@Expolar
NOLAN

This guy wasn't drunk, but just by judging the smell burning his nostrills, this man had just recently hit it hard at a local pub. Apparently he had a love for some place called Pete's Tavern or perhaps just a strong love for booze in general. He glanced at the man's large hand smacking his shoulder with a sharp glare. Being touched by a random stranger reeking of alcohol wasn't exactly one of his favorite things. This man was starting to get on his nerves with his obnoxious laughter and noxious breath though he lighted up a bit. In some way, he was glad that he had brought entertainment for others when life can be so boring; it's not like every person could use magic or go on crazy adventures like a mage could.

Seeing as he keeps persisting with the question, Nolan decided to just give him an answer so this man would be on his way. "I'm not sure how I felt. I wanted to beat them... I know I can beat them, but shit happens. Does that satisfy you now?"

Somewhere, out on the roads leading to town, but at the same time not too far from civilization, a certain wizard-to-be and his partner had decided to camp for the night. The morning was here and the wizard had decided to get some training done before they set out for the next town. It is here now that we find him...oh wait, that's his partner. What a peculiar-looking creature, just sitting on a perch atop a tree and reading from some sort of novel while taking bites out of a slice of pumpkin pie.

For onlookers, heavy breathing would draw their attention to the base of the tree where a humanoid figure was limping past, donned in some sort of blue body armor that covered its whole body, making it appear almost inhuman. The figure finally stopped and began panting, hands on its knees, breathing in and out through a vent where its mouth should be. "Nine...laps...one more...to go...phew..." He looked up to the branches where his partner sat. Despite being so out of breath, he still had a hint of annoyance in his tone while he spoke, "Aura...shouldn't you...be...training...too...?"

"I AM training, you knuckle-head," The one known as Aura remarked while rolling her eyes but still smiling, "Training my MIND, to be exact. You really should try reading more. Might teach you something other than how to make yourself look like a dork."

The armored man groaned out through his mask as he held out his arm, still trying to catch his breath, "Let...me...see that.." Complying with his request, the sprite floated down and handed him the book while his armor shattered, exposing the young man inside. Alan only needed to read one page to know what this was. He then proceeded to raise an eyebrow at Aura, "You...do realize this is a recipe book, right?"

"Of course I know that, silly!" Aura giggled while giving him a friendly poke in the nose, "There's a lot of good recipes in there I want you to make for me, so..." She then floated over to his knapsack and tossed him the canteen which he fumbled with, "If you're done making a fool of yourself by walking around in clunky armor, maybe we can make it to that guild around here some time today?"

Alan drank deeply of the water and wiped the sweat from his brow. His Barrier armor was strong and durable, but he moved like a tortoise in it, so he figured training while wearing it would help him move better. It was...a work in progress. "Yeah, yeah...and try to behave yourself, ok? I don't want us getting kicked out of the next restaurant we visit just cause you couldn't control your appetite for pies."

"Hey, not my fault you didn't have enough cash to pay for it all," Aura stuck out her tongue at him playfully, causing Alan to fume, before flying inside his knapsack, "Now come on. Time to go make a good first impression."

Alan rolled his eyes but relented. He scooped up the knapsack and followed the road leading toward their destination: The Guild known as Phoenix Wing.

Ethel Storm

My Hider [+]

@Infichi
Ethel pouted slightly before reluctantly letting Chu go.
"Ethel knows that Sora will come back sooner or later. Sora is afraid of cats, but Chu isn't a cat." Ethel got back to her feet before dusting her self off and patting the dust off of her skirt.
"Ethel last saw them...an hour ago? Ethel got distracted and lost track of them." Ethel explained softly as she poked at the ground with her foot. She felt guilty for being the one to have lost track of them rather than the other way round since Sora was obviously mad at them. She was also feeling a little uneasy being alone with somebody she had just met basically five minutes ago.
"Sora didn't tell Verrick? Ethel hired Sora to help Ethel find family. Sister, brother, father." As Ethel explained in her usual concise manner, she held up a finger for each member she was looking for...however she quickly brought it down to one finger.
"Ethel doesn't remember brother....father missing. Only lead Ethel has is sister. Own set of problems."

"Jeez kid." Verick rubbed the back of his head, Damn, how was he supposed to handle this situation. He let out a little groan and looked down at the little Chu. "Come on then, Hurry up and go find the others. Bring them back here alright?" He shook his head as the Chu dashed off, sniffing around the best it could. "So we're looking for your sister huh?" The young mage created a chair and sat down next to the young Ethel. Damn it... This kid was really getting to him... "I don't have any money you know." He coughed, sitting slumped in the chair, his elbows resting on his knees. "The chu should be able to find them and bring them back." He didn't really want to wait here with the girl... But at the same time, he didn't feel right leaving her alone.

"So..." Verick's voice trailed off, man talking to kids was a real pain... He didn't have anything to say to her. Nor did he really care of want to. But the silence was just awkward and she looked scared. "When I was a kid." He started, "I lost my family." He scratched the back of his hand as he spoke. "So I've just been wandering around for the last half of my life, looking for a place to stay... make some money, get filthy rich." He smirked as he turned to the girl. "You know! The usual!"

His story didn't really seem to be helping much... "When they come back, with the Chu... You can keep it. Just make sure you food it. Cause i'm not going to."

Drake smiled as she saw that Levi was excited for her idea, though her smile faded quickly as Levi got serious. "Well, we don't charge a flat fee, so it's really up to you how much. Uhm," she hesitated trying to think of a way to cheer him back up some. His staring at her was intimidating as hell. "Uhm, generally you set the maximum price you'll pay, then a down payment of t-twenty to thirty percent. After that we go and try and find out as much as we can until we either find out the information, or the money just isn't worth it. If we find the information, we give you a bill based on what you set as your maximum and how hard the information was to attain. Otherwise, we all go on about our merry ways without another jewel changing hands. Most first-time customers get a couple discounts, but those are usually hammered out with, uh, Guild Master Vale," Drake bit her lip as she finished talking, before offering one final thing. "And I'll be more than happy to pitch in some, since what you're looking for seems interesting."

