Exodus: The Assassin's Path 33 Prodigal Musician

TAP Interface Acquired.

Synchronizing character data.....

Welcome Back Q, find your path!

The warehouse was empty. It had been a hub of activity since he had acquired it, but for once it was empty.

"I don't completely understand what's going on, but Remmy explained a bit. You are trying to awake another hero, someone very important to you." A soft pleasant voice came from the bunk area. She twisted one finger through her long red hair as she walked toward him.

"Leah... how did you get here? Aren't you surveying the coastal region this week?" Q smiled as his nose picked up the light scent of apples. She was wearing riding clothes, and looked tired.

"On horseback of course," she wrapped her arms around his waist, staring at him with her bright green eyes.

"You came all this way?" He bent his head and brushed his lips against hers.

"Mmm.. after you successfully summon your friend. I'm taking you back with me," she pressed against him extending their kiss.

"That does sound nice. We can go camping, hunt some of those huge reptiles." Q took her by the hand and walked toward the alcove.

"Huge reptiles?" She wrinkled her pretty freckled nose at him. "They are tiny Q."

A large area around the water fountain have been cordoned off. Guardsman were posted every few yards to ensure that no one entered this section of the marketplace. Someone had filled the fountain with luminescent stones. The Songbirds were sitting on the bench that circled it. There were dozens of lamps surrounding the perimeter.

Q walked hand in hand with Leah, to anyone looking they looked like a young couple on a moonlight stroll. Her head rested against his shoulder as they walked, they spoke softly in hushed tones. They stopped as they approached the fountain.

Leah squeezed his hand once and walked away without a word. This would be his stage, not hers. She saw Remmy waving from one side and decided to join her. Remmy was sitting with Mojo, Tal and Pops.

All five Songbirds stopped chatting when Q approached them. "Be ready."

They gave each other blank stares. Ready for what?

He noticed that Jangles and Jinn were talking next to one of the guards, he motioned them both over.

Q stared hard at Jangles. "I guess we'll see if you are all hype."

"I'll go sit with the Songbirds Q. Good luck!" Jinn kissed him on the cheek and strolled away. She felt oddly excited, like she was on the cusp of something big.

"Where is this musician you mentioned?" Jangles was dressed in bright silks. He wore blue pants, an orange shirt and red boots. A pink bandanna was tied to his head, and a twelve stringed mandolin hybrid strapped to his back.

Monarch

12 stringed MandoGuitar: Legendary

Mass Effect: Mesmerize up to 30

targets.

Additional Effect:Spirt Healing

"I'll get her now." Quinn grabbed a bench from the perimeter and dragged it close to the fountain.

He had set this up last week with TAP admin, he would have to piggyback Renri's signal.

"Log On TAP, Ren."

TAP Interface Acquired.

Synchronizing character data.....

Synchronization Failure....

"Log On TAP, Ren!"

TAP Interface Acquired.

Synchronizing character data.....

Synchronization Failure

"Override Character Synchronizing!"

Character Synchronizing Overridden

No Character Statistics Found, Recommend Reboot.

"Do not Reboot, Continue with Log On process."

Welcome Ren, find your path!

Ren

Level 1

Strength 0

Endurance 0

Intelligence 0

Agility 0

Luck 0

Charisma 0

A pale slender blonde girl appeared in the Marketplace. Q could hear Tal's breathless gasp from the perimeter. The girl's blue eyes were open, but they stared into nothingness.

"Ren.." Q noticed that she was swaying, moving quickly, he caught her as she collapsed in his arms. Q bit his lip to keep focus, he could hear Tal crying behind him.

Gently he picked her up and walked to the bench. Q could feel the eyes of the crowd staring at him, the only sound were the stifled sobs of Tal. "Damn.. how did this become a public spectacle?"

He carefully sat her up and placed her hands on her lap. He reached into his pack and took out two flutes, he kept one and placed the other in her hands.

Plain Silver Flute

Unique Item: Finely crafted by

Grand Master musician Bo Jangles.

Description: A simple elegant flute.

Additional Effect: The better the musician,

the better the sound.

Q glanced over at the group near the fountain and spoke. "Sometimes.. through no fault of their own. People get themselves in a bit of trouble. It's times like these, that the people who care about them, need to step forward and be counted."

Q took a deep breathe and let it out slowly. 'I'm no musician, but maybe.. just this one time. I can stand on stage.'

He carefully placed his hands in position and brought the flute to his mouth, he looked over at Jangles who had unslung his instrument. "I'm going to be disappointed if you aren't the grand daddy of all genius's."

One clear note floated into the night air, it wasn't perfect but it cast an eerie mood on the crowd. A second note followed and then a third. Even Jangles could only hold his breathe and watch.

'The first part, a few mistakes... but I've done worse', Q moved onto the second part. It was a mirror image of the first, but played slightly better.

Jangles had his eyes closed... listening to the notes. 'There were only three, something...'

Jinn watched Q with her dark eyes, she felt something pushing at her... her blood slowly heating up.

