Last time Leo, Pyra, and the rest of the Expedition Party travelled deeper into the Lab. There they encountered a man made monster known as a Sovereign, a strange mechanical being. Barely destroying through the Aegis's power and quick teamwork. The group now finds themselves at a door that the strange man made monster was guarding.

The members of the Expedition Party stood in front of the door that the Sovereign had been guarding mere moments ago. "Are we sure it's safe to enter that room? What if another one of those Sovereign things is waiting for us? Pyra and Leo are exhausted and they were the deciding factor in that battle!" Lefiya said as she doubted it was safe for them to enter the room without regrouping to get their bearings. Leo walked up to the door, studying it closely before looking over his shoulder at the others. "Your logic is sound Lefiya, however I doubt this room would hold another Sovereign. I explored the lower floor of this lab, this is the first encounter I've had with the strange man made device." Leo explained calmly as he continued to study the door.

Gareth stepped forward, a concerned look on his face. "Lad, how can you be certain?" Gareth asked, Leo looking over his shoulder at the Dwarf. Leo noticed that despite all his experience, the veteran adventurer had been shaken by the whole encounter. "While there is no way to say for certain, there is one factor that helps me make an educated guess. The Sovereign is not a monster, but a man made weapon. That would indicate that unlike monsters which merely spawn from the walls of the Dungeon, it was strategically placed here to guard this door." Leo explained as he continued to study the door, preparing to open it. Pyra walked up next to her Driver before gently resting a hand on his shoulder. Leo looked over at Pyra who smiled at him encouragingly.

"I'm with you every step of the way Leo." Pyra said in a supportive tone as she gave the teen's shoulder a squeeze. Leo nodded and was about to open the door, but stopped when Ais walked up to him, stopping on his other side. "We won that battle because you and Pyra were able to break through that thing's defenses. I will go with you." Ais stated in her usual monotone voice, but Leo spotted a ghost is a smile on her face. Lefiya walked up to join the trio, stopping behind Leo. "If Ais is going so am I! Besides, someone has to make sure you don't get yourself killed considering how close you came to it a few minutes ago." Lefiya said in a smug tone, but also could see a teasing smirk on the elf's face. Bete let out an annoyed huff before walking up to the others, joining them.

"Like hell I'm letting you get all the glory for this expedition, weakling!" Bete snapped, but refused to make eye contact with Leo. Gareth looked at the other members of the Expedition Party, his fellow Familia Members before he let a jovial smile spread across his face. "Honestly you youngins are trying to get this old man killed! Can't be helped I suppose, can't let you children walk into the unknown by yourselves!" Gareth said before he joined the group as well. Leo looked at everyone who all in turn gave him a nod, telling him to open the door. Leo turned to face the door, a smirk spreading across his face before he rested his hand in the center of it. The door lit up with a familiar blue light before sliding open. The Expedition Party all filed into the unknown room, ready for whatever awaited them.

????????
The expedition party found themselves in an average sized room, large wires and tubes haphazardly lay across the floor. Strange devices hung from the ceiling, shelves held an assortment of gadgets that none of them had ever seen before. Finally up against the wall, dead center was a desk that had a large red chair next to it, on the desk were two strange rectangular objects resting on top of it.

"Doesn't this look like someone's room?" Lefiya said as she looked around the strange room, finding it weirdly lived in despite it obviously abandoned for decades, potentially longer. Leo surveyed the room, noticing in the dim lighting that many of the strange objects within seemed to lack some form of power. Leo scanned the room before noticing a lever on the wall next to Bete. "Bete, pull that lever down that is on the wall next to you." Leo instructed as the werewolf shot him an annoyed glare. Bete opened his mouth to argue, but merely let out an annoyed growl before grabbing the lever and pulling it down. Sparks shot off the lever before suddenly the entire room came to life,

The lights on the ceiling shined brighter, the strange gadgets all turned on, the two strange rectangles on top of the desk lit up as well. "The hell? What are with this weird torches on the ceiling?" Bete said as he looked up at the lights lining the ceiling. Leo looked up at the lights on the ceiling as his eyes started to glow blue. "Those aren't torches, they are apparently something called light bulbs. They create light through electricity." Leo explained as everyone turned to look at him surprised at how he knew what they were, until they saw his eyes glowing blue and remembered his unique skill. Leo walked towards the desk in the room, stopping in front of it. Leo studied the two strange rectangles sitting atop the desk itself. Leo's eyes glowed a more intense shade of blue as he clutched his head and let out a pained groan.

