Fantasy Skyheart (1 slot open)

[kase9187]

"Thank you. I want to make sure Spica's alright." Aldaf walked to the assistant, waiting for anyone who'd follow with.

SilverFlight SleepyCreamy Lioness075 YumenoTsukishiro Naberius Elenion Aura explosiveKitten AncientBird Saturn_moon

 

[SleepyCreamy]

As the group made their way towards Headmaster Candour's office, Zeke could feel his palms getting sweaty as memories drifted past his mind. He could remember when he first walked into this academy with his father, the glint in his father's eyes were always a mystery to Zeke, but as he grew older, he understood why as he himself has that same proud glint his father has. However, that was back then, before he woke up in a tent with a bunch of strangers. As he neared the familiar door, he could also hear some faint, but familiar voices. When the door opened and a person appeared in front of them, Zeke suddenly took interest in the floor beneath him as he held his head down while the person he really doesn't want to see simply walked past him.

The name Deralis has always left a filthy taste in Zeke's mouth, whenever he would hear it, he would always have this urge to run as far away from that man. He simply hated every bone in that man's body, to which he wondered why the headmaster would ever engage a conversation with him. The headmaster is a kind man in Zeke's eyes, one of the very few he could trust. So when he asks Zeke for a favor, then Zeke would accept any favor he would give.

Zeke listened as the group inquired more questions about their predicament and Zeke found it to be reasonable for them to be suspicious. However, Zeke was surprised when Kari stepped up and gave everyone a smile that held nothing but pure hope. The type of hope his mother would want him to learn. Zeke could feel his fist tighten up in determination. While everyone still has their doubts, Zeke could only be worried of one thing and one thing only.

Zeke stepped forward, finally revealing himself to the headmaster. “Headmaster Candour,” He nodded in respect, not caring if everyone’s watching, it just shows that he could be polite whenever he wants to. “May I inquire you about my mother?”

SilverFlight

 

[SilverFlight]

Candour looked up and his eyes widened as they settled on Zeke. A mix if relief and joy played on his aged features and without warning he stepped forward and pulled the boy into a hug.
"I had hoped...I knew you wouldn't leave without good reason...I knew you were part of this...somehow." He stepped back, giving the first true smile since they had entered. Kari thought a smile suited Candour. He seemed used to smiling.
"Welcome home boy. Yes, your mother is fine, I have been visiting her personally, and I send the assistants when I can't go."
Keshka was smiling in the background and Kari glanced back.
"You remembered him? Why didn't you say anything?"
"Wasn't my place. I didn't know how much he'd told you. Zeke doesn't like talking about himself much."
SleepyCreamy

 

[AncientBird]

Serik’s heart fell for hearing what Candour said. Even Estendor wasn’t safe from the monsters... Would his family specifically safe from them though? Serik wasn’t sure. They were rather normadic and although they would have to come to Ocris sometimes, the chance they would meet any deathborns on the way would be little... Nonetheless, it only increased Serik’s concern over his family. If anything, helping Candour uncovering this mystery would be the only sensible way he could contribute for his family’s safety...

“Thank you, headmaster...” Serik said and departed, followed Keshka to where the dorm was.

Serik stopped at the stable to release Valkyrie first. The place was large and grand, capable of stocking lots of skybeasts. Many had already been in their own stall, resting. The other teammates spread out to greet their skybeasts. Serik could see Kari and Aldaf talking while visiting Zephyr and Spica who seemed to take refuge in the upper level of the stable.

His friends’ skybeasts seemed comfortable in their own space. Serik greeted the one occurring on the ground level one by one as he walked through the passage.

“You all look so comfortable here. Take a good rest, you deserve it.” Serik said to the beasts.

Serik then noticed a woman who seemed to be one of the stable assistants just newly finished her work on a stall not so far away from the rest of the band’s skybeasts. At first glance, Serik thought she was a man, with her tall stature, possibly as tall as Aldaf, and her rather short, bob hair. Her arms showed quite some muscle indicating that she definitely worked out a lot.

The stable woman whistled loudly and gleefully, not noticing Serik as she pushed her gigantic cart full of fresh hay away. In front of the cart were 2 mules pulling it. The nimble beasts seemed really calm working in the place full of many potential predators that could easily kill them at any minute.

Serik took that stall and with his release word, Valkyrie emerged. She immediately turned to Serik and emitted an ear deafening screech right in his face. Serik however, wasn’t moved by her action. He stood there, facing his skybeast.

“Yeah, be angry all you want... Do you have any idea what would happen if you hurt or kill that poor staff earlier? Both of us would be in big trouble... You want to stay well fed and happy here in the society with me or back to the life of scrapping off tiny pieces of meat and got your food taken away everytime by gryphons or winged demons?” Serik said. If Valkyrie harmed any humans without a sensible excuse, both her and Serik would be punished by casting out to be clanless.

Valkyrie began to get calmer and turned her head away. Still, she was irritated that Serik encased her.

“Well, what about you stopped being a big baby and helped yourself over those fresh meat over there?” Serik said and pointed to her food bucket which were filled earlier by the staff. Valkyrie’s eyes sparkled as she started digging in her food.

“See? Isn’t this place good? You will be fed regularly and had fresh hay to lay on. Now take some rest and don’t make another scene or cause any more trouble.” Serik said, patting his beast on her leg and then went out. “I will see you tomorrow.” He added. Serik trusted the stork drake wouldn’t make any more trouble. After all this placed was full with skybeasts strong enough to intimidate her, Valkyrie would behave under their presence.

Valkyrie looked after Serik as he walked away from her. She then turned back to feast upon her meal.

Serik caught Kari and Aldaf leaving so he went to join them. “Hey, wait for me friends! I am starving.” He said.

