Rose listened to him "honestly, I don't remember much of what happened cause for the most part I remember pain even when I breathed and just the fact I couldn't hear the dark voice in the back of my mind. I felt as if a part of me was ripped apart...you see my darkness type magic is inherited, or at least I remember my father telling me that the day we buried my mother. He said she suffered from her own darkness fighting her choice of change. He didn't know I ended her suffering a few days before hand by allowing my own' friend's to consume what was aling her...my.'friend' grew into what he is today and he is my burden to handle. Anyhow, After I finally was able to breath without some pain I figured out I was in some alley..a older woman took me in when she found me and nursed me back to health before I found I was to bare a child. In all truth, I didn't want to give Elyse life cause of how ! she was convinced. I wasn't about to bring a child with your backstabbing genes into this world. The older woman fought with me and convienced. Me to at least give her life and maybe allow a family to adopt her...give her a fighting chance... so I went through with that thought until she came into this world. She is the only reason I havn't ended everyone's life in the rider's. Elyse was the reason black rose died and rose was allowed to live. I made sure you and the rider's couldn't find me cause I never wanted Elyse to learn of my dark past and everything leading to her birth."she explained while taking sips of her tea. "It was the kind older woman that helped me control my magic and it was her that showed me to guildmaster Jamie..who is currently on break so Jarvis has stepped in till she returns. Elyse has taken a liking to Jamie as it was Jamie that asked me if I wished to join the guild. I would have been dumb to say no cause the Phoenix Wing guild was a stable home for Elyse to live in and meet people and if I ever ran into you or if anything ever happened to me that she would be taken care of."she added

She listened to him apologized" honestly I really didn't expect the US to go any farther due to the rider's and our positions within the group. Most didn't know but I was only where I was and there because I guess Necro took a fancy to me or something so that was probably why I was tossed in the garbage to say the least. But in that aspect in a way you saved me from being around that monster so I thank you in that cause. As for knowing Elyse...she isn't trusting of many so you have to be around more often and she is like any kid she loves fish abd stuff animals along with candy she absolutely loves the ocean and pretty things. As for me, I am assistant bartender and cook for the guild and kinda the mother of the guild since a lot of the younger ones sometimes come to me. I recently been classified as a a rank wizard and I plan for trying to become a s rank so I can assist my guild."she said with a smile" I like just the simple things in life and I am one of those chooses to participate in the magic games...um let's see I like reading and just being there for Elyse."she added" that's about it"



Amaya listened as she didn't pay attention to the fact of him still having a hold of her hand as amaya wasn't one to pay much attention for very odd reasons even she doesn't know why she doesn't pay attention all the time."You do know I could have gotten out myself but thank you for considering me that was really sweet of you"[/color]she said sweetly " and I would love to get something to eat I havn't eaten anything but a few popsicles"she said dusting off her skirt before she took her hair out of her ponytail before tieing the ribbon around her wrist. She messed with her hair getting it to look decent before she played with her scarf waiting for him to lead the way

Sayuri Takashi

Sayuri hums to herself as she walks down the path leading to the guildhall. She pulls a small ball out of a pouch on her belt and starts tossing it with one hand and occasionally switches hands. Arriving at the guildhall she noticed Jarvis outside the hall talking to someone outside the hall. She stops at the bottom of the steps to watch.

(And don't forget to mention or I am almost guaranteed to miss the reply)

jarvis
@joshua Tamashii@zarkun

Everything Farquhar said served to make jarvis more suspicious rather then more incline to continue talking. A flash of anger ran across his features, and he narrowed his eyes "so you didn't object to killing an innocent child, but when he threatened to break her mind, you objected? How very noble of you" he said sarcastically, shaking his head. This guild could never be a light guild, with views like that.

"killing should always be a last resort, and the killing of children, of innocents should never be considered. And yet, you were prepared to do that. That disgusts me. If I hear that you, or any of your guild have killed someone, or harmed any innocents, I will take you down. Leave"

He would not leave the front of the guild until they left.

He looked to James and said "I do not begrudge them the opportunity to be a light guild, but their views will never make them one. They may not be led by a mad man anymore, but there is a long way until To can be considered light. And the last time I trusted someone similar to them, sineine i cared about greatly was murdered. I won't let that happen again"

There was if course some information he could now tell Amelia, as well as some speculations that Jarvis could make.

"Well, not really. My guildmaster did the whole announcement thing. Chose a team. I'm not on it. Guess I'm a little to knew. Not well known. Not the most powerful." He paused for a moment. That statement. Admitting that he wasn't the most powerful. It felt wrong. "Not yet anyway." He added quickly under his breath as he got his burger. It was a mess of meat. The patty, bacon, there was some chicken thrown in there, with some french fries under the bun as well. Only thing that could make it better was some poison. But no. Ask for that and he would get the craziest look. All the different kinds of poison in the word. There was even poison magic. And he almost never encountered, or needed it. It was saddening really. But still. "So where ya goin from here? I'm curious. I mean you can't just fight me until the games. You won't progress like that. You've got some sort of plan don't you?" He asked calmly as he bit into the mass of bread and meat. There was some cheese, but not much.

Lazarus

His toned lowered as Sasha questioned his thinking. He sighed. "It's just... all too convenient how we are the guild that gets into trouble all of the time. A few years ago, we had no worries as phoenix wing wizards, and now we constantly have to look over our shoulders. It's just a hunch, but it is possible we have a member or multiple members among us who are double agents. As stupid as it sounds it's entirely plausible." He sighed. "I dont know, but whatever happens, I believe in my own power to keep me and my friends safe."

Fleo soon after found herself in the little infirmary clinic, under the pretense of getting some sort of medication for her 'burned' arms. Aside from one other patient sleeping in a cot, she didn't turn up much of anything interesting, though she probed each door for strange sounds within. It suddenly and critically struck her that she hadn't seen Annalise since before the group had arrived at the bar, and in a panic that the poor girl had gotten herself lost, she rushed out of the college to look around the perimeter. "Annalise? Where are you?" She called repeatedly, to no avail."

Trinity took to a third building, containing the magic and science labs. Seemed a likely place to carry out weird experiments, right? Though she didn't find anything like that, she found some kind of set up with two tables and multiple electrodes on each. The two tables were hooked up to a machine between them, like something you'd see out of a mad science flick. She counted 19 electrodes on each table, but... she couldn't tell what it was for. With further inspection, she found a diagram on the side of the machine, labeling the points for the electrodes. One at each shoulder, knee, hip, elbow, foot and hand, and then seven up the back and on the head. Chakra points...? Interesting, but she had no evidence that it was related.

She found a few various and sundry other things, but nothing else as interesting or suspicious. Upon her return outside, the young lady spied her dusty companion bursting into the gym building with some urgency. They must have found something important?

Not in any particular mood to talk, Ariel just started toward the gym silently. How many places could they use to hold someone hostage? Given how uninterested she looked, she might be able to go for a while without trouble. Wandering around, it occurred to her that perhaps they would be in the locker rooms. Following the signs Ariel found and put an ear to the door of the men's locker room.

Very abruptly, the locker room door swung inward. Either it had not been fully shut, or the knob mechanism did not actually connect to the doorframe. Regardless, due to her position, Ariel could not help but stumble inside. Mercifully, the place appeared to be empty. At least, it was devoid of human life--it harbored a strange and fascinating anomaly in one of the adjoining doorways. Though the door itself was wide open, in its place was a two-dimensional sheet of what appeared to be fire: a magical barrier.

Suspicious enough to warrant investigation, but Ariel was alone now. Perhaps wandering off on her own was not the greatest of plans. If these guys could use magic, then it would probably be better to have backup. Turning away from the barrier, she headed back out of the locker room and put the door back the way she found it. Apathy did not make for much urgency, so her movement was a normal walk. Hopefully, she would find Fleo or Trinity before long. Being outside would probably make her easier to find, so she pointed herself to an exit.

As it happened, the exit through which Ariel planned to travel burst open with a loud noise, admitted a very worried Fleo. Barely managing to keep herself from running into her teammate, the dusty woman uttered a short yelp of surprise before beginning to babble. "Ahh! Ariel! I can't find Annalise anywhere. I think she must have been taken! Have you found any clue where the kids...er, adults, uh, kidnap-ees are?" Trinity appeared behind her.

Fleo's sudden entrance didn't seem to phase Ariel, other than stepping back to avoid the door swinging toward her. After listening to the dust mage's panic, she answered the question. "There is a magical barrier in the men's locker room. I was looking to find you and Trinity so we could investigate." Her voice was still monotone and her expression dry. It was like Ariel soul had been drained out of her. There was no response to the news of Annalise missing.

"A barrier? Walls designed to keep people out. Show us the way."

A few moments later, the group stood before the blazing barrier. Fleo narrowed her eyes, not quite over the loss of Annalise but resolved to remain strong. "I bet it'd fry us if we tried to touch it." Her gaze landed on Ariel. "Hey, you can do water, right? Maybe that would work."

Nodding slightly, Ariel turned blue and let out a soft sigh. "I don't like the dark magic much. Alright let me try." Conjuring up some water, she splashed it against the barrier and it went down. Easy enough, until directly behind where it had stood, a new barrier flared to life. This one seemed to be made of water, and it undulated and whirled with such force that no passage through it was possible. "Uhm. I don't think I have a good magic to counter that." Ariel attempted to use her control of water to take out the barrier, but though her magic coaxed a few pulses out of it, the vortex proved ultimately too furious to be handled.

"This?" Trinity stepped up from behind and flung the lesser ice arrow she had conjured earlier into the water barrier. Though one would have been right to think such a thing impossible, the water hardened into ice upon contact with the arrow, but still in frantic motion. After a few seconds, however, the glaciated barrier shook itself to pieces. Behind it, another wall popped up, this one of a rippling, inky blackness. "This is quite the barrier. Well, now that we've started, we shouldn't stop. They may be able to tell we're breaking it."

