Dealing with a business issue

Ruvel had been resting at his normal spot at the back of the West Fiore Trading Companies head quarters, as odd as his behaviour was the CEO Cirven had told people just to leave him be and though they had found this strange done as they had been told. Though he had blankets, pillows and other basic luxuries they had never been used in fact he had moved them away from where he rested and now seemed to have a family of birds whom had built a nest on them. He had done what he could to protect them from predators and the elements even going so far to make sure their was food for them, so they no longer minded the youths presence anywhere near them which made him happy. He wanted to see them safe and happy being able to bring their own children up without having to worry about the evils out there, but still he knew it was out their like their parents and one day they would have to face it; but that was an issue to worry about when they had hatched and where old enough to leave the safety of the nest.

For now however he seemed as if he was resting peacefully, that was until he felt something on his head, sitting up he covered his mouth as he began to shake his eyes scanning around as he tried to prevent a scream escaping. Eventually he calmed lowering his hands as he took quick shallow breaths "You'd think I'd be over that by now..." he scolded himself quietly, but there was so many things he had been through that though he seemed peaceful it was far from the case, he had just trained himself not to move during nightmares, and those nightmares he had little belief would ever leave him. "I know, before any of you say anything, it'll take time..." he said before any of his summons could say it, he was sick of hearing it because with how he felt it just felt like a continual lie being told to him. His eyes looked up to what had been on his head and seen one of the two parents to be sitting there "I'm sorry Dalphine, I didn't mean to startle you." his words where warm as he got up with in a single motion and went to a small bowl and washed his face and hands before heading to where he kept the food for the fledgling family heading to where the had made their home placing food on a plate before pouring water into a basin so they could wash, his eyes looking over the ocean then he seen the bloody red colour of the sky "Blood has been spilt recently... not a good omen." he whispered sadly before he turned his eyes to look at both the birds splashing happily and chuckled. "You both enjoying that?" he asked them hearing chirping and whistling.

"I'll be back soon, I need to go get a glass of water." he stood dusting off the white hakama he wore with his normal clothing as he moved into the headquarters, then to the mess hall ignoring the food as was normal and headed for the ice water. "Ruvel.." Alisha called to him making the youth turn to look at her "Good morning Alisha, how can I help?" he asked, normally he was left be until he was dragged off for his daily training or a task had been chosen for him but even then he wasn't disturbed at this time in the morning. "An assignment has been left for you." she said holding out a letter "By whom?" he had to ask but as he took the letter he blinked seeing not the companies insignia within the wax but the guilds. 'This can't be good' he thought looking to the other "Whom gave you this?" he asked once more making her lean in "Phantom" she whispered making the youth groan as he opened the letter, to him it looked like nothing but squiggles. 'Uh... little help..' he requested for this summons.

'It would seem as if one of your companies ships have been attacked, well not only attacked but looted. The group aren't known, but you have been chosen to take revenge on these people to show that this company isn't to be messed with' Shindara stated reading the letter for him 'It seems your teacher has also put in the request that you not only take what they have stolen from your home back but he expects interest. It's rumoured that their headquarters are in Hargeon.' Amuul continued as Ruvel looked to the other as if he was reading it more to keep the facade up that he could read 'Your teacher expects you to take your weapon, reminds you to take your dagger and Seyuki's charms but you're not to be reliant on us.' Shindara took over 'In addition you are to wear your mask' Amuul finished, 'Thank you.' he sent to them both before looking up to Alisha "This would be better suited to someone like Akryn..." he said to the other, Alisha had no idea what was in the letter but with the person he mentioned it must have had something to do with fighting "They have faith you can do it Ruvel, do them proud okay" she said gently kissing his forehead and creating the link between Ruvel, herself and Cirven.

"They're so much stronger, I'm sure they could do this without breaking a sweat." he said his eyes going to the letter, Alisha sighed "It's a test... everyone gets them." she was trying to help him settle into the task at hand, it was clear to everyone he didn't want to do harm but in their line of work it was needed at times "Cirven and Julius trust you to do them and guild proud, they want to see how much you've grown since coming home." She said warmly, she had always spoke to him as if this had always been his home and that he was just removed from it for a while, it helped him feel more at peace and had helped him settle somewhat though it was still a work in progress. "Drink, eat... tend to your friends and get going." she said starting to walk of but stopped a smile on her face "Want to really impress them, limit your magic use... I know it will be hard for you, but try" she said exiting the mess hall. He sighed moving to the kitchen pouring the water from the glass before washing, drying and putting the glass away before heading back to where he rested.

Seeing the two birds he smiled sadly "I need to go for a little while, I'll leave seed out for you and water too." he said tending to the things before picking up his dagger and charms placing them in his top before looking at his rapier "I don't want to use it..." he hated weapons, there was more to it than he wasn't built for physical combat, but his personal treatment as he grew up "I'm still..." he sighed knowing he still fumbled with the thing 'Do as your told kid' Barthenz scolded 'You can't get better if you don't continue using it' he continued 'Training and fighting are different..' Ruvel sent back 'Not for you kid, they both can potentially kill you, now take the damn rapier!' he said his tone showing it wasn't up for discussion 'Fine, but if I do myself harm I'm going to blame you and Cirven.' he said picking up the rapier 'If you do yourself harm with that toy then Sparky and I haven't been training you right, and if we haven't been training you right it means we've been to soft now get going.' he said making Ruvel flinch knowing that Barthenz meant every word he spoke, Ruvel walked to the area that seemed to be made of obsidian. It wasn't the fact it was made that way it was due to what Ruvel was about to do that had caused it to change that way. "I ssannnnhan thi nnh tshh gairrtiin flinness shaf rredirrtsh" he called out looking to the sky. A screech followed by a sonic boom heard as the 16 foot tall phoenix landed seemingly with golden feathers if anyone was to do a further examination that person will notice that each feather is actually made out of flames. "Good morning Bennu, we need to go to Hargeon" he said caressing his head gently before he was picked up by his hood by Bennu and dropped onto his back, before Ruvel could protest a new sonic boom and screech could be heard as Bennu took off heading towards the requested area.

Ruvel moved into his top and brought out his mask placing it on his moon blue eye changing to match his golden amber eye, his black hair turning white the silver streaks changing black where the golden streaks remained. His clothing changed to be that of a priest outfit but where it was usually white and red his was black and white his skin looking albino as he tied the rapier to his side "How I hate this thing." he complained once more laying down his eyes closing so he could pretend that he wasn't in a small restrictive area, though he didn't drift off he managed to work through puzzles in his head to keep him occupied before long Bennu swooped and landed outside the town knowing he would cause damage if he went inside. He allowed Ruvel to jump off before nipping at his hair "Bennu..." Ruvel said warmly stroking under his head "Go home, your mother will be missing you." he said a chirp followed before a screech and a sonic boom as he took off sending Ruvel back a bit "He's gonna be bad when he's fully grown" he said to himself with a chuckle unsure where to start because the location of everything left a lot to be desired.

Word Count: 1'690
Health: 200/200
Mana: 111/115

Summons:

Bennu's Flight - On cooldown

Hargeon town seemed to be a magnet to Oras Auro lately, or rather, as he was slowly being known in this town, Verus.  The news that the murderer known as Jacob Goodnight, a former miner who was assumed to be psychotic but turned out to be sane despite his murders, was arrested was still getting around.  Only the guards knew it was Verus of course.  He asked this of them since he wanted to keep a low profile.  Of course it was rather difficult to do so when he'd already taken at least three jobs in Hargeon town.  The first was taking care of bandits.  It was a very quick and simple matter, but it caught the attention of the captain of the guard in the Hargeon port.  After that he had disappeared.  When Oras went to travel again, he took a second job in the town along the way.  This involved a man who needed assistance with loading and unloading crates from Hargeon town to the River Valley.  He had been framed a few years back and thus his reputation kept him from having any more than a small ship just big enough for a small shipment.  Oras noticed that the man's crew were the thieves and exposed them upon arrival, restoring the man's reputation.  The last job was by far the most difficult.  Jacob Goodnight was far from foolish.  Oras had quite the time tracking him down, and had to avoid the man's traps.  He was also a good fighter.