Featuring: SilverFlight kase9187

 

[kase9187]

Aldaf returned to the dorms, looking a bit better after his trip to the stables to go check up on Spica. He still looked worse for wear, but at least he had his grin and his eyes held his spark of mischief.

Almost immediately upon returning, Aldaf set out for the bathroom to get washed up. Unlike the others, he hadn't been able to get a good soak until now, and was dying to clean off.

SleepyCreamy SilverFlight Saturn_moon YumenoTsukishiro explosiveKitten Naberius Lioness075 Elenion Aura AncientBird

 

[Naberius]

Caliban Lupei

After everyone had been dismissed from the headmaster's office, Caliban had started wandering around the gardens of the school, just taking things in. There was a lot of information to process, and he found himself walking around just trying to wrap his mind around everything that had happened up to this point, as well as the information they had just received. Things were never dull with this group, sure, but this certainly took things to a new level. Even the magic academy had a great deal of interest in them and their memories, and they were being asked to help them by training and studying here like they did before, so that hopefully their memories would return, and they could then aid them in recovering someone who had gone missing. He sighed, dropping down onto a stone bench and staring up at the sky, arms behind his head.

As if things weren't complicated enough. We still haven't figured out if or when we'll be able to go home and see our families. And now this... And I still have no idea what that weird feeling was earlier when we met Rhyne... I'm probably just over thinking things.

SleepyCreamy SilverFlight Saturn_moon YumenoTsukishiro explosiveKitten kase9187 Lioness075 Elenion Aura AncientBird

 

[SleepyCreamy]

Zeke was surprised when the headmaster hugged him without the warning and he didn't know how to respond at first, so, he immediately thought of the reason behind the hug. His heart dropped at the possibility of his own mother dropping far worse into her ill mind. But once the Headmaster gave him an answer, his heart suddenly swelled with relief. "You know me far too well, Headmaster. I'm not a fool who just leaves his ill mother behind." Zeke paused and nodded his head respectfully. "Thank you for taking care of her while I'm gone. I'll do whatever you ask of me and will perform to the best of my ability as my thanks. You've done enough for me and my mother, and it's mighty time I return the favor."

Zeke stepped away and once he did, he saw Kashka leading a few of them away and he took that as an opportunity to stray away from the group and check his beloved library. He simply has to make sure his books are still in tip-top shape. Would the headmaster have gotten a new librarian to replace him? The thought did frighten Zeke a bit, how else could he provide for him and his mother if he doesn't have a job. Zeke shook the thoughts away and decided to stray on another thought. He thought about how foolish it is to forget Keshka and her explosive personality, or Ord's gentle personality. He smiled at the faces of students that were around at the same age as him, act so scared around Keshka. He was around fifteen when he started his career as a librarian and he remembered the funny looks he would get whenever the older kids would look at him when he presents them their books. This was truly like his second home, and he doesn't want anything to happen to it, so he would be determined to help protect it to the best of his ability. He will sharpen his skills if he has to.

Once Zeke has finally made it to the Library through the corridors of the Senior Dorms, Zeke was hit with the sudden feeling of nostalgia. Rows and shelves of books rose above them up high towards the ceilings. Zeke walked through the rows and then towards the desk where he would mostly spend his time on. Zeke went around the table and was greeted by the tidiness it held. It looks exactly the same as the way he left it. Zeke let out a bright smile as Stitt flew around the area where she would lounge. There was a tiny birdhouse in front of the desk where Stitt would greet the students and would ask for free pets. Perhaps, that was one of the many reasons why the library would get so many visits. Stitt chirped happily at the sight and Zeke fished Aldaf's carving out of his pocket and placed it right next to the birdhouse, the part underneath the carving was a little bit uneven, so he tilted it so that it would be leaning towards Stitt's resting place.

"Let's just go and get to bed." He told Stitt as he made his way back to the hallway. The seniors must be asleep if they were to be this quiet. Zeke made it in front of the courtyard, only to find a figure sitting on a stone bench, while they were surrounded by beautiful greenery. Zeke sighed when he noticed that it was Caliban, wearing a worried face. Zeke may have his life back, but the others are still going to have to settle soon enough.

How can the asshole be so lucky? Am I Right? Zeke sighed and was about to turn away when Stitt whizzed past him and made a beeline towards Cal and Zeke released a frustrated groan of disapproval. Why?!

Zeke tried to pinch Stitt's tiny wings and drag her back towards their assigned rooms, but the little creature was too fast, it was as if he was trying to catch a lightning-fast hummingbird. Stitt however, has other plans in mind, she has always wanted the best for Zeke as she herself saw the kindness within his heart, and she wanted to share that side of him to others. Stitt only chirped and landed herself on top of Caliban's blonde head. When Zeke was in front of Caliban and saw the state he was in, he uttered the first words that would come to his mind. "You look..." Zeke paused for a moment and reconsidered using the word, 'pathetic'. "Sad." He finally uttered. The look simply doesn't suit him, and the same thing could be said with a particular boy that has been swimming in his mind lately. Zeke sighed and took a seat right next to the blonde boy. After Zeke's 'mean' statement to Katja, Zeke was surprised to see Caliban without a smile on his face, that was when he knew he took it too far, along with the silence he received from a certain emerald-eyed Sudenta boy.

All he had to do was to apologize, right? So how can a single word be so hard to say for Zeke? Was it because of his pride that was keeping him chained from opening up his feelings for people? Or was it the lingering fear of the disapproving eyes he would receive once he finally opened up his feelings? Or perhaps, could it be both? Zeke would never know the answer for this, but what he did know, is that this was bound to happen. He was bound to be confronted by his actions, Kari already did that for him, but Zeke refused to see her ways. Maybe this time, he'll be ready. Maybe this time... he can properly take that first step into being a better person.

