[IC] Mystic Ram - the newest guild of Fiore!

[The Irish Tree]

At the sight of the cat garnering Celia's attention, Noire nearly jumped out and lunged at the thing, if not for Jayce's quick timing to put the black canine into a headlock. Once Celia had bid it goodbye, the two were back to the position they'd been when she's last looked, as if nothing happened at all. Just another one of those compulsions he hadn't been able to get Noire over. Following along, he took fondness in remembering a lot of the familiar shops and buildings, this place really did feel like a good place to grow up in. At least, if Web Valley wasn't such a big issue. It was kind of sad that even the Hunter's Guild members didn't always come back from Web Valley...made him think of what exactly it was about it that made it so hard to get out of.

As they approached the Hunter's Guild hall, not too far from the Guild Meeting building if he recalled correctly, Celia gestured towards the entrance, a clear sign that she wanted Jayce to lead on. Not like it mattered, but he didn't really mind having her lead that much. Shrugging slightly, he walked to the great oaken doors of the hall and pushed it open easily with his mechanical arm, and gave a light wave of his hand to signal Noire and Celia to follow in behind him as he entered.

[Dragonydas]

It was finally here. After a long travel, Laura found herself right at the entrance to the Mystic Ram Guild. This was the closest guild to her home, but she also lived pretty far from from any city. Still, by using her magic and taking the kindness of some strangers, she had managed to complete the journey twice as fast. She entered trough the main door, carrying a small blue book and a small backpack filled with the bare essentials. In the book were written the lessons about telepathic magic. It was the final gift from her teacher before he left to continue his journey as a fare performer. She didn't practice much during her journey cause she didn't want to spook people with a sudden voice inside their head. Up till now, she had used signs to ask for various things, but the moment she entered the city, she threw them to the trash. It was time for a fresh start, and now, she needed to practice her telepathic messaging.

Upon entering, she realized that the inside was more similar to a tavern than to what she expected a magic guild to be, but she quickly advanced to the counter. If someone could tell her how to join the guild, it was certainly the bartender. She approached it but realize that there was no one there. 'The bartender probably left for a bit' She though and decided to wait near the counter. She took a quick look around. Somehow, she was feeling a little shy about entering a guild, but it was something that she wanted to do. Plus, with the money she was going to get, she could help her parents with the farm.

[YipeeXD]

Shujin smiled as the young girl had clearly turned a tad mardy. "Hey, you're a big girl, wipe that frown off of your face. Show Janus what real Mystic Ram guild members are made of!" He grinned, but then sighed. Time to try and inspire a younger one. "Look, Nina, and also even you Janus. Master once told me that it matters not the size of a wizard, what matters most is the size of their heart and that you stand up to a guy no matter how big they are. The size of your heat depends on how much you are willing to let it fill up. Those around us fill our hearts, our guild members, brothers and sisters. Because when we are in need, their power lies within us, in our hearts. That is what it means to be in Mystic Ram. The strength of our magic is nothing to do with power. It is to do with what lies in our hearts, each other." He beamed, continuing walking onwards.

[Vec]

Janus was deep in thought, trying to make a plan for the mission so he didn't hear half of what Shujin said. "Huh? Heart? Of course! But having having power makes things a lot easier don't ya think?" he said and laughed. Those two seemed so confident about this mission and Shujin's words seemed so inspirational that somehow that confidence rubbed off on him too and relaxed him a little bit. "You're right. There's no use in worrying about a mission before you even get to the damn place!" Janus followed behind Shujin, confident that everything would be alright.

After some time, they reached the north rim where the cave was located. "We're finally here!" Janus exclaimed. The rocky mountains hid the entrance to the cave pretty well but after searching for a while, they found it, well hidden behind some rock formations. "Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go!" he said and pointed at the entrance excited.

[pyroman]

Talon sighed. He knew that Looking imposing probably wasn't the best idea around, but he didn't expect for the mage to just run off like he did. "Guess we're not getting a new guild member." He said simply as he walked back to his office, smiling darkly. He wanted to see the look on the faces of the group that left with the S-class mission. He wasn't really angered or anything when a group of regular mages and one S-class mage decided to take the job. He would have expected Volta to break the doors down and take the mission alongside the book mage, but a group of regular mages worked just as well. It was a good thing that his large and manly hands worked delicately with a pen in hand, or one of them might have noticed something...

