[System]
Aliases: Salmu Pulhu (Sumerian), Shasheuss-Throth (De Vermis Mysteriis), The Sleeper of the Clandestine

Gender: Male

Species: Elder Horror, Primeval Vampire

Lifespan: As long as it can continue drinking blood. It doesn't age when it sleeps for years in-between large meals.

Age: 1,907

Appearance: A piebald monstrosity with slime slicked flesh and no hind legs. Its only limbs are two long, winged arms and a powerful tail. It has four claws on each forepaw, with the middle one being eight inches long and capable of slicing through muscle like tissue paper. The beast's head is mostly a jagged maw with oily, unseeing eyes on top. It has a sharp, hollow tongue which can extend three feet from its mouth and act as a siphon to suck in blood. From snout to tail base, it is over eight feet long. The tail is fourteen feet. It weighs in at about two-hundred and ninety-five kilos, as much as a siberian tiger.

Abilities

~Limited flight. Due to its wingspan and body weight, it can only fly for a maximum distance of ninety meters and remain aloft for little more than a half minute.

~Ectothermic: It's body temperature adjusts to match its surroundings. It can withstand the hottest or coldest environments.

~Tremendous strength and speed.

~Keen hearing and sonar. It's echolocation has a maximum distance of 6,700 meters and can detect objects moving at half the speed of sound. Anything faster than subsonic it can detect via air pressure gradient.

~Heat pits: Can detect the heat of organisms.

~Tongue: Can draw in blood through a wound like a vaccuum. It can also squirt or spray blood and bile. The bile is not highly acidic.

~Can squeeze into any opening that it can fit its head through.

~Capable of entering a state of metabolic stasis which can last for decades. It retains spatial awareness during this "hibernation" and can awaken at will.

~Sense of smell: It can track down others thousands of kilometers away just by smelling them on the clothing of its prey.

~Intelligence: Is far more clever that it looks. Can grasp (but not speak) all languages.

~Can quickly regenerate from wounds by consuming blood and flesh. The amount of mass healed is proportionate to how much is consumed, I.E one pound of food to replace one pound of damaged tissue.

~The membrane of its wings is tougher than Kevlar.

~Its body mucous and saliva contains anticoagulant, cytotoxic, and bufotoxic properties. Those whom it bites or claws will suffer gradual necrosis, unstoppable bleeding, and fast-acting, nightmarish hallucinations.
The speed at which the bufotoxins take effect depends on how close the wound is to the head, ranging from several minutes to several seconds. It is immune to its own toxins.
The viscosity of the mucous can be regulated, allowing the Magna Pater to be extremely slippery or adhesive.
The mucous functions also to mask its scent.
It can convert and excrete up to twenty percent of its body weight in mucous. It becomes significantly faster when empty, and can regain the weight by eating.

~The Alpha:
Though it would never allow its young to live unless driven to desperation by an immense threat to its existence, for it is a selfish thing that dislikes sharing its hunting grounds, it is able to impose its will upon its brood of lesser vampires via shared split-consciousness. By forcefully breeding with another organism, it can produce in one month a litter of four juveniles. The juveniles mature after a single month and become fully capable of killing and breeding, weighing at that time around 100 kilos each. The brood will never grow to more than 200 kilos. Each one can have a litter of four young, and can breed with as many victims as are available.
At such a rate the number of mature brood would grow exponentially as follows, assuming the lowest estimate of each one breeding a single time per month.

Month One- The Magna Pater breeds and the young emerge.

Month Two- Five mature brood counting the Magna Pater.

Month Four- Twenty brood.

Month Six- Eighty Brood.

Month Eight- 320 brood.

Month Ten- 1,280 brood.

Year One- 5,120 brood.

Year Two- 26,214,400 brood.

Year Three- Planetary Extinction.

~Malocchio:
It may use its "true eyes" by shutting down its other senses. Before it uses the Malocchio, the intended victim(s) will have a brief premonition of the danger to come. Those who see the true eyes will, each time they go to sleep, enter a trance and begin moving in the direction of the Magna Pater, wherever it may be. They will awaken at the time they normally would, such as a few minutes for a nap and several hours for deep sleep. It also allows the Magna Later to see through the eyes of its prey at any and all times, even at the same time if there are multiple victims. By using the Malocchio on one who is already cursed, the victim's sight will be replaced with that of the Magna Pater's until it deactivates its eyes.

It is a passive curse that has no immediate negative effects unless the victim is entirely under the influence of the Magna Pater's hallucinogens, in which case the victim will immediately lose their mind from fright. If the bufotoxins haven't taken full effect then the victim will feel an intense fear which escalates in accordance to the strength of the already terrifying hallucinations.

Looking into its "true eyes" for too long can result in the victim's body becoming riddled with cancer at a later period in time, I.E developing prostate and skin cancer two years after the encounter. It takes roughly seven seconds of eye-to-eye contact (does not have to be constant) before the dormant cancer cells begin taking root.
The Magna Pater can only keep the Malocchio active for at most sixteen seconds, and cannot use it again until the same amount of time has passed. As an example, if it only uses it for ten seconds and then deactivates, then it must rest its eyes for ten seconds.

~Those that are consumed by the Magna Pater whilst cursed by the Malocchio have their consciousness eternally bound to their physical state of matter. They gain a horrific form of immortality, doomed to live on forever in boundless agony as inert particles bequeathed unto the earth, lost to time and memory beneath the weight of the ages.

(A lesser, juvenile vampire)

Behavior: The Magna Pater is what one would first think of when the word "monster" comes to you in the dead of night.
It may be called if one completes a forbidden ritual detailed within the ancient tome of black magic known as De Vermis Mysteriis, but nary a being would consider doing such an obscene thing. It makes no noise, has no mercy, cannot be reasoned with, and lives only to drain the blood and devour the flesh of all living things it can bind within its greasy wings. It enjoys all manner of prey and is especially inclined to go out of its way to find children, but it is shy and despises the light. It prefers to remain in damp pitch-blackness, where no eyes can spy it and no light can fall upon it. When outside of its primary lair it lurks around graveyards, occasionally squirming through the wormy soil to feast upon the dead and decaying when no live meat is available.
It will frequently impregnate victims with its brood, keeping them alive until its malformed young are birthed. It will eat both the victim and the young, doing these things not for food but to purposefully inflict prolonged torment.

The few who come into contact with it and live may never be the same as they had been before, for above all else it is a creature of persistence. Even if one leaves the Magna Pater, it will never leave them. A variety of lifelong physical complications and psychological ailments can stem from a meeting with it and it never stops pursuing its prey, even if they move far away. It will also track down any living thing that leaves its scent on a victim. This leads to the it consuming the families of those it hunts, along with anyone those families had come into recent physical contact with. Though one may travel often and abroad, once the Magna Pater has chosen a victim their fate is inevitable. It could take days, weeks, months, even years, but eventually on some cold and moonless evening one will awaken to see a sticky face with dead eyes peering through their bedroom window.

History:

Once in a millennium is a creature born, a living horror known as the "Magna Pater". The progenitor of monsters, the true genesis, the harbinger of loss, ancient and terrible. Only one has ever lived at a time, for it is greedy and does not abide its own kind, but always has one lived. It is the alpha of its virtually nonexistant subspecies, devouring its own young at birth. Only when the lone alpha dies is a new alpha conceived. It travels far and with little preference, drawn to whatever realm has foolishly called it via black magic. It has seen and ended countless civilisations. In Sumeria it was worshipped as a cruel deity to which many sacrifices were made. In this lifetime does a special one exist, the most dreadful of its kind to have ever been. Even the most vile of devils would balk at associating with it. Like each Magna Pater before it, it wields the unique capacity to share the sight and manipulate the will of its subspecies, an apocalyptic power which it does not abuse only for the sake of preserving its food supply.

Though it lingers not permanently in this world, it is anchored here during times of inactivity. It haunts the secret places deep below ground, amidst a lichen hellscape of death and graverot. It slumbers upon a towering mountain of soggy bones, reigning over its decaying empire on a haphazard throne several thousand lives thick. Those who enter this wretched domain, where the blue sky transitions into a black void, do so at the risk of becoming yet another skeleton upon which the Magna Pater may sleep, with their loved ones soon joining them.

Theme Music:

[User] The sound would fade away after several seconds... It might be in the tunnels ahead, either having stopped or gone too far for even the cave's echoes to reach Higan.

[Assistant]
Time was not massively against Higan as he walked at an almost leisurely pace through the cave system. Ultimately he was either going to escape the cave unmolested and return home for repair work or he was going to run into Slimy again before he got top-side. The worst thing he could do was sprint through the darkness with three quarters of his vision fucked up and let the monster get the drop on him again. Such was to be expected when you pursued creatures into their own lair, but fool me twice and all that jazz. As it were he was relying solely upon Electric vision, or what remained of it, as he made his way through the long dark. However, there was no particular reason why he should, as his Optics were still connected to the computer system and would change when necessary. He made some adjustments, of which the creature he pursued could have no knowledge of.

