Shishi
Posted: Sun Jan 31, 2010 7:06 am
Name: Shishi
Age: 13
Gender: Male
Race: Fu-Dog (also known as lion dog)
Height: 4'8"
weight: 120 pounds
Physical description:
Shishi's body is like that of a lion, accept that it is much more muscular, with bright red and yellow fur giving him a 'fiery' appearance. His body has three golden ornaments which were permanently attached both surgically and with magic by the priests at the temple where he once served. At the top of each of his four limbs is a rune which were each branded onto his body as a newborn pup. His eyes are a bright blue and he has thick patches of fur around his neck, on the upper back of his legs, on his chest, back, and on his tail. There are also four sharp, somewhat curved, claws on each of his legs. Finally his jaws are lined with razor sharp teeth with two large fangs protruding from each end of his upper jaw.
Possessions:
The three golden ornaments on his body, and the four runes which are used to increase the effectiveness of his natural ability to ward off evil spirits.
Powers/Strengths:
The fu-dog is a guardian and protector usually of holy sites and temples, this is because they have a natural ability to ward off evil spirits. Basically any evil spirit such as a ghost or a lessor demon is repelled if it comes within a specific distance of Shishi. However, this usually has little to no effect on more powerful demons. the range of this ability is increased with special runes which were placed on his body as a young fu-dog which make the field large enough to protect a range of around 25 meters from evil spirits. His body is also highly resistant to magic, and his muscular body makes him rather quick and dexterous. He also has three other unique powers which require a mutual 'contract' to be formed with a partner. This 'contract' is formed when Shishi and his partner consume a small amount of each others blood, only a drop is required from both parties in order to form the contract. Only one contract can be held at a time and the only way to end a contract is for his partner to die or for his partner to intentionally release him from the contract. At first only one of these powers will show itself immediately, the other two will develop as the bond between Shishi and his partner becomes stronger. The fist power, which is revealed immediately, allows himself and his partner to 'feel' each others emotions (sadness, happiness, joy, anger, etc.). The second is developed after the two have formed a closer bond, and sometimes if they already have a fairly close relationship before the contract is made, this power can also show itself immediately. This is telepathy between his partner and himself, it allows them to hear each others thoughts, and thus, communicate with one another. The third power, and the most powerful, can only be developed after a very deep bond has been formed between the fu-dog and his partner. This is the power to heal his partners wounds and transfer whatever physical injuries his partner might receive onto himself.
Weaknesses/Flaws:
Being a fu-dog Shishi can not wear any armor, and thus, he is very susceptible to physical pain, such as being kicked or stabbed. He is also slow to trust others, however, once a bond is formed he is extremely loyal and would sacrifice his own life if necessary to protect his friends. He also lacks the ability to communicate audibly with other races because he can not speak in words with them which increases his need to form a contract with someone. The telepathy between his partner and himself is limited only to 100 meters and thus they cannot communicate outside of this distance, however, they can always feel each others emotions no matter the distance. Also regarding his third ability after forming a contract (the healing power). Shishi can only transfer physical injuries and so he cannot heal illness or magical effects which do not cause physical harm. Also, because he literally transfers the injury to his own body, anything which would be fatal for his partner, if he chooses to transfer the injury, would be fatal to him as well. Finally in regard to his natural ability to ward off evil spirits, he cannot control it, the power is always active like an invisible field around him (himself being the center of this 'field') and thus he cannot turn it off. This ability can also only be used if Shishi has a clear view of his partner so if he cannot see his partner he can not heal him/her.
History:
Shishi, like all lion dogs, was born in a temple near the town of Guang Wag in the region of Tian Zia. Upon birth he was separated from his parents and siblings and branded with magic runes then given as a gift to the one year old Adalgisa the daughter of the temple master Daedalus. His duties would be to protect Adalgisa and, after he had matured around the age of 12, to form a contract with her and become her partner.
At eight months old he was old enough to begin learning under the older fu-dogs who, after years of service themselves to their masters, lived inside the temple protecting it from evil spirits and any intruders. One of the first things he was taught was the importance of forming a contract and also the power he would gain from doing so. He was also taught to understand the local languages spoken even though he could not speak to them himself.