@Hatakekuro

@hatakekuro
Me, satisfied? I don't think you satisfied us!" Frye raised his voice to get the attention of the large crowd of people who were walking street around them. "Do you people remember the kid from the games these past few days. I watched his performance in the games and he just said that he had a feeling he could of beaten those Frenzy Plant wizards. If he could have beaten them, then you have to show us what you're really capable of. Show us how much magic power you're packing inside, kid! HAA! Am I right people! He shouted into the air to help energize the crowd. It definitely helped the crowd's interests, especially when some of Nolan's fan girls realized who the man was talking about.

Frye noticed Nolan get a bit tense from the sounds of his female fans and gave the Nolan a pat on the shoulder. "Kid, if you're nervous about your fans, don't worry. When I was about your age, I would garner some attention from the ladies too. Meaning I can keep them back if they get too close. Wouldn't want them to ruin the show, right?" He gave a confident smile to Nolan. Thanks to Nolan, Frye felt this kid could excite his day from the usual boredom that he felt everyday.

penny

@Lunarlors34
Penny frowned as Jasmime continued talking. It sounded like memory magic, which was illegal, banned for a reason. Jasmine was an example of that reason. She thought for a moment, but she had never come across moth or butterfly people.

"well then we will just have to find the answers" she said, spying a stable where you could rent horses, she looked to Jasmime "do you know how to ride? Horses would make the travel time a lot quicker" and give them a means of escape if they needed it. Not that she was worried about that. "that way we can travel faster and maybe find answers today for you" and they could put Penny's mind at ease that something had happened to jasmines parents.

jessie
@hatakekuro

Jessie smiled, and turned to give Ferris a kiss, "thank you, it was good being able to see him, I'm glad you came" she snagged a last piece of foot, and nodded "let's go, and maybe we can give you those years back" she winked flirtily, and popped the slice of apple onto her mouth, taking his hand and starting back to the hotel. "I was thinking Riders Blade. Guilds like Phoenix wing and Dragon Fang are such large guilds, and already have so many great members, and Riders blade has been through a lot. They're trying to make something, it would be nice to be able to help heal something, don't you think? That is if they're accepting new members. "

sam, Jamie, Jarvis
@joshua tamashii

"all elements can be combined" Sam said tilting her head slightly, thoughtful. "if you combine light and dark you get shadows, right?" she asked curiously

gabriel
@hatakekuro@lugubrious
"my magic is extensive, Enma. I won't run out." Gabriel said absently, daunted by the thought of climbing back up there "at least not for a while I guess. I don't know if I'm strong enough to climb up there. I'm only 17" he frowned, "or is it 18, now?" Was it the 14th today, or was that tomorrow? He pondered that for a moment, before shaking his head.

"I'll do my best if that's the way we are getting out of here"

@Infichi
Ethel frowned slightly as Verrick talked.
"Ethel isn't kid...Ethel is Ethel." She mumbled into her jacket as she listened further. So Verrick was like Ethel as well? Well similar anyway...Ethel hadn't seen her sister properly in over a decade and didn't have fantastic memories of their more recent encounters. She had never meet her brother so there wasn't much to remember about him.
Her father had left her two years ago, although she was sure there was a reason...
"If Verrick wants money, Ethel has money. We do missions whenever we can while we search, and split the payments." Ethel wasn't good at holding a conversation and was simply thinking of things to say now. Verrick had mentioned however that he had no money, and Ethel had money. And Sora had introduced Ethel to Verrick as 'the client' meaning that Ethel was hiring Verrick (apparently).
Looking down at the ground now Ethel noticed something where Sora had been standing previously. A newspaper?
Bending down to pick it up, she looked it over with her head cocked to the side.
"Sora dropped this?" She mumbled to herself as stared at it intently. Sora holding onto newspapers was a rare thing...unless something caught his eye. Opening it now she scanned through a few pages before stopping abruptly and concentrating on a single article. It was a news article on the Dome incident from the day before.
"...Ethel's sister is here. Good and bad." Ethel mumbled softly into her collar. However once more she had fallen into her habit of saying things but skipping over important parts, making whatever she said difficult to follow for whoever was listening.



@Caits
"Ah yes, I learned how to from my father. I didn't really have a choice in the matter." Jasmine responded quickly. Anything they could do to help speed this up would be welcome to Jasmine, she didn't want to bother Penny too much. She was already going out of her way to do so much for her but Jasmine didn't want to burden her too much.
"I'm not very good at it yet but...I prefer being able to move freely without feeling cramped. But time isn't really something we have in spades, so I'm willing to live with a little discomfort." Jasmine didn't mention the fact that she disliked horses in general for other reasons as well because she didn't want to offend Penny somehow. She could put her dislike for them aside easily of course, just that she never went out of her way to do so.

Ethel Storm

My Hider [+]

@Infichi
Ethel frowned slightly as Verrick talked.
"Ethel isn't kid...Ethel is Ethel." She mumbled into her jacket as she listened further. So Verrick was like Ethel as well? Well similar anyway...Ethel hadn't seen her sister properly in over a decade and didn't have fantastic memories of their more recent encounters. She had never meet her brother so there wasn't much to remember about him.
Her father had left her two years ago, although she was sure there was a reason...
"If Verrick wants money, Ethel has money. We do missions whenever we can while we search, and split the payments." Ethel wasn't good at holding a conversation and was simply thinking of things to say now. Verrick had mentioned however that he had no money, and Ethel had money. And Sora had introduced Ethel to Verrick as 'the client' meaning that Ethel was hiring Verrick (apparently).
Looking down at the ground now Ethel noticed something where Sora had been standing previously. A newspaper?
Bending down to pick it up, she looked it over with her head cocked to the side.
"Sora dropped this?" She mumbled to herself as stared at it intently. Sora holding onto newspapers was a rare thing...unless something caught his eye. Opening it now she scanned through a few pages before stopping abruptly and concentrating on a single article. It was a news article on the Dome incident from the day before.
"...Ethel's sister is here. Good and bad." Ethel mumbled softly into her collar. However once more she had fallen into her habit of saying things but skipping over important parts, making whatever she said difficult to follow for whoever was listening.