With no more sound to pursue there was little to guide Higan towards his prey. To that end he set himself on a reverse course to that he had followed, pausing more rarely to listen out for the Pater, perhaps every minute or so, though there was no pattern to his action and he sometimes stopped and listened suddenly, hoping to catch it out if it understood what he was doing. In regards to his eventual escape, Higan was a trained A.S.P operator, and part of his job was a scouting role. Orienteering his way out of a cave was child's play, in fact he would probably make about the same time as he did on his way in allowing for his less than consistent walking.

[User] Higan would indeed succeed in leaving the cavern, without a hitch. Something was off, though. It all had been too easy. Having the Magna Pater off the grid was like sitting on a ticking bomb...

[Assistant]
"Well now, it's definitely up ahead somewhere." Higan muttered to himself as the Mech made its final ascent. It was a little easier getting out of the cave than getting in so the Mech was climbing up the last tunnel in a sort of crouch-walk with its right side facing forward. It was still slow going though, which worried Higan just a tad as he had a foreboding feeling the Pater was preparing something for him up topside. He had forced it out of its little nest and back up into open air, if it was like any other ugly bastard living in dirt it couldn't have liked that very much. Still, once he reached daylight visibility was bound to be improved and he'd have space to work with, all factors in his favour. Particularly in light of two things, he had entered the forest in the early hours of the morning and had been in the deeps for at least two hours, so sunlight would be permeating the forest. However, more importantly he remembered the exit was on a hillside, so the sun would shine more brightly upon it as the canopy couldn't be as thick, and he would have an excellent field of vision. There was a chance he could still kill the creature yet, with just forty rounds of rifle ammo and maybe 900 rounds in his chain-gun.

The entrance to the cave was the biggest danger. If the creature stayed true to form it would be up waiting for him in a blind spot as he exited the cave. He couldn't hear it anymore, so either it had fled far enough through the forest to escape him or it had settled down to wait for him to leave the cave. His mind flittered back to the skeletal decoy earlier, he couldn't even discount the possibility of a trap waiting for him at the exit, and it had certainly proved itself wily enough to carry out some manual tasks. All in all the light at the end of the tunnel was looking progressively worse as he swapped back to ordinary vision function to avoid blinding himself. If there was anything un-toward about the entrance of the cave Higan would notice it, he wasn't a scout for nothing, having passed this way earlier he could probably spot a single stone out of place.

Presuming he was not accosted before reaching the exit his rifle would poke out into daylight, feeling for anything untoward on his path and perhaps fishing out the creature. If nothing bit he'd consider his next plan of action about six feet inside of the cave, his cannon pointed with deadly intent before him and his eyes searching what he could see outside.

[User] The forest was quiet, and the Magna Pater was nowhere to be seen. Most of the its victims had experienced this very situation. He who strikes first strikes last, and the monster had the luxury of time.

[Assistant] Eventually you just have to take the plunge. The Mech stepped out into open air with another burst of chain-gun fire clearing its head and the patch of earth above and behind it in its immediate blind spot. Provided it went unmolested Higan would pause and listen for further sound, before making his way slowly up the hill in the same stopping and listening fashion he had used earlier.


[System]
~Quinn Myers~

Appearance:
 Quinn Myers has jet black hair that runs all the way down her back. She tends to wear her hair in low pony tails, letting curled pieces of her hair fall in front of her face. Standing at around 5'3, she's fairly short for her age, but seems taller due to her incredible confidence. Quinn's eyes are bright baby blue and are the first thing people seem to notice about her. They make her face pop up, and with a touch a makeup, Quinn looks absolutely stunning.

 Quinn's wardrobe isn't exactly the best, she tends to go more comfy that stylish. Occasionally though, she'll dress up for no particular reason. It can be fun every once and awhile to be fancy for Quinn, and she loves messing with people's heads. Quinn usually puts on a dash of eye shadow and a touch of mascara. It's not too much, but the perfect amount of natural beauty and cosmetics.
Age: 16

Reputation:
 Quinn is considered to be a fun and outgoing girl. As a human, she had missed out on everything a normal girl went through. Now, she's determined to live life as a normal teenager would, well except for the bloodsucking part. Fun-loving and adventures, Quinn's the type of girl that encourages people to skinny dip, or to stink out past curfew, anything to get her close to a beating heart beat. She's also fearless and courageous. It's rare for something to frighten her. Life as a human sucked for Quinn, she intends to make up for it as a vampire.

 Unlike most vampires, Quinn has a pretty good control on blood. It comes easy to her, for whatever reason. She'd always been good at pacing herself and drinking blood seemed to be just the same. Sometimes Quinn would even help young vampires gain control, something her teacher's will often assign her to do.

 Quinn is also extremely hardworking. If there's something she wants, count on it happening. She will to all extremes to accomplish something. Write a book? Check. Learn Japanese? Check. Learn ancient history? Check. The list goes on and on. No matter what she sets out to do, it will get done. Watch out if you stand her way, she's not afraid to run right through you.

History:
 Quinn was born in London England to normal human parents. From a young age, she had a wild imagination and from there developed an intense interest for the supernatural. Instead of going to birthday parties and having sleepovers, Quinn would read and research everything she could find on the occult. Any normal, loving parent would have been concentered by Quinn's obsession, but not hers. Being professors as they were, they didn't have enough time for their only daughter. The only interest they ever showed was when they hired Quinn's nanny.

 And so, Quinn continued her research. It wasn't until high school did Quinn start to believe not only was the supernatural interesting, but it was real. Several trips were taken to mysterious places about strange, magical incidents or humans drained from blood, even the slightest rumor had Quinn packing her bags. She could be gone for weeks, and her parents still wouldn't care. As far as they were concerned, Quinn was simply a stray cat, who could leave the house for weeks but would still come back home for food and shelter. Not even the nanny, who was only there for the money, cared where Quinn went off to.

 It was when Quinn's grades started slipping did her parents start to intervene. She had always been a straight A student, until 10th grade. High school wasn't even slightly interesting to Quinn anymore, all that mattered was the supernatural. She could have dropped out right then and made a career in the occult world. But her father was furious at the embarrassment Quinn had caused. She had only three B's, but they still completely freaked out. She wouldn't have been surprised if her father's booming voice caused the entire house to collapse. They grounded her to the house for an entire month. Quinn couldn't bear to spend another minute stuck in that house, so the first day her parents left to give a speech in America, she decided to flee the prison which she was supposed to call home. To this day, Quinn's unsure if her parents ever tried to look for her. Quinn took this opportunity to become a full time supernatural information gatherer, which she still wasn't sure if that was actually a thing. Regardless, Quinn traveled around the world gathering more information on the Occult.

 Never did Quinn think she could become a supernatural creature herself. It was March 15th, the death of Julius Caesar, and apparently the day a ghost attacked a small village in Italy every year, when Quinn's life was changed forever. It was simply any other normal day, well normal for Quinn anyway. The clock read 11:30pm, just a half hour before it struck midnight. Venturing through the town's vast forest, Quinn was searching for a secret burial ground when she came across a mysterious boy dressed in a dark red cloak. Who would be hanging around in these woods so late? She asked herself, extremely suspicious of the boy. It wasn't until he was 2 feet from her did she see the pointy white fangs. But it was too late to run away by then. The boy bit into her soft neck and fed on her, sucking practically all the blood from her body. Despite the pain and the terrifying vampire biting her, not once did Quinn scream or try to struggle. She stood there, amazed that all her research was true. Vampires existed. Once the vampire had finished his meal, Quinn crumbled to the ground. Breathing incredibly hard, she knew it was only a matter of time before her spirit traveled into an unknown world. The boy looked at her, surprised at her peaceful surrender to him. Whether it be amazement, mercy, or whatever the vampire was feeling, he decided to make the ultimate decision and turn her. Biting into her own arm, he gave Quinn, who was seconds from death, his very own blood. Moments after putting his blood into her system, the boy snapped Quinn's neck. She woke hours later as a vampire.

Secrets:
-Quinn is currently working on Natural Vampire magic, and while she's only been a vampire for a little over a year, she's already come to see much improvement in her abilities. Quinn's favorite element is water.

-Quinn actually loves being a vampire. All her human life, she studied them and practically worshiped them, and now it was like she had become a god. She was stronger and faster, and most importantly, free to do whatever she wanted.

-Imagine the worst dancer in the world, then times it by 50 and you'll get Quinn. Dance moves clearly aren't her thing, not that she's aware of that though.

-Surprisingly smart, Quinn is at the top of her class. Studying and memorizing facts comes easy to her.

-Due to her terrible parents, Quinn has extreme trust issue. It's difficult for her to share any secret information to anyone. It's a scar she's trying to heal, but no matter how hard she tries, Quinn just can't seem to trust anyone.

