Lord of Azure Flame Chapter 25: The Road to Jerdon

[-Cynthia-]

"There may be other forces that can sever wielders. Spirits perhaps, or dragons. Still, I would prefer not to have to sever unless absolutely necessary. Are you worried about the Isotov situation? That is not setting my mind at ease either. I would go to Zaftra and bring him back if I could but...such a thing is not within my power currently," Morgan said, frowning.

[Phoenix]

Viveka

Viveka: Well, there is Ixion. He probably won't let anything happen to Proxima at least. I'm honestly more concerned about what's going on inside the party right now.

She paused for a moment, crossing her arms at the druidess.

Viveka: So how long do you think you're going to be able to deal with Reika and her constant hostility. At this rate she's going to kill someone and spew who knows what garbage to defend it. Are you going to mind wipe her, and just hope she's still useful in battle, or what?

[-Cynthia-]

Morgan

"The Ivanko Mercenaries do seem to recognize the importance of the Crimson Weapons, but they are fighting a civil war. Keeping Isotov alive may not be too high on their list of priorities. Still, I suppose worrying about it is rather pointless as we cannot do anything at the moment."

"As for Reika, she has become rather...difficult to deal with. I am hesitant to resort to memory modification, you saw how much that affected Kamilla. Leaving her unable to defend herself would make a prime target for demons, and I am not sure we could recover the tome and rebind it in time. It is a last resort," Morgan said to Viveka grimly.

Between a Rock and Hard Place

Petros sat and looked out at the night sky, as if he were staring at something far off in the distance.

Not bothering to turn his head, he asked the nearby Shanice "Have you finished recovering yet? More of our brethren are awakening. Our time is nearly at hand..."

[Phoenix]

Viveka

Viveka: Reika's not going to miraculously get any saner, so you've got to consider all of your options in advance. I know crimson weapons wielders don't just get replaced on the fly but it's still something to consider, because if she keeps this up, she's too dangerous to keep around anyway, and if you mind wipe her, she might just end up a vegetable, which isn't much different in a battle. I'm not trying to sound like I have a grudge. I DO but that doesn't change the fact that that girl is as big a hindrance to us as the damn reformists are. (I mean really, I would rather hang around someone like Ixion than her.)

Shanice

Still in the form he had been dragged away in, Shanice lied there allowing its body to regenerate around its core. It was healed enough for it to move around and not be encumbered but there was little to do at the moment, and so it slowly faded back into its humanoid form and lied there on its side, staring at the grass in the night.

Shanice: My senses are dulled. How many are out there?

[-Cynthia-]

Morgan

"The Reformists are very persistent. Kill a few and some others will show up a few months later, they do not seem to be capable of reason or able to comperehend defeat. Reika is much the same way I suppose unfortunately," Morgan admitted.

Petros

"Hundreds at the very least. Perhaps the time has come to stop focusing on the wielders and make our move against the humans sooner rather than later. The sooner we destroy their leaders, the quicker the humans will crumble," Petros said to Shanice.

[Phoenix]

Viveka

Viveka: At least the reformists gave us a warning before they tried to start something. Okay bitterness aside, having her not tied up AND not mind wiped is just condoning her BS. When she causes trouble, she might get roughed up a little, but she gets worse from the enemy anyway. If we don't do something, she's just going to keep this up and eventually somebody is going to get killed over it. (I know we can't replace her YET, but that doesn't mean we should just sit back and pretend beating her into submission is going to work as a long term solution.)

Shanice

Shanice: I always wanted to be a commander ... silliness aside, you may be right. Focusing on the wielders just keeps backfiring, and now that Miranda is working with one of their allies.

[-Cynthia-]

Morgan

"Reika has been very difficult to deal with from the moment I met her. However, treating her like a prisoner will simply make her a target for our enemies in combat; having to defend her every time we get into a fight seems very inefficient to me. I would prefer to keep these unecessary conbflicts from escalating if possible, but I am not entirely sure how," Morgan said to Viveka.

