Golden Sun: The Genesis Halo

[Kamotz]

Golden Sun: The Genesis Halo
a Kamotz RPG
​

Prologue: "We are the Few"


Elsewhere...

There was silence, and the peace of the warm sun burning down through the calm, still air. It was wonderfully silent, just the faint click of insects and crisp crack of grasses twitching against each other. Gerard thrived on it, the time between missions, between the clamor of the city and the crash of steel and claws and power; the air filled with a palpable tension and possibility of violence threatening to crack into existence. Not that any of those were "bad" things, per say--they certainly had their uses and their draws--Gerard simply preferred the perfect stillness.

The cry of a large bird shook Gerard from his reverie and his eyes snapped open. His trepidation last only for an instant. Only for a brief moment he was alone, only for the space of time between when his eyes snapped open and took their first blink. Then he felt it stir again, as it always did. He felt it, drawing up, rising within him, huge and vast. With a single breath it swelled and filled the dark spaces behind his eyes. That dark thing, his passenger, was always with him. It was an animal acknowledging and evaluating its surroundings, and it took only a moment to reaffirm that it was indeed still the most dangerous thing in the immediate vicinity; the top of the food chain, the apex predator. Hyper-lethal.

All was right in the world.

Gerard watched as a red-tailed hawk descended from the sky to land on the low branch of a nearby tree. With a sigh, Gerard hauled himself out of the cool, clear pool of water he had been swimming in. He grabbed his nearby towel and gave himself a quick dry-off before making his way over to the bird and untying the note strapped to its leg. He gave it a quick read-through.

"Well, there goes our vacation," he said with a sigh. "Amon. Up." Gerard tossed his towel over his shoulder at the great cat that lay sunning itself on a nearby rock.

The tiger growled his displeasure, but stood up regardless. Gerard quickly slipped on a pair of pants and his boots, and then he tied his armor together and strapped that to his back. Amon walked up beside him and gently nudged his large head against Gerard's thigh, nearly knocking Gerard over in the process. But Gerard caught himself and straightened his stance with a roll of his eyes. He cuffed the tiger stiffly behind the ear.

Amon snarled and Gerard snarled back. They were too similar not to scrap occasionally—they were too much alike. Competitive, but respectful of the power the other held. Amon was brash and dangerous, despite the familiarity with which Gerard acted around him. He was much wilder than most of the other animals the League Adepts found themselves partnered with. And despite their partnership, Gerard had no illusions when it came to the big cat. He was completely untamed and (to all but Gerard himself) completely unpredictable. Gerard's understanding of Amon came only because of their similarities; Gerard had more in common with Amon than he did with other humans.

And Amon regarded Gerard more like a fellow predator than he did a squishy pink human.

"If we leave now we might just make it back to Tolbi by nightfall," he said as he started down the road. The tiger grumbled his distaste but followed beside Gerard, stalking along with the lumbering grace only a great predatory cat possessed.

=====

Tolbi...

Tara strode through the crowded Tolbi streets. She'd spent the night before in Tolbi village, situated on a hill that looked out over the Colosso stadium. As a League Adept she was certainly welcome in the city center, but it was a bit nosier than she wanted. She had a few old benefactors in the village who were perfectly happy to give her a quiet room for the night. Privacy was a rare thing among League Adepts around the Tolbi City Center. It was fine when you were out on patrol or a mission, but the city was crowded.

On top of it all, her animal partners always became edgy around the city. Leah could at least fly off to the rooftops and ledges with some of the other League raptors. Kano was stuck in the busy streets with her. And the big cat really didn't like that. At least in the village, the three of them could have a night of peace.

Now that they were in the city, she could see the tension in Kano's body; his head and chest were dropped low, eyes darted back and forth, a frustrated growl seemed to rumble ceaselessly from his throat. Tara had lost sight of Leah after letting her fly loose, but knew she was somewhere far overhead, raptor eyes trained on her two partners below. It would only take a sharp, high whistle, and Leah would come streaking from the sky faster than most could follow.

Tara was one of only a handful of League Adepts that had managed to bond with more than one animal partner. With that added power came added responsibility in caring for them. She had met both of them when they were young, and they'd come to depend on her for a great many things. She'd tried her hardest to instil in them a sense of wild self, teaching both to hunt and fend for themselves should the day ever arise that she was unable. But both looked to her for guidance more often than not. It was comforting: she was never alone.

But she was also never alone.

Never was that more apparent than in the crowded city center of Tolbi, with Kano practically glued to her heels. She heard a piercing screech above her, and glanced up to watch Leah swoop through the spires of the League and into one of the high windows. Tara wasn't worried; the caretakers at the aviary would feed her and give her a place to rest.

"Kano, see if Gregor is still in the kitchen," Tara said, turning to the sleek black jaguar. Gregor was the head chef for the mess hall, and an old friend of hers. He'd helped her when she was first starting her training. And he had a soft spot for Kano. There was no reason for the jaguar to attend the meeting.

There were already six other Adepts waiting by the chosen conference hall. Two Adepts each of Mercury, Mars, and Jupiter. Was she the only Venus Adept? Iodem had a thing for assigning Venus Adepts in leadership roles, but usually never with more than three others (and most often one Adept of each other alignment).

Maybe it was because both Isaac and Felix were Venus Adepts, and they'd been essentially in charge of that great quest thirty years before...or maybe it was the inherent overall sturdiness of the typical Venus Adept--level headed, convicted, and adaptable--that made them natural leaders. She certainly wouldn't want a Mars Adept in charge; they were unbelievably hotheaded and reckless...Jupiter Adepts were wishy-washy, and Mercury Adepts were so incredibly slow to decide anything.

"Is this everyone?" Tara asked as Iodem opened the doors and invited everyone in. He invited everyone to take a seat around a round central table and took his position at the far end of the room next to a recently-drawn map. It was one of the smaller rooms, meaning whatever this mission was, it couldn't be all that important. Or was she wrong?

Iodem sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose. He looked so much older than the last time she'd seen him...which hadn't been all that long ago. He'd stepped back from handling the day-to-day dealings of the League and left the minutiae of Tolbi's ongoings to his advisors and those he'd been grooming to take his place. He only involved himself in matters he found most dire, or most personal.

Which one of them was this? Tara couldn't help but wonder.

"We're missing one. The other Venus Adept," Iodem couldn't hide the frown from Tara. "But he's...ugh. Always late."

"Fashionably so," a low voice chuckled. Tara glanced at the new arrival out of the corner of her eye. Gerard Leonhardt. "But it's not like you'd actually started either way. I think I'm right on time, all things considered."

"You asked him?" Tara growled, jabbing her thumb at the other Venus Adept. "Of all the boneheaded, selfish--"

"Competent, skilled, and talented?" Gerard offered with a shrug. Amon hadn't moved from his side. The enormous cat watched each Adept and animal intently, sizing them up. He didn't look impressed, though he was by no means unimpressive.

Tara had never seen a larger cat.

But she just rolled her eyes at Gerard's antics. She...knew him well enough to see through the mask of lighthearted banter and good-natured humor. He was none of those things.

"You're not asking him to lead, are you?" she asked Iodem. When the older man shook his head, she sighed in relief.

"I was hoping you would step up," Iodem said. "I know you're not used to working with such a large group, and certainly not with so many outside the Lions, but..."

"Of course, Sir," Tara snapped a salute. "I'm honored."

"Good," Iodem said. He looked to the rest of the Adepts and directed their sight to the map behind him. "Then here is where you shall begin..."

 

[Monster Guy]

Timothy "Tim" Wolfe
Conference Room, Tolbi

A large group of animals surrounded one boy and his grey wolf puppy. He had started singing a cheerful tune as he made his way to Tolbi. As he did, wild animals that lived in the area flocked to where he was. Small birds flew around him, stray dogs nuzzled his ankles, and even a few butterflies sat on his shoulders. Alice, the puppy accompanying him was scared of all the strange creatures surrounding her and hid behind the boy. Tim, her companion, simply laughed. "Haha, hey guys! How've ya been?" For a moment, Tim was happy. Animals were his life. They were the best friends he had ever had. Humans however, were an entirely different matter. While he knew there were good people in the world, a lot of the ones he knew were judgemental jerks.

It was his first major mission as an official member of the League of Adepts. While he was honored to have been chosen for this, he was nervous about having to be in a group with a bunch of strangers. Thinking about it made him shudder. Who knows what kind of people he was going to have to be with. When he was invited to be a member a few months ago, he was looking foward to being independent. To be able to travel at his own pace, meet some interesting animals, and stop to smell the flowers once in a while. Speaking of smelling flowers, Tim took the opportunity to sniff a few that were scattered around, as well as pick a few berries to make treats for himself and Alice later.