Groaning slightly once again, Ariel changed her magic, thing time to light. What in the world could be behind all this that would require so many barriers? Forming a ball of light around her hand, she flung it against the black barrier. The whole thing grumbled, as if the shadows themselves were alive, but could not beat back the radiance. It melted, dripping down like a heap of sludge, and spread across the floor until it was thin enough to evaporate into gas. In the moment before a new barrier sprang up, however, the three ladies could see into the warded hallway. It continued for a short way before turning into a staircase on the right side, heading downward. More importantly, however, they could see sigils traced on the floor, walls, and ceiling of the hall. Three were ashen, disturbed and scattered, but three remained. And the next one was green.

From the walls of the hallway protruded a curtain of roots and vines. Growing faster than possible, they entwined and entangled until they were an impassable obstruction. Its mottled surface, however, oozed a transparent but oily coating, one that gleamed in the locker room's light.

"Ariel, be ready to douse the flames." Trinity, after giving the smaller mage a chance to get ready, conjured a fire arrow and stooped down to draw the tip of her arrow across the base of the plants. "Fleo, can you make some kind of sawblade from your dust?"

"Wait wait...wouldn't it be better not to set it on fire?"

"Probably." Trinity stopped, turning her head to watch her friend, instead. She seemed to have an idea.

After stepping back, Fleo held up her hands, bemused. "I can make the shape, but it won't be sharp enough. I might be able to cut into it with a Silver Wind, but I don't know if I could push all the way through. Let's see...Haiiro no Kaze!" Fleo slapped a hand on her head to keep her cap from flying off, and traced a horizontal line in front of her. Where her finger moved, a miniature tornado of dust formed, and when she released it a horizontal line of glittering dust shot forward. It buried into the plant wall, ripping its surface with the sustained force of hundreds of thousands of particles, but it could not go all the way through. Fleo shouted over the noise of her Silver Wind, "I've got it! There's no oil in the center of the vines! Fire now!"

Trinity rose to her feet quickly and requipped her bow into her hands, already in the motion of drawing the arrow. She aimed quickly and released, the fire arrow piercing the center opening. The fleshy cores of the vines smoldered, and the verdant wall burned from the inside out. By the time the oil caught fire, it was mere drippings on the floor, and soon died out. A second later, the next barrier activated, a rippling, red-tinged screen covered with wailing, lamenting faces. [color=C2B280]"Huh..?" Fleo said, and summoned a Dust Bomb. She threw it against the wall, and recoiled in surprise as the faces actually reached out and devoured the attack. "Ah, well...hmm. That's mildly disturbing.

"What... is...?" What a horrible sight! The young lady of white gazed at the new barrier with a subtle horror, taking half a step back. "Tormented souls...?" It took her a moment to calm herself, but with slow breathing and a calm mind, she was able to center herself. "I think I know how to pass this one." The minstrel set her bow against the wall nearby, and stepped in front of the barrier. She closed her eyes and brought her hands in front of herself. "May the bonds of love grant strength and peace. Love Arrow." A golden orb formed between her palms before it took the shape of an arrow. It was then that the quiver on her back shone softly, and the golden arrow solidified into a pink arrow, with a gold trim and a heart shaped tip.

Trinity then tenderly took the arrow in hand, and slowly offered it to the wall, touching the tip against the barrier. Greedily the faces devoured it, but their expressions altered soon afterward. The apparent hatred that held them together dissolved, and the faces fell apart in a horrible yet strangely heartwarming fashion. Fleo glanced at Trinity dubiously. [color=C2B280]"Love arrow? Uh, heh heh, do you rent those?"

The last barrier galvanized into action, very literally. A torrent of electricity blanketed the hallway, ready to incinerate anyone foolish enough to step in.

"Why, you want some?" Trinity grinned at the dusty woman and winked flirtatiously, before turning her eyes to the new barrier. "Ah. Fleo, you're up."

The sight caused Fleo to grin; just yesterday, she'd had a similar experience. "Ah-hah! Finally, time to be useful. Dust Craft: Bowling Ball! Hup!" She composed herself, then step forward and rolled the dusty sphere forward. It went straight into the wall, drawing all the electricity into itself and diffusing it through the floor. A moment passed, then another, but no more walls appeared. The way was clear.

"Wow, finally. That was crazy." Her expression dimmed slightly as now they could see into the hallway better. This place was creepy. Since it looked like nothing else was popping up, Ariel started into the hall and followed its path down the stairs. At the bottom, a room opened up, and within lay a most haunting sight.

Three dozen people lay on cots spaced evenly along both sides of the chamber. Though they all lay still, the soft sound of breathing in the air accredited the idea that they were asleep. There were no visible restraints, but beside each of the cots was a small table with a magical device connected via electrodes and wires to the peoples' heads. All of the devices had a lacrima attached to them, all glowing faintly with the prismatic colors of the rainbow, except for one. That one, however, had something else.

Beside that final cot, on the other side of the room, was a chair in which a familiar figure silently rocked. Annalise sat, bent over the sleeping figure, her face hooded but her sorrow none the less palpable. The woman over whom she leaned was beautiful, in her early thirties, with faint purplish hair that must have once been dyed. Her features were eerily similar to Annalise's, but they were far more still.

"... found her." Trinity had been wondering where the woman had gone, but it wasn't as though they could hold her hand like a child.

Fleo's eyes widened, and she rushed across the room toward the cot, kicking up dust. Likewise, Ariel went to check on those laying on the cots. What kind of twisted experiment was this? If it was one, it was what it looked like. Ariel was about to speak, but Trinity got to it first.

All these people... Trinity stepped slowly into the room, inspecting one of the cots and the people attached to the strange devices. "What are these? Annalise, will you tell me?" They didn't seem like the device she had found in the magic and science labs, but perhaps they were more similar than she thought? She couldn't tell. The electrodes weren't hooked up like the diagram, so she would guess not.

It was not Annalise's voice that greeted them first. "How the hell did you get past my barriers?" came a reedy, indignant male voice from across the room, seizing the attention of the Phoenix Wingers. A door opposite the staircase slammed shut, and two people approached the intruders. One was a goateed man with a blonde pompadour, garbed in casual green clothes and a white overcoat. His short stature and rather effeminate slimness made him seem particularly small in the company of his companion, a bespectacled woman who towered above six feet, with brown hair tied in a ponytail and a large, brutish figure in a matching purple jacket and pants. The man continued, "You must be wizards. Guild wizards too, I'll bet. Angel, if you'd go ahead and bury that mustached moron we let escape afterward, I'd greatly appreciate it." He frowned and crossed his arms. "I hate to do it, but it'll be years before people come to see how necessary and important my research is, and how much good it'll do in the world. Until then...well, you'll find out shortly. Don't bother calling us machiavellian. It gets old after a while." He pointed in the Phoenix Wingers' direction. "Time for you lot to beat it. Actually, let Angel do the beating, that'd work out great. Then you can join my little group therapy session. Go get 'em, sweetheart."

His companion grinned and charged the wizards' way, straight through the center aisle, her hands thrumming with a crimson power.

Ariel glanced back at her guildmates. She spoke softly, "Cover your eyes," and created two balls of light in her hands. Smashing them together produced a blinding flash of light. Usually, the easiest way to win a fight is to hinder the opponent.

While fast, Ariel's dazzling flare wasn't instant, giving Angel enough time to throw up an arm in front of her eyes. It didn't afford her complete protection, but did keep her sight sharp enough to bull into the smaller woman at close to full speed. At the same time, the reseacher threw up his own arms and wailed, "Barrier Magic: Searing Mist Shield!" and Angel's body was enveloped by a protective cloak of steam. She reached out to grab Ariel by the hair.

Trinity drew her full incantation Ice Arrow from her quiver, calling "get away" before loosing it into the steam shield enveloping Angel's body. She called "Lightning Arrow!" next and loosed that into the same target. Though the ice arrow melted into vapor in contact with the searing steam, the second projectile had a pronounced effect, and caused Angel to momentarily stagger. Ariel didn't exactly need a warning to get away, considering a large woman was barreling toward her. Thankfully, she was quite nimble, a rather important requirement for the physical weapon she carried. Angel had a better reach, though, so while managing to avoid a couple grabs, her proximity and higher conductivity of the mist made for a rather nasty shock for Ariel as well. This, of course, made for the third time she'd been hit with lighning. Taking a tumble, Ariel rolled away but felt several more shocks after the fact. "Come on, not right now. Trinity..."

Fleo was in motion. Thinking quickly, she leaped up onto the wall, using her Sirocco to glide across its surface. She made a beeline for the researcher, who quickly conjured a blue energy shield around himself. "Hokori Kurafuto: Twinhammer!" Now wielding a sledgehammer in both hands, she initiated a furious beatdown on the researcher's shield, yelling, "Hold her off until I can take this guy out!"

Ariel was clear and her attack was primed! "Sorry, but now I can Archery Magic: Repeating Shot!" Trinity unleashes three more lightning arrows on the poor steam-shrouded woman, before firing two at the researcher. Though the lightning arrows toward Angel all hit their mark, stunning her and almost making her lose her balance, Ariel was forced to duck to avoid them. In that moment she was vulnerable, and Angel reached out and successfully grabbed the smaller woman. Instantly the crimson resonance around her hands resolved itself into a draining effect, replenishing Angel's stamina at the cost of her opponent's. While using her Siphon Magic, however, Angel couldn't do much else but rely on her shield and hope that she could heal faster than Trinity could pepper her with arrows.

