Chapter 2 – The First Mission
The train trundled along the tracks with the wind rushing against it as it raced towards its next destination, rattling every now and then with enough of a jolt that it slightly shook its riders slightly. Sat down in one of the compartments of a carriage of the train was Caminal and Raphael whilst Razi had excitedly slid open one of the windows, creating a massive draft in the room all to stick his face out of the carriage and to the outside, letting the wind hit him with a smile on his face.
"Do you have any idea how dangerous that is?!" Caminal exclaimed at the sight of what the boy was doing. "You should pull him back in right now! You should think about what will happen if he falls out or he gets hit by something!"
Her words however were heard by Razi as he continued to enjoy whatever experience that he got out of what he was doing whilst Raphael sighed, something that was completely drowned out by the wind.
"I'll pull him in if he starts getting stupid about it all or if a tunnel is coming up… sorry but this is something that you will have to get used to." Raphael then answered her as the both of them who were sitting side by side looked at Razi either blandly or fuming. Their choice of seating was practically natural given the situation, as neither of them wanted to sit in the middle of the draft that Razi enjoyed, yet despite their positioning they still felt some of its effects as Caminal's hair began to flutter in the air.
"What do you mean?! He's acting completely like a dog now! Just how was he raised for the duration of time that you have known him?!" Caminal continued to argue as she pointed toward him, only briefly getting Razi's attention before he soon dropped the idea to go back to looking at wherever they were headed.
"I completely understand you, but the moment that you saw his tail and ears you should have known he was something different to us on a biological level. He probably came with us to get away from Orla because of it." Raphael replied to her, still as calm as ever in contrast to the whole situation that surrounded him. The only new thing about the situation was the fact that the person in question with them was Caminal, yet otherwise, he had experienced the same situation every time that they had gone on a mission with Razi before with someone who was yet to get to know him.
"Also, you're lucky that Razi is completely consumed with… that, right now but try to avoid calling him a dog. Despite all the similarities." He coolly added on whilst Caminal began to settle down with a huff beside him.
'Just what is he?' She couldn't help but think whilst she looked at the dog boy as she did her best to keep her hair under control, preventing it from becoming a mess later on. Once there was some time when Razi wasn't too close she was going to have to ask either Raphael or Kimberly for whatever they knew about the far from natural kid.
"Well, thank you very much for being willing to pay for the tickets." Caminal then said, moving the conversation along whilst doing her best to regain her cool and composure much like Raphael flawlessly maintained.
"No problem, but I'm guessing if you couldn't even pay for a train ticket then you are doing pretty tight with money, aren't you?" He replied, his words making her flinch slightly.
"There is no need to have to point that out." Caminal sourly replied, turning away from him in embarrassment that she had been so easily seen through. It was only natural to be able to make such an easy observation but hearing someone else mention it still greatly ashamed her.
"Oh, sorry, but I wasn't meaning to upset you are anything. It's just that you need a place to stay, don't you? And possible some meal's for a bit?" Raphael then continued. "I was going to explain that you should be able to pay to have a room in the guild if that's what you need, the money that you will get from this mission should be enough. And if you are running a little short for anything necessary, I'm willing to pay until you're comfortable to pay back." He continued to offer to her shock.
"Do you really mean it? Making an offer like that?" Caminal couldn't help but ask in disbelief.
"Course, I've got money saved up and I'll believe that you're not the kind of person to try and use others like that. I've been helping you get settled into the guild the whole time as well, haven't I?" Raphael replied like it was only the most expected thing.
"Well…" Caminal started to reply with hesitance in her voice as she lowered her head thinking about her scenario. "If it is truly ok with you… and I'll be sure to pay you back right away! But please don't mention this to anyone!"
"Don't worry, I understand," Raphael replied with an easy smile as he leaned back, fully enjoying the ride to the best of his ability whilst Caminal was left taken back for a few moments, having to take a moment to fully process everything that had unfolded before a small, gentle smile found its way onto her face.
Back at the guild plenty of people were moving about, doing various things from relaxing, ordering food, talking with one another or scanning over the request board for anything that was good. Some people came out from further within whilst there were others that were coming and going through the main door to the guild.
"So where is Razi then? I haven't seen him either eating or running from Orla yet, is he up to something?" An incredibly lanky young man asked with bright blue eyes that positively gleamed with energy. "And at the same time, I don't see Raphi anywhere as well, did the two of them take a job somewhere?" He then asked, turning to face the girl that was keeping him company.
"They did go out on a job, but they're only there to supervise it by orders of the master, Rocchi." Kimberly replied, "An old friend of mine actually came to the guild today looking to join and so the master started the usual ordeal for them."
"Really? What's her name? Is there any particular reason that brought her here?" Rocchi then asked, his curiosity on the matter rising exponentially by the second.
"Caminal Sisua, but I call her Cami-meow." Kimberly was quick to reply, "I did ask her what had brought her out here but she wouldn't say, but I know that it must be something serious because she would have never left her town otherwise…"
"Why is that? What kind of person is she?" Rocchi asked, leaning into the conversation, waiting to hear more about the situation, not being one to allow any kind of opportunity for conversation to pass him by.
"Well, she comes from a very traditional place and has a long family history. Because of that, the town begins to expect certain things from her, but she was also just as serious as sticking to that tradition so I doubt that it would have been something like that that would have driven her to leave…" Kimberly began to answer as she lapsed into thought. "She can be a serious person about duty she never slacked on it before."
"Maybe something unexpected came up? Or something started happening to the town?" Rocchi then guessed as he started to think about any possible scenarios that would have driven such a person to leave their town despite their apparent devotions.
