[IC] St. Sappho Academy, Medieval Magic Academy (Invite Only)

[Rune_Alchemist]

~Livia~

Livia's amused smile faded almost instantly with Aetheria's next words. Divine? Her? She sat the teacup on the table, the air in the room becoming chill.

"Cynthia, I think it is time for a break, hm?" Livia said with a serious tone. The maid simply cast a slightly quizzical glance over to the headmistress, but only bowed and left the room, closing the door quietly behind her.

"Explain," Livia's fingers tapped on the desk impatiently, a serious glare gazing at Aetheria. She didn't seem angry, but she was definitely displeased with whatever it was Aetheria had said. "In detail. You better have a good explanation or you better leave and find one now." She was being a bit harsh, certainly.

But the implications of what Aetheria said...might undermine her entire lives work, wouldn't it?

~Miren~

"Oh! I see!" Miren said with a smile. "If its organizing information and keeping it straight I can certainly be of assistance. It's sort of my job, after all." The bunny laughed. For once, it'd be quite refreshing to help someone else instead of simply keeping the library organized. "Alright, what have you discovered so far? Do you have any notes written?"

~Sorcha~

"Little one, you must understand." Sorcha said shaking her head. "I have been sleeping for the past...two hundred years? Such a long time, really. I can't even recall. Any mage I know aside from Livia is likely long dead...though..." She placed a hand on her chin, looking towards the ground with a thoughtful expression. "If we can not find a solution by the time we reach Gibraltar, I have an old acquaintance I suppose I could ask for help. I do not know how receptive he would be, it has been quite some time since I have been anywhere near Valhalla and he was never the...sociable sort, but I suppose I am getting off topic." The dragon smiled, gently grabbing the kitten's arm.

"We should be going, yes?" With a forceful flap of her wings, the dragon lifted herself and Maoin into the sky, just above the treetops before darting off to the south west.

~Selvinia & Co~

As the group stepped into the pad, the coordinator flashed them a bright smile and waved them off. A flash of light, a small hum of magic and the four of them had almost instantly traveled halfway across the globe. As soon as it wore off, they would find themselves first assaulted by a gust of cold air, with breathing becoming somewhat difficult, at least suggesting they were somewhat high up. Likely in the mountains somewhere. Short grass crunched beneath their feet as they walked, and as soon as their eyes adjusted they would find where they had ended up.

The outskirts of a small village somewhere high up in the mountains.

The group was currently standing in what looked to be a circular stone platform, raised a few feet off of the ground. A few weathered stone pillars surrounded it, though they had obviously seen much better days. The houses in the distance were made of simple stone and wood roofs, quite far a part. Leveled fields were something was being farmed could be seen on the side of the mountain a little ways off from where they had arrived. Smoke gently rose from the houses, some being two or three stories tall as they likely were being warmed by fires.

The entire small village was surrounded by a rough stone wall, a large wooden gate that looked like it hadn't been used in years was open and allowed for travel into the village. A few shouts could be heard from the other side in some foreign language. If they so bothered to look behind them, they would see a massive mountain looming in the distance.

Hopefully one of the people present could speak something other than french.

"Waaah, I should have bought a jacket." Lyssa complained, rubbing her shoulders. Not that she really minded the cold, but she was probably going to need a lot warmer clothing if they were heading any further up this mountain.

[Roleplayer001]

Removing one of the several fur coats he had brought along, Lyssa would find it placed into her hands as Selvina took a look around. "Problem solved."

Moving off the platform, the magierprinz took a brief look around as she proceeded to examine the village, the mountain, and various other details of the local region. It was cold, but not extremely so, and the northern edge of the Holy Roman Empire could freeze much more cruelly.

"Don't worry, I came with a book that contains what probably amounts to horrible translations. Anybody know the local tounge?" After briefly looking at the demoness and Eith and discounting them, Selvina looked towards Lady Lightsword with some hope.

The magierprinz had of course prepared magic for this situation, but it required contact and could backfire if the other party was malicious and had any knowledge of magic. It also required physical contact, which was awkward with some cultural groups.

Aetheria watched the maid leave, suddenly feeling a little nervous as the headmistress bored down onto her. After taking a small gulp, the white mage countinued her story. "It would be easier for me to verify it's exact origin with a more stable sample of Fia, but essentially you have two souls that are interconnected."

It probably wasn't a fantastic idea to start doing a review for the headmistress, but it was also important to explain where she was coming from. "Assuming your bloodline is from Egypt based on Fia's likely background in the mediterranean, you are probably related to a line of Pharohs from the Old or Middle Kingdoms. Every mortal has a Ka, which is essentially the mortal soul. It's what you manipulate on a daily basis and what you tend to move around. However, those in the royal bloodline - especially those closer to the Pharoh - also obtain a Ba, which is basically the divine soul. Unlike the Greek demigods which are half human half god, you are completely human with a slice of the divine on the side." Aetheria paused for a moment as she sipped some her own water, countinuing.