"You shouldn't mumble." Verick spoke as he looked over her shoulder, the newspaper? What was in that? "Hey, the old man was reading that." He could hear her mumble something... But he was quite able to make it out. "Hey." Verick stuck his face close in to the girls. "You need to speak up so others can understand you." He demanded lightly, not in a harsh tone, but in one to signify that... seriously speak up. "Anyway. We still need to find your two other... uh... disciples of Sora or whatever." He sighed as he sat back in his chair. "We also need to find The old man. I don't have any interest in sitting in this chair for a year waiting you know." There was no fun in just sitting back and waiting for things to happen... You had to make them happen.

"So tell me what you've been mumbling about and we can go look for The old man."

Nidhogg, in his distracted state, wasn't as quick on the draw as Shiro. While he was able to recognize that James was preparing something and Joshua was moving(thus switching into Speed mode in order to react) he couldn't bring his wings up in time to shield his eyes from James' attack. As such, he was left annoyed as he got hit with the full brunt of it. Not only did it actually hurt due to the Holy element, though it was more of a stinging sensation than anything else, but the top layer of his eyes had fried, making it impossible for him to see. However, he didn't seem overly bothered by the fact, completely ignoring not only James, but Jacey as well as he proceeded pull out his eyes with his fingers. Needless to say, it was a rather bloody and grotesque thing to do, especially when he actually did pull them out and hung them from one of his hands, staring at first James, then Jacey with nothing but the empty, bleeding sockets of his eyes as he swung around the bloody organs by their nerves.

"Boy, you both sure can talk a lot about shit I don't care about. Anyway, I don't see why what I was doing seemed to be a problem, since I didn't touch a hair on any of them, and I did intend to keep my word because, in honesty, playing games with them was just so much fun. And I wouldn't have hurt any of them as long as they had followed the rules." As he spoke, he threw his eyes into the sky for a bit before catching them in his other hand, placing one inbetween his thumb and forefinger in a way where the organ was staring directly at the group of light mages, James in particular. "Though, because of that one, I am obligated to start killing civilians now, since he decided to put his students safety above them after all, but you came in at the perfect time to stop that. Too bad as well, I feel like he would've been interesting to torment with that, as he seemed like the righteous type. I mean, while his instincts and advice was right, he must've been pretty blind to not realize that the other one was going to stop the boy. I said that those two could move, and I extended that to Cody to keep his conscious from holding back his rage. . . so why risk innocent lives like that? It truly is interesting, and I only wish some civilians had stayed around to see that, but I'm thinking that we're the only ones here."

At this point, Nidhogg would toss the eye into his mouth, chewing on it thoughtfully while finally closing one of his eyelids, covering the bleeding socket, though not stopping the blood from seeping out the sides, making it look like he was crying blood.

"You know, I tend to forget sometimes that I taste rather delicious, not to mention how much I under-rate the texture of a human eyeball. I can't think of anything else that just seems to pop and melt in your mouth like this." As he swallowed, a strange slurping sound could be heard from his covered eye before he opened it up to show the eye had been replaced, though it seemed to be turned towards the side in an odd way. He would repeat the process with his other eye, then shake his head a bit as he reconnected the optic nerves. This could've been solved much more easily by just causing the damaged tissue to peel off his eye, but this was done to give him sometime to think, as well as just to be as unnerving as possible to those around. Once he could see again, however, he'd send an icy glare towards the newcomer, no small amount of killing intent radiating off of him. "As far as your concerned, I would very much like to taste your eyeballs. See if they retain the same delectable consistency. I'm certain whoever sent you wouldn't mind, especially when they find out that you drew more attention to their plans than anything I could've done. I'd say that you're confident the guilds won't be able to do anything, but of course, then you wouldn't care what I did? It seems rather amateur to me, and thus I would normally have nothing to say to a lackey like you . . . but I tend to have a certain hatred for anyone who tries to control me. It's the reason why I want to hand Georgie by her own intestines while I feast on everything else, then bring her back so I can do it over, and over, and over again for the rest of eternity."

"Yes, I think I'd very much enjoy doing the same to you, but I doubt you'd indulge me in that. You don't seem like the type, which is why I made a point to memorize how your sins smell, so that I can find you when you eventually flee like the lackey you are." As he spoke, his magical energy began to condense around him in a thick purple mess, forming soon into the snarling maw of a dragon. His eyes were pinned on her with a savage intensity, that it seemed like he was about to launch himself at her at any moment. Then, in an instant, his face would break into a mocking grin as the ground beneath Amaya would break open, fanged skulls bursting from the ground to sink their fangs into her legs and skeletal hands reaching out to pull her by the shoulders down into a hole where a savage looking beast of rotting flesh would be waiting for her in the sewer below. In that same instant, the ground around James, Cody, and Joshua would burst as a dome of bone, wreathed in necrotic energy on both the inside and outside, would quickly slam down over them while similar hands and fanged skulls would burst out from the sides of the dome to grasp at them. THe dome would close over too quickly for most to even think of escaping before it closed, but Joshua might be able to. The dome wasn't that thick, however, as it was mainly a diversionary tactic.

"But before that, why don't you help us get rid of these witnesses, so that their guild and the council get's as little information as possible on whatever plan your planning, cause no matter what happens now, investigations will happen, it's just up to you how much they have to go on." Nidhogg would say, seeming to be greatly enjoying the havoc he was creating. He knew that their were flaws in his logic, as well as that he could be possible fighting off the newcomer, Mamami, and Shiro as well if she decided to strike him down, but if it did come down to that, then he could always just eradicate the entire city and be done with it. Death would be assured, but at least he would take down a lot of delicious morsels with him. "Oh, and Shiro, I hope you noticed that Slayer going over all the information she just learned. Names are important, thus why we don't just say them without thinking. Manami, teach your pet better tactics, cause so far, she seems rather useless in these kinds of endeavors. No wonder you got your ass kicked last time."

