Return of the Emblem Chapter Three: The Show

[-Cynthia-]

Selene

"Very well Disciple Desmond, I will do what is necessary to secure the Emblem. May Wrath guide you to answers," she said, giving him a polite bow before exiting his office. On her way back out of the cathedral, thoughts ran through her mind on how to best secure the Emblem. That Raquel appeared to be a traveling merchant, I do not think she will stay in Europa long. Once she is in a more remote area, I can send an agent after her. I'll write the letter tonight and have Noelle deliver it to Alastor in the morning.

Connor

"Aww that means you missed the Astra Bow and the Hex Ballista, not to mention my transmutation demonstration. At least you got to see some of the cool explosions. I always think it's a shame how only a few people get to see the demonstrations, but Uncle Seth says it's for security and secrecy and all," Connor said to the guard, shrugging.

[Phoenix]

Storage Shenanigans

Gabbie stared at one of the four bars she had picked to swipe. It looked like it was ... frankly, impossible to remove. She kept staring for half a minute trying to think of ideas. "... ... ...." Still thinking, she crossed her arms and tapped her foot.

...

"... I could blast it out with the tank's main gun ... erm ... no, too damn loud."

...

"Could ram the lift and break it out that way ... uh ... wait, that ain't as loud but it'll blow my cover."

...

"Betta take a closer look at this rig." she said kneeling down over it. "Come on, aren't there some kinda screws holdin' this thing together?"

"Gabbie, what the hell are you doing in here?" a man standing behind her with a cup of coffee said. As casual as he sounded, Gabbie was upright and frozen. She'd thought she was alone. Of course that did give her a chance to recruit some unwitting help.

"Oh, uh yeah. Listen up, this is important. Weyland told me he wanted ona the bars from the tank lift. Can you help me out, here?"

"One of those? What ever for?"

"Weeeell from the looks of it he needed a precise measurement for something. He might be upgradin' the model. You know how he gets, heheh." she said trying to laugh a bit casually.

"Heheh, I sure do. Well don't bother with that. You should know by now that we've got back ups for everything around here. Even back ups for the back ups." he said motioning her to follow him. Once they reached the other side of the storehouse, he went into an office and came out with a bar identical to the ones on the tank lift. "Will this do? It's identical to the others." he said presenting it.

"WOW, THANKS, MAN! You're a life saver!" she said praising him and swiping the bar before he could even blink.

"Uh, thanks." he said getting slightly red in the face.

Meanwhile outside ...

"Yeah it bites to miss out on so much, but I guess my pay is compensation enough. Frankly I'm more annoyed that my wife is due any day now. I swear if I miss my own kid being born I'm gonna be pissed." the sniper explained putting a hand on his hip and leaning forward slightly to scratch his head with the other.

[-Cynthia-]

"Couldn't you ask for the week off or something?" Connor asked the man. "We have plenty of guards, I'm sure Uncle Seth would let you leave for something like this. If seeing your kid being born is that important to you, it's probably worth a shot," Connor said to the sniper, realizing he hadn't really worked out a way to know that Gabbie had obtained the bar. Stall for a little while longer I guess, then hope she got out of there.

[Snowy_One]

LFG Ursium museum

Having not been encumbered by the sheep, Robin had already made it outside and was standing beside the two ladies, staves still in hand; a disgusted look on her face as she watched the exchange of money. With a quick shudder, she returned her focus to Olga.

"Here are your staves Olga." She turned to Bron. "Now, we have two thieves, a archer, a healer, and I presume you are a front-line fighter of some sort. That's a basic group right there if I'm not mistaken. We're more than ready to raid Ursium for this relic."

[Phoenix]

Estate Storage Area

The sniper shrugged a bit. "I guess it's worth a try. Weyland wanted his best people around this week because of the meeting so now that that's over maybe there's a chance. Though if the military made their purchases tonight, Weyland might be shipping some things out tomorrow, and damn is that going to be nearly as much security as at the meeting. On the bright side, the military would be filling in most of that since it's a cross region endeavor and not like tonights viewing."

With the bar in hand, and being spun around her palms and wrists like a lance already, Gabbie went out the side door. She figured it was less suspicious than trying to get back out the window, and if she was quiet enough, the sniper wouldn't notice. At the very least she had the advantage of being around the corner, and not by the front where he was. She wasn't sure how she was going to signal Connor though. Once she was outside she sneaked back to the mansion the way she came.

And the Show Went On

Once Synthia was comfortable with the lyrics, Rodrigo signaled for the band to begin playing. Then he made a silent prayer to the Goddess Mercy that Alice wouldn't try to muscle her way to the song lead. The Goddess sometimes granted miracles, but the hero felt like he was asking for WAY too much just the same.

...

When the guitarist began playing, the crowd finally began quieting down. Alice had sparkles in her eyes of course. Backstage the crew was biting their fingernails hoping things would go well. The concert itself was sudden enough, but Alice was just supposed to stall things until Rodrigo got there. Now she was in a position that had them almost as nervous and worried as Rodrigo was. Nonetheless, they kept focused, and Rodrigo made it through the first verse in full character. One of the crew backstage couldn't help but make all sorts of guiding gestures even though Rodrigo couldn't see him. It was more out of habit, and he kept on doing it. "And one ... two ... three ... ..." he whispered as the singers went into the first course. "Good. Great, man, you're doin' fantastic." he said in a low volume cheer.

During the build up to the last course, Silvia was slowly swaying back and forth with a few people in the audience, and had her arms around the shoulders of two people and partly as a result, they were forced to sway with her and the others. Amon wasn't sure how Nanahm felt about being woman handled at a time like this, but couldn't bring himself to say anything either, and frankly she was enjoying this too much for him to feel right getting loose. Were those tears he saw in her eyes? Okay wow. Well the songs almost over so the swaying should be over in a minute. Then I can go back to feeling slightly less awkward. Amon thought to himself.

When Rodrigo ended the song, the crowd sounded off with thunderous applause but he could barely notice it over his own shock. Alice hadn't muscled in on him or stolen any lyrics. What the hell was going on? Had Mercy answered his prayer? Oh man ... thank you. THANK YOU AGAIN, YOU SWEET MERCIFUL GODDESS! Rodrigo thought, tears building up in his eyes too. The last thing he needed was a show ruined and he felt blessed.

Silvia let go of Amon and Nanahm to clap along with everyone else, raising her hands high in the air. Amon caught himself looking at her outfit. What really had his attention was an empty sword sheath on her side. Is she a swordsman? This type of set up is similar to Veronika's. Maybe she's a mercenary? he thought.

