Chapter 26 - Into the Capital

Fairy Tail: Paths of the Soul

Amber's lungs were on fire, it felt like she'd been running forever. She ran from building to building, between deserted streets, desperately searching for someone, anyone. The sky overhead was pitch black, and there was a strange rumbling in the distance. "Guys?!" She called, glancing down every ally she could.

Not mater how hard she pushed though, she couldn't seem to go any faster than a walking pace. It was like she was running underwater. She soon stopped and rested her hands on her knees, gasping for breath. After a few seconds the pain slowed to simple fatigue, and Amber looked around the intersection again. Each street looked the same as the last, devoid of just about everything. She grabbed her belt when a cold shiver ran up her back, looking for any comfort she could. "Armeria, come out." There was no response, and through it really didn't surprise her, it still didn't help.

She took another look around the intersection, not wanting to take another step further if she was just going to run blindly. "Guys, where are you!?"

At first there was nothing, until a faint voice echoed. "Here..."

The voice seemed to come from everywhere at once, Amber quickly spun around. Nothing but the dull rumbling in the distance could be heard, but it didn't matter, she knew who the voice belonged to. "Shelly!? Is that you!?"

"We're here." The voice called again, sounding closer now but still without origin.

Amber took off again, picking one direction at random. She had no idea where she was going, but staying put didn't seem to make much sense either. She made it maybe a dozen steps, but the ache in her chest returned fairly quickly and she stopped again. "This isn't funny!" She yelled, looking around for someone, anyone. "Shelly, say something!"

"Wake up." The voice echoed.

Amber stood stunned, more confused now than ever. "What?"

She felt a hand on her shoulder, and the streets and buildings faded away with a gentle shake. "Amber, wake up!"

Amber blinked a couple times, finding herself looking straight into the sun. She sat upright, pushing off the window of the train cabin she, Shelly, and Kat where occupying. "Hey, sleepy head." Kat cooed, pulling their bags from an overhead rack. "Have a nice nap?"

"Yeah..." She moaned, rubbing a sore spot on the back of her neck. They had all set out from Merow City with just minutes to spare before their departure, and barely had enough time to sit down by the time the train started moving. With Shelly occupying herself with her drawings and Kat trying to play a word game with Fiona, Amber had simply nodded off only a few minutes after the train had left. And apparently, if the darkened sky was any indication, she'd been asleep for quite a while. "What time is it?"

"Quarter after seven." Shelly said, rubbing her shoulder. "I never did like these long train rides..."

"Where's everyone else?" Amber asked after a quick headcount.

Glancing out the window, Kat smirked. "With Axel, making sure he doesn't throw up on anybody." Amber looked out the window as well, seeing Fiona and Geno standing on the train platform with Axel heaving into a trashcan. Zeke circled overhead as well, and Rift stood off to the side laughing at Axel's predicament. "C'mon, we should get going before the train leaves again." She encouraged.

With a nod, Amber followed Shelly and Kat out. Just as she stepped through the door however, she felt a weight drop from her waist and a sudden tug at her foot. "Wait Amber." Armeria stared up at her, pointing back into the cabin. "You forgot your bag."

Fighting through the flood of people trying to disembark, Amber headed back and found her bag sitting under her seat. After their last trip with absolutely nothing to carry, having a bag of her own was something that may take some time to get use too. "Can't forget about that." Kat quipped after Amber had gotten back. "Girl loses her bags after coming to the big city. You were almost the star of a real life comedy movie."

Hanging her bag over her shoulder, Amber shrugged. "I get that a lot." It was beginning to become uncanny how similar Kat and Jaina where, even though Kat still smiled more and was less... Grating. "So where are we going?"

"Nowhere, we're here." Kat said with pride, resting her hands on her hips they rejoined the others. "Welcome to the Capital of Lowindell, home of Bantia's one percent."

"I think she meant now that we're here, sis." Fiona chuckled.

Kat twitched, realising that was kind of obvious. Never losing her smile though, she continued to explain. "We're headed to the Omnison household. They're holding their annual get-together tomorrow; rich people from all over come and talk about whatever rich people talk about. And they hire us to work as security detail."

"Because rich people love their valuables." Rift quipped.

