[System]
Age:
30

Sex:
Female

Race:
Half Dwarf by her mother, half Human (Rivaini) by her father.

Class:
Rogue/Duelist

Appearance:
At first glance, Feri could quite easily pass as a strangely tall Dwarf, or a very short human, what with her mixed blood giving her a strange height for both races. Her figure is less stocky than that of a female Dwarf, with a more defined waist and hips, and being generally slimmer in the arms and legs. However, in human standards, she would be considered as curvaceous and voluptuous. Her face too, is more angular than that of a dwarf, with prominent cheekbones, full lips, and green eyes.

Feri's Rivaini heritage has given her a tanned complexion, lighter than that of her Father, but enough so to indicate she is no pale-skinned Fereldan. Her skin is mostly clear around her face, barring a few freckles across her nose, which will appear when she's been in the sun too long; however, her body is littered with scars of past skirmishes. While most remain minor, the pale scar tissue stands out against her tanned skin and makes them more obvious. Not that she cares, that is – the main one she dislikes is a particularly deep one running down the length of her back. The tissue there is knotted and ugly, but as it's usually hidden by either clothes or her nearly waist-length hair, she doesn't really have issues with it. As for her hair – a black so dark it almost has tinges of blue in it – it is rarely tied up, usually with some strands plaited together to frame her face, or pushed back with a colourful scarf or bandana.

As far as her outfits go, they are as lightweight and durable as any other rogue's. Leather and fur in a theme of browns and blue's; her leather armour consists of a teal cotton undershirt with elbow-length sleeves; a brown corset and leggings along with knee-length leather boots, light leather pauldrons and gauntlets with teal fingerless gloves beneath. She also has a lightweight and tattered brown leather coat, trimed with fur along the neck and shoulders and tied with a blue sash. As for jewellery, she has seven piercings; two in each earlobe, three along the cartilage of her right ear and two along her left; she also wears her father's amulet (Medium in size, gold, and with a sapphire pendant set within), and a woven leather bracelet – a good luck token from Antiva.

Personality:
While generally a pleasant sort of individual, Feri can often come across as brusque and tactless - not caring much for whining or complaining, she prefers the philosophy of "Get over it and fix the issue." There's no point in feeling sad or angry over something you can't control - all it will do is make you feel worse and not help the situation at all. While this advice can often seem overly harsh - especially if the situation is particularly dire - Feri can be compassionate. She feels a driving need to look after the underdog, the weak or the helpless, particularly children. Because of that, she is appreciative of strength and solidarity, particularly in the face of danger.

In terms of the varying politics of the land, Feri tries to keep herself removed from it all - unless it begins to threaten herself or her morals. She will not stand for discrimination against a race or people, particularly if it is over something they cannot control. Sympathy is often shown for elves and Mages for the toils of their lives, unless they've been ungracious towards someone offering aid. While she can understand hesitancy when trusting others, she gets annoyed when someone becomes angry at everyone for what only a small group has done. To her, life is too short to remain angry for all of it.

Backstory:
Work in progress - y'all know it anyhoo!

Weapons
2 shortswords, steel.
Several steel knives of varying length and style hidden about her body.

[User]
It started with the birds.

In the sleepy village of Lothering, animals were everywhere; particularly birds. Sparrows and wrens diving for snails and worms; the occasional hawk from the nearby Kokari wilds scaring away pigeons; robins singing merrily in the trees while crows circled the farmer's fields for any sort of carrion they could get their beaks on. As it happened, the crows were the first to go. They must have sensed or smelt it before anything else - the stench of destruction, of death. The carrion birds flew south, towards Ostagar. As the hours ticked by, the other birds also fled, but in any direction other than their black-feathered kin. News began to trickle in to the town, most of them ridiculous rumours and stories that only children could dream up in a nightmare... but the message was very clear. The Blight had begun; Ostagar and their King had fell. The Grey Wardens had abandoned them all. That was what the people were told by soldiers of Teryn Loghain, and most believed them - who would doubt the war-hero Loghain MacTir, after all that he had sacrificed and given to King Maric and his son, Cailan?

Rumours flew about Lothering, and most believed the story... except perhaps one.

---

Ferirev had no idea why she felt bad about the whole situation. Of course, there was that dread set deep within her about the coming of a Blight, with Darkspawn forces marching north towards a rather unprotected village. But something about the story of the soldier's didn't add up. How could such a small amount of Grey Wardens be responsible for the death of the King? The numbers of Cailan and the Teryn's armies far outmatched the Wardens - unless they slaughtered the King himself, she couldn't work out how the blame was shifted entirely to that one group. There was also some discomfort in the fact; say what you would about the patchy history the Chantry offered to the masses, but it was clear that one needed Grey Wardens to end a Blight and kill an Archdemon. If this Blight was being left unchecked, Lothering would be the first to fall.

As the birds fled, Ferirev began sowing seeds of discomfort among those in Lothering; they had to pack. They had to flee... or the Blight would take them all.

---

Despite her worries and her preparation, Feri still remained aghast at the attack. Not two days after Grey Wardens had passed through, the Darkspawn descended on the refugees and villagers still remaining. Feri watched on as helpless men, women and children were slain in their haste to run away from the beasts. She could not help herself in feeling frightened, but fear would have to wait until she was safe. Even then, she could not simply abandon those who needed help. After slaying several Darkspawn and saving a handful of people, the north of the village became overrun - she could not follow her neighbours to the safe north. The Hinterlands to the west were undoubtedly crawling with beasts - not just Darkspawn either - and the west seemed to hold even more of the monsters. Although more and more of the beasts were spilling in from the south, Feri was able to find a somewhat safe path, towards the Kokari wilds. From there, she made a plan to circle round and head north-west, towards the Frostback mountains. For the young rogue, this seemed like an easy enough plan; slip away and hide in the last place the Darkspawn would think to look.

However, after several days of sleepless nights and tireless wanderings, Feri's luck ran out. In the midst of a clearing in the wilds, she stumbled upon several Genlocks and Hurlocks. In her sleep-deprived state, her presence became known to them immediately. They didn't seem pleased at the intrusion.

"Oh, for the love of..." Shaking her head at her own foolishness, Feri swiftly launched one of her knives into the throat of an approaching Genlock, her swords ready in hands before it hit the floor. There would be no out-running the tall ones, not with her short legs. That left her with just the one option.

"Come on then, you tainted bastards! Give it your best!" A somewhat wild smile accompanied Feri's words - if she was going to go down, she may as well do it smiling.

[Assistant]
A genlock was hurled into the clearing of the forest, hitting one of the Genlocks that attempted to close in on Feri and sending them both crashing to the ground. Following them from the tree line was a massive Mabari Warhound, pouncing and slamming into the two Dwarkspawn, massive paws pressing them to the ground as the dog rend and tore with his great maw.

One of the Hurlocks turned, his head getting cloven in two by a notched Bastard sword, before his fidgeting body was kicked to the ground by a powerful boot. From where the Hurlock had been stood a tall, strong fereldan youth with iron eyes and the scars of war. He regarded Feri for a moment, only long enough to give her a nod, before engaging a Genlock, sword leading. A few brutal moments later, the Genlock was slain.

The few Darkspawn that were between this soldier and his Mabari were easy pickings for Feri, and once the battle was over she had merely received a minor cut at the midriff. The soldier was covered in enough blood for his injuries to be very well hidden, and the Mabari was...well it was safe to say he wore his prey/food more than having eaten any of it.

Rannon tore his sword out of a Genlock corpse, favoring one leg by the looks of things as he wiped his face with his hands. His and his Mabari's entrance had been brutal and swift, and with Feri's quick blades they'd ended it even more swiftly with the darkspawn too surprised to react. But despite his gruff look and bloodied appearance, his words were underwhelming.

"Hey," he said breathlessly, slumping down and holding himself up by his sword, using it like a walking stick. The Mabari trotted over and looked at Feri curiously, tall enough to be eye to eye with her. "You alright?"

[User]
Breathing heavily with exertion, Feri regarded the human somewhat incredulously before her. She figured it was just exhaustion or something that made his greeting so casual, and her eyes shifted quickly between the blood-stained warrior and his equally-bloody hound.

"A right sight better than you, by the looks of things." She replied with a slight wince, noticing the slight limp in his leg. She could barely tell the difference between his own blood and that of the blighted creatures slain beneath them. And from what Feri knew, a mixture of open wounds and Darkspawn blood was a bad idea. Starting forwards suddenly, now somewhat concerned with the injured soldier, she winced and attempted to ignore the pain in her side as she approached him. It wasn't a serious cut; hadn't hit anything major, at least. It could wait.

"I think there's a stream nearby - we should get cleaned up. It would be a damn shame to be tainted after surviving such a fight. And... thanks, by the way." Flushing slightly in embarrassment, Feri realised that this stranger and his dog had just saved her life. Without even thinking about it, it would seem. Offering forth a somewhat hesitant hand for him to shake, Feri smiled slightly at the young man. "I suppose you're a survivor of Ostagar? I came from Lothering; had some stupid plan about doubling back because the blighted creatures wouldn't think to look for victims in the south." A chuckle was cut short with another realisation; introductions. "Oh! And I'm Feri. Ferirev Kobald, actually - but most call me Feri."

[Assistant]
His eyes were downcast and his powerful form looked tired beyond the physical, but he nodded at her comment she was better looking than he was. Usually he would be pretty receptive and responsive to such an upfront and hard fighting woman, but the only companions he'd had the past three or four days was Gideon and the combat, along with the cries of Darkspawn and the cleaving of his sword. Still, he looked up just in time to see her approaching with a look of somewhat concern. He got to his feet, and this time he couldn't help but give her a gruff nod and a shake of his hand. His grip was strong and true. "Don't mention it." he told her. "Yeah I...I was there. I'll tell you more about it when we get cleaned up."

