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acraftedmistake · 4 years

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A Person Who Has Never Played MCSM Writes A Story About MCSM Chp 10

AAAAAH IT’S SUPER LATE HERE BUT IT IS C O M P L E T E D

Hope you guys like it!!!

“Alright, that should do it.” Lukas said, closing the saddlebag and giving the dark bay horse a few pats.

He turned around to face his friends who stood under the arch of Obsidian Town’s entrance. Lukas won’t be seeing them for a while, and seeing their smiles--and Stella fanning her eyes--was making the idea of leaving the town a whole lot harder.

Lukas didn’t want to leave. He truly didn’t. He wanted to stay here and train with Maya, enjoy Gill’s hot meals, visit Petra with Cassie Rose, help Stella with her planning or Olivia with her contraptions, or sit on the balcony and write a story as Jesse would spitball ideas while Aiden poked fun at him for being ‘cheesy’. But he offered to help. North Wind City needed as much help as they could get after The Awakening summoned their lava monstrosity that Lukas and the others defeated. It tore apart their barrier, crushed people’s homes, it wasn’t going to be easy but the city needed to be pieced back together.

He gave his friends a warm smile and adjusted his goggles, “I’ll see you guys soon?”

“We’ll miss you!” Olivia grinned, rubbing her hands together in an attempt to keep herself warm in the crisp cold of the early morning.

North Wind City was quite the distance from Obsidian Town, on horseback alone the journey would take a couple of hours, plus the possible detours when he’ll run into the enormous ravines. Lukas wanted to leave before sunrise, yes, he might get drowsy while traveling, but he wouldn’t be wandering in the dark.

“You’re gonna send letters, right? Won’tcha?” Gill asked with a cracking but enthusiastic voice.

“As long as you promise to write me back.” Lukas responded.

Gill nodded, “Ya--Of course! Of course I will!”

“Oh, I’m going to miss you so much--!” Stella exclaimed, failing to keep the tears back. Maya and Cassie gave her comforting pats on the back.

“He’s not going away forever, don’t worry.” Cassie tried to reassure Stella. Cassie changed the topic to distract the both of them from their sadness, “Maybe we could uh… Plan his welcome back party.”

“Yeah, he’ll be back before we know it!” Gill added.

“They’re right.” Lukas agreed, approaching his tearful friend and giving her a hug, letting her sob into his leather jacket.

“You guys will be focused on fixing Obsidian Town, you won’t even notice I’m gone.” Lukas said while Olivia carefully pryed Stella off of the blond. Stella leaned on Olivia’s shoulders to wipe away her running mascara as she nodded to Lukas’ statement.

“Be safe.” Maya said.

“Yeah, and try not to bore the town too much with your little stories.” Aiden chimed in, a playful smirk on his face.

“Only if you promise not to forget everything and ruin the town.” Lukas rolled his eyes.

“Alright, you know what?” Aiden went over and hoisted Lukas over his shoulders, taking him back to his steed.

“You should head off now, don’t wanna keep the people waiting.” He said as Lukas kept hitting Aiden’s back, demanding to be put down through laughs, lighting the mood.

Aiden set his friend next to the horse and placed a hand on his shoulder, “I’m kidding. I’m sure they’ll love you. And your writing.”

The group wasn’t going to feel whole without Lukas for the next several months. It was definitely a surprise to them when he offered to set off to another place by himself, everyone had known Lukas as the writer who wanted nothing more than to stay home with his friends, writing in his journal.

“Yeah.” Lukas grinned, “You guys will do great. I know it.”

Lukas made sure his bags were secured before hopping onto the horse. He turned his head to face his friends, “Tell Radar I said goodbye!”

His eyes landed on the quietest of the bunch, Jesse, who wore a small, weak smile. Lukas knew how much Jesse hated goodbyes, how could he possibly leave his friend on a sorrowful note?

“Jesse!” Lukas called out. Jesse jumped and lifted his head.

“Make sure these guys don’t kill each other.” He grinned, “I’m counting on you!”

Jesse’s smile grew, becoming more genuine as he nodded, “I will.”

Lukas stared at his friends for a moment longer. ‘If anything ever happens,’ Olivia’s words from last night rang through his head, ‘You know who to go to.’

Yes, he’d be far, but he wasn’t going to be alone. He had people to turn to. That’s what’s important.

He gave the horse a light kick to start a steady pace, hoping to speed up once he passed the larger ravines. Lukas heard his friends’ goodbyes, Stella’s tearful “Love you!”, Aiden jokingly telling him not to fall off the horse as Olivia shushed him. Lukas couldn’t bring himself to glance back at his friends, fearful his mind would change.

Jesse watched as Lukas got farther and farther, his friends soon stopped their waving and talked amongst themselves. Olivia and Gill were still comforting Stella--who was much calmer than she was a few minutes ago--while the others discussed how they would help Radar, who had helped with planning of reconstructing Obsidian Town.

Jesse couldn’t tear his eyes off of his distancing friend, his heart was pumping, he felt his hands shake, his eyes welled with tears. This shouldn’t be tearing at him as much as it is, but he hated how awful the goodbye felt. He hated himself for not saying more.

“You okay?” Gill asked.

Jesse faced his concerned friend and wiped away his tears, nodding.

“Yea… Yeah. I’m just… I need to--” Without Jesse’s command, his body took off running after Lukas. He heard his friends' confused shouts grow fainter as he kept getting closer and closer to Lukas. The tall grass, the distant trees, the bright flowers, the dusty orange sky, everything was blurring together into incoherent chaos, but his eyes remained on Lukas, who was nothing but a blob of colors.

“LUKAS!” Jesse shouted, reaching his hand out.

Lukas jolted and stopped his horse, whipping his head around to see a crying, winded Jesse approach him.

When Jesse’s hand was in reach, Lukas grabbed it and held onto it. He was shaking. They were both shaking.

“I’m sorry, I--” Jesse began, rubbing the tears off his face with the sleeve of his other arm. “I’m… I’m gonna miss you. You know that, right?”

This was such an overreaction. Such an overreaction. He had rarely ever held someone’s hand, but he didn’t want to let Lukas go. He didn’t want Lukas to leave. Jesse knew he was coming back, but a special, unignorable pain accompanied the view--the mere thought--of watching your childhood friend leave. This wasn’t like when the both of you would set off, knowing you’d see each other tomorrow, knowing you’d be the same person tomorrow as you were today. This was counting down the days until your reunion, hoping neither of you had changed into a complete stranger.

Lukas’ mouth hung open for a moment.

He swallowed and kept a strong face for Jesse, “Of course I do. How about this:” Lukas’ eyes brightened, “The minute I come back, we’ll go to the Coal Cafe together, we’ll share stories and everything. That’s a promise.”

“A promise?” Repeating those words warmed him. Comforted him. It was going to be okay.

Jesse took a deep breath, “Okay,”

He squeezed Lukas’ hand for the last time, “Be safe.”

“Always.” Lukas said, slipping his hand out of Jesse’s grasp and continuing the journey.

Jesse stood in the open field, watching his friend leave. He was at ease.

Olivia ran to his side, “Are you going to be alright? You know we’re here if you need anything.”

“Yeah. Thank you.” He turned to Olivia and was surprised to see her hunched over, catching her breath. Had he really run that far?

The others quickly caught up--Aiden ruffled Jesse’s hair for making them chase after him--and all expressed how they’ll also miss Lukas, comforting Jesse further.

Jesse watched the Sun rise as his friends chattered. Morning was coming, the sky’s colors were growing, and Jesse was drained. They were all going to be horribly busy these upcoming months.