As soon as he approached the edge of town, Tim had to shoo his new entourage of animals away. "Ok guys, can you go now, please? He said politely, "It's not safe for you guys to come into town. I'll bring back some treats as soon as I can." All the animals obeyed his request, leaving him and Alice alone. "Well Alice, it's just the two of us now..." the boy said with a sigh.

Alice simply nodded. In the short amount of time they've been together the two of them bonded quickly, and became inseparable. He had cared for her when she was left behind by her pack because she couldn't keep up with them, and she became loyal to Tim. As scary as this situation was for her, she wasn't about to abandon him now.

For a few moments, Tim just stood there taking deep breaths trying to calm himself. Taking the first few steps was a nerve-racking experience. Once he finally mustered up the courage, he stepped into the crowded city, and made his way to the conference hall.

---

Tim cautiously navigated through the streets of Tolbi. He had lived in a small village that never had this many people gathered in one place. Large crowds like this always made him uncomfortable. All the sounds, smells and other things going on at once was very overwhelming. Alice was just as on edge as her human companion was. She tensed up, kept her head down, and never strayed very far from Tim. He took deep breaths, and did his best to tune out all the noise as he eventually made it to his destination.

There were a few other Adepts waiting there when he arrived, and some more came after him. Once everyone was present, they were was let in. The Adepts were escorted into a room with a large table and chairs surrounding it. Tim sighed, bit his lip, and started wringing his hands as he looked at the other Adepts in attendance. He felt completely out of place, like a goldfish in a lake filled with piranhas. Judging by the way everyone carried themselves, these people looked like they had much more experience than he did. He was unsure why they had asked him to come here in the first place. He had completed his training and became a League member not that long ago. Surely there were other, more qualified Mercury Adepts they could've called on?

Even their animal companions were intimidating. A few of them had brought large wild animals with them. Even if he was nervous, Tim still found these huge beasts as fascinating as the small and cute creatures. However, the presence of other carnivorous animals which were much bigger than herself caused Alice to cower behind Tim's ankle, and whimper.

As much as he wanted to get out of there, he had already come this far, and it was too late to leave now. Besides, running away after being summoned would make a bad first impression with the ones in charge. Then he'd never get assigned to any important tasks. The Mercury Adept kept his head down, and quietly took a seat at the table, away from everyone else. He sat Alice on his lap, and gently stroked her head as he watched the others, and waited for instructions to be given.

 

[Blivsey]

Lucia Lynwood
Conference Hall, Tolbi

Being located as it was at the end of the Silk Road, the city-state of Tolbi was a veritable hub for trade within the continent of Angara. With this comes a huge volume of people traveling through, both money and information switching hands, and easy travel routes to most people - all manner of reasons for the League of Adepts to quarter there. Which was a lucky thing as far as Lucia was concerned, since being near such a massive marketplace put her at ease and gave her access to a colorful variety of trade goods.

In fact, Lucia was taking advantage of this right now - allowing her familiar Mari to nap at her heels while she read from a tome for roughly the past twenty minutes. A rather thick one, at that, but that just meant to Lucia that she was getting a more sizeable return on her investment. And so far, it had indeed, as for the rather small sum she had traded it for she had in return been provided something to do for the nearly twenty-four minutes she had been in line. Excessive, probably, but on a certain level it did add to the air she was putting forth - arriving early and reading from a thick book would make for a strong first impression, she felt.

And so it was that she only looked briefly up from her story to exchange pleasantries with the others as the arrived, almost entirely within five minutes of the prescribed time, albeit she did allow more consideration and formality for the senior Adept who joined their group (Iodem, if she recalled correctly). Aside from him but including herself, there were six of them gathered total - two Adepts to represent each element but Venus, if she was guessing correctly based on conversation and dress. Adepts did have a habit of self-identifying their affinity by reflecting it in their wardrobe, oddly enough, a notion which Lucia was doing little to disprove in her white blouse and dark-blue skirt. Seeing as the others gathered looked young enough to be her fellow trainees (albeit she only recognized one of them, and did not even know her by name), it was likely that the remaining Adepts to arrive would be their supervisors for whatever task they would be assigned, so Lucia theorized. Yet within a few seconds, another student just a bit taller, leaner, and visibly more aggressive than herself rounded the corner to put that theory to rest.

As the newest arrival exchanged greetings with Iodem, Lucia moved a short ribbon from the inside of the book's cover to between the currently-opened pages. It should figure that she should have to stop just as the main character had been inexplicably and falsely charged for treasons. But the good bits would have to come before lights-out that night, or on their journey out of town, whichever came first. Here and now more important things were happening than the fictional tribulations of one Edmund Dantès, and so Lucia followed the others inside and took her seat on the middle-left side of the table from the entrance.

No sooner had Lucia placed her tome on the table and set herself down in a chair than she felt a small weight land in her lap, shaking. Fully aware that would be Mari, Lucia discreetly moved her hands below the table to stroke the mountain hare. A quick glance about proved why she was so tense, her ears shot straight back and stiff as though she had been spotted by some great carnivore. That was, in fact, because she had been spotted by a great carnivore several times over - of the seven other Adepts, Lucia could spot at least four of them having brought along a large wild cat or dog of some sort as their companion, a number of which she had only been vaguely aware while inside her fiction. She could only hope, then, that this would be a rather short excursion, for the sake of Mari's mental health.

Not a moment after the last of those arrived had taken their seat, all attention was drawn to the door as but one more young Adept arrived. Built just shy of a giant and accompanied by a grown tiger (yet another reason for the hare in her lap to squirm), he was practically asking that the room's collective gaze be drawn on him. With such a brash appearance, it was everything Lucia could do to keep from tensing up or widening her eyes. His nonchalant bickering with Tall, Lean, and Feisty wasn't quite diverting focus, either, though Iodem minimized the conflict shortly and expertly by ignoring the feud entirely and indicating TLF as the gathered group's leader.

Of course, the woman accepted moving briskly on to the map on the wall. This indicated to Lucia that: 1. Their assignment would indeed involve travel; 2. This was some task requiring quite a few Adepts; and 3. More senior members of the League could not be afforded. Admittedly, this left few obvious options as to the possible nature of their job. Diplomatic talks were best served by someone older and wiser than they. Abuse of Alchemy was usually handled by smaller groups of Adepts specializing specifically in dueling. Certainly not training, as they were unchaperoned. Perhaps working population control on a small monster outbreak? Not unlikely, given the supposed state of things in the more rural regions and the increasing uneasiness Mari displayed on their weekly excursions into the woods.

Or perhaps Iodem would get to that in just a moment, should she stop brainstorming long enough for listen to him speak.

 

[*Jean Grey*]

Daciana Lupei
Tolbi

Tolbi, a bustling and wealthy city-state not without its seedy side. Daciana Lupei knew of this less-than-savory side all too well, having been part of it for a little over two years of her life, a move in a battle against her mother which she ultimately won. Now, here she was once again after three years. This moment however, it wasn't at the risk of arrest or behind bars. Not that Daciana could keep herself off the alleys and pubs entirely...

"One more, man." She said to the bartender while pushing her empty beer glass towards him. She remembered that she had to attend a meeting soon, only to shrug it off after. There was still enough time, and it was not as if she had any particular impression to make, having been in the League for a few months. More of the golden, bubbling liquid was poured into it, and she raised the glass to her mouth, drinking it down quickly, albeit messily, some of the drink spilling on the table and dribbling down her chin. She hastily wiped the mess on her face before hopping off the wooden bar stool she sat on. Lucian looked up at her with stormy silver eyes as she pat the thick, black fur on his head, while taking a few coins out of her pocket, which she dropped on the counter. The bartender eyed the wolf. shaking his head.

"Next time, Lupei, no dogs allowed!" He warned. Daciana looked at him and merely smirked, before giving him the finger.

"Hehe...sure, man. Lucian isn't a dog anyway, so fat chance with that!" She laughed sarcastically before heading for the door, the dark-colored wolf in tow. The day was warm, warmer than what she was accustomed to back in Morgal, though not to the point of being oppressive. At this thought, she snorted at the irony. She might have been a Mars Adept, traveled all over Gondowan and Angara as a young girl, and lived in Tolbi for a little over two years during her bandit days, but even up to now, it was hot weather that bothered her. Daciana might have been her father's daughter in almost all ways, but she probably owed this part of her to Tatiana. She unbuckled her cloak, took it off and folded it over her arm. There was still some time, enough for her to walk leisurely. Instead though, Daciana looked to Lucian, a playful glint in her winter-colored eyes.

"Race you there, Luke?" She offered, grinning, before dashing off. Her long, scarlet ponytail flew behind her in the warm breeze. The Jupiter-aligned canine followed, catching up to her with ease.

