1 ? Aiden the Explorer
The world of Thallasa is a world covered by water. This world dotted by countless ruins. These ruins are under constant exploration. Explorers are jumping in to try and find the next big treasure. The last big treasure were magical runes. It allowed the inhabitants of the world to cast magic. It opened a whole host troubles with it, monsters now inhabit these old ruins. But with magic at their side, they can now fight back. But even with magic it is extremely dangerous and many explorers lose their lives in the ruins. It takes someone very brave to explore these ruins.
?Are we lost?? one explorer asked the other. She was a young woman with shoulder length blonde wavy hair. She was wearing a blue dress and white blouse with a brown vest. Her face was wearing a frown. And she was carrying a large book under her arm.
?Brigid,? the other explorer answered. He was a young man with short red hair. He was wearing a white shirt with a brown vest and black pants. His right arm was covered in bandages. His face was wearing a grin as he turned to face his companion. ?What kind of question is that? Of course we're lost! I've never been in this ruin before.?
However, a lot of people mistake stupidity for bravery.
?Ah...wha..,? Brigid was at a loss for words. ?AIDEN!? she yelled. ?How could you be so irresponsible??
?Hey now,? he said holding up his hands, ?who is really the irresponsible one here? The one we know is irresponsible or the one following the irresponsible one and expecting them to not be irresponsible??
?You,? she narrowed her eyes, ?you are the irresponsible one.?
?Oh whatever,? he shrugged, ?you can always summon your lightning fairy and have her find our way out.?
?My lightning fairy can not do that,? she sighed.
?She got us out last time,? he grinning back at her.
?That was completely by accident and she lead us straight to the guardian beast first,? she glared back at him.
?Well that's good right? I'm not leaving here with out the treasure,? Aiden said and started walking off. Brigid sighed and followed behind.
This was an average ruin no matter how you looked at it. There were stone pathways with torches lit along the walls. There was a high pitched yell from farther down.
?Get ready,? Brigid said and flipped open her book.
?I'm always ready,? Aiden said and raised his fists to his face.
The loud yell grew closer and was followed by the sound of footsteps.
?Sounds like there's only three of them,? she said and held up her hand. ?We want need anything too fancy,? a rune appeared beneath her feet. ?Aurora, heed my call!? A small cloud appeared before Brigid and floated to eye level. A small girl with blue wings popped out.
Brigid is a summoner. Summoning is an advanced form of Elemental magic. They call forth beings from different planes and use their powers as their own. Brigid is specifically a fairy summoner. Fairies are highly in tune with the elements and there magic is second only to the pure elementals. However, they are very frail to all physical attacks and magic attacks of the opposing element.
This is Aurora, an ice fairy. She had short curly blue hair and was wearing a blue dress to match. Her specialty is slowing the enemies down.
?Alright, you know what to do!? Brigid yelled and they both nodded.
?Wall of Mist!? Aurora yelled and two runes appeared on the walls and mist started spraying out of them. The enemies came into sight.
?Hmph, as I thought,? Brigid nodded, ?nothing but common goblins.?
Goblins are hideous creatures. They resemble small men with leathery gray skin covered in warts. They were tattered clothes and sometimes carry small knives.
?Skree!? they yelled and ran straight into the mist. They yelled again and kept running. Goblins aren't know for there intelligence.
Aiden snapped his fingers and red aura covered him and he kicked off with his right foot and lunged at the closest Goblin. He reared back and punched it in the face, it started falling back. Aiden took the chance to uppercut it and the force knocked it to the ceiling and it disappeared. He picked up one of the other goblins and threw it into the last and they disappeared.
There disappearing is just another reminder that they aren't from this world. No one knows what happens to them or why they disappear. The leading theory is that they go back to where they came from before the magic runes were discovered. Sometimes when they disappear they leave behind a treasure, but not this time.
?Good job Aurora, you can go back now,? Brigid said and dismissed her fairy. The mist flowing out of the walls disappeared along with her.
They continued on exploring the ruin. They turned the corner the goblins came from.
?Hey that looks important,? Aiden said, pointing at a large door.
