Masquerade Part 2: Army of Darkness

[Xinnidy]

A ghost's Introspective

...I can't bring myself to go back. I can't bring them that harm... if... if this is... Kadin drifted in the loneliest corners of the Slums, his soul weary as his memories became more vivid. I've no doubt this council means a lot to me, and yet... I can't shake this feeling. This hesitation. I shouldn't get them in this.

Kadin started hovering closer to the ground, almost as if 'walking'. He took a good look at the slums as he walked around the place. I know this place. I know Felson. I'm sure that I lived here... but not in these parts. ...This place truly hasn't changed. A frown formed on his ethereal face for a moment, until it was replaced by surprise as Kadin pondered his own thoughts. "Hasn't changed..." Kadin stood in complete silence for a few moments.

I was... very important. I know it. I was murdered. I don't... I don't think I know who did that. He thought about his memories in Ward, where him and Maja had their memories read. That... the one I saw... she was important to me. She could't have been the killer. I'm sure of it. What happened was too sudden.

"Damn it all! I'm so close!" Kadin threw an ethereal punch against the nearest wall in frustration. A punch that went right through it, causing him to sigh. If I go up, I'll probably learn more. Remember more. Yet, whoever killed me is dangerous, I can't put them in that risk...

A determined friend

"Kadin! Kadin, where are you?" A voice could be heard throughout the slums. Maja rushed through the path Vriska pointed and in no time found herself walking the straight line. The burst of running such a distance in so little time left her a bit tired, but Maja continued to press on by holding onto her hopes.

Hopes that finally gave fruit as she saw her spectral friend close to a wall. "Kadin!" Maja waved as she approached him. "It's you! Oh, thank Him, you can't *huff* believe how long I've been searching for you." She only stopped to regain some breath herself.

"Maja... Why?" Kadin felt conflicted. He wanted to spare her, to spare the group. Yet, she just came back for him. "My past isn't safe to delve in. If we do, you will be in danger." He tried to bring himself a threatening tone, even if it didn't feel quite right. "...Just let me be."

"But... Kadin! We've been all worried, we've been with you all this time! You can't just... this isn't fair!" Maja stomped the ground with her right foot. "I'm a mercenary now, you know? It's not like this is the only dangerous thing I've ever done. You've been with us so far!" She crossed her arms. "I'll help you find your past, I don't care if it's dangerous. I want you to be happy, to find peace. This matters to me, Kadin."

Kadin froze in place by Maja's reply. He truly appreciated all her actions, but... her conviction just sent a chill through his soul. "But... Maja, if you all die for my cause, I don't think I'd ever be able to find peace. I wouldn't be able to bear the guilt." He looked directly at Maja's eyes. "I'm sorry. Please don't do this for me."

Maja sighed, even her protests unable to convince him. "Look, Kadin. You can't know until you try." She gazed back at Kadin. "I don't know what will happen if I try to find about your past, but what I do know is that you're going to keep running from it if I don't! For the rest of your... existence." Despite her tumbling with words, Maja was fairly serious about her message. "If the others didn't feel like risking themselves, they could have just said so. I'm sure everyone agrees too." Maja lost all of her usual upbeat demeanor at that point. "It is.... something worth fighting for, Kadin. For both of us. I want to make this possible, and I need you to trust me on that."

Kadin fell silent again, until looking back at Maja. "I... thank you, for caring." Kadin's glance wavered for a moment. "I don't know what to say, but... I'll promise you I'll stay, for now." Maja's conviction calmed him enough to weaken Kadin's guilt trip. "Just... I'll think of what to do. Please stay as safe as you can."

A smile of relief formed in Maja's face, and she went to hug her spectral buddy --surprisingly enough, he felt solid! Not exactly as solid as a human, but enough to surprise Maja over her own antics. Right, he's a ghost! And yet...

Releasing her grip on Kadin, Maja took a step back and returned to the cheery mood of usual, albeit not entirely, yet. "You should at least come upstairs! We're staying at an inn there, so you'll know where we are!"

Kadin simply replied with a nod, an understandable lot going on in his mind.

Edited October 1, 2014 by Xinnidy

[Oersted]

Lanos didn't really know what he expected Vriska's answer to be but it certainly wasn't that. His face took on a light red color. "Yeah, that's... fine." ​He really didn't know what to say other than that. Having no idea what to do, he found himself staring at her staring at the ground. She's kinda cute too. Wait, is that her natural hair color? With a small smile he offered Vriska his arm, or hand (it was up to her interpretation). "So... you want to start walking again? The sooner I check on my stuff the sooner we can go back up to the upper rung."

