Drosil was more than a little surprised by the arrival of their esteemed guest. In fact, it was best to say he was utterly flabbergasted by not only her beauty and identity, but the general bubbly excitability of her personality. He had never known what to expect from the Divines if he ever met them, as he considered them to be enigmatic beings beyond human comprehension . . . but the woman who stood before him acted in such a human fashion, if not for her strange abilities and the Paladin being the one who named her as such, he'd be hard-pressed to believe the claim. However, his curiosity won out against his shock, and he quickly worked up the courage to approach his . . . 'Aunt'.

"Um . . . Madame Ambrosia," He spoke up, his voice uncharacteristically quiet as he approached the deity, unsure quite how to phrase the questions he had. He was convinced that before him lie a well of answers to who knows how many mysteries . . . and yet, only one question came to mind, one that he thought he'd come to terms with quite some time ago. "I was wondering if, perhaps, you had any clue as to who my mortal parent might be?"

The Divine certainly didn't seem to mind Drosil approaching her, nor did she mind the fact that she asked him such a question. If anything, it was the subject matter of the question itself that seemed to bother her, the Divine frowning briefly as she mulled over how to answer before giving a soft, genuine, and comforting sort of smile as she floated in closer, and a little down.

"Oh, my poor dear... I'm sorry, but I honestly don't know. I didn't know you existed at all until you were at least five. None of us did. That's simply how the Masked is... They don't tell us anything at all, really, so we're often surprised... And you were a big surprise, too. I don't know of any other children of the Masked, we all thought they avoided that... Who knows, maybe you have some brothers and sisters around somewhere, that you haven't met yet!"

The Divine seemed to be positively ecstatic about that possibility, and in her joy she went down even further to begin patting Sir Maulsalot gently.

"Of course, I should've figured it wouldn't be that easy. He's not called the Divine of Mystery for nothing." Drosil tried not to let his disappointment show, not wanting to be pitied by the goddess, but this feeling soon dissipated as his mind immediately got on a few things she had said. First, that their were things the Divines didn't know, which he found curious for the beings that supposedly created and ruled this world, but then again, they were things of the Divine tasked with secrecy, so maybe it was just a natural progression of things. Second was that the Divines didn't know of him and his brother until they were five, a rather specific age, to be sure. As he watched Sir Mauls clatter in contentment from the Divines pampering, he couldn't help the way his thoughts zig-zagged through his mind, trying to see if he could find a reason for that to be the day when the Divines could sense his presence. However, he was coming up with nothing that he could solemnly claim as a fact, so, he decided to ask the Divine again, clearing his throat in order to regain her attention.

"Madame Ambrosia, if you don't mind me asking another question, why did the Divines only seem to sense me when I turned 5? Also . . . Could you perhaps assist me in handling a certain problem of mine. I feel like it may become an issue in the future, so any help you can give me in solving it would be much appreciated." As Drosil spoke, his eyes lowered once more, his hand moving towards his chest as he felt the familiar twinge in the depths of his core. Phantom feelings of a gentle caress wrapping around him, giving him shivers as his mind thought back to the darker moments that his curiosity and desire for knowledge had led him to.

The Divine giggled in response to Sir Maulsalot's clattering contentment, beaming down at the Deathcrawler. However, her gaze once more went back to Drosil as the mage began asking his question, and still she smiled at him. She gave a slight shake of her head, though the smile didn't waver as she said, "I don't speak for all of us when I say that I noticed you when you were around five. That's the first time I happened notice you and your brother switch places, and it was quite unlike anything I had seen before; from humans, at least! And when it comes to your problem, well..."

Her look became knowing, but comforting. "You're on the way to the best place to get help for that. I could help you right now, but it would just be an extra step for you and her. Ask Karin for help once you reach her, and she'll take care of the problem. You'll be able to make it that long, won't you?"

"If I'm to be strictly honest, I'm not looking forward to this meeting. I've had enough dealings with those of their kind for a long time . . . but if you say that is the best option, then there's nothing I can do for it. I can't claim to know more than a Divine." Yet . . . but one day, I will.

Drosil was more than convinced that he could accomplish such a ludicrous feat, and while meeting a Divine in the flesh didn't make the goal anymore believable, it did make him feel that maybe, just maybe, there was more to the Divines then he thought. . . or maybe he was just over thinking things, which was something he tended to do. Whatever the case, he figured that this was all he had to ask that pertained to himself . . . which brought forth his other questions, for which he had many. "Madame Ambrosia, I've often wondered, what is the difference between Light Divines and Dark Divines, well and truly. Neither are considered as particularly good or evil, like I've seen such distinctions be treated by other forms of heretical religions in my forays into ancient ruins, so it brings the question: Why the distinction, and why does my parent along hold the title of Dual Divine and . . . what exactly does that mean for me as . . . Oh . . . crap."

It was at this point that Drosil realized that Shadar would be more than a little pissed off at both Ambrosia and himself for bringing it up. You see, them being a Divineborn was something most everyone knew thanks to the Paladin, but the fact that they were a child of the Masked was not, so Shadar had wanted to keep that secret, well, a secret. But, thanks to his inquest of the Divine, he found himself having just let all of the cats out of their bag, and simply froze with his finger in the air, looking quite flabbergasted. He would stay like that for a moment longer, before shrugging it off, as he was sure that those here could be trusted not to blabber too much to strangers about such information . . . well, maybe not the apprentice, but he could be watched to make sure he didn't loosen his lips on the matter. Regaining his train of thought, Drosil turned his attention back to the Divine, finishing out his question.

"Sorry, mind wandered for a bit. What I was going to say is, what does the Masked being a Dual Divine mean for me as their child? I've suspected that it's the reason for why me and my brother are as we are, but . . . given that we have no other references to draw from, we have no idea how unique this type of arrangement truly is, or the meaning behind it. My brother is convinced it's a curse cast on us for the Masked's enjoyment while I . . . honestly don't know what to make of it."

"Oh, that's very simple, actually!" Ambrosia straightened up some, her hands gripping the edge of the tear that was in front of her as she shifted back some, listing lazily in her path as she did so. To her, it didn't seem to be a big deal that Drosil had spilled the beans, considering she knew the fact already. "It's in the name, when you think about it! The Light Divines are focused upon the Light, while the Dark ones, like myself, are focused on the Dark! Like you said, it isn't a matter of good or evil at all, it's simply a matter of... nature! So, by being a Dual Divine, the Masked is focused on both aspects. So... in a way, that's why you two are the way you are. It's not a curse from the Masked, as your brother thinks. Really, it's just your heritage showing; two separate existences brought together into one. Does that help clear things up a little?"

"A little, though I don't think my brother will be satisfied with such an answer. His views of the Divines have never been particularly . . . reverent, to say the least. Many have even considered him to be rather heretical, which has lead to it's own share of problems." Drosil grimaced, remembering all the times that Shadar had decided to incite conflict with various religious figures, the only time where he actually goes looking for a fight. Drosil had no idea what his brother was trying to prove with these displays, but nothing that the mage had said could ever really break his brother of this habit. "Continuing this topic, why is it that the Divine of Love is considered a Dark Divine? One would think that love would usually be attached to the light, as that seems to be the nature most project on it. Also, I've been wondering for a while, but how are you able to lean on the portal like it's a solid object? Is it solid or . . ." As he spoke, he reached out, attempting to touch the void itself with one of his fingers, his eyes taking on a focused look as he was ready to observe whatever was about to happen.

"Oh, your brother is allowed to believe whatever he likes, no one can take that away from him! Ooooh, now there's a question-" However, before she answered it she moved forwards slightly, making it so that the edge of the tear would actually meet his finger sooner. to his touch, it felt very firm despite how it appeared to just be a rip through the air, at least initially. "It's solid because I make it so! Now, that means I can also do this!" And, with that, his hand suddenly passed through the tear entirely, the edges wavering briefly before solidifying again; the feeling as his hand had passed through was surprisingly warm.

"Now, about that question you asked, when it comes to Love; Light is simply too harsh for it. It's glaring, and it blinds. Dark suits it so much more simply because it is inherently gentle, and carefully encloses whatever is within it, protecting it; and, as I'm sure you just experienced, there is a warmth to the Dark as well."

"Hmm. . . How interesting." Drosil studied the portal a bit more, his eyes starting to spin a bit as he subconsciously activated his ability. Looking back up to the Divine, he continued his questions, quite enjoying everything he was learning, not only about the Divine, but just in general. "As the Divine of Love, what can you do in regards to it? For example, Could you make two people fall in or out of it? Or would your abilities fall more into the realm of suggestion, making two people more likely to find each other attractive, but not make them falling in love a foregone conclusion? In fact, do any of the Divines have the ability to directly influence the minds of humans?"

Despite all the questions the Divine was truly patient, still smiling as she gave a shrug. "Just because we can do it, my dear, doesn't mean we will, or that we should. My powers, though, are truly focused on the Void and what is within; Love just happens to be something I found myself to... well, love, and have some skills with it, so I became its patron. It's as simple as that."

Drosil's mind wandered slightly when the Divine mentioned having 'skills at love', wondering if Ambrosia and the other Divines could naturally feel inclinations towards more carnal desires, or they have to create forms capable of experiencing them. Or maybe she was speaking of matchmaking, as she did seem like the type that would set two people up with each other if she thought they'd make a cute couple. The thought of the goddess going around, trying to convince people to be with each other in her past time, brought a small smile and a chuckle to Drosil, before he tried to think of other questions he could ask the Divine.

"Interesting, truly interesting. I guess another question I have is how does the ability of Creation work, exactly? It's quite a puzzling magic, to be sure, and even using my own abilities tends to leave me with only vague impressions. In fact, this leads me to wonder how the Divines can have children at all? Is there anything special that happens or is it just the usual process, and in the case where the Godly Parent is Divine, how does that in itself work? Do you have to go through all the same labors of a human, or are they something you form with the ability of Creation?"

"Very perceptive! Creation comes from how we made the entire world, and you are blessed to have it since you come from one of us. Really, it's you giving a piece of yourself, of your soul, to make something new and unique. It's a power quite unlike any other, because even though both you and I have it, it'll wary wildly between us, as it would vary between you and any other Divineborn. When it comes to your last question, well, I suppose that's up to the Divine in question! Oh, you're just so very curious! Azim would love you, I'm sure of it."

. . . Did she just dodge the question?

Drosil's eyes narrowed slightly as he thought over the Divine's answer to his secondary question, and considered pushing the issue a bit more, but decided against it. While this was a once in a lifetime opportunity, it'd be rude of him to pry into the Ambrosia's personal matters to much, and the subject of birth was certainly a very personal matter for her. Instead, he turned his thoughts towards the other Divines, and wondered what Madame Ambrosia had to say about them.

"Do the other Divines act as . . . human as you do? What kind of interests do they have and, since you act in such a human fashion, what do you all do in your free time? If you act like us, it stands to reason that you can likely get bored like we can, so you must have something to pass the time when you aren't doing . . . whatever it is Divines do exactly? Actually, what do the Divines do in general? It's hard to think you just . . . exist in the world and do nothing in it, as such an existence sounds absolutely dreadful."

"Oh, that isn't for me to tell! It's rude to speak about other people, after all! But I do, well... I do like Barcea, so I often come here!"

In that moment, the Prince glanced to the Paladin, and noted how he was watching the encounter like a hawk. Tensing some, he soon pulled the reins of his horse to bring himself over to the Divine and the curious mage, clearing his throat some.

"Drosil, you've asked plenty of questions so far. That's probably enough for now."

She did it again. I'm not asking for gossip or anything, just some facts that can be given. Maybe I should ask whether or not the other Divines can be more directly contacted or . . As Drosil thought on his next series of questions, and more importantly, how to make the Divine stop with the question dodging without rudely calling her out on it, he didn't seem to notice the Prince at first, whispering a multitude of questions to himself, with only a quarter of them being in a language the prince himself could understand. It was only after a minute of this that Drosil looked up, seeming to have a perfect set of inescapable questions, only to notice Cyril presence. His face was almost comically confused for a moment as he seemed to question the man's existence, but after a moment, he looked around at those around him. It took a second before it finally dawned on him just how long he'd been taking up Madame Ambrosia's questions, as he'd kind of started tuning them out about halfway into the questioning, and as such, he felt his cheeks start to heat up as he merely cleared his throat, avoiding eye contact with anyone as he addressed the Divine.

"I apologize for taking up so much of your time, Madame Ambrosia. I tend to get a little over-zealous with my investigations at times, and I'm sure you didn't come all this way just to listen to me babble and bombard you with questions." He gave a slight bow before backing away towards the rest of the group, silently wishing he had actually had a teleportation spell for this moment, he felt so embarrassed by his lack of self control. He was tempted to switch to Shadar, but knowing his brother, things would get really bad . . . really fast, especially with the Paladin around. A shiver ran up the mage's spine at the thought of such an altercation, and in order to take his mind on it, he whispered a spell to himself, bringing up a hand to summon forth a small ball of light, which upon closer inspection would be a series of small concentric circles that were made up of even smaller arcane symbols. Known as a spell matrix, it helped with making and testing new spells by putting theory into limited application, allowing for the safe testing of magic without the usual consequences, such as accidentally summoning a host of slimes into the women's bathhouse.

That was quite the chaotic scene, good thing they were relative harmless creatures, or else I fear that the manhunt for summoning specialists would've gone on for quite a deal longer than just a few weeks. Shadar really got pissed after that mix up. Letting out a quiet sigh, he began to fiddle with the matrix, replacing certain symbols, rearranging others, and at times, expanding it to get a look at what would likely be summoned if he cast it. Most of the time he was met with just nothingness, but once in a while, a view would show fire, volcanic landscape, and one time, a rather angry-looking reptilian eye. All the while, he continued to mutter to himself in arcane formula, a language all it's own, as he considered ways to safely control the beast he was seeking to summon.

"Think nothing of it, my dear!" Ambrosia said cheerfully, already beginning to drift to the side. "I'm always happy to talk, so don't worry about it!" She gave a wink to the Prince then, who just nodded slightly as he kept his mouth shut, moving back towards the front.

Etsuko happily received the pats on her head, nodding it when the Divine asked if she was a friend of her "baby boy's." She had already deduced that said baby boy was Christopher and she figured that they were friends, since she did latch onto him after the attack on the castle. No pondering over the meaning of friendship here.

Chi was mumbling something under her breath about how "the damned bastard would've gotten lost without me anyway..."

The Divine's joy was contagious and Etsuko found herself smiling almost as much as Calypso normally did. She also nodded her head vigorously when Ambrosia mentioned how beautiful Calypso was.

Quietly, she listened as Drosil and Ambrosia exchanged questions and answers. She was surprised to hear that the mage--along with his brother--were Divineborn. She couldn't help but tilt her head slightly as she watched him interact with the Divine. The fortune teller herself had a few questions to ask, but she didn't feel the same hungry curiosity that the mage did when it came to inquiries.

As Ambrosia moved to the side and seemed to make her rounds around the group, Etsuko watched with a smile. There was something comforting about watching the patron Divine of Barcea and she could truly understand why she happened to be the Divine of Love. Her personality was extremely motherly and Etsuko couldn't help but giggle as she thought of how similar their motherliness was. Of course, there was probably a large chance that Ambrosia was actually a mother and Etsuko was just...well, herself.

She figured it was a rare opportunity to meet a Divine and started to wonder whether she had any questions to ask. Drosil seemed to have asked similar questions to the ones she had thought of. And then, almost suddenly, Etsuko's smile gave way to complete and utter horror when she realized who was present.

"O-Oh I-I'm so sorry, L-Lady of the Abyss! U-umm I-I thank you so much for the gift y-you've given me b-but I-I really hope I haven't been using it i-incorrectly o-or anything...W-When I get back to my village, I-I'll be sure to give you a-a proper o-offering a-and if I'm using m-my gift in anyway that displease you, I-I'll stop..."

Baaa.

When the Divine turned to face Etsuko and come to a stop, she seemed to drift a little far for just a moment as she did so. She positively beamed at Etsuko, giving a few nods even as she spoke.

"Oh, my dear, don't worry at all! You've been doing just fine, I've been completely fine with what you're doing, and so are a few of the others! You're a sweetheart, just keep being like that!"

Etsuko almost cried at Ambrosia's words.

"R-Really?"

Ambrosia chuckled gently, before she reached out to gently hold both of her cheeks, giving them gentle squeezes. "Of course, my dear! You're doing just fine! Please don't worry about it at all!"

Etsuko simply nodded her head, trying not to cry tears of joy from the sheer fact she hadn't been misusing her gift.

"W-Wait, you said that a few others were pleased as well..."

"Mhm! A few others have noted what you're doing, and they're fairly happy with it!" Still the Divine beamed. "So don't worry about it at all, you have more than a few Divines on your side!"

She blinked, clearly in awe that one: the Divines were actually paying attention her, and two: a few of them were even on her side.

"O-Oh...U-Umm...c-can I know who they are? S-So I c-can thank them properly w-when I get home?"

"Mmmm, I don't think they'll mind..." Thinking for a moment the Divine soon nodded before saying, "Alright then! Both Yumio and Silvae are happy with what you've been doing with them!"

"The Divines of Freedom and Compassion..." She looked down for a moment before looking back up, nodding and smiling brightly.

"T-Thank you, Lady of the Abyss! I-I'm honored a-and very happy t-that we got a chance to meet a-and talk."

The Divine gave a gentle warm laugh as she nodded, before finally letting go of Etsuko's cheeks once again. "Oh, of course my dear! Just keep doing as you are and I couldn't be any more happy with you! Is there anything else I can do for you today?"

Etsuko shook her head, still smiling.

"N-No, u-umm, I-I think that's all I had in mind."

"Alright then! Don't be a stranger now!" And off the Divine continued, happily humming her way along.

The moment the words came out of Damon’s mouth of their party was now in the presence of THE Lady of the Abyss; Stark seemed to freeze for a fraction for a second before her eyes rounded and her whole body seemed to buzz with excitement. The hidden smile barely being bitten back on her lips would be almost entertaining to any who actually paid some form of attention to the Jasian.