?It's a start,? Brigid said and headed for the door with Aiden. They put her hand on the handle and pulled it open. Inside was a large room and in the middle was a giant stone humanoid. ?The guardian beast is a golem.? She said and they took a couple steps inside.
Guardian beasts, as the name implies, is the guard of the ruins. Most explorers view defeating them as their main goal. They stand at the end of ruins and defeating them always results in a treasure drop.
A surge of energy burst forth and t\he room itself seemed to become alive. Magical particles seemed to float into the golem. It started creaking and rubble started falling off of it. Aiden raised his first to his face and Brigid opened her tome. The golem let out a loud roar.
?Eclair!? Brigid held up her hand and a rune appeared on the ground in front of her. A great burst light struck the rune and a small girl with yellow wings appeared inside it. She had long straight blonde hair and was wearing a blue dress.
Eclair is a lightning fairy. She's full of energy and has enough of it to spare.
?Awesome,? Aiden grinned.
?Hey Aiden!? the small girl exclaimed and ran over and gave Aiden a big hug. When she let go she looked up and saw the golem. ?Tha...that doesn't look too friendly.?
?It isn't,? Brigid responded. ?Eclair, I need you to boost Aiden's speed and Aiden you just need to chip away at it while I study it and try to find it's weak point.?
Eclair and Aiden nodded. Eclair raised her hands in the air and a rune appeared below Aiden. He started jabbing and hooking in the air and laughed to himself. ?Yeah, this will do!? He yelled and lunged at the golem.
Aiden only came up to the golem's waist. He started punching straight at the beast's gut. It didn't take any noticeable damage. It reared back and punched straight down at Aiden. He jumped back and the golem punched into the ground. Aiden ran up the golem's arm and jumped on it's shoulder and kicked it in the neck. With it's free hand it grabbed Aiden and threw him to the wall. He flipped back and hit the wall feet first and jumped at the golem again and held both fist in front of him. He collided with the golem's chest and it toppled over. Aiden landed on the ground in front of it.
?That's it!? Brigid suddenly exclaimed. The golem stood back up and there was a large pile of rubble on the ground where it was. ?The knees! Work the knees and topple it over again!?
?Got it!? Aiden said and hit the golem with a straight right hit, followed by a left hook. He stretched back and snapped his hand, something started glowing under the bandages and let a straight punch go with all of his might that blew the golem's leg out from under him. The golem started struggling, but it was in vain and the whole thing toppled over.
The golem started vanishing into the air. A ring of light appeared where it was and book appeared floating in the middle.
?A book!?? Eclair said in disbelief. ?I wanted something edible,? she said with a frown on her face.
?Then I shall send you home to get something to eat,? Brigid said.
?Aww, come on! Can't I stay a little longer? I didn't get to play with Aiden at all!? Eclair moaned.
?We both know it takes a lot to keep a summon out,? Brigid said with a smile on her face.
?Alright, alright, play with y'all later!? Eclair waved good bye and vanished, taking the rune with her.
?My arms feel so heavy when she leaves,? Aiden said with his arms limp at his side.
?Come on, grab the book and let's get out of here,? Eclair said and head for the center of the room.
?Alright,? Aiden said and grabbed the book. The room was engulfed in light and the couple found themselves outside of the ruins. ?Wah, so bright!? Aiden said shielding his eyes.
?I don't think I'll ever get used to that,? Brigid said rubbing her eyes. ?It's been a rough day, let's head back to the Alkaid.?
2 ? Remmy the Spear
The Alkaid, Aiden and Brigid's own ship. All high ranking explorers have them. All ships come equipped with a path finding navigation system that's linked with the atlas system in the main hall of the Explorers Guild. Guild mates can add one another to the system so they can always stay in touch.
The ship comes with a large cargo hold under the deck and is very customizable, no two ships are exactly alike. The Alkaid has a cold storage for food with an Ice Crystal system to regulate the temperate. They have a water pumping station with a Nature Crystal to purify the sea water and next to it is a large tub with a Fire Crystal for bathing.