"It sounded personal." Kimberly then added on, still trying her best to remember anything about the time that she had spent with Caminal in her hometown. "I think that it has something to do with her family, but her parents were both rather kind people."
"If it's a family matter then there could be such a wide range of things. Maybe her parents began to expect a little too much from her? Or maybe she just wanted to see the rest of the world for a little bit?"
"Or maybe you shouldn't delve too much into other people's personal matters, Rokumon, Kimberly?" Another voice then interrupted the two, making them look up to see who the newcomer was, but the stern voice of theirs made them already have a good idea about who it was.
"It's just innocent speculation, Cassidy! It's not like we know anything personal about her to share." Rokumon, Rocchi, replied thinking that it would be enough to help calm down the harsh yet mature woman that had approached them.
Standing before them was a slightly tall woman with blond hair that was so bright that one could mistake it for being white if they took just a quick glance whilst it ran halfway down her back. With green eyes and tanned skin that stood out on the contrary.
Her choice of dress wasn't something that would have usually brought about attention, being a merely back tank-top with a white jacket over it with simple brown pants and black boots. But whenever her jacket shifted slightly, the tank top allowed her shapelier figure to be seen.
"And you shouldn't do that about people, it can be rude and can make the person in question uncomfortable, you might start even thinking the wrong thing about them or starting rumours because people might overhear you!" Cassidy quickly replied, making no room for either of the chatterboxes to make any sort of comeback, making Kimberly's mood begin to drastically sink now that someone had come along to ruin her fun. A small lecture was something that she would never be in the mood for.
"If we have a new member, then we should want them to feel more comfortable with the guild. I'm guessing that Raphael has already gone with them, and he should be a good help for them." Cassidy said. "I know that it can be interesting and exciting that we have someone new joining us, and that you would love to talk about them as a result, but you should always try to steer clear of more personal topics." She then said, her voice now softening as she spoke, no longer being the older woman giving the pair of chatterboxes a lesson whilst her whole aura quickly changed.
"I guess that you have a point, I don't want her to feel bad and I really don't want her to try and avoid me either," Rokumon replied as she scratched his scarlet red, curly hair at the back of his head, his grin never having faded despite the brief chastising that he had received. "Would you like to join us then? Aren't you a bit interested in Caminal as well?"
"Is Caminal her name?" Cassidy replied in a thoughtful manner before sitting down beside Rokumon. "What is she like then? Have either of you got to talk to her yet?"
"Cami-meow is an old friend of mine, I was shocked seeing her here and leaving her village because of reasons, but then you came along when we were speculating about that," Kimberly answered the older woman with her soft voice whilst Cassidy gently nodded along with a warm smile.
"I see, it's great that you get to see her again, isn't it?" Cassidy replied. "But then, if you are friends then why didn't you go with her?" she then asked the moment that the question arose in her mind.
"I'm guessing that she didn't want to go on a mission with Raphael," Rocchi chimed in, "Was Raphi with her before you got to meet her or did you simply have him take care of her to help get him away?" he then asked, adding to the questioning on Kimberly.
"Well, Raphael is the best to introduce someone to the master," Kimberly answered almost defensively in response. "I know that she isn't in bad hands at the least, and she can tell me how she is finding everything when she gets back."
"I know that people like to believe that Raphael is the best to turn to since he is the master's nephew but he treats him just the same as all of us," Cassidy said in response. "But I do hope that she is willing to tell you everything about how she is feeling, but I do trust that Raphael is doing a good job looking after her."
"Hmm, but I wonder how well she is going for her test?" Rokumon then pondered aloud, gathering the attention of the two-woman who sat with him before they also dipped into thought. "Hey, Kimber, how is Caminal in a fight?"
"Caminal fighting?" Kimberly repeated as she continued to think about the subject, "Well, as far as I know, unless something has changed in the last few years, she had never had a fight before… and as for the one time that I tested her magic she was…" she answered before slowly trailing off, leaving the other two confused and guessing whilst they waited for her to continue...
"Good luck!" Razi cheerily replied as the team arrived at the lake that lay within a wooded area. The three having already made it to the town where the job was located and had talked with the people that had handed out the job to get whatever information that Caminal thought that she wanted.
Now after having been directed towards the lake and given various warnings about Aquafiné, Caminal stood before the lake where it resided whilst Raphael and Razi made sure to keep out of her way, allowing her to handle it alone whilst being ready to do something should anything start going wrong.
"Now then…" Caminal said to herself in a hushed voice, "Aquafiné are much more dangerous in the water, and on land, they mostly thrash and even struggle to use their magic. All I have to do is beach it, but first I need to find it." She continued talking to herself, making sure to remember what her plan of action was going to be.
"Sacred guardian beast: Hippocampus!" Caminal then called out as she raised her hand into the air, her body briefly glimmering golden with her magic as something began to materialise before her in the water. Slowly as it began to take form, the light started to fade away to reveal a creature that seemed like the perfect blend between a horse and a fish with its back half a fishtail whilst its whole body was covered in scales and front legs turned to fins.
"Whoa! She can summon things!" Razi excitedly mentioned as he enjoyed the sight of the fish horse that was patiently sitting in the water, awaiting further commands. "Do you think that she will be willing to summon some things for me to play with?" he then asked as he looked up at Raphael.
"I don't think it's summoning; Ark of Embodiment isn't like that." Raphael quickly answered Razi to his interest while he himself continued to watch what Mina was attempting.
"Ark of Embodiment? I haven't heard of that before…" Razi replied, perplexed at the name.
