Peeking over Aristespha's shoulder, Sebastian's ghostly form hovers nearby. He samples the sections the text Aristespha reads from a pile on the dining table. Eyeing over at Aristespha's worn gaze, he inspects the document currently in her hands. Aristespha tosses her long silvery blue hair back, groaning out a long sigh, and slowly shakes her head. A defeated frown slips out upon her face, and she drops the stack of papers upon the table top between other piles of research materials and a tablet. Bach idly rocks side to side in his seat, wrestling a mix of boredom and stale frustration, and strains to keep his eyes upon the heavily notated printout. Losing the battle with his diminishing attention span, he releases the paperwork upon the dining table and rakes both hands through his brown, longer hair. Sinking back into the dining chair, he stretches a grimace on his light tan face. "Damn. I've run through all this stuff a few times... And, I can't figure out anything new."

Nodding slowly, Aristespha brushes her hair back, guiding a few stray strands over her very long, pointed ears. "Same. Here."

She blinks her violet eyes, stretching her arms out in front of her, and rests her hands on the table top. "Okay. Reviewing all this... Noxian-"

Pausing a moment, she twists the corner of her mouth. "Well, Isaac, seems to be interested in these sites and ruins near coordinates detected by that research outpost. I believe we can now safely assume that these sites have had some kind of involvement with elder energy, since we keep finding energy collectors of some variety."

She lifts her hands up and rubs her ivory skin along the blue gray hints at the temples of her head, grimacing with a long, worn sigh. "He has definitely been collecting power where he can. But, I cannot help to think there is something else he is looking for."

Sebastian hums ethereally in thought, floats down into an empty seat at the table, and crosses his arms, delving into the discussion. "Alright. Gathering power makes sense. Going to places that have elder energy makes sense, still. We're still not certain what his end goal is..."

Lifting a quizzical brow towards Bach, Sebastian cocks his head to the side, posing a question. "But... The fact he seems to be changing things up because of what he learned about your elder energy connection... That's what I'm trying to figure out."

Bach blinks blankly, searching his mind, and squirms slightly in his seat. "I don't know. I mean, if he could figure out how I'm getting elder energy..."

Snarling his upper lip, he uncomfortably groans out. "And gods forbid, reproduce it..."

He frowns with his conclusion. "It'd certainly solve his problem with acquiring power."

Sebastian nods in agreement, twisting his mouth, and sorts through his thoughts, grumbling. "Yeah... THEN, he'd just build up his power far from anyone else, and then do whatever he wants when he feels the time is right."

Mulling over the possibilities, he focuses his gaze at Bach and inquires hopefully. "Hey, bro, you sure he didn't mention anything else to you when you ran into each other? Insinuated anything? Even an odd reference?"

An uncomfortable wave travels through Bach's body, and a frown slowly weighs down his face. Furrowing his brow, he plays back recent memories in his mind with a squint. "I- I've gone through that whole thing in my head. Multiple times. Nothing blatant stands out. Though..."

Grimacing, he narrows his blue eyes inward and uncertainly comments. "Isaac seemed really happy I was using elder energy in the ways I have. And, I mean, he seemed really honest with offering to help me. It's strange. It really felt different talking to him then, than Noxian before."

Aristespha twists her mouth and sighs. "I really do hate to say it, but it might have been truly genuine. Isaac was an academic, a knowledge seeker, and a very supportive member of the Grand Library during his tenure. Unfortunately... Him and that particular group were not much for respecting limitations."

Sebastian's ghostly form phases slightly through the chair and table, drifting into a deep line of thought. A minute later, he blinks his translucent blue eyes, floats back in sync with the physical objects around him, and cocks his head to side, staring uncomfortably. "Actually training others to use elder energy? Possibly recruiting people to whatever his cause is?"

Cringing, Bach sighs and rests his forehead on his palm, searching in mind. "Man. I don't know. That could make sense..."

He glances over to Sebastian, pondering out loud. "Instead of trying to do whatever he plans by himself, train others to assist him? Gods, that's fucking terrifying... The LAST thing this world needs is more elder energy users. The worst magical disasters I've ever heard of happened because of elder energy."

Squirming briefly into an uneasy roll of his shoulders, Sebastian glances over to Aristespha and awkwardly approaches the topic. "If I remember right, dear, some weird zones were the result of such disasters?"

Aristespha sighs deeply and nods solemnly. "Yes, Sebastian... That is what the current consensus of evidence points to. Well. The evidence that existed afterwards. Numerous things that plague us today stem from elder energy misuse."

Pushing her mood towards levity, she slides back her chair away from the dining table and stands up into a long, slow stretch. "Historians at the Grand Library joke that the fact the planet was NOT annihilated before the Abstract Prism proves the gods exist, and they are strangely merciful. Anyway..."

She surveys the kitchen prep area, through the bar opening. "Does anyone want anything? I'm brewing some coffee."

Bach glances to Aristespha and briefly lifts his hand up. "Some tea, please. Nothing special."

Pivoting around towards the living section of the large room, Aristespha tilts her head to the side, watching Dretphi pull out a cloth measuring tape along Cideeda's outstretched arm. "You two want anything?"

