With the first rounds over all the contestants were summoned to a banquet with the banished Princess. Though the event was held in good spirits, Jessi had no intention of partaking in the food or drink. In fact, even with the Jester of the Court himself present, Jessi was possibly the most observant in the room. Everything from drinks being poured to crumbs falling on the floor Jessi watched and kept an eye for anything.

Save for those sitting next to him, all of these people were traitors to the Imperium who would love to see horrible things happen to Asguard. Being her only chance at safety, Jessi was convinced these people would do something to sabotage him and his allies. Poison, drugs, even a hidden blade, he dare not risk anything with what was at stake.

Things only got worse as Emilia began flaunting the Crimson Guardian as if to say “What are you gonna do about it?” It took everything bit of discipline to hold back. Had anyone regardless of status touched Asguard like that in Imperium borders, they would have been swiftly arrested and most likely judged on the spot.

He of course knew, no matter how frustrating it was for him to see this and be unable to stop it, Fei was suffering unimaginably worse than him. This was no more clear now as her eyes began to burn and her face showed nothing but rage. Jessi made no move to stop her though. His attempt to do so in the arena didn’t work, why would it now? And would it really be so bad to let loose now? Sure they were outnumbered much like at the tavern before, but not nearly as bad. The Jester was there as well, his power alone could probably handle everyone here…

It wouldn’t come to that as his thoughts and Fei’s fire were cut off by a knight who also hailed from the Imperium, asking Fei to drop out of the tournament. His request was met exactly as Jessi figured it would, with the Princesses anger and hostility. The knight made no further attempt at talking Fei out of the tournament after that.

Not that he even had a chance. Fei excused herself and left the table before anyone had a chance to say anything. At first Jessi was going to follow as it was his job to be with her at all times. But the second his eyes fell on who had summoned her, he dared not move. If the Jester wanted him to come he would have made it known. He wanted to be alone with Fei and it was not Jessi’s place to interrupt.

That wasn’t even close to the biggest surprise of the night, however. As soon as Fei and the Jester left, a woman dressed in all black with a mask entered the banquet hall, drawing nearly everyone's attention. She made her way to Emilia and asked that she be allowed in the tournament despite the fact she had missed the beginning rounds.

To Jessi’s astonishment, Emilia allowed her to join! ”What? She’s letting her join just like that?” Jessi whispered to no one in particular. ”Even the most basic rules for this tournament aren’t followed. This truly is a law-less land.”

---

The time had come for the second round, though this one would be played much different than before. Instead of one on one, the combatants would fight in a deathmatch style were only two would emerge victorious and move to the finals. If the others were smart, they would find someone they thought weaker than them and pair up; giving them not only an edge in this round but the final. That wouldn’t be a problem for Jessi and Fei. Of course they would fight together, but he had every intention of disappointing the crowd by forfeiting at the finals and letting Fei be the tournament champion.

Before the match began and the beasts were loosed, Fei walked up to Jessi and caught him by surprise. She held out her hand basically told him how much she respected him. When the shock wore off, Jessi shook her and reciprocated, ”Nor were you ever in need of one. Regardless it’s been an honor serving you Princess Fei.”

@KoL@BlueAjah@ReaptheMusic

---

It didn't take long for the Jester and the daughter of Asgard to find themselves wandering alone in the dark hallways of Emilia's palace. The masked man spoke no words, simply striding forward at a pace to which Fei was expected to match. Only when roughly a few minutes had passed to ensure they were truly alone did the Jester halt, turning around to face the young girl.

"It would seem the Imperium has come to an impasse, Fei. The capture of Asgard was unexpected...but not unseen. As you can imagine, the Imperator does not take lightly to her Knights being used as mere toys of bodily pleasure," he stated with no emotion.

Even with the vigorous amounts of training Fei had been through, it was still an effort to keep up with the Jester. He said nothing as they walked to where Fei had no idea. If it had been anyone else, she would have demanded answers but the hot headed girl kept her mouth shut. Questions ran through her feisty mind, curious as to what the Jester wished to say. She hoped he wasn’t here to take her back home for she would absolutely refused. Even if the Imperator came down herself and ordered her return, she would go down fighting. Fei wouldn’t rest until her mother was back safely at home.

Finally, the Jester came to a stop and turned to face her. As he explained the already known situation, she couldn’t help but be surprised and confused. The capture of her mother had been seen? “Are you saying my mother’s capture could have been avoided this whole time? Why wasn't any action taken? How is it that she was even captured in the first place?” Try as she might, Fei couldn’t control the anger beneath her words.

The Jester was unfazed by Fei's anger though his head did tilt when faced with it. He waited for her questions to be fired before saying, "The Imperator was unaware of these predictions. Only I was. And even then, I could not predict the exact measures and methods to be used in Asgard's capture."

Knowing the Jester of the Court, it was every bit reasonable he was lying. But to call him out on that was probably not going to get Fei anywhere. The fact remained that Asgard was captured and what was done was done. Now all that remained was the strategies needed to release her from her own mental prison.

"Your mother was captured on the very same night of the Imperator's speech. When Emilia of Warovia foolishly attacked the Imperium head on. I assume you remember the resulting explosion? She was then brought to Excadia shortly after your own departure from the Imperium."

Despite the Jester’s claims, Fei still couldn’t believe her mother had been captured so easily. Perhaps if he had warned people, kept her on watch, anything and this incident could have been easily avoided. Something had to have gone wrong. Eleonor wouldn’t have just been taken so easily, she was the Crimson Warrior for a reason. She supposed it explained the presence of the Jester and what he had been tasked to complete. Although what he had in mind, she couldn’t quite figure out.

“Of course I remember. It was the first time in months I had seen her. How exactly did Emilia capture someone of such strength as the Asgard though? It seems impossible to think this happened so easily,” Fei said. She wondered how the Imperator had taken the news that one of her knights had been kidnapped and now held as a mere puppet in a pitiful desert.

The masked man leaned back on the wall with crossed arms. He could tell Fei was getting emotional again and while it was understandable, such rash reactions would get them nowhere. So the Jester said, "There are things at work within the Imperium. Who is to say your mother wasn't set up?"

