What's Mine is Mine

**Date Started:** July 21st, 2021
**Date Completed:** Ongoing
**Previous Role-Play:** N/A
**Users Involved:** User:BQD, User:Blackdagger01, User:PuddingCups, User:MorellaVoltaire, User:GuyCivic, User:ColeKane101, User:Black Dwarf Star
**Setting:** Kikka, Clover Kingdom
**Characters Involved**: Madelynn, Cheshire Cassius, Irene Temporada, Xiomar Blaze, Gron Xavier, Alev Rainier, Ferrah Pan

The black market of Kikka was an unsettling place, its alleys were dark, the lighting was dim, and the people were less than friendly. It was a place most mages did not want to find themselves in, especially those that had never been there before. Stealing, threatening, and even fighting were more occurrent than one would expect, and while rarely did one lose their life, they usually came out changed one way or another after a transaction. It was truly, a horrendous market, one that had changed the lives of many for the worst.

But not for Madelynn.

The Captain of the Aqua Deer squad skipped through its streets like a child walking through a field of flowers. The comparison wasn't far off, her short height, baggy clothes, and innocent smile all made her look as if she was way younger. She hummed tunes to herself happily without a care in the world, regardless of who looked her way, who plotted to steal the purse she brought with her, or who already thought of scamming her from a deal.

In a place where everyone was careful, manipulative and calculative, Madelynn was happy. She jumped from merchant to merchant, gazing through the items they had bought. She herself had already glanced at more than a few items, though not a single one had been bought. They were of utmost importance to her as they fed her endless curiosity. "Ohhhs, and ahhhs!" Accompanied her skipping ever so often, though not once did she seem to seriously stop and seriously gaze at an item. She didn't need to, a glance from her glasses was all it took to decipher how they worked, how they were made, and how one could improve upon them. Of course, she'd kept her mouth shut, she knew illegal merchants hated to hear her pounce on their products, some of them even hiding their stands when Madelynn arrived, such was her renown.

"Hm?" Suddenly, the woman stopped on her tracks, a finger to her chin as she finally stopped upon a single object. A beautiful necklace, colored golden, with a darkened gemstone at its center. It was an object that seemed oddly familiar to her, immediately, her curiosity got the best of her. Madelynn leaned forward, completely ignoring the merchant behind the necklace. "Ah...I see, so it's made out of that...interesting...interesting." Madelynn nodded to herself, a full on analysis going on inside her head.

"Sir, I'd like to purchase this!" The man seemed taken aback by the fact that Madelynn's forwardness, especially in a place like this.

He seemed almost scared even, hands moving towards the necklace as he spoke. "It's not for purchase anym-"

His hands never reached it, for Madelynn's own went from her pockets to the man's hands. Several paper bills and coins felt into his hand, a clicking sound emerging as Madelynn placed her hand firmly atop the merchant's own. "Keep the change, sir! Bye!" She noted before he could respond, and with that Madelynn was off, necklace in hand as she inspected it. The man quickly began to get rid of the items, placing them on a bag.

Madelynn smiled, "Ahh, so this is why this seemed so familiar..." Madelynn tilted her head, her smile dissipating for an instant. "Hmmm, I guess I can't play at the Casino today. I should tell LoLo about this..." Madelynn nodded, her skipping and humming now resuming. It was time to head home.

## Scientific Breakdown

A summer's breeze rocked the branches as Cheshire sat outside the main building of the Aqua Deer Headquarters. Her nose twitched as the wind carried on it the slight smell of pollen which so nearly warranted a sneeze from the girl held off just barely by the cleansing steam that wafted up from her afternoon tea. Bringing the porcelain tea cup to her lips her eyes never left the book in her other hand, notes from their late night research, reading over them to ensure they were coherent despite being written in a state when they clearly hadn't been. Frankly, she only remembered half of what she'd written but that was part of the risk of spending a night in the lab with their Captain.

The changing of the wind's direction caught her attention, the sound of something gliding through the air guiding her eyes until they fell upon the appearance of Madelynn, seemingly returning from her trip much earlier than Cheshire had originally expected. Marking the page she sat down the book and rose from her chair, waving up toward their captain in welcoming her back to Headquarters.

Irene had the body of a gorilla and the voice of a smoker, that compared with the fashion sense of someone who was much richer than she actually was, summed up her personality. "Mady must have had a marvelous time in the market." Irene commented as she sat at the bar, her kiseru blowing flower-like shapes from its pipe. "I heard this time of year they've got all types of things, diamond, pearls, emeralds, rubies!" Irene was foaming at the mouth at the mention of such extravagance. "It's all very in season." The woman huffed as the door opened, having not been talking to anyone directly, she was excited to see the captains return.

And to return with a shopping bag? "Finally! Finally doll! You're out of those old rags and into something more.." Irene struck a pose, hugging her body and toying with her fur coat. "Form fitting! As I've always told you. Those tattered hand-me-downs of yours... so... last season." Irene rolled her eyes, trying to peak at what the captain had bought; ignoring almost everyone else.

Madelynn walked down the stone paved road that led to the Aqua Deer's base. Several members often stood outside, for the appearance of Madelynn's home was...different, to say the least. It seemed more akin to a ship than anything else, an incredibly massive ship. Some sort of metal coated its exterior, along with green-paned windows. Several buildings, akin to castles and houses could be seen protruding, likely where Madelynn often resided. More importantly, mana could be felt, as it slightly floated off of the ground, the Aqua Deer's base, was of course, one of Madelynn's many experiments.

"Heyo!!!" Madelynn called out happily, immediately upon arriving Madelynn looked at her ensemble. "What about these clothes, Irene? They're comfy, that's all that matters! Can't be seen wearing a lab coat all day, y'know? It's not my style." Noticing that Irene hoped to look into her bag, Madelynn extended her arm so she could more easily gaze at it. Clinking sounds could be heard when she moved the purse, a variety of junk inside of it. "Wait, no, no, that's not important." Madelynn shook her head.

"I actually need to tell you guys something! Where's Loholt at?"

Leaning against a bench, Cheshire clicked the metal tip of her umbrella against the stone road. "I'm afraid I haven't seen him today, Maddie. I'd thought perhaps he'd gone with you to the market. Is it something important? Perhaps he has his communicator on hand?" The blonde asked, entering the room using the umbrella much like a cane as she strode up to her captain and mentor with a curious look on her face.

"You're back far earlier than I'd expected. You didn't encounter any trouble did you?"

Irene made a face of pure disgust. Contempt with being a squad captain and looking like a commoner? If that was her choice. Turning around and prancing, she played with a string of pearls around her neck, turning around to hear Chesire answer the question. Where was Loholt? That made Irene think. Well she hadn't seen him, and that was too bad. He was a looker, and a good dresser too.

Taking her Kiseru Irene blew a heart of smoke this time, shrugging. "Good thinking Blondie, maybe you should have been in the detective division of the Magic Knights instead..." Irene rolled her eyes, her heels clicking against the stone path as a cloud of smoke from her Kiseru followed her. "You know what I say dolls? He's a big boy..." Irene's lips shaped themselves into a grin, showing off her abnormally large teeth, almost like a rodents. "He'll be back eventually."

"Huh?! He's gone? Well...I guess it's fine." Madelynn looked at her wrist, a small bracelet lightly hugging it. She tapped it with her free hand, a beeping sound leaving it, as she nodded to herself. "Yeah, he'll be back soon, anyways, we should get inside. We have things to do squad! Yep! No more lounging around!" Madelynn declared happily. She walked towards the floating base, a set of stairs forming at its entrance, they descended towards the ground, allowing the trio to easily walk through. A second at the door passed, a flash of red washing over them, before the door itself opened.

All it took was a short walk through the entrance, many cameras and lights flashing, and then they had arrived. To the base's common room. A bar could be seen, as well as many couches, and screens. A soothing cold washed over them, as opposed to the heat they felt outside, and there, some of the other Aqua Deer members could be seen.

"Give me a sec girls, I'll be right back!" Madelynn called, as she walked through another corridor, the sound of her clinking bag echoing through.