Cideeda blinks to attention, searches her mind with her emerald eyes, and perks up her furry ears. "I'll join in on the coffee."

Dretphi glances over her shoulder and nods towards Aristespha. "Coffee will be fine."

Snorting ethereally, Sebastian shakes his head amused. "Gods. Almost noon on a Wednesday, and we're already hitting the coffee again."

Aristespha rolls her violet eyes with a dismissively humored toss of her hair and presents a defiant smirk. "Oh, please. This isn't my worst abuse of caffeine."

She groans on her way into the kitchen area, sneering her upper lip. She prepares the larger coffee machine, mumbling. "And, fuck me, if I'm going to dig through all this material again for some off the wall reasoning we haven't found yet..."

Pulling in a calming breath, she exhales. "I am going to need SOMETHING to keep my mind from wandering to ANYTHING else."

Cideeda's furry ear flicks back from listening to Aristespha, and she nods to herself with a commiserating smirk. Dretphi kneels down next to Cideeda and wraps the fabric measuring tape snugly around Cideeda's hips, squinting at the end overlapping the marks on the strip. Briefly opening her eyes wide, a relevant concern enters Cideeda's mind, and she taps Dretphi on the shoulder. "OH. You should probably get a measurement with my tail wrapped up. I always buy body suits with a little extra room because of that."

Dretphi releases the tape measure from around Cideeda and writes down another number on a pad of paper. "That would be wise. I have options to contend with that."

Cideeda's long, fluffy tail curls between her legs, flicks upward in the front of her shorts, and loosely coils around her waist. With well practiced methodology, Cideeda combs down the medium length fur with her clawed fingers, gently tightens the slack in the partial wrap, and guides her tail the rest of the way around and back between her legs. Using a bit of effort, she works the tufting at the end down and secures the wrap between her thighs. She lifts her hands up away from the area and nods towards Dretphi. "Okay. NOW take a measurement. The tail always adds a few centimeters around the waist and hips."

The sliding glass door opens up, and Sotalia walks in with a towel around her shoulders. Closing the door behind her, she takes a few steps and dries the damp ends of her fiery orange, wavy hair. She stops midway, blinking curiously at Cideeda and Dretphi, and lets the towel drape over to either side of her bikini top. Observing Cideeda standing around with her tail coiled around in a rough imitation of her bikini bottom, Sotalia smiles intrigued, resting her hands on her hips, and chuckles lightly. "Gods. Sometimes, I just can't help but get a little bit jealous of those with tails."

Cideeda gazes over to Sotalia, crossing her arms, and shrugs with a nonchalant tone. "It has its benefits."

She presses down an embarrassed smile. "Honestly, I'm still surprised I made it out of childhood with it intact."

Rolling her emerald eyes at herself, she smirks with a lighthearted snort and slowly shakes her head at the memories. "I mean, by all odds, between my dad's junkyard and my mom's metal shop, it should have been shortened from all the trouble I got into."

Sebastian glances over to his brother, smirking. "Yeah. I doubt we'd have anything left by now, if we had tails."

Bach smiles tightly and blinks with a rocking nod, briefly gritting his teeth. "Yeah..."

He ponders a moment and gazes back over to Sebastian with a curious tone. "So... Between us... Who would have lost part of their tail first?"

Lowering his head in reflection, Sebastian's eyes sort through a long series of memories, returning to the conversation with a twist of his mouth. "Probably me. OH. Actually... Definitely ME."

He furrows his brow towards Bach. "But, I don't think you'd be too far behind, bro."

Mulling over the answer, Bach quickly nods back in agreement. "Oh yeah. That wouldn't surprise me at all."

Dretphi finishes taking the measurements. Cideeda's tail unravels free from around her shorts, flips out behind her, and wags in purposeful stretches. Stepping into position for the next set of measurements from Dretphi, she flashes a prideful grin towards Sotalia. "One of the benefits to being the only child was getting all the attention and care from mom and dad..."

She averts her emerald eyes briefly. "If only to save me from myself."

A bit of embarrassment sneaks out onto Cideeda's face, and she smiles awkwardly. "Thinking about it NOW, Fate was kind to have me be the special, unexpected little surprise to my mom and dad when they were younger."

She grits her sharp teeth momentarily and grimaces in equal parts humor and seriousness. "Because, I seriously doubt they'd have the energy these days to keep up with me back then. I think they started teaching me how to properly use all the equipment and told me all the safety rules, just so they could get a few moments free from watching me."

Snickering, Sotalia steps towards the kitchen area, playfully motioning to snatch hold of Cideeda's tail, and smiles slyly. "You'd think it wouldn't be too hard with a handle this long on you."

With a proud grin, Cideeda laughs, resting her hands on her hips, and wags her tail defiantly. "OH. Believe me. It was used for that purpose A LOT. First thing a fvalian parent learns about their child is how tough their tails are to you grabbing them."

The watery gurgle of the coffee machine rises up from the background, and the familiar steamy hiss piques everyone's attention. Aristespha waits patiently, the last few drops of brew drizzling down into the carafe, and sets out containers and condiments on the counter top. Carefully removing the glass pot from the built-in hotplate, she slowly pours the dark drink into a mug,and stirs the teabag around in a cup off to the side. Sotalia sniffs the air with interest. Stopping, she notices the academic chaos upon the dining table top. "So... Any progress on the Noxian front?"