Conference Hall, Tolbi

Daciana reached the meeting place, her muddy boots leaving tracks on the polished floor, small beads of sweat dripping down the sides of her face, her long bangs in disarray...and Lucian still running beside her. She had made it. Noticing the number of people outside, she looked them over. None of them seemed to be Venus Adepts, an observation that made her grumble. Did that mean that a Venus Adept would lead...again? The girl knew it was no secret that those Venus types were somehow favored over other types of Adepts for the role of "boss". As for what the main reason was, Daciana never understood. She always found Venus Adepts to be too...traditional, stern and bossy. She didn't like anyone lording over her, and hoped that perhaps, a change of pace and tradition would come. At least the small Mercury Adept seemed quite adorable, with his wolf pup and blue getup. Lucian eyed the gray pup, something that Daciana noticed. She grinned at Lucian before gesturing towards the pup with her thumb, knowing what he probably was going to do next...and she was right. Lucian had left her side and was bounding towards the smaller wolf.

Unfortunately, the Lucky Slots of fate was trying to mess with her, as there was a new arrival, and she was indeed a Venus Adept. Not quite as tall as Daciana's six feet and one inch, but close enough, with armor on, as well as two animals. Daciana leaned against the wall and rested her head on top of her raised, folded arms, snorting. She wondered why couldn't the meeting just be held somewhere less...suffocating and a little livelier. It was clear that the twenty-two-year-old redhead was uncomfortable in formal settings, cared nothing for proper decorum, and wasn't afraid to let it show. She would have played one more game of pool, but it was something to be chosen for this...and Daciana loved adventure and exploring just as much as she loved bets and wagers.

"Is this everyone?" The woman asked, after which Iodem opened the door to the conference hall. Daciana pushed her way inside, catching up with Lucian as she entered. Taking her seat, she raised a leg up as she made herself comfortable, her wolf standing on his hind legs as he reached up to her. She responded by stroking him a few times, before leaning back onto her chair and resting her arms onto its back, waiting for everything to start, and clearly wanting the meeting to be short so that they could get going right away. Another Venus Adept entered, this time followed by a tiger. The female Venus Adept was arguing with the newcomer, before Iodem assigned her as the leader. She responded with a salute.

"Honored my ass..." Daciana snickered, not exactly discreetly either, as Iodem directed her and the other Adepts to look at the map hanging behind him.

 

[bronislav84]

(I'm changing the name of Cathy's staff to Fiery Aurora. Just a name change. Also, I'm terrible with opening posts. Please tell me if I missed anything important and need to edit.)

Cathy "Cat-chan" Katherine
Around Tolbi

With Sally curled up around my neck like a fur scarf, I'd decided to spend some of the time before the meeting on helping the residents of the city with any lights they needed to have lit instead of worrying about starting fires by natural means. I didn't always do this and lend myself out to the large city like this, but on the days that I did it was highly appreciated. Most times it was just lighting stoves or candles, but it felt nice to help people like this. The blue fire I created was slightly warmer than normal and took a couple hours to turn orange-red to match standard fire, so it was especially prized in kitchens which had to beat the rush for a short amount of time. After spending a couple of hours running around the city handling that, I spent an hour in the HQ training hall burning dummies.

Eventually it was time to head to the meeting, and I went to meet up with the others. I leaned on the door of the meeting hall, cradling Sally in my arms and playing with her fur. The other Mars Adept was leaning against a nearby wall. "Hmm, you're pretty." I commented to her, kinda hoping she wouldn't actually hear the complement and embarrass us both.

No stuffy Venus Adepts were there yet? Just as I thought of this, a lady who could was very likely one of the missing Venus Adepts showed up. Not late, but definitely near last. Okay, not last because there were seven of us at the time, but she did show up later than the others.

"Is this everyone?" She asked as the doors were opened for us by Iodem and I almost fell back, forgetting I was leaning on the conference hall door. I caught myself in time though. I couldn't help spitting behind the lady's feet as she entered. Probably wouldn't see it, but I had to express my dissatisfaction at who would likely be our leader. Sure I expected it with the great heroes being led by Venus, but I just couldn't help expressing my dislike for authority in general. I followed Iodem and the trainers out of principle, not because I actually wanted to.

As we filed in and chose our seats a guy Venus Adept showed up, noticeably late. By this time I'd chosen a seat between the young Mercury Adept and the other Mars Adept, and propped both my feet on the table, crossing them and getting comfortable. I snickered at the mention of being honored, agreeing with her comment. Yup, led by a Venus as expected. I'd get to know her eventually, as well as the others. Sally curled up on my lap as I got ready to listen to the mission.

 

[GoldenHouou]

Frath Wieldson
Outside the Conference Hall, Tolbi

Rather uncharacteristically of him, Frath had been the first Adept to arrive to their assigned meeting place today, and a good few hours before anybody else, to boot. While usually, he wouldn't have even considered getting out of his bed - much less dressing up and walking out of the door - more than half an hour prior the meeting's start, be the town however busy it may, today he had been up since dawn - although admittedly not of his own accord. Inspiration had struck him in the middle of the night while still transformed into his beastly form on the outskirts of town, but having had no fingers proper to hold a pen and write with, he had been forced to wait until morning to be able to put all his ideas on paper. And, come the sun and the end to his nightly curse, he had been so full of ideas and rhymes that he had not been able to cease writing from the moment he'd picked up his pen. Hence, instead of spending the very first hours of sunshine sleeping and recovering after a night of wandering the lands like usual, he'd walked around town while scribbling and ended up where he was sitting now; the outside of the city's conference hall, back pressed against the building's shady side, tired eyes focused on his notebook and ears shut to the outside world with decades's worth of practice.

Funny how that had worked out.

Sheer was flying high above in the skies, sharp eyes scanning everything that moved within her vision with the precision only a buzzard could possess. Every now and again she let out a cry, high-pitched and loud to ensure her companion didn't doze off prematurely. She didn't really care for his poems, but she knew that should he allow sleep to overtake him now, he would not wake up in time for the meeting - or in time for dinner, for that matter. And she was a bird that did not skip out on meals. She wanted to keep her physical peak at all times come ever the sudden need to fight. Frath knew that as well, and thus agreed to raise his hand to her every now and again as if to signal he was still present in the world of the awake. But man, were the others slow.

Frath glanced up from his already finished work, blinking a few times to clear his vision from the grey haze of sleep that threatened to consume him. There were already quite a few people gathered closer to the doors, but judging by the expectant, sometimes even impatient looks on some of their faces, they were still waiting for someone. He wouldn't know. He couldn't recall if the amount of people had ever been mentioned in the letter he'd gotten and even if it had, there was no way he would remember it. His mind and memory capacity was strictly reserved for things that actually mattered.

Just then, after one more person found her way to the small ragtag group, the doors were opened, signaling that everyone had indeed arrived. Good, that. He was rather curious to see what sort of a mission they were called in for. It wasn't often that he worked with so many others; usually, his missions consisted of him and one or two other older members of the League. Not kids and wolf puppies. Not that he had anything in particular against either, but he couldn't help but question how well some of the youngsters could hold on their own in battle.

"Keep an eye on them for me, will you?" Frath chuckled to Sheer as she descended onto his shoulder, sharp talons digging into the man's shoulder protectors, puncturing the lather enough to scratch at his skin just lightly. The man nothing but smiled at the slight jolt of pain, however. He had lived and hunted together with the bird for years far before he'd even known about this silly thing called armor that humans liked to wear to protect themselves from anything they didn't like.

Noticing he was about to be left behind despite his early arrival, Frath quickly made his way inside after the others.


Inside the Conference Hall, Tolbi

After having sneaked in as unnoticeably as a man almost two meters tall could (which was surprisingly well, actually. He doubted many saw him tiptoe past) Frath slumped onto the furthermost seat and rested his cheek on his fist.

Figuring it couldn't hurt, he allowed his eyes to flutter closed for just a second - or what he believed to be a second - only to awake with a startle some minutes later when his head slipped off his palm and his chin met the table with a loud bang. So much for going unnoticed. Ow.

Rubbing the area of impact, Frath straightened himself with a slight clatter of his chair, only to find that the headcount in the room had increased by one. And that there was... a tiger in the room now. He cocked an eyebrow at the sight. Not an everyday occurrence, that was for sure. The cat had beautiful fur. Sheer didn't seem to agree though, as she was making a silent protest to the other hunter's presence by walking around her companion's shoulder, clearly irritated.

Frath calmed her with a silent hush, but not before she pecked him in the nose for daring disturb her sulking. The man grinned lazily in response and then focused back on what mattered; the meeting. Right. He seemed to have woken up just in time to hear the aftermath of the announcement of their newest leader; one of the youngsters of the group, a female Venus adept. Sheer instantly shrieked her disagreement, but again, Frath patted her to silence her.

