Author: Douken, Posted: Thu Dec 27, 2018 12:16 PM, Post Subject: Research on Life and Death [P, R]

As much as Douken's face laid flat on the table, he was conscious to hear sounds. Sure they were muffled to all hell, making it nearly impossible to actually tell what the sounds were. Not like his attention was even try to try and grasp any of it as his face laid heavily on the table, his mind drowned out once again by the Dwarven ale. It just goes to show how much a dwarf's poison resistance was if their ale blend had this much punch to it.

It took some jostling to stir him out of this state, his attention barely grasping onto the straw of reality as Mazerine stirred him awake before helping him too his feet. It must have been an amusing sight to watch two wasted customers trying to keep each other balanced enough to drag their feet to their rooms before crashing out on the bed provided to them. Even if he was sober enough to even consider changing,  his items were in the fist inn they settled in at. Still, for now, all that mattered was the bed, which Douken drug his feet to first, dropping his body over first before rolling over onto his back, soon followed by Mazerine curling up at his side. The two were out quickly, not even able to notice Marella popping in to place in what items the two brought in before drowning themselves.

The alarm for the two were more like nails being driven in by a hammer straight into their skulls, the hangover striking them hard, when consciousness returned on a much better level. The morning sun was still rising, and there was still plenty to get done today now that they had a lead. First was to pay the tab on the room, followed by finding some medication to take care of the pikes in their heads. After that, they had to return back to their first room to gather their items there and take care of that tab, before finally telling Iria farewell as they boarded the ship towards Abed.

Course, the first thing they did was to rest their heads as the ship departed, taking in the roll of the ocean waves as they caught their breath until they felt like they could stand up without much issue, where it was time to work on translating the map before the ship's landing…

Author: Mazerine, Posted: Thu Dec 27, 2018 10:57 AM, Post Subject: Research on Life and Death [P, R]

The rules the barmaid set down sat well with Mazerine. She hadn’t been planning on cheating, anyway, and assumed that Douken had not, either. Eliminating the chance that their opponents would cheat in any way ensured that they would have the best chances on obtaining the map – though, if she recalled correctly, blackjack was more a game of chance than anything. There was a bit of skill required, but much less than poker.

The game went off without a hitch at first, but it seemed that their opponents decided to risk things after imbibing a bit too much of the dwarven ale due to losing hands – and the smaller of the two was caught by the barmaid. A few hands after that saw Douken go down as well, having finally hit his limit on the amount he could drink. That left Mazerine and the larger man, and both were in a bit of a state at the current moment.

Mazerine’s hair was disheveled, strands falling out of her braids. Her cheeks were red and she seemed to be squinting slightly with one eye. The larger man’s face was ruddy as well, and one of his eyes was completely closed, as though he were trying to focus rather intently on whatever happened to be in front of him. The barmaid seemed rather amused by this. ”Here,” she said to Mazerine, sliding a key across the table to her. ”We’ll add it to your tab, a room upstairs. The two of you won’t be going anywhere tonight,” she added, her accent still very audible to Mazerine, even through the heavy fog of liquor that hung in her brain.

Mazerine gave her a very awkward thumbs up, grabbed the key, and shoved it into the bodice of her dress. The barmaid shook her head slightly, dealing the next hand. Keeping the cards face down as they had been instructed to do, she took a quick glance at them, and made a weird sound. Her opponent smirked, unable to keep a poker face as it were, clearly pleased with his hand. Mazerine tapped the table, indicating that she wanted another card. And then another. And another. And one more. She stared at her cards, blinking a few times, before asking for one more card, and then nodded, waving her hand off to indicate that she was done. Her opponent waved his hand, clearly happy with the cards that he had been dealt.

”Show your hands,” the barmaid indicated.

The burly man obliged the barmaid, flipping his cards over to reveal a ten and a nine. ”Nice knowing ya, sweetheart,” he sneered to Mazerine, though the effect of his words was sort of lost as he slurred nearly every syllable. Mazerine made a bit of a face as she attempted to do the math, but then seemed to give up and flip her own cards over. She had five twos, and a king.

”Her twenty to your nineteen,” she said, pushing a full mug of the ale towards the burly man. ”Drink.” Mazerine was still starting at her cards, completely confused. The burly man was attempting to drink the mug of ale, though about halfway through his first gulp, it seemed to come back up as he had turned a sickening shade of green.

”Take your damn map,” he choked, and drunkenly grabbed his companion’s motionless body and dragged him out the door – the barman suddenly chasing after them as they had left their tab unpaid. Mazerine gave a small cheer in indication that she finally realized that she had won, and scooped up the map and the relic.

”Be sure to pay your tab before you depart in the morning. Congratulations, miss, it seems that you have done what you accomplished. Would you like some assistance getting your husband to your room?” the barmaid asked in her elegant accent.

Mazerine laughed loudly, the volume bolstered by the alcohol in her system. ”He’s not my husband,” she slurred, stumbling to get up from her chair. ”I don’t think that would be the worst thing in the world, though, but don’t tell him I said that,” she managed to blurt out, giving the barmaid a wink. The barmaid just started at her, watching the hilarity unfold as Mazerine moved over to Douken, rousing him from his drunken stupor just enough for the pair to stumble drunkenly up to their room.

When they were inside with the door locked behind them, Mazerine dumped the relic and the map on the table and watched as Douken made his way to the bed, falling in without undressing. She did the same shortly, moving only enough to curl up with her head on his chest before passing out into a dreamless sleep.

Author: Douken, Posted: Mon Dec 24, 2018 11:43 AM, Post Subject: Research on Life and Death [P, R]

It was an interesting bit of negotiation, but he knew very well of Mazerine's charisma. Very thoughtful, tactical, and trusting in those on her side. He knew she wouldn't make such a risky offer on pure chance. Still, he couldn't help but internally worry about offering the relic up as a gamble, but at the same time knew it would be that, or an absurd amount of coin to dare ad match the questionable value of what the map was hiding. It only made sense to show relation to match value so they can consider the offer to be fair. Especially since it came from their first map, which meant Douken and Mazerine took care of the hard work.

During the silence that left Douken alone with the two, he pulled up two additional seats: one for himself and the other for the dealer Maz proposed for. "Hey," the burlier of the two stated as he did this, "… Have we met? You seem a bit… familiar…"

Probably from the moment we faked a make out in the rain, ran through his head while, "Can't say I have," ran out of his mouth.

