Dam'atia locks the front door of the shop, closing up for the moment. She looks over her shoulder at the box as Haaru comes from the back rooms with the witch, "I will see what I can figure out... for a discount on rent for that room."

"Of course, this is important, children are being taken, and we need to know how... if we can reverse it somehow," Haaru looks a bit weary, having been filled in on what was going on when they brought the box back to shop, "Has Galora been informed yet?"

"Enna went to inform her, she may be on her way back here by now" Dam'taia nods moving over to the group looking around at the faces there.

The witch raises her hands and begins muttering words of an ancient language, the ips of her fingers begin to glow, as the air feels tight the closer to the box one stands. Smoky green tendrils extend out from the woman and encase the box, searching for secret not visible to the eye, "A teleportation of sorts, with an age limiter on it it seems. Only children and teens can go through, possibly to keep adults from prying too much."

"Can you tell where it leads?"

"No, I cannot, there is a connection, but it is a distance away, and I cannot pinpoint it's location, apologies."

A few moments tick by as we stare at the box, "..." Haaru opens his mouth to say something as the front door is knocked open by Galora coming inside in a furious rage.

"Where is she!? Where's my daughter?!" the woman storms up to the group glaring at each person in turn, her sight seems to bore into Haaru the most as they take a step back, "You," she gestures collectively to the group, "WILL find her! Whatever it takes, I will not have more children going missing from my streets!"

"Galora, all we know right now is that this box teleports the children away and-" Haaru is cut off as Galora pushes up to the box intent on stepping into it, but nothing happens to her.

"WHY!?" she rounds on Haaru grabbing the young lass's shirt to pull them closer, poor Haaru... they don't deserve this...

"Galora" Dam'atia steps up putting a hand on Galora's arm, as Enna seems to have the same idea touching the woman's other arm. Dam'atia smiles at Enna, "The box has an age limit on it, and none of us are children. We can't go through, and we can't risk picking a random child to go through either, we know not what's on the other side"

"This one is a child though..." Galora glares at Haaru, "aren't you... pretending to be more than you are"

"I am not a child" Haaru glares back at the woman and they fall into a tense stare off neither willing to budge for long moments as the rest stare on, not willing to interrupt the standoff, "fine, move... I'll show you that I'm not a child" Haaru shoves at Galora, but the woman doesn't move right off, she stares, her expression softening for a moment before she steps away to allow Haaru to stand in the box, "See..." one foot goes into the box their eye locking as he brings his other foot up, "I'm not a ch-"

"Haaru!" Enna yells out reaching for the young kayal, as he vanishes from view. She starts frantically patting around the bottom of the box and tries to stand in it herself.

The darkness is thick and suffocating, but only for a moment, before Daebru feels himself falling. A quick drop onto a stone floor, "uugh..." he sits up looking around the small space, his eyes quickly adjusting to the darkness surrounding him.

"A-are you okay?" a soft voice comes to him and he turns to see a young girl, dressed in fancy clothing, her had dark and thin falling about her shoulders, eyes a soft yet piercing shade of green, "I'm Cilandria Cromwell, and you are?" she holds out a hand to him.

"Cromwell... Galora's daughter?" she nods with a slight smile, "I'm Haaru," he takes her hand to give a dainty shake, noticing that she is trembling slightly, "Has anyone been by yet?" she shakes her head, "try to stay back away from the bars then, perhaps if you stay in the shadows they won't bother you."

He stands up dusting off his legs, more out of habit than necessity, as the jail like room is actually really clean, though lacking in beds, it instead has a pile of hay more like it's made to hold animals than people. Sound from the hall just outside the bars can be heard, a slithering type of sound and soft foot falls. He starts to ready a spell as he gets closer to the bars, but something doesn't feel right. He looks down at his hands in confusion as the spell fizzles before he can finish it, as if something or someone is stopping his magic. He reaches into his bag, to find nothing but an empty bag, "Hello there" a woman peeks around looking into the cell, "it's so nice to have fresh meat for my tests! Welcome to my lab!" she says with a crazed sort of smile.

Haaru steps back and the woman lets out a sort of maniacal laugh that borders on a giggle, "What do you want with us?"

"In due time, little one, in due time," She steps away her heels clicking a bit on the stone as she walks away.

A serpent like being steps, nay slithers into view, placing two food trays on the floor and sliding them through the small gap that seems to be intended for the food to pass through, "Eatsss" he speaks out his word slurring into a hiss at the end, "Keep strength, trials hard."

"What trials?" Haaru steps up grabbing hold of the bars in a pleading manner, "What's she going to do to us?"

"You ssee, later... eatsss now" and he turns away with a hissing laughter.

Daebru turns to Cilandria with a soft sigh, "I guess we eat"

Dam'atia continues to stare at the box, words from around her muted to her ears as her mind races for ways to reverse what just happened, "Dam'atia!" Alinor shakes her shoulder hard, "We're going to the scrying pool, we're going to find them" Dam'atia give a slow nod, "Do you... want to stay here, work with Aria?" he turns questioningly to the witch, who nods yes to the name, "Stay with Aria and try to figure out more about the box"

"That sounds reasonable," Dam'atia nods and looks over to Aria, "Thank you, for helping with this."

"I'm coming with you to this, scrying pool" Galora comments, arms folding over her chest, no one argues.

Alinor, Galora, Enna, and Gorthan head off, going through the basement to get into the sewer system below the city. Dam'atia had been to the pool previously with Alinor and Gorthan, they had found it in an underground temple, that met with the sewer systems beneath the city. It was the place where Alinor had gotten his sword, some ancient magic was on the place that only his bloodline could gain access to, though it appeared as if many had tried before to gain entry.

Dam'atia set off to her lab, but Aria stopped her, "There will not be anything more to gain from this item. As much as I wish there was, so that you could find the children, it is simply not in the cards, and I'm afraid too much tampering would cause... issues with the spell."

"So, I stayed behind for no reason then? Stayed behind to what? keep you company?" She seems frustrated and sighs when the woman steps to the side and points at the office, "No... I do not need to speak to him"

"You do, and he needs to know, Haaru is... precious to him."

Dam'atia sighs and nods, making her way to the office door. She pauses before knocking to look back at Aria, but the woman is nowhere to be seen, and she had not heard her move away. She knocks on the door lightly, "Sunriver?"

"C-come in!" the avariel's voice carries through the door.

She opens the door slowly, and peers in at the man hard at work, double and triple checking papers on his desk, "H... Haaru's gone... th-they were trying to prove they were not a child, and that they wouldn't be able to go through this portal, a-and now they're just gone... I..." she looks up, her words cutting off as she see the crestfallen, and horrified look on the man's face, "Sunriver...?"

"H-Haaru's gone?" he starts breathing heavy  putting a hand over his heart, "I didn't... oh gods... Haaru... no... no no no..." The man cover his face with his hands, "w-what happened? w-where did... they go?"

"We're lookin' into it, I'm sorry I don' have more ta tell ya," she hesitates a moment in the doorway before she's moving around the desk and kneeling down beside the man's chair. Sunriver turns to her confused by the action. "It will be alright" she holds out her arms for Sunriver to lean on her. He takes a moment but he does, and then her just, cries. He cries in her arms, glad for the comfort.