Sebastian's ghostly form hovers up from his seat, drifts over ahead, and surveys the collection of research materials. "Well. We've definitely been going for the same places that Noxian is interested in. But, maybe that's the problem."

Sotalia lifts her eyebrow incredulously, sways her pose, and contorts her light tan, dark gray bordered face. "Okay... I thought beating him to the punch was the current plan? Clear out the elder energy before he gets it? Maybe catch him off guard?"

Walking on by Sotalia from the kitchen area with mugs in hands, Aristespha drops off the cup of tea in front of Bach. She leaves a mug of coffee in front of her seat and glances over to Sotalia. "Yes. But, we might need to try a different strategy. There are a few mundane and well-explored sites indicated by the coordinates on the printout."

Settling in her chair, Aristespha wraps her hands around the mug, pondering the situation for a moment. "I have done the initial searches in the Grand Library database and found exploration reports for some of the sites. I haven't delved too deeply, but some have unexplored, sealed areas."

Dretphi and Cideeda slip on by towards the fresh coffee, and Sotalia perks up at Aristespha's explanation. She steps up behind a chair next to Bach's and leans over slowly for a better view at the material all over the table top, cracking an unconvinced smirk. "Okay. Interesting... Sounds like we'd be pushing the limit for acceptable exploration."

With an eager smirk, Sebastian shrugs. "Well, I don't think we should go around cracking open every sealed door. BUT, since I don't have to worry about typical barriers, I could easily find out if there's anything worth the risks."

Cideeda and Dretphi return around the table with coffee mugs in hand. Bach shifts his attention away from a nearby distraction, the gathering around the table focusing on the topic. Cideeda's interest piques, and she slowly sips from her cup with intrigue. "That would help cut through the list..."

Furrowing her light brown brow, she narrows her inquisitive gaze at Sebastian. "First thing. How are we getting official reasons to be at these places? There's only so much protocol you can dodge before you get the wrong type of attention."

With an understanding sigh, Sebastian nods his head and ethereally grumbles. "Yeah... The whole pursuing and tracking down Noxian excuse probably won't get as far as it did, since he's been mostly out of the news lately."

A sly smirk graces Aristespha, and she sits up straighter in her seat. "WELL, I am still a Master Sage of the Grand Library. So, I doubt academic passes with legitimate enough sounding reasons would be too out of the ordinary."

Flicking her furry ears with her thoughts, Cideeda grins toothily and scratches her chin with a claw tip. "OH. THAT would probably work. Make it sound boring enough so the local authorities don't get nosy. Throw in some long winded justification report so long they won't bother to read it. No one will check it out at that point."

Standing up back straight, Sotalia narrows her golden eyes, sways her stance with her internal deliberation, and grumbles slightly in an unenthusiastic tone. "I don't know. This feels like going down the wrong fucking path. Gods damn it. We NEED to get ahead of him."

Bach manages his gaze upwards from his seat toward Sotalia, presenting a reassuring smile, and motions towards the coordinate list. "Well, maybe THIS is the way to get one over on him. I mean, he can easily go to the same ruins out in the middle of fucking nowhere that we can. BUT..."

Lifting an eyebrow, he cracks a sly grin. "Just how easy is it for him to go to regularly patrolled places? It's not like he can easily camp out around these places anymore, since the police have been informed what to look out for. And, he wants to keep a low profile. While I don't think it'll stop him from investigating these places, they're NOT his first picks."

Dretphi finishes a long sip of her coffee and idly combs her fingers through her platinum blonde braids, following an idea in her mind. Moments later, she furrows her brow and calmly states. "If we have to clean a location of elder energy, we should monitor that location."

The suggestion floats above the gathering, slowly sinking into the minds of the team. Cideeda chuckles to herself, flicking her furry ears and wagging her tail. "Yeah! I bet he'll investigate at least one of these places. And, I don't think he'll have the time to be too cautious. So, if we could manage to hide some intrusion detectors near something he'd be interested in, we might be able to detect him when he's making his move."

A spark of excitement slips out into Sotalia expression, and she shifts her weight, brushing back her fiery orange hair over a swept-back, black horn. "OKAY..."

Pointing at Cideeda, she smiles eagerly. "Now, THAT I can get behind."

Her mood sours slightly, sarcasm tinging her voice, and she rolls her golden eyes with a grimace. "And... I actually wouldn't mind going to places that don't have completely unknown horrors awaiting us... For once."

Recovering her confidence into a bold grin, she glances over to Cideeda and snickers to a suggestion. "Are spy cameras an option? I'd LOVE to capture the look on his fucking face when we surprise him."

Grinning toothily, Cideeda laughs with a mischievous tint and poses with her hands at her hips. "As if I was going with anything else."

