Return of the Emblem Chapter Three: The Show

[Acacia Sgt]

'Wait, a piece of THE Emblem...?' John thought, surprised. He had heard stories, but to think it could possibly be true? 'Then everything since back in Sergio has been... this is much bigger than I first though. Then again, I didn't knew exactly the specifics.' John decided to keep hearing the conversation.

[roymbrog]

Synthia was locked out. After breakfast and getting cleaned up and changed she was approached in the library by a servant. Apparently they’d been looking for her for some meeting or something, and she’d quickly hurried to the meeting room. It was already locked.

Knock, or wait for them to finish? If the entire group had been gathered here it was probably pretty important, but she also hated being late. Waiting outside would save her reputation somewhat. However, she didn’t have much time to think it over before the decision was made for her. A passing maid, seeing her looking uncertainly at the door, went up and knocked before she could say anything.

“Weyland, sir, I think one of them has been left out here,” she called, and Synthia inwardly cringed.

“Er… thanks.”

[Phoenix]

We Missed One

Rather than waiting for a cue from Weyland, Gabbie headed over to the doors and opened the one on her left, peeking out to see the maid and Synthia. "If ya one'a Pinky's over here, come on in." she said rudely.

[roymbrog]

Pinky? Who the hell was Pinky? Did she mean Raquel? And what was with that tone? Synthia walked in through the doorway, looking thoroughly unimpressed at whomever this was holding the door. “I’d hate being identified by my hair color. Perhaps you could use her name?”

[Phoenix]

Gabbie

"Raquel. Rock, like those little things you throw at passin' wagons, and El, like those tomes." she shot back, being a little facetious.

[roymbrog]

“Much better,” Synthia said, smirk firmly planted on her face. She knew the girl was probably trying to piss her off, and acting this way would maybe piss her off instead. Or something. Maybe she just liked being a jerk. Either way, she made her way over to join the group.

[ReformBlade]

Nanahm frowned at the conversation as a whole. Seemed depressing mostly, and now Synthia was just picking a fight when one shouldn't be. Nanahm was glad that chelsea made it to the meeting though. Poor girl seemed a bit lost, he'd probably have to keep an eye on her. He looked back at Synthia and shook his head a little. Really? No need for this now... We've got plenty of people that hate us already, no reason to be like that to an ally!

[Snike]

The night went on rather uneventfully for Axel, as he remained guarding the wagon. The hours flew by, the moon rose and fell, and it was early morning by the time the other members of the group returned to the wagon. Though he felt slightly drowsy, the lancer resisted the urge to close his eyes, and listened in the general conversation. It seemed Amon had gone missing since last night, which would in turn explain why he hadn't been relieved yet.

Raquel arrived about twenty minutes later, with the news that the Rexian was in the hospital, having been attacked by a member of the shadowy organization. This fact merely confirmed that they did have some presence in Europa, as the mercenary suspected. It didn't matter at the moment, as he couldn't reasonably expect success in acting against them, but the information might be useful for later. The merchant then announced that they were to head for Weyland's estate, where Amon was being moved to, while she and Veronika took a detour to the markets for weaponry. That helped Axel slip away and gather his armor into a bundle, and then make his way to the estate unnoticed.

About a quarter of the mile away from the meeting place, the soldier paused for a moment, right in front of an alleyway. He touched a scar just above his stomach, remembering the incident that had happened so many months ago, and resumed the trek.

Once at the gate, it was merely a matter of stating that he was part of Raquel's group, along with producing a piece of his red armor to verify his identity, and the lancer was allowed entry into Seth's grounds. He swiftly made his way to the meeting room and stood in the corner, merely minutes before the Professor arrived.

Almost immediately the Fire Emblem was brought up, as Weyland asked about how the merchant came to get the necklace. Quite a few of the mercenaries were shocked, since, well, the Emblem was supposed to be mythical. Almost no one had seriously considered that it ever existed, much less believed that it still did. The discussion eventually turned to the assailants, who wanted them all to join them, or so the one who attacked Amon said. It was a strange and ominous sign like Weyland pointed out, as their reach was far, their numbers enormous, and their strength... Well, if they sent even an inkling of their true power, the whole group would be dead before the end of the week. Unluckily, the professor became distracted by the informant list, and as a result prevented the departure of those who either would lose hope for the cause, or be scared enough to abandon their task: A favorable outcome in either case if it meant that the Skotians would leave.

