August stands on a balcony of her guild hall's second floor. She's observing the adventurers that have been assembled for this quest.
As always, they're a bit of an exotic bunch at this level. Especially the Gold Rank adventurers. Two ranks below a Star adventurer, they're as strong as any Olympian, and have the skill of seasoned veterans. There aren't that many though, only twelve altogether.
"I'm as strong as a Gold rank, but only have Silver Rank. This will be a good opportunity to prove myself amongst the adventurers. Of course, I can't overdo it or it will tip off the public to my skills." August thinks calmly.
During August's youth, an importance was placed on secrecy when it comes to one's power and skills.
"August, proving you have power is a double edged sword. You may be feared and loved for your prowess, but then others will know what to look out for when they come for you. Thus, it is best to act with as much secrecy as possible." Julia Caeser explains calmly in a memory.
August sighs sadly.
"One day I'll have respect." she thinks sadly.
She shakes her head, and focuses on the situation. Without moving a muscle, she casts the Fate spell Observe, allowing her to gain information from anyone she looks at. The longer she looks, the more information she gets. She's doing this to ascertain people's worth, and making sure no one came in with anything that'd be a problem, like a disease.
She first gains information on the Bardic Swordsman John Williams, and his entourage. He's average height, tanned, with luscious blonde hair. He wears dark blue pants, black boots, a white shirt with a deep, open collar showing off his pecs' cleavage. And a white leather jacket that is covered in tiny, glowing gems of all colors. The gems form the opening riff sheet notes of his favorite song, Feel Good.
John Williams
Physical Strength: Average Human
Magical Strength: Demigod
Mana: 300,000
Paladin Captain of Apollo
"A Paladin Captain? Interesting. I'm surprised Apollo even has a paladin, he's known for having too many female followers." August thinks, intrigued.
Status Effects: Favor of Apollo, Happy Days, Blessings of the Olympians, Slave to Desire, and Discipline.
"Ugh, Slave to Desire. A debuff from one of Aphrodite's blessings, I'm sure. No wonder this guy is strong, the olympians love him." August thinks bitterly.
August has been staring at John for a minute. A few adventurers were beginning to notice her, and grumbling about it. It was a known "habit" of August and her family to stare at adventurers before they do an important quest. No one knew they were using Observe though.
August needed to glean one more important detail from him though. His fate, or more specifically, a phrase that hints at his fate.
The curtain may close, being pulled tight by a distant brother turned traitor by the notions of Grand Necessity.
"Hmm…he may die soon. I will need to ascertain the fates of others to know for sure." August thinks seriously.
First, she observes his big maine coon cat. It's a pretty black and brown cat, but nothing else is special about it beyond having the status effect "Absolutely Spoiled".
Next, his blacksmith.
Ornsnov Goldsmith
Physical Prowess: Olympian level
Magical Prowess: Genius Level
Mana: 50,000
Chosen Descendent of Hephaestus
"Damn, the blacksmith might not be a liability. He might be gold level if his skills aren't all oriented around smithing." August thinks happily.
Status Effects: Favor of Hephaestus, Blessings of Olympians
Mastercraft works will soon meet a master of many blades.
August freezes, becoming tense with this sentence.
"A master of many blades…a powerful swordsman may attack us soon?" August thinks nervously.
She scans some of the adventurers. Fearful messages begin to pile up.
Misguided man meets a righteous storm of blades.
Betrayal by a beautiful woman.
A valley of mistakes will swallow all.
"Shit, shit, shit. I might need to use a vision, but that takes up a lot of mana and time." August thinks nervously.
August sighs and shakes her head.
"It's too late, we're here now." August thinks nervously.
August decides it's time to leave. She descends down the stairs, moves around the crowd of adventurers, and approaches John Williams. He has a smug grin on his face.
"Did you like what you saw?" John asked smugly.
August glares for a brief second.
"Yeah, you all seem decent. I'm ready to leave if you are." August says calmly.
"I was waiting for the word." John says happily.
John steps forward, and I step aside. He addresses the room with a loud shout that sounds nice to the ears for some reason.
"Attention ladies and gentlemen! We are now heading out! Assume formation with your groups, and let's head out!" he shouts happily.
"You didn't change the groups I made, right?" I ask quickly.
