"Nix." Her words were soft, like a gentle wind. She picked up the Ravager and hugged him.


    Ravager Nix chuckled and nudged her with his ck nose. "I know why you can''t usems down here. The lower levels of the Keep are neutral, like the ocean."


    "Soupy!" Ducky skipped across the room, her blue eyes filled with happiness as she swept up both her and Nix in one swoop.


    "Ducky." The round face was smiling at the Water Witch while clutching the Ravager tightly.


    "Hey... Don''t squeeze so hard!" Nix squirmed free of thebined grasps of his spiritpanions. "How long have you been down here?"


    Soup knelt until she was eye-level with the Ravager. Her Jade hand stroked his ck-furred head while making a cooing sound. "Nix."


    A pulsing glow from behind them caused the entire group to turn. A silver cloth hung in the air over the corpse of cia. The Ravager approached cautiously and studied it.


    /Family: Nix: I''ll link it.


    Silver Witch''s Mantle


    Elemental: Unassigned.


    Description: This Mantle was originally gifted to cia by the Goddess of Winter to preside over all Covens.


    /Family: Pradi: No stats? What''s it do?


    /Family: Ducky: What do want me to do, Nix?


    /Family: Nix: Equip it.


    Ducky advanced slowly, a pale hand reaching out tentatively to touch the mantle. The moment she did, it appeared around her shoulders and lengthened until it touched the floor. The color shifted into a deep blue, the Water Witch''s eyes seemed to focus on something directly in front of her. A wave of her hand caused a realm map to appear in the air.


    Nix had seen realm maps before, but they had beenyered; these were presented side-by-side. When Ducky moved her hand, the next ne rotated into view.


    The City of Cyphix was highlighted, a purple point blinked over the city''s location.


    /Family: Nix: That''s the Cyphix Coven, right? Show us Oasis.


    The map of Oasis was easily recognizable; there was one marked city.


    Nix nced at Prada, who was also studying the map. "Know much about Oasis?"


    Pradi shook his head. "Never been there."


    "That''s Beco, an illegal ver city in the Su''Dhassi territory." Nix frowned at the map. "I doubt if Pon left any of it standing."


    "It''s a closed Coven site. I have the option of opening it up." Ducky had never heard of Beco, but she was aware that Pon had tracked his daughter''s abductors through the Su''Dhassi territory.


    "No. Send me all the data regarding closed Coven sites. If cia closed them, then she had a reason." The Ravager turned towards Soup, who was still kneeling next to him. "I assume you have a way out?"


    /Family: Ducky: What do you want us to do?


    /Family: Nix: Keep an eye on this Hulo person. Link me that mantle that you are wearing.


    Blue Witch''s Mantle


    Elemental: Water


    Description: This Mantle was originally gifted to cia by the Goddess of Winter to preside over all Covens.


    /Family: Pradi: It customized to the wearer.


    /Family: Nix: Time to go. Stay alive and out of trouble.


    Ducky hugged Soup tight for a moment, stroking the quill-covered head. "So beautiful!"


    The Ravager nced at the exit; they''d already been gone longer than he nned. "I want to see how you''re getting in, Soup."


    Soup nodded and scooped the Ravager up. She waved at Ducky and then quickly exited the room.


    The Sea-Turtle moved with grace and speed through the water-filled lower halls. At times, her feet would barely skim the surface. After several minutes of twists and turns, they arrived at a small cavern that was half-filled with water. Nix was forced to use Night vision because of theck of lighting.


    "This is the entrance to the ocean?"


    Soup sat him down and knelt until she was eye-level again. Her round aqua-marine eyes glowed slightly in the darkness. "Nix."


    "Thanks for the help today, Soup. You alwayse through for me."


    Soup patted the top of his head while Nix took a better look at her. Up close, her skin was definitely that of an amphibian. Smooth green scales covered a feminine but well-muscled form. The green quills that covered her head extended down her neck before stopping at her shoulders.


    "This cavern must be your entry point. Can you take this Ravager puppet back to camp?"


    Soup nodded and scooped up the Ravager in a hug. "Nix."


    "Thanks. See you back in camp."


