty of graduate assistants who’d have no problems to supervising them, and making sure they behave themselves.”

Albert wraps his arm around Thomas’s neck, hugs him, and smiles deviously. “Consider it an early birthday gift.”

He stands back up, sips his coffee while walking around the small dining table, and directs his voice towards the aetherphone. “If you could, Kaleb, send me Mr. Frenzacia’s contact information along with Gordon’s. If we’re quick enough, we can get enough in place for Thomas’s new student workers to be on the road by late this afternoon. And, I think SHOULD be able to finalize it by tomorrow. If not, Monday morning. The latest.”

Kaleb ponders briefly, and laughs approvingly from other side of the call. “I’ll definitely do that. In fact, I’ll get right on it. Anyway, I think Shadeesa is looking for me anyway.”

Thomas glances over with an amused smirk to Albert, and comments towards the phone. “Yeah, you better make sure she’s happy.”

Albert blinks momentarily, flits his dark green eyes wide, and leans close to playfully whisper into the aetherphone. “Oh, before you go, let Shadeesa know I said hello and... Have you two picked a name for the baby?”

From other side of the conversation, Kaleb chuckles awkwardly. “Yes, but I am not at liberty to reveal the name till after he’s born. You’ll have to wait.”

Crossing his arms, Albert grimaces with an unsatisfied sigh. “I GUESS I understand. You go take care of the two of them.”

Thomas shakes his head with a smile and picks up his aetherphone. “You have a good day, Kaleb.”

Kaleb says goodbye to both Thomas and Albert, and the call concludes. Thomas thinks a moment, eyes Albert, and twists his mouth. “How do you know the district attorney down there?”

Rolling his eyes, and Albert shrugs his shoulders with a hint of past guilt. “Well. You know. We went to the same parties when we were younger.”

Searching his mind, Thomas furrows his brow and ponders out loud. “Oh, what kind of parties?”

Albert awkwardly smirks, eyes Thomas, and sighs. “Well, the crazier type of parties you go to when you are younger.”

Thomas grimaces uncomfortably, and mumbles out hints of embarrassment. “Oh yeah. Those types of parties. Uh, that I never went to because I was always helping on the farm, tending to a dragon, and doing night missions. So... Yeah...”

Albert swiftly steps next to Thomas’s seat, sets down his coffee, and wraps his arms around Thomas. “Oh, don’t feel that way. Really, you didn’t miss that much. Just a bunch of people trying to kill boredom.”

He hugs Thomas, and eyes him playfully. “Anyways, your stories are SO MUCH better. And, you REMEMBER most of them.”

Thomas chuckles, flips over a few pages of paperwork, and stares at another empty schedule. “Yeah... So, you don’t happen to have any other solutions to the rest of my scheduling problems?”

Albert glances down at the chronological puzzles before him, stands up, and snatches up his coffee on his way out. “Nope. I can only coerce so many people into questionable community service in any given day. Sorry.”

With a long sigh, Thomas settles his stare upon the pages of time blocks, picks up a pencil, and slides over another pile of paperwork. “Damn...”

----

Laying on the back bench seat of the humvee cab, Dretphi plays with a small stuffed toy dragon, and flaps its black wings with a smile. She rests it upon her chest, and admires another fuzzy toy thudkicker happily. Bach gazes out his window, and watches the surrounding suburbia wane to a sparser rural landscape. Blinking his blue eyes, he glances across the aisle to Aristespha, and lifts a curious brow at her tablet. “Trying to make sense of that route they recommended to us?”

Aristespha stares at the screen, drags her finger across the surface, and follows a long winding route on the digital map. “Yes. I guess it does make sense when you consider the other factors of this weird zone. But, it just feels so... inefficient.”

Sebastian’s ethereal form peeks over Aristespha’s shoulder, and he tugs at the corner of his mouth. “Yeah, it does, dear. But, given what they told us, it’s probably the safest route. We don’t need to make it any harder on us right now.”

Dretphi lifts her up head from a pillow, glances towards the front, and comments. “Northern route was not... friendly. This may be the fast route. Others went into dangerous areas. Some we could not cross in the humvee.”

Sotalia blinks back to awareness from her idle staring into the distance, turns her head towards the conversation, and sighs. “Still, I don’t like the fact the PDF investigators told us they didn’t find Noxian’s vehicle on the remote monitors on the main routes.”

Bach contorts his face, and musters up a bit of hope. “Well, that might be a good thing. If he’s taking some secret side route, it might have slowed him down a lot. We actually might not be too far behind him by a main route.”

Slowly nodding at the prospect, Sotalia smiles at Bach, and winks at him. “I like that thought. Hell, given how bad the weather has been, we may actually beat him there. Just wish we had an exact time he left. Gods, I hope we do find him in Precipice. He won’t be expecting it.”

Cideeda’s tail flicks up beside her, and she raps her claw tips on the steering wheel of the humvee. “He couldn’t have gone that much faster than what we’re going to be able to do. After the next check point, it’s going to be gravel roads, AT BEST. There’s a whole lot of dirt, inclines, and overgrowth from everything I read and heard. We might be lucky to average thirty kilometers an hour throughout the day.”

Aristespha rests her tablet in her lap, leans back into the seat, and gazes out her window. “We shouldn’t forget they did mention reports of recent vehicle activity on smuggling routes their scouts keep track of. So, there’s likely truth to him taking a side route. At least, we can hope.”

Sebastian smiles and chuckles lightly. “Well, either way, we should probably learn to enjoy the scenery. We’re going to be seeing plenty of it in the next few days. Just hope the conditions stay good.”

Cideeda navigates the humvee around a bend, and slowly straightens the vehicle back out. She shrugs her shoulders, resettles in her seat, and smirks. “They should from all the zone weather reports. Seems like everything is getting kicked up to the north east.”

Bach eases back into his seat, rolls his shoulders, and stretches out as his attention shifts outwards. “Well, I just hope we get more info to go in Precipice.”

The humvee rolls down a narrow two lane road as the pavement gradually degrades the further it reaches out into the zone.

----

The modern gray sedan coasts down the long stretch of highway. Noyando drives the car while he converses in fvalian on his aetherphone. Mera sits in the passenger’s seat, and idly gazes out into the fading suburbia. The vehicle slows to stop at a stop sign, and turns right. As the scenery passes by, Mera blinks back to awareness and perks up. Scanning the passing landmarks, she concentrates on her view of the world, as familiar aspects of the environment capture her attention. The vehicle rolls down the road past a section of forest, and Mera immediately recognizes the ranch style house. She narrows her crimson eyes, and studies the front. Moving fast down the road, she visually searches the property and settles her focus on the empty driveway. Her very long, pointed ears twitch, and she cocks her head curiously to the side. Noyando ends the call on his phone, and directs his voice to Mera. “Mera?”

Mera shudders back to awareness, and gazes over to Noyando. “Oh, yes, sorry?”

Noyando lifts a curious brow, and politely inquires. “You okay?”

Donning a smile, and Mera nods and laughs. “Oh, yes. Just noticed that one group’s humvee still isn’t there.”

Humming in thought, Noyando searches his mind, and shrugs his shoulders. “When they last ordered, they said they wanted good food before they left. So, they may have gone on an adventure? I don’t know. Adventurers do adventurer things. I don’t try to understand them. I’m just happy they like my food.”

He squints ahead down the road, and motions to a list on the center console. “Who is left on the delivery list? I forgot while talking on the phone.”

Mera picks up a list, inspects it quickly, and taps a finger between two remaining orders. “Just two more. And, I think the big one is up next.”

Noyando nods with a smile, and glances down at the navigation map on his phone. Mera glances over the seat back, and double-checks the bags of food in the back. After her inspection, she wanders her stare up through the back window, and settles upon the ranch style house shrinking in the distance. Meredosia’s eyes narrow upon the target, and she drifts of into her mind with a plotting expression.

-96-

The black sports utility vehicle pulls into the driveway of the two story house, and slows to a stop. Nearby cameras crews aim their equipment, and move into rehearsed positions. Inside the vehicle, Chad turns the engine off, pauses momentarily, and stares uncertainly between the surrounding camera crews. “Anyone else getting a BAD feeling about this welcome?”

Trakenthin slightly sneers his upper lip, slowly shakes his head, and grumbles. “It is concerning.”

Rolling her eyes, Tassilda grips her handle, and opens up the back driver’s side door. “Well, no use sitting here. Let us see what they have planned for us now.”

Deedri glances back at Modoran, droops her furry ears, and grimaces uncomfortably. “What do you think?”

Tugging at the corner of his mouth, Modoran narrows his scanning gaze, and sighs with an unamused grumble. “I don’t quite know. But... They’re anticipating something. All too well planned.”

Chad, Trakenthin, Tassilda, Deedri, and Modoran exit the vehicle, gather around the front house door, and witness the crew uncomfortably closing in. Chad smirks uneasily, use his the keys on the lock, and quickly pushes through the entry. The group slips through and gradually disperses into the living room. Sitting on the couch, Veevi releases a long dramatic sigh, and greets the team with a pitiful whine. “I was wondering when you all would get back today. I am so happy you got here so soon. It was getting very lonely without you all here.”

Tassilda narrows her light blue on black eyes, gradually pivots her head, and lowers her stare. Trakenthin glances over to Veevi, and presents a stern front towards her. Chad studies Veevi’s demure display, and lifts an intrigued brow. “Well, I hope you’ve had some time to think things through. Maybe we’ll talk after we all have settled back in, and see if you are ready to be part of the group again.”

Veevi’s fuzzy ears drop slightly, and she bows her head sadly. “If you think that’ll help. Maybe we can talk. I’d really like to go on the next mission.”

Chad sorts through his thoughts in between flits of confusion, and forces out an uncertain chuckle. “Good. We’ll talk later tonight.”

Twisting her mouth, Tassilda rolls her eyes dismissively, weaves through the team towards the stair case, and tosses back her long, raven black hair. “Whatever. I need shower before anything else today.”

She quickly darts up the stairwell out of sight, and a camera operator trails closely behind. Modoran narrows his gaze uncertainly, and glances around the area. Deedri’s ears perk to footsteps upstairs, muffled sounds of keys working into lock, and then a strange abrupt pause. She blinks and puzzles as her ears flick.

A string of Emin curses burst into the air upstairs, and an enraged yell from Tassilda echoes into the living room. “WHAT. THE. FUCK?!”

Chad, Trakenthin, Deedri, and Modoran quickly exchange bewildered glances with each other, and then simultaneously focus their attention upon Veevi. Combing her sharp, black nails through her long pink hair, Veevi presents a smug grin on her tan face, and giggles insidiously. Chad blinks blankly, reflexively winces, and quickly steps up towards the stairs. Trakenthin, Deedri, and Modoran follow afterwards, and crew members rush up behind them. The team gathers around Tassilda’s bedroom door, and peer inside. Tassilda glares furiously at her bed as her balled up fists tremble with anger. Drawing a strained sniff and growling out an exhale, she scoops her fingers underneath a pile of fanciful wrappers upon her bedspread, and lets the small papers slip out between her fingers. Snarling her upper lip upon her gray face, she runs her palm upon the comforter and sweeps up specs of cookie crumbs onto her hand. Her face lowers in anger as strands of straight black hair slip over her swirling horns. She shakily points to an opened box with fancy emin script and images of finely crafted chocolates.

The team at the door studies the situation, and each arrive to an unnerving conclusion. They split away from Tassilda’s door, and rush over to their own bedrooms. Trakenthin swiftly gets his door open, and he steps in. Halting a meter from the door, a low grumble sounds out, and Trakenthin slowly surveys the spots of disarray in his room. He kneels down next to the chaotic mess of books littering the floor around his bed, and sifts through his scattered belongings. As he stands back up, he pauses as a reflective glint catches his eyes from on top of his bed. Almost a dozen empty beer bottles with grath titles bask in the late morning sun beaming through the window. Trakenthin reaches out, grasps the nearest bottle tightly, and glares at it. As he maintains his stoic stare, twitches of swelling anger slip out upon his dark bronze cheeks. Standing straight up, he silently steps to his bedroom door, moves through with recording crew keeping a safe distance, and slowly pivots to glare back down the hall.

Modoran crosses his arms, studies his door up and down, and cocks his head to the side. He glances over towards Trakenthin, notices the empty bottle, and points down to shattered glass of a similar color. “Yeah... I think I found out where some of your beer went.”

He kneels down, narrows his dark blue eyes at the door jamb next to the door knob, and shakes his head. “Wow...”

Deedri hops out of her bedroom, closes the door firmly behind her, and pants out her relief. “I don’t think she got into my room. Nothing looks out of place.”

Nodding towards Deedri behind him, Modoran stands up, shrugs his shoulders, and scratches his short white hair. “I know she didn’t get into mine. But, she sure tried.”

Gesturing through an incantation, Modoran wills wisps of magical flow to his fingers, and taps the door knob to his bedroom door. A wave of faint energy pulses through a barrier weaving into the door frame, and a haze of miasma diffuses away. The flush join between jamb and door drifts apart to form a narrow divide.

Tassilda marches out of her room, grits her teeth tightly with seething breaths, and tightens her grip upon a decorated box top. “Gods. HELP ME. I am going to KILL that UNHOLY ABOMINATION. She’s nothing but a PINK FURRED MONSTER that feeds upon chaos and misery!”

Snapping her bright light blue glower at the stairwell, she storms off stomping and growls out. “Oh... It’s going to be closed shoe box funeral when I get done with her!”

Deedri’s auburn eyes widen, she pushes through a camera operator, and diplomatically blockades Tassilda. “You need to sit down a moment, and clear your head. Please! She’s not worth the jail time.”

Tassilda halts in her tracts, stares at Deedri, and mulls over the pleas unconvinced. A firm hand grips her shoulder, and holds her in place. Tassilda snaps her glance over and stares at Trakenthin. She starts to move her mouth, and Trakenthin hoists up the empty grath beer bottle. Tassilda gazes into Trakenthin’s stoic face. A low groan sounds out from Trakenthin, and he slowly shakes his head. Tassilda visibly debates her emotions, slumps her shoulders gradually, and holds up her box lid. Patting her shoulder, Trakenthin nods with an understanding frown, and turns his head towards Chad’s bedroom.

Trakenthin leads ahead, and Tassilda follows quickly behind. Deedri and Modoran rush over to join the group. The gathering converges upon Chad’s bedroom entry. Trakenthin steps once into the room, halts, and blinks in surprise at the destruction. Tassilda begins to summon up a demanding tone, pauses to blink her light blue on black eyes, and drops her jaw at the wood chunks near the desk. Deedri peeks around Tassilda, springs her auburn eyes wide, and gasps as she covers her mouth. Modoran leans out through the door to get a view, and cringes as he scans the vicinity. Standing the middle of the room, Chad tosses scraps from shredded poster upon his collapsed bed, draws in a long breath, and scratches the back of his light brown, coiffed head of hair. Glancing unhappily at three person recording crew in the corner of the room, he eventually pivots around, notices the rest of the team gawking, and musters up a smile. Pushing against the overwhelming defeat in on his voice, Chad just sighs sadly, shakes his head, and awkwardly laughs. “Well... Um... Ah... This was not exactly the... ah... huh... direction I was hoping she would take.”

He blinks around at the extensive, rage fueled redecoration of his bedroom, uncertainly crosses his arms, and gazes to the team. “So... I’m going to admit, I don’t know how to proceed here. Any thoughts would be appreciated? Yeah... Huh...”

Trakenthin steps forth, glances down at Chad’s bed, and kneels down. “I will lift. We will clear out all underneath.”

Modoran slips through, drops down to his knees, and sorts through the messes of belongings on the floor. “Yeah, we’ll need to clean up the floor a bit, so we can work through all this.”

Tassilda steps up to Chad, rubs his back, and motions to the torn posters. “I might be able to piece those back together for you.”

Deedri picks up a torn half of a pillow, inspects the torn fabric, and ponders out loud. “I’ll see if I can stitch this up.”

An appreciate smile appears on Chad’s face, and nods to Tassilda. “Thank you.”

He glances out to the team and smirks. “Thank you all... We’ll... figure this out yet.”

Down the stairwell in the living room, Veevi lounges upon the couch, casually splays out upon the cushions, and giggles delightfully. A smug grin grows wide on her face, and she tosses back her pink hair with a flick of a furry pink tail. Settling upon the couch in sheer satisfaction, she admires the flat black color upon her sharp nails, and pulls out a paperback novel. She cracks it open to a bookmarked section, settles her gaze at it, and flicks the bookmark away.

----

Rolling curtains of wind wave across the thick, tall grasses in the surrounding fields. Shallow pools scattered in the marshy sections ripple with the breezes, small wildlife moving, and unseen forces. Large magnolias sway with the air and brush branches with nearby pines and willows. Cresting the top of a long winding incline, the humvee slowly climbs the apex. Tires turn against the rough dirt road, spin free for brief moments, and regain traction as they dig into the layers of gravel underneath. The vehicle settles to a steady roll upon the level road ahead, and Cideeda leans her head outside her driver’s side window. Squinting at the relatively flat path ahead, she follows the course and notices a concrete entrance at a crude “T” intersection. She settles back in her seat, sighs as she rests of her head of short multi-colored hair, and presses a button on the front control console. “I think we’ve FINALLY made it to the rest area. And, before I lose my mind, I’m turning off the traction control. Those damn whiny motor controllers.”

Sotalia gazes out at the darkening purple and blue sky ahead, and glances behind at the cooling warm orange sunset. “If you say so, girl. I’ll just be glad to remind myself what being on flat ground feels like.”

Focusing her attention upon a location on a digital map, Aristespha glances up to the signage at the reinforced gateway, nods to herself as see matches up the information. She taps her finger upon her window. “This is the correct area. I believe we just turn in and find a place to set up.”

The humvee turns between concrete entry pillars, and rolls up onto dirt and sand coated pavement slab. The vehicle navigates through sparse directional signs encircling a huge cleared area around a large central structure. Bach searches out his back passenger window, and directs his voice to the rest of the team. “I think we’re the only ones here. At least right now.”

Dretphi leans into the central aisle, peers out Bach and Aristespha’s windows, and ponders out loud. “Area is maintained. Camp areas have been used. Within the last week? Good sign. It has not been abandoned long.”

Sebastian’s ethereal form materializes between Bach and Aristespha, and in front of Dretphi. He stares out windows, shrugs his shoulders, and motions towards a long, concrete archway. “I guess we have our choice of camp ground. Let’s pull into one of these armored carports? And, we’ll check the place out.”

Quickly scanning the large reinforced shelters, Cideeda navigates the humvee into middle of a wide, open bunker. As the powerplant of the vehicle spins down, doors open up. Sotalia hops out onto the dirt and sand covered pavement, glances around the roofed space inside the shelter, and gazes up at the nearly six meters of clearance overhead. “My gods, they don’t fuck around when they build carports out here.”

Bach slides his seat forward, and allows Dretphi to squeeze out from the cab. He gazes up around the huge vacant space, shrugs his shoulders, and scratches the back of his head of longer brown hair. “While I feel relieved they put really nice shelters out here for travelers... I’m wondering why they’re THIS well built.”

Floating up in the space above the team, Sebastian’s ghostly form drifts around with his attention, and he crosses his arms. “Well, bro, I mean if you are going to put something out here and not have to fix it every week, you probably have to go all out.”

Glancing up a moment, Bach levels his stare out to the central building, and nods in agreement. “Yeah, that makes sense. Build it ridiculous once, and don’t have to touch until something ridiculous happens.”

Stepping out from underneath the dim shade of the arched concrete bunker, he slowly pans a gaze around the vicinity, and settles upon an assembled wall of signs with different icons and languages. “They certainly didn’t cut corners on the literature. Holy shit.”

The team assembles and wanders toward the large, reinforced central structure, and stop in front of the metal panels of instructions. Each studies different signs and reads through the information. Sotalia crosses her arms, lifts an intrigued brow, and mumbles out loud. “Restrooms with showing facilities available inside? We’ll see about THAT.”

Tossing back her silvery blue hair, Aristespha smirks towards Sotalia, and chuckles dryly. “Yeah... I have my doubts at how viable they are, but I honestly would not mind being proven wrong after today.”

Sotalia rests her hand of long, black nailed fingers on her hip, smirks smugly towards Aristespha, and snorts. “At this point, I’ll make them viable. It’s amazing how clean and cleared things get when you do a little aggressive magical steam cleaning.”

Glancing down at her shirt, she picks at the fabric, fans some air through her chest, and sighs. “Honestly, I really wouldn’t mind getting a crappy shower right now. Worked up a sweat with this heat and casting telekinesis spells today. Hope the rest of the roads are less cluttered.”

Cideeda blinks her emerald eyes, perks up furry ears up, and flicks her long tail up. She pivots in place, focuses her attention to the inside of the bunker at a huge metal cabinet. She cocks her head curiously, and shrugs. “If they’re willing to provide vehicle chargers in the bunkers, working showers might not be too much to ask for.”

She slowly spins in place, and her eyes inspect the solar panels upon the roofs of the central structure and the different arched shelters surrounding. Her furry ears flick towards a noise above, and she watches a few windmills turn into the wind. While studying the different types of antennas mounted, she reaches into her shorts pocket, and retrieves her aetherphone. She taps her claw tipped fingers on the screen through the different menus. “They put some thought when they made this place. I think there’s a radio relay system running.”

Dretphi shifts her attention from a sign to a rugged awning over a number of picnic tables, cooking pits, and basic food preparation facilities. “Requirements are different here. This feels like a long term camp site.”

Aristespha finishes reading a dense chunk of instructions, glances over to Sebastian hovering next to her, and perks her brow. Sebastian shrugs his shoulders, and points to a kiosk. “I guess do what it says.”

Stepping up to a metal booth, Aristespha cautiously grabs hold of a handle, turns the latch on the protective doors, and opens up a cabinet of switches, buttons, and indicators. She glances over her shoulder, narrows her gaze at the number carved at the top of the arched bunker, and pulls a large weatherized switch that matches.

A status light flicks green on the panel, and a number of others follow. Cideeda’s ears flick around at the emerging sounds in the background, and Dretphi watches the area expectantly. Dim building lights brighten. Armored flood lamps flip up from the side of the central building and illuminate the surrounding area against the encroaching darkness. Muffled whirs of pumps coming online and the rushes of water flowing through pipes faintly sound out from inside the central building. Lights flick on inside the arched concrete bunker and shine upon the humvee.

Sebastian glances around, twists his mouth, and blinks blankly. “Huh. Well, I guess things will be ready for us soon. Settle in I guess?”

Sotalia nods, eyes the entry to the restroom facility, and brushes a lock of her fiery orange, wavy hair over a swept back horn. She pauses a moment, rolls the red strands between her fingers, and grimaces with faint disgust. “Sounds good. I’d really like to see if we can get a shower running here.”

Crossing her arms, Dretphi sneaks a sniff towards her shoulder, twists her mouth uncomfortably, and tilts her head of platinum blonde braids. “Yes. We should run the water. Clean the pipes out. Should be workable.”

Cideeda glances up to Bach with a smile, pokes his arm with a claw tip, and motions towards the bunker. “I’m going to get the humvee hooked up to whatever passes for a power source out here. Might need you to magic up an adapter.”

Nodding in agreement, Bach concentrates upon a big sign with red text and a direction indicator. He blinks at the literature, glances over to mesh doors upon a wide, deep concrete stairwell, and grimaces. “Yeah. We might want to check out this Surge Shelter they keep talking about. It says to make sure the door opens up, and there’s a clear path to it from the exterior and interior entrances.”

Aristespha shifts her violet eyes over to the sign detailing Surge Shelter information, sorts through the information, and frowns. “Yes. I really hope we will not need it. Maelstroms are here powerful enough. Surges are on a whole different level.”

As the team divides and spreads out into the site, flits of bright light flicker in the distant dark clouds east. Eerie glows cascade out, illuminate the night sky, and sparkle out chains of other faint activity.

----

Sheets of thick rain pound the ground, and a roaring chorus of water drowns the world under a relentless drone. The blue all terrain vehicle revs up, and tires spin through layers of mud and wet rock. Isaac squints his eyes through the fast swipes of windshield wipers, and misty haze flowing around the vehicle. The wheels muscle up to the crest of a hill and grip onto a patch of scattered stones. Isaac glances over to the passengers seat, and blinks wide eyed at Mavian. “Not to sound negative, but I think we’re pushing our luck quite more than we should right now.”

Mavian’s faintly glowing green eyes search ahead, and he nods with a grimace. “Yeah, I agree. There’s a small surge shelter around here. We just need follow the path for another kilometer or so.”

Tensing his grip on the steering wheel, Isaac grits his teeth and navigates the rugged truck around washed out ruts and debris. Along a clear straight path, he eases out a breath of relief, brushes his wild, wispy white hair back, and blinks his gray eyes. “Well, if the next kilometer is like this, I think we’ll be alright.”

Focusing his stare ahead, Mavian’s eyes widen and he gestures ahead to soaked and empty span of road ahead. “Shit! STOP HERE! Don’t go THERE!”

Isaac narrows his confusion at Mavian, glances ahead, and cocks his head. “Really? What’s the problem-”

Mavian motions towards the brakes, and sternly addresses Isaac. “Please. STOP THE VEHICLE.”

Isaac blinks blankly, gazes ahead, and eases the vehicle to stop. As the rain washes over the vehicle, he alternates his attention between Mavian and the open, soggy road ahead between fast sweeps of the windshield wipers. “Okay. What am I missing here?”

Mavian’s green eyes glow brightly, and he directs Isaac’s attention with a wave of the hand ahead. “Mage sight. Look carefully at the road ahead.”

Lifting his head back in surprise, Isaac squints his gray eyes as they flash to a bright light, and widens his stare as he reflexively gasps. “Dear gods... What in the hell is going on up there?”

Twisting his mouth, Mavian uneasily draws a breath in, studies the road ahead, and rocks his head side to side uncertainly. “I don’t know. Looks like something got dropped out from the storm. Which means we’re close to this being a proper maelstrom.”

He leans close to the front windshield, peers out carefully through the chaotic rain and haze, and points to the rough shoulder of the dirt route. “We might be able to squeeze around it over there.”

Isaac traces the direction Mavian indicates, gradually nods in agreement, and summons up his nerve. “That looks feasible. And, I guess, probably our best option at the moment.”

Glancing over to the wet passage of road, he grimaces as he watches uneasily through his glowing gray eyes. “Because from the traces of flow I’m seeing, I don’t think anything good will happen if we touch that spot.”

Mavian nods, and focuses his attention upon the brush and roadside debris along the shoulder. “Yeah. I’m not quite sure what that anomaly is now, but it looks like Flare Out or leakage from a Fire Flower. Neither are that great, and the water makes them blast steam instead of just heat.”

Summoning up his courage, Isaac grips the steering wheel tightly, carefully steers the vehicle towards the shoulder, and eases the accelerator. Tires churn through the soggy earth, and the blue truck rides upon the rough shoulder. Pushing through brush and rolling over debris, Isaac steadies the path and Mavian observes the progress. Isaac keeps the all terrain vehicle steady, and glances over to the eerily calm section of wet road. A sharp snap happens overhead with a surge of wind, and a large, leafy branch lands upon the empty part of the path.

An eruption of heat boils the water into a powerful gout of steam. A thick cloud of vapor immediately floods the area. The haze billows out and engulfs the blue truck, and plumes into the surrounding area. Seconds of hard rain later, the vapor disperses down onto the ground. Isaac glances back over, and grits his teeth uncomfortably as he stares at the branch. The piece of wood smolders slightly, lays barren of leaves, and flecks of stripped bark float away with the flow of water. Gradually turning his stare ahead, Isaac grips the steering wheel tighter, and uncomfortably grumbles under his breath. Mavian nods understandingly, and resumes his watch.

The rugged vehicle pushes through the final patch of shrubs, angles back towards the center of the road, and powers through the waves of heavy rain. Rolling through thickening muck, the vehicle struggles to keep forward momentum. Mavian spots a colorful marker pillar, and directs Isaac. “There! Turn in here, hopefully, there’s a shelter we can use.”

Turning into the driveway, the all terrain vehicle finds footing upon packed gravel, and Isaac navigates the pathway into a concrete, arched shelter. Putting the vehicle in park, Isaac blinks back to his senses during the escape from the pounding drone of rain, and breathes slowly. Mavian glances around, studies the area, and nods slowly. “Okay. We’ve got something to shield us for now. We’ll need to check to see if we can get in the surge shelter. But, I think we can take it easy for a bit.”

Isaac rubs his eyes, stretches his shoulders, and laughs nervously. “I’ll admit, while I’ve driven through some maelstroms, I get the distinct impression you classify things a little different out here.”

Mavian snorts out his humor, and smirks as he relaxes in the seat. “Yeah. Regular storms are always a bit more powerful. And, we don’t consider something a maelstrom until it constantly drops dangerous stuff.”

Idling in the relative quiet, Isaac rubs his ears, cracks his neck with a wince, and glances over to Mavian. “On the same subject... I’ve read up about zone surges. But, I’ve never experienced one personally. So, I’m not certain on what exactly happens.”

Mavian blinks his faintly glowing green eyes, twists his mouth, and grimaces as he pushes his back against his seat. “Yeah. I’ve been through many, and a few times without much shelter. It’s hard to really explain in detail. But, I can kind of sum it up?”

He searches through his mind for the words, taps his finger thoughtfully on the door side, and sighs with a cautious tone. “Maelstroms are just magic stirred up by weather. So, they can only get so much power naturally, and the anomalies can only boost it so much. The magic in a maelstrom is just part of the chaos soup. It’s not really organized in any shape or form.”

Drawing in a long breath, he grits his teeth, and slowly shakes his head. “A Surge. That’s a different beast. Surges form without any kind of weather. For some reason, magic energies align and... As strange as it sounds, seem to coordinate with each other. You practically get a magic hurricane forming high above a huge area, and the eye of it is where the surge can happen.”

Mavian gazes at Isaac and motions a finger upwards. “If you are lucky, when it reaches critical mass, it launches it up. It’ll scare the shit out of you, but all the energy goes away from you.”

He frowns sternly and points down. “If you aren’t lucky, it surges it down on top of you. Gods help you if you are outside, and don’t have some protection.”

Isaac blinks slowly, and contorts his face uncomfortably. “I see. So, best to be well within a surge shelter before that point?”

Mavian eases out a breath, and points roughly towards a concrete bunker in the middle of a circle of a few more arched shelters. “Yes. Surge shelters go underground, have protection enchantments upon the inside, and have layers of magically protective materials surrounding them. The best protection you’ll get out here, if you don’t have some shielding magic.”

He chuckles lightly, and shakes his head. “But, don’t worry right now. There’s been no surge warning issued over the radio network, no sirens blaring from the monitoring station here, and the skies looked... clear... today.”

Isaac lifts an intrigued brow at Mavian, and cocks his head to the side as he adjust his blue scarf. “Interesting. Anything that mage sight can detect?”

Mulling over the thought, Mavian wrestles with a concept, and shrugs his shoulders uncertainly. “Yes and no? It’s more noticing when the usual chaos is too... organized? You get a feeling that the background noise is somehow different. It’s something you start to notice after years of being in zone.”

Pausing as a stray idea crosses his mind, Mavian gazes over to Isaac, scratches his chin curiously, and ponders out loud. “Speaking of being in the zone... Typically, I don’t pry too much into people’s business out here. But, I’m not going to lie. I am a little curious as to why your friend Malkav has been out in the zone for so long. I’ve lead people around and scoured the PWZ for a long time, and I still can’t recall anything that special about that region he might be in.”

Isaac casually turns his ahead to glance out his driver side window, and his eyes widen with flits of worry and suspicion. He musters a calm demeanor, and wrestles down the unease out of his expression. He presents an intrigued, academic tone towards Mavian. “I actually thought the same exact thing. I know general pieces of what he hopes to accomplish out here. But, I frankly do not know fully. I believe he thinks something exists in some very old ruins of significant archaeological importance. So much so, he’s been very dedicated and not bothered to regularly contact anyone about it. I’m happy he’s actually been seen in the last few months from your reports, because that’s more than a lot of people have seen him.”

Mavian narrows his faintly glowing green eyes, searches his mind, and analyzes Isaac’s words. Quirking an interested brow, he crosses his arms, and smirks out his curiosity. “That actually explains a lot. Most zone runners keep tabs on everyone going into the PWZ for all the artifacts and strange magic.”

He frowns slightly with hints of embarrassment. “We actually don’t pay that much attention to anyone just looking at the, uh, old architecture?”

Isaac blinks to attention, and concentrates upon Mavian’s cadence. “You say that like there’s generally a lot of ruins and old structures out here.”

Mavian nods quickly, shrugs his shoulders, and smiles awkwardly. “Yeah. This zone is loaded with a lot of ancient buildings. Some are hidden. Some are a bit too dangerous to go near without a good reason. And, some are just, well, boring. Most zone runners just consider them part of the scenery, and really only pay attention to them if they’re useful to hide in or find artifacts around.”

Isaac cocks his head to the side, studies Mavian, and hums in thought. “Interesting. Any of these ruins you are willing to tell me about?”

Mavian pauses, rolls down the window, and listens carefully. “Sure. If you are going to be anywhere else in the zone, there’s a few I can recommend in case you need a place to shelter from a storm... Or, hide from the not so friendly people that wander parts of the zone.”

He opens the blue truck’s door, glances out behind the vehicle, and motions towards the surge shelter. “It looks like the rain has slowed down. Let’s check to make sure the shelter is in working order.”

Isaac pushes his door open, steps down from the all terrain vehicle, and nods. “Sound goods. I guess we should set up camp down there for tonight?”

Mavian stands at the edge of the concrete arch bunker, surveys the vicinity, and glances up at the dark sky. “Yeah. We’re not traveling much further in this mess.”

Unlocking the back tailgate, Isaac lifts up the top window hatch, and cracks a relieved smile. “Oh, good. I hoped you’d agree. It’s been a bit harrowing today, and I wouldn’t mind a long rest.”

An intrigued grin grows upon his face. “And, I would love to hear more about these ruins you know of.”

----

Lounging in the fully tilted back front passenger’s seat, Sotalia slowly turns to the last page of a graphic novel. Her golden eyes follow the flow of the story across the layout, and she bites her lower lip as anticipation builds. As the toes of her sock covered feet curl upon the front dash, she flips the other side of the last page. She studies the literature, blinks, and rolls her eyes with a disappointed groan. “Oh gods... You’ve got to be kidding me. ANOTHER cliffhanger?! Why do I do this myself?”

She rolls her head, gazes out the back passenger door, and waves the book for Dretphi’s attention. “Can you believe this crap? Now I understand why you were so frustrated.”

Dretphi notices the graphic novel in Sotalia’s hand, grimaces, and sighs with a shake of her head. “It is aggravating. Next volume MUST deliver.”

Standing up from her tent, she inspects the rigid supports and cabling, and gazes with satisfaction at her lodging. Sotalia closes up the graphic novel, rests the book down against her chest, and runs her long nailed fingers through her fiery orange, wavy hair. “I mean, they share interests, have some real chemistry, and have been awkwardly close to each other SO MANY TIMES!”

She tilts the cover of the book towards her narrowing stare, and twists her mouth. “Shit, will you two just kiss and FUCK already!”

Dretphi pauses a moment, smiles tightly, and steps over near Sotalia in the humvee. “I have a theory.”

Sotalia tilts her head over, perks an intrigued brow, and curls a devilish smirk. “Oh? Do tell...”

Leaning down, Dretphi whispers a few sentences of grath to Sotalia, and fails to hold back the her enthusiastic smile against flush of embarrassment. Sotalia blinks blankly, glances at the book, and contorts her face uncertainly. “I like where you are going... But... Would that even...”

Dretphi slips a finger between the pages of graphic novel, and searches through with an eager grin. “Read this part...”

From the large central building in the middle of the camp site, Bach steps out of the restroom hallway, stretches his back, and gazes up at the full moon overhead in the star filled sky upon faintly hazy hints of the Milky Way. He stares upwards silently, gawks at the serene sky above, and relaxes. A small scraping sound interrupts his trance, and Bach searches around for the source of the noise. His stare settles upon a squirrel working on the leftover peach flesh around a pit. Cocking his head to the side, he curiously studies the critter upon the picnic table under the illuminated awning. After a few moments, the squirrel pauses, snaps its gaze towards Bach, and stares quietly. Bach chuckles with an awkward tinge, and shrugs his shoulders. “Well, don’t let me interrupt your dinner.”

He pans a gaze across the open area surrounding the central building, and notices Cideeda pacing around with her aetherphone out. Bach glances over his shoulder briefly and freezes. His blue eyes widen slightly, and he uneasily spots three squirrels staring back at him. He cautiously steps back, pivots towards Cideeda, and quickly walks over. Stopping nearby, Bach suspiciously glances back towards the now empty picnic area, and shifts his attention to Cideeda. “So, any luck getting a signal?”

Cideeda frowns with a frustrated grumble, and rolls her emerald green eyes. “No.”

She raps her claws along the protective case on her aetherphone, and snorts with a grimace. “There’s a news radio broadcast, the emergency channels, and a crude radio relay service.”

Slipping her phone back into her shorts pocket, she gazes up to Bach, perks her ears, and smirks. “We’re just going to have to entertain ourselves, I guess.”

Bach chuckles, puffs the white hair streak out of his face, and rolls his eyes. “Oh gods... The horror. What will we ever do? What could possibly captivate our attention while in the middle of a weird zone.”

Resting her hands on her hips, Cideeda shifts her weight with a wag of her tail, and twists a smile upon her face. “You have a point. Maybe we should take a look around?”

Bach blinks his eyes, glances down at the toothy grin on Cideeda’s light brown face, and shrugs his shoulders. “I’m not against it. Might be good to check anyway if we’re staying the night.”

Cideeda nods, and motions Bach to follow. The two rejoin the rest of the team under the arched bunker. Sebastian’s ethereal form hovers down from the curved roof above, and lands at the center of the camp near the humvee. Crossing his arms, he furrows his brow and a smirks creeps up on his face. “So... Just curious, anyone up for checking out this part of the zone? I mean, since we’re here and all.”

Sotalia pulls herself up in humvee seat, puts her book down, and works her feet into her boots. “Gods, yes! I can’t wait to see what I’ll find!”

Dretphi nods and smiles eagerly. “I will join.”

Bach and Cideeda exchange glances, and nod towards Sebastian. Glancing around the area, Sebastian settles his gaze upon a small tent, and drifts his ghostly visage next to it. He kneels down beside it, and whispers. “Oh, dear, you think you take a break from writing your slash fiction, and help us explore?”

Cideeda snorts, and mutters of embarrassed evuukian sound out from the tent. Aristespha crawls out from the tent, straightens her back out as she works out the faint flush in her ivory face, and sighs. “Yes, Sebastian. I actually would like to see if we can explore this area.”

Brushing her silvery blue hair over her very long, pointed ears, she starts to slip her foot into her leather boot, and stops. Thinking a moment, she grabs the boot, turns it upside down, and shakes it. After a few dull rattles, a single pebble drops out onto the ground. Aristespha narrows her stare with a smirk of satisfaction. “I figured as much.”

The team readies themselves, and walk out from underneath the concrete arch bunker. Following a side path, they approach the cleared perimeter of large rest area, and Aristespha steps ahead. She signals the group to stop, and glances back. “Before we go any further, we need to gauge how safe this part of the zone is right now.”

She draws in a calming breath, readies her hands, and plants her feet. With intricate gestures and precisely rehearsed incantations, she directs flows of magic into the palms of her hands and holds the energy tightly. With a wide opening sweep her arms, a faint pulse of energy swells out into the tall grass and trees before the team. As the wave travels, glowing specs of activity flit about, spectral entities flicker into view, and moving flow of light drifts upon the ground and plants. Focusing her glowing violet eyes, Aristespha stares and assesses the otherworldly inhabitants casually existing. As the rest of the team gawks at the expanding reveal of the hidden spiritual life further out, Aristespha smiles contentedly, spins around to the team, and nods happily. “We should be okay to look around. The harmless and nicer spirits are plentiful, and there’s no signs of anything obviously dangerous.”

Sotalia’s golden eyes widen with glee, and she motions her head towards the field while staring the team. “Well? Let’s see what we can find!”

Sebastian darts out in front of the group and hovers in the air above. Sotalia leads the group, while Aristespha keeps pace with her, and Bach, Cideeda, and Dretphi follow right behind. Navigating through the large open field of pools and trees, the team wanders closer to the flits and specs of magical light. From above, Sebastian halts mid flight, glances down, and stares. He waves towards the team and points down past tall grasses and surrounding willow and magnolia trees. The team finds an opening and peer into a clearing around a small pond. Sotalia visually searches the area, contorts her face, and puzzles out loud. “Okay... What are we looking for?”

She narrows her stare, slowly scans, and twists her mouth. “I’m feeling something around here.”

A distant gust filters through the landscape and pushes a gentle breeze through. As the wind sways the plant life, wavering glows of colorful light radiate along the leaves, bark, and roots of the trees. Aristespha and Bach glance to each other. Aristespha focuses her violet glowing gaze upon the pond as prismatic ripples pulse out upon the surface. Bach narrows his blue illuminated eyes at the large waxy leaves of a magnolia. He leans close to a dark green leaf, cocks his head to the side, and ponders out loud. “There’s some kind of... flow capacity... in this leaf?”

Dretphi peeks over Bach’s shoulder, and Cideeda gazes up from next to Bach. After a few seconds of study, Bach glances between Cideeda and Dretphi, reaches his hand out, and wills wisps of flow to the tip of his finger. Tapping the surface of the leaf gingerly, he tilts his head to the side with a smirk as a prismatic dot glimmers. “Huh. That’s pretty cool.”

Cideeda’s emerald eyes glint with the faint reflection from the colorful glow, and she lightly presses her claw tips onto Bach’s forearm. “Can I try that?”

Bach gazes down, smiles, and pulls down a huge leaf in front of her. “Sure. All you have to do is to concentrate your flow to a finger tip, and just press it on the surface.”

With Dretphi watching curiously, Cideeda closes her eyes to concentrate, lifts up a claw tipped finger, and eases out a breath. Opening her eyes, faint swirls of magical flow slowly drift down her arm, up her hand, and condense loosely upon her digit. Dragging her finger across the leaf, a faint prismatic trail glows upon the surface. A warm smile fills Cideeda’s face, and she excitedly sketches out a fvalian caricature. Dretphi eagerly reaches for another large leaf ahead, and ease down a branch for herself.

Floating above the small pond, Sebastian keeps his stare upon the waters and slowly shakes his head. “I know I saw something in the water.”

Kneeling down upon faintly glowing moss, Sotalia squints her flickering golden eyes and grits her teeth as she strains. “There’s something in this pool. But, I can’t... see it...”

Aristespha surveys the perimeter of the pool with her radiant violet eyes, frowns slightly, and crosses her arms. “I’m having problems, too. There just seems to be a lot of... magical noise? That is my best explanation without further study. There’s definitely something about this pool.”

She twists her mouth, huffs out her frustration, and mumbles. “There seems to be a lack of contrast.”

Sotalia drums her long thick nails upon a nearby rock, and glances over to Bach, Cideeda, and Dretphi. Watching the trio flow magic energy upon the leaves and paint residual glows, her golden eyes flit wide, and a bold grin emerges on her face. Lifting an intrigued brow, she places her hands into the surface of the water, draws a breath in, and focuses. A burst of flow swirls out from her arms, jets down to her hands, and surges into the pond. A pulse of prismatic energy radiates brightly into the pool, travels along winding channels along the shore, and creeps up blades of grass and tree roots. Sebastian and Aristespha watch the pond shine brilliantly against the moonlit, starry night, and Bach, Cideeda, and Dretphi glance over at the colorful display.

Sotalia diligently observes as the illumination wanes, and squints into the pool. As the water’s light fades, crystalline specks within remain bright. With an eager smile, Sotalia’s attention shifts to larger formations of crystal upon the bottom of the pond, and she reaches her hands into the water. The rest of the team converge around Sotalia as she scoops up, and raises up a prismatic mineral from the pool. Her attention fully affixes upon the artifact in her hands, and she grins brightly. “Oh I’ve heard of these, but never have been able to find one intact.”

Aristespha’s fascination locks onto the crystal, and a genuine smile appears on her face. “Oh my. A natural magical material formation. I always wanted to hold the ones in the geology department’s displays, and charge them up to watch them glow.”

Gazing over to Aristespha, Sotalia smirks warmly to Aristespha, presents the prismatic mineral to her, and rests it in her hands. “Well, here’s your chance. This one is all yours.”

Sebastian smiles to Sotalia, and chuckles as Aristespha studies the crystal happily. “What do you say, dear?”