OOC:

Here is the actual song for those curious about the lyrics and Rodrigo's voice tone, etc.

Somewhere in Yasnygrad

Well, both women had come out of the house together, and Olga put Niko down and shut the door behind her, so for the most part they were ready to go. Olga accepted the staves from Robin and looked each one over making sure she hadn't missed any or gotten duplicates.

"You wouldn't guess it by looking, but Bron's actually a fire mage." Liliya explained. "Mage garbs are a horrible choice for relic hunting though, so when we see him, he's usually in that sort of outfit."

"Uhhh, yeah, what she said." Bron muttered, still a bit sad at the loss of the ten gold. "Alright, if that's all, Olga, mind if we get going?"

"W-wait. Does a girl have to carry all this stuff AND walk little Niko all by herself?"

"... damn. Alright, give me the bag." he mumbled.

"And these staves ... they're sooo heavy. I don't ... I don't think I can go on like this." she whined feigning a great burden.

"Uuuuugh, and the staves."

As if waiting for him to say that, Olga forced the bag and staves into Bron's arms and began walking off ahead of the group with Niko following closely behind. "She's at it again." Liza said looking at her sister, who grimaced.

"Come on, guys! Borders to cross, relics to acquire!" she called back at the group.

[Dark Sage]

"Hmmm? Oh Urisium." Domovoi carefully considered how to reply. On the one hand, an Ursium person might hear his....less than flattering opinion and there might be a confrontation. On the other hand, he didn't care about offending them, like how they didn't care about offending any Neviskotian. Still, it was best to tread a little lightly.

"I've only traveled Ursium for two or three weeks now. But it does not impress me in the least the way Neviskotia does. Take this city here. Everything here is so luxurious and gaudy it's disgusting. Some people like their cities like that, but I don't. I believe there is a beauty in simplicity and functionality like there is in Kievan Rus. The smaller towns and ports from what I've seen don't suffer this nearly as much as this place does, which I am thankful for. I dislike that the Ursium church has so much influence on day to day life and the law, unlike the religions in Neviskotia. I'm not sure if Kigen and Rex Avaz are similar when it comes to religion but I hope not."

[-Cynthia-]

Connor

"Oh right, after the show it's usually time for shipments," Connor said unenthusiastically. It makes Uncle really busy, but he doesn't even have anything cool to show at the end of it. What a drag. Wonder if Gabbie's done yet... "Well uh, nice meeting you," he finished, waving the sniper goodbye and returning to the backstage area of the show where he had his blowtorch.

Veronika

Veronika nodded as Domovoi gave his assessment on Ursium. "I have been here for less time than you have, but what you say rings true to my ears. I suppose all of northern Sardius was like this once, before Neviskotia broke off and it could return that way if things go poorly enough. I'm sure my father and the other generals have things under control, but still...." she said, her voice traling off.

She snapped back into reality rather quickly. "Anyway, from what I hear, Kigen and Rex-Avaz aren't much like Ursium. Thet worship dragons or something in Kigen, which is a little odd but no more so than worshipping supposedly cosmic beings that are on some other plane. I recall Rex-Avaz having a religion revolving around some sand goddess thing, makes some degree of practical sense I guess given how their entire country is made up of sand. Both countries have some absurd policies though, so personally I'm happy to be Neviskotian born."

[Phoenix]

Mission Compl-Oh shi-

Gabbie had gone back the way she came at first, but found herself lost among the outdoor shrubbery she was trudging through. When she finally got out of Nature's domain, she found herself facing a massive wall. "... completely stone wall? Now where the hell am I? This must be one of the reinforced areas sooooo ... I'm probably near the labs. Damn, that means I'm all the way on the other friggin soide 'a place! What the ... friggin hell, man?!" she hollered. There was nothing to be done about it now. She took the only route that would keep her from being spotted, and it brought her here. She walked alongside the wall following it to the first window she could find, which luckily led into a hallway.

"Okay now I'm gettin' close to the entrance ... a bit too close actually. Need to get back to the stage and without runnin' int'a the Professor."

As she went along eventually she ran into a familiar face. It was her wyvern, Ringo. The big flying lizard was nearly invisible where he was and rather than spotting him, she merely tripped toppling over him. The wyvern raised up his head, having clearly been asleep and looked at his downed master and gave a concerned moan. She looked like she had been dragged through the dirt and trampled or something of that nature. "You ... idiot! What are you doin' over here?!"

He didn't know what she was saying, but her tone suggested whatever happened to her was his fault. He was sorry and didn't know how to convey that so came over and licked her cheek which, surprisingly shut her up for a second. "Uh ... what's with you? Eh, whatev'a. I need ya help anyway, so come on." she ordered walking off again. Ringo followed along keeping his eyes peeled.

The two soon arrived very close to the mansion entrance. Both were clumsily hidden in the finely cut bushes that lined the walkway. They both peeked out and scanned around. The only guards seemed to be on the roof, and they were out of normal viewing range so they didn't matter of the moment. Ringo wondered why the were sneaking around. They knew most of these humans. Gabbie okay then, you stay here, and if anyone comes around, bother'em for me. Okay, just gotta get back to the stage area, and give Connor this thing so I can get a replacement lance. I don't know where Weyland is but I gotta avoid'em at all cost. If he sees me with this thing, he'll think ... hmm, not sure what he'll think but I'm already in trouble as it is so ... not takin' any chances ... she thought with a glare.

She quickly made her way into the mansion and blew past the six or seven maids that tried to inform her about the horrible condition her clothes were in. She already knew, and didn't care. The conference room doors came into view and for some reason they were being held open. That was convenient! She picked up her pace and sprinted toward the opening, ready to rush the stage and head to the back and meet up with Connor. She almost made it to the door when Weyland and General Capaberra came walking into view overlooking a document together. Gabbie grinded to a stop in front of the both of them and hid the bar rather poorly behind her back.

"Gabbie, no running in the halls." Weyland said offhandedly almost paying her no mind.

"What a lively employee you have here, Weyland." the General said giving Gabbie a quick scan.

"Uh ... roight, Profess'a! Won't happen again! Honest!" she replied.

Now Weyland's eyebrow was raising and he spotted the bar she was holding. "Two things. One, what are you doing with that? Two, bloody hell, you look awful, woman. What happened to you?"

"Uh, well ya see ... I uh, need this for ... something and this guy said I could have it, and I uh ... got into a fight with Ringo over it. But I was all 'Oh no ya don't, ya friggin lizard!" and kicked'em square in the face. That showed'em." she explained.

