As Ashe wandered closer to the burning scent he noticed a large tower of flame coming from a nearby building,to which he began walking towards.As he came closer he realized it was some kind of temple,he continued walking towards the flaming temple letting his curiosity get the better of him.When he was a few feet away he was suddenly surprised,and drenched by the sudden down pour.
Shocked,and in a bit of a daze he walked around the temple,while drying his face off with a spare rag that hadn't been soaked.
When he finally looked up he saw two female figures standing before him.He froze in place panicking at the sudden appearance of the two women.
When his eyes had adjusted to the dark he realized they were elves!or at least one was,he wasn't so sure about the other.
Forgetting his hood was no longer covering his face he politely said "oh hope i'm not intruding on anything,i just came to see what the fire was from."
Normally timid he was feeling rather good at the time,having found more supply's,and a few valuables on his way there.Causing him to be a bit sloppy.

As Ashe wandered closer to the burning scent he noticed a large tower of flame coming from a nearby building,to which he began walking towards.As he came closer he realized it was some kind of temple,he continued walking towards the flaming temple letting his curiosity get the better of him.When he was a few feet away he was suddenly surprised,and drenched by the sudden down pour.
Shocked,and in a bit of a daze he walked around the temple,while drying his face off with a spare rag that hadn't been soaked.
When he finally looked up he saw two female figures standing before him.He froze in place panicking at the sudden appearance of the two women.
When his eyes had adjusted to the dark he realized they were elves!or at least one was,he wasn't so sure about the other.
Forgetting his hood was no longer covering his face he politely said "oh hope i'm not intruding on anything,i just came to see what the fire was from."
Normally timid he was feeling rather good at the time,having found more supply's,and a few valuables on his way there.Causing him to be a bit sloppy.

The dark clad woman shifted her weight a little as she noticed the tone of Lumen... her eyes sparking lightly with surprise and perhaps a bit of interest. It wasn't everyday that people didn't change their attitude when they stood at the side of one of the hated half elves. Even more pleasant surprises were had when Lumen revealed her mastery of water Thauma... and put it to effect on a magnificent spell.

Letting out a soft whistle, she leaned a little closer to feel a single drop of that water fall upon her cheek... looking back at Lumen with a smile as she said "It was about a chance in five, but I really didn't expect this place to be lucky enough to find itself an Undine Thauma user... And more so for them to be a skilled spell caster. Summon Spirits must be looking over this temple... Or perhaps not, given it got torched down in the first place"

With that, the half elf takes a few steps back, to Lumen's side once again to look over the wreckage as she puts her hands to the back of her head "Who may have been the vandals? Hope they left a clue or two about their identity... This place is as far away as it can from the other nations to be a good target"

"Ah, by the way, I'm Lianne... don't mind my prattle too much? I'm used to thinking aloud a bit too much" She says with a little smile... just as she notices someone else coming to the scene... and her eyes sparkled with even more interest as she noticed the dark skin of this new arrival, raising her voice for the young man to hear "Now this is looking like the beginning of a joke. An elf, a half elf and a dark elf all stand watching a temple burning to the ground..."

"Well, young man... so far, we don't know what caused this... event. However, I'm more than a bit curious to find out... and better yet, I'm sure the authorities of the city will be even more eager for that information" says Lianne, lightly scratching her chin "Want to help a fellow long ears try to get to the root of this?" Asks the half elf with a light wink of her golden eyes.