The excitement seemed to only intensify as Ambrosia had drifted towards her and spoken to her about her studies. Stark could have died right then and there and been perfectly fine. A Divine knew her name. She knew her name. Perhaps to some it might have been something that simply made sense for an all knowing being to have in their knowledge but to the young girl it meant the world. While Alice simply seemed stunned and even a tad embarrassed as she averted her eyes and allowed the soft smile to accompany her blushing cheeks, her young companion seemed to just still be processing what just happened.

It would only dawn on her at a later time that she had simply sat there with her mouth agape and not given her thanks to the Divine- something that made her ears turn red and her heart beat hard. ”I didn’t say thank you!” She harshly whispered to her ever vigilant elder. Alice’s brows came together in mild confusion before staring directly at the water mage. After a moment a smile broke out on her lips while her hand gently grabbed Stark’s and she began to pull her towards the Divine. ”So say it now.”

Alice practically shoved Stark forward towards the purple woman with a snicker while Stark gave a mildly surprised sound. She fixed herself immediately upon the realization that it was an idol of hers standing, well floating, in front of her. The words came out a tad louder than she’d intended, ”T-thank you Miss Lady of the Abyss ma’me!” She was shaking with both excitement and anxiety as her silvery eyes stared in awe at the gorgeous woman.

With a dazzling smile the Divine woman turned to look at Stark, floating down just a little so that their heads were at the same height. ”Oh, but of course my dear little Stark! Good work deserves good praise, so there’s no need to thank me for it! I am quite proud of what you’re becoming, you know, and just how hard you’re working to get there!”

Alice suppressed a chuckle as she watched the exchange; Stark’s skin tinted red as a massive toothy smile exposed her odd teeth but also her sheer happiness. She found herself doing something of an odd cross between a curtsey and a bow before standing up and almost bouncing on her toes. ”T-thank you M’ambrosia-er- uh, I’m so sorry! I meant to say Miss Ambrosia but I also wanted to say Ma’me and I’m so sorry!” The embarrassment was there and caused her to keep rattling on. ”Um- Mister Dubois said that you traveled around Barcea and that you are the patron there! Is there a reason for that? I mean I know I love it there and I wanna make it a home, maybe one day, but why do you do that? Why do you wear purple? What kind of pow-” Her words were cut short by Alice’s hand clamping down over her lips. ”Excuse her. She is a bit excited to meet you.”

Alice received the same beam that Ambrosia did, the Divine nodding. ”Oh, don’t worry, I completely understand. Just a moment, please!” With that the Divine looked back to Stark, before beginning to say, ”I’m the patron of Barcea simply because I love the people and the landscape, the culture and their ideals, especially now! And purple is my favorite color, of course!” With the completed questions answered the Divine then looked back to Alice, before asking, ”And you, my dear?”

Alice’s hand dropped as the attention was turned to her and the chance to ask a question or two was presented before her. Quite a few of the questions flew threw her brain before true ones stuck out. ”I’m not sure if I should ask this but I’m not going to get the chance to as a real Divine this…” She sucked in a slow breath before squaring her shoulders and asking, ”What happened in the West? It’s my home and I haven’t been to get much of any kind of information from anyone. Is it safe to return?”

Ambrosia’s smile became a little more gentle, before she gave a shake of her head. ”My dear, if you leave Barcea now you leave many people in an unsafe position. I need you here, as do those in your party. So, please, just stay here for now, and focus on the East rather than the West.”

The air seemed to leak out of the woman as the Divine answered her. She took a long moment to swallow back the knot in her throat with a forced smile, ”I’m simply a gunner but I think you for thinking so highly of me. Truly, thank you.” She took a shaky breath before rolling her shoulders, ”I never planned on going back to the West anyways. There is nothing for me there.” The knot returned for a moment before she gave a short bow. ”Excuse me Lady Ambrosia. This is an experience I’ll remember.” Alice gave a soft smile before turning on her heel to a more private space.

Stark watched her friend for a long moment before turning to Amrbrosia one last time. ”I have one last questions My Lady...Is there, well, uh…” Stark took a long breath before confidently asking, ”How does one become a Champion of a Divine?”

At that final question Ambrosia blinked in surprise, before the same energy from before came back to that smile of hers as she perked up some. ”Oh, well, that’s quite simple actually! All you have to do is simply be picked by a Divine! That’s all there is to it!”

Blink.

There seemed to be a bit of a delay as Stark’s brain processed the words the woman spoke. ”Simple...yeah…” She spoke quietly under her breath before giving a deep bow to the woman. ”Thank-thank you so much for speaking to me Lady Nocte. Truely you have no idea what this means to have been able to meet you.” She stood with her hands folded in front of her and a softer smile on her lips.

”Oh, I think I do know!” The Divine said, before giggling slightly. ”I look forward to seeing you again, my dear!”

Dalious watched on curiously as the divine spoke to the group. She seemed to know everyone, speaking to each with different words. When she came to him, she called him of his true title. He couldn't help but to smile, giving a soft bow afterward. He wasn't a captain anymore though, but it was nice to hear. The not so nice part was when she told him that he should shave, as he had grown accustom to his facial hair. Yet she was right, it had to go, as he was also tired of tasting his own hair every time he ate food.

The lady moved on to Drosil, which he deemed would be a very interesting conversation. He was right, as he hadn't realized that Drosil was divine born, which made a lot of things in his head clear up. He was finding out how much there actually was to this world, and even beyond. Before the incident at the gallows, his world only consisted of land and sea. Back and forth, quite often. Never staying in one place for to long. There were good and bad days, but essentially every moment was the same. There was no purpose. Now, he had seen the other side. He had joined royalty, fought unkillable assassins, and was currently in the presence of a divine.

As the lady gracefully moved on again, Dalious noticed how sleepy she seemed. Or weary, or drunk. It made him raise an eyebrow and scratch his beard, or maybe that was just himself feeling those things. 'Can divine's drink?' He wondered. 'That would be epic to get plastered with a divine. Did the divine's create drinks, for that matter? How far back does the world go? Is the world flat?? If I were to sail to the end of the seas, what would happen? What happens when we die? Will I ever sail again? Shit, she's coming.'

"I have but one question, my lady," Dalious said, completely forgetting everything he had just thought about, save for one thing. "How does one become rich in these times?" He realized it was the wrong question to ask, of all the correct ones he could have chosen. All he could do now was wince at himself, then hope she would direct him to some hidden treasure with mounds of gold.

Once more the Divine came to a stop when she was asked a question, and she smiled at Dalious. However, she didn't initially answer him, moving slightly instead. From her shoulder she pulled her parasol, before holding it up slightly and closing it. Only once it was closed did she lean in closer, still smiling at the pirate... And then, quite suddenly, she brought the parasol up and down in a very quick movement. For all intents and purposes, it should have hurt like Hell, but just before he was hit she slowed her strike down so that she only gave him a light tap on his head, applying just enough force to make him bow his head slightly.

With the physical part of the reprimand done she once more opened the parasol and set it upon her shoulder, but she still smiled even as she began to mildly scold him. " Now then, Captain, right now you have much more important things to think about than gaining material wealth! That will come later, if it's meant to come at all. For now, you should focus on what you can do to make yourself stronger, so you can better serve those around you. You are on a very different path now from even the one you were just over a week ago; do your best to make the most of it, rather than trying to turn yourself back to where you've already been!"

Dalious shook his head and also smiled, as he found her rather funny and more interesting.

"Apologies, my lady," he said, though figured it didn't hurt to try. "Though I am a pirate, I promise you I will stand by my prince in this time of need. I will take heed to your advice." History was being made, and a part of him wanted to make a profit on it, while his other side knew what the right thing to do was. Hearing it from a divine instantly boosted up his morale, though. He felt confident that he was on a good path, all they had to do was survive it all.

"Oh, of course! I'm absolutely sure of it, my dear!" Ambrosia gave another chuckle, even as she turned. "Though if the day does come that you return to seafaring, I'm looking forward to it; I don't get on ships all that often. Trains just happen to be my favorite way of getting around!"

"It will be a fine day, my lady."

Healthy skepticism is necessary for one to survive while travelling alone, and it was something Vesta had come quite accustomed to during her years of banditry. For her, the difference between waking up in the morning with a raging hangover or waking up in the morning with a fatal wound was based largely upon the assumption that everyone with a sword wanted to use it and thus everyone with a sword should be kept more than their blades length away. Since she had yet to be killed, her faulty logic was considered a personal sort of gospel by her as the one and only way to really make it in the world. However, too much of a “good” thing can do one ill (drink too much you lose your lunch, ride too much you wake with sores, ectetera), and in turn Vesta’s skepticism became not only unhealthy but borderline paranoia.

For example, while the others were awed and accepting of the sudden appearance of the Divine in the middle of the sticks, Vesta was sitting back on her horse with a knitted brow and her arms folded over her chest. True, yes, it was incredible that the woman was able to leap through tears, but it was also incredible that Drosi and Shadar could swap places with one another or that dozens of unkillable assassins could breach a castle. At this point in Vesta’s life, she had seen enough of the arcane for it to become mundane. Likewise, while it was odd that the woman knew their names, it wasn’t unthinkable that they had been described to her by somebody; they were a rather odd bunch after all. It wouldn’t be very hard to guess that the scorpion girl was Thuraya or that the teenage boy was Marco or that Alice was—Vesta blinked between Stark and Alice, uncertain of which was was actually which although that didn’t, in her mind, disprove her point. Regardless, while the others questioned “Ambrosia”, Vesta just glared between her and the paladin looking for some sort of tell because she had a small, sneaking suspicion that this Lady of the Abyss in front of them was more likely a Lady of the Stage, Who Knew a Little Magic, and was Hired by an Asshole Paladin so He Could Bolster His Ego. Perhaps it wasn’t as catchy of a title, but it did just seem wrong to Vesta that Ambrosia would actually show up at this time, in this place, or even exist at all.

Right, so maybe borderline was underselling it.

After the others had finished asking the “Divine” their questions, with their stuttering thanks and their bowed heads in response to vague answers similar to the ones you could get from a festival fortune teller, Vesta dismounted from her horse and walked forward with a notable scowl on her face. She pushed her way past Dalious so that nobody stood between her and the woman, her spirit filled with the resolve to expose this pretender so that they could continue on with their task. Vesta’s eyes met the eerie purple ones of the “Divine” and for a moment she was taken aback and filled with doubt, only for the feeling to dissipate as she bowed her head in a mocking parody of the others.

“My lady, it is so nice for you to finally show up,” said Vesta, making little effort to hide her callousness. “I bet you’re a busy Divine, so I’ll spare you the mountains of praise and all the weeping. I just have two quick questions. The first one is,” she said, with her lips curling, “Why have you come before us?”

Once more, Ambrosia perked up as another person approached her. She didn't seem to mind just how aggressive Vesta was, even though it was extremely obvious; so much so that Cyril actually paled slightly even while Vesta had approached the Divine. Surprisingly enough the Paladin didn't seem to be bothered by it at all, and seemed to be barely paying attention to the newest conversation at all, as if it weren't worth his interest. However Ambrosia gave Vesta her full attention, cheerfully saying, "Oh, I just missed by baby boy so much that I simply had to come by for a visit! Especially with all of you on your way to dear Karin's, I couldn't pass up the opportunity!"

"Ma, please." Came the very quiet, very disgruntled protest from Christopher, who was still rubbing at his throat carefully as if it were quite sore. This only prompted Ambrosia to giggle slightly, giving him a wave over her shoulder before once more looking back to Vesta, to continue speaking.

"Really, though, I wanted to meet you all! It's not often that a group of people like you all begin to gather together, and it was so exciting that I simply just couldn't watch from the sidelines this time around! Especially since you're on my side, after all, I thought it'd be nice to introduce myself. And your next question, my dear?"

Christopher's distraction gave Vesta enough time to shake her head in a mixture of amusement and disapproval. She had hoped the "Divine" would have some better sort of excuse instead of going with the doting mother act. Her lips finished curling into a sinister smile, and a gloved hand stroked Vesta's chin as the woman asked her to go ahead with her second question. Her gray eyes burned with a challenging stare, and this time she did not break away contact with the so-called Lady. She needed to see the moment the pretender realized that she had been caught, so she gave them a question she knew that any human did not know the answer. All she needed was some hesitation, some excuse, and then they could all be done with this nonsense and go back to the road. As far as Vesta was concerned, this distraction had gone on long enough.

"My second question...well, since you're the Divine of Love, I'll make it a fitting one. I was in love, once, when I was younger and stupider," said Vesta, folding her arms back over her chest and looking sure of herself. "What was their name?"

At that, Ambrosia's eyes widened slightly, her mouth parting slightly in shock. However, it wasn't because she didn't know the answer, at least it seemed that way because she looked around at their present company, Cyril the last. Biting her lip nervously, she leaned forwards then, beginning to inch closer as the floating tear slowly floated along.

"Are you absolutely, completely, utterly sure you want me to say it out loud in present company, my dear? Is that wise?"

Vesta misread the woman's act of mercy as a sign of weakness and took a confident step forward.

"As a Divine, I'm sure you know quite well that wisdom tends to fall on deaf ears around here. And it's fine if you don't really know. You just have to say it. None of us are fit to judge someone, Divine," she said with a sneer, taking another step forward, "or otherwise."

Once more, Ambrosia bit her lip, before giving a sigh and nodding. "If you insist, my dear, I just hope you don't regret it. You held feelings within you for Olain Serio while he was still alive, and it was part of the reason why you pushed yourself so hard in his service."

At that, the Prince blinked in surprise, before his eyes widened and his jaw dropped slightly.

The arrogant expression quickly fell from Vesta's face like a shattered mask as her strong eyes wavered and glanced nervously to the ground. A soft but piercing choking sound escaped from her throat, not unfamiliar to the startled yelp of a dog whose tail has been stepped upon, as if she herself had not realized what the true answer to her question had been until Ambrosia (and indeed it was Ambrosia) had said it out loud. Vesta was quick to recover, however, and fixed her typical stern look back on her face. She covered up the sound with a somewhat exaggerated and shrill laugh that was a little too loud and a little too joyful for it to be anything but artificial, although laughter was such a rare thing to hear from the woman that perhaps it could actually pass as real.

"I suppose even Divines can make mistakes every now and then," she said a bit too quickly and protesting way too much for her words to be anything but a constructed lie. "I'd give you a second shot, but I believe we've already wasted enough of our daylight. You've seen your baby boy, so I take it's time that we must part."

"For fuck's sake..." Christopher knew he was never going to hear the end of it now.

The Divine didn't push the subject along any further, just giving a nod. Though she still smiled, it was just a little bit sad, her beginning to drift back a little. "If you say so, my dear..." And, quite suddenly, she smiled brightly once again. "Oh, don't be in such a rush though! You're almost to Karin's, it's practically right around the corner! I'd say this little aside is nice for plenty of you!"

A quiet huff escaped from Vesta's throat, and she nodded curtly to Ambrosia before stepping back through the others as she stared directly ahead and tried her best to avoid making any eye contact that would expose her embarrassment. Reaching her horse, she spent some time fidgeting with her saddle that did not need any adjustments and hoped that all of this would be ignored and forgotten the moment the next person went up to the Divine to ask her another stupid, stupid, such a fucking dumb, stupid question.

Not caring about the Divines what Thuraya's specialty. She cared about very few things - Seryosa and Survival being her top two priorities. To be honest, she looked a little like she didn't understand what all the hullabaloo was about. She did know, it was just very clear she wasn't planning to be a part of any of it.

As Ambrosia made her way through their ranks to talk to each person, Thuraya silently wished that the blonde wouldn't stop anywhere near her or say a single word, but as her luck would have it, there was a comment on her tail, and a single name spoken that caused her to shrink inside herself a little. Eyes met with the Divine's for only a moment before she looked away, tail curling up slightly. "It's possible..." was all she said in return.

Thoughts started going a little more then, mind wandering back to her home. 'Is she proud..? Even after that humiliating defeat..?' she gave a soft sigh and her form stayed curled inward, head hung between slightly shrugged in shoulders. 'Was it pride or disappointment that sent me here..?' eyes closed for a moment. When she let them open, to look to where Ambrosia had once been, she was relieved to find the Divine had moved on to the others.

She listened for a while, to everyone, but her main focus seemed to be Drosil's conversation with the Divine. Everyone seemed to have some questions, but his were the only ones she seemed to care for. Maybe she could find out a little more about him, more about who or what he was. She hadn't made any efforts to truly find out any information about him on her own. She didn't care to talk to him in the slightest, and thought it a bit prying to ask anyone else about him. All she knew so far, was that she didn't like him. She just needed the information so that next time, if they were ever to be pitted against one another again, she would have a bit more knowledge of what's to come.

Emerald eyes locked on the mage through out the conversation. So, he was born of one of them..? Lips formed a slight frown as she listened a little closer. As the conversation continued, she only became more and more interested in what was actually going on in Drosil's mind. Eyes focused a little more, and she even got a little closer, though tried to be subtle about it. They didn't use a name, or specifics.. It bothered her a little, but she could only assume that this "brother" they were talking about was who she'd fought..? Maybe... It was aggravating not knowing for sure.

A final sigh escaped as their conversation ended and others started with uninteresting topics she couldn't care less about. Eyes lingered on Drosil for a moment longer before she looked away finally. 'I guess it wouldn't hurt to talk to him...' just not now. Maybe not even any time soon.

'... But I really don't want to...'

---

Marco blinked rapidly at the sight of the woman as she spoke with him quickly, unable to do much more than that. As sudden was a breeze she appeared and turned his world upside down. "A god in the flesh", he thought aloud in a small whisper escaped his lips. The reality of the situation crashed around him. His father would never believe him if he was still alive. "I doubt that even Master Az'Cer has seen one of the Divine alive, but then again I am just a simple boy with fancy tricks and I lack the depth of mind that my Master has."