Mazerine returned back with a familiar scent with her and another face to join them. With the elf's question in the air, the skinnier of the pair grinned. "Black jack," he stated, digging into his coat for a deck, before the barmaid's hand flew up into the air to stop him.

"That shall not be necessary, gentlemen," Marella stated, her tone thick with accent and calling the group out with the local tongue before resting her two hands on the table, lifting them up to reveal two sealed decks. "I have the cards you will be playing with right here. And before any of you ask, I have no clue on who any of you are." She was quick to break the seals open before pulling the cards out, revealing each deck had a matching back before fanning them out and turning them over, showing the contents of each to be perfectly organized and evenly distributed before flipping back over and melding the two into one pile before her fingers danced with the cards, intermixing them heavily until the pile was finely blended with each other.

"Now then, the rules of this game. Each player shall play with with their hands upside down for the entire game until everyone has drawn what they wish. The hand with the lowest value or everyone who has busted will have to drink a minimum of 1 cup. After hands are settled, you bet on how much more everyone must drink in half-cup portions until everyone is in agree-ance or both members of one side folds. You may fold your hand at any time, but must drink the amount that was on the table in order to do so. The only exception is being dealt a blackjack, in which you can turn over immediately and force the other team to drink a cup each before play resumes. Are we all in agree-ance with this?" It took a small bit, but sure enough, all four nodded their heads. "Good. The winning side will be walking away with the artifact and the map while the losing side will be given my bill. Now then, let us play. Best of luck to all."

Mazerine. The scrawny man. Douken. The burly man. That was the order the cards flew out twice, ensuring everyone had a pair to work with. Thumbs took hold of each corner to see what they had to work with. Evaluations were made before Marella started at the top of that order for any additions to their hands, though was quick to summon a dagger and stab it into the table in front of scrawny man. "Now now. Take back that illusion magic," she cold-stated before glowing eyes turned back towards him. "I am not a fan of cheaters, you know? Half a cup for faking a hand. A whole cup for reading minds to see what they hold. Two cups for magically removing toxins. Anything else that affects the game itself will be determined as it happens." She was sure to pour the half-cup immediately and passing it over, holding the game until he did, and the way her eyes gleamed, it was clear she would force it down anyone's throats if they did not chug it immediately.

After the cheating cup was taken, the game proceeded forwards. Cards flew across the table, negotiations were being made at each moment depending on how confident each person was with their hands, before drinks were passed out and given to each other. It was an amusing version of the game, which drew the attention of a few onlookers, though they, too, would be victims if they tried to help any side to cheat or reveal information plus the side who they dared to help if they looked for it. The first to fall was the scrawny man, partially due to roguish tactics he tried when she was distracted, magically or not. A couple rounds next would be Douken, who fell due to a Blackjack pushing his limits, which left Mazerine and the burly leader of the group both in drunken states as the last couple hands were dealt out…

Author: Mazerine, Posted: Mon Dec 24, 2018 9:59 AM, Post Subject: Research on Life and Death [P, R]

In Mazerine’s mind, she was at least grateful that the meeting with the eccentric, albeit helpful, professor had been at least somewhat helpful. They had now discovered that the artifact they had found was only part of a smaller artifact, and that was both good and bad in her opinion. The new information was good in the fact that it meant they would (assuming they found more of the artifact) be able to discern why it had reacted to them in the manner it had, but it was bad in the fact that they were essentially looking at a blank slate now on where to look next.

The suggestion of food was rather welcome, and Mazerine followed Douken into the pub that they had chosen. It was nothing remarkable – neither dingy and dirty nor sparkling and clean – to Mazerine, this was a sign of an establishment that would offer decent food at a decent rate, and that was all she needed.

The vague excitement the elf had felt about eating, however, faded rather quickly once their surroundings came into view. There was a pair of men sitting at a table not far from the entrance, and they were rather familiar to Mazerine – in fact, it was the pair that she had stolen the map from that had spurned this whole journey in the first place – the very map that had, both literally and figuratively, tossed her into Douken’s arms. Her eyes widened as the familiar faces associated themselves with their identities in her mind, and she immediately positioned herself so that her face would not be visible to the men if they were to look in their general direction – which had, fortunately, not happened yet.

Mazerine moved in closely to Douken so she could speak at a barely audible level. ”Do you see those two men with the dark red cloaks right over there?” she said, hoping that Douken would catch the general direction she was indicating. When he did, she continued. ”It’s the men I stole the map from, the map to Occultatum,” she added, urgency in her whisper. She watched Douken’s eyes dart to the pair quickly before returning back to her. [n]”We need that map,” she said, commenting on the document she had seen out of the corner of her eye when she had recognized them. Without another word, she stood up on her tiptoes, grabbing one of his hands, and kissed him on the cheek quickly. ”I have an idea… and you’re going to have to trust me,” she added after a moment of silence.

She dropped Douken’s hand and took a deep breath, turning away from him and walking right up to the pair. She placed her hands on the table and leaned forward slightly. ”Hello boys,” she said, a smirk on her lips. The thinner of the two men made a strange guttural noise and immediately went to draw his dagger. ”Mm, I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” she said, tilting her head towards three members of the city guard sitting only a few tables away. ”They don’t take kindly to barfights around here,” she said, though she did not know how much truth there was to that statement. ”That’s it,” she said, grinning as the man released his dagger and placed his hands back upon the table. ”Relax. I’m not here to steal from you again,” she said. ”Just wanna chat,” she added, and the heavier set man gestured to an empty chair at the table, his eyes narrowed as though he were trying to figure out what game she was attempting to play. Mazerine looked behind her to make sure that Douken was still near, and when she saw that she was she sat down.

”What’dya want, you tart?” asked the heavier man, his voice gravelly. The thinner man let out a guffaw at the remark, which Mazerine made no note to react to.

”First, I wanted to thank you. That map you so easily let me relieve you of was pretty interesting,” she said. ”Found some interesting things where it lead me, I did,” she added. The men seemed to perk up at that comment.

