[M] A Broken Revenge [Sorrow and Ash]

[Ashen]

"I seriously doubt they'd be in your hometown still. My guess is they'd be heading north, where it's warmer. They're more at home in warmer climates. They might have even gone south, to claim some smaller civilizations. We'll look everywhere." He shrugged his shoulders. There were loads of possibilities. The mages could have gone anywhere in the near decade since Iris had last seen them, but Ignatius was determined. They would find them, and Iris would get her revenge.

The two traveled back to the entrance of the guild. They went underground, and listened for who might be awake. In the common room, a large room with a great table and random things thrown about, a few members of the guild were talking about something in Incolumis, the town Ignatius and Iris had just come back from. They stopped when they noticed the two enter. A couple of them bowed their heads in greeting.

"We're leaving!" Ignatius announced, loud enough to wake up any remaining sleeping members. "Remember, I was going to take Iris on that journey? It's today!"

The unofficial leader of the guild, a middle-aged man named Radcliffe, raised a brow. "So early in the morning? That's odd of you, Ignatius."

The teen waved him off. "We're just going to take a map, and some food, and we'll be off. We'll be back, okay? Don't go missing us too much."

Radcliffe turned to Iris. "You're sure you're ready for this? I cannot stop you, but it will be very emotionally taxing to encounter those who so dramatically changed your life."

"She'll have me!" Ignatius assured. "Nothing bad will happen."

Radcliffe rolled his eyes at Ignatius, a common sight in the guild. He looked at Iris again. "It's been a pleasure watching you grow with us, Iris. I am very happy to see your passage into womanhood today. Remember, Exls will always be your family, and we will always welcome you back should you need it. For your sake, I hope you can find those bastards and destroy them. I think you will find yourself on your journey." He turned to the rest of the room. "Should we toast them off?" he suggested. "Our Exls children, our youngest members, they are adults now, and it's time to leave their nest."

One of the other members of the guild, Harold, glared at Ignatius. "Finally," he muttered.

Ignatius blew him a mocking kiss. He looked at Iris with a wide grind. "So, it really is goodbye for now. I'm going to miss it here. Exls Guild will always be a part of me. And we will be back to them, to all of you, when we finish what we're starting today."

​...I hope.

[DragonOfSorrows]

Iris could only smile as the entire guild had came out to see her off. They might not have been her family by blood, but they were family nonetheless.She glanced down at the floor, then back up at everyone. All the attention was starting to embarrass her. "Thank you.." She mumbled.

"I will do my best out there. I will make our guild proud! No matter what happens,I will be back. I'll have many tales for you, and I'll have one about getting my revenge. No matter how long this journey takes us, I promise you that we'll come back successful." She grabbed a cup and held it high. "To the adventure ahead, to the good and bad times, and to my revenge!" With that said, she took a large drink out of the cup, only to cough and spit it's contents out. She laughed and wiped her mouth. Her cheeks were blood red. "I didn't realize that was mead." She laughed a little more. She secretly loved the attention, but she knew it wouldn't last long. Once her and Ignatius set out, everything would die down and they would go about their lives like they normally would.

She turned to Ignatius and nodded. It was time. "Let's go." She said. Iris didn't want to waste anymore time. Each second gone could be used to hunt down the mages.

[Ashen]

The two spent longer than they intended with their family. Everyone wished them a warm farewell, though most were more excited about Ignatius leaving than Iris achieving her goal. Mead was passed around and everyone took a sip, even Iris who made the entire guild laugh when she realized what exactly she'd put in her mouth. Ignatius, on the other hand, could handle the taste of mead. He didn't like the stuff, didn't know anyone who genuinely did, but he liked the bonding that went on through passing that cup. By the time they were finally ready to go Ignatius had had a bit much to drink, but he assured Iris he would be fine.

After their final goodbye, the two left their guild, their home, the place and people that had raised them. Ignatius was sure not to let any of his tears show. He wanted to help Iris, he wanted to find those mages, but the entire ordeal was bittersweet. He loved his guild, but he had to do this. They had to do this. So with a last determined nod, Ignatius took Iris's hand, and they started off.

Ignatius was rummaging through the rucksack he'd just packed, already having lost their map. "It's in here somewhere," he muttered. In a couple minutes he finally pulled it out, and he handed the map to Iris. "Now. We're going to go north. What's that one town called, the one with the big lake? Jan-something? We should go there first. Then we can continue up north, maybe even getting a horse, and asking around where we go. I'm sure we'll find something eventually." He looked up at her, then glanced at the map. "But if you have a better plan, by all means, present it. You're better at this kind of thing. I can't believe we're actually leaving. We're going to see the world. ...Wow."