Aristespha rolls her eyes playfully at Sebastian, and nods sincerely to Sotalia. “Thank you, Sotalia.”

Sotalia nods with grin. “You’re welcome, girl.”

Determination twists her mouth, and desire focuses her attention into the pool. She rolls up the short sleeves of her shirt, seats herself upon the rock along pond bank, and reaches her hand back. “Okay... Bach! Dretphi! Hold onto to my arm, I see a few big ones I want and I don’t want to fall in all the way! I got nieces and nephews expecting Aunt Sotalia to deliver!”

-97-

A warm glow filters through the tent around a slumbering Bach. Faint twitches of consciousness flit upon his face, and he draws in a long breath. Stirring in his sleeping bag, his blue eyes flutter open as the ambient light radiates the morning sun’s heat into the small space. Familiar sounds of movement drift from outside into his ears, and slumber yields to groggy awareness. As Bach gradually reconnects his mind back to reality, he squirms in weak defiance within the comfort of his sleeping bag. He slows to a pause, and blinks in surprise. As his eyes refocus, his attention shifts down to his midsection, upon the sleeping bag. Tilting his head up from the pillow, he notices his tent flap partially open and the light sounds of claws upon fabric. Lifting his head up, he surveys the length of his sleeping bag.

A large, zone parrot with colorful plumage meets his gaze. The creature pivots its head side to side to glance at Bach with each eye curiously, and fluffs up its feathers momentarily. After a few still seconds, it ignores Bach, shifts its weight, and curls its talons around a prismatic crystal. It stares at the glittering colors while cocking its head, and trills in wonder at the artifact. Breaking from the trance, the bird clamps its beak tightly on the mineral and nibbles it around. Unproductive seconds later, boredom seizes the creature, and it slams the crystal repeatedly upon the soft fabric cover Bach’s stomach. Blinking in wonder and confusion, Bach smirks with a laugh. “Huh, uh... Hey. What are you doing in here? You like those colorful crystals?”

Lifting its head up, the zone parrot plainly drops the prismatic mineral out of its beak, and tilts its head at Bach. Perking its neck feathers up, it focuses its gaze upon Bach and whistles. Bach glances around, props himself up a little more with arms, and stares at the bird. “I guess that’s a no. Are you hungry? You want something to eat?”

As Bach continues to observe the parrot, the creature sways its head around side to side with its body and releases a series of whistles, clicks, and mimicked noises. It darts over towards Bach face with a fast waddle along the sleeping bag, halts right in front of him, and studies him. Pulling his head back, Bach blinks his blue eyes and grits his teeth uneasily with a nervous chuckle. “Nice bird. If you could get off of me, I’m sure I can get something for you to eat...”

The zone parrot fluffs its feathers momentarily, and stares curiously at Bach. In a swift motion, it clamps its beak down on Bach’s nose.

Leading with a yelp of pain, a chorus of growling squawks, flails of wings, struggles against fabric, and vocal curses between two voices ring out into the arched concrete shelter. Aristespha, Cideeda, Dretphi, Sebastian, and Sotalia snap their attention to the tent shaking around, and the chaotic fight inside. Bach angrily swears out from inside. “OH GODS! What the fuck you little shit!?”

A jumbled mess of of mimicked words spews forth between flaps, growls, squawks, and shrieks. “Fuck you! Fuck you! Godsdamn bird! Shit! Shit! Get the fuck out!”

The rest of the quickly exchange bewildered glances. Dretphi and Cideeda rush on over with Aristespha, Sotalia, and Sebastian close behind. Grabbing hold of a support pole, Dretphi stabilizes the tent, and swiftly unzips the front flap. A few colorful feathers fly out with the air from large flapping wings, and Dretphi blinks in surprise as she tries to figure out the situation. Bach growls over the parrot’s battering wings and multilingual insults, and roars. “THAT’S IT! FUCK THIS!”

A golden pulse of light radiates out through the fabric of the tent. The flapping noise stops, while the squawks deaden to a muffle. Dretphi cocks her head of platinum blonde braids to the side, gazes inside in surprise, and leans in concerned. “Can I help?”

Bach’s silhouette against the tent outline sits up. He holds out a golden dodecahedron out of the tent, and sniffs sharply. “First, get this away from me... Please.”

Dretphi grips hold of the transparent geometric shape. She observes the zone parrot’s attempts to claw, bite, and flap inside with muffled, shrill squawks. Glancing over her shoulder, she meets Cideeda’s gawk, and passes the dodecahedron over. Cideeda grasps hold of the imprisoned zone parrot, and admires the geometry. A toothy grin grows from the corner of her mouth, and her emerald green eyes flit wide as she steps away. Dretphi shifts her attention back to Bach, and reaches in to assist him as he crawls out of the tent. Sitting upon the ground outside, Bach winces as he blinks around, feels the crimson flowing down from his nose into his beard, and groans. “Okay... I’m awake NOW. Ow...”

Dretphi spots the blood, gently places her hand under Bach’s chin, and guides his head back. “Tilt your head back.”

As Bach eases out a sigh and complies, Dretphi points to the towel around Sotalia’s hair. In a smooth motion, Sotalia unravels the damp cloth, folds it up to a workable size, and presents it to Dretphi. “Here.”

Aristespha kneels down next to Dretphi, flits her eyes wide with a violet glow, and leans in to inspect the injuries. “Well... Good news, it is nothing serious. Bad news...”

Bach’s blue eyes angle down from his tilted head of brown hair, and he cringes expectantly. “Is?”

Twisting her mouth, she directs Sotalia over towards medical supplies near another tent, and sighs sympathetically. “The disinfectant I’m going to use is REALLY going to HURT.”

Sotalia grimaces, and shakes her head as she away walks. Sebastian ethereal form hovers over and hides an ill-humored smirk. “Good gods, bro. What is it with you the wildlife?”

Rolling his eyes, Bach groans out his defeated frustration while Dretphi applies pressure with a towel. “Fuck if I know. Why do they keep going for my head in some way? All I need now is to run into some thudkickers, again.”

Dretphi awkwardly frowns, avert her steely gray gaze around, and whispers to Bach. “Saw a few this morning.”

Bach snaps a tense stare to Dretphi, and a faint grumble sounds out. Dretphi warmly smiles, and pats Bach’s head with her free hand. “They left. You are safe.”

Easing out a sigh of relief, Bach relaxes with smirk as Sotalia drops off medical supplies next to Aristespha. Cideeda raps her claw tips upon the golden dodecahedron, wags her long haired tail, and perks her furry ears. She searches around between the team, and watches the stale rage from the trapped zone parrot. “Hey, what do you want me to do with this?”

Sebastian pivots his attention over, narrows his gaze upon the translucent shape, and directs his voice to his brother. “Bro, is that roughly the same trap spell you used to do?”

Wincing from Aristespha carefully checking his nose, Bach calls out. “Yeah. It’ll fade in a minute or two. Please get it far away before then?”

With a nod, Sebastian drifts over next to Cideeda, glances annoyed at the parrot in the geometric container, and smirks to Cideeda. “So... Are you thinking what I’m thinking?”

A sly, toothy grin graces Cideeda’s light brown face, her furry ears flick up, and her tail sways expectantly. She rolls the magical shape into her offhand, winks to Sebastian, and stretches her arm in preparation. “Think so. Just wish it had numbers on it.”

She digs her toes claws into the dirt, readies her bowling stance, and takes her aim.

----

Trakenthin’s large form cracks open the interior door of the laundry room. He peeks out into the hallway, and searches around the empty passage with hazel eyes. Slowly easing the door closed, he turns around to the rest of the team. “She is still occupying the camera crew.”

Chad reaches up, plucks a cable from the back of a wall mounted camera, and sighs. “Okay... A moment to actually talk.”

Crossing her gray skinned arms, Tassilda tosses her raven black hair, huffs out her displeasure, and frowns sharply. “By the gods, is there ANY WAY to get that insufferable pest off the team? Can’t we have a vote or something?”

Deedri flicks her furry, tufted ears in thought, tilts her head of multi-colored hair to the side, and ponders out loud. “You have a point. We ARE on a reality TV show. I mean, you would think voting someone off would totally be a thing they would do. It not like they haven’t stooped to other lows.”

Drawing in a long breath, she sighs out her frustration with a frown, and leans against the large white dryer. Modoran glances over to her as he casually lounges on top of the washer and smiles comfortingly. He shifts his gaze ahead, rolls his dark blue eyes with a wry smirk, and snorts derisively. “I had really hoped she would have... resolved herself. I mean adventuring IS dangerous and all. Stuff happens.”

A darker tone grumbles from him. “Sometimes with the right assistance.”

Modoran notices the rest of the team scrutinizing him, and he nonchalantly shrugs off the awkward moment. “I don’t mean anything too terrible to happen to her. Just enough she’d be sitting out the rest of the season.”

Biting her lip, Deedri wrestles a grimace on her fair skinned face, and glances around with a mumble to herself. “A femoral shaft fracture would do that easily...”

Blinking a few times, Modoran turns his head, stares at Deedri, and cocks his head with an amused smile. Deedri blushes at the attention, flits her auburn eyes wide in embarrassment, and shakes her head of multi-colored hair. “Not that I’m suggesting anything like THAT. But, I’m really shocked she hasn’t managed to do that to herself.”

Glancing over Trakenthin, Modoran cracks an evil grin and perks a brow. “Training session mishap?”

Trakenthin blinks, frowns with a dragging groan, and shakes his head. “Tempting. No. Would not feel right. Would be obvious if I did. Surprised that more injury has not happened to her.”

Gritting his teeth uneasily, Chad holds his hands up, and waves down the developing plot. “As... effective as that would be... There’s actually a number of clauses in our contracts with the show that prevent THAT type of stuff from happening. I’m guessing due to prior seasons.”

He rolls his brown eyes, and twist his mouth. “I sent my copy to my mother and father. There’s really no easy way out of them without giving up the all the pay and risking a breach of contract lawsuit.”

Trakenthin grumbles with a nod of his head. Modoran crosses his arms, and frowns in defeated acceptance. Deedri sighs and tightly smiles as she sorts through her own thoughts. Tassilda huffs out her irritation, slides her hands tightly along her swirling horns, and shakes her head. “What options do we have?”

A reserved smile appears on Chad’s tan face, and he combs his fingers through his light brown coiffed hair. “Well, we actually are getting close to the minimum number of episodes outlined in the contract. So...”

He gazes over the team in the laundry room, grins slyly, and chuckles. “I’m thinking we let her have her way. Let her hog all the camera attention, and let her choose the most bullshit missions. It’ll be annoying, but keep the recorded drama to a minimum.”

Tassilda narrows her light blue on black stare at Chad, tilts her head to side, and puzzles at the proposal. Trakenthin searches his mind, scratches his short dirty blonde hair, and lifts an intrigued eyebrow. Rapping her claw tipped fingers on her forearm, Deedri sways her weight side to side with the wags of her tail, and smirks deviously. “That might work even better than you think. If the ratings drop enough, they might end the season right after the requirement.”

Modoran tilts his head towards Chad, grins, and chuckles. “I like it. We can’t be too obvious about it. But, just the right amount and it be long over before they quite figure it out.”

Resting his hands at his sides, Chad straightens up his posture, smiles proudly to everyone, and laughs. “Well, I think that’s as good enough of a plan for now.”

He chuckles with a waning confidence into a drifting, awkward cadence. “And, if it works out just right, then we can focus on doing some real adventuring on our own... If any of you... want to...”

Silence swells into the laundry room and presses down upon the assembled team. Chad shrinks against the quiet as Trakenthin, Tassilda, Modoran, and Deedri process the idea. Seconds later, Trakenthin glances down at Chad, and smirks. “Worthwhile endeavor.”

Tassilda guides her hair back over a horn, smiles smugly at Chad, and laughs. “Admittedly, this whole experience started out rough, but I can see it working between present company.”

Modoran and Deedri exchange quick glances. Perking her furry, tufted ears up, Deedri nods in agreement towards Chad. “I think so, too. We can definitely try a few more missions.”

Modoran surveys the team, shrugs his shoulders nonchalantly, and grins. “Hell, crazier shit that we saw ourselves has worked. Let’s give it a go.”

A renewed sense of pride swells up in Chad, and he slightly bow to the team respectfully. “Thank you. It really means a lot. I’m still figuring all this out. But, I’d really like to give it an honest, proper shot.”

Easing out a long sigh, he grits his teeth and shakes his head. “But of course, AFTER we’ve had a few weeks break from this show.”

The group agrees together with laughs and relief. Trakenthin notices noises from the hallway, and signals the team. Quickly the members of the Flames of the Phoenix sneak out of the laundry room, and Chad plugs the camera back in before he exits.

----

Bach’s eyes flutter open and he groggily pulls himself up with a long yawn. Wiping the traces of sleep from his face, he glances around the cab of the humvee and observes the early morning idling. Patting around the side of his seat, he pulls up a lever and adjusts the back to an upright position. He fights through one final yawn, grimaces through, and sighs quietly while pinching down the small bandage on his nose. “I think I’d risk another bite on the nose to have sleep in something like that last rest site.”

Dretphi grumbles with a nod as she curls up tighter in a blanket on the back row bench. Aristespha stretches her back by twisting her upper half in the seat, and sighs her agreement. “Yes. That was certainly not the best sleep I’ve had.”

Opening her golden eyes halfway, Sotalia groans weakly and with a frown curling the corner of her mouth. She combs her long black nailed fingers through her fiery orange, curly hair, and briefly sticks her tongue out in disgust. “Tell me about it, girl. I don’t know what it was, but I could NOT get comfortable last night around here.”

Wrestling a grimace across her face, she sneers her upper lip, tensely shrugs her shoulders, and squirms in her seat. “Still feeling strange today.”

Peering over her shoulder towards Bach and Aristespha, she lifts a curious brow at the two. “You two sensing anything weird? I keep feeling... something... Kinda magical, but not quite what I’m used to? It’s hard to describe.”

Bach and Aristespha exchange intrigued expressions. Searching his thoughts, Bach rocks his head indecisively side to side. “Maybe? This place definitely has a weird vibe to it. But, that just might be the usual around here.”

Aristespha twists her mouth, hums in thought, and narrows her distant gaze. “It feels different today. But, that could be the specific area we’re in?”

Scanning her emerald green eyes around the scenery surrounding the humvee and flicking her furry ears, Cideeda raps her claw tips upon the center console, and slowly nods. “I’d lean towards that. This camp site is pretty crappy, and a little creepy. Especially, after what we were treated to last.”

Sebastian’s voice emanates from the sword resting on floorboard between Aristespha and Bach. “Yeah. Hard to beat that place. But, patrolling around last night, there wasn’t anything bad at all. Oddly peaceful. Maybe a little too peaceful? I don’t know. Nothing conclusive from the what sword can sense.”

Stretching out her arms and curling her clawed fingers, Cideeda wraps her hands around the steering wheel, and eyes the roughly cleared lot of gravel along the side of the main patchy roadway. “So, I’m guessing we can start rolling out?”

Watching a series nods from the rest of the team, she flips a few switches and the vehicle’s powerplant spins up. “Good. I vote to tear into those breakfast bars and juice boxes.”

Dretphi perks up, sits up on the back bench, and unzips a large pack. “Indeed.”

Sotalia rubs her stomach lightly, grimaces, and sighs. “I’ll take some orange juice for now. Not quite there yet for food.”

Leaning out into the aisle, Bach directs his concern ahead. “If you want, you lean your seat back a bit and take it easy.”

An appreciative smile graces Sotalia’s face, and she gazes at Bach with a nod. “Thank you. That actually sounds good. Think I’ll just sort through all the crystals we got again. Maybe a little distraction will help.”

As the humvee rolls back on to the road, the team opens breakfast bar wrappers and stakes straws into juice boxes. After poking the straw through Cideeda’s drink and handing it over, Sotalia shifts her attention to a number of prismatic crystals resting upon a blanket over her lap. She sorts through the different mineral formations, eyes them curiously, and sets aside a few on the front dash. As the team debates the flavor highlights of their meals, the random rainbow of color refracting through the crystals on the dash slowly synchronize from sparkling specks to wavering waves.

----

Up a high hill, Isaac slowly scans the rolling scenery around with a pair of binoculars as the breezes flutters stray, wispy white hairs on his head. Tapping his finger thoughtfully on the chassis of the lenses, he calls back to Mavian. “I do believe we are getting close. I’m seeing a lot of old structures that Malkav described in his notes. A bit far away to be sure, but the style of the architecture is in line with what I would expect.”

Mavian nods his head as his faintly glowing green eyes survey another swath of the landscape, and he directs his voice over to Isaac. “Good. It’s been a long time since I’ve been over in this area specifically. I do remember one area that might be the best place to check next.”

Isaac lowers the binoculars from his gray eyes, slowly turns his head with a tight smile on his face, and sighs. “Let me guess, there’s no direct route to it?”

Cracking a humored smirk, Mavian shrugs his shoulders, and chuckles. “Unfortunately not. The zone abhors a straight path to anything. But, thankfully, while a longer route... It’s fairly boring route and an easy drive.”

A sigh of relief escapes from Isaac as he steps closer to the blue all terrain vehicle, and slowly shakes his head with a laugh. “By the gods, I will take all the boring you can offer. And, pay the highest premium you can ask.”

Mavian snorts, pivots around, and starts walking back to the vehicle. Gazing up into the skies above, his stare halts upon a part of the western horizon. He squints his green eyes as they brighten intensely, and sharply grits his teeth. “SHIT.”

Isaac freezes in place, snaps his attention to Mavian, and glances around. “What is it?”

Focusing his full concentration, Mavian lifts his hand and points towards the distant skies. “Over there. Use your mage sight. This is what I was talking about.”

Following Mavian’s guidance, Isaac eyes illuminate and he squints into the western horizon. As the moments pass, his stare grows into an awestruck gawk. “I think... I think I see what you are talking about. It’s so subtle... Just like you said... A vague... Pattern?”

Nodding uncomfortably, Mavian stiffly draws an uneasy breath through his nose, and plucks a field radio off his belt. “Yep. Thankfully, I think it’s early enough to get the alert out well in advance.”

Isaac’s attention shifts to a thought springing to front of his mind, and his concern widens his eyes. “Oh gods! Is that near Precipice?”

Shaking his head as he watches, Mavian lifts up the radio to his mouth, and motions towards a more southern section of the horizon. “No. Precipice is that way. But, that spot close to one of the main roads to it. Thankfully, surges seem to never hit towns.”

He glances seriously over to Isaac. “It might take a bit, but I got to get this properly reported so the PDF and Borderland Rangers know where to monitor. And, it'll also warn any zone runners.”

Isaac nods encouragingly to Mavian, and shifts his intrigued gawk back to the skies. “Please, go ahead!”

He pauses a moment in thought. “Strange that such phenomena doesn’t happen to towns, but I’m glad that’s the case then.”

Mavian shrugs his shoulders and twists his mouth. “Yeah. People debate on why that s lot.”

He steps up to the hood of the all terrain vehicle, takes breath in, and keys up his radio. “Surge sign. Surge sign. This is runner Mavian reporting an early stage surge sign on the horizon. Reporting north east of Precipice. Sighting is westward on my horizon. Requesting assist to triangulate.”

As the seconds pass, he bites his lower lip and grumbles. “Come on... Stupid radio relays...”

Through heavy static a calm, commanding voice rises out of the warping background hiss and blares out from the radio. “This is Captain Hays of the Borderland Rangers... ...just north of Brook’s Haven... ...Providing vector towards the east.”

Seconds later, another stern tone pushes through strange warbling shifts of acoustics and droning interference. “PDF Patrol Boat Hellbringer reporting. Ready to radar coordinate and relay to Perimeter.”

Mavian blinks at the response, draws out a large rolled up map from his pack on the front passenger’s seat of the blue vehicle, and flops it upon the hood. Isaac rushes over and holds open the chart while Mavian fishes out other tools from his pack. The radio chirps as other people join in on the response.

----

The late afternoon evening sun looms over the horizon in the west and the blue partly cloud sky, and trace hints of evening orange and purple sneak out into the palette. The humvee wheels churn through shallow patches of loose gravel, and grind through the layers as the vehicle climbs up a steep incline. Gracing the crest of the hill, Cideeda spins the steering wheel through a number of motions and navigates around washed out ruts down the slope. Gritting her teeth through the brief obstacle course, she eases out a sigh of relief and shakes her head of short, multi-colored hair. “That storm a few days ago really worked this place over.”

Sebastian’s ethereal form lean towards the front of the vehicle and glances over to Cideeda. “How are you holding up?”

Weighing her options, Cideeda contorts her light brown face, and grumbles reluctantly. “If I listen to my pride, I could totally keep going. But... If I listen to my laziness, I could totally settle in for the night.”

With a confirming nod, Sebastian smiles and glances over his shoulder towards Aristespha. “Dear, could you check the map to see if there’s any good place to stop soon? No sense in pushing our luck.”

Aristespha flutters her violet eyes back open, tilts her head forward off the seat rest, and disguises her wake from a nap. “Oh... Uh... Yes, I completely agree, Sebastian. I will check the map.”

Sebastian dons a loving smile to Aristespha as faint hints of embarrassment fade from Aristespha’s ivory cheeks. He shifts his attention towards Sotalia in the passenger’s seat and cocks his head to the side. “How are you holding up?”

Laying back in a tilted seat, Sotalia turns her head, slips hand out from underneath her blanket, and brushes stray orange hairs over her swept back horns. “Just feeling... uncomfortable. On edge for some reason. I can’t figure out why though.”

Nodding in thought, a glint from the prismatic crystals resting in a cup holder catches Sebastian’s attention, and he points his ghostly finger. “What’s going on with those?”

Sotalia gazes down at the rhythmic rainbow colors drifting through the crystal, narrows her golden eyes, and frowns unsatisfied. “I don’t know. It’s gone from glittering to waves of color. I’ve been trying to figure it out, but I’m too distracted by this weird feeling.”

Thinking quietly for a moment, Sebastian drifts his inquisitive focus over to Bach. “Bro, you feeling anything strange?”

Bach blinks back to awareness from his aimless stare out his window, and ponders out a loud. “Um... Yeah... I feel something. But, it’s hard to describe. It- Um- It’s like a should be expecting something?”

Sotalia angles her head up and direct her voice back. “I felt that earlier today. This... It’s like something is moving around us.”

Aristespha glances up from her study of the map on her tablet, and frowns uneasily. “It feels like the pressure system has changed. That’s the best I can describe it.”

Cideeda glances into the rear view mirror, meets Dretphi’s puzzled gaze, and the two exchange mutual shrugs. Sebastian hums with an ethereal reverb, and crosses his arms. “Yeah. Haven’t noticed any sudden changes with what the sword can sense. But, then again, I’m still figuring this thing out.”

A chorus of alert chimes spread through the cab of the humvee. Aetherphones ring out, the humvee radio chirps, and the holoplayer screen materializes above it’s resting place on the center console. Cideeda swiftly taps through a sequence of buttons on the vehicle’s radio, and the speakers crackle to life with a stern woman’s voice.

“Warning. Warning. Warning. This is an emergency broadcast from the Perimeter Defense Force and Borderland Rangers. A Surge Sign has been confirmed by multiple sources. Please seek a Surge Shelter immediately if you are in or near the affected area. Please standby for coordinates. Please standby for coordinates. Please standby for coordinates...”

As the voice clearly dictates a series of numbers through the warping static of the radio channel, the holoplayer’s holographic screen streams out similar information from a data radio broadcast. Spectrum monitors flood with activity as tones of data transmissions decode into lines of text on screen, and another window appears with a map image gradually flowing into existence. Cideeda concentrates on the road ahead, and calls out the rest of the team. “Someone check that! I don’t want to drive into that mess.”

Aristespha leans forward carefully reads the data on the holoplayer, and checks the map on her tablet. Bach, Sotalia, and Dretphi check their aetherphones. With each glance between the different screens, Aristespha’s violet eyes widen, her concern contorts her face, and her body tenses. Sebastian quickly notices the rigid body language, turns to Aristespha, and asks with hints of worry. “Dear... What is it?”

Lifting her head up to address the group, Aristespha sharply pulls in a breath of air through her nose, and presents a frown upon her slightly pale face. “Oh. Fuck... I think were right in the middle of it.”

A strangling silence stills the team inside the cab, as they exchange wide eyed stares in between the slow seconds. Sebastian blinks his eyes hard as his ethereal form pales briefly. Sorting through the stunned stares of the rest of the team, he stiffens his upper lip and straightens his posture. “Okay. Everyone listen carefully.”

He direct his calm, commanding tone to Cideeda. “Cideeda. Full power ahead. Drive it as hard as you think you can manage.”

Cideeda nods, snaps her grip to a throttle control, and pushes it all the way. While the powerplant revs up to an audible roar in the cab, Sebastian glances back to Dretphi and motions to Aristespha’s tablet. “Dretphi. Work with Aristespha and Cideeda on the route ahead. Find us a shelter. Failing that, the quickest route of out the area.”

Dretphi summons a stoic front, and slides into the aisle between Bach and Aristespha. Sebastian hovers out of the way behind Aristespha and directs his tone to her. “Dear. Work on protective wards or whatever you think can help.”

He shifts his glance up to Sotalia. “Sotalia. Until we get in a shelter or out of it, be ready to handle magic bullshit that gets in our way.”

Gazing over to Bach, he nods to his brother. “Bro, help as you always do... But, start thinking of one of your Oh Shit plans. We just might need it.”

Aristespha, Sotalia, and Bach acknowledge Sebastian’s orders. Settling in for the trek ahead, Sebastian sighs with a grit of his teeth. “And keep an eye out for any signs of the situation changing. We may not have that much time to act if it turns bad.”

While the humvee speeds up and everyone readies themselves, Bach searches the calm skies above with an uneasy frown. He blinks his blue eyes hard, and reopens them to a glowing illumination. His upwards stare widens with reflexive gasp, and he cringes as he scans above. “Shit... THAT is not normal.”

Aristespha’s violet eyes ignite, and she gazes out her window. Her expression sours abruptly, and she nervously exhales. “No, it isn’t. That much flow is not supposed to be in the sky and uniformly moving.”

Sotalia golden gaze flickers brightly. She blinks blankly, averts her gaze from the skies, and focuses her attention forward. “Gods dammit. Well, THAT explained TOO much.”

----

A tall horizon stretching, column of clouds swirl fast overhead in a torrent of pulsating hues. Electrical arcs rip across the sky and ignite plumes of prismatic flow. The churning maelstrom of chaos vacuums the energy into the forming aerial wall. Cyclones of wind whip horizontally through the lower atmosphere and engulf specs of light drifting near. Gusts of unseen force yank the tops of trees to one direction and abruptly snap them back the opposite. Orbs of light fall down upon the landscape in waves, and pulses of energy erupt throughout the area as they smash into the ground. The roar of a turbine screams as the humvee rips through the top layer of gravel on the rough path, and all four wheels spin against the momentum pulling along the sharp turn.

A world shaking low rumble resonates from the sky above. The acoustics pulsate in a warbling cacophony of twisting pitches. The leaves and branches vibrate against the overbearing pressure, gravel shakes loosely into staggered flows upon the road, and the windows of the humvee faintly flex. Cideeda’s furry ears reflexively flicks down tightly against the back of her neck and shoulders, and she grits her teeth while digging her claws into the steering wheel. “FUCK! It’s keeps making that SOUND! The fuck is THAT?!”

As the vehicle powers through a section of plants shifting by themselves in still air, Cideeda’s emerald eyes widen, the hair on the back of her neck and sideburns flares out, and her tightly coiled tail fluffs out. She fights against an uncomfortable grimace, and glances over to Sotalia. “Okay... That’s... new. Did you feel that... wind that wasn’t wind... move through you?”

Sotalia nods, pats Cideeda’s shoulder comfortingly, and maintains her watchful stare ahead. “Yes. That was huge jet of background flow. It’s usually a lot nicer feeling. I promise. Just not right now.”

Dretphi shudders as she struggles to keep a stoic expression on her tan face, and uneasily strains a breath through her teeth. “I FELT that. Strange.”

She shakes her head of platinum blonde braids, steadies herself upon the aisle floor between Bach and Aristespha. She refocuses upon both paper and digital maps in her hands. Retracing the charted route with her finger, she glances at landmarks through the front windshield, and directs her voice to Cideeda. “Hard left. Slight right. Slight decline. Sharp incline. Long straight.”

Gritting her sharp teeth, Cideeda musters up her determination and scans the road ahead. “Got it. Hold on. Next turn is coming up.”

Sebastian’s ethereal form materializes behind Dretphi in the aisle, and his ghostly tone reports. “Clear ahead from what I can tell.”

His visage warps slightly and shimmers off hue briefly. After a moment, his projection stabilizes and he shakes his head. “Shit, I think the sword is actually confused. Not that I can blame it, because it’s absolute chaos out there.”

Peering around Dretphi’s shoulder, he summons up a calm tone and inquires. “How much further?”

Bracing herself against Bach’s seat as the humvee slides into a drift through the turn, she glances over at the securing grip of Bach on upper arm shoulder appreciatively. Shifting her knees wide upon the aisle floor, she shifts her weight against gradual lateral forces and feels the supporting grasp of Aristespha. In the lull of forces, Dretphi draws in a quick breath and glances up to Sebastian. “Four kilometers. Nearest shelter I could find.”

Sebastian nods with a reassuring smile, gazes ahead, and addresses the team. “Okay. We’re going to make this work. Just keep it up for a little while longer everyone.”

The humvee rides down a long slope towards a rocky stream bed. Aristespha’s brilliantly violet glowing eyes, squint momentarily, and widen. “Cideeda! Move two meters to the right. Something is in that creek!”

Cideeda tugs the steering sharply, guides the vehicle over, and straightens out. The humvee splashes through the shallow water, and roars up the hill side path. Behind, a section of the stream bubbles with vapor dissipating quickly into the winds. Sebastian turns his gaze back to the front, and sighs out his relief. “Good catch, dear.”

Speeding down the straight away, a wave of energy orbs rain down from above. Small specs of illumination bounce of a translucent barrier coating the humvee, and Aristespha narrows her eyes in to focus. Her very long, pointed ears twitch back, and she calmly exhales as magic flows from her arms into the frame of humvee. The bits of phenomena slick of the pulsating shell and fall onto the roadside. Sotalia straightens her posture in the front passenger’s seat, darts her glance around, and peers up through the windshield. Her golden eyes widen in fright and she yells out. “INCOMING!”

A large energy mass flops heavily upon the front of the hood, and oozes out upon the protective magical shell. Cideeda tenses her muscles, wrestles to maintain control, and steels herself as she steadies the humvee. The team blankly stares. Seconds pass, and Sotalia breaks the uneasy silence. “Okay, I’ll pull this one off before I does any-”

The prismatic mass sparks and bubbles, and flame billows out. The fire surrounds the vehicle as it speeds down the road, and the protective magical barrier warps to opacity against the onslaught. Aristespha grimaces, summons up a surge of flow, and grumbles out straining. “Get that thing OFF of us! I can only keep the barrier working for so long against all this...”

Cideeda clamps her claws on the steering wheel, grits her teeth, and stares her wide emerald green eyes through the flames flowing over the windshield. Sotalia growls out her frustration as she searches vainly for a solution. “Maybe if I shield the fire enough, I can get dispel out-”

Bach leans forward from his seat, pull himself through the gap between Cideeda and Sotalia, and firmly places his hands on the front dash. “I got something! Give a me moment.”

With Dretphi holding his midsection secure, Bach’s eyes flash to a bright blue. Swirls of magical flow surge out from his body, jet along his form, and collect into streams of energy. Threads of magic materialize, weave into dense cables, and rush down into the air condition vents. Moments later, a web of prismatic traces erupt upon the surface of the hood. A large golden triangular shape emerges underneath the protective bubble and flaming blob. Nineteen other triangles materialize from the central point in a purposeful pattern from the central shape. A determined smirk cracks from the corner of Bach’s mouth, and he narrows his brilliant blue stare at the fiery mass. Fibers burst out from the edges of the triangles, slip up through the protective bubble, and snag the large blob. The triangular branches curl and fold up, as the threads of magical energy peel the anomaly off the translucent barrier. Pulses of prismatic flow rush down the magical cables in Bach’s hand, and the closing container wrenches the flaming entity into the trap. Gritting his teeth, Bach sends a massive surge of flow, and the edges seal the fiery anomaly into a golden dodecahedron. With a final pulse of power, a burst of concussive force ejects the trap high into air and clear of the humvee.

Aristespha eases out a thankful sigh, and glances over with a tired smile. “Thank you. That was taking a lot out of me.”

Bach nods and chuckles. “Yeah. I know the feeling.”

He awkwardly works his way back, and pats around for a good grip. Sotalia holds onto his upper arm, Dretphi shifts him backwards. He flops back into his seat, and shakes his head as the glow dims in his eyes. “I hope another one doesn’t do that. I’m going to need a few minutes.”

Cideeda’s furry ears perk up, and aim forward. She narrows her eyes ahead, scans the horizon, and cracks a hopeful smile. “I think I hear a siren! That must be the surge shelter! We’re close!”

A loud crack echoes, and a large mass of leaves sharply shifts in the surrounding forest ahead. The large tree tilts towards the road, and slowly descends. While the rest of the team watches in shock, Sotalia sneers her upper lip, speeds through a complicated series of incantations and gestures, and yanks the door handle. Pushing the door open with her foot, she thrusts her arms forward at the tumbling lumber, and a jet of nearly invisible force rushes out. The energy envelopes a section of the trunk, rushes down to the ground, and solidifies. The tree slows to a halt mid fall, and hangs at an angle to the ground. Sotalia strains hard as prismatic energy surges out of her, swirls into the beam, and collects into the forming transparent tower. With a harsh wince, she sharp rotates her hands around the condensation of flow, and the column of force pushes the tree over to fall in another direction.

The humvee speeds by, the energy dissipates, and Sotalia slumps back into her seat as the door closes back. Panting out the stress, she groans out. “Let’s get in that shelter already!”

----

With a hard shove, Dretphi pushes the heavy metal, symbol inscribed door of the surge shelter closed. As Bach steps past the archway into a large central room, he flicks up blue illumination orbs up onto the ceiling. “Looks like there’s a few alcoves around this main room. Not much else.”

Sebastian hovers out into the center of the circular chamber, and gazes up at the overhead dome. “Yeah. Probably sleeping areas. Might be some fold out cots or something.”

Sotalia slowly walks out, rubs the temples of her head, and grips her swept back horns. She grimaces, groans out her exhaustion, and drops down on wall-mounted bench encircling the central room. “Gods, I need to sit down. What a day...”

Bach flicks the last orb, plods over to the bench spot next to Sotalia, and plops down. “Yeah... That doesn’t sound too bad. Just need a few minutes...”

Surveying the area, Cideeda peeks into side rooms, and inspects the layouts. “This shelter looks pretty basic so far. But, it’ll do-”

Her furry ears twitch back towards the heavy metal door, and she pivots to face Dretphi. “I think someone just pulled up outside.”

Sebastian zips up to the heavy door, phases his head through briefly, and nods towards the rest of the team. “Looks like another group. Get the door open for them, and I’ll disappear for now.”

Dretphi muscles the door handle open, readies herself, and tugs door open. She peers out in the chaotic outside, and yells. “DOOR IS OPEN! HURRY!”

Second later, a woman in elegant robes, a grath man carrying large medical pack, a large man with a sword on his back, an emin woman with a scar across her face and pistols at her sides, and a thin, hooded figure with a sleek outfit emerge from the doorway into the entry area. As the group collects themselves, the large man greets Dretphi and motions towards the door. “Thank you. Don’t worry, it’s just us. We didn’t see anyone else on our way here.”

Dretphi nods with a smile, presses the heavy metal door shut, and engages the latch. Aristespha steps into the entry from the central room and Cideeda waves to the new group. Bach tries to get up from the bench. He feels the sudden firm grip of a trembling hand on his arm, gazes over to the frightful, pleading stare of Sotalia, and watches her panicked, shallows pants. His blue eyes flit wide with recognition, and he glances over towards the entry archway at the realization. Snapping his attention back to Sotalia, he gazes calmly into her golden eyes, and whispers reassuringly. “It’ll be okay. Pull your cloak over, and just act like you fell asleep. I’ll sit with you.”

Blinking back to some awareness, Sotalia quietly nods, yanks the hood of cloak over her head, and drops her head down. She leans slightly towards Bach, and turns her head away from the entryway. Aristespha steps into the central chamber, motions to the space, and shrugs her shoulders with a smile on her ivory face. “I wish we could tell you more, but we just arrived ourselves.”

The tall man with the sword on his back nods, laughs lightly, and crosses his arms. “Completely understand. Thankfully, we weren’t too far away when got the alert.”

The rest of the new group filters into central chamber, and Cideeda and Dretphi follow. The tall man pauses in thought a moment, extends his hand, and smirks with a bit of embarrassment. “Pardon my manners, the name is Omaron.”

Aristespha shakes Omaron’s hand, and bows politely. “Aristespha. Pleasure to meet you.”

Omaron glances around at the rest of his group, sighs, and shakes his head. “Once we settle down, we’ll be happy to do introductions.”

Panning her gaze between Dretphi, Cideeda, Bach, Aristespha settles her stare upon Sotalia, and puzzles while responding. “Understandable. We’re recovering ourselves.”

She lifts a confused brow and directs her concern to Bach, motioning towards Sotalia. Bach smirks awkwardly and chuckles quietly. “She said she was going to rest her eyes.”

Aristespha rolls her violet eyes, and smiles back. “Heard that one before. It’s been quite a day for all of us.”

Sneaking a glance out of the corner of his hood, the thin figure in the sleek outfit, scrutinizes Bach with recognition, and shifts his attention to the sleeping woman next to him with a sly grin. After a few minutes of people settling down and enjoying the lull in activity, a low rumble vibrates through the structure as the outside acoustic pressure warbles through twisting pitches. The heavy metal door rattles against its frame, and Dretphi, Cideeda, and Aristespha watch it. Exchanging uneasy glances, Aristespha waves over to Bach. “I think we might need you help. This door does not look that secure.”

Cideeda grits her sharp teeth, points towards the entry, and shakes her head. “Yeah, it’s misaligned or something. Maybe you can barrier it up until later.”

Bach blinks to attention, and nods slowly. “Okay, I’ll be right there.”

He whispers out the side of his mouth to Sotalia. “Stay calm. I’ll be right back.”

Sotalia eases out a shuddering breath and quietly sneaks out. “Okay...”

Bach stands up from the bench, and rushes over to the team. They cautiously approach the entry door. Lurking around the darker shadows of the room, the thin, hooded figure in the sleek outfit steps silently over to Sotalia. Swiftly he slinks in front of her. Sotalia’s body tenses and she remains silently still. The thin man kneels down, cranes his head around, and grins with recognition as he catches Sotalia’s golden eyed stare. “Hello, Sotalia.”

Pupils narrowing to pinpoints, Sotalia freezes completely, motionless and breathless. Seconds later, her eyes roll back, and she flops unceremoniously upon the bench, completely limp. As the noise echoes in the chamber and Sotalia's faint seizes everyone’s attention, the emin woman with a scar across her face, glares angrily at the thin hooded man. “WHAT THE FUCK DID YOU DO?!”

Stumbling onto the floor in shock, the hooded man shrugs his shoulders pleadingly. “I don’t know!? I just said hello! Really!”

-98-

Rumbles from the chaotic outdoors vibrate through the aged concrete walls of the dim alcove. Flecks of debris rattle loose from above, and scatter upon the floor below. Sotalia stirs upon a blanket, and rocks her head side to side upon a rolled up towel. With her cheeks twitching against unconsciousness, Sotalia flexes her elevated, socked feet. Fluttering her golden eyes open, she groggily searches around her environment and slowly pieces the world back together in her mind. Her confused gaze settles upon Aristespha sitting next to her on the ground. As consciousness returns, Sotalia furrows her brow and puzzles at the device in Aristespha’s hands. “What are you watching?”

Aristespha blinks her violet eyes, shifts her attention to Sotalia, and smiles calmly. “Just monitoring your vitals. Fortunately, your old group’s medical mage had his on him in that big pack of his.”

Sotalia watches Aristespha study the metrics and graphs upon the display and pauses in quiet contemplation. She sighs long and collects herself. “Yes. Drekkalin always carried a portable hospital everywhere. Really saved us a number of times...”

A large grath figure steps through the archway into the side room from the main chamber. The stout man gazes his blue eyes through shaggy orange hair and down at Sotalia. As he kneels down nearby, a rhythmic alarm chirps out from the vital monitor in Aristespha’s hands, and both medical mages exchange intrigued glances. Aristespha narrows a stern gaze at Sotalia, and calmly instructs. “Breathe, please.”

Sotalia snaps back to awareness, exhales, and draws in a long breath. The grath man furrows his brow, tilts his head to the side, and frowns his fair, freckled face. “Do not know if I should be impressed? Disheartened?”

A sad groan slips out from Sotalia between her concentrated efforts to ease her anxiety. “I’m so sorry, Drekkalin. It’s not you... Really. You’ve always been nice and kind to everyone. Even to me. It’s just... My guilt by association? I don’t know...”

She contorts her face and grits her teeth as she struggles against the swell of stress. Aristespha frowns at the device, taps a mute button on the side, and sets it down. She holds Sotalia’s hand, and directs a comforting tone. “Just focus on your breathing. Take long deep breaths, and ease them out.”

Drekkalin smiles reassuringly and instructs with a patient cadence. “Close your eyes. Focus on that one beach. Imagine that nice place.”

He cracks a smirk and a wry, sarcastic tinge slips into his voice. “Ignore reality tearing itself apart outside. Do not focus on that. If possible.”

A giggle rides out with Sotalia’s exhale, and a humored smile appears on her face. “Of course. Totally not relevant.”

Minutes pass and a tentative peace returns to Sotalia with Aristespha’s and Drekkalin’s advice. Sotalia blinks her golden eyes back open, brushes clear fiery orange hairs past her horns, and sighs. “Gods. How long have I been out?”

Aristespha’s violet eyes search her mind briefly. “About half an hour. Longer than I expected, but today has been exhausting.”

A slight frown curls at the corners of Drekkalin’s face, and he shakes his head with hints of frustration. “I apologize for Cassolon. He should NOT have done that to you.”

With snort, Sotalia’s smirks and lifts a humored eyebrow towards Drekkalin. “Crass Cass strikes again. I should have known of anyone in the group, it would have been him to do something like that.”

Drawing in a long breath, she exhales with focus and bites her lip uneasily. “So, I guess everyone knows now?”

Drekkalin nods simply. “Yes. We were informed previously. Did not expect to encounter you here. A strange surprise to us.”

Aristespha glances over between sorting through medical supplies, and presents a reassuring smile. “After you fainted, there was a lot of confusion turning tense quick. But Bach stepped up and explained the circumstances.”

Sotalia twists an uncertain expression on her light tan face, and scratches the dark gray skin under her pointed ears. Leaning close, Aristespha smirks with a stern gaze at Sotalia. “He wanted me to apologize to you for saying anything.”

Rolling her eyes, Sotalia frowns briefly and shakes her head upon the rolled up towel. “Gods, he should not feel guilty for that. Especially, not when my problems became everyone else’s.”

Sorting through his thoughts, Drekkalin contorts his face as his feelings push through his calm, stoic exterior. “On that subject... I want you to know that I do not harbor animosity to you. This you.”

He pauses in thought a moment, and gazes his blue eyes upon Sotalia. “I believe each have thought on how we would handle encountering you. Multiple times. Initial considerations were unkind.”

Shrugging his shoulders, he smiles genuinely to Sotalia and sighs. “Time has mellowed our desires. Understanding has replaced revenge.”

Sotalia puzzles through the meaning of Drekkalin’s words, and grimaces uncertainly. “Even Precella?”

Drekkalin blinks a few times, searches his mind, and tilts his head to the side. “Surprisingly, yes? Comparatively to her original fantasies. It took her a long time. Now we just desire closure to what was.”

Focusing his genuine concern upon Sotalia, he frowns slightly. “I believe you need it.”

Cracking a smirk from the corner of his mouth, he perks his brow with a wry tinge. “Seem to have beaten yourself up. Spared us the trouble. Needs to stop. Excessive now.”

Closing her eyes, Sotalia covers her face with her hands, grumbles uncomfortably to herself, and groans. “Gods, I really don’t know about this. I know I should, but I don’t know if there’s anything I could say. I just... I don’t know...”

Aristespha pats Sotalia’s shoulder, and smiles reassuringly. “It’ll help. You can’t undo the past. Just give everyone a chance to move on from it at least.”