          "Leo, are you okay?" Pyra asked as she walked up to her Driver and gently rested her hand on his shoulder. Leo took a moment to collect himself before turning to look at Pyra, giving a nod of his head. "Yes Pyra, just a slight case of information overload. However this Computer Terminal might just answer a few of our questions." Leo said as he gently grabbed the corner of the monitor. The rest of the Loki Familia looked at Leo in confusion having no idea what he was talking about. "How in goddess's name is that rectangle going to help us?" Bete said in a slightly irritated tone as he shot Leo an expectant glare. Leo sat down in the red chair next to the desk before it moved on its own, positioning itself in front of the computer.

"Apparently this Computer Terminal device holds entire libraries worth of information. It's only a matter of requesting the information." Leo explained as the other members of the expedition party looked at one another before walking up to the desk to watch. In front of Leo was a board covered in buttons, each one labeled with one of the symbols he's seen on the signs within the lab. Leo scanned the buttons before punching in the symbols that spelled out the word "Aegis" as each symbol appeared on screen. Suddenly the entire monitor shined blue as a noise crackled to life. "Access Granted, playing Video Recording now." The Computer spoke in a synthetic voice as the entire group was slightly taken aback by the strange device speaking. The group watched the monitor closely as something loaded onto the screen.

Recording
The screen displayed the very room the group was currently in, this version however was clean, everything within looked like it had been untouched by the passage of time. Sitting in the same chair that Leo was sitting in was a figure, the only thing that could be deciphered about his appearance however was that he was in fact male given the broadness of his shoulders. He wore a large brown cloak, the hood casting a dark shadow over his face, completely hiding it from view.

The man in the hood turned to look directly at the monitor before he began speaking. "To whom has ever found my Laboratory, for you this is the first recording of me you have seen, for me it is the last I shall create. While my true identity must remain classified, you may call me Da Vinci." The figure now known as Da Vinci introduced himself as he adjusted his position in his chair. Da Vinci let out a tired sigh before he once again looked directly at the monitor. "Whomever has discovered this place, it has been decades, potentially hundreds of years since I recorded this. If humanity has conquered the Dungeon, please leave and forget you ever found this place." Da Vinci continued as he once again adjusted himself in his chair.

"If however humanity even with the guidance of the Gods have still not conquered the Dungeon, perhaps my work can be of assistance. Myself and a team of inventors, blacksmiths, scholars, and dreamers banded together to create a way to ensure humanity's future." Da Vinci spoke in an almost wishful tone as if he were reminiscing. The hooded figure let out a cough before refocusing on the task at hand. "I apologize for the rude welcome you likely received from the Garasha Sovereign, they are advanced weapons that can battle on their own. They were intended to help combat creatures within the depths of the Dungeon, however when everything fell apart, they were repurposed to guard the Corridors." Da Vinci explained in an apologetic tone as he knew how dangerous creations were.

"However, if you have made it to my personal laboratory where this terminal is, then you as I theorized gained the ability to decipher my code language and have become the Aegis's new Driver. Blades are my magnum opus, sentient weapons who resonate with humans to unleash awesome power upon unsuspecting foes!" Da Vinci said with a hint of pride as he leaned back in his chair slightly, another tired sigh escaping his lips. The hooded figure fell silent once again the man appeared exhausted. "Despite the Aegis's power, my colleagues and I failed to fully conquer the Dungeon. I deemed it necessary to seal the Blades and my other creations away after a catastrophe that occurred a mere month ago. However you have a chance to succeed where my chosen heroes failed." Da Vinci said hope returning to his tone.

          The recording crackled slightly, lines of static briefly running across the video. Da Vinci looked at something or someone behind him before letting out a frustrated sigh. "Blast, it appears my time is running short. Listen closely Adventurer chosen by the Aegis, my laboratory is not the only Corridor within the Dungeon, there are multiple, each holding its own secrets and dangers. I implore you to seek them out, help give humanity and all species the ability to Conquer the Dungeon!" Da Vinci said as he stood up from his chair, looking at whatever caught his attention earlier. Da Vinci then turned his attention back towards the monitor. Da Vinci rested his hands on the desk, leaning towards the monitor, as if trying to break through the screen itself.

