Colin's posts

"All right then." Darrel replied.

"I'll tell Abby about this right now." he told her.

"...thanks." he then said.

"I know this was probably a bit of a bother, and I know mana hunters have a stigma attached to them." he went on.

"So... I mean, even if this was no big deal, thanks." he told her.

"It means a lot to me. Abby's really cool, and she doesn't deserve to lose her livelihood." he reasoned.

"...oh, and I assume I'm not to reveal any real names or any info until she's actually a member, right?" he then asked, more just making sure he knew where the boundaries were here.

Ryker hadn't been gone for terribly long, so when he returned to the room, Eke was still conscious... he hadn't passed out JUST yet.

"The hell!?" Ryker exclaimed upon seeing this.

"Eke!?" he said further, kneeling down.

"Eke, what's happening!?" he asked him.

"What's going on with you!?"

Ryker was a little stunned that Eke was acting this way.

He didn't even return to the room, instead opting for the fountain in the middle of the city square.

He walked towards it and looked at his reflection... sighing when he saw flickers of red in his eyes, and what seemed to be an ominous shadow behind him.

".....who am I?" he asked quietly.

"Who... am I meant to be...?"

".....sorry." Darrel responded.

"I... I'll remember that." he said, before pausing.

"But I'll relay the info to her." he continued.

"And you mentioned there'd be more info closer to the actual day, so... that's good." he went on.

"How is she going to get there?" he then asked.

"Do you want me to use my portals?" he asked further.

Yup. was all she got in response.

About 20 minutes later, her phone rang... and the caller I.D. said it was Darrel.

"...uh... h-hey Grandma." Darrel said when she answered.

"I... uh... well, Dad said that you had information for me to give to Abby..." he went on.

"And... he said it needed to be ME to call and ask for it, but didn't say WHY..." he continued.

"Sorry if I'm bothering you." he then quickly apologized.

"All righty then!" Ash responded.

---

Jaden looked at the text that he had been sent, and smirked.

Awesome. he sent back.

Expect a call from your grandson soon. he then sent her.

After all, this is something he needs to learn.

"......." Ryker was silent as Eke said what he did.

"Mm." he mumbled.

"Well... I suppose there IS truth to what you say..." he admitted.

"But... are you all right?" he then asked him.

"Or are things still weighing down on you?"

Ash just sighed.

"....hey, I WILL!" he insisted.

"All I need is a little luck." he said.

"...ok, a LOT of luck." he corrected himself.

".......and for you to be off your game and distracted...." he went on, trailing off at the end.

"Look, the chances of my beating you aren't 0%!" he then insisted in a new statement.

".............probably."

"Really? Ashley?" Ash asked.

"All right then..." he said.

"I'll make sure she's available for the spar." he told her.

"Other than that... I think we're done here." he said. "As far as the potential new recruit goes." he clarified.

"All that's left for me to say is I WILL beat you one day." he then told her.

"One day, I will beat you in billiards."

Ash just smirked.

"Yup." he replied.

He then sighed, and leaned back in his chair.

"Been a while since we've had a new recruit." he commented.

"Kinda miss it." he said.

"Hope she meets the grade." he went on.

"....who do you think she should fight against?" he then asked her. "Regardless of position, we need a minimum standard of capability in combat, but we need it to be... well... at least a LITTLE fair."

Ash took down the info, and then hit a button with a hint of finality.

"And done." he said.

"Ball's in your court now." he told her.

"At any rate, this should be interesting." he went on.

"Mana hunters are... well... they get interesting around me." he chuckled.

"Hasn't happened very often, but sometimes their reactions to getting close to me are... quite something." he went on, before pausing.

"Well, I suppose the first test of her mettle will just be meeting me." he then added.

"A test in more than one way."

"Well, of course." Ash responded.

"Anyway, I'll need some basic info about her, though." he then said.

"You give me her name and such, I'll get her into the interview slot, and we'll go from there." he went on.

"...I admit, I'm interested in this girl." he then told Sydney.

"She sounds like a... unique case."

All this had not gone unnoticed by Ryker, and when they were walking by a certain store, he stopped, and stopped Eke as well.

"Eke, I don't have much." he said.

"But I know I at least have enough for this." he told him, directing his attention to what was in display window; Gourmet Artisan Chocolates.

"Eke, pick out some." he told him.

"You deserve a little something nice."

Ash nodded.

"Works for me." he said.

"And nearer the actual date, I'll give you more info for her." he went on.

"Ie: temporary codename and password to get INTO here." he clarified.

"...on that note, HOW is she getting here?" he then asked.

"You say she doesn't have mana... how is she even getting here?"