BoZV - Arc 4

[Sorrum]

Arc 1 Recap

Silver and Rion meet first, from a stranger attacking Silver.
The two meet Aqua, Terra, and Lucas shortly later, and they all participate in protecting the town from a blight attack together.
Silver gained the trust of some, and the mistrust of others, by being discreet with her actions. She reveals to Rion she is a dark mage, somehow. Doesn’t really get in to details.
The group managed to travel to the town corrupted by blight, defeat all the beasts lurking within, and help Silver deactivate the blight crystal.
Aqua questions Rion a bit, but seems to decide to be okay with him.
Everyone sleeps, Arc 2 begins.



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Arc 2 Recap

After saving the town of Aldur our heroes spent the night in the inn to recuperate after their battle with blighted creatures. In the morning Silver and Rion answered some, but not all of the questions the party had about Silver's mysterious book, and about the powers the two had displayed during the battle. The party decided to travel together to the larger city of Agrova so that they could inform military leadership about the renewed Blight threat. Along the way they were met by the dragon Celestrus, who shattered the Blight crystal the party had recovered and created protective charms for everyone.

Upon reaching Agrova the party spoke to Captain Cliff who was either unable or unwilling to help. Fortunately they were met by Shin and Enfurnus, who were already acquainted with Rion and Silver, and intervened on the party's behalf. Shin and Enfurnus provided the party with intelligence regarding the Blight threat, as well as the location of the next probable target, a mountainous region close to the town of Eulene. Before leaving Agrova, Terra was attacked by a mysterious group of men, and at some point Lucas Boltin became separated from the party.

The party left that night for Eulene, flying most of the way on Silver and Enfurnus' backs. They stopped to rest for the night, and in the morning they entered a cave in the mountain where they encountered another Blight crystal. This time it affected Silver much differently, shifting her into a feral monster. In the scuffle the cave began to collapse and Terra used the last of her energy to create a tunnel out. Aqua conjured an ice sled to transport the unconscious party members and from there they made their way to Eulene so that everyone could recover. Hours later Lucas Boltin arrived at the mountain and retrieved the discarded crystal.

In Eulene the party discovered that a festival was taking place. Since Shin had no intelligence into any further Blight activity he encouraged the party to relax, recover and enjoy themselves. The party members indulged food and drink, they shopped, danced and played in dunk tanks. Rion and Terra even fought some explosive battles in Yung Fueg's Ring of Doom where they were awarded money and an invitation to train at Yung's mage school. They also met Arne and Etch-Flame who were invited to join the party.

That night before the festival ended Terra and Aqua were ambushed by a group of men. Aqua ran to gather their party and Terra was seriously injured in the ensuing battle. The party reconvened at a special clinic operated by Logan Galford, Rion's father. Logan treated Terra's wounds and Terra revealed to the party everything she knew about the mysterious House of Lords organization. The party enjoyed one final day at the Eulene spa before returning to the inn to receive their next mission.


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Arc 3 Recap

The next day Celestrus arrived in a panic to warn the party about an impending attack on dragon territories. Information was scant, but he assured the group that it would be an overwhelming force of Blight Mages, including Arch-Mages and a contingent of blighted dragons. The party agreed to help the dragons, and devised a plan to attack the blight forces from behind while they were engaged with the dragons. Celestrus created a portal and ushered the party through.

The party emerged to find a darkened forest which already showed signs of battle. After a bit of walking they came to a clearing with a lone figure and devised a plan to non-lethally bring him down. Their plan was successful but the figure turned out to be a simple blighted zombie. Instead they'd walked into a trap, one that appeared to have been lain specifically for them! A blight mage revealed himself and taunted the group before summoning a pair of twisted monstrosities to battle the party. Silver fled immediately, but after a fierce battle the group was able to bring down the enormous blight spider. The blight infused three headed dragon however proved too much for the party to handle, especially after it flew out of range and began raining fire, lightning and acid down upon them. As the party took cover an enormous blight crystal fell from the sky and began to spread, forcing the group to flee. Once they were safely away Enfurnus left the party to take command of nearby dragon forces and Celestrus reappeared to portal everyone else back to Eulene where they could recover their strength.

Several days had gone by since the attack on the dragon settlement and the party's battle with the Blight mage and it's blighted manifestations. In this period of time little word had come from Enfurnus as to their next step, and Celestrus if he visited was brief. There hadn't been any word on the whereabouts of Silver, and it seemed to be the only thing left was to standby and wait until they knew their next move....

