Fantasy I Was Supposed To Become a Hero but Got Stuck in a Deadend Job Instead

[Xafin]

Jax gets out of the car and reaches towards the sky. As they do so, their shoulders and middle back audibly pop and they groan, partially in pain and partially in relief. Then, they watch Jayce do his thing with some interest. "You've got a whole stretching routine down, huh Jayce? Did someone teach you that or did you just get it on your own?" They ask when he finishes, propping their hands on their hips and tilting their head to the side, sort of smiling but not really.

 

[TanteRegenbogen]

"Why thank you." Aenera says to Hekate accepting a Pocky. Aenera soon made it back to the auto. "So I am guessing it will be another 40 or 50 minutes until we get to our place of stay. My tower is only a fifteen minute walk from an interesting bar district in the capital. I am just wondering if they finally built some stuff on the plots behind it or if they still consider the land to be cursed. In the worst case there is a forest or a public park behind my place. Otherwise I expect some modern residential highrises." Aenera said to the others.

Aenera climbed back in the auto and waited for the others to get done stretching so they could continue to the city.

 

[JayOokami]

Jayce smiles and responds with, "my Father taught me, he is a retired Martial artist, took part in competitions. He taught me how to stretch optimally and how to fight in a couple of different styles." He starts getting back in the van, "I haven't talked to him much in a while but I send him the occasional check up message and he usually responds with in a few days"

 

[CasualTea]

Hekate soon got into the SUV shortly after Aenera. She then put all of the packs of Pocky in a safe place in her backpack and offered the others some Pocky to be fair to everyone else. "Pocky anyone?" She asked as she held out the pack of Pocky, letting anyone take one or more. She also placed her milk tea in the cupholder next to her seat as well so she can drink it during the ride.

 

[Xafin]

"I wish I was closer to my family, to be honest." They respond, climbing into the car. "They didn't really understand me a whole lot when I was younger so I sort of irreparably damaged my relationship with them. I'm sure I could possibly try and reach out..." They shake their head. "Regardless, it's very cool that your father taught you such things."

 

[TanteRegenbogen]

Once everyone was back in the SUV, Aenera continued the drive towards the capital city. Within 20 minutes, they had reached the city limits. First they passed the slums, which were far more unpleasant than the Rim. There were shacks with gravel paths between them in a boggy area. There weren't any communal longhouses like in Quarrytown.

"Sad, isn't it? When I was in the academy, I tried to help them, but my superiors tried to prevent me from doing so. The worst part is that most of those in the slums are goblins. So sad to see such intelligent creature be treated like that." Aenera explained.

Soon they were past the slums into the suburbs with buildings more like Quarrytown proper. Mostly either single family homes or row houses with up to five units. "I have only been to the suburbs once. Lots of dwarves and humans there. Occasionally a shopping mall here and there. The furthest outlying train stations of the city are in the suburbs. Out stay is further into the city though, pretty close to the government district." She explained further.

After about ten minutes, Aenera took an exit and they began driving on the city streets. In the inner city many of the buildings were large and had up to ten floors for residential buildings and were pretty long. All in the old imperial architecture or in a modern interpretation of it. Soon they were on a large boulevard that was lined with what seemed to be a park on both sides. In front of them at the end of the boulevard was a massive building complex with a central domed building possibly 300 meters (ca. 1000 ft) high. Next to it was a smaller domed building about half the size. On the far side of the complex was a massive tower that was two or three times the height of the large domed building.

"That large domed building in front of us is the old palace, formerly the palace of the emperor and currently the palace of the representative king. The building was built long ago on orders of the king who claimed to have defeated the first tyrant. Underneath it is a deepcroft where the frozen army resides. The frozen army is the army frozen in time by the first tyrant over a thousand years ago. The smaller domed building is the council building and the supreme court. There 1000 elected representatives and nobles rule over the nation. And on the far side is the academy. It is that tower over there. Last time I was on the inside of it was during the incident that got me removed from the academy." Aenera said.

