Abruptly, the foreigner froze in place…motionless as she stood, a strange…bumpy shiver entering her nerves and spine. An anomalous sense…and feeling…pierced into her essence. A sudden emerging presence…her essence could…infer; she did not need to turn around and see it…to know that it was there; that it was behind her; that it was…staring right at her.

Quickly, she sprung herself around, lancing her attention straight ahead and towards a collapsed building…afar yet near, staring at that which…stared back at her.

An apparition…a butterfly. Gold in its soft and refined radiance; wispy yet not at all ‘dusty’ and ‘choppy’ as if it were riddled with ‘noise’; so pure and smooth, as if it were composed of the creamy plasma of a golden phantom sun… as if it were the milky streams of the cosmos above. Warm yet cold; bitter yet sweet; empty yet full; nothing yet everything. Calamitous-aligned essence.

There was no mistaking it; not even from its divergent and contrasting appearance from that of hers and most other regular humans, but rather…that certain feeling its detection instilled into her own fully activated and ‘awakened’ essence, which had an awareness and sensitivity—especially to divergent alignments of essence—sharper than that of those whose essence was usually in a deactivated and ‘slumbering’ state…such as the average denizen. Although, hers tended to be more especially attuned to these specific affairs given that…such was her domain.

« … » the foreigner stared blankly…at this butterfly apparition of calamitous gold essence. No one else seemed to have noticed its presence; she was the only one. It was not a trick of the mind, either.

« …oi ĵocos façhes…çertissimë? Vuin me éllud consequere…seríosë? » she muttered out, knowing it could hear her; surely, this had to be a joke, right? Did it seriously want her to follow that thing?

Indeed, even though that calamitous butterfly apparition was rather far off, it still nodded its little phantasm head in a cutesy yes.

Trust me, trooper

This will only save you time

Provided that you follow

Like a rolling dime

« … » she stared ever-more blankly, before sighing. She knew well enough that this abominable fragment wanted her to follow its butterfly, and thus she was going to follow its butterfly…regardless of her consent on the matter.

The foreigner…silently slipped away from the rest, approaching that collapsed building upon which the butterfly apparition gently sat. The apparition swiftly flew into the air above, graciously making way…as the foreigner trailed and followed along.

It guided her down these despoiled streets and endless ruins…taking her deeper and…farther; perhaps too far from where she was supposed to be stationed, making way closer to the coast…areas she ought not to be.

It was leading her into zones that had yet to be cleared sufficiently; the way became somewhat more hazardous…with more debris, rubble, and other obstacles in the way; but she persisted, nevertheless. Guiding and moving…the butterfly apparition elegantly led her through what used to be an alley or…thin route of sorts, before finally…it began to circle around over a site.

The foreigner…arrived, pausing as she began to inspect and scan around.

It was hard to truly say…what this specific area used to be. A plaza? A dense district of sorts? A place with many amenities or specialized buildings? Whatever it once had been, it was unidentifiable; nothing more than a collapsed collection of ash, charred debris, and glass.

Though…some of the collapsed buildings here seemed to have had more…advanced architectural engineering—deformed metallic beams and other structural components were evident in the ruins, frames and foundations still being…somewhat persistent, some of the walls still standing. This suggested to her…more Far Western design than local in a few of these buildings.

Also, she noticed charred chunks and debris scattered around and about…as if such had been blown apart and away; some of these ruins, in fact, seemed more…like preexisting piles of collapsed building-stuff that which been devoured by flames…rather than buildings that had been devoured by flames—yes, there was an apparent difference.

Suffice it to say, she was getting a hunch that this area…had already been devastated by the bombardment and the large detonation’s shockwave…well before it had been eaten by fires. Such would make sense…given the close proximity to that explosion’s alleged epicenter.

Hmm…all interesting, but…irrelevant. Why was she brought here? She looked…and eyed that butterfly apparition, which stared at her as it hovered afar…over the remains of a rather…large building—not in height as much…in width and girth.

She stared…the butterfly apparition began to wisp and dance around in the air; clearly, that was the place of interest. Thus, the foreigner…cautiously approached; arriving before it, she…scanned and evaluated around in kind…even circling around as she did so.

Hmm…more advanced in design, with metallic beams protruding here and there; some of the walls seemed…somewhat intact, also. But it was still just…one big pile of charred rubble and toxic ash. Yet…a remarkably thin one at that, considering this building’s size and scale.

This suggested to her…a rather spacious and hollow interior…with one tall ceiling to go along. Hmm…she noticed also at…what seemed to have been the front…the disformed remains of…a large metallic gate-door of sorts—not a typical thing for most buildings in this city.

Interesting…so had this been…perhaps…a large storage space of sorts? What the locals called…a ‘warehouse’?

« Fasçinants installațion primitiva quidem, sed ģe quar hûc duçhitù fuí? » she remarked and interrogated as her eyes glared up at the butterfly apparition; fascinating building indeed, but the question still stood: why had she been brought here?

She knew that abomination would not have dragged here in such a direct way unless there was…something of vague relevancy here; there was a reason…even if ultimately an absurd one.