Cheshire watched as their captain scuttled down the hall and out of sight, not averting her gaze until she could no longer be seen. Only then did she turn to the other occupants of the room and address them with a nod. "Hmm..." Was all Cheshire said, knowing to note that Maddie seemed rather preocuppied with something would be a moot point given that was often the case with how often Maddie stretched herself thin on so many different projects and ideas. But in spite of that Cheshire couldn't help but feel this was different, if only a bit.

"I wonder what it is she bought at the market. It clinked and rattled when she moved... Perhaps something for Loholt?" She thought aloud, not really asking for the opinion's of the others but rather just letting her thoughts be heard.

"Hm? Madelynn was at the market?" Loholt arrived at the Aqua Deer's base, a group of rookies trailing behind him. He'd picked them up respectively wherever they were, and personally guided them to the base. After all, yesterday was their day to celebrate, now, it was finally time for them to get to work. "I thought I told her we didn't have the funds for her shopping addiction..." Loholt said, a sigh escaping his lips, as he led the rookies through the common room.

Floors and walls were both made of wood, with there being several benches and tables as well as couches. There many lights of all pink, blue and other colors, as well as a single digital screen behind a large wooden counter. Some of the members of the squadron sat there, eating their meals while curiously gazing at the rookies, others focusing on themselves.

"Ahem..." Loholt cleared his throat. "I'd like to introduce all of you Aqua Deer members to our newest additions of our squadron! Out of the 200 applicants, five made it into Aqua Deer, so treat them as you would any other member. That's an order from your Vice-Captain." Many of the mages agreed.

"Now, if anyone would like to formally introduce themselves, feel free to do so." Loholt stated. His head turned towards the corridor that led to Madelynn's research room, where still, heavy tinkering could be heard.

"Speak of the devil and before you he shall appear." Cheshire spoke under her breath at Loholt's arrival, having just missed Madelynn by a hair, his timing was impeccable. Though her eyes moved past Loholt and instead found the rookies that had followed him along. Frankly, she'd forgotten that the exams took place, her mind occupied with other things the past several days and nights alike. Eyeing them up and down she wasn't sure what to make of them, a motely crew to be sure. Mostly men and single woman, some certainly looking a bit older than the average age of a rookie.

Covering up the clearing of her throat with the tapping of her umbrella against the common room floor she stepped forward toward Loholt and the new recruits. "I see the harvest was bountiful this year, Loholt. Since they were all chosen by Madd- The Captain, I'll be sure to give them the benefit of the doubt."

"I am Cheshire Cassius, Noble, and intermediate Magic Knight of fifth rank. In short, your superior. As such, I expect you lot to make fine additions to the Squad. The captain will be with us shortly, do show her the respect she deserves."

One of the strangest people in the room was the pale, white-haired, yellow-eyed teenager with a dog by himself. He walked up front, giving a slight smirk underneath his mask. "Sit," he ordered to Rhododendron, his faithful companion, and the dog did so happily. "Ferrah Pan, 5th Class Junior Magic Knight. Or did you already forget about our little chat, vice-captain?"

Tinkering could still be heard, followed by screams that came from Madelynn's room. "Hm?" Loholt's head turned too Ferrah. "Of course not, Ferrah. I'm incapable of forgetting something like that."

"Good," said Ferrah, "I would've thought that I simply couldn't be forgettable."

"Ahem..." Alev Rainier stepped forward, clearing his throat. "My name is Alev, of House Rainier. Thank you for inviting me and my fellow rookies to join your Squad." The young nobleman spoke clearly and concisely, with a smile that could very well be seen as forced.

"I might as well make a good impression as long as I'm here. Wouldn't hurt to have some help with trying to transfer Squads." Alev thought to himself as he scanned the table for anyone that stood out.

Xiomar was a bit nervous with introducing himself though he felt that he wanted to make it as short as possible but at least stand out. Xiomar stepped forward as he politely bowed giving a gentle smile. "Hello, I'm Xiomar Blaze, I am grateful to be part of the Aqua Deer squad and it's really nice to meet you all."

Xiomar took a deep breath after his introduction. A small smile formed on his face as he nodded to himself. "*That was easier said than done*," Xiomar thought to himself.

As the others introduced themselves, Gron stepped to the back of the group and began moving to the side. The scream from the other room intrigued him, and with this being a place of research, it may had been good for Gron to check it out. As silent and as stealthy as he could, Gron tried to slip past the eyes in the room as he made his way towards corridor, as he used his incredibly small stature to duck beneath some of the distracted eyes that were looking towards the new recruits.

*"Oh, he's going there...."*

As small as he was, Gron did not go undetected. Still, his path was anything but stopped. Loholt's arms remained crossed over his chest, the small rookie passed through towards the corridor, where Madelynn's tinkering only grew and grew. With each step he'd take, he'd get closer and closer to the place where the research actually happened.

*WHAM!*

Suddenly, the door to the room burst open, hitting Gron in the face. Coming out of it was no other than the Captain of the Aqua Deer squad, who'd only met the rookies briefly during the exams, where she quite literally attempted to pick up more than any other squadron. For many, Madelynn was a joke. Not only had she become a Magic Knight Captain at the age of 30, she appeared to have little to no physical inclination, and had missed more events than any other Captain. In fact, many believed Loholt to be the actual Captain.

"I FINALLY FIGURED IT OU-!" she screamed, rushing through the corridor and into the open room, though it was right there that Madelynn tripped, falling right on her face. She did nothing to stop her fall, except outstretch her arms, where she held an amulet with a darkened gem, despite its color it shone brightly, perhaps enticing to whoever dared to look.

Perhaps some of the rookies would've thought Madelynn was dead, for she made no movements, no sounds whatsoever for a few seconds.

"Wait for it..." Loholt claimed, many of the Aqua Deer members didn't seem surprised as if it was an everyday occurrence.

"I...figured...it out!" Madelynn stood up slowly, the wooden tiles marked red on her face. She dusted her clothes off, "This amulet, I found it at the black market!"

"C-captain...I-I don't think you should say that so openly..." One of the members retorted, before Loholt interrupted.

"So? What about it, Madelynn? You're not one to steal other's work, what's so important about this amulet?"

Madelynn shook her head. "Well, at first it seemed familiar to be honest. A little tinkering in the lab, and I confirmed my suspicions. I MADE this item. And I know, I know LoLo, that's not weird, after all. But it's been changed, altered, all that jazz. It has all the characteristics of a dark magic item, but the same basis as what I made, even the appearance."

"I see..." Loholt asked. "I suppose we should look into who you gave that item too, perhaps one of our sponsoring families?"

Madelynn nodded. "Yep, yep, yep! We should get on that right no-" Madelynn stopped herself, noticing the rookies. "Oh, OH CRAP! The rookies! They're here! Damn it! Loholt, I've made a bad first impression, I fell in front of them! They're gonna think I'm a klutz!" Madelynn punched Loholt softly on his chest, tears leaving her eyes.

"...We all knew you were a klutz anyways."

"You're so mean, LoLo!" Madelynn added, her saddened expression turning into a smile. "Oh, this'll be good for them, then!" Madelynn jumped in excitement. "Yeah an initiation mission or something!"

"It'll take a while to look through all the storehouses of your sponsors, Madelynn...maybe it'd be wiser to have the entire squad help out." Loholt noted.

"Heheh, I'd agree! But we can find our source easier. The dude I bought this from?" Madelynn grasped the amulet. "I planted a bug on him, all we gotta do is interrogate him or somethin', be all Silver Eagle-y, ya know? Take whoever you want, as long as they get to help!"

"Madelynn..." Loholt spoke.

"What?"

"You still haven't introduced yourself..."

"Oh, right! Sorry guys, I'm Madelynn, Captain of Aqua Deer, head of research of Clover! Pleased to meet all of you!" She noted with a smile. "Any rookies interested in staying with me? I still need to look a little more into this item, you've gotta be real careful with dark magic."

"Alternatively," Loholt spoke. "You can come with me."

