@Hatakekuro

Jessie looked over and smiled, before checking everything again. Feeling his eyes, Jessie deliberately wriggled her butt, enjoying teasing Ferris, and turned when he cleared his throat, following behind him. It was indeed cute when he blushed, and watching him walk, she walked happily. Hurrying, she caught up with him and slipped her arm through his as he whistled.

"Well, the just shy of murdering people could potentially be your guild mates, so better not get on their bad side!" She said cheerfully


@YipeeXD
"I can't promise that, Lazarus. What good would stepping back be, if I allow your death? If I allow a dreadful power to rise? What good is our future, if that happens? Don't you dare ask me to do that, because I won't." Sasha said, and she wasn't merely being stubbon, but knowing herself, she knew she wouldn't leave, so what was the point of making a promise she couldn't keep? "I'm strong, Lazarus, I can look out for myself"


@Joshua Tamashii@zarkun
Jamie studied Jackie, and then gave a heavy sigh, almost in consent, but instead said "You do not get it, do you Jackie? As long as there is still light, even if that light is minisually compared to the darkness, there is hope, and hope rallies to light. They can tear us down, scatter us, but we will always come back together, and what doesn't kill us makes us stronger. We will destroy the dark guilds, not simply because it is the right thing to do, but because we can, even if it takes a thousand years.

Jack could have given up on you anytime, and yet he hasn't, because there was the hope of your recovery from your dark guild.

Jarvis and I could have given up, all those years ago, and yet we didn't. We created a guild and we brought hope. Each and ever member that comes to us, is a new light to fight the dark.

Jane's parents kept a light alive, and Jane herself will carry their light with her, for to have hope is to be alive. That's something you should learn, Jackie. As long as one person that fights for the light, for what is right, is breathing, then we have never truly lost."

Jamie might have ruined her speech by licking her ice cream cone, before continuing "You don't know me well enough to know that I won't give up, until I do just that. Destroy the darkness. I just have to keep on doing the unexpected, keep on making my guild and name known, and people like Jane will come. Because a moth is attracted to a flame, and Phoenix Wing shines brightly. Hope is a powerful thing"

Arie bit her lip, clearly debating whether to stick with Laynette or go with hunter like she had been told for a long moment before finally deciding the follow the order. She remained just behind Hunter and Zev all the way down to the infirmary, watching them and Luna to see what would happen. Though, instead of sticking with Luna once she was left at the infirmary, she followed him as he hunted down the medics. The one that got thrown at the wall would find themselves slowing down much faster than they normally would, as well as their clothes pulling tightly on them, so when they hit the wall they weren't hurt that bad. Anyone watching Arie would've definitely seen the magic circle by her hand.

After her stormed, Arie hesitated to continue following. The young woman was unsure that it would be a good idea to follow someone after they were already angry enough to throw people around, even if it was just to thank them for helping with Luna. Arie was sure she didn't have any ulterior motives to wanting to thank him at all. She eventually decided to follow him.

Jogging a little, Arie got to the exit of the stadium only a little after Zev did, and blushed as she heard him make a comment to himself about hunter. Taking a breath, she spoke up, hoping that maybe he'd get Hunter to come back so she could thank him too.

"H-hey, excuse me, uhm... Thanks for helping Luna out. I'm n-not sure Laynette and I could've carried her," her voice was weak and shy, and Arie couldn't keep a blush from her cheeks.

@hatakekuro@Zarkun

Laynette limped in on her Glaive about ten minutes after Luna was brought in, and slowly made her way to a chair between Luna and Mark's beds. Both were still unconscious, though what seemed to be for vastly different reasons. Mark had received enough blunt force trauma to knock him out, while it seemed Luna had just been using too much magic lately and finally hit rock bottom on her reserves. As the doctors told Laynette this she just nodded, looking between her two guildmates. She knew Mark wouldn't of gone out like that if the fight was 2-on-1, and she had seen him get between that wolf-beast and Luna several times. That was respectable in her eyes, though she knew he wouldn't of done it if he didn't feel that Luna could handle the fight herself. But, faith in one's allies is important too. Laynette sighed. Her guild was headed for a schism or a massacre, and everyone knew it but Luna, and how were you meant to break that kind of news to a 16-year-old?

Trying to distract herself, Laynette looked around the almost-full infirmary, but to no avail. Everyone in there were people who were injured because of the games, which only brought her back to Luna's fight. It was a good fight, too. Luna won the fight by, as Laynette would describe it, the skin of her teeth. But even stressed that far, the girl still couldn't quite bring herself to go all out. Though, admittedly, she might not of had the magic power to go all out today. Taking a deep breath, Laynette moved a few strands of Luna's hair from her face before standing up and limping over to her two opponents, looking over them. They were in worse shape, at least physically, than Luna was for sure. Maybe the girl had put too much into that last Solar Flare...?

@Lugubrious(No response actually required, but if you want, go ahead and make one.)

@Caits

Ariel held onto Penny while she cried, instinctively wrapping her new wings around her guildmate. She didn't try saying anything, there was nothing to say. Penny just had to kill her father to end a cycle. The strength and love needed to do that was something she could hardly grasp. As the minutes passed Penny's cries and tears stopped. It wasn't that she was through mourning she just couldn't anymore. Even so Ariel didn't let go. It was getting later in the day as a hours passed. By now Penny had exhausted herself and fallen asleep.