"Interesting wyvern treatment." Capaberra noted aloud.

"'This guy'? Name?"

"Gary? Err Tom? Kinda short, only comes up to my chest, brown hair, blue eyes, likes coffee?"

"Ah, Tom." That is a support to the tank lift. What on earth could she need that for? And what is she lying to me about? "Well ... carry on, then." he said dismissing her and going back to the document with the General.

"Yessir!" she said giving a salute for some reason and then dashing into the conference room the second they weren't blocking the door. She made it back stage and was panting as if she'd run a marathon when she found Connor. "Urgh! What the hell, man?! Seriously! First a wrong turn, and then I run into Weyland the second I make it back here?! I don't know which one'a those clowns up there is screwin' with me but I'm not havin' it! Wrath! You ... bastard! Mercy! You sold me out! Nature ... thickets? Seriously?! And ... Truth! You floating ... ball!" she complained to the boy.

Edited May 2, 2011 by Phoenix

[-Cynthia-]

Connor noted Gabbie's outburst with a mixture of concern and amusement. "But...you got the rod right?" he asked, looking up from his rune-drawing process he was doing on the lance that used to belong to the suit of armor. Almost ready, hope this works as well for weapons as it does it for armor.

[Phoenix]

"Yeah I got it right here." she said handing Connor the last ingredient. "Anythin' else we need or are ya good to go?" she asked kneeling down curiously looking over the runes.

[-Cynthia-]

"That should be it, I had everything set up for the presentation so everything should be good to go," Connor said, inscribing the last of the runes on the old decorative lance. "You'll probably want to stand back after I turn the torch on, always have to have your goggles on before you experiment. If you don't, well you might not need them afterwards."

Connor positioned the lance near the blowtorch then went around and turned it on. There was a bright flash of light which forced Connor to close his eyes. He shut off the blowtorch and went over to look at the lance.

"Well it looks like it's iron. Don't touch it with your bare hands though; since it should still be pretty hot."

[Phoenix]

Gabbie just plain looked away as the light became too bright for her. Of course once she saw the lance her first thought was to pick it up and start twirling it about, but Connor gave her a warning about the heat. "Crud." she uttered. "Sooo how long til it cools off?"

"

[-Cynthia-]

"Just a minute or too," Connor answered Gabbie. He got up close and inspected the lance a little closer. "Hmm...seems the transmutation took a few inches off the shaft; it's not supposed to do that. The lance should still be functional, but I guess I need to practice with weapons a little more before I can make one without defects," he said, frowning a little.

[Phoenix]

Waiting

"Well as long as it won't break during a full on thrust or bend during block busting I'm good to go!" she exclaimed, looking closer herself wondering how much longer she had to wait.

The Concert Concludes

As they went into another song, it became clear to Rodrigo that Alice hadn't miraculously cooperated with him, she was merely delaying her takeover until an opportune moment ... the next song. The audience didn't seem too bothered, and she performed well, but Rodrigo was silently cursing and his crew knew he was annoyed. When it came time to conclude the show, Rodrigo stood on the stage alone, Alice and Synthia were brought over to the crew to watch with them until it was over. The hero addressed the crowd directly, resonating stone held up, and eyes full of sincerity.

"Well I hope you had a good time out here tonight, folks. I've gotta tell ya, the last few days have been quite the thrill. I ALMOST didn't make it here due to a silly little hold up with some individuals. You might call them morons." he said making a joke. "I mean really, tying up Mister Blue first? I'm the one with the gun. What weeere they thinking?" he said following up with another joke at their expense.

Silvia listened closely because she knew far more about what Rodrigo was talking about than most everyone else in the audience. "So yeah, I won't say it was a cake walk, but when you're getting your butt handed to you by a tied up Phoenix, you probably need some practice, no?" Again another joke. "But it wasn't all me. A lovely young lady and her employees showed up just in time to make things that much easier for us, and we bagged and tagged another group of idiotic wrong doers, and made it just in time for the concert. Now is that a happy ending or what? Unfortunately not all of them could be here tonight, but please give a round of applause for these modern day heroes, ladies and gentlemen. Every last one of them." he said getting the audience into a clapping storm.

"... ugh ... Caine." Silvia muttered to herself right before the clap began.

Amon's eyes widened in surprise. Did ... she just say ... CAINE? The Rexian agent tried to examine her a bit without being noticed in return and was wondering just how dangerous she may or may not be. She was still holding onto him, though her grip on Nanahm had loosened to the point of looking like her arm would fall off at any moment, and then it did. Amon was released right afterward. Now's my chance. I need to tell Raquel about ... no she's at the mansion. Veronika's closer. I don't know anyone else that's ... what's the right word ... ... trustworthy isn't it but I guess I'll go with that for now. Really it's just they're the only two that seem like they're capable of doing anything with information like this.

He moved behind Silvia and tapped Nanahm on the shoulder and then began whispering in his ear. "This is important. I don't know who this woman is but she might know the people who attacked us. If you can, just keep her here until I get back." he said before trying to muscle his way out of the crowd. Little did he realize that Silvia had vanished the moment he did and Nanahm had been left with a mission that was already failed. Okay so I need to get back to the university, and then tell Veronika about this woman ... and then ... great I'm not sure what next. We need to find out what she knows but she's not going to cooperate with us if she's one of them, is she?

Amon escaped the crowds and made it back to the streets, but there was the same problem from earlier. He would never make any good time if he headed back at street level. That was it, he ducked into an alley way and scaled up to the top of the building, and then began sneaking around on the rooftops looking for opportunities for stealthy sprints. He didn't make it very far before Silvia popped out in front of him and forced him to stop or run into her. He chose the former and noted the knife in his coat.

"Hi." she said in a perky voice.

"... hi." Amon replied, his voice reserved and distrusting.

Yeah, he's definitely one of Raquel's. "So where are you off to in such a hurry?"

"Well, nowhere now." he said looking around a bit. "My plan is shot. I'll just have to deal with this myself."

"Well now that the concert is over, I've got nothing but time. So just how were you planning to deal with me?" she asked crossing her arms, genuinely curious.

"Just questions. I don't like to fight if it's not necessary." he explained. "Do you know the people that came after us?"

"I already answered that one, didn't I?"

"Vaguely. Still, are you just old acquaintances or are you allied with them?"

"Hard to be allied with corpses." she said wryly. "Next question?"

Now she's just being comical. How am I supposed to learn anything at this rate? "What's your name?"

Encounter

"Silvia, and yours?"

"... Amon."