Jesse couldn’t wait to go to bed.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The group was still getting used to Lukas’ absence throughout the past few weeks, Aiden being the worst of the bunch. Every afternoon he’d ask “Lukas still sleeping?”, or before they’d head out he’d run towards the stairs to make sure Lukas wouldn’t be left behind, only for one of his friends to correct him, or for Aiden to stop himself and do the walk of shame when he’d remember what had happened. Cassie would sometimes poke fun at him; Jesse was guilty of making little comments as well.

Stella was used to waking up early and meeting Lukas, the only other member of the group who also had a decent sleep schedule, at the kitchen where they’d ramble about whatever or planned the schedule for the day.

Olivia enjoyed his company whenever she’d work on any of her inventions, Gill missed his presence when he’d attend Hadrian and Mevia’s lessons--Lukas used what he learned as inspiration for his stories--and Maya missed the mid-morning training they’d do every couple of days to help improve his fighting.

Though they were all anticipating the day of his return, everyone was fine and continued their days as they normally would. Even Jesse.

Everybody had been occupied with cleaning the debris, filling the giant cracks in the town’s streets, and repairing or entirely rebuilding citizens’ houses and stores. Compared to the other towns surrounding them, the damage here wasn’t too severe.

Gill, Aiden, Maya, and sometimes Jesse would focus on the heavier workload while Stella, Radar, Cassie, and Olivia helped search for and craft the needed materials.

Both Stella and Olivia were back home, finally taking a much needed late-lunch break. They had grabbed Gill’s premade sandwiches from the fridge and had finally sat down after a long day of running around. Stella was eating, listening to Olivia, who hadn’t touched her food yet.

“...Then I saw the obsidian had been broken into big pieces, meaning we could find a way to put them back together instead of going through the hassle of wasting materials to create new obsidian--” She took a swig from her cup of water before continuing, “But Radar pointed out we had nothing strong enough to keep the pieces in place. I suggested slime, but with all the weight that’d be put on top of them, I’m not sure how long they’d last.”

She quickly adjusted her green, aviator hat before putting her hands on her head to take a breather.

“Sorry, I’m rambling.” Olivia said through quick breaths.

Stella swallowed her food, “Don’t be!”

She set her sandwich aside, “You know, when I help prepare The Impossible Festival, we create this weird, glue-like… Substance with slime.” Her face scrunched when recalling it’s sticky texture, “We use it to keep any heavy structures in place. It’s a bit of a hassle to make, but it is tremendous! Resistant against water, handles extreme pressure, I can show you how to make it.”

Olivia perked up, “Really?”

Stella was about to add on when the front door suddenly swung open. In came Aiden and Jesse who brought only chaos along with them. Aiden was walking backwards, a smirk on his face with an envelope he held high into the air while Jesse kept reaching and jumping for it.

“Finders keepers.” Aiden said as he watched Jesse attempt to nab the letter once again.

“You wouldn’t have known about the letter if I hadn’t reminded you to check the mailbox!” Jesse grunted.

“I still saw it first.”

Stella spun on her barstool to face the commotion, “What are you two bickering about this time?”

Aiden waved the envelope while fending off Jesse, “Letter from Lukas!”

Both of the girls’ faces lit up.

“Gill, Aiden’s distracted, get him!” Jesse shouted at the wide open door.

“Wha--” Before Aiden had the chance to react, Gill came charging into the house and tackled Aiden to the floor. The letter flew out of Aiden’s grasp and the two crashed into the wall. Gill spotted the floating letter and quickly nabbed it.

“Got it!” Gill beamed, holding it high and proud. He could hear Jesse’s quiet “Yes!”

Cassie Rose and Maya walked into the house and beheld the scene before them.

Cassie saw Aiden groaning on the floor with Gill still on top of him.

“Is he dead?” Cassie asked without batting an eye.

“No. Just crushed.” Aiden replied.

Maya looked at Stella and Olivia, “They tell you about the letter?”

“Sloppily, but yes.” Olivia answered happily, yoinking the letter from Gill’s hands. She nor Stella no longer trusted either of the boys with the paper in their grasp. On the front she saw the neat, right-leaning handwriting that belonged to the one and only Lukas.

She opened the envelope, carefully pulled out the letter, and unfolded it.

She read the contents aloud, “Hello everyone, I hope you guys are doing well! North Wind City has been wonderful so far, the people here have kept a pretty positive attitude while working, and they surprisingly recognized me the moment I walked in! They wanted me to tell you they’re thankful for our bravery against The Awakening, they truly are grateful. I haven’t been able to write as much, a majority of this city is in absolute ruins, I’ve only been able to take breaks at a small cafe. It’s okay compared to the Coal Cafe. I’ve been working hard these last several days, and I know you guys have been as well. Don’t overwork yourselves! Can’t wait to see you guys again!”

Olivia’s eyes would go over the letter again and again, it was refreshing to see his written voice.

“Glad to know North Wind is being kind to him.” said Stella, who was reading over Olivia’s shoulder. The others nodded and chatted about the letter’s contents.

“Who wouldn’t be?” Asked Gill as he helped Aiden up.

Gill turned to the girls, “Can I write the letter back, please? I promised him!”

“You don’t have to ask for permission, silly. Make sure to proofread!” Stella reminded him.

“Right!” Gill turned to Jesse, “Jesse, yer gonna be m’proofreader!”

“Oh, oka--” Before Jesse could finish his sentence, Gill had already ran up the stairs, happily cheering how he was going to tell Lukas everything. Jesse chased after him.

Cassie Rose followed behind, “Tell him about how Stella burnt the pasta last night!”

Stella jumped and ran after the trio, “Do NOT tell him about how Stella burnt the pasta!”

After Stella disappeared, loud crashing and thrashing could be heard from the second floor, causing Olivia to cringe. The noise went on for another second before the house fell deathly quiet.

“Welp,” Aiden started walking to the stairs, “Better go make sure they aren’t dead.”

“Sounds good to me.” Said Maya, following behind.

Olivia chuckled and joined them.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Jesse sat on one of the couches in the living room, body spread out over the cushions, trying to get as comfortable as possible. His legs were sore, no--his legs and arms were sore--actually, everything was sore. The last couple of months had been exhausting. Him and the others had finally finished filling in the cracks of the town, meaning they could walk on the streets and repair any buildings on the road safely. Most of the houses were as good as new and the town was getting more lively each night. Exhausting or not, it was rewarding to see the progress.

Jesse promised to help Radar move the heavy items with Aiden and Maya, but that wasn’t until the early day. His friends were still out working, but Jesse wanted to rest. Just for a little bit.

He heard footsteps coming from behind. He didn’t have enough energy to turn his head, so he laid it on the back of the couch to get an upside view of who was approaching.

It was Gill. He was holding a letter.

“S’okay if I sit?” Gill tilted his head. Jesse gave him a nod and scooted his body over, giving Gill room.

He sat beside Jesse, looked at the letter, then back to Jesse.

“I was bout to send this off but…” Gill stared at what he had written, “I was wonderin’ if you wanted to add anythin’?”

Lukas had been sending letters at an inconsistent rate throughout the months; one week they’d receive two letters, then the next two weeks they wouldn’t get a thing. Luckily, his letters had been nothing but positive. Jesse and the others understood he was busy helping a city, so writing wouldn’t be his top priority.

The group would take turns writing to Lukas so no one would fight. This time it was Gill’s turn.

“Hm…” Jesse thought for a moment, recalling what Lukas had written. He mainly remembered Lukas talking about the apartment he was temporarily living in, how there was a small balcony, and how he could see the thick, vibrant forest--reminding him of their trips to Petra’s--whenever he looked out.