Axel pulled his hood further over his face as a slew of smaller conversations began, not wanting to be seen at the moment. Synthia, the healer, arrived late, and seemed to be agitated, but other than that, there was very little to glean. He'd have to talk to Weyland after the meeting was concluded, but for now, being in the background was what suited him.

[Mercakete]

"Ahoy, there," Gytha replied, trying to remember Chelsea's name and...rather failing. The only time she could remember interacting with the girl was whenever she restored her on the battlefield, considering they were in separate teams and Chelsea was rather prone to falling asleep. When Synthia entered the room, she was glad to see her but figured it would be better to pay attention to the remainder of the meeting for now. What now? We disbandin' cause we're in over our heads? We goin' somewhere new? Where're we headed?

[Phoenix]

Her Choice; Their Choice

"So this Boris fellow is one of theirs. I suppose Rodrigo will have paid him a visit by now. Though if he hadn't given any useful information by now, he probably isn't going to. Best to focus on your remaining options." Weyland said taking his pipe back from Gabbie and taking a puff.

"So ... what do you think our options are?" Raquel asked taking a seat herself facing Weyland.

"Two primary options. Give up get rid of the emblem, and possibly leaving your father in their hands ... or ... keep trying to fight these people and pray that they are just stupid enough to bend over and take it like gentlemen, and not retaliate in true force. The former option at least gives you a chance to survive. The latter eases your conscience I suppose ..." he explained, stopping to gauge their reactions.

"... well," Raquel paused, standing up with some nerve. "Well thanks for the vote of confidence! I mean ... what else are we supposed to do? What else am I suppose to do? If I give up now, I might not ever see my father again."

"Do you think he would want you to die trying to save him?" Weyland asked giving a stern look to match hers.

"I ... can't. I can't back down. He would do the same for me."

"... does your mother know about this?"

"I haven't spoken with her in a long while. I don't even know what she's up to these days." Raquel said calming down again.

Rodrigo, you pinhead, why haven't you told her about that? Weyland thought to himself. "Well, that aside, I think pressing on in such a state is a preposterous endeavor, but you obviously won't be detoured by my disapproval alone."

She nodding. "That's right. I didn't come here to decide whether or not to continue on. I came to get help." she clarified.

"Hmm." Putting a hand on his chin, and taking his pipe away, he began thinking on the matter. "You need resources, both human and tool. Where you get them doesn't much matter so long as you can keep them in under control, and keep their own issues from affecting your mission. Now a consequence of being strong enough to harm or otherwise completely eradicate your enemy is that when they realize you have gained such power, the gloves will come off, so you had better be prepared for when that time comes. Other than manpower and supplies, which you seem to be handling at a decent enough pace, you'll need to ready them for the more difficult battles that will come if you aim to pursue this to its conclusion."

"Ready them?" Raquel asked not sure what he meant.

"Training. Ordinary training isn't going to cut it. It doesn't matter how many followers you have if they're outmatched. You'll be feeding the enemy cannon fodder if your allies are underpowered, so train them."

"You said ordinary training won't be enough though. So what then?"

"Do what you can to build up your strength and numbers. Find enemies that need defeating and take them down to gain experience until you're ready to take the true enemy head on." he explained taking another puff. "... and protect that emblem ... since their ultimate goal concerning you seems to be acquiring it."

"So, as dangerous as this is, you want us to start running headlong into danger?"

"Precisely. I don't approve of suicide missions but I do approve of not going through life in utter fear of the inevitable. Sometimes you must face many dangers in order to survive a greater one in the future. This is just such a time."

"... okay ... I guess we'll do that then. But what should we do next?" she asked.

