Equinoxis's Story

In an inn several miles north of the woodland, a hooded figure shifted uncomfortably in his chair. The spindly little man seemed quite composed outwardly, but his mind was roiling with possibilities. He had been sent to meet up with the agent over two hours ago, but they were nowhere in sight. All manner of dangers could have befell the agent; brigands on the road, delay by weather, or, he cringed at the thought, the agent had been discovered prematurely and dragged off to the dungeons. Now that would be unpleasant. Would the agent be so crass as to divulge the knowledge of their meeting in the face of torture? Such a risk could not be taken. The shrouded man pulled his cowl lower as another bar patron passed by, and was surprised to see this one stop at the table.

"No need to hide your face, Florevenean." the agent said softly. "I would have words with you." this was him, the hooded man thought excitedly, having confirmed his identity through the innocuous phrase. Helgan threw back his hood to reveal a withered face and took in the instrument of his new king.

Dusky skin and silvery hair, tied in a neat tail. If that was not enough to attest to the man's refined tastes, the expensive leather garb was more than enough to allay any concerns Helgan may have had. This was indeed the Val'hul mage, Equinoxis. He bade the mage to take a seat and gestured to the barmaid for a couple pints of ale as she passed. Pleasantries were exchanged, so as to appear casual, but it was obvious Equinoxis was eager to pry what information he could from the shriveled old man.

"So, you are aware of her whereabouts?" Equinoxis asked, and the hungry gleam in his eye was a little more than unsettling. But Helgan brushed the cold feeling that twisted his guts away. This was his chance to get in good with the Sylvitrans before the dung hit the ceiling, and he was not going to mess this up. Helgan gave a subtle nod and waited for the barmaid to set the drinks down before speaking again. It would not do to have nosy wenches overhearing their conversation.

"Yes, milord." Helgan produced a thin slip of parchment from his cloak and gingerly slid it across the table. Equinoxis snatched up the document and proceeded to gloss over it. By the way the sylvitran was screwing up his face, he was having a hard time deciphering Helgan's pathetic handwriting. The informant almost scoffed. What did they expect? They should have been grateful that he could write at all, seeing as most of the peasantry was illiterate! His thoughts were cut short when he noticed Equinoxis staring him down from across the table, the paper already crumpling away in tiny puffs of ash. "Uh...w-what is it, milord?"

"She is here? Here? In this town?" Equinoxis could barely keep his excitement in check, his voice almost rising. The informant nodded, meekly at first, but quickly gaining certainty as he got his bearings. That was all Equinoxis required of this meeting, and the mage stood to leave. The scrawny hand the grasped his wrist was much stronger than it appeared, and Equinoxis shot Helgan a questioning, startled look. The elderly informant shrank back and released Equinoxis, as if having forgot his place.

"I mean no disrespect, milord, but...well, when will I receive my papers to cross the border? A-and my estate, I was promised land and a title-"

Equinoxis stopped Helgan mid sentence with a raised hand and a disarming smile. "Seek out a woman by the name of Sheryl. Tell her that the silver crow has found his nest. She will provide safe passage into Sylvitra, and the rest will be provided upon your meeting with his Grace, the King."

Helgan was stuttering out a response, but Equinoxis was already leaving the crummy inn for one of the nicer taverns down the road before he could speak. So Helgan was left alone at the table, with a pass to riches, safety, land and women...and, he noted cheerily, the ale Equinoxis had left untouched. Today was a good day.

The blood-brained fool! What was he thinking? Equinoxis sifted through the dying crowd with as much haste as he could muster. It was obvious by his creased brow that the nobleman was deeply concerned about something, but in the din, nobody paid him more than a moments glance. Possibilities dwindles like sand escaping through his fingers as the moments passed. His concerns may have been baseless, but Equinoxis was too learned not to trust his instincts; the man that followed him out of the inn was hunting Euterpe as well. The difference between them, however, was this one was not particularly stealthy. The man obviously reveled in the chase as well, as he made no effort towards a subtle approach.

Equinoxis had doubled back around through a couple alleyways, coming back in to the main street a block behind his rival. Although he was a plain enough looking fellow, the sight nearly made him cringe. The bounty hunter was extracting information from the local street rats? A glint of metal in the dying light further lowered Equinoxis' opinion of the man's skills; the hunter produced a single gold piece and handed it off to a grimy looking boy, who pointed in down the road. Whoever Hunter was, he was a tracker of a different breed than Equinoxis. Judging by the scabbards at his hip and the way his fingers twitched toward them at every sound, Hunter was out for blood. Equinoxis nodded. A thug hired by some lord of another country, who somehow caught wind of his King's plan.

