Month 1, Day 2, 9:50:10; Arvium, High Council West Building

The busy inner area of the West High Council Building was shaped like a circle, connecting two corners of the building and acting as the entrance for the Armory, Magic Training Center, and Weapons Center. Each of the three were busy with both Alpha and Beta players busy leveling up their weapons and magic sets.

Aella watched the player stop in the center of the common area, a confused look on his face. His hand was raised in front of him, and he made motions in the air with his fingers as he shook his head. Then he suddenly froze, and turned on his heel and ran out of the entrance at full speed.

She smirked and shook her head. I hope whatever he forgot wasn't important. She straightened as she saw Sigmund and the twins come through the door and look around. She pushed herself off of the wall with her foot, letting her arms fall to her sides. She smiled and nodded her head to Gemina who waved to her.

"You got here before us?" Gemini called out as he came closer.

Aella craned her neck to look up at his face and nodded. "I took a shortcut and headed straight here."

"That was a tough event," Gemina said, crossing her arms and shaking her head. "I got turned around so many times."

"That's because you can't just punch your way through the walls," Gemini said, lightly punching her shoulder.

"Look who's talking, you big oaf," she protested, punching him back.

He stumbled from the force of the blow and winced, glaring at his sister and rubbing the spot.

Aella smiled and shook her head at the two.

"Let's go inside then," Gemina said. "Maeva sent me a note saying she has started her own skills tasks, and got her first tool."

She nodded, and started following the small group through the archway and small hallway that led into the Weapons Center.

"I see I owe you congratulations," Sigmund said.

She smiled and nodded, seeing he was pointing to the staff in her belt.

Both Gemini and Gemina turned their heads, looking to where he was pointing.

Gemina's eyes widened and she grinned. "You got a weapon?"

Aella shrugged, feeling her cheeks grow warmer. "I got the third flag."

"Hey, that's great!" Gemini said, laughing. "I would expect nothing less."

Aella frowned as they emerged into the Weapons Center. "What about you, Sigmund? Since you're a merchant, do you get a weapon?"

Sigmund chuckled and winked at her. "I make my weapons."

Aella's eyes widened. "Really?"

He nodded, pointing his index finger at his head. "And whatever else pops into my head, as long as I have the resources for it."

She stopped just outside the hallway, her eyes taking in the busy scene. Lines of stalls with signs designating the different types of weapons lined the long hallway on the left and to the right was an open arena with several rows of boxing rings on raised platforms served as mini combat arenas for weapons tests. Almost half were filled with players sparring.

"What weapon do you want to start off with?" Gemini asked, looking back at her. "We get one basic level weapon as a welcome gift this week."

Gemini chimed in, her eyes wide and her teeth showing through a grin. "And over there, we can join in sparring matches. Winners get credits and it's a quick and easy way to level up the stats on a weapon and get upgrades. The Magic Training Center is the same, but you use spells and magical items over there."

"Meet back here in an hour?" Gemini asked.

Aella nodded. "That sounds fine."

She and Sigmund watched as the two walked off, Gemini to the weapons stalls and Gemina to the arena.

"Walk with me?" he asked, nodding his head toward the weapons stalls.

She nodded, walking past small groups of players and into the walkway between stalls.

"Is that a staff?" Sigmund asked.

She nodded, pulling it out and handing it to him. "I have experience with it, and I have my sword already." She waited as he looked over it, taking a look at the stalls on either side of them.

The stalls were weapon-specific, and seemed to be arranged in sections. The stall on her left and held small projectile weapons, ranging from daggers to shuriken and darts. The stall on the right held slightly larger weapons, but were still in the range of small projectile weapons.

She turned back to him, watching as he tested the weight.

He turned it over in his hands, pressing the button and watching as it extended. He pressed the button again and it returned to it's baton-like state and he handed it back to her. "It should be useful. Are you going to get another weapon with your welcome gift?"

She paused for a moment, her eyebrows drawing together. "My sword and staff are short-range. I'll need something long-range if I'm going to be doing scouting missions."

He nodded. "Long-range weapons are at the end of the hall. I would suggest a bow or crossbow, but there might be something else that interests you."

"Hey," a voice called to them.

Both Sigmund and Aella turned to look at the person.

The lanky man, dressed in a long, flowing robe was squinting at them. His bright green hair flowed down to his waist, tied in a low ponytail. He pointed a finger at Sigmund, then at Aella. "You two--looking for weapons?"