At the age of two he finally began to live with Adalgisa who was still only three in order to form a bond with her at an early age. He also began learning how to hunt and fight with demons as this would be one of his primary roles in protecting Adalgisa. He seemed to be a natural and picked up fighting skills much more quickly than he had learned the languages, mathematics, and other things taught to him by the elder fu-dogs. One of his teachers even praised him as being exceptionally strong for his age.
When Adalgisa turned eight she become old enough to begin learning the history of the temple and what her role as a priestess would be and so during the day, when she was learning from the older priestesses, Shishi would accompany her as her guardian and as her friend. After her lessons they would have some time together when they would play games. After this Shishi would go alone to train with the elder fu-dogs and to learn more about the history of the world around him and about his duties as a guardian. He would return late at night and sleep in front of the door to Adalgisa's room so that no one could either exit the room or enter it without his knowledge. This was more of a learning experience since the only people who lived their with them were Adalgisa's parents and the gate in front of the house prevented uninvited guests from entering, along with the two adult fu-dogs who were partnered with Daedalus and his wife Zarya.
When Adalgisa turned 13 it was decided that she would go with her mother Zarya and some of the other priestesses to Keltaris, a town just across the border of the Eyropa region, on an annual pilgrimage and to perform exorcisms and healing within that region in order to see first hand what would be required of her when she reached the age of 16. By this time Shishi had fully matured, at least in the physical sense. Zarya's guardian, Shigandang, had fallen ill and would not be able to accompany them, and because the other two priestess who would travel with them were of a lower class they did not have their own fu-dog guardians and so it would be the responsibility of Shishi and the three guardsmen traveling with them to watch over all four of the priestesses. Before leaving his body was adorned with three golden ornaments to symbolize his maturity as fu-dog and he, along with Adalgisa, learned some of the language Eyropian language. He also formed a contract with Adalgisa in a traditional ceremony and, as expected because of their already close relationship, they could not only feel each others emotions but could also communicate telepathically. Both Adalgisa and Shishi were filled with joy because for the first time they could communicate with one another.
That night neither Adalgisa nor Shishi slept at all, since it was her first time hearing Shishi talk to her she had many questions for Shishi that she had always wanted answered. Shishi answered all of her questions and promised her that he would always protect her. The next day they loaded supplies into one of the two wagons and said their goodbye's to friends and family. Then, after the guards arrived, they began their two day journey to Daloyxiu. This would be the first time either Adalgisa or Shishi would leave the safety of Guang Wag. Shishi was excited to be able to finally go out and prove himself, but he could feel the anxiety and nervousness of Adalgisa. He stayed inside the first wagon with Adalgisa, Zarya, and the other priestesses on the first day of the journey in an effort to comfort her but the next day he had to walk outside with the guardsmen to watch for bandits or anything else that might harm them.
The group stopped in Daloyxiu and they made a camp just outside the town, because there was no room in any of the inns for all of them and no place for them to leave their supplies. After setting up camp Zarya, Adalgisa, Shishi, and one of the guardsmen whose name was Menelaose went into the town to gather more supplies and listen to the local rumors about what might be waiting for them ahead on the long journey to Thar Shaddin the next stop before reaching their destination of Keltaris. While they were in the town there was a very rich tradesman of exotic animals from the Eyropa region visiting who, upon seeing Shishi, took immediate notice of them and approached Zarya with an offer to buy Shishi from them for a very large amount of gold and jewels. When Zarya turned him down he offered even more and Shishi growled at the man and told Adalgisa to stand behind him. Instead she hugged his neck and told the man that Shishi was getting angry and wanted him to leave, then Zarya told the man that Shishi was a member of their family and not an item to be sold or bartered with, at that she motioned to Menelaose to intervene and he moved between the tradesman and the others and asked him to leave before things got messy. Before he left the tradesman told them his name was Hindi and that the offer still stood if they changed their minds.