Sotalia hisses an uneasy sigh through her gritting teeth, gradually nods, and cringes. “Yes. I know. Just... Let me rest a bit, so I can muster my courage. I’m still feeling crappy from the outside world turning itself inside out.”

Drekkalin nods in agreement, and glances out towards the archway. “Understandable. Precella has been irritable today.”

Narrowing an amused stare at Drekkalin, Sotalia lifts an eyebrow with a smirk. “There’s a difference?”

Meeting Sotalia with a similar expression, a faint grin appears on Drekkalin’s fair, freckled face. “Slight. Irritable today. Often irritated with you before.”

Nodding at the divide between definition, Sotalia smiles with a roll her golden eyes. “I always thought it was horn envy with her.”

Drekkalin ponders quietly, rocks his head side to side in deliberation, and quirk his brow. Aristespha retrieves a small bottle from her medical pack, and examines it. “Would you like something to bring the anxiety down a little?”

Sotalia flits her eyes widen, smiles tightly, and snorts. “Oh gods, yes, girl. I’m going to need all the help I can get.”

----

Powerful, low vibrations shudder through the surrounding wall of the central dome room. Omaron and Dretphi observe the metallic rattles of the door against its worn frame from the archway. They watch the translucent gold magical flows reinforcing the entry shimmer with waves of prismatic energy. Omaron grimaces his brown face, and darts his dark brown eyes between the doorway and Dretphi. “That seems to be holding pretty good. I don’t think anyone needs to be near that thing right now.”

Dretphi shifts away from the corner against the wall opposite of Omaron’s position, twists her mouth uncomfortably, and nods. “Agreed. Will prefer Bach’s shelter when done.”

She glances over towards the center of the main area, and watches flows of magic solidify upon a geometric structure. As swirls of energy wane from his arms, Bach blinks his glowing blue eyes dim, and settles to a seat upon the ground. He rests his hands on his knees and relaxes as much as possible during the wave of noise seeping in from the outside. Along a wall, a woman in elegant robes concentrates her shimmering bright yellow eyes upon a woven matrix of flow in front of her and meticulously articulates her fingers to shift the imagery in the web. Omaron directs his voice to the woman with elaborate blonde, white-streaked braids. “Brianna, is it still building up outside?”

Brianna blinks, draws in a breath, and contorts her light tan face. “It hasn’t gotten stronger. But gods almighty, it’s fluctuating incredibly. Maybe the next fifteen minutes? Sooner? I don’t know. It can’t seem to make up it’s damned mind.”

Tapping through a status screen on her aetherphone, Cideeda narrows her emerald green eyes the wavering projection from the holoplayer, drops her furry ears down against the earth shaking groan emanating from far above, and grits her sharp teeth. “That’s about what the last alert we got said. Haven’t gotten anything about which way the surge is going to erupt.”

Omaron nods at the response, and focuses upon the thin hooded figure cycling through channels on a handheld radio. “Cassolon? Anything on your end?”

Glancing his dark green eyes up from the screen, Cassolon shrugs his shoulders, scratches the dirty blonde hair at the base of his long, blunted tipped ears, and awkwardly presents a smirk on his dark tan face. “Uh, well... About the same, too. It’s getting hard to pick out voices in all the interference.”

Aristespha and Drekkalin step out from the archway of a side room, and move towards the gathering. A few moments later, Sotalia peers out, glances around, and cautiously steps out into the main room. She walks slowly towards the center of the area. Sebastian’s ethereal form phases down from the ceiling, lands on the floor, and shudders as his visage warps. He regains awareness of the area around him, notices Sotalia, and floats over. “Hey. How are you feeling?”

Sotalia crosses her arms, fields a slight frown, and directs her embarrassed glance to the side. “Better. Just got overwhelmed. That’s all. A whole lot of what I did not expect to deal with today. Minor in comparison to what’s going on outside...”

Hovering close, Sebastian smiles comfortingly to Sotalia, and meets her gaze with a soft tone. “It’s still important. And, you know we’ll help you as want. So don’t be afraid to ask.”

Drawing in a long breath through her nose, Sotalia smiles weakly and nods appreciatively. “I know. I’m trying to handle it... a little at the time...”

She darts her golden eyes up towards the domed ceiling, grimaces uneasily, and sighs. “After the world stops trying to blow up.”

Sebastian rolls his blue tinted eyes, and groans out his frustration. “Yeah. That’s still going on. Pretty freaky outside. My form gets distorted being out there too long and I stop seeing things clearly.”

Shifting her gaze side to side around the room, Sotalia puzzles and whispers to Sebastian. “So, how did they take seeing you the first time?”

Glancing at the rumbling pressure above, Sebastian shrugs his shoulders and smirks. “Good. Given everything else happening, probably didn’t even register on their weird scale.”

Sotalia sneers at the muffled chaos outside, and sighs. “Yeah. That makes sense.”

Sebastian points and drifts upwards. “Going to give it another check.”

With a nod, Sotalia watches Sebastian depart through the ceiling. She uncomfortably grips her elbows, searches around the room, and settles her gaze upon Bach. Stepping swiftly over, she squats down next to Bach and gently rests a hand on his shoulder. “Looks like you’ve been busy. Do you need any help?”

Shaking off some creeping drowsiness, Bach turns his head of longer brown hair and blinks his eyes. “Oh, uh... Not right now. But, if you are feeling good enough, if you could cast a barrier once we're inside that’d be great.”

Sotalia glances her golden eyes over to point and returns her attention to Bach. “I can do that.”

Bach twists his mouth uneasily and whispers out an apologetic tone. “Hey, um... Really sorry that I told everyone about your... circumstances. With everyone on edge already, I didn’t want it to get out of hand and-”

With a thankful smile, Sotalia rubs Bach’s back and shakes her head. “It’s okay. Really. You don’t need to worry. I’m going to... Try... to take care of it.”

She glances back over to the same point, grimaces faintly, and continues her conversation with Bach. “You did nothing wrong. You shouldn’t feel responsible for my problems. How are you doing?”

Bach shifts his gaze towards the large, translucent geometric bowl barrier, and sighs out his fatigue. “Trying to create something to give us some extra protection when this surge erupts. After closing that door, I wasn’t ready to trust the rest of this place. But... I’m trying to pace myself.”

Sotalia studies the magical shelter in the center of the main room, and glances back over to same point as before. Bach blinks to awareness, tilts his attention to Sotalia, and softly inquires. “You okay? I feel your hand shaking.”

Flitting her golden eyes wide, a few locks of fiery orange, wavy hair tumble off a horn when Sotalia twists her gaze back to Bach. She strains a sharp breath through her nose, exhales a slow, quiet sigh, and sneaks a whisper. “Kind of. Precella has been staring me down for the past few minutes. We fought A LOT. So...”

Bach nods his understanding, and speaks quietly out the corner of his mouth. “I mean, I can stick near you if you want?”

Sotalia pats Bach on the back, smirks warmly, and briefly grits her teeth. “I appreciate the offer. But, if I can’t have a simple conversation at this point, then I don’t think it’s going to happen anytime soon.”

With a parting squeeze of the shoulder, Sotalia stands up slowly, summons up her composure with a deep breath, and faces towards the emin woman with a scar across her face. She meets the silver on black glower of the woman with aged familiarity, stands still for seconds, and steps through a swell of fear. Approaching the woman leaning against the wall, Sotalia fights to maintain a neutral expression on her face, and stops nearby. Struggling against the constant eye contact, Sotalia musters her resolve, and bows slightly. “Hello, Precella. I hope you’ve been well...”

Precella quirks her brow with genuine surprise, tilts her head of very long, tied back silver hair, and contorts her light silvery blue face incredulously. “By the gods, I think you really have fucking changed. I was expecting you to call me a bitch in five languages I’ve never heard of and spit at me for staring at you like that.”

Sotalia blinks her golden eyes blankly, puzzles a moment, and stumbles to an answer. “Uh, yes. I, um, huh... I really did mean what I wrote to you, if you read it. It was a long time ago, and I’ve had a lot of life lessons since. I didn’t think any of you would believe me so... Um...”

Resting her hands on her hips, Precella straightens up her athletic figure, and cocks her head to the side. “Gods damned right I didn’t believe that letter of yours. Initially. Hell, I didn’t fully believe it was possible until you blacked out at the sight of Cass. It’s really fucking weird seeing you with remorse and guilt.”

Drawing a long breath, Sotalia grits her teeth, nods, and sighs. “It’s been strange dealing with it. I’m pretty fucking awful at it. But, if I can hold a normal conversation with you, maybe I’ve got a chance.”

Precella snorts out a chuckle, shakes her head, and narrows her silver on black eyes. “Ah, so I’m your biggest challenge then? Well, I guess I should feel gods damned honored.”

A sly smirk emerges from the corner of her mouth, and she drums her long, black nailed fingers on her hips. “So, who in this group are you fucking?”

Sotalia crosses her arms defensively, uneasily pauses, and sighs with a long roll of her eyes. “Really? Okay. Listen, I’ve honestly changed. You said it yourself.”

Precella laughs with an ill-humored grin, and lifts an inquisitive brow. “Changed. Not mutated into another kind of life form.”

Closing her eyes, Sotalia breathes deeply and reopens her eyes with a long sigh. “It didn’t happen all at once.”

Nodding in agreement, Precella studies Sotalia's expression and body language, and softens her stare. “Yeah. That it did. Huh... I'll be damned.”

The two gaze at each other in relative quiet for a minute. Seconds later, Sotalia darts her gaze around the vicinity and tenses her posture. Precella searches the area and inquires. “Wait, are you feeling something, too?”

Sotalia nods quickly, and checks around the large main room. “Yeah. I don’t know what though.”

A looming silence swells into the space and the eerie pressure seizes everyone’s attention. Sebastian phases down from the ceiling wide eyed, and points to the shelter. Bach rushes over to the magical geometric dome, and flows energy into the construct. As the doors of the golden bowl open, everyone scrambles inside. The doors close under Bach’s control. Sotalia quickly gestures out an incantation and field expands upon the interior walls of the golden barrier. The two teams reside under the magical shell for minutes in the eerie, dead silence, and tension fades to confusion.

After a few exchanges of awkward shrugs and bewildered stares, a loud boom resonates into entire area, as a prismatic wave washes over geometric, magic dome. A very low, warping groan from the world above passes through the walls, and sharply rushes to chaotic roar. The constant harsh white noise seeps through the protective layers and floods out all other sounds. Dirt rattles across the floor, large fleck of debris rain down from the ceiling, and clouds of dust fume from the braced exterior door. The intensity of the cacophony wanes in cascading waves until final drop to silence. As usual background noises rise back, digital alerts chirp out from aetherphones, radios, and the holoplayer. A transcribed message from a data broadcast appears on the holographic projection and a voice crackles through radio. “Surge over. Surge over. Surge over. Upwards eruption was detected.”

----

Thunder rolls over outside, and the wavering drone of heavy rain emanates into the background noise of the small concrete room. Aristespha snores as she slumbers upon a wall mounted cot, and mumbles incoherently. On the other side of the room, Sotalia’s golden eyes blink with the soft rumble of storm outside, and she sighs while staring at the concrete ceiling above. Aimlessly drifting her gaze between the dim blue-white light of magic orbs around the room, she rubs her face and groans quietly. Pulling off the blanket, she quietly sits up on the cot, steps softly to the archway leading into the main room, and peers out. Omaron studiously flips through a stack of paperwork and writes out detailed notes. He rests his dark brown eyes upon the faint warm glow of a small magical construct, and holds his open hands close. Sotalia grimaces, squirms uncomfortably, and sighs. Summoning up her will, she breathes deeply, and slowly approaches.

Omaron notices Sotalia walking closer, grants a friendly nod, and pleasant smile. “Couldn’t sleep either?”

Halting briefly, Sotalia frowns lightly and grits her teeth. “Yes. Still too riled up from today. It’s been a lot.”

With an understanding smile, Omaron gestures to a spot on the floor near him and motions towards the solidified flow formed around a large battery cell. “You’re welcome to sit down. I’ve been enjoying the heater that Bach crafted. Pretty handy guy to have around.”

A slight smirk grows from the corner of Sotalia’s mouth, and she settles down on a blanket on the concrete floor. “That he is.”

After a few moments of silence, she perks her brow and awkwardly smiles with a reserved, humored tone. “Not thinking of trying to recruit him from our team?”

Omaron snorts lightly, shakes his head, and chuckles. “Don’t know if I could afford him. Plus, everyone likes the pay splits as they are.”

Sotalia pulls up her legs, warps her arms around her knees, and stares at the pulsing glow of the magitech heater. Biting her lip uncomfortably, she draws in a long breath, and gazes at Omaron with genuine remorse. “Since, this opportunity has come up... I want to apologize to you. For... Well everything I did and was... I’m really sorry.”

Nodding his head of short, curly black hair, Omaron replies with calm, intrigued tone. “I do appreciate hearing that from you. Maybe a little unnecessary given how detailed your letter was. But, it makes those words feel more honest now. We didn't quite know what to make of them at first.”

Dropping her head down, Sotalia cringes and squirms slightly. “Gods, that was just a rambling mess. I didn’t know how, or if, you could write anything that would start to make up for all the shit I was responsible for.”

Omaron chuckles, shakes his head, and rests the packet of papers in his lap off to the side. “To be honest, I don’t think anything written could. But... It helped. Really gave me some reassurance that leaving you behind wasn’t the worst decision I have ever made. Just so you know, that still was the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do.”

Sotalia strains a breath through her nose, twists her mouth, and averts her gaze away as she fights embarrassment. “You all should have done it sooner. I was a lost cause back then. Too stupid to realize what I was doing. Ditching me was the smart and kind thing to do. It took me forever for my dumbass self realize what I had become even after that.”

Contorting his brown face, Omaron scratches his arm around an elaborate tattoo, and sighs. “Well, I held out hope that you’d come to that realization with us. It was hard to accept the raw facts and do what was needed. I mean you had your good moments and pulled your weight. But...”

Rolling her eyes at herself, Sotalia grimaces, groans regretfully, and shakes her head. “Oh gods, you were too generous. I really do appreciate it now. Just wish I could have back then. I needed something that sudden and harsh to break me. You all needed to be free of me more than anything.”

Slowly easing a smile upon her face, she gazes over to Omaron and laughs. “Anyway, all of you seem to be doing better without out me anyway. I’m happy for you all.”

Omaron blinks at Sotalia, and grows a delighted smile. “Thank you. It was hard for a while. We really missed having a power mage for a few quests. And... We missed having the rare moments of the nice and kind side of you around.”

Wiping the welling tears out of her eyes, Sotalia snorts out a soft chuckle, and shakes her head. “Oh please, those couldn’t been worth the sheer amount of bullshit I was. But... I have missed all of you, but I just couldn’t bring myself to darken your lives again when you were doing just fine without me. It just kind of got out of control in my own head after that... As you saw. It’s still taking a lot to do even this.”

Solid footsteps sound out from the shadowy perimeter of the main room, and a thin hooded figure steps out into the dim glow of the magical heater. Cassolon holds his dark tan hands up, awkwardly grins, and approaches cautiously. “Hey, don’t be alarmed. Just heard you two talking. Don’t want to accidentally scare you again.”

Sotalia concentrates a stern stare upon Cassolon as he twists the goofy expression on his dark green hinted face. After a few moments, she melts the glare into a warm smirk and sighs. “It’s fine, Cass. You deserve at least a few jump scares on me.”

Cassolon eases down in another spot around the stabilized magical flow heater, and quirks his brow. “So, talking about the past and stuff? Um, well, uh, we’re cool now. Just so you know. Shit, I didn’t mean to nearly scare you to do death and all. I was surprised when I saw you at the Perimeter market place. And then you ran off.”

Cringing visibly, Sotalia sighs and nods slowly. “Yes. I couldn’t process it then. Barely can now.”

Scratching the back of his head, Cassolon smiles and nervously chuckles. “Yeah... Well, don’t worry yourself on my account. I think you seem different now. I mean, you don’t feel like the same Sotalia as before... Does that make sense? I’m still garbage at words and talking, so nothing new there. But, this feels different... Better?”

Sotalia nods and smiles humored at Cassolon. “I understand. And, thank you. You still deserve a proper apology. So, I’m sorry, Cass. Really.”

She rolls her eyes at herself, sighs deeply, and shakes her head of fiery orange, wavy hair. “Gods, I bet you all went for the exact opposite of me when you got your replacement. Why take any chances, right?”

Omaron snorts and Cassolon tightly smiles as he darts his gaze away. Sotalia tilts her head curiously to the side and searches for an explanation between the two. Omaron meets Sotalia’s gaze, and grits his teeth with a chuckle. “We did initially. But... Turns out our group has type when it comes to power mages. It just meshes better with us when they’re bold and competitive to a fault. Don’t get us wrong, Brianna is nice and a pleasure to work with.”

Cassolon grumbles to himself and crosses his arms petulantly. Omaron grins widely, and lifts an amused brow to Sotalia. “But, be ready for a vicious fight when there’s a card game on the table.”

Shrugging up his shoulders, Cassolon narrows a pleading, frustrated glance to Omaron. “It’s such fucking bullshit. She has a red blue deck that’s full of rares she’s must of blackmailed the developers out of at some point. You just don’t find all of those and put them in one deck. It’s obscene, disgusting, and an abject sin against the gods.”

Sotalia blinks at the childish irritation on Cassolon’s face, smiles reminiscently, and lifts an intrigued brow towards Omaron. “I’ve been warned about his game I think.”

Omaron slowly nods, and groans. “You have no idea.”

----

Light clouds drift slowly across the clear, late morning sky, and gentle wind rustles the leaves of trees surrounding the clearing encircling the surge shelter tower. Bach drops prone upon the gravel, blinks his eyes to glowing blue, and carefully searches underneath the humvee. Wagging her long tail, Cideeda kneels nearby, angles her curious gaze, and flicks her furry ears against the wind. “See any weird magic under there?”

Crawling further under the humvee, Bach scans around, shrugs his shoulders, and direct his voice back. “Nothing I can see. Looks clean.”

Swiftly, Cideeda lays on her back on the ground next to Bach, slips her clawed fingers around a vehicle support bar, and slides herself underneath. Her emerald green eyes dart between key points, and she methodically inspects the suspension and plating. “Good... Doesn’t look like anything is immediately wrong mechanically. And, the plating is intact. So, we should be good to roll if everything starts up.”

Nearby Brianna quickly gestures out an incantation, flicks her finger towards a warping mass of energy meters away, and releases a prismatic blast. The flow sprays upon the strange anomaly and the entity diminishes in size slowly. Sotalia steps up curiously next to the woman, observes her work, and crosses her arms. “Might have to give it a little more. I’ve run into a few that didn’t dissipate completely.”

Turning her head of very long blonde hair to face Sotalia, Brianna smirks. With a twist her hand, flows of magic surge and zip down the stream. Upon impact, the energy bursts inside the anomaly and pops it into a faint miasma. Sotalia cracks smile at the display, and lifts her examining brow. “Nicely done. Use the stream as a conduit to contain the surge until contact.”

Brianna nods, rests her hands at her hips, and shifts her weight. “Indeed. The force of the stream sometimes pushes into these things, and creates a nice pocket for a blast.”

Sotalia ponders a moment, lift an intrigued brow, and tilts her head. “So, you lean towards the elemental spells?”

An amused smile appears on Brianna’s face, and she laughs. “Oh, certainly. From what I heard, so do you.”

Grimacing briefly, Sotalia sighs with a quick roll of her eyes into a proud grin. “Well, my past behavior aside, I still think myself quite capable. And as cliché as it sounds, I am very partial to fire and ice combos.”

Pulling a humored grin across her light tan face, Brianna idly plays with the end of an elaborate braid, and sways her hips. “Oh, don’t feel bad. I love the thermal spells, but I rarely get a good chance to use them.”

Sotalia sighs and nods understandingly. “Inside ruins and ancient tunnels a lot?”

Brianna rolls her bright yellow eyes, and twists her mouth. “Gods, I wish it was just that. I always have to keep a watch out for Cassolon sneaking around right into the blast area.”

Gritting her teeth as old memories rise to the front of her mind, Sotalia groans lightly and glances over to Brianna. “Some things don’t change. I ended up having to whistle loud and point before I used any energy bombs. I got him trained decently.”

Brianna nods as she ponders and hums thoughtfully. “I’ll have to try that. We’ve been checking out old ruins in the area, so I’ve been sticking to electric and photon spells.”

Rolling her golden eyes, Sotalia sighs in commiseration and shakes her head. “Always hate running into things down in old tunnels. SO limiting.”

Across the clearing, Omaron hoists up a large branch off large truck with a covered bed, and tosses it off to the side. He rubs a smudge of bark grime off the surface of the hood, and shrugs his shoulders at the vehicle. “Looks like it’s intact.”

He turns to Sebastian and Aristespha, bows slightly, and smiles. “Well, despite some awkward history coming up, I’m glad we ran into all of you. It was reassuring to have the extra magic and good company. Hope the rest of the your trek to Precipice is... really, really uneventful.”

Sebastian’s visage laughs ethereally, and nods in complete agreement. “Gods, that’d be nice. Hope you can wrap up your mission the same.”

Omaron shakes his head, and groans. “Yeah. I mean, it’s nothing hard. We’ve just had to be so exhaustive in our inspections and searches. It just takes so long to properly clear these ruins, and we have to be really careful being in the zone, too.”

He pauses a moment, looks to both Sebastian and Aristespha, and twists his mouth. “If you all could do me a favor, if you find a group of people hauling a bunch of old equipment around here... Let me know.”

Sebastian blinks, nods, and cocks his head. “Sure. Any particular reason?”

Omaron crosses his muscular arms, and ponders out loud a moment. “Well, we’ve been sent out to inspect a bunch of abandoned military facilities in the area. A bunch of zone runners reported strange activity in a few of them and signs of odd people moving around. In most of the places we checked, it looks like they’ve been cleaned out. Recently cleaned out. I mean they unbolted things to strip them out of the places. Not the typical scavenger operation either.”

Narrowing her stare at her tablet, Aristespha shifts her attention to Omaron and inquires further. “That requires some significant effort to perform. Were you able to track down where they went?”

With an uncertain frown, Omaron grumbles and shakes his head. “Somewhat. Tracking is a bit hard in the zone, but the trails we followed always lead to the water ways. It’s really weird.”

Sebastian searches his own mind for a moment, frowns, and agrees. “Yeah. That’s strange. We’ll keep an eye out.”

Showing the screen of her aetherphone to Omaron, Aristespha smiles nicely, and points out relevant information. “Here’s our contact information.”

Omaron blinks a moment, remembers something, and laughs as he retrieves his phone. “Oh, right, you’ll probably need to know our info, too. Sorry. I’m still figuring out all this technology.”

Glancing around the vicinity, Sebastian quietly directs his voice to Omaron. “By the way, thanks for being understanding with Sotalia. She’s mentioned things, but never gone into detail.”

Pausing from pecking out the information on screen, Omaron glances up with a calm smile and sighs. “I’m just glad she’s come around and is with a good group. I always wondered what happened to her. So, this has given us some closure. I hope it helps her, too.”

Sebastian, Omaron, and Aristespha glance across the clearing and watch Brianna and Sotalia take turns flicking dispelling bolts at small anomalies, comparing their abilities.

----

Chad walks in front of the large screen television in the living room of the two-story house. Trakenthin, Tassilda, Modoran, Deedri, and Veevi sit on the sectional couches surrounding the center coffee table. Clearing his throat after surveying the camera crews at the edges of the room, Chad straightens up his posture and addresses the team. “Okay, everyone. Before the next fan meet up, we are going to do one mission. I made sure ALL of you got packets containing the information for each beforehand.”

Drawing in a long breath, he glances over the team and settles his reserved stare upon Veevi. “One the first orders of business... Is deciding whether Veevi is to be allowed back on a mission.”

Tossing her pink hair back, Veevi narrows a contemptuous glare at Chad, drags her sharp nails upon the back of the couch, and flicks her pink tail up. The rest of the team exchange a mix of expressions, shift their full attention to Veevi, and wait silently. After tense moments of quiet, Tassilda groans out her disgust and crosses her arms. “Well, we might as fucking well. At least we can keep an eye on her, and she doesn’t have free reign to wreck our rooms.”

Trakenthin darts his hazel eyes between the different recording crews, grumbles, and snarls his upper lip. “Regardless, two bad options. Take her along. She can be destructive elsewhere. Not here.”

Veevi scoffs with the roll her pink pupil eyes and perks her fuzzy ears. “See, you all are learning.”

Chad gazes to Modoran and Deedri, and sneaks a quick eye roll with a flit of smirk. Modoran scratches the back of his head of white hair, and shrugs. “Um, sure? If they don’t have an issue with it, I don’t.”

Drawing in a long breath, Deedri sighs, rests her hands on her lap, and perks up her furry, tufted ears. “We might as well give her a chance to put her energies to more productive things?”

A sly smile graces Veevi’s lips, and she nods appreciatively towards Deedri. Chad agrees in slow, dramatic motions. “Okay.”

He gazes to Veevi and announces. “Veevi, you’re back on the team for this mission. Please use this opportunity well.”

Veevi glares at Chad, twists her mouth on her tan face, and flexes her fingers. “Oh, I’ll try my best, fearless leader.”

Shifting his attention away from Veevi, Chad scans over the team and addresses the group. “For this mission vote, I’m going to abstain and let you all decide. And, we’ll do a show of hands this time.”

In the corner of the room with a camera aiming at Chad, Gerald blinks a moment, and suspicion creeps into his demeanor. Chad holds up the first packet from the coffee table and smirks dismissively. “First mission choice... Slime extermination.”

The team remains silent and unmoved. Chad nods in agreement, tosses the packet towards a garbage can, and rolls his eyes. “Yeah. I know. They keep putting one in.”

He picks up a second packet, presents it up into camera view, and quickly glances between Trakenthin and Tassilda. “Second choice... Ruin exploration for the local county.”

Trakenthin and Tassilda raise their hands. Veevi sneers her upper lip at the two, and stares expectantly over to Modoran and Deedri. Chad waits a few moments and places the document back down. “That’s two votes. So...”

He lifts up the last packet on the table and presents it. “Third choice... Escort a mystery celebrity on an adventuring themed outing.”

Modoran shrugs his shoulders and lifts his hand nonchalantly up. Deedri raises her arm up. Attention from the team and camera crews focus solely upon Veevi. Blinking in sheer bewilderment, a bright smile appears on her, and she jumps up from the couch, arm first. “YES! Finally!”

Barely containing her excitement, Veevi grins in delight and hops in place as her tail wags. “Oh gods! This going to be so much fun! Just you all wait, it’ll be amazing! I can’t wait to see who it is! Just to be adventuring with a big name!”

Chad nods to Veevi, and announces to the team. “Well, I guess it is decided. I’ll make this official.”

As the recording team focus upon Veevi’s antics, Chad glances over his shoulder to the rest of the team with the hint of a smirk and meets similar subtle expressions. Samantha snickers from the dining area, grins, and mumbles as she writes down on her clipboard. “Very good, Veevi... This is going to boost the ratings, so much...”

Gerald lowers the camera off his shoulder, glances over to Samantha, and studies the team. Narrowing his suspicions, he lifts an intrigued brow, contorts the smirk on his face, and hums in thought.

----

The humvee rolls to a stop in a rough parking lot near the center circle of the town. As the powerplant winds down, the door opens and the team departs. Bach, Sotalia, Dretphi, Cideeda, and Aristespha congregate upon a crude sidewalk and slowly survey the small town center. Sotalia lifts an eyebrow and crosses her arms. “So, Precipice...”

Bach shrugs his shoulders, observes locals walking about, and squints at the signage upon surrounding buildings. “Well, it’s a town. I mean, it’s civilization in the middle of the zone.”

With snort, Cideeda spots a large building and points to the Precipice Inn & Tavern. “Far better than what we’ve seen. That looks like the best place to start. And I’m hungry.”

Aristespha checks her aetherphone, scrolls through lines of text, and nods in agreement. “I believe that’s the place that Lady Rhian told us to check for Mavian.”

The team strolls along the walkway, scouting the very few attractions around the town center, and arrive at the front doors of the inn. Filtering inside from the late afternoon glow outside, they enter a large main room with a few patrons using an eclectic collection of tables and chairs. From the bar counter, Aggie smiles wide and waves to the team. “Hey there! What can I get for all of you?”

Aristespha leads the rest of the group over to the bar, and bows slightly to Aggie. “Hello. We’ve got a few things actually. Lodging and food, first.”

Surveying the team behind Aristespha, Aggie visibly contemplates, rocks her head of curly black hair side to side, and hums thoughtfully. “We’ve got a few rooms. But, dear, I’m guessing you probably want the big group room. Economical and all.”

With a gracious smile, Aristespha nods in agreement. “Exactly. We’ll take that one, and I believe we’ll probably need it for the week. Possibly longer.”

Arranging a number of glasses upon the bar top, Aggie pulls out a ledger, and opens it up. “That works for me. Makes the bookkeeping easier. Hence, I’m inclined to give a good rate for you all.”

She motions over to the tables, and scribbles out some calculations on a scratch piece of paper. “As for food, grab any table, settle in, and I’ll get you menus. Got some drink specials going, if you are interested.”

Sotalia glances between Bach, Cideeda, and Dretphi, and presents an eager grin to Aggie. “Oh, I think we’d be interested. It’s been a trying few days.”

Bach grits his teeth, hisses out a sigh, and nods. “Yeah... That surge was not fun.”

A tired groan slips out from Dretphi, and her shoulders slump slightly. “Beer. Food. Bed. A good way to end today.”

Lifting a curious eyebrow, Aggie cocks her head to side, and twist her mouth with hints of concern. “Gods, don’t tell me you were caught up in that mess.”

Cideeda smirks and shakes her head. “Caught up? Hell, we were underneath it in a shelter when it erupted. Spent last night waiting for it go away, then the storm afterwards.”

Resting her hands on her hips, Aggie grimaces uncomfortably and sighs uneasily. “Gods, well I’m glad Mavian called that one in when he did.”

The team’s attention piques. Aristespha directs her focus upon Aggie, and inquires. “Is Mavian around? We actually are here to talk to him.”

Aggie quirks her brow, cracks a smirk, and shakes her head. “Not at the moment. He should be back in a few days. But, I might be able to encourage him to pick up the pace, if he’s got business waiting for him. He should be getting done guiding his latest client.”

An awkward wave of tension radiates through the team. Aristespha cautiously broaches the subject, and nicely asks with smile. “Oh... Good. I hope his current job goes smoothly.”

With a snort, Aggie rolls her eyes and laughs. “Oh, it’ll probably go better than most his jobs. He was just helping a nice man find a missing friend. I do hope he stops back on by.”

From the kitchen, Elissia’s voice calls out. “Are you talking about Isaac?”

Aggie turns around and calls back. “Yes. It was nice having someone academic minded around here.”

Aristespha, Bach, Cideeda, Dretphi, and Sotalia blink blankly at the same time and remain quiet. Sebastian’s muted ethereal tone emanates from the sword at Aristespha’s side. “Shit.”

----

In the late afternoon glow, Isaac and Mavian stand before a large stone structure. Mavian glances over to Isaac, and crosses his arms. “This is the closest thing I know around here that matches what you described.”

Isaac’s gray eyes widen as he spots unique markings, and he pauses to study the odd structures nearby. After scanning the area, he starts walking closer to the ancient building and nods his head. “I think this is IT. The designs and architecture... just fits...”

Mavian twists his mouth, follows behind Isaac, and blinks his faintly glowing green eyes. “Okay. Don’t get your hopes up too much. A lot of these things often look very similar-”

Halting in place, he squints is eyes, flits them wide in recognition, and points over to a location. “Well. This has to be it. Look.”

Isaac traces Mavian’s point, and stares at the spot underneath a rock overhang. A gust of wind flows through and ruffles layers of carefully arranged camouflage mesh concealing a parked hover truck. Mavian glances over to Isaac, and shrugs his shoulders. “Meets the descriptions I’ve heard from other runners. So, I think that’s confirmation enough.”

A delighted smile grows on Isaac’s face, and he picks up his pace towards a large entry archway. As Isaac examines the elaborate detail work, he notices the glow of artificial lighting from work lamps further inside. He turns around and notices Mavian leaning against an aged wall patiently. “Well, would you join me inside?”

Mavian smiles and shakes his head respectfully. “I’ll have to pass. I try to stay out of other people’s business as much as possible, when it’s not related to what I need to do. But, I appreciate it.”

Glancing up to the darkening skies, Isaac politely offers. “It’s getting dark. I certainly wouldn’t want to put you out, and I am sure my colleague wouldn’t either.”

Standing up straight, Mavian grins proudly and shrugs his shoulders. “Ah, it doesn’t bother me. I appreciate the gesture. I’ve got plenty of tricks when I’m by myself out here.”

He gestures towards the archway. “You should probably check to see if you friend is in there. Once you know, let me know and I start heading on back to Precipice.”

Isaac nods understandingly, pivots around, and walks into the building. Navigating through old architecture, Isaac recognizes different markings on the walls, chalk notes scribbles near points of interest, and warning marks. He follows a long chain of electrical lines joining the gaps between work lamps, exploration equipment, and survival supplies. Passing through a long established camp site in a large room, a faint, distant voice seizes Isaac’s full attention. Quickly rushing down a long corridor to a dim glow, he reaches end and steps into a massive, vast chamber. In a stupor, he gawks at massive pillars of interwoven magic and technology, elaborate crystalline arrangements, intricate flow conduits, and gigantic machinery incorporating untold components. His attention snaps towards the center of the area upon a large circular platform, and he watches a tall man with tied back stark white hair step around with a notepad in hand scribbling notes.

A genuine smile of joy appears on Isaac face, and he walks towards the man. “Dr. Malkav!”

Dr. Malkav halts in place, blinks back to awareness, and slowly lifts his head up. Searching around the room, he snaps his focus upon Isaac. His blue eyes widen in a mix of recognition and sheer surprise. Cocking his head to the side, Dr. Malkav gawks utterly bewildered at Isaac. “Oh my hell...”

-99-

A gentle white glow fills the large room and illuminates the furnishings of the camp site within the ancient walls. A tall man stands at a brewing machine upon a crate and sways his lean frame side to side. As the light brown, hot beverage finishes to a few final drips into a carafe, he grabs the handle and walks over to a small table. He pours an equal share into the mug in front of the seated Isaac and the mug in front of the open seat. The man settles down into the seat, brushes back this stark white, tied hair, and sighs his mild annoyance. “It’s not bad tea, but certainly nothing in comparison to what you can easily get in Perimeter. Hard as hell to get anything out here without it costing your first born or taking months.”

Isaac graciously grabs hold of the cup in front of him, nods respectfully, and chuckles. “Oh, don’t fret Dr. Malkav. After the trek out here, this is absolutely wonderful. Especially after the last few days. Weather around here is pretty aggressive.”

Dr. Malkav narrows his blue eyes with a curl to his smirk. “Gods, Isaac. It’s Max. I appreciate the respect, but no sense in having proper titles out in this wasteland. It’s simpler to yell out when something fucks up, too.”

Blinking his gray eyes, Isaac nods, sips his steaming tea, and laughs. “Yeah. I guess that makes sense. I’ll eventually get used to it.”

Max narrows an inquisitive stare at Isaac and smirks. “It’s just fanciful terms at the end of the day that stroke the egos of some.”

Sampling his drink, he straightens his posture in the wooden chair, cocks his head to the side, and twists the corner of his mouth. “So... What the fuck brings you out here?”

With a smile, Isaac chuckles lightly as he explains. “Well, the short answer is Emanuel directed me to your backup notes. After acquiring them from where you hid them in the computer science building, we both reviewed them. It took some effort and travel, but I followed the information. It finally lead me here after searching.”

Max settles back into his chair, sips his tea long, and focuses an examining stare upon Isaac. “Okay, that explains the how... How about the WHY? Care to share those details? What’s the reason for coming out all this way through hell’s backyard? I’m certain it’s not just socialize and catch up.”

Propping up a smirk, Isaac uneasily contorts his face, and eases out a sigh. “To be honest, both Emanuel and I were extremely curious as to what you had discovered out here. Given that there was no easy way to contact you and not receiving a new update for some time, I decided to come out to you. Partly to learn and partly to find out if you were still among the living.”

Max taps a light tan finger upon the side of his mug of tea, rocks his head slowly shoulder to shoulder, and thoughtfully studies Isaac. After a minute, he sighs with a brief grit of his teeth, and grumbles. “Pardon my paranoia, but while I do believe all of what you’ve said... There’s more. So, stop bullshitting me already. I may have been out in middle of nowhere for years, but that doesn’t mean I’ve completely lost my gods damned mind.”

He leans forward, glares into Isaac’s eyes, and frowns. “Why the fuck would Emanuel even let you know about my stash? What did you present to him that convinced him this was the best course of action?”

Isaac maintains eye contact with Max, lifts his head of wispy white hair up, and squints with a pull at the corner of his mouth. “A very interesting development in the subject of Elder Energy, specifically a new source of it.”

Flitting his blue eyes wide, Max slowly pulls his gaze back, settles back into his chair, and searches his mind. He contorts his face in thought, glances back to Isaac a few times, and gradually nods. “Yeah... That would probably convince Emanuel and lead the both of you to my stash.”

He narrows an examining stare through Isaac, cracks sly grin, and chuckles. “And given your activities under your alter ego... It would make all to much sense that you would come across such a new discovery.”

Noxian’s gray eyes widen, and he straightens his posture rigid in the chair expectantly. In the moments of tense silence, he quietly examines Max, and darts his eyes around the room in sprints of paranoia. Max shakes his head, rolls his eyes dismissively, and waves of the tension. “Oh please, I’ve had my suspicions for years, especially with THAT scarf around your neck... It’s hard to forget...”

Cocking his head to the side, he forces a nonchalant smile over a flit sadness. “Truthfully, someone going around scooping up the last reserves of elder energy out of the hands of psychos and morons just seems like a much needed clean up effort. Better someone I know rather than any of these self-important government black site idiots.”

With a long regretful sigh, he frowns sadly and slowly shakes his head. “I think we both know what happens when those are left to their own devices for too long.”

Isaac’s expression softens, and he nods in grim agreement. Max shrugs his shoulders, drinks his tea, and gazes over to Isaac. “And, really, at the end of the day, it doesn’t affect anything I’m doing... My digging through ancient junk and leftovers hoping to find something historical.”

A sly grin appears on Max’s face, and he cocks his head to the side. “So, you and Emanuel want to know what I’ve found?”

Blinking back to awareness from an old, painful memories, Isaac snaps his attention fully upon Emanuel. “Oh, yes! Of course. Your notes mentioned finding the place one of the architects for the Abstract Prism retired to?”

With a simple nod, Max rests against the back of his chair, takes a long sip of his tea, and snorts with a smirk. “You could say that. Turns out it was a bit more than that. Whoever came back here was busy carefully scrubbing certain aspects of this place from history. But, I don’t know if they did their job right or not. Because I’ve figured out what this place was.”

Isaac unconsciously leans closer, gripping his mug tightly. “And that is?”

Max grins brightly, and perk his brow. “One of the aether access points used in the construction of the Abstract Prism.”

In sudden silence, Isaac stares blankly at Max. Moments later, flits of thought twitch across his face, and he straightens up in his seat. Searching his mind, he tries to process the information and his eyes dart through different thoughts racing within. He twists his upper body around, glances down the long hallway to the massive chamber, and gawks in awe. He shakes his head out of the stupor, and snaps his wide eyed attention back to Max. “One of THE TWELVE? One of the twelve anchors used to align the prism? HERE?!”

He swings his arm out, points down the hallway, and stares at Max. “There? Down that hall? That massive chamber?”

Max shrugs his shoulders, and snorts. “Yeah. I mean it looks the part, doesn’t it? Just examining the equipment and enchantments, I can barely comprehend the intricacies of such a system. But, I’m limited in what theories I can test in its present state. I mean, the thing runs off of massive amounts of Elder energy ONLY. It doesn’t even react to anything prismatic. I feel that was intentional.”

Blinking hard, Isaac tilts his head to the side, grins eagerly, and chuckles. “Well, I think I might be able to help with that.”

Releasing a long, frustrated sigh, Max shakes his head and frowns. “Unfortunately, it would be a waste of time, effort, and energy. From everything I’ve read up and studied, whatever connection that access point had to the Abstract Prism has long since been severed completely.”

Isaac stares at Max for a few seconds, glances back down the hallway to the huge chamber, and sinks down in his seat. Max smirks and offers a comforting tone. “No sense in feeling bad about something like that. Its fate was decided long before us. From what I learned, those connections were cut a LONG time ago. Fairly certain it was before both our grandparents were even born. And whichever architect decided to live here made sure to cover up a lot of key details to make brute force probing the aether fruitless.”

A begrudging acceptance fills Isaac’s face, and he slowly shakes his head. “That makes sense. I would have been more surprised if it hadn’t been given such a treatment. Oddly, I think I would be disappointed if the architects hadn’t followed up like this.”

Max shrugs his shoulders, motions to a massive array of document piles upon a number of scattered crates, and laughs. “Well, they were very particular in how they followed up. It’s very strange what information they didn’t scrub and seem to have purposely left behind. You are more than welcome to look over it and see if you can divine anything else from it. I can only tolerate it for so long these days.”

Isaac shifts his gaze over to the stacks of papers and other articles, and a surge of eager excitement swells in his face. “Of course! Thank you! That’s wonderful.”

Focusing his inquisitive stare upon Isaac, Max curls the corner of his smirk and narrows his attention. “Before you run off, what’s this new source of Elder Energy you mentioned?”

Pausing briefly in thought, Isaac nods as he opens up his backpack. “Oh yes! It’s absolutely fascinating and has really given me new motivation in my own research. I think new source isn’t the most correct terminology. It’s technically correct, but not the... full picture.”

He retrieves a bundle of documents, places them upon the small table, and smiles eagerly. Max places his tea down to the side, leans forward, and surveys the collection of materials. Flipping through the pages, he sorts sections into separate piles. He halts upon a photograph of a brown haired man carrying a half-emin woman in his arms in the air with a white aura surrounding him. Slowly lifting the picture up, he squints his blue eyes and taps upon the image. “What is going on here?”

----

The doors to the main room of the Precipice Inn & Tavern spring open and Cedric rushes through. He stops in the middle of the entry and waits. Moments later, Ryos pushes open the main door and holds it. A young girl walks in with a doll in her arms, stops in front of Ryos, and bows slightly. “Thank you, Ryos.”

Ryos shyly averts his eyes, nods, and whispers back. “You're welcome, Suzie.”

The robotic doll in Suzie’s arms turns its head, and grants a respectful tip of its small hat. “Appreciate it as always, Ryos.”

Suzie sprints off next to Cedric. Ryos glances around the door and waits. Stepping through the doorway, a humanoid robot brushes off his ragged clothing, and straightens its mechanical form. It gazes down at Ryos with a simple approximation of smile on its battered and chipped mouth display, and bows with the sound of faint servo strain. “Always the gentleman, Ryos. So, how has school been so far today?”

Ryos eases the main door close as the mechanical man side steps. He pivots around, and shrugs his small shoulders. “Good. I guess. We’re learning new words, Mr. Amos.”

Amos’s pair of eye optics refocus upon Ryos and he nods his flat gray, steel head. “Excellent news. The more you learn, the more stories I’ll be able to regale you all with.”

Cedric perks up, and snaps his attention to Amos. “Can you tell another story Mr. Amos!?”

Suzie smiles brightly, hugs the doll in arms tightly, and chimes. “Did you hear that Mr. Ishy! More stories!”

Mr. Ishy rolls his faintly glowing, mechanical eyes, and sighs with a sarcastic tinge. “Oh joy, another inflated tale from the deranged droid.”

Narrowing optic shutters, Amos paints an amused smirk upon his facial display, and emulates the sound of a snort from a speaker. “Oh yes, Ishmael... I think the next one I’ll tell with be particularly grandiose and drawn out. I think my THIRD encounter with a the great four winged blue dragon is in order.”

Ishmael drops its articulated, cloth head forward, and groans out in mild disgust. “Of course... Some new variant of that old tale.”

A mimickery of a smirk pulls upon the soft fabric of Ishmael’s face, and it stares up at Amos. “You should really tell the children of your story with the Great Thudkickers of the West. I think it’s some of your best work.”

Amos shakes his head, crosses his robotic arms, and dismissively averts his gaze. “Of course, the one where I got nearly torn apart by giant psychotic birds.”

Ishmael holds up his simple cloth covered arms. “I think it’s such an underrated classical comedy.”

