/Guildchat: Jun Li: You really should be here Nix.

/Guildchat: Nix: Sorry Junie, busy at the moment.

[Whisper: Jun Li to Nix] What do I tell Resolute?

[Whisper: Nix to Jun Li] Nothing, our contract says we let them take the pearl long enough to finish the quest and charge it.

[Whisper: Jun Li: Nix] What if they try to take it?

[Whisper: Nix to Jun Li] Have Shae greet them, if they try anything squirrely she will stop it.

[Whisper: Jun Li to Nix] Fine. Then I just give it to Darsi?

[Whisper: Nix to Jun Li:] Yep

[Whisper: Jun Li to Nix] She's a criminal Nix. What if she runs off with it?

[Whisper: Nix to Jun Li] In three months Darsi will leave everything she's made with us.

[Whisper: Jun Li to Nix] Darsi is almost done?

[Whisper: Nix to Jun Li] As part of her agreement with Gladis, her character will be reset to zero, along with her crafting. She'll be woken up and turned loose. It will be a few days before we see her again.

[Whisper: Jun Li to Nix] You'll give her back her shop and all the credits?

[Whisper: Nix to Jun Li] Yes. It's a good deal all around. Being able to duplicate an artifact is pretty amazing. She hasn't said what she'll do when she returns.

[Whisper: Jun Li to Nix] What should I do with the Lamia Temple Deed?

[Whisper: Nix to Jun Li] Give it to Shae when you see her.

[Whisper: Jun Li to Nix] Fine. Have fun in Jenza.

After grabbing a few hours of sleep, Nix had woke up just in time to grab the mid-morning ferry. He had insisted that Hyai take the day off so that he could keep his promise and bring her to Jenza.

Hyai stood at the rail of the ferry, it was the return trip back to Broyan, so it was completely empty. "Why didn't we just gate Nix?"

Nix shrugged, enjoying the warm sea breeze and the seagulls shrieking overhead. "You said you've never taken the ferry, it seems like a nice trip."

Hyai nodded and slid an arm through his. "Thanks, Nix."

Nix smiled, "you are helping me out by getting me an introduction to this mysterious swordsman."

Hyai nodded, "Bane says he's the real deal. Apparently he visits annually because of Bela's cooking."

Nix had originally been shocked to learn that Bane Ton was Hyai's son-in-law, he wasn't surprised that Bela was a great cook. "Taught her everything you know?"

Hyai gave him a wicked smile. "Just about cooking."

"Mind if we stop by Shana's before we head to the Provost office to meet Bane?" Nix had been wondering how the shop and Shana were doing.

"It's fine hun." Hyai took a deep breath and exhaled, "sometimes I miss the good old days."

***************

Sulane was flanked by Caza, she had been directed by Nix to only bring one other person with her to Glory. She ran a hand through her short hair and glanced toward her companion. "That f*cking temple is amazing."

Caza nodded in agreement, "This is a Fire Palace, which of course dwarfs normal Temples." Caza was a Fire Mage, so of course, he had felt the buff the moment they arrived in Glory. He also felt a strong fire presence nearby. "The Palace Nemesis is definitely here."

They were greeted by an Acolyte the moment they entered the Temple, she was accompanied by an old Fire Mage. "Greeting friends. I'm Dervi and my companion is called Pon. He is one of the Inferno representatives."

Caza smiled at the old mage, they knew each other of course. "Pon, you old bastard!" He extended his hand towards one of his oldest friends.

Pon scowled and shook the offered hand. "I didn't realize that Resolute would let shitty Fire Mages join."

Caza pounded him on the back, "I was going to say the same thing about Inferno. This is Sulane, my guild leader."

Pon nodded toward her. "Please follow me Guild leader Sulane."

A moment later the two members of Resolute were standing in front of Shae and Jun Li. The Salamander was seated comfortably on her throne while Jun Li was standing to one side. Shae's long hair hung nearly to the floor, her red dress clung to her slim body. On the floor in front of her was a red cushion with a pearl sitting on it.

