[IC] Scattered Shades: Arcadia Chronicles

[13org]

Illon, Yvin's Quarters

Kasumi

"...Reginald is dead."

The moment she heard that sentence, her expression changed.
Reginald was a powerful person. What could possibly kill him like that?
"Reginald is dead huh?" she said, serious. "He was an interesting man. Very intelligent, powerful and influent. Without him, you will have a lot of work to do..."

She slowly knelt down, grabbing the clump of hair, examining it.

"No signs of fight or indications that his room was broken into... Its not a creature. At least not an irrational one." she said with her eyes focused on the clump of hair.

"Whatever it may be, it must be sentient. I don't believe a simple creature would be able to kill Reginald like that."

"To reiterate, you two are here to track, and kill whomever was responsible for this."

Dropping the clump of hair on the floor, she got up and started flexing her hands, her gauntlets faintly reflecting the light from the office in a wicked and sinister way.

"It shall be done." she proffered with a faint smile.
"As usual, I shall bring a proof of the target's elimination with me."

"I'm glad that you called me to have a bit of fun~! I was getting bored." she said with a mischievous smile
"You know well that I love a good hunt." she bited her lips, smiling. It would be an seductive expression, only if wasn't for the predatory look in her face.

"Lets go Pride, our prey is waiting. Let the hunt begin."

@tex

[Empath]

Mira

Diver’s Paradise

@Rune_Alchemist

A thin smile with just a hint of quilt spread across the face of Mira as the words of her companion registered within her ears. She knew she had pestered Lila more than pretty much anyone since she had first learned of her existence and her vast knowledge of the No Man’s Land and the possible treasures it hid within its depths - but what could she have done? She had always felt an urge to understand everything about her newest obsession.

“Well now,” Mira spoke, choosing deliberately to ignore the sharp comment from Lila, “the tale of… What should I call it? Ah, yes, let’s call it ‘The Tale of how the CMAS decided to ruin everything and yours truly had to save everyone in here’ - that sounds about right, doesn’t it?” Mira joked, something that even surprised herself as she wasn’t one to throw around as many jokes as she had done in the last half an hour. Perhaps she had really missed her ‘friend’?
Turning a corner onto a section of the caves that took them deeper underground she continued her explanation of the current events. “In all honesty I am not entirely certain how it started, I just sort of minded my own business - you know how I am,” Mira added before continuing in a dry tone, “but somehow those dredged CMAS-agents somehow figured out where our ‘Paradise’ were located and decided to improve the view by cracking our ceiling as you saw back there,” motioning with her thumb back towards the general location of the room they had just been in.

“As you can see we did manage to repel them, but we sustained quite a large loss to do so: many of the pillars and interior of this place have suffered scars from the battle, and I cannot even begin to imagine how many Divers sacrificed their lives or got hurt in the mess - the need for medical knowledge and help is probably off the chart” Mira added, “but, as you might suspect: I am completely unharmed!”

Mira winked playfully at Lila before moving out of the way to let a few Divers past her, it was something she had begun to do unconsciously at this stage, but when she first arrived at the Paradise she certainly wasn’t such a natural at dodging people. Having returned to her old position next to Lila she continued with her tale.

“As you’ve probably realized it was quite a mess to be a part of…” Mira spoke in a hollow tone as she finished her tale, “but anyway, What about you? Where have you been? Have you found something exciting in the No Man’s Land that I shou-”

But before Mira could ask into the deeper details of Lila’s trip something stopped her in her step.

“Urgh…” Mira groaned under her own breath as they turned the last corner and were now standing only a few strides from the White Horse. The reason for her sudden outburst of annoyance would be clear to anyone: the establishment was filled to the brim with other Divers, all of whom had likely seeked a place of peace and liquor enough to quench their thirst after the battle. They would be lucky to get a place to settle in that crowd.

[Hatman1801]

Illuna Forest

_{Towards the disturbance}

Sulfrax's mouth turned in curiosity, and he picked up his pace as he began heading in the direction of the smoke. He could feel magic in their direction. Different than the unusual beings he had battled previously, so it wasn't reinforcements for them. Still, the energy had a strange flux to it, consistent only in its inconsistency. A mental checklist of commonplace spells didn't match the tempo of what he felt.

