Fantasy ✧ Starhunter ✧

[beymozo]

"I can share my projection with you Rai if you want me to! Currently Pyt's unleashing some psychic power as we speak, Khy's firing some weird arrow into Deivyd's face, and... Oh those going to need to some serious repairs later..." Pollyanna stated what was happening. "Oh also, mind if I can fix me some tea Rai?" She inquired.

...

As Deivyd was about to reload, he was caught off guard by the combo of attacks. For a brief moment, Deivyd felt the very scythe of death tug at his soul as the numug arrow hit him square between the eyes and sent him flying back with nothing more than a lower jaw hanging loosely off his bloody stump for a neck. His body laid there, lifeless and cold before spazzing out the moment Pyt broke through and began to shatter the higher vampyre's mind.

In a last ditch effort, Deivyd lifted his arms into the air and unleashed a final screaming wave of spectral lightning which was bright as a flashbang and hot enough to turn the falling rainwater into steam directly at the Hunters before his body melted away into a puddle of red ooze, seeping deep into the ground. His skeletal remains and fine tuned firearm were left in his place... as it truly seemed as if the Hunters had managed to put the vampyre down for good; Yet his soul was not caught within any of their dreamcatchers...

 

[JadeGreen17]

"All my drones went out and all my friends are out there fighting that psycho! And you think now of all times is a good time to think about drinking tea! I don't even like tea." Raiah shouted back.

...

The blast of spectral lightning collapsed the barrier. The Hunters behind it sheltered behind their collapsable shields, battered and crumpled beyond repair, and standing in a small crater as the collapsing rubble landed around them. Those that had them hastily threw them aside letting out a plethora of curses and yelps. They had avoided the worst of the blast but virtually every individual in the group was reeling from snaking, blistering scars resembling cracks on some area of their body. It seemed the fight was over.

Manei snapped to attention. Seeing their foe seemingly receding into the ground. She began to glow from within, as though magma now ran through her veins instead of blood. Her voice overshadowed by the echoing of seven throaty draconic speakers that seemed to emanate from all around.

"OH, NO YOU DON'T!"

Bringing her hands together, she scrunched up the ground upon which Deyvid's remains lay, his flesh seeping into the ground. Gathering up a snapping wad of earth which she struggled to compress. Accentuating a throw of telekinetic force as though she were hurling a javelin while letting out a thundering roar, the meteorite was sent hurtling eastward with an immense crescendo of shockwaves and roaring snaps. Piercing a temporary hole through the stormy tempest, revealing the deep blue of the late evening sky. Though it was ultimately a futile effort given they had failed to trap his soul... or even understand what they were up against, one made in raw rage and desperation.

As the meteorite faded into the distance, she stood there for a few moments, seething. The light gradually dimming as the other hunters had scrambled to get away. She radiated heat like furnace, enough to boil the rains herself and easily burn those who dared come close. Slowly the rain returned to cool her down and the pain of her injuries kicked on. She stumbled, nearly falling face first but narrowly catching herself before losing consciousness.

Alduir's voice echoed around them.

"He got away... I saw his soul depart. I know not to where... but the Numug most definitely destabilized his physical form and halted his regeneration."

"Everyone alright?" Hanai barked. "On your feet. We've still got a mess to clean up."

"I'll live." Her son responded with a huff. "Good... At least if he comes back we know how we can hurt him."

"Ow.... Ow ow ow!" Pyt mumbled, rising to his feet. Spectral lightning had caught his exposed leg quite badly, causing him to walk with a limp. "Hyuna... where... where are you buddy?"

There was a grunt. The wendigo arrived, though a foot-thick log impaled his shoulder and he had regenerated around it, with his arm sticking out at an odd angle. He let out a grunt, bashing himself into a rock. The tree trunk broke apart into splinters. He let out a pained roar as his arm snapped back into the shoulder socket and the wound closed.

 

[beymozo]

"Apologies . . ." Pollyanna sighed with a rather disappointed frown and water eyes with widened pupils. She simply trailed off and sat down in a more remote corner of the room to sulk for a bit, it all didn't set right with her, she felt like a fuckup, plain and simple as that, even then she didn't expect sympathy, instead choosing to ponder things in her own mind. "I wonder what my kids are doing right about now... Especially my dear little Ehly." She thought to herself, reminiscing of the days she'd spend with her own children. Tears full of melancholy and optimism rolled down her conflicted face as all she could think about was the visions she saw.

She smiled, clutching onto her beating heartstone as everything suddenly began to go dark and soon she blacked out from her narcolepsy and stepped back into her dream world for the time being.

…

High upon a mountain far far away in the old world, there sat a long abandoned log cabin, nested in view of the silky white and ambrosial golden city of Arcadia. Inside it’s lifeless cobweb ridden living room, the front door opened from the outside; purple haze jetted into the dark recesses of the cabin as from the starlight zone a small group of otherworldly individuals stepped out into the living room.

“Ugh. Is it arachne season or what?” Remarked a young man; He had a rather athletic build and sported a scar under one of his pale blue eyes much like Pollyanna's. He wore loose clothes consisting mainly of a grey hoodie with the symbol of golden dragon wrapped around an inverted crucifix patched onto the back, brown leathery boots, and baggy jean-like pants. Strapped to his back was a pair of swords, one of which had a blood red guard with a living eye and grey blade while the other was mostly black with a ridged golden blade. He scratched the back of his half-black half-blonde hair. Next to him was a woman

“Dunno, but it certainly is dusty, in here…” she sneezed “Innit Ehly?” Retorted the woman around the same age as Ehlijah. She was of a similar build to her friend, medium, athletic, clear having been around the block just as much as over her nose and under her emerald green eyes was a scar. She wore rather form fitting clothes from her croptop jacket, tight jeans, and brown cowgirl boots. Aleixandrea gazed around the room with curious eyes, blowing the bangs of her messy ginger hair from over her cat-like eyes. Both her and Ehlijah possessed spaded tails.

“Ughhh… I hate dust…” Aleixandrea sound displeased as she didn’t take too well to all the dusty particulates in the air, having practically sneezed her brains out at this point.

“Alrighty, let’s see what kind of a shit shack we land ourselves inside of today. Tch.” Another far more peculiar individual stepped in. Unlike the already established Loreons, this man was a Merrow, or rather Fishfolk. He had rather bony, sky blue skin with a soft underbelly and teal kelp-like hair tied into dreadlocks atop his gaunt head. He had a mouth that was lined with rows of shark-like teeth, fins for ears, four webbed fingers, and a wide variety of tatts dotting his body. The Merrow’s clothes consisted of a simple pair of shorts with a waist cloth lined over it, sandals, and a strapless top that cut off directly below his pectorals.

“Well, so far, everything looks fine… Kai. We could've landed anywhere else, whether in the midst of a nuclear test facility, outside of a dragon’s lair, or… at my mum's house. So I’ll personally take this as a win.” An older, staunch gentleman replied as he stepped out of the starlight zone. He was the tallest, leanest, and eldest of the bunch, being practically nothing more than a withering old man. Draego possessed chocolate brown eyes and spikey black yet greying hair paired with a zappa moustache and beard; he wore a fancy brown leather trench coat and carried a cane adorned with a draconian skull with him. The shadow below his feet seemed writhe around as if it was alive and animated.

