Hayslem City

Amelia kept staring at Okora, she didn’t even register the boys attempts, or Demor’s attempts to diffuse the situation. The insults kept flying.

She couldn’t back up her threats? Amelia’s lips pulled in tightly as they pursed in tense anger, then after a few moments of staring at the Saiyan before her, she called out.

“Sergeant Talyn!”

She called the name out without breaking her gaze from the group before her. “Transmit the following orders to my Command Carrier...”

Amelia’s voice was firm, cold, while her red faced gaze was unflinching. Another individual quickly stepped into the bath from one of the massage tables, electing to get a shoulder rub while Admiral Montrose was in the bath, a shoulder rub that ended all too abruptly.

The man was in full Aschen urban pattern camouflage, but was unarmed, save for his radio communicator, and a few ancillary devices worn on his belt.

“Yes, Admiral?” He said with a crisp salute, bringing his fist across his chest. Then he reached into his pocket to produce a pad and paper.

Amelia was still seething with rage, they were mocking her, they were mocking the Empire, and this was unacceptable by the Admiral’s standards.

“Have them send for my shuttle, I’ll decide what to do with this brazen act of aggression against an officer of the Empire once I reach my Command Carrier.”

For the briefest moment, Amelia considered ordering the Command Carrier to combat readiness, engaging the local defense forces, and striking against the planet from orbit.

A thought she quickly dismissed; there was no way Command would allow her to carry out such an attack... A fact that she knew, and found quite disappointing.

The corner of her lips turned upwards into a slight smirk. “Have Colonel Decurion bring the Pride of Langara to condition two, until I arrive.” Amelia demanded, and the poor unfortunate sergeant saluted once more. “Ad Victoriam, Admiral!” Before swallowing visibly, a flash of fear crossed his eyes, before he turned to leave, his boots hitting the floor as he made his way out of the bath house.


Amelia brought her attention to the girls, and the boys, she huffed, her chest rising, puffing outwards before she growled to herself. “You will all pay for your insolence.” She muttered, covering her chest with her slender arms, folding them in front of her. She would never leave her Command Carrier again for some alien world, the baths were cleaner, the water was hotter, and there were no insults, only a clear chain that binds, and dutiful suboardinates, rather than insulting patrons.

She committed each of their faces to memory, for a lengthy report to be submitted to her superiors regarding the hostile culture on this world.

She backed away towards the edge of the bath, and lowered herself more into the water, there she would sit until the sergeant returned, to inform her the shuttle had arrived.

Demor's glance moved to Jaune as the boy managed to upstage him, he did nothing about it. He knew how to win over a crowd, it seemed, and their combined little speeches seemed to mostly lighten the mood enough for catastrophe to be averted. Tail twitching, he watched the situation continue to unfold, the air around him beginning to buzz ever so gently with some Draconian Electricity. Not enough to manifest or zap anyone, but perhaps enough to be sensed by anyone with some magical affinity or similar. As the Aschen woman covered herself and turned to leave, or at least, wait for her shuttle, the edge of his lips tugged downwards slightly - despite her nasty attitude, he found the Aschen woman attractive, and would have liked to see more of her. But it seemed fate would not allow.

Sighing as the situation diffused, Demor made his way to a bench within the baths, and sat down, putting his towel over his face as he leaned back and tilted his head back, leaving his mouth exposed to breathe for a moment before replacing it around his neck and shoulders, propping his arms on the back rest, allowing him to relax in full while in the water. Draconian eyes once more centered on the group of females. Sensing that his earlier compliment backfired and would have only gotten him more trouble than it's worth, he decided on small talk for now - to see if flirtation would naturally come to him.

"So of you all... which girl is the strongest would you say? If I had to take my guess...." his eyes searched the group before he lifted an arm and pointed at Etaass. "....You... you, my multi-armed beauty, are probably the strongest, based on what I'm sensing right now...." he finished. There was a hard stare to his Draconian eyes - he knew what he was talking about, granted of course that his senses were telling him correctly. He had no way of knowing if the others were suppressing any power or not, but from what he sensed, the woman who was partly machine was the strongest. Magic Wise.

Demor lowered his arm back to its position, leaning forward slightly. "Come now, tell me! Am I right or wrong! Just... don't be too harsh?" he winked with his request, seeing who his charm would work on.

His eyes returned to Iviri, and he motioned to the boy with his tail. "Iviri, bud! Come on join us. Don't hide all day or the massage will wear off!" he smirked. He then nodded in greeting to Liam and Jaune, and returned his attention to the girls.

Jaune and Liam left their towels on the side as they moved closer, while Iviri who had already entered the water ended up moving closer and sitting next to Demor. He looked over at all the others, and was a bit nervous as Demor put him under the spotlight again. It seemed that he got nervous and shy under the spotlight, enough that you should probably never ask him to be the star role in a play.