"I was honestly surprised to find it built up in any detectable level over two thousand years after the fall of that civilization. It wasn't that large in you, but it's no small prescence either." Some papers were slid across the desk to give the other woman a chance to look at the values she was observing. "However, Egyptian nobility were noted for their ability to manipulate and understand souls as well as their general magical prowess, so it's no surprise to me that you are as talented as you are in that realm of magic. I'm not saying you didn't work hard to get on that side of the desk, but simply that you had help internally that propelled you forward faster than your peers."

After her quick little lecture, the teacher paused and stretched slightly as she waited for a response.

The kitten allowed herself to be lifted into Sorcha's arms as they took off, clinging on comfortably to ensure she wasn't dropped. Maoin was impressed with how quickly the land went by despite having flown with the dragon previously, although she had a question for the best.

"Could you transform into your true form, Sorcha? Your back would be more comfortable for us both, right?" Of course, the cat was forced to scream this out as the wind rushed by the pair of them, and simply hoped the dragoness would be able to hear her.

She was curious about this contact, but the details would likely be better settled ont he ground.

Fia put her fingers together as the other woman asked the final questions, shaking her head no. After several seconds went by and her amber eyes looked towards the ground, the girl finally seemed to raise her point. "... contradictions ... confusion ... vaugity ..."

Based on the way the girl was looking, it would probably be wise for the librarian to take the pair of them to Fia's reading hole so they could work in length there.

[Pyromania99]

Lunalel Lightsword and Eith

Luna listened, unsure of what was being said. Of course, it was nothing she knew or understood. She heard the words of Selvinia and looked over, impressed at her resourcefulness and then, noticed the look of hope in the transformed person's eyes. "Apologies. I can only tell you this is not a language from the Europa proper. At least, according to mine ears. It's a farcry from French or English." Luna said while looking around. She was curious about the area. For example, she wondered why it was so cold now. Were they far north? Or perhaps with the shortness of breath she felt, likely somewhere in a mountain. She spent a small time in the mountains, but that would have never prepared her for this. "Regardless, the cold is bearable for me. Perhaps a secret virtue from harsh English winters?" Luna joked.

Eith had no idea, nor did she care really. She kept a lookout to ensure the safety of her food-payer, but that was the biggest goal she had really. . . Still . . . "Oh, I know this. I think. S. . . Sannnnskri? Sanscript? Something like that." Something seemed to trigger Eith's memory, though it also had the side-effect of making her face look rather red. "My head hurts." The Shellagh complained, holding her temple.

Katherine Lindall

"Oh my, so Livia dear has her own ancestor as a familiar? Oh, how delightfully humorous." Katherine giggled to herself as she walked to somewhere to eat. Of course, plans changed as Livia seemed more and more irritated with Aetheria. "Hmmm, perhaps I should leave her be. But of course, I could go and bother her." For the moment, food was a priority probably. She kept vigilant watch over her teacher as she went about her business.

[Rune_Alchemist]

~Livia~

Livia knew how souls worked. She had studied them intensely all of her life. Any sort of mythology, any theories...everything. She prided herself in knowing everything about souls and about anything relating to them. What Aetheria was suggesting though was purely preposterous. She had...divinity? Some sort of Divine power? That was...absolutely absurd. She wasn't any sort of...divine being. Was she? But perhaps...she certainly couldn't strictly be called human any more, could she? This was becoming troublesome to think about.

The headmistress grabbed the cup of tea with some still left in it. That was absurd. Pure folly. It shouldn't be a thing. Livia crossed her legs, quietly taking a sip of the tea before replying.

"...Leave." Livia's voice was cold, almost emotionless. It would have sent a chill up even a murderers spine. She did not thank Aetheria, nor make any sort of mention of what she was thinking, and if Aetheria was any sort of intelligent she would leave before the slow, seemingly suffocating force that seemed to suddenly blanket the room got any worse.

...what would she do here? She would need to do an in-depth study of her own soul again. Obviously something had happened...she could think of what. She hadn't done a study of her soul in quite some time. She hadn't done the monthly maintenance on it yet, so to speak. There was only one major change since then that she could think of.

Would this mean, that her sister was also?...

...the thought made her frown. Thinking about it only made her angry. So-called 'Gods' were abhorrent creatures that deserved nothing less than the deepest pits of hell even more so, if that was the case.

~Miren~

She had...no notes written? No books bookmarked? Oh dear sweet jesus. This was absolutely mortifying for the bunny. Did this child not know how to do any sort of proper research on her own at all? Oh your poor little birdie bird. Miren could not leave you in such a state of distress.

"I see! Well," Miren took a quick glance around. "Hmhm, hehe. There's a room behind the main counter over there." Miren said, pointing to a room. "There's a desk in there, so if you don't mind waiting on me I'll be in there in a moment to help you!~"

~Sorcha~

"Haha, you want me to frighten the locals?" Sorcha laughed, doing a barrel roll. "It would take quite a bit of energy unfortunately. I simply do not have the time for it, little one." Her voice boomed loudly over the wind, surprisingly not seemingly hindered much at all by it. The ground sped by them at an alarming rate, Sorcha not wanting to go all that much higher if she could help it. Just in case something bad happened, she didn't want to be too high. For about an hour, the pair flew. With the dragons speed they covered an almost impossible distance for someone to be able to travel in even a day. It wouldn't do much for the kittens hair and any sort of appearance, but it was fast and that was all Sorcha cared for.