Ferrah raised an eyebrow as he looked at the scatterbrained captain. He couldn't tell if he had hit the jackpot or would quickly be regretting his decision to join this squad. The reason he had chosen the Aqua Deer was because he thought it required the least work, given its specialty, but he was now beginning to worry that he should have picked any other squad instead.

He sighed. "Whatever, let's see where this goes. Rhododendron! Come!" he called to his dog, who happily stood up as he followed his master, who was following his captain.

"Yes, some action! Count me in!" Alev sprang up, excited that he wouldn't be confined to researching magic items. This Squad wasn't the Crimson Lions, but maybe it wouldn't be so bad here. Maybe he could skip out on research every time and go on missions like these. The young nobleman grinned as he stepped towards his vice-captain.

Gron stumbled out of the corridor and leaned against the wall as he held his head, his eyes slightly spinning from the sudden door that slammed right into his face. Even as he shook his head vigorously from side to side, the little wizard still needed the wall to support himself up as he made his answer. "I-uh. I'll stay with Captain Madelynn," He said in a slightly wobbly voice, even as he tried to sound as monotone as he usually did.

Xiomar was a bit confused by the introduction that Captain Madelynn displayed but didn't think anything of it. He thought about the idea of if being with the Aqua Deer squad was meant for him or not but shrugged as he made his decision. "Think I'll stay here for the time being, be nice to see what this mission has to offer," Xiomar replied.

"Alright, alright!" Madelynn barked, she threw some sort of gadget at Loholt. "This'll let you find the guy. To the lab then!" She skipped towards the corridor, the rookies following behind her.

Loholt looked at Madelynn as she left the gadget falling in his hand, "So...three researchers and one hunter, perhaps? Interesting. Irene, Cheshire. You'll both come with us, show Alev here the ropes, even if this is...an unusual job." Loholt noted, as they too headed towards the door. They had work to do.

## Research Shows

Madelynn had guided the rookies towards the common experiment room. It was here that Magic tools were made and research was tested by the very members of the Aqua Deer squad. Due to Madelynn's orders, it had been emptied of any others, as an unknown Dark Magic tool was something that one had to be extremely careful with. She carried the item pinched between her fingers lightly, almost as if she was cautious of making contact with it.

Placing it on a table of cold metal, the crystal seemed to appear brighter than ever a ray of light hitting the ceiling, perhaps due to a magic lamp's light that focused on the item. Madelynn gave the amulet a long glance, before she repositioned her glasses slightly. It was often that they fell from her face, but she'd grown used to it.

She grabbed a wrench, seemingly pulling out of thin air, and with it, she took the embedded "gem" off of the golden necklace. "Very few people know this but some parts of Magic tools are actually just for decoration, hehe." Madelynn giggled to herself. "Alright, so, say you have an unidentifiable Magic item. How would you guys try to find out what type of item it is?"

Gron stood in the middle of both Ferrah and Xiomar and glanced back and forth between the two mages. His eyes dropped as he looked at both their heights in a comically annoyed manner, and took a step back to allow them both to take the spotlight of Madelyn's attention. As he stepped behind Ferrah and Xiomar, Gron found his eyes wandering the room, looking at everything that appeared in this 'common experiment room', a room he may have the chance to spend his days in due to being in the squad. As Gron scurried off, one could have easily mistaken the small wizard for a rat, even with the coat that fluttered behind his person as he moved on.

"I wonder where they keep the burners and beakers," Gron quietly wondered to himself.

Ferrah simply shrugged his shoulders as the question. "Try to use it I guess. Maybe see if it looks similar to another Magic Item we can compare it to."

Not too bad...Jaw-kun!" Madelynn responded excitedly, she almost seemed unaware or uncaring of Gron's scurrying away. "Still you need to be careful. If you straight up used the item, well, if you don't know what happens you're basically screwed. What if it's a bomb or somethin' ya know?"

And so, Madelynn pulled out another tool, a magnifying "glass" so to speak, though it was empty in the middle. "This is an attribute finder!" She explained. Focusing it on one eye, she looked at Ferrah and Xiomar through it. Magic shined and blinked from the tool, before the "glass" manifested a symbol akin to the grimoire of the two, one after the other. "It's one of the most essential tools for researchers, it's been with us for a while now. "Try using it on the necklace!" She suggested.

Xiomar was a bit confused on what he had to do. He looked through the magnifying glass then as he focused it in the necklace. "Hm, so then what's to happen next once looking at the necklace," Xiomar asked curiously.

Ferrah reached over and snatched the tool out of Xiomar's hands. Holding it over the necklace, a symbol soon appeared inside the area where the glass would be. "Interesting."

It was because Ferrah quickly snatched it out of Xiomar's hands that he was unable to see the result. Ferrah focused the glass over the item, and the image of a mirror appeared where the magnifying glass should've been. Madelynn lightly tapped the side of the tool and the symbol was now projected for all to see.

"As you can see, it's an item laced with Mirror Magic! Heheh, that means it reflects magic in some way. In this item's case, it seems to reflect the user's magic as a copy of themselves. There's ways to confirm it of course, but I can tell you this since I made the item and all." Madelynn winked. Still, the item seemed to glisten. "The only issue is how was it modified and all. Oi, err..shorty. Can you pass me that wand over there?" Madelynn said, pointing to one of the many wands she owned.

Gron looked over his shoulder as he held a couple of empty glass vials in his hands with a dead glare towards the captain. Even without using his actual name, it seemed as though Gron responded as if it was. The young mage quickly shoved the vials into the outer pockets of his coat to hold onto as he made his way towards the wand where Madelyn pointed, looking over the many tools that she had to offer. Gron looked from the tip Madelynn's finger to the wand she wanted, his eyes followed an unnatural straight line towards the object and proceeded to pick it from the collection. The way he wandered over to Madelynn looked to be the same way a child would go fetch something their parent called for, except instead of a child's innocence on his face, it was Gron's dead enthusiasm.

"Do you have an ingredient storage room somewhere nearby that I can look through," Gron asked as he handed the wand over to Madelynn, "I promise I won't take anything that's *too* expensive."

It was quite a sight to look at really, how Gron analyzed Madelynn, to how he moved through the lab. He seemed alike to Madelynn in many ways, even physically, for their hair was the same color. There they stood in front of each other, Madelynn's smile widening slightly. Rather than take the wand, Madelynn shook her head slowly. "If you want play time..." She attempted to grab Gron much like one would a child and place him on a stool. "You need to pay attention to your teacher first!"

She nudged at the gem. "Try using the wand on the item, just to see what happens. We've got to make sure that everything's working perfectly."

Gron couldn't look any less enthusiastic, and rolled his eyes as he realised that Madelynn had managed to lift him up and placed him onto a nearby seat. He cleared his throat and looked to the wand in his hand, turning it and weighing it whilst examining every inch and surface it had to offer, before he held it lightly in his hand. Pointing its tip to the object, Gron took a deep breath in and out before his eyes lifted upwards towards Madelynn and the others with a shocked look in his pupils. Even though nothing had happened, Gron looked panicked as he glanced to the captain.

"I think I'll like all of you to take a step back. I'd like to set some measures just incase," He warned. "Yes, I think that'll be the best course of action, especially when dealing with something we're not sure about," he continued on, more so as a thought brought out to the open.

"Hm?" Madelynn seemed intrigued. "Sure, sure." Madelynn nodded, it'd been some time since the group had gotten a dedicated researcher, most of them eventually developed into those professions. "Set up all the measures you want!" Madelynn and the rest took a step back. "So far, all you know is that it's enlaced with some sort of Mirror Magic."

"Exactly, that's all we know at the moment. We don't know if there's anything else on this magic item," Gron nodded his head.

As everyone took a step back, a large magic cube appeared around Gron and the magic item, containing the both of them safely within the confines of the barrier and protecting the others who stood on the outside. The young man looked around the inside of the cube, checking that everyone there was outside before he proceeded with the examination and pointed the wand towards the magic item. Gron took a deep breath before tightening his grip on the wand handle, a technique that young mages were often taught to draw their mana into an item.

"I'd say an eighteen percent chance this item blows up in my face, and an eighty one percent chance of it not," Gron thought out loud, "But with the barrier, there's a ninety seven percent chance you won't get hurt."

