Konundrums, Katastrophes, and Klytie (Last May Be Redundant)

As Geranium wipes down the last table for the night, she's surprised to see the Floating Frenchman set down in the garden. She calls in the rest of Squirrely's crew, and they welcome their friend, along with Vibrissa and Grumpkins.

"What's up?" Squirrely asks as he pours Lucien a large mug of his favorite cider.

"Ah, I am not so sure, mon ami. I only know that the Protectors have been called and I have been tasked with bringing any who are still here to the Gearwork Goose."

"Are dey goink back to Crystania then?" asks Ingrid.

"I do not know this either. It seems to be the starting point, but alas, all is not yet known. The situation is urgent. That is all I can say."

"Mama," interrupts Chester, "are we going to leave that pretty lady outside?"

Geranium looks up and sees a very sweet looking young girl standing wistfully in the dark beyond the French doors. Branch gets up to open them.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," Grumpkins interjects. "That's Klytie."

"What's a Klytie?" Chester wonders.

"Now, Grumpy dear," Vibrissa purrs gently. "We must be polite to our guest." She nods to Branch to bring her in.

"It's your funeral," snarls Grumpkins.

Squirrely looks at the girl as she enters. Her bottom lip is quivering, and she looks as though she's about to cry, but she seems harmless.

"Well, first of all..."Grumpkins warns to the task, "she's not a young girl. She's..."

"Klytie," says the girl, suddenly brave. "I am 169 in Sidhe years. I'm supposed to be a faerie godmother, but I haven't done very well at it. In fact, I'm sort of a..."

"Walking disaster," finishes Grumpkins.

Klytie nods sadly. "I just get things wrong, sometimes---well, a lot of the time." She sees Grumpkins about to interrupt again. "Oh, okay, all of the time!" She sniffs audibly.

Vibrissa sighs deeply. "Last year, we had a number of lessons in the ways of the non-feline Sidhe worlds, and their excessive need for protocol. It seems Klytie was in charge of matching five human couples and arranging the 'Ultra Deluxe Happily Ever After' wedding package for all of them. A great deal of Faerie Godmother honor was at stake, if you can imagine."

Klytie nods and sniffs again. "But I didn't know that the Grand Palumbos of Palinbah had been slighted in favor of the Faeries, and so they only gave me a list with nine clues. I'm not in the least mathmatical, so...."

"It's just logic, not math" snaps Grumpkins.

"I think logic is math!" Klytie snaps back, finally showing a bit of spunk.

"Ve cud be arguink about dat all night," Ingrid cuts them off. "And, belief me, it had been done vith the Squirrels. Vat is rest of story?"

"Sadly," Vibrissa continues, "she got every couple wrong. The honeymoons were a series of quarrels and accusations, and they had to send in a team of experts in annulments."

"Except for the honeymoon baby couple. They got a Divorce Sorceress," Klytie fills in.

"Ridic!" scoffs Grumpkins. "if they were getting along well enough to make a baby, they couldn't have been that upset."

Vibrissa gives him a stern not-in-front-of-the-kit look, and goes on. "So Klytie was exiled to the Feline Court for six months and has to come back with an understanding of what the couples should have been and proof that she has helped others. We thought an adventure might be best for her, and so we brought her along."

"Lucky us," mutters Grumpkins.

"I heard that!" sniffs Klytie.

"Why don't you show us the list you've got, and we'll see if we can help," Squirrely offers.

"Okay," Klytie smiles for the first time. "It doesn't make much sense, but thanks!"

She hands the list to Squirrely and he begins writing the clues on the board. Branch tucks into the kitchen for some snacks, and the saloon folks settle in to help before the big adventure.

Geranium looks at the clues as Squirrely finishes. "Oh, my!"

"Ya," agrees Ingrid. "It is beink long night, I tink."

Meanwhile, Lappy has finished the story of his recovery, and Hayao now has tears running down his cheeks. Ertrude holds his hand while he explains:

"My brother Sato and I grew up happily in Crystania, where I became an inventor and he rose to prominence in the diplomatic core at a young age. At a masked ball, he met a lovely Sinhaese girl named Hyorin and fell in love. They were so happy together, and the birth of Tanaka made our whole family rejoice.

"Then a warlord named YunSzeto violated the current peace treaty, and hired Kukto mercenaries to take over the western islands of Sinhae. We were all sure he was amassing a power base to invade the continent, so my brother took his family and went to see Hyorin's cousin, who ruled one of the larger islands, and who was, like Sato, a man of peace.

"When they were there, the Kukto struck. I can't explain the pain I felt when I heard they were all gone. But then a young man washed up on the Eastern shore. He was battered and had a sword slice on a shoulder, so it took several months for him to recover. When he did, he claimed to be the son of the very man Sato was visiting. He also said that he had sent his sister, Chiasa, and little Tanaka away in time.

"After that, I devoted myself to a search for my nephew. It took me many places I never knew existed, and pulled me too near death a few times, but in the end, I found a reclusive mystic in the northeastern mountains who had a foster son who matched Tanaka's description. The man was known only as The Master, and the lad with him was nearly twelve, but he was Tanaka!

"He had blanked most of his ordeal from his mind, but after I brought him home, and he saw familliar objects, he began to recall piece by piece. I raised him in Crystania, but on vacations, he returned to the mountains to continue his training and traveling with The Master, who he also loved.

"During last year's events, Tanaka saw an image of Chiasa, and the implication that she was still alive. It was dark magic around her then, so, if she does live, she is in peril, which was just shown in the scrying bowl.

"Tanaka must have gone to The Master with you, Lappy. He would have the skills to restore you."

"He did," the pup nods. "And that's where he heard that Chiasa was alive. That was when the attack happened and I ran."

"Even though Lappy didn't see much of his surroundings, there is only one place I can think of, and that is Ellak City. You must go there, my friends, but I warn you, Ellak lives by its own rules, not Crystania's. It is part of the country, but it teems with brigands and scoundrels of every sort.

"You must go there, and those of us staying behind here and at the Goose will do all we can to help you, but it will be a perilous journey!"

"Mistress," asks Lappy, "may I go? I feel I have an obligation."

Larianne squares her shoulders. "You will go, Lappy, but not without me. And I suggest that all of us leave at once!"

(OOC: Instructions and challenges will be on the OOC thread for this chapter. Please post only in-character postings here.)

Frieda sighs, massages her throbbing temples and looks at her team. "Well, that was an ignominious entrance. I guess we have our marching orders." She reaches down to pet Doom but sees that the honey badger and the Lure named Lini are carrying on some kind of conversation and attempts to stand without help.

After one quick meal and a brief rest, the Protectors make their way through the tunnel to arrive at the Gearwork Goose just before dinner. But a night of really good food and drink is not to be had. Oh, you all get dinner, but that is followed by boarding the various craft of the Crystal Pyrates and taking to the air.

A rather long trip deposits you on top of a sloping hill that leads down to the wide gates of Ellak City. It's an easy walk to the open city gates, but Larianne sighs, "I wouldn't exactly call this 'Cafe' Star Map' a good lead, but it's the only thing Nancy could locate on short notice, so we'll have to roll with it."

She pulls out the diagram and puts it in front of you:

Lappy puts his muzzle close to the picture and listens intently as Lari reads the sidebar descriptions of each place. When she reaches the description of number 8, he claps down his paw. "From what I recall, that would be the place, Mistress."

"Okay, but where is that on the map?" asks Klytie. "There's no connection."

Lari continues, "It says: 'Place the digits 1 to 8 into the grid. The numbers you can see are the totals for the surrounding numbers. Each digit is used only once. So if we total correctly, that should enable us to label them all, and know where 8 is."

Klytie's eyes go wide. "That's math!!!! Noooooooo!!"

She runs off, with Larianne dashing after her, leaving the Cafe' map to you to figure out. Where do the numbers fit on the map? And what will stand in your way after you pass through the open gates? Surely you can figure it all out.

(OCC: This bonus puzzle if worth 100 extra points, and like all else, is totally optional. Submit by smail either in picture for or list the positions of each number. Same deadline applies.)

[Spoiler=Han Solo, heroes we are not]

Nightshade rolled his eyes “Oh no I understand perfectly, you’ll just drop me here in the middle of nowhere” Literally, he was standing in front of a sign saying Noh-Ware 5kms south! “So I can hopefully dowse for some old geezer and a 12 year old in a city full of low-lives with zero info. Is that the sum of it?”

The Crystanians shifted uncomfortably, they had given him a lift to the edges of the Ellak City but that was all he was getting out of them it seems.

Jack looked him straight in the eyes “yes” he said nonchalant.

Nightshade smiled “Good, I’ll add the tracking and finding fee to your bill then.”

With that he spun on his heel and headed to the city, he was aware that his flashy attire would be the equivalent of painting a bulls-eye on his forehead so surveying his surroundings he started formulating a strategy.

Keeping out of sight he waited for nightfall, using the cover of the night -and the guard’s sleepiness… the night shift are never the brightest- He snuck into the city. Once in it was easy to grab the first poor idiot that looked to be about his size and “borrow” his attire. They stank of gin and poor hygiene but they’ll have to do for now.

The streets were oddly busy at this late hour, Shady deals in dark alleys, scantily dressed women standing in dimly lit corners. The whole City seemed sketchy to him. That meant one thing though. His job would be an easy one.

Nightshade headed towards the rowdiest bar he could find, nobody even gave him a second glance when he walked in and asked for a pint.

He held it to his lips but never drank any, his eyes quickly assessed the room and its occupants until he found his target. The man that seemed to be the leader of one of the gangs, he was big, burly with a bushy black beard and a face that only a gorilla could... after a few pints that is.

He left his drink at the counter with a few coins to pay for it and heading to the door bumped into the man’s shoulder. “OI! You want te die ya skinny piece of bog scum!” came the predictable reply, too easy thought Nightshade as a smirk danced on his lips. “You kiss your mother with that mouth or just your boyfriend?” The laughter stopped and the man’s face started to turn red. Nightshade prepared for a brawl.

Twenty minutes and a few bruises later Nightshade walked out of the Bar… or what was left of it anyway, he did end up taking a few hits but once he was done with the gang leader and his men they were more than happy to give up what info they had. After all it was their business to find whatever prey there was in this city. An old man and a well-dressed young boy in a place like this? They might as well have been walking around with a sign that said (ROB ME!) in neon flashing lights.