         "There is a button underneath my desk, press it. Consider what you find as compensation for what I am asking of you. You will find the next Corridor on the Eighth Floor of the Dungeon. This has been Da Vinci, signing off for the final time." Da Vinci stated calmly before he turned on his heel and began walking away from the desk. Static began overtaking the screen as Da Vinci got further and further away from the screen. Da Vinci stopped near the back of the room as another figure entered the field of view, the static making it impossible to decipher what they looked like. The static overtook the entire screen as the crackling only grew louder before the entire screen went pitch black. The words "Recording Ended" appearing on the screen in the strange symbols.

Recording End
The members of the Expedition Party stared at the message flashing across the black screen in stunned silence. "What the hell was that?" Bete said his tone completely devoid of its usual aggression. Leo leaned back in the chair, taking a moment to let his brain process what he had just witnessed. "So this place was man made and there are other places just like it throughout the Dungeon." Leo thought to himself as he glanced over at Pyra, he noticed a worried look on her face. "T-This can't be real right? Humanity didn't make any significant progress in the Dungeon until the gods descended upon the land hundreds of years ago!" Lefiya said, refusing to believe the recording had been real. Leo however let a thoughtful look spread across his face, something wasn't right here.

"Unless this Da Vinci and his colleagues found a way to explore the depths of the Dungeons. You heard him, he helped create that Sovereign we battled and is the creator of the Blades." Leo stated as the rest of the Expedition Party's eyes widened in realization. The group exchange glances with one another before looking at Pyra. "Pyra, did you know this person before you were sealed within that tube?" Leo asked gently as Pyra stiffened slightly. The Blade fidgeted around nervously before letting out a defeated sigh. "Da Vinci is the creator of the Blades, he intended on giving Humans, Elves, Werwolves, Dwarves, and the other humanoid species a way to combat the monsters of the Dungeon. I only ever met him a once or twice, he was rather reclusive, monitoring things from a distance." Pyra explained as the rest of the group were now only more confused on the strange cloaked man.

           Leo then ran his hand across the underside of the desk, feeling for the button that Da Vinci had mentioned. Eventually he felt a slight indent in the desk, Leo pressed down on its as a hissing sound was heard. Everyone turned to see that the self containing the collection of gadgets had swung open like a door. "Well it appears there is one more room to explore, shall we?" Leo said as he turned to look at his fellow Familia Members who all nodded their heads in agreement. Leo and Pyra led the group into the hidden room. Once they entered they found themselves surrounded by components of what appeared to be Sovereigns. "How exactly is any of this junk useful to us?" Bete said in an annoyed tone as he looked at all the pieces of the mechanical monstrosities that they had barely survived fighting.

           "On the contrary Bete, if we bring a few of these components back with us, we could give them to the Hephaestus Familia to examine. I imagine if anyone could figure out how the Sovereigns function it would be them. It might even help them develop weaponry to help combat them." Leo suggested as everyone thought it over for a moment. After what they went through in order to bring the Garasha Sovereign down, Leo's plan seemed like the best course of action. Leo then noticed two chests on the very back wall of the room. Above them on the shelf was a box the size of Leo's satchel. Leo approached the box before pressing the circle in the center of it. This caused the circle to light up blue before the box's lid automatically opened up. Inside resting on a cushioned interior were two deep blue crystals.

"Pyra, are these what I think they are?" Leo asked as he turned to look at his Blade partner. Pyra nodded as a relieved smile spread across the red haired girl's face. "Yes those are Core Crystals, we found two of the lost Blades." Pyra explained, relief dripping from her words as Leo gently removed both Core Crystals from the box before gently placing them within his satchel. Gareth and Bete both opened the chests on the ground only to find an assortment of gold and jewels. "Looks like that cloaked freak was loaded! Guess this wasn't a complete bust after all!" Bete barked as he and Gareth began collecting the treasure from the chests. Ais and Lefiya both grabbed a few of the Sovereign Components before securing them in their own bags. "We should return to Orario. I don't think we'll find much more in here." Gareth said as everyone nodded before they gathered everything they needed before beginning the long trek home.

