Floria, Moira, and I arrived at the Dark Lord Merchant Plaza and made our way to the Monster Trader to seek out Jinx to report that we found the Soul of Nature. As we traversed toward Jinx's section of the plaza, Floria began to look around the area, a sense of nostalgia rushing within her.
"Ahh, I can't even remember the last time I've been here~ Y'know, when I was first starting as a Dark Lord, I could barely even go 100 Days without dying~ I was always in this plaza trying my hardest to prepare, but my power leans more on the support side. I don't do much fighting unless I have to," Floria said, looking around at the bustling areas of the plaza and hummed softly.
"You seemed to fight pretty well against the Druids when we were protection Moira," I said, glancing at Floria.
Floria giggled softly and looked at me. "Well, I've mastered my abilities, silly..~ I can go well beyond 100+ Days now without breaking a single sweat and that's only five worlds. The most worlds destroyed without Rebirth within my generation of sisters belongs to the Vampire Dark Lord, Elizabeth aka Carmilla Alucard."
Moira shuddered hearing Elizabeth's name, clutching her statue even tighter. I glanced at Moira, noticing her reaction to Floria's revelation then looked at Floria with a curious gaze.
"Elizabeth? Is she really that strong?" I asked, genuinely curious.
"More than you realize. She has survived over 4,000 Days without Rebirth. That equates to 10 Years without needing to Rebirth and doing the math, if it takes 20 Days for one of us to destroy a world then 4,000 Days..." Floria said, her voice trailing off so I could finish her sentence.
A surprised expression played on my face, my eyes slightly widening. "That's 200 Worlds destroyed in just 4,000 Days... That's entire Solar Systems destroyed by one person."
"Mhm..~ We can survive up to an unspecified amount of Days if we wanted to and if we are strong enough, but most of us stop at around 500 Days and Rebirth just so we can have a little break. We always come to the Plaza and hang out during a Rebirtb sequence. This is our favorite hang out spot after all," Floria chuckled lightly, looking ahead and noticing we were nearing Jinx's shop.
Her revelation stayed in my mind, my mind racing with questions about how powerful a Dark Lord was truly. Even Moira began to contemplate the true strength of a Dark Lord, but our curiosity rested in the back of our minds as we approached Jinx's shop.
Jinx noticed us and smiled, walking toward the front counter and leaned against it. She softly purred at me and her tail swayed from side to side. "Welcome back, meow..~ And it seems you've brought some guests. A Shaman and Lady Floria~ Welcome back to the land of the living~"
"I wasn't dead, y'know. I was only sealed away into a little sprout, and I still have to applaud the Infinity Council for being able to seal us away in such a timely manner," Floria said, smiling at Jinx then glanced at the Soul of Nature hovering beside me. "Anyways, we have the Soul of Nature~"
Jinx waited for us to summon the Soul of Nature, staring at us. We looked back at her, waiting for her to acknowledge the Soul of Nature.
"You all don't expect me to actually believe that common wisp is the Soul of Nature right?" Jinx asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Well...you see..." I began, rubbing the back of my head with a soft chuckle.
"Unfortunately...this Nature Wisp you see before you is the Soul of Nature, Basselt. It seems like he's been weakened back into his Seedling State..~" Floria answered, a soft giggle escaping her lips.
"Trust me, we all had the same reaction you did," Moira said, an embarrassed smile playing on her lips and a sweat drop rolling down her face.
Jinx sighed and lowered her head. "I was not expecting this, meow..."
The three of us glanced at each other and let out embarrassed chuckles. Although Basselt's Soul of Nature stage was not up to expectations, we still decided to take care of him equally and hoped to find out ways to evolve him back to his original state once again.
"Alright, so it seems this monster is different from the typical Monsters I'm used to dealing with. It also seems like he's already bonded to you as well, so I won't be able to keep him around to study him. Taken that he can evolve, I'm sure using Nature Type monsters will do the trick," Jinx said, watching the Soul of Nature float around me.