Petros

"So if you were a commander, where would be your first choice for an assault? You know the humans better than I after all," Petros said to Shanice.

[Phoenix]

Viveka

Viveka: Reika isn't really someone you can reason with or control ... at least, she can't be controlled by people who aren't willing to kill her on the spot. She does whatever she think we won't kill her for, so the only way to stop these conflicts is to make her believe that we'll kill her if she becomes a problem.

Looking down at the ground as she continued, she pictured what it might look like to see a more cooperative and submissive Reika.

Viveka: Those daggers of hers are her trumpcard against us. Without them, she's no better than our enemies, pretty much a worthless human being. The best way to get rid of that trumpcard of hers is to make her think that you can replace her at a moment's notice. It would be even better if that was actually true, but whether it is or isn't, it's not like she can prove you wrong. Chase ended up with a crimson weapon too so he's living proof that the current wielder isn't necessarily the permanent one. Regardless of my feelings, I don't see any other way to get her in line than to hold the one thing she seems to fear over her head. Certain death.

Commander Shanice

Shanice: Where would I attack? Probably Ilyphina. That gets TISME HQ and two nuisances from the past out of the way in one or two battles. As an added bonus, Elyisima doesn't fight very often, and their soldiers are forced to get their experience in fighting simple bandits. That's not to say someplace like Halton should be saved for last, but it would damage international morale if one of the big three were taken so quickly and easily. When the Lord returns, I'm sure he'll take great pleasure in crushing Halton with his own hands anyway.

[-Cynthia-]

Morgan

"So, an idle threat of death if she becomes difficult to deal with? An interesting manuever, though it relies upon Reika valuing her own survival. She certainly does not act in a manner that would benefit her continued existence much of the time," Morgan said, thinking back on all the fights Reika had started within the group.

Petros

"That is in the land the humans call Elysimia correct? A wise choice perhaps. Something that would fall fairly easily, yet crush the spirits of the other nations in the process. I imagine they would be unprepared for our assault as well...provided we moved the army where they could not detect it," Petros said, looking down at the ground knowingly.

[the_whistler]

Not a Goose Chase:

Thunderbolt slowed to a stop as Illiam flew ahead to catch up to Beau. The general exhaled, turning to head back in the opposite direction when a figure galloped into view. He squinted and recognized the lithe thief on horseback, moving his stead into his path Conrad called out. "Stop!"

The general stopped the pursuit? Odd… perhaps he knows why they left. Heinz pulled back on the reins, and Ralf came to a glad stop, slight puffs of dust coming up from underneath his hooves. "Do you know where Beau and Raemond are going?" he inquired politely, hiding his impatience.

Conrad paused, taking a second to carefully form a response to the thief's question. "Beau has some urgent matters to attend that I am not at liberty to discuss, I'm afraid. He left before I could impart everything, and therefore was forced to ride along for a bit. Why are you following after them?" He was cleared as a spy once, but the armless man seemed to hint otherwise. Best to be careful.

'Ride along for a bit?' Hope they've not too far ahead. "Raemond, as you know is one of the Reformist Templars. His sister was apparently Beau's teacher at one point, and he attempted to run off with Beau because he felt responsible for the priest. I captured him," he stated flatly. "I've been watching over him since then, and thought the monk might be trying to run away with Beau again. So, Beau is actually leaving of his own free will?"

"He is," the Elyisiman confirmed. "If you want to bring Raemond along with us, I have no objections. However, Beau must continue on his own path. Heinz, I'd also like to talk to you in private later, when you finish your current business," he requested firmly.

Heinz nodded. "Sure," pushing Ralf back into motion. Within a number of minutes the mercenary closed in on the scene, spotting the Elyisiman pegasus knight as well. Guess the general sent her, he thought, slowing to a stop nearby the woman. The monk and an unfamiliar mage were speaking. Dismounting silently, he listened in. That green hair sticks out like a raven flying across snow, momentarily mildly amused. Avenge Althea? Probