Tocsax nodded at Orpheus, his eyes filled with sudden compassion. "Yes, they did. And yes, he has joined the Thirteen Seekers, leaving only one empty slot."

Then, turning to Alex, Tocsax would say, "350 thousand of your credits, got it. Would you like them in gold, silver, or actual Chronos Credits? Note though that I have not finished giving the objectives yet; so it is...disconcerting that you guys are already asking for rewards." At Lukas asking for a Knighthood, the Keyblader would say: "You too?!" A sigh. "Very well; I am sure that the Basileus and Bassilisa would be honored to grant you rank and title."

Emperor Michael Sideros smiled at Lukas. "Very well, you will be added among the ranks of the Dynatoi, the Imperial Nobility, and given the rank of Megas Konostaulos; Grand Constable in your tounge. You get an income equivalent to several million Moogle Munny, which is the new inter-universe currency. You also have prime choice of estates in Hellas and Anatolia, estates with palatial residences already pre-built." He then pursed his lips, actually displeased. "But you get no legal rights over my subjects; our idea of nobility does not work that way."

Empress Maria di Italia nodded as well. "Same for mine. Our subjects are their own people."

She then continued, "But as Queen Regnant of Italy, I offer inclusion among the ranks of my own Kingdom's nobility, a seperate income payable not just in Moogle Munny, but also in gold, silver, platinum and diamonds, estates ranging from the Alpine border to Palermo, and everything short of legal rights over my subjects. But fair warning; the Senates of Rhomanion and Italia will ask that you prove worthy of the honors they pay for. Now, to complete what Tocsax wanted us to convey; the last objectives of the mission." The Empress then turned to her husband, "Dear, can you finally explain what the Princesses of Heart are?"

A nod from the Basileus, as he said, "There are seven women, not necessarily actual princesses, who have hearts of pure Light that cannot be corrupted by the Darkness. This is because these - non-literal - Princesses of Heart are actually the Light Half of the X-Blade, scattered across worlds and timelines. These seven women cannot be turned into Heartless, although they can create Nobodies, and more importantly, they can transform Heartless back into Humans with a touch. Your job is to go to these seven worlds, the seventh of which is a mystery, and find the Princesses of Heart, and then after those seven worlds, go to the Tomb of Ascot and turn Ascot back into a human."

"All potential help will be given you, including a Gummi Ship of your own, and we ourselves will have a fleet and an army of 30,000 men and women just close by, just in case we encounter Non-Heartless enemies, which Leo and the Thirteen Seekers of Darkness can throw at us -"

"Dear," said Maria, "you haven't explained what exactly the Thirteen Seekers of Darkness are..."

"Oh, right," Michael XIII Sideros said. "Well, the Thirteen Seekers of Darkness, which I think Tocsax mentioned before, are Leo's organization. They're an attempt to artificially create the 'dark half' of the X-Blade and have them attack or fuse with the Seven Princesses of Heart to create the X-Blade anew. They're also all incarnations of Leo, either his past self from another timeline, himself from the present, his Nobody and his Heartless, and people from The Circle that he has possessed. And of course, they're Keyblade Wielders, too; the reason they have not won yet is because they are incomplete."

Maria interrupted once again, "And by that, they are actually twelve in number; they have not captured their ideal candidate for the thirteenth Seeker." She looked at Tocsax, Orpheus, and then at Zarxe as he discreetly stood in the throne room, before looking at Tocsax again. "If they capture their ideal candidate for the thirteenth Seeker, all might be lost."

@Rai@The 42nd Gecko@Rex@WXer@Double[@Gentelmanvaultboy]

He was actually taken aback that this man seemed to know who, exactly, he was looking for but then again these people were humans. It was no telling how mighty their minds worked. He had no idea to what point these people had evolved. Was it some sort of psychic impulse from physical contact, or a deep cold reading technique? Was their information network just that vast and omniscient? Had the story been written in the stars or predicted by some sort of supercomputer? Or perhaps it was the moogles who had heard the whole story and had pointed him here on their behalf?

Oh...

It was the moogles wasn't it...

Yeah...yeah that made much more sense...

He couldn't let mind run away like that out here. These were real humans, they were probably nothing like all the myths. They hadn't gotten there yet. They never would at all, if these seekers of darkness had their way. It wasn't enough for them to kidnap his oldest friend, snuff out one of the wisest being in Paradise, and genocide literally countless slave programs just waiting to be reborn. No, that just wasn't evil enough for them. And what had it been for, to complete the set? Is that why that had shown up in the first place, because Metallica had lost his heart and they were looking to recruit? Or had they somehow set that up too?

The corners of his mouth downturned just a little, his only betrayal of the boiling caldera of anger that bubbled just under the surface. "I don't need any compensation either." He said. "You had me at 'yes.'" He tuned on his heel and set back across the floor to where he'd been. So the best way to stick it in these seekers craw was to find the princesses before they did. Beings whose hearts were composed of pure light, huh? He looked around the room, his eyes landing on the girl Lilliana who was currently attempting to coax the crude robotic dinosaur belonging to the bounty hunter into...playing with her? The one that had just been nothing but delightful this entire time.

It probably wasn't that simple, but what if it was?

He walked over to her, standing there with the bounty hunter and what was unmistakably one of the old gene mods. You occasionally ran across a human with a tail, weird ears, multiple limbs, strange eyes. It might have been some sort of high fashion before they'd locked themselves into that form when embracing forever. They were arguing with one another, which meant he could just slip in. "Excuse me." He said to Lilliana, tapping her lightly on the shoulder. "Are you one of them? A princess of heart, I mean. Like, would you know?"

