The Mark of the Infinite

“I don’t know, Michaelis is a week’s trip from here. That is if you manage to get the transportation.” She told the group of five whom all surrounded Xaymara, as a box who would not let her leave until she went through with what they ask.

“But Michaelis is the only place in the continent with the signals.” One girl said, easing close in desperation.

“Our challenge would be nothing without it.” Another boy said.

“We promise to return back for when you need the carriage.”

“It’s not the carriage that worries me, it’s the distance. Plus Michaelis is not exactly a safe place from the Dryads either.”

“You know we can defend ourselves.”

Suriel and the rest had just then managed to come close, enough to hear clearly the group’s conversation. The four of them patiently waited for their turn to speak, but already their presence was felt by the other group and the angel.

She sighed and shooed them away for now. “I’ll talk with Carlos and see, and you’ll have a definite answer tomorrow in the afternoon.” They all looked back to notice another group wanted to speak to her, one of them even giving them a maddening scowl as they slowly moved away until Xaymara was clear for them to talk.

Like the rest in the building, Xaymara could tell easily that this group was new, showing off a kind smile.

“Yes?”

“Ah, yes…uh…” Suriel went ahead, since the rest just pushed him to speak first.

“So when did you all arrive to Eden, a week ago, two days perhaps…”

“This morning.” That was exceptionally new.

They barely got anybody right out off the bat into this area. Well…unless the dryads got to them first. This group had been lucky then.

“How many points each?” they were rather hesitant, looking at each other worriedly.

“Points?” she asked again, harsher this time.

Although shyly, each began to take the garment off from whatever part their points were presented. All of course, but Rei. She took a good look at each, then over to Rei, expecting for him to show now. He didn’t, he simply held his bag, starring continuously hoping she would just excuse it, but neither did he or she would budge.

“Sir…”

“My points are 1,000.” He said.

“I need to see it to be sure.”

“I would rather you didn’t.”

“Why?”

“It’s uh…” he pointed over to the area that it could be, but Xaymara had gotten the wrong idea.

“Oh…oh…um…never mind then.”

“Wait! No! No…”

“Sir, there is no need to explain.” The rest began to chuckle under their breaths mockingly at him, while Rei blushed in embarrassment.

“Your points are very low. The minimal requirement to enter is 5,000.” She eased away then.

“We just got here, how can we get that amount for now?”

“Go elsewhere.” She felt slightly bad for them, but she did have to follow with the rules here.

“Elsewhere? This is the only place for miles!” Luis stood out.

“If you keep following the road northward you’ll arrive…” she began counting in her head. “Probably in two weeks to Michaelis, it’s one of the major cities in the continent and surely they’ll have simple challenges or guilds that you can join.”

“Two weeks!” Gensel exclaimed for the rest of the group.

“If it goes safely and you don’t get attacked.” She seemed so kind, but she seemed to wish the worst for them.

“You gotta have something we can do.” A place like this surely couldn’t be that high rate. Look at it! It was falling apart!

“There is…but just by looking at the four of you I can tell it would not make any difference.”

“What do you mean?” Luis demanded to know, looking quite insulted.

“First of all, Stellars are useless.” An idignang huff left Luis’s lip. “Sure, they’re great navigators, but are nothing in battle. They have no attacks or defensive spells. They depend completely on the rest of their team to even gain points.” She turned to Rei and Gensel, who both stood awkwardly at her hard stare. “Although Wizards are powerful here, it takes more than just basic books to even win you a simple challenge. I doubt you’ve ever even tried magic.” She was right in that. They wanted to disappear, melt or just walk away, to hide in embarrassment before she saw that it was indeed the case. “And you…” she gazed Suriel up and down, especially his belt and sides, but nothing of what she was looking for. “Don’t even have a Primal Weapon.” she hoped now that they understood, so maybe she could turn and leave.

So yeah, Suriel didn’t know what that was, but that still didn’t stop him from continuing to try.

“Please, just let us do something! Anything!” he went after her as she began to move away.

“You won’t stand a chance!”

“Ah come on, just give us a break!” they were insisting, she’ll give them that.

She turned too abruptly towards him, her kind persona dropping down for her eyes to emit a dangerous light, combined with a fire that for once had Suriel moving back.

“One night. I’ll let you stay here for one night, but by the next morning I want you all out of here.” And she was off, no regret or pity for them. That was her last offer for them.

“We’re fucked.” Gensel declared.

“She at least gave us a night.”

“So no matter how we look at it, we’re still going to have to go through that forest like this after all.”