Meanwhile, the two lightning arrows directed at the researcher were rendered useless as they diverted into Fleo's dust. At that point, however, she had hounded the researcher into the corner with her hammer assault, and was just about to break through his protection.

While in Angel's grasp, Ariel could feel her strength leaving her. What kind of magic is this? Oddly enough, her own magic wasn't being drained. It didn't look like she was getting away on her own so might as well make the best of this situation until her guildmates could free her. Switching to her Fire magic, she could resist the heat better. Reaching up, Ariel grabbed Angel's arm and began to draw off her magic. It wasn't rapid, but a noticable twinge.

"Tsk." She could leave the researcher to Fleo, clearly. She hadn't counted on Fleo's magic nullifying her attacks not aimed at her, but... Oh. Say, Ariel could also... Trinity needed to keep her focus on the hitwoman here. She needed Ariel to get distance, so she could hit this lady with more lightning. Or, perhaps... She was thinking of the steam as water, but it was different than that. When she hit the woman, the whole cloud lit up. The electricity jumped between all the different drops of water and went around the woman more than hitting her directly. "A tornado in my hand, Wind Arrow. Raiden's Fury will rain upon you, Lightning Arrow. Bright Arrow." She incanted quietly. The woman seemed like she was in a comfortable position, so she had an opportunity here. She notched her Bright Arrow first, aiming for the woman's face before she looses it. This would need to happen fast. "Dust, now!" It might not be necessary if Ariel could get away, but she couldn't depend on that.

Trinity's call took a moment to process in Ariel's mind. It was getting harder to think clearly. Dust, did she mean Fleo or... Finally connecting the dots Ariel's magic slowly shifted to Dust. The bard-mage was already in the process of loosing the next step in her plan, her incanted Wind Arrow, as this happened.

A call rang out from the opposite side of the room. [color=C2B280]"Hold it just a minute! I've almost...got him!"" With a triumphant cry, Fleo brought down both hammers on the researcher's shield, and it shattered. She raised her weapons again to knock him out and bring down his partner's steam shield, but to her astonishment and dismay the man smugly summoned another shield. When Fleo's hammers fell, they ricocheted off of it, and dissolved. Fleo took a look back at her friends, very much in need of her help, before she clenched her teeth and screamed, "Damn it! SUNAKEMURI!". Her voice took on a malefic echo, and dust all around the room streamed toward her. As it swirled around her, her bandages were thrown off, and the woman disappeared in a ball of particles and cloth. A second later, it burst with a tremendous noise, and Fleo was thrown to the ground. Except...it wasn't quite Fleo.

Her cap had fallen off, and her arms and legs of dust were longer, larger, and spiky, and her hands both had sixth fingers. The bandages slithered across her like snakes, constantly in motion, as the sound of a heartbeat rang out. All eyes were upon her as the hovered into the air like a marionette and the heartbeat sped up. Faster and faster it went, and higher and higher she rose, until she was back in a vertical position. The lines beneath her eyes had lengthened, and grown jagged, like cracks. Her eyes flashed open, and they were totally black. She howled, and sprang at the researcher, raking across his shield with cruel claws. His shield fell in seconds, and the next instant he was thrown against the wall, unconscious and bleeding. So to did the steam shield collapse. The Dust Devil's inhuman voice echoed across the chamber, "Finish it now!"

She had planned for her Wind Arrow to blow the shield of steam apart, but as the arrow did its work, the source of the shield disappeared. No matter. She didn't have to be told twice, already following up her Wind Arrow with her last prepped attack, her incanted Lightning Arrow. Ariel hadn't had time to build up an aura of dust yet, she had only just changed magics, so that shouldn't be a problem. Her wind arrow would have dispersed any, anyway. She loosed it, but her inexperience with lightning arrows resulted in a small backlash. Her aim remained true, but the current bit her drawing hand as she let loose the thunder. "Agh, shit!" She held her hand up for a moment, trying to control the spasms before she crouched and put her hand to the ground.

Fortunately, her true aim made the difference. Without her partner lending her support, Angel boasted minimal defense to magic, and the electricity infused into her did far more damage than its recoil did to Trinity. Angel collapsed to the ground, twitching, her glasses falling to shatter. After that, the room would have been quiet, if not for the sound of grinding dust.

Fleo walked slowly toward her friends, trying not to trip over her elongated legs. With the moment of excitement passed, her bandages had settled back over her limbs, though their new proportions and spikes made it so that they weren't nearly completely covered. She held up a clawed, six-fingered hand. "It's been a really long time since I used that spell. The shield guy forced my hand." she laughed nervously, very aware of the fact that her eyes were completely black even if she couldn't see them. "Guess we're all revealing weird magic today. It...it'll deactivate in a few moments...you guys okay?" her eyes fell upon the questing girl. "Annalise..."

Now that the fight was over, Trinity took a moment to absorb Fleo's transformation. Her arms were made of dust... made of her magic. Was that why they were wrapped? To hide it? "I suppose we all have our secrets, don't we. I'm alright, but..."

Ariel had taken another hit of electricity, but not nearly as bad as before. Even with Dust magic it wasn't as effective at resisting a shock, at least not with as new as she was to it. Dropping to the floor she managed to sit herself up. "Oh, this is going to hurt for a while." Still feeling the shocking by not it was apparent to her that the Lightning magic had built up enough to actually become a part of her selective magics. Unlike most of the others though it was a rather painful transition. Each shock caused her muscles to tense up and contract.

At a time like thing switching magic again would not be a great idea. But she didn't have the strength or clarity to fight it. Curling up into a ball arcs of electricity jumped across her body until she cried out in pain. The tortuous shocks ceased have a negative effect once her eyes, hair, and clothes shifted to a bright yellow, signaling she was now a Lightning mage. Laying out flat on the ground Ariel glanced at the others. "Much better, I guess. Don't worry about me I'll be up in a minute, or two, or ten."

"Sorry, Ariel. That steam barrier was annoying..." Trinity knelt next to the little one, resting her yellow head in her lap and stroking her hair softly. She looked up, scanning the room. They weren't done yet. "You lay here and rest, Ariel." She pat her head twice and gently lay her back down on the ground, standing and slowly approaching Annalise. "Hey." She didn't know what to ask, but it didn't seem like she would have to.

As if noticing Trinity for the first time, Annalise raised her head. "Is Sagan gone? Her probing eyes found the researcher's unconscious body. "...Good. He did not understand...what he was messing with." She gestured at the thirty-six people lying motionless around the chamber. "These people are all asleep. Some have been for only a few days...some for ten years, when Sagan's brother ran the show. Sleeping, endlessly, except..." she reached her head out for Trinity's, and placed it on the prone woman's heart.

She felt nothing.

@YipeeXD

Sasha looked up at Lazarus, pondering what he said. Then she shook her head. "no. I shan't believe that any in our guild would betray us like that. It's true, we get in troubke. But...we Always have. It's just...more known. We are a well known, powerful guild. It's bound to attract trouble" she pointed out, and gave him a smile, as they arrived when he was taking them.

As far as she knew, all the members of the guild had sought Phoenix Wing out. They has all joined, and they all seemed happy there. There was Mitheria, but she seemed content with Zenoram and zero, and Karn. Sasha didn't think the shapeshifter would betray them, or cause them any unnessacary hurt.

So she wouldn't beleieve any of the guild could harm them. "we can trust our members. And...just train to protect the guild"

Jack watched Zephyr as he donned some sort of light looking black armor. She would've guessed it was the Knight, but something about it seemed like it wasn't requip. Eyes narrowed, she watched as he charged her before letting out a shock wave halfway to her, which she dodged by rolling to the side, quickly getting to her feet. She had no idea what he had used to make the shockwave. Was it some form of pure force or it more of a soundwave? She had no idea and that made it deadly to approach. Best to just let him show off more while keeping her cards hidden, so when she did strike, he wouldn't know what actually hit him.



"At the time, all I know about your daughter was that she had wings. I thought she might be an outcast and reviled by everyone. Apparently I was wrong.

I see asking for a chance is pointless with you Master Jarvis. You have your opinion on us and are going to be immovable in that. Even if we were to try our hardest, I can see it will not change. So, I will see you at a later date, for better or for worse. Good day." Fraquar said before turning around and leaving. He had nothing more to say to the Phoenix Wing guild master. It was just going to fall on deaf ears and such a fight was pointless.



Lucus listened to Rose as she explained what had happened to her after Necro had gotten rid of her. He had never been more thankful to hear of a stranger helping someone then he was now and that appreciation only grew when he heard the old lady had pretty much saved Elyse's life. Sighing, he rested his head in his hands.
"I'm not sure I should even try to be her father. She's probably better off not knowing me at all. But... a part of me wants to know her. And you want to know the kicker. She doesn't even look like she's out daughter. I mean, she has blond hair and blue eyes. You have black hair and black eyes while mine are both gray. Seriously, where did she get her features from?" He said, unable to help laughing at this thought."Still though, it seems you're doing much better now Rosey. That's... that's good to see. I think it's best I don't add drama to your life and just keep things down to a minimum.

Oh an congrats on getting into one of the teams for the Magic Games. I know my guild will be entering. Hopefully we don't end up fighting."



"No offense, but sometimes you seem a bit oblivious to the obvious. So I figured it was better to get you out before you realized things were going downhill a little late." Joshua said while watching her mess with her appearance, completely confused as to why she was doing it to begin with, She had looked nice enough as it was. Must've been a girl thing. The again, why was he even thinking that to begin with? Reaching over, he moved one stray strand of hair into place for her before beckoning her to follow to a nearby restaurant. He sent his katana to his pocket dimension before entering and managed to get them a seat outside."Order what you want. I'll pay. Just... try not to leave me completely broke, please."