    A momentter, Nix sat up in his bunk, pushing the sleeping Orion onto the floor. He was back in the tent he shared with Shae and Fajii. "Anything happen while I was gone?"


    "Nothing." Del padded toward the exit without speaking further.


    /Inferno: Nix: Come back to camp; we won''t be needing the Trinity me.


    /Inferno: Pon: Damn you! I have been waiting for two hours! Let''s st something.


    /Inferno: Darsi: Permission to engage roof targets, Trip-7.


    /Inferno: Nix: Granted. Take out whoever you can and then report back to base.


    /Inferno: Shae: Something happen, Nix?


    /Inferno: Nix: Yep. We managed to kill cia and Sandi.


    /Inferno: Pon: The fuck you say?


    /Inferno: Nix: Learned some valuable intel. Officer meeting on the beach, right away.


    When Nix exited his tent a momentter, he nearly collided with Gil and Mortimus in their human forms. Someone had braided the Titan Warleader''s red beard. "Coming down to the beach?"


    Gil nodded. "How''d you manage to put down cia while in puppet form?"


    Nix slipped off his [Thine Enemy] ring and reverted back to his skelly form. "Had some serious back-up."


    The trio walked down to the edge of the water. The Inferno Guild Leader stepped one bony foot into the surf.


    Nix has activated [Mariner].


    Nix grinned at the two Titans. The return of his Elemental abilities meant he could once again use the Mariner form. He held out a webbed hand for the Titan Turtle to examine. "Like it?"


    Gil nodded. "It makes you a little less ugly, but not much."


    Nix waded deeper into the water before submerging. Hey in the shallows, letting the surf wash over him.


    Fajii and Semmi arrived a few minutester; the Aquarion needed no invitation to join Nix in the water. He was tempted to challenge her to a race, but he already knew what the oue would be. Without the benefit of enchanted items, Nix''s Mariner form couldn''t keep up with Fajii or any of the other Aquarions.


    Sharl headed a procession that included most of the Inferno Officers. The guild tank sighed in envy when she saw that Nix was in the water. "I''d kill for a swimsuit."


    Nix held back thement he wanted to say. "Latest count says 5867, Darsi and Ronnie must have managed to put down quite a few people."


    Jun Li nced at Ronnie who was busy rolling up her pants legs. "We should post a few ranged fighters there from now one. Give them the green light on any group with five or more."


    A few minutester, Soup arrived in her Sea Turtle form with the Ravager puppet secure on her back. She pped the water happily with a flipper when she spotted Nix in his Mariner form.


    Nix relieved her of the puppet and spent a moment with her. He''d recognized her as soon as she broke through the Ice barrier that cia had trapped them with. The two of them shared a symbiotic bondpanion bond; when he grew stronger, so did she, and vice versa. "I''lle backter and y with you."


    The Inferno Leader watched as Soup headed back out to sea; when she was finally out of sight, he returned to the Inferno Officers who were waiting on the beach.


    /Officers: Gil: Soup is looking good.


    /Officer: Nix: Stay away from my turtle.


    /Officer: Jun Li: First order of business. Nix managed to take down both Sandi and cia. Did you get any intel?


    Nix uploaded the realm map that he copied from Ducky. An instantter, everyone''s hud buzzed.


    /Office: Nix: We have a current listing of all Covens. Some of them were purposefully deactivated.


    /Officer: Semmi: How many active?


    /Officer: Nix: Just the two we know about in Mid-Everspire and Cyphix. We''ll need to send teams these other Covens.


    /Officer: Del: This one in Beco, if I can send word to my people. They will investigate that.


    /Officer: Shae: I can do that. I''m heading back tonight to talk with Sinfaya.


    [Whisper: Nix to Shae] I want that dragon puppet. She should be able to figure something out.


    [Whisper: Shae to Nix] I''m on it.


    /Officer: Jun Li: Our priorities for iing fighters are the Drakes and Muncie.


    /Officer: Nix: And the Aquarions. I found out something nice today. The lower levels of the Keep are not actually part of it. Soup found a way in and has been hunting there.


    /Officer: Semmi: It''s neutral ground? We should keep this to ourselves!


    /Officer: Jun Li: Agreed. We''ll put this aside until we''ve taken all the Burroughs.