----

Upon a brightly lit, small stage, Veevi prances to the bass beat, tossing her long, bright pink hair back, and flashes an attention soaking grin to the crowd in the large karaoke bar. Rhythmically wagging her long, short-haired tail, she plucks the microphone out of the stand, winking to the eager crowd, and sings out to the audience one of her songs. Dozens of younger evuukians cheer out from the many surrounding tables, and a few dance upon the small dance floor in front of the stage. Wandering around the venue, Chad patrols the greater floor and stops at each table, meeting and greeting groups of evuukian house members. With his trademark bright white smile, he poses in pictures for excited fans and signs his elaborate signature upon promotional materials, items, and the bodies of a few inebriated, wilder evuukians.

Tassilda tosses her raven hair back, presenting a sly smirk with an evocative lift of an eye brow towards a fan calling out her name. Granting a parting wave to the drunken evuukian, she struts through the maze of tables. Through the slalom, her alluring facade fades the further along she gets. She approaches a corner section of the establishment and stops next to Trakenthin, curiously glancing over at the cover of the book he's reading. "Gods. I'm very surprised you're able to read during all of this chaos."

Straightening his standing posture, Trakenthin turns his head slightly and gazes down at Tassilda, shrugging his shoulders stoically. "You learn when you have no choice."

Tassilda rests her hands on her hips and leans over, peering around Trakenthin down the narrow passage towards the booths next to the bar. "So... Is Deedri STILL back there?"

Twisting his head the other way, Trakenthin searches down the aisle next to the booths along the wall and notices a familiar tail lazily wagging out from the further corner booth. "Yes. The server has gone there multiple times. With large drinks to the table. Empty ones coming back."

Quirking an eyebrow in surprise, Tassilda nods with a twist at the corner of her mouth and pats Trakenthin on the shoulder. "Well, thank you for keeping an eye on these spoiled brats."

Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.

Glancing briefly over her shoulder, she smirks with a begrudging hint. "At least Veevi is good at keeping them all distracted."

Trakenthin contorts his face into a mix of agreement and vague contempt. Releasing a long sigh, he nods and briefly scans over the flurry of chaos within the karaoke bar. His hazel eyes glide over the wild scene of bright, colorful stage lights casting out into dimly lit masses, and he grumbles in Grath to himself and angles his head back down upon the book in his hands. Tassilda walks down the corridor towards the corner end booth and slides into the leather bench seat opposite of Deedri. "Still hiding out here?"

Springing back to awareness from a distant thought, Deedri notices Tassilda at the table with a few flutters of her auburn eyes and awkwardly smiles at her. "Um... Yes? I just..."

She releases a long sigh, props up the side of her face upon the palm of her hand, and slowly shakes her head. "I'm sorry... I KNOW I should be going around to all the tables... Talking to fans... Signing random shit... But..."

Her stare wanders off into the immaterial distance, and she winces her weary eyes closed. "I just need a BREAK."

Smiling comfortingly at Deedri, Tassilda waves off the troubled atmosphere. "Oh. It's fine. The nobility are thoroughly distracted right now. I doubt they'd really pay that much attention to anything else right now."

She rolls her light blue on black eyes, twists a grimace upon her gray, patterned face, and sneers her upper lip. "Truthfully, I hate to admit it... But, Veevi can actually sing pretty well. And, she is certainly putting on the best karaoke show I've ever seen."

Nodding her head of multi-colored tied back hair, Deedri releases a long sigh and relaxes back against the booth seat, slouching down into leather cushioning. "Yeah... I'll give her THAT."

Tassilda surveys the table tap and studies the pile of leftover beverage decorations. Pondering quietly to herself, her eyes tally up evidence, and she furrows her suspicious brow. "So... How many have you had, so far?"

Averting her guilty gaze to either side, Deedri presents an innocent facade, shrugging her shoulders with a nonchalant smile. "Uh, um, not that many."

A sharp, high pitched hiccup reveals the truth, and Tassilda focuses her examining gaze upon Deedri's wavering front. With an amused smirk, Tassilda chuckles to herself and dismissively rolls her light blue on black eyes. "Oh. Don't worry. Your secret is safe with me."

Wrestling down a grimace, she sighs. "And, I'm certainly not one to judge these days."

Deedri rakes her clawed fingers through her multi-colored hair and exhales out her relief. "Thank you. After having to babysit these noble jackasses these last few days, I need a few moments to unwind. Gods. Some of them are THE WORST."

Tassilda grumbles sympathetically, gritting her teeth, and resettles herself on the booth seat. "Tell me about it. They certainly are used to thinking they are better than everyone else. I can smell that attitude from experience."

Glances around the vicinity, Tassilda leans slightly over the table and directs a whisper towards Deedri's awaiting, furry, tufted ear. "And, you can definitely tell some are hunting for an opportunity to defy that interracial relations taboo they all act like they have."

Deedri groans visibly irritated, narrowing her auburn eyes, and contorts the frustration out on her fair face, clenching her fist. "OH. MY. GODS... I swear! The next one that tries to work the conversation into asking what I can do with my tail or if I use my claws..."

Bearing her sharp, pronounced canines, Deedri curls her clawed fingers with a flicker of auburn light from her eyes. "Will get a full strength magical bowel evacuation."

In a short wave of shock, Tassilda blinks blankly, staring at Deedri. Moments later, Deedri recollects herself with a punctuating short, high-pitched hiccup. Failing to contain her smile, Tassilda covers her mouth with a hand and giggles, keeping it as politely as possible. "Oh, I know the feeling. Such hypocrites, too. Especially since they're the ones that keep that whole taboo alive publicly."