He had wanted to speak, as she spoke to him, but found himself just gasping like a fool. She was beautiful to the boy, yet terrifying. He could feel the weight of her being surrounding him, suffocating him, and it scared him honestly. No being, mortal or Divine, should be able to command such power. It brought a tear to his eye, even though he was certain that he wasn't sad or upset. The boy wasn't able to properly process what he was witnessing, a Goddess among men. He fought to find his voice, to respond with her and carry on a proper greeting.

And just as quickly as the feeling came, it was gone. He let out a sigh and allowed his shoulders to slump as the Divine wandering over to others with the same cheerful poise. He shook his head and moved a bit off to the side to collect himself. 'She... it...,' his thought came back in a rush, 'She believes in me.' A smile came to his face, warmth beyond compare blossomed in his chest. 'She believes and she shows care for my well being, just like mum used too...' He had questioned that buzzed in his head, questions that burned to be answered, but he would have to wait. Others flocked to the Divine with questions of their own and he did not wish to interrupt them.

To say that the young boy was surprised by this sudden appearance was an understatement. He was sure that it went for everyone, though he couldn't say for sure how to handle the situation. Had he not witnessed the tear that she hung out of, he would find it hard to believe. 'A goddess, in the flesh stumbles upon us... I am not certain if this is a good omen or an ill one.' He didn't dwell on it long however, as other individuals made way to speak to the Divine. He was about to speak, ask Lady Ambrosia about the origin of blood magic, but he saw another he was hoping to speak to first. Marco wasn't sure of how long the Divine would be with them, so he decided to make it quick.

"Drosil," he began as the older mage walked away from his conversation with the Lady of the Abyss, "I was wondering if you wouldn't mind answering a few question of my own, if you aren't too terribly busy with that Arcane Matrix." Marco had seen the device before, though never this close up. He had read about the properties of it in the text left behind by Master Az'Cer. However, viewing on up close was far more interesting.

Drosil didn't seem to notice the boy at first, so engrossed he was in what he was doing. With a frustrated look on his face, he kept trying to impose his control spell upon the creature, only to find his attempts rebuffed time and time again. The problem was simple, he lacked the strength of will to make this beast submit, but this only made him angrier as he pushed harder and harder with his mind. As he did so, he felt a slight shiver crawl up his spine, followed by the slightest sliver of purple energy flowing into the Matrix. Suddenly, the control spell seemed to have some effect on the beast, but Drosil's frustration seemed to only grow, for he soon, released his hold on the magical energy, letting the matrix fade away into nothingness. Letting out a grumbling curse in some whispered language of old, Drosil took a moment to calm himself, only to finally take notice of the boy who had approached him.

"Oh, uh, Marco was it?" Drosil began, clearing his throat as he tried to recollect what the boy had said to him. Something about answers and questions, if he recalled correctly, so it was likely the boy wanted to ask him something. "You've some questions for me, right? I certainly wouldn't mind seeing what I could answer, though I would think a budding mage such as yourself would jump at the chance to speak to one of the Divines. It is, after all, a once in a lifetime opportunity for most."

Marco had glanced over at the Divine again as Drosil voiced his opinion. See Marco would have jumped at the opportunity to speak with the Divine, had she not intimidated him to such an extent. He was nervous about a goddess just suddenly appearing before them, but then again he was nervous about a lot since the evening at the Castle. He could still feel the dread wash over him at seeing those creatures of death and darkness.

"Yes, I do have a few questions for her, but I have one that maybe you can answer for me." He cleared his throat and swallowed his nerves as he reached for the hilt of the blood stained dagger. He held it out for Drosil to see, laid bare on the oiled cloth. "This blade is stained with my blood, it seems to react to my magic whenever I channel it. what I was wondering is if you knew anything about this phenomenal occurrence?"

Perhaps speaking with Sir Sampson had given him confidence to trust others with the subject. Despite not knowing much of the magical art, Sir Sampson was not bothered by the blade. If the Sentinel was willing to offer him aid, why wouldn't the others be as well?

"Hmm. . . How intriguing, to say the least, though not as strange as one might think. Blood is often associated with the binding of objects and magics to certain individuals, and shares a deep connection with the most powerful of magics, though it also holds an equally strong tie with that of Taboo magics that requiring gruesome deeds to be accomplished, such as human sacrifice and what not."

Drosil was quick to pluck the dagger from the boy's hands, giving it a few look overs before summoning another Spell matrix around the object, his eyes taking on a bright luminescence as he examined the magic that may be attached to the bloodied weapon, his gaze attempting to strip from it of any and all secrets it may hold. As he did so, he continued his conversation with Marco, hoping the young mage could give him some more details about the dagger.

"How, exactly, did this dagger get coated in your blood, and what do you mean specifically when you say it 'reacts' when you channel magic? Please be as detailed as you possibly can about this, so I can better understand what may be causing this binding between you and the weapon, as well as ways you could possibly turn it to your benefit."

Marco nodded a bit and moved his hand up to his wound out of habit as the memories of that night came back to mind. Even in his heightened state, he felt the sensation of his flesh parting easily before the dagger's point. He closed his eyes and took in a deep breath before speaking to his colleague.

"What I mean is," he began as he let the breath out, "this dagger was used to assault me during the raid on the castle a few nights ago." He lowered his hand and focused his magical talent. His personal rune spread over the back of his hand and through to his palm, the dagger began to vibrate slightly, lifting off the cloth. The same rune appeared on the flat side of the blade before spreading along the length. "And that is what I mean, the blood upon the blade's surface is my own. It would appear as if it still reacts to me, maybe even as an extension of my own magical talent."

"How odd. . .," Drosil said with a slight frown on his face, shifting the spell matrix as he studied the connection between the blade and the boy, muttering a few things under his breath. Something about 'fluctuations in the energy field' and 'improper bonding of arcane channels'. He'd go over the whole thing a few more times, assuring his inspections, as well as having Marco channel magic energy a few more times before he finally released the spell matrix, letting out a light sigh before looking up at Marco. "Well, definitely Blood Magic, though it's of a more acceptable sort. You must have lose control of your magic when attack or something like that and accidentally bonded yourself to the blade. From what I can tell, you should be able to learn how to possible wiled it telepathically with practice just by channeling energy through it. A very useful little ability, I must say, though I suggest you reinforce the connection yourself through some more mundane methods."

As Drosil spoke, his voice went from observational and objective, to very serious as he turned his gold and green eyes towards the young apprentice, having noticed the taint of Blood Magic in his investigations.

"While Blood magic offers much more expedient ways to gain power and cast spells, it's a path fraught with dark temptation and wicked compulsions. If you must use it, I suggest you wait until you've completed your studies and reached the level of an Adept, at the very least. None of the 'Dark Magics, as they are called, should ever be taken lightly, no matter how confident you are in your skills. Too many fools, both young and old, make this mistake, and most do not get the chance to regret and learn from it." While no magic was inherently bad in his eyes, he knew that Blood Magic was a steep slope to darker magics that can easily corrupted even the strongest of wills, not to mention that in order to progress in such a study, sacrifices were usually needed. With a sigh, he dropped the serious face, entering a light banter with the boy as he rose up from where he was kneeling, stretching his legs to regain the feeling in them. "If you understand this, then I'd be more than willing to assist you in strengthening the connection between this blade and yourself and helping you figure out how to control it. We should probably get Diane to over see this, however, lest we end up injuring ourselves in the process."

Marco could only nod as the gravity of what he had heard weighed in. 'He speaks from experience, from grief,' the boy thought as he matched eyes with the other mage. "Thank you, Drosil, for your council and your concern," he said with proper manners and a short bow. Marco glanced over towards the Goddess, speaking once again with the Prince. "I think... I will take up that opportunity now. Thank you again, we will speak again once we reach our destination."

Many questions were asked as Marco waited patiently, and it seemed that each person who chose to ask something of the Divine had a different way of asking it. Soon enough though, especially thanks to Vesta's question, it seemed to be time for the meeting to come to an end. The Prince had taken a moment to recover after Vesta's failed challenge against Ambrosia, and had apparently hidden just what he was thinking behind a veil focused on the task at hand. Sending his horse forward slightly, he once again approached the Divine.

"Thank you, Lady Ambrosia, for blessing us with your presence. With your permission though, we'd like to continue on so that we might reach Lady Renata's soon."

The Divine gave a happy little wave with her hand, and a nod as well. "Of course, Prince, I understand! Do enjoy your trip, and I'm sure I'll see you all again soon! Ta ta!" Giving a nod in response to her reply, the Prince gave another flick of the reins, once more beginning to lead the group past the Divine and to the east.

As the others rode off after the Prince, the young mage trailed behind. His own mare, a small pony befitting his own size, grazed close by. It was simply the boy and the goddess left. Swallowing his fears and willing himself forward he approached the Divine. "Excuse me, Madame Ambrosia, if you would allow me but a simple question." He made sure to mind his manners, it would not do well to anger a being whom could destroy him without much thought. "I am a simple boy, grown by a man and his wife. We were farmers, though my talent was not present then. After witnessing my fathers demise I grew worried for my mother. I was wondering if you knew how she fared and if you could pass a message along to her about my story."

Ambrosia looked down to him with a smile, and it was a very soft and caring smile. Slowly she floated down to his level, and her hands reached forwards from the edges of the tear to take a hold of his, gently holding them. Bowing her head briefly, she quietly said, "Your mother rests now, my dear. I'm sorry I must be the one to tell you this. She went quietly, though; she did not suffer. She would be so proud of you, as I am, and as Kori is too."

The news did not shock him, his mothers was always a sickly woman. Where anyone else would have felt sad, Marco felt empty. He nodded as the answered crashed around him like the waves crashed against the shack he lost his father to. His life was a series of storms, any peace was just the eye stared down at him from the skies above. "Thank you, Madame," he said after a brief silence, his head bowing low to hide any tears that may have come. "It is good to know that she did not suffer. I shall not disappoint you, nor Queen Kori, if I can help it." He looked her in the eye, a passionate fire a lit.

She would have felt a surge of energy come from him, like a brief explosion. He let go of her hands and gathered the reins of his pony. "Good day to you, Madame Ambrosia. May we ever be in your faith."

Once more the Divine beamed, pulling away from the young mage and giving him a nod. "Of course, my dear! Travel safely, now!"

Despite how the group had met a Divine, something that was surely a once in a lifetime experience, there was no time to waste. The way east was waiting, and they very quickly followed Richard as he set the pace and guided them on their path. Though he, Etsuko, and Calypso had certainly experienced the way before, everyone else was experiencing this specific route through the mountains for the first time. For many of them it was the first time they experienced the winding, overgrown path, the gathering trees, and the thickening mist. It was the first time for many of them to be that cold, except for perhaps for Thuraya.

The breaking through from the fog and suffocating forest into the apparently eternal night that the Lady of Demons' mansion stood in. Suddenly emerging from the stifling fog into the red moonlit grounds of the mansion was a shock for multiple reasons, from the size of the moon to the fact it shouldn't have been night at all. The beauty of the mansion may have been initially lost thanks to this beginning surprise, but it had plenty of time to set in as they passed through the gates and walked down the long paths to the door, with gardens and fountains on either side.

After they all dismounted Richard continued to lead them all the way up to the front doors, which he opened easily with a gentle push. Stepping to the side he once more bowed to them all, holding one hand up to his chest as he did so and spoke. "Welcome to the home of the Lady of Demons, Karin Renata... Oh my." The reason why he said those last two words and the curious sort of eyebrow raise came over his face wasn't apparent at first, but soon they would all feel it; the ground and entire mansion was rumbling, lightly at first, before rapidly picking up in strength to the point that many of them, including Cyril himself, would have trouble standing.

"What the Hell-?" The Prince asked to no one in particular, even as he staggered to the side and ended up tumbling down onto one of the stone benches. Slowly, a long, unending shout could be heard as the rumbling continued, having apparently started even before they could hear it properly:

"... uuuuuuuuuuEEEEEEEEEEEEEESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSTSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!"

Those closest to the open doorway could see the golden blur that shot into sight from one of the many hallways. They would be able to see how, as it turned towards the doorway, it shot up and around, travelling from floor to wall to ceiling to opposite wall all the way back to the floor on its path out. It was almost too fast to track for some of them, and soon it was shooting past the doors and into the group, shooting back and forth in between them. Even as it shot through the group, it ended up heading right for Christopher-

"SON OF A BITCH!" The young man dove to the side then, heavily hitting the ground. This caused the blur to miss him entirely, and it instead crashed into Etsuko, taking the poor Diviner off her feet with ease. Down the path they sailed, almost all the way back to the gates as they eventually hit the ground and rolled to a stop. It was in this moment that the blur finally became a recognizable shape, being that of the surprisingly young appearing girl with beautiful blonde hair and big red eyes.

"Guests are here again already-!! Wait! Etusko?! YOU'RE ALREADY BACK!" Back and forth Helle rolled with Etsuko, not releasing her as she beamed with clear excitement.

Etsuko knew it was coming, however the magnitude of it all wasn't something she could predict. She wasn't quick enough to dodge the blur like Christopher, so her entire world went upside down as Helle crashed into her. The Diviner yelped loudly and her eyes were reduced to swirls that even the Wanderer would be jealous of (maybe not). She could barely let a word out as she rolled around with Helle, her world never really returning to equilibrium.

"T-That I am, Lady Helle..."

She tried to pat her head. She missed and patted the ground.

"Yay! We can play again! Buttercup missed you, so-!"

In that moment, Richard cleared his throat slightly before calling out, "Lady Helle, if you don't mind helping Ms. Tanaka back, we shouldn't keep your sister waiting for much longer."

"Oh, right! Come on then!" With that Helle was up in a flash, pulling Etsuko up by her hand and dragging her along back through the group, all the way past them up to the front doors. Once there she came to a stop thanks to Richard's guiding hand, but she didn't let go of Etsuko. For those who didn't already know her the butler introduced her in that moment:

"This is Lady Helle Renata, the sister to the Lady of Demons."

"Oh, hello!"

Etsuko still wasn't settled and had propped herself up against the door as she tried to keep the world from spinning even more.

"Hello again..."

Giving Etsuko (and everyone who had been knocked down thanks to Helle's rapid approach) a moment to recover, Richard soon turned and passed through the open doors, leading them into the hallways. The front doors closed behind the last few people on their own, and soon they were all passing through those twisting, confusing, and should-be physically impossible hallways. Despite how confusing it was, Richard led them on quite calmly, all the way to the double doors that Etsuko and Calypso could have recognized as the ones to the dining rooms. Once there, Richard turned to face the entire group the same way he had faced Etsuko and Calypso when he had first introduced the owner of the house, and in fact said the same words:

"Allow me to present the Lady of Demons, Karin Renata."

When he turned and opened the doors to step through everyone was able to see the dining room with its long table. They were also able to see the massive windows at the end, with the impossibly large red space of stars and haze slowly spinning around in a wide vortex. It was a sight even more shocking than the moon and the night outside, but when they were able to eventually get beyond it they would see how the long dinner table was set up with the exact number of places for everyone present.

They would also see the Lady of Demons herself, sitting at the end of the dining table in the dark of her chair, her startling red eyes glowing from the shadow and her silver hair shining ever slightly as she leaned forwards some. Already in front of her she had a tea set, and she brought her cup up to take a sip as she said, "Welcome, all of you, from the Prince and Princess, to the Sentinels, to their companions. Enter, take a seat, and get comfortable. We might be here for a little while."

Even if Helle had appeared childlike it still would have been surprising to see such a feared and respected (save for those who doubted her existence) individual in such a small and young appearing form. However, despite this, the Lady of Demons still exuded an almost overwhelming sense of power, one that pervaded throughout the entire room. After just a moment of hesitation Cyril led the way, taking his sister along with him all the way to the end of the table, to sit in two of the seats closest to the Lady. Helle, meanwhile, dragged Etsuko down the opposite side of the table to similarly close seats, which meant that Calypso followed along quickly as well.

As everyone sat down in their seats, something else surprising happened; food began appearing in the plates in front of them. However, it certainly wasn't the same meal between them all; no, each meal was customized to be the favorite of each person, no matter how complicated, simple, or strange it may have been. This sudden appearance of food didn't surprise the Lady of Demons in the slightest, and she simply rested her cheek in her hand as she smiled, looking towards Cyril in particular.

"Thank you for arriving on such short notice, Prince Serio. You made quite good time, all things considered."

"Yes, of course Lady Renata... We're very grateful you're offering us shelter."

"Of course, Prince. But I plan to offer much more as well."

"More? What do you mean?"

"I plan on getting you ready for a war that's been going on for a very long time, yet you've known nothing about. However, now you can't avoid getting pulled into it, no matter how much you try."

"Lady Renata, with all due respect but I was alive during the last war with H'kela-"

The Lady of the Demons gave a sudden and dismissive wave, cutting off the Prince with the motion. "I'm not talking about your affair of nationalistic violence with Gartian and his predecessors. I'm talking about a long conflict fought through subterfuge and manipulation, that's finally coming to a head. Your true enemy isn't Gartian, as that man is just a pawn being manipulated by the Advisor; and yet at the same time she is merely a pawn as well."

"The Advisor? How could she-?"

"Even the least magic sensitive of you all must have sensed that she has great power, more than Gartian certainly. It also certainly doesn't take a lot of perception to tell that Gartian certainly isn't stable enough to keep control of her, nevermind run an entire nation. No, at this point he's just a figurehead, albeit a violent one; the Advisor is the true opponent, but even then she's just the lowest level of the enemy. A peon compared to the rest."

"Then... Who are they?"

The Lady of Demons didn't answer initially, even as it was obvious just how confused and concerned the Prince was. Instead she took her time to fix another cup of tea, pouring herself a new cup before adding milk, sugar, and more than just a little bit of a thick, dark red substance (what it actually was being quite obvious). Stirring briefly, she soon brought it up for another sip, gently blowing it before actually partaking, only speaking afterwards.