After the man had left, Zarya apologized to both Adalgisa and Shishi and told them that this had never happened in the past when she was with Shigandang. They all agreed it would be best to leave as soon as possible and so they gathered what supplies they still needed and went back to the camp. They stayed there that night and then headed out on their journey to Thar Shaddin. The trip would take a little over a week and they had heard rumors of bandits along the road to Marn, the capitol of Thar Shaddin where they would stay once they entered the region. During the trip Zarya warned them that they would have to stop in Marn's justice hall in order to register the magic abilities of Adalgisa and Shishi. Zarya and the other priestesses had been their before during past pilgrimages and so they had already been registered.
After nine days of traveling they finally reached the gates of Thar Shaddin. Thankfully they were able to avoid any bandits or other hazards along the road, probably because of the presence of Shishi and the other guards. Upon entering the city of Marn, Zarya took Adalgisa and Shishi to justice hall to register their magic power in the city and Menelaose, along with the other guardsmen and priestesses, went to find a suitable inn. They agreed to meet Menelaose in the downtown area after their registration was complete. First Zarya registered Adalgisa which did not take long, but when it came time to register Shishi the men making the registry became much more strict and after somewhere around three hours of discussion they were finally able to have him properly registered.
After rejoining Menelaose the four of them went together to the inn which he had found for them and showed them their rooms. Shishi and Adalgisa were given a room with a window that faced the historic district of Marn. Adalgisa loved exploring new places so after they had finished unpacking she asked her mother for permission to go out and explore the historical district. Zarya knew of the dangers of the historical district and warned her not to go there but Zarya did give her permission to go out and explore the rest of the town as long as Shishi was with her. Zarya also told her that they would have to spend a week in the city of Marn because their wagon that was carrying all of their supplies had broken and would need repairs and so she had to be sure to behave herself and not draw any unnecessary attention to them, she also warned her that the people in Marn were not fond of magic and so she should not use any of her abilities and also that the citizens would not be very fond of Shishi so he needed to be careful as well. Adalgisa gave her mother a big hug, kissed her, and then ran back to her room and jumped onto Shishi.
Shishi had been in the middle of a wonderful nap after the exhausting journey to Marn when Adalgisa woke him by jumping on top of him. "Is something wrong? I was in the middle of a nap." Adalgisa hugged him tight and looked at him with a big smile "My mom said I could explore the city as long as you're with me isn't that great! let's go there's no time to waste!" Adalgisa tugged on Shishi until he got up and agreed to go with her into the city.
Since they were already in the downtown area they decided to start there and look at all the shops in the city as they walked around they could see people staring at Shishi and whispering to each other while trying to keep their distance. Adalgisa, still being young of course, wanted to stop at every single shop and see what was there. They found everything from spices to beautiful jewelry, weapons, armor, and tools that were unlike anything they had seen before. Eventually they came to a stall which had many exotic animals for sale in it and Adalgisa wanted to hold every single one of them, the man running the shop walked over to them but he looked a little nervous and was obviously trying to keep a gap between himself and Shishi "Ah I see that you have an interest in exotic pets, the shop owner isn't here right now so I can't sell you anything but if you come back tomorrow around six he should be back. His name is Hindi and I'm sure that he would be happy to help you." Shishi immediately tugged on Adalgisa's sleeve and asked her to go back to the inn. Adalgisa agreed so they went back and told Zarya what had happened.
The next day Zarya warned them that if they should run into Hindi again that they should come back to the inn immediately. Zarya and the other priestesses had other duties to attend to in the city and the guardsmen had to accompany them so Adalgisa and Shishi were left alone. They decided to go out to the Industrial area of the city today and left the inn after eating breakfast together. When they got to the industrial area they found that the workers wouldn't let them get very close to the buildings. Shishi had already expected this and wasn't very surprised, but Adalgisa on the other hand was devastated and practically in tears when they told her that she wasn't allowed to go inside any of the buildings. On the way back to the inn they were stopped on the main road by three men, one of whom seemed oddly familiar. "Why hello there young lady, do you remember me? we met in Daloyxiu a little over a week ago, my name is Hindi." The man had a crooked smile and looked like he was scheming something, he didn't seem dangerous but Shishi didn't like him and he was standing between them and the direction of the inn. Adalgisa took a couple steps back "my mother told me to stay away from you, please get out of our way." Hindi didn't budge, instead he started to walk closer to them "You know my offer to buy that pet of yours is still open, come on, let me take you to my shop and show you what I can offer you." Shishi moved himself in between Adalgisa and Hindi then roared as loud as he could. Hindi was so startled that he fell backwards but the two men who were with him caught him before he landed on the ground. Luckily for them Menelaose happened to be in the area and when he heard Shishi's loud roar he knew what it was immediately and ran to them. "Whats going on here, are these people bothering you Lady Adalgisa?" Hindi didn't give her a chance to respond though, he said that they were just saying hello to Adalgisa and said that Shishi went wild for no reason then they turned around and walked away.