“Tell him I hope he’s been able to get some writing in.” He said with a weak smile.

Gill blinked a couple of times, studying Jesse’s expression, “Ya miss him?”

“Ah,” Jesse waved his hand, “It’s alright.”

They both sat silently for a few seconds.

“I miss him too.” Gill said, “But hey--Maybe we could visit him. Surprise visit!”

“Oh, no. No, it’s okay.” Jesse let out a chuckle, “Thanks though.”

If they did want to walk to North Wind City, they’d have to travel by foot, as neither of them had horses to rely on. Horses were difficult to find and extremely expensive if you happened to run into someone who sold them. The only reason Lukas got a horse for his travels was because a woman in Obsidian Town lent it to him for saving the town. Jesse appreciated the thought, however.

Gill got off the couch and approached the shelves along the living room’s wall. He reached for a small, wooden basket filled with envelopes, stamps, and pens.

As he finished writing the letter, he turned to Jesse, “Maya ‘n I are gonna train tomorrow, ya wanna join? Stella’ll be there too.”

Jesse’s body was telling him ‘No’. He was already aching enough, he’d have to wake up early, get all sweaty, feel even more sore… But honestly? Jesse didn’t care. He’d love to do something with his friends that didn’t require manual labor for once.

Jesse gave Gill a grin, “Sounds good to me.”

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The town was nearly finished, the workload was getting smaller and smaller, everything was beginning to feel normal once again.

Everyone was mostly lounging around in the living room or kitchen, they had finished dinner and were talking about their day or what they had planned for tomorrow.

Olivia was sharing the couch with Jesse, who sat stiffly with his hands in his lap.

“...Then Maya said ‘Alright, if you say so.’ And handed Radar the block of cement and he collapsed--!” Olivia told Jesse through laughter.

“It was pretty funny.” Maya grinned as she finished washing the remainder of the dishes.

Olivia wiped a tear away, “Oh, you should’ve seen his poor face.”

Olivia’s smile faded when she noticed the lack of reaction from her friend. Jesse was always the one to crack up at the little things, but his lips were pressed together and his eyes were focused elsewhere.

“Are you alright?” She asked.

He glanced at her worried expression before shifting away, “... Lukas hasn’t written back in a while.”

It's been a few months.

“I’m just--” Jesse gripped the fabric of his pants, “It’s stupid, but I’ve been afraid. What if he’s forgotten about us? Or found other people? What if something terrible happened to him?”

She scooted closer to him, “Oh, Jesse--”

“I know it’s dumb, I know he can handle himself, but--”

“No, I understand.” She breathed in, “I feel the same way.”

“I think we all feel that way.” Stella chimed in, approaching the two and leaning against the back of the couch. “It’s a normal feeling to have. Granted, it’s an awful feeling, but it’s normal.”

“Yeah, it sucks, but this is Lukas we’re talking about. He’s not gonna forget us.” Added Cassie Rose, who was slumped in the arm chair.

“Exactly!” Spoke Gill. He slid over to Jesse and Olivia.

“D’ya really think he’d forget his own friends? Or the guy he had to help who got stabbed in the arm multiple times?” Gill asked, pointing at himself with a big smile on his face. Jesse found himself chuckling to Gill’s addition.

How weird was this. Everyone in this room wanted Lukas back, they wanted to be whole again, they should feel miserable. But they didn’t. Instead, Jesse felt a smile form and remain. He wasn’t the only one feeling this way. It was normal. It’s okay.

“He’s helping a pretty large city, that sorta thing doesn’t take a few months. He’s probably caught up on the work and too exhausted to write anything. Stuff happens, you know?” Said Aiden; he was sitting at the bar with Maya, who nodded along.

Jesse had been telling himself the same thing for the last couple of weeks and was beginning to second guess his own thoughts, but hearing them aloud by Aiden was the reassurance he needed.

Suddenly, there was knocking at their door.

Aiden pushed himself off the barstool and made his way to the door.

“Did Radar say he was stopping by?” He asked Maya.

Maya thought to herself for a moment, trying to recall if Radar had ever mentioned visiting. “Don’t think so?”

Aiden opened the door and was surprised to see one of the guards of Obsidian Town. He stood tall, wearing his ash-colored armor with pride. Most of his skin had been covered by his uniform, his hair hidden underneath his hat, gloves hiding his hands, leaving only his tan face and neck visible.

“Mornin’. Everything okay?” Aiden asked.

The guard nodded and reached into his pocket, “A letter from North Wind City.”

He handed Aiden the letter.

“Alright, thanks.” Aiden said as he held the letter firmly. The guard nodded, told Aiden to have a good day, then left.

Aiden closed the door and took a look at the envelope while the others watched him. It was completely blank. No sender’s address, no stamp, nothing.

“Did Lukas finally write us back?” Asked Rose, trying to get into a comfortable position.

Aiden opened the letter, “I’m… Not sure?”

The handwriting was small and tidy. Aiden began reading.

“To the friends of Lukas, it seems the unthinkable has happened to us during our time of recovery. Over the last few days, Lukas has not been seen outside, many people claimed he went to his apartment and hadn’t come out. We had sent guards to check on him, only to find he had disappeared without a trace. No one is certain what had happened to him, nor where he might’ve gone to, but a search party has formed and is hard at work. We would appreciate any and all help, we truly need it.”

No one reacted. No one emoted. They couldn’t. It was as if everyone’s mind was unable to process what they’ve been told, and had shut down completely.

Aiden kept skimming the letter over and over again, making sure he had truly read everything correctly, hoping he had skipped over the section where it said ‘False alarm!’, and it was just a stupid joke to scare them. But the more he kept reading, the bigger the pit in his stomach grew. He held the letter tightly, crinkling it.

“Lukas is missing?” Jesse asked quietly, breaking the silence.

The others were still rigid and wide eyed.

“That… Can’t be right.” Said Stella slowly. She walked over to Aiden, who handed her the letter. She scanned it thoroughly. Aiden hadn’t skipped a word, this was real. The realization shot through her like an arrow, her hands trembled and she blinked back tears.

Her head darted around the room, seeing everyone’s increasingly worried and fearful expressions was making her heart race. She could hardly swallow.

She put her free hand on her hair, tugging on strands as she read through the letter again.

“We don’t know what day he went missing,” Stella began, “Nor who he last interacted with--”

“This has to be The Awakening!” Jesse said with a loud, wavering voice. He got off the couch and ran to Stella and Aiden to see the letter as well.

“We can’t point fingers at them yet!” Olivia started, “With so many newly formed ravines, along with the quakes, maybe he…”

She was no longer on board with where her train of thought was going, “... Fell in?”

“Fell in, kidnapped, lost--Whatever!” Cassie leapt off the chair, “We gotta do something!”

“She’s right.” Maya nodded, “We’re not gonna find him by freaking out. What’s the plan?”

“We’re gonna find him.” Gill answered without hesitation, “We will find him.”

‘Lukas’ disappearance was recent.’ Jesse thought to himself, holding onto the letter. ‘If we start searching now, we’d have a higher chance of finding him sooner.”

Stella could no longer remain still, she darted to the stairs. Her quick footsteps could be heard from the second floor, followed by a door opening.

“Some of us should go to North Wind while the rest try to see if Lukas had mentioned anything weird in his letters.” Aiden said, “Maybe a weird person, a strange place, anything!”

“What could we do at North Wind?” Cassie questioned, “They said he disappeared without a trace!”

��No one just… Disappears into thin air.” Maya said.

“Exactly.” Aiden made his way to the chests against the living room wall, “There’s gotta be something in his apartment, or any of the places he’s been to that’ll help.”