“What was that she said about Dryads earlier though?”

“Probably just excuses to not get people to leave.” Suriel really didn’t care much about the conversation going on behind him. He still though about what the angel had said.

They were indeed so new here and knew nothing even of the abilities they were just given. The angels from earlier didn’t really help them on that fact and he doubted anyone here would do the same.

“Where are we even going to stay here?”

“I’m not sleeping on this ground.”

“We’ll find it then.” Suriel was eager to get them to a close place.

He already moved about, much to the confusion of the rest. In the end, they didn’t have any other choice than to follow him to wherever they would stay. It was starting to get dark anyway and most were already heading to their rooms. They followed the crowd of people who took several stairs down, the building growing and growing below to show a whole world down here. Sure, the place seemed just as darkened and dirty as the rest, but much more spacious and alive at least.

Woodened stairs extended to all sorts of halls and floors, continuing who knows how long. Different signs hanged from bridges directing people to their rooms, numbered and some even had team names. From all the various ones that hanged like a gallery of chandeliers, only one actually read ‘Visitors’, rather plainly compared to all the richly decorated ones. They followed those steps, which lead them all the way to the bottom of the building. It was a part so deep that no other came in this area, only but a lost member and well…themselves. It was creepy and they had to use a near torch to light the rest of their way.

A torch? A torch!

It was cold, dirty…and they just saw some sort of bug run across the walls away from their light and presence. They continued down the halls, turning smaller and tighter until it was hard for them to even move together. They had to form a straight line as they walked on, until finally they found a vacant room.

It had no electrical light, but the holder for them to place the torch. Although the room had four standard beds that admittedly looked comfortable, it was still too small to even give them space to walk. They all took their turn coming inside, until Suriel was left out, ready to close the door behind them…then realizing there was none. Oh, how great.

“The blankets feel like shit.” Rei commented.

No one really paid mind to it….there were worst things about this room.

“I’m actually worried on what we’re going to do after this.” Gensel was first to take one of the corner beds, trying to make himself comfortable, but the space was too tight and it was too cold to get the heat he wanted.

“We’ll just have to keep going until something else tells me so.” Luis didn’t even know if he could even fit in his bed.

“Were not going anywhere.” Suriel declared, finally coming inside, taking one of the middle beds, the only that was left to be chosen.

“What do you mean?”

“You heard her! She wants us out by the next morning.”

“Nope, we aren’t going to.”

“Dude-”

“Listen!” he shouted with enough force to shut any other words they wanted to utter.

“Rei, Gensel, do you two still have the books Ashley gave you.” Rei opened one of the compartments in his bag to take them out. “Get to reading! I want you both practicing this instant.” The both of them just really starred at him, as if he was a mad man. “Don’t just sit there! Go on! Start!” he sounded intimidated enough to seem like he was to hit them if they didn’t.

They each opened their own book, beginning with the introduction for now.

“Luis!” he beamed up, actually eager to see what he could do.

“Just make sure they’re reading. I’ll be back.” And he stood back up, and just left right through the door, much to the surprise of the rest.

Where the hell was he going?

“You heard him! Get to reading!” Luis scolded them, pointing and commanding.

Despite the time that it was, the building was still as lively as ever, with people moving about in conversations and activities. They seemed so distracted with one another to notice the newcomer Suriel going through all the different signs that hanged. It was all the same he had seen when they had come down here. Numbers, teams and teams and teams, maybe an occasional one that read cafeteria, bathroom, Challenge board and weapons. Wait, there it was! weapons! He ran to that sign like a magnet, eyes taking in every letter to make sure it read the word he wanted. Yes, maybe he could get something there!

He ran then as the signs lead him, through halls, bridges and stairs until he reached an area similar like the visitor’s room that he came from. It had become tight and small, but surely larger than the one of his ‘room’. The hall, although it continued endlessly, with signs going on, pointing out different things, the specific weapons sign stopped him half way, to a door that lead down to another room or hall perhaps in a dark spiral staircase. He heard a lot of commotion from there, a single light flickering with a shadow moving about. Carefully he made his way down, trying not to make much a sound to disturb whoever was down there. He had almost stumbled upon a dropped dagger in one of the steps, continuing to find more as he kept moving down.

He found swords, various amount of small guns, even tridents, piling up more and more until he reached the solid floor. For a moment, he actually expected everything to be in order, but he found the very same mess that was in the stairs. With all the tossing and metal clanking he expected maybe a large group working on…he didn’t know, maybe actually putting these things into place. But no, there was only but a single person there, scrawny, small, yet with an incredible force to actually move all these heavy things around with ease. He didn’t seem to pay mind to the newcomer, simply working on looking for something through a pile of countless weaponry.