"It makes sense considering it's lost magic. I don't know all the details myself but if she was summoning then she would have used Summoning Magic to get a creature of some kind, or Celestial Spirit Magic to summon a spirit that can use magic…"
"So, what is she doing?" Razi then asked, turning to watch Caminal once again.
"We'll have to watch and ask her afterwards," Raphael said.
Meanwhile, Caminal didn't even need to say a word before the Hippocampus started swimming out into the lake before diving down into the depths, already enacting its purpose for being there without needing a single command.
For a little while, nothing happened at all until quite suddenly a large amount of water suddenly began to rise until it finally burst like a massive bubble revealing the Hippocampus from before, now struggling in the grasp of another serpent-like creature covered in countless smooth scales that glimmered like rainbows. If it wasn't for the fact that it was baring its teeth and biting into the Hippocampus that was relatively small in comparison then it would have appeared rather beautiful and majestic instead.
The two aquatic creatures didn't stay above the water for long before they plunged back under the surface of the water to continue thrashing about, their silhouettes barely visible as they continue moving about under the water, the aquafiné soon completely coiling around the hippocampus.
"Now that I know where it is, I guess that one of the better ways to get it out would be whaling it." Caminal then deduced as she kept her eyes keenly on the fighting creatures before raising her hand above her head, once again light began to appear above her head as it began to form into the shape of an enormous spear before the light faded away to reveal the floating weapon whilst a heap of rope that was attached to it dropped to the ground.
Raphael simply looked on with a smile as they watched as Razi's mouth was almost agape as he watched what Caminal was capable of, the two of them continuing to watch the small girl then gesturing towards the swimming creatures for the spear above her to suddenly go shooting off towards them at high speed, leaving its rope behind.
And in the next moment, some of the water in the lake was dyed red whilst the aquafiné suddenly burst out the water in pain and struggling and now with a great big spear firmly wedged into its side. Despite its more beautiful appearance, its screams were something more akin to horrible screeches that made the whole group want to cover their ears with Razi in particular almost falling to the ground as he desperately attempted to plug his ears to keep out the horrible sound.
But unlike the boys, Caminal didn't have the pleasure of being able to cover her ears as she was forced to continue handling the job at hand. 'But if I don't do something… I can't focus like this…' Caminal thought to herself whilst she was already noticing the effect of not being able to properly concentrate.
The hippocampus that she had made had already completely faded away, not like it likely had much life in it after the beating that it had taken for her. But the spear that she had freshly created and launched was flickering in and out of existence whilst the painful screeches made it nearly impossible to focus.
'I just need to block out the sound… of course!" Caminal thought to herself until an idea suddenly sparked in her mind. With a quick snap of her fingers, some ear mufflers appear in her hand which she hastily put on, almost immediately blocking out all the sound of the suffering beast.
"Thank goodness…" Caminal couldn't help but sigh to herself before she resumed dealing with the Aquafiné, her giant spear no longer flicking as she could once again concentrate again. But now she was likely getting to the hard part.
"Sacred Guardian Beast: Yggdrasil!" Caminal shouted out again, this time quickly creating a giant golden wolf by herself that easily towered over her. With smooth, lustrous fur that held intricate flame-like patterns in a darker yellow whilst its eyes were of a deep, royal blue that would have made for a graceful expression if it wasn't for the razor-sharp fangs that it bore.
"Pull it in!" Caminal quickly instructed once her creation was complete, making the giant wolf bite hold of the rope that was by their feet and start tugging on it, yanking on the spear that remained firmly stuck in the struggling beast, as a result, tugging pulling it along. Yet it also made it realise just what was happening to it, quickly shifting from random struggles of pain in the water to actively fighting back against its attacker.
The moment that Yggdrasil pulled on the rope, the Aquafiné immediately pulled back at it plunged beneath the water trying to swim away from danger. "It's finally over…" Raphael couldn't help but sigh in relief once the shrieks had left their ears.
"My ears are still ringing… Why didn't you warn me that they sound like that?!" Razi quickly complained as he picked himself off the ground, finally taking his hands off his ears despite his dizzy state.
"Can't warn you about the things I don't know… They are supposed to sound better underwater though…" Raphael replied, "But all in all, she's not doing too bad for someone who had zero confidence about this." He then said, nodding in the direction of Caminal, directing Razi's attention to the girl that was continuing to struggle against the giant water serpent.
"Whoa! Did she summon that wolf as well?" Razi asked as his eyes went wide in awe at the sight of the sacred beast that was fighting for her.
"That's right." Raphael nonchalantly replied as he continued to calmly observe Caminal, his confidence in her growing. Thanks to her versatility in magic and logical thinking she was managing to make the job much easier than it could have been by attempting to have done it with brute force like some might have tried.
Ahead of them, Caminal continued to struggle, doing her best to bestow whatever strength that she could on her creation from what she could muster out of herself with Yggdrasil barely managed to pull in their catch at all, yet whilst barely it still managed to.
Slowly and very gradually, step by step did the sacred golden beast manage to pull in to Caminal's joy that she was actually managing to pull it in at all, that the mission was proving to be something that she was indeed capable of but it didn't take long at all for her joy to switch to confusion and sink to panic.
Multiple bubbles of water had begun to rise out of the lake before stopping, remaining poised in the air just long enough for Caminal to work out just what they were allowing her to practically throw herself to the side in order to avoid them.
The area which she had previously stood was now a small hole, perhaps something that one might have started to call a crater whilst at it's bottom was a puddle of water that had just made it. But that wasn't all as more bullets of water began to rain down on her, forcing Caminal to scramble to her feet and dodge to the best of her untrained ability.