"Well you've a lot of options there. You could chase down people on that list taking down whoever gets in your way while you search for more information on this group ... or you could take on one or two of the things I have that need doing. Up to you and your mercenaries really." he explained taking yet another puff.

Turning to the others in the room, she spoke to them this time. "So ... what do you guys all think?"

[Mercakete]

"Either one's good, but I think fer now we should help this'ere gentleman," Gytha put in, indicating Prof. Oak Weyland, "We can go after the others later. I'd like to be stronger when I fight'em next, personally, especially after hearin' Amon's message from Silvia. 'Sides, once we're out chasen' 'em again, this'un's offer'll likely be gone. We should take the opportunity while we can. have t' say..." The mariner's thoughtful expression evaporated into a broad grin, her eyes flashing with excitement. "...It's gettin' hard t' wait and sit around like this. Lets go after somethin'! I'll take whatever sort of trainin' ye have and I'll bring Amon and Synthia with me and we'll show 'em how it's done! HAHAHARR!!!" As she was speaking, more and more fervor came to her and she slowly stood up, but by the end of it, she was standing on her chair, sword raised, eager for the next fight.

Edited May 8, 2011 by Mercakete

[Rothene]

As soon as Ranyin heard Weyland mention about training, he immediately lost all interest in the talks of wyverns with Domovoi as the memories of early morning practice drills back in Kigen flooded back to Ranyin. None of those were pleasant as the mage was always among the bottom few list in terms of performance. He lacked the proper aggressive spirit to fight relentlessly and was heavily dependant on his good fortune to barely scrap himself some semblence of performance.

Kigens had always been fighting the Fallen for a long time and the little teahouse that Ranyin's family owned was frequently filled with travellers from the south-western borders of Kigen. They told terrifying tales of Fallen raids as well as some nonesensical folklore that the academy Ranyin learned magic from disbelieves. Because of the looming threat, even mages who only aimed for scholarly persuits had to spend time being blasted by their more bloodlusting collegues during the morning practices. Those times were not the least bit enjoyable.

Thinking back onto what Raquel had addressed to the group, Ranyin decided that he rather run errands for Weyland as it would put them in a more favourable position to the potentially helpful man, as well as delay facing these strange group that was hunting Raquel. From what he heard from Amon's encounter, they were not people he would want to face anytime soon. Finally realising the scope of the danger Ranyin was getting into, he was very much ready to leave, but already associating with this group, it was very likely he would be targeted anyway and he would be all alone.

Approaching Raquel, Ranyin said softly but clearly,"I'd rather train through helping Weyland. Those other guys that would hunt you down don't seem like opponents we would want to face anytime soon. Plus we wouldn't want to reveal to them what our capabilites are just yet right?"

Edited May 8, 2011 by Rothene

[ReformBlade]

"If you're asking for an opinion, I'm for helping him out with whatever he needs first for a number of reasons. First, I think we'd have more immediate protection and safety. Second, we'd be able to get some solid ground beneath our feet for training and whatnot as he said we badly need. Third, I don't think he'd ask for assistance on something if he didn't think we'd be suitable for such a task. He seems that kind of guy to me, anyway." he ended with a shrug. She wanted an opinion and she got it, and he put it as nicely as he could. It all made sense to him, and to a few others it seems, though they had a few other reasons than Nanahm did.

[Phoenix]

Three opinions came, and they were all in varying degrees of unity. Raquel considered their view points while Amon went down his own train of thought. Of course it makes sense that we would take what seems to be the less suicidal route for the moment, but is it really any less dangerous? Just what kind of things would Weyland have us doing?

"Um, I don't mean to break the unanimity here, but ... working for you isn't necessarily any less suicidal from our perspective. I mean, you can assume it is since we would be taking the initiative and not going after people that are already after us, but I really couldn't support working for you until you explained exactly what we would be up against." Amon explained, steadily losing his firmness throughout his statement until at the end he was speaking as if addressing a lawman.

"Hmm, fair enough." Weyland said simply before revealing the folder from earlier out from underneath his arm. "Here." he said lifting them up so the Rexian could take it.