The made it to the building complex. It was impressive, even when they were just travelling along the road around it. But soon it was behind them again. The academy wasn't just the tower but a large plaza with a gate surrounded buildings and the tower in the midst of it. Lots of robed figures, many of whom looked like important wizards and mages were still on academy grounds, even at this hour. A couple of the figures were riding a floating platform up the tower. Higher up on the tower were floating elements like a floating crystal and a floating metal ring around the tower. What was definitely noticeable was something that looked like a tear in space near the tower. It had a blueish color, was thin and seemed stagnant.

"Huh. They still haven't found out how to get rid of it after all these years. Maybe I should stop by later and give them a hand if they let me." Aenera said. It would seem as if she may have been the culprit of the tear or knew who it was.

After another couple of minutes they drove into a more sparsely populated neighborhood in the government district. Between the academy and the neighborhood was a street lined with bars and restaurants. They finally arrived at their place of stay. It looked like smaller mages tower and was littered with more tears around it. The area behind it was forested. It seemed to be a patch of nature in the middle of such a large city.

"Just like I left it, just with more overgrown foliage. And they still haven't developed the area around it. Anyways, let me clean up quickly." Aenera said. She parked the SUV in front of the building and got out. She faced the building and her forehead crystal began to glow. It seemed she needed a little more mana to deal with the tears and it took a bit longer for her to seal them. Eventually, the tears closed one by one. Afterwards, Aenera was a little out of breath.

"It has... been... a while... since I... did... that." Aenera said trying to catch her breath.

Soon the door of the build opened and a middle aged man peeked out. "Who are you people? What have you done?" The man said with a cranky voice. Then he noticed Aenera and a look of dread came across his face. The man's originally cranky and rude demeanor turned into one of fear and tension. "What do you want? I pay my contribution to live here. Did I miss a payment? I mean I am sorry for being rude!" The man said with a shiver in his voice while prostrating himself.

"Oh boy. Was I actually mean years ago? Stand up. You don't need to apologize. You haven't done anything wrong. We are just here for vacation. I will give you a year rent free as compensation for our stay. And I apologize ahead of time for not notifying you. Are the guest rooms still available?" Aenera said.

The man stood up, a little more at ease. "Well yes. I just haven't cleaned them. Your study is also vacant." He said.

Aenera then turned around to the others: "If I may introduce: This is Kren. He was my roommate all those years ago and is still the occupant of the building. Don't mind him if he is a bit moody sometimes. It's just how he is." Yfirryn then stormed towards Kren and grabbed his hand and said: "Pleased to meet you. I am Yfirryn, Aenera's little brother." Taken aback by Yfirryn, Kren said: "Brother? I expected you to say sister. This might sound weird, but Aenera, your brother is cute." Kren then saw a scheming grin grow on Aenera's face.

"Oh I see. But you might be a little old for him." Aenera said jokingly. Kren then irritatedly replied: "That is not how I meant it."

Aenera then told the others: "Okay, guestrooms are up the stairs, the first five doors on the left. They might be a little dusty but I will have that taken care of. Most of the guest rooms have their own toilet and shower. Like the SUV, the place is a lot bigger on the inside than the outside. And if you guys want to we can go hit the bars and restaurants after getting freshened up and changed. If we go downtown to drink, then a change of clothes isn't needed. But if we go to the bars in the government district, then maybe wear something nicer like a suit, robes, something traditional or a dress."

 

[JayOokami]

As they were traveling through the city he was sure to take in the surroundings. The slums deeply bothered him, why must people live like that? He thought the suburb looked nice enough but it didn't seem to be anything special. Jayce was amazed by the Government district.

Once they've arrived at the tower, "Going out for drink sound fun but I don't even own a suit." he says in an almost embarrassed tone. He then says, "where's the kitchen? I can make us some coffee or tea. I have a bunch of different flavors of tea and 3 different coffees with me."

 

[CasualTea]

Hekate wasn't really phased much by the slums when they passed it. Sure, she understood that it was pitiful that the inhabitants, the goblins, live in such a state. But she just wondered what screwed them over truly? Corporate corruption? Themselves? She doesn't really know nor she really cares. It's probably that no one would take in a goblin for physical labor and would rather put them through office work. But there's only so many corporations with such limited jobs that the people who took them are there for awhile until they get old. Since it's an office job, physical abilities doesn't really matter, just mental strength and some brains. She wouldn't talk about it much anyway, it didn't concern her much.

