Dragon Gunfire's Newest Mage: The Trial of The Scholar and The Knight

- Teresa stood before her classroom, the silence deafening aside from the sounds of turning pages and the scratching of pencils. The low hum of the fluorescent lighting always being a constant and thus hardly noticed by her and the students who worked tirelessly on their mid-term exam. She adjusted her glasses as she looked down from the students back to the book in her hands, knowing they had a little less than ten minutes to finish before they would be free to move on to their next classes. Time passed by quickly as the alarm sat on her lacrima phone went off and alerted the student to quickly place their pencils down on the table. "Time is up, please line up in an orderly fashion and turn in your tests. Then you may leave. For those of you whose last class of the day happens to be this one I wish you a good weekend and for those not so lucky I wish you the best of luck on your next exam." She said as the students began lining up to hand in their exams. The line was made up of the same people as always, some looking rather confident and others not so much while others didn't seem to care one way or the other. When all the tests were passed in she placed them in her bag and spoke with the few remaining students who had questions about future lectures and study material. She always had a pleasure talking to those students who seemed to actually want to be in her class, not finding it a coincidence at all that those students were often the same ones who did well on the tests. When she was the only one left in the room she began to pack her things, sliding the tests along with her own things into her backpack before sipping her thermos and sliding it into the left pocket of her back.

"Hello Teresa," said a voice from the doorway. A man clad in a red coat and black clothes was standing there. He ran his hand through his white hair, pushing it back as he walked over to her. "I see that your midterms are done. Knowing you, your class likely received top marks." He smiled at her, stopping when he arrived at her desk.

"If they studied and took the proper notes then they will and their success will be their own." She spoke, not looking up at the tanned gentleman as she threw her the bag over her shoulder. Only once that was done did she look up to see the man wearing his normal attire. "Hm, I see you've made no attempt to blend in. You do realize this is a college campus, correct? You could at the very least attempt to wear something more casual." She spoke, her voice sharp and her tone cold, nothing out of the ordinary for the woman known for her strict no-nonsense personality and often cold approach to others. "I assume you have a reason for meeting me here? I planned to stop by the guild later but I suppose you had no way of knowing that. Let's walk and talk, another professor will be needing this classroom soon for their five thirty lecture." She moved from behind her desk and moved toward the door, entering the slightly louder hallway as students made their way to class or simply found themselves waiting around in their free time.

William allowed her to pass him, and followed her out the door. Despite her somewhat cold response, William still wore his smile. "I have an assignment for you," he said. "There's a curse on a village. None of the other mages that have stopped by in the area have been able to save it.  Every night, a creature made from shadows arrives there.  Its been causing paralysis and insanity among the villagers.  Do you think you can handle it?"

Her heels clicked as they exited the building, the carpet giving way to the concrete of the sidewalk outside. The sun was on the verge of leaving its position as king of the sky, no doubt going to turn over it's crown to the moon in only a few more hours causing elongated shadows to begin casting themselves from anything that dared to block their light. "Hm, a village cursed by a creature made of shadows. I don't know much about curses or things of that nature but the job sounds interesting enough I suppose. I'm guessing this appeared as a job on the board, did the flyer say anything else? Or the people who failed before us assuming they returned alive?"

"The only other description it gave was to not let it touch you," answered William. "The information the village possesses is understandably sparse. Although, not just you will be going on this mission.  Do you remember Jason Gaebolg?"

Reaching up with an open hand she adjusted her glasses with her middle finger, pushing them up to once again rest comfortably on the bridge of her nose. "Don't let it touch you with no reason as to why as if anyone would simply allow it do so for the pure joy of letting it? They could have at least explained why that is. Does it curse you? Instantly kill you? Drag you into a shadow dimension from which you will never escape? I do believe the answer to that question will eventually be most important to our strategy once we come to face the being." She spoke quickly as if she were only allowed to speak so many minutes within the day as the two came to the edge of campus, crossing into the market district of Crocus where the smell of food and other items began to fill the air. " I suppose that is a bridge we will cross when the time comes. As to answer your question, I know of the man but I do not know him personally. I have yet to find the time to get around to knowing every one of the guild members quite yet. Do forgive my delay in such things but I assure you I am much more free to do as I please now that mid-terms are completed, my only required task now being to grade them and return them next week." She said before stopping and turning toward William. "If possible I would like to return to my home and get ready for this mission before leaving either tomorrow morning or later tonight. I am capable of whichever you think would be best so long as my partner can agree to the same."