"I mean...I think that in terms of strength, she seems to be the strongest to me..." Iviri said, looking towards Okora. He was not sure about magic, he could not sense it as well as Demor, but he could understand auras, atmospheres, and such. And of them, he felt that Okora was the strongest.

However, it was Jaune who stood up and shook his head.

"No no, the strongest" he said, looking at the five women. "It is definently you".

Jaune looked right at Shaka when he said that, sure of his answer. Well...Jaune was not actually known for thinking, but he had great instincts. And also, he seemed really happy...he probably liked this sort of thing.

"What else...oh, I know!"

Jaune suddenly grabbed Iviri's hand, and pulled him up to his feet while they were still in the water. It seemed Iviri's embarrassment just would not stop. He wrapped his arm around Iviri's neck and pulled him in till they were hip to hip.

Liam, who was just shaking his head, decided to ask Demor and the girls something before Jaune started whatever he was about to.

"So, are any of you here because you are on your way to participate in or watch the Grand Magi Games? Also, sorry about Jaune...he can get rather excited easily, and he really lacks any form of modesty or common sense it seems".

Liam got that in, while Jaune approached them.

"Alright! Which of us do you think is bigger? Me or him?" Jaune said innocently and energetically. "Oh, and who do you think has a bigger butt?"

"Wha...what does that have to do with anything?!"

"Isn't it obvious? Its less painful to fall on with more cushion. Oh yeah, who do you think has more spirit power, me or him?"

"Do we have to be standing for this?!"

"Come on, its cool right? Besides, at places like this, of course we should all compare! Comparing and competing is one of life's greatest activities! So while naked in a bathhouse, of course we should also compare and show off our bodies the gods gave us!"

Liam just shook his head and shrugged.

"Sorry, he likes this sort of playful competitiveness. That said, I have not given my answer yet, have I?"

He said that as he looked around, noticing all of them...and then, while skillfully hiding who he was truly observing, noticed something about Nyst...

"...well, I suppose you are all quite strong in your own ways".

Liam, with the most experience and perception out of all of them, said something like that.

"Oh, I just realized something! I am so sorry, I was really rude!"

And then, Jaune broke the air like that.

"We have been talking all this time, but I never introduced myself! My name is Jaune Al'asfar, eleven years old! And this is my partner, Kimaru!"

Suddenly, a yellow fox seemed to hop onto his head.

"Heyo! My name is Kimaru!"

However, for those with magical and supernatural perceptions, they would notice strong supernatural energy radiating off of Jaune and Kimaru, as well as some sort of link between them.

"Well, I suppose that is true. My name is Liam Jones, the leader of the Adventurer's Guild".

The Leader of the Adventurer's Guild. It was said that only an adventurer of incredible skill and power could hold that position, one that showed incredible strength but also the ability to lead and manage. And it was once rumored that Liam himself fought against an entire monster army and won, though he always insists the story was over-exaggerated.

"My-my name is...Iviri! Pleasure to meet you all! J-Jaune, can we please sit back down now?!" he said, covering himself this whole time with a red face. Jaune seemed to listen this time, also because he wanted to enjoy the water, but he ended up floating a bit closer to the women.

"So...we all said our opinions, but what do you girls think? Seems unfair to not let the people in question voice their own opinions, after all!"

As Amelia did her thing, and then backed off, Okora laughed.

I'm sure I'll pay all right! You want cash?

Okora raised her right fist out of the water.

Or do you want credit?

Okora then raised her left fist out of the water. Bringing them together, she went back to relaxing.

The other girls giggled lightly, but then Demor asked his question.

A bold assessment. You're right in some ways. I am the strongest here, but my status means you can't compare me to the others.

Noticing his wink somehow, despite the fact that she never visibly opened her eyes, Etaass crossed two of her arms while two held the towel around her, and the other two motioned with slight disapproval.

I will also add, if you want something, I can only offer it to my most devoted followers. You'll need to convert first, my apologies.

Etaass gave a gentle smile to the Drachni.

As Iviri looked toward Okora, she winked at him.

Good kid! Smart assessment! Keep it up and I might show you some of it once we finish up here. Come find me later if you want a demonstration! Maybe I can beat up a bully or two of yours? You seem quite shy, like someone who was picked on.

As for Jaune's assessment, Shakaurduraug looked at him with a narrowed glare, but said nothing as the young boy paraded himself and Iviri in jubilee. Missing Liam's question, she instead stood up, covering herself with her arms as she huffed and entered a black/purple portal that spawned before her. She entered it, disappearing from sight.

Amid Jaune being foolish, Nyst felt a gaze. Instinctively, she covered her chest and turned her back to the others. Standing to leave herself, she responded.

