Chapter 244 - Return to Mermaid City

After spending the night at the Tysta Inn, the Inferno trio took a quick tour of the remaining Izzin cities before sitting down for lunch with the Monarchy. The King and Queen of Izzin were a cheerful duo named Sid and Zosia, they had seven very boisterous children, not at all what Nix had been expecting. Inferno officially signed an alliance agreement with Izzin and by late afternoon were back at the Gemini Temple for a brief respite from their travels.

/Inferno: Nix: Take a quick break to relax, I have a thing.

/Inferno: MIna: Back here in an hour?

/Inferno: Nix: Yep. That should work.

Nix walked toward the Gemini exit. He wanted to contact Leva but for secrecy purposes didn't want Milat or Mina to know. He left the temple a few minutes later and headed toward his ranch house. He stopped suddenly when he finally started paying attention. "Damn... that's just big."

The Dragon Fir seemed to stare down at the grassy plateau. Its height was probably around 300 feet, the diameter maybe 10 or 12 feet. It was quickly outgrowing all of the other trees in Haven. He had convinced the guild that Deidra placed some sort of enchantment on it. Not exactly an untruth. Half a vial of dragon blood would have destroyed anything made from flesh and blood.

[Whisper: Gideon to Nix] Got anything for us Nix?

[Whisper: Nix to Gideon] Not at the moment. I'm going questing for a few days, if I run into difficulty I'll call up Pathfinder.

[Whisper: Gideon to Nix] We'll be ready. Hey... The Aquarions that live in the bay near Loki have approached us with an odd request.

[Whisper: Nix to Gideon] How many men are they requesting?

[Whisper: Gideon to Nix] They requested 12 of us, all by name.

[Whisper: Nix to Gideon] Let it be volunteer only. Are you on the list?

[Whisper: Gideon to Nix] Yes. So are you, Wind, Donri, and Banzi.

[Whisper: Nix to Gadene] I'm opting out, but I can't speak for the rest of Inferno.

[Whisper: Gideon to Nix] I'm a girl irl, so I'm out also.

[Whisper: Nix to Gideon] Really?

[Whisper: Gideon to Nix] Damn... That's a secret, not sure why I blabbed.

[Whisper: Nix to Gideon] I'm good with secrets.

A few minutes later Nix sat on the bed in his room. There was no one else in the house, but he closed the door just in case someone showed up.

[Direct Contact: Leva]

Nix waited patiently for a moment before the fallen chancellor's holo popped up in front of him. She appeared to be out in the Nether somewhere. "Are you able to speak now?"

Leva nodded. "The plans against Solomon City have been scrapped for now. They understand that neutralizing all four Breach Commanders is no longer a viable option."

"How was Deidra going to be dealt with? I understand that she was going to be attacked while she was 'feeding' the city."

"Dragons lock themselves up during that time because they are very vulnerable. The plans were to interrupt the procedure."

Nix studied his minion for a moment, from his informed eye, she appeared exactly like she did when he'd first seen her. "I believe Zylanex is Zylanexor, the former Dragon Master of the fallen city of Chyanama. What's your take on this?"

"Dragon?" Leva seemed to consider it for a long moment. "This would fit in with several oddities regarding him. If that's true..."

"Was the Nether his exit strategy? Or did he plan a return to the Sky Kingdom the entire time?" Nix shook his head in frustration, "there are too many unanswered questions."

"I could offer my services to him. He has sought my favor in the past while trying to bring me in." Leva's pale face was devoid of any emotion while she spoke.

"Why didn't you follow him?"

"I don't like him." Leva shrugged. "I only offer now because it suits your needs."

"Be mindful of your actions. I don't want you doing anything out of character to the point where it draws attention toward you."

Leva nodded. "I understand. My services aren't as vital as they use to be, he has two chancellors working for him now."

"Be watchful, and look for a way to deal with his chancellors. Take no actions that will put you at risk."

"I understand Nix."

By the time Nix returned to the Gemini Temple both Aquarions were waiting.

/Inferno: Nix: I must admit, I'm looking forward to what the Trickster Class is capable of.

/Inferno: Milat: You won't be disappointed. I already have a significant strike and all three chain abilities.

/Inferno: Nix: Critical, Unbalanced and Dual? I think we unlocked that for all Gemini Classes, however, we are going to have to get more significant strike abilities.

