Twilight Crusade's airship stalled above the dry, cracked Earth, lowering slowly. Plumes of dust scattered in every direction underneath, leaving a clear circle of stone for the airship to land.
"Whoa, you're getting better at landing!" Rusty remarked teasingly. "I almost didn't break my neck this time!"
"Hey, I was only halfway through the airship flight guide when I started flying this thing," Greyson defended with a chuckle. Azure's eyes widened in shock, and she turned her head slowly toward him. "Oh. Right. Azure didn't know that."
Greyson stepped out of the drivers' side door and into the sunlight. Though he had been in Vacuo for most of June, all of July, and into the earliest days of August, he still had never become used to the intense heat, which daily broke one hundred degrees. He pulled his scroll out of his pocket to check the time. Twelve fifty-eight in the afternoon, just a tad early to the scheduled meeting. He walked around the front of the airship, and helped Azure down from the passenger's side. Turning around, Greyson caught his first glimpse of the Agaupt Precious Metals Company's Vacuo headquarters. The building stood in stark contrast to the rest of its surroundings. On the edge of a sheer, craggy, brown cliff, a sleek, silver obelisk rose high into the blue sky. Surrounding the base was a rectangular building, with large windows evenly spaced and tinted the slightest shade of light blue. Two tall, glass, rounded doors slid apart as Greyson continued to marvel at the sight.
Out walked a woman in full silver business attire. Her dirty blonde hair was pulled back into a bun, and her grey eyes were eternally intent and focused. She walked forward briskly to meet the group of huntsmen.
"Greetings. My name is Sandy Kantar," the woman welcomed formally. "On behalf of the Agaupt Precious Metals Company, I would like to thank you for coming to help. Please, follow me inside."
Greyson nodded, and, along with the rest of Twilight Crusade, followed the secretary into the building. A sublime gust of chilled air met Greyson the moment he stepped through the door. Wide windows covered the far wall of the main room, displaying a gorgeous view of the desert. Sand stretched out in every direction for miles, punctuated at first by the Agaupt company's mines and quarries, then plateaus, valleys and tiny oases. Everything inside held an air of neatness and prosperity. The floor was made of patterned marble, grey swirling within white. Between two pillars sat several geometrically shaped chairs and tables. The black top of the front desk, sitting just in front of the group, shone with cleanliness.
The secretary led Twilight Crusade a bit down a hallway to the left, down a second hallway that required her keycard to access, and to an elevator. Greyson looked first to the beautiful floor, then to the pictures of past presidents that hung upon the wall. After a short elevator ride, he and the others stood in front of an imposing, ornate, walnut wood door. A single gold plate on the front displayed one word: "President."
"The company president is here?" Rusty quiety asked aside to Greyson.
"If so, I have a little explaining to do," Greyson replied, thinking back to his fight with Dunder, Sylvia, and Kurai. "I'm fairly certain Sylvia is his daughter."
Secretary Kantar grasped the knocker and knocked three times.
"Come in," an older man's voice welcomed politely from inside. The secretary opened the door, ushering Twilight Crusade into the large, lavish space.
The room was furnished differently from the rest of the headquarters. From the hardwood floors, to the desk, to the bookshelves that lined three walls, everything seemed to be crafted out of the same wood as the door. Directly in front of Greyson, seated at his desk, sat the company's president. Beyond was a wall made completely of window, providing the same view as the windows below.
"What!? They're Twilight Crusade?" a teenaged girl's voice groaned. "There are rumors it's an old team from Beacon, but them?" Greyson grimaced, instantly knowing the voice's owner. Sylvia sat in the room's back corner, book opened in her lap.
"Sylvia, I would like this to be a private meeting, if you'd please," President Agaupt politely hinted. Begrudgingly, Sylvia shut her book, and stood up. She winced, hunching over and grabbing her stomach momentarily before walking past Twilight Crusade and to the door.
She glared at Greyson spitefully as she passed by. Despite her hostility, Greyson noticed something that sent a pang of guilt through his mind. She was weak, with sunken cheeks, and a constant hollow, pained look on her face. She was thinner than at Beacon, and looked as if she had missed several nights of sleep. She hobbled feebly out the door with a limp. Shaking off the feeling, Greyson took a seat next to Azure.
The President was a portly, elderly man. Small, rectangular glasses were nested on the bridge of his wide nose. Snow white hair formed a thick rim around the back of his bald head. He sat back in his chair, arms crossed in his lap.
"So, I'm sure my secretary has briefed you on our situation," President Agaupt began. Greyson nodded once in reply. "We would like you to investigate for as long as you can, or until you find the cause of the occurrences. Up front, we can offer 1,500 lien. Should you complete the job, you will earn 2,000 more."
Greyson was shocked. "Sir, are you sure? We really don't need that much pay..." he argued.