Tanaka and the Master were seen in one of the nice cafes to the North, by the main road. Nightshade kept to the shadows and quietly made his way there. After the brawl he guessed he had at best an hour or two before more gang members where sent after him. He had to get this over with before then. He stopped just outside the Café, in the dim streetlamp light he could just make out the name of the place. The broken glass windows hinted at signs of a scuffle not too long ago. He'd have to keep his guard up, after all corpses don't get paid.... unfortunately. [/spoiler]

You know, Sorn,” Dash said, “You should name the pixie, it is after all, your pet.” Sorn gave him a very nasty look, so he redirected and said, “Or we could name it… How about Peter?”

“I refuse,” Sorn said with a snarl, “to call that bloody thing something humans call a nickname for a dick.”

Traveling wasn’t bad for Cerac, he had traveled a lot before moving in with his Uncle. The company was a nice change, even the snarking. Not bothering to hold back a snort of laughter he gave Sorn a wide eyed innocent look. “Ye ken, Dick is also a human name- fer, well, a dick.”

Kara looked between the three, her brow furrowed slightly. “Why would you want to name the creature after a penis?”

“I dinnae. It was Sorn’s idea; he is a wee bit o’ a perve. How about Gonad? Or Reginal?“

Sorn’s temper was on a short leash. He gritted his teeth. “I do not wish to name it at all. I wish to kill it.” The traveling wasn’t bad but now the pixie was sitting inside Sorn’s headdress. He liked wearing ostentatious clothing and today’s was a headdress with a working scale. Sorn tried to swat it but it flew out and he wound up slapping his head instead. The glare he had was murderous.

Dash carried on with no concern whatsoever of Sorn’s foul mood. “How about Pixiewiggy? Widdle Cutey, Fluffy Wuffy… he could be Mr Happy Wings to go with Raven’s new fish Mr HappyFin.”

They were getting strange looks as they walked down the street. Then again Cerac giggling like a loon probably had something to do with it. He spun, easily walking backwards so he could look at his companions. “Nay need tae slap yerself. We will figure it out fer ye,” he smirked, meeting that glare with dancing green eyes.

Kara stepped closer to the man, slipping her hand into his once more and giving it a squeeze. “You know, maybe if you just accepted that it likes you, it might not be so annoying,” she murmured.

“I ken! What about mini me? A wee Sorn.”

Sorn tossed a small jolt of lightning at Cerac. Nothing to hurt him—much. Closer to static discharge. Cerac was enjoying this way too much. Then Kara’s hand was around his and it was like some weight shifted—he felt himself a little less angry. “Why does it have to like me? Why could it not annoy the little twat walking backwards?” Like it or not he was going to have to name the pixie… “How about Zhah?”

Cerac danced out of the way, quick on his feet when he wanted to be though a few strands of hair were flying out from his head by the close call. Luckily Conall merely growled and did not attack. Sorn should be more careful, plus they were entering Ellak City and who knew what they would find there. “Kin I call ye brat?” He mock grumbled, spinning back around and moving to walk by Dash.

“I think it is a fine name,” Kara agreed, paying no mind to the boys. They were just wound tight, maybe a little nervous. “Now where is this Café we are supposed to find?”

“What does Zhah mean?” Dash asked as he took his lover’s hand. It had been an enjoyable time at Sorn’s expense. But now they had to focus.

“It means ‘is’ in drow.”

“That’s an odd name for a pet, isn’t it?”

Sorn shrugged, he never had a pet in his long life, never named anything. Hell he had not even met any of the children he had sired. A look of sorrow flashed for a brief moment and then it was gone. “I do not know,” he said with a growl. “The map we were given makes no sense to me. I really don’t care about this stupid café. Maybe we just follow the rest of the morons that came with us?”

Dash took in the city, which really didn’t look like much. Thin twisty roads, rundown buildings—it had a feeling of lawlessness and rather dingy to him.

Kara took out the map and puzzled over it for a few moments and led the group towards the café. She noticed Sorn was out of sorts and held his hand to help calm him. She wasn’t sure if it was just traveling, leaving Raven or something else. Maybe when they were alone together he could tell her what was up.

Both Cerac and Dash wordlessly decided to leave the drow alone. As they walked through the dingy and narrow streets. Finally they arrived at the entrance of the café. All of the group seemed to notice the same thing—there was signs of a scuffle. Sorn muttered “shit” under his breath in Drow. The others knew without knowing his language what he said as they all echoed that sentiment and none of them wanted to know what exactly had happened.

: [spoiler=Organized Chaos Split Up] After a meal and a short rest, The Organized Chaos gathered with the rest of the protectors in the Gearwork Goose to arrange for transportation to new land. Frieda strode up to the first pilot she recognized,  "Captain Lucian, it's me, Frieda, of the Protectors."  She stammered a little, she was somewhat in awe of the Captain of the Floating Frenchman.  He had been very genteel toward her in the past, even to the point of kissing her cheek when they had departed on the last adventure. "My team, the Organized Chaos, are in need of travel to Ellak City and would appreciate your help."

"Mon Ami," the pilot of the Floating Frenchman cooed. "One does not simply walk into Ellak City dressed as you are, an alchemist.  Your garb, your habit, as it were, would give you away, you would be arrested, convicted and executed on the spot, alchemists are outlaws in that land."  He motioned for one of his lieutenants to come over. "Outfit this lovely creature in the garb that a warrior would wear."  The other members of the O.C. were welcomed aboard, stowed their gear, found a place to sit and awaited departure.

After Frieda had been properly arrayed she felt burdened by mass of the gear she was compelled to don in order to appear as a warrior. She was familiar with most of the weapons, she could wield a small sword fairly well and could manage a bow and arrows, but she had no idea what to do with a shield.  Still, one must merely look the part, not necessarily be proficient in all aspects of the ruse.

Once aboard The Floating Frenchman, Aicha the mage found herself a quiet part of the ship as soon as they were aboard and locked the door behind her with a spell. Dropping her small bag onto the floor, she changed the rickety chair into a plush lounge with a wave and sat. After a quick delving meditation to make sure there was no one and nothing around her to spy, she withdrew a piece of folded parchment from her sleeve. Unfolding the square into a large rectangle, she set it down upon the cushion beside her. An unfamiliar and strange array of symbols and shapes covered the page in random direction, no true order or repetition visible to them. The mage scowled to herself as she grabbed a notebook from her bag. Page after page was filled with notes and calculations in various languages; almost all were crossed out.

Three months. It had taken three months of work to steal this note from one of his men. Three months of careful planning for a note she couldn't read. And now she would have almost no time to work on it at all...not to mention her trip to the archives had been delayed. Muttering a curse no one else was there to hear, the mage flipped to a new page and began to write.

Lucian had warned everybody that the journey would take several hours and Frieda was tired enough to consider taking a nap, but she was more interested in catching up on the news and events of her friends.  She was especially interested in getting to know Vaedelia better.  She approached the ranger and stuck out her paw, "Welcome aboard the Organized Chaos Team.  I know we met briefly, but we haven't had a chance yet to talk.  I love your name, Vaedalia." She gestured toward a bench apart from the others and sat. "Where do you come from?"

Vae sat, but didn't answer Frieda. Instead she took out a pad and a pencil and began to write.  Immediately, Frieda put her paw on the ranger's arm and caught her eye, "Can you speak with your paws?  My youngest daughter Aya, who has no voice, has taught me her language.  Perhaps you speak it also."

The ranger put her pad and pencil away and used her hands to make silent gestures in a smooth, fluid motion. My voice is in my body, I use it to speak for me."

Frieda nodded and used her paws to reply, "Would you prefer me to speak with my voice or my paws when conversing with you?"

Vae replied "When with the others, use your voice, but in the wild or when the need arises for us to remain silent, use your paws." Vae smiled.

Frieda smiled back. "I think we shall be good friends.  I could be your interpreter if you like, or Dace, she also knows your language, she is Aya's auntie and they are as thick as thieves."

"Well... shit"  The little fluttery butterfly that flew in loops around Dace's head cussed for what had to be the hundredth time and finally chose to land in Dace's chestnut hair.  "I don't wanna go flying again!"  Dace rolled her eyes but sympathized with the delicate faerie.  Last year's adventures had taken quite a toll on the poor little thing, what with evil faerie magic, nearly getting blown up several times and the constant air sickness she had gotten from being on the Terrapin glider.   Dace was a bit sturdier, but she had to admit that airships just weren't as familiar to her as her own barge.  She admired Frieda's warrior outfit and hefted her rucksack higher on her shoulder as she boarded the Flying Frenchman.

Teislyn had patiently listened quietly to the rest of the story that Larianne had related about what the Protectors were attempting to accomplish, but there was no real instruction about what her part was going to be.  Being the bard was very important to her team, but rarely were there explicit instructions up front to clue her in as to what was expected of her. Instead, she was usually called upon on the spot to improvise some performance or contrivance.   Teislyn gathered up her bag and went to find Lini who had wandered off with Doom somewhere.  Once the lure was found, she met the others at the Frenchman and boarded. She couldn't help but feel a bit apprehensive and a bit excited about the unknown they were heading into.  She knew from previous adventures that, even though the situation might become difficult, or that the pressures would be nearly insurmountable, her team had always prevailed and had made it thought in one piece.  She had faith that it would be so again on this adventure.

Vaedelia was so accustomed to traveling by foot that the thought of air travel filled her with slight unease. Azbre, however, was all fluff and blurs as he wriggled around both on and nearby her with clear excitement. He always did enjoy being her scout in the tallest of the trees, and to him this was going to be the best scouting he'd ever have the opportunity do. Not to mention he was equally thrilled about spending time becoming acquainted with his new friends. Vae drew courage from his excitement, pushing fear aside, and stepped onto the ship. She stuck to her instincts to keep her mind off the upcoming flight and started having a look around the ship. When she felt more confident in its ability to get them safely to their destination, she sought out her teammates. Vae hadn't had much time to interact with them yet, but she was becoming increasingly optimistic about where the adventure was going to take them all together.  Knowing that the vagabond and the alchemist could converse with her did much to calm any anxiety she may have had.

When the Frenchman eventually landed after its very long journey and all moorings were secured, Azbre shot past Vaedelia to explore the new land. She shook her head, but a soft smile was present on her face. As Azbre investigated close by, she waited for her team to settle on the hill as well.  As the Protectors gathered on the small hillside overlooking the Ellak City, Larianne presented them with a coded map as their only viable clue for finding the cafe they were supposed to locate.  Vae stared intently at the puzzle and began working it out in her head while Azbre cavorted nearby.

Once landed, Teislyn followed the other on the hill and gazed toward the city gates.  Line chased after Doom and Azure, sniffing out all the new scents while waiting on their humans to figure out what to do next.  Teislyn managed a small smile at the sight and then turned her attention to her group and what appeared to be a map.