It was a smart move, truly. By using his own affinity, Gron could control whatever threat came at him. Madelynn nodded. "*He's definitely done this before!*" She said to herself. The wand was pointed at the item, magic tapping against the stone. That was all it took, the very same instant that the wand hit it, and the barrier of magic formed around the item, it glistened once more. The barriers dissolved into particles, all of which were drawn towards the amulet, and with it the power of the mages present.

Madelynn was the first to react, eyes widening as she realized the properties of the magic. She'd known a little more than the rookies about the item, but she'd hope they were able to identify it before they figured out how it'd been turned into a dark magic tool. As the amulet stole some of their mana, it glistened even more, a bright light washing over the entirety of the room. Madelynn's hand made contact with the item as it did so, and then, everything returned to normal.

Everything except the item.

It had disappeared, Madelynn's eyes still remained widened in surprised. "Interesting...so that's what happened..."

Gron had just been able to shield his eyes from the white light that enveloped the room, having peeked out the side of his hand once he heard Madelynn's voice after the sudden incident. The last thing he saw, however, was the Aqua Deer captain reaching for the item, before the intensity of the light began to force his body to react. Every second of the situation before he looked away raced through his mind as he closed his eyes to think, a faint idea of what have happened forming on the tip of his tongue that he wanted to blurt out as if it was an answer. "I saw, it broke my cube down to its mana particles, and absorb them... Thing is, I swear that some of those particles didn't just come from the cube itself. Does anyone feel a bit different than to how they were a minute ago?" He said as he looked to everyone else.

The young mage scratched his head and looked to where the crystal was before, his mouth begun to move even if it looked like Gron's attention was in some other plane of existence. "...Strange, I don't remember using that much magic to create the cube. Feels like I used a bit more than what was needed for some reason."

Madelynn grinned, though it seemed a little to mischievous. "Good observation, I have good news and bad news team." Madelynn scratched the side of her face with her index finger, thinking about how best to put the conclusion she had reached. "You see, thanks to shortie, I know *exactly* what the item does now. I wouldn't have made the barriers personally, but that's only because of my own magic. Anyways, as you saw, the crystal clearly absorbed his mana, and probably the mana of you two as well. It seemed to have been doing so for a while...but it only reacted strongly when Shortie's magic because he actually used it. This original item was able to reflect not only spells, but the user itself, as long as it had the proper magic. Though until now...it never actually absorbed mana passively. That's something very few things can do. It almost unleashed reflection of you guys, thankfully, I sealed it!"

Out of a sudden, there was another flash of blue, and there was the item, completely destroyed, with even the gemstone crushed. "The bad thing is, it seems that all the mana it absorbed caused the item to blow up, and it seems that it broke the seal I placed on it last second...very few things can get through my seals...namely, Forbidden Magic." She said, her grin disappearing. "The reflections are probably out there by now, and they'll start causing a ruckus sooner than later. I know you're all researchers, but I think this'll be a good experience too!" Madelynn chuckled. "This way you can also learn a little about field work, plus, it's our responsibility and all that jazz! Any questions?!" Madelynn asked.

"Damn," said Ferrah, scratching the back of his head, "that's a pretty impressive tool. Where do you even get something like that?"

"A reflection, as in another me?" Gron said as he crossed his arms and cupped his chin, "...Well, that, is definitely something I want to check out."

"Pretty interesting tool I will admit," Xiomar said, "would be useful for distractions or at least anything in that situation if I'm correct."

Madelynn pointed at herself as she smiled at Ferrah. "It's not hard really. All you need is some brains, a crystal that can be imbued with magic, a test subject with the mirror attribute, and an amaretto sour cocktail or two." Seemingly out of nowhere, a glass of the very same alcoholic beverage appeared in her hand before she sipped on it. "That last one is essential, makes you forget about the subject's screams. Kidding, kidding. I do feel like I own science when I'm drunk though!"

Madelynn drank down the entire glass, "Anyways, we should get going. Or those reflections'll cause some chaos, wouldn't want any houses breaking now, would ya?!"

Madelynn stormed out of the room, the three rookies following in tow.

## Questions and Questions

"Pay me a bit more and maybe I'll keep it going, okay?" A woman winked, even within the darkness of the area she was in, as there were no more than dim lights within the room, her expression could clearly be seen. Or at least imagined by the man she stood over.

He was no more than forty five years old, both small and fat. There were no pleasant features that the man carried, perhaps that was why he found himself in a place like this. Still, despite the unluckiness that he was born with. The man felt luckier than anyone else in the world in that moment. He had this moment, all to himself. A woman with curves in all the right places, and tan skin. Her clothes were provocative to say the least, but it was a necessary part of the job. Her tan skin shone brightly, and while her face was from beautiful, to the man, who could see the rest of her body, she was a goddess.

The man's hand went into his pocket shuffling and searching for the coins he had earned that day. He'd sell a necklace to that annoying green-haired brat, yes, he knew it'd be troublesome, as he recognized her, but that was something he could deal with later, right? He'd barely been given any time to react when Madelynn approached him, he simply took her money and ran away. There was no chance that she could find him anyways. Yes, everything would be fine. All he had to focus on was paying the beauty before him to continue, all the stress, all the worry would leave him that way.

Pulling out the coins from his pocket, the woman counted them as she took them from his hand, and that slight touch made the man's nostrils flare, his cheeks reddening and his eyes widening. His instincts took over, hands moving to grasp what was properly his now!

"No touching!" The woman pushed his hands away, looking at him with disgusting for what appeared a single instant. "This pay'll do. Let's keep going then, you have ten more minutes, okay babe~?!"

The man nodded rapidly, unaware that something blinked within his coat. He gulped to himself. "L-let's get to it then."

The tracker created and planted by Madelynn had created a detailed map for the group of Aqua Deer members to follow. All Irene, Alev and Cheshire had gone with Loholt on this occasion, and after many minutes of travel, they had finally gotten to the place the man was supposedly in. Loholt stood outside the establishment with bright lights, and more then suggestive neon drawings of a woman's figure at its entrance.

It was a strip club.

"Huh," Loholt said, there was no way Madelynn had been wrong, or that her tracker failed. She was a klutz, but she was dedicated. Incredibly dedicated to her craft, but to think they'd arrive at a place like this surprised even the stern man slightly. "Well, I suppose this is it."

A man stood at the entrance, his appearance intimidating. He stroke his beard softly, as Loholt approached him. "Good afternoo-"

"You can't get in here, Magic Knight. Not with that." The man said, to which Loholt could only blink.

"How do you mean?" Loholt responded.

"Tch, figure it out. What about you, girl?" He looked at Cheshire up and down. "You tryna work here or what?

With hands wrapped tightly around her umbrella Cheshire hissed with vemon like a spitting cobra through clenched teeth, "You wretch, How dare y-" She bit her tongue in spite of her offense. "We are here on behalf of the Magic Knights, an extension of Clover's judicial system. By halting us here you are obstructing the course of justice and harboring a suspected criminal. Let us through or we may very well be leaving with more than one digusting pig in chains." Cheshire spoke down her nose at the man before them, the passive aggressive tone of her voice oozing out of every word she spoke.

The bouncer scoffed. "Calm down, missy." He recognized their robes, their light blue color. Everyone did. The Aqua Deer squad were nerds, nothing more, nothing less. As far as the man knew they couldn't arrest people, all they did was mess with tools. "This is a respected establishment, aight? Rules are rules, ain't one person that can deny us that. We've had Magic Knights show up before, that shit protocol. Takin' the robes off prevents people from identifying you dumbasses, give you that bad rep. And it prevents us from gettin' shit. Ya understand? Plus, your squad has no authority for that shit, you nerds fuck with broom and shit." The man replied.

"Now, y'all gon' take those robes off or scram. Y'all gotta pay to enter too." The man once more looked at Cheshire up and down. "Except the girl, she gets a pass." He winked at her.

Her temper flared as though fire would radiate from her body at any moment, her hand shaking as she restrained it from reaching for her grimoire. She couldn't believe the nerve of these people, these... 'common filth'.But through great will and effort she looked to Loholt, "Vice Captain, we've encountered an obstacle. How do you suggest we proceed?" She asked with a clenched jaw, knowing well to follow the chain of command even in spite of her personal offense.