"Odd indeed," Sulfrax mused as they made their way towards the source of trouble, albeit slowed by his own lack of speed. "Whatever happened, there was magic involved. It's not another attack from the same enemies we were up against before. I can't put quite my finger on what sort of magic was used, though. Curious, curious. Even if this is a chance threat, it could be an interesting one."

He hurried himself as best he could now, driven by newfound interest. It wouldn't be far before he and Rem would reach the source of discord. Ah, yes, Rem. Sulfrax glanced over at his travelling companion(s). Should he have told this man so much? He decided it didn't matter. Whether or not Rem found a reason to spread his secret would be an amusing little experiment in and of itself.

As would be whether or not Rem could be even more useful with that information. A way to heal your limbs. Wouldn't that be something...

@Necrophage@Greenguy

[Greenguy]

Heedy Haw Haw the Disturbance, Illuma Forest

_{Force may or may not apply}

Heedy could hear the shitty B-rated music now. Wildly looking around, he keeps his cannon at the ready. It's like the air was thick with the smell of burning wood. Right. Crazy bastards come with crazy stuff right? He continues to walk along, keeping mind of any of those pesky rogueish tree roots that might be in the way as he takes another swig of what ever is in his canteen. Ahhhh....what was he doing again?

He looks around once more, taking in the sight. Is that wood burning? Oh right! Shitty b-rated illusiongrams and their music. He pockets the wonderful bottle of hooch and two hands his Z.O.D. cannon. He could just FEEL the superman coming along as he moves along. Turning around once more, he spots a man with the skin color of...what ever fuck color that one metal shit is. What the fuck is this guy? Mega beard, mega muscles, yet wizard hat and robe. Well, hat is iffy, might be hair. Scraggly as fuck hair. Aaaaand...other guy is..

Wait. Oversized robe, spooky glowing eyes. Looks like...Oh no the shitty b-rated illusiongram bullshit is real!

"OH SHIT!"

(https://youtu.be/D3EVqETK4Gk)

Heedy Haw Haw books it, heading toward the shitty smell, then veering away from it because CLEARLY that's where the shitty b-rated monster would be going.

...however to the other two he's just a midget with an oversized cannon running in circles for a moment.

@necrophage@hatman1801

[tex]

---

Hyznia, CMAS HQ

@RyuShura

---

Sarah lead Pincy down the hall and to their left, quickly, with the other guards making sure to guide Pincy with very unwelcoming shoves and rude comments. It only took a few moments to reach another room, similar to the one they were just in. But three people were positioned near the back wall, two seated on the floor, and one with his back rested against the wall and his arms crossed.

"Hm, perhaps several was a assuming a little much. It seems two of our volunteers have vanished. Jim, where did they go?" Sarah asked a guard who stood opposite to the three Divers. The standing man kissed his teeth irritably and looked away from Sarah and her group. He was a dark skinned Diver who dressed rather formally despite his occupation. His hair was a light blonde, contrasting his skin tone entirely, and making him stand out to anyone who could actually see him.

"Ulfric left in a hurry, and he took Jennifer with him. You did tell tell them they were welcome to leave.."

"No, that was sarcasm, dishonesty? You're familiar with it, yes? Was I not clear when I glanced in your direction?" Jim backed away and shook his head. "Unbelievable, really. Whatever. I suppose without that hot headed fool, there won't be much need of-" Sarah paused and cleared her throat, turning back to Pincy. "These are your options. Zack, Jojo, and Stephanie. Their last names are irrelevant. Zack is a shifter. Jojo is a fire mage, and Stephanie claims to be proficient with machinery. We have agree to return her equipment to her once the mission is completed, so she will have to deal with standard issue CMAS weaponry if she accompanies you," Sarah explained, waiting for Pincy to look over the Divers. Jojo was facing the wall and rocking in place, while Stephanie sat with her legs crossed, patiently waiting for the CMAS to give her shit back to her.

---

Illon, Yvin's Quarters

@13org

---

Pride shook her head and headed out of Yvin's chambers with Lust in tow. Yvin cringed at Kasumi's excitement, but disregarded it and sat back upon his throne with a heft huff, releasing the building anxiety within his chest. The sins were sure to solve this issue, whatever it was.

