… This ought to have been interesting.
 
On their way back from the dungeon - remember? The dungeon with the hostile minotaurs who held no sense of hospitality towards the Blue Pegasus mages that paid them a visit - the Fire Mage was instructed to meet up with someone that Alisa wanted to recruit. It was someone going by the name Criss… strange name, but then again, Daiko couldn’t say something like that. He had yet to meet anyone else who were named after a vegetable…
 
He no longer had to feel so foreign in these streets of Myras, for after his duties and the conclusion of the feud between the two families, uh… whose names he would definitely be able to remember later, many appeared to eye him with welcoming gazes. Others appreciated his work, but they put their attention all to their crafts and occupations.
 
Okay, so from what Alisa informed him, this Criss was to be found in a hospital… it took the Fire Mage a while to find said place, for to be completely honest, he couldn’t remember the last time he visited a hospital. Were they different in appearance from any other house here? And how did it look in Myras? He had to start asking residents for directions, but thankfully, his harsh boots reached the place. Just in time for his favorite bird to soar down from her patrol atop the roofs and land on his shoulder.
 
“… Is… is this a hospital?” Daiko asked suspiciously with a raised eyebrow. It wasn’t the efficiency that he was judging, but… he felt a little weird inside. It didn’t… it didn’t really look like the type of hospital that he expected. However, where’d that feeling come from? He hadn’t a single memory of visiting a hospital; this should, probably, be his first hospital ever! C’mon, brain, work properly!
 
He scuffed annoyingly and walked through the door to find Criss, who at this point could be located in any room. Another scenario arose when he referred to her as ‘Criss’ to the assistant at the front entrance, who couldn’t recognize said person for 5 solid minutes before realizing that he meant ‘Crissandra’. The right room was informed to him, and his heavy steps took him towards her location…
 
*stomp, stomp, stomp, stomp, stomp!*


 
*SLAM!*




 
“Hello?"

WC: 389

Crissandra lay comatose by magic in the hospital room. The doctors had to to help her recover. Thankfully they had used nature magic, one that complimented her already existing magic. The clothing she had been wearing were cleaned and folded near her bed. Her breathing monitored by a strange fluffy sheep like magic creation.

There were various other fluffy creatures running. throught the hospital. They were controlled by the matron he ran it. A skilled mage with a dower face. She was soon to follow the loud man into the room.

"You'll keep your volume down in my hospital. What brings you here to Crissandras room? I hope you arent the one Alisa sent to take her away." She was old amd leather skinned. Her hair tied up into 3 white flame like ponytails.

Crissandra was breathing steadily and she was slowly being repaired by the magical fluff that surrounded her. She whimpered and moved a bit as it healed her.

The old woman spoke up. "Poor thing... beaten to within an inch of her life and saved only by sheer luck. If you are taking her out of the hospital, you had better take good care of her."

The girl laying in the bed further ahead of him must’ve been Criss… she looked to be in a terrible condition. Although Daiko himself wasn’t present, Alisa found and saved her from slavery. Daiko had never dealt with that topic before in his life as a mage… yup, as he tried to think back, not a single event ever exposed him to the disturbing abuse. His heart nearly sunk to his feet in realization.
 
And so did his head. And his hands. At this point, after receiving a stern rebuke from the elder doctor who scolded him for making a lot of noise, he was kneeling down with his forehead planted on the clean floor and his eyes widened up in a sense of shock. “S-S-S-S…” he muttered, trying his best to collect himself. It felt like he committed a grave sin, even if it was unintentional. “Sorry, I was… n-no, sorry about that. Please forgive me.” It was clear that he wasn’t used to getting scolded at or rebuked like this, for Daiko rarely took it with a calm demeanor. He rarely took anything calmly…
 
He rose his head when Alisa’s name was mentioned. The doctor knew what he came here for. “Y-Yeah, I’m with her and Blue Pegasus. I’m Daiko…” The three, flame-like ponytails on the doctor’s hair made her look vicious in appearance. It helped little with the worry seeded in his mind. He rose up on his feet and drew himself near the fluffy clouds that engulfed most of Criss, but he couldn’t see that it healed her. And it also covered most of her wounds from his view… perhaps for the better.
 
“Y-Yes!- I mean, yes… yes, of course,” Daiko proclaimed while toning himself down immediately after realizing that his vocal chords were working up on the decibels again. He held his palms together in gratitude and bowed his head towards the doctor. “I promise, we’ll take good care of her… I promise a thousand times.” Coda, the vermillion falcon resting on his shoulder, was more mature and managed to keep her calm through the entire scenario as she darted her head forward to look at Criss. The clouds reminded her of the clouds up in the skies.
 