[Sorrum]

Aqua had been taken to the clinic Dr. Galford ran and had been treated for her injuries, thanks to Terra. They weren't as severe as they looked, but only because the attacks she suffered were at least weakened by her ice shell and armor. After just one day of rest she recovered, but her armor was wrecked.

With no word on what to do next, she contemplated the time she had spent with the Blight neutralizing dragon and her quest to rid the world of the foul magic, and how uncharacteristic this behavior of hers had been. Needless to say she was shaken by her decision, and as the days passed further did she doubt the dragon intended to return or even resume her quest. Was she capable of defeating these mages when she flees at first sight? Is she strong enough to defeat these monsters they're able to conjure? What's more, was she herself willing to face that creature that nearly killed her once more?

All these questions weighed on her mind while she waited. In that time, she reconstructed her armor with what she was able to find in the city, but it was not nearly as durable and she was no blacksmith. Her biggest concern was the visor in her helmet, as it worked as a communications device between her and her father. By the looks of things, she could use it for one last communication with her father before the damage it had taken made it a paperweight.

As the group gathered to dine in the inn that evening, they quietly looked around at each other with unsure faces. Aqua however would break the silence. "I'm afraid that I can't wait any longer for these dragons to reappear." She said. "I nearly died for Silver's cause and neither she nor they have given me any reasoning behind her actions there."

"What's more, my armor is heavily damaged and my means of communication back home is nearly exhausted. Tomorrow, I will be leaving Eulene to start my journey home to The Frontier." She then turned to Terra. "I still would you like to accompany me there as well." Then to the others. "I would like to offer the rest of you an invitation to journey to my home as well. Our policy on immigration and tourism is rather guarded and secluded, so it would be a good chance to see part of the world not open to outsiders otherwise. I owe you all a great debt as you saved my life from those beasts, and would welcome you all as friends of the elves and humans."

[Vic Alriikerson]

     Alriik would have stuck around the last few days, the boisterous elf being a friendly and lighthearted presence since they had arrived. He would have taken any opportunity to talk about anything, and if given the chance, regail with the exploits of himself and his teachers. Danshiro of the East of his blinding blade, The Great Hunter Seras Laurey who slayed a massive blighted bull with one swing of his great sword. Rage Blighteater's slaying of a fell giant with one mighty blow. Alriik's weeklong war against a dragon who would become his lover. He had many tales, of glory and battle. He'd also make mention his usefulness; he was experienced in battling blight, and outside of battle he was a survivalist and could even play like 4 songs on guitar. And yes, he took every opportunity to talk and learn more about these heroes and their journey.


     When asked anything more personal… He was less giving. He was Alriik of Altiim, the Altiim being a small forest based clan of elven mages. The silver hair marks him as part of their warrior caste. He's 60. That is about all he would speak of on himself. And... when asked where any of those others he tells stories of are now… He would quickly change the subject. But what he carried on his back may shine some light on the matter.


By the time Aqua had gotten fed up with things, Alriik would be sitting in the corner, eating a fish he caught and cooked himself, low on funds as he was. When she asked the question… All he did was look at her, and with a confused, yet somewhat excited face, pointed at himself.

[Swim]

In the days that had passed since the party had returned to Eulene Terra could see that the party had grown restless. She was feeling it herself. Alriik of Altiim was friendly enough, and from the sound of things a useful companion to have at their sides, but his stories could only do so much to enliven their gloom. Eulene was a nice place but her happy memories of the festival had been darkened by all of the violence they'd endured since then. It wasn't in her nature to stay in one place for too long either, but with no news from any of the three dragons it seemed like staying put was their only option. If the dragon stronghold fell then there would undoubtedly be more draconic amalgamations to fight in their future, and Terra couldn't stand not knowing what was happening.

The only positive development had been a Aqua's rapid and full recovery, but even though her friend was back on her feet Terra could sense that something was troubling her. Terra's best guess was that her friend was coping with the aftermath of their utter defeat and the feeling of uselessness that they'd been unable to do anything about it. It wasn't an easy feeling to live with, it was certainly one that Terra had wrestled with more than once herself. She half considered taking the elf back to the day spa while they waited in Eulene, but it didn't feel like the right solution. Terra wasn't sure if she had any words that would be of any consolation to her friend at this time, she simply resolved to make herself available if and when Aqua wanted to talk.

