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Fire Emblem: The Ruined World (Act 1- Clandestine Crusade)


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It is the 897th year, and Weal is ruined.

Yet even in a ruined world, life persists.

People continue to make their way and survive, as was done by these five.

Karen Bianchi, a young girl from what was once a prominent family of Cardinal merchants, whose song had an odd power to reinvigorate the listener.

Toki, a flirtatious follower of Nortia, determined to completely master games of chance.

Butter Milkslad, a spirited Highlander wandering the ruined continent.

Cantus, an aloof Auran scholar with many trivial interests and the husband of a dancer.

Noelle von Altyna, a former aristocrat who has sworn revenge revenge against the Masked, the wife of a knight and mother of two children.

It was a common autumn day. These five strangers, scattered across Weal, where simultaneously beset by the same event.

There was a sound from above them like the tearing of fabric as the firmament tore open. Some ten cubits overhead there formed a rift one meter in diameter. Peered through, it appeared as a window beneath the sea, looking up towards the sun.

With unnatural speed, the arm of a massive octopus snatched the stranger and yanked them through the portal, which closed soon after. Within the firmament, there was an odd sensation which was like wetness and dryness both, in which all the senses seemed denied their full use, except to feel the uncomfortable force constricting the waist.

And as soon as the event began, it ended. An even greater tear appeared in the sky, some ten cubits from the ground, and the five strangers were unceremoniously tossed onto the same patch of ground.

It was a common autumn day. These five strangers landed in a loose crowd. They found themselves before a great plateau in the midst of a vast plain. The air came with a chill breeze, and the dry grass crunched underfoot.

Atop the the cliff, against the smoky skies swirling with ash, stood a lone figure down at them. Lightning flashed, revealing a robed silhouette.

It seemed to be speaking, but the low rumble of wind and thunder drowned out his voice.

He scratched his head, then vanished, reappearing in a flash of light at the foot of the cliff.

"Ladies and gentlemen," he stiffly began. His stature was rather unimpressive, though his resigned expression showed he was not very impressed by the folks in front of him. "Wait. You all aren't..."

His hand shakily drifted towards his temple and slowly drug down his face. "Of course. Random summoning in opposition to a goddess of chance. Oh no. I should have seen this coming."

The man clapped his hands in front of him, froze up, and finally forced himself to speak. "So. Uh...I'm Charlemagne. You know, the...the kind of...the patron one. I just did this very elaborate ritual, you see, to summon from the strongest warriors in Weal." 

Charlie glanced between them all. "Well, we're all here now. I think this will do," he assured himself. "It's going to have to. See, I've summoned you all here for this one specific purpose. You see, Nortia, the very famous goddess one, is behind the Masked. I need help to defeat her and restore peace to the continent."

He hiccuped and forced a grin.

"So. Who wants to save the world?"

***

 

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"I will join this righteous cause. Despite the fact that according to my field guides, humanity has a 1/1 890 364 chance to recover to half its population in the next five centuries,  any little thing can help. Sort of like how a single specimen of the Lauridus Florus can help recover 300 feet of forest..."

(Several minutes later)

"And that is a concise description of the power of the Lauridius Florus. Oh, and I have my wife to protect. I can't let anything bad happen to her."

 

P.S If I'm doing anything wrong, please let me know.

Edited by Benice
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Butter, was confused, one moment he was strolling along the river making his way to Cardinal in order find work to earn a few more coins, the next, he's being yanked through the air and the next moment after that, he is on some unfamiliar patch of ground, lying at the bottom of a heap of strangers, with some important looking mage type fellow preaching at him, about the dangers that Weal was facing. He seemed to be seeking warriors, so chances were he was offering a job, and in this economy, Butter wouldn't turn down pay, especially if he got to fight some Masked in the process, with that in mind, he asked the fellow;

"Alright then mister Charlie Mangs, whats the pay and who do ya need me to hit? Also, where geographically speaking are we?"

Edited by Pengaius
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When she woke up that day, Karen was only expecting it to be like most days.