The Songbirds huddled together watching him. The one who had pulled them from the sewers of Fenway. Nightingale stared the hardest... his words echoed in her heart... 'have my back, step forward and be counted.'

Q moved on to the fourth part, and then the fifth. Each time small improvements pushing him forward to do more. On the sixth part, it happened. A novice, with no musical training, touched perfection. Despite changes in time and measure, it was only three notes, but it slammed into the crowd like a meteor.

System Message: World Event... Broadcasting

Jinn who had been teetering on the edge of something, slowly stepped away from the fountain, her arms raised as she slowly spun, her bare feet weaving among the cobblestones.

Jangles had finally opened his eyes, a curious realization entering his thoughts. 'I can play this.. I must play this.' He moved his instrument into position.

All five of the Songbirds had stood up. It was Lark who started it. A soft clear voice, without any words, she followed the notes, adjusting her pitch. A song without words.

The seventh part started, the novice's eyes blazed with focus as he clung to his belief. 'Find the music and she will play.' The perfection continued as Q, refused to back away.

Jinn's feet danced and spun around the fountain, her body and hands weaving in complicated intricacies. She felt something.. it was hiding from her. 'I can't back down, Q needs me.'

One by one the rest of the songbirds joined Lark. Each had a unique and lovely voice, but when raised together.. harmony.

It was then that Jangles jumped in. He entered slowly, piggybacking on one of the perfect notes coming from the flute he had crafted. Then he escalated it, slowly adding notes and melody to the music as his fingers nimbly caressed the strings.

The volume increased slowly, as the audience started to sway with the music. It was good, maybe even great, but..

Nightingale listened to the music, and flowed easily into the melody. 'It isn't enough.. I can do more. Why must I let him down?' She stepped away from the other Songbirds.. and walked towards Q, 'they have beautiful voices... but I have... more.'

She continued to sing, her arms clasped together in front of her as she slowly released everything. A soft golden light enveloped her, her voice strengthened and rose in volume, the light expanding outwards. She soared past the others, pushing her vocals to climb higher.

When the Nightingale stepped forward, Jinn also broke through. She no longer danced on the stones of the marketplace. Her feet danced on air, when she spun, small flames flashed from her feet and hung in the air. As she moved faster, the flames began blending together.

Jangles felt Nightingale's voice soar toward him, she might have passed him by, but instead she weaved her voice into the music he was playing. 'She wants to soar further, but I'm holding her back.. I won't hold back either!' Jangles gritted his teeth and his music exploded upwards, Nightingale who had been matching him, threw her head back joyously and plunged forward. Together they punched through the sky.

Jinn was a hundred feet off the ground, the flames that clung to her trail slowly formed dozens of miniature versions of her. Each dancing and moving in the same manner as the original. Slowly, Jinn and the smaller versions of her, pushed upwards, lighting the sky on fire.

A small, slender hand moved. It wasn't much, just the slightest tightening of her grip. No one had noticed. Nor did they notice, a few seconds later when her second hand did the same. The entire sky was a spinning cauldron of music and fire.

They did notice however, when she began to play.

'Where? ... that's my music. and Quinn. I meant for us to play it together.' Effortlessly she weaved into the tempest, letting her music flow into it and strengthen it before she sent it spiraling outwards.

World Broadcast:World Buff in effect plus 50 to all stats.

World Broadcast: Deviant Ability discovered. Prodigal Musician.

Prodigal Musician

Description: When the prodigy

plays, the entire world stops to

listen.

Above cities all across TAP, the scene was broadcast in the skies. The illusionist, the angel, the rockstar, the prodigy and the novice. It continued on for several minutes and then slowly wound its way down. Deafening noise shook the walls of every city in TAP as the heroes and NPCs raised their voices and cheered.

She approached the girl slowly, a metallic clicking sound echoing off the stones... Tal froze, just a few steps away, only hope keeping her standing..

A blue eye girl carrying a flute, turned at the clicking sound. She knew it well.. "Mama?"

For the first time in two years, Tal was hugged by her daughter. They clung to each other, the mother sobbing uncontrollably, while the daughter held her close.

In the aftermath, no one approached them for several minutes. Finally the old man walked slowly over and hugged them.

An exhausted Q, collapsed on the fountain bench..."Display Stats Ren."

Synchronizing Character Data...

Ren

Prodigal Musician

Level 1

Strength 59

Endurance 68

Intelligence 110

Agility 64

Luck 62

Charisma 70

"What the hell? Q stared blankly at the god-like stats, "oh wait, a world buff." He checked the counter, it only had 4 minutes left.

World Broadcast: A new TAP class for the Dancer subclass has been discovered in Talon by Sinful Jinn. TAP Class Illusionist

"Quinn?" Renri had finally been released by Tal, she stepped away and stared at her childhood friend. He was so tall. "I heard you playing .. I heard you playing my music."

Renri leaped at Q and hugged him close, she buried her face against his chest and cried. "It's fine Ren.." He stroked her soft hair as Ben and Tal wrapped them both up in a family hug.

Chapter end