On deck, on the one end is the bedroom. There are many stacks of books scattered around the floor. Brigid has tried to organize it countless times, but it doesn't last long when Aiden needs to look something up. And on the other end is the Captain's Quarters. It's a large room covered in a red carpet with a desk at the far end. There were a couple of couches along the wall and a few bookshelves. At dock it is considered rude to keep the Captain's Quarters locked, so anything important must be placed somewhere else.
?That was refreshing,? Brigid entered the Captain's Quarters in a blue bath robe with a towel wrapped around her hair. She looked over at Aiden who was staring intently into the book they just found. ?Anything interesting??
?Not really,? he sighed. ?Not for us anyway.?
Brigid's eyes narrowed, ?What are you planning??
?Well, I just happen to know that the Seshat is nearing Pleiades?s Port. We should be able to intercept them before than,? he laughed to himself.
Brigid just sighed and stood up. She started walking out of the room, ?where are you going?? Aiden asked.
?To bed, it's going to be a long day tomorrow,? she said and walked out the door.
Aiden yawned and stretched his arms above his head, ?Yea, I better go to bed too.? He closed the book and headed to the bedroom.
It was the next morning, Brigid was peering into the navigation system, she looked up at the clouds and shielded her eyes from the sun. ?They're over there!? He pointed towards the northeast.
?Alkaid,? Aiden addressed the ship. ?Set a course to The Seshat.?
?Head's up,? Brigid said, ?they seem to be headed for us as well. They must have found something worth showing off as well.?
?Ah,? Aiden said a little dejected, ?I was hoping for a chase.?
?Maybe next time,? Brigid sighed.
The Seshat, Remmy's ship, appeared over the horizon. The two ships pulled up next to each other. Both parties looked at each other. Remmy, a childhood friend of Brigid and Aiden had a grin on his face. He was shorter than the average person, he had light blue hair and was wearing a white shirt with black pants and a red vest.
Next to him was Cassidy, she was taller than the average person and standing next to Remmy made him look even shorter. She had long red hair, that reached down to her knees. She was wearing a white shirt that showed off her firm and flat stomach among her other assets and a red vest, her shirt was sleeveless, once again showing off her muscles. She was wearing the bottom of a karate gi and was barefoot. She had a large smile on her face and was waving at the Alkaid.
Next to her was Cearul. He was of average height. He had short black hair and was wearing a black suit that made him look like a butler and the red vest. He had to same stern look on his face. Next to him, was Neala. Her face was hidden beneath the light purple hooded robe she was wearing and a red vest. She was holding a book in her arms.
?Hey you guys!? Cassidy yelled and reached over and grabbed the book out of Neala's hand, ?look at what we got!?
?We got one too!? Aiden said and held up his book.
?Yea, but does that one maybe have to location of a fairy grove?? Cassidy said with a smirk.
Brigid took a step forward and looked at the book, ?Hm,? she said looking at it, ?That's fairy writing on the spine.?
?None of us can read it, we figured it would be of some use to you,? Remmy explained. ?But not without a price.?
?You want this book,? he waved their book at them. ?I hate to say it, but there's not much in here. Only something about an Omni Legacy.? Neala gasped when she heard the words Omni Legacy.
?What! You didn't say anything about that?? Brigid yelled at him.
?Hm? What's an Omni Legacy?? Aiden asked.
Brigid's hand went straight to her forehead, ?How do you not know why we're out here? THE Omni Legacy is one of the most sought out treasures out there. Ever since the Magical Rune discovery we've received hints at the Omni Legacy's existence. They're all vague at best, but one thing is clear, it will change the course of history once again.?
?Hm,? Aiden looked at his book, ?well what do you propose we do??
?The usual,? Remmy said with a smirk, ?winner takes all??
Aiden handed the book to Brigid and put his fist up to his face, ?Come on!? He beckoned with one hand. Brigid let out a loud sigh and ran back to the bed room and Neala did the same, minus the objective sigh.
?I love this part!? Cassidy yelled and jumped from the Seshat to the Alkaid.
?There was a bridge,? Caerul said walking across said bridge. Remmy held out his hand and a rune appeared and created a spear and ran across the bridge with Caerul and Cassidy.