"It would likely be best for you to leave tonight," William responded. "Even if you can't stop it, you'd likely get a glimpse of the monster and learn a way to defeat it. I'll inform Jason.  He possesses a fair bit of knowledge on the dark arts, which is why you'll be sharing this mission.  As to why you shouldn't touch it, as soon as you do, you can't move."

"An interesting development indeed. I suppose it's a good thing I have no use for close combat. As for the time of our departure, tell Jason that I will meet him at the train station at seven this evening. I'll assume you'll tell him our exact destination and I will learn of it once I arrive but until then I will bid you adieu, I have preparations to make." She said, giving a slight bow before leaving William and heading toward her home to get ready for the sudden and unexpected task asked of her. Once she found herself packed and ready she made her way down to the market once more to grab a few things she figured she made need during the duration of the trip. When all preparations were made she walked to the train station to await her partner's arrival.

By the time she arrived, he was already there, a pale man wearing full black armor, covering every inch of him except for his joints and head. The leader of the Spartoi, and one of the strongest Mage of Dragon Gunfire, Jason Gaebolg. "You must be Teresa," he said. His words somewhat dragged, as if he was suffering from sleep deprivation. "It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance." He extended his hand to her, asking for a shake.

"Likewise," Teresa said, taking the offered handshake before letting her hand fall to her side again. "I assume William did give you the exact location of this village we are supposed to be visiting, is that correct? If so I would much appreciate it if that information was shared with me. After all, until this point, I've had no idea where it is I am being sent off to and I believe being given such information would only be common courtesy." She said, paying no mind to the man's grandiose attire, suddenly feeling glad that it had been William to visit her on campus as his chosen clothing only just barely stood out when compared to the full suit of armor worn by her temporary partner.

"It's a remote town called Lilium," answered Jason in the same manner. "It's near Onibus, but the train doesn't pass through there directly. We'll need to depart at Onibus Station and go the rest of the way on foot." He was very matter of factly, his tone of voice showing a desire to not waste any time. He beckoned her to follow him onto the train as he spoke.

Adjusting her glasses, she followed him onto the train, giving the conductor their tickets and finding their way to their seats. She sat closest to the window, crossing one leg over the other the moment she took her seat. "Hm, Onibus is where Koma Inu is located if I remember correctly. Odd for us to receive the job request with such a large guild nearby but I suppose humans aren't exactly the most logical creatures. Anyhow, I believe it best that we at the least exchange basic information with one another if we are to be working together. Knowing each other's names will mean nothing if we don't know each other's strengths and weaknesses." She said, crossing her arms as the train whistle began to blow before the train jerked forward and started moving. "As you know I am Dr. Teresa Stein. I am a user of Crystal and repair magic. This is my first job so I'm not quite sure how all of this works yet but I doubt it will be too hard to figure out as I go along."

Jason didn't look at her as he began to speak. He looked out into the hallways outside of their train cart, his eyes darting from each person passing by. "Koma Inu likely doesn't have as much experience with the Black Arts. While they do have scholars in their guild, Dragon Gunfire is the only guild with an expert on the subject such as myself.  I utilize Darkness, Chain, and Barrier Magic, as well as Amaterasu.  My Darkness Magic is more unique than most in that also possesses some qualities of Gravity Magic.  I also possess two unique spells called Katsu and Quasar.  Katsu incinerates anyone who is intimidated by me, and Quasar uses Gravity Magic to absorb anything in a certain radius before blasting it out as a large beam.  On top of this, I also possess a unique transformation.  One of the many things it does for me is give me these." He turned towards Teresa, his eyes suddenly being pitch black. "They allow me to see magical signatures."

