novelraw Chapter 309 - 254 - Jenteri
Chapter 309 - 254 - Jenteri
When Shouri and Taika got back last night, Pacifica knew something happened. She felt it in her rhythm first; Shouri pulled on her. He didn't try to connect via à deux, so she reciprocated and just let him take what he needed.
Poor Taika was a mess. Whatever happened on their walk, she cried her heart out over it. Sadly, she didn't want to talk about it, and Shouri reassured them they would address it after the festival. For now, there was the possibility of splitting up a lot during their stay in Jenteri. Or at least, that's what Shouri had planned on. He didn't want to make Vince bear the burden of keeping Miro company. It felt wrong to treat their Natural teammate like… baggage; a burden to pass around. So, if anything, Shouri would take Taika away to do stuff together on their own.
At least that was the game plan the Maestro cooked up in the twenty minutes before bed the night prior. They knew from experience things would change when they actually stepped foot in Jenteri proper. It always did.
For now, all Pacifica could do was be as reassuring of a presence as possible--for both her Maestro and her foxy friend. Pacifica held Taika from behind, Shouri had her front. Taika needed this. Every so often the socially savvy otter could feel it--Taika questioning why she was with them. It hurt. It hurt so bad. Pacifica loved this girl with all her heart, and she was still so tormented by those dark thoughts.
It was heart breaking. Pacifica had no idea how to help. Etude clearly wasn't the end-all be-all they hoped.
Even so… it did help.
Taika seemed normal as they went about their morning routine. Seeing how they were staying in an MA Office, there was no homemade breakfast, but the cafeteria was always stocked and ready to go. It was a shame Miro couldn't partake in the facilities, despite being a registered hunter. The more Pacifica thought about it, the less sense it made.
Perhaps that came from historical biases. The peace they enjoyed now didn't always exist, that was one thing she remembered from studying history under her parent's tutelage. During the time of the Seven Heroes they were cruel and violent towards Maestros and Resonators alike; even for hundreds of years after. It was only with the Noble Swords and the wars of liberation did the violence end… only because of violence on an unseen scale.
"You alright?" asked Shouri, stirring the otter from her thoughts.
"Yeah, just thinking," Pacifica replied, looking around blearily.
"'bout what?" he quizzed.
"War," she blurted out.
That was one way to earn the attention of her beloveds, who stared back with concern.
"Uh, just thinking about history, nothing crazy," she offered, chuckling sheepishly.
"Aaaanyways," Shouri resumed breakfast. "Vince said he and his two will be over shortly. They're just getting up for the day," he informed the rest of the table.
Five in the morning wasn't the busiest time for the MA Office cafeteria. It was mostly populated by the Resonator staff that worked the halls and grounds. The guest presence was significantly thinner than it would be in the coming hours. Granted, thinner didn't mean entirely absent. A couple of early risers like themselves wandered the canteen, quietly getting their own food and coffee (mostly coffee).
Either way, nobody paid the quartet any mind.
Vince and Mila walked in (Zephyr was most likely asleep in Vince's pocket, as usual).
"Morning Vince!" Shouri called.
The boy raised a hand to groggily wave at his fellow Maestro.
"I'm gonna go pick up, Miro," Shouri began. Taika began eating faster. The Maestro placed a hand on her shoulder. She squeaked and jumped.
He smiled. "Don't force yourself to come with me. We're going to spend a lot of time together in Jenteri."
She nodded and slowed her pace.
"I'll go. Let me just grab a refill and a lid real quick," Rebecca held up her paper coffee cup and gave it a small shake.
"What do you think it is?" Rebecca asked as the two walked down the street to the hotel.
"Her caretakers were Naturals. They treated her as a servant, and not well," Shouri theorized.
Rebecca nodded in agreement. "Those kind of feelings don't come out of nowhere." She considered her own words. "I'm surprised she's as nice as she is," mumbled the fox.
"Healing attributes uhhh…" Shouri grunted, his expression clouding. "Healing attributes have insane mental fortitude. Even without training they can witness horrible things and not flinch," he explained.
"Is that something you read?" Rebecca wondered.
"It is something that has been proven and re-proven since at least the era of the heroes. Modern studies haven't been able to debunk it. Apparently healing attributes tend to skew towards strong emotion staves, and shielding to willpower, but Taika is a willpower," he explained.
"Right, I think I remember hearing something like, your stave is usually something you develop really young," Rebecca commented.
By this point in the conversation, they had reached the hotel.
"Either way, we're gonna need to figure out how to get her some help," said Shouri.
Taika opened her eyes. She blinked a few times to clear her vision, and discovered she was still seated in the van. Her tablet was tucked into the side pocket nearby, and the orange of the evening sun informed her of the passage of time.
Truthfully, she was beyond done with sitting. She wanted to get up and run a marathon. There was only so much driving she could handle before it started to make her crazy.
Things were looking up for the vixen as they whipped past a sign which read "Jenteri – Next Exit".
The long trip was finally coming to an end!
Her fellow passengers agreed, with groans of protest all around.
Jenteri was a major city, that much Taika realized immediately. Way bigger than Dalliva, but smaller than somewhere like Canolapra. The skyline was illuminated by several prominent skyscrapers, whose lights reflected with a fluttering glow off the river that cut through the city. In the distance, was the ocean itself.
Their vehicle crossed over one of the longer bridges in the city, with signage that warned that there were no exits once they got on. Rebecca confidently proceeded forward without a peep.
Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.
Taika wasn't alone in her appreciation of their new surroundings. Pretty much everyone else was glued to a window, as they scanned every little bit of scenery that passed by. Zephyr fluttered between different windows, getting to take in much more than anyone else present.