“You doing alright there Trice… just a bad feeling huh?” Draego asked as he turned his head over to a small juvenile cockatrice with a handkerchief around her neck and bandages around her right leg. Trice’s feathers resembled that of an old english game rooster and she possessed short horns ending in flat points atop her head. “Mrrr…” She let out a shrill sound accompanied by a nod in reply to Draego, she felt like something would be afoot soon.

Out stepped another figure, this time a rather pale looking woman with seams all over her body. She too much like Kaimana was one of the odd ones out of the bunch, this time being not a Loreon but an Indroid. The Indroid, better known as Amala, eyed the room with multicolored eyes that reflected light like CDs as she analyzed every square inch of it. She had radio-like boxes with antennae jetting out for ears and jet-black hair. She wore a long blue and gold cloak which covered up her rather alien set of robes; buckled to her belt was a rather large tome of unknown use.

The room itself wasn’t much to gawk at, simply covered in dust and cobwebs, there was a small fireplace, abandoned furniture, a shelf full of books, shards of broken glass, and an unplugged dial phone scattered on the floor next to a collapsed stand. There were also a handful of coins lying about as well.

“oh shinies!” The coins we’re greedily picked up by the oddest member of the group, a homunculus by the name of Djinn, who began to fuck around as he always did. Jet black, spikey fur lined his body; he wore a set of tight leathery pants, steel boots, had a brace around his neck, and possessed a pair of slick as hell shades over his cyan eyes. Djinn struck a lofty pose where his arms were lying on the ground, legs spread out, and behind up in the air as he pinched the coins and observed them.

“Really Djinn… Really. We end up in the middle of nowhere and your first instinct is to ogle at a bunch of coins lying on the ground? Can’t you take anything seriously?” Another rather older woman rolled her eyes at the homunculus’ immediate attraction to vanity. She looked almost identical to the Loreons in the room, except she lacked a tail and cat-like eyes. Without a doubt this woman, otherwise known as Kirisakura, was the only human amongst the bunch. Compared to everyone else in the room she was rather scrawny, being seemingly deprived of nutrients and pale in appearance.

Kiri reached into her heavy green long coat which had a Queen shirt underneath, and pulled out a carton of cigarettes, placing one between her vampyric fangs and lighting it up; she took a long drag off of it, letting out a long trail of smoke in the end. “no.” Djinn replied before going back to inspecting the coins.

“Hey guys, come over to the window… I think I’ve spotted something interesting.” Stated one last woman in a rather quiet voice; her inquiry caused the idle chitter-chatter amongst the group to cease and desist as they all headed over to her. Compared to everyone else, she had a rather short and curvy frame; possessing curly violet hair and curious grey eyes which stared outside, towards the eccentric city beyond the horizon; a small breeze blew through the holes in the abandoned cabin, causing the girl’s handmade skirt to flow in the wind in conjunction with her rather baggy sweater.

“Well I’ll be damned, if someone said we stepped directly in view of the Golden City… I’d probably believe them… Nice lookin’ Nat” Ehlijah stated, giving his ally a pat on the shoulder as he looked out at Arcadia, clutching his heart stone as it shined with a faint pink glow in tandem with the golden lights of the city beyond them. “Heartstone’s glowing… Looks to be a good start searching for my mother there, what do you think everyone?”

“Don’t know… we just got here and about anything could happen; I’d rather not rush this since we just arrived, ‘Specially when Trice has got a feeling about it. Say ‘Mala, can you see anything magickal about the city over there?” Draego gave his two cents on the matter.

“Aside from the mighty tall tower in it’s center, I’m detecting a rather copious amount of magickal saturation over the city… Clearly it has an aura of its own. Seems to be a combination of individuals and a handful of structures. As for what kinds of magicks… I would have to unfortunately get closer.” Amala replied, her eyes shifting color as the moonlight reflected in her eyes, specks of gold dotting the surface of her irises and pupils from the city's lights.

“Huh, interesting. We might have to investigate that one later then.” Ehlijah looked intrigued at the prospect.

“Dunno ‘bout ya’ll, but I’d say we should just go on down the hill here, like what’s the worst that can happen?” Aleixandrea replied.

“Many things, Aleixandrea. Many things... such as getting stabbed, tortured, assaulted, pickpocketed, murdered, burned, arrested, thrown into a volcano, waterboarded, eaten alive by creatures at least quadruple our size, burnt to a cripse by a dragon, harassed by a businessman inquiring about our tour bus’ extended warranty, beaten to death by a gang of assmad villagers because we accidentally laid a finger on a chicken, chased away by wendigo worshipping tribals, or worst of all… my mother forces us to eat her homemade pastries until our guts practically explode. Do you really believe whatever we’re doing is truly worth the risk?” Draego gasped for air after finishing his long ass tangent.

“Uhm… But I actually wouldn’t mind trying ya mother’s pastries...”

“No, you don’t want to try my mother’s pastries, Aleixandrea.”

“Anyways guys, can we stay on topic? Who’s in favour of heading to that golden city over there?” Although Ehlijah facepalmed, clearly done with his party’s antics, yet he couldn’t help but chuckle a little at the sequence before him. Natalee, Kiri, and Trice all simply nodded in agreement.

“Yah sure. I’m willing to go.” Aleixandrea stated.

“Eh. I don’t actually have a problem with it. Real question is, does anyone actually have a problem with it?” Draego replied.

“Nah I’m alright with going wherever the group goes. Though I know this is going to be bold coming from me, I'd recommend we be on our goddamned toes out here. As from what Amala’s implied, this world may be full of magick, so combined that with the fact we know next to nothing about this place and about anything could go awfully wrong.” Kaimana added.

“If I might add, aside from our flow, I am detecting absolutely no leyline presence in this world so far. This means that the denizens here may very well draw their magicks from another source, entirely separate from our own. As for what that is, I have no idea. I am ready to go when you all are.” Amala stated as she straightened her cloak out a bit.

“Djinn, you got anything to comment on aside from your… coin collection over there?” Ehlijah looked over at Djinn who was counting the coins and placing them within a small pouch.

“nope. not at all. though i must ask, can we fly over there or?” He replied.

“Eh. I’d say we should stay low and on the ground. Flying can be rather dangerous anyways, especially in foreign territory… Other than that, let’s all get going shall we?” Ehlijah stated as he began to open the door to outside and stepped out alongside his motley crew. The heartstone dangling from his necklace began to glow once again as the group casually walked their way towards the city of Arcadia.

 

[JadeGreen17]

For the lack of light pollution the stars were surprisingly scarce and the crescent moon setting on the horizon. The trees and grass were green, in the bloom of mid spring but the night was deceptively frigid. The cabin was built on the outskirts of a smaller town at the base of the mountain, tucked away behind some towering pine trees. Atop one of the branches, a red squirrel not native to the region watched intently. His whiskers twitching as he saw the group exit the cabin. Before he took off down the tree and into the flax fields with a conviction and purpose unbefitting of the animal.

