"Ten miles to Clover Town!" Maryanna pointed at the sign alongside the train track.
"We ALL can see it Maryanna!" Synnova erupted. "When the first sign in MILES shows up, we are all gonna read it! You don't need to say it out loud!"
"Fuck you, that are my girlfriend!" Dante pressed his forehead against Synnova's.
"I'll call off your tail if I want to!" Synnova pressed back against him.
"What the hell does 'tail' mean?" Mason inquired, looking into the air absently.
"WHAT?" Dante shrieked.
"Tail. What the hell is it supposed to mean?" Mason inquired. "Are saiyans a thing here? Are we doing that kind of crossover?"
"God dammit!" Synnova slammed her palm against her forehead and craned her head back. 'I thought we finished the learning curve after Ragnarok."
"It's not my fault!" Mason swiveled his body to face the group. "I went to a Catholic school! We didn't use those words; I don't know what that means!"
"Catholic?" Dante scratched his chin thoughtfully. "Isn't that like white flower you can eat?"
"That's cauliflower." Mason corrected with a huff.
"The increase in the rate of a chemical reaction due to the participation of a substance?" Maryanna offered cheerily.
"Catalyst..." Mason sighed.
"Clouding of the lens inside the eye which leads to a decrease in vision." Synnova stated confidently.
"Cataracts!" Mason threw up his hands in disbelief. "Where did you learn these words!?"
"Sufferin' succotash" Dante muttered.
"NEVER SAY THAT AGAIN!" Mason jabbed a pointed finger at Dante accusingly.
"Well what does tail mean?!" Mason said after a moment of silence.
"Guess..." Dante rolled his eyes at him.
"Boo-"
"Try again."
"But-"
"Closer."
"As-"
"Ew, colder."
"... v-"
"Yup." Dante nodded. Everyone sweat dropped as Mason finally understood it.
"I don't get what a tail has to do with a violinist though..." Mason muttered, scratching his chin." The other three members of Unicorns are Mystical fell onto their backs, limbs sticking up, with a ragged chorus of groans.
"It means a woman's vagina." Synnova finally sighed.
"Don't say it like a Sex Ed. Class." Dante muttered.
"How else was I supposed to say it?" Synnova snapped.
"Just not like you're asking if the scary man touched me in my special place." Mason offered.
"That must be Clover Town!" Maryann pointed to the cluster of houses in the distance, slowly coming closer.
"No, that city right in front of you ISN'T the only city in miles." Synnova snapped.
"Why is she so tsundere today?' Dante whispered to Mason.
"Expect in for the next five to seven days." Mason shuddered; the safe portion of the month had run out and now they were all in danger.
"My leg's hurt." Dante groaned. "My knees are sore from all the steps I've taken."
"Well there is one way to solve that situation." Synnova grinned widely, maybe a little too widely.
"How?" Dante brightened.
"SUCK IT UP YOU PANSY!" Synnova's neck quintupled in size and her shark-like face loomed over top of Dante. "MASON'S THE ONE CARRYING HALF OF OUR LUGGAGE AND HE ISN'T COMPLAINING!"
"I'm fine." Mason said with strain. He rolled a shoulder, adjusting a backpack to fit better on it. In each of his hands he carried an overstuffed and very heavy duffel bag.
"Remember that Dante fought for us on the train." Maryanna chimed in her melodious voice.
"Let me take one." Dante reached a hand out to snatch a bag. "You've carried them all the way here."
"It's not a chore." Mason held the bag forward and out of Dante's reach. "Drop it."
"But-" Dante started an argument.
"And were here!" Mason interrupted, jogging forward with his laden arms.
Having left at first light and walked over ten miles, it was several hours past noon. The sun would have been shining brightly at its peak in the sky, but it was very cloudy out. The sky was shrouded by an ugly grey blanket that carried on for as far as anyone could see. The point where the sun was could be seen; a glowing section of the large cloud, but barely any of its warmth hit the ground. The chilly air slowly trickled away the energy of the teenagers. The air was musty and thick, evidence of a previous or future rainstorm.