"You humans have a habit of romanticizing everything. From your rulers to your soldiers to your battles, you always try painting them with the brightest of lights. Not even the Gifted or Divineborn are immune to such glossy treatment, and you often forget that many are just as likely to be villains as they are heroes. The enemy has used this to their advantage, so very few know of the organization of Divineborn known as the Manu Propria, who have manipulated much of the going ons in the world."

In that moment, a few of the older members of those at the table reacted; the Paladin looked up ever slightly, the Direwolf raised his eyebrow, and the Wanderer bristled some, for example. The Prince, however, didn't notice any of it, only blinking in surprise as his focus remained entirely on Lady Renata. "A group of Divineborn? There are that many?"

"Immortality certainly can be boring for some." She shrugged, taking another sip of her tea. "The Manu Propria, on the other hand, keep themselves as busy as they possibly can. From the influencing of Kings to even creating the God Kings, they've filled their time turning the forces of the world to their own advantage. Individuals on the lower level like the Advisor are the most active while the leader and their servants, the Crux and their Aspects, manipulate and keep watch over everything, while directly acting for the greatest moves such as the God Kings."

It was the mentioning of the God Kings that got the Prince to pale, him tensing some. "H-how could someone-"

"So powerful exist? It happens more often than you might realize." Karin shrugged in quite a nonchalant manner. "It doesn't matter how they exist though, not to you at this moment. What matters is how you, your family, your friends and your allies are now their targets, and you must prepare yourselves for this conflict." She gave another casual shrug, as if this was nothing unusual. "That is why I brought you here. In the coming days, I'll give you the tools to survive the initial skirmish. Beyond that, well... I'm a very busy woman. I won't have the time to hold your hand the entire way."

Silent for a moment, Cyril quietly said, "I understand, Lady Renata..." This prompted the Lady of Demons to chuckle slightly, giving a shake of her head.

"No, I don't think you fully do yet. So if any of you have any questions, then I'd advise you to ask them now while you can. And if not, well, then enjoy your meal, and the gifts to come.”

One might see her as nosey, others perhaps finding her simply curious. But what she was, was definitely the former. Eyes watched Drosil the rest of the way to their destination, occasionally flicking over to Marco. Their conversation was one of interest. Apparently some sort of blood magic was being used by Marco? She hadn't heard all the details, but perhaps he was one to look out for as well. Drosil was also willing to help the young lad delve deeper into darkness with this stuff.

Lips curled down into a small frown. It was all she could do not to just run over, take the blade and place herself between Marco and Drosil, pushing the latter away, pulling the former into a bosom-filled embrace he wouldn't soon forget, telling him she'd make the bad man go away. Instead she just watched, waited. As Marco turned his attention instead, to Ambrosia, Thuraya let her own set on just Drosil for the remainder of their travels.

When they came up closer to the mansion, and it came into view, was the first time she let her attention leave him. He may have been interesting, but the moon was much more-so. Emerald eyes glistened in the crimson light, seemingly lost in it, until she felt the ground tremble slightly with a rumbling sound, then yelling. As the blur of a girl came out at them, Christopher dodged with a dive, others made their own ways out of her path, and Thuraya was no different. She stepped to the side, and put her tail downward to make sure the blur didn't run into it by accident somehow, and when she became visible, Thuraya showed a small smile.

In they went, and the first thing that came to the Scorpionfolk's attention was the soft sound of a violin. She didn't pay it much mind, but it was rather pleasant. She stopped with the others as Richard introduced the woman who they'd come to see. Her smile stayed, but did lessen some. Helle was cute, but she hadn't been expecting Karin to also be so... cute. As instructed, Thuraya took a seat. She was near the end away from Karin's location. She looked at the places set and then over toward the Lady of Demons herself, taking in the features for a moment. Eyes showed wisdom and words spoke intelligence. Of course, the Lady of Demons was... well... a demon, so clearly she could've been older than she looked and sounded. But she was... soooo cuuuute! but she knew so much... It didn't make sense!

Emerald eyes locked onto her then, harder than before and eventually her lips parted; ”Hey, how old are you?!”

Deeply red eyes turned to slowly look over to Thuraya. Very slowly, her eyebrow raised slightly before she quite calmly said, "Old enough."

Slightly tanned fingers tapped on the table as she looked a little disappointed with the response. ”Old enough for what though? Like... Old enough to play outside on your own or like... Old enough to know the history of the everything?”

Slowly the Lady of Demons brought her tea cup up once again, in order to take a sip before she said, "Both."

”Huh...” It was then that she actually noticed the food. It was a rare case when Thuraya didn't notice food as soon as it was there, if not before it was even close enough for most to smell. She looked at others' plates and frowned a bit but when she looked to her own she almost drooled. She sniffed it a bit, more like a dog than a human or scorpion, then took one longer inhale through her nose before she decided to take a bite of the meat before her.

---

The music Thuraya had heard upon entering the estate grew louder then, a door opened down a corridor and foot steps echoed closer to the dining room where they were all seated. Eventually, the violin's melody came to a stop, and in the doorway stood a tall, slender male. Cerulean eyes with long, dark brown hair tied back with a ribbon. He was garbed in a light salmon blouse under a vest with tie, pants that matched the vest's brown-auburn colour, with black shoes.

He stepped in and smiled widely, placing the bow of his violin into his right hand along with the violin itself, his left hand taking from under his right arm, a slender cane with a shining metallic top. Blue orbs scanned each person at the table before landing on the Lady herself.
”My, my, my! You didn't tell me we were having guests! Why, of course I could hear Lady Helle yelling the word from a mile away over my music, but I'd no idea how many~ And how important!”

His steps took him past each person, eyes resting for only a moment on each one as he made his way toward the head of the table. Smile widened as he leaned slightly, on Karin's seat and a caw sounded briefly before a crow came into view to drop a cup into the man's hand then perch upon his shoulder. ”Seri-Viva! Say hello to the guests!”
She cawed at first, then fixed her position on his shoulder. ”Hello!” slender hand reached up to pat her head and eyes shifted down to Karin as his own cup was filled with the same thick, red liquid that she'd added to her own. ”You know, some days I believe you might be ashamed of me! And that's why you don't ever invite me to your little social gatherings~!”

The Lady of Demons had remained quite silent on Dimitrius' entrance, just sitting where she was. She didn't even give him a single glance, eyes only focused upon her guests, as if he wasn't there. However, eventually she sighed, once more taking a sip of her own tea, but this one much larger that the previous ones as she nearly drained the cup.

"Richard is the only help I need at these gatherings."

”Oh, yes, yes I know he's all the help you need my lady~! But certainly you don't wish to intentionally exclude me from these things? Hmm? Do you~?”

"You still sleep inside, don't you?"

He pondered the reply a moment and nodded. ”Why, yes. Yes I do~! And it's quite kind of you to let me do so, might I add!” he turned toward the others again and gave a fairly low bow, holding for a moment as Seri hopped about on his shoulder to keep herself on it, and again as he stood back up straight, he took a sip from his cup and grinned even wider. ”Sir Dimitrius Alexander James Turner~ At your service! What a pleasure to meet all of you!” he took a single step away from Karin's seat then, keeping his grin, taking another sip. "So! How is everyone?!" he asked, a general disregard for how important the conversation they were having before his arrival may have been.

Drosil was glad that Marco understood the seriousness of the matter, and gave him a small nod as he walked away. As the group headed out, Drosil gave a final glance towards Ambrosia his gaze sliding across towards Christopher as he felt something clench in his chest. It was an unpleasant feeling, and one that he felt he'd long buried. The interaction between the Divine and her child reminded him rather painfully of how his own Divine parent never sought him out, never set him any guidance, nor even made their presence known in any way, shape or fashion. While he did care deeply for his caretakers . . . there was always a distance between them, maintained by secrets that the two would never share. THey laughed, they smiled, but he could never truly consider them his mother or his father, even in an adoptive sense. They cared for him because it was their job, and while they did enjoy it and care for him, they never let their guard down, never let him into their hearts.

He'd only really thought about this in his final years at the orphanage, having seen all the other kids, his friends, leaving with their new families, all happy smiles and tender embraces. It wasn't until he felt a tap from Sir Maul's antenna that he realized that he squeezing his fists so tightly that his knuckles were turning white, nor that his teeth were grinding together so fiercely. He told himself to relax, attempting to clear his head of these unwelcome thoughts, but all that came to mind was that first image of the Divine rushing forward to hug her child, and soon after an image of himself studying alone with a Jasian Library, 17 years old and surrounded by many summoning tomes, filled with the passion that first brought him towards his current passion and field of study: The desire to summon a Divine whenever he wished.

Shaking his head, he simply focused on something else, his eyes tinging slightly with purple energy as he felt a familiar touch make it's way up from the small of his back. The phantom presence located inside of his own mind was reveling within the feel of his dark and hateful thoughts, a teasing chuckle resounding in his head, amused by how deep strong a chord this jealousy struck within his soul.

---

Sometime later. . .

---

Drosil was very impressed by the powerful magic he was seeing as the group entered the world of their host, but he also couldn't help the instinctual terror that rose up within him, both his own and that of the other being that held onto his soul. Still, afraid or not, he was scanning all of the world around him, taking down notes on all of the magical emanations he could understand, and even that he couldn't. His examinations of the dimensional space was interrupted, however, by a sudden rumbling that exploded into a golden blur streaking it's way through the air, aiming for Christopher, but hitting the Fortune-teller instead. Drosil blinked slightly as he found the blur to be a young girl(young, at least, in terms of attitude and appearance, if not actual age), and couldn't help but tilt his head slightly in confusion as he found that Etsuko had apparently already been acquainted with the girl in question, who the butler fellow introduced as Lady Helle, younger sister of the one they had come to see. At the mention of Karin, however, he couldn't repress the shiver that ran through his form, a desire to flee overcoming him for a second before he suppressed it, if only barely. His head was filled with a barrage of gruesome imagery, bodies adorning a field, glowing crimson eyes in darkness, bright silver hair dyed red by the blood of a hundred demons. THese and more filled his head as he walked forward with the others, having dismounted from Sir Mauls, who had decided to follow with the rest instead of waiting outside with the other mounts, much to the relief of the horses he was sure.

Entering the mansion, he felt a mix of comfort from no longer freezing his butt of, and dread as he felt the fear inside of his gut fill him even more intensely . . . as well as other emotions. Lustful desire, something he hardly felt in such strength, suddenly assaulted him, fantasy upon fantasy and causing his face to turn about as red as the over-sized moon from outside. He shook his head, and spoke a short spell of focus on himself, a simple incantation that assists helps block out outer interference. It helped a little, making it so that he could actually think and pay attention inside of his own mind. If anyone where to look at him now, they'd find that he'd look quite frustrated with something, though what was hard for them to say.

Okay, so either she's fucking with me right now, or has some extremely mixed feelings about this woman. Either way, I doubt my time here will be anything less than excrutiating. *sigh* I should have Shadar deal with this instead, but he'll probably switch back as soon as he realizes what I'm trying to do.

When they were finally introduced to their patron, the fear came back stronger than ever as he laid his eyes on their host, as he took an instinctive step back, his eyes quickly shifting to a violet hue before he closed them shut and rub them, whispering the focus spell several times over and over in order to keep him from attempting to flee the room that moment. Still, he couldn't help but feel the pressure of her power weighing down on him as he approached, making sure to take a seat that was as far away as possible from the demon as possible. While he remembered what Lady Ambrosia had said, he couldn't help his own terror from driving him away from her, having a grand distaste for demons in general, though he didn't let it show. That being so, he had little doubt that the deceptively young looking girl in front of them could tell how uncomfortable he was, and probably knew the reason why as well. As the food appeared on his plate, he couldn't bring himself to eat, having lost much of his appetite upon entering the mansion, and the fact that he was still suffering a bit from the feelings from before. As such, seeing the Traditional Jasian meal before him, a concoction of delectable spices and meats that had yet to be so perfectly recreated since he had left the orphanage, made him feel just a tad more melancholy than he had felt before.

He looked up from his meal, looking between Thuraya and Karin as the former seemed to struggle with the fact that the child-like figure was more than she seemed. Drosil had no such problems, having studied and experienced such a phenomena many times over, and having suffered ever so slightly for underestimating a summoned being just because it looked like a child. He shuddered slightly as he recalled the time he'd summoned his first pixie, remembering rather keenly the feeling of it's tiny syringe-like teeth as it tried to bite his hand off that one time. he'd given too much power to the Fae, causing it too grow large and ferocious as a result, and had gotten quite the scolding from his professor for that mess up. Luckily, everything had gotten relatively under control, and they only had to worry about the Mega-pixie , as it had been named, every full moon or so.

As KArin spoke to them all, however, Drosil did a good job of schooling his face so as not to let on to the guilt he felt stab at his chest as he heard of the Advisor and her organization. FInding out that she was only one of the lower rungs of the operation made him feel rather pathetic as a mage, as he knew she was leagues above him . . . and that the ones stronger than her where behind the god kings made him realize how deep in the shit he currently was. There was no getting out of this organization alive, that he was now certain . . . but maybe if he could get some information out of them, something to assist the Prince. The God kings where a terror on the world, and any organization that were behind them were not one he wanted to be behind.

But you know . . . if they birthed the God kings, imagine what power they have at their command, what kind of knowledge they hold? Do you really think that such knowledge, that which you've been seeking all your life, can be obtained by pure and moral means? Why give up this chance just for a man you barely know, a country you bear no allegiance to. . .

Drosil froze slightly as he heard the voice in his head, because it was not the soft, sultry one he'd been expecting, trying to pull at his darker side. It was his own voice, his own thoughts, which had reverberated through his mind, and to make matters worse, he felt himself getting dragged into the seductive promise that the voice whispered to him. However, he shook his head again, warding it off, as he made himself eat, feeling a knife plant itself deep in his chest and twist around a bit with every bite reminding him of what he had never truly had, of what he was trying to run from, and what he truly desired.

That being said, he couldn't fault that the food was as delicious as he remembered. Almost brought him to tears.

---

As the man with the violin appeared, another slamming of the door could be heard, but whoever turned to look would find the hallway the portal lead to being completely empty, as if a soul had never passed through there at all. It wouldn't be until a voice spoke up from near Etsuko that attention would likely be drawn to the second newcomer. He was a tallish man, standing about 5'11, dressed in rather plain, travel-worn clothes as opposed to the more well-dressed man that had come before him. He wore a simple white tunic with leather breeches, his form framed with a patchwork cloak made form many different forms of fabric, going from expensive silks to plain cottons, ranging every color of the rainbow and beyond. Hanging from his neck was a elaborate jeweled and designed medallion, with four gleaming red jewels near the center, metal encasing them with petal-like extensions sprouting all around it like multi-colored flower petals. As for the man himself, he was a very handsome individual, his blond hair reaching all the way down to his back in a rolling wave, shifting from it's natural golden hue to a veritable rainbow of dyes and hues, all of them strangely seeming to compliment each other instead of clashing garishly as they should. His skin was rather tanned, similar to that of Drosil, actually, but of a somewhat deeper pigment. As he fixated a single, ice-blue eye down upon Etsuko, the other covered by a simple black eyepatch, he got down to one knee, reaching out to lightly grasp her hand and give it a light kiss, as if he was a knight greeting a princess.

Rising soon after, he gave a warm smile down towards the woman before him, speaking in a melodious voice that tickled the ears upon hearing it, giving a low bow to both Etsuko and then the rest of the group as he introduced himself.

"Hello all, my name is Ian Blackwood, a rather humble bard who Lady Renata has taken the time to help from time to time. I must say, however, that I feel rather bullied by both the ladies of this household, for they did not prepare me for charm of the Diviner, nor her other lovely compatriots." Ian gave an over dramatic spin, as he grasped at his hear, seemingly pained as his form fell over in a tumble of cloth, only to disappear, as if he was erased from existence. Before the group would have time to wonder what happened, Ian's voice would be heard from near Cyril and Ayano(assuming they were sitting near each other, if not he's next to Cyril). "I must say, Prince Cyril, you're exploits, both past, present, and future, will likely make for great tales for me and my ilk to carry across the land. Ah, the very thought of it makes me wish to break out into song."

The flamboyant man suddenly seemed to produce a Lute from out of nowhere and, without further adieu, sang. The language was not one known by most, light and airy as if it was the voice of the very sky and sunshine, but it would touch them all to their core. As he played and sang, the group would feel their souls become lifted, their worries eased, their darkness abated as a brilliance seemed to radiate of the man, impossible to see with ones eyes, yet impossible to miss. They'd be reminded of better times, happier times, uplifting times where things were so much simpler and the worries of life seemed so far away. After what seemed like hours of pleasant listening, but was truly only a few minutes, the song would come to a close, and the man would take a bow before appearing on the other side of Lady Renata and Dimitrius. Noticeable only to these two, however, would be a single, hungering glance at what they held in their cups, but in the split second that it broke through, the look was gone, and he was moving on to bow towards the Lady of the house.

"I apologize for my intrusion, but I couldn't help but see who had come, as well as make a good first impression while I can. It's always fun to meet new people, after all. But seriously, couldn't you have told me that so many lovely individuals would be coming? I swear, I was almost blinded in the one good eye I had left."

Returning to the Renata Manor was something akin to coming home. Albeit, a very red, somewhat eerie but still beautiful home. When her world finally stopped spinning, she was certainly surprised to see a home cooked meal in front of her. The smells made her think of the cottage she and Calypso shared and made her nostalgic for their home in their small village.

The conversation between Lady Renata and her guests immediately set an urgent and tense atmosphere, making Etsuko feel somewhat uncomfortable eating the comfy meal in front of her. The air was relatively thick until the sound of a violin could be heard from the end of the table.

She looked up from her plate and watched as the youthful looking man came walking towards the front, smiling to herself as she hummed along to the sounds of the violin. She briefly wondered where he was during her stay. Perhaps he was a new resident? His flamboyant nature juxtaposed greatly with Lady Renata’s, and even Richard’s.

