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The Hunt, A Modern Fantasy Smorgasbord RP

^{Interactions: Amanda @Kumbaris, Micheal Crane @BigPapaBelial, Scarlet @AWACS}

---

Even though Faye was a bit too absorbed in enjoying her hot chocolate, she was still paying enough attention to the conversation to agree with Scarlet. While it was really worrying that someone had managed to infiltrate such an important position that could so easily gather information, it was still exactly the place where someone would go if they wanted to gather information.

"Having a mole in such an important position is really worrying... But what Scarlet says makes a lot of sense. Only someone with privileged information would be able to organize that ambush..." Faye said.

"I hope we're wrong though... If the mole managed to infiltrate all the way to the communications, then the security at the headquarters might need a complete change..." Faye said with a disappointed sigh.

At first, they didn't see anything out of the ordinary when Amanda put on the tape and they started investigating the tape, but after a few minutes, Amanda spotted a rather suspicious agent who entered and started asking a lot of questions. Upon close examination though, the suspicious person was no one other than Xaviron himself.

"Wait.. what?!" Faye asked, surprised as she looked around, trying to understand what she had just seen.

It wasn't until Amanda mentioned the chance of some kind of unknown spell allowing oneself to disguise as another that Faye relaxed a bit.

"I mean... The possibility of an unknown spell sounds way better than Xaviron having betrayed us..." Faye said.

"Still... How should we even guard ourselves against such a spell... If it exists, that is? If they can just make themselves look exactly like us, they could just freely walk around and get any information they wanted... right?" she asked, a bit worried as she looked at Amanda.

When Michael looked over to Faye and Scarlet, asking if they were really that compromised, Faye couldn't help but give him a worried look.

"Even if we don't have a mole on our team... It might be just a matter of time, if they can really just infiltrate themselves so easily..." she said with a heavy sigh.

"We might need to have a serious talk with the higher-ups after we figure everything out, Amanda..." Faye said, looking to Amanda with a serious expression.

Avalia

Time: Morning
Location: Near Guarav Village
Interactions: Cyrus @Helo, Ophelia @princess

---

It was painful knowing one of her sisters forgot about her... Deep down inside, Viola couldn't help but resent her for it. For having forgotten about her while she suffered on Daka Island... But at the same time, seeing how Ophelia was still the same girl Viola had once knew made her feel mixed feelings about that entire situation.

Despite calling herself a different name, despite having forgotten Viola, there was still much of her sister Ophelia in the way 'Phia' acted and spoke... The way how it seemed to be difficult for her to be distrustful of others, how it almost felt wrong to see her without a cheerful smile and even in the way how Ophelia was always so eager to help other people... Even those being 'strangers' such as her and Cyrus...

The moment Phia hugged her, those mixed feelings clashed even more in Viola's mind. In one side, all the suffering and every negative feeling she felt in Daka Island made her feel that she wasn't wrong in resenting Phia, who had completely forgotten about her, even if only a bit. On the other side though, Phia was still her dear, youngest sister. The same Ophelia she knew when she was young.

While brief, the hug was very... awkward for Viola, who didn't know how to react, simply standing still with her body stiff and the thorny vines shifting uncomfortably in response to her feelings. After everything Viola went through, she had almost forgotten that there could be other reason for someone to touch her other than to torture and perform cruel experiments on her.

The one good thing was that, compared to the hug, the prolonged physical contact, with Ophelia touching her shoulder, didn't feel nearly as uncomfortable and awkward... Although it still caused the thorny vines to shift and nudge Ophelia's hand, trying to make her move her hand.

"Our missing siblings... Our sisters... We had very similar hair colors..." Viola said, adding to her brother Cyrus' reply after Ophelia asked them to describe their missing family. Other than what Cyrus said, there wasn't much she could add... since most physical descriptions she could give would be very outdated, just as Cypress had said.

