This one begins.. with a dream.

I had fun with this one, but it was a huge challenge. I'd have to write four characters. No biggie there, normally, but two of them are regular (well, irregular) players in AIL, and another is based on our King, who doesn't play AIL...
but I've given the AIL version of MTiger a somewhat demanding writing style.

It ends up being a pretty decent lengthed piece, all in all, and establishes that the Toot is missing. The original idea was that the Toot would be this really secret creature that only appeared to train a select few in great secrecy.

I guess my point was too subtle, as he was written, much like in the actual KOL game, to be a creature that trained all the newbies, or at least, enough of them that his presence wasn't written to seem very secretive.

I tried to write him as a mix of both views in the finale, having once been a bird only heard of in whispers, but being more active in training 'noobs' lately.

But there's still a lot to read before you get to the Finale! Look forward to an AIL debut, as well as Dash, Catrina and Raw Hide.

And for now- enjoy the beginning of the mission, the first of a two part story!

The Prince of the kingdom of KOL turned restlessly in his sleep, the distinctive combination of deep sleep and restlessness that haunted Adventurers in the times of their greatest trials.

When you'd been mentally and physically drained almost to the literal breaking point.

This was somehow different. Nightmares tugged at his sleep, as they always had, mixed with memories of both recent years, and days passed many-a-moons ago. All the trials of being a young "Prince" charged with managing the food supplies of the Kingdom of KOL came rushing back to him as he slept.

A lot of the dream seemed to focus on his training. A good deal of effort had been invested into BlahKing's success and abilities since he first arrived in the Kingdom of KOL.

Although the Kingdom of KOL was a big part of that, they weren't the only ones responsible for tutoring of the Prince.

The Toot Oriole was one of the strangest creatures Blahking had ever seen, due mostly to the fact the Toot is a talking bird. Despite that, and his often odd personality, Blahking, like the current King Mtiger, who had trained before the Prince, found the Toot a valuable source of information on the way the Kingdom worked.

It goes without saying that the Kingdom's always had it's share of violence, and therefore it also goes without saying that some of the valuable training the Toot offered Blahking- and MTiger, and who knows who else? - was in the fine art of defense. He taught Blahking to tap into cosmic powers unknown to the minds of most of KOL's general population.

But the Toot's knowledge extended far beyond simple fighting. Despite his gruff, demanding exterior, and his occasional frequent bouts of insanity (how's that for a contradiction?), Blahking had developed something of a sense of fondness for the bird.

He shot up in bed, suddenly shaken from the memories, and the remnants of the dream already fading from his mind. He looked around the room, half sure the nightmarish creatures were real, and more, lurking in the dark corners of the blackness bathing over his room, ready to pounce him the second he took his guard down. Consciousness slowly washed over Blahking, who realized, despite the chill of early fall, his forehead was covered in sweat.

Despite training Blahking, little was known about the Toot, who seemed to show up and vanish randomly. Some proof existed already that would imply he might have mastery over space and time himself. Blahking sensed something out of the ordinary, even as he shook off the memory of the dream.

As it would turn out, his fears that night were far from unfounded.

 
Blahking had sent some feelers throughout the kingdom which paid off only days later in the presence of the King, Fluffy Hamster, and one of the heads of Kingdom of KOL's many information recon teams, Briggs Detree.

The King starred off into the distance, his mind obviously on other manners. Although small meetings like this sometimes indicated a subject of the most dire circumstances, it was more often done for brevity, using only the minimum of those necessary at the meeting for the sake of saving time. Mtiger wasn't quite sure which category this fit into yet.

Briggs Detree was another veteran of the KOKOL's long and grueling war with the various Pertene nation members. He felt as if in the harsh three year war, and the problems that proceeded it, he'd quickly seen his best years as a fighter come to an end. Briggs survived because of a dogged like determination. He'd lead seemingly suicidal missions against the Stone Trorcs in the Deadly Hallows, and been a part of key defenses against several of Peretene's trash bomb attacks from Kingdom of KOL armies. Although he could be downright likable when he wanted to be, he was better known among the Kingdom for his gruff, serious nature. Well, that and the powder blue monogram shirt, autographed by Arena Suzy, for formal occasions. Mostly the gruff nature thing, though.

He wasn't that interesting. The room would probably interest you more. Especially the silver lined table in the middle of the room, atop of which Fluffy Hamster sat, outside of a Ceramic model house which was only a bit too small for him to enter. The miniature lawnchair was perfect for his fluffy hamster body, so he sat in it, playing solitaire with a set of indeterminably tiny playing cards with carrot images.

Blahking arrived, and seeing the King still busy with another matter, quietly made small talk with Detree as he waited for the King's signal to begin. After all, the recent incident with the Chrono dragon had left a good deal of matters in the air, and it'd left the Kingdom of KOL in possession of a shiny new mine on the Mysterious Island of Mystery. Within a few minutes, the King looked up from his papers, having apparently finished signing important trade agreements, or reviewing crucial budget decisions, or trying to figure out how to invent television. Whatever it was occupying the King's time.

Proud stood he, the anthropomorphic rightful King of the Kingdom of KOL. MTiger, once the greatest of KOKOL's warriors, who now kept the clan to held tight as it's leader . It wasn't a situation he was able to adjust to easily.

Spoke he these words.