With the inner city, she remembered the place all too well. She lived here before. She even attended that very same academy some years ago as well. She never knew what caused the space tear near the tower. Well now she knows after all these years and who the culprit was. She sort of just raised an eyebrow at Aenera during the drive but didn't really say anything. All she knew is that Aenera seemed a lot more powerful than she original thought her out to be when she was talking about her abilities.

When they arrived at their destination, she felt a bit sluggish so she had to take a few drinks out of her milk tea to wake her up as well as some Pocky sticks. When she saw the old man crankily greeting them, she raised an eyebrow wondering if Aenera got the right place or wondered if the house was sold without her knowing or something. Soon enough, the old man prostrated himself and seemingly begged for his life. She stood there a bit wide eyed very confused as to what was really happening. She glanced at Aenera before looking down at the old man as he stood back up. Now there were even more questions going on in her head that she kind of not wanted to find the answer for any of them.

Finally, Aenera mentioned where they would be staying. She supposed with something like this, she couldn't really complain. But then she mentioned the bars in the government district and about the attire they should get, she sort of shrugged after Jayce's comment about not having a suit. "I don't think I packed anything special except some... Formal Casuals." She said as she scratched the back of her head. "But ain't the stuff there pretty expensive then? Since it's in the government district and all, the bars probably up the prices to get some money out of the tourists."

 

[Xafin]

Jax is saddened by the slums, having never been to the capital they never realized that people lived in such poverty next to one of the most prosperous cities in the nation. It's not fair, and frankly, is disgusting. They frown as the group passes by them.

The suburbs are a miss for them. They are still thinking about the slums and don't really care about the boring architecture belonging to the middle class.

The tear in space that they see once getting into the overly expensive center of the city... now that's interesting. Aenera did that? They always knew that she was powerful but... no matter. They are skeptical that the officials will let her close enough to the academy to clean up the tear.

When they get to the tower, they are slightly cranky themself from being cooped up in the car for so long. They stumble out of the car, squinting at the middle aged man as he grovels before Aenera. Strange, they suppose, but they've seen weirder because of her. Upon being prompted to speak about the formal clothes situation, they say, "I have a nicer button down and some slacks. But no really formal stuff. You should've warned us, it seems."

 

[TanteRegenbogen]

When Jayce mentioned he didn't have a suit, Aenera said: "Check the closets. There could be a suit or something halfway formal in there. Kitchen is downstairs to the back. It is an older style kitchen but it shouldn't be a problem if you can use a hand grinder or heat with crystals instead of a standing mana line. I think only the refridgerator is modern in that kitchen."

When Hekate talked about hitting the bars, Aenera replied: "Formal casuals are fine. They just expect you to not wear street or work clothes. Slacks and a buttoned shirt or a dress will be fine. And if someone gives you trouble about how unexquisite your clothes are, just turn to me and I will resolve the situation. And the places nearby aren't really expensive. The stretch between the academy and here are usually frequented by students of the academy and therefore can't afford to be expensive. The other side of the governmental district tends to be more upclass. Roads like Council Ringroad have much more expensive things. We can stay in the area this evening and if you want to hit the bars downtown, we can do that tomorrow and start earlier."

Kren barged into the conversation. "There are some decent inexpensive places nearby. And don't worry about the mage students being uppity. They can get into deep trouble if they use magic outside of their living quarters or the academy. But I would recommend that Aenera stays away from the Council Ringroad. There are probably still a lot of people there who still have a grudge against her." He said.

"I didn't plan on going to the Ringroad, Kren. Too expensive and I don't want get into any drama on my first day here in years." Aenera replied.

Upon Jax explaining that they have a button down and slacks, Aenera said: "Those are fine. It is like going to a nice club and not to some ball. Yes, I could have warned you about the dress code in the bars in this district. Sorry about that."