Upon hearing the second part of her explanation on why she was here, he couldn't help but bark out a laugh at the absurdity of all of this. He'd been trying to get north for as long as he could remember, and not only was Lothering gone but this...Dwarf girl(?) had gone south. He gave her a grin at that, and a rough pat on the shoulder. Some of the fire that had been doused out from his grief had returned for a moment, making his grey eyes look like cold iron being smelted with with what could only be described as a fiery daring.

"I'm Rannon," he told her. "Borf!" was heard from the left, and the Mabari Warhound strutted toward them, sniffing Feri's hair with audible 'snoofs'. "Oh sorry, this is Gideon."

The Mabari tilted his head, now sniffing Feri's face. Beyond the Mabari, the tall human was backing up and heading toward the stream, for he had seen it earlier too. "C'mon Giddy! Don't be rude." As he walked, he realized why the woman had been concerned, but he'd slept with nightmares and horror for what seemed like an eternity. If Darkspawn blood had not already gotten into his system, he doubted it ever would. @MiddleEarthRoze

[User]
Feri couldn't help but feel somewhat relieved at the soldier's reaction; a laugh, a warm grin, and a spark lighting up his grey eyes. Even in battle, she had seen a dullness there - and if he was a survivor of Ostagar, it was no wonder he seemed so haunted. From the stories she had heard, she could only imagine how much worse it would be in person. Especially if he lost someone there.

Looking somewhat uncertainly at the large dog, Feri carefully patted the top of Gideon's head after deciding he wasn't going to take a chomp out of her fingers. Even after all of her years in Ferelden, she was unused to the size of dogs. Any dogs, actually - you never had a hound on a ship. A mongrel got on board once when they docked in Antiva, and it had taken 3 whole months to coax the cats out of their hiding holes. The mice population really boomed during that time.

Shaking her head slightly as her thoughts drifted, Feri followed Rannon to the stream, Gideon trotting behind them. She stayed in silence for a moment, wondering if she had been somewhat insensitive in asking about Ostagar. But then, they were in quite the desperate situation - now wasn't the time to play along with social niceties.

"We had some Grey Wardens come through Lothering a few days before the Darkspawn arrived - I was wondering if anyone other than them had survived." Feri said as she knelt at the stream, running her blades through the bubbling water. She glanced at Rannon again, smiling slightly. "Glad to see someone did - otherwise I'd be Blight fodder."


[System]
Age: 21
Appearance: Gideon stands at about 5'10", with naturally, lightly tanned skin, and brown hair and eyes. His shoulders are quite broad. In addition to this he needs reading glasses, and keeps a pair on his person at all times.

[User]
Dull and gray. A fitting description for everything that seemed to involve Sky. The experiment sat silently in her room with her back against the cold concrete wall. She listened carefully to each conversation, always tensing up when she heard her number mentioned. She could always tell when it was time to have needles pierce her or some other painful and unhumane experiment.

The worst she had been through was for what they explained to each other to be an upgrade on vision. These blue eyes she bore so easily were not even her own.

Sky let out a small sigh as she heard the voice of a scientist,whom she knew all too well, walking by. He wasn't alone though. A set of other footsteps walked besides him. A guard perhaps? Or just another scientist?

[Assistant]
"And this is where we keep the experiments," the scientist said. The young man with him was a college dropout who was the new security guard. "You are not allowed back here, unless it is a life-threatening emergency."

"Yessir," Gideon said. He couldn't see into the cages where the subjects were kept. But something felt off. He kept that to himself though.

"Good," the man said. He checked his watch. "The staff will be going home soon. It'll just be you tonight. Do what you're instructed, and you'll be just fine."

[User]
A new recruit. Sky glanced outside the confines of her cage, trying to get a view of who this new person was. She wasn't even sure why she was curious. Everyone around here was the same it seemed. Same beliefs, same ideals, same cruelty.

From where she sat she could just barely make out the outlines of the two. She listened in as usual. This was always the best time of the day for her. It was certainly the most relaxing since there were very few times that the scientists would stay behind for late night testing. As far as the guards went, well.... she rarely ever saw them up close but she still thought very little of them, as she did with most people.

[Assistant]
Gideon went back to the security room. There was a wall of black-and-white monitors, a desk, and a mini fridge. Upon inspection he found most of the food in the latter was spoiled or growing mold. He tossed it in the garbage. The young man made himself comfortable.

Several hours passed, and one of the screens went snowy. "What the...?" he murmured. He got up to investigate. The particular area was covering the entrance to Sky's cage.

[User]
Sky had been trying to get some sleep at the time. She seemed rather uncomfortable as she used her arm as a pillow to avoid the hard floor. Still she somehow managed without verbal complaints.

The sound of approaching footsteps is what work her up as they came closer to her cage. She shot up and looked out towards the guard. "Huh?" she mumbled in confusion. Realizing it wasn't a scientist made her relax a little.

[Assistant] Gideon found the malfunctioning camera. However, observing it put him right in Sky's line of vision. He fiddled with the camera, checking the battery and cords connected to it. Looked as if a mouse or rat had chewed through the cables. They'd have to repair it in the morning. It wasn't his job. Gideon made a mental note to come through again every fifteen minutes.

[User] She watched him fiddle with the camera for a moment, thinking carefully before deciding to speak up. If the camera was out, then that meant she could get away with a few small things. "Hello." Sky called out timidly. Normally she wouldn't bother speaking to anyone. It usually resulted in rather unwanted events but this guy was new to the job. Which meant she could likely get something from him, be it water or some extra food. Anything was better than nothing.

[Assistant] Gideon froze. He turned towards the cage. There was someone here? He was supposed to be the only one here. He knew that there were animals-- rats, cats, dogs, chimps... but nobody else was supposed to be here. He approached the cage door hesitantly. "Hello?"

[User] Sky sat there and stared up at him as he reached her cage door. Her gaze was innocent, as innocent as she could pull off at least. "You're the new guard? I heard you talking to one of the scientist earlier." she said calmly. She didn't know of his lack of information on her exsistence.

[Assistant] "I am," Gideon said. "You shouldn't be in there. How did you get into the lab? And why are you wearing that?" She sounded naïve. It gad to be an act. "What are you? PETA, ASPCA? Look, if you're trying to make a statement, try taking it to the press."

[User] Her borrows furrowed in confusion as he listed off organizations she had never heard of and questioned her. "My name is Sky.... I'm not sure about that other stuff you're talking about." she admitted. Glancing down at her clothing, which was rather old and worn down. "This is all I have. This is all I was given."

[Assistant] Gideon froze. All she was given? What...? His eyebrows shot up. "Y-Y-You mean..." he asked, "you've been... here all this time? In this cage? You're... an experiment?" The last part came out ad if he was spitting something disgusting out. "That's wrong. So wrong! And they know it."

[User] Sky gave a small nod. She fell silent for a moment, watching his reaction. "You're strange." she said. "I thought you would have known about this stuff anyways. I've never seen anyone with that sort of reaction after all." She shifted slightly in her cage, watching him with interest.

[Assistant] "They said they just had animals," Gideon said. "Not people." He moved closer to the door. "Testing people like this... it's against the law. It's wrong on so many different levels." He peered in. "Sky? Could you come closer? I want to see you."

[User] "There definition of an animal must vary from yours then." Sky remakred. When he told her to come closer she became tense. She looked at him skepticially, not quite willing to just trust him. She, however, decided to give him the benefit of the doubt and slowly moved closer to the door but she seemed ready to flee despite the lack of space to do so.

[Assistant] Gideon thought she was beautiful. However he kept that to himself. "You're not an animal," he assured. "You are very much a human being." He held his hand up, palm facing Sky. "See? Look at our hands?"

[User] Sky stared at him. Her gaze was no longer as innocent as before. It became a bit more stern and narrowed. "Same on the outside does not mean we are the same on the inside. If I've learned anything here, it's that." she replied sharply.

[Assistant] Gideon withdrew his hand. "Those people aren't normal," he said. "They call you an animal, and see you like one, because they want to deny that you're human. It gives them power over you. But those people never had power before. I know what they're like... I used to be one of them. They had no power when they were younger, so they put you down to give themselves power."

[User] Sky gave a small shrug and relaxed slightly seeing as how he wasn't making any move to harm her for now. "I guess..." she mumbled. Who was she to determine what was normal for people and what wasn't? She had been stuck here all her life so saying that the scientists weren't normal was a new idea. "....Who are you anyways?" she asked him.

[Assistant] "My name is Gideon," he introduced himself. "I just started work. But you must know that already." He reached in once again, offering his hand to shake. He was being polite. However he knew she might hurt him. But she was giving him the benefit of the doubt, so he would too.

[User] Sky gave him a very reluctant look again. This time, though, she reached out and lightly shook his hand, barely even gripping it. "Yeah..." she mumbled and then moved her hand back to her side. "Gideon.... You should go." she said a bit firmly now.

[Assistant] "This isn't right, what they're doing to you," Gideon said. He drew his arm back. "I want to keep talking to you. I won't come tomorrow night. But after that I'll come every night." He gave a sad smile. "No one should be in a cage. Except the eggheads who do this. But I'm sure that they'll be in one soon enough, Sky."