Irene thought the whole situation was hilarious, and considering her scandalous youth places like this weren't unfamiliar to her. In fact, Irene was so familiar with this place, she marched right up to the body guard. "Don't mind that skinny little twig, she was born with a royal stick up her ass." Irene took a long drag from her pipe, blowing a cloud into the guards face. "Besides, she couldn't work here if she wanted. She's built like a board with the personality of a saltine cracker." Irene's heels clacked against the pavement as she leaned closer to the guard. "Me though?" She hugged her figure, her arms follows her feminine curves. "I'm a bigger woman, but I've got it going on!" Irene commented. "So what about you let us through and maybe you can have me as a special guest star for one night only. How many men would like to see a magic knight such as myself? Heavy set is very... in season." Irene winked.

The guard could only look at Irene with surprise. Surprise that quickly turned into disgust. His face twisted in ways that one would think wasn't possible, wrinkles showing all over it. "You're fat, ain't no way in hell you're workin' here. You wanna get in, you pay, aight? We don't need no heavyweights like you. Shit, you'd prolly kill a customer or somethin'."

"Ohh you're playing hard to get. I like that. Well, play with fire and you tend to, get fired." Irene cackled. She was relentless. "Well, let me just..." Irene dug through her purse, pulling out a crystal ball and spinning her finger on it. Suddenly, a snazzy dressed fat and ugly man appeared in the glass. The owner of the joint. "If it isn't my favorite girl! Irene! What are you doing baby, how does it go?"

"Well darling I'm doing absolutely vicious, this guard of yours however..."

"What about em doll! What about em!"

"Absolute monster, he called me fat, could you believe it? Me, a former employee at the Coyote Ugly... they won't even let us inside!"

"HUH? My girl! Fat! You're just big boned."

"Precisely my dear, precisely. He just doesn't understand..." Irene gave a large grin, staring directly into the guards eyes. "Fashion."

"Tch, still, take off the robes..." The guard insisted, the boss nodding at the group with a smile on his face.

"...Alright then. We'll oblige." Loholt said, not the slightest hint of awkwardness in his voice. Not even he was aware of Irene's past, but it sure had been useful. Loholt was the first to take off his robe, walking in and handing it to the boss along with the other members. He continued looking at the tracker, the beeping sound increasing and increasing. There were a large amount of obstacles to reach the supposed "location" of the man. Both women and men, dressed in incredibly provocative clothes approached the group, some even attempting to separate them.

"You want a dance, baby~?" A man wearing nothing but his undergarments approached Cheshire, while a woman neared Alev as well.

With a flick of her wrist Cheshire brought the metal tip of her umbrella to the throat of the man approaching her so that he could move no closer. *"Tch, of course that... thing is familiar with this sort. To pretend I'm surprised would be the greatest lie I've ever told." She thought in reference to Irene, her past and present connections left a sour taste in the throat of the Noble girl.*

"Do not approach me, do not touch me, do not even speak to me you vile thing you." She commanded the half-naked man before lowering her umbrella and moving to point at the woman approaching their rookie as well. "He's broke, find yourself a more inebriated fellow to separate from his yul. Be gone with you."

With a huff she addressed Alev without looking at him. "This is no place for a child, you'd do well to watch yourself. No good comes from socializing with these... unsavory types."

"I think I understand." Was all a wide-eyed Alev could say in response, too flustered to even correct her about the state of his wallet. The young lad's cheeks were flushed red as he stared forwards, trying to ignore the woman at his side.

The two strippers moved away from the group, afraid of whatever it was Cheshire could do. Loholt still looked the deal, yet for some reason he didn't seem the slightest bit flustered by the environment he was in. Reaching the side of the room, where the private rooms were located, all that separated the Aqua Deer group from it was a thin, red curtain. A red curtain that separated from the group.

"Hmm...I suppose it'd be invasive to knock, but I suppose this is a matter than can't wait...I apologize in advance." Loholt pulled the curtain to the side, revealing another skimpily dressed woman, legs atop the ones of a very, very fat and embarrassed man.

"W-w-what are you doing here?! Can't you see I'm damn busy!" His eyes widened massively and his nostrils flared angrily, to the stripper, it seemed quite similar to how he always was, and thus, she signaled Loholt to close the curtain once more. Silence followed between the two groups, awkwardness could be felt in the air, Loholt likely being the only one unable to grasp it.

"Err...well sir, we're Magic Knights, of the Aqua Deer squad specifically. I'm sorry for interrupting but I have a few questions to ask you, about an item you sold that is." As Loholt talked, the man only seemed more and more frightened, sweat dripped down his bald head. Not even bothering to hear him out completely, he shoved the stripper towards the group, causing her to land in Loholt's arms, before he attempted to speed off amidst the confusion. As fast as he could.

"I-I'm still getting paid, right?!" The woman asked as he ran.

Snapping out of his embarrassment, Alev began sprinting after the rotund suspect with surprising speed. He knew he couldn't use his magic to stop the man, it was too dangerous in a place like this. Luckily, Alev was superior in his physique.

It wasn't common to see Magic Knights, particularly Nobles, who trained their body alongside their magic. Alev wasn't most Nobles. With a determined look on his face the young Magic Knight quickly closed in on his target and dove, aiming to tackle him to the ground.

The man knew that he could be outran, and so, as much as he tried to distance himself by throwing almost naked women at Alev, the distance between them was eventually narrowed, the Magic Knight toppling him before he could even perform a spell. His hands remained behind his back, Alev's body against his.

Loholt seemed surprised, a needle floating next to him as Alev sprung into action. "Good job." Was all he said to the Noble as the trio approached the man. Before they could seriously interrogate him, the owner gave a glance at Irene, then at the group. It'd be bad for their business if the scene continued to develop, and so, Loholt with his group, left, walking several minutes with the man in tow, until they reached an open grass field, a place where nobody would see him, and nobody would hear the man.

"Now..." Loholt stopped before the man, his robe covering him once more. "I want you to tell me, who sold you *this* item." Loholt pressed a button on the same bug, and a display of the magical necklace appeared in front of the group. "Hm? Who was it? House Quintrell? House Agrippa?"

"I-I can't disclose that information! C-client privilege...I'd lose my credibility and all that. Y-yeah."

"Well, you'll lose your credibility anyways if we exposed you." Loholt noted.

"W-what?! N-no?! I-I'm sorry, I can't tell you...they'd, no, he would harm me...or someone from that family...I can't! My livelihood, my reputation, my business is on the line!"

The man cried and cried, yet Loholt didn't seem even slightly persuaded. "Cheshire."

With a sound like clashing steel two swords formed at Cheshire's side, her Grimoire glowing a deep pink color as the spell was cast. "Steel Creation Magic: Summon Swords," She spoke in an unamused tone as she approached the 'man' they'd captured. "Your cowardly disposition is unbefitting of nobility. You are nothing more than a fat pig with more Yul than he knows what to do with."

One of the swords moved from her side to hang several feet over the head of the man, tip pointed down as though it could fall at any moment. "Your activities have allowed a perversion of our captain's hard work to make their way into black market circulation. I will not allow her's nor the Aqua Deer's reputation to be sullied and defiled because you fear to face the consequences of your actions. Tell us what we want to know now or.... Well, are you familiar with the story of the sword of Damocles?" She asked as the sword above the man's head began to swing gently as though held up by a string.

Loholt blinked underneath his mask. *"These two could've definitely joined the Silver Eagles"*. In contrast the man appeared even sweatier than before. He didn't even move a single inch, his eyes looking upwards revealed to him the sword that hung over him. "O-okay! Okay! Damn...I didn't know the fuckin' Aqua Deer squad had people like this...I-It was House Noblesse...they backed me up...I-I don't know who modified the item, but I'm reselling it for them! I-I promise! T-that's all I know!"

Loholt tiled his head slightly. "Hmm...I see then. Thank you for your time." Loholt patted the man's shoulder, causing him to jump. "Let's get going, squad." Loholt walked away from the man beginning to walk away from him.