[Nanami Touko]

Colors

Ingverd had taken the time to look for some clothes, something that would go well with his odd white hair and dark skin tone. And blue seemed to work itself out. He was now sporting some nazy blue pants, that were gold hemmed around the pockets, and held a very faint red around the ends. He wore two shirts, actually. One a snugg, long sleeved grey shirt, and over that, a button up, light blue shirt, with a small tribal pattern on the sleeves. He was perfectly fine with this. "So, how do I look?" he asked the still seemingly bored clerk.

"Well... Better than most customers. Kinda good, actually. Hope your date appreciates it, too."

"Let's hope... So, how much for all this?" It had better not be too much; I can't exactly ask Valha to pay for dinner after asking her...

"Twenty five gold. I told you, cheap."

"Wow! That is cheap... The clothes aren't going to fall apart, are they?" he joked, leaving enough gold on the counter. "Well, then, time to go relax for a bit. Enjoy yourself, Clarine...Junior." She shot him a small glare, as he walked himself out of the store, rather happy with his this all looked.

Awkward, For Some

Next time, I'll ask him a stupid question, and make him blush. Geez... Vriska held the red for a few more moments, until she got control over her emotions again, dispelling them with a huff. "Honestly. You can't just go asking a girl something like that. I thought you were supposed to be meek? That was rather forward of you." She smirked despite her words, and gladly took his hand this time, not his arm. "Then lead on, Lanos."

Dragons

Marius snapped his fingers, and out came Quincy's next opponent, a man riding a rather terrifying dragon, spinning a lance above his head. The dragon snarled at Quincy, and the man lowered his spear, ready for a fight...

Heart of The Problem

"It's good to know even a Harpy can leave and find a life for themselves, without needing to resort to the extremes. Good for you," Maggie said, glad she hadn't even posed the question of the alternate. She heard Valha's 'ow' and giggled, find another tight muscle, and proceeding to do the same. At least the subject now was as heavy as the massage. "It's the peoples' fault. You could say that, while everyone understands the situation, no one really challenges the status quo... They're content to live their lives up here, without voicing how they feel. Ignorance is bliss, or something along those lines. Maybe one day..."

Edited October 1, 2014 by I have opinions

[riariadne]

"Thank you," Valha responded jovially, wincing at the further pinching feeling. "Maybe, but... the average person even from the upper quarter can't really make a difference to the slums as an individual, but the Council, they have so much resources that would improve things so easily! And if someone from the slums speaks up, what good will that do to help either? They don't really care about us 'n it shows. I think you can't blame the people here when it'd be so easy for the Council to change things if they happened to feel charitable some day or somethin' instead of panderin' to useless nobles that drag this place down. If it weren't for the nobles 'n the useless Council, here... Felson could be a great city. We deserve better than this... this city needs a better class of leaders, 'n some day, I wanna bring it to 'em." She huffed angrily. "I bet I sounded like a six-year-old who wants to be a pretty princess 'n be all luxurious 'n live a life of glamor, but it's more than that... I really wanna turn this place around 'n nobody else has the ambition to do anythin' about it."

[charlie_]

"Cheers." Angus mocked, grinning smugly to himself, before following Makin in. "It seems that way." he replied, looking around. "Do you reckon all of the guards are that dense?"

Edited October 2, 2014 by SB.

[algae]

What a... vulgar song. This is what's popular these days? Still, Sonia caught herself humming it as she left the theater, and after the initial shock wore off she found that she actually enjoyed both tunes. Maybe once I can afford an instrument of my own...

Her next stop was a fairly impressive building that turned out to be an arena... Not the best way to relax after so much fighting, but it was free, and one of the combatants looked somewhat familiar.

[Oersted]

"Er... sorry?" Was I not supposed to ask that? Lanos didn't really get what he'd done wrong, he'd just wanted to know if she was messing with him or not, but he apologized anyway. "It was? I just wanted to know if you were just messing with me or something." Once Vriska had taken his hand he started walking, relying on his memories to guide him. Before long, the walk was five minutes at the most, they arrived at their destination: one of the many abandoned buildings in the slums. Lanos walked inside without a second thought and was sorta surprised no one was there, shelter was a valuable thing no matter where you were. Maybe whoever lives here now is out right now. Either way it made things easier for him. "Vriska could you let go? I need both my arms to see if they're still here."