[System]
"The weight of my family rests on me. I'll do my best not to let them down."
Age
17

Gender
Male

Soul Weapon
Chakrams

Magic Element
Gravity

Personality
Kind, Disciplined, Reserved, Opportunistic, Calculating

Other
Arata has the ability to pull up to 5 chakrams for his soul weapon.
Bringing out his soul weapon begins to limit the use of his magic element.
0 chakrams = "Perfect" control over gravity
1 chakram = Excellent control
2 chakrams = Great control
3 chakrams = Mediocre control
4 chakrams = Poor control
5 chakrams = Little to No control

[User] Exiting the long and tiring airplane ride Gin stopped yawning in the middle of a very large crowd literally being carried by the crowd like a wave. Barely surviving the tidal wave of people Gin clenched to the nearest nailed down object holding on for his life.  "The hell was that!?"  He asked no one in particular resuming back to the usual exiting the terminal steps. Of course he waited until the crowd of people died down. Gin quickly retrieved his bag his mind getting the best of him as his did so. For some reason he thought he seen a shark out the corner of his eye which explains a lot since he almost drowned....well suffocated in the vast amount of people that paraded the terminal. Yes, he was delusional and a bit frightened but that quickly left as it came when he soon realized he was on land. Calming down from the whole shark fiasco he assumed his normal persona. He roamed a bit searching for something that represented this 'Scarlet Academy'. As if on cue a woman holding up an obvious sign reeled in Gin's attention. He walked to the woman bowing at her his green bang shading his right eye completely. Gin sat down seeing this weird girl who seemed to be pissed at life it self(Kireina). He peeked at her in order to avoid becoming a target for her 'stares'. It wasn't hard to avoid eye contact that was something that he was actually good at. But to play it safe he slid on some head phones looking off into random directions.

[Assistant] Arata waited as the plane he was on landed at Raikonan Airport. The majority of people on the plane rushed to get off and to there destination. There's no need to rush, everything in due time. Once the crowd had thinned some, he exited the plane and went to luggage claim. When he found his suitcase, he also found a note attached to it. Dearest Arata, remember that you must... are they really trying to... i know that they're just... forget it. After reading the note, which only infuriated him, he tore it off and stuffed it in his pocket. Walking out, Arata was surprised to see how many families were waiting for someone to arrive. It took him a moment to scan the area and find a woman with a sign reading 'New Students of Scarlet Academy!' He walked up, noting a tension in the air which he couldn't place a reason for, and sat down in the seat furthest from the group.

[User]
This the life. Just sitting back, relaxing, keeping eyes closed to enjoy that darkness. Nothing beats a good-- 'WHO DARES TO DISTURB MY NAP FOR I SWEAR I'LL-- oh we're here,' was the first thing Koken thought after waking up from a rather pleasing nap on the long plane ride. As the crowd formed in the aisles Koken took her time to stretch from where she sat before wiping some drool off her face with her black sleeve; and then adjusting her stylish but plain black cap, or her 'traveling' cap in which she calls it and literally just bought it for this occasion, as it appeared crooked on her head. After a short bit of waking up Koken stood and waited almost impatiently to get out of the plane. It kind of switched in and out every now and then. Impatient, then not, impatient, then not, rinse and repeat. That's bipolar for you, or something like that.

After finally getting off the plane it was off to baggage claim. Koken did have a backpack as her carry on, but alas there's one more piece of luggage. After all of that was done, it was time to find and meet up with whoever. Through...all of these signs... So...many signs... Koken stood there looking at them all, scratching the black hair behind her head as she blinked, "...What's the name of the school again?" she muttered to herself. How in the hell she forgot the name of the god damn school is anyone's guess. But soon after some looking around more closely a sign that would seem to represent the school would catch Koken's attention. 'Scarlet Academy' was basically what it was. "...Yea that sounds about right," Koken muttered to herself once again before shrugging her shoulders and walking on over. She tilted up the visor of her cap upward to reveal her eyes a little more, but not like they were hidden in the first place or anything. A few students seemed to have been there already, but the one that temporarily caught Koken's attention the most was the girl standing in front of the woman in the suit. Some kind of problem was probably being caused. Maybe. Who knows. But then as she was walking towards the group in general she heard the girl say something like 'Because I'll punish you,' or something like that. Unplanned, Koken snickered as a substitution to hold in a chuckle as she walked past her and the woman in the suit and turning her head away slightly as well. Koken actually found the 'punish' part funny, or at least the fact that she's saying it to someone who's obviously in charge. Anyways, aside from that. Koken stood around the general area of the group slightly off to the side, seeming that the only thing to do now is stand around and wait.

[Assistant]
Aleksandri Galino

The plane ride was horrible for Aleksa, though she didn't show it for the most part as she was either passed out or distracting herself by singing in Russian. The turbulence that had occurred earlier in the flight had her clutching the arm hard enough for her knuckles to turn white. "I don't Like flying, I really don't like flying!" this was the thought that kept running through her head when she was awake and until they were on the ground and about to get off the plane. As she waited to disembark Aleksa hummed a tune that had a happy note to it before she was able to get off. When she stood Aleksa grabbed her backpack from the over head compartment and exited the plane before breathing a sigh of relief, "God I'm glad to be of that thing".

Aleksa got to the area to pick up her luggage and picked up her lightning imprinted duffelbag before walking around to find the person who was supposed to pick her up. With her bag slung over her shoulder Aleksa scanned the crowd until she spotted the woman holding a Scarlet Academy sign and approached the small group of what she suspected were students. When Aleksa reached the person holding the sign she gave a small courtesy out of respect and waved to the others who were sitting down. She stood quietly just listening to the bustle of the airport goers and waiting for the rest of the people to get there. Aleksandri began to hum the song Katyusha  while waiting.

[User] Djura waited for the large bloody crowd that rushed out of the plane when it landed to thin before he even tried to get up. He grabbed his backpack out of the storage above the seats. It was all he had brought, he didn't want to trudge too much stuff all the way from Ireland, and hey no need to go through baggage claims. After getting off the plane, and being frisked by airport security he wore a cover over half his face suspicious persons and all, he began walking through the terminal looking around at all the people and signs. He was rubbing his hands together nervously, feeling a bit odd at being in a foreign country and not knowing anyone. He almost missed the women holding up a sign for Scarlet Academy students since someone was standing infront of her. He made his way over and slipped quietly past the girl glaring at the sign holder and some of the other student that had arrived before him and sat down, placing his backpack between his feet. He began listening to the girl standing nearby humming the tune of a song.

[Assistant]
Saturday September 1st 2020 6:45AM Early Morning

The woman in the suit looked down to Kireina who was giving her a cold glare. "Let me answer your question with this..." The woman mumbled as she let off a pressure of aura that would cause even the gods to back down. "You should go sit down now. You wouldn't want to mess with Ms. Shiba now, would you?" She said obviously speaking in third person.

Hisoka who was staring off yet still paying attention to the people who had sat down after him, decided to have a bit of fun with the others and emit some pressure from his aura mixed with his element. His pressure was strong enough to make even the toughest of guys back down and cower in fear. Even with this his aura had a heat wave mixed with it so anyone who felt the pressure would feel the heat as well. "Let's see how they deal with this. Wonder who will be able to figure out who is doing it." He thought to himself "Let's say this is a test from an upperclassman." He added in thought.

[User]
Emi Sugihara
"Yikes, did that girl really say that?" Emi frowned, somewhat annoyed."Even I have better social skills than that."

But before Emi could say anything, Ms. Shiba, as she discovered, emitted an aura that even Emi had to admit was unsettling. That probably settled things for now. More and more students began to arrive, each looking more standoffish than the last. Well some of them were nice and she waved back at anyone who waved to her. Still, they did not seem to be a very preppy group, not that she minded.

Suddenly, she felt a different kind of pressure. It was strong and warm and uncomfortable. Was one of the students here trying to show off? She sighed, doing her best to use her element to keep her cool, creating a sort of wind barrier around herself. Then she turned to the guy that beat her here and asked quietly so only he could hear her, "By chance are you the one doing this? Because if so, it's not very funny." She was just guessing but by the looks of most people here, she could kind of guess what kind of elements they use. For example, Miss ColdnSerious was probably an ice element user. Two of the more quiet, brooding types seemed to be darkness users. Though the rest were somewhat anybody's guess. She wondered if she looked like an air elemental... Regardless, she didn't mean to pinpoint the guy; he just happened to be sitting closest to her.

[Assistant] Gin looked out the corner of his eye at this 'Ms. Shiba' lady. He felt some serious shit radiating from her not to long after the staring chick threatened her.  "what ever the heck that was avoid that!"  He whispered to himself soon feeling another pressure. It wasn't as firece as Ms. Shinba's but way more warmer. Gin looked around his eyes coming to a reasonable origin of this warm aura. The guy didn't look like he was doing anything but just starring at him for a good second Gin noticed the area around him was much 'warmer' or the pressure was more frequent around him than anybody else. Gin was starting to get bothered by this warmth and was about to answer the problem to the warmth but was caught of gaurd by another chick confronting his possible target. He took a deep breathe relaxing. She can handle the problem for him. Gin oddly and uncontrollably chuckled covering his mouth as soon as the weird noise escaped his mouth.

[User]
Saturday September 1st 2020 6:50AM Early Morning

Hisoka looked at the girl confronting him and gave a small smile "Very good. You guessed correctly and so did you greeny" He said to the girl as well as the guy with headphones. "You two seem to have a reasonable amount of skill at your ages." He said as he extended his hand "Hisoka Namiki. Age 19. Fire is my element." He said "And you are?" he added

[Assistant]
Emi Sugihara
Emi looked at him with disbelief. "He was testing us? People here are so..." She left it at that and shrugged it off. She took his hand and gave it a gentle shake.