She was about to introduce herself when she heard another male voice speak up near her, causing the Diviner to jump slightly. She looked up at the newcomer and watched as his eye settled on her. The young woman blinked, wondering if there might’ve been something on her face when he got on one knee and took her hand from where it had been on the table. It wasn’t until he kissed it gently that her face turned bright red.

Her face stayed bright red as he introduced himself. She started fidgeting slightly in her seat as he began to sit, embarrassed by what had just happened.

As the bard began singing, Etsuko admitted to herself that his voice did possess a calming quality. However, she managed to glance at Lady Renata and wondered whether these two men were supposed to diffuse the tense atmosphere on purpose or if she found their sudden appearances to be a nuisance. It seemed so by the long tea sip Karin had taken after Dimitirius entered the room.

Both men asked everyone how they were, perhaps to introduce themselves. Etsuko was so embarrassed—and probably shocked by the attention Ian had given her—that she just poked the food on her plate with her fork. She could hardly give a response. The Diviner also wasn’t sure if she was allowed to encourage the men’s behavior and found it easier to stay quiet.

Dalious walked along with the others through the darkened forest, holding Stealthion's reigns in his left hand as he moved along. The cool windy air wasn't much a problem for him as it seemed to be for the maority of the group, his light armor felt tight to his skin. It was comfortable and reasonably warm in harsh conditions, a perfect fit for him. The blacksmith that made it for him was a true talent, and Dalious was thankful for crossing paths with the man. However, in the midst of all the chaos that happened back at the castle, and with how quickly the group set out again, he was unable to make sure the man was still alive. Hopefully he was, and that he survived the slaughter. Dalious made a mental note to himself to seek out the blacksmith upon return. He was so drunk that night, he couldn't even remember the damned man's name!

Pulling his hood further over his face, he walked until the mist was partially going away. He could see Stark walking amongst him and a few others. While he had noticed a few of the others taking greater interests in magics from Drosil, the one that he himself found the most curious, even moreso than the divine herself, was that power of Starks. Whatever the hell it was. 'Water magic. How bloody useful that could of been all those years at sea'. He was to ask the girl about it, but dipping in his thoughts for to long, he looked up and found that they were at the destination.

A curious brow rose for a moment as he saw that it was nightfall. More magic, something he was slowly beginning to get used to. He briefly put a finger to the hilt of the blade sheathed to his back, but as no one seemed threatened, he relaxed again. The mansion was beautiful, and so was everything surrounding it. It was a gloomy kind of beauty, his favorite for some reason, though it made him cautious. He paused a moment to stare, debating if he were to follow the rest inside. He calmly stroked Stealthion's neck as he pondered. 'Feels a trap to me' he thought to himself. Again, he didn't want to cause trouble where it was not needed, so he watched the others and did as they did. He followed again, only to find the earth shaking and a large bright light coming.

Dalious dove out of the way as the shining thing seemed to bounce around. He coward behind Vesta until it hit Etsuko and revealed its true self. The poor pirate almost had a heart attack with all this damned magic coming freely into his life. He stood and took out his flask of whiskey, he took a swig of it then offered it over to Vesta. "...the hell was that about?"

The Lady of Demons was then introduced, as well as many others that the pirate was losing track of. There were to many damned names for him to remember, he was moreso a face person anyway. He remained silent as everyone else spoke, and gladly took a part in the feast. The music being played was also quite relaxing to him, though he paid very little attention to that as he stuffed his face. He was able to go without food for many days when he wanted or was forced, but there was nothing finer in his mind than having your way at all you wanted. He ate and drank until his plate was clean, then looked over at Etsuko who was sitting next to him. She seemed to be bedazzled by some handsome lad that came forth. He leaned in as she poked at her food.

"You gonna eat that??"

Etsuko hardly registered what was going on, seemingly content with just poking her food around her plate. Hearing Dalious’ voice made her jump, since she had assumed Calypso was sitting by her and not the pirate.

She gave a polite smile and pushed her half-eaten plate in his direction.

”Please, go right ahead.”

She had lost her appetite anyway.

Vesta was mute for the rest of the ride. She almost always had a sour look on her face to begin with, as if her horse had just trotted in something foul, but there was something about it now that looked sunken, sullen, and exhausted. She hardly directed her horse; it was only through the fine breeding of the horse that she had spent quite a sum of the Ambassador’s money on that she even remained with the others. Otherwise, as distracted as she was Vesta would have been fine with letting the animal wander off and graze in a field. Even the bizarre transition from day to night that normally would have jangled alarms to be wary of witchery and draw her sword closer to her did not draw the woman out of her daze-like state.

She dismounted only because the others had, following their motions like some sort of puppet. It was the easiest way a soldier could function, yet certainly the least efficient. Her body acted on its own as it braced itself as the ground shook, and only by muscle memory alone did she reach for her sword as the loud scream echoed throughout the air of the strange atmosphere. Vesta hardly noticed the pirate sneaking behind her for cover as the whirl drew closer, and only by the grace of it being too quick and crashing into somebody else did she not pull her sword on the girl. Already again she was sinking back into her own thoughts, although she didn’t ignore Dalious’s flask—she didn’t need to think to know that she needed a drink. Her hand dropped the noticeably lighter flask back towards him without even the slightest hint of thankfulness as she filed in behind the others into the house of the Lady of Demons.

It was the mention of the God Kings that pulled her out of her haze. Her eyes narrowed as Karin and the Prince continued to talk, the food in front of her remaining untouched. The mention of a shadowy group of Divineborns caused her to throw a suspicious glance towards Drosil and Ambrosia’s dear baby boy, Christopher. Then she chuckled to herself, shaking her head—she knew that was ridiculous. Of course, even with this information Vesta was only certain of one thing: they should have been fighting Gartian inside of dining with some devil. Pawn or not, the less pieces on the board the better of a position they were in—and right now as those around her stuffed their faces she couldn’t help but consider how many Barceans were in skirmishes with the H’kelan regulars.

And then something horrible happened.

Some fop entered the room, manicured in such a way that Vesta couldn’t help but be reminded of the H’kelan Ambassador. She looked with some disdain at the instrument in his hand, saved only by the grace of some Divine that the man with four hundred million names was only interested in talking than playing. Yet, bards were much like other typical pests where if there’s one there was bound to be others, and Vesta’s fears were confirmed almost intermediately as another garishly dressed man swaggered into the room with an air of unearned confidence that seemed to radiate from their kind—and this one wanted to sing. Vesta buried her face into her hand, her fingers gripping the bridge of her nose as if she was suffering from some kind of migraine before he had even plucked the first note.

To be honest, it wasn’t the worst song she had ever heard. She actually felt strangely relieved for a moment, although that relief flew out the door the moment the music stopped as all of her doubts and apprehensions swooped back in—accompanied now by the annoyance of being around not one, but two bards. She nearly threw her back out with the huff that escaped from her throat while Dalious and Etsuko played with their food, and leaned forward in her seat so that she could look down the table at the Lady of Demons.

“Before I ask my question, will there be anymore guests of yours barging in? A Jasian belly dancer? A Guratan sword swallower? A western mage who insists on showing us his amazing ability to pull a white rabbit out of his hat?” she said, counting each imaginary resident of with her fingers before curling her hand into a fist and pointing at the table with annoyance. “Or could we take a moment to discuss how we fight these Manu Propria. I highly doubt they are spending their time stuffing their faces and singing songs between apparently manipulating and creating kings. So, unless we can kill them through the power of song,” she said, her eyes darting between the two newcomers, “then perhaps we should focus. And if that is the way then I’ll regretfully not be much help, since I seemed to have forgotten to pack my flute, what, with all of my countrymen dying and whatnot.”

She sighed, the harshness dropping from her voice as it was replaced with pure exhaustion. “I’ve experienced firsthand the power of the God Kings. You’re saying these bastards created them.” The thought of what was to come made her body feel heavy. “That’s just...forget it,” she said, shaking her head. “Nevermind. Tell me where they are and how to kill them. That’s all I need. Nothing else.”

And with that she pushed her plate of warm bread over to Dalious.

The sniper had only been at half attention after her interaction with the Divine. Sure, she had been grateful to meet someone such as herself but it has lost it’s effect on her as Ambrosia’s words came into full effect on the forefront of her mind.

’Would it ever be safe enough to go back? Should I just stop thinking about the West all together?’

The thoughts filled her mind as the fog filled the air around them. If she’d been on her normal guard she’d have realized that the area around them was warping and changing into something less than normal. It wasn’t until it was fully upon them at Alice snapped from her thoughts and the full force of the altered space kicked in.

She’d glanced behind her where Stark had been riding towards the back. She seemed nervous, scared even. Almost like a caged animal; seeing her like that made the pit in Alice’s stomach grow.

Dismounting in such an odd location and barely realizing what was going on with the small bundle that went rip roaring through them all Alice very much so felt herself on guard with a hand brushing the cool metal of her pistols and her head on a swivel to assess their surroundings. Even entering into the mansion with the distorted air she couldn’t help but feel the hairs on the back of her neck standing on end.

And yet as she was introduced Alice felt her head tilting to the side in curiosity. Something was drawing her to get closer towards the woman...at least close as would be politely allowed. She took her place near to the Lady’s position as she could manage after the ‘important’ people’ had taken their place. She’d leaned back in her chair simply listening to the deemed ‘Lady of Demons’ before less than subtly looking over the two bards who had wandered their way in singing. A passing thought of climb one of them flashed through her mind before she turned her attention back to the powerhouse in the room and the sight behind her; the red swirling mass catching her line of sight for a few second.

She paused a moment, shifting her line of sight from behind the striking woman to the woman herself, before opening her mouth, “Excuse me if I misheard but you’re said to be the Lady of Demons, correct?” Her focus on the woman and not on the two doot doots flamboyantly making their rounds. They weren’t of concern at the moment-she was.

To begin with, the Lady of Demons didn’t return the focus that the hired gun was giving her at all. Instead, she was focused on once more drawing the tea set close to her, though she never touched it to move it; instead she just waved her hand slightly, which caused the set to slide over to her without a noise. Another cup was poured, the same substances going in as before. This included the deep red substance, but rather than spooning it over it rose on its own, slowly curling through the air as it went to deposit itself into the cup.

Only when the spoon was set to stir the cup by itself did the Lady Renata look up to Alice with a slow blink, followed by a nod. “That is one of the more popular titles for me, yes.” After that she then looked to the older woman who had spoken up just before. For a moment she pondered, quietly mouthing to herself, “A Jasian…” but she never quite finished that thought before she shook her head slightly, saying, “Be patient, Ms. Debove. Those details will come. You are probably correct in assuming our enemies aren’t taking a break as you might be, but you don’t have to stoop to their level to overcome them.” With that said, she slowly looked back to Alice’s direction, as if she expected more.

It took quite a bit of her own focus not to flinch back from that odd odd gaze but she managed..barely. “If I may be so bold as to ask...why would the Lady of Demons be willing to help a kingdom on the brink of war? Why assist with Barcea at all? Wouldn’t you be able to take charge and wipe out all those you deem an enemy?” Of course she wasn’t questioning the clearly powerful woman’s ability but it was striking her as odd. Why lend assistance when you should be powerful enough to take care of everything on one’s own?

Lady Renata’s smile grew ever slightly as she gave a nod, taking a sip before she replied. “A simple but rational question, with more than one answer. I assist Barcea because I have a vested interest in seeing the Manu Propria’s plans crumble, and since they back H’kelan then I’ll back their enemy. Furthermore, I’ve always had an interest in seeing Barcea flourish; technically, I do live in the land after all. And why I don’t take care of it myself, well…”

Another sip was taken, her closing her eyes briefly. Only when she opened them again a few seconds later did she speak, saying, “I took care of everything myself long ago, and it left me spent for a very long time. I had to rest for a long while, and it’s probably part of the reason why the Manu Propria was able to start gaining the momentum they currently have. At the same time, the Crux is certainly just as strong as I am, and unlike them I don’t have as many extremely powerful subordinates to strike with in unison. So, I’m using the resources available to me, setting up for the killing blow.”

The smile that was waiting to surface on Alice’s lips was struggling to be hidden. She leaned back in her own seat before simply nodding and letting the smile out. “Playing it like a game of chess and letting the enemies tired themselves out before finishing it. I highly respect that, my Lady. I do wish we can have conversations in the future. I’d love to pick your brain about a few different things.”

“Certainly testing their current strength at the very least, and drawing them out.” Her shoulders raised slightly in her shrug, even as she held her tea close and yet not quite yet taking another sip. “Anything else, Ms. Leon?”

“What did you mean by gifts?”

“Now now, my dear, be patient. It’d be terrible to spoil the surprise.”

“My apologies, Lady Karin.” She gave a small nod before pulling her own tea cup to her lips, after depositing a few sugar cubes, with a clearly pleased expression.

“Noted, Ms. Leon.” With that, the Lady took another sip.

---

It hadn't taken Marco long to catch up to the others, riding at a swift gallop until he caught the tail end of their group. He had much to reflect once since the meeting with the Divine. Any whom may have noticed him would have gathered that he was more silent than usual. Like a brooding storm cloud hung over the boy for the remainder of the trip.

Though, the natural beauty of the trip though the mountains and enclosed forest was not lost to him. From time to time, he was gazing upon the lands in hopes to discover something new. He would occasionally jot down quick notes in his journal as his pony rode onward, stopping briefly to take a small sample with him. He would never pass up the opportunity to learn something new.

Once they reached the mansion however, the boy finally spoke.

"By the Divine...," he whispered quietly as the others began to dismount. He had never seen the moon that color, or that big. He could see the imperfections upon its surface due the the eons of existence that came to mar it. He quickly recovered, following the others to the large doorway that was opened to them all.

However, he did not enter soon enough. A flash of a small being came flying past him and knocked him over into a nearby fountain ass first. He quickly spat out some of the water that flew into his mouth and look toward what caused him to spill over. He wasn't angry at the girl that was embracing Etsuko, well what he assumed to be a girl with the strength of ten gorillas at least, but rather curious. He didn't dwell on it for long however. He quickly removed himself from the fountain and began drying off his belongings with a simple fire spell. "I will be in shortly," he shouted to Richard as he worked the water from this clothing, "I don't want to hold the others up." Still the butler waited patiently for him.

He wandered into the mansion with the others, surrounded by the soft sound of music like a siren's call. It was pleasant to hear and mesmerized him into following its tune. He became aware that on his own he would have been lost within the mansion's expansive halls and silently thanked Richard for his assistance. Having seen the Lady of Demons for the first time, he was conflicted. She was cute, small and adorable... but he felt nothing from her other than the warm greeting smile... or at least what he perceived as warm. He remembered the same when he saw the Divine, though he couldn't grasp how Karin looked not a day beyond her prepubescent years. Marco found himself short of breath at her sight, though he managed to hide it better than before. She looked no older than he did, though he could only imagine what magics she used to hold such an appearance.

"Thank you, ma'am, for having us," he said politely before take a seat at the far end of the hall, away from the Lady of Demons. He glanced over at his guest, the Guratan warrior named Thuraya, before their meals appeared before him. His eyes widened as he saw his favorite meal. Shepherd's pie with golden flaky crust, mashed potatoes covered in melted butter, corn off the cob in a sweet cream sauce, and bread made from cornmeal. His mouth began to water just from the different aromas, though he knew that this plate was just for him. He took up his silverware and cut into the pie, steam rising forth, and brought a small fork load to his mouth. It was quite delicious, though it felt like it missed something. The more he ate, the less he tasted the food. It was until he was half way through the pie that he knew what was missing.

A tear ran down his cheek as he thought about his mother and her passing. It was her cooking that he missed most, the love and care that went into each ingredient. He sniffed back more tears that wanted to flow, insisting on finishing his meal. He didn't want to ignore Karin's hospitality, such rudeness would sullen the teachings that his mother and father gave him. He grasped the mug of coffee, that he discovered much to his surprise again, and swallowed many hefty gulps. It burned on the way down, but warmed his chest and brought a small smile back to his face.

"I may be a simple boy," he spoke briefly as he rested the mug back down. "Born a farmer and his wife after a time of strife, but you have a way with cooking, Lady Karin. The food is delicious and reminds me of a life I may never get back. It was good to remember my roots during a time where I do not know of my future."

There was much that he was unsure of, and frankly it scared him, but he had to keep a brave face. He wasn't the only one frightened by these events he was certain. But the others came willingly and would do what they could to ensure that they remained safe. It would be foolish to think that he would do less than that. 'Divine watch over us, those who seek peace, in this war brewing at our feet,' he thought in silent prayer as be started to mix his corn with his potatoes.

The Renata Household - Dining Hall

At Marco's compliment the Lady of Demons had a strange reaction. For a moment she didn't react at all, as if she missed what he said entirely as she simply took a sip from her tea, and then her eyes widened suddenly even as the sip went down. Quickly she lowered her cup as her shoulders shook, head bowed briefly before she looked up, laughing only when it wouldn't send her tea spewing forwards.

"I appreciate the compliment, Mr. Maxwell, but I certainly don't prepare my own meals."

A few snickers later and a slight shake of her head led to her lowering her cup, once more looking to them all. Her hand went out, and lazily the very tip of her very sharp nail of her forefinger began to slowly stir the liquid. She seemed pensive, thinking to herself, before she suddenly removed her hand and waved with a slight flourish of her fingers. Quickly Richard stepped forwards, removing the tea set from in front of her even as she spoke.

"Please, finish your meals, and then go and rest yourselves. You had a very long trip, and you should enjoy this time while you have it. Remember, I'll be speaking to each of you at some point in the following days, so expect me to find you."

In that moment Helle suddenly sprung up with such force that it sent her chair wobbling erratically, and it would have fallen over if it weren't for Richard's intervention. She ended up landing on the table, feet barely missing her own plate and silverware as she threw her arms out, saying, "I'll lead you all to the guest rooms! They're easy to find!"

"Everything here is easy to find, so long as you remain calm." The Lady of Demons began to rise then, turning to walk over to a small door to the side. "Enjoy your night."

