It didn't take long for Mel to get an answer, in the form of a black shadow forming on the ground at her feet and a tall, thin, vicious looking fellow would rise up out of it, a wicked grin, filled with razor sharp teeth, plastered on his face, beneath his long, pointed, black and white nose. "My my my, no need for such a banging entrancw!" he said before suddenly starting to cackle. "The master is on his way, but who dear are you dear, and why dear are you here?" he asked, his head tilting, further and further and further still until the entire thing was completely upside down, that grin somehow seeming even more menacing than before.

If Mel had done her research on the guild and its members she would recognize the horrifying creature before her as Laughing Jack, a member of the guild who served directly under the guild master as his right hand. If she hadn't done her homework however, which was far more likely, all she would see was another monster, which the guild was admittedly famous for housing.

"Those are some high accomplishments madam. However, I rarely trust the magic council or any of its members based on policy and principal alone." Said a new voice from behind Mel. Behind her stood a tall, handsome man, though his appearance was marred by a nasty facial scar. Akryn stood before her, smiling broadly at the shorter woman, his hands on his hips. Normally he would be sporting his big, floppy hat and his long blue coat. Today however he looked far more regal and certainly struck a handsome, sharp figure. Gleaming black and red armor shone in the sunlight with a billowing cape flowing behind him. His white hair was combed back, and a silver longsword hung from his hip, eye patch firmly in place.

(Reference )



"I am Akryn Motomiji, guild master of Eclipse Soul. Your fellow council members likely refer to me by different names, such as Blackheart, Butcher of Ba'Shraak, and my personal favorite, that giant, one eyed, asshole." He said with a laugh, offering one of his giant hands to her. "Don't mind Jack here, he works as my right hand man and the guilds first line of defense. His mannerisms and behavior may be odd but he would never harm you unless you attempted to harm the guild. I apologize for not being here when you arrived, my sister in law was getting married. She asked that I officiate the wedding. Do come inside now though, we should have a glass of wine before discussing things. After all, if you are our only friend on the council then we should welcome you as such."

"Jack does not make the tea. He is a guard and a friend, not a servant." Akryn said with a nod to the tall, thin being as they passed him and he faded into the shadows once more. Once they reached his office, with its many weapons, its wall of wanted posters, some marked off, and its suits of armor and massive vault door, Akryn would pull a small saucer and tea cup from his desk as well as a thin, long, gold and emerald wand. He would tap the cup with the wand before a small bit of steam would begin rising from it, which he would then push torwards her. "Green tea with some lemon and a bt of honey, very delicious. I do hope you don't mind if I partake in something a little stronger. Dwarven malted liquor, six hundred and forty nine years old apparently. Got it as a gift a while back for nailing a nasty mage that a dwarf had been after." he said with a small smirk as he popped the top of the bottle, a thin, purple smoke rising from the bottle as he did so.

Afterwards he would sit there quietly, occasionally taking swigs of his alcohol as he listened. As she drew to an end a small smirk would play across his lips as he leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms over his chest. "Well, the first thing says I is you have a funny idea of how to treat your friends. Normally we ask our questions before we start trying to strong arm each other, I mean its not like I have anything to hide. I've shared everything else with the council so far, including the existence and imprisonment of the Kishin Lord. The only thing I haven't shared is the location of the key and the prison, and you all know why I have hidden that. I have no reason to hide information now unless it happens to be something that would threaten the safety of my guild or the world." he said, pausing to take another drink of his liquor before grinning at her.

"Also, as for the incident involving Kyll, there are two things to that. First of all, that was not Kyll, it was Vierra. She looks the same, it is the same body in fact, but the spirit and intelligence within that body is entirely different. She is not Kyll, and was not a part of this guild at the time of her actions, so the guild can not legally be held accountable for her actions as she joined us afterwards. You do recall the councils recent decision on the accountability and contract obligations of different entities in new bodies, yes? Also, her actions were the result of her conscience demanding she take action against a great injustice. Child slave labor is illegal in this country, yet the authorities had taken no action to keep this crime off of our shores. As such I would say that the council is far more responsible due to its own inaction than Vierra is for her actions. As for Cirven, I was not aware he had officially left the guild. He simply vanished on us, as so many tend to do, including our first guildmaster. But many return with time. If he has done something illegal or immoral however then you know our guild dictates would remove him from our ranks and set him at the top of our priority list. To that end I would very much like a copy of the incident report. If one of my souls has allowed the eclipse to overtake it then it is my duty to end him."