Leaning out into the aisle, she scouts towards the show and watches Veevi command a few of the evuukians upon stage, contestants participating in the impromptu singing contest. Gauging the future entertainment, Tassilda settles back into her seat, glancing over to Deedri, and motions towards the bar exit. "Hey. You want to head on out and walk around a bit? I think Veevi and Chad have got this slice of chaos contained, for now."

Deedri springs her eyes wide open for a moment, bites her lower lip in embarrassment, and sheepishly mumbles. "Uh... I want to... But, I don't think I should."

Noticing the confusion up Tassilda, Deedri weaves her fingers together upon the tabletop, averting her gaze briefly, and sighs. "I don't think I'm sober enough yet to risk a long walk."

Tassilda squelches a laugh and smiles amused at Deedri, searching around for a server. "OH. That's okay."

Lifting a humored eyebrow, she smirks with a giggle. "I'm impressed, actually. In the meantime, let's see about getting some water for you."

Relaxing her guard, Deedri sighs appreciatively and furrows her brow. "Um, have you seen Modoran lately? I thought he'd eventually show up here like the rest of us. But, I haven't seen any sign of him."

Tassilda pauses in thought and shakes her head, gazing over towards Deedri curiously. "I actually haven't seen much of him today, since that lunch and trivia event."

Deedri narrows her stare off to the side, twisting her mouth, and colors her tone with an angry tint. "What the hell has made him so scarce these last few days? Gods dammit. I know he usually sticks to the shadows. But, THIS? This is fucking ridiculous."

With a growling hint in her voice, she curls her upper lip and reveals a sharp canine. Digging a claw tip into the finish of the wooden table, she snorts out her irritation. "He's hiding SOMETHING... from me. And, he won't say what!"

Tassilda perks her eyebrow at the display, puzzling at the odd change of attitude. Quickly analyzing the behavior, she gradually adopts a sly grin, her intrigue growing upon the perceived evidence. "Well. I'm sure he has his reasons. I don't think it's worth getting too upset over... Yet."

Drifting off into her own thoughts, Deedri's frustration fades. She droops her furry ears down closer to her shoulders and slows the wags of her tail. "Hmm... You're right."

She props her arm on the table by the elbow and rests her head lazily on her hand. Growing a goofy smile, she mumbles near incoherently. "...can't stay mad... ...especially... ...that good... ...shirtless..."

Tilting her head to the side in honest confusion, Tassilda aims her pointed ear towards Deedri. "Huh? What did you say?"

A flush of red colors Deedri fair tone cheeks. Protective measures in her conscious mind force a surge of corrective sobriety into her thought processes. "UM. Nothing! I think I NEED some water."

Nodding in agreement, Tassilda spots a server and waves them over. "Yes... THAT would be for the best."

She turns back toward Deedri and nudges the conversation. "Speaking of water, we really need to find time to try out that private pool we have."

Deedri grits her teeth briefly and sighs out a reluctant tone, squirming uncomfortably. "Yeah... Unfortunately, I don't really have a swim suit."

Holding a finger up, she smirks. "But! I'll hang out around the pool."

A delighted grin appears on Tassilda, and she winks. "Well! Lucky for you, they have a wonderful little shop on site that we can visit. I'm certain we can find something for you."

Blanking her expression, Deedri wrestles her self-conscious discomfort and stumbles around the subject. "Uh- um- You sure? I mean... I doubt they'd have anything that... flattering of my figure..."

Tassilda narrows her intrigued gaze upon Deedri, shining a sly smile, and giggles eagerly. "OH. You would be surprised. Let me be your guide."

----

Between brighter, neutral tone, textured walls, a calm quiet flows through the warmly lit hall of the hotel building. Leaning out cautiously, Modoran peeks around the corner into the main run from a branch corridor, searching around with his dark blue eyes, and pauses a moment, listening with his long, pointed ears. With nothing rising above the dull ambient background noise, he softly steps out into the hallway and carefully surveys the long stretch of hall. Assessing the situation, Modoran gradually relaxes his posture, breathes a muted sigh, and casually walks down the passage. He reaches the midway point of the corridor between intersections and halts abruptly. Darting his eyes around the exit points, he mutters a short evuukian curse under his breath, gritting his teeth briefly.

Six evuukians similar in age to Modoran boldly step out, a trio each covering the two ends of this section of hallway. With a mean, sneering smirk, the best dressed one calls out in a dramatic, patronizing tone. "Modoran..."

Fighting the mix of emotions vying for space on his dusky bluish gray face, Modoran manages a nonchalant smile, quelling the nervous hints sneaking out into his body language. He directs his recognition upon the lead evuukian with a respectful bow and addresses the man with a proper evuukian greeting. The leader of the group narrows a disgusted glare right at Modoran, crossing his arms defiantly, and growls out his distaste. "Stop trying to speak to me using OUR tongue. You damn well know YOU aren't worthy enough to use it to address me, after what you've done to our house."