Outside of Yvin's Chambers, the main hall sat, a giant stone encased block of stone with two levels. They were on the first floor, a large hall that seemed more fitting for banquets than a simple crossroads between the many rooms on the first floor of the fortress. Pride lead Kasumi towards the right-most center door, which put them in the west hall, where Reginald's room was located. Two guards stood outside of his room, but Pride and Lust were immediately allowed into Reginald's chamber without a single question. The sins may have kept to the shadows, but everyone in the castle knew who they were. It was mandatory. Yvin didn't want them to lash out at anyone who got in their way. Some, including Pride and Gluttony, had a habit of doing so at the most inopportune times.

Within Reginald's room, everything seemed in place. Nothing out of order, save for a few strands of that pale hair that Yvin had shown them earlier. Pride looked around carefully. "My eyes," she started, "They are confused." Jaymee was the self-proclaimed leader of the sins, despite not actually holding any real position of authority over her peers. Her eyes however, did surpass the capabilities of every other sin by far. It was a curious skill, but she'd been able to manifest arcane energy in such a complex way, with the assistance of Envy's superior magic control, to the point where the purple-veined spectacles didn't even appear human. She could see lingering Ki, assuming that a person had died within 72 hours of her presence, and identify who the owner was if she's tasted their soul in the past with her razor sharp Ki-based attacks. "Reginald is dead, yes, but there is another who has died here. It is unfamiliar. They are new, but strange.. It feels strange.." The room was mostly free of clues, but a close eye might have noticed a very subtle nick in the western window, and several inconsistencies in the carpet below.

[tex]

---

Diver's Paradise, Eastern Entrance

@Jensoman@LokiLeo789

---

Luke turned his attention to Jenso and immediately smiled. Upon noticing Brian however, his smile disappeared. The Diver's leader didn't look too displeased, just somewhat taken aback by his presence. He approached Jenso and waved to him, "Oi!" He shouted, "Jenso! And that CMAS fella!" Brian looked up at him and forced a smile, but in all honestly, the titanic man was one of the scariest things for him to witness. After he'd seen him destroy his squad's Z-ATV with a single strike, Luke's power was an unfortunate reminder of not only his own weakness, but fear. Brian felt useless around people like him and Jenso. Perhaps even people like Len. Hell, being surrounded by powerful Divers was slowly beginning to wear into his confidence despite the passion he'd shown earlier. Luke paused and looked at Len, nodding quickly. "I recognize ya, too! Aint you one o' those eh... Nature-type guys or somethin'?" Luke asked. He didn't really wait for an answer before looking back to Brian, though. "What's he doin' here?"

[LokiLeo789]

---

Divers Paradise, Eastern Entrance

---

A brittle smile played itself onto Len's face as Jenso's feelings washed over him. He enjoyed analysing others ideas and opinions, thoughts and feelings. It brought him a certain completeness that he himself lacked, and idea of ones own self; a destructive path of self searching through the ideals of others; a path false to his own determination but deeply ingrained in his psyche, like alcohol to an alcoholic, or drugs to an addict. Like one, he struggled to rid himself of the habit, stopping himself from comparing his own flimsy philosophies.

Len leaned his broad back against the stone wall, dust flaking onto his smooth skin. Habit playing itself out once again, he sniffed out the silver lining, and black sheep in Jenso's argument.

"I too, can side with your vendetta, but such a reality is a jaded one at best. Those who just follow orders, are no more at fault than those who give them." he mused.

As Brian cut in, Len only nodded, taking in his powerful words, words powered by determination and the will to make a difference in thier chaotic world. An admirable imperative, but nature would have its way with such a vendetta. None the less, he supported the man's point, and understood his deep rooted hatred for the CMAS and thier actions, but upon hearing the word evil, Len frowned. That wasn't mentioned to him before. His questions were clear and precise, yet his answers were ever changing. Such an unusual man.

As was Len's usual tradition, upon hearing such negative words like 'evil', he usually told a story.
"You are an interesting bunch aren't you. Since we aren't pressed for time-" Before Len could finish, a booming voice interrupted him. Peeved and slightly curious, he looked upon the man who cut him off so rudely, only to find the hulking mass of a man known as Luke, the powerhouse of Divers Paradise. He seemed to be acquainted with the others, but Len was surprised to find out that he was also well known by the Divers de facto leader, although he meant little as he was more interested in Brian; so Len returned an eye for an eye, and cut Luke off mid-sentence, just to observe his reaction.