"Get up you pathetic mage!" What was that? A woman, angry, what happened? Draco attacked and that beam of ice. Wait a minute... Lucas could feel the cold hand touching his chest. He slightly opened his eye, it appears his right eye is gone for good. "I said, get up!" This time, the cold hand was felt slapping him across his face. He shot up, the energy flowing through his body, raising the hairs on his arms as his fists lit up with holy light... and in a blink of an eye, his glowing hands were covered in ice. He looked to the culprit. Lucas's face was of confusion but quickly changed to shock, "Emily!?"

"This one...this one is dead. Her sustenance lacrima was broken, and her body failed.' Annalise stared at the woman's face for a moment before turning to Fleo, Ariel, and Trinity with an unfounded ferocity in her eyes. "Are the body and the mind one and the same? All chemicals, and tissues, and hormones? I thought so. But they are different. Linked, but not conjoined. When these bodies were sleeping, their minds wandered through a million different dreams. Some knew they were dreaming, and some didn't. There were dreams of fantastic, unimaginable things, and then there were dreams like this girl's. They were mundane, but they were strong. She dreamed of youth, joy, adventure, and freedom, and when her body died, she lived on inside the dream. Isn't it sad?"

Having a few minutes to rest Ariel sat back up and struggled to her feet. Taking a moment she looked at Fleo. "Whoa. What happened to you?" She'd missed the transformation and short explanation. Annalise started explaining something and she stopped to listen. It almost sounded like the woman was saying she was a dream. But that could also be her own brain not quite up to speed. "I'm sorry. Now I'm confused."

Though distracted by Annalise's words, even if she didn't quite understand them, Fleo was able to come up with a succinct summary for Ariel. "Dust Devil. It's a spell that makes...uh, covers my arms and legs in dust, and makes me better at fighting." She knelt by Annalise, her menacing black eyes now full of consternation. "I'm sorry about your mom, Anna. Is there a way to...to help her? Or any of them?"

"She's not my mother." Annalise said, sighing. "Didn't you get it? She's me. My body. Ten years ago I was put into this sleep, which is why I'm ten years younger than my body. A few weeks ago, my body died." She gently nudged the dead woman's head to the side, exposing a greenish shard of lacrima in the back of her skull. "An accident, or maybe on purpose. Don't know, don't care. I guess my spirit fused with my dream-self, rather than moving...on. It's like the real world is my dream now. When I came in here, I remembered, and now that I know, I can better manipulate the dream. Look." She held up her hand, and her sword appeared in it, materializing in a blur from nothing. All at once, the scabbard shattered into a swarm of butterflies, and they rapidly changed constitution from normal, to gold, to water, to stone, and back to normal. Annalise tossed the sword into the air, and it changed into a living bird before exploding into a shower of miniature fireworks. "I guess I can do anything now. But what I want more than anything...is to wake up. The personality changes aren't going away, and I can't go on like that."

"For them," she gestured to the other sleepers, "Just douse them with water. It'll shock them awake. But for me...what is the one thing that always marks the end of the dream? When the kids run to their mommies and daddies, they say, this happened, that happened, then I died, and I woke up. Do you understand? You've got to kill me." She held out her hand, and a pistol materialized in it. "I'll...forget all this. Working with Frenzy Plant, and then Phoenix Wing. Being friends. But you always forget dreams once you wake up, sooner or later." She trembled, terribly afraid but more determined, and she stood. She pulled off her hood, and knelt in front of her chair, facing away from the wizards. In the dim lighting, her purple-and-blue hair looked feathery and ghostlike, and the green shard in her head glimmered in time to her heartbeat.

Damn Ariel was right. How the hell... "You are a dream. How come I couldn't tell with my Spirit magic?" Well, maybe it was a little presumptuous to assume she could recognize something like that. Maybe that's why the sleeping spell worked so effectively.Of course now they had a choice. To effectively kill Annalise or leave her trapped in this unstable state in the real world. Were Ariel able to change magic right now she would have turned blue. So for the moment the sadness and conflict in her expression showed in short bursts. Glancing at her companions, Ariel seemed to be looking for answers. "What do we do?"

Fleo gave a helpless shrug. "I don't know!, she whined, distraught. "All my magic's good for is combat, and I'm not good with serious situations like this!"

Trinity puts a hand on the gun offered and pushes down gently. "Let's not be hasty. I... have an idea." She smiles gently at the dream projection before turning to the body. She crouches beside her and leans in close, inspecting the shard in her neck. The corresponding shard in the dream's neck seemed to pulse with life, so what would happen if she imbued this one with energy? She takes a slow, easy breath, drawing her magic power together. She was a little worn from the fight, but she could manage this. "May the bonds of love grant strength and peace. Love Arrow." She forms another ornate, heart-themed arrow and touches it carefully to the gem.

As Trinity began to infuse the shard with her own energy, Annalise gasped. "Ah, ah, ow! Cou-agh! ...Could you maybe use...a less painful way? It'll...ow! It'll do the job, but it's really hurting me!" The anguish in the woman's tone made ti clear that while the shards were definitely sympathetic in nature, charging the real shard only caused her agony. Apparently the power of love didn't mesh as well with dreams -the mind-as it did with more heart-felt emotions.

"Hmm... Well, shit. What if I..." She steps around the... living?... Annalise. She conjures another Love Arrow and taps it to her shard. Would this have some kind of other effect? It better, she was getting tired. "This shard is... strange. Is it a part of the machine?"

Annalise shook her head, oblivious to the presence of another Love Arrow. "Best I can guess, it's a piece of a lacrima. Maybe one of the ones that keeps the bodies in suspended animation while they're dreaming. From the aches, I think it goes straight to the brain." She turned her head slightly so that she could see Trinity's Love Arrow out of the corner of her eye. "If you're trying to do something to my shard, don't bother. This body is a...product, I guess, of that one. If you were to draw a line on her arm, one would appear on mine."

There was a whirring sound from Fleo's direction as her arms and legs began to shorten. They shrank back to their original sizes, now covered by the bandages. The claws and sixth fingers vanished. She closed her eyes, and when they reopened, they were human and magenta once more. "I'm sure the shard's a part of it," she fretted. "If it's in the brain, maybe it's cutting off some important bits. Like your personality section, or dreaming section."

Watching from the sidelines, Ariel wasn't coming up with a much better solution. Maybe if they knew what was actually trying to be done here they could figure something out. But the two that would probably be able to tell them were not really able, or perhaps even willing, to tell. One one hand Annalise appeared to be mostly separate from her actual dead body. Could it be holding her back, or was it the shard in the dream girl? Either way she seemed to want to be free of this limbo state. Taking the shard from the body in her hand Ariel hesitated.

As the shard slid out from the body's head, trailing thick, congealed blood, the one in Annalise flickered and, abruptly, vanished. For a moment, the young woman didn't seem to notice the displacement, but she was aware of some sort of change. "I feel...the aching, it's gone. I..." she scrunched her face up, as if rummaging around in her own mind. "My mind. I think it's...fixed!" She looked at the three Phoenix Wingers with a face that glowed with joy. "I don't have to move on! I can stay after all, even if I'm living a dream, it's real enough to intersect with the waking world!"

Then her form flickered.

It was as if a faucet had been turned off. All the happiness and eagerness present in Annalise a moment ago had vanished. This wasn't an alternate personality: it was fear, plain and simple. She held a hand up and watched it lose its definition momentarily, as if fading from existence. "No..." she whispered. "I'm...I'm waking up. I'll forget...everything."

Trinity gives the disappearing woman a hug, trying to give her some form of comfort as she fades away. She didn't know what else to do, now that Ariel had taken the shard out. "We'll remember for you." There must be something. Dissatisfied, she uses "Radar Love," trying to feel for some way to preserve this life. A container, or an ebb and flow to Annalise's energies. Though faint, she became aware of something. The spirit of Annalise was resonating in reply--she did not want to leave this world. It was, however, fading quickly. The strange interference that had sustained her, as a result of the embedded lacrima shard, was seeping like water through the open drain. Some sort of white energy, like smoke but with the appearance of liquid, was seeping out through the hole in her head and dissolving in the air.

Doing her best to keep her own head on straight, Fleo remembered a second from her past. "Wait, I think I might have something. I'll explain later, but we need to get an object..." she ripped off her cap, and stuffed it into Trinity's hands. She reached for Ariel's, and pulled them close. "She's basically a ghost right now, borne of the dream. If we can bind her to an object, we might be able to get a Spirit wizard to revive her. Before, it was the shard, but it also messed her up. Both of you, try to use whatever Love or Charm magics you have, and contain her spirit in my hat."

Trinity nods softly, holding out a hand. "The bonds of Love give us Strength. Love Arrow." This time, no orb of golden energy formed in her hand, but an arrow still took shape. What would have, before, been golden trim was now transparent, as though empty.

Charm magic? Ariel barely managed to come out of Lightning mostly unscathed. Speaking of which it was currently much stranger than her Charm at the moment. Stepping back from the others so as not to harm them she discharged as much electricity as she could. It didn't take but a moment. Afterward she weaved a bit and tried her best to get Charm to surface. After shifting through a couple of her other magics for seconds at a time Ariel finally grabbed onto Charm. Practically falling against Trinity she used her to stay upright. "Okay, we can do this." Lending her magic to the cause Ariel focused on putting Annalise into the hat. Somewhat of an odd object but they didn't have much of a choice.

Trinity puts an arm around Ariel as she falls against her, speaking gently, "I know, sweety. Just a little more." She takes a deep breath and focuses on the energies of Annalise's spirit. With a little bit of Energy Make, she uses her empty Love Arrow as a catalyst to guide Annalise's soul into the hat.