Naberius

 

[kase9187]

Aldaf stood in the bathroom staring at the monstrosity in front of him. The shower was foreign to him, he had no idea how to really turn it on. What the fuck. He thought to himself.

After struggling with the shower for about 3-4 minutes, Aldaf got it turned on.

(Minor timeskip, feathers can happen in between)

Aldaf got out of the bathroom, new clothes on. He had dried off, and decided to look around a bit. After all, they just got here and the shower helped wake him up, if just for a while longer.

...

Aldaf wandered around the grounds, humming the same song he'd seen Zeke dance to back at the Proving camp. The tune was really catchy. His humming echoed softly down the hallways as he wandered.

During his wanderings, he saw Zeke and Cal mid-conversation in the gardens or something. He wouldn't force Zeke to talk to him, but his humming made his presence known. He strolled off, looking for nowhere in particular.

Aldaf couldn't help but think back to his... "episode" after Zeke had left. He hoped that Zeke would come talk to him, but felt a small tinge of doubt.

...

After walking around a bit and seeing some rooms, such as the library, Aldaf decided to head back to the dorms to get some shuteye.

After getting back, Aldaf practically fainted into his bed and fell asleep rather quickly.

SleepyCreamy Naberius

SilverFlight Saturn_moon explosiveKitten AncientBird YumenoTsukishiro Elenion Aura Lioness075

 

[explosiveKitten]

Katja was mystified by the hours that followed. She had been wide-eyed throughout the entire adventure. She was feeling a million different emotions are flipping through her head. Stress, awe, doubt, fear, wonder. Gods above, this guy was hot. And commanding. He made her explain her whole process twice, and yet she got the feeling that he wasn’t actually listening to her.

His choice of decore was certainly... a choice. Uh... It almost immediately felt like he was going to throw her in a vat of preservatives and keep her as part of his collection, but that’s a horrible thing to think about someone, Katja! You don’t even know him! Bad!

Despite all her tiredness, all her fatigue, she pushes through everything to help Ord. She was shocked by the other room in this office, only adding to the creepy factor.
She watched as he mended Ord’s flesh with magic, and her jaw dropped when she saw it. Before she knew it, she had been swept off to the previous room with all the creepy wallpaper, sitting in a cushy chair with a cup of tea in her hand. One sniff of the tea told her it was a spice blend... One sip immediately told her those spices were chai. Not too bad. Katja was rather partial to the classics, herself. But good tea is good tea.

While she awkwardly trying not to look at the walls and shelves, Rhyne started bombarding her with statements about magic, what they had done here, offering to teach her magic, and- hold on, slow down mister!

“I believe it’s safe to say that everyone has been trying to remember the entire time, myself included... If you’ve lost a friend then I’m sure everyone will be eager to try to help. Of course, I’ll try too. Erm... I feel that I should say thank you, for the offer, Mister Rhyne, but if I may, may I have some time to think on such an offer? I’ve always tried to not be too hasty with things. Plus, my mind is rather... distracted right now.”

She put the tea down on a small table beside the chair and tried to not yawn too obviously, “I’m also sure that you can tell, we were all rather tired when we arrived, and I’m unfortunately no different. I wouldn’t want to make decisions without a clear mind... you understand, I’m sure.”

“Me? Oh.. I could have sworn I already mentioned this, but, um, I’m Katja. Nice to meet you.”

SilverFlight

 

[Elenion Aura]

Matthias​

Matthias kept quiet for the rest of the Headmaster's spiel. His answer had sounded sincere enough, but still, Matthias could not be sure. Keshka and Ord had proved their loyalty, risking their lives to save him and the others. Ord had nearly lost his. Nearly. Matthias wondered if that were true. He didn't want to think about it. Besides, the white hot of Keshka's eyes boring two holes into his head was enough to keep his mind away from more morbid topics.

Then, just like that, they were dismissed. Some went to the stables, others went gods know where. Matthias hung back. He was not one for sneaking about; there was no honor in employing under handed tactics. Yet, he figured, if what the Headmaster said was true, they were honored guests, privileged to walk freely. If that were the case, then what he did next was perfectly justified. Matthias sought to test this. He retraced his steps, doing his best to appear as inconscpicuous as his frame, and obvious Northarian features would allow, until he arrived back at the massive double doors the group had passed on their way to the Headmaster's office.

He examined them from afar with a skeptical look. Men without secrets have nothing to hide. Matthias thought. Then what need have they for doors meant to keep people out? This was reason enough for Matthias to approach the doors, slowly. They were truly massive. He didn't think a team of men could open them. But still, he drew near, placed his hands on their cool metal hand hold, and pulled with all his might.

Tags: Lioness075 SleepyCreamy AncientBird kase9187 Saturn_moon Naberius YumenoTsukishiro explosiveKitten SilverFlight
​

 

[SilverFlight]

Rhyne blinked, as if just now realizing that rest was a normal thing that people needed.
"Hmm, yes. I've told you what my intentions are. The rest is up to you."
He stood up and moved over to his desk and paused.
"Something for you and your friends to consider: the training will be hard, the more your skills grow, the more danger you will be in, but, I'm not speaking about the deathborn. This city...has a great many snakes. Goodnight."

explosiveKitten

Keshka was the last to leave, bowing respectfully to the headmaster before going out. She noticed Matthias, and his attempts to open the large metal doors.
"Five."
She called out, walking up to him casually. "It takes five people to open these doors. They are almost solid iron."
There were a handful of assistants leaving too and with a nod, Keshka asked them to help.
She took the handle above Matthias' hands and the others took the handle of the other door. With all their effort the doors still came open slowly.
What was inside seemed like an empty room, a quarter of the full round interior, lined with metal plating. The floor was also solid metal and pipes ran underneath, water gurgling quietly through them.
With a flick of her wrist Keshka sent light to the ceiling, illuminating the entire space. Scorch marks scarred the walls, radial patterns with a blackened central point and swipes, like someone had dragged soot across them. Marks of fire and lightning magic.
"Welcome to the elemental magic training hall, Matthias."