After what had happened the previous day Zarya asked Adalgisa to stay in the inn for remainder of their visit in Marn. She agreed without any arguing and Shishi tried to entertain Adalgisa the best he could. When Zarya and the others returned that day three guardsmen and someone known as a battlemage of Marn were with them. Apparently Hindi had filed a complaint with them about what had happened the previous day and so they were sent to investigate the claims. Adalgisa and Menelaose told him their side of the story and the guardsmen were satisfied and left. The battlemage, however, had not been satisfied and did a much more thorough investigation. He made sure that the powers they had registered with were really their real powers and made them provide more proof that they were who they said they were. After several hours of trying to convince him he agreed to let them go after they payed a large sum to him for his precious time. Only a couple hours after the mage had left Menelaose gave them word that the wagon had been fixed early and they could now leave.
Zarya and the other priestesses decided that it would be best for them to leave as early as possible to avoid anymore trouble in Marn and so that morning they packed up their belongings and began the journey to their final destination Keltaris. Adalgisa was sad that she wasn't able to see the whole city, but at the same time she was glad they could finally get away from Hindi. Shishi, knowing what she was thinking, tried to comfort her by reminding her that they could see the rest of the city on the way back and that if they were lucky, Hindi wouldn't be there the second time. Adalgisa smiled and cheered up a little bit but she knew they would not have time to see everything on the way back.
That night they stopped to camp near the border of Thar Shaddin and Eyropa, it was the night that would change Shishi's life forever. That night Menelaose asked Shishi to do a quick patrol ahead of them so they would know what to expect the following day. He went for about an hour and then decided he had gone far enough and turned back. As he got closer he realized that he could no longer feel any of Adalisa's emotions and he became gripped with fear. Shishi ran back to the campsite as fast as he could and when he finally arrived he found four men dead near the wagons which had been destroyed and everything inside was gone. Three of the men were the guardsmen who had traveled with them from the temple but the fourth he could not recognize. He was about to search for Adalgisa when he heard one of the guardsmen cough, it was Menelaose, still barely clinging onto life. Shishi nudged him and he responded but putting his arm around Shishi's back. He carefully moved Menelaose to the side of one of the wagons so that he could sit up. Menelaose then told him that a little over an hour after he had left, four men came to the camp demanding that they hand Shishi over to them. When they refused the men attacked them and took the priestesses as prisoners along with everything inside the wagons, Menelaose begged Shishi to find the men responsible and rescue the priestesses and then he passed away.
Shishi was about to leave the camp when he noticed something inside one of the wagons. When he went in to investigate he realized that it was a persons leg, the person was wearing what looked like priestesses clothing. Shishi was frozen in place, after standing there staring for several minutes he walked up to the wagon and looked inside. What he saw filled him with rage, it was Adalgisa's corpse covered in blood. He began to weep and roared several times, then he turned around and remembered that there was a fourth body he did not recognize. Upon closer inspection he realized that it was one of the two men he had seen with Hindi the previous day. Shishi ran back to the city of Marn and reached it around noon the next day. When he went to where Hindi's shop had been he found it completely vacant. He tried to get close enough to people to listen to hear what they were saying but they backed away whenever he got close. He needed a new strategy and so he hid in a small alley between to buildings and after hearing bits and pieces of several different conversations learned that Hindi had packed everything up and left in a hurry without saying a word to anyone.
Shishi didn't know what to do and so he decided to go back to the campsite and try to find any clues, but when he arrived everything was gone. The wagons, the bodies, everything all of it had disappeared as though nothing had happened. Shishi was lost, he couldn't return to his home. They would probably kill him for failing to protect everyone. The only thing he could think to do was to stay in Marn and search for clues as to where Hindi might have gone and so he began the long slow walk back to the city.
