Somewhere in the sky of mistral, a raven was flying
this raven wasn't just regular, it was in fact, Raven Branwen, the leader of the Branwen tribe, a group of criminals
she was currently flying over the area trying to locate a small convoy for her tribe, so they could raid it
suddenly she felt a change in the air, hot air was coming from a direction
then she felt a huge gust of hot wind and a magical wave hit her (however she did not realize it was magic
« heh ? » raven was now in her human form
the magical shock wave made her cancel her bird form without wanting to
she begins to fall and quickly
« what is this? »
raven couldn't turn into a bird again and she was trying her best
« ?! »
she begins to fall faster and faster
« dammit! »
she was just about to use her maidens power to stop her fall, but her bird transformation suddenly came back
even in raven form, she still kept for a bit as it took her a bit of time to recover her flying balance
raven had already fallen a huge distance, but she manage to land « safely »'
she almost crashes to the ground, but after a quick roll, she's now on the ground and not injured
« what was that ?! »
raven looks at her hands
[for some reason...I was forced out of my raven form...how is that possible?]
Raven remembered the shockwave and look in the direction it came from
raven stays silent and breath calmy, she checks her aura or if she has any injuries anywhere
[i'm not hurt at all...it's probably not a direct attack...but i need to check what it is]
[i should stay in human form...i can't risk being forced out of bird form again]
Raven start running at incredible speed in the forest to reach the place from the shockwave came from
she run for 30 minutes, sadly for her,Maos was long gone
she arrived at a destroyed area
[what happened here?]
raven draw her sword in the case as she look around.., this place was simply destroy
some parts seem to burn, some others frozen, some simply crush, some cut
[it's like several types of dust somehow explode everywhere in this place….it's similar to what a maiden can do….but stronger…]
the damage was way too wide even for a maiden, raven knew that
however Raven would know if they were a maiden near her location as she still observes From from time to time
Raven was a bit disturbed, whatever caused that, it was really dangerous
she search for 10 minutes, she does notice an entrance to a cave, but she merely saw the waterfall, and they seem to be no life in there
in the end, she turn into a raven and flies away [i will look into that later, I have a convoy to find]
Maos found himself in front of a carriage with 2 healthy horse
he sees five people on the carriage,1 in front driving and 4 in the back, there's a couple of bags that seem to carry various goods….and it's really varied
Maos stop in silence in front of the carriage, the carriage as they surprise
[wait...what if don't speak the same language?!]
« Oh ! » the one controlling the horse had to stop, he manage to stop them
« are you crazy !? Who runs into an advancing carriage like that ?! »
Maos suddenly had a big smile [we speak the same language! this makes things so much easier]
the four people behind seem to draw a strange-looking weapon,in general, those people were strangely dressed at least for the one driving, he was wearing what seem to be a jack made of black leather, he seem to also have some strange glasses around his neck ( sunglass)
« Sorry for that ! »said Maos
Maos raise his hand showing he doesn't have any hostile intentions
« i...I'm just lost !... I'm searching for a ride to the closest village or town »said Maos
«you lost ? »react the driver
the people in the back of the carriage started to whisper
« should we kill him? he's in our way ! »said a young woman, probably around 24, she had short dark hair and blue eyes
« don't be so aggressive! Look at him, with clothes like and those weird staff, he's clearly a huntsman, we may not stand a chance against him, plus we're supposed to be nice little merchant trying to sell the rest of our unsold good at a lesser in small villages »said an older
«I promise I'm not dangerous,»said Maos
« that really doesn't sound convincing,» said the driver
author's note: they are bandits of the Branwen tribe in case you didn't understand
the older one whispered to the driver, the oldest seem to be around 28, he had a great brown beard
« ask if he's a huntsman »
« you a huntsman ? »asks the driven as he takes control over the horses again [seriously couldn't we have borrowed a truck or something?!, I get we suppose to be small merchants but still…]
[great...i don't know what that is….it's better to not pretend I'm something I'm not for now….especially since I don't know what a huntsman is]