Sometime between the orphan extortion and the present, Equinoxis had lost track of Hunter. The mage ducked under an awning for a moment to get his bearings. Scanning the crowd, it was becoming painfully obvious that Equinoxis was not going to pick up the trail again. Trying to find Hunter in this morass would take far too much time, time Equinoxis was not sure Euterpe had, assuming this tracker was as deadly as he seemed. That left him with one option: find the mage girl before Hunter did.

Whether by divine design or serendipity, Euterpe appeared before his very eyes. With the hulking golem schlepping Euterpe above the crowd, it was absurdly easy to spot her. Of course, a woman with a giant key, a "witch" hat, and an automaton would have been conspicuous under any circumstances. But if Equinoxis could see her, he reasoned, so could Hunter. Sure enough, as he began crossing the street once more, Equinoxis caught sight of Hunter moving in the same direction.

"Just in time." the words died almost as soon as he loosed them. Equinoxis picked up the pace. Hunter had his hand hidden in his cloak, and by the way the lump underneath edged toward Euterpe, Equinoxis guessed it was a compact crossbow. Hunter was going to slay Euterpe in plain sight, with none of the revelers any wiser as to what had transpired. Hunter was by no means subtle, but Equinoxis had to give him credit...he knew how to kill.

Equinoxis was not nearly close enough to Euterpe to shield her, nor was it desolate enough to cast a spell of some sort to stop Hunter. Again, Equinoxis was forced to take an alternate route.

"Lady Euterpe!" he called over the murmur of the town, "Behind you!" his last word was punctuated by the sound of Hunter's crossbow firing, the bolt streaking towards the base of the young mage's skull.

"Lady Euterpe! Behind you!"

Both automaton and witch turned to see the bolt heading straight for her. People gasped and watched as the girl was destined to die in front of them. Jin's large hand grabbed the bolt from the air, making the people clap wildly. "Thank you, thank you. This was all a stunt, everyone please, thank you." The crowd murmured and went back to whatever they had been doing. Euterpe sighed and slid off her familiar's shoulder.

She looked up at him and nodded. The two made their way through the crowd to a less crowded place in the town, near a restaurant. She knew the man would follow if he needed something from her. She didn't want to talk were so many could hear them. She tapped her foot, looking around. She still needed to thank the mage, regardless of his employer. He did save her life. A light blush covered her face when she thought about it. The man who had chased her for months, years even saved her. But for what purpose...? She wondered, her bare hand tapping her lip, the bracelets on her arm jingling.

The speed with which the golem snatched a live bolt from the air was as amazing as it was disconcerting, and definitely something to take note of. The gasping crowd was still stunned for a few moments as the spectacle played out before them, allowing Equinoxis to take advantage and get in close with the equally aghast Hunter. The bounty hunter managed to draw his sword halfway when Equinoxis placed his hand on the larger mans shoulder, but jolt abruptly, then stiffened. Hunter stared in to Equinoxis' eyes, his own orbs bloodshot and his mouth twisted in a pained grimace, before slumping to the cobbles in an unconscious heap. Got to love the "shocking hand" spell... he thought, looking at Hunter's prone form. When the tracker fell, his crossbow tumbled out beside him. "Performance" or not, when the patrols came upon a sleeping man with a discharged weapon, someone was going to the dungeons for questioning.

That threat quashed for the moment, Equinoxis frowned slightly at Euterpe's vague nod and almost stumbled over himself to keep up with her as the girl moved through the crowd. What was this about? Was that really how Floreveneans gave their thanks, by nodding and walking away? How rude, Equinoxis thought. He almost bowled Euterpe over as she abruptly stopped at the entrance to a local eatery. When she looked to him again, obviously not surprised that he'd followed, Equinoxis smiled sheepishly. Oh, he thought, feeling quite the fool, she wanted to thank me more personally.

Reminding himself to take a course of some kind on female signals, Equinoxis, sketched a shallow bow and followed the waiter to their booth. It was large enough to fit six people instead of two, but with most of the town outside living it up, they had their pick of the place. After they were seated and had ordered, Equinoxis awkwardly scratched the back of his head and glanced around for a while. This was not going how he had planned.

During the long chase, Equinoxis had played through this scenario in his head a hundred times over. It usually entailed Euterpe being bound and thrown over his shoulder, or some climactic duel of magical might. Sitting in a three-star restaurant was not in any of his fancies. The mage cleared his throat and finally managed to find words. If he could end this without violence, he supposed it would be in his best interest to do so.

"Lady," he said cordially, "I am glad to have finally caught up with you. Two years." he whispered, smiling warmly, "I've watched over you for two years now, only barely keeping up. You make my job difficult, you know...but seeing your golem, I suppose my assistance would have been mildly helpful at best." warming up to the situation, Equinoxis reached in to his coat and withdrew a slip of paper. On the front of the unopened letter, the sigil of the Royal House Florevene was imprinted in green wax. Within the letter was a detailed note of apology, and an explanation that the aristocracy of Florevene was aware of Euterpe's dilemma. It was concluded by stating the mage before her, Equin, was to be her provisional guardian and accompany her until this Holy Lands business was settled and the Sylvitrans were dealt with...all in the Queen's handwriting, with signatures from the entire house, of course.

