Return of The Emblem Chapter One: The Artifact

[Mercakete]

Gytha was glad the marchant was finally completing the transaction. She's looking for mercenaries, is she? Well, it looks like the others have it covered. ...Wait. If this is to go after those magic-usin' brine-brains, then this may turn into more of a quest than a simple job. Do even one of these landlubbers know aft from fore? I'd hate for the nice merchant to sink because of the inability to handle a ship... If they're on a quest, they'll wind up at sea at some point I'll wager. I'll ask when she comes around again.

[ReformBlade]

An odd girl, to be sure... But not one that Nanahm felt hostility from, which is always a good thing for co-workers. Still, he hoped he hadn't weirded her out with his small ramblings. Now wasn't the time to dwell on that though as Veronika decided they should be doing something now. He followed, wondering what she was going for now since he had only half listened to her conversation with that pink haired lady. Still, he wasn't sure what to look for at the docks, but he guessed to just look for anything suspicious for the time being.

"What have i wandered into this time...?" he muttered to himself more to hear his own voice than to voice any actual concerns.

[EchoingPewter]

"Alirght, here's my suggestion," Wolfgang started as they headed around the wagon, "Wallace, the wyvern lord I had watch over you while the battle was going on, has left due north of here to meet with another one of my mercenaries. There is a dire message he had for me, and his flight over here from Sergei has likely taken some time, so I sent Wallace to be a middle man. So my suggestion is that if we do leave tonight, we travel north for the time being so Wallace will not spend extra time searching for us. Once I have worked out the details with him, I personally do not mind where we go from there. If we need to ready a ship to take, I can have Ariost prepare that while we book rooms at an inn tonight." Wolfgang opened up the wagon cover to make it easier for Raquel to search.

"Is that acceptable? Or do you prefer something different?" Wolfgang questioned while he waited for her to finish searching.

[Snowy_One]

As the city behind him started to fade into the distance, Daloth could not help but feel as if his resentment towards the idiot guardsman was fading away into the horizon behind him as well. With every step he took, he could feel the frustration starting to ebb away as a more relaxed demeanor came over his body. Taking a deep breath, he quickly gave himself a light shake before clutching his tome close to his body.

"Suppose I best find a proper place to rest for the night soon." he grumbled to himself. He looked over to his right, taking note of the bay beside him. If he followed it, he could easily head north, or west if he followed the other branch from which Sergio was based on. North would lead to Ursium, while west to the relatively untamed lands. He gave a shudder at the thought of those wild places. He was a traveler, sure, but he still needed the comfort of civilization. Ursium it was. He would have to keep his tongue bitten, sure, but at least he would be in a civilized land.

[-Cynthia-]

"Hmm, either you're very observant or my nation of origin is more transparent than I intended. I will keep your advice in mind." Veronika responded to Jeanne.

She surveyed the scene at the docks, where there were many guards salvaging the wreckage and blocking most access to the part with another slightly smaller warship than the one that blew up.

"Looks like they aren't letting any vessels in or out at the moment, a sensible security measure given the explosion. That means that the kidnappers probably did not escape on the water. I still wonder at how such a large vessel was destroyed so quickly. If this attack and the kidnappers are connected, perhaps the nature of the attack will give us some sort of clue." Veronika said to Jeanne and Nanahm.

[RPG]

Me? Observant? Nah, you just should have done more research on Ursium. Your questions just screamed foreigner. Jeanne thought to herself before responding. "Magic is a possibility, assuming we are dealing with a very skilled mage," she said to Veronika. "I'm no arcane art practitioner, but it would have been an advanced spell or a skilled caster to create an explosion, I'm guessing. Offensive magic often involves releasing a fairly unstable discharge of energy through use of a controlled tome, whereas an explosion could be created with powerfully concentrated energy built up to the point of detonation, and released when the potential energy is maximized." Jeanne couldn't help but yawn before continuing. Her own theory was beginning to bore herself.

"...Or it could have just been synthetic materials that reacted explosively together. Hell if I know, I wasn't there." She almost slapped herself after realizing another potential error in her behavior. "Y'know, let's just ask one of the witnesses. That's better than guessing." Dammit, now I look like a babbling idiot.

Edited January 12, 2011 by RPG

[Phoenix]

"I guess that's fine, though we have to change direction depending on where those robed guys are operating from. As soon as we find out where they are that's where we have to go." she replied failing to sound stern. With him holding up the cover she managed to get a better look around, and she did eventually find the polish, though the container it was in was a bit larger than she expected. Stepping off and out of the back of the wagon she sighed. "Alright, here it is. Hey miss! I found the polish!"

[-Cynthia-]

"You seem to know more about magic that I do at any rate." Veronika reponded to Jeanne, noting her yawn. Is she tired? Or bored? These are some interesting mercenaries. she thought to herself before walking up to a guard.

"Excuse me, it seems odd that such a large vessel would sink so quickly, how did this happen?" she asked him.

[Phoenix]

You should have seen it ...