At this point, Daiko knew little of what kind of person Criss was. However, her circumstances alone made it all too clear to him that she needed someone by her side. She needed good company, and what better company was there than the illustrious Blue Pegasus?
 
“… Is she going to be… alright and all?” Daiko asked after mustering up a little courage. The clouds surely intrigued him, but what were they used for, he wondered…?

WC: 449
TWC: 838

Crissandra lay asleep, even as he touched and looked at the clouds. She was dreaming now, a peaceful look on her face as she did so. She was young. Even for a human, she was young. Only 14 or so from the looks of it. The matron gently rubbed Daikos head reassuring him like an grandmother would. She may have been cold before, but she could tell Daiko had a good heart.

"Only time will tell... when Alisa brought her to me she was bleeding badly from her head, and she wasnt much better elsewhere. The bastards even..." she collected herself, having grabbed Daikos hair in anger. In strength alne she was stronger then any healer had a right to, and surely given enough reason she could easily deal with someone of Daikos level. But she calmed and let go of his hair.

"Thankfully your Guildmaster was there to save her from the worse of it. She even told me she fought instinctually when alisa tried to pick her up. Shes a strong girl, with a stronger will."

She traced the burned scars on crissandras body. The fluffy servent retrieved crissandras clothing and using the magic of her fluffy clouds, she had her dressed back up and ready to leave when she woke up.

"Be careful with her. Take a stage coach if you have to. No horse riding, and limited walking until she gets back. tte guild. Understood?"

It was very reassuring when the matron stroked his hair. It was… kind of motherly. It made him smile a lot, too, for he had to be strong and patient in times like these. Whatever Criss may had been through, may she recover fully again. “Thank you so much for nursing her…” he told her, clearly wanting to show his gratitude as well as all of Blue Pegasus’ gratitude towards the hard-working nurse who, by the looks of it, had saved this young girl’s life from whatever crisis her wounds would’ve brought her.
 
His hair was suddenly grabbed tightly without warning. Something rose in the nurse - anger. He could feel just how angry she got just from the violent grasp, and her outburst of strength actually shocked him. He didn’t see this strength coming from her at all, so it surprised him and even caused him to flinch for a bit.
 
After she let go, he got more to know about the situation; Alisa had saved Criss from whoever was causing this pain to her before, and due to experience, Criss likely was on alert all the time and didn’t trust his Guildmaster at first. That worried him a little… what if she didn’t trust him either? What if she decided to attack in purely out of anxiety? She had never met him before. She even attacked Alisa, who tried to help her, so…
 
It was worth sweating a little bit about.
 
The Fire Mage nodded at her requests. They were going to make use of a stage coach… no horse riding. That was a usual way of transport around here, so if walking was going to be limited, then they needed another method for transportation. He could fly… he could even have her piggyback-ride him like his mother used to let him piggyback-ride her. Ah, that was a fun time… he once fell and hit his head, though- okay, not doing that.
 
“Understood,” Daiko said and nodded continuously, “I’ll make sure she gets to the guild without a scratch, trust me on that one.” Now, Coda began softly pecking the clouds filling Criss’ body as she was getting dressed by them, curious as to why it was so… solid, at least in comparison to real clouds.

WC: 378
TWC: 1216

It wasnt clouds. It was a material like cotton. And as it dressed crissandra it was made to be a perfect fit. The matron smiled. "While shes being prepared for exit. Come with me. I need to finish a few paper works and since your guild master isnt here yo sign them, you will have too."

She waited and once he agreed shed take him from the room. It took roughly a half hour of boring, mind numbing paperwork. During that time, crissandra had finally been dressed and slowly came out of the magical coma. She sat up on the bed and numbly looked around. She was hazzy and still feeling the effects of the medical mana in her system. She would for a few minutes, but as the door opened and the matron walked through first, Crissandra was awake enough to attack.

She had no memory of where she was or what had happened. She lashed out with a D rank magic that bounced off the woman as if it was nothing. Crissandra struggled to keep her arm up before having t release the spell. "W...what...what did you... do... I cant feel my arms..."

The matron smiled softly. "That's okay. Your in a hospital. Your safe and sound."

Aw, what… paper work. Who liked that?
 
Anyway, it was necessary, so Daiko bit through it and signed the papers in his Guildmaster’s stead. At first, he thought that it was only one piece of paper that needed signing, but reality hit him like a falling meteor. His brain was pushing against the wall of his skull, and his legs vibrated. He needed to move a lot after that half hour of signing.
 
However, he did notice a slight change in the air. It felt like… a refreshment. The matron had opened the door and was returning to the room where Criss was waiting, but too late did Daiko spot the launch of a weak spell bouncing off the matron like a bouncing ball. He dashed out and stood next to the matron, checking the nurse for any injuries which, again to his surprise, were absent. This woman was something else, alright…!
 