The sensation that the Floating Frenchman had stopped moving eventually aroused Frieda and she stood, momentarily confused. She didn't remember dozing off, but then again, wasn't that the nature of sleep? She quickly gathered up her gear and joined her group on the hill.  To her eyes, the city looked strange and foreboding, she had never seen a city with walls and a gate before.  Her team were all looking at a strange map that Larianne had produced and Vaedelia looked as if she had already worked out the puzzle of the map. The ranger made gestures with her hands again, "I think the best course of action is for us to concentrate on the left-lower quadrant of the city," Frieda looked at Vae with amusement and was impressed with her air of confidence and authority. She made the sign for Vae to continue.  "That seems to be the best bet for locating that cafe we're supposed to find." Dace was interpreting Vae's signs for the group and Frieda was delighted to see everybody nod in approval.

Frieda took a look at the map and couldn't find any argument with the ranger's conclusions and turned again to Vae, "I'll trust your instincts on this one," She was good with making things that went boom, but finding her way around a city was not her strong suite. She pointed at the strange shape of the city on the map, "I thought all cities were supposed to be laid out like a waffle, how are we ever going to get around this place with the streets going in all directions."  Frieda was no navigator, not by any stretch of the imagination.

Dace turned from the map and looked out over the land of Sinhae "So, we're headed to a cafe in Ellak city right? And we have a map?"  She had stood by while her clever teammates had deciphered the clues, but now was the time to plan on how to enter the city.  Luckily she had some prowess when it came to navigating uncharted waters, so she volunteered to help get going through the streets of the city.

It was decided that rather then entering the city as a group, the Organized Chaos Protectors should enter the gates in a staged intervals.  Vae and Dace worked out a time schedule with directions and instructions for each member of the team. Vae took Frieda by the elbow and then signed, "Lady Frieda, will you come with me and we will enter first?  We're going to take a rather circuitous route and scout around while we're at it."  She placed her hand on her weapons, "A warrior and a ranger wandering the streets will draw attention away from the rest of our team as they take more direct routes to our eventual destination." Frieda just nodded and tried to look bigger then she was.  Did the ranger know she was no good with directions?

Dace next handed a slip of paper to Teislyn.  "Nobody will question a musician who makes a bee-line to a cafe, a typical haunt for a hungry musician looking for work.  Just follow the instructions, you really have only one major turn once inside the city gates.  Just be sure to keep your instruments in plain view and nobody should trouble you." Teislyn took the instructions and tucked them into her satchel.

Dace held out another piece of paper to Aicha and resisted the urge to say something snotty.  Dace never really came to terms with the mage during the last adventure and was reserved about her chances of making fast friends with Aicha today.  Still, if Friendship is Magic, there was at least a tiny hope that they might be able to come to some terms, if she could keep her tongue in check. "You are also taking an indirect pathway to the cafe's possible location, mostly as a distraction, but also because of your abilities.  I have no doubt that you will arrive unseen."

Dace looked to her team mates, "If all is satisfactory, then I will enter last and I will arrive at our destination from the opposite side of the city."  She turned to Frieda, "Is that OK, cousin?"

Frieda smiled, jostled the load of weapons higher up on her shoulders, took up her shield and nodded, "Yes, that's perfect Dace, Vae.  Good luck to all."

Aicha wandered away from the group slightly before channeling her power into the runes she had drawn on her arms and legs before debarking. The power flowed through her then settled and the mage walked out into the city. Invisibility was a tricky spell to pull off; tricky and costly in the amount of power it consumed. Cloaking spells could be seen through by certain beings and the aura they gave off was easily detectable to any magic user worth their salt. It was far easier to just dim oneself. That is, of course, if you knew how to do it. In all essence, being dim turned one akin to a ghost in way of appearance; transparent was perhaps the best word. That coupled with a little "don't notice me" charm rendered her practically invisible to all. It would take a gifted mage to be able to see her now.

With no fear she strode through the city being careful not to bump anyone or anything; being dim did not make you able to walk through things or people, mind you. Aaicha easily arrived by the cafe before anyone else and stood waiting.

Frieda and Vae strolled into Ellak City with hardly any trouble, or so it seemed.  The gates were wide open and it appeared that there were few guards standing in the gates and even fewer citizens.  Usually, there were city elders who occupied the important places near the gates engaged in discussions among themselves, greeting strangers, inquiring of those who entered and exited about newsworthy information.  But today, it seemed strangely quiet.

Vae and Frieda wound their way through many back streets and alley-ways and were greeted by the citizens with quite nods, a small salute or a brief 'hello.'  But, nobody stopped them or asked where they were from or what their business was.  At one point, on a wider corner, they encountered a food cart and Frieda strode up to the purveyor and asked for what looked like a meat-filled pastry, the matron quickly handed her one wrapped in paper.  When Frieda took out a coin to pay, the woman lowered her gaze, waved her hand and said in a hushed voice, "No, no payment please.  I want no trouble.  Take more if it pleases you."

Frieda opened her mouth to insist on paying, but Vae gently took her by the elbow, "My Lady, we must be on our way. Trouble this woman no more." then turned and strode away.

After making their way through narrow, high-walled alleys and somewhat unfriendly looking turns, Vae, Frieda, Azbre and Doom stood gathered in a dark alley across the street from the cafe's entrance. Vae took a deep breath in anticipation of their next move and waited for the rest of the team to arrive.  They would remain hidden until everybody was accounted for.  Now she wished she had taken a meat pastry from the cart like Frieda had, she was very hungry. Frieda could not see Aicha, but she could sense her emotions and wasn't surprised that the powerful mage had arrived first.

It wasn't long before Teislyn arrived with Lini.  There were little cafe tables along the sidewalk and the bard took a seat at the last table which was partially obscured by a big potted shrubbery. She debated on unslinging her lute to tune it up and perhaps play a few chords to liven up the place.  But what was the point of sitting half-hidden and then drawing attention to herself?  Perhaps it would be better to wait to see what happens next then to make a show.

Dace and Buttercup navigated down the main concourse toward the center of the city, where the marketplace was and the highest concentration of people could be found.  One of the best ways to get lost in a city was in a crowd and if there were any who were 'tailing' them would soon loose them in a sea of faces, sights and sounds.  Once they had arrived at Market, the vagabond strolled among the stalls while Buttercup kept an eye out for anybody who looked like they were paying a little too much attention to their presence.  Convinced that they hadn't drawn any attention to them selves, Dace doubled back and headed down a side street which eventually brought them behind the cafe.  Dace rested for a moment and thought he heard somebody chewing food in his ear. "Is that you Buttercup?  What are you eating?"

The faerie didn't answer right away but swallowed her bite and followed th

Half-awake and groggy, Akalia forgot where she was at first. A quick glance around revealed that she had slept the night away in a chair in the cockpit. Stretching out her sore muscles, the elf heard the soft snoring of Gunther. He had taken residence in the chair beside hers.

“Let’s never do that again,” Akalia yawned.

Most of the night had been a blur, but she swore that there was a talking, drinking otter. That can’t be possible, can it? And the door, it opened on its own. I think. Shaking the thought from her throbbing head, then instantly regretting it, Akalia rose from the chair and picked up the sleeping goat.

The slowly sobering elf left the cockpit and made her way down the corridor wondering who else was awake.

“Rumor has it we have to go to Ellak City!“ Myra exclaimed, “How wonderful! I always wanted to go there!“ The alchemist smiled and looked somehow … dreamy? “Huh?“ Krios replied, swirling his staff, “how would a good girl like you even know such a city full of villains exists?“ Myra gave him THE look. “Never heard of Ellak Choc Lac?“ the silver-haired maiden asked, astonished. “Best in all the worlds!“ Krios scratched his head and looked a little bit nonplussed. “Um, well - no? What is it, some kind of chocolate-colored cootie?“ Perhaps, they make suitable bait, the young mage thought, already wallowing in lovely fishing days home at the lake, the beloved image of a very special girl floating lazily around in his head…… “A what?“ Myra couldn't believe it. “There are no lice in it! It's the finest unsweetened chocolate milk drink you'll find. Its natural process cocoa base has no added alkali and tastes intense bittersweet with a full truffle flavour…….." Myra´s voice trailed off, she got it that Krios apparently wasn't sharing her passion for hot chocolate with cream. “However“, she murmured, "I used to import quite a lot from there. They have great coffee and vanilla beans, too.“ "Perhaps we can visit the merchandiser, he always wrote some cheerful letters about what to expect next!“ "He could be able to help us find a portal!“

Krios, rudely awakened out of his daydream by the word help, pondered this only shortly, then agreed. “We don't know anybody around there, could be a chance, if only a small one. However, we have to use any resource.“ “Do you know anybody in Ellak City, then? Any contact?“ Myra inquired. “For a fact, yes“, Krios admitted and blushed slightly. That looks interesting, Myra thought and nudged the mage, encouraging. “I don't think this contact would be useful at all. Let's not talk about it, it was long ago……“

Shimmershadow was already curled up at Krios feet, looking forward to one of the mage´s long and sometimes confusing yet always rewarding stories, the demons settled comfortably on his back, their jewel-like eyes sparkling.

“I was very young then“ Krios confessed, “you have to consider that!“ The mage looked around, haunted. No need for any more people to hear this embarrassing story! “I stayed in Ellak only for one day - and a day I would rather forget about. With two mage students, I spend some hours at a monastery a little bit outside the city. The monks prepared for an open day and we felt quite a bit bored. Cake selling, honey, pottery, not the kind of things a young and ambitious apprentice of the magic arts is interested in. So we offered to fire the grill ….." Myra smiled, she could see it coming already. “At first, all was well. Then, we thought why not show off some of our special fireworks? The first fellow knocked off some silver and golden stars, to the loud adulation of the audience. The second colleague conjured a fire-spewing golden dragon and the Ohs! and Ahs! continued. Naturally, I wanted to top this. A ballet of dancing fire elves came to my mind and with closed eyes, concentrating hard on the difficult spell, I started with a sweeping arm movement and, accidentally, hurled a big bowl full of chilis into the fire. They mixed up with the stars and the dragon's fire breath and with a big bang, the planet's most spicy chilis exploded and showered all the spectators with bits and crumbs, and also the cakes!“ Myra pictured this and gave a high, clear laugh. “You hadn't done it intentionally“, she soothed yet Krios answered with a small voice: “The cake was only the half of it, yet all that whining, we had to heal many an eye, nose and mouth that day. The monks were not amused, we had to leave immediately afterwards. They thought we had done it on purpose. I don't think they would help us somehow, they would shoo us away when recognizing me.“ Krios sat down, exhausted. He didn´t like to remember his defeats. “Yet I am sure your elven ballet would have been beautiful!“ Myra said fondly. With shining eyes, the red-haired mage looked up. “Shall I show you?“ “When we have successfully completed this adventure!“ the alchemist suggested. “Deal?“ “Deal!“ Krios jumped to his feet “Let's get ready for action!“

With a sleeping Gunther still in her arms, Akalia continued her aimless wandering until she heard hushed tones coming from a room that she had just passed.

