-- Rowan --

I found myself running, through the city, looking for Bays telltale auburn ponytail. Don't panic she could have gone far. After a few minutes of fruitlessly running through the street I stopped. Realizing running aimlessly wouldn't help him find her.

I turned on a corner and stopped to grab a breath. I found myself on a crowded market street, seeing all of the people and the cloud of emotion they gave off, made me realize the true scope of finding someone in a city. If this was a single block how many people are here?

I found myself leaning against the brick wall on the corner standing and looking out. I was wondering if my newfound connections could possibly tell me anything. I still didn't fully understand what it was. Emotions with context. It didn't feel right to bring it up to the team, it was almost like low-grade mind reading, and even I wasn't sure how I felt about it. But right now that felt like it was my only shot. Surely, someone had to have seen her.

I was still struggling to allow the flood of emotions to flow through me. The few days outside with just my teams was a welcome relief, but now that I was back around so many people, I felt I was struggling to breathe. That and this place was strange. So many negative emotions or listless numbness, mixed with a strong determination and unrelenting will. I wasn't sure if I wanted that flowing through me, I don't know how it would affect me

Blight if I didn't know better I would think the city had a gambling problem, with so many highs and lows. I just couldn't get a bead on the city itself.

I mean even asters emotions seemed to have finally stabilized on the ride here. No longer jumping from fear, to happy, to sad, too excited, and all over the place. He was mainly just radiating a lot of guilt and fear every time he looked at us.

While I logically understood, it wasn't his fault for the fiasco, I couldn't help but wonder if it would have gone differently. Even with him there I didn't know how many loops we would have had to do. At this point, I didn't think any of us should be doing this, but I don't know. We really shouldn't drag him along. He was too weak, he couldn't have leveled near as much as us, and I couldn't help but feel someone else might have been able to do a better job with the car. I mean he picked a strange form of smithing, that was way too organic. It just felt wrong. Not to mention watching him fight, no it was more like watching him attempt to fight. He was always falling over himself, tripping, and altogether just being a klutz.

I let out a small chuckle remembering seeing him try to jump out of the car only to snag his foot. I shook my head, as I was getting sidetracked. I need to find Bay, and I wouldn't have lost her if he didn't distract me. Even in my own head that sounded wrong. Ok, that's not on him. But the siren. She would have left us alone if... focus. Find Bay.

I closed my eyes and opened myself up to the city. My world became nothing but stray emotions as I focused all the emotion began to look like a thousand, thousand strands a weave of life in a city. I began to pluck along each string, and with every pluck, the vibration told me what they were giving me only what I could describe as a strange context.

One small one vibration telling me of their worry of being late. Plucking another I felt an annoyance at myself. Why were they annoyed at themselves I didn't know or have a way to find out. Another note played loud without me plucking the string. It seemed to hum in annoyance and anger at someone around them. I continued to pluck the strings when I finally began to feel something was wrong, prompting me to open my eyes and take notice of the world around me. The first thing I noticed was how quiet the world had become.

With my eyes open and the direct emotions now muted, I found a crowd of people staring right at me annoyed and angry. I could feel the promise of violence in their gaze. Could they feel me? I was about to say something in my defense when.

"Ow," I felt a hard open hand strike the back of my head.

I rubbed the back of my head in pain when I hear an angry voice. "If you can feel them they can feel you. What you were doing was quite rude."

I looked to the source of the voice and pain, to find an older man with a long brown beard with streaks of grey, and a stern expression staring down at me.

"Sorry. I'm still kind of new to this." I admitted, and all around me, I heard people scuff at my excuse, as some started to walk away.

The man didn't let up, "Not an excuse, but now you know."

More people agreed with the man before walking off, some yelled dumb-ass or stupid untrained, as the market traffic began to move.

After a minute or two, the world was back to normal people going about their day. Only a few people were still giving me the side-eye, and I was feeling embarrassed by the whole thing. I turned, to make a getaway, expecting to be alone only to find the man who hit me over the head still standing there. I jumped startled, as I couldn't feel any emotions from him, it was like he was a statue.

"Rot you really are untrained." The man looked on with annoyance but also pity.

I felt anger build at this strange man, who struck me, and now was claiming I was untrained. My mouth opened, "Who was he to say I was untrained? I'll have you know I am a rank three range." I said with pride.

The man rolled his eyes, "Yeah that would be impressive if you were below level ten, but you are way past that." His words squashed whatever pride I felt after reaching this level. It was true I should be a much higher rank at this point with being level twenty-five, I just hadn't had time to rank up. We've been jumping from one thing to another.

Then something he said hit me, and I took a step back. How did he know I was at a high level? I fought to keep my voice from shaking, "Well I'm going to go."

I started to take a step away when the man spoke, "Yes but if you want to control that influx of power you can come with me. Your broadcasting more than you are feeling."

I froze. Was I? I looked at the man and gaged his leather outfit, bow, and boots. I could see fresh mud and the green along the boots seemed to belong stain from years of movement through the grass. I got the feeling that this man would be able to teach me exactly what I would need to know about my new strength. Maybe even show me how to hide my own emotions.

I took a step towards the man before blinking and shaking my head. I guess he might know...But what about Bay? I turned to him and asked, "I would, but I'm looking for my friend."

That caught the man by surprise like he didn't expect me to refuse. The man shrugged, "I guess I could help. Then we can at least get you squared away. What do they look like?"

"Tall, auburn hair in a ponytail, gold-green eyes, wearing dark blue robes, staff." Not sure why I was telling him all this, but if he could help me find her faster then we could get to my training.

The man looked thoughtful as he stroked his beard, "Can't say I've seen her. What was her last known location."

"By the hotel around the corner about ten minutes ago," I answered

The man gave me an incredulous look, "And you lost her?"

"Yeah?" I knew it was embarrassing.

The man shook his head. "You need more training than I thought." The man said regretfully.

"Can you help?"

"Any idea where she was going?"

"Following the flow?"

That made the man smile, "She a mage?"

"Yeah?"

The man let out a belly laugh, "Let me tell you from experience. She's fine. But she probably stuck in one of the towers."

"Towers? The big ones around the city?" I remember seeing a few really tall towers all around the city. So she had gone to one of those.

"Yeah. New mages tend to flock to them right after getting here. then get stuck for a day or two. you might as well come with me while I give you some exercises."

Something about everything he said had a ring of truth, and if the guy said Bay was fine I was inclined to believe him. He felt trustworthy and would be a bolster to my skills. "Alright, I'll follow you."

"Great let's go." The man started to walk off and I began to follow him. There was something I was forgetting. Something about Aster...but it didn't matter Bay was safe, and I was going to be trained.