"Why I am one of the many 'Nature-types' that live in this world, but I'm better known as Len." he jibbed, his face deadpan as he attempted to challenge whatever authority Luke had to show in cutting him off so rudely.

@Jensoman@tex

[Rune_Alchemist]

~Lila Vyner~
Divers Paradise

@Empath

Lila laughed when Mira opened her mouth. She had to save everyone here? Good lord, that was the biggest tale she had ever heard in her life and that was saying something. For the most part though, she let the other woman continued as they walked. Lila wasn't in any particular hurry, as much as she wanted a drink. She more wanted to hear this tale of Mira's, and her oh so amazing gallantry and how they repelled the forces of the CMAS, after all.

Of course, it seemed she wouldn't be getting her drink any time soon even now, though. Lila silently observed what Mira was put out with. They really did do a number on this place if that many divers were looking for a drink at this establishment. No way in hell was Lila even going to attempt barging her way in there with that many people. Mix that with them being agitated with the CMAS, and she'd have a nice little bar fight on their hands. As much as Lila would love to put some morons six feet under just for giggles, that probably would cause more trouble than it was worth.

"God-fucking-damn it," Lila cursed. "Unless you want a party with more bullets than liquor, that place is probably a bad idea." The hunter shook her head. Feh, might as well shoot the breeze out here a bit and see if it'd clear up a bit. Returning to their previous topic of conversation, Lila shrugged.

"Unfortunately, my tale ain't half as heroic and gallant as yours." Lila laughed. "Unless you count the beautiful vistas of the Plains and Dunes as excitin' Nothin that much happened, aside some critter makin' off with my alcohol when I was asleep. I swear to god, I find that critter, I'm gonna beat that alcohol out of it." Though, she did have something that Mira might possibly be interested in. She wanted to possibly share the deal over a glass of delicious alcohol, but that didn't seem like it was gonna be happening any time soon unless someone just threw out half the establishment.

"But," Lila continued. "I've been thinkin' about, eh, headin' out to the desert. Was wonderin' if you'd be interested in comin' with me. Could be fun. Might find somethin' exciting or get eaten by some giant death worm. Wanted to unwind with a drink or two before that, but heh, doesn't look like that's gonna happen unless we kick those guys out ourselves." Despite not particularly wanting to get into a fight, it was difficult to not sound as though it wouldn't be somewhat fun.

[Jensoman]

@LokiLeo789 @tex

Diver's Paradise, Eastern Entrance

Jenso nodded at Len and Brian respectfully. He understood and respected their opinions and their viewpoints on the matters at hand. He believed what he wanted to believe, though. It wasn't simple to disobey a superior's orders, especially since the punishment for disobeying the CMAS higher-ups would lead to execution or imprisonment. The Divers weren't that strict on rules and such in comparison to CMAS, but naturally they weren't very keen on disobedience either. He turned to Luke as he entered Diver's Paradise and smiled. He was glad to see him again after all this time. It seemed most likely that Luke intended to go to war against CMAS, but he was still unsure. He still respected the man a lot, despite everything that had been going on.

"Hey Luke!" Jenso shouted, waving over to him with a wide grin on his face. He hopped onto his feet and walked over to him. He looked at Brian briefly, and back at Luke. He frowned. "About that...a CMAS official made a wanted poster for Yvette and the rest of her crew...so there'll be many bounty hunters after them now. We encountered some earlier...we managed to deal with them but this is the safest place that I could think of to bring Brian and Yvette too. Yvette admitted that she was a spy for you, so.." Jenso explained to him. He paused for a moment and eventually spoke again. "...Are you really going to war against CMAS, now?" He asked. The answer seemed obvious, but he wanted to be sure. The Divers never intended to start a full-out war in the past, but that was before the CMAS had attacked Diver's Paradise.

[tex]

---

Diver's Paradise, Eastern Entrance

@Jensoman@LokiLeo789

---

The surrounding Divers turned to Len when he interupted Luke with a plethora of worried and excited looks. Not many people had the nerve to cut Luke off, but nobody really knew what would happen if they did. Luke looked at him for a second, but chuckled and nodded instead of getting angry. "Len, eh? I like the cut of yer jib! Glad you're one o' us, otherwise I'd have to pound ya!" Luke said in jest with a hearty chuckle. "I'll remember yer name."