The nearby town of Whitewater, made up of whitewashed timber frame homes, cobblestone streets and ornate gas lanterns was well kept save for the cabin they had existed from. Aside from the odd barking dog and the creaking of a waterwheel built up along a small creek that cut through the town. It was the middle of the night and a scant few people if anybody seemed to be awake.

Two soldiers bearing rifles and ornate white and gold coats were escorting a woman clad entirely in red. She wore a golden headband and had an oval cut in her gown revealing her face, but no other part of her body. They approached the door of one of the houses, the woman knocking rather firmly. After a minute someone came to the door. There was a conversation, but it seemed to be out of earshot. After a brief back-and-fourth the woman went inside while the soldiers stood posted at the door.

 

[beymozo]

Ehlijah and his merry band of misfits rather than walking down the streets of whitewater like it was nothing chose to stick inside the forest, simply using the overgrowth as cover as to not provoke anyone or anything. Upon reaching the nicely polished town, they all sat there in the trees and began to whisper amongst themselves.

"Good to know not everything around here is abandoned..." Ehlijah stated.

"Yeah... though for another world, the people here look awfully similar, I was at the very least expecting some super weird, multi limbed and eyed giant bugs; not a bunch of tailless Loreons." Draego noted.

"True and speaking of tailless Loreons... Kiri." Ehlijah looked over the higher vampyre.

"Yeah?"

"See those two folks over there... Think you can approach and chat them up for a bit? Collect some info for us?"

"Oh. Yeah I can." Kiri replied with a nod as she opened her mouth to reveal her retracting fangs. She stood up and slowly stepped out of the overgrowth and onto the road into whitewater where she head straight towards the guards.

"Hello, guardsman? Mind helping me out a bit." Kiri implored the guards a little, giving an intentionally confused and helpless look across her face.

Back in the overgrowth, the group was idly chatting among themselves, discussing plans and ideas. Trice waddled around the tiny oval shaped grove they were in, humming quietly to herself out of boredom. Amala sat there and flicked through her book until she came across the first empty page within it. She took a quill from inside her coat and began to write a variety of magickal symbols, making sure to not leave a single spot clear of writing.

"What in the hell have you been working on there Amala, if you don't mind me asking?" Kaimana looked the Indroid's shoulder, a confused look over his face.

"My magnum opus."

"And what does your Magnum Opus entail exactly?"

"Each page here stores a single spell, specifically fireball. When I say a certain phrase, all of the fireballs will activate and explode violently."

"Huh... So, why are you making the damn thing anyways? Seems like a disaster waiting to happen to me."

"Don't worry, only I can activate the book... I plan to use this little book against Deivyd when the time comes in hopes of utterly destroying him."

"I see. Seems like a good way to give him hell if you ask me. Though, knowing the fuckers regeneration, it might prove to be ultimately hopeless. How many fireballs have you stuffed in there anyways?"

"Oh, about one hundred seventy six of them... last I checked anyways."

"What... What the fuck." Kaimana had a dumbfounded expression across his face, clearly he wasn't in the know for some time. Patchy just stared at the surprised merrow before going back to work on filling her one hundred and seventy seventh page of the book.

 

[JadeGreen17]

The guard picked a wood and bronze radio off his belt.

"Uhh... Major we've got another one." He began, completely ignoring her request for help. "Theres a woman out on the streets alone at night... and I dont know what in Nex's Name she's wearing."

The Major returned over the radio barking some inaudible but very grouchy sounding order at the solider. The only word audible was "Ridosian Spy".

"Ma'am, I'm going to have to ask that you come with me." The solider said sternly.

The door of the house had been left open a crack. A small child let out a single loud wail, then quieted down.

"Thank you, Obido Lucia." A mother and father responded in union.

 

[beymozo]

"I must ask two things... What the fuck's a Ridosian!? And... what happens if I refuse to go along..?" Kiri bit back at the guard, having suddenly snapped as she curled her fist up and lightly grit her teeth before finally relaxing. She had zero respect for authority figures, especially ones who were already showing that they clearly wouldn't work with her whatsoever. Nothing the less, she eased her own mood up. She was becoming rather confused, attempting to articulate just what was going on here.

"Ehly... Ya really think you're mother is here... in this world I mean." Aleixandrea asked.

"Yeah of course I do... The Heartstone is my guide after all, wherever it points towards, is where I must go, and that where just so happens to be here." Ehlijah replied.

"I hope Kiri can coax so info outta them gu-" Aleixandrea was awkwardly cut off as Ehlijah began to mutter to himself, his eyes rapidly adjusting shape as he became increasing worried.

"Wearing... spy... come with me... Shit!" Ehlijah turned around, having pieced the puzzle together himself. "Guys, I think those guards may believe that Kiri is some kind of spy due to her appearance." He turned over to the other watchers who all looked about as suspicious as he did. "I don't normally like to tread on any kind of military... and I would prefer to see where this goes first, but we may need to be ready to cut in soon."

"God Fucking damnit! We've been here for only thirty minutes and things are already going fucking sideways. What else can go po-" Kaimana cussed outloud like a sailor before being silenced by his friends.

"Shhhhh! Since when did you and Ale switch places all of a sudden, you'll get us caught if you continue to speak any longer you freaking loudmouth." Ehlijah rebuked Kaimana for his sudden yelping out loud.

"actually we've only been here for exactly 23 minutes." Djinn cut in.

"Same difference. Fuck off Djinn."

"how about you fuck on." Djinn winked at Kaimana, clearly messing with his teammate.

"Ughhh... If only you weren't wearing that metal brace around your neck, I would've strangled your ass by now."

"hah, get bent." Djinn maniacally chuckled.

"Can you two quiet down please... I really don't wanna get caught..." Natalee quietly requested, the both of them immediately zipped their lips upon her doing so.

The group may or may not be so lucky, what between the sudden spike in volume and especially when the eyes of the Loreons in the group can be seen perfectly glowing within the undergrowth. Almost as if they were in a dark room and all that was visible were their own two eyes.

 

[JadeGreen17]

The woman exited the house and turned abruptly to see Kiri. She seemed to process something, one could see the gears turning behind her utterly blank and manufactured smile. The woman looked to be of middle age, with a kindly face and gray eyes; her distinguishing feature being a small wart on her button nose.

"Hello." She spoke with a cadence and inflection that was uncannily monotone. "I am Obido Lucia. You are out after curfew. You will have to come with the soldiers or there will be serious consequences."

"Uh huh. Yeah." The soldier finished talking to someone on the radio. The other raised a flashlight at the others hiding in the woods, Djinn and Kaimana's bickering having alerted them to their presence. "You there. Come out with your hands up! All of you!"