"Doubtful they would have chosen a bird, no matter how strong, a leader anyway, my friend", he mumbled, amused. "You had not much of a chance in the first place."

The bird seemed to almost scoff.

And so the actual meeting could finally begin.

 

[Kamotz]

"Looks like they're not happy with your choice of leader, Iodem," Gerard said chuckling lazily. He glanced from Tara to the other Adepts in the room. "Maybe let one of the children lead, no?"

"You think they're all so much younger than you?" Iodem challenged.

Gerard chuckled. "Well, that one certainly isn't," he nodded to the big Jupiter Adept and his eagle, then glanced to the little Mercury Adept, Timothy. "And that one most certainly is." He turned to Iodem with a critical glare. "I didn't know the League was in the business of sending kids out into the field."

"Eighteen is the standard age for graduation and Sentry rank," Iodem countered, holding Gerard's glare. "You and Tara were both eighteen when you undertook your first missions."

"He's eighteen?" Gerard scoffed. Iodem just frowned in response. "I hardly think this is an appropriate mission for someone so green. Something as important as this."

"And what makes you think this is such a critical mission, Leonhardt?" Iodem challenged. "You have a very high opinion of yourself, don't you?"

"Why yes, I do," Gerard quipped back. But he smirked and folded his arms across his chest. "And I know this is significantly more vital than you're letting on."

"Oh?" Iodem asked, a smirk forming. And only then did Gerard realize that this was all according to the League-master's plan. Another teaching exercise. Another lesson; for both himself and the rest of the team. "And how did you uncover that, might I ask?"

"You don't bring eight Adepts together for a mission unless you absolutely have to," Tara spoke up, her voice low, but strong. Unyielding. "Furthermore, it's not every day that Iodem himself, founder of the League, brings a team together for the briefing."

Gerard nodded before cutting in. "Most importantly," he began. "You don't put myself, Tara Slade, and the Wolf of the Blue Mountains," he nodded to Frath, "together on a single team unless it's something very important."

"You realize you just complimented two other people?" Tara smirked.

Gerard just shrugged. "Credit where credit is due."

"Antagonism aside, Gerard is right," Iodem confessed. "This is not a normal mission." He stopped, seeming almost unsure of how to proceed. He glanced back to the map, frowning. "The Warriors of Vale asked for this group to be put together. They left the individual members up to my discretion, but asked for eight Adepts to investigate a series of...incidents that they themselves were hoping to look into before being called away elsewhere."

"Where?" Tara asked.

"I'm not at liberty to say...and I'm don't exactly know for sure," Iodem confessed. Gerard recognized the well-disguised lie. It would have fooled anyone else. "But this team--and your mission--was their idea." Iodem took a breath before continuing. "We've been keeping track of a series of instances in southern Indra. Several weeks ago, a man disappeared in the middle of the night with no warning except a blood-curling scream. There was no sign of a struggle, no blood, and no human remains whatsoever."

"This is what Isaac and Felix called us for?" Gerard scoffed. "We usually let the local governments deal with this type of thing."

"Yes, but these attacks have been occurring more frequently," Iodem explained. "Men, women, and children are simply vanishing without a trace, so I decided to get the League involved before this gets out of hand. With the Warriors of Vale otherwise indisposed, you are being asked to step in."

"So we're going to Indra?" Tara asked.

"Yes," Iodem answered simply. "You'll travel from here to Suhalla and then to Lalivero There we've arranged a ship for you. Sail to the coast of eastern Indra, just south of the Dehkan Plateau and then continue your way south to Madra. That's where the instances seem to be centered.

"Any questions?" Iodem asked.

 

[Monster Guy]

As Tim sat in his chair, anxiously waiting for their task, a silver eyed black wolf bounded towards him. The sudden appearance of the larger canine frightened the small pup sitting on his lap, causing her to let out a small yelp, jump off, and cower behind her owner. Tim on the other hand wasn't scared of it at all. He liked all kinds of animals, big and small. "Aw, hey big guy!" He smiled and gently stroked the fully grown wolf a few times before his owner, a redheaded woman, took her seat, and he returned to her side. A blue haired woman wearing a rather revealing outfit, also took a seat between him and the redhead. The Mercury Adept blushed. He always got nervous when being around people, let alone girls. Both females looked rather intimidating in his eyes, as did everyone else in the room. Why am I even here?

As the two Venus Adepts spoke to Iodem, he noticed the male glancing at him, and gesturing in his direction. Tim had an idea what they were probably talking about, and upon paying closer attention to their conversation, he was proven right. They brought up how he was too young and inexperienced to be on a mission like this. He sank in his seat from being reminded of this fact, closed his eyes, and took deep breaths. While he knew that guy was probably right, he didn't think he was the right person to be judging him. His eyes narrowed. At least I know enough to get here on time, he thought. Besides, how am I supposed to get any experience if no one would bring me on any missions to get any experience? He didn't want to say that out loud and make a scene. So, he straightened his posture, his expression returned to it's usual meekness, and he listened as Iodem explained what they had been gathered to do.

They had to travel to Indra to investigate a series of incidents where people have been vanishing without a trace. What those incidents were was probably what they're being told to investigate, but it must be serious if the Warriors of Vale themselves asked for them. Tim was nervous about what they might encounter, but also determined. He wanted to prove his worth, and he couldn't afford to fail. When Iodem asked if anyone had any questions, Tim shook his head no. He felt everything was made pretty clear, and was ready to get started.

 

[GoldenHouou]

Frath found himself listening to the conversation unfolding in front of him with slight amusement, and just the tiniest bit of curiosity. The man with the tiger seemed to be quite the talkative type, a fact that came to the old wolf as an admitted surprise; the man carried himself rather proudly, and just a quick look at him was enough to tell Frath that he was not far from his physical peak - if not already there. The tiger certainly did seem to respect his partner, and as Frath knew from experience, no predator bowed to those not worthy of it. So yes, the man certainlylooked the part of a fighter. And yet, when he opened his mouth, the words that came out spoke to Frath of a carefree youth, intent on proving his worth not through actions and respect, but by through boasts and jokes, through words empty as the deserts of the south. It was a rather bizarre combination, but he held his judgment for the time being and supposed that perhaps that need for rebellious behaviour was just part of growing up - it certainly was rampant enough among youths he'd met to warrant that theory. Maybe, then, one day, the man's demeanor would match his image, and come that day he would nod the youngster his approval. For now however, the lady appointed as their leader seemed far closer to reaching that approval. Those with true power did not flaunt it after all, he'd found.

Not that all that came out of the man's mouth was pointless blabber; the man - Gerard, he believed it was - and him seemed to both share the concern over the well-being of the youngest members of their group, as well as the bafflement of gathering together quite the sizable number of people for a single mission. Frath was rather delighted to hear someone else put voice to his thoughts, as it meant he not only got to keep to himself for now, but that he got to see that he wasn't the only one with his point of view. After so many years of solitude, he did have to admit it was nice to find being agree with, for a change.

What he did not particularly like was the fact Gerard, even if just in passing, referred to him as a wolf. By all accounts, that was what he was, and it did not surprise him that the older and higher ranked who had heard of him were aware of this fact. The youngsters, however, most likely knew not of his species, and he would have preferred to keep it that way. There was no reason to breed distrust among the group before they had even been officially dispatched. He could only hope the others either assumed the title to be nothing but a play on the term "lone wolf", or not pay heed to the mention of it in the first place.

Frath sighed, scratching the back of his head. He found himself tired, and overthinking did nothing to help that fact. His smile remained however, and the sigh was gone as quickly as it had come as he focused his sights on Iodem and his explanation. The way the man described the disappearances instantly brought to mind his own nightly hunts. Could it be this was the doing of another one like him, an abnormal among abnormals? It was a possibility, but he supposed an unlikely one. Perhaps it was just him secretly wishing to find an explanation to his condition after so long. A chuckle escaped him, one quiet enough to go unnoticed by the others. Ah, he was being rather selfish, wasn't he?

At Iodem's final question, Frath scratched his chin in thought. Sure, he had quite the amount of questions, but none he expected to receive an answer to. He supposed, though, that all would be clear in due time. The first step was getting to the crime scene for an investigation, all questions prior would probably prove pointless in the long run. That, and he would have preferred to get going posthaste - people could be disappearing tonight as well, and he'd rather get this job done before the dawn of tomorrow - as unlikely as that was. His gut told him as much.

For now, he let his gaze wander among the group as he waited for their reactions or possible questions, only briefly stopping and raising a surprised brow at the manner of dress two of the young ladies present had chosen (one of them at least, seemed to have at least some practicality to her wardrobe). Were they truly meaning to travel - and fight - in that gear?

It seemed like he had more people to keep a protective eye on than just the teenage mage.