Equinoxis waited for her to finish reading and rubbed his neck nervously, obviously not accustomed to being around pretty women. He thanked the gods that his skin was just dark enough to hide his flushing face. "So, well met, Lady Euterpe. I am Equin Neirith, paige of Florevene. At your service."

Spells Remaining Today: 9

If the mage saving her surprised her, the fact he was sitting here, talking to her, politely, blew her mind. She decided to go with it for now. Though poor Jin had to wait outside.

"Lady," he said cordially, "I am glad to have finally caught up with you. Two years." he whispered, smiling warmly, "I've watched over you for two years now, only barely keeping up. You make my job difficult, you know...but seeing your golem, I suppose my assistance would have been mildly helpful at best."

He handed her a letter and she read it, looking up at him every so often. She finished and set the letter on the table. She stayed silent for a moment, her eyes narrowed before she gave him a wide smile. "I'm Euterpe, but you know this. My familiar and brother is Jin. It's very nice to meet you, Equin!" She smiled and turned to see their food was here. Her cake and tea were set on the table and she smiled. "Though, I'm surprised her highness would send me aid. I told her I could easily handle it... Though, she might be worried." She said, pointing with her fork.

She looked at Equin, her face blushing. "Though, I have to ask, how have I never seen you in the palace?"

It was Equinoxis' turn to redden, if only a little, at the mention of the palace. She was royalty? Or at the very least, of a status equal to his own in Sylvitra. That complicated matters somewhat, but he'd been briefed on enough Florevene culture to know the basic construction of their ruling class. Returning to the facade, Equinoxis cleared his throat and sketched another bow, though much smaller before, as the table hindered such a movement. He appeared rightly embarrassed at what Euterpe had revealed.

"I was unaware that I would be assisting a lady of the court, my lady." he shrugged, as if was to be expected that they would leave someone like himself out of the loop. "Alas, I am but a paige prince, born to live and die upon a manor in the countryside, of little more importance than a land owner, I am afraid. Not that landowners are not important," he quickly added, "But the aristocracy rarely places much value on...well...my kind." the last words were given an emphasis that clearly implied he had been mistreated because of his station at some point, but Equinoxis composed himself in an instant and was smiling again.

"That's all well and good though, I suppose. I was recognized for my skill with alteration magic just before you left the country..." the mage slowly clapped his hands together, symbolizing two pieces forming a whole, "So I was just skilled enough to protect you in case you required, and just expendable enough that nobody would care overly much if I expired on the road, or was waylayed on the trail by brigands." he mocked shivering in fear, but brushed it aside as if the thought of thugs overcoming him was incredulous. He marked the entrance a knight and an outlandishly exotic looking girl with some interest, but the thought of his quarry right before him set those idle fancies aside.

"I was unaware that your construct was also your...brother?" again, he shrugged helplessly. Equinoxis was much more relaxed, seeing how often Euterpe was put off or at a loss of words, nearly as much as he was, really. He was about to inquire if Jin was really her brother, transformed by some horrific accident, but thought better of such a faux pas and twined some of his pasta with a fork. "I did not even meet the queen, mind you." he chuckled between bites, "I was presented to the royal court in front of an empty throne! Her Excellence was out riding horses with her daughters, apparently, and I was presented with this task by a hawk-nosed adviser or some such, and the Queen's son, Jelvus. Surely you know him? A bit husky, always smiling, didn't really want to be in the palace..." Equinoxis patted his mouth with a napkin and wiped away some sauce. "Although with the rumors going around about "Jowly Jelvus", I expected him to be...well, large. He's not much bigger than myself!"

Euterpe laughed at the mage's words. She nibbled on the end of her fork and smiled. "I've never met the poor lad. Heard of him though. The Queen speaks fondly of him." she said, leaning her delicate form against the table. "And I'm merely a royal mage. I'm not that important either, so we're both expendable." She waved her hand, as if to brush away the thought. She really wasn't that important though. She was maybe as important as one of the knights. Maybe.

"And Jin is my brother! He's just different." She nodded to herself. "But enough about Brother. He has enough attention as is." she went for her pouch, intent on paying, seeing as this was the mage that saved her life. Once again, her face became warm.

"Well?" he said, taking another mouthful of the poorly spiced cuisine before speaking again, "You never agreed, you know." Equinoxis quickly nodded toward the Queen's writ, still sitting on the edge of the table where Euterpe had left it. He shrugged noncommittally, but managed a sincere smile. "I am obligated to follow you until a time that your safety can be guaranteed, whether you accept or not, but..." the mage shrugged helplessly, "I would feel much better if you gave your consent to do so. I know that unexpected presents can be a burden, sometimes, especially when they may be...extraneous."