-------
A soft breeze whistled through the air, adding soft ambiance to the cool Zenterrian night. It had already reached that magical hour when the last of the shopkeepers had completed their post-hours inventory and gone home for the night, transforming the usually bustling Market Street into a ghost town. A lone figure penetrated this darkness, shuffling slowly through the empty street. This figure happened to be Laureas Brissimon, an elf who worked as a janitor for the local baker. She had stayed late that night, making a valiant effort to hold back the tide of crumbs that had ensued when the day's loaves had ended up slightly harder than intended. Laureas had some reservations about staying as late as she had; the elf had heard the stories, had seen the rope cordoning off one of the alleyways where they'd found a body. Someone was murdering elves, and Laureas had little to no wish to become the next name in the paper. She wouldn't even be a front page headline, just a little page four article titled "Elf Found Cut Open, Killer's Count Rises" or something. She really shouldn't do that, imagine how they'd phrase the news of her death. Laureas had arranged to meet some friends of hers after work, safety in numbers not being the least of her reasons why. As she locked the bakery behind her and began walking, she wondered where they could be.

On the roof of a store not half a block from the bakery stood Anton, remaining both warm and anonymous in the comfort of his probably-stolen thaumaturge robes. A knife found its way into the man's hand, his grip tightening as he saw the young elf begin her trek down the street. It was too perfect. There were no witnesses, and she would not put up much of a struggle once the blade had pierced her breast. He could hide the body next to the butcher's shop amongst the cattle viscera, granting at least one extra day before they found it. I'm so glad it's Friday, Anton thought as he watched her walk closer and closer towards him, never suspecting that her death stood above her that night. It's already like, 2 AM. There's no way I would be able to wake up early enough for work tomorrow. She was almost in range now, just a few more feet and he could use an arte to appear right above her, at which point her fate would be sealed. But wait. Something was amiss. Who were these other people, walking towards her in the middle of the street. Do they know this elf? Are they friends? She didn't usually meet up with friends after work, this is cheating!

Loreas breathed a sigh of relief when she saw her friends not a block in front of her. She ran up to them eagerly, the specter of her death's headline quickly fading from her mind. Jake and Hanah had been really great to agree to walk her back to her home after work, and their presence put to rest her fears. However, as she neared them something seemed amiss. Both of her friends were staring slightly upward, toward the roof of a nearby building. Their expressions were of pure terror, and after following their line of sight Loreas understood why: a darkened figure, almost inhuman in its outline, stood atop the building. Though it was dark, Loreas could barely make out the faint outline of the creepy mask and coat most commonly associated with thaumaturges. A chill crept up her spine and she walked slowly towards her two friends, all her fears flooding back into her head. Was this it? Was she going to die? Would all three of them be found disemboweled? From his high perch, the figure thought to himself: Did I remember to check the mail today? I know there was something I forgot, but I'm not sure if it was the mail.

If all three of the pedestrians had been elves, Anton might have risked it. Hell, adding three bodies to the count? That would make the tally 1.5 times what it had been before. But even in this darkness he could see that at least one of them was human, and he would not risk hurting an innocent in this crusade of his. That little elf was lucky this night, though judging by her expression she probably wasn't feeling it. One quick shadow storm later, and Anton had disappeared into the night.

---

It had been the mail he'd forgotten. Upon returning to his home (now dressed in far more normal clothing), Anton discovered that there had been a letter left in his mailbox. Guh, it was far too late to deal with letters, words, and, God forbid, sentences. It would definitely still be there in the morning, and so Anton fell onto his bed and instantly conked right out.

The letter was totally still there in the morning. Didn't even make a slight attempt at escaping the house before Anton had woken up and felt ready to deal with the small, written communication. He saw before opening it that the letter had come from Sord, and was therefore most likely from his parents. Anton supposed it had been quite a while since he'd made an effort to communicate with them, and years since he'd last seen them. The letter wasn't much, just an update on how the shop was doing (Stacil had apparently really gotten the hang of profiting from vendor trash, and his parents were considering soon giving him full run of the store) and other bits and pieces from their lives. The letter concluded with a request that he visit sometime, as they both missed him terribly. Anton sighed after reading the letter, and supposed it was no longer any use putting it off. He'd accumulated a vast wealth of vacation days, and taking a few weeks off to go visit his parents wouldn't be an issue. Besides, while the elves in this part of Zenterr had grown wary with the growing body count, down in Sord they could be caught unawares.