Once certain that the woman was truly asleep, Ariel picked up her up and brought her over to the bed and lay her down. With that done she walked over to the bathroom and looked at herself in the mirror. At the moment the woman in the reflection was having a kind of identity crisis. Obviously she looked more like Ariel than anything, but memories that weren't her own were swimming around in her head. They were remnants of Solias'. Not that she was thinking that she was the old phoenix. But maybe this transformation meant she was someone new. Despite all the new magic energy Ariel was beginning to feel the fatigue of reincarnation. Checking the couch it was a foldout bed. That was good because her wings were probably going to get in the way at times. Plopping down she put aside the mental conflict to rest.

Angel Ferrara

Lux's mopey friend mentioned that he liked blueberries, eyes slightly downcast. Angel's face softened, teeth locked down on the corner of his bottom lip, and considered the amount of antioxidant-heavy smoothies he'd be making. It would almost be easier to just make the same for everybody and cut up some apple for Cyare, maybe just sprinkle some extra blend atop Kaia's...

"I," spoke the softie, "am on it, guys."

He disappeared through the door behind Kaia briefly and came out with a large portion of the food stores he and the blind mage had brought from the last town they visited, burning a path to the common room with the other mages in tow. To keep Kaia in the loop on his whereabouts at the head of the line, he would knock on the wood of a table they passed, or giggle quietly once or twice. The little things.

"Kaia, it's going to be your job to keep an ear out for Cyare. You need to fend her off if she starts getting uppity."

The Tactical Mage got a playful smile, with a rare lack of trepidation.

"I'll handle the dorky paladin."

Lux got a similar grin.

@Jangel13
“I rather not cause anyone else problems or bring them into one. But thanks for the offer.” It started to feel a bit weird talking to someone again. Usually in the guild he was the silent one and while in Edolas he still talked to a minimum. He might have tendencies to ramble on during a discussion, but that’s usually because of how his thoughts tend to leave his mind.

“Angelo, let’s try to take a walk around the city. After a nice drink it feels a bit nice to walk and see some sites in the city than sitting here for the rest of the day.” Wes sat up and place a few jewels on the table to pay for the drinks and walked outside as he waited for Angelo.

@Crimson Raven
Odd, Grane thought the news of the Council’s defeat would have spread through most of Fiore already. The council member couldn’t stay here for too long, there were other things that he had to attend to. But to answer the wizard’s question, he briefly stated that “While I was away on a mission, the Council became corrupted by malicious council members. To prevent me from finding out or become suspicious of them, they frequently sent me new missions to oversee various things that kept me away from interacting with those members in person. Eventually, Phoenix Wing grew too tired of how these corrupted council members behaved and decided to stop them. Although I would have prefer a non violent solution, the corrupted council members apparently disagreed with the guild’s offer to stop and a battle erupted between the two groups. I eventually joined the battle to prevent the guild from destroying anymore of the Council. But during my fight with, I felt nothing but sincerity from what they proclaimed and the effort that they displayed during our fight. It made me believe in their side and I allowed them to win at the end. After that battle and with the few remaining Council Members that I could trust, we rebuilt the Magic Council, reformed and changed the things that the corrupted members damaged.”

“We’re making some progress, but apparently not enough. You already saw the battle today that took place in the dome. There were reports of a dark guild attacking some guild members and trashing a few buildings yesterday. And another report of some wizards causing a mess in a guild’s hotel. Things are only getting worse and I intend to find a way to prevent them from escalating any further.”

@Lunarlors34
Monsoon was on the outskirts of the city and made no delays this time to meet another member of organization. Although Minami and Shiro left after she gave her card, Monsoon could still hear her as she said "C'mon Shiro.... We have some slayers to kill.". This was only possible because of the water that Monsoon gave her to drink when she first arrived in the safe house. The girl might have specialized in the water type of magic, but from this she clearer wasn’t experienced or skilled enough to sense his small amount of latent anti-ethernano particles inside her drink. From this range, Monsoon could tell where she was and hear enough while she still unaware of the anti-ethernano in her body. Information gathering from this is something Monsoon valued the most and usually had the anti-ethernano remain dormant for as long as it can last.

On one of the mountains that neighbored Crocus, Monsoon reached near the peak. In front of him was an odd cave, if anyone saw it, they would be confused on rather it was manmade and natural. But Monsoon already knew the answer. From inside the dark entrance of the cave, a man emerged with a bored expression on his face as his walking appeared sluggish. Once he was outside, sounds of the cave collapsing could faintly be heard as the man gentle griped his hand until the cave could finally be seen to be sealing itself by from inside. The man yawned as he waited for what Monsoon came here for. ”As we discussed, here is the other portion of the jewels that we agreed to.” From inside his garbs, he tossed a huge pouch filled with jewels to the man. ”Great, but next time, try giving me a job that is worth my time.”

”Eventually, yes. But your skills were best suited in leaving Crocus underground caverns without any noticeable physical traces of your departure.”

”Then I hope there’s no disappointment in the next job that you decide to give me.”

”And you won’t find one if decide to actually join the organization, Frye.”

”Perhaps, but like any group, guild, organization, or something with more than to two people that tries ask me to stay longer. You have to actually show me something that catches my interest than simply talking about it if you want me on board for bit.” With that said, Frye walked away and Monsoon began his walk back to the safe house.