[DragonOfSorrows]

Iris chuckled as she watched Ignatius struggle with the map, only to end up snatching it from him in the end. After examining the map, she shook her head. "I believe it's called 'Jan-dora' or something like that." She muttered. "Keep in mind, a horse may be better travel. Can we really afford one?" She pointed out. With a small smirk, she handed the map back to Ignatius. "By the way, we aren't stealing one. So you can put the idea out of your head." She playfully punched him in the arm.

"I'd rather not go through this adventure as wanted criminals."

"After we get to the next town, we should probably go to where my old hometown was. Maybe in its ruins we can find some form of clue that will bring us one step closer to our goal. If we can locate those blasted mages, we can end this once and for all." She was beginning to get frustrated. She took a deep breath and calmed herself. Even though she knew Ignatius knew how hard this would be on her, she didn't want to show it. She wanted to remain strong in front of him.

"Though, as we travel we're going to see many places. I'm glad I'll get to share those places with you." Iris smiled. "Do you think we'll get to see a frozen waterfall?" The excitement on her face was enough to show she really wanted to see one.

[Ashen]

Ignatius grumbled when Iris told him not to steal a horse. They probably would not be able to afford one, and that had been his plan, but she had a point. Getting arrested would delay their journey. So he accepted her word and listened to her plan for their trip. "That's a good idea," he said. "We'll swing by your hometown, see what we can find. There might be something there. But, Rissy, will you be okay?" Ignatius looked to her, his honey brown eyes soft. There was a concern in them that was genuine. "I know this trip will be hard enough on you, but seeing your old home... If it gets to be too much, we can avoid it. We'll find them no matter what, I know it."

Ignatius was distracted then by Iris's voice, so full of excitement. "A frozen waterfall?" he repeated, wondering where they might even find something like that. He took the map from her and looked it over. His eyes scanned the northernmost cities, days, perhaps weeks away by foot. "Maybe here..." he mumbled to himself. His dirtied finger slowly traced paths and rivers to the north, wondering how they would get there. "I think it can be arranged," he finally said, rolling the map up and shoving it back into his rucksack. "After all, no one is expecting us back by any point. We can take as long as we want. I think that would be a very nice place to go to celebrate our victory."

With everything settled, Ignatius made a point of nodding dramatically. "Right then!" he announced. "Off to Jandora we shall go!" He started off on their journey in a theatrical march, taking to his usual goofy tone. There were a lot of reasons Ignatius was going on this journey, but he knew one big reason was to forge memories, to make this the best time of Iris's life, before it all changed dramatically before her.

[DragonOfSorrows]

Iris silently thought to herself, not even Ignatius' goofy banter couldn't break the trance she put herself in. She knew the trip would be hard on her, but she never stop to think just how difficult it actually would be. There were be tears, and even anger. She promised herself that her emotions would not get in the way of her goal. She hadn't realized how long her thoughts had went on before making things awkward with Ignatius. She chuckled to herself out of embarrassment. "I'm sorry, Iggy. I can't help but to keep thinking about it. I know the path before me is a rough one. With you by my side, I think I can manage," She said, nodding at him. "After I hunt down all those fire mages, I want to rebuild my hometown. It's not fair that they can keep living their lives normally and mine had to drastically change! It's not fair I tell you!" She was raising her voice at this point.

Her sweet stare had changed to one of anger and hatred. Ignatius' expression to her anger was enough to pull her out of it. "I..." she muttered, glancing down at the ground in shame. "I'm really sorry for that outburst," she glanced back up, her eyes had returned to that welcoming soft glow they had before. "It's just a very touchy subject for me. I know that you already know, but I still can't help but to apologize."

As they continued to walk, Iris slowly reached for her partners hand. It somehow comforted her and make the world around them disappear. No matter how much she apologized, she would always feel guilty letting Ignatius see that side of her. She awkwardly pulled her hand away and stared ahead. "So, what do you think Jandora will be like? I hope that their bread is as good as ours!" She was trying too hard to steer away from the awkward moment she caused earlier.

[Ashen]

Even though Ignatius was joking around, Iris wasn't having it. He straightened, trying to figure out what he could do for his friend. Perhaps this journey would be too much on her. Maybe he should have waited until she were older still. Maybe he should have just gone alone. Thoughts swirled in Ignatius's mind. Iris said she'd be able to do it as long as he was there, but was that true? He supposed they would have to find out.