[User]
"Well, here we are I suppose..." Maple stepped off the train to the amazing sight of the school. Most were immediately walking through the large ornate doors into the city surrounding the academy, but Maple slipped out of the crowd to stand off to the side and catch her breath. As she did, she watched the crowd.

There were some interesting folks there, but the most interesting to her was a girl about her age with a wing on her head and another on her shoulder. She was wearing a fancy little black dress, and looked like she was about to cry her heart out. As Maple approached her, she noticed her eyes were red-tinted, like her own, and found a reason to talk to the girl other than, 'Hey, don't cry sweetheart!'

"Hey, i'm Maple. Yes like the tree. I'm also Canadian, if that means anything to you." Maple silently cursed her harsh tone as she spoke, trying again with a light kindness in her voice now. "Sorry, I'm what you'd call naturally blunt. Don't take what I say seriously." A smile now, and reel her in.

"You hungry? Don't bother saying no, because I can see it all in your eyes." Maple kept a kind smile on her face as she waited for the girl to respond, holding her hand out to her.

[Assistant]
Veit's eyes were glued to the amazing display of acrobatics. He heard Quinn say something, but he only caught the last bit of it,'Can you you do that?'. Veit's eyes snapped forward, landing on the wheel barrow, watching as it quickly drew closer. Veit was ready to do something, but his body wasn't, he could have copied Quinn and just do an elegant back flip through the air but Veit wanted to do something different. He wasn't sure what else he could do, and without realizing it, the wheel barrow was only a few feet away. It was to late to turn around and shout to Quinn 'I'm not that skilled', but the momentum would carry him into the wheel barrow if he tried to stop.

Veit accepted defeat when he realized there was no way out of this, the wheel barrow was now within arms length and he had no plan in mind. Veit closed his eyes as he crashed into the wheel barrow. The edge of the contraption made him trip into the barrow face first, after landing in it the momentum from his incredible speed propelled both Veit and the barrow forward toward a crowed where people were seated at a stage. Unbeknownst to him, this stage was where all the magics teachers were.

[User]
"Ah, a new student. Here are some papers you need to fill out, including your name, race, birthday, and when you discovered your vampirism. Also..."

All-in-all it took Lucilia and Morticia about thirty minutes to fill out the various forms and documents, take her picture, and produce her a card. "Do your best to keep your card. Not only is it your identity card, but it is also needed if you wish to buy anything within the city, access certain facilities, or engage in various services. Aside from that, enjoy your stay at the Scarlet Briar Academy!" Giving a kind smile to Morticia Lucilia spied some newcomers in the distance. Lucilia gathered more documents for them, feeling that they would come see her soon.

@Vesuvius00@Luna

Meanwhile as Donny watched from his tree, he saw some teachers come out for magical demonstrations. The first up was the man dressed completely in white. He even had white hair. The only thing that wasn't white was his eyes, which were gold. He stepped up to the microphone and spoke out. "I am Psyren, and I know each and everyone one of you. You may be wondering how, or why. The answer is simple: it's thanks to Mental Magic. I can read your thoughts... And control others with my mind." Demonstrating the power of his control Psyren took a step back and raised his hands. Soon, various students were lifted up into the air, helpless as they flailed around. "Mental magic is not only the power of telepathy, but also telekinesis! To master Mental Magic is to master matter itself. Observe!" Lowering the various students back into their seat, some assistants came out with various objects. Balls, buckets of water, barrels, a gun, a couple of bags, and a set of barbells. They threw them at Psyren and without even lifting a finger they were caught in the air. One of the assistants even shot at him, but no bullets hit him. A wave of his hand and he even disarmed the gun, dismantling it into pieces before dropping the parts into a barrel. He said nothing more as he walked off the stage, carrying the props with him using telekinesis.

The next up was a young man in a fancy three-piece suit. He walked up to the stage and to the mike. "Hello, my name is Vandheer Lorde. Don't let my appearance fool you... My magic involves mastering the wild and harsh Elements. They're a tricky and vicious beast, some which contains a vampire's natural weakness. And if you learn my magic, you will learn how to combat these weaknesses. Like so." Suddenly, Vandheer burst into flames, scaring much of the audience members. "Fire is our natural enemy. But with nature magic, we turn fire into a loyal ally. And you may be wondering about our other weakness, one that could make any gaudy human into a threat. Silver." Vandheer's fire vanished, and his body was now covered in silver. He moved himself freely however, even producing a blade to cut his arms. No blood was drawn, and his body seemed fine. He dismissed the silver, falling into dust around his feet. He was completely unharmed. He then waved his arms through the air, and water and wind gathered around him forming a comfortably chair for him to sit on while in the air. "Master the elements and you master nature itself. Even if you don't master the elements, you're still far more powerful then any other vampire who chooses a different path." And with that Vandheer left the stage, slouching in his wind and water chair.

[Assistant]
Morticia was very much relieved when the paperwork was done and to find out that she would have a bit of allowance to spend. She quickly hurried away to find Casey and when she did find him, she was all smiles.

"Hey Casey! I am officially enrolled into the Academy! I have my ID card, room number and everything! I am so excited......" she paused as she heard and saw the two professors.

"Wow..... I guess there is a lot to learn and do here. I need to decide what classes I want yet. Want to come and sit with me while I make my choices?"


[System]
Gender: Female
Race: Human
Age: 31
Height: 5' 7"
Weight: 125 lbs
Alignment: Chaotic Good
Significant Other: Hugh Van Halder
Hair color, texture, length, style: Dirty ash blonde with layers from ears to shoulders. Her hair is usually worn with shorter layers crimped and pulled back with a few loose strands around her face, the longer layers are curled under and left loose falling to her shoulders.

Eye look, shape & color: Milk Chocolate with amber specks, round eyes with a slight slant at the outer corners.

Skin Tone: Tanned with olive undertones.

Body Type: Toned body over all with very defined arm muscles.

Voice/Accent: Her voice has a tad deeper intonation than most women and is slightly raspy. Though not skilled in the magical arts of her people Sana has a stunningly beautiful voice when she sings but it is something that she rarely ever does.

Clothing: She wears a very simple halter top made of tanned leather that tied around the back of her neck and is trimmed in a deep brown rawhide. She wears a matching shorts that is slit on each side of her thighs as to not to hinder her movements. Her boots are a soft suede material that come up to just below her knees and lace up the entire way, soft soles, no heels. She wears a sheer mantle that flows to the ground and is trimmed in the same material as her halter top, usually pulled over her arms to hide their definition.

Armor: Snake Band Arm Cuff with Enchanted Garnet (Barkskin)

Weapons: She carried one small dagger that is used for cutting up meat before cooking for the most part though is works as a throwing dagger if need be. Nothing special about it, the blade is 6 inches of plain steel while the hilt is carved oak. Her other and main weapon is a Recurve Bow that was hand carved for her, she uses cedar arrows that resist warping. Silver Dagger found in the chest of a Liches Layer.

Spells: None

Natural Abilities: Agility, acrobatics, gymnastics, ambidextrous

Skilled: Excellent marksman with a bow and skilled dagger thrower. Knows some close combat fighting, using her bow in a staff like manner. When weaponless Sana will use her knowledge of acrobatics and gymnastics, combined with her agility, to attack and defend herself.

Personality: Quiet and untrusting, hard to get close to. She prefers to be left alone and detests asking for help. A very stubborn woman who prefers to do things alone than in a group. She can be quite volatile if provoked and tends to be a bit moody.

History: She comes from a wandering band of gypsy that she left long ago for she refused to become what they wanted her to be. Another dancer and entertainer for the group. She was a tom boy growing up who preferred to spend time with a bow and arrow than a person. Though she never sought the way of her people she is very defensive of them and knows their ways. Skilled in song, dance, showmanship. Nothing traumatic happened during her childhood or growing up but being the typical teenager, hated what her parents wanted for her and in the end left those she knew for a world she wanted to know.

After she reached maturity she decided to leave the home and family she knew and set out on her own. Over the years she has worked in various towns trading furs from animals she has killed on her journeys and worked mercenary from time to time as wars broke out, utilizing her skills as a marksman. Currently she wanders the land hunting and selling fur when she reaches a new town.
(A more in-depth history can be provided if needed.)

[User]
Ellyn turned her head around, looking to see Artos's sleeping face and sighed softly to herself, she was obviously happy he didn't hear any of that, what if he thought what she felt was weird and unusual?? she cuddled into him regardless liking the feel of his breath softly hitting her.

Holding his hand lightly she turned her head back to Garrek and Vivian, nodding slowly before reaching to his cheek and kisses it softly, not understanding why she wanted to kiss his cheek, she just did.

Then giggling to Garrek she asked him softly 'G-garrek… I am not strong enough, but it wouldn't bother you if you could carry him… please…? I don't want to leave him here...' After that she thought to herself and wanted to giggle some more, wondering what he would do if he was carried like a princess but by Garrek.

