A/N: Aaaan I shall update again! ^^ The thing with my friends is going quite well so far~ oh, and to answer your question on how to read Guad's name, it's "Goo-ad".

Anyway, let's start, shall we?

Warning & Disclaimer: ...you know the drill

Enjoy~

Chronicles of the Drowned City

C.12: Letters from afar

The minute Adisa opened her eyes, the first thing she noticed is that the rain had let up. The sky showed blue hues, and even though the dark clouds are still lingering, the rain had stopped enough for them to continue exploring.

The Princess got up, stretching her stiff limbs. Wow, she needed that... She then noticed that someone is missing from within their bunk. Yuki.

She got up and went out with what she's wearing. When she came down to the lobby, she saw Yuki standing there, holding what looks to be a letter.

The Shogun noticed her and turned, walking towards her, before he spoke.

"A letter came in. It's for you, actually." He then gave Adisa the letter and went off, headed back to their room. Adisa opened the seemingly simple looking letter, only having a small Aeaean emblem attached to it. Carefully opening the letter and taking the folded paper out, she unfolded it.

What she saw surprised her. The handwritting is rushed, but she could tell that that handwritting is her brother's.

Her brother's.

No one knew of her dissapearence. Well, they must've known by now she's dissapeared. But no one knew where she went to. How did her brother know?

Taking a seat on one of the lobby's chairs, she read the letter.

Dear sister

If you are wondering who this is, it is your brother. Don't worry, no one knows of your whereabouts right now. How are you? Safe? And Heinrich, how is he doing?

Do not be surprised that I know of your whereabouts, though. You used to talk about Armoroad a lot, and I overheard of Heinrich's plans to go into their Labyrinth. I don't particullarly like the idea of you going into such a place, but I won't go against your wishes.

Father is getting quite worried though. Everyday he searches frantically for you. At the very least, if you don't want to head back until you've explored the place, come back alive and safe.

Again, I won't go against your wishes. Just be careful out there. And you take care of Heinrich too.

Best of luck, sister

Johan

Heh. She knew her brother would know where she went to. But she's glad he hasn't told anyone.

"Of course I'll take care of Heinrich, bro... and myself, too..," she mumbled, placing the letter carefuly back into the envelope, re-sealing it.

"Adisa, what are you doing here? Get ready, we're headed back into the Labyrinth." Adisa jumped a bit at the Ninja's sudden appearence, but nodded quickly and went off, a hint of a smile on her face.

After a while, everyone was ready, and they headed out of the inn. They noticed, though, that the prices for their rooms are proggresivelly getting more and more expensive. Why is that?

Zakharia, as usual, clung onto Yuki, eyes closed listening to the stars one last time before she opened it again, her attention back to her surroundings.

"So... where to now?" Rudollf asked.

"We head back into the Labyrinth." Said Heinrich.

"Maybe we should gather some things as well?" Everyone turned to Guad, then looked at one another. Ribu then perked up.

"Gather? I call animals to help gather!"

"I'm not too sure that's a good idea, Ribu..."

"Some animals help gather. Make things easy." A cheerful smile plastered itself on Ribu's face. Guad sighed. As a Farmer, he's not so sure. But, new methods for things have to be made and tried out someday, right? Well... maybe he'll give Ribu's little idea a shot.

"Alright... just make sure those animals don't break anything." Ribu eagerly nodded, then proceeded to drag Guad into the Labyrinth, excitment completely taking over. Everyone else sighed.

"Was that the girl who cares so much about animals?" Chitose then smiled a bit,"well... I suppose I can respect her and do my... experiments elsewhere." Everyone shuddered.

"But wait, there are already two people from our Guild headed into the Labyrinth... how're we supposed to enter as a five-man team?" Cia asked.

"We head in as another group going into a different floor. Haven't you done your homework?" Yuki then proceeded to walk towards the entrance, Zakharia as usual following him.

"H-Hey! No need to be like that!" Cia chased after Yuki, the others following. Rudollf then stopped.

"Well, looks like I'm headed back to sea, then!"

"Then I guess I'll go too." Chitose then walked to Rudollf. Heinrich nodded.

"Just the two of you?"

"Hey, the Labyrinth looks much more dangerous than the sea, right?" A wave came from Rudollf before the two went towards the port.

"Well, I guess that leaves just us," Adisa said before she walked off, Heinrich following suit.

They talked with the guards who who are standing guard in front of the Labyrinth's entrance. After he allowed them to come into the Labyrinth, they immediately headed to the third floor. They went into the room with the giant, red Hippo in it. Again, after a not-so-small sprint to one of the exits, they went through the door, shutting it just as quickly as they came through. Adisa sunk onto the ground.

"Well... that thing was different.." Heinrich sighed.

"I have a feeling there'll be more of those..."

"There a mining spot there," Zakharia then pointed to the spot on the eastern edge of the room, near one of the many rivers in this floor, ores and gems alike glimmering under what little light managed to pierce through the thick brush of leaves. Yuki looked at her.

"The stars told you?" The Zodiak nodded.

Heinrich mapped the spot on the map before he opened the door again, peeking through it. The Hippo seems to have calmed down. He then motioned for the others to start moving, carefully sneaking out of the door and past the Hippo to the other exit. They opened the door, then shut it quietly. As they turned to look behind them, a long hall greeted them.

They mapped the hall, and the rest of the portion of the floor they're in. This part of the floor wasn't too difficult; just long, narrow pathways and a few twists and turns here and there. Also, they found a shortcut that, conveniently, lead to the stairs to the upper floor.

They then came upon a small clearing. As they walked further into the clearing, a cheerful voice caught their ear.

"Heeey!" The voice called as the group turned to the direction of the voice. What greeted them is a boy, clad in ninja gear, kind of like Chitose. Except this ninja had a cheery air to him.

Well... not cheery, but more towards... energetic and maybe slightly hyper.

"Yes! I finally found someone! Your must be explorers since your down here, right?"

"Y-yeah...? Why?" Asked Cia.

"Well... there's this monster in the room behind us that I just can't sneak by! I mean, there are other monsters like this that I managed to dodge so far, but this one just won't let me pass!" The boy then smiled.

"Your headed past this room too, right? Then how about you help me pass too? You guys lead, and I'll follow~!" Offered the boy. Heinrich, as their unofficial leader, took up the task of contemplating the boy's offer.

Wait a sec'... cheerful disposition, energetic, and is still a young boy...

Oh wait a second

"...Alright," Heinrich began,"we'll help you go through." Everyone else turned to look at their leader. The boy, meanwhile, grinned, getting even more excited.

"Alright! Thank you!" He then turned before he spoke up again," oh, by the way, my name's Agata. I'm from the Murotsumi Guild!" He then opened the door a little, stepping aside. "You first," he said.

As the group went in, they noticed that the very same red Hippo they encountered in that huge hall rests here as well. It's still on guard though. Noting this, the group went out of the door, carefully shutting it. Agata looked puzzled.

"What's wrong?"

"That thing still has it's guard up. We'll wait for it to calm down first," Yuki explained. Agata then leaned against one of the trees.

"Aww... well, okay then, if you say so..." Slight discontentment can be heard in the boy's voice, but he complied anyway.

They waited for a while, Agata eating a fruit he picked up while inside the Labyrinth. Zakharia then spoke.

"It's safe enough to go in. Though the stars can't guarentee the fact that that thing won't notice us." At this, Agata's attention snapped towards the girl.

"Hey, your an astrologer?" curiously, the boy asked. Zakharia nodded.

"Heh, just like Hypatia!" He then turned his attention to the others,"say, did you happen to pass by her? How is she?"

"Worried," Cia bluntly answered,"she's been searching for you for a while now." Agata sighed.

"That's just like her..." He then turned towards the door,"well, let's head in, then!"

And so the others went in, the Hippo, as Zakharia said, seemingly calm. Heinrich then scanned the room, mapping parts of it before he took a few careful steps forward.

The Hippo rests on the western part of the room. So the group headed east, over a bridge, and then took a few steps before they stepped into a puddle of mud. As the group struggled to get off the mud, the Hippo snapped it's attention towards them, heading straight towards the small group. The group got off the mud as quickly as they could, luckily quickly enough for them to avoid getting rammed by the giant Hippo. Following Heinrich, they ran around a pillar, the Hippo stupidly following from behind them, then crossing a bridge the Hippo wouldn't be able to get on.