Annalise's body vanished into nothing, quicker than a person could snap her fingers. The leaking energy disappeared also, leaving no trace of her behind. All three wizards looked down at the hat, but it appeared unchanged. "Oh...rats," Fleo mumbled sadly. "I...I was wrong. I messed up. That wasn't the right way."

Rather sleepily Ariel patted Fleo on the sholder. "That's okay. She's gone on to..." Surely there was more to the thought but before the Charm mage could get it out she drifted off to sleep. Her mind, body, and magic had all reached their limit. Already leaning against her guildmates at least she didn't have to worry about falling over.

"Rest in peace, Annalise." Trinity strokes Ariel's hair gently, putting her other hand on Fleo's shoulder. "You tried. I didn't know what to do, either. We should hold a service for her, later." She then takes her Love Arrow and focuses on it, the transparent trim filling in with gold before she taps Ariel on the head with it. Though the shell was made with Arrows Magic, the core of the arrow was formed with her Energy Make. That was the magic she used, in order to give.

Utterly unhappy and looking ready to cry, Fleo stood up. She took one last grieving look at Annalise's body, turned away, and put her cap on in preparation for leaving. A moment later, she uttered an indescribable sound--a cry from the heart, wild and powerful, and suggestive of great joy. "Hahahaha" she laughed afterward, tears of happiness streaming from her eyes. "It worked! She spoke to me! She's in the hat! We need to go, right now. We'll call the authorities and tell them about this in a bit, but we've got to get back to Phoenix Wing. Amelia is a Spirit mage, I think. She'll be able to revive Annalise!"

In short order, and supporting the slumbering Ariel between them, the wizards made their way back to the train station. They notified a guard on the way of what lay beneath the university's locker room, and boarded a train home in great haste, their mission nothing less than to reignite the dream that would keep their friend awake and, after a fashion, alive, unencumbered by mood swings and possessed of great powers.

And they did.

@Joshua Tamashii

Zephyr
Dragon Fang Training Hall

As she dodged his shockwave, he looked at her still playing the defense card. "Scoping me out? Probs the smart play, but with me I just go and go!" Zephyr said with a wide grin as he ran at her again but ran much closer and as he raised his fist in the air he pushed off with his foot and went to her right side and that's when he placed his hand over his mouth and then let out a roar, same as a regular attack this time just covering more area, and if she hated loud piercings sounds then this wouldn't feel very great at this close range.

Sayuri Takashi

Sayuri watched the mage turn and leave the guildhall. She walks up the stairs and nods to Jarvis, "What was that all about? Hopefully nothing I need to worry about," she throws the ball around her back and catches it in the opposite hand, "Oh, and is Jamie around? I wanna talk to him about something. Though It can wait if he's not around."

@Caits

Jarvis sighed and shook his head as Fraquar walked away. It was very clear that he didn't understand Jarvis's stand on the matter. Jarvis would be very foolish to simply forgive everything, and let them in.

It could, after all be a trap.

He turned to Sayuri, and shook his head again, "Jamie's away. I hope she returns soon" he said wearily, "He left me in charge. you can talk with me"@Demous

Hunter took a big bite of his own burger before answering, enjoying the taste. Shirotesume had some good burger joints, but this one beat them by miles. Finishing chewing, he wipes his mouth and takes a quick drink. "Got a few places to go actually. Few of them my father showed to me when he was teaching my Dragon Slayer magic, a few I stumbled across during jobs or when Master Jack sent me to take care of something he couldn't leave the hall for on a busy day. I figure by the time it's Games time, I'll have hit the most important ones." Eating some fries, Hunter swallowed and turned to Zero.

"So who all is on your team then? Or are you entering more than one?"

Gabriel studied everything they came across, right up until te dark shape fell towards him. Dog crashed into him, sending him flying out of the way to safety, and as he crashed into a display table, sending its items flying. He scrambled up into a sitting postion, Dog growing lightly, over him, with Rat.

He looked about, uneasy, for what had fallen through the second floor towards him. It almost seemed deliberate. Gabriel rarely took anything to change, nor believed in coincidence's. Was it an out of control spirit, who sought to take the only one that could sense it out of the game as soon as possible?

He didn't know, but he rose. He wouldn't be taken on his back. Blood ran down in a line from a cut on his forehead, running down his cheek, but at least it didn't sink into his eye. He narrowed his eyes, searching.

The laugh rose to a crescendo, audible to all, but now it echoed from every corner of the room. The dark shape that descended from the broken second floor, now splayed on the ground visible for everyone to see, was nothing more than a wooden manikin. It lacked any sort of detail, including clothes, fingers, or toes, save for a crude scratching on its face. Eliza knelt down to it, twisted the head until it faced her, and squinted her eyes to better see what the crude scratchings relayed. "Leafe this place," she transcribed simply.

The next instant, however, she jumped back from the manikin. A barnacle had appeared on its face, and as she watched, the whole puppet changed. Its wood became waterlogged and ruined, barnacles appeared out of nowhere and littered its surface. Around it, in a radius of about two feet, the carpet became soaked and covered in flotsom. Eliza held out her right hand, crying out, "Glass Ball!" and a sphere of crystal shot from her palm to smash into the manikin and shatter. The puppet's head exploded from the impact, and a squid slimed out from the neck-hole to plop onto the carpet. Outside, the lightning flashed again, this time a sepulchral green. Again, Eliza shivered, and said, "Let us keep movink."

At the back of the souvenir shop was a metal door, locked with an electric mechanism. Eliza tried to pull it open with her gauntlet, to no avail. She seemed rather on edge, expecting something else to jump out at her any moment. When she stepped back, a small slit near the door's center opened, and a male voice came through from the other side. "The password?" it asked.

Thor was finally getting used to the wiggling of the boat and steadily breathed as they approached shore. Thor slowly stepped on their feet and carefully started walking to the edge in case Thor did trip and fall into the water. As a shadowy darkness came down on them Thor jumped up immediately casting their spell "Lightning Body" Thor flew up in the air at least 15 feet high and stopped to look down at the other two to see if they were okay. It came to notice that the ship they had been traveling on suddenly looked wrecked and torn down. This couldn't have happened in a mere 15 seconds. Even if it did there were clear signs of algae on the side of the ship. Thor widely scanned the area from up high and noticed the whole island was in this state. There must have been some kind of magic surrounding the island or a barrier along those ways. Thor had read upon these kind of magics and they were rather difficult to cast upon large objects. Thor slowly landed on vast land near the docks welcoming the other two at their arrival. Thor still had their magic ready to move quicker if something happened.

The soft whining of the dog and the comment of Gabriel made it clear they had to inspect what was happening any clues might get them earlier off this freaked out island. As the dog began moving Thor quickly followed, the magic did all the work for Thor so they didn't have to take a simple step while walking. Thor flew past the dog and opened up the door to see if anything was inside, the others followed soon after with Eliza closing the door tightly. Luckily the lights of the structure were still on so it wasn't as scary as Thor thought it would be. The sudden lightly strike made Eliza startled and Thor only lightly chuckle at her reaction. Thor wrote a note and showed it to Eliza "Lightning won't kill you when you're close to me. I promise." Thor lightly smiled at the girl but quickly turned their head as small cracking sounds were heard from the ceiling. Once Thor saw that it was above Gabriel they wanted to shout at Gabriel before it was to late but only a small gasp sounded from Thor as the dark object came falling down.

Thor was relieved that Gabriel was okay but was ready to use their magic against the dark figure. Thor lightly panted that wooden manikin almost gave Thor a mild heart attack. Thor kicked against the large doll when Eliza was done with reading and looked up to see how it fell down. Nobody was there it was just an accident. Thor walked over to Gabriel and tucked lightly onto the side of his sleeve to get his attention. As Gabriel turned Thor showed a note "Keep still." Thor carefully looked at the cut on his forehead and showed another note "This will only hurt a little" Thor placed the tops of their fingers of both their hands against the cut on Gabriel's head and closed their eyes. Nothing was happening at first but suddenly a jolt of electricity could be felt. It only took several seconds before the cut was completely healed. Thor opened their eyes again and gave a small smile thinking they had done a good job. At last Thor grabbed the side of Thor's cloak sleeve and started to remove the blood on his face. When Thor was done they started moving again. Thor slowly trailed behind the other two looking behind them from time to time. As they came up to a electronic door Thor lightly squeezed past Gabriel to open the lock but was startled as they all heard a voice from behind the door.

Gabriel was surprised at the...gentleness that Thor show as she healed the cut, and wiped away the blood. Gabriel had always had Michael to do things like that, and he was sure their mother had done it, but most of Gabriels memories of his parents were fading, it had been so long ago. Michael could remember them clearly, while Gabriel was stuck with the fading.

He eyed the broken maniquine suspiciously. Something must have forced it through the ceiling, or the floor had rotted through quite like everything else. They were deal with something water related, then. He followed the others, Dog and Rat with him. As always, the thought that perhaps he should give them proper names came to him. They did after all resemble human shapes. But as they approached the door, the thought disappeared, as he frowned.

As it asked for a password, he assumed they had walked into a trap. His anger rose, a fury of it. "open the door, you damned cursed spirit, I'm going to kick your arse from here to next century and then turn you into a pretty key" Eliza seemed on edge, but Gabriel was just ticked off. While it could very well just be a crazy wizard, he didn't think so. So if it was a spirit, then who had treated it so badly that it had resorted to this?

He knew that that anger was what made him move around the girls, and try the door himself, using his right hand, and giving it a kick as well. "open sesesme damn it!" he shouted, unafraid of anything that might happen

For a moment it seemed as if Eliza might be appreciative of Thor's gesture, but her distant look quickly returned. "It is not lightning that I fear," she informed the hooded wizard. Another peal of thunder rocked the building, and the former dark mage pointed out through the glossy window. "That color is not natural. This is not a simple hauntink. It feels...deeper."