@zarkun
Cody flinched as he watched the blade stop seemingly millimetres from his neck. James was quick, quicker and stronger than Cody.
Nodding as he took in what James said, he swung again as instructed only to swing at air before feeling a sharp pain in his back as James' pommel smacked him in the back.
Mumbling a few choice words under his breath as he managed to stop his stumble forward before he faceplant, he knew he was going to be sore tomorrow. James had given him a couple of nasty bruises with just the last two counters he did.
“I see...avoiding and deflecting. Lesson learnt.” Cody mumbled softly as he stood up once more with his sword leveled calmly towards James.
“Parry, block, avoid, deflect. I just need to practice those right?” Cody said a little louder than his mumbling earlier. Sure those sounded easy enough...however Cody knew first hand that even things which sounded easy, could easily be the hardest things to do.



@zarkun
After splitting ways with Manami, who was sticking to staying hidden since she was probably the one who might be recognised by Rune Knights, and donning a new eyepatch Shiro had stopped by a local tea store for a break. Nothing was more relaxing than a cup of tea, especially since it would give her a chance to think.
The slayers were all in guilds, of the ones they knew of, and since it was the grand magic games they had decided it was a prime time to target them since they were all gathered here (or at least most)
However, Shiro knew she and Manami now faced a couple of rather big problems. One, finding the slayers themselves would be like finding a needle in a haystack. Shiro had memorised the names and faces of the known slayers, however there were slayers they simply only knew the names of.
However by watching the games unfold, that had helped fill in a few blanks.
Second the slayers were in guilds. The guilds would therefore protect the slayers if Manami and Shiro attacked, so they had to separate the slayers from their compatriots.
But how?
As Shiro thought about this, she decided to sip on her camomile tea while scanning the crowd for any sort of threats or perhaps an unlikely informant. This was more out of habit than any real reason, however it did pay off it would seem.
Shiro's one visible eye now narrowed as she 'honed in' on one particular person in the crowd.
“....Target Found.” Shiro mumbled softly under her breath before quickly finishing her tea and now trailed after Hunter. Of course Shiro was quite good at trailing after people and not letting them notice, however how would she stack up against a slayers enhanced senses?

Manami had been sitting atop a rooftop which she could use to overlook the tea shop Shiro was residing in. Manami wouldn't mind a cup of tea herself, however she would wait till they got back since she couldn't just stroll about carelessly.
She had enough trust in Shiro as well to get the searching done, all Manami had to do was trail after Shiro and strike when their target least expected it.
Noticing Shiro stand up suddenly now and start to walk off, Manami raised an eyebrow. Most people who didn't know Shiro wouldn't notice the difference, however she and Shiro had not only been raised together but were partners and best friends.
She could tell even subtle differences in Shiro's body language, and this was Shiro on the hunt.
Standing up herself Manami smiled softly before going to ground. It would be easier to follow Shiro through the sewers now, as Manami seemingly melted through a grate and now followed Shiro's soft magical presence.

@Expolar
no need my friend, least I can do after all Angelo said when he declined his offer for help but Angelo couldn't really blame him. After all their were just some things you had to do on your own and Angelo could understand that. When Wes thought that they should go for a wall Angelo shrugged smiling a little sure why not he aid as he got up stretching a little before he joined Wes outside the cafe so they could take their walk

Hunter had been searching for some place to eat most of the time since he'd left the stadium, his good mood slowly returning now that he wasn't around ass hole guild dark guild members and half-baked medics who thought it was OK to pick and choose who they helped. Of course, he was so focused on trying to find food that he ALMOST missed the sound of someone purposefully trying to avoid sticking out by a forced casual walking pace. He could also smell a new scent that had appeared just shortly after the steps, so Hunter grinned. Gutsy gal, I'll give her that. Still, Hunter didn't give away that he'd noticed his tail, instead opting to work his way towards an unoccupied park where he took a seat at a bench.

He leaned back and closed his eyes, listening to the girl getting all the closer. When he was sure she was close enough to hear him, he chuckled. "Good try lady, but next time you try to tail a dragon slayer, don't make yourself match the pace of the crowd. You stick out too much."



Damian didn't respond to any of the other ideas, instead opting to remain silent and follow the column. He could tell the idea of having to take innocent lives didn't sit well with some of them, nor did it sit well with the former child soldier, but he also knew that sometimes it was the soldiers who had to do the unthinkable. Soldiers do the unthinkable so that others might remain pure and unharmed. And so Damian stayed near the back, following the Frenzy Plant members.




James smiled underneath his helm and raised his shield. "One more bout, for as long as you can last, and then I think we'll call it a day. After all, it has been rather eventful for you."




Jane let Master Jamie finish what she had to say before speaking her own mind on the subject. "I'm not crazy enough to think that we can eliminate all the darkness in the world. After all, you can't have light without shadow, but I do believe in doing our best in keeping it from overrunning everything we hold dear. Otherwise, we'd be no better than the dark ourselves."

As the day drew to a close, the sun setting, throwing magnificent colours over the horizon, the night grew considerably colder. Perhaps this was a changing weather, the winter months coming up, or maybe it was just that it seemed to go dark quickly, the suns warmth zapped from the air.

the curfew still in effect despite the rest day, the guilds were expecting to be in their hotels, and Jamie found the absence of Damian, wearily sitting down on the bed in her room, she let her head drop into her hands, wondering why the guild seemed intent on sabotaging their chances.

