Heroes of Avalon

[Zamokra41]

"Gods damned it, Vincent !" Xilan shouted at the wolf right after he announced where the perpetrator AND his friends could be found to the whole Fortress. Before they knew it, the group was running for the hills, were people actually chasing them? Probably not but none of them thought about looking back to check, they simply ran as fast as their feet could take them. 'Darn wolf, did he had to pitch the rest of us into that elf's mischief as well?' were Arianna's thoughts as she put up the effort to keep up the pace with the rest. The group were escaping the presumed mob that followed them to the nearby forests, they got separated before reaching their destination but only noticed that later. Arianna was following Vincent, with a vindictive thought on the top of her head. She saw the wolf stop in a small clearing to catch his breath, so did she but before Vincent could notice her presence, Arianna grunted "Oafish wolf" and struck the Anthro over the head with the dictionary. The red-haired girl was gazing at the wolf with her arms crossed as if expecting an apology....what she got instead was Vincent pouncing on her, pinning her to the ground and then starting to tickle her. "A-doo-doo-doo-doo-doo, you thought we're not gon' to make it, didya sweetie rumps?"

Arianna struggled and tried to escape but the wolf had pinned her down with all his weight and the tickling really didn't help her trying to come up with an escape plan. "Bwaahahah..stop..hahaha...stop it ! Hahahah..bwahahha....I..haha..." she then managed to grab her dictionary which lay right next to her "I said stop it !" and then whacked Vincent in the snout with the book, making him topple to the side and grunt in pain "Damn, tough love. You're playing mmrrrough. . . " Arianna quickly got up and sat on her rear with her hands clutching the dictionary and holding it between her legs as if to cover herself "You asked for it ! Oafish wolf !" she screeched while catching her breath. Only later did she notice that they got separated from Xilan and Alexandra...and also that they reached quite a pretty place. The grass was green and lush, flower bushes added to the beauty while the sun was shining above them like a magnificent father and the surrounding trees were giving the clearing a sense of privacy. 'What a beautiful place. We should have a picnic here someday.' As she was admiring the place, Vincent returned with a handful of cherries which he plucked from a nearby tree and laid them on the ground between them, Arianna happily picked a few and considered it an 'apology' of sorts from the wolf for what he just did.

"So, uh. Do you like them? No, not the cherries, the... earrings." Arianna widen her eyes at Vincent for a moment, noticing the way he said that, as if he was afraid to ask. The girl brought one hand to one of her ears and felt the earring she still wore. Liking them was an understatement "They are lovely. I haven't taken them off since, not even when sleeping.." Arianna let out to a nervous low chuckle imagining how silly it must have sounded, it was the truth but that didn't make any less silly. It was a tad bit hard to believe that Vincent got her those, the same wolf who would be prone to rude mischief proved to actually be thoughtful....when he wanted. "Ari, something's been bothering me, I think; it's, I don't know, I think I-" A light blush was making its presence noted on Arianna's cheeks as the wolf spoke only to be interrupted but the rustle of leaves nearby. Xilan and Alexandra managed to find their way into the clearing, both of them stopped next to Arianna and Vincent to catch their breath. "Gods be good. At what point did you think it was a GOOD idea?!" Xilan barked in an irritated tone towards Vincent who simply sighed, rose to his feet and placed his hands in front of him trying to calm the vengeful elf. "Now, now, relax, take your shoes off, we're safe here! We've also got cherries." Instead of the peace he was aiming at, the only answer Vincent received from Xilan was a shout of "Traitor !" in an exaggerated 'chivalric' tone and before anyone was the wiser, Arianna and Alexandra were watching how the elf was chasing the wolf. Soon enough Vincent had climbed a tree and fashioned a 'weapon' from a twig which he used to poke Xilan as he attempted to climb after him. The elf did the same by snatching a stick from the ground and pointed it towards Vincent "Face me like a man...wolf." he stated in a challenging tone and moments later the two were fighting stick against stick both assuming a light stance and wielding their 'weapons' as if they were rapiers.

Watching them, Arianna couldn't help but laugh lightly though she would usually comment on them being oafs when something of the sort happened. Perhaps it was this place and peaceful atmosphere around which made her feel more relaxed. "Tis' a splendid place no?" Alexandra inquired as she laid her shield next to her and sat down though her armor didn't permit her to assume a pose as comfortable as Arianna. The red-haired girl nodded approvingly and gazed up at the blue sky and the bright sun. Among the sounds of sticks striking one another and the rather silly taunts from Xilan and Vincent, they could hear the breeze rustling through the trees, the birds chirping and flapping their wings as they flew from one tree to another. Arianna brushed her fingers though the grass beneath her and closed her eyes taking a deep breath and smiling. Everything around them felt so peaceful, as if there was no trouble in the world, no conflicts, no danger, only serenity. Soon enough, though it was probably much later, Vincent and Xilan returned to the two with their sticks broken and both of them huffing. "Who won?" Alexandra asked in a cheery tone to which the elf and wolf looked at eachother...narrowed their eyes in a menacing manner and simply gazed at one another for a few moments before stating "A tie.." in a displeased tone. It would seem that today was going to be a relaxing day....for the 4 Juniors at least.

The group sat down and each picked at the cherries until only very few were left. Xilan and Vincent both reached for the last one but retracted their hands and started at eachother in a moment of confusion. They narrowed their eyes and gazed menacingly at eacother like before, one could feel the tension between these two competitors for the last of the cherries. Before they could reach a decision however...Alexandra snatched the cheery for herself but Xilan and Vincent noticed that only well after she had spat the seed. Arianna chuckled lightly but then, her face twisted in a shocked expression and her body became stiff. A shiver ran through her spine and she gritted her teeth while letting loose to a small shriek as she felt something crawling up her back beneath her robe. Soon enough the little Freckles made its way on Arianna's head, looking at everyone among the crimson blaze of hair around him. "Take him off....take him off...take him off !" Arianna said quickly not moving a muscle. Xilan and Vincent snickered deviously and the wolf made a comment of of comfortable the salamander seemed to be laying in Arianna's hair....the comment only made the girl screech "It's not funny!". After Vincent finally picked up Freckles from her head, the salamander shot out its long tongue and pecked Arianna on the cheek which made her shuffle away and rub her face with her hands. "I guess he likes you" Xilan commented in a mocking manner while chuckling.

[MachineSoul]

"Face me like a man...wolf."

"Thou art nay worth of my marvelous wooden blade, elf! Though be wary, for I will unleash my man-wolf wrath upon thine fur-less hide!"

Vincent replied in an exaggerated zealous, chivalrous tone that matched with Xilan's. With a mighty spring, Vincent jumped off the tree and quickly recovered by rolling away from the elf; he took a relaxed stance and held the half-torn spear-twig in the same fashion as a knight would wield a rapier. Although the spar was obviously another silly folly of the mischievous duo, neither of them could not abstain from throwing overly exaggerated taunts at each other.

"I shall use your pelt as wall warmer!"

"No quarter shall be given to you!"

"Your skull will serve as a cup!"

"I kill for only two coppers, but you, my friend, I kill you for free!"

Soon, they degenerated into random shrieks and battle-cries, one sillier than the other:

"Ha-nee-nee-nee-nee-nee!"

"AIYIYIYIYIY!"

Hah-hoo-hya-sha!"

"Ha-hue-hua!"

"Ha-hue-hoo-hya"

"Ha-huyasha!"

"Death to the caterpillars!"

"I AM THE TABLE!"

And the battle took for around two more minutes, until Vincent and Xilan jumped at each other with lunging attacks, which resulted in the shattering of the two makeshift rapiers, Vincent's twig snapped so badly it whipped his left eye. The stopped to look down at their weapons then at each other, then back at their weapons; the wolf covered the whipped eye with hand to check for blood, there was none to be seen. They both returned in silence to the girls, where Alexandra asked them in a cheery tone:

"Who won?"

The two fighters looked at each other and narrowed their eyes and gazed menacingly for couple of moments until they declared the draw in unison:

"A tie.."
"A tie.."

Vincent then laid down on the grass and stretched his five limbs, he already felt tired from the effort he'd pull the whole morning and this afternoon; the rays of sunlight were warming the fur on Vincent's face, arms and tail, the wind lightly brushed through the light fur in waves. He managed to open his left eye again and since he could spot the blinding sun on the vivid blue sky, there was nothing to worry about; at least not for now. So the wolf decided he must enjoy this brief moment of tranquility as it lasted; his trio extended into a 4 member squad, a quad, ever since Alex decided to stick with them. Vincent actually found her presence enjoyable, now that he had a chance to fight by her side and catch a glimpse of her personality; so long they have a charming meat grinder on their side, he's happy. With Xilan and Ari, both skinny, one of them a bookworm, the other one the embodiment of the word "oaf", wouldn't stand much of a chance against armed and skilled foes up close and personal; and Vincent is no fighter, he may be resourceful and strong, but it is well-known how downright bad he is with melee weapons, excepting his trusty pipe, pole-arms, blunted arms for bludgeoning and the clumsy bastard sword.

Vince took a couple of cherries, spitting out the seeds to the side, one of them managed to land into his right ear; he plucked it out disgusted by the wet sensation of the seed and threw it aside, hopefully far enough. When he stretched his hand to find another cherry, he instead found another pair of fingers, which made him raise his head and open his eyes, only to see Xilan trying to take the very same last cherry as Vincent did; the two narrowed their eyes and gazed menacingly once more, preparing for an imminent epic fight for the last cherry. It took them a while to realize that it was already too late since Alex quickly dispatched of it; when Ari started chuckling did the two break eye contact and realize that they just lost their last precious cherry. Vincent grumbled something and laid back down, but Arianna's sudden shriek made him look back up, only to see her sitting stiff and shocked; he raised his eyebrow in confusion, thinking that maybe an ant just bit her, or worse, a bee stung her. When something black popped out of her crimson hair, Vincent already knew what this was all about, so he slapped his own forehead and snickered devilishly at little Freckles that seemed to have found a new home.

"Take him off....take him off...take him off !"

"Aww, but Ari, he likes it up there. This is brilliant! I don't have to build him a cage no more, I found his home!"

Even so, the wolf moved in closer and gently freed the salamander from the entangled locks of hair so he would not to hurt the tiny being and Arianna; as soon as the salamander felt the warmth of Vincent's palms, it relaxed quickly and turned around towards the girl and promptly pecked her cheek with it's long tongue. Vincent's snicker turned into laughter, it was more than obvious that Freckles liked her for some reason. When she shuffled away, the wolf shuffled in closer, holding the salamander in the cup of his palms, the little thing was prepared to peck again as it started to chitter louder than ever.

"I guess he likes you"

"Yesh he doesh, don't you Freckles? Come on, Ari, he doesn't bite, he doesn't even have teeth! He only kisses and makes a lot of noise when you least want it; come on, try to hold him, who knows, maybe he'll transform into a handsome prince?"

He held the salamander closer and closer to the girl, the little critter opened it's mouth in the same fashion as it did the whole day, emoting a very wide, innocent smile; it had a good reason to do so, as Vincent suddenly felt something warm and long landing on his palm. He stops laughing and his face turns into shock; with his free hand, he plucks the lizard from his palm and places it on his chest, only to discover a long, black and thin turd laying in his palm. Everyone around him laughed and Xilan threw a mocking remark and he had to agree, this was a rather shitty situation; the stench of the tiny turd was absolutely horrendous for it's size, but he knew exactly how to turn this situation all around. He picked up Freckles and chucked him into Arianna's lap:

"Here, hold this..."

He stood up and started to chase Xilan while holding his right hand in front of him, trying his best to land the turd on his elf friend; he chased him a while around the clearing, yelling more silly cries:

"Embrace the poo-poo! Become the poo-poo! You are the poo-poo! EAT THE POO-POO!"

While the two were running around, Freckles raised it's tiny head up towards Arianna and gazed straight into her green, sparkling eyes it's small, black beady droplets; although he wasn't "smiling" anymore, it was clear that it tried to express something, a feeling, a message maybe. Soon enough, it started chittering slowly, almost as if it tried to be gentle with the girl and not scare her; even so, the salamander still remained a cold reptile thing, not a fuzzy, adorable kitten. Sure, the wolf managed to land half of the turd on Xilan's hair and seeing him react, Vincent starting laughing and slapped his forehead with the dirty hand, sticking the turd to the fur on his forehead. They both took time to clean the nuisance and finally return to the girls, both looking very disappointed. When asked what happened, Vincent replied with a displeased tone:

"A tie.."