In the tiny slit, a human face could be seen looking. His eyes blinked, looking at the assembled wizards. "...That'll do." The slit snapped shut, and the slicking noises of unbolting reverberated through the door. A moment passed before the door swung inward, creaking noisily from the rust. The inside of the room was darker than a moonless night, but as the neon-green lightning flashed again, a grisly scene was revealed for a split second.

Sitting in a chair behind the door was a man's corpse--no, skeleton, picked clean of all its flesh and garbed in ratty, aged rags. It slumped against the back of its seat, its bony hand resting on a bucket full of water. At the bottom of the bucket lay a shining bluish object, and Eliza, after overcoming her trepidation when faced with a body, held her gauntlet over the bucket. Its eyes glowed white, the object shot up into her grasp, and she held it out for the others to see. It was a sapphire, though encrusted with dirt, and at its core was a faint blue light. As the three watched, the blue light shuddered and shrank, and a noise came from the room that they'd left behind. When Eliza went to look, she found that the souvenir shop looked like it had been flooded, left to sit for years, and then drained. Coral polyps, barnacles, starfish, seaweed, and crabs were everywhere, as well as discarded shells, driftwood, and other flotsam. Dying squid flopped around on the carpet. The door itself was so encrusted with coral that it could barely by seen.

A moment later, a shuttered window in the locked room burst open, a fierce wind blowing through the place bringing rain in its wake. The cackling laugh came again, and Eliza stepped toward the window. "This think is toying with us. If somethink big is goink on, it is tryink to lead us on, keep us avay from real problem. Come on." Eliza hopped through the window, and in seconds was soaked to the skin by the downpour. Her already-tight bodysuit clung to her frame, and after an embarrassed look at Gabriel, she turned away, blushing. In doing so, she spotted a glowing green light across the resort: a lighthouse. "O-over there! Let us go. Quickly. Fery wet."

Gabriel followed Eliza though the window, his spirits following as well. All three were soaked to the skin in seconds, Gabriel brushed back his hair out of his eyes, grinning. It appeared that even being tormented by something and seeing a skeleton of a man that was most likely the face seen through the door could dampen his spirits.

Or maybe that was the soaking wet Eliza, blushing. Gabriel actually thought it was sweet that she could blush. And that she was embarrassed that the rain forced her clothes against her skin. He smiled, and followed her gaze to the green light. He blinked. Both dog and rat looked like drowned animals, Dogs white hair plastered to head, his pointed ears thin as the fur there was plastered down. He shook, obviously in an attempt to dry himself, and inpossible feet in this rain. Rat simple looked grumpy.

Gabriel studied the light, his expression darkening somewhat. He nodded and followed after Eliza, after the green light, Dog running forward, and rat behind them.

The door into the lighthouse was ajar, and the trio pushed their way in. Aside from a table, some cabinets, and a rack of tools, there was nothing on the ground floor but a spiral staircase leading upward. As the wizards watched, however, a torrent of water began to stream down the stairs and soak the bottom floor. Eliza made to move out of the lighthouse, but found to her dismay the door inexplicably closed and locked behind them. "Huh...that is a problem." With the only ready exit sealed, the murky water began to pile up on the ground. In no time at all, it was ankle-deep and climbing. "Quick! We must climb! Eliza led the way up the staircase, struggling somewhat due to the water flow, and the tide behind them rose right on their heels.

They reached the top floor a few moments later, wet and tired but not remotely drowned. The upper chamber was surprisingly empty; only two points of interest existed within. One was the green light that the soldiers had mistaken for the lighthouse beacon; in actuality, it was a lamp, resting on the railing of the lighthouse's balcony. The other was the lighthouse beacon itself, which was dark, covered in chains, and encrusted with seascum. In its console was a small, octagonal opening, where something might have once fit.

Any musing about the beacon, however, was cut short by a particularly loud flash of lightning. In the split second that the world was illuminated, a large, misshapen figure was visible next to the lantern, but it was gone the next second. In the wake of the lightning flash, there came, however, the sound of maniacal laughter from below. Eliza rushed to the edge of the balcony, looked down from atop it, and uttered a long, low groan of fear.

Down on the ground, a horrible thing was afoot. At the center of the amusement park was a blazing bonfire, green instead of red, and dancing around it in an insane frenzy were dozens of skeletons in ragged clothing. The roller coasters were moving again, ridden by a crew of bony apparitions, that shrieked and laughed as the plunged around corners and down drops. Everything in the park was now waterlogged, covered in vestiges of sealife and marine detritus. Nearby, the ocean had risen across the beach, and was lapping at the park's edge. "My...God..."

Everything just seemed wrong, and yet, Gabriel didn't feel scared. Why should he? He had his guild with him, as well as his spirits, and this thing was just toying with them. If you showed it fear, it would just make everything worse, he thought. Eliza though seemed to be...of not scared, way way uneasy. He stepped up, and laid a hand on her shoulder, giving it a squeeze, before removing his hand. "everything's going to be okay. We're Frenzy plant, after all!" he grinned easily, taking in the scene around them.

He pondered what their next move should be, but e was disturbed by the manifestation near the lantern. He approached the lantern carefully, Dog and Rat by his side. Dog sniffed at the air, and seemed to be on edge. Gabriel didn't blame him. "a bad smell" dog said softly, "but there is so much...sea decay around that it could just be that." Gabriel expected that, and it actually gave him an idea.

He approached the window again, looking out, and gave a chuckle. The other two probably thought him delusional. But Gabriel saw something. Bones didn't conduct electricity. But metal did. Water did. And they just so happened go have someone who could use electrical attacks, if the way she had healed his cut was any indication. He looked to Thor, and then Eliza.

He couldn't deny that Eliza was more experienced, at jobs, and with Magic. Gabriel knew his own magic well, or he wouldn't have chosen this. He also had a good grasp on people, else wise he wouldn't know that he only got in the guild because the member he had fought let him win. Gabriel had seen that, and yet he did not care. Because it meant that this was a guild that...was what he wanted. If it seemed a little...strict and solider like...well, Gabriel was sure he could bring life and laughter to the guild, even as it taught him some discipline.

So he decided for now to defer to her judgement and said "what do you think will happen if we had Thor electrify everything?" he would have asked Thor herself, but she seemed to have difficulty talking, as so far all she had done with him was write on paper and show him the words.

"Fer starters, ye'd kill all my hostages".



To Eliza's immediate right, a being materialized. It stood a foot taller than young woman easily, and wore ancient, rusted armor that in the eerie lighting appeared grotesque and malevolent. In its right had it carried a sword, but its left was an enormous crab claw, and instead of a head a diving helmet sat upon its shoulders. Eliza jumped back, shouting, "Lightnink Dog!" and an electric clone of Dog surged forth toward the behemoth to attack. It threw out a shocking kick with all its power, but the blow glanced harmlessly off of the being's pincer. "Nothink?!" Eliza exclaimed, too excited and nervous to stay focused. Her opponent reached out with its claw, fast as a lunging snake, and caught Eliza around the waist. She screamed once before the seaman's touch changed her, reducing her to a skeleton in rotten versions of her own clothes before tossing her. To the wizards' surprise, the skeleton moved and caught herself, preventing herself from falling down--she was fully animate. The now-ghoulish Eliza took one look at herself and, for one reason or another, burst out laughing.

The seaman didn't share her mirth. "Another new addition to me crew," it sighed happily. "It's turnin' out to be a won'erful day. An almost inaudible mumbling came from Thor, and an orb of condensed electricity sparked to life in her hand. This she hurled at the seaman like a softball, who held up his claw to block it and shrugged off the accompanying jolt. "Don't you get fussy. There's plenty o' room aboard me vessel." Its gaze landed on Dog and Rat, and from within the diving helmet came that unnerving, cackling laugh. "I seriously hope ye don' plan on usin' them to try an' beat me. There's no stoppin' me now...not like ye ever had a chance. Spirits are nothin' compared to Mystic Beasts."

He hooked the lantern with his claw, and hovered into the air. Floating out into the empty space above the roaring bonfire, he reeled with laughter. "Welcome, conscripts!" he called, and the skeletons below all chattered in response. "It's been a fun couple of days, prowlin' around this port, gettin' friendly-like with the locals. But I came here to find a crew, and here you are, so now it's time to see the ship!" He pointed his sword toward the ocean, and from the dark fog issued a gigantic, tri-mast ship of black and gray, coated with barnacles. Two or three skeletons, both festering with sea creatures themselves, reveled on the deck. "So we've got a crew. We've got a ship. Now ye just need a captain." He turned to face the wizards in the lighthouse, and held up his lantern. Its shutter swung open and the light died down, revealing a small rectangle within that depicted a man in a noose. "I am one of the twen'y-six Mystic Beasts! Me card is The Hanged Man, but you may call me Proteus. My brothers and sisters let humans, the Mystic Fate Mages, control 'em, but I've held me own card fer years! Ye think ye can take me, wizards? Give it yer best shot! All the more fun once we set sail."

Garbiel smiled. The situation might be dire, and yet, he knew that they would win. "What do you say, guys?" He turned to his spirits, and continued "This guy thinks you guys can't beat him. Lets show his ugly arse that we can beat him, and turn him back into a card. After all, we can't go back with a failed job and a guild member skeletal" They both seemed eager, and he smiled, laughing.

It was clear to Gabriel now that the skeleton were people, resort patrons and staff. So, they couldn't attack them. Gabriel just had to hope that defeating Ugly would let them return to their normal forms, return everything back to normal.