He took out a diamond sword, “We’ll ask anyone who looks suspicious, and if they act up? I won’t hesitate giving them a piece of my mind.”

“Sounds like a plan to me.” Maya cracked her knuckles.

“Who’s going to go to North Wind?” Asked Olivia, “You can’t go by yourself, Aiden. Lukas might’ve been--I’m not saying he was, but--he might’ve been targeted because he was alone. I don’t want anything bad happening to you.”

“He’s not gonna be alone.” Maya stood beside him, “I’m going with him.”

“I’m comin’ too!” Gill added, “The more th’ merrier!”

Cassie Rose got out of her seat, “Same here. I’ll bring my axes, might come in handy.”

“What can I do?” Jesse asked everyone.

“Do you need an extra set of hands?” He asked Aiden and the others, “Or--or could I--”

“Actually,” Olivia began, “Would you be willing to help me analyze the letters Lukas has sent us? I could use the extra set of eyes.”

“Of course!” Jesse said, ready to do anything and everything to help out.

Stella ran down the stairs, holding onto a thin, blue folder with.

“I’m back!” She sputtered, almost dropping the folder.

She quickly opened it, revealing a group photo, and pointed at the smiling Lukas in it.

“I’m going to make missing posters with Radar, this is the best quality photo we have of him!” She ran to the door, “We’ll make a bunch of copies to hand out and tape everywhere!” She explained in one breath and slammed the door behind her.

Everyone watched Stella rush through the streets, when they could no longer see her, they continued talking.

“I’d recommend heading off tomorrow.” Olivia suggested, “You’d be energized and have enough time to prepare. Plus I think Stella would want you to take some posters along.”

“It’s going to be a long walk.” Jesse mentioned, giving the four a worried look.

Maya lifted her head up, “It’s alright, we’ve walked longer.”

“Nothing we can’t handle.” Aiden assured him.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Of course when everything was finally calming down, when lives were returning to normal, when everyone could finally be at ease, the universe snatched the hope and happiness of the group and dangled it on a stick, taking great pleasure in watching them struggle.

Yes, reconstruction of his hometown was tiresome and--at times--painful, but at least Jesse was able to rest. These past few days, however? He didn’t sleep. He couldn’t sleep. No one did. Aiden, Maya, Gill, and Cassie went to North Wind first thing in the afternoon, packing the essentials along with Stella handing them the missing posters, telling them to please write to her the minute they reached the city. The four only took a break once they had finally reached their destination to prepare themselves for the long days ahead.

Before Olivia and Jesse could begin studying the letters, they had to inform the town of their friend’s--and one of the town’s hero’s--disappearance. They were prepared for the people’s panics and had assured them they were already hard at work searching, but any help would be wonderful. Whenever a citizen would see Jesse, Olivia, or Stella, they’d give them their sympathy and tell them they hoped for the best. And though Radar was also friends with Lukas, he wasn’t as close to him as the others were, and not too many people knew of their relationship. Not that Radar mind, he was too busy helping the trio.

When Aiden, Maya, Gill, and Cassie Rose began their investigation in North Wind City, they were overwhelmed with how much bigger everything was. All apartment complexes were the same shade of tawny brown, only their light blue windows prevented them from merging all together, the brick roads--the worn down clashing with the newly filled gaps--were so wide they managed to balance out the enormous, surrounding, brown buildings. Towering, almost intimidating windmills could be seen everywhere, some breaking the clouds, and had propellers moving slowly and steadily. The population was also huge, large groups of people were everywhere, which could make searching for clues easier or harder.

The four first went to find Lukas’ apartment, which they were able to find thanks to Maya remembering the address, and were allowed inside. Most places were closing--or had closed--since it was early morning, so they decided to see what the apartment had to offer as they waited for a new night to come. To their surprise, the place looked untouched. No signs of a fight, struggle, nothing. In fact, the room looked tidy in typical Lukas-fashion. The bed was made, the kitchen was cleaned and organized, papers were in neat stacks on a small, dark brown table in the middle of the living room.

Gill sat on the brown couch and carefully looked through the papers, discovering some were unfinished letters for them. Him, Maya, and Cassie skimmed through them, hoping to find anything to point them to the right direction, but they all contained the usual updates of his life.

Gill looked around the room, “I don’ see his goggles anywhere.”

The others stopped what they were doing and scanned the apartment. He was right. Lukas had always kept his goggles on his head, around his neck, or in the pockets of his jacket. If he wasn’t wearing them, he’d place them within reach--or at least somewhere easy to find--so he could grab them and go.

“He could’ve gone missing while he was on his way home. Or when he was leaving it.” Maya suggested.

Cassie put her hand on her head, “This place is huge, he could be anywhere!”

“Exactly!” Gill agreed, though his tone was optimistic. “It IS huge, someone had to have seen ‘im!”

Gill turned his head to the window, peering into the blue-skied world, “I bet it’s real hard to do somethin’ here without someone seein’ ya.”

“Yeah, you’re right.” Aiden folded his arms. He took out the letter informing them of Lukas’ disappearance--which he had slipped back into it’s blank envelope--and said they should find out who had sent it first thing tomorrow. Everyone agreed.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

“I just remembered I promised to write Stella a letter once we reached North Wind.” Aiden said, his head drooped as he rested against the rails of Lukas’ small balcony.

“That would’ve been good to know a month ago.” Maya said, watching the sun rise past the thick forest.

“I’m sorry, I--”

“Don’t be. We’re all stressed. Stuff slips the mind.” She assured him. She was usually the one to remind Aiden of information, but had completely forgotten about writing the letter as well. The only thing on her mind the second she left Obsidian town and the second she stepped foot in North Wind was “Find Lukas”.

“She probably thinks we’re dead now.” The two heard Cassie comment. She was resting on the couch with Gill, who had fallen asleep. They’ve been running around this monstrous city for nearly two months, they have hardly gotten any time to rest.

It was difficult to decide whether or not they’ve progressed during their time here. They found out the blank envelope had been sent by the mayor of North Wind herself, Isa, who explained when upon hearing the news, she frantically wrote the letter and requested one of her guards to send it to their town immediately. She was so focused on alerting Aiden and the others that she had completely forgotten about putting her own address, a stamp, and the other insignificant details.

They visited the places Lukas would talk about often, the city’s cafe, it’s library, the park, and spoke to the people who worked there as they hung up missing posters. They asked the people if Lukas acted out of character, and they all said he was being his usual, cheerful self. They asked if anyone suspicious had been near or following him, no one could recall any figures near Lukas. The people who were a part of the city’s reconstruction group--along with the guards--had said nothing seemed out of the ordinary, and they hadn’t spotted any odd character.

The four were ready to turn in for the day, but Gill was set on wanting to talk to a small group of people who were hanging around a construction site. While the others were tired, they knew Gill would be told what they’ve already heard a million times, so it’d only be a few minute wait. When Gill returned, he looked excited. The group of people had worked with Lukas multiple times on the far west end of town, and had shown Lukas a ‘scenic route’ through the west gate that led back to his apartment. It was through the forest which Lukas’ balcony looked over. One man said he would see Lukas occasionally walk this path from the window of his room, and suggested something might’ve happened to him there.

When they had entered the forest, they were disheartened to see almost nothing. Sure, the forest was peaceful compared to the city’s ruckus, the earthy and subtle floral scent was nice, the plants were colorful, but there were no signs of anything happening here. No scraps of clothes or a broken weapon in sight. The only thing they did find was a large, gaping ravine who’s bottom could not be seen. Olivia’s words rang through their heads, “Maybe he fell in.”