This was how, a few weeks later Anton found himself in the South of Sord, fully dressed in his thaumaturge getup and looking for possible prey to stalk. Having not visited Sord in years, Anton hadn't been completely sure what to expect from the underdeveloped nation. What had definitely thrown him through a loop, though, was a local temple going up in flames only a couple days into his visit. The brightly burning temple lit up the dark night, and Anton sighed from inside his mask. He'd liked that temple, it had taken his family in for a night on the last leg of their journey from Boreas. Who would dare burn down an edifice that served to help out those who needed it? Anton would not put such a horrid thing past an elf. The wind to his back, he rushed through the shadows of the night, making his way to the building as quickly as he could, on the off chance that the arsonist was still in the area.

“Don’t worry, I’m here to help.” Deimos droned darkly to Melvin alone with a sadistic smile, as if she was a villain herself. Nothing she said would give clear signals whether her intentions would be negative or in their favor, the words conflicting with her eerie tone.

---

Melvin frowned even harder - he had no idea she also possessed a Lorelei Thauma until now. Was this a ruse of her own? The vaguely sinister tone in her voice didn't help the dark elf clue in to her real intentions either. It was like she enjoyed toying with his suspicions. He had to find out what the hell she wanted with him before deciding to kill her.

He concentrated on his Lorelei Thauma and intoned to Deimos, "Meet me at the stable near the abandoned barn. Don't follow too closely or you'll be mistaken for an accomplice."

"Hey, whoa, whoa, whoa! Dude, why the hell did you just say that to her!?" his buddy exclaimed. "You're practically admitting to the arson now!"

"Fuck it. The chick has a Lorelei Thauma too, so she heard me say stuff about 'keeping our ruse up'. As long as she cooperates, it won't matter - the important thing is to deceive the authorities. Hell, she looked to be a half-elf as well. Even if she ratted us out to the knights, I bet they wouldn't take her seriously on account of her race and that she doesn't have any hard evidence of our involvement."

"But I was going to tell the knights about the arson, even though I'm a half-elf."

"That's different. You're performing your duty as a citizen to alert them and possibly save some lives."

"I guess so..."

Melvin looked back at the burning temple... or rather, formerly burning temple. He noticed that the flames had died out by now, but he thought the blaze would have lasted longer than that. Someone must have stopped by and extinguished it during their escape.

"On second thought, don't bother. Someone do-gooder's come by to save the temple. They'll probably tell the knights for us. Let's just head straight back to the cellar and intercept this chick for now," Melvin said. With that, the horseman guided the horse around a bend and over some small hills until a dilapidated barn came into view. Even in the late night darkness, the structure had seen better days. Once upon a time, it was a successful wheat barn until the soil ran out of nutrients and the farmers opted to abandon the place. Melvin and his crew used it as one of their many temporary bases across Sord, but with the destruction of Izumo's temple, he doubted they would be staying here for much longer.

The cart reached the barn and stopped. The small group got out and the equestrian got his horse inside the stable. Melvin waited in the abandoned fields, now teeming with grass, weeds and wild flowers, until Deimos would find him.

As the words long ears registered he realized he had forgotten to put his hood back on, silently cursing his stupidity he pulled his hood back over his head.Then considering the fact she didn't instantly call the guards at the sight of him he responded"well i don't really have anything better to do,so why not?i'll help,not so sure how much help i'll be but " as he spoke he continued to dry himself off.
he really only agreed to help because he was rather lonely at this point,it had seemingly been months since he met somebody who didn't try to kill him on sight,or refuse
him some kind of humanity.So a little companionship couldn't hurt he figured,at that he walked over to the two elven women stopping three or four feet away.
Then saying " i assume that sudden shower was one of you right?".

Lumen watched the graceful and delicate way the half-elf took appreciation of the water granted from Undine, and Lianne instantly won some respect. For years the council pushed propaganda that races other than pureblood elves were a plague upon humanity and could never appreciate Thauma. She had realized once again that their lies couldn’t be further from the truth for this half-elf radiated courtesy, and the ability to disregard Lumen’s race too. Even though Lianne may have found the good in this situation Lumen was beginning to see nothing but trouble and deep seeded questions.

