Colin's posts

Ash was silent for a moment, as the info came back to him.

"....oh, yeah." he muttered.

"Forgot that renovation happened..." he said, covering his tracks a bit. Or at least, trying to. He was acting casual and embarrassed about it, so he hoped that would do it.

"Guess Sydney's still right. I can be an idiot." he lamented with a sigh.

"Anyway, thanks for the key." he told her.

"If I'm not in the room, I'll probably be in the sparring area." he finished, figuring that info would probably be useful for her, if she needed to find him for whatever reason.

Ash snatched the key at it was thrown to him.

"Uhhhh.... right." he said.

"That sounds... nothing like what I'm used to." he commented.

"Anyway, guess I'm going to dorm 541." he then said further.

"...mind if I check something along the way?" he asked.

"My... well, my former office." he said.

"I want to see what it's become. Or, can you tell me, at least?" he asked her, before giving her the location of where his office had been.

Ash just shrugged.

"Sure, that works." he said.

"So... she technically lives here, but stays away from here." he then commented.

"And she's told me not to mention her or my brother." he went on.

"Are we Fyranes not liked here?" he asked her.

"Or is it something else?"

Ash was silent in response, before sighing.

"That's a fair question." he said.

"I'm... Ashley. Ashley Joseph Fyrane." he told her. "Usually called 'Ash'." he said further.

"And... known as 'AJ' here at the guild." he continued.

"I dunno which direction that sways your decision, but... yeah." he mumbled.

"If you want, I can prove it, too." he added.

"Ah..." Ash stammered, stunned for a moment by the discord between her appearance and her sounds. He was silent for another moment, before shaking his head a little.

"Right." he said.

"I was... told to come here by... Jazz." he told her, recalling the earlier female's name.

"She told me a 'Mina' would be here." he commented. "And that she would tell me how to find the one called 'Emi'." he said further.

'Wow...' he then thought, taking in his new surroundings.

'Loooootta stuff here. But... it looks like everything has a place, and it's in it.' he thought further, thinking that his brother would be simultaneously amazed and horrified by the place. Amazed at the organization, horrified at how much of a mess it deceptively looked like.

"I remember where the head office is." Ash replied.

"I've been there so many times in the past." he sighed.

'Wonder what happened to MY office...?' he then thought, making a mental note to check on it later.

"Anyway, I'll head there now." he told her.

"See ya, I guess." he finished, before they parted ways.

As he walked, he saw people gesture slightly towards him, whisper to others, some shot him glares, while others seemed to deliberately ignore him.

He expected it, as Vic had warned him, and he just sighed quietly.

"Uh-huh..." he mumbled, before stopping at the closed door to the head office.

"...hello?" he called in, knocking on the door.

"Heh." Ash chuckled.

"Nice." he said.

"Glad to hear there's still an Argento in charge here." he commented.

"Cass was the best thing that happened to the guild. She brought it up from the ditch that her father had put it in, and made it rise to the top." he went on.

"...good times." he finished, sounding a bit wistful.

"Guess I should try and find Emi..." he then mumbled.

"....I see." Ash replied.

"Well... hello then, Jazz." he greeted her.

"Regardless, I was sent here, so... here I am." he said. He then looked around, taking in his surroundings, and sighed deeply.

"...this is nostalgic." he said.

"It's sad to see it like this, but... it's amazing that this place is still standing, and in such good condition, given the circumstances." he commented further.

"So this is a safe place, eh?" he asked.

".......yeah." Ash replied.

"She found me in my suspended hibernation pod." he told her.

"Showed me this world, and filled me in on how it's gone to hell in a handbasket." he continued. "Which included the things that prowl about out there." he added.

"Right, so who are you?" he asked.

"And how do you recognize me?" he asked further.

"Are you Emi?"

Ash was silent as he heard what the woman ordered him to say.

It completely contradicted what he had been told by Vic. She had said specifically NOT to mention her name, or Lindsay's name. But she had also said that the one known as Emi knew her...

He narrowed his eyes, and took a small breath. He was assuming that this was Emi, so he'd take a chance here, and tell her what she wanted to know.

"Lindsay Edward Fyrane. Brother. Victoria Eden Remmington. Sister. Alice Danielle Remmington. Sister." he told her, listing off his three siblings.

"And only Alice had a nickname. Alley Cat." he added.

"Also how do you know me?" he then asked her.

"I've never seen YOU before."

".....right. Duly noted." Ash replied.

"Sylphjay. Blue and pink. Messengers." he repeated, truncating it.

"I'll remember that." he told her.

".....Vic, there's a lot more I want to say, but I get the feeling that lingering here might not be the best idea as well." he then said further. "So I'll just go. But we need to catch up later." he went on.

"Catch ya later." he said again.

With that, he concentrated on the coordinates of the guild... the location of what he had been used to, and threw the sand to the ground, the mana within causing it to swirl around him. He watched as his vision became obscured by what seemed to be a large sandstorm, and when it died down, he saw the guild before him.

Looking run down and ancient, but still standing firm and proud.

"...heh." he chuckled. "Back when they knew how to build things to last." he commented to himself, before making his way to the front door and pausing for a moment.

He then sighed deeply, and knocked loudly.

".............oh, yeah!" Ash exclaimed.

"Huh. So it is." he said.

"I never did focus on them, no." he confirmed.

"I was co-owner, after all." he reminded her. "My mana just had a natural pull to it." he added with a small shrug.

"Regardless, thanks." he said.

"I shall see you later."

".......that sounds like Emelie, all right." Ash said, taking a small amount of sand out of the pouch. He then closed it, and lightly tossed it back at her.

"I'll find you again." he told her as she caught it.

"I refuse to let this be the only time we meet in this world." he said.

"And I WILL find you." he assured her.

"I'm a top-notch hunter, after all!" he added with a smile and a chuckle... which she hadn't seen or heard in so long...

Ash's eyed widened when he heard that.

".........what." he said blankly.

"Holy hell, this future is bleak and scary." he commented. "...to... massively understate it..." he then added, shaking his head a little.

"Regardless, all right." he said.

"I'll use a little to get to these coordinates." he told her.

"I get the feeling I should leave the rest here with you. Just in case."