Submission (#1499) Approved

Quest: Resonance - Act 2
Act Type: Character
Word Count: 1180
Adult Elnin Present: Lumia [ELN122]
Regional Affinity: Silveil
Claiming Regional Affinity for: Cirrus [ELN1573]
[Adventurer] Rank Unlock Mini-Requirement: n/a

Making his way into Silveil City, Cirrus grew a little uneasy. Despite being born here, very rarely did he visit the city. For most of his childhood, he and Ocean roamed the forests of Silveil, playing about among the bioluminescent flora. They also traveled a bit too, often visiting Strynhalde due to it being their father’s birthplace.

He had heard stories of… unsavory things happening here. Questionable nighttime activities, gambling, and theft. If one weren’t aware of their surroundings, they could easily find themselves robbed blind and left in an alleyway to fend for themselves.

That said, he didn’t have a lot of money on him. Just enough for maybe a small meal and to pay a healer for their services, but it would have been quite inconvenient to lose it. He kept his bag close to him, making sure to have a hand on it always in case someone tried to yank it from him, and his eyes darted about, keeping a lookout for anyone that might look shady.

Wait, no. Act natural.

While he didn’t visit the city much, he was still born here, in Silveil. He shouldn’t be nervous.

“Hey, kiddo, where ya going?”

The voice made him jump, and he spun around to see an older nin looking at him.

“Need some help? I can escort you… for a fee.”

“N-no thank you, I’m good, thanks.”

Before the nin could respond, Cirrus rushed off, not making eye contact with them. His heart was thumping in his chest, mind racing. Part of him wondered what the nin meant by “fee”. Probably money, which was already out of the question considering he didn’t have much, but he didn’t want to think about it further.

Attempting to take his mind off the recent ordeal, he turned his gaze to the sky, finding comfort in the stars above. Part of him wondered if the stars were just as clear here as they were in other regions. It was probably hard to tell, since Silveil was always nighttime, and the sky was always filled with stars. Even the city itself was surrounded by a “sea of stars” as he called it, despite the “stars” being bioluminescent fauna living in Starlake. Even more interesting was how Silveil’s regional tree was actually submerged upside-down beneath the lake and city itself. It was a curious phenomenon, though something to ponder over another time.

After some wandering, he managed to locate a local apothecary, and breathed a sigh of relief. Now he just had to give them the mushrooms, pay them for their services, maybe grab some food before heading back home.

Stepping inside, he took a deep breath to calm his pounding heart. The thick smell of medicinal herbs helped soothe his nerves, and he made his way to the counter.

Not seeing anyone at first, he looked around, wondering if there was a bell he had to ring. Not seeing one, he decided to call out, only to have an elderly nin pop their head up from behind the counter, nearly giving poor Cirrus a heart attack.

“Oh… young one… what brings you to this place at this hour of night?”

Cirrus explained his situation, describing how his brother had gone out to gather mushrooms for a strange client, and ended up sampling some with odd side effects as well as managing to catch Dusk Fever in the process.

The nin listened quietly, nodding his head on occasion.

When Cirrus finished, he emptied his bag with all the mushrooms he procured, as well as a small satchel of coins for the fee of concocting a remedy.

Looking over the ingredients as well as the coins, he gave a sad smile and headshake, mentioning that this was not enough to cover the costs.

“B-but…”

Cirrus’ shoulders. He didn’t know how costly it would be, but assumed gathering some of the ingredients should have helped alleviate it. Had it been a simple cold it may have been enough, but as Ocean seemed to be suffering side effects of not only Dusk Fever but the mushrooms consumed as well, it was safer to concoct something stronger which would require using the elnin’s own wares.

Taking pity on the kittom, he pat Cirrus’ head, and mentioned he would make an exception if he delivered a letter on his behalf. It seemed like a reasonable request, and so Cirrus agreed, accepting the latter as well as a map of where to go.

Ah. He forgot to ask who the letter was for. When he turned around to ask, the nin had already disappeared. He could go back into the store and look for him, but… part of him was embarrassed for not asking in the first place, and asking now would show he wasn’t capable of carrying out a simple errand. After all, how hard could delivering a letter be?

Following the map, he found himself at a local theatre. This place… felt familiar. He looked down at the envelope. There was no addressee, and other than a golden seal stamped with the image of an elecite coin as well as the title “Maiden of the Night”, there was no indication of who the letter was for.

Cirrus sighed. Should he… just ask? Though it’d be weird asking random strangers if this letter was for them.

“Hey kiddo. Is that fan mail for me?”

The voice made him jolt. The person from before?! Wait, no, the voice was different. It was a female voice, strangely nostalgic, and-

He looked up to see an elnin dressed in royal blues, their clothing seeming to shimmer and sparkle like the night sky. A pair of golden eyes greeted him with a playful smirk.

“M-mom?!”

The elnin laughed.

“Why, I didn’t expect my little boy to visit me here of all places. Isn’t it past your bedtime?”

Cirrus huffed.

“I’m not a child, mom.” Well, maybe he was but he didn’t like being treated like a child.

“Besides, I’m here on an errand, so-”

Lumia reached over and plucked the letter out of his hand.

Before he could protest, she opened the letter, reading over the contents before letting out a soft chuckle.

“Mom. It’s a criminal offence to read other people’s mail, you know.”

“Even if it’s for me?”

She turned the letter towards him, letting him read it for himself.

He… he was asked to send a love letter… to his own mom??!

Cirrus’ baffled expression made Lumia burst out in laughter.

“Oh, sweetie, it’s just a letter of admiration. He used to come to my shows quite a bit. Said I had the voice of a “sultry cherub”, whatever that means.

Cirrus groaned. How could he forget that this was where his mom performed? Granted he hadn’t kept in touch much as she was… quite free spirited, equally if not moreso than Cloud, but she was a singer and dancer by profession, so he guessed it… made sense she’d have fans…

“Well, now that your little errand is over, care to fill me in on what you’re doing here?”