He noticed the girl coloring again, and had to keep himself from doing the same. What was on with her? Was there something on his face? Was she ill? There were whispers of a plague to the north, but Equinoxis had put that up to hearsay and superstitious rabble from bored locals. All the while he was wondering, Equnoxis was staring in to Euterpe's eyes with concern plain on his face and a worried frown.

His concentration was broken for a brief moment. Equinoxis glanced toward the window to see the citizens appear somewhat agitated, and he even thought he heard a scream. A nasally, desperate plea, but a scream non the less. Street brawls and petty theft were no concern of his, however, and he was intent on hearing the young mage's answer.

Euterpe flushed darker and nodded. "Of course, of course! I'd be glad to have your help, Equin! Though I'll have to throw together a search party of some sort. Oh dear..." She muttered before looking back up at Equin and nearly dropping her coin purse. The man was watching her with concern and worry, two things that only came from brother and her pseudo father.

Then she heard the scream. It shook her core and she looked worriedly out the window. Jin was standing there of course and she relaxed some. The scream wasn't too close. If it was, Jin, the bighearted golem he was, would have helped out. She turned back to the other mage with a faked smile. Inwardly, she wanted to run out and hide in Jin's arms again. But she couldn't and that scared her a bit.

"My, my, what a ruckus out there... I wonder if someone was frightened by Jin..." She said, tilting her head. Her hands, which were tucked in her lap, shook something awful. She tried her best to keep the shaking from racking her body but light tremors still traveled across her skin. "I hope not... He's very gentle and nice... He just looks somewhat scary..."

Equinoxis was pleasantly surprised by Euterpe's optimism and willingness to accept his aid. Then again, these were dangerous times, and it always paid to have an extra spell or two on hand. In any case, Equinoxis was ahead of schedule, having not expected to "catch" Euterpe in at last another two days, one at the very least. He was about to suggest they find lodgings and a map for the morrow, but the girl's reaction to the events outside proved to be far more ardent than his own. As a bastard of Sylvitra, attaining a higher station in life was not something that came easily. With circumstances as taboo as his own, Equinoxis was forced to learn quickly or tumble back down the slope to wallow in the dregs of society. One skill the boy took up quickly was lying, in both movement as well as speech. As an adept of the art of facial manipulation, Equinoxis could spot a fraudulent smile from a mile away. A part of him wanted to sneer in disgust at the girl's empathy for some wretch she did not even know, as another part wanted to reach out and pat her on the shoulder in a gesture of comfort. Equinoxis gritted his teeth for a moment and quashed both urges in favor of a third option.

"Well, I suppose it cannot be helped." with a curt nod, the guardian mage gracefully arose from his seat and made for the door in a single fluid motion. "I shall alleviate your concerns, and we can make plans for the days ahead." he called back to Euterpe over his shoulder.

Words of rolling thunder and frigid wind were already on his lips as Equinoxis cleared the doorway. The mage was three syllables away from blasting Mximilien before he realized the wounded man was not some sort of brigand. Judging by his bedraggled attire and the axe he had freshly wrenched from his arm, Equinoxis automatically assumed the lanky man was a brigand. Judging by the pointed lack of screams and jeers directed toward him however, this was likely not the case. Indeed, the foreign woman and her knightly companion seemed to include him in their conversation. Equinoxis let the magic die and crossed his arms as her observed the exchange. It seemed as if a second foreigner, wearing clothes that rivaled the outlandishness of the azure-haired woman's garb, had joined the event.

It was interesting, to say the least. Although the distance between the group and himself muted most of the chatter, what tidbits Equinoxis did manage to catch were amusing. Even in the dying light, he could catch a glimpse of the wounded one's offense or Blue Hair's blushing. Eventually, he grew bored of eavesdropping and turned on his heel to return to the restaurant. At the mention of the Holy Lands, the mage flinched slightly, but continued his pace, picking up pieces of the tale of the newcomer's arrival from the dispersing crowd.

Stopping at the door, Equinoxis poked his head inside and beamed at Euterpe. "Everything is well, milady. Simply a thug of some sort wandering too close to town, I think, threatening travelers, you know, normal bandit behavior." he waved as if it were all so mundane, "A young swordsman made quick work of him with minimal injury to himself, I assume, since he had the energy to argue..." Equinoxis shrugged and smiled once more. "Are you ready to go? The evening is still young, you know."

"So you're going to the Holy Land, then? My little brother's headed there, and I'm looking for him like Miou and Hajime are looking for Kimiko, only I've been searching for him for months. I'll help you look for Kimiko, but after that I really have to go and find Arik."

