The light ash drifted down onto Ulmiyda's eagerly awaiting palm. She looks to her retainer with an overjoyous expression for such a mundane experience.
"Cervayhn! Feel it, it's like snow but warm!" The young girl exclaims to her retainer as she pulls on the older dark elf's sleeve.

The exhausted man glances down to the young girl with a concerned expression. While he was glad to see she was enjoying her trip to Charon's dark dreary corner, the girl was acting rather blase considering she was an outsider. "What did I tell you before? Keep the talking to a minimum when outside. Breathing in that stuff is bad for you, especially since it's your first time here. Pull your mask back up."

"Fine, fine" She replies as she pulls her mask back over her nose.
Undeterred by her retainer concerns, she continues to walk down the city street with an enthusiastic spring in her step, utterly uncaring of the fact she was in Charon's most dangerous city. She peers through the windows of every building they pass, whether it be a business or otherwise, often eliciting glares from the residents within. Despite the unfriendly locals, the young girl can't help but smile. This place was actually warm and unlike Zeinav, it wasn't a gritty wasteland.

Suddenly the girl stops in her tracks as she spots something through an ash stained shop window, a large egg decorated with a flame pattern. "Cervayhn, we're going in here." she yells, dashing into the shop before her retainer has a chance to protest her decision.

The young girl immediately runs to the wooden counter, surprising the elderly female fellblood behind it. "Fire egg. How much?" she asks, staring at the woman with an unflinching stare. Cervayhn enters the establishment as the woman takes a moment to process the girl's request. He looks around the store, noting the wide variety of products strewn about with no commonality or reason. The business probably dealt in pawning and fencing if he had to guess, meaning that this egg was likely acquired through unscrupulous means.
"Hold on, what exactly is in that egg?" He asks before the woman can respond to Ulmiyda.

The woman glances back and forth between the strange pair of foreigners before addressing Cervayhn's concern. "Um… I don't know exactly. A friend gave it to me with no details. I have no way of caring for the thing, whatever it is. So I put it up for sale."

Before Cervayhn has a chance to turn Ulmiyda away, the young girl places a satchel full of solars atop the counter with a hefty plop. "How much?" She repeats, paying their conversation no mind.
"5 solars" the fellblood says with a hint of caution.
The young girl quickly snatches the solars from her satchel before shoving them across the counter. She snatches the large egg, spinning it around as she inspects the flame-like pattern like an artist observing a sculpture. Cervayhn thanks the business owner before ushering his young master out the door with an exhausted sigh.

As the pair leaves, one of the inner doors of the shop slowly creeps open. A pair of eyes glow through the darkness, staring towards the shopkeeper. “What do you think?” a grisly voice asks from the shadows. “Seems like an easy mark to me. Just got to nab her when her babysitter is distracted. Did you see the amount of solars she had? You’d better compensate me well for luring in such a valuable prize.” The fellblood shopkeeper replies with a smirk.

Outside the shop, Cervayhn pulls Ulmiyda aside into a dark, but empty, alley. "What do you think you're doing? Darkveil is dangerous enough for outsiders and yet here you are flaunting your wealth."
The young girl looks up from her trance for a brief moment, addressing her retainer's reprimanding with a dreary frown. "Well that's why you are here isn't it? To protect me?"
A groan of frustration escapes the older dark elf's lips as he holds his face in his palm. "It is but I would appreciate it if you didn't make my job harder than it needs to be. It's not like Darkveil is some tourist city, I'm taking a big risk bringing you out here without your parents permission, the least you can do is listen to me for once."
The young girl breaks her enthrallment with her ovoid treasure as tucks it into her coat with a sigh. "Okay, no more interruptions I promise. Let's get to the inn, I’m getting sleepy.” She holds out her hand in a gesture of agreement. With a sigh of his own, Cervayhn takes the young girl’s hand and leads her through the maze of alleyways and streets.

After quite some time, the pair finally arrive at their destination, The Midnight Mare. While not as fanciful or well known as the Den, the establishment’s smaller size meant they were less likely to draw attention. Cervayhn’s former profession as an intelligence officer had earned him connections with some of the regulars here, including the bartender Meric Devrim. Although they were on opposing sides, the two of them had bonded previously over their shared military service, both of them recognizing the virtues the other held. Buying a couple nights in one of the tavern's spare rooms was quite easy when you made for good company.