"Even if you can't see it, Pig, remember that there's always a sword hanging over your head. Don't make the Aqua Deer have to find you again." She said as the swords shattered and faded into magic particles before she moved to catch up to the Vice Captain and her other Squadmates.

"House Noblesse? I've heard of them, new bloods. Only been nobility for the last few generations. Do you think the guy was telling the truth?" She asked Loholt, but she didn't address him directly as she left room for the others to weigh in on the idea.

"Doesn't matter if he was." Loholt responded. "I know exactly where he is at any time regardless." It had all been in his touch, as a man that could literally create compasses and anything related to them, Loholt could lock-on to targets by touching them. "Hopefully for the Noblesse, he's lying. It'd be a tremendous blow to that family, one that could take them out of nobility."

Loholt pulled out a communication magic tool, leaving a message behind for Madelynn, though he was aware she didn't really need it. "We'll be heading to their estate next. I have more than a few questions to ask Mr. Yadin..." And with that, the group set off towards their estate on magic brooms, some of which had been modified by Madelynn herself.

## Noble Obligations

It hadn't taken that long for the group to reach the massive mansion owned by the Noblesse. It was in the Common Realm, much like Kikka and the Aqua Deer base itself. It was a large house, surrounded by greenery. Bushes, tress, they were all luscious and incredibly well taken care off, it seemed more than anything, like a lawful place. A place where no rules would be broken, where everything remained in order. Loholt only hoped he could say the same thing about their businesses as well.

Stopping at their front gate, Loholt rung the bell, and awaited. They didn't know if Yadin had actually done it, and until then. They had to remain courteous.

Almost as soon as Loholt's hand moved away from the door it cracked open to reveal no one on the other side, at least, no one at eye-level. "Oh? Knights? If you're here for my brother he isn't here, he hasn't been home for awhile but even if he was he'd probably still be in bed. Do you all want some tea? Adults drink tea right? I prefer milk though because Alice says that it helps bones grow big and strong." The voice of a little girl spoke, standing much shorter than the knights at the door.

"I'd normally be outside but I was told not to because it was supposed to rain today and I don't like the thunder too much so I-" She continued on without a break as she rambled before suddenly being cut off somone garbbed her wrist and pulled her away from the door which quickly flung open to reveal a red haired woman with thick glasses, clearly one of the help.

"Themis! We told you about opening the door on your own!" The woman scolded her with a tone of exasperation in her voice. The woman's eyes moving to meet with the Knights at the door. A sudden look of shock appearing followed quickly by the shame of embarrassment in the form of a red tint that burned at her ears and cheeks.

Letting go of the child she bowed to the knights, "Noble Knights, I apologize for this. Lady Themis is... excitable. She isn't supposed to answer the door. I hope she didn't cause any trouble, how can I help you?"

Loholt looked at Themis down for what appeared to be an instant, though one wouldn't be able to tell from a glance. "She didn't cause any trouble, no. We were hoping if you could take us to Yadin. We have a couple questions to ask him."

The woman seemed a bit frightened by the request, a bead of sweat on her brow followed by a loud gulp. "T-the Master? He's rather busy recently... I-I'm no-" She hesitated for a moment before bowing her head again in apology. "I'll speak to him right away, I apologize for the wait in the meantime." She continued with an avoidant gaze.

"Run along, Themis, these people are here to see your father." She waved her hand to shoo away the girl but it was clear that Themis didn't understand the situation.

She seemed even more chipper at the prospect, "Father? Can I come too? I'd like to see him too!" Her smile glew, wide and bright. Only to disappear when her request was denied swiftly and completely by the help.

"Not today, go play somewhere else." And with the dismissal another apology came from the maid before she allowed the Knights inside before dismissing herself as well to speak to the head of house.

Looking around the mansion's interior, Alev was reminded a bit of his own home. What with being a noble himself and it only being his first day as a Magic Knight, it was almost off-putting to be back in a place that somewhat-resembled his old home.

"So...what exactly is the plan here? We just talk with this guy, he admits to committing his crimes, and we arrest him? Problem solved?" Somehow Alev didn't think it would be that simple, but he didn't exactly have the experience to back up his suspicion just yet.

"Hmmm, yes, pretty much." Was all Loholt could reply as they walked towards where they were instructed. "There's about a fifty percent chance he won't admit to them, and we'll know what to do if that happens. There's also a chance that the man completely lied to us, and Mr. Noblesse is actually upholding his promise to Madelynn, but a part of me highly doubts that. If he retaliates, then we'll fight back too, so just be ready for any outcome, Alev."

The sound of footsteps descending the stairs echoed through the room the moment Loholt's voice went silent, easy to tell that there were more than a single set. Two people were walking down the stairs still out of view for a time before they rounded the bend. An older man and a priest appeared at the top of the landing, paying the Knights no mind for the moment.

"Thank you again, Mr. Noblesse, God bless you." The Priest, dressed in his black and white robes spoke in a sincere and thankful tone toward the older gentleman.

"Please, make no mention of it. I'll be sure to visit once its been built but until then, Father, I'm afraid I have other guests I must entertain. Do be careful on your travels." The old man said, his cane clicking against the marble floor as they reached the bottom of the stairs. With a nod of acknowledgement the priest left the group alone, exiting through the same large door they'd been allowed in through.

Once the door closed, the click of the latch closing, Yadin turned his head to the Knights in his presence. He stroked his beard, a look of disappointment on his wrinkled face. "Hm, that's a shame. When I was told the Aqua Deer had arrived I'd hoped that Madelynn would be among you, it's been quite a long time since she'd come to visit." He explained, leaning on his cane as he walked forward to stand before Loholt. "I suppose I should show you the same hospitality nonetheless, Vice Captain Loholt I'd assume? Madelynn mentioned something about that visor of yours at one point... Oh, but that was so long ago I'm afraid I don't remember what exactly she'd had to say about it. All the same-" Yadin outstretched his hand to Loholt, "It's good to finally meet you. It must have been a long journey, may I offer food and drink while we discuss whatever it is you've come here for?"

"It's about lunch time anyway, yes?"

Loholt's teeth clenched together for a single instant, hands curling into fists as well before he untended himself. "No, do not worry. I don't think we'll be here for long." He replied. Yadin was polite, kind, and his visit from the priest suggested he was everything but what the man from the strip club made him to be, but Loholt couldn't be easily swayed, or perhaps swayed at all.

Loholt shook Yadin's hand, before his eyes fell on his pole. Could a man like him really be behind what had occurred? "You see Mr. Noblesse, we found one of Madelynn's items in the Black Market...with modifications that clearly weren't her own. Would you happen to know anything about that?"

"Oh dear, the Black Market? I'd always heard about such places but to think the young Madelynn's inventions could end up in such a place? I imagine she must be quite distraught, of course, that must be why she isn't here with you all today. Do give her my sympathies when you next see her, is there anything I may do to help?" He spoke with grief in his gruff and aged voice.

"What sort of item might it have been? That and its intended purpose, if we can locate when it left possession of my company perhaps we could find the buyer? Though I couldn't imagine why someone would taint such quality tools with modifications, the nerve of some people." Yadin shook his head and tapped his cane against the flooring.

"You see, we contacted the buyer, Mr. Noblesse." Loholt crossed his arms. "And according to him...you sold him the item, or at least your company did."

Yadin stroked his beard, "Oh my, that is a serious allegation to be thrown around so carelessly. For Madelynn's sake I'll be sure to launch an investigation into some of my vendors and employees. Though I admit it would be difficult, for them to have flown under my radar up until now I can't help but fear whoever it is might be quite tricky to catch. I must thank you for bringing this to the light of day, Mr. Loholt. Please, have your Captain send me the bill for any damages the item might have caused, emotional or otherwise. It's truly the least I can do for such a grave error happening within my own company.

"Is there anything else I might be able to assist you with today, Mr. Loholt? Any other way I could help your investigation?"

Loholt tilted his head slightly, even someone like him could not decipher if Yadin was lying. There were no signs, no type of sweat that came from his person, no stuttering. "Would you mind allowing us to check your warehouses, Mr. Noblesse?"