"It's nice to meet you, Amon. Any other questions?"

"What are you planning to do? What's your goal?" he asked sounding desperate.

"A better world. Nothing more, nothing less ... and that's not as vague as it sounds, Amon. Why don't you join me?"

"Can't. I've got other allegiances." he said standing firmly now.

"Suit yourself, but if you're not going to join us ..." she paused to unsheathe what Amon easily identified as a killing edge. "... we're going to be enemies. Are you alright with that? I heard Rexians aren't big on fighting women. Is that true?"

This ... is not good. Amon thought to himself while taking out his knife. "I'll do it if I have to."

"I guess you have to, that or just let me stab you. Feel free to come at me first. If I go first this might be over too quickly." she explained readying herself.

Okay, number one priority here is to survive. Just survive. Even if you have to let her escape, just survive. Amon said to himself over and over again before beginning his attack on the swordswoman.

Amon rolls 6,1,5

http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/3006554/

HIT

-4 hp

Amon's first attack hit and Silvia's guard was overpowered easily. The cut on her sword arm would have been much larger if not for her arm guard. "Whoa, you don't mess around, do you?" He was trying to disarm me there. I guess he's not interested in killing me. That's going to cost him. "I don't mess around much, either ..." she said lunging more quickly than what Amon had expected.

Silvia rolls 5,5,6

http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/3006576/

LETHAL HIT!

-24 hp KO

Silvia 8/12

Amon -15/9

Silvia's sword plunged right through Amon's stomach and the force of her charge pushed them both to the edge of the building! Urgh ... no ....

"That wasn't bad but you leave yourself way too open for counterattacks. Enemies can walk all over you once you make your move, Amon." she said yanking the sword out and catching the Rexian by the hand before he could fall off the building. "Hey, looks like you've got a vulnerary here ... it's not going to do you much good in your state though. I didn't think I would do this much damage, sorry about that." He is sooo going to bleed to death at this rate. Let's see, how many people are down there? Oh good, plenty. "Do me a favor would you, Amon? Tell your friends that they can't beat us, so they may as well join us. Oh, and don't land on your head or anything. Hard to give them my little message if you die, right?" she explained before shoving Amon off the building. She was out of sight before he crashed on top of a pile of garbage and tumbled out into the sidewalk in a bloody pile. Several women screamed, and a couple of people came over to see if he was alright. He had already passed out though, and they sent for aid right away.

He knew he was as good as dead if he gave me that answer ... "Can't. I've got other allegiances." ... and yet he still said it. Why can't we have more people like that? It's like they're all vanishing, and being replaced by greedy little idiots. Maybe I'll try again later, but for now, it's best to get on with my duties. She thought, looking down on the building she had defeated Amon on from another building. She saw several guards beginning to be drawn to that building by the noise of Amon's crash, but she was in the shadows, and Amon was being swarmed by citizens, so she wasn't going to be seen again that night ....

Back at the Concert

"Well I that's it for us tonight, ladies and gentlemen, I hope you enjoyed it. WE WILL SEE YOU NEXT TIIIME!~" Rodrigo closed with a signature statement and began his confidant stroll backstage while walls of fire shot up on his left and right flanking him until he was out of sight. Once he was back with the crew again, he sighed in relief. "Well ... could have gone better, could have gone worse. I won't complain ... but dammit, Alice, don't do that. Get your own fans. Don't try and steal mine." he said to the woman.

"Rodrigo, you come from a noble house and you have oodles of gold at your disposal. A simple woman like me cannot get anywhere in the world save through the assistance of a charitable gentleman such as yourself." she explained calmly, feeling she was in the right.

"Yeah that's called being a leeeech." he said glaring at her.

Edited May 2, 2011 by Phoenix

[Snowy_One]

Aiding the Pack-Bron

As Olga proceeded to promptly unload all of the staves and her bag upon Bron, Robin shot the healer a look of disgust. As soon as her back was turned, Robin promptly snatched the staves from Bron's care. <"Let me carry them."> she offered, stashing them under her arm before taking the bag as well. A audible 'oof' came as she started to walk with both the bag, staves, and her own bow and quiver loaded upon her body. It took less than three steps for the bag to start swinging wildly as she hurriedly approached Olga. "Want me to walk your sheep? I have a left-hand free and *urk* and a frail priestess like yourself should not be tasked with animal care." she offered, a pained smile upon her face.

[Phoenix]

Yasnygrad

"Hm? Nah it's okay, I've got it. Hey, what are you carryin' everything for all of a sudden?" she asked, a bit curious.

Guest Room

Raquel was left in the room and the maid went to go fetch a sandwich from the kitchen for her as she came over to the bed, took off her cloak and sat down on the bed's edge. Chip immediately hopped off her shoulder and onto the bed, scurrying over to the pillow and mimicking a human as he fell down onto it facing away from the door. Raquel glanced back at him and giggled. "That reminds me, you still need a new gun. That girl from earlier ... she chopped your pistol in half like it was nothing. What kind of lance was that? The blade was black too. What kind of material I wonder."

She lied back on the bed placing her arms out and sighed. "Okay what's on my to-do list? See if Weyland can help us with the emblem and getting my father back, load up on essentials and usefuls in the market, chase down some more leads, stay alive, stay out of prison ... shower. Well this isn't going to be any fun." she said closing her eyes for a moment to think about simpler times. Then she sat up and took off her boots. The maid returned with the sandwich and Raquel gladly accepted it. "Thanks." she said with a big smile.

"My pleasure, Miss." she said bowing and then exiting.

Raquel went back over to the bed with the sandwich and sat down again. It was already in two pieces but Chip wasn't the same size as her, so she broke a piece in half and gave it to him. The monkey shot up, hurried over and took the piece knowing full well it was his. He began eating furiously while Raquel took small bites out of the other piece.

[ReformBlade]

Synthia

Having only a few moments prior to singing to actually memorize the lyrics, she felt she did a good job given the circumstances. After all, it isn't every day you go and perform in a concert with The Phoenix. The applause only made it that much better for her, though she could do without the possibly going deaf part... Maybe I misjudged her? She doesn't seem all that troublesome once she starts singing. Whatever, I'm probably just over thinking it... maybe. She thought, but then she witnessed Alice stealing the next song, leaving her having not a single clue as to what to do. Synthia looked over to Rodrigo, but he seemed to be pissed off, reasonably so of course. Thankfully, Rodrigo was just standing there as well, so she figured she'd do the same.