@Lunarlors34@Joshua Tamashii@Roseletta@Zarkun

@Burthstone
LEVI

"Um, no no. You don't need to help with the payment! I'm happy that you're offering your guild's services to me, even if it will probably put a major hole in my wallet." Levi said with a nervous grin on his face. Perhaps he came off as intimidating to her though there was a reason why he was so serious about the amount it would cost. When he first arrived in Crocus, he barely had any money and literally lived off of ramen packets so he became stingy about spending things that he doesn't need. However this was something that could benefit him in the long run.

@Expolar
NOLAN

"Wait what are you-?" All he could was watch in horror as this man had drawn in a crowd so he could put on a show for them. Just what the hell was this man thinking? Magic wasn't a toy that could be used for someone's amusement; it was a powerful tool that could bring upon havoc if not controlled properly and here was this man that wanted him to use it to put on a show. No, it wasn't just a show that he wanted to see; he wanted to see the extent of Nolan's power. That wasn't something that he could do for the safety of everyone around him and he would've voiced it, but Exceed caught his tongue from the sudden presence of women ever growing. "Humana humana humana humana humana..." He repeated over and over again with swirls where his eyes should've been.

The man laid his hand on Nolan's shoulder and said something about him being a charmer when he was the boy's age though the slayer wasn't exactly paying attention to what the man he was saying although he did bring him back around from his near panic attack. Nolan glared at him and shrugged his hand off, ever feeling his patience starting to run thin. "Don't you dare get me wringed in this, old man. Do you have any idea how much property damage, no, how much trouble I would get my guild in? We're already under enough scutiny as it is in light of recent events with the council." Nolan said defiantly. He was certainly not going to comply though perhaps a he just needed a small push.

@Caits
FERRIS

Ferris face flushed into a vivid red from Jessie's 'suggestion.' "You know, I would've thought that you would be innocent. Was I ever wrong." He chuckled though he wasn't joking. She was this short young woman with such a sweet face though she was far the image that everyone else saw. What Ferris experienced was this flirty, stubborn, strong woman that wasn't afraid to say what was on her mind and certainly didn't beat around the bush when she wanted something.

Like now, when she said that they should join Rider's Blade. It was guild that he didn't think about joining since they had such a bad repuation in the past though perhaps he could consider it."If they're accepting new guild members then I'll apply. I'll give them the benefit of the doubt that they had changed their ways, but...Hey, isn't that carriage going a bit too fast?" As they were walking, they would've seen a magic powered carriage speeding right towards the couple. The people driving the carriage were young looking hooligans, most likely from one of the universities that had closed for the week for the Grand Magic Games. Some of the trouble makers had held themselves halfway out of the windows holding balloons filled with something in their hands. Before Ferris or Jessie would realize what was happening, they were pelted with these balloons in a drive by fashion as the delinquents drove by.

Well how could it had been bad? They were just water balloons right? Wrong! Followed by the popping of the balloons was a stench, a god awful stench that would've made their noses curl upwards in disgust. "Oh god, what the hell was in those balloons?!" Ferris gagged out those words. What had filled those balloons was a concoction literally made to smell horrible though not just any regular concotion; it was a magic potion meant to smell like a fieled of decay and garbage.

Joshua didn't bother to keep too much track on what was going on. More people showed up and the whole scenario was dissolving into a sort of chaos. Seeing as how the kid, apparently named Cody according to his companion, that rushed recklessly before was under control and under the watch of another mage. Not waiting for the others, he moved over to Amaya's side and was there when Nidhogg decided it would be a good idea to attack her. He slashed the skulls in half as they made their move but could do nothing as both of them where dragged underground. Seeing the beast before them, he could only think one thought.
"Well, shit."



"Well, some are harder then others but I suppose..." Amelia began before a red flame appeared by the table.

"My lady, I need to take care of some business. I have sensed a necromancer and confirmed the presence of a powerful undead in the town. I will not let this one slip past like the Dullahan." the voice of Phlegethon said

"Where. I'm coming too." Amelia said, standing up. She wasn't one to get easily riled over things but she hated the idea of Necromancers. They disrespected the dead and forcefully used their spirits or desecrated their bodies, both of which where acts she found unforgivable.

"Your mother should track the whereabouts of those in danger. She tends to be rather knowledgeable on such things." Phlegethon said before vanishing.



It took Phlegethon seconds to arrive on the scene. He made his entrance in style, crashing into the dome that surrounded James and Cody. The armored spirits turned towards the undead mage and moved forward.
"Nidhogg. It would seem you are overdue for your damnation." The spirit said while draining all the necrotic energy in the surrounding area, whether it be in use or not. It was obvious this one was not here to negotiate. It was here to simply kill the man it had addressed and a sword appeared in it's hand to help drive this point home.



Aria shook her head.
"Only remember that world. Can't remember anything else." She said.

Amaya covered her eyes from the light before uncovering them. She watched a horrific sight of Nidhogg pull his eyes out of their sockets like something out of a horror movie. She turned her back to the group falling to her knees pucking all she had in her stoumach from the sight as his description of what he would do to this Georgie person just continued her vomiting as she didn't have a stoumach for it. Her eyes widen as she let out a gasp from the ground breaking under her before letting out a cry of pain from some fangs sinking into her legs, they were quickly ended by Joshua. Having no time to recover from the skulls she felt hands grab a hold as she struggled to get free getting dragged down with Joshua. She landed next to him looking at the monster "good God."she exclaimed about to vomit from the smell. She gulped before taking in a horrible deep breath letting out one of her Dragon roars as she hoped it would be enough to by time "I shouldn't have spar with Hunter.."she added as she looked around "Where is Cecilia?"she asked keeping watch of the monster as her legs shaked under her threatening to drop any second.

The city was as busy as it was yesterday, maybe even more so. The Grand Magic Games had brought wizards and spectators for all over Firore to Crocus to witness the games, and what they signified, a burgeoning re-acceptance of magic. But people seemed to not care what they signified, or give thought to the consequences of their actions. If a wizard started a massacre at the games, it could very well cause a backward slide into another century of fear for magic. Though Ferrin only recently ended up in this time, he knew this was a huge, and frightening possibility.