"What's all of this?" he asked while flipping through pages of old records and a few pictures. Some of the pictures were hand drawn renditions of fallen, others were of rows of naked humans lying on tables like at a morgue.

[Dark Sage]

It appeared the conversation had shifted away from wyverns and back to the Emblem. It was apparently THE Fire Emblem which amazed Domovoi. The emblem was an object of the gods which meant it possessed incredible powers. If he had the emblem for himself, he might be able to end the war between Ursium and Neviskotia permanently if he was lucky.

Perhaps Lady Raquel might allow for it's use in that fashion? Probably not even if she did know how to use it. Hmmm...I'll wait for now before asking about it.

"My opinion? I would agree with the professor over here to help him out. We could use whatever protection and resources he'd provide us but more importantly, we'd be a lot stronger the next time we fight this group. Some of us were knocked out last time we fought and we need to be able to be sure we can take on any group of warriors using any and all types of tactics. We're not at that state yet and to go charging after them immediately is not such a good idea."

[-Cynthia-]

Veronika pondered over Weyland's options. Her initial thought was to go after the group, but as others weighed in she began to change her mind. We haven't done that well against them so far...and if Pavel ran into them he wasn't strong enough to beat them obviously. Of course if Weyland has us running errands for the Ursian military I'll be right out.

She looked over the pictures. "So our errands are... dead people or the Fallen? I don't know much about the Fallen really, they're not a problem in Neviskotia. Do you know anything about them Ranyin?" she asked the Kigenese mage, turning towards him.

[Phoenix]

The Details

"Fallen are way more dangerous than your average human combatant. I'd take my chances with a platoon of Ursian soldiers over a couple of fallen any day." Amon commented. "And these people? Are they really dead?"

"It would take you awhile to read through all of that but it's all vital information. The pictures are just other evidence and references for you to work with depending on which you decide to do. As for the fallen, you might not have to face any of them at all if all goes well." he explained.

"So ... what's that about then."

"I'll explain both issues in depth." he began. "Your first choice is to help me with an unfinished job of sorts. About two months ago I got into contact with some Kigenese mercenaries. In exchange for live fallen subjects bearing specific traits, they would be paid what to me is chicken change but what to them was probably a retirement fund. Normally capturing fallen is all but impossible. Those who have tried generally have to deal with suicides or other fallen showing up in ridiculous numbers to save or prevent just what I'm trying to do. Right now the fallen aren't a threat to Ursium but if Kigen ever falls, we're next on the chopping block, and I'll not have the entire nation completely unprepared, you understand?"

Raquel nodded as he continued. "Now the mercenaries I hired managed to capture a fallen, a young female. Interestingly enough she didn't kill herself. On their way to Ursium they sent back regular reports and anything they learned about the young fallen. They suspected that they were being followed, but were making good progress. They dropped out of contact very close to the Kigen Ursium border in the midwest. Their regular reports haven't reached me, so something went wrong. Any number of things could have happened, but what I want you to do if you decided to accept is to investigate backtracking along their return route and find them. If possible help them complete their mission or complete it for them in the event they're already dead. Of course you'll be collecting their entire fee if they perished, or half of it if they require your assistance, but I need that fallen alive. The future of anti fallen weapons development hinges on it." he explained.

"Now next up is something that's been a thorn in the country's side for ages." he began about to elaborate on the next one. "Those bodies you see in those pictures. They didn't stay dead for long. A little over seventy years ago a small organization working under the government began working on a project to create human beings using magic. ... yes, the rumors some of you may have heard growing up are actually true. Artificial humans capable of filling the bulk of an army was their goal, and it would have secured victory for Ursium at the time had it succeeded, however ... the gods ... all four of them are said to be opposed to the creation of artificial humans, and so through church influence, the practice though up until that time fruitless, was outlawed. From all of the information I've been able to gather about it, all of the artificial humans that this organization managed to create were killed in a secret military raid of their facility, along with most of the scientist working on the project at the time."

This ... seemed more relevant seventy plus years ago. Amon thought to himself, admittedly confused.