A bit unease bends the friendly grin upon Modoran, and he lifts his open hands up in an apologetic manner. "Okay. My apologies, Hektoran. It has been awhile since I've even gotten near proper nobility. So, I have obviously forgotten my manners."

Hektoran concentrates his yellow eyes at Modoran and steps forward, leading the other male and female evuukians at his sides. The other three on the opposite end of the hall section close in. Hektoran curls up a damning sneer and tips his head up. "Yes. Yes you have. BUT, I have not forgotten the embarrassment you brought upon my house for your actions."

Uncomfortably chuckling, Modoran glances around at the diminishing space between the two groups of three, trying to adopt a calming, peaceful attitude. "Hey... Listen. That was a few years back. And, I mean..."

With a mix of stale frustration and ill-humor, he sighs. "I got caught. I was very officially removed from my house, and I have kept away from it all. Also, your house got popular from it. THAT is always good."

Hektoran grits his teeth with a curl of his upper lip and slowly stretches out his neck towards both shoulders, cracking his knuckles. "Yes... BUT. WE were still denied proper payback. Which I think we shall exact, NOW."

Glancing nervously between the two closing parties, Modoran holds his hands up in the air and dons a nervous, pleading grin, calmly addressing the incoming hostility with an easy-going, relaxed voice. "Hey... This is supposed to be a vacation for you all. Take it easy. Relax next to the pool. Veevi Valiant is doing a show at the karaoke club, right now."

Lowing his hands to his sides, he deftly sneaks in magical gestures and whispers out incantations under his breath. Pausing in the midst of the process, he gazes over to Hektoran and shrugs his shoulders. "I may have been out of the loop. But, I have heard that your sister is a big fan of hers. You two can still catch the show if you head out now."

With an evil laugh, Hektoran beams a confident grin on his pale, dark blue hinted face and motions his head towards the female evuukian leading the opposite group. "OH. We plan on doing so. AFTER... We settle some debts with YOU. Do NOT try your disappearing act, Mishavalla has been practicing her magic. Especially to counter your tricks."

Pausing in thought, Modoran blinks in surprise and gazes over to the young evuukian woman in the other group. He squints his dark blue eyes at her lithe frame, pale dark blue hinted skin, and piercing yellow eyes. Mishavalla precisely weaves together a preparation of magical flow through gestured incantations. A moment later, recognition dawns upon Modoran, and he nods in Mishavalla's direction. "Huh. You've certainly grown up since I last saw you. Taking after your mother with magic I see."

With a sinister and appreciative smirk, Mishavalla steps forward in sync with her brother Hektoran. The two groups of three systematically shrink the space around Modoran, searching for an escape route. He shrugs his shoulders with hands out to his sides and puts on his best charming grin, levity lifting his tone. "Oh, come on! I am NOT worth THIS much effort. I mean... I appreciate the sentiment. Hey, let me buy you all a few rounds. We'll take some pictures you all can post on your favorite aethernet site..."

Modoran's voice trails off. He studies the blatant lack of any reaction, swiftly concluding the six surrounding evuukians no longer seem receptive to persuasion. His body tenses, his posture shifts defensively, and he nervously grits his teeth.

Down the hallway from an intersection, a booming, commanding voice echoes powerfully out from a tall, imposing evuukian man. "HEKTORAN! MISHAVALLA!"

With solid footsteps, the older evuukian in proper attire walks down the corridor towards the gathering, leveling soul piercing stares upon the six younger evuukians. Focusing a drilling, brilliant orange eyed glare right through Hektoran, he exudes an intimidating, stoic presence. The older evuukian man parts through the pair of lackeys behind Hektoran and stops mere centimeters away. Waiting expectantly, he gradually lowers his glower. With Mishavalla and the accompanying evuukians watching in terror, Hektoran stiffly pivots against his reflexive trembling and fumbles a greeting toward the imposing, older evuukian. "Uh... Hello, great uncle Kallentesson..."

Kallentesson widens his cutting glower and leans closer in demanding silence. Hektoran's horror spikes through his brief stupor, and he awkwardly presents a colorful, elaborate proper greeting to Kallentesson. Straightening his posture with the satisfactory address, Kallentesson launches into a condemning verbal fury and systematically berates Hektoran, Mishavalla, and their associates in litany of furious evuukian. Heads bowing and long ears slightly drooping, the group weathers the savage scolding without any contest. Modoran gradually creeps back from the center of the hallway and slinks over against the wall, hunting for an exit. With a final angered, snorting exhale, Kallentesson snaps his fingers towards a point down to the nearest exit and commands the group. Taking the first opportunity, the six evuukians flee quickly, evacuating out of the area.

A wave of relief slightly relaxes Modoran, waning against Kallentesson's attention upon him. Kallentesson walks over to Modoran, bows slightly, and calmly speaks. "I would like to apologize for their behavior, Modoran."

Modoran appreciatively smiles, relaxing his tensed posture further. "It is okay. To be fair, House Head Kallentesson, I did expect some kind of run in. Just thought I was being a bit more careful."

Kallentesson smirks and sighs out his frustrations, his commanding presence fading. "Well. It has been a number of years since you last dealt with them. And, they have gotten significantly more crafty and bold."