”And what did an inexperienced rat such as yourself manage to find there?” asked the larger man, clearly trying to mask his genuine interest with unmarked disgust. ”You don’t look rich, and you don’t look all powerful, so couldn’t have found what was really hidden there,” he added, an air of arrogance to his speech. Mazerine grabbed the satchel that carried the relic, and fished it out, setting it down on the tabletop with a loud clunk.

”This,” she said, smirking as the she watched the eyes of the men widen. The thin one reached out to touch it, and she snatched it away quickly. ”Not so fast. I’ve a proposition for you,” she said, and the heavier man raised an eyebrow. He opened his mouth to say something but Mazerine cut him off. ”Before you get a chance to say anything vulgar, let me continue. This was the end game, right? This is what you would have gotten from Occultatum had you not… lost track of your map,” she said, pausing for effect. She slid the artifact across the table and this time let the men touch it, so they could see that it was not a sham and was in fact real. After a moment, she leaned over and snatched it back again. ”Let’s… well, let’s have some fun with this, shall we?” she said. She gestured to the map that was still laid out across the table between the men. She could tell, just from looking at it, that it was in fact a sister to the map she possessed that showed them Occultatum. ”Let’s play for it. You pick the game, I’ll pick the drink, and we’ll combine them into one. If we win,” she said, gesturing to Douken. ”We get the map. If you win,” she said, gesturing to the two men. ”You get the artifact.”

The men looked at each other, the heavier man leaning over to the thinner man to whisper something in his ear. They seemed to bicker back and forth a bit before finally coming to an agreement. ”Deal,” he said slowly, his eyes slightly narrowed.

”Gentlemen, decide our game,” she said, standing up from the table. ”I’ll retrieve the drink,” she said, and with a quick glance to Douken, she hustled herself up to the bar. The barkeep addressed her and she slammed a handful of coins onto the counter. ”I need one small barrel of dwarven ale,” she said, astutely. The bartender let out a guffaw and looked at her.

”Y’sure, miss? That’ll knock ye’ right on yer ass, it will, pard’n my words,” he said. Mazerine shrugged.

”I know how to handle myself… and that’s the idea,” she said, with a bit of a wink.

”Alrigh’, then,” said the barman. ”I’ll bring it to ye’ in a right mo’. Ye’ be needin’ four mugs, then I take it?” Mazerine reaffirmed with him that this was correct.

”Could you also spare a barmaid to deal our game? I’ll compensate her fairly,” she added, and the barman agreed. Moments later Mazerine was back over at the table and the barman arrived with a barrel of dwarven ale, four mugs, and a barmaid in tow.

”This’ere is Marella,” the barman said, introducing the barmaid. ”Just let ‘er know what ye’ need. But I’ll tell ye’- she’s a trained mage, she is – don’t try none o’ that funny bis’ness with her,” he added, to which the barmaid smiled.

”Thank you,” said Mazerine. She then grabbed the four mugs and filled them all up with the ale, before sitting back down and addressing the men. ”So, what’s the game?”

Author: Douken, Posted: Sat Sep 8, 2018 9:47 AM, Post Subject: Research on Life and Death [P, R]

After being shoved out the door, Douken could not help but let out a bit of a sigh. "Even after all these years, she has only gotten worse after she got married. I bet that its on;t because of Drakma's stamina and tolerance that let them get this far," he chuckled before explaining to Mazerine the minor details of how they knew each other. How Drakma was his teacher in rune-writings and at the time, the two were merely dating and by the time he left, the two were engaged. It could very well had been this bad, just more of the fact that she knew to hold back in front of a child. As far as he knew, they still yet to have a child…

Still, by the time the two were out, there was the question of what was next. Should they try to seek out a temple for Angela or Dalanesca to see if either of them held any kind of documents of joint temples they had together? Would their existence even be in any kind of writing? Well, whatever they were after, it was clear it was a much bigger piece… but did this mean it was cut into two or even more? Even more to mull over.

"Well, how about we at least can see what we can find then, eh?" With that, the two took to the town to see what they could find out. Of course, the religious break overseas meant that whatever temples were here were on a much smaller scale, meaning what they could find out was limited and thus not too useful.

When their stomachs told them it was time for a break, the two headed for the nearest pub. He doubted it would get them good word-of-mouth, but at least the grub would be fine. Still, there was no way they would actually get anything useful.

"Look, I am telling you what we want is just north of here. We get a ship through the Znanje Bay to Abed, and we can find ourselves at the treasure!"

"Yeah, okay, but what about last plan you had? The one that the dagger-eared bitch took from us?"

"Yes, I get it, that was a bad move, but not this time! We get this treasure, and we will be swimming in a harem of women! Not even she would be able to deny my charms!"

As the two entered, a pair of familiar faces were sitting nearby, looking over a map that held familiar writings on it…

Author: Mazerine, Posted: Sat Sep 8, 2018 8:41 AM, Post Subject: Research on Life and Death [P, R]

Mazerine found her eyes widening as Douken laid a solid blow to Professor Zuuli’s head with a rather thick tome. True, she had looked to Douken with a pleading expression, but she had not expected him to retaliate with such physical violence! Fortunately, as the spine of the book connected with Zuuli’s cranium, it did not seem to cause her any permanent damage. Mazerine winced, feeling a bit of sympathy for the professor. In truth, the professor had partially deserved some sort of retaliation – she was, after all, asking that the pair divulge rather personal information to her – but either way, they had gone to her asking for her help – they should have known that they were going to have to share something about what was happening when the artifact was glowing if they were going to want to find out what it was that caused the reaction.

”Fine,” she said, though it was rather clear that Mazerine was rather reluctant to want to share anything personal about what was going on with Douken – but she understood. They would need to reveal at least a small portion of information if they wanted Zuuli to help them.

The elf remained silent as she listened to Douken explain to Professor Zuuli where they found the item, the shrine that they had discovered when they first ventured out together, and then to Zuuli spew her thought process – and quite a bit of what she was saying made sense to Mazerine. She glanced at Douken to see if he was following the professor’s thought process in the same manner she was. Douken interjected that it couldn’t be that, because the time they noticed the reaction they hadn’t been in the act of doing anything in the realm of procreation.

As the professor finished her explanation of what she thought could be, Mazerine looked to Douken once more. It made sense, and Mazerine let out a sigh of relief – it seemed that she was going to jump off of the bandwagon of asking the two to get down and dirty right in front of her. ”Dead end, then?” said Mazerine, looking to the professor and waiting for her to say something else.