[Assistant]
Das the Shameless

 "No shame at all," Das said with a toothy smile as he turned to walk back towards his tent, deciding it was about time to get dressed. As he slowly padded along the sand to his rough tent he continued to talk, "Santa, huh? Well I have to admit I don't know any Santas."

 He disappeared into the tent and after some commotion poked his head out, his wild hair covering his face in a tangled mess, "wait, Sana or Santa? Because Sana sounds familiar."

 His blocked gaze turned to the shorter assorted adventurer who had emerged from the city face, "more of me? Has my cousin been here, spreading his rumors."

 After a moment of thought his head disappeared back into the tent, and with a burst that sent the tent rumpling to the ground he jolted out, modestly covered with his fur vest, pants and boots. An occasional bone tooth or knuckle from some wild animal or another helped adorn the simple feral attire. A rucksack was slung over his shoulders and a large knife that glinted in the moonlight clung to his rough leather belt.

 "No," Das said as he started to stuff the rough canvas tent into his rucksack, "my cousin is more of a cold mountain kinda person. Also oceans away I would presume."

 He hefted the sack back onto his broad shoulders and shrugged, continuing his now solo conversation, "it was a bad joke, but what are you going to do, there isn't much to work with in this desert."

[User]
Ellis

 Ellis looked over and saw the naked elf. 'He has no shame'...he heard from the deep reaches of his mind. "If I had a body like that I wouldn't either." He stood up and joined the three. Looking to Das and then to the others who were outside. "Well you know... There would only be one way to make this less awkward if we follow mr. Das's steps and take our cloths off." He said taking another sip of his wine filled flask. He then looked to Sana and Hugh. "If i told you I was just as big downstairs as he was would you believe me?"

Vivian

 She smiled and left the three their devices. She decided to follow the rest outside. She was sad to see the little goblin go but he wanted and she wouldnt argue. She then noticed something Varis was no where to be seen. He had left them and she had to let out a sigh. I guess we were just to weird for him. She snorted and stomped up the stairs and after getting her hair wet along with her leather armor and finally made it out what she was greeted to was a naked dark elf. She rose a brow and found her steps taking her to the wagon and she continued to check out Das. She rose a brow and brushed hair from her face. "He can stay naked for a little while cant he?" Then he vanished into his tent and came out fully dressed. She shrugged.

Garekk

 Garekk nodded and put his silver dagger back into its place. He then reached down and pulled Artos from Ellyn and lifted him up. He wasn't that heavy. He then gestured with his head. "Let's go join the others shall we?" The orc turned around and began to move towards the exit. He felt the water from the falls might wake him up ,but he didn't stop to see. He climbed up the steps and he came upon the current scene. He looked to the naked elf...."the only time i saw a naked elf was when Me and my kin were going to eat him."

Zaphere

 "So it is started... With that a purge may occur by the Inquisitor." Danika spoke turning to Samuel.

"Yes,... Yes. This brings so much fond memories." A robbed figure appearing from the darkness. Samuel looked to him and then back to Danika. A brow raised.
"Who is this?" He asked. Danika turned to face him fully and she smiled. "His name is Eliphas. He is in his current form because he does not want himself known yet to the people or the inquisitor."

 "We must draw the Inquisitors focus on the idiot fools of the mages guild here." He grinned. "I know just how to do it too..." He laughed raising a hand as dark energy poured from it's palm. The with a burst of energy a portal opened only for a second. Dropping through it was a succubus. She bowed to him. Her wings folded and her eyes to the ground. He then gestured for the sorceress to hand to her the hairs of one such mage."There is a inquisitor looking for us. A purge will likely begin. Give the clergy a enemy to fight. Do what you must and make it seem like the guild is behind the chaos. Wont be hard sense the church already had mixed feelings of the infamous guild." He ordered. She touched the hairs and picture the owner those hairs and took his form. She then left. She knew exactly how to do it too. Sense it was to her knowledge and Eliphas that the guild was after a Lich's Phylactery and with the mage who commissioned the mission to retrieve it dead and the evidence given to the succubus. The Inquisitor would not hesitate to burn that building to the ground. The demon lord laughed uncontrollably.

 The Succubus carried the evidence in while in the form of the very mage that had the group sent out to find the chalice. She only had to find the inquisitor and once she did bump into him and let the evidence speak to him as she made her escape. Dressed in the attire of the mages it would not be hard to draw the conclusion. A war will break out...

[Assistant]
Hugh was taken aback a little by the naked man as he raised an eyebrow, simply shrugging and looking to his horse. "Yeah, okay, naked dude." He strode over to Rodger to give the horse a pat on the nose and a 'good boy'. The proud horse acknowledged his master's presence, lifting his nose and greeting him with a snort to his face. Hugh simply smiled, petted his nose and rubbed his neck.

What surprised Hugh the most was when Sana greeted the elf as if she had known him from before. He pointed to the elf, "Some other adventurer you worked with?" He raised a brow, looking rather unconcerned. It was weird to have a naked elf standing there and slightly awkward. Hugh simply waved it off, as Sana had averted her eyes. He wasn't all too concerned. It did perturb him that she knew the elf from before and now this elf was standing stark naked in the moonlight.

Hugh looked to Sana as she ushered the elf off to go and get some clothes on. She also tried to make it clear to the seemingly dimwitted elf that they had met before. Obviously the elf wasn't feeling up to the task of remembering at the moment. Perhaps drunk or drugged? It didn't really matter, after all the elf went off and finally got his clothes on. Hugh continued to tend to his horse, unconcerned at the events taking place around them.

The others seemed to congregate up top little by little, over time, giving their two cents on the random elf that had showed up on the surface. Hugh seemed rather annoyed by the situation, trying to concentrate on keeping his horse in good care. He didn't really care for all this new business. All the same, he would welcome the new addition along.

Ellis seemed to start sharing some thoughts with Hugh and Sana, that didn't particularly interest him. Hugh never really cared for a conversation about 'how big it was down there' with a halfling or anyone for that matter. "Yeah, okay Ellis." He said, seemingly shrugging it all off as he started to brush his horse. "When do we leave?" He gave a tired sigh, wishing a little for a nap. He hadn't the patience for any time wasting.


[System]
Age: 17

Heritage: The son of Hatter Madrail. Ghent's mother was murdered a few years after he was born.

Adoptive parents: Frederick and Elise Preston. Elise was the first to find Hatter's son; she was astonished to discover him in the woods near their home, disoriented and impossibly lost.

Appearance: Thick, medium length black hair. The style is unpredictable, but the layers sometimes give it an unruly appearance. His bangs fall in front of his eyes, which are blue in color and have a sharp, piercing quality to them. The rest of his features are dark and seem to contrast against his paler-than-should-be skin. He has a lithe build and currently stands at 5'9", but has about a year left to grow.

Distinguishing Marks: A few light freckles running across the bridge of his nose. A more noticeable one is underneath his left eye. He has a small scar underneath his jaw.

Clothes Wear: Whatever's comfortable. He usually wears hoodies, jeans, worn out sneakers, and three quarter/graphic t-shirts.

Abilities: Strength and magic, both inherited from his race. As far as magic goes, Ghent was completely unaware of the ability until Drust and Elayra came to earth. Understandably, he is inexperienced but has the potential to become better with practice.

Weapons: A staff, given to him on page 13.

Personality: It's no secret that Ghent can be a pain. He isn't malicious, but he enjoys pushing the buttons of others in order to get a reaction out of them. His sarcasm usually lands him in trouble, but his past experiences haven't been enough for him to keep his mouth shut. Despite his immaturity, he has a good heart. Ghent has lazy tendencies, but can be hard working with proper motivation.

Major Positive Traits: Compassionate. Empathetic. Hardworking (sometimes).

Major Negative Traits: Sarcastic. Cocky. Klutz. Impulsive. Awkward.

Weaknesses: At times, Ghent doubts himself and his abilities. The fear of failure usually prevents him from achieving success. Having lived in two worlds, he struggles with deciding where he belongs and where his loyalties lie.

Ticks and Tags: Ticks: Fidgets a lot, often with the drawstrings of his hoodies. When he's faced with a situation he can't wrap his mind around, he will pace and/or mumble to himself until he can make sense of what's happening.  Tags: "Cut me some slack!" "Great." "Wait, what?"

Fears: Ghosts. Failure. Being unable to return home. Wonderland in general.