His eyes narrowed just briefly before he continued with, "However, your thoughts on the matter of how it occurred are irrelevant. Reality shows us now that it did happen. Reality also inquires upon us the question of how to bring her back. The Imperator was...most displeased with the actions of Emilia Warov. Her anger is the reason I stand before you today."

The Jester tilted his head and for a moment his eyes seemed to flash. They focused on Fei's face; it was difficult to tell if there was passion or something more hidden in those red depths.

"Tell me Fei...how strong is your dedication to the woman you call Mother? How much power is behind the flames that burn in your shared bond together?"

Fei’s breath escaped her as the Jester mentioned both a traitor and something at work within the Imperium. Who could be so foolish as to betray the government? She was aware of the Librarian and the growing army of rebellion he was building but they had always been within the Imperium’s control. This... This was different. One fact was true, though. Whoever had betrayed her mother, Fei wouldn’t rest until they were punished. The thought that one of her own had sold her out didn’t settle well with her and she couldn’t shake the feeling off that something extremely bad was brewing.

As if he could read her thoughts, the Jester revealed the Imperator’s response to the capture of the Asgard. She had tasked the Jester with the job of returning the Asgard back to the Imperium. It seemed simple enough for one of the Jester’s abilities but why hadn’t he already acted? Was he waiting for some sort of invitation?

The Jester cocked his head at her with his wicked eyes and stared, as if assessing her abilities and strengths. She easily returned his stare, a fire roaring within her eyes. “More power than you could possibly imagine.” She spoke, letting the tome beneath her shirt glow brightly. “I don’t care what I have to do, what obstacles stand in my way, I will burn anyone or anything that tries to stop me from rescuing my mother.”

"As expected of the daughter of Asgard," the Jester mused before reaching out with one hand. "It is obvious there is determination in your gaze young Fei and I have no doubt you are completely loyal to the Imperium. I can see it in your expression. You wish to wonder why I have not intervened, yes? I do not meddle in the affairs of idiots...however, your devotion to your mother and the Imperium have impressed me. Saving Asgard? That task is up for you. Consider it a noble deed in serving your Imperium."

At once the Jester's palm glowed with a silver fire that coated the entire hand. He did not say so, but the flames would not burn Fei and he offered the limb out to her. She would become most valuable in the coming events ahead.

"There will be a time when I will require your service Fei. To ensure these future actions of yours, a deal must be struck. Agree to these conditions, and there will be no doubt in your power on the battlefield. You will never lose another battle again. What was once a flame of desire will grow into a maelstrom of chaos for with which you will create to protect the one you love. And in the end...you will be the one to have Emilia Warov's head. How does that sound? Do we have a deal?"

The masked man waited patiently.

As the Jester spoke with such high praise of Fei, she couldn’t help but stand up a little straighter and grin with pride. Since she had come to this god forsaken dump, no one had come to recognize her strength or acknowledge the power within her. In fact, many had told her to leave and return home where she would be safe. Fei’s grin grew even wider as the Jester claimed the role of saving the Asgard would be her own. Thoughts of the relic no longer stayed within her mind, she simply didn’t care anymore. All that mattered to her was rescuing the Asgard. When she finally returned home with her mother, everything she had been training for would be worth it. Eleonor could finally be proud to call Fei, her daughter.

A breathtaking silver flame enveloped the Jester’s entire hand as he extended it out to her. It was unlike any fire she had witnessed and she stared into it, unable to take in how magnificent it was. All of her attention was fixated on the Jester and the flame as he spoke, speaking of a time where he would request upon Fei’s services. Why he would ever need her help, she wasn’t sure, but Fei would be more than honored to serve the Imperium in any way she could. A deal, the Jester continued, was to be made between the two to ensure she withheld her promise in the future. While it seemed strange to even consider her disobedience, the thought was completely erased when he claimed her as the one who could burn Emilia. There would be no other way to restore her mother’s honor than by killing the one who had made a fool of her. Fei glanced down at his hand again, confident that could accomplish the Jester’s wishes.

Despite the breathing flame on his hands, Fei felt no fear as she took the Jester’s hand. “We do,” she said.

The Jester's eyes flashed as the flame began to burst even brighter for just a moment before fizzling away to little more than sparks. The masked man stepped back, his body already beginning to fade away from sight. A deal had been struck and things were no doubt about to get...interesting.

"I look forward to seeing your next course of action young Fei. Do not disappoint the Imperium," his lingering voice said before fading out of sight like a ghost.

Taking note of her other two opponents shaking hands, Letty turned her head to seeing one of the great beasts that had been let out of their cages along the walls was charging for her. Unflinchingly, She leaned back as though she were letting herself fall off a building toward the silhouette of her own shadow. Instead of hitting the ground itself, she seemed to fall through and merge with her shadow, causing the beast to harmlessly trample on the dark silhouette on the ground and careen into the wall behind her.

The beast pulled back, shaking it's head as it tried to reorient itself, oblivious to the intricate shadow curling up the side of the wall it had hit. A pale hand inset with Letty's familiar Raven armor reached out, becoming visible, and snatched at the beasts face, a spiral of ice forming on it's body and neck to lock it in place. Frightened, the beast snarled and tried to break free, wriggling it's head back and forth as much as it could to no avail. It was with a sickening crunch that the beast's head was pulled back at a fast pace and cracked into the wall as Letty pulled her arm back and disappeared within the concrete. It's neck snapped having hit at just the right angle due to it's wriggling, the beast slumped down the wall, dead.

At a similar pace, the shadow shot across the ground of the arena and in it's pace passing beneath the two standing in the center shaking hands, shot up a pale hand just in time to attempt a grasp a Jessi's ankle and fling him across the arena. At that moment, Fei found herself also prey to a beast lungeing for her neck.

---

---

"Uuughhh I'm totes DIIIZZZZYYYY...." Lav dragged herself back to her boss's office after pulling on some appropriately lazy attire for the evening, Her loose wavy hair only adorned by a headband with a small black top hat perched diagonally in accordance to her head. She stretched and sat on the desk, parasol in hand as her knee-high white lace up high heeled boots clicked against the side of the hard wood. She sighed, fanning herself with a white lace matching folding fan.

