Birth of Phoenix

The Time of Change, A Perfect Candidate is Chosen!
Victor could feel the world changing.

Ever since his company had been established as the world's leading innovator in advancing technology wrapped around the concept of using natural resources in tandem with modicum amounts of eternano to create clean, environmentally friendly fuel people all around Fiore and beyond recognized his work. His time as a young man, adventuring around the world to learn and discover magic were behind him, now settled down with a wife and two daughters, he began expanding his dream of uniting the world in a place where magic and technology will be one in the same.

While his influence was well known and his reach was expanding, the amount of reliable people to protect his dream and interests were growing smaller by the day. Not just because his business demanded too much, but because the time it takes for Official Guilds to react accordingly to any single demand, most problems either go away by the time they arrive to assist or the damage is already too great for their assistance to be of any help. Even his allies from the Midnight Titans Guild cannot be bothered with helping a big corporation incessantly, as many others keep pouring requests to their Guild regardless of any plight he may possess.

That's when it hit him. He would need to assemble a personal team of people who can protect his company, his dreams, and even become a new form of protection for the people depending on his business flourishing and providing the products all the citizens desire. They wouldn't be merely restricted to individuals limited by their human nature, inviting Mages to back up his interested and reinforce the professionalism that would be demanded of their expertise and response time.

These thoughts crossed his mind, as he sipped tea in his dining hall, just as the footsteps of a particular subordinate entered.

"Diana," Victor said with a polite tone, his face stretching into a pleased smile as he looked up at the stoic visage of his Virago Spirit. She was endowed in her Black Rider Armor, a beautifully crafted black suit, most suitable for daily chores and more mundane tasks. Under her left arm was a fold of newspaper, while in her right was a simple broom. Looking down down at the two items in hand, Victor mused lowly, "I see you've been keeping yourself busy."

"Yes, sir," Diana nodded with affirmation.

"Made progress with handling most of the servants' duties?" Victor inquired.

"Yes, sir," Diana responded crisply.

"You may be at ease, Diana," Victor chuckled, hearing Diana let out a sigh as her stance split into a more relaxed posture, "I'm sorry about having nothing for you more exciting. What with the majority of the staff taking a small vacation, and some others attending to personal estate projects, I had little man power left for maintaining the estate."

"Not at all, sir," Diana insisted with a shake of her head, her voice holding nothing but sincerity as she voiced her thoughts, "I prefer to be busy than loitering about. It is unbecoming of me if I became lethargic and let my senses dull just because no challenges of my speciality are available for me to assume."

"Glad to hear your enthusiasm hasn't dampened," Victor shook his head with amusement, straightening himself on his seat before standing upwards. Sipping his tea cup with his left, he reached his right hand out towards the rolled up paper under Diana's arm, "may I see that paper you got for me?"

Diana blushed, realizing she had totally forgotten about the article of news tucked under her left arm. Bowing her head rapidly, she stuttered out an apology, "F-Forgive my forgetfulness, sir! I meant to give this to you as soon as I reported-"

"No need to apologize," Victor raised a hand up with reassurance, setting down his tea cup back on the saucer, accepting the offered paper gratefully. As he unfolded it, he began to skim past the headlines regarding incidents across Fiore, and articles underlaying things involving his company. After turning a few pages, Victor narrowed his eyes at a particular headline titled, 'Moving Up With No Destination,' and began reading the article with audible curiosity, "hmmmmmm."

Diana silently arched a brow with inquisitive emphasis, placing her gloved hands behind her back as she awaited her Master's announcement.

"Very interesting," Victor murmured, his sharp eyes lighting up at what he saw, a smile of satisfaction gracing his visage, "yes, you are a perfect start."

"Sir?" Diana finally voiced her inquiry, cocking her head to the side.

"I have a task for you," Victor said with a level-tone, holding a sample of the excitement he restrained within himself. He noticed the immediate attentiveness of his close friend and personally treasured Virago Spirit, the sound of an order yearned within her being as his words came out accordingly, "there is a particular individual I want to employ within a organization I want to create. His track record, as it has been read, is impressive and he seems like the kind of character who would be ideal to be enlisted."

"Who is this individual, sir?" Diana asked in a stoic, but barely contained exicted tone of her own.

"An Independant Mage, known simply as Kenneth," Victor answered, putting the re-rolled newspaper back into Diana's hands, allowing the picture of the man and his article retain the information the subject matter laid out, "Kenneth of the Unbroken Promise, as the interviewer found out. Sounds like the perfect man to help my dream, as well as fulfill his own goals, does it not?"

"Sounds like a man with a strong integrity for professionalism," Diana reacted with a smile of approval, looking fondly at the mugshot of the sharp visage Kenneth held, ingraining it into her mind before looking up with a nod of understanding, "right. You want to recruit this man as a new subordinate?"

"More like a mutual associate, a partner if you will," Victor responded with a smile, unfastening a ruby ring from his left hand and handing it to Diana, "when you find him and convince him to listen to my offer, press the ruby on this ring. I'll be there, more or less, when called."

"A Thought Projection Ring? Of course," Diana nodded with understanding, placing the ruby ring onto her left middle finger, balling her fist a few times to get used to its weight, "the density is abnormal."