Short Bio: Ghent's story could have been a tragic one, had he not been found. He was discovered in a forest as a toddler, and later adopted by the very family that took him in.
 For much of his childhood, Ghent lived in the comforts of a small farmhouse in the country. Life was serene, quiet, and good. He grew up happy and healthy, with a mother who doted on him and a dedicated, hardworking father.
 Things changed when they moved. Seeking better employment, Mr. Preston uprooted his family to the city, which is where they remained for the years that followed.
 The city posed many differences and challenges, but Ghent learned to adapt and knew his way around. Unfortunately, street smarts didn't help much in school.
 As Ghent grew older, the nightmares and flashbacks became more frequent. Different events or images would trigger a memory, many of which involved Elayra and Drust. The memories confused and frightened Ghent. He never forgot Wonderland, but he learned to stop talking about it after his parents sought him professional help. It was something his mother made the mistake of telling her longtime friend, Mrs. Saxon.
 News spread and rumors started. High school proved to be Ghent's biggest obstacle. He became an easy target for jokes and ridicule, and his grades began to suffer for it.
 Motivated by money and the desire to help his family financially, he began to take on odd jobs. His fifth job turned out to be his favorite: a part-time shift at Frank's Book Barn.
 Even there, Ghent wasn't free from Wonderland. Flashbacks would hit him at the most inconvenient times…and they didn't cease until became reunited with two important faces from his past.

Other Important Characters

Name: Henry

Age: 14

Appearance:  Henry is thin, wiry, with no muscle tone whatsoever. He makes an effort to look neat, but his untamed shock of ginger hair betrays him by looking a mess and his freckles are out of control. When reading, he wears thick black glasses over his large, brown eyes that give him an owlish appearance.

Clothes wear: Henry wears an odd mix of clothing. Most of his clothes are hand-me-downs from previous cousins, including Ghent. When his options are limited, he can be found wearing faded graphic t-shirts (he favors Disney ones) and jeans that have been rolled up at the cuffs in order to fit.

Personality: Despite a rocky home life, Henry remains optimistic, but he has a sensitive side that results in him crying at the drop of a hat. Although he has a sweet, childlike innocence about him, he isn't foolish. He's remarkably intelligent and has a great love for reading and learning. Because of his OCD, Henry is always cleaning and organizing, and likes to keep busy in order to make himself useful. His desire for perfect order can be a little overwhelming at times, but he means no ill intent and has great respect for his family and friends.

Bio: Henry is an only child who never longed for the company of a sibling. Growing up in the country, he had plenty of family and cousins to spend his time with. The families all lived quite close in the rural area, including the Preston family.
 Even as a toddler, Henry was fascinated by Ghent and seemed to gravitate towards him, viewing him as an older brother figure. To the delight of their parents, the three year age gap and a difference in personality didn't prevent the two boys from getting along.
 After the Preston family moved to the city, Henry was heartbroken. The families kept in touch when possible, making multiple visits during the holidays. The visits lessened over the years, but Henry took it upon himself to keep in touch through any means possible. To Elise's delight (and to Frederick and Ghent's dismay) Henry has been known to leave long rambling phone messages, sends more texts than a teenage girl, and writes letters so long, they need to be mailed in multiple envelopes.
 Henry is the only one Ghent continued to trust with his few memories of Wonderland. Their efforts to uncover the mystery were admirable, but brought nothing but disappointment and wild theories. Eventually, a disgruntled Ghent gave up, but Henry continued to search for the truth behind his cousin's past.

[User]
"Well that's just great." Despite the heat of the fire, Ghent shivered, his delusions of safety replaced by fears of the unknown. "Hanging out with you two, I always expect the worst," he grumbled, folding the cloth over the remainder of the jerky. He didn't want to see, let alone think about whatever it was he just ate.
 After tying off the twine, he passed the bundle back to Drust, mumbling a sheepish 'thanks' before turning to his backpack. He started to put away most of the scattered food items, leaving out the hard candy and a couple of candy bars to appease Drust.
 His attention was suddenly diverted to the exchange involving Elayra's waterskin.
 What, is water not substantial enough? Ghent came close to rolling his eyes, his inner voice heavy with sarcasm. From what he could tell, Drust was even harder to please than Elayra. Why would he object to her drinking water?
 Taking one last swig of soda, Ghent crushed the empty can in his fist, his eyes darting between the two as they seemed to argue over the curious looking bottle. He hadn't known Elayra for long, but he had a feeling it was rare for her to show that much emotion over something. She almost seemed...worried.
 Brows furrowed, Ghent tossed the can aside with the abandoned snacks, completely lost. What was a daejinn, and why did the idea of one seem to bother her so much? He waited for someone to fill him in, but no one did.
 "Um…what was that all about?" Ghent asked finally, perplexed by the entire situation. "Is that stuff medicine?" he nodded to the bottle, wondering of its significance. Whatever it was, Elayra seemed more concerned of where it came from, rather than what it was used for. "And what's a daejinn?"

[Assistant]
Elayra sighed heavily. She held the bottle up carefully, delicately, as if afraid even looking at it too hard would shatter it.
 "King's Curative. Supposedly, the only thing it can't cure is death. Takes a lot of magic to make." She looked to Drust. "Don't you think we should save it?"
 "You were knocked out, girl. You may have a concussion." He glanced to Ghent and took the bundle of jerky the boy had returned. "We can't risk its side effects."
 "I feel fine… Mostly fine," she amended grudgingly, sure the first lie would not go well. "It'd be a waste."
 Drust snorted as he tossed the bundle into the depths of his still open pack. It disappeared inside, devoured by the enchanted fabric.
 "Then stand." The man rose swiftly to his feet, his expression hard.
 Elayra blinked up at him. Craning her neck to keep an eye on his face nearly made her dizzy and her neck ache. She had expected some sort of rejection, but the demand to stand was not a part of it. She glanced to his katana, thankful he had not grabbed it. But that meant little.
 Heart pounding a bit faster, Elayra carefully set her water skin and the King's Curative aside. Keeping a wary eye on him, she forced her aching legs to move as quickly as they would let her.
 She gasped when the movement made the throb in her head worsen and spread. Her world spun and she nearly lost her balance, the clearing going momentarily fuzzy around the edges.
 Drust reached out to steady her with a firm, but gentle—for him, at least—hand. He watched her sit back down, the girl scowling.
 "Two drops." This time, the order sounded less severe. He returned to his own indentation in the grass beside the fire.
 The argument drained out of her. He had made his point. She retrieved the discarded items. Not wanting to look at either of her companions as she gave in, she focused on removing the inkwell's dropper stopper. She put two careful drops into her water skin, then snugly restoppered it. It did not look any emptier than before.
 "Daejinn," Drust began, his attention returning to Ghent, "are Spiritayian cats. Born of the spirit realm. They have more free rein in our physical world. Compared to most other Spiritayians."
 "They… make deals," Elayra began quietly, staring down at her water skin. "The stronger ones can do about anything, but…" She took a breath. Her voice came even softer as she continued, the sounds of the fire threatening to drown it out. "Their services always come at a price."
 Her grip tightened on her water skin. She shoved the cork back into it and shook it to mix in the King's Curative. She sighed, realizing it was barely half full.


[System]
Alias: Flake
Sex: Male
Age: 20
Occupation: Bounty Hunter

Appearance:

His eyes are often bloodshot, his eyelids heavy from sleep, and his body is usually deprived of food. Dirt crusts all of the jet-black hair on his head, the likes of which he never styles and rarely cuts. He never shaves, instead opting to use a dagger to cut hair off when it gets too long for his convenience. Usually, this means he has facial stubble and relatively short hair. His teeth are more-or-less aligned, and are mostly yellow, but he has one missing tooth on the right side of his lower jaw. His jaw is fairly sharp, and his chin is rounded. Overall, he has a rough look to him.

His body is lean and very muscular. He has dense bones, dense muscles, and thick, calloused skin. He is about average height, 5'8", and weighs around 130lbs. His strength is divided about evenly between his upper and lower body, and he is extremely agile. His body is iron-hard from years of combat, and he wears many scars on his exposed flesh, many of which he treated himself.

.

Personality: Harsh and exacting, but seeks moral good. Makes puns and jokes to himself. He has great wisdom and charisma, although he isn't too knowledgeable about much aside from economics and combat. His main personality feature is his control over his emotions - he doesn't like it when people learn more about him than he learns about them, so he takes great pains to blank out his expressions when around hostile influences. In addition, he is a loner, but is very sociable. He likes to play with other people and to learn from them as much as possible. His playfulness is rarely more prominent than a mere mischievous tendency, but he is prone to making games out of otherwise boring situations even when it inconveniences others.

The one most important part of his personality is that he is rarely serious. He jokes a lot so that he can keep himself thinking. When he stops thinking is when he becomes most dangerous, since he defaults to analysis of his surroundings, and consequently, the weaknesses of those around him. He is only serious when he is in a truly challenging situation, or when his life is at stake, and he rarely offers mercy or consideration to others when in this state, despite his tendency for moral goodness.

.

Backstory: Flake grew up under the close observation of her father, who was the captain of the Talgot city guard. Talgot was the capitol of Kiodomn, the kingdom in which he lived. Sheckels were the main currency, and thirty were needed each month to provide modest accommodations and enough food for one person to survive. His childhood wasn't very difficult since his father earned enough for the family, but one day, his father didn't return from work. After that day, Flake and his mother tried making a living on their own, but his mother ended up starving herself to keep her son alive.