Meanwhile Yfirryn was unpacking in the room he had selected. He wondered what this city considered formal clothing. Back home it was either traditional clothing or a long robe or dress.

 

[JayOokami]

"I'm pretty easy going, It would take a lot for anyone to upset me... well only if they specifically target me." Jayce shrugs his shoulders, " I doubt I'll have any issue though." He starts moving toward the kitchen and calls back,"I'll take my bags to the room after I make drinks, if you want something just ask."

As he finds the kitchen he starts setting out his teas and coffees, takes out a small metal pot, and a small jar of honey. While he filled the teapot he thought about the group's plans and Aenera's comment about getting her attention if someone comments about less fancy attire, as well as the previous warning she gave. To be honest though, he would welcome a fight. He would of course not instigate but he gets so few chances for combat that it would be nice practice.

 

[CasualTea]

Hekate just nodded at what Aenera said, though wondering why most have a grudge against her. Every time she heard more about Aenera, the more she became interested in her. Not only her magic but the interest of her background is starting to creep up on her. She wondered what was really going on before she just shrugged it off and decided to take her bags and started heading up to the guest rooms to unpack. "Well, I'll be putting these upstairs real quick." She said with an expression that everything's normal and she isn't wondering about Aenera's background. Come to think of it, if Aenera had this much of a background, what was Yfirryn's considering he's her brother? Perhaps she could ask him what was up with Aenera later on the trip when they talk a little bit more. Since she felt like she hasn't talked to him a lot to gain his trust with talking about Aenera and her past.

Once she got into the guest room she had picked out, she just placed her bags inside and didn't bother to unpack. Though, she did unpack her commu charger and her laptop stuff because she wanted to plug them into the wall right away. At least she put a password on her laptop just incase someone decided to use it without her permission and began finding some stuff about her being a hitwoman. She didn't really want to reveal that part of herself yet. When she was done with all that, she headed back downstairs with a pack of Pocky and the empty cup which had her milk tea. She finished the rest since Jayce was making some drinks and she'd like to try it. She just wondered where the garbage was since she didn't find one in her room, so she went to Aenera and began asking her. "Hey Aenera, where's the garbage?"

 

[Xafin]

Jax smiles at Aenera, and waves a hand. "Don't worry about not warning us. It probably just slipped your mind, right?" They pick up their bags and start to haul them to the guest rooms, the gentle clinking of unknown metal easily heard from within the depths of a duffle bag. They poke their head into the kitchen as they go, asking Jayce politely, "If it's okay, do you mind if you make me a cup of black tea? I don't really care what kind..."

 

[TanteRegenbogen]

Aenera smiled at Jax and said: "Yeah, it did."

When Hekate asked where the garbage was, Aenera replied: "If the garbage is still where it was to be put ten years ago, there should be three bins in the back. The one on the left for papers and woods. The middle one for metals and the right one for special materials like depleted mana crystals. If they aren't there anymore, ask Kren. Speaking of which, I need to talk to him." Aenera went to Kren and grabbed his hand, tugging him towards her room.

She then called out the others before entering her room: "If there aren't spare clothes in the closets, we could still try getting into places with what we have or just by booze and loiter someplace and maybe mess with the students."

Once inside her room, Aenera then spoke to Kren: "I hope you are properly upholding our deal. If you let anything slip, the authorities aren't the ones you have to worry about. Stay on my good side and nothing will happen to you." "How many times do I have to reassure to you that I am upholding my part? I am grateful for your lenience. But please, don't do anything stupid. You might end up dragging me into it just by association. It is already suspicious to them that I live here even though it is your place." Kren replied. Aenera then smiled and said: "Keep quiet and you will not only be spared but also protected." Alone Aenera saying that Kren was being spared sent shivers down his spine.

"Now let me unpack for me and Yfirryn. If you want to come along drinking later, your drinks will be on me." Aenera said as she began unpacking. Kren nodded and left the room.

Meanwhile Yfirryn was downstairs sitting at a table. "Can you make me tea? Any tea?" Yfirryn requested from Jayce. "I'd looove to try what you can make."