My name is Nyst... That's all you need to know right now. I'm sorry.

She seemed a bit upset as she took her leave as well, grabbing her towel as she left the water, wrapping it around herself. Wringing out her braids, she went back to the changing rooms.

That left Sesame, Okora, and Etaass. As Jaune and Iviri introduced themselves, Okora and Sesame looked on before Liam spoke. When he did, Sesame and Okora both glanced at each other. With Etaass speaking to Demor, the two took their chance.

Nice to meet you, Jaune and Iviri! Tee hee hee! My name is Sesame! Oh, and my opinion is that my friend is stronger in a fight, but...

Sesame moved over to Liam's side at this point, settling in beside him.

I'm the stronger one socially! Tee hee hee! Hee hee hee!

Seeing Sesame move made Okora give a dangerous smirk as she proceeded to follow Sesame.

Jaune, Iviri... My name is Okora. Remember it!

She then settled in on the other side of Liam from Sesame.

I wouldn't listen to her. She's too carefree and reckless!

The two ladies seemed to both be putting on the pressure somehow. From Liam's perspective, Sesame did seem slightly more curvy than Okora did, but both were relatively close to each other, and both were flanking him.

Demor tilted his head at the Goddess woman, and tapped his chin, shrugging after a moment. "A Tempting offer, gorgeous... I'll take it into consideration~ In the mean time... would you excuse me?" he blew her a cute kiss before pushing off and swimming over to the Aschen woman, Montrose, using his tail to propel him similar to a crocodile uses its tail. Once he reaches the Admiral, he stops and rights himself, practically kneeling in front of her, his head above the water as he tilted his head, those Piercing eyes looking her up and down.

"So... Admiral, eh~?" he commented, looking her up and down subtly. Despite her inherent xenophobia and distaste of magic, Demor found the Aschen woman attractive.... Might as well try his luck. "You are very pretty for an Admiral... not that I've met many in my life... are all Aschen women as good looking as you, or are you an exception?" might as well try out some cheesy pick up lines. See how well, or poorly, they are received.

Demor slithered his way to sitting next to, but within a comfortable distance from, the Aschen woman, seeing just where her boundaries were slowly, and trying to get under them, and much more. He shifted so he faced her, tail laid out across his lap and on the bench between them, curled up so he could maintain a comfortable talking distance between them, and yet still be just within arms reach if he wanted to gently brush against her skin. He didn't do so yet, but the option was there.

Suddenly his tone dropped, became more gentle, inquisitive. "So tell me, Admiral.... why do the Aschen teach such... harsh things about people who are not like them? Enlighten me." he leaned forward to emphasize his interest, and to prove his concern was genuine. Operation: Try and bang an Aschen lady! was a go.

Amelia didn't say much as she sank even lower into the water. Her eyes seemed to tell everything that she needed to say as she kept glaring at Okora.

Amelia was glaring so hard, she didn't seem to notice Demor sliding up to her.

"I'm considered average by Aschen standards, I don't see why you would see me as any sort of attractive, I mean... look at you.." The Admiral rudely quipped back, before returning to her glare.

"Do you know these women? I want to put a price on their heads so large, they won't be able to enter a civilized system." Montrose said coldly, while brushing some red curls out of her face.

This thing was prodding her with questions, and of course being cooped up in the CIC of a command carrier, and a Reverence II before that for as long as Montrose could remember, she couldn't tell flirting from curiosity, to an interrogation.

She opted to play his game though, and the other girls seemed to express interest, thus the woman began to formulate a plan.

"Because we are the true destined rulers of this galaxy, it's in our genetics, our technology, our military; we are superior, our bloodlines are pure, untainted by the alien hoards of this galaxy." She replied. "Things like magic, and alien species are a perversion of the natural order, a perversion of Big Brother's vision for our galaxy."

As the conversations, and the baths, went in all sorts of strange, weird, and for some, highly opinionated, Liam continued to soak and enjoy the water, that he didn't even notice when Okora and Sesame moved over and flanked him.

"Well now, what to do what to do...I have two beautiful ladies on either side now, disagreeing with each other. Both of them strong, and determined. Quite the situation..."

Saying that in a particular voice, Jaune and Iviri turned to face the trio.

"Hey, how come everyone is over there. I want to join to...ehk?!"

Jaune tried to go and swim over there, but his leg was grabbed and pulled back by Iviri, who was better at reading the room then Jaune.

"Shhh! Dont interrupt! They are having adult time".

"Oh. You mean they are going to...mmhmhmhm?!"

And then, while explaining it to Jaune, Iviri was forced to then cover his mouth before he said something that was too blunt.