"What type of Nature Type monsters do you think would work for him?" I asked.
"There are four types of Nature Monsters: Ents, Ent Girls, Druids, and Wood Nymphs. If I'm right, you would need one Ent and one Druid to evolve the Soul of Nature," Jinx answered, looking through her book of monsters.
Floria checked her Monster Souls and hummed softly, letting out a soft exhale. "I only have Wood Nymphs and Ents on me right now... do you happen to have any Druid Eggs?"
Jinx looked up at Floria, shaking her head slightly. "I'm all dried up on eggs today after today's events. I don't even have a Druid to constantly provide those kinds of Eggs. I'm not too sure where to find wild Druids, and I'm not too sure that wild monsters are that easy to find anymore."
I began to think then my eyes began to light up in realization. "I think I may know where to find Druids."
"Where?" Moira asked, glancing at me.
"We can track down that Summoner that attacked us earlier in the Virgo Kingdom. She had Druids and seemed to be able to control then well enough for them to listen to her commands," I answered, glancing between Floria and Moira.
"Oh right, that woman...but she seemed to be working with The Fallen. It won't be easy tracking her down," Floria said.
"Exactly, so we lure her. Yen told me about two more Fallen Settlements along with the Libra Justice Base. There's one at St. Nova at a church near Twin Summits and another near Zodiac Square. We can go to those to find the Druid Summoner and take her monsters," I said, a mischievous twinkle playing in my eyes.
Floria stared at me for a moment then chuckled lightly. "Hmm..~ That may work, plus it gives me an excuse to break out the old dungeon and my trusty Fusion Monster again..~"
Jinx listened to our plan then smiled and got off the counter. "Before you go, I suggest you visit the Equipment Trader west of here. The Blacksmith finally returned and opened her shop once again."
"Gotcha, thank you," I said, waving to Jinx as I walked off.
Jinx smiled at me and watched as we walked off to go visit the Equipment Trader. She began to make her way to the back of her shop, preparing more Monster Eggs and restocking her wares.
To the west of the plaza, the Equipment Trader presided over a large stall filled with weapons, armor, and magical artifacts for monsters. Her wares were meticulously organized, displayed on racks and tables draped with tattered black cloth. From enchanted blades that shimmer with malice to obsidian armor plates forged in the fires of hell, the Equipment Trader's goods are designed to empower the monstrous armies that serve the Dark Lords.
A beautiful, muscular woman in rugged clothes, her fiery red hair framing her face, the Equipment Trader spoke in a strong tone as she offered her wares. She was known for her ability to craft powerful weapons that not only enhance the physical strength of a Dark Lord's monsters but also imbue them with magical abilities. Her most prized items are cursed armaments that can drain the life force of their targets and bolster the power of those who wield them.
"Fabriana," Floria called out, her voice reaching out to the Blacksmith through the sounds of a hammer banging against hot iron.
Fabriana looked up, noticing us then took off her goggles. She set down her hammer and walked toward us with a smile. "Well, well..~ If it isn't Miss Nature herself. I see you have the new Dark Lord and his Shaman also," Fabriana said, her tone strong and having an attractive ruggedness to it.
I extended my hand for a formal greeting and handshake. "Hey, my name's August and my Shaman here is Moira."
Fabriana took my hand for a handshake, her grip strong and firm, causing me to slightly grunt through my smile. "It's nice to meet you two. So what brings you here today?"
"We are just passing by to get some weapons before we head out to go invade a few settlements. Do you happen to have some easy to carry weapons for Moira here...and a weapon for Shiva and my Ixia?" Floria asked, looking through her travel bag for some Gold.
"Of course! For Moira, I just crafted this Ruler's Staff which can allow her to command her targets by inflicting them with the Obey State. The mind control aspect of the weapon depends on her skill with Dark Magic," Fabriana said, taking a black staff off the wall.
"Uhm...do you have something... y'know...less evil and intimidating? I don't know if I'll do well with Dark Magic," Moira said, her tone a mix of shyness and nervousness.