The first solider continued to talk on the radio, before being instructed to pass the radio to the woman. Someone spoke through the other end. The radio's speaker was of very poor quality, and that actually worked to their advantage as it wasn't completely clear what was being said on the other end. But when the passed it to the woman it was notably different. It sounded like someone was breathing very heavily, mumbling words between labored breaths. But the soldiers made it quite clear they didn't want anyone getting in earshot. When she finished, she passed the radio back to the soldiers with a firm "Thank you"

She turned to Kiri.

"I have just been informed that the Head of House Redwin is requesting an audience with you all personally, and you will be absolved of your crimes of improper dress and being out after curfew... This is... very... unorthodox. Please wait here, and we will have coaches brought out shortly to take you to meet with Mr Rewdin."

 

[beymozo]

Ehlijah and company stepped out of the overgrowth. They seemed to be rather suspicious of the Arcadians already, so much so to the point that Ehlijah begun to speak to his fellow folks with telepathy. "Something about this feels off already. I just got blasted after getting a handle on that freak of a woman's aura. We need to tread this territory carefully guys." He stated to the others.

"I don't like this one bit. Personally, I say we should ditch these saps and get the fuck out of here." Kaimana's eyes shot over to the guards and then stared point blank at Lucia.

"Neither do I..." Natalee wriggled her tail around out of nervousness, the whole situation, and especially the Arcadians auras was really pulling at her anxiety.

"I disagree Kaimana, this is probably one of our only shots we have at finding Ehlijah's mother. It's best to at least hear them out, especially if they're pardoning us of our so called "crimes." Amala stated rather bluntly.

"I agree with Amala, as that's what I was thinking. No real choice in the matter anyways, and I don't want to have to immediately fight a potential army. No way in pandaemonia would we even stand a chance." Ehlijah sighed.

"Same. It'd be better to follow along than to back out... Though I must say, it seems awfully weird that this "Mr. Redwin" has requested an audience with us, despite the fact we weren't here until thirty Minutes ago. Makes you really wonder doesn't it?" Draego seemed put off by this sudden realization.

"Yeah true... Something about this stinks like a bunch of rotten cockatrice eggs. I'm tempted to do some snooping around when this is all said and done." Djinn replied.

"Maybe, but for now, let's just wait for these "coaches" and maybe humor these folks, try and get on their good side. Seeing how we've kind of failed so far." Ehlijah affirmed.

"So we're gonna butter 'em up before we grill 'em eh?" Aleixandrea cheekily stated.

"Something like that Ale... Something like that." Ehlijah gave an amused chuckle.

"Redwin. Who is Redwin?" The group chattered amongst their minds for a bit longer as Trice decided to try and speak up, her speech was rather broken, being a faint attempt at mimicry over anything else.

"Look, would ya believe us if I said we were from an-" Djinn immediately smothered Aleixandrea, stopping her from speaking outloud any longer than necessary.

"she means would you believe it if we were from an Adventurer's Guild a couple continents away. heheh..." He stated with an awkward laugh. Kiri just rolled her eyes and took her katana back from Draego who had held onto it for her.

 

[JadeGreen17]

"Adventurer's guild? I haven't heard of any 'Adventurer's Guild' on any continent. Ridosians are a bunch of warmongering freaks and the Chespakaians are too busy selling sewer water for five dollars a bottle and calling it beer. And who else is there, really?"

The soldiers chuckled, clearly quite ignorant to the state of the wider world.

It took some time but eventually an elaborate procession of coaches drawn by huge draft unicorns made their way up the road. The equine beasts were strong, able to pull the carriages along at a smooth canter that no regular horse could have hoped to manage for long. Guards on the backs of slightly smaller and armored unicorns flanked them to either side. Ushers clad in neatly trimmed suits made their way about, opening each of them to reveal bourgeois and inviting interiors. Elaborate gold decorations on the walls; plush red leather seats complete with throw pillows. They hastily made their way around, almost nervously. The usher fluffed the pillow, wiped a dead bug off the window with a handkerchief and then brought out a stepstool. Even this was ornately crafted.

"Four to a carriage please. Sit with whomever your most comfortable."

 

[beymozo]

"Oh yeah, there's an adventurer's guild alright... reason you haven't heard of it is because it's recently come into business. Like as in a week ago. Heheheheh..." Djinn said, lying profusely through his teeth with a confidant smile. Everyone hopped into carriages, Kiri, Patchy, Djinn, and Kaimana were in one while Natalee, Aleixandrea, Draego along with Trice who clinged onto Ehlijah's shoulders stepped inside another.

"Of course they have to give us the bourgeois experience. Yuck." Kaimana crossed his arms, speaking through the group's telepathy as they quietly went along. "For us being a bunch criminals breaking their dress code and curfew prior, this is one hell of a goddamn shift in accommodations. Say, everyone else, what do you think's going on?"

"Once again, it's a good question, but I don't think any of us will figure that out remotely until we meet this Redwin guy... Which speaking of that." Ehlijah did a fake cough as he begun to speak up to the Arcadians. "Mind telling us a bit about this place alongside Mr. Redwin as we're traveling?" He asked the closest Arcadian manning the now moving carriages.

Trice stared out at the golden city, almost mesmerized by the intense show of lights ahead. Patchy simply continued to work on her magnum opus while Kaimana pulled out his flute and played a light tune. Natalee sat with her head down, and Djinn attempted to fuck with the driver until Kiri immediately stopped him from doing so, acting as his personal babysitting. Draego took to reading a small book out of his bag; Aleixandrea scooched a bit closer to Ehlijah and laid her head against his shoulder before grabbing hold of his hand; She decided to take a small nap using her fiance as a cushion. Ehlijah of course didn't mind this, simply continuing to keep a telepathic channel open for the group to communicate in while he attempted to ask the Arcadians some questions.

 

[JadeGreen17]

"This is Arcadia. The holy city, and the last safe place on earth." The Obido answered. "Pilgrims from all around the world come here to pray to Nex. Pray that when Nex comes to pass judgement on the world, they may be chosen to ascend into the next life. Whereupon they shall be reborn and the world shall begin anew, purified and free of corruption. Crown Priest Redwin is quite versed in our history, I am sure he would be quite happy to share with you all he knows..."

The carriages set off across the farms. it would not be a terribly lengthy journey. Though if the watchers were astute to what their namesake would suggest they may notice a cosmic occurrence. One of the dozen or so visible stars in the inky void, one near to the horizon began to dim. It slowly flickered out, like a candle burning down to the last of its wax. Clinging to life for a few more moments before winking out and resigning itself to death.

 

[beymozo]

"Tch. I lowkey felt cozier back at that shithole for a cabin." Kaimana sarcastically said to the others in telepathy. They all responded by metaphorically nodding in agreement.

"I see... If you don't mind me asking, I heard mentions about so called Ridosians and Chespakaians, mind enlightening us about them a little?" Ehlijah curiously asked, wishing to view the Arcadian's side of the coin. In the meantime, he stared out the window, watching what little remained of the stars in the astral above. The sudden burning out of the sickly white dot caught his attention as did a few of the other observant watchers.

"Noted." Ehlijah whispered to himself. "Did you guys notice that as well?" He asked the rest of his party.