(OOC, if my character's story becomes too dominant, let me know. Otherwise, you can add more of your character's backgrounds.)

 

[JayOokami]

Jayce prepares the infusers for a black tea for Jax and and a green tea for Yfirryn carefully watching the temperature of the water as it heats so he can draw out the best flavor of the teas. First he brings water to 180 degrees for the black tea and begins steeping. Then for the green tea he brings water up to 150, "I hope you don't mind green tea. It can give an energy boost which i thought might be helpful." As he's working, "Yfiryn... Aenera's pretty interesting. If she is capable of creating tears like we saw earlier and she seems to be able to just close it like its nothing I wonder what else she is capable of. I'm both envious and sad for her." As he spoke he started steeping two cups of green tea.

 

[CasualTea]

Hekate nodded as she headed over to the garbage to throw away the empty cup. Though, when she got to the garbage bins, she took a moment to use one of her abilities. She wanted to practice her true sight. Sure, she shouldn't be invading privacy, but Aenera seemed pretty suspicious with Kren's actions and comments. It took her a bit until she could look into Aenera's room with her true sight. She can faintly hear Aenera and Kren's conversation when she closed her ears, as an experiment. Listening in, she felt her suspicions were correct. There was something going on about Aenera. Soon enough, after the conversation was over, Hekate had to stop her true sight as she was straining her eyes and ears. She bumped into the wall, leaning against it as she was both blind and deaf. Her vision was very blurry and her ears rang. Hekate sort of pushed her limits with this one. Soon, she regained her vision and hearing partially before finally throwing away the empty cup and acting as if nothing happened as to not alert anyone that she wasn't alright before. Hopefully no one saw her nor noticed her ability's usage.

Soon, she found herself in the living room and laid down on the couch, her legs hanging off one of the arms of it. She covered her eyes with her arm and closed them, trying to regain her vision back as well as listening to some music without her ear buds to regain her hearing. She was listening to an orchestral soundtrack which seemed like it had a quick, hasty and a bit of a tango vibe. She playing it off her commu obviously, and was holding it by her side. She'd probably guess her vision and hearing would be fine after a few minutes of rest.

Spoiler: Soundtrack Hekate's listening to

 

[Xafin]

Jax makes it upstairs to the guest rooms and slowly unpacks their stuff, taking a moment to stare blankly into the corner of the room. All these people are kind of overwhelming, if they're being completely honest with themself. Jax is used to spending their days alone, for the most part, and occasionally meeting up with friends for drinks or what have you. And now they're on a roadtrip? Kind of silly of them, to be on this trip.

They shake their head and chuckle, unfolding their last piece of clothing and hanging it on the convenient hangers in the closet. No wrinkles for their clothes, no siree. They head for the door, taking one last look at the guest room. They have a feeling they'll be wanting to spend a bit of time in here just to recuperate sometimes.

 

[TanteRegenbogen]

"I don't mind green tea." Yfirryn says with a smile. When Jayce asked about Aenera, Yfirryn answered: "All I know is she can use chronos magic really good but can only use other magics on a basic level. I didn't know she could open and close tears though. She can move really fast though. With a snap of her fingers, she will have moved to the other side of the valley at home. I don't understand why you think it is sad. Maybe the one thing that may be sad is that sister was in prison ten years ago. She only told me she did something really bad. Maybe that Kren guy knows more. He seems to know her well."

Meanwhile Aenera was unpacking in her room. She had heard a thump just before Kren had left but thought nothing of it as the building was old and made weird sounds from time to time. After unpacking, she went down to the central living space near the kitchen. "Tea smells good. Let me guess. Green tea? When Jax gets down, we can discuss what to do next. Just keep in mind, loitering is not allowed within a quarter mile of the palace or council building." Aenera said to Jayce and Yfirryn before sitting down.

 

[JayOokami]

Before Aenera entered the room Jayce tells Yfirryn, "I've seen power make people lonely." Once Aenera has sat down he pushes the cups of green tea infront of the two, "it is indeed, have some. I'll make myself a cup now. Jax's is just about ready for them as well." he then smirks, "it's not loitering if you keep moving." He chuckles, "in all seriouness though I have little interest in angering anyone in a high place."
Jayce begins working on his cup of green tea.