Aiden volunteered to explore the ravine tomorrow, and he was either going to find nothing, or the corpse of one of his closest friends.

For once, throughout this entire mess, Cassie Rose was hoping they’d find nothing. The thought of Lukas’ limp body plagued her mind, it was an idea she didn’t want to become reality.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Stella and Radar had hung the posters around town, while Jesse and Olivia had read and reread every letter Lukas had sent. None of them had even a tiny sliver of anything that could be labeled ‘suspicious’. They only talked about the city, his life, and how much he missed them.

Mevia and Hadrian had been of tremendous help. When hearing of Lukas’ disappearance, they pulled out a number of old maps which showed the locations of ancient, forgotten shrines of The Awakening’s built around both Obsidian Town and North Wind. They suggested the group should explore the abandoned shrines to see if The Awakening had retreated to any of them. Jesse was on board, ready to put himself at risk if it meant finding Lukas faster, but Stella, Olivia, and Radar refused. If they did find The Awakening, they’d have to go against the hundreds of members, not to mention a number of the shrines were hazardous and falling apart.

Radar wanted to make himself as useful as possible. When the three would rest, he’d continue to question citizens, guards, and anyone who they hadn’t spoken to yet. He’d use what knowledge he had of The Awakening to help create theories as to what they could’ve done, or what might’ve happened to Lukas.

As they continued their work, Aiden and the others finally wrote back. They had saved Stella from a heart attack, but had only brought bad news. No luck. The only positive was Gill, who managed to keep the spirits of his friends high during their time in the city. They had found Lukas’ horse--unharmed--as well, and were going to return it to the lady. As for Lukas himself, they’ve searched North Wind, the horrid ravines surrounding it, and they’ve found nothing. No body, no signs of his presence, it was truly as if he had disappeared from thin air.

In the letter, Aiden said they were planning on returning home in--roughly--a week. By then, it’d mark four months of them losing Lukas. What a horrible pill to swallow.

Olivia, as much as she didn’t want to, suggested they needed to take a break once the others came back. Even if it only lasted a week, they needed time to think. Maybe an idea would pop into their heads, maybe someone will spot Lukas, who knows. But they were all deteriorating. Their sleep had been butchered, their diets ruined, and the stress was ripping them limb from limb.

They weren’t progressing. Obsidian town offered nothing, North Wind offered nothing, what else could they possibly do?

Jesse didn’t want to rest. He wanted to keep looking. He wanted to. He really wanted to.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The week-long break lasted a month, everyone was more worn out than they realized. The break was needed, but everything felt forced. Their conversations, their moments of lounging around, everything felt unnatural. How could you live out a normal day with your friend’s missing poster plastered everywhere? Knowing he could still be saved, that he could still be out there, lost, hurt, confused. Knowing he might be dead.

Everyone was weighed down with these thoughts and feelings, while Aiden and Jesse were being crushed by them. They couldn’t put their minds to rest, their bodies couldn’t take remaining in one place with Lukas still out there. Their friends understood their anger and eagerness all too well, and had barely convinced the two to rest.

The end of the month was nearing, Radar was visiting the group, and they had finished dinner not too long ago. Aiden, Jesse, and Gill were having a conversation in the kitchen about what their next plan was, while the girls--and Radar--were upstairs in their rooms, rambling about whatever.

Suddenly, there was knocking at the door. Three, heavy, slow knocks.

The boys stared at the door for a moment, unsure if they truly wanted to open it.

“... Guess I’ll get it?” Jesse said quietly, getting off the barstool and approaching the door. He peered through the doorhole and saw no one.

He opened the door and looked around, seeing no signs of whoever had knocked.

His eyes fell to the stairs of the front door and he froze. Reality began to unravel, this wasn’t real. This wasn’t real. It wasn’t.

He crouched down to look at Lukas’ goggles who sat atop his journal. Jesse had almost convinced himself he was seeing things, that his brain was so desperate for anything it had resorted to making hopeful hallucinations.

Jesse was afraid to touch them. What if they broke? What if they disappeared?

He carefully reached one hand out and let his finger barely touch the lens of the goggles. It was real. It was Lukas’.

He warily picked up the goggles and held them close, seeing his reflection in the tinted lens. The strap was damp.

“Jesse, who’s--” Aiden stopped in his tracks and saw what his friend was craddeling. Aiden couldn’t say anything, all he did was stare. He kept staring and staring, his hand curled into a fist and he punched the wall, shaking the house.

It had been nearly a year. Almost an entire, damn year of nothing, yet someone too vile to be considered human had left these at their steps to take pleasure in their misery and failures.

Gill had run upstairs to tell the others what appeared as the two remained in place. They knew who was at fault. There was no question about it now.

When the rest of the group came downstairs, everyone had to see the items for themselves. Olivia was reading the last pages of his journal, hoping to find any bit of information as the others discussed what could’ve happened.

“I already know what happened.” Aiden growled, “We all do.”

“It was The Awakening!” Jesse exclaimed, he was fuming. “We’ve looked through our town and the city, we’ve asked everyone, we can’t keep avoiding what’s in front of our faces!”

“Yes, but--” Olivia started but was immediately cut off by Jesse.

“But WHAT? How can you say ‘but’?! Our friend’s been taken and we’ve done nothing--”

“What if you’re wrong.” Maya said sternly. Her arms were crossed.

“It’s not that we believe The Awakening is innocent,” Olivia kept her eyes on the journal’s pages to avoid her friends’ hurt expressions, “it’s that we don’t have enough evidence.”

“Enough evidence?!” Aiden repeated, his voice was rising.

“This--!” He grabbed the goggles from Jesse’s grasp, “Is enough evidence! They obviously did something to him!”

Jesse continued ranting, “Lukas was far away from the rest of us, none of us were with him, why WOULDN’T The Awakening take advantage of one of us finally being alone?! We need to--”

“We need to think about this realistically.” said Olivia, hugging the journal. “Let’s say you do find The Awakening… What’ll you do if you find out they never took Lukas? You’ll be outnumbered, in danger, and you’d spark more conflict.”

“Then we’ll do what we did last time!” Jesse answered, “Fight them!”

Aiden nodded once.

“The two of you against the hundreds of cult members?” Maya tilted her head.

“Don’t mean to interrupt,” Cassie cut in, “but does anyone else find it weird the minute Radar joined our group, Lukas went missing?”

Radar jumped, his pupils shrunk, “I beg your pardon?!”

“What are you getting at, Cass?” Maya asked, leaning towards the red head, her brow creasing.

“Maybe we’ve been set up from the start!” She shot at both Maya and Radar.

An argument erupted. Everyone was shouting at one another, talking over each other, the yelling getting louder and louder.

Stella’s shouting at Aiden had thankfully been voluminous enough to silence the entire room, “We are NOT hunting down The Awakening! That is FINAL.”

“So we’re gonna give up!?” Aiden yelled. Jesse brought himself closer to Aiden’s side, equally enraged.

“We’re not--! I never sai--”

“Whatever.” Aiden stormed off to his room, Jesse followed. The door slammed and shook the house.

Everyone stood still, silent and miserable.

Gill finally looked at his friends,

“Is there really nothin’ we can do?” He asked quietly.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

After the fight from a few days ago, along with receiving what remained of Lukas, everyone had been staying in their rooms, distancing themselves from one another. They were only together when they ate dinner, but even then they hardly spoke to each other.

Aiden, Jesse, and Gill had been absent, neither of them had been seen in the house or their rooms. The girls didn’t comment on their vanishment, they assumed the three of them wanted time away.

On the third day, when everyone was awake and eating whatever they found for breakfast, Olivia spoke up.