”Hardly,” said the professor, letting out a chuckle. She picked the artifact back up, and turned it over, showing the pair what Mazerine had originally thought was the bottom of the relic, and pointed at some strange grooves. ”See these?” she asked, running her fingers across the bottom and moving so that she was nearly shoving the relic in Mazerine’s face. ”Sever marks! This is merely but part of a larger relic!”

Mazerine looked more closely at the marks, and sure enough the professor was correct. ”Well, can’t say I would have noticed that on my own,” she admitted, turning to Douken before looking back to the professor. ”I guess this means that Douken and I have more work to do?” she said, though she immediately regretted her choice of words upon uttering them.

”In more ways than one!” the professor shouted with a laugh. ”I’ll see what information I can turn up on a possible location of another piece, but in the meantime, you two should do your own share of work as well!” she said, turning to Douken and giving him a strange wink. ”Remember, let me know should any other… reactions arise.” Mazerine brought her palm to her forehead, shaking her head slightly. ”Now, off with the two of you,” she said, taking each of them by the shoulder and shuffling them toward the door. ”I’ve got to do some studying of my own with my husband!” she exclaimed, leaving the connotations of such an announcement up to the pair to interpret.

Once they were outside of the classroom, and out of the building, back on the pathway to the entrance of the Mage’s Academy, Mazerine looked at Douken. ”Well, now what?” she asked. ”I haven’t the slightest idea where to go from here… I happened upon that first map by chance,” she said, frowning slightly.

Author: Douken, Posted: Sun Aug 26, 2018 10:50 AM, Post Subject: Research on Life and Death [P, R]

And there she goes, AGAIN, Douken mentally sighed as that gleam shined for her potential study. Once again, any form of personal space was gone with this woman if it meant learning more about that they held within their possession. As Mazerine tried to fight her off with words, Douken began to scour the table for the right item… Something that would help the pair fend off such an act in front of them. There. A large tome resting on the table close enough to reach without moving. By the time Mazerine looked back for some serious reinforcements, Douken was well armed to send the spine of the book onto the professor's head, right down the center.

Her ears folded flat as she hugged the struck point, tail raised high and fluffed up as she murred in pain. "Really, Dou-Dou? The 600 pager?" While it certainly was a heavy book, it was clearly not enough to knock her unconscious or to bleed. Still, the stare-down from him and tome in hand made her shake it off and straighten back off. "Fine, fine. But if you are not going to show, you can at the very least tell, right?"

Douken looked back at Mazerine, as if to silently tell her, "If we want to get anything out of this, we have to do that," before turning his attention back to the professor, telling the tale of the Occultatum, the Shrine of Life and Death, and all the way over to the actual reaction, keeping things simple enough for her to understand. After all, no need to tell a married woman about the birds and the bees.

"I see," she said, thinking over the details. "Well, if I was to offer any theories, then its reactions could be that from the Life side of things: Procreation. I believe that our bodies give off something I have been calling 'hormones' during such acts, and it very well may be acting upon such feelings it provides. Unfortunately, its also hard to say what actual effects it would have if you kept going, but it seem you two are not exactly willing to share that."

"Yeah, well…" Douken's face easily turned a notable shade of red as he scratched his cheek, "A bit too much ale did cause things to escalate further than that… But as far as we know, there was no reaction then."

The professor murred over the details once more before amending, "In that case, then the influence probably dampened the reaction to not be noticeable… OR you two were just so drunk and in the moment you did not even bother to notice… Well, I guess if it was the former, then asking you two to do it right here would probably get the same not-reaction because the feeling would not be as authentic…" Her tail wagged back and forth as the gears in her mind turned over the information.

Author: Mazerine, Posted: Sun Aug 26, 2018 9:49 AM, Post Subject: Research on Life and Death [P, R]

It seemed that Professor Zuuli had met Douken before, considering the nickname she addressed him with. Mazerine was not surprised by this - after all, when Douken had suggested that they go and visit the professor, it seemed that he already had a basic knowledge of her studies. Her cheeks flushed slightly as the professor commented on her, and she glanced at Douken, seeing that his own cheeks had followed suit.

Mazerine extended her own hand as the professor offered hers, grasping it in a firm handshake. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Professor Zuuli,” she responded, doing her best to hide the color that had risen in her cheeks. ”My name is Mazerine Alaudriel,” she continued her own introduction. ”I’m a former junior ambassador from Endapano, but have more recently taken up exploration and I suppose what one could refer to as archaeology,” she said with a brief smile.

”Indeed we did,” she answered as the professor mentioned the artifact that they had found in Occultatum. To this, the professor’s eyes seemed to light up, as though she were very excited at the prospect of studying whatever this artifact was.

”Do you have it with you?” the professor asked, to which Mazerine glanced at Douken. When his expression affirmed that the professor was trustworthy, Mazerine fished the artifact out of her satchel and handed it to the professor, who then proceeded to spend several minutes turning it over and looking it, while Mazerine shifted her weight from one foot to the other rather uncomfortably.

”Well,” Zuuli said, after a moment. ”It doesn’t seem to be having any sort of reaction right now. Perhaps if the two of you were to recreate the situation in which you first noticed the reaction, I might be able to study its properties more fully,” she said, looking at Mazerine and Douken with encouragement in her eyes.

Mazerine cleared her throat, her cheeks turning bright red. ”Yeah, that’s not going to happen, not here,” she said rather abruptly, glancing sideways at Douken before looking away rather quickly. ”Any other suggestions?” she asked, to which the professor looked at her with a rather puzzled expression, before her eyes widened slightly and she let out a laugh.

”I see. Well, can’t blame the boy, look at you!” she replied, still chuckling. ”Suppose I can’t blame you for not wanting to share something that intimate with a stranger!” she said. ”Though, it is a shame. I’d really like to see what it was doing. Are you sure I can’t persuade you?” she asked, looking hopeful and wiggling her eyebrows slightly. It was clear that academia was the strongest driving force behind her request, though it seemed that there may have been just a hint of something else mixed in.

Mazerine looked to Douken for help. There was no way she was going to do what the professor was acting, but she did not know how else to tell her no.