Nanahm

He was enjoying the show a bit, cheering with the crowd at times. Evidently, the lady next to him was really enjoying the show, too. Nanahm had clearly underestimated how much influence this Phoenix guy had over women, not that it mattered at all to him in the end (denial). But damn, this lady seemed clingy. Is she ever gonna let go? Seems odd to just wrap an arm around a guy out of nowhe- Oh... songs over. He noted as the lady began clapping along with the crowd again.

Amon whispered sweet no- I mean in his ear. He made no motion to show he had heard, but he understood completely what he was supposed to do. It's just watching some silly little woman, right? Nothing to woFUCK SHE'S SUDDENLY GONE! I'm terrible at this!

[Rothene]

Thankfully, by the time Ranyin had reached the show, it was relatively late, and the guards had started to lax in their duties. They barely listened to the essay long excuse Ranyin had mentally prepared to explain how his tome was a Kigen Diary when they waved him to shuffle along to the crowd. Somehow, he had the strange impression that one of the younger guard kept looking back at him as he walked to the crowd.

The show was relatively enjoyable...until some crowd started swaying. Ranyin tried to join in the activity, but his small frame meant the swaying only served to act like shoving, causing him get crushed in the crowd. The experience was not the least bit enjoyable. I came to see an awesome show and all I get is a concert, thought Ranyin angrily. He made a sweeping glance to observe how the other memebers from Raquel's gang were doing.

He spotted a stranger clinging onto both Nanahm and Amon, and by the looks of it, she was irritating them. Their expressions were so amusing, Ranyin decided that going out to the show was worth it. It was better than the thought of seeing John wave his spear hidden as a flag in the crowd somehow.

After Rodrigo finished his little speech and left the stage, Ranyin spun around to see if the stranger was still latched onto either Amon or Nanahm. All he saw was a distraught Nanahm standing alone in the crowd. Hurriedly, Ranyin made his way to Nanahm and asked,"Hey, what's the matter Nanahm?"

[Snowy_One]

Shaming the lazy

"It is not so much." said Robin, her walk visibly one-sided due to the immense amount of weight upon her right-side. "I am only carrying... the stuff you asked Bron to carry. It's really not so heavyyyyyyy!" She took a small step forwards, her foot coming down slightly uneven upon a rock within the path. With a sudden lurch forwards, she teetered off the the right with all the grace and momentum of a bolder. She suddenly collapsed to the ground, the staves scattering about her now-dislodged quiver across the street.

For a moment, she did nothing more than simply lay still upon the street, muffled Neviskonian curses coming from under her breath. Then, slowly, she stood up as she tried to gather the staves. "Olga. You are lazy. Please carry at least some of your stuff." she said in a dry tone before she hobbled over to the woman, Olga's staves in hand.

[Phoenix]

Simplistic Woman

"What were you trying to carry all of that for? If Bron had a problem carrying my stuff, he'd say so, wouldn't he?" Olga explained while Bron ran up to see if Robin was alright.

"Hey, you okay there? It's okay, I can carry the stuff, at least until we've got a wagon or something."

For The Morning

Raquel finished her sandwich and then both her and Chip lied down mimicking the same laying position. The monkey scooted back closer to her for warmth as she pulled up the covers and dosed off. First thing tomorrow, freshen up, then head down to the markets and get us some new stuff. Chip soon turned to face her and fell asleep that way, with the girl's arms draping over him.

A Wolf, All Alone (not the same as a lone wolf )

When Amon woke up there was a doctor and a young woman with a staff standing at his bedside. His clothes were gone and he seemed to be wearing a very loose fitting long sleeve shirt and some pants. The only bit of his old outfit that still seemed to be with him was his green headband, which surprised even him. He blinked looking up at them wondering what happened ... and where he was. "Uh, where am I?" he asked the two of them.

The doctor pushed up his glasses with a finger and a concerned look on his face. "Several witnesses saw you stumble out of an alley after some sort of loud crash. You had an otherwise fatal pierce straight through your stomach, a couple of inches below your chest. You're lucky to be alive, young man. Caron here barely managed to close the wound in time."

"Oh ... uh, thank you, Miss Caron." Amon said trying to be polite. She only nodded nervously at first.

"W-who did this to you? That wound ... it was awful." she muttered.

"Yes, who did do this to you, young man? If there's a criminal about, we need as much to go on as we can get." the doctor explained sounding like an officer himself.

What would he tell them? Well that's kind of pointless isn't it? No one's going to catch that woman. She's our problem so we should be the ones to deal with her. "It was dark ... too dark even."

"Understandable." the cleric girl said quietly.

"Hmm, I notice you carry a knife with you. You didn't happen to be robbing someone when you got what you deserved, now did you?" the doctor asked, suddenly changing tunes. The cleric gasped at the doctor's question. She couldn't believe he just asked that.

Crap! Not again! "N-no! Not at all! That knife is for protection ... lot of good that did." he mumbled. "Just ask my friends, they'll vouch for me." he exclaimed. He tried to raise his arms in protest during his explanation but realized at last that his right arm was in a sling while his left wrist was heavily bandaged. "What's all this? What happened to my arms?"

"Your right arm was broken for some reason or other, and your wrist was fractured as well." the doctor explained.

What? Wait, well I did fall off of a three story building and live. I guess I got lucky given the circumstances. I know I didn't land on my feet, that's for certain. the Rexian thought, giving his pained limbs another look over.

"They can come off this time tomorrow or so. The broken bones are already healed but we can't put you on any pain medications until you clarify any allergies you might have, and healed bones or not, the pain doesn't go away just because you got put back together again, so don't exert yourself. Other than that, try to get some rest."

Great, another day? I can't hold the group up like this. Oh crap, the group. The others don't know I'm here, do they? "Doctor? Did anyone claiming to know me come by?"

"Let's see ... hmm, yes actually. There were some get well flowers sent to you about an hour ago. They're behind you over there, sent by a 'Silvia' if the card reads correctly. Other than that, no one."

Silvia? What? Isn't that a little suspicious? I just got here and they aren't questioning where the flowers came from? Or ... how long have I been here exactly? "H-how long have I been here exactly?"

"Six hours." the cleric said chiming in to answer.

"GAAAAAGH! Six hours?! It's four o'clock in the morning already?!"

"That's correct. So this, Silvia woman, do you know her or is she one of the people that brought you in?" the doctor asked fixing his glasses again.

"She ..." Ah, that's it. It's because I didn't get here on my own. "... must have, but I don't remember for certain."

"Makes sense, you were apparently unconscious since they found you. Well Caron here will be looking after you and some other patients until the end of her shift, however mine ended twenty minutes ago and I need to get going. I'll be by tomorrow to have you released if you're doing better by then, alright?"