There she was, sitting under a tree, reading a book... when of all of a sudden she feels herself being grabbed and lifted into the air. Only a shriek of terror was all she could let out, before forced to endure being dragged through who knows where, then unceremoniously thrown back onto the ground like a discarded rag doll. With a small moan of pain, she slowly opened her eyes.

What did just happened? she wondered, before rising to her feet.

Karen was quick to note she wasn't alone. Likely other unfortunate victims of the same... event, that happened to her. She paid them little mind at first, opting to extract a handkerchief from her pocket; and used it to clean herself. Alas, while wiping off dust, dirt, and grass and cleaning her face was an easy affair, there was little to be done for the stains on her dress. With a sigh, she pocketed her handkerchief back. In any case, it was the least of her concerns. Far from the familiar confines of Bight, she was now on who knows where, with the company of complete strangers. It was enough to make feelings of unnerve sprung.

Or rather, it could've been, if not for what transpired later. She had to conceded, the initial theatrics of the man proclaiming himself to be Charlemagne were certainly impressive. Whoever, it had been after that where things floundered. Between his behavior, claims, and proclaimed plan, Karen was left quite... confounded; skeptical, even. However, regardless if he truly was one of the patrons, there was no doubt he was a powerful individual. After what she went through and had seen so far, could she deny it? Unless the whole thing revealed itself to be some kind of dream, she really couldn't. Everything else, however, was still up to scrutiny. As for the man's query...

Take up arms against one of the goddesses? That had to be the pinnacle of the absurdity of it all. Ultimately, it all boiled down to another question:

Do we really have a choice? she thought.

Unless the man could send them back from where they came from, it was likely they'd have to stick together, regardless of intentions. Even so, she wasn't fully sure it was her part to play. She considered she already had one, back in Bight. Though was it enough? She longed for things to be the way they were before; but it always felt it was something outside her control, so she made due with what there was. Yet, here she was, an actual opportunity to do more before her, crazy as it sounded. Would she take it? Well, one thing for sure, she was a Bianchi; and the Bianchi didn't rose to where they were before the Masked business playing it safe.

"I certainly want to," she merely replied.

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Noelle was happy, she had her children, and the love of her life but something was missing for her and that was her status

She always told her children the greats stories of House Altyna and how some of the most greatest knights had come from there.

But House Altyna is gone, and so are her parents.

But all that's about to change...

"So what you're saying is that together we could destroy those retched mongrels!"

"Now, this so called goddess will know the name of Noelle von Altyna!"

Noelle was excited she could restore her name, she would no longer be the laughing stock of nobility but that's when she felt a tug at her hand...

"Mommy, are you going to leave us?", her daughter Aelin asked her. 

"Why would Mom leave us?", her son Mako asked his sister.

"I'm afraid I have to, in order for us to have a better future.", Noelle replied but as each word left her lips tears welled up in her eyes.

Noelle wanted them to be safe, she wanted them to have a better life even if that meant leaving them behind.

Aelin and Mako began to cry, them begging their mother not to leave.

Their father Micah told them that Noelle would return to them.

Noelle realized that it's time to fight 

"This goddess will fall before a true goddess, ME!!"

 

 

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“A shocking turn of events...” He muttered to himself. “On the bright side, that conspiracy kid owes me a dinner now. Clay Dragon, indeed.”

No, this was much more interesting. Nortia at fault for the Masked? He of all people chosen to fight her?

Naughty, naughty, He thought, tapping the card in his pocket - a Queen of Diamonds. Is that the game, then? It’ll take more than this to make me fold, Lady Luck.

“Well, this is a fine hand you’ve been dealt, if you ask me.” Toki addressed the Patron while looking at the others, rubbing the goatee covering his chin. “I’m interested in playing it out. Perhaps you’d like to elaborate a little for us, if there’s anything else you know? I’m afraid I don’t quite understand why Nortia would pick this kind of fight. Seems like a rather one-sided war if you ask me, especially for a goddess who's supposed to be impartial.”