"Oh it was horrifying. I'm positive no one on the Celeste got out alive." the soldier began. Pointing out at what was left, he continued. "I was carrying one of the ration crates onto the Missionary when some loud cracking sound got mine and everyone else's attention. I looked out over the water and saw the Celeste bending inward, like it was being crushed or something. Next thing I knew, it just blew in half from the center. The explosion was bigger than the ship. I couldn't see anything else until after the flash wore off. Then there were just two halves going under. No one could have survived that. It's really sad."

[Mercakete]

"Ah! Thank ye!" Gytha replied, digging into her pouch and pulling out the promised 60 gold. It had turned out to be a good wager. This was more than she'd been expeting. Making the exchange, she placed the stone and the containter into her item pouch. I'll toss the old stone later and use up the old polish before I start on the new one.

"Oh, an' sounded like ye was lookn' for mercenaries, no?" she asked, "Is it to find yer sales partner who disappeared in that black, swirly cloud thing? Bah, let me get to the point: Will ye be needn' ships at all?"

[Phoenix]

Would they be needing ships? Raquel certainly hoped not. She didn't do too well on the water herself. She couldn't even swim. She decided not to mention that though. "The person they took w- ... is my father. I have to rescue him. I don't really know if we'll end up needing to cross over any large bodies of water, but I guess it's always a possibility. I do need some help regardless though." she said alluding to her mercenary recruitment issue as she accepted the payment.

Edited January 12, 2011 by Phoenix

[Mercakete]

"Count me in," Gytha stated. It wasn't meant to sound like an order, but it might've come across that way, "I didn't know that was yer father. No one deserves to be separated from their father if they're on good terms. And asside from that, if ye'll be on ships at all, ye'll need someone who knows how to sail 'em, aye? I'm a mariner meself. Maw'll come along, too. She's a right-good rat-catcher, ye know. So, ye'll have us along, aye?" The woman's eyes glinted with adventure and determination as she, at the same time, have her usual, wide, wistful smile, fists on her hips.

[Phoenix]

"Oh. Okay then." she began. Feeling the need to explain things a bit she added "I'm going to be offering discounts on anything you people need while we're at this. I can also pay you for your services, though not very much until I start turning a profit here. That's all assuming I we don't find my father immediately." The more she thought about it, the more she wanted to get rid of that mysterious group that had attacked her and abducted her father. They were after the emblem she carried and there was likely no end to her future troubles until either it was gone, or they were. With all those involved thus far in favor of the former her mind was made up too. Even once Jethro was rescued she would keep hounding that group right back however she could until they were wiped out. Though the mercenaries that would remain with her after that would have to do all of the killing. Raquel didn't like the idea of killing someone herself but was plenty use to Jethro dealing with bandits during their travels.

[Mercakete]

"Sounds grand! Well, then, it be gettn' darker by the minute. So, where should we all be lodging, captain?" she asked, ready to start taking orders immediately.

[Phoenix]

"I'm really hoping you guys can afford your own rooms if we end up staying in town for the night." she said shyly. "Wherever you people decide to stay is fine with me, just make sure you're back with me when it's time to go." I've got a lot of reading to do in the meantime ... and I won't even be half way caught up on everything I should know by now. Ugh.

[RPG]

"Interesting..." Due to her logical and analytical mind, Jeanne had always been adept in school, back when she lived with her parents and when they could afford her. In her studies, she was always the most interested in physics; the idea of knowing how and why the world worked through energy interactions and movement fascinated her. She focused on it immensely (it was one of the few things that interested her then), and as such Jeanne knew a fair amount of how energy worked in magic. Using this talent of hers, she attempted to piece together an explanation for the incident. She covered her mouth with the left hand (the right held both Megaera's reigns and her lance), and she stared at the ground, deep in thought. Only little mysteries like this could keep her from being bored.

There are plenty of possibilities for the explosion. Any explosive material would work, and explosive magic isn't unheard of. The "bending inward" thing is a little more difficult though. It's clear that it was a forced occurrence. I'd hazard a guess towards more arcane magic, or another ancient force. I recall certain dark spells being able to distort or fluctuate space due to the immense potential energy invoked...anima spells involve the transfer of energy, so that's a no. I'd imagine light magic depends more on the strength of the spirit than the skill of the caster, but I doubt that it could distort the atmosphere around the ship enough to bend it either way. It's probably dark magic, or something I'm not familiar with. Regardless, she was almost certain that they were dealing with a skilled master of arcane arts.

"About sixty percent," Jeanne found herself saying aloud, moving her left hand to her hip. "I'd say there's about a sixty percent chance that this was caused by a skilled dark mage." When she was in this mood, nothing troubled her, even her finances and the hunger that was slowly building up insider her were nothing right now. Until she realized what her employer might think when she realized that she barely had enough money for a night at an inn, in addition to the chance that she might notice her ranting theoretical scientist side. Damn, keeping a good reputation is hard.

Edited January 12, 2011 by RPG

[EchoingPewter]

"Ariost!" Wolfgang said with a slightly elevated voice while behind the wagon after Raquel left to complete her transaction. The druid slowly ascended out of the dark mist that formulated in front of Wolfgang.