"Isn't the place on the other side of the city?" Axel asked, finally overcoming his motion sickness and standing up straight. "You telling me we have to walk all the way there."

"If we walked there, we'd arrive just as the party gets going. And I don't know about you, but I need my eight hours of beauty sleep each night." Kat huffed. The way she spoke, Amber couldn't tell if she was being sarcastic or not. She'd done it so much that it'd become impossible for her to tell anymore. "Naw, we've got a carriage coming to pick us up."

"Uhh..." Axel groaned, quickly rethinking his options. "I think I'll just follow along from the air." He shook the shoulder Zeke was resting on, making him nod in agreement. "I've had enough vehicles for one day."

Sensing the conversation was going in circles, Shelly had begun walking away to their meeting place. "You know you can't do that. The council doesn't like us using magic in the city without a good reason."

"It's totally a good reason..." Axel mumbled, even as the others began to leave as well.

As they walked along, Amber dropped back to walk with Axel, remembering how jumpy he'd get whenever the council got involved. She also began to wonder of everyone shared some trait with Jaina. "Why is the council such a problem?"

"They're always on my back whenever I break something." He said, sliding his hands into his pockets.

"Yeah, because you've got worse aim than Leo does, on occasion." Rift chuckled again.

Axel grumbled something, as did Shelly but for an entirely different reason. Fiona however, dropped back with them and said. "The Council is based here in Lowindell, so they keep a pretty close eye on the city." As she spoke, she gestured to a trio of people in wearing long white robes with a Council Emblem over the chest. "I wouldn't be surprised to see a few of them kicking around the party we're going to."

Amber sighed. With each new explanation, something more would spring to mind. "Then what're we here for?"

"It's more of a formality for them. In all likelihood they'll only send one or two people." Kat interrupted, having overheard them from the front of the group. "Someone from almost every major organisation in the country will be showing up, so you might see a familiar face along the way." Amber had mixed feelings about that. Sure, she'd met some interesting people over the last few weeks, but at the same time there were some she could think of that she'd like to never see again. While she thought, Kat ran ahead to a street corner with a large white carriage parked just off the street. "C'mon, this is our ride!" She called back, followed by a slow, disgruntled moan from Axel.

The sun sank below the horizon during their ride through the city. That didn't make it any harder to see however, as the buildings soon lit up bright enough that one could be forgiven for thinking it was daytime. The trip lasted another hour, through which Axel looked like he was going to pass out. They all got board of this after a while though, and soon took to admiring the massive buildings and bustling city life just outside their carriage window.

For the most part however, Amber was relatively unimpressed. She tried to look interested every time Shelly pointed something out, but nothing really caught her fancy. It was a long and somehow tiresome journey, but after a while the tall buildings began to grow farther and farther apart and the ocean could be seen between the houses in the distance. After passing over a long bridge that stretched over a canal, their carriage turned into a massive gate and followed down a long courtyard, eventually stopping under a canopy covering the front entrance. A dozen butlers and maids came out to great them, lining either side of the carriage and bowing as the group disembarked. "Welcome to the Omnison household." They said in predict harmony.

Though many of the Blazing Soul troupe simply moved along as if nothing had happened, Amber was stunned. A massive stone wall encircled the property, which was located on an artificial island and looked to be a town all of it's own. "This way please." One of the maids waved for her to follow, braking her out of her trance. She caught up to the others with a moment's jog, just as the doors opened to let them in. The inside was just as lavish as the outside; marble floors, a large staircase, and a massive chandelier hanging overhead. Amber found that it resembled the main hall of Aged Pelt, though with less books and more staff. From the looks of it the others were less impressed than she was, but that didn't deter her one bit.

While Amber took time to take everything in, a woman with light green hair wearing an elegant light red dress appeared at the top of the stares. Though she looked agitated to no end, she smiled the instant she laid eyes on them. "Kat!" She shouted, running down the stairs.

"Hey Sinann!" Kat responded, hopping forward to meet her. The woman threw her arms around Kat's shoulders, sliding to a halt on the smooth marble floor. "How have you been?"