"Uh, sure. Thank you, doctor."

"Oh they always thank us before they get the bill. Take care." he said waving goodbye and exiting the room.

"The ... bill?" Amon said looking over to Caron, the only person left to confirm his fears.

"Um, currently you're up to six thousand gold. One thousand for every individual injury healed, five hundred for admission, and another five hundred for the other services you've had so far, like the mending to your clothes and storage. I'm sorry about all of this, sometimes they'll do stuff like that without waiting for a request. People can be greedy like that sometimes." she said nervously.

Six thousand gold? I've got thirty-five gold to my name right now. Five hundred for admission? What was I supposed to do? Bleed out? It's not like I asked them to take me here, I would have preferred a spooky old church to this if I knew there was money involved. "Uh, c-can I maybe call someone?"

"Do you have relatives in Europa?"

"Uh not exactly but I do need to talk to some people as soon as possible. I know at least a few of them are at Professor Weyland's estate, and the rest are at the Europa university." he explained.

"Okay, I'll send a couple of our messengers out to those places in a few minutes and find out if they're available, but it's very early in the morning so keep in mind that it could be awhile. So what are their names?" she asked ready to jot them down on a piece of paper.

"Uh, Raquel, and or Veronika. Hmm. Try Gytha, and Synthia too. Or Nanahm." Amon said listing off people as they came to mind.

The cleric wrote them down one after another until Amon finished naming everyone in the group he knew by name. Clearly the first two took priority and she took note of that as well. "Okay then, I'll take care of that, you just get some rest, and I'll be back in a little bit, kay?" she said finally seeming like she was normal and cheerful.

"Sure." he nodded as she turned to leave. She closed the door behind her, and Amon lied back on the bed turning to look at the flowers left for him. "... strange girl. Stabs me, throws me off a building and then sends me flowers? Haythem's right. I'm lousy with women. Mmm ... nah, he probably would have been all over her and gotten himself stabbed to death or something. I'm doing just fine. After all there's Raquel, Gytha, Veronika, and Synthia. I get along with them just fine." he said looking away from the flowers. "Yep, I'm doing just fine." he said reassuring himself. "Then again ... I guess I'm in for a serious scolding if they do come ... oh maaan, it wasn't supposed to happen like this! Here I was trying to help and now I'm sitting in this hospital bed with an outrageous medical bill and flowers from the enemy. Suddenly I miss home again. I wasn't a burden to people there ..." he said closing his eyes. "... curses."

[Snowy_One]

That was a load-bearing foot!

"I twisted my ankle. It is nothing." replied Robin as Bron asked her if she was fine. "And you should not half to carry this stuff. You are carrying your things, I am carrying my things, and Olga has a sheep to carry her things. She should be ashamed to unload her things onto you." she approached Olga again, being careful not to put weight on her right foot as she offered her the load of staves. "Please carry at least some of your things <lazy woman>."

[Mercakete]

It had come to this. Out of despiration, the latch had been successfully undone and she was out the window, onto the rooftops, then outside on the ground. She didn't dare stay outside long, however. As soon as she'd relieved herself, Maw scrambled back to Gytha's window. Now the silver tabby was hungry, but hunting wasn't an option in unfamilliar cities. She'd gotten used to the fuzzy-tailed rats in the wilderness but whenever they came to a city... There were bound to be territories she shouldn't tresspass in lest she be attacked by the cats there. Gytha would be awake shortly. She might as well make sure her coat was in perfect order.

Sure enough, Maw was only several dozen licks into her grooming when she heard and saw the familliar streching under the bed's covers indicating Gytha's awakening. A deep breath later, the human sat up, moving the covers off of herself, and combed her fingers through her hair. "Ahh, that was a good rest!" she observed in a sing-song voice -- a side-effect of her good mood. Taking some string from her belt-pouch, she began braiding her hair and tied it off when the task was complete. The next obvious step was to strap her belt on along with all the other carrying bits of leather already hanging from it. The bandana went over her head, then the boots on her feet and the pantlegs lucked into said boots and Gytha was ready for breakfast! Looking over, the mariner smiled at the cat. "Mornin' Maw," she greeted, "Hungry?"

The cat immediately padded to the bowl Gytha had provided food in last night and sat by it, looking expectantly at the seafarer. "Haharr, aye, I'm hungry too. C'mon, Maw, lets go get somethn' t' eat." With that, Gytha picked up the bowl and headed for the caff'tera or whatever it was called. Maw was trotting alongside the woman, having recognized the words indicating that she would be given food if she followed.

[Phoenix]

Yasnygrad

"No offense to the rest of you, but Bron's not exactly paying me enough for this to be unreasonable. Besides. Not a one of you is going to help me with the reserves so I don't see the problem with Bron carrying my other stuff." Olga explained. She hadn't bothered mentioning that she was only walking ahead of the group so she could get to the liquor store and make a few purchases with the money Bron had paid her in advance. Bron already knew this of course, and knew Olga had enough to purchase a whole crate.

"I'm not sure what our situation is going to be once we have to cross the waters, but until then we might want to get some horses, some to ride to speed things up, and one to carry things. A wagon's out of the question since we won't be taking any roads on this trip." Bron explained.

"Eh, leave that to us. We'll go get some horses." Liza said putting her hands on her hips.

"Just don't steal them, please ..." Bron said in a dull unamused voice.

Both thieves looked at each other the moment Bron had told them not to steal the horses. It was a moment of silence, and then both girls looked to Bron blankly and each held out an open palm. They clearly didn't have enough to pay for five or six horses.

"... my pouch is getting a bit light here, ladies." Bron said digging for some more gold.

A Chat With the Archbishop

Once Major General Selene had left the Grand Cathedral, Desmond made his way to Worthington's office higher up in the massive building. The place was marked by two rather large doors. Desmond knocked on one of them and it slowly opened revealing a young woman in a pale blue gown with light brown hair. She seemed to have large structures on her back but they were nearly completely obscured by the door from Desmond's perspective. He knew exactly who she was though. "... you."

"Oh, Disciple Langley. Did you wish to speak with the Archbishop?" the woman said beginning to back away and open up the door. As she did this, the brown structures on her back came into view. They were feathered wings completely solid in color.

"Joanna? Who's come by, dear?" a voice from deeper in the room said, the sound echoing a bit to indicate that the room was rather large.

"It's Disciple Langley." the woman called back.

