Packing the box into the shopping bag, Jared made his way to the exit as two seemed to enter.
"Is that?" Jared started to smile.
"Ah, little man!"
A fellow with long, straight, red hair with a goth-like style walked toward him. He looked like a bodybuilder with a height of 5' 7. His greatswords jangled as he approached.
"Riley?!" Jared screamed, jumping into Riley's open hands as he lifted him up and twirled.
"What's going on, little guy? Haven't been seeing you around in training camp? You're not forgetting your daily training, right?"
With a swift jab to Riley's arm, another young man named Jovan walked to Riley's side. His silver eyes, glasses, and blue hair fit his skinny and 5'10 tall demeanor. Hooked to his belt were a plain rapier and an orange book with a purple outline that looked to be filled with notes.
Jovan- "Come on, pass him over here."
With a light toss, Jovan caught him, giving Jared the same treatment.
"And you better be reading those books I got from Aizen. It was a lot of work getting him to lend them to me."
Jared's eyes flickered white as he could sense Jovan and Riley's heartbeat.
Jovan gently put Jared down.
"So what brings you here, little warrior," Riley questioned joyfully.
"I researched Pets and wanted to buy one for myself."
…
Riley and Jovan looked at each other with worry and then back at Jared. Jared looked at them puzzled; although concerned, they seemed to hesitate to speak about the topic further. As if taking the bullet, Riley spoke first.
"I'm guessing it's part of one of your family's many studies?"
Still confused, Jared replied, "Not exactly…I just got interested in the topic after… Reading one of Miss Koto's books."
The two looked back at each other, keeping their conversation as quiet as possible.
Jovan- "Well… we can't really tell you not to buy one… interfering with Insight family members' studies in their own nation is a big no-no."
Riley- "I know… but knowing what we know, letting anyone research the topic always leads to bad news. That's how most Millennial Beasts are crafted nowadays. Plus the whole connection with Journalists that it implies when you have one."
"Sure, if it's open for sale here, then it must be legal, no? We're on their turf, so we have to follow their rules. If it's that easy to buy them, then it's their issue to solve. And knowing this family, they might have some information they're hiding regarding the topic."
Jared- "So are you two just going to keep whispering between yourselves, or are you going to say something. "
The two looked at each other one more time before Riley stepped up.
"Just be careful, alright. There are stereotypes around having one going around right now and having one… in other nations marks you as a Journalist. It's just a bad look and can get you into some unwanted confrontations. So as long as you follow the instructions and do your research, you should be fine."
Although sensing their unease, Jared nodded along to their warnings.
"Got it."- Jared.
"By the way, where's Mark?"
With slightly disappointed grins on their faces, Jared looked at Jovan, Jovan looked at Riley, and Riley looked at Jared. All of them started to shake their heads.
"Yeah!!!" x3
Preparing himself to leave, Jared continued as he tied his shoe. "Amber should be working today and tomorrow, so when you guys go back out, don't forget to pick up Mark,"
"Yeah, we'll swing by a little today."- Jovan.
"How can one man have so much game and not pull the girl he's been friends with for years," Riley muttered. "It just doesn't make sense. They're so close.
With Riley ranting, Jovan waved Jared goodbye as he walked, vanishing into the crowd.
…
Kōtō de no Kōdō Mansion, Kōtōdō for short, was a mansion heavily inspired by Gothic style architecture. Its pointed arches and ribbed vaults left all visitors at a loss for words. Across three acres of land were delicate flowers patterned across the grass.
Kōtōdō, the warrior who single-handedly carried the name of the Insight family for the past three years.
The ceiling emitted a soft aqua color that reflected off the floor tiles, emitting through the slightly cracked open door. It is behind this door that the warrior sleeps.
The early morning sun shone through the window, shining its light over the sole, twin sized bed in the room.
" This is a little too much-" Melinda muttered. Her scar bled as a scarf, covering it, slowly pulsed with a green light.
Moving the black rag soaked in mineral water from over one of her eyes, Melinda tilted to the door.
" You know you can just come in."
As the door opened, Yidhra calmly walked in, removing the hood from her head with a smile.
" Sorry, I didn't know if this was your bedroom or not. Got to give the girls time to prepare."
" Huh…" Melinda laughed softly as she dropped the rag back onto her face.
[ Didn't think you would have followed through.] - Melinda
[Well, I had to pay back the favor, but I would have done it even if you didn't ask me.]
Yidhra casually took a seat, dropping beside the bed.
[ So who was it?]- Melinda
[ Black tr-]
[ B.T huh,]
A stiff crack came from under the covers.
[ I see] -Melinda
[ Long story short, they kidnapped some of your guys for the next Season Shift. As you know how important long range communication can be for those types of events. That is my guess at least but there could always be more to it.]
[ I assumed as much. But breaking the Heavy Arms Act so publicly. Going after more would make sense.]
Melinda quickly sat up, removing the rag from her eyes, placing it beside her.
[.... You're hiding something, aren't you?]
Struggling to look her in the eyes, Yidhra looked down at her hands, fidgeting. [I'm just not sure if what I'm about to say is true.]
[ You shouldn't concern yourself with that. This is still our issue to solve, so any information is better than taking shots in the dark.]
[ You're right but.]
Yidhra slowly removed and lowered Melinda's scarf seeing the dark purple and black wounds around her neck.
[ I can't trust your Elders not to smite me the moment I'm no longer of use to them.]
[ Again, you don't need to worry about that. The consequences of my actions belong to me and me alone.]
[ Alright…]
Taking a deep breath, Yidhra took out a map of Caster. There were three sections, Precast, Biscaster and the Template city. Pointed at Biscaster with a serious tone.
[ So we're here. Last night, after everything that had happened, I looked around and learned a few things. First, if B.T was after some of your people, then they might also be after the information y'all have stored in your servers. If both things are true, then they still haven't left yet.]
Yidhra pointed to the grayed-out portion of the map southwest of Caster, the Template city.
[ If I were to guess, they're somewhere here. Lots of space, unmanaged, and still close to their objective. In my honest opinion, they already gained so much from yesterday's stunt, but I digress.]
[ The library is their next target, I'm sure of it. Just be VERY smart with how you go about protecting it. With the lead they have now, getting a handle on the situation will be a uphill battle.]- Yidhra
[ I see, I'll get on it immediately. ]
[ Don't get comfortable.]
[ Oh, don't worry, we know all too well.]
Yidhra slowly stood up from her chair, leaving the map on the bed. Beside it was a list of other important information she had gathered about their Leader and other things she may find interesting.
[ Again, I'm sorry that I can't do more. But I'd better be going.]
Fixing her cloak, Yidhra walked to the door, gesturing her exit.
Melinda smiled as she opened her mouth, letting out her scorched and weak voice.
" Use my name as much as you need. As long as you're here, I'll pay for the stay."
" Thanks, I'll treat myself to better cooking supplies."
" See you at the next Seasonal Shift, Kaelin."
Yidhra smiled
Melinda- " Before you leave… Can I ask you to do one more favor for me."
Hesitating, Kaelin braced against the door frame, her face cloaked in confusion.