“We can’t keep quiet forever, guys.” She mumbled, “This isn’t going to bring Lukas back.”

Just like her last attempts at conversing, she was met with nothing. She looked around to see all her friends, Cassie, Maya, Stella, facing away from each other, staring at the floor, and remaining silent. Olivia went back to her breakfast, all she could eat was a small bowl of fruit, but it tasted sour. Her stomach was sour. The room was sour.

She rested her head on the kitchen table and pushed the bowl away. Olivia saw the bowl tremble and let out a groan. A quake. Perfect. Just what they needed.

They all held onto whatever they were close to. The house shook, the dishes chattered, the ground let out a low rumble before everything settled down again.

Everything went quiet for another minute.

Maya inhaled, tossed her empty plate onto the counter, and walked over to the table. She pulled out a chair and sat next to Olivia.

“This sucks.” Maya slouched and rested her head on her hand. Olivia peered over at her friend.

“Things were finally getting better.” Maya let out a tired sigh. Bags hung under her eyes and tear streaks stained her face.

Someone was finally talking, but Olivia didn’t know what to say. She inched her hand closer to Maya’s, and offered to hold it. Maya stared at the hand for a moment before grabbing and holding it carefully. Olivia’s hand was much smaller than her’s, but it didn’t make any difference. She needed this. They needed this.

“Yea… Yeah. Everything’s just falling apart all over again.” Cassie Rose added with a cracking voice. She struggled to keep her face together.

“We can’t find Lukas,” She sat on the table and pushed up her glasses, drying her eyes with her sleeve before tears formed, “I--I said a bunch of dumb stuff. And I’m--I’m sorry, you know? I feel awful. About everything.”

“It’s a normal feeling.” Said Stella, who had been staring into her cup of tea, only able to watch it get cold.

She turned to her friends, her eyes were puffy and tears were still running down her face, yet her expression appeared content. She wore a sad, small smile.

“And it’s an awful feeling.” She left the counter and sat across from Olivia.

Once again, the room became quiet. But this silence was comforting compared to what had overtaken the room before.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Gill bursted through the doors only an hour later. He was frantic, sweating, eyes darting everywhere, looking for any sign of his friends.

Olivia ran downstairs and gasped, she was about to ask him where he had been, and where Aiden and Jesse were, but Gill couldn’t wait another second.

“Aiden’s hurt!” He blurted.

Olivia froze, “Wha--”

“We were--We went to some shrines, I know ya said not too but Aiden ‘n Jesse wanted to go, ‘n--! The quake happened, part of th’ceiling fell apart, landed on his arm, ‘n he was bleedin’--Come on!” Gill ran out the door.

Cassie, Maya, and Stella had heard the commotion, Olivia didn’t have time to explain but she quickly told them the boys needed help. The three rushed after Gill, following him past the town’s entrance and to the start of the northwest forest’s trail. Through the trees they could make out a sluggish Aiden, who was refusing any of Jesse’s assistance.

They got Aiden home; he had a bloody, gaping gash on his right arm. The three of them had been searching through a number of old shrines without resting in hopes of finding either their friend or the cult. Originally, only Jesse and Aiden were going to explore the shrines, but the two of them managed to convince Gill they needed his strength while exploring. They felt awful for dragging him into the mess, but if he hadn’t joined, he wouldn’t have been there to push the rubble off of Aiden’s arm. It could’ve gotten uglier.

When they got to the house, Aiden and Jesse were expecting the usual teasing from Rose about their mess ups and bad planning, or Stella’s criticism for being so careless, but they received nothing.

Rose was tending Aiden’s wound as he sat on her bed. Everyone one else was in the room too, listening to Jesse explain what had happened over the past few days.

“Why’d you go to the shrines?” Rose asked Aiden with a flat tone as she was wrapping a bandage around his arm.

Aiden thought the answer was obvious, but he answered anyway.

“Wanted to find Lukas.”

She glanced at his face then back to the wound, “You got hurt anywhere else?”

Aiden let out a groan, “Who cares about me, we--”

“I care.” Rose growled as she tightened the bandage, causing Aiden to wince. “We all care.”

She breathed in and continued wrapping the wound. Aiden turned his head slightly to look elsewhere.

Jesse was sitting on the window ledge, surrounded by his other friends.

“Sorry we ran off.” He apologized again, he pressed himself against the glass.

“Just glad you’re in one piece.” Maya replied with her hands shoved into her pockets.

“Yeah, we already lost Lukas.” Olivia sat beside Jesse, “We don’t want to lose anyone else.”

“Ah,” Jesse said tiredly, “We’ll find him, won’t we?”

He glanced at his friends faces, all tainted with tear streaks and tired, defeated eyes.

Jesse landed on his last hope, Gill, for reassurance, but all he received was a pair of sad, scared eyes.

“Lukas is gone.” Gill croaked.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

It felt like the world had played a cruel joke on the day of Lukas’ memorial service. The skies were blue, clouds decorated the skies, there was a light breeze, it was the sort of day Lukas would stay up for, claiming the morning was too beautiful to sleep through, and it’d be a crime not to write.

It felt wrong to mourn for somebody they’ve yet to--and never will--find.

Jesse, Olivia, Aiden, Gill, Maya, Cassie Rose, and Stella all stood before the small memorial they had built together for their friend. A blackstone, squared base with three, thin, polished andesite columns on the front and back, with two columns on each side, and a top made of smooth, stone slabs. Lukas’ picture hung from the middle of the front-center column, surrounded by hundreds of flowers and candles.

They had expected many citizens of their town to attend, but were surprised to see people from other cities--including North Wind--to appear. People came to pay their respects, to thank him, to sympathize, and to apologize. Everyone listened to the eulogy delivered by Stella, who had to pause a couple of times thanks to her cracking voice, while the rest of Lukas’ friends shared stories and fond memories, or had only enough strength to say they’ll miss him.

No one was sure how long the service had lasted; their sadness had made it feel like an eternity, yet it somehow felt too short to do Lukas justice.

The crowd began to dwindle as the sun lowered. Cassie, Olivia, Gill, Stella, and Maya had gone home to finally sleep, leaving only Aiden and Jesse by themselves.

Jesse kept staring at the memorial, he kept taking sharp, quick breaths, sounding as if he were about to cry again, but he could no longer produce any more tears even if he wanted to. He was exhausted, his legs were sore from standing, he had held his hands together tightly for so long they were numb, yet he refused to leave.

Jesse felt Aiden’s arm wrap around and pull him close. Jesse had never been too fond of receiving hugs, Aiden was never fond of giving them, but for once, they did.

They needed to.

Aiden held him close.

“The second The Awakening slips up…” He whispered through gritted teeth, “We’re gonna give them Hell.”

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

“... Jesse stayed at the memorial for a while after I left. He needed time to be alone with Lukas.” Aiden finished. He leaned against the bookshelf and took a minute to rest.

Despite Lukas’ disappearance being one of the few moments in his life that had stuck with him, that had been ingrained into his brain and haunted him, he kept the few belongings to him out. He never wants to forget him. Never.

Jess was sitting on the chair by the cluttered desk, holding the poster in his hand. This was all surreal. Wrong. A piece of a terrible nightmare. It didn’t matter whether it was his Lukas or not, this was his missing poster. He was still gone. Pairing his familiar, smiling face with what he had heard caused a twisted, gut wrenching feeling.

“I’m…” Jess finally tore his eyes from the poster, “I’m sorry.”

There was so much he wanted to say, but that was all he could say. Hearing the story was awful enough, he couldn’t begin to imagine what it was like to experience it.