He smiled at the Mystic Beast Card spirit, and chuckled "You'll lose your card, I'll make sure of that, Ugly. Spirits are stronger with wizards. go guys! Go, and show him what spirits can do!" They both darted of, not towardsz the Mystic Beast, but towards the ship.

Gabriel shifted forward, and took from his back pocket, of all things, a sling shot, as well as some ammo. He smiled again, and without taking aim, shot towards the Mystic beast. He just had to hope that the pebble like object would be enough, the spirit magic in it, would be enough to hurt the Mystic beast and give them enough time to do something.

"Eliza! Get your bony arse into movement! Don't let Ugly here control you!"

The skeletal Eliza let out a hollow laugh. ”Never planned on it. I've seen transformink spells like this before. Fast-actink ones are far less easy to influence than slow-actink ones. I vill be fine. This Hanged Man, however,” she gnashed her teeth ferociously, “is another story, for thinkink to pull one over on Eliza.”

Proteus, however, laughed last. "A fight it is, then! Come on, pups, I'll show ye what a spirit made for fightin' can do! The lantern snapped shut, and Proteus leveled his blade at Dog and Rat. A bolt of water shot from its tip, piping-hot judging by its steam, toward the two spirits. He had, however, been expecting them to jump out off the balcony and fight him, and instead they made for his vessel, so he missed. "Can't kill what's already dead, boyos!” he called down toward them, "It's called a Ghost Ship for a reason!” There was a slight edge to his voice though; was the Hanged Man gloating over an advantage, or trying to trick the group yet again?

There wasn't much time to think before Gabriel slung a pebble his way. Proteus cackled and swiped at it with his sword, flawlessly cleaving the pebble in two as if it was nothing. A second later, however, white energy arced around his body, stunning him. "What?” A quiet voice at the back of the group uttered 'Lightning Body' and Thor shot into the air on thunderous wings, ready to fight the Hanged Man in midair.

The two traded a series of vicious blows in mere seconds. Proteus used his clawed arm as both to shield and to grapple, pinching his opponent and holding her in place, though not casting his curse on her, and all the while he kept up a brutal offense with his sword. He even shoehorned in a few metal-plated headbutts. To her credit, however, Thor held up well. Her electrocutions, though seemingly ineffective at first, were becoming more and more powerful as she accumulated charge. The moment of paralysis inflicted upon him by the backlash of Gabriel's pebble offered the lightning wizard a crucial advantage, but nevertheless Proteus boasted a serious level of power. When his back was turned, however, Eliza made her move. ”Helios' Harvest Arc!” A huge scythe made of burning brimstone whirled through the air and smashed into the Hanged Man's back. He span around and threw a swath of boiling water her way. It hit its mark, and Eliza was flung backward into the stairs. She rolled down them, unable to get her balance and fight the steaming flow.

Whenever he could get a clear shot, Gabriel shot another pebble at the hanged man, unafraid that he would hit a comrade. His pebbles always went where he wanted them to, and if they hit a comrade, they would just be harmless pebbles, although he was sure they would still hurt somewhat.

Dog and Rat moved quickly, running over the land, the two zodiac spirits sticking together. Again, they were unafraid. They reached the ship, and Dog kept lightly onto it, while Rat stayed down. Dog smiled, charming on his boyish face, holding out a clawed hand. "celestial flame", in a soft almost musical voice the spirits did have magical attacks themselves. Dogs were...definetely more spirit like then anything else. Maybe ghost ship...he slammed his hand down on the ship, while Rat sucried about.

As Eliza was flung back, Gabriel gritted his teeth. He could feel the heat of the water from here, but how could he leave Eliza just like that? He stepped towards her, slipped gloves on his hands from another pocket, he darted one hand in, to grab Eliza, and pull her up, and out of the torrent, "you need to be faster" he said cheerfully, returning to his sling shot

The burning impact tore through the planks with ease--evidently, the ethereal ghost ship was still a rickety old boat after all, with decks not at all designed to tank magical attack. Back in front of the lighthouse balcony, Proteus the Hanged Man growled through his diving helmet. The moment of vulnerability had passed, Gabriel having used it to rescue Eliza rather than press his advantage against his foe, leaving Thor the sole target of his wrath. "Looks like me ship's got stowaways. I'm afraid ye 'll have to wait a few ticks 'fore I deal with ye properlike." Possessed of an unanticipated speed and critical accuracy, he appeared right in front of Thor, grabbed her, and threw her into the lighthouse with a painful crack. He cackled madly, and as his glee echoed over the amusement park his body faded away.

Eliza glared at Gabrie as much as she could with neither eyeballs nor eyebrows. "You try losink a hundred pounds in an instant! It von't be an easy adjustment either!" She pushed herself to her feet, and looked to where Proteus had been a moment before. Remembering something important, and suddenly anxious for the memory, she rushed to where Thor had been thrown. The little lightning mage was unconscious. No further help would be received from her. "Vhat a dickhead...poor Thor's out cold. She vas the strongest of us. Brute force must not be the right vay." Eliza laid a finger to her bare temple. "Hmm...lots of ghosts have specific requirements that need to be fulfilled before they can mofe on. Hanged Man is not ghost, but maybe principle is the same?"

Proteus manifested on the deck of the ship, directly between Rat and Dog. "Mutiny, eh? There be a death sentence if I ever here one. All mutineers...be hanged!" So saying, Proteus waved his sword at the rigging, and the ropes slithered to life to heed his summons. Like brown, knotted snakes, the ropes stretched across the deck, tying around posts and worming up masts, until a canopy of nooses lay above the Zodiac Spirits' heads. Across the deck were numerous lines pulled taught; an observant individual might guess that if they were stepped on, a noose trap would spring shut, and yank its victim up to dance to the death. "Come on then, vermin! Remind me how pathetic the lesser spirits are!"

"if i lost a hundred pounds if be the weight I was as a toddler. That would be awesome!" Gabriel chuckled, but winced as Thor was thrown around like a rag doll. As the Hanged Man chased after his spirits, Gabriel knelt, but Thor seemed to be okay.

"one thing I've learned, Eliza, is that sometimes even the weakest of us, can be the strongest. You just have to...believe. To want it. And to have something to fight for. If id fought with my spirits, to get in? Well, chances are, I could have reached A rank, although I'd be a poor A rank wizard really at the moment. Because I wanted in. And when my spirits and I work together? We always have something to fight for" he summoned the small bear, which seemed to know what Gabriel wanted, and Stayed by Thor's side.

He rose and smiled, starting out the light house, to go to his Spirits aid if they needed it.

Dog looked to rat, staying still. Rat seemed to sigh audiably, and raised his hands, tail flicking. There was a special thing about Rat. He began to shrink, but it wasn't just that. Proper rats began to appear, physical rats, animal rats. They climbed up anything they needed, to begin chewing at the ropes. Always being careful not to get caught, the rats were quick, darting in and out, While Rat himself simply used his claws, larger then his smaller brothers still, they were effective in tearing up the ropes, as Dog summoned more celestial flames.

"well, you did say vermin" Dog chuckled, puffy tail wagging, as he began to throw the flames at any bit of the ship he could.

If Eliza still had eyes, she would have rolled them. "Vhat a crock," she said imperiously, strolling to the balcony railing. "A sheep cannot kill a wolf by believing it can. Havink friends does not make the chicken stronker than the coyote. Skill and trainink are vhat make someone the stronkest." She turned to look at the ghost ship, and stepped onto the balcony. "If I say, Hanged Man, I have friends, and I believe, that makes me stronk, he vill svat me like a fly. If ve cannot outpower him, ve must outsmart him. That is vhat I do best. And I have a plan." She muttered a combo spell, and a note like a harp strumming sounded. Eliza's body shone, and the radiance washed away the curse like the evanescence of a bad dream. Now whole again, she intoned another spell, and electricity-wreathed batwings appeared to carry her toward her destination.

Back on the ship, Proteus had grown unhappy that the Spirits would not fight him right out. "Looks like someone in't gettin' the idea," he growled, and flourished his sword. His lantern appeared and attached to the weapon's hilt, and the Hanged Man slammed the sword into the deck. A green wave of energy spread out across the deck, empowering the wood, the rope, and in short, the whole ship. Broken pieces began to repair themselves, and the ropes came to life to wrap around the rats' middles and wring the life out of them without mercy. One of the rodents ensnared was Rat himself. "Ye aren't quite appreciatin' the power of a Mystic Beast. This ship and I are linked, one strengthens the other!" He held out an armored gauntlet, and a new sword materialized in his hand. "This in't some second-rate privateer ye've boarded, mutt. Ye've installed yerself in pirate territ'ry, an' ye'll pay the pirate price!" He extended his claw, and wooden hands rose from the boards to grab Dog's limbs and pin him to the deck.

"Proteus," a familiar voice called.

The shipmaster turned himself to see Eliza land, and her batwings vanish. A rumble issued from his diving helmet when he viewed her in human form. "Ah, the lassie's got an anti-curse, has she? No matter, I'll just kill ye first this time." He lunged at her, sword extended, and impaled her through the ribcage.

Eliza smiled as her image faded. "Sorry, captain. Kumbha uses Gel Fakes. I improved on his design." Abruptly, she exploded in a ruby-red flash. Proteus howled, the light compounded by the reflective metal in his diving helmet, and was blind. Overhead there came a beat of wings, and the real Eliza removed a pin from the mast and dropped upon Proteus his own noose. Laboriously, and calling upon a combination Strength magic she had in store, she pulled the rope up, and the Hanged Man dangled in his noose, kicking. "A neat trick, bitch, but ye can't choke a man in a divin' suit!

