I suppose disrespecting the dead comes with the job of delving into archeology. In our defense, the race of Isz isn't around to complain, are they? Plus the knowledge is worth it. She said, going over to the table to view the photographs. Hmmm... Did you find a skull? The Isz are said to have believed the skull was the most important part of them. So they ground down the bones of the dead into dust. All but the skull. Looking over the the relic mentioned, she asked Lucille. May I see that relic?

Despite having a cinema just a short walk from her house, she never got into watching movies. The radio was where it was at for her. Maybe one day she'd get into those films that were starting to become all the rage nowadays.

"Oh yeah, for sure, take a look. I trust ya to be careful." Lucy motions to the relic in question. "The stuff here's been OK'd for you to pore over, anyways. In terms of the skull, I dunno. I was actually only added in to the group managin' the ruins when the boss realized he needed a translator, and I was the closest connection he had to the best one in town." she said with a sly wink and light shoulder, making sure not to jostle Wingate. These were somewhat delicate objects they were working with, after all.

"Speakin' of which, I'm quite excited for tomorrow. Haven't been to the ruins themselves yet, you're actually my ticket in."

@Yomojo
The relic in question was a small device, resembling an astrolabe. The rune seems to be missing. If it had one that was. There is some text here. Pausing, she took a moment to translate them, [8882be]Well, it's a astrolabe. The next on here are different directions. It must've been used for mapping out stars and for traveling. A tool of our "Forgotten Hero" perhaps?[/color]

Setting the relic down, she hummed, looking puzzled. If you all don't have the rune, it must've been taken out a long time ago. My other theory that it never had one to begin with. Either way, this astrolabe is unusable with its age. Regardless, I am looking forward to unraveling this tomorrow, my dear~ When it came to researching the culture of Isz, every single temple, tomb, and keep was like unraveling a mystery. Every one of them had their own story.

"Well, I'd say I definitely have enough to convince the boss to let ya come see the site. One of the boys can guide ya out, I'll stay here for a bit and do a bit of writin' up your translations. You should have a car waitin' for ya outside your place tomorrow mornin'. Should be a lot more answers in the tomb itself." Was Lucy's reply. It didn't have the energy that one might expect in a situation such as this, but Lucille was already mapping out in her head what to write down, what to bring to the boss, and how she'd present it to him. This was going to be the hardest part of the job, after all. She had to make sure this went perfectly, because when she said that Wingate was her ticket into the tomb, she really meant it. She knew that after getting the OK from upstairs, everything would be smooth sailing from there, she just had to make sure that actually happened.

@Yomojo
In that case, I will see myself out. She said with a nod, ready to head on out and prepare for tomorrow. She did not know what to expect from tomorrow, but as long as everything went smoothly, she had no problem with it. I'll be sure to prepare as well. I hope you too will dress for the occasion.

"I will, don't worry." Lucy said half-absentmindedly. Her first initial thought about what the rest of her night would look like brought up more problems, causing her to have to think more, which just ended up starting this downward spiral of Lucy having to commit all her brainpower to the issue she had consumed herself with. This didn't happen very often, and in fact had never happened before, but it seems like there was some part of Lucille Barlow that had been awakened this night. She didn't even look to Wingate as she left, she just continued to look at the pieces on the table in front of her, taking out a notepad and starting to scratch down some notes. Some part of her subconscious had taken up an irresistible chant, pressing upon Lucy's mind how important this was to her.

Maybe partially due to this unprecedented concentration, but more probably due to it not really being that big of a deal, the rest of the night went smoothly. The boss was impressed with what he was presented with, and gave the OK for Lucy and Wingate to go to the ruin early the next morning. As Lucy lied in her bed that night, back at her apartment, she reflected back on what had happened to her last night. "I'm not changin', am I Seb?" she asked to her amalgamate cat. It didn't answer, of course, but she liked talking to him once in a while anyways. "Must just be the powers of the fates talkin' to me. Maybe this'll be some sort of life-changin' incident, who knows." ...there was a pause... "Yeah, that must be it. Just me cluin' in to how big this'll be."

The next morning, Lucy got up early and put on an outfit similar to the one she wore last night. She sort of considered it her White Tooth uniform. She went to the boss' mansion, reporting in and hopping into the locomotive that had been assigned to their trip. It oozed class, as would be expected. One of the fantastic creations of the Universal Machine, it was one of the automobiles that had become popular as a personal means of travel over long distances, re-decorated to emulate the White Tooth Men's sense of clean professionalism. Lucy wasn't driving, of course, she had no idea how. One of the White Tooth's drivers was behind the wheel, with another beside him in the passenger seat, Lucy sitting in the back with an empty seat for their guest. They headed out, trundling through the streets, before they arrived in front of Wingate's place. Lucy would wait a couple minutes, and if Wingate had not come out by then, she would go up and knock on the door.