That evening Aqua did indeed have something to say in front of their full group, she was returning home. She reiterated her desire for Terra to accompany her, and extended the invitation the the rest of their party as well. Terra had expected this after Aqua had broached the subject with her before. It seemed like a sensible move to her, and she would love to visit Aqua's home. Terra shared a look with her friend and nodded her agreement. "I've also had my fill of Blight and dragons." And blighted dragons, she added silently to herself. "The scale of the attack was beyond anything our group could be counted on to handle, at this point Enfurnus and Shin have the evidence to bring to their superiors and the military will have to act. It's out of our hands now. So yes, I will be glad to come with you." She reached out and gently squeezed Aqua's arm before leaning in and adding "My uncle was a blacksmith and he helped me craft my armor. It may not be as ornate as your own but it's strong and sturdy, you should let me have a look at yours before we depart tomorrow."

[Sorrum]

Aqua stared at the elf as he pointed to himself with a goofy grin. She gave a small smile. He gave off a positive energy that she didn't mind in this tough time. Though she thought his antics in the battle were a bit extra... it's not like he was the one who got felled by dragon lightning. She smiled a bit more and said, "Yes, even you."

Terra made a point that she agreed with. It really was out of their hands. That dragon monster was nigh invincible to their attacks, or at least it was smart enough to defend itself from each and every one. Nonetheless, she was glad her friend was still coming along.

Her offer to help repair her armor was a little surprising but welcome. "Ah, that would be nice actually. I only managed to do so much on my own. Back home any damage our armor incurs means a drop-off at the quartermaster's shop and a short return period, so I don't really specialize in this kind of thing." she replied.

"Before we leave though, I'll have to call my father and let him know I'm returning and bringing company with me so he can provide us with the right papers once we arrive. Don't want any miscommunications with the naval guard before we enter sovereign waters."

[Bloodbane]

To call what happened a failure was, at least in Rion's opinion, vastly understating things.

To say nothing about what nearly became of those who had made it back to Eulene, there had been no sight or sound of the three dragons the group had become somewhat familiar with since they were rather quickly whisked away from the battlefield through the efforts of Celestrus. Were the dragons dead...? It would be pretty clear to anyone who asked Rion what was next that he was uncertain, but in the end what he was most uncertain about was pulling these people into what had once again become his problem alone; without Silver, he was back to trying to find someone else that could aid in de-powering the Blighted Crystals. Even Logan's efforts to try and lighten things up somewhat had been met with uncertain gazes and short phrases, and in the end all Rion's father could do is try and offer encouragement to him and the others, though it was more in the vein of encouraging the group not to rush back into this so soon.

When the group had all gathered at the inn, Rion raised an eyebrow quietly when Aqua spoke up, advising that regardless of what anyone else thought, she needed to return to her homeland for repairs. What had surprised him, however, was her invitation for the others to join her on her journey back to the Frontier. It seemed that Terra was willing to join with Aqua, which meant the others were likely to make their opinions known soon. "I don't know what happened back there... and I don't know if the others will return. Unfortunately, this puts us back at the beginning; without Silver I'm not so sure there's much we can do about the source of the undead, even if we were to come across one of their crystals. Simply put, I don't feel comfortable trying to continue on this path with you all as things stand currently..." Rion's words trailed off afterward, as even he was not entirely sure what that meant as far as a decision...

"But have you really been set so far back?" Rion's eyebrow twitched slightly as he turned his head, and sure enough Shin had pulled up a seat nearby. "Must you always sneak up on me like that...?!" The silver-haired officer simply chuckled and shrugged in response to Rion's agitation. "It's clear enough now that these mages have grown stronger than anticipated. I'll be getting word out as quickly as I can. Though I would be happy to experience the Frontier first-hand, unfortunately that isn't in the cards for me... but perhaps an unknown land is as good a place as any to continue your search? Though who knows... Perhaps going back to the beginning wouldn't be a bad idea either, eh Rion?"

Rion stared at Shin for a moment, knowing full well that there was more of that riddle-speak entwined into Shin's suggestion. It seemed the man could never resist saying something that left people wondering if it was some sort of hint, though for now, Rion felt the last thing he needed to do was start over, if it could be avoided. "... I think you've made your point, Shin..." he said, pausing for a few seconds before looking back to Aqua.