He looked up to Xilan and shared the menacing gaze once more before the wolf finally declared in a suddenly relaxed tone:

"Wellp, we're even now. Uch, all this sparring, running, sparring and running got me starving. . . anyone wanna go grab something? We can pick it up and eat out here, how's that sound?" he recovered his pet salamander which quickly burrowed into the layers of his clothing.

[Zamokra41]

The silliness of the day was rather welcome, without a doubt each of the Juniors were glad that they didn't have to confront some abominable peril and instead could lazily lie down on the grass and munch some food in their newly discovered 'retreat'. While they were walking back to the clearing, Arianna wondered if anyone else knew about the place and since it did not seem likely, she proposed that they claim it for themselves, a personal little resting place just for the 4 of them, needless to say everyone agreed without so much as a second though. The day went on peacefully with no great or out-standing events...save for the occasional competition between Xilan and Vincent whenever they both reached for the last piece of something.

A FEW DAYS LATER

The days passed and rather peacefully, however it didn't took long for the people at the Fortress to notice that something was amiss, afterall there was no sign of any of the Seniors save for the few who only stood briefly or came back with all sorts of wounds. One was even said to suffer from some sort of poison or disease when he came and since the physicians and healers refused to share any information (since they were ordered not to) the rumor of the said Senior's demise spread like wildfire. By now the whole Fortress was some-what aware of what the Heroes of Avalon were confronting, while the rest of the Juniors do not know exactly what it is they are sure that it would probably be more dangerous than anything they confronted before, luckily enough most of them didn't lose heart for whatever reasons. Talk of ;necromancers; could be heard among the Juniors, with as many theories as flowers in a meadow. The Taskmaster was probably thankful that in spite of all their gossip, none of them shrunk from their duties. While the Seniors were busy tracking down the shards and trying to prevent Shader from getting his hands on them, there was no shortage of missions and pleas addressed to the Heroes of Avalon and everyone was signing up for whatever they thought suited them best. Vincent, Xilan, Arianna and Alexandra were no exception, they each took up various missions these past days. They learned that just because they would consider themselves a squad, that does not really mean anything among the Heroes, each member was on their own yet in the same time they stuck together, as such some missions required them to be paired with different people or even work alone though they could request to bring a partner along.

Vincent and Alexandra along with a few other Juniors were assigned to guard a small trading caravan until the next village, while Xilan and 3 other of the Spellcaster Unit were sent to investigate some strange happenings around a lake not very far away from the clearing the Juniors claimed for themselves. After that, Vincent volunteered to join a small group of the Craftsmen Unit to help make some repairs in a small town, Arianna was assigned to investigate the sudden appearance of a pentagram in a crop field in a nearby farm and Alexandra volunteered to guard her should anything go amiss while Xilan agreed to join a pair of the Recon Unit in their task to capture a fleeing outlaw in a road-side tavern. With reluctance and a deep sigh, Vincent agreed in keeping an eye open and make sure no one will bother a pair of the Spellcaster Unit while they were scrying on a big, black gals ball for something, Arianna volunteered to make some order and rearrange the books, scrolls and documents in the library while Xilan, Alexandra and few other Juniors were assigned to guard a small village until a nearby town could spare a few guardsmen. Such missions and more kept the group busy and not always together however they had made a reputation of sorts among the other Juniors due to their performances and the way they didn't shifted away from any task, be them as dull or dangerous as they come.

During these past few days, Xilan was officially introduced into the Spellcaster Unit, Alexandra into the Vanguard Unit, Arianna does not belong to any Unit instead she was officially made the Steward's assistant due to her diligence and careful handling of the documents. Vincent also does not belong to any Unit, he was told that a unit is usually assigned to a Junior depending on their overall performance and aptitude on their missions, yet in consideration to that he was also told that save for the Spellcaster Unit, he was free to join either the Vanguard, Recon or Craftsmen, it all depended on his choice and he was allowed as much time as he wanted before deciding. The wolf didn't give much thought to this, or if he did than he didn't show it and kept his mouth shut about it.

Vincent and Xilan were heading back to the Fortress from the nearby woods, both of them looked a bit more raggedy than usual and they were dragging behind a cart with a pair of wild boars, an elk, a few rabbits and some pigeons which the two just hunted. The hunt in itself was not really dangerous, the only creatures who posed trouble being the 2 wild boards which needed a though hard beating to kill. The elk nearly escaped them but thankfully Vincent managed to shoot it down just before it could make itself unseen among the trees. Close to where the elk was shot, Vincent sniffed out a few rabbits and Xilan caged them in his Arcane Prison so they won't escape and give the wolf sufficient time to snap their necks. Before leaving, Vincent saw Xilan shooting small bolts of lighting in the sky and before the wolf could ask, he saw pigeons falling down around him. The hard part was dragging all this game back to the Fortress, the cart was heavy and neither the wolf nor the elf were particularly strong yet together they somehow seem to manage. "Tell me again, why did you assign me to help you on this?" Xilan said in a complaining tone while he struggled to pull the cart along with the wolf. Vincent's response was a remark to the elf's figure and how he could use some exercise. "I'm not !" Xilan quickly replied but he soon nodded approvingly when Vincent mentioned that this mission gave him the chance to shoot lighting. It was surprising but in these past days, Xilan had been practicing with his magic often and actually managed to learn how to 'properly' use spells from the Elemental School, by the only thing he could do was infuse some elemental power in his Arcana spells but the results were pretty good, he considered.

The distance was not very great but with all the weight and the time it took to drag it behind them, it felt like they would never reach their destination although the Fortress was visible not far away. When they did reach it, the two left the cart with their hunt close to a small wooden door located on the side of the Fortress, which lead to the larder and was permanently locked the only one in possession of a key being the cook or the Steward. Vincent and Xilan stretched their backs and after the wolf muttered a 'good work' to the elf, the two headed inside the Fortress and into the Dining Hall where the cook was eagerly awaiting them. Vincent told the cook about their hunt and the man seemed very pleased of what he heard. "Mighty well done, both of you. With this and the hunt from the rest of the Juniors we will be restocked on meat in no time. I'l go and sort your game in the larder myself, now I just need to worry about our greens. Mhmmm..." The cook was rubbing his chin in contemplation for a moment and then gazed back at Vincent "Tell you what. Since you two need to give the report on this task to the Steward anyway, why not mention to that old bag of dust that we're running low on vegetables, fruits and herbs and he should probably buy some from the villages." Said and done, Xilan and Vincent were now heading to the Steward's office. Knowing all to well that the old man was most probably not going to hear them, Vincent knocked symbolically on the door a few times and then opened it himself and entered with Xilan behind him. Inside, the Steward's office was unrecognizable from a few days past. The vast bundle of documents and letters that littered the floor were now neatly arranged next to the desk. Spare ink pots, quills, empty papers, small books and money pouches now each had an easy to reach place among the shelves. The desk where the Steward loomed over was still heavy with plenty of scrolls and parchments but now there was also enough space for a small pile of stacked coins as well as an odd looking wooden box with many screws, bolts and moving gears as well as cooper buttons engraved either with numbers from 0 to 9 or mathematical symbols, an Anthro invention which Vincent most probably recognized as a 'calculator' from first glance.Everytime the old Steward finished scribing on a piece of parchment he would toss it aside to which a younger and more delicate hand would pick it up and find it a place either on the shelves or in the stacked pile next to the desk.

Vincent and Xilan's presence seemed to have gone unnoticed as the Steward ignored them being busy with his documents and Arianna had her back turned arranging something on the shelves. The Steward stopped his scribbling and squinted at the parchment in front of him, "Ms. Helmshear, what is the price on iron ingots ?" he asked in a rather irritated tone. "21 coins for a piece, sir." Arianna answered and went to another shelf picking up an ink pot while the Steward pressed a few buttons on the Anthro calculator and a number appeared on its "screen". The Steward frowned "Why did we pay 26 per piece in our last shipment?" At the question, Arianna stopped, ink pot in hand and looked over another shelf and took a small paper with her free hand "The last shipment came from Snowbridge..." she put the paper back in its place "In the Dwarven Lands, the price for iron is higher, sir." she said and placed the freshly picked ink pot in place of the old one the steward was using. The old man rolled his eyes and sighed muttering "Dwarves...greedy little crooks they are..." and resumed his scribbling seemingly not noticing that his ink pot had been replaced. Arianna finally noticed Vincent and Xilan when she turned to pick up the parchment the Steward just tossed aside. The girl smiled and waved her hand at them after which she gently tapped the Steward on the shoulder "Sir, someone is here to see you". The old man lifted his gaze at Arianna and then quickly shifted it at the two newcomers in his office. "Ah, yes, yes, yes. What do you two want? Hm? I am a busy man with vital duties so be quick about it. Speak up, don't just stand there like lettuce." After Vincent gave the Steward the mission's report as well as the cook's request, the old Steward twitched his mouth and squinted his gaze at him. "Bah!" he spouted and then resumed to scribbling his papers and counting on his calculator "Last time I checked we still had sufficient veggies to last us till the end of the month! If this lot eats to much of it then I'm not at fault so he shouldn't pin it on me! The Fortress is having sufficient financial problems as it is, between the usual expenses for medical and crafting supplies adding in all the letters of requests we get on a daily basis and supporting the Hero Wall, we are barely left with a meager amount to scrape by! " The old man then stops from his scribbling and raises his gaze up at Vincent "So if the cook wants to restock on his greens then you can tell him he should bloody well start a damn garden! " to his angry muttering Arianna walked sheepishly to his side "That's actually a good idea sir. If I recall correctly, the land behind the fortress is rather fertile and if we cut down some of the trees around we could have a wide enough space for a large garden.." The Steward ceased everything he was doing and was eying Arianna, giving her a slight nod as to say 'go on' to which the girl obliged "....so, what if we tell the cook that instead of actual vegetables, fruits and herbs we would buy seeds and plant them so we could cultivate our own greens?"

The Steward stroke his gray stubble for a few moments in contemplation and then stated, in a more calmer tone "This way our expenses for food would be reduced quite nicely. Yes, we would need to cover for newer ones including the building and managing of such a large garden, but I'm sure we could cover it and it would still be nowhere near as expensive. " The Steward then looks up at Arianna and it almost seemed as if there was some trace of a smile on his wrinkly pale face. "You are indeed a rare kind of a Hero, Ms. Helmshear. One with a brain." It appeared that both of them forgot Vincent and Xilan's presence in the room once again. "Please give me the lists of supplies for the next caravans, Ms. Helmshear. We have some...minor modifications to do." "Right away sir." and Arianna started shuffling through the shelves looking over pieces of parchment and scrolls, putting most of them back while keeping some in her hands and setting them on the desk before looking for some more while the Steward starts to scribble over them. It was only after a few good minutes that the Steward rose his gaze to see Vincent and Xilan still there (Arianna brought his attention to them again) "And what are you two still standing here for? Shoo, Ms. Helmshear is helping me in these tasks of topmost importance, you can attempt to fill her brain with useless chatter later." Vincent and Xilan then looked at Arianna who simply shrugged with an apologetic look on her face and then the two left the room. "Vincent, please tell me that Arianna won't end up like that old man someday." Vincent attempted to ease Xilan's mind with some strange remark about Arianna's dutiful nature in an attempt to point out some difference between her and the Steward but it didn't seem to work "That's not really reassuring, you know..." as response, the wolf grunted in annoyance and told his elf friend that they should check on Alexandra.