"Boss, that loser distasteful lady totally blew a hole in your roof. Annnnd I think our revenue got stolen like, AGAIN. " She pouted, flipping her hair and tugging at her white lace gloves, sighing deeply. "The heck is "Kani-chan" anyway??? OMG soooooo early 20XX."

"It means "Cute Crab". Or something," Jeremias said lazily, as he read away at his favorite best seller novel. "Lav, dear, if it's really such a problem why don't you go out and do something about it?" Annoyed, Lavlene looked over at him.

"Shouldn't you, like, be more concerned or whatever? I mean, this IS your revenue."

"Gah!" Happiness at his success had rapidly faded away as the dragon came around and grabbed him instead, it's grip firm and unmovable. The following pain was, well, a lot, as he was slammed through the deck and left hanging on the abyss, the ground far below and his upper torso simply in the air, like he could fall at any time.

"Oh hell, I am not going out this way," he grunted after he had recovered, needing to get his breath back first. He had not come all this way to simply be killed by a dragon or whatever, and a quick flick of his wrist brought a solid platform of air into existence beneath him, to support his body and keep him from simply falling to his death. Well, that was one issue dealt with.

As the dragon was distracted by the attack from above Alex went to work to deal with the rest of his situation, struggling and writhing to try and slip out of the literally iron grip he was held in. He shot off another blast of air, aimed at thee wrist of the dragon thing, to try and loosen its grip or simply throw it off balance. A quick dodged the beak if it even came near him, and for now he focused on recovery, before he had to get to the issue of the airship plunging out of the sky. He had to have some priorities, and those had precedence.

A wide grin spread across Fei’s face as she gripped Jessi’s hand tightly. It was strange.. Having someone who had your back no matter what was something she had never experienced before. Everything had always been just her. She had trained alone, fought alone, won alone. No one had been there for her when she needed it. Students, teachers, and ordinary strangers were either terrified to be around her or absolutely hated her attitude beyond words. Up to that point in her life, she hadn’t cared. There was no reason to have friends, no reason to be close to anyone except her mother. Fei had one clear goal in life-make her mother proud. It was what filled her dreams and motivated her to train harder.

Yet.. Such a simple handshake seemed to hold more meaning to her than all of those years spent training and working hard. Having Jessi by her side, knowing she had someone to lean on, Fei couldn’t understand why she felt such..relief. It was like all of her life she had an elephant stuck to her back and no one had helped her until now. The chest locked under her shirt wiggled. Fei raised her eyebrow and let go of Jessi’s hand. For a mere second, she let her eyes off the battlefield and watched as her tome slightly moved again. That’s odd…

In the slight moment her eyes left Jessi and her competitors, a shadow hand grabbed his leg. There was no time to react for before she could even breathe her fire to life, a repulsive beast tackled her to the ground, filling her nose with a disgusting stench. The beast was met with Fei’s fiery swords, barely keeping it at bay. She stared into its lifeless eyes and would have pitied it if the threatening reminder of Jessi hadn’t crept into her mind. Taking a deep breath, she willed fire to travel from her and latch onto the beast. A deafening scream filled the stadium and Fei quickly slashed its throat to end the pain.

Fei’s eyes dashed across the arena, looking for Jessi.

@ReaptheMusic@Awesomoman64@KoL

The small smirk Fei had turned into a full on grin as Jessi shook her hand. This again threw Jessi off. Since they came here Fei had hardly spoke to him and treated him as nothing more than an unwanted tag along. Yet, in this moment, the way she was talking to him and even looking at him made him feel appreciated. Maybe he had misjudged her this whole time, mistaken stern determination for harshness.

While these thoughts crossed Jessi’s mind, Fei sudden got a confused look and turned her gaze to the pendant she had under her shirt. ”Everything alright?” It was that instant Jessi felt something tighten around his ankle. Before he could even react he was launched across the arena.

Flying through the air, Jessi cursed himself for letting himself be caught off guard. Up until then he had made it a point to keep his guard and watch for everything, of course the one time he let it down was when they would strike. But now that things were kicking off, it was his turn to strike.

Stabbing his spear into the ground he halted his flight and used the momentum to swing back around and roll towards his original position. While he didn’t quite make it, he was close enough to thrust his spear into the shadow hand that threw him. Quickly standing after, he looked back to Fei worried the beast caught her by surprise as well.

Of course she not only was fine and the beast did, but she must have been looking for him as their eyes quickly met. Pointing with his spear at where the shadow hand was he called to Fei over the sound of the fighting, ”Can’t we have a single fight where people don’t immediately try and screw us over with magic!?”

@KoL@BlueAjah@ReaptheMusic

Tori watched in a detached horror at the state of the captain. Her face was as blank as ever, as if someone had just dropped a pile of paperwork in front of her. Was it shock? Maybe, she felt numb as if all her sense of touch had been shut down as she stumbled vaguely over to the impaled captain, her face now as bone white as her cloak. There was only one saving grace, the controls seemed undamaged. For all the creature’s intelligence it seemed to be prioritising dealing with living things and not disabling the ship.

This assumption was quickly ruined by the metallic abomination’s inclination to tear through the hull of the airship. Clenching her teeth so she wouldn’t accidentally bite her tongue, Tori was about to try and take control when she felt the ship plummet a bit with the weight of the metal dragon creature. Spreading her wings, Tori kicked off the door and guided herself back over to the controls where she unceremoniously knocked the captain from his seat and began wrestling for control.

Gasping Tori felt she was fighting a useless battle as the airship continued to plummet, the best case scenario she could hope for is to aim the crashing airship at a floating island. Actually, the best case scenario would be crushing that metal bastard underneath the airship as it crashed, but for now she would be happy for a crash landing without fatalities.