But, the Hippo wasn't really stupid. It swam in the river, before emerging right as the group got off the bridge. The group ran around a pillar again, the Hippo still following from behind, before they reached the exit, avoiding muddy floors, before opening the door and closing it behind them.

Wow, what a chase that was...

The group sighed in relief, happy that they didn't become Hippo grub. Agata however, stayed cheerful.

"Yes! Thanks! I memorized the route, so don't worry. I owe you guys one!"

"Yeah... sure, as long as you don't get it wrong and become Hippo meal," said Adisa. The Ninja chuckled.

"Yeah, sure, I'll keep that in mind." The boy then turned a bit, flashing a smile at the group. "Well, I guess I'll be off then. Thanks again!" He then stormed off. Cia sighed.

"You think he's headed back to Armoroad?"

"No. He's going to explore some more," Yuki said before he got up. He's surprised to see Zakharia managed to hold on to him throughout that whole chase. Yuki then motioned for the others to start moving again, continuing their explorations.

The group pressed on. They could see, on the other side of the river, the Hippo calming down. Still, they took no chances and hurriedly went past this part of the river.

Another long pathway and some fights with big, carnivorous fish, plants, and a steel-shelled crab, and they came across three paths aligned with one another. They could choose to enter the eastern one, middle one, or the western one.

"I say east!" Everyone sighed and did as Cia told. Whichever path they chose first won't really make that much of a difference. Either way this floor is going to get mapped, and it's going to get mapped completely, down to the last nook and cranny.

The eastern road was a complete dead end. Just a bridge, a slight turn, then a dead end. Adisa however, noticed a two rocks with something lodged in it.

A small crab.

Concern overtaking her, the Princess reached out to the crab and tried pulling it. Unable to free it by pulling it out, she decided to remove the two rocks pinning the crab. That didn't succeed either. The Princess sighed in defeat.

"Sorry lil' guy..."

"Just leave it. Someone else might come and rescue it later probably." Yuki then walked off. Adisa pouted, but got up anyway, following suit, along with the others, Adisa taking one last glance of the still trapped little crab.

The passageway in the middle though, holds something rather worthwhile. In the middle, ores and gems jut out of the ground, seemingly ready to be taken and used. Heinrich quickly mapped the room before getting out. An ambush from that steel-shelled crab came, but the group quickly disposed of it.

The last passageway, the western one, apparently leads to the stairs to the next floor. Heinrich mapped it, before a call came from Cia.

"Hey! Looks like you forgot a shortcut here!" Heinrich walked towards the blue patch of flowers, before going into the thick brush. They came upon a small, hidden room, containing two treasure chests- a gold one and a silver looking one.

They managed to get what's inside the gold one, but the silver one can't be opened. After a few tries of forcefully opening the chest, they gave up and opened another shortcut they happened to find. They then went out of the crevice they went in through and headed to the stairs, going down.

What greeted them is a small clearing. Heinrich, again, mapped it and they went further, but as they entered the small passageway, they were stopped.

The same man they met one the second floor greeted them, his gaze stern as always. But then it relaxed, a hint of a smile on the man's face before he spoke.

"We've met on the second floor, no? Glad to see that your safe. Your one of the luckier Guilds." At this, Cia inwardly sighed.

"Yeah... pure luck brought us here..." a hard nudge to the shoulder came from Yuki.

"So... why are you here?" Yuki asked.

"You've made it this far, yes, but trespassing further into the Labyrinth is forbidden." Everyone raised an eyebrow at this.

"Why? I thought you wanted us to explore the Labyrinth." Heinrich asked.

"Well, yes. But this is far enough for those with idle curiosity. Those with higher calling though, may pass through."

"What do we have to do then?" Yuki blunty asked.

"If you wish to strive for more than just seeing the Labyrinth...," the man began,"then return to the Senatus and petition them for a letter of marque. If you wish, that is." The man then stopped talking, stance firm, guarding the way deeper into the Labyrinth. The group then walked back into the clearing.

"Well... I guess we don't really have much of a choice. That guy sure as hell won't let us pass by until we get the Senatus' permission.." Heinrich nodded before he fished out an Ariadne Thread from within his bag.