Suzie frowns slightly, stares down her reddish-brown eyes at Ishmael, and squeezes him gently. “Don’t be mean, Mr. Ishy. I want to hear Mr. Amos’s story.”

Glancing up to Suzie, Ishmael sighs and dons an apologetic tone. “I am sorry. I’ll try to be on my best behavior. I promise.”

He cocks his head to the side, and contorts his brow. “But, before the story, you need to eat lunch, and your mother has given you money to give to Aggie and Elissia.”

Amos nods in agreement and motions Suzie towards the bar. “Well, you better eat, first. Then, I’ll tell you a story before you head back to school.”

Suzie nods, rushes over to Cedric and Ryos. Suzie hands off Ishmael to Ryos, and starts climbing up into the bar stool. Cedric boosts Suzie up the rest of the way by lifting up her shoe, and Ryos passes Ishmael to Suzie’s awaiting arms. Suzie tosses back her braided blonde hair, and smiles thankfully to both Cedric and Ryos when they take their seats. Amos watches Aggie and Elissia greet the children. Slowly searching the large main room and the eclectic collection of furniture, he spots a group of five adventurers sitting around one of the large tables. Brushing off his dusty, ragged clothes, he adjust his mechanical stature, and nonchalantly walks over towards the table.

Aristespha sorts through documents on her tablet. Cideeda busily taps through different settings on her aetherphone, waits, and grumbles quietly. Dretphi enjoys the grilled chicken, rice, and vegetables dish. Sotalia examines a number of crystals arranged on the table next to her empty plate. Bach idly eyes the current channel on the television.

Amos approaches the table, stops nearby, and mimics a cough. Aristespha, Bach, Cideeda, Dretphi, and Sotalia stir up from their distractions, and shift their attention to Amos. With a dramatic bow, Amos dons a pleasant tone, and smiles brightly on his facial display. “Greetings fellow adventurers! My name is Amos, and I hope you’ve found our fair town of Precipice to be enjoyable so far. If it’s not too forward, may I ask your names?”

Aristespha lifts an intrigued brow, tosses her silvery blue hair back, and rests her tablet down upon the table. “Aristespha, pleased to meet you, Amos.”

Dretphi’s steely gray eyes survey the robot in front of her, and she puzzles briefly. “Dretphi...”

Bach cocks his head to side, ponders briefly, and nods towards Amos. “Bach.”

Sotalia lifts an incredulous brow, crosses her arms unconvinced, and twists her mouth. “Sotalia...”

Leaning out of her seat across the table, Cideeda’s wide emerald green eyes scan Amos and an eager toothy grin grows. “Cideeda. You are- You are an actual AI? Just not a programmed greeter with advanced heuristics and some deep learning algorithms? Or some remotely controlled drone?”

Amos lifts his head to the side, fashions a grin on his worn mouth display, and simulates a laugh. “Now that is a hard question to answer. Any answer I could give could be construed so many different ways. Who is to say that the answer I give will be correct given the context? I believe I think therefor I believe I am. But, to prove either is a whole different situation.”

Sotalia rolls her golden eyes, tilts her head of fiery orange, wavy hair, and sighs. “Gods, he’s trying to discuss existential philosophy, I’m willing to give him the benefit of the doubt now.”

Resting his mechanical hands on his sides, Amos fashions a smile on his digital face, and leans towards the team. “So, seeing that you are new adventurers in town, I have to ask...”

He holds a robotic hand close to his face, and emulates a hushed tone. “Does your current quest grant you room for a side quest?”

Amos gauges the mix of interested and amused expressions on the assembled team, and slides a worn satchel from his back. He unbuttons the top flop, and reveals dozens of rolled up papers inside. Scanning the curiosity of the team, he proudly addresses the team. “You see, I’ve been around this part of the zone for a great number of years. I’ve seen many things, and heard of many tales. And I’ve been only so bold to investigate rumors and discover the truths behind them.”

He gracefully draws out one scroll, taps the end lightly, and gazes at the team. “I’ve got a little bit of everything. But, I’m curious if a group like yours would be interested in map to location rumored to contain great treasures. I am only so brave, so while I’ve confirmed these fabled locations to exist... I dare not go into them, for I am only one aging mechanical man.”

Sliding the scroll back into the satchel, he stands up straight, gazes over the team, and laughs. “But! With your might, you can profit off my fright! I charge only the simplest of fees, and will present you with a fine map leading to a location of possible riches.”

Amos awaits an answer from the team. Sotalia stares up and down Amos, snorts, and shakes her head. “Oh, please. I mean, admittedly, that’s a really great pitch there. But, we’re not that gullible.”

Bach scratches the back of his head of longer brown hair, shrugs his shoulders, and awkwardly smiles. “I mean, we’re kind of already looking for something as it is. Don’t think we need to be looking for anything else at the moment. We’ll keep you in mind.”

Gauging the lack of interest, Amos nods respectfully and slides the satchel around towards his back. “Understandable. Just remember, if your schedule clears up, I’ll be happy to provide. Now, is there anything I can possibly assist you with?”

Lifting an intrigued brow, Aristespha smirks curiously and taps her finger tips together. “Would you provide a little knowledge about the local area?”

Amos quirks his head, nods slowly, and displays an entrepreneurial smile. “Of course. I can definitely give you the many highlights of the fair town of Precipice. Planning on staying for a little while?”

Aristespha rocks her head side to side with a small, pleasant smile. “You could say that. We’re a little curious about what this town has to offer, while we prepare for the next step of our quest.”

With an understanding bow, Amos adjusts the collar of his tattered duster, and lifts a visual approximation of a brow. “I can be quite the tour guide for many of the local attractions Precipice has to offer. Despite how remote we are, we try to be the quite the spot of civilization.”

He bows with a flourish and simulates a chuckle. “For local tours, I’m very modest with my fees, and they often pay for themselves with the discounts my name can offer with many of our fine businesses.”

Straightening his posture, he address the group and waves his hand out. “As a sample of the knowledge I can relay, I’m certain you’re familiar with the town center.”

The team nods with a variety of reservation. Amos grips hold the lapel his duster, tilts his head, and pantomimes a circle in the air. “Well, Precipice has a few circles around the town center. There’s a fair number of fine businesses you’d easily miss without a little insider knowledge. Pally’s automotive yard, Precipice guild office, Borderland Ranger office, the community garden and market, the Precipice Scrapyard, -”

Cideeda’s furry ears perk up, and she blinks her emerald green eyes to attention. She raps her claw tips upon the table, cocks her head, and interrupts. “Precipice Scrapyard? Anything special about that?”

Amos swings his gaze over to Cideeda, refocuses his optics, and presents a digital grin. “Ah, it’s a fine place for the technically inclined. An outstanding place to find those hard to locate parts and strange technological mysteries of the past. That yard is rumored to be older than town of Precipice itself, and occasionally they discover technology from as far back as the First Period.”

He leans over the table slightly, cups his hand near his face, and simulates a whisper. “Rumor has it, there’s even enough parts for a few whole battle mechs buried out there. Leftovers from the Red Gear conflicts out west.”

Cideeda’s emerald green eyes widen, and toothy grin forms on her face. “Well, I certainly wouldn’t mind checking that out.”

Amos stands up, and holds his hand up to make a point. Ishmael yells out from the bar and motions with his simple cloth arms. “TIN MAN! Stop trying to swindle the tourists, and tell the poor children the story you promised them. They have to go back to school soon.”

A flit of digital noise flutters on Amos’s facial displays, and he glances over his shoulder. After a moment, he addresses the team with a bow. “My apologies. I need to honor a prior commitment. But, if you are interested, I will happily give you a proper tour of our fair town... including a special trip to The Scrapyard, tomorrow. My schedule is currently open.”

Cideeda glances between the rest of the team, lifts an entrepreneurial brow towards Amos, and smiles. “Well, I’m interested. So, morning around eight?”

Amos flashes a smile on screen, and reaches his hand out towards Cideeda. “Quite acceptable.”

With a firm handshake between Amos and Cideeda, the rest of the team shows growing interest. Amos gives a final nod to the team, and walks over towards the children at the bar. Dretphi cocks her head of platinum braids to the side, and crosses her arms. “This town is interesting.”

Bach glances over, and watches the humanoid man regale a tale to three children, while an animated doll begrudgingly tolerates the show. “Yeah... You can definitely say that.”

Sotalia golden eyes focus upon the doll. She blinks and puzzles at the life like actions of the child’s toy. Sebastian's voice softly emanates from the sword at Aristespha's side. “Yeah, the sword has been sense some odd blips. Just plain odd.”

----

Sitting the middle of a massive circular platform of the ancient chamber, Isaac flips through a packet of notes and searches the lines of text. He pauses upon a page, glances over to an array of papers upon the stone and metal alloy floor, and compares the documents hopefully. Refocusing upon the writing, Isaac continues to read the information closely, and shakes his head in surprise. Lowering the packet down upon the ground, he rubs his eyes, yawns, and gazes around the echoing chamber of technomagical equipment. Easing himself up, he straightens up his back into a long stretch, flexes his shoulders, and winces as he works the stiffness out of his neck. Surveying the huge space of silent and dark magical machines, he slowly walks towards the archway leading to the hallway. Stepping through long passage, he massages the temples of his head, brushes his wispy white hair back, and gradually gains awareness of the world around.

Glancing around the built out camp in the large room of the ruins, he settles his gaze upon Max. He walks up to the small table nearby, drops into a chair, and directs his curiosity towards Max. “I must give credit to a bright student, Blesk Ziebens, for the camera technology. It’s an amazing process he’s come up with that gives far greater clarity for such imagery.”

Adjusting his position upon a makeshift recliner of wood and blankets, Max nods his head slowly and flips to the next picture in the stack. Resting the collection off to the side, he draws in a long breath, and twists his mouth. “This Bach Warwick is a very interesting case. If he has somehow forged some kind of connection that provides him direct access to Elder energy... Then, he has accomplished something that no one has done in over two hundred years.”

An eager smirk appears on Isaac face, and he props his feet upon another nearby chair. “I know. It’s absolutely fascinating! I haven’t been able to really examine it properly, but it indicates whole new possibilities we could have never thought as feasible before.”

A faint frown emerges upon Max’s face, and he eases out a long sigh. “Indeed. All indicates something has possibly changed... And, it is one of most troublesome things I’ve been made aware of in a long time.”

Isaac halts in thought, blinks blankly, and narrows a puzzling stare at Max. “Um... Uh... Could you explain that further?”

Max sits up in the makeshift recliner, stuffs a rolled up blanket behind his lower back, and crosses his arms has he leans back. “Yes. One of the main reasons I’ve been here for so long is simply because I have no idea what to do with what I’ve discovered.”

He gradually turns his head, and levels a serious gaze upon Isaac. “As you’ve seen from my notes, I’ve learned a lot from my studies here. At first, I was happy to gain the knowledge I could from what was left behind. Later, I desired to know what seems to have been purposely kept from me.”

Weighing a heavy frown on his face, he grits his teeth and shakes his head. “In pursuing such, I found something completely unexpected, and it imparted a lot of fucking uncomfortable wisdom upon me. It gave me a great deal of context behind many of the decisions the architects of the prism made.”

Isaac’s gray eyes widen, and he cocks his head in utter fascination. “What did you find?”

Max stares at Isaac, twists his mouth uncertainly, and sighs sadly. “A journal of one of the architects. The one that fled here. It’s mix of historical recounts and personal thoughts. To say the least, it has given me a lot of pause.”

Pulling his head back in shock, Isaac blinks his confusion and awkwardly laughs. “My gods, whatever could shake the magic maverick of the Grand Library?”

Laying his head back upon the back of the makeshift recliner, Max contorts his face uncertainly, and narrows his eyes upon a thought coming to the front of his mind. “Far more understanding than I ever wanted. I’ll leave the details for you to explore, if so wish to understand them. But, I’ll try to summarize.”

He draws in a long breath of air, concentrates on his words, and explains. “The more I’ve learned, the more I’ve come to understand how intricate and complicated magic has become. Even going beyond how intertwined every being with some semblance of will is with the Abstract Prism and the Foundational Constructs... There’s far more going on. The Abstract Prism of legend no longer exists.”

Twisting his head to the side, Isaac blinks blankly, darts his eyes around his mind, and focuses a perplexed stare upon Max. Rolling his eyes at himself, Max groans out his frustration and nods. “Well, more appropriately, the Abstract Prism has long since evolved from its original form. There have been countless fundamental reorganizations, updates, revamps, and optimizations to every aspect of the prism.”

He points across the camp site to the long hallway. “The main reason that access point will no longer work for what it was designed for is because it has nowhere to connect to anymore. The prism shed it’s original construction mounts a long time ago. Not simply deactivated. Completely removed. Even with the knowledge of the architects, we could never reestablish a link.”

Isaac leans back into his chair, rests his arm upon the table top, and drifts his thoughtful, lost gaze within. Max grips the arms of the blanket covered recliner with hands, twists his frustration upon his face, and tempers his tone. “That’s just one example. There’s been whole new schools of magic formed over the years by discoveries of new magical incantations and gestures. Those incantations and gestures didn’t exist for decades after the prism was installed. They're not even derivatives. Somehow they came into existence.”

He narrows stern stare upon Isaac. “Spell processes have gotten simpler. They’re discovering shorthand versions of old spells that work just as reliably. Direct casting is becoming more intuitive than it has been historically. This is well beyond just some optimization routines. There is significantly more going on with the Abstract Prism, and probably has been for years.”

Searching aimlessly around the room, he releases a long sigh and shakes his head. “I don’t know if there’s some kind of proper intelligence behind all of this, or if it’s even something we could even know to recognize. But whatever is happening, it’s adapting the very nature of how magic works for everyone. I keep finding more and more examples of the differences in this place.”

Isaac blinks into a stupor, slumps his shoulder, and idly taps the table top with his finger. After a few seconds, he regains some awareness and pries for more information. “Okay... But, what do you make of Bach and his access to Elder energy?”

Max slowly pivots his head to Isaac, and frowns uncertainly. “I haven’t the slightest fucking clue. All I know is that it shows me how much I don’t know about these processes... these machinations... I’m certain now the Abstract Prism is now as much of a mystery to the architects now as it is to us.”

He huffs out his irritation, pulls himself up off the makeshift recliner, and steps over to a cooler chest. Flipping the lid up, he studies the assortment of capped, brown bottles in the cool, hazy mist, and plucks two out. He pops the bottle caps off with an opener mounted on the wall, walks over next to Issac, and drops a beverage on the tabletop. “This Bach just adds another twist to a very complicated puzzle that just evades me. Was this some discovery the prism left out there? Maybe this was a pure accident and catastrophic mistake that even the architects didn’t anticipate? Maybe the prism wants to see if elder energy could be allowed to some degree? Maybe it’s temporary thing to see if someone will clean up some leftovers of the past?”

Isaac gradually grips the bottle on the table, searches through his thoughts, and ponders out loud with waning certainty. “All those could be feasible explanations. He’s stated he doesn’t quite know how he made the connection. But, he’s been very reserved and careful about his use of such power. And, he’s managed to eliminate two Nightmare Geists with his connection to elder energy. When you put such in this context, it does make it hard to decipher any exact reason.”

Pouring a long swig of the beer, Max gulps down the alcohol, exhales deeply, and shrugs his shoulders in defiance of the circumstances. “Well, I don’t very well fucking know... At this moment, I can’t very well bring myself to get in the way. This is beyond me at this point. And if the Second and Third Cataclysms are teach anyone anything... Mucking with this shit could make us all pay for thousands of years!”

Awkward moments of silence between the two pass on by. Isaac contorts his face introspectively, and plays out his deliberations visibly. Max gazes at Isaac, frowns regretfully, and sighs apologetically. “Oh gods, I am sorry for the outburst. That subject has been a very sore one for me for the past few months. You certainly didn’t deserve to be front row to that rant.”

Isaac presents a weak, understanding smile to Max, and shrugs his shoulders. “It’s okay. It’s not the first time I’ve faced similar moments in my life. It’s not easy figuring out what to do next when you learn uncomfortable truths and face the situation at hand.”

Max smirks sadly with a nod to Isaac. “Yeah. We both have.”

He steps over to a device on a cinder block and plank shelf, taps a power button, and motions towards a crude couch. “Let’s take our minds off this crap for a bit. I got a holoplayer loaded with a bunch of the old comedies, and plenty of beer I don’t need to drink by myself.”

A faint grin appears on Isaac’s face, and he stands up from the chair with beer in hand. “That actually sounds like a good distraction. We’ll continue research tomorrow.”

As the holoplayer fires up and a projection materializes, Max steps over to his makeshift recliner, and eases himself back down. “Fair enough. I actually have some very interesting materials for you to review. Wouldn’t mind your perspective. Maybe you'll see something I can't.”

He picks up, and tosses a small remote to Isaac. “But, for now, pick a movie.”

----

Teams of recording crews move between the outer perimeter of a clearing and settle into different choice angles. Standing in the middle of the grass field under the morning sun, Chad glances around the area, crosses his arms, and sighs out his emerging boredom. Behind him, Trakenthin reads the latest article on an aethernet site quietly. Tassilda brushes back her raven black hair and inspects her nails. Deedri patiently waits and occasionally sneaks a warm glance to Modoran. Stretching his arms out, Modoran maintains his nonchalant facade and cracks brief smiles to Deedri. Nearby in front of Chad, Veevi scans the clearing section closest to the road, rests her hands on her hips, and briefly snarls her upper lip. “How long does it take to get out here?!”

Chad glances his brown eyes over to Veevi, rolls them away, and twists his mouth. Near the outer perimeter of the clearing, Samantha checks her aetherphone, nods, and signals everyone towards a passage. A minute passes, and two small teams of different camera crews rush out into position. Veevi, Chad, Trakenthin, Tassilda, Modoran, and Deedri shift their gazes over. Stepping out from between two large trees down a dirt path, a tall, young evuukian man arrives into the clearing. Tossing back his golden locks, he presents a bright white smile to the crews, poses in his shining suit of light, plated armor, and winks his sparking blue eye to the perceived audience. Chad furrows an uncomfortable brow, grimaces, and squirms under the surge of latent self-awareness.

Moments later, the evuukian dramatically guides his hair against the gentle wind over a very long, fair skinned ear, spots the team, and struts pridefully over. Keeping pace behind him, a few plain dressed assistants haul his pack and caddie his equipment. Stopping in front of Chad, the young evuukian man smiles brightly, extends his gloved hand, and nods slightly. “Odellon Magnus Verital of House Grefallin. Pleasure to make your acquaintance...”

Chad shakes Odellon’s hand firmly, grants a polite, acknowledging bow, and presents a professional tone. “Chad Bosch, Leader of The Flames of the Phoenix team.”

Odellon lifts his brow, smirks smugly, and chuckles. “I have been made aware of your work. I am an emerging fan.”

Presenting a reserved smile, Chad humbly nods to Odellon. “I have seen quite a few of your movies.”

He steps aside, and individually points other members of the team. “Trakenthin, our capable front line. Tassilda, our master of magic. Modoran, the infiltration expert. Mage Deedri, one of the best medical mages around.”

Odellon shakes Trakenthin’s hand firmly, and bows respectfully to Tassilda. He pauses a moment, studies Modoran, and the two settle on short nods. With a smile, he bows to Deedri. Chad motions over and directs Odellon’s towards Veevi. “Last but not least... Veevi Valiant, pop star and our... Wildcard.”

Odellon smiles brightly at Veevi, bows with a dramatic flair in front of her, and gazes at her. “Oh, I’m quite familiar with Miss Valiant’s artistic exploits. And, I’m starting to learn more about her adventuring prowess.”

Veevi straights her posture slowly, grins wide, and flutters her pink pupil eyes at Odellon. “You flatter me too much, Odellon. It’s quite an honor to meet you in person after watching so many movies starring you.”

Perking his brow, Odellon chuckles lightly and winks at Veevi. “Well, if we have time I might regale you with all the tales behind the scenes, if you will be so kind to entertain me.”

A spark of glee travels through Veevi, and she graciously nods. “Of course!”

Odellon pivots to Chad, rests his hands at his sides, and smirks. “Well, my dear leader, I have been seeking a proper adventure and offer my services as another sword to your team for the duration of this quest.”

Maintaining his composure, Chad respectfully nods, gestures towards a map upon a foldout table, and directs Odellon to follow. “I accept. Without further ado, please join us in our briefing of the quest at hand. If you have any immediate questions, please feel free to ask Veevi. Since she is our newest member in training, answers to common questions are probably fresh on her mind.”

Odellon steps forward towards the table with his assistants trailing behind. Soon camera crews follow behind Odellon while Veevi rushes up to his side. Chad walks a slow pace within a blind spot of obvious camera coverage, glances back to Trakenthin, Tassilda, Modoran, and Deedri, and rolls his eyes quickly. The team meets Chad’s gaze with similar brief, dismissive breaks in facades, and group up behind him.

From a secluded vantage point, Gerald lifts a suspicious brow, and grimaces uncertainly. Lowering his camera down, he steps out from his hidden spot, and moves towards the main grouping of crew members. He spots a middle aged man directing a fvalian man and woman recording team, and points over. “Harris! Hold up!”

Harris stops in place, and gazes at Gerald. “What’s up?”

Gerald twists a faint frown on his face and motions towards Chad, Trakenthin, Tassilda, Modoran, and Deedri. “Keep your attention on them. Shadow them, and keep it on the down low. I’m... looking to record some of their honest thoughts on all this.”

Thinking a moment, Harris nods, and cracks a sly grin. “We’ll see what we can do.”

----

Below the noon sun from a partly cloudy sky, Amos leads Aristespha, Bach, Cideeda, Dretphi, and Sotalia down the sidewalk bordering a worn road between sparse rows of small square buildings. He glances back to the team, waves his robotic arm towards an T-intersection, and gestures to the right. “We’re pretty close, down this next right, and we should see it.”

Sotalia quirks her brow, adjusts her sunglasses, and smirks as she surveys the surrounding structures. “What part of town is this?”

Amos’s optics refocus, and he motions an outstretched arm to the area with a smile upon his facial display. “This is where the hardest workers live. Not much for aesthetics, but it’s functional and fair out here. Quite a few like to prowl around the heaps in search of treasure, or scrap to pawn off.”

He shrugs his shoulders, pivots to face ahead, and simulates a chuckle. “Rough business to succeed in, but someone has to do it. And, you never know who might be interested in your finds.”

In a large space between two buildings, groups of people shuffle between different vendor stalls, and the drone of trade conversations fill the air. A small group of rough and ragged zone runners part from the small marketplace. They walk quickly in a direction leading in front of Amos. At the crossing of paths, one of the larger men side steps and shoulder checks Amos with a mean grin on his face. “Watch where you’re going, fucking scrap heap.”

Quickly balancing himself to a stable stance, Amos bows politely with a cheery tone. “My apologies. I’ll be sure to re-calibrate my navigation routines in the near future.”

The crude man snorts derisively, rolls his eyes dismissively, and spits on the ground towards Amos. “Whatever, talking toaster.”

As the rough group departs, Bach blinks his perplexed gaze at Amos and directs a hushed tone. “Hey, you okay? What was their problem?”

Sotalia rests her hand on her hip, lowers her sunglasses, and narrows a golden eyed glare to the rude crew. “Really. It seems like they need their shitty attitudes adjusted.”

Dretphi crosses her arms with a stoic stare maintaining a cautious watch of the ragged team as they leave. Sneering her upper lip, Cideeda pulls her furry ears back, and grumbles out. “It’s in bad taste to interrupt someone when they’re working anyway.”

Amos emulates an appreciative chuckle, and displays a calm smile. “Nothing to worry about. Just a few people who don’t exactly care much for myself and what I do. While I appreciate the concern, let’s continue with the tour. We are so close to our destination anyway.”

As the team reforms and follows Amos, Aristespha quirks an intrigued brow as her gaze wanders from the small market. “Does anyone own the scrap yard in particular? Or does the town lay claim to it?”

Pausing a moment in thought before the right turn, Amos’s displays flicker between different expressions of thought, and he rocks his steel plated head side to side. “That is a good question. Technically, it is supposedly owned. But, the owner passed a long time ago. While Precipice is technically the legal authority of the area, it’s ability to rule and enforce complicated matters such as inheritance and estates with no known heirs is... Severely lacking.”

He shrugs his shoulders dramatically as he steps around down the right path of the intersection. “It’s unofficially public domain at this point, because it’s frankly too much of a pain otherwise.”

Halting his approach, he side steps, waves his arms with a dramatic flair, and presents a grin on his facial display. “Behold! The Scrapyard.”

Down at the end of the short, rough street, a large gateway in the middle of tall stretches of chain link fence frames a scene of unending junk. Beyond the entry, mountainous piles of metal glint in the sun despite their ages of corrosion. Heaps of partially sorted materials lay around mounds of discarded technology. Hills of parts to machinery long forgotten warm in the light. Hints of large contraptions jut out from the many amassed piles.

Aristespha, Bach, Dretphi, and Sotalia gawk in awe at the vast landscape of scrap before them in silence. Amos straightens his stance, and stares ahead. “The place to search when you are seeking a piece of the past. I should know. I have found quite a few needed parts and pieces for my own self. I wouldn’t be half the machine I am today without the bounty of this wondrous scrapyard.”

Blinking back to some awareness, Bach chuckles and directs his voice down at his side. “So, where do we even start in this place?”

Bach waits a few moments, flutters his blue eyes at the lack of a response, and glances down at his side. Noticing the empty space next to him, he puzzles to the rest of the team. “Um, uh... Did anyone see where Cideeda went?”

Aristespha and Dretphi search around the nearby area. Amos pivots in place, tilts his mechanical head to the side, and ponders out loud. “Strange... I normally am very good at detecting movement.”

Sotalia cracks a humored smirk, shakes her head, and walks towards the entry gates. “Gods, I don’t think it was my day to watch her. But, I think I know where she went.”

A long, furry tail wags eagerly up into view upon the top of a junk mound near the main gate.

-100-

Mera pushes through the front glass door of Fval Spice, retrieves a neat bundle of papers from her jeans pocket, and steps up to the cashier’s counter. As she sorts through the orders, she arranges tickets and money on the counter top. “I’m back!”

In between the crackle of cooking fires and clanks of utensils, Noyando’s voice calls out from the back. “Good! One moment.”

Giving a final inspection, Mera matches up money and signed charge receipts with satisfaction. Noyando slips out from the back of the kitchen, stiffly rolls his shoulders, and smiles at Mera. “All the deliveries go well?”

With a confident smirk, Mera glances down at the arrangement. “All delivered on time, and with no problems I could tell.”

Deftly slipping his claw tips under the paid bills, Noyando methodically stacks up the paperwork, and visually tallies the money. He separates the currency from the receipts, pauses in quick calculations, and parts a few larger bills away from the stack. Handing the cash over to Mera, he appreciatively grins and opens a register drawer under the counter. “Very good. Here’s your pay for the day so far.”

With a simple nod, Mera swiftly stows the cash into her pocket and smiles. “Thank you.”

Noyando glances back into the kitchen briefly, notices the time on a wall clock, and returns his attention to Mera. “What would you like to eat? Modeena is cooking the next orders. I can cook your lunch.”

Mera perks up, and her crimson eyes search her mind briefly. She cracks an eager smirk and chuckles lightly. “I think I’ll try the spicy beef salad. I kept on smelling that the whole drive. So...”

With a smile, Noyando nods, and rushes off into the kitchen. “Good. I will make a big batch for everyone. Have lunch together before any more orders come in.”

Wandering her gaze around the few regulars enjoying their meals at usual tables, she settles her focus upon the three pairs of furry black ears of the fvalian girls of descending ages. She steps over, stands observantly over the sisters, and watches their drawings progress. Mera smiles happily and leans over slightly. “You are doing great, Katelli. You are getting the hang of perspectives.”

She shifts her attention to the younger fvalian girl, and studies the blending of color pencil marks on the page. “If you like smooth blends of color Natashalli, you should try water colors. You can mix and guide the color directly on the page.”

As Mera rotates her head, the youngest girl thrusts her page of rough art up. With a smile showing a new tooth growing in, the fvalian girl perks up her furry black ears and giggles. “I’m getting better!”

Blinking blankly at the sudden piece of paper in her face, Mera dons an amused smile, gazes over the chaotic sprawl of crude caricatures with familiar sets of major features, and nods. “Yes you are, Jesselli. Keep it up and fill some more details.”

As the Jesselli lays the page back on the table surface and reaches out her painted claw tipped fingers to the central pool of supplies, Mera smiles with a quiet chuckle. Her gaze grows more distant, and her attentions shifts inwards. Minutes pass and she idly continues observing the girls draw. Her crimson eyes shift between emerging thoughts, and she clears her long gray hair from the ivory face. From the kitchen archway, Noyando steps out with a large plate with a mix of vegetables and beef slices covered in a spicy sauce upon a bed of lettuce. He looks around briefly, places the platter in the middle of the larger table in the front area, and glances over to the children. “Time to eat. Sit down.”

A furry brown eared fvalian woman arrives out from the back, navigates around chairs and kids with a huge bowl of rice, and carries a stack of smaller plates in her other hand. She lays out six places at the table, and steps back towards the kitchen. Pausing next to Mera, she pantomimes filling a glass, and lifts a curious brow. “What drink do you want?”

Mera snaps back to awareness, sorts through her desires, and smiles awkwardly. “Oh, um... Jasmine tea? If that’s okay?”

The fvalian woman nods and continues to the back area. “Good. That’s what I wanted, too. I’ll use my good tea, then.”

Blinking out her surprise, Mera bows slightly with an appreciative tone. “Thank you, Modeena. That sounds wonderful.”

She watches Noyando herd the three girls over to the table with food, and places napkin wrapped silverware at each setting. When Noyando steps away, she approaches with hints of nervousness. “Noyando? Can I ask you a question?”

Noyando flicks his gray tipped, black furry ears, and tilts his head to the side. “Of course.”

Fighting the twist of her mouth, Mera eases out a sigh and manages a hopeful, awkward smirk. “Would it be okay if I borrowed the scooter early in the morning to run a personal errand? There’s this one specialty grocery store north of town I’d like to go to. It has some evuukian specific products that I can’t get around here... since I can only walk.”

With a chuckle, Noyando nods his head and smiles. “I think that would be fine. If you want, I can drive you there. I think Modeena has wanted to go there.”

Mera’s crimson eyes search around with hints of nervousness, and she briefly grits her teeth. “I appreciate the offer, but I don’t want to inconvenience you. You and Modeena have enough to deal with the restaurant and your children. I should handle this myself.”

With a glint of inspiration in her eyes, she smiles with a shrug. “And, it might help me learn the roads around here better.”

Lifting an intrigued brow, Noyando agrees with an understanding smile. “Good point. Very good point. Just be sure to connect it to the charger when you get back. Do not want you to run out of power on a delivery.”

After Mera bows appreciatively, Modeena walks by with a tea pot leaving a faint steam trail behind her, and glances over. “When you go, be sure to tell me if it’s any good.”

Mera nods with a smile. “I will.”

Noyando and Modeena settle into chairs, corral the children, and invite Mera to sit down with them.

----

Dust speckled air drifts sluggishly through the wide halls, and beams of light slip through the narrow gaps in the weathered ceiling above. An outside gust filters through and pushes fresh air into the stagnant corridor. The faint hints of leaves rustling seeps into the stale silence filling the space between stone work floors and walls. Creaks of old piping echo with the slightest pressures upon the old structure. Chad walks slowly next to Odellon and a combined mass of crew and teams swell through the hallway. “Now, it’s usually good at intersections to hold position just short of the crossing. It keeps you from revealing yourself and gives you a chance to let the sneakier people to check ahead.”

Odellon tosses back his golden hair, straightens his posture, and glances over to Chad. “Being very cautious I see? I thought this was just some dusty ruin.”

Twisting his mouth, Chad sighs with a smirk and shrugs his shoulders. “A little too cautious is never bad. Old, quiet ruins attract a lot of different creatures. Some are easier to deal with when they don’t know you’re around.”

Nodding slowly as he processes the information, Odellon hums dramatically, spots a camera aimed his direction with his sparking blue eyes, and dons a bright white smile. “Yes. You are right. This could very well be a lair for some hideous beasts.”

He grins to the unseen audience, grips the handle of his blade, and pulls it slowly out of the scabbard. “Best to keep my Stalwart Sword drawn and ready.”

Chad furrows his brow, quells a cringe, and chuckles lightly. “Maybe? We haven’t found any signs of activity yet, but if it makes you feel better.”

Lifting his hand to hide his mouth, he whispers to Odellon. “It might wear on you constantly carrying it around like that.”

Odellon nods in agreement and smirks as he motions his head behind him. “It very well could, but that’s why I have my squires to aid me.”

Darting his gaze awkwardly around, Chad eventually blinks to a halfhearted acknowledgment. He points down the long corridor, and smiles to Odellon. “If you want, you could take lead with Veevi for a little bit. It would be good experience to learn how to assess these situations for yourself.”

With a bold grin, Odellon steps forth in front of the groups, points his blade forward, and commands. “Indeed. Onward everyone, but proceed with care... Danger may lurk ahead.”

As Odellon leads on with Veevi at his side, Chad slows his pace, and gradually falls back in middle of Tassilda, Trakenthin, and Deedri. He eyes the rest of the team, waits a few moments as recording attention shifts to the two new leaders, and slips muffled sigh. Tassilda smirks, narrows her light blue on black eyes, and snickers quietly. “Didn’t like that look in the mirror?”

Chad rolls his brown eyes, groans softly, and shakes his head. “A bit more painful than I wanted it to be.”

Odellon and Veevi reach four way intersection of the hallways. With a quick lift of his free hand, Odellon signals a stop. He glances down at his side, presents a bright smile to Veevi, and inquires. “Veevi, how are you at sneaking around?”

Veevi blinks her pink pupil eyes, draws a sly grin around her tan face, and tosses back her long pink hair. “I think I’m exceptional.”

With a nod, Odellon motions to the right hallway, and quietly commands. “Could you explore that corridor for a number of meters, and make sure nothing is lying in wait?”

Glancing down the dark, eerie hall, Veevi summons up her courage, grins sharply, and struts away with her body language directed specifically at Odellon. “Of course. I’ll be back.”

Trakenthin rolls his eyes, slowly shakes his head dismissively, and leans towards Chad. “Should we stop them?”

Chad scratches his chin, crosses his arms, and ponders softly. “Maybe. I don’t think there’s anything in here, but I’m still waiting to for Modoran to return...”

From the shadowy edges of illumination, Modoran nonchalantly leans away from the brickwork wall, calmly steps on over to the team, and shrugs his shoulders. “I’ve found nothing so far. Layers upon layers of undisturbed dust and untouched debris. It’s a bit creepy with the wind blowing through the ceiling cracks... But, that’s it.”

Tassilda brushes back her long raven black hair, cracks a plotting smirk on her gray, patterned skin, and surveys the lack of immediate camera attention from the main horde. “So... Anyone up to bump up the drama a bit? Stir up their fears, raise the tension, and frighten them?”

Rolling her auburn eyes, Deedri’s furry, tufted ears droop down, and she tugs at the corner of her mouth dismissively. “I don’t think we need to do anything. They seem just fine themselves. I’m curious how far they’re willing to go with the farce.”

Chad snorts, quirks his brow, and sighs with a smirk. “Yeah. Honestly, it’s been nice letting those two dork around and keep the cameras off us.”

Tassilda rolls her eyes, crosses her arms, and shakes her head. “True. And honestly, it wouldn’t be much of a challenge. Tossing a pebble down the hall would probably spook them enough.”

From the shadows of the right intersection branch, Veevi slips back into view, stands with her sharp nailed hands on her hips, and smiles with a slow wag of her tail. “All clear down there. Do you want me to check the left side now?”

Odellon nods, extends his arm in the direction, and bows slightly. “Please do.”

Veevi struts with a sway to her steps, walks across the front of Odellon, and slips her tail between his legs in passing. She flashes a sneaky, devious grin. Blinking out his surprise, Odellon observes Veevi moving into the darkness with a sly tint to his bright white smile.

Chad, Tassilda, Trakenthin, Deedri, and Modoran exchange a mix of ill-humored expressions, and contain their amusement. Trakenthin twists his mouth, snorts, and rolls his hazel eyes. “This requires no effort on our part. Let this happen on its own.”

With a nod, Chad steps forward in the lead of his team. “Yeah. Let them have the spotlight and we’ll just enjoy the show... for once.”

As the squad regroups, a small recording team focuses their attention from hiding. The fvalian man aims a camera with a telephoto lens, the fvalian woman trains a microphone with a parabolic dish on the team, and an older man coordinates the other two.

----

Inside the main room of the Precipice Inn & Tavern, Aristespha, Bach, Cideeda, Dretphi, and Sotalia sit around a larger table upon mismatching chairs. Cideeda’s emerald green eyes narrow upon a metal box next to her plate of food, and she flicks her furry ears. Placing her fork down upon the dish, she combs her claws tips through her short, multi-colored hair, and twists her upper lip into a snarl of her canines. With a grumble, she grips her clawed fingers around the metal box, and scratches carefully around the seams between heavy outer plates. Blinking out of a daydream, Bach shifts his blue eyes over and watches Cideeda struggle to pry part of the device open. He cocks his head to the side, and lifts a curious brow. “What are you trying to break open?”

Cideeda strains her arms for a few more moments, and huffs as she relaxes. Resting the metal down on the table, she picks up her fork, sweeps up a bit of her salad, and sighs with a smirk. “I think it’s an old Vukasin IFF module.”

She rolls her eyes at herself, and smiles with a little embarrassment. “Well, at least that’s what it looks like to me from the miniatures I’ve seen and the model book specs I’ve read. It has the right logos at least.”

Bach leans his gaze over, and studies the blue geometric wolf logo embossed on the device. “Makes sense, I guess. You think it still works?”

Cideeda swallows a bite of food, raps her claw tips upon the chassis, and ponders out loud. “Maybe? I’m trying to get an access panel open, but they damn well made sure every security measure was put into this thing to lock itself up tight.”

She pulls a sly, toothy grin on her light brown face, and winks at Bach. “Might have to draft you to see if you can disengage the locks.”

Contorting his face uncertainly, Bach briefly grits his teeth, and shrugs his shoulders apprehensively. “I don’t know... I could very well break it. Hate to ruin it before you get chance to check if it works.”

Rolling her eyes nonchalantly, Cideeda waves off Bach’s concerns and rocks the device on its edge on the tabletop. “Ah, I’d need a lot more parts and pieces to make it work properly. I’d just want to see if it draws enough power to indicate it was trying to boot up.”

Bach nods, squints as he studies the exterior markings, and puzzles. “How old do you think it is?”

Cideeda rests the component down, pats it, and stretches her arms out. “I think it’s from the Red Gear conflicts. Has all the right numbers and design features.”

Tilting his head to the side, Bach guides the white streak out of his face, and brushes back wild longer brown hairs. “Certainly gives some credit to the rumor that some old mechs are buried in that junkyard.”

With a smile Cideeda shrugs her shoulders as she settles back into her chair with a wag of her long, furry tail. “Yes, but it’d take forever to find and dig up just one.”

Dretphi leans over into the conversation with a delighted smile. “I am happy you found parts for the minigun.”

An eager grin grows upon Cideeda’s face, and she flit her eyebrows up. “With a few modifications and changing out the ammo type used, I think we could make something nice. Might be only useful for suppression and harassment fire. But, that’s sometimes enough.”

Walking away from a small group of adventurers, Amos strolls between the tables, and navigates himself over to larger table. With a slight bow, he stands up straight and arranges the lapels of his duster. “I hope you all enjoyed the grand tour yesterday. Certainly seems like you found far more treasures than junk.”

Sotalia focuses her golden eyed stare at Amos, curls a smirk, and chuckles her amusement. “Well, you found anyone else to pawn your maps off to today?”

Amos laughs with synthesized cadence, refocuses his optics, and charts a grin upon his facial displays. “Well, I may not have sold one exactly. But... I did a little community service by providing the children with an activity.”

He leans down towards the table, glances around briefly, and emits a whispering tone. “I hid some candy around the school and playground, and drew out a treasure map for them. Keeps them from wandering off into any real danger. And a little exercise and wonder can’t hurt.”

After some humored expressions around table, Aristespha’s attention briefly switches inside her mind as she rest her hand on the hilt of the sword at her side. She readies a thought, and focuses her inquisitive gaze upon Amos. “Out of curiosity, how lucrative is the map business around here?”

Amos straightens up his posture, crosses his arms thoughtfully, and ponders out loud. “It depends really. It depends on the groups of people in town at the time. New adventurers and other groups between jobs are usually interested in my common tier of maps. Places they can check out in a day and occasionally come back with something nice.”

He mimics a growing smile on his displays with a tilt of his robotic head. “Rookie zone runners are great. They don’t quite know where are the best spots for finding anomaly artifacts are yet, so they’re usually happy to pay a little to get that early edge. A little payment now for a steady payday for the future.”

Twirling her fork with a piece of meat at the end, Sotalia points towards Amos, tosses back her fiery orange, wavy hair, and smirks. “So, the more gullible the better, right? That’s your angle.”

Amos chuckles, shakes his head, and rolls the lenses of his optics. “I almost wish. Unfortunately, the truly gullible ones latch onto the latest rumor going around and head off into the worst parts deep in the zone... Sometimes never to be heard from again. My customers come back. Maybe empty handed, but they still come back.”

Dretphi’s steely gray eyes sort between a few ideas emerging in the front her mind, and she stares curiously at Amos. “Do you have competition? For maps?”

Resting his mechanical hands on his steel plated sides, Amos nods slowly and emulates a sigh. “In a way I do. It’s mostly the rougher zone runners that don’t like their supposed secrets being spilled.”

He leans down near the table and address the team with a defiant grin. “I hate to break it to them, but I’ve known about their secret spots well before many of their parents were out of diapers. So, I believe I’m in my right to sell off whatever I know. I charted it well before they were ever here. If I know, it certainly isn’t a secret.”

Stepping through her patrol of customers at the tables, Aggie arrives at the larger table and gazes over the assembled team. “Just wanted to see if you all needed anything else before while I’m up and wandering.”

Aristespha, Bach, Cideeda, Dretphi, and Sotalia check their food and drinks, and relay their satisfaction so far. Aristespha cocks her head of long silvery blue hair, and inquires. “Any updates on Mavian’s arrival time?”

Aggie presents a hopeful smile to the group, and nods. “Talked to him briefly while the radio signal got through. He should be back by tomorrow night. He got held up waiting for an anomaly along his shortcut to town to calm down before he tried to pass through it. But, he said that’s the last rough patch, then it’s straight here.”

Faint dissatisfaction washes over the team. Sotalia glances around, cracks a smirk on her face, and combs her long, black nails through her hair as she relaxes in her chair. “Well, I say we could stand a round of proper drinks. No sense in not relaxing while we can.”

After a few moments of silent consideration leading to unspoken agreement, Aggie writes down orders from each member of the team at the table.

----

A hint of a very early morning light radiates down upon the front yard of the ranch style house. Traces of morning dew condense and slip off the tall blades of grass, and small bits of debris evenly coat the driveway top leading up to the garage. A few advertisement fliers flutter in the weak breeze rolling down the two lane highway. With a faint whine, an electric scooter zips a hard right turn into the driveway, rolls quickly down the path, and slows to a stop next to the garage door. Mera kills the lights, and swiftly clicks off the power. She slides off the vehicle, presses herself against the garage door, and slowly removes her helmet. Glancing her crimson eyes around, she angles her head down to either side of the house, and waits. Seconds of still ambient morning sounds out into the vicinity, and she eases a tense breath out. Slinking down the front path, she cautiously approaches the front door. Inspecting the frame, she narrows a studious gaze at the door jamb and analyzes the door knob. Grasping onto a hand rail, she leans herself over, grips a window sill, and peers inside through the divide between frame and window blinds inside. Moments later, she settles back onto to front steps, and inspects the even coating of dirt and pollen upon the doormat.

She ducks down low, and creeps around the corner of the house. Keeping close to the brick walls, she halts under a window, surveys the area, and hops up. Carefully peering inside, she peeks through the gaps of the partially closed blinds, and eases her ivory ear close. With hints of satisfaction, she drops back down and rushes around the corner. Softly stepping up to the back sliding glass door, she angles her careful stare through the visible gaps and inspects the room inside. She places her ear against the glass, and waits. Her mind sorts through her senses, and she eases out a tense breath. Glancing down upon the patio, she slowly scans the undisturbed leaves and dead grass flakes coating the area. Her inspection shifts to the handle of the sliding glass door, and she narrows her investigative gaze upon the equally even coating of dirt, grime, and pollen upon handle and frame.