Author: Douken, Posted: Wed Jul 18, 2018 6:22 PM, Post Subject: Research on Life and Death [P, R]

Douken went down with her, going against the current of students who were headed to their next classes, he would assume, making their way to the desk of the professor, who was busy getting her notes organized once more and getting the board cleaned up for the next teacher, muttering to herself in the same tongue as they heard in the cafe. Of course, when her name was called out, her ears flicked towards them before turning her head. "Ah, Dou-Dou. I was told I had to make room for an appointment, but who would have guessed it was with you." She kept herself refined as she turned around to see the elf who accompanied him. "Now, I knew you were after treasures, but who would have guessed this would be one such finds." A sly, yet playful giggle left her lips, causing Douken to get a bit red.

Still, she was not one to be rude, and with quick jests out of the way, she was sure to hold her hand out to Mazerine. "A pleasure to meet you. I am Namyan Zuuli, a professor here who studies the theory of biological and magical bonds. From my memo, I was told you two found an artifact that reacted to you two?"

With a nod, Douken looked over to Mazerine, giving her a smile to assure her she could be trusted with seeing it. The only thing he could really hope for, however, would be that she wouldn't want to see how it reacted… After all, such a thing in public?

Author: Mazerine, Posted: Tue Jul 17, 2018 12:16 PM, Post Subject: Research on Life and Death [P, R]

Mazerine enjoyed spending the day with Douken showing her around Iria. She appreciated the fact that he would answer her questions without judging her on her lack of knowledge of the area. She was sad to see the day end, but time seemed to go by rather quickly when the pair found something fun to do. Her favorite part of the day, however, had to be when the pair retired for the night, snuggled up next to one another in the bed in the room at the inn they rented. Before drifting off to sleep, Mazerine had twisted around and gave Douken one quick, yet soft and sweet, kiss, before sleep overcame her.

When she awoke the next morning, she laid in bed, relishing in the feeling of Douken next to her - until the pair both got up and got ready to head out for the day. They both knew they had things to accomplish, and while part of Mazerine would have liked the pair to stay back in their room at the inn all day long, now was not the time nor the place - but that did not stop her mind from wandering as Douken directed them towards the Mage’s College - a building that was by far the most impressive of everything in Iria. She took a moment to take it all in before the pair was brought into what seemed to be a class having already began.

Mazerine took a look at the professor teaching the class. She had no clue what the woman was talking about - well, perhaps the basics behind it, but it was all a bit too complicated for her. The students, however, seemed very interested in what she had to say, and took no note of the pair walking into the middle of their class. She leaned close to Douken as he informed her that this was the professor that they were looking for, and the pair stood by, awaiting the class to end.

When it was over, the students filtered out one by one, leaving just the professor, Mazerine, and Douken in the room. Mazerine gave Douken a look, not sure if they should approach the professor or not, but she just decided it would be best to do so. She marched right down to where the professor was standing, and cleared her throat to get the woman’s attention. ”Excuse me, Professor Zuuli?” she said, to which the professor looked up at her. ”We were wondering if we could have a moment of your time to ask you about something,” she continued, looking at Douken to help her out.

Author: Douken, Posted: Thu Apr 12, 2018 8:18 AM, Post Subject: Research on Life and Death [P, R]

"Yeah, that's why its a popular drink in the morning when sleep is rough. Instead of fighting off the drowse, they drink a mug of coffee to perk themselves right up. Its almost like a piece of the city of magic," he chuckled. Still, at the very least, the idea of window shopping and touring the new city seemed like a great idea for her, the smile on her face showing she was glad she went with someone who was familiar. He could act like he had no idea and play the game of two blind tourists, but knowing had its benefits of picking out special spots.

As much of a woman she was, being in the higher class, it was fun seeing her make fun of it, as if poking a bit of fun at how they go about with their meets. Was this because the image from the mirrors was still fresh in her memory? Still, he let her catch her breath before smiling, taking her hand in tow, and replying, "But of course, my lady. Allow me," chuckling himself before escorting her out of the hotel and into the busy night streets. There, the two explored the city, watching the event throw down. While the smell of delectables filled the air, their massive late lunch made them good enough aside from pretty much a dessert to share. If Mazerine ever had a question or an interest to see, Douken was sure to reply what he recalled before checking to see if they were still around. before finishing the night at the market night event, where the outside workers were out sharing their own wares. Internally, he hoped he could find someone from his homestead there, but there was not a face he could recognize, nor recognize him.

When the two agreed it was time to return to the inn, they worked their way back with final points on the way back before planning out what they wanted to know at the college. Still, it was not until was moon was high did tiredness began to set in before the two went together for the night, resting together peacefully, almost as if each night moved them closer together.

Morning came quick, though the knowledge of the day's plans were already set. Their time for relaxing was just about over as the two packed up and headed to the main selling point of Iria: The Mage's College. A place where many young mages and intellects gathered to study and learn. Taking a moment to get things set up, the pair was lead down to what was a class midway through motion, where a white-haired woman with large, pointed ears and a fluffy tail informed the class before her about… well, something. Their timing could not really help them understand what the topic was, but whatever it was, it had engrossed the students to not even bother looking at the two new people inside.

"That would be Professor Zuuli," he whispered to Mazerine, being sure to not interrupt the lesson. "If you think she is energetic now, you have not seen anything yet…"

Author: Mazerine, Posted: Thu Apr 12, 2018 6:48 AM, Post Subject: Research on Life and Death [P, R]

Mazerine held the key out to Douken when he asked for it, watching him as he looked at it. When he reached out and took her hand, she grinned at him, following along happily, her fingers interlaced with his. Her cheek reddened slightly where he planted a quick kiss, and she soon busied herself looking at the different buildings and shops they walked past. She glanced to Douken for a moment as he pointed out specific places, and she couldn’t help but smile as she watched him enjoy being back in such a familiar area. It didn’t seem to take him very long to find the building that they had a room secured in, and what he had stated was correct - it was Starline. It wasn’t as fancy as some of the places she had stayed at in her time, but it was certainly a nice establishment.