"I hate these things... It feels like I haven't slept for three days!" She moaned, stepping away and rubbing her back. "Organising events, planning meals, inviting guests... Work, work, work. Just to have a bunch of people I barely know drop in and make judgments about how I've been running things." Kat giggled and stepped back when Sinann began looking other the others. "You brought a lot of friends this time."

Fiona scratched the back of her head, nodding towards Kat. "Yeah, she insisted. Sorry about that."

Sinann laughed. "It's ok. The more friendly faces there are around here the better." She scanned over the group, taking a second to inspect each of them. "I think I've met most of you before..." She crossed her arms to think after stopping on Rift. "You're one of the S-Class mages, right?"

"Sup?" He said with a grin.

"And..." She stopped again on Amber, touching a finger to her lip to think. "I'm sorry, I don't think we've met."

"Oh, that's Amber. She just joined the guild a couple weeks ago." Kat said, absentmindedly watching as people entered and left the hall.

"N-nice to meet you." Amber mumbled, feeling a little intimidated.

"Hey, Ms. Omnison?" Amber spun around to see Shelly standing right behind her with an anxious look on her face, almost like she was hiding. "Umm, your sister isn't here right now, is she?"

Sinann glanced back at Kat, then sighed through her smile. "Shelly, you can just call me by name. I don't mind." She spun to glance down the hallway in front of them, watching more people go about their business. "And yeah, she's here. I saw her upstairs in her room a little while ago, but I don't know if she's still-."

"Hamster girl!" A tiny voice echoed through the hall, and a small girl came sprinting down the stairs. "You came!" Everyone parted as she hit the bottom step, and she ran straight at Shelly.

Sinann grabbed the collar of the girl's shirt on the way, bringing her charge to an abrupt halt. "Lir, I told you to behave." She said, the agitation in her face returning in an instant. "What're you doing?"

Nothing, I’m bored!" She spat back. "I want to do something." Now that she was standing still Amber noticed something odd about her. She looked like a smaller version of Sinann, save for a patch of rust brown hair on either side of her head, as well as one dropping out of the back of her shirt. It took a moment, but Amber realised the girl had dog ears, and a tail!

"Master Omnison?" Another butler approached from down the main hall, this one looking quite a bit older than the others. "Please, we have matters that still need attending too."

Sinann glanced back at him, slumping her shoulders in annoyance. "God, I can't even have one second..." In her exasperation, she let go of Lir, who instantly raced to Shelly's side. "Can you guys make your own way from here? I'm sort of swamped."

"Big day planned?" Kat asked sarcastically.

Sinann smiled again. "Yeah. We've got a big unveiling tomorrow, so we're pulling out all the stops." She huffed, stretching out her back. "We've got a plan to-."

"Master Omnison." The butler called again. "We are running short on time."

"I'm coming, Ramosa!" She shouted back, looking more annoyed now than ever before. The man waited, not so patiently, as Sinann spun back to the others. "I'm never going to be done with this."

"Want a hand?" Kat suggested.

"God yes." Sinann said quickly, grabbing Kat by the arm and pulling along. Just as they passed the butler by, who appeared to have a look on complete distain on his face, she spun again and said. "Ramosa, can you get them settled?"

Despite obviously not liking the idea, the butler bowed in respect. "Of course, master Omnison." Sinann smiled back at Kat, who raced off together and rounded the corner in just under a second. After a long sigh, he stood up straight and addressed the remainder of the group. "My name is Ramosa Scarglow. If you'll follow me, I'll show you to your accommodations."

"Bitchin'." Rift quipped, seemingly aware that they had been deemed a bit of an inconvenience. "Lead the way, old man."

"Indeed..." He said with another sigh. "This way please."

Everyone picked up their bags and followed the old butler out. Amber lingered a moment longer to take one last look around, then noticed Shelly had stayed behind as well, and that Lir was tugging at her sleeve. "Hey, hey. Want to play a game?"

Quickly, Shelly took a massive step out of her reach, looping her arm around Ambers. "Sorry, it's been a long day." She sounded both annoyed and exhausted, and seemed to intentionally be keeping her distance. "I'll play with you tomorrow, ok?" Lir puffed her cheeks, but nodded none the less. A pair of maids approached and led her away, and Shelly tugged Amber along to catch up with the others. "C'mon, let's go."