Edited October 2, 2014 by Oersted

[Refa]

Quincy stared at his opposition. A wyvern rider...this one's going to be tough. Time to show some skill, eh? He thought as he readied his axe once again. The half elf started moving as soon as the battle started, wanting to finish the match off quickly instead of making it a battle of attrition. He ran towards the rider and slashed with all of his might, inflicting a critical blow right from the getgo. Troy countered with his long reaching lance, which was proving to be more difficult to avoid than expected considering the innate characteristics of both of their weapons. Quincy slashed at Troy's lower body next, but it was a glancing blow and Troy retaliated in kind once again. At this point, Quincy had reached the limit of his endurance. I can't take another blow, I have to finish things off here and now, he thought as he stepped back a few paces. Mustering all of his energy, he ran then jumped at Troy, slashing him off of his wyvern in the process. Quincy breathed a deep sigh of relief as the crowd was cheering all around; however, he had no interesting in continuing his arena endeavors for the day. Healing or not, at this point Quincy was exhausted. Money be damned, I've had enough of this, he thought as he walked out of the fighting area and proceeded to collect his earnings.

Edited October 2, 2014 by Refa

[Bluedoom]

Ferdinand frowned a bit. This one didn't grow around other centaurs, how tragic! He decided to teach her more about archery... with time. Maybe if this one was comfortable with him enough to learn.

" Well, since we're comrades, I can teach you archery sometime, if you're willing to learn. But for now... hmm this is my first time around this place, are you familiar with Felson?"

[MRDRHAWK]

Kendeall immediately started swinging, in an attempt to get the first blow in. Of course, his opponent wouldn't be that much of a wimp, and dodged his wild swing with ease, with Kendeall taking a sharp blow to the body as he did so. Then an uppercut. As Carl approached to deal with he thought would be another big shot...

CRACK.

Kendeall threw a sharp headbutt at Carl, staggering him for a moment and allowing Kendeall to regain his composure, but Carl himself soon recovered and threw another quick 1-2 at Kendeall, which stung the axeman and caused him to stagger somewhat. Carl then decided that would be the time to go in for the kill - again - so he swung at Kendeall a third time.

Or tried to, at least. But his fist only met the axeman's hand, then soon found himself in a painful headlock variant. For that matter, Carl couldn't see Kendeall... because Kendeall was behind him, and wrenching on his neck and back. The crowd roared. They wanted a kill shot from Kendeall now.

So Kendeall obliged, and hefted the man up above his shoulders before dropping him down behind him in a Reverse Suplex. Kendeall got up, but Carl didn't.

"Alright! Next!" Kendeall called out to the man in charge, hoping that the adrenaline wouldn't wear off just yet. He needed some more cash, after all, and this was a fun way to do it.

[Nanami Touko]

Guard Duty

Makin laughed. "I hope so. That was almost too easy... Though I was about to give up, so, thanks for speaking up. See? I brought you along for a reason." Makin slithered along, looking at these nobles...mansions. They were far too large to be houses. Is this how everyone lives up here? This is even more extravagant than the Upper Rung... And they won't do anything for the slums? She sighed, and stopped staring. It made her feel even worse over her conflicted feelings of the slum dwellers. "Anyway, we're looking for Cedric's manse... I don't know if they have signs for these things, but judging off of the shops earlier, they might... Just shout if you see it."

Time to Wait

Ingverd walked about the town, wondering what he could do whilst he waited for Valha to finish her spa day. I could wait at the inn... Or I could see what's happening at the arena... Don't want to ruin these clothes, though. I just got them. Well, I can always watch. So he walked his way towards the arena, to catch the end of Quincy's fight. Huh, he can really move, even when swinging that axe around... I guess it's a good thing we picked him up. He spotted Raith in the stands, and decided to sit next to him. "Hey Raith. Enjoying the fights?" He spotted Sonia among the crowd as well, wondering if this was her sort of thing. She never seems to talk to any of us, but she doesn't seem antisocial... Maybe we're all just really boring.

Too Many Feels

"Of course it was. You can't just ask someone how they feel, so boldly like that," she felt the red coming back and shut if off, not even touching the subject anymore. But unfortunately for her, Lanos bringing her to an abandoned house set her cheeks aflame again. Why are we here alone? Is there anyone in this house? He's being so forward! When did this happen!? But when he asked her to leg go of his hand, she calmed down, quite quickly, and let go. "Alright. What are you looking for?"

