A long open field, abandoned by the caretakers who would have once tended to it. Encircling that field were a large number of trees that seemed to stretch down from Vitnova, rather than go up from the ground. Some of them didn't even touch the ground. Broken metal and unrecognizable equipment littered the ground, further emphasizing the disarray this place had been left to.
"Can't say I'm too happy to see this place in such disrepair, it wouldn't be a stretch for me to call this place another home," lamented Krista.
"Vanessa said you'd be familiar with this place; does it hold some special significance?" asked Damien.
"This was the Guardian's old training space," she reminisced, "I used to spend a lot of time with them until they disbanded."
"Want to tell me what that is?" Damien could see that Krista wanted to share, she just needed some prompting, so he made a little fun of her, "Were they like a circus group?"
"No, you… I see what you're doing," she said smiling a bit, "They were a military troop known best for their use of untethered soldiers. The only one of its kind in Stellar."
"You spent your time… with a military troop?" Damien questioned, "How old were you?"
"Well, I started when I was about four or five, and it was always so lively," Krista replied, "I'm actually kind of happy all these people are here, I don't know how I would have felt if it was just empty."
Speaking of which, "Oi, to everyone who is not a Hunter," said Cline standing on his brother, Cyren's, shoulders, a voice the trio had feared they would hear, "You might as well leave, Dante said that he wanted the strongest to come with him. All you weaklings would just slow him down."
"What about Ms. Photon?" said an unfamiliar but well-dressed person, "She asked for people with intelligence, my people from the Financer's Guild are far more suited for that kind of support than you muscle headed Hunters."
"Hey-" started Cline.
"Well, we have intelligence, strength, and cunning," This time it was Milly speaking alongside Nova who continued for her, "I'm sure Raven would much appreciate a Researcher over you!"
"Aye, well us Artisans will leave all that incessant fighting to you," There was Hammer, the whole gang is here, "We are sure a fellow craftsman like Dmitri would understand."
"Shut up Hammer," said Cline, Cyren, Milly, and Nova.
"It's Haïymier, you dolts!" he shouted back.
It wasn't just those five arguing among one another, alongside them, each had a group numbering around three to five members, and behind them were several other groups from other guilds that they didn't recognize. In total, there were probably a little more than 50 people.
The trio wordlessly decided not to get involved with all the hostilities, but Amelia couldn't help but try to listen into their conversation, a fact not lost on Damien, "Something up, Amelia? Do you want to get involved with all that?"
"No, not at all!" she exclaimed, "I was just a bit interested something they said, Damien."
"Hey, codenames, remember," he reminded her, "It's Darius and Krisha again."
"Right, it's just they said the name Dmitri," Amelia responded.
"Someone you or I should know?" Damien asked, "I don't remember someone with that name being a big part of Shining Twilight. The other names though, unless these are just people with the same names, I think coming here may be more productive than I thought."
Damien had an evil look on his face, so Amelia quickly went to change the subject, "Yes, if they're talking about who I'm thinking about, Dr. Martin Dmitri was an expert in a new field of study he called Biomagistry. Biomagistry sought to understand the affects of wattiez on the human body. He was brilliant in his field, but he passed away several years ago."
"Attention!"
Postponing their conversation, a voice called from high in the air. A familiar voice, one that Damien would never forget so long as he lived. The voice came from one of the branches thar jutted down from the canopy above. About 50 feet high in that foliage, there a lone dark-skinned man wearing a long black overcoat who stood without fear of the fall that seemed imminent to happen.
"My name is Dante Guile, and you're all here to impress me!" He shouted at the top of his lungs, "So, impress me!" Then he stepped off the branch.
"Yes!" Damien shouted uncontrollably as the man fell towards his own impending doom.
"Someone do something!" cried somebody in the crowd of guild members, yet he didn't need to, several others had already grabbed their staffs and were running to Dante's rescue, including Krista.
Near the front of the pack, due in part to her augmentation staff and knowledge of the area, she had little time to think about what she could do. There was probably less than 10 seconds until Dante went splat, and she wasn't sure that she could actually support a person after they fell 50 feet. At this point, Krista could only do what she did best.
"Darius hit me with as much wind elemental wattiez as you can!" yelled Krista.