@Rai@The 42nd Gecko@Rex@WXer@Double@Letter Bee

For all but a moment, Zarxe didn't hear anything being said. A single uttered word grabbed his attention and for that moment, it was the only thing he could think about. Knighthood. That word, something about it seemed so... familiar to Zarxe. And for another brief moment, a vivid picture filled his mind - and it was something he remembered...

Primus ~ The Past

"Come on, now, you won't win by pulling your punches." Prince Lyon spoke in a taunting tone. He stood across from his sparring partner, each gripped a training sword in their hand. The swords were real, save for the blades being dulled to avoid serious injury. It was only a training exercise, and so obviously real swords were not necessary.

Lyon was a Prince, one of several actually. The continent of Arvell had been torn by war and rivalries once upon a time. The Kingdoms of Arvell vied for land and resources, their bold and brave knights fighting bloody battles in the name of their kings. Then the Horrors appeared. Creatures of darkness, black as the midnight sky emerged from shadows and all manner of places. They preyed upon the innocent and guilty alike, their Hearts devoured and adding to the numbers of the Horrors. So great was this invasion, that all the Kingdoms nearly fell within the year. But Arvell was not lost, a young knight named Mithos called to his hand a mighty weapon said to be forged from the very Light of heaven itself. With this key-shaped blade Mithos vanquished the Horrors and saved Arvell from its destruction. With the Horrors defeated, all the kingdoms of Arvell were indebted to Mithos the Hero, who only asked that the wars between the Kingdoms be put to an end and peace be allowed to reign over Arvell. His wish was granted, and the Kingdoms came together and formed the Imperium Of Nations. Each Kingdom retained their autonomy but in times of crisis they would come together as the Imperium. That story had long since faded into Legend, in recent times in unknown where Mithos even hailed from - though many of the Imperium's nations claim to the Hero's homeland.

Lyon's nation, the Kingdom of Ashwall, was such a nation. Lyon's father even took it a step further and claimed to be a direct descendant of Mithos. But none of that mattered at the moment, for this day was not about Lyon, but the friend he was sparring with. A squire who later that afternoon was set to take on the final trial to prove his worthiness of knighthood. Different kingdoms approached knighthood in different ways, but in Ashwall one could only be called a knight if they pass the Trials of Knighthood. The trials involved completing a quest given by their sire, spending their teenage and young adult years training under an experienced knight. Then, if their Knight Master finds them ready, the Squire is to participate in an almost ritualistic dual against the very Knight who trained them, finally being awarded knighthood upon their victory. Lyon's friend had finished all the other trials, and only the dual against Sir Ardeth Balmung remained.

"Set the formalities aside for once, and let me see what you can really do!" taunted Lyon, awaiting an attack from his sparring partner. Nearby, Lyon's sister Rana watched the sparring with mild interest that became more serious when her brother started goading his opponent to go all out. She could only sigh and hope no one got seriously hurt. Once those two got going it was always impossible to stop them.

Lyon's opponent, meanwhile, tightened his grip on his sword. He then slowly rotated the blade into a wide circle before quickly twisting the sword around his grip. This action signaled an almost radiant glow in the blade as he lunged for an attack. The light the blade gave off almost seemed to extend the size and reach of the sword. Lyon managed to duck out of the way, and as a result the attack struck a nearby boulder. At first nothing happened, then cracks started forming and eventually the boulder cleanly split into two halves.

"What the - you could have killed me just now!" Lyon shouted, exasperated. He stuck the blade of his weapon into the ground and glared at his opponent with an annoyed look on his face. His opponent did the same with their weapon. Instead of talking back he dropped to a single knee, preparing to offer his deepest apologizes.

"Oh stop." it was Rana. She was stomping up to Lyon with an annoyed look of her own, "You told him to stop holding back, Brother. You have no one to blame but yourself." she said, putting her hands on her hips and giving her brother an accusatory point of her finger.

Then, suddenly, and without warning, all three burst out in laughter. Apparently this little argument - if it could even be called that - was just one of many examples of this trio mercilessly teasing each other.

"A fine attack." said Lyon, examining his opponent's handiwork and whistling with awe, "Looks like Master Balmung's been training you hard, alright. But... then again, Master Balmung is reputed to have felled fifty opponents with a single stroke. You might still be in trouble yet."

"Oh, please... probably just more knightly boasting. Don't listen to Lyon. Master Balmung wouldn't be dueling you if he didn't think you were ready."

"Hey, I never said I didn't believe in him. You'll do great, I'm sure of it. You're definitely ready. Right? Ez-"

Renovation

And just like that, Zarxe snapped out of it. He filed the memory away and put his attention back on the here and now. But it was a good sign, it meant that the Leader was telling the truth and Zarxe's memories would indeed piece themselves back together over time.

"Aww.... Spoilsport. What's the point of having a robo-dinosaur if you're too cool to roar with it." Lilliana pouted as the robo-dinosaur was removed from play.

~~ 2 hours later ~~

"Umm... Now don't be too hard on him, Seth..." Lilliana was nervously pushing her fingers together. "Honestly, though I'm not going to demand it.. I'd really appreciate some money too, if we win, I mean. No point if we don't. College is getting more expensive all the time, and the time I'm out here, I'm not growing my brand or saving up for it. My manager's really been on about that, and I was already probably going to have to push it back a few years. I don't want to put my parents in debt for it." It seemed that, even as deeply hidden away as it was, Lilliana did at least have SOME common sense. "So.. Um, we don't know his situation. Maybe as cocky as he acts, he still needs the money. Maybe robo-velociraptors don't come cheap. Every time one of those breaks on the job it might cost more than the job earns to repair. Or maybe it's something completely different, and he has something else he's saving for, like me. We can't know so early. Sometimes the people trying to put up the brightest or suavest front are the ones most afraid to lose what little they can cling to for comfort." @Rex

"Huh.. A Knight? I've always seen it as some romantic ideal, but it seems more practical to him than that." Lilliana commented with a little curiosity at Lucas.