When they went upstairs, Vincent and Xilan were rather...surprised to see Alexandra in her casual wear and sweeping the hallway of the Living Quarters. "Well...you don't see that everyday..." Vincent seemed to agree by remarking how surprised he was to see Alexandra sweeping the floors as punishment for something before Xilan. Alexandra simply sighed at them "I suppose it's no less than I deserve, really." at this remark Vincent couldn't help but inquire about what happened, Alex answered him "In the last mission, I was too careless and led the caravan right into a highwaymen ambush. Luckily enough no one got killed or hurt...too badly...but all the goods were either stolen or broken and most of the crooks got away." Before anyone could say anything Xilan took a step forward with a look of curiosity on his face "Did these highwaymen happen to be dressed in long green coats with funny looking hats? And red scarfs for masks?" Alexandra widen her eyes at Xilan's question "Yes! Yes, all of them seem to wear that, like some kind of uniform. How do you know?" Xilan then sighed deeply, "Looks like you were the latest victims of the Forest Guard." Vincent couldn't help but remark how badly the name fitted a band of thieves. "I know, right?" Xilan agreed "The Forest Guard is a gang of highwaymen, they stay away from highly populated areas most of them time and prefer to pick on those traveling the roads, taking every little scrap they have." Vincent jokingly asked if they even took something worthless to which Xilan shrugged "From what I hear they'll even steal your small-clothes and leave you as naked as in your name-day...if they won't downright kill you." Alexandra frowned "Vile..." Xilan rose a hand as if to interrupt Alexandra from speaking "You haven't heard the weirdest part" the next statement from Xilan's mouth did utterly shock Vincent. "They're all elves and it's said they learned how to use firearms like the Anthro Engineers." Needless to say Vincent was beyond himself and it appeared that even Freckles, on his shoulder, was gaping his tiny mouth in disbelief. "I don't recall something like that...Are you certain?" Xilan simply shrugged at the question "That's the rumor, so who knows?" It was not unheard of races other than the Anthro to learn how to use simple firearms, like the Humans from the kingdom of Mistraven who seemed to have a fondness of sorts for flintlock pistols and rifles, but what Xilan said was that these Forest Guard actually learned how to work and tinker with the complicated machinery consisting of a firearm, something believed to be comprehended only by the Anthro race.

"Hey, who knows? Maybe we'll get a chance to meet them in person and then you can see for yourself if the rumors are true, eh Vincent?" The wolf expressed his...eagerness for such a meeting "You probably shouldn't jest about such things..." Alexandra said letting the broom lean on her. Soon enough each of the Juniors were tending to their own devices. Alexandra resumed her sweeping punishment, Xilan said that he had to meet up with 2 others from the Spellcaster Unit and help them scry for something, Arianna was still busy with being the Steward's assistant. In his room, Vincent would find a number of packages along with a letter which stated that his request for supplies shipped a few days ago had arrived and it seemed were delivered to his room while he was busy with the hunting mission.

[MachineSoul]

Although the rumors of the poisoned senior that died overnight had spread all over the fortress, it did not stop the juniors from mobilizing; there were tasks to be fulfilled, who else is going complete them? Seeing everyone around him getting their wits together and contribute to the effort, even his own three friends, motivated Vincent to grab himself some tasks too; there wasn't much to do around the fortress other than eating, training and eating again; his order of supplies has yet to arrive and the commander did not contact them about anything new, so why not? While it did take a lot of self-convincing, the wolf finally applied for a random task up in the map room; he knew he was to be paired with complete strangers, a concept he sincerely loathed, but it was too late to resign now: he was to guard a small trading caravan on it's way to a village along with other juniors. Without further ado, Vincent picked up his gear and prepared himself for a tedious ride; little he knew about how much fun he was going to have.

Luckily for him, he had Alex's familiar face on this task so he wouldn't have to face complete strangers. Seen as a leader was already chosen, the wolf volunteered to scout ahead since he had a ranged weapon, better, a firearm. It was the prefect occasion to test his "Slugshots" on live targets, should they face any threat; but to his disappointment, the trip was bland and slow, even if he kept his distance from the caravan. Nothing tried to attack, no one popped out in ambush, nothing. When they reached a tight pass, the wolf quickly climbed to the top to search this perfect ambush spot, to be disappointed once more; as soon as he turned around, he spotted something moving in the foliage and in an immediate reaction, he shot a slug at the foliage. It turned out to be a boar, but the wolf was much more impressed by how he managed to kill it in one shot with the slug. Then, a devious idea struck through his mind; the juniors below did hear the shotgun fire and prepared for the worst to come, so they scanned the tall spruce line, but saw nothing trying to attack them, only to be surprised by something big tumbling down the side of the cliff and land at their feet. When they realized it was a dead boar with half of it's skull missing, they raised their gaze only to find a topless anthro wolf standing mightily on a boulder, holding his shotgun above his head in a fashion of might and power. Most of the juniors were laughing so hard they nearly coughed their lungs out, others simply gawped in disbelief and a few scoffed in annoyance; Alex did not understand at first what was going on, but as soon she realized it was no one else but Vincent, she started chuckling along with the others. But this whole silliness shortly passed when the carriage came to a full stop not far away from the village; the juniors tried to understand what the driver was muttering about, but it soon became clear that the front right wheel of the carriage was damaged. The wheel then cracked in half and fell off it's axis, leaving the juniors puzzled over this nasty situation. Finally noticing that the carriage has stopped, Vincent backtracked until he found the juniors trying to look for a placeholder, or for a spare wheel on the carriage; that was his moment to shine, so, he makes his way through and pushes some of the juniors away from the wheel.

"Folks, folks. . ." he stops in front of the wheel and takes a look at it. Then, he points at himself with his right palm and raises his voice in a confident tone it almost seemed he was mocking them. "I got this. I can fix that!"

When he said "fix", Vincent actually meant "jury-rig", as he basically nailed the two pieces back together and strengthened the joints with two metal plaques he pulled off the carriage's decorations and bolted them tight. It looked downright hilarious, the juniors actually questioned the wolf's ability to craft and repair.

"So, uh, Grayhide-"

"It's Vincent."

"-Vincent, yes. I do not mean to disrespect your crafting skills, but are you sure you know what to do?"

The wolf finally fixed the wheel back unto the axis and took a few steps back to take a look at it. It was obvious to him too that it looked rather funny, so he replied with old anthro words of wisdom:

"It may look stupid, but it works, therefore it is not stupid. Look, it can support the carriage's weight."

Miraculously, the improvisation worked well and brought the carriage to the safety of it's destination, so the juniors could rejoice in their small victory. While everyone else went to the dining hall to celebrate, Vincent politely refused this affair and headed straight into his own chambers, where he waited long enough so he could sup alone. Old habits die hard, they say.

After a good job done, the wolf felt he should try some more work and to his luck, he found something suiting his skill: a small village needed help with repairs, the canals were overflowing, the village well stubbornly refused to share water with the inhabitants and some of the houses were barely standing on their pillars. Armed with tools and wits, many craftsmen and engineers headed there, including our merry Vincent. While somewhere inside him he still preferred to work alone, he knew too well this monumental task would take more than one man to complete, so he threw a helping hand here and there, nails and bolts, lifts and support. He wasn't necessarily feeling glad that he was helping the unfortunate, but he was definitely consumed by the immense satisfaction manual, hard work he was laboring. One of the other craftsmen seemed to stick around the wolf more often than the other, a siamese anthro with a very dark snout and glaring blue eyes; it amused Vincent when he'd talk, a red gaping mouth popping out of nowhere on that dark snout. Vincent took initiative to repair the village well, which the siamese cat agreed to help him with whatever was needed; as the wolf was installing a cog contraption that would allow the well use an automated counterweight system, the siamese was trying it's best to hold one of the larger cogs still and suspended so the wolf could bolt it on an axis. Being too heavy, the cog swayed here and there, rendering the wolf frustrated to the point he actually stood up, threw the bolt iron away and shout:

"For the love of everything, hold that thing straight, what are you, a woman?!"

"Yes I fucking am, you half-wit dog!"

"Then why- wait, wait, WHAT?!"

They looked at each other in disbelief for a few moments, they both started to laugh a bit later; the siamese cat then took off her beret to reveal she was holding her hair in a bun. Vincent never really paid attention to her look, but now that he looked closely, he could see that her hips are too broad and curved for a male and he was convinced that her voice was of a young child rather than a woman. The two changed roles so that it would be much easier for both of them to finish the damned well already. After a while, Vincent actually felt that he knew her from somewhere, but he couldn't quite remember from where.

"I think we've seen each other before. . ."

"Aye, Gordon's class. We had two years in common."

Vincent raised his head from the well and looked up at her face. Then he remembered the silent cat in the corner of the classroom that never uttered a word but to talk to Gordon or present her creations; she was good, but anything spectacular in particular. She made amazing connections between matters showing a high intelligence, but to what use if she refused to talk?

In the end, the well was finally installed and it worked like a charm, no hiccups or malfunctions. Sure, poor Vincent dropped the massive counterweight on his foot once, but other than that, everything went smooth. They did not realize that the day was already over and the city looked already as good as new, the villagers claiming that they could finish up the rest with no problem. Compared to the scrawny meals they had to endure, the craftsmen were served a hefty supper filled with meatballs, mashed potatoes, steaks, grills, enough booze to knock out a troll and plenty of bosom for the tired men. Vincent ate like a true hero and had a sip of beer, which almost instantly rendered him in a beer buzz. After returning to the fortress with a considerable effort, the wolf somehow ended up in the mess hall with some of the craftsmen where he promptly refused any other drink he was offered, to the amusement of the lot. The only one less amused was the siamese, knowing all too well the low alcohol tolerance anthros have; she was the one that helped Vincent back to his room and cover him up once he fell flat on the bed and did not move. The following day, the wolf woke up with a crippling headache that took him half a day to heal, the rest of it was spent fiddling with cogs, prank someone on the sparring ground with the help of good old Xilan and a slim dinner with the gang. When Vince went to bed that night, he finally felt that something big was amiss, something bothered him greatly: he did not spend as much time with his trio since two days already and he already felt very alone. He could not fall sleep, the bed felt uncomfortable no matter how he'd lay in it or how much he'd keep his eyes shut and his mind clear; there was a massive hollow within him, consuming and absorbing his thoughts into the dark, aching and keeping him restless. At some point, he couldn't take it anymore and sprung out of the bed and kicked it furiously with his heel. He dressed back up and took a brief walk outside; there were a few juniors here and there with their own small business, others found solace and space for themselves. Vincent found nothing but more frustration, nothing seemed to cheer him up anymore at this point; he actually looked down at his feet and cursed at the earth below him, just so he could throw out some of the rising anger:

"Fuck you, grass."

Finally, he found himself at the doors of his comrades, but to his disappointment, he found Alex and Arianna asleep, Xilan was nowhere to be found; that was very odd for him, should the elf go for any mischief, he would have known. Maybe he was stuck with some task of sorts; with nothing else to do, Vincent finally gave up and went to the crafting hall and work on something, anything that would help for his next task. The hall had an interesting smell to it, of dust, cold, molten metal and sweat. For some reason, he liked this smell; the halls were rather empty, save for a few other people working on their own inventions. At first, he wasn't sure what to come up with, but the state of anger soon gave him the grievous idea to start crafting some nasty traps. Not like those bear traps or rope ones, ones that would launch shrapnels. Or nails, nasty, rusty nails up someone's heel 'till to his thigh or more; the devious, dirty idea instantly sparked the wolf's creativity and started to work with the spare parts he found lying around along with his own stash of bolts, cogs, nails and pieces. Not exceedingly complex but hard enough to prove a challenge to disarm such a trap, Vincent uses a mechanized spring-based trap that launched a handful of nails into the victim; the trigger was easily convertible from pressure to trip-wired, it was a basic hammer that once pulled, it would release the winded up cog to rotate and unlock the spring in order to launch the surprise at a speed enough to penetrate mail. He still had to come up with something stronger in order to pierce plates, but it was a good point to start. Making only one of them took the wolf long enough to turn him drowsy, but he did not stop and kept working until he was unsure whether he was still awake or he fell asleep, but he knew he was still working on the traps.It was well past midnight when someone woke Vincent up so he could clean up the hall. The wolf dragged his feet and traps back to his own room, where he fell back asleep.

He woke up with the same hollowness inside him that disturbed him to the point he nearly refused to get out of bed that day and just stay there; it was an old feeling that returned to him after a long time, it would happen to him daily, before the times he befriended Xilan and Ari. Once again, he had to find himself a reason to get out of bed and get moving: he will go to the taskmaster and search for something new to do. This new task, unfortunately, was not as interesting as the ones before as he had to guard a pair of spellcasters scrying a big black glass ball; he just stood there, patrolled around the two, he was even tempted to prank them, but it would only interrupt whatever the hell they were doing and it would take longer. The day and night passed somehow in gray and Vincent took the next task of hunting some animals to provide the cook with meat; finally, Vincent could bring up one of his friends, so of course he quickly picked Xilan. After two days of growing a dark hollow inside him, he felt relieved when he finally saw his elf friend again; of course, he wouldn't want to make this problem a burden for him too so he kept this problem a secret for now. He wouldn't reveal this thing to Ari either, he wouldn't want her to worry for him more than she already does.