"Yeah I did... and there's something off about the astral above... I can sense an aura, one that is rather potent and malevolent." Draego stated, his brown eyes suddenly glowing blood red. The old man suddenly begun to roll in his seat as he suffered, feeling as if his head was going to split open any moment now. The sheer dark existence of Endtropy was overwhelming to him, the existence of such a "thing" was too immense for any mortal to truly comprehend, let alone handle gazing upon.

"Draego, are you okay?" Amala caught hold of the old man, rubbing his back in an attempt to soothe his sudden affliction.

"I'm fine... Just feel a little sick... that's all. Forgot to make my meds this morning." Draego began to violently cough all of a sudden before getting ahold of himself and sitting straight back up.

"Now that I think about it; the moment we stepped out of the cabin, I could immediately sense that nature here is sick, and dying." Natalee made an offhand comment, speaking more than she usually did.

"Good eyes Nat. That may come in handy." Ehlijah applauded her for picking up on such a small detail.

"Glad to help 'Lijah." Natalee gave him a jolly smile as she took off her golden glasses and to began to wipe them with a rag; as Nat cleaned her glasses, her pale grey eyes looked around the carriage with seemingly no direction, she was totally blind after all. Though after a few moments of clean, she placed them back over her eyes, regaining her lost sense once again; the lenses glistened with a shade of violet light.

"Hmm... Now between that star above suddenly going out, Draego sensing the aura of something aberrative in the Astral beyond, this Redwin guy anticipating us, and the world being ill..." Ehlijah curled his pointer finger over his chin, extrapolating the whole ordeal. "I'm now truly becoming certain that there's more to this than meets the eye... This Mr. Redwin better be ready to answer a whole slew of questions when we get to him." Ehlijah kept this dialogue to himself.

 

[JadeGreen17]

The carriage would take them inside the walls of the city. Of course the entire city seemed to be treated as though it were a vanity project. There was not one scrap of litter, cigarette butt or stray dead leaf in the gutters. Every brick on the street was meticulously aligned to perfection, and every building whitewashed in ivory marble. Only the truly industrial buildings even had hints of grime and disuse. Eventually the cut across a bridge, a small lake within the walls to a manor built upon an island. The manor was immense, four stories in height with a sprawling garden.

Upon arriving, Lucia would show them to the door, where she knocked for them, placing them in the hands of another Obidio of identical rank who introduced herself as Obido Rose.

The house seemed desolate. But echoing through its halls was a somber and frittering melody played from the piano. Its origin, just beyond the grand foyer complete with crystal chandelier and suits of holy paladin armor. There was an almost empty room. What had once been a dining hall now empty of furniture; replaced with a singular grand piano. Seated at it, he played.

Rythe un-hunched ever so slightly upon sensing the arrival of his guests, stealing a glance at them without turning his head fully. But he continued playing his dreary and frigid melody; failing to respond to any queries until he had finished. When witnessed directly it was impossible to deny just how impactful, how manipulative the melody seemed. Simply how an overwhelmingly dismal mood could be conveyed so universally through something so simple as the vibrations caused by the pressing of ivory keys. The final note of the song died away and the room was bathed in an all encompassing silence.

He turned his small stool, without kicking off the floor or shifting his weight.

"Well. What do you think?"

 

[beymozo]

The watchers shuffled into the room in an awkward sync to the temperamental beat of each stroke of the piano's keys. Each and every one of them were silent as Rythe played his manipulative melody, only the sounds of them sighing and muttering under their slow gasps for air could be heard within the wordless room. Everyone but Kaimana bowed out of respect after the old man finished his welcoming concert, the merrow instead gave a slow clap.

"Tch. Well, a welcome is a welcome I guess." Kaimana said, a slight tinge of sarcasm in his approving tone of voice. "Never had a chance to use a damn good percussion like that... though lugging one around would be rather annoying. Besides... besides, I'm a fan of woodwind more than anything. Nonetheless, a good performance."

"Yeah, what Kaimana said. Good performance... uhhhhhhh, Mr. Redwin? I presume yer that Mr. Redwin we keep hearin' about." Aleixandrea stated with a handful of wide eye blinks.

"Not bad." Draego fashioned his tie a little.

"Uhm, it was good I guess..." Natalee melted away, instinctively hiding behind Kiri who just rolled her eyes. Djinn meanwhile chose not to comment, neither did Trice, even though she wouldn't be able to if she wanted. Amala gave a thumbs up to Rythe's performance.

"Not a half bad performance there Mr. Redwin... Got to say, you're a lot different from how I imagined you." Ehlijah stared at Rythe attempting to read into his aura but was only met with lackluster results. The old man's lack of an aura caused Ehlijah to raise a single brow before he finally began to open his telepathy back up with the group.

"Already, something's fishy about this Redwin guy now that we've come face to face." He stated.

"And what would that be exactly?" Amala scratched the back of her head.

"He lacks an aura, entirely." Ehlijah replied.

"Wait what!? He does? Don't that mean he's like super fishy or something Ehly?!" Aleixandrea's eyes widened even further to the point it seemed as if they were going to pop out of her sockets any moment now.

"Eh, not quite. It certainly can be a good thing to have, especially when you're dealing with certain monsters, yet given the circumstances so far... I'm farther inclined to believe this old man's hiding something from us. As to what I... don't know at all." He explained.

"Of course he fucking lacks a goddamn aura. Telling you, this entire place is a pile of shit that needs to be cleaned out from under our beats." Kaimana cut in.

"But you don't even wear boots." Djinn also cut in with an amused chuckle.

"Shut up!" Kaimana yelped.

Meanwhile Draego tried reading into the malicious intent of Rythe yet he too wielded absolutely zero results. Something was once again, very afoot and the watchers were even so keen on figuring the situation out as they continued to analyze the situation, piece by piece this puzzle was coming together.

 

[JadeGreen17]

Rythe let out a dejected sigh, hoping for a more amicable response to the one thing that truly bound him to this world. Inside he felt so insanely frustrated. To create such a thing of beauty... to pour his heart and soul into music, only to only have it be ignored by his new guests. But these feelings were kept repressed very deep down inside, and it validated something within him. It validated what was to come, what he was going to have to do.

"At least you guys have the decency to be honest."

He stood, appearing somewhat feeble in his posture and mannerisms.

"I am Rythe Redwin. Crown Priest of Arcadia. The last safe city on earth. Nex told of me that visitors would be arriving, travelers from another dimension coming to us on the eve of Nex's judgement. Perhaps... harbingers. A trial sent before me to test my good faith and selflessness. I have lived a long life, and seen many a adventurer and warrior amongst the ranks of the Paladins. I see conviction and drive in your eyes and a passionate fire in your hearts. You have not aimlessly been thrust into our reality; but you have come here with a purpose..."

 

[beymozo]

"Don't worry, we all thought it was a good performance. Just didn't want to interrupt your ebb and flow with too much racket you know?" Ehlijah scratched the back of his head with an awkward and amused chuckle, attempting to play it off rather friendly. That was rather hard to do however as he was quite taken back by Rythe's unusual eyes, something about them felt just as off as him getting "told" of their arrival by this "Nex" nontheless he went along and attempted to play the situation as cool as he could.