Edited by SoulWeaver
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Charlemagne looked between the five.
He had expected more unrest concerning the whole eldritch transportation, but in hindsight it probably wasn't the strangest thing to happen in the past eight minutes, yet alone the past eight years. It looked like each of them was going to be quite ready to-

14 hours ago, SoulWeaver said:

“Perhaps you’d like to elaborate a little for us, if there’s anything else you know? I’m afraid I don’t quite understand why Nortia would pick this kind of fight. Seems like a rather one-sided war if you ask me, especially for a goddess who's supposed to be impartial.”

Blast it all.

"...Right. You obviously have a lot of questions I obviously have a lot to say, so hopefully I can get through this very quickly. Uh..."

"Rewards. You don't die, uh...you get to keep the spoils. I have food?"

"Location. We're about two days northwest of Lake Quell. See, the warp point I've established here is reusable, so we can return here with, oh, a days preparation if we need to. I wanted to set this point somewhere in the middle of the continent, so nothing would be too far out of reach."

"The things you asked about," he pointed absently to Toki. "I don't know the reasons for them, but the observations are correct."

"That said, what I have found out is the location of an artifact which should be very, very helpful to us. It's west of the Ivory Mountains, but I haven't been able to get it yet because it's guarded by monsters and I would proably get torn apart trying to get it by myself. But now we have a team! So that should enable us to retrieve it. Probably."

"Uh...any other questions?"

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"Yes, Why aren't you rushing to protect me and my beloved wyvern Anthiese I mean I carry this entire army, yet no one bows or gasps at my gaze or a simple thanks."

"One, why does Nortia back these mongrels anyways?" 

" Two, How do we know you won't leave us for dead after you get this so called relic?"

" Because so help me I will make sure even from my grave that my children will hunt you down!"

Edited by PeonyofLeosa Dreamworld
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Butter, was content with the pay, not having to worry about food was always nice and this Churly-whatsit seemed to be a nice enough guy, fighting, food and fellowship, the three best things in life were coming to meet him all at once. Still, travelling to Ivory wouldn't be fun, as it meant going near the former Cardinal border, which would almost certainly be filled with the people of Cardinal, ah well, life giveth and life taketh away. 

“So, uh if we're going to the Ivory Mountains, does that mean we're heading straight to Bastion, or are we going to Pool first?"

Edited by Pengaius
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So we don’t get to know the rules before we begin...dear, dear, you do know me well.

”Yes, you wouldn’t happen to have a spare Lance, would you? I’m afraid I set my weapons down just before the whole transportation thing, they’re back in Bight. In addition, might I know how exactly you discovered Nortia was behind the Masked, or is this going to be one of those ‘ask me no questions I tell you no lies’ arrangements?” Toki rolled his left shoulder, it was still a little sore from an...incident...a week or so back, then grinned at the flustered Patron. “Oh, and if it wasn’t clear, I’m definitely all in.”

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What did I got myself into? Karen thought.

Now it seems that the first thing they'll do is retrieve something from a place so dangerous the man himself wasn't sure he could do it alone. Not very reassuring.

In any case, since he offered to answer any queries they'd have...

"I would also like to know what else you have for our disposal," she spoke up. "I, too, was brought here with not much to my name."

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9 hours ago, PeonyofLeosa Dreamworld said:

"Yes, Why aren't you rushing to protect me and my beloved wyvern Anthiese I mean I carry this entire army, yet no one bows or gasps at my gaze or a simple thanks."

"...thank you?"

Charlemagne took a deep breath and moved on to her second question. "Even if I was so unkind, bringing you all here was extremely difficult. It'd be terribly silly to just let you all die."

He scratched his head. "That came out wrong. But, uh...I'm not that sort of person."

"I will attempt to go through and answer your questions systematically. Starting with-" Charlie turned to Noelle and then paused. "Uh, I haven't actually gotten any of your names, so if we could do a short roll call or something like that, you know...that'd be nice."

"That said. Questions!"

He turned to Butter. "We would travel directly towards the location of the artifact. That wouldn't necessarily take us through Bastion, yet alone Pool. That said, if you all would like to take a detour, I suppose we could."