"For your patience, my appreciation. The call of the king is the sylph's song, calling me in every minute of the day, beckoning me to tend it's unending needs. Maps must be delineated, slivers and masses of meat sewed and a'woven into a tapestry consisting of complication and madness, least an erroneous choice of the colors of the royal bed spell the difference between glorious paradise and unending hades for the Kingdom."

His voice betrayed the tire of his duties, and a fair bit of sarcasm as well.

"Duties of king and warrior, trying still, and though as the endless waves crashed upon the mighty shore, I put aside. It is instead this moiety of military thread and intended seizure of one most dear and beloved to our Kingdom which draws us into these tight confines."

Detree and the Prince looked at the King, more or less understanding the meaning of his words. Fluffy occasionally looked up at him, helplessly lost, before the hamster turned his attention back to his playing cards.

The King turned to the Prince. "Speak now, so that we may understand this grave new thread from the Knob Goblins."

Fluffy squeaked! "Knob Goblins! How bad could it be?"

"You might be surprised," Prince Blahking answered. "We've been doing some scouting on the area. They're up to something big. To understand this, you'll have to understand who they're out to kidnap. After talking with the King, we've decided there's some things you all need to know. We'd appreciate it if none of this left the room we're in now. Or at the very least, take great care in who you tell. With your permission, your highness?"

The King simply nodded, somewhat solemnly.

"The Toot Oriole,' Blahking said, simply. Even Fluffy looked up from his tiny playing cards, if only momentarily.

Detree murmured, stroking his short grey beard. "Are you saying it does exist? I've heard hushed whispers, but. . . " his voice trailed off in reverence to the king and prince.

"It exists," the Prince answered curtly. "In fact, it's trained a select few in the ways of magic. . .. and the Kingdom. Fluffy, I'm not sure if you were aware of this or not. . . "

"Nope!" Fluffy quickly interjected.

The Prince continued. "The King and I were both trained by the Toot Oriole. Tutored, if you will."

"Toot-ored?" Fluffy joked.

Blahking paid him no mind. "With his arcane knowledge of magics, and his familiar understanding of the workings of the Kingdom at large, he'd make a valuable prize to those out there with less than noble intentions for their neighbors. Unfortunately, there's more than a few out there who wouldn't hesitate to try to get his knowledge, or even sell the bird out, if only as a novelty. This's one of the many, many reasons the secret of it's exitance has been kept secret for so long.

"However, we've known for a while know that the Toot is getting restless. Eager to spread his knowledge to those he deems worthy, or maybe even just those who are in a convenient range. This has put him on some danger." Blahking paused as the King leaned forward, showing a substantial amount more interest now.

"So our maven maestro finds himself eye'd by the tiger, then? Would seem, then, what was once a fountain of pure knowledge has become tainted by the murky waters of insanity, and thus, does our former mentor find himself naught but a mouse in the eye of the lion."

Fluffy stood on his hind legs, and squeaked a "Huh?!" Then he gnawed on his little gnarly surfboard toy.

Fluffy often had problems following the King's meaning. In all fairness, though, Fluffy also had a short attention span.

Detree understood him just fine, thank you much. "So someone's out to get this Toot, huh? Who do we gotta beat up?"

"As stated earlier, the Knob Goblins," Blahking simply responded.

Detree. "Sounds basic enough. What's the catch?"

"As hard it as is to believe," Blahking answered, "It looks like they've put together a set of elite warriors. I know Knob Goblins and elite hardly belong in the same sentence, but from what I've heard, these are fighters who'll try even the best of us, and then some. They're *not* to be taken lightly, in other words.

"There's rumors they've taken to recruiting from outside the traditional Knob forces for this 'Elite Seven,' and even rumors they've dipped into their darkest arts for this one. In fact, several witnesses report a flurry of mage activity in the Knob Goblin strong points during our last mission to the Mysterious Island of Mystery. If I had to take my guess, I'd say they're specifically expecting a confrontation from us, more than they are from the Penguin Mafia."

"Good!" Detree rubbed his gloved hands together. "If they want a fight, I'm sure we can oblige them."

"Noble haste. Nobler still that we should deal with our adversaries as the tiger upon it's pray," the King admitted. "Yet, to every hour stands a goal. As the dawn of our mission breaks, our first goal is quite simply to find the location of our erstwhile teacher. Upon discovery of that information. . . "

"We can figure out if we're going to have to lay down with them or not," the prince finished the King's thought quite nicely. "But remember, we'll have to know what we're up against before we can engage them directly. Recruit the individuals you think are suited to this portion of the job, but above all else, make they know two things; our goals, and the dangers we're up against."

Fluffy squeaked! "Shouldn't we just beat the 'Elite Seven' up once we get to them?"

"Under normal circumstances, maybe," answered Prince Blahking. "But considering what we're up against, I'm strongly suggesting you avoid conflict with them. At least, until we get more information. In fact, think of that as a direct order. If you can't avoid a fight, so be it, but it's in our best interests if we gather information before we engage them."

Fluffy shrugged and went back to playing his cards.

"Any other questions?" Blahking asked.

"Are we offering any rewards for this?" Detree asked.

"I shall personally assure a favor of my choosing to the one who proves most valuable to this mission," declared the King. "Spread word of our noble goal upon the winds to my Kingdom, so they shall know even in this most trying of times, we can, and shall, prosper."

That said, as Fluffy continued his game of solitaire, Blahking and Detree nodded, and went to inform the Kingdom's warriors of the KOKOL's next task.

See why Mtiger's such a pain to write? *Grins* Onto the first roleplay of the mission!