"Emi Sugihara. 16. Air elemental." she answered back simply. She turned back to see who he meant by "greeny". Actually, it was really obvious, huh, that nickname really did fit him to a tee. He was indeed, very green. He was covering his mouth; did he find something amusing?

"Now, now Emi. You won't make friends like that." She could already hear her aunt's voice ringing in the back of her head. She redirected her attention towards Hisoka.

"Nice to meet you, Namiki-senpai," she added, doing her best to sound friendly.

[User]
Kaya Mishiba

"...whew, it's hot in here!"

Kaya, seemingly out of nowhere, had just popped up behind Emi from the boiling pot that was the new batch of Magic Knights...er, to-be, right? She went straight onto ruffling her shirt, a sort of lime-green blouse doused in tai-dai with a dark teal sort of color, and propped her elbows on a seat by the Air-elmentalist's head, before stacking her head on her hands.

Intrusive? Probably.

Not that she'd care. She was bored out of her mind, and finally something interesting had popped up, so there was an opportunity to make friends...hopefully. They never really seemed to last since she was constantly moved here and there. Now, if she could keep them guessing her element by suppressing her aura like she had been for the past six hours...

"So...you guys are heading towards the Academy, right? I heard it's huge!"

[Assistant]
Arata was simply waiting as other students arrived. His interest was piqued when Ms. Shiba let her aura free. I wonder what happened just before I arrived... It was unlikely that Ms. Shiba was attempting to intimidate a prospective student just for fun. As Arata glanced around at the other students to attempt to piece together the situation, he felt another aura with warmth attached to it. Friendlier and less demanding... a fun-loving fire wielder? He audibly sighed. His aura shifted to both become less noticeable and direct the pressuring auras around him.

Arata would have taken the time to guess who was using their aura to warm the area except that Hisoka revealed himself rather quickly when Emi questioned him on it. Hisoka said that Emi and 'Greeny' had decent skill. Greeny? Who could... oh... yeah. He glanced around the rest of the airport, wondering when everyone would arrive so they could head over to Scarlet Academy.


[System] Ashley Gallagher

[User]
Ashley Gallagher
Club Carousel

"They'll listen to you before they listen to the guy on suspension. I want you to walk up to that lovely hostess and ask to see their books. Get a list of all tenants on the nights of the two murders and let's cross-reference them."

Ashley eyed the woman in question, before setting a sidelong glance upon Cal. "I don't know, you were always the charmer. All that wit and that scheming smile, women love a man they know will break their hearts. Hell, you could probably wink and she'd tell you any shady business you wanted to know."

Nonetheless, Ashley stood, brushing his trousers off with a sweep of his hands and making his way towards the hostess. She was preoccupied with... something, her pencil scratching quickly across the paper before her. As he approached her eyes flickered up from the task and met his with a neutral stare.

Most women at clubs like these had a charade, a bubbly, promiscuous personality they wear for the men who passed through, but the gaze he held was genuine -- tired, but genuine. It seemed she was waiting for him to speak.

"Hello ma'am." Ashley almost winced at the cold, professional tone he had taken. Sometimes it was too easy to slip into his job. With a considerable effort to sound gentler, though it probably sounded more forced than anything, he continued. "I'm going to need to take a look at your books." He slipped his badge across the small table and it almost seemed as if she flinched upon seeing it. Her gaze hardened and she crossed her arms.

"What for?" Her voice was harsh, inelegant.

Ashley could have rolled his eyes. He refrained and sent a shifty look in Cal's direction, a small part of him wishing the man would step in. Ashley had never been good with women. "My apologies, miss. I'm Detective Gallagher, Vice, and the information in your logs is critical for our case."

She smirked, but complied. "You Vice boys, rolling in here like you've got a handle on crime. Thinkin' you're the first to sniff drugs in this club." Her tone was teasing as she ducked down below her table, pulling out what appeared to be a large ledger and sliding it across to him. "Don't let me get in your way, take a peek."

[Assistant]
"Emerald"
 Gilded Heights Apartment Complex, Room #67

Emerald perused the Detective's apartment as if it were a museum. Museum Ashley. It spoke lengths about his habits, dishes stacked high in the sink, bedsheets strewn about, dust collecting in a thin sheen atop lots of general clutter. Every so often she would check the locks. Check the door, check the window. She would undo all of them just to peer out into the hallway, then do them all up once more.

She wished she was working. Her mind was quiet when she was dancing. Hell, she might even be safer in front of a crowd of people, all eyes on her. She had half a mind to march right down to the Carousel with that thought, but she stopped realizing business at this time of day and in these circumstances would be deader than the chopped up girl in her apartment.

So she sat, neatly setting herself amidst the mess of bedsheets with an ominous creak of the frame, and waited.

[User]
Calvin Lovegrove
Club Carousel

Cal stared at the bottom of his scotch. "I hope I'm alive once they figure out how to make 'em bottomless.." He downed the remainder of his demented health potion and stared over at Ashley. He couldn't let the boy do all the work. He'd let Detective Gallagher use his awkward charm to reel in the hostess, and then he'd strike. It wasn't long before she'd conjured the ledger.

After making an obsessive taste-test to make sure no drops of scotch were left in his glass, he sauntered over toward Ashley with his arms tucked into the pockets of his coat. He snatched the ledger from Detective Gallagher and held it out so they both could see, flipping to the two dates in question. February 5th and 6th, 1949. He traced his fingers down the two different days, on which hundreds of aliases had found their way onto the paper. Fuck. There was an entire city's worth of names here.

There was little to no chance that the murderer had signed in, and done so under their name, but perhaps if a strange detail had caught the eye of a repeat customer, it could at least be a thread to pull. He sighed as he exasperatedly ran his fingers down the list. He narrowed his eyes. The fuck? He found a name, which had been signed onto both evenings at the exact same time. 10:20 P.M. Danielle Raymonde. "What in the hell?" He muttered.

The hostess furrowed her brow. "You know her?"

Cal nervously quivered his lip. "Y---no. I don't know her personally," he lied. "But if that's the Dani Raymonde, then The Florist is tangling with the top of the tower. She's about as...thrilling...and rich...as starlets come." He narrowed his eyes. It was his job to veil her criminal dealings. This was nothing compared to some of the sinful depravity he'd masked for her. If Danielle had hidden that she'd been at Club Carousel on the nights of the murders from him, then this labyrinth of a case was far more complex than he'd predicted.

"This makes things far more complicated.' Cal plopped another cigarette into his mouth and lit the end. He took a deep breath and let loose a large puff of smoke. "Sounds like we're going to have to question this 'Danielle Raymonde', Detective Gallagher. I know, I know...Popping your Hollywood-leading-lady-chat cherry isn't so attractive when it's done in police procedure. But take what you can get."

"Shall we take my car?"

[Assistant]
Ashley Gallagher
Club Carousel

"Sounds like we're going to have to question this 'Danielle Raymonde', Detective Gallagher. I know, I know...Popping your Hollywood-leading-lady-chat cherry isn't so attractive when it's done in police procedure. But take what you can get."

"Shall we take my car?"

Ashley grumbled, gazing over the names in the ledger one last time before shoving his hands in his pockets. "Never heard of her, but if you insist."

He thought on Cal's car, and the idea of taking a spin in it was somewhat unappealing. He couldn't hide the green under his collar at the thought of it— she was beautiful, and expensive, far more expensive than anything Ashley could afford. Nonetheless it beat taking Cal for a ride in his clunker.

Ashley agreed mutely and headed for the door, only to be interrupted by a pair of eyes from across the club. Behind one of the large curtains curiously peered two hazel hues that met his briefly before disappearing into the depths of what he assumed was backstage. "Go on ahead, wait in the car." He called over to Cal before taking long strides to where he'd seen the woman disappear.

He ducked behind the wings of the stage, revealing a set of rooms filled with costumes, mirrors, lights, and makeup. There was no one present, save for one lone figure seated at a vanity.

Trying not to spook the young woman, Ashley cleared his throat as he approached. Even still, a small, surprised shudder ran through her. "You're not allowed to be back here." She whispered softly.

"Gonna' have to speak up dear, can hardly hear you."

She said nothing, simply leaned forward as a shaky hand applied ruby red to her lips. He figured she was a dancer there, she was pretty. Dark, exotic features with long caramel hair. Her figure was draped and concealed by a robe, but it hinted at the easily desirable curves that would win her plenty of dough in this line of work.

"Going to be straight with you here," He began roughly, "I'm here to investigate the murder, you look like you've seen a ghost, there somethin' you can tell me?"

She snapped her lipstick shut with a sudden and sharp pop before turning to look at him. She offered a soft hand. "You may call me Pizazz."

These names. Ashley nodded nonetheless.

"Now I didn't see anything suspicious that night, but I will tell you that my… colleague, Emerald, disappeared promptly afterwards. She didn't show up for work today and that is incredibly uncharacteristic."

Great. Useless.

"I will look into that, ma'am. But I wouldn't worry too much, it seems everyones a little turned off from the club at this time."

She made a face. "Yeah, but I know Emerald. If there's trouble abound, she's waist-deep in it. She acts ignorant, but nothin' goes on in this club without her being in the know. If you're looking for leads, she's where you want to look."

Ashley nodded slowly, digesting the information. "Right, thank you… Pizazz."

He turned, steadily jogging to the entrance.

Was Emerald hiding something?