No Pinch, No Pinch

Maggie listened carefully, having dealt with the tight knots in Valha's stomach. The rest of the massage there would probably be pleasant. She didn't actually know what to say to most of this. She'd thought about the slums from time to time, and even given some of her gold away to help a few times. But all this talk of revolution was a bit... Out of her reach. "It sounds like you've got a lot on your plate, then... Are you sure you can handle all of that by yourself?" she asked, not sure if she could comment on the situation without being biased. She liked her life up here. "And... You're going to roll over, now. Feel free to hold onto the towel. Need to get to your back to get at those shoulders."

Time For The Applause

Marius rose to his feet with applause, along with the rest of the crowd, as Quincy managed to knock Troy off of his wyvern. Marius, of course, wanted to see him take on the last round, but made no motion to attempt to stop him when he left to collect his winnings. What an interesting man... Such strength! I may have to find him later...

The guard at the gate looked at Quincy with slight disgust, giving him his winnings. "There's yer seven hundred gold... Can't believe you actually made it." He grunted, and waited for Quincy to leave. He didn't want to admit he'd been wrong about him.

Carl Down

Carl didn't get back up from the suplex, and had to be carried out of the ring. A healer came over to Kendeall and healed him up from the punches, as the next opponent came in. He seemed far larger than Carl. He flexed, struck a pose, and then proceeded to hold his hands up, ready to fight.

Edited October 2, 2014 by I have opinions

[riariadne]

"Can I handle it all? Well... no, probably not," Valha admitted, sighing quietly. "That's why it'll take time... some day, they will know my name- all of them- but not today." She pushed the towel up against her chest again, rolling onto her back carefully so as to not mess up her feathers too much. "Sorry if it's sorta hard to deal with... kinda all feathery up there. Not every harpy's got feathers that go all the way around 'n stuff, but I do, 'n nothin' I can really do about that."

[Vestige]

"Yeah, they've been pretty good so far, that Quincy guy sure fights a good fight. Seems like that was the last of it though, shame you missed most of it," he said. And then he turned to actually look at Ingverd and quickly noticed his change of apparel, "Don't suppose you always walk around town dressed like you've got someplace to be? You got a date tonight or something?" he asked bemusedly.

[charlie_]

"Wow, this uh... really fancy." Angus wasn't really sure what to say. He expected that the nobles would have nice houses and everything, but this? "That's Cedric's Crib, right over there." he joked, although it came somewhat half-heartedly. How can the people living here just ignore the slums? The memory of Ertel telling them that some of the nobles kept harpies as pets resurfaced, leading him to look around to try and spot anything suspicious.

He didn't see any, and he shouldn't have expected them to be out in broad daylight or anything, but that knowledge made him uncomfortable. "This place is really screwed up." he said, finally, breaking the silence. "I can't say I have a high opinion of this Cedric guy, and I haven't even seen him yet." He intended to keep his mouth shut for real this time when they met him, or else he'd probably end up running his mouth and screwing it up. Or maybe there's something else I can do...?

"On second thought," he began, tentatively. "Would it be alright if I had a look around for something when we get there? I... don't really trust myself to keep quiet around Cedric and there's something I'd like to check. I'll try and keep out of sight." He added the last part hastily at the end. He didn't doubt Ertel's words, but now that he was here, he felt like he had to confirm it for himself. And if luck was on his side, maybe there was even a chance that he could free some of them? Maybe that was too optimistic, but...

Edited October 2, 2014 by SB.

[Oersted]

"Just some books I forgot to return before I left three years ago, nothing all that special," Lanos said as he scanned the rafters. He saw that the roof itself appeared to be in good condition so, provided no one found them first, the books would probably be in good condition even if they'd be incredibly dusty. Of course that meant there was little light in which to see... much of anything really. He thought he saw something sticking out from one of the rafters so he flew up to get a better look and, sure enough, they were there in all their dusty glory. The only problem would be getting them down. He didn't want to risk taking them down himself, it was hard enough getting them up here, or just throwing them down. Maybe Vriska could try to catch them, it wasn't like they were that heavy, well except for one, and it wasn't that big of a drop. "Hey Vriska, could you give me a hand? Could you try and catch the books? It'd make this a lot less tedious."

[Sandalphon]

"that sounds like it would be kinda neat, yeah!" Vesta said, with a little bit too much enthusiasm. "but uh, maybe when I sober up a bit more though."