“Please, please, please! Crash safely!” this course of action slightly conflicted with her, the cold calculating part of her mind told Tori that she was in unnecessary danger that with her Tome she could safely escape and it would simply be another crash in the Arcadian skies… yet she was still there, holding on and wrestling with the controls, working as hard as she could. Body not obeying the logical, selfish, mind.

@Flamelord@KoL@TheWindel

Soma herself had fallen from her platform and by the time she recovered herself and noticed the ship plummeting out of the sky like the gods themselves damned it back down to earth. Somewhere deep inside her, she felt that call to protect those in danger even if it meant killing herself, literally the exact reason she chose to distance herself from troublesome people or situations was happening right now in front of her. Creating a platform midair and bouncing herself up until she boarded the airship and began to shield those who just couldn’t abandon the ship in her own personal shields if they popped Soma would be the one to take the damage instead of them.

“Whhhhhhhy me, ” she grunted that annoying feeling was the most persistent thing in the world interfering with her basic survival needs like living.

Soma continued her job until all that was left were the people fighting that monster and the captain of the ship, because he wouldn’t let go of the stick he was left unprotected this left Soma with an empty pit like feeling. In an attempt to get rid of that feeling she gathers up the people she did shield in the ballroom like area like marbles then capturing them in a large second orb

"I wonder where my sister is" she thought to herself randomly

@McFazzer@Flamelord@KoL

---

---

As Jessi got back to his feet and tried to help Fei while sproutting a witty remark he would find the looming figure of Tegonay waiting for them, ready to smash the Lancer's ribcage with the pummel of his massive sword, Arondight -The Black Blade of the Lake-, following with a kick aimed at Fei's chest. How the hulking armored knight got there without any of them noticing was anyone's guess, but Jessi's enhanced senses would let him get a feeling of something wrong, something not right about Tegonay. There was no signs of life at all coming from the armor, no breath, no pulsation or digestion, no muscles tensing or bones grinding, in fact even the knight's voice as he said "Pardon me, Milady, but this mission was handed upon myself by Lord Yggdrasil, you posses no autorithy to dismiss me. A child's tantrum will not be put before the will of the Imperium!" seemed to ring hollow inside his helm. The meaning of this was for Jessi and Fei to devise.

On his part, the Dark Knight would continue the assault by spinning his body using the momentum of the kick to smash Jessi's side with the flat of his blade, just after saying to his peer,"You sure understand, don't you? A knight's duty always comes first. Our oath is our honor and life and I sworn to follow Lord Yggdrasil to the depths of hell and back, if so commanded." Following that, the ground bellow Tegonay's feet shattered and burst as the dark knight used all his strength to do a standing somersault and try to crush Fei once and for all, though as soon as he was about to connect...

"What sort of witchery is this!?" Tegonay exclaimed, as an aura of silver flames threw him off balance and frced the knight to retreat, giving Jessi and Fei the precious time they would need to plot a counter-attack.

Meanwhile, Vassagus, the Mercenary Sorcerer, used Letty's momentary distraction to aim a spell on her position. "From the pits of hellfire, what I call forth is cremating flames: Taika!" Vassagus said while drawing a reverse pentagram inlaid in a magic circle in the air and then touching the ground, causing a ten feet wide pillar of dark gray flames to erupt from the ground where Letty stood. To make things harder for the raven dressed woman the last of the wyverns cornered her from behind, lunging with blood lust on the one who got the first of them killed.

"You should pay more attention to your surroundings, Lady. There's more than the Imperial love birds on this arena, after all." Vassagus said in his typical raspy voice, while holding another spell at the ready, a magic shield, just in case Letty tried anything funny. That is, if the raven hadn't been turned into roasted chicken by his previous spell.



Things weren't much better for the Arcadia exploration party, despite the introduction of an unexpected helper and everyone's efforts, it looked like the Metalodactilus' attack had damaged the ship beyond any hope of salvaging. Tori's efforts coupled with the mysterious helper's, well... help and Alex and the twins assault on the flying lawnmower managed to bring the beast down, but only to have it crash on the ship, sending it in a barely controlled spin until it got smashed against the nearest flying island.

Sometime later...



"Pfft! Pfft!" Sienna and Linea coughed, spitting large amounts of water from the, seemingly underground, pool the airship hit on it's downfall, the Metalodactilus was nowhere to be found, which earned a sigh from Linea, even so their priorities were others now. "Hey, everyone! Are you there?" Sienna yelled as they began to search the ship's debris. "Indeed, is everyone unharmed?" Linea called in as high a voice as she could, while taking the time to look are them and take in the details of the place they landed.

"Oneesama, I believe we are inside some form of temple, though the maker is unknown to me." The quiet Beastkin said as her animal-like eyes canned the dark and damp cave, noticing what looked like lines and inscriptions on the walls, some of them with figures that looked like planets and stars. The stone blocks composing the old damp walls were placed in a way that the spaces between the formed lines that were akin to electric circuits. A low, machine-like hum came from the depths of the ruins, barely audible over the sound of the running water that encompassed all the visible parts of the ruins, pouring from the cracks between the stones or from the high ceiling that seemed to be taken by some for of plant, most likely the roots of a gigantic tree.

While the Aquarian twins searched for their companions one doubt lasted on the minds... Where in the world were they?



"A girl gotta have her secrets, you two know it, don't? Also, it's alright Chenny-boy, I'll wait until you talk to your boss. If he likes the relic I can sell it on a discount, since we are party members, or is it not?" Mikoto said while drawing both Chen and Ruxen on a forced hug with a strength that betrayed her size, before pointing to to the interior of the forest. "Alright, we have a relic to find, who's with me?"

And so, the brave journey of the Peddler Witch, Mikoto Kanzaki, and her goons through the dangers of Rivenwood began. What would be of them? Not even the Jester himself knows.