With a flicker of crimson glow in her eyes, she studies the entirety of the door. Summoning up her courage against the hesitance upon her face, she quietly and precisely gestures out a series of incantations, and guides flows of prismatic energy into the door lock. With careful motions of her hands, tension upon the cylinder gives away to soft tapping of metal pins inside. After a sudden click, the lock rolls smoothly and the latch disengages. Glancing around, Mera grips the handle, and pries the door open. The sliding frame abruptly halts after a few centimeters, and Mera freezes in fright. Her eyes dart around and her ears faintly twitch. Her attention snaps to a wooden plank resting in the door track on the other side of the glass. Rolling her eyes at herself, she slowly shakes her head, and recollects herself. Flowing new threads of magic within a different series of gestures and incantations, she guides the energy through the crevices and thin gaps of the lower door frame. Seconds later, the wooden plank lifts up quietly, shifts out of the way, and lands softly on the floor. With a search of the area, Mera grabs the handle, eases the door open, and slips inside.

Mera slowly seals the glass door behind her, stands still, and observes the room. An ambient drone of the wall air conditioner joins the idle quiet inside the living area of the ranch style house. Studying the layout of the room, Mera glances at the hallway archway, kitchen area, and corridor leading to the front door. She softly steps in front of the coffee table, moves by the dining table, and passes by the fridge towards the garage door. Entering into the space, her glowing crimson eyes survey the contents, and her stare settles upon a large box off to the side. She kneels down next to the container, reaches inside, and inspects the assortment of golem parts and crystals. Her stare grows distant, and she drops her head with a sad sigh. Easing the components back into the box, she departs the garage and secures the door shut.

Leaning through the archway, Mera peers down either end of the hallway, and eyes each door with her glowing crimson eyes. With careful steps upon the wooden floor, she creeps to the door at the end of the hallway, listens for a moment, and opens it. Peeking inside, she quickly scans the plain, simple room, and dismissively closes the door. Passing by the bathroom, she cautiously enters the next room. Passing her illuminated sight across the room, she pauses at the old under armor suit and collection of battered plates, and quirks her brow at the stuffed dire boar toy on a shelf over the bed.

Leaving the room, she walks over to the next door, and peers inside. Her investigating stare slowly wanders between a stack of comic books, technological devices in different states of assembly, and a table covered in miniatures and painting supplies. Pulling the door shut, she eyes door at the end of the hallway, and passes by an open office door and another closed bedroom door. She slows her approach when gets close, focuses her glowing eyes, and carefully opens the door. Inside, she quickly pans her stare across the room, and snaps her attention to a number of items upon a table. After a few moments, hints of relief emerge on her face. She steps into the room, navigates around the boxes of medical supplies, and studies the different magical projects upon the table top. Her searching gaze halts around the floor near the bed. She eases herself down, finds a wooden box, and pulls it out. Opening the lid, she finds a collection of vials filled with various liquids, and closely examines them. Minutes later, she shakes her head, closes the box, and slides it back where she found it.

Mera sighs, steps away from the end of the hallway, and snaps her attention at the last unopened door. As her stare remains upon the doorway, she cocks her head to the side, blinks in surprise, and mumbles to herself in evuukian. Carefully turning the knob, she pushes the door open. The crimson glow in Mera’s eyes brighten as surprise overtakes her face. She wanders into the room, and drifts her aimless gaze upon the bountiful collection of magic trinkets and items littering the bedroom. Mera gradually steps around the perimeter of the room, and pauses to inspect strange artifacts upon a table top or shelf. She narrows her inquisitive gaze upon items in special glass containers. Her curiosity leads her to a table with a list of names on a pad of paper on one side, and arranged trinkets on the other. Mera halts at a compact chest of thin drawers. She kneels down, grabs the handles, and pulls the frame out. Her eyes flit wide at the expanded space within the frame and the ready to ship packages inside with matching names from the list.

As Mera proceeds to search through the space frames, trickles of doubt trickle into her expression. Pushing the last frame back into place, she breathes out a long, heavy sigh, and mumbles to herself. With surges of guilt and doubt tainting her tone, she buries her shaking head face first into her hands. Slowly combing her fingers through her long gray hair, she grits her teeth and aimlessly stares around the room. Minutes of self contemplation later, she pinches the bridge of her nose, nods to herself, and summons up her resolve. As she stands up her eyes open. She halts, and snaps her focus to the underside of the bed. The illumination in Mera’s eyes brightens and her pupils widen. She kneels down next to the bed, and pauses in place. Her mouth twists with interest. She reaches her hand out to a finely crafted wooden box, and stops. Meredosia’s eyes flit wide with recognition and desire.

Gripping the container tightly, she drags it out and examines it. With a series of complicated gestures and incantations, she forces a surge of flow at the box, and magical energy upon the box wavers. With a few sputtering crackles, the enchantment upon the finely crafted wooden box dissipates in a faint puff of miasma. Meredosia quickly flips open the lid. She cautiously brushes aside a coil of magical cable near a neatly folded blue and green woven garment resembling a harness. Moving a jar of golden shards, she shifts over a golden disc and translucent green plate. She blinks her confusion at the stabilized energy spoon, lifts her brow at the practice wand, and halts her gaze upon a folded cleaning cloth. Mera’s hand trembles above the wrapped bundle, and she uneasily grits her teeth. Steeling herself, a spark of determination ignites on her face, and she swiftly plucks the rag out of the chest.

Unwrapping the cloth, Mera stares at the small, blue tinted crystal with a faint glow. Licking her lips, she draws in a breath through her teeth, holds her other hand over the mineral, and concentrates. Seconds later, a thin, tiny wisp of white energy drifts up into the palm of her hand. Meredosia moans out her relief, rocks her head back, and smiles.

Eagerly stashing away the crystal in her pocket, she closes up the wooden box, slides it back under the bed, and leaves the room with a close of the door. Quickly, she navigates through the living area, and slips out through the back sliding glass door. With a similar series of incantations, she locks the doors and levitates the wooden plank back in the track. Slinking around the house, she mounts the electric scooter, turns it on, and speeds down the driveway. She rides for minutes down the two lane highway, and eventually finds a wide shoulder to stop at.

Mera feels her heart beating in her chest, eases her pants to calm breaths, and regains her composure. She stares up the brighter early morning skies, flutters her gaze to the clouds above, and sighs with smile. Chuckling out surges of nerves, she retrieves her aetherphone from her pocket, taps through menus to map, and studies a marked location. Noticing the time and checking the opening times for a selected specialty grocery store, she puts her phone into a holder, puts on her helmet, and zips off with a sated smile.

----

A drone activity fills the air in the high ceiling bar. People play on a few arcade machines in a corner, televisions display different programming, and the glow from beverage advertising merges with warm overhead lighting. Sitting at a table, Nash grips his glass of foamy amber and drinks a long swig. He wipes his mouth, sighs, and leans into the back of the sturdy wooden chair. “Nothing like burger day. Gods, I needed it after these last few weeks.”

Harvos shakes his head of short, bright brown hair, pours back his glass of golden liquid, and groans. “I know. The start of the semester is bad enough. But all these governments digging around all our records with this investigation has just made it miserable.”

Nash plucks a fried potato wedge off his plate, takes a bite of out it, and rolls his pale blue eyes. “No fuckin’ shit. I thought my hemorrhoids were real pains in the ass, but these fuckers... Holy hell!”

Gripping his burger, Harvos lifts the hefty sandwich off his plate and sinks his teeth in. He drifts off in his mind and enjoys the bites of the meal in moments of bliss. Blinking his bright brown on black eyes, he sighs and twist his mouth. “It’s made getting any proper information for our investigation gods damned difficult.”

Gritting his teeth briefly, Nash groans with a trailing grumble, and contorts the irritation into his expression. “Yeah... So, I mean... It’s not like we have that much to go on at the moment. Isaac busted in there, grabbed something, and left. We don’t know how he knew, what he got, or where he’s planning to go.”

Harvos cautiously rocks his head from shoulder to shoulder, glancing around for clearance for his tall horns. “Admittedly, I don’t believe where he went is really going to grant us anything. I am really curious as to what he got. That is the principle concern here.”

Nash lifts up his glass of beer, and nods in agreement. “Indeed.”

His gaze works around Harvos, and Nash narrows his eyes to someone walking around. A woman with orange streaked, ruby hair wanders through the crowded bar, searches for an open spot to sit down, and makes eye contact with Nash. With an amused grin, Nash lifts up his drink, slides a chair out at the table with his foot, and calls over the surrounding din. “Come on over, Vetra! Don’t worry, we’ve long since accepted you bite.”

Vetra rests her sharp, dark nailed hands at her hips, grits her sharp teeth with hesitance, and flicks her pointed ears. She shakes her head, walks over quickly to the chair, and rolls her bright orange eyes. “Why am I not surprised?”

Nash pours back his beer, motions to the remnants of a burger on his plate, and shrugs. “Burger day. I mean...”

He pats his large stomach and snorts. “I’m a creature of habit.”

With a wave of his hand, he directs Vetra to the seat. “Have a seat. Enjoy a meal.”

Vetra twists a smirk on her face, sits down, and rests her arms at the table. “Well... Thank you. I guess a lot of people needed burger day this week.”

Harvos nods with a tight smile and sighs. “Yes. Indeed. These investigations have been awful.”

Gritting her teeth, Vetra rubs the temple of her patterned face, and groans. “I know. I’ve only caught some of it, but looks like they’ve been really tearing through your departments.”

She narrows an inquisitive gaze between Nash and Harvos, and lowers her voice. “Have you two found out anything more about... Isaac?”

Nash grumbles and sips his beer. Harvos frowns slightly and shrugs his shoulders. “It’s ground to a standstill. We really just don’t have much to go on. Kind of stuck until the investigators stop watching over everything.”

Vetra raps her nails on the tabletop, searches her mind, and lifts an intrigued brow. “Okay... Well... I mean... What are the major names involved in what you’ve found out so far?”

Harvos grimaces, and contorts his light gray face. “Isaac. And... Maybe Dr. Dawkins? That’s all we have really.”

Rolling his eyes dismissively, Nash sighs and shakes his head. “The only other major name remotely related is Dr. Malkav, since Isaac searched for his work on the system.”

Vetra’s eyes flit wide, and she slowly tilts her head to side. She searches quickly through her mind, and narrows her stare inwards. Twisting her mouth, she bites her lip and perks her pointy ears. “That name...”

Harvos and Nash exchange glances and look to Vetra. Harvos inquires with an encouraging tone. “Yes? You got anything?”

Drawing in a long breath, Vetra uncertainly explains. “I don’t know. If I’m remembering this right, one of the old facilities guys has told me a number of stories about someone named Malkav. He used to run into him all the time at night.”

Her head rocks to the side, and she squints her eyes as she scrutinizes the memory. “He used to do his work at night. But... He mentioned... Seeing him in the computer science building. That prompted him to do a whole sweep of the building checking for anything out of place.”

Nash pulls his head back, blinks his confusion, and pries for more. “Why would he search the building for something out of place?”

Vetra shrugs her shoulders, and quirks her brow. “Uh, because it seems that Malkav HATED the previous head of the computer science department and swore to never step foot in that building.”

Nash and Harvos blink blankly, and ponder quietly. As the din of the surrounding bar radiates around them, Nash sits upright in his seat and narrows his gaze to Harvos. “Hey... Um... How well did Dr. Dawkins know Dr. Malkav?”

Harvos lifts his head up, eyes Nash, and awkwardly tugs at the corner of his mouth. “I think they were close colleagues...”

Glancing between the shift in mood between Harvos and Nash, Vetra grimaces uneasily. “So, what would connect Isaac to them?”

Nash’s eyes widen in abject realization. “Orth Ridge.”

Harvos grits his teeth and slips out. “Shit... Dawkins... Oh, fuck...”

----

Sitting at the crude table, Isaac lifts his head up from closely examining a collection of documents and images. Blinking one gray eye at a time, he winces as he wanders his gaze around and rubs his eyes. He shakes his head and brushes his white wispy hair back, and exhales long. Thinking in his own head for a few moments, he trains his attention on Max, sitting in his makeshift recliner. “Okay... There’s something I keep observing when reading your notes and comparing it to the original documents.”

Max flutters his eyes open, yawns wide, and stretches his shoulders back. “And what would that be?”

Isaac scratches the temple of his head, adjusts the blue scarf around his neck, and ponders out loud. “The architect certainly made it difficult to gauge the proper context from what they omitted on purpose and by their own assumed knowledge. But, there’s a reference to an aether access point... And, it just doesn’t seem like it is in reference to one of the original twelve construction access points for the prism.”

Narrowing his scrutinizing stare upon Max, Isaac inquires with hints of curiosity and faint suspicion. “Have you encountered such an observation yourself?”

Max lifts a brow at Isaac, maintains a neutral, cool expression, and searches his mind with his blue eyes. Twisting his mouth into a grimace, he contemplates out loud, and motions down the hallway. “Yes. I had originally thought that maybe the inference was to the old access point we have down the hallway. But, since that thing has been well beyond ever working again... I abandoned that theory. And given how everything was phrased, I ruled out any of the original twelve.”

Isaac furrows his brow, cocks his head to the side, and watches Max carefully. “So, do you believe there’s a thirteenth access point to the abstract prism? Similar a backdoor or backup connection?”

Pressing the finger tips of his hands together, he slowly nods. “That’s most logical theory I’ve got so far.”

A smile widens on Isaac’s face. “It makes sense. Something like the prism, they would have had to have such just in case something went wrong.”

Max points to Isaac and sighs his hesitation. “Now don’t you fucking get your hopes up. I don’t have any exact details about what it is, where it is, or even if the thing is anything more than an ancient piece of shit. I’ve just been able to draw out inferences at best from my recent studies, and do some general extrapolations and cross-referencing.”

He rolls his eyes and grits his teeth. “To be damned honest, the thing may be nothing more than a shitty lawn ornament at this point. Given what has happened with the original twelve and the prism, we have to be careful not to assume too much.”

Isaac eagerly grins, gazes upon Max with wide gray eyes, and sits up in his seat at the table. “But, the potential is still there! Just from what I can conclude so far, it doesn’t seem to be located in the zone. But, I get the feeling it’s at least in the greater region. The little clues are there.”

Max frowns slightly and sighs as he shakes his head. “Again, I have to warn you about delving into things we don’t fully understand.”

Furrowing his brow, he tilts his head of white hair to the side and ponders out. “Honestly, if one found it... What would one even do with it? I’ve been trying figure THAT out. There’s easier methods for getting elder energy. So, what would be the end goal of accessing this connection to the prism?”

A calm wave washes over Isaac, and he focuses his full attention upon Max. Carefully reading the contemplative and genuine curiosity on Max’s face, Isaac slowly nods, draws in a long breath, and explains. “It wouldn’t be about just getting elder energy for yourself. But... finding a way to open the channels for elder energy for yourself... and others...”

Sorting through his thoughts, he feels the fabric of the blue scarf around his neck, and continues. “While we have done well as a world to operate within the confines of prismatic energy granted to us by the prism... We still are suffering from the mistakes of the past. We are still paying debts our ancestors left us the bill for. But, we could remedy so much with proper access to elder magic again.”

He tightly grips the scarf, sniffs, and closes his eyes tightly. “We could finally clean up hazards before they have a chance to harm anyone else.”

With a crack of a smile, his tone brightens gradually. “As a people we have grown wiser in our understanding of magic. There are those that are showing proper wisdom with magic. And, if we could grant access to elder energy to those very people... The great things that could be achieved.”

A wild grin appears on Noxian’s face, and he chuckles hopefully. “We already have an example that such can be achieved.”

Max blinks his eyes, studies the expressions of the man at the table, and sighs deeply with a stern tone. “Isaac... I understand where you are coming from. But, lest you let fucking ambition blind you to the collection of dumbasses we call humanity... Many of the worst events have happened because people with access to great power cocked things up. Well meaning, but short-sighted. Just imagine what the opposite could manage to do.”

Isaac blinks back to awareness, crosses his arms, and grits his teeth. “Yes, I know. But... We both know that access to elder energy at the right time could have prevented... so much... loss...”

Maintaining a firm upper lip, Max nods once, focuses his cool stare upon Isaac, and calmly rebuts. “Yes... I agree. But... Remember... Elder energy also set THAT in motion long ago.”

A long, tense silence loom overs and weighs down the mood. Minutes pass by as both men introspect quietly. Stirring from his makeshift recliner, Max sighs, stands up, and walks over to a crate in the corner. Lifting the lid, he leans over and rummages through bundles of papers. Sneaking a glance over his shoulder at Isaac, Max separates a thin bundle of documents from the mass within the box. He pulls up a hidden metal loop, quietly lifts the false bottom, and slips the folio of papers into a secret compartment. After securing the fake platform inside the crate, he lifts up the remaining papers, pivots around, and steps up to the table next to Isaac.

With a soft thud, Max plops the stack of assorted documents upon the table. Isaac startles back to reality, and puzzles at the mound of notes before him. Max draws in a long breath and weighs his voice heavy with concern. “These are my recent notes. They are scattered as hell, but maybe it’ll give you more insight on the thirteenth access point. I just... Well...”

He sighs long and gazes into Isaac’s eyes. “Please pay attention to the terrible incidents I transcribed from the architect's recounts of history in his journal. And heed my advice... All this may not be worth pursuing just yet. Maybe in time with more understanding. Just... consider it.”

Lifting his head to meet Max’s stare, a genuine and thankful smile graces Isaac’s face. “I will. I’ll take it all into account, my friend.”

----

Stepping through the doors into the Precipice Inn & Tavern from the diminishing evening light, Mavian ambles in a few meters and stops. Slipping his backpack off and sliding it down to the ground along his arm, he stretches his back out, spots the nearest bar stool, and plods over dragging his pack. Plopping into his seat, he rest his arms upon the counter top, and nods towards Aggie. Cracking a smile, Aggie walks down the behind bar, narrows her brown eyes at him, and waits quietly. Mavian reaches into his pocket, retrieves a bundle of bills, and counts off some money. Laying it neatly upon the counter, he nods to Aggie. “Next month’s rent. AND... My tab.”

An entrepreneurial grin emerges upon Aggie’s face, and she returns the nod to Mavian. “Beer?”

Mavian plainly states. “Yes.”

Elissia steps out from the back kitchen, notices Mavian, and smiles at Aggie filing away the money. “I’m glad you are back, and paid up. You want your usual?”

Mavian plainly states again as he relaxes his shoulders. “Yes.”

Aggie places an opened brown bottle in front of Mavian, leans close, and motions towards Aristespha, Bach, Cideeda, Dretphi, and Sotalia sitting around the larger table in the room. “By the way, your next customers have been waiting. You might not want to keep them waiting for much longer.”

Rolling his faintly glowing green eyes, Mavian smirks dismissively. “They can wait till after I eat and drink.”

Elissia lifts her brow, curls a smirk, and laughs. “Yeah... I think you’re not going to be able to hold them off for that long.”

Mavian glances over, makes eye contact with team, and watches as a chair is pulled out from the larger table. Blinking blankly, he eyes over to Aggie and Elissia, chugs back half of his beer, and sighs uneasily.

-101-

Leaning far back into the chair, Mavian tilts up his beer bottle sharply, swallows hard, and cringes with twitch at the corner of his eye. Hissing an uneasy breath through his teeth, he sets the empty container upon the table, blinks his faintly glowing green eyes hard, and stumbles upon his words. “That- He- Isaac... The Dark Lord Noxian?! Um... Really?! He didn’t seem anything like what the news made him out to be. Seemed really nice and all... Huh...”

Crossing her arms tightly, Sotalia curls up a sneer of her upper lip, and groans out her frustration. “When he’s not terrorizing, he likes to act like some kind of rogue scholar.”

Chuckling uncomfortably, Mavian wrestles the disbelief on his face, and checks the message on his aetherphone. “I mean, the message from Rhian I got through the relay does match your story. But... I mean, I’m finding all this a bit hard to believe. I’m not going to call you liars, but how do I know you really are that same team?”

Sebastian’s voice resonates out from the sword at Aristespha’s side. “Is the coast clear to come out, dear?”

Drawing in a long breath, Aristespha glances around the empty tables in the main room, and tugs at the corner of her mouth. “Go ahead, Sebastian.”

Sebastian’s ethereal visage materializes next to Aristespha, and he leans over partially through table towards Mavian with a smug smirk. “Hello, I’m Sebastian Warwick. Leader of the team, and the chosen one by the Sword of the Spirit Realm that the Dark Lord Noxian blasted. Proof enough for you?”

Mavian blinks blankly, swirls the faint remnants of beer in the bottle, and glances over to the bar. “Hey, Aggie! I’ll take another, please. Maybe two.”

He returns his attention to the group, chuckles nervously, and scratches the back of his head of wild brown hair. “Okay, so I believe you. But... What do you exactly want from me at this point?”

Sebastian drifts down into an empty chair while scanning the room for unwanted attention, and studies Mavian. “Any information you got to where and why Noxian- Well, Isaac, is.”

Aristespha taps through a few screens on her tablet, opens up a notation app, and waits patiently. “Any information you can provide would be appreciated.”

Gritting his teeth briefly, Mavian’s eyes search his mind, and he furrows his brow while pondering out loud. “Okay... He met up with me days ago, and he simply wanted to track down this one location his friend Malkav was rumored to be at. Malkav comes to Precipice once every few months for supplies, but not much else. So, I knew he was in the area.”

He idly rocks the bottle in hand, twists his mouth between thoughts, and exhales thoughtfully. “It took a few days. But, following a lot notes and rough maps that Isaac had, we were able to locate some really old ruins. He went inside the place, and came out. Confirmed his friend was there and okay.”

Aristespha narrows an inquisitive stare at Mavian, and pauses her note taking. “So, you saw Malkav?”

Mavian shakes his head and frowns slightly. “No. I stayed outside.”

Sotalia lifts her eyebrow, grimaces sharply, and grumbles. “So you didn’t even go inside to confirm he was telling the truth?! Or even check to see what was so important about the place?”

Slowly pivoting his gaze to Sotalia, Mavian shrugs his shoulders, and darts his indifferent glances around the table. “Um, no. It was none of my business. I make it a policy to not pry too much about other people’s affairs. My job was to guide him to the place safely, and chart him a path back. That’s it. I delivered and left.”

Cideeda tilts her head the side, flicks her furry ears, and slightly nods her head of short, multi-colored hair. “Understandable. Standard contractor policy with stuff like this.”

Wrestling a mix of expressions on his face, Bach sighs with a hint of agreement. “Yeah. I can’t blame you. Keep it neutral and professional, and then you get to walk away home.”

Mavian points towards Cideeda and Bach with a thankful smile, and sighs. “Exactly. Helping someone get to a place is innocent enough. After that I don’t want to know. I mean he seemed straight forward enough, so I didn’t have any reason to doubt him, as far as I was concerned.”

Sotalia rolls her golden eyes dismissively, and groans out her frustration. “I guess... Would be useful to know what was in there.”

Lifting an intrigued brow, Dretphi cocks her head to the side, and inquires. “You remember the location?”

Mavian blinks his faintly glowing green eyes, nods, and smirks. “Of course, I just got back. I could probably mark it on a map if you want.”

Aristespha sorts through a few menus on her tablet, lays it flat in front of Mavian, and points to the screen. “Can you find it on this map?”

Sliding the device over to him, Mavian navigates the map, zooms in and out, and traces a path through the topology. Pausing in thought, he searches for unique points of reference, shifts between a few possibilities, and settles upon one area. “There. If not exactly, then it’s within a few kilometers of that point.”

Sebastian cracks a hopeful smile, crosses his arms, and laughs. “So, you up for making a little more money leading us back to that spot?”

Mavian thinks a moment, glances over towards the bar briefly, and gazes over the team. “Sure. But, it’ll be a few days a before we can set out.”

With faint twitch of her cheek, Sotalia narrows a glare at Mavian. “A few DAYS? I can understand a day, but what’s the hold up?”

Squinting his stare Sotalia, Mavian curls his upper lip, and growls out his irritation. “Listen, I just got back from traveling a REALLY dangerous passage, and pulling long days and nights of travel on foot to get back here. I’m going to need at least a day to rest up, and another to get supplies ready. Which I recommend you do, too.”

Sebastian glances between Mavian and Sotalia, waves down Sotalia’s ire, and nods to Mavian with an apologetic tone. “Hey, we understand. Sorry, if we are a bit on edge, but we’ve been chasing him for quite some time.”

Mavian eases out a calming breath, and cracks an appreciative smirk. “Hey, I get it. I want to help. But, I really don’t want to lead a bunch of people through dangerous zone territory sleep-deprived. It doesn’t take much for things to go really bad in the zone when you are ready. I’ve found what’s leftover of those who weren’t careful, too many times.”

After a few uneasy moments processing the implications of that statement, Dretphi straightens her posture, brushes back a stray platinum blonde braid, and directs her question to Mavian. “Could we use your shortcut?”

Contorting his face, Mavian sighs with a regretful cadence. “No. I can’t imagine a way for it to work for you all. I can navigate it, but I still run into issues. The passages can only be traveled on foot, and you have to move with the fluctuations of overlapping anomalies. It would wind up being slower and more dangerous than the route I used with Isaac.”

Bach cocks his head to the side, sorts through his thoughts with his blue eyes, and scratches the beard on his chin. After a few seconds, he focuses his attention to Mavian and inquires. “Is there any other settlements apart from Precipice around? I mean, anywhere else Isaac could run off to?”

Quickly shaking his head, Mavian snorts and chuckles with a smirk. “Oh, hell no. Precipice is the only real civilization out here. There a few zone runner camps. But, most of those aren’t friendly because they’re filled with all the people not allowed to get near Precipice. Plus, they purposefully keep hidden because of they don’t want anyone paying attention to what they do.”

Cideeda perks her brow, glances her emerald green eyes at Bach, and grins toothily at Mavian. “So chances are if he’s going to leave, we’re going to run into him here in town or on the road.”

Mavian simply nods. “Pretty much. There’s only a few routes and all narrow down to Precipice before hitting either the southern or northern roads.”

A sly smirk curls out from the corner of Sotalia’s mouth. Cideeda raps her claw tips upon the table top with smile. A quiet eager agreement spreads through team, and Sebastian nods to Mavian. “Sounds like the best plan we got at the moment. Let us know what we need to get ready and a time frame.”

Aggie walks up to the table, places a full brown bottle in front of Mavian, and smiles. “Just can’t keep that tab closed for long can you?”

Mavian awkwardly smiles, picks up the beer with an appreciative bow to Aggie, and pours it back. Aggie glances over to the team, begins to open her mouth, and narrows a her focus upon Sebastian. After a few moments of silent examination and faint flickers of illumination from her brown eyes, Aggie lifts an intrigued brow at Sebastian. “Huh, I get the feeling there’s a story behind you.”

Sebastian dons a goofy smirk and shrugs his shoulders. “Yeah... You could say that.”

----

Overhead stars glow brightly with faint traces of the Milky Way in the infinite backdrop upon the crowded skies above. A crescent moon hovers in front of the galactic starscape, as a few faint outlines of clouds drift slowly around the horizon. Isaac stands outside the entry to the ancient ruins, and stares quietly up into the cosmic scene. Gentle breezes coast over the surrounding tall grasses, shrubs, and scattered trees. Blinking his gray eyes, a peaceful smiles grows from the corner of his mouth, and stray wispy white hairs flutter in the calm winds. The tail of his blue scarf drifts with the gust. His hand slowly guides the knit fabric back around his neck, and Isaac feels the texture between his fingers. A gentle frown pulls down his expression, and remorseful sigh escapes his breath. Minutes of distant thoughts reflect along with the night sky in Isaac’s eyes as he gazes out aimlessly.

Along the horizon faint flits of magical light flicker briefly into existence and fade. Sparks flash out without sound in one direction, a cluster of orbs dart from one lone tree to another, and visages of ethereal beings slowly move across the land in bursts of wavering opacity. In stark contrast, wandering spots of flashlights congregate around the far off ruins of a modern structure.

Isaac blinks back to awareness, aims his attention to the gathering of illumination, and studies the scene. Specs of humanoid silhouettes cast shadows against the scattering glow of the spot lit building. An uncomfortable curl at the corner of his mouth tints Isaac’s expression, and he slowly steps back towards the entrance of the ancient ruins. Keeping close to the old stone walls, he furrows his curious brow, and narrows a wary stare. Minutes of cautious observation pass, and the distant figures merge into the modern ruins with lighting following. Easing back, Isaac steps through the ruin's entry into the corridor of the ancient structure. Mid way through the dark tunnel, he stops at a security gate. Quietly closing the steel door, he engages the lock, slides over a blackout curtain hanging across the hallway, and grimaces uneasily.

He continues down the corridor to the large room, glances around, and settles his concern upon a relaxing Max. “Not to alarm you, but there seems to be some people going inside one of the older buildings east of here.”

Max flutters his eyes, quickly gathers his thoughts, and sits up on his makeshift recliner. “Oh... Yes... I’ve been noticing a few groups occasionally poking around the abandoned buildings around here.”

Isaac glances back down the entry halls, and lifts a curious brow towards Malkav. “Anything we should be concerned with?”

Searching his mind with his blue eyes, Max scratches the back of his head of white, tied back hair, and shrugs. “Not really. I’ve never seen any of them come close to the old ruins. They just don’t seem to have an interest in any of them. I figure they are just some scavengers or maybe some salvaging company taking risks for some kind of pay day. I don’t know...”

He smirks with a snort, and rolls his eyes as he eases back into makeshift recliner. “I try to keep a low profile out here anyway, since I’m by myself. Keep this place looking as unappealing and ordinary as possible. It seems to work. I don’t think they’re interested in archaeology anyway.”

Isaac chuckles briefly and shakes his head. “I wouldn’t guess. You are probably right. Still a little disconcerting.”

Max nods in agreement, and points down the corridor as he leans forward to get up. “You locked the gate?”

Settling down into a chair at the crude table, Isaac glances over to the corridor briefly before sniffing the air. “Yes. I locked it up, and pulled the curtain. By the way, what are you cooking?”

A humored grin grows on Max’s face, and he walks over to large pot on a hotplate and a kettle on a smaller heater. He lifts the lid to reveal a warm broth filled with curly noodles and cubes of chicken, and stirs with a nearby ladle. “Ah, the old researcher favorite. Freeze dried chicken cubes with soggy discount noodles in the saltiest broth around! I’m sure this brings back those undergraduate memories.”

Rolling his eyes, Isaac snorts while shaking his head. “May the gods help our stomachs.”

Cracking a smirk, Max taps the kettle with the ladle. “That’s why I went with mint tea tonight. We’ll need all the help we can get.”

----

Down the worn and cracked sidewalk, Amos leads Aristespha, Bach, Cideeda, Dretphi, and Sotalia along, and motions ahead while brushing off his duster. “Now the best place I know to get rations and other packaged meals is Marla’s. She specializes in a variety of food ready for long journeys. And, if you are really nice, she’s been known to do custom orders, too.”

Aristespha scrolls through a list on her aetherphone, and glances back. “Dretphi, how many days of food do we have packed up?”

With steely gray eyes searching the top of her mind, Dretphi blinks with a grimace and sighs. “A week. Few days of desirable food. The rest is passable for emergencies.”

Cideeda grits her sharp teeth, flicks her furry ears back, and grumbles. “Yeah, we need to stock up then. I know it’ll keep us alive, but I rather avoid tapping into that stuff.”

Shivering briefly as an uncomfortable memory pops into his mind, Bach grimaces, and gazes around at the surrounding team. “Yeah, I tried one of those meal bars once. I think I nearly chipped my tooth on it.”

Dretphi smiles tightly, shakes her head of platinum blonde braids, and relays a commiserating tone. “Boiling helps. Does not help the taste. Makes it easy to eat quick. Do not focus on the texture.”

Tensing her shoulders, Sotalia shudders, and winces her disgust. “Gods, I will personally chip in to get anything else. Still can’t forget that time we had to eat those for two weeks.”

The gathering travels down along the packed dirt and gravel road, and approaches a large open, well cared field surrounding a brick and steel building. A few children sit outside at wooden tables under an awning, while a few adults keep watch over their antics. Walking out from the entrance gate, Cedric, Ryos, and Suzie turn and quickly travel towards Amos. Stopping with a smile on his facial displays, Amos kneels down to the children’s level and greets them. “Now whatever are you young adventurers up to today? Certainly nothing too dangerous?”

Cedric rolls his brown eyes, and shakes his head. “Nothing. Going home to eat.”

Amos tilts his head to side, glances over to the school sign, and puzzles briefly. “Strange to see you all at school on a Sunday.”

From Suzie’s arms, Ishmael directs his soft cloth face towards Amos. “Well, someone forgot to turn in some homework and needed to do some make up exercises.”

Cedric narrows a pouting glare at Ishmael, crosses his arms defiantly, and grumbles to himself. “It was easy, I don’t know why Ms. Reena wanted me to do weekend school. I could have done it tomorrow.”

Shaking his head slightly, Ryos slowly rolls his purple on black eyes, and sighs. “Our mommas said you had to. They didn’t want you to get behind... again...”

Amos focuses his optics upon Cedric, and colors his tone with stern hints. “Now, you don’t want to that to happen. I can’t very well give you another treasure map, if you keep that up.”

The young boy’s eyes widen in worry at the prospect, and Cedric bows his head slightly. “Okay, I guess.”

Turning his attention to Ryos and Suzie, Amos cocks his head to the side. “So, why are you two here?”

Suzie smiles brightly and giggles. “To play! No one is using the playground.”

Shrugging his robotic doll shoulders, Ishmael furrows his brow. “I’ll admit it made sense. If the teachers are going to be around, might as put the equipment to use.”

Ryos blinks as he remembers something and summons up his voice. “Um, Mr. Amos, do you think you could... Um, come to school tomorrow? To tell another one of your stories?”

Amos fashions proud grin on his facial display, synthesizes a laugh, and raps his fingers on his knee. “Of course. I don’t have anything planned for tomorrow... If Ms. Reena will allow it. I don’t know if she’s fully forgiven me for the last tale I told, after all the bad ideas I SUPPOSEDLY put in your heads.”

Nodding quickly with Cedric and Suzie, Ryos smiles and his eagerness lightens his tone. “Yes! But only during recess. After lunch.”

With a nod, Amos stands back up, displays a smirk, and emulates a chuckle. “Then, I will be there. I’ll meet you at the gate right at the start of lunch. I’ll need to remember a particularly special story.”

An annoyed, higher pitched groan emanates from Ishmael, and he points his simple cloth arms past Amos and the team. “Oh good, I’ll forward to THAT tomorrow. Come on children, time for your lunch.”

After a quick goodbye, the three children blitz around Aristespha, Bach, Cideeda, Dretphi, and Sotalia. During the energetic rush, Ishmael’s arm brushes against Bach leg. Ishmael freezes as his robotic eyes flit wide in a reflexive motion. As Suzie rushes off to keep up with Cedric and Ryos, Ishmael focuses his attention to his arm as a brief, faint stir of magical illumination blurs an outline around his form. He leans his head around watches Bach, and stares as intrigue and fascination grow upon his simple face.

Sotalia turns her head back around, tosses back stray locks of fiery orange, curly hair, and narrows her golden eyes at Amos. “Okay, so what’s the deal with the little girl’s doll? I’ve never seen anything like that. And, I’ve scoured everywhere for stuff for my nieces and nephews.”

Cideeda glances her emerald green eyes up at Sotalia, ponders a moment, and scratches a claw tip gently under her chin. “Yeah... He might be a really advanced robotic assistant. Rare, but not unheard of. Strange he’s in that type of body, but he may have been a custom model. In really good shape though.”

Amos pauses a moment as flickers momentarily disrupt his facial displays, and he recomposes himself. “Well... We all have our mysteries. And, given the strange items you found in the junkyard, it’s not unheard of to come across fascinating technology that’s been... re-adapted over the years. I tend to believe that Ishmael and I share some common lineage at a point.”

He pivots to face back down the sidewalk, motions his arms forward, and starts walking. “But, that’s discussion for another time, we need to get you prepared for your journey and I have plenty of shops to show you.”

Sotalia lifts an unconvinced brow and ponders quietly to herself as she follows. Cideeda shrugs her shoulders and quips. “Could just be a really convincing conversation assistant AI. I’ve run into a few of those.”

As the team forms up and moves, Bach glances back over his should and notices the attention from Ishmael in distance. He puzzles as the children turn around a corner and Suzie carries Ishmael out of view. The group travels down the sidewalk, and pass an alley way. From the alley way, a familiar group of zone runners glare out at the mechanical man, maintain their irritated stares, and whisper quietly to each other.

----

Sitting around the larger table in the main room of the Precipice Inn & Tavern, Aristespha, Bach, Cideeda, Dretphi, and Sotalia review a collection of maps, documents, and tablets in the center of the table between plates of lunch time meals. Mavian reaches over and traces a route upon the map with a finger. “So, this passage is usually pretty trouble free. But, once we get around here, we’ll have to take it slow depending on how anomalies have shifted. There’s always some route through, but it’ll take some time to figure out.”

Dretphi studies the topography indicated on the printout, and slowly nods her head. Cideeda flicks her furry ears back, bites down on a carrot, and mulls over the circumstances. “Okay, how much trouble are we asking for if we take it fast? The old humvee is pretty tough. Are we’re just talking about annoying things that inconvenience us? Or...”

Gritting his teeth, Mavian loosens the knit, green scarf around his neck, and hisses a sigh. “Yeah... That’s the problem. You don’t quite know until you get there. The problem is there’s really crazy sections that butt up against that route. It could be all clear, or one of the bad pockets of anomalies has drifted over and dumped a bunch of problems.”

Finishing off a hot wing, Sotalia leans back in her seat, twists her mouth after a swallow, and casually motions towards the map with the chicken bone. “Will any of our defensive magic help? We can layer up some armor and barriers? Or, sling A LOT of dispel blasts?”

Mavian ponders a moment, crosses his arms, and slowly shakes his head. “That’s not something you want to rely upon this deep in the zone. The PWZ can fling out a lot more than you’d expect. And dispel magic upsets the zone. As crazy as that sounds. It disrupts the balance in way you can’t quite anticipate. It just, uh... Makes it angry.”

Contorting his face in thought, Bach draws in a long breath, and shrugs his shoulders. “You think it’s still worth taking the time to put up magical armor and similar things?”

Nodding his head, Mavian circles an area with his finger above the map, and smirks. “Yes. Anything that’ll give us a few more seconds to react. Especially at this one point. That part is always coin flip. Peaceful some days. Absolute hell others. And depending on how it goes, we’ll need to stop for the night before that point. You really don’t want to risk a night drive through that.”

Aristespha's violet eyes observe the spots on the map. Upon her tablet, She taps on a matching section on a digital layout, and enters in detailed notes. The main door of the Precipice Inn & Tavern opens. Cedric leads the way through with Ryos and Suzie immediately behind. Aggie gazes over at the children with smile while cleaning off three spots at the bar. “How’s everything going at school today?”

Cedric frowns with a huff, pulls himself up into the bar stool, and crosses his arms. “Mr. Amos hasn’t shown up like he said he would.”

After helping Suzie up, Ryos climbs up into the bar stool, gazes up to Aggie, and uneasily sighs. “We waited a long time, and we didn’t see him.”

Suzie glances down at the robotic doll in her arms and asks with a sad tone. “Do you think he’s okay, Mr. Ishy?”

Ishmael’s robotic eyes glance between the children and Aggie, and an uncertain expression contorts on his simple, cloth face. “I wish I could say so. Despite my misgivings about how he normally carries himself, this is very odd for him to break a promise to you all.”

Narrowing his eyes, an unamused twist curls his the representation of a mouth on his face with traces of genuine concern. “It’s certainly not like him to miss an opportunity to regale yet another tall tale of his.”

Aggie straightens her posture thoughtfully as Elissia steps out of the back kitchen. Elissia notices the mood, surveys the frowns and worry, and steps next to Aggie. “What’s going on?”

Holding her elbows, Aggie pivots slowly to gaze at Elissia, and contorts her unease on her sun tanned face. “Amos didn’t show up to meet the kids at school.”

Elissia blinks her violet on black eyes, tosses back her head of dark blue braided hair, and hums in contemplation. “He may have run a little late. If nothing else, he knows the children usually eat here. So, I’m certain he’ll show up any time now-”

A loud thud knocks the door to main room, and the force swings it open. Standing shakily upon on his remaining leg, Amos’s dented and battered form teeters between unstable attempts of balance. With his one functional arm clamped upon the door frame, he plots out a static peppered grin on his loosened facial displays, and refocuses his stuttering optics. “You’ll have the excuse the delay children. I’ve had quite the morning- Evening? Time. Yes. I’ve had quite the time recently.”

A spark arcs out from his ankle joint, and his weight topples forward. His grip on the door frame slides off from the sudden tug of mass, and his partial arm braces down towards the floor. With a metallic crash, his form flops upon wood planks, and a his ripped duster billows out the remaining wind of his descent. With the team standing up in shock from their table and children staring wide eyed, Amos pushes up his frame with his working arm and emulates a chuckle. “I was curious when that signal line was going to give up. Quite the dramatic timing there.”

----

A thin trail of smoke rises up around Cideeda’s light brown face, and she blows softly as the soldering iron melts a shiny coat of metal around thick copper wiring. Lifting her head away, she waves off the remaining vapor, and scrutinizes her work. “That should actually carry some proper amperage now.”

She glances over to Bach, watches the magical mesh of flow suspending a cloud of individual parts and pieces in the air, and smirks. “How’s the arm reassembly going?”

With a bright blue glow in his eyes, Bach’s fingers and hands move slightly as floating components gradually assemble back together. He narrows his stare upon the hovering mass of pieces, and pauses. Twisting his hands around carefully, the parts drift away to allow a section of the forearm to move away from Bach and closer to Cideeda. “I think there’s something missing here or I’ve got something in the wrong place.”

Pausing a moment from her work, Cideeda glances around the area. She nods with a smile over to Cedric, Ryos, and Suzie watching the magic and tech at work in utter fascination. She halts a moment, watches Ishmael stare constantly at Bach, then returns her attention to Bach. Leaning close to the free floating robotic arm pieces, Cideeda reaches out, carefully inspects with her claw tips, and rotates the components as her emerald green eyes study. Flicking her furry ears with her inspection, she twists her mouth thoughtfully, and nods. “Yes. There’s something missing, but the oxidation around there makes me think it hasn’t been there for awhile.”

She glances over to Amos’s partially disassembled form upon the largest and sturdiest chair from the eclectic collection of the main room, and guides the hovering components into his view. “Is this a new issue?”

Amos refocuses his optics, tilts his head slowly to the side, and flicks searching indicators on his facial displays. “Oh, THAT. I lost that particular guide in a grand escape from a horde of bloodthirsty whelps.”

Drawing a smirk on his face, he synthesizes a sly laugh and rolls his optics. “They were quite disappointed when they figured I didn’t contain any blood.”

Cideeda shakes her head with an amused smile, leads the floating mass of parts back over, and snorts. “Well, we’ll try to fashion a good replacement when Aristespha and Sotalia come back with the rest of your parts.”

An appreciative tone sounds out from Amos, and he carefully bows his head. “You all are too kind. I just might be able to get back into my card tricks. I used to be quite the fast draw.”

With a gentle tap of a finger from a tan and faint gray striped arm, Dretphi gets Amos’s attention, and displays Amos’s patched up duster with smile. “Rough patches. They will hold up. Unfortunately, the material is thin. The best I can do under circumstances.”

Amos chuckles with a synthetic cadence. “Oh, that’s more than I expected could be done. You are certainly a master of your craft. I’ll wear it proudly... Until it completely gives away, of course.”

Dretphi nods with an understanding smirk, and folds up the duster neatly. The door leading to the main room opens, and Aristespha and Sotalia step through. Aristespha carries a severed robotic forearm and a bucket of scrap bits. Sotalia eases down a detached metal leg from her shoulders, and lowers it to the floor near Cideeda. She glances her golden eyes to Amos and sighs. “Found your shack. Or what’s left of it. Whoever attacked you made sure to leave a mess behind.”

Aristespha deposits the forearm on a nearby table, and directs her intrigue to Dretphi. “What does this look like to you?”

Dretphi studies the cleaved metal structure bars, sliced polymer, and chopped wiring. She frowns sternly and grumbles. “Sword. Cleaver. Sharp. A proper weapon designed for combat do this.”

Aggie and Elissia nearby exchange glances, and both nod to the other. Aggie steps up behind the children, puts her hands on Cedric’s and Ryos’s shoulders, and leans close. “Okay. Boys. Suzie. It’s time for you get back to school. It’s well past lunch time, and I’m certain Ms. Reena will be worried if you take too much longer.”