Age: 13
Gender: Male
Race: Fu-Dog (also known as lion dog)
Height: 4'8"
weight: 120 pounds
Physical description:
Shishi's body is like that of a lion, accept that it is much more muscular, with bright red and yellow fur giving him a 'fiery' appearance. His body has three golden ornaments which were permanently attached both surgically and with magic by the priests at the temple where he once served. At the top of each of his four limbs is a rune which were each branded onto his body as a newborn pup. His eyes are a bright blue and he has thick patches of fur around his neck, on the upper back of his legs, on his chest, back, and on his tail. There are also four sharp, somewhat curved, claws on each of his legs. Finally his jaws are lined with razor sharp teeth with two large fangs protruding from each end of his upper jaw.
Possessions:
The three golden ornaments on his body, and the four runes which are used to increase the effectiveness of his natural ability to ward off evil spirits.
Powers/Strengths:
The fu-dog is a guardian and protector usually of holy sites and temples, this is because they have a natural ability to ward off evil spirits. Basically any evil spirit such as a ghost or a lessor demon is repelled if it comes within a specific distance of Shishi. However, this usually has little to no effect on more powerful demons. the range of this ability is increased with special runes which were placed on his body as a young fu-dog which make the field large enough to protect a range of around 25 meters from evil spirits. His body is also highly resistant to magic, and his muscular body makes him rather quick and dexterous. He also has three other unique powers which require a mutual 'contract' to be formed with a partner. This 'contract' is formed when Shishi and his partner consume a small amount of each others blood, only a drop is required from both parties in order to form the contract. Only one contract can be held at a time and the only way to end a contract is for his partner to die or for his partner to intentionally release him from the contract. At first only one of these powers will show itself immediately, the other two will develop as the bond between Shishi and his partner becomes stronger. The fist power, which is revealed immediately, allows himself and his partner to 'feel' each others emotions (sadness, happiness, joy, anger, etc.). The second is developed after the two have formed a closer bond, and sometimes if they already have a fairly close relationship before the contract is made, this power can also show itself immediately. This is telepathy between his partner and himself, it allows them to hear each others thoughts, and thus, communicate with one another. The third power, and the most powerful, can only be developed after a very deep bond has been formed between the fu-dog and his partner. This is the power to heal his partners wounds and transfer whatever physical injuries his partner might receive onto himself.
Weaknesses/Flaws:
Being a fu-dog Shishi can not wear any armor, and thus, he is very susceptible to physical pain, such as being kicked or stabbed. He is also slow to trust others, however, once a bond is formed he is extremely loyal and would sacrifice his own life if necessary to protect his friends. He also lacks the ability to communicate audibly with other races because he can not speak in words with them which increases his need to form a contract with someone. The telepathy between his partner and himself is limited only to 100 meters and thus they cannot communicate outside of this distance, however, they can always feel each others emotions no matter the distance. Also regarding his third ability after forming a contract (the healing power). Shishi can only transfer physical injuries and so he cannot heal illness or magical effects which do not cause physical harm. Also, because he literally transfers the injury to his own body, anything which would be fatal for his partner, if he chooses to transfer the injury, would be fatal to him as well. Finally in regard to his natural ability to ward off evil spirits, he cannot control it, the power is always active like an invisible field around him (himself being the center of this 'field') and thus he cannot turn it off. This ability can also only be used if Shishi has a clear view of his partner so if he cannot see his partner he can not heal him/her.
History:
Shishi, like all lion dogs, was born in a temple near the town of Guang Wag in the region of Tian Zia. Upon birth he was separated from his parents and siblings and branded with magic runes then given as a gift to the one year old Adalgisa the daughter of the temple master Daedalus. His duties would be to protect Adalgisa and, after he had matured around the age of 12, to form a contract with her and become her partner.
At eight months old he was old enough to begin learning under the older fu-dogs who, after years of service themselves to their masters, lived inside the temple protecting it from evil spirits and any intruders. One of the first things he was taught was the importance of forming a contract and also the power he would gain from doing so. He was also taught to understand the local languages spoken even though he could not speak to them himself.