For the record, while bathhouses like this were normal on Origin, obviously while flirting was okay you could not go to the next step, after kissing, in public.

Saved from having their moment interrupted, Liam decided to continue.

"I don't really think I am qualified to determine who is stronger at what in such detail, but I will say you both clearly are quite strong and powerful in your own ways. Each of you have your own merits".

Meanwhile, Iviri looked over at Demor, getting a bit nervous. If they wanted to make good time, they would probably need to head out soon, but he didn't want to interrupt Demor either. And as they had now been in the water for quite some time now, some people had started to prune a little...with the exception of Iviri of course, whose skin seemed perfect. If anything, the bathing had only made him seem even more stunning, despite only appearing as a child.

Of course, that was due to artificial enhancements and his Adaptability power. Jaune, thanks to the physical enhancements of being bonded to an Armor Spirit, also had incredible appearances....but inversely, despite not having either of those, Liam was also incredible in appearance after having bathed in the waters and washing off.

"We should totally compare our skins as well with Liam and Demor and....mhhmhmm?"

Iviri once again covered Jaune's mouth, and with a shy and embarrassed face, got out of the water while pulling Jaune with him.

"Excuse us! We are going to wash each other's backs now! Don't mind us!"

...it should be noted that Iviri has very high potential and skill as a wing man.

Etaass took this time to take her own leave, the multi-armed woman standing and ascending into the air before she vanished into a golden bronze glow. Leaving only Okora and Sesame left, the pair continued their time with Liam, mostly with some banter with each other, and some teasing of him, complete with innuendo.

However, at Iviri's sudden desire to retreat away from the group, Okora smirked. Not every time to relax could last forever. After pulling close to Liam to let her body and bosom press against him as she kissed him on the cheek, she stood up and grabbed her own towel, ready to head back to the changing rooms.

Sorry, Liam. Sweet as you are, we have business to attend to! Sesame! You still want the cash? We need to dash!

Sesame giggled and kissed Liam on his other cheek as she pressed her squishy and soft gum like body against him, bosom first. Was it a competition between these two?

Tee hee hee! Sorry, Liam, but work calls!

She then jumped out of the water in a cheery manner as she picked up her towel and wrapped it around herself to join Okora, with the two apparently talking to each other about needing to find a few people as they walked away.

Their time in the changing rooms wasn't too eventful beyond them both suiting up. Okora's battle suit was as normal, but Sesame wore something else.

Yo, Sesame! What kind of outfit is that?

Tee hee hee! It's the ideal Buu-gi, a Buu-gi made just for me!

Well, if you want to work with me, you should dress the part. We're a pair now!

Hearing this, Sesame nodded and unfurled a tentacle from her head, firing a magenta beam around herself and her outfit as the clothes changed into something not dissimilar to what Okora was wearing. The new outfit was a two piece midriff bearing ensemble with a dark blue chest piece that conformed around her bust, a single yellow shoulder guard for her left shoulder, and black briefs. Her gloves and boots were colored white, and the chest piece had a small rounded cutout where her logo sat, a black design in a yellow field. The suit no doubt was like Okora's, being far more durable than it appeared at first glance.

Tee hee hee! Alright! Let's go!

Okora finished putting on her gloves and smirked, leaning over to whisper to Sesame.

Alright, we're looking for that kid. The shy one. We should get him, alive preferably. He's still here, likely, but he may be skittish.

The pair thus exited the bathhouse and took a rest in the lobby area. They were going to wait for Iviri to finish up and try to leave, where they could jump him. In the meantime, the two chatted like two college girls, talking about girl things. Their first topic? Liam.

Demor only chuckled as she responded to his compliment with what he assumed could be considered the Aschen version of modesty before delving to the insults she'd basically been programmed into spewing. Ignoring that, he gave her another look up and down, raising an eyebrow, shaking his head. "Nah, you can't be average.... no you're just being modest. You're gorgeous." he insisted. Turning his eyes back to the other women in time to watch them leave, he returned them to Montrose and offered a shrug. "I don't know them enough to tell you anything - they are as new to me as you are, though you are the one who caught my eye, rather than them today." he grinned at that.

There was her reason for the high-and-mighty vision of the Aschen, and Demor considered it for a moment, tapping his chin with a finger while looking up, and then once he had an answer, came to focus on the Aschen woman again. "Perhaps that is true for the Aschen and the worlds you hail from.... but me? I am a product of evolution... the next generation of my race: The first male.... Magic was likewise natural for my kind. How can you say it is an affront if it does happen naturally outside of your lands?" he asked calmly, scooting just a tad closer.