Eliza grinned wickedly at him. Her eyes were wilder than she should have been; she was clearly enjoying her foe in pain. "Maybe. Maybe not. There are three S-class vizards in Frenzy Plant: Zander, Indigo, and Ludo the Hermit. Recognize the name? He is also Mystic Beast. He said that all of them were once humans who died at auspicious times, and that all are veak to the same thing that killed them...Hanged Man."

Proteus howled. "Still won't kill me! All ye've done is make sure that I'm sendin' ye to the watery depths o' hell when I get loose!" With his attention elsewhere, Dog and Rat were both free, and Proteus knew it. In a state like this, it was conceivable that they'd be able to end him. An enraging but necessary conclusion was made. "Damn yer eyes! I'll be back fer ye! Mark me words!" He began to laugh, horrible and shrieking and louder than before, until the entire ship was in flux with his glee. Then, as suddenly as it came, the whole thing vanished.

The Spirits and Eliza plopped onto the beach, in a ship-shaped indent in the sand.

Dog leaped aside, avoiding being caught by the deck as Rat was captured. He wasn't for long, as he broke the rope increasing his size to his normal size. He shook himself, and glared at the Beast spirit. Both Dog and Rat prepared to attack the Hanged Man, but before they could, the ship and man disappeared.

Gabriel just chuckled. He figured that there was a lot that he could teach this guild, and a lot he could learn. He jogged across the ground, towards the ship, just in time to catch Dog on his head, falling to the ground with the Spirit on top of him.

"hey! Get off me, you're not a puppy!" Gabriel said, pushing Dog off him, checking both spirits but they seemed okay. There were both still here, and hadn't been sent back to the spirit world, at least. He looked to Eliza, but he wasn't foolish enough to ask if they had won. He rose, and looked about them.

Wordlessly, and without much regard for whether or not her allies followed, Eliza made her way back into the theme park. She found every trace of sealife, every vestige of rot, and every drop of water mysteriously vanished. Where before there had pranced skeletons, there were only normal people now, though as the former dark mage walked by their clusters she could make out a common tattoo on all of them: a circular emblem depicting a squid. "The job is done, but the task set before us is not. Ve did not beat Proteus, only delay him. Next time, though, ve'll know how to beat him, and who to send. Ve'll know the sights and omens, and next time ve vill eliminate the threat."

Overhead, the clouds were clearing. No more rain fell, and no trace of lightning remained but for an eerie memory. Eliza hurried to the top of the lighthouse and found Thor revived, though rather sore. After explaining what had happened to the cloaked mute, the two reunited with Gabriel and his spirits, and began the long journey northward to the fortress they called home.

"Hmmmm... Mmmmmm... Ghmmm..." Lots of frustrated noises came from the girl as she stared down at the list of directions the man at the Magnolia train station had written up for her. Fen was walking through the crowded market street, studying to paper with a rapidly deepening frown. "I asked for directions and he wrote them down for me," She mumbled to herself. "But I didn't think he'd write them in some strange language. I don't even recognise the letters..." She tilted her head to one side as she struggled to decipher the meaningless scribbles and held the paper out at arm's length with both hands, turning to this way and that. Finally, after an embarrassingly long time, her face cleared and she let out a quick exclamation. "Oh!" She turned the sheet of paper around 180 degrees and suddenly the words made sense.

Her face burning slightly from the fact that she'd just spent the last half an hour trying to read a page upside down, Fen quickly ran through the directions and followed them to the large building she'd been looking for. Phoenix Wing. The moment she'd heard of the Wizard's Guild by that name, it had captured her attention. Being a full fledged Wizard meant joining a Wizard's Guild and, with a name like Phoenix Wing, she couldn't have asked for a better fit. It was like fate. And so Fen had made up her mind to go to Magnolia and had jumped aboard the very next train out of Hargeon Town, and then had to change trains when she realized she'd gotten on the wrong one.

Now she was here. Fen pushed the doors to the guild hall open and stepped inside, looking around with wide eyes at everything and everyone around her. She stood dumbfounded for a moment before gathering her wits and taking a more calculated look around. Her eyes came to rest on a bar and, lacking any other major landmark to navigate this new environment by, she made her way over to it. As she reached the bar she took a deep breath, girding herself to make a strong and confident first impression. "U-umm..." she mewled out in a shaky voice. "I-is the Master in? I'm...I'm a Wizard and, if... that is if he doesn't mind, I'd like to join." Talk about confidence...

Sayuri Takashi

Sayuri starts bouncing the ball off the wall of the guildhall, "Oh I see. Well in that case I've heard from my dad the Games are coming up in a couple months right? Would it be too much trouble if I took a couple jobs and went off to train until they started?" she catches the ball and tosses it up once, "Only if that's alright with you of course."

@Caits

@Kuroneko@Demous

"Go ahead. Just be careful, the dark guilds are rising lately" Jarvis said to Sayuri, starting back into the guild.

Jarvis spied the new person, and taking a deep breath, went over to them. "master Jamie is currently away, but I'm here, in charge. Apparetnly. You just need to tell me where you want your guild mark, and what colour!" He said friendly, and once he was told, he got the stamp and gave her her guild mark.

@burthstone (Your special mention)

Master Jamie

Having returned to the guild, Jamie had spent hours trying to deflect Elyse gently, but eventually succumbed to it all, before finally returning to her office. And now, two months later, it was like nothing had happened, Jamie's office once more looked like a bomb had gone off in it, papers and books were everywhere, and the tray of food that Jarvis had more then likely left there was resting on a stack of books, as Jamie was snoozing, leaning on the desk, his chair threatening to toppled Jamie to the floor.

Jamie gave a loud, rumbling snore which woke her up. She blinked blearly, and then gave a yawn, checking the time. He jumped up, "Oh dear, we're going t be late!" Jamie darted out the guild hall, leaping upon the bar "EVERYONE!"

Penny

As Damain and Penny made their way back to the guild after their training, to meet up and then start to the games, Penny contemplated what had happened the last two months. After unlocking Second Origin, a rather painful experience that Penny hoped never to go through again, she nevertheless felt the increase in power. She had, to some good affect, managed to create good weapons out of her flames and had some skill with it now.

And she was slowly becoming accustomed to the idea of love. Well, rather, someone loving her. It still surprised her.

Although she wasn't part of the games, the training would always have beneficial outcomes, and it would be fun, she thought, to watch the guild compete for the title of strongest guild.

They arrived just as Jamie, having returned, was calling attention to the guild hall, once more standing onto of the bar.

Sasha

Sasha and Lazarus had spent the last two months training, becoming stronger and working on their attacks. Sasha was still unsure about the games, but felt like they could do great. They had returned to the guild the day before, and Sasha had gone to bed early, and rose early, grabbing breakfast, she spent the time waiting to leave drawing in her drawing pad. She had discovered some missing drawings, and that had puzzled her, but not enough to worry about it seriously.

Michael

Michael had spent the two months, when not on jobs, decking out his room. He had worked on it himself, building what he wanted with his own hands, and using money from jobs to pay for it. He finally had something that he wanted, and he was going to make it fabulously. Cleopatra pretty much made the guild her own personal castle, roaming through it without a care, and seemed to delight in pestering Master Jack, no matter what Michael did.

Michael had been taken aback upon learning that the guild master had a phobia of cats, but couldn't even fathom the idea of givign Cleo away.

He wiped his brow, and looking about the room. He was currently standing on the bed, considering that the whole room was virtually bed. That had been fun to make! It was decked out in bright colours, the bed spread a rainbow swirl of colours, the wall as bright blue, the curtains on the window a yellow. It was an outrageous collection of colours that never the less worked. In one corner, there was a wardrobe, and pictures plaster the walls. He had just finished putting some pictures, and figured the room was done.

Cleopatra was curled up in the middle of the great bed, and Michael stepped towards her, giving her a pat, before heading to the door, stepping down onto the only piece of floor not covered by bed, and slipped his shoes on, heading out, he stood in the open door way, taking in his room happily.

Gabriel

Gabriel had spent the two months training, when he wasn't taking jobs. He wanted to get sstronger, and wanted to have a better bond with his spirits. Most of the guild had seemed focused on the games, but not being apart of it, Gabriel wasn't really that fussed about it all, except when there had been spars. They had been awesome! gabriel was happy, but at times, he worried and wondered about Michael, if his brother was doing okay. It helped that Michael sent Hermas to him every so often, bringing news of successful jobs and general happiness.

For the last two months Ariel had joined the others in training. Given how easily she had been practically rendered useless in her last job it was a clear issue. In particular she tried to work with Fleo to learn some useful spells for her Dust magic. It took a while to build up enough of that particular magic to do some of them though. Although the spells were a little different. So far in Ariel's experimentation this was consistent for almost all of her magic. It was always at least a slight variation from the original that made the spells off. What it meant is she needed to come up with her own. Not an easy task by yourself. But it was how it was.

The other thing she worked on was switching her magics. So far they were really dependant on her mood but she did manage to "trick" herself into changing. And while it didn't drain her or weaken her as much now there was still a long way to go. One of the biggest problems was it still put a strain on her mind. Rapid or consistent personality changes really did a number on her. Often she would end up stuck on her Dark magic, probably as a defense mechanism to prevent further harm.

Now, two months later, the Magic Games were getting ready to be underway. For many that meant going to the games to watch, and a few to participate. Ariel herself though did not have either luxury. Because of her innate magical absorption, large gatherings of magic made her feel sick and dizzy. She found this out the hard way when first coming to Phoenix Wing. So instead she was going to stay behind and have to watch via lacrama. While understanding the situation Ariel was still rather miffed about the whole thing and stood leaning against one of the supports. Her arms were crossed and her Fire magic made it apparent she was not in the greatest of moods. "This sucks. The biggest mage gathering in a hundred years and I have to watch it from here."