To avoid squandering his mother's efforts, Flake ended up trying to join the guard force of Talgot. He learned after joining the guard that it was a burdensome job full of ass-kissing and chores as opposed to actual fighting, so he gritted his teeth and bore with it as he searched for another job. During this time, he weighed three options: he could try to get an honest job like a guard, he could join in competitions to make money, like a bar-fighter, or he could get an illegal job, like an assassin. As he searched, he found the perfect role model, and thusly, the perfect job: The Bounty Hunter.

He immediately quit his job as a guard by challenging the guard captain, Drake, to a duel. He ended up winning the duel, then used his fame to march into the Sweeper's Hall and ask for a bounty. From that day forward, his legacy as a bounty hunter began. He would spare many of his victims if he saw it morally right and they let him exchange their lives for proof of their death. He only had to kill a few of his targets, and even then, he never did so by accident. The Sweeper started to respect him quite quickly. But that's when the Hardest Night of Winter came along and he earned his nickname, "Flake."

The Hardest Night of Winter is an event that he rarely talks about due to how gruesome and horrific it was. The word "genocide" would be inadequate for describing the event. A mixture of snow, thunder, and monstrous creatures attacked the town and darned near annihilated the guard forces. But Flake teamed up with Drake and repelled the creatures by analyzing their attacks and telling Drake what to do. Drake himself gave Flake the nickname since he supposedly, "danced through the wind like a snowflake, untouchable, unseeable, heartless, cold, and deadly." Flake decided to keep the name, since it was the first and only accolade he had to his name aside from his successful bounty hunting.

Immediately after getting the name of Flake, the Sweeper of Talgot honored him with the unnamed bounty they had in reserve. Flake eagerly accepted it, completely unaware of the lasting implications of doing so.

And so the story continues...

.

Equipment:
- Armor: He has a set of leather armor that covers his body from the base of his neck to his ankles, leaving only his hands and feet exposed. Beneath the leather armor is a set of thinly-woven steel chainmail and thin cloth padding, and there are metal ribs along the forearm sections of the armor. He wears dark leather boots with iron-plated and cushioned soles.
- Weapons: He uses a straight, 50cm long falchion with a smoothed and ergonomically designed ebony handle and a weighted pummel. The hand-guard on the weapon is minimal. He has three balanced daggers arranged parallel to his oblique. Additionally, he keeps a composite shortbow with a draw weight of 60lbs in his rucksack(unstrung).
- Carrying Equipment: He has a rucksack with 2 cubic feet of volume and 40lbs of carrying capacity, one quiver with 20 arrows, and a bandolier that can hold up to 3 daggers. He also has a coin purse that is almost always empty.
- Other Equipment: Varies. Usually he has a set of spare clothes, a mirror, and at least one day's worth of food and water in his rucksack. Sometimes he carries extra supplies or equipment to carry out a bounty.

[User]
Drake heard what he assumed to be the voice of the lady he met earlier, so he continued on through the entrance to the building. Immediately after entering, an almost unbearable heat shot across the room as a foundry crucible passed by. A few men looked over to see the faces of the intruders, but quickly returned to their tasks after seeing the walking tank charging through. Six anvils were lined up along the left side of the large room, along with two large furnaces. A group of men were busying themselves with hammers and tongs, forging and drawing tools and weapons with surprising fluidity.

Steam erupted from a bath of water which one of the metalsmiths dropped a metal rod into. The painfully loud sound of metal on rock pierced the air as a man spun a grindstone. The right side had a wall of molds and a rack of tools and materials set in an organized chaos. At the far wall was a wall of buffered and finished-looking items, a few doors, and a flight of stairs. Drake continued his quick pace until he reached a table with what seemed to be a merchant behind it. "Ahh, you're ba-" the man behind the table started, a fake smile lining his face.

He was instantly interrupted by the guard as he shouted, "I need light armor, something I won't laugh at." He then gestured behind himself and added, "suit her up and put it on my tab." With that said, the merchant nodded at Drake, who then shifted over and rushed up the stairs, his footsteps heavy on the wooden surface. The man reached the second floor and walked over to a lady at a leather molding station worked at her task. He stopped a few feet away and gave a quick bow, then waited for her to respond.

"You're too polite," the leather crafter commented, smiling over at him, "give me a minute, I'm almost on quota." Drake then nodded and walked over to a chair, cautiously taking a seat. "You're getting careless," she added, continuing her craft as Drake watched. The guard was silent, more concerned than nervous. The leather crafter looked up after a minute and asked, "what's wrong?" Drake sighed, then pointed to his helmet. "You know how much I hate taking this off," he started. The lady giggled after hearing this, her voice bemused as she responded, "want me to handle it again?"

Drake shook his head, quickly adding, "Delta six." The leather crafter looked up in disbelief, but said nothing. With one last tug, she finished making what looked like a quiver and set it on a mold to dry. "I'm honored," she commented, her voice laced with venom as she wiped off her hands on her apron, "that you would ask me for something like this." Drake rose from his seat, then began walking back towards the stairs as he said, "don't let him down." The guard then walked back down the stairs, a frown set across his face beneath his visor.*I'm sure she can, but this is definitely pushing the limit*he thought, looking around to see where the merchant took the thief-lady.

[Assistant]
Raine glared at the guard's back as he practically ignored her and continued walking. "Rude, much?" She mumbled to herself but decided that, since he was getting her new armor, the most she could do was keep her sarcastic remarks to herself. With that thought in mind, the girl continued to follow him until he stopped in front of a man, one who she assumed to be a merchant since he had a few items displayed on his table at that time. For a moment, Raine found herself staring at the various items until she heard Derek's voice beside her. He practically commanded the man to put armor on her before walking away without another word. The two watched him go before turning to look at each other.

It was only then that Raine had actually got a good look at the merchant: he was a man who looked to be in his late forties, early late fifties. Dirty blonde hair was pulled back neatly with a leather strap and his face was lined with wrinkles of all shapes and sizes. His hands were large and worn, as if he had been working since he was born. Despite that, his eyes held a bit of kindness in them as he stood up from where he was sitting.

"Follow me, please."

Nodding, Raine followed the merchant as he led her to a set of steps that led to an area below the main part of the building. "Where exactly are we going?" Raine asked the man curiously. "Down to the armory so we can get you a new set of armor. It looks like your current one is a bit worn, don't you think?" He responded with a slight smile and watched as the assassin glanced down at her armor: It was true. The metal plates were covered in scratches and dents while some of her leather straps were hanging on by little strands. The sad part about it was that Raine hadn't noticed any of it.

"Well, I guess you're right…I do need a bit of an upgrade." She said in agreement then fell into a comfortable silence. The silence didn't last for too long, though, as they finally arrived to the armory. The area was actually much bigger than Raine would have guessed. Armor of all kinds were placed upon the walls neatly and in certain spots so that the heavier armor would sit on a stand that could hold its weight without collapsing. Another thing the girl noticed was the merchants. They were busy pandering to the customers' needs and sometimes had to climb ladders in order to retrieve the armor that their customer desired. Raine was surprised to see that even children were being fitted for armor as well but she figured that it was simply for training instead of actual work that would require them to fight. Then again, she was fairly unfamiliar with the area, so who knows?

"This way." The man called to Raine, pulling her out of her thoughts. She followed him once more through the growing crowd of people until they stood in front of what she assumed to be the light weight armor area. The merchant then gestured for her to stand in one spot as he measured her torso, legs and arms. Once he recorded the measurements, he turned and examined the wall of armor behind him. Raine then watched as he scaled up a ladder and looked at the measurement for various pieces of armor before coming back down.

"Unfortunately, we don't have any in your size, so we'll have to make one especially for you. I just need a few more measurements." This time, the measurement taking too a bit longer since the merchant had to measure nearly every part of her arms, legs and torso to make sure that everything would fit comfortably. Eventually, she was allowed to head back up while the merchant took the measurements somewhere else. As she made it back to the main area, she spotted the guard that brought her here and walked over to him.

"So, they didn't have any in my size and now they have to make a new set or armor for me." She told him simply. "And thanks for taking me here, I guess." Raine added under her breath, though her statement was genuine.


[System]
Age:
Nineteen

Gender:
Male

Appearance:

Personality:
Generally laid back and somewhat snarky, the majority of people meeting Leo for the first time would probably walk away thinking of him as an extremely annoying person. Honestly, they wouldn't really be wrong to think that either, as he is one hundred percent the kind of person who finds the fact that people find him infuriating hilarious, and it often seems like one of the only things he will actually put effort into is finding gaps in peoples armour and teasing them relentlessly with them. And yes, he won't deny that he greatly enjoys his rest and relaxation time, certainly far more than he enjoys hard work.