"Yes, Wolfgang?" Ariost inqured as his headache seemed to have disappeared now.

"I want you to do some digging around here. See if you can find any leads on this group since Wallace is away. Can I trust you with this task?" Wolfgang said with a low voice.

"Of course, Wolfgang. I shall return with...pleasing, results." Ariost said. With that, he faded into the dark mist before it dissipated.

Wolfgang followed Raquel at this point and heard her just finish hiring the mercenary from the ship. He couldn't help but smirk at the conversation he heard between them.

"It seems like your predicament has influenced a few mercenaries to assist you. Perhaps with your discount, you can influence more." Wolfgang said as he joined Raquel at her side, looking down at her. He wanted to know if that Neviskotian would be joining them as well, he could not remember. However, he kept quiet on that for now, asking such around Gytha might not go well since that person seemed to be keeping their identity secret.

Hm...at that point I would assume she is a noble. The fact that she also has hired two people with her increases the chances, a normal civillian usually does not worry about such details when travelling. I can not be sure until I decide to ask her. Perhaps I will know of or remember her.

Edited January 12, 2011 by EchoingPewter

[Phoenix]

"It would still be nice to get a few more people ... and at least one healer." she muttered mostly to herself. Spotting another wyvern rider, she wondered if he would do for another recruit. There was also a lance wielder and a man who appeared to be a Rexian speaking to each other. For a split second she thought she saw their eyes meet, but he quickly went back to looking at the man he was conversing with. Not sure what to make of the intimidating stare, she went back to focusing on the wyvern rider close by. "I'll talk to him next I guess." she said as she began heading over minding the wyvern.

OOC: Wyvern rider mentioned is John just so you know

[Acacia Sgt]

For the last few minutes John only watched. 'And here I was thinking I'd be out of town by now.' He thought. 'Well, so now what? The guards already said we could leave, but now I'm curious about this whole thing.'

He then noticed the woman of the wagon approaching him. 'Well, looks like this is my chance to find out.'

[Dark Sage]

Hmm...It would probably be prudent to investigate the disturbance at the docks. The trouble began as soon as it happened, so I might as well survey the damage.

"Lady Merchant," Domovoi said, heading near Raquel, "I am going to investigate the docks now and report back what I find. it is best you know so you don't think I just wandered off."

Red haired woman isn't here now. And a couple of people who also fought are no longer here either. Whatever the case, I should probably check Miskavolv.

[Snike]

Mission for friends of his. So, there were at least four factions in the hunt. This was vital.

"Alright, I won't press you about it," Axel replied, appearing to ignore the look the Rexian shot at the merchant. After a moment, he nodded. "Well, Truth be with you, I guess." Having said that, the merc walked away from the foreigner, and out to the port, to look at the sunken ship.

[Phoenix]

"Um, fair well then." Amon replied to the man before spotting Raquel on her way over to another wyvern rider. He wasn't sure what was going on, but he felt a bit of urgency and took a single step toward her and then stopped. Whatever it is I'm searching for, she has it. I'm not certain how to go about this. If I go over and ask her to hand it over, I'm likely to cause an incident. They had no problem attacking a dozen robed agents. I doubt they wouldn't seek to take me out. This is ... risky.

Hearing Domovoi, Raquel quickly called back "The woman I talked to before is already on that. Can you help me try to recruit some of these mercenaries instead?" After that she greeted the other wyvern rider. "Hello. I'm Raquel. This may sound a bit forward and maybe even condescending but I need to hire some of you people for an extended period. I can't pay you much in the beginning, but while we track down the people that attacked us, I'm going to be handling my father's business. Since you'd be assisting me anyway, I could offer very good deals for you. Is that agreeable?" The salesmanship book came to mind and she cursed herself mentally for not reading it and getting some charisma in advance.

[Dark Sage]

"Yes I see," Domovoi said back. He wasn't very good with people and a wyvern rider would be better for a scouting mission. Still, an order was an order.

Let's see...who to recruit...who hasn't been recruited yet? Ah nuts, this is going to be a little tricky. Especially since I don't know the most convincing recruiting speech with what we have.

[Acacia Sgt]

John heard what the woman had to say. He thought about the proposal for a moment. 'This sounds like a job that may take a while. Well, I guess to me it wouldn't make that much of a difference, I guess. Still, those men didn't looked like typical bandits, so something must be going on. I'd say my curiousity has won me over. Alright then...'

His answer ready, he told her: ''Well, I may not know what exactly is going on but, you say you want to hire me? And... you say you can't exactly pay me in gold? Well, if you say you have a way around that... Okay then, I accept.''

[EchoingPewter]

"Well, while I cannot speak for Raquel here, I would put in my point of view that this job would be very much worth your time, wyvern rider." Wolfgang said with a smile as he followed after Raquel. After he spoke to the wyvern rider with her he'd head over to the docks and find that woman he believed to be a noble. He wanted to find out who she was. Badly.

"I assure you if you travel with her, and use her discounts to your advantage, you'll likely live to benefit from it." He stated, trying to help her get this guy's help.