The hunt itself was fun for the wolf since he had his companion by him, making fun of the animals they just brought down, making fun of nature, of each other, of the sky, grass, everything was much more fun when he had this buddy around. Definitely, the commander spoke words of wisdom to cherish his friendships. When the two finally caught enough game, they struggled their way back to the fortress, of course, not without complaints:

"Tell me again, why did you assign me to help you on this?"

Vincent adopted a silly tone, emulating a zealous man that enjoyed his work: "Now Xilan, we can't afford to be picky, we must survive with whatever we can! Would you rather eat corn all day long instead of juicy, tasty burnt corpses of animals? You need to put some meat on you, you're so skinny I could use you as a toothpick for Freckles!"

"I'm not !"

"But at least you got to test your new Magicborn skills of lightning! I must admit, it was most shocking to see you jolt those birds down. I bet they were mortified by the display of power!"

Although it sounded more like a joke, the wolf was also rather impressed by Xilan's evolution, he remembered too well how miserable the elf was with elemental magic, granted he was the one who burnt the bench in the library. The two somehow pulled through and reached the fortress with the carriage of meaty goodness, the chef quickly dispatched of the two and sent them away to the steward to announce the need of vegetables. Once they reached his door, the wolf volunteered to knock at it and open up: he knocked four times in a polite manner, took a short pause, knocked for times again with more power then three might kicks into the door, after which he opened it slowly and ominously. Inside, they found the steward working over something, muttering to himself with a disgusting sweaty upper lip, but Vincent was more preoccupied with identifying the typewriter mark the steward was using; disappointed that it was but a human imitation, the wolf soon recognized a slim voice of a girl, spotting no one else but Ari afterwards. When she smiled and wave, the wolf did the same in a more silly fashion and thanks to the crimson haired sorceress, the steward finally noticed the two standing in front of him.

"Ah, yes, yes, yes. What do you two want? Hm? I am a busy man with vital duties so be quick about it. Speak up, don't just stand there like lettuce."

"We just finished the hunt and we gathered, hm, two big boars, a healthy elk, around six rabbits and 9 pigeons."

The elf then completed by adding two more pigeons to the count, to which the wolf quickly retaliated:

"The roadkills don't count, Xilan- oh gods, don't tell me you put those in the carria-"

Xilan grabbed Vincent's snout and closed it quickly and continued on with the cook's request of vegetables, to which the steward seemed to be more than simply annoyed and pretty much refused to talk about this matter, that until Arianna intervened and suggested that getting a batch of seeds would be a good idea and there would be enough space next the fortress to hold a lush garden, should they chop some of the trees down. To quickly participate to this ingenious effort to avoid a possible vegetable crisis, Vincent also adds up:

"Me and my friend here could assign people to start chopp-"

"Wait, wait, why me-" The elf tried to complain but Vincent immediately seized his mouth.

" -assign people to prepare the terrain and start chopping some of those trees. Choppa choppa!"

The steward finally seemed to agree with the idea and gave a hideous excuse of a smile, noting Arianna's higher intelligence in comparison with the other two blokes standing in front of him. The steward dismissed the two, but they both waited to see if Arianna will join their gang, but towards their disappointment, she had a lot of work to do; Vincent expresses a silly, overly exaggerated displeased face, literally picked up Xilan and got out of the hall, where he puts him down.

"Vincent, please tell me that Arianna won't end up like that old man someday."

"Don't worry, Xilan, she won't. You know how dutiful Ari is, she knows better what's for her future. Besides, admit it, she's far more prettier than that old dusty wine-skin." Just after he finished the sentence, he also realized that it didn't sound all that good, really.

"That's not really reassuring, you know..."

"Ch'yeah, it definitely sounded better in my head.

When the two rode upstairs, to their surprise, they found Alex sweeping the floor as if it has always been her job. Dressed in casual wear, she was gathering up a heap of dust safe from the eventual juniors passing the corridors so they wouldn't spread the fresh dust all over the place.

"Well...you don't see that everyday..." Vincent seemed to agree by remarking how surprised he was to see Alexandra sweeping the floors as punishment for something.

Alexandra simply sighed at them "I suppose it's no less than I deserve, really." Vincent cocked his head in confusion, not really imagining what a good-spirited girl like Alex could do wrong:

"What gives, Alex? What'd you do?"

"In the last mission, I was too careless and led the caravan right into a highwaymen ambush. Luckily enough no one got killed or hurt...too badly...but all the goods were either stolen or broken and most of the crooks got away."

"And for that, you now sweep the floors. Great. Just how were you supposed to fend off those highwaymen alone? I can bet those juniors who assisted you were as good as target practice; if you had Xilan, Ari and I, we would have wrecked them so badly, the'd wish to return to their mother's wombs."

The discussion then turned over to some queer bandit force that seemed really desperate in their moves and appearance, not to mention that they would steal anything that's not nailed to the ground.

"So, you mean to say that those desperate lot would steal a bag of fingernails, should they pillage one?"Vincent jokingly asked if they even took something worthless to which Xilan shrugged

"From what I hear they'll even steal your small-clothes and leave you as naked as in your name-day...if they won't downright kill you."

"Vile..."

Xilan rose a hand as if to interrupt Alexandra from speaking "You haven't heard the weirdest part: they're all elves and it's said they learned how to use firearms like the Anthro Engineers." Needless to say Vincent was beyond himself and it appeared that even Freckles, on his shoulder, was gaping his tiny mouth in disbelief.

"I don't recall something like that...Are you certain?"

"That's the rumor, but hey, who knows? Maybe we'll get a chance to meet them in person and then you can see for yourself if the rumors are true, eh Vincent?"

The wolf was still sinking the thought of firearm-wielding elven bandits; it wasn't too difficult to actually use a firearm, but it does take time to learn how to repair, reload and maneuver one. And he could not think of any type of firearm that would have an easy maintenance, other than the revolver he designed for himself. An encounter with them would prove to be at least fascinating:

"Hrm . . . I'm really curious of their weapons, should we encounter them. I'll have to disassemble, reverse-engineer, reassemble and test those things on the bandits, surely they will offer to volunteer to help with my future research . . ."

"You probably shouldn't jest about such things..."

The three heroes departed, two of them with their duties, the wolf once more had to find something to do with his spare time; although he was offered to join two of the three main Units, the Vanguards and the Craftsmen, he did not consider it was absolutely important to wear any other badge but the one he was already wearing as a junior hero. He believed he wouldn't gain any advantage by joining them. Helping with the tasks, on the other hand, will prove to be quite useful in the long run. The wolf entered his own room, where he noticed the arrival of his ordered package after he tripped over them and fell flat on the room's floor. Vincent picked himself up, his snout and whatever was left of his pride and took a moment to look over the boxes he just received; he tried to figure out why would someone send him boxes of stuff, but shortly, he remembered he was the one who sent that requisition letter. He equipped his pipe and quickly cracked open the lids of the boxes, to reveal the materials he requisitioned, the leaden slugs, the copper-saboted iron sheets, the caps, it was all there. A wild, satisfied grin was building on the wolf's snout as he soon knew what he was going to do for the rest of his day. The wolf quickly opened the toolbox from his desk and pulled out the molding pieces, tweezers and a metallic scoop. With not a moment to waste, the wolf headed down to the crafting hall where he knew there was a small smelter, hopefully he could catch it while no one's using it; to his luck, the smelter was free to use, so the wolf quickly dunked in a handful of leaden slugs into the cauldron and waited for them to melt so he could scoop out and fill the mold to create the bullet tips. It took him some time to complete twenty tips suited for his rifle bullets and thirty for the revolving pistol rounds; he was so absorbed and concentrated not to drip any of the molten metallic goop on himself or all over the floor or bench and to carefully shape the lead that he realized it was way past noon, the sun was already preparing to set. But there was no time to go and eat, so he grabbed a quick snack he was going to eat while he works, a saucy meat and mushroom pie. The rest of the bullet confection comprised of cutting a small foil of the saboted sheets, add a compartment separator, place the leaden tip, fuse, cap, gunpowder, lock it all together and press tightly. Among the crafting, Vincent grabbed a bit or two of the pie, but he never really stop from the crafting fever that caught him, not even to clean up after Freckles when it dropped another majestic turd right in the gunpowder bag. But he only cared to clean it up after he finished the batch, stored them safely and store the remaining materials for later use. It took him a moment to realize that it was already night time and he lit the candles on his desk most probably by reflex and he was pretty sure someone came knocking at his door and he completely ignored that person.

But it was too late to care for that anymore, so with a half-empty stomach, the wolf made one last visit to the mess hall, not knowing what to eat, what to expect to eat; he simply headed there because he felt like exiting his room and leave his thoughts there, take a break, nibble something and enjoy the silence of the nearly empty hall. Though the company of any of his friends would be most welcome to him right now.

[Zamokra41]

When Vincent arrived in the Mess Hall, the place was almost empty save for the occasional few who fancied a late-night snack or wanted a moment alone. Just as always during night time, the Mess Hall was mostly dark with the only sources of light being the light of the moon peeking through the tall, thin windows and the candles on the tables where people stood though they were very scarce this night, Vincent was able to count around 4 or 5 from first glance, which means the Mess Hall was particularly lonely tonight. Instead of staying at a table, Vincent was beckoned by the burly cook and once the wolf approached him, the man gave him a small smile though his bushy mustache. "Out for a late snack again? Was wondering if you'd show up." the cook then glanced around the Mess Hall in a second and then gave a light sigh "Fewer people frequent this place, fewer than usual I mean." Vincent noted that already, perhaps it was due to the absence of the Seniors which are on their mission of finding the crystals before Shader. The Senior Heroes have scarcely been seen around the Fortress lately, they only returned in small groups (slightly worse for wear) probably to deliver their reports and then get back into the field as soon as possible. The cook widen his eyes for a moment as if he was surprised by something "Oh, sorry. You're just here to munch on something, not listen to an old man complaining about the lack of company, right?" the cook gave him a friendly chuckle "So, what should it be?" after Vincent stated what he would like to eat and drink, the burly man nodded and pointed to a table located right under a window "Go ahead and take a seat there, your friend arrived just a few minutes ago."

The wolf was probably a bit surprised to hear that one of his friends arrived here earlier and took a seat at their usual table, the only question was who was it but the answer came as soon as Vincent approached the table and noted the red curls in the light of the candle. Arianna was glancing down on a book, reading with the same twinkle of fascination in her green eyes which is characteristic to her when flipping though a book and holding a small half-filled cup of tea in her free hand. The girl didn't notice Vincent not even when he seated himself in front of her, this until the wolf greeted her. "Oh, Vince. Hi, believe it or not but I'm really glad to see you." Arianna then took a sip from her cup, her gaze never leaving Vincent "Today was really busy, I'm really sorry I couldn't accompany you, Xilan and Alex." she let out a small sigh "Truth be told, I only just finished my duty for the day. Did you know the Steward works even at this hour? He probably wouldn't have let me go if I hadn't asked nicely and mentioned that I'm tiered and it's late and I barely ate at all today." After hearing this, Vincent asked why Arianna was working for the Steward if it took up so much of her time and energy, as a response Arianna simply smiled and pointed at the book she was reading, 'The Stranger's Journey' by Michael Pirhan. " 'One who shrinks from their duty, is worth less than what a pig would spit' " Arianna quoted the line from one of the key characters from the story, Vincent simply nodding to that. "We all have to undertake whatever tasks suits us best..." the red-head girl paused for a moment and gave the wolf a weak smile and an apologetic gaze "..and let's be honest, I'd rather belong in a place filled to the brim with books and scrolls than a battlefield." It appeared Arianna was still unsure of her 'usefulness' in means of combat although the wolf was pretty sure that just like Xilan, she has been practicing her magic and if the elf improved then this sorceress MUST have also improved her skills.

The cook brought Vincent his food, wished him to enjoy his meal and departed. Before eating, Vince inquired if Arianna would like a bit to eat as well (something quite unlike him) "I...uhhh...already ate." Arianna replied shyly and only then did Vincent notice 3 plates, dirty with the remains of food, and a bowl piled a few inches away from her. The wolf couldn't help but give a cheeky remark on Arianna's weight should she continue to eat like that, which made the girl reply angrily "I was famished! And I won't end up like that, I am careful about what I eat." though she replied like that, a trace of a blush made itself visible on her cheeks though it was probably just due to the light of the candle, who could tell? A few minutes passed in silence while Vincent ate but once he was done, the conversation resumed with Arianna asking Vincent a question "Have you made up your mind? About which Unit you would join, I mean. Recon, Vanguard or Craftsmen?" Vincent responded that he has yet to decide and he said it as if he does not have the slightest intention of joining either. "You have to decide in the end, I would have joined the Spellcasters but the Steward was...especially vocal about me being his assistant so the Taskmaster had to drop the issue." The both lightly chuckled and then a few more moments of silence passed before the conversation took on a more serious tone "You know, we have received lots of requests and pleas for help from all around the country. Some were serious issues...or at least sounded like such. With most of the Seniors gone, I wonder if the rest of us can keep up with all this?" Arianna was looking down on her cup, with a worrying gaze. Vincent tried to reassure her that they will be fine in spite of all the hardships that may come and the wolf's confidence seemed to have made her feel better as she looked up at him and smiled with a nod. It was only after Arianna yawned that Vincent suggested they both go back to their rooms and rest, though he seemed reluctant to do so. Did he want to talk more with the red-haired girl, maybe?