“Surely news of this will spread like the fire someone set to this temple, and we are now involved whether we want to be or not. “

Before Lumen could speak further her intense eyes narrowed a bit toward the new stranger dripping with fresh water from her spell. Unfortunately a sense of humor was not one of her traits otherwise she would have found this particularly funny. She did not even apologize for accidentally soaking him either…Humility was still a work in progress after living a lifetime of bias but she meant well.

“Your assumption would be correct dark-elf.” Lumen stated matter-of-factly. Without further delay she turned to begin trekking down the ever quiet open pathway. She did not glance back to admire her work or see if the acquaintances were following. She did not have any plans to stop them or ask for their assistance regardless because this decision was no one else’s but their own.

“Izumo’s authorizes will indeed be eager to hear about this, though I am not too pleased to be the first addressing the matter.” Lumen honestly disclosed.

With that somewhat settled the straightforward elf’s matching boots in gold outline took graceful steps without hesitation. There was no point now in avoiding patrols since her aim was to disclose what little information she had on the matter…they probably would find this hard to believe that she was not the culprit. If anyone else just so happened to show themselves at the temple they would no longer be greeted by flames. Lumen progressed toward the picturesque town as cherry blossoms fluttered through the cooling breeze. The world kept blossoming even while destruction tried to consume it. Before stepping through a tall tori gate onto a widened footbridge two Izumo knights in traditional cuirass rounded a corner and spotted outsiders. Although they did not draw their katana’s their tone of voice was sharp enough to prove they meant business.

“You there! What businesses do you have here?” The first knight pointed his finger toward the elf.

“You are breaking Izumo’s curfew, speak now!” Another guard chimed and both their displeased expressions were visible enough by the hanging lanterns strewn throughout the village.

A smile trickled onto Deimos’s lips as Melvin soon realized she was a force to be reckoned with, even her horse’s ears were perked forwards, attentive on the manner. She nodded subtly at his directions, slowing her animal to a sluggish gallop. Although Melvin was paying attention to his crew when he mentioned her being a half-elf, Deimos shoved her hood up farther over her face. Would they be able to tell if she contained her ears? No, no, worry that I knew you committed arson. Think Full elf, fools. That’s the last thing they should be concerned about. She thought, pondering on her past complications just because of her race, never to be able to be changed into a pureblood of either. So deep in thought, she lost grip of her horse when the animal’s stride became uneven on the rocky pathway headed towards the barn, quickly to be met with a mouthful of sand. She stood erect quickly, facing the animal who had stopped in curiosity of the fallen half-elf. Shaking her head, she grabbed the animal’s reins and walked the rest of the way, sending out her lorelei thauma to make sure the wheels of the cart never traveled too far.

She stopped to examine the abandoned barn down the road just as a horse was taken inside. It was one of many abandoned barns in Sord, she could see why their ‘cellar’ was never uncovered. She made a mental note of the location, another thought recurring after that mentioned how foolish it would to be to stay after revealing their location to an outsider. She had no idea how important or how official this base had grown to be. She felt a pang of nausea, holding onto her horse’s rein tighter, glancing at the way she came from- they could dispose her in favor of keeping their location. It hadn’t done her any good to let her mind run and douse her in her fantasies of worry- she was already here, Melvin could’ve heard her coming a long time ago.

Soon her elven shoes would hit grass and weeds, tangled through years of abandonment, an outline of a darker shadow revealing the dark elf. Combined with her concerns, his lone appearance hit her, making her footsteps stutter and her heart to thump faster in her chest. Paranoid flashed across her mind. In response, she stiffened her lips, walking gracefully towards the elf. She stopped next to him, gazing out the same direction he was. “Why? Why shouldn’t I report you?” She asked, her father’s heavy British accent clear in her close to whispered words. “What drives you to cause more death and despair? Trying to get your point across this country or just because you want to? The last thing you should say is that I’ll never understand and that I’m going to report you to the authorities regardless.” She turned her head towards him, the red eye left uncovered by an eyepatch scraping over his features. “Dark elves and half-elves have more in common than you think.”