The butterfly apparition…promptly lowered itself, into the rubble-pile ruins of this collapsed building, graciously hovering over a spot deeper within, before…gently seating itself upon that same specific spot.

The foreigner sighed…before cautiously…stepping into—or rather onto—the rubble-ruins…as she began to make her way through it, using her shovel and two hands…to help balance and clear heavy debris and obstacles. She had to be careful, for one wrong step and she could find herself…plunging face first into this pile of toxic ash, charred debris, dust-turned-to-glass. Not an easy endeavor, indeed, but…not an unfeasible one either.

Eventually, she arrived at the spot of interest…mask-obscured eyes staring down at it. The radiant butterfly of gold calamitous essence…dissipated into a stream, withering away as if nothing had ever been there.

She sighed again…well, here she was. Clearly, she was supposed to excavate. She planted her boots firmly as best she could as she began to…do just that. She first shoved and moved any large chunks and debris out of the way, before she began to dig and clear away with her shovel and hands…to see what was underneath. By no means an easy task. Of course, thankfully, the layers were rather thin; it was clear there was something underneath here…a few, in fact.

It did not take that long before she cleared enough to start…noticing. She stuck her hand into the rubble…evaluating…squishing; realizing instantly, she swiftly double-tripled her efforts, relentlessly excavating away as she rapidly cleared more and more…trying not to destabilize the rubble around which she stood upon. Quickly, she was able to make out in detail…

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“Bodies!” she suddenly shouted aloud in hailing voice…such having become a default response by this point; “over here! Bodies! Two…no three, four! Four bodies!” she hailed out further, before realizing… « …rectë, est solù jo » …right, it was only her.

Nevertheless, she inspected and evaluated, excavating them out more as best she could. Thoroughly charred and blackened; utterly unrecognizable. There was even…brittle bone exposed; half skeleton and half corpse, in many ways.

Okay…bodies, she found bodies…but why? What made these bodies…

Then she noticed…near and somewhat underneath one of the exposed bodies…something shiny and reflective, glimmering…distinctly so. She gently…repositioned the corpse…just to see…and immediately realize. Without hesitation, she…rather aggressively…yanked it into hand, inspecting and evaluating; she knew what it was.

An amulet…a uniquely Guild one; an unmistakenly receptionist one; disformed a bit…but largely intact. Were these all…

She dropped her shovel; her mask-obscured eyes began to scan around, her hands searching near the charred bodies. She found another, then another…and then…

Another…

Her eyes stared as she…carefully…yanked this amulet…from this body, taking it into her right-hand…as she held it up to sight. Unlike the other three in her left-hand…this one was distinct…this one denoted…a different type of receptionist…a familiar type.

Words…engraved, still legible, she could see.

« ‘Reidneval’ » her breaths read aloud in local tongue; ‘Lavender’ so read the name; ‘Lavender Honeypot. Forever in love with Halbert Honeypot, love equal to the Guild and nice coffee’ thus were the full words engraved.

Found it…she found it…after all of this time; yet she did not even know that she was…looking for it specifically.

She stared into this amulet…her eyes’ attention fixated, almost stumbling aback.

Ah…thus it was so, that receptionist truly was…dead; no longer with existence besides a decaying echo; never to be spoken to again; never to be interacted with again. Dead. She was dead.

Strange feelings…so many strange…strange feelings…invaded her being as her mind…contemplated… feelings which she could not truly fathom nor comprehend…besides that…maybe, perhaps, she wished that…she could have at least…spoken to this denizen…one more time, even if she did not know…for what or why.

Yet…such did not last long, for she could only simply sigh. Her attention…returned to the body from which…she had taken it; unrecognizable and indistinguishable from the rest, it was hard to tell…if it was even hers. She then looked at the other bodies and amulets in hand. Right…the receptionist…was not only one…who was dead…

Indeed, no matter how much is done to build and construct

To characterize and prepare

It does not require much effort for something random

To suddenly tear it all down

Or in this case, burn it all to the ground

A shame, one could say, for there was hope

For a greater role in this play

Yet, instead, a story was left incomplete and unfinished

Though, as you realize, such is the case with everyone else here…

Buried in ash and dust

So many stories were abruptly cut short

Abruptly left incomplete

Left to be untold

Left to be forgotten by history and time

Meaningless and insignificant

That is how most end

That is how most will end

But, of course

As you may know best, little violet

I know their names

I know their ambitions

I know their dreams

I know their pain

Their sorrow

Their glee and joy

Their hopes and despairs

Their regrets and sins

I know their memories

And I will carry them all, until the end of time

Though…

Some stories need not necessarily be over, even in death

For indeed…take a thought and a gander

And see…

Wait…she began to cogitate. What were…all of these four even doing here…clustered like this? She began to scan around, noticing…they seemed to be the only bodies here. Wasn’t the receptionist…supposed to be with her…‘husband’ or her…mate or whoever?

She inspected the bodies in even greater detail…something did not seem right at all about this. She noticed…hands, their hands were… something seemed to be… charred roasted metal? She noticed…then…

Wait…her eyes turned their attention…noticing; she carefully…flipped a body over just a bit… noticing the head…

Then she inspected another one…

Then the other…

And then…the other…

They were dead…before being burned…she began to infer…

They had all been shot in the head; even in this state, it was evident.