Agreeing with a simple nod, Modoran sheepishly addresses the old evuukian. "Either way, sir. I want to apologize for disturbing your evening."

Kallentesson furrows his brow, slowly shaking his head, and frowns slightly. "No need on your part. You did nothing to provoke THIS. In fact..."

Lifting an eyebrow, a smirk grows on his fair, tan hinted face. "I have been meaning to apologize to you."

Modoran halts his thoughts and blankly gazes at Kallentesson, tilting his head of grayish white hair curiously to the side. Kallentesson draws in a long breath, sighs deeply, and nods respectfully to Modoran. "Truth be told, I've been doing some much overdue reflecting after recent revelations. And... I want to apologize for how you were treated. If I had the wisdom I do now, I would have talked down my brother into pursuing a more reasonable punishment for you."

In stunned astonishment, Modoran stumbles to a response and awkwardly scratches the back of his head, settles into a thankful tone. "I- Uh- Wow... Thank you. It does mean a lot. But, I don't blame you for anything. By house laws, you were correct to allow your brother to seek justice for the slight upon him."

Kallentesson rolls his bright orange eyes, shaking his head of gray speckled golden brown hair, and twists his mouth dismissively. "True. But, my brother is a vindictive prick at times, and no one should suffer it. The judgment was unfair. I should have at least appealed for something more fitting."

Smirking amused, Modoran shrugs his shoulders and snorts with a chuckle. "Gods. I think THAT would have caused far more drama and trouble for everyone."

With a hearty laugh, Kallentesson nods in agreement and releases another long sigh into a smile. Seconds of silence later, Modoran glances over to the exit and thumbs over to it. "Well... I don't want to keep you all night, House Head Kallentesson. So, I will leave you be."

Raising his hand for Modoran's attention, Kallentesson quickly addresses Modoran in evuukian and pauses in thought. He cracks a short grin and chuckles to himself. "Could I ask a favor of you?"

Modoran searches his mind for a moment and nods tentatively, lifts a curious eyebrow. "Um. Sure? Depends on what it is. If I can even grant it."

With a bit of embarrassment, Kallentesson smiles, relaying his request. "Could I get a picture with you? I am going to see my grandson this week, and I would like to impress him. He is always excited to see you on the show..."

Furrowing his brow, he tightens his lip and grumbles playfully. "Well... The little he sees when sneaks out of bed and before his parents catch him."

Modoran thinks a moment, standing up straighter with his thoughts, and nods happily. "Sure. AND, I will get you a group signed promo photo, too. I'm sure your daughter and her husband will like that."

----

Carefully reading the last few lines of a page of handwritten notes, Dr. Dawkins pauses, furrowing his aged brow. He gradually lifts his gaze up, settles back into his leather recliner, and locates his glass of whiskey upon the small table nearby. Resting the packet of papers upon his lap, he glances over to Issac and shakes his head, blinking out of a state of mind. "Has the weight of what you are reading been as heavy as mine?"

Isaac closes his eyes hard into a wince, stretches his neck to either shoulder, and shudders back to the conversation. "Yes... I think so. While I'm not seeing anything definite and concrete..."

Springing his eyes wide open briefly, he sighs out with a distant stare. "The implications are all there."

He glances over towards Dr. Dawkins, twisting his mouth into a grimace, and lowers another collection of heavily annotated documents down. "Okay. Before I say anything, what do YOU think that Dr. Malkav BELIEVES he's found?"

Dr. Dawkins ponders, searching his mind between flicks of his green eyes, and draws in a long, collected breath. "The location of where one of the lead architects behind the Abstract Prism retreated to."

Isaac nods slowly, wanders a glance over his packet of notes, and flips through a few pages. "Yes... Most importantly, it seems like it was one particularly meticulous mage that somehow absconded with a great deal of the original design documents."

Grasping hold of his drink, Dr. Dawkins sips upon the brown liquor and slowly shakes his head in astonishment, sighing out his amazement. "While I highly doubt those documents have survived after all these years... Assuming they weren't destroyed purposefully..."

He furrows his brow and bows his head slightly. "Just the fact that Dr. Malkav located a copy of the table of contents and part of the index to possibly THE master plan for the Prism is-"

Turning towards Isaac, Dr. Dawkins cocks his head. "I do not know where to even begin."

Rubbing the temples of his head, Isaac closes his eyes briefly, collecting himself, and searches through the text in his hands. "The section headings alone are fascinating enough! By the gods almighty, there are references to aspects that I don't ever remember hearing about during any of my studies."

He leans over towards Dr. Dawkins, presents the packet of papers, and points to highlighted sections. "There are references to the actual construction of the Prism! Where it is located, and the definition of what the WHERE is actually? How it streams out magical flow and the definitions of what the Prism will recognize? Foundational Construct templates?"

He drags a hand through his wilder white hair and exhales in astonishment. "These are things that dedicated researchers have spent their entire careers trying to grossly speculate about."

Sorting through the stack of notes on his lap, Dr. Dawkins pulls out a page and hands it over to Isaac. "If you think THAT is fascinating, read this summary Malkav wrote from his exploration of the references he found in the index."

