It had all happened so fast. But Leika, Xandra, and Kurisa all headed to their designated locations. At least Leika wasn't on her own in this task. Not only did she have Bolt with her, but she easily spotted Sadao due to his unusual skin color and eye patch. Communication with him was brief and lacking, but Leika knew her role in this mission.

He told her what to do, the signal to use. It was simple. She only had to hide and keep watch all night long. Easy enough. She didn't sleep much anyway due to the nightmares, so staying up all night was relatively simple. She was almost good at hiding, due to hiding from people regularly. She didn't like pain and was never in a fight. She wasn't even aware she had magic... yet.

Maybe now she'd find out. She may need to rely on it to survive, after all.

So, hiding in a nearby bush, Leika crouched low into the shadows, her tail curled around her frame, her ears drawn as Bolt stayed behind her. His black and white coat acted as a decent camouflage among the scenery, as it would in the wild with a normal zebra.

Now they waited and watched. People actively moved about inside the Crimson Quarter. It didn't look like it was closing anytime soon. It seemed she'd be here a while. In the distance, she could vaguely see Sadao hiding and waiting for the signal.

Her red eyes glowed in the darkness, taking on a wolf-like appearance as she studied the building, doing as instructed. She just had to wait until she was sure it was empty. Once no one else was present, it'd be time to move. She was both nervous and eager for the action to begin.

[WC: 311/1,500]

She watched well into the night, waiting for the customers to clear out as told by Sadeo upon their first encounter. The tattooed male seemed intimidating to Leika, prompting her to not trust him. But her Guild sisters insist he's an ally, so she does so out of necessity. Bolt brays impatiently, and the demi-human gently hushes her companion. They can't get caught. Too risky. This much Leika understood. People like this... had no mercy for people like her. And whatever it was he was doing, Leika knew it was bad. She heard drugs and lacing, she didn't understand the second word, but she had been drugged enough times to understand the first.

Finally, the time came. As the last customer vanished around the corner and out of sight, Leika raised her hand into the air, signaling Sadeo to make his move. AS he saw the redhead's signal, he charged at the building and kicked the automatic lock, busting the door open. As the tattooed male ran inside the building, the wolf-woman followed behind him, Bolt trailing the end of the team. Once the trio was in, they realized straight away that they were heavily outnumbered.

There were thirty members, all staring down the unexpected intruders. Sadeo took a battle stance, and Leika looked up at him from her position a few steps behind, tail swaying anxiously. Bolt spread his legs and pawed at the ground with his hooves, lightning crackling in his mane. Leika had no idea she was a mage, much less that she had Magic.

But she was soon about to find out as the crooks attacked. Sadeo wasted no time jumping into action with various martial art style moves and acrobatics. He was clearly a skilled Rogue as he expertly used his dagger. Leika watched at first, unsure what to do. She'd never been in a fight before. But as she stood defenseless, three (3) crooks took advantage of her confused state and jumped her.

Bolt was quick to react, however, jumping in front and shaking his head as a Little Lightning Arc shot from his horn towards the nearest target, zapping him as the man dropped from his attack, taken off guard by the jolt of electricity!

Status::

[690/1,500 WC]

The fight was on, and Sadeo was showing off some wicked skills against the crooks. Leika, being entirely new to all this, was unsure what to do. Because of this, Bolt was protectively kicking and zapping anyone that came near her. Leika wasn't sure what to do as the fight progressed with Sadeo and Bolt doing the brunt of the work. Suddenly, as if on instinct, Leika's eyes began to glow red and she began to make strange hand motions upon the ground. Roots and vines within a 1-meter radius sprouted from the floor and began to entangle the arms and legs of the crooks, rooting them in place.

Her Magic had been unleashed!

Not sure why or who this was happening, Leika used all her might to keep the bad people held in place as Bolt and Sadeo took them out one by one. It was going pretty easy until Leika began to tire from overexerting herself in something she was very much unfamiliar with. She dropped to her knees, panting heavily as a crook charged at her with a sword only to meet Sadeo's boot to the face. He helped Leika into a corner to recover.

"Rest. I've got this. Don't overdo it. Jump in when you're sure you're ready. Got it?"