"Aaaaah!" Lilliana took a super deep breath in as the word princesses was dropped, standing straight up, only to let it all out in a "Oooooh..." As it was revealed they were not literal princesses. Then as Orpheus asked a question, she turned in surprise to answer him. "Oh, sorry, I didn't see you there! Um, well, I call myself the Radiant Heart, but that's just marketing really. Gotta have a catchy name to inspire the people!" Lilliana posed, in a manner than seemed like a trained reflex, one hand to the sky while another "dramatically" covered half her face. Before her expressions softened and downturned just the slightest bit. "My powers, they actually come from Mana. And, well, if I could turn heartless back into humans just by touching them, I would probably have a lot easier time fighting them. When my Mana runs out, I'm mostly just a liability." Her hand faintly traced a jagged little path on her side, and there was definitely a little guilt in her voice. @Gentlemanvaultboy

"Hmph." Lilliana suddenly smiled, as she put her hands on her hips while still staring down at herself. "Well, listen to me being all modest. Don't you worry, even if I'm no Princess of Heart, I'm still the right gal for the job! I'll keep you guys safe while you bring the bad guys down! We've got this!" Lilliana once again posed, but this time it felt a little more genuine, just a simple, though enthusiastic victory sign, over an outstretched playful tongue.

Lucas smiled as his demands were met, fueling his ego and clearing his prior hesitations. “Then I shall rise now as Sir Lukaz Apó to Vyzántio und de Italia. As for the concerns regarding the governance of the estates, I shall leave it to the administrators that already rule the lands. In fact, add to their treasury the respective stipends that would have been granted to me.” Such a move would hopefully not disrupt the delicate political landscape of Renovation while building good relations with his new liege, Lucas had hoped. He then turned his attention to Tocsax. “Fun fact about my world. The rulers of a German principality known as Lichtenstein never visited the lands they were sovereign of. The title was mostly ceremonial.”

With his business and loyalty secured, Lucas continued to listen in about the princesses and the Seekers. He simply nodded, noting to himself that this was a race against a clock that they couldn’t even see. The matters of the X-Blade’s potential were still unclear to him but if he was granted all of his demands with no resistance then it was probably beyond his mortal understanding. He soon quickly realized the gravity of the situation he had found himself and doubt began to sink in once more. They needed to act now!.. However, before he could go lament even further, his trail thought would be interrupted by a passing statement from Lily.

“I suppose knights were once idealized paragons of virtue… And your talk of inspiring people to do good is admirable. Perhaps we has humans, no matter how flawed we may be, should strive towards these ideals so others will follow in our footsteps.” Lucas said, smiling. “Fair warning though. The battlefield is not kind to children and those without a hardened heart.”

"Compensation? I have no use for it..." Ziton spoke with a solid realness that made his words seem more than true. He was given a quizzical stare from Baqar. Through out his young memory of Ziton he was never to run away from rare riches or something to make his life easier in general that did not hinder his cause. Did asking for money against his desires, truly? Baqar thought but the conniving smile from Ziton made him question twice.

"You're not planning something else bad are you?" The boy whispered while tugging on his coat to gain his elusive attention. Ziton briefly looked down at Baqar before returning his gaze on the others. "No plans.." He muttered. "And what happens to humans is not a concern of mine. As long as you're not from my world I don't give a damn. Let's just remember I'm here to make sure my world is safe!" Ziton shouted to make it clear to all others. He was not with them through good will.

Alex shrugged and said, “To be honest. I got the jest of what we need to do and yes, 350 thousand credits will do. However, the 350 is mostly to let you know I won’t betray you.” Alex placed his right leg over his left and listened to Basileus as he explained the details of the mission. When Basileus mentioned that there might be actual humans with Leo and the dark seekers. He laughed and added, “If you’re so worried about us killing them. Then just leave it to me. We Bounty Hunters don’t care for human life, only how much money we’re getting paid.”

Seth was dumbfounded that most everyone there was asking for compensation. He was even shocked that Lilliana was asking for money as he whined, “Not you too Liliana.” He sighed and slumped back into his chair. Seth perked up when he heard Basileus begin to explain their mission.

“Seven princesses of heart?” Seth said to himself. He had only heard the term princesses in old stories when he was younger. He didn’t believe that princesses actually existed, but then again he never thought multiple worlds existed either. However, the thought of compensation came back to his mind. Something in his heart knew this was now or never.

“I know I wanted to help without compensation, but. If I may ask,” Seth cautiously said before he added, “We Faunus have a defect were our primal rage can take over and make us into beasts that attack anyone around us. whether it be friend or foe. So I wanted to know if there was a way you might be able to help with that. I’ve seen so many friends turn and attack loved ones. I just want to know if there’s some way to keep them from turning while also bringing back those who have already turned.” Seth twitched a little as he remembered how Dagger explained when he let his primal rage take over and attack part of the hunting party.

“I do apologize if I’m asking for too much,” Seth said.

“Hypocrite,” Alex said. Seth turned to him and growled.
@Letter Bee@The 42nd Gecko

The Emperor and Empress smiled at Lilliana; the latter clearly had a more just reason for wanting money than the others did. And so Emperor Michael said, "All right, Lilliana, you and your family get a trust fund, with enough money to set you up for life." He then turned to his wife, and said, "You know, we really should subsidize higher education more, while at the same time looking into why it's more expensive in the first place."

Empress Maria nodded at that, also smiling as Lukas basically returned the stipends he had been granted back to their respective nations. A win-win situation, it seemed. But now it seemed as though the meeting was drawing to a close, and the group needed the chance to rest.