"We have a deal then." Max said with a smile. He then let them leave... Miou with all his gold. Stupid... he thought planting his palm in his face. "I might as well go sell the boar." He said looking at the bag hanging around him. He first went to the butchers, selling the boar for about 50 gold pieces saying it's high quality and excusing himself for the missing pieces. He then went to the restaurant to find a golem at the door. "Why would a golem be here... and why isn't it attacking anybody?" He asked to himself. Max shrugged the curiousity out of himself and entered the restaurant. He wasn't used to being in social places... it struck him with much confusion, but what struck him even more was why he saw a man dressed nobolly and a girl dressed with the garbs of a witch.

He was about to walk over to them until he saw a waving hand, and saw it was the man he was looking for. After a quick chat, Max stood up and left. He eyed the duo from earlier with curiousity and then walked out. He looked around, not knowing what to do, he walked towards the tailor's shop. He saw Alaric play and smiled. He walked up to the lute case and dropped the pouch of 50 gold in it. "As a gift." He said as Miou walked out. He looked at her in the clothes and smiled. "Aren't you a pretty sight? The necklace is a nice touch..." He then put out his hand as she sat down and motioned for her to give the gold pouch back. "I think you've spent enough of my savings already." He said jokingly.

Euterpe quickly paid and ran to the front, eager to get outside again. Jin stood behind Equin and she hugged him. "Jin! I'm so glad you didn't scare anyone! I know these capital people don't like the way you look but that's okay!" She beamed up at him, making his hand ruffle her hair, almost affectionately. She smiled and turned to Equin. "Well, we should start by finding someone to accompany us. Maybe a small troupe or something..." She tapped her foot as someone began to sing. She wandered over, her curiosity getting the better of her. She gasped as she heard Dragonic, a language required to be learned to be a royal mage. She listening, swaying gently to the music. She reached into her own pocket and pulled out a smaller bag of gold coins, around 50 to 60 jingled in it. She gently set them in the case.

"Anyone who knows Dragonic is very special. Tell me where did you learn it, if it's not too personal..." She said in the language, the strange sounds coming fluidly and almost musically out of her mouth, as if she was singing with him. She smiled at the red haired male as Jin merely stared behind him.

So the games begin in earnest, Equinoxis thought coolly. As the younger mage was reunited with her construct, Equinoxis smirked and followed her at a respectful distance. Despite the hour, the market district was bustling. Mostly the more eccentric townsfolk, he noted, judging by the odd state of dress and peculiar tastes of those they passed. Just as they drew up to a small crowd overseeing the outfitters a sibilant hiss caused the nobleman to cock his head in confusion. Dragonic? Sticking a little closer to Euterpe now as well as maintaining an air of levity, Equinoxis casually slipped his hands in to his pockets. With a few hidden gestures, liquid darkness was coiling around his fingertips, ready to slay on his command. Dragonic was not so common a language that one would encounter it in a bazaar.

As such, Equinoxis felt the need to be on his guard. To his knowledge, only four types of people knew even an inkling of the arcane tongue: Archmages, royal magi, dragon-revering cultists, and the occasional scholar. None of those would normally be in a place such as this. The irony of two such people, Euterpe and himself, being in a common bazaar was not lost on the dark mage.

Equinoxis nearly bowled Euterpe over in his haste to place himself between the dragon-speaker and her...and abruptly pulled up to a halt. It was a...knight? Someone of that or a similar status, seeing as how expensive his armored appeared to be. A knight and a white-haired boy Equinoxis presumed to be another Sylvitran...Equinoxis listened calmly as Euterpe voiced a question that he was going to pose as well: how does a non-magus come upon dragonic? The answer came quickly enough, and the inanity of it caused Equinoxis to allow the spell swirling about his concealed fingers to fade. The knight had picked up the words through song, instead of training. Equinoxis very nearly sneered, but patted Euterpe's shoulder and smiled instead. "Pure coincidence, then-"

The jingling of a few dozen coins smacking down in the knight' collection evoked a flinch from the mage. Another came immediately after as Euterpe suggested the minstrel-knight to accompany them. "Milady, I am not sure what you have heard about the local fighter's guild, but their reputation for honest dealings are unmatched."

Equinoxis was interrupted by yet another, even more vagrant-like young man exiting the tailor's shop. Equinoxis caught sight of the blue-haired beauty from before and smiled charmingly before returning his efforts to Euterpe. Another fighter, though this one much less regal had taken Euterpe's proposition despite the offer not extending to him at all. Equinoxis stepped forward with a scowl on his face. "Excuse me, sir," it was obvious that his polite tone notwithstanding, Equinoxis used the term in the loosest sense, "But I do believe the Lady was speaking to-"

"First of all," she cut in, admonishing the second swordsman, "I don't think she was talking to you. Second of all, Alaric is looking for his little brother, so when Hajime and I (by the way, my name's Miou, nice to meet you) find our friend, Alaric's going to go right on with his search."