Unfortunately, the exertion from flying that long finally caught up and the dragon had to let them down in a forested area some incredibly far distance away from the academy. She gently landed, letting the cat out of her arms with a stretch.

"Well, I think we made good time so far." She said. "Walking from here though...my wings aren't going to be able to carry us further without rest.."

~Selvinia & Co~

"Eeh? Thanks!" The demon giggled brightly, quickly donning the coat. "Waaah, so warm." She gave a contented sigh, but for the most part contributed absolutely nothing to the discussion.

So what would the group do now?

[Roleplayer001]

Selvina looked towards Luna as she responded, frowning slightly as she asserted the similar situation. It was understandable though - even as the sort of insane academic that he was, the magierprinz didn't know how to speak the tounges of far off people he would likely never encounter.

The surprise here was when the puppy responded, although a headache quickly seemed to overcome the girl despite the poor weather. Sanscript? It was useful that she knew what the language was, but even more so if she could speak it. Placing a hand lightly onto her head, the magierprinz looked into her eyes. "You're really hot up here, more so than normal. Do you need ice packs or a way to cool it down? Also, do you know how to speak the language?" The hand was removed as a little concern filled the mage's voice.

Lyssa was largely ignored as Selvina was occupied with the familiar.

As the headmistress told her to leave, the white mage contemplated protesting for about half a second. But if the aura that filled the room wasn't a sign that this was not a suggestion, then Aetheria wasn't quite sure what did. Getting up out of her chair, the white mage gave the other woman a slight bow before leaving the room.

Well, this probably counted as a slight surprise. The teacher slid a note reminding her of the promise about phoenix tears under the door before leaving and heading to the classrooms. Where she taught most of the time, since the clinic usually was not occupied.

The kitten nodded as the two landed, a little dissapointed that the dragoness didn't transform still. Though there were more pressing issues, like how her hair was completely frizzled despite the nice clothes she was wearing. The neko brushed it with her hands, pampering herself slightly until it was in a reasonable condition.

Maoin moved next to the dragon, ready to walk when the tall woman was. She stayed nearby incase her teacher needed some sort of support, but was otherwise content with remaining quiet unless Sorcha decided to breach the silence.

The crimson haired girl nodded, following the bunnies orders as she took out one of the books she had taken home and placed it on the desk. Her amber eyes glanced over at one of the chairs, and after sighing she moved it and pulled the desk up towards the windowsill so she could sit on that instead. She didn't feel like having to deal with panic at the moment.

Otherwise, the only thing she could do was wait until the librarian returned with whatever advice she had.

[Pyromania99]

Lunalel Lightsword and Eith

"Eith? Are you well?" Luna asked, more concerned with the Shellagh's condition than what she said. The was turning a harsh red but it seemed to peak as it slightly faded. "You seem. . ."

Eith grabbed the side of her face slightly before she released it and the color in her face went back to normal. "I'm. . . Fine. It's Sanskrit. I don't know it. Just of it. Though, I kind of understand what is said. Slightly." The Shellagh shook her head and looked around again. She couldn't even tell it was cold really. A positive of being perpetually hot. "I'll be fine, Caras, Sword-Girl."

Luna looked at her suspiciously, but left her alone. If she insisted on it. "Very well, now then Selvinia. Do you have an idea as to where we need to go? I think I'm mostly along here as muscle as it is." The Knightess couldn't help but joke. She was glad to help, but she wasn't one hundred percent sure on where they were going.

Katherine Lindall

Livia seemed as though she needed time to herself. . . "Let's go visit her, I'm sure she'll love having me around." She only needed the time between when Aetheria left to the time Katherine got there to seethe in her own anger or whatever it was she was feeling at the moment. Actually, it didn't take long for Katherine to arrive at the Headmistress' office and knock on the door. "Livia dear, I'm here."

Before giving her teacher time to reply, she opened the door and entered, noticing a small note on the floor. "Someone left a note for you. Love letter perhaps?" The puppeteer couldn't help but joke as she picked it up before reading it. "Oh, not so. Perhaps something to read later." She walked near Livia's desk and set it on it, letting her teacher talk.

[Rune_Alchemist]

~Livia~

Katherine was just about the only person that Livia wouldn't have told immediately to leave right about now. Despite her rather...distinct aversion to getting too attached to anyone, the student was one of the few exceptions she allowed herself.

"Hmph, Aetheria will get her tears later. I have more pressing matters with that new information..." Livia replied curtly. "I assume you heard everything, so I doubt you need me to fill you in." Liva stood from her chair, walking over to one of the bookshelves that lined the wall of the room. "Apparently, I am the descendant of some pharaoh, or other divine being." She frowned, running her hand over a few of the tomes that lined the shelves. "At one time when I was younger I might have been amused by such a development, and brushed it off as nonsense. Now though...I have to question my own goals."