[User]
Calvin Lovegrove
Club Carousel

Calvin made his way to his convertible without Ashley, who had stayed behind with some show-broad with a deer-in-the-headlights look about her. He sighed and hopped over the driver's side door, lighting a cigarette as he landed in the almost addictingly plush seat. He had to be very careful about how he played his cards with Danielle. He looked down the sidewalk he had parked along. At the end of the block, there stood a lone payphone.

What a fucking mess. Calvin rubbed his forehead as cigarette smoke filled the interior of the car. Two different demons were gripping his arms, and he would have to choose one to elope with. On one side, bringing Ashley to Danielle's apartment unannounced would prove to be a nightmare; she was devious but there was no way she would be able to masquerade her relationship with Calvin to a detective as merciless as Gallagher. His facade would burst at the seams; all of the dirty loopholes Cal used to keep Danielle out of prison would rain into the public eye.

On the other side, if Calvin called Danielle and warned her of the impending search, she would have time to rehearse her persona and keep the ruse intact. But this would mean that she would have time to craft her own story and alibi; the truth would be long-gone by the time Gallagher made it there. It would save Calvin's skin, but it would destroy the case. She was the only thread of evidence they had. Fuck. Calvin stepped out of the car and slammed the door shut. He leaned against the car-door and tossed his cigarette on the ground, burying it with his wing-tipped shoe.

Calvin took a deep breath and hurried to the payphone. He pumped in a nickel rung Danielle's apartment. He had to live to fight another day.

"Hello?"

"It's me. Calvin."

"Ugh. I got out of bed for your sorry hide?" Calvin could hear her chuckle behind the line.

"It's a pretty picture, darling. But I've got some alarming news."

"What?"

"You were signed into the Carousel Club on the nights of both of the Florist's murders."

"Yes, but...what?! You don't think that I--"

"No. I don't. You came home long before the first murder. But that's the problem. I'm your alibi."

"Shit..."

"I'm coming to your apartment with a fuckin' gunslinger of a detective--Ashley Gallagher--and he is going to drill his procedure into your goddamn skull until your brain starts to leak through your nose. Be ready for him. Prepare a story if you have to. We're forty five minutes away. Craft an alibi if you have to. If Detective Gallagher finds out about us, he will investigate our dealings and he will find everything. He is the best they have to offer."

"Perhaps it would be better if he was out of the picture..."

"Are you fuckin' crazy, love? No. Don't dig a deeper hole. Do what you do best. Act. I've got a lot on the line, but I'm working this case, Dani. I expect the truth from you later."

"Good luck, Calvin Lovegrove," Danielle muttered, with a raspy and almost seductive tone of voice. The line fell dead. Calvin quickly hung up the phone and sprinted back to his car. Ashley had not yet arrived. He hopped into his driver's seat and waited. Fuck. He'd quite possibly sabotaged the case before it even began.

[Assistant]
Ashley Gallagher
Club Carousel

"You know the way, Cal?" Ashley ducked into the passenger seat, admiring the beautiful machine with a quick glance-over.

As they made the drive, Ashley went over what they knew. 10:20 PM, Danielle Raymond, both nights. The first murder took place later, sometime between 2-3 AM, the second one took place closer to 10:30-11 PM, Emerald found the body when she got off work, which was 11:30.

Emerald. Ashley had to put his lingering suspicions of her to bed for the moment, they would only distract him now.

"So she's a… what'd you call her? Starlet, Hollywood Leading Lady? I'm not big on films. Tell me about the broad. I want to get as much information as possible. What do the uh…. eh… tabloids say? She got a good public presence? Any dirty laundry slip?" He stroked his chin thoughtfully. "And what would a woman, a rich woman anyway, be doing at the Carousel Club? If you're not there for the girls you're there for the crime." He paused, "She like girls?"

It was mostly just a stream of incoherent conscience, but he supposed he had to cover all of the bases.


[System]
Quote: "And who's gonna stop me? …You?"
Alias: Omega
Age: 27
Gender: Male
Family: Mother - Sonya (super); Father - Richard, older brother - Ellis (non-super)

Occupation:
Coming from a family who manages their finances pretty well, Manny makes his money work for him, giving him time to train most days. He does, however, help his father with his construction business quite often.

Appearance:

Manny is 5'9" and about 185lbs. He has a muscular build but isn't massively buff. He does like to show off his arms, so most of his wardrobe is short sleeved or sleeveless.

His 'hero' wear consists of a black base layer underneath a dark grey/black vest. He wears black shoulder pads over the vest which are strapped in place with an Omega-shaped buckle. He wears dark gray fingerless gloves that go halfway up his forearm, loose-fitting black pants with padded knees, and boots with the same color scheme as his vest. On his head, he wears a set of ski-like goggles that wrap completely around his head and a wrap over the top of his head to cover his hair.

Method of Operation:
His home base is in a secret location, but he can usually be found cruising the rooftops, surveilling the city from above. He has enough cooperation with the authorities that he hasn't been arrested yet. Since he can easily take out larger groups, he usually looks out for gang activity.

Superpower:
Gravity Manipulation
Manny can alter his own gravity or the gravity of a given area, the largest being about the size of a school gymnasium. He also uses a few gravity-based attacks. Specific abilities include:

Upforce/Downforce: decrease/increase the effect of the planet's gravity in a specific area
Force Push/Pull: repel/attract objects using force (precision is somewhat limited)
Concussive Blast: emit a burst of force in single direction
Zero Point Gravity: can attract all matter within a small area to a single point in space
Personal Gravity Manipulation/Gravity Aura: can alter the effects of gravity on himself enhancing his jumping ability, allowing him to walk on walls/ceilings, and giving him levitation and gliding abilities (though he can't technically 'fly'). He also uses this power to land harder strikes when fighting and repel things like bullets (he has to be consciously doing this; he's not bulletproof).

Manny is limited to the amount of alteration happening at one time. This includes area of effect, the strength of the alteration, and the amount of time the area is affected.

Reckless use of his power can also cause a good bit of collateral damage, so he has to be careful when affecting the gravity of something other than himself.

Skills:
Since his vigilante work involves frequent contact with bad guys, Manny has become a skilled fighter. He trains at several different gravity levels and, at times, with weighted clothing. He also has very good parkour skills. Also, thanks to his father, he knows a good bit about construction.

Equipment:
Goggles - altering gravity can sometimes loosen up a lot of floating particles
Music player - never goes anywhere without his music

Personality:
Being born a super has given Manny a thick skin when it comes to negativity. He doesn't let many things bother him and humbly recognizes his superiority over humans. He understands the human disdain for supers: some are jealous, some scared, others are just put off by the abnormal. As a matter of fact, he has a certain animosity himself for supers who misuse or abuse their powers. Jeopardizing innocent lives is wrong no matter what a person's genetic code happens to be.

Manny likes adventure and exploration, and living in Millennium City ensures he's never bored. Having powers gives him freedom from a normal human lifestyle and using those powers for good gives him a sense of purpose.

When faced with a challenge, he is confident in his abilities but still errs on the side of caution. He knows how to stay level-headed in most situations, seeing panic and doubt as surefire ways to fail.

Manny tends to keep people in the neutral zone until he sees their true nature. He prefers independence, but still cooperates with others if necessary. He likes to crack a joke or two, whether or not the humor is appreciated. Since Manny has earbuds permanently attached to his head, he tends to quote a lot of lyrics and sing/hum to himself.

Biography:
Manny grew up just outside Millennium City. His father, Richard, owns a construction company which started locally and moved into the city when business grew, and his mother, Sonya, works at the local children's hospital. His parents met in high school and married soon afterward. Sonya revealed her power to Richard a little after they got engaged which she was certain would drive him away, but he was only upset that she hadn't mentioned it sooner. This may had only been because she had a 'good' power, but to this day, he claims that it was because of 'true love'. His mother has the ability to physically heal bio-mass with her singing voice.

Sonya had to pretty much beg for children, the second being an easier sell because the first didn't have powers. Richard's human genes apparently dominated in Manny's older brother, Ellis, so Manhattan is the only child of theirs with powers. Growing up, Sonya helped Manny develop his powers while always urging him to keep it to himself. He didn't quite understand why he had to be so secretive when his mom used her powers for work, but she always told him he would get it one day.

When 'one day' came, Manny was in his late teens and he decided to pack up his things and move into the city. His parents reluctantly let him go, reminding him that the city was dangerous even for a super, and especially for a teenager, but they couldn't change his mind. He needed a place to freely explore his powers, and he promised to never get his family involved or even reveal his relation to them (in case he gained some enemies).

Manny took to the city pretty well and spent a lot of time exploring, but he didn't really get serious about being a vigilante until his brother was injured in a fire caused by a pyrokinetic. Ellis ended up trapped underneath some fallen rubble, and even though Manny was able to rescue him, Ellis was paralyzed from the waist down and confined to a wheelchair. At that moment, Manhattan dedicated himself fully to ridding the city of crime and finding the person responsible for his brother's injury.

Theme Song:
Weapons of Mass Distortion - The Crystal Method

[User]
The desperate pleading of Raven was hard for Omega to hear but he had to stay his ground and bring her to justice. He gritted his teeth and steeled his heart against the cries of anguish now flooding his ears. And if her desperation wasn't enough, there was a nice dose of whimpering and mewling coming from what was now a headless horse. The motorcycle appearance seemed to be a veil shrouding the true form of the beast. As perplexing as the whole thing was, Omega didn't let himself break his hold on the summon. He remained neutral, and, as the sirens grew nearer, he closed his eyes in anticipation of the end of the madness. That is until…

"Manny, please!"