« no, I'm just a traveler, I lost my map because of a Grimm »lied Maos [please believe it]
everyone in the carriage whispered between themself
« he could be a good cover. For if he becomes a problem..we can just kill him »said the young woman,she
« you really need to chill...we can't just kill a random guy on our way, plus this guy is way to suspicious,if he's actually a huntsman I'm not sure we could beat him,»said another man with blond hair
« he seems young for a huntsman,» said the older one
« huntsman in training maybe ? »the young woman
« We just need to keep our cover as regular merchants,don't make this harder than that dumb ass,»said the driver while turning around a bit
« you guys are annoying,»said the driver
and after a few seconds, the driver moves a bit to the left to let a bit of place
«I swear I won't cause any problem,» said Maos
"my name is -"
"no name, we don't care, we're only giving you a ride, not become friends," said the oldest one
[that wasn't my intention...]thought Maos
« you better not cause any trouble»said the driver
Maos sit next to the driver
the carriage start advancing again
Maos had turned around to look at the content of the carriage, several bags, full of different things, decorations, paintings, tools...everything seem out of place
Maos look at the people on board...they had scars here and there, and their overall look seem a bit uneducated given the way they stand and sit [those guys are clearly criminal..or adventurers...but bandits seem to be the most logical answer]
Maos turn around again and face the forest, he was mostly around, hoping to see a bird, to kill it and have a part of its body to be able to do the ritual
he was mostly looking around
[this place is pretty, with all the mountains and everything]
[there's probably a big city somewhere around here, this place is too perfect not to, the mountain are a natural barrier to Grimm after all]
around 15 minutes passed on the carriage
in complete silence
the back of the carriage was still whispering between them
« Isn't he weirdly quiet ? «whispered the youngest, a boy probably around 17, with yellow hair and brown
« yeah, you right…. »said the oldest one
« if he was trying to trap us or arrest us, he would be trying to be more friendly »
« maybe he really is just a lost traveler,» said another one
Maos isn't the kind to start a conversation and he's mostly distracted by the look of the area
in the front of the carriage
the driver had given a more keen look at Maos
[red eyes, black hair,even his look is similar to Raven's...is he related to her?]
the other bandits had noticed too
« so ?….what your story mate ? »asks the driver
Maos didn't answer
« so ? » the driver insists
Maos turn to the driver
« huh ? »react maos
« what's your story ? »repeat the driver [maybe I can a bit more information]
« Oh sorry..i wasn't listening….. »said Maos
« Nothing much... »
« oh come on, everyone got a story, nobody just travels the world for no reason,» said the driver trying to be friendly to make Maos talk
« well….i'm not really what I will yet….I'm mostly trying to find my place in this world, like most people » [i mean it's a half lie]
« by the way, where we're going to ? »asks Maos
« Mistral » responds the driver
[that doesn't give me a lot of information]thought Maos
«I don't what Mistral is...I'm really unfamiliar with this region »
« Really ?!….that's weird,» said the driver
« you come from another continent? »
«I guess you could say that…. »said Maos
[well that's a really suspicious answer]thought the driver
« and what's your story? you seem to be merchants or…... bandits,» said Maos
« ?! »every bandit in the carriage had their spine shivered
« b-bandits ?!…..why would you think that ? »asks the driver stuttering a bit
«I don't know….either it doesn't matter »
« heh ? »react the driver
« you gave me a ride, so I'm thankful for that, and even if you were bandits and you are obviously not….i wouldn't care at all,I mean you didn't rob me….but if you did, please know that I would defend myself» said Maos with his usual tone
« i just want to get to the nearest city...I'm thankful to anyone helping me on the way »
the driver suddenly draws a gun at Maos, and the other people of the carriage also draw their weapon, all of them had guns, one had a sword
« don't fuck with me ! »said the driver as he stop the friendly act
Maos look at the gun
it was some kind of revolver, however, maos don't know what it is exatly
« what's that ? »asks Maos as he points at the driver's gun
« heh ? »react the driver
« what do you mean what's that ?, it's a gun ?!
