This chapter was being a major pain in the butt and was rewritten several times. I'm still not 100% pleased with it but I was due for an update so. Here it is. Enjoy it!
Disclaimer:
"When in doubt, remember FISH. Fuck It, Shit Happens."
"Whatever you do in life, always give 100% unless its blood."
"I'm waking up, I feel in in my bones
Enough to make my systems blow.
Welcome to the new age, to the new age
welcome to the new age, to the new age"
Kirshea frowned as she stared at what was supposed to be a magical glowing aura in her hands. What was in her hand…. was a lump of… substance. "Oz, I'm pretty sure it's not supposed to do that."
The vampire laughed wholeheartedly at the young fae's attempt at mana conjuring, "Kirshea my dear, you're correct. It's s not."
"Thanks a lot," she muttered, burying her face in her hands.
"Now now~" Oz cooed, running his fingers through her hair, "if at first you don't succeed, try try again. Its ok! conjuration of mana in the way I'm asking you to do is extremely difficult. You're doing a great job!"
Kirshea narrowed her scarlet eyes at Oz, "You sure about this?" she questioned him, clearly not believing him.
"But of course dear!" He was always charismatic and charming; even when he was being a sarcastic asshole; probably ingrained into his personality.
"Oz," when she spoke again, her tone shifted from doubt to pure curiosity. "Why do I need to learn this? I'm obviously not very good at using mana."
"Well, I'm not going to deny you there," he chuckled, ducking when said lump of substance was thrown at his head. "It's not that I need you to be able to use mana, I need you to be able to manipulate it; which is why I'm having you do this first. It'll help you with controlling it. A sage you will never be," his chuckle turned into a warm laugh, "I think we may be able to drag some pretty powerful basic attacks out of you, in terms of self defense." he trailed off before continuing after a pregnant pause, "Plus some of the seals we will have to unlock require you to channel your mana into them to unlock them. All I need you to be able to do is flare your mana enough to help me unlock the seals."
"Oh! So it's like using a key in a lock then?" She inquired, tilting her head to the side.
"Exactly like that!" Oz praised her, "see? I told you those stupid elves didn't know anything. You're a brilliant little thing~" he cooed and went in for a hug, though it was interrupted by a tall woman with light blonde hair tied up in a sloppy bun. Her piercing periwinkle eyes scanned their surroundings; matching the stoic expression on her face. Her heels clicked against the old wooden floor as she crossed it; with her heels on she was eye-level with Oz. Oz was by no means a short man.
Kirshea instinctively shrank back shyly from the older woman. Though GC was an elf and shared the trait of pointed ears with Kirshea, the little fae was sure that GC wasn't the kind of elf she'd grown up with in Filia. Even with the cruel treatment from the elven children, there were a select handful of adults who'd treated her kindly. She'd heard stories of a handful of elves who'd went rogue in the olden days of Filia's history. Hagel had told her that they weren't to be trifled with. He'd adamantly believed that their descendants were still alive somewhere. Seeing GC, Kirshea couldn't help but silently agree with Hagel.
"Brutal blood thirsty monsters" he'd called them. Kirshea shuddered, remembering the kind banker's words.
"Oz, there's word of Sai's movement," she spoke coolly, keeping her gaze on Oz with a neutral face. "And your week is almost up."
"Now now~ GC~ don't be like that~" Oz cooed, lightly nudging the curvaceous female. "Perhaps you could give our dear little Kirshea some tips later on being able to flare mana to open the seals since she's having the same problems you did~"
Shifting her eye to Kirshea, she nodded ever so slightly, "Affirmative, but that will have to happen later. You need to go feed."
Waving his pale hands in surrender, he got up and strolled to his right hand, "Fine. Have it your way, love." he spoke while putting his hands on GC's shoulders, only to have them slapped off and a meaningful periwinkle glare thrown his way.
"Yes Ma'am," Oz relented with a sigh, strolling out of the room. "Oh by the way," he paused in the doorway, "Kirshea's working on mana conjuring and trying to make a crystal out of mana. While I feed, I need you to supervise. When I get back, tell me what you've heard on Sai."
The elven woman responded with a curt nod before taking a seat in the chair Oz had previously occupied. "Now, fae." she commanded, gaining Kirshea's full attention. "Begin again."