Neither Razi nor Raphael was spared from the attack either as several water bullets went flying in their direction but unlike Caminal they were hardly troubled by it. "Shadow Sneak." Razi had quietly mentioned before his body began to turn black whilst he sunk into the ground, or rather the shade of a nearby tree, allowing the attacks to uselessly pound against the ground.
Raphael on the other hand just stood his ground before his body flashed with a brief spark of lightning, yet it was enough so that it lashed out at the water and shocked it enough that it evaporated almost instantly sparing him from any potential harm.
"Are you sure that she doesn't need any help?" Razi then worriedly asked as he popped back out of the shade as the two continued to watch Caminal continuing to run, whilst Yggdrasil found itself taking a slight beating as it was filled fully occupied with trying to pull the rope in.
"Hmmm…" Raphael hummed in response, still seemingly thinking about the situation some more. "Perhaps be ready to act?" he said whilst they then watched Caminal trip over herself and fall to the ground before hurriedly creating a simple sheet of metal that floated in the sky, acting as a barrier between her and the water attacks.
Yet at the same time, Yggdrasil then began to fade from existence, allowing the rope that it had been holding onto to go free and by extension released the Aquafiné back into freely swimming around.
Sensing that it was no longer being pulled in towards the land the Aquafiné once again rose above the water to spot where Caminal was before briefly screeching once again, raising its tail above the surface of the water before it slammed it back down causing multiple spouts of water to erupt into the air before they all went racing towards Caminal as they combined into one great big blast of water.
There was brief fear and hesitation from the small girl that lay on the ground before an idea popped into her mind, quickly raising an arm to use her magic to reshape the metal sheet that floated between her and the oncoming attack. In accordance with her will, the metal sheet quickly began to bend into a watershed shape just before the blast of water managed to connect, allowing it to easily split and cut through the attack without having to take on the full brunt of its force.
"Ok, go help her a bit. But be sure to listen to whatever she wants to do." Raphael said making Razi perk up as he looked back at the older teenager as if to check what he heard was correct before he hurriedly sprung into action, making use of his all fours to effectively sprint towards the Aquafiné at incredibly speed before jumping for it.
"Midnight Palm!" Razi cried out whilst his fist began to faintly glow with black and white magic as he flew through the air towards his target, his words alerting it to his presence and gaining its attention as he threw the punch. The resulting blow was enough to force the Aquafiné back, sending it crashing back under the surface of the lake, freeing Caminal from the onslaught of its attack.
"Ah…" Caminal said as she noticed the sudden lack of pressure against her before noticing Razi falling through the air and into the lake, already able to understand exactly what had happened. "Is it already over? Just like that? But he's a child…" was all she could say with her sense of disbelief of how much easier of a time that Razi seemingly had compared to her.
But then again, perhaps that was just the difference between her and guild mages as a whole?
But as if to prove her wrong in some sense, as Razi was swimming out of the lake a current began to form out of seemingly nowhere and before long the whole lake had formed into a whirlpool sucking in anything in the water towards the centre and under.
As the current strength began to get stronger and stronger, Razi quickly showed an increasing inability to make his way out of the water as his swimming style of a mere doggy paddle proved completely inefficient at fighting against the water. At the sight, Caminal found herself somewhere between worry and exasperation towards him for his rash and poorly thought-out actions, yet she knew that she needed to do something to help him out before anything else started to get worse for them.
"Razi! Climb onto this!" Caminal soon shouted out to the struggling boy before raising both her hands above her head, once again making use of her magic despite her exhaustion. In response to her actions a frigid wind quickly began to emit from her whilst wild blue lightning ran across the water, turning everything, it touched into crystal until Razi was surrounded with a ring around him and a bridge back to shore.
Yet despite Caminal's instructions, Razi didn't climb onto the ice, in fact, he did nothing but freeze up himself whilst he looked at the crystalline bridge with a sense of shock, its appearance reminiscent of ice.
"Razi?! What are you waiting for? Climb on before it drags you under!" Caminal harshly shouted out again almost sounding like a demand at the boy whilst managing to snap him out of initial shock, once again taking a look at the bridge that was before him, its touch reaffirming him that it wasn't quite as it appeared.
But his hesitation had cost him…
His hesitation had been long enough that even before his feet had managed to fully leave the water the Aquafiné had burst out of the water, slamming into the underside of the crystal bridge and destroying it before he had the chance to use it.
Once again, he was splashed with water and left helpless against the current whilst the towering fish glared down at him, poised and ready to strike at any moment, perfectly prepared to grab hold of its prey and drag it under the water where I couldn't hope to breathe or get away from it.
From on the shore, Caminal was panicking to herself about whatever the best to somehow get Razi out of the grasp of the creature was. She still remained clueless as to why he had gone stiff when she had made the bridge for him despite being confident that she didn't hit him, but it only made her think that whatever she was going to do, she couldn't rely on Razi himself to act upon whatever she did for him.
She continued to frantically run through all the options that she could try but they all came up short. "I have to grab its attention somehow… but can I even keep it occupied?" she thought aloud before another possible idea came to her mind. 'But I have to do something…'
Once again, she began to channel her magic whilst she started to hold her breath as she tensed slightly. On cue, multiple different razor-sharp purple crystals flashed into existence all floating around Caminal whilst she took aim at Aquafiné whilst at the same time she held out her hand to the water, recreating the hippocampus in the water.
"Go and save the boy whilst I keep it busy." Caminal curtly ordered her creation, not taking her eyes nor her concentration off her target for even a moment. There was barely a reaction from the creation but she knew that it would carry out her orders without fail, and so wasted little extra time.
