A wicked weave of the draconic kind.

[Lance]

Lance chuckled at the noise Nyx made, finding it kind of cute in an odd way. "Never thought I'd see a spider-woman purr...kinda cute.~"

Luna felt her head start spinning as soon as the location changed, her head throbbing softly as she looked around, "Ugh...gods damned portals..." The Dark-Elf put her hand on her forehead and took a slow breath, her equilibrium returning bit by bit as she looked around. "Good to see this place hasn't lost business in the wake of the Palace attack."

Lance looked up when Celeste yelled to them, raising his other hand whilst still petting Nyx's head, "Hey Celeste! How's it going!?"

Meanwhile, a now slightly sauced Alicia looked up upon hearing Lance's voice, her eyes focusing on the Airman...and his Arachne friend. She felt a surge of...anger? No, irritation, definitely irritation, it was too indirect to be anger. 'Tch, why am I even getting annoyed? He's said over and over that he thinks it's better for us to be friends, if he wants the spider bae he can have it-her...wow, dick move Alicia.'

The airwoman sighed and finished her drink, rubbing the bridge of her nose and standing up, her gait a bit unsteady. "Oof...shoulda quit before that last one..." She pushed off of the bar and moved to leave, only to feel a small hand gripping her wrist and a stern voice talking to her.

"Oh no you don't...you're tipsy and grumpy, stay with me, okay?" Ciel gave Alicia a look that was akin to a mother gently scolding her child, not angry, but definitely disapproving. "Please Alicia, I'm sick of all the yelling and fighting, I had enough of that before I was homeless...it's why I was homeless..."

Alicia clenched her fist hearing that, her mind clearing a bit as she sat down and nodded at Ciel. "Alright kiddo...sorry for making you worry about me."

Ciel just hugged Alicia, her voice no longer chastising. "It's okay...I know you were scared, I was too. Lance is a bit strange, but he's the reason I have my momma now, and why I have you. He's like my other big brother, or an uncle who keeps me safe."

Alicia smiled at that, raising her hand to grab the bartender's attention while she looked at Lance, who was smiling and walking over to say hello to the Mercenaries. "Yeah...he's always been that kinda guy...~"

((For the sake of not confusing anyone, Alicia's text will now be rendered in this color))

[Arin]

Arin helped steady Luna as she passed through the portal, acting without hesitation given her sensitivity to arcane displacement magic "Easy Luna, I got you." He looked around and noticed how bustling the hall was, chuckling "Yeah, guess the threat of war has kept this place busy, huh?"

Umbra noticed Luna's harsh reaction to the portal, approaching her and giving the dark elf a rub on the back "Spacial sensitivity is never an easy condition to get used to, I'm afraid. Perhaps you should help the poor child to a table so she can sit down."

Celeste smiled nervously when Lance asked how things were going, glancing nervously at the unconscious duo sitting on both sides of Scarlet "Eh...Same crazy group shenanigans, so I guess everything is back to normal compared to our latest adventure. You look better, no more injuries?"

[Lance]

Luna rolled her eyes a bit as she hobbled over to a table adjacent to Celeste and her group, sitting down a bit heavily in a chair. "Tch...drunken sellswords who live to fight? The threat of war probably has them running the risk of breaking the seam in their tunic pants..."

Florentine snorted a bit at Luna's rather harsh remark, his smile becoming a bit puckish, "Ah the joys of self employment.~ You should try it sometime Miss Luna."

Luna just shook her head, propping her elbows on the table as she tried to will her brain to stop throbbing in her head. She wasn't in the mood for verbal dueling right now, "I'll take life advice from a madman when I start going to Lance for anger management courses..."

If Lance heard Luna's little jab, he ignored it, simply chuckling at the sight of Dune and Winter drooling into the table. "Yeah, my wounds are sealed up all right, and I even feel a little less...let's be gentle and call it upset. I ran into a lady who helped me out a bit."

[Arin]

Arin couldn't help but chuckle when Luna was having a small back and forth with Florentine about Mercenaries and their tendencies of being overeager sell-swords. "Yeah, well, they're a far cry from the mercenaries back in the human realm, they're far worse and get even drunker. And they even have drugs to make it worse."

Celeste smiled happily when she heard that Lance was feeling better, leaning forward on the table a little more provocatively, albeit unintentionally "Well, that's good to hear. Who helped you out?"

