In this world, Magic is Everything. All people, all races, are granted with the power to perform mystical and magical feats via grimories, mystical tomes granted to each and every child on their 15th birthday. Those blessed by the mana can have their names written down in legend.
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[attr="class","shadowsHead"]Investigate to find their hideout. [Int]
After repelling the larger conflict of Minotaurs knights were tasked to figure out where they were coming from. Knights must find someone who can tell them about the minotaurs as well as give them information on their whereabouts.
[break]Additional Information: Survivor laric, the same guy from before has become infatuated with the creatures and has begun tracking their every move. Talking to him will tell you the whereabouts of the creatures. They live in some sort of cave off the west side of the road exiting the main entrance of the city, roughly 3 miles out.
[break]Additional Information:- Guard Captain Miles, the captain of the guard of the city fought the creatures before and managed to even talk to one in its dying moments. He will tell you that they are minotaurs whose Father was brought back. But that before he was told how the minotaur died. He knows that they are called minotaurs and fight without magic but are big, fast and aggressive. He is mostly unhelpful.
[attr=class,cyrustext]It had been a few days since Cyrus and Zaven had last visited Sosshi; a noticeably smaller gap between visits than there had been previously when the reports of Minotaur attacks first came to the Golden Dawn's headquarters. As luck would have it however, the cause of their visit today was not another attack to fend off or monsters to hunt. Instead, they had been contacted with the hopes that they could begin the process of putting this entire business to rest.
Specifically, they were here to see if they could find any more information about the recent attacks from some of the locals, and maybe they could finally stop these innocent people from the ambushes that had so plagued them for weeks now. To that end Cyrus and Zaven entered the walls of Sosshi, with the Vice Captain of the Golden Dawn referring back to the notes he had been taking over the course of their past couple of visits to catalog what they knew so far.
"When we first came here with Cinna after the reports first started, do you recall us meeting with a man who had been injured in one of the earliest of the minotaur attacks on a caravan?" He asked his Captain, Hama sitting on his shoulder and looking down at his notes curiously. Cyrus turned to the shadow wizard, looking away from the pages. "When we reported the mission complete at the time, the doctor tending to him informed us that he would probably be fully recovered within a week or so. That was some time ago, now."
Hama stretched as she lay down, taking a hold of a lock of her partner's hair and using it as a blanket of sorts. "So you wanna go find this guy and see if he can tell us anything else now that he's better?" She asked, trying to recall just what the injured traveler had looked like. The sap mage nodded in confirmation. "Right. I don't know where he lives, so I was thinking I would swing by the clinic and ask the doctor. It seems like a good place to start."
He returned his attention to his notebook, flipping back a couple of pages. Cyrus had previously drawn up a simple map of the city to refer back to in case of any attacks on the settlement itself, and had the foresight to mark where the clinic had been during their first visit.
Cyrus turned back to Zaven after making sure he had the location down correctly. "Have any ideas on who else to ask, Zaven?" He asked as he snapped the notebook shut, stowing it away in his bag. While he wasn't entirely sure how he felt about it, the young man was making an effort to take charge a bit better while out on missions. Not for the first time, Zaven had commented on his potential to lead when they finished their previous mission outside of Sosshi. And given the especially mundane nature of this particular outing, he figured the Blake family head would probably be rather blase about the particulars anyway. Asking around town wasn't something Cyrus suspected would add much fuel to the Captain's fire.
[attr="class","zavenreescroll"] Zaven had been processing a few missions for the lower ranking members of the Golden Dawn, his head had already been far away from the incidents that happened at Sosshi. He did not need to dwell on the mission all that much, it was just a mop up job for the Black Bulls anyway...or so it felt like. It was not long though before his Vice Captain, Cyrus Elwood told him that they needed to go back...something felt off. Zaven was in agreement and the two set off back for the Black Bull backyard as they needed to tie up the loose ends from this odd job. AS they arrived in the village Cyrus took it upon himself to ask about one of the victims they interviewed with Cinna. ”I remember letting you do the interview, and I watched and listened. He should be released from the care of that doctor soon, that is right…” He then stopped and applauded his Vice Captain, the man was resourceful and that was a great asset to have in ANY squad. After it was all made clear Zaven listened to his Vice Captain and eventually he nodded once Cyrus gave him the floor once more. ”Actually my friend, I think you know enough about this series of missions that we have been on. Please lead the way and I will do as I did in the first place, and watch your judgement. You have grown into a strong individual and you are capable of great deeds. Please, Vice Captain Cyrus...lead the way.” Zaven said in a proud tone as he motioned to the door, he grabbed his grimoire and duster before making his way to the door, hopefully following Cyrus on his way out, of course Hraban perched on the Shadow of Dawn’s shoulder. [break][break]
Once back in Soshi he was happy to see that the town had somewhat returned to normal and he kept his hands in his pockets as he was just along for the ride at the moment. ”THe clinic is the right choice, but you know this already Cyrus...follow your gut.” Zaven said in a calm, almost whimsical tone.