« a gun ?... i mean it's clearly a weapon given how you point it at me…..some kind of crossbow ? » asks Maos
« Are you mocking me right now ? »asks the driver with genuine confusion
Maos show his hand to show his pacific intent
«I swear, I'm not mocking you »
« also don't get angry, you could attract a few Grimms»
the driver stare at Maos for a second, the other bandits were also disturbed by Maos ignorance...but mostly by his lack of fear in front of a gun, it wasn't like he seem like a veteran or something
he really did seem clueless about what it is
[what kind of weirdo is that? Does he come from another planet or something?]thought all the bandits
the oldest start putting his gun down as he directly speaks to Maos
« you said you didn't care if we were bandits? »
« yep, I don't care….I just want a ride... »said Maos [he seems to be the oldest, the rest will probably listen to him]
the oldest completely put his gun away,
« he's right….let's not attract Grimm, we don't need that right now, especially with this much loot, so guys, just calm down,» said the oldest
the others slowly put their weapon away as the tension goes down
[few….I'm happy I managed to avoid a fight]thought Maos
[i don't what those weird weapons can do...i should be careful]
the driver ends up putting back his revolver in the holster
« can I see it ? »asks Maos
«heh ? »read the driver
« the gun » insists Maos
« what? No ! »said the driver
«I ain't giving you my gun! »
« i swear I just want to look at it,» said Maos with a curious look in his eyes
the oldest sigh
« shay...just unload the gun and show it to him,» said the oldest
« heh? no !...it's my gun. And .you're not my boss »said the driver
[ooh no...it's starting again..they're gonna fight again...]the young seem to have witnessed this similar scene much time
« Raven gave the order directly to me to sell of this stuff, I'm the one in charge,» said the oldest
« like hell, you are, I'm the one who finds those old shops! »said the driver
« so you're going against the order Raven now? that's bold, I wonder what she will think of it »said the oldest
« i think you should stop...you are both going to attract Grimm.. »maos was trying to talk, but his voice clearly was heard
the 2 bandits start insulting each other with a lot of different names
Maos look at the other bandits, they are pretty quiet and done with this whole conversation
Maos decide to try his best to ignore the conversation, but he could hardly do...so he just start looking around
[damn...i wish I could just like open the book of magic and learn spell,this could be along ride...]thought Maos
the road they were on, was still in the middle of the forest
at some point,Maos look at the 2 bandits still screaming at each other, they were slowly but surely getting on his nerve
the carriage was closer to the side of the road and the forest because he was still arguing with the oldest one so he wasn't careful
and from the corner of his eyes maos saw something dangerous
« watch out ! » screamed the woman
a Beowulf jumps from the forest and tries to attack the 2 idiots fighting each other
« fuck ! »react the oldest as he realise the grim was gonna bite his head off
however, the Grimm jaw never reaches the oldest's head
the Grimm was frozen in the air (not frozen like ice) and not moving,it was unable to move, the Grimm was surrounded by a strange line of purple light
the carriage stop as the driver and the bandits were shocked
they all see Maos raising one of his hands, it was aiming at the Grimm, his red eyes were now purple and had a glow to them
[he's the one who stops the Grimm?!]
Maos suddenly close his hand to make a fist
the Grimm's neck suddenly snaps as it unfroze and falls to the ground
Maos were using his wild magic, however, he used something too strong, he start breathing slowly to make sure he doesn't have another magic surge, and after 5 seconds,he was fine
[i should have used the staff...no i wouldn't have the time to save him if i had...shit why is telekinesis with wild magic so hard to control ?!, it's like a basic spell...]
he lowers his hand and looks at the oldest and the driver
« Can you please just calm down a bit.. and just keep on advancing, next time I may not be able to stop it" said Maos as he turn back toward the road
every bandits look at each other
[shit….that was scaring]thought the bandits
[that is a scary semblance]
the driver silently starts the carriage and the group keep enhancing
the oldest pat Maos on the back to attract his attention
« yeah ? »react Maos as he turns around
[his eyes are back to red...]thought the oldest
« Thanks...for saving my life,»said the oldest
« don't mention, it was nothing,»said Maos
[if he was an enemy, he would let the Grimm kill me]thought the oldest
Maos suddenly felt something on his leg, he look down and see the gun
« i unloaded it….i guess you can take a look at it »said the driver, he seem a bit embarrassed
« oh...thanks,»said Maos as he grab the gun and start looking at it
he seems like a child finding a new toy
[he really doesn't know what a gun is]thought the bandits
[what an interesting weapon]thought Maos
"this gun thing is brilliant"
[i guess technology had to progress, due to magic not being a thing anymore]
At some point,Maos was done examining the gun and gave it back
[when i think about it...they don't seem that surprised by my magic….why?is there some kind of power that some humans have ?]