[Lance]

Luna looked at Dune and Winter, arching an eyebrow at Arin's assertion regarding human world mercenaries. "Well, at the very least they can't shoot fire or freeze the land around them with a single thought. Though some might strip randomly like that Ice mage."

Florentine chuckled at that, flagging down a waitress who walked by, "Excuse me miss! Would you be alright taking our orders?~" The tailor's tone was friendly and conversational, a disarming smile on his face.

Lance's eyes flicked down to Celeste's chest for a moment, clearing his throat and pointing to her shirt discreetly, "Hm, your ah...your shirt Celeste?"

The airman waited for his friend to adjust herself before grinning again, "As for who helped, it was a Majin sorceress actually, one of Aria's teaches at that. You familiar with a Dark Mage named Umbra, she's Married to fucking ALDUIN, the big dragon who's helping thaw out the palace! Ain't that some shit eh?"

Alicia watched from a distance still, now sipping a glass of what tasted like soda...how one got the materials needed for such a thing in this world was beyond her, all the Bartender would say is that they'd learned how to make something comparable to Cola from an outworlder about 50 years back or so. "Hmm, nice chest on that blonde...naaah, the redhead would probably...hmm, I like a lady who can kick ass though."

Ciel just sighed, blushing slightly at her friend and guardian's drunken musings regarding the figures of various women in the Guild Hall. "Not to ruin your fun but...could you keep it PG while I'm here? I don't want mama getting mad at you."

Alicia chuckled a bit, actually more of a drunken giggle, and smiled while ruffling Ciel's hair. "Alright kiddo, sorry for getting raunchy."

[Arin]

Arin rolled his eyes and smirked when Luna commented about the fact that human realm mercenaries couldn's use magic "Well, when they can topple over buildings and possible cities with enough explosives to rock an entire town, it still makes me glad we don't have them here. At least we can repair damage done with magic if something is destroyed, the amount of resources it would take to rebuild back in the other realm...economies could crumble if they got too out of hand."

The waitress, a silver haired beauty wearing a maroon dress, came strolling over, smiling softly and speaking in an equally soft voice "Apologies for the wait. How may I help you today?~"

Celeste blinked a few times, before looking down and blushing, correcting her shirt and giggling nervously Oops! S-sorry about that..." She kept upright, keeping her shirt in mind as she listened to Lance describe the sorceress to her. But when names started to drop, Celeste's eyes started to shimmer, and she had the most adorable fangirl smile ever "Wait! You met Umbra?! The Dragon Queen!? That woman is a living legend with spacial arcane magic! What was she like? Was she intimidating?! Did she display her power to you?! Was she wise?! Oh who am I kidding! She must be wise to help you overcome your own personal battles in such a short time!"

Scarlet smirked and turned her attention to Celeste "You are quite the fan, aren't you, Celeste?" "How can I not?! She is the witch! As timeless as she is, she practically invented arcane magic! Most of our spells come from her own designs in some way, shape, or form! She didn't just birth dragons, she birthed an entire style of sorcery!"

Umbra turned and looked over at the table Arin and Luna were sitting at, smirking and pushing her glasses up "I do believe my ears are starting to burn, wouldn't you agree, Aria?~ It seems someone over there is quite the fan of our work.~" Aria was sipping from a glass of wine she had conjured up for herself, remaining neutral about Umbra's interest in the other conversations in the room "I am content simply doing what I do, for no other reason than preservation. If some would worship up as gods or heroes, then they may do as they please. So long as I do not suddenly become some source for a cult that I will have to dismantle personally."

[Lance]

Luna nodded, not really having an answer for what Arin had told her...it made her all the more glad that Arin had left that gods forsaken place. "Yes...well, it's lucky for us that we don't have to deal with that any longer, and now, neither does Lance." The dark elf cursed inwardly at how that sounded, she hadn't meant to sound so...callous. "Sorry...I just...don't know how to respond to that, weapons that powerful that don't require mastery like magic, the ability for any man or woman to become a force of destruction...it's disturbing."

Florentine smiled at the girl and bowed his head, his voice polite and civil. "No harm done, it's quite hectic in here today.~ I'll have the strip steak, medium rare, with a glass of mead and a baked potato, please."

Lance smirked and chuckled, waggling his eyebrows at Celeste and speaking in a jovial, if somewhat teasing tone. "Heh, no worries hon, personally I found the view lovely.~"

When Celeste began to fangirl over Umbra, Lance had to repress a laugh, the girl's energy was utterly precious. "Well, she is wise, but it's more in a worldly kinda way ya know? She doesn't ACT wise and sagelike, but you can tell that she knows her shit. She's also not too intimidating, she's...well, why don't I introduce you?"

Lance stood up and looked around, his lips curling into a smirk when he saw Umbra chatting with Aria. He cupped his hands to his mouth, and in a characteristic show of his level of tact (I/E: None at freaking all), he shouted to the witch, his voice amplified ever so slightly by his wind magic. "YO! UMBRA! C'MERE FOR A SEC! YOU GOT A FAN!~"

Alicia snorted into her food when she heard Lance yelling, having to clear her throat so she didn't choke. "Jesus fuckin' Christ...you dumbass..." The former pilot's lips curled into a smile, her face flushed a bit as the booze she'd drank was hitting her system properly now.

[Arin]

Arin had a somber look in his eyes as Luna reflected on the destruction that was human warfare. He knew all too well the devastation that his kind could cause, he grew up for 20 years in that world, and he hated the constant conflict and warfare for the most asinine reasons. "Especially when you had to grow up as a force of destruction, and had to hide what you were for fear of being wiped from the history books just from fear and misunderstanding."

The silver haired waitress nodded and wrote down Florentine's order, before turning to Arin, still smiling and asked with a sweet tone "And for you, sir?~" Arin was snapped out of his self reflection and turned to the waitress "Um...I'll have a sirloin. Medium rare, with some biscuits and gravy on the side." "And what to drink?~" "...Um...Do we have any red wine?" The waitress nodded cheerfully, giving all of the men at the table a bit of a show from how the nodding affected other parts of her body "We do, actually! It's a sweeter wine, without as much bite. Yang likes to call it the 'subtle spike' because of how mellowed the fermented flavor is, but how equally potent the wine can be compared to other drinks."

Arin blinked a couple of times, surprised by the waitress' specific reply "That...is surprisingly specific. I guess I'll take a glass of that, and a glass of ice water, please." "Verrry welllll...Aaaand done!" As the waitress finished writing down Arin's order, she then finally turned to Luna "And for you, dear?~"

Celeste blinked a few times when Lance started to suggest that he introduce Umbra to her, before her eyes started to widen in shock "wait, she's here?! Lance you don't have to-" But it was too late, Lance was already calling for Umbra, and announcing it to the entire guild hall with how he amplified his voice with his wind magic. Celeste, in response, started to shield her face with her hands, sweating nervously and muttering to herself "Oh my gods! Oh my gods! Oh my gods! Lance you idiot, why did you do that..."

Umbra, hearing Lance's voice over the entire roar of the crowd, smirked as she stood up and placed a hand on Aria "Well, it would seem I'm needed elsewhere. Aria, darling, we can catch up later. Do tell the king I said hello, if he stops by.~" Aria sighed softly, looking up and giving Umbra a nod "I will. Until then." She returned to her drink and relaxed, as Umbra began to saunter her way over to Lance, each stride accentuating her curves as she approached "What's this I hear about a fan, Lance?~" Nyx sat her abdomen on the cool guild floor, her upper body laying down and resting her head on Lance's lap as she napped contently.

[Lance]

Luna went silent when Arin talked about having to hide how destructive his abilities were, and how afraid he had been for a time of simply being killed for what he was. She was so absorbed in her thoughts that she almost missed the waitress talking to her. She snapped out of her inner thoughts and looked at the woman, pausing for perhaps a moment longer than was necessary before giving her order. "Oh, um...I'd like a salad please, with...ugh, what is that white dressing that Lance told me about? The tangy one..."

Pagan stifled a snort, a mischievous grin creasing his lips as he repressed the urge to make a very, VERY crude joke. Instead he simply looked at Luna and smiled, "I believe that's ranch dressing madam."

Luna nodded, "Yes, if you have that then I'd like my salad to come with that, as well as the same drink order that Arin made."