[attr=class,cyrustext]Not unlike the first time Cyrus and Zaven visited Sosshi for this particular line of jobs, the Captain encouraged his second in command to take the lead on questioning the man who they had interviewed during their original investigation, the Shadow wizard supporting his plan of action. Cyrus nodded, glad to hear that his idea was approved, before turning to head in the direction of the clinic where they had first met the man.
The streets were lively, he noticed, though perhaps not as much as they had been in previous visits. No doubt the frequent attacks were behind the comparative lack of activity; even quiet lulls in the assaults such as this might be cause for concern; a calm before the storm, to use a cliche expression.
On the bright side, if it could be called that, it made navigating the usually hustling streets a fair bit easier than it normally would be as the two made it to the clinic in record time (though to be fair, their only other visit was once before).
Cyrus nodded to Zaven before pushing open the door. eyes quickly falling on a familiar secretary. The woman shifted her attention from the paperwork in front of her to the pair of knights that had just walked in, and smiled. "Ah Captain Zaven, Vice Captain Cyrus! It has been a while. Can I help you with something? We haven't had any serious injuries from the minotaurs for a while."
Cyrus smiled, glad to see that she recognized them and to hear that things had been relatively quiet. He approached the desk, Hama flying down to study the paperwork the woman was looking at. "Good to hear that things have been alright. And there is something you can help us with, actually. Do you remember the man we spoke with a few weeks ago when these attacks first started? I was wondering if you could tell us where he lives; now that he's had time to recover, we thought he might be able to tell us more."
The receptionist nodded, pulling out one of the desk's drawers and flipping through some files within until she found the man in question. "Ah, here he is! Mr. Jaric; yes, he was discharged fully recovered two weeks ago. Let's see... he lives on the west edge of town, a short distance past the base for the town's guards." The woman copied down the location of the man's home and handed it to Cyrus, who gave a respectful bow. "Thanks for the help, ma'am. I think we'll be putting this mess to an end real soon." He assured her with a smile before turning to head out the door, looking down at the address she had given him.
Hama returned to her usual perch on his shoulder, resting her hands behind her head. "She said he's not far from the guards' place, right? Think any of them might know something?" She asked Zaven as they resumed walking.
[attr="class","zavenreescroll"] Zaven followed Cyrus down the streets of the town, noticing the infrequency of the people around the Shadow of Dawn held out his hand as Hraban landed in the palm of his hand and looked up at it’s master. ”Go take a look around the village and listen to see if there are any rumors flying around...this place is never quiet...not with the Black Bulls base so close...Report back if you find anything.” Zaven told the shadow spirit telepathically just as Hraban nodded its head and flew away to take a look around, the shadows around the area seemed to be just the right amount as Hraban could be seen moving from place to place as if the spirit was one with the shadows themselves. [break][break]
When they arrived at the clinic they were eagerly greeted once more by the receptionist, of course they were though...it was not every day that the captain and vice captain of one of the strongest squads in Clover came to visit. Zaven was looking around the room as he listened to the conversation, Cyrus was doing a good job and as he was told where to find the patient that was now at home, Zaven remembered the guards as well and that there was a station for them near the edge of the village. Turning to face his vice captain, it was easy to figure out exactly what they would need to do. Shortly after the shadow spirit, Hraban showed back up using the supernatural abilities of a spirit and transferring itself through the shadows and to Zaven’s side. [break][break]
”Master...there is nothing wrong in this village, the rumors of the minotaur threat that this place is experiencing seems to mostly be a thing of the past.” Hraban said as Zaven just listened while nonchalantly looking around the place until the spirit was done talking. Zaven then would sigh as he would understand that he would need to ultimately find those that witnessed or were victims of the attacks so that they could get down to the nitty gritty of this job and get some answers. Zaven walked back to his vice captain as the shadow spirit sat on the Shadow of Dawn’s shoulder as they waited on Cyrus’s next plan of action...if he did not agree he would suggest splitting the party to see the guards first.
[attr=class,cyrustext]Not long after the party left the clinic, Hraban flew up into the air. Cyrus watched as the raven spirit faded into the distance while he, Zaven, and Hama made their way across town. Cyrus figured that the Captain had asked him to check things out. He wasn't gone for too long, however, returning with the news that there weren't very many people talking about the minotaur attacks any more.
With this knowledge in mind, Cyrus nodded. "We should stop by the guard station on our way to see Jaric, then. At the very least, we should speak to the guard captain; even if the civilians haven't been bothered by the attacks recently, the same is probably not true for the guards."