---

Distracted and amused within her realm of darkness that could only be found within shadows, Letty's bemusement was cut short by a sudden shift in atmosphere. Pillars surrounded her and fire spouted from the ground, forcing her shadow to no longer be attached and out in the open just as the wyverns lunged at her from behind. She glanced back at them, noting the feet of her armor quickly getting hot. She turned her head back, looking up to the top of the pillars. Just as the beasts were upon her and the fire began to consume her armored legs, she leapt upward, tucking her legs beneath her body. Beneath her raised feet, a small white and blue glyph appeared before shooting out in all directions, attaching to all edges of the pillars around her to create a makeshift platform made of black ice in the shape of a snowflake. The sharp edges lanced through the bodies of the wyverns, "freezing them in place" as the blood dripped onto the hungry flames below. Almost as if in response, the flames hissed greedily and began to consume the beast's corpses as Letty continued up in her descent like this, her massive snowflakes spearing her way up until she brought herself to the top of the pillar. Having been given a new vantage point, Letty opened her wings to look down. It would seem a bold armor-clad man had decided to make work of Jessi and Fei. She would need to keep an eye on them. Her beak-shaped armor turned to face the man who had claimed himself to be Vassagus and smiled beneath the large visor covering the majority of her expression.

Letty raised her arm, forming a large ice lance as it grew with white and black spiraling magic from her wrist and pointed it at the mage. Her wings opened wide and she made a run whilst her wings were spread as if to leap dramatically from the tower and lunge for the mage. However, instead, she seemed to fall over the edge and disappear down the wall. The fleeing shadow seemed to rocket down the wall and over the ground past Vassagus until from the near wall behind him she emerged, quickly attempting to plunge her ice lance into the back of his neck while he still faced the tower.

---

---

"Well, you know, whatevsies. I guess I'll track down that dumb distasteful girl myself." With a sight, Lav brought herself up from the desk, stretching lazily as she made her way to the door. "Honestly boss, It's a wonder how you get any work done without me around." Lavlene let herself out of the office and made her way down to the street. There, she found the company car Jeremias frequently lent to her and pulled herself into the drivers seat. Just as she was starting the car, her phone let out a chirping sound to signify a new message. As she plucked her white and pink cellphone up, her sparkling strawberry phone charm swayed gently and reflected the street light off of it as she swiped her phone open. It was a text.



Lavlene felt her heart stop for a moment as she stared down at the words on her phone. Her hand was shaking as she went to put it down, only to hear another chime from the cell. Hesitantly, she glanced at the phone and pulled it back towards her, once more clicking open the screen.



Biting her lip, the pink haired girl put her phone down and gently rested her forehead against the steering wheel, gripping it tightly with both of her hands. With a sigh, she leaned back and tossed her cell phone into the passenger seat as it began chiming away again, each chime coming faster than the last. She put the car into drive and drove into the night.

~Ruxen~

---

“Why am I getting the feeling that you’re enjoying this?”

Ruxen directed the question at Mikoto with a glare. Really, anything that involved the peddler was no doubt bound to end in some explosion or daring escape. Which, for the Beastkin who had just escaped imprisonment, was more than a bit excessive. All she wanted was a nap.

But she couldn’t complain much seeing as Chen was the one to have rescued her. So she had to follow him around for at least a few days before ditching him for that nap. Growling to herself, she padded after the two and walked beside them in silence, nose twitching to the bugs that randomly flitted by. The more they entered the forest, the more a sense of unease crept up onto her form…

“Hey do you hear that?”

Ruxen suddenly paused in her step, ears twitching as they strained towards the direction they were walking in which lead to a massive clearing within the forest. Tangled growth surrounded them on all sides yet the ground underfoot had transitioned from hard dirt into soft ferns and tuft.

What Ruxen had heard was a soft whispering, almost close enough to tickle her ear. But paying more attention now, she could narrow it down to the sound of…singing? Humming? Something distinctly similar to that and it only increased the sense of foreboding entering into the hound’s system.

“Yeah…hey, just a suggestion. But we should probably get the fuck out of here. Like…fucking now.”

It would seem the prospect of greater adventure near-universal, the events of the battle in the sky near Arcadia coming to a close. But unlike the threats faced in Rivenwood, the vast and unexplored terrain of Arcadia would prove much more unexpected. Not too far from the wreckage of the crash site, the sound of grass crunching was heard with no mistake.

Yet if anyone was brave enough to turn towards the noise they would find nothing there. Nothing but the lingering shadow of their own curiosity. Weird. The ruins themselves seemed to be held aloft by a small body of water, the clear streams occasionally gurgling with something living within them. In fact, multiple pots dotted the water where nothing but bubbles formed. Truly a strange place…

“Sienna! Linea! Where are you guys?”

The voice came from near the water bedside by the undergrowth was much too thick, the reeds too tall to tell where the voice was coming from. It sounded like Alex. No wait, it was Tori. Maybe Soma, the girl who had tried to help them out before? It was hard to distinguish who was speaking. And for the others…

“Alex? Is that you?”

“Tori, come closer!

---

Chen squirmed a little as the peddler witch drew him and Ruxen into a hug, it felt weird to he touching someone who looked like they were 12. "Please don't touch me." Chen asked politely as he wrenched himself from her grasp. He took a moment to compose himself and he brushed himself off. "Yes, that would be good."

They began to walk into the forest on the search for another Legend Relic, Chen idly putting his hand in the pocket where his was held. Once again he found himself wondering how this mysterious artifact worked, what activated it, was it really that much of a game changer? All these thoughts and more ran through his head, interrupted only by Ruxen's sudden warning. His hand came out of his pocket quickly and ice formed in it, ready to defend at any moment. "Which way is the danger coming from?"

Alex had managed to break free from the giant dragon thing, but he had little time to be relieved as the ship whined and shuddered, slanting downwards as air whipped past, with the vessel headed straight for the ground. Oh this was not good, this was not good at all. He could only assume that that had been the result of the dragon, which was very unfortunate.

But there was no time to lament his own misfortune, and he quickly acted to save himself from a very painful death. His tome activated as he grabbed on to the sturdiest structure that he could find, hanging on for dear life as the ship neared the ground. Dear god, this was going to be painful. "How do I keep getting myself in these situations," he grumbled, knuckles clenched as he waited for the impact. This was going to suck.