"Why?!" he called back, "I'd rather just-"
"Now!" she commanded
He did as he was told, point his staff directly Krista before begrudgingly yelling, "Wind!"
A burst of energy flew forth, blowing several people behind Krista away and her towards the air. Honestly, Damien was surprised he had all that in him. She flew into the air at an angle, practically tackling Dante from below. The force momently knocked Krista unconscious, a flash of blackness that momentarily blinded her, but she managed to regain her senses, turning her body towards the floor to absorb the force.
"Krisha!" Amelia immediately ran to her side prepared to heal both her compatriots and the man who just tried to kill himself, "Heal! Heal! Heal! Vitnova! Are you okay?"
The pain in her back had luckily gone from sharp and piercing pain to a pleasant numb sensation due to Amelia. Unfortunately, Krista got a good look at what had caused that pain, shards of broken crystal from her formally not broken crystal staff, "Yeah, I'm fine, just some scratches. How's the dumbass doing?"
"Darius is fine, if not a bit tired, he just used a bit more wattiez than he's used to," answered Amelia.
"No, I meant Dante," retorted Krista.
Amelia glowed bright red realizing her mistake, "No, you just would sometimes refer to Darius that way when you're angry so I… Dante, right! He's… not alive?"
Hearing Amelia's words, Krista quickly sprang to Dante's side, "No way, I'm sure he should be fine. Hurt, maybe, a few broken bones, sure, but he should be breathing!"
Krista began to give the man chest compression, in hopes of resuscitating him, but Amelia stopped her, "No, not dead, he's not dead. He's just not alive, like Derek."
Before Krista could respond, they heard Dante's voice from further away, I don't recognize you two, what guild are you from? Do you even have cards?"
Dante walked from the edge of the training grounds alongside three other people. Like his doppelganger, Dante wore the same long black overcoat, and as he continued laugh at the situation, he stroked his fingers through his short but silky, black hair.
On his immediate right, stood a tall, pale skinned man with a piercing gaze. That gaze was placed squarely on Krista, and she could feel it, it was like a predator eyeing its prey waiting for an opportune time to strike. His large, blue, heavy coat looked three sizes too large on him, the sleeves even went past his hands, leaving them to flutter in the wind. Someone might have mistaken him for a ghost, devoid of all color, had he not worn a set of three gold piercings on both of his ears.
On his left was a woman, probably the most beautiful Damien had seen since his own mother. The woman was tall, had light brown skin, and long dreaded fiery orange hair. It was easy to tell that she liked to stand out. She also wore a long dress and around her neck she had a wooden amulet of a tree, and on her arm was wore a small, shiny bracelet with green crystals.
Behind them all was a young man, of about average height, medium length curly brown hair. He was burned, a large burn that covered a large portion of the left side of his face that ran down his neck and probably passed his shoulder. Despite that, he had a neatly trimmed beard and mustache and wore a long grey coat, along with wearing a pair of glasses, the first Damien had seen since coming to Stellar.
Krista rose to her feet and showed off her card, "I'm with the Laborer's Guild!"
"Right then, everyone who isn't from the Laborer's Guild, you can just go back home," responded Dante immediately.
"What, how is that fair?!" shouted the crowd. Dissent and outrage roared throughout the crowds with each member complaining over his words.
Dante opened his mouth to say something, but Cleo put a finger to his lips, stopping him before he could start, "We apologize if you believe your time was wasted, but when you came here, you all knew that we would be competing against all the other guilds."
"Right, so why are we not competing?" Cline asked as he confronted Cleo, "My crew and I are ready for anything you throw at us so long as you give us the chance."
Before Cleo could speak, the tall, pale man rudely jumped in front of her and coldly spoke, "You had your chance, now leave before I make you."
Surprisingly, Cline took a step back, but he continued to stay where he was though he couldn't quite find the words to speak back, "I… hey, come on Raven, don't be like that."
Seeing that Cline was reeling, Nova jumped in to sway things in their favor, "Brickbrain has a point, no one was ready, so if you'd just-"
"Three," said Raven simply.
Milly quickly ran to Nova's side to defuse the situation, "Raven, we're all adults here, I'm sure that we could come to some sort of impasse."
"Two," Raven continued, eyes glaring at the maybe six groups that didn't leave as soon he commanded it.