All in all, despite Oras' attempts to keep his profile low, people were beginning to catch on to his name, one or two individuals passing by and whispering 'is that the masked man?'  It was high time for Oras to leave Hargeon town.  In fact he was hoping there would be no other job assignments that would keep him here any longer.  Normally Oras would stay no longer than half a day and night before leaving before dawn broke out, keeping out of sight of most people, let alone wizards or guilds.  He would spend most of his time on the road actually.  For the nights on the road he had a small tent and for food he would go hunting.  Yes he knew how to hunt, and he also knew how to cook.  Sometime's he'd grill the meat, sometimes he'd make a stew.  He knew how to cook and how to do so well.  If there were herbs in the nearby forest, which there usually were, he would add the appropriate amount to the food so that the meat was never bland.  With water he simply refilled his containers  when he traveled through towns or when he passed by wells.

As it was, despite the fact that he had attempted to leave before dawn he was interrupted and delayed.  The captain of the guard seemed to have noticed Oras' restlessness last time and anticipated he'd leave early.  The fact that he had been waiting for the wizard outside the inn was proof enough of that.  He had mentioned how he was very glad Oras had been kind enough to aid the soldiers with catching the bandits, arresting the true thieves, and taking down Jacob Goodnight, who had killed several guards before he was finally caught by Oras.  Oras had noticed that the man had been promoted.  This was probably due to the fact that Oras had asked for them not to tell others of him or his actions, and thus the captain had received the credit.  Oras was still uncertain if the captain was a good man, or if he was one of those individuals who craved the power of authority above anything else.  Only time would tell of course.

The man continued to talk, mentioning how it would be great if they could call upon Oras in case something went wrong.  That they would be glad to pay him for his work.  Oras had declined, stating that he was not the sort to accept any form of stable job, and to only think of calling him if it was a legitimate emergency.  The guard had smiled and nodded, accepting Oras' decision rather than attempting to push for him to reconsider.  Was this because even with Oras helping only when there were emergency's, he'd be getting the credit again?  Oras was uncertain.  Either way the guard stepped aside and wished Oras well along his journey, and to stop by if he ever came through Hargeon town again.  Oras nodded without a word and began to walk down the small porch of the seaside town inn and on the cobblestone road yet again.  Even now he knew the guard was watching him, but he didn't care.  Nobody else was awake to watch and that's what mattered to him.

As Oras made his way over to the town's gates, he began to think about what spells he'd add to his arsenal once he had the time to develop and practice them.  He had already came up with his next passive magical ability.  Like his ability to inject fear into his opponents and cause the world to appear more nightmarish to his choosing and style, this ability would be affecting the world yet in a different way.  So many individuals relied on their senses to navigate this world and discern what is real from what is false.  However, what if that ability was stripped away?  How could you discern real from illusion then?  His ability targeted the most common and most depended on senses of all:  Sight, smell and sound.  He couldn't alter how someone was able to sense, that was something that he just couldn't do.  No, but he could easily alter the way the world is seen, heard and smelled by.  This ability would soon benefit him greatly, especially if he came across someone with slayer magic.  Unlike his fear aura however, he would only be able to prevent the effects of his magic from affecting Oras.  It would still affect his allies, if he ever did get allies that is.  However, perhaps he could create a spell or artifact that could help other's focus or see through these changes, therefore temporarily immune to them.  Or he could take more time to practice making it possible for certain individuals to see past his changes. These notes he had made a while back were effective, and now Oras was stronger than before. He had even developed more spells besides his abilities.

He was finally at the gate when something happened that he did not expect.  He watched as something golden and bright, as if glowing brilliantly, glided down towards the land outside the town gates.  Oras instantly shot towards the side of the gate between pillars, his cloak blending into the background as the darkness embraced him.  He watched from a distance as what seemed like a giant phoenix and a cloaked individual interacted before the bird took off, a sonic boom sending a shockwave through the town.  Oras stood as stationary as he could and waited for the individual to approach.  The closer the man came the more he was able to identify him as Moon.  The cloaked and masked individual he had run into during a job earlier on.  Oh how fate works he thought to himself.  He would wait until Moon had crossed him, entering the town, before pulling himself out of the shadows and said, "For someone who keeps his identity as hidden as yourself, you draw a lot of attention," he said in a simple tone, though he was grinning beneath the mask.

Ruvel walked towards the archway of the sea town at a leisurely pace he had no real reason to rush given that the raid had happened only a few hours before dawn and so the things stolen would have still been marked with the west fiore trading companies mark, this would make the items in question still be to hot to move on without suspicion, but then those who had done such an action had just no clue on whom they actually stole from but he was there to make sure it was understood and for the culprits to be punished for their stupidity. His eyes looked over the near by area however as walked checking for any threats, ambush potential, escapes, hiding areas not that there should be any threats in such a large town with apparently well armed and trained guards but still the fact his guilds ships got raided under their watch made him wonder about how competent these guards truly where. 'Is it your first time here isn't it Ruvel?' Aelona asked him through their bond 'Yes, but there is always thing to learn even if it wasn't' he sent back to her, he knew his summons worried about him going to new areas, he also knew they where concerned he would over do it given he carried no medicine with him at all. Then again it involved needles and they knew just how much he freaked out when those went near him. 'Just be careful you don't get lost, you can't exactly stop and ask directions with how your dressed.' she reminded him

Hearing a very familiar voice he stopped blinking and listened to his words quirking an eyebrow under his kitsune like mask. "Just because I wear a mask doesn't mean I wish to remain low profile like yourself, I am not an assassin after all. I just want my task done so I can get back, so longs you don't become an issue illusionist why don't you tag along, it should get it done quicker." he said without tone as he once again started to walk passing the man, he knew this would be a problem for him as he couldn't read a map and it was his first time there. It wasn't exactly like he could stop and ask directions how he was dressed as Aelona had recently pointed out to him, if he were normally dressed or in his company uniform that be a different story completely. 'Now, if I was an idiot who attacked the ships of a highly respected trading company where would I hide until I could sell the stolen items?' he thought to himself, going over the facts in his mind. 'They would need to be somewhere close by because our ships normally are filled with cargo when they come to places like this as far as I know.' he thought to himself as he looked up to the signs and grumbled quietly as he couldn't make heads or tails of them.

'You need to tell someone about that weakness and start lessons our summoner so you can advance.' Shindara sent to him making his eyes rolling his eyes 'Taking out the fact I look like a teenager and am actually a child, who my age do you know can't actually read or write?' he sent back to him making the other go silent, to be honest he had no real idea how old he was, he couldn't count and with everything that happened even if he could he had lost a lot of time due to not seeing the changing of days or sometimes seasons. The elder of the void twins knew Ruvel had a point and knew that his summoner was ashamed that he couldn't that's why he kept it hidden but he knew it was eventually something that would have to be dealt with. 'Our summoner, the docks are to east.' Amuul offered though he knew his elder brother wouldn't approve they could have their disagreement in private. 'Thank you Amuul' he said turning and moving towards the direction that he was informed the docks where.

He found it strange however that Verus kept showing up of late like a bad jewel, he couldn't help wonder if it was because of fate trying to tell both men something, some strange coincidence or if the other was stalking him. It was something he would have to look into at some point but at current he didn't have the time to worry about it, he did however find himself contemplating if the other masked man, the one whom he knew the true identity of would follow him. He wouldn't mind of course as he knew the other was trying to figure him out, but the moment he became a problem for him getting his task done then nothing was off limits that was for sure. His guild came before all else even his own well being, they had given him protection and safety and where there was little he could give back he would do what he could.