[YipeeXD]

Shujin stood still staring into the cave. He waited. "Janus wait." He sounded pissed. "This is an official job. We cant afford to mess this up." He looked back over his shoulder to see Nina still napping. He took her off his shoulders and sat her down on a nearby rock still sleeping. He shook her gently. "Eh... wake up. We're here." He walked back to Janus. "I have a plan to get you some light for your magic." He looked over his shoulder back at Nina smiling. "Her magic gives off bright colours. It will probably light up most of the cave." He grinned. "Are you ready to see real wizards at work, and are you ready to become one?" He grinned, before fist bumping Janus. He focused his eyes on the cave. "....Battle mode." He started to glow and heat up a little. "Metal make... Golden Impurity!" He glowed yellow, as golden pieces of armour formed across his skin, and dust changed the colour of his hair to the familiar blonde. A shield in one hand and a long sword in the other, he took a step forward. The sound of his metal boots on the gravel crunched. He turned back. "Let's go." He took his first step into the pitch black cave.

[Zeroth]

Rutger opened his eyes, confident that he had gone over everything he thought would be of help on the mission. Well, perhaps confident was the wrong word. He was sure he had gone over everything. There was just nothing left that he thought he could use. He would have to be satisfied with what he had for now. If worse came to worst, he had the incantation. There was nothing left to do but to get going.

A quick glance up at a clock on the wall told him that Artemis and Darren would soon be back. He glanced over at Mombaki and waved a hand in the boy's direction.

"Hey, let's step outside. Artemis and Darren will be back soon, and then we can get this thing started."

[pyroman]

Darren walked back to the Mystic Ram guild hall at about the same paced he used to walk home. While he was a horrible judge of distance, he knew how long it would take him to walk home at a certain pace, as well as how long it would take to pack and walk back to the guild, so he was sure that there was still some time until the hour was up. He just hoped that he was right, and wasn't just standing around in the guild for an unknown amount of time waiting for the others to get there.

The swordsman trapped his sword onto the ground with a bit more force than usual, using a bit of vibration magic to tell him how far he was from reaching the guild. He was actually closer than he had realized, and soon stopped as he reached the entrance to the guild hall. With a small breath, he walked through the open doors and took his usual seat at the bar.

Over at the bar, Kori had just gotten back to her work station, and watched as both Darren and the young woman approached the bar, both of them at different times. The girl arrived first, and the swordsman sat somewhat near her probably without realizing it. The wind made smiled sweetly to the woman and nodded her head slightly. "Can I help you with something?" She asked her curiously. While she was a little bummed out that she wasn't able to spar against the other mage, she had to put those thoughts aside for the time being.

[Dragonydas]

Laura took a quick look at the boy that sat close to her at the bar, but since he didn't directed any words to her, Laura kept quiet as well. Then, a female approached her and asked what she wanted. Laura was a bit frightened about using her telepathic messaging but she knew that from now on it was what she had to do. She put down the book on the counter and place the index fingers on her head, closing down her eyes and focusing on the mind she wanted to contact. She was still inexperienced in the use of this type of communication, so the language of the message was a bit rudimentary, but after gathering up her courage, she did sent it. "Me Laura Merilli. Me want join." After the message was sent, she opened her eyes. She was blushing. It was the first time she had used her telepathic messaging on a complete stranger.

[chukklehed]

Nina rubbed her eyes and sat up, her eyelids half closed. Stretching her arms over her head, she gave a tiny yawn and looked around. "We're here?" she asked slowly, getting her bearings, then scooted off the rock. She walked over to the cave entrance and looked inside, staring into the darkness intently.

Artemis showed up exactly one hour from when he left, walking out of the back rooms of the guild with his cloak swishing behind him. He looked around the room and, seeing that everybody was present, nodded to himself. "Are we all prepared then?" He asked the group gathered near the bar.

[Dusk]

The young wizard entered into the building, and in all honesty, wasn't too surprised by what was there. Maybe the set-up was a bit different from the Mystic Ram guild hall, but it was obvious that camaraderie was strong in the Hunter's Guild building.Along with a board in the back with various assignments and such, a bar sat right at the entrance, and stuffed heads of various game hung on the walls. Hunters milled about the several tables on the floor, boasting and planning and drinking all they could. A few looked their way and their gaze lingered on the slight, dainty looking girl before turning back to their conversations.