"Personally? I wouldn't mind it at all but with heavy heart I'm afraid I cannot allow that without a warrant. You see, while I do indeed have a lot of respect for your Captain's hard work and more than that I feel awful what what has transpired under my watch I'm afraid I do have other clients that ship through my company that wouldn't take kindly to me allowing magic knights to shuffle through their products. If I allowed you to do so without a warrant and they found out it could damage my business severely." Yadin shook his head as he denied Loholt's request.

"I apologize to you all but while I feel inclined to help where I can I cannot find it in my heart to toss aside the hard work and dedication my father and grandfather before him poured into growing this company just because someone told you something. I do hope you understand where it is that I'm coming from."

"Sure." Loholt responded with a nod. "I suppose we'll be on our way then. Have a good day sir." Loholt nodded once more, before he and the knights left the room, completely empty-handed. They walked out of the estate, already making distance.

"Hmmm...what do you all think?" Loholt asked.

"I don't like this. Now that he knows we're onto him, he could clean up crucial evidence. We can't wait for a warrant, we need action!" Alev spoke up, frustrated by the conversation held just moments ago.

Cheshire clicked her umbrella against a rock on the ground, "It seems we find ourselves between a rock and a hard place with this one. If we wait for a warrant there's a chance that, if he is indeed guilty, all evidence will be wiped away. But if he is guilty and we do find evidence without a warrant then I don't know if such evidence will be admissible in the courts given the way we obtained it. I suppose that would be for the judge to decide... but it's still a risk we take."

"All the same, sitting here doing nothing would irk me a great deal. Loholt, as Maddie seems to trust in your judgement I will elect to do so as well. Our next course of action is yours to decide, I will follow."

Before Loholt could speak, she materialized. Seemingly out of nowhere, from Loholt's arm, where his communication tool lied. Madelyn appeared, hair billowing in the wind, her glasses nearly falling off of her face.

"Glad to hear all that guys! Heheheh! Especially you, red hairs!" Madelynn screamed from the tool. "I heard from Loholt kinda, all that happened...kinda crazy to think Yadin could do all that y'know? Granted, there's no way we can confirm it..." Madelynn grew quiet for a moment. "Psych! Of course there is. I want you all to storm into those warehouses! We can't wait. If he truly is doing this, then he'll clear out any evidence before we can act. People might think Aqua Deer is a squad for the brainiacs, but it's more important to follow your heart!" Madelynn cheered.

"Got it. How's it going over there?" Loholt asked.

"Uhh...some things went wrong with the tool...there's um, copies of our rookies roaming through Clover now. We're following them though, so don't worry, okay, bye!" Before Loholt could scold her, Madelynn's face disappeared, leaving the Vice-Captain confused.

"Well...you all heard that. The Captain spoke." His lips curled slightly into a smile. With the same tool, he began to tap it repeatedly. "There's several warehouses all over Clover..." Loholt opened his palms, several needles formed upon them, as they begun to spin, before heading off in different directions. "We'll be moving one at a time, act discreetly and rapidly. Prepare yourselves, this mission might change Aqua Deer's fate."

Cheshire let out an exhale from her nose, Maddie had indeed spoken. She'd have liked to have said that being reckless like this was unlike her captain but she would be lying to anyone who'd hear her say it. "We'll hit the warehouses then, as per ordered." She said followed closely be a click of her tongue.

"What's that?!" A voice called out from behind the vice captain, though its presence was a surprise surely those of the Aqua Deer would recognize the voice of the young lady of the house. Themis stood just off to the side of Loholt at the gate of the property, her finger pointing at Loholt, or rather, his communication tool.

"I saw that! Someone came out of that thing, it was a ghost, wasn't it? Is that your magic? I don't know what mine is yet." She started to ramble again just as she'd done when they'd first met at the door of the home.

*"Wow, a warehouse raid and it's only my first day! I'm so glad I joined the Magic Knights!"* Thought Alev to himself as he beamed with excitement. *"And on top of that, my captain just acknowledged me! I'll be able to move up and out of here in no time!"* Then, upon hearing little Themis from the mansion's gate, the young nobleman was relieved he hadn't spoken out loud. If the young girl had heard something about raiding warehouses and brought it up around an adult inside...Alev shuddered. The entire mission could be finished before it even started.

"Hm?" Loholt turned, noticing Themis once more. This time he knelt so that his mask would be at eye level to her. "It's a communication tool. It lets me talk with people far away. As for your magic, research indicates that at your age only about 31% of children can actually awaken theirs, or well, what I'm guessing your age is." For someone that was talking to a child, Loholt seemed rather formal, if not outright logical.

Loholt looked at his tool, then at Themis. "Would you like one?"

Themis was hesitant, not only because she was told not to take things from strangers, nor was it the unfeeling tone that the man had used with her, rather it was his mask more than anything that made her hesitate to take him up on is offer. Perhaps some animal instinct hidden deep down inside, to be cautious when you couldn't see the face of a person, to be careful when you couldn't see the emotions that rested on their brow. It was scary for the girl in a way. What swayed her opinion was his squad cloak, he and the others were magic knights after all. She was supposed to trust them, the whole kingdom did after all.

"Is it really okay for me to have one?" She asked, swaying back and forth on her feet in anticipation of his answer.

“Hmm…” Loholt gave it some thought. “I don’t think a communication tool can hurt you, at least not directly as far as I’m aware. But it’s up to you, I suppose. You’re a person, yes? Then you have free will.”

She didn't really understand what all he was talking about but one thing that was clear to her is that he'd basically given her the okay to have one and frankly, that's all she really cared about. A smile formed on her face and she nodded her head excitedly as she held out her hands to the masked man.

Loholt placed the tool in her hands. “If you ever need us, you call, or if anything happens around here.”

Themis took the object in her small hands, it looked something like a large locket or perhaps even a compact mirror of some kind. Staring down at the object she considered the man's words with a contemplative *Hmmm* sound before she began to nod her head again in agreement, "Okay!" She stated loudly, holding up the magic object.

"Hey, are we allowed to just give these things out?" Alev whispered to Cheshire, unsure of his Vice-Captain's decision to give the young girl a piece of magic technology.

"If it were any other squad I would say no, we're not. However, as the Aqua Deer we could always just make another one. Believe it or not they're not too complicated. That said, don't see that as an excuse not to take care of yours." She responded without turning to look at the Junior knight, watching the scene unfold before her. She didn't know Loholt's reasoning in giving the device to the child but she'd found trust in Loholt long ago, if only for the fact that Maddie trusted him as well.

"Enough chatting. Let's go now." Loholt said, and the group went on their way, to one of the many warehouses.

## What's Yours is Mine

"Maaan, already, I love this job. First day in, and all I have to do is patrol? I could get used to this!" Dion called out as he walked through a town near the Forsaken Realm. He'd walked slowly, carefully, hoping that nothing would ruin a perfect stroll. The sun was out, the people were calm, and he knew the area. As far as he knew, there weren't many criminals either around the town, meaning that he'd probably have the day to himself to lounge, or at least that's what he hoped for.

He still couldn't get used to it, the way people looked at him solely because he wore a robe. It was ridiculous, really, how people's perception could change. "If you would've asked me days ago if I could become a Magic Knight...I would've said no...nothing can ruin this perfect day!"

*SCHWOOOM!*

Oh, yes it could.

Above the tallest of towers that the village possessed, he could see them. Three figures, covered completely in darkness. They catapulted through the sky in cubes of mana with extreme speed. Dion couldn't make who they were exactly, but he could feel it. The sinister aura that came from them, nearly made him want to run away. However, following behind them, some sort of vehicle could be seen. Akin to a car, it dashed through the air, almost as if it was riding on mana itself.

"Ah shit, shit, shit! Fuck! No, no, not on my first day! Not a damn car chase!" Dion overreacted, both of his hands at the sides of his head. "Well, maybe they're not evil, yeah, maybe they've got it handled."