"I'm not as neanderthal as I look," Melvin replied dully. "I'm fully aware of how similar our kinds are, and that you know my situation as well as I know yours. Hell, I was born half-elf just like you. What caused me to become like this..."

He addressed his hideous physical features with a harsh gesture.

"... Is the driving force behind my actions. If you want to know more, you have to guarantee me one thing - that you won't report me to the Sect, as well as Sord's shogun and daimyos, who are all nothing more than the Sect's puppet rulers for this nation anyway. I won't force you to join my cause, but I am demanding your silence. A fairly simple request, no? If you're still interested, then come with me this way."

Melvin turned around and walked towards a portion of ground with a nondescript rock lying nearby. He set the rock aside to reveal a handle, which he pulled up to pry open a hidden trapdoor with a series of rotting wood steps leading down into a dark cavern. He lifted two of his fingers up and lit the fingertips like a candle, lighting the way down for Deimos.

"As you can see, my appearance makes it impossible for me to mingle with Izumo's townsfolk, so I can't book any rooms at an inn or anything. Consider yourself lucky that you can get by with hiding your ears and wearing an eyepatch."

Through Melvin’s words, she found an eerie sense of understanding: the way he addressed his physicals features with absolute horror, the new view he’s shed on her eyes even when she had grown under the Sect’s name revered as if it was a deity. If they truly wanted to kill her, walking into a rotting cavern was the way to go. I…have nothing to live for but the truth for now. No more lies. She thought, tying her horse to a nearby post after thanking it with a stroke.

With a deep breath of the chilly night’s air, she looked up to the Smokey, starry sky. It showed signs of morning approaching in a few hours with a dim dash of yellow on the horizon. She emerged into the dark caravan behind Melvin, catching wind of his fire thauma show itself on his lit fingers. “You know…” She whispered softly, her breath hitting the dark elf’s shoulder. “Our thaumas clash.” A tiny stream of icey air wrapped around his finger, seeming to toy with the flame’s will to survive, depleting it of oxygen. Not until it left seconds later could the flame grow to it’s fullest measure. With a woosh, she pulled back her hood and pulled up her eye patch, blinking a couple times to let her eyes adjust to the dark.

For the rest of the night, she listened full heartedly to Melvin’s tale. Although she was hooked from the beginning, a harsh glare took a while to melt into a stoic, confused gaze. There were many yawns she had to cover and times his voice had almost lulled her to sleep but she still had heard his past out. Eventually she had inserted a few sentence of her past, of how her parents hid her, taught her the tricks of the trade to living (where she also became highly experience in thievery), and sent her off so her elf-father could remain peacefully working with the sect he loved more than his family. She found she had the same questions as the dark elf- where is Larcen, the inspiration for rebellion?

When morning was close and Melvin had finished, she stood from an old chair that creaked it’s protest, facing Melvin with her lips etched into a straight line and her eyes seeming to search his face to complete her answer. “I hope you are not playing jokes to keep me sworn to silence…. I’d hate to be the person caught in a room with me if so.” Finally, she extends a hand to him. “ But….I may only know your story and not your name stranger (she cracks a smile at the oddity of lacking that detail), but after living under years of….pure obliviousness…. I ,Deimos, want to join your cause. ”

"Quite a serious person, it seems" comments Lianne as she notices the way Lumen looks at the current situation... her treatment of the curious dark elf besides them and then the grim look she took as she set it upon herself to call the authorities. With a little shrug of her shoulders and an awkward smile, it wasn't long before the half elf went chasing after her purer of blood cousin.