"No, of course not. I've heard your mother gets upset when we change your stuff." John says calmly.
August rolls her eyes at his indirect disrespect.
"My mother gets mad, I'll fucking gouge your eyes out, you fuck." August thinks angrily.
The journey to the lake isn't long, especially with the wonders of modern magic and technology. They travel in long, steel trucks painted gray. The windows are tinted black. And there are no wheels, instead there are blue clouds of smoke that are used to make the car fly.
These trucks are a sign of the Crimson Wolves wealth, and one that only August and John Williams really enjoy as they had their own vehicles to travel in. The rest of the adventurers had to travel with their superiors, not allowed to drink, so they only enjoy some tv and comfortable seats.
John Williams was given his own vehicle, to own, and it was a nice black sedan. Hooked onto the back of it, is a bright pink pumpkin cart, and inside is his massive maine coon cat. Inside, John sings a beautiful love song to lull his cat to sleep while he drives.
Meanwhile, in the back of her limo, August appears to be taking a nap. But strangely, the bottom of her eyelids leak out some golden light. This is because August has used Fate magic to experience a Vision spell. Specifically, she aims for what is to come with taking over the lake.
First, August sees a message that appears in golden letters.
The odds are in the favor of these lizardfolk. Please lend them a hand, heroes.
"A quest? Someone sent to defend them because of a quest?" August thinks nervously.
She sees a burning forest, and hears a furious song playing. John William's body lays on the ground, dead. Alongside many other corpses.
An unknown swordsman in all black, wielding a strange black and red dagger and a black machete. He lays waste to the battlefield with a storm of black Flying Slashes. Concentrated arcs of sharp Battle mana.
And anyone who remains standing is shot dead by someone from within the burning forest.
Suddenly a massive figure of golden flames forms behind the swordsman, and he turns towards it with a bloodthirsty grin.
August was not satisfied with this, but unfortunately it was all she could do. A vision spends 20,000 units of Mana per hour, and she only has a supply of 100,000. This and her Observing earlier caused her to already spend over a third of her mana.
"If only Fate magic wasn't so expensive." August thinks bitterly.
She awakened a few minutes before they were due to arrive. She yawns, and pulls out a cigarette. She lights it, and takes a long hit. She rolls down a window a bit, and lets out a thin cloud of smoke.
"Who the hell was that guy? And who was helping him?" August thinks annoyedly. "One thing is clear, they probably help because of some God's interference. He was by himself at least though. Perhaps I could find out where that person was shooting from, take them out, and shoot the swordsman instead." she thinks calmly.
August tiredly ponders her future situation as they arrive at their location. It's a small, concrete building that's been built recently in the woods. Judging by the smooth stone, August and others can tell it was built by magic. However, the building is covered in graffiti in a foreign language.
"It's easy to guess what it says though. The locals want these guys to fuck off." August thinks calmly.
As they approach, August sees guns with bright blue, glowing tips point at them. August pulls out a radio, and talks into it to address everyone.
"Nobody come out with weapons drawn. They're clearly nervous because of the locals or something." August state firmly.
August moves to the front of the limo, and pushes aside the window separating her and the driver.
"Stop here." August order calmly.
He pulls over the limo, and August steps out with her hands up, a friendly smile on her face.
She slowly approaches the building as the other vehicles of her party pull up. But suddenly, as August expected to inevitably happen, John Williams ignored her and did as he wanted. He feels that it's necessary for him to come up alongside August, with his weapon drawn. It's an enchanted steel rapier, with a golden basket hilt, that has a purple sheen due to the magic within it.
He quickly jogs up to August, and then walks a bit ahead of her.
"I literally said no weapons." August states annoyedly.
"You don't know what they could be thinking." John says firmly.
August rolls her eyes. She doesn't mind too much, it's more just the disrespect from ignoring her.
As they drew near, the weapons came out in full view along with their wielders' faces.
"State your names and purpose." one of them asks firmly.
"My name is-" August tries to say calmly.
"My name is John Williams, and I represent the guild Crimson Wolves." John interrupts proudly.
August glares at John's back for a brief moment, then she steps forward.
"That's not quite true. We both are, he is the leader of the adventurers, and I am the one you will be negotiating with. My name is August Caeser, daughter of Cleo and Julia Caeser." August explains elegantly.