Cedric gazes up at his mother, and whines. “Aww, momma! But this is so cool to watch.”

Ryos blinks his purple on black eyes up at his mother, and pleads. “Momma, can we stay longer? I want to make sure Mr. Amos is okay.”

Tightening her arms around Ishmael’s robotic doll form, Suzie sniffs and gazes teary eyed up at Aggie. “Mr. Ishy seems really concerned, too. Him and Mr. Amos are friends.”

Elissia steps forward to Amos, rests her long, black nailed hands on her hips, and sharply frowns at Amos. “Who was it?”

Amos’s optics reset and refocus. He pans his gaze around, and laughs in a dismissive tone. “Oh, just my usual fans. Nothing to really concern yourselves with.”

Elissia crosses her arms, narrows her violet on black eyes, and growls softly. “Don’t give me THAT, Amos. This has gone beyond roughing you up over a territorial dispute. This has to stop. NOW.”

A digital sigh escapes Amos’s speakers, and he shakes his head. “It would honestly stir a whole nest of trouble. They’ve gotten it well out of their systems now, so what’s the point in antagonizing the situation more-”

Shifting attention sharply from Bach, Ishmael points his simple arm out towards Amos, and directs a demanding tone. “For love the of- Just tell them already, Amos! There won’t be enough left of you next time. And, there WILL be a next time with these people. We BOTH know that.”

Amos and Ishmael stare at each other. After seconds of silence between the two, Amos nods in a quiet agreement at a hint of satisfaction upon Ishmael. He pivots his head to Elissia and emulates a curious tone. “You wouldn’t have to have a tablet or similar device? I’ve got images and video.”

Aggie presents a warm, calming smile to the worried children’s pleas, and gently ushers them towards the door. “Don’t worry. We have some nice people getting Mr. Amos fixed up enough. You need to get back to school. Don’t want any of you to have to go to weekend school again.”

Cedric grumbles quietly. Amos bows his head towards the kids, and chuckles out brightly. “Go to school. I’ll be good as new soon enough. If all goes well, I join you all tomorrow after lunch. I’ll try really hard this time.”

As Aggie leads the children, Ishmael leans out around Suzie to observe Bach. Suzie smiles and holds Ishmael close. “Don’t worry, Mr. Ishy. He’ll be okay.”

Ishmael snaps back to awareness, fashions a smile on his simple, cloth face, and awkwardly replies. “Oh yes, of course. Yes... Let’s get back to school now.”

As the door closes, Elissia glances around towards the bar and bites her lips uncertainly. “Oh gods... I’ve got an old model tablet that might work in the bedroom...”

Aristespha reaches over, plucks a tablet of the larger table, and presents it to Amos. “Will this one work?”

Fashioning an appreciative smile on his distorted facial displays, Amos focuses his optics on the screen and nods. “I think so. Thank you so much. Give this old droid a moment.”

Seconds later, a sync request appears on the device, and Aristespha accepts it. Moments later multiple transfers stream onto the device. After the final download completes, Amos motions his head towards Elissia. “Check the media gallery. All the evidence should be there.”

Aristespha hands the device over to Elissia. With a thankful bow of the head, Elissia taps to the gallery, and sorts through the most recent images. She grits her teeth with a hard tinge of anger, and shakes her head. Glancing around the room, she growls out. “Fucking Rust Runners. I knew it. They’ve been trouble for years.”

She glances over to the team and Amos, and points towards the bar. “I’m calling the sheriff and the Borderlands Rangers. We’ll see what happens from there. Maybe Mavian will have a few clues to where they went.”

As she departs to the land line phone behind the bar, the last few sub-assemblies reunite and the magical forces reform Amos’s arm. Cideeda lifts her hands underneath the robotic limb, and nods to Bach. Blinking the blue glow out his eyes, Bach shudders and blinks hard. “I’ll need to take a break before we try the other arm. And... then fashion any replacement parts.”

Cideeda deftly reattaches the arm into Amos’s shoulder socket, clips in the cables, and locks the support clamps. “That’s fine. I’m going to need to go through that other leg before we do anything else.”

Bach settles down into a chair next to Amos and contorts a worried expression. “Not to pry into your personal business... But... How long have you put up with that shit?”

Amos turns his head to face Bach, blanks his facial displays, and ponders out loud. “Oh, you mean this particular group here? A few years. But, it just got bad recently. Thought I was humoring them enough before this happened. I guess not.”

Bach quirks his brow and cocks his head to the side with a puzzling tone. “There’s been others?”

With a simple nod, Amos awkwardly chuckles with hints of digital distortion and wavering digital noise. “Oh... Yes... This is not a new phenomena for me. When you are an... alternative intelligence, you tend to be a lightning rod for any kind of discriminating tendencies people have. When you aren’t the right type of biological persuasion, you aren’t pleading your case from the most ideal platform. Visual differences alone are difficult enough for many to get around.”

Sotalia frowns sadly and nods understandingly to Amos. “Yeah, I know how that goes.”

Amos flexes the fingers on his reattached arm, slowly rotates the forearm section, and halts the motion briefly at spots of aged damage. “Many of the marks on my chassis are from sad and scary moments. All part of the ongoing question to what my existence is.”

His optics narrow down and the hue fades from his facial indicators. “It’s one of the reasons I am here in Precipice. I was driven from one place to another, until I arrived at Perimeter. But, I could only stay in the noise of the big city for so long. So, I traveled to Precipice and have made my home here for decades now. But...”

Closing and opening his hand, his emulated tone drifts off into a monotone and simple synthetic cadence. “Each time something like this happens... I can’t help but question what I am. Do I even properly exist? What do I compare myself with? Am I even consciousness or is this just an elaborate illusion?”

Sebastian voice emanates from the sword at Aristespha’s side. “I can feel you there. Took me week to move past that point.”

Amos pulls his head back, refocuses his lenses, and rotates his head to the side intrigued. Aristespha glances down wide eyed at the sword, searches around the sparse post-lunch crowd, and sighs. “Sebastian...”

An ethereal sigh resonates from the sheathed blade, and Sebastian’s tone shifts to apologetic. “Sorry. But, I wanted to say it. Long story short, Amos... Blasted by the Dark Lord, drawn into the sword, and now I have a strange existence at the moment. We can talk more later.”

Color returns to Amos’s facial displays, and he plots out a delighted smile. “Fascinating. And, quite reassuring that I’m not the only one that’s wrestled this very topic before, and from such a unique angle.”

Sotalia rolls her golden eyes with a smirk, brushes back her fiery orange, wavy hair over a horn, and snorts. “If you are honestly debating yourself this much about it, I’ll vouch for you. Again, that’s proof enough for me.”

Dretphi nods, and smiles. Cideeda shakes her head, cracks toothy grin, and continues inspecting leg servo. “I wouldn’t worry too much. If you can legitimately ask the question, you are doing better than most.”

Donning a goofy smile, Bach laughs awkwardly and shrugs his shoulders. “Yeah, I mean. I think, therefor I am. And, well, you think, therefor you are? I might be stretching that one out a bit.”

As Bach scratches the back of head and reviews his thoughts, a genuine smile appears on Amos and he gazes at the team surrounding him. “I must say you are nice people to humor my existential quandaries. I’ve had quite a few. Intelligence, sentience, and sapience... I’ve found my own answers for each over the years.”

He chuckles lightly. “To be fully honest, for the longest time I questioned if what drove my intelligence, my sentience, and my sapience was the same as everything else in this world.”

A dull tone emanates from Amos and he slowly shakes his head with a somber motion. “Every time I was treated differently... Every time I was dismissed... Every time I felt lesser... I always asked that question and wondered if I was different on a deeper, fundamental level. Those thoughts were always the ones that haunted me in my most idle moments.”

Glancing through his own troubled memory, Bach blinks out of a trance, and sighs. “Yeah, those aren’t easy thoughts. Coming from experience.”

Upon a cracked screen, the vectors morph and twist to a sly grin, and Amos perks his digital brow. “But... I got an answer. Certainly not the one I expected. Nor in a way I anticipated. But, it satisfies me. Would you like to see it? It’s given me comfort in my darkest days.”

The surrounding team exchange a mix of intrigue and wary glances. Bach lifts a brow, tilts his head to the side, and nods with a genuine tone. “Yeah. I’m actually really curious.”

Amos extends his working arm out in front of him, turns his hand over, holds his mechanical palm up. Seconds of quiet pass. Flickers of digital patterns flash out upon Amos’s different displays, and faint trill noises sound out from his audio system. From his robotic frame, strands of prismatic flow thread around his chassis, swirl around his metal body, and travel down his functional arm. The waves of energy drift around his forearm, and gradually condense into his hand. A simple, prismatic orb of energy forms, hovers above his palm, and remains.

Aristespha’s violet eyes widen in wonder. Sotalia’s jaw drops slowly and she blinks astonished. Dretphi covers her mouth with hand as she gasps. Cideeda gazes up, and maintains a bewildered gaze. Bach cocks his head to the side, darts his blue eyes around, and watches in sheer fascination. Amos’s displays return to normal, and genuine joy swirls into his articulate voice. “To the powers that matter... I guess I’m the same as anyone else.”

----

In the early morning light, Cideeda checks underneath the humvee, Dretphi hoists up a bundle of supplies into the back, and Aristespha arranges some documents near her seat in the vehicle. Mavian walks out the door to the Precipice Inn & Tavern with Bach and Sotalia behind him. He glances over his shoulder, and awkwardly contorts a grin on his face. “Sorry, about taking your seat and all. But, I really need to be in front.”

Sotalia smirks and shakes her head. “Don’t worry about it. I rather someone warn us what we are about to roll into, rather than watch it catch us on fire or worse.”

A small, devilish grin cracks out the corner of her mouth, and she winks to Bach. “Plus, it’ll be fun to pester Bach from the back seat for once.”

Bach twists his mouth, slowly shakes his head, and sighs. Leaning against the wall of the building, Amos waves to the group and bows slightly. “I wish you the best of luck in your travels, my friends.”

Halting in place, Bach pivots around nods to Amos. “Thank you. You going to be okay?”

Amos displays a smile on his face. “Very much so. Aggie and Elissia are going to let me stay in a room they can’t rent due to the bathroom being out of order. Which doesn’t affect me much. It’ll give me time to figure out what my next lodging arrangements will be.”

Mavian points to Amos. “By the way, word has it that group ran off from town. So, I don’t think they’ll be back any time soon. Quite a few zone runners weren’t too happy with them already, and were NOT happy to hear what they did.”

Tilting his head in honest surprise, Amos dons an appreciative tone. “That’s comforting. Well, here’s hoping they move to some other part of zone far, far from us.”

Running excitedly down the sidewalk, Suzie rushes up to Amos hugs his leg. “Mr. Amos! Are you okay?”

Amos glances down at the little girl, pats her on the head, and shows her bright smile on his facial display. “Perfectly fine. A little more functional than I was before actually.”

Ishmael glances up from his position in the top of Suzie’s backpack, and nods to Amos. “Excellent. Maybe that’ll improve your memory on how your stories actually went rather than filling the missing details with your grandiose embellishments.”

Crossing his arms, a smug tone infiltrates Amos’s synthetic voice. “Oh, there’s never any embellishments with stories. Just contextual adjustments.”

Mavian waves goodbye to Amos and walks away. Bach and Sotalia give goodbyes. Amos returns the gesture while Suzie keeps asking different questions. As Bach starts pivoting away, he glances down and meets Ishmael’s stare at him. After a few tense moments, Bach blinks his eyes, steps away, and turns around. He walks quickly to Sotalia’s side, and directs a whisper to her. “Okay... Um... I’m getting a weird vibe from that doll now.”

Sotalia darts her golden eyes over to Bach, and slowly nods. “Yeah... I’ve felt something similar before, but not quite. Gods, I don’t know where to put it. It’s familiar, but not really.”

She grumbles her frustrations and crosses her patterned arms. “This place is so weird. I just can’t get a good read off anything.”

Bach shrugs his shoulders, and sighs. “Well, hopefully it’ll just be one less mystery we have to solve.”

Sotalia turns her head up towards Bach, and snorts with a smirk. “When has THAT ever been the case?”

Hanging his head low briefly, Bach shakes his head. “I know... I know. I can hope right?”

Sotalia pats him on the back, and the two join the group around the humvee.

-102-

The orange evening glow lights up Bach’s tan face, and the faint sounds of slumber crest above the background din of the humvee upon the rough road. A devious grin growing on her face, Sotalia leans out into the aisle from the far back seat opposite of Bach. Confirming his soft snores, she reaches out with both hands, and lifts up a few locks of his longer brown hair. Quickly she weaves the hair into a loose, short braid. Dretphi snaps back to attention from watching the road, notices the Sotalia’s hands, and narrows a stern glare. Glancing her golden eyes to the steely gray pair focusing upon her, Sotalia slinks back with a mischievous smirk and snorts. “Oh, like you haven’t wanted to yourself. It’s getting long. Need to do something with it.”

Wrestling a few thoughts of her own, Dretphi maintains her firm stance and crosses her arms resolutely. With a cautious wide turn from Cideeda, the humvee rolls slowly up to the gravel road leading to a single concrete vehicle shelter. Mavian points out from the front passenger seat a small covered dome with a large metal access door. “There’s shelter for the night. It’s not as nice as some surge shelters, but it’s still tough enough.”

Cideeda darts her emerald eyes around the vicinity, and navigates the vehicle underneath the middle of concrete archway. “Good enough. That’s enough driving these roads for me today.”

With a nod, Mavian opens up his door, inspects the ground nearby, and hops out. “Yeah, there’s not much else past this point when it comes to stopping. It’s best we save the troublesome stuff for tomorrow.”

As the front passenger door closes, Bach flutters his blue eyes, gradually regains consciousness, and glances around. Noticing Aristespha pushing her door open, Bach works the handle of his. Stepping out, he slides his seat forward out of well rehearsed habit, and clears the way for Dretphi. After she pulls herself out, he closes the door, stretches his arms out, and rubs the sleep out of his eyes. Combing his hands through his longer brown hair, he halts when he feels the loose, short braid at the end of a few locks of hair. Studying the woven hair, he blinks blankly, puzzles a moment, and focuses his attention at Dretphi’s platinum blonde braids. Gathering his confusion together in his mind, he glances between the seating in the humvee, feels his hair, and stares bewildered at Dretphi.

Sebastian’s ethereal form drifts above the assembling team, and lowers down to the ground. He slowly pans his gaze around the area, tugs at the corner of his mouth, and addresses the team. “Probably need to give the place a once over. Just to be on the safe side.”

Mavian nods in agreement, steps off to the side, and narrows his stare the northern horizon. “That’d be a good idea. We all try to keep the shelters functional. But, they do get worn down over time.”

Aristespha lifts a curious brow, shifts her weight to another foot, and inquires. “What’s your predictions for tomorrow? Do you anticipate any difficulties?”

Surveying the skies and focusing his faintly glowing, green eyes into the distance, Mavian crosses his arms, tilts his head of wild, brown hair, and smirks with hints of confidence. “I think we got a good chance to get through fast. I haven’t seen any bad signs so far, and there have been a few good indicators along the way.”

He turns around towards the team, and ponders out loud. “It’ll take some proper timing. But, there’s a good chance the usual road anomalies will line up just right and we can power through them. We might have to wait for a later morning or noon approach, but it’ll be far safer and probably faster. So, please be patient.”

Sotalia rests her hands on her hips, grumbles to herself, and sighs. “I really hate to give him any more of a chance to get away from us.”

Glancing over, Bach smirks with a reassuring tone and shrugs his shoulders. “Even if he’s leaving, he’ll probably run into the same problems we are.”

He shifts his gaze to Mavian, and pantomimes for some kind of confirmation. Mavian blinks, glances down the road, and shakes his head. “Oh... Yeah. Depending on the anomalies and how they’re moving, it can be practically just be a one way road. And, this passage is one of the major bottlenecks, so any route large enough for his truck has to go through here.”

Sebastian nods, surveys the roadway, and hums to himself. “Okay, that good to know. We need to set up a watch then. Keep a close eye on the road.”

He smiles to the team, hovers upwards, and motions his arms out to the vicinity. “But, first, let’s secure the site.”

Aristespha, Bach, Cideeda, Dretphi, Sotalia, Sebastian, and Mavian disperse into the surrounding gravel lot, and sweep the area before carefully inspecting the inside of the shelter.

----

Isaac hoists up a cardboard box into the back seat of the blue all terrain vehicle, winces briefly, and rubs his lower back. Stretching into a backward lean, he grimaces with a pained sigh, and narrows his gaze to the rising sun. After few rocks side to side, he cracks his neck, brushes the stray white, wispy hairs out of his face, and closes the vehicle door. Max walks up slowly, pauses near Isaac, and studies the vehicle. “All loaded up?”

With a smirk, Isaac nods with an exhale. “As far as I know. Notes loaded up. Supplies secured. And, everything on the vehicle checks out.”

Twisting his mouth, Max hums to himself and glances around the area. After a few seconds, he levels a stare at Isaac and frowns faintly. “This is probably pointless, but understand... I still have to try. Isaac, I urge you to reconsider chasing after this aether access point. There is so much we don’t know and I’d hate for you to run off chasing something that very well may be a myth or just not exist anymore. Spend some time here. Let’s study this more and see if we can come up with anything more definite.”

He quirks his brow, and smiles with a pleading tone. “We may yet find out more information about it. Maybe figure out exactly what we’re dealing with. And, I’d really hate for you to run into yet another fucking dead end.”

Isaac blinks his gray eyes, cracks a humored smirk, and shakes his head. “I truly appreciate the offer and the words. But... You know this is something I have to do. Everything I’ve done so far seems to be leading up to this. I HAVE to know if this thing exists and what it can do. Not just for me. But... For everyone else. THIS is just too important to stand by and wait.”

Easing out a long, disappointed sigh, Max grits his teeth briefly, and frowns. “I figured that’s the answer I would get from you. I understand where you are coming from, and I know I can’t convince you otherwise. Well, thanks for letting me say my peace before you ran off to wander yet again.”

With a faint smirk, he rolls his eyes and groans out with a light chuckle. “But... For fucks sake, before you do anything too world changing... Just take a few minutes to really think about it. You never quite know what insight you might get at the last second.”

He holds his hand out and smiles. Isaac glances down, and shakes Max’s hand with the trace of a grin. “Well, I’ll do that. If it’s that significant, that will probably all I will be doing for quite some time. So, I can certainly promise you that much.”

Moments of silence past between the two men. Isaac draws in a long deep breath, surveys the surrounding horizon around the ruins, and lifts a curious brow towards Max. “So, I have to ask. Is there’s another way out of this area to the main road? Mavian showed me one way to get here, and I know I can use that.”

Max blinks in thought a moment, glances towards a number of landmarks, and wanders a finger point towards a rough path. “Well, all the paths lead to the main road eventually. This one here runs parallel to that route you probably took here, and merges before that one bottleneck between the shifting anomalies.”

Isaac crosses his arms, tilts his head to the side, and inquires. “Anything special about that route?”

Narrowing his stare down the winding path, Max debates the options and contorts his face. “Well, it takes a bit longer. Winds around a lot more. But, it is very secluded and not used that much from my experience.”

Nodding his head, Isaac glances over to Max. “That sounds like a good option given all these weird scavengers around lately. I wouldn’t want them to spot me and start trying trace back to figure out where I came from. Certainly wouldn’t want to lead anything bad back to you.”

With an agreeable grimace, Max groans out his irritation, and sighs out an appreciative tone. “That would be nice. Doubt there’s anything here they’d want, but scavengers are always risky to run into. I know a few that’d no sooner leave you with nothing but your underwear. A couple assholes wouldn’t even be that nice.”

He motions back to the path, and smiles. “But, yes, I’ve used that route personally a number of times with the hover truck. It’s a good way to lose anything tailing you. Just pull off when you hit a rocky stretch. Unless they’re paying close attention to the road for your tracks, they’ll probably drive right past you and not realize it.”

A sly smirk graces his face, and he winks to Isaac. “I’ve done that trick a few times. Always confuses the hell out of them, and they spend all day looking for nothing.”

Isaac shakes head with a chuckle, walks around the blue all terrain vehicle, and opens the driver’s side door. “Well... Thank you, Max. I really do appreciate all the information and assistance. And know, I will keep your advice in mind should I be on the verge of something significant.”

Max nods, steps back from the vehicle, and waves to Isaac. The engine fires up, the transmission shifts, and the tires roll forward. Carefully traversing the rough ground of the ruins, Isaac grants a final goodbye to Max. The early morning light shines out, and the vehicle rolls down into a shadowy path, obscured the topology and brush.

----

Mavian leans forward from the back of the front passenger seat, narrows his faintly glowing, green stare, and searches the horizon. After moments surveying the surrounding landscape in the late afternoon light, he points his finger over the front dash of the humvee. “There. That collection of ruins. That’s where I took Isaac.”

Cideeda spots the location, flicks a switch on the control console, and cautiously navigates the vehicle down into grass covered valley between two small hills. “Okay. Cutting off the powerplant and switching to the capacitors. I’ll try to keep it quiet on the approach.”

Sebastian’s ethereal form nods in aisle behind the front two seats, and he gestures towards the terrain ahead. “Good plan. Try to keep a low profile for as long as you can. Creep in slow.”

He glances over to rest of the team in the back seats with a quiet tone. “Okay. Get ready. Everyone keep an eye on the ruins and watch for anything going on. Once we get close, we’ll try to move in fast and keep out of the open.”

Bach inspects his plasma pistol at his side, and secures his helmet. Aristespha checks the sword, nods to Bach, and secures her pack. Dretphi readies her sub machine gun, stretches her arms and shoulders, and lowers down her face visor. Sotalia curls a sneer, flexes her fingers, and stares eagerly at the ancient structure. The humvee follows the dips between hills, travels through the valleys between lower rises, and hides behind tall grasses on the approach. The team remains silent and watchful.

As the vehicle closes in on the ruins surrounding the main building, Mavian darts his gaze around the area. Squinting to a number of obscuring spots in the area, he furrows his brow and directs his voice back. “I’m not seeing his truck. There’s only so many places he could have put it, but I’m not finding it.”

Sotalia blinks her golden eyes, focuses an emerging glare at Mavian, and growls out. “What do you mean? Are you saying he somehow got by us?!”

Mavian grits his teeth, rolls his faintly glowing, green eyes, and groans. “I don’t know... He may have gone out for a bit. Or, left to another structure around here. It’s a big, blue all terrain truck. It’s exactly a hard one to miss. And, there’s only a few places you can easily hide it.”

Narrowing his gaze out the front windshield, he scans the major landmarks in the area and slowly shakes his head. “No signs of illusion magic. No zone anomalies. He may have left, or found some other spot to hide his ride that I don’t know of.”

Sotalia grimaces harshly, pops her knuckles in frustration, and huffs. “Well, he may found some route you didn’t know about, and ran off.”

Sebastian snaps his stern stare at Sotalia. “Calm down. We don’t know anything yet. Even if he did run off, he couldn’t have gotten far. And... We need to see if Malkav is still here and find out what he knows.”

Fighting down her surges of emotions, Sotalia crosses her arms, eases out a calming breath, and nods quietly. The humvee slows to a stop around the age worn remains of a stone wall. With a nod from Sebastian, the doors of the vehicle open slowly. Cideeda slips out of her seat, sinks low onto the ground, and slinks around to the corner of the ancient barrier. Bach and Aristespha drop low, check the area, and gently pull seat slider levers. After easing their seats forward, both Dretphi and Sotalia step out of the humvee. Sebastian hovers low, and motions the team to regroup. Mavian sneaks up near Cideeda. After her emerald green eyes dart around to key locations and her furry ears flick through the soundscape, Cideeda tilts her head towards the open area near the entrance. Narrowing his stare, Mavian carefully scans the vicinity, and shakes his head.

Cideeda signals Sebastian. With a nod, Sebastian directs the team forward, and zips his ghostly form ahead towards the door. Swiftly the team navigates the surrounding chunks of old structures and debris, and gather around the entry archway. Sebastian darts inside and reappears a moment later. “Locked metal door.”

Peeking her head through the archway, Cideeda focuses her gaze, grits her sharp teeth, and grumbles quietly. “I can pick the lock, but it’d take a minute or two.”

She points a claw tip to Bach, and directs him ahead. “Bach, can you cut it?”

Bach nods, and positions himself towards the front of the formation. The group quietly gathers around the security gate. Bach flows prismatic energies through the metal of the lock, and Cideeda catches the remnant chunks when they fall. Passing through the gate, the team progress through the old hallways weapons and magics at the ready. Approaching a large lit room at the end of the corridor run, the team slows to stop. Sebastian points to himself and motions to the room. He departs the team, hovers close to the archway into the room, and phases partially into the nearby wall. Pushing through the ancient stonework, Sebastian’s face barely clears the other side of the wall. Quickly surveying the room, he notices a thin, older man with white hair slumbering in a makeshift recliner. After a few moments, Sebastian fully materializes into the room, drifts closer to the man, and watches expectantly.

With a glint of an observant blue eye, Max slowly tightens his grip upon something hidden between the recliner and couch. His gaze refocuses upon Sebastian, and a hint of recognition twitches his cheek. Sebastian moves in closer, angling his gaze, and determining any threats. Peering through the archway from the hallway, Cideeda and Dretphi ready themselves.

A high-pitch whine fills the air in the room. Max’s eyes open to an irritated glare upon Sebastian, and his arm tenses at the ready. “WHO and WHAT the HELL are you?”

Sebastian's ethereal form raises his arms up, and he chuckles uneasily. “Hey, just a guy looking for someone. Are you Dr. Malkav?”

Max blinks a moment, tilts his head back, and twists his mouth. “Who wants to know?”

With a smirk, Sebastian bows and chuckles lightly. “Sebastian Warwick.”

After he analyzes Sebastian’s transparent nature, Max turns his attention to the doorway and tenses up. “Okay then... Mind letting me know who else is here?”

Sebastian smiles awkwardly and waves down any aggression. “My team. If you’ll keep the weapon down, we’ll do the same. Then, we can have nice conversation and explain everything.”

Max nods silently, and concentrates his full focus to the door. Sebastian signals the team. Cautiously the team walks into the room. Max shifts his stare Cideeda, pauses warily at Dretphi, and scrutinizes Aristespha with hints of recognition. He cocks his head as he gazes at Sotalia. When his attention finds Bach’s face through his helmet visor, he widens his blue eyes. In a surge of recognition, he eases the tension away from the hidden weapon, slowly lifts his hand away, and points at Bach. “I know who YOU are... We definitely need to talk.”

----

Sotalia tightens her grip around crossed arms, fidgets annoyed against the archway dividing the large room and hallway, and growls out. “I can’t believe you just let him GO! After you just gave up all the information to him!”

Max sighs out long, furrows his unamused brow towards Sotalia, and grimaces. “Yes, as if I’m anywhere near capable of handling the latest Dark Lord at my doorstep. I’m certain my modest magical abilities, years of more age than not, and marginal physical prowess would have certainly served me well to quell the likes of him.”

Rolling her golden eyes, Sotalia grits her teeth, glances over her shoulder down the hallway, and directs her voice to the team. “We should go after him NOW. We’ve already wasted enough time.”

Mavian frowns uneasily and shakes his head of wild brown hair. “Yeah, um. Not only does he have a day ahead of us, but traveling right now at night is really bad idea when taking a vehicle. It’s hard enough to spot anomalies on a good day.”

With an awkward chuckle, he smiles hopefully and shrugs his shoulders. “But... If he’s taking my advice, he’s probably stopped for the day, too. So, it’s not like he’s going to make any more progress tonight.”

Sebastian’s ghostly form nods, and he sighs with a slow shake of his head. “That’s good. Even if he does have a day on us, he’ll very likely stop back in Precipice. We’ll see about tracking him down then. But, let’s just calm down and have a moment to think about things.”

Dretphi exchanges glances with Sotalia, and both share a silent disappointment. Max tugs at the corner of his mouth, and presents an understanding tone. “I know you don’t like the fact I did share that information. But, you must understand, I was trying to gain his trust and hopefully convince him to change his mind.”

Sotalia rolls her golden eyes, guides a lock of fiery orange, wavy hair over a horn, and huffs. Dretphi crosses her arms, contorts her face with her thoughts, and remains quiet. Aristespha leans back into the chair at the table, turns her gaze towards Max across from her, and nods. “It was a noble effort, but our experiences have lead us to believe he’s far too gone to be dissuaded at this point.”

Max grits his teeth, picks up the mug of tea upon the table, and sips. Contorting his face, he shakes his head and frowns. “I hope you understand, but there wasn’t much I could do in the situation. He literally just showed up out of no where. But, I did do what I could.”

Scratching the back of his head, Bach focuses his blue eyes upon Max from the improvised couch, furrows his brow, and shrugs his shoulders. “I guess. He probably would have figured it out on his own, and then he’d just be mad at you if he thought you were keeping secrets from him. I mean, Isaac is a smart and resourceful guy.”

Aristespha nods in agreement, tilts her head of silvery blue hair back, and ponders out loud. “Yes. Isaac was a Grand Library researcher in this particular field. I’m certain he’d have expectations of another fellow colleague that is his senior.”

Curling her claw tips into the rough fabric of the couch arm, Cideeda wrestles a frown on her face, and gradually nods to an understanding. “You only play so dumb for so long.”

Max stands up from his chair, motions towards a crate in the corner of the room, and smirks slyly. “Exactly. If I didn’t provide some of my findings, he’s certainly expect I was hiding something. But...”

The rest of the team watches carefully as Max walks across the room, lifts the lid of a the container, and pats around the bottom. Finding a hidden metal loop, he lifts up the false bottom of the crate, and grips hold a folio of papers. Retrieving the papers from inside, he steps over the rough table, and drops the packet in front of Aristespha. He cracks a grin and chuckles lightly. “I certainly didn’t give him ALL the information. Just enough.”

Attention shifts to the pile of documents. Aristespha curiously opens up the folio, and inspects the first few papers inside. “What are these exactly?”

Max walks over to his makeshift recliner, settles down in it, and laughs with a devious tint. “Oh, just the key bits of information to narrow down the search area for where the possible thirteenth access point to the Abstract Prism exists.”

A shocked silence fills the room. A sly smirk graces Sotalia’s face, and she lifts an intrigued brow towards Max. “So... How much does this on the table narrow things down?”

Stretching out his back in the chair, Max snorts and chuckles. “He’s probably looking at just over a two hundred and fifty kilometer diameter range. The information I recently found out from my personal research shrinks that to a rough hundred kilometer diameter circle.”

He grins wide and lifts a smug eyebrow. “He might be busy hunting a bunch of dead ends in some remote places for a while. I was thinking it’d give me some time to head out and get in contact with the authorities before he even got a chance to find anything.”

Dretphi blinks her steely gray eyes, tilts her head, and parts the hint of a smile. Sotalia rests her long, black nailed hands on her hips, shifts her weight, and laughs. “Well. While I’d rather catch him, it is amusing to think of him wandering the woods aimlessly and finding nothing.”

Bach’s blue eyes widen, and he turns his attention towards the packet of documents on the table. “What if we got to it before him?”

Perking her furry ears, Cideeda taps a claw tip to her chin, and searches her mind with her emerald green eyes. “Yeah. We could lay a really good trap for him. Probably has no clue we know anything right now, and he’ll be too focused. Even if we lose him here, we know what he's going for now.”

With a distant stare towards the stone floor, Bach mumbles under his breath with a spark of determination. “...and shut it down for good...”

Cideeda’s ear flicks back from Bach, and she watches at his resolute mood. Max nods in agreement, and twists his mouth. “Definitely a good idea to intercept him. As much as I believe Isaac feels his intentions are good, his obsession has blinded him to the reality of it all. Now, it may be a moot point even you find this thirteenth access point. I doubt it properly functions anymore.”

He narrows a stern stare to all the gathered team and uneasily frowns. “But gods almighty, if there’s even a remote chance it could do anything more than flash pretty lights, he’s THE LAST person that needs to be fucking with it. That’s power no one should experiment with. This world doesn’t need yet another Cataclysm because someone decided to flick a bunch of random switches.”

Slowly shaking his head, he sighs sadly and winces heavy with regret. “Isaac is too deep into all of this right now. I could feel it after talking to him... Gods... Wish I could have done more for him before this point.”

Quiet moments weigh down the mood of room. Adjusting his posture in the recliner, Max dons a curious expression on his face, casually interlocks his fingers together on his hands, and tilts his head to the side. Searching his gaze around the room, he quirks his brow and addresses everyone with a tone heavy with intrigue. “So, I have to ask... How did you all track Isaac down? Didn’t act like he was being followed.”

Sebastian cocks his head to the side, lifts an eyebrow, and drifts his ethereal form close to Max. “We had a run in with him when we monitored a location he was interested in, near Amaranth. After he escaped when we tried to capture him, we got the help of the PDF and GAA to track him down to Perimeter. Then, we checked a number of sources and tracked him down to Precipice.”

Mavian uncomfortably twists his mouth and squirms slightly with a sigh. “Then, I lead them out here to you. So, sorry about that. I try to not make it a habit... But, Isaac being the Dark Lord Noxian and all made it the exception.”

Max nods understandingly to Mavian. Sebastian blinks as an idea jumps to the front of his mind, and he concentrates his full attention upon Max. “How DID Isaac know where to find you? Mavian told us he had notes and maps he was using to locate this place. Do you know where he got all that from?”

Aristespha’s very long ears twitch, and her violet eyes shift to focus upon Max. Slowly, Max meets Sebastian's gaze, sneers his upper lip, and grumbles loudly. “Oh, yes. I know exactly where he got it from. I know which idiot gave it to him, too.”

Flitting her eyes wide, Aristespha turns the rest of her body in the chair, leans closer, and asks. “Who?”

Max shakes his head, rolls his blue eyes, and growls. “Fucking Dawkins. That old fool decided to give Isaac the location to my store of notes hidden in the basement of the Grand Library Computer Science building.”

Shock and surprise radiate through Sebastian, Aristespha, Bach, Cideeda, Dretphi, and Sotalia. Mavian glances around at the reactions between everyone, and shrugs his shoulders nonchalantly. Aristespha attempts to start a sentence between the flurry of thoughts playing upon her ivory face. “I- Um- Ah- Oh my gods... I have to let Nash and Harvos know. It- Um- It explains so much.”

Lifting his brow curiously, Max frowns slightly. “I get the feeling there’s a little more to this story than I even know. Regardless...”

He settles back into the makeshift recliner and rubs his forehead. “As much as I respect Dawkins for what he’s accomplished, I’ve never been a fan of some of his methods and the routes he’d be willing to take to get the job done. Too much of him rubbed off on Isaac. Always digging too deep.”

Bach straightens his posture upon the couch, turns his gaze towards Max, and uneasily questions. “Like, for example, um... Orth Ridge?”

Max’s blue eyes grow wide as his mind processes the name. He draws in a long, deep breath, and grimaces sharply, and swallows harshly. He eases out his breath with a remorseful shake of the head. “Well, I think we do have a lot of notes to compare. But...”

He points towards the archway leading to the entry hall and glances to the team. “First things first. Let’s get you all settled in for the night. You should probably hide your vehicle next to my hover truck. There’s been some scavengers around lately, and you don’t want to leave anything obvious out there for them.”

Cideeda springs up from the couch, stretches out her arms and back, and steps towards the exit hall. “Yeah, I’ll take care of that.”

Walking behind Cideeda, Dretphi holds her sub machine gun at the ready and follows. “I will assist. Should not go alone.”

Max sits up partially, rubs his back, and motions towards the corridor leading down towards a dimly illuminated space. “Since you all will be staying the night, I might as well give you a tour of the place. It’s absolutely fascinating and it’ll be a good break from all this business.”

Aristespha stands up from her chair at the rough table, smiles appreciatively, and gazes towards the massive hall. “Thank you. That sounds nice.”

With a hint of eagerness slipping into pace, Sotalia joins up with Aristespha and smirks. “Well, I guess it’s not everyday you see one of the places that once help build THE SOURCE of today’s magic.”

Furrowing a suspicious brow, Aristespha narrows her violet eye stare at Sotalia and directs a scolding tinge to her tone. “No pocketing the ancient artifacts.”

Sotalia twists her mouth into a playful pout and rolls her golden eyes. “Fine...”

Max rocks himself forward of the recliner, steps over to another crate with a pile books and notes on top, and searches through the stack. “After the tour... and before we discuss too many other topics...”

He retrieves a photograph, pivots to the face Sebastian and Bach, and turns the image towards them. “Sebastian. Bach. If you could satisfy my curiosity about yourselves, I think I might be able to shine light upon some of Isaac’s activities.”

Sebastian and Bach study the picture. Both tilt their heads to side in utter bewilderment, as the two brothers gaze upon a photograph of the team in assembled in a familiar cavern around a massive pit with varied auras surrounding each member.

----

Sitting around a camp fire, four people in worn, ratty zone running gear converse between each other. A dirty, unkempt man bellows out laughing, chugs down his beer, and pitches the bottle into the surrounding night time darkness. “Fuck me, I still can’t believe you hacked that ancient bot’s leg clean off with that thing!”

With a crooked smile upon his scarred face, a brutish man snorts, proudly shows his machete, and rotates it slow. He gazes hungrily at the reflection upon the shiny blade surface, and plants the tip into the dirt nearby. “Nothing this blade can’t do! Best thing I ever found. Almost a shame that it didn’t help the corpse I pulled it off of.”

Scraping the bottom of a tin can, a conflict weathered woman shakes her head, groans out her frustrations, and points to the brute. “Yeah... But fuck! We won’t be able to go to town after that. Don’t know if shit canning that droid was worth pissing the locals off.”

Rolling his eyes, a man lounging upon a bedroll tilts his head over and sighs. “Well, too late now. Ah, to hell with that town anyway. I know a few camps to the north that are far better.”

Pointing to the man on the mat, the unkempt man nods in agreement, wipes his nose with his ragged sleeve, and coughs. “No shit! Precipice is nothing like it used to be. All these people moving in and bringing law and order. Fuck that! We all came out here to make some real riches!”

The weathered woman snorts, and rolls her eyes. “Yeah, you got that right. I mean they were starting to tax all our finds. For what? Roads? Water? Power? Defenses? Whatever. We never got to enjoy that crap most the time.”

From the shadows a cloaked figure nonchalantly approaches the group surrounding the fire. With each step faint noises of hydraulics and servos mix with the ambiance of the night time wilderness. After planting his heavy boots solidly into the ground, the figure straightens his posture nearby and cracks sinister grin upon his fire illuminated lower face. “Well... Well... Well... What do we have here on this fine night?”

The four people around the fire snap their full attention to the hooded figure and stare suspiciously. Slowly the quartet ready their grips around weapons, and the covered man chuckles darkly. “Oh, don’t worry. I’m just a humble traveler. And I just couldn’t resist your conversation about the local town nearby. Seems you’re not quite the fans of that place, and I just HAD to know more as I’m a bit curious myself.”

The dirty, unkempt man sneers his upper lip, twists the disdain up on his face, and spits off to the side. “Well, maybe we don’t want to talk to some random asshole wandering the zone. It’s pretty dangerous out here... Maybe you should fuck right off before something dangerous happens.”

A crooked grin grows across the scarred face of the brutish man, and he tightens the grip around his shiny blade. “He’s right you know. Really dangerous out here. Never know when something bad might happen to you. It might be a good idea to pay us to keep you safe out here. If you know what I mean.”

The hooded man draws a smug smirk on his face, slowly shakes his partially obscured head, and laughs loudly. “Oh. You see... You’ve made a very dangerous assumption that I’m out here all by my lonesome.”

From the darkness bordering the dim glow of the fire, large cloaked and covered figures step into the light. The glints of gun barrels, sheen of fine blades, and the illumination of charged energy weapons distract from the hint of electronic light upon the faces and bodies. The quartet freeze in place and nervously glance at the looming threats closing in on them. The hooded figure steps forward with heavy impressions into the ground, brushes off a log, and settles into a seat upon it. With an ill-humored grin, the man draws in a long, calming breath, exhales with a chuckle, and crosses his legs with faint sounds of hydraulics and servos. “How about we start all over. I simply want engage in a little trade.”

A sinister smile emerges on the cloaked mans visible face, and he cocks his head to the side. “Information about Precipice for your safety? I think that’s an equitable trade? Don’t you think?”

The quartet quickly asset the developing situation around them, as the details of the augmented persons around them become clearer in the wavering fire light. The dirty, unkempt man puts forth his most agreeable, awkward smile, and nods in pleading agreement. “Of course. Yeah. I mean. As far as I’m concerned, I think you’re the boss now. Yeah, um. So, what do you want to know, boss?”

Boss leans his face forward, taps the finger tips of his hands together, and grins wide in the glow of the campfire. “OH. I LIKE YOU. Someone who can immediately recognize their place and their superiors? You know my friend, if this exchange goes well, I might have an opening for you in my organization.”

----

In the large room of the ancient ruins, the team with Mavian and Max engage in an ongoing discussion over breakfast meals. Aristespha flips over a number of pages, and spots a paragraph upon a paper. Her violet eyes sort through the information, and her ivory face contorts as her tone wavers mid mental debate. “I don’t know... It’s just... This information certainly limits where we have to search. But... The amount time it’d take to properly survey the area, and we don’t even know exactly what we are looking for. It might be more prudent to chase down Isaac directly, while we can.”

Sebastian’s ethereal visage crosses his arms, and he sighs with a ghostly reverb. “Dear, as much as I want to confront him, I get the feeling we may have lost our ideal window. If we run into him out on the road, we’re liable to run into all kinds of trouble from the zone. And, I don’t think a showdown in Precipice would be all that great. That’d put the town at risk.”

Gritting her teeth, Sotalia tosses back her fiery orange, wavy hair, huffs loudly, and shakes her head. “So let’s get MOVING! If we catch him on the road, that’s outside of town and the same stuff dangerous in the zone is dangerous to him too!”

She exhales out her frustration and pours a long swig of coffee into her mouth, with an unhappy stare towards Sebastian. Cideeda bites into a piece of jerky, eases back into the couch cushion, and groans. “Yes, as if we have had any luck in an open fight with him yet. I’m all for tracking him down. But, we really need to stack all the odds in our favor. I’d say we start looking for this thing.”

Mavian glances between the debate while standing off the side with a mug of coffee. After a moment, he shrugs his shoulders, and comments. “He’s not going to go that fast right now. He doesn’t have a guide and he doesn’t think you guys are tracking him. At least, I never got that impression off of him.”

Dretphi nods in agreement, stirs up a bowl of oatmeal upon the rough coffee table in front of the couch, and narrows her eyes in thought. Drawing in a long breath, she twists her mouth and contemplates out loud. “That is one advantage we have. If we are careful, we could remain behind him. Stay out of his sight. Do not spook him. Figure out his first destination. Summon our allies. Entrap him.”

Staring at his cooling bowl of noodles, Bach’s eyes shift between passing thoughts and he frowns. “Okay, so... Why are we even going after him at this point?”

The group’s attention focuses upon Bach. After glancing around at the confused expressions, Bach shakes his head and groans in a mix of fatigue and frustration. “I mean... Let’s think about this. Noxian- Isaac isn’t leaving the area right now. We actually have a clue at what he’s planning on doing. And, this thirteenth access point to the Abstract Prism is where he believes he can do it.”

Lifting his head up, he draws in a long breath through his nose, straightens his back, and pans his gaze around the room. “Let’s say we find this thing. Maybe it doesn’t work. Great, we know exactly where he’s going to waste his time and we can get everyone we can to surround him. Maybe it’s barely functional? Okay, then we can either disable it, break it, or... whatever...”

He grits his teeth, rakes his fingers through his longer brown, white streaked head of hair, and grumbles loud. “I just don’t feel like he’s the biggest threat right now. This access point existing and possibly working is actually really fucking scary! Something like this shouldn’t be left around for... anyone.”

Max flits his eyes wide, levels an understanding stare towards Bach across the rough table, and nods slowly. “I agree. Truthfully, that’s one of the reasons I remained out here for so long. I couldn’t decide whether to burn it all or just seal it away deeper. I don’t want to destroy knowledge, but this... This I’m almost willing to make an exception for.”

Folding the folio of papers neatly closed, Aristespha sighs with a frown, pats her hand upon the bundle, and shakes her head. “The more I think about it, the more it worries me. I don’t know if anyone else needs to know such a thing could exist. Not even the Grand Library.”