He lowered his tone then, just slightly, to try and spark some intrigue within the woman. "And if I occurred naturally, and my magic is likewise Natural to my body... can I really be an affront to your kind?" he asked, his tone a gentle growl as he lifted a hand, some water swirling around his forearm as he lifted it out of the water via his magic. His eyes held a gentle look to them as he watched the water dance around his arm as if it was born to do that - as if it were natural. And it was, for Demor to be able to do this. Once he finished speaking, his eyes slowly turned back towards the Aschen Admiral, narrowed ever so slightly as he waited for his answer.

The woman offered Demor a frown, before running a hand through her frizzed, curly red locks. Perhaps it was out of nervousness, or something else, but she listened quietly to his explanation. No matter how hard the Drachini tried to justify his existence to the Admiral, she still viewed him, and everyone else in the bath, as beneath her.

Her eyes followed his movements, his attempted rebuking of her own explanation for the superiority of the Aschen Empire.

Her eyes moved towards his forearm, and she watched the magical energies exert upon the water, as it flowed, and coiled up around him. She visibly recoiled in disgust at his magical display, moving several paces back, and glaring at him.

"You, and everyone like you, your very existence is an affront to the Empire!" She called out. "Even if you think it is natural, it is not! It's disgusting perversion of the natural order." She brought her arms in front of her, covering her bust while her eyes looked for a way out.

Her resolve hardened.

"I am an Aschen, an officer of the Fleet, I see what you're trying to do, and to be frank; you're not my type... Even if I was interested, I could be punished, I could face expulsion from the Military. I won't destroy my career over a piece of strange." She turned away from him, as if to give him the cold shoulder.

"My men will return for me in time, your playing a fool's errand."

(Yeah, I was not quite sure what to post, so this was the best I came up with. Sorry for the delay, but RL stuff kept me occupied the past few days)

Of course, Iviri was still not coming out. After all, he had to take Demor to Questrios City. Whether others came with them was up to them and Demor, but Iviri planned to wait unless some part of the situation changed. Of course, currently he was getting his back washed by Jaune. His face was red with embarassment, though that was more due to the words that came out of Jaune's mouth. He was either oblivious, or just didn't think much of it, but Jaune averaged about four to five embarrassing sentences per minute, at least.

"Come on Iviri, lets play with each other!"

That sentence, which could be misconstrued in a whole variety of ways, actually meant the basketball court they had in here, or the video game room, which also had a small bath that you could soak in while playing.

No wonder this place was so popular...it was basically a community center.

Iviri had no idea what to do while he waited for Demor to finish flirting, and Liam had been left on his own for the moment, having been enjoying the company of the females until a moment ago. Because of that, despite himself being new to Origin and getting embarrassed, playing Basketball in the nude (as obviously the towels would not hold themselves up playing a sport), he was unable to say anything as an excuse to stop Jaune from pulling him away.

In the meantime though, Liam watched Iviri and Jaune run off before looking back at Demor. Iviri had actually already registered with the Guild, but was new and unknown, very low on the rankings. Meanwhile, Demor seemed totally new...he wondered if he could pull him in to join the Adventurer's Guild? It seemed like he would make a good addition.

If he saw an opportunity, he would ask Demor for sure, and made sure to stay close by.

The game between Iviri and Jaune meanwhile...turned in a rather surprising way. After some banter by Jaune, Iviri temporarily forgot the situation and went into play mode, forgetting his situation, and was winning by 10-6. That said, suddenly Kimaru jumped onto Jaune's shoulder and whispered something into his ear.

"Huh...is he sure?"

"What is it?"

"Ah, well....hmm".

Jaune then looked over towards Demor from the basketball court, which was not that far away, and waved at him.

"Hey, you two are going to Questrios right? YOu want to go together? I just got word from someone I might be needed there anyways, so I thought it would be more convienent for everyone if we all went together. What do you say?"

"Are you entered the Grand Magi Games?"

"Yeah. By the way Iviri, nice ball playing".

And Jaune's innocent but poor word choice embarrassed Iviri, making him hold the basketball in front of him.

"Thats an interesting way to hold it...did you forget? Do you want me to help?"

"Oh my...how does he not hear what comes out of his own mouth?"

"By the way, you fell on your butt pretty hard back there. Do you want me to get some ointment to rub on it fir..."

"Demor! We should probably leave soon so we can get a decent hotel room! Maybe right now even!"

Iviri, who had done his very best not to rush Demor at this point, had a face that probably could not get any more red or embarrassed that it was right now. As nice as Jaune was, he lacked any and all ability to see issues with his own words or actions...

"Demor! YOu should join us! Also, I learned a lot of Iviri's ticklish spots if you want to take advantage of them right now!"

"...you are doing this on purpose, aren't you?"

"Doing what on purpose?"

"Uhg!"