"Release him at once!" Caminal yelled out as she let her crystals fly loose, having at the greater aquatic being with the crystals that acted like bullets, battering its whole being and successfully gripping its attention.
In the meantime, the hippocampus made sure to dive under the water keeping it hidden from the view of the surface whilst it managed to swim along unaffected by the currents of the water towards the struggling boy that it had been ordered to save, making sure to dodge between the rest of the serpent-like body of the Aquafiné that was beneath the water.
With its attention shifted Caminal's expression quickly shifted from determination to concern and even some fear as the Aquafiné had turned its head her way before briefly screeching at her, clearly turning all of its aggression towards her.
Yet she knew that she couldn't let herself falter or her mind slip, or else everything would some apart and then she would almost certainly be doomed. Almost instantly did it raise its tail into the air before slamming it down, now creating a tidal wave that came rushing towards her despite the seemingly lacking amount of water that the lake held.
In response to a clean snap of her fingers, she once again formed a watershed barrier against the wave, letting it crash against it whilst mainly diverting most of its strength, yet the same metal barrier soon came rushing towards her and pinning her again a tree. The reason was the jaws of the Aquafiné clamping down on the shield whilst pushing against it, a good portion of its body now out of the water as it continued to try to eat her.
At first, all Caminal could do was scream in response whilst the metal barrier she had made began to creek under the pressure of the jaws of the beast before it started to close in on her bit by bit. 'I don't have enough power to make anything else! I still don't know if Razi is out of the water either!' she thought to herself in a complete panic, desperately racking her mind through the panic for anything that would have a chance of saving her life.
Yet now she truly kept coming up blank, there was nothing she could do. Her power was stretched completely thin and she herself was pinned against a tree with no ability to do anything herself, she didn't even know if Razi would be able to get out of the water and to her in time to help at the rate that the metal was giving away either.
"Raphael!" She suddenly exclaimed as she remembered the sole other person who had come with them, the main person who was supposed to be looking after her." Raphael! Please, help me please Raphael!" She continued to cry out as she couldn't help but glance towards the innards of the jaws that threatened to soon consume her.
Yet at the same time the metal barrier that she had formed finally caved in, crumpling completely to the force that crushed it, yet it failed to manage to even touch upon Caminal. Instead, the Aquafiné soon found its throat being crushed whilst Caminal was being hugged to the chest of a person or being, that she didn't immediately recognise.
"Ok, sorry for cutting that one so close! Are you ok Mina?" A familiar voice said to Caminal before they floated into the air and away from the creature that was now seemingly choaking.
"Raphi?!" Caminal explained as she finally realised who her saviour was, being just the person that she desperately called upon at the last moment, except for the fact that he no longer looked anything like how he did moments ago. "What happened to you?!"
No longer did Raphael sport short, messy brown hair but it had now miraculously turned completely wild and long whilst also having turned white to the point that it almost glowed. Nor was he wearing the same clothes either as Caminal quickly turned beat red when she realised that she was being hugged against his bare chest as he only wore large baggy white trousers with plenty of gold jewellery all over him from jewelled bracelets on his arms to necklaces and piercings in his ears.
But the thing that really made him stand out was the various arcane markings that ran along his skin, all of them faintly glowing white with magic power whilst strong winds blew around his legs and feet.
"I use take-over magic," Raphael simply explained as he hovered away and back down onto the ground, putting Caminal back onto her feet allowing her to rapidly distance herself from him whilst attempting to cool her face down.
"Do you have to end up shirtless?! You shouldn't remove clothes like that around a lady! And nor should you hug them close to you!" She frantically shouted out whilst fanning herself, conveniently having created an actual fan to do so. "But, are you?" She then started to ask as she gradually began to calm down.
"Djinn soul: Zathay." Raphael answered, knowing just what she was trying to ask, "And for the record, I don't get to choose what I look like when I perform a take-over, could you please not belittle your saviour? It's not like I meant to play on your innocence."
Hearing this Caminal could help but begin to get upset again, but before she could talk Raphael interrupted her again. "But I have to say, if you didn't have to help out Razi there then you would have likely been able to complete this mission."
"Did he get involved because you told him to?" Caminal guessed whilst Raphael returned back to normal before her, his hair going short and brown whilst his clothes likewise returned to the causal getup that had before.
"Yeah, he's pretty strong for his age and is capable of handling it no problems but uh… he's just got a little bit to learn. Like assessing the situation fully to make sure that he doesn't end up entering a disadvantageous situation…" Raphael replied before they began to feel faint tremors through their feet whilst hearing movement behind them, getting the pair to quickly spin around to see that the Aquafiné still had some life left in it.
"I didn't hit it that hard, because at this point you should have no problem with it." Raphael calmly mentioned as he was already stepping back, giving room for Caminal to do whatever she wanted whilst she flashed a brief glance of disbelief at him before sighing in with a sense of defeat before immediately pulling herself together, determined to not let the ample opportunity that was presented.
"Sacred Guardian Beast: Yggdrasil!" Caminal called out as she mustered what magic she could once again, redirecting all her energy that she had been using up on other creations to finally finish up the job. In response to her will, once again did the gigantic golden wolf appear by her side once more. "A-Attack it!" She then commanded with a sliver of hesitance yet still completing her order, making her creation immediately launch into action as it pounced upon the Aquafiné that had brought to land.
The animal of the water was completely unable to retreat back into the water in time before the divine wolf could pounce upon it, making sure to drag the rest of it out of the water leaving it completely stranded and at Yggdrasil's mercy, yet such mercy wasn't granted. But not from choice, but instead clear lack of experience.