"Yes, I... I think so." Viola said, replying to Cypress' asking her if it was a worthy detour to their path after offering to help Phia to find her way back to her village

"Do you remember the direction where you came from?" Viola asked, looking to Ophelia as she took a step back, still a bit uncomfortable with the sudden physical contact.

There was still much Viola had to think about that entire situation. About her feelings and which 'side' of her she should listen... But right now, the only thing she cared about was to keep her brother and her sister by her side. To be alone again, just like she was on Daka Island, wasn't something she would ever want for herself ever again.

The Eye of the Needle (where Fantasy and Sci-fi collide)

Location: 'Tekeri' encampment.

Truth be told, Nellara was very surprised in how quickly the humans were able to analyze and be able to communicate in S'toric. Even with the assistance of a thought mage, being able to create a device to let the communicate in S'toric by themselves in just seven days was remarkable, to say the least. Evidently, Nellara wasn't the only one amazed by that fact, judging by how excited Kareet herself seemed to be on the very second she heard Vigdis communicating with them by using her strange bracelet and how Kerchak quickly asked for a meeting to be arranged with the doctor.

Vigdis' quickly started her explanation about the previous events as soon as she was able to confirm that her bracelet worked well. The first matter Vigdis wished to address was her reaction to Gar'Tan's magic, which was somewhat understandable, judging the nature of thought magic.

"Your reaction is understandable, seeing as it is your first time dealing with a thought mage. Thought magic, when misused, can indeed be extremely dangerous. Although I would like to vouch for the Inquisitors and the thought mages that work with them. Their neutrality is a well established fact in Kanth-Aremek." Nellara said, nodding her head.

Ixtaro was also quick to reply to Kareet's questions, reaffirming that the humans indeed had no magic. Instead, both the ship and the strange bracelet seemed to be a result of something they crafted themselves, without the help of any magic at all.


"Which seems to be unlikely, considering our society focus much more on magic than on crafting... At least if we don't factor in any knowledge shared by you humans..." Nellara said to herself, reflecting as she heard Ixtaro's words regarding how they too should be able to craft similar artifacts in the future.

"If we consider that at least some of the principles used in your technology can also be applied to magic, there is a very good possibility of a creation of a new field of study that could revolutionize the way we see and use magic... Which would happen to be exactly Kareet's field of study instead of mine." Nellara said, reflecting to herself before she turned to Kareet, realizing that if she started such conversation, it would quickly leave her area of expertise.

Regardless of how fascinating the humans' 'machines' were, their complexity also seemed to bring them a rather difficult time repairing them, something that was quite obvious if one observed the Jotunheim even for a moment and how the humans inside never stopped working. Even Ixtaro and Vigdis themselves seemed to also be relaying orders to other humans inside despite being talking with them.

According to Vigdis' words, there were still some issues with their machines that they were not able to solve yet, as she explained while, for some reason, she hammered a metal spike into the ground. The explanation for such seemingly random act would follow soon after Vigdis was done hammering the metal spike.

According to her, most of the humans' 'machines' worked by using the same natural phenomenon that was responsible for lightning. 'Electricity' as they called.

"To think the humans were able to harness, control and use lightning despite having no magic is truly impressive... How does these... 'batteries' work? I wonder if a similar concept could be used with magic... Perhaps to 'store' magic to be used later..." Nellara said as she heard about how the humans had found a way to even store electricity for later use, by using devices called 'batteries'.

Even though Nellara wasn't exactly a scholar like Kareet, she knew very well that such information could definitely be used by their own scholars. Without speaking a word, she turned to Kareet, giving a discreet nod towards her. Both of them should definitely pay very close attention at Vigdis and Ixtaro's explanation about such phenomenon and how the humans were able to harness it to their own goals... Particularly how they were able to 'store' it by using batteries.

Vigdis' experiment consisted in Nellara using her lightning magic into the metal spike, which would allow Vigdis to measure it and know if Nellara's electricity would be able to be used to charge the humans' 'batteries'.

"Very well. Please tell me when to stop, Vigdis." Nellara said as she approached the metal spike Vigdis indicated after she said for her to strike the metal spike as hard as she could.

Giving a few steps forward, Nellara approached the metal spike. The moment she extended her hand towards the metal spike, even before she touched it, strong arcs of electricity started jumping from her claws to it, crackling through the air with an audible noise for a moment before Nellara finally grabbed the spike.

Avalia

Time: Morning
Location: Near Guarav Village
Interactions: Cyrus @Helo, Ophelia @princess

---

Despite Viola's negative thoughts, particularly about Riverbloom, her brother's words still brought some peace to both her mind and heart, causing her to let out a very discreet and faint, but still noticeable smile. She knew that her 'home' the way she knew when she was young was gone, but that didn't mean that she couldn't reunite her missing siblings and maybe make a new one... That was, after all, the reason she started such a journey with Cyrus, wasn't it?

Their conversation was soon cut short when, from the direction where the sound came, a fairy suddenly appeared, swooping down from atop of a tree. Twirling her staff, the fairy girl ordered them to tell her who they were and what they were doing. Viola's immediate reaction was to get ready to fight, with the thorned vines twitching and getting ready to strike. The moment she looked at the fairy though, it was almost as if all her motivation to fight simply evaporated.

Too stunned to speak, Viola could simply look at the very familiar face of someone she thought she had lost. Her youngest sister, Ophelia. Almost instinctively, Viola began walking towards Ophelia, finding it difficult to believe in what she was seeing. Among all her siblings, Ophelia was by far the kindest and sweetest. To think she managed to survive, despite trusting others to a fault, gave her hope that her dear twin, Violetta, who was the most energetic amongst the siblings could also be alive.

"Ophelia...?" Viola asked, a faint smile beginning to form on her face as she gave one more step towards her lost sister. Even if for a brief moment Viola wanted to be close to her, just to be sure she wasn't hallucinating, to show Ophelia that despite everything that had happened, they were finally reunited, to reassure her that they would find Violetta and be all together again...

But before Viola could approach her, Ophelia slammed her staff into the ground, demanding them to identify themselves.

Hesitating, Viola's smile quickly turned into a pained expression, especially when she heard Cyrus' words, asking if she wasn't happy to see them. For Viola to show such emotions, especially in such a short amount of time was something rare and Cyrus knew that well, as the only other time he ever saw Viola showing her emotions like that was when she met him after escaping Daka Island.

Ophelia's complete lack of reaction, coupled with Cyrus' words made Viola immediately understand what was going on... Knowing that one of her siblings had died was perhaps, not as painful as knowing that they were still alive, but had completely forgotten about them.
Even after Cypress introduced himself, there was no reaction from Ophelia. Not even a hint of recognizing them. For her, they were merely trespassers.

"I... I see..." Viola said, her pained expression quickly turning into her normal, emotionless one as she held in and suppressed her feelings. One of the first things she had to learn how to do in order to preserve her sanity back on Daka Island. Neither the torture nor the experiments had broken her, it wouldn't be now that would either.

"Viola... My name, that is." she said, introducing herself in an emotionless tone as she walked back, returning to her spot nearby her brother Cypress.

"I am Cyrus' sister." Viola said, her eyes fixed on Ophelia, looking for any reaction, no matter how small it might be. Any hint that she might have not forgotten them forever.

Deep inside, Viola still hoped that there was a chance for Ophelia to remember them, that if they stood nearby her, she would slowly realize who they were... To remember who she once was.

🗡 Roses and Daggers 🎕

Time: 6pm
Location: Guest House Dining Room - Dinner with the Sultan
Interactions: Nahir @Rodiak, Layla @Potter, Charlotte @princess, Lorenzo @FunnyGuy, Munir @Infinite Cosmos, Leo @Helo, Sultan Raif Kadir @princess
Mentions:

---

Despite how stubborn both her uncle Hafiz and Lorenzo seemed to be, Mayet was relieved to see that even Leo was trying to defuse that situation without any more issues. If Duke Vikena hadn't taken her previous hint for him to change seats, she hoped Lord Leo's suggestion would make him realize what was going on. Looking to Leo, Mayet gave a discreet nod, thanking him for his assistance.