***

A groan escaped as Alex began to stir back to wakefulness, his head throbbing in pain and the rest of his body hardly as well off. His eyes opened to reveal a blurry expanse, which slowly resolved in a dark cave of sorts, blocks present and water nearby, the debris from the airship scattered about all over the place. Naturally, the crash had done a number on the place.

At the moment it looked like he was stuck, the metal having caved in in a fashion to hold him in place. He wasn't too damaged besides scrapes and bumps, but this was hardly the most adequate situation to be in. And he wasn't sure if he could use his tome for fear of dropping more debris on him, at least at the moment.

"Wonderful," he groaned to himself as he tried to move, a bit more confident when it didn't bring anything down on him. Pausing for a moment he could swear he heard someone calling his name, a sign that other people had survived the crash. Good. Otherwise he would have been really worried. "Hey, anyone there!" he called aloud, knocking on the metal near his face a bit to try and draw attention. Here was hoping someone could help him before he needed to save himself. Again.

His remark had cost him his concentration, but the placement of his spear put Jessi in the perfect position to swing it around and deflect the pommel of Tegonay’s blade. The dark knight then used this momentum to send a kick at Fei. ”Have you gone mad?” The young soldier shouted to Tegonay who had just claimed his orders surpassed the will of the princess. He was correct of course. A guardian’s authority was near absolute and if he was ordered to win, it was his duty to do so.

Keeping on the offensive, Tegonay came back once more bringing his sword towards Jessi; but he was more than ready this time. Hold his spear out vertically and stopping the blade mid swing the knight spoke to Jessi about oath and honor. It was then something caught Jessi’s attention; there was a distinct echo in the man’s words. Was his helmet...Empty? It didn’t matter. While he still had the servant of Yssdrasil next to him he gave a response, ”I understand all too well. But we are not your enemies! Help us fight so that we can secure the safety of Lady Asgard!”

Hopes of gaining the now mysterious knights alliance were quickly dashed by Tegonay pulling away and sending a devastating strike toward Fei. He had no intention of working with them. In truth it looked as though he intended to kill them. Silver flames erupted around the princess and halted his strike and even stunned him. Jessi used this opportunity to strike quickly, sweeping the armored ‘man’s’ legs then bringing his spear down where he would lay.

”You have orders to win, but I have orders from a guardian as well to protect and keep her daughter safe. If you will not back down, then so be it!” He pushed himself up with his spear and took position in front of Fei. Using this time to check the field he noted the other combatants were keeping each other busy. Good. No one would interrupt them. Glancing back at Fei, Jessi gave a command for the first time as her protector. ”Stay back!” turning his attention again to the metal warrior in front of him, he spoke just loud enough for them to hear, ”He’s mine.”

It was unfortunate. Imperial blood would be spilled this day. But by his word as a soldier, no matter what it cost him, Jessi would make certain that it would not be Fei’s!

@KoL@BlueAjah@ReaptheMusic

The moment she saw Jessi alive and well, Fei breathed a sigh of relief. Anyone of his capabilities would have no problem fighting any of their appointments, she shouldn’t have been worried in the first place. So why was she..? At his humorous remark, she flashed a slight smile. It was rather annoying that they’d been tricked through magic twice… “Well, if they want to fight through magic, let’s give them a show.” Fire burned through Fei’s veins and if people wanted to battle with her flames, she wouldn’t back down.

As she was looking at Jessi, a dark figure hovered over him and didn’t hesitate to strike him with the gigantic sword in his hands. The fact that he, who she now recognized as the knight from the night before, had managed to sneak up on both of them worried Fei for both of them should have already sensed him. Before she could so much as move to attack, the man laid a forceful kick in her chest and she was thrown to the ground as her breath escaped her. Bastard.. The pain in her breast was incredible but she bit her lip before she would show the odd figure that. Something about him felt rather strange. He felt.. cold. And she couldn’t help but be confused as he went to shout orders from the Platinum guardian. One working for the Imperium surely wouldn’t attack Fei like this, even with orders from a guardian. There were other methods to safely take her out rather than attack her. Something wasn’t right about him…

The knight was well trained, his fighting methods were exceptional, expected of one coming from the Imperium. He moved with ease and flexibility and Fei could barely predict his movements. She definitely hadn’t expected the knight to nex do a summersault and prepare to smash into Fei. Part of her felt like a little girl at the moment, how someone from the Imperium would be the one to defeat her. She closed her eyes and waited, but instead of the aching pain she expected, there was nothing. Her eyes flickered open to find familiar silver flames blocking the knight from reaching her and knocking him off balance. While she knew of the deal she had made with the Jester, she hadn’t expected it to be so powerful. It seemed his promise that she would in fact win this tournament would prove to be true. Of course that didn’t mean she would simply hold back.

Jessi held no hesitation as he took the man’s confusion to trip him and take position in front of Fei. She raised her eyebrow as he then went to order her to stay back. As a guard, Jessi had no right to speak to her in such a commanding tone. Part of her was even annoyed that he thought he could order her around but she knew it had nothing to do with that. Jessi wanted blood, wanted to prove that no one could mess with him and get away with it, and he wanted to protect her. So she did something she wouldn’t typically do, back down. She would let him have the knight. No words needed to be said as she took a few steps back and allowed Jessi his wish.

Fei turned her head slightly to assess the rest of the battlefield. It seemed everyone was caught up in their own battles, leaving her the choice of who to pick off first. The sorcerer and late arrival of the competition were already far into battle. Smirking, Fei thought she’d use one of her tome’s abilities she hadn’t used in a while. Taking a deep breath, she stared at both Letty and the sorcerer with tense eyes. Emotions of angst and fear would soon drift into their minds, taking control, consuming them. It was an unfair trick Fei typically chose not to use but she needed to win this battle as quickly as possible. Time was of the utmost essence.

As she let the magic take effect, Fei began to slowly make her way over the two. While the trick would weaken their mind, it still didn’t mean they were completely useless and could still very much prove to be a challenge. But Fei was prepared for that and gripped her two swords to prove it.

@Awesomoman64@ReaptheMusic@KoL

---

---

The battle rages on!

