"We...took the liberty of compiling everything we have for you." (fox-kin 1)
Teyla's older subordinate hands her a sheet of paper. She accepts it with a smile, then begins scanning it eagerly. She lets out a low, amused whistle.
"Wowww...a young elven woman with a magic power level over three and every elemental affinity. Impressive. A sixteen years old wolf-kin girl – the new Elder, I presume. A physical enhancer, naturally, and a high two for power level. Not bad, but definitely not extraordinary. Hmm...human female, early to mid-20s...huh?" (Teyla)
She gives her two subordinates a puzzled look.
"It says she's obsessed with the party leader. That's...weird, but why is this the only personality information on any of them?" (Teyla)
The older of the two men shrugs helplessly.
"It seems the Empire's commoners in the border cities don't know anything else, or don't bother talking about it. I can only assume that this particular personality trait must be...very noticeable." (fox-kin 1)
Teyla snorts, returning her attention to the document with an amused smile. However, as soon as she resumes reading, her pupils constrict, and she once again stares at her subordinates in disbelief.
"The same woman – it says dual elemental and dark classes with a five power level. Surely that's not right? That's not a human, that's a monster cross-dressing." (Teyla)
Again, her subordinate shrugs – a response she's finding increasingly irritating.
"Unfortunately, I think it's true. The Empire has publicized their guild records in an effort to help locate them. That information should be from an official magic assessment." (fox-kin 1)
Teyla pales, immediately abandoning any plans to engage with their party recklessly. She's interested, but not suicidal. In fact, she can't help but wonder if the rumors of them slaughtering a hundred Empire elites were really exaggerated...that woman might even be able to do it on her own.
Even though that's not Nina's true power level, it's important to keep in mind how skewed Mizuki's frame of reference is. To the rest of Azura, the average power level falls just below a two on that logarithmic scale. People who pass the benchmark of power level three are considered absolute elites, possessing the magic power of dozens of typical soldiers. So, Nina's profile that suggests over a hundred times the magic power of those elites...well, it's like a living nightmare.
Suppressing the urge to shudder, Teyla continues scanning the dossier on the infamous party.
"So...the leader. Basically nothing on him. Eighteen years old human boy, and his magical abilities are...nonexistent?" (Teyla)
She turns her gaze towards her subordinates, but they don't give her a chance to express her skepticism.
"Yes, I'm sure about that, too, Head Teyla. Guild records...official assessment." (fox-kin 1)
Teyla sighs deeply, muttering to herself. Suddenly, the paper in her hands catches fire. While the two men flinch at the sudden combustion, Teyla just watches the paper turn to ash in her hand with an annoyed expression. She tilts her hand, watching the ash sift through her fingers with a thoughtful expression. Eventually, she speaks, her words measured, her voice so low to almost sound disinterested. Deceptively so.
"So basically...you two suck at your jobs. Or, you're idiots. Maybe both?" (Teyla)
The men exchange nervous glances, but they decide to remain quiet. They've both been serving Teyla for almost a decade, since she was a girl. Her blunt attitude, her crass language, her biting sarcasm – the real Teyla behind the refined facade. The Teyla that makes an appearance when something has grabbed her interest. They...know better than to defend themselves against her insults when that happens.
Teyla rolls her eyes at their silence.
"Honestly, I've never seen such obvious bullshit in my entire life. You two really don't see the problem here?" (Teyla)
The younger man clears his throat nervously.
"Uhm...you think the Empire altered their guild records?" (fox-kin 2)
Teyla gives him a pained look.
"No...that would be idiotic of them, given that they put a bounty out. I think the leader somehow falsified his guild information. I think the Empire is in the dark about him just as much as the rest of us. The leader...in a word, I think he's dangerous...the interesting kind." (Teyla)
The two men fall silent for a few seconds, then the older one directs a curious gaze at her.
"Why?" (fox-kin 1)
Teyla lets out a short bark of laughter.