Remmy had a natural affinity to the light element. All his attacks are holy based and he can heal in a pinch too. Caerul was a wind affinity and knife user, he was fast and threw knives and could control where they went, however he could not take a hit. However, Cassidy was earth affinity and a fist user. She was slow, but could take more hits.
?Three on one,? Aiden laughed, ?Where's my challenge??
?Don't underestimate us!? Cassidy laughed and lunged at Aiden. He jumped back out of the way. Caerul threw knives and he sidestepped out of the way. Remmy thrust with his spear, with no time to dodge, Aiden punched with his bandaged hand. They both recoiled.
Cassidy took this opening and took a large step forward and put the full weight of her attack into her elbow and slammed Aiden into the wall of the Captain's Quarters. He staggered up to his feet and shook his head. He saw a glare and immediately jumped to the left, but it wasn't quick enough, one of Caerul's knife cut his right arm.
His bandages sled off his arm, revealing numerous black symbols tattooed all over his arm. ?Guess I have your permission to go all out then!? He smiled and snapped his finger, the runes started glowing and his arm became engulfed in fire.
Aiden was of fire affinity. After an incident when he was younger, he had runes tattooed on his arm. It gives him zero cast time, but at the cost of his life energy.
He punched and fire ball flew out. The three all jumped back. He held his arm straight down with his palm open. A fire spiral started crawling down his arm and he pointed his arm straight forward and a continuous strain of fire spewed forth. Caerul stepped forward and threw four knives on the ground and started chanted. An zigzag symbol appeared beneath his feet and a tornado started forming around him. The fire was drown in and he was engulfed in flames. The whole thing exploded and he was thrown back to the Seshat.
?Caerul!? Remmy shouted and ran straight at Aiden. While he was running he started chanted and an eye rune appeared in his free hand and he thrust it forward and a bright light was thrown from it.
?Ugh,? Aiden shielded his eyes and Remmy kept coming. Aiden started firing sporadically in the direction the footsteps were coming from. Remmy had to stop running and start defending.
There were loud foot steps coming from behind him. Cassidy started taking large steps to close the distance between the two. Still blinded, Aiden started firing at the louder steps. Cassidy didn't even stop and took all the fire balls. Realizing what was happening, Aiden stopped and started rubbing his eyes. He sidestepped in hopes to get away from them.
?Your trapped!? Remmy said.
Aiden shook his head and looked around. He gotten himself between both of them. ?Well crap,? he said. One of the runes on his arm started glowing and he punched the ground. A large shock wave erupted from the punch and it threw Remmy back. Cassidy shielded her face and took the front of the attack.
?Just you and me now,? she said and make the same beckoning motion he made at the start of the fight.
Fire and earth are polar opposites with one another. Fire is raw power while earth is pure defense. They ran at each other knowing this. Aiden landed a punch on her stomach, she returned by hitting his jaw. They continued to trade blows for minutes. Then Aiden suddenly smirked and swept her feet and lunged into her with his elbow. She had the breath knocked out of and she sled back. Before she could catch her breath Aiden was upon her and that rune started glowing and he hit her in the gut and created a large shock wave with her at the epicenter. She fell to her knees gasping.
?You've won,? she said between breathes.
Aiden let out a sigh of relief. ?That was some workout,? he said extended a hand to Cassidy with a smile. She smiled as he helped her up. The two bookkeepers exited their rooms.
Neala handed the book to Brigid, even under the hood, you could see the longing look for the book Neala was holding.
?Rules are rules,? Brigid said, ?and according to the rules of a duel both of the books are ours.? Neala looked heart broken, ?however, this book is near incompressible for just one person. I'm going to need another mage to help me look it over.? She looked up and her hood fell down reveling one of the happiest faces anyone has ever seen. ?St...stop looking at me like that. I'm doing because I can't read it all on my own.?
Remmy and Aiden started laughing, ?She hasn't changed.?
?Shut up!? she said and stormed off into the bedroom and Neala followed.
?Heh heh,? Aiden staggered a little, ?guess I went a little overboard. I'm going to take a bath.?
Remmy gave him a worried look, but knowing he was even less honest then Brigid, he let it go. ?Us too, come on Cass. Gather up Caerul and let's head back to Plaiedas.?