Flashes of light could be seen, completely destroying Dion's assumption. "God damn it! If I don't do anything, Lucielle's gonna kill me. I'm gonna follow 'em, yep, but only that, and then call her!" Dion hopped on his mop, attempting his best to follow the group.

"Guys, we're almost there!" Madelynn spoke, driving the same vehicle Dion had seen. It had comfortable seats, and tainted windows, almost like a car, but it was in fact, a modification of a broom. Within the same car, Gron, Xiomar and Ferrah accompanied her, as they dashed across the air, barely managing to dodge attacks from the mirror clones due to Madelynn's horrible driving.

"I think they're headed towards one of the warehouses...how strange..." Madelynn noted, the clones seemed to dive down towards a large building, one that Madelynn very well recognized. She followed their route, stopping the airborne vehicle within a nearby forest. "So we're in the outskirts of Clover now, hm? You guys alright?!" Madelynn asked, opening the doors so each of the members could make their way out of the car.

In the back of the car, Gron laid flat on the seat with his head sat on his chest and his legs dangled over the edge, quick rapid breathes passed in and out of his mouth as he looked to Madelynn with a dead glare. Compared to the rest, he seemed to have suffered the most from Madelynn's mad dash, looking as though he was in the middle of recovering from the whole experience.

"That's. Really. Strange. All the signs before this moment, and I didn't think to say someone else should have drove," He groaned before he tried to pull himself up and get out.

Ferrah had not moved from his seat. He was holding onto Rhododendron so hard that he began to whimper from his restricted breathing. He finally released the dog from his grasp and he ran outside of the broom's carriage. Despite all that, he dutifully waited for Ferrah just outside the door, but he still didn't move.

This was not what he had signed up for. He was expecting an office job, researching magic tools, maybe going on nice business trips from time to time, nothing like this. Not being chased through the city by doppelgängers and driven around town by the worst driver of all time. "I think I'm gonna be sick..." He began to gag, but he swallowed it back down. He couldn't take his mask off and he wasn't going to throw up in it either.

For some reason at first, Xiomar wasn't all too thrilled being part of the Aqua Deer squad, but at the same time he was slowly beginning to get used to his role. He could get used to it once he got the hang of it. "*You know, I could get used to this,*" Xiomar thought to himself as a small smile formed on his face.

Madelynn moved quickly, using the trees as cover for her awful athleticism. She hadn't even ran for 2 seconds, and already fatigue caught up to her. She tapped on her communication tool, allowing her to once more communicate with Loholt. "Lolo, we..caught up...to the...clones. They're...in...warehouse." She spoke through ragged breaths.

"Hm?! Well we were just leaving one ourselves...we'll be there soon, Madelynn. Don't do anything too rash." The man responded through the tool. Even someone as collected as him seemed somewhat worried. The call ended, and Madelynn turned to look at the group again.

"Okay...okay, I've never been in a situation like this, going to be honest guys. BUT, it can't be that bad...whatever they have in there I mean. I do sense some powerful signatures..." Madelynn concluded, even now, her rambling continued. "Hmm, might not be wise for us to go there...but we also need to find out what those copies are after..." Madelynn thought to herself.

"Fuck it, let's go!" Madelynn claimed, and as the head of the group, Madelynn headed towards the warehouse. There weren't any openings, besides the massive front door which seemed to be closed shut as soon as the copied had gotten in. Even so, voices could be heard.

"Hurry, hurry, the boss wants us to transport the items elsewhere!"

"Sure, but what do we do about these...creepy looking things."

"They might be bodyguards or something like that guy...I don't know, but they seem to follow all the products, so we'll be fine!"

Madelynn looked back at the rookies. "Hmm...if only we had someone that could make a flashy entrance." She smirked, looking at Xiomar.

"Hm? Me? I couldn't," Xiomar said in a bashful tone, "but if you insist." Xiomar went up pulling his grimoire out from itself pouch, he opened it before using his spell.

"**Explosion Magic: Detonate!**"

And detonate it did, the massive iron doors were blasted open, propelled backwards with intense force. Many men, seemingly armored dodged out of the way as the doors came, a thudding sound heard loudly as they banged against one of the warehouse's walls.

"W-what the hell?!" One of the soldiers called out, noticing the group. They seemed so...harmless. Madelynn's frail physique, combined with Gron's size, and the noticeable inexperience from the other two, it was quite surprising that they could possess such powerful magic.

"Stop right there! Clover PD here!" Madelynn exclaimed happily.

"Y-you don't even have the right robe!" One of the mages replied. "Y-you don't even have a warrant, what are Aqua Deer members doing here?!"

"Looking for something that's ours. Now...where are those clones..." Madelynn looked around, seemingly unaware of the attacks that came from many of the soldiers. Fireballs, lightning bolts both came towards her person. "Hm?" Madelynn turned to look at them, feeling the immense heat coming her way. Putting her palm up, the attacks simply failed to reach her, instead disappearing into nothing.

"E-eh?!" One of the men replied.

Madelynn snapped her fingers, and out of a sudden the attacks returned to their source, their power nearly doubled. And just then, that was when the clones attacked.

First came a myriad of darkened cubes, that headed towards the group. Followed by the loud sound that followed explosions, as if propelling someone, and with those, a barrage of jaws. The powerful magic energy could be felt, as the three clones, reminiscent to Xiomar, Gron and Ferrah appeared.

"There they ar-" Madelynn seemed to look beyond those attacks, feeling as if someone was watching them. In between the attacks, a shadow expanded from the ground underneath them. "Guys, guys, move!" Madelynn screamed. An item appeared at her hand, some sort of gun which she used to launch herself back and away from both the shadow and the attacks.

Ferrah was in awe of Madelynn's magic, at least ever so briefly as the time could allow. "*What was that?*" he thought, "*Trap Magic?*" But there was no time to dawdle or be lost in thought. They were in the middle of a battle after all.

Ferrah jumped out of the range of the shadow, just as Madelynn had instructed. Considering his captains physical frailty, if she could do so, he certainly could as well. However, that still left him open to the attack from the mirror clones. A pair of jaws, his **Flash Fang**, was headed right towards him. Yet, Ferrah didn't appear scared in the least. The jaws had barely touched his person when a magic circle suddenly appeared on his stomach.

"Didn't get to use this one during the exam. Glad it's still there."

A massive set of jaws, dwarfing that of the one used to attack him practically ate the mirror clone's spell, headed right towards it with a set large enough to devour a whole person. The clone may have had all of Ferrah's magic and spells, maybe even his magic power, but would it have copied even his already active spells? And if it didn't, would the clone have had the foresight to protect itself with the same spell that Ferrah had used on himself a few days ago.

Xiomar dodged the shadow just in time as he looked over to Madelynn and was intrigued by her magic. He was impressed by how well her magic was that in his mind that maybe, again being part of the Aqua Deer squad wasn't a bad decision. He then looked over at the set of jaws heading towards him which caught him off guard. "What is that? I've never seen this type of magic before," Xiomar thought to himself.

With everything going on, it was only when the members of Aqua Deer had gotten themselves some control over the situation that they could see Gron sat above them on a floating cube. Several cubes that served as platforms for Gron to climb onto from underneath shattered into particles, one by one, each destroyed and severed the path up towards the little green Magic Knight. His feet dangled over the edge as he leaned forward with his arm underneath his head as a support that leaned on his lap, looking down at the clones with eyes of intrigue and curiosity.

"If these clones were created from our magic energy, then it would be the magic energy that was stolen from us AT the time in the lab. The magic energy from our bodies must have some code within it that allows us to cast certain spells more easily, so these clones 'should' know every spell and magical technique we knew at that time? Right?" Gron thought out to himself, "That just means we gotta throw something new? -ish? At them? Something that our bodies haven't cast before?"

Gron's eyes twinkled as he pulled his back up from his forward lean and pointed his finger to the air, "OH! I wonder if these clones are capable of making their own spells. Or at the same time, be capable of developing the same spells we would make if we were to circumvent this issue the way I thought? They are seperate entities with our magic, so to what extent can they become different to us? I guess there's only one way to find out."

He looked down and his eyes darted around the area where the clones were seen, as he tried to spot where his own clone had ended up.