Fabriana glanced at Moira and smiled at her, looking through her wall of staffs. She took an ornate white staff off the wall and looked at Moira. "Well, I do have this staff from when I used to be a Hero. It's called the Mage's Sword."
"It has two modes, Magic Mode when you hold the weapon with the crystal facing upwards, and Attack Mode when you hold the weapon with the crystal facing down and the hilt opens and the body of the staff becomes a blade," Fabriana explained, handing it to Moira to hold.
Moira held the staff in her hand and looked at it, admiring its design and comfortability. She held it upside down and watched it before a sword. "Wow...this is really cool!~ I'll take it,"
"And for us, one Frost Axe and one Solar Scepter," Floria said, taking out ten Devil Stones and placing it on the counter.
"Ten Devil Stones?" I asked, looking at Floria in confusion.
"Devil Stones are also used for currency for us Dark Lords. Each Dark Lord has their own Devil Stone in their dungeon that is used to power our dungeon and keep us alive, but we can also collect Devil Stones like these," Floria said, picking up the six pointed stone that resembled a large token.
"How do I get those?" I asked, curious about this second form of currency.
"Oh, you can only get these after you Rebirth. During your Rebirth, Ragnarok evaluates your performance by how many days you've gone, how many worlds you've destroyed, and your Notoriety. Afterwards, you're sent to the plaza to either rest of go back out there," Floria explained and set the Devil Stone down.
"Also, when you do Rebirth, you grow stronger via Ragnarok's Influence. Depending on how well you do, his influence can boost you by 100% per Rebirth to even a whopping 10,000%. It just all depends on your performance," Floria added, grabbing the Frost Axe and Solar Scepter from Fabriana.
I nodded, understanding the lesson I was just given by Floria. "Interesting...I think I've got it."
Fabriana chuckled softly and placed a hand on her hip. "Looks like the newbie still has much to learn. Alright, I have to get back to work. These weapons won't make themselves."
"See you around, Briana," Floria giggled, waving at her before leading me and Moira to the Devil Stone in the center of the plaza.
Fabriana waved back then returned back to her work. Floria used the Devil Stone to warp us back to the surface and we began to plan out our course of action from there.
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The three of us made it back to The Pride HQ and walked inside to give everyone the news. We gathered everyone in the living room and I stood in front everyone to deliver the news.
"Alright everyone, I just want to announce that we will be going back to St. Nova in a few days. A main reason is that I want to to take down the Fallen Settlements near those areas, but also it allows us to be closer to North Emerald and the Emerald Crusade," I began, noticing April, Lily, and Nina getting excited to visit the district again.
"Plus at St. Nova, another of our sisters are sealed there. She's the Dark Lord of the Inferno, Cinder. She's been sealed in the Lion's Den at the Peridot Kingdom," Floria added, her gaze shifting between each of the girls.
"We are also aware of the Taurus-Scorpio War going on in North Emerald, so we will help stop The Fallen from completely taking over the Kingdom and help stop their plans of taking over all of Exzodia. In return, we want you all to allow us to unseal our sisters," Mariella said, sitting in her giant clamshell.
"I suppose that's fair...you scratch our back, we scratch yours mentality," Raven said, shrugging her shoulders.
"Yeah, as long as the other Dark Lords promise to also help us out as well, we will let you do what you need. If it's for the greater good, we don't really see an issue," April said, smiling at Mariella and Floria.
Mariella and Floria smiled at their acceptance, glad that we were allowing them to opportunity to finally revive their sisters. Floria looked at me, nodding her head then I nodded back.
"If you all want, I'll let you all pack your stuff for now. We will be in St. Nova for a while like we were last time. We are getting closer to ending Darkness's reign and with him down, his faction falls with him. I've spoken with Amunet and she said she, Sennie, Athena and Avery have an HQ we can stay at in the meantime," I said.
"We get to see them again? Finally!~ I've been wanting to visit them again and see how they are doing now~" April beamed, clapping her hands together.