Much as Douken did, Mazerine scanned the room when the walked inside. There was no butler like there had been aboard the fancy airship that they had been on - that had been the height of luxury, after all. It seemed a nice enough room, at least - Mazerine had no complaints. She set her belongings down and set out walking about the room for a few moments before settling down at the table in the room. She pulled out her coin purse and looked into it - while she still had a decent amount of silver left, she was getting rather low. After they were done in Iria, it looked as though she were going to need to make a trip home to Endapano to visit the family and replenish her coin - if they’d let her…

When she was done checking what sort of coin she had left, she glanced over at Douken. It seemed he had taken out the artifact and was making his own notes on it. She watched him for a moment, deciding that it would be best not to interrupt him while he was focusing on it. Once he set his quill down, she moved to sit a bit closer to him. When he asked if she was tired, she tilted her head to the side. Come to think of it, she was not even remotely tired, now that Douken mentioned it. “You know, I’m not, actually,” she said, laughing a bit. “Is that why the coffee tastes so bitter? Is it meant to keep you awake?” she asked, rather naively.

His suggestion of the market evening lit up her eyes. Granted, she wouldn’t be spending her silver as frivolously as she had in the past, but just as in Adeluna, it would be fun to look at the wares that the vendors from beyond the city walls had set up. “That sounds like a nice time,” she said, giving him a smile. “But when we come back we really should figure out what kind of questions we’re going to ask at the Mage’s college tomorrow,” she said. It was clear that she was in the mood to go do something fun, but she still knew what the task at hand was.

“I’m a complete stranger to this area, no idea where anything is,” she said, getting up from her chair. With a cheesey grin she gave Douken a bit of a courtsey, extending her hand towards him as she straightened back up. “Would you care to escort a lady about the town this evening?” she asked, though she cracked up laughing towards the end as she could no longer keep a straight face. She finally stopped laughing and gave Douken a genuine smile. “In all seriousness, though, you’re gonna have to show me where to go. I’ve never been here, as you know - hell, I haven’t even been on this continent!”

Author: Douken, Posted: Mon Apr 9, 2018 2:32 PM, Post Subject: Research on Life and Death [P, R]

Douken couldn't help but chuckle, even after he felt his leg getting kicked. "What, are you saying if someone talked to you in an Elven tongue, you talk back in something different?" Sure, she clearly showed she knew how to handle what Mazerine spoke, which probably granted him another kick in response, but he knew she was being more of a tease with it and not too serious. However, with her initial reaction to the coffee, calling it a tea and her reaction from the initial sip, a snicker escaped him. "I don't know, but whoever did learned it helps as a massive wake up call."

The meal was her next reaction, which was a complete reversal from the luxury on the ship. There was no finesse to their sandwiches and they were proud of it, but one thing was for sure: the flavor was on point. So much that it seemed the lack of finesse affected her and had her speak with a mouth full of food. It was almost as if, during a single week, the two were able to experience each side's comforts and tastes in terms of what meals they got to enjoy.

With both their bellies full and plans to be plotted out, the two decided it was best to take to their inn and get a bit more settled down, Douken paying for the pair's meal. "May I see they key?" he asked, examining the hold of it and its details. "If I was to guess, this would be connected to Starline. Definitely more of a hotel room than a tavern room. More comforts of home and less noise on the ground floor. Come on, I'll show you." Taking each other in hand once more, Douken returned a kiss to her cheek before the two took to the streets once more, Douken pointing out some shops he remembered fondly and locations his family would trade with often, even if it was clear some of them had to close down and had either taken new ownership, or rested as available lots. It was not until they reached Starline did they stop, and what an interesting one it was. It was a massive five-story building where the first three seemed quite normal, yet the forth had much bigger windows and the fifth were essentially sky boxes. If they were to squint a bit, it could have even been possible to see movement up there. "Hopefully she didn't go too overboard," he muttered nervously before the two headed inside and checked in.

Luckily, their room was only on the third floor: room 308. While it was certainly much better quality than the room slept in when they first met, it was still nothing like what they relaxed in in the ship. It was almost like the perfect middle of the two. Setting their things down, the two focused on two things: checking the artifact and seeing how much still remained in Mazerine's wallet. By her face, not much… at least in terms of what she started with he guessed. This gave Douken time to examine it himself, quill, ink, and parchment at the ready for whatever new signs he could find while noting details from the glow.

We can see if it had the same reaction again, echoed in his mind, looking over at Maz as she cleaned up her change before blushing a bit and returning back to the parchment. Would it  react the same if they did it again? Would something new happen if they went further… like that night, but under their own volitions? You can't ask her that just for some notes, he told himself as he shook his head, trying to remove the thoughts. Still, his eyes moved back to her once more before setting the quill down.

"Are you feeling tired?" he asked her, setting the writing utensil down before stretching his back a bit, "Because that coffee is keeping me awake. If things have not changed too much, it should be a market night tonight. Always fun to see what people outside the city have made. Even some of the gem sculptors from the miners are eye-catchers. Always fun to shop with your eyes with someone."

Author: Mazerine, Posted: Mon Apr 9, 2018 1:33 PM, Post Subject: Research on Life and Death [P, R]

Mazerine stared rather incredulously at Douken as he responded to the waitress in perfect synchronization with the language the waitress or hostess was speaking. She had remembered Douken mentioning something about growing up not too far from Iria, but the way he had made it sound seemed as though he had been gone for a long time. She had expected him to understand the girl, but not to be able to converse back to her quite so fluently. Mazerine just continued to stare, mouth parted in extreme surprise as the pair spoke back and forth for a few beats, ending with the woman walking away.

In the time that she was gone, retrieving their beverages, Mazerine said nothing - only shook her head at Douken. It was clear that, while she was not really upset, she was a bit annoyed with the fact that he had done such a thing. She was hoping that he had at least taken her tastes to mind when he was ordering, as she had no way of knowing what sort of decisions he had made. “Couldn’t help yourself, could you?” she asked, rolling her eyes slightly. She gave him a playful kick from her foot to his under the table, as though to make sure he was aware that she was not really upset.

When the waitress returned with the two steaming mugs of coffee for them. Mazerine watched as she set the jar of sugar between the two mugs and walked away. “Oh, is this really strong tea?” she said, looking at the black liquid. She leaned down to inhale deeply from the steam that drifted from the steaming liquid, and immediately made a face. “That doesn’t smell like any tea I’ve ever had before,” she said, and spooned a bit of the sugar in, stirring it up. Before Douken could say anything to her, she took a drink and immediately made a face as well as a rather taken aback sound. “What the hell is that?” she asked.