@Yomojo
That night, Wingate spent her night as she usually did. She too had gone through the same enchantment that the ancient culture instilled in Lucille. Many thoughts and questions went through her mind as she was in the bath. Who was this fogotten hero "An'Kan?" Why would such a tomb be made for him or her if they were forgotten and unspoken like this? Would Lucille's predictions of a secret passage way come to light; after all, it wasn't unheard of for the Isz to build secret entrances in their tombs or temples.

No matter, she had to get a good night sleep. She didn't want to look tired for tomorrow and had to be running on all gears.

---

The next morning she headed on out of her flat. She lived a humble life, despite her reputation in the archeology and caster community. A small, out of the way flat in New Wickborough. Oh how she would love to live in one of those large manors that all the rich and famous have, but she didn't want to draw too much attention to herself. Her outfit was different to her usual outfit. A pair of cargo pants, a button up shirt, and a hat more suited for the hot sun. She was going to a tomb after all.

Greetings~ She said, standing at the stoop of her flat, as she saw the car parked out.

@Patches
Lucy opens the door, then schooches over to the other side, patting the seat beside her. "Well, don't be waitin' outside, hop on in. We got a whole lot to do at the site. Speakin' of which, I got a bit more debreifin' to do on the way there since the boss has officially given ya the OK."

A curious look comes across Lucy's face. "Hey Winnie, you ever been in a car before?" Lucy didn't have a car herself, and she considered the rare trips she got in one of the White Tooth's vehicles to be luxuries. She knew they weren't super rare, but they weren't something everyone owned, and she got the impression that Wingate wouldn't be the sort of person to splurge on luxuries like that.

Getting in the car, Wingate got comfortable for the long ride. Cars were so amazing to her. Getting around without the need to move around and at such a fast pace, but smaller than a train or boat? What advances awaited the city next. Oh I've been in them. The occasional car ride to get from place to place. humming, she looked out the window, watching the world go by, I would love to have one of my own someday... But enough about my fantasies about cars and the like, what's in store for us today? she asked, awaiting Lucille's debrief.

@Patches
"Heh, dunno if I'd trust myself to pilot one of these. But yeah, the dig site." Lucy pulls out a map. "Dig site's here, we've marked any other sites nearby where Isz stuff's been found before with that symbol. Discovered four days ago when a couple of our guys were combin' the area, lookin' for somethin' else. Here's some more pics of the place..." she continued on. More pictures of the place, some notes that had been written about it, other Isz artifacts found different places that had matching themes... It seemed the White Tooth Men were pretty serious about this. Looks like they were expecting some serious returns on this discovery.

The ride was pleasant, not much happening on the way there. The drive itself took almost an hour, and when they finally arrived, landscape was a bit different from where they had left from. The area around the tomb was more foresty than the landscapes common to New Wickborough, with large trees all around, and vines hanging down from the canopy. It wasn't particularly dense, with sky still visible between the treetops, but it was enough for Lucy to really get in the mood.

"Well, here we are! Oh man, this is excitin', we get to explore some real ruins! C'mon Winnie!" she slung over her shoulder as she hopped out of the car.

Listening and nodding at the pictures shown, Wingate began to get caught up on the situation. If the boys are combing the area, look for statues. They sell for high prices and they are said to be used as markers for their tombs.

Hopping out of the car, WIngate adjusted her hat. It was common for the ruins to be out in the middle of jungles or deserts. Usually if you could locate a temple you could locate tombs, due to how close they were. Yet, this one wasn't near any of the discovered temple. Beautiful~ She said, grinning at the area. In all my years, I never expected to be working at an dig site with the mafia.

"I like to think of us more as a family than as mafia. But... I guess that's what's someone who's in the mafia would say, now that I think 'bout it." Lucy muses as she leads Wingate to the site. After going a small distance off the road they drove in on, they come across a small encampment, with tents set up. Some of the tents are smaller, personal tents, implying that there had been people sleeping over. There were also larger, communal tents however, where tables were set up for various objects of interest to be stored, as well as for the people temporarily living here to eat.

"Anythin' in specific you want to stop here for, or ya good to keep goin on to the tomb itself? We don't neccesarily need to stop, everythin's been set up for us ahead of time, so it's up to you." Lucy said as they approached the camp, looking to Wingate.

Mmm... Depends. We should get some supplies before heading for the tomb, no? Water, provisions, I specialize in light magic so we won't be needing flashlights. But we don't know how big the tomb is completely, so at the least a canteen of fresh water will be nice.

SUch a nice encampment... She felt like this was something that most of the White Teeth weren't use to; having pictured them as a bunch of fancy men in suits pulling the strings in the background, she never would have expected them to go out and get their hands dirty. Actually as a matter of fact, her younger self would have expected herself to go out and get her hands dirty like this. I suppose if you define family as a group of people serving a common purpose, living under the same houses, and looking out for each other, than you are family. As they say: The blood of the covenant is thicker than the water of the womb. She said with a smirk.

"Good thinkin'. Let's pick up some supplies then."