"Now I will address the final issue of your greeting." Akryn said, the smirk falling from his face and a stern, dark look over taking his features. "I would advise you to never again make such idle threats against me or my guild. Your threats of financial destruction unless I give you want you want are tasteless at best and a direct threat to my guild at worst. I will allow no such threats to my family. This institute is a home for mages seeking a second chance, a chance at regaining there morality and becoming proper citizens once more. They need this guild and the shelter we provide far more than we need the council. If you wish to continue any form of communication with me in the future, then it would be wise of you to remember that." He said to her sternly, much like a father would sound scolding a petulant child. "Now then, we have the nasty business of financial threats out of the way, what questions have you?"

Akryn stared at the woman before him, rubbing one chin thoughtfully before answering. "Where is Kyll Vie? I do not know, and that is the truth. The woman known as Vierra now is broken and unwhole. Her will, mind, and I suspect body have all been broken, torn apart and put back together haphazardly by someone who does not seem to want Kyll back. I suspect that the ones responsible are the beings known as the Arcane Lords." He said finally, rising from his seat to step behind his desk, staring at the massive vault door. "I am aware, painfully so, of the threat the arcane magics pose to us all. They are powerful, unpredictable, and undocumented. We all know so little of it all. I perhaps know more of it than you though. I have been doing my research you see..... The Arcane Lords are entities of magic from a different place, much like Edolas I would believe. A different dimension of sorts. In that place their rule is absolute and undeniable. It is they whom I believe to be responsible for the disappearance of Kyll and Zeno, to an end I can only speculate and tremble at. Kyll has returned to us as a new person, replaced by this being known as Vierra whom I do not trust. I have only speculations so far, but they are speculations based on what I have seen from other beings from outside our realm who hold absolute power." he said before turning back to her.

"Power corrupts, Lady Mel. Absolute power does so even more. Every day I myself fight the urge to force my will and beliefs onto others, with the knowledge that I perhaps could. Imagine if a being held absolute sway over all, was as like a god. For many their intentions would start out noble, seeking to right the wrongs and horrors of the world and make it a better place. But before long those intentions of kindness become delusions of grandeur. Others view you as a god, and soon you to begin to view yourself as one. You bask in their praises, revel in the use of your power, annihilate those who might oppose you, and in time you come to believe yourself to be the only way it can or should be. Then one day something breaks deep into your world, the tiniest crack of darkness in your paradise. Someone outside of your will, who does not kneel at your name or sing your praises. You peek through this crack, curiously, and see a world much like the one you destroyed. Free will, ego, greed, anger, dispute. You see humanity without guidance and you think to yourself that perhaps here too you shall intervene. It is my belief that the arcane lords are not such noble beings, but driven as much by arrogance and hubris as we are. The difference is that they have the power to enforce such hubris upon us. I do not know where Kyll is, because I am not sure the woman within this guild is truly Kyll. Twice have I stopped beings of immense power, who come from beyond our realm, from invading and conquering us all. Twice it has cost me personally and dearly. I have learned to not trust such powers however. A costly lesson. Kyll, or at least the being so many think to be her, is here, in the guild, being observed. I believe it best that the council leave it as such. As for the card, I can not say. Vierra herself has one, and claims that several others have some as well. I believe they are linked to Zeno somehow, though in what way I do not yet know."

"I have heard no news of Zenos return, though I have learned of nothing yet. Either he has yet to return himself or he is in hiding, I am uncertain which would be worse. I can assure you and the rest of the council however that I am prepared for his return, for better or for worse. Now perhaps it is time for you to answer my questions." Akryn said as he returned to his seat, lacing his fingers together and glaring at Mel with a piercing stare, one which could kill. "I sent a request to the council for access to its records months ago, even before I became a guild master, and you have ignored me time and time again. There are no more complete records of wizardry and mischief in the land than the councils records, and you know why I need access to them. Where is Grigorio Rasputin?" he asked in a growl, his aura darkening and his magical pressure rising. She may not be completely familiar with the name, but it would be easy to understand the emotion behind the search. There was rage, and unbridled bloodlust here.