"According to my sources there are some strange things happening in Ursentius that can't be ignored." he took a puff then put his pipe off to the side. "There's a string of serial killings going on in Ursentius, but the public isn't fully aware of it. Murders happen from time to time, but due to who these people are, the military can keep people calm by covering things up, but these murders are all related to this old organization from seventy some years ago. Everyone that has been killed I have had a background check done on, and every last one of them has some tie or connection to the old scientists from the original project. Some are relatives, other family friends or associates who worked in the same field, but all have that one thing in common ... that and something else. At first I wanted to investigate this serial killer and find out who he is and why he's doing this, but then I learned that he is not the real problem, only a symptom of it. Everyone this man has killed also knew each other. Apparently they've spent the last five years working on some kind of revolutionary project. That is a problem if it is what I think it is. This is another investigation, but you have plenty of information to work with. What you'll need to do should you accept is head to Ursentius, and find out what this project is. If you find that they've been working on a revived AH project, end it, and destroy every last finished product as well as the scientists. I don't much care how you go about it."

"Sooo what's the problem with artificial humans?" Amon asked.

"Nothing necessarily. They were the brainchild of some men who wanted to breed a better stronger human for various purposes, but artificials won't strengthen our race or even our nation as a whole, only give us more reasons to discriminate and kill each other. Regardless of their reasons, the gods apparently don't condone it. I'm an Ursian, and as much as I despise religion I follow the rules. On top of that I'm a citizen of this country and as such it's my responsibility to do what I can for this kingdom ... which is quite a bit given the circumstances. No need for any of you to care about that though. If you succeed monetary compensation is what you'll be getting." he explained.

[Rothene]

"Fallen? What I know are gathered from recent tomes and rumours from travellers. As is common knowledge, Fallen despite their names have wings and can fly. This abbility is the core of almost all their battle strategy. A whole army of soldiers born to fly enables them to skillfully dodge projectiles aimed at them and strike any weakpoints by simply avoiding the foot soldiers. Also, they have very good eyesight both night and day, hence they usually strike when its dark when our human eyes are at its weakest." said Ranyin plucking memories from the days he was forced to memorise Kigen war history with the Fallen.

"They are supposedly well versed at using dark magic, so good at it that they were noted to not require the use of tomes and there are cases of them even summoning demonic beings to their aids. It is said that Fallen are able to control the shadows of their victims to kill themselves or their comrades. There are also tales of Fallen recovering from their wounds by devouring the flesh of dead victims while in a battle." he continued, subconsiously looking at his tomes.

"Some sources have claimed that they are afraid of fire for some strange reason and wear light armour in order to fly properly. Those are their presumed weakpoints. And there are multitudes of folklores pertaining how they can't enter a house unless invited, fall from the sky if you shout the names of the five founding dragons of Kigen backwards and some such nonsense." at this point, Ranyin was feeling thirsty and the mention of fire made him ponder on his pyrophobia momentarily.

"Soldiers have also claimed that even the weakest Fallen fight as well as an experienced trueblader, that the only advantage the military ever had was sheer numerical superiority. And even then, victory is rare and won by a margin. We are safe according to some scholars because the Fallen are very small in numbers and have yet to be able to amass a large enough force to wipe us all out. But so far no successful assault onto Fallen lands have been reported. That is all I can recall." concluded Ranyin, amazed at the number of facts he was able to remember.

Slowly, he shifted his attention to survey the room and asked shamelessly," Can I get something to drink. That long talk has made me thirsty."

OOC:

Not all that he said are true. No one can ever know about their enemy entirely. Some of his facts are purposely false based on folklore!

[Mercakete]

Well, the choices certainly were serious missions. "Are we picking just one or the other or can we do both? I, for one, would like t' get as much trainin' as possible in. Maybe we could do these at the same time, if Urcentus is on the route those Fallen-catchers were on," the mariner suggested. She wasn't really sure what to make of all this. It all seemed a bit fantastic for her. Sure she'd heard soem crazy sea stories -- even a bit about the Fallen from those who'd visited Kigen -- but it was all so forign she wasn't sure what to think.