An hour had passed since they arrived. Ramosa had led them all to a small building next to the property wall, and they had used the time to get settled after their long day of traveling. Their accommodations, as Ramosa had called it, was a suite around the size of the guild hall back home, with a pair of doors on either side that led to two sets of conjoined bedrooms. The rooms where divided between the boys and girls and everyone turned in for the night. Amber was busying herself by watching a few ships pass along the canal next to the property when Kat eventually returned, quickly telling them of everything she had seen while helping Sinann.

"She's calling it the Rainbow Stone." She said, talking about the big unveiling Sinann had mentioned. "It looks kind of like an opal, but I swear it's got to be the size of my head!"

"What're they using it for?" Fiona asked, having just returned from the other room after changing for the night.

"Well, it's actually a Lacrima. But it's really rare to find one that big so they're using it as a chance to get into magic tech." Kat shrugged. "Since Omni-Corp mostly deals with trades and agriculture, this'll be a pretty big move for them."

"Who?" Amber asked.

"Omni-Corp." Kat repeated, slowly realising the fault in her explanation. "Oh, um... Sinann's company, the one that she runs. Anyways, Sinann said they've got a bunch of investors coming too, so it'll help them keep afloat for a while."

Though Amber was trying to listen, the politics of it all bored her to no end. She glanced at Shelly, silently reading a book on her bed, and realised she had been strangely quiet for most of their stay. In noticing it, she couldn't help but think that Lir was the cause, and a whole other slew of questions came to mind. "Hey, about Lir." She interrupted, her curiosity getting the better of her. "Um..."

"You want to know about the puppy ears?" Kat said with a grin.

"And the tail." Amber added. "Yeah."

"Well..." She glanced at Shelly, who didn't say a word despite obviously hearing the conversation. "She can use Transformation Magic, and she's sort of starved for attention. Their parents aren't around much, and Sinann is usually too busy to spend much time with her." Shelly grumbled something, but they all thought it best not to ask her to repeat it. "She's like a typical rebelling kid. Except instead of black clothes and bad tattoos, she has dog ears and a tail."

"Guess there are worse thing's she could have done..." Shelly mumbled, looking sadder now rather than annoyed.

Somehow without Amber noticing how, Kat appeared beside Shelly with her arm around the girl's shoulders. "Oh, c'mon. She adores you." Shelly rolled away, apparently realising that this wasn't a conversation she'd win. Despite this, Kat carried on. "Your like, the only person she knows who's around her age. And you can use magic, so she thinks you're the coolest person ever."

"I'm older than she is..." Shelly moaned.

Kat chuckled, bouncing off the bed. "Not the point. But be her friend, ok? She's just a little lonely." It was weird to hear, but Kat almost sounded like she was being serious. Shelly sighed and nodded, and Kat returned to her usual tone like someone had flipped a switch. "Alright, we've got a big day tomorrow. So everyone get some sleep."

Shelly dove under the covers, apparently wishing for nothing else but this talk to be over. Amber rolled into bed as well, and Armeria climbed up to the center nightstand to rest. Just before the sisters departed however, Fiona stuck her head back in the door and said. "Remember, if one of the guy's try and sneak in, just scream."

"Good. Night!" Shelly interrupted, sending both Fiona and Kat giggling back into their own room with her tone alone. She quickly flicked the light off, then rolled over after Amber had worked her way under the blanket of her bed. "They're both kind of like Jaina, aren't they?"

"More than I care to admit." Amber mumbled, making them both giggle before drifting off to sleep.

On a tall building overlooking the Omnison property, a single man dressed in black watched the lights throughout the house slowly go out. A small manikin was perched on his shoulder, holding a communications lacrima to his ear. "The Rainbow Stone, huh?" He said, jotting down notes on a piece of paper. "Yeah, doesn't sound too hard. When're they showing it off?" He glanced at his watch, then made another note. "Right, anything else?" He listened for a second longer, when I wide grin split across his face. "Don't worry about it. They'll never see me coming."

The doll slid down his jacket, dropping the communicator into his pocket. He rested his elbows on the edge of the railing, grinning to himself while observing the vast Omnison property. "I think this might just be the crown jewel of Thain Rook's career."

Next Chapter – An Easy Job