Lance snickered and gently patted Nyx on the head, brushing some strands of hair behind her ear as he gave Celeste a hearty pat on the back. "Yup!~ Her name's Celeste, and this little lady right here is the one who patched me up on the way here after I got my ass kicked in the Twilight me. She's also a summoner, so I figured you'd enjoy talkin' shop with her.~"

[Arin]

The waitress scribbled down some notes, then smiled "Alright, so that's one strip steak, one sirloin, and a salad. One mead, a 'subtle spike' wine, and two ice waters. Will that be all today?" Arin looked around, to see if anyone else needed to place their order, but it looked like it was just them for now "Yeah, I think that will be it for now, thank you." <I hope you won't mind one more to your little meeting, do you, young prince?> "If you are still taking orders, madam, I would like to request a goat's leg, pan seared but still bleeding. Freshly butchered, if possible. And a salt-water vodka with lemon and lime juice. If the barkeep id not familiar with the drink, I will be happy to mix it, so long as I have the sea salt and ingredients." The waitress blinked a few times, but gave a nod to the new Drow-like arrival, and scribbled down his order "I'll see what I can have the kitchen put together, sir. I will be back with your drinks.~"

The waitress glided to the counter, and Syraki took a seat not that far away from Arin and the others. "Such a silent lot, you three are. I thought that this would be a table for celebration of your recent victory in the catacombs."

Celeste was blushing up a storm as Umbra stood there with a smirk, intrigued by what Lance was telling her about Celeste's powers "My my.~ A healer and a summoner? Well, you certainly have some talent." Celeste's face reddened even more, as she started to stammer a little "Oh! Um! Well, it-it's not exactly summoning, really, miss...I, um..." She started fumbling around for her talismans, and some of them fell onto the floor, which she cursed as she scrambled to pick them up. She got back in her seat, holding her talismans up awkwardly. But when she realized how she looked, she slumped and let the talismans drop onto the table, covering her face "Gods...I am acting like such a fool right now..."

Umbra walked over and sat besides Celeste, placing a hand on her back "Deep breaths, dear. I'm just like anyone else, no need to get nervous.~ So, how do these little trinkets work?~" Celeste took a few deep breaths, trying to calm herself down, but it was certainly difficult, given the fact that her idol was here, interested in her talismans "...Well...The talismans have mana stones in them, and I infused different mana elements into the stones themselves, after exhausting their reserves. The incantations are engraved into the talismans, and when I channel the stones through the incantations, it manifests a spectral elemental that I can use for whatever task I need it to do at the time. They require regular maintenance, and repeat infusions so they work, but I feel like I've perfected the design the best that I can...But it still uses some of my own mana per summon, and I can only use 2 at a time...If I force myself to do more than I'm able to do, and I become a burden to my team."

Umbra smirked and levitated the talismans in front of her, observing the runic designs, and scratched her chin thoughtfully "Masterfully crafted, and a mix of mythril and gold alloys as a conduit for the stone. You're quite the artificer, aren't you, dear?~ The only thing you need to work on is your mana control and output, and you can be a force to be reckoned with.~" Celeste's face blushed even more as she covered her face from the embarrassment, even going so far as to let out a small squee of joy for being praised by her idol.

[Lance]

Luna didn't respond to Syraki's words, being deep in thought regarding everything that had happened recently. They had a new member of their group, Lance had seemingly gotten some level of control over his issues, and Arin had not only gotten proof of his lineage, but a new goal in life to strive for...where did that put her? She would stay at Arin's side of course, protect him like she'd always tried to do, but could she do that as effectively now that Arin's own magic was given a better avenue of control? She wasn't one for self consciousness, but she felt...as if she'd fallen behind the rest of her companions in such a short span.

'Lance's training regimen might not be enough, I need to improve all of my abilities...but where to start? HOW to start?' Luna scowled softly, she hated this, not knowing what to do or where to start on something so important...it was an irritant, a distraction.

Florentine just chuckled and looked at Syraki, his expression a bit impish. "But think of what a victory like this means my Drow friend!" The clothier leaned forward in his chair and clasped his hands together over his mouth, looking at Arin, Luna and Lance at the other table. "They have new abilities, new leases on life...but what to do when you have the world open for you? So many roads to travel and so many avenues to explore! Such a victory comes with consequences, and such large things tend to make one pensive, not jubilant.~"

The pink clad man looked at Luna in particular, making the Dark Elf's eyes widen almost imperceptibly. Did this man know what she was thinking? Or was he just that good at reading a room? His skill at snooping apparently went beyond mere eavesdropping. "That just makes us smarter than most, doesn't it? Not forgetting how important such things are."