Regardless of the chaos that was currently going on, Mayet didn't miss Charlotte's displeased stare towards her. Instead of feeling offended by such stare though, Mayet simply let out a sarcastic chuckle. To think she would have the audacity to even look at Mayet with a displeased expression, considering everything her father did to insult them was simply amusing, to say the least. Mayet was well aware that Charlotte had no hand in the foolish behavior her father had, but to not only condone such behavior, but to send such an insolent stare towards Mayet simply because she spoke the truth was outrageous, to say the least.

Still, it seemed Charlotte wasn't satisfied with merely gazing towards Mayet and staying silent and instead, she decided to speak out, directing her stare directly towards Mayet and Layla, going as far as also addressing her uncle. Something which Mayet was almost sure would make him livid.

It was after hearing Charlotte's words that Mayet's expression suddenly changed. For a brief moment, everyone at the table noticed that Mayet was incredibly close from just pouncing at Lorenzo and Charlotte and ripping them to shreds.

"Father... I truly admire your patience and self-control." Mayet said with a deep sigh, after taking a moment to calm down as she looked to the sultan.

"I think you aren't well aware of how serious your father's offense was against us, both on the welcoming ball and now, Lady Charlotte. For you to speak about decorum, civility and respect after everything your father has done towards us is laughable, to say the least. I will warn you and your father one last time..." Mayet said, looking towards Charlotte with cold, threatening eyes.

"Do not try my patience." she said, her voice taking a frightening tone as she looked towards them with a piercing stare.

For a brief moment, Mayet said nothing and instead just kept looking towards Charlotte and Lorenzo, her dangerous stare was as much of a warning as her words or the tone she spoke in.

"Do not take my words as an insult, Charlotte. Take them as a lesson to be learned. If you truly care about your stepfather, then you shouldn't condone his errors and be proud of them. You should help him to grow as a person enough for him to be able to act as a noble of his standing. Enough for him to respect himself and be confident enough to present himself without feeling the necessity to act out just to draw attention." Mayet said with a harsh tone.

"Sometimes, harsh words can teach more and be more helpful for one's growth than kindness and sympathy." Mayet finished.

Surprisingly enough, despite his temper, Hafiz's reaction to Charlotte's words proved to be less... 'disastrous' than she thought it would be, with him calming down instead of lashing out at Lorenzo's audacity. Despite his sharp, venomous words, Mayet couldn't help to agree with him, especially as he mentioned that hospitality was a two-way street. After everything he had done, to demand hospitality and politeness was simply absurd.

While Hafiz had agreed to let Lorenzo keep his chair and sat near Charlotte. With that said, her uncle's predatory smirk didn't go unnoticed by Mayet. She knew exactly what he was doing, but for her, it was still better than having him lash out and potentially ruin the dinner, together with Lorenzo, of course.

Unfortunately, Lorenzo did catch up quite quickly to the game her uncle Hafiz was playing and instead of simply letting Hafiz have his small victories, he replied in a similar manner to her uncle, with a particularly venomous reply, mentioning that he was 'second' to the Sultan... Whether by sheer coincidence or due to Lorenzo using his brain, he ended up going straight for the one thing that was Hafiz' biggest issue... His inferiority complex to his brother.

Before anyone could say anything more though, she heard her father loudly clapping, calling the attention from everyone at the table as a clear sign that he had enough of all that. A moment later, he called the servants to serve the first course. A smart move, hopefully stuffing Lorenzo and Hafiz's mouths with food would prevent them from continuing to trade barbs between themselves.
Truth be told, the scent of the spices, especially the grilled chicken skewers were very helpful to calm down Mayet and improve her mood.

"Thank you, father." Mayet said, thanking the Sultan in a low tone with a discreet smile.