She always had this idea that centaurs were supposed to know about this archery business (namely because of the fact that once Mama Clay revealed that Vesta was not to be eaten, the overwhelming response around the camp was "yeah, plus centaurs are supposed to be good at this archery business!")

besides, she always considered her less-than-stellar archery skills to be a sort of Achilles heel, or at least it would be if she didn't have at least a million other flaws.

"Honestly, this is also my first time in this place. I have no idea where I'm goin' and I kinda hope you do... That is if ya don't mind me taggin' along or something. I know these legs look mighty stumpy but I am deceptively fast, I can keep up!"

This making friends thing was harder (and more awkward) than it looked...

[Nanami Touko]

Plans

"Oh, so it is," Makin said, chuckling jovially at Angus' little joke. Surprisingly, there weren't any gates, which meant Makin and Angus could freely walk up to the doors (which might as well've been gates.) She didn't exactly have an opinion on Cedric, but she had an inkling she knew what Angus might be getting at. "Pets?" she asked, nonchalantly. She was about to knock, when Angus brought what was on his mind up. Makin immediately frowned. "What do you mean?" she asked, though she had an idea of what he wanted to do. He seemed like a nice guy, and most of the heavier subjects seemed to bother him, from her talk of revenge earlier. "Tell me what you want to check before I knock on this door. I don't want you getting yourself into trouble that you can't get yourself out of."

Dinner Plans

"Quincy was his name, was it? Yeah, I just saw him knock that draco rider over... Too bad I missed everything else. Alas, surely someone'll step up to the challenge. I need to waste some time before this evening." It seemed Raith was right on the money, as well. "I do, in fact. With Valha. Didn't want to show up in the same sort of clothes I'd been walking around in this whole time, right? Felt I should... Brighten up the look. What about you?"

Studious

"Books? You can read?" she asked, a bit bluntly. She'd assumed most, or even all, harpies of Felson had no idea how to read the common language, given their poor living and upbringing situations. Huh. That's kinda curious, actually. And kinda neat. But there was talk of catching books, that snapped Vriska back into reality. "Wha? Oh, sure. I'm not that strong, but they're just books. Feel free to toss them down." She braced herself, ready to catch the paper treasures. Speaking of books, it had just dawned on her that Maja still had her tomes. Poo. I'll need to get those back, later.

Shoulders

"Are you by yourself in your endeavors?" Maggie asked, feeling her way past the feathers to try and get to Valha's shoulders. It was a bit tricky, but her hands were skilled, and she found a pretty good place to start. "Now, this, shouldn't be painful at all... Just try to relax." She began to press, and work the stress out of those muscles. Stretch, everyone really needs to stretch more... "Maybe you'll end up being a queen, then," she joked. "Is your mercenary group helping with these thoughts? Sorry, just going back to that question. Certainly, someone must see things the way you do."

Edited October 2, 2014 by I have opinions

[charlie_]

"Yeah. Pets." Angus replied, bluntly. "If I get the chance, I'd like to slip away for a few minutes and see if I could find if he has any. I... don't reckon I could free them, as much as I'd like to there's probably not way to do that without exposing myself, but maybe there would be some kind of evidence I could take away from this place and get them out later? Just knowing that they're trapped here in some of the houses and leaving them would wrong to me..." he sighed, expecting Makin to reject his proposal outright. He wouldn't blame her if she did, it was a risky plan and would probably have been better suited to Sonia or someone else, but he felt like he had to try.

[Vestige]

Raith raised an eyebrow at that. Last he remembered, Ingverd was moping about because Valha and Lanos were getting all "buddy-buddy". And now within that short window of time, he'd already managed to line up a date with her. He sure works fast. "Well, it looks pretty good on you. Did you buy it here? Don't suppose you'd be able to direct a guy to where you bought that? I've got uh...someplace to be later today, and I wouldn't mind some new clothes to wear," he said.

[riariadne]

"Not entirely alone, but I dunno how many think I'm really serious about it," Valha admitted. "My best friend is with us, 'n we'd always stick by each other, 'n there's this other guy who... I guess I'm datin', sorta, but there's a whole lot to it all." She eased into the relaxing press of hands, surprised at how much easy Margaret seemed to be having with her wings. "Ha, queen... maybe. Not an easy task, since I'd imagine the nobles wouldn't be pleased with losin' a lot of favor all of a sudden, 'n a lot of other complications, 'n... yeah."