President Agaupt smiled and waved his hand in generous dismissal. "No, no. You don't need to worry about our funds," he assured. He leaned in, gaze suddenly hardening. "Judging by some of the reports I've received, this won't be an easy mission. We've already contacted paranormal groups. They've all left after night one."
Greyson felt a sudden surge of apprehension, which faded into a cautious enthusiasm. "I'm not easily scared, President Agaupt," Greyson confidently said. "I'm ready."
After spending the remaining afternoon and evening hours resting for the long night ahead, Greyson led Twilight Crusade to the agreed meeting place. At the cliff's edge, a steel cage mounted on a rickety metal shaft served as an elevator between headquarters and the desert below. Greyson and the others followed Secretary Kantar onto the elevator, then down, slowly into the choking blackness below. Only a few lights, scattered seemingly at random, revealed where Twilight Crusade would be staying for the night, and where they would be investigating. An old, run-down cabin sat on the edge of a deep, long quarry. The cabin's windows looked sunken and dark, creating a dreary, sad atmosphere, contrasting completely with the clean, futuristic headquarters above.
"The cabin is where you will stay," the Secretary reported calmly. "If ever you wish to come up early, here's the emergency contact number." She handed Greyson a small piece of rigid paper, with a number neatly written in black ink. "Get whatever evidence you can, and try to get to the bottom of this nuisance."
Half an hour later, Greyson, Azure, Ember, and Kita had everything set up. The others explored the cabin, finding it to be very slightly more welcoming inside. The building consisted of one hallway after the foyer. The two rooms to the right were bedrooms with four cots each. First door on the left was a small kitchen, refrigerator full of food nobody could be sure was still safe, and sink holding the corpse of an unfortunate spider. The second door to the left opened to a small bathroom.
On one of the cots, a huge, expensive video camera sat haphazardly, as if left behind in a hurry and forgotten. Greyson stepped over to it, fiddled with several buttons until gaining a general idea of its most important features, and looked through old footage.
The only video on the camera was of a group of burly-looking men, all tinted in the eerie green light of night vision. Greyson watched for several minutes as the men walked through the quarry, every now and then hearing noises that would send the cameraman in a frenzy. At a particularly calm moment, when the investigators were asking typical "paranormal" questions, Greyson felt a chill run down his spine as a woman's shrill scream broke through the camera's speaker. The cameraman jumped, and as the men ran in terror, Greyson could have sworn he saw a gaunt, pitch-black figure following behind.
Greyson sat on the edge of the cot, with the camera in his lap and a wide-eyed, vacant look painted on his face. "What did I get myself into?" he thought. "Ghosts aren't real. They don't make sense. But then, what the hell WAS that?"
"Greyson! Let's go!" Ezelia called eagerly, suddenly appearing in the doorway. She approached Greyson. "Ooh, that thing looks fancy," she noted.
"Yeah, and I think I figured out how to record with it, too..." Greyson commented, as he searched for the little red button he happened upon minutes earlier. "Ah. There we go."
Together with Azure, Kita, and Ezelia, Greyson walked due North, travelling alongside the quarry. The desert night was pitch black, as the cliff to the right of the group cast a shadow across the dirt. With no moonlight, Greyson could only rely on the small, green screen of the camera for vision. The group walked for twenty minutes without incident. Though hesitant at first, Greyson began to relax, the warm night air and gentle breeze doing wonders to calm his nerves.
A girl's laughter broke the silence. A light, mischievous giggle that caused Greyson to freeze in place. Kita unsheathed Kenakuma, and Azure held Greyson's arm tighter. He knew the sound was not imagined.
The three remained frozen for several seconds, and Ezelia looked around curiously. Suddenly, Azure shrieked loudly with fright, jumping into Greyson.
"What happened? Are you alright?" Greyson fervently asked.
"Uhh, uh, uh... Something... I don't- I don't know what. Something grabbed my ankle!" Azure said frantically, pushing a coherent sentence out with immense effort. Greyson could feel her shaking against him.
Greyson nodded. "Try to stay calm. Grimm can sense fear. Do you need to go back to base?"
"Well, I don't want to be weak, but... yes," Azure admitted.
Greyson grabbed his scroll and called Ember. She picked up within seconds.
"Ember. How are things on your end?" Greyson asked.
"Pretty quiet," she calmly reported. "Really, nothing out of the ordinary."
"Strange. Can you take Raven and walk due North?" Greyson asked. "Weird things are happening here. Azure wants to go back."
"Alright," Ember affirmed. "We'll be there in a little. And, uh... stay safe."
The call ended.
Greyson, Azure, and Kita sat on boulders in complete darkness and silence. Several minutes later, the sound of footsteps approached the group.
"Ember? Raven?" Greyson called.
He was answered by eerie, female laughter, then silence.
"Well, now I understand why the workers are so damn creeped out," Greyson conceded, trying to lighten the mood.
"Greyson, there is a powerful presence nearby. It is not grimm, and it is not Ember nor Raven," Kita warned. "Still, the presence feels... human."