"Now please, let us all sit down and enjoy some traditional Alidasht cuisine. I particularly recommend the grilled chicken skewers. While it might look like a simple dish, the spices really give it an entirely different depth." Mayet said, following the Sultan's cue, asking to cease the conflicts so they could enjoy their dinner.

Avalia

Time: One week after Zora arrived into Avalia.
Location: Riverbloom, Daisy Bakery
Interactions: Aurora @mole, Rowan @GingerBobOh

---

Even though Zora was no stranger to moving her body, Rowan's training regime was, ironically enough, just inhuman. While she did understand that his reasons were good, as he wanted her to be capable of defending herself against any possible threat, His daily, spartan training regime were exhausting her quicker than she would have imagined. Due to that, she was quite grateful to Aurora's suggestion for them to take a break and visit a local bakery called 'Daisy', to rest, relax and eat some cake.

"No need to hold yourself, sister. Words of praise are always welcome." Zora replied with a chuckle. Her strong Jamaican accent drawing even more attention towards her, especially when coupled with her rather... 'exotic' attire.

Upon being asked by Aurora about her thoughts, Zora had to think for a bit, until she turned towards her again.

"While I have learned much about this land in the last few days, I feel there is still much to learn about it... Especially about magic." Zora said, with a thoughtful expression.

"There is a connection between magic, this land and its elements... I felt it before, when I arrived in Avalia, but now I can feel it a better. The pull I feel towards water, towards the ocean... It is much stronger here than it was in my past life." Zora said with an enigmatic expression.

Just as she finished replying to Aurora, she heard Rowan's complaints about their small, and very needed break. Thankfully, Aurora seemed to be on her side, at least regarding giving her a break from Rowan's spartan training regime. Rowan would quickly notice how a dangerous glint seemed to flash in Zora's eyes when he mentioned that she would have to learn more to be of 'use'.

"To use one another... It is a very dangerous type of relationship to have, Rowan. One never knows who is truly using who... And for what they are being used for..." she said, with an rather dangerous smirk.

Despite the rather 'subtle' words Zora used, it was undeniably a reminder that she would not accept being used, ordered or being made into a puppet. Despite having spent only a week together, both Aurora and Rowan would already have a very good idea of Zora's personality and they would know that truly 'taming' the woman would be next to impossible.

"Besides... I was able to keep up with you rather well in our sparring sessions, despite the cruel, spartan training regime you have been putting me, a delicate woman, into, wasn't I?" Zora asked, her expression quickly turning back to her usual one and the dangerous smirk giving way to a playful, teasing grin.

"You should let me at least eat a slice of this wonderful cake as a reward, you know?" Zora said with a chuckle, giving another bite into her cake as she gave a playful, mischievous wink towards Aurora, having noticed the stare she gave towards Rowan that caused him to sit down and enjoy his cake instead of complaining.

"This 'transmission bracelet' of yours, quite an impressive thing, isn't it? To communicate with one another instantly, regardless of the distance. The captains back on my world would gladly give an eye and a leg for this ability." Zora said with a chuckle, imagining the utter chaos that such bracelet would bring to the sea.

Avalia

Time: Morning
Location: Near Guarav Village
Interactions: Cyrus @Helo

---

While Viola thought that the prayer and the symbolic action of closing the boar's eyes was unnecessary, she could still understand the beauty behind the ritual Cyrus performed whenever she they stopped to feed her rose. Even if she didn't care about the respect he offered to the dead creature nor the prayer, the act of planting a seed and making it sprout next to the boar was indeed a beautiful action. There would be many creatures which would feast in the dead carcass of the boar, before it rotted and returned to the earth. When that happened, it would serve as nutrition for the bush Cyrus planted. Other creatures would come to feed on the bush's berries, which would be hunted, only to be consumed and have their remains rot and decay into the earth. No matter where, death was always followed by life.