The team strolled through the streets in their search for "the posters of the poster" as Dante put it. The town was relatively empty, but the shops still had colorful signs and advertisements in their windows, and most were open. Deciding they had enough time to spare, they even sat down at a nice-looking cafe and had a brief respite at the small building.
They sat near the window in a booth. Maryanna clicked away on her phone, keeping up on the gossip even when out of town and Mason entertained himself by levitating sugar packets and spinning them, making them do wanton tricks. Synnova was doing her best to make a dent in her huge pile of bagels, croissants, muffins, and rice cakes. Dante aimlessly charged his cards before flicking them at his coke can in an attempt to slice it in two. He finally succeeded, causing a cry of joy from his lungs and a pressurized 355ml's of soda to spray all over Synnova. She stared at the drenched blueberry muffin she held, her eyes slowly rising to look at Dante, who gulped loudly.
"Can I see the paper, Mason?" Maryanna asked, barely audible over the sounds of Synnova choking Dante.
"Check if they list a meeting place." Mason noted, fishing through Dante's bag that sat on the floor and handing it to Maryanna.
The paper listed a meeting place, simply telling applicants to meet at the Amador residence. And, of course, there were hundreds of different houses in Clover Town, with too many lacking the surname of the residents. After the coffee shop they trekked through the town, doing their best to locate a house that housed people with the last name Amador.
"Found it!" Dante exclaimed out of the blue.
"Dante, I swear if you lost Toby Keith again and you just found him-" Mason muttered, looking away from Dante.
"No, I found the house!" Dante pointed, his monkey perched on his shoulder, but no one was looking at him to see what he was pointing at.
"You tried to pull that three times, I'm pretty sure the library wasn't the Amador house." Synnova sighed.
"LOOK YOU IDIOTS!" Dante pointed with both hands, showing he meant business. Respecting the authority of dual pointing, the team turned and saw a huge mansion that made Toby Keith's tiny jaw drop.
The regular, suburban houses ended suddenly, giving way to this house. A thick, ten-foot tall concrete wall stood as a border around the property. The property itself was carpeted with verdant green grass; all cut to an exact two inches. The road to the mansion split two ways and formed a circle around a huge, multi-layered marble fountain. A well trimmed hedge formed strange shapes only discernible by birds on their left, and to their right sat a long, sparkling, unattended swimming pool. Right in front of the team sat a sign as simple as any other on the street, carved wood. It proudly read, "The Amador Mansion". To the front of them sat the greatest prize of all. Slowly, Team Unicorns Are Mystical walked inside the open gate and towards the amazing structure.
A huge, castle-like manor loomed above them. It seemed to be made of a brick, colored a dull pale. Embrasures and merlons danced along the top of the roof battlements, being the major contributor to the medieval appearance. Another feature was the windows, all of which were tall and pointed, and stacked three high at most places. They were often cut down the middle, split into three, or some other delicate design. Around the huge arch that was the front entrance Mason spotted several large ones, made with colored glass to create pictures he couldn't make out. Towers that were at least a story higher than the regular structure pushed forward towards them. On the towers and beside the main entrance hung long banners. They were quartered, colored red and blue and decorated with a swan holding a rose branch in its mouth. Above the towers and the battlements loomed a large, red-shingled roof with a hefty brick chimney sticking out of it.
"Halt!" Someone said abruptly, making the four mages jump. They had been so lost in the grandeur of the mansion that they didn't notice the two people guarding the entrance, or that they had even arrived at the house.
"Duuuuuuhhhhh..." Dante made an excellent representation of everyone's intelligence by slowly looking up, craning his neck and looking like an idiot.
"We are mages from the Fairy Tail guild inquiring about the job post." Maryanna recovered quickest of all, she even brandished the job request to the two guards. One of them wore casual clothes, a t-shirt and jeans, while the other was clad in thief-like leather padded armour. It had metal studs along the thick shoulder pauldron, and had delicate details that made excellent use of the two base colors, black and brown.
"And you didn't call in prior?" One of them, looking about twenty years of age, had a tall spiky mohawk that was colored bright red, completely contrast to the classy, well-kept house he stood in front. He sported numerous facial piercing, and the tip of a tattoo poked through the collar of his t-shirt. He squinted at them accusingly for no apparent reason.