She allowed herself a moment of weariness, before rising, bading Sam stay with Jarvis as she went to check everyone was in the hotel, before the curfew came into effect.

---

Penny
@t2wave
Waking early, and seemingly alone, Penny found herself feeling empty, lonely, and...weary despite what must have been a long sleep. With Solias dead, she would never come to an answer to helping Karn and Edo-Karn-and they really had to come up with another name for Edo-Karn, didn't they?. Forcing herself to rise, she went over to the window, feeling like she had no energy to get ready for the day, what was the point in any case? It was a rest day.

she leaned her head against the window, watching the city come to life.

Her eyes stung, and she felt like she'd never have another tear to shed. She felt the drain on her powers for what she had done, an wondered briefly if some part of her had not been damaged by the use of the death song. Her body would heal, but what if she had permanently damaged her magical abilities?

Turning she realised she had forgotten about Ariel as she saw the girl on the couch. Not wanting to wake her, Penny slipped into the bathroom, where she allowed the water from the shower to pound the weariness from her body, letting the spray ease her stinging eyes.

Gregory Vale looked up as there came a knock at his bedroom door. He idly wondered who it might be as he put the communication lacrima he had used to communicate with distant contacts. The conversations had been well concluded before, and he had left the lacrima strewn about his paperwork as paperweights and reminders to clean up his desk once he was done. Once he had returned the lacrima to their proper places he stood and moved to the door, opening it gently, so as to keep the creek it had from waking everyone. "Good evening Luna." He said as he discovered who had knocked. "You did a good job in the arena today, I’m sorry I haven’t had a chance to congratulate you in person, but shouldn’t you be resting? As I understand it you took quite the beating."

Luna looked up at her Guild Master, and her countenance betrayed that this was no pointless visit. Vale simply nodded, and moved to the side to let her by, motioning her in. She took a seat in one of the chairs near the desk he had been working at, and he closed the door behind her, moving to sit in the chair he had been in for the past three hours. "So, to what do I owe this visit?" Luna looked down for a moment, gathering her thoughts and her will, before looking up, meeting his eyes, and speaking.

"I… Uhm… It’s… Hard to explain." She stuttered, breaking eye contact again. it wasn’t really that hard to explain, in truth, but she was having difficulty making herself admit the sad truth that had suffered itself upon her. "See, uhm, you know how I have a ‘don’t kill’ rule, right?" She asked slowly, planning to wait for a response before continuing. Stalling despite already having forced herself to get up in the dead of night to talk to him about this.

Gregory, being no dull sword, quickly figured what this was likely leading to. He had given this some thought himself, as Luna certainly didn’t seem the type to go along with what most of the S-Class wizards in his guild were willing to do at this point. "Ah, mind if I make a guess as to what you wish to talk about?" He asked, having remembered conversations where people had gotten quite angry at him for not simply playing the attentive listener. Luna gave him a small nod, and he continued with his hypothesis. "You’re concerned that you may not be happy with the direction my son is taking the guild. Or, you already are not happy with it." The quiet lunar mage nodded, unable to look up at him.

”Well, I’ve given this some thought myself, actually.” She looked up, a gleam in her eyes indicating the naive faith that he would always guide her down the right path. He sighed inwardly, hating that he couldn’t realistically fulfill that hope. "And… It’s really up to you what you wish to do, but ultimately you are going to have to choose whether to leave Iron Enigma, or stay with it until the bitter end." She nodded and looked down again, understanding.

"But I don’t think you’d be all that happy in a guild that kills people, Luna, but I can understand if you can’t bring yourself to leave our family behind. But I fear choosing to do so won't make you happy in the long run," he took a breath, hesitating for a moment. "And if you choose to leave us and join a light guild, we may be at the other end of your halberd some day." He saw Luna close her eyes, and the candlelight reflected back at him from her wet cheeks.

Gregory couldn’t bring himself to continue to watch Luna as her face twisted into sad understanding, and stood up, going for the now cold cup of coffee he had left by his bed hours earlier. He picked it up, as if to take a sip from it, before speaking again. "I know it may be hard, but I ask that, if you do leave... if you do find us your enemy... Don’t let that fact that we were once your family stop you from doing what you think is right. I promise you, at least half the members of Iron Enigma would use that weakness to get under your guard. Act like you’re still close friends, and that you don’t need to hurt them."

Here he took a sip of the coffee. It was disgusting. Right up until they slit your throat. Was what he wanted to say. He put the cup down, it taking all of his willpower not to just pour it into the trash can. However, the distraction succeeded, and as he brought himself to face Luna yet again he had managed to retain his calm, cool countenance. He moved over to the youngest member of his guild, and gently held his hand out to help her up.

"But you don’t need to make your decision now, or even soon. But I ask that you make the choice, and not let indecision plague you until an answer is chosen simply by default. For now, however, I think we both need sleep. If you’re feeling more talkative in the morning, Luna, we can talk more about it then, but for now, I don’t think it’s best to talk about this in the middle of the night, okay?" Luna looked up at him, and nodded.

"I understand, Master." She would stand up, nod to him, and move from the door. She had gotten exactly what she came here for, and she didn’t even have to make herself say any of it. "Thank you, Master." She left at that, closing the door behind her. Gregory sighed, dumping the cold coffee in the bathroom sink as soon as it was convenient.