 

[CasualTea]

After a few minutes of rest, Hekate began getting up from her undisturbed rest. She can feel her dizziness going away, almost completely. She heard a conversations from the kitchen so she might as well join up with them. She still looked rather fatigued but if questioned, she could always just say she took a nap because her sleep schedule's pretty fucked up. Not the best lie she could ever come up with but it's a more probable one.
When she got to the kitchen, she was hit by a whiff of tea. Specifically green tea. She sat down with the group and just listened in on the conversation, not yet contributing to it. All she did was wave when she got there. Well, she figured she'd just say one thing. "Tea smells great. Can I get a cup?" She asked Jayce.
She didn't expect to see Aenera so soon, but it wasn't that much of a problem. It doesn't look like she's suspicious of anything so she was probably in the clear.

 

[Xafin]

Jax heads down the steps from their guest room with heavy steps, rubbing one of their eyes as they go. They yawn, suddenly exhausted from the car ride. If only they could sleep in moving vehicles. A sigh escapes them as they enter the kitchen, and smile at everyone gathered there. "Hey." They say simply, waggling their fingers in greeting. They pull out a chair with their foot, and sink down onto it like their strings have been cut. "Tea should be about ready by now, right?" An eagerness can be seen in their eyes.

 

[TanteRegenbogen]

Aenera and Yfirryn thanked Jayce for the tea.

When Jayce mentioned angering people in high places, Aenera giggled and said: "Too late. I already did so ten years ago. I honestly don't expect any warm welcomes in the government quarter. But they are wary of me enough that I can only expect insults and mean stares. But I would really like to go out in the government quarter just to find amusement in their reactions." Alone the audacity Aenera had given what Kren knew well of about her, sent shivers down his spine. Trying to convince Aenera otherwise, Kren said: "Well, taunting them will just make you look like the bad guy. Maybe it is more reputable to stay away from them."

Aenera shook her head: "Don't worry. I don't intend to taunt anybody. We can all be civilized."

Once Jax had joined the round, the group was complete.

"Sooo, since we are all here. I can offer some options to do stuff this evening. My first idea was to go drinking in the government quarter. Most bars have a dress code here. So either you will have to see if the closets here have fitting formal clothes for you or robes or I will have to work a little... magic. Second option is to find a place without a dresscode which may prove difficult. Third, is to go downtown drinking, however I don't know if anyone has the energy to wait for a taxi, ride fourty minutes into downtown and then have the same on the way back. Fourth, we can just buy booze and loiter in the neighborhood. I can give you a walking tour of the area then. And whoever is too tired to do anything, they can just stay home for tonight." Aenera said

"Any preferences or suggestions? If you have alternatives, then let them be known." Aenera asked.

 

[JayOokami]

Jayce lets his own tea steep while he slides the cup of black tea to Jax and starts making a cup for Hekate, "would you like a drink mr. Kren?" He the looks to Aenera, "whichever is fine for me, though going out to the bars around here would be nice. It would allow us to see more of the area. The dress code may be tricky but shouldn't be too bad." Jayce never really went to bars before so even that is a new experience despite how mundane it may seem.

 

[CasualTea]

Hekate can feel her fatigue and everything that put her in the dumps going away. When she heard Aenera's suggestions she just shrugged. "I'm down for anything really. But, I have to ask..." She said before looking at Aenera, raising a brow. "What did you do that made everyone have a grudge against you?" She asked bluntly since it doesn't sound like a secret anymore. Plus, she did want to know who she was hanging out with if going anywhere with her would get some angry stares at Aenera and maybe at her as collateral.

 

[Xafin]

Jax looks between Hekate and Aenera with thinly veiled amusement, mixed in with a dash of concern. "I'd be willing to go to the bars here, I can swing a dress code... and I don't think I've ever really heard the story of why you left this place. " They take a sip of their tea, then, letting the cup warm their perpetually cold hands.