Tocsax would then smile and say to Seth, "Your request and Lilliana's are actually the most reasonable. I am sure that magic or super-science can be used to prevent one from falling to the genetic defect you mention. Very well, a cure will be formulated soon."

The Nobody continued, "Well, as we've ran out of anything important to say, I think you guys should rest and relax. There are guest lodgings near the palace gardens, after all." He then pointedly ignored Ziton's statement; it was quite clear that the Nobody distrusted the knowledge-seeking adventurer. "Either way, the maids and butlers will guide you all to your guestrooms now."

------

The guestrooms were lavish, with silk-lined furniture, desks made of Alt-Brazillian dyewood, and scented with citrus perfumes. Each also had a small backdoor that led to a garden with a fountain and bright flowers - a recent addition. And of course, there were books, plenty of books on the Original Timeline and Renovation itself.

But there was one final part of the guest quarters that was most interesting: A medium-sized training room filled with dummy weapons, where Giorgios Kyros, the young man in special forces armor who bore only a shield as his weapon, waited for anyone to approach him for training.

As for Seth, Damianos Sardis the scholar-wizard would go to his room, bringing him a blue bottle which he would say was: "Calming draught; a stop-gap solution against innate rage; if taken or injected, it would cut off the primal rage even as it builds up. In short, a pre-emptive solution that though not perfect, is still a solution. It can also revert a person who has lost himself in rage if injected."

@Rai@The 42nd Gecko@Rex@WXer@Double@Gentlemanvaultboy@Drifting Pollen

Renovation

In his own quarters, Zarxe sat in silent contemplation. As he had a free moment, he used that time to think on the memory he had earlier recollected, in particular the word spoken that triggered it: Knighthood. What exactly did that mean to him? Had he been a knight in his previous life? The answers were still unclear, so Zarxe had little choice to give his memories more time to return to him. In the meantime, he wasn't alone in his quarters. Alpha stood nearby the door as if on watch. The other Hunters were still patrolling the palace grounds.

You're beginning to remember?

Zarxe heard the voice, like an echo that none but himself could hear. He looked over at Alpha and only responded after a hesitant pause, "I did. Something about Knighthood, but nothing else." at this point the Nobody reached up and pulled back his hood. His light brown hair becoming easily visible on a figure in all black. Also newly visible was his brown eyes and stern expression. Then, almost without warning, Zarxe spoke again, "How much do you remember?"

Alpha's head turned suddenly, as the canine-like Hunter turned its sharp gaze over to Zarxe. Alpha seemed... surprised. Like this was the first time any of them had ever been asked a question like this. However, Alpha didn't quite get the chance to answer before the Hunter suddenly tensed up.

Something's coming.

Zarxe then stood, though restrained himself from summoning his weapon. Another Nobody seemed to... pop into existence. Its entrance into the room was very slithery, like it had slid in from a tiny opening in the air. It had a vaguely humanoid shape, though small in stature. It's arms and legs looked like nothing more than tendrils, and it's mouth appeared to be little more than an unzipped opening in its face. Like the Hunters, it too bore the mark of Organization XIII on its face. It was a Dusk, the most basic form of Nobody. The Dusks numbers were greater than any of the other "Lessers" but they were also the weakest of their kind in turn. Most importantly, Zarxe did not command any of the Dusks, so this one was here on someone else's orders. There was a pause, as if a silent conversation took place between the Nobodies.

You're being summoned back to headquarters. It seems the Leader desires a progress report.

That was Alpha's message before the Dusk left in the same eerie way it had first appeared, a Corridor of Darknesss appearing in its wake. Seemed Zarxe had little choice but to return now. So, the Nobody calmly stepped through the Corridor with Alpha following close behind.

The World That Never Was ~ Throne Room of Emptiness

Zarxe found himself almost instantly transported to the Throne Room of Emptiness. He was indeed back in the World That Never Was. Sitting before him was Number I, on his throne in his usual posture. None of the other members were present, they all probably had missions of their own to do, and their gathering before was merely a special occasion.

"So..." said the Leader, his tone playful and his grin never changing, "...how'd it go?"

"Smoothly." Zarxe said, with no hesitation. He also found himself taking a knee. This was generally not required within the Organization, but instead it seemed to be an instinct unique to Zarxe, "The Keyblade is indeed a powerful weapon, and the Wielder serving Renovation's Emperor is indeed strong as we suspected. And just as you predicted, Emperor Michael welcomes our olive branch, at least for the time being."

"Oh good, good!" said Number I, even clapping his gloved hands with eagerness, "That means everything's going right on schedule. You have no idea how happy that makes me, Zarxe."

"And, Leader..." Zarxe spoke, adding to the report, "...it seems the Multiverse was created by someone wielding a special Keyblade. We weren't given the full details, but this "X-Blade" appears to be the Key to some ultimate power. And what's more, that Wielder's Nobody is the Wielder serving Emperor Michael. Is... is that the reason you became interested in them?"

Number I widened his grin, his way of confirming the question, "See, this is why I knew you were the right one for this job. You even figured out the twist before I could surprise everyone. Yep, that "X-Blade" is just what we need to fulfill our mission. Find out whatever you can about it and keep me informed."

"The weapon is said to have been broken into twenty pieces, seven of Light and thirteen of Darkness. Michael's goal is find those Seven before a man named Leo does. It sounds like there are others who wish to claim the X-Blade."

"Is that so...?" Number I asked thoughtfully, "...I suppose I'll have to have this Leo looked into. For now, just focus on helping Michael gather those Seven Princesses."

"Yes, Leader." and Zarxe left the throne room without another thought. Only then did he notice that Alpha had not been in the room. Somehow only Zarxe was able to arrive at the intended destination. Instead, Zarxe found Alpha just outside of the Castle... and they weren't alone.