For Viola, there was nothing more beautiful than the cycle of life, no matter of how cruel and violent it could be... While she and her actions symbolized the end, Cypress' embodied the beginning. Both sides, while opposite from each other, were an integral and necessary part of the cycle of life itself. That small fact gave her a bit of solace when she reflected about her and her brother's relationship. No matter how much she had changed or how different they became, there was still something that would bring them close to each other, even if it was merely their roles towards the cycle of life.

Viola watched, keeping a respectful silence until Cypress was done with his ritual, before she nodded towards him when he was done. As they began to walk once more, Cyrus mentioned 'home', referring to the old River Fairy Kingdom, now called Riverbloom. Upon hearing that word, Viola's expression had a discreet, but still noticeable change.

"Home is a word that lost it's meaning to me a long time ago, brother Cypress... All the years I spent as a prisoner on Daka Island... Stuck in a 'luxury' cell, every single day being fed false kindness only to be tortured and experimented soon after... Waiting for a rescue that never came." Viola said, the vines around her body twitching and moving uncomfortably, a reflection of her current mood.

"Even if I did remember how 'home' truly felt like, it wouldn't matter. My home is gone Cyrus... Gone with the fall of the Kingdom, the slaughter of our family and many of our siblings. Gone to never return. The River Fairy Kingdom was my home. Riverbloom is not." Viola said in a cold, harsh tone.

"I wouldn't care even if Riverbloom was burned to the ground. The only thing I care is finding my missing siblings... Or at least knowing if they are still alive and well." Viola finished, with a twinge of hatred and resentment suddenly appearing on her expression and tone, only to quickly disappear into her usual, emotionless expression once again.

Their conversation was soon cut short though, as Cypress alerted her to a faint, but suspicious noise coming from somewhere around them. While it was a faint noise, Viola knew better than to just dismiss it as being nothing. Any different, suspicious noise, no matter how small it was, could be anything from dangerous creatures to people that might be after her.

"I did, brother Cypress." Viola said, as the vines around her began to unfurl, preparing to attack in case something approached them.

The Five Senses - Second Arc (Accepting New Players!)

Karina Frost

"Feel free to use this to clean yourself if you want... It's ruined anyways..." Karina said with a heavy sigh and an annoyed, bitter tone, handing her torn jacket to Týfurkh and Tayla as she watched the spectacle that they were doing after for some bizarre bad luck, a bird pooped straight into Tayla's mouth.

Akai, who was watching that scene with a mischievous grin on her face let out a snicker, watching Karina's small tantrum after having her jacked ruined.

"What is this girly reaction? It really doesn't suit you, you know?" Akai said, teasing Karina as she laughed.

"I swear to you that I will freeze you in a block of ice if you don't stop right this instant, Akai." Karina said, sending Akai a death stare, enough to make a shiver run down her spine.

"Now that's more likely!" Akai said, with a teasing grin as she raised her hands, signalling her defeat.

Despite the confusion, Karina couldn't help but to wonder since when Týfurkh had gotten so close to Tayla. Were they still playing the bit of 'lovebirds', or was there really anything going on?

"It doesn't matter. As long as it doesn't impact their performance and as long as they don't forget our mission, that is." Karina thought to herself, shaking her head. The fact that she didn't say though out loud was also very lucky. After all, if Sil had heard such thoughts, even if those were mere curiosity, it would undoubtedly only contribute to the weird love triangle Sil had created.

Not even a second after she dismissed those thoughts though, Sil suddenly approached her, mentioning that she had lost her chance to 'sweep Tayla off her feet'. Caught off guard, Karina looked at Sil with a worried expression. Was that pure coincidence? Or was Sil somehow learning how to read minds?

"Sil, don't even start with-" Karina protested unsuccessfully before Sil zipped away once again.

Much to Karina's dismay, she watched as Sil immediately grabbed Chres' flask of water and struggled with it's weight before she handed it to Tayla, saying it was Karina's courtesy.

