"Hubris, turn your lights off!" Whispered Grek. After a few days of continuous riding they arrived at the Vault. They now hid themselves on a ledge overlooking the island. The structure, one of the safest in all of Ardonia, sits in the middle of a giant pit, atop a high tower, with only one bridge stretching the giant chasm. Since it is the rainy season, water filled the pit, forming a small lake way below the tower.
"I can't!" Hubris replied under his breath. Grek should know by now that the markings of Ardoni only dim once they are dead.
"How are you supposed to sneak around with lights all over your body?" Grek couldn't imagine a less stealthy profile than a constant beacon of light on you.
"We don't normally go sneaking around!" Hubris said, suppressing his voice.
"No wonder you Ardonis almost wiped out yourselves." Grek must have forgotten the near-extinction of Jaggarthans.
Hubris noticed some shimmers of red out of the corners of his eye. "Masani!" He called quietly to the archer, "What can you see?"
Masani, who perched atop a tree so that she could better lay down cover fire and snipes, replied, "Nothin' much. It's a bit too quiet here."
"Looks like we beat the Voltaris here." Concluded Hubris. "My intel says they were right behind us."
"They'd better hurry." Said Grek, rubbing his hands. "I've been itching for a good fight."
"Simmer down Grek, you might reveal our location." Cautioned Hubris. "Let's regroup slightly further in. Masani, raise a warning if anything happens."
The two returned to a small dug-out, where Senn, Grim, and Onyx waited.
"What does the Deathsinger wan' from The Vaul' anyway?" Onyx asked as soon as Hubris emerged.
"What do you think?" Hubris bounced back the question.
"I dunno… Diamon'?" Grim facepalmed, and let out a purr of disappointment. Senn interpreted that as a "how can you be so stupid?"
"He's after the Prime Songs." Senn chimed in. Everyone turned on him.
"He's right." Agreed Hubris. "When Thalleous re-distributed them, it's likely he hid at least one of them in The Vault."
"Hey!" Came Masani's voice, "Someone's coming!" Everyone drew their weapons and readied themselves.
"False alarm. It's only the captain." Masani called. Everyone relaxed.
"Captain?" Senn was confused. "I thought you were the leader."
"I was just maintaining our daily duties while she was away." Hubris explained. "The Captain drew us together, and we voted her as our leader. Form up."
"So… who's in charge?"
"I am." Rang out a familiar girl's voice. "Who's asking?" An Ardoni with pleasant light blue markings entered the small room. On her back, she carried a spear-like weapon with a flat metal blade at the tip.
"Ria?" Senn burst out.