Demor sighed as he was given the cold shoulder, quite literally, and his advances were pushed back past the starting point. Right... so don't use magic around the Aschen girls... got it.... Sighing, Demor let the water fall and stayed there for a moment, eyes looking at his reflection in the water. He was about to open his mouth and speak to Montrose again in an attempt to salvage the situation, but then Iviri called out, seemingly in slight anguish and in need of assistance. Turning his head towards the younger male, Demor nodded and sighed, standing.

"Well then... since I am such an affront to you... I suppose I will do you a favor and get out of your lovely red hair.... farewell, Admiral." Demor said, his voice a bit soothing, though hurt. tossing his towel around his neck as he walked towards the boys, stopping about seven feet away and shifting his weight to his right hip as he looked at the two younger males.

"I suppose that we should go, then, Iviri. I've been given the cold shoulder... should try my luck with one of those other girls I suppose." he grinned, tail twitching playfully behind him as he crossed his arms in front of him. Pausing a moment, he considered his options, then nodded, turning to step towards the locker room, pausing once to cast a curious glance at Montrose before looking away and then heading into the locker room. Once there, he grabbed a fresh towel or two and began to dry himself off, humming a Draconian Lullaby to himself while he did so.

"Something on your mind, Iviri?" he asked, sensing that there was something indeed on the boy's mind, at least a little anyway.

(Sorry if its kinda shit. Trying to get the flow going again, and move things along so the people who want to be in the Grand Magi Games can start it soon as well)

With their course of action decided, the group returned to the changing room, and the two of them got their clothes on and got all of their possessions. Afterwards, Jaune decided to pay for everything on his treat, without even a wince or second thought, but once the payment was done...he took out a strange stone...

Iviri, having been on Origin for awhile now, recognized what it was.

"Wait wait, we don't have to..."

But before Iviri could finish protesting, Jaune threw the stone onto the ground, and a large vortex seemed to appear in it. That was because it was a Class-A City to City Warp Stone. Crazy expensive, takes about a week to fully recharge, and also...the trip is one rather shakey and disorienting ride, even if it will only be a few seconds.

And so with the intention of heading to Questrios, Jaune immediately grabbed both Iviri's and Demor's hands and leapt into the vortex, warping to Questrios in an instant.

This was the first time Castalia had been outside in...too long. (Look, she wasn't proud of it, okay? Just...sometimes she lost track of time. That's all.)

She rubbed her arms through her jacket as she shuffled down the sidewalk, keeping her head down. No need to zone out and stare at someone for too long. She reached up and tugged at her choppily cut hair. Then she tugged harder, until she could feel the dull pain on her scalp. Bad habit. She knew. Along with biting her lip until it ached. Times like these she really knew she was messed up. A hoarse laugh forced itself out of her mouth at that thought. She cut it off quickly, and looked up, eyes darting quickly to see if anyone had noticed her laughing to herself like the freak she was.

Maybe she should've stayed inside for another day.

The bathhouse of Hayslem city would find itself visited by Demor again, who by happenstance, had managed to find out that Iviri's brother was a private detective. So, inviting Iviri to the bathhouse again, Demor waited in the locker rooms, hoping his young friend would show up. It had only been a few hours since Demor's visit with the Aschen IIA, and though he wasn't given a specific consequence of what would happen if he failed to find evidence of Montrose's whereabouts, he didn't necessarily want to find out. Being tied to a chair while naked and being yelled at and hit wasn't fun at all. At least, not to Demor, and not in that particular circumstance.

Sighing as he disrobed and grabbed a towel, Demor headed once more to the massage tables, to take place in one of those mind-blowingly relaxing massages that he had taken part in last time he was here. All he had to do, was wait for Iviri to show up again. Hopefully he wouldn't have to wait too long.

It did not take long for Iviri to arrive at the bathhouse once more, however it was in a bit of a different situation then he might have expected. That was because instead of being alone, he was with someone. Someone far younger then him, but looked eeriely identical.

That was because he was Iviri's little brother, Ixian. He was also one of the strongest Rixys out there. As for why they were coming to the bathhouse...they were both covered in a strange green goop.

"Let me guess....Eldritch Horror attacked Astrius Academy, you two got involved in the fight, now you need a bath?"

"Close. It attacked Millenium Plaza" Iviri corrected, as the two went into the changing area. They put their clothes in a section that designated them to be washed and cleaned, got some towels, and then went to shower the green goop off, before they entered the general bathing area.

"This place...makes a lot of sense" Ixian said, as he drooped the towel over his shoulder instead of covering himself.

"Ixian! Cover up!"

"Why?" Ixian said, not really getting why anyone would be so bothered by it.

"...why cant you just learn common sense...it was bad enough when you attracted all that attention fighting off that huge mercenary force in that one town, but cant you at least try a bit harder to blend in?"