Instead of giving the giant fish a quick demise it instead was made to slowly suffer as Yggdrasil continued to fail to deliver a proper finishing blow to the creature, instead wildly slashing and biting into it whilst Caminal continued to flinch over and over again at the sight whilst continually getting the wolf to try different things all in the attempt of ending everything even just a little sooner.
"You weren't kidding about not having experience huh…" Raphael eventually mentioned as Caminal tried to resist slumping to the ground out of mental, physical and magical fatigue, all her creations finally clearing away for good.
"Why did it take so much to beat? Are all B-Class monsters like that?" Caminal couldn't help but ask between heavy breaths, putting her hands to her knees to try and better support herself.
"Like I said, inexperience. Once you beached it you would have had the potential to deal with it instantly but… you just didn't know what you were doing." Raphael answered as he finally stepped forwards, checking that the girl was ok despite her current state. "It was like you were just blindly throwing things at it and hoping for the best."
"I did tell you that I have never fought anything before…" Caminal replied.
"You'll improve. There are plenty of people in the guild willing to help and assist you until then as well, myself included." Raphael responded.
"What happened to Razi? When I made Yggdrasil I undid the hippocampus, I hope that he has finally made it back onto the shore." She then asked, breaking the moment of silence between then that had otherwise only gone filled with the sounds of her panting and of the nature that was around them.
"Over there." Raphael simply replied, pointing out in the direction of a small figure that was still completely soaked and sat beneath a tree, seeming in deep thought as he kept running over something in his mind, almost in a shell-shocked manner.
"Has something happened? He doesn't appear to be ok…" Caminal worriedly pointed out whilst Raphael began walking towards him with little to no hesitation prompting Caminal to hurry after him, keeping up just behind as they went to check on the wolf boy.
"Hey Razi, are you alright?" Raphael asked as he came to a stop just before him, looking down at him with a concerned expression as Caminal just game up to his side. Upon noticing her, Razi's eye's widened in response before he quickly calmed himself down, but despite how brief it had been it hadn't managed to split past the notice of the two older teenagers.
"You're not hurt, are you?" Caminal then asked but Razi only shook his head in response.
"You… I was just… reminded of something…" Razi eventually responded in a quiet voice, his vagueness leaving Raphael and Caminal in confusion as they looked at one another trying to see if the other happened to know any more than the other. Yet whilst they were thinking between themselves about what was possibly wrong with Razi, he had started to stand up by himself catching their attention.
"There's nothing to worry about anymore, let's just go home now!" Razi then said with a forced smile that didn't hold any reassuring effect at all, yet only instead further worried the other two as it became more apparent that something was wrong, but instead of insisting against him they simply decided to trust in him.
"We should be worried about you getting a cold though, at least…" Raphael then mentioned as they started to turn around to start going back the way they came, once again looking over the sight of Razi as he effectively trudged his way along, still dripping from all over whilst his tail once fluffy was now a depression sight to behold.
"Perhaps we could pay a hotel just enough for him to be able to clean up a little bit?" Caminal then suggested before starting to follow after Razi, until Raphael then suddenly held her back to her confusion.
Yet almost as if on cue, Razi began to rapidly shake his body much like a dog sending droplets of water everywhere much to Caminal's disdain whilst she quickly took cover behind Raphael to make sure that little to none of it got onto her.
"I could have supplied you with a towel!" Caminal exclaimed with a huff as she peaked around Raphael with puffed cheeks. "Why do you insist on acting so…" She started to go off on him again before remembering and noticing that something was still wrong with him, opting to instead still her tongue for the one time.
"Razi will be Razi," Raphael replied with a sigh, briefly checking over his clothes to check how wet if at all, he had gotten. "Come on, Mina was right that we should try and do something for you when we get to town." He then continued, walking up and briefly patting Razi on the shoulder as he walked by, talking the lead back the way they had come…
It was dusk by the time that the three had made it back to the guild, the doors slamming shut behind them altering several people who were still within the building despite the time, with each and everyone taking quick note of their various appearances.
" I'll be going back to my room…" Razi mentioned, already walking off in the direction of a corridor that led deeper into the guild where Caminal never got the chance to check out, his tail dragging along the floor as he walked.
"Shouldn't we do something for him?" Caminal couldn't help but wonder as she watched him wander off, his clothes still somewhat messy and damp despite the efforts they had made once they had returned to town.
"Hopefully dinner alone will have him perk up, otherwise we should try asking someone like Cassidy to talk to him. She's usually great when it comes to things like this." Raphael responded with a troubled expression as his mind continued to wonder over and think about the possibilities that would have left Razi upset. "Did you notice when exactly he got upset? He was fine when he first went to help you."
"Not really… There was the moment where he hesitated to climb onto the bridge that I made for him, however. Do you think there was anything to consider then?" Caminal replied.
"Maybe he's downcast about how his rescue attempt went or the sudden appearance of the bridge shocked him? I can't really be certain about anything off of just that…" Raphael responded, leaving the two of them in a moment of silence as they continued to think about whatever was wrong with the younger boy. "Well, in the meantime we should report to the master. I'm sure that he'll be satisfied with you and give you a stamp now." Raphael then said, pulling himself back together and moving on with ease, likewise snapping Caminal out of her own thoughts as she remembered the imposing man from the morning that had her on her nerves.
"Ah, very well… I shouldn't keep it waiting any longer, and I do need to be able to make a request of him as well…"
"Getting a room, right?"
"Yes… and then whatever there is to be done about meals."