Ulmiyda grabs the tavern’s doorknob eager to get some rest, only to run into some unlikely company.

---

Bringing:

Cervayhn Halist (Warlord NPC)

    Sometimes, there is more to a visit to the lava world than needing to do business. While I often appear here to help with minor issues or work some needed jobs under my aliases, today I came here as Keyke, a fun little trip after work. On the other hand, Nit is adamant about leaving, saying things about this place not being suitable for anyone, much less me in my younger form. Like the worried wort that he is, he starts listing ideas about what could happen, "Robbery, murder, assault, kidnapping, or even torture in public! We can take a break back in Dragon's Cradle; the trip isn't that long-"

    Needless to say, his argument was silenced as some newcomers entered the tavern. Well, newcomers to the area, old friends of ours for some time. At the sight of Ulm and Cervayhn, I released the giggle I had been holding from Nit's monologue of why we should be going. I wave my hand and call out to them, "Ulm! Cervayhn! Hi there!" I hop up, leaving my parasol next to my seat. It was evident that I upgraded my outfit recently, as I had a bonnet partially covering my face and the backpack carrying my doll. I quickly run to her before skidding to a stop before her, "How are you?"

    All while this is happening, a little blue pixie is sitting on the table with a miniature cup of water in her hands. Her curiosity peeked at the sight of the egg, feeling similar energy from it that her egg had. Anyone can tell as their wings flutter anytime they focus on the egg.

---

Bringing:
Nitin Ashwood (Earth Domain Apprentice)
Rosemary (Water Pixie)

SPOILER: Click to show

Quest Name: Fuel for the rebirth!
Participants: Two or more
Location: Anywhere in Charon
Post Requirements: 6 post per person, 200 words per post
Reward: +1 Renown, +1 Mystical Archive Ticket
Description: Random citizens have been going missing, kidnapped by mysterious cultists. We believe they are being taken to Mount Drakolt for some sort of ritual. You have become entangled in one of these kidnappings. You can go about doing this a multitude of ways such as having one PC be kidnapped while the other mounts a rescue, or both PCs could witness a citizen getting kidnapped. Whether or not you succeed or fail in rescuing the kidnapped PC or civilian is up to you and your writing partners.

Ulmiyda’s first steps into the tavern offered her more surprises than she was expecting. She is at first taken aback by the atmosphere of the establishment before completely shifting into excitement as she hears a familiar voice call out her name. She quickly hands Cervayhn her egg before dashing across the tavern floor, not showing any concern to watchful eyes of the tavern’s patrons and almost tackling her friend to the ground as she embraces her in a hug. Panic is added to her mix of emotions as she quickly readjusts both herself and Keyke. “AHH, I’m sorry Keyke, I got too excited. I’m doing well, I’ve got a big sister now and a wagon after our race! Still looking for a mount that’s fast enough for it. How are you doing? I like your hat and your parasol, they really complete your look!” She leans back slightly from her hug to look over to Nit, who seems even more worried by her presence, causing the young to smile even more. “Hi Nit!” she calls out.

As the two girls greet each other, Cervayhn breathes a heavy sigh as he gives the nervous Nit a nod. His eyes scan the room spotting numerous dark figures watching his young master. He shoots a glare at each of them, causing their lingering eyes to quickly flee as he crosses the room. He gives Keyke a small wave with his free hand before gesturing to a table towards the back of the establishment. “We should move somewhere a bit more private, you two are interrupting your fellow customers’ quiet evening.”

His eyes suddenly catch the small pixie atop Keyke’s table; he’d been so focused on the other patrons in the room that a being this small had gone unnoticed. He traces its gaze back to the egg sitting in his hand. He taps Ulmiyda on the shoulder, drawing her attention towards the pixie as he addresses Keyke. “It seems your little table guest has taken an interest in Ulmiyda’s souvenir. Any idea what’s inside it?”

   The rammed hug was fun; if anything, it was hilarious to see the face of Nit at her tackle. Luckily, I retain much of my regular strength in a child form, but boy, is it fun to act like a child with child strength. With the tackle, I released a bit of my balance to cause worry and spun around a bit, giving more momentum that needed readjustments for standing. Throughout this, I giggle, knowing that this will only worry Nit more about safety. One glance at him while the hug finished only confirmed that, yes, he was worried even more. It sucks to be him; he's more like a mom watching me now.