Omega's eyes snapped open and instantly the same desperation had found him as well. His heart began to race and his breathing became quick and labored. His gaze shot over to the fallen super as a look of utter confusion arrested his features.

Wha…? How…? Wait…

He now recognized that voice. How could he have not seen it before? The height similarity alone could have given it away. But he had no reason to think that Raven Tale was blind...but she was blind, because Raven Tale was…

"Aurora...?"

Manny's first instinct -- which was to bolt -- was overridden by his obligation to help this girl that he now knew was as far from a villain as you could get. He could see that he hurt her pretty bad and he surely couldn't leave her for the authorities now.

He normalized the gravity holding both Aurora and her summon and rushed to gently scoop her up from the ground. Floating both her book and her summon behind him, he hurriedly carried her to a safe spot within the nearest warehouse. After setting her down, he froze for a second and his heart broke a little.

"I…"

His mind was still racing. He had no idea how to perceive what had just occurred and he needed to get away and clear his head. He didn't really want to leave her like this, but he couldn't bring himself to face her right now, either. Reluctantly, he departed from the scene, making sure not to alert the cops to her whereabouts and hoping that Aurora would be able to recover from what he had just done.

[Assistant]
Alone, thats all this night has been. The gasping breath chocked with sobs was trying desperately to quiet itself down. The distant sirens that of a nightmare as Raven, no, Aurora laid her back against the cold wall. Abandoned...
Every breath was agony, tears now trailing from under her mask. Her body still shaking she began to feel for her book. The clicking hooves and whimpers causing her to freeze. Dullahan trying so hard to get up, yet she felt her heart break at the sound of the creature laying back down.
Almost dragging herself over, she began to disperse her mask. Feeling the sides of the beast that twitched under her fingers. The same sensation of Sweet Tea, only to run her hands down the creature's leg to feel what could have easily been mistaken for crushed ice. "Cannon bone is shattered....Dullahan, I need you gone..."

Again she was met with protest as she opened the saddle bags. Slowly and painfully changing into a set of civilian cloths. Porcelain skin now stained in violet. "Disperse my friend" yet the Dullahan would not leave Aurora alone in such a state. With a baited breath she found her book, slamming it shut and trying desperately not to scream from the severed link.

The walk home was long, and lonely. She's never had to find her way home from such a situation. Dullahan had never been injured so badly before. And so, with slow, pained steps, and a mind clouded in thought. She tried, and tried again to find her way home. Having to spend the night in the homeless shelter, the next day a library.
Three days it took her to find her home, three days it took for someone to realize she was lost and help.

When she finally got home, she all but fell ontop of a whimpering Goliath. A door opening behind her to reveal a well dressed man with hair slicked back. "Aurora, darlin what happened to you? You been away for days I had to feed Goliath!" Yet seeing her state he instantly was at her side. "What happened....your hurt bad, come on, I'll take you to the hospital."

---
Three cracked ribs, a fractured wrist and endless questions. Eventually Aurora just had enough. She wanted music, she wanted comfort as she simply listened to her sister, her pillows stained with tears while Goliath laid at her side. Periodically bringing her a bottle of water.

It was days before she decided she needed fresh air. Bundling up, she brought Goliath and herself to her favourite music cafe. Sitting with her back to the wall and nibbling on a slice of cake. She felt far better than that night. Yet she still couldn't help but keep her guard up. Goliath sensing his owner's distress would not sit down, watching every person that entered and left the building.

[User]
The days following Manny's encounter with Raven were a whirlwind of emotions. Never had any other vigilante known his identity out of costume. He'd been careful about it for all these years, but one slip-up had exposed him. Luckily, it was only to Aurora…

Aurora. Manny still couldn't believe he had hurt someone whom he had literally saved not long before. He felt terrible about leaving her the way he did. Blind and injured…

Is that how we're taking care of things now, Manny?

The more he thought about it, the angrier he became with himself. He'd never in his life hurt a friend like that...but was she a friend? The only connection they really had was the rescue. But that wasn't true, either. He had been playing cat and mouse with Raven for a while, sparing her from capture, not knowing that later on, she would be gifting him with cookies. Wrapping his head around the fact that little blind, bashful Aurora and the daring, cunning Raven Tale were one in the same had started to make his head hurt. It wasn't often that Manny got in this state, but when he did, his only solace was music.

Walking up to the door, he lightly caressed the doorknob as if it was something very precious or sacred. He gently inserted his key and entered the studio. Closing and locking the door, he paused for a moment after pocketing the key. This was a place of both joyful memories and solemn reverence. The music studio was previously owned by his mentor and best friend whom had passed a few years prior. Her family had left it to Manny with the promise of keeping it up and he had honored that oath quite faithfully. The place was immaculate despite its lack of use and became a safe haven for Manny whenever he needed a place to get away.

He selected a guitar from the nearby rack and made his way to the chair in front the control panel. Setting the guitar down, he queued up a familiar track to play through the speakers. It was his mentor's half of one of several guitar duets that they had recorded together for fun. Sitting back in his chair, he silently played along with the track as a few unexpected tears rolled down his cheek.

-----

After a few hours of hanging out in the studio, Manny decided to visit the local music cafe that he frequented. He was still in the music mood and this was the perfect spot to satisfy any music lover's need. When he walked in, he was greeted by an old friend who also happened to work there.

"Manny! How are you, bud?"

"I'm just fine, Dave. How 'bout you?"

"Ah, same old, same old around here...you know how it is...in fact, it's great that you showed up. The entertainment's been a bit lackluster tonight...could use a touch of Manny, if you know what I mean."

"Really? I haven't even sat down."

"C'mon, I can see it in your eyes, dude. You know you want to play something."

Manny rolled his eyes but couldn't get the grin off of his face. "Just get me a drink, alright."

He made his way to the edge of the stage and signaled to the house band that he was going to join them in their next set. They actually seemed pretty excited to see him as it had been a while since he was convinced to take the stage. When they finished the current set, Manny hopped on stage and greeted the band.

"Good to see ya, Manny. Finally felt like playing with us again?"

"You know it's always a pleasure. I'm thinkin' a nice jam session is in order."

The band smiled and nodded in agreement as Manny grabbed a guitar and stepped up to the mic.

"Evening, everyone...I hope you're enjoying yourselves. We're just gonna cook up a little something if you don't mind..."

Wearing a laid-back smile, he stepped back from the mic and started jamming with the band.


[System]
Age: 26
Gender: Female.
Race/Nationality: Irish-born, with Roman lineages. Weak accent.

5'8", 166 lb, slender physique. Heterochromic, with one blue eye and one normally green eye, the latter changing color upon her power's influence. Her very light blonde hair covers that green eye, and shines an almost white color under certain lights. Typically wears in either neutral color schemes, very regal clothing or military uniform.

---

Personality:
In this world full of sorcerers, heathens, god-maniacs and skeptics, she is perhaps one of the very, very few to worship God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit, let alone any god or godly spirit. Even while the Vatican is now all but a tiny institution, Margaret herself remains firmly rooted in her Catholic faith, and still puts much of its devotional principles into practice. As such, Margaret can often be seen contemplating on the mysteries of the Rosary in the morning, suddenly stopping to pray exactly at noon and 6 in the evening, fervently praying when encountered with adversary, and carrying devotional scapulars, prayer leaflets and relics of saints. Her continuous faith can be attributed to an incredible coincidence of her family's deep religious traditions and the holy-like nature of her power, and even her family continues to hide any trace of their newfound irreligion should she contact them.

Consequently enough, this deep devotion has also compelled her to gain some notorious traits of the typical zealous Middle Ages crusader. In particular, Margaret often believes herself to have the right to damn anyone to Hell, and most especially condemns Novodeans, GAUs, and, to much hypocrisy, self-righteous people. Margaret believes the rise of humanity's power as God's test on whoever is virtuous enough to use God's gift wisely and gain right to Heaven, and whoever is wicked enough to use God's gift for nefarious intentions and earn damnation. Among Margaret's list of what constitutes as virtue is the fervency to purge whatever she deems as sin... which would in turn spell quite some trouble in this age.

In general, Margaret is very disdainful to the brash, but kind to the gentle. She, in turn, is gentle-natured most of the time, but thinks highly about herself and can come off as arrogant occasionally. Margaret, though, is willing to rend her abilities, especially the Spirit, in servicing people for the better.

Besides religion, Margaret has actually quite a knack for games both video and board (though not really good with the former), drinking, and dining to the point of gluttony (while surprisingly staying fit). It seems much of her morals are simply quite focused on the issue of superhumanity and is willing to let it be loose, if not totally absent, when it comes to other aspects.

Abilities:
 Divinity
A luminous form of magic that comes in three forms, altogether making Margaret angel-like in power. She has named the forms after the aspects of the Holy Trinity:

The Power of the Father - Simply referred to as the Father, the energy of Divinity is conjured into forms able to hurt and kill. The Father can damage anything that lives with extra effectiveness against any creature of a summoned background (except intelligents), but is not capable of doing damage to nonliving things.

The Wisdom of the Son - Simply referred to as the Son. Luminous wings made out of Divinity and capable of flight and highly effective shielding.

The Love of the Holy Spirit - Simply referred to as the Holy Spirit or Spirit. Performs the exact opposite purpose of the Father: to heal. Rends wounds at a very quick rate, but may not be able to resurrect one that has sustained an injury severe enough to deliver quick or instant death.

All three abilities derive from the same energy pool. Should one ability sustain overuse, other abilities may be rendered unusable upon the depletion of Divinity. One can read how exhausted her reserves are by her heterochromic green left eye: increased use reddens it, and turns black as her energies go less and less.