His eyes then turned towards the rising, shining Criss who had quite a hostile look on them. The Fire Mage’s eyes widened, but he remembered that she had been through a lot and, probably, didn’t remember much of the events leading her to this place. Then again, attacking someone random like that was kind of ill, but Daiko couldn’t help thinking that. He still lacked some context.
 
“Y-Yeah, chill out,” he added to the conversation with his hands raised up in a reassuring fashion, “She nursed you back to health… I’m from Blue Pegasus, and I’m a friend of the lady who saved you. You’re not in danger anymore.” Unbeknownst to the Fire Mage, his head was tilting a little by Coda who pecked his skull like a woodpecker. That was likely the most hostile thing going on inside the room where all three of them were located in at the moment.

WC: 304
TWC: 1520

Crissandra looked around the room. As if she was finally actually taking in where she was. She settled down sitting on the bed as the memories began trickling back. She began shaking as the did so. The nurse sadly cast a spell, letting her feel the numbness of the medicine once more.

"Its okay just relax dear." She helped her stand up. The medicine magic helped calm the nerves and keep her from experiencing the full shock of the moment. She held her closely and motioned for Daiko to go and get the carriage ready. She calmed and held crissandra as she cried. And her painful tears let her heal just a little bit. She was like a incant, and the nurse knew just what to do.

She spent the time that daiko was getting the ride ready, to explain to her what happened. It took a little bit,n but soon she had even convinced crissandra that Daiko was a trustworthy person. She nodded softly as the matron made a list of things to do to heal at the guild. She even gave her a few small scrolls that had a weaker pain killer magic in them.

"Only use these if the pain is really bad. It's not as potent as my fulls strength, but it is string enough to dull any pain you may feel."

…
 
Was she calm now? It looked to be the case; she sat down on the bed again, almost in deep thought. He could see that she was thinking some things over for a moment, and he would gladly give her the time needed to catch up to the present. Daiko would have asked her if she was feeling any better, but he was quickly motioned out to go as the nurse would take care of her in these last moments here at the hospital. He figured that he should get things ready outside; a carriage and sorts, but he remembered that horse riding was a no go…
 
What other transport was there? A stage coach was a ride… right? It must have been.
 
He gently exited the room and went down the stairs in a jolly matter, eager to show her their guild. Things would likely be more easier for her from this point. Maybe she would open up to them and become a closer friend and all.
 
…
 
Daiko found himself a new challenge; getting one of the stage coaches, which appeared to be some kind of four-wheeled monstrosity without the back-up of any horses. Yeah, a type of transport that Daiko had never seen before… man, he really needed to familiarize himself with the urban society. It had been… 5 years, 5 years, and things like this were still taking him by surprise.
 
Anyway, as soon as Criss arrived outside, Daiko would be found climbing on the wheeled beast of machinery, trying to comprehend how it worked and why it was so relatively small and compact in comparison to horse-driven convoys. The driver, however, found that annoying and asked him to get down from his diesel mobile. “Ow, wait, sorry, I was just a little curious-“ Daiko explained himself as he comically slid down the front of the car and fell onto the floor like a blob, “Where can I even get one of these?”

WC: 328
TWC: 1848

Soon crissandra was brought down and she had what few things she had come with, not including her original clothes. The matron had hid those away given how bloodstained they were. The magical clothing she had made crissandra was now jsut regular clothing. And the matron smiled as she explained to the driver where they were going. The driver nodded and accepted the job, logging in the information as the matron helped crissandra into the carriage.

"Daiko, keep her safe, dont let her get to worked up. She needs to rest understood? Given shes a wood elf, if your guild has a sizable garden house let her stay there."

Crissandra blushed. "I'm not a child.... I can speak for myself."

The matron smiled. "I know you can. But right now I'm the one speaking."

Once Daiko was securely seated the driver would head off making their way toward the guild. Crissandra herself was looking out the window. She avoided eye contact with Daiko, but should he move she would flinch eve. If it wasnt moved toward her. The driver remained quiet, and simply controlled the carriage for a slow and steady ride. He wondered what hed have for dinner.

Criss soon made her way down to the street where the driver and Daiko were waiting, accompanied by the matron herself. The information was given to said driver, y’know, where they were going and all, and Daiko contently listened to the matron’s last words of advice concerning the wood elf as Criss turned out to be. “Sure! I don’t know if we have a proper garden house, but we do have a cottage,” Daiko replied with a thumbs-up to signal that everything was going to be fine. Hopefully.
 