Sebastian blinks blankly, stares in genuine surprise at Aristespha, and eventually arrives to a thoughtful, quiet nod. Bach shakes his head, rubs the back of his neck uncomfortably, and grits his teeth briefly. “Just another thought... Probably not likely... But, maybe there’s enough power left in this supposed thing to satisfy the sword and get Sebastian out. See if the sword can drain it completely of power afterwards, or we can figure out how to shut it down for good.”

He gazes towards Sebastian with a faint hint of hope in his smirk. “It’s ancient site of power. Maybe there’s enough for you still stored in it.”

Sebastian searches his mind, crosses his arms, and cocks his head to the side. “To be honest, bro... At this point, if I can get out of his sword into my body, and Noxian can’t fuck magic for everyone in Nexus... I'm ready to never care about Noxian or this damned sword.”

Contorting her face through conflicting emotions, Sotalia squirms against the archway leading to the inside corridor, grips her coffee mug tightly, and frowns heavy with reluctance. “That would... Work for me.”

She points the cup towards Bach, cracks a smirk, and snorts. “I still think we should not lose track of him. And, I don’t want to lose out a good chance to get him if it happens.”

A smile graces Aristespha face, and she raps her finger tips upon the folio. “Thinking about it... If we are going to try to find this aether access point, I know someone who could assist us. It might take some effort to find where he is exactly.”

Cideeda’s furry ear flicks towards the archway leading towards the exit corridor. Her emerald green eyes grow wide. Darting her eyes to everyone else in the room, she subtly signals towards the dark hallway and slowly removes her laser pistol from the hostler. “That’s sounds good. But, we should CHECK on the humvee first, and go OUTSIDE.”

In the tense moments, everyone maintains the facade of their idle activities while they gradually ready themselves. Cideeda’s ear twitches. She snaps her emerald green eyed gaze through archway, drops low upon the couch, and trains her laser pistol to a dark shape. “DON’T MOVE!”

The figure darts down the hallway loudly. Dretphi charges forward down the corridor with Cideeda scrambling up behind. Sebastian zips down the hallway. Sotalia rushes up to the archway and growls behind. “I thought you put that lock back together Bach!”

Bach runs up next to Sotalia. “I did! I put it back the way it was-”

His blue eyes flit widen, and he points out the ajar metal security door coming into view to Sotalia. “SHUT THE DOOR!”

Her golden eyes finding the target, Sotalia quickly gestures out an incantation, summons up the magic flow, and flings her arms forward. A rush of transparent energy flies out from her arms, arcs over Cideeda, Dretphi, Sebastian, and the darkened figure. It splashes upon the door, slamming it shut. The figure scrambles in panic against the handle of the doorway, and vainly jerks against the binding magical energies. In the next few seconds, he lifts his head, blinks to a growing terror, and pivots slowly to witness the last part of Dretphi’s charge into full body shoulder check.

A loud metallic crash echoes through the corridor, punctuated by the pitiful yelp of air forced out of lungs. The figure peels off the metal mesh of the security door, and flops onto the floor in a stupor. Dretphi pins him to the ground and Cideeda’s laser pistol drains the remaining fight out of the thin, cloaked man. Dretphi pulls off the covering garment and reveals a younger man with traces of cybernetics. She locks her glare up the prominent Red Gear symbol tattooed on his bare shoulder, and spits out furious string of curses in grath.

When the rest of the team surrounds and secures, Sebastian hovers over, points to the ruin exit, and silently flies through the security door. Zipping through the remainder of the hallway towards the morning light, Sebastian peeks his head out. His transparent visage pales. Along a distant path, squads of cloaked soldiers upon trucks and quad bikes ride forward, the Red Gear logo occasionally visible upon vehicle and person alike.

-103-

The team debates in the large room of the ruins. Dretphi secures a red shoulder armor plate, glances down at the bound Red Gear scout, and tightens the rope around him. Sebastian’s ethereal visage hovers the middle of the discussion, and sighs grimly. “We HAVE to warn Precipice. They need to get armed and evacuate.”

Aristespha rubs her blue and gray hinted temples, and tightly blinks her violet eyes. “We may have time, but it may not be much if we can’t outpace them.”

Walking in from the hallway, Cideeda slowly shakes her head, raps her claw tips on the chassis of radio in her hand, and grumbles. “No fucking luck. Too much interference to get anything out.”

Mavian follows in behind her, blinks his faintly glowing green eyes, and frowns. “Yeah, I can’t even get anyone locally.”

Sebastian glances over and lifts a curious brow. “Interference from the zone or them?”

Cideeda and Mavian exchange pondering gazes. Mavian shrugs his shoulders. “Both? It’s hard to tell.”

Placing her radio back into her vest, Cideeda rests her hands on her hips, and grimaces. “Yeah. Either way, we’re not getting anything out from here.”

Sotalia grits her teeth, crosses her arms, and rests her head of fiery orange, wavy hair against a wall. “Okay... So, anyone got any idea on how we are getting the fuck out of here?”

Nodding in agreement with Sotalia, Sebastian searches between the team. “Yeah, what do we have to work with?”

Bach twists his mouth, searches his mind with his blue eyes, and ponders out loud. “Okay... So, are there any other routes we can take that we can use the humvee? We have to go faster than them... Somehow.”

Lowering his head down, Mavian mulls as he stares distantly at the stonework floor. “I... Um... I don’t think so. The Red Gears are using THE best route. Anything else would take a lot longer and be really dangerous.”

Dretphi perks her brow inquisitively and tilts her head of platinum blonde, braided hair. “Viable routes on foot?”

Mavian pauses a moment and nods slowly while combating hesitation. “Yes. They are far from ideal, but could work. It’d be fucking dangerous to rush through, and I don’t know how much time it’d buy us.”

He glances up with a hopeful smirk. “Maybe we’d get a window to get a radio call out and warn everyone.”

Hesitation spreads, and uncertainty twist faces as the seconds pass. Straightening his posture in a chair at the rough table, Max cocks his head and glances around to the team. “Would my hover truck help here?”

Mavian perks up, crosses his arms, and darts his eyes through his thoughts. With growing attention from the team, he dons a reserved smile. “Yeah... It can.”

He nods his head down, strokes his chin, and grins hopefully. “I’ve never thought of it as viable route to cut through, but... The Blue Fields. It’s impassable on foot because it is packed with ground anomalies and arc flowers. But, we won’t touch the ground. Once we get past it, there’s an almost direct shot to Precipice.”

Sotalia smirks boldly, lifts an eyebrow, and rests her hands on her hips. “Sounds good enough to me.”

Cideeda frowns and sighs through a grimace. Dretphi glances down. “What is wrong?”

Rolling her emerald green eyes, Cideeda waves off the concern with a tug at the corner of her mouth. “It’s fine. I’d hate to leave the humvee here. But, we don’t have a choice.”

Bach turns his head towards Cideeda, smiles reassuringly, and motions towards the outside. “I think we can come up with some illusion magic to go with the camouflage. These guys seem to be about the tech. We haven’t run into a Red Gear mage.”

Cideeda’s furry ears perk up, and a toothy grin appears on her face. “That’s right.”

Dretphi nods in agreement. “Yes. Red Gears are hesitant to use magic. Doubt they would detect an illusion.”

She thinks briefly and twists her mouth. “Take what you can, as a precaution.”

Sebastian assesses reactions and dons a proud grin. “Sounds as good of a plan as we’re going to have.”

He motions towards the hallways leading towards the exit. “Okay. Grab your gear, load up, and let’s move.”

As everyone gathers belongings, Sebastian glances down at the bound and gagged Red Gear scout, and quirks his brow at Dretphi. “So, what do you want to do with him?”

Dretphi glares down at the subdued cyborg, maintains a stoic tone, and cracks a faint smirk. “Bring in as proof. Question if cooperative. Otherwise if not.”

Sebastian grants a single nod, drifts towards the exit corridor, and signals the team. “Okay, I’ll keep a lookout. Keep it quiet until we are clear.”

The team sneaks out to the parked hover truck. They coordinate swift efforts to transfer gear to the open bed, while Max and Cideeda prepare the vehicle. Aristespha, Bach, and Sotalia gather around the humvee. With incantations, gestures, and flows of energy, the humvee blends into the background and a visage matching the surrounding terrain forms. Seconds later, the outline of the humvee fades into a fitting formation of rock, weathered brick wall, and dirt. Cideeda reaches her arm out the truck cab, directs the key fob at the obfuscated humvee, and presses the lock button.

The team seat themselves along the sides of the bed. Dretphi carefully lifts up the last bit of her gear. She glares down at the tied up Red Gear scout. With a mean smirk cracking, she hoists up the prisoner by shirt collar and waistline, and flops the captive in. As the scout tries to grumble through his gag, Dretphi hops up, glowers him into silence, and closes up the tailgate.

A low hum radiates from the truck as the front console lights up. Max toggles a bank of switches, and the landing gear flips up into the chassis. The vehicle drops slightly, hovers up, and stabilizes a meter off the ground. Max softly directs his voice out the back window of the cab, and motions towards the scenery in front. “Okay. We’re ready... How are we doing this?”

Sebastian’s ethereal form surveys the team. “Is stealth even an option at this point?”

With an uneasy frown, Aristespha shakes her head and brushes back her silvery blue hair. “Sorry, Sebastian. I don’t think we have a spell that can hide something this large while moving.”

Cideeda glances back with a toothy grin. “I say fuck it and go fast. They have to roll. We don’t.”

Mavian nods in agreement. “We get to the Blue Fields, they won’t follow after us.”

Bach furrows his brow, and tilts his head. “What if they try?”

Mavian blinks his faintly glowing green eyes, and cringes. “Their funeral.”

Sebastian assesses expressions, turns to Max, and grins. “Punch it.”

With an eager smirk, Max throttles up the powerplant, secures his safety harness, and grips the controls. “Hold on to your asses.”

The hover truck coasts out into the open, steers around ancient architectural leftovers into a straight passage, and accelerates. It speeds down a long stretch and zips over low shrubs. The wind stirs around the back bed, tosses hair around, and ripples around clothing. Tall grasses blur by with sporadic trees. Mavian points towards a destination in distance, while Max steers and Cideeda monitors the front console. A tentative calm settles as the squad maintains a watch. Seconds pass into a minutes. Hints of hope rise.

A chorus of engines drone louder with each moment, and shatter the hesitant silence. Three fast assault quads race through brush, trees, and terrain. They close the distance. Sebastian calls out to the cab. “Can we go any faster?!”

Max grits his teeth, and shakes his head. “This is about as fast as it goes at this height and weight.”

Squinting his faintly glowing green eyes into the distance, Mavian points out to a long hill line. “If we can go over that ridge, we’re good! Just need to hold out-”

Pops and cracks echo out, and metallic plunks ring. The team sinks low into the bed of the hover truck. Another barrage of gunfire fills the air with an aggressive cacophony of nearby wood splintering, leaves shredding, and steel puncturing. Dretphi deploys her energy shield, kneels defensively, and ushers the team in her shadow. Gunners on the quads balances themselves when the vehicles navigate a flat stretch, line up their sub machine guns, and squeeze bursts of lead. Rounds spark on the energy shield, bounce off the red plates of Dretphi’s armor, and impact the chassis of the truck. A loud pop rattles the vehicle, and it dips low to the ground with a trail of smoke venting out from underneath.

Cideeda yells out. “A repulsor got hit!”

Dretphi grits her teeth underneath her full face visor, and peers out with her steely gray eyes. “They are reloading!”

Sebastian points to Aristespha and Sotalia. “Barriers!”

Aristespha and Sotalia quickly gesture out incantations, sit up, and fling out fields of magical flow. Layers of protective energies bubble into hemispheres anchored to the back of the hover truck. Sebastian glances over to Bach then Cideeda. “Bro, you and Cideeda see what you can do to keep this thing up and running!”

Cideeda deftly slips out the back window, scrambles next to Bach, and taps the side of the bed. “The damaged repulsor is right here! Open it up!”

Bach nods, blinks his eyes to a bright blue glow, and presses his hands upon the vehicle. As bullets deflect off the barriers, flows of magical energy sink into the metal, and condense into a glowing square. A newly cut panel hinges down into the bed, and a plume of smoke vents out. Cideeda angles her emerald gaze into the space, and inspects the smoldering, sputtering unit. After more arcs, another gout of black smoke erupts out, and Cideeda grits her teeth. She spouts out a few fvalian curses, and shakes her head. “Shit! It took a direct hit. The coils are frying from the load. It’s not fixable right now.”

Frantically searching through his mind, Bach grimaces in flit of panic. A realization arrives with a blink of his glowing blue eyes, and he cocks his head to peer inside the vehicle cavity. “Where’s the power lines?”

Cideeda directs Bach’s attention with a claw tip. “There. Why?”

Bach cracks a hint of confidence. “Got an idea!”

An eager smile appears on Cideeda’s face. Drawing in a long breath, Bach presses his hands tightly upon the hover truck. A surge of prismatic magical flow erupts out, radiates through the vehicle, and condenses into the cavity. As the torrent of energy continues, ethereal mechanisms materialize with developing complexity, and anchor to the frame of the hover truck. Bach winces sharply, grits his teeth, and growls out. “Dammit! I just need some more energy to speed this up.”

Cideeda’s furry ears perk up, and she spins her attention to Sotalia. “Sotalia! We need you here!”

Sotalia grimaces as she keeps herself steady between the hard banks and turns following Mavian’s directions to Max. “Little busy blocking bullets!”

A solid, large rifle bolt locks into place, and Dretphi props her rifle up upon the tailgate. Both Aristespha and Sotalia notice the firepower, exchange glances, and twist barrier energies into a small gap for the barrel. In a clear valley run, Dretphi lines up her shot, and squeezes the trigger. Waves of pressure ripple across the magical barrier and a plume of gases vent out after the slug leaves the rifle barrel. The head quad lurches. Sparks and shrapnel blast out from the small engine, as the wheels seize to the grating rattle of shredding metal. The two side assault vehicle swerve out of the way and fall back. Dretphi opens the bolt, and glances over to Sotalia. “Hurry!”

Aristespha grants a quick nod as her magical flows mix with Sotalia’s. Quickly sliding over, Sotalia glances at Bach. “What do you need?!”

Bach winces and grits his teeth. “Energy.”

Without hesitation, Sotalia places her hands on Bach’s and directs a swirling torrent of flow. The magical machinery materializes faster. The final threads weave into the power lines of the repulsor unit. Sotalia glances over to the construction, and cocks her head to Bach. “What are you doing?”

Bach weakly grins and shrugs his shoulders as he pants. “It’s um... Like the uh... Hover Disc spell.”

Sotalia flits her golden eyes wide, snaps her gaze over, and watches as the solidified magical energy erupts to shining life. The hover truck rises up to stable altitude. Bach lays down on the truck bed and catches his breath. Cideeda lightly squeezes Bach’s forearm, and grins to him before rushing back into the cab. Sotalia scoots over to her position, and resumes her flows into the barrier. Dretphi mutters grath curses as the two assault quads dart around the landscape. She pulls her rifle back as the barrier repels another barrage of sub machine gun fire, and shakes her head. “No clear shot!”

Mavian calls back and points ahead. “It won’t matter soon!”

The hover truck ramps up the hill. Crossing the crest, it glides down the slope and coasts over a vast, horizon stretching field of short flower covered shrubs. In the momentary peace, the team stares out into the wind swept field of iridescent blue splotches, and stare in awe. Snapping back to awareness, Cideeda sniffs the air, flicks her furry ears, and her emerald green eyes widen in discomfort.

Revving up loudly, the two assault quads launch themselves over the top of the hill, and land into the field of flowers. As their tires roll over each plant, static sparks out. The two vehicle speed deeper in and approach a thick patch with traces of wavering energy reaching out. Mavian winces his eyes closed, and turns his face. “You might want to close your eyes! This isn’t going to be pretty!”

As team heeds the advice, arcs of electricity erupt along the ground from the distance down ethereal conduits. In a brilliant flash, energy surges to a central point. A thunderous boom erupts out with the hammering roar of current arcing chaotically and a gout of plasma bursts up.

Molten quads tumble, and charred remains flop into smoldering piles, with the snaps and pops of cooling cybernetics.

The hover truck coasts above the sea of patchy blue towards Precipice.

----

People rush around the center of town between buildings. A light recon vehicle speeds down a side street filled with armed Borderland Rangers. Citizens hurry down sidewalks carrying belongings aboard into a convoy of hauler trucks. A chorus of large engines roar as a small fleet of earth movers pull, drag, and hoist up flat sections of old concrete and massive panels of rusted steel from the junkyard. Around the divide between the inner city and sparser outskirts, crews of workers guide the pieces into a defensive wall. A militia captain over a loudspeaker instructs armed people about the current plan while pointing to a map of the town.

Mavian gazes down the street, listens for a moment, and sighs uneasily. He glances up at the starless late night sky, searches the dark haze above, and the pushes the main door to the Precipice Inn & Tavern. Inside Elissia drops off plate after plate of food to zone runners seated at the bar. Aggie climbs up downwards stairs beyond a dusty doorway, brushes her hands off on her pants, and smiles towards the bar. “Thank you all again for clearing that old surge shelter. Should be able to fit a few people down there while we wait for evac.”

One of the hooded figures in protective gear points to Aggie in the middle of scooping up food into his mouth. “Not a problem. Just be sure you all and your boys are on the next convoy out of town when they secure the path.”

Aggie smirks to the man and walks towards Mavian. “Don’t worry about us. Just make sure we have a place to go to.”

She stops in front of Mavian and frowns slightly. “Any updates?”

Scratching the back of his head of wild brown hair, Mavian grimaces. “The rangers are getting organized to secure the evac route when the time comes. Scouts predict the Red Gears are going to get here by tomorrow, since they’re pushing through the night.”

He dons a hopeful smile. “But, PDF has been contacted and they’re trying to get out here. And... Vukasin is coming. It’ll take them awhile since they’re not used to the zone.”

Aggie draws in a long breath through her nose, smirks with a nod, and gazes over the main room. “That’s some good news. If we can hold them off, they probably won’t be able to stick around long.”

Elissia carries large carafe out to the larger table in room, sets it down in front of Aristespha, and cleans up a few plates. Aristespha picks up the container, pours herself a cup, and fills up Sotalia’s mug when she slides it over. Soft snores escape from Bach as he slumbers with his head resting upon his crossed arms. Dretphi glances over from her watch near a front window, checks the team, and lifts an inquiring brow towards Cideeda. Sorting through a few settings on her aetherphone, Cideeda gazes up, twist her mouth uncertainly, and droops her furry ears. “Nothing new.”

Noticing attention from Cideeda and Dretphi between a long swig of coffee, Aristespha rest her hand on the sword at her side and blinks her eyes to a faint violet glow. Moments later, she shakes her head. “Sebastian hasn’t seen anything new.”

Max finishes up his meal, and furrows his brow towards the team. “Certain you all don’t want on the first convoy out?”

Aristespha dons an appreciative, tired smile. “Yes. Thank you, but we need to do what we can here.”

With nod, Max draws in a long breath and smirks. “Okay. Well... Look for me when the second convoy gathers, because I’ll be looking for you all.”

The group shares a moment of silent gratitude, and quietly contemplate as distant thunder seeps in.

----

Within a sparse section of forest and between assault quads and an armored truck, a dozen people with cybernetics and heavy weaponry watch a wide, established roadway. The rain surges down in a torrent and pushes through the canopy. A man walks over to another with far more apparent cybernetic modification and speaks above the surrounding drone. “You sure Boss doesn’t want us to trap the road out of town? We can fucking shut this shit down real quick.”

The decorated Red Gear glances over, returns his attention back to the road, and shakes his head. “No. Boss was clear. We wait here. When they get ready to run, they’ll send out a patrol to clear the route out. We let them pass. They’ll think it’s clear and send out the first convoy. THEN... We fuck that shit up.”

The underling shrugs his shoulders with a faint mechanical whine, and snorts with an evil grin. “Yeah. I see what he’s going for. Take some hostages, kill a few to let them know we’re serious, and leverage the rest of the town to give up?”

The commanding Red Gear nods with a sinister smirk, and crosses his augmented arms. “Pretty much. Make sure we hit them hard where it hurts, and they won’t have time to come up with some other plan.”

Other man straightens up his posture, pats his machine gun, and cracks a mean smile. “How many do we kill versus keep?”

Rocking his head side to side, the decorated gear twists his mouth indecisively. “Make examples of anyone who fights back. We’ll go from there. Boss wants as many workers as possible.”

The lesser gear nods in agreement, glances around the surrounding forest, and chuckles. “Yeah, need some peons to get this operation running right.”

From the darkness between two larger trunks, a pair of eyes flicker to a bright white and narrow angrily. The underling blinks, focuses his stare out into the trees, and lifts up his machine gun. He motions up a hand signal, slowly approaches the perimeter of the encampment. Seconds pass as others watch expectantly. The lesser gear scans out into the woods, trains his stare upon a different points, and relaxes. He pivots around, waves off the concern, and laughs. “Sorry! Must have been some weird zone shit and the rain. Thought I saw some glowing eyes-”

A translucent energy whips around the man, and he launches backwards into darkness. A machine gun pounds out rounds and muzzle flashes scatter light between the trees. Troopers freeze in place when panicked screams echo. A bright white glow bursts out from the shadows. In the seconds of silence, Red Gears exchange worried glances, peer into the stormy darkness, and aim weapons. Just as bewilderment matches concern, a smoldering mass of metal and bioelectronics splats into the middle of the encampment. Fright pulls triggers.

Weapons burst out into the surrounding forest as the commanding Red Gear barks orders. Individual troopers panic fire at random as the storm rages on and dumps a blinding deluge. A pair of bright white eyes flash out. Tentacles of energy spear out from beyond, envelop limbs, and violently drag people away. Screams, gunfire, servos straining, and snaps blend to a chaotic cocktail of terror when Red Gears lose their grip onto earth or steel. Bright white flashes erupt and ignite the mists in blinding blasts. The decorated Red Gear, retrieves a hand held radio unit, and keys it up. Only twisted static punctuated by crackles of matching lightning in the distance answer back after each vain attempt to call.

Gritting his teeth, the decorated Red Gear stands up with a ring pin around his finger and a grenade in his other hand. He searches darkness, spots white eyes, and opens his mouth to a defiant yell. A pure white lance of energy floods the clearing in a blinding light. The commanding gear remains still while his expression fades. Wisps of smoke escape his slacking jaw. Faint sizzles creep into the background noise as the rainfall wanes. The wind blows into the smoldering, seared tunnel through his chest. He tips back, splashes upon the flooded mud, and releases the grenade spoon.

Remaining troops rush clear as an explosion peppers the area in shrapnel. Dazed Red Gears scramble for cover near quads. One man scrambles up into the cab of the armored truck, and starts the vehicle. A pair of cold, glowing eyes from the darkness glare. A brilliant flash of white engulfs the hazy air within the encampment. Sizzles of molten slag dripping from the underside of the truck replaces the rumble of combustion. Smoke billows through a glowing, steaming hole through the engine block. Whips of translucent energy spring out, snare remaining soldiers, and yank them free from cover. Panicked blasts of machines guns and heavy rifles rip through the trees and brush, and silence under flashes of pure white energy.

An eerie silence looms over as the rain fades. Faint splashes sound out. From the darkness a thin man steps. He slowly surveys the devastation under the sparse forest canopy. His wispy hair flutters in a constant updraft of energy along with the tails of the blue scarf covering his face.

Noxian blinks his cold, bright white, glowing eyes, and frowns underneath the fabric.

----

Underneath the stormy, gray skies, people maintain watch from behind a perimeter of junk concrete and steel, and train weapons towards a distant line up of Red Gears troops and vehicles. Within the wide alley of a row of buildings, Aristespha coordinates between others in a field hospital. She places her hand upon the sword at her side, feels the faint vibrations, and twists her mouth uncomfortably. Beside her Sebastian materializes, glances down at the sword, and shares a similar expression. “I don’t know either, dear.”

He cracks a hopeful smirk and motions towards the front line a few block away. “Maybe he’s cleaning up some trouble.”

Aristespha shakes her head with a faint smile. “That’d be nice. I doubt he’d be too cooperative with them.”

On a store rooftop, Dretphi patiently pans the scope of her rifle out, and scans the horizon. Sotalia walks along the protective perimeter. She spots a large man with a sword on his back, a woman in elegant robes, and an emin woman with pistols at her sides. A faint smile appears on her face, and she steps up to the line. Settling into an empty space between the group, she gazes over to Omaron, and smirks. “Well, fancy seeing you all here.”

Omaron lowers the binoculars from his eyes, glances over, and chuckles with a small grin. “It’s good to see you, too. Quite the trouble your team found.”

Sotalia tosses back her fiery orange, wavy hair, snorts with a shake of her head, and peers out into the distance. “Yeah. We were lucky to get back yesterday before they got here.”

She pauses a moment, searches between the familiar gathering, and smiles hopefully. “Mind if I join you all here? If I’m going to fight here, I’d really like to be next to people I know.”

Omaron grins, chuckles as he lifts up his binoculars, and sighs. “Of course. I’m certainly not going to turn down more firepower with us.”

Precella quirks her brow, dons smug smirk, and snorts. “Hope you’re still in practice with those spells of yours. Hate for you linger behind.”

With twist in the corner of her mouth, Sotalia grins proudly, stretches out her arms, and settles into a ready position. “Oh, please. Just don’t make me have to wait for you to catch up.”

Down the main street, Bach stands and observes the activity surrounding him. He darts his attention between the Aristespha and Drekkalin down the alley field hospital, Dretphi’s barrel barely peeking out above, and Sotalia at the front line. He scratches the back of his head, and wanders his focus in an uncertain gaze. He startles when he feels a familiar five claw tips lightly press on his forearm, and he glances down at Cideeda’s emerald green eyes. “Oh! Hey... Um, how it’s going? I, uh...”

Cideeda cocks her head to the side, gazes up to Bach, and frowns with hints of concern. “You okay? You’ve been standing here the past fifteen minutes, looking really confused.”

Bach grits his teeth, droops his head down, and nods regretfully. “Y-yeah. I don’t know what to do right now. I know I can be useful... But, I don’t think here, right now? Um...”

A warm smile appears on Cideeda’s light brown face, and she gently tugs Bach arm towards the center of town. “You can come with me. I’m going help make sure the convoy trucks will make it to the evac point. I could use someone who can fashion parts for me.”

Bach smirks appreciatively, and follows Cideeda. “Yeah, that I can do. Thanks.”

Cideeda leads Bach down the main road towards the center of town, away from building tension of the front line.

----

Inside the Precipice Inn & Tavern, Aggie directs another group of civilians into the surge shelter. “Down here. I’ve set up some food and water. So, eat up and rest for now.”

When they descend down, she pauses a moment, glances over at the reinforced door frame, and places her hand on it. After a series of gestures with her free hand and incantations under her breath, a flow of magical energy glides over the structure and illuminates faint arcane symbols. Once the glow fades from her brown eyes, she releases a tense sigh. Stepping down from upstairs in heavy boots, Elissia brushes bits of lint and futz off her suit of soft armor, adjusts the carrying strap for her shotgun, and walks over to Aggie. Pausing moment, Aggie gazes over Elissia, cracks a loving smirk, and rests her hands on her hips. “Gods, it’s been a long time.”

Elissia smiles with hints of pride on her light gray, blue hued skin, and rolls her bright violet on black eyes. “It has. Unfortunately, the pants have shrunk for some reason...”

A humored grin appears on Aggie’s sun tanned face, and she shakes her head of curly black hair. “Don’t feel too bad. I couldn’t even get the pants on from my old battle mage gear... Since they had shrunk so much.”

Checking the ties on her dark blue, braided hair, Elissia giggles softly, steps next to Aggie, and kisses her on the cheek. “Amazing how old clothes from your youth do that.”

The front door opens. An older man and woman step in with Suzie in front of them. Aggie smiles with relief, and walks up. “Todd, April, and Suzie... Gods, I’m so glad you’re all safe.”

Todd presents a worn smile to Aggie and nods. “Thanks for having us.”

Aggie motions over towards the stairwell, and leads the three over. “It’s no problem.”

Suzie glances around the main room of the establishment, and gazes up with concern to Aggie. “Where is Cedric and Ryos?”

With a bright smile, Aggie points towards the stairs leading into the shelter. “They’re already down in the shelter. They found some old board games, and I think they’ll want you to play.”

With a spring to her step, Suzie excitedly slides her small backpack off, and opens it. “Did you hear that, Mr. Ishy! You like playing old games...”

Rummaging with fright in her eyes, she snaps her attention to the doorway and tries to rush over. “Mr. Ishy is not here! He must have fallen out!”

Both Todd and April secure their daughter and hold her back. April kneels down in front of with a motherly tone. “Suzie. Listen. It will be okay. Mr. Ishy will be fine. We will find him later.”

Hearing the sobs and cries, Amos steps over from a table in the main room, nods to everyone, and squats down to gaze at Suzie with his optics. Presenting a confident grin on his facial displays, he projects a reassuring tone and bows slightly. “Suzie, you have my word I will find Ishmael for you. He’s my friend, too. I will make sure he is safe.”

Slowing to sniffle, Suzie glances to all the reassuring adults, musters up a hopeful smile, and nods. “O-okay... Thank you, Mr. Amos.”

She reaches her arms around, and gives Amos as big of a hug as she can. While a gentle pat of his robotic hand, Amos directs Suzie to follow her parents down into the shelter. April and Todd smile gratefully to Amos. As April leads Suzie down into the shelter, Todd hangs back and waits. He inquires quietly towards Aggie and Elissia. “Have you heard anything from Miss Reena?”

Elissia grants a reassuring smile to Todd. “Not recently. But, I wouldn’t worry about her. She’s capable of taking care of herself.”

With a final nod, Todd goes down into the shelter. Seconds later, Elissia leans close and whispers to Aggie. “Gods, the stories from that woman after a few drinks about her days as an Appaland sniper...”

Aggie tightens her smile into a faint grimace, and gazes back at Elissia. “Gods, I’d hate to be a Red Gear right now. That area around the school must be a kill zone right now.”

Elissia smirks briefly and notices Amos walking towards the front door. She rushes over, pulls out a pistol from her back pocket, and presents it. “Amos, take this. I don’t want you going out there without something. You know how to use this, right?”

Amos glances down at the weapon, cautiously takes it, and focuses his optics upon it. In a quick series of precise and calculated actions, he inspects, checks, and assesses the pistol thoroughly. Checking the safety, he performs a series of twirls with handgun in his robotic hand, and holsters it with a flourish into an empty, dedicated spot in his duster. He projects a confident smile on his face, and nods to Elissia. “Thank you very much. I’ll return when I’m done.”

Elissia quirks her brow curiously, and cracks an amused smirk. Amos shrugs his mechanical shoulders, and synthetically chuckles. “Well, I think we all have our pasts in this town.”

With a nod, Elissia pushes open the door, and Amos exists quickly into the eerie silence of the dark gray day. Standing in front of the Precipice Inn & Tavern, he slowly scans the area, and settles his focus upon the muddy ground. His optics sort through the chaos on the ground, and his metal head perks. From the layers of foot traffic, his sensors follow a set of small, short gait tracks emerging from the front of the establishment and traveling in sprints down the street.

Amos pivots, and quickly walks down the trail. Building after building, he follows the route. Near the end, he aims his attention towards an alley, spots a small robotic doll peeking out, and rushes over. “Ishmael! What the hell are you doing?”

Ishmael freezes in place, turns his simple face around, and yells out. “Trying to save this town!”

Cocking his head to the side, Amos squats down next to Ishmael. “How do you propose to do that?”

Contorting his cloth, doll face, Ishmael sighs with faint ethereal reverberation and shakes his head. “It’d take too long to explain. But, I need to find Bach.”

Amos glances towards a direction and points. “I believe I saw Cideeda and Bach near the convoy checking vehicles.”

Ishmael snaps head up to Amos reaches his soft, cloth arms up. “Take me to him! PLEASE!”

Amos hesitates a moment, processes flits of confusion, and stares. After a moment of silent communication, he scoops up Ishmael into his arm, stands up, and runs. Speeding through the alleys between buildings, weaving through crowds, and darting around obstacles, the two arrive at the forming convoy. Amos spots Cideeda giving a thumbs up to the driver of a hauler truck. Bach steps away, flings excess grease off his hands, and stands next to Cideeda. The engine of the truck sputters to life, and rangers cheer as they board. Amos rushes over to Bach and Cideeda, and presents Ishmael. “My friend would like a word with you, Bach.”

Bach and Cideeda exchange confused glances. Ishmael gestures out his explanation and points to Bach. “Without going into details, there’s something in the junkyard that will help defend this town. But, I need YOU to help me to get it working.”

Uncertainly shrugging his shoulders, Bach blinks and cocks his head. “Okay. Um. Yeah. I don’t know why you need me specifically, but... We’ll check it out after we’re-”

Large rifle reports echo out, magical energies resonate, and bursts of small arms fire spread from the distance. Leaders of the convoy yell out orders, and the chain of vehicles roll out. Cideeda gazes up to Bach. “I think we’re done here. Let’s check this out.”

With a nod from Bach, the group rushes down the road towards the junkyard.

----

Thunder rolls overhead, and Amos, Ishmael, Cideeda, and Bach navigate through the towering piles of scrap metal and paths of packed down liter. Ishmael waves his simple cloth arms while in Amos’s grip, and motions down to the ground. “Here! It’s right here.”

Amos, Bach, and Cideeda exchange equally perplexed glances. Cideeda perks her furry ears, scans the vicinity with her emerald green eyes, and tilts her head at Ishmael. “Okay, what’s here?”

Ishmael blinks his robotic doll eyes, straightens himself up in Amos’s arm, and sighs. “Buried under here is a mostly intact Vukasin mech from the Red Gear Uprising era.”

He glances between the incredulous stares coming from Amos, Bach, and Cideeda. Furrowing her brow, Cideeda crosses her arms, lowers her furry ears, and growls out. “Well THAT would have been helpful to know maybe a WEEK ago! The town is getting attacked NOW. What the hell do you expect us to do?!”

Amos glances down at Ishmael, cocks his head, and grumbles electronically. “She has a really good point. I fail to see how an mech underground is going to help us out.”

Ishmael rolls his eyes, snaps his head over to stare at Bach, and points his cloth arm out. “That’s why I NEED HIM!”

Bach blinks dumbfounded, and darts his eyes around awkwardly. “Uh, okay. How am I suppose to help here?”

Narrowing his glare upon Bach, Ishmael rolls his eyes and groans with faint ethereal reverb. “You have THE POWER that I need and can use efficiently.”

With shock rushing into his face, Bach opens his blue eyes wide, reflexively steps back, and nervously chuckles. “Um- Uh- What do you mean by that-”

Ishmael yells out with a voice larger than his toy form. “ELDER ENERGY! You have it! I need it!”

Watching the mix of confusion and worry, he grumbles, face palms, and shakes his head. “Wait. This will make it easier explain.”

The robotic doll in Amos’s arm goes limp and an ethereal vapor plumes out. Condensing into a hovering entity of translucent angular shapes and transparent geometric arrangements, the cloud of energy and light drifts out in between the group. With an echoing tone, a voice emits from the being. “Without wasting any more time, I call myself Ishmael. But, I am an anima. A magic entity formed from technology with the ability to manipulate technology.”

Ishmael’s true form shifts and reconfigures as it drifts close to Bach. “You have Elder Energy. I sense it. This mech can be raised and activated, but we have to work together. Your power, my control, and we save this town.”

Bach stares frightfully at Ishmael, steps back again, and nervously sputters back. “O-o-kay... This is a lot to process the moment. Um...”

Taking a few calming breaths, he collects his thoughts and musters up his courage. “So, what you are asking me to do... Is willingly give some strange entity I barely know a form of ridiculously dangerous power... In hopes that it will be used to bring a war machine from past up to defend the town... And expect it won’t do anything else with that, at great personal risk to myself. Is that right?”

Flows of illumination flit through layers of angular, ethereal pathways within Ishmael’s form, and he sounds out. “Yes. That summarizes it, for all practical purposes.”

Bach grits his teeth, straightens his posture, and slowly shakes his head. “Yeah, I don’t think that’s terribly great idea, right now. We really should be helping out in ways that don’t risk more-”

Flashing his ghostly form brighter, Ishmael calms his tone and sternly relays. “I know this all sudden. I know this is a lot. But, we don’t have time for this. Just listen.”

The assembled group pauses as distant sounds of combat echo into the area. Cideeda and Bach’s radios crackle between different channels of radio communications. In quick succession, Aristespha, Dretphi, and Sotalia’s voices flit between the different conversations with new reports of trouble. Ishmael’s visage cools and a genuinely somber tone chills his voice. “This... This isn’t the first time. I’ve had to witness many towns fall to terrors like the Red Gears. I came into being out west, drifted, and settled into a nice town. Quiet and peaceful. I inhabited many of their systems and slowly improved their lives behind the scenes. But... It ended...”

Moments of silence later, a tremble wavers his speech and a sorrowful, ethereal sigh resonates. “It ended like it has many times... and THIS... Right now... is how it starts.”

With energy pulsing slowly through his form, his illumination gathers towards Bach. “I don’t want this to happen again. WE have a chance to STOP this. YOU can make good happen here tonight.”

Bach blinks his blue eyes. He stands silently, glances between Amos and Cideeda. Amos bows his head in thought, and turns to Bach. “I’ve never known him to lie or mislead. And, I must say... This town needs all the help it can get.”

Searching her mind, Cideeda grits her teeth, gazes up to Bach, and smiles worried. “At this point, it’s a chance. I don’t know what more we can do even if we joined the lines.”

Bach draws in a long breath through his nose, sighs, and slowly nods. “Okay... This may make top the list of the stupid things I’ve done... Let’s do this.”

Ishmael’s anima form floods with bright light and a determined, hopeful tone sounds out. “Thank you! Just flow what power you can to me, and I handle the rest. Stand off the side. This mech is gigantic.”

Amos and Cideeda stand behind Bach as he plants his feet securely and readies himself. Closing his eyes, Bach holds his hands out towards Ishmael’s form. Seconds pass on by. Slowly opening his eyes, between the bright blue glow, brilliant white swells within Bach’s pupils. Conduits of prismatic energy form and spiral around his body. Faint threads of pure white flow travel the guiding corridors and gradually condense near Ishmael. Geometric patterns spread out from the anima’s form and contact the orb of pure white. With a bright surge, threads of energy launch out from Ishmael, plunge into the dirt, and pulse with brilliant light.

Seconds tick away. Bach concentrates as the white pushes out the blue glow in his eyes. Surges of elder energy seep through the prismatic conduits, and the flow spirals along his body directly to Ishmael. In the relative silence, only the hums energy and distant fighting challenge the occasional thunder.

The ground shudders.

A pile of scrap metal slides away from a swell of dirt. From the earth, a massive hand pushes through the junk, turns its meter wide palm at the wrist, and sinks metal fingers into the ground. Another hand rises, and secures a grip onto ground. Wincing from the strain, Bach grits his teeth, widens his distant stare as the elder energy overtakes his eyes, and releases a surge flow. Ishmael’s forms swells and pulses threads into the scrap packed soil.

The earth rumbles, and the cracks form a humanoid outline in ground.

Dirt, scrap, and junk fall away from the robotic head, cascade down the armored torso, and pile past the hip section. Amos slowly steps back from the rising behemoth sitting upright, and leads back Cideeda while she gawks in utter awe. Recognition floods Cideeda’s face, and she excitedly calls out. “It’s an Amarok! It’s a Vukasin Amarok! I know that model!”

Amos glances over to Cideeda, and tilts his head. “Do you think it’ll work?”

Cideeda darts her gaze around to the critical sections of the emerging mech, and gestures her claw tip to parts of the humanoid robot. “I think so. It looks like all everything is there. It just might!”

Bach tilts his ear towards Cideeda’s voice, ponders a moment, and settles his attention up the massive machine in front him. He cracks a bold grin and forces out a chuckle. “You think you can handle more, Ishmael?”

Ishmael’s form flutters with activity. “Yes! I’ve almost got it articulated into the pre-start squat position. Then, we can try to bring it online.”

Bowing his head down, a burst of white energy floods around Bach, shatters the prismatic guides, and swirls in a torrent to Ishmael. The energy spreads through ethereal passages in the air into the mech. The mechanical humanoid shifts its huge feet underneath, and balances into a ready position. Ishmael launches forth and plunges through into cockpit of the mech. Angular pathways spread out along the surfaces of the machine. Geometrical patterns radiate out. Caked on dirt flakes off. Rust fades as white energy washes over and leaves pristine steel. Sparks shoot out from joins as sections of limbs shudder, and fresh leaks of stale hydraulic oil cease as the sheen of elder energy shifts through the machine.

Bach drops down to a knee. Gritting his teeth and keeping the flow of energy going, he pants louder. Cideeda steps closer and calls out. “Bach! Are you okay?!”

Forcing a nod, Bach stares at the hulking robot in front of him, and winces tight as the elder energy veins out from his eyes. “Yeah. Hitting my limit. But... I can do it... A little longer…”

From the mech’s loudspeaker, Ishamel calls out. “We just need to get the reactor online. It’s going to take a huge surge to start it. Can you do it, Bach?!”

Sweating dripping off his brow, Bach blinks hard, shakes his head, and strains against the looming fatigue. “I don’t know. A huge surge might be too much. I... Don’t know...”

Cideeda watches Bach teeter briefly before recovering his balance. She searches around the junkyard and growls out her frustration. “Shit! If the literature about these mechs is right, they have super-capacitors that can store a charge to jump start the reactor. But, it takes a lot of power for them to start the cascade reaction.”

With the robotic doll under his arm, Amos darts his optics around the area. “How much are we talking about, we might be able to get some assistance to power it up.”

Gritting her sharp teeth, Cideeda shakes her head of short, multi-colored hair, and droops her furry ears. “It’s a lot. They usually needed another mech that was running or a dedicated generator truck to do it. There’s stories of people arcing power from high tension power lines to pull it off in an emergency.”

A loud crack of thunder rolls over head. Bach pulls his attention from Cideeda’s explanation, forces his tiring body to turn his head up, and stares at the stormy clouds above. From deep within his mind, a surge of heroic determination pushes through hesitation and bold grin cracks on his face. He directs his voice towards Amos and Cideeda. “Cideeda! Amos! Get REALLY FAR away! Please!”

Amos resets his optics. Cideeda tilts her head and puzzles. Prismatic flows solidify upon the chassis of mech, conduits slip between the gaps of the plating, and a construct of golden energy forms. A growing tower of transparent magical framework extends upwards, and a thick thread of energy drifts into the sky above. Amos and Cideeda exchange glances. Cideeda stares wide eyed and scared. “Bach! Those were only stories I was talking about! I don’t think it really applies here!”

Bach glances over his shoulder to Cideeda, cracks a confident smile, and chuckles. “Don’t worry, I’m just directing the energy. I’m sticking around here myself.”

He pauses briefly, flits his glowing white eyes wide, and yells towards the mech. “Ishmael! You’re about to get your jump start!”

Springing to his feet, Bach sprints out from mech, flows of magical thread trailing behind him. He stumbles to the ground. He scrambles up to his feet, and twitches prismatic fibers from his fingers. Covering his ears, he shouts out. “Cover your ears!”

From the tip of the hovering, golden magical construct, a faint arc reaches up into the sky in the fraction of a second. A brilliant flash erupts out. The deafening boom rattles away debris and shakes scrap piles nearby. The golden structure ignites in a blinding glow and flows of blue-white energy surge down prismatic conduits into the mech.

In the silence after the strike. Bach opens his fading white eyes, uncovers his ears, and pants in between wavering attempts to keep his balance. Amos and Cideeda peer out from behind a mound of concrete chunks.

A low thump resonates out from the mech. Metal scraps shudder, and Amos warily keeps behind cover. Moments later, a more powerful thump rumbles out. Larger fragments of metal next to the mech slide closer. Over the growing drone, a final massive shake growls out to surging roar, and pitches to stable hum. Vents open up on mech and flows of heated air blast out.

Inside the cockpit, Ishmael’s form materializes from energy vapors seeping in. Angular threads reach out in to the surrounding controls. The cabin remains silent. Signs of activity flash on a screen. Streams of text sputter out and a Vukasin logo appears. Consoles activate, status monitors flick from red to green, displays highlight system status on 3d blueprints, and a preflight check list ticks down. A computerized voice states. “All systems nominal. Full startup engaged.”

The Vukasin Amarok shudders. Heated air blasts out, hydraulic turbines whine loudly, and metal strain echoes through the frame. From a squat, the massive behemoth stands up. Slowly rising, it towers above the tallest scrap piles surrounding, and reaches a height of twelve meters. A massive leg steps forward out of it’s grave. A wide foot impacts the metal strewn ground with a chorus of crunches. It shifts it’s frame forward into the next step. The mech stomps ahead out of the hole without pause.