Curious, she turned around and sneaked a peek inside. In the room was Myra, Krios and their companions. Krios looked as though he was telling the silver-haired girl a story. Akalia made to listen from a far when Gunther stirred in her arms and kicked the door.

"Deal! Let's get ready for action!

Akalia watched with a sheepish face as Krios jumped to his feet. The elf put Gunther down and stood up, waving to her new friends.

"Good Morning", she placed the biggest smile on her face that she could and entered the room with a tired Gunther in tow.

With a hearty smile on her lips, Myra turned to the newcomer and welcomed her. Shimmershadow stood quickly and nudged the little goat, which caused an uproar with the demons because they had no intention before to leave their warm resting place.

"Kronos! Rhea!“ Krios exclaimed, "Stop bickering! I can´t hear my own words!“. The demons gave him a dirty look yet their cackles died down and they sat down on their master´s shoulders one by one.

"Excuse them demons, my fair maiden“, the mage said, and with an inviting hand movement, he continued "I hope you slept well, come sit down with us.“

"We were just discussing plans for how to venture forth in Ellak City, the place we´re needed now.“ the alchemist provided. "What are your plans, anyway? What´s the destination you´re aiming for?“ Myra asked, curious.

Akalia looked at Myra curiously. Ellak City? Having never ventured from her forest before she had never seen nor heard of such place. She pondered how to answer when she saw Gunther prance around Shimmershadow as he had done on their first meeting.

A sweet smile crossed her face and she looked back up to Myra and Krios.

"Going wherever you go!"

Not waiting for a response, Akalia swiftly turned around and headed to the cargo bay. Gunther quickly following behind.

Lilith stumbled awkwardly from her room, one hand steadying her on the door frame the other rubbing her forehead. “I'm never letting you and Val talk me into doing that ever again.” The half-drow groaned as she could feel the bile rising in her throat. Rushing back into her room she just barley made the toilet. Jasper sat on the edge of the bed sipping from his cask, a smirk crossing his lips as Lilith groaned from the bathroom. “You're the one who didn't want to be upstaged, I don't know what you where thinking trying to drink two drunkards under the table.” Slipping off the bed he headed out the door momentarily popping his head in he called back to Lilith. “If you're done we have a bit of urgent news we need to attend to.” Before Lilith could answer back Jasper had dashed off to find his drinking buddy. “Yeah yeah I'm coming.” Speaking to thin air Lilith hobbled her way down the hall making her way to the rest of the group.

With Valera, Lilith, and Jasper awash in a drinking game Verrek had elected to wander the ship a bit. He found himfelf poking around in the weapons bay, SilentOne on his shoulder filling the Shade's head with attempts at verse and rhyme. Verrek wondered if they could install an enclosed rotating turret uner the T.S.I.M. Chimera that would have more of a range than the one Gatling gun they had above the bridge...

The shade made his way out of the weapons bay and stepped into the cargo hold just as his senses picked up movement from the direction of the living quarters.

When Akalia entered the Cargo Bay she noticed that Verrek and SilentOne were already there. Still a bit wary of him after their first encounter, the elf mustered up her courage and approached him while waving.

"Hello! Good day isn't it? I think Krios and Myra are on their way as well."

Gunther bleated as if to confirm the elf's statement and Akalia looked behind her to see if they, or anyone else, was coming.

The Shade blinked, then remembering himself he bowed his head courtiously.

"Hello again, Akalia. I'd like to apologize for not introducing myself." He straightened up and gave her an apologetic smile.

"I'm sure by now you have heard my name from the others, and that isn't how it should be." He gave a full sweeping bow, one hand to his chest the other extended behind him.

"Verrek Kaslin Call, at your service. I am a Shade and member of the Chimerad, Protectors of the Wayward Squirrel."

Verrek stood straight again, noticing that SilentOne had left his shoulder to flutter down to the floor next to the pigmy goat Gunther. The crow cocked his head at the creature and grunted deep in his throat, about the only noise he could make.

"And that is my formidable ally, SilentOne, a crow of many talents and few words."

"Hello again, Akalia. I'd like to apologize for not introducing myself."

Akalia's attention focused back on Verrek as he bowed and formally introduced both himself and SilentOne.

She had seen a similar gesture before as travelling merchants tried to pass through her forest once. When the Shade finished introducing himself, Akalia mimicked him as best she could.

"Akalia Selve. I am," she paused for a moment, "the protector of my forest."

Akalia stood back up and pointed down to Gunther, 'And this is my goat, Gunther. He just followed me home one day."

Gunther looked blankly at the crow that grunted at him and let out a small cry. Lowering his head Gunther tried to headbutt SilentOne. Before he could connect, the elf picked him up, "That's his way of saying 'Hi'."

SilentOne flew away to perch on Verrek's speeder windshield.

"Rude." the crow said to Verrek through their mental link.

"Don't worry about it, SilentOne has trouble fitting in with other animals, he thinks he is human." Verrek said aloud smiling at the goat.

"No, not rude." Verrek thought to the bird. "Maybe young."

"I didn't see him attack ShimmerShadow." The crow huffed.

"Not attack, goats do butt heads in greeting. Besides, it's different when creatures meet a unicorn and you know it. Regardless, if he really is upset at all it would likely be with me since I acted suspicious of his companion." Verrek chided silently.

The Shade glanced over the top of Akalia's head up the hall where she had said Myra and Krios would be coming from. His conversation with the elf had barely lasted a minute, the alchemist and mage would likely be here any moment.

Myra and Krios and their companions approached the cargo bay to meet their friend and the newcomer, the alchemist turning over the supplies she was able to make before their departure in her mind, the young mage spinning around, exuberant. Myra, used to this behavior, tried to concentrate yet had to listen with half an ear nevertheless to what was Krios´ latest synthesis of the fine arts.

Her friend began to hum and then, in a more low voice, she perceived the intonation of an old nursery rhyme she had long forgotten:

" Dumm, dumm, dumm, Krios beats the drum. Myra says we have a deal, she doesn´t know how good I feel, dumm, dumm, dumm, Rhea beats the drum.

Dumm, dumm, dumm, Krios beats the drum. Fire elves and dancer fine to be seen in all their shine, dumm, dumm, dumm, Kronos beats the drum.

Dumm, dumm, dumm, Krios beats the drum. Portals found and fiends fought wiped out without a thought, dumm, dumm, dumm, let´s all beat the scum!"

And with a last swirl and a mock bow, Krios stopped right before Lia and Verrek and the procession of friends and companions came to a stop.

"dumm, dumm, dumm, let´s all beat the scum!"

Sure enough Krios swirled into view thrumming to an old beat. Still caught up in his recitation he finished with a bow and froze as he saw he had more of an audience than he first thought.

Verrek smiled broadly and applauded striding forward to greet the mage as Myra and the companions appeared in the hall behind Krios.

"A marvelous performance Krios! Myra! There you are, lovely as ever! Has anyone seen the Captain? We have much to discuss on the mission at hand!"

Valera drank back her current mug of ale, before she stumbled her way towards the bridge. Feng walked closely behind the pirate to make sure she didn't fall over from her drunken stupor. It would seem as if the ship reached the Wayward Squirrel in due time. Val chuckled to herself because she remembered Lilith hightailing it to the bathroom. Maybe one day the drow could hold her liquor...

Because her legs couldn't hold her up very well at the moment, Valera hopped on Feng's back before she picked up the mic to inform everyone on the ship of their arrival.

"hic ALRIGHT ME MATEYSSS!!! Meshinks ye all need to getsh to the Wayward Schwuirrel and shee whatsss they wants. I'll finish up here'n heads on oversss once I'av the ship shut-down properly! hic Grabs yer shings'n git going!"

With that the pirate went down her checklist to make sure she had everything turned off and locked up before she left the ship and joined up with the others.

The PA crackled to life as Valera's drunken voice echoed through the ship's hull.

"Alright then, you heard the Captain!" Verrek said with a wave of his arms. But at the blank stare from Akalia he thought maybe not.

Rubbing the back of his head bemused that anyone couldn't understand Val's pirate accent he translated for the elf:

"Captain says we need to get to the Wayward Squirrel and see what they want. She'll finish up here and head on over once she has the ship shut down properly." He looked around at the others.

"So grab your things and get going!"

And with that they all scattered.

Disembarking the T.S.I.M. Chimera the members of the Chimeriad entered the Wayward Squirrel and proceeded to show their newest member around until their Captain could rejoin them. Together they learned all about Lappy's return and their mission to Ellak City.

The Chimeriad ate a quick meal and made their way through the tunnel to arrive at the Gearwork Goose just before dinner. But a night of really good food and drink is not to be had, ("Jus' try an stop us!" Val and Jasper bellow.). Oh, you all get dinner, but that is foll

Abigail watched as many people disembarked the airships and headed towards the Café. She had heard rumors that there may be dark Lords brewing up trouble in Ellak City. However, none of her sources had been able to figure out who had been behind many of the turbulent skirmishes and mysterious disappearances in the city. Out of habit, Abigail rubbed her locket while she thought of the troubles in the country.

Opening her locket, she whispered, “Come and be my shadow for a bit, Rune.” Her companion, Rune, slowly descended in a dark mist and took on the form of Abigail’s shadow on the ground.

‘You must be careful around all these strangers,’ Rune cautioned her with his soft mind voice. ‘You never know who might be able to pry into your thoughts.’

Abigail looked at her shadow on the ground, ‘You are quite right,’ she mind spoke. Looking around once more she pulled her hood up and over her hair, concealing most of her body in the cloak she wore. She stood to leave and noticed that the sky had begun to turn brilliant deep orange. Rays of the setting sun soaked into the few thin clouds that lingered in the sky, looking like huge bleeding gashes.

‘A bad omen that is,’ Rune mind spoke as he followed Abigail’s train of thought.

‘I choose to believe it is simply a gorgeous sunset,’ she replied and began to walk towards the Café.

Leaving the grass clearing, she entered the dusty road and entered the throng of travelers headed towards the Inn. Abigail was glad she had chosen to wear her cloak, the thick dust made it difficult to see very far ahead. Just as the sky started turning a deep red Abigail saw the sign of the Café as it gently swayed back and forth in the wind.