After around thirty minutes he found himself at the docks his eyes looking around each of the store houses. "There aren't that many and they aren't overly big compared to other places, but still... this is going to take a while and there's nothing saying they're above ground." he said quietly with a sigh, he was trying to find away where he wouldn't cause any unwarranted attention because anyone he passed could be involved with what happened and could send word making the others scatter "So now we have the secondary problem..." he whispered moving to to the shadows and sitting behind a barrel "Best course of action is to wait until the evening until I can think of something else." he didn't want to be there any longer than he had to be but with the limited ways he could gather information, he was going to attempt to do this with as few summons as possible but it would me more straining on his body and he had no idea if he would even make it back to the company but he was still going to try regardless.

Word Count: 1'041
Total word Count: 2'731
Health: 200/200
Mana: 115/115

Oras watched as the man Moon halted to a stop, listening to his words.  It had been a while since they encountered each other, and to be frank, Oras wondered if anything would develop.  Both were equally cautious and analytical, and thus it made it difficult for them to really work well together.  Perhaps in the future, if Moon even wanted a partner or ally.  Oras was very used to working solo, however he didn't mind having an ally that he could trust.  Of course he would rather look into this Moon individual first.  Most of his knowledge on the man was gained by watching him closely during conversation and his summoning.  However since there wasn't much action the last time they encountered each other, Oras was unable to make any sort of summary yet.  Too much vague information that needed clarification.  Oras began to wonder if he could get the captain of the guard here in Hargeon to talk to an informer he may know.  Try to find any sort of information he could get on this Moon character.  If Moon tried doing the same for Oras, all he'd hear about would be his feats in Hargeon town and nothing else.

Moon then began to speak, mentioning how he didn't care about keeping a low profile despite the fact that he was wearing a mask.  Why wear the mask then, Oras wondered to himself.  Could it be that he wore the mask simply to add an effect when other's saw him?  Perhaps he had a split life that he wished to keep hidden from the world.  Or perhaps this was his hidden life, and he'd rather not be connected to his other half, or others know of it.  Whatever the reason, Oras would learn the truth one way or another.  This did however bring to mind Ruvel, where once he uncovered a secret the man had quite literally exploded on him.  Oras doubt this man would have the same reaction.  He was more like Oras in the sense that he didn't reveal or show any emotions really, and instead took on a more logical view on life rather than an emotion based one.  He felt that Moon would respect Oras' attempts more than react emotionally to them.  Oh if only Oras knew how wrong he was.

Moon's comment of being an assassin nearly got a chuckle from Oras but he refrained from doing so.  Assassin eh?  Oras didn't classify himself as an assassin, or rogue for that matter.  If he had to choose which he was closest to being like it would be a Rogue.  However Oras believed that he wasn't either of those, and was more of a ranger like class.  At any rate while the man didn't seem to be in a laughing mood, Oras was going to take it.  He rarely ever smiled or laughed out of humor or joy, and thus he may as well take it while he could.  After all.  Even though joy was such a fleeting thing, it gave some satisfaction, knowing that his life wasn't a machine work.  He didn't seem like it most times, but Oras truly sought to be more than he was currently.  It was one of the reasons he secretly longed for allies and, though it be a long shot, friends.

The next half of his words shocked Oras the most.  He mentioned that he wanted to get a task of his over with quickly so that he could return home, and if Oras didn't prove to be an issue he could come along as it would probably quicken the pace.  With that the man continued walking, not bothering to see if Oras was following him.  Oras stood there in silence as a mental war of debate raged and roared in his mind.  He had finally made the decision to leave this damaged town and now this?  Moon had pretty much asked if Oras would be willing to help him with this task.  No promise of reward or anything, just to help him quicken the process.  Oras wanted to move on, leave this place, but there were three reasons he had decided to go along with it.  The first being that he would be able to completely memorize the place if he acted in this town more.  The second was that he could always gain information about Moon the more he acted around him.  The third was simply his gut telling him to do so, that this could be a way to test out his new magic.

Oras gave out a frustrated sigh, one that Ruvel wouldn't be able to hear, and rolled his eyes as he walked behind Moon.  For a moment it seemed as if Moon had no sense of direction and was getting lost.  He'd seen tourists get lost but not to the degree as this man.  Suddenly however he altered his course and made a straight path for the docks.  Now that Oras knew where he was going he took a shortcut and easily caught up with Moon long before they reached the water, walking beside him the rest of the way.  Soon enough they came to the docks where people were active.  Oras hadn't seen these men before, nor did he see anyone active at the docks this early in the morning.  He ducked down beside moon in their cover and listened to him think to himself out loud.

"Not necessarily," Oras said.  "Remember what I told you about how there are many paths to a single destination?"  Oras scanned the individuals and their weapons, taking a moment to analyze the situation and why he would want to wait until evening.  With his new abilities, this should be rather simple.  He chuckled too softly and quietly for anyone but Moon to hear him.  As he prepared to speak, he was also warming up his ability, choosing to make only the tiniest changes so that the ability would have time to warm up, yet without the other individuals, Moon included, from seeing them.  "Whether we fight them or sneak past them should be easy from what I can tell.  It would be easier for me to aid you however, if you tell me what the objective is.  Otherwise I'm useless to you."

Abilities:  Stage 1

Ruvel remained where he was he hadn't really cared if the other had came after him, it wasn't an official request for him to join him after all he just wanted to get this issue over and done with so he could get back. 'I still think this is a job better suited to Akryn, that sociopath enjoys a good fight and that's without reason... with an actual reason I'm pretty sure he'd think it was his birthday and the idiots where his presents.' he thought to himself with a sigh shaking his head. He knew he shouldn't think of it in such a way but knew this wasn't exactly the best task for him given for one he hated fighting and two he wasn't build for physical combat as much as Barthenz and Cirven may be pushing and hoping for. Where his speed was picking up thanks to their constant onslaughts during training as was his over all manoeuvrability he still took a lot of damage when hit and dealt next to nothing when he actually managed to land one. 'Barthenz I wish you and Cirven would get it through your heads I'm not a fighter and I'll never be one...' he started, it felt like he had this argument with the warrior daily as of late 'I hate weapons and the sight of blood scares me.' he finished his eyes closing for a moment.

'Aww, really?' Barthenz sent back in a patronising tone making Ruvel clench his fists a little 'Deal with it, there are going to be times you can't summon us or will have to wait till we can get to you... we need to know you can survive.' he sent back, it also felt as if he was getting use to the same daily counter argument that the warrior gave. 'There will also be times Sparky isn't going to be there to save you right away, what happens if you end up back there? Hm?' he continued the onslaught in the hopes to get it through Ruvel's mind that it was a needed skill, he could feel his young summoner shaking through their bond at the mention of the place he was once forced to call home but he needed to make it clear what was on the line. 'Barthenz you're being to hard handed with him, he'll breakdown and this isn't the time for it.' Edaenz cautioned him making the warrior growl a little 'He needs to hear the truth now stop molly coddling him and let me do my damn job woman.' he barked back at her. 'Barthenz, don't forget you need women like me or you would end up in a grave very quickly so watch your words with me.' the healer reminded him 'Same could be said about your type' the warrior reminded her.

Ruvel hated it when they got like this 'Warrior and healer, healer and warrior... two threads of the same string, both holding importance in the others continued existence...' he started hoping it would shut them both up 'The warrior protects the healer when they're in danger, and in return the healer heals the warrior when they are hurt.' he said listening to the silence that came afterwards. 'Well said our summoner.' Shindara stated he could hear a few claps within the bond and it made him smile underneath his mask. 'Look kid, all I am saying is if you are found by them and they do drag you back there, it takes us months of storing energy before we can get to you and during that time getting in touch with sparky wouldn't be almost impossible possible for us.' He explained in the same abrasive tone but it had a very slight warmer undertone 'You are our bridge to this plain and each of ours, you'd be on your own and we need to make sure you could survive until we could come get you.' he hoped Ruvel would understand, the youth did understand fully but he knew other than his speed and movements nothing else was improving so it seemed like time wasted. 'Can we do this argument some other time Barthenz. You know when I don't have an over analytical person like myself around?' he sent to the warrior who went silent in agreement but he had this funny feeling he would get it from both Barthenz and Cirven when he got back for training.