After that, to Toki. "As for how I have come into this knowledge. As Nortia's patron, I was in a position to speak with her somewhat regularly. I noticed alterations in her behavior, and, in investigating, discovered her exerting some degree of influence over the Masked. Oh, and uh...thank you for your support."

Charlemagne turned to Noelle again. "So, to answer your first question, they are technically Nortia's mongrels, not mongrels which Nortia is backing."

Lastly, he turned to to Toki and Karen. "Concerning armaments, I have a few items stored within a convoy." Charlemagne reached into a robe and pulled out a floppy looking sack. "I managed to scavenge together some weapons, but I'm afraid it's a bit of, heheh, a mixed bag. Heh." It dawned on him that his joke wasn't very funny. "A-anyway. Does anyone else need armaments?"

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"You would perhaps be socially successful and have friends if you stuttered less often. In order to defend you so you can pull your shambles of a life together, I will require tomes of eldr magic. Anways, I am Cantus, a scholar currently trying to help victims of the Masked. I sort of missed the invasion of the masked, so I travelled to the east coast to analyze the pebbles there. Along the way, I saw a woman who was being attacked by the Masked. I saved her, took her to the highlands to heal her properly, researched the Masked's arrival, fell in love with the woman I saved, got married and left to go help people no matter where they are. Pleased to make your acquaintance."

Edited by Benice
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“Uh, rollcall, right. I'm Butter, I come from a village in the highlands, none of you would probably know, and I use Lances and Bows. Anyhow, if we head to Pool, we could probably scrounge up some better gear, to take on whatever it is we have to fight in the mountains, or at least trade for some mountaineering supplies with any of the nomads settled in the area. Truthfully I'm unaware of how bad the Masked situation is there at the moment, but if there's any settlement nearby, it's at Pool. Anyway, we should probably get a supply route for this place , if we're going to be warping here, and it's never a bad idea to scout the surroundings, maybe get some lumber to set up a perimeter so that we don't warp right into a group of Masked when we return. Oh, and no offense, but you could probably use some real clothing and not that oversized robe, Mr. Charles Manson, sorry what was it again?"

 

Edited by Pengaius
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I do hope it is more than just weapons, Karen thought, looking at the sack with some contempt. "My name is Karen Bianchi. As for your... inventory, if you have a healing staff or two, I will gladly take one."

She was certainly no fighter; but there were other ways she could help out.

"Pool? I am not sure that is a good idea," she said at Butter's suggestion. "By this time there may not be much left to retrieve, nor much chances to barter. We may have better fortune at Palisade; but it might be an even larger detour. Turning this place into a proper base of operations is a good idea, though it would require a lot of work for it to be feasible. Far from what we have at the moment. In any case, I take it going to retrieve that artifact is going to take priority for now?" This last question aimed back at Charlemagne.

Edited by Acacia Sgt
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How curious...perhaps Ira was on to something.

"Whatever the plan, it sounds like haste is our best ally - it's probable Nortia knows Charlemagne is against her by now, so she'll be using the Masked to try to find us. I'd recommend you either come with us or else find a way to make a hideout they can't discover, assuming you haven't already. As for names, just call me Toki. I can use Swords, Lances, Axes, whatever you've got, though I'd prefer to have one of each on hand if possible. For this artifact...how far west are we talking? Is it in the Bastion or Cardinal area, or are we looking at those three mountains at the far west point of Weal? We should take that into consideration thinking about detours."

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" I am the great Noelle von Altyna of the fallen House Altyna go ahead you may gasp at my beauty, even though I am married and have two children; as for weapons do you have any staves, and maybe some tomes?"

"Also, you still never answered my question, how do we know we can trust you?"

Edited by PeonyofLeosa Dreamworld
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Charlemagne listened intently as each gave their name.

"Right. Very good. As previously stated, I-" he turned to Butter- "am Charlie Main. Charlemagne. I uh...I appreciate your concern, but this robe is quite comfortable, thank you."

