Decoy [Rina's Ace Exam/Private]

Sorano’s footsteps echoed down the staircase as she carried a job slip in her hands, eyes searching out for someone. It was rare that they got a job so specifically aimed like this from the Magic Council of all places – were they perhaps suspicious about their activities? The letter mage’s eyes narrowed in contemplation, mind sifting through all the possibilities for what this may imply. It had requested specifically for a guild member and not herself, too… How odd. The description didn’t seem particularly important, either. A mage was needed to assist a Rune Knight regiment in enhancing magically reinforced weapons, which could honestly be something anyone could do.

Turning into the lobby, the letter mage’s eyes scanned over the mages available. Preferably a higher ranked mage would be good, right? That way, in case the request was a trap, they would be able to defend themselves. Slowly, the dark eyes would land upon the figure of a familiar woman. Ah, that’s right, Rina. She could work, right? Having recently achieved B rank, the mage should be strong enough to hold off against an attack. “Hello, Miss Rina.” Sorano approached the table at which the heavenly mage sat, writing out a quick circle of silence around them to keep anyone from hearing their conversation. With the magic circle up, she carefully laid the job slip on the table. “We’ve received a rather suspicious job request from the Magic Council, requesting a mage to go and help a regiment of Rune Knights enhance their weapons. Since this was a job directly pointed at our guild, I’m guessing they are attempting to learn more about the guild’s activities.”

The letter mage paused for a moment, eyebrows knitting up in thought, before continuing. “I’d like you to take the job and make sure the Magic Council’s suspicions are erased, and to put them off our trail as best you can. If it ends up being a trap, please contact me if you must by drawing some of your blood – any. It will alert me to your being in danger, though I don’t think you’ll need it. You’re strong enough by now to take care of yourself in a dangerous situation, right, Miss Rina?” The youth turned to look at the older mage, fairly confident that she would have no problem.

Job Slip:

The exam will consist of this job where Rina must set the Rune Knights' suspicions of Fairy Tail at rest and steer them off the path! Please write a minimum of 300 words per post - you may depart for the job on the next post. This will be an interactive exam, so we will be going back and forth until the problem is solved properly. It is possible to fail this, so please be careful!

@Musicalbunny

Rina was in the Guildhall sitting next to the bar at the table, she usually sat at. She swirled around the straw in her glass of apple juice as she looked like she was in a trance. She listened to the sounds of people around the bar as some talked about gossip and the others, jobs. Rina tried to eavesdrop on most conversations since she had nothing better to do anyway. As she listened to a conversation about a newborn child in the guild, her attention was directed to somebody right next to her.

With the turn of her head, she looked downwards to see a tiny girl sitting there. It was her guild master Sorano, and she seemed to be tracing out a magic circle. Rina was sure that it was some sort of circle used to keep the conversation private, which odded her out. With the short greeting from her guildmaster, Rina replied and said, "Hello, Miss Granon." As Rina stared at her gm intently, the powerful mage explained to her about a mysterious job. Rina mouthed the words in public as though she was trying to get a grasp on them, "put them off our trail..." Rina didn't understand what Sorano met by that but she knew that she could handle the magic council if needed. It was their fault, after all, that the homeless were so badly treated by the people in Magnolia.

As she looked down at the ground, she raised her head back up and said, "Okay I will do this task for you the best I can. You can trust me, and I will heed your warning about the knights." As Rina stood up, she turned her head back towards Sorano as she did a small wave. While she stepped up to the door of the guild hall, she took a deep breath and walked out the door into Magnolia. She then took out her map and walked towards the area the slip specified.