Aella looked up at Sigmund, meeting his gaze. Then she turned back to the man. "Yes."

"Good." He turned and walked down the hallway, his robe trailing on the ground behind him. "Follow me."

"Well?" Sigmund asked, sliding his hands into his pant's pockets.

Aella watched the figure for a moment then shrugged. A strange character but I didn't get any creepy vibes off of him. "I don't see why not."

They followed the man to the end of the of the stalls, then through a hallway on the left that turned into a curving staircase leading upwards. They climbed two floors, coming out in a large intersection of two hallways on the third floor. There were few players milling around, most in heavy sets of armor.

The man walked several feet to the left, then disappeared through a doorway. Sigmund followed him first and Aella trailed after him, stepping through the open doorway into a room that was larger than she had expected, since it extended at least one hundred feet beyond a countertop a few feet from where they were standing. It was cluttered from side to side with tables, shelving units, and cupboards crammed so full of strange items she wondered how the shelves didn't break from the weight. A door at the back was ajar, showing a workroom inside.

The room smelled musty, with old, burnt wood and burning metal. A loud clang rang every few seconds, almost drowning out the tinkling of bells that rang as the man lifted a panel and stepped behind the countertop. The countertop was littered with blueprints, pens, and chalk bits, and a lone pencil sticking out of a multi-colored, paint-splattered bowl with a chip on its handle.

"Welcome to Charon's" he said, waving a hand. "You want it, we can make it--for a price." He reached under the counter and pulled out a bell, ringing it several times. "Just a moment."

The clanging stopped, accompanied by a cloud of smoke and a deep-throated bellow of pain, then a splash of water and hiss of steam.

Aella frowned as she heard hollow pounding sounds coming closer. Her eyes widened as Charon came out of the workroom and made his way through the tables. He wore no clothing other than a scarlet apron covering his bare chest. She forced herself not to let her eyes wander down his back at the cotton blanket that lay across it, and to the thick black tail that was flicking back and forth. She glanced down at the floor, seeing hooves beneath the panel.

He cleared his throat. "My eyes are up here, miss."

She jerked her head up, seeing Sigmund bow out of the corner of her eye.

"You are Charon?" Sigmund asked.

"The one and only centaur blacksmith in town, and pleased to make your acquaintances." he paused, waiting for their names.

"Sigmund."

Aella turned to look at the man's rugged face. He was pleasant to look at, with a rugged beard and twinkling blue eyes. "And I'm Aella."

"Anadon's boarders?" he asked, shuffling through some of the blueprints on the countertop.

"Yes," she answered.

Charon nodded. "I have your blueprints ready, if you'll wait just a moment."

Aella looked to Sigmund, seeing him raise an eyebrow. Maybe he has the wrong people.

Charon frowned as he lifted a small stack of blank blueprints. "Silver, I--"

The man handed him two rolled blueprints, and crossed his arms.

Charon took it and nodded. "Thank you." He looked up at Sigmund and Aella and frowned. "There are supposed to be five of them. Where are the other three?"

"I will find them now, Master."

Aella stepped out of the way as the white-robed man--rather, Silver--opened the panel and walked past her and out of the door.

Charon turned to her and Sigmund. "I will go ahead and get started while we wait for the others. I assume you've come here to finalize the details of your suits of armor?"

Aella frowned. "I haven't placed any orders for a suit of armor."

"Neither have I," Sigmund said.

Charon laughed and shook his head. "Don't worry, it's already been paid for. Your whole team has been given armor."

"Who paid for it?" Sigmund said.

"The High Council," Charon said. "The top five teams of players--and I'm talking about your scores in the testing--were entered into a raffle. One team received suits of armor, another team received fully upgraded weapons-thankfully I'm not in charge of that, another team won a six month's worth of free food tickets, another team got a small ship which is going to take me ages to make, and the last team received small animal companions. Your team won the welcome lottery for free suits of armor. You didn't know?"

Aella shook her head and looked at Sigmund. "I haven't heard anything about it--have you?"

He shrugged. "I haven't seen any messages about it in our inbox. So we placed into the top five teams?"

Charon crossed his arms and frowned at them. "That is what I said."

"What place did we get?" Aella asked.

Charon frown grew even deeper. "I don't know."

"Do you know who the other top four teams are?" Sigmund asked. He turned to Aella and wagged a finger at her. "You know this means we will get better mentors."

"How does that work--the mentor thing?" she asked, looking to Charon. "Is it an event or are we approached individually?"