"Don't worry about that, like I said, anything you need some financial help with just ask me and meals are supplied by the guild in our dining area that we were at before." Raphael started to say as they walked along through the guildhall, once again making their way towards the stairs that lead up to the viewing platform where they had previously met the master. "The only thing I can't really help with is everything to do with the dorms since you're a girl. But I can mention that everyone shares hot springs here that are divided into boys and girls just like the hot springs in town, except we don't have to pay."
"We get to bathe in hot springs for free every day?!" Caminal exclaimed before a wide beaming smile began to find its way onto her face as she was clearly already ecstatic at the prospect.
"Just be aware that if you make too much noise when the men are also in and they'll hear you through the wall," Raphael added on, quickly calming Caminal down as the information sunk in.
"Do… do people try to…" she started to hesitantly ask but Raphael could already guess what she was trying to say from her pink cheeks that contrasted her dark expression.
"They can't, the wall touches the ceiling so it isn't possible. Besides, Cassidy would kick their asses for even thinking about it. Not to mention how the master would go on to punish them…" Raphael nonchalantly mentioned until shivering at the mention of the master, a small action that already spoke volumes to Caminal as she wondered just what kind of punishment one could expect for Raphael to have given such a reaction to merely mentioning it. "Either way, rest easy."
"That is good to hear," Caminal replied as they made their up the stairs together.
Break
"What do you think is wrong with Razi? He's always so energetic." Rokumon asked as he shifted his position to better watch Razi make his way off likely towards his dorm room. "I wonder what must have happened on that mission, I mean he was only to watch over Caminal right? And they went with Raphael so the job itself couldn't have been the problem about it."
"It is really worrying to see him like that, he's completely lacking his energy." Cassidy then mentioned as he also watched him walk by with a frown. "I need to talk to Raphael about this, he would have helped him out if it were something easy enough."
"But he also isn't the best with feelings, is he?" Kimberly then pointed out.
"Anyone would notice that something is wrong with Razi when he is like that, however," Rokumon replied as he spun back around the messy-haired girl. "Do you think that there is a chance that it's because of Caminal somehow? Maybe they don't mesh together that well."
"That might be in the case actually." Kimberly replied, getting the interest of the other two, "Caminal can act rather proper at times, and there are plenty of things about Razi that I see her getting upset about."
"Proper? What kind of background does she have again?" Rokumon couldn't help but ask, his mind racked with both curiosity and a sense of worry at the same time. "You said that she came from a traditional town but is there any reason that she's rather proper?"
"Because of the fact she a princess," Kimberly answered without any hesitation, her response completely blowing away both Cassidy and Rokumon.
"A princess?!" Rokumon began to exclaim before Cassidy quickly clamped her hand over his mouth, muffling his words and preventing anyone nearby from hearing him shout out.
"Rocchi! Don't shout that out!" Cassidy said in a harsh, hushed voice making sure that the instructions quickly set in without making anyone suspicious about them. "If that really is the case, we can't afford the world knowing that!"
"But, but… what's a princess doing here?!" Rokumon argued back in a panic, yet doing his best to keep his voice on the lowdown. "We should be introducing ourselves as quickly and properly! And why is she here of all places? And trying to join the guild? What kind of life did you have in the past Kimberly?! Are you some kind of noble as well secretly?!"
"Nope, I'm nothing like Cami-meow, she just took in me for a time when I was in the middle of travelling," Kimberly replied with an easy smile.
"That's amazing that royalty took care of you!" Rokumon replied, still awestruck at the apparent revelation whilst Cassidy was now beginning to sceptically inspect Kimberly who was still smiling quite gently at them.
"She's not really a princess at all is she?" Cassidy then said, rendering Rokumon silent as he looked at her as he looked between the two women as Kimberly's smile widened, seemingly having expected the reaction.
"Well, she is just not in the generic sense. To her hometown she basically is." Kimberly replied.
"You should simply give up a straight answer and not lead people around like this, creating misunderstandings like that would make large issues for Caminal you know," Cassidy replied, her gaze hardening quickly telling Kimberly that there was little room to continue the act.
"Wait, then just what is she then?" Rokumon asked, still completely consumed with his shock.
"More specifically, she's a shrine princess. You remember that I said that she came from a place of tradition, right?" Kimberly answered as she eased up in her seat again as Cassidy herself relaxed once again with a gentle smile spreading across her face.
"So, she really is a princess? What is the difference between a shrine princess to a normal one?" Rokumon asked.
"Whilst calling her a shrine princess wouldn't be wrong, they are more typically referred to as shrine maidens, or Miko's that work at shrines." Cassidy quickly explained whilst turning back around to see Caminal and Raphael finally reaching the viewing platform once again with a faint smile.
"A shrine?" Rokumon asked again to the disbelief of the woman, quickly getting stared down by the pair of them in disbelief, not that he understood why they would look at him that way. For him, it was something that he didn't know, something that had never been a part of the life that he had before…
"Master, we've returned," Raphael called out as they finally stepped onto the viewing platform, neither of the pair needing to look around to find the master as he was dealing with a mild amount of paperwork, sat down at the table and looking up with the new distraction that had presented itself.
"How did the job go? Did she complete it by herself?" Remorti asked as he stood up to full height, his imposing aura setting in instantly with his deep voice and crossed arms.
"There was a moment where Razi helped out, and another when I just got Mina out of a tight spot, but she did also make up for a bit of a mess up that happened." Raphael calmly answered, making sure to get straight to the point as he looked his uncle in the eye. "I would say that she's a high C, or low B class mage right now."