It seemed that her naivete with the beverage amused Douken, as he chuckled at her before explaining to her that it was coffee - something she had never had before. She took another drink, now expecting it, and realized that it wasn’t nearly as bad as she had thought now that she wasn’t taken by surprise. “Who ever decided that this was a good idea to drink?” she muttered to herself before turning her attention the food that had just been served.

Mazerine’s eyes widened at the sight of the food in front of her - never before had she seen anything so… so messy! She watched Douken rather tentatively as he dove into his sandwich, following suit not long after. Upon the first bite, she closed her eyes. Before she could even finish chewing, she couldn’t help herself. “Oh my gosh, that’s so good!” she said, swallowing the bite she had taken. As bits of the sandwich fell onto the fried potato pieces, she picked one up and shoved it in her mouth, chewing it. It was crunch, salty, and covered in the pieces of sandwich that had fallen out.

“I’ve never had anything like this before,” she said, eyes wide. “This is amazing,” she said, before tucking into the sandwich once more. The two went on and finished their food, not speaking much between bites, until nearly every bit was gone. A small pile of fries covered in sandwich fixings still remained on Mazerine’s plate, but she was stuffed. “I can’t eat anymore,” she said, leaning back in her chair and sighing. She sipped on a bit of the coffee, which she was now growing accustomed to.

“So,” she said, turning her attention back towards Douken now that she had finished eating. “Once we get to the inn where our room is, I think we should take the artifact out and look it over again,” she said, turning the topic towards the reason they had come to Iria in the first place. “That reaction it had, with the glowing red and green was… interesting, to say the least,” she said. “I wonder if it really did have to do with what… happened? Or maybe it was coincidental,” she said, shrugging her shoulders. “Either way, I want to look it over again before we got to the Mage’s College tomorrow,” she concluded.

“I mean, we could see if it had the same reaction again,” she said, trailing off as though deep in thought, though her face turned bright red as she realized the connotations behind her suggestion. “I mean, not like that, I just wonder if it would do it again,” she said, though she started laughing when she realized that she was scrambling. There was no point in being embarrassed about the things that had happened between the two of them. To lighten the mood a bit, she leaned across the table and planted a quick kiss on Douken’s cheek.

“Sorry I get so flustered sometimes,” she said, with a laugh as she sat back down. “I think it’s just a whole lot of chaos wrapped up into one tiny package. I’m just nervous to find out what this artifact really is,” she admitted. “And, you know, figuring all of… well, this out,” she said, gesturing back and forth between the two of them. “It’s just a lot for me to process,” she said, with a little bit of a laugh.

After a moment and another drink of her coffee, she spoke again. “Well, should we go find the inn?” she asked, unsure if Douken would want to stay at the place longer, or head to their final destination for the evening.

Author: Douken, Posted: Fri Apr 6, 2018 10:20 AM, Post Subject: Research on Life and Death [P, R]

How long had it been since he had taken to these streets? It was odd for a bit, just thinking how close to home he now was after all of these years. Who knows, if there was time, would Mazerine mind visiting his small cottage? Meet his parents? Visit his grandfather''s grave? Questions to be asked another time, he thought to himself as he shifted his gaze from the streets to Mazerine, watching the elf's eyes sparkle at the new sights before her. To Douken, asking such questions now would ruin the moment.

It was not long until they found themselves at a kafic, smiling a bit as he saw the emblem that embroidered the door. Glad to see them open still, he thought as the door opened up and the scents flooded the two. The crowd here was not too thick, considering they landed in the middle of lunch and dinner, and while a light meal would have made more sense in his head, he could not hope not too much has changed.

It was when their hostess arrived when it looked like Mazerine was hit by a runaway carriage. The new tongue in front of her threw her for a loop and she struggled to understand. It was not like a tongue that belonged to a foreign race, but more of a unique dialect strict to themselves. Luckily for Mazerine, their hostess was polite to respond in a tongue she was more common with. Unfortunately, though, was how Douken responded.

"Thank you for having us," he responded in the same tongue, catching out of the corner of his eye Mazerine's jaw drop to the floor, shock and confusion written all over her face. "Can we start with two house blends along with two house specials? … Extra messy." There was no delay in the way he spoke. No struggle for words. To him, it was as natural of a tongue as he spoke with Mazerine with.

The hostess smiled a bit as she wrote it all down, pausing a bit when hearing the "extra messy" part before the smile got bigger, noting in her head that at least one of them were not strangers to the shop. "Any sweeteners for the drinks?"

Douken looked at Maz for a moment before replying, "On the side, just in case." There was one final nod before the hostess headed to the back, shouting out the order as soon as she hit the door. It was at that time Douken looked back at her, almost a bit of a skeptic look in her eyes. "What?" was his only response. During the time things got ready, Douken answered any questions she had for him.

It was a moment later when she came back, placing two mugs of black coffee in front of them before placing a jar of sugar between the two and another before the pair had gotten their meals: two large sandwiches with thin cuts of beefsteak layered in between with mixed in green peppers and onions and a white sauce layered on top next to a bed of fries with a bit of the same sauce on them and a fork stuck in one of them. "Trust me, these fries will not need anything else," he chuckled before picking up his sandwich and taking a bite. Just as good as I remembered it, echoed in his mind as a bit of the sandwich filling rained down on the fries.

Author: Mazerine, Posted: Fri Apr 6, 2018 9:38 AM, Post Subject: Research on Life and Death [P, R]

A small amount of worry had fluttered through Mazerine’s system as their surroundings began to dull and fade - was the maze disappearing? Were they going to disappear along with it? The reflections were growing more dull with each passing moment, but Douken didn’t seem to be worried - instead, he laid a comforting hand on Mazerine’s back. She gave him a rather uncertain smile, though some of the worry that she felt did fade as she saw that he did not seem to be too worried. It was then that he called out for the fae they had hire to be in their service.

She followed Douken through the gate, and their surroundings faded - it was in that moment she realized that they were now in Parvpora, in the port of Iria to be particularly precise. A momentary feeling of excitement washed over her as she realized where they were - but she held it in as Jesdiin addressed them and presented them with a key, which she reached out timidly to accept. “Thank you so much, that was kind of you to have that prepared for us,” Mazerine said to Jesdiin, giving her a gracious smile. Of course, she didn’t say anything about the cost of the room, as money had never really been an object for Mazerine - though the thought now did cross her mind that perhaps it might be time to check her balances, as she had been spending an awful lot as of late.