Desmond stepped inside glaring at Joanna until he had made it past her. Then he turned back to face her. "I need to speak with Worthington alone. Leave us, and keep your distance." he said in a threatening tone.

She curled up defensively and kept her head low. "Y-yes, of course."

"Ohohoh. What's the matter there, Desmond? Do you not trust a follower of Mother Mercy?" Worthington chuckled walking casually into view with his arms behind his back.

Looking over to him to hear what he had to say, and then glaring at Joanna again, Desmond replied saying "A follower of Mercy does not equate to a trustworthy individual. Besides, this is a sensitive topic, and you and I both know what people like her are capable of."

"You shouldn't be so afraid to think around the girl. Her intentions are never evil. You know this, Desmond."

"She's a dark avian. That title exists for a reason. Even if she was a normal avian I wouldn't trust her. They hide away on their mountain killing anyone to tread into Aquila. In a way they're worse."

"We should save that argument for another day, Desmond. Joanna, you may leave us, but if you would, fetch Priestess Io for me. There is something I would like to discuss with her once we finish here." Worthington said to Joanna who promptly bowed and silently stepped out, closing the door behind her. Desmond kept his eye on her and the door until the closing sound resonated throughout the room. Then he his gaze shot to Worthington.

"Now then, my boy, what have you come to speak with me about this fine evening?"

"I need information, and I mean INFORMATION, not your usual cryptic rhetoric." Desmond said snidely. "What do you know of the Fire Emblem, and the legends surrounding it?"

"I know that it has changed hands many times over the centuries, and that it is the cause of many unsung conflicts throughout our history." Worthington explained.

"That can't be all." He said giving the Archbishop glare. "Why has it changed hands so many times?"

"What does one do with anything they cannot use? One throws it away, or at the very least guards it with little care until it is taken away by another with more fervent desire to utilize it ... and the cycle goes on."

Cycle? A cycle of theft and failed utilization of the Emblem? That might explain why this Raquel is in possession of the Emblem now. "Why can't it be used? I want a straight answer."

"... dear boy, no one can truly control a power they don't understand."

"Is that all?" Desmond said feeling the Archbishop was holding back, and rightly so.

"What do you expect me to say? That there is some trick to using the Emblem? Some ritual or chant to unlock its power?"

"The Fire Emblem is the most powerful artifact ever known, and you're telling me that it is useless because it cannot be understood by mortal men?! Are you saying the legends of old could wield its power?!"

"Perhaps." Worthington said plainly.

"Lies. If the legends could wield the Emblem, then someone would have done so by now. That means it is beyond their understanding as well, does it not?"

"Ah, you do realize that there's a piece of the puzzle missing here, don't you, Desmond? You'll make a fine replacement for your superior when he passes on."

"..."

"The Emblem does not appear to be functional at this time, or any time after the rebellion for that matter. During past centuries when the Emblem fell into the protective hands of the four orders, it was found to be but a glowing golden emblem. Some even speculated that it was not the Fire Emblem due to its size and nature. Lord Truth has confirmed otherwise. I have come to suspect that the Emblem cannot be used because of something that happened at the end of the rebellion nearly five millennia ago." Worthington explained to the now deeply struck and surprised Desmond.

"What could have happened to the Emblem?"

"Who knows, perhaps you should direct that question to ... Priestess Io." Worthington explained, pausing to place some suspicious emphasis on the woman.

"What could she possibly have any knowledge of?" Desmond scoffed.

"The Truth?" he said with a fake questioning look. "It's often surprising what I have gleaned from that woman. The gods may speak through me, but perhaps I am not the only one Lord Truth works through as most believe. Perhaps Lord Truth favors her quite highly. No that would not surprise me in the least."

Desmond's face grew dark as he heard what Worthington said. Insulting. That a god would work through that woman, and my own god will not work directly through me, but instead I must go through this man. Absolutely insulting. PREPOSTEROUS! "I doubt that's possible, unless Truth's standards in servants has simply become that lax." the Wrathite commented crossing his arms.

"The gods will do what the will, and we shall abide by them. This is true for you and your favored god, Lord Wrath, yes?"

"Of course." Desmond said grudgingly. Every time I set foot in this room, this man insults me and what I stand for. I grow tired of dealing with him all of the time. Lord Wrath, I lack the might to perform your will throughout this world, but please, grant me what is just to do all that I can in your name. Worthington is your chosen vessel from which your will is given words for the people, but still, I beg of you, mighty one, to grant me your voice, so that I may carry out your will with all haste. I will not delay even a moment in my duties as Worthington does, nor will I let your commandments linger in my thoughts and not let them reach the ears of those who would otherwise follow them. Please, Lord Wrath, make me your vessel, your own true servant who hears only your words and hears no other ....

[Acacia Sgt]

The show was certainly impressive. During his whole time wandering around, John had never went to events like this, due to not considering it vital to his nomadic life. However, now that he had the chance to, he did certainly enjoy it. 'Though I'd never had guessed it would be singing.' He had thought. 'Judging from his entrance I'd have thought it'd be acrobatics.' Still, he cheered and clapped with the crowd.

He didn't noticed when Amon left, though considering when he noticed it was around the time everyone's leaving he thought he may just walked ahead back. Making his way back to the University, first stopping by a now sleeping Gil to get the bag he left behind back, he directly went back to his room to rest up for the remainder of the night.

Once next morning came, after waking up and a change of clothes, John decided to not go to the Cafeteria again for breakfast. Instead, he decided to head back outside to get something out of his stuff.

[Phoenix]

Estate

Raquel awoke to a bit of light nudging from a maid. She opened her eyes and looked up to see both her and Professer Weyland standing beside her bed. Weyland was wearing a long robe and had an unlit pipe in his hand.

"Oh, uh, good morning. Um, did I do something wrong?" she asked, somewhat distracted by the Professor's attire. She'd never seen him out of the formal before. He didn't even have his glasses on though they were dangling on his collar.

"No, not at all, but you might want to know that your Rexian friend Amon is in the hospital." he explained taking his other hand out of his pocket and crossing his arms. "Apparently the fellow was run through with a sword and left on a sidewalk to die."

"What?! That's terrible!" she exclaimed throwing off the covers and awaking Chip. The monkey immediately shrieked thinking danger was close and lunged for the maid's chest! He grabbed onto her outfit and began yanking and tugging while making all as loud a battle cry as he could manage. She screamed too but Raquel resolved the incident before it progressed any further by grabbing Chip and holding him to her chest, him facing the maid who was terrified. "Chip, don't do that. So, he's alright, isn't he?"

