01 && FIRST STEPS

[maka albarn]

"Okay. The effects of the Flash should wear off in a second." Lilium took her hand off Stargazers' shoulder and stepped back. They stood in a glade of birches near the Gate, screened from the main road by the encircling foilage. Just two shadows in the deepening gloom under the trees.

Once they had emerged from the hidden trap-door to the tunnels, Lilium had guided Stargazer through side-streets and secluded courtyards, trying to spare him the embarrassment of being seen while she led him around.  Lilium thought back on their silent journey through Hearts City. Even though that deep hood obscured his face, she had sensed Stargazers' uneasiness. His shoulder had felt stiff and hard. Little hesitations, cautious movements: almost indiscernible changes in his behavior (despite all those confident words) showed that he was ill at ease. Why? Was it embarrassment? Was it just the usual discomfort that came from walking in the pitch dark? For the past forty-five minutes, he had been forced to trust her as a guide. Someone he met a handful of times, leading him through a subterranean labyrinth. No wonder he was tense.

A gentle breeze stirred Lilium's hair. After the damp and closeness of the tunnels, being in the open was a relief. Lilium took a deep breath. The air was cool and sweet. Far above her head, she could hear the gentle patter of stirring leaves. She looked at Stargazer. Why hadn't he spoken yet? Some people talk when they're nervous. Maybe he got quiet. Maybe he was angry. Lilium rubbed the hilt of her rapier and shifted her weight. He had said there was somewhere he needed to be. This whole thing may have been an accident, but it had still been time-consuming and uncomfortable. Biting her lip, Lilium thought for a minute. Then, in a quieter tone than usual, she said, "Listen... I want to apologize for dragging you into this. It wasn't my intent for things to become so... complicated. I know you know that, it's just... it's been a massive inconvenience and I'm sorry." She took a breath and continued, "While we were in the city, you said you had somewhere to be. If you're in the middle of a quest... maybe i could help you out in some way to make up for this."

[✖STRIDE✖]

"Okay. The effects of the Flash should wear off in a second."

There really was not much for him to say the moment she slipped her hand off his shoulder. He couldn't lie though, just the fact that she had placed herself behind him and with her hand on his shoulder, rather then placing herself in front of him, caused him to come to some admiration of her though he really would rather not admit that out loud. Technically it was her fault that they were both in the mess in the first place. He'd had everything under control before she had come prancing onto the scene. He was also quite appreciative of the fact that she hadn't asked him a whole bunch of questions or tried to hold a conversation while they were in the tunnels. Maybe she had gotten them into a horrid mess, but she sure knew how to get them both out, and for that he was certainly grateful.

Of course, who would ever see Stargazer Thanking someone or apologizing. No one in this world, certainly not. But still.... He couldn't just..... leave it without being tended to.

The moment they had come out of the hole, it was as if his "vision was full of light." His sixth sense turned once again back on, despite her attempt to keep his vision impaired, and he was able to feel the world around him. A sense of comfort and relief washed over him. However, the leading was not over. No, he now had to pretend as if he still couldn't see. But there was nothing stoping him from relaxing his shoulders if even a little bit.

Once completely outside the gate and the lighting effects supposedly having worn off, He now felt completely and entirely relieved. He even walked over to the nearest tree and collapsed right next to it out of shock. The experience he had just gone through was not one he would likely attempt to imitate.

He was quiet for a long time. Simply because he was trying to calm his racing virtual heart and because he was attempting to enjoy the coolness of the tree's calming shade. He kept alert and his head down like usual, but he needed a moment to rest before he could fully recover. Of course, then she had to go and ask him questions, but he guessed he didn't mind. It was something to take his mind off his helplessness in the dark tunnels.

"Listen... I want to apologize for dragging you into this. It wasn't my intent for things to become so... complicated. I know you know that, it's just... it's been a massive inconvenience and I'm sorry. While we were in the city, you said you had somewhere to be. If you're in the middle of a quest... maybe i could help you out in some way to make up for this."

Her voice was so sincere that Stargazer couldn't stop a small smile from appearing on his hood-hidden lips. There she went again, making life hard for him to ignore. Of course she would offer her services. He'd rather she didn't help him out, but if there was even the slightest possibility he could show her his respect, then maybe it wasn't the worst idea for him to share a little bit about his operation.

He tossed over a large red gem. His wrist so smoothly flicked that it was almost impossible for her to miss. "That's the Dragon's Ruby. One of the ten precious gems that once mounted the King's Lost Crown. It's a new quest that just came out. It's so new that most of BOW haven't even heard about it. Got the information about it from a buddy of mine so I thought I'd check it out, course there are some areas that I haven't been able to breech. This was the first I've been able to actually get my hands on. I know the locations for at least three others, But have yet to find a way to get to them. The Black Daggers found this one though. You have no idea how annoying it was to get my hands on it. Oh yeah, and most of the locations require special tests." 

[maka albarn]

Stargazer tossed something to her. Lilium caught it easily and examined it: a large ruby, probably the biggest gem she had seen in the game. She knit her brows together and looked inquiringly at Stargazer. "That's the Dragon's Ruby. One of the ten precious gems that once mounted the King's Lost Crown..."

"The Dragons' Ruby..." Lilium turned it in her hands. The ruby's design impressed her: every facet was perfectly proportioned, beautiful, almost luminous even in the shadows of the birch trees. Even as she admired the stone, something more remarkable captured her attention. Stargazer described his quest. Offering help had been a sincere gesture, but if he had simply told her to take a hike, it wouldn't have surprised her. He could be a little abrasive under the best circumstances, and their situation didn't exactly fit that description. Maybe he thought he could actually use her help for something. Which would be a good thing. Because if he was going for the Gems, he would need all the help he could get.

