"Welcome to the Adventure Gui—"
The attendant who greeted them was cut off by a familiar face.
Songa.
Her medium sized build was avidly walking towards Elijah with not a demented grin, but a grin of, "I'm going to kick your ass".
"Are you the two thirteen year olds taking an adventure exam?" She asked with her hands on her hips.
"Yes, that is us." Elijah responded confidently, undeterred by her attitude.
"Show me your emblems."
The look on her face was nothing short of brutal and embarrassing. This whole situation had been escalated by only her. While the reason for the escalation was because she had suspicions of their origins, she was more so worried about Niko who she wanted to put on suicide watch.
"Okay. Everything is all clear, however, I knew you were coming when Enida described you. That was nothing more than a test to gauge your resolve… We don't have many thirteen year olds as adventurers. Most kids wait until the 2nd or third year of academy to join the Adventure Guild for more experience…"
'Seems like Gion isn't struggling at all for there to not be an emphasis on beast hunting. Their population is far larger, and does not have the creeping sensations of beasts lurking underneath their kingdom…' Elijah drew conclusions in his head.
This exam is going to be a little different as I will be your examiner." During her talk, she handed a brown piece of thick paper to Elijah and Niko describing their mission.
[Investigate the gathering of beasts around the Peak of Mammalia.]
[Goal: Determine what is causing the gathering of many types of beasts alongside the coordinated attacks on the southern wall.]
[Alternate Objectives: Kill as many beasts as possible.]
[Detailed Map: Flip over]
"You said your name was Songa right?" Niko hesitantly asked with a slightly disturbed face.
"Yes!"
"Are we on our own for this mission?"
From behind Songa, appeared the same boy they saw close to the river. His name was Kithus Neshu, a nobody with black hair, black eyes, and eye bags that detailed him as being sickly out of shape for this mission. Clothed in a gray jacket, black baggy hunting pants, and a small leather satchel strapped around his shoulder, he stared into his hand that held his signature black goggles.
Thankfully, there was one more person.
A brown-haired and green-eyed man with boots that reached nearly to his knees, and a large silver sword was strapped to his back — its ornate silver hilt reflecting the bright yellow lights in the building. The name was Joffrey Corpisan, a brute of a man with a voice similar to his build.
"I have no idea how Songa got the clearance to do this, but you two are up for one godly exam!"
Elijah scoffed as he didn't want to appear okay with the situation when in reality his brain was salivating for the danger and chance to let loose.
A mission guaranteed to involve the killing of beasts!
On the way to a reinforced carriage, Songa explained how this would be an examination for the two known as Niko and Elijah, as well as the first official mission for the one known as Kithus.
Once in the carriage — accompanied by a resource gatherer who had said to hand over any beast cores they harvest, conversations of everyone's abilities began to create a dynamic plan for the future beast encounters.
"I'm Kithus, and can explode any beast I touch."
"Niko, I use the fire element."
"Elijah, I use the water element."
Obviously, Elijah and Niko chose to not reveal more than necessary, especially around Kithus based on their previous interaction.
'How the hell did other people get these crazy abilities?'
While Elijah was thinking, his eyes landed on Kithus squinting his eyes.
Within the silence directly after his thought, Kithus answered the question inside Elijah's mind. "Because of the Monolith of Power!"
"Huh? What are you babbling about again Kithus. Keep control of yourself, if you do that in the beast territory you may be sending ourselves into an ambush!" Songa shook her head in pity from the outlash of Kithus who obviously had some personal problems.
Elijah bent over to Niko's ear while looking out the back of the carriage.
"Don't think too much about your secrets. Kithus is able to read minds and doesn't show any hesitation in hiding it."
The reinforced carriage passes through the area where Richter's flat is to the point of literally passing by the exact duplex.
Apparently, there was a man-made ramp of stone that allows carriages to get to the lower level of Tavenas where the southern side of one of the Market Districts lays.
It was truly a sight to behold.
Limestone and wooden buildings as tall as three stories with many of them possessing balconies. As well as the scattered trees that sometimes sat in between two buildings! Far more people were moving up and down the streets even with it being near the edge of the Market District.
The point of interest the caravan was heading to was atop of a cliffside that peered directly into a large body of water. Apparently, this place was called the Peak of Mammalia and was home to a few large cave systems amongst the grassy and hilly land.
Once again, caves were the focal point of where these beasts came from. It must have something to do with the integration of mana into the natural world. After all, the deeper into the caves you go, the closer you get to The Void.
It seems like Elijah's worry of escaping one hell just to jump into another was only slightly true.
There was an immense amount of beauty to The Kingdom of Gion, as well as the potential to create a bright future for oneself.
However, what Elijah was after was freedom.
This begged the question…
Were Elijah's actions taking him towards that goal?
Or has his recent experiences skewed his idea of freedom itself?
At this point, Elijah was just going with the motions of life — not to the point of agreeing to every little thing, but choosing what is in his best interest to gain power and comfort.
His mind felt rather odd, as if in a transition period with a focus on stabilizing his life. No goals, no means of trying to improve, but only securing his survival and comfort.
…
"Stand guard everyone! Can you hear the silence of the forest?" Joffrey stated once passing into a light forest on a dirt path that must have been trekked thousands of times.
From the crossing of the farmlands that provided fifty percent of the kingdom's food supply, they veered off on a tight dirt path that led them through a light forest With many patches of wide open grass. The jungle was thankfully no more as it would be literally impossible to bring a carriage through the area.
Both Elijah and Niko had their specific knives at the ready. A small poison knife, and a large fire hunting knife — both of which were scavenged off a dead body. Bent over on one knee of the carriage was every single soul present, ready for the beasts cautiously waiting in the silence while observing an unknown prey.
The only sound that was made was the racket sound of the carriage rupturing the eloquent peace of the light forest.
Moments later…
The chaos began with small birds transforming into daggers with the speed they flew at and the sharpness of their beaks.
Within every crevasse of a branch and grouping of leaves was death, exemplified by the sound of wind cutting and breaking.
It did not make an ounce of a difference when Elijah recklessly put up a barrier of water that took a shape relative to that of a half circle. The bright red beaks colored with dried blood pierced straight through without resistance, injuring every single member of the caravan.
That is until Joffrey stepped proudly up the plate — taking a beating of miniature birds against his stainless steel armor that perfectly fit around the most important parts of his body. His focus concentrated, and released a barely visible blast of mystery that put every bird eyeing for their eyes at rest.
"Healing potions! Drink fast then kill!!" Songa yelled at the three while pointing to the hands of the resource gatherer curled up into a ball.
The heavy duty armor had protected him against the death blows, but not against the pain of the incredible force.
Niko had gotten extremely lucky with only scratches against his face and body while helping Elijah drink the vial of liquid to heal his badly pierced body. At least half a dozen punctures that nurtured a dead bird were inside of his arms and chest, thankfully not deep enough to be fatal.
"SPLIT UP!"
The cart was forced to stop as the two horses were also badly damaged, and were likely going to die.
Elijah and Niko grouped together and stayed close to the trees. Ever since the blast that had brought peace, all violence had mysteriously stopped. Yet another wild ability that begged the question of its origin. Kithus, and now Joffrey.
Could they have been reincarnated?
Or, it relates to what Kithus had randomly said earlier…
While adeptly and cautiously walking closely against the bushy trees, Elijah heard the sound of wings flapping. However, instead of preparing for an unavoidable attack, Elijah sighed when realizing the sounds of the birds were getting softer and softer indicating they were retreating.
"RETURN!" Songa's voice resounded through the open space, likely filled with beasts. Although, giving away their position did not matter at this point.
The caravan began walking with an uneasy feeling, and harvested over 40 small red beast cores that were placed in a humongous cloth bag the resource gatherer, Daniel, threw over his back effortlessly. Resorting to walking was their only choice, and led them straight into a different type of beast, one that required them to put up their guard and think of a strategy.
Orc's.
All Songa said was how they fought like humans while passing through the farmlands — using whatever hard material they could possibly find for weapons.
These orc's were nothing of the sort. Each one held a simple polished club of metal that they effortlessly swung through the air. With bodies as tall as eight feet and a mouth filled with disorganized and sharp teeth, there was no doubt this would be a challenge. Strength is the humans biggest weakness as there is no possible way to win a fight if strength itself is the only determining factor.
"ELIJAH! NO!" Joffrey saw a figure begin to run into the herd with a pulsating ball of water in his left hand. The knife had been thrown to Niko who sat back and watched the show unfold.
"Dammit… I have no choice! Let's help him, Joffrey! You, stay behind and shoot your fire!" Songa, with an obvious favoritism over Elijah, used blunt words to describe Niko's magical abilities. Even Kithus was making his way toward the pack, albeit, walking for some odd reason.