Elenion Aura

 

[Elenion Aura]

Matthias​

Matthias' expression belied his disappointment. The doors seem a bit excessive if all they are guarding is an empty room, he mused. Then he eyed Keshka. He grunted in response to her welcome. His back was up, and he faced her, the walls of the training hall spreading wide behind him.

The silence filled the space between them, but Matthias felt no call to fill it. Silence was his baseline. He stared at her.

Tags: SilverFlight
​

 

[explosiveKitten]

Katja felt like her blood turned to ice in that moment.
“This city...has a great many snakes. Goodnight."
Well, obviously he doesn’t mean actual snakes, but- I mean there’s are probably actual snakes, it’s the desert, but... I know he’s talking about people. But who? Why?

“Er, before I go, one more question, though I’m not sure if you can answer it... Um...” She stood and walked up to the desk, sipping the remains of the tea in her cup, “I was just wondering if ah... If you perhaps knew if there was someone I could talk to in order to find some other people who live in Westeros? I’m looking for the um, the Ahkamet family?”

SilverFlight

 

[SilverFlight]

"Well, if you're satisfied we're not secretly all evil, I am going to check on my friend." Keshka said flatly and turned to go. She stopped at the door frame for just a moment.
"I didn't thank you, for going to help him, back at the island. So, there, now I did." With that, she left him there, standing in the hall, with the doors open to the cool night air.

Elenion Aura

Rhyne blinked again, trying to filter through the limited number of names he kept in his memory.
"Hmm, headmaster Candour can send you to them in the morning. As I recall there might be a council member with that name. His office opens at eight, door left of the rotunda. Goodnight."

explosiveKitten

 

[Elenion Aura]

Matthias​

Matthias watched her go. What was he doing here? Why did it feel so difficult to trust these people? Matthias asked of himself, though he already knew the answer. He knew what his father would say if he found out that Matthias were here - or that, apparently, he'd been here already. He sighed, as if the act of dredging up old memories had drained him. He waited until Keshka's foot falls were too soft to hear before making his way toward the large doors, now swung wide. Then a thought struck him, and he half-turned around until he was stuck midway between the outside, and the training hall. Hall of Elements, eh?

Matthias raised a tentative hand and flexed his fingers. In an instant, sparks alighted across the back of his hand, dancing between his splayed fingertips. It felt like instant relief, like a breath held too long finally released. He shook his hand out and the sparks diminished. This felt like a bad idea. Matthias turned toward the exit again, took one step towards it, then flung himself back, arm extended, toward the cavernous open room. His whole arm ignited with curling tendrils of lightning. He flexed his power, and a bolt of blue-white energy arced from his hand and lanced across the far wall, leaving a fresh scorch mark to match the others.

Matthias, eyes wide with disbelief, hurriedly shook out his arm until the tingling sensation dissipated. He fled the training room, doors left wide, into the night.

Tags: SilverFlight
​

 

[AncientBird]

Serik arrived at the dorm. The room was large and there were stalls that separate each bed out of each other. The dorm was mildly decorated comparing to the building outside but it was clean, neat and tidy, giving the feeling of security and comfort. Serik picked a bed to claim as his and put his belongings beside it. He then headed for a bath, heading toward what he assumed to be bathroom.

Upon entering the room, Serik found himself more stalls... He was confused, he expected it to be a large tub for soaking inside. "Alright... So Westerosians don't bath in tub? How is this supposed to work then?" He said and entered one of the stall. Serik found more troublesome equipment. One is a large metal object, with long handle that could be lifted and down. Serik tried stroking the handle several time... But nothing happened. "Well, am I even in the bathroom?" Serik said to himself. He then saw another metal piece sticking in the wall, above it was metal pipe coming from the ceiling of the room. Perhaps the water is supposed to come out of the pipe? Serik thought to himself. He had a feeling that the metal piece on the wall had something to do with it. He tried pushing it, pulling it... Nothing happened. Just then that Serik noticed that the metal piece kind of shaped like a wheel... He decided to trying turning it around...

In that moment, a jet of water gushed down from above and right on his head. "Alas!!!" Startled, Serik jumped backward, his head banged against the wall. the young man collapsed to the floor with his hands over his head where it hit the wall. "Ouch... so the water does really come from that pipe..." Serik groaned in pain. Hearing the sound of water, it seemed that others had used the bath stalls next to him as well. Feeling the pain fading away, Serik took off all his cloths and walked under the stream of water coming down. This was the first time since waking up at central island that he took an actual bath and it was the first time in his life to take a bath this way. Serik wondered if anyone back at home would believe if he told them about these strange bathing objects.

Thinking about his family suddenly turned Serik's mood down again... How are they doing during all of this? Are they safe? Well fed? Question started to overwhelm Serik like the stream of water that poured down over him. He put his forehead against the wall and with that, came the tear of concern and homesick, which was quickly dissolved in the water. However, Serik wouldn't let the emotion taking over for long. He would have to be strong... If he could help solving the problem with deathborns and the memory loss, he would be able to go home, and everyone would be safe... And things would return to be the way it always be...

Featuring: SilverFlight SleepyCreamy Lioness075 YumenoTsukishiro Naberius Elenion Aura explosiveKitten kase9187 Saturn_moon

 

[explosiveKitten]

“Oh, uh, okay, thank you. Goodnight.” Katja did an awkward bow, then realized that was probably the wrong thing to do, and instead of apologizing more like a fool, she simply scuttled out of the room.