At the age of two he finally began to live with Adalgisa who was still only three in order to form a bond with her at an early age. He also began learning how to hunt and fight with demons as this would be one of his primary roles in protecting Adalgisa. He seemed to be a natural and picked up fighting skills much more quickly than he had learned the languages, mathematics, and other things taught to him by the elder fu-dogs. One of his teachers even praised him as being exceptionally strong for his age.
When Adalgisa turned eight she become old enough to begin learning the history of the temple and what her role as a priestess would be and so during the day, when she was learning from the older priestesses, Shishi would accompany her as her guardian and as her friend. After her lessons they would have some time together when they would play games. After this Shishi would go alone to train with the elder fu-dogs and to learn more about the history of the world around him and about his duties as a guardian. He would return late at night and sleep in front of the door to Adalgisa's room so that no one could either exit the room or enter it without his knowledge. This was more of a learning experience since the only people who lived their with them were Adalgisa's parents and the gate in front of the house prevented uninvited guests from entering, along with the two adult fu-dogs who were partnered with Daedalus and his wife Zarya.
When Adalgisa turned 13 it was decided that she would go with her mother Zarya and some of the other priestesses to Keltaris, a town just across the border of the Eyropa region, on an annual pilgrimage and to perform exorcisms and healing within that region in order to see first hand what would be required of her when she reached the age of 16. By this time Shishi had fully matured, at least in the physical sense. Zarya's guardian, Shigandang, had fallen ill and would not be able to accompany them, and because the other two priestess who would travel with them were of a lower class they did not have their own fu-dog guardians and so it would be the responsibility of Shishi and the three guardsmen traveling with them to watch over all four of the priestesses. Before leaving his body was adorned with three golden ornaments to symbolize his maturity as fu-dog and he, along with Adalgisa, learned some of the language Eyropian language. He also formed a contract with Adalgisa in a traditional ceremony and, as expected because of their already close relationship, they could not only feel each others emotions but could also communicate telepathically. Both Adalgisa and Shishi were filled with joy because for the first time they could communicate with one another.
That night neither Adalgisa nor Shishi slept at all, since it was her first time hearing Shishi talk to her she had many questions for Shishi that she had always wanted answered. Shishi answered all of her questions and promised her that he would always protect her. The next day they loaded supplies into one of the two wagons and said their goodbye's to friends and family. Then, after the guards arrived, they began their two day journey to Daloyxiu. This would be the first time either Adalgisa or Shishi would leave the safety of Guang Wag. Shishi was excited to be able to finally go out and prove himself, but he could feel the anxiety and nervousness of Adalgisa. He stayed inside the first wagon with Adalgisa, Zarya, and the other priestesses on the first day of the journey in an effort to comfort her but the next day he had to walk outside with the guardsmen to watch for bandits or anything else that might harm them.
The group stopped in Daloyxiu and they made a camp just outside the town, because there was no room in any of the inns for all of them and no place for them to leave their supplies. After setting up camp Zarya, Adalgisa, Shishi, and one of the guardsmen whose name was Menelaose went into the town to gather more supplies and listen to the local rumors about what might be waiting for them ahead on the long journey to Thar Shaddin the next stop before reaching their destination of Keltaris. While they were in the town there was a very rich tradesman of exotic animals from the Eyropa region visiting who, upon seeing Shishi, took immediate notice of them and approached Zarya with an offer to buy Shishi from them for a very large amount of gold and jewels. When Zarya turned him down he offered even more and Shishi growled at the man and told Adalgisa to stand behind him. Instead she hugged his neck and told the man that Shishi was getting angry and wanted him to leave, then Zarya told the man that Shishi was a member of their family and not an item to be sold or bartered with, at that she motioned to Menelaose to intervene and he moved between the tradesman and the others and asked him to leave before things got messy. Before he left the tradesman told them his name was Hindi and that the offer still stood if they changed their minds.
After the man had left, Zarya apologized to both Adalgisa and Shishi and told them that this had never happened in the past when she was with Shigandang. They all agreed it would be best to leave as soon as possible and so they gathered what supplies they still needed and went back to the camp. They stayed there that night and then headed out on their journey to Thar Shaddin. The trip would take a little over a week and they had heard rumors of bandits along the road to Marn, the capitol of Thar Shaddin where they would stay once they entered the region. During the trip Zarya warned them that they would have to stop in Marn's justice hall in order to register the magic abilities of Adalgisa and Shishi. Zarya and the other priestesses had been their before during past pilgrimages and so they had already been registered.