"Yes, he's fine. He should be released tomorrow morning or so, but he did have them send for you so I'm here to let you know." he explained.

"I should hurry then." she said getting out of bed to make it and letting Chip use her shoulder as a perch the whole time. Once she was finished the three of them stepped out of the room, but not before the maid took the plate from last night's little snack. "Thank you for letting me and my friends stay the night here, Professor." she said bowing her head.

"Anytime, you're always welcome here, Raquel, though before you leave Europa you might want to explain to me exactly why it is you came here, no? It seemed pretty important to you yesterday." he said lighting his pipe.

Raquel's eyes widened. "Oh I completely forgot after I went to sleep! Okay I'll go see how Amon's doing and then come back and we'll talk about the e- ... that thing I need to talk with you about." she explained minding her words.

"Amon will be fine, I think. What you'll really be needing is to get those medical bills handled."

"Medical bills?" she asked.

"Well yes the messenger left a little while ago, but I contacted the staff there and they explained the situation to me. Apparently your friend's medical bills are around six thousand gold." he explained making a small puff a smoke making sure not to blow it directly at either of them.

"... oh crap." she muttered almost inaudibly.

"Yes I thought so. It's alright though, I won't mind taking care of the bill for you nor, will I mind replacing Chip's pistol if do me a favor in the near future."

"Favor? What kind of favor?"

"What I ask for depends entirely on the severity of your own situation. Go check on Amon, tell them I'm handling the expenses for his stay there and tell them to contact me so we can talk about having him released later this morning instead of tomorrow evening. If he absolutely needs bed rest, I've got plenty of staff on hand to see to that, and plenty of beds no less." he explained taking another puff.

"T-thank you." she said almost tearing up.

"Don't thank me yet. Favors for the Weylands always take some doing ... otherwise we'd just handle every little thing ourselves."

"Okay, I'll go do as you asked, and then I'll come back and explain the situation to you in full."

"Oh, and gather up your companions as well. If one of them was attacked, then there is a chance they're all in danger, and the last thing you need is anther incident like this or worse. Once we conclude our little meeting, I'll leave your safety in your hands, but until then humor me, please."

"Y-yes, of course."

"Good." he said turning to head back down the hall. The maid followed him until he made another turn. She went on to the kitchen and Raquel ran back into the room to grab her cloak and boots. She was in a hurry but she still wanted to wash up before heading over to the hospital. Once she was ready, she ran outside and remembered that the wagon was all the way down at the university. "... oh darnit!"

Hospital

Amon awoke from a nap to see Raquel sitting at his bedside. "Raquel?"

"How're you doing?" she said in a relieved voice.

"I'm fine now but listen, I've got to tell you what happened!"

"Okay go'head. What did you get yourself into last night?" she asked, her tone going from relief to something dubious.

"I went to the concert with Nanahm and John, and this other person ... during the show this blonde woman was ... uh ... well, anyway once the concert was over, Rodrigo was thanking us for what we did in the last battle and letting the audience know about it. She said Caine's name like he did something wrong, and then I left to go tell you guys about it. The thing is, she intercepted me on a rooftop. I found out her name is Silvia, and she wanted me to join her. I said no, and then we fought. I landed a hit, but she almost killed me with one thrust. She told me to tell you guys that fighting was useless and we should join her and then she made sure I fell so that I would end up in plain sight. Otherwise I'd be dead in an alley right now. I woke up here, and apparently she sent flowers and a 'get well soon' card." he explained looking Raquel in the eyes.

"... a 'get well soon' card? What kind of sick twisted joke is that?! She's the one who put you here in the first place! I hate people who don't take life and death seriously, they make me sick! Amon, what did she look like?" she asked calming down.

The thief blushed and stayed silent for a few seconds. "B-blonde, a bit lighter than my hair actually. Very pretty ... she dressed a bit like Veronika though. I think she's a myrmidon too. Too fast to be an ordinary swordsman."

"I hate femme fatales too." Raquel muttered crossing her legs and arms and looking away from Amon. She probably put the moves on him so he'd let his guard down and then attacked. How else would she have hit him? "So ... are you sure you're going to be alright? The Professor wants to have you moved to the estate for the time being." She looked back to him with some concern in her eyes. The sling wasn't helping her own assessment of his condition.

"Good idea. Another night here and the bill jumps up another five hundred gold apparently." Amon said sounding offended. "Honestly why do they charge such outrageous fees? That's a good way to end up becoming an indentured servant."

"Eh, the Professor's going to take care of the bill for you so don't worry about that."

"He's just doing this out of the goodness of his heart?" Amon said, believing firmly that that wasn't the case.

Raquel's hesitation to answer only confirmed it before the words left her lips. "N-not quite. He wants our help with something, but first he wants to meet with all of us and find out what our own situation is. I guess he doesn't want to enlist the help of people up to their heads in their own troubles."

"He's a smart man then I guess, but I'm the only one that owes him anything. The rest of you shouldn't need to get involved." Amon protested.

Raquel shook her head. "No, you're wrong there. Chip's pistol is gone and he needs a new one. The last one was pretty expensive. Besides, maybe if we help him, he'll lend us a much bigger hand in dealing with this organization."

"Maybe, but let's pray to our gods and goddesses that he's not working with them. If he is, then we're already finished and just don't realize it yet." he said looking down, his mood turning pessimistic.

"No way, I don't think he's with them, Amon. I know him ... err, use to. Look, if we can't trust the Professor then we've got no reason to stay in Ursium. He's the most powerful ally we can possibly get in a place like this, and I trust him. I know there's a lot of wishful thinking going on in my head, but I'm positive he's one of the good guys." she explained.

"I'll trust your, judgment, Raquel, but don't underestimate these people. Their confidence comes from somewhere and if they don't back off after Weyland helps us then that means we're dealing with people far and away more powerful than him, or worse, people who simply don't care. There's nothing worse than an enemy that doesn't know when to cut their losses. You've got to wipe them all out and it's costly."

"OKAY, enough depressing talk, I'm going to go talk to the staff. Do you want anything from the cafeteria? I'm going down there to get breakfast before I head back." she said standing up.

"... some milk?"

She nodded with a wide smile. "Sure." she replied before leaving and closing the door behind her. What's gotten into him? Is he scared of them or something? He has a few points though. Okay I'll talk to the staff really quick, bring him his milk, eat something myself, then head over to the university, tell everyone to head over to the mansion and fetch the wagon while Weyland's people handle the transfer. I'll get our trading done ahead of time, and then meet them all at the estate and we can get some things sorted out, and decide what to do next. she thought as she made her way down the hall.