THE NEXT DAY

This time, Vincent woke up rather relaxed and took his time with a hearty breakfast, probably to compensate for the fact that he barely ate the other day. He met with Xilan in the Dining Hall who just finished munching on a piece of lemon cake. "Morning old wolf. What's your plans for today?" as always Xilan was in a cheery mood in spite the fact that it was rather early in the morning. After breaking their fast rather in a hurry, the two were heading down to the Map Room, no doubt there were plenty of missions waiting to be taken and completed. When they reached the Map Room, however, the two stopped at the entrance and saw that inside, the Taskmaster and Brandon were talking with someone. The flowing cape with the Heroes of Avalon crest and the imposing great-sword slung on his back made him easy to recognize even with his back turned, though the Commander was rather absent these days so Vincent and Xilan were rather curious about what he was discussing with the Seniors. Before they could whisper a word to eachother, Bjor Mornn noticed them and beckoned both the elf and the Anthro inside. "Commander, tell them what you told us." to the Taskmaster's request, Brandon crossed his arms "Just like that? Not even a bit of a warning or maybe a mug of ale to wash down the news better?" Brandon's remark seemed to be all but ignored as the Commander turned his grey gaze at Vincent and Xilan "You have accepted to aid us and the Seniors in our efforts against Shader, I believe you have every right to know how these efforts progress." Harlod cleared his throat and then explained "For the past days, the Seniors dispatched have been looking all around Avalon in search for the shards before Shader could find them. At the same time, we have sent carrier birds with pleas for aid to each of the great kingdoms of the land." The Commander followed with a pause which Vincent used to ask if there was a problem. "The messages were sent about a week ago. Too damn long." Bjor's statement was followed by Brandon's "Too long a time and no reply from anyone. That can't be good." Harlod continued "And the reports from the Seniors haven't been fruitful either. I fear we are in a disadvantage." This time Xilan took up the guts to ask "What should we do, Commander?" The room felt silent for a few moments before the Commander rose his gaze and stated "We need the aid of the races of Avalon. I fear Shader may be more of a threat than we realize yet." Bjor scoffed "One single Necromancer exiled from his own home?" "Tristan was also only one Necromancer, yet he was close to undoing the Heroes of Avalon." Harlod's response made Bjor grumble "Yet it seems we stand by ourselves, Commander." Brandon took a step towards the Taskmaster "You're not seriously believing they might have simply ignored the messages, are you?"

A displeasing thought though not improbable. Afterall, it's no secret that the races of Avalon have a shaky understanding with eachother and after so many years, the Heroes of Avalon are not viewed as the great champions and protectors that they once were and are rather looked upon as little more than a large and organized band of mercenaries by most folk. However, in spite of these opinions, Harlod refused to believe that the kings and queens of Avalon simply decided to throw away the letters they sent, "Our order may be...less glorious than it once were but regardless of how the folk view us, a warning mentioning a Necro-Lord is simply too dire to be ignored." Bjor did not seem persuaded by the Commander's 'optimism' "Then were is the help we requested? Were are the troops of Avalon? Beg your pardon Commander, but those puffed-up kings and queens didn't even sent a response to our letters!" The Commander's gray eyes narrowed as he stroke his beard with an armored hand "Which is troubling. I was expecting this from the Dark Elven Magistrates or the Orcish Warlord but if even King Alexander of Lioncross has yet to sent a reply..." Harlod took a brief pause to shift his gaze at Vincent and Xilan "...then we should assume that something has gone awry. And this, my friends, is where you come in." To the Commander's statement, both Bjor and Brandon seemed surprised "Commander, are you suggesting we..." before Brandon could finish his question he was cut off by Harlod who was still addressing Vincent " Vincent Grayhide, Xilan Silvertooth, I am entrusting you and your squad with an important task. I need you to travel to each kingdom of the land and find transmit our plea for aid directly to their rulers. It may not sound like much, but believe me, this task is as vital as it can be dangerous, these are troubling times afterall." Needless to say, the other 2 Senior Heroes in the room were less than thrilled with this news especially Bjor "Sir, are you certain it is wise to entrust this kind of mission to a bunch of Juniors?" Brandon reinforced the issue "The Old Bear is right. Commander, grant me leave to go instead." But Harlod declined the Senior's request "No, Brandon. I need you, Bjor and the rest of the remaining Seniors here to direct the search efforts of the rest. I would go myself but I received a letter this morning from the Border Lord, summoning me to the Hero Wall. I fear I do not know when I shall return." the Commander then returned his gaze to Vincent "I have full confidence in your ability and that of your squad, you may be Juniors but your are still Heroes of Avalon, any obstacle can be overcome and I know you can do so. You simply must. If you have any questions regarding this task then now would be the time to ask rather than later, I will answer as best I can."

[MachineSoul]

"Out for a late snack again? Was wondering if you'd show up."

"Ch'yeah, I'm hungry as a wolf can be."

he automatically replied to the chef, without even bothering to look at him. The two had grown some sort of bond, maybe because Vincent was one of the best clients the chef had; the wolf had a knack at ordering most of the leftovers, but he did not mind it. In fact, he is the kind of anthro that would eat basically anything you'd give him, as long as it is edible of course.

"Fewer people frequent this place, fewer than usual I mean."

The wolf raised his eyebrow as he looked around the place. Surely, at this hour you don't have many people who need a fix, but indeed, the number of Heroes has been greatly reduced with the departing of the seniors.

"I guess times are getting a tad rougher now." he mutters under his breath.

"Oh, sorry. You're just here to munch on something, not listen to an old man complaining about the lack of company, right?" the cook gave him a friendly chuckle "So, what should it be?"

"It's fine, good man, I don't mind talking to you really. Hrm, I would definitely enjoy a healthy sausage with marshed potaters and that juicy red sauce you have boiling there. And a fine anthro stout would work perfectly right now."

Soon, he was directed towards a secluded table, where he saw a crimson maned woman staring down at a book. The wolf was trying to figure out what was the chef's intention, was he attempting to pair him up with a girl? Company would be most welcome, honestly, after nearly a day in complete isolation; the poor fool didn't know though that he had eyes for someone else, though.

"Go ahead and take a seat there, your friend arrived just a few minutes ago."

Taking a better look at the one sitting down at the table, he realized it was no else but Ari. He was rather astonished by how he did not instantly recognize her, he was a lot more tired than he imagined; a small smile grew on his wolfish snout as he took a seat across the girl. He looked at her, hoping she'd raise her head to greet him, but she was so absorbed in that little book of hers that even if Shader would pop up in this room, she would not even care to notice. So he sat there and crossed his hands only to look at her while she's all concentrated and disconnected from her surroundings, his smile growing every second. If only . . . In the end he could not abstain from disrupting her attention by clearing his throat loudly and greet her with a meek voice:

"Hey Ari."

"Oh, Vince. Hi, believe it or not but I'm really glad to see you."

In the same meek tone, he gapes his mouth as if he was surprised and points at his own chest: "Who, me?"

"Today was really busy, I'm really sorry I couldn't accompany you, Xilan and Alex." she let out a small sigh "Truth be told, I only just finished my duty for the day. Did you know the Steward works even at this hour? He probably wouldn't have let me go if I hadn't asked nicely and mentioned that I'm tired and it's late and I barely ate at all today."

"Sheesh, what a low-life. If he dislikes his job so, he shouldn't have applied in the first place; now he's dragging you down too! Why are you working for that scrub if it tears you down like this?"

Then she revealed the book she was reading: yet another book he read when he was a younger cub, a truly inspiring read indeed. But judging by how far she was into the book, she had yet to discover the massive twist that changes the whole plot and turns it upside down.

" 'One who shrinks from their duty, is worth less than what a pig would spit' " Arianna quoted the line from one of the key characters from the story, Vincent simply nodding to that. "We all have to undertake whatever tasks suits us best. . . and let's be honest, I'd rather belong in a place filled to the brim with books and scrolls than a battlefield."

There, the wolf disagreed once more with the girl : "In all honesty, you'd fit in anywhere you wish with your brilliant mind. And listen to me, you don't belong next to that dust bag: you'll end up ugly and salty just like him and I don't want my Arianna to turn like that. Believe me, you're extremely helpful on the field; after three glorious victories, you judge your abilities for the single loss we experienced? And if you really want to be useful among your 'books', you should have aimed to become an apprentice to some professor"

That's when the cook showed up with his steaming hot meal and his cold drink. The wolf grinned widely and prepared to devour it all, so he grabs his tableware and prepares to plunge in shamelessly; he stops midway, remembering what Arianna just said about being hungry and tired. His grin washes away and it turns into a frown and offers his fork to Arianna. He generally dislikes to share his meal for some reason, but for Ari . . .

"Hey, have a bite with me. Dunno if I can eat it all up by myself."

"I...uhhh...already ate."

The wolf then noticed the pile of platters she stacked not far from her. His frown shifts into a wide smile as he chuckled lightly.

"My, my, you've been training hard, Ari! Finally, you listened to my advice . . . you know I like my girls meaty."

"I was famished! And I won't end up like that, I am careful about what I eat."

Seeing her blush amused him even more, he leaned in with his evil grin and rested his head on his hand too look gaze straight into her eyes. "Tell me more about how you're gonna grow your beautiful chicken legs, hm?"

But it seemed she had enough of the joke, so he returned to his own meal shortly. It didn't take much to finish it all up, but he saved his drink to finish it later. As he took a long sip that cooled his insides with a refreshing bitterness, Ari brought up those three units he couldn't be bothered to care about.

"Honestly, I'm not very excited about those three guilds. Didn't join one yet, but I'm not really looking forward to join one either. It's not like they are going to help me with anything at all, really."

"You have to decide in the end, I would have joined the Spellcasters but the Steward was...especially vocal about me being his assistant so the Taskmaster had to drop the issue."

The wolf snorted and chuckled at the thought of seeing the puny steward accosting that monster of a Taskmaster, but there is a saying that states "Smaller doses are always the most concentrated." In the few moments of silence he gazed at the girl, his eyes ran all over her slender, soft body dressed in her fancy robe she improved with her uncanny tailoring talent; her crimson blaze of hair she complained about all the time was actually a perk that cherished her soft, noble features. Any anthro female would kill and sacrifice to have her wild hair, to expose the wild side of their furry kind. Arianna was gods-damned pretty for a female human, Vincent thought; although he prefers not to woo out of his own canine species, Arianna was so different from the selfish humans with her kindness and gentle touch. Were she an anthro, most likely an innocent looking vixen, everything would be so different; the temptation is unimaginable even now the urge is boiling and pushing him. Were the circumstances different, though, he would most likely give in.

"You know, we have received lots of requests and pleas for help from all around the country. Some were serious issues...or at least sounded like such. With most of the Seniors gone, I wonder if the rest of us can keep up with all this?"

The wolf woke up from the brief to her words, trying to remember and process what the girl just said. He remained stuck and confused at first but quickly found his words.

"Well, it is pretty much our job, it is expected for us to have work to do. And how else are we juniors supposed to gain experience if not through difficult tasks? They may call it serious issues, me, I'd call them a challenge. Hell, I'd take them all myself if I have to, it's mt job now. We're gonna' beat those wussies so bad they'll run back to their mothers and hide in their bellies. And you, missy, I need you on the field next to me so I can be sure you will not get hurt again, you hear me?"