Ixian just looked at his brother with a confused look, driving Iviri further into frustation. Given they were both clones of the same person, one had to admire how different they turned out.

Demor perked up at hearing Iviri's voice, and propped his head up as the lovely massage therapist ladies and the strange tendrils worked their magic on his body, his face one of bliss. "Hey~! Iviri! Over here!" he called out, waving a hand towards the boy and his brother. "Good to see you again... who's this~?" he asked, looking to Ixian, not caring that he wasn't covered. Then again, neither was Demor.

"Glad you came by - I was gonna try and find you anyway, I need to talk to you." He said calmly.

"Oh, Demor! Nice job in the Grand Magi Games" Iviri said, while Ixian had a sort of mischevous smile remembering them as well. But all that passed as they walked towards Demor. Ixian was the youngest and smallest brother Demor had encountered so far, but as he approached...Demor could probably sense it, deep down. A great and vast darkness and danger, something that often only accompanied people who had killed in the past, and who could do it professionally.

"This is my little brother, Ixian. Ixian, this is Demor" Iviri said as he introduced them. Ixian however seemed facinated by Demor's tail, and ran over to grab it. "Ixian! Dont grab people's tails without permission! Sorry bout that Demor, but when he isn't working, he tends to be like this. Anyways, what did you need to talk about?"

"Oh, Demor! Nice job in the Grand Magi Games" Iviri said, while Ixian had a sort of mischevous smile remembering them as well. But all that passed as they walked towards Demor. Ixian was the youngest and smallest brother Demor had encountered so far, but as he approached...Demor could probably sense it, deep down. A great and vast darkness and danger, something that often only accompanied people who had killed in the past, and who could do it professionally.

"This is my little brother, Ixian. Ixian, this is Demor" Iviri said as he introduced them. Ixian however seemed facinated by Demor's tail, and ran over to grab it. "Ixian! Dont grab people's tails without permission! Sorry bout that Demor, but when he isn't working, he tends to be like this. Anyways, what did you need to talk about?"

Demor's tail helped him with his natural affinity for kids, or at least kid-like people. As Ixian ran up to try and grab his tail, his tail would move to try and grab the boy in return, coiling around his body and picking him up playfully while Demor noted the slightly killer look about the boy - many people weren't as they seemed here. He looked to Iviri and smiled again. "He's fine, don't worry about it." he said.

Moving on, his face became a little more serious. "I did some digging... and found that one of your brothers is a private investigator of sorts?" he asked. "I'm in a bit of a pickle... and I need the help of an investigator." he explained.

"Okay. Just...dont provoke any weird competitions from him. He can get pretty serious sometimes with those...by the way, Ixian...I could have swore I saw you at the Grand Magi Games actually..."

"I didn't participate!"

"I am going to have to ask you about that later" Iviri said, before looking back at Demor. "Ah, yes! Not surprised you heard of him, he is a very well known detective these days. Of course, all that public attention often gets people to come after him, but...he always ends up out smarting them. Last bounty hunters that went out of him, he apparently messed up so bad, they are still in therapy bawling their eyes out".

Iviri had gotten a little off topic, but that last part was very impressive...and maybe also concerning. There were a number of bounty hunters who were hardened sociopaths and psychopaths after all, so to reduce some of them to going to therapy was terrifying in its own right.

"I have his phone number if you want to call him" Ixian said, taking out a cell phone from...hold on, where did he get that from? And why did the phone have a case styled like a white ghost?

Demor listened idly, and with his tail, set Ixian down back on his feet. It was at that moment, coincidentally, that his massage ended, and he was able to get off of the table, using his tail as a sort of chair, curling it at the bottom to form a base before lifting himself up, and crossed his legs, lowering himself until he was comfortable. He set his towel on his lap.

His predatory eyes settled upon the phone, and then Ixian. Where did he conjure that phone from? Narrowing those eyes, Demor examined Ixian curiously, looking at him with more detail, sensing out what sort of magic he could conjure. The Male Drachini was silent for a moment while he considered it.

"Can you call him? I'd like to talk to him." he said. Truthfully, Demor didn't entirely know how cell-phone's worked quite yet. He could figure out a regular telephone, and had one in his apartment, but he rarely used it.

Demor's plan was thus: He knew where Montrose was last seen, but after that, he didn't know how to proceed. He'd let the professional track her down, and then figure out the rescue plan himself. Granted of course, that he could meet the time-deadline that the Aschen agents had given.

"Alright" the two brothers said, as Ixian began to dial. Once he did, and he set it to speaker.

"Welcome to Starnet, your calling network throughout the stars. I am the Artificial Intelligence that monitors and maintains this cellular network. Please hold, your brother is currently in the middle of presenting his deduction on who murdered a man and stole his award winning top of the line violin made from Elderwood, and which had strings created from a dragon".