"HA! Why? Why!? Let's examine what we know about him, shall we? You know, the useful stuff, not the trash written in your profile of him. His followers are a good start.
"A prodigious Elder of the wolf-kin, who lifted her people from poverty into the modern age in less than a month. The wolf-kin themselves, who won't even acknowledge a dragon's strength until it's killed them thrice over, yet seemed willing to murder our spies just for asking about this boy's secrets. An elf – again...ELF – that I suspect could beat my ass without breaking a sweat. Then, the Elf Queen, who went so far as to endorse him. Finally, a walking, talking calamity whose infatuation with him is so memorable that Empire commoners gossip about it.
"Now, do you seriously think some magic-less human teenager would inspire that kind of loyalty from all these incredible people? No, not unless you're an idiot. So, I see two explanations.
"One, this guy is so incredibly, comically attractive, so ridiculously fucking charming, that men and women alike are compelled to serve him at first sight. Or two, he's someone powerful enough that it's both warranted and possible for him to hide his true abilities from the guild. That's on top of being ambitious enough to attract others to his cause, and smart enough to ensure he does all that with enough discretion that morons like you two fall for his act.
"Since option one is the kind of thing that even normal people notice and remember, and your little dossier didn't mention all the women in Rodsgard soaking their pants when he visited, I'm placing my bets on option two." (Teyla)
Her older subordinate raises his eyebrows, likely impressed with her colorful language more than her deductions. Nevertheless, he nods thoughtfully at her assessment.
"Okay, let's say you're right. How would you like to proceed based on that information?" (fox-kin 1)
Teyla smiles – a natural smile. Unreserved, heart-wrenchingly beautiful, and so full of mischief that it sends shivers down her subordinates' spines.
"Obviously I want to meet him, and you two idiots are going to arrange it. If I can meet the whole party, that'd be ideal, but he's the priority. I can feel it...whatever he's hiding will be absolutely worth my time." (Teyla)
The older of the two men sighs in resignation.
"Right...how would you like us to go about arranging such a meeting?" (fox-kin 1)
Teyla rolls her eyes.
"Honestly, Xu, sometimes you and Wei make me question keeping you two in charge of my intelligence network. It's not that hard to figure out. He's friends with that wolf-kin Elder. The wolf-kin are clearly interested in development now. Go leverage the appeal of an alliance with us, and get them into a meeting room with me. These people have every reason to respond positively to us.
"Oh, and so help me gods, don't do something stupid and offend them. Not only are they the most interesting people I've ever heard of, but it's safe to assume that they're walking around with enough power to topple countries on their own. I won't hesitate to execute you two if it means appeasing them. Got it?" (Teyla)
The older fox-kin, Xu, nods respectfully.
"As you wish, Head Teyla." (Xu)
The younger fox-kin, Wei, smiles nervously.
"Uhm, Head Teyla, what if you're wrong and the guild records are accurate? People don't only follow strength. He could just be competent and charismatic." (Wei)
Teyla smirks.
"Then I still want to meet him, maybe even more so. If he's really able to charm all those people with nothing but his looks and wit, I might finally consider a husband. If nothing else, Xian's reaction will be priceless." (Teyla)
Wu and Xei pale, giving one another disturbed looks as they say a silent prayer for the mysterious party leader.
CRASH!
At the sound of shearing metal in the distance, all three of them snap their heads towards the source. Their previously jovial demeanors are replaced with a serious air. Xu and Wei stand, hands instinctively sliding to the katana's on their hips.
"That...sounded like it came from the eastern Sanctum entrance." (Xu)
In an instant, Teyla is on her feet, her crimson eyes cold and calculating.
"Let's go." (Teyla)
Xu and Wei don't even spare her a glance. They don't concern themselves with whether she has armor, or a weapon, or how a ruler shouldn't be running towards potential danger. They just nod, because they already know how dangerous she is, all by herself.
Without further delay, the trio takes off running.
¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬
Teyla sprints at top speed, keeping pace behind Xu and Wei. As she weaves between the various buildings, feet pounding on the stone walkways and robes straining against her toned thighs, she collects Daima along the way. Meanwhile, her thoughts are swirling with threat assessments and contingencies.
'An accident? An attack?'
Neither seems particularly likely to her, given that the disturbance sounded like it was deep within the city, likely in or near the Sanctum. If it's an accident, handling it is well within standard protocols. However...
'If it's an attack, how is the first indication of it so deep inside the city? And who would be attacking? We would have had more notice if there were human soldiers moving through our territory. Unless...'
Her thoughts flit to the earlier briefing...the dragon that's been harassing the rabbit-kin. It's not so unreasonable for something like that to fly east in a few days. She feels a pang of apprehension at the possibility of a dragon attack.
'Defeating a dragon is not guaranteed even with our whole Daima force. And inside the city, we can't afford a drawn out battle. It'd need to be put down as fast as possible, or the loss of life and property could be catastrophic.'
Fortunately, they have exactly one contingency that could do exactly that...take down a dragon decisively. Teyla's jaw tightens.
'We might have to...call him to help.'
Shaking the thought from her mind, and reminding herself not to jump to conclusions, Teyla continues sprinting towards their destination. Her eyes scan for any signs of the underlying reason for the disturbance, but none present themselves.
Eventually, her, Xu and Wei, and about twenty Daima arrive in the east plaza, the corresponding Sanctum entrance coming into view. Teyla immediately spots the source of the disturbance from earlier, but...it's both exactly what she feared, and nothing like she imagined.
The Sanctum's massive, metal gates, crafted by their best blacksmiths to withstand repeated assaults from a crowd of physical enhancers, have been ripped from their hinges, mangled, and flung into the plaza. Lying near them, she spots two Daima, seemingly still breathing, but bloody and unconscious. The guards for the Sanctum's east entrance. More shocking than either of those facts, though...
Is the sight of the likely perpetrator.
Teyla watches as a young wolf-kin girl, probably sixteen or seventeen at most, strolls through the now gaping hole in the Sanctum wall with all the casualness of someone stretching their legs. She has a lean but toned build, olive skin, dark brown hair, and steely grey eyes. Her hand is resting comfortably on the hilt of a sheathed sword while she sweeps the surrounding plaza with a calm, calculating gaze.
Lagging several meters behind her is a young man, less than twenty years old, she'd guess. As far as Teyla can tell, he has no weapon or armor, just trousers and what looks like a plain, silk shirt.
Despite his deferential position behind the wolf-kin girl, his lack of any overt threat, and his quiet, unassuming demeanor, Teyla's eyes are immediately drawn to him. For one, he's...quite handsome, carrying an appeal that's somewhere between boyish charm and mature sexiness. Light brown hair, slightly above-average height, with a frame that's slim but clearly wrapped in lean muscle.
His skin is slightly tanned, smooth. His face angular, but not rugged. Teyla's also drawn to the way he carries himself – back straight, hands clasped behind his back, steps unhurried, posture otherwise relaxed...
'He's confident...self-assured.'
Even more so, she's drawn in by his eyes...a beautiful green, gleaming with a quiet intelligence, but also carrying a coldness just evident enough to make her heart flutter with apprehension. More than anything else, though, she's struck by the necklace he's wearing. Or rather, a collar with the engraving she recognizes all too well. 'Good Human' – her own little inside joke for the city's recently relaxed visitor policies.
Her pupils constrict at the sight.
'He's...he's human. A young human male, a teenage wolf-kin girl...obviously on good terms with one another. Don't tell me...'
Before she can even finish the thought, the wolf-kin girl stops about twenty meters short of Teyla and the Daima, leveling them all with an unflinching stare. She speaks, her voice sharp and clear, her tone carrying both authority and mild annoyance.
"Greetings, Fox-kin. I am Zara Zuki, Elder of the wolf-kin, and I demand an audience with Council member Teyla." (Zara)