[center][h3][color=seagreen]Artemisia[/color][/h3][/center]

The black mage kept her wits about her as she descended, but when her slow fall came to an end in the grass she allowed her muscles to go slack. Had the monster slumped over there might have been cause to fret over a fake-out, but a headlong drop into a convenient pit struck her as a little too tough to recover from. Since the hole seemed to be nothing more than that -a hole- she found herself looking around at the foliage. As if in response to the fall of the malboro, the ominous atmosphere of the forest began to evaporate like morning dew. Fog drifted away, shadows crept back to where they belonged, and fresh air filtered through the trees. “A fell aura somehow linked to the creature,” she murmured. “Its abatement must signify its source's demise.” While once again not the most novel information, it meant that the group would not need to worry about the overgrown vegetable crawling up the pit again.

Artemisia took a deep breath of the sweet air, feeling the adrenaline seep from her body, and sighed in pleasure. Another victory, another tale in her life's story, although the events of this morning would need a great deal of embellishment to qualify as a chapter. She looked over just in time to see Edgar grab the crystal and get zapped, which made her shake her head in wonderment. “Such blissful ignorance may have more dire consequences some day.” Balder went over to help him, for however much that counted since he possessed no healing abilities. Artemisia, meanwhile, crouched over the crystal with her head resting on her hand, and the elbow of that arm on her knee. Though it shared some superficial qualities with aldite, it matched up with no variety she had ever heard of. The others would end up disappointed if they figured she might be able to tell them something about it, but it clearly carried some measure of importance. While no botanist, she felt as though malboros did not typically feature such gems, and the thing showed a visible reaction when the crystal received damage. Still, handling it would be foolhardy, so she left it where it lay.

Standing up, she dusted off her dress. Balder appeared to be very impressed, and he wanted everyone to return to the city. Artemisia could definitely get behind that. “Goodness,” she began, primarily addressing Balder. “Either we make for a far more talented company than first impressions would suggest, or you aggrandized that particular bit of vegetation somewhat. Felled by a pack of uncoordinated greenhorns without so much as a bite wound to show for it...it was rather intimidating for a houseplant.” Idly wondering if the black crystal possessed mutative properties, she fell in behind the others to begin the long, long, long walk back to the guild.

[hr]

Soon after the return, Artemisia was obliged to drag herself from the corner where she had plopped, sweating and exhausted, to take part in the hunt's formal debriefing. Looking like she'd just run a marathon or two, she lay with her upper half sprawled across the meeting table. When Balder placed her new badge beside her, however, she revealed that she harbored enough strength to pick it up and pin it on the right side of her collar before resting again. When a sack of money hit the board, however, she snatched it with remarkable speed. Her plum-colored eyes practically shone as she heard the amount held within. “Oh my, oh my! Goodbye hungry nights and empty mornings, and fare you ill! Hello food fit for a queen!”

Balder seemed more intent on dishing out the newly-minted hunters next duties than letting her enjoy herself for once, however. More monsters like that malboro, was it? And as dangerous. Hopefully that meant they would all be this easy, although Artemisia knew she couldn't count on getting lucky again. “We're already leaving?” she wondered aloud. Did that performance really make them an elite force who weren't needed to solve any other problems around here? The prospect of more walking made her want to bang her head on the table, but somehow being rich was making her feel a bit better. “Well, I suppose I should visit the marketplace. After...after some brief repose.”

While a nap sounded good, she wanted to eat more than anything. Hunger had been gnawing at her since yesterday, which in turn made for a fitful night's sleep. After securing her new coinpurse on her person she made her way out of the hunter's guild and to the nearest tavern, where she ordered a whole dish of food that she took to a secluded corner to eat in peace and quiet. An elegant mage she might be, but Artemisia got tired and famished the same as anyone, and she needed to be her best if she was going to work more miracles.