She raised her gaze and gave a nod, it was obvious that her confidence was restored after his few words; he reached Arianna's shoulder to give her a bit of comfort by stroking her arm gently. A few moments later the girl yawned, letting out a high-pitched squeak that made Vincent chuckle

"Aww, you're destroyed, aren't you? Mmmpf-" the wolf quickly gulps down what was left of the stout and puts the tankard back on the table. He stands up and beckons the girl to follow him. "Cha'mon, let's get our sleepyhead to bed." As he left the hall, he waved at the chef and kissed his own finger in appreciation for the tasty meal he enjoyed. Although he would just love to spend more time with her, she obviously wrecked; but what if he invites her to his room? No, she needs to sleep, knowing that the steward might abuse her like this again the next day. Though he did offer to escort her back to her room, holding her shoulder the whole walk; in the end he reluctantly let go of her and retreated to his own room, feeling rather lightheaded. Was it from the stout or from something else, he was unsure, but neither did he give it much attention. The wolf quickly threw everything off of him and crashed into his bed, letting out a tired groan. He'd usually sleep on his chest and rest his head on a pillow, pretty much like canines do, but tonight he felt like grappling the pillow tight to his chest and lay on his side. It took him a bit more time to fall asleep, the night felt mighty jealous of the feather pillow lying safely in the wolf's grasp; she knew to well who that pillow is supposed to be so she will not give the wolf the pleasantry of a restful night.


((He woke up rather relaxed? FUCK THE POLICE))



The second day, the wolf woke up lying on the ground, the sheets entangled his feet and tail, his right arm fell asleep, he was pretty sure that the left arm does NOT bend that way, but the pillow he grasped did not abandon him, it most likely broke his fall from a certain massive headache. After a considerate effort, the wolf escaped the trap and tried to wake up his arm; he got entangled so bad, he had marks all over his face and body of where the folds of the sheets protruded and creased his hide. Mightily annoyed, he had to take a shower to re-arrange his fur. He dried out and made sure his fur doesn't smell of wet dog and immediately ran to the mess hall to have a hearty meal of bacon, eggs and more "marshed potaters" and a couple of tankards with fresh water. He even found Xilan enjoying the very last bite of his lemon cake, so he moved his meal over to his table.

"Morning old wolf. What's your plans for today?"

"Shit on the carpet, piss every statue I find, chew clothing and eat important scrolls." he replied while chomping on his bacon. "What would you expect from a wolf?" he replied when he saw Xilan laugh at his remark.

Once they both finished their food, they decided to give the Map Room a visit, surely there would be many tasks that need to be accomplished and who else would be good for the job if not for these two goofballs? As soon as they entered the room, the laughter that accompanied the two was quickly snuffed when they spotted the commander discussing something with the taskmaster and Brandon. Vincent wanted to suggest Xilan to surprise the group, but their plan is immediately foiled when Bjor noticed the two and called them in; it seemed the commander had something rather important to discuss about, important enough to turn Brandon weary.

"Just like that? Not even a bit of a warning or maybe a mug of ale to wash down the news better?"

"For once, I agree with Sarge's idea. Ale would do very goo right now, actually, I'd-"

You have accepted to aid us and the Seniors in our efforts against Shader, I believe you have every right to know how these efforts progress." being interrupted, the wolf blinked twice and took a more serious posture; it seemed that they're in for a real surprise and jokes really had no more place in the following discussions. And for a good reason: the call-to-arms have been ignored, it seems. And the seniors have yet to return with any useful information, a prospect which put Shader in advantage. But Vincent remained stuck on the idea that no bird has yet to return with replies from the rulers of Avalon; would they truly ignore such grievous news? Very unlikely. Vincent thought of something else though . . . were he a necromancer gone mad collecting rocks, he'd definitely try his best to reduce the number of enemies he'd might get. His train of thoughts was itnerrupted once again when he heard his name called out loud:

" Vincent Grayhide, Xilan Silvertooth, I am entrusting you and your squad with an important task. I need you to travel to each kingdom of the land and find transmit our plea for aid directly to their rulers. It may not sound like much, but believe me, this task is as vital as it can be dangerous, these are troubling times after all." The wolf blinked twice and a weak smirk carved on his snout. Finally, a serious task for a serious wolf, he thought. It did involve a lot of travelling and camping, but at least he will have the chance to see the whole world; who knows, maybe he'll decide to find a different place for his business instead of freedom island. Instead of scaring him, this task actually excited the wolf greatly. Unnaturally so.

"I have full confidence in your ability and that of your squad, you may be Juniors but your are still Heroes of Avalon, any obstacle can be overcome and I know you can do so. You simply must. If you have any questions regarding this task then now would be the time to ask rather than later, I will answer as best I can."

Vincent took a moment to stomach everything and to calm down, he had to keep his cool in front of the commander. After a few moments of silence, the wolf finally spoke up, a sliver of excitement could be picked up from his tone.

"First of all, I'm more than honored and excited about the task at hand, I will not fail even if it means I'll have to raise from the dead and complete the task, Captain." Fuck. "Now, about the silence from the rulers . . . surely they could not ignore such dark tidings, at least, not EVERYONE. Whenever there is a grievous threat arising, you send warning birds and call-to-arms, no? Let's look at this in Shader's perspective: it is a very predictable move. My guess is that those messages never reached anyone.

We will know for sure once we get there, though. How exactly are we going to travel, though? Avalon is by far not the size of a courtyard, travelling by foot would take too much time and it would turn out to be very inefficient. Resources, like food, water and crafting materials cold be arranged, but we definitely need a quicker mean of transport, not to mention we need to carry camping equipment. We will also need a safe and secure way to remain in contact, otherwise we'd might be cut off like the rulers. I can't think of anything else, though. We'd might pick up a few more juniors to help us, seniors if we meet on the road, heck, any kind of help we can get . . . though that would be resource consuming. I'll figure it out, though.

You, Xilan, have you got any ideas, thoughts, questions, whatever?"

[Zamokra41]

Vincent's theory that the messages sent to the rulers of Avalon never reached them and that it may very well be Shader's doing was highly probable and the Commander as well as the 2 Seniors thought so too. "We've also sent plenty of 'decoy' carrier biirds just in case something like this happens." said Brandon to which Bjor answered "What if this Necromancer got them all, including the decoys?" "That would be...pretty bad..." the Commander pondered the idea for a brief moment and then stated "It does seem like the most likely scenario. We should not have underestimated Shader's cunning. We have to be more cautious in the future if we are to face him." The Commander then turned to Brandon with a request "Brandon, do we still have a few copies of the letters?" The Senior Hero rose an eyebrow in confusion then then scratched his head in contemplation "I believe so, the Steward insisted we hold a few copies of the original letters just in case....and it seems he had a good call..." the Senior Hero then murmured to himself "..I hate it when he's right..." Bjor crossed his burly arms and leaned his back against the wall "So we send another batch of carrier birds? What if Shader gets to them too?" to that question the Commander replied with a risky idea "No, the messages are to important and we cannot risk loosing them again. Instead I believe it would be for the best if we entrust these letters to you, Vincent and your group." When Harlod stated this idea, Bjor nearly lost his balance before he pushed himself off the wall "Commande, are you sure about this?" This time it seamed that Brandon agreed with Harlod's idea "They will be heading to each of the kingdoms of Avalon, might as well deliver a few courteous invitations while they are at it. Besides, call me wishful but I believe they stand a better chance then carrier birds." Bjor grumbled to himself and remained silent. The Commander turned his gaze back at Vincent "It seems your mission suddenly became much more important, friend. The letters that you will deliver must reach the hands of each ruler of Avalon, no one else. Your theory sounds like a valid explanation to the lack of replies from the kingdoms, we will simply have to assume that it happened as such. Brandon will fetch the letters from the Steward for you and we will also send another batch of decoy carriers to keep Shader's ...interceptors busy."

The means of transportation was another issue to be addressed. "I think I have an idea for that." Bjor stated and then turned his grizzly gaze at Vincent "The carriage driver." before Bjor could elaborate, Brandon chuckled "Really? Marvelous plan, why didn't the rest of us think of that?" the Seniors sarcasm was seemingly ignored by the Taskmaster as he continued his idea "It's obvious that the driver won't be able to bring you with his carriage all over Avalon as it would attract attention, but simply go to him and ask if he could spare a few mounts for you. If he seems unlikely to then simply say that the Taskmaster asks him kindly." Bjor was smiling confidently to himself after stating that but judging by the look on Vincent and Xilan's faces it only brought confusion but they didn't have many alternatives but to try. "So it's settled then." The Commander crossed his arms and gave a slight nod. "You best go and gather your companions as well as gear up for the journey. Once you are ready, meet with us just outside the Fortress." Harlod turned his head to Brandon "Brandon, go and retrieve the letters as well as gather appropriate supplies for them and prepare the to send the decoy birds." "Already on my way, sir." and with a smile and a casual wave the Senior Hero walked past Vincent and Xilan to do as he was told. "Bjor, will you accompany me for a moment? There are some details we need to discuss." The Taskmaster nodded without saying a word and followed the Commander as they both left the room. "Make whatever preparations you see fit for this long journey Vincent, but be swift. You and whomever you choose and is available to accompany you will leave as soon as possible." The Commander said to Vincent as he walked past him. Once they were left alone in the Map Room, Xilan tapped Vincent on the shoulder once "I can see you are really looking forward to this grand mission, wonder what the girls will think about that."

The two went to look for Alexandra and Arianna and inform them about the upcoming journey. One could only wonder what their reactions would be to such news, a mission of great importance has been entrusted to their small group and it would be quite difficult and dangerous without a doubt. Vincent and Xilan found Alexandra already geared up in her armor about to leave her room. She was a bit startled by the sudden appearance of the two "Vincent, Xilan? Hello, I thought I might see you later today. I'm sorry but I can't stay and chat, I need to.." before the Lady-Knight had a chance to excuse herself, Vincent cut her off and explained the situation to her. "Truly? The Commander himself charged you with such an important task?" Alexandra placed her hand over her armored chest "As always, you have my shield and sword you only need ask." With Alexandra by their side, the Juniors then went downstairs and managed to run into Arianna, who already seemed equipped for the occasion. "I know, Senior Hero Brandon just came by earlier and explained the situation. The Steward was hell-bent on not allowing me to leave but when Brandon mentioned that it was the Commander's explicit order that I accompany you, he had to remain silent." Arianna answered after Vincent told her about the task. "The Commander's explicit order? Nice one Sarge." Xilan whispered aside to Vincent and even the wolf seemed somewhat pleased by the Senior's lie, it probably came as a relief to him since they won't have to convince the Steward themselves. Once all 4 were together, they organized themselves. Each went to their respective rooms to properly gear up and stock on whatever they thought would not be supplied to them. Xilan came dressed in his Spellcaster gear with his new staff and the pouches on his belt were filled with a few vials of potion, those filled with a light-red liquid ought to be for healing while those filled with a dark-blue liquid must be for restoring energy. Xilan also had the Marsh Talisman from the Lizardmen attached to the side of his belt, probably just in case they might have to traverse some harsh terrain on foot, if the tribal trinket truly does what the rumors say it does. Arianna came with her own gear and this time she also wore the same cloak that Xilan was given. She also had a small leather purse slung over her side where she would most probably keep her potions and other miscellaneous items. Alexandra was equipped in her Vanguard gear, her Paladin Tome attached to the strong chains of her belt. She also came equipped with a standard issue brown leather backpack. When asked what was inside, Alexandra said it was empty and that she would offer to carry any extra items that the rest couldn't be burden with.

Once the group was properly equipped they headed out of the Fortress. While walking through the hallways, they saw a few Juniors about their business, not even suspecting what their small group was about to do. Once outside, Vincent started to look for the carriage driver and Xilan, Arianna and Alex were right behind him. They found the driver in his usual spot close to the main road that lead away from the Fortress with his carriage and his black horses munching on the grass. Vincent greeted the driver and then asked if he could provide them with mounts. The driver seemed to ignore him, as always. "Maybe he didn't hear you?" Vincent dismissed Arianna's suspicion by reassuring her that the driver heard him clearly and only SEEMED to ignore them. Vincent inquired again about the mounts, this time explaining that they needed them to travel though the whole of Avalon by the Commander's orders. The driver still seemed to ignore him and the horses which pull his carriage were now eerily glaring at the group with their black beady eyes yet the wolf did not exactly feel as though those were friendly gazes. "Vincent...I'm scared.." Xilan muttered to Vincent, feeling the insistent gazes of the horses upon him. The small salamander on Vincent's shoulder shared in the fear as it quickly crawled behind the collar of Vincent's coat to hide. This time, Vincent mentioned that the Taskmaster had recommended they talk to him for the mounts and as soon as the wolf mentioned the Old Bear, the driver turned his head in the Anthro's direction, the void from under his black hood starring at the group. After a few moments of silence, the driver jumped off his seat and inquired with his hand that the Juniors follow him. After a bit of a walk through the woods surrounding the Fortress, the driver had lead them to the entrance of a cave. "A silent and creepy looking guy dressed in black asks us to follow him inside a dark cave..." Xilan muttered to the group "I read this story before and it doesn't end good..." but the elf's concern seemed to be ignored as they each walked through the entrance. Arianna blew lightly on the crystal of her staff making it glow so they could see though the dark of the cave, yet eerily enough the driver was walking in front of them as if he could clearly see though the dark, perhaps he could, who knows? The walk though the cave's tunnel would probably remind the group of the dark cave they went though to find and fight Xiao, the atmosphere felt quite similar.