 

[Blivsey]

Lucia Lynwood
Conference Hall, Tolbi

She had to hand it to Iodem - he could give the other, younger adepts a good verbal jousting. A much more active approach than the quiet observation of the other elder Adept in the room, whom she had before thought to be waiting for a different meeting given the ages of the rest of the group. Honestly, it was a bit of a surprise that the two (assumed) Venus adepts were the ones stirring up the conversation - usually that would be more of a trait of Mars adepts. Odd, that, how the use of Psynergy had a strong tendency to mold one's psychology. Probably a reading topic that would last her a good week if she pursued it; alas, that level of biology was firmly over her head.

Iodem ended their small game shortly (unsurprising, given that nearly every one of the concerns brought up could be addressed by actually getting on with the briefing) and pressed on with the actual purpose of their assignment. Namely, to investigate a particular case in a string of disappearances in Indra - not a place with which Lucia was personally familiar, having never really left the continent of Angara despite her frequent travel, but she knew it to be largely flat with a few mountains about its latitudinal center (a likely place as any to spirit people away, she noted), and that its cities depended largely on fishing and sea trade to supplement its agriculture-friendly land. Very utilitarian, trade-wise. Not much to be gained by and person by carrying out their people-napping there, then, but also an inconspicuous place to operate. Surely no economic motive for these person-nappings, then.

Their travel plan, it was laid out, was to head south through the desert to Lalivero, and from there across the sea to the Indran coast, after which they would make their way to Madra, the source of the reports. Simple enough, albeit a lengthy journey to investigate disappearances with little else to go on. Many questions danced about Lucia's head as Iodem called for them, but as she stroked the backs of Mari's ears, she came up with as many reasons to leave them unasked:

Why should we be sent on such a long trek to investigate kidnappings without any obvious Alchemic influence? For all the League knew, it may as well have been a group of well-organized bandits. Yet she was sure that the particular circumstances were what piqued the League's interest in the first place, and also why they were cautiously sending out a large group.

A lack of general information was also concerning; for the number of big names being dropped in this room, their entire directive had been laid out in hardly more than two or three minutes. Did the League of Adepts truly intend to send them out on the contents of a letter and some suspicion? But questioning this decision was not something to be done by someone in her position, not yet a Master.

There was always the question of why this group in particular was chosen in response, particularly involving so many young Adepts, but to ask such a question would seem to border on fishing for complements, and thus she dismissed the idea for fear of appearing rude or pompous.

For the moment, Lucia pondered these and other questions, gently holding down the shivering rabbit in her lap in one hand and putting her thumb to her chin with the other, before finally deciding on a milder version of her second concern.

"What other information have we to go on?" she asked of Iodem. "For example, how many victims have been reported - a handful, or a dozen or more? Have these victims had any commonalities, and how far-spread are the incidents?" Admittedly, it was likely that they would have to investigate these questions upon their arrival in Madra, but whatever information they had ahead of time would aid in their preparation.

 

[bronislav84]

Cathy "Cat-chan" Katherine
Conference Hall, Tolbi

The young Mercury Adept played with the other girl's wolf. Was he really playing? He looked me over, blushing, and I wasn't sure if he approved or not, but paid it no mind either way. Whatever his opinion was, he didn't voice it and I wouldn't bother him about it. At least for now. I relaxed with my feet still up on the table in a cross position.

As I looked on waiting for the mission to be explained, the two Venus Adepts bickered like typical Mars Adepts. Maybe I was too hasty to judge them as stuffy. They were quite refreshing in their bickering. Not that this compelled me to follow their orders in the slightest, but maybe we could get along. Finally the mission was explained: Directly from the Warriors of Vale, we were issued a mission to investigate kidnappings in Madra in Indra, but we would have to get there first. I had to agree with the initial assessment that this seemed like something the authorities should handle, but wouldn't refuse a chance to go on a mission.

Not budging from my comfortable position, I looked around the room. One man was practically a geezer compared to the rest of us. While he no doubt had years of experience, I had to wonder if he would slow us down. Not that he was a senior citizen quite yet and looked pretty spry for his age, but it still made me wonder about him. He probably had similar or even worse misgivings about me, as he had looked me over too. I rather liked the animals in the room, and looked forward to getting to know them, if they felt like talking to me at all.

"I actually have two questions. Is there any other prudent information worth sharing, and how much time do we have to prepare? I'd like to pack my change of clothes in case we go into colder climates. Maybe some snacks if the boat trip is long." I said with a wide grin, thinking about the snacks.

 

[Kamotz]

Tara Slade
Conference Hall, Tolbi

"What other information have we to go on?" Lucia asked Iodem. "For example, how many victims have been reported - a handful, or a dozen or more? Have these victims had any commonalities, and how far-spread are the incidents?"

"Two-dozen disappearances have been reported to the League," Iodem answered. He paced towards the far window and stared out in silent contemplation. "We can't be certain they're all related without investigating further, of course. But the similar circumstances--no remains, no ransom, no evidence...it certainly seems the case. The rest, I fear, we don't know. I'm hoping that you will be able to uncover it. We have very little information on the situation. The center of these attacks are most likely in Madra, based on the fact that there aren't many population centers in southern Indra, but that doesn't exclude the surrounding area.""

"I actually have two questions," said Cathy. "Is there any other prudent information worth sharing, and how much time do we have to prepare? I'd like to pack my change of clothes in case we go into colder climates. Maybe some snacks if the boat trip is long."

Tara rolled her eyes.

"I--" Iodem stammered for a minute. "Your summons instructed you to assemble here with whatever equipment and supplies you would need for travel."

She could practically see the self-righteousness oozing from Gerard. He wore the barest hint of a smile, invisible to almost everyone else. But to her, he might as well have been sneering.

"Shouldn't old man Kraden know what this thing is?" Gerard offered. He leaned back against the wall, almost lazily. But Tara could see the strategy in his stance. He could have a weapon drawn and poised for a killing strike in half an instant...which in and of itself was unnecessary. The tiger--Amon, if she remembered right--could be ready in half that time. "I mean...he is the League's authority on all things Psynergy, right?"

"Kraden is off traveling," Iodem explained, shaking his head with a sigh.

That was unsurprising. Despite being well over 100 years old, Kraden still insisted on voyaging out with some of his pupils and continuing his study of Alchemy and its effects on the world.

"We did consult one of his pupils, though, asking her to look into his research and see if there was anything ringing similar to these circumstances," Iodem said with a frown. "But there's been nothing so far.

"We're sending you because we don't know exactly what's going on," Iodem said. "We thought that the Madran government would be able to take care of this. If it were a simple monster attack or murder, we wouldn't have to get involved, but Madra has been unable to handle this on its own, and even more people have disappeared. We don't know what we're dealing with so I decided to take the safest route and send in a strong group of Adepts to assess the situation. If it comes to be that this action was overkill, then so be it. But I don't want to be caught unawares. Especially if this is something the Warriors of Vale thought to be so critical."

Tara nodded; the answer made sense enough to her. But there were things that still bothered her, things that Drake's comments stirred up. For one, what could this "thing" possibly be? Kraden had to have some sort of idea: he was among the most widely-traveled sages in the entire world. He must have seen or heard about something that could possibly be behind these attacks. But if Kraden didn't know...

Tara's brow furrowed at the thought. No one liked to face the dangerous unknown. But if that's what Iodem and the League asked of her, then Tara would do what needed to be done. She'd faced down dozens of threats during her relatively short time as a Sentry, and felt that this wouldn't be any different.

"Okay then," she said with a sense of finality in her voice. "Then it's settled. We'll head to Suhalla and Lalivero right away."

"Good," Iodem stated. "Take care, and good luck. Keep us informed via messenger bird when you arrive in Madra and let us know what you find."

Tara nodded and then turned to her group of Adepts. "Her" group...she'd have to get used to that. She had big shoes to fill: Venus Adepts were the usual group leaders. She'd have to take into account every possibility; to prepare for every possible outcome. She needed to think beyond just herself.

She needed to step up. She needed to lead.

"Leah," she said softly. Her falcon partner fluttered in through one of the high open windows. "Head down to the dining hall and get Kano. Meet us by the front gate." The falcon didn't make a sound, just spun around and whipped through the air and out of sight.

"Cathy. Timothy," she announced, gathering the attention of the group. "Head into the city and pick up whatever medical supplies you think we'll need." Tara gave herself a mental pat on the back: Mars and Mercury mages were the most proficient healers among Adepts. Venus Adepts like herself had some healing techniques, but Tara wasn't as well versed in those as she probably should have been, all things considered.

"Frath, go with them; see if there's anything else in the market that might be of use to us: anything that might boost our Psynergy or any strong armor, weapons, or artifacts that we can use. I don't expect you'll find much, but keep your eyes open." Tara then turned to the remaining Adepts. "The rest of you are with me. We'll check out our current supplies for this quest and finalize all our travel arrangements. This all shouldn't take too long; we'll meet right outside the City Center in a half hour."