"Anyways, first order of business is that I introduce my crew and I here, as you're likely aware, the name's Ehlijah Cross. The girl with the ginger hair there is my fiance Aleixandrea. The cockatrice up here on my shoulder is Trice. The older gentleman is my good friend Draego. The one with the glasses is Natalee, and the merrow over there is Kaimana. The jackass- I mean homunculus is Djinn, the Indroid is Amala but we call her Patchy and the Vam- one with the katana is Kirisakura. You can just call us the Watchers." Everyone waved and bowed respectfully.

"Greetings Mr. Redwin." Draego stepped forward with a bow. "Full name's Draego-Aleister Teplinsky von Hellsing, though you may infer to me as Mr. Hellsing if you'd like."

"Yah, whassup." Aleixandrea replied, her stomach growling a bit.

"Hi." Trice spoke up, another shaky attempt at mimicry. "Hi, Hello." She said again. "How, How are you?" Trice went on, not being particularly noisy but rather attempting to communicate with the other party.

"Quite the guesser, I got to say that one.... we do have a purpose for being here, the other Watchers and I are looking for somebody in particular, of course I don't know if you know anything but given you seem to be rather knowledgeable of our existence already thanks to this Idol of yours... I'm going to go out on a limb and presume that you do know something already, Mr. Redwin." Ehlijah stated with a level of utmost observance of the situation.

 

[JadeGreen17]

"Its an honor to meet you, Mr Hellsing." He said, returning with a slight bow as well. It was obvious he took to the more formal manner of greeting better. "It is nice to meet you as well, Alexandria. Your Fiance is very lucky to have a woman like you." Though he seemed to be a bit surprised that Trice could even talk. "Yes... uhm. Hello..."

"I need you to be patient with me. I feel there is much I need to explain to you about this world, as it is quite clearly very different from the one in which you hail." He said, rising and inviting everybody into the next room. From it came the most succulent smell. Foods prepared by a master chef. A banquet feast was being laid out at a long dining table by white-gloved butlers. The main attraction seemed to be a stuffed roast duck, but there were great cakes of lasagna, a large ham, salads; and no shortages of ordurves, breads, fruits and other appetizers.

"Hopefully... a nice meal is something which is universal between our worlds. Please, have a seat, help yourselves to as much as you would like." He affirmed, gesturing to the feast. He removed a bottle of a pinkish nectar. "I have but one request." Pulling out the cork without the aide of an opener, he began to fill a row of crystal goblets. "That you each try a glass of Rosai 2202. The 'Nectar of the Earth' they call it; and some of the finest at that. It does have a rather... pungent and fruity taste that you may have to grow accustomed to..."

 

[beymozo]

"I wouldn't have it any other, that's for certain." Aleixandrea's cheeks turned a bright violet color as she clinged on to her fiancé, the both of them walking into the banquet room together while holding hands. The aroma hit everyone square in the nostrils, it was a pleasing smell to them. It seemed as if this night was theirs. Everyone took a seat of their own, including Trice who for once hopped off Ehlijah's shoulders and removed a handful of books from her satchel, using them as a sort of "booster seat" due to her small stature.

"That's perfectly fair Mr. Redwin... Would be best if I got to know the world first above anything else. Normally I'm not so hotheaded, but when it comes to the person I'm searching for, kind of can't help it sometimes, heheheh..." Ehlijah initially hesitated to take a drink of the Rosai but after a few moments he ended up taking a sip of it anyways. The Rosai 2022 perked him up rather quickly, he simply held out the glass with a very peachy expression, smacking his lips to really absorb the flavor as he gave it the pink liquid a few astute glances. "Damn, that's surprisingly pretty good. Good stuff... Gooood stuff."

"Yeah... I apologize Mr. Redwin, but I'm going to decline this Rosai 2022, my people are carnivorous, so I'd prefer to not be throwing up over your pearly white room here. Apologies once again." Kaimana handed the extra Rosai over to Aleixandrea who had already finished off her own like a greedy pig. "That and I don't trust you one fucking bit old man, could've spiked these drinks for all I know." Kaimana thought to himself, clearly holding less respect for Rythe then he let on.

"Got to say, this goes along quite well with the bougie atmosphere in these parts." Kiri stated, having taken a sip of the Rosai.

"Not bad. It's super sweet, reminds of Nat's cinnies, and is very fruity as well, like that of a kaboriberri smoothie on a hot day in champions." Draego took a good old swig of the drink, before cutting into a portion of the duck's tender breast in an elegant and clean fashion, fork in the left hand and knife on the right. Natalee smiled at Draego's comment, taking a sip of the cider herself.

"My taste receptors couldn't agree any more." Amala gave an amused chuckle.

"Sweet." Djinn was clearly more distracted by the coins he collected from the cabin, having such little table manners to the point he'd examine them in the dining hall of all places. Trice meanwhile used her unusually high dexterity to grab the goblet with her talons and began drinking from it like that of a normal person, she let out a squeal of delight, clearly taking to the taste rather well.

"Dunno about ya'll, but I could go for some thirds on that Rosai stuff. Heya Rythe my guy, think ya can hook me up with some more of it?" She stated with a full mouth as she held her glass out, clearly wanting more of the Rosai 2022 Cider. Ehlijah gave an amused chuckle.

"Hospitality goes a long way in our culture Mr. Redwin, I'm glad you're at least treating us well. I appreciate it." Ehlijah stated with a regards to the old man. "So should I ask questions about the new world we've found ourselves in here? Or do you already have all my questions pre-answered?" He asked while toying around with his goblet of Rosai, spinning and sloshing the nectar around gently. Everyone else was already digging into the food pretty heavily with the exception of Ehly who simply had a few loaves of buttered bread on his plain, choosing to eat light as he not only spoke with Rythe but also contemplated what heavier meal he wished to have.

 

[JadeGreen17]

One of the butlers, moving about as quickly as he could while maintaining his formality and composure continued to resupply Aleix's glass. Seeing the others were drinking, now was his time to strike. To install his doctrine onto the visitors and make them into his servants.

"Now then. I understand interdimensional travel must have been... quite disorienting. So hopefully I can explain to you the overall state of this world in which you have arrived. Our world is at the cusp of a reckoning. It is no secret that in any world, the vices and imperfections of man and nature can wreak havoc. Corruptive Influences... depletion of resources... conflicts and death. These are essential elements of our reality, but they have fallen out of balance. With each passing year, they grow more powerful until they would consume our world in its entirety and we would be reduced to madness. Senie, screaming animals with no will or drive to act or achieve anything.

That is why Nex... why He purges our world. Once every ten Millenia, Nex wipes the world clean. Only our people, the faithful, righteous and pure of heart will be spared of this cycle of death and rebirth. We, those who are pure shall be left to rebuild this world in our image; starting anew and free of the corrupting influences of this world. Though Ten Millenia is a long time for this corruption to take hold, for dissonants to reemerge and for our society to fragment and spread. I have lived a long and fruitful life; yet my time is almost inconsequential... a mere... one percent of that time. Thus I have been born to witness the world at its worst; the very tail end of this cycle.