"... I'll go to the Frontier."

"Well then! Looks like you've got yourself the beginnings of a crew, Captain Nyharllothor." Shin said with a smirk, before getting up from his seat. "If something comes up, I'll try and get word to you all directly. And before you ask how, don't worry about it; there's a reason this sort of thing is my specialty." he said before looking to the others with a nod and taking his leave, at which time Rion gave an annoyed sigh.

"I wish he'd stop beating around the bush sometimes... just what the hell is he up to..." Rion grumbled.

[Swim]

OOC: It's been awhile since we've heard from our buddy Lucas, if you need a refresher you can find his last post here - zerovirus.proboards.com/post/159826

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IC: The woman's name was Lisesh. It hadn't seemed important to remember before but things had certainly changed in the last couple of hours. While she was unconscious Boltin had strapped her down to re-examine her vitals. It was extraordinary- not only had she been the first survivor of his experimentation, she also seemed to be exhibiting the energy of a lightning mage. So far there had only been the minor shock as he'd checked her pulse but Boltin felt certain, in the same way that he could tell that the pink haired fellow he bumped into back in Eulene had also been a lightning mage. Somehow he'd done it, somehow he'd achieved his life's work, but it had been so reflexive he didn't know how to replicate the success.

With squinted eyes and furrowed brow Boltin studied the recording, playing back the event for his review. His intent at the time had been to protect himself, to knock her away, and now he couldn't remember quite how powerful a shock he had delivered. Surely the intensity of the attack had to have been the deciding factor in her life and death and in gifting her some measure of his power, Lucas thought as he reached the end of the video. There was no other explaina- the crystal! Why hadn't he seen it before? The shock had occurred just as he had reached out to pry it from her fingers!

A thousand thoughts raced through Lucas' mind as he searched for an explanation. He knew that the crystal could store vast amounts of energy. Had it somehow reacted and nullified his attack, allowing just enough energy to reach the woman that she would be left alive? The possibility seemed ludicrous to Boltin but then... what other possibility was there? None of his other experiments had ever produced a living mage, and the most drastic change between this trial and all the others was the inclusion of the deactivated blight crystal. There were still many questions left to answer, such as how he'd survived the lightning strike as a child which had awakened his own powers, but for now he had a working hypothesis.

Lisesh groaned, she seemed to be coming to. Lucas hurried over to the table and peered down at Lisesh as her eyes fluttered open. "Where am I?" she demanded seeing him there. She struggled against the restraints holding her down. "Let me go!" she shouted.

Boltin quickly stuffed a rag into her mouth to silence her cries. "Please calm yourself," he told her once she'd been muffled. "I am going to let you go, do you hear me? I have no intention of keeping you here against your will. These bonds are for my protection, I have no intention of being struck again with my own lab equipment. As soon as you can calm down and stop thrashing about then I will untie you."

Lisesh struggled and screamed into her rag for another minute or two but eventually the fever broke. She shuddered and shrank back against the table, closing her eyes and preparing for the worst to come. She winced back as Lucas' hand touched her own, but the scientist was true to his word, he was only loosening her bonds. Once released Lisesh sat up on the table and peered at Boltin skeptically. "What do you want from me?" she asked in a guarded tone.

"For the time being," Lucas replied, "Only your silence. I've given you a great gift but now I need some time to think before I'm ready to share it with the world."

Lisesh snorted. "I can tell you think pretty highly of yourself but your dick is no great wonder, please don't go around exposing yourself to others now that it's been used for the first time."

"I am not talking about such base desires, do not be crude," Boltin said angrily. He moved toward Lisesh who hopped off the table and scurried back a few feet in fright. "I've made you a mage. Look here, I'll show you." When she shook her head Lucas sighed exasperatedly. "I've already told you I'm not going to harm you, just hold out your hand." He approached more slowly with an open palm and this time Lisesh slowly raised hers. Very slowly Lucas placed his palm against her own. "Can you feel that?" he asked, feeling the familiar pulse of a fellow lightning mage. "The connection?" Lisesh nodded with frightened eyes. "Do not be afraid," he instructed, "Just watch." Lucas slowly drew his hand away revealing miniature arcs of electricity that sparked and leapt between their fingers. Lisesh stared down at her hands with an expression somewhere between shock and horror. Eventually she pulled away, breaking the connection. "What did you do to me?"