After nine days of traveling they finally reached the gates of Thar Shaddin. Thankfully they were able to avoid any bandits or other hazards along the road, probably because of the presence of Shishi and the other guards. Upon entering the city of Marn, Zarya took Adalgisa and Shishi to justice hall to register their magic power in the city and Menelaose, along with the other guardsmen and priestesses, went to find a suitable inn. They agreed to meet Menelaose in the downtown area after their registration was complete. First Zarya registered Adalgisa which did not take long, but when it came time to register Shishi the men making the registry became much more strict and after somewhere around three hours of discussion they were finally able to have him properly registered.
After rejoining Menelaose the four of them went together to the inn which he had found for them and showed them their rooms. Shishi and Adalgisa were given a room with a window that faced the historic district of Marn. Adalgisa loved exploring new places so after they had finished unpacking she asked her mother for permission to go out and explore the historical district. Zarya knew of the dangers of the historical district and warned her not to go there but Zarya did give her permission to go out and explore the rest of the town as long as Shishi was with her. Zarya also told her that they would have to spend a week in the city of Marn because their wagon that was carrying all of their supplies had broken and would need repairs and so she had to be sure to behave herself and not draw any unnecessary attention to them, she also warned her that the people in Marn were not fond of magic and so she should not use any of her abilities and also that the citizens would not be very fond of Shishi so he needed to be careful as well. Adalgisa gave her mother a big hug, kissed her, and then ran back to her room and jumped onto Shishi.
Shishi had been in the middle of a wonderful nap after the exhausting journey to Marn when Adalgisa woke him by jumping on top of him. "Is something wrong? I was in the middle of a nap." Adalgisa hugged him tight and looked at him with a big smile "My mom said I could explore the city as long as you're with me isn't that great! let's go there's no time to waste!" Adalgisa tugged on Shishi until he got up and agreed to go with her into the city.
Since they were already in the downtown area they decided to start there and look at all the shops in the city as they walked around they could see people staring at Shishi and whispering to each other while trying to keep their distance. Adalgisa, still being young of course, wanted to stop at every single shop and see what was there. They found everything from spices to beautiful jewelry, weapons, armor, and tools that were unlike anything they had seen before. Eventually they came to a stall which had many exotic animals for sale in it and Adalgisa wanted to hold every single one of them, the man running the shop walked over to them but he looked a little nervous and was obviously trying to keep a gap between himself and Shishi "Ah I see that you have an interest in exotic pets, the shop owner isn't here right now so I can't sell you anything but if you come back tomorrow around six he should be back. His name is Hindi and I'm sure that he would be happy to help you." Shishi immediately tugged on Adalgisa's sleeve and asked her to go back to the inn. Adalgisa agreed so they went back and told Zarya what had happened.
The next day Zarya warned them that if they should run into Hindi again that they should come back to the inn immediately. Zarya and the other priestesses had other duties to attend to in the city and the guardsmen had to accompany them so Adalgisa and Shishi were left alone. They decided to go out to the Industrial area of the city today and left the inn after eating breakfast together. When they got to the industrial area they found that the workers wouldn't let them get very close to the buildings. Shishi had already expected this and wasn't very surprised, but Adalgisa on the other hand was devastated and practically in tears when they told her that she wasn't allowed to go inside any of the buildings. On the way back to the inn they were stopped on the main road by three men, one of whom seemed oddly familiar. "Why hello there young lady, do you remember me? we met in Daloyxiu a little over a week ago, my name is Hindi." The man had a crooked smile and looked like he was scheming something, he didn't seem dangerous but Shishi didn't like him and he was standing between them and the direction of the inn. Adalgisa took a couple steps back "my mother told me to stay away from you, please get out of our way." Hindi didn't budge, instead he started to walk closer to them "You know my offer to buy that pet of yours is still open, come on, let me take you to my shop and show you what I can offer you." Shishi moved himself in between Adalgisa and Hindi then roared as loud as he could. Hindi was so startled that he fell backwards but the two men who were with him caught him before he landed on the ground. Luckily for them Menelaose happened to be in the area and when he heard Shishi's loud roar he knew what it was immediately and ran to them. "Whats going on here, are these people bothering you Lady Adalgisa?" Hindi didn't give her a chance to respond though, he said that they were just saying hello to Adalgisa and said that Shishi went wild for no reason then they turned around and walked away.