There are the Chespakaians... across the Atlantic. They have stripped their land bare of resources; and their people toil endlessly to the benefit of the wealthy leaders. They are consumed... torn beyond repair by a depraved greed... an insatiable hunger which cannot be satisfied.

The Ridosians. Their lust for violence knows no bounds, and they know no honor. No method of warfare is too deprived or too savage for their kind. Every aspect of their society is centric around waging war, and they fight with no honor. For the last two years, my people have been engaged in a desperate holy war with their people.

The residents of Golden Rock. People who have long since fallen... their lack of cleanliness and organization led to their demise. Succumbing to great plagues, they have withered into but a husk of what they once were.

The residents of Northwind. We once called them friends, visionaries of a great future where people could work together. But they have fallen, they have died out. Even our people cannot point to the cause. Some say they simply... lost the will to carry on their utopian vision.

Arcadia is the only place on earth that is free. That is pure of this... contamination. But by far, the most vile individuals... the ones which threaten our very existence are the ones who call themselves the Nightmare Hunters. Heretics of the highest order, once subscribers of our own belief. Aligned with the house of Hexos, a formerly Arcadian house which... deserted the faith in pursuit of wealth and forbidden knowledge. These so-called hunters seek to break the cycle... to prevent the world from being reborn and instead allow it to continue to fall further into corruption and madness. They are led by a man named Alduir. He is your greatest test; for he possesses a dark power to twist and warp your mind. Obscure your senses and warp your ideals with the allure of his fanatical philosophy..."

 

[beymozo]

"Cool story bro, now where's the dessert? I'm craving chocolate and vanilla over here." Aleix inquired in a rather apathetic tone of voice, caring more about shoving food down her gullet than actually listening to Rythe's rather obviously biased tirade about the inevitable end of the world and how everyone but Arcadia is absolutely awful.

"I see..." Ehlijah took the kettle off the table and poured a glass of hot water before placing in a bag of earl grey to soak. "Can't exactly have a utopia without controlling everything." He shot Rythe a glance, clearly having put together what was exactly happening, a confidant smile was stricken across his face.

"Anyways, what's the catch now that we're here?" Ehlijah bit into a piece of the duck, giving a delighted expression at it's taste.

"Aye, guys." Djinn called out to everyone in the telepathic link. "I'm going to go snoop around if that's good with you." He stated, clearly up to something.

"Your call there, but if you get caught, just know that I don't know you." Kaimana replied.

"I'm going to preface this now, it's probably a bad idea, but if you can get information, that could prove crucial in piecing this puzzle together. I don't trust this Rythe guy and neither does anyone else in the party, that's clear." Ehlijah noted. "Oh and please don't steal anything Djinn, for the love of the Idols." He pleaded.

"No guarantees there pal, as the saying goes... I see, I take." Djinn gave an amused chuckle as he stood up. "You guys got a bathroom by any chance? Gotta head off to the loo." He turned to Rythe.

"Dunno, but he seems pretty convincing to me babe." Aleixandrea replied.

"Eh, yeah, he hasn't brought up anything overly alarming with his story just now, but that still doesn't invalidate that he's already got some clearly suspicious stuff going on either. Can you riddle me how he knew about us in the first place Ale?" Ehlijah stated back to Aleixandrea.

"Fair. Guess all the food's getting too me." She gave an amused chuckle. "Mmmm mmm mmm! Ehly, ya should really try this lasagna in all it's gooey goodness. This stuff is freaking the bomb!" She said holding out her fork with a bit of the lasagna towards Ehlijah.

"Sure thing love." He said taking the fork his fiancee and trying the dish; the taste perked him up real quick. "Mmm. That is good." He said handing the silverware back.

"See I told ya it's good." She stuck her tongue out at Ehly, teasing and flirting around with her lover.

 

[JadeGreen17]

"Desert?" Rythe chuckled. "It will be coming soon enough. Be patient... perhaps consider trying some of that roast duck in the meantime."

The sweet smell of cinnamon rolls and cake was already wafting from the neighboring kitchen; giving credence to his claim.

"And yes, Elijah. It is true. You must control people to maintain a utopia. But without control, without authority... what order would there be? On what merits do we decide what people are to be entrusted and what people are to be ignored? There is no denying that I must control and direct things to go the way I want them. But I am burdened... cursed with knowledge of the true workings of this world. So I must assume that power, such that the people living everyday lives can continue to go about them in peace. That is why our ideals must be rigid and unchanging.

But look around you. Ask yourself if that is really so bad? You saw the villagers that live at the base of the mountains. Even those living on the outskirts live in places of beauty... they have safe and comfortable homes and loving families. I only ask that you refrain from judging us at a glance... that you wait until you have seen the rest of the world before coming to any abrupt conclusions about us. Because nowhere else in the world will you find that."

...

One of the butlers began to escort Djinn to the restroom. As they walked, they passed by a locked room. The door seemingly had no handles, it had to be opened in some other ways. If there was something worthy of stealing, it would have to be in that room...

 

[beymozo]

"You seem like an alright guy, but call me a heretic or whatever else you wish, I'm just not about that pearly white and ambrosial gold streets where everything is in perfect order sort of ordeal you know? Crack it up to us being from completely different worlds, especially when I come from one that isn't as downtrodden as this one so far. Nature is bountiful and alive not desolate and sick, people are happy and free not wretched nor controlled.

Of course, I understand that with individual freedom does come anarchy, but that's something I would take any day personally, granted there should be some order in the mix. That's why folks like police and watchers exist back home, to maintain a sort of balance. People like my party and I existed to slay monsters which could take just about any life at any moment.

I'm still willing to give you the benefit of the doubt, not once will I ever glance at this surface level, after all I am perfectly aware that there's always more than meets the eye. This Arcadia you have built is fine so far compared to what we've seen so far of the world in my opinion, and I am, as I said, totally willing to not draw conclusions so quickly, even if this place isn't my kind of thing personally." Ehlijah respectfully indulged Rythe in this little philosophical debate.

"Man. This is going to be quite the debate I feel." Ehlijah stated began talking to his party.

"Honestly I agree most with you Ehly, but Rythe does make some good points at the least." Amala replied.

"Yeah he does, and I'm going to respect that." Ehlijah replied back.

"Might I chime into this discussion of Authority vs Anarchy?" Draego humbly requested to Rythe and Ehlijah that he join in on the conversation.

...

Djinn calmly went along with the butler, along the way he couldn't help but give the mysterious door a glance; swift as a tiger and followed by a string of hand signs Djinn quietly whispered a quick phrase under his breath to himself... "Shadow Clone." Immediately an illusionary duplicate took Djinn's place as the real one went invisible straight after; The speed at which he moved was incomprehensible to the human eye. He scurried over to the door, searching for a means to open it up.