Her mind…did not even know what to think or make of all this, everything was being unveiled so quickly…

Yet, “HEY! YOU!” so suddenly echoed from afar rather the shout, snapping her attention away…as she began to stare. “YES! WE KNOW YOU ARE THERE! COME OUT RIGHT NOW!” the echoing shouts continued, drawing closer.

The foreigner…withdrew from this spot, amulets still in hand, as she went to the front…eyeing the street ahead, spotting…ah, making way from afar…a Company officer of sorts...flanked by three soldiers behind.

This was…not at all going to be a pleasant exchange, she could already tell…for indeed, she was not supposed to be here. She sighed as she…slid down back onto the street, readying herself for their arrival.

-|-

“Volunteer! So you are the one who was heard shouting from here earlier! What are you doing here?! This entire zone is restricted! Did you not see the signs?! Company only!” so lambasted the officer as he arrived with his three others, halting sternly before her.

She in fact had not noticed the signs, to be quite frank. “I saw a magical butterfly which led me to here” she replied bluntly, but with naivety in her voice.

The officer scoffed in a light groan; “Oh, of course… [great, one of these types… and what’s with that mask of hers? Crazy woman…]” his breaths blurted out, switching tongues, before his goggled eyes lanced their attention back to her, her hands specifically; “And what’s in your hands now? Do not tell me you were looting!” he interrogated.

The foreigner…tilted her head slightly, before realizing…oh right, she still had them in hand. “Oh…these, I…uhm…bodies, I found them near bodies” she replied…before pointing her thumb to the rubble-ruins behind; “In that place, I found them buried with bodies; these are the Adventurer Guild’s receptionist amulets… I was asked to collect these for them” she specified.

The officer, hearing this, tilted his head somewhat…his demeanor suddenly shifting in a completely different manner; “Huh?” he mumbled out; “let me see” he demanded, not even asking before yanking an amulet from her hand…the foreigner allowing this…forceful confiscation to proceed.

He inspected the amulet now in his hand; “…yes, this is…unmistakably a Guild receptionist amulet… that explains why it even survived…” he remarked, his eyes then looking at the building ruins in front; “Found in there…you said… it doesn’t need to be intact for me to tell that was once a Company warehouse…” he remarked further, before turning his head to a soldier behind; “[Corporal, you have been detached here before, right? This is…]”

“[Storage warehouse three, I believe…if this is the right street—the one near that statue of that native king or whoever. That one was sold to some native business which did nothing with it]” the soldier…respectfully…answered in advance.

“[I think you’re right, didn’t we just pass by some…disfigured bronze sludge or something? This is old warehouse three, has to be then…no other was near any such bronze statue]” another added.

The officer’s head nodded away; he withdrew his focus from the soldier and back…to the site in front; “[Four Guild custodian insignias found in what had been a reportedly abandoned Company-built warehouse…]” he mumbled in remark, before shifting his goggled eyes to the foreigner; “Were those the only bodies you found, volunteer?” he inquired.

The foreigner nodded “Yes…”; “those were the only bodies that I found so far…and…also…” she began to add, her attention shifting down somewhat, “…I think that they were shot…there is…the entry hole…in each of the heads, and…I think that their hands were…bounded by something” thus she described…her voice turning…somewhat lowly, some of it…genuine, for indeed…headshots were certainly the worst.

“Why didn’t you say that to begin with?! Are you certain?” the officer snappingly asked.

“I was…in the middle of inspection before you all interrupted, so I cannot be certain…but it is very likely” she answered…rather bluntly.

The officer was silent, clearly in cogitation and heavy thought. “Rather the discovery…you’ve stumbled into while trespassing, volunteer…” he remarked; “Fine, you may stay here just a bit longer until the overseeing captain arrives…” he said, before shifting his attention straight to a soldier behind; “[You, go fetch overseeing captain Renard and explain to him … ]” thus he began to instruct and order swiftly.

“[And keep this discreet, the last thing we need are the Guild’s ears to pick this up and think that we are the ones responsible!]” he finished, the soldier acknowledging before hastily departing away. The officer then pointed his finger and attention to the foreigner; “You, volunteer! You are the one who scavenged this” he said, surprisingly handing her back…the amulet he had taken instead of confiscating the rest as she…was thinking he was going to do; “Lead these two to where you found the bodies, and if you can, identify from which you took each” thus he ordered.

“It is understood…” the foreigner acknowledged.

He quickly snapped his attention to the remaining two behind; “[You two! Swallow your pride and follow her… I want those bodies looked at, excavated, and prepared for inspection! Stay with her and with the bodies until Captain Renard arrives…but I want this entire site thoroughly investigated beforehand, I will be bringing more]” thus he ordered, the two soldiers acknowledging in kind.

The officer quickly departed off, making way to collect more men.

The foreigner…began to lead the two soldiers left behind to where she had found the bodies and thus the amulets. Yet…as she did so…her mind could not help but remain trapped in an abyss of heavy thoughts and cogitations. There were…so many sudden implications, indeed, that she had to…parse together and process…about all of this.