When Jenso began explaining what had happened earlier, Luke turned to him and the color drained from his face. The news pulled him pretty far down from his happy little pedestal. "Eh.. So that's how it is. She looking for me right now then?" Luke asked once more, looking towards his home that was planted firmly in the side of the wall. Then Jenso asked of war. He turned to him and placed his hands on his hips. "Well, about that. There's been a few changes in this uh.. This whole situation, a lot of revelations, some new unions, stuff that aint' exactly common talk." Luke shot a glance at nearby Divers who were listening in, prompting most to look away and mind their own business. "Although I aint too keen on making it all public just yet, we may be findin' ourselves clashin' with the CMAS again soon. Who knows," Luke looked away again and sighed. "You brought Yvette and this CMAS kid back, didn't ya, Jenso?" Luke looked at Brian, and then turned to the dirtied coat that he had thrown away, grinning subtly as he did so.

[13org]

Illon, Reginald's Chambers

Kasumi

Just as Kasumi entered Reginald's chambers, she started to search for clues. Surprisingly, it was exactly as Yvin said... there was no signs of fight in that room.

Kasumi calmly walked around the room, searching every little nook and corner of it. As an assassin herself, she knew how to "disappear without a trace". Assuming that it wasn't a specialist, there were always very small clues that one could left behind if they weren't careful.

"My eyes,"
"They are confused."
"Reginald is dead, yes, but there is another who has died here. It is unfamiliar. They are new, but strange.. It feels strange.."

Kasumi stopped what she was doing and looked to Pride.
Her abilities were very, very useful. And rarely missed.

"Hmm... I see..." Kasumi said, looking to Pride
"Reginald is dead. This is not big news, but... another death in this room?"


That new information sparked Kasumi's interest. There was something going on. Two deaths in the same room, but the room itself shows no sign of any conflict that could have happened there or anything like that.

Resuming her search, she looked around the room carefully.

"Oh, and you might want to take a look at these." she said with a grin.
"Disappearing without a trace is not something everyone can do." she said, feeling confident and pointing to the inconsistencies on the carpet and the very discreet nick on the window.

"I don't blame Yvin and his soldiers for not finding them. These small mistakes would only been noticed by a trained assassin, a specialist." she said winking.
"Pride, I will need some help. I need more information about the second death. Any trace of magic in the room? Anything that catches your eyes?" she asked, kneeling down and closely examining the carpet.
Kasumi was an assassin, a hunter. She needed to know at least some info about her prey before starting to track it.
That's why she loved to have Pride nearby on those occasions. Sure, she was not the most exciting companion... but she was very useful.

"As much as I hate to admit, the ones who did this are very skilled... but they are not me." she said, licking her lips with a mischievous grin.

@tex

[RyuShura]

Pincy laughed the whole way though as the guards pushed him about to a nearby room, taking no offence or to their shoves at all as he allowing himself to flop back and forth gleefully. It was like he was riding one of those coasters at a carnival than acting any serious as the situation might dictate.

When Sara finished giving him the need-to-know, the lanky mage hummed and looked over his prospects with an uncomfortably long blank stare. There wasn't the greatest selection as he hoped, but he was not disappointed by what they presented. His purple eyes were twinkling. Though he didn't care much for the pyromancer, something he has seen so many times before, he was more interested in the other two. His role in this mission was not the killing, but rather the method that leads to such an outcome. Still, any direct method of murder won't work on such an esteemed and powerful mage Sulfrax. They would need to take him by surprise. And oh, how his mind was already codifying many wild ideas. He had always been interested in these so called 'machines' and the prospect that these metal contraptions could do things not possible with flesh. Unlike other mages, he did not discriminate in how one uses magic. How could he cast such a shadow upon someone when he also walks the path of deviancy. Then again, shifting was quite a rare trait of magic to possess. Not many people can retain their original selves after numerous or prolonged transformations, or so the stories go. There was just so much potential with these two. But how much?

He bowed to Sara before quickly moving over to whom he heard to be named as Zack, ducking down low to get to head level and stared him up and down. "Excuse me, good sir, may I implore the range of what you are able to shift into. And to what extent? An arm? Legs? Your whole body? I have a plan that involves a small rodent, the blue-prints for a castle, and a few mannequins. So I'll need a model to base my mannequins off." quickly turning his head to the woman seated across the room, "And you, uhh, Stephanie. If I give you a diagram for a certain... obscure and probably absurd machine, how quickly can you provide me results?"