Criss’ words said quite a lot about her. Given what Daiko had been informed, she still took a stand and held strength in her voice, all while also wanting to be the architect of her own actions and wishes. Daiko simply blinked in a mild surprise before entering the car along with Criss. From there, he waved the matron goodbye, internally thanking her for all her help. Now, Criss’ safety and recovery was in Blue Pegasus’ hands.
 
Criss… wasn’t the talkative type, but that was to be expected. Coda, on the other hand - the small falcon on Daiko’s lap - she was more talkative with her small chirps and squeaks. She was hungry, given by her body language. “Don’t worry, Coda, we’re almost t- ouch, ouch, ouch, ouch, ouch, ouch, ouch, ouch, ouch, ouch, ouch, ouch, ouch, ouch, ouch, ouch, ouch, ouch, ouch, ouch, ouch, ouch, ouch-“ Daiko’s words were halted by Coda’s sudden pecking of his skull like a bird from a cartoon, his head bobbing back consecutively to the pecks like a sparring dummy.
 
Coda suddenly stopped, though… sooner than expected. Her deep, raptor eyes aimed straight at Criss, while the bird’s head slowly approached the wood elf. You see, Coda had met a wood elf before… and truly, their connection to nature was strong enough to intrigue the animals.

WC: 311
TWC: 2159

As the bird attacked her owner, crissandra couldnt help but giggle. Dispite her trying to be tough, she was still a little girl. As Coda soon made her way toward crissandra, she wouldnt stop her and even nuzzled her head against the bird, speaking in soft and happy elvish. Crissandra gently rubbed the spots around the birds head that they wouldnt normally be able to groom with ease. She cooed and loved on Coda. But after a moment she blushed.

"I... thank you for taking me to the guild... the Matron told me where we were going...."she was quiet once more petting the bird softly. "Your bird is very pretty. And very nice." She listened as the bird squeaked and made noise. She giggled. "If I remember what my uncle told me... she probably said something about you. Something... about having a tough... shell? Sorry... I didnt get to finish my lessons with him." She giggled and continued to pet the bird. The driver kept going, he would have it done quickly and would go to have some tavern pork he decided. Until an arrow dug itself into the bench by his ass.

"FUCK! hold on in there!" He poured mana into the engine and the cart rocked forward. But didnt move far before the arrow activated its spell, shutting down the cart. "Mage boy! Get the hell out here we have bandits!"

Coda accepted Criss’ petting wholly, not a bit shy at the stranger. Her aura, her fragrance and even odor reminded the red hawk of Keira, another lovely wood elf whom the raptor adored. Coda cooed back in delight, her head stroking against Criss’ in affection. It was uncommon for a bird of prey to act this lovely, but it was a sign that Daiko had trained her well… either that or it was completely due to Criss’ own elven heritage.
 
Daiko simply nodded at her gratitude, wanting to wait for the big reveal of their famous guild once they got to their temporary lounge. Blue Pegasus, or at least the words of them, must’ve reached her ears… although, on second thought, he wouldn’t assume so.
 
“That’s Coda for ya!” he responded, revealing the bird’s name to her, “I wish she was as calm with me, though…” Criss began explaining something that came to mind; her uncle must’ve taught her a way to communicate with animals, for she claimed that Coda said something about him. Something about having a tough shell, which didn’t ring any bells in the Fire Mage. Tough shell? Why would he have a tough shell? Pft, he had nothing to hide… at least, not in front of her.
 
Coda raised her head up sharply, removing herself from Criss’ petting when the driver met a hostile obstacle; an arrow that dug into the bench where he sat. Daiko looked around hastily, spotting no one from where he sat, and the arrow’s magic did the truck in as it was unable to continue. “Nooo… we do not need that right now,” he cursed under his breath - he felt confident in taking on random bandits, but Criss was still recovering, and her ears were reportedly sensitive. He had to be watchful.
 
“Coda, guard,” he commanded the bird. Coda responded by expanding her wings in front of Criss, after which Daiko jumped out of the car. It was likely that the bandits were after valuables in the truck or the truck itself, so he had to snuff them out first.
 
With him standing outside, they would surely know that to get to the truck, they had to get through him first. Daiko would hold off… actually, no.
 
A magic circle appeared in front of his left eye, red in color and began to embed into his eye socket. That same eye transformed, gaining a golden iris and a raptor-like pupil. Heat escaped from it, and Daiko’s left eye was now able to see only in a strange vision that darkened objects around him except places that emitted significant amounts of heat. These heat signatures did tell him that a person was hiding behind the boulder behind the car - using the rocky biome around them to their advantage. Daiko leapt up onto the car and manifested another magic circle in his hand, one that summoned a single, red feather. The feather lit ablaze, before he threw it towards the boulder like a dagger. He watched it melt right through the rock like a bullet breaking through glass, and this should be enough to scare ‘em.

WC: 525
TWC: 2684