"I do suppose there is an equal amount of charm in complexity as there is in simplicity, " she spoke, referring to the number of different abilities that Jason had just listed off. "However, considering that you happen to be an expert in the usage of darkness magic I would assume this shadow being won't be too much trouble for it. To be completely honest, It seems odd that I was asked to accompany you but I don't feel that questioning it will solve anything at the moment." She spoke, the train continuing forward, their stop in Onibus getting ever closer as the two sat in the nearly empty car of the train. "Regardless, I imagine that your usage of Darkness magic will play a key role in our future fight against whatever this thing is. Is there anything else of note you feel the need to tell me? Is there any hints as to what exactly this curse might be. I'm sure the villagers are tight lipped but surely someone has been willing to speak up, right?"

"The villagers have actually been very open about this creature," said Jason, his eyes turning back to normal. "The problem is that they don't anything about it either. All we know is that it only comes out at night, it has been plaguing the town for about a month, and if you touch it you'll be paralyzed." Jason touched his fingers to his chin, as if he was in thought. "Although, the villagers noted that all of the attacks were in the same general location."

"That sounds fishy, doesn't it? For there to be a curse on a village for no reason and if this thing is simply some kind of creature why would it keep attacking the same village time and time again without reason? Contrary to popular belief, very few things happen without some kind of cause and effect." She spoke as the train pulled into the station. The sky burned with the scarlet orange of a setting sun, like a ticking clock counting down the hours left before darkness invaded to snuff out the light and whatever creature they were dealing with would come out. " I understand the need for a darkness magic expert but considering the fact that the creature seems unable or unwilling to leave its dwelling to attack during the day I can't help but feel a light magic user might have made more sense." She thought out loud as the two took a carriage out of Onibus and toward the village they needed to reach.

"Perhaps," said Jason, "but the only dedicated Light Magic user our guild possesses is Matthew Drakon, and he is lacking in experience. Master William thought that I would be a better fit for this type of mission." He put his hand to his chin as he thought. "When we arrive it would be a good idea to ask when the attacks began, and anything out of the ordinary that may have happened beforehand."

The two reached the small village just before the sun had fully set. Making their way from the carriage the two made note of their surroundings. The small village was surrounded by thick forests with only one path in and out of the village side from the small forest trails that seemed to move deeper into the woods. The shadows cast by the setting sun gave the small town an ominous atmosphere as the shades of the trees seemed to reach out toward the houses like boney figures threatening to grasp at any who dared to venture out when the safety of the light no longer provided its protection from the unknown. The few who braved the streets were those of shop keepers who even so seemed to be closing up as what remained of the sun began to disappear behind the trees. Teresa nodded, signaling for Jason to follow as she made her way down what appeared to be the central street of the town down toward a house that seemed to rest in the middle of the village and thus seemed the most likely place for any important figures to be. Upon reaching the larger building, she reached out her hand, knocking softely before waiting for someone to answer.

A young girl with long blonde hair, pale blue eyes, and fair skin was the one to answer. She was beautiful, although Jason failed to recognize that. "You must be the mages from Dragon Gunfire," she said, "please come in."

Jason's eyes turned black as he activated his Dark Eyes, briefly scanning the room. The woman made a tiny yelp and took a step back at this before regaining her composure. He briefly turned to Teresa, giving her a nod to tell her the room was clear. He stepped into the house. "Are you the one that made the job request?"

"No, that's my father," said the woman. "He's the mayor."

As she said this, an older looking gentleman entered the room. At the sight of the two mages the expression on the man's face became one of relief as he greeted them. "You must be the mages I was told were coming. I can't begin to tell you how happy I am to see you."

The man motioned them into what seemed like his office, a small room containing a desk with two velvet chairs before it. The man rounded the desk before taking a seat, motioning for Teresa and Jason to follow. The mages did and took their seats across from him.

"My name is Godfrey and I am the mayor of this town. I must thank you two for coming on such short notice."

"I am Teresa and my partner here is Jason. We are indeed the mages you have been expecting. It's a pleasure to meet you." Teresa spoke to get formalities out of the way to get to the meat of the problem at hand. "We're here to deal with your shadow problem, it would be helpful if you could begin there. When and where did the attacks start taking place? And what can you tell us about the creature itself?"