Lieutenant Robin Amantea strolled through the relatively few rows of soldiers in her regiment, eyes coldly scanning their uniforms and posture. She’d been charged with a particular task today – they were to have visitors, and it simply wouldn’t do to have them thinking the Rune Knights of the Magic Council were jokes – oh no. A small smirk crossed her normally stoic face, lined with creases of experience, and she stopped before her soldiers, hands clasped perfectly at the center of her body. “Rune Knights of the Third Infiltration Regiment! As many of you should be aware already, we will be receiving a special visitor today, hired to enhance your weapons. Of course, they will be from Fairy Tail, the guild we have been instructed to monitor. As you all should know, they are still under suspicion by the Magic Council, and it will be our task to find out as much as we can about the guild from this mage.” Finishing the sentence, Robin arched an eyebrow at soldiers, harmonics of her voice still echoing slightly throughout the spacious arena.

“You will undergo normal training sessions, and one by one you shall be called out to have your weapon enhanced by the hired mage. Naturally, you do not need your weapons enhanced at all, with your individual degrees in magic. You were all chosen for a reason, and should be able to recognize signs of tampering on your weapons, correct?” Instantly, fifteen hands would snap smartly to their foreheads, the knights chorusing a confident “Yes, ma’am!”

“Any questions?”

No hands would emerge from the group, and Robin was confident in her knights’ abilities. They were all specially trained, perfectly suited for interrogation and infiltration. Having graduated as some of the finest from the Magic Council’s training academy, these were top-notch soldiers that she was honored to lead.

“Alright, now get to work!”

Turning towards the door, all she had to do now was to await the mage’s arrival. The lieutenant had been something of a genius in the Knights, rising up at impossibly fast speeds. Being descended from a long line of Rune Knights, it was only natural that she’d been highly trained and prepared for when she would enter. This task should be nothing – she’d been through far worse than interrogating a mere mage.

The door to the arena would open then, and Robin arched her eyebrow once more. Was this the mage? “Please enter, mage of Fairy Tail, and introduce yourself!”

@Musicalbunny

Robin Amantea Appearance

Rina had looked around the area, as she entered the new area. She had never actually been here before since she never had the time or money to travel anywhere in the first place. It was actually way bigger than she imagined it would be. The dreams of her exploring the world were actually coming true. The world was so much better than she imagined. She didn't expect the architecture of the area to look so beautiful, and plus the flowers. The flowers were so beautiful as they sprouted from little pots set out onto the opening of the street. She wondered if this was truly an area run by the magic council because she didn't see any of the homeless at all. Those thoughts in her head then began to turn into a goal as she thought of a plan for when she meets with the rune knights.

Now, she was actually able to go out and try to resolve the problems the homeless have with the magic council. For many years, people with magic have treated the homeless awfully. They have been mugged, hurt, and so many other things by magic people. Yet the magic council had done nothing because the homeless weren't seen as actual citizens. Rina didn't have one hope for her today, but two. It may have seemed selfish, but Rina knew that she had to defend the homeless citizens of Earthland.

As these thoughts filled her mind, she clenched her fist with anger at the council. She then released the grip on the open air and turned it into determination. That determination was going to be how she was going to try and get everything right. She wanted the best for her guild and the homeless. She was going to get through this job...if it is the last thing she does. Like the homeless, she was not going to let the magic council think less of her guild just because we had a bad past. As she ran down the streets, she screamed with happiness.

It wasn't long until Rina had finally reached the beautifully designed arena. She saw as a scout looked towards her. He didn't seem to think anything of it until Rina had lifted up her hand to flash the guild mark at him. With surprise, he jumped as he tried to notify someone on the inside as quick as possible. With a quick motion, he opened the gate slowly. With a booming voice, what seemed like a commanding officer, asked her to announce herself in front of all the soldiers. As she walked into the Coliseum, she projected her voice loud enough to where she wasn't yelling, but she could be heard. She then put her hand to her head, saluting. With her voice, Rina had announced herself and said, "Rina Everglades, from the guild Fairytail. I have been sent here on the implication that I had to enhance some of the weapons for the regiment. I hope we have a nice time working here today and hope that this whole thing goes peacefully." With that, she put her hand down and hoped that that was what she was supposed to do