He and the Twin had been combing the city for hours, talking to people, and looking into anything suspicious, searching for this mysterious necromancer who the Twin claimed was going to destroy the city. Despite the headache it caused him, Ferrin kept his magical senses perked for any feeling of necromancy. Unfortunately, the city was large and he had a limited area that his senses covered.

Ferrin started reflecting on the events that lead to him to this point in time, and those thoughts invoked a storm of emotions that he couldn't begin to contemplate.

Suddely, a voice, followed by the sound of a foot kicking something hard interrupted Ferrin's thought. "Ugh, this is useless, we have been walking in circles for hours!" Claire shouted in frustration.

"Calm down, sis. I'm sure he knows what he is doing." Colt told her.

"No way in hell! If it was this easy, we would have found them days ago! This is just a waste of time!

She has a point. This gets us nowhere. Outside of lucky chance, we will not find them this way. Ferrin pondered, while the Twin argued back and forth. There has to be a better way. I could try contacting the guilds in the area, and see what information they have...What the-?

Ferrin stopped in his tracks.

The Twin, who had been behind him, kept walking and ran into him.

"Hey! What's the big idea!" Claire asked.

Ferrin said nothing, but bent down to put his Gauntlet palm on the ground. He closed his eyes, and furrowed his brow.

Claire took another breath to berate him, but Colt took control, and clapped a mental hand over their mouth. Quiet! Can't you see he is concentrating?" Colt felt her disgruntlement, but she settled down. The object of Ferrin's scrutiny was a feeling he got. He could feel a line of residual magic, clear, somehow silverly and very thin. The line continued east to west, across the street. Ferrin walked across, following the line, and focusing on it to the exclusion of all else. He drew shouts, and curses, as he blocked foot traffic.

"How very odd..." He remarked. He had felt this same magic before, a day ago, in a completely different part of town. Just like before, it felt new, strong. But it did not seem to do anything. Just marked a line. He walked back and forth, as the Twin looked on in confusion, and the people walking along the street got irate. "GET OUT OF THE WAY, BUD." One shouted. Ferrin pondered it for a while, something about it bothered him. It was completely irrelevant, yet it was out of place from the usual backdrop of the city. Like a book on a bookcase that was slightly out of place, or an off-pitch singer in a choir. It took him a few paces back and forth, before he realized what it was.

"It is not a line...it is a circle." He muttered. Could it be...

Suddenly, a blast of necrotic magic washed over his wide open senses, like a wave. His head snapped up, like a hound that had caught a scent. "Over there!" He rushed over to the Twin, and snatched them up.

"Hey, what are you dooooooaaahhhh!" Colt tried to ask, just as Ferrin jumped with aether-enhanced strength on the top of the nearest building. He set them down and looked back. Their was nothing, but a confused crowd staring back. Ferrin heaved a mental sigh of relief. He thought they were being attacked. He could still feel the magic, moving away from them very quickly, if he didn't move fast, he would lose it. He bent down, "No time to explain, get on my back." He said.

The Twin backed away, slightly, "I'm not really a fan of--" Colt tried to say, speaking for both of them.

"Would you rather be carried under my arm?" Ferrin interrupted.

"Ugh, no." Colt sighed, and he reluctantly got on Ferrin's back. This is embarrassing... Claire thought to Colt. "You don't have to tell me that." He thought back.

"Hold on tight!" Ferrin admonished. He took a running start, and he leapt form rooftop to rooftop, in pursuit of the magic. The speed of his passage, rustled his coat, and from the Twin's postion, they could see a very interesting mark on Ferrin's body.

Sis, that mark...is that...?
I think so...anyone would know that mark.
What does it mean?

But she didn't respond.

Back on the street...

"That was a dangerous ploy."

"I know, but he was getting too close."

A moment of silence.

"There is also a certain mage we can use as a scapegoat. Once I lead him there, he will hit a dead end."

"Good. Do so."

---

Unbeknownst to Ferrin, a little skeletal rat was the source of the magic. Guided by it's creator, it lead Ferrin on a chase through the city, bravely dodging stomping feet. And circling birds, before finally stopping at the source of another disturbance brewing. It's task finished, it curled up, and once again, became an inanimate pile of bones. A moment later, Ferrin's boot came crashing down on them, reducing them to dust.

He let a very disgruntled Twin down, as he took a look around, his magic held at the ready. Loud shouts nearby drew his attention. He moved over to investigate. He was half hidden in the shadow of an alleyway, as he watched the details of Nidhogg's showdown with the various other wizards, most of which Ferrin couldn't identify. This guy again. He though. I need to question him, but getting an honest answer will be a pain in the ass. He studied all involved as tensions mounted. Crap, this is going to get ugly. I have got to do something, and fast. He prepared to charge in, but he checked himself. Stupid, stupid, that is what got you into trouble last time, dumbass. This Nidhogg is a slippery fellow, dead set (ba-dump-ching) on causing mayhem. I need to formulate a plan... Ferrin stayed where he was, as the dome went up.

"This fellow really likes his domes..." Ferrin remarked idly. He turned to the Twin, whom he was in charge of protecting. "Stay here, out of site, or if things get chaotic, run far and run fast. I will be able to track you via that ring you are wearing." They nodded.

"Hey, Ferrin." Colt said, hesitantly. "Don't die."

Ferrin flashed him a grin, that was full of confidence and cocky assurance.

"Ha! They would have to kill me first." He said, turning away, and heading toward the dome.

Most of the once-gathering crowd had exercised the better part of valor, and ran off. Leaving only the brave or foolhardy with the Lich. I'm one of the brave ones, right? Ferrin though. Two of the mages had been pulled below ground, but Ferrin decided to let them fend for themselves. His priority was to capture Nidhogg, or kill him, then damage control.