And in equally short time, she found her before the watch of Izumo, who like usual were chasing after all the wrong problems "Gentlemen, if you worried less about ladies walking at night perhaps you would have noticed what we saw" says the half elf, hoping the dark is enough to hide her features. While she was not ashamed of what she was, this was not the time to deal with discrimination "The Shrine is aflame... someone attacked the temple. With the smell of smoke in the air, and the light of flames afar we saw what happened and moved to see if we could help. My friend here helped douse the flames with her Thauma, however this is beyond our hands gentlemen... Now, don't just stand there! Find help! Report to those who ought to know that the Shrine is aflame!"

Deciding to follow the half elf he walked after her,at the sight of the guards he chose to hang back a bit.he thought to himself"Is she insane!? there just gonna think she started the fire when they get a good look at her!And who knows what they'll do to me..." At that he chose to pull his hood down further hiding his face,and stand at a distance from the woman.and guards.

"...." His superior was silent. Maybe I'll try another time Luke thought as they approached the village. On the way there, the light from the fire had been getting smaller and smaller, the smoke no longer breaching the clouds in the atmosphere. The locals put it out pretty fast. The people of Sord couldn't possibly take it out that fast with only buckets of water. Unless an Undine user was awake during the incident. Luke began to ponder on why someone would attack a Sect temple. The death of his father made him want revenge, but he couldn't do something like attacking a temple. That's not something he would want. I only need to find out why...find the Truth.. "I'm going ahead." Luke said and brought his hood down so he wouldn't look suspicious.

Quickly running through the small buildings, Luke halted on a nearby rooftop. There were a small group of people by the temple remains and also a masked figure running towards the situation. Couldn't have been him. Luke thought as he took in his surroundings. Why would the arsonist run back towards the temple? Well, the culprit always returns to the crime scene. There was also two knights approaching the small group of people. He couldn't help but get involved, the situation was very interesting to him. Luke brought his cloak up and leaped from the rooftop and landed in an alleyway nearby. I shouldn't let them know I'm a Zenterr knight. Being in Sord and all. As Luke approached the group, with his hood down to not raise suspicions, and listened to what the knights were saying to them. Now that the local law enforcement are involved it probably wouldn't be best to get involved. However, he was already walking towards them and would look stupid to just walk away.

Overhearing their conversation, Luke could tell they were having some difficulty with having the knights to leave. He quickly came up with a statement to have them leave. "Yes! We need to find the person responsible for this tragedy!" The red-haired boy did his all to make a convincing face. "Can't you see they're putting out the fire? It couldn't have been them!" He wasn't giving the authorities any time to speak. He hoped to convince them to go search for the arsonist. "There are two of you, so you guys could split up and look for the man responsible."

Xoven - Mecanizada

Xoven woke up from sleeping the whole night in complete bliss. Not a single dream entered his imagination the past night. That was the way he liked it. The less he had to focus on, while unconcious, the more rested he was when he was conscious.

He ate breakfast at the dining room table after taking a look 'round his cold storage room for what to eat. There wasn't that much, and so his meal was fairly meager. A few scrambled eggs and some two day old lettuce and a few slabs of basic bread, made it a decent enough sandwich. After breakfast he decided to close the shop for the next couple weeks.

For some reason waking up today, gave him an appetite for adventuring. He had never really been outside Mechanizada, at least not that he can remember.

Thankfully he had something locked up in a large shed at the back of his house, that would be perfect for just such an expedition.

He grabbed his weapons and strapped them to his back as he left the house making sure to also pack a few sandwichs, a compass, a good chunk of cash and a pair of tough hiking shoes.

He then proceeded to the shed and unlocked it to view his most complicated creation. Admittedly he did get a little help with buying parts from other mechanics at cheaper prices by knowing them beforehand. It always helped to know people.

Anyway, this vechicle had a very simplistic engine, along with hardened rubber wheels and mirrors for viewing behind the vehicle along with tons of gears that made up the inside skeleton. There were many different parts to this but the important thing was-that it worked as he had tested it before.