Biography:
Born within the more Catholic confines of Ireland, Margaret was raised by a wealthy family whose faith was rather empty; despite a large collection of religious icons and even relics of saints, most of them simply didn't have the motivation to attend regular Masses nor take any prayer seriously. This was Margaret, too; the girl used not to have a care in anything.

Around 11, however, Margaret suddenly started heading to a life of "sainthood". From a simple fascination with icons and relics, it all then spiraled into full-blown devotion, something so sudden her parents started thinking what the hell has gone wrong.

Cue hell breaking loose.

Concerns grew even deeper. What if Margaret was to become one of those maniacs on the news? Her family had already began packing their bags in case she did prove herself to be one. And when they finally saw her floating around the rooms, bearing wings of light, it was then decided that it was high time they got the hell out of here.

Just as they were about to leave, however, a crazed telekinetic decided it would be fun to join on the rampage, starting with the Vergilias. When they were then cornered and as her father had just sustained a blow to his shoulder with a rock, Margaret raced quickly out of the house, struck the attacker in the face with a beam of light, and fixed his father's shoulder in a snap.

Though some of the rest of the family acquired their powers, Margaret was still best suited to guide her family while they roamed around, before settling on Mundin months later. This proved to be a wise choice; the city-state would later become one of the few remaining safe havens of the world, and for the rest of the years the Vergilias would then live in peace without a care in the world... while Margaret had her own duties to pursue, as a soldier of the Defense Unit and "most importantly, as a soldier of God".

---

Specialties:
Adept at memorization, and knows the entirety of the Catholic Pastoral Editon Bible, all known Catholic prayers, and the encyclicals of St. John Paul II. Strong-willed and motivated. Fluent in Latin and English.

Equipment:
Regularly keeps with herself scapulars, a Rosary and a Miraculous Medal, along with money, IDs and other necessities.

Has tons of religious icons and relics of saints in her home. Mostly retrieved from her old home, but some new ones are in there as well.

Other:
Margaret is stationed at the long-range defense placements on the coast facing Britain.

Prefers wines, but will still occasionally take beer.

Very much loves steaks. Dislikes fruits, but likes leafy greens.

[User]
Matthew Anderson

---

Residential Area, Matthew's Apartment
Today was expected, it was announced, and everyone was talking about the 35th anniversary of Mundin's founding which has incited a lot of attention to those inside the city. He earlier today had been working at the lab but had been let off work early for the celebration, so that was a plus, but he never had much to do besides working and go out after his shift- which was hours from now. So, he had little else to do to burn the free time he had in his hands away. Maybe he would get some takeout for dinner and head out maybe after the fireworks which would be when the after party happened. Exhaling as he got up from his couch, he looked out of the window from his apartment as a parade of people moved to St. Jeanne's Plaza to listen to the Prime Minister's speech. Matthew himself didn't live too far from the Plaza itself but it was an expensive area to live in, thankfully his job was more than enough to cover it and continue to support for more.

Moving to his bedroom, he dug through his closet and tossed on a dark outfit with mostly neutral colors to them as he wore a military green button up that was underneath a dark leather vest with black pants and shoes. Looking at himself in the mirror for a final time before he left his apartment, locking the door with his keys before he placed them into his pocket. Walking down the stairs as he saw the two elevators already occupied as one was already moving to the bottom floor while the other already passed his floor as it went up. Walking down several flights of stairs of his multistoried apartment as he reached the lobby after a quick descent from his end. Exiting the glass doors before he immersed into the sea of people that all head to St. Jeanne's Plaza, following them as he blended into the crowd- he would get food around there anyways. Minding his own business as he got closer, it was almost impossible to not get a whiff of the thoughts of people around him as it was similar to eavesdropping.

---

St. Jeanne's Plaza, Restaurant
However, despite all the traffic both physical and mentally, Matthew eventually made his way to the Plaza as he began to make his way through the crowds to one of the restaurants on the edge. Entering one of the businesses which he simply got to the easiest, he walked up to the cashier and ordered a dinner for four that would last him a few nights if he didn't pig out along with a plate for the current meal to eat. After paying, he sat down with the plastic box and opened it as he began to eat, keeping the rest of his order on the table next to him. He had his attention focused on the speech that would be happening soon, similar to everyone else in the restaurant as they were talking quietly as they waited.

---

[Assistant]
Sora hummed a little tune as he ducked and weaved passed the people in the bustling city streets. Slung over his shoulder was a bag, filled to the brim with cash. The bag originally belonged to the owner of several stores and establishments that reside within Mundin. Just a few hours earlier, the business owner had decided to buy into a high-stakes game of poker. Unfortunately for him, Sora was playing in the same game. After just forty-five minutes of playing, Sora had already taken everything the entrepreneur had placed on the table. A smile slid it's way onto Sora's face as he remembered the businessman's face as he lost. The mix of anger and complete bewilderment on his face, after he lost hand after hand, was priceless. Although this wasn't the reason that Sora attended the game. The real reason he was there was simply for information. The surplus of money was just a happy addition to what he really went there for. Several of the people playing in the game, including the businessman, were not what one would call law abiding citizens. They were all involved in the city's criminal enterprises, in one form or another, and Sora was there to see what their plans were for today's festivities. Much to his disappointment, there were no great big plays being made against the city today.

Sora quickly stopped humming as he made a sudden and sharp turn into a nearby alleyway. He knew the city's street and alley systems like the back of his hand, and this was the most efficient route to Parliament. He wasn't interested in today's festivities, and he decided to go inform the soldiers of the lack of criminal activity. A couple years back, Sora approached the MDU and MPU with an offer. He offered to become a confidential informant in return for relative freedom to work within the city. This was initially met with nothing but laughter, and Sora took his leave. The next time Sora showed up at MPU headquarters, he brought information that not only resulted in several successful drug busts, but also brought a criminal drug smuggling ring to an abrupt end. The MDU/MPU had no choice but to accept his offer at that point.

 A left turn and then a right. A few minutes passed as Sora snaked his way through the alleyways. Most of the alleys were empty due to the fact that almost everyone in the city was currently funneling into St. Jeanne Plaza. Sora made one more left turn and kept going straight until the alley suddenly opened up. The sight before him was none other than an empty pathway leading straight to the Parliament Courtyard. He stood there only for a moment as he pondered his approach. He then reached into the bag, pulled out the money he used to buy into the poker game, put the cash into his jacket pocket, and then made his way up the pathway. The walk didn't take too long, and soon enough he found himself in front of a small platoon of guards and what looked like a supplier of equipment. He was glad to see that his assumption that the Prime Minister would be delaying his involvement in the festivities was correct.

 A smile crept onto his face as he said, "Well, well, well. Isn't it my favorite platoon of goodie-two-shoes. How's guard duty treating y'all?" He took a short pause to toss the bag of money off to the side and away from him, "I seriously don't know how you guys do it. This looks like one of the most boring jobs on the planet, and I should know, my father was a college professor", he chuckled, "Anywho, Your faithful spider has come to report on what news has fallen into his web!" He bowed towards the soldiers as he finished his sentence.

[User]
Oh, look, it's the PM!... no, wait, that's just an MP. A jet black suit, a deep maroon tie and a polished shoe on the member was a fine choice of attire indeed, but everyone knew this was not the Prime Minister's style. He had held the position of the city's head of state for the last six long years, and it's already common knowledge that the PM preferred to wear anything pompous and elegant that appeared more to belong to pageants rather than any formal event. Foundation feasts, public speeches, security briefings and even emergency meetings-- you name it, he does it!

The already-impatient officer on duty flinched an eye upon hearing another come in as well. Though there's not really any point getting mad at the Units' favorite vigilante, especially if he came in bringing anything of use. And he had news, it appeared.

"Mon ami, you're just in the nick of time. Bring in your report."

Elsewhere, St. Jeanne's Plaza is still lively as ever, even as the dusk drew near. Much of the news broadcasts for today, displayed all-around at the holo-screens, focused their cameras on the still empty platform that the Prime Minister will hold his speech on while the anchors made their commentaries in the background. And of course, before every commercial break, there's always that unmistakable joyous tune of chimes, followed by Mundin's tourism slogan fading in on a white background and a robotic female voice reading those aloud:

Nothing's ever mundane in Mundin!


[System]
Age: 26
Gender: Male
Race: Imperial
Birthsign: The Steed

Appearance: Roland is a young man, and tall for a Imperial, about 185 centimeters. He is a sinewy man, who is quick and agile, but is not a brawny or muscular man at all, and there are stronger men than him. For his services during the Civil War and in the Imperial Legion, he has gained more than just a few scars. Roland has long, dark brown hair, bordering almost black at times, and clear green eyes, that have a spark of determination and will. His face is kept clean shaven meticulously. He could be considered a handsome man, if he smiled more with his thin mouth.

Biography: Roland was born into the Corvo family in 181 Fourth Era, whose members have served in the Imperial Legion as officers and soldiers for generations. His father Marcus, for example, fought against the Aldmeri Dominion in the Great War. As such, Roland has always wanted to distinguish himself in the Legion. Roland lived most of his childhood and teenage years in Cyrodiil, often moving from town to town, as his father was assigned to different towns to act as an inspector and instructor for Legion's troops in Cyrodiilic garrisons.

Roland learned how to use a sword and other weapons while still being a child. Often, he would just use a stick or a wooden sword and fight with his friends, siblings and cousins. As the eldest son of the flock of six children, he was often given the best education, but Roland has always looked after his younger siblings.