"I’m not the paragon of kindness and wisdom you think I am Luna." He said, once she had left, going back to his desk to clean up the papers before going to bed. "God I hope she's stronger than I am."

Mithera sat, humming, in a chair she had brought to the back of the caboose of the train she was on currently. It was the dead of night, and her traveling companions were all asleep. She had snuck out of the car to get some fresh air. She had spent most of the first day practicing walking, much to the annoyance of other passengers, but now she was a lot more confident in her ability to walk by herself than before.

Right now, however, she was just enjoying a nice breeze across her face and fresh air. She gently pulled the communication lacrima with Phoenix Wing out and looked it over, thinking about what to say. She had given a progress report that was little more than “We’re alive” earlier, but now she had a few more thoughts to potentially tag on to that. She took a deep breath before bringing it up to talk.

”Hey. I know it’s late and everyone’s probably sleep, but I wanted to give a more proper report as to how everything is going on my end. Earlier it was just kind of a check-in, but now I think I’ve got some things to actually say.” She took a deep breath, and leaned back in her seat, watching the blackness move off behind her at its rapid pace. ”Mayt got off today. I don’t really know why, I didn’t go talk to him. I believe the town was called Onibus. Our train is apparently going up through Clover town then along the coast to a town by the border of Bosso, where we plan on getting off and crossing on foot to avoid me not having any paperwork. So uhm, I guess that’s the plan.”

She fidgeted with part of her dress a little, thinking that she probably would need a few more sets of clothes by the time things were over. ”I’ve been practicing walking a lot, since that was something I kinda need to be able to do on my own in case things go as badly as possible. I’ve gotten a lot better since I left, but I’m a bit afraid I’ll be unable to properly walk once I get off this train, since this is where I’m learning. Though, walking seems to lessen up on a bit of the motion sickness I’m getting. It’s not bad, but it’s a bit uncomfortable, and it makes it hard to sleep.”

She sighed, loudly enough for it to be audible on the other side. ”I’m rambling, but it feels good to just be able to say what’s on my mind… It’s odd, but I actually kind of miss having Melina around to bounce my every thought off of. I figure most people would get sick of a lack of privacy like that, but I enjoyed it. No matter what situation I was in, I was never alone in it. There was never any Solitary Confinement for me. Now, however, I’m… Alone. For the first time in eight years, I can’t feel someone else I can talk to close by. It wasn’t as bad that first two months I was with you, since then I was just holding out until I could go back with Melina… But now, since I know I won’t be seeing her as often for a while, I feel like part of me is missing. It’s a weird kind of… Sadness again.” She smiled to herself, closing her eyes for a moment.

”Ah, there I go rambling again. I guess I should wrap this up or I’ll be here all night. We’re doing fine out here, though it’s going to be a long while before we come back, that’s okay. Say hi to everyone for me… Or, whomever you can say hi to for me if the case is that. I hope everyone’s doing alright. I know the games are going well for us, so let’s keep that up. Go team Phoenix Wing!” She giggles softly, pumping her fist despite there being no one to see. ”Heh, well. Good night everyone at Phoenix Wing. Sleep well, and win the games for us!” She smiled softly, and put the lacrima away before standing up, giving one last glance up at the starry sky above her before going back inside the train, closing the door behind her as she went.

(These were actually written well in advance, but there shouldn't be too many dependencies with whats been going on. Yay for a bunch of pointless characterization!)

@Caits
Sleeping in a bit Ariel was actually given a chance to stabilize. The other days she was here she was getting bombarded by magic. Eventually she did wake up though feeling much more refreshed. Finding that she still had the wings confirmed that the events of the other day were not a dream. Her memories were still a little hazy though and was a little confused as to where she was. Getting up from the couch she meandered her way around the hotel room before realizing that Penny was already up and in the shower. Not wanting to disturb her Ariel decided to head out of the room. Hindsight probably would tell her otherwise though.


The hallway was a little more open with higher ceilings, which Ariel took full advantage of. Oblivious to others that may be around Ariel picked this spot to stretch. Crossing her arms over her head she leaned back a bit. Though that probably wasn't much compared to the spectacle of her wings spreading out to their full length, nearly 16 feet across. Much like her arms she lifted her wings up and the feathers splayed out until she retracted them again. Letting out a soft sigh she glanced around and noticed people looking at her. "Uhm... Hello." She waved slightly and smiled sheepishly. The faces were familiar but she couldn't entirely place names to most of them yet.

@Expolar

Two out of three. I must be slipping. Ferrin thought, whimsicaly. Out loud he said, "Facinating. You have been very informative, especially considering how I approached you. Thank you. You have given me much to consider. Unfortunately, I have somewhere to be, so I must get going." He hesitated for a moment, as if weighing something. Finally, he said, "I suppose you should at least know my neme. My name is Ferrin. Ferrin Astra." Grane gave his name, and Ferrin put up a simple veil that hid him from sight, and headed back the way he came.

As the sun rose over the mountains illuminating the world Aisling felt the heat against her back, as she sat meditating like she had been taught. She felt the winds rush by slow but ever flowing as if fleeing the sun. The mountain air this high up was thin but bearable. The Suns' warmth broke her focus and she opened her blue eyes to the sight before her, a slight smile on her lips.