as some, the group change the drivers, now the oldest one was driving
« so by the way...earlier….what that your semblance ? »asks the oldest
« My what ? »react Maos
« you know..your semblance ! »said the young woman
«….. »Maos stare at them in confusion [is it the name they give to this kind of power ?…. Maybe magic is not completely gone...or at least humans still have some kind of powers]
« y-yeah….that,» said Maos
« it rare to see semblance that powerful...like being to simply kill a Grimm that way, it's impressive,»said the oldest
[is it really though?]thought maos
the oldest one takes a closer look at maos, especially at the fabric of Mao's clothes, it doesn't like regular fur or silk
« anyways...where do you come from ? »asks the oldest
« first time,i see someone with clothes like that »
the oldest raises his and touches Maos shoulder to feel the fabric
« what it is made of? »
Maos immediately back down, mostly because he didn't stranger touching him
« a mix between silk and hides »said Maos really fast [i mean….is alchemy still a thing? Can I tell them that my clothes are made from a mix of silk, hides, and a few grim skin and bones?]
[doesn't seem like silk nor hide]thought the oldest, the rest of the bandits listening to the conversation seem to agree
Maos suddenly facepalm for no apparent reason
[dammit...i should have harvested at least the bone of the Grimm i fought earlier !….wait...i don't have any Grimm-tear...so i can't harvest anything on a Grimm for now]
« Something wrong ? »asks the young woman
« nothing i just realise I just remembered something dumb »
« so where do you come from ? »asks the oldest again trying to get an answer
«I'm a traveler, asking me where I came from is kinda stupid,»said Maos trying to avoid the question
« Where are you born then ? »asks the young woman as she enters the conversation
« ... »Maos stay silent for a while
«I'm not sure actually, but from what I heard, I'm born in the middle of the forest,» said Maos with a thinking look, he wasn't lying
« parents ? »asks the woman
« dead,»said Maos
« adoptive parents? »
« ...dead,»said Maos, as he look, got really sad for a second, his eyes were suddenly shaking and glowing again, after a few seconds he calm down
[seem pretty recent, probably the reason for his journey]deduce the bandits
« sorry for you man, we know what it feels,» said one of the bandits
« you do ? »ask maos as he looks at each bandit
« wait you are all orphans? »
« well, not really, we technically have a whole tribe of adoptive parents»said the oldest
« hey,i have parents, i'm born in the tribe unlike all of you,» said shay ( the driver)
« We all are born in the tribe idiot,shay, your parents just happen to be alive»said the oldest one
« wait really? ...but I thought... »said shay
« yeah, shut up shay,»said the woman
« so your guy were raised by a tribe of bandits ? »asks Maos
« pretty much,yeah,»said one of the bandits
« i guess this Raven your talked about earlier is the leader ? »asks Maos
« ... » all the bandits stay silent
« yeah, raven Branwen, she's the leader, she's super strong,» said shay
« shut up ! »said the woman
« dammit shay »said the oldest
« What ? »react shay
At the same time, the other bandits left, grab Shay and stop him from talking any further
there was silence
« by the way...you kinda look like her,»said the oldest
« How so ? »asks Maos
« you're scary,»said the woman
« well that..and also your red eyes and really black hair,»said the oldest, meanwhile shay was fighting for his life in the background
« her name doesn't ring any bells to me, should I be worried about her ? »asks Maos
« Well, unless you are extremely rich or know things you should, you should be fine…..i think... »
« Could you be related to her ? »asks the woman
« what? Because we have similar eyes and hair? that's dumb and I can guarantee I'm not related to anybody you know, I'm 100 % sure of it »said Maos
«maybe a distant relative ? »asks the oldest
«I am not related to her, I'm sure of it »said Maos
« Have you any other people with red eyes and dark hair like you ? » insisted the oldest
« ...that's a good point however, i don't have any distant relatives, I can assure you »
Maos red eyes start glowing a bit
« why are you all insisting about it ?! like seriously it's getting annoying»
« sheesh, fine we get it….we were just curious…. »said the woman
"It's just that a few we heard the elder of the tribe talk about Raven having a child who isn't part of the tribe when they were drunk...so since you look like her...we were just curious..."