As he made his move some one else crashed the party, literaly. "Hey!" He shouted at the newcomer. "You are stealing my thunder!" He then turned, and pointed at Nidhogg, "And I have a bone to pick with you, Lich."

@Lunarlors34@Joshua Tamashii@Roseletta@Zarkun@Raijinslayer

@Infichi
Ethel's body began to let off blue sparks as Verrick put his face close to hers but they soon faded away as she turned away from him.
"Ethel said Ethel is Ethel, not kid." She said in a louder tone, however her voice was naturally soft and quiet so it wasn't particulary loud still. But loud enough for him to hear her now.
"Ethel's sister is here...somewhere in Crocus. Good for Ethel, bad for others. Sora will find Ethel once calmed down. Ethel hire Verrick to help." The last part was more directed as a request towards Verrick while the rest was a brief explanation of what she had said. She hadn't the heart right now to admit her sister was a dark wizard, however she also knew she couldn't hide that fact forever.
"Searching for Sora pointless right now. Probably in the clouds." She quickly added as she pointed upwards towards the sky. So unless Verrick knew how to fly and find a man who could turn himself invisible, it might be quite difficult to track him down right now.



[@Infinchi]
"Ethel! Ethel! Bloody hell we turn our backs on her for three seconds and she runs off somewhere....and where the hell are we anyway?" Mai let loud sigh before glancing around their general vicinity. She and Jess had been searching for Ethel for just over an hour now without any luck and had found themselves at the end of some random alleyway.
Sora was going to be mad when and if he found out they had lost Ethel.
"...Maybe Ethel went to the inn. Ethel is smart, so if she realised she gotten separated she would've headed there no?" Mai turned towards her younger sister with a dumbfounded look on her face....why hadn't she thought of that?
After a quick facepalm at her own stupidity and letting out a few choice curses into the palm of her hand, Mai was leading her sister out of the alley when she noticed that her sister was knelt down.
"Jess, what the heck are you doing?" She asked with a sigh, however Jess seemed to be ignoring her and paying more attention to whatever was on the ground. Before Mai could come over however Jess stood up and turned around, with Chu in her arms.
"Can we keep it?"



@Raijinslayer@Zarkun@Joshua Tamashii@Roseletta@Crimson Raven
Manami frowned as Nidhogg got into his little spiel. Could he kindly not go around danging his eyeballs? Not only was it probably creeping out the Phoenix Wing mages but it was certainly creeping the heck out of her.
Deciding to not look at him as he continued, she simply listened and took in what he said. Shiro on the other hand seem relatively unfazed by his little show, like she couldn't care less even. Maybe because she didn't care, but beside the point.
"My dear Mr DuCarthy I'm afraid you're forgetting who exactly you begged to come along here....I didn't allow you to come along to make a scene and you promised me your best behavior. Yet I hear from yourself that you were threatening the lives of the citizens? I have half a mind to take you back this very instant." Despite her seemingly scolding tone a small tendril of golden water snaked up her arm as she talked.
"However despite how much I detest your methods, I must admit they've been effective. And you haven't technically broken your promise so let's just mop these small fry up and get out of here before any of the bigger guns turn up."

As the dome began to encase Cody and James, Cody punched the ground in frustration. He was sick of being underestimated. It was about time he showed he could be useful rather than just a troublemaking nobody.
Throwing his arms out as the hands and skulls that raced towards him and James seemed to bounce off of a near invisible barrier. However the light blue tingle in the air was obviously as Cody took a few breaths to calm himself. This wasn't like him at all.
He was usually more level headed than this...what made him feel this way?
"I didn't run in here half-cock...I already had my magic activated. I've stretched my Absolute Shield to it's maxium length however-" Cody didn't get much of a chance to finish however as the dome was soon smashed into tiny pieces. Well he was just going to ask James to smash the dome, but that would work just as well.
But he didn't notice that Amaya and Joshua were gone and frowned slightly now. Did they run away? What had happened?!

As soon as Ferrin and Phlegethon made their side of the fight clear here Manami sighed heavily.
"Dear oh dear Mr DuCarthy it would seem that you have a few fanboys here to see you. I hope you won't mind me taking one out of the equation." Manami gave him a teasing grin and wink before pointing her open hand towards Phlegethon. A flaming skeleton huh?
"Shiro my dear, I'm afraid we will need to execute Plan B. I'll buy you time." With a quick nod from Shiro, who then proceeded to vanish, Manami quickly turned her entire attention on Phlegethon. She would have to handle him, the Paladin and the absolute defence user herself then.
"By the power invested in thy vessel grant me the strength lord." Manami mumbled softly before glowing slightly. Smirking now towards Phlegethon she boldly made a brief declaration of her intent if it wasn't clear enough.
"I'm afraid if you want to play with my friend here you'll have to have to play a little game with myself first." And with that a massive hand made from golden water now erupted from the ground and attempted to crush Phlegethon in it's grasp. One of it's fingers was bigger than the spirit itself.
Several tendrils of water about as thing as string now raced forwards along the ground towards James and Cody as well in preparation for whatever they might try.

James had very little time to verify what was happening before all hell broke loose, with Joshua and Amaya disappearing before he could turn to help them and then suddenly they were under attack from the third woman who'd appeared from water. "Alright, fight it is. Prepare to face my Wrath! Cody, do your best." His sword glowed with a golden light once more and he slammed it into the ground, a wave of holy energy slamming into the water and stopping it before turning it into nothing more than normal water. Standing, he dashes forwards, throwing his shield for a Shield of Judgement directly at her. Of course, what she didn't know is it would richochet until it returned to him due to the spell's nature, and it would hit her once first. Following that up after catching the return, he slashed diagonally. "I can feel the stain in your magic, how it was born of sin and evil. It's element may be holy, but it's nature is perverse in His eyes."




Jacey stepped back as the trouble began, grinning ear to ear and ignoring Nidhogg's attempts at affecting her humanity with his nature. "Oh, my dear Nidhogg, you know nothing about the art of toying with prey like I do. Let them take the names and information that they can scrap together from our exchange to the Council and Rune Knights. The appropriate steps have been taken to ensure they don't interfere before we're ready. Now then, enjoy your little soiree, I've other things to do." She turns to start walking away, then pauses and looks back, zapping Manami in the butt.