   I wave my hands at the excited apologies to cut off its need. "No need to apologize, though it sounds like you had so much fun!" I gasp at the news of her getting an older sister, "That's so cool to get a sibling with your choice! I have too many in my old family and don't have many good experiences with siblings." I glance at Nit; his gaze of worry has turned to a mixture of longing and slight anger, "Nit's doesn't count." A sense of relief seemed to rush him at those words, though the remainder of his twin sparked many conflicting emotions.

   With Cervayhn redirecting us to the table, I could also see Rosemary's interest in the egg... I looked at her and held up my hand, beckoning her. She placed down her cup and quickly flew to us, flying close to the egg. She looks up at the group that she doesn't know and confidently asks, "Where did you get this?"

Ulmiyda's expression is one of excited confusion as Keyke describes her siblings. Growing up an only child, the young girl had trouble comprehending the idea of too many siblings. The crippling isolation she felt during her seclusion had caused her to greatly value any sort of companionship, especially those willing to put up with her less than normal interests. She continues her excited rambling, leaving Keyke's words in the back of her head to process later. “Yeah her name is Cirice, she knows a lot about magic! Well not so much my favorite type of magic but she showed me a book about it! She has this big library in her wagon with all sorts of stuff inside, even a book golem which I thought was going to murder me!”

The new voice caught her by surprise. In her overactive excitement, Ulmiyda had failed to notice the little blue pixie atop Keyke's table nor her gesture. She glances back and forth between the egg cradled in Cervayhn's hand and fae eagerly observing it, before looking back to Keyke. “Um… who is this? Some friend of yours?”

Cervayhn leads the group to a dimly lit table in the far corner, out of earshot of the remaining bar patrons. He sits down with a groan and places the egg atop the round table, allowing the pixie to examine the egg. The older dark elf’s expression was far less excited than his young master, clearly being more versed with this manner of rare creature. “Ulmiyda saw it in a shop window as we passed through town. Of course she had to have it due to the design on it. No doubt she paid far more than what it is actually worth. She didn’t even check if the flames were just painted on; they are not, but I wish she would exercise more caution with her spending habits. Maybe her adopted sister’s bad habits are rubbing off on her. So what’s in it? Some manner of drake?”

   At the name Circe, my mind supplied a multitude of information, but a prominent thought was the lavender Cult-aid we made. I could feel the energy of excitement rush through my body, so much that I couldn't control my reaction as my face brightened even more and my feet started to quickly, almost tap dance. I drew the attention of Nit and Rose for a moment, as me acting like a child was nothing new, but going this far was. I did not care; I gave a little hope as I started talking. "Cirice! I know her! We are good friends! She is really knowledgeable about a lot of things!" I pause for a moment as I think of something, "I still need to give her my book of beverage recipes..." I shake my head, "Anyways, yes! That's Rosemary, my new pixie friend! She's really good with water magic!"

   Nit welcomes the graceful movement to the table, Rose mainly focuses on the egg. She touches it and tapes at the shell, trying to confirm her idea of what was in there. Looking up, she glances around before turning to Cervayhn. "It's one of my people." She glances over at the conversation when she hears the tapping feet of me, before continuing. "Just like I was, there is a fae pixie in this egg." Glancing at the design, she makes eye contact to Nit, "It's not a fire type, we all have opposing designs to what we connect to. This is a Earth Pixie!" Nit glanced down at the egg, remembering how I brought an ice egg home and out came Rose, "That, tracks really well, actually." He glances over at Cervayhn, "Rose here can coat a person with a water aura. There is a high chance whose inside could do something similar."

Ulmiyda does her best to hide her discomfort as Keyke mentions Rosemary's aptitude with water magic. She greets the diminutive creature with a nervous smile. "It's nice to meet you Rosemary, I'm Ulmiyda, Ulmiyda Flameborne, I have met a couple of people adept in water magic before. Hopefully we can be friends."

The pixie seems far too focused on the large egg to notice the young dark elf's introduction. Ulmiyda's dismay only grows as the pixie addresses Cervayhn, revealing the egg's contents to be not of a dragon, but rather a pixie. She mulls over her options as the bartender brings them some drinks; sure, a pixie may be small but at least she will have a kindred spirit in regard to her obsession.