Roland grew up into an ambitious young man, who took service to the Empire seriously and saw life in the military as a prestigious one. As he turned eighteen, Roland joined the Imperial Legion as a footman, starting as a swordsman. Proving himself as a competent and aggressive duelist and a handsome young man, Roland became a poster boy, so to speak, for the Legion for a while during his training, as he excelled as a soldier and came from from a military family. Two of his younger brothers also joined the Legion as scribes.

He gained some fame before the Skyrim's Civil War, and as he had risen to the officer ranks just before the war's beginning, he was given the command of a unit of heavy footmen. His commanding officer would turn out to be Hector Sibassius.

Roland had heard a few rumours and whispers of Hector from some older men of the Legion, but not many concrete facts. Roland soon was acquainted with the man himself, and served as one of his junior staff members throughout the war, helping him pacifying Skyrim's countryside. Roland's cohort of swordsmen often broke the back of Stormcloak resistance in any battle and often took the heaviest losses. Often clad in steel and taller than most Imperials, he gained the nickname "Steelpike" from his fellow soldiers.

Roland often volunteered to take his men into the fray if needed and led them from the front. The unit shared a tight bond and certain feel of entitlement forged in the many battles. They saw themselves as the best unit in the whole Legion, which, of course, could be always argued by other units.

One day, though, Roland's Raiders, as his cohort was known, was attacked by a brown-scaled dragon while on the march. The attack lasted only a couple minutes, but it left the cohort devastated and decimated. Out of the dozens men under Roland's command, only a handful survived, and the dragon was hardly hurt at all, vanishing as fast as it had attacked. The Raiders lost most of veteran soldiers, who had been serving ever since the beginning of the war.

The attack left Roland mentally shaken and embittered, and tried to serve the same way as he had before the dragon attack, but something had changed. He had become more short tempered and angry, often snapping at people. Some of his comrades would say that he had lost his edge in the dragon attack, and they would be right. After seeing his men and friends dying a fiery death, Roland had been devastated emotionally.

After the Civil War, Roland became an instructor at an imperial garrison in Skyrim, teaching what he knew to new recruits and soldiers. He hasn't told much to anyone what had happened to his cohort during the Civil War, but there are rumours and whispers around him, of course. Almost two years passed, before Hector Sibassius contacted Roland and asked him to join his expedition to find and kill a rogue mage named Akhar.

Personality: Once an ambitious and sociable young man, Roland has become a more reserved man, often seeming more cold and emotionally distant than before, perhaps even somewhat cynical. He has still his wit and sense of pride in his line of work. He is a quick and clever man, but he is not an academic. He has a practical view on the world, and can crack a joke or two, if he's on a good mood. An honest and direct man, Roland often says what he thinks.

During his early career in the Legion, Roland was a good humoured man, who saw soldier's life as a duty of a good citizen, but also as a game. He on purpose wanted to be the best, seeming a bit cocky and overconfident, but he often made sure that he didn't leave any comrades behind. The Civil War changed his personality draamatically.

Skills: Roland is an expert swordsman and duelist, a solid tactician and a competent instructor. Roland is magically non-gifted, relying on his physical attributes. He also knows how to read and write. He is used to march and camp in different enviroments, mainly Skyrim and Cyrodiil's forests.

Equipment:
 - Armour: red gambeson, black mail hauberk, black breastplate, pauldrons and gauntlets, fullhelmet ornamented with bird feathers.
 - Weapons: A steel bastard sword, a foot long steel dagger and an oaken shield with a steel rim.
 - Green wool shirt, a brown travelling cloak with a hood, a green cotton tunic, a scarf.
 - Backpack and a flagon.
 - An amulet of Talos.

Other: Roland likes card and board games, especially if Septims are involved. He also enjoys drinking Nord mead and Cyrodiilic brandy. He hates the smell of burning flesh and fat, and is afraid of burning alive.

[User]
Hector was torn between amusement and fierce irritation when Do'ava galloped into the scene without a care in the world and dismounted by the river. He was afraid for the Khajiit's life but fortunately Erissil managed to keep her wits about her. It occurred to Hector that she might never have seen one of Do'ava's race, making note how she circled around the group while she kept everyone else (and especially Balen) between herself and the cat-folk. Sensing that the danger had passed when Erissil shouldered her bow, Hector took a few seconds to cool himself down with the same ice-burst trick as before while he sauntered over to Do'ava. "Good day, old friend," Hector said amicably, if still a little tense, and shook the Khajiit's hand without taking his eyes off the wood elf. "We'll wait on the others until dusk, then we move out. Now excuse me for a moment."

The Captain slowly approached Erissil until he stood shoulder-to-shoulder with Balen. The two exchanged a brief glance just before Erissil spoke up. The cadence and accent of her Tamrielic was already peculiar, but the hunched posture and the almost primeval gestures made Hector feel like he was talking to a creature of ages past. "Yes," he agreed, and tapped his breastplate with one finger. "Hector Sibassius." He conjured up the most affable smile he could manage. "It is a pleasure to meet you, Erissil. Welcome." His hand then pointed at each member of the assembled group in turn and introduced them by name. "Eno. Roland. Do'ava."

A short silence fell while Hector thought of what to say next, only to be interrupted by...

To all: feel free to post, but I especially recommend @Dismas to use this moment to introduce Alaron.

[Assistant]
Alaron's feet ached and his throat was parched. The journey from the Imperial City had been taxing on his body. He had deliberately left early for Valenwood, only possessing enough money to afford a carriage as far as Skingrad. He was no adventurer, and this showed through in his preparedness for on foot travel. By the time he had reached the border to Valenwood he was already dehydrated, carrying with him only a meager amount of water. His affliction was only amplified by the foolish decision to continuously smoke his pipe throughout the journey.

The thought of passing a border checkpoint frightened him. He was given assurances that the documents he received would fool the guards but it did little to comfort him.

Miraculously he managed the crossing only receiving minimal questions despite a heavy aroma of tobacco and moon sugar. The guard had seemed almost hurried in his processing of Alaron, perhaps an indication that his shift was nearly over and had important plans for the evening.

Alaron progressed towards Arenthia, keeping a slight westwards heading as the notes instructed. He felt the heat was almost unbearable in his fur-lined coat, but sadly it was the only coat he owned. Steadying himself on tree trucks and wheezing through a throat with sandpaper texture by this point he felt he must be nearing on the meeting site. He propped himself up against a tree to catch his breath and listened to his surroundings. A few birds called in the distance and the vegetation sounded as though it was scraping and brushing against itself in a constant war for sunlight. He pulled at a few leaves, continuing to gasp for air till he heard voice in the distance. A loud call rang out from between the trees.

Alaron's body plummeted beneath the vegetation. The voice sounded comforting, like a greeting. Still, Alaron wasn't about to take any chances, certainly not in a place as foreign as Valenwood. His breathing slowed as he focused, edging his way towards the source of the voice. Foliage was not a terrain he was used to creeping through and every leaf that scraped along his coat rang out to him like a siren. As he grew closer he could hear murmurs. Short conversations grew louder and louder till his body reached a breaking point. The dehydration had wrapped its arms around his legs and pulled the man to his knees, partially toppling and snapping a small bush. Alaron could almost feel the campsite's gaze loom over his sweat glossed face.

By this point he couldn't take any more punishment and needed a break from his journey. Panting like he had run a marathon he emerged from the undergrowth and passed by a few trees, finally finding the campsite. His vision was blurred, and he made for the first upright tree once he was in view of the party. He attempted to make his descent to the clear ground graceful and scanned the group members who had arrived ahead of him.

His eyes were first drawn to the shimmer of steel armor worn by an Imperial. Alaron looked in disbelief and wondered how he wasn't as in poor condition as he was. Next was a Dark elf, who had the look of a college type about him. He noticed the containers strapped across his chest and it reminded him of the Imperial City's researchers he viewed taking samples from the surrounding water.

Alaron could make out another man, tall with long dark hair and he could make out a battle-worn face. He thought of the hired muscle and large doormen he encountered working for various crime syndicates. Next was a Khajiit, and Alaron's eyes lingered on the creature's black fur. It was like staring at a walking shadow, and Alaron felt envious seeing the advantage of such camouflage.

Lastly was what Alaron assumed to be a Wood Elf. Once he managed in a great show of willpower to pull his gaze from her attire he took note of the extensive tattoos covering the wood elf, particularly adorned upon her face. He would have gawked a moment longer but had to wipe the sweat from his eyes. It felt as though someone was pouring a jug of sticky mead atop his head, except at a boiling temperature.

He drew a few more gasps for air before uttering his first words to the group.

"Greetings." he winced, unable to sustain eye contact with any of them.

[User]
When Roland heard the Imperial greeting the group, his sword went instinctively for his sword's handle, gently grasping it, before turning towards the newcomer. He was a young man, about his height and looked exhausted. He had malnourished look on him, and could be a bait. Or he could be a member of this troupe of heroes, Roland ran in his head.

"Well, greetings to you, fellow Imperial" Roland said, moving his hand away from the handle softly. He had a flagon of red wine strapped to his backpack, and Roland would hate himself if he let it go sour. Perhaps I can try to relieve some of the tension.

"As our fellowship grows", Roland started. "I suggest a drink before our voyage onward." Roland took his backpack and detached the flagon, opening it and letting the wine breathe. It wasn't an expensive vintage, but it would do the trick. "When I fought in Skyrim, me and my men shared one habit, and that was drinking together. As we travel together, we will share everything and anything, even our drinks. Only then we can truly triumph."

Roland took a sip of wine and passed the flagon around. He didn't doubt that it would come back to him empty.