Twilight Manor
By the time the Expedition Party exited the Dungeon, it was night time. Once the group set foot in the Twilight Manor, they were swarmed by the other members of their Familia. Ais, Lefiya, Bete, and Gareth were berated with questions, however Leo was mostly glossed over. "I don't get why they are ignoring you, the expedition wouldn't have been possible without you." Pyra said in an annoyed tone as a pout spread across her face. Leo however simply rolled his eyes not minding no one gave him the time of day. "I rather prefer not being swarmed by a crowd. Let the real Adventurers enjoy the glory." Leo said casually as he simply began walking down the hall to return to his room. Pyra followed after her Driver, a concerned look on her face.

           "Leo! You got a moment lad?" Leo and Pyra both stopped walking as they turned to face Gareth who jogged up to them. "Yes Gareth, how can I be of assistance?" Leo asked the Dwarf, a curious expression on his face. Gareth stopped in front of them before taking a moment to compose himself. "Lady Loki said she wants a full debriefing of the Expedition from you tomorrow morning, I'll be present alongside Finn and Riveria to discuss what we should do moving forward." Gareth explained as Leo nodded his head in understanding. Pyra still looked at her Driver in concern, she didn't like that it felt like her Driver was merely being used for his knowledge at this point. "Understood Gareth, tell Lady Loki I will be there." Leo said simply before he turned on his heel ready to continue on his way.

           "Hold on a second lad, there's one more thing I'd like to discuss with you." Gareth said as he gently grabbed Leo by the wrist. Leo stopped again and looked over his shoulder in surprise at the Dwarf's actions. Leo turned to face Gareth once again, giving the Dwarf his full attention. "What is it you wish to discuss?" Leo asked, curiosity once again returning to his voice. Gareth remained silent for a moment before letting out a sigh. "Could I borrow one of your journals? You certainly surprised this old man with everything you learned. I think it would be a big help in training some of our Rookie Members." Gareth admitted as he scratched the back of his head awkwardly. An annoyed expression spread across Pyra's face at Gareth's words.

"So now you want to take credit for Leo's research?!" Pyra snapped in frustration, causing the Dwarf to jump back in fear. Pyra's fist was clenched tightly as her usual meek attitude was cast aside in favor of this more aggressive one. "That's not my intention lass, I don't wanna take credit for Leo's work. I doubt anyone in the Familia would even believe I'd have the patience to fill a journal with all that information." Gareth said defensively as he raised his hands in surrender. Pyra still looked annoyed, but stopped when Leo placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. "Pyra, it's fine. My research was gathered for this express purpose." Leo said calmly before he reached into his satchel before pulling out one of his journals.

"Here you are Gareth, this is the journal containing information on Floor Two. I hope it proves useful." Leo said as he held the journal out for Gareth to take. The Dwarf took the journal from Leo's hand before parting him on the back. "Thank you lad, I promise you won't regret trusting me with it." Gareth said before he took his leave to rejoin the rest of the Familia. Leo turned on his heel, continuing his trip back to his bedroom with Pyra following close behind him. "I still think you shouldn't have given your journal to him." Pyra said in an annoyed tone as a pout spread across her face. Leo simply let out a tired sigh at his Blade's words. "Knowledge should be shared Pyra, it's why I spend all my time gathering it." Leo stated simply as he shot a quick glance over his shoulder at the red haired girl.

          Pyra opened her mouth to argue, only to close it and let out a defeated sigh. "Okay, but if he tries to take credit for your work I'm lighting his beard on fire." Pyra said in a surprisingly whiny tone for the usually mature Blade. Leo bit back a snort as a grin spread across his face. "I believe I can trust Gareth, he's always looking out for the younger members of the Familia. I doubt he has an ulterior motives for requesting my journal." Leo stated casually as Pyra simply nodded her head in understanding. The duo walked down the hall in silence, however Leo's mind was plagued by the recording of Da Vinci. "Just who are you Da Vinci? You said you made multiple recordings, perhaps to get the answers I seek, I will need to venture to the Eighth Floor and find the next Corridor?" Leo thought to himself as he now had a new goal in mind, reach the Eighth Floor while documenting each floor in between.

So the Expedition Party discovered the personal lab with technology they have never seen before. They discovered a recording left by a man who calls himself Da Vinci, who has connections to both the Blades and the Sovereigns. More so, he also reveals there are more Corridors within the Dungeon, some potentially deep within the Dungeon. As always please leave your thoughts and opinions in the comments! What will Leo discuss during the debriefing? What are his plans moving forward? Who is Da Vinci? What will happen to the two Core Crystals the group obtained? Find out in the next Quest of Danmachi: Master of the Aegis!