The World That Never Was ~ Castle Entrance

"Did you really think yourself worthy of being in the Leader's presence?" a black-coated Organization Member was shouting at Alpha, and his voice was unmistakably Xagram's, "Don't make me laugh!"

"That's enough!" Zarxe spoke, approaching Xagram, "He was trying to follow my orders, so the mistake was mine."

"Then you should more carefully remember our protocols." Xagram snapped at Zarxe, "And you..." he turned back to Alpha, "...you and your mongrel pack should take a lesson from your Lesser brethren and learn your place!" without warning Xagram kicked Alpha, sending the Hunter flying a short distance and then onto the ground.

"I said that's enough!" said Zarxe again, this time summoning his weapon, "The Hunters are my soldiers, Xagram! Not yours!"

"You would draw your weapon against me?" asked Xagram, who then summoned his own weapon. It was basically a rapier, though very ornate and exaggerated in design, "You forget your place, Zarxe. I am Number XII, which puts me higher than you. Unless you're seriously trying to challenge me for my rank?" it wasn't an often invoked rule, but a member could challenge the member directly above them for their rank in the group, the two switching numbers should the challenger be victorious.

"Enough, both of you." that deathly calm voice could only belong to Xadeth, Number III. The hooded figure acted as if he'd been there all along, "I believe you both have missions to attend to?" this was enough to get Xagram to back down, and so the Nobody dispelled his blade and vanished into a Corridor he opened for himself. Zarxe dispelled his own weapon, but Xadeth spoke again before he could follow suit on returning to his mission, "Xagram seems to hate everything about you. I am unsure why. Perhaps you remind him of something from his previous life? Who knows, but you should tread carefully with some of the others in this Organization. The last thing you need is to make enemies of them." he said no more, and vanished into a Corridor of Darkness.

Now alone, Zarxe opened a new Corridor of Darkness, and he and Alpha returned to Zarxe's quarters in Renovations without sharing any words between them.

Apparently not everyone had been around for the little chat in the throne room- or at least, one particular guest hadn't seen fit to show up where she was supposed to. It was a simple fact of life that pirates rarely did as they were told.

Instead, Jillian McAnn had somehow made her way to the palace garden, where she was happily tearing up flowers by the dozen and grinding them to paste with a mortar and pestle.

Honestly, how the flying fuck had they been dumb enough to leave a jackpot like this unguarded? There were all sorts of strange weeds here, including some Jill couldn't even name, and she'd been around the world at least twice in her lifetime. All that multiple-universes shit the Moogles had tried to explain to her didn't make much sense, but if it meant there were bounties like this lying about, she wasn't about to complain. Exotic plants were valuable where she was from: many produced compounds you couldn't get through any other means, and that made them valuable Alchemical components.

Having mashed a pile of purple blossoms to pieces, she dug a hand in one pocket and retrieved a small vial, uncorking it and sprinkling just the barest hint of red dust out onto the ruined flowers. Almost immediately, they caught fire, sending up streams of dark smoke that Jill quickly inhaled.

Smelled sweet. Ionone? She could work with ionone...

For the moment, however, she moved on, pulling up more flowers and destroying them in a similar manner. Before long, she was mixing them too, dissolving them in solvents then filtering each solution for different compounds. This place was her laboratory, now, and she'd doubtless be able to cook up some handy brews before the time came to fuck up the Heartless. Let the talky people do their talking, she'd be making weapons.

Orpheus sniffed the air in the guest room, enjoying the atmosphere that had been so lovingly crafted, before turning to the maid that had led his to his room. "Is there a menu here, or anything like that? No? Never mind then, if you can just go and get me one of everything the chef is capable of preparing that would be splendid." He didn't even wait for her to respond as he spun around and picked one of the many books off the shelf at random and flipped it open, only understanding the maid had left as he heard the door shut on the way out. He didn't mind if she didn't bring him his meal, he only wanted it for the flavor anyway, he could get it in the city later if there was time. Time was really the problem, there was not enough time. Now that all the important things were done with he was ready to get down to his passion and pack as much scholarship as possible into the limited amount of time he would be staying here.

The book itself seemed to be an official history of the original timeline, or at least what had been pieced together by the scholars of this world. He wondered if he could get copies off all of these brought back to his own world. Human culture was the fascination of many a Terminal, but there was so little of it they had found compared to how much there must have been. The world was wonderful, yes, but it was mysterious and perhaps these books covering the evolution of different timeline humans would shed some light on the ones that had created the Servers and the Terminals.

Deciding to take his time in the garden, he was surprised to see another human hard at work destroying it. He'd never seen a human do something like that before, but the way she was working intrigued and exited him. Human science was something they knew even less about than culture. He crossed his legs in the air, leaving the door swinging open behind him, and floated over for some good old fashioned human observation. There was a sharp electric popping sound as he synchronized his eyes from one another so that he could continue reading his book while observing the human, but that was the only noise he made has he recorded her work over her shoulder.

@Drifting Pollen

"Maybe a battlefield you're used to, Sir Knight, but when we're literally fighting over a big heart... Well, never know, perhaps a hardened heart isn't the optimal weapon in this war." Lilliana smirked a little at Lucas's warning. She'd fought the heartless before. This would go fine, right?

"Wh... What? For life, really? Gosh, I... Um, thank you!" Lilliana stammered a bit, clearly stunned by the generosity, but also perhaps a bit more. She was set up for life? What was she gonna go to college for then? If she didn't have to worry about having a fiscally sound back up plan if magic girl didn't work out... She could study anything she wanted! But.. what did she want? Lilliana left the room looking as troubled as she did dazed, and let a maid lead her to her room barely recognizing what was around her.