"Don't let a mere flask of water win! Show it you're stronger than it!" Akai said, encouraging Sil as she laughed, clearly finding that entire situation incredibly hilarious and amusing, much to Karina's dismay.


"Hey! Easy, easy! I'm just encouraging Sil! I'm not doing anything wrong... this time!" Akai protested, hiding behind Chres as Karina looked to Akai once again, this time with a cold current of air beginning to emanate from her.

"Please tell me Sil doesn't know how to read minds, Chres... Knowing her, that would probably only make the misunderstandings even worse and more frequent..." Karina asked, with a heavy sigh as she watched Sil giving her a 'thumbs-up' with an annoyed expression.

Avalia

Time: Morning
Location: Near Guarav Village
Interactions: Cyrus @Helo

---

Viola wasn't sure if it was all the suffering she went through in Daka Island, the experiments that transformed her body or even the reeducation she was forced to go through, but the fact that she was a changed person was quite clear, not only to herself it was evident to Cypress as well, once she met him after escaping. Even after she steeled her will to escape, her hopes to meet her family were nonexistent. Due to that, the relief she felt when she met Cypress after escaping was enough to light a small ember of hope to find her siblings deep within her. It was exactly that feeling of wanting to find her missing family members and the fact that made her follow Cypress. Even if she was changed, even if Cypress ended up not feeling as she was still his sister, he was still one of the few people in Avalia that cared about her. That, coupled with the fact that she had absolutely nowhere to go was more than enough reason for her to travel together with him.

Following Cypress as they searched for their missing siblings took them to the forests between the old River Fairy Kingdom, now called Riverbloom and River Port. Despite the River Fairy Kingdom having fallen with the slaughter of their family 15 years ago, the territory that once was their home was still their best bet of finding any clues... Whether them be good or bad, regarding their missing family.

The reason for them to stop in the forest instead of heading straight towards Riverbloom or River Port was in part, due to Viola's request. It had been some time since she fed her Blood Rose with the blood of a wild animal and she could feel the plant asking her for it. While her own blood was already a good sustenance to it, the Blood Rose still asked for blood of wild animals. Normally, Viola would simply catch a creature that passed nearby them and let her rose drain it's blood, but it was not always that their travels took them through a forest where bigger creatures lived and due to that, she had been feeding it with small creatures such as rodents and rabbits until now.

It didn't took long until they found a boar after they entered the forest. Aided by Viola's Chlorokinesis, the Blood Rose's acted swiftly, ending the boar's life the blink of an eye, impaling it with one of it's thorny vines, the sames that delicately embraced Viola's body, protecting her. After a minute, when Viola felt the rose had finished absorbing the creature's blood, she watched as the thorny vine that was deeply embedded into the boar's chest retracted, leaving a sizeable hole without a single drop of blood left inside.

"It is satisfied. I am done, brother Cypress." Viola said, walking away from the boar carcass and approaching Cyrus.

While that wasn't the first time Cyrus had saw Viola 'feeding' her blood rose, it was still a rather disturbing sight to see her feeding it with another creature instead of feeding it with her own blood. It was especially worse when Viola used Necrosis magic to rot the carcass. Fortunately, since they were in a forest, Viola decided to simply let nature run it's course.

"Thank you... For waiting for me." Viola said as she nodded to Cypress, indicating she was ready to continue their travel.

Avalia

In one moment, Zora could only feel the violent embrace of the sea, her world swirling and spinning as she was dragged down into the depths, salt water filling her lungs as the surface of the sea got further and further away... It was at that moment, after darkness fully embraced Zora that she felt herself falling on her knees into solid ground.

Confused and disorientated, Zora could do little but to kneel on the ground and cough, trying to expel the water from her lungs. It was only after after she recover herself that Zora finally took a moment to look around. With the first breath of fresh air, Zora felt the unfamiliar scents of an unknown forest, strange noises she hadn't heard before and when she finally opened her eyes, after cleaning them from salt water, the explosion of colors she saw around her was enough to almost overwhelm her.