Isaac grasps hold of the page, settles back into his seat, and quickly reads through the information. Dr. Dawkins waits patiently and calmly drinks his whiskey, observing Isaac. The looming quiet peaks, and Isaac stares absolutely dumbfounded and bewildered. Mentally wrestling with the conclusion written upon the document, he slowly turns his head towards Dr. Dawkins and states plainly. "Possible self-optimization and self-adaptation systems in the design..."

Dr. Dawkins gradually nods, releasing a long exhale, and rests his head upon the back of the recliner. "Yes. Something that's been theorized to exist... This practically CONFIRMS."

Isaac rubs his eyes into a pinch of the bridge of his nose, easing back into his recliner, and calms himself back down. The two dwell in a long silence, and both internally deliberate the ramifications. Minutes later, Dr. Dawkins twists his face contemplatively and theorizes out loud. "Having such documentation would explain why this mage disappeared into the Perimeter Weird Zone."

Stirring from his stupor, Isaac reflects between hard blinks and visibly puzzles. "Also, that might explain why there's no mention of his existence or involvement anywhere. Yet another thing the creator mages obscured from history in some obtuse attempt to protect us."

Dr. Dawkins narrows his distant stare, gradually nods, and ponders out loud. "That would make a great deal of sense. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if they purposely planted rumors about prominent creator mages having small sections of Abstract Prism documentation as a way to distract everyone. Busy everyone out there into looking for the known small, unimportant bits. Meanwhile..."

He lowers a stare upon the paperwork nearby. "An unknown mage disappeared with the master document to an unknown location. If I had my guess, they were probably keeping it around just in case something went wrong too soon after the implementation of the Abstract Prism. Their backup plans, I would guess."

Contorting his face against his shifting mood, Isaac shakes his head and clenches his fist briefly. "Oh, fucking hell... Given the other trickery and shenanigans that collection of pompous, arrogant smartasses have cursed upon our society..."

He relaxes his hand and groans. "That makes too much sense."

A brief moment of silence later, Dr. Dawkins glances over to Isaac with an adventurous smirk. "I do believe this confirms that dear Dr. Malkav is most certainly in or around Perimeter. And, quite possibly has delved into that massive weird zone."

Sighing, Isaac stares distantly ahead inside his mind, his thoughts playing out into his demeanor. "Oh. Yes. But, the city of Perimeter is massive by itself. And, that weird zone dwarfs it completely. If he's gone in..."

He wrestles with a frown. "Who knows where he's at now? I need to go there. But... It'll be fruitless if I don't have a means of, at least, roughly locating him."

Dr. Dawkins lifts an enlightened eyebrow and chuckles to himself. "While I can't say where he went to if he's inside the PWZ, he most certainly left an impression somewhere in Perimeter. Believe me, he's easy to pick out in a crowd and unforgettable by most."

A sly grin grows on Dr. Dawkins, and he taps the fingertips of his hands together. "And, it does help that I still have a few contacts around those parts that I can put you in touch with. Plus, I most certainly am not going to let you run down there unprepared."

Isaac gazes over to Dr. Dawkins in hopeful disbelief and smiles graciously with a thankful nod. "I- I, uh... Thank you. I don't know what to say. You have done more than enough, and I don't want to burden you any more than I have to. And, I certainly..."

He shallows hard and stiffens his upper lip. "Do not want to feel that you owe me for... The past."

Dr. Dawkins notices the empty glass on Isaac's side of the table between the recliners, picks up the bottle of whiskey, and calmly fills the container. With a delighted smile, he laughs softly and shakes his head. "Well, just think of it as repaying you for reviving an old man's sense of adventure and thirst for discovery. To be honest, Dr. Malkav's recent work here has captured my curiosity. While I'm no longer spry enough to do field work, YOU seem most capable still."

Isaac grins eagerly, picking up the filled glass, and sips down the liquor. Wandering through his thoughts, he halts at one and quirks his brow. "There is some prep work that needs to be done. And, thinking about it, a little bit of clean up after our recent chore."

With a mild grumble, Dr. Dawkins frowns slightly annoyed and muses. "Very true. We need to contend with those cheap aetherphones I bought through the... Usual Sources. Gods. I always detest wasting good, still serviceable equipment. But, in this situation, I guess it cannot be helped exactly."

Pulling a smirk at the corner of his mouth, Isaac glances over at Dr. Dawkins, inquiring with a plotting tone. "Are the phones still on the dining table?"

Dr. Dawkins eyes Isaac curiously, nodding. "Yes. Batteries still removed, and the identification chips pulled. All of it should still be there."

Pausing a moment with a thought, he narrows an inquisitive gaze at Isaac. "Whatever are you planning?"

A brilliant, scheming grin widens upon Isaac, and he settles himself contentedly in the recliner with a devious tinge to his voice. "Well... I think a quick, stealthy visit to that pick up point for The Train is in order. I believe with careful placements on the undersides of hauler trucks, and liberal applications of duct tape, they should transmit some interesting coordinate data in case someone gets a lucky idea. Give them red herring to enjoy."

A highly amused cackle leaves Dr. Dawkins, and he shakes his head snorting. "Oh, gods... Have I ever told you the story where we had to contend with a bunch of bandits looting our artifact shipments back to the Grand Library?"