Fortunately, the sight of an enormous floofy bed was more than enough to reinvigorate Lilliana's spirits, and the maid's sigh could barely be heard over the groaning springs of the mattress as Lilliana bounced up and down upon it.

~~

Still, Lilliana did eventually stop jumping on the bed, and made her way to Giorgios Kyros first, somehow, of all the warriors gathered. However, she seemed a little apprehensive at the idea of simply jumping straight into personal combat.

"Pardon me.. But, I'm not exactly sure I'm suited this sort of.. Direct training. More of a wizard really. And the books in the library seemed more of the history type at first glance than casting type. Should I head back there and look more carefully, or are there any wizards I could learn under?" @Letter Bee

As the meeting concluded, Lucas placed his right hand on his heart and bowed to his gracious hosts. Taking his leave, he exited the throne room and went in search of his steed. To his surprise and convenience, the moogles that had retrieved him from his world had prepared his iron horse and the rest of his equipment just outside the palace where gardens bloomed. He nodded at the small cherubs for their prompt attentiveness before noticing an odd looking woman in Victorian garb engaging in herbology. This new world was full of oddballs and Lucas felt right at home.

With his gear in check, a servant in uniform escorted him to his quarters and Lucas was pleasantly surprised at the accommodations. "If you could grab me a bottle of the finest Italian wine from the cellar and a pitcher of water, that'd be great." he told the guide, before sending them away. He hadn't seen a bed in lord knows how long but rest was not for the wicked. The books on the shelves immediately caught his attention, grabbing one about the Original Timeline in the hopes of knowing how the American civil war actually concluded. Lucas opened the text's table of contents and flipped towards the page number of interest while getting into a comfortable position on his bed. In fact, it was such comfortable position that he fell asleep two pages into his readings.

Smack! The heavy book would leave a mark on his face as his hands loosened their grip. Surely, he was only out for a brief time yet it felt like an eternity. On his desk were the requested drinks, further confusing his sense of time as he doesn't recall when those were delivered. He wasn't about to look a gift horse in the mouth though, popping the cork off the wine bottle and dipping his hands in the pitcher to wash his face. A quick swig and he was back on his feet, ready to explore the rest of the castle since reading without pictures was too boring.

His natural curiosity for wandering lead him to the training room, where it seemed Lilliana was about to spar with the shieldbearer. "Ah! Young miss, I see you're to strengthen your resolve against one of the Emperor's finest. Cheers to you and show him what for!" Lucas would say before downing another chug of liquor.

@The 42nd Gecko

It wasn't long before Jill caught wind of people moving around nearby, passing through the castle in their own strange ways. Most of them didn't come near- or at least, not near enough to be a threat -but she kept an eye out, partly out of curiosity and partly so she'd be ready if anyone tried to fuck with her.

Sure enough, someone soon drifted a little too close for comfort. Drifted in the literal sense, since the boy was apparently floating a foot or more clear of the ground. Jill blinked a few times at that. How did it work? Was he some kind of ghost, or just harnessing the wind in such a way as to keep himself aloft? No, it couldn't be: there wasn't much of a breeze about, and he'd be tossing and turning this way and that if he were using the air. Whatever made him float, it was like nothing Jill had ever seen. She frowned, all the more aware of just how little she knew about her situation.

Very slowly and calmly, taking care not to look directly at the newcomer, she set a flask down at the edge of the fountain. No need to be rash. Maybe the ghost-boy was just curious. Maybe he'd go away-

She heard something, a sharp pop, and burst into motion without even thinking. In a single motion she'd drawn her pistol and whipped around to face the floating boy, aiming the barrel directly at his head.

So much for passing unnoticed.

"You got business with me?" she growled, turning the flintlock to one side whilst keeping her aim level. "Out with it. Did someone send you?"

@Gentlemanvaultboy

Seth’s ears perked up as Tocsax Agreed to help him. He blinked several times before he said, “Really? You’ll really help me?” Seth’s eyes widened as he suddenly stood up and bowed to Tocsax, the king, and queen and added, “Thank you so much! You don’t know how much this means to me and the rest of the Faunus.” A few tears fell to the ground as he continued to bow. He didn’t think they would actually help him. Since humans hated Faunus, but he remembered that these people weren’t from his world. This was truly a blessing in disguise. Seth stood up and wiped a tear from his eye as Tocsax mentioned relaxation before maids and butlers walked out to show them to their quarters.

Seth followed the butler down the hall until he showed him to his room. Seth was shocked at how luxurious the room looked and how homey it felt to Seth. He laughed, “Wow, you all go all out with your guestrooms,” Seth then reached into his pocket and pulled out eight coins made of pure gold. He turned to the butler and handed it to him.

“I’m sorry if this is worthless here. I’m not sure if my currency is a good tip or not,” Seth said hoping that the tip was worth at least something here and he wasn’t insulting the butler. Seth’s ear’s perked again as Damianos walked into his room. He handed Seth a bottle and explained that it was a Calming Draught. Once he was done explaining what it did. Seth looked at the bottle in his hand and a smile formed on his face. It might be a temporary solution, but It still was something. Seth lightly closed his hand around the bottle and looked up at Damianos before he bowed to him.

“Thank you so much. This means so much to my clan and the other Faunus. I can’t tell you how much this means to us,” Seth said before he added, “I’m not sure if you’ve seen someone close convert into something they're not. Watch them attack their loved ones out of rage and not seeing the damage they’re causing. Thank you for all of this.” Seth tightened his grip on the bottle as the memory of Dagger telling him how he attacked the hunting party flooded his mind. He never wanted to feel like that again and with this. He wouldn’t have to.