Sighing, Kirshea found herself obeying her superior's command. More so out of fear than respect. Oz, while flamboyant and silly, wasn't really anyone that Kirshea saw as a threat. His followers? They were a whole different story.
GC was one of his top advisers. While she had never threatened Kirshea or made any sort of indication that she intended to, it was clear that she would cut the little fairy down should the need arise. She probably wouldn't lose sleep over it either.
Oz's base was well hidden along the unpopulated shores of Belvast Island - deep within Tory Ravine, several miles north-east of the springs on Scathatch Beach. Thanks to the superstition of the population of Belvast, their base was essentially a safe haven from outsiders. Patrols were not necessary, though GC and a handful of her underlings handled doing them anyway.
"Too much." GC commented, interrupting Kirshea's thought process.
With a bright flash of light and a loud pop, Kirshea found herself holding yet another lump of substance. Scarlet eyes widened as she dropped the heated lump onto the floor, her palms burning in protest from having held scaredly met GC's gaze whilst muttering a rather intelligent, "huh?"
"You're concentrating too hard," she elaborated with a flat tone. "Less is more."
Kirshea watched GC a moment, waiting to see if the older woman would clarify a bit more, but when the elf leaned back in Oz's chair, going as far as to prop one leg up on the table in a rather unlady-like fashion; the cape of her armor shifting, nearly showing off all her lower assets, it became clear to Kirshea that GC wasn't going to offer her too much advice.
Sighing again, Kirshea pondered GC's words before closing her eyes and trying once again.
Stepping off the boat in Port Cobh, Takori spared a quick glance down the pier as the sun was setting over the ocean. He'd just returned to Uladh after spending six months in Iria.
It'd been mostly refreshing, getting away from his troubles. During his stay in Port Qilla, he'd learned a few new survival - cooking - tips that he almost might be able to put to good use during nights he had to camp out. Such as, he made an excellent roasted potato; well, when he had Effie's supervision, at least.
The first aid tips, as well as learning some healing tips from a Cor Native who'd been visiting the area during his stay, the vagabond smiled as he walked along the dock.
It was the first time in years since he'd felt genuinely refreshed.
Pausing his stride for a heartbeat, he idly toyed with the idea of grabbing lunch at the pub before continuing his travels. His stomach was delighted by the idea, plus chatting with Annick was always fun - he learned some interesting information about the latest news going on in Uladh.
"Hey Annick!" he greeted cheerfully. "The usual!"
"Hey Kid!" the old pirate answered, "Give me fifteen!"
"Yes Ma'am!" he answered automatically as he took his usual seat.
Takori found himself once again staring out the window as he did every time he visited the port. He felt a sense of deja vu when he saw another ship of sailors preparing to set sail.
Then, his eyes spotted a familiar glimpse of blue-gray hair and eyes. His heart dropped to his stomach. Equi was heading to the pub.
Quickly standing in his chair, he met Annick on her way out of the kitchen, "May I hide here for a little while?"
"Personal Issues?" the old pirate woman guessed.
"Yes Ma'am."
"Don't mess up anything, and you can sit on that stool back here as long as you need." She answered with a shrug as Takori dashed into the kitchen just in time as the bell on the door to the pub chimed.
When Oz returned to the great room, he couldn't help the way his lips curled into a smile upon hearing Kirshea's jubilant cries of "I DID IT!"
The young fae reminded him of Sai in so many ways. He paused in his spot, right outside the slightly open door. His mind taking him back to a much simpler time.
"Ozzy!" the little black haired boy ran circles around him. "I can make shadow puppets and I figured out I can talk through them! Stay put! Stay put! I wanna show you!"
Laughing, Oz humored the small child, "alright alright. I won't move!" he promised, watching as Sai ran off into the next room.
Shaking his head, drawing himself back to reality, Oz pushed the door open and entered the room. "Great job! I knew you could do it!" he exclaimed, feeling a pained nostalgia wash over him as he said a phrase he hadn't spoken in a long time.
The little blonde girl practically radiated with excited pride. He nodded at her before flashing her a smile. Walking over to Kirshea, he lightly patted her on the head before taking a seat across from GC. "Tell me what you found out," he commanded, his whole demeanor changing.