It was then he heard footsteps and moved to a crouched position his hand cupped as if he was holding a weapon which wasn't far from the truth as he could make one with ease if it was needed. But seeing the other he just sat once more his hand relaxing "Are we going to have a philosophical debate on paths and destinations right now? It's to early in the morning for that kind of thing besides I have other things that require my attention, so maybe some other time." he said to the other, not that he wasn't up for such conversations but right now wasn't the time or the place for them as his tone showed "As much as I would love to sneak past them and get my task done without causing a ruckus, it's not on the cards for these poor morons unfortunately, they made a mistake and I've been tasked with their punishment so they might not make the same mistake again." he said to the other his pale golden orbs looking the other over, he had wondered why the other was there, given he felt almost like he was being tracked by him by this point.

Hearing the others request to know the information on his task here made him quirk an eyebrow under his mask as he had no idea the other would want to know this information, it almost felt like a trap to him. He however decided to take a gamble after all if worst came to worse and the other did become a threat or did betray him he would just take out the other. "The West Fiore Trading Companies ships where attacked and looted within the late hours of last night, my guild was given the job of recovering the lost cargo in early hours of this morning and have sent me here to beat those responsible to a pulp and recover the lost cargo for our current employers." He shrugged it was as plain and simple as that and no lie was told. He knew little suspicion would fall upon his him or his task as trade ships where often targeted and jobs and rewards often given out shortly afterwards for the return of said cargo. For now he waited and watched to see what the other done and thought of what he was to do.

Word Count: 1'132
Total Word Count: 3'863

It would seem that Moon had completely misunderstood what Oras was attempting to say, and that was made perfectly clear when he replied about philosophical discussions.  Oras rolled his eyes under the mask.  The entire reason he had brought that old statement up was because it seemed as though Moon thought the only way to do this was to wait until evening, when in fact there were ways to get through.  Moon may not have the magic, or perhaps imagination, to get through, but Oras did.  And Moon had invited Oras on this little mission of his.  All Oras was doing was attempting to show him how narrow minded he was being.  He needed to expand his options outside of the obvious ones.  Think outside the box.  Oras listened to Moon and how he'd love to have such a discussion but not this early in the morning with his current mission.  Oras just stared at him, wondering if this man would ever get what he was trying to say.

He then started talking about how he'd love to sneak past them and complete his task without any ruckus but that it wasn't a possibility with these morons.  Oras heard how they made a mistake and that they had to be punished for it.  Oras looked at the men on the docks and did agree that they were morons, however he didn't see much difficulty sneaking past them.  If one of them removed their cloaks and masks, and instead dressed up as workers, he was certain they could easily fool them and get past without any issue.  Of course the problem here was that neither Moon nor Oras wished to reveal anything about them so that option was out.  Oras wondered if Moon had a summon who could possibly put a sleeping spell, or dizzying spell that would allow them safe passage, but since he hadn't done so Oras assumed he had nothing for stealth, which was disappointing if he was being honest.

Moon seemed hesitant to share the objective of the mission, despite the fact that Oras couldn't do anything to aid him with his task if he didn't know it.  This was amusing to Oras in that Moon's asking Oras to aid him in this was the whole reason he was here in the first place.  Eventually however he shared to Oras a few of the details and what the objective was.  When Oras heard that these men targeted the trading company, the same company another wizard named Ruvel worked for, he was dispatched from his guild to punish those who attacked.  Oras figured that this was a job that Moon had taken and didn't expect to be paid by the end of it.  Still he'd have a chance to learn Moon's strategy and personality more.  Information was it's own currency Oras believed.  He nodded, now knowing that their task was to locate and defeat the targets.  They were most likely on the ship, but there was also a chance they could be in the building nearby as well.  As luck would have it, the ship was directly beside the building and thus within Oras' 30 meter range.  He had a plan now.

Oras turned to look at Moon and grinned under his mask as he activated his magic. "How quiet can you be?"  He asked.  If Moon looked at himself after this, he would notice that he could not see himself at all.  No skin, no clothes, not even his shadow could be seen.  Oras asked the question not to see if Moon could be stealth like and avoid alerting anyone.  It was only to give him a big enough hint to look at himself and see the effect.  Oras could alter sound waves as well, and as such he could also stop them.  Therefore he could keep Moon from making any sounds at all.  If Moon attempted to yell, like a warning, Oras would stop it, but he would also be alerted because he could feel the vibrations to begin with before they could reach anyone else's ears.  When one understands how delicate and fragile the system of the world is, due to the fact that it is ever changing, bending, and inconsistent, it's very easy to break the reality of others.  Invisibility however, was a really cheap method he was using at the current moment.

Oras altered the light around himself, making himself invisible as well.  "Rather than waiting until evening to make any sort of action and losing time and opportunities, we'll use this method in order to investigate and collect information on our targets.  Once we understand what we are dealing with we can make our next move.  If you have the ability to speak telepathically with me, we can use that rather than alerting others with our voices.  Don't take any unnecessary risks or we'll be exposed.  The best option here is to work in the shadows and catch them by surprise."  He was hoping the man would take the full benefit of this opportunity and listen to what Oras had to say.  "A word of caution.  I can only effect the area within thirty meters in each direction.  If you get close to leaving that range I'll signal you a warning so you'll know.  The instant you leave it you'll be seen.  Understood?"

Oras turned to look at the two target areas, thinking to himself.  Where would the man in charge of this operation be staying in?  Would he be overseeing the work?  Or would he head straight for the building?  Oras could see him putting his second best in charge so that he could oversee other matters of greater importance.  Possibly trading or negotiating with another group inside the structure rather than the ship.  "The chances that their captain is inside the building is a very high probability.  That is where the most threat will be.  I'm certain that your summons can deal with them easily but we are doing recon.  We'll start with the building and see where that takes us."  Oras finished speaking and waited for Moon to reply.  He was hoping the man was sensible enough to take the advantage and opportunity that was being presented to him, hell even given to him.

Ruvel had understood fully what the other was trying to say, but was at least trying to be somewhat social to the other after all he was helping him without reward being paid; but then he realised the other was most likely using this encounter as a way to gain more information on him, but then that worked both ways. He had seen the basics of what the other could do but given their first encounter and even the encounter on the fat monster island had reaped little information on the one who sat beside him as when the other used an underhanded tactic to check a hunch it made the youth feel violated and thus moved away from him even before the task had come to an end. Even now working with him once more he wanted to strangle him but he said he would give the other a chance and he was a person of his word. He did however believe the other at a disadvantage as he would learn more about the other than the other would about him, this was due to the fact the other was under the impression he was working with two separate people but it also meant he had to remember who learned what knowledge so he wouldn't be found out.

He had guessed that the other was thinking much like him and that was that they could slip past with little difficulty if one of them removed their current guises, but he knew the rules and that was on such missions the mask had to remain on for not only his protection but everyone elses as well. Knowing just how difficult it had been for the other to even show him his face at the halloween party he had also come to the conclusion such a path was out of the question. "I'm pretty sure some of these people are innocent, but I can't be sure which without the proper information and that takes time." he said with a sigh he hated tasks like this because it was far to easy for innocent people to be harmed and damage to the surrounding area done and he was dead set against both happening, it wasn't exactly a moral thing it was more a quirk he had after seeing both happening so often when he grew. He swore he would try not do damage or harm people especially those who didn't deserve such actions taken against them.