After a while they stopped in front of what looked like a large underground pond filled with crystal clear water. The 'room' was surrounded by a number of torches which made it easy to see. A few stone plaques engraved directly on the wall could be seen located between the torches. The group looked around at the torches, the plaques and the pond not understanding why the driver would bring them here. The eerie looking person was standing beside the pond and pointed at one of the plaques which read "An offer of sacrifice is required for a worthy companion to help you on the road." Vincent read that out loud and then the driver produced a slender curved knife from under his wavy sleeve and gave it to Vincent, telling him "Blood..." in a ghostly voice. Reluctantly, the wolf tore off one glove and made a light cut over the surface of his palm and allowed a few droplets of blood to fall in the clear water of the pond. The dark-red cloud that formed inside the water started to grow larger and darker and it felt as though it was...alive. A sudden sound (similar to the neigh of a horse) made Vincent quickly step away from the pond as he and his friends gazed with wide eyes in amazement and shock as they saw a large, black horse emerging from the water, from the same spot where Vincent's blood fell in. The horse that emerged shook his head to dry off and then slowly approached Vincent. It was a strong looking pitch black courser with a messy light gray mane and tail and a grim look in its black eyes. Vincent approached the beast and slowly lay a hand over its head and started to stroke it's snout, the courser pulled away as if he didn't like it but did not react aggressively. Vincent handed the knife to Xilan who did the same as Vincent before him and after the elf followed Alexandra and Arianna, each were given a horse in exchange for their offering. Xilan's horse was a palfrey just as pitch black as Vincent's courser but Xilan's was smaller, had a long blonde mane and a much friendlier gaze and disposition. Alexandra's horse was a rather strong looking destrier, also pitch black but with a shortly trimmed brown mane and a tied tail, the destrier bowed its head when Alexandra approached as if saluting her. Arianna's horse was a mare, pitch black like the rest but with an elegant look about it and a wildly grown crimson mane and the mare seemed to shy away from everyone save for Arianna or the other horses. Once each of the Juniors received their mounts, Vincent gave the knife back to the driver who 'sheathed' it under his sleeve and then pointed to another plaque on the wall which read "The bond between man and beast must be of blood. Otherwise, it would easily break." and then he muttered in the same ghostly voice as before "Take care....Treat well...and respect....Otherwise..." the driver then pointed to the last of the three plaques which read "A farmer who treats his animals well will find only love and trust from them. A farmer who mistreats his animals will only find death." The driver then presented the Heroes with a large wooden crate filed with 4 leather saddles. While each of the Juniors were busy to tie the saddles to their respective mounts, they never noticed the driver vanish.

After such an adventure, the group headed out of the cave with their mounts and decided to ride them the rest of the way back to the Fortress. Strangely enough, each of them felt pretty...natural on the saddle as if they rode on their horses for a lifetime. "This is awesome !" Xilan shouted in a cheery voice as he raced across the field and his palfrey neighed loudly in accord to the elf. After they reached the Fortress, the Juniors spotted the Commander accompanied by Brandon, Bjor and the Steward waiting for them. Once the Heroes approached and dismounted, the Commander greeted them "I see you managed to acquire suitable mounts for the journey" Bjor smiled and muttered "Smart kids" after which Brandon approached Vincent and gave him a number of sealed envelopes. "Here. These are the 'call-to-arms-letters' which you have to deliver to each of the kingdoms." Brandon then pointed to his right at a small pile of packs "And those are all the goodies you will need to reach your first destination. Be sure to restock once you're there before heading out again, alright? Here let me help." and then the Senior Hero along with the Juniors tied the packs to the horses. Each of them were given a tent along with standard camping supplies and food. Once the preparations were done, the Commander approached the group. "We wish you the greatest of luck on this journey young Heroes. Your mission is one of the utmost importance, you must ensure that the letters reach the hands of the rulers of Avalon and you must do your best to persuade them to lend us their support. Divided I highly doubt we will have a chance against Shader should he succeed in whatever his plans are." The Steward approached and handed Vincent a bag, heavy with gold. "This all I managed to scrap by and spare for you. Listen carefully : Use this money to fund your expedition, DO NOT dare to spend a single coin on whatever selfish desires you may have unless you somehow manage to survive on grass and rain." the old man then turned his gaze to Arianna "And Miss Helmshear, do take care in this mission. Unlike these oafs you are still a valuable asset to the Heroes of Avalon. Return safely." Arianna was not sure how to take that but she appreciated the Steward's....concern. "Don't worry about Shader, we will do what we can to make him look at us and ignore you." said Bjor with a strong fist bump on his chest. "Good luck lads." The Commander then presented Vincent with a sheathed longsword "Here, take this. It will help you on your journey." Vincent accepted the weapon and then drove the sword from its sheath. The weapon felt light and slightly off balanced. The leather wrapping of the handle was mostly torn due to extensive usage revealing the metal bar underneath, the guard was made of gold and shaped like 4 speared wings but they were chipped, broken and covered with spots of rust. The blade itself was also notched and chipped and covered in rust. It probably was a fine weapon ONCE but now it simply looks like a broken shadow of its former glory. Vincent couldn't help but question the usefulness of such a 'weapon' in battle, in response the Commander chuckled lightly "You are right, this weapon would do poorly in a battle. No, Vincent. This sword is far more special than you suspect but not as a means of combat. Once you found a suitable place to make camp, plant this sword in the center of the area and you will understand." Vincent gave the Commander a confused gaze, nodded and tied the weapon to the side of the saddle though he still doubted the point of carrying this 'sword' around.

"Oi, keep it safe lad. It's an heirloom." Bjor barked at Vincent to which Xilan rose an eyebrow "Heirloom?" The Commander offered to answer that question "Indeed, it is an heirloom. This sword was used by the Heroes of Avalon since the first Commander." Bjor found the freedom to cut in the conversation "Forged in the core of the Dwarven Lands and enchanted by the finest mages of the land. A valuable and one of a kind companion for any Hero." He nodded to himself. Brandon conclude with "In short? It's a really old, really important thing. Don't sell it, lose it or break it. Oh, and if you could take the time to clean it up a little, it would be appreciated." Brandon's jest managed to pluck a few chuckles from the crowd (Save for the Commander who only smiled and the Steward and Bjor who grunted and sighed) but it was time to leave now. The Commander gave them the final words "Journey fast and swift my friends. We are placing our hopes in your hands. During your journey you will meet plenty of people who will either resent or revere the Heroes of Avalon. Take help when it is offered and remember, you must accomplish your goal by any means necessary. Good luck, we are all counting on you four." And with that, the four Junior Heroes saddled up and galloped down the road heading further and further away from the Fortress and towards their destinies. While they were marching towards the horizon, there was only one question on their minds and Xilan found the liberty to ask it.

"Vincent, where should we go first?"

[MachineSoul]

Vincent listened carefully to the instructions and thoughts of the three seniors and when he was given the task to send the letters personally, he nearly lost his balance too like Bjor; he wasn't sure what he actually expected so he shouldn't be surprised of this additional task to his mission. And indeed, this whole adventure will turn out to be a tad more dangerous. Only now does the wolf realize how important this matter is; not that he did not acknowledge it, but he never fully wrapped his head around the matter to realize what great responsibility fell on his shoulder. Actually, what responsibility he BROUGHT to his own shoulders by being so over-confident in his skills and judgement. Bravo, another fine mess you've gotten yourself into, you smart mutt he scolded himself, but on the exterior, the wolf was present in the discussion and took a mental note of the transport issue. It seemed that their carriage driver was also an avid horse herder; how funny, the wolf does not remember seeing any stables within the vicinity of the fortress and he's walked around it quite a few times. After all, he did accept the silly 'mission' to escort a group of spellcasters as they foraged for some potion ingredients and tried to catch butterflies, claiming that their wings had special eyes with magical properties. Of course, he wasn't about to infirm their theory, so he made sure the group would not be assaulted by, gods forbid, an angry feral fox.

His mind returned to the present when the commander announced they should gather their squad and gear for the mission that's about to follow, Vincent stood straight and nodded at the commander respectfully. As the seniors left the room, Vincent leaned towards the table, his hands pressed against the edge of the table as he gazed over the territories of Avalon; high and low, he took a quick scan of the map, not really sure what he was looking for.

"I can see you are really looking forward to this grand mission, wonder what the girls will think about that."

The wolf smirked as he pictured Arianna's less pleased face of this whole situation "They're gonna love it"

He turned his head to Xilan for a quick glance then back at the table. When the wolf was happy with whatever he was looking for, he stood up and headed towards the door, that until he stopped right in the middle of his tracks halfway through the door frame. He turned around and jogged over to a drawer placed against the the wall facing the east side of the table; he opened it gently and grabbed a long tome rather than thick. He opened it up to reveal it was a tome containing maps of the whole Avalon, a very valuable item to possess for the upcoming journey.

[ITEM RECEIVED = Map Tome]

So now Vincent and Xilan started to roam the fortress to find the girls, meeting up with Alex first who was dressed perfectly for the mission.

"Vincent, Xilan? Hello, I thought I might see you later today. I'm sorry but I can't stay and chat, I need to.."

"Sod it, the captain- fuck, I mean, commander has something else in mind. We have to investigate all the kingdoms of Avalon that supports our cause and personally send them the call-to-arms letters. Get your everything packed, we're moving out today!"

The wolf was about to walk away at a hurried pace, but hearing Alex saying something again, he turned around and moved down the hall with his back.

"Truly? The Commander himself charged you with such an important task?"

He sighed in exasperation and continued: "Yes, yes, Alex, come on, there's no time to lose!"

Alex then picked up the pace and joined the two on their search for Arianna, but she did not finish with her lady-knight gallantries, making Vincent grumble and cringe: "As always, you have my shield and sword you only need ask."

Of course, he had to pull off one of his snide remarks "Great. Give 'em to me, you can stay home."

And so they all headed towards where they suspected Arianna to be, at the stewards; luckily for them, though, they managed to run into her. Literally so, for Vincent. He nearly knocked her off her feet, but he swiftly grabbed her hips to keep her stable; he quickly lets go of her once he could feel Xilan's amused gaze peering over his own neck. The wolf opened his mouth to present the situation, but the girl already seemed to know about the matter, as Senior Hero Brandon went beyond duty in order to assure her recruiting; the wolf stood there somewhat surprised by the fact that a fool like Brandon would care enough to do them a favor like this. He snickered quietly and beckoned the girl to follow the group up to their personal quarters so they could swiftly grab everything they had stashed in their rooms and prepare for a long journey.

"The Commander's explicit order? Nice one Sarge." Xilan whispered aside to Vincent. He smirked and replied in a hushed voice "I believe Sarge just won himself a keg of ale."