"Seems like when you made that little trip to Mori," she tailed off, cutting her eyes at Oz in a wordless message that the child shouldn't hear what she had to say.
With a long stretch and a loud yawn, Oz easily handled the situation, "Neh, Lil' Lady~ You mind doing me a favor?"
"Sure!" she chirped, her disposition mellow; having missed the look the older duo had shared.
"How about you go get me a cold one? I forgot to get it while I was down there," he suggested dramatically.
"You're so forgetful!" Kirshea chastised, but nodded anyway. "The usual?"
"Yes ma'am!" he answered automatically; purposefully sending her to the basement to ensure she'd be gone for an extended period of time. "Oh~ Take your time getting it, dear." he waved a hand in dismissal, "I'm not dying or anything."
Once Kirshea was out of earshot, he once again met his right hand's gaze, "Alright, talk to me."
With a flick of her hand - a silent command for one of her underlines to keep watch for the girl, she nodded at Oz, "when you made off with those documents," she continued from where she left off, "It seems like that paladin that gave you chase was rescued by Sai and that little girl that you buried in the sands six months ago. She seems to be on his side. It could cause you some trouble."
"Hah." Oz chuckled, "who would have thought that the day I buried a thieving gypsy, I'd find her sister who just so conveniently looking for said thief. Life sure is funny sometimes. It's s even funnier that Sai found her so soon. If he hadn't, she'd be a singing decomposing body by now." He laughed again at his own joke before a quiet cough from his partner forced him back on topic. "Ah, right. What else you got?"
"They have Embezzler's higher ups on their side; at least that's what my spy tells me." GC added. "What are you going to do if you get confronted?"
"Same plan as we always do. We'll deal with it accordingly, and escape quickly. Don't do anything that could jeopardize our goal." He spoke slowly and deliberately.
"Understood."
"Tell DD to be careful. I hear Boi and Sien aren't exactly gentle when they find rats," Oz advised.
"DD and I were partners long before you recruited us. He won't get caught, and if he does, then he deserves whatever punishment the mafia monarchs deliver him," she stated in a tone void of emotion. "If we come across that little half pint again, she's mine."
"Have you a crush on the gypsy?" Oz teased.
"Not really. But Sai does and she could be used as leverage against him. Plus, I'm mildly curious of the extent of her vocal range." The elven woman answered with a shrug. "Shame she wouldn't join us willingly." Snorting, GC then pitched her voice up, in mockery of her confrontation with the pink haired fae. "I'm only interested in my music."
"I bet we can use the little girl to get her on our side, which would get to Sai. We could kill two birds with one stone." GC continued thoughtfully, prompting Oz to nod. "Do it."
A coughing fit from outside the door, gave them plenty of warning to cease their conversation as Kirshea returned with Oz's drink.
"In other news," GC spoke in her normal tone, "I heard that there's a lead on your sister," directing her attention to Kirshea, watching as the smaller blonde's features light up.
"Really!?" Kirshea squeaked.
"Oh that's great!" Oz added, feigning ignorance. "What'd you hear?"
"Well, its not exactly great news," GC continued, choosing her words carefully, Oz noted. "But she is well; for now. It seems Sai's brainwashed her into helping him. So, to get her into our safe hands, I propose we plan a rescue mission."
"What do you have in mind?" Oz questioned for Kirshea who'd gone silent as she took in the news, before putting an arm around her, "No worries, we'll save her!" he encouraged, his gaze not leaving her until she nodded at him.
Kirshea focused her scarlet gaze in GC. Her sister was being brainwashed by a spoiled loonatic? She was working for the enemy? Don't worry, Seri, she thought, we'll save you!
She nodded once again, her still babyish face set with determination. She decided that if GC went out of her way to get news on Seriyan, she couldn't really be that bad afterall. GC was her only hope.
"Well…" GC began before getting into the details of her elaborate plan.
T.B.C.
"Woah~ Woah~ I'm radioactive, radioactive
Woah~ Woah~ I'm radioactive, radioactive"
- "Radioactive" - Imagine Dragons
Feat. LittleKid!Sai in this chapter.
Characters in this chapter:
Ksenny, Deadoz, Takori, Guiltyclear, equinox78
Mentioned:
Deathsai, Seriyan, Ordersol, Darkdealer