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~ The Hunt for Eloquii Aequoris, pt II ~ Keydis had yet to meet any other bounty hunter who'd be so calm about losing their mark. Deciding she had seen through the ruse, she laughed. "Sure sounds like something an accomplice would come up with, but I saw you two being all buddy-buddy over there, so don't even try it!" The girl plucked the hat from the sword, holding it behind her back. "Think they'll pay me double if I turned both of you in?" Did she..? A curious look crossed Annora's face, before she responded in an almost confused voice. "Are you... serious?" "Huh?" El said. From where he stood – leaning over the bench, one han

~ The Hunt for Eloquii Aequoris, pt I ~ Eloquii Aequoris, Wanted for Crimes in the Port City of Avelyn, Said Crimes Including Attempted Piracy, Assault and Battery of the Citizenry, and Malicious Arson. A Reward of Five Hundred Exa will Henceforth be Awarded for the Apprehension of This Criminal if Alive, One Hundred Exa if Dead. The commons room of the Fraternitas branch was still flooded with people come to marvel at the new grandis speculum. The large green screen was protected behind a cage of steel bars, but everyone could still see the displayed bounties. Rare and expensive, the device was made with vitatium, giving all of the images

~ Iucunda Memoria ~ (Phantoms III S) The Nocte Nils festivities grew louder as the sun fell lower in the sky. After long days hard at work, people were going out on the streets to enjoy the revelry. Many of them took up weapons to go join in on Gavelock's Hunt, others recounted tales of the Cataclysm and the struggles that faced the first survivors. Dances and games started up at various town squares, old songs roaring along with whatever instruments people could scrounge up. Nocte Nils had always been a big celebration, but being the five hundredth anniversary, people had gone all out this year. All of the noise seemed dim, however, a m

Victory: Loss Feet, padding towards her. Fervent, panicked, terrified. A worried face, framed in pale blue. Tears, spilling onto her face. Darkness. Movement, being lifted. Harsh language, both in Common and in snarling croons. Warmth, spreading from her chest outwards. Darkness. Wispy laughter, like nails on a chalkboard. Slipping through her mind like sand through glass. Numb, her arms. Can't breathe, can't breathe..! Darkness. Keydis awoke slowly, bundled in a small tent with barely enough room to sit up in. The crackling of fire reached her ears, a pleasant warmth spreading down her limbs as the sounds of forest and rain grac

~ Caeancora, Phantoms pt X ~ Her eyes opened to a sky full of stars. Wind blew softly by, brushing against her skin, ruffling her hair. How long had she been falling? Keydis slowly realized that she didn't feel like she was falling at all. She turned over. Below her there was only an orange sky, near sunset or sunrise. 'Below' might not have been accurate, however. On one side, night; on the other day. The ground was nowhere in sight and there was no sense of up or down. Keydis floated there, her mind foggy and distant, trying to think of why she was there, how she had gotten there. She looked down at herself, only then realizing that

~ Aurora, Phantoms pt IX ~ In the darkest corner of the darkest pass in Hiemis, stood the wreckage of the airship Promoveo. In the deepest corner of the deepest deck of that airship, Keydis stepped into the engine room. The writhing tendrils of pitch and tar seemed to come alive as they spider-webbed around the frame of the door, sprawling up through the destroyed floorboards to creep across the entirety of the ship's frame. Inside, the engines were dead. A great hulk of steam and steel sat dormant, unmoving. Yet, just behind it, on the far wall, a distinct light could be glimpsed. A vibrant violet, accompanied by the ever-so-soft sounds o

~ Umbra, Phantoms pt VIII ~ The morning of the fifth day after leaving Terminus found Keydis standing atop the Cliffs of Aerius, overlooking the Sea of Aquilonia. Over two hundred meters below, at the bottom of the sheer cliff-face, waves pounded over rocks, crashing into sprays of sea foam. White gulls cried out overhead, riding the sea breeze. The laicar had parted from the caravan in the late afternoon, two days earlier, saying her goodbyes and promising to meet up with Annora in Excelsus. From there, she had walked the rest of the way. A day and a half of solitude immediately made her grateful for the companionship on the rest of the t

~ Ante Passionem Poise, Phantoms pt VII ~ The dry crunch of frozen grass echoed loudly as the treaded wagon made its steady path across Western Hiemis. Frost stretched lazily across the roof of its cab, and the breath of its occupants now condensed into a fog with every exhale. At the front, the enclosed steel cab was closed and occupied, while a number of hunched forms sat in the bed at the wagon's rear. Pulling the wagon with little care for the biting cold, a pair of basilisks were chained and reined into the front of the cab, inside of which sat the controls for their leads. Sitting in the cab, Gaius operated the driver's seat, occasi

~ Acta non Verba, Phantoms pt VI ~ "Fuck! My back!" Keydis yelled out suddenly. The girl growled as she curled up, trying to alleviate the sudden pounding pain in her spine. She pushed herself to her feet, grunting as her head hit the metal ceiling of the caravan's cab. Dropping back into her seat, the teen rubbed at her lower back and cracked an eye open, squinting at the sunlight pouring in through the window. Gaius was seated next to her, eyes wide. When she turned toward him, he flinched, as if afraid she would hit him. "Ugh. I dozed off. How fucking long was I out?" Rather than answer, Gaius pointed outside. Annoyed, Keydis fumble

~ Terra Firma, Phantoms pt V Noon brought cloudy skies and ugly horizons to Terminus, the Western Gates sitting tall and undaunted by the distant storm. The large auritium gates held a dull sheen, ovular and reaching almost halfway up the wall. At a more reasonable height, bigatium doors had been installed within the larger gates themselves, permitting smaller caravans and general foot traffic with ease. Lined outside this gate, a number of stalls seemed to stretch on well back into the outlying districts. Sitting inside, carts and wagons of various designs and condition were parked, their attendants lazing about nearby. At the far end, to