Aliquam: Academy of the Arts Estelle gaped first at the sheer size of the Academy, which ascended far, far into the sky and dwarfed them all. Then, to the exquisite and immaculate details of the building, and the hustle and bustle of students walking or milling about, showing off the various exhibitions they had all worked so hard on to fellow students and interested tourists. Even from where she stood, in the centre of the courtyard with the various exhibitions a short distance in all directions, she couldn’t get a proper view of the details but could tell that everything here was exemplary. Estelle always had a fondness for art, and enjoyed drawing and colouring when she was younger, even if the best her talent could muster were stick figures. Whilst she wasn’t any good at it, she could certainly appreciate it, and the Academy had a wide and diverse range of arts to showcase. From the more traditional fine arts of painting and sculpting, to floral arrangements, music and theatre, the Academy held everything.
The only question, really, was where to begin?
“Dylan?!!”
A bouncing bundle of blonde hair emerged from the crowd, running over to the where the Pride was and tackled Dylan, nearly knocking the matter artist to the ground. “Oh Dyl I can’t believe you’re back!”
A smile crept upon the swordswoman’s face, as she witnessed Dylan introduce the young blonde woman as Dalia Sanders, his sister. Estelle had heard bits and pieces from Dylan about Dalia before, but never to any great detail. Much to her delight, Dalia fulfilled Estelle’s mental picture of her almost perfectly, except Dalia was much, much more prettier. She had to agree with Trixie, and like the prankster, her enthusiasm could only grow.
“Hi Dalia!” Estelle shot her hand into the sky, hopping in front of everybody else and gripping the priestess’ hands for a powerful shake. “My name’s Estelle Fenix, and I’m kind of Dylan’s boss! It’s a pleasure to meet you!!”
Marcus shook his head. “There certainly is a lot here for all to see. It wouldn’t be a problem to split up a little to explore, would it? I’m sure everyone here has something they’re dying to see, from Lucien and his paintings, Moira’s statues and Aria’s music rooms and theatres. Would that be a problem, Miss Sanders? I know the Academy is big, but… it should be okay to get around, shouldn’t it?”
Biggs and Wedge!Meanwhile, seated on a park bench located around the courtyard fountain and in fullview of the Pride, a duo clad in light armour and their weapons (a javelin and a hammer) resting by their side, relaxed with a hearty smile as they enjoyed the sunshine beaming down on them and their lunch from the Academy’s cafeteria.
“This is nice, isn’t it Biggs?”
“It sure is, Wedge. What a beautiful day and festival!”
Biggs and Wedge were recent recruits of the Artar Empire’s army, still slowly growing and accumulating experience during training. The duo were virtually inseparable partners, and had been through a lot to get to were they were today. But the road ahead was still extremely long.
Biggs was a tall, slender and lithe man, with a long pronounced chin and large eyes, whilst his partner Wedge was far shorter, squattier and muscular, with a wide smile and rosy cheeks. They had been sent to Aliquam’s Academy to help provide security for the festival and be sure no trouble transpired, as well as sent with a personal message to be delivered from their Captain to his two adored children. It seemed like a simple enough mission, and was a pleasant break from one of their more recent ones. Becoming a tree wasn’t exactly fun.
Biggs finished off his mustard hotdog by shoving the remains of it into his throat, whilst Wedge smacked his lips off one by one to clean them off the ketchup that had spilt from his hamburger. Coupling that with their milkshakes, it had been a tasty treat.
“Ah… what now, Biggs?”
“Hmm… maybe we could just enjoy the sun a little longer? Walking is tiring.”
“You’re telling me…”