He was glad that he hadn't taken it out before, because he might be broke if somehow a piece had broken down from wear and tear or simply from the costs of fuel because the fuel was discovered by one person and so they jacked the prices up to take advantage of their monopoly.

Anyway, he got into his vehicle, set his weapons and other things in the passenger side seat and started the engine, heading to the shop right away to put the closed sign up and a note to his helpers on the front door that they will be payed double for the time they have been layed off for him to go on his excursion.

He then left the city heading south at the speed of a horses gallop.

“What are you people playing at?! The temple is fine woman.” One of the knights flicked his wrist toward the defeated tower and then tilted his head curiously at how different it appeared. Although the flames were snuffed out completely the smoke remained rising out of the gaping spaces.

The truth of the matter was that they were not properly following their objective and were the furthest possible distance away from the sight without arousing too much suspicion. They would surely be disciplined or worse for not noticing the dire circumstances first or try to blame the entire situation on these strangers who coincidentally wandered by the town. Not much activity or crime happened in Izumo thus the knight patrol were lax in their duties especially during nighttime hours. To confirm this theory the scent of sake could even be smelt on their breath therefore neglecting to notice the fire all this time.

It was the final straw when another man decided to intervene that the Knights decided to take the groups tale into investigation. “An arsonist you say? Hmph...As of now each one of you are suspects and we expect you not to leave before this is settled.” The hostile first knight commanded and pointed sharply at each one including the crimson haired man. His finger hovered in the air an extra second as though it had been rude of the young man to interrupt. Both tipsy Knights threw each other worrisome glances before splitting directions post haste with one headed toward the decimated tower, and the other to gather the authorizes to search for the culprit.

“Foolish Knights” Lumen mumbled in Elvish as the sound of their heavy armor became less apparent with each advancing step. She did not have plans to remain here in a town where they had not even noticed such a troubling event. It could be months before the crime could be solved and time was of the essence. Lumen then turned to face the half-elf, the dark elf, and now the human still not bothering to offer any introductions.

“I find it quite pointless to return to the camp deep in the forest to rest. It is probably best to comply at least till dawn or before it and rest at their Ryokan.” She began walking toward a large multi-tiered building with a wooden sign posted in the ground, which was visible to passersby.

Abruptly she paused for a second so that the dark-elf could hear her well enough. “I am sure if you keep your hood pulled and stand close behind that your appearance will go unnoticed…a blazing fire went unseen under their watchful eye after all.” She emphasized the last sentence and then began walking off again without a gracious thank you to the man in red. She just assumed he would simply go his separate way, and not wish to become involved further with their quest—or whatever this turned into.

When inside the cozy inn Lumen retrieved a small bag that had been tucked safely inside her extravagant gold belt. The guests were greeted by a sleepy older woman in a plain komon kimono who felt no need to ask questions like she usually did, and simply took the payment the elf handed.

“Three rooms…and another just in case a man in red just happens to stay here.” Lumen seemed detached from the situation and her emotions remained static. Once everything was situated Lumen tucked away the money.

“Choose any rooms on the first floor. We have not seen many guests lately.” The old woman bowed to each of them and signaled for them to take their pick.

“Until morning then.” Lumen said before heading into a room for the remainder of dark.

Melvin found it odd that Deimos didn’t hear his name during his lengthy explanation. She must have been more tired than he realized, and he had just run his mouth off for the entire night to explain everything about himself while forcing her to stay up and listen.

“That’s good to hear,” he said, accepting her hand and shaking it. “Would’ve been a waste of a night if you didn’t want to join me after hearing that. I think I mentioned my name a few times, but it’s Melvin.”

Although he felt invigorated from letting everything off his chest, the dark elf figured that his new comrade was exhausted. He stood up from the wine barrel he sat on and opened a door leading into his room. He probably wasn’t the brightest tool in the shed at times, but even he was enough of a gentleman to know when a lady needed her rest.