"You know what, I think I'm just going to go home," Hammer commented, "Never forget that it still takes a week to heal a broken hand."
"Four for a broken femur, three for a fractured elbow, and two for a broken jaw… one," he finally said palm on a crescent shaped sheath on his hip.
The last few groups didn't need to hear anymore as they quickly cleared out from the Guardian training grounds. From that close, Krista was sure she could hear Raven groan, almost as if he was hoping at least one other group stayed to test him.
"Really now Raven, you're such a brute," Cleo scoffed, "If you had given me a bit of time, I would have had them gone without threatening them."
"But you didn't, and I did, now be quiet you detestable woman," said Raven harshly.
Cleo and Raven continued their verbal battle, leaving Dante and the man with the burn to speak with the trio, starting with Dante, "Yes, this happens a lot, and no I have not way of stopping them, best to let them be until they tucker out. Regardless, it's nice to meet you three, like I said, I'm Dante and this is my head scientist."
"Dr. Dmitri, but Dmitri is just fine," the burned man said, "I still have much to learn, so I'd like to refrain from the use of titles."
"You wouldn't happen to be related to Dr. Martin Dmitri, would you?" asked Amelia.
"My grandfather, yes, I'm pleased to see you've heard of him," he answered.
"The lovely lady over there is Cleo Photon, and Mr. tall, dark, and handsome is Raven," Dante continued as he held a hand out to Damien who was ahead of the other two, "As you saw before, I'd refrain from getting on his bad side."
Damien took his hand and smiled, barely managing to hold himself from stabbing the man who let his guard down so openly. When he spoke Damien also disguised his voice with a Horizon accent, a bit thicker than Amelia's closer to Chief's, "Darius… Color, you'll remember me from my skill with a bow, traveling alongside my lovely wife and her sister."
He could hear Krista choke on air behind him, so Amelia covered for her, "That's right, She's Krisha Heart and I'm her sister Amelia."
"Oh, really?" Dante questioned, "I can't remember travelling with a couple like that, just make sure to keep your tent closed, alright?"
"Dante. a re you forgetting about the final test?" asked Dmitri.
"Final test?" asked Damien, "You got rid of everyone else already, what's the point of another test?"
"I value two things over anything else, strength and spontaneity," Dante said, "That was the purpose of the first test to see who had the most. If you couldn't keep up, or you hesitated and were left behind, that disqualifies you from being a part of my organization. You didn't do either, therefore I want you to come along with us."
"Then why another test?" asked Krista.
"That was something decided by these three," he answered, "Tell them why Dmitiri."
Dante practically shoved Dmitri forward, causing him to nearly trip on his own feet, "Hey! Yes, sorry. Raven, Cleo, and I agreed that our benefactor, Dante, will sometimes make a decision far too quickly, so we agreed that while he can make the initial decision on who he wants, we get to evaluate you once more. It's less of a test and more of an… interview"
"What occurs if we fail your interview?" inquired Amelia.
"Then we will return to Soaring Sun alone," Dmitri answered, "While we would like to take you and even the others along on a provisional basis, but with current events as they are, you can never be too safe."
"Then we'll just have to pass," stated Damien as he walked in close to Dmitri, "What do we need to do and what do you want to know?"
Dmitri back from Damien's advance, intimidated by his 'enthusiasm', "Oh, well I… if you would… sorry I can't think right now, Raven, Cleo!"
"What?!" they shouted in unison as they glared at him.
Dmitri looked all but ready to cry, leading Cleo to quickly coddle him, "Dmitri, I'm so sorry! I didn't mean… look at what you made me do, Raven! I swear whenever you're around I- Hey don't just walk away from me!"
Yet, he paid her no mind, instead walking to confront Damien and the girls, eyes locked onto the trio, not unlike the Raven of his namesake, "I'm going to state seven kinds of people, and you will tell me which one has the most importance to you. Do not explain why, I do not care: Yourself, friend, lover, parent, leader, sibling, teacher, enemy. Answer within three seconds."
Without time to think each person answered quickly, "Friend," said Krista.
"Teacher," said Amelia.
"Enemy," finished Damien.
Raven eyed Damien for a particularly long time after he answered, but Damien didn't let his gaze wander, meeting eye to eye with him, "Explain."