[Oersted]

"Yeah. I've been able to read for a long time, maybe even since I could talk." He tried to remember how he learned in the first place since by the time he was four he could read and write relatively well. However with it being such an old memory, and a certain memory of his mother being one of the few things he remembered from then, he couldn't place it. It probably wasn't even that important. "Thanks, it's a big help," he said as he tossed the first of the two books he dared throw to her. He gave her plenty of time to catch the first one before throwing the second one to her. He dared not throw the third one.. Partially due to it's weight, on the off chance it her on the head it might knock her out, and because it was the most valuable of the lot. He picked it up and carefully began to lower himself from the rafters, letting himself drop once he got as far down as he could and safely landing on his feet. "Thanks again. Because of you that was a lot easier than I thought I'd be."

Edited October 2, 2014 by Oersted

[Nanami Touko]

Well...

She'd been spot on with her assumption, and she sighed. She looked at the door, and then at Angus, and took a few double takes. "Alright, listen up," she said, her voice strict. Was she about to berate him? Oh, far from it. "We'll go in, and while I'm talking up Cedric, you ask if you can use the toiletries, or something. Then sneak about-- and make sure you're quiet," she said, holding her finger right up to Angus' face. "If you make a noise in there that isn't where it's supposed to be, we'll be in deep shit. And, more importantly, out of a job. I'm sure he knows his manse, so if you aren't just in the loo, and sounds start happening, he'll know." She sighed, but after all that strict talk, she smiled. "I knew it was the right decision to ask you to come along. After seeing you shirk away from revenge talk, I thought maybe you were a bit... Cowardly," she said, after a small pause. "It's good to know I was wrong-- Oh, but, one more thing," she said, turning from the door and back to him, "you might have to get a bit creative in your searching. He might've hid them behind a wall, or a bookshelf, or something. I know it sounds like something out of a novel, but with all the money they have to throw around, I wouldn't be surprised. Alright? Alright." She banged the handle against the door.

Directions

"Thanks~ And, yeah, it was this little shop called Clarine's... Was really cheap, but then again, I suppose all the clothes in Felson are that way. Current trends, and all that. Where've you got to be? Got a little dinner date yourself?" he joked, nudging Raith with his elbow. It dawned on him that this was a bit of an odd topic to be discussing whilst they were in an arena, but whatever. It was fun.

A Lead

Maggie got up to the top of Valha's shoulders, using her thumbs to press into the blades, and move the muscles there around a bit. Now there's something I know how to talk about. "Tell me about these two, then. Talk of revolution and changing things is a bit out of my scope, but, I can handle guy talk..." Oh, there's a rough spot of feathers... And we're past it. This is a bit trickier than I thought... "Well, if you're set on changing things, then you'll just have to prove them wrong. Show those nobles that you're fit to be their Queen."

Playing Catch

"What?" she asked up at him. Now that was preposterous. A slum dwelling harpy being able to read from such a young age? "Hold on, Lanos-- ah!" Vriska didn't have to time form the rest of her question as she was now catching books, catching them well enough as they came out of this small attic. Hmm. I don't think I've read these. I'll have to. "No problem. It was just catching books. Now... Seriously, you could read from that young? Unless harpies start talking a lot later than humans, that's... Don't you find that odd?" she asked.

Edited October 3, 2014 by I have opinions

[riariadne]

Valha smirked a bit with the change in conversation direction. "Haha, well... I'm sorta at a crossroads there. It's this... harpy thing, but I'm really attached to both of 'em, 'n I don't really like the feelin' of bein' some sorta competition, yeah? But it's hard to say that, sorta, since that kinda thing is looked down on, 'n I guess I don't care much for what standards are elsewhere, but on this... I don't know. I guess you're gettin' to hear about all my thoughts 'n stuff now, huh?" She gave a small "ooh," when she stopped at one place a bit longer than the others. "So sorta... prove myself, is what you're sayin'?"

[Oersted]

"Yeah. I've been able read since I was, at the very latest, four. I know because I was four when Valha found me and I remember being surprised she couldn't read any of the signs." He hadn't really thought about his ability to read all that much. It was just something he'd done to pass the time when Valha went and did whatever she'd done back when they still lived in the slums. "I guess. I didn't really question it back then because, other than going to get books, it was basically all I did during the day unless Valha dragged me off somewhere."

[Bluedoom]

" Its ok, Vesta, I scanned a bit of this place while making my way towards the inn. I remember hearing a lot of shouts and cheering from a building earlier... I wonder what that was all about. You can come along, of course." Ferdinand replied as he led the way to the building he had observed earlier.

---------

Soon he entered the building he had observed earlier to see a crowd standing in a circle, watching something. Ferdinand moved in closer to see what the fuss was all about.