...

[Rekaigan]

Oswyn Ainsworth
Diver's Paradise, Western Entrance

@tex

Oswyn was quite amused by the other man's reaction to his tone, although he managed to keep such an expression hidden behind his blank expression. The alchemist liked these types of people.. It was easy to elicit a reaction from them and it made everything that little bit more amusing. In the back of his mind, he wondered if the man was actually going to attack him.
'So he doesn't know all that much either.. Of course, he's wrong to an extent. If they had been drained of both Ki and Arcane energy, I wouldn't have been able to help.' He thought to himself.

"I merely helped to make them all be quiet. Seems that didn't work." Oswyn replied simply. Maybe it would've been better if he didn't help. He could've restocked by now if it wasn't for all these curious people.
"Also, I'm pretty bad at remembering names." He added with a shrug.

'Especially the names of people I don't give a shit about.'

[tex]

---

Hyznia, CMAS HQ

@RyuShura

---

Zack cringed as Pincy grew nearer, and stepped away from the wall. "I'm not that kind of shifter. I can shift parts of my body's mass into energy for periods of time- Lets me evade practically anything and slip around without making a sound," Zack briefly explained. He was awfully compliant despite his defiant composure. Perhaps the CMAS had threatened him with something a little more vicious than simply stealing his supplies. Stephanie looked up at Pincy and nodded.

"I could likely put together anything that seems plausible, if I had the right parts," She quipped, glaring at Sarah. Miss Eridal huffed and crossed her arms. "What did they threaten you with?" She asked abruptly. Sarah stepped forward and leaned towards Stephanie aggressively.

"No need for such questions, at present time, Stephanie," Sarah urged.

---

Illon, Reginald's Quarters

@13org

---

"Curious," Pride hissed, ducking low to the ground to examine the carpet closely. She moved quickly, like an insect, towards the window and inspected the nick with due diligence. Jaymee thought it over intently, listening closely to Lust as she did so. A sword, or a dagger, something sharp. Or magic? Metal boots? No, it was too small, and precise. Jaymee paused in thought and turned back to Kasumi with a curt nod. "Not magic, Ki. A curious, curious Ki, unlike any I've felt before. It seems almost inhuman, beyond my understanding, that much is certain. It reeks of death, but these markings, and the window- Something moved through here, still dying. I suspect necromancy is at play, but such magic has been lost to even the most resolute Arcadia scholars. Forbidden magic, Illon is not a stranger to such, but it still seems peculiar. At any rate-" Jaymee stopped and opened the window, pointing down towards the marshes that separated Illon's keep from the slums to the west. "-Our culprit is through here. Does it not seem strange, Kasumi? Traveling through the Snapper flooded swampland is not something done so easily, and there is no sign of struggle. How does one silently traverse the dangers of the swampland, and sneak upon an Archmage with so little resistance?"

---

Diver's Paradise, Western Entrance

@rekaigan

---

Oswyn was definitely good at getting on Kevin's nerves. The large man shook his head and began walking off, towards one of the ramps that lead towards the lower portion of the paradise. "When this kind of shit's happening, and the CMAS are knocking on our door, it may be time for Divers to start rememberin' one another," Kevin groaned, speaking not only to Oswyn, but himself. With that, he was headed off to catch himself a drink. The chaos that'd been flung about recently could weigh heavily on even the most powerful Divers. Soon, the gathering around Oswyn began to completely disperse as well. Aside from the line of corpses that hugged the western entrance's ledge, he was all on his own. What of these orb-wielding maniacs and the CMAS, though? Just who were the real enemies? With so much being kept in the dark by Luke on his advisers, along with the sheer mystery that encompassed No-Man's-Land, there was simply no telling what any of it meant.