“Your challenge is accepted, Knight. You have an admirable devotion to your station”, Tegonay replied to Jessi, “to honor such resolve, there’s no choice for me but to take out the kid gloves. Arondight, awake and pulverize!” As Tegonay called forth the name of his tome, the whole colosseum went silent as an earthquake hit the bloody arena, pillars shattered, tiles broke and the very ground which they stood began to cave in. People began to panic, as the Black Knight began his charge at Jessi, bringing down a sword as heavy as the mountains while a pillar of rock rose behind the spearman, to block his most viable escape route.

“While your qualities are admirable, there’s only one truth in this world, and it’s power. Those who wield overwhelming power are at a whole different level than those who think they can win by determination alone. Now, Knight, taste the true meaning of POWER!” Tegonay blared as once again the soil seemed to burst under his feet launching him into the air to crash down upon Jessi with an overhead smash.



“Heh, too easy, Crow Lady! How many times do you think people tried to stab me in the back before?” Vassagus mocked Letty’s counter, before blocking her icy lance with the flaming shield he had prepared beforehand. “You may have the skills, but you lack the experience and tactics to beat a men whose life was fighting from the moment of his birth.” Vassagus said as he suddenly dropped his center of gravity, falling under Letty’s field of vision in the blink of an eye and using his hand as a fulcrum for a spinning kick, aiming not to hurt, but to throw Letty off balance.

Following that, either his maneuver succeeding or not, the Mercenary Sorcerer used the left over momentum to spring backwards, drawing another magic glyph in the air with his fingers. “Flame of the underworld, I call upon thee. IZUNA!” Upon Vassagus command, a wreath of pale blue fire balls appeared on his back, nine in total. Izuna, the mystic flames of the legendary kitsune. Vassagus caught one in each hand and flung them toward Letty, for the time being ignoring as the world literally crumbled around them.

However, "Ghh! What the!?" Vassagus fell to his knee just as Fei's magic clouded his mind, rapid processing calculations and innate knowledge of magic crumbling under the surprise mental assault. To the Mercenary Sorcerer it was a rather brutal attack. It was just a matter of time before Vassagus could analyze, process and counter Fei's mental interference, but for the time being he was mostly open to attacks, except maybe for the uncontrolled flames of his Izuna spell spinning in wild ellipses around him.





“I always enjoy myself in everything, Ruxy.” Mikoto replied to Ruxen’s grumbling question with her typical million gold pieces smile. When Chen complained about Mikoto’s demonstration of camaraderie, the peddler replied, “Aw~ You hurt me Chenny-boy, you’re just like those people who think I’d rob their underpants if they get close to me. Anyway, I’m waiting to meet this Librarian pal of yours.”

A few minutes later…

Mikoto was lazily walking behind her two companions, her broom securely perched on her shoulder and her backpack firmly strapped to her back, whistling away a merry tune… merrily. When she noticed the strange apprehension of her subordinates, the Peddler Witch stopped in her tracks and asked. “Hey, what’s up with you two? Any potential customers that you may be spotting, Ruxy?” Mikoto asked, twirling broom around, ready to beat a hasty retreat, just in case it was another one of those pesky debit collectors.





“Oneesama, I think there’s someone here.” Linea pointed to the part of the derelict hull of the ship where Alex was stuck. It seemed to be a section of it, so there was the chance of the others having surviving on the other parts of the dismantled ship. Anyway, they needed to help the one at hand, before moving to search for extra survivors.

“Right, we’re going to try to take you out, don’t move!” Sienna yelled before just shooting a glance at Linea, who replied with a silent nod. “3... 2… 1… Freeze’em!” Suddenly the section of the ship where Alex was stuck began to freeze and crack under its own weight, a second later a huge metallic gauntlet was gripping Alex safely, protecting him from the debris. If he dared to look, Alex would see that an iron golem had him firmly secured in his grasp, placing him beside the Aquarian Twins just as the ship debris crumbled to frozen hunks of steel.

“Are you ok, Alex? If you are feeling bad, we can leave you in a safer place while we look for the others.” Sienna asked, while Linea just nodded, saying, “Indeed, it’s as Oneesama said, Alex.” A moment later, the Twins foxy ears perked as they noticed the voice calling everyone’s names. “It must be that girl who helped us, Oneesama. But how can she know our names?” Linea mused about how they should proceed. “Heh, we have no choice but go there and ask’er, Linea. You take care of here, Alex, we‘ll be back in no time.” And so the Aquarian Sisters set out to find who was calling them with their foxy ears and eyes ready to locate and any on coming trouble.

---

Strangely enough plummeting thousands of feet from the god’s seat to the forsaken depths of some unknown grotto didn’t kill as many people as one would think. Partly thanks to Soma shielding everyone, but that didn’t stop Soma herself from bouncing several feet away, then sliding into a pool of what she hoped was water. Snapping her fingers to release every barrier she created and swam back up crawling her beaten body to the edge and pulling herself out to cough up the water and stand on the ground oh so happy that she was on good old terra ferma. She stumbled back and lounged on a nearby rock to take a little break from all the excitement knowing her luck it was only a matter of time before something else decided to blow up. Looking at her surrounding peaked her interest as she had cleared thousands of miles of ground in the name of exploration, but this place was new to her, something urged her forward a little towards the edge of the cliff the airship crashed on.

The explorer took off her jacket and all other formal attire as they were completely ruined, thankfully she wore her normal outfit underneath it exposing the tattoo on her back and a lot more. Before she could start to seek out the unknown she heard voices all out and decided the best course of action was the meet up with the others.

@KoL@Flamelord@KoL

She'd fallen back from the fire barrier due to his kick, something she had been sure she had ducked beneath. Regardless, She moved to a higher up location by leaping upward from the rumbling stones of the coliseum floor and creating a glyph beneath her to make yet another ice floor, this one connected to the wall. Her expression was placid as the blue flames were hurled toward her. She leapt upward, gliding along on her wings with a bend in them to ensure her speed while evading them. However, as the mage began to seem to experience some form of headache, Letty saw her opportunity. At the same moment, intense fear and angst, feelings of despair welled up inside her. She paused, her head down... and raised it back up with a scowl. These were feelings she had defeated a very, very long time ago. Regardless, she felt a waver in her mind due to this. Only simple spells would have to do right now. Another glyph beneath her feet, Letty raised both her hands, one atop the other. Her wrists wrung around in opposite directions, forming two large ice walls on either side of the mage. She brought her wrists close together, moving them apart.