She put some charm into her words to make her appear better. Inside however, she was irritated.
"Fucking men." August curses in her thoughts bitterly.
The men in the building withdraw their weapons, and two men exit the building. One is a seasoned soldier in enchanted leather armor with a red sheen, with a steel chestplate over it. He has a large greatsword on his back. The handle appears to be the femur of a large creature, and the crossguard is a small bone. The other is a middle aged man with slicked back black hair, in a black suit with a green tie.
"Before you come in, please arrange your men in a defensive formation around the building. The lizardmen could strike at any time." the soldier asks with dutiful calm.
"Of course. Allow-" John starts to say warmly.
"No, leave them where they're at. No one moves until the deal is done." August states firmly.
John looks at August like he's stunned, while the soldier is angry and glaring while the suit looks fearful.
"Is this really necessary? We already had terms set up." the suit says nervously.
"This can be over quickly if you'd like. The new deal is you cover half the costs of these adventurers and give us thirty percent of all profits from the water gained here." August explains smugly.
"You think you can just fuck with us like this?" the soldier snaps angrily.
"I don't enjoy it, but you don't deserve pity either. You're a leading company in the world." August says amusedly.
"Your guild is like a leech." the soldier growls angrily.
"The kettle says to the pot." August says smugly.
"August, can we talk for a moment?" John asks quietly but firmly.
"No, we're negotiating." I say dismissively.
"August, this is incredibly unfair." John whispers annoyedly.
August ignores him, and stares at the uncomfortable duo in front of her. They both hate her, but they both know they need their forces.
"Sir, can you please tell her to be reasonable and agree to the original terms?" the suit asks urgently.
"John, if you speak a word, I'll have your pay docked." I state firmly.
Suddenly John unleashes a small burst of power, which unnerves everyone in the area. August is fearful, but she knows she must stand firm. She turns and tries to glare at John.
"You need to calm down, and quit acting like a hero. We are not heroes, this is a business opportunity. If you don't like this, quit, because this is being done at the request of my mother, one of your bosses." August explains firmly.
August struggles to stare into the face of the man before her. His power is still washing over her, causing her to struggle with fear. August knows she can't beat a Demigod, even one that is only an Ascended. John, meanwhile, stares at her coolly. After a few moments, he sighs and turns away.
"I'm sorry guys, she's right. I've forgotten where I'm at. The Crimson Wolves love money more than your company, it seems." John says sadly.
The suit looks depressed as John begins walking away. August grins smugly, and holds out her hand.
"It does appear this situation is more dangerous than it seems. Plus, you were rude first, pointing guns at us. Very mean." August says with an earnest attitude, though she's actually being sarcastic.
"The best we can do is a fourth of the expenses for the adventurers. This has been expensive, and a lot of men have died." the suit says with earnest desperation.
August restrains herself from chuckling.
"This man dares act like he cares about these men's deaths? Perhaps it's true, but only to the extent that funerals can be expensive." August thinks with spiteful amusement.
"The best I'll do is forty percent." August says with smug firmness.
"Thirty five!" the suit says desperately.
"Forty." August states firmly.
The suit growls while holding a fist. At this point, August decides to hold out a hand meant to cement a deal.
"Forty percent, do you agree Mister…" August asks smugly.
"Woodle. You have a deal." Woodle says sadly.
With that, the deal was set. August tells John they can begin their work settling down, and doing as they please. She will be sticking around until the money hits the guild bank accounts, and then she will head back. No one was happy but August.
And honestly, that was cause shortly after making the deal, she got high. Drugs, even a low level one like marijuana, are a way of denial. Though that doesn't mean she doesn't have bouts of self-loathing.
"You're such a piece of shit, sending these men to kill a bunch of indigenous people." August thinks hatefully. "But at least I got the moneyyyyy!" she says happily.
"Gonna enjoy the headlines when they find out you eradicated villages for a sea during this Grand Necessity shit? What if you become a target for this? This isn't exactly making them stop enabling the abuse of the rich, or whatever." August thinks hatefully. "But whatever. Life goes on. I'm not gonna die any time soon at any rate, I'm at the top of the food chain." she thinks nervously.
It's just easier to cope when you're high.