When she was out of there, she leaned against the wall and exhaled heavily. She wasn’t sure what to do at this point. She was tired, hungry, sweaty, and overall just not having a good time. She needed to recover, bathe... rest. For the rest of her life. Honestly she hadn’t felt this stressed since... well, those days.

She managed to trot around by herself for a short while, till she found somewhere to wash herself with... an incredibly strange bathing system- Piping water into the building, sure, but then instead of a tub, they just spray it out of this weird nozzle high on the wall and... it was strange. She managed to wash herself, thankfully, but now she had to find the dorm room she was staying in. She needed a nap. And this was a large place. She supposed that she could just.. follow the crowds?

 

[SilverFlight]

Kari left the headmaster's office feeling hopeful. They had made it. The deathborn could no longer track them, and she had a way to refine her skills. She looked at the grounds, and the few assistants left running errands in the late evening. Every one of them was a mage, and it made her feel safer than she'd felt since waking up in that strange tent at the proving. There were still so many question left to answer, but they could wait until she'd had a long rest.
After a quick trip to the stables with Aldaf, Kari found her way to the dorms, pointed out to her by some of the staff.
Her belongings had already been taken from her saddle and put on a bed. She was headed to the showers when she found Katja
"Hey, there you are! You look lost." She pointed to a door, where light was pouring out onto the hallway floor. "Our room's that one."

She showers were a marvel and it took a quick douse of icy water and then a burst of hot before she managed to figure it out. She squealed as the cold water hit her and then laughed. She would have to ask how this system worked in the morning. It was fascinating.
Clean and dressed in light, linen pajamas Kari was ready to climb into bed and sleep for a week.
She felt relieved to be in a dorm with the others, everything was still so new, and she didn't want to be alone.
The bed was plush and soft, with down-stuffed pillows, far softer than they had slept on for days. Kari had almost forgotten what a proper bed felt like and she lay back in it and smiled.
"Not bad." She thought out loud. "I don't think even my bed at home was this soft..."
She sat up then, suddenly not half as tired as she had been. Now the excitement of where they were was starting to kick in. "Where should we go first tomorrow?" She asked this to no one in particular. "The market? We do need our new clothes. I saw a stable when we were flying in, I have to check that out."

Lioness075 SleepyCreamy AncientBird kase9187 YumenoTsukishiro Naberius Elenion Aura Saturn_moon explosiveKitten

 

[Saturn_moon]

Marylka's mind was still reeling from Headmaster Candour's words as they left his office that she barely processed where they were going. It wasn't until one of the assistants pointed out the bathrooms that she remembered how incredibly dirty she was. That fact that she could smell herself - and it was far from a pleasant scent - was a huge giveaway that she was in desperate need of a bath. All other concerns, no matter how formidable they may seem, could at least wait until she didn't smell like something had died inside her tunic (the irony of that thought was not lost on her).

To her utter bemusement, upon entering the bathroom, rather than finding a bath as she was expecting, she was instead faced with individual cubicles each outfitted with some strange metal apparatus attached to the wall. She'd heard of the technological advancements the world had made in the last few years, and even seen some in the city of Ocris, but the nomadic life hadn't given her many chances to be exposed to them. Had she been less tired and filthy, she probably would have taken the time to appreciate this feat of engineering, but as things stood, she just really wanted to get to bed. She stared at the contraption for a moment with wide-eyed confusion then moved to press her hand against the wall. With her magic she could feel the water running through a pipe system behind the stone which led to the handle in front of her. Several long and cold minutes passed with her randomly fiddling with the various handles and knobs when water suddenly rushed out from the nozzle above, giving Marylka a very cold and wet surprise.

Soon the warm water enveloped her and she began to methodically scrub her skin with a wash cloth, making sure to get the dirt off every inch of her body. The act was a good distraction from her thoughts and gave her some semblance of being in control of everything that was happening. When she was done, she put on the linen pajamas they were given and made her way back to the dorm. Walking through the corridors, she was filled with a sense of deja vu and each step pulled at the vestiges of her memory. While she wanted to explore the compounds more, she decided she should try to address her physiological needs first.

Crawling into the soft bed, she felt all the tension in her body slowly melt away and her problems felt infinitesimally smaller. She absent mindedly started brushing out the knots in her hair while she reevaluated her current situation. She was alive and she was safe so that was already a huge win in her books. Sure, there were about a hundred other things to worry about but she decided she would take the challenges one at time, like checking items off a to-do list. That was the most pragmatic and sensible thing to do and eventually, once she had worked through the list, everything would be okay. Right?

Lioness075 SleepyCreamy AncientBird kase9187 YumenoTsukishiro Naberius Elenion Aura SilverFlight explosiveKitten

 

[Lioness075]

Name: Leandra LaFrae	Nicknames: Lea, Firefly
Clan: Sudenta	Clan Job: Huntress
Equipment: Knapsack, Medicinal Pouch, Bow, Quiver (0/10), Twin Daggers

Spoiler: Momo's Appearance

Spoiler: Falarion's Appearance

Falarion actually has brightly colored wings that have a rainbow hue in bright lighting. In darker settings, they can seem muted into a dark grey or even black color. He also does not have the golden tattoos spanning his body or the necklace around his neck.