Jacob flew noiselessly through the air, landing on a low pine branch near Alexia. He flooded Alexia’s mid with his emotions, trying to convey the cause of the commotion in town. After soaking in the news, Alexia let out a deep breath that she hadn’t been aware she’d been holding.

“We’ve been summoned,” she whispered while looking out from under the protection of the pine tree. She looked down the mountainside towards the small village that rested near the only trade port in the region. There was smoke rising from several chimneys and people scurrying about the streets, like squirrels gathering nuts before the first real cold sets in.

Alexia could tell from Jacobs not so subtle joy-filled energies that he wanted to go. She half smiled at his exuberance as she quickly packed a few items.

After making her way to the port, Alexia located the next vessel out of this tiny village. Jacob flew down and perched on Alexia’s shoulder as she walked on board and found the most secluded bunk on the ship.

Due to the high volume of travelers on the ship, the journey to Ellak City seemed longer than it should have been. As soon as the ship reached the destination port Alexia jumped over the side, not even waiting for the ship to come to a full dock.

She sent relief and pent up irritation emotions towards Jacob, who just looked at her and nodded in understanding.

The streets were quite noisy from all the travelers that had been summoned. The dust from the street created bright motes of light that floated aimlessly on the gentle breeze. The setting sun was spreading rays of deep amber and red light through the streets, creating a peaceful moment amidst the chaos. Alexia focused on the energies around her, allowing herself to recharge and gain stability.

Just as she was thinking about finding a secluded place to wait out the throngs of people, Alexia rounded a street corner and saw the Café that had been mentioned by many travelers who had also been summoned here. She found a quiet corner and leaned against the wall, watching everything around her.

Bright red wings beat up and down as the big parrot tried turning himself back around on Kalyna’s arm. One of the wings hit the young girl in the face, on accident of course, but she just scrunched her nose, she was used to it. Now that Spike had turned around, he calmly walked the rest of the way to her shoulder where he clicked his beak excitedly at her.

“I know, there’s so much to see.”

This was Kalyna’s first time out among so many different people. Of course she’d seen her fair share of ports since her parents were pirates but they didn’t often travel far from the waters that were both home and freedom. This was far inland and there were so many different kinds of people and creatures! Spike had been going in circles trying to watch everyone and everything that was going on around them. She chuckled, he was so engrossed in eyeballing everyone that his head hadn’t stopped bobbing since they’d met the crew from the starship. It seemed that quite a few people were meeting up on the way to the Goose!

The Gearwork Goose had brought out delicious food and even a bowl of feed for Spike. A lady named Starboard sat next to her. She vaguely remembered her from the meetup. It turned out they both loved boats and sailing, and Starboard had her own bird at home. She was wearing all black, a lot of eye makeup, and had purple and blue swirled hair. She ordered a bottle of wine and winked at Kaylna and got two glasses.

Spike had shown his enthusiasm for the home grown seeds and fruit by gobbling it down and had even asked for more. He’d knocked the empty bowl with his beak and looked very pointedly at Kalyna and said, “Walk the plank.” She laughed at his harmless threat and got him a refill, half of it had ended up on the floor anyways. Starboard had laughed her butt off when Spike told her to walk the plank. “Cheeky buggers, aren’t they?”

He was more careful with the second one, he’d been rather preoccupied with everyone and their stories over dinner, as she had.

“My bird’s name is Wash,” Starboard said while taking a drink of the red wine. “I brought him along last year but I didn’t this time around. Thought I’d save his sorry ass the hassle. Kinda regrettin’ it now though.”

“Oh I wouldn’t go anywhere without Spike,” Kalyna said, savoring the warm, rich taste of the wine and desserts. “I’ve had him since I was a little kid! We’ve done so much together and he’s a part of me.”

After dinner they were offered rides to Ellak City by the Crystal Pyrates. Kalyna was almost jumping for joy when she heard that there were pirates. Starboard, her, and this girl named Shalinda who knew someone Starboard knew, or something like that went in the same aircraft together. She was so excited to meet these pyrates! They were just as crazy and amazing as she thought they’d be and had the most incredible airships. They told incredible stories the whole time.

Once they landed they found out that the only way to find the Café was to solve a puzzle. Luckily the ranger, Alixia, was able to figure it out. She could figure out her way almost anywhere without a map but first she had to know where she was going. Being born to life on a ship she’d acquired the skills to find her way using the sun, a compass, and the stars at night. Though the stars here were sure different than the ones at home! On her way she was going to pick up some maps. Pirates do NOT get lost. She slowly stroked Spike’s feathers. The city looked clean but she could see from here that they were very twisty and much of the city wound over large hills and valleys. Time to go see what adventures awaited!

“Oh, be still my beating heart,” Starboard said to herself. The Floating Frenchman had been docked in the garden an hour ago. It was the second most beautiful ship she’d ever seen. (After her own, of course.) She wasn’t one to swoon over a sailor or captain but a good ship got her every time. She walked near to it, noticing the improvements that had been made since the last time she’d seen it. Last year had been chaotic and the ship was lucky to even be in one piece. They were all lucky when it came down to it.

When she’d received the summons to join the Wayward Squirrel protectors she had hesitated in answering it, but only for a few hours. She was more than happy to brave her fears, go adventuring, or get up to no good but this… What she’d seen last year had been more than she’d bargained for and she knew just how dangerous it could be. Worse maybe. She knew that if she didn’t reply or said no they’d just find someone else to fill her shoes. Yet instead of that thought pushing her to stay, it pushed her to go. For she DID know the perils, she’d seen the morbid creatures from nightmares, experienced the destruction a corrupted faction could do, fought warriors from a dark and nasty world, and she’d managed to come out on top. A stranger wouldn’t know, wouldn’t have that experience to guide them, but she did. And she couldn’t let someone else stumble into the same same situation she had last year.

This time she at least knew what she was getting into. She'd seen Angelica at the meeting too, which had eased her anxiety a bit. She'd been there last year and was really good at everything she put her mind too. She might look and act like a diva but hey, when you have it, might as well act like it. She'd never been into glamour, glitter sure, she smiled to herself, but she didn't blame Angelica for strutting her stuff.

She jiggled around in her pockets and pulled out a cigarette and lighter. The sun was going down as she lit it. She walked around the ship a little more, smoking, thinking about the destination ahead and the odd little Klytie. She seemed to be a basket case but as long as she could follow orders she should be safe enough. The dog who thought like a human, trapped in a new puppy body, kinda creeped her out though. She’d never been a huge fan of dogs if she was honest though. She’d left her owl/hawk hybrid, Wash, with friends this time. Last year he’d been a huge help but she just couldn’t bring him with, going in this time knowing exactly how dangerous it was. He’d grumped at her but she stood firm.

Speaking of… Her phone buzzed with a text from her friend. Wash was doing just fine, spoiled space-birb that he was. She sent back a picture text with the Frenchman lit up by the setting sun behind her. Shit, it was late already. Shoving her phone back in her pocket she grabbed the bag she’d left by the back door and headed inside. Time to get to the Goose and get her grub on!

Dinner at the Goose had been great. She’d found out that the tan girl with thick brown hair and brown eyes named Kalyna was a pirate where she came from. This instantly arose suspicion from Starboard since she knew a few space pirates and there were only three kinds. The ones that would stab you in the back to your face, the ones that would stab you in the back when you weren’t looking, and the ones that would be your friend but were always working an angle. She sat next to the young girl and after talking for a while knew that the kid wasn’t any of these. She seemed like a decent person and they chatted about boats and sailing for a while. Her bird, Spike, was adorable and sassy and she even fed him a piece of fruit.

She also made the discovery that Shalinda knew her old friend Brynna, and more than that, was her aunt! Brynna had been with the Nightowls team the year before when they’d defeated the evil sidhe empire. Starboard was glad to hear she was doing alright. Like herself, it seemed that she’d had a rocky few months re-adjusting to normal life. Starboard definitely felt that. She called the waiter and got another glass for Shalinda and poured her a glass too.

“Cheers to Brynna!”

They all took a drink. Wait a minute, she thought- “Cheers to us, too!”

That got a laugh and they all took another drink.

**

The ride on the Crystal Pyrates ship had been hands down, exquisite. They were fine drivers and she’d trust them with her life if she needed to. She tried not to take up their time by asking them a bunch of questions about the mechanics, engine, flight stability but a few managed to get by until Kalyna asked them about their pirating adventures. They had dragged poor Shalinda along in their craft so when Kalyna asked if they could do a barrel roll, Starboard quickly interjected. She swore she saw Shalinda’s little bunny give a sigh of relief.

Once they landed they met up with everyone again. They were just outside the darkened city. She didn’t like the look of those narrow alleys, she found the knife strapped to her leg with her fingers. She wasn’t an expert anything when it came to fighting but she had taken the time to learn what she could. The map that they’d been given wasn’t even a real map and she’d almost used the knife on the blasted thing before Alexia worked it out for them. Thank god for that, she thought. They headed towards the gates. Suspicious as always, she stayed towards the outside where she could keep an eye on things.

Levity stood at the top of the hill soaking in the sunshine. She loved the sunshine although you could never tell from her white skin that she did. For some odd reason no matter how much time she spent in it she never gained any color. Of course that was not the only odd thing about her she thought and giggled to herself. She kind of wondered what she had gotten herself into and felt a little bit of anxiety. She hoped she had not made a mistake in coming here but she could not just ignore the summons and really hoped that she could be of some assistance. She looked down at the open city gates and felt a surge of excitement come over her. She had a feeling that she was in for a wild adventure and could not wait to meet her new companions. Pistol, her feline companion who was chasing something in the grass, paused long enough to pop his head up and shouted at her. "Care to join me?" he asked. "Um no, I'm good. We should probabbly make our way down." she replied. "Looks like you shall live to see another day tiny little creature. Remember, it is I who decided that our game should end and as such I have granted you your life, for if I had continued in my pursuit you most certainly would have met your demise." A little rabbit then popped its head up from the grass and wildflowers and promptly showed Pistol her backside as she hopped away. "Get over yourself Pistol!" she exclaimed as she grabbed her duffle bag. "You know I don't approve of you hunting. If you are hungry eat this catnip infused, salmon flavored enegy bar I made for you." she began to dig in the bag to find him one. "Oh no! What have I done to deserve such torture!" Pistol replied throwing himself down in the grass and dramatically covering his face with his paws. "Fine. Starve, jerko!" She closed her bag and stood over him. "Get up, doofus. We have an adventure to go on" she said as she started down the hill. When she reached the city she quickly navigated her way through the streets and followed the noise to the Café where people had gathered and were talking excitedly to each other. Everyone seemed very animated as they greeted old friends and new. She looked around and smiled as a girl began to approach her. Here we go she thought to herself.