---

The Capitol of Barcea

The Capitol of Barcea was under siege. It was at noon that news of the approaching H'kelan army reached the Queen, and by then it was far too late to do anything besides prepare for the inevitable. The gates were shut and the walls manned, and for two hours the entire city waited with bated breath. When the H'kelan forces appeared, however, whatever hope they had of fighting them off died instantly. The army could have been more accurately described as a horde, easily thousands of H'kelans thirsty for Barcean blood flooding around the Capitol's walls, surrounding them entirely.

At the forefront of the forces stood Gartian and his Advisor, the Rabid King grinning at the front. Holding a torch he stepped forwards, toeing the line that was the range of the Barcean archers, getting close enough to tempt them to prepare to fire but never getting close enough to actually be in danger. From this position he brought his voice up, calling out so that everyone on that side of the wall could hear him without straining:

"GOOD AFTERNOON, MY FOUL WRETCHES! I COME HERE FOR ONE PERSON ONLY; YOUR SO-STICKILY-BELOVED QUEEN! HOW I GET HER IS UP TO YOU; THIS CAN GO BY WITHOUT A SNEEZE, OR I CAN REACH HER USING A BRIDGE MADE OF YOUR CORPSES!"

Though Gartian may have phrased it in such a way that it could have been viewed as a temptation for betrayal, both sides knew that none of the Barcean soldiers would ever turn against their country and their Queen in such a low way. Not even a murmur passed up and down the wall, everything silent save for the Captain of the Guard ordering a messenger to be sent up to the castle. The messenger was able to move quickly through the streets seeing as they were clear of everyone except other soldiers, the citizens of Barcea having already been told to keep to their homes with their doors locked.

The Queen had spent her time waiting in the throne room since the news of the impending attack, and this is where the messenger found her. Quickly dropping to one knee he relayed Gartian's demands, while also telling her that the Barceans were prepared to fight and die to keep her safe...

But this didn't seem to bring any sort of comfort to the Queen. Quietly, Kori simply shut her eyes, and stayed like that for almost three minutes before she sighed, saying, "I suppose I have no choice then..." With that, she began to slowly stand.

Thin lips parted, single icy blue eye widened as it fell upon the messenger, and then the Queen. Head turned to watch the Queen, waiting patiently for her response. Like all those outside this room, outside these walls, Krissandria too was willing to lay down her life for her. Yet with so many people ready to die, she knew that Kori would never let such a thing come to pass. She knew that if given the choice, she would gladly give herself over to save the lives of those trying to save her own.

Finally, when she spoke, the elf reached forward, stopping just short of taking the Queen's arm in her grasp. Fingers hesitant, they simply let their tips brush against arm instead. "Your Majesty..." Anything she said would be for nothing, she knew that already. She wouldn't convince her to change her mind, not while everyone was in such danger. Not while she was the only one who would be able to save these lives. Eye closed, and finally fingers pressed a little harder against the Queen's arm, teeth clenched. "Surely... Surely there must be something else we can do." blue orb opened, gazed, showing determination to find another way, sorrow for the inevitable choice that had already been made.

The Queen fully stood, but didn't take that first step forwards thanks to the touch of the elf. It brought her pause, and once more she closed her eyes. However, they didn't remain shut for very long that time, the Queen soon looking to Krissandria with an intense sort of resolve that, while not surprising considering who the Queen was, still seemed just a little out of place.

"Not this time, Krissandria. There is no reason to draw this out. Cyril and Ayano are safe, so fighting now would simply be a waste of life. I will give Gartian what he wants; I will surrender myself to him, and he will retreat from the Capitol. Of this I am certain."

With what she had said, there was nothing to keep Gartian from storming the Capitol after she turned herself over... But it was as if Kori knew something that they didn't, something that would indeed mean Gartian would have no choice but to leave the Capitol be.

Regardless of how certain she seemed, Krissandria couldn't help but lean ever so slightly closer to her. Anyone else wouldn't have noticed, but Kori would. Eye looked between the Queen's two. "Majesty..." she said again, voice hushing significantly, "I thought the worst before; that I might have lost you. Then again right after I came close once more; I vowed to you I would not leave your side again. I would keep you safe." mind raced, going over what Kori had said once more, she knew two things. Kori would not change her mind, and for her to accompany the Queen wasn't possible either.

Another moment of silence and a soft sigh escaped her lips, "So what would you have me do..?"

For a moment Kori was silent, and then she replied quietly, "I don't plan on this being the end, Krissandria. Not nearly. Go to Cyril, as fast as you can, and let him know what happened. I have no doubt he'll rush to join the Guratans and tell them what happened as well, and from there... We can end Gartian's aggression." For a moment she was silent again, before she reached up to gently rest her hand on the elf's gripping just a little tightly. "Take your sister with you, just in case. If anyone can help her become stronger and what she was meant to be, it's Lady Renata."

Hand turned from her arm and grasped back at the Queen's hand, eye closing once more. She bowed slowly, very slightly. The bow held only a moment before halberd clattered to the floor and her other arm came around to pull Kori into an embrace. Breaths were deep, as though trying their hardest to keep calm, and three words whispered to the Queen's ear before the blonde pulled away. She turned to pick up her weapon and looked at it as she stood. Posture straightened and her expression changed to a blank one. 'The next time I see you... I will never leave you again.'

As for her sister, "Yes, we'll go. But you know... Alicandriella will be upset she didn't get to see you off with a care basket." a poor attempt at lightening the mood, but an attempt no less. "Be safe, Kori..."

When the embrace came Kori returned it just as tightly, closing her eyes only after she was certain Krissandria could no longer see her face. If there had been no one else in the throne room the Queen would have shown the briefest signs of weakness... But she wasn't allowed even that relief thanks to the presence of the other guards. She fully regained her composure as the elf did the same, and a gentle smile came over her face at the mention of Alicandriella's name, her nodding.

"I will be, Krissandria. You as well. Be as quick as you can."

Steps took her from the throne room, down to the stables. As she readied herself, she couldn't help but look to such a noble steed and feel as though she were the worst knight, unfit to protect such a Queen as Kori. Trying to make light of things her mind resulted to blaming the fact she lacked any shining armour, but the thought was quickly pushed aside. Saddle set upon two horses, halberd strapped to the side of one, a bow and light mace to the other. She pulled herself up and made way into the city then, turning off the main road into the business district. If she knew her sister, she would be thinking positively, and making the best of things here, rather than in her home. And right she was to assume such things.

She hopped off the horse, tied him and the other off to a post and slowly opened the door. The gentle ringing of a bell sounded above her and for a moment, things seemed fine. The smell of freshly baked goods wafted into her nose and it was a pleasant quiet, unlike how it had been in the throne room. "Alicandriella?"

The sound of her name could only bring one reply; "I'll be right out! Just give me a moment!"

Krissandria sighed, they didn't have time... "Alicandriella we don't have the luxury of time on our side. Please, we must speak."

She was greeted by a slightly smaller elf who looked nearly identical, save slightly darker eyes and hair. That, and instead of battle-ready attire, she stood in a corset and dress. She had a very folksy peasant look about her, and the bright pink oven mits didn't seem to help any. She carried the tray to the front counter and started putting the goods onto the rack. "Let me guess. You're going off on another important mission, and I'll be left to worry about you for a while again."

"I wish that were the case... Unfortunately, you won't be worrying about me. You'll be accompanying me. Get your things, we leave as soon as you're ready."

"What? What could I possibly do to help? I'll just get in the way, aren't there other knights that can-"

"Damnit Alice! We don't have time for this! Get your things ready, now! Close the shop, grab what you need, we're leaving!"

The smaller elf flinched backward slightly, but after a moment of really taking in her sister's expression for the first time since she arrived, she nodded and went into the back portion of the shop. Ovens were turned off, dough put away and she grabbed a few of her belongings that she had with her. Her pennywhistle, cloak, coin and seed pouches, along with a larger satchel filled with food - mostly sweets, but some other food items as well - then met her sister in front again.

"What's the matter, Kriss..?"

"We have a long road ahead of us... Just come with me... I'll explain more on the way."

"Will Kori be coming too?" An unsettling pause from the elder sister came then. The younger simply nodded. "I see..." She climbed up onto the horse that her sister had brought for her, and with a gentle pet of the mane, let Krissandria take the lead, following close behind.

By the time the two sisters arrived at the gate to leave the Capitol, it was already opened slightly with guards and Barcean soldiers all around them. None of them were even slightly joyous that beyond the walls the forces of H'kela had already withdrawn; they had seen their Queen give herself up, which the two elves hadn't.

---

The Renata Household - The Next Day

It was only due to the clocks inside the home of the Lady of Demons that any of them would be able to tell that night had passed and morning had come; truly, the unnatural night was eternal surrounding this home. Though the Lady of Demons hadn't explained herself about how remaining calm had anything to do with the hallways of the mansion, the more perceptive while simultaneously being more explorative of the group would learn that the hallways did indeed react to their emotions. Though they always twisted and turned in a confusing manner, so long as one kept calm one would end up at whatever destination within the mansion that they desired... or, in cases where they had no destination in mind, would end up somewhere interesting, or where they should have been.

The halls of the mansion were always quiet. Not a servant was ever seen, even if the halls remained perfectly clean no matter what happened. It was a place full of sights that they had never seen, and would probably never see any else in the world.

Dalious had a confused look on his face. He looked down one hallway, then down another. He had been wandering the mansion for a few minutes after waking up and already found himself alone and lost, though he was without a destination to begin with. So he continued on, picking paths at random only to find that everywhere he walked, it was eerily quiet.

"Hello," he said to no one at all.

As peaceful as it was to him, a headache was forming from being inside. Maybe it was the walls moving, if indeed they were, or maybe he felt like he was in an endless stuck state. He wasn't sure, but as soon as he thought about getting some fresh air, to perhaps get some training in, a door came into his view. He simply walked to it and opened it, then walked outside. As if on command.

Regardless of the color in the sky, Dalious always woke before dawn. Unless, of course, he was blacked out drunk. In which case it would add a few more hours on. He passed the hedge maze and the fountains, and went out into an open field. There he sat with his knees forward into the soft grass, preparing some dragongrass into a small pipe he had carved out of oak. He lit the pipe weed with a match and then took a nice, long drag of it. As he exhaled he closed his eyes and took in the quietness of it all. No sounds, just silence. A perfect place to train.

There was a war coming. On a much larger scale than he had originally predicted. There was to be nothing else on his mind from this moment forth, but to protect and serve the prince. Perhaps getting rich along the way. He began stretching every inch of his body, loosening up any kinks he might have developed from all the horse back riding. His neck and back popped quite often, until everything was set and in place. Dalious dropped to the ground and began doing push ups.

"One, two, three, four..." he started. As he continued, all he could think of was how quiet it was. How peaceful it was. It had been a long time since he had experienced anything like it, and he remembered that time.

"The captain is dead!!" one of the crew members yelled. He had fallen overboard with many others during the hurricane. The waves crashed down around them with intense power and fury, as thunder boomed across the stormy skies and lightning struck all around.

A younger Dalious, one of the deck crew, quickly climbed up the un-piloted ship and grabbed hold of the helm. He struggled with regaining control of it, but once he had it he began barking orders. The men could barely hear him over the harshness of the winds and waves, but the ones that did quickly took to action and the others soon followed.

"Dalious!!" another deck hand called out to him, as the majority of the higher ranking members were already dead. "Look, we're going to die!!" The kid pointed at the biggest wave he had ever seen, coming toward them from the right side. Dalious turned the ship toward the wave.

"Full speed!" Dalious shouted. "Brace yourselves, lads!!"

The ship raced up to the top , forcing through the majority of the wave, though still getting completely crushed by enough water to sour any man's day. Over the wave they went, directly into the eye of the hurricane. Everything seemingly immediately stopped, and all was very still for the moment. The waves even turned from brutal to placid, in a very short amount of time. They could see the storm all around them from a distance, and every man remained as quiet as a mouse for a few moments longer. Some of them wept, thinking of how it all almost just ended. The silence was eerie, just like the mansion he was staying at.

"...fifty nine, sixty...sixty one..."

"Aye, you saved us!" another of the crew said, breaking the peaceful silence. "Captain Dalious!"

The remaining members of the ship all cheered. It was from there that he led them out of the storm, heading through the western path as it was where it was weakest. He would never forget that moment, he could never forget that silence.

When he finished his workout warm ups, he moved on to practicing with his katana. He used slow movements, but focused on the force of a single attack with each strike. He continued this for the next half hour, changing from speed drills to power drills. He also practiced some water dancing, swift fluid like movements that appeared graceful but struck as any deathly blow. It was important to him to train in every kind of art, giving him many options in combat as opposed to the one he started with.

For a long while he was left alone, or seemingly alone. It was difficult to tell inside and around the Lady of Demons' home, as the senses always seemed to be clouded in such a subtle way it was difficult to tell. However, at some point he went from truly being alone to having company, though this company didn't announce itself until it felt like it, after several minutes had passed by.

"What an interesting variety, Captain Durendail." From a nearby bench the Lady of Demons spoke where she watched Dalious, sitting with one ankle lightly crossed in front of the other. In her hands she held a small pouch made of a dark cloth, both hands resting over it slightly as she held it in her lap. "So is that what you want to be? A Jack-of-all-Trades?

"My lady," he said, upon realizing she was present. He sheathed his katana to his back and wiped some sweat from his brow. "I only try to better myself in all forms of combat. Gives me more options. So, yes, I suppose. If only the human life were longer, as there are to many things I would love to learn. Alas, life is to short, especially for a pirate...especially for a pirate fighting in a war. Not an issue I imagine you need worry 'bout? Mortality, that is." He wasn't sure if demons were immortal, but everything surrounding this mansion did make it seem as so. Her appearance, one of a young girl seemingly only with a few years to her, gave him the implication. How old was she really? He wondered what she would really look like, if there were no magic to this place.

A chuckle left her lips, giving a sort of shrug as she began to stand. "I suppose you could put it like that. I certainly am not worried about the same issues as you are, though. Just remember, though, a Jack-of-All-Trades tends to falter against a master of one talent, especially when it matters. But enough of that for the time being. I assume you remember your ship, yes?

"I guess its a good thing I've made friends with other talents along the way," he said, knowing full well he might be getting in way over his head. It was to late though, once he dipped his toes in he had to swim.

"Aye, of course i remember her." He could never forget the first time he set eyes to the Sparrow. He was a poor young lad helping out around at the docks of his village, sleeping in hay stacks and barely getting by with food for a night. His parents were both killed by bandits, or so he was told by the orphanage he stayed at for a time. He had always been on his own. The day the Sparrow came into his life, everything changed. The ships' captain at the time needed a crew, and so he agreed and never looked back. "The Sparrow changed my life. Last I saw of her she was taken from me, from my old crew no less. Probably sold off to some bloke. Why, have you seen her?"

The Lady of Demons shook her head slightly, but the smirking aspect of her smile grew slightly, her clearly knowing something that he didn't; thankfully, this was something she didn't keep to herself, not that time. "No, I haven't seen your ship, but I do have a little bit of news for you. A certain Captain Thorpe has come across the Sparrow, and has decided to keep the ship in his possession for time being until, say, the true owner returns." She gave a slight shrug, though her smile remained as it was. "Something I thought might come across as good news to you."

A wide grin surfaced on Dalious' face. It had been a very, very long time since he had heard that name. Especially the correct version of it, with many other variations floating around the world. Captain Thorpe, Steeljaw himself. Dalious chuckled aloud for a moment, he should have known that pirating bastard was still around causing trouble and having fun. As the memories of the legend began pouring back into his mind, he cut them short out of respect for the Lady of Demons, as she seemed quite the busy body.

"My lady, there is no finer news I could hear!" he said, bending down to attempt to hug her, though stopping short as he wasn't sure of her customs. Instead, he gave her a soft pat on the shoulder. "Thank you. You have made my day. Though I am eager to go out and seek my old friend, I still am the prince's to command. At least until this is all over. There is much still left to do, but I shall rest easy in knowing that the Sparrow is in good hands."

When Dalious moved forwards and seemed like he might embrace her, though her smile didn't fade the eyes of the Lady of Demons narrowed ever slightly. When he thought better of it her gaze became a little less sharp, though her eyebrow raised slightly at the shoulder pat. Slowly looking from his hand up to him, she just slowly nodded. "I thought you might be glad to hear that. You should like what I have for you next." She brought her hand up then, holding up the small bag she carried. "From what I understand, you use a blunderbuss. In this bag is a small amount of shot that you can use for it; however, don't make the mistake of thinking it's any normal kind of shot. If I were you, I would save it until my opponent was someone on the Advisor's level, or higher."

Dalious took the pouch into his hand and bowed low, not expecting this much kindness from the Lady of Demons. It was rare to be treated as such, and though he was not used to it, he embraced it with much respect. He stood again and gave off another nod.

"Thank you again, I shall remember your words," he told her. "It was an honor to cross paths with you, my lady. I do hope we can meet again, perhaps under less stressful circumstances."

"I wouldn't be too surprised if we do, Captain Durendail." She gave a nod, before turning to begin walking away at a leisurely pace. "Good luck with the rest of your exercise."

Dalious watched her leave until she was out of his view. He reloaded his weed pipe with more dragongrass, taking a few puffs as he stood in thought.

"What a nice demon lady," he said to himself, then continued to smoke.

With the majority of the Sentinels breaking up to go train and prepare for war, Etsuko was at a loss for what to do. She couldn’t find her way to the library and for some odd reason, she couldn’t find Calypso. She had a feeling that Helle was somewhere else, so for once, she actually had time for herself in the Renata Manor.

She figured that she could find her way outside and to the rose maze. It was something that she quite enjoyed from her first stay at the manor and she wouldn’t mind seeing it again. It took her a little longer than she would’ve liked to make her way to the front steps, but once she did, she found the rose maze right away.

Since she was already so disoriented by the labyrinth that was Renata Manor, she stayed by the roses that could be seen from the front steps. She would smell one or two, gently caress the petals of a few, but mostly seemed lost in thought.