He knew it would be easy if he used some of his summons as they could bind them, put them to sleep and such but at the same time he knew that Cirven currently wanted to limit his summon use; he had said so within their daily training. Ruvel swore that he and Barthenz had the intent to kill him during their training schedules, however thought back on how the two could go at it as if they intended to do grievous harm to one another for hours on end with neither letting up. During their sparring matches he had watched them eat, drink and even have civilised conversations and debates as if they had be sat at a table and found himself wondering how they could do such acts. For the moment he shook his head a little pushing the thoughts out of his head, this wasn't the time or place for such things and he knew it. He watched as the other nodded showing he understood the task at hand and was surprised he had no objection in beating people to a pulp 'Is he a sociopath too?' he thought to himself, he knew if he was he would show himself as such in time.

"By the way I did understand what you meant earlier, but it is something I would like to debate with you if either of us ever get time." he said with a shrug as he stood up dusting off his white hakama. Hearing the others question he quirked an eyebrow under his mask "I can sneak up on dragons and slayers." he said plainly as if it was a run of the mill thing, but to him it was, it was just another method of survival after all if you where loud they found you, remaining small and quiet it made the task more difficult. "How quiet can you be?" he returned the others question, now curious on the subject himself after all he didn't like giving information without gaining some in return and understood the other would likely be the same after all, all information was valuable it was just to whom it was valuable to. He watched the other carefully and then looked to himself what the other didn't realise is that he could partly see through the illusion seeing himself and the other 'Shindara, create a bond please. Everyone Black Sails rules.' He sent to each of them when they had shown they understood Shindara created the temporary link between the two by touching the other's shadow.

'Can you hear me?' he sent to the other 'If you do hear others don't worry it's a large network' he said, he was being vague on what they where allowing the other to fall on the assumption that they could be others on the same task. With a slight stretch he moved forward his eyes looking around for anything that stuck out. He knew it was unlikely they would keep things on a ship as all ships where checked over by the dock master before they left to make sure everything was up and above board or at least the dock masters on the island did. 'Ships are of little threat for the moment, they need to let the heat calm down before they could risk moving it; trading companies mark their cargo.' he said as he continued making sure to watch how far he moved knowing that the range was limited but if he did go over it then he would just use his own magic to compensate the illusion and shroud himself and the other. 'Don't worry' he said as if he was paying little mind to the others warning which was far from the truth but he was getting a little bit irritable with the task.

'They'll be underground most likely, if they remained above ground with the stolen cargo it would be easily found by raiding. Below ground is an endless maze.' he continued knowing if you did somehow manage to get under the trading companies basement there was what seemed like a never ending maze that had disorientation, illusion and displacement magic within it so a person could quite literally end up spending the rest of their lives in the place. There where of course special markings that helped the guild members navigate the maze to the guilds lair but you needed a guild mark to be able to see them, it was a smart way to keep the two guilds separate and away from curious minds. 'I am being limited on my summons, so no summons.' he explained to the other, he knew to the others knowledge that was the only magic the other had which was no longer true at this point but the other didn't know this and he wasn't about to tell him 'Why I have this forsaken thing on my side.' he explained his normal stoic tone having a slight agitated undertone when speaking of his rapier.

He made sure to keep within the limits of the others illusion but stopped his head turning to the right as he heard what appeared to be two men whispering, he could hear them as clear as day and headed quickly towards them at a quick pace. Though he knew he did little damage given his small size, light weight and over all physical weakness and fragility he was hoping the speed would help make up for what he lacked and jumped as he got close enough round house kicking the male on the left knocking him head first into the other making it almost seem as if he had headbutted the other for no random reason. He had to admit it made him chuckle silently under his mask hearing how they where superstitious and fighting over what just happened 'sorry but they're in on it and must be taken out.' he sent to the other dropping and swiping the legs away from one quickly. As the man fell he tried to grab onto his buddy but ended up pulling down his trousers making the rest of the dock laugh at what had just happened making the man run off.

He then leaned into the man on the floor his eyes cold as he moved his hand around the man's neck slowly almost as if he was threatening to snuff out the man's light. "Here's the deal, I'm the moon and I am going to make your life hell for the wrong you and your organisation have done." his voice was cold but seemed eerie as he spoke which was unusual even in this persona "You want to escape this fate open the door to the place where what you stole is stored. Make any sound or attempt to make a scene I will happily go to your home when your wife and children are sleeping and burn it to the ground." his tone almost showed it as a promise he felt sick even threatening such a thing but it was a means to an end, the man went white hearing what was said and went to a store house nearby after Ruvel let go of his neck. Ruvel who followed him "Get yourself a real job, your family need you and you're no good to them dead or locked up you fool." he said kicking the man in the rear making him stumble forward before running off. Now Ruvel waited for the other to turn up so they could proceed, he knew those he let go with just a few bruises and a scare where likely the least to know information and so posed no real threat or baring to what was going on. That meant the difficult part laid within and he wasn't really looking forward to it.

Word count: 1'719
Total Word Count: 5'582

Oras heard Moon say something about how he knew some of these men were innocent and yet he didn't have the proper time to find out who.  Oras knew there was a way of course.  His plan was to go in among them and learn more about who was there, how strong they were, how many, what weapons or magic, purpose, and  other details such as these.  While they looked, Oras could observe the individuals easily.  Not to mention that by using his fear aura and certain words and actions, he could easily find individuals who had something to hide.  Those who were criminals acted far differently than the innocent, and Oras had trained his eye on how to spot those differences.  Whether they be subtle or obvious.  The best way to determine the truth was through the eyes.  Anyone who was wise would block other's view from their eyes as Oras did with the visor of his mask.  "Don't worry about them," he said.  "No innocents will be harmed by either of us."  

Then Moon stated that he understood what he was saying, however he replied as such because he actually did wish to have a discussion on said topic.  Oras thought about this for a moment.  He could easily have said this after the mission was over, and instead given a response designed for this moment in particular.  Whether the man was thinking in a strategic sense or not however, he would not mind a discussion on said topic.  Not many individuals wanted to talk about philosophical matters, let alone have a friendly debate about them.  Nearly all individuals typically wanted to go talk about the latest gossip, or subjects regarding entertainment and such.  They prefer to leave more important and weighty topics for people who study it for a living.  These individuals were absolute morons in Oras' opinion.  To think that they could live their whole lives without having to worry about anything?  Typical human ignorance.  Laziness.

He next answered Oras' question in the literal sense which Oras half expected and nearly sighed to see that he didn't get why Oras had asked it.  That it wasn't actually a question, but rather a signal.  Still, he gave Oras some interesting info.  Sneak up on dragons and slayers eh?  With Oras' illusions he was very rarely caught by surprise, but even he wasn't arrogant.  He would be extra cautious from this point forward.  He then asked how quiet Oras could be, which was a fair question.  However instead of answering with words, he held his hands out and clapped them together with all his force.  Even with his gloves this would have made a very loud sound.  Thanks to his magic however, there was absolutely no sound that left his hands.  He left it at that.

Then Oras heard him in his head and nodded to Moon in response to his question.  Moon mentioned that if he heard others it was because he was a part of a large network.  Oras made an educated guess that after this assignment he'd cut Oras from said connection, as would be the wisest option he could make.  He didn't make any communications, nor thoughts, until he found out how to hide his mind from Moon and only send out what he wanted to say directly to Moon rather than accidentally sharing his every thought to the man.  He hadn't partaken in telepathy before so he wanted to ensure that his thoughts and feelings were secure.  If Moon looked into his mind before Oras established a protection of sorts however, he would get a glimpse of a young girl with red hair.  The image would be extremely fuzzy and blurry and would vanish as soon as he saw it.  That is, only if Moon looked into his mind.  Once he had mastered it did he allow his mind to be filled with thoughts once more.  When the man told him not to worry Oras wondered how to react from that.  Was he being arrogant?  Or was he distracted?  Either way it was no good.  He needed to stay focused for this task.

They began to advance on the target area when suddenly Oras felt Moon move closer to the edge of his range, not too close, and came to a stop.  He was frustrated that Moon would take such a risk as he now did, and while he was still upset with him doing something like this without warning or discussing it with Oras, he had to give him credit for making it look like an accident you'd see any other day.  "I can easily pick locks of any kind," he said telepathically.  "We can't take any more risks from this point forth Moon.  Check with me to see if I am unable to do something first.  If you have no trust or faith in me you should never have invited me to assist you at all."