[roymbrog]

…What the hell were they talking about before she showed up? Synthia was somewhat confused, but understood most of what happened after she arrived. If it was up to her they wouldn’t be chasing down that group or working for Weyland, but it wasn’t up to her apparently.

She considered the others’ opinions, and while she could agree with most of them, she really just wanted the least dangerous job. “Investigating serial killings and a secret project seems less dangerous than encountering fallen, honestly.” Especially after the other mage’s little speech, she thought. “If we have to choose I’d pick that one, if we can do both I’d do that one first. Ursentius is much closer to us than Kigen anyway.”

[Acacia Sgt]

''Say, that doesn't sound like a bad idea.'' John commented. ''I also agree that training first is a good idea. Although, if it means doing both, there's also the matter of time. Whatever may be happening further at one place while we are at the other? Though, if it's a matter of choosing anyway, I'd say going to Ursentius first as well.''

[Phoenix]

Directions

"Well as I said, the mercenaries were coming back from Kigen but I never got any new reports once they got near the border in the midwest. That would be directly southwest of here. Ursentius is roughly one hundred miles west of here, close enough to that route for you to do both if you choose I suppose." Weyland clarified. "Just be aware that 'time marches on.' Not that I'm not capable of keeping you people occupied until you're ready to face that group head on, I think that these assignments should suffice for now."

"Yes." Raquel replied nodding. It means I have to wait a little while longer before going to rescue my father, but it's better that when we go to help him we're physically capable of doing so.

"Well, I guess I understand the basic objectives here, but what happens if those guys we're trying to ultimately beat come after us while we're working for you? We'd be stupid to just assume they won't. We've gotten into it with them four times in the last week alone." Amon explained.

"While you're working for me I'll be looking into this group trying to learn what I can. It's a risk, but I won't be keeping relevant information from you. You won't be completely in the dark from this point onward so long as they don't go into hiding. Of course given your week's worth of activities I doubt that will happen." Weyland replied to Amon, almost grinning. "If they come after you, you'll have to fight them off as best you can. At this point you can't move with absolute certainty. You're taking a huge gamble with your lives, and your only hope until you're stronger is that they continue to not perceive you as an actual threat. With that in mind, try not to show off." he ended half joking.

[Snowy_One]

"<I see. If we cross that far north though, we may have to risk the cold chill. Be sure that the girls and Olga can handle it before we end up freezing ourselves to death. Shouldn't be too big of an issue though as it is not THAT cold... usually. Well, I suppose that when they get back, we will be on our way then, right? No further stops or ladies for you to pick up?>"

OOC: I suggest TSing them ahead now.

[Mercakete]

"Great!" Gytha exclaimed cheerfully, eager to get going. This sounded like the best possible deal they could get. She was beginning to like this Weyland fellow. Looking over to Raquel intently, eyes shining with anticipation, she asked, "So, Captain, what's the order? We Urcentus-bound?"

[Phoenix]

Conference Room

"Um, I guess so." Raquel muttered, a bit surprised earning the title of 'Captain' from Gytha. She supposed that made the wagon their ship or something. Great, now all we need are some cannons and a mast with sails on it, heheh.

"I guess I'll ask then." Amon began. "Is there anything you can tell us about this serial killer person? Do you know how strong he is?"

"Everything on him is in that file, but nothing that will help you identify him. He doesn't seem to be in any records anywhere. Beyond that all I know is his preferred killing method. The victims are usually killed with one or two strikes from a large blade. I also know that he isn't particularly stealthy, and so often engages anyone else that tries to get in the way, like personal bodyguards and the like. They are usually killed with horrifyingly accurate gunshots to the head."

"... nothing's ever simple, is it?" Amon asked rhetorically, and clearly annoyed. This serial killer sounded like someone that might give them one hell of a hard time one way or the other.

"Eh." Weyland replied taking a puff. "As I said, I don't much care how you go about it. Just do what you can to learn and grow from it. No need to shy away from a fight, but pick your battles wisely."