The flowers had a reaction as soon as she touched them, one that would spread to nearby flowers. To begin with, they were a soft red, but at her touch blue cracks began to slowly form, beginning to spread through the rest of the flower as well. From the ones she touched the color spread to the others, until many of them along that side of the hedge had turned the same blue.

“Whoa, I've never seen anything like that before.” The voice came from behind her, and it was a familiar one to her despite the short amount of time the two knew each other. Quietly, Christopher walked up, staying to the other side of the hedge as he looked over the roses that she had changed.

Though he didn't touch any of the flowers, they still changed, though did so strangely. The red began to slowly fade away, the flowers becoming truly colorless; not white and not black, but almost a sort of see through. He didn't seem to notice, simply bringing up a hand to point at the blue flowers and say, “I like that blue.”

She was startled out of her thoughts when she heard Christopher’s voice, her eyes wide as she turned around and watched him approach. The Diviner hadn’t even been aware that the color of the roses had changed and didn’t see them until he pointed them out.

Quietly, she watched as the roses went from red to, what she figured, was his…colorless. It made her blink. How peculiar.

“I think Ayano says I smell like this kind of blue.”

“What? Oh, right, how she experiences the world.” He nodded slightly. “It doesn't surprise me too much. This place is... weird. Color changing flowers doesn't surprise me that much…” He brought up his hand to rub at the back of his head as he so often did, before gesturing into the hedge maze and asked, “So, uh, would you like to walk for a little? I don't mind and I don't want to stop you.”

She smiled a little at his invitation and nodded.

“Please, lead the way.”

He nodded slightly, turning and beginning to walk. His hands slipped down into his pockets, and a few moments he was silent before he asked, “So, you came here before, huh?”

She nodded again, keeping her hands folded in front of her.

“Yes, with Calypso. Lady Renata seemed to take interest in my foresight.”

He blinked, glancing over to her. “So you really have it, then? Foresight, I mean. The ability to see into the future?”

Another nod was given. ”That’s the one. Although, I know there are a lot of…dishonest people who claim to have my ability…”

“Yeah, I know.” Christopher said with a shrug and a nod. “I’ve met plenty of them on my travels... and Dubois usually takes care of them. Gets pretty annoying after awhile…”

“I can” imagine…”

“Yeah. But you really have it, so that's... pretty impressive, to be honest. It's not a very common ability, for obvious reasons.”

“Yes. I’m truly thankful to the Divines for blessing me with this ability.”

"Er, yeah, if they gave it to you definitely. So, uh, how does it work? Do you just see things, or…?”

"Hm? Oh, I use tarot cards. Would you like me to read your fortune?”

He blinked in surprise, startled. “What, just like that? It's that easy?”

She blinked in response, a small smile tugging at the corner of her lips. “It is.”

The answer seemed to confound him slightly, and left him silent for a few moments. As they passed, it was as if the hedge maze answered for him. Suddenly the narrow path widened into an opening, which revealed one of what was most likely many fountains hidden by the dark green shrubbery walls. Near this fountain were several stone benches.

Giving a slow nod finally, Christopher said, “Sure, I wouldn't mind that at all.”

She began to walk through the opening the maze provided, sitting at one of the stone benches. Reaching for a small pouch attached to her belt, she took out a stack of cards. The backs were painted the same blue as the roses that surrounded her and a minimalist sheep was the only embellishment on them.

She patted the spot on the bench next to her with a small smile. “It’s easier if you sit.”

“Er, right.” Having been briefly unsure of what to do, the grey-haired young man quickly sat down on the bench as well, on the opposite side. He folded both hands in front of him, a slightly nervous motion as he looked to the cards. “Alright, so, uh, how is this going to work?”

Her thumb ran across the back of the cards absentmindedly as she waited for him to sit down. Once he did, she held out the deck to him.

“Shuffle these for as long as you feel necessary and then give them back to me.”

He nodded slightly, reaching over to carefully take the cards. He began to gently shuffle them, as if nervous of breaking them (or, knowing Christopher, accidentally setting them alight with a spark from his gauntlets), but as time passed he began to go a little faster. For about thirty seconds he shuffled the cards, before holding them back to her. “Here you go.”

She took the cards back and drew the first three, keeping them face down. Pointing from her left to right, she said, “This represents your past, present and future. Remember that the future can always change.”

He nodded slightly, looking down to the cards. “Seems pretty straight forward for fortune telling.”

A small smile appeared on her face as she went to turn his “past” card. “I think fortune telling was always meant to be straightforward.”

“Not from what I've seen- and apparently the cards agree, what the fuck-?”

Christopher sat up where he sat, before hunching over the card slightly. The reason why, though surprising, was quite simple; the card that she had flipped over was blank, completely white, as if nothing had ever been detailed into them.

“Do you keep blank ones in there, or something?”

She blinked, confused as to why the card was blank. “No, I don’t…”

She went ahead and flipped the other two, finding those to be blank as well. It was then that she flipped through her entire deck in a somewhat panicked frenzy; they were all blank.

“W-What happened…”

As Etsuko began flipping through the deck and revealed that all the cards were blank, Christopher actually went to standing as he watched, blinking rapidly. “This doesn't usually happen, does it?”

She shook her head furiously, tears beginning to form in her eyes. “N-No…”

“Oh, shi-“ He didn't quite finish the word, his hand going up to rub at the back of his head quickly. “Er, uh... Is there anything we can do?”

A small hiccup escaped from Etsuko as she held the cards in her hand limply. “M-Maybe w-we can ask L-Lady Renata?”

"Er, yeah, that's a good idea. Uh, how the hell are we going to find her, though?”

She looked around and sniffled as she put her cards away. “U-Umm, R-Richard w-was usually around to help me get out, b-but Lady Renata said something about being c-calm…”

“Ah, shit, I hate riddles like that-“

“There's no riddle involved, Mr. Nocte, it's just a matter of remaining calm. Something the both of you seem incapable of doing, at this moment.”

“OH WHAT THE HELL-?!” Christopher nearly tumbled over the bench to the side as he jumped, thanks to the voice that came from behind him. There, of course, stood the ever undetectable Lady of Demons, who raised her eyebrow slightly.

“I sense there's a problem out here? Is Mr. Nocte overstepping his bounds? Should I call his mother to ground him, Ms. Tanaka?”

Another hiccup escaped when Karin appeared. Etsuko’s eyes widened as she saw her and a hint of blush appeared at the Lady’s questions. She shook her head and brought her cards back out.

“N-No, C-Christopher didn’t do a-anything. T-There’s something wrong with the cards…” She held them out to Karin limply, trying not to let any more tears form and fall.

Lady Renata's hand went forwards, gently taking the cards from Etsuko. With one fluid flick of her thumb she looked through the cards, noting how they were all white even though she seemed to only pay them less than half of her attention. It was as if she expected them to be blank. “You attempted to read Mr. Nocte's fortune, then?”

"Y-Yes, ma’am.”

"Then in that case I would say the Manu Propria is well aware of your presence at this point, and they do not want you to have any idea of what's coming for him.” With quick, deft moments the Lady of Demons turned the cards over and began to rapidly shuffle them, coming to a stop after a few seconds. “You'll probably achieve the same result for the rest of your companions, in all likelihood. I would refrain from trying to read their fortunes until I've taught you how to push back their influence a little more. Small questions you might get away with, but a general reading will be perceived as too much by them.”

She gently slid one finger down the backs of the cards, dragging her nail slowly along them. Though there was no immediate visible change, she flipped them over and thumbed through them briskly again; once more, all of the images had returned to the cards. Turning them back again, the Lady of Demons held them back out to their owner. “Irritating, I know.”

Her tears had faded by that point and her worried expression was replaced with a small frown. She took the cards back and put them away, giving a slight bow of her head.

“T-Thank you. I look forward to what you have to teach me later on.”

"I look forward to seeing what you learn. For the time being, however…” The Lady of Demons held her hand out again, but rather than taking it was to give. In it a black card appeared as Lady Renata once more performed the feat of turning shadows into something solid, before placing it down next to Etsuko. “If it happens again, shuffle that card into the deck and the issue should resolve itself. Don't ask the same question again if it causes the cards to go blank.”

With that, the Lady of Demons slowly looked to Christopher... And then she gave a dismissive wave of her hand, turning to begin walking away. “I have nothing to give to you.”

Christopher's jaw dropped ever slightly, in his shock at suddenly being caught off guard by the bait and switch. “Uh... thanks.”

Etsuko watched as Lady Renata created a black card, something that would definitely stand out amongst her deck. She took it and placed it on top of her deck, a small smile appearing on her face.

“T-Thank you.”

She turned to Christopher and gave him a sheepish expression.

“Sorry about…all of this.”

Briefly Christopher watched the Lady of Demons leave, before he glanced to Etsuko; by the time he looked back, Lady Renata was gone. Blinking, he looked back to Etsuko fully, before he gave a slight shake of his head. “It's not a problem. Just, er... Just glad I didn't screw up your cards beyond fixing.”

”I don’t think you could’ve done that. N-Not t-to say that y-you’re not powerful o-or anything, b-but…it takes a certain kind of magic to ruin tarot cards. W-Well, not i-in a physical sense…”

"Er, yeah, I guess so…” Briefly glancing around, he then bristled slightly, before saying, “So, I'm just going to, er... Head on. I've got a feeling the Paladin is looking for me and, well, I don't want to be found…”

"H-Huh? O-Oh, r-right. U-Um, w-would you like me to keep you company? I-It isn’t a fortune, b-but I-I want to make up for it. O-Or lack thereof.”

"No, no, it's alright. We'll hang out later but, right now, I need to move a little more... quickly than just walking. I hope you understand.”

She nodded and gave a polite smile as she stood up. “Oh, alright. Um, be seeing you.”

With that, she turned and left.

And he, on the other hand, looked back and forth with a shifty look in his eye before taking a seemingly random direction away from the spot.

Drosil didn't say anything as the group conversed with the Lady of Demons, simply eating quietly, keeping to himself, and paying only some attention to everything that they were saying. One thing that got his attention was how Karin seemed to take special interest in their resident marksman being a Jasian. He didn't know what to make of that, but he kept it mind, not fully trusting their demonic benefactor for a number of reasons. The fact that she had all but labeled them pawns in her much grander scheme also didn't set well with him, but he also feared what the woman would do if she found out he was connected to the group she sought to destroy. True, it was only a passing connection and he didn't really know anything, but still, she might just kill him just on principle.

Needless to say, Drosil was glad when the excitable demon led them all to their rooms, though he still could find it in himself to truly examine the magic that caused the hallways to shift and change the way they do. The girl's explaination of how they work did give him some worry of traveling them by himself, given that he doubt he'd be able to actually remain calm in this mansion. Ignoring all his other reason to be nervous, it was much, much too red for him to ever feel at ease. Even in the guest room he was led to, a luxurious one that fit the opulence of the rest of the abode, was plastered everywhere with many different shades and hues of red.

This must be a rather boring house for the young princess. . . He mused to himself, his mood lightening as he reached into his pack and pulling out his notebook, looking over his theories on how her sight worked and whether or not it was magically inclined. He wished to do an indepth analysis, but he had yet to ask Cyril if it would fine for him to do so. He felt that, given what he had the man assist him with, he'd likely want Drosil to stay as far away as possible from his sister at all times, and certainly wouldn't want him to perform any form of experiments on her. After making a few adjustments and notes based from his previous observations, Drosil retired into the silken crimson folds of the bed, letting himself be swallowed into a dreamless sleep.

---

Drosil would spend the next day wondering around the hallways of the Mansion, seeming to be in a much better mood than yesterday as he attempted to study the magic coursing through the halls, a notebook in hand as he wrote down his observations. However, as he walked further and further into the mansion's crimson gullet, he felt the walls seem to press in on him, eyes staring down from the shadows as he made his way through. The light from the windows seemed to dim, the candles flickering a little more erratically, and shadows seemed to flit here and there, to and fro, at the edges of his vision. It made him feel more than a tad bit uneasy, and often caused him to quicken his steps. All the while, he felt like he was being led somewhere, as if the building was trying to force him to a particular point within, and since he had no idea how to fight against it's wishes, he had no choice but to descend further into the belly of this beast.

Back and forth the hallways led him, leading to haphazard turns and corners here and there. Clearly, the hallways were reacting to his unease, and had set about confounding him even more than he already was. Perhaps, due to his fear, they thought him to be an intruder and set out to prevent his movements, and considering the deal he had made not too long before they wouldn't be completely wrong...

However they suddenly calmed, leading to one long and straight hallway. Here the air of the hall seemed much calmer and at peace, though still not too welcoming; in comparison to what he had just traveled through it was still much better. This hallway would lead him past a set of double doors, but as he went by the would suddenly open, revealing what was within...

The room past the doors was so tall, long, and wide that three of the castle in the Capitol could have sat in a row within it. The room, however, certainly wasn't empty. Up above collections of lights hung, chandeliers hanging from chains of different lengths to spread light throughout the room, with candles placed as necessary. From floor to ceiling along all of the walls bookshelves stood, and rows were made of bookshelves as well that stretched just as high. Not a single space on these bookshelves were empty.

The books within were of varying ages, sources, and languages. Texts that were thought to have been lost forever long ago rested safely on these bookshelves. Not even Jasi had anything like this collection that spanned thousands of years and countless cultures and authors...

It seemed that the Lady of Demons had the entirety of mortal knowledge (and beyond) in this one library.

As soon as Drosil beheld the Library before him, all of his fears and doubts were swept away as he stared around in utter awe. The sheer amount of tomes he saw compiled within this vast room boggled the mind, and he swore he could almost here the tomes call out to him, eager to share whatever knowledge they held with whoever sought them out. In a flash, Drosil would rush over to the first bookcase he came across, running a finger across the books as he tried to find a good place to start his research.

"History of Barcea . . . A study of Pyrokinetic magics. . . Bestiary of the Deep Seas . . . A moron's guide to Dragonhunting. . . AHA!!"

Pulling out a rather thick looking tome, the weight of which seemed to nearly topple the mage's slender frame before he regained his balance, he set it down on a nearby table, looking over it with barely contained glee. "Summoning Mysterium: A kind to higher level Summoning magics. I've been looking for this study for ages, so long that I'd almost given up hope. And yet here you are."

Drosil took a moment to bask in the presence of the ancient tome, before slowly and carefully opening it. Soon, he'd become lost within the complex diagrams, theories, and recipes for a grand amount of summoning spells, as well as catalysts to bring forth specific beings rather than just the closest one available. He'd become so engrossed with his studying that it would be quite difficult to garner his attention while he was reading.

Drosil may have been getting lost in a literary heaven, and he hadn't even had to die for it. However, the mass of purple crystal that suddenly smashed against the back of his head seemed to half-heartedly attempt to make him cross over. However, though it hit him hard, it shattered into fragments that dissolved away into a shiny sort of dust before they hit the bookshelf in front of him, each individual piece becoming smaller and smaller until they could no longer be seen.

"What are you doing here?"

The source of this chunk of crystal that had been sent flying at his head was a magic circle that floated in the air several yards behind him, though it began to rapidly dissolve. The source of this magic circle was the woman that stood next to it while it existed, watching him with half-lidded and tired purple eyes. Everything about her, for the most part, was purple; her long hair was purple, her clothes (being a sort of nightgown complete with slippers) were purple, but at least her skin wasn't purple; instead it was so pale that the blood vessels beneath could be easily seen, especially at her thing wrists.

In her hand she held an open tome, and she snapped it shut as she continued to stare at him. The air around her was one of being offended at his intrusion, so perhaps it was due to her that while this part of the manor was calm, it was still very closed off.

"Who..." In that moment, she coughed gently, though it seemed like for a moment that the cough would become even worse. For a moment her shoulders shook, and then she lowered her hand, finishing with, "... are you?"

Hmmm, so that was what was wrong with my previous summoning test. I needed to add in more restrictive binding circles in order to properly hold the beast. . . and the ones presented here would do just perfectly for that. Now, I wonder if this tome holds any specific beasts or spirits to unveil to- "AGGGHH!!"

Drosil held his head in pain, turning around rapidly to stare at his assailant with narrowed eyes. While she asked him her questions, Drosil took her in and marveled at how positively purple this woman was and how this automatically made him dislike her. While red made him feel uncomfortable, purple was a color that made his skin crawl. However, before he said something rude and got pelted with another crystal, he calmed himself, taking a few deep breaths before responding to the woman, still offering her a rather poignant glare.

"My name is Drosil Maeneld, and as for what I'm doing, it's obviously reading. If you're wondering why I came here, then ask the Mansion, as it led me here while wondering those damned hallways. . .wait, can you actually communicate with the building?" Drosil glare suddenly changed into a more thoughtful and intrigued look as he went off into his own mind again, following this train of thought as he made his way from his seat and around the table, mumbling to himself as he did so, his eyes shifting to and fro as if looking through imaginary diagrams that only he could see. "It seems implausible, but what is magic for if not making the implausible into fact, plus it would explain why I felt as if the eyes was being watched where I went? Moving on from that, perhaps I should do some studying on the outside, see if there is anyway for me to replicate this pocket dimension on a smaller scale. It would be an excellent way to carry things around without having to worry about the weight, as well as storing interesting specimens without fear of them expiring if I can add a preservation effect."

The woman seemed utterly disinterested by what Drosil had to say, even if she asked him who he was. Furthermore, she didn't seem to care about anything he had to say when it came to his theories and research either, her gaze still level. Without care for the fact he was speaking, she calmly said, "Ah, so you're one of her guests. And..." Here she deeply inhaled, eyes briefly shutting before she continued to speak. "You talk too much too. If you must paw through my books, do so quietly." With that, the woman turned, beginning to walk away with slow, almost faltering steps as she held her hand out against the shelves to support herself.