The girl's heart only sinks further as the pixie excitedly dashes her final hopes. She looks rapidly around the table with a distraught expression, hoping someone will offer her some recompense for the cruel joke that has been played upon her. "WHAT. What do you mean it's an Earth pixie? This is some major false advertising. Someone needs to be in jail for this! I demand a refund!"

In a rare break of character, Cervayhn erupts into laughter at his young master's dismay. He throws a quick smile to the rest of the tavern as he holds up his glass, a vain attempt at showing solidarity with the local patrons, before looking down to his anguishing master.
"It's your own fault for making such an impulsive purchase. Somehow, I doubt the shopkeeper will offer us a refund. Look on the bright side, at least this gives you some diversity in terms of magical abilities." The older dark elf replies as he does his best to stifle his laughter.
He holds a smirk as he looks at Nit. “So it will allow some manner of earth coating. That may be useful both offensively and defensively, she will just need to wrap her inane little mind around using some other form of magic.”

Ulmiyda looks to her retainer with an exceptionally annoyed grimace.

   I shake my head at the quick reply to the the anger over the pixie being earth, I give her a smile, "Hey, if it says anything, Rose's egg had stuff for ice sprawled across it, then out came a water pixie." I give the patrons a wave before turning back to the situation, "At least there are some things earth can help with." I tap my chin as I think of ways earth helps with fire, "One way can be to open room so it can spread, another could have you get fire elemental out of the way for your own fire to burn," I gasp as a thought comes to me. I quickly clap my hands at the thought, "Oh! Oh! It can also be used for a special ability!" I lean forward and whisper very softly in her ear, "Keeping Cerv away without harming him."

   Nit followed my lead with lifting his hands to the others as he spoke to Cerv, "Sounds like an interesting problem on your hands," he lets out a chuckle, "My own little lady has the problem of endless curiosity." He glances over to my fan girling over magic ideas to help my friend's preferences as he continues; "Endless study of all magic and tactics has made her so creative I can never understand any of her thought processes till she thoroughly explains it all." Rose nods her head in agreement, "Yeah, she's in her own world up there."

Keyke’s suggestions do little to comfort Ulmiyda's soured mood and the last remark particularly didn’t fit her current set of emotions. While she makes a mental note of the groups’ tactical input, It is clear to all of them that Cervayhn’s laughter did not sit well with his young master. On the verge of tears, she turns to face her retainer. “You are supposed to be on my side and yet you laugh at my misfortune! I don't want any more of your lectures!”

With her grievances voiced, Ulmiyda snatches up the egg and storms away from the table in a fit, leaving Cervayhn stunned as she heads up the staircase to the tavern’s guest rooms. The older dark elf looks downward, wondering if his gesture of catharsis went a bit too far for the girl. He looks up to Keyke with apologetic eyes, hoping she would offer some aid after his screw up. “Keyke, can you stay in Ulmiyda’s room tonight? She needs some time to cool off and I doubt my presence will help. I’ll stay with Nit if you don't mind.”

With a sigh, the weary retainer rises to his feet. “She needs a friend during times like these, someone to help take her mind off her disappointment.” The regret is visible on his face as he faces away from the table. “I’ll be retiring for the night, alert me if anything goes wrong… Sorry to lay this burden upon you.”

    I purse my lips as I ponder, if you can't help, how can I? I mean, I get disappointment, but after so much in my early years, I have grow to roll with the punches! How can I truly saw I empathize or properly react to this? I look up and give a nod, letting my smile shine, "Don't worry, I'm sure we're gonna have fun." I rock onto my heels before doing a little spin then chase after Ulm. Hopefully I can figure something out to cheer her up, maybe try and learn a bit of fire magic from her would do it? Even if she's not a good teach, I should be able to to replicate after a bit. I let my grin turn to a more genuine smile as I think of getting a new spell, to learn and see!

    With an airy huff, Nit turns to a grin as he glances at the egg. "How much you wanna bet that something is going to get destroyed?" His fingers tap in a waltz like pattern, Rosemary quickly shook her head with a giggle, "I'm not betting against that, but I will bet when or how much!" Her wings pick her up to come face to face height of Nit. As if picking of her own energy, blue little sparkles beginning to circle around her. Nit glances over at Cervayhn and reaches out his hand, "Say, what do you think? When or what will you guess? Or would you rather say something else without the..." he glances over at Rose, "them in the room?"