Maos calm down a bit after that
there was an awkward silence after that for a minute
« so..how is she like ? »asks Maos
« in case I meet her »
« scary/strong/intimidating/ »said the bandits one after the other
« she's only nice to the tribe,» said shay
" i mean you all seem pretty nice," said Maos
"you do realize we can still kill you whenever we want ? "said the woman
"you can still try to kill me, there's an error in your sentence," said Maos
[in case...let's be more discreet]
[mage armoir]
author's note:by the way the spells with [...] mean Maos doesn't actually say the spell out loud
the spell mage armor took effect instantly, without all the flashy effects like earlier
the woman stare at Mao's with a threatening look
Maos did too at her, they had a fighting stare for less than a second...mostly because Moas's threatening look way scarier than the woman's
[even his threatening look is the same as raven]thought the bandits
[maybe it's just the red eyes]
«Anyway, let's stop fighting each other...back to raven... so unless you plan on joining…..you really shouldn't expect anything good from her »
« the tribe is open to outsiders? That's strange »
« well, not really,i mean most of us have at least one parent from outside the tribe,» said the oldest
« Plus if you're young enough, you can have someone be your senior, which he or she is responsible for your adaption to the tribe, but most people who join the tribe are mostly people marrying someone in the tribe »
« you guys have an actual system to include people from outside...I didn't expect that...from bandits»said Maos
« Hey, we may be bandits, killers, and thieves, but we're not animals even if know some people who wouldn't agree in that, plus the tribe can't just fully close on itself….because you. know...incest is a bad idea... and people can die at any moment, from raids, Grimm...huntsman...dehydration, starvation..and the list goes on »
« the tribe needs fresh blood from time to time »
[This tribe has a culture similar to a druid circle or a barbarian tribe]
« How is the leader decided? It's the child of the previous leader ? »asks Maos
« nope,it's based on strength and more importantly someone's interest in the tribe's safety, the elder of the tribe can actually decide to not allow someone to be a leader despite their strenght as the leader must have the tribe prosperity in mind and not personal gain »explain the oldest
« also in order, to become leader, you have to be born and raised in the tribe that's like the only condition to compete as the tribe leader»
[so it's closer to a druid circle, a barbarian tribe would only focused on strength]
« interested in joining ? »asks the oldest
« no sorry.,..I'm not interested in such a lifestyle, but thanks for the offer »
« hmm.. too bad, the tribe could use someone like you,» said the woman, she seem a bit disappointed
the carriage almost arrived at its destination
everyone had calm down and stop talking a bit
they all arrive in a tunnel, in a mountain
the woman stretch a bit
« finally, mistral,we can finally sell all of this »
« wait... that's just a tunnel,»said Maos
« the city is behind it, you'll see,it's a nice sigh,»said shay
and then they finally enter the tunnel, there wasn't much light in the tunnel, but light could be seen in the end
and when finally out of the tunnel
Maos get up while still being on the carriage as he looks at the city in from him
it was beautiful
«a city built all over the mountain and relief, several, house build to stand a mountain wall
«several levels,it seems to go really deep and really high
Maos then saw a flying airship above him, that look like a boat
[they got a floating vehicle too?!is magic really gone in this world or does technology really did that hell of a jump?! human from this era are really impressive]
the bandist go near Maos
« nice sight isn't it "
the oldest put his hand on Maos's shoulder
Maos was like a child
Maos had stars in his eyes as he realise he had just given himself a new objective in life
«I wanna learn everything about this world, i wanna know how this technology works...I wanna learn about.."
Maos start looking at the people in the city and he actually froze
"you okay ?" asks the oldest bandits
"yeah...but...there's something weird here..." said Maos as he stare at several special people in the crowd
"yeah ?"
Maos rub his eyes a bit to make he wasn't dreaming"
"WHY DO SOME PEOPLE HAVE ANIMAL TRAIT...this guy over there has a dog's tail,this woman over there has the horns of a Goat ?! !"
Maos was not judging those people or anything, he was just surprised and in total confusion
"Why so surprised...those people are just Faunus "
there an awkward silence as the bandits stare at Maos, he seems really confused
[by the gods...don't tell me...]thought the oldest and the woman and the others bandits while shay just start laughing in the back of carriage
"what's a Faunus ?" asks Maos
and so now Maos is now in the city of Mistral, the bandits will soon leave to achieve their mission and let Maos alone in this big city...alone...well for long as a certain raven will soon arrive at the city of Mistral and she was not in a good mood