Equinoxis was taken back by the girl's candor, but impressed none the less. It was not every day a foreigner had the gal to stand up to an armed man without preamble. Equinoxis felt the overwhelming desire to introduce himself properly when she returned. For the moment, he stepped closer to Euterpe's side and leaned over to whisper in her ear.

"Although I cannot command you to do otherwise, I would recommend purchasing more reputable services than this one. At least the fighters guild members have records and the word of the people...you cannot be sure what this man has done or who he is..." his opinion voiced, Equinoxis retracted, shrugged, and extended a hand to Alaric.

"I am Equin Neirith, paige prince of Florevene, and newly appointed guardian of lady Euterpe." he flashed a comradely smile, "Should you accept her offer, after your business in town is concluded of course, it will be my pleasure serving alongside you."

Euterpe looked at Equin. While his words rang true, she needed that book. "I understand you need help and I will be willing to assist in return for assistance. I must find the Holy Lands as quickly as possible." She almost pleaded, her eyes honestly scared for a second before she looked down. She shook her head to clear her thoughts and nodded.

"I'll help you, just please, help me in return. You can keep everything else but the item I need!" She pleaded, before Jin rested a metal hand on her head. She quickly stopped and looked down. Jin seemed to comfort her with unspoken words because her breathing slowed back down. "I'm sorry for yelling at you guys. I just need help that's beyond my asking..."

Hajime returned from the shop shortly after Miou, wearing similar clothing. Both of them seemed to be armed with knives, knives they hadn't owned before going into the tailor's. What kind of strange tailor would sell daggers? Fortunately for Hajime and Miou, Alaric didn't hear Hajime's comment about how this world was strange.

"Of course, you can easily turn me down but..."
"But you've already paid me." Alaric finished with an impressed smile, "You're pretty smart for a little girl. I'll come with you, however, but first I've got to-"
"I would gladly help you, but I am helping a friend out right now. As soon as I am done finding what my friend is looking for, I will help you... Unless you would like to come with us, you see, this girl has lost her friend somewhere in the woods and she is sadly nowhere to be seen, if you would please help us find her friend. As soon as we have found the lost girl I will gladly help you, free of cost."
Alaric was cut off by Max, who seemed to think the question had been aimed at him. Why he had thought that, Alaric couldn't guess for the life of him. He hadn't been singing in Dragonic, paid or even looked at. He was also wounded in multiple places, not giving the impression that he was much of a warrior. As Alaric was about to inform Max that Euterpe had not been talking to him, the witch's bodyguard beat him to it. However, he didn't get to make the point, as Miou angrily starting hissing like an angry cat at Max and the witch.
"First of all, I don't think she was talking to you. Second of all, Alaric is looking for his little brother, so when Hajime and I (by the way, my name's Miou, nice to meet you) find our friend, Alaric's going to go right on with his search."
Alaric was glad that Miou wanted to stick up for Alaric, but he could make his own decisions, he was a nineteen-year-old man, not a little toddler who needed his mother to make all his decisions for him.
"Miou, I appreciate you're only trying to help, but I'm capable of making my own choices." Alaric told her before she ran off back into the tailor's, dragging Hajime in tow.

"What is one who calls darkness his friend doing here?"
Alaric suddenly noticed there was a white-haired boy standing nearby and glowering at the mage accompanying the witch. What did he mean by "one who calls the darkness his friend"? Alaric hadn't taken too warmly to him, considering he had talked about him as if he were some sort of street rat and suggested hiring someone from a guild instead, but he didn't seem like some sort of demon as the white-haired boy implied. Alaric decided it would be best to just ignore the boy's comment for now and let the mage deal with it.

"I'll help you, just please, help me in return. You can keep everything else but the item I need!"
Now seemed like as good a time as any to give the witch his answer. If Max hadn't cut him off earlier, the witch wouldn't have gotten so hysterical.
"As I was trying to say earlier," Alaric began, "Yes, I will help you, however, I need to help Miou and Hajime find a friend who's gone missing, then I need to find my brother and dragon, who will accompany us to the Holy Lands. Oh, and I need to sort something out for Hajime, Miou and their friend, they seem utterly clueless and understand nothing about Echo. After that, I'm all game."

"I am Equin Neirith, paige prince of Florevene, and newly appointed guardian of lady Euterpe. Should you accept her offer, after your business in town is concluded of course, it will be my pleasure serving alongside you."
The mage now seemed to accept that Alaric was coming with him and held out a hand for Alaric to shake.
"Alaric Thorne." Alaric informed Equin as he shook his hand firmly, "I'm a travelling bard and warrior from Sylvitra. The feeling is mutual."

As Alaric released his firm grip on Equin's hand and let it fall to his side, he noticed Miou and Hajime returning from inside the shop once again. They both slumped down against the wall, looking tired, upset and worn out. It was obvious that Miou had been crying, her eyes looked red and sore and her cheeks were flushed red (as usual). Hajime was now sleeping peacefully against the wall, regardless of the fact he was in a noisy, bustling street and it was the middle of the day. Alaric knew he'd have to wake him up soon, but decided to let him have a few minutes of oddly placed sleep.