"How did the Black Daggers get this? They must be stronger players than I thought. Or better thieves.", Lilium murmured to herself. Then she raised her voice enough to be heard clearly.
"You're on the LC quest? That's ambitious. I'm not sure what you traded to get this from the Daggers, but it must have been pretty valuable... or they're just bigger idiots than I imagined."
Lilium traced the edges of the stone, lost in thought. Stargazer had just shown her some trust and good-will by telling her about the quest he had undertaken. Only fools or new members talked to strangers about their high-level quests, and Stargazer was neither. His respect seemed like a fragile thing, not lightly bestowed and easily broken. Maybe she should avoid giving offense and just wish him luck. She had, however, offered to help him. and, Ace player though he was, it would be a massive waste of time to go after the gems himself. Better to just get her opinion out before she lost her nerve. Gathering her coat-tails in one hand, Lilium settled down on the grass.

"I've heard about the Crown quests: frankly, I'm surprised the Daggers got their hands on this. The Crown quests were designed to test the strength of the best guilds. You're an Ace, and it's impressive that you know where to find three of these gems: my guess is that's more than ninety-nine percent of the players in this game know. I'm not trying to shut you down: this is your business. But i think the best help i can offer you is some advice: if you're going to go after the Gems, you're going to need a team. And they'll have to be of a caliber comparable to your own." Lilium leaned forward and held out the gem. "Like I said: it's your business, not mine." She hesitated. "Actually, there is one service I can offer. Whether you go with a group or not, there's a guy you should meet. He's in the Diamond capital: an architect with substantial knowledge and valuable connections. I can introduce you if you'd like. At the very least he can tell you some of what he knows about the quest."

[✖STRIDE✖]

"How did the Black Daggers get this? They must be stronger players than I thought. Or better thieves."

At her voice the Shadow Elementalist scoffed with amusement. The sad part was, it was his fault that they almost ended up with the ruby. He had manipulated them into getting going into a quest they had no knowledge about and he tricked them into giving it to him later on. Of course, that was when Brights had appeared and had intercepted. He had ended up with the Ruby, but the girl had been taken by them. He hadn't meant to leave her within their clutches over night, but due to the time of night it was he would have gotten into serious trouble if he had been caught on that late. So he had to leave her. 

However, there was absolutely no way he was going to tell miss pretty face here about the manipulation. That would only serve to make him even more notorious in her eyes. No, he just happened to leave that part out and if she wanted to believe that the Black Daggers were much better then they "seemed" to be, then let her. Of course they never would be. Their boss may be big, but he was a bumbling fool and was easily tricked into anger. That was the simple answer. 

"You're on the LC quest? That's ambitious. I'm not sure what you traded to get this from the Daggers, but it must have been pretty valuable... or they're just bigger idiots than I imagined."

"Thats a good question Brights." he said simply. That was basically his answer to everything he didn't know how to respond to or refused to respond to. It made things easier. People couldn't say he was hiding something simply because he didn't know how to answer. 

"I've heard about the Crown quests: frankly, I'm surprised the Daggers got their hands on this. The Crown quests were designed to test the strength of the best guilds. You're an Ace, and it's impressive that you know where to find three of these gems: my guess is that's more than ninety-nine percent of the players in this game know. I'm not trying to shut you down: this is your business. But i think the best help i can offer you is some advice: if you're going to go after the Gems, you're going to need a team. And they'll have to be of a caliber comparable to your own. Like I said: it's your business, not mine."

At that moment she held out the gem to him and he took it casually. He had allowed her to hold it for a reason. He knew she wasn't going to run off with it and for some reason he wanted to draw her in. He would rather do the quest by himself, cause that was how he was used to working, but judging by the places he had been to finding the three that he had found then she was right and he would need a team. He couldn't just keep manipulating stupid guilds. That specific test was a test of physical strength. There were some others, he had no doubt, that there would be tests of intelligence and element. 

"Actually, there is one service I can offer. Whether you go with a group or not, there's a guy you should meet. He's in the Diamond capital: an architect with substantial knowledge and valuable connections. I can introduce you if you'd like. At the very least he can tell you some of what he knows about the quest."

A guy huh? If he knew anything about this specific quest then he had to be of substantial level. If she could find him someone who could give him even more information then he already knew then he would certainly be impressed.

He leaned back against the tree as the gem disappeared from sight. "If you are so sure about this guy that you mentioned. Then if you would contact him and ask him to meet me, I would be ever so grateful to you my dear." His voice was obviously snarky. But there was always some truth to what Stargazer speaks allowed. Whether people caught onto it or not. That was of their own intelligence level.

[maka albarn]

"If you are so sure about this guy that you mentioned. Then if you would contact him and ask him to meet me, I would be ever so grateful to you my dear."

Lilium's eyes narrowed. Whoa. Snark attack. Sure, she had messed up. But taking Stargazers' sarcastic comments after she offered to help irritated her. If she hadn't felt obligated to help, she might have left right then. Yet, despite all that snarkiness, Lilium felt that Stargazer had been truthful. He probably would be grateful if she introduced him to the Architecht. Maybe not "ever so grateful". But grateful nonetheless. Of course, promises of future gratitude didn't make Stargazers' present speeches any less rude. Lilium bit her tounge. Then she said: "Yeah, I'm sure about him." She stood up, brushing the back of her coat with a few brisk strokes. "Let me see if he's online. Either way, I'll send him a message." Standing with one hand on her hip, Lilium called up her user menu and selected the "Friends" hologram. She scrolled through her list until she came to the Js. A single name glowed green.

JADE - ONLINE.

Opening a telepathic link, Lilium hailed her friend. After a moments' silence, she turned to Stargazer. "Alright. He said he'll assemble some possible team-members. We'll meet them in the Diamond capital."