"So you say," Remorti replied as he turned his attention to Caminal making her flinch under the sudden heavy gaze of the older man. "Both now and when I first saw her, she seems completely physically lacking. But I take it that you just make up for it with pure magic."
"I wouldn't say that I'm overly capable even then, sir…" Caminal faintly replied, doing her best to maintain her usual composure and not slip up in the slightest, no matter how justified that it may have been.
"But you completed a B-ranked request?" Remorti replied. "That job was more than just being let into the guild, it was to push you so you yourself could see what you could do. You can't be unconfident when you get such blatant results." He continued on to Caminal's shock.
"It doesn't matter how you managed to do it, because what you lacked you made up for it with something else. Despite being your first fight, and B-rank, you still won."
"You can consider yourself an official member of the Mythic Djinn guild now." Remorti then said after enough of a pause that you would have thought that he was finished, yet not quite long enough for anyone to have managed to say anything either.
"Thank you very much, sir." Caminal swiftly replied as she gave a polite bow, her tensions dropping slightly as she heard the distinct clicking of the master's footwear against the wooden boards get even so slightly fainter as she walked away. When she had chosen to raise her head again, she caught sight of Remorti already returning to them again, only this time he was carrying a stamp.
"Where would you like your mark?" he bluntly asked, confusing Caminal slightly before she silently looked at Raphael for any answers.
"The stamp is something that when pressed against your body leaves the guild's symbol on you as official recognition of being a guild mage. It also doesn't wear away in the slightest unless the master were to remove it." Raphael answered her with a vague smile, pulling down at his shirt and overcoat to reveal a mark of his own, a symbol of a djinn, in a royal blue. "You can have it applied to anywhere you like." He then added on, prompting her to look at the stamp in the master's hand again, giving some vague thought on the subject.
"Then I suppose…" Caminal mostly mumbled to herself, still half in thought about the decision. "Could I also have it there?" she asked, before lifting off her poncho and attempting to pull down the collar of her shirt that whilst elastic to stretch out and reveal her shoulder, resisted in an attempt to stay relatively tight to her body.
Remorti didn't give a verbal response as he almost automatically moved towards her to press the stamp against her shoulder with it giving a brief sparkle before he pulled it away, revealing the same mark that Raphael had, only hers came out in deep pink.
The moment that the stamp had been applied Caminal released her collar having it almost snap back into place, instantly covering up her new mark, before readjusting her poncho yet again so that she looked no different than before.
"Now that you're a member of the guild the only thing that I will say is that you should keep to doing at best B-rank requests whenever you are on your own, and whenever you take any job you are to write it down into the request book near the board," Remorti said as he took a few steps back until his face turned unbelievably stern and fierce to the point that Caminal felt herself almost squeak as she shrunk back cowering, almost closing the gap between her and Raphael whom likewise had flinched and tensed up when faced with the master's new mood.
"Never," Remorti said in a grave voice that almost had Caminal's hairs standing on end. "Ever, take a request from the S-Class board or above, without an S-Class wizard with you."
"Of course sir! I would never!" Caminal desperately replied as if the answer was what it took to save her life whilst she continued to look more and more like a tiny little animal that was desperate for protection, something that Raphael couldn't help but compare to her much prouder and bossier moments during the day.
"Good, you should be able to ask anyone in the guild should you have any further questions or stay with Raphael. If you need anything out of their abilities then come find me here or in my office." Remorti said, completely flipping back to his usual self almost as if a switch had been flicked as he casually walked back to the table he had been working at to finish off the small pile of paper that remained.
"Master, there is something that Caminal would like to ask actually." Raphael then quickly spoke up for her, making the elder man stop momentary to cast a gaze back at them over his shoulder.
"She would like a dorm room." He guessed in response.
"Yes please sir, if it isn't any hassle. I already have the money prepared if you wish to be paid immediately." Caminal said, holding out her hand and beginning to use her magic were after a few moments a bag of money began to materialise in her hand where she held it for the master to take it, the money being the reward that she had received earlier that day.
"I shall count it later," Remorti replied, turning around and accepting the money. "Raphael, you can fetch a spare key from my office and give it to her. I assume that you have told her about the dorms in general haven't you? Then just make sure to follow the rules." He finished before once again returning to his desk as Raphael finally gave Caminal a little nudge for her attention before gesturing towards the stairs, leading the grateful and now timid little girl towards them…
I hope that everyone enjoys this chapter as well, despite things having mainly been geared towards Caminal, Raphael and Razi so far. I did plan on doing more this chapter but thought it would be best to instead do it in another chapter.
Whilst the next chapter will likely simply be about getting accumulated to the guild, it should also be the introduction for every character in the guild that hasn't appeared yet, so hopefully something for nearly everyone who sent in a character! And the chapter after that will be splitting everyone up into different groups for various jobs so I can better focus on characters. To that end, I do also plan on that whilst some situations will be going on side by side, they will be dealt with as big arks if you will be able to focus.
Also, for those also reading Collapsing Realities, the next chapter is almost finished as well.
Characters:
Cassidy Fisher - Naterthegreater
Rokumon Chisen - Lucurykiwi
Reviews:
Luxurykiwi - I'm glad that the cast in enjoyable, but really that's thanks to the great submissions I received, although I am glad that I managed to start tying together the characters so well. It really does feel a bit different, trying to use a character that someone else came up with instead.
mooseman3 - I'm glad to hear it, I hope that this is just as enjoyable!
Naterthegreater - I'm glad that my way of starting to bond together the characters was liked, and I also hope that this chapter serves a good easing into the story as a whole!.