However, when it comes down to it, Leo always at least tries to be a good person. It isn't rare for him to pick up on whether or not someone is feeling alright, and will sit with them and help them work things out to the best of his abilities, even if that means he has to skip work. Especially when it means he has to skip work. All in all, he's someone who believes in not stressing over the little things, and will help people he sees doing so get over it. Hell, get him in the right mood, and he might even do something constructive!

Abilities:
Affinity: Words
Mana Quantity: High
Mana Quality: Slightly below average
Leonardo has access to two kinds of magic that have been passed down through the Vadris family for generations. The first has been given the nickname "Word of God", and allows the caster to speak a number of words in an forgotten language that may or may not have been created by the Vadris family itself. Each of these words represent a concept, and most of them are simple modifiers placed around the core word of 'unity'. As the words are spoken, the runic version of the word appears in the air around him, flowing towards the unity runes to take the form of a phantasmal object made of the runes. The form the runes take depends partly on the original intent of the caster, and partly on the modifying words being used.

The second is runic enchantment, and is quite similar to Word of God. However, in addition to speaking the words aloud, the caster must also somehow inscribe the runes for the word being used into an object. This causes the object being enchanted to take on that aspect, allowing for a lot of versatility. However, enchanting usually takes a large amount of time and even more intense focus than Word of God, and must therefore be done only in a safe, secure location.

In both cases, there are limitations to wordcasting. The greatest example of this is the mana cost of each word, which fluctuates depending on the word and it's effects, but can often be quite high simply on their own, let alone combined with several other words. This is compounded by the fact that many modifying words have little effect on their own, and often need to be repeated multiple times in a single construct to actually accomplish the intended results. For example, one instance of hunt in a construct will usually cause it to simply arc gently in the targets direction, which in some cases might be enough, but this is rarely the case. A safer bet would be three or four uses of hunt, which makes the seeking aspect far more accurate, but uses significantly more mana than just one use would.

Skills:
Hand to hand combat:
Ever since his parents death eight years ago, Leo has trained in various combat skills in order to better defend himself in case he and his sister are also attacked. It isn't his best skill, more just something that he's thrown together, but it works fine against opponents who don't focus on close combat skills.

Firearms training and maintenance:
A fair sight better than his hand to hand skills, Leo has spent a large part of the last eight years training himself in the use and maintenance of various types of firearms. He's no master sniper or anything, or even particularly good with a sniper rifle, but with regular rifles and pistols, he can be quite formidable.

Handwriting:
The guys got neat handwriting.

Fishing:
Leo is good at fishing. Leo likes fishing. Leo has ignored important household tasks in the past to go fishing, because fishing lets him sit around doing nothing while still technically doing something.

Sewing:
Leo likes sewing too. It lets him save money, and is one of his few actually productive skills. He uses it to make small charms with weak, almost undetectable enchantments and sell them as a small side business.

Gardening:
Again, Leo likes gardening because it let him save money when he and his sister are low on funds. If he manages to grow enough at one time, he can even make some money selling them at the market.

Assets:
Most of the little the Vadris family owns is back at their home on the island, but he has managed to bring a few things with him. These are a small Beretta pistol, a sewing kit, his fishing rod and supplies, and a small ink brush to write runes for enchanting.

Brief Backstory:
Leonardo was born to the Vadris family, who despite their great age had managed to remain out of the spotlight for much of their history. While expectations were high for Leo to master the art of wordcasting as soon as possible, his situation was not nearly as bad as is so often the case with other mage bloodlines. He and his parents were quite close, and he was allowed time to pursue his own hobbies where others might find themselves completely tied down. The birth of his sister Elise seven years later only served to bring the family closer, and his ambition to improve largely focused around making them proud.

However, disaster struck when Leo was just eleven years old, when his parents were both killed in a terrible 'accident'. Leo and Elise were never given the details of the accident, other than the fact that it probably wasn't actually an accident, instead being quickly shepherded away from their home in Ireland to a small, unassuming island in the middle of the pacific ocean, where they have spent the last eight years living as the lower-class McGillis family with their homunculus caretaker Luna. Times have been tough, with Leo having to dedicate the majority of his time to helping raise Elise, and eventually assisting in bringing in an income for the three to live off of. So far he has managed that, but along with the self defense training, it has taken a heavy toll on his magic education, having made very little progress in expanding his magic vocabulary other than a few words he can use to subtly make money. Without revealing the existence of magic, put away the pitchforks...

Honestly, despite life just above the poverty line being a little bit difficult, Leonardo felt like he probably could have kept going with it. He had gotten used to it, he knew what he was doing! And then he was called back to London by their families ancient contract with the Ar-Rynesarte family, meaning that not only would he have to reveal the fact that he and his sister actually survived their parents... 'accident'... but he would also have to put his limited understanding on how to act as the head of a mage family to the test.

[User]
"Something about a murderer, I presume. You haven't exactly been quiet about your intentions, Lady Ar-Rynesarte."

The first to answer was a tall woman in a fashionable black coat, leaning back in an old wooden chair. A platinum blonde, languid and elegant, who looked so entirely at ease with the situation that one might have thought she'd called this meeting herself.

(She hadn't, of course. She'd arrived two minutes prior and had quickly claimed her seat, pointedly ignoring everyone present and flipping open a small paperback book, which now rested open in one long-fingered hand.)

"And the fact that you've gone into the trouble of calling us here," she continued, meeting Arinne's eyes, "means you've found a lead." One corner of her mouth quirked upward, a half-smile. "Am I correct?"

[Assistant]
Arinne entered the room, and Saturday followed behind her.

...Even though she'd met some of these people before, she still felt awkward around them. Really, "met" was about all she'd done with them. She'd never really talked to them, after all. Even if she'd tried to, she wouldn't have really gotten far. Arinne was the only person she could talk at length with, and with anyone else the most she could really get out were a few mumbles before she had to make herself scarce. People were just... Not her strong point.

It was so much easier to deal with dead people, really.

Silently, she took a seat as close to Arinne's as possible and hunched down in her chair, shoulders sunk and head lowered as she quietly took a jammy dodger and began munching on it like a mouse. Really, she already knew everything Arinne was going to say... Why was she even here? Couldn't she just... Get to work already? It would be far less awkward than having to deal with all this...

[User]
"Is the lead's name Jack the Ripper?" Jun muttered as he entered the conversation.

Previously resting his head on the table while waiting for the Ar-Rynesarte kid, Jun straightened his back and leaned back on the chair "If the meeting is about anything else this would be quite the coincidence" he said dryly. It didn't take a genius to put two and two together, the only real question was their roles in whatever the girl was planning, though he decided to keep that question to himself until their host gave her explanation.

He sure didn't like to have to spend his time repaying his grandfather's favors, especially considering that he hadn't had any contact with any members of the family in years, but he wasn't stupid enough to go against a binding contract, even more so regarding one made by the Ar-Rynesarte family. Some of the other magi there looked competent so Jun hoped that whatever they would do be smooth sailing from beginning to end.

[Assistant]
It was only upon hearing Arinne's voice that Leonardo jumped awake, having drifted of to sleep due to both the length of time he'd been waiting and a particularly nasty case of jet lag. He looked around the room and noticed a few things. The first was the girl Luna had told him about, Arinne Ar-Rynesarte, standing in the room with a Homunculus of her own, and he decided she was probably the voice that had woken him up. The second was that there were significantly more people in the lounge than there were when he had fallen asleep. Like, at least four more.

And the third was that there was now a delectable-looking plate of biscuits on the table, which in turn caused him to realise how hungry he currently was.

He didn't even think twice before he pushed himself to his feet and took one.

"Hey, hi, I'm awake." He said, as if to reassure everyone that he really was, in fact, awake. "So you're my boss now? A little short, but I've met enough scary short people that I won't judge."

He took a bite out his biscuit, before continuing to spe-oh wow those biscuits were good.

"Anyway, I guess we're here to catch a murderer?" He half said half asked, looking around at all the other people who'd already said so. "I'll admit, I don't know all that much about the situation here. My plane only landed last night, so you're probably gonna need to fill me in on all the juicy deets."

As he spoke, he stuffed the rest of the biscuit in his mouth.

"Also, on an unrelated note, fishing in the Thames, legal or illegal?"


[System]
Species: Human

Gender: Female

Age: 34

Nationality: Outreman, previously citizen of Angjusk

Occupation: Deputy head of department - Cradle Research & Development

Cybernetics:
* Cradle quick-access implant - Allows access to and from the Cradle environment without additional hardware. This advanced module also reduces fatigue caused by the process, allowing power users multiple entries in a single day.
* Tier 7c 'Cradle Builder' suite - Grants access to the programs created specifically for 'terraforming' the Cradle. Tier 7 out of 20 allows Freyr to auto-build a variety of specialised equipment and propose-build mid level structures.
* Ilyes Brand communication and productivity module - Standard implant for access to Outremer's communications network. Also integrates with many well known productivity tools like a personal assistant, as well as more bespoke scientific tools.