A blue flame appeared in Livia's right hand, an extension of her own soul. As it engulfed her hand, she placed it upon the bookshelf. There was a sound of something heaving, a rush of air as the bookshelf seemed to fade from existence revealing a passage behind it.

"Come. I think its time you and I had a little chat about my future, as well as yours."

~Miren~

A long ten minutes would pass before Miren would return.

"Oof-P-pardon me!" Was the first thing Fia would hear of the bunnies voice as she returned to the room...carrying what was an almost comical amount of books that a person of her size would definitely be having trouble carrying. The massive stack of books was plopped down in front of Fia near the desk, a dull thud noise being made as they hit the ground. She was quite surprised to find the large oak desk having been moved to a nearby window...the only window in the room.

"Oof, my poor little bunny arms aren't meant for carrying that stuff..." The rabbit complained, rubbing her forearms. "Ah, at least I still have good legs..." The rabbit mused silently, before remembering what she was supposed to be doing. "Erm, right! So, having trouble organizing information. Well, thankfully I am good at that!" She chuckled a bit proudly. It wasn't often she got to brag about something that most mages were inherently good at.

"All the books on the phoenix and any sort of relating myths, legends, and anything else I could find is right here for you." Miren patted the pile of books, which was taller than she was. "So. We should get started, then? Oh - right." Miren bounced over to the other side of the room, shuffling through some papers before bouncing back over with a pen and a blank journal. "Its a blank book - free to write in all you want. I don't know how much exactly you're going to be researching into it but I think it'd be best if it was kept all in one place." Miren placed the book and pen on the desk.

For now this should be enough to get started.

~Sorcha~

The dragon stretched. They still had quite a ways to go, but at least they were making progress. Now they just had to...well, walk. One of the least exciting aspects she was looking forward too. Ah, she really would have just loved to fly the entire distance but she couldn't leave the kitten behind, nor could she take her with her. Well, at least they could perhaps make pleasant conversation as they walked.

...right?

The dragon turned her head to Maoin, a small smile forming.

"Rather quiet today, are we Maoin?" She said as they walked.

~Selvinia & Co~

For the most part, Lyssa seemed content with not doing much of anything other than stand a bit impatiently off to the side. She was eager to get this whole adventuring thing start, yep! She had not understood a single bit of the language here but that didn't matter! Everyone understood hugs, after all! But she'd let Eith do the talking then.

"Uhm. Well, well, the place is up some mountain, right?" Lyssa asked. "So I guess we should head up there, yeah?" She said, pointing towards the mountain. It looked absolutely cold, though at the same time like a good time to traverse.

[Roleplayer001]

The magierprinz looked around at his companions, before shaking his head at Lyssa. "I suggest we talk to the villagers first, they may know about the beast." With that, Selvina brought along the various forms of muscle that had tagged along with them, arriving quickly at the small village and greeting a simple looking villager with a slight respectful bow.

She had read that in eastern kingdoms that was an appropriate greeting. "Greetings, my good man. Do you mind if I cast a spell on us?" Of course the local would have no idea what was going on, but Selvina extended a hand in hopefully a non-hostile manner.

Being a girl would hopefully make the lad more trusting too, she imagined.

The kitten looked up at her teacher as she made her comment. Maoin's ears twitched slightly as she thought, not really sure what to talk about as they walked. "... is ... is that a problem ...?" Truthfully, she was a little nervous about this entire mission - what would happen even if they succeeded? And what did she really want anyways? The cat shook her head to get rid of the confusion before glancing back up towards the dragon.

The dragon would probably like to talk about her past exploits, but in truth the kitten didn't mind hearing them either.

Fia glanced up as the poor bunny brought a large series of books up, her eyes widening slightly as the girl hopped around the room several times. The phoenix had an idea of what the book was for - you were supposed to write notes to condense information - but it seemed most of the students had more guidance than that. Nervously though, the girl opened one of the smaller books as her eyes shifted across the page as she read about the hypothetical origins of the bird. When she finished, she looked up towards Miren with the notepad in hand as she seemed to seek some sort of instruction.

[Pyromania99]

Katherine Lindall

"I should have expected it but serious talk?" Katherine almost complained. Livia would be able to tell she wasn't all too serious about it. She was a playful, teasing person of course! "That aside, I don't quite understand how this minor revelation would have you question your own goals. I mean, even if I found out I was a demon it wouldn't really change my own goal. Actually, it'd probably help me. Hmm, maybe. I don't know if ancestors of "Divines" have a strength against demons or not. Matters little I suppose. It wouldn't change my goal of wanting to kill you. Or being able to at the least." Katherine said as she followed Livia. "But you speak of futures? Hmm?"