It was then Drosil heard a giggle from quite near him, in the opposite direction of the strange purple woman. It was the Lady of Demons herself, leaning against the bookshelf with a small black book in her hands, flicking through the pages almost lazily. "I see you've met Resalia Narratio. I'm not surprised at all. You two are cut from the same cloth... Ironically enough, you just happen to be cut from a louder patch." She closed the book with a slight snap, moving from the bookshelf done. "It's entirely possible that Resalia Narratio is the smartest person in the world... Well..." Her smirk grew then, slightly. "Besides myself."

Drosil didn't hear his assailants words, currently buried inside his own mind as he continued his circling gait around the table, mumbling to himself a number of infintily branching theories regarding the nature of this mansion and the realm in which it resided. However, the smooth voice of the Lady of Demons slip through the internal cacophony like a knife through Drosil's ribs, freezing him in place as he felt an icy chill crawl up his back, his hands clenching into fists as he felt that same confusing mix of fear and arousal explode from the hole in his soul. He didn't really respond at first, his hand slowly unraveling in order for him to somewhat clumsily clutch a nearby chair, in which he soon sat himself down. Looking up at her, he couldn't help but feel his breath catch in his throat, memories of wandering hands making their way through his form, his vision taken away momentarily to bring him back to his darkest moments. The fear and helplessness from them were so similar to how he felt in this moment, he couldn't help but think back to his first and worst mistake.

After a minute, which felt like an hour, he managed to actually say something.

"H-hello, Madame Renata. To what do I owe this . . . pleasure?" The hesitation in his voice was easy to notice, and his flustered, fearful state was evident sense he hadn't said that line in the common tongue, but in a jumbled mess of the languages he did know. After he realized his mistake, he repeated himself in the common tongue, doing his best to keep his voice and hands steady. He offered a small bow in apology, not trusting himself to speak as he looked at everything in the library but the woman he was speaking to.

"This is my library, Mr. Maeneld, and I do make a happen of browsing through it every so often." Her tone was one of light amusement, and the gleam to her red eyes matched it. For a moment she watched him as he sat in the chair, before she began to step forwards to get closer. "It seems to me that you are quite intimidated by my presence. I wonder what the reason for that could possibly be...?" Though she phrased it like a question, Lady Renata said it like someone who already knew the answer.

"R-right, I s-shouldn't be surprised. Sorry about that." Drosil said, moving away slightly as Karin neared him. As she asked her question in that knowing tone, Drosil considered not answering, figuring their was little point in saying anything to such a being. Still, Lady Ambrosia's words crept into his mind once more, saying how this woman would be the best to help him. Even if he feared her for more reasons than one, getting rid of just one of those reasons would be worth almost anything. Even now, he held his chest as the other presence began to seep into him, memories and emotions flailing wildly within his mind. Taking a breath, he began to speak again, making sure each word was steady and proper."Well. . . You're presence and demeanor bring to mind many unpleasant memories from my dealings with another of your kind, though I'm not sure if you know of her. Her name is Lilith and when I first summoned her . . . we made a pact. I do whatever she pleased and she would teach me how to better control my magic, as well as my own studies."

"However, her help was not without cost, as it slowly began to corrupt me. It was thanks to my brother that I was able to see them before she had me completely within her thrall. Still, the day I tried to send her back . . . she simply laughed and . . . and-" Drosil tried to go on, but as he was assailed with memories of that day, his body began to shake near-uncontrollably. It took him three tries to cast the focus spell, forcibly aiming his nerves as moved past his trauma. "Anyway, I was lucky to have a teacher come in and force her to return to whatever realm I had brought her from. I was nearly expelled from the University for that. I think it took me two years before I could look at a woman without shaking in fear, and a few months after that before I could talk to them normally. However. . .your presence is too similar to hers for me to feel at ease, in fact, it's so much greater that I fear to even directly look at you right now, lest I lose all ability to think or talk in the terror that will follow."

"Also, if I may request some assistance of you, I was told that you'd be able to help me remove the mark the demon has left upon my soul. While I was able to keep it in check before, recent events have led to me having less control than I had before. I can feel her magic seeping into me with each and every day, violating me over and over. I. . . just want it to stop." As Drosil neared the end of his speech, he was near in tears, his hands clenched so tightly that blood began to stream from his fists. All as he spoke, he felt the presence within him swell tauntingly, phantom fingers tracing their way across his form with mocking slowness.

The knowing look remained in Lady Renata's expression. It was if she was hearing the same story she had heard many times told to her again. Even as he spoke she looked off to the side, beginning to browse through the nearby books and almost carelessly pulling one that caught her eye of the shelf, giving it a glance before yawning slightly and placing it back. She continued looking over the bookshelf, even as she spoke.

"I know of many Lilith's. It is a common demon name, not unlike how common human names include, say, Edward and the like." She waved her hand slightly, as if she believed herself to be off track and wanted to focus on the task at hand. "Your problem is one that have plagued many mortals throughout the ages. Well, I say plagued in this case. For many, it comes as an advantage; just look to both... Blackwood and Turner..." Briefly, she gave a sigh, as if regretting some sort of decision before she began speaking again. "Depending on the power of the demon in question, removing this connection has varying levels of difficulty. You could never do it on your own, that much is certain..."

She brought one hand up, slightly resting it against the side of her face with one finger extended, where she tapped against her cheek with a slow beat. Slowly, she looked at him out of the corner of her eye. Her smile continued to creep across her lips, as if she found a great sort of amusement in this affair. "But, for me, it is a matter of a little consequence. It will hurt both you and her a fair bit though, but which one more... Well, that's just something we'll have to find out if you truly want to go through with this."

"I'm not sure if this helps, but she's a Succubus with specialization in Domination Magic. As for the pain, I don't care how much it hurts, if you can do it, then do it." Drosil's eyes hardened as he managed to look at Karin, his gaze holding on her with determination, even though it was clear that it was taking an lot of effort to hold her gaze. While part of him couldn't help but feel anger at how flippantly she was treating his situation, he had met many spirits that had lived for as long, if not longer, then the demon and he knew that such mortal worries no longer truly affected them. They had seen the pattern of life for so long that such stories were boring to them. He didn't expect empathy or compassion from this being, but if she could help rid him of the stain on his soul, then that would be enough for him.

He'd hold this gaze for a while longer, before he turned away taking deeper breaths as the presence in his soul suddenly became over-whelming. Flashes of purple and violet energy danced within his eyes, before he suddenly focused a large amount of magical energy into himself, closing off the otherworldly influence for now. Still, he heard voices echoing in his heads, offerings of power, knowledge, and purpose.

"Ah, you would be the one to tangle with a succubus..." This seemed to bring the Lady of Demons even more amusement, but once more she waved it off. "Very well then, since you appear so resolved I don't see why you won't survive this. Shall we, then?

Before Drosil could respond, the Lady moved. Perhaps she didn't want to give him time to back out of his decision, or maybe she just decided to get it out of the way then and there. Whatever it was, she moved so quickly that it didn't matter if Drosil blinked or not; Lady Renata may have teleported for all anyone knew, with how she suddenly appeared in front of him. Though they weren't touching, she was still close enough that he was able to feel the cold radiating off of her. In that moment, Lady Renata's smirking sort of smile changed into a complete grin.

Her hand suddenly shot up, swinging upwards vertically. Swung in such a way it seemed to lightly brush up Drosil's torso, the touch was so faint he would have difficulty telling he had been touched at all. She ended her motion with her hand above her head, before lowering it and drawing it back. In that moment Drosil would feel an intense pain explode into his chest in a line, and if he looked down he would realize he was looking at his own ribcage, neatly sliced open to reveal what was beneath.

Before his innards had the time to shift and begin to fall out her hand shot forwards, plunging into the wound. Beginning at her hand a sensation of complete and utter cold began to spread through him, and though it numbed the pain into insignificance it was like being literally turned bit by bit into ice. From the initial slice and thrust of her hand, there was surprisingly little blood; it was as she began to shift her hand around that globs began to fly, splattering him, the nearby bookshelves, and the Lady of Demons herself.

"Hold still for a moment, and this should be done quickly."

Drosil brow furrowed into a brow, and he was about to ask what she was insinuating with that, but then he noticed her presence closing in. Whatever suppression he had used before faded as she came close, licks of violet energy flaring somewhat wildly around him as he felt the demon's hand briefly pass over his chest, seeming to make only the briefest of contact. His body already clenched from both the preparation and the fact that he was focusing to keep the otherworldly presence from taking him over, the sudden spike of pain from his chest caused him to let pout a single shout of pain, only for it to quickly contort into a strange and inhuman sound as Karin plunged her hand inside his body, the feeling of the foreign grasping object lost as he felt a deep and lasting cold spread throughout his form.

While the pain had left him, the sight of his blood flying all over the area as the demon began to do something to him that began to really unnerve him. He hadn't known what to expect, but to have himself be violated by another demon was almost too much to bear. While he couldn't stop the screams as they ripped their way through his body, his lungs pressing tightly against the inside of his open ribcage as his diaphragm struggled to compensate(probably spreading his split ribs open even further as a result), but his body remained as still as could be expected. His fingers gripped the arms of the chair he sat in so tightly, his knuckles were turning bone white and his fingernails were bleeding as they were stretched off their foundation. However, throughout the whole ordeal, he never looked down or at Lady Renata. He knew that if he did, then he'd probably loose his ability to hold on, and from then it would only be a short hop down the well into the afterlife. His voice would grow hoarse, and while he couldn't feel any pain, the cold that permeated his form was a poor substitute, barely tolerable in it's numbing affect then the initial flash of pain. His thoughts were slowing down with every passing second, as it got harder and harder to keep himself ahead of the reaper's grasping hand. However, whenever it seemed like he'd lose his nerve and just give up, he remembered his passion, his dreams, the burning ambition that had already taken him so far.

I can't die here, in some demon's library, pathetic and worthless. I have yet to learn even a fragment of this world's secrets, and no matter what I have to do or what I must endure, I won't die until I know EVERYTHING!

Sometime during the process, Drosil would cease screaming, his eyes gazing sightlessly at the roof above him as his mind emptied. Gold, Green, and Violet would swirl together as he viewed the magical energy that was flaring around him ever more violently, reflecting the colors manifested as they seemed to cycle in and out of his body. From time to time, the purple would suddenly begin to pulse in an erratic fashion, causing the pattern to become altered as it sought to close in on Renata, only to get brought back into the fold by the other two colors, rolling around and absorbing the magic back into the roaring flame, subduing it once again.

Despite how she had suddenly and brutally attacked Drosil, for lack of a better word, Lady Renata remained quite calm. Back and forth her hand went, and if weren't for the cold he surely would have died from the shock that would have come from a combination of having his torso split open and then his organs shifted through. While Drosil's gaze remained upwards, the Lady of Demons' remained narrowed and focused on the split in his chest, while at the same time looking beyond it-

And then, suddenly, she once again grinned.

"Excellent."

With that, she seemed to clench her hand down on something, before suddenly ripping it back out. The force of the movement nearly ripped out everything from inside of him all at once, but instead just a large amount of blood that flew out with her arm; if he had been actually looking down, however, he would have realized that it was actually the blood holding his organs in, stopping just a moment briefly before flying in all directions.

The magic that Drosil focused on above would shift then. The Gold and Green would remain as they were, but the Violet was removed from the mix entirely; instead, it was suddenly pulled out towards the Lady of Demons, despite the best efforts of the two other colors. However, this was what the Lady of Demons wanted, as after the Violet swirled around her it suddenly concentrated into her clenched hands, slipping in between her fingers.

All at once, all of the blood involved in the entire process began to move. That included the blood that had splatted on him, her, and the books, bookshelves, and floor; all of it began to rise, drop by drop at first, before rapidly beginning to combine together into larger and larger orbs. These were very rapidly attracted to the Lady of Demons, wrapping around her arm. So thickly it wrapped around with such a volume that one could barely see her pale arm beneath it, and yet it all suddenly began to gather around her hand, before slipping in between her fingers as well.

Everything around them was perfectly clean, so much so it was like it had never happened. The only evidence of this was the split still down Drosil's chest, but even that began to disappear. His own blood was still at work, rapidly congealing and sealing up the wound, hardening quickly into a very dark and almost crystalline substance. Beyond this strange scar and the tear in the front of his top, there was no evidence of the encounter at all...

Until the Lady of Demons opened her hand, of course, slowly bringing it up. In between her forefinger and thumb she held an orb that possessed a certain sheen to it. It was dark red and black, but every so often there was a purple glow within... A purple glow that was being maintained.

The grin was long gone, and instead she was once more smirking her smile.

[b]"Now then, why shouldn't I crush this here and now...?"[/b}

After the extraction was done with, the light would slowly enter Drosil's eyes again, before his body suddenly shook as the feeling returned. He grasped at his chest, looking down to see the strange crystalline scar. Just thinking about what happened made him want to throw up, but he was able to control his urge as he looked up, hearing Karin's question and thinking if he had a reason to keep such a thing around. . . and strangely enough, he found one much faster then he expected. Standing up a bit unsteadily, he felt a strange emptiness inside of him, as if his insides had been carved out while he was under whatever trance he had been in. It was a disturbing feeling, but it was better than having that tainted magic within his soul.

"I need it . . .to get even . . . and to better my own magic. Foul as it felt, I can't deny the usefulness of having Domination magic to help control the stronger summons, not to mention that I can also find a way to resist it myself if I study how it works." His voice was tired, but determined, with hints of a fiery rage burning underneath his logic. He'd been fearing Lilth for so long, but now he had a chance to actually study her magic, to fight back without any worry for how it might effect his soul, and all that fear turned into anger. She still has the other half of my soul, after all

A chuckle left the Lady of Demons, her slowly looking over to him out of the corner of her eye. "I wasn't speaking to you, Mr. Maeneld, but to her." She raised the orb slightly, her gaze going back to it. However, without warning she suddenly tossed it in Drosil's direction with a light, almost dismissive toss; the tips of her thumb and forefinger remained red with the blood, her slowly lowering her hand. "Very well then, it will be my gift to you. If the seal ever starts to weaken, which it will since I won't be around all the time to maintain it, simply place it into some of your blood for a little while and it will be fine."

Drosil caught the orb easily enough, looking down at his clothes with a bit of a sigh as he fingered the large cut in his cloak. When he looked back up at Lady Renata, looking vaguely annoyed. "Thank you, Madame Renata. You wouldn't happen to know a safe place where I could test out the power of this without disturbing the others . . . or causing too much damage to the rest of the mansion. I'd also like to take that book with me as well, if you wouldn't mind?"

The Lady of Demons gave a slight wave towards the book, nodding. "Very well then, just remember where you got it from, and put it back when you're done. Otherwise, Resalia might spend all of her energy hunting you down for it. And when it comes to where you might test, just take it outside into one of the farther gardens. With that said, I would like to speak to your brother right now, so if you wouldn't mind."

Drosil nodded somewhat absentmindedly, picking up the book and reading through it a little before setting it down, his form becoming cloaked in choking shadows as he gave over control to his brother. As Shadar's form came into existence, towering above the Lady Renata with his immense size, he had no words for the demon. Just an expectant glare that demanded answers. However, it would be noted that the fact Shadar chose not to speak was a sign of how he knew not to mess with Lady Renata, a sign of plausible respect at best, and an acknowledgement of her power over him at the very least.

Patiently the Lady of Demnos watched the change occur, her smile growing some as her eyes narrowed slightly. She certainly had to look up a decent bit to make eye contact with him, but despite the almost ridiculous height different Lady Renata wasn't bothered in the slightest. So much more than height went into her presence, after all.

"Ah, and here's the more competent of the two twins. Welcome, Mr. Maeneld. It's about time we met."

"What do you want, Lady Renata, I'd rather get to the point. And if you plan to split me open like you did my brother, I'd rather you not."

Shadar wasn't one for pleasantries, especially when he faced with her type, aloof and acting as of anyone they saw was their own personal toy. She was like every other infuriating noble he had ever met, but this particular noble could probably crack his shell open like an egg, so he'd refrain from his usual form of insults and blunt language with her.

"Oh, just a few questions. I don't plan to take up too much of your time. To be honest, I don't need to speak to you all that much. You are already at the level you need to be to survive the immediate coming days, so I have no reason to give you any sort of boost. So, consider this a sort of consolation prize."

She reached to the side then, to remove a book from the shelf. It was larger than most of the other books, but thinner; to Shadar's eye, it would immediately be clear it was a black sketchbook, seemingly nothing special about it... but considering it was coming from the Lady of Demons, that simply couldn't be the case.

"I've noticed that you have a habit of recording the sights you've seen in a way a few can. I wish to supplement this skill you have. This sketchbook is special, so I wouldn't waste the pages; if you use ink mixed with blood of the subject, you'll record more than just an image; movement, perhaps even a phrase or more if you build up the skill to do so. Of course, that means the subject has to trust you enough to provide a little donation... Or it's someone you simply take it from. I leave that choice to you."

With that, she held it forwards. "Entertain yourself with this little luxury until the time comes you actually need something from me."

"Hmm. . . Interesting. A bit morbid and disgusting, but it should have some use. I'd ask for specifics, but what's life without a few surprises. I'll accept your gift, and hope for the best. Now then, unless you have any other business with me, I'll be on my way. I don't get to walk around to often, and this dimension looks like it'd be interesting to explore. A bit one-note with the color palette, if I say so myself, but everyone's got their tastes and it's not my place to judge."

"That it isn't, Mr. Maeneld." Giving a nod, the Lady of Demons continued to smile as she turned, walking from Shadar. "Do enjoy your exploration." And, with that, she disappeared around the corner of the bookcase.

Shadar let out a grunt as he made his own way out of the Library, wondering if he could find something in this world that wasn't just slathered in the same garish red coloring.

"I really, really hate this place." He muttered under his breath, wondering whether or not their was anything living in this plane ,besides the Lady and her guests, lurking in those gardens. He wouldn't put it past the demoness to put some monsters in his path to test him, preparing the lot of them for whatever grand game she had in place. Nobility always love to play around with those they consider as lesser men, playing games with others and treating the lives of other people as pawns for there own ends. *Hmph* Like hell I'm going to use her cursed book. I'm not going to owe that demon bitch a damn thing, if I can help it.