The girl who entered seemed fairly young – perhaps a few years or so younger than herself. Scanning her up and down, Robin raised a skeptical eye. She looked rather eccentric as was typical for your average guild mage, with that odd green hair and strange clothing, but it was rude to judge, wasn’t it? Frowning slightly, she watched as the girl – Rina or whatever – snapped a hand smartly to her forehead. Was she nervous, perhaps? Maybe a first-time interaction with one of the Rune Knights? Knowing that many of her co-workers were less strict than herself, however, the lieutenant was determined to give her a strong, confident image of the Magic Council’s troops. “Greetings, Everglades! I am the lieutenant commander of the Third Infiltration Regiment of Rune Knights. I am sure you have been briefed on your task already, yes? All I have to add to any instructions you have been given is to listen to the soldiers – if they have any specifications or sensitivities, please do oblige. Several of their weapons have already been worked with by private Magic Council mages, but the rest will be done by your hands. Please remember that any damage to these weapons will result in a hefty fine. Do be careful, Everglades.”

With that, the soldier gestured sharply towards a table in the corner for the mage to sit at, calling forth the last soldier. Ordered by their skill and ability, Kanti Tendai would be the least proficient out of the bunch. Even so, she was still sufficiently skilled and able to perform the tasks necessary in her regiment. “Private Tendai. You may begin interrogations through casual conversation while your weapon is enhanced. Be sure to keep a careful eye on her magic.”

“Yes, lieutenant.” The man quickly hurried off to the table where Rina would have been sent, laying his silver dagger inscribed with the Rune Knights’ symbol on the hilt down before her. “Greetings, Miss Everglades. My enhancements should be relatively simple – it just needs to be sharpened a bit, if that’s reasonable for you.”

Meanwhile, Robin would stand off to the side, carefully listening to the conversation through a magical earring clipped to her earlobe.

“So how’s life a guild mage?” The man would suddenly intone, leaning closer in an act to hide the conversation from his lieutenant, “I’ve been a mage for the Magic Council all my career, so I’ve never been in an actual guild before – is the work hard?”

@Musicalbunny

Kanti Tendai Appearance

Rina looked towards the women in front of her, seeing that she was in thought. Rina wondered if the woman even heard what she said just now. However, the woman did reply back after a few moments. She told Rina about the job that she was supposed to do today. This included enhancing the weapons of the soldiers, listening to any specifics the soldiers give, and being careful with the weapons. Rina kept the words flowing through her head, to make sure that she did not forget a single word. As she ran over the words in her head 5 times, she heard a name called out. She wasn't paying attention which was worrying, but she heard some part of the name. She tried sounding it out to herself before the man came over to her, and muttered to herself, "Ten-en-dons? No that's not it. Te-en-dai?" With a gasp, she said to herself, "Oh my god I think I got it!"

Once he came over, he asked her a question. She was obliged to answer it but first, she had to get everything ready. She held up a little finger and said to him, "Let me get out all the things before I talk to you about my life because after all, I wouldn't want to take up all of our time talking. As she looked around, she found all the things she needed. She found, oil, a heat source, a whetstone, and a leather strap. She knew what she was doing since she had to do so many odd jobs like this to even pay for small amounts of food for her family. She sort of zoned off, looking back at memories of her and her family on the street. As she snapped out of her trance, she realized that she still hadn't answered the question the soldier asked her. As she heated up the dagger, she said to the soldier, "Being a guild mage is so fulfilling. Knowing that I'm doing good and being able to provide for my family at the same time is amazing. You see, I was homeless before the guild. We had so many troubles when we were homeless, then my dad...well he got sick. So, I decided it was time to join a guild so I could see the world and pay my dad's medical bills." With a deep sigh, she went back to checking the dagger and saw that it was the correct amount of orange to start the next process.