Ruvel wouldn't hurt people unless it was truly called for, he still hated the fact he had been picked to do this task but who was he to disobey orders? He had never been able to say no in the past and it didn't seem like it was going to change anytime in the future. He couldn't exactly complain about it however his guild cared for him and protected him from the only life he could remember vividly so if it meant he had to follow orders and go against what made him comfortable now and then to prevent the fear and pain returning he would do so without question. He hadn't noticed that his thumb was rubbing over his black and purple guild mark showing the symbol of black sails 'My family and home bare this mark.' he thought to himself, shindara made sure the other couldn't hear such a personal thought, he done it to protect his summoner and would continue to be his minds defence; if by some chance now or in the future he was taken down he knew his twin would be able to take on the task.

'Do pardon my intrusion, but I would ask you to try guard your mind better than you currently are.' Came a voice as the other thought of a girl 'My brother and I can pick up on thoughts and other things of other with ease.' came a second voice which held the same calm tone as the first 'It can be quite distracting as you could imagine.' the first voice continued 'Anything we see however we don't share with anyone unless required, such things are private.' the second voice finished, they knew there was no real way to for a person to protect their thoughts from them but they wanted the other to know that they could see, wanted him to try protect his mind and put his mind at ease they wouldn't take advantage or share with anyone else. 'If the meeting has finished can we continue please?' Ruvel said somewhat coldly, the twins didn't take it personally with how their summoner was acting, they knew that this wasn't the kind of task he liked and wanted to get it over and done with as soon as he possibly could. 'Of course our summoner' the first voice said before going quiet.

He couldn't help letting out a frustrated sigh, but he knew that Amuul and Shidara's way of talking wouldn't change it was the way of their people and more apparent by their status within their race. Ruvel thought himself in no way arrogant on his claim on just how silent he was, he had to be such when he was growing to avoid those who harmed him, then there was the fact that a dragon and another slayer being his teachers so he had to increase just how quiet he was due to their enhanced hearing. He had personally asked for this to be part of his weekly training and where Barthenz didn't like it since he was the type to kick down the front door and beat the living daylights out of anyone he seen, he understood that Ruvel was more fragile so required such tactfulness within battle so had agreed along with Cirven. He looked to the other seeing him raising his hands and clapping he shook his head hearing no noise, he knew it just to be the side effect of the others magic and all magic spells came to an end meaning he would have to be careful when his companions magic did. 'You should learn to be quiet without the use of your magic, there are dead magic zones after all.' he sent to the other knowing for a fact that it was the truth, he had luckily been blessed to use his magic in such areas they just took a bit longer to take effect.

'You may be able to pick locks of any kind but there are a dozen store houses around us, I am pretty sure people would notice that they where being opened by an invisible force and know something was wrong.' he sent to the other, his method at least managed to get them what they needed with as little issue as possible, he knew the other would have to agree with his logic even if he didn't like it after all at current the docks where busy. 'I have little trust or faith in anyone, I have found it simpler this way.' he sent to the other his voice calm yet cold 'It's to easy to get hurt and betrayed if you do' he thought to himself Shindara once more blocking the second thought, he knew his summoner was struggling with the two sides of the coin they had placed him in and wondered if he should speak to the others and his tutor to remove him from the darker side of the coin. To Shindara it was clearly no place for him to be and it was a place they should have never agreed for him to be in the first place. 'We need to talk later everyone.' he finally said, he had no idea what can of worms he was about to open but he knew it would likely divide them for a while for those for and against it.

'What you where suggesting put us more at risk than what I actually done, however, if you can not deal with how I am to do my job you are more than free to leave.' he stated moving into the now open storehouse looking around at the boxes trying to see if any of them showed the signs of the companies marking. He then realised how he was thinking made him seem dumb, of course they wouldn't keep up on the floor where anyone could see it if the door was open and started to move around the walls his hand moving to glide across the bricks as if checking for something. He knew if he used Crystal he would be able to find it sooner but he was determined to do as much as he could without the use of any of his summons. His eyes went slightly wider as he finally heard a click and looked down to see what he had stood on, it had been a pressure plate but the question now stood was it a trap or a way to open a secret door. Going through both scenarios in his mind he lifted his foot off and watched as a door opened. After a few seconds he walked in and looked around the dark hallway moving into his yukata he brought out a pendant that lit up the area, he knew this was risky but he could risk being seen now he wasn't outside.

Word count: 1'147
Total word count: 6'729

Shindara and Amuul could feel the man's cold seething anger, however it didn't concern them as much as people may think; it was their summoners anger that worried them because when he got angry it was deadly not only to the target but potentially Ruvel himself. None the less they knew the other was right, the mind and soul where both sanctuaries to people and wither they wished to invade them or not it had been the curse they where born with. 'My name is Shindara I am the crowned prince of my people...' he introduced himself 'My name is Amuul, I am his younger twin brother' the other followed suit, they had no problem about revealing their real names after all Ruvel only hand to think of them in means to summon them so the two sides would remain separate. 'We understand we took something sacred' the voice of Amuul spoke 'We can't help it, it was the way we were born.' Shindara continued, both their voices though never loosing their calmness held shame within them, it was clear they where speaking the truth.

'It is a curse...' Shindara spoke with a faint sigh 'Try being in a room with hundreds of people and being able to see every detail of their lives, their every thought, every memory, every dream...' Amuul continued 'We can't prevent it and there's no way to truly guard from us' Shindara continued 'It's why we ask people to try be careful on what they think and feel when we are around' Amuul said, there wouldn't be a hint of deceit from either male instead there would be pain and shame from them both. 'Please don't be angry with our summoner, he doesn't know...' Shindara finally spoke after a long moment 'He doesn't know because every summon he has has full discloser clause with him... he needs to bare everything to us, so this kind of thing has never really came up in conversation with him.' Amuul stated with a sigh 'It's not like people normally come into the bond that aren't a summon of his either, only one other has and that person wasn't even invited by him but another summon' Shindara admitted 'He must trust you on some level to let you do this' Amuul finished.

'Where it is true we know your name our ally, we will share it with no one, not even our summoner unless you allow it.' Shindara spoke to the other, they where speaking on an individual network from that of the one they had with Ruvel 'Our people speak telepathically so we have a separate network' Amuul interjected before the other could take further offence believing they where spilling his secrets 'While we speak with you on the main network we will not even call you by your alias' Shindara continued 'It is not our way.' Amuul continued 'Our people hold honour, tradition, duty and appearance above all else and you have ours that what we see will go no further unless you wish it' Shindara said in a disciplined tone 'Again you have our apologies our ally, please help us atone for our actions.' Amuul's voice rang true on his words neither of them had shown a single thread of deceit the entire time, they truly wanted to make amends with the other no matter what the cost was so long it didn't break that one rule they kept dear. That rule being they didn't share what wasn't theirs to.

'Our summoner is a kind boy, he's just a victim of circumstance.' Amuul stated biting his lip 'Don't even think about it Amuul!' Shindara's voice boomed 'They are not yours to give!' he continued his voice though calm easily seen as distraught 'I wasn't going to let him see our summoners, but ours...' he said opening up his own thoughts with his brothers silent blessing Oras would see their majestic home, their mother and father, their people, daily life; then the memories would take a different turn as he would see how people looked at them as if they were monsters fear in their eyes how they clung on to each other as the identical youths in fear seeing the hatred of others for their abilities, it changed to show them growing pretty much in isolation. 'The only reason we were not killed, is because it would be treason...' Amuul stated in a low tone 'We are still feared for what we can't control, but we are always open when someone joins the network.' Shindara finished, they would wait to see if there was any other way they could atone after baring themselves completely to Oras, there was now no secrets between the three.