[RyuShura]

Pincy tilted his head with a low hum at what Zack said, not even noticing the difference in demeanor. It seemed like he didn't care how it happened as long as they were obedient. "Wow. The ability to transmorph the physical form into a different state of matter, quite interesting indeed... you would be quite useful, though for a different plan I have yet to come up with." When it was Stephanie's turn, he nodded each word while listening to her explanation, "Worry not, young madam. We can always acquire you such parts, any parts you could possibly want." But when she suddenly asked him the question at the end, the man burst out laughing. The lanky mage bent low and grabbed his abdomen, his torn robes drooping like a weeping willow as he bellowed awkwardly spaced 'ha-ha's'. It must have looked like he was suffering from a sudden cardiac attack in the eyes of normal people. When he finished, he quickly straightened out and started at Stephanie with glowing eyes full of amusement.

"Threaten? No, no, I'm doing this by my own free will! A mutually agreed negotiation with missus Sara, here." he muttered, nodding to the woman in mention. He then turned around on his heels to face the wall, hand on his head as though in deep thought, "So only one of these, beautiful specimens, huh..." he sighed sorrowfully, "I'd love to take you both with me, but since I can only have one..." he arched backwards unnaturally, almost impossibly, leaning a finger down at Stephanie, "You."

He twirled his body so he was facing them again, bouncing like a wound up sponge, "One cannot fight magic with magic. Especially one such as Sulfrax. He would know every counter and every move. But if we were to introduce new rules... we might just catch him by surprise!~"

...

[Necrophage]

Illuna Forest

Coming quickly out of the woodwork a short man saw them, panicked, and started running in circles. He belligerently kept mumbling to himself. Even Senna growled for a moment before staring at him in confusion.

"Uh.. what are we looking at?" Rem addressed the other mage. The strange man kept flailing around a weapon of some sort as he apparently sought a way to escape without ever actually getting anywhere.

"Sir!?" He spoke up, trying to grab the man's attention. "Are you well?"

[Jensoman]

@LokiLeo789 @tex

Diver's Paradise, Eastern Entrance

Jenso gave Luke a sad look as he spoke. It seemed like the war was really going to happen. Luke may not have been very specific about the Divers being in an all-out war with the CMAS now, but it was obvious enough. If he wanted to stop the war, he needed to solve this dispute between Luke and Sydney. If anything, the easiest way to get to Sydney was probably with Luke's help, but it was possible that many would die in the process. "Yeah...I brought Brian and Yvette here. Don't worry though, I'm positive that we weren't followed. Brian can sense people from a good distance, so we probably would have noticed. And I believe that Brian here can be trusted, too. He seems like a good guy." Jenso said reassuringly, tapping Brian gently on the shoulder. He was speaking more quietly this time around, to make sure that only the people nearby would be able to hear him. "Yvette's indeed looking for you, and assumed you'd be in the tower where you often discuss things." He added.

"You know, Luke...I agree that Sydney needs a lesson. But is going to war with the entire CMAS really smart? Isn't there a way to deal with Sydney without risking many Diver's lives?" He asked. He was unsure if Luke had some kind of plan already, but he hoped that he would tell him what he was up too soon. He was fully aware about how determined Luke was to take Sydney down, so he certainly didn't want to get in the way of that. The war was certainly coming, and it would be difficult to stop. But perhaps, at the very least, Jenso could help to reduce the amount of casualties.

[tex]

---

Diver's Paradise, Eastern Entrance

@Jensoman@LokiLeo789

---

Luke grunted at Jenso's commentary, and glared at Len. "I appreciate what ya did Jenso, but you're meddlin' in affairs ya don't understand. Besides, nothin's for sure yet. But while I'm here, I may as well satisfy a curiosity o' mine," Luke suddenly stepped towards Len and sized him up with a quick once over. Although Luke was big, he didn't quite match up to the titanic Len. Looking up to people wasn't uncommon, as Luke wasn't actually that tall, but it never bothered him. Muscles were muscles, after all, and Luke had strength where it counted! "Len! I figured you were a buddy o' Jenso, but I 'aint so sure about that no more. Still, I guess there's no harm in it- whattaya make of all this chaos? You lookin' forward to a war? Ya think there's any reasonin' with that dirt bag Duvell after what he's done? Or, is uprooting his corrupt little ass from the CMAS counsel lookin' to be a really attractive option to ya?" Luke inquired, tilting his head along with his statements. Luke turned back and glanced at Jenso momentarily before returning his focus to Len. Brian shuddered at the thought of hearing Len's own take on the prospect of war. The man seemed awfully stoic for one so curious. It bothered him to no end. But despite his demeanor, the hulking bronzed warrior didn't seem to harbor any evil intent. Luke waited patiently for a response from Len, whatever it may have been.