As she looked at the dagger, she started to smooth it out with the whetstone, continuing her conversation. With a gentle smile, she said to the solider, "Yea, the work is hard but being homeless helped me prepare for all those troubles. Its probably the only reason why I'm able to stand up with things knock me down. It's nice to know that I'm doing good for others, which makes all the pain and hurt worth it. All those odd jobs I did when I was little, would be nothing compared to the jobs I did here. All the good I can do from defeating a mystical sand demon to saving an entire forest are only a few of the things that I've done that makes me proud to be a member of a guild. You don't know the rush you feel when you know that you just saved the lives of living creatures. It's honestly the best experience I ever had."

After that conversation, she didn't really have anything else to say, so she stopped the smoothening of the dagger and moved on to the sharpening with a leather strip. She waited a few seconds for the dagger to cool down since it was still a tiny bit hot. It only took 1 minute for it to completely die down, so she started. As she moved the dagger elegantly across the strip, she took her time with it to make sure she did not damage it one bit. She then reheated the dagger to the crisp orange that it was before and dunked it back into the oil.

As she was waving it through the air, she felt the lightness of it restored and saw as the blade cut through the air with ease. She then put it on the table of the working station and scooted it towards the soldier. She smiled and asked the soldier, "So, is this okay for you? Or do you need any other specifications to be made?" She waited for his reply as she stood there with a calming look on her face.

Settling down and starting off with a fairly casual question in his opinion, Tendai would be halted briefly by a finger held up by the blonde mage. Telling him to wait a moment as she got her things ready, he zipped his mouth and sat there a bit awkwardly. Compared to the other mages of his regiment, he was by far the least proficient in interrogations and things like these, and nothing he said flowed quite as smoothly as they did with his fellow knights. Instead, he awkwardly eyed the woman who was now gathering up an assortment of items needed to enhance the dagger. It had been gifted to him by his father, who worked as part of the law enforcement in Fiore, and had encouraged him to join the Rune Knights once he was found to have magical potential. Although he’d never risen up too high in the ranks, the man was comfortable enough where he was – the pay was good, the work never too back-breakingly hard, and in general, life was good.

Even as he dwelled in his own memories of his childhood and slowly learning to use the silver weapon that laid before him, Tendai realized that the Fairy mage seemed to have momentarily spaced out was well, eyes looking off into an unseen distance. Opening his mouth to try and get her back to business, Rina burst out of her trance herself, turning back towards the Knight. The dagger would be lifted up and heated by the light mage, and she began to answer his question. Guild life was…fulfilling, huh. According to what she said, Fairy Tail seemed to be doing good things. Hearing her story with careful ears, there didn’t seem to be anything particularly suspicious about it. But then again, he wasn’t the best at detecting lies or spun tales, and had no idea whether she told the truth or not. Angling a gaze towards the lieutenant, he watched her eyes narrowed slightly at the things Rina had said, processing it carefully.

As the light mage now pulled out the whetstone and began to sharpen the weapon, she would surprisingly continue to speak. It seemed that she was surprisingly justice-oriented for a mercenary guild, something that felt quite strange to the Knight. After all, weren’t mercenaries supposed to be with few morals? “Ah, that sounds pretty nice actually – really similar to what we do here.” He laughed slightly, watching her sharpen the blade with a leather strip. “In fact, you sound even more genuine than some of the soldiers I’ve met in the Rune Knights myself.” He smiled slightly, feeling more at ease for some reason.

The woman would quickly finish up the blade, leaving it glowing slightly with a thin sheen of magic, and cleanly polished with craftsmanship of the mage. “Thanks, it looks fantastic, Miss Everglades, that should be fine,” he said, dipping his head courteously before walking back over into the arena. He now wondered as to what Fairy Tail was really like – with members as kind and just as Rina was, what was the true nature of the guild? Perhaps the Magic Council was just being paranoid? Robin Amantea herself stood there with a thoughtful look on her face. The mage didn’t seem to be suspicious in any way, but she had met some excellent liars in her career. It wouldn’t surprise her if the woman was hiding something, or there was just more information they’d have to dig out. Calling up the next soldier, she raised her voice. “Yaling Song! Please come up.”