Although the mess, they did have everything here, most of them with their own unique design, sharp blades and…Suriel picked one of the random guns, pulling the trigger and yes, the guns were loaded. It was the sound the other needed to finally notice Suriel there.

“Uh…hello, how can I help you, Sir?” he turned to him, carrying a large shield, checking the inscriptions before tossing it to another pile.

“Yeah, I’m just looking for a…a primal weapon.” He easily admitted, looking to see if he could find something on his own that he though legible.

“A primal weapon?” he didn’t usually get asked to find that for someone.

“Yes, what’s the best you got?”

“That depends. What do you specialize in?” Suriel had no idea on how to answer that.

Yeah, he worked with a gun or two back in Earth, but he doubted those kind of things would be helpful here when his opponent possessed magic. Honestly he wanted something different, powerful, the perfect match for him. He would take anything, but he couldn’t let this guy standing there, waiting for an answer.

“Anything.” He said simply.

The other male took a deep breath, rolling his eyes and gripping his hands on his own arm.

“I can’t just give you any random weapon like that. It has to go along with your abilities and what you have experienced.” Suriel remained silent for that, that’s when the other started to notice something. “Are you even from this guild?” Suriel wanted to lie, but the truth was, he had nothing or could say anything that could prove so. “

They let my group stay here for the night, but I want to participate in a challenge.” He looked at him over like he was a mad.

“Points?” he asked.

“1,000.” And the other had begun to laugh, continuing with dealing ON the mess.

“The angels that decided to place your group in this area were cruel, heartless, maybe wanted to fool around and see how long someone like you could survive here.” He was now working on his things like Suriel had left, like there was nothing else that could be done for him…without even giving him something and you know just…hoping.

“Just…give me something.”

“Sorry, only experience members are allowed to take something from here.”

“I can take anything you’re not using.”

“Nope.”

“Ah come on!” he was angered at the fact that the other just stayed there working, not seeming to be minded.

Suriel wanted to spring his neck, take something and run. He had prepared his hands to do so, but gave up knowing it wouldn’t do much. You could only kill and harm people here if you took away their points.

As the other continued searching, he started to really think, trying to put himself in his place, the consequences…which honestly weren’t that much.

“You know, I do feel rather charitable today and I feel like annoying Carlos and Xaymara, why not choose something to your liking, only one though…I doubt it will make much of a difference, but hey, you’ll have something.”

It still didn’t change his attitude towards him. Still, something was something, so he began to search. “Any advice?”

“Don’t you think it’s enough I’m letting you take something.”

Last time he asked him then.

He began looking around the piles and piles, but nothing took his interest enough for him to take. Sure there was a dagger here and there, some swords, other weapons that he couldn’t even recognize, but none seemed promising to him.

And then he saw it, the only one of the weapons that was actually guarded in a glass case against the wall. It was an Axe, a big one that was as tall as himself. The head was larger than his own face, strong curves to cut at either side. It was dark, decorated in rubies and some red strings, making it seem even more intimidating. It was perfect.

“How about this one?” he asked.

The other turned finally to him, expecting him to choose maybe one of the large swords. Instead he seemed to choose the one that was off limits to everyone in the guild…and all of Eden actually.

“No, no! Definitely not that one.” But Suriel wasn’t listening to him. “Do you have any idea what that- And no you don’t! You’re new! Of course! Just don’t get near it, besides no one but the-” before he could continue Suriel actually held it in his hands. It felt light to him. He threw it up and down, catching it swiftly each time. He was surprised, something this large he expected would be even hard to swing, but it wasn’t, it moved like he was simply carrying a small cutting knife. The other went on rambling words that went over Suriel’s head, so before he could say anything else, he just began to leave.

“So yeah, thanks for letting me take something, really appreciate it, what’s your name by the way?” By the time he had noticed what was going on, he was left in great surprise to even stop him from taking it.

“Je-jean.” He uttered, having to rub his eyes to make sure that the Axe was actually being carried…by some newcomer who just…took it.

“Jean, Jean, okay cool, thanks again.” And he was off up the stairs, as excited as a child with a new toy.

Jean didn’t know how to react, what to even do. No one actually told him what to do if the Axe was taken so easily like that. Actually they really didn’t give him any rules about it…just to watch it. He should talk to Xaymara for now.