[Rune_Alchemist]

~Livia~

"Still setting goals too high for yourself, I see." Livia commented, as she led Katherine into the corridor behind the shelf and down a flight of stairs. As soon as they walked, the shelf reformed, putting the room just as it was. "It is good you still aspire to such lofty things, but one should try keeping their goals grounded in reality." To put quite bluntly, that was something Katherine would never be capable of in Livia's opinion. At least, not unless she let the other woman.

...which was a tantalizing option at the moment.

"Indeed, futures. I am quite aware of your intentions, which is why I am doing you the courtesy of telling you this." As she walked, the blue flame in Livia's hand was the only source of illumination as they led down a flight of stairs, to a basement level of the academy. "I think it might be rather obvious to one such as yourself, but my time on this planet is beginning to become rather...short. My physical body is deteriorating at a rather rapid rate and I have done all I can to keep it from doing so."

They reached the end of the stairs, a iron door easily opening as Livia pushed against it. The room that it led too seemed to a large rotunda of sorts. A large domed room, illuminated by a chandelier full of glowing crystals of some sort. The room itself was large enough to house a number of people, and had doors leading off into other directions. The place was remarkably clean, though a faint smell of chemicals and other sharp smelling agents could be detected in the air.

"So take it as a fair warning...if you don't hurry along, then 132 years of time will finally be catching up with me." Livia stood in the center of the room, and turned to face Katherine. "But that is irrelevant to the current happenings." She continued. "You know I have spent most of my life for the betterment of humans as a whole. As a human, I thought I was doing something someone should have done ages ago. But it seems that was simply foolish, wasn't it? I'm not even human myself. That means that what I am doing is no better than any other tyrant king, or arrogant god who thinks they can do whatever they want with humans, or do you disagree with that? Indeed, it'd be quite easy for someone with knowledge of that to undermine any attempts I had at such a thing." Though she was quite certain she could easily deal with such a thing, but she was starting to become tired in her old age.

~Miren~

Miren watched Fia read, waiting for her to possibly ask a question or to write something down. When she didn't, the rabbit merely sighed. Ugh, this was going to be a bit difficult, wasn't it?

"Erm, Fia. If you read something that piques your interest or seems interesting or noteworthy, you should write it down in the notebook. Make a note of anything relating to that as well. Say, dates, times, names...places. Things like that."

That was about all she could do at the moment to help Fia. She supposed she could do it for her, but that seemed a little...easy? Or at least, counter productive in the long run.

~Sorcha~

"Not a problem, really." The dragon chuckled. "But it'd make walking much faster, don't you think?" Sorcha replied. "I suppose if you don't want to speak, I could talk your ear off all day - though I doubt any of my stories are as grand as you think." Well...the ones she'd be willing to talk about, at least.

Whatever the kittens response, the dragon began speaking of past adventures - mostly the good ones as they walked.

~Selvinia & Co~

The boy Selvinia had greeted stared up at her with a somewhat apprehensive expression. He was dressed in simple garb made from animal hide and cloth. It wasn't too odd to assume that they didn't get many visitors up here, wherever they were. After a few seconds of debating, a mans voice called out from the top of the stone wall, and the boy shouted back in something that sounded like confirmation to something. He turned around and started to run off in the opposite direction and was quickly lost in a crowd of people.

A few seconds later, a man's voice echoed from the top of the small stone wall again, as he walked down a set of stairs leading up to it. He was dressed similarly to the boy, though he had a bow and arrow on his person. Judging from the look he was giving them he wasn't exactly the friendly sort, and from the way he had just put away the bow it seemed like he was likely watching them from atop the wall.

He spoke, pointing to them and then to the village.

"What is your purpose here?"

Eith would be able to pick up on.

"...this guy could use a hug." Lyssa said with a giggle. Someone might want to try and make sure she doesn't actually try and do that.

[Roleplayer001]

Selvina put an arm out in front of Lyssa and shook her head no. "Not now, Lyssa." The recently made woman seemed irritated with the entire situation, but without contact and magic or an understanding of this archer's tounge the mage could only guess what was being said to them.

It would probably be a bad idea to try and shake hands at this point, though. The magierprinz looked over to Eith a little nervously. "Try to tell him we are from a North-Western land and mean them no harm, if you can." The puppy had stated earlier she wouldn't be able to speak it, but it was possible the hound had more abilities than she let on.

Worst come to worst, the wind cantrip he had memorized would always be nice.

"... right ..." Looking at the title of the book, the girl wrote that down at the top of the page. Then she jotted down various notes from the book which effectively amounted to a short summary, and then looked at the bunny in front of her for approval. Hopefully she was doing things right this time, but she wasn't feeling so confident about the entire circumstance.

[Pyromania99]

Lunalel Lightsword and Eith

Eith looked to Selvinia with doubt. "Oh, he wants our. . . Purpose? Or he's calling us splendid. . ." One was more likely that the other surely. Eith could figure out that much. "I, uhhh, I'll try something then." The hound sounded unconfident but spoke anyways. Whatever words she spoke, seemed to come from some etheral source rather than Eith's own mind as she spoke in a fashion that felt like it was being read from a book. Of course, as anyone that payed attention to the girl earlier would notice, this was not likely to be a permanent solution as she was becoming red again.