The lithe and agile Midian woman was small in frame, but an excellent warrior that was the fastest in the regiment. In fact the only reason for her lower rank was her lack of communication skills, being rather quiet most of the time and not the best for things like interrogations. Moving towards the table with her set of knives, she unclipped a few from her jacket and limbs even as she approached the table. “Hello, Miss Everglades.” A light accent tinged her voice, dark bangs falling into her face. “My knives are sharp enough, they just need to be enhanced to be more durable.” Unlike Tendai’s casual nature, she never quite knew what the right thing to say was. Instead, she sort of just sat there awkwardly, glancing around uneasily.

@Musicalbunny

Yaling Song Appearance

Rina looked as the man held the blade in his hand, complimenting Rina's handiwork. She was very happy with herself since it was probably some of the best work she had ever done on a weapon. As she smiled at the man, she saw as he left the table. Right as he left, another person came out of the blue. Her name seemed to be something like "Yaling Song." It was quite an interesting name which made Rina giggle. She had never heard such a unique name in her lifetime. As the lady sat down awkwardly, she seemed to shove her knives in front of Rina. She seemed to be wanting her knives to not be sharpened but enhanced to endure more. Rina knew there was no way without magic for her to possibly do this, so that's what she did.

As she put her hand on her heart, she created a field of spores around her and began to compact it into an even smaller zone around the 5 knives that the woman gave to Rina. Not forgetting her manners, Rina began a conversation with the lady. She looked over at her with a smile and informed her, "My spores are magically healing and will be able to increase the strength of your knives. It's very interesting to see a knife user. How do you use your knives? Do you throw them, slash with them, or something else." As Rina waited for an answer, she looked back towards the dagger to see them absorbing the spores well enough. They were growing stronger each minute inside the dome. Aura could easily tell that they were more durable than before, which the lady in front of her would hopefully like.

After listening to what the lady had to say, Rina thought that it was time for her to tell her a story about herself. She thought back towards the time she saved the forest with Sogi, who now seemed to be distant from the guild. As she thought about the story, she tried to explain the job. While telling the story, Rina started it by saying, "So, it was a stormy day in the Fairy Tail guild hall and all of a sudden a rabbit bursts through the door. At first, the only person to accept the request of the rabbit was Sogi. However, the rabbit seemed to dislike the fact that my guildmate was so young. I scolded the rabbit in hopes of defending my guildmember's honor, which was why I went on the job. Just so Sogi would be able to prove himself while still having the comfort of me being able to be there. He excelled excellently which made me feel so proud of him. Although we had to fight off some animals, one that I became friends with, we seemed to find the monster behind all the destruction. Some sort of magical force was controlling a tree like a puppet and terrorized the whole forest. In the end, we were able to defeat him and allowed the animals to live peacefully once more. That's where I met my lovely friend Chiki." With the sound of her name, Chiki peeked out of Rina's pocket and climbed up Rina's body and onto her shoulder. With a smile, she petted Chiki.

She gasped for a second forgetting that she still had to check on the knives. All though nothing bad could happen, Rina still had to check on them so she didn't have to waste the time of the officer in front of her. As she looked over at the knives, the process of the spores seemed to be done, and the knives were left looking even stronger than before. Rina looked at them and smiled, seeing that bits of her magic were imbued into the knives. She looked over to the soldier and handed her the knives, saying to the lady, "Seems like my magic infused a bit into your knives. I guess if you were to ever fight any monsters opposing my light magic, you would be able to defeat them faster. Also, my spores were able to enhance the durability greatly, and even heal the blades from the past experiences of them." Rina handed them to the soldier, hoping that there was no problems the soldier had with her.

@Ivyleaf33

It seemed like her soldier seemed content, which was nice. As the woman thanked her, an alarm rang. It seemed to be what sounded like trouble. As Rina wondered what was happening, the soldiers ran out as their leader told Rina to be off. They seemed to have a job to attend to. As Rina shrugged, she walked out as though nothing happened and went on her way.