"Greetings Nemesis Shae." Caza bowed deeply, his heart pounding in the presence of the Salamander.

Shae stared at her guests, then gestured toward the pearl. "This is the Earth Pearl. As our agreement states, you will charge it and finish your quest. Then you will leave it in our hands for the next three days."

Sulane had been waiting to be introduced, but neither the Acolyte or her guildmate had done so. "It may not be possible to charge it successfully in Glory. I believe our chances are better if we take it back to Resolute HQ first."

Shae shared a glance with Jun Li, they had expected something like this. Resolute was reliable, but they wanted to keep and maintain possession of the artifact. "Charge the artifact or not, I really don't care which." Shae stood up and walked toward the duo, "however, no matter what. This pearl is mine for the next three days."

Sulane swallowed her words, she felt the aura of the Nemesis pushing at her. The two of them wouldn't be able to take it from the Salamander. Even with all of Resolute present, standing against Shae in her own territory would be suicidal. "Of course, please give me some room to work."

A few minutes later Sulane and Caza both left the Fire Palace together, neither one of them had spoken after it was charged. They were more than willing to lend the pearl to Inferno for their efforts in recovering it, however, they had wanted to maintain its possession.

Darsi pulled back her acolyte hood and moved closer to the pearl. Shae had asked her to pose as one of her people so she could ensure there weren't any slight of hands from Sulane. "May I examine it now?"

Jun Li nodded, "Please do, then I'll escort you back to your shop."

Earth Pearl: Artifact

Description: The Earth Pearl grants

the path of the Earth Mage when activated.

This may be done once a day. When placed

in an Earth Temple, the Earth Pearl gives

+100 to Earth abilities, Resistance to Fire and Earth Wall.

Earth Wall: +200 to temple and

city defense.

Resistance to Fire: Base on a percentage of indivduals current resistance.

Darsi whistled softly, "it won't take long to duplicate it."

Jun Li glanced at Shae, "As soon as the pearl is copied, we'll return it to you."

"Don't bring me the copy. Save that for the members of Resolute."

Jun Li hid her smile, everything would be fine as long as the copy was an exact match. "Of course, we'll be back in a bit."

Shae waited until everyone but Fajii had left, then she pulled out the Temple deed and handed it to the Aquarion. "After you become an Earth Mage, you will activate this here and choose to integrate it into the Fire Palace."

Fajii nodded, she already knew that the fire within her was dangerous. If not for Shae's intervention she would have long been dead. They had been working on improving her resistance to fire in the interest of extending her life. Walking the path of Earth would probably solve her issues. "I understand."

/Guildchat: Jun Li: Resolute has come and gone Nix. Everything happened just as we planned.

/Guildchat: Nix: Great. Was there a recharge on the Earth Pearl like you thought?

/Guildchat: Jun Li: Yes, it's once a day.

/Guildchat: Nix: Two volunteers to walk the Path of Earth?

/Guildchat: Ronnie: Me.

/Guildchat: Chael: I would like to also.

/Guildchat: Sharl: Don't even think about it, Ronnie.

/Guildchat: Ronnie: Nix? I can, right?

/Guildchat: Nix: Earth princess Ronnie, I don't hate it.

/Guildchat: Semmi: Two of our range dps.

/Guildchat: Jun Li: It's fine, they can choose to move their primary to the secondary. Secondary dps comes with a forty percent penalty.

/Guildchat: Ronnie: Ouch.

/Guildchat: Chael: Harsh.

**************

Nix walked hand in hand with Hyai towards Shana's shop. Since he had been a total noob to Colonial, he had researched a lot of his questions. Secondary paths only did sixty percent of the damage the Primary did. When you choose the new Primary path, you have the option of moving the current path to Secondary. This saves a lot of time working talents, however, it is also very costly. Nix's circumstances hadn't given him that option.

"We should buy Bela something at your friend's shop." Hyai could see the sign in the distance, she was well aware of Nix's close relationship with the shop owners.

"I made both her and Bane something, but feel free. Everyone likes presents."