As they went through the camp getting what they needed, Wingate would notice a slight air of unrest among the White Teeth gathered here. It would seem the mafioso weren't exactly used to this sort of work, but they were disciplined enough to keep themselves in check. It seems like the sooner they got this done, the more it would be appreciated. A couple of the members camping out joined them as they went about, seemingly getting ready to come with them to the tomb.

"Hey Ash, comin' with us?" Lucy asked a large, muscular woman who had joined them. "Yes Lucille. I was asked to be a body guard for you two." came the deep reply. "Hah, yeah, as if we need one." It seemed the two women knew each other, and the exchange between the two seemed to imply that they were at least friendly with each other, despite Ashley's serious tone.

All of the needed supplies gathered, and a couple of people joining them, the group left the camp to continue heading onward. It was another little while until they saw the signs of the tomb itself. It was a small hill with a hole in the front, the vines that used to hang over and cover the entrance cut away to reveal hints of the Isz architecture hidden underneath. Lucy, with a small flourish, extended her hand as if to present the entrance to Wingate. "Ta-daah!"

Ash looked to be helpful for the situation. While her magic could be used for strength, it certainly didn't have the delicate touch of a human being. A bodyguard? My dear, I will watch your back and you can watch mine, Wingate boasted I'm not gentle flower.

The tomb was what one would expect from an ancient tomb. A large crater shape in the ground, with a large entrance at the bottom going into the earth. Archways stood on the road to the tomb, each with words carved into them. Wingate couldn't help but walk over to one and begin attempting to translate. Hm... Before walking away and going over to another, They mostly seem to be Isz burial rites. I've seen the same texts on tablets or walkways near tombs. I suppose kings, great warriors, and even forgotten hero were all equal in death. At least when it came to writings outside the tombs.

At the entrance of the tomb was a small carving of a face above the entrance. Large canine teeth, thin eyes, primate like features, Think that was carved in the likeness of our hero? Wingate said, acknowledging the carving.

"Huh, never thought 'bout that, I just assumed it was decoration. You think they had animal folk back then too? If they had the same rep they do nowadays, could explain why this hero was forgotten." Lucy mused as she took a closer look at the carving. Looked vicious, whatever it was.

Having moved closer to the entrance to get a look at the face, Lucy caught a whiff of the musty air coming out of the tomb. She took a deep sniff, taking the scent in. "Aahhh, smells like fame. And money, too." she looked back to Wingate, smiling. "Well, shall we?"

Some Isz skeletons have shown traits attributed to beastkin, so it is likely. The issue with retrieving Isz skeletons is that they grind down the bones, all but the skull. So retrieving a whole skeleton is rare. She looked to Ash. Do you know about their burial tradition? They remove the head from the body and incinerate the body, all till there is nothing but ash and soot. The head is then submerged in a bowl of corrosive magic, till all the skin and flesh is off, leaving a clean white skull. The ashes of their body are then scattered around the tomb. She said, walking into the tomb So we are probably walking all over him right now.

CHuckling, she inspected the area, looking for any hidden passages not shown in the photos. You may be in it for the fame and money, but I will always do this for knowledge... Well, maybe a bit of money is always welcomed.

Ash simply gave a shrug as Wingate addressed her. Seemed she was the strong, silent type.

"Fame, money, knowledge, they're all good. No reason ya can't do it for all three." Lucy said as she holds up her torch and walks around. "Wow, but if this isn't amazin'. Gives me shivers, thinkin' about just how old this all is. And the Isz, what a fascinatin' people. We're just now startin' to catch up to where they were in terms of magical know-how." Lucy shakes her head in amazement, then lapses into partial silence, just wandering around, taking in the sights and smells. Ash stays mostly still, just surveying the room from her place near the entrance.

Certainly... They were far beyond us in understanding of magic, but we have achieved things that they haven't. the tomb was just as it was in the photos. Everything where it was. Wingate noticed the indents and areas where the tablets and artifacts use to be. Allow me to survey the area. Wingate said, as she held her hand out, activating her brand. From her fingers, several liquid tentacles manifested, as they began to feel the walls for any possible entrances, some of them checking for texts.

"Let me know if you need me to make a hole in anything." Ash called from her position. In response to Wingate's inevitable look of horror, she puts up a hand to interrupt her. "I won't break anything, Ms. Ipswich. I merely offer my stone-shaping abilities." "Yeah, in case we get stumped on the puzzle." Lucy pipes up. Lucille slowly walked over to where Wingate was studying the wall. "I'd ask if you've found anythin' interesin', but everytin' here is interestin'. If ya need a keen eye or probin' finger, just ask by the way."

Taking a look at the wall she and Wingate were now at, Lucy cocks her head, studying it. There were words, few of which she knew what to do with, but there were also some pictures carved into the walls. She had seen some in the photos she was given, but she was amazed how detailed they seemed to be, especially considering how old they were. "Hey, is preservation somethin' runes can do? If so, would there be any way to power 'em for so long?" Lucy mused towards Wingate.