Leandra's head popped up when the headmaster began describing all they had studied during their time here. She had never recalled planning on attending the Academy for anything, but she must have decided to come here one way or another. She was intrigued to hear the mention of other magics beyond the usual four. Lightning and light were mentioned, which reminded Leandra of the spear Gerel had thrown that had radiated something more as well as when Serik had created his temporary clones. It was bizarre to think there were more magics out there and terrifying to know the dark magic existed to bring life to the Deathborn. That told Leandra that someone knew of light magic and had purposefully gone out of their way to seek out its polar opposite. The mere thought sent chills up her arms.
Having been distracted by her thoughts of magic, Leandra snapped back to the present when engineers were mentioned. She felt her curiosity spike at this, as she remembered that her quiver was now barren of arrows. An engineering workshop would be the perfect place for her to restock with her own meager supplies and plus some. What little gossip she had picked up in the city when trading had clued her in on some hints of the technological advances that were being made here. She could only imagine what she would find at the engineering workshop.
Leandra worried about this Danubey they had to seek out, though. If he had figured something out about the Deathborn that caused him to flee...she feared what they may find out in the process of finding him. What terrible secret did he uncover that made him feel compelled to flee so abruptly?

When dorm rooms, baths, and food were all mentioned, Leandra finally was able to manage a weary smile. That was all she needed to hear in order to feel a semblance of happiness return to her. More than anything, she wanted a reprieve from all they had suffered in the past few days. It had all happened so quickly and with so little rest in-between. She could only imagine how well Falarion must be sleeping in the stables without Deathborn disrupting their sleep once more.
Leandra felt too tired at this point to give any fancy speech and merely nodded in agreement with those who voiced that they were onboard. It certainly could not hurt to relearn their skills and abilities they had lost in their memory lapse. What brief moments she had seen in her memory flashes told Leandra she had undoubtedly been excelling in her studies and practices here. Catching an arrow just like that...she had no way of understanding how that was even possible for her to do.

Just then, Caliban nudged her and Leandra sighed.
"It's just...it's been a long few days is all."
She scuffled her feet and then purposefully trailed behind the group with Caliban as they made their ways to the dorms.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Now in the bathing facilities, Leandra was baffled at the contraptions before her. She had truly expected some fancy wash basin, but this was on a whole new level. She took a few minutes to merely examine each piece and began poking and prodding about. She soon figured out the hand pump since it took her a moment to realize she had similar contraptions back home. The shower head and its weird tiny wheel were another story. She finally figured out to twist it in one direction and got a face full of water.
"Mother-!" She gasped in surprise and jumped back from the water before righting herself and reassessing the situation. Soon enough, she figured it all out and connected the dots.

Returning to the dorm rooms in her fresh pajamas, Leandra finally felt her shoulders slumping in both relaxation and exhaustion from everything. She approached an empty bed near Kari and was about to face plant into it when she posed her questions. It was like rapid fire and Leandra took a moment to simply stare at her in disbelief. She could not begin to fathom how Kari had such energy out of the blue.
Wearily, Leandra walked over to Kari's bed and gestured at it before asking, "May I?"
Once she got permission, Leandra eased down on the end of Kari's bed and immediately smiled as she too relished in how soft the linens were. She brought her legs up and sat with them crossed in front of her.
Facing Kari, Leandra copied the headmaster's thoughtful look from earlier and then said, "It'd probably make the most sense to get new outfits first. I have a feeling I'll be sunburned before noon if I don't get something to conceal most of my skin."

SilverFlight Naberius Saturn_moon kase9187 SleepyCreamy Elenion Aura YumenoTsukishiro explosiveKitten AncientBird

 

[SilverFlight]

Kari moved over with smile, letting Leandra sit.
"Yeah, the sun wasn't all that kind to us on the flight here, I guess that's why Keshka had us flying at dawn and dusk most of the time since hitting the main land." She paused for a moment as she thought.
"What do you want to see?"
They could go anywhere, the headmaster has said, and there was an entire new world out there just waiting to be discovered. Kari has never been off the Estendor plains (that she remembered) and she was filled with a curious wonder now that the danger of the days before had faded.

*~*~*

Kari slept like she had never slept before. After days of adrenaline, hard bed rolls and grueling flights she didn't realize just how tired she had been. The sun was pouring through the tall windows, open, without glass but wrought iron decorative coverings. The faint sounds of the city streets floated up to her, as strange as the scents of the city and the feel of linen sheets.
The smell of breakfast pulled her out of bed. To her surprise, it was the man from the previous night, Rhyne, looking as devastatingly pretty as he had before, bringing a cart stacked high with the most decadent pastries Kari had ever seen. They looked like they had been pulled from the oven fresh that very hour. There was also a pot of steaming tea.
"Headmaster Candour bids you good morning on your first day." Rhyne started, in his delicate monotone. "From now on, you will have your meals served along with the students in the great hall below the junior dorms."

Kari slid from her bed and took a pastry under his graceful blue gaze. She dipped her head in a thank you.
The crust was thick and flaky, and inside was a soft berry filling absolutely bursting with a wonderful flavour Kari didn't recognize. She finished her first in seconds flat and took another, and a mug of tea.
"This is amazing!" She said through a mouthful. "Guys try that puffy one!"

