Central Prison/Police station

@⚜ ♕ Emily Mei  Daniel held her gaze, his expression carved from stone. He let the silence stretch, absorbing every flicker of resolve in her eyes, every waver in her breath. Then, he exhaled, a slow, measured thing, like the ticking of a clock winding down.

“Promise?” he mused, voice smooth, almost bemused. “A bold request from a princess without a throne.”

His gaze darkened, an abyss swallowing the brief shimmer of amusement. “You ask for change, yet your own hands are empty. No armies. No judiciary. No law to enforce, no structure to govern. Your homeland is a fractured dream, scattered in the wind. And you believe you can bargain with me?”
He leaned forward, his presence suffocating. “What can you offer, Emily Mei? Words? Convictions? Those won’t keep the wolves from tearing at Heleo’s throat.”

His fingers drummed against the desk, precise, methodical. “You speak of justice as if it is a birthright. But tell me, what justice do your people have? What system protects them? What power do you wield to enforce order?” His voice dipped lower, silk over steel. “Do not lecture me on responsibilities you do not carry.”

Daniel rose, the motion fluid, final. At his side, the water shimmered, parting as the ethereal seahorse reappeared. The creature’s bioluminescent glow cast eerie shadows across the walls as it swayed toward the door.
“When I hear something, you will be the first to know,” he said coolly. “Until then, do not mistake my patience for indulgence.”
He turned, stepping past her, intent on dismissing her entirely—

And then—

A scream. Sharp. Ragged. Ripping through the night like a blade against bone.
Daniel halted. His head tilted slightly, his breath stilling. From the alley beyond his office walls, the wail echoed, desperate, wrong.
His eyes flickered aqua blue, a pulse of something ancient and knowing. “What now?”
A pause. Then, without looking back, he strode for the door, the weight of something far darker pressing in from the streets beyond.

@❖ Daniel Henney Em held Daniel's gaze, unflinching beneath the weight of his golden amber eyes. The tensions between them thicken the air in the office like the way the steam from the brass pipes does in the hallways. Her ears twitched at his carefully crafted words, each carrying burdens from years of powers and rules. Emily brows knitted close creating a crease on her forehead. She inhaled slowly, letting go as her fingers flex, faint wisps of blue fames crackled before disappearing. Is this the kind of control that people always talked about?

"Rules," She repeated, softly but steady, "Rules were meant to keep order. But, Lord of Dreams, how many more will need to vanish before it's more than just the Dragon king? Shouldn't all civilians of Heleo be a priority?"

She studied him, letting his words sink in. 'Balance.' He was right though even when she wants to fight for her friend. For other Heleo civilians that was lost, there was an order of things. She tapped her fingers against the arm of the chair, avoiding her nails and using the pads of the tips instead. The red of her eyes glowed brighter as she came to term. "If....if i help you find the missing Dragon King," A faint wry smile tugged at her lips, something bigger is happening. A change--a cosmic shimmer of time's endless flow. "Promise me, that when the time comes, you will ACT as a force of change for the people rather than the scales of power bounded by rules."

Just shy of a whisper, Emily stood up from her seat. "I will help, Daniel."

@⚜ ♕ Emily Mei  Daniel’s golden amber eyes studied Emily with unnerving intensity, his gaze unwavering. He had felt the shift in her demeanor, the subtle heat rising at her fingertips. It was a matter of time before her powers fully manifested, and that could either be an asset or a danger to all involved. But for now, he refrained from probing her thoughts, though the temptation lingered at the edge of his mind.
"You're not the first to bring me such a report," Daniel said, his voice smooth but cold, the weight of centuries echoing in each syllable. His hands clasped together on the desk, his fingers tapping a slow rhythm. "Missing persons... a troubling pattern, I agree. But rules, Emily," he paused, his eyes narrowing, "rules must be followed. International law, Central City regulations—these are not to be ignored, no matter your urgency."
He leaned back in his chair, sighing as though the weight of the world pressed down on him. "The Grand Central Council has voted. The first priority is locating the missing Dragon King. Everything else is secondary."
He let that sink in before continuing, his expression hardening. "The Judicar task force is doing what it can, but my hands are tied." His words were laced with more than a hint of frustration. "And my tools—" he faltered, just for a moment, as a dark thought flashed across his mind— "they remain lost."
Daniel’s gaze softened, though his voice held no warmth. "What I don’t tell you, Emily, is that my Queen, Bambi Naka, has her own interest in this case. It’s not merely about the missing. It’s about balance."
He leaned forward now, his tone a quiet command. "I can help you find your friend, but you must understand the stakes. Help me find the King of Dragons first. Then, and only then, will I have the means to assist you fully."
The room seemed to shrink in the silence that followed, as though the weight of his words had already begun to change the air between them. The choice was hers to make.