"There was nothing notifying us of that need on the request." Synnova met the man's eyes, her eyebrows slowly lowering in a threatening action.
"You think you can just stroll in to the Amador mansion whenever you feel like it?" The mohawked man spread his arms wide and spoke in strange, presumably sarcastic tones. "Well sure, why don't you stroll on in? Would you like tea? All we have left is Earl Grey."
"Rob, shut your stinking trap." The other guard, who looked their age, had silver eyes and dark blonde hair, and he stated his insult with a sick grin. "These pretty young mages have come to help us the day after we sent out the request, why must you always be so cruel?" The second one spoke with a smooth, soothing tone. Despite this, it still had a sick, cruel edge that made every word slice into your thoughts.
"Oh..." He turned slowly to face Synnova and smiled the strangest, widest smile yet. "Hello Synnova."
A trio of mages whipped their head sideways to look at Synnova with similar questioning faces. They were all met by a Synnova that was staring wide-eyed and unblinking at the man. Sweat beaded her brow, and both of her hands shook uncontrollably.
"H-hello... Corvo. I didn't kn-now you were an Amador..." Synnova stuttered. This action nearly made the team faint. Synnova, an S-class mage, of all people, was frozen? Shaking, even? Barely able to spit out a feasible sentence?
"Born and raised." Corvo flashed the same creepy grin from before at Synnova.
"Come with me then..." The mohawk-clad one known as Rob turned and led them inside the house. They all followed him, but Synnova stopped when she was abreast Corvo.
"Fairy Tail?" Corvo inquired quietly. He didn't turn to talk to Synnova, and his lips barely moved when he spoke. "You've come a long way from-"
"Corvo, I'm not that person anymore." Synnova answered, apparently regaining her firmness.
"Aww..." Corvo stuck out his bottom lip in a pout. "Don't you remember our good times? That you was so much fun."
"And now she is non-existent." Synnova growled. "Now I'd prefer it if you didn't mention Ragnarok anymore, it has brought Fairy Tail alot of sorrow recently."
"Sounds like a plan, Nova." He purred the name, but it still sounded like it came off a snake's tongue. "Now better catch up with your friends."
Synnova obeyed without a goodbye. She ran down the main hall, trying to find where they could have possibly gone to. She barely paid attention to the fine decorations. Huge tapestries, more banners, old furniture, vases, lamps, chandeliers, and so much more was lost to her current haste.
"As you know, our surname is Amador." A presumably old man wheezed. Synnova whirled suddenly, bursting into a small side room. Sitting in a comfy-looking chair was, as thought, a wrinkly old man. Around him sat Rob, Corvo, who had somehow beaten her here, and other people of all different sexes, heights, dress, weights, and hair styles that were probably other members of the Amador family. She slipped in with her team and did her best to hear the old man's wheezy speech.
The old man stopped for a moment. His glazed eyes floated over to Synnova's current position, but he started up again when he was done his observation. "Our family is barely over half of its past population. There is a story behind this. It is the tale of the Amador family, and I will tell it to you now."
The old man took several deep breaths, which wasn't a good sign for any impatient listeners. "It began with the greatest Amador of all, the late Logan Amador. He was my father. He was born when the Amador name was one of poverty, not riches. After the early death of his own father, upon him was bestowed the title of Head of the Family at the tender age of eighteen. Although you can say he wasn't dealt a very good hand as the Head of a poverty stricken family, he was a strong, courageous man and very clever. He expanded out industry at a rapid pace, trading and investing on a global level in no time. In less than a decade, the Amador family had gone from the slums to being the richest family in Fiore. To continue his legacy, Logan had children with his new wife Trisha. His children grew up happily, but my twin brother, Baron, was always a strange one. When he and I were both in our fifties, Logan passed in his sleep. Both of us were considered the eldest of the family, for we were never told which was the older. We could not ask our mother, for she had passed three years prior. A great schism swept through the Amador family, with my own blood supporting me; bless their gracious souls, and his own brethren following him. The family business fell with no one to head it. Our friends and business partners were all forced to choose between the Amadors, my family, or the newly separated Baradin family, headed by my brother. As our stalemate continued, the Amador personal treasury slowly grew dry. You see, it is not easy running a family after it has been torn in two. Only several months ago, the Amador account finally ran completely empty." The man let out a ragged sigh, and many people standing around him pursed their lips tightly together, clenched their fists, or some other representation of suppressed anger.