Crocus lay below at the bottom of the mountains in all its glory greenery from countless parks visible from even here. The arena of the Grand Magic Games was also visible above the city floating by some powerful, unfathomable magic. Aisling could not tell from here but it looked empty today. She wondered if she was late and everyone had already left. No, no the innkeeper in the last town she had stopped in said there was three days left.

How long had it been? It was hard to tell travelling through the mountains, but if she had gone around she would definitely have been late. She spent a while trying to puzzle out the jumble of the past few days an absent-minded smile upon her lips. A bird sailed by trilling the new day bringing her from her thoughts.

Well she had spent her last Jewel on food for the journey, whether or not she was late she would have to find something fast. She gathered her dusty, light blue, travelling cloak from the ground she had been sitting. With a frown at the dust mark she gathered her magic and uttered a spell sending a blast of wind through it to beat some of the dust off. With that she slung it over her shoulders and picked up her bag filled with all her belongings. Finally with one last glance at the mountains and the long road that lay behind her. she stepped off the cliff she had been resting on.

And flew, not true flight like a bird, but as if she weighed less than the air around her borne by the wind itself gathered tight around her. She hoped the magic power she had gathered mediating would be enough to get her to the city far below. Soon enough she reached the city landing lightly on a rooftop. She had no idea where to go and this was a big city, far bigger than any Aisling had visited before. Rather than stop to ask directions she headed further into the city leaping over roofs toward the great Arena looming above. This way she stayed out of sight after all most people feared the use of magic so her grandfather said.

It was while pondering if it was different here she came to a terrifying realization as she leapt to a yet higher rooftop her magic running dry, she fell down onto the roof. At the last second falling face first she flung out an arm and yelled out a spell which slowed her enough to only leave bruises and a loud thump rather than tearing right through.

Her bag lost in the fall, slid down the slanted roof with the clunk of pots and pans caught itself on the eaves of the building. She eased herself down toward it careful not to fall. As she clutched the bags' strap she glanced down at the street far below, too far to get down herself. She climbed back to the peak of the roof settling herself legs braced against sliding, nursing her bruises.

So she sat ready for a long wait until her magic power returned she was stuck upon the roof of the Phoenix Wing Hotel although she did not know it. Unless someone had heard her fall. “Well Grandpa, I'm here, what now?” She asked the empty air her soft voice drifting unheard.

Upon coming out of the bathroom, Penny found Ariel gone, which immediately worried her. Ariel was in no condition to wonder about by herself, if she was still in a similar state to the night before. Hurrying out the room, Penny ran down the stairs, not wanting the other girl to stumble into trouble. "Ariel! What are you doing?" There was a hint of fear and panic in Penny's voice, and she glanced around, relieved to find that the hotel was still full of the guild, she turned to the girl. "Do you ever wonder why there's only a handful of phoenix's left in the world? T hey were hunted for their magical abilities. You might not be a phoenix, but that probably won't stop people. Until you learn to use your abilities in this form, don't go off without someone, okay? I don't want you to get hurt"

Penny felt responsible for Ariel's state, thinking that if she hadn't taken her with her, Ariel wouldn't be in this state, not that there was anything wrong with her form, more that her mind seemed to be regenerating still.

"Promise me, okay? We can work on the attacks later, just don't leave the hotel without me or someone"



As the new day rocked around, Carrie was up early. Having been, for lack of a better word, indisposed the day before, Carrie had a lot to catch up on, and she had already called a meeting of the council, expecting them in her rooms any minute, she had already had breakfast set up. There were a few things she had to discuss with them, not the least being Masahiko's decision to step back from his duties for a time.

She turned at the knock on the door, opening it to reveal Janice. Always a little on edge with the older woman, Carrie nevertheless greeted her in what she hoped was a warm manor.

"What is this II hear about Masahiko?" Janice said at once, causing Carrie to sigh.

"bringing the magic council to its current position has been hard, Janice. Masahiko deserves some time off, so please, leave it at that, and help yourself to some food" Carrie said, her tone indicating not to press. Before Janice could speak, Drew entered in his cheerful way, saying "I hope this doesn't take long. I haven't seen my sister in months, and I hear she and the guy she's working with are getting pretty close, gotta make sure he won't her my baby sister"

Relieved for once of Drews ability to chatter endlessly, Carrie helped herself to a sweet bun, biting into it, watching as little Dochas slipped into the room, watching them all.

When everyone was gathered, Carrie sat down, taking out several folders. She placed them on her lap, and looked over the council members. She was composed, and she studied each of them. This was who she had to rely on. She didn't know if that was a good thing or not.

"firstly, Masahiko has decided to step back for a time. This means that essentially I take over his duties, as he wished it. No problems with that?" Carrie didn't give them time to respond, moving smoothly to her next order of business. "Secondly, there has been accounts of the dark guilds activities decreasing, and of some order, or rather alliances being formed between them. this is not good news, and I think it's time we address something that hasn't been touched since the new council was constructed.

The rune knights. They use to be a source of honor for the council, but under Anglica's guidance they became a source essentially for the dark guilds to do as they wish. It is time we recruit and train new knights, as a force against the dark guilds, and time we stops standing apart from other wizards and accept the help of the light guilds.