"Come on baby... There's gotta be something around here."

"So... What's it like working here?" Meanwhile the duplicate indulged the butler on a bit of conversation, attempting to keep him distracted.

 

[JadeGreen17]

Rythe had a butler top of Ehly's glass of cider, and replace it closer to him.

"The only way to validate which principles are truly successful is on the grand canvas of life, discussion is only a means to consolidate these ideas. The inhabitants of Golden Rock abided by such a philosophy. One of freedom. People were free to do what they wanted, believe what they wanted, act how they wanted. It was... on paper... a beautiful idea. A cultural melting pot where all were free to express themselves. But in practice... it was chaos. LIke a horde of rabid, famished scavengers clawing and kicking over one another for resources and notoriety.

An extreme example, I am aware. But look to Chespakay. The people there are of poor moral fiber... society is structured but in a way that leaves people oppressed. Those with wealth hold the power because nobody is strong enough to restrict their greed. Because they are not strong enough to recognize that so long as they are self-serving their society cannot flourish to its fullest potential. You may advocate for freedom all you want. But that is often a price we must pay for security and sanity. People must be made to oblige to society's rules, as only society's leaders can see the full picture; and see the most optimum route that everyone should take.

And of course, Mr. Hellsing. Speak your peace."

...

"I'd prefer not to discuss my personal feelings about this job and simply do my duty... it is unprofessional. Now..." He gave a slight smile. "Here is the restroom, so that you can do your 'duty.' "

...

This looked to be a side room, left locked and inaccessible. It had once been a chapel with an octagonal terrace at the far end, but was being used for storage of artifacts awaiting transfer to elsewhere. Some were in orate display cases, on pillows behind glass boxes on oaken pedestals. Some were within wooden crates or aged metal strongboxes. Still others lay scattered about. There was a semblance of organization to it, yet at the same time it was something of ordered chaos.

A full size taxidermied alicorn took up about a quarter of the room. No doubt it could be disassembled or there is no way they could have gotten it in there. There were several identical suits of gold and silver paladins armor on stands; bolt upright like guardians. Sword handles with a dreamcatcher motif, but lacking blades. The dreamcatcher motif seemed to be common. There was one dreamcatcher with a ring at least three meters in diameter laying scattered in the corner, its webbing like thick rope. Unclear where someone had gotten feathers big enough to hang below.

Iron skulls just a bit too large to be human, with just a few too many teeth. An entire open crate full of violet books. All of them copies of some tome "blindfolded man's book of monster fighting plans, 2 and 1/2th edition." In one display case sat what looked to be a glass eyeball. With a purple iris and the golden webbing of a dreamcatcher. The eye swiveled on the spot to look at the intruder, the pupil dilating.

In another box were some smaller items. Several sets of golden spectacles with amethyst lenses. Vials quartz of a fine green dust like flour, and what looked to be regular water. There was also a white and gold casket, with a vase atop it, though the flowers had long since withered into little more than crumbling brown powder and brittle twigs.

 

[beymozo]

"Fair enough, if that's what you believe, more power to you Rythe. We're quite different in the end, and I hope that's not going to put a strain on us being acquaintances." Ehlijah gave a thumbs up, deciding to allow his mentor to speak in his place. He stared at the Rosai Cider and back at his Earl Grey which had finished soaking. He gave it some thought before taking a drink of the Earl Grey first, not wanting it to get cold. He felt the Rosai could just wait a bit longer.

"Those are certainly extreme examples, however they apply strictly to your world if I might add. Where we come from, the ability to go down your path in life is well... the root of our foundation. Those who are free are just as capable of seeing the full picture as those in charge. Granted, we do have a hierarchy to help prevent squandering amongst our people, not everything should lean so far in one direction in the other, a good middle ground is personally better in my eyes, and it seems Ehlijah as well.

Course you're just as in the dark about our world as we are yours at this current moment, it's hard to quantify the reality of something when you can't understand it, directly. So even though they may not be of much direct help, allowing me to surmise an exemplary story from my people. Back on Chrome, the city of Starlight was built on the very core principles of the various indigenous people unifying, from us Loreons, to the Merrow, Kultians, Fariners, Indroid, and so on.

Although there was a much needed push from the Founders themselves, the city was built on each individual's strive to come together. In our world, free spirits commonly unite together to live, and fight as one. Granted, that's not to say there hasn't been bloodshed in our history, plenty of it, especially when it took the first world war to bring everyone together a few decades ago. What I am simply getting at here is that unity is sometimes best maximized not just by the leaders alone but the people uniting as one. It takes but only a pair of free souls at the very minimum to make a whole. Freedom and choice is inherent to everything... I'll leave you with one last thing.

You chose to lead your own people, and it's simple as that, is it not?" Draego let out a long drawn breath as if he was exhausted yet refreshed from dumping his own personal spin on the debate. He took a sip of Hot Cocoa he had prepared while speaking. Meanwhile, Kirisakura shifted around her chair, clearly looking discomforted about the whole ordeal.

"Personally... I hate authority with every fiber of my being. Ninety-nine percent of politicians, leaders, law enforcement can kiss my skinny ass for all I care." Kiri finally spoke up after minutes of endured silence, her tone of voice was clearly sour and eyes full of a burning hatred. "However, I do understand both of your points... it's just, the amount of abuse I've gone through because of the figures of authority in my life, from my own experience, I can't stand them. Say I'm blind or myopic, I just... can't." She sighed.

. . .

"Well that's juuuuust boring Mr. Butler... I hope your day goes well then." Shadow Djinn chuckled, clearly attempting to butter the butler up a bit before heading within the bathroom to stall time while the real one was at the mysterious door. Djinn stood there, contemplating what to do before finally coming to a good plan.

"Melt." Djinn uttered another phrase, and after performing the hand signs necessary for the technique, his organically mechanical body melted into a pool of shadow which seeped underneath the door and through into the other side. Afterwards his body reassembled itself and he was standing there amongst a treasure trove of delectable items to steal. Goosebumps ran all across the Homunculus' body as he became all giddy, ogling at each and every item attempting to decide.

"Too big..." He passed by the taxidermized Alicorn, already denying it.

"Boring. Boring. Boring! Oh, these ones might be interesting." He decided against the armor, giant dreamcatcher, and skulls. The books seemed of no use, however the sword handles seemed rather fine to him, so naturally he took one for himself.

"Ohhh... a new belt. I love me some belts." He grabbed one of the collapsible armor belts and stuffed it within his impossibly unempty pockets along with the sword handle. Eventually he took notice of the eyeball watching him from the other side of the room which almost caused him to flip out. He remained calm however and walked over to the eye, staring at it as it stared back at him.

"Boop." He gently poked the eye, causing it to seemingly shudder. "Eh, fuck it. You're coming with me little buddy." He stated before stuffing the eyeball within a small pouch which he then placed within his personal pocket dimension. He stayed around for a little bit longer to loot a few more things, notably spare coin, extra more unique weapons he found laying around, and anything which looked to be of remote value that he could pawn off for money.