Shalinda had decided to be dropped off a good hour away from the ship that would be carrying her to adventure so she could walk the rest of the way. It was a lovely day out and she found that walking helped her think things through and calm her nerves. When Brynna had asked her to go in her place to join the Protectors, she hadn't hesitated, but now she found herself with butterflies in her stomach and a worried crease in her brow. Brynna had told her all about what had happened last year and Shalinda had seen how drastically

[spoiler=Bumping elbows with the locals: the Wayfarers arrive in Ellak City] Jean was rather disappointed that, of all the members of the Fellowship she’d travelled with in the past, only one of them had been free to join her for the latest trip to the Wayward Squirrel and beyond. And with that friend delayed by various troubles, she’d found herself looking at a solo adventure. Luckily she was not the only one whose usual companions had been otherwise occupied, and a talented bard had offered her the chance to join a new group. The vagabond had been glad to accept, and during the journey to Ellak City she’d tried to get to know her new partners. Sihr was less certain about them. Dragons, even small ones, often found faelings tasty, and the assurance that these particular dragons would leave her be was not yet sufficient to bring her out of hiding. She’d changed spots from Jean’s shoulder to her pouch after Cosmo had tried to make off with some of their coins. The lizard, at least, was not large enough to be a threat and how dare he try something like that? Jean had forgiven the matter, but not Sihr.

This was all a very new, but exciting experience for Lyra. She had heard from her friend, Clara, all about her previous adventures with the band of Protectors known as the League of Whovians, so she was eager to experience her own. In fact when Lyra was doing her storytelling, it was Clara’s adventures against the Unseelies that quite often drew the largest crowds (and for Cosmo, her pickpocketing lizard, the most profitable). Lyra couldn’t wait to chat to the crystal pyrates for more of their adventures so that she might find some more fascinating subjects for her stories, but first she had to have a stern conversation with her pet about not pickpocketing from their new friends.

HeiYu, having committed to joining up with this new group of adventurers, spent the time travelling to Ellak City trying to learn something about her newest acquaintances, and being amused by the new friendship between Mee and Cosmo. Having somehow understood that Cosmo was jealous of her wings, Mee had spent almost all of the journey either on the ground or on HeiYu’s shoulder. She seemed to find Cosmo quite handsome.

After waving farewell to the Crystal Pyrates who had deposited the Wayfarers uphill from the Ellak City gates, the group of adventurers huddled around the Cafe Star Map, trying to work out which cafe was where. “Wait,” said Lyra, “So we know we are looking for cafe number 8, and where it is on the map, how do we know where on the map we are? There don’t seem to be any other landmarks marked, let alone a giant red ‘You Are Here’ arrow.” She was holding the map, turning it this way and that, hoping that would help shed some light on the problem.

HeiYu quietly watched and listened. She wanted to learn more about these strangers. What skills did they have? How would they react when difficulties occurred or danger threatened? Who would she be able to count on? She was mildly amused as Lyra tried to figure out the map by turning it about.

Safera spoke up. “I suggest we make our way into town and then perhaps we can get our bearings once we reach a cafe. We can use those helpful descriptions on the side of the map to work out which one it is.”

Ellak City was a bright place that hid its shadows well.  “I’ve heard about this place, but it’s exciting to be here in person,” Jean said, torn between taking in the sights and keeping an eye out for trouble.  “However, with the twisty streets and a coffee shop or cafe on almost every corner, finding the right one is going to be difficult.  At least we figured out that map.  It should get us where we want to go, but let’s try not to attract attention on our way.  Better we avoid a fight if we can.”

Hoping to see something that would correspond to their their solved map, the Wayfarers headed deeper into the city.  The streets were narrow and had little pattern.  If anything, they were designed to get people lost.  And it was hard to avoid brushing elbows if there were more than a couple people present in any given place.  Inevitably there was a minor collision as the Wayfarer’s ranger, not quite used to so many people, banged against a local tough.

The man flung an insult and advice to pay better attention.  “Does your hair do that naturally, or did you have to work to make it look so trashy?" he added, mocking the ranger’s unusual style.  Safera only gaped a moment at the insolent fellow before his dark face flushed darker.  How dare the man insult his appearance, especially his hair!  He swung his fist and connected solidly, leaving behind a bloody nose and what would doubtless be a lovely bruise the next day.  The man on the receiving end stumbled backwards, his hand going to his nose.  When it came away bloody, his expression turned equally furious.  “You think you can slam into people and then attack them when they call you on it?  I think you need to be taught a lesson.”  A shout lifted the heads of several thuggish folks loitering nearby.  Safera would have set upon the ruffian again, but his companions caught him.  Jean and Lyra each grabbed one of his arms and dragging him off in a hurry.

What was he thinking? Jean wondered, doing her best to keep the scowl off her face.  Had Safera seriously just socked someone in the face over a bit of rudeness and an insult?  It seemed he was even vainer than he’d appeared on the flight over -- and hotheaded to boot.

Lyra found herself biting her lip as she helped Jean drag Safera away. She was furious at his impetuousness. When she thought they were at a safe enough distance, she let go of his arm and whirled around. “I can’t believe your stupidity” she hissed, “for Pete’s sake, we’ve just arrived. Let’s not draw attention to ourselves, I have a feeling we don’t want the people who have been following the Master and Tanaka to know that are here yet. And an outright street brawl is a surefire way of getting the wrong kind of attention!” Cosmo perched on Lyra’s shoulder, chattering and clicking away as if emphasising his owner’s fury.

“Now’s probably not the best time to be discussing it!”  Aery pointed behind them, where the disgruntled man and his cohorts were advancing purposefully in their direction.  “Let’s get out of here.  Silme!  Make sure we don’t run into a dead end.”  The tiny dragon spread its wings and flew ahead, with the Wayfarers hurrying after.

HeiYu ran lightly along, no longer amused.  This was no way to avoid attention, let alone a fight.  As soon as the group raced around a corner a few seconds ahead of the chasing toughs, she cast a spell and kept running.  When the chasers came dashing after they slowed a bit and seemed to be confused, which was only natural since they could no longer see any of the group and were not at all sure where they’d gone.  As they lost time trying to decide whether to keep running or look for their targets in the surrounding buildings, the Wayfarers continued at full speed and eventually left them far behind.

Lyra stopped and doubled over, trying to catch her breath. “Okay… I.. think...lost them. Must..remember..to...do...more...exercise...when...home.”  She stood up and looked around. “Did anyone happen to notice any cafes while we were running? Otherwise, I think we are totally lost.”

“Only two or three,” Jean replied.  She wasn’t quite as out of breath, but still needed a moment to bring her heart rate back down.  “But none were the one we wanted.”  They got out the Cafe Star Map and Jean tried to identify which cafes she had seen.  The rest of the group looked around them, trying to work out where they should go next.  A couple of street urchins who mustn’t have been much older than 9 or 10 were watching them carefully from across the street.

“I suppose I’m going to have to ask for directions,” sighed Lyra, “come on Cosmo, maybe that money that I saw you pinch from Jean can pay for some information.” She started to head towards the children, but then stopped and sniffed. “Guys, come on this way, can’t you smell it? Gosh, that coffee smells fantastic! That must mean there is a cafe nearby. Let’s see if it’s the one we are looking for. In any case, I would kill for a grande, quad, soy, no foam latte. And ooh, I wonder if they have pastries.” Lyra was suddenly energized at the mere thought of caffeine and baked products, dashed off to find the cafe, leaving the others to trail uncertainly after.

Jean sighed when the shop was not the one they sought, nor any of the ones on the map.  “Honestly, this place seems made to lose people.  Asking for a guide seems like a good idea.  Give me a minute.”  She headed toward the loitering kids, and after a bit of negotiation and a few small coins changing hands, two of the younglings followed her back to the others.

“Gotcherselves good and lost, didja?” the taller one chirped, as her shorter friend gave them a gap-toothed grin.  “Well, we’ll getcha where ya wanna go.  Not gonna wait long, though -- your friend better hurry up!”

Fortunately purchasing a snack and a drink took little time, and soon the Wayfarers were following their guides through the narrow streets.  When they arrived at their destination, the redhead girl stuck out an imperious hand.  “Here y’are.  Now gimme the rest of it!”  The vagabond did with a few words of thanks, and both children dashed off, vanishing into the maze of Ellak City.  The group of Protectors turned their attention to the cafe before them.  What waited inside?[/spoiler]

((@Raven @Die I am loving watching you guys~  *giggles at the antics*))

"What the..." Lovecraft is to stunned to continue.

"I got bored," Tea says and takes a drink of the beverage sitting on the table.

"I think that was mine," Kaiidth says to her.

"Good thing I asked for a spare copy of the problems," Reaper says handing the sheet over to the others. "Keep Tea away from this one. Here wifey, have a drink I feel you may need it before setting out." She hands Lovecraft a tall fruity looking beverage.

Terrena, Spring and Kaiidth start working on the problems coming up with fast solutions.

"Think we are done," Spring says.

"Just in time cus our transport to Ellak City is arriving," Terrena states looking outside at the flying ships.

They quickly turn in their answers to the logic stuff and head out the door.

"We are going to a cafe right?" Tea asks. "Tea and Cakes are going to be great! I want one of each!"

"The cake is a lie," Reaper says over her shoulder to her.

Lovecraft grabs Reaper and shakes her, "DON'T EVER SAY THAT TO HER! You have no clue what she will do with that sort of thing.

"Yu-huh....lovecraft confirmed it," Reaper says back to Tea, nods and doesn't look over at anyone else, "Cake just for you." She starts to bite her nails nervously.

Eying them both suspiciously, "So there will be cake?" Tea pushes.

"THERE WILL BE CAKE! There will be. Yummy delicious cake. No one here is allergic to cake, right?" Springjoy bounces into the conversation, "We can take over the kitchen and make it if we have to."

Lovecraft quickly puts a hand over her mouth, "We don't even know if we are going to go inside this cafe to HAVE any of that stuff. So quiet!"

"You guys can decide all that later," Terrena says. "Kaiidth is already on the ship waiting. Think she is trying to get away."

They look up and see Kaiidth standing on deck of a flying ship waving at them. "Come on guys! This one."

Off they go......

The Dazed Denizens of Chopped Crazy Delusional Jalapeno-ville stood atop a hill overlooking Ellak City.