"Thank you. I am also headed to the Holy Lands myself, mostly for the book of spells that is said to reside there. This book is a guide and a map to the Holy Lands but it's written in an ancient code... Luckily I can crack it but I only have the first few pages down."
"Book of spells"... The Holy Lands were supposed to house treasures made by gods, and the gods possessed extreme power and knowledge. Maybe that book would contain a spell that would... No, he couldn't, there was no point wishing for something that almost certainly didn't exist. Besides, even if it did, there would be large price to pay.
Alaric looked at the book the young witch was holding out to him in confusion, he couldn't make heads or tails of the gibberish that was scrawled down upon the pages. It surprised him that the young witch understood any of it at all, let alone pages of the stuff.
"Good luck with that." Alaric said, his tone showing that he expected the witch to need it.

"S-sylvitra? Oh my... Well, despite past encounters with Sylvitrians, I believe you are a good man and will not try to give me to your king..."
"Past encounters"? Did she have a bounty on her head in Sylvitra? She didn't look like a criminal, and certainly didn't act like one. Besides, he didn't think many people would try and apprehend her with that massive golem following her everywhere.
"Don't worry, I owe no fealty to the selfish, old git." Alaric reassured her, "I'll raise my blade against all who raise their's against you, even if they are working for the king. In fact, I'd cut them down sooner then anyone else. The greedy bastards have made life harder and harder for innocent people because of that man. Oh, and I never managed to catch your name. What is it?"

"Don't worry, I owe no fealty to the selfish, old git." Alaric reassured her, "I'll raise my blade against all who raise their's against you, even if they are working for the king. In fact, I'd cut them down sooner then anyone else. The greedy bastards have made life harder and harder for innocent people because of that man. Oh, and I never managed to catch your name. What is it?"

Euterpe sighed and nodded. "I'm Euterpe, thirty eigth female water mage to the Queen of Florevene and a elemental witch by birth. This is Jin, my familiar and brother. He looks a bit mean, but he means well, promise!" She recited, from memory. It was the introduction she gave almost everyone. She smiled widely at Alaric. "It's so nice to see nice people that are willing to help someone! It's almost impossible to find help that won't stab you in the back!"

She looked over the book and frowned. "Stupid code..." She muttered softly. "Let's see... All I have so far is about the Holy Lands. What it contains, the description, things like that. Honestly, who or what ever wrote this book thought that a scholar would grow bored of the endless details!" She shook her head and looked at her newest travel companions then skywards. "Oh my, it's getting dark... Shall we find an inn to rest for the night? That way, we're all alert and ready for travel and search!"

"To them if I'm there or not makes no difference, I've been days without going back and they never bothered, but now you are disappeared they're probably crying disconsolately."
Alaric almost slammed the palm of his hand into his face, Arik could say some utterly stupid things when he wanted to, and seemed to want to frequently.
"Mother and Father know exactly where I am, I had enough sense to tell them I was leaving." Alaric responded incredulously, "I told them why you left, Mother tried to stop me from coming after you, but as you can see I came anyway. Our parents care about you Arik, and they're worried about you. The only reason they didn't indulge you as much as they indulged me was because you never showed any promise. Not because you couldn't do anything, it was because you wouldn't try."

"Ultimately it comes down to that I came with Kaatanmura otherwise you wouldn't even be here now, as I see you have the same confidence as always."
Once again, Arik was spewing bilge out of his mouth. Every comment Arik made made Alaric want to slap some sense into him, but refrained from doing so.
"While I did come looking for Kaatanmura, I came looking for you as well." Alaric replied, "While you can be incredibly stupid and constantly drive me up the wall, you're still my little brother and I care about you. I can't just let you fly off on a wild goose chase on your own, can I?"
Alaric then took Kaatanmura's reins from Arik and climbed into the saddle. It would feel good to fly again.
"You're no better than he is though, don't think I overlooked the fact you ran off willingly." Alaric scolded Kaatanmura, causing him to bow his head in shame.

Just as Alaric was about to take off and fly back to the group, Arik turned to him and asked a question.
"That 'Japan' thing has something that do with 'Japanese'? Because I met a girl who dressed weird and asked obvious questions she was looking for something like that."
"I should think so." Alaric answered, "Since that girl was almost certainly Kimiko, the girl Miou and Hajime were looking for, it looks like you're going to have to tell them everything you know about where she is."
Giving Arik no chance to respond in any way, Kaatanmura surged forward and skyward while Alaric grabbed his little brother and hoisted him up into the saddle.