As Rhyne watched them eat the corners of his mouth twitched up ever so slightly.
Suddenly a voice began to echo down the halls, growing louder as its owner closed the distance.
"Rhyyyne! Rhyne!"
For a split second, Rhyne looked like a frightened cat, and then a big, extremely well-muscled woman came bursting through the doors.
"Rhyne! This time I've got it! A new design to replace your missing hand!"
She was tall and broad and Kari didn't fancy the chances of their biggest members against her. Strawberry blonde was partly braided tightly against the sides of her scalp, and left to hang down from the back, draped over thick shoulder muscles. The tattoos on her bare arms looks Northarian. She had a square jaw and an overwhelming presence. A pair of glass-lensed goggles rested on top of her head. She was holding what looked like a brass gauntlet, though there were two pieces that overlapped and looked like they were designed to come together.
"Targus, do not give us a--"
"I'm gonna give you all a demonstration!"
She placed the pincer-like brackets loosely around a mug of hot tea.
"And now I activate the mechanism..." And she did, using some sort of mechanism on the inside of the gauntlet, Kari could only guess it would be activated by a subtle muscle movement in the arm. Gears began to whir, as cogs and cams turned under the open cage of the central piece. The pincers slowly began to come together and they took hold of the mug.
The woman, Targus, held up the mug triumphantly...right before it exploded from the pressure of the grip.
Tea flew so far it hit the walls, spattering people and beds, but thankfully causing no injuries.
Rhyne, now dripping, picked a piece of pottery off the pastry plate and tossed it to the floor.
Targus looked less triumphant. "Well, I'll need to refine the mechanism before you start sewing people up with it..."
"Go get more breakfast." Rhyne told her flatly.
"Right! But don't worry, I'm almost done!" She put her arms about Rhyne, who stiffened visibly.
"I can kill you in a hundred and thirty six painful ways Targus."
Targus only laughed and vanished through the door.
"Targus is our instructor for lightning magic...and our engineering expert." Rhyne explained softly. "You will learn about the workshops tomorrow during your first day of classes.
She came back not long after with a new cart, and a broom and mop and began to clean up the remnants of the explosion. The device, still grasping shards of pottery, sat on the old cart, gleaming in the sunlight.

Lioness075 SleepyCreamy AncientBird kase9187 YumenoTsukishiro Naberius Elenion Aura Saturn_moon explosiveKitten

 

[kase9187]

Aldaf woke up to Rhyne giving them breakfast. Since his talk with Kari, he'd been feeling better. The nice long rest he took was also helpful.

Aldaf finally actually looked at Rhyne. The man actually looked younger than what Aldaf would think his age would be, and he didn't look half bad. His eyes moved about Rhyne's body, taking in any details he might need to know.

His eyes stopped at Rhyne's hand. Or rather, lack of one. It... might be a sensitive subject, so Aldaf decided to not talk to him about it right now. However, he did feel the need to introduce himself, as he was pretty withdrawn yesterday.

"Good morning, Rhyne. I'm sorry I didn't introduce myself earlier, kind of having a rough few days." Aldaf, emerging from his bed with clothes already on, walked over and took a pastry. Kari had said something about eating one, so why not?

Aldaf had two, taking a nice cup of tea before turning to Rhyne. He was going to ask who made the food before...

Targus burst into the room, talked about replacing Rhyne's hand. Aldaf watched with amusement as Targus performed her demonstration... then had to hold back his laughter as the teacup just exploded. It was a great way to start off the day.

Targus came back with more food and started cleaning up the bits and pieces. Aldaf kneeled down to carefully pick up any pieces he saw on the floor or on a bed, helping gather the shards.

"Quite the... mechanism... you have there. I'll admit, not a quiet way to start the day, but a fun one!" Aldaf spoke to Targus, smiling. "I'm Aldaf."

SilverFlight Naberius explosiveKitten YumenoTsukishiro Elenion Aura AncientBird SleepyCreamy Lioness075 Saturn_moon

 

[AncientBird]

After the midnight trip to stable with Aldaf and Matthias, Serik slept the rest of his slumber in peace. The golden sun finally came and its night shone through window and called him up for the next day. The smelled of food came after and pulled Serik up to sit on his bed. He saw Kari and Aldaf already up and were facing a visitor. It was Rhyne, bringing in a cart full of breakfast. Serik's eye widened as he slipped from his bed and headed for the meal alongside Kari and Aldaf. Serik picked up something that seemed like some sort of pie. "This is really nice!" He said with food in his mouth. "Thank you, sir!" He added.

Suddenly, bursted in was a woman named Targus. She came with a bizarre invention that Serik could tell was some sort of gantlet meant for Rhyne's missing hand. It wasn't working as it was supposed to be and its mighty grip busted the tea mug into pieces. Targus apologized and ran off to get the mop to clean up. "I never see something like that before." Serik said to his friends. "Are we going to see invention like this in the workshop?" He asked as he put another piece of pie in his mouth.

It's not even an hour and Serik could tell this day was going to be exciting.

----------

"Errr, pretty birdie... Good birdie... Can I pass through to clean your hay!" A stable maid plead in fear as she stood face to face with the towering stork drake who was just awakened and found someone trying to intrude her 'personal' space. Valkyrie huffed and puffed but stood silently, not letting her in.

"Hey! What's happening there?" Came a heavy and low sound as another stable maid approached. She was the big and muscular woman that cleaned and prepared Valkyrie stall last night, this time however was wearing a leather vest, with a cape and trousers, seemingly like she was about to go out. "Oh thank goodness, you are still here Shivali!" The first stable maid said as she retreated from Valkyrie stall. "This skybeast won't let me get in to clean the hay!" She said.

"Leave it to me..." The bigger woman spoke and stepped forward to face Valkyrie. Two other stable staffs came running to see and she faced the stork drake as if something interesting was about to happened. "Hmm the grumpy kind, right?" The woman said. Her short bob hair shone by the light that leaked from the ceiling and her face showed determination. She then slowly approached the stork drake, her eyes set on Valkyrie's. She wasn't intimidated by her at all.

Valkyrie tried to stare her down but the stable maid kept staring back. She got closer and closer... So close it's almost considered dangerous. Her eyes fixed on the stork drake like a predator preparing to pounce. Valkyrie began to lose her courage. Soon, she backed away and let the lady passed. "Alright, it's clear." Said the big stable maid. The other staff then be able to do their job and clean up the stall. "Bring back scratcher." Said the strong woman. One of the staff came with a brush with long handle and started scrubbing Valkyrie's back. The stork drake startled a bit but soon she found herself likeing it. "See? Not bad huh? We all can be friends here." Said the strong woman.