"Glad the trip here was rather uneventful," Reaper states.

"The city looks nice," TerrenaAnimula states.

Kaiidth stood with the group and all she could see was the close quarter streets making her and Terrena's ranger abilities harder to use, not impossible but harder.

"Lets find the Cafe," Kaiidth states. She and Howie, her companion, start down the hill into the city. The rest of the group follow her down.

"OMG!" Tea exclaims and looks at Lovecraft. "You didn't push me down the hill!" She goes to grab Love for a hug.

"Don't even think about it," Lovecraft says to her. "Besides that would have been to easy to push you HERE. I think the drop off location was a set up to get rid of you."

Kaiidth looks around some and shrugs. “Does anyone know where this cafe is we are supposed to go to or are we just checking every cafe till we find the right one?”

"I don't see a map," Terrena says looking through things. "I guess stop and check as we go."

After a few minutes of the group discussing they head off to try and locate the right cafe. They look into a couple and ask for directions, but no one seems to know what they are asking for.

Stopping at yet another cafe, the group decides to sit and relax for a few getting some tea. Perhaps they could discuss a game plan on getting to the location safely. Seeing as they only offered tea, being a strict coffee drinker, Lovecraft offered her drink, which she thought was a simple mint mix to her cats, unknowing that the mix was catnip. The cats start licking at it and quickly the catnip takes effect. The kittens start going bonkers chasing each other and playing. The cafe owner starts yelling as Lovecraft tries to corral them looking to Reaper for help. Reaper shakes her head nope and gets up heading out the cafe.

Kaiidth gets up and looks sympathetically at Lovecraft. “Uh we're canines so…. Uh we don't really do well with cats….” she slips out the door with Reaper. “So uh now what?” she asks as everyone but Lovecraft joins them outside.

Kaiidth shrugs some. “Keep looking I guess?” she heads off towards the west. Tea-roll starts doing cartwheels and other acrobatic moves, knocking down all the street signs as she goes. They try to get her attention as she heads off down a different road then they intend to take. Destroying more things as she goes.

“Howie follow her…” the white wolf looks at her a bit before heading down the road to follow her. A distance behind her, but doing as he was asked.

After a while Kaiidth stops to rub her feet desperately in need of new shoes. Reaper noticing this smirks, one of her favorite things is to shoe shop. Grabbing Kaiidth's arm she drags off their merry band to a shoe shop. Reaper starts pulling out shoes for herself and Kaiidth to try. Springjoy and Terrena start to browse in another section trying things on.

“This isn't what we are supposed to be doing you know. There are more important things to do then buy shoes,” Kaiidth states. Reaper looks aghast at her.

“WE need new shoes!!! Lots of walking to do so for the greater good of the mission we need to do this.” Reaper replies. Kaiidth didn't know how to argue that point so she just went about trying on shoes till she found a pair that fit well. Laying down her coins she notices the light fading to late afternoon.

“Guys it's starting to get dark, like late afternoon.” she heads out wearing her new boots and looking around. Reaper, Springjoy and Terrena follow her out with several bags in their hands.

Lovecraft walks up as they exit and appears to be some cats short.

"What happened to all your cats?" Terrena asks seeing only two.

"Well," Lovecraft begins, "The cats were causing such a mess, but at the same time other patrons were so amused by their happy, playing nature that they wanted to know how they could get one. So, I talked it over with the owner and convinced them to start one of those new awesome Kitty Cafes where you can go to relax, play with a kitty, and even adopt one. I had to keep these two, they were my original ones that were changed. I feared that some day Witchy's brew would wear off and poor innocent people would find dazed and confused and naked Sindhe guards standing in their home."

"Convinced?" Springjoy says suspiciously. "You never simply convince. I mean you have that 'OFF-LIMITS' room in LRVT and you use that word convince when bringing people in there too. I never see anyone come out. What did you do?"

"Lives MAY have been threatened, but none were taken," Lovecraft grins.

They once again head off stopping a few more times before someone stomach growls loud enough for all to hear. The group laugh.

"It's getting late," Springjoy says. "I think we should just stop for the night and find the place in the morning." With that, Tea_Roll walks up still being followed by Howie.

"Good job, Howie," Kaiidth says has he runs up to her. "Hope wasn't to much trouble." Her companion seems to have a horrified look on his face tho. "Tea was there any trouble?

"It was Tea," Lovecraft says, "There was probably lots of trouble."

"Well since you ask," Tea says. "No trouble, just lots of fun adventures on our own. Right Howie?" Kaiidth's companion ducks behind her away from Tea's view. "We may just want to stay out of the downtown area of the city for awhile tho," Tea continues on. "They aren't sure when they may get the fire put out."

Terrena and Springjoy gasp. Reaper and Kaiidth just stare at her in disbelief.

"Not all that shocking," Lovecraft says, shaking her head.

Clearing her throat trying to move the topic away from the fire, "Any leads on the cafe we're looking for?" Kaiidth asks now that the group has reunited. "We visited dozens today."

"And none of them have any cake! How could they ALL even be in business without selling cake!" Tea says. "Fresh isn't even here and we could have eaten our fill!"

"I know," Spring says. "It's almost like someone called and..."convinced" them to pretend like they never heard of cake before." She looks at Lovecraft, who ignores her.

"Lets just go to that Inn and Pub over there," Reaper points. "We will get some rooms and a good meal, with drink. Set out in the morning."

"Good plan," Terrena agrees.

The group head into the Inn and Pub. After getting two rooms, figured they could sleep three per room, and settle in. They head downstairs to the pub and find a nice corner booth.

They each grab up some and start to look. Cake or not, it was time to eat!

"OHHhhhhh," Tea says, "I could eat everything on here!"

"Do you have a bottomless pit?" Reaper asks looking up at her.

"No I just never get full," Tea responds looking over everything.

"But that's exactly what a bottom-" Reaper starts before Lovecraft lays a hand on her arm, stopping Reaper from continuing.

"Not worth it," she mumbles before going back to her menu.

They each order a few things from the menu and a nice tall glass of their best on tap. Getting their meal they didn't realize how hungry they were, they seem to shovel everything in fast.

"Wow that was good," Terrena says sitting back in the booth.

"I don't think I ever ate that much," Spring states.

"Now we can get good nights rest," Kaiidth says. She, Spring and Terrena stand up to leave.

"I'm gonna have a few more drinks," Lovecraft states.

"Me too!" Reaper adds in.

"I'm staying for more food," Tea utters while licking her plate.

Kaiidth, Terrena and Spring just shake their heads and go up to sleep. Leaving the other three behind in the Pub. Knowing that this probably isn't the wisest of choices, but they are so tired and can't babysit the other three.

Morning arrives and they are all in the lobby. Its easy to notice, Reaper, Lovecraft and Tea are still tired because of their yawning.

"What time did you three get to sleep?" Kaiidth ventures to ask.

"Sleep?" Reaper asks.

"Plus side," Lovecraft continues on while ignoring the disapproving stares, "We got directions to the cafe we need."

Tea pulls out a napkin to show to everyone.

Directions to the cafe on a napkin

After looking at the napkin for a few moments, "What are the green things by the pub?" Terrena asks.

"US!" Tea says. "Thats Jalapenos!"

"And, um, dare I ask the red-orange area is?" Spring asks not sure she wants to know the answer.

"That's downtown," Reaper says looking at Tea. "According to those we talk to the fire is getting bigger down there."

"Is their a straight route to the Cafe from here or do we have to do the twisty part?" Kaiidth notices the turn and kinda the out of the way direction towards the death skull.

"It is a straight path," Lovecraft says looking at the map. "I think Tea got carried away with the dash marks.

"Okay then!" Terrena says "Lets go!"

The group gather up their possessions and head out the door to the cafe. No one mentions that Lovecraft now has three cats instead of just two. After about a 15 minute walk up the road, they come to a cafe.

"This has to be the place," Reaper says. "It has an odd vibe to it."

"I don't care!" Tea yells. "They better have cake!" And she takes off running for the door. Before they can tell her to wait, she runs into the door and bounces off. "What?!" She starts pulling on the handle of the door. "OPEN! I want cake!!!"

The others walk up behind her and notice the Hours of Operation sign on the door. The place doesn't open for another half hour.

"May as well sit at one of these outside tables," Kaiidth points and sits down.

"Get a little more rest while we can," Spring says agreeing with her and pulling up another chair.

The rest of the group does the same. Sitting and waiting til they can go inside.

[/spoiler]

[spoiler=The Reaver Team Finds Their Way to a Cafe]After the last adventure Ilaera had been traveling around, trying to find her own destiny. She hadn’t found one yet and was still unsure what to do next, but then she had been visited by a tiny squirrel and she knew that she had to go for another adventure.

She whistled to Phaeri who was high up in the sky and she knew that the bird hadn’t seen the squirrel. "Come on, Phaeri," she yelled to the bird. "We’re going on an adventure again!"

~

While he should have been at the goose with his team, making arrangements for the trip ahead, Jettison had wandered out a bit to deal with some business. It was likely more on the shady side. After all he was in a cemetery and holding cash by the end, but whatever it had been he seemed pleased with himself.

Though right as he was about to take a seat on a nice little plinth near the exit, something swooped down and landed on his head. He paid it no mind as it was obviously Potch. What other bird would be so ok with sitting in his mostly shaven mess of ginger locks while also chattering away about something or other.

"What ya want?" He shifted and shoved the wad of cash in a pocket inside his jacket.

"STAND AND DELIVER" the bird said, doing a little spin and becoming more caught in the hair below his claws.

"Elaborate. Unless ya' jus want me ta sing Adam Ant for the fifth time today..." Jettison sighed, not sure what had his little friend in such a specific mood for that song. He tried to sing goodie two shoes and even play it but Potch insisted on the other.

"SQUIRREL VISIT, DID BEST NOT TO EAT." Potch took a second to think of how to say what he wanted. Of course in the mean time Jett chuckled at the image of poor squirrely trying to talk to this daft avian while also keeping safe. "WAYWARD NEED. YES."

"Yes.." The brit said with a roll to his eyes. He understood, but that didnt mean it wasnt annoying. "Well then, we best be off. Glad we stopped in at th' goose earlier. Aint got time ta' go back now. Lead th way, will ya?"

~

Sashi had made her way over to the Goose as well.

She wasn’t happy to find out that by the time she got there most people had already left. She got up to see the vessels to see if anyone them could take her to Ellak City. She wished she had taken her bike with her, as she had enjoyed riding it in the previous adventures. But unfortunately she had to leave it behind.