“Don’t be.” Aiden walked over and held his hand out. Jess gave him the poster.

“There’s nothing we can do about it now.” He lifted Lukas’ journal up and carefully slid the poster underneath.

Aiden placed his hand on top of the journal and paused.

He took a deep breath and turned to Jess, “We still need to find the rest of those items, right?”

“Let’s get working on that.” He said, forcing a happy tone of voice with no smile to accompany it.

Jess nodded. He pushed the chair in and followed Aiden out the room.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

“Jesse stayed at the memorial for a while after I left.”

‘I need to go home.’ Jesse thought to himself, still standing in front of the memorial. It was like he had been rooted into the ground, he knew he should go back inside, yet his mind refused to let his body move.

Standing here wasn’t going to revive Lukas, neither would tears and false hope. A part of him was praying he’d wake up tomorrow and see Lukas downstairs finishing his breakfast, or sitting outside of the house writing in his journal.

But Jesse wouldn’t, and he never will.

He’s gone.

Jesse inhaled, preparing himself to finally step away, when he heard footsteps and an unfamiliar voice.

“Hi, Jesse.” The voice was low and somewhat raspy.

He turned and saw a woman approaching him. Her skin was ivory, her hair was wavy, blonde, and ended a bit past her shoulders. She wore a scarlet red shirt with an open, dark gray, two-buttoned jacket with pants the same color.

Jesse had seen her before, she had given her condolences to him and his friends earlier at the service.

“Is… This a bad time?” She asked. Her blue eyes were soft.

“No, not at all…”

“Nell.” Nell said.

Jesse nodded. Nell stood beside him.

She clasped her hands and remained quiet for a moment, “I know the service ended but… Something inside me told me to go back, you know?”

Nell stared at the memorial.

“I’m so sorry, again. I wasn’t as close to him as you, but I knew he was a good person.”

Jesse mouthed the word ‘Yeah’, and pushed the hair out of his face. A lump was forming in his throat again, along with a strange, burning feeling in his stomach, but he remained in place. Though he couldn’t bring himself to talk, he was thankful for the sympathy.

“I--” Nell closed her eyes and breathed in, “I know what it’s like to lose someone you love.”

Jesse peered at her from the corner of his eye.

“It’s awful. It hurts, but… Jesse, I want to let you know you’re not alone.” She wrapped her arms around her body, hugging herself.

Jesse lifted his head more as Nell continued.

“I went to this support group and they really helped me through my darkest times.”

Something felt off.

“You’re lucky to have your friends with you, but… Would you give the group a chance? It’s a lot of people, but they’re mostly from here and… And they’re so understanding. Maybe you’d like it.” She gave Jesse a warm smile.

Jesse couldn’t take his eyes off her as thousands of alarms blared through his head and clashed with his pounding heart. His stomach felt as if it were being torn to shreds, and he repressed the urge to run away or vomit.

She didn’t have to use their name, Jesse knew what she was trying to do. He needs to go home, he needs to tell the others, they need to know. But maybe, just maybe, he would learn more of Lukas’ disappearance if he joined.

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melodymemorandums · 7 years

Text

Planning For Coerthas

Jigumundo Darkbore sits behind his desk, behind a huge stack of book and papers, examining his glasses through squinted eyes. He'd scratch his cheek, thinking intensely, and reaching for a quill to note something down.

Melody Adagio enters none-too-quietly, baby Aria was strapped to her back wiggling and 'talking' up a storm. She rounded the corner holding a small tray which held a hot kettle, two cups and a tray of crackers, cheeses and grapes. "Hello-OW- Aria, not Mommy's hair!" -throat clears- "Hello, Papa, we've come to see you!" Jigumundo Darkbore: "Huh." He peeked from behind his usual desk mess, squinting his eyes even harder, recognizing the voices. Too bad the figures were shapeless blobs... "Well, look at you, Mama and Aria... I hope."

Melody Adagio: "Is that sarcasm I hear?" she continues into the room towards the desk to see him squinting at them. "Oh dear, you were being literal."

Jigumundo Darkbore nodded with a pinch of bitterness pointing at his glasses being cracked before he'd slide them on his nose. "Yes. Yes I was. I've spend hours trying to find a way to fix my glasses... I'm afraid I might have to get myself a new pair. Again." He sighed deeply, displeased with the concept of spending money. "This was my favorite pair..." Melody Adagio frowns as she places the goodie tray carefully onto the table. "Hmm, I liked that pair on you too." Aria made an appropriate sounding disappointed noise, or it could have been disapproving. Who knows, it's hard to tell with babies. Melody Adagio : "You want me to take a turn at it?" she asked as she fixed them some tea. Jigumundo Darkbore shrugged bouncing off his chair, making his way to Mel. "Sure. Although I don't know what you will do... one of the lenses is broken." He took off his glasses handing it to his beloved, trading the specs for a baby.

Melody Adagio maneuvered to help get Aria out of her carrier. "Oh, well that makes it harder doesn't it..." she takes the specs and assessed the damage with her own, currently better sight.

Jigumundo Darkbore: "Since we came back I spent every evening researching a spell that would fix them. Neither Thaumaturgy or Conjuring has a solution." He sighed. "All my research for nothing..." He'd hang his head dramatically in front of Mel-blob. Melody Adagio: "That's a true shame. One would think, with so much magick in this land there would be something for this situation. Though I suppose that's how optometrists make their gil." she patted Jig's cheek lightly. Jigumundo Darkbore: "I need to find a reliable Machinist to get me out of this one..." It almost feels like he completely missed the point . Professor sighed, taking his glasses back, putting them where they belong. "You look... favorable today, dear." Melody Adagio raised an eyebrow at him. "I-uh...Thank you?" she blushed the tiniest bit. Aria had been looking at Jig and quietly baby talking to herself, but when his glasses came back she took her chance to grab at them. "A-Bah!" she cried joyfully. Jigumundo Darkbore got taken by surprise. Caught completely off guard by the baby got his frames snagged from his face. "Gah! Oh... Aria. Glasses are not for babies!"

Melody Adagio chuckled a little. "She's too much." she turned back to the tea and finished the preparations. "So, aside from broken spectacles, how has your day been? Anything new?"

Jigumundo Darkbore: "Quite a few things in fact. I have an interesting project in mind. At least proves to be challenging enough to keep me interested."

Melody Adagio nodded and left his cup on the tray so he could take it when it was wanted. She took her own and settled on the couch beside them, letting out a deep breath of relaxation. "So then tell me about it? What sort of excitement do you have in mind?" she grins, munching a cheese cracker she'd snagged from the tray.

Jigumundo Darkbore would probably gesture energetically but his hands were full of baby. "So... what if I would find a way to go on adventures... from the safety of my office!" His words were worthy of a madman but everybody knew that in his case... it's not necessarily far from the truth. Yet... as mad as his ideas sometimes are, they usually work.

Melody Adagio quirked her head and stopped chewing. "M-what you mean?" she swallowed. "Why wouldn't you leave your office?"

Jigumundo Darkbore: "I don't know... in case some expeditions would prove to be too dangerous?"

Melody Adagio still looked confused. "But how? I still don't understand." she took a sip of her tea to wash down the cracker. "I'm very curious."

Jigumundo Darkbore: "Imagine another me..."( Everybody run!) "...but mechanical."

Melody Adagio took a pause..."I think one of you is just the right amount for everyone, dear." she obviously still needed more explanation. "Are you telling me you're big idea is a mechanized clone of yourself?"

Jigumundo Darkbore: "More like a puppet. Yes. Let's say... a mammet that I'd be able to control."