A burly man with graying hairs on his head and face looked up from the stein he was washing, eyebrows arching a little before making his way closer to the edge of the bar, nearer to the entrance. He flexed the large muscles under his beige button-up shirt as he rolled his shoulders and smirked, "Welcome to the Hunter's Guild, folks. Name's Gordon. Come to join up?" Gordon inquired, mostly to Jayce. obviously disregarding any possibility that a girl like Celia could want to join. However, at the mention of it, Celia began to daydream of what life as a hunter would be like, staring off into space. It was a wonder that she ever got through jobs alive.

[The Irish Tree]

Jayce gave the large burly man a friendly wave of the hand, a faint smile as he denied the offer with: "Sorry, already in a guild in Middlemist; In fact, my friend and I are here on a job." Jayce pulled the job slip from his back pocket and unfolded the paper, holding it up for the man to read it, saying: "Got word of people going missing in Web Valley around here, and we were wondering if you could give us any information to help us out with finding them." Jayce seemed oddly...calm about approaching the man outright with this. No doubt several of their hunters had taken on this job before, and there would naturally be only one person or team rewarded.

Noire simply took a seat next to Celia, looking around at all the strangers in this hunting guild. She couldn't help but get a feeling that some were watching her...understandable, since something like her wasn't only not native to the area; as far as Jayce or anybody else knew, she was the only one of her kind.

[Vec]

"Her magic produces light huh?" Janus said impressed. "Well then i guess i wont have any problems with fighting in the darkness." He fist-bumped Shujin back and stepped back as he activated his magic. "I will never get tired of seeing this..." he exclaimed as golden armor formed and covered Shujin's skin and his hair turned blond. "I guess i should prepare as well" and with a quick snap of his fingers, an ethereal bow, whitish in color, formed on his hand.

At the time he saw that Nina had already woken up and followed Shujin inside the cave and so he took a deep breath, "Here it is, your first mission, albeit unofficial. Don't screw it up." he muttered and walked inside the cave.

[pyroman]

Kori's eyes widened in surprise as she heard a voice that wasn't her own in her head. It was louder than a usual thought, and almost seemed as if someone had actually spoken to her, but she knew it wasn't the case. The wind mage looked at Laura with curiosity as she leaned slightly over to her. The way she spoke was different, and she wondered why she didn't speak. "Did you speak to me?" She asked the other woman, just clarifying that it was her that spoke to her telepathically.

[Zeroth]

Just as Rutger and Mombaki were getting ready to leave, Darren and Artemis were both walking in. As the S-ranked mage inquired as to their readiness, Rutger nodded.

"I think we're all good to go. Where exactly is this dark guild located, and how will we be getting there?" the fire mage said. He hoped it wasn't too far away, and that it wasn't near a populated area. If the dark mages had their own guild building set up somewhere outside any proper civilization, they would be able to fight without worrying about collateral damage or innocent bystanders. If the place were surrounded by forests or hills, too, it would make setting up an ambush easier...then again, they would be on unfamiliar turf.

Rutger shook his head to stop his imagination from running away with him. There were too many problems with this situation already for him to be coming up with more before he even knew what they were facing.

[pyroman]

Darren nodded to Artemis after his question was asked. He was fully prepared for the journey, and he assumed that everyone else in the group was as well. He sat in silence until Rutger was finished speaking, hoping to get his two cents in. "Maybe the location is on the request paper. I believe that Artemis has it, and we shouldn't bother Kori right now since she's talking to someone at the moment."

On the job request, other than the absurdly large amount of money being printed on, anyone who looked at it would see a small map, obviously hand drawn by somebody who wasn't the best artist in the world. The map had Middlemist in the center of the drawing, and an arrow pointing south to a dot, where another town was located. Next to the dot, the word "Hobbs" was scribbled down. Anyone who looked at it would probably assumed that it was somebody's surname, but it was actually the name of the town. It was called Hobbs Grove, and it was quite the wealthy town. It was a bit of distance away from normal trade routes and paths, that's what kept kept the town safe for so long. It was in the middle of a thick and dense forest, keeping it away from the eyes of thieves and dark mages alike. However, a guild had been set up in the same forest, and seemed to be causing trouble for the wealthy town.

