*bzzt**bzzt**bzzt*

"Why in the ever loving fuck did i decide to get an alarm clock," I utter as I roll out of bed, "I'm literally the last person on earth that needs to get up in the morning."

Stumbling slightly from grogginess I sidle over the my pc, 3 screens and exponentially more power than I need for reading and playing some classic grind games, but what is one to do when you hate dealing with idiots and have more money than you can spend in a year, with the help of every sorority in the states helping with no spending lmits or oversight.

Running my hand through the slightly greying stuble of a beard, thanks to a family history of going completely white by the time we're thirty, I boot up the machine and start perusing through my news feed, "more of the same shit, politicians playing their games, shootings, ad, ad, ad. what the shit, i dont need or want to buy a damn wifi extender, stop trying to get me to do so."

Spinning away from my desk, I head towards the bathroom, grabbing a fresh set of clothes on the way. After a thourough scrub down and fairly long faux recording session in the shower, I step out and dry off getting dressed in a tightfitting pair of khaki pants, and a white silk button up. gazing into the mirror as I pull up my decently long hair, a pair of burnt amber eyes gaze back underneath dark angular eyebrows and a playful smirk. before turning away and leaving the bathroom I slip on a stack of bracelets and my three favorite rings.

Stepping out I go and slip my boots on before swinging on my tight fitting and flared trench coat. "Time to go see just how much theboard wants to spend this month," I hum out as I reach for the door handle. just as my hand brushes the door handle everything goes black and a sense of weightlessness overcomes me.

*****

"well it appears that this is in fact one of the ancient magical formations, and as all of the ancient magical formations go, will either do something horrible when activated, or turn the room into a veritable bath house, given its size."

"Well you are the expert on such things, and given its so far into the Barucchi, maybe it'll be useful and once copied be worth a decent amount of gold."

"The problem I see is that the entire formation is done in gold, and considering the size and scope of this building, I highly doubt well get much after we activate this and report the finding to the king. At best we'll be awarded medals and titles and gold. worst, well I've seen my fair share of hush money and heard enough about the assassinations."

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"Bah, were it not for the fact that there's a line unfinished in that gold powder they used for it, we could damn well go ahead and activate the damn thing and be on our way. The emptiness of this city is absurd and is setting the expedition team, along with myself, on edge."

"Yes, yes, most sites like this still have your so called loot, but very few sites have fully intact formations. Unlike your kind, me and mine thrive on knowledge of this calibre."

"Bossman! I finished filling in the circle thingie with a wee bit of ground up coin, can we fire it up and get outta here?"

"Damn straight! Artivus, you have any idea on firing this up?"

"Certainly Yark, we'll throw this crystal up on that pedestal over there. Its worked on every other formation I've had the pleasure of coming across."

"The pedestal with the much smaller formation?"

"Do you see another pedestal in this room? Yes you halfwit dwarf, that pedestal. Also make sure that crystal is in the center of the formation, should be a circle you can fit it into."

"Alright. Klax. Get this crystal up on that pedestal pronto. i wanna be out of this city before sundown. And you Artivus. I want you ready to get us the fuck outta here if it goes poorly."

"Of course. You didnt hire me from the guild just for the formations experience i have."

"Team, I want weapons at the ready, I've heard enough horror stories of shit coming out of these formations, and would rather not have my face chewed off by a Kurvlaw, should one come out of this. If its anything more mundane, drinks are on my the night we get back to civilization."

"Well Yark, based on its slight glow to the lines, Klax must have done his job right for once. activation should be in three, two, one."

*****

After a brief sense of weightlessness, and a thouroughly nauseating spinning feeling, I find myself back on solid ground. After a loud rambling from a bunch of different voices in a language that is most definitely foreign to me my vision finally returns. and oh boy oh boy was I not ready for getting out of bed this morning.

Arrayed around me are several short burly men with beards and crossbows, a few with shields and swords, a tall willowy fellow in a long cloak and a floating spear shaped length of what appears to be ice next to him, and. Wait. I'm definitely sure that a goblin is hiding behind that pedestal.

I proceed to get on my knees a few moments later, and raise my hands very slowly up, hoping whoever these people and goblin are they know the universal sign of peace and surrender. A sharp crack to the back of the head shortly after raising my hands up and the last thoughts that go through my head are wondering how theres a goblin or why they have such primative weapons and a floating piece of what is definitely ice.