@❖ Daniel Henney "May I?" She gestured towards the chair before taking a seat, crossing her legs and folding her hands over her lap. There was always something about Daniel that Emily could not put her hands on. She watched him work for a bit, watching the way the quill moved about until it slowed down just enough for her to cut in. There was too much going on around Heleo. And with her new power emerging, she was not sure how long until she accidently triggers it. Something wasn't adding up for her on that term.

"It's only urgent when I show up to you personally. You know I rather send a bird than bother you." Emily pulls out another envelope with a small list of missing people -- the list that she's been making comparing to Bible's list in their paper. "Missing people report that I've been gathering. Poof. Vanished out of thin air." One including her good friend who she considered like a sister. Dawn's little sister. Her heart ached, hoping and praying to to all the kitsune temples for safe return. "I need your help in finding them, especially, my friend."

There were also another matter at hand. One that she heard from others that maybe the Dream lord can help her uncover if he was willing. The dream lord should be able to retrieve parts of herself that may piece together the craziness that is surrounding her. Her gaze moved down to her hand neatly folded on her lap. Something happened during the winter solstice and Emily need to figure how she triggered the portal. "There is also another matter at hand that requires your assistant as well." Her red eyes locked on his as she felt the kitsune fire starts to warm at her fingertips. 'Don't overthink the portal, Em." She reminded herself.

@⚜ ♕ Emily Mei  The rhythmic scratching of quill on parchment echoed softly within the Warden’s office. Daniel Henney, Warden of the Central Isles Enforcement, sat immobile save for the deliberate motion of his hand. His black hair hung like a curtain over his face, casting shadows across his sharp, expressionless features. The reports before him—each detailing another missing person in the mist-shrouded city—were stacked in unnervingly neat piles. Every map, ledger, and ink pot in the office sat in its designated place, a reflection of Daniel's meticulous nature.
The room itself was a testament to stoicism and order. Ash-gray stone walls seemed to breathe faintly with the embers of embedded dragon veins, their soft glow casting a warm, otherworldly light. The oak floor beneath was polished to an almost unnatural sheen, its worn grain telling silent stories of years past. Yet, it was the white-gold seahorse hovering near the far wall that disrupted the somber perfection of the space. Its luminous form blinked in and out of sight, eyes as hollow as the void yet brimming with a silent vigilance, as though awaiting a command.
Daniel paused his work, the quill still in his grasp. His golden gaze flickered to the seahorse, its vanishing act a subtle reminder of things left unresolved, a realm undone. Frustration simmered beneath his calm exterior, tempered by a weary sense of duty. The weight of his imprisonment and the fragments of his former power gnawed at his thoughts. It was not the reports or the missing lives that stirred him most, but the haunting sense that all roads led to a greater disruption—one that danced perilously between dreams and reality.
The sharp staccato of heels echoed in the corridor outside. Three distinct taps followed, firm yet measured, before the door swung open.
Emily Mei stepped into the room, the faint scent of ozone and lavender following her. Daniel’s gaze shifted to the envelope she carried, then to her face. Her presence, confident and poised, was an unwelcome disruption to his precise solitude.
"Daniel," she began, her tone balancing formality with an undercurrent of ease. "Just who I was looking for. It’s good to see you."
Her words brushed against him like a breeze against stone, eliciting neither warmth nor irritation. Daniel leaned back slightly, his fingers still resting on the quill, eyes narrowing as he regarded her with calculating detachment.
"It’s been a while since I delivered you an arrest warrant," she added, her gaze wandering over the office before returning to him. "How have you been, sir?"
Daniel studied her for a long moment, his expression inscrutable. Her presence was more than a mere disturbance—she brought with her the scent of the unreal, the pull of something vast and uncontrollable. He let the silence linger just long enough to unsettle before replying in a low, measured tone.
"Busy," he said simply, the single word laced with finality. His gaze dropped to the envelope she had placed on his desk, scanning its crisp edges. "I assume this is urgent."
Though he spoke calmly, his mind churned. Emily Mei’s arrival was not a coincidence; it was another thread in the web he sought to untangle, another dream bleeding into reality.

@❖ Daniel Henney The clicking of her heels down a hallway creates a rhythmic, sharp sound that echoes through the space. Each step resonates with a staccato precision, the hard heels striking the floor with a crisp, decisive tap. The sound is clear and distinct, reverberating against the walls as it travels, creating a sense of purpose and authority. As the footsteps grow louder with each step punctuates the air. The pace and sharpness of the clicks came to a halt at his office. The office door stands solid, with a sleek, polished nameplate-- D. HENNY -- affixed just right of the door frame, its crisp lettering shining just enough with the amount of light coming in.