Charon neighed and raised his hands to the air, then snorted as he crossed his arms. "You should ask the High Council. My job is just to make things."

Aella hung her head and bit her bottom lip, nodding.

"I apologize for any rudeness I may have exhibited, Charon," Sigmund, bowing his head to the centaur. "I let myself get carried away."

"The same applies to me," Aella echoed. "I am sorry."

Charon nodded his head once. "It is no problem." He lifted one of the blueprints and squinted at the faint writing on the top edge. "Now, then," he said, laying one of the blueprints on the countertop and rolling it out. "What do you think of this, Aella?"

Her eyes widened at the suit of armor drawn on the blueprint. Every inch of the woman's body was covered with armor made up of intricately woven pieces, but it wasn't a bulky design. Rather, it was built for mobility. A simple, but intricately embroidered skirt hung from the belt, a cape flowed from the back, and a bird of prey with outstretched wings decorated the chest area. The shoulder pieces looked as if it were made of feathers. Her eyes scanned the armor and she grinned.

To the side was a drawing of a helmet, and she laughed softly as she took in all of the details. Two wings extended from the sides of the helmet. A visor took up most of the area around the eyes, but the bottom half was shaped like a beak, and protected the nose and chin area.

"It's beautiful," she said, her voice soft.

"It's light armor, but I gave most of the detail to the design and modeled it after a phoenix," Charon said. "The symbol of rebirth." He pointed at different parts of the armor as he talked. "The wings tell of the phoenix's ability to rise above anything it comes across, even death. The fiery colors--red and gold--show it's majesty, strength, and warmth. It is a royal bird, and gives life even when it is reduced to ashes. It is a magnificent set of armor, if I do say so myself."

She looked the armor over, trying to think of scenarios she would be placed it. She pointed to the cape, then looked up at him. "Does the cape come with a hood?"

Charon frowned. "No, but I can add one." He picked up one of the pens and wrote down a note on the blueprint. He mumbled to himself as he wrote. "Accommodate helmet, another two yards...add some embroidery."

He looked back up at her. "Anything else?"

She glanced back down at the blueprint. "I assume that the pieces are separate? I wouldn't have to wear the whole suit of armor unless I went into battle?"

Charon nodded. "For now, you won't need much else besides the boots, arm guards, chest plate and helmet. You won't be involved in any major skirmishes with monsters or such else until after the Graduate Games. I'll have the minor pieces finished by this evening, and will have them delivered to your residence. The rest of the armor I estimate will be done in time for the Graduate Games."

"And can the armor be upgraded?" she asked.

"It's already advanced," Charon said, crossing his arms. He paused for a moment, then pointed the pen at her. "But if you could find some Galaxium crystals before the Games--the ones you find by doing the scavenging spells and gold ones, preferably--I could include them in the metal work. They would boost your health and magic stats, as well as give the armor a glowing effect. The same goes for you too, Sigmund"

Aella nodded. "I'll keep an eye out for some."

"So, just add a cape?" he asked. "I've strengthened the fabric with magic resistance. You can use it as a shield, almost."

Aella frowned, her fingers drumming on the countertop as her eyes scanned the blueprint once again. "I have a sword and staff, and I'm thinking of getting a bow as the welcome gift weapon. Does this armor accommodate those?"

Charon nodded. "Yes. I'll put pockets on the inside of the cape and hooks on the inside of the armguards for throwing weapons as well. If you ever want to include magic spells or amulets into the design, you can always bring it back to me. I don't charge for upgrades if you give me the resources for them. Just fifty credits for my time."

Aella smiled as she looked up at him. "I don't see anything else I want to change. It's a beautiful set of armor."

Charon nodded and snapped his fingers. The blueprint rolled itself up, then began to rise in the air. "Commence building spell," he said, slapping his hands together.

The blueprint vanished with a small puff of white smoke.

"You're a merchant?" Sigmund asked.

Charon nodded. "I was an Alpha player. I chose reincarnation as an NPC, but I still have most of my spells." He laid the second blueprint on the countertop. "Now it's your turn."

"I'm going to go find a bow," Aella said, placing her hand on Sigmund's forearm.

He smiled as he looked down at her, his golden eyes reflecting the light in the room. "I'll meet you down there."

She walked toward the doorway, then turned back. "Thanks, Charon. It was nice meeting you."

The centaur raised a hand to her, his other hand pointing to the blueprint on the countertop.

She smiled and walked back into the hallway, and headed down the stairs to the Weapons Center.