The result made it more difficult to affect the smoothness in which her water moved for just an instant. "And remember, Manami. We're all constantly getting stronger, including me. You can try and kill me, but I won't be so lenient as that Dragon Slayer you fought yesterday was." And then she was gone, disappearing in a black bolt of lightning as mysteriously as she'd appeared.




Jack sighed and then smiled softly. "That might be true, but Jackie and I would be happy to help you make memories in this world. Aria, this is where you were born, a world full of sights, sounds, colors, and people. Even if you haven't truly lived in it, it's never too late to learn how."

After all they had said to the old man and done to the old man he prove diffrent to them. He did some weird trick to someone where their guts left their body but the person didn't seem to be in any sort of serious pain and was still breathing. It was all very weird to watch but hew as speaking the truth. He was truely healing the person.

Isla still had her doubts somewhat but gave no more input knowing she was clearly wrong just now. She stayed close to the frenzy plant soldiers and followed the both of them closely. Cautiously they followed the old man with some sort of weird bucket filled with guts and the likes. It was gross. After having opened a door a unbareable smell erupted from the room. Together with Nandy she stayed near the entrance of the room half gagging cause of the smell. After a while they proceeded too but came to a short conclusion that he was speaking the truth. With no more to investigate they went back towards the camp in the city to report.



Once down they were struck with a terrifying sight. In the dark it was clear to see that there were multiple cages in the room with multiple still being occupied. Thor tightend her scarff around her neck and placed it in front of her nose and mouth to make the smell a little bit more unnoticeable. With squint eyes she looked around the room if there was more to it but as for now light would be the priority.

Just as Thor wanted to make a spark in the middle of the room Ash was ahead of her. Would preserve her some magic at least. She headed in deeper and inspected some of the cages. At first she thought all of them had died but that was clearly not the case. Most of them were barely still alive. She grit her teeth and continued on down the room to see if there was more to it. A few empty cages and a broken one. What was this about. This was getting to Thor her nerves. How could they do stuff like this.

Harper asked the people in the cages a few thinga but it still wasn't clear. Their tongues were cut out and they probably couldnt write either. Thor knew it was of no use. They had to find the one who did this or it was of no use.

Thor agreed with Harper. The two of them headed for the exit while Thor grabbed something from under her cloak. It was her afternoon snack but she could lose it. She divided a food bar as the amount of people still here and gave it to them through the cages. The people inside didn't seem to appreciate it as much as freedom but it was something. Thor headed towards the exit too with a face of regret under her hood and proceeded to head back to the camp with the other two.

As the wind kicked up the dust from the road between the small town of Hantsel and Crocus, a lone traveler made his way to the capital city, his face protected from wind and gritty debris by a hood. When he'd heard of the Grand Magic Games and who would be in attendance, he'd set out for the capital of Fiore immediately. The guilds Frenzy Plant, Dragon Fang, and Phoenix Wing would all have access to information that he, despite his best efforts, did not have the same level of access to. He certainly had established a number of contacts across the country in his five year exile in Fiore, but they were street urchins and other rabble, not the kind that had information on the names of bandits and their locations.

He had stayed over night in Hantsel and left early that morning, determined to catch all the guild masters in one day if he could. As he walked, he reminisced on how he had ended up at this point in time. His training had all but guarenteed that he could easily accomplish an escort mission and return home unscathed with coin in hand for a job well done. So why had it all gone wrong? I blame my lack of experience, a lack of information and a lack of proper discipline. Or...maybe it's the proper amount of discipline that I had lacked. I should have been paying more attention to the surroundings instead of asking the dignitary about his own family.

This had been a constant reflection, and the traveler almost always came to the same conclusion, but in the end, he would wonder if the end result would have been any different if he'd been watching the treelines instead of speaking with his employer about his family and the differences between them and the Kurohiko clan. Pausing in his self reflection for a moment, he looked up and spotted the city walls of Crocus, indicating his journey was almost at an end. Speeding up, he was within sight of the gates when footsteps behind him caused him to pause and turn around.

Before him stood three men, one with a number of tattoos, another who, for all intents and purposes, was unscarred in anyway, and the final man, who lacked a shirt and sported a large scar across his chest. This was the one who spoke. "'ey, weirdo in the cloak! Yeah you! No one goes into Crocus from this way without paying the tax. Three thousand jewels now or we rough ya up and send you to another gate." The traveler took a moment to appraise the three, looking them up and down before nodding to himself and reaching up to reveal his face, his teal eyes shining in the midafternoon light.

"You are scoundrels and rapscallions seeking to cause trouble for those who don't cower at the mere sight of you. I will pay no such fee." Turning, the traveler began to walk forwards towards the gate when he heard rapidly approaching footsteps from behind. Without missing a beat, he activated his Dragon Chi Enhancement, the electric blue of his magic appearing as a tattoo running the length of his body, though only the head, resting on the travler's neck, stood out. Spinning, he redirected the metal covered punch of the flawless young man to the side before delivering a palm strike into his chin and sending the now unconscious theif sailing backwards. The second attacker, the tattooed man, swung a giant hammer towards the travler, confident that a fancy move like what had floored his friend wouldn't save his target.

The traveler leaped over the hammer swing and landed on the ground on the otherside of it before he'd even finished swinging the oversized weapon. Now next to the weapon's wielder, the teal eyed man delivered a quick series of four punches to his side and finished with a sweeping kick that put the man on the ground out of breath. His breathing became less labored when an ax kick to his temple, while not lethal, would have him unconscious for the next several days. The final man's face was a mixture of surprise and rage, the former at the traveler's skill and the latter at how easily his friends had been dealt with.

"Your friends, fortunately for them, will live. But if you persist in attempting to accost me, I will not hesitate to maim you at best. At worst, I will kill you and not feel any regret if you do nothing more than rob others of their hard earned money." The man with the scar on his chest continued to stand there torn between rage and surprise before rage won out.