Alex scoffed at how Seth acted after his request was granted. Crybaby. Alex thought. Once the butlers and Maids came out to lead them to his room he got up, Stretched, and followed a Maid to his quarters. As he followed the maid down the hall a smile formed on his face as he asked, “so are you only allowed to show me to my room or.” Alex cut himself off when the maid opened the door to show him the guest quarters.

“Holy shit!” Alex said as he walked into the room and looked around. He laughed and added, “A guy could get used to this. Just need a pretty girl and it's complete.” Alex then noticed the door in his room and remembered something about a training room. He forgot about the maid and everything he had said and walked towards the door. He pushed the door open and walked through the threshold.

He found the training room and two other people there. One was Lucas and the other was Lilliana. He heard something about training and figured it beat sitting in his room doing nothing. As he walked up to the three he pulled out an electric cigarette and broke off the tip. He placed it between his lips and breathed in. The tip glowed cherry red and as he breathed out. White smoke that smelled of peaches and cream blew out his mouth.

“I guess I’m not the only one who decided to train instead of sitting in their rooms,” Alex said as he walked closer to them. He turned his attention to Giorgios and added, “You don’t mind me putting my hat into this training? I just want to see what I’m working with. I was hoping to get to see everyone’s skills, but I’ll settle for the guy who thinks he’s a knight and a girl who thinks she’s some magical girl from some weird cartoon.” Alex let out a sigh which in turn blew out white smoke.

“So, how we going to do this. We fight you or each other?” Alex asked.

@WXer@The 42nd Gecko@Letter Bee

The book tumbled to the grass as Orpheus raised both hands and backed up. "I'm sorry. Sorry. I just wanted to see what you were doing. I'm not used to people acknowledging I'm there when I observe them like this." He said, expressionless. He thought about for just a second, his left eye now without purpose and rolling around randomly in his head. "I just now realized how bad that sounds, but I'm from another world and we have a pretty unique situation going on there."

This was actually bad. He had no idea what that weapon was, no clue what would happen if she fired it. He had to deescalate the situation. "My name is Orpheus and Euryale. You can use either one, I don't mind which. You can think of me as something of a scholar of humanity. This is kind of what I do, I study people to try and figure out what they're doing, what they're thinking. I once watched a man contemplate a leaf for sixty-seven straight years and then eat it. He never even looked up. I'm still not sure what was going on there. I'm sorry for babbling like this. You might not be able to tell, but I'm really quite afraid right now. Is this a gun? What does it fire?"
@Drifting Pollen

"Well, young Lilliana," Giorgios Kyros said, even though he was only one year older than her, "That's what Damianos Sardis can teach; he's a Wizard and my best friend." He would then give a slight bow to Lukas. "Have you come here for a spar as well? The young lady has actually expressed a preference for wizardy, meaning that my best friend will have to be the one to spar with her."