Emily gave the door three firm taps before stepping in confidently into the warden's office, the envelope in her hand. She places the letter on the desk, her eyes meeting the warden’s with a polite yet knowing glance. "Daniel. Just who I was looking for. Its good to see you." She looked around his office. "It has been a while since I deliever you an arrest warrant." Her orbs danced around him, recognizing him. Although they had little interactions, he wa someone that she have to rely on for her line of work. "How have you been, sir?"

@☠ Bang Yongguk￥✔ The human's eyes flipped open to see what the ghoul was going on about. Rather in a rude manner as well. Almost made Parkha not want to come over and stay where he sat instead. Against his better judgement, the slayer gets up and dusts off his clothing before approaching Yongguk. Arms were crossed against his chest whlist dark irsises glanced towards the floor. "And just what is it? It's bad enough I'm stuck in this damn cell with you. I don't need your games either."

@❖ Chris Roma Even if i paid a day late. Would i still be wanted? And this month they not collecting.

The hour is late, and the moon is in held crescent. It glims through the station window, illuminating the Warden's desk and showcasing a stack of papers that were in no short order. He methodically goes through the file by file, and to his frustration, it leaves him no closer to the location of his tools. An ember of irrationality rattles through him, going his back slumped against his office chair and clapping of his palms pressure over his nose and brows.
"It feels as if I'll never return to dreaming."

@♆ ♕ Nam Vo thank you. i got it []

@❖ Chris Roma got it thanks

@❖ Taehyung Click the form and its self explanatory. ()

@❖ Taehyung () in short its citizen tax for your realm. It can be found in the world map. For dragons its ❖ Bahamut's Summit is where the cost can be found. If you are and owner of a house or business its an extra tax fee. But if you have any questions tag an admin but refer to the announcements prior as they have alot of helpful info or go to the FAQ. Hope that clears up any confusion.

@❖ Chris Roma () i dont even know what to pay!!! But ok

First notices have been sent out to arrest the following
Lockdown
〄 Jeon Jungkook
〄 Choi San
⥈Park Jimin
❖ Taehyung
☠ Park Jihoon ¥
@† Lee Soohyuk

@⚜ ♕ Emily Mei  Thank you my lady, I'll be processing these warrants through Central State today

@❖ Taehyung [] hey Fran, pay at the Central Bank and Finance. Its in big red letters that say 'The Tax Form can be found *HERE*'

@⚜ ♕ Emily Mei  (I paid already, sorry I didn't paid the tax in time)

@⚜ ♕ Emily Mei  Can i have the link to pay it? ()

@⚜ Son Seungwan ¥ @〄 Jeon Jungkook @〄 Choi San @⥈Park Jimin @❖ Taehyung @❖ Chris Roma @♆ Karina @☠ Park Jihoon ¥ @☠ Christian Yu ¥✔ @† Lee Soohyuk /sends off a new monthly mail, this time in a form of a paper airplane, using your work table as a landing strip, the paper airplane unfolded and display a list of names, popping out of the paper like little display lights.

"Dearest Roma,
Here is my wonderfully long list of species that had fail to comply with taxes:
<see tagged names besides ROMA>
As always, its a pleasure to do business with you, handsome.
Much love,
Princess Emily"

(PAYROLL NOT APPLICABLE.)

@❇︎ Miyawaki Sakura ¥ i uhh...
*looks at you as you lock arms with me*
but you still have to work! o-once i prepare what kind of work you're going to do for me.
*sighs*
b-but you know gambling is bad, you already have a few income, why do you still kept on doing it?

@♆ Joy /turns to look at you
/blinks
So... you lied? Why? /shrugs/ Nevermind, let's go then I'm sure I can make myself comfortable at the inn
/locks arms with you again in case you fall over and walks along
Wait, why are you being so nice?

@❇︎ Miyawaki Sakura ¥ [ ] my pleasure

@⚜ ♕ Emily Mei  [] thank you sweetieee

@❇︎ Miyawaki Sakura ¥ [ ] transactions are all done.

I HAVE PAAAID

@⚜ ♕ Emily Mei  [] oooh! woops okay i saw minis and sakuras points had gone up by a 100 each and figured this was why

@❇︎ Miyawaki Sakura ¥ (still waiting to see what the gmadmins say)

@♆ Joy [] ill reply to this later fyi you should have gotten your 122 points back!