'My my there's anger on the network, and here was me just thinking the block head got that way' a woman's voice chuckled 'Shut it firework or I'll get windy to suck out the air of your flames' a male voice bolstered 'I actually thing this guy is angry at the poor innocent Moon... doesn't surprise me to be honest.' she said again 'Keep it up fire!' A small voice said 'Forgive his manners, he's wasn't raised with them' another womans voice said this woman's voice he would recognise from their first task together 'Will you all please be quiet, your giving me a headache' he didn't sound angry or tired but there was something not quite right with his tone 'Are you pushing yourself dear one? How are your eyes?' a gentle warm tone flowed through 'I don't think he's eaten in a while and we've been pushing him in training...' the first male voice known as warrior spoke 'Do you two need to be so heavy handed with him? For the sake of the winds you know he has problems!' the voice though gentle seemed to be upset and somewhat angry at the male 'And I'll be speaking to Jester about this when we return to because he obviously needs rest!' the voice continued 'Always fun when your doctor and guardian argue' Ruvel said with a sigh 'I'm fine for now, but most likely will require my medicine soon' as he thought such a thing his hand went to his neck as if protecting it from something the pendant dropped to be hanging around his chest. His summons to note that he must be feeling worse than what he actually had admitted.

'He's a complicated child, please bare him no ill will' it would be another voice he would have heard before, the woman of snow 'Moon, you better remember you are not on this task alone now so lean on your allies abilites and let them strengthen your own.' she reminded him, making Ruvel nod showing he understood her words 'I understand Snow' he turned and looked to Oras, his hands going to his mask covering it as he bent forward a little 'I do apologise for my behaviour but I hate this kind of task and want to get it done as soon as I can so I can see my friends again, their eggs will hatch any day now.' his voice was softer, after a moment he took his hands away from his mask as he stood. Shindara and Amuul heard the words and even without a single word the other would still be able to feel their glares 'We have no master, we entered a contract not slavery!' Amuul stated in the same calm tone but it held anger, it was as if he had offended them which he inadvertently had with that one sentence 'His magic is a lost forbidden type of summoning, he must make contracts but unlike celestial wizards where both parties are equal, the favour of the contract is stacked in the summons favour we he is not equal to us.' Shindara informed him 'He has to bend to our desires, our wills, our wants or the contracts become nulled' Amuul continued, it showed that the summons had more power over their summoner than the summoner had over them 'He gains special benefits due to this, but sometime we wonder if it is worth it.' Shindara finished 'Give him a chance, socialising and trust are far from his strong points.' Amuul stated with a sigh, he wished he could inform the other why it but broke their rule.

Ruvel blinked watching as the illusions ran off and sighed "And you call me careless..." he said running after them watching as they decided to take on the many bandits they met along the way "Thanks for the help" he said knowing that the other was able to see and hear through his illusions. Ruvel continued to run forward, his hand flicking quickly as a seal made of pure light appeared underneath his feet and expanded for twenty meters, tendrils of light shot up grabbing any enemy standing within the seal and cocooning them allowing ruvel to create two straight blades made of light appear in his hands as he dashed between the enemies. Where it was true he was dealing damage no physical wounds could be seen and he made sure that he didn't hit anything vital, soon the tendrils vanished and the bodies of the men dropped to the floor moving one of the weapons to his other hand he went around each checking for vitals "That's a relief, I'd have hated myself for doing any real damage to them." he said to himself more than anyone else before standing up waiting for the other in front of the room that likely held the one responsible his bodyguards and the stolen cargo his hand took the secondary blade back as he looked behind him his eyes glowing a little "Lets do this together hm?" he was trying to remember what his summons had said to him it was just difficult was all.

Word count: 1'651
Total Word Count: 8'380
Health: 200/200
Mana: 109/115

Spells:

Light's Tendrils - On cooldown

Notes:

Oras' thoughts were distracted and made silent when he heard the two speak to him again.  The first thing they had done was introduced themselves, which they should have done the moment the connection was made in his opinion.  The next thing they began to tell him that they understood exactly what they had took, and even called it sacred which he believed was an accurate term in this case.  Raven was the one thing.  The one person he could think of that might actually have survived the destruction of his village.  The one normal thing from his childhood.  The one thing that made him Oras Auro and not Verus.  He controlled his Alias and used it to his advantage, but he did not wish to become his alias.  And they had stolen that precious memory and solitude from him.  He didn't even know if she was alive or not.  He was acting out on the hope that she was so that he could find her.  And hopefully restore a piece of his soul that was lost on that day.  The two would feel a glimpse of the pain he had felt but he was able to quickly suppress it.  It wasn't a physical pain like Ruvel's, nor a pain of the horror Ruvel had of his childhood.  But it was pain of having lost everything, being stripped of everything, being taught how to survive by his mentor, and then left alone with no family or allies.

They then said that they were born with it and he gave out a sigh, allowing them to continue while he regained control of his emotions.  Or more accurately, a more focused control.  The first word they used to describe the ability was that it was a curse, and he could detect the weight in their voices and knew that what they were telling him now was something that haunted them even today.  They began to explain how it was like for them and explained that nothing was hidden from them, whether it be thoughts, memories, feelings or even dreams.  Everything was viewable for them.  Oras processed this information and his immediate thought was pity for them.  Indeed it could be a good tool for investigations.  However to have that at all times and never be able to stop the effects could easily be a very powerful burden.  His second thought however was anger towards Moon who had not warned Oras of this.  Should he have been warned he could have kept the one thing that kept Oras, Oras, protected to the best of his ability.  They seemed to have anticipated this and pleaded him not to be angry at Moon as he didn't know.  Oras was about to ask how in the hell could Moon not know about their ability when they started explaining that, making Oras wonder if this was the first time they encountered a situation like this, or if they had prepared for a situation like this.  

Oras was slowly beginning to understand the situation better now that it was actually being explained to him.  When they told him that he had some level of trust to create a connection with him, that wasn't enough.  I understand he doesn't trust me, he does not yet have a reason to.  He should however respect my abilities as a wizard.  I'm not some fool who can't handle myself.  As you already know from my memories, I've been very thoroughly trained in how to survive.  Oras left it at that but he made it clear that he had a newfound respect for the two that seemed far greater than Moon at the current moment.  They then explained that they would never tell his name to their summoner or anyone else without his permission and he could tell in their voice that they were being honest.  They further established his trust with them explaining that they were speaking directly to him on a separate connection than the network with Moon and his other summons.  Gratitude was the first response they would receive.  When they mentioned how they didn't even mention him as an alias he gave them permission to use the Alias.  That was the purpose of it after all.  To use the alias over his real name just like he wore his mask over his true face.  The last words caught him by surprise, requesting to him that he help them atone the actions.

He thought about what they said about tradition, honor and such.  He spoke directly to the two of them on the separate connection, his tone more respectful of them than ever.  Not because they were prince's.  It would be clear to them that such titles meant nothing to him.  He saw people as people, regardless of race, or position.  "While your own kind may have isolated you because of this ability, I believe that your curse has given you motivation to be better.  Because of this, it is my belief that you are more honorable than any other.  Shindara.  Amuul.  You have my respect."  He meant this in every level.  And they knew that he would respect Moon not for the man himself, but because of whom he was contracted with.  "I cannot remain angry towards you for something that you cannot control."  This last sentence was essentially his way of forgiving them and accepting their apology.

That was when things turned.  He was reconnected with the overall network, hearing a woman he hadn't heard before, as well as other voices.  It was too many for him to memorize all at once so he'd need to memorize them over time.  The woman started by taking note of the anger that was going on, knowing it was coming from Oras, and was quickly answered by a gruff and vicious sounding man who threatened her.  The woman seemed to take no note of the threat, and the way she spoke made Oras believe that this individual was the sort of woman who enjoyed taunting and teasing others.  She would get no such pleasure from Oras.  Not now or ever.  Since she couldn't see into his memories and past, he was able to be a stone wall, giving her quite literally no reaction whatsoever.  At any rate he could tell that Moon wasn't the same case.  The fact that she was saying this to Moon told him that he was affected by her.  After all, one who takes pleasure in drawing out emotions like she did, would not continue if she got nothing out of it.  Not to mention that the more Oras grew to know these summons, if Moon kept Oras in the network which was unlikely he could one day learn how to shut them all up within a single sentence and give Moon some silence and solitude.