"Howe could you do it, Shivali?... We wouldn't dare to get any closer like that!" Said the same staff who face Valkyrie earlier. "Just be confident, it wouldn't hurt you if it feel you don't fear it, but if thing get out of the hand, get the owner anyway." Said the woman smilingly. "Alright, enjoy your time! See you at the night shift!" Said the other maid. "Yeah, see you around too girls!" Said the woman as she walked toward the door. She then whistled and called out for someone. "Come, Geb! Let's go get Mesa and head out."

A large bird then suddenly landed right next to her, possibly coming from the second floor of the stable. It was a large secretary bird with beautiful head crest and orange mask. it croaked happily at the woman and followed her out of the stable.

"She is so cool..." One of the male staff said. "Don't you even think about it, she was taken..." Another staff said.

Meanwhile, Valkyrie stood silently in her stall, enjoying the back scratch...

Featuring: SilverFlight Naberius explosiveKitten YumenoTsukishiro Elenion Aura kase9187 SleepyCreamy Lioness075 Saturn_moon

 

[Lioness075]

Name: Leandra LaFrae	Nicknames: Lea, Firefly
Clan: Sudenta	Clan Job: Huntress
Equipment: Knapsack, Medicinal Pouch, Bow, Quiver (0/10), Twin Daggers

Spoiler: Momo's Appearance

Spoiler: Falarion's Appearance

Falarion actually has brightly colored wings that have a rainbow hue in bright lighting. In darker settings, they can seem muted into a dark grey or even black color. He also does not have the golden tattoos spanning his body or the necklace around his neck.

Sleep came slowly, but surely for Leandra that night. She woke up several times in a panic, fearing the Deathborn were coming for them again, but finally reached deep sleep and stayed asleep until they were woken up by Rhyne entering their dorms with a fresh selection of breakfast foods.

Leandra sat up and blinked blearily before slowly stretching her arms and yawning. She shuffled out behind Kari and was about to try the suggested pastry, but hesitated at the mention of it being puffy. She looked it over and instead decided to go for a simpler pastry - the croissant. She could never go wrong with one of these and immediately grabbed two more while Rhyne spoke to them. The personal meal delivery was a pleasant surprise after everything and she bobbed her head at Rhyne, as she tried to thank him while stuffing her face with another croissant.

Hearing someone approaching and shouting Rhyne's name, Leandra peered curiously out the dorms and then yelped as she pulled back in time for the muscular woman to barge in. Leandra hastily juggled her last croissant, which nearly fell to the ground before she caught it with a sigh of relief. Nibbling on it, she returned to the cart and watched with wide eyes as the woman produced a gauntlet.
Leandra had noted Rhyne's missing hand the day prior and she instinctively itched at her left hand despite still having the leather glove on concealing the bandages beneath it. She was at least happy to know nobody had questioned the oddity of her wearing the leather glove at all times. She could always brush it off and say it was to help her use her bow, but it made little sense why she had slept with it on.

Targus jumped right into the demonstration despite Rhyne's protests and Leandra was amazed at the gauntlet holding the mug...until it exploded from the pressure.
Leandra screamed out of surprise and instinctively turned away in time for a few fragments to harmlessly hit her in the back before they clattered to the floor. She could already feel the warm tea spots on her back and she faced the group once more with a shocked expression. What in the world had just happened?
Bewildered, Leandra watched the continued exchange between Rhyne and Targus before she rushed out to get cleaning supplies.
Hearing that Targus was the engineering expert, Leandra's shocked expression shifted into curiosity. She knew little about engineering from her time back home, but she had learned to craft her own arrows and was keen at the idea of restocking her quiver in addition to perhaps learning how to make a sturdier bow. Hers was a beginner's bow, really, and she had heard gossip about special bows that were made of sturdier materials and could allow the person to fire arrows up to one hundred meters away. The mere thought of that made Leandra feel an overwhelming urge to see the engineering workshop now. Alas, she knew they had plans to shop for new clothes and she figured today would be focused on exploring the city more so than the Academy, which they would get to see in better detail tomorrow.

Lost in her thoughts, Leandra made herself a mug of tea and began sipping at it before choking and belatedly remembering that she was not overly fond of tea. Setting her mug back on the cart, Leandra absentmindedly retrieved a flask of water from her bed area and then returned to see Aldalf helping Targus clean up the mess. She almost face palmed at the fact she had not offered to help and retrieved a cloth from the cart to start wiping off the tea that had splattered on the cart itself.
Overhearing Serik's questions, Leandra remained quiet while she listened for the answers.

SilverFlight kase9187 Naberius AncientBird Elenion Aura YumenoTsukishiro Saturn_moon explosiveKitten SleepyCreamy

 

[SilverFlight]

Rhyne's gaze fell on Aldaf
""Rough few days?" You mean aside from the deathborn terrors, Keshka's temper and the militant pace to get here before Ord died?"
Rhyne said it all with a flat, monotone voice, but his eyes danced with humour.

"Targus!" She introduced herself to Aldaf brightly.
"If you want quiet, better stay away from the engineering workshop, there's always something exploding. Though if it's fun you want, can't say there's much better than inventing!" She examined a shard of tea cup, "even if there are...minor setbacks."

She turned to Serik with a grin. "There are all kinds of projects under development in the workshop. You'll be brought round to it tomorrow. Until then, you should get your strength back, rest, maybe explore the city. There's lots to see for people who have never been to Westeros before."

Kari helped clean the shard up too, after that helping herself to more pastries. They were delicious.

kase9187 AncientBird