We also need to address the issue of the wizard Saints. traditionally there are ten, and we do not have that many. It is time we appoint another saint. This means I will be accepting names from you, and we can judge whether any of them are reasonable for wizard saint appointment"

@Zran@Caits@hatakekuro
Like Penny had found, Ariel hadn't gone out just yet. She was however about to because she had heard a thump and clanging coming from above. But when Penny rushed over and was cut off she jumped slightly and took a step back. Holding her hands together she glanced around nervously. Being new to this magic she wasn't entirely sure why anyone would want it. Sure it changed her, but most people didn't have the same ability as far as she knew. Acting a little like a child she sighed and looked down, her shoulders and wings dropping slightly as well. "Okay. I'll stay inside." She may not like it but she trusted that Penny was telling her was for her own good.

The downtrodden attitude vanished once Ariel remembered what she was about to do. She looked up at the ceiling. "I think someone is on the roof. Maybe you should check it out instead so I won't be seen." Smiling she stepped away from the windows and seemingly forgot about being bothered by having to stay indoors. It was pretty clear that she wan't all there still and had quite a bit to go before getting back to normal. Or what counted as normal for her at least. "I'll be sure to stay inside or with someone else in the guild so you don't have to babysit me the whole time. Thanks for warning me.". Moving on she decided to explore other parts of the hotel.

Before long she whilst meandering the halls she paused, having picked up a scent. Though a Phoenix was not particularly know for their sense of smell there was one thing that they could pick up unmistakably. Making her way over to a door she had a confused expression. Why would someone have ash in a hotel room? Curious she knocked on the door and waited to see who would answer.

@CirusArvennicus

Emerald green eyes snapped open, the ethereal green left eye shining brightly. Edo-Karn being the one in control. A frown creasing this body's lips as she slowly sat up. Eyes unfocused as she looked at her hands, curling her fingers against the palms. Seem Karn transformed back into his body. Unsurprising. Seemed like keeping another form used up magic, so she supposed she couldn't blame him. It was nice of him to try and make her feel better, even if he's the one who's probably hurting the most. After that whole... freak out. This Karn in general seemed pretty docile for the most part. But he was deadly and dangerous when he loses it. It made her wonder, if eventually even his own Guildmates would be forced to put him down like a rabid animal. It was a dark thought, but she couldn't help but think of the dark possibilities. Had to think of all alternatives. Still, she preferred if that did not happen.

"Hey. You gonna go down and say hi?" She thought, coaxing him to answer.

"Could you take over for a little bit? I.. don't feel good after yesterday." Karn's thought answered in a soft manner, one could just hear the forced smile.

"Fine." Edo-Karn answered thoughtfully before standing and stretching out a bit. Wearing simple pajama pants, with no shirt. Glancing down at the male body, she rolled her eyes. Suppose this body wasn't too different upper body wise. Still flat. Less muscle though.

Twitching as she listened to this body's stomach growl, Edo-Karn gave a slight sigh. "Why is your body always fucking hungry?" she thought.

"Sorry! Chimera Slayers eat a lot!" Karn whined.

Deciding to just go and get breakfast before going out, Edo-Karn glanced to Trinity thoughtfully, taking out a black marker and drew a mustache on the pretty face before casually just walking out. Not even bothering with clothes besides his pale scarf to wrap around the throat collared by the lacrima. Not like it made much difference in her opinion. All Karn wore was raggy clothes. Except when he decides to crossdress but fuck that shit she was not going to willingly put on a maid outfit or something. Maybe she could go shopping for actual decent apparel for him.

Again, she more or less ignored anyone she may have passed and just went downstairs and got a plate of breakfast before sitting down. What was today again? Meh whatever, either way, probably will go check out that airship.

"Chicken chicken chicken chicken!!!!"
"No! Bacon Bacon Bacon!"

Oh. Right ignore those as well. Ugh.

Rose got her father and half brother to leave her be by saying they will talk in private tomorrow and she would answer all questions he had.

Once she got him to leave she had a victory dinner between her lucus ap elyse before heading to the hotel for crefew.

Amaya excused herself seeing a couple at the door that resembled Nolan as she knew they had to be family but she wasn't sure if they were siblings or his parents...either way she was happy he had others caring about him more then his team and the guild and his adorable partner. She retired early that night just suddenly feeling tired.

---------------

@Joshua Tamashii

The next morning rose was sitting in the shower with her eyes closed, listening to the water rushing down over her. She was thinking about what she was going to be asked. How will he react when he finds out what she really did. So many questions that she couldn't think of or even hold the right answers. She knew she was probably going to have elyse spend the day with lucus unless she wanted to meet her grandpa and uncle. She sighed opening her blue eyes.

@Joshua tamashii

Amaya was standing in front of a small alter holding the prized treasure of her village. She was just staring at the gem before she felt a pulse that played steadily over and over. The room around faded to a black void leaving only her and the gem. She looked up when a bell sound ringing.

Amaya opened her ice blue eyes blinking a bit for them to focus in on two large blood red eyes staring inches from her face. It took a few seconds for her to lift to small being off sitting it back down as she got up heading to the restroom. A minute later she dashed out of the bathroom looking towards her bed where a small cat was sitting on the edge looking back at her. It's fur was a smooth off white which complimented the white sleeveless collared shirt with a pink tie with a burgundy skirt and a large burgundy bow by her left ear. "Hi! I been looking for you for about a year now...I'm Cecilia."