"Looks like you've got things under control," Iodem said with a proud smile.

'God I really hope so,' Tara thought, feeling the pressure. But she instead said, "Yes, Sir. We won't let you down."

"Well then, fearless leader," Gerard said with a smirk. He moved away from the door and with a flourish, offered it to her. "After you."

Tara rolled her eyes again and moved to step forward, but Gerard's lumbering brute of a tiger shouldered past her and exited first. The big cat didn't pay her any mind, he just let out a chuffing growl and padded silently down the hall. Gerard clicked his teeth in amusement and used Tara's hesitation to slip through the door after him.

"Don't let your guard down around him too much," she said, turning to Daciana and Lucia. If there was anything Gerard loved, it was a pretty face. She led the remainder of the group out, and nodded to Frath as he strolled away with Cathy and Tim. They'd meet back up by the City Center soon enough. And if they couldn't handle that...

She turned back, but Gerard was already gone.

"Someone his size walking next to a tiger shouldn't be able to disappear so damned easily," she muttered under her breath. Of all the other Venus Adepts to be partnered with, Iodem had chosen Gerard f**kin' Leonhardt. Of course he had his merits, but he was not a team player. He couldn't even play a damned duet right. She wondered if Iodem and the rest of the League knew of their history. She'd never made a big show of her personal life, but rumors spread easily among close-working colleagues, and Adepts were no exception.

She put Gerard out of her mind and continued down the hall. He'd either meet them at the City Center or she'd leave without him. That was all there was to it. She led the group outside, meeting Kano and Leah by the entrance. Kano looked more relaxed than before, and fell in step with her and the others quickly. He moved with a bit more bounce, much more content. Food did that. Leah sliced down through the sky, landed on Tara's outstretched arm, and hopped over to her favorite perch--Tara's shoulder--to preen herself.

=====

The Northern Reaches

He soldiered on. The cold meant nothing. It was all illusion, at least for him. The biting wind failed to penetrate the defenses he'd erected over his lifetime of training. The frozen buildup of ice on his skin and clothes did little to encumber his powerful movements. He called this place home. A harsh place to match him. A place that matched his fury.

"We have a task for you," whispered the voice in the endless wind. He bowed his head and looked away. "Forces move against us. You are to stop them. Eliminate them, or hinder them. The choice is yours. But do not fail us. The consequences will be dire."

"Of course," he vowed into the nothingness of his home. He felt movement behind him; great power plowing through the endless expanse of snow and ice. His partner did little to hide his growing distaste for the voices, for his benefactors. But his partner was loyal, and was privy to the rest of the plan.

The great beast let out a low growl, a sound that rumbled over the everstorm like the crash of boulders, like an avalanche, like an earthquake. Eagerness, anxiousness, and growing concern.

"Just another task, Bragka," he said, patting the enormous beast between the shoulders. Shoulders which nearly reached his chest level. "Just another step closer."

 

[*Jean Grey*]

Daciana Lupei
Tolbi Conference Hall

Daciana had dozed off in her seat, bored by all of the official talk. The room was cool, and she couldn't help it. Pissing off the so-called leader was a bonus for her. By the time she woke up, some of her colleagues were already leaving the conference room. She looked up and saw the female Venus Adept. Did that mean that she was with her? Daciana became alert as she sat up. A Mercury Adept girl and the latecomer Venus Adept were the other two in the group. She groaned as she got up.

"Great, what's worse than one Venus Adept? Two Venus Adepts..." She muttered, not exactly discreetly.

"Well then, fearless leader. After you." The Venus male, Gerard, smirked as he offered the door to Tara. The blonde was about to exit, but the giant tiger beat her to it.

"Don't let your guard down around him too much." Tara said. Daciana scoffed at the comment of the older girl. Was the Venus Adept implying that she was stupid, weak and naive? Daciana was twenty-two, an ex-bandit and a Mars Adept. Independent and assertive to a fault, last thing she wanted was anyone trying to get all protective of her....she could take care of herself after all, and she wasn't afraid to let her defiance show.

"I'm not some healing pussy, man! I can handle myself...or give him a damn black eye. 'Both' is also an option." The redhead replied, grinning sarcastically at her before heading out of the door, Lucian running beside her. Daciana wasn't taking orders for something she wasn't going to like, she wanted to do what she wanted to do...and this time, she wanted to be the one to try out the hang glider, guessing that there was going to be one. She was a natural, surpassing even most Jupiter Adepts, and she knew it. The older Jupiter Adept couldn't possibly work the device out. Logically, operating it was going to fall to her, and she was looking forward to checking it out and testing it. Lifting things was alright, but She ran down the hall, Lucian sprinting by her side.

"You better make sure there's a damn glider there, O Righteous One!" She shouted as she passed Tara at the exit, stopping outside. The Jupiter canine walked ahead and howled. One could tell that Lucian was eager for action, just as Daciana was. The redhead wasn't a patient or lax young woman, and she wanted to get this last stage of preparation over with already, and get on with the actual mission.

"C'mon, are we moving or not?! Where's the stuff?" She called out, her manner impatient and almost taunting.

 

[Monster Guy]

Timothy "Tim" Wolfe
Conference Room, Tolbi

The other Mercury Adept in the room, (Tim could recognize another Mercury Adept when he saw one. Her blue hair, and the colors she had chosen to wear gave her away,) had asked a question about the victims of these kidnappings. How many there were, and if they had anything in common. It was a good question, but Tim figured the League didn't have enough information to answer, which was why they were being sent out to investigate in the first place. A thought Iodem had proven right when he answered.

Then the other blue haired girl sitting next to him asked a question about how much time they had to prepare. He saw the Venus Adept lady that was their leader roll her eyes, and the male Venus adept grining smugly, as Iodem explained that they were supposed to be ready for travel when they got here. It looked like he didn't know what to make of her question either. Tim frowned, but kept quiet. He had already brought everything he needed, but that didn't mean everyone else had to be jerks about it. She was probably embarrassed about asking it now, and he knew very well what it was like to be embarrassed in a room full of people.

After all the questions had been asked, Tim had been ordered to go get medical supplies in the city. The boy nodded. He knew plenty of healing spells, but he had been taught a long time ago that it was wise to carry around a supply of healing potions in case of emergencies, and he agreed with that wisdom. Besides, while he could heal using whatever water is available as a catalyst, the special of properties of the Water of Life would heal much better than ordinary water. While he was there, he could also get other things he might have forgotten. After the blue haired woman brought it up, he thought about getting some more snacks for Alice, himself, and any other animals he might encounter on this journey.

He was told to go with the blue haired girl sitting next to him whose name was Cathy, and the older man whose name was Frath. He wasn't too sure what to make of them. They didn't seem like they were mean or anything, but they were still strangers in his eyes, and Tim could never be too careful. He wasn't used to seeing females wear so little clothing. Back where he came from, everyone was dressed for the winter. The most skin you ever saw was their face, so her choice of wardrobe was a shock to him. He also noticed she had cat ears and a tail. He had read about humans with animal parts before, but never actually seen one in person. He thought it must be pretty cool to be part animal. He didn't know what to think about the older guy. Tim wasn't certain, but he might have been older than his dad back home, but Tim knew it would be hypocritical to judge the man based on his age. At least he had an awesome eagle. Either way, he was sure both of them thought the same thing about him as that guy with the tiger. That he was too young and inexperienced to be here.

With a sigh, Tim got out of his seat, and made his way down the hall, Alice walking alongside him. Once he got to the door, he patiently waited for the other two to catch up while nervously shifting his weight from one foot to the other, and mentally bracing himself for the journey ahead. He was anxious to get started, but he didn't want to be a pest and rush the others.

 

[bronislav84]

Cathy "Cat-chan" Katherine
Conference Room, Tolbi

Jerks, the both of them. They were both jerks at me about my questions. I clenched my fists at them, but remained quiet for Iodem's sake and growled. I respected Iodem for the way he and the League gave me a job when I couldn't work at the club anymore, but the group leader Tara and the other Venus Gerard would have to earn my respect. By being a good group leader and with actions, respectively, not by being smug jerks at me. I wonder how Tara would feel if I lit her shoes on fire for rolling her eyes at me? Nah, that wouldn't really serve any purpose, even though it might be fun.

"Well I was too busy helping people this morning to prepare for a long trip halfway around the world! Not that I even knew what this summons was about at the time." I finally replied to Iodem about what he had said that we had to be prepared already.

Then I turned to Tara. "You're not the boss of me quite yet Tara, but since we were all assigned this mission and Iodem thinks highly of you....." I didn't get to finish that sentence, as Tim had already walked out. I headed after him as he waited by the room entrance and I followed. We were to buy healing items on the League's budget. Yay, shopping!