"That is...an oddly specific hold request message".

"Thank you".

"...and it responded".

The phone let up some elevator music, before it was picked up.

"Ixian?! What is it?! Are you okay?" the voice asked, shocked, before he calmed down a bit. "Wait, you are not calling me to ask for another loan to buy another sniper rifle, right?"

"Nooo! Iviri is here with me, as well as this one guy who..."

"Needs a mystery solved?"

"Yeah! How did you know?"

"Honestly, not that much of a deduction. YOu would be surprised how many times this happens...anyways, so what is the mystery?"

"Oh yeah..." Ixian said, looking at Demor. "You never told us, what do you need investigated? If its how to get into a place, I can help you here! One of my specialties is siegecraft and enemy deployment!"

"An Aschen Admiral has gone missing." Demor stated flatly. No point in hiding anything. "Long story short, she went missing outside a local VR Arcade, and I was the last person anyone saw with her. I need to find her and rescue her before I am in turn made to disappear. At least, I think that's what they'll to me." he explained.

"My name is Demor, I'm a friend of Iviri's and I participated in the Games recently. The Admiral's name is Amelia Montrose." he went on. He paused for a moment for the information to sink in. "Can you help me? I have a limited window to find her... I wager about 68 hours now."

He paused again, crossing his arms and lowering himself further on his tail, adding more to the coiled base he was balancing on. "If you want... I can give you some pictures of what she looks like." he stated one last quick thing before sighing. Besides the talk of cost of hiring him, Demor didn't really have anything else to discuss.

"I see....An Aschen Admiral huh? ANd her name is Amelia Montrose....and 68 hours? I see, probably some secret police or secret spy service then. Some pictures would help though, especially for what she was wearing. If I know what clothes she was wearing, that would help. Anyways, it sounds interesting, so I can help. Also can help you disappear if it comes to that. But first off...I need to know from an outside source, and not Ixian who has no concept of love or Iviri, who is too timid to speak of such things properly...but how hot was she?"

"Ivera?"

"This is important. FIrst, we have to establish motive. The Aschen are infamous for being Anti-Alien, and so in response, there are a lot of extremist groups that would love to get their hands on her. However, most of those groups operate off of Terra, and dont have much of a pressence on Origin. That said, due to the influx of refugees from the war, it is entirely possible she was abducted by someone, or a group of people even, who held a grudge against hte Aschen for the chaos and hate they have caused. But we also cant immediately leap to that conclusion".

"So then, you were asking if she were hot because..."

"Because the Aschen are known for gene manipulation, and I heard they manipulate their people to be breathtakingly beautiful. If its an Admiral, its likely more so, but I have to account for personal taste, hence why I asked Demor who had seen her in person. Also, I need to know how tall she is, her build, and such. If she is bigger, the amount of ways to carry her and transport her would be limited. Also, Ixian. Since you are currently closer to the site of abduction then me, I need you to hack into the city's security system. They probably tried to avoid being detected, but to move a person without being noticed, they would need a vehicle. Living things dont tend to fit will into trans-dimensional storage devices, and since they went out of their way to abduct her, they shouldn't have killed her and then stored the body".

As Ivera's mind went to work, even though Demor could not see his face, the way he talked and the way he thought was already pretty impressive.

"...hold on, did you say a VR Arcade? Nevermind that, we can rule out refugees. They are more recent, and if the Aschen operatives cant track her, that means knowledge of the city. In other words, someone local. Locals have not had much interaction with the Aschen, so they have not had the opportunities to form bias and hate. In other words, the chance of a hate crime is astronomically low. Also, you recently participated in the Games? So this happened in Questrios then, right after the Games, when there would still be a large population of visitors in Questrios. Yet, they got her out without witnesses?"

There was an audible sound of a drink being sipped, and some tapping.

"Okay, there are a few possibilities I can think of right off the bat. I will be there soon to narrow things down, but until then, I suspect it could be one of a few organizations. First off is Spiral, a terrorist organization known for all sorts of crap. They are also believed to make a lot of money off of their crimes, so its possible that they kidnapped her to cause chaos, and also maybe to sell to someone who does want an Aschen Admiral. There are also local crime lords. SOmeone as beautiful as her, its possible a crime lord desired her so much they kidnapped her and dragged her off to be his, or her, personal...well, you get the idea. I suppose its also entirely possible she came across one by chance, casually insulted him or her, and they abducted her to fill out some sort of revenge fantasy. At this point, I can still only theorize, but there is an extremely high probability she is still in Questrios City. Well, what do you think? Anything else you might know that we can add to the situation?"

It had become pretty clear why Ivera Rixy was known as a Master Detective now.