Out of everything they saw, there was one thing that drew the undivided attention of all who could bask in its glory--the pirate ships. They were massive classic wooden vessels that bobbed in the waves of the bay. The boats were decorated in stunning lights that outlined their hulls, making them perfectly visible even in the dead of night.
"I wonder if we're gonna see any mermaids," Pacifica pondered aloud.
"Probably, I know they're pretty popular to see around the beaches during the festival," said Shouri.
They couldn't get to the central MA Office by road since the downtown district was totally blocked off. Thankfully, Shouri accounted for this and they booked actual hotel rooms months in advance.
The cost wasn't insignificant, but he felt with everything going on they definitely earned this vacation.
Given how the van was going to be useless for traversal around the city, the group unloaded the vehicle and dropped it off at the local car rental branch and made their way down the streets to their hotel.
"It's busy…" Taika gasped, noting the many Maestros and Resonators that joined them on the sidewalk.
The sun had long since set and the night crowd of Jenteri was fully engaged. The members of PTRS weren't the only tourists about; in fact, most of the foot traffic that joined the eight strong group were fellow out-of-towners. The cacophony of conversations spoke to that. Many marveled at the bright shimmering buildings surrounding them, and the boats prowling the harbor. Others spoke of their plans for the festival, excitedly sharing what days they were excited for.
"Surprised the boats are the only things we've seen for the festival," Rebecca noted.
"Yeah, I thought there'd be more… anything. Besides people," Mila added.
"Apparently, it's taboo for vendors to set up anything until midnight tonight," Shouri read off one of his tuners.
"Really?" asked Vince.
"Why?" Zephyr chimed in.
"Says here, the first day of the festival is all about the gathering of the crew and their maiden voyage. They represent that by making the vendors 'build' their 'ships' when the 'adventure' 'starts', as it were," explained the guildmaster.
"Lots of air quotes there bossman," noted Rebecca.
"I mean it's all for the feel of it, I guess. Supposedly, a lot of vendors will hire hunters to help set up for tomorrow morning," Shouri added, returning the tuner to his side.
"It is very exciting! I think I will stay up and go see them!" Miro decided.
Shouri smiled. "Have fun, I'm exhausted after two days of driving."
"Mind if we tag along, Miro?" asked Vince.
"I do not have a problem with that," smiled the Natural.
"Getting a little stir-crazy?" Shouri smirked at Mila.
The cat shrugged and smirked back. "You know me too well."
Checking into the hotel was the easy part.
The hard part for Miro, Vince, and the two Resonators, was prying themselves from the creature comforts of the hotel room to hit the streets of Jenteri.
"Woah, it's totally different…" Vince gasped in astonishment.
Gone were the tourists and in was industry. Many vendors shouted over each other, all in a tizzy to set things up as quickly as possible to get to bed.
The group of four wandered around, taking in the sights as various stalls were constructed in rapid fashion. As the quartet walked they took in all kinds of booths, from carnival games, to food, to merchandise. It truly was a festival, and a big one at that.
It felt like it went on forever, and the four tourists found themselves just wandering in awe. There were so many Resonators too, of all different shapes and sizes. There were even lunar elements helping, which was a surprise to the group.
"Must be because they work better at night," Vince reasoned out, Miro nodded in agreement.
"Let's go! Let's go! The faster we get this set up the faster we can hit the hay!" a small girl shouted to the three working in the booth.
Vince and his group stopped to watch. The girl was clad in pink and white, though oddly green graced her head. If he really focused…
"She's a Resonator," Mila noted. "Nature element," she added.
"Oh! She's a zalavan!" Zephyr exclaimed.
At the cry of her species name, the girl turned around. "Can I help you?" she asked.
"Oh sorry, didn't mean to bother you; we were just looking around," replied Vince, shuffling back a little bit.
"Ah." The girl studied him, humming in thought. "A fairy? I've never seen one before," she noted. The girl smiled. "Fair's fair I suppose," she chuckled.
"Holly? What's going on?" The woman who had been behind the counter of their booth walked up to the gathering.
Vince noted the three tuners at her waist--Red, blue, and green. The two Resonators still working in the booth must be a fire and water element respectively. Red matched red, as the fire element was a cat-looking Resonator. Blue somewhat matched with the lilac man who was taller than most people around. Though the strange fin-like protrusions on the sides of his head didn't immediately inform of a species Vince was familiar with.
"Nothing Lana, was just talking to them," said the Zalavan.
The woman smiled brightly. "Good evening. Are you here for work or pleasure?" she asked.
"Uh, pleasure," answered Vince.
The nature element caught her Maestro's smile. "I'm Holly," she motioned to the Maestro by her side. "This is Solana, my Maestro."
"It's wonderful to meet you all," greeted the Maestro.
"In the booth is Vivi and Lee, linsang and axolotl respectively," Holly finished the greetings for her group.
For a moment there was a small awkward silence.
"O-oh! I'm Vince!" the boy said a little louder than he intended.
"Mila, his babysitter," said the cat, tousling her Maestro's hair.
"Zephyr, the cute one," the fairy chimed in with a boast.
"Miro, it is nice to meet you," concluded the Natural.
Holly appraised the group one more time. "Come back here tomorrow for lunch, our treat," said the zalavan.
"Huh?" the four travelers shared their confusion.
"Sorry, we seem to have skipped a vital detail," Solana chuckled. "We're traveling chefs. We cook at hunting grounds for a living. Please come by, we'd love to see you."