"Now then, as for trust. Well, uh...it's more parsimonious to assume that the former patron of Nortia summoned you all here than an imposter without such supernatural standing. You are a reasonable woman, misses Noelle von Altyna. Surely you see the logic in this assertion."

"I'm glad to see you're all interested in our...survival," Charlemagne said with a smile and a small bow. "The artifact is located about halfway between Origin and Bastion. I would recommend we proceed directly. A stop by Bastion would be better than one by Pool, if we are to gather resources anywhere."

"I wouldn't worry about attempting to establish a permanent base here. In the future, we may warp on top of the plateau. I think that would be a sufficient barrier."

"Now then, let's see what equipment we have available." Charlie laid the bag on the ground, stretched open the mouth of it, and allowed a large tentacle dotted with suction cups to hand him items from within. "We've got an a flux tome and a fire tome," he noted, tossing both into a pile in front of him. "Two heal staves...an iron sword, an iron bow...an iron axe..." Sweat started pooling on his forehead. "Some javelins...and...a steel lance!" With great effort and a hefty thud, Charlemagne hurled the polearm into the pile. "I trust you all should be able to divide that appropriate among yourselves."

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I think this is too much to be just a con, Karen thought, at Charlemagne's reasoning he was the real deal. So long it is genuine we will do something to stop the Masked, he could just be pretending to be the Patron for all I care.

"Well, unless we depart right away after returning here, it would not hurt having something to return to than just an empty plateau," she spoke.

In any case, the man delivered in providing them with weapons. Though Karen's attention was more on the bag itself, which seemed to hold much more than its size suggested.

A power like that would have certainly been useful back home, Karen was certainly impressed. Although, did he had to just place them on the ground and expect us to pick them up? She frowned. Considering we stated what we needed, he could just hand them to us directly with that tentacle.

Her annoyance was short lived, however. Considering said tentacle was the very likely culprit of taking her all the way here so brusquely, perhaps it was for the best to avoid further interactions with it. She walked over to the pile and picked up on the healing staves.

"Thank you," she said to Charlemagne. "If I may ask, do you have some way to, say, send something back to the places you called us from?"

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“Well, anyhow, guess I'll grab the bow and the Steel Lance, 'less uh... Toki wants to use it. But I agree with, Karen was it? That we should probably establish some kind of makeshift defense. Just in case. If we're leaving messages behind, you don't need to worry about me, truth is I was on my way to find a new contract, and you've saved me the time and effort hunting, so I have nobody to leave anything relevant for. Also, by most direct route do you mean road route or just chage through, woods, hills and what have you in a straight line? Because I'm fine with either."

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"I shall take the dark tome. I hope my abilities will be justifiable. Also, when do I get to see my wife? She'll be concerned if I haven't been seen in a few weeks when I was last seen at a library."

Edited by Benice
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" I need a staff and tome, If you have any. Preferably a Fire tome, but if you have a dark tome that will work too. I am far more important than this Camus guy that's his name right?"

Edited by PeonyofLeosa Dreamworld
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3 hours ago, PeonyofLeosa Dreamworld said:

" I need a staff and tome, If you have any. Preferably a Fire tome, but if you have a dark tome that will work too. I am far more important than this Camus guy that's his name right?"

Cantus's eyes lit up when he heard the words "dark tome."

"Ah! You too are a fan of the delicate incitracies of the elder arts? I thought that this day would never come! Tell me, what is your opinion on Karthurstian's dissertation, 'Arablalagalagalazek's laws and their corelation with the principles considered normal?' Regardless,  you may well be more qualified than me for the dark tome. I have, after all, only fought with them forty-two times, despite all of my experince reading them. It was Masked forty-one times, and my wife the other. But I don't really want to talk about that last one; I thought she was breaking into our house."

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"You're good to take it, Butter, I'll make a Javelin work fine."

Toki slid his foot under the throwing Lance, flipping into the air and catching it before turning to Charlemagne.

"Alright, honored Patron, any recommendations on how to proceed?"

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