Amaya's eyes blinked before her brain finally clicked as she let out a scream first getting scared from just finding a talking cat in her room but then realizing what the cat was. She ran over falling to her knees in front of the cat hugging her " I can't believe it! I finally have a exceed, a adorable flying partner! Like the slayers of old! How did you even find my magic then track me?"she asked happy and excited
"I was in the desert looking for my friend who got separated from me. I saw you and those others take down that mage. I called to you but you all left. I remembered your Mark and traveled to your guild only to find you all came to the games. Then it was easy tracking your scent, plus you are easy to spot with your white and blue look..." she explained getting out of Amayas arms

Amaya listened smiling "well you been through a lot and I am honored you have been looking for me...does that mean you wish to be my partner by chance?"
"yes..I been searching for you for that reason
" then welcome to team powder keg and Phoenix wing. Lets go tell our guildmaster to get you the guild mark..oh I'm so excited to have you meet my friends" Amaya said chatting Cecilia's ears off as she got dressed before lifting her New partner up heading out to the lobby dinning area to eat.

Elyse enjoyed spending the evening with her parents and was a bundle of joy and chatter the entire time. She was asleep well before her father had dropped them off at the hotel and she slept through the night with no trouble. When she awoke the next morning, she looked around for her mother curiously, wondering where she was. When she heard the shower, she happily jumped out of bed and went to the bathroom, joining her mother and giving her a hug.
"Morning Mommy!" She said happily before spotting Rose's expression, her own dropping in response. "Mommy okay?"



After leaving Nolan's room, Joshua left the city for a bit to do a bit of training before returning to the hotel before curfew came around. Once in his room, he spent the remaining time he had before going to bed going through his fights again, as well as remembering Nolan's part in their match. He woke up earlier then usual the next morning and went out for some exercise before returning to the hotel just as Amaya came down.
"Hey Amaya. How are you... holding a... cat?" Joshua said, his question changing halfway through as he noticed the creature Amaya was carrying. Curious, he reached out to poke Cecilia's forehead to see if she was real or not.



Amelia had enjoyed the evening with her mother and sister, even if it had been accompanied by some darker discussions. After they returned to the hotel, she helped take care of Sam and watched her mother, worried about how the stress might be effecting her. Unable to help though, she simply went to bed, hoping things would be better in the morning.

As everyone else was getting up or already awake, Amelia slept on, enjoying dreams that managed to bring a smile to her face in her sleep.



Jackie had stayed quiet the rest of the conversation, consuming the ice cream Master Jack had gotten her. She had to admit she enjoyed the treat. Maybe she would have it more often and try some of the other flavors. When Jack left Jamie and the others, she left with him, not bothering to say a word to them as she did so.

She was up early the next morning an enjoying her usual cup of tea. When Jack finally came down, she approached him, as she had something on her mind.
"Is that girl still here?" She asked.

Aria was still locked up in the basement, waiting patiently as her fate was decided.

Angel Ferrara

Lux's mopey friend mentioned that he liked blueberries, eyes slightly downcast. Angel's face softened, teeth locked down on the corner of his bottom lip, and considered the amount of antioxidant-heavy smoothies he'd be making. It would almost be easier to just make the same for everybody and cut up some apple for Cyare, maybe just sprinkle some extra blend atop Kaia's...

"I," spoke the softie, "am on it, guys."

He disappeared through the door behind Kaia briefly and came out with a large portion of the food stores he and the blind mage had brought from the last town they visited, burning a path to the common room with the other mages in tow. To keep Kaia in the loop on his whereabouts at the head of the line, he would knock on the wood of a table they passed, or giggle quietly once or twice. The little things.

"Kaia, it's going to be your job to keep an ear out for Cyare. You need to fend her off if she starts getting uppity."

The Tactical Mage got a playful smile, with a rare lack of trepidation.

"I'll handle the dorky paladin."

Lux got a similar grin.

"I do not get uppity." Cyare protested, sinking into a chair that afforded her a nearly perfect view of the entire room with a minimum of blind spots. The choice was intentional, but not entirely conscious; it spoke less of her opinion of those around her, and more of her habits. Or perhaps of her usual sort of company. Either way the habitual suspicion remained despite the fact that she felt relatively at ease. She fixed her eyes first on Angel, a stare somehow reminiscent of a glare without really requiring any truly emotive expressions, then on the shorter girl tasked with keeping her from 'getting uppity'. "Nor do I think that you could handle it if I did."

"Nevertheless, my help was declined, so I will stay here. Quietly. And wait patiently."

@Joshua Tamashii

Rose looked over hearing The must happiest voice one could hear as she listened to her daughter asking her if everything is alright. "yeah I am fine just thinking I gotta meet with your grandpa and uncle today. Would you like to spend the day with daddy and the other riders? Or would you like to stay with Jamie and her girls for the day? Or would you wanna try to know grandpa?" asked rose

@Joshua tamashii

" before you go poking things. Why don't you put on some deodorant cause you are really messing with my sense of smell "said the cat plugging her nose

" Cecilia, be nice...this is Joshua I call him my mother hen since he is so kind to check up on me " said Amaya

"Arn't hens suppose to be female with feathers and I don't think he could lay a egg even if he wanted to..anyways sorry just feeling like making a joke.I'm Cecilia, and I am her partner"said the cat getting out of Amaya's arms.