Ravyn Pain - Age: 96
Silver Pain - Age: 91
Athi
Maria
Xara
Mimi
Waul
Xhara
Alberto - Age: 124
Yito

Cw:Mention and hint on sexual herassemt

An alarm clock rings in the background before Ravyn grabs it and throws it against the wall, clearly annoyed at being woken up.

Ravyn: By Nexus, why must I always rise so early?

She stretches her arms and body until she feels a bit more awake, then slowly walks to the bathroom and begins washing her face. She looks into the mirror.

Ravyn: I look absolutely dreadful...

She finishes cleaning up and gets dressed, grabs her Illionis Eye, attaches it to the strap of her bag, and opens the door to head to the main room of the adventure guild to see if anything new is happening.

Ahti, Silver, Maria, Xara, Mimi, Waul, Xhara, Alberto, and Yito are already in the main room. Silver is reading a book. Ravyn enters the room, and Silver notices her.

Silver: Good morning, dear sister. I hope you slept well.

Ravyn gives Silver a sharp glare.

Silver: Alright, your face says it all. You were woken up too early for your liking.

Ravyn: Precisely. I am not a morning person.

Maria: Yes, we are quite aware. But remember our arrangement. It is the only reason you are not imprisoned or worse. The queen rather... wants you dead, Ravyn.

Ravyn: Yes, well, sometimes I find myself wishing that would simply happen.

Silver: Please do not say that. I am truly grateful to have you with us.

Maria: On a brighter note, today we are going to explore a ruin that has caught the attention of the adventure guild.

Ravyn: May I ask where these ruins are located?

Maria: Near the Aliminc Region.

Ravyn: The Vampiere Kingdom...

She frowns deeply at the mention.

Xara: Ravyn...

Ravyn: As long as we do not encounter the queen or the king.

Her voice turns harsh at the final word.

Mimi: We will leave in one hour, so everyone prepare your belongings.

Everyone begins packing drinks and food, as the journey will be a long one. After one hour, they are ready and head to the nearest train station, as the train is the fastest route.

Conductor: Your tickets, please.

They all show their tickets and are allowed onto the train. Everyone takes their seats, which are grouped closely together.

Xara: So what do we know about these ruins?

Ahti: From the information we received, they are magical in nature. Previously, no one was able to explore them deeply due to some unknown force, but it appears whatever barrier existed has now dissipated.

Ravyn reads a magic spell book in silence.

Yito: Ravyn, why do you dislike visiting the Vampiere Kingdom?

Ravyn: Because there are people there I would rather not meet... and the king wishes me dead.

Waul: Why would the king want that?

Ravyn: That is none of your concern.

She does not look up from her book.

The conversation quiets before eventually returning to casual chatter. Everyone takes a nap on the train until they arrive in the Vampiere Kingdom eight hours later and depart the train.

Meli: Nexus, it is hot here.

Ravyn: Why are you surprised? This is the desert.

Meli: No need to raise your voice, Ravyn. You are in a mood today.

Ravyn: I am always in a mood.

They begin walking toward the ruins and eventually enter a forest.

Mimi: I am surprised there is even a forest in this desert.

Silver: The Vampieres have taken great care to preserve it. It seems the local nature and wildlife have adapted to the heat.

They venture deeper into the forest.

Waul: Oh wow. There it is.

A large ruin with a waterfall and a crumbled building appears in view.

Silver: We should split up. It will be faster if we cover more ground.

Ahti enters a side section of the ruins where she finds rooms that resemble destroyed bedrooms and living spaces. She discovers numerous papers.

Ahti: Hmm... These look interesting. I will take them with me. Perhaps we can translate them later.

Maria explores a library.

Maria: That is a lot of old books.

She carefully flips through several volumes, then returns to the water's edge to cool off.

Xara, Silver, and Waul examine the exterior, copying writing they find on the walls.

Ravyn ventures into the heart of the ruins, unfortunately accompanied by Alberto, whom she dislikes. She lights her torch with a fire spell and begins recording the inscriptions on the wall.

Ravyn: There is an abundance of writing here... but it is in a language I do not recognize.

Alberto: I do not know it either.

Alberto stands uncomfortably close, making Ravyn feel uneasy. When he tries to touch her inappropriately, she chooses to go deeper into the ruins to avoid him.

Ravyn: Hmmm...

She copies more text from the walls. Suddenly, she hears something beside her and turns to find a spear aimed at her neck.

Unknown Figure: Leave.

Alberto is already in another part of the ruins, having retreated when he failed to get what he wanted.

Ravyn: Calm yourself. We are merely explorers.

Unknown Figure: You are not welcome here.

Ravyn: Who are you, and what is this place?

Unknown Figure: I am the guardian of this place. I cannot allow you to proceed.

Ravyn: What is this place, exactly? I give you my word I will not speak of it to anyone.

The figure considers her words and appears to converse with someone in an unfamiliar language.

Unknown Figure: Very well. These ruins house the core of magic itself. That is why I cannot allow you to enter further.

Ravyn: That is understandable. You may accompany me. I only wish to finish copying the writings on the walls.

Unknown Figure: ...Fine.

Ravyn continues until she finishes her transcription.

Ravyn: I shall take my leave now.

Unknown Figure: Good.

Ravyn returns to the entrance and reunites with the others.

Ravyn: I have returned.

Xara is occupied with a desert cat that refuses to leave her alone, so she picks it up.

Maria: Did you find anything?

Ravyn: Many inscriptions in an unfamiliar language. Nothing else of note.

Ahti: I found documents and writings in the same language. I have them here.

Xara: We discovered more script as well.

Ravyn looks back toward the unknown figure and gives a discreet nod.

Ravyn: We should depart. I sense we are not alone, and I do not believe the one here wants us to linger.

Silver: Are you certain?

Ravyn: Yes. I have an unpleasant feeling about this place.

Mimi: We gathered quite a bit of information. We can head back or perhaps stay in a hotel and return tomorrow.

They begin to leave the ruins, and Ravyn rereads her notes.

Silver: May I take a look? Perhaps I can make some sense of it.

Ravyn: Certainly.

Silver examines Ravyn's notes carefully.

Silver: Hmm... I feel like I saw this language earlier today, but I cannot quite place it.

Ravyn: I will attempt to translate it, though working with a language I do not know will take time.

Silver: I have confidence in you. You are incredibly clever.

Ravyn: We shall see. I will do my best.

END