The surreal scenery around her, with plants she had never seen before, was only made even more unbelievable upon realizing that she wasn't alone. From beautiful humans with pointed ears, fairies and animal-like humans to huge, warrior-like creatures with tusks and green skin, all of them seemed to be straight out of fantastic stories and myths. The only ones who seemed to stand out in such a fantastic scenery was Zora herself and four other humans who seemed to be equally as confused.

After the initial shock, a quick evaluation of her surroundings quickly told Zora that not only her and the other humans' presence there was already expected, but it also caused a very positive reaction from the creatures watching them. Despite the 'warm' welcome, there were still many questions on Zora's mind. Fortunately, before she or even any other of the humans could ask, one of the humans with pointy ears gave a step forward, introducing himself as Vaeril as he greeted the confused humans.

His voice was as beautiful and melodic as his appearance and his words at first, were once again almost straight out of fantasy tales. According to his words, they were transported to Avalia. A completely different 'dimension', where magic not only was real but permeated the land. A land where different kinds of fantastical races called home, such as his race, light elves, who fought against the oppression and tyranny that they suffered under the rule of the dark elves and how the humans would aid them in their righteous fight for the future of their land. A beautiful and exciting tale, of the kind many merchants would love to sell to nobles by outrageous prices, but still, it was not something that should be of Zora's concern.

Or that was what Zora thought, until Vaeril spoke about his first 'gift' to them... A new chance at life. His words were heavy as he said that the last memories they all had from their world was their last moments before their death. No matter what they did, their story on Earth had reached to an end and their fate was sealed. Even if they demanded to return, nothing could change that fact.

Avalia was now, her only choice if she wanted to live. With that said, Zora would also soon learn that Avalia held more opportunities for her than simply another chance at life...

---

The next few days in Avalia passed by rather quickly for Zora, thanks to the amount of information she was being taught by Aurora and Rowan, the light elves Vaeril assigned to instruct and take care of her.

Aurora showed herself not only to be incredibly kind, calm, patient and wise. Her peaceful ways made Zora remember of the preachers and priests that sometimes she met during her travels. The ones that weren't corrupt, of course. Should those ever had the chance to meet Aurora, Zora had no doubts that they would immediately think of her as a saint, due to her kindness and selflessness.

With her, Zora learned about the many different races that called Avalia home, about Avalia itself and most importantly, about the magical power that flowed through the land and Zora's connection to it. More specifically to her element, water. Aurora quickly shown to be incredibly wise and by what Zora could discern, very attuned to the magic of the land. Most of the magical advice and teachings came from her.

Unlike Aurora, Rowan, despite having a polite and noble-like behavior, was much more serious. Coming from a military background, he was the one that assisted Zora with combat training, evaluating Zora's combat capabilities, sparring and teaching her about the war tactics that were used on Avalia. His ability with magic seemed to be very limited, but his skill with the bow and short swords was unparalleled. His personality and the importance he gave to honor and chivalry meant that he not always agreed with Zora's ways, but he still could find a common ground with Zora once he started to notice some of the moral rules Zora had.

But those weeks also made Zora reflect about her past life... At first, to think someone like her, who held an incredible influence through the sea had met such a pathetic end was hard to believe... To have been sacrificed thanks to the very own fame she made for herself was ironic to say the least. But when she thought a bit more about it, she realized where her mistake was... While she had influence over many people, she was never 'powerful'. The 'power' she played with was never truly hers and instead, was merely borrowed and on her hubris, she had forgotten that very fact...

But in Avalia, it would be different. The very moment Zora began being taught about magic by Aurora, she became aware of the strong connection she had with magic and specifically, water. If she learned how to wield it correctly and control it, the 'power' she was believed to have in her 'previous life' wouldn't be borrowed. She wouldn't need to borrow the sea's power, to read and interpret the waves. She wouldn't be restricted to have influence over people. In Avalia, Zora could influence the sea itself. To become truly as powerful as others believed her to be back on Earth.