Truth be told, Luke himself wasn't keen on the idea of going to war with the CMAS just to take Sydney down, but with so few options, and the diver's way of life on the line, what else could he do? His preparations were well under way, at any rate. All Luke had to do was give the word when everything was in place, and a war could be set into motion.

[Empath]

Mira

Diver’s Paradise

@Rune_Alchemist

The air filled with the rare sound of Mira’s laughter as Lila began the story of her last travels. “Oh well, I wouldn’t want to be that poor critter!” Mira commented with a grin as they both stood in front of the pub, staring at it’s Diver-filled interior. She kept looking at the many different faces of Divers inside of the pub, too many of them she had never spoken a single word to despite her roughly 2 years of being a part of this random guild of travellers.

If she had been by her usual alone self she could probably have been standing right there on the floor of the cavern, staring at the many Divers she did not know and wondered about her current existence. Luckily for her and everyone around her she was not alone. Instead, her thoughts got interrupted by Lila’s voice as she began to speak shortly after her last comment about that thieving critter.

An unconscious smile began to paint Mira’s face as Lila delved deeper into her proposition. Mira had always loved the adventures of No Man’s Land and the tales that the other Divers would sometimes pleasure her with. It gave her a sense of her old life: a vast world full of adventures and new experiences, but it also held the best chance for her to get rid of this wretched ‘Curse’: perhaps somewhere out there in the No Man’s Land was the answer to her many questions? Well, she certainly believed it to be so.

It was almost physically painful for her to wait for Lila to finish her proposition. Oh, how Mira craved to interrupt her with a cheer and excitement - but of course that wasn’t something ‘Mira’ would do: She buried her feelings beneath a cold and calculative exterior so that almost no one would notice the small signs of excitement and waited calmly for her friend to finish speaking.

“Ah Lila,” Mira began shortly after her friend had ended her sentence, “you really know how to get my attention! How could I refuse such a proposition?” Mira asked with a grin on her face. “Have you gotten a specific area in mind? Or perhaps you’ve even gotten a contract? Do you have everything ready, or should we ready some preparations? And how about a team? You know I don’t like to work with a group unless I am forced to, but perhaps one is required?”

As Mira barraged her friend with different questions from her well-hidden excitement she began to lead both of them away from the deeper areas of Diver’s Paradise, heading towards one of the exits and the outside world.

[13org]

Illon, Yvin's Quarters

Kasumi

"I can think in a few ways of doing it... But since you mentioned Necromancy..." Kasumi replied, going near the window and looking outside.
"For someone to traverse the swamp, enter an Archmage's quarters without being noticed and getting out in an equally "undetectable" manner, only to die after this? Its almost like it was a spirit, wraith or something like that." she said, squinting her eyes, looking to the swampland.

"Necromancy... Those who practice it are always very shady... Usually crazy or insane... not the type of person who I would like to talk with..." Kasumi said, clearly showing disdain towards that type of magic and those who practiced it.

"The dead should remain dead..." she mumbled.

"Anyways, we need to start searching somewhere, and i don't think that the one behind all this will be hiding in the swamp. We can go to the slums. We will most certainly get some information there." she said, walking impatiently towards the door. "Correct me if i'm wrong, but i think that our target is not the puppet, but the one pulling the strings." Kasumi opened the door with some violence.

"Suddenly i feel like ending this quickly. I hate those who don't have the courage to do the dirty work themselves..." Kasumi waited for Pride, her eyes brimming with rage. "I believe we are done in this room." she said.
"It might be a good idea to give a look at the swamp before going to the slums. If we get lucky, we might even find some useful information. Perhaps the remains of our beloved puppet... So, what do you say? Swamp or Slums?"

One thing about Kasumi was that she HATED being lost. She absolutely despised the feeling of suddenly losing the trail of her prey, having to double her efforts to find it again. It was very rare for that to happen, and usually happened when unique types of magic, ki or other abilities that she wasn't familiar with were involved. Pride was the one that she called when that happened. Pride should know well that Kasumi gets really impatient and irritated when that happened, losing all the will to play with her prey, instead wanting to end it quickly and violently. Maybe is was exactly why she was assigned to that type of job when she played too much with her prey, or ignored orders on her previous mission.

@tex