Sadeo then returned to the action, as he kicked the ass of as many crooks as he could solo. Bolt stayed by Leika, protecting her as she recovered. He'd zap or charge anyone he saw in his range. Leika was still confused about what had happened. She knew magic existed, but she had no idea she had any. Was this part of the experiments that were being done on her? She stood up, once she had recovered, but having no weapon or experience in combat she stayed back and let Bolt fight for her.

Status:

[991/1,500 WC]

Things were going well so far, though Sadeo clearly needed help fighting. Bolt was also getting worn out from attacking and had taken some damage from the crooks attacking him. Leika felt a surge through her she never felt before. Or maybe she had, but never noticed it? Either way, she reached for Bolt and a green healing wave emitted from her fingertips, healing the zebra's wounds. It was then she realized she had some sort of healing and support type magic. Was this was they were doing at the lab? They had created a Demi-human Mage?

What purpose, or why they were doing such experiments was beyond her knowledge. But maybe they were causing her pain to try and trigger her into casting her Magic. But it didn't work. Why? Was it because she was alone? She felt stronger with a companion. What on earth WAS she? The term Beastmaster was not something she was yet familiar with but would be soon. Still, in a world where she has no idea what or why she is, all she has is the moment to live and learn.

It would appear she had a new thing to learn now. how to use and control her magic. What her magic even is. Where it even comes from. Why she even has it. Some of these questions would probably never receive an answer. She had other things to deal with, however, as the crooks weren't all dealt with yet and she needed to focus on the fight.

(Speaking in Sinese) "Bolt! Fight!"

The zebra brayed in response and went charging in, surrounded by lightning, his mane crackling as he ran through the group of crooks managing to knock a couple down. Sadeo took advantage of this, finishing off any that Bolt managed to injure. This was going pretty easy so far. But they still had the upcoming boss to deal with.

Status:

[1,316/1,500 WC]

Together, they easily finished off the remaining crooks, Sadeo doing most of the work due to Leika being new to all this and only just realizing her magic.  The building was pretty well destroyed due to the fighting. There were plant overgrowth thanks to Leika's magic, toppled or smashed tables and chairs, broken windows, and bodies everywhere. When it was all said and done, Sadeo checked to be sure Leika and Bolt were fit to continue before the trio headed down into the basement where they found Oga and a batch of his drug concoctions. He had apparently been working busily while they took care of his thugs upstairs. More than likely he heard the commotion and was preparing for their arrival should they get past his goons.

"So, you're still alive."

"Give it up, Oga. You're outnumbered here."

"Am I?" He grabbed some vials of unusual shades and sizes off the table behind him. Before Leika, Bolt or Sadeo could move he threw several vials at them, releasing gasses and liquids that made them feel weaker, even dizzy and nauseous. They began to cough and try to wave away the fog in vane as Oga opened a few more vials and drank the contents, the effects buffing him to advantageous size. Well, this wasn't good.

Still, it was three to one. The numbers, at least, were in their favor.

Hopefully, that was enough. They still didn't know if he was a mage or not, but he was definitely an alchemist of sorts. That could prove dangerous in and of itself, especially if he had any poisons or acids at his disposal. Leika and Sadeo assumed their battle stances, as did Oga. It was time to start. As expected, he launched a poison vial at them. Unlike his previous debuffs, this was aimed to kill or at least harm the target.

Bolt zapped him with a Lightning Bolt, catching him off guard as Sadeo attacked, swiping him with his dagger and leaving a dash across his chest. Leika crouched down and moved her hands in an odd pattern, her eyes glowing as rooms sprouted around her. It covered a 1-meter area, and as Oga attacked Sadeo, and the man dodged backward luring him in, the roots latched onto the drug lord trapping him.

While Leika maintained the spell, Sadeo and Bolt took advantage. Sadeo lunged at Oga and stabbed him in the chest with his blade repeatedly, Bolt then powered up a Buzz Charge attack and tackled Oga so hard he flattened the man as the roots held him tight. The force literally dislocated if not ripped off his legs as he hit the ground crying out in pain. Sadeo then finished him off, and left the building.

Leika stood up, panting after using such a spell, she and Bolt headed out to meet with Sadeo, who then confirmed with them a job well done and thanked the wolf-girl as she prepared to meet up with her Guildmates on their progress.

[1,500/1,500 WC]