After what had happened the previous day Zarya asked Adalgisa to stay in the inn for remainder of their visit in Marn. She agreed without any arguing and Shishi tried to entertain Adalgisa the best he could. When Zarya and the others returned that day three guardsmen and someone known as a battlemage of Marn were with them. Apparently Hindi had filed a complaint with them about what had happened the previous day and so they were sent to investigate the claims. Adalgisa and Menelaose told him their side of the story and the guardsmen were satisfied and left. The battlemage, however, had not been satisfied and did a much more thorough investigation. He made sure that the powers they had registered with were really their real powers and made them provide more proof that they were who they said they were. After several hours of trying to convince him he agreed to let them go after they payed a large sum to him for his precious time. Only a couple hours after the mage had left Menelaose gave them word that the wagon had been fixed early and they could now leave.
Zarya and the other priestesses decided that it would be best for them to leave as early as possible to avoid anymore trouble in Marn and so that morning they packed up their belongings and began the journey to their final destination Keltaris. Adalgisa was sad that she wasn't able to see the whole city, but at the same time she was glad they could finally get away from Hindi. Shishi, knowing what she was thinking, tried to comfort her by reminding her that they could see the rest of the city on the way back and that if they were lucky, Hindi wouldn't be there the second time. Adalgisa smiled and cheered up a little bit but she knew they would not have time to see everything on the way back.
That night they stopped to camp near the border of Thar Shaddin and Eyropa, it was the night that would change Shishi's life forever. That night Menelaose asked Shishi to do a quick patrol ahead of them so they would know what to expect the following day. He went for about an hour and then decided he had gone far enough and turned back. As he got closer he realized that he could no longer feel any of Adalisa's emotions and he became gripped with fear. Shishi ran back to the campsite as fast as he could and when he finally arrived he found four men dead near the wagons which had been destroyed and everything inside was gone. Three of the men were the guardsmen who had traveled with them from the temple but the fourth he could not recognize. He was about to search for Adalgisa when he heard one of the guardsmen cough, it was Menelaose, still barely clinging onto life. Shishi nudged him and he responded but putting his arm around Shishi's back. He carefully moved Menelaose to the side of one of the wagons so that he could sit up. Menelaose then told him that a little over an hour after he had left, four men came to the camp demanding that they hand Shishi over to them. When they refused the men attacked them and took the priestesses as prisoners along with everything inside the wagons, Menelaose begged Shishi to find the men responsible and rescue the priestesses and then he passed away.
Shishi was about to leave the camp when he noticed something inside one of the wagons. When he went in to investigate he realized that it was a persons leg, the person was wearing what looked like priestesses clothing. Shishi was frozen in place, after standing there staring for several minutes he walked up to the wagon and looked inside. What he saw filled him with rage, it was Adalgisa's corpse covered in blood. He began to weep and roared several times, then he turned around and remembered that there was a fourth body he did not recognize. Upon closer inspection he realized that it was one of the two men he had seen with Hindi the previous day. Shishi ran back to the city of Marn and reached it around noon the next day. When he went to where Hindi's shop had been he found it completely vacant. He tried to get close enough to people to listen to hear what they were saying but they backed away whenever he got close. He needed a new strategy and so he hid in a small alley between to buildings and after hearing bits and pieces of several different conversations learned that Hindi had packed everything up and left in a hurry without saying a word to anyone.
Shishi didn't know what to do and so he decided to go back to the campsite and try to find any clues, but when he arrived everything was gone. The wagons, the bodies, everything all of it had disappeared as though nothing had happened. Shishi was lost, he couldn't return to his home. They would probably kill him for failing to protect everyone. The only thing he could think to do was to stay in Marn and search for clues as to where Hindi might have gone and so he began the long slow walk back to the city.