Florentine chuckled, "Ah yes...but one must also be mindful of becoming fixated on the unknown. If you spend all your time wringing your hands over the things you can't perceive, there are only two options...become clairvoyant, which is impossible no matter what some hair-brained seers may claim. Or, you can become flexible, learn to adapt at a moment's notice. Still quite challenging, but very, very possible for young folks such as yourself.~"

Lance chuckled at Celeste's reaction, finding it freaking adorable. "Pft, see? She called your work masterful. Put that feather in your cap and wear it around town!~" Lance gently caressed Nyx under the chin, gently scratching her like one would while playing with a cat. He wasn't sure if she'd like it...but hey, if she purred like a cat maybe she liked being preened like one?

[Arin]

Syraki nodded in agreement with Florentine's words of wisdom, noting Luna's pensive attitude and having an idea of how she must be feeling. He hadn't known much about these three before the twilight kingdom, but he noticed that Luna was far more cautious, and fought from a distance, and bows can only do so much agaisnt something that has no form.

"Well, my initial intent was going to be training Arin in bettering his control over his darkness. But it seems I may have been neglecting some of the others in the young prince's company." He glanced over to Lance's table, where Umbra seemed quite comfortable around the group, as always "Since the soldier prince has his own mentor and defenses, I shall assist your mate in bettering her skills as well. After all, ranged combat can only get you so far, and there will be enemies you may face who you will not fair well against, unless you learn to alter your strategies."

Celeste's face, while still blood red, was beaming with excitement. Her idol called her skills 'masterful', and praised her talents. She felt like a child being given a treat for good behavior. She stood up, grabbed Dune's half-empty mug, and lifted it up "That seals it! I'm gonna keep working on my magic crafting, and get better control of my mana flow! I'm not going to make my idol regret her words of praise! If you or your friends ever need some magic items to tinker with, you just let me know!"

[Lance]

Luna looked at Lance and sighed, "Lance offered to train me as well Syraki, I'm just hoping that us coming to blows doesn't impede that."

Florentine laughed and gave Luna a friendly clap on the back. "Ah, now you're letting your anxiety get the best of you! The young man seemed perfectly content with you when he returned. I'm sure just asking him will get you the answer you seek my dear.~"

Luna flinched and give the clothier a pointed look, not really appreciating having her back touched. "Even if you're correct, Do not do that again...please." Florentine responded with a sheepish, apologetic grin, leaning back a bit and giving an awkward laugh. "Heh, sorry about that."

Lance, meanwhile, was clapping his hands and giving Celeste a thump on the back himself, grinning at the young mage's declaration. "Fuck yeah! Good on ya honey.~"

[Arin]

Syraki nodded in agreement with Florentine and Luna's interaction, his reptilian eyes laying on Lance, then back to the others "A soldier's training will likely be sufficient, I am sure. And given his more light-hearted nature, and lack of negativity about him, I have no doubts that he holds no ill will towards what happened in the past. It would seem that the party has been growing more rambunctious by the moment, given the energy from my mother's company."

Scarlet smiled and nodded in approval, Celeste was certainly growing more confident in herself now, which brought her great joy to witness "You will be sure to get some requests from me, Celeste. Some of my gear has been falling to disrepair, from how heavily I've used them." Celeste scratched her head and giggled shyly "You got it, Scarlet. I'm sure I can get your equipment fixed up, once my skills are high enough. Though, I think some simple mending enchantments should help with keeping them preserved, I'll just need to work with a blacksmith to get them fixed up."

Umbra, smiling mirthfully, lifted her goblet "I propose a toast! To the return of lost empires! May this realm no longer be desolate and ridden with ruins, let us bring it back to it's former beauty, and an even better glory! What say you, loves?~"

[Lance]

Luna looked over at the group, snorting softly when Lance raised his own glass and let out a loud, "Yer goddamn right!~" before throwing back his drink. "Great, a drunken clown, just what every party needs."

The Dark elf's lips curled into a soft smirk, she was happy to see that Lance had recuperated from his mental traumas somewhat. He was an ass and a loudmouth...but he had saved her life, at great risk to his own, and she wouldn't forget that readily. "But I'd be wrong if I said that he didn't deserve the reprieve..." Luna drank some of her water, a bit of it trickling down her chin and pooling in the gap of her chest, though she didn't seem to pay it much mind.

Florentine just chuckled and ate his meal, smirking behind his glass as he took a drink. 'Well well well...so part two falls into place, first my daughter and that Oni...and now these children. I do wish I knew exactly why Philemon thinks they're so vital, but if he thinks I shouldn't know then I won't argue the point with him.'