She saw the Victorious Vixen all ready to go, so she ran over to it and jumped it. She was curious to see if her friends had made it to Ellak City too.

~

Kenny looked up as a crystal squirrel over the door of his cellar alchemy lab chimed and began to glow. Quickly packing his enchanted travel satchel (It was larger on the inside than out), with his chiurgeon's implements, along with a variety of healing herbs, and useful powders, he called for Blanco and headed for the now shimmering door.

Blanco stretched and yawned, reluctant to leave his sunny window ledge until he saw the cellar door open into a portal to the Crossroads. Eager for an adventure, after Kennys mishap last time had left them rebuilding their home instead of joining, the little black dragon leapt to soar through the gateway after his friend.

Spotting the Caroline, Kenny hurried over to shout "Ahoy!" to his friend Bearman Jack....

~

Esme decided that she enjoyed her adventures so much that she wasn’t in much of a rush to head back to the village even though she had plenty of stories to tell.

Whilst at a local tavern Esme received a note saying it was time to gather her things and make her way to the inn so she could head to the Gearwork Goose, Nighteyes wasn’t very happy to be moved and grumbled at his mistress. She made her way over and found that before she could even say hello, the last of her group was heading out. She quickly made her way to one of the ships around, which happened to be the Caroline. Once alight Esme made her way over to a familiar face. Thankfully she was able to catch up right behind Kenny who was waving down a ride.

“Hi Kenny I hope all is well with yourself, do you think we will meet others from our team, I do hope so...I’m am very interested to see if Venus is able to make it too." She stopped to give him a smile then said "Might I join? I guess I arrived a bit later than I expected. Im glad to see someone I know at least."

"Of course! I havent had a chance to see anyone yet either. So it will be nice to catch up on the way to our destination." He smiled as well, giving her a pat on the shoulder. "Im sure we will. No idea on Venus though. I heard that Jettison and Sashi both left early. Though I dont think Jett was on his way to the city just yet...Quite odd that one is."

She laughed, looking back on the past wayward adventure. "He is. But you get used to it. Jett just has a lot of...spirit. It brings us all a good mood and some extra fun during hard times."

"I only really know the little of him from the Nutsy case. Not like we had much time to chat then."

"Oh yeah! I forgot we had you there with us. Well it should be a good time. For now though, should we board? I think we are keeping Jack waiting..." Esme looked up and saw the large man staring down at them, not mad, just a bit annoyed maybe?

"Yes, I say we shall. Then we shall be off to Ellak City!" Kenny ended with before making his way in to the vessel, helping Esme and Nighteyes in as well.

~

After Ilaera and Phaeri had finally arrived at the Gearloose Goose and had found a few of her friends in the crowd of bodies, she was trying to gather her thoughts.

She had just arrived there and now she had to travel to Ellak City already. She didn’t even understand what was going on, like for real….no one had told her anything, other than that she had to be there, cause they needed her bow. She knew she was just grumpy because of the lack of sleep and of course she knew that they were summoned to help out, because that was always the reason for them to be asked here.

She had no clue what to think of Ellak City. She hadn’t been there before and had no idea on what she had to bring with her for the travel. She grabbed her satchel, which was filled with arrows and daggers, and her bow and walked out to search for her beloved Phaeri.

Jettison walked a good bit still to make it back to his ride. With it not starting at the Goose he expected to be on his own. Though a stop was made at the exact place and he peered out the window.

"I think ya got a friend back mate." He said to the bird who had been asleep on his lap.

Potch perked up, knowing if it was a Squirrely adventure that Phaeri would likely be there. So with Jetty insinuating such he was even more stoked for the mission.

Ilaera and Phaeri were looking around to see if they could find a ride to travel to Ellak City, it would be nice if they could be on their own for a little bit, to see if they were able to figure out what they were supposed to do in Ellak City

Kenny and Esme had left and Sashi was nowhere to be found, So she may get lucky and score some alone time. Unfortunately before she could hop on board of one of the vessels, she heard Jett yell her name, she sighed as she knew the man could be annoying sometimes, but she quickly headed towards him to travel together.

"Well ello' there. Been doin well?" He asked, reaching a hand out to help her climb the steps inside. Immediately he could see the look of 'ohman I wanted quiet' dash across her face, so he tried to at least talk a bit more softly than usual.

Potch on the other hand was silent for once, at least in chatter. He was squawking happily as he and Phaeri circled above their owners. Doing their own bird like greeting.

Ilaera walks over to Jett and gives him a hug. As annoying as he can be, they had been through so much together that she also considered him a very good friend and she knew that she could rely on him through the adventure and he was fun to work with after all. "I have. Not up to as much as I hoped. So this will be a nice change of pace." She said as they pulled apart and took their seats.

"I know that feelin'. Though by th' end of this Im pretty sure we will both be ready fer' some extended r&r."

Phaeri finally settled down and took a spot by Ilaera, still watching Potch intently to see what the silly raven may get up to. Just like his owner, Potch was a bit of a loose canon.

"I remember how long I slept the first night I got home after our last adventure...all that stuff near the end in the ship really had me worn out. So I agree."

"Prolly a good idea ta keep it slow then, build up energy an not waste it to begin with." Jett grinned, pulling out a book from his over shoulder bag.

Sighing contently she leaned back in her seat, reaching out to pat Phaeri. For the first time since they had met, it seemed Jettison may be looking for quiet just like she was. Unless he planned to read the darn book aloud. She wouldnt put that past him.

Settling in just as his companion had, He got to reading and just let his pet fly around the cabin of their transport vehicle as much as he liked. Though a few times he threw some sharp looks when the creature started to peck at things. He was a freaking Raven, Not a woodpecker. Why was this even an issue?

~

When both modes of transport arrive, somehow Jett and Ilaera are there first. Even though they left last. Maybe he had chosen a faster vessel, or bad traffic was hit by the others? Either way, it gave the two of them and their birds time to take a good look.

They are dropped on a roof and have to climb down some fire escapes to make it to ground level.

After they’ve been dropped on the rooftop in Ellak City, Ilaera looks around to see what the area looks like. It seems like the city consists of narrow streets only. How where they supposed to find that Café in here?

"No wonder they wanted ta' fly us in. Drivin in this place would be a fuckin' nightmare. Not like ya can even fit a car in th' alleyways.."

"Yeah, Im glad I didnt walk. Its like a maze. Maybe we will get a map..? Or did you bring one?" She could tell pretty quick that Jett handt, from the look of disappointment on his face. Hopefully someone else had one. Or knew at least where to start.

"Should we explore? Or wait here?

"If this s' th official meeting spot. I say we wait around yeah? Best not get lost an then late." He plopped down then, sitting with his back to a stone wall. With in seconds he had a sandwich open on his lap, glad he decided to pack it because who knew how long itd take to get to the cafe.

Potch had been sitting on the fire escape and now flew down, grabbing bits of the sandwich before going back to his spot.

"I already fed you! Dun' go stealin my damn food! Lil' piece o' shit." Jett huffed and then took a bite. Though he was a bit more his usual loudness, there was little real malice to his tone.

Ilaera just nodded, taking a few more looks in both directions. She laughed at the confrontation, and then more so when she saw her bird trying to steal crumbs that had fallen around Jett. She hadn’t seen Phaeri do something like that ever before. The bird had a hard time trusting people besides her.

"See, now thas' fine. I aint gonna eat floor stuff. Learn some stuff from this one!" He spat, glaring up at the Raven who was now laughing and doing a little flap of the wings. Quite pleased with himself for annoying Jett so quickly in to this ordeal.

Moments later another vessel lands on top of a roof and out of it jumps another team member. Sashi looks around and quickly spots Jett and Ilaera in the crowd. She smiles and waves at them, yelling a hello to them from the other side of the roof.

Jett looked up to see a familiar face. He waved with one hand while doing his best to keep his lunch from being inhaled by Potch. "Ey!" He said, trying not to speak too much with his mouth full.

Sashi comes over to them. “I have some serious déjà vu...” she says to Ilaera, pointing at Jett.

Ilaera smiles to Sashi. “That’s probably because Jett is always eating or laying around somewhere in the dirt. You recall the last time we went on an adventure right? He was in the grass outside the inn like for the entire time we were there”.

He spits and makes a face at that, though he knows its true.

"Ahaha you are right. No wonder." The girl says, reaching in to give Ilaera a hug. She had really missed this banter and teasing. With Jett around it sure made that sort of thing a common act.

Ilaera hugged her back, and just as she pulled away one more ship went over them. Bringing a large shadow over them until far enough to the side the sun could peek back through. "Oh look, I think we have more friends above."

From the ship a rope ladder tumbled out, which Kenny was quick to begin the descent down. He smiled and said "Hello!" right as he hopped to the ground. He was so excited to be part of his first ws with this group of misfit toys. It seemed they had already begun to chatter and get hellos going.

Once the Caroline had arrived at Ellak City, Esme waited till after Kenny departed down the ladder, tucking nighteyes under her arms she proceeded to descend, into the gathering crowd.

Having looked around Esme gave a squeal of joy and ran to her dear friend Ilaera and gave her the biggest hug she could forgetting that she still held nighteyes who was not at all happy to be squashed. Looking around she became more composed and smiled and said hi.

Sashi crossed her arms while looking at Jett floundering around. She smiled to Esme, knowing that she must have the same thoughts about Jett at that moment.

"Aww hello there you two!" Ilaera said, hugging back. It seemed she was either the most huggable or the most popular to get so many, but didnt particularly mind.

Jett finally stood up from his little spot on the stone walkway now that he finished eating. Though in the end only came out with about 2/3 of the food. Potch scurried off with a much larger bit than Jett thought. So it couldnt be counted as a full meal. At least now that almost everyone was here they should be heading to a place with more food soon.

He brushed himself off as he said "Im glad ta see ya' all. S'been ages." The man always enjoyed some good sleuthing and puzzle work, and it would be far easier to do such a thing with people he understood and knew how they were as a team.

“I agree with you on that” Sashi says. “I missed the challenges and I can’t wait for a good fight. There’s gonna be one this time, right? It has been a while."

"Even if there aint, I got a feelin yer gonna find one if ya want it that bad." He laughed, waving a hand at the girl. She was still the same as ever.

"You know I will." She said with a large smile. Sashi was going to say something to tease Jett back, but Ilaera began to speak first.

“I’m sorry Venus wasn’t able to make it this time. I contacted her before we left, but she said she was so busy that she wouldn’t be able to travel with us. She did say that if we needed her she was just one phone call away and we could contact her anytime."

[color=olive]Kenny sa

Could you please lock this, dear? We're going on to Chapter 3.