Lily nodded, a bright smile tugging at her lips. "Yeah, it feels like forever since we last seen them. A lot can change in a month.."
Nina let out a soft chuckle, closing her eyes. "Yeah, plus they were pretty cool to hang around too."
I nodded at their readiness to head toward St. Nova again. "Alright, let's get ready to head out. I'll give them a call and let them know we're coming by."
The girls nodded and got up to go pack their things. I took my phone out of my pocket and walked off to talk to Amunet about when we were showing up.
As the hours and days go by, we were finally ready to head off to St. Nova and revisit our old allies and friends. Everyone met outside at the van and we loaded our luggage inside then got in. I started the van and drove off to St. Nova.
"So where is this HQ?" April asked, looking at me from the passenger seat.
"It's like our HQ, right next to St. Nova Academy. They've been handling small skirmishes with The Fallen as well it seems, but they are powerful Zodiacs so it's no problem for them. The main issue is to try and get them on board with the Dark Lords.." I said, rubbing the back of my head as I drove toward the district.
"I'm sure they'll understand! After all, Floria and Mariella are on our side and soon Cinder and the others will be too!" Lily said, optimistic as ever.
"Right~ Besides, us Dark Lords are rather loyal to our allies. We don't typically switch sides unless they do us wrong. It's just this is the first time we've ever sided with heroes instead of taking on our typical villain roles," Floria said, holding the Soul of Nature in the palms of her hands.
"It's a nice change of pace as well. For once we don't have to worry about getting bombarded every day by heroes. I mean, it's been so long since we were able to just relax," Mariella hummed, looking out the window and enjoying the scenery rushing by her.
I glanced at the rearview mirror and smiled at everyone, a soft chuckle escaping my lips. "Just don't get too comfortable. We still have work to do despite the peace we make. As long as The Fallen are still here, we won't have much time to rest."
"Yeah, yeah," Mariella smiled, rolling her eyes and giggling softly.
The ride to St. Nova was peaceful, the girls having their usual gossip and the music April was playing being genuinely enjoyable. Amidst the chaotic state that Exzodia was in, these moments of peace really kept us grounded.
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We soon arrived at St. Nova HQ and I parked my van along the curb, getting out with everyone else. I watched as April, Lily, and Nina hurried toward the entrance and followed behind them with the others. Mariella and Floria looked around with curiosity, taking in the new sights.
Soon, the doors opened, revealing Amunet standing in front of us with a smile on her face. "Ahh, you all made it safely. Welcome back to St. Nova and I see you've brought some new faces with you.."
"Okay, so first meet the Sagittarius Zodiac Knight, Raven Artemis and our Dark Mage, Melinoe aka Maliz. Next we have August's Shaman, Moira, and last but not least, two Dark Lords, Mariella and Floria," April introduced, a smiled playing on her face.
"Dark Lords..? Like those World Destroyers? How the heck did you manage to even get them on your side?" Amunet asked, rubbing the back of her neck.
"It was mainly August's doing. Trust us, we had similar reactions when first meeting Mariella and finding out that August had became one himself. However, they are still on our side in the end," Nina smiled, crossing her arms.
"You don't have to worry about us causing trouble. We have our own issues to currently worry about, starting with finding Relics that will help unseal Cinder. Come, Floria, we have work to do!~ And bring Moira!~" Mariella said, hurrying off.
Floria smiled and gently grabbed Moira's hand. "C'mon, no rest for the wicked~"
Moira glanced at Floria then looked back at me, silently asking me for help.
I chuckled softly and looked at the girl. "I've got to make sure Mariella doesn't stir up too much trouble while they are here. They are still Dark Lords after all."
Amunet smiled back at me, nodding with an understanding expression. "No worries, I'll help the girls unpack. We've got a lot to catch up on anyway."
I nodded and hurried behind Floria, Moira, and Mariella with Leona and Sephora. The girls began to make their way to the van and engaged in their girl talk while they unpacked and brought their luggage into the St. Nova HQ.