"You think you can do that to my partners and get away with it? T' hell with that! Flaming Scythe of Pain!" A scythe made of fire appeared in his hand and he rushed forwards, swinging for the traveler's torso. When it looked like the attack would be successful, a triumphant shout escaped the scarred man's lips. However, it was cut short when he realized that there was something blocking the flaming blade from meeting flesh.

The travler could only smile softly when the scarred man realized his mistake. "You have til three to get out of my sight. It is not my mission to spill blood today." The man, who's flaming scythe had disappeared along with his confidence, nodded frantically as he turned and ran for the tree line. The traveler, watched, the single glaive poised in a throwing position. When the teal eyed man hit three, the bandit was still within sight. Sighing, the traveler sent the glaive flying towards the man, taking off his right hand before it returned after bouncing off a tree. "You will not rob anyone ever again." Turning away as the man dropped to his knees with a scream, he approached the gates as the glaive disappeared into a hidden position up his sleeve after compacting, but found himself stopped by a pair of bored looking guards.

"Name and reason for being in...ah, just a name." The traveler sighed softly.

"Mako Kurohiko." The guard who had asked the question nodded and he entered the city. "Finally, the end of a long journey. Hopefully I didn't waste my time coming here..."

@hatakekuro

"Worried about collateral damage? Don't worry, we can do this outside the city. Is that enough for you kid." The man pushed his hand against Nolan to push him back a bit. "Unless you can't. Afraid you're not strong enough to control your magic?" Frye quickly turned his head as he looked at the crowd and shouted "Hey girls, the kid here is a bit shy, want to help carry him outside the city so he can show us what he's hiding that shy expression of his!" The fans didn't hesitate as they swarmed out from the crowd and pulled Nolan from side to side. Frye looked at everyone else as he announced "To the eastern outskirts of the city everyone, that will be where we will start the show!" With the fan girls taking the lead, the crowd followed with Frye behind.

As the crowd of people were leaving the city, Frye noticed a guy tremble as he stared at Frye. "F-F-Frye G-" The guy then seemed to have somehow fallen and had difficulty getting back up. Frye took his gaze away from the man as he began walking away. "Only been a few years since I was last here. Although I'm a bit glad someone recognized me, can't have them spoil the fun. It would be a bore if this all ended here." With the crowd of people almost out of sight, Frye quickly tried to catch up.

Once Frye found everyone on the eastern side of the outskirts of the city, Frye found Nolan surrounded by women who wouldn't leave his side. "Ladies, ladies. Sorry to disturb your business here, but the two of us have to start the show." The fans might of ignored the man, but once they could smell the terrible stench of alcohol from him, they all jumped back and quickly ran back into the crowd. "Hey kid, you awake?" There was no response and Frye turned around to the crowd. "Just give us a few minutes." Frye lifted Nolan up and carried him over his shoulder as he tried to make some distance from the crowd of people. Once they were far enough Frye shrugged Nolan off his shoulder without a care and lightly tried slapping across the face in hopes he work wake up. "Kid! We should be far enough! WAKE UP! You were going to show your magic power remember?"

Ethel Storm

My Hider [+]

@Infichi
Ethel's body began to let off blue sparks as Verrick put his face close to hers but they soon faded away as she turned away from him.
"Ethel said Ethel is Ethel, not kid." She said in a louder tone, however her voice was naturally soft and quiet so it wasn't particulary loud still. But loud enough for him to hear her now.
"Ethel's sister is here...somewhere in Crocus. Good for Ethel, bad for others. Sora will find Ethel once calmed down. Ethel hire Verrick to help." The last part was more directed as a request towards Verrick while the rest was a brief explanation of what she had said. She hadn't the heart right now to admit her sister was a dark wizard, however she also knew she couldn't hide that fact forever.
"Searching for Sora pointless right now. Probably in the clouds." She quickly added as she pointed upwards towards the sky. So unless Verrick knew how to fly and find a man who could turn himself invisible, it might be quite difficult to track him down right now.

Verick let out a sigh, this was going to be really a boring time if he was just going to sit here… baby sitting. “Look, Ethel Is Ethel. You’re younger than me so you’re kid. Old man is older, so he’s old man. That’s just how the world is.” Verick kicked his chair back and rested on the back legs, with the back resting on the building itself to balance him. “Sora’s in the clouds huh.” He looked up at the sky. “Crazy kind of world and crazy magics out there huh?” He looked over at her… “Your sister.” He coughed, looking back at the sky.

“Why is it bad for others? She some kinda whackjob? Don’t get me wrong, I’ve known a few crazy women in my day.” While he did know some crazy women in his time, he wasn’t really sure what special brand of crazy her sister might be… If she was bad for others. She might just be a real bitch, the kind that busts balls and breaks tables. Yells at managers, maybe she would throw tables?

@Infichi
Ethel frowned but decided to drop the subject. She had a feeling the more she argued about what he called her, the more likely he was to call her kid. However upon him questioning about her sister made her fidget nervously with the hem of her skirt, twisting it around her finger.
"Umm...Well...Ethel...ah..." Ethel twisted the hem of her skirt more and more as she was trying, but failing, to think of how to explain this well. What was she going to say? Her sister was a wanted criminal? A member of a dark guild? Wanted to kill the slayers?
Letting out an exasperated sigh, Ethel hung her head slightly in shame as she gave up trying to find an explanation and to just tell the truth.
"Ethel...Ethel's sister is...um...well..she's a dark wizard. Ethel doesn't know the full details...but she joined a dark guild. If she is here, then the scary water lady is as well. Wanted criminals." Ethel had a feeling that Verrick mightn't like her too much after telling him that. Ethel wasn't sure why but people seemed to dislike Ethel when they learned about her sister.
"But Ethel doesn't care....Family is family....but she doesn't remember Ethel. Attack Ethel. Ethel still doesn't care, Ethel wants family back." Ethel hid her face in the shadows of her hood as she leaned against a nearby wall. Would Verrick hate Ethel now?