"I've given you the freedom to make your own choices, to choose your own destiny" Lucas answered.

"And what if I choose to walk out this door?"

"Then I will not stop you."

Lisesh's eyes jumped back and forth between Lucas and the door several times before she made up her mind. Lucas sighed heavily as the door slammed shut behind her. He'd hoped she'd stay and work with him but his goal had always been to create a world of mages who were empowered to protect themselves and decide their own fates. Now that he'd been successful it would be antithetical to his vision if he forced her to stay. The thing to do now was to build on his success and see whether or not his hypothesis regarding the crystal was correct. With newfound enthusiasm Lucas Boltin adjusted the settings on his microscope and reached for a syringe, it was time to get to work.

[Swim]

It was dark by the time Lisesh left Boltin's building. Her footsteps beat rapidly down the street, eager to put as much space between her and that... man as possible. Her mind was spinning, not sure what to think. It was simply too much to process all at once. She'd been abducted and knocked unconscious for the better part of a day, unwillingly been violated and experimented on and yet... after all that he'd simply let her go. He'd been sincere about not wanting to harm her, she'd been entirely within his power if that had been his intent. Logically she knew that the sensible thing to do was report him to the authorities and see him led away in chains, but would anyone even believe her incredible tale? Then there were the powers he'd allegedly endowed her with, so fantastic that they simply couldn't be real. Just to set herself at ease Lisesh flexed her hand and focused, willing the sparks to dance from one finger to the other as before. Nothing. Maybe she would wake up and find it had all just been a bad dream.

Someone screamed in the alley to her right. Lisesh's shadow fell upon the dim figure of a man forcing himself on a young woman. The man reeked of piss and alcohol but had enough of his senses about him to realize that they were no longer alone. "Jus get out of here," he yelled, slurring his speech. Lisesh didn't know where she'd summoned the courage but before she knew what was happening she found herself sprinting down the alley and shoving the drunkard off the unfortunate woman. The woman fled in terror as the man slowly picked himself off the filthy street. "Yer gonna pay for that missy," he snarled, brandishing a switchblade. Lisesh backed away but the drunkard suddenly lurched forward and grabbed her arm. As she attempted to push him away electricity flew from her fingertips and sent the would-be rapist flying, cracking his head against the alley wall.

Lisesh fled the alley escaping back into the street when her arm was suddenly seized by another pair of hands. It was the woman she'd just rescued. "You saved my life," she cried, tears streaming down her face. Lisesh considered for a moment the series of events that had just unfolded, then she took the woman by the hand. A few minutes later there was a knock on Lucas Boltin's door and he answered with a perplexed expression on his face.

"Will you do her too?" Lisesh asked breathlessly. "Please, give her the same gift you gave me."

[Vic Alriikerson]

Purpose. Finally.


Ten long years of wandering alone… No aims, no one… Just simply wandering where he could, hunting blight and getting paid for it when he could… Finally. He hadn't felt like this since… Since… He would tear up a bit, but anyone other than Aqua or Terra would have difficulty seeing it around his hair. He'd attempt to slyly wipe the tears away, before calmly putting down what remained of his fish, wiping his hands, and taking a deep breath.



Afterward, he was like a flash, quickly appearing on Aqua's side, opposite of Terra, and wrapping an arm around her shoulders in the most platonic of hugs, his free arm pumping his fist. His eyes almost literally glowed with excitement, a goofy grin stretched across his face; he could literally burst with excitement. He would begin to speak, words flying from him a mile a minute.

“ThankYouThankYouLookIt'sBeenAReallyRoughLast10YearsIHaven'tHadAnyRealCompanionshipInAgesYouHaveNoIdeaHowMuchThisMeansToMeIJustReallyDidn'tHaveAnyPurposeOtherThanRandomRevengeAgainstBlightMonstersAndIJustHaveHadNoDirectionWhatsoeverSince-"



He'd blink. He'd then remember:

Boundaries.

As quickly as he dashed from his chair, he'd return to it, a bit embarrassed. “I-I mean, uh-" He'd clear his throat. “It'd be an honor to offer my blades to your service, m'lady… But, uh…” He'd suddenly have a realization, before point to his hair. “Y’sure you want an Altiim with you? We’re not exactly the most popular last time I checked, not that I blame anyone for having those thoughts…”

[Sorrum]

Aqua listened as Rion made his decision. However, Shin mysteriously appeared and changed his mind. She wished he'd stop doing that. At least Rion wanted to come along now. "Oh, that's good then. Traveling in a group will be safer anyway."