"That is a Lacrima Transmitter embedded upon the ring. Naturally it feels heavier than a normal ring," Victor explained with a matter-of-fact tone.

"Where should I look?" Diana inquired, her hands placed at her sides.

"Crocus," Victor said pointedly, his eyes blinking a few times as his eyes met hers with an authoritative light, "from there, you may use whatever means there is to convince him to listen to my offer. I believe you'll use your judgement in the means to accomplish this task as flawlessly as your others have been completed."

"Understood," Diana nodded, bowing her head to Victor before turning on her heels and walking swiftly out of the dining hall, leaving her Master behind to continue enjoying his tea with his thoughts.

Entering the courtyard pathway, Diana stopped dead in her tracks. Closing her eyes, she inhaled and exhaled, before opening them once more as she spoke aloud in an incantation of commanding decibel, "REQUIP!"

A sudden flash of silver light coalesced next to her, summoning her Silver Comet, the Magic-Powered Motorcycle. Reaching for the handles as she placed her body over its smooth leather seating, she revved up the engine with a few audible roars. With a final turn, her vehicle dashed off away from the mountain-base located estate and sped away towards the Capital of Fiore.

An Initial Meeting, Do you accept my terms?
It didn't take long for Diana to reach Crocus, having only taken the Lacrima-battery empowered cycle half a day to reach its premises. As she unsummoned her item, she strode into the bustling city and looked around the masses passing by her. She didn't see the man immediately, something she anticipated transpiring. To make up for this, she headed towards one of the busier pubs that companions and workers of all different classes hung around.

"It also houses Independant Mage Requests on a wall on the west side," Diana noted internally, as her body jogged through the busy streets during the late afternoon, aiming to reach the establishment while the traffic was light. She knew recruiting a man of notoriety and infamy among the media, she didn't want to start anything in case the deal went foul.

Reaching the dual Sun-Faced outlined entrance, Diana composed herself, adopting her stoic visage as she entered the bar. Upon doing so, she narrowly avoided a sudden mug thrown in her direction. Her eyes widened with shock, deftly spinning on her heels, avoiding the alcholic beverage and its container that smashed into pieces across the doorway.

Turning her head, she saw a particularly rowdy group of people laughing and carrying on their business. A few turned their eyes towards her, eyeing her up with drunken curiosity and lewd stares.

"What'schit? Ish dat a chick?" A large burly man with a thick black beard and a shoe-shaped hat on his bald head spurted out, along with a number of brown-colored suds.

"Sheesh purty. Why don'tcha com-HIC-come over here and have sum fun, heh?!" A skinnier man of younger age, having a black skull tattoo laced over his pale complexioned visage that made him seem both revolting and intimidating at the same time.

Both beared weapons and the tell-tale signs that they were freelance mercenaries.

Diana chose to avoid contact, not wanting to start an incident that would earn the ire of the local barkeep. Instead her sharp eyes and senses blocked their drunken mumbles and shouts. She began looking for a man under the description within the newspaper she stored in her pocket dimension for safe keeping. Upon seeing nothing, she furrowed her brows and cupped her chin with her right gloved hand.

"I can't look around the city, it's too big for that. This is the best place to find Kenneth. I best stay put and stake it out," Diana planned out, nodding with affirmation, turning around to walk over to a table near the back of the bar.

"HEY!" The skull-faced man shouted out loud, his hand grasping her left arm in a surprisingly strong grip, causing Diana to stop in her tracks, "I WUSH TALKIN TA YA!"

"Let go," Diana said in a level, calm tone, her visage obscured in a foreboding silhouette of obscuring shadows, "I will not ask again."

"Heh! Get a load of dish broad!" The Skull-Faced man cackled out, his grip tightening, his face turning around to talk to his hulking sized comrade, "sheesh tinks sheesh all dat! I jesh wanna getcha know eRRRRRRRRRRRRRMFFFF!"

In mid sentance the mercenary found himself grappled by his wrist and swung around, smashing in a painful crack onto the floor. The force was substantial enough to wedge his face into the wood frame below, the movement causing all eyes that weren't already attentive to the incident to be drawn what just happened at this moment.

"WHY YOU-!" The Burly Man reached for the hammer strapped to his back, suddenly seeing a flash of light project from an outstretched arm of Diana's, revealing a simplistic broadsword, its edge touching his neck. Sweat beaded down his face and his stupor dissipated under the sudden sight of what he saw, "y-y-you'ze a Mage!"

"I don't appreciate being manhandled nor challenged in such an unsavory manner," Diana said coldly, her eyes glaring daggers at the muscular man, forcing him to back up from her with hands upraised, "take your friend and leave this establishment. I think you've been here long enough."

"Uh...Uh...Uh...!" The Burly Man gulped, kneeling down to scoop up his comrade in his arms, his face bruised and bloodied, comically still having a board stuck around his neck, "I didn't like it here anyways!"

With a dramatic run out, the drunken pair left, and a series of cheers was raised by the rest of the attendants and customers. Diana could only sigh with relief, smiling with satisfaction as she Un-Requipped her blade. Turning to the Barmaster, she bowed humbly as she said apologized forthrightly, "I apologize for the damage to your floor. I can pay off the expenses."