Melody Adagio took another sip of tea. "I see...And would this mammet also be able to wield magic for you as well?"

Jigumundo Darkbore: "No." He'd shake his head. "Instead I would arm him with a selection of weapons and gadgets to... substitute for my magic." He'd pause for a bit, bouncing little Aria a few times in his arms, fixing her position. "Obviously it'll be physically stronger than me which I intend to utilize as well."

Melody Adagio: "But..." she scrunched her eyebrows. "What makes you want to hide in your office while your mammet handles all the fun?" it was her turn to miss the point now. "This seems a little toward the extreme..."

Jigumundo Darkbore: "It's for extreme cases. And if I won't be physically able to do it. I'm just considering different scenarios." He shrugged again. "Besides nobody has ever something like that. Not that I know of it. That would be some breakthrough research."

Melody Adagio quirked her head, then gave a small nod in agreement. "I guess you're right. Something like that could be very useful if it works right." she leans back a little farther. "Careful though, you may accidentally start a trend."

Jigumundo Darkbore: "At least I would get old and die knowing that I did something meaningful." He'd clear his throat. "Aside from the obvious, which is parts and all the utilities, I miss one crucial thing to make it possible..."

Melody Adagio: "You know you're not old yet, right?" she smirked from behind her teacup.

Jigumundo Darkbore: "I know. But it's also healthy to think about the future!" He'd raise his finger finally reaching for his cup and taking a sip. "Back on track though... We're going to take a trip to Dravania."

Melody Adagio nearly spit her tea back into her cup. "We-t-Dravania?" she blinked. "What in the name of the Twelve do you need there?"

Jigumundo Darkbore: "Have you ever heard of The Great Gubal Library?" He'd walk towards the table to look over the globe.

Melody Adagio tapped her chin. "I think I'd heard it mentioned around town a few times? Isn't it an old Sharlayan relic of a building, though?" she hopped off the couch to join him at the globe.

Jigumundo Darkbore: "Which holds an immense collection of tomes and scrolls. Nearly infinite storage of data and knowledge. Including some Allagan tomes..."

Melody Adagio: "Aaah, I get it." she smiles. "So first you'd need to know exactly how to make a mammet, then. I'm a little surprised you don't know how to do that yet since you can rebuild yourself the walking magitek armor..." she smiles at Jig.

Jigumundo Darkbore: "Believe it or not but Mammets are a little bit more intricate than a crude walking tank..." A duh, so obvious Melody, go educate yourself, geez.

Melody Adagio: Gives him a look of annoyance "Sooo sorry, Professor. I suppose I've simply no knowledge whatsoever as to mechanical ANYTHING." she frowned at him.

Jigumundo Darkbore leaned in to peck her cheek. "Not your fault." He cleared his throat again, pushing the glasses further up his nose. "Building a mammet is going to be the easiest part of it... controlling it over long distances is a whole different thing."

Jigumundo Darkbore: "I'm hoping to find my answers there."

Melody Adagio 's frown faded after his little kiss. "True. I wonder how you would manage that. Maybe a sort of remote signal?"

Jigumundo Darkbore: "Perhaps. Or by sending Aether over long distance... I don't know yet. We shall travel to Dravania through Ishgard. Perhaps we would find some help on our way."

Melody Adagio beamed with excitement at the thought of traveling to such a new place. "What about this one, though?" she looked down at Aria in his arms. "Would you be okay bringing her with us?" she poked at her baby's chubby cheeks.

Jigumundo Darkbore: "Uh... I don't know. That might be tricky. This might be too dangerous for her." He pondered for a minute. "Wait. Isn't Marzia in Coerthas now? I remember you mentioning something."

Melody Adagio: "She's been trying to stay down here lately. I think I finally talked her out of continuing her pointless search for Brio..." her eyes hooded a bit in sadness. "But maybe she can at least join us for part of it. Maybe like a guide of sorts." she looked back up with a grin.

Jigumundo Darkbore: "Excellent idea. And after that she would keep an eye on Aria while we explore Dravania. Land of the dragons is not a place for a child... not for now anyway."

Melody Adagio: "I'll try to convince her it's a good idea." she giggled at the thought of Mar trying to take care of Aria for an extended period of time. "So, just the two of us would go you think? Or did you perhaps have others in mind to join us?"

Jigumundo Darkbore: "It might be too dangerous to go just the two of us. Even with my magic and your skills... We may need a skilled healer and somebody to do actual fighting if the need arises."

Melody Adagio: "Miss Tisharu may need some more time to let her eyes fully finish healing, but she's capable from what I understand. Maybe we could ask her if she'd be up to it?"

Jigumundo Darkbore: "Preparations may take enough time for her to fully recover. If we're talking about Miss Tisharu, then we need to count Miss Leuvoix as well. She proved herself as a capable healer on our previous escapade. She'll be a fine addition to our expedition."

Jigumundo Darkbore: "...as much as difficult it is for me to admit." he places a finger on his chin, thinking. "I think I... owe her an apology..."

Melody Adagio: "Wait, what? You mean you still haven't apologized for throwing her out a window?" she seems shocked.

Jigumundo Darkbore: "No. Why would I. It was her own fault..." He shrugged.

Melody Adagio buries her face in disbelief.

Jigumundo Darkbore: "I owe her an apology for something different."

Jigumundo Darkbore: "That's not important though."

Melody Adagio looks at him oddly. Jigumundo Darkbore: "We have a lot of work to do!"

Melody Adagio looks annoyed with Jigumundo Darkbore.

Jigumundo Darkbore: "...what?"

Melody Adagio: "Can't say I care for when you don't tell me things..."

Jigumundo Darkbore: "I was a bit too strict with her if that really concerns you this much."

Melody Adagio raises an eyebrow and decides she'll just take his word for it. "I see. Good for you, then." She grins tauntingly at Jig.

Jigumundo Darkbore: "I don't understand how being excessively strict with somebody who didn't deserve that is good for me, but I'll let that slip..."

Melody Adagio rolled her eyes. "I meant for you apologizing and acknowledging a mistake you've made." she can't help but grin, then steps up and returns the peck on a cheek.

Jigumundo Darkbore: "Oh. All right then..." He returned the smile taking her hand. "Also... there's another thing I need in Coerthas, making it important to make a stop there."

Melody Adagio: "It's going to be a busy trip, then, isn't it?"

Jigumundo Darkbore: "Definitely. I abandoned my Magitek Reaper in Coerthas. I'm going to need it's parts. So there's that."

Melody Adagio: "Huh, I had been wondering where you've been hiding it. Makes sense."

Jigumundo Darkbore: "Uh... hiding is a bit of a stretch..."

Melody Adagio: "Do I need to be worried?"

Jigumundo Darkbore: "Uhm... No?" He bared his teeth in a troubled grin.

Melody Adagio: "It's not buried in a collapsed cave or something ridiculous like that....is it?"

Jigumundo Darkbore keeps grinning. A drop of sweat just slid down his forehead.

Melody Adagio sighs despondently

Jigumundo Darkbore: "It's not my fault!"

Jigumundo Darkbore: "...fine it is. A little bit."

Jigumundo Darkbore: "But not entirely!"

Melody Adagio: "I suppose we'd better bring some sturdy shovels."

Jigumundo Darkbore: "Heheh.... perhaps. LET US WASTE NO TIME!"

Jigumundo Darkbore walks a few steps towards the door, but stops and comes back really fast to hand Melody the baby. "Here. Hold her." And then he leaves.

Melody Adagio: "Uh...Jig?...JIG??!"

#ffxiv #balmung #roleplay #rplog #melody adagio #jigumundo darkbore #lalafell #lala baby #adorable

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