"I'll be right back." I nodded to Tim as I concentrated. I didn't use this very often, but it was faster than running in heels. My body was covered in shaggy fur as my clothes melted away then disappeared in front of him and I was forced onto four legs. I had transformed into my Beastform, meowed in what I hoped was a friendly tone, and bounded off down the hall to my room.

When I got there I changed back into my normal form, dove into my closet, pulled out my clothes for cold weather, and put them in the backpack I wore all the time. I also pulled out my red butt cape and tied it around my waist. At least now I could sit comfortably without freezing my behind off. Why didn't I think to put this on earlier? Eh, must have slipped my mind. Along with the medicines, I'd buy snacks at the market on the League's budget, and the others would probably enjoy them. I then locked the door to my room, changed back to Beastform and bounded back down the hall to meet up with Tim and the older man Frath again.

I transformed back to normal when I got there. "Sorry about that. I had to pack my colder outfit just in case, as well as this butt cape." I said as I turned around to show it off. "So, shall we head over to the market then?" I asked as I started to walk ahead of the others a little.

 

[GoldenHouou]

OOC: I'm temporarily alive again with the power of honey tea, so have a really quick post. Haven't checked it for errors or anything but it's here yay now back to work.

-----------

Frath Wieldson
Conference Hall, Tolbi

Just as Frath'd predicted, the answers to the questions thrown about weren't much more than speculation or repetition of what had already been said - or at the very least, what had already been implied. Indeed, if Iodem had had any more information to offer them, surely he would have done so already; anything else would just be wasting both his time and theirs, and Frath knew the man better to suspect him of being guilty of procrastination. Still, the fact that the others were asking questions in the first place did show their dedication and interest towards the task at the very least - so perhaps something good came out of this mandatory 'question time' in the end, after all.

Unfortunately, the questions also revealed, in the case of the young beastwoman, an alarming lack of preparation. Frath couldn't, for the life of him, figure out why anyone would come to a briefing ill prepared enough not to carry proper clothes. It wasn't even a matter of not having clothes for cold - her attire didn't seem suited for any situation he could think of. He had never understood the habit of some young human women to show off their body in such a way. He sighed a bit to himself as he scratched his head and messed up his hairdo even further. And if that hadn't been bad enough... snacks? This was hardly a picnic they were about to set out for. Food was one thing, snacks another, and as a beast she should have been more than able to hunt for the former when needed.

Curiously enough, the only other ones batting an eye at her questions were the other senior members of the group, namely the two Venus adepts and Iodem himself. Hm. Seemed like his first impressions had been fairly correct so far, then. Now that was a first - he wasn't terribly amazing a judge of character. Living in solitude most of your life tended to do that you. Still, he wished the two Venus adepts had been as mature about her question as Iodem had been. The young beast woman didn't seem a bad person in any way, after all, just very... inexperienced. Naive, perhaps. Making her feel ridiculed was hardly the proper way to guide her into maturing.

Well, so much of that. They had dwindled their thumbs long enough, so Frath welcomed the end of the meeting rather happily. He wasn't too excited to hear what was about to follow, however; instead of setting out at once to try and save as many lives as possible, they were instructed to go buy supplies. Was that not something you normally did in advance? That, and he was probably the worst choice for weapon and armor shopping you could imagine, as his knowledge on both was rather limited. Not that the Venus adept could have known that. Well then, maybe this was an apt time for him to learn. He wasn't going to criticize their leader because of anything this small.

So, with a nod of acknowledgment, he rose from his chair, stretched his limbs and slumped his way after the two youngsters he'd been paired with. He saw the mage and the cat woman waiting by the door, and just as he approached and raised a lazy hand in greeting, the latter transformed into her feline form and sped past him on the hallway.

And, for a split second, something rather predatory flashed in the werewolf's eyes. It was the feeling every hunter got when they spotted a fleeing prey. It was the reason you should never run from a dog on watch. It was instinct.

But luckily enough, it was also gone in a flash once the girl disappeared from view. With a heavy groan, Frath placed a hand on his forehead. He'd need to be careful about that. He'd learned how to deal with humans, but these beasts... they were a species rather new to him, and he still wasn't entirely certain how to react. In their animal form, they looked way too much like prey to his eyes. And in their human form, they seemed... curious. They were similar to him with their ability to transform, yet, he felt, they were also worlds apart.

The girl returned after a while with some new clothes in tow, and proceeded to... show off her "butt cape" as she rather strangely referred to it as, after transforming back into a human, seemingly with no effort at all. Ah. If only it had been that easy for him as well.

Regardless, Frath shook his head with a sigh and turned to the exit.

"Well then, if you two are ready," he suggested with a tired smile and walked ahead, his avian companion eyeing the two others expectantly from his shoulder, as if telling them to follow.

 

[Monster Guy]

Timothy "Tim" Wolfe
Conference Room, Tolbi

Once the old guy and the cat girl arrived, Tim was already prepared to leave. Before he had a chance to go, Cathy had to run off to get something, and did something that surprised the young mage. She had turned into cat, and ran down the hallway. His eyes widened in delight, and a smile formed on his face. It was one thing just to have cat ears and a tail, but it was another to actually be able to turn into one. If he had that power, he'd spend all his time in animal form, and only be a human when he had to. Life would be so much easier that way. He could spend all his time running around outside, and not give a care in the world for what other people thought. People usually knew better than to mess with a wild animal, and they would actually leave him alone. Then he could play with his animal friends in the forest all day long! Life would be great.

Tim was interrupted from his thoughts, when she got back a few moments later with some new clothes. Tim was absolutely amazed by the transformation, that he didn't seem to notice the new clothes. "OHMYGOSH! That was awesome!" The mercury Adept exclaimed. "I've never seen someone do that before! Wow! Um... What's it like, being a Beastman?" He asked rather excitedly. As soon as the words left his mouth, Tim immediately regretted it. That question sounded too personal, and she probably had to answer it many times before. He blushed for a second, and started twiddling his thumbs. "Oh... I'm sorry... That was rude of me... "Y...you don't have to answer if you don't want to..." He lowered his head, and walked away in shame. Frath had already went ahead, and Tim quietly followed behind him. Once the boy got to the door, he held it open for Cathy, and then walked out after she did.

---

The Tolbi market area wasn't very far from where they were. There were all kinds of indoor shops all over the place, as well as merchants in stands selling their wares. In the center was a huge fountain in the center. Being a marketplace and one of the busiest places in town, it was more crowded than the rest of this city, which made both Tim and Alice uncomfortable. The boy had to pick up his wolf puppy, and took her in his arms as both a comfort to her, and himself. It would be ok if he could just find that potions store. All these people crowded around in one place talking amongst themselves made it hard to concentrate on finding anything. He hoped his companions had better luck than he did.

 

[Kamotz]

Tara Slade
Outside League Headquarters, Tolbi

"I'm not some healing pussy, man! I can handle myself...or give him a damn black eye. 'Both' is also an option."

"I'd certainly hope for more--and better--options, too," Tara muttered under her breath as Daciana dashed away. 'Little c*nt,' she added to herself for good measure.

"You better make sure there's a damn glider there, O Righteous One!"

"Glider?" Tara wondered with a raised eyebrow. For a team-mission? What good would that possibly do? "I'll stick with things that make sense, thanks." Leave it to the Mars ***** to focus solely on her own selfish gratification.

She probably could have done without sending Frath with her healers. He certainly looked the part of a vagabond--a bit disheveled, his robes and clothes worn around the edges--clearly he traveled extensively. The Jupiter mage--was he a mage? He certainly looked the part. Then again, he carried that huge thing wrapped in bandages on his back. Tara certainly knew an axe when she saw one. Either way, based on his ensemble, he probably wasn't the best choice to send shopping for weapons and armor. She could have sent one of the other warriors, but hardly knew them. She'd have preferred sending Gerard; she knew him well enough to appreciate his martial prowess and understanding of weaponry, if nothing else, but he was already off on his own.

And Gerard had...complimented Frath earlier. A compliment. From Gerard. What was the world coming to? That was in no way a normal occurrence. What had Gerard called Frath? The "Wolf of the Blue Mountains." Why did that sound so familiar?

"Let's get moving," she said to the others...and herself. She wasn't about to dwell on it any further. "We don't have too much time. And I want to get started as soon as possible."

If her calculations were accurate--and they usually were--it'd take just over half a day to reach Suhalla, even accounting for slower travel time as a group. They'd have to rest, sure, but no more than 5 hours; that'd let them take the heat of Suhalla Desert in comfort. The Tornado Lizards that made the desert their home would also be less active at night, limiting the winds.

It was as good a start as any.

