The sky, blue and bright; only puffs of bright white clouds and a flying ship sail
through it. A pair of balloon sails shaped like stars and filled with magic dust
keep the vessel afloat. At the stern, the captain of the Double Star Rhapsody,
Kira Kira~sama, guides her home and her crew towards land below.
Many other ships and boats litter the docks at the Port of Gambino,
some are old, many new. Buildings that were once small and few were now
tripled in size and amount. The bustle of town people below was now filled
with tiny animal folk. Kira Kira looked down and then into the distance.
She gazed at the expanding landscaped and wondered aloud, “Is it still there…”
Her husband and rival D_Vious stepped beside her and shared in her glance as he said, “What? The Guild?”
“Yeah. Just looking at Gaia from above, you can tell it’s very different than when we left it.”
Eikouden, sitting on the steps, replied, “Well, it’s been like 5 years. Of course, it’s going to change.”
“But I’m curious as to how much of it is different.”
Silver Were Wolf emerged from Kira Kira’s quarters and said, “We could take a team in one of the lifeboats and check it out.”
“I’ll go!” said Ronnie, “I want to see what's new!”
Second Crimson, following behind Silver, added, “I’ll go too. It’ll be fun!”
Kira Kira smiled at her ever-faithful crew and proudly stated, “You all followed
me when we left this place and found adventures in other lands. You all have
grown into fine and admirable men and women in that time…” she looked
back to the land and added, “Let’s go back to where it all began!”
In an hour’s time, 3 lifeboats were lowered into the sea and rowed
toward the port. New eyes, big and small, gawked at the crew in their older
gear. Some pointed and laughed, others sneered at the items they knew cost
a fortune. But even the crew found themselves in awe of the new items. Kira
Kira adjusted her hat as her mates learned how and where new shops in Gaia were located.
Kira Kira was the first to enter the Marketplace. She looked at the price
to an item she had already owned and her eyeballs popped! She turned to
D_Vious and nearly shouted his ear off.
“Billions!”
“What?!” he cried, wincing at his ringing ear.
“Items are in the billions!” she pointed, “Look at this armor! I have the same one and it’s being sold for 8 billion!”
Kai~sensei, one of Kira Kira’s oldest mates, laughed, “Then we’re rich!”
D_Vious then looked at a message from their crew in the shops, “Not so fast.
The others are saying even items in the shops are costing thousands or millions.”
“That is ridiculous! How has the economy not crashed?!” Kira Kira was flabbergasted.
Zantty, another member, suddenly hollered a flash of pink went off on his communicator, “I got a pink link!”
Kira Kira giggled, “Well, I guess some things are still the same.”
Mostly everyone decided to do some real shopping and selling. Their
inventories were emptied and full. Their wallets also saw the increase in size
as gold amounts for items they no longer wanted to bring them immense
amounts. Kira Kira realized she had some Cash stashed away and decided to use it.
She entered La Victoire and began to browse. There were so many new
things she didn’t know where to begin. Instead, she asked the shopkeeper,
Jet, where his least expensive items for Cash were displayed. He eyed her,
suspicious about how a Gaian in such older attire couldn’t afford his more
pricey wares. Still, he showed her his collection.
Kira Kira spotted and shimmering envelope and asked, “What’s the Stargazing Nights Chance Item?”
Jet explained, “It’s an item by Visual Pandora. Give it a try. You may discover a beautiful item that will make your night sparkle!”
Kira Kira was intrigued, “Okay.”
She paid Jet the last of her Cash and placed the envelope in her inventory.
Before she had a moment to open it, Silver and Crimson burst into the shop with happy cheers.
“We got married!” Silver chirped.
Eikouden gasped, “Marriage is legal in Gaia now?!”
Crimson showed off his new band, “It sure is!”
Eikouden then turned his head quickly to Ronnie.
He grabbed his hand and pulled him while proclaiming, “We’re getting married! NOW!!”
Ronnie chuckled and followed close to him, “Yes! Let’s do it!!”
“Should we head to the Guild now?” Silver asked her captain.
The members and crew followed Kira Kira through the forest and other towns.
They pointed out familiar landmarks the Isle of Gambino and Bass’ken Lake.
Along the way, they reminisced about many times Gaia was invaded and the
Fall of the Gambino Tower, Halloween and Christmas in the shops, and all the
fun events they hosted in their Guild. At the wall to Barton Town, Kira Kira
took a deep breath and headed to the Hall of Guilds.
Leon, the guard, hadn’t aged a bit but the constant battles for Gaia were
starting to show on his armor. Kira Kira announced herself as captain of the
Animanium Polls Guild. Leon looked it up in the database. It took several
minutes to find the access door. It had been archived as an abandoned guild.
“Guild number: 1419… That’s a really low number.”
“The guild was an inheritance to me from the previous captain.”
Leon squinted, “You closed it nearly 5 years ago… That’s a nice thing to do with an inheritance.”
Kira Kira defended her decision, “Was I supposed to keep my members from
finding a life outside of Gaia? Plus, my crew and I tried to keep it alive but
Gaia’s tourism was dwindling. There was nothing I could do and I trusted no
one to keep the original purpose of the guild alive should we return.”
Leon sighed, “Alright, whatever. Just sign here and I’ll get you the door.”
Kira Kira entered her name and password and Leon used a code to find the
door. With magic is appeared and the guild saw the old sign they’d left years
before. Kira Kira left it in place and put her hand to it.
The door opened like a portal and the crew quietly followed her inside.
Cobwebs, dust, and stale air greeted their senses. D_Vious tasked himself
and a few others to clean as much as they could. Silver claimed the first poll
though Kira wanted that honor. She let it go and went about looking at older
discussion topics. Some of them made her smile, others pained her heart.
The remaining topics of guild members she’d lost from misunderstandings
made her wish things could have turned out better. The topics started by
those she had often butted heads with caused her to roll her eyes and move on.
Kira Kira passed the dressing room in the guild and remembered the chance
item she still hadn’t opened. She did so as the others walked around her. To
her surprise, the item she received was called the Demon Star. The name
alone got her attention so she entered the dressing room to try it on.
Eikoden and Ronnie arrived moments later, happily married and wistfully
looking at old art and topics. Kai had trouble getting into her inventory and
decided to head to town hall for help. Zantty continued to sell his items
remotely as Madame Zombie and Lady Sang played music and danced as they swept.
D_Vious asked for his beloved but no one had remembered where Kira Kira had gone.
JadeAngelWings decided to look for her in the town.
D_Vious called out for her, “Bunny! Where are you?!”
“Right here!” she replied and proudly exited the dressing room.
Kira Kira twirled a cape which was black on the outside and glittering
with starlight on the inside. She then draped it over her shoulders and the
starlight fell into specs of blues and purples. The members marveled at her
new cape and it made her look much more like a captain than all her other
items.
Triumphantly she stated to her crew, “Send word across Gaia and the world!
Look for anyone who was once a member of our guild and let them know, the APG IS HAVING A REUNION!!”