/Inferno: Milat: I agree.

/Inferno: Mina: A significant strike is one that is a critical hit and manages to stun the opponent?

/Inferno: Nix: Yes, and Dual Chain is the chain attack for one of those attacks. Someone like Wind who doesn't have a significant strike can choose to stack a critical chain onto it but that changes it.

/Inferno: Milat: I'll display the abilities.

[Gemini: Trickster Class]

Dual Wield: Daggers, Short swords. Handguns.

Viper Strike: Perform a significant strike on your opponent stunning them for three seconds.

Two Fangs: You perform a double attack on your enemy landing two critical hits. (Two weapons must be equipped.)

[First Blood] You are immune to melee damage for the first five seconds you enter combat.

Flash: Drops a small charge that blinds and stuns up to five enemies for three seconds. Cool Down= 60 seconds.

Copyright: Become a copy of anyone on the battlefield at 80 percent of their ability for 15 seconds. Cool Down=15 minutes.

Turn Coat: Your enemy fights on your side for one minute. Cool Down= 60 seconds.

Grounded: Bring a flying enemy to the ground. Once targeted they are unable to take flight again for two minutes. Cool Down= 60 seconds.

Light Bender: Light is bent around you rendering you completely invisible to everyone. Instant, no

Cool Down.

Oil Slick: One of your enemies has stepped in something slippery. They are unable to gain their feet again for 30 seconds. (Melee Only)

Joker: You've whispered something funny to your enemy. They are unable to cast magic for 30 seconds. (Caster Only)

Critical Chain: When your teammate lands a critical strike, you have the opportunity to follow it up with another critical hit. Stacks up to 5 times

Unbalanced Chain: When your teammate stuns an opponent, you have the opportunity to follow it up with another stun.

Dual Chain: When your teammate lands a significant strike, you have the opportunity to follow it up with another significant strike. Stacks up to 5 times.

Gemini: Use a skill from one of your Gemini teammates.

Nix smiled when he read the description. "Those are pretty nice, now you can CC and free up me to do some fire damage."

/Inferno: Nix: Let's get going.

[Create Breach: Mermaid City]

Nix floated in place for a few moments, since they had closed Mermaid City he hadn't been spending a lot of time in water zones.

[Summons: Soup]

Nix rubbed soup's greenish head and grabbed ahold of her shell.

/Inferno: Mina: This way.

Mina led the way through the empty courtyard and headed north. Mermaid City had become a ghost town. The Crater in question was an hour away from their entry point. The Abyssal crater was an impressive sight. Nearly a hundred feet across and mostly unexplored.

/Inferno: Nix: We don't know what to expect, everyone rides Soup.

All three members of Inferno lay across the top of Soup's shell with Nix in the middle. "Straight down girl, don't stop unless we have to fight. Let's see how fast you are."

Soup entered the crater and started moving downward in a wide circle, gradually picking up speed as she continued her angle becoming steeper. Within a few minutes, all three passengers were holding on tight.

/Inferno: Mina: I didn't realize she was so fast.

/Inferno: Nix: She's not just a chalkboard.

[Whisper Mina to Nix] I'm glad to hear you haven't forgotten.

[Whisper Nix to Mina] Well... I did promise.

The minutes went by quickly, 30... 60... then 90.

[Flourescent] Soup has used light she has stored from the sun to illuminate the darkness.

"Hey! I thought you were just a lazy turtle!" Nix reached up and rubbed the top of her head.

/Inferno: Milat: Did you know she could do that?

/Inferno: Nix: Nope. I might have to put off eating her a while longer.

Time seemed to drift by quickly as the group lost track of everything but the endless descent. Nearly four hours after they started, the tiniest bit of light could be seen in the distance.

"This is good Soup." Nix waited until she coasted to a stop and then dismounted. He spent a few moments saying thank you before he unsummoned her.

/Inferno: Nix: Not sure what kind of place Core'dium is, but I know it isn't a water zone.

Ten minutes later the wide passage curved suddenly and started to narrow, the lights growing brighter. A few minutes after that, the water stopped and they stepped onto the rock floor of a cave. Nix put his armor back on and led the others out.

/Inferno: Nix: I don't want to spend too much time here. Investigate the ferret race and find out about spectrum.