"If you don't mind me asking, how did you retain such a beautiful house?" Dante asked, looking around him at the extravagant house.
"A stroke of luck, young man. The Amador name is on the deed to the land, so ownership of the ancient family mansion passed to us and not the Baradins. Another factor of our poverty is that it is very difficult and expensive to maintain such an old building, but I would never let the family mansion pass to someone else with a pure heart. As you probably noticed, long ago we rid of any servants or workers. Now our family is forced to fill those positions as cooks, gardeners, landscapers, guards, maids, and everything else."
The man looked to Dante, as if asking if he was satisfied. When he didn't receive an answer, he continued.
"My brother and I spoke for the first time in several decades last month. We both came to a single conclusion; it had to be decided which family was the true Amador family. This was such an important concept because a wealth greater than that of the Fiore government sits in waiting for the Amador family to claim it. Since my brother and I both claim to be born first, there are no solid grounds to claim the money. That is the purpose of our past meeting. One thing everyone who knew Logan retained in memory was his list. It was a specific list of twenty objects in Fiore he wanted to see before he died. Sadly, due to his early demise, he was never able to see a single one of these artifacts. And so, Baron and I came to an agreement. Whoever could lay to rest the most of the twenty artifacts with our father would be the true Amador family, and would have the right to Logan's Vault in Crocus."
Suddenly, the man made a choking noise. Maryanna took a step forward quickly, truly thinking the man was dying, but she then realized the shrivelled old figure was crying.
"You see..." He breathed with likeliness to a shiver, in and out very rapidly. (Giggity.) "The Baradins live in wealth in Oshibana, the neighboring t-town. We are only poor because we cannot make our money by wicked means. Baron... he takes bribes, he hires out his children as mercenaries, he takes criminal jobs such as assassinations, or other wicked acts. My children are starving, and he only wants the money for the satisfaction of finally beating me in our lifelong rivalry."
The man's head fell to his hands and he began to cry softly. Several Amadors bent to his level and attempted to comfort him, but to little avail. The four mages still stood there awkwardly, unsure what to do. Dante turned to his team, who quickly turned in on each other to make a circle.
"So the competition mentioned on the job request was the Baradins." He said quietly. Although he had little to fear, for it wouldn't exactly be a tragedy if the Amadors heard his supporting words.
"Even though they wouldn't be able to pay anyone now, they probably thought if they could hire enough mages, they would win the money anyway and would afford to pay whatever sum." Synnova commented.
"We can't let that Baron creep get Logan's Vault and let these guys suffer." Mason muttered quietly. He was looking down, his face void of any emotion. It was clear the story had truly gotten to him.
"I think if, for some reason, the Baradins win, we shouldn't request payment." Maryanna suggested.
"Of course." Dante scoffed. "We would never ask poor people to pay for our expenses, even if they deserve the money."
"Alright, Arthur!" Dante whirled around. Synnova frowned at the name, but then remembered she had missed introductions, and Arthur must have been the one talking the whole time. "We're in it together now! There aint no way were letting those Baradins get away with your rightful fortune! We are gonna fight alongside you guys and get to those artifacts first!"
"Children..." The old man lifted his head form his hands. His cheeks were stained with tears, but there was a smile on his face. "It heartens me to hear that. Thank you dearly for your support. But... there is one more thing you should know..."Arthur's body convulsed suddenly in a huge sob, and he burst into tears into his hands.
"I was doing some spying on the Baradins last week." Corvo stepped forward, taking it upon himself to finish the thought his grandfather couldn't. "Luckily, I managed to slip into the archives. I managed to gain a piece of Barons private diary from four decades ago. Logan didn't die in his sleep. Baron Baradin, then Baron Amador, killed his father Logan in cold blood in hopes of having the power and fortune of the Amador family to himself."