Finally, Alex arrived at the scene with his own questions; the reply was, "Either would do; fighting me or each other."

~~~~~

Damianos Sardis smiled at Seth's words. "You're welcome to what help we can provide. Either way, I think my presence is needed elsewhere; Wizard's intuition."

And with that, he would go to where Giorgios, Lilliana, Lukas, and Alex were, saying once he arrived; "So, is a Wizard needed anywhere?"

@Rai@The 42nd Gecko@Rex@WXer@Double@Gentlemanvaultboy@Drifting Pollen

Lucas eyed up his fruit-smoking "ally" from head to toe before scoffing at him, downing the rest of his wine in one go to follow up his disdain. There was something about Alex that perplexed him, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it. While he didn't know the reason, that didn't stop him from dismissing him. "Mercenary, I'm quite certain that the honor of dueling Sir Kyros should first go to me. After all, you're already a trained killer, are you not? Meanwhile I haven't handled a blade since receiving fencing lessons in Berlin as a lad." he would say with a smile towards Alex, before looking down at his own feet to belch. "Besides, I don't see a keyblade on your person." Lucas would then drop the bottle he held, unstrapped the keyblade from his back, and wielded it with only his right hand. With his Ghostrock Gauntlet, the weight of Gloria could easily be carried by the knight of the Dark West.

His left hand would be behind his back as he stood tall, slowly transitioning into a slight squat with his left foot perpendicular to his right foot. The keyblade would then be slightly tilted towards his sparring partner. "Now, Sir Kyros, I noticed you don't have a sword either. I sure hope a lack of weapons isn't the cause of it!" Lucas would state with a wheezing laugh at his own wit, pointing at the training weapons with his keyblade scattered across the room. He would soon loosen his stance as realized that perhaps he should grab the non-fatal weapons for himself and Giorgos before he inadvertently injured two of the Imperial couple's vassals. Slowly, his laughter came to a halt as he walked towards a sword rack in order to grab appropriate fencing equipment so they may begin.

@Letter Bee@Rex

After his words Ziton turned to Baqar. "Go into the guest room. Don't leave it." He then turned away from the child and began walking the opposite direction. Before he could get too far Baqar voiced a question without raising his voice. "What will you do?" Ziton paused while mid stride, the shade from over his face growing darker. Yet his smile grew brighter as he parted his lips once more to speak with a fluid confident tongue. "To try and find something." He then kept walking. Leaving behind a calmly confused Baqar.

The young boy shrugged and began to walk with a hop to his happy steps. He made his way with a maid to the guest room and was in awe of the decor. He found the bed most amusing and jumped on it to find out how high he could bounce. The glint of different colors met his eye as he was twisting midair. He hopped onto the ground and opened the back doors with a rush. He dashed with open excited arms to perform a classic display of smelling the flowers. As he did this however he came across patches of missing bundles. He also took notice of the two people within the garden. One had a weapon drawn on the other. "That's a weapon!" He spoke up from behind a bundle of foliage as a stand in reply to the floating mans question. "And it fires magic!" He exclaimed with raised arms. Though he was hardly visible behind the shrub.
@Drifting Pollen@Gentlemanvaultboy

Ziton made his way to the training hall for a brief moment. Merely to observe. He then continued walking. Wandering the halls to find where he could go that was not heavily guarded. He veered over the line of where he could go. Accessing his limitations. It was only now that he found his murderous intent dampened. Indeed he did plan on killing where the coverage was light. Yet he did not find the will to attempt. "Where is this coming from?" He muttered. His eyes gave a feint glow and his eyes saw he was surrounded with a mysterious mist. It was coming from the ground itself. The mist guided him to what he sought.

He stepped back in surprise. "No different from Vrondi. When will people learn.." Ziton chuckled as he continued to view the scene whilst suppressing the affects of the magical floors. The training room, the throne room, and the guest rooms seemed to be the main places allowing passage. Yet the view of the various machines and weapons surrounding the castle made him smirk. He stood now at a window that looked outside at the city surrounding the castle with his arms crossed and his worn hat tilted.

((Collab post between Letter Bee and WXer))

There were wooden, padded, and blunted weapons on the racks, but Giorgios just took up another shield. Facing Lukas, the heavily-muscled eighteen-year old said, "I have all I need."

The shields would glow with a faint, almost certainly supernatural light...

The keyblader would grab the first wooden sword from the closest rack, quickly turning his attention to his sparring partner afterwards. "Then I choose Holzschwert here. En garde!" Lukaz would exclaim, doing a running lunge towards Giorgios with a drunken swagger. His aim was naturally drawn towards the light of the shield, almost like a moth to the flame.

As the wooden blade struck the shield, Lukas would feel the force of the blow magically bounce back from the enchanted item, causing a shockwave that would hit him and deal the same force he had struck with. Girogios then took up a protective stance, saying, "Sorry about that; I was assuming magic was allowed."

"All's fair in war, Sir Kyrios." Lukaz would state with a smirk on his face. This brief pause gave certain insight to the fiery fencer, concluding that if he merely stopped attacking then surely the shield could not reflect his force. But that wasn't the point of the duel. With the same initiative, Lukaz would aim high in the hopes of bypassing the shield and knock a few bells off of Giorgious' helm. However, the blows would be quick yet soft for a sweep aimed at the legs would soon follow after, hoping the shield was raised high enough that they couldn't protect the opponent's lower body.

Giorgios took the second shield for a reason; one to protect his upper body and head, the second to protect his lower body. Both shields glowed with the same reflective magic that would bounce back the damage to Lukas, but it was quite clear the shieldbearer's dexterity had been tested. The next words from him were, "Better than before. But an eighteen-year old isn't granted magical shields when he doesn't know how to use them."

A soft 'Hyuk' esaped his throat. "Oh, sorry about that; Damianos says it's a 'verbal tic' or something."

"Think not a second thought of it, shieldbearer. I'd say you have quite the storied career ahead of you considering your skill and age." Lukaz would state before switching the wooden sword to his left hand. He was now about to pull out more tricks than just fancy swordwork. The Ghostrock Gauntlet on his right hand started to glow before exhaling a fog of smoke directed at Giorgios, as he hoped to get the element of surprise on him. Instead of a strike from his sword though, Lukaz attempted to grapple his opponent in a headlock.

The sound of both shields dropping would be the first clue that Giorgios has figured out his ploy. The second clue would be Lukas finding himself grappled back in close-quarters wrestling, with Girogios proving to be just as strong as he was, and well-aware of the principle of leverage and using said principle to position himself in a way that made the best use of his strength...

As both men were stuck in their grapple holds, a feeling of uneasiness rose back from Lukaz's guts. "We... seem to find ourselves in a predicament, Giorgios." he would state just before throwing up towards his opponent. This wasn't the trick he had in mind but he'd take it, hoping that the locks of strength would loosen up to accomodate the situation.

Girogios closed his eyes, but his grapple was broken and he was forced to stagger back. His shields began floating back towards his hands even as he blinked out the vomit. Regaining his composure, he attacked; throwing one shield, then the other, then having the first thrown shield return to his hand. The young man was cutting loose.

Lukaz threw the sparring sword at the first shield, hoping to change its trajectory while attempting to catch the second shield in mid air with a punch from his gauntlet. His aim might have been impaired but he was still standing, barely. He couldn't tell if shields were suppose to do that, but if he was getting tested for eye-hand coordination then perhaps it was time to return it in kind. "Sir Giorgios. How fast is your shield and how lucky do you feel?"

The shields would reflect their force back onto Lukas' body when they were hit, and as they returned to Giorgios' side, the soldier would say: "To both questions? Very."

"Then I call an ace high!" exclaimed Lukaz, pulling his pistol from his holster. Faster than his earlier sprints, he would run and gun towards Giorgios. However, all the shots would miss as they flew by his target's head as the deputy was careful not to hit anything vital. These were all warning shots to flinch his opponent as the big finisher was coming. Lukaz was tough and drunk enough to take a punch to the face while his fellow fighter was surely formidable. So, as he came close to Giorgios, a straight jab from a full powered Ghostrock Gauntlet landed squarely on his shield. A shockwave of power eminated from the impact which would have crushed Lukaz's arm if it wasn't already protected.

One shield parried the shots, another shield would parry the Ghostrock Gauntlet. However, only the Gauntlet's blow would be reflected back onto Lukas' body, while the gunshots would be bounced back to a random training dummy. Giorgios smiled at that, and said, his face still covered with vomit: "Draw."

Lukaz was worn out from the fight but glad that he could keep up. After all, it's been a while since someone actually gave him a run for his money. "Now, I suppose someone else can take a go if they want." he would state, before taking a seat on the training hall's floor.