She snapped herself back to present just as a foul voice cut off the fae. Her body tensed as she saw the voice’s origin - of course, she had known it was that awful duke right away, but seeing him solidified it. When he froze and held his head however, Mazerine tilted her head in slight confusion, turning to Jesdiin for some sort of explanation as the volatile duke stormed off from them. “Oh,” she said, in understanding as Jesdiin explained to them what sort of curse had been set upon him. She listened to the exchange between Douken and Jesdiin before Jesdiin took her leave, and she bid her farewell.

When the pair finally found themselves alone, Mazerine turned to Douken. She beamed for a moment as he welcomed her to Parvpora for the first time. “I kind of assumed that’s where we were,” she said with a grin. “But it’s rather exciting, isn’t it? I mean, for me at least…” She trailed off for a moment, her eyes taking in their surroundings before falling back onto Douken.

“Yeah, that sounds good,” she said, and she found herself blushing much like Douken, her smile stretching even wider. “You know me - I love my tourism stuff,” she said, giving him a wink. With that, the pair made their way away from the airship port and into the city of Iria. A glance to the east and she could see the Mage’s Academy, and it was no less impressive than any stories had led her to believe. “I’m not going to lie, I’m quite hungry,” she said off handedly as they made their way into the city. “What do you say we find something to eat?” she asked. When Douken agreed, the pair continued in search of some food, still hand in hand.

Mazerine took a moment to think to herself. Here she was, in Parvpora, in Iria of all places, her fingers intertwined with those of a man she had hired by chance in a tavern. After all the pair had been through, here they were, together in search of more answers. Those answers, however, could wait until the next day - Mazerine’s stomach was growling and food was the first thought on her mind.

Shortly after they entered the city proper, Mazerine guided them toward a kafic, having smelled the sweet scent of pastries and some sort of strongly brewed beverage - she thought maybe she had heard someone refer to it as coffee before? Regardless, the pair made their way inside the building. They found a table, and after they had taken their seats, a young woman walked over to them, speaking in a foreign tongue but with a rather pleasant expression on her face. ”Good day, my friends. Welcome. Can I get you something to drink, something to eat, or perhaps a bit of both? We have much to choose from.”

Mazerine stared at her rather blankly. Her face turned a bit red and she turned to Douken. “I don’t know what she said,” she whispered, but it was still loud enough for the girl to hear her. She wasn’t attempting to be rude - she really couldn’t understand her. “Um,” she said, turning back towards the girl.

“Oh, it is alright miss!” said the girl, now speaking in the common tongue that Mazerine had grown so used to in Adeluna. “We get many foreign folk in here - I speak many languages,” she said, smiling at her still. “Welcome to our kafic. Can I bring you something to drink or something to eat? I can bring both, if you would like,” she said. She laid a bit of parchment on the table with a list of things they could order - but of course, it was written in a language that Mazerine did not understand. She pushed it towards Douken.

“You pick.”

Author: Douken, Posted: Wed Apr 4, 2018 7:14 AM, Post Subject: Research on Life and Death [P, R]

The more Douken and Mazerine tried to solve the puzzles before them, the more pieces were revealed to each other. They were small ones, but they were still pieces they could talk to each other later. Unfortunately, as they moved to finish one of the doors, the images that flooded them of their past faded away, leaving them within just the mirrors before they, too, lost their luster, with their reflections looking much duller, leaving the pair in a state of confusion before a gate appeared before them. It did not take long for the pair to head through to find themselves back in the room of the four cores, though they themselves had lost color as well, wisps of smoke and mist leaking out of them as they slowly dissolved. It seemed they had failed to have finish their travels through the mazes.

Still, Douken had a relaxed smile and rubbed Mazerine's back, possibly as one last act of comfort from what she saw in the reflections before the two gathered their things before they called out, "Jasdiin!" leaving them in a moment of silent before a gate opened above them and a head popped out upside down, revealing the fae maid from the Acteon whose services they had hired for the moment. "We are ready to finally reach our destination." With a nod, the head popped back into the gate before a bigger one opened before them. Once they step through, the natural greenary went away as, in a few steps, they walked over the ocean and into the airship port of Iria.

"Welcome back," Jesdiin told the pair, giving a bow upon their arrival before holding something out to them: a key. "While you two were away, I returned and took a bit more silver to afford a room for you two. It is only for a single night, but I am sure you two can take care of your selves from now on. You are also free to downgrade if the room's value is too much to upkeep. Now then, thank you for using my ser–"

"YOU!" seemed to have flooded the room as a man who looked like he never knew how to put on a shirt the right way came up to them. "Did you come here to mock me? ME?! Duke Tridere Karma!" However, the moment his fingers curled into a fist, the man's eyes widened  as he froze before holding his head. There was one last stare at the two before he stormed off. With a mere look at the fae, she knew what was on their minds and replied before words left their lips.

"That would be his punishment for his acts upon the two of you. Since he felt that his class gave him too much free realm to be a complete dirtbag, our ki–aptain figured the best punishment for them would be to strip it away. And no, we have not contacted his family about it. Instead, he stripped him of any symbols of house from him, fogged up his memory of what it looks like, and cursed him so that anyone who tried to remind him of who he is from his house will forget he had ever existed, and those who know him as house secondly, only that connection stays. As a final nail, we felt it right that any thoughts of violence towards anyone would result in a loss of memory to those who live in said house, meaning if he keeps it up and is fit enough to regain his title, he could have easily forgotten everyone he knew."

"Wow… talk about savage," Douken muttered, which left a smile on Jasdiin's face.

"If we were savage, we would have destroyed the entire house and not the single member. Now, once again, thank you so much for joining us upon our kingdom airship, the Acteon. We would love to see you visit again soon." With one final bow, she walked off, back to where her airship and family resigned, leaving the two of them alone.

"Well then, I guess now I can finally tell you 'Welcome to the land of Parvpora,' huh? At the current time, I  can set up a meet with the professor, but there's a good chance that most everyone at the College has already turned in, so why don't we go ahead and take the rest of the day to ourselves?" As he said this, his hand swayed  over to Mazerine's, fingers wrapping themselves around hers as Douken blushed a bit, though the smile not fading. "Get a bit of tourist time in before we go to business."