"Are you well, Eith?" Lunalel asked, noticing the reddening herself.

Eith shook her head before looking back, "I'm not eating and I seem to be heating up a lot today. Also, I either told him we come in peace or that we do not desire peace. I think it was the former, however. . ." Well, the tone of voice she had earlier likely wouldn't inspire confidence, but that could be misleading. . .

Katherine Lindall

"My, my. Are you really trying to make me talk serious all about this serious business now?" Katherine asked, scratching her head. This serious business was always a drag of sorts. "Very well, where shall I start? A tyrant king would care little for his-- well, her subjects. I've seen you help a number of the students with little questions asked. Admittedly, I'll give you have arrogance about you, but you're hardly a god. Last I checked, a human with a slice of divinity is just that. Human. Didn't that droning researcher of yours tell you that you're not even a demi-god or even close? Or did I hear that wrong?"

The Doll-Maker felt the need to strech her arms over her head, yawning slightly. Sleeping as she did, it wasn't an uncommon thing to see. "If you have your time coming to an end, you have a plethora of worries other than what you may or may not be. Keep Lyssa's mother from taking the academy over, keeping an eye on me and stopping me from killing you early, or in general keeping humans safe. Aetheria took a great deal of research to actually figure out and make sure of this and only the three of us know. You know me, hardly trustworthy to some, but I'm good for my word typically. I'm not sure how you feel on the woman, but I know if you don't trust her on keeping her mouth shut there's one way to keep her permanently silent." The Puppeteer brought her thumb to her neck and dragged it across.

"That is, if you worry about people knowing. I think you're being a bit silly about this personally. Livia is my teacher and Livia is Livia. That's about it to me at least." Katherine obviously didn't seem very bothered before she added one last thing before Livia start to speak, "Oh, if you need a new body I could make you one. It would be absolutely adorable."

[Rune_Alchemist]

~Livia~

Katherine didn't understand, did she? Not everyone would have the same opinion of such a thing. All it would take is one person decrying her status as just another tyrant, king, or god, and she'd lose all legitimate credibility. Or at least, she would unless she had some sort of...death grip on the populace, which at the moment she didn't want any part in. If anything, she was growing increasingly tired of such things. Longevity and kindness tend to wear on ones principles quite often, if one wasn't careful. Her patience had been one of those things being worn on. She was beginning to think, harsher methods were beginning to be required...

"Please, Myrilla has no desire to run this establishment. She's too...flighty. The Council is constantly trying to get her to do her job as it is. Aetheria has no need to be killed while she is still useful, and you...if you were capable of killing me you'd have already done it, no?" Livia chuckled with a smirk. "So I am quite confident that I do not need to worry about any of those things." Walking over to one of the doors in the rotunda, Livia motioned for Katherine to follow once again.

"As for your offer...well, I am already a few steps ahead." She replied with a confident smirk. "I kept it secret from you for obvious reasons, but it is done with the help of that insufferable demon - her alchemy comes in quite handily sometimes if she's given a bit of...direction. Or any offer of messing with any sort of godly beings." The room looked to be a lab of some sort. Various medical instruments as well as crates full of a number of scientific chemicals and other such things littered the room. A few odd metal machines were strewn about the place, a few were making odd beeping noises.

"It's amazing what a little innovation, tireless nights of research and other things can do." She brought Katherine to a far wall of the room where a large metal box sat. It was cool to the touch, and incredibly heavy. "Might sound a bit odd with our...tenuous relationship, but Myrilla and I have a bit of a...partnership stemming from a somewhat extended stay in Hell a number of years ago." She opened the latch on the box, causing it to spring open.

"The fruit of our labor - an artificial human made through alchemy." The thing in question was no larger than a child. A small, petite thing, with blond hair resting on a bed of ice. Almost looked like a tiny version of Livia, really. It was the best they could make with Alchemy. A 'Homunculous', as the older alchemists would likely call it. "All it needs is a soul. I have been tirelessly working on how to make an artificial one, but it is a labor I will likely not be able to complete in this single lifetime." She looked over to Katherine.

"So you do not have to worry about such a thing...What you should worry about, however, is what comes after I die." Livia said. "I am giving this academy to you whether you want it or not. And do not worry, I won't be leaving you alone. I won't actually be dead after all...In fact, I think it might be fun to play the student again."

~Miren~

"It's a good start!" Miren cheerfully said with a bright smile. It wasn't the best note taking job to be sure, but it was definitely getting there. "Alright...that's from that one book, correct?" Miren asked, taking the book from Fia. "You start on another one - I'll go through this again to make sure there's nothing you missed, alright? It's never a bad idea to get another persons opinion or perspective on something."