Once the group was up at their quarters, the wolf prompted them to prepare everything they wanted to take on the long journey, including clothes, accessories, hygiene articles, tools, everything they would bring for a long travel by themselves. So, the wolf immediately started rummaging through his own belongings, placing his clothes neatly on the bed, his tool box was prepared for voyage on the desk, along with all the sketches and written thoughts strapped neatly in their dossier. Then came the problem: his supplies. He gave it a few moments of thought, but in the end, he still crammed them with the rest of the clothes; he hoped his jumpers and shirts will not be ruined by the sharp edges of the metallic sheets... or his fingers. But then came another problem: how exactly was he going to carry all the ammo he forged the last several days? The pouches on his belt were already filled with components and spare pistol rounds and there was literally no room left for the larger projectiles. Confronted with this dilemma, the wolf pondered a while until he realized that his companions are most likely still waiting for him to get ready for departure. As he got out the door, imagining that Xilan and the gang were waiting to scold the wolf for being late, an idea struck him. Although no one was waiting for him outside, the wolf still uttered something not even he could understand and dashed down the hall, only to land in a few moments in the crafting hall. As soon as he got there, his eyes locked unto the standard supplies for craftsmen being stashed on the wall along with hammers, saws, aprons and other tools. The wolf immediately seized a leather strap holding three pouches identical in size and dashed away, hoping no one spotted him; even if someone did, he would have a valid excuse for his sudden action. Once in his room, he quickly strapped the leather torso piece over his jumper, over which he strapped the newly acquired leather band, resting on the reinforced leather pads protecting his chest; he took on the fancy long coat he received from the armory and quickly folded the sleeves over his elbows. After he sprung a few times on the same place to see if he was comfortable enough with his setup, he grabbed all of the clothes and materials and coaxed them into two large backpacks he threw over his left shoulder. His rifle was resting on his back snugged tightly with a leather strap embracing his chest, his trusty pistol on his right thigh, the pipe was carving into the flesh of his left thigh due to the backpacks pressing against it; the shotgun was latched unto the back-side of the tool belt, resting just above his tail. With all this gear encumbering him and pulling him down to the floor, the wolf stubbornly started to move the ammo to the pouches on his chest in an order he found most useful to his setting: on the leftmost pouch he stashed the pistol rounds as it would be quicker for his left hand to plunge into the bag and quickly pull out six rounds, the middle pouch was reserved for his shotgun shots and "slugshots" since the grip on his shotgun required him to center his weapon. Finally, his rightmost pouch was designated for the rifle, as it allowed him to quickly pull out a bullet and slide it down into the chamber with a quick wrist maneuver.

Once he cleared the whole stash of ammo, Vincent could barely walk anymore, but his stubbornness got the better of him so he pulled the rifle from his back so he could get some balance; this reminded him of the days when he was but a recruit at the academy doing the basic military boot camp. Those long, strenuous marches with loads of weights on him would tire him dead but thanks to his inhuman endurance and high pain tolerance, he would finish the course with the same stubbornness as ever. He finally exited his room, where he found the rest of the gang ready to go; they all seemed to carry much less items than himself, making him frown quite heavily as his footsteps rang loudly due to the weight pushing down his legs. Alexandra even offered to help him with some of the weight, but just as expected, he refused with a tired grumble as he shifted the weight on his back to make it comfortable to some degree. He took the lead out of the fortress, leading his group outside and headed towards the main road where they found the carriage driver. Once there, the wolf took the liberty of putting his bags down so he could talk to the driver properly; he took a deep breath and approached the carriage, his voice booming loud enough so he would make sure that even the half-deaf could hear him.

"Good day to you, Sir!" he accented on the last word "Do you perchance have any available mounts we could grab?"

Yet, the driver seemed impervious to his words. Arianna then suggested:

"Maybe he didn't hear you?"

"Pfft. Of course he heard me, he likes to ignore people." he replied to the girl and tried again. "We are in dire need of these mounts, we're off to travel nearly the whole Avalon; it would be outrageous if we decided to take this task on foot, the commander agreed we should ask you for help."

That's when the horses, NOT the driver, turned their heads to look at the group with a chilling gaze. It was not filled with hatred or scorn, but it definitely felt rather unfriendly. Taking a closer look, Vincent finally notice that there was something rather peculiar with these horses: they were all coated in an identical jet black short fur, save for their manes that varied in colors and styles.

Vincent...I'm scared.." Xilan muttered to Vincent, feeling the insistent gazes of the horses upon him.

"Honsetly? Me too." muttered the wolf. The small salamander on Vincent's shoulder shared in the fear as it quickly crawled behind the collar of Vincent's coat to hide.

Then he remembered what the taskmaster suggested him to do. With a grin on his face, he turned to his squad and lifted his hand, giving them a reassuring nod:

"Guys, guys ... I GOT this!" he turned back to the driver and leaned in closer, bringing out the artillery "Bjor would be most pleased, should you give use some mounts. He IS asking you nicely to do so, after all."

And thus, he finally obtained a reaction; the driver turned it's head to the group and peered at them in complete silence until it finally jumped off from the seat and beckoned the group to follow him. With a satisfied grin, the wolf picked up his two backpacks, refused any help from Alex yet again and followed the dark figure to the entrance of a cave. Xilan protested, though he was completely ignored, save for the wolf.

"Then you can go ahead and march your way to Lioncross, Xilan."

The cave did feel very odd, though, the darkness did not feel natural, the setting was so oddly familiar. They were lucky with Ari's staff lighting their way, but that still raised a confusion: how was the driver able to walk down the damned cave with no light source in front of him. Finally, light was visible at the other end, revealing a small chamber lit by torches and decorated with metal plaques; in the very middle of the room there was a large pond with a water so clean and clear one could see the very smooth bedrock at the bottom of the pond. The wolf inspected the slate of stone carefully, trying to determine what kind of stone was it as it did not look like something he knew about. He lifted his head when he saw movement around him and quickly turned his attention to the plaque he was pointed at; he took a few steps closer in order to read what was scribbled on the metal. He read it aloud:

"An offer of sacrifice is required for a worthy companion to help you on the road. Oh boy." he finished. He immediately made the connection between the horses outside pulling the carriage and this little misadventure; at least, correlation made sense in his head.

He turned his head to the driver, which pulled out a small knife from the void of it's cloth; The wolf took the knife by the hilt and gave it a good look; at least it wasn't all rusty and dented so he wouldn't have to worry about fever and puss. He sighed loudly and headed over to the edge of the pond and pulled off the glove from his left hand so he could hold it in his mouth; he took the blade and aimed the slender edge to the palm of his hand, giving it a few moments of thought before he would carve a thin cut in the soft flesh. The wolf did not react at all, to his own surprise too and as soon as he saw blood trying to drip out, he clenched his hand into a fist so he could produce droplets quickly; his blood landed in the water and seemed to dissolve at first, but suddenly it started to progressively color the whole pond in a dark red hue that kept growing and darken until a sound similar to a neigh boomed from the pond. The wolf quickly drew back, not knowing what in the nine hells was going on right in this moment and his mind did not get any clearer once a gods-damned horse emerged from where the cloud of blood used to be; although Vincent was no horse expert, he could determine that this one was a courser. A strong-looking one, for that matter; while it's fur seemed to be jet-black, it's short mane was dark grey and appeared to be rather messy which prompted the wolf to check his own hair to make sure it was neatly arranged to blast backwards. His horse looked rather mean and even it's gaze wasn't very welcoming, yet, it approached the wolf until they were a few fingers apart from each other. It was a queer moment for the wolf, if not outright magical; a horse made out of his own blood that seemed to be similar in appearance and attitude was standing in front of him. The wolf raised his hand to caress it's large snout, managing only to give it a pat as it turned it's head away from him, puffing some air out in exasperation. The wolf pretty much did the same and crossed his arms while peering at the horse. He passed his blade over to Xilan which did the same, only to produce a horse similar to his friend: a long, golden mane flowing on the side, a much friendlier posture and attitude compared to his own grumpy stallion. This one approached Xilan with no holding back, rubbing it's head against the elf cheerily; it even approached Vincent's horse to tap it's side with his own snout. Vincent's horse turned it's head and grunted in annoyance; soon after it nodded in acceptance and whacked Xilan's horse with it's tail. Alexandra's horse seemed mighty and proud, fitting for the young lady knight and Arianna pulled out a slender mare, gentle and shy.

The wolf listened carefully to the last words of the driver and read the two remaining plaques as prompted to and returned the blade so he could saddle up his own horse. Only when he finished the whole process, did he notice that the driver had vanished in the mean time; and to think that the wolf was actually considering to tip the driver for being nice enough to offer them a mean of transportation. The wolf felt excitement once he hopped onto the saddle and grabbed the helm; Vincent is notoriously clumsy when riding horses, but this one felt so natural and responsive to his commands the wolf could not contain his satisfied grin which lifted up his previously impenetrable frown. His heart fluttered as they crossed the grounds, feeling like a child playing with his new toy; if Xilan cried with joy and the horse replied with a neigh just as excited as his new master, Vincent's mount seemed to trot playfully and look outright silly as Vincent leaned forward and laughed as his own horse neighed with a deep voice. Once they found the seniors and the commander, Vincent dismounted and greeted them with the same wide grin he was unable to wipe off his muzzle. Brandon handled him the sealed envelopes, which the wolf quickly stashed in his toolbox secured safely on his mount; once presented with their supplies for the first ride, Vincent also offered to give a hand and help Brandon tie them safely on everyone's mounts.

"We wish you the greatest of luck on this journey young Heroes. Your mission is one of the utmost importance, you must ensure that the letters reach the hands of the rulers of Avalon and you must do your best to persuade them to lend us their support. Divided I highly doubt we will have a chance against Shader should he succeed in whatever his plans are."

"Once again, it is an honor, Captain. We will NOT fail you, not while I'm standing. United we will prevail."

He received the bag of gold from the steward, which immediately rebuked him. The wolf scoffed silently as he weighed the bag of coins, figuring they had enough gold to live nicely for the next two years.

"And Miss Helmshear, do take care in this mission. Unlike these oafs you are still a valuable asset to the Heroes of Avalon. Return safely."

The wolf then immediately turned around, his frown returning to his forehead and walked angrily straight up to the steward; he wouldn't care how important this man was, but right now, he felt as if he could bury this small man 'till to his chest and play foot-ball with his head/.

"OI! I'm here and I heard that, you-" but he managed to contain his small burst of fury, knowing the commander was watching him right now. Instead, he lifted his finger menacingly towards the steward; even his horse puffed some air and scrapped the ground with it's hoof.

Just then, the wolf was presented with a sheathed sword, the wolf grabbed the hilt and the sheath tightly and pulled out the sword; he was unsure what he expected, but the fact that it's weight felt off excited him seen as he was proficient with awkward weapons... but now it made sense. This sword was a wreck: the blade was rusty, dented and chipped, the hilt was missing it's pommel and the leather straps were worn off. He looked up at the commander, his eyebrow raised in confusion:

"Sir, I... thank you for all these, but to be honest, I'm not sure this sword is going to be helpful against, well, anything." he replied sheepishly, to make sure he will not offend the commander for this weird offering.

"You are right, this weapon would do poorly in a battle. No, Vincent. This sword is far more special than you suspect but not as a means of combat. Once you found a suitable place to make camp, plant this sword in the center of the area and you will understand."

The wolf blinked a couple of times and nodded respectfully, he turned around and attached it to his saddle; he was still rather confused why this sword was so important, surely, it can't be much more important than the letters, right? Just then, Bjor suggested that it was a heirloom. Both him and Xilan reacted rather surprised.

"Heirloom?"
"Heirloom?"

Even though Bjor gave them a description and history lesson of the sword, they were still clueless about it's properties, though Brandon's annotation made the wolf snort and chuckle. That's when an idea came to him: he opened up the steward's bag of gold and pulled out about a dozen gold coins which he poured into Brandon's hand, a devilish grin on his face as he made the trade.

"Thanks for helping us out with-" he cocked his head pointing towards the steward, clarifying the wolf's intention to reward Brandon for the good lie he crafted to save Ari from the steward. He intentionally paid him with the money he received from the steward as a small revenge on his earlier remark. Surely, Brandon would know. "Fetch yerself a keg of ale, a woman, whatever. You deserve it, Sarge."

The wolf took time to shake hands with Bjor and the commander, heeding his final words. As a reply, he quoted the motto of their guild: "Divided we fall, united we prevail. We'll find a way to keep in contact and deliver situation reports."

With nothing else to say and do, the wolf finally hopped back into the saddle and trotted with his squad until the reached the main road; from there, they all switched to a hasty gallop, distancing away from the safety of the fortress. The wolf turned his head to gave it one last glance, the walls basking under the light of the sun. After a while, they reached the main artery, from where the roads dispersed into many different directions; Xilan asked the wolf where would they be heading, so, Vincent pulled out the map tome he recovered earlier that day and gave it a good look, trying to estimate the time and distance required to reach the closest kingdoms. After a few moments, the wolf shut the tome and secured it back in the backpack; he pulled out his leaden pipe and aimed towards one of the roads:

"Closest destination from here: Lioncross. It may take up to four days, but it IS the closest. Onwards!" his voice boomed with pride and might as his steed neighed to match his tone.

And so, the wolf galloped down the road, his steed grunting furiously underneath him, their destination set to Lioncross, home of the Inquisition. Vincent was enjoying this ride probably more than he should, even Freckles seemed to be enjoying this new adventure as it left it's tiny mouth open in awe.