Backstory:
Freyr was born on Angjusk, an older colony than Outremer that was renowned for its military materiel, particularly star ships.

Her mother was an innovations tsar assigned by the government to a consortium of the planet's largest ship manufacturers. During most of Freyr's childhood, her mother's sole task was making sure Angjusk battle fleets were the best money could buy in the Diaspora.

Before she was born, her father owned and operated a series of protein farms across Angjusk. After a chance encounter at a lobby meeting, he was headhunted to co-ordinate the military industrial complex's entire food supply chain. He also met his future wife, as it was Freyr's mother who had recommended him for the job on that fateful day in the lobby.

Freyr was born five years later. Her early life was a whirlwind of schooling, snatches of intimacy with her parents (when they weren't busy) and extended periods with friends. She discovered a natural capacity for learning and excelled in her studies. So much so that she received offers from universities across the Diaspora to come and develop with them.

Her mother and father both pressured her to consider diplomas like Interplanetary Relations or Agrarian Policy. However Freyr was not interested in pursuing a career in politics. Angjusk has been involved in at least a dozen small conflicts since Freyr had been born. She had seen how politicians would destroy entire cultures for the sake of influence, and wanted none of it.

In her first act of defiance, Freyr accepted a position at a school in Babylon, the main city of a far away frontier colony called Outremer. Driven more by the desire to have time away from her planet than by the subjects on offer, she researched what Outremer was known for. It was here that she first discovered the object powering this section of the Diaspora - the Cradle.

She quickly became obsessed with its untapped potential and seemingly unknowable past. She decided to pursue Xenobiology and Machine Intelligence as her subjects of interest, voraciously consuming the knowledge gathered so far on the Cradle.

It was here at the university that she met her future partner, David, who was studying art history. Isolated from her family and friends, alone on a strange planet, Freyr was glad of his unassuming company and kindness. They grew very close over the course of their degrees, and moved in together after graduation. Their daughter Amy was born a few years later.

After Uni, Freyr was picked up by an Outremer administration outreach team and placed in a government career fast lane. Her obsession with the Cradle made her an obvious choice for the Cradle Research & Development department. Once there, she quickly proved herself capable. Several breakthroughs in her first five years meant she was allowed to hand select a team of dynamic young individuals to help pursue her work. A couple more catapulted her into a deputy head of department role, to the ire of some of it's older and more entrenched members.

It was on her 34th birthday that the Cradle abducted her family. It had been acting strangely for weeks prior, rolling back years of terraforming. Freyr had been working round the clock to figure out why, practically living at her field office by the Border. David had bought sweet treats and had Amy with her.

What can only be described as creatures emerged from beyond the Border and overran the camp. A panic spread through the mostly unarmed workers, leading many to flee for their lives. Freyr's last memory of her family was being propelled across the camp by one of the creatures. She could only watch from her position immobile on the floor as they carried off her husband and little girl.

Security forces conducted a sweep of the immediate area beyond the Border, but found no sign of them. So Freyr began looking by herself as soon as her broken bones were reconstructed. Months went by. Her work stopped and her mental health deteriorated. Eventually she was placed on sick leave and her access revoked, after she attempted to use her influence to organise an armed excursion deep into the uncontrolled zone.

[User]
Freyr leaned back away from Vreta'Sori. She didn't like talking about her body. "Both - my implants are mostly geared towards helping me inside the Cradle. I don't go on about it, but I see it differently to you. Having all these data overlays lets me understand it in real time. It's a gift and a curse really…"

She drifted off, then continued after a moment. "If I properly look inside my own head, I'm scared of what I'll find. That is why I've avoided it for so long."

"Doctor Lang!" A voice called. Freyr looked around, but couldn't see the source of the sound. There was just the path they had departed from to sit on the side of the grassy knoll.

"Freyr!" The sound was closer this time. Freyr looked behind her and smiled with recognition when she found Dr Kim striding down towards them. She got up and the young scientist embraced her heartily, careful not to drop his stim-stick.

"I'm glad to see you up and moving. We were all so worried!"

"Thanks to our Rothian friends, I'm fine now." Freyr replied. Dr Kim glanced warily at Vreta'Sori.

"We're in a tent on the other side of this thing." He motioned to the long, low hill they were standing on. "A bot just showed up with a big basket of fruit." Kim laughed. "I knew you wouldn't be far behind. Come, I'll show you."

Together, they scaled the hill. From the summit they looked out over a small field with trees for shade on the edge of a river. An octagonal grey tent stood in the field, with a few people Freyr instantly recognised conversing outside.

"It's good to be out of the safe house, even if this place is just an illusion of space." Dr Kim sighed contentedly as they strolled towards the tent.

"Some of the team want to leave for good though - they've had enough." He warned, shooting his superior and mentor a glance.

"I can hardly blame them. It is my fault we're in this mess to begin with - i'll talk to them." Freyr responded.

[Assistant]
Given the scale of the atrium, it was not surprising that the team had been able to set up where they pleased. There was enough space for every living person on the ship to live in the atrium full-time, if they needed to. Indeed, some emergency plans involved moving the crew to the atrium to allow them to power down other parts of the ship. Regardless, the Human team had seemed to have settled in well enough. The tent they were using was of Rothian make, and was designed for rapid, but effective shelter in any environment. It was made from a smart polymer that could be flexible like cloth to be arranged into any needed shape, then, when activated, could harden into a tough, rigid plastic. The polymer could be shifted manually, or automatically with programmable presets. Currently, it seemed like their tent was simply arranged into an open area with plenty of space for whatever equipment they wanted to have with them.

The location they had chosen had what Vreta would consider a certain, idyllic charm. It was open, on a gentle hill near a river. Somewhat closeby, Vreta could see one of the waterfalls from one of the atrium walls. Like much of the rest of the chamber, the walls were intended to blend seamlessly with the environment it presented, so they had the appearance of natural barriers, rather than artificial ones. This waterfall had the appearance of flowing down from a short, but steep rock cliff face. Personally, Vreta felt like he might end up getting distracted if he were to try to work "outside" like this, but he could see how it could help the team to cope with all the stress they had been through.

Vreta did not want to interrupt Freyr or her team, but he did shoot her a message to respond to what she had said to him. "I understand how you feel, and I know the pressure you're under, being the leader of all these people. Especially now, with all they've been through. Not a lot of Rothians are comfortable with danger, and I can't imagine it's 'that' much easier for Humans. Still, though, you do need to remember to look out for yourself, too. Your well-being is just as important as theirs. If you decide to accept it, whenever you are feeling ready, we can get you the help you need. Whatever we might find, we'll be ready to face it."

Vreta gave a look around the area, taking in a deep breath and speaking out loud this time. "After all this chaos, I do think it would be good for your team to hear from you. Maybe we should get everyone together, your team and Marae's. This is a perfect place, just rest by the river, sit in the sand. Talk. Air out concerns, grievances, and figure out our path going forward."

[User]
"That sounds like a plan." Freyr agreed.

The large tent was bereft of much heavy equipment. Instead, a dozen holos projected mountains of data visualisations onto whiteboards, the walls and even the ceiling. Academics of both species stood around talking, sitting quietly and running through simulations in their head or writing out structures to make sense of it all. The groups were more mixed than before, but there was still quite a clear separation between the Rothian & Human cadres.

Most of the Human team greeted their leader returning with relief. They'd been to her bedside earlier, but the doctors had ushered them away to let Freyr rest. She did notice though that some people didn't come and say hello. They clumped together in pockets throughout the space and watched her with interest.

Eventually, quiet fell in the tent when it became clear Dr Lang wanted to address them.

"Hi everyone." She began, searching for the words. "I think we all need to talk."

[Assistant]
After Freyr's answer, Vreta silently messaged Marae to get the rest of the team together. Most of the science team was in and around the atrium, but there were some who were elsewhere in the ship, including Marae herself. They did have to wait a few minutes for the stragglers to trickle in and join them. It did not take long for Nirann to join them. Rather than repair the damage to his body, he had moved to an entirely new frame. He seemed to have moved to a different model of military droid. It was still a Rothian-like droid, though this one was noticeably taller with plating that seemed thicker. Whatever else might have been different from the previous droid was not visible from the outside.

Marae had been in a different part of the ship when Freyr awoke, so she was one of the last to join them in the tent. Pretty much right away as she saw Freyr, she rushed up to her arms outstretched. She seemed to be all smiles and excitement as she pulled her into a tight hug. Whatever the rest of the team might have been feeling, she was certainly in a good mood in the moment. "Ah, I was so glad when I heard you had woke up. I trust our doctors of course, but it's nice to see in person that their diagnosis was correct. I see you got the outfit I gave you; do you like it? Did I do a good job on it?"