~Selvinia & Co~

The man with the bow looked at them suspiciously for a few long seconds, obviously debating the truthfulness of their words. Finally though, he started walking into the village, seemingly motioning for them to follow. Assuming the did follow the man, after a minute or so of walking they would finally reach their destination. It was one of the larger houses in the village, situated near the edge of a cliff, overlooking a rocky valley below. The boy from earlier was standing on the wooden stairs leading up to the house, an older, aged man was standing overhead, leaning on the railing.

The groups guide walked up the stairs, and conversed quietly with the older man for a few minutes before he walked back down the stairs, roughly passing Selvinia and the group with a hint of hostility. The older man however, greeted the group with a friendly smile, walking down the stairs.

"Welcome." He simply said, his voice light and jovial. "I speak...little. Apologies for him...come in, come in." He motioned for the group to follow him inside.

Would they?

[Roleplayer001]

Selvina gave the man a smile in turn along with a slight bow before looking to the rest of the group with a nod and walking into the house. "Thank you good sir." If the noblewoman was indicated to take a seat, she would gladly do so and do her best to copy the customs of the man who was hosting them.

The phoenix nodded as she picked up another book, looking into it's pages and taking a few more notes while hoping she did an alright job. Unless she was interrupted, she would spend the remainder of the day studying in there.

[Pyromania99]

Katherine Lindall

"Me? As Headmistress? I can hardly imagine it. . . Well, not like there are any other candidates I suppose aside maybe Generica. . . Fine, fine. I'll do it." Katherine begrudgingly agreed. She should feel more concerned over her teacher's impending death . . . But really, it felt like the woman would never actully die and stay dead. It's part of the reason Katherine wants to have power to best her. "Though, Livia-dear. I do want you to know I don't want to kill you, rather just have the power to do so."

Still, something was bothering her about Livia's speech. . . Yes! Livia mentioned, "...partnership stemming from a somewhat extended stay in Hell a number of years ago." Katherine quoted her mentor. "Does that mean than just working on this Homunculus? Curious as I am on how you made one, I think I'm more interested in that." Like Katherine could stay serious so long. Not when it was just her and Livia at the least.

[Rune_Alchemist]

~Livia~

"And I can assure you once again, you will never have the power to do so." Livia smirked, closing the large box of magically kept ice. "Not unless you are willing to do something quite dangerous that I wouldn't even recommend doing, but I digress." She accidentally let something about her and Myrilla slip. That was something she was hoping to keep from mostly everyone, considering the fact she mostly hated the damnable demon.

"...my relationship with Myrilla is my own. Although, everyone has had a teacher in their lives. Some multiple. I'll leave it at that." Livia said with a sigh. "Although, to be honest there was much less teaching going on than I liked at the time, but that is irrelevant, and quit trying to bring up rather unpleasant points about my history, hm?" With a small smirk Livia walked over to Katherine, giving her a hard swat on the butt as she walked past. "Or I'll have to discipline you, my precious little student. Now," She moved to a table. "You are quite correct. My time will remain short. I honestly tire of all of this...problem solving and trying to stop the church, the mage council, demons, and angels from trying to constantly kill each other and keep us humans from suffering any consequences of both."

She turned to face Katherine.

"Honestly, I want a permanent vacation from all of this. Now would be as good of a time as any I suppose, though it would be quite...distressing to leave Fia behind. Not to mention letting Myrilla do whatever she wants, the church likely would take the chance to try and get more power and those pompous fools on the council messing everything up." Livia gave Katherine a serious look. "If I wanted too, I could move my soul into this artificial body - this homunculous. It currently lacks a soul and it'd be easy enough to move in with your help." Livia sighed tiredly. "I do not wish to do it now, but when the time comes I expect you to be ready. That is all. We can discuss more details when it inevitably happens."

~Selvinia & Co~

The man seemed relieved, letting out a sigh that he seemed to have been holding in before motioning for them to head inside.

Once inside the residence, it was exceedingly clear this place was nothing like Sappho. Inside the building, it was much warmer than it was outside. Sheltered from the wind, and the crackling of a fireplace could be heard. The entire building was made of wood, and seemed to have none of the amenities or other such things. It was quite likely it was the norm all the way out here, and the rest of the village didn't have such things either. The older gentleman led them to a rough wooden table near a fireplace in the main part of the house. Over the fireplace, was a large iron pot where a stew was bubbling away. He motioned for them to sit, himself taking a seat in a chair next to the fire, turning it to face the table.

Lyssa took a seat near one of the ends of it, glad to be out of the cold.

"Wow, this place is pretty rustic." She commented. "Haven't seen a place like this except in purga-erm, countryside!~" She giggled. Well, at least she was still trying to keep her identity secret. As much good as that'd do. "It's nice though. Hey hey, Swen, ask him if there's any sweets around here." She also still apparently had a one track mind.

"You...are 'sorcerers'?"

He asked simply.

The group could answer his question if they wanted.
Perhaps they could simply walk out and find their way up the mountain themselves? The older man didn't seem particularly fond of them, despite remaining mostly Civil.
Maybe talking with him could warm him up to the group a bit?
They could even lie, if they wanted.