Finding the group didn't take long, since they had a bird's eye view over the city. As soon as Alaric had found the group again, he had Kaatanmura swoop down towards them and land in the street, metres away from them.
"Sorry about that." Alaric told the group as he dismounted Kaatanmura, "I just had to pick up these two idiots. I hope you don't mind them coming with us to the Holy Lands. Oh, and my brother said he met Kimiko, so go ahead and ask him questions about her."

Suddenly exhausted from the overflow of emotions, Miou didn't bother trying to follow the conversation. She wasn't even sure what half of the things that they were talking about meant, so she allowed herself to fall in and out of sleep. Her eyelids would droop and she'd doze off, but her attention would get caught by something that she somewhat understood, then she'd slowly fall asleep again.

"...Lands myself, mostly for the book of spells..." If all of this didn't seem so realistic, Miou would have rolled her eyes at the notion of a journey to find a book of spells. She opened one of her eyes a bit to look quizzically at the young witch before closing it again to try to find sleep once more. She began to be pulled into the arms of sleep when Hajime spazzed and brought her back to the marketplace.

“Kimiko!! We have to find Kimiko now.” Miou, jerked forward, shouting in surprise. She whirled around to look at Hajime, thinking that maybe he saw their lost friend or something. Alas, Hajime looked wide awake and scared, however Miou recognized the heavy bags under his eyes and his slight bed head from leaning against the building and put two and two together.

"Goddamn it Hajime, calm down." She muttered, turning over so that she was leaning on her side, her back to her friend. "We'll find Kimiko tomorrow maybe." Miou closed her eyes, irritable from being interrupted when sleep had been so close to claiming her. She assumed that Hajime understood her, because he didn't say anything else.

Slowly but surely, she began to nod off, once more.

"Oh my, it's getting dark... Shall we find an inn to rest for the night? That way, we're all alert and ready for travel and search!" The witch said and Alaric seemed to agree. She frowned, not wanting to put fourth the effort it would take to stand up.

"C'mon, can't we just all sleep here for tonight, it's more comfortable than it looks." She yawned, but the others were all on board with Euterpe's plan, so she stood up on wobbly legs, and hopped around, trying to shake the pin-prickly feeling from her feet.

“We’ll find Kimiko in the morning, I guess. Hopefully she has the sense to stay away from trouble, mm?”

Miou stopped her jumping about and rubbed the sleep from her eyes, "What? Oh yeah, hopefully. I mean, she's Kimi, I'm sure she'll be fine." She followed the rest of the group, staying in the back with Hajime, walking groggily along. Hajime looked as if he was in a whole other world, thinking about god knows what. Meanwhile, the only thing that Miou was thinking about was staying on her feet and staying awake until they reached the inn.

There was an unnatural gust of wind and a strange flapping sound, and Miou was suddenly wide awake, however she did need to grab Hajime's arm to keep herself from falling over. It was a freaking dragon! With wings and scales! Not only that, but it was flying! If Miou could puke rainbows, she would have.

"Holy f- Hajime, do you see this?" She squealed, "is this some sort of whacked up animatronic or something? Please don't tell me it's real!" The dragon landed and Alaric hopped off, along with someone who looked a lot like him, but younger. She assumed he was Alaric's brother.

"Sorry about that." Alaric told the group as he dismounted the mutant lizard, "I just had to pick up these two idiots. I hope you don't mind them coming with us to the Holy Lands. Oh, and my brother said he met Kimiko, so go ahead and ask him questions about her.”

She stopped, stunned. Hajime had gained his senses quicker than she had because he ran at Arik and demanded to know everything that he knew about Kimiko. "Hajime, calm down." She muttered, walking up behind her friend and putting her hand on his shoulder.

"In the afternoon I met a girl who was dressed weird, she lacked the common knowledge and seemed to think she was dreaming or something, she was looking for something called 'Japanese' and we decided to come together to the city, in the way she started running and went into a cave but I followed then everything turned purple and when I opened my eyes she was gone, I walked through the cave but found no signs of life"

Miou was struck speechless. She simply stood there, "so...Kimi was here...but she disappeared again...?"

“The cave where we found our way here was purple!” Hajime turned to Miou, a relieved smile finding its way across his face. “She made it, Miou! She’s home! And now we know where to go to get home, too!” He went over to her, taking her hands in his. “Isn’t this great?”

Miou didn't say anything, still stunned by the strange thing that had happened to their friend. It didn't seem to add up, it seemed too easy, though for the time being, she allowed herself to accept Hajime's theory, and a smile slowly crept it's way across her face. "Yeah, Hajime, it is great." Her hands were beginning to get a bit clammy and she pulled them from Hajime's grasp. Maybe he was right, maybe they would get home and find Kimiko. "Come on, guys, lets find that inn, I'm getting cold." She wrapped her cloak tightly around her and urged the group forward, pushing her friend's strange disappearance from her mind.

There were more pressing things to worry about at the moment, like room arrangements.