“You can borrow my room and get some shut eye. We usually operate in the evening anyway, plus we’ll be moving to the next hideout early this evening, so now’s the time to relax,” Melvin offered, showing her an old but decent bed with a worn mattress and blankets. “It’d be best not to come in and out of here too much lest we attract some unwanted attention. Like I said, I can’t wander about because of my appearance, so I’ll be around all day if you need me. My guys are in town scouting for news or buying food, so there’s no need to worry.”

He left Deimos alone after getting her acquainted with the room. As the wine cellar was rather cramped, Melvin needed to shift and shimmey around some stray barrels to reach a desk in the corner of the damp quarters. He used his magic to light a lantern hanging just above, allowing him to see the detailed map of Sord. The dark elf sat down and inspected it carefully, intent on spending the afternoon strategizing what to do next. Melvin also had journals from his conspirators detailing their findings after scouting the Sect of Maxwell’s various temples and facilities across the country. He relied on their accounts to figure out the details of his latest plans.

Lianne naturally followed Lumen to the Ryokan, shrugging her shoulders and letting out a sigh at the shown competence of the local guard. At worst, they would be obtrusive but given their skills she doubted they would be able to actually catch the culprits and obtain the bounty that would surely be put on them. For that, she could sleep easy at night.

Seeing Lumen's curtness and efficiency of action, she smiled at her remaining, hooded companion before saying "She must not be a night kind of person... Anyway, I recommend you to go to sleep. If you decide to stick with this issue, we'll have quite an early morning"

With those words, the half elf bid her good night, picking her room and walking with a graceful, relaxed manner within it to get some sleep.

As the guards went their both ways, Luke was left with the three elves by his side. "Phew..." Luke sighed, happy that his plan was successful. He looked at the group of elves and had a mental inspection. They weren't dressed like the local Sord residents so they must be travelers. Before he could start any introductions, one of the elves had began to walk towards the local Inn. The talk of rest had reminded him that he hasn't slept since the beginning of his mission, causing him to desire a place to rest.

Luke looked back in the direction that he left Seth. I'm sure he won't mind. I'll find him later. He yawned and walked into the Inn, surprised to have a room set up for him already, and began to rest.

Xoven-South of Mecanizada

Xoven's foot pressed a little harder on the gas pedal as he drove his 'very fine machine' over small rocks and short grasses, still going south. At least the weather looks nice enough. he thought to himself as he looked to the calm blue sky above with only a slight breeze to stir his hair. His machine did make a fair bit of noise though, which had its downsides and upsides. The upside was all animals got out of the way before he even came close to him and so there was no roadkill to worry about. The downside was that somebody could hear him coming from a fairly large distance away.

He hummed to himself to keep from boredom taking over. A few long driving hours later, he decided to park next to a few trees. Leaving the engine running, because it wouldn't be long before he hit the road again. He only wanted to practice a little, as he took out his crossbow, loaded it and aimed it at the nearest tree's decaying bark. He had a target in his mind as he shot the crossbow bolt. It launched from a good thirty feet away, right where he wanted to, having the bolt sunk three quarters of the way into the bark. Nodding happily to himself, he wondered if anyone was as good as he at marksmanship.

Shocked at the show of kindness from the elf woman Ashe simply said"i suppose you're right"nodding his head towards the half elf then taking his leave for the night.
As Ashe prepared for bed he checked the door carefully to make sure no one could burst in unexpectedly.as Ashe laid down for the night he considered the day just passed
he thought about the fire, curious as he was he wasn't sure if it was wise for him to hang around,trouble ha a way of finding him.
Then again he thought about the fact that he that he was now sleeping in a room he hadn't paid for,which was quite odd in his opinion,anything he had obtained
from the moment he lost kyah he hadn't had an easy day.but out of his many long days on the road this was one of his best,so he decided he should he hang around to help
the two he met earlier that day.It's not like a little danger was that uncommon,and he was curious about the fire,so at that he dosed off wearing his other clothes,not wanting to wear his hood while sleeping.