===

Gerard Leonhardt
Market Street, Tolbi

Gerard didn't like it. Something was off, scratching away at that primitive sort of sense most others didn't actually have. A nagging unease that didn't pass, regardless of how often he assured himself that he and Amon were the two most dangerous things in the vicinity. There was...danger. And he hated it--the idea that there was something out there that could threaten him, that dared to threaten him. Scavengers lurking at the edge of his senses. It was wrong. Scavengers should not threaten an apex predator like himself.

And yet...here they were.

The tip of Amon's tail twitched; he was feeling just as irritated, just as uneasy. The big cat was tense. His ears swiveled back and forth, searching for anything out of place. But in the crowded streets, there was little he could discern.

"Take a walk, Amon," Gerard muttered under his breath, so only the cat could hear him. "Sniff around and remember what you smell." He glanced around at the busy bustle. "I don't like being watched."

Amon growled under his breath. Anyone else and the cat would have just ignored them, wouldn't have paid them any mind or even pretended to understand. But for Gerard... Amon stalked away. A path cleared for him (and why wouldn't people move for a 600 pound cat?), and all attention was drawn away from Gerard. It wasn't the first time they did this; it was second nature by now.

Amon would register each scent and sound as he made his way down the street. He'd commit them to memory, and if they ever turned up in unexpected and unwanted places, he'd be there to greet them. Gerard, for his part, would watch the crowd, watch the people, watch their reactions, and use his own considerable talents to discern who among them was most suspicious. The scavengers would no longer have the element of surprise when they chose to act. It was simple, really.

Jackals do not threaten the tiger.

 

[Blivsey]

Lucia Lynwood
Conference Hall, Tolbi

Lucia held her hands in her lap, grooming Mari, as Iodem elaborated with what remaining information he had. It hardly much more to set off with, but that was about what she had been expecting, anyway. Two dozen cases under similar circumstances, but no significant evidence to link them for sure. Nearly everything would have to be legwork on-site, then, which was fairly enough not far outside the standard manner of operation for these types of investigation. Between the eight of them, it wouldn't take long to generate stable ground from which to work, in any case.

Her question was followed up by one of the two beastmen in the room, a girl about her own age; the question being of two parts. The first was simply a reiteration of her own query (was she not listening to the larger conversation at all?) and the second being a question of how much time remained to prepare for the mission, followed up by a particularly frivolous question regarding taking along snacks for the "boat trip". Lucia joined at least a few others in expressing her embarrassed astonishment, casting her gaze down and away from the girl (who, by the way, was hardly younger than Lucia herself); Iodem responded with similar dismissal.

After Iodem addressed certain other concerns remaining about the group (of which little amounted except certain admittance that they were selected for being a high-skill yet low-profile group) , the elder among them specified their plans to head out through Suhalla to Lalivero, after which the female Venus assigned the entire group their tasks, specifically regarding preparation for their travels. She had been assigned to the group regarding acquisitions of existing provisions. A bit of an odd decision, she thought; Lucia personally thought that she would better serve as an ambassador to the merchantry, having personal experience with them herself. Of course, she also was not in charge of the larger decisions for this mission and hardly in a position to challenge them, besides.

Their assignments being given, the de facto leader stood up to leave the room, on her way calling a familiar to her (a falcon, no less; Mari would hardly be getting a full night's sleep within the next month) and having yet another small clash with the large Venus adept. Ye gads, the tension between those two was two steps short of palpable. To her credit, the male Venus had slipped away hardly having offered anything to the group outside of boisterous advice to guard themselves. Really, is Lucia hadn't the rest of the group to go by, she might have pegged him for another hot-blooded Mars.

Tara had assigned most of the others, including the evident beastman and the senior member of their squad, out to seek supplies amongst the marketplace. One of the girls, rather thinly-clad and nearly wild in appearance, appeared to be as fickle as the first in minding the operation, as she was already suggesting such outlandish solutions as "gliders" (some wind-powered vehicle popular mainly for recreation, as Lucia had gathered) for their travel, and the one which had earlier suggestedf packing a picnic for their business now demanding a pit-stop to change her garments already. Power be to the other two adepts for their patience.

And so those four were left to their shopping; Lucia was stuck with Tara and the remaining Jupiter adept to plan the stock of their remaining supplies. With Mari kept close to her stomach for fear of the predatory bird now latched to the light-haired lady's shoulder, Lucia cautiously prodded her to begin discussion regarding their provisions; there was little point in wasting the time spent walking the halls without discussion, and besides, sooner decisions could allow Tara to send her bird-partner out to the others with new direction.

"How much should we expect the others to return with?" Lucia asked to begin with. "Surely we should pack lightly if we are to be crossing the desert to the south without undue duress. With respect, it may be better to gather more provisions at the port beyond so that we need not carry them on our backs, I may think." And all this was true, to her experience; heavier wagons and laden creatures were slow to cross the Suhalla, and the ship they had been promised would make transporting goods so much easier once they had reached that leg of the journey. Port towns were generally rich enough in mercantile traffic to generate a fine selection of foods and trade commodities, as well; it might pay them well to hold their coin until a later time.

 

[GoldenHouou]

OOC: Okay, all work done, catching up is a go.

--------------------------

Frath Wieldson
Market Street, Tolbi

After reaching the market, Frath and the two mages had split up as instructed to carry out their respective searches. The two others had, at least presumably, since the old werewolf hadn't exactly bothered to check, went to look for medical supplies, while he had set out to take a gander at the more blacksmith-heavy area of the market. He wasn't really sure what he was looking or what he hoped to find, but he intended to keep to his word and at least attempt to bring back something useful if possible. He didn't plan to sacrifice too long a time for his search however, as he still felt that setting out as soon as possible would be in the best interest of everyone. As such, his steps were just a tad more hurried than usual. Not that it showed; to anyone else, he still looked like he was dragging his feet and taking his time.

Another reason for his relative hurry to get his job done and over with was the strange, uncomfortable feeling that had been slithering up his spine like a constrictor ready to strike for some time now. Frath wasn't sure where it came from or what it entailed, and if it wasn't for the sheer intensity of it, he would have easily brushed it off as just his social anxiety acting up when surrounded by more heads than he could comfortably count. Actually, he was almost ready to pass the feeling off as just that, regardless; the humans moving around him, the occasional brush of an arm against arm and him having to glance down to avoid stepping on and breaking any toes whenever there were children near was slowly eating at his nerves. Him being almost a head taller (and wider) than most passersby helped somewhat, as it at least allowed him a clear line of sight no matter how surrounded by people he were, but not enough to bring him complete ease.

Long story short, he wanted to get out, be the source of the strange feeling whatever it may.

"So then, equipment..." The large wolf mumbled to himself as he reached the heart of Tolbi market's smith district. He slowed down his steps and let his gaze linger on each and every item around for a moment, only for him to invariably find some sort of flaw in them all and moved on. Truly, everything he saw was either too 'puny', too impractical or both, and he could imagine himself easily clawing through most armor he saw. And if he found something his claws couldn't combat, his axe at the very least could. If he hoped to bring back something particularly useful, it needed to be something few hunters out in outside world could hope to combat; in other words, not something he would find just laying around in a common marketplace.

And indeed, the more he looked, the less point he saw in his search. He didn't understand the importance of the things he was looking for, and to make matters worse, he held no previous knowledge of what the members of his team currently carried on them. How would he know their fighting styles or that whatever he brought back wasn't even weaker than what they already wielded? His judgment, then, on what was needed and what wasn't was anything but accurate.

It was then that the shrill cry of Sheer caught Frath's attention and offered a momentary break from his unfruitful search. Frath glanced at his companion, and saw her sharp eyes glaring daggers at something in the distance. Curious, the man followed her gaze over the heads and shoulders of the people around him, and surely enough, he didn't have to look for long before he spotted the cause of her senses flaring up; stalking among the crowd, equal parts turning heads and chasing people from its path without having to lift a paw, was a large tiger, one Frath knew he'd seen before. He wasn't sure if he had been told the feline's name, but even if he was, it escaped him at the moment. What he remembered was the beautiful coat the animal boasted, as well as the thick, deadly paws now pressing soundlessly against the ground as it made its way forward. Even if Frath didn't consider it exactly his equal, he did have to admit that it was truly a beautiful beast. Sheer must have agreed; she rarely paid attention to creatures she didn't either consider worth her time or apt prey, and this was definitely a case of the former. The wolf just hoped she didn't try picking a fight anytime soon.

The tiger didn't seem to be in any rush, but it most certainly was not on a Sunday walk, either. Its ears and muscles would indicate as much. Then, what was it doing, and without its adept partner, no less? Frath found himself being just the slightest bit curious. For now though, he unfortunately had another job to attend to.

"I will greet you in proper later, friend," he mumbled to himself with a smile as he watched the tiger from afar a few seconds more, before he focused back on the task at hand and picked up a rather promising pendant for closer examination.