As it was, only more voices entered the conversation, one of them really heated up and calling the first voice fire.  This was something that Oras locked down, determined to keep up and memorize each of their abilities.  The first one had something to do with fire.  The second voice mentioned bringing in someone with wind abilities, and.  He stopped his process as another voice picked up, speaking to Oras directly, mentioning to forgive him and that he wasn't raised with them.  Oras was confused as to whom she was referring to.  Names were needed in a wide conversation like this since there were many males and females in the conversation.  She could have been referring to the brothers, or Moon, or the warrior.  In this scenario however he believed the woman was referring to Moon.  She sounded very familiar and he recalled her voice from the first time he encountered Moon.  During the job that is.  So Moon wasn't raised with manners?  That gave him a hint to the man's past.  "If you do not wish for me to figure out Moon's past and history, I suggest convincing the other summons to be more cautious of what they say." he told the brothers.

Another voice chimed in, this one being Moon's, telling them all to be silent for his own sake.  Then another entered the conversation.  If Oras had such a relationship, he would have placed rules and restrictions to the communication, such as only a certain amount could speak at a time.  Otherwise it was confusing.  Oras' head didn't hurt, it was simply processing slower than usual due to the vast amount of information to process.  He wasn't able to catch the part about his eyes due to this.  If he had he would have been reminded of Ruvel's moon eyes.  He did however hear the rough voice mentioning how Moon hadn't been eating during his training.  A prior female voice spoke up again, stating how they were being hard on him and how she'd be speaking to someone named Jester about the matter.  It all ended with Moon mentioning how he needed his medicine.  Oras had it at this point.  These people were utterly careless and his frustration could be felt among them all.  "If you wish for your summoner to keep his secrets, perhaps you should be more subtle about it.  If that proves too much for you then perhaps being silent until you can speak in private would prove better.  That goes for you too Moon.  If you wish to keep your past a secret, be careful what you say around me."  Oras did not hide his frustrations with the summons, but when speaking to Moon he spoke in a very even tone, to show that he legitimately cared about secrets and did not wish to overstep his bounds.

He then heard another voice speak up.  This one also familiar.  She was the one with ice abilities.  She, out of the other summons, didn't back up Moon and tell Oras something about not being so hard on Moon, or to give him a chance.  It was actually the other way around.  She told Moon that he had allies on this mission and to work with him, using his strengths along with his own.  Oras waited for a response and he acknowledged her words.  He then turned to Oras, apologizing before explaining why he'd been acting this way.  He was in a rush. Oras nodded finally.  "Alright then."  

While he moved through the labyrinth he could hear the brothers speak to him again, this time with anger in regards to his words.  The words he used while clouded by emotion.  When they finished he had mixed feelings.  "I apologize for the use of the term.  I was clouded by emotion and most of the time I have the ability to process my thinking and share them afterwards.  I'm not used to this...  Instant communication.  Forgive me.  As for his magic.  Nothing is worth the cost of free will."

When they finally reached the door he nodded to Moon's question and the two moved in.  Oras immediately summoned his three physical illusions and had them charge forward.  With four sets of eyes Oras was able to see everything.  Nothing was hidden from him.  In case he missed something, he sent the images of all four visions to the network.  What he did notice were the immediate threats.  Six guards and the leader.  The illusions immediately tackled the guards, taking on two at a time.  Moon would see by the way they fought that Oras was trained in advanced martial arts.  After two were knocked out, one of the illusions shot forward at one hiding in the corner holding an explosive and knocked him out by striking him in the throat.  No permanent damage of course.  While all this was going on, the leader and the guards would see the world become nightmarish, horrifying.  Cruel.  Evil.  His illusions didn't look like Oras.  They appeared to everyone in the room as if they were demons.  This wasn't the work of his fear aura, but because he could alter who his physical illusions looked like.  Oras and Moon would look the same, though the leader (as long as he wasn't a higher rank than Oras) would be terrified of both of them.  When his guards were down, the illusions stood around the leader, blocking his exits.

Ruvel looked to him from behind his mask his eyes glowing brighter than they had before no longer a pale golden amber, but vibrant like molten gold. He had listened to the others concern and smiled weakly behind the mask. He was thankful that he had learned from the mistake of when he touched his skin. "Don't worry they haven't given anything but general information, besides other than my identity which I must keep due to being a guild rule, I have no secrets." he said his eyes turning towards the inside of the room where he seen what had been stolen from his guild his hand flicked just a little by his side making everything vanish of importance; this wasn't just the trading companies stolen wares but the other things they have stolen, he had been told to assert the dominance of the guild and that is what he would do. "Well at least that's that part of the task complete" he mumbled to himself, Black Sails was the dominant force in regards to doing certain questionable acts after all; of course there where rules in place that even they followed Cirven made sure of it.

He had never seen anyone break the rules but he had heard stories of people whom did, apparently it didn't work out well because even the first warning came with a harsh punishment that either made you learn or something worse was to follow. He would rather not break or see another break the rules due to these stories. He looked to the room where those inside seemed to be in a panic due to the sudden loss of their loot and couldn't help but chuckle under his mask lightly "Fools, don't steal... you'll never know who'll be employed to gain the items back." he said but before he could move the other had already sent illusions to deal with the goons before leaving the leader of the bunch for him to tend to. This worried him given the guy looked like a smaller version of Barthenz with how he was built. 'Great...' He thought to himself, shindara shielding the thought from the other.

He was already feeling dizzy, his vision was blurred slightly from using his newly found secondary magic and abilities. He knew his summons could feel just how he was 'Moon, summon one of us... you made it this far without; there's no shame' A new voice said making him shake his head, he refused to fall back on his summoning no matter how hard it was he had to try and do it without them. He wanted his teacher to be proud of him for at least trying to use what he was taught though it made him uncomfortable and knew it would be fruitless. By the time he could focus his eyes the leader was riled up given everything he had stolen recently plus more was gone, not only that this gang where down and out thanks to Oras's illusions.

Moving into the room the leader was about to charge him until he stamped the ground an invisible seal being placed and making it seem as if the floor had all but vanished from beneath him making him stop in his tracks. Jumping against a wall he spring boarded off it aiming right for the leader pulling out his rapier and aimed it right at the man. The tip glowed as he managed stab it into the man's shoulder joint pulling in dealing more damage than should be possible, as he brought the blade back the man stumbled back but it didn't stop the onslaught of quick precise blows as before he made sure not to hit anything vital his eyes dead locked on the man who had been caught off guard, unaware and believed he would fall off the small island on the floor if he moved. After a moment he looked at the body of the bleeding semi conscious man "Don't steal from the West Fiore Trading Company again or I will return and next time the toll will be more than a tax, it'll be your life" with that the man was out for the count.

After a moment his hand went to his head as he wobbled back and forward his illusion wearing off, his rapier dropping on the floor as he soon collapsed afterwards. His hand weakly going to his ear "D-Done.." his voice was weak wobbling "I-I've sent guide with the co ordinates of the stolen items" his breathing was steady but shallow "Jester, I-I need my medicine..." this would have been the first time his tutor would have ever heard him willingly request his medicine given how he reacted every other time. As his eyes closed his hand fell down and the connection with Oras broke. 'His guardian will be here soon, you best leave.' Shindara said calmly 'Thank you for helping our summoner he would have collapsed much sooner without your help.' Amuul continued 'We'll protect him until help arrives so please don't worry and go.' Shindara finished hoping that the other would leave. They had no idea how the guild would react to a hooded and masked male in the same room as their unconscious summoner, but they would rather not take the chance of someone whom had helped get hurt over a misunderstanding.

Word Count: 895
Total word count: 9'275