[chukklehed]

Artemis took a look at the map attached and handed it to Rutger. "Here, that's where we're going." He waved his hand at the door in a clear indication that he wanted the fire mage to lead them out, "Let us be off."

As they walked, Artemis opened the Dreamtide and started reading random pages, never seeming to reach the end. He never looked where he was walking, but he never ran into anything either.

[Dragonydas]

Laura thought that the girl found her skill frightening and that made Laura back away just a little bit. Still, she returned to her telepathic form and directed more thoughts towards her. "Me not want scare you. Me not speak. Me mind message." It was a pretty rudimentary language, but Laura was focusing extremely hard on sending those exact thoughts. If her mind wandered for any reason while she was messaging, it was possible that the other girl would also receive those thoughts, and that was what Laura didn't want to happen. After sending the new message, she approached the counter, opened her book, and showed one of the lessons written on it, just to try to make it clear to the girl what type of magic she was using to communicate.

[Zeroth]

Rutger took the poster from Artemis and looked over the map, a frown creasing his face.

"This is looking fishier by the minute," he said in a low tone, looking over the scribbles that barely constituted a map. Nonetheless, he led the way out of the guild, and onto the southern streets that would take them out of town. "At least it's within walking distance, so we won't have to pay for train tickets."

The dark guild had been set up out in the depths of the forest, but a place as wealthy as Hobbs Grove was bound to have a well paid guard force, and the richer folks would likely have their own security. Why stay so close to such a high profile, high security target? Were they just stupid and overconfident, or powerful enough that they didn't care? Maybe the people of Hobbs were the kind of rich folk who were rich enough that they didn't have to know anything about the world around them. Maybe they were just throwing this ridiculous sum of money out because they could afford it, and they were naive enough about the world of mages that they thought a simple band of thugs were worth this much.

Somehow Rutger doubted things would play out so conveniently.

The woods would give them a lot of cover, especially at night, but they weren't familiar with the area. The dark guild, unless they really were just a rag-tag bunch with an unjustified bounty, would probably have lookouts posted in various places, maybe even traps or alarms. How could they get through all of that? Rutger knew a fair bit about wilderness survival, but his experiences were with mountains, not the woods. Then it hit him, and he glanced over his shoulder.

Mombaki was a well-traveled hunter, even though he was young, and his type of magic gave him an affinity for animals and nature. He could probably navigate through the forest, and maybe even track the dark mages down. And while Darren was blind, he used magic to sense vibrations around him, like a bat's echolocation in a way. Those vibrations could tell him a lot about the environment, even some things that people with sight might overlook or miss entirely. Maybe between the two of them, they would be able to do this without being ambushed themselves.

"Darren, Mombaki. Do you guys think you could work together and take point when we get to these woods? With your combined skills I think you might be our best chance at finding the targets and avoiding any traps or lookouts along the way." he said.

[Dusk]

Gordon looked the trio up and down. Sure, the guy looked kinda tough with that big metal arm, but he wasn't sure about the dog-like creature or the teenager. "Middlemist, huh? You must be from that... what is it...Mystic Ham then?" He asked, after a brief pause as his older brain mixed up the last half of the name. "Well, it depends which missing persons you're looking for. Our most recent report was about some group of travelers getting stuck in there." Gordon reached under the bar and pulled out a box. Upon opening it, one could see files within it's confines, filled with yellowed paper.

"These are all of the Web Valley notices we get. Let's see here, X791...here we go." Gordon pulled a sheet from the box, upon which was scrawled a map, showing how far and where the last party went. The trail was drawn around the outer edges of the valley, showing just how hesitant the Hunters were to go any deeper. Additional details concerning the case were scrawled above the map, showing that the group was a band of merchants from Bosco, and time of disappearance: 5 days ago.

"Here's what we've got. The poor fools must have gotten lost much further in...and considering the time they went missing, there's no guarantee that they're still alive." Gordon cautioned, as several hunters about started whispering. They're goners... They whispered, We've tried everything, as usual...

Celia snapped out of her daydream to hear all of this, and she simply countered him, them all, really, with a bright smile. "That's no way to think, Mr. Gordon, " She bent down to pet Noire on the head as she continued, "There's still a chance to find them, we just have to push onward, even with the risks. Simple as that, right, Jayce?"