"It's only normal for someone to care for a friend, lover, or family member, but an enemy…" Damien paused for effect, "Anyone who I'd considered an enemy deserves special attention."
Raven's gaze lightened to Damien's answer, "True… pass."
"Would you mind if I asked my question next??" Dmitri inquired.
"Yes, go ahead," said Raven as he walked back to Dante's side.
"Wattiez what is your general view on it?" Dmitri asked the trio, "I have a vested interest on studying how different people's aptitudes for wattiez has affected their lives. I noticed that Krista made use a crystal staff, possibly due to having a smaller vase, and you, Damien, displayed an abundant aptitude for wattiez, so I'd like to understand youe experience by asking you just your general view on wattiez for now. If we should continue to travel together, I'd also like to know more."
Krista and Damien both thought that Dmitri was a bit like Amelia, normally pretty reclusive until talking about something they have an interest in.
"It's a tool, right?" started Damien, "It's no different from the air that carries my arrows or the fire that lights my firecrackers. It's something to be understood and used to further my aspirations."
"Wattiez is more than that, it's something that connects all of us," argued Krista, "Though I guess I don't really have any place saying that. You guys were going to learn it sooner or later, but I'm untethered, you might as well have heard it from me."
"Untethered?" asked Cleo, "Well look at that Raven, you aren't alone anymore."
"He's untethered?!" asked a shocked Krista, "But I'm sure I felt an aura from him, isn't that why everyone ran away from him?"
"No, that's just because he's a grouch, aren't you Raven," mocked Cleo.
"Hear me devil woman, if I hear another word from your mouth, I will-" started Raven.
"Do what, hit me?" Cleo asked with a look of utter smugness "In front of Dante?"
"No, I'll only tell him about the last time you went out drinking," threatened Raven.
"You were watching me you creep?!" yelled Cleo.
"An enemy is often most vulnerable when they do not know they are being watched, I'm sure I've told you this before," he said with an uncharacteristic smile.
"I ought ta-" began Cleo.
"Now, hey, wait a minute guys, we haven't heard Amelia answer yet," offered Dante.
Dante was right, Amelia looked anxious to say her piece, all but squealing her next words, "I've also had an interest in that subject! Vase Theory, right? The idea that the greater a person's Vase, the less they revere it."
"You've heard of it?" asked Dmitri, "Very few people around my age have, what about…" The two began to rabble on topics not comprehendible to the others.
As they continued, Cleo decided to restart their conversation, "I'm going to assume that's a pass from Dmitri, but that still means you need to answer my question."
"Of course, Cleo, ask away," retorted Damien.
"You're face to face with your worst nemesis, they're bound and helpless, what would you do?"
These questions all felt like they had hidden layers or meaning, maybe they already knew about them both and were just taunting the trio. Damien considered lying, maybe answering more virtuous that what would have been the truth, but something about Cleo just made him want to answer honestly.
"End him, no need to have a loose end like that running about anymore," responded Damien.
"And you, Krisha?" asked Cleo.
"I'd befriend them," was her answer.
"Excuse me?" questioned Cleo.
"An enemy is just someone who doesn't understand your stance and resents you for it," Krista explained, "Maybe befriend is a bit much, but I'd try to understand their viewpoint and have them understand mine. That way, we may not be enemies anymore."
"Not gonna lie, that definitely wasn't the kind of answer I was expecting from you," commented Damien.
"Hey, if worst came to worst, I'd just beat them again. I'd already done it once, right?" shrugged Krista.
A burst of laughter erupted from Dante who had trouble standing on his feet, "Sorry, I just really liked that answer. Cleo, that's a pass from you, right?"
"I don't see why not, and it seems that Dmitri has already taken a shine to Amelia." Those two were off in their own little world, completely separated from the conversation of the others, "It's a pass from me."
"Alright!" squealed Dante, "I pick them well, don't I? With those tests out of the way, I'm happy to say, glad to have you with us!"
"When do we leave then?" asked Krista.
"Let me think, another friend of ours should be meeting with us soon," Dante explained, "She should be back in a little less than a week, so let's meet back her in two weeks, sound good?"
"Yes, sounds just perfect," remarked Damien.