"Freeze to death."

It was no spell spoken in a monotone, but as her hands clapped together firmly, bringing the two, formless slabs of ice together at high velocity, it was all she hoped she would need to say. Her attention was brought to the approaching girl from before regardless of the outcome with the mage and the ice slabs, then to the boy who was fighting a suit of armor. The boy was busy... clearly, the girl was at hand. A deep sigh echoed from her lips as she looked at Fei.

"You're turning on the wrong card, girl. Know when to fold."

Letty's head tilted to the side, revealing a pale blue eye decorated in winged eyeliner beneath the mask. She winked at Fei, promptly dropping her head back to the side.

---

"When I was just a little girl..."

The singing had grown closer. A woman was singing it... so it sounded. Between each melodic line, from the position of the trees, a dragging sound was heard.

"I asked my mother... what will I be?"

It was slowed down... dragged out. As though the woman singing were exhausted.

"Will I be pretty?"

The figure was starting to be seen through the trees, headed toward the trio, stumbling and limping as though their leg was broken at an unnatural angle.

"Will I be rich?"

At last, a hand was seen through the trees, gripping the branches, blood on the fingertips.

"Here's what she said to me..."

She stumbled out, revealing herself as a woman with a ripped dress, blood spattered from the bottom of her ripped skirt to the top of her lavish updo which was bedraggled with leaves and branches inside of it. Her leg, indeed, was broken. She limped on it, dragging it behind her with her black heel still attached to the dainty ankle. Meanwhile, her other foot was bare and covered in thistle, poked with blackberry thorns.

"Que Sera, Sera..."

Her head slowly turned to look at the trio as she pulled herself onto the road.

"Whatever will be, will be..."

She looked at them fully now, revealing her face which had bits of glass sticking out of it where clearly someone had smashed something like a mirror or glass vase against. In her shoulder and sticking out in the front from the back was a golden tipped arrow. In her hand, which was covered in blood from a slash at her upper arm to the point where muscle was exposed and had caused red plasma to cover her palm which held a golden-handled shark steak knife. As soon as her eyes met the trio, her expression turned from dazed to contorting with anger, fear, and delirium. She slowly raised the knife up high and lunged for Chen.

Watching Fei back down from this fight only to run to the other, Jessi couldn’t help but wonder why he was even there. So far she had single handedly taken down an ogress while under a curse, killed a skilled barbarian in less than a minute, and even now charged into the heat of another battle rather than wait for one of the combatants to fall. Sure she was reckless, temperamental, and until recently he had thought...Well for lack of a better term, a royal bitch. But she was without a doubt the best warrior he had ever seen and in no way needed someone to look after her.

A thought sprung into Jessi’s mind, maybe this wasn’t about protecting her at all. Maybe the reason he wanted her to stand down had less to do with her protection, and more with her opinion. She had nothing to prove to him about her skills, but did she think of him in the same way? The thought was dropped just as easily as it came. Reasons didn’t matter now. The match was set and it was time to fight.

The moment Jessi locked eyes with Tegonay, the world around him vanished. Of course he was still observant of his surroundings, but his focus on this single battle was absolute. Tegonay made the first move calling on his tome the arena began to violently quake. Another bonus to improved senses, balance was never a worry. Despite the shaking floor, Jessi kept his center and was virtually uneffected. A sly smirk crept up on his face, “Again with magic? I thought you were better than that.”

A sudden shift in the ground behind him alerted him to the knight’s plan. He was going to try and force him into a corner was he? Jessi decided to play along with this game and held his position. Tegonay attacked without hesitation bringing his sword down with a mighty swing. Jessi was more than ready to stop the blade holding his spear out above him, but he had underestimated his foes strength as the force pushed him to his knees.

The dark knight must have taken this as a sign of weakness and spoke about overwhelming power. Still keeping the blade from reaching him, the valiant soldier retorted, ”Power may help you win, but it takes true skill to win any fight!” He pushed upwards hoping to send his opponent off balance. Instead Tegonay launched into the air and came down with a strike ready to cleave the young fighter in half.

Unknown to the armored man, this was just what Jessi was hoping for. Calculating and watching for just the right time he pushed off the ground and rolled under the knight just as he came crashing down. With lightening fast reflexes, Jessi spun around and drove his spear directly into the lower back of the black armor knowing any spot meant to bend would be weakest.

Something was wrong. He felt the break in the metal, but that was it. There was no puncture of flesh nor the sound of cracking bones. Quickly pulling his spear out, Jessi found it to be clean with not even a trace of blood. ”What...What are you?” he could hide the shock in his voice nor the fear he currently felt. Could he kill this metal monster? Had he even hurt it? For the first time in a while, Jessi was afraid. If he couldn’t hurt this thing, then it was only a matter of time before his defeat.

@KoL@BlueAjah@ReaptheMusic

Chen stayed on guard, paying little attention to Ruxen and Mikoto. The ice in his hands turned into a knife and the ground around him froze, making a quick getaway easily doable. It shouldn't hurt his allies either, Ruxen being far away enough that she wouldn't be on the ice and Mikoto being able to fly.

Suddenly a song echoed through the forest, female voice, somewhat young, hurt, no not hurt, tired. Something was being dragged as well, but it wasn't heavy. Then the mystery voice showed herself. His initial thoughts had been correct, she was very hurt. Chen dropped his knife and began to step forward. "Excuse me miss, you need to stop moving. You are only exacerbating your wounds-"

Suddenly she jumped at him with the now very noticeable steak knife, aiming to cut him open like a bag of flour. Chen hopped back as quickly as he could, forming a shield in his left hand to block any further attacks. He certainly wasn't going to attack her after all.
@ReaptheMusic@KoL