"I guess that's enough for today. Ready to head back?" Everyone nodded before Heinrich warped the group back with the thread.

The sun had set by the time the group got back to the entrance. The city lights are on and the town is bustling with night-life activity. The group went to the inn, entering it, and is greeted by the innkeeper.

"Hey! You don't have to pay for a bunk tonight, one of your Guild members already rented one. It's on the second floor to the far right. Oh," the innkeeper then turned to look behind him,"there's someone who wants to see you too! I'll go get her. Be back in a minute!" The innkeeper then walked to one of the seats, with a familiar figure sitting on it. The innkeeper and the girl –Hypatia- walked towards the group.

"Ah, hello! It's good that you came back safe." She then spoke again,"uh...have you found Agata yet?"

"Yes, we have. He was on the third floor, trying to get past a monster," explained Heinrich.

"What?! Oh, I'm so sorry for the trouble he's causing you!" Hypatia then started massaging her temples again.

"No, no, it's okay. We were headed past that same room anyway, so hey, kill two birds with one stone, right?" Everyone stayed quiet. Adisa sighed, pouting a bit.

"I'll be sure to give him a good talking-to later... thank you, though...," said Hypatia as she nodded in thanks before she returned to her room. The group did the same.

As they came into the room, they saw both Guad and Ribu asleep on the floor. Stacked against the wall are materials they managed to gather up.

Lots of 'em.

Wood, herbs, ores, you name it.

"Wow... these sure are a lot..." Adisa mumbled. Cia chuckled a bit.

"Well, I guess they deserve some rest." She then stretched a bit,"well, I'm going to change. No peeking, got that?!"

"Yes, yes, we know...," said Yuki before he took a seat on one of the two small beds in the bunk, taking off his boots.

The night went on, and soon the others fell asleep. Adisa however, still thought of that letter. She decided it was high time she replied to it.

So she got up, grabbing an empty parchment from under the table, taking a seat in front of the table. She grabbed the quill pen on the table and placed the ink bottle next to the paper, far enough that she won't accidentally spill the ink. Lighting up a candle and placing it on the table, she began writing.

Dear brother

Heh, I knew you'd know where I went off to. Now that I think about it, I did talk about Armoroad a lot, didn't I?

Oh, and please, please don't tell anyone about where Heinrich and I went off to. I'm sorry for dissapearing like that, but I had to. I wanted to make sure Heinrich's okay throughout this whole exploration.

So, how are you, bro? And how are things at home? Good? I knew dad would be worried sick... just tell him that I'll be back and that he doesn't need to worry. You know, we're asked to chart the sea too, not just explore the Labyrinth. If we chart fast enough, I'll be back home in no time!

Oh, and if your planning on heading down here, don't. Dad would get even more worried if you do. Hell, it's bad enough he's worrying about me!

I promise to come back alive, don't worry. And I'll keep Heinrich safe, too.

Thanks, bro. Oh, and you stay safe, too. Don't get into any trouble, okay? And try not to get sick, too. Also, tell dad not to worry so much! I'm capable.

Best wishes to you, bro

Adisa

"A letter from your brother?"

Adisa jumped a bit, nearly knocking the ink bottle over and spilling it's contents. She turned to see Heinrich, standing behind her.

"Heh, yeah. How did you know?"

"The look on your face says all." Adisa sighed. This guy can read her like a book.

"How is he?" Heinrich asked.

"Good. Oh, and don't worry, no one knows about where we are right now. Only bro knows, and he's not going to tell anyone I don't think...," explained Adisa. Heinrich sighed, smiling.

"That's good." He then took the parchment and neatly folded it. "I'll go and get this letter sent. Get some rest." The Hoplite then went out of the door. Adisa went back to her bed, snuffing the candle out, closing her eyes and drifting off to sleep.

Say... where are those two?

-To Be Continued-

A/N: No, don't worry, I didn't forget about Rudollf and Chitose XDD

Anyway, wow, development for Yuki and Zakharia are coming in rather slow, where as the others are coming in quite fast... I wonder what I should do... meh, I'll think about it later.

Anyway, WOW 3K+. And I wrote this in less than a day O-O.

And now I shall get this uploaded *creeps into FFN*