He tried shaking his thoughts, instead concentrating on Iris's ideas to rebuild her hometown. He smiled at that. Ignatius thought it was important for Iris to have hopes, have something to look forward to through their trip. But then her tone turned angry, and Ignatius had to stop. She was getting too emotional. Ignatius patiently waited for her to calm down, and then he put a hand on her shoulder. "It's okay," he said quietly. "I understand." He did, more than she could know. "You're allowed to be angry, Riss. I know I am too. But we will bring about their end, and then, we will rebuild your home, okay? You can count on me." Silently, Ignatius clenched his fist at his false promise.

Iris tried to continue, but it was clear she was clutching at any conversation subject to try and move on from her outburst. Ignatius didn't mind. He continued walking and humored her. "I'm hoping they have some good food too. Cake for breakfast is pretty great, but I could use a real meal. Maybe we could find one for cheap there. Might even be able to find some clues about these mages." He placed both hands behind his head as he walked. "Hey, wasn't Jandora the place that was known for their sculpting? Maybe we'll see a cool sculpture. Or, maybe we'll leave such an impression that they'll want to sculpt us." Ignatius chuckled. "What do you think, Ris? We have it in us, don't we?"

[DragonOfSorrows]

Iris smiled amusingly at Ignatius, giving the idea of them having a sculpture some thought. It was an interesting idea, but she shook her head and cast it aside. "I don't think they'll sculpt us for anything good," She replied. "Unless you consider eating all their cake and stealing horses good." she gave a small chuckle. Iris snatched her bladed boomerang from her side and stood in a heroic pose, having its blades point to the sky.

"I can see it now..." she said, closing her eyes. "Beautiful girl stops cake thief with her graceful boomerang throwing!" She jumped forward and let out a load roar, as if she were trying to stir up an audience. She glanced over at her partner and shrugged. It was an amusing idea, but likely to not happen. She stared around at the area around them. The dusted road ahead seem to go on for miles. She wondered if traveling with Ignatius would be like this the whole time. Surely at some point they would get on each other's nerves.

"I hope we get there soon. Each step we take will get us closer to our goal," she said firmly. "Do you think anyone there will have any information? It happened years ago. I doubt anyone will remember it."

[Ashen]

Ignatius watched with a smile when Iris struck a heroic pose. His joking around seemed to have worked in turning her mood around. He rolled his eyes at her. "Excuse me? Who are you calling a cake thief?" He unsheathed his double blades and when she wasn't looking he smacked the boomerang out of her grasp. "I'll have you know I am more than capable of protecting myself against a child's toy." He crossed both his blades in front of him and crouched a bit, taking a heroic stance of his own. "Dashing man defends entire town against stray stick."

He chuckled and sheathed his swords again. "My cake thieving got you a nice birthday breakfast, didn't it?" He raised an eyebrow at her. "Exactly. So don't complain about it. And besides, I haven't stolen a horse. Yet." Ignatius continued walking, noting how long this particular path seemed to go on. It'd be a long journey, and he'd known that, but what would happen when they had to continue on, for miles, in the silence, being too weary to joke or speak anymore? He shook his head. For now, they were happy in each other's company. Hopefully it would stay that way for as long as possible.

Ignatius looked up when Iris spoke. "That's the spirit," he said. He looked to his boots. "The thousand-mile journey starts with the first step. Or, well, however that saying goes." He turned up again. "I think people will definitely have information. People don't forget things like that. Besides, if the people won't talk to us, we can always go where other things will. Yours wasn't the only town they burned down. Perhaps we could go to another town, see if they left any clues among the debris. We have the world to search, Riss, but we'll definitely find something."

[DragonOfSorrows]

The fact Ignatius knocked her boomerang from her grasp was enough to make Iris give him a glare that pierced like knives. She caught herself and gave a chuckle. She was more surprised by his action than angry. She cleared her thoughts and agreed with her partner. "You're right, I suppose. People don't just forget," she said, shaking her head. "When we get to Jandora, it might be wise to talk to the elder, or the elderly folk. They are very wise and may remember the most about it."She smirked to herself. "Or with our luck we'll get one who's mind is going."

Out in the far distance, there was something sitting. A building? A windmill? Iris couldn't tell. They were too far from it. "Do you that? It may be Jandora!" Her excited tone gave her the strength to push forward and start running, leaving Ignatius behind.

She turned and motioned for him to run. "Come on, you slow poke!" she called, sticking her tongue out. She knew all the ways to rile him up and get him to chase after her. She pulled back her running a bit, preparing for if he decided to leave her behind.She had hoped this race would be enough to distract them until they reached their destination.