[Roleplayer001]

The magician shot the hellion a look as she decided to mention sweets in this high tension situation. It should firstly be rather obvious that this person was incapable of affording sweets, but also that the village likely lived in a state of perpetual survival up here in the harsh mountains and that this person going out of their way to acquire them could be the death of the village.

How could this girl's mom be so different?

The magierprinz's attention returned to the chief in front of them though as she spoke once again, looking to Luna for backup. Luna was always better with people anyways, at least when it came to giving off good intentions. It would be silly to lie about having magical powers based on the books and the general group appearance though. "Although we wield magic, calling us sorcerers is a bit much. Right now we are a bunch of schoolgirls-" Saying that about himself made Swen feel sick, especially with the slight giggle she gave off half way through ... "-who are here to solve some problems the adults couldn't handle properly." Selvina shot off a look of irritation at the air, as if this entire ordeal was just as frustrating to her as anything else.

Of course, that frustration was caused by different reasons.

"I mean, I'm pretty sure all of us want to get back to our nice dormitories and be warm and cuddly ..." ... the magierprinz wondered if that's what girls do ... "... how do your people survive up here? You must be really tough to be comfortable in this weather!"

When all else failed, flirt slightly.

[Pyromania99]

Katherine Lindall

"Yes, we shall. It'll be like taking care of a daughter of some sort. Not that I'm really interesting in making one. . . Men can be so. . . Crude." Katherine said with little self-reflection. "That said, there are things you wish to do in this lifetime I imagine. Tell this dear miracle worker here, and she will do her best to help. . . With reasonable compensation of course. Miracle but not charity, mind you." Katherine teased with her hands on her hips, ready to hear the words of her dying teacher.

Lunalel Lightsword and Eith

Luna almost chuckled when they were asked if they were sorcerors. Luna definitely considered herself a Knight more than she did a magic user at this point. She'd have said so if Selvinia hadn't spoke first. Luna felt that she had a correction to Selvinia though. "Not that I can speak for them, but it's not about getting comfortable. Back in England my father had me spend a short winter closer to Scotland and up in the more mountainous area. Rather than get comfortable, you learn to live with it and do your best to stay warm." Luna looked between Selvinia and the Elder. "Apologies. That was just my experience with overly freezing temperatures. Please, answer hi-- her question if you would."

Eith meanwhile, just nosed around the house. Curious if there was anything here. If she remembered the language in a way, maybe there was more about why she knew it.

[Rune_Alchemist]

~Livia~

"Hoho? So eager to learn as always." Livia chuckled. "I still have much to teach you, if you wish to learn. Secrets to my longevity. How to traverse the various realms of the dead and afterlife without even their guardians knowing...all you have to do, my little student, is ask and I will teach as always." With a thoughtful look, she looked at Katherine.

"As for what I want...Ha, well. There are a number of things I have left unfinished. Small things, mind you, but things that could greatly help in coming days should I gain their assistance...So, if you would be willing to do these things for me, that would be greatly welcome. Such things would require a bit of power from me, but in my current state the more of my abilities I use the more my body will deteriorate I feel. But," With a smirk she walked forward towards Katherine.

"We can discuss things a bit more later. I tired of this serious discussion. So...how about a little fun instead, hm?"

~Selvinia & Co~

At Selvinia's comment, the older man laughed in a friendly tone.

"More stubborn," He made a motion with his arms. "Sometimes cuddly helps." He laughed, turning his gaze to Luna and Lyssa, who was pouting a bit that Swen didn't ask him for any sort of sweets. His grin faded, sighing. "Not so warm greeting. Sorcerers...have had trouble in past." He shook his head. "Better not to stay long."

He didn't seem like he wanted to particularly elaborate, but so far he hadn't been hostile. Perhaps if they asked they could get a little more information?

Meanwhile, Eith wandered around the house. It was large, compared to most of the other buildings they had and at one time perhaps house a family, though aside from the Elder or whoever he was, it didn't seem like anyone else was currently living there. Sitting on a shelf in a room adjacent to the dining room was a small doll. A set of stairs seemed to lead to a second story.

Though, if Eith was paying attention she might hear someone eavesdropping near one of the closed windows.

[Roleplayer001]

Selvina bowed her head as the chieftain gave his advice to the group, happy that Luna's interruption about England hadn't slowed their momentum. Apparently a little buttering up had been rather useful for them all ... "I understand, Sir. Can we ask what you know about the creature of the mountain temple though? Anything you know can help us with our job and get us back home a little sooner." Selvina gave off her best smile, wishing they had something like an adorable cat-girl to make the party less threatening.

Eith might have been some sort of dog, but she wasn't the same adorable Selvina was looking for. Speaking of the puppy ... "Eith! What are you doing? Get back here and stop wondering around the poor man's house!" After their recent conversation Selvina was happier with their relationship, but that didn't mean that Eith wasn't some sort of nimwit at times.

Of course, Selvina was totally unaware of the eavesdropper, but his ears weren't half as keen as the hounds.