Bach’s balance wavers as he watches the machine leave. He starts to tilt back, and a pair of arms wrap around his lower chest. Cideeda guides Bach gently down. She sits behind him and props him up. Blinking through the fatigue, Bach turns his head back and smiles weakly. “Thank you...”

Cideeda smirks warmly, pats his forearm, and laughs. “Least I could do.”

Amos walks up next to the two, and stares out to the departing mech. “I would suggest we join the fight. But, if THIS doesn’t win the battle. I don’t know what actually will.”

Bach attempts to brush some of his hair out of his face. He sighs as his weakened arm flops down and chuckles. “So... Uh... What the fuck did I end up doing this time? I don’t know what to call this.”

Cideeda deftly combs away the annoying strands of hair in Bach’s face and ponders. She grins toothily. “Mechanecromancy? Yeah, Mechanecromancy. I like that. That’s what I’m calling it.”

With an amused snort, Bach gradually shakes his head and laughs exhausted. “Good. I’ll add to the list of charges.”

Leaning close, Cideeda smiles warmly and winks. “It’s pretty cool. I’ll have to learn it one day.”

Standing upon distant pile of scrap, Isaac grin proudly, and gazes at Bach from afar.

----

Aggie inspects magical wards around the entrance of the Precipice Inn & Tavern. She pauses a moment, listens to a faint rattle of glassware on the bar, and puzzles. Elissia slowly opens the front door, and leans in with wide, bright violet on black eyes. “Um... You need to see this...”

From on top of the store front, Dretphi pulls back her rifle, opens the bolt, and checks the chamber. While changing the magazine, she halts a moment, and witnesses the spent brass vibrate. Slowly crawling up to the ledge, she aims her rifle around, and scans through the scope. She freezes in place, pulls her head back, and blurts out bewildered grath.

Aristespha finishes extracting a bullet from a man’s leg, and directs another medic. After walking along the run of the field hospital, she steps off to the side and closes her eyes to breathe. Staring down at the ground, she watches the ripples in a shallow pool of rainwater. As she tilts her head to the side, Sebastian’s materializes next to her. “Dear... I think know why the sword was acting up a few minutes ago. I think.”

Along the defensive perimeter, the fervor of gunfire wanes and an eerie silence looms over. From a commanding position opposite from the town, Boss peers out over the battle and furrows his brow. “I didn’t order a cease fire. The fuck is going on here?”

One of the underlings blinks in shock, hands over a pair of binoculars to Boss, and points. “Um... Over there.”

Peering through the optics, Boss searches around and halts his hunt. With each powerful step, a towering figure moves closer. Along the distant horizon, lightning strikes and back lights the gigantic humanoid machine. As the energy cascades through the clouds above, the flickers of arcs highlight the blue Vukasin logos decorating the metal behemoth. Lowering the binoculars, Boss blinks in sheer astonishment, cocks his head, and yells out to the surrounding troops. “Okay. WHERE THE FUCK DID IT COME FROM?! There was NO report saying THAT existed!”

He pulls out his radio, and calls out. “To all listening. Can someone fucking EXPLAIN to me the what, why, and HOW of that thing existing!?”

Strange wavering static and distortion twists the dead air out from the radio. Moments later, an ethereal voice resonates through the radio and a faint echo sounds out from the distant machine. “I can explain. I could explain many things to you. But, right now, all I want you to do is LEAVE. Just LEAVE. And, I won’t have to soil the earth with your charred corpses.”

Boss glances at the radio, squints at the approaching Mech, and sneers his upper lip. He keys up the radio and growls out. “All troops! Focus fire on the big metal piece of shit!”

Volleys of machine guns, rifles, and canons ring out. Round impact the Amarok. Small munitions bounce, larger flake off armor, and the most powerful melt divots in the chassis. In the rain of lead and bolts of energy, a low hum joins the cacophony from the mech and sparkles of energy arcs a long the chassis. A barrier spreads out and solidifies along the body. Boss grits teeth, grumbles to himself, and calls out on the radio. “Continue your fire! That shield will eventually wear down. Chances are that ancient hunk of junk can’t fire. They’re just trying to scare us off with an antique!”

Ripples of static blare out from the radio and a twisting voice calls out. “I wouldn’t be so confident if I were you. The past has come to collect.”

Boss frowns angrily, keys up the radio, and shouts out. “Who the fuck is this anyway!?”

Sounding clearly from the distance and static free over all radios, Ishmael’s voice articulates with chilling resolution. “You do not recognize me. I know you wouldn’t. But... I know... You. Ampa. Lake City. Junction. Mosa. Towns rendered to bloody dust in your kind’s campaigns to conquer. The suffering I’ve experienced and witnessed over the years... Pointless to explain. There’s only one thing I can do now.”

Boss’s wide eyes gawk in swelling terror and surges of recognition, and he stares at the incoming Amarok. Ishmael’s voice ethereally broadcasts over the air. “Their ghosts send their regards!”

Underneath the right arm of the Amarok, a blue-white glow radiates from within the meter wide bore of a barrel and huge intakes vacuums up atmosphere. The limb lines up a target. A sphere of ball lightning tears through the air, leaving a tail of ionized wind behind it. The orb impacts a heavy, armored truck, burrows through the exterior layers, and bursts inside. Molten slag spews from the windows and gaps between the outer plating, and the frame deflates into a heap of steaming metal. Underneath the other arm, multiple, massive barrels spin up to speed, and arcs of electricity crackle. In fast repetition, vapor trails rip from of each sequential muzzle, and stretches of dirt explode in eruptions of kinetic energy as sonic booms crack immediately.

Boss blinks blankly, assesses the situation, and yells out as his cybernetic legs power up. “RUN! Run, you fuckin’ idiots!”

Red Gear troops scramble into a chaotic retreat as the Amarok slows its advance and positions itself between enemies and the town. Cheers ring out along the town’s defensive perimeter. Snapping back to awareness, Sotalia searches her mind, furrows her brow, and keys up her radio. “Bach? Cideeda? Do you two have any idea at why a massive fucking mech showed up?”

With faint hints of Cideeda snickering in the background, Bach tries to form a coherent response. “Well... Um... Ah... You see... Shit...”

Sotalia smirks, rolls her golden eyes, and shakes her head. “Okay... So, where are you?”

-104-

Inside the busy main room of the Precipice Inn & Tavern, the team sits around the larger table in the eclectic mix of furniture. Aristespha sorts through messages on her tablet and Sebastian peeks over her shoulder. Cideeda eagerly reviews pictures of the Vukasin Amarok on her aetherphone, and Dretphi nods interested between judging the eggs upon her plate of breakfast. Sotalia glances over at the occasionally glitching broadcast coming in on the television. Bach closes his eyes, rests a cheek on his fist. He gradually puts more weight upon it as his drowsiness gains a lead over his consciousness. Returning her attention to food, Sotalia notices Bach nodding off and eyes his plate. She spots an empty space devoid of bacon, and frowns slightly. A faint smile cracks from the corner of her mouth, and she deftly maneuvers the fork to plop a strip of bacon off her plate onto Bach’s. Glancing around for a few moments, she nudges Bach with her elbow and smirks. “You should really finish up your breakfast before you doze off and let it gets cold.”

Fluttering his blue eyes open, Bach darts his gaze around, remembers his surroundings, and shakes his head. “Oh, yeah... Sorry... Still really drained from yesterday.”

With a genuine smile, Sotalia playfully rolls her golden eyes and giggles softly. “Oh, I wonder why. I guess a little mechanecromancy does that to someone.”

Bach grumbles lightly, sighs hints of embarrassment, and wanders his attention down to his plate. “Gods, is that even a real term?”

He pauses a moment, tilts his head as he stares at the lone piece of bacon on his plate. He turns his head towards Sotalia. She nonchalantly shifts her attention back towards the television screen, combs her wavy, fiery orange hair over her shoulder, and scratches the pointed tip of her gray ears with her long black, thick nails. Bach smiles, and enjoys the crispy strip. Sotalia smirks with the nearby clank of a fork and subsequent crunch.

Aristespha places down her tablet, rubs her violet eyes, and tosses back her silvery blue hair. “Okay, that’s all the messages I needed to read and send right now. I think they all got out. So... What is next?”

Hovering into an empty seat next to Aristespha, Sebastian’s ethereal visage crosses his arms, searches his mind, and shrugs. “Head towards Perimeter, back to Amaranth Valley, and start searching, dear? I haven’t gotten much further than that.”

Sotalia sighs with a frown, and shakes her head. “Yeah. Noxian has got days ahead of us now. We MIGHT be able to find his trail in Perimeter.”

Presenting a toothy grin, Cideeda chuckles wryly as she flutters her emerald green eyes towards Sotalia. “Well, he’s going to have a few more days, since we still have to get our ride back from where we left it.”

Dretphi draws in a long frustrated breath, and twists her mouth. “Unfortunate.”

Sotalia blinks a few times, rolls her eyes with an irritated grimace, and tugs at the corner of her mouth. “Gods damn it... I keep forgetting that.”

Covering a yawn with his hand, Bach stretches out his neck and smirks. “So, I guess that’s the first thing we need to do.”

Sebastian shrugs his shoulders and nods. “Apparently, bro.”

The entry door into the main room opens and Amos steps in. He guides the door the rest of the way and holds it with his robotic hand. Ryos, Cedric, and Suzie rush in afterwards. Aggie finishes wiping down the bar top, gazes over at the children, and quirks her brow. “You’re all back early.”

Cedric huffs with a frown, and slumps his shoulders. “The playground is closed! Nothing is open!”

Elissia steps out from the back kitchen area, stands next to Aggie, and shakes her head. “I’m sorry to hear that. It might be that way for a few days.”

Ryos scratches his head of long, dark blue hair, near one of his coiling horns, and glances around the busy main room. He settles his attention to the television, and points it out to his mothers. “Can we watch something?”

Elissia surveys the room of patrons, and gauges the amount of interest on the current broadcast on the screen. She grits her teeth briefly, gazes down at the children, and shakes her head. “Not right now. Everyone is paying attention to the news. Maybe when everyone leaves after breakfast.”

Suzie glances between the disappointment on Cedric and Ryos, and notices Ishmael motioning his simple cloth arm towards the surge shelter door. She smiles, hugs Ishmael tightly in her arms, and brightly inquires. “Can we play down in the shelter? Mr. Ishy would like to play some of the board games with us.”

Elissia and Aggie exchange glances, and both shrug in quiet agreement. Aggie grins, waves towards the stairwell down, and nods. “That sounds just fine with me. Just play fair and be nice to each other.”

Ishmael bows in Suzie’s arms towards Aggie and Elissia, and fashions a smile on his simple doll face. “I’ll do my best to make sure they do. Right, Ryos?”

Ryos flits his purple on black eyes wide, glances around with a bit of guilt, and nods. “Yes.”

As Suzie walks towards the shelter with Ishmael, Cedric leans close to Ryos and whispers. “I think he made up that rule.”

Ryos smirks at Cedric, and the two rush past Suzie and Ishmael. Suzie waits by the doorway, turns to Amos, and smiles brightly. “Mr. Amos. Thank you for keeping Mr. Ishy safe.”

Amos displays a bold grin on his facial screen and bows towards Suzie with confident flare. “Of course. He certainly needed all the help he could get, and I was happy to assist.”

Ishmael rolls his eyes, and turns his head towards Bach. Seconds later, Bach glances around and notices the attention from Ishmael. With brief ethereal visage overlaying, Ishmael smirks to Bach and bows appreciatively. Bach nods back with an awkward grin. After Suzie departs with Ishmael down the stairs, Amos wanders over to the bar counter near Elissia and Aggie. Leaning close to Amos, Aggie queries in a quiet tone. “So, why is the playground still closed?”

Amos pivots his head around the room, props his mechanical elbows upon the bar, and speaks between Elissia and Aggie. “They just found that straggler Red Gear that Miss Reena said ran off before she got a clear shot on him. She was very insistent that no one go near the school grounds until she had cleared it herself.”

Elissia perks her brow, and tilts her head curiously. “So, is that Red Gear still alive?”

Rocking his metal head side to side, Amos emits a synthetic chuckle. “Presently. He was quick to surrender when he kept finding his squad mates with holes in their heads.”

Aggie smirks towards Elissia and holds a hand near her mouth. “I wonder if she had anything to do with what happened in the forest near the main road?”

Elissia twists her mouth and slowly shakes her head. “No. I don’t think so. She wouldn’t have left the school.”

Amos straightens up his posture, shrugs his shoulders, and crosses his robotic arms. “That one everyone is still debating. So far, it seems like it was a really powerful magic user. But, the strangest thing is that the area is covered in a magical residue that no one can quite identify. It’s very strange. Not even zone energies quite matches up to this stuff.”

The collective attention from Aristespha, Bach, Cideeda, Dretphi, Sebastian and Sotalia briefly snaps towards Amos as his voice carries out the pertinent information during a lull in surrounding conversations. The team glances between themselves, and arrives at a silent consensus. The entry opens, and Max’s tall frame walks in. He quickly scans the room, spots the team, and steps over. With a relieved smile, he nods to group and eases out a sigh. “It’s good to see all of you. It seems like the strangest and best thing that could happen... Did. Still can’t quite believe it myself.”

Sebastian’s ghostly form grins, and shrugs his shoulder. “Yeah. This place is just full of surprises.”

Max lifts a curious brow, cracks a smirk, and chuckles. “I guess so. Well, before I set out for the ruins, I was curious if you all wanted to hitch a ride with me.”

Cideeda’s emerald green eyes widen, and she pivots in her seat to face Max. “That sounds great! When do we leave?”

She pans a demanding stare to the team. Quickly, the group arrives to similarly eager sentiments.

----

Around a modest camp fire, Chad stands up from tending the flames, stretches his back, and surveys the site. Tassilda leans out with her aetherphone signal guiding her hand outside her tent flap. She holds the device place a moment, and a message chime rings out. An excited giggle escapes her and she brings the phone back inside. Deedri arranges some supplies within her tent, lays down on her bedroll, and rubs the stress of the day from temples. Slipping a bookmark between the pages, Trakenthin closes a book, stands up from a seat against a large tree trunk, and walks towards his tent. He glances over to Chad, grants a friendly nod of acknowledgment, and settles in for the night. From shadows outside the perimeter of the firelight, Modoran slides out into view and stands next to Chad with a directed whisper. “The night crew is taking over now. Usual camera coverage. But, they’ve got a few extras aimed at the Odellon’s and Veevi’s tents.”

Struggling with a grimace, Chad rolls his brown eyes, strains a sigh, and grumbles. “I don’t know why they need to watch both tents. They’re only going to use one.”

Cracking an ill-humored smirk, Modoran snorts and shakes his head. “Yeah... But, which one?”

Chad slowly turns his head to face Modoran, pauses in thought, and groans. “Point taken.”

Modoran bows his head down to a shake, lightly fist bumps Chad’s shoulder, and chuckles. “Get some sleep. We’ll at least be rid of him tomorrow. I’m sure the days of wandering through empty ruins will help him get into character, or whatever.”

Squelching a snort, Chad sighs out his stress, and smirks to Modoran. “Yeah... I’m sure. Night.”

Modoran walks near the perimeter of campfire illuminated tents nonchalantly. He freezes. Glancing down at his leg, and he watches a familiar tail slip away under a tent flap. The fabric parts briefly, and Deedri’s auburn eyes gaze up. She smiles slyly, winks, and mouths. “Good night.”

With a half grin on his dusky bluish gray face, Modoran calmly nods, and returns the wink. He casually resumes his stroll to his tent, and slips inside. Chad rolls his shoulders, and scans over the quiet camp site. Lights within tents dim and the surrounding noises of nature fill the area. Pivoting towards his tent, Chad steps slowly while gazing out into the peaceful night forest. He crawls inside his tent, removes his boots, and settles into his bed roll. Minutes pass on by and his gaze to the top of the tent grows heavy. Closing his eyes, he yawns, wiggles to comfort in his sleeping bag, and relaxes.

As conscious starts to fade, a series of noises starkly contrast the ambient night. Flits of a grimace twist Chad’s face, and he stirs back from the edge of unconsciousness. Cringing slightly, he lifts his head up from a pillow, angles his ear towards the source of the noise, and listens. His eyes spring open. He turns onto an elbow, and blinks his confusion. Recognition leads the ways to disgust and annoyance, and the muffled sounds of Veevi’s and Odellon’s distant voices mix with faint tinges of carnal gymnastics. Chad rolls back down onto his bedroll, and quietly grumbles out. “Shit...”

Venting out a frustrated sigh, he sits up slowly, and searches around his tent with mumble. “Got to have something...”

A minute hunt turns up nothing of use, and he flops back down onto the sleeping bag in defeat. Light rapping upon the tent fabric captures his attention. Chad sits back up, unzips the entry flap, and puzzles at Deedri kneeling next to the tent. With a smile, Deedri holds out some cotton balls, and whispers. “This helps keep the... um... noise manageable.”

Relief escapes Chad through a sigh, and he graciously accepts the gift. “Thank you. I was looking for something...”

He pauses a moment, grits his teeth, and draws in a long humbling breath. “Okay... Um... I have to ask... Were Veevi and I, um, this loud?”

Deedri narrows her auburn stare at Chad, lifts an eyebrow, and tugs at the corner of mouth. In the moments of silent confirmation, Chad slowly nods with emerging embarrassment and drops his head down. “Oh gods. I’m really sorry. It’s has to be really annoying for you.”

Deedri droops her furry ears, cracks a dry smirk, and rolls her eyes. “The noise isn’t that bad. It’s the lingering smells that really bother me.”

Chad reflexively cringes as the connotations circle around in his head. A sly grin slips out onto Deedri’s fair skinned face, and she chuckles. “Maybe they’ll really hit it off and she’ll ditch the show for him.”

Snorting, Chad shakes his head and softly laughs through his whisper. “Gods, that’d be way too convenient for us. It'll never happen.”

Deedri sighs, shakes her head of tied back, multi-colored hair, and perks her furry ears. “Yeah. That’s true. We can hope, though.”

Chad nods with a smile. “That we can. For now... Stick to the plan.”

With a tight smile, Deedri agrees with a sigh. Her ears flick over to the mix of partial, repetitive sentences interrupted by bodily contact. A mean grin sneaks out on Deedri face and she directs her voice. “If it’s any comfort, it sounds like she’s really putting on act with him.”

Keeping an amused snort back, Chad cracks an ill-humored smirk. “Should I be surprised he can't tell?”

Deedri shakes her head as she stands up, and steps back over to her tent. Chad zips back up his tent, readies the cotton, and places the noise barrier into his ears.

----

The Next Adventurers of Nexus camera crews slip into available recording angles, and a few passive aggressively compete with Odellon’s entourage for ideal positions. Standing tall with his flowing golden hair, Odellon straightens his posture in his elaborate armor, and presents a bright white smile to Chad. “Again, I would like to thank you Chad Bosch for generously granting me the opportunity to adventure with your team. It has been greatly insightful and enlightening.”

Chad dons a modest smirk, nods towards Odellon as he stands in front of the gathered team, and extends a hand. “It has been a delightful experience, Odellon. I hope the experience will prove useful in your future ventures. If you want to go on another mission, feel free to contact us again.”

Odellon firmly shakes Chad’s hand, grins wide, and chuckles. “Of course. I think I might be up for a greater challenge next time. I’ll be keeping track of the Flames of the Phoenix’s accomplishments well into the future.”

The two stand in places for a few seconds. A voice from Odellon’s crew shouts out. “And, CUT! We got it!”

Releasing a short sigh of relief, Odellon shakes head and guides his golden locks over his fair skinned, very long, pointed ears, and rolls his blue eyes. “Very good! I’ve GOT to get this armor off me. I’m going to melt in it.”

He pauses a moment, stares inquisitively, and cocks his head curiously. “I have to ask, how do you stand it all day?”

Chad points to the shirt under his breastplate and smirks. “Specialty undershirt. Wicks all the sweat away.”

Leaning slightly into the conversation, Trakenthin motions to his under armor. “Under armor with thermal thread helps.”

Odellon glances over to a young evuukian woman, and quirks his brow. “Did you get that?”

The young evuukian woman nods quickly, finishes up a notation on her tablet, and smiles. “Yes, Lord Odellon. I’ve already sent a message to the production company’s equipment manager to procure a selection of such for you to try out.”

With a confident smile, he winks to the young evuukian woman. “Excellent.”

He turns towards Chad, Trakenthin, Tassilda, Deedri, Modoran, and Veevi. “Well, thank you all for your time, but I have business to handle elsewhere. If you happen to be around where they are shooting a movie I’m starring in, please let my agent know and I’m certain we can get you a free day tour and full access to the catering. Until then, I bid you all a good day.”

After a respectful bow, he pivots, walks towards an awaiting luxury vehicle, and holds his arms out. “Someone get this off of me! I’ve got at least a whole day at the spa before I feel right again.”

Tassilda twists her mouth in a failing attempt to hide her amusement, and rests her hands on her hips. Deedri sneaks out a snort, and slowly shakes her head. Modoran crosses his arms, exchanges a glance with Deedri, and smirks humored. Trakenthin blinks his hazel eyes, tilts his head of dirty blonde hair, and puzzles. Chad shrugs his shoulders, and rolls his eyes. Veevi blinks her pink pupil eyes, flicks her fuzzy ears, and rushes up to Odellon. She presents an eager, sharp grin, flutters her eyes, and tosses back her pink hair. “So, have you given some thought to my proposal last night?”

Odellon drifts his attention over towards Veevi. “Huh, what proposal would that be?”

Holding back flit of frustration on her tan face, she crosses her brown striped arms behind, arches her back slightly, and accentuates her figure through her tight fitting clothing. “Well! Considering me for a lead actress in an upcoming project, of course! I think I have MUCH to offer.”

Perking his brow, Odellon twists his mouth in contemplation, and molds a sly smirk on his face. He pauses, turns to face Veevi, and presents a bright white smile to her. “Of course... I have a few projects on the table, and I MAY be able to use my clout to convince a studio to take a chance on such a PROMISING star like yourself. But, these things take a little time to get going. You understand certainly.”

He glances over to an assistant orbiting him, snaps his fingers, and points to Veevi. “Please give her my agent’s card.”

A business card appears in Veevi’s hand, and she blankly stares at it perplexed. Odellon grins with a nod, and turns around swiftly. “Have your agent call mine, and we’ll see about lunch in a month or so.”

With the last piece of armor off, Odellon power walks to the awaiting luxury vehicle’s open door, and slips inside. The driver quickly closes up the black sedan with tinted windows, and rushes over to the driver’s seat. As the vehicle speeds off, a swarm of other support staff board crew trucks and depart in a growing horde down the access road. Veevi blinks, and tilts her head to the side as her eye twitches. Tassilda covers her mouth over a soft snicker and glances around at the surprised expressions of the rest of the team. Chad grits his teeth, pivots around, and motions towards the camp site. “Well, that was an interesting mission. Let’s pack it up and head home, everyone!”

The team disperses slowly, keeping an eye on Veevi. As the Next Adventurers of Nexus crew wander close to Veevi with cameras focusing, contempt and fury swell upon the half-fvalian’s tan face and her long, short hair tail whips around in forming rage.

----

Dretphi hoists up the last sack of supplies into the back of the humvee, and closes up. In the front driver’s seat, Cideeda inspects the latest diagnostics readout on the center dash console, and releases a breath of relief. Adjusting her front passenger’s seat, Sotalia leans into the cushions, stretches out her arms, and peeks at the display. “Everything still look good?”

With a nod, Cideeda grips the steering wheel, flexes her claw tips, and grows a toothy grin. “Yes, it does. So nice to have her in my hands again.”

Sotalia rolls her golden eyes with smile, gazes out into ancient, decayed architecture surrounding the ruin, and watches the orange darkened skies of evening fade towards night. “And, we still have to travel back to Precipice... Then Perimeter... Then, wherever the hell else, I guess.”

Cideeda closes her emerald green eyes, puts her arms behind her head, and yawns. “Yeah... What a way to start the work week.”

Flicking her fluffy tail with her thoughts, she twists her mouth between calculations and sighs. “It’s Monday night. So, if we take it easy on the main route, we should get back to Precipice Thursday. Maybe a little sooner? I don’t know.”

Sotalia nods, closes her eyes, and relaxes as the glow the sun filters in through the windshield. Max sits outside the entryway into the ruins upon an old crate, rests his back against the age beaten wall, and sighs. Sebastian’s ethereal form quirks his brow, and crosses his arms with a curious tone. “So what’s your plans now, Max?”

Bach nods, settles to a seat on a large boulder of broken masonry, and smirks. “Yeah. I mean, not to be nosy, but I don’t think you can keep doing what you were doing.”

Max chuckles, cracks wry grin, and groans. “No fucking shit. I was already thinking about that. Recent events have made me make up damned mind finally.”

Aristespha rests her hands on her hips, glances towards the direction of a breeze blowing her silvery blue hair, and smirks. “What is your decision?”

Leaning forward, Max rests his elbows on his knees, bows his head down thoughtfully, and sighs with a grimace. “I’m going back to the Grand Library. I’m going to report everything that’s happened down here. Then... I’m going kick a stupid old man’s ass. Gods damned Emanuel.”

He shifts his glare towards the entryway to the ruins, grits his teeth, and growls his frustration. “But FIRST, I’m going to seal off these ruins. I can’t bring myself to destroy and all the information that could be inside... But, I can certainly hide it and keep it out of curious hands for a little while longer. As is the unfortunate Grand Library tradition these days.”

With a hopeful tone, he gazes up to Bach, Sebastian, and Aristespha, and cracks a humored grin. “But... I’d like to think what you all are planning to do next will make it all moot and safe to be studied once again.”

Bach blinks uncertainly and musters up an awkward smile. “Uh, sure. We’ll try. Right.”

Aristespha perks her brow, retrieves her aetherphone, and sorts through the menus. After a few moments, she turns the screen towards Max, and directs his attention to the information. “When you get a chance, you may want to contact my friend Nash. He’s the current chair of the computer science department.”

Max furrows his brow suspiciously, and mulls it over with a hesitant tone. “I don’t know. I didn’t care for the last one of those.”

With a pleasant smile, Aristespha laughs, and shakes her head. “Oh, he’s nothing like the last chair. I think they made sure of that when he got hired. He’s been doing investigations of his own.”

She leans forwards, smirks slyly, and directs her voice to Max. “And, I think you owe him a full explanation for what got stowed away in his server room and prompted a massive investigation due to Isaac sneaking in to get it.”

Max blinks a few times, searches his conscience, and awkwardly smiles. “Yeah... I probably owe him at least that much. That wasn’t his to have to deal with.”

Pulling out his aetherphone, Max taps in the information, and confirms it with Aristespha. The group idles in the calm breezes swaying tall grasses filling the landscape around the ruins. Moments of peace drift by with the small clouds overhead tinting to the setting sun. Exhaling out his last thoughts, Max eases himself up, brushes off his pants, and motions towards the door. “Well, let’s get settled in for the night. I’m going to cook up feast for you all. It’s the very least I could do... And, I REALLY don’t want to have haul all these supplies back.”

Dretphi perks up, cocks her head to the side as she approaches, and inquires. “Do you require assistance?”

Max gazes towards Dretphi, nods appreciatively, and gestures her ahead. “Of course. If you can make what I have more appetizing, please do so. It not exactly fine dining here.”

As Dretphi ponders possible options, the rest of the team follows inside.

----

Gerald pushes his bed pillow under his head, angles his aetherphone, and taps through messages. He glances out the doors to the balcony, watches Samantha pace down the center of the room, and rolls his dark brown eyes. Samantha brushes back her shoulder-length brown hair, sorts through pages of notes on her clipboard, and grins eagerly. “We can definitely work with that schedule, Howie! This is going to work perfectly. We can record a down time episode and lead straight to this event.”

From an aetherphone on a desk, Howard’s voice sounds out into the room. “That was what I was thinking. We got enough clips for the crews to weave together a good episode for this coming Friday. Then, we can mix the remaining bits with some after mission house events.”

He draws in a long breath. “All the delays may have lined everything up just right for us for once. Our little fan expo is going to work out just fine. We have the place, time, and merchandise. We need to do is to get the team there for a few days to entertain our... Lucky... contest winners.”

A smirk grows an evil tinge on Samantha’s face, and she directs an intrigued tone towards the phone. “Have Modoran’s, oh, I guess, fans confirmed their attendance?”

Howard laughs from the other side of the call, and exhales with smug contentment. “Yes. Yes, they have. It didn’t take much. Once we confirmed their receipt of the prize packages, they informed us they had travel already booked. Even informed us they have booked their own lodging.”

Samantha quirks her brow, tilts her head curiously to the side, and ponders out loud. “Interesting. I mean, the Special Quest tickets from the contest included everything. Now, I’m curious who these people are. Did they mention where they got rooms?”

An amused tone resonates through the aetherphone speaker, and Howard explains. “A very nice hotel. One that is often favored by visiting Evuukian noble houses. I’m not fully versed all the politics of Evuukian Houses, but everything points to these people being from a prominent house.”

Samantha’s hazel eyes widen and she cocks her head to the side as her thoughts wander. “Really? Oh, this is going to be very interesting. We’re going to have to watch Modoran like a hawk all the time for this event.”

She pivots around, gazes over to Gerald, and grins eagerly. “Okay, Gerald, who do you know that can properly keep track of Modoran?”

Gerald tilts his phone down, glances around his head, and twist his face. Seconds of deliberation later, he grits his teeth, and hisses reluctantly. “I’ve got a few that I could probably teach. Modoran’s tricks and magic have a few tells, and they’re observant enough to spot them once they know what to look for.”

Pinching the bridge of his nose, he grimaces and groans. “But, that’s going to take some extra time to do with our regular filming schedule. The crew is a little worn out right now, and they’re not exactly yearning for extra hours-”

Howard sternly echoes into the room from the speakerphone. “Double pay for you and them to get this training done as soon as possible.”

Gerald lifts his head up from the pillow, and blinks surprise onto his face. Moment pass, and he draws in a long breath, flops his head back down, and grumbles. “Okay. I might be able to convince them with that. I’ll see what I can do.”

A satisfied chuckle sounds out from the aetherphone on the desk, and Howard sighs contentedly. “Good. Very good. I get the feeling this little local fan expo is going to be a big highlight for this season. There’s going to be so many surprises. I can just feel it... Yes. A capstone maybe.”

Watching Samantha grin widely and snicker with Howard, Gerald shifts his attention towards the noon light out the balcony, and frowns. He squints his eyes, notices a colorful bird upon the railing, and rolls on his bed. Deftly reaching into a bag next to his bed, he retrieves a photography camera, removes the cover, and feels around. Finding his target, he grips tightly, removes a lens, and carefully secures it on the camera. In fast, well rehearsed motions, he readies the unit, adjusts settings, stabilizes the camera up the pillow, and takes aim. The colorful bird twists and turns its head curiously, and watches the movement inside the room. Gerald waits patiently, keeps his focus through the viewfinder, and maintains his shot. The creature glances over towards Gerald. A satisfied smile appears on Gerald’s face, and he presses the button. A series of fast clicks fire off. The bird’s attention wanders elsewhere, and it flies away.

Eagerly, Gerald resettles on the bed, turns the camera around to the back display, and turns a mode switch. Vibrant images of the colorful bird show up on the screen, and Gerald slowly studies them with a grin on his face. Samantha’s and Howard’s plans fade into the background noise while he judges each photo in the series.

----

A lone evuukian man stares over a large, long computer console, and drifts his yellow eyes between readouts. His gaze wanders over neatly organized piles of notes underneath sections of the control systems before him. Reaching down deep into a backpack at his side, he retrieves a worn binder and opens it up. Reading the information on the page, he idly rocks in an old office chair. His attention wanders around the dusty room with multiple computer stations, and drifts into the illuminated space beyond large, full wall window. He tosses back his long, black hair over his very long, pointed ears, and cracks a plotting smirk on his light-gray, green hinted face. Furrowing his brow, he returns his focus upon the main computer screen in front of him.

Upon the display, a cursor blinks at the start of an empty line below a buffer full of different complicated commands and various error messages after each entry. The lone evuukian man rests his fingers upon the keyboard, starts typing up a series of keywords and variables, and narrows his stare. He presses enter, waits patiently, and watches the screen. Seconds pass with a still display. Text appears below the echo of the command, and another intricate error output spells itself out. The man grits his teeth, grumbles out in an evuukian dialect, and shakes his head. Leaning back into the old office chair, he growls out, rubs his temples, and draws in a slow breath.

His concentration wanes. His stare idly rests upon the age stained ceiling tiles and avoid the bright lamps overhead. He reaches out to a table, and picks up a stick with roasted meat on it. He bites a chunk off of it, mulls over ideas while he chews, and huffs after a swallow. He shifts his stare down to the main computer screen, and twists his mouth. Minutes of thought pass. He blinks his yellow eyes, and cocks his head to the side. Pulling back stray strands of his long black hair, he focuses his gaze upon the display. Reaching out to the keyboard, he taps up through the long history of commands. His eyes dart between entries and settle briefly upon key pieces. He scrolls through faster as his visual hunt focuses upon parts of preceding entries. In blur of text rolling down, a break in the pattern halts his progress and he leans forward, close to the display. An eager grin grows upon his light-gray, green hinted face, and he readies his hands upon the keyboard.

Glancing over nearby notes and documents, he carefully types out a complicated string of instructions, deviates from previous attempts, and rearranges other components. Thoroughly reviewing the latest manifestation on the screen, he hover his finger over the enter key. Seconds of deliberation pass, and he finally hits the button. In the silence, he intertwines his hands and waits hopefully.

The cursor shifts, new lines appear, and an explosive amount of text floods the screen. Other displays nearby flicker to life, hums of subsystems sound out as they revive from their slumber, and a large monitor on the wall illuminates. Upon the huge screen, a large map appears with specialized data layers, territory lines, road routes, and icons peppered throughout. An overlay process charts out a central triangle, scattered squares, and a mesh of connecting lines. The lone evuukian man stands up, narrows his stare at the screen, and steps closer.

From the central triangle, pulses of illumination travel through the network of squares and lines. The brightness fades down some routes. But a few paths maintain and then slowly branch out to other locations. Squares flicker between red and yellow. With a chime from a degraded speaker in the monitor, a square flashes to a bright green. Moving close to large, flat screen, the lone evuukian man taps his finger upon the central triangle. As recognition of the map grows, he traces a path down roads, routes around sections with recent familiarity, and arrives at the bright green square. Studying the surrounding area, a sinister smile spreads wide on his face, and a hints of devious grin part his lips.

He exhales long and hints of accomplishment slip out. Walking away from the display, he picks up a notebook, flips through pages, and settles upon an annotated, recent geographic map. He glances between the display and the page, and taps a spot near a major city. He closes the binder of notes, slowly nods, and chuckles to himself. Stepping close to the large, full wall window, he stares out into the large illuminated space. Far below upon a concrete floor, bipedal robots stand upon designated platforms and recently stirred layers of dust.

A plotting grin widens on the lone evuukian man’s face, and he gazes over the status reports streaming in on a nearby display, and watches a small maintenance bot roll on the floor with a fresh robotic arm for one of the large machines.

----

The humvee rolls to stop in the rough gravel parking lot near the town center. As the powerplant spins down, the doors open. Sotalia hops out, stretches, and fluffs her fiery orange, wavy hair. “Gods, I’m so glad we don’t have to make THAT trip again.”

Bach steps out, shifts his seat forward, and sighs in agreement. “I mean it was interesting once, but... Yeah, the fourth trip in a week gets a bit old.”

As Dretphi slides out from the far back seat, Bach scans the town square around the main loop, and settles his attention upon new vehicles and people in the area. “Huh, looks like things have picked up.”

A large armored hauler turns down a wide main street, and a blue angular wolf logo upon it reflects the late afternoon sun. Dretphi narrows her steely gray eyes briefly, and flits them wide with recognition. “Vukasin. Securing the area.”

From a side street, a light scout vehicle slows down around the square, and parks behind another similar truck with Perimeter Defense Force insignia. Aristespha glances around after closing her door, and studies the uniformed troops walking around. “Reinforcements from Perimeter, too. They must have arrived after we left.”

Sotalia rests her hands on her hips, and glances over towards Bach with a grin. “Good, someone else can summon up military equipment to fight off roving bands of cybernetic raiders. You’ve got the night off, Bach.”

Bach quirks his brow, dons a grimace, and sarcastically grumbles. “Oh, great. Didn’t know it was my night again to defend the town. Glad someone else can take the weigh of responsibility from my hands.”

Walking along in his own thoughts, Mavian's faintly glowing, green eyes search his mind. He watches a progress bar on his aetherphone, stops in place, and holds up the device as the signal indicator fluctuates. The team notices him nearby, and wait as curiosity keeps them quiet. After a few moments, Cideeda cracks a toothy grin and yells out. “You should try over here, the signal might be better!”

Mavian shudders, glances around, and spots the team. With a smile and a quick wave, he steps on over next to the humvee and gathering. “Hey! Sorry, I’m just trying to get a message out over the radio relays. The system is almost back to normal after all that's happened.”

Motioning towards the activity in the town, Bach furrows his brow and inquires. “So, what’s the news around here? It seems everybody showed up after we left.”

Watching the progress bar finish, Mavian stows away his aetherphone, glances over to the PDF and Vukasin units wandering around, and chuckles awkwardly. “Yeah. It’s been a bit crazy lately. PDF arrived into town and relieved the militia for local patrols. And, Vukasin arrived just afterwards and started hunting for any Red Gear remnants in the area.”

Dretphi stares stoically and perks her brow. “Have they found any?”

Gritting his teeth brief, Mavian twists a smirk on his face, and rocks his head side to side. “Well. Yes and no. They certainly found a few stragglers. But, mostly... Um, zone leftovers. It’s a strange thing, too. Areas I and others have known for years to be completely safe... Well, they found A LOT of dead Red Gears in those places.”

Flits of intrigue spread through the team as they puzzle. Sotalia narrows her golden eyes, and cracks a smirk. “Sounds like a few people took care of the problem themselves.”

Mavian slowly shakes his head, and crosses his arms. “That’s what I thought originally, too. But, none of the zone runners have a clue who did it. If anyone actually did it.”

Sotalia cocks her head, furrows her brow, and blinks her bewilderment. “What are you saying, exactly?”

Shrugging his shoulders, Mavian cracks a smirk and laughs. “Well, I guess they over stayed their welcome and the Zone showed its mercy. It’s not the first time something like this has happened.”

He darts his eyes around, adjusts his green knit scarf, and contorts his face. “It’s just one of those secrets the Zone is going to keep.”

Aristespha smiles intrigued. “Anything else going in town we should know about?”

Mavian snorts, shakes his head, and points over to the top of the Vukasin Amarok cresting over the buildings in the distance. “Well, all the officials are arguing about what to do with the huge, old war mech that... Somehow...”

He narrows an amused stare towards Bach and continues. “Rose from its rusty grave after the Zone struck down a massive bolt of lightning to give it new life, and joined the defense of the town, driven to seek justice for the souls wronged by the Red Gears.”

Crossing his arms, he rolls his eyes and sighs. “Or, that’s the latest tale that Amos is spreading around.”

Awkwardly averting his eyes away from the examining gaze of Mavian, Bach weakly laughs and uneasily agrees. “Yeah, that’s quite the tale. I mean, given all the other strange things that happen in the zone... That sounds about right...”

Presenting the best innocent smile he can muster, he glances to the rest of the team and seeks confirmation. “Right, everyone? Weird zone stuff. Fire blobs from the sky. Flowers that roast people in plumes of plasma. Pools of rainbow rocks. That totally sounds par for the course, right?”

Mavian shakes his head, and smirks with a nonchalant tone. “Yeah. The usual drill around here. If it happens to be anything else, most people around here are really good at keeping secrets... Especially, for those that help out when we need it the most.”

He leans forward slightly towards to the team, and cracks knowing grin. “So, thanks for all the help.”

Relaxing his shoulders, he scratches the back of his wild head of brown hair, snorts, and rolls his faintly glowing, green eyes. “Anyway, there’s a whole debate going on between the mayor, PDF, and Vukasin about what to do with the fully functional battle mech. So, that’s going to be weeks of local politics there... That I look forward to staying far away from with my trips into the zone.”

Sotalia lifts an eyebrow, cocks her head, and smirks slyly. “Anything new from Rhian? I was curious if she had heard what happened out here.”

With an awkward smile, Mavian taps the pocket with his aetherphone, and chuckles. “Oh yeah. I just actually sent her a message about it all. I’m sure once the relays sync up enough for voice calls, I’ll be getting a-”

A ring sounds out from Mavian’s aetherphone, and he quickly scrambles for the device. “Of all the times they get those things working-”

He excuses himself, and walks towards the Precipice Inn & Tavern as he answers his phone. “Hey! Yes, I’m fine... ... Well, it’s long story and- ... I guess I got time to tell it...”

A few snickers and snorts escape the team while Mavian departs. Aristespha rests her hands on her hips, yawns, and stares towards the Precipice Inn & Tavern. “If there’s no objections, I think we should arrange our lodging for the night, and enjoy a nice meal.”

Cideeda flicks her furry ears, wags her tail, and grins toothily. “Sounds good to me. I’ll sneak over to the junkyard one more time and take a few pictures of the Amarok before we leave.”

Bach glances down towards Cideeda, and tilts his head to the side with a smile. “More reference material for your next miniature build?”

Tapping her claw tips together, an eager smirk widens on Cideeda’s light brown face, and a spark illuminates her emerald green eyes. “Yes, and so much more. It’s proof I was RIGHT on the aethersite forums about the historical alternative equipment load-outs for that mech.”

The team walks towards the nearby establishment, while Cideeda recounts a summarized debate to Bach.

----

The bright early morning sun rises up higher over the horizon, and a blue all terrain vehicle rolls down smoother, packed dirt roads. As the truck travels down the path, signs of civilization emerge in denser clusters. A metal road sign appears off the side of the highway listing kilometers to various Perimeter destinations ahead. A smaller placard shows in front of it displays. “Entering Perimeter Territorial Limits.”

Isaac glances over at the signage, nods to himself, and returns his attention to the road ahead. The wind slipping through the cracked window flows over his blue scarf, and lightly rustles pages in a notebook in the seat beside him. With a confident smile, Isaac eagerly gazes upon the documents. A spark of determination pulls a grin on his face, and he navigates his blue all terrain vehicle over the transition to rough, paved roads. He stares ahead at the hints of city skyline in the distance, and accelerates faster down the road.

On top of a tall lamp post next to an intersection, a camera pans over, spots Isaac’s ride, and tracks his progress.

----

From the dark skies above, stars reflect upon the rolling seas below. Within the wheel house of a cargo ship, Boss frowns heavily and stares out into the empty seas ahead. He glances out to the sides and eyes the other similar vessels slowly trolling near the shore in rough formation. With a groaning sigh, he shakes his head, crosses his arms in thought, and fights off the persistent frustration upon his face. A crew member with minor cybernetics smirks towards Boss with a reassuring tone. “It’s alright, Boss. We’ll try another town along the coast. Plenty of other places on the east coast.”

Boss glances over, cracks an amused smirk, and sighs. “Yeah... I’ve actually heard New Valdo is nice this time of the year. Ever been there?”

The man shakes his head. Boss sports a grin, eases back in his chair, and chuckles. “Well, looks like we’ll be visiting soon enough. We’ll be sure to enjoy the tourism a little more beforehand this time around.”

Distantly, multiple ethereal figures flit and flicker into view at the border between shore and forest. The translucent manifestations shift in sync with the movement of the cargo vessels departing. The entities dissipate and reform into fast moving specks and clouds of magical energy. Many dive into the water and jet off towards the ships. Another batch zip low above the surface in the opposite direction. The aquatic swarm condenses below the keels of the vessels, and a faint pulse of energy radiates out into the surrounding waters.

Minutes later, a periscope breaches the black, starlight speckled surface of the deeper sea. It slowly rotates, and the internal optics adjust towards the distant horizon. Dim specs of light appear, and hover idly in front of the lens. The periscope stops. The motes of illumination slowly, purposefully orbit around as the optics follow. The specks stop, and dissipate into the darkness. The periscope shifts gradually side to side, then freezes. The lenses inside quickly rotate. Immediately, the device maintains a stable position against the waves, and focuses upon a dark fleet of cargo vessels moving slowly near the shore.

The scope drops into the water. Within the shadowy depths of the water, a black cylindrical mass creeps silently towards the ships.