She was then accosted by Alriik. She was more stunned at his sudden behavior, but he reacted quickly and apologized. "That's, uh.. don't worry about it. Did you say an Altiim? I recall the Altiim elves are native to The Frontier in one of it's more isolationist regions, choosing not to associate much with the rest of society. I'm surprised I'm meeting one that isn't the ambassador." She responded. "You should be fine to return home as long as you've got your associated paperwork and all.. but come with us anyway. I'll consider it a cultural exchange to be among one of your kind."

~

Once the meal had finished, Aqua and the others retired to a common room, where she set her armor down in front of Terra. "Here, if you look here in the back of the chest piece there's an ugly dent in the back where I believe rocks smashed and ate away at the outer layers. Not only that, I think there's something wrong with the metal all over, it feels kind of brittle since that battle with the dragon monster."

She'd let Terra focus on the repairs while she messed with the visor. She removed the visor from the helmet and began pressing a few buttons, before drawing a rune on the front of it. "Itham Nyharllothor." she spoke to the machine. It seemed to register something, but obviously something went wrong. The visor cracked and flashed a sharp array of colors which caused concern to cross Aqua's face. An awful noise screeched shortly, ending in a few loud beeps.

"Oh yeah, it's messed up. This might not even go through.." she whispered aloud. Just then, a deep, somewhat hushed voice came through the other side.

"Frida?"

"Father! I'm so glad to hear your voice. The last few days have been terrible. My armor has-"

"I haven't heard from you in forever! What happened?! You're not hurt are you?" Itham questioned quickly.

"No, well, not anymore thanks to my friends. Everyone, say hello!" Aqua waved everyone to gather around the device.

As the party centered around Aqua, they were given the opportunity to introduce themselves.

"Hello everyone," the device spoke. "I am Itham Nyharllothor. I see you all have met my daughter Frida, but you probably know her better by her codename. Thank you for taking care of her, she is my only daughter and the reason I still walk these lands some 350 years weary of them." He then laughed, a hearty rumble came through the device. "I'd like to know about you all, tell me about the people she has to accompany her in those far off human lands."

[Tony]

Arne couldn't handle simply waiting around, and kept himself busy taking up whatever odd job he could in Eulene as the days passed. Despite that, his mind couldn't help but think of the events that took place. That abomination of a dragon... how they clearly stood no chance against it... how Silver abandoned them, essentially leaving for them for dead, without a single word.

While having dinner one day, he thought about what he would do next. It didn't feel right for him to leave this group so soon after joining them, but at the same time... he couldn't just sit and wait for some dragons that might never come. Fortunately, he wouldn't have to, as Aqua invited the entire group to travel with her to The Frontier. "You can count me in. I've always wanted to head that way if I ever had the opportunity." After stating this, his attention is drawn towards Shin who seemingly just appeared next to Rion... only to leave randomly after saying a few words. Both him and Hien stared in confusion as he left. "What the...? You guy's sure know some... interesting people."

---

Arne watched as Aqua fiddled with the visor from her armor, not really sure what she was trying to accomplish... only for it to emit a horrible screech, which caused Hien to growl angrily at it, followed by the voice of a man. While still not sure about this device, he takes the opportunity to introduce himself.

"Hello. My name is Arne." following Arne's lead, Hien started chirping at the device. "And that would be my wyvern partner, Hien. I'm an adventurer, and travel from town to town trying to find whatever jobs I can or anything that interests me. I haven't really known your daughter for very long, so I don't think I really deserve much thanks."

[Vic Alriikerson]

Alriik's immediate reaction was to flip over the table, point at himself, list off his accolades and history. But after watching his Thunder Brother's cool response, he agreed. He hadn't been there for long. All he had done was make a fool of himself against a dragon and thunder brother all over a weakened spider. Low key, Alriik. You can give him the full version after you've earned it.

"Hello, I'm Alriik of Altiim. Sellsword spellsword and Blight Hunter. I, uh, just joined." He'd wave, with a smile. " But, uh... Your daughter seems a fine warrior and I'll do my best to keep her from harm. Also, nice meeting you!" His smile would widen as he waved again.