Hama decided to fly a bit higher herself, looking up ahead on the path they were walking. "Well we picked a good time for the decision; the guards' place is right up ahead!" She called out to the others before returning to her favorite perch on Cyrus' shoulder.
Cyrus made his way to the building his partner had pointed out, spotting several of the town's guards outside the building discussing patrol routes. Figuring it would be a good start, he approached the trio. "Excuse me, sirs. My name is Cyrus Elwood, and this is Captain Zaven of the Golden Dawn. Might we trouble you for the name and location of the town's guard captain? We're investigating the minotaur attacks that have been occurring recently."
The three turned to face the group, the tallest speaking up with the information they needed. He told them that their captain, Miles, was inside the facility going over their weapons to ensure they had been maintained properly following their last act of combat. Cyrus thanked the three, beckoning for the rest of the party to follow him into the barracks.
It didn't take long, thankfully, to find Captain Miles. His armor was mostly identical to the other guards', but with a few extra bits and baubles to denote his higher rank. He looked up from the shield he was inspecting at the sound of footsteps, and quickly stood up once he saw who his guests were. "Captain and Vice Captain of the Golden Dawn! Name's Miles, Captain of the town's guards! What can I do for you two today?"
Cyrus smiled. "Well, we were hoping that you could give us any information you had regarding the minotaur attacks recently. We aim to put a stop to them as soon as possible, so any help would be appreciated."
The man hummed thoughtfully and rubbed his chin, covered in a thick, roughly styled beard. "Those bull bastards, eh? Yeah, we dealt with'em before. Tough ol things, but we can usually manage to drive'em off without too much hassle."
Cyrus thought on his words, but needed to hear more. "Is there anything of note about them? Tactics, where they come from? Anything about how they operate?"
Miles rolled his neck and shrugged, noticing a smudge on the shield in his hand and rubbing at it with a dirty rag. "Eh, you fight one minotaur you've fought'em all. There was this one that was kinda chatty, but besides that-"
Cyrus held up a hand, signaling him to stop. "I'm sorry, did you say that one of them spoke?" He asked; certainly none that they had dealt with so far had been capable of speech. Or if they had, they hadn't given them the opportunity.
Miles grunted in affirmation, nodding towards a spear leaning against the wall. "Yeah, one did. I stabbed it in the chest and put it down. But the damned thing wouldn't stop ranting about how their "Father" was back or some such. Bunch of malarkey if you ask me."
Cyrus turned to face Zaven, and even Hama had an intrigued expression on her face. "What do you think, boss?" She asked the Shadow of the Dawn. Regardless of his answer, Cyrus figured they were done with the guards; if their captain was so blase as to dismiss a minotaur speaking to him, it was doubtful they'd find much more information that would be of use here.
[attr="class","zavenreescroll"] Zaven took in the sights as he felt Hraban’s aura in the air, the spirit was good at following orders and the way that the two worked together was getting stronger each day. Cyrus then spoke up saying that it would be prudent for them to stop by the guard station and talk to the captain while on the way to speak to Jaric, to which Zaven had no qualms with. Watching Hama leap up and take flight to get her own eyes on the area Zaven gave a soft smile, happy that the future of the Golden Dawn will be secure with this pair when he finally leaves the service or is killed. ”I think that is a wise choice my friend, let us continue then, we are indeed not too far away now.” He said as he followed alongside Cyrus, taking mental note of his actions during this outing. Cyrus was quick to introduce the two of them before asking for the captain of the guard, the man was not around at the moment...at least in their immediate vicinity so they told Cyrus where to find the captain as Zaven looked at the weapons that the guards carried. They carried various swords and spears of various degrees of operation, their grimoires were at their hips and locked away in leather bindings, their scent was...not unpleasant even with the slight salty perfume that hung about them. The pair soon left to find the captain, and Zaven remained quiet as Hraban was able to tell him telepathically that there was something on the horizon, perhaps a scout of some sort, even though it was hard to really zone in on the person...yet Hraban reported back to Zaven and remained up to watch the horizon for the captain and his vice captain.[break][break]
It did not take long to find the captain, and of course the man was instantly the pair as if they were old friends, which led Zaven to believe that either the man knew that they were in town or that he had a rather extensive network of informants. Regardless, the man identified himself as Miles, and Cyrus immediately went into asking him questions which eventually lead to a rather shocking reveal that Zaven could actually see as a thing and when Cyrus and Hama looked back at him he gave a smirk. ”It is pretty simple then I would say, its time to hunt the father and put an end to these beasts as soon as possible. The fact that they are starting to learn human speech means that there is some sort of connection somewhere…” Zaven trailed off as Hraban suddenly reported that there was a group moving along the visible edge of the forest. .