'Nailed it', he thought.

[Swim]

After the meal Terra excused herself quickly and went up to her room and emerged a few moments later with a small kit of blacksmith's tools. It wasn't much, more for repairing small issues while she was on the road, but Terra was sure that there was something she could do for Frida's damaged armor. She withdrew a small smithing mallet from her kit and began pounding some of the dented portions back into place. She could feel the brittle areas that Frida had complained about, probably corrosion caused by the acid rain from the blight dragon. There wasn't much that she could do about any parts that were eaten away, but for the time being she covered the holes with small leather patches. Then she applied an oil to the rest of the armor to get rid of the brittleness, ensuring that Frida would be able to move around without any impediment. By this point the others had all gathered around Frida's visor and were using it to speak with her father.

"Hello Mr. Nyharllothor, sir," Terra spoke up, hastily wiping away the oil from her hands. "It's a pleasure to speak with you finally, Frida has told me quite a bit about you! I met your daughter in Aldur where we helped to protect the town from monsters, and we've been traveling together ever since. In that time she's saved dozens of lives, including my own, you should be very proud of her. I hope we have the honor of meeting you in person when we travel to the Frontier!"

As the next person began to speak to Itham Terra quietly returned Frida's armor to her. "I'd be able to do more if I had a full forge to work with, but at very least your armor should be travel ready now."

[Sorrum]

The visor sat quietly as each member spoke, until a pause promoted it's reply. "You all certainly sound impressive. I'm sure the members of Frida's crew would be delighted to hear you're watching out for her. But yes, I would like to hear more from you and meet you but I must speak with you, Frida, about something important. "

Aqua's expression changed to concern. "What's wrong father?"

"I want you to stay away from The Frontier."

Aqua was taken aback. "W-what? Why?"


An exasperated sigh came through the device.
"When I allowed you to go on this journey it was because I'd noticed strange happenings. Members of the Council's children had been disappearing for several hours to days with no recollection of where they'd gone. Common behavior among youths but not a one not a one could recall where they'd been, what they had seen, who they were with, or what they were doing.

"I feared you'd get wrapped up in this, so I let you go, years before you were ready, so you'd be safe. Tensions are rising now due to this odd behavior between the House of Man and House of Elves. Weirder still, an ill omen appeared near the Mount Recluse."

Aqua's hands turned to tight fists, knuckles white.

"A boy was seen stealing from farms in the area and stowing the goods in a cave. But the boy was said to have died years past."

Instantly a nauseous feeling overcame Aqua. A man thought to be dead seen walking among the living again. That could only be..

"Look," "stay away for now. The safest place for you is away from this madness."

Fear treaded into Aqua's voice. "No father I must come there now. If that is really what you say it is, then my enemy has now invaded my homeland. Even the mighty dragons couldn't repel them, I must return now!"

The device was silent. Aqua snapped at it, tapping it violently before it buzzed again.

"We can handle some lone mage hiding in a cave. We've already sent out a unit to patrol and keep watch of the area. I can't handle losing you to this witchcraft. Stay in Eulene, Captain Aqua. That's an order. I'll send word when you can return." With that, the device shuddered and went silent.

[Swim]

Terra's eyes narrowed when she heard Itham talk about odd behavior from the House of Man and House of Elves. She's have to have Frida or Itham explain to her more about how the system of governance in the Frontier worked. But for right now she felt very unsettled, her mind making the leap and associating them with another House that had very recently scarred her.

After the communication ended there was a moment of silence within the room. Terra studied Frida's expression carefully, quietly watching as mixed emotions and ideas swirled in her friend's head. Terra didn't want to get on the wrong side of Frida's father, or the Frontier's government for that matter, but the choice was entirely Frida's to make. Terra simply knew that she would follow and support her friend regardless of her decision. But by this point Terra had spent enough time with the elf that she could make an educated guess as to her intentions.

"If your father is determined to keep you away from the Frontier I don't think we can count on him to provide the customs paperwork we were counting on," Terra began quietly. She knelt down next to Frida who was still resolutely staring at the silent visor and flashed a mischievous grin. "But then I'm sure you know half a dozen ways to circumvent customs and sneak in and out of your own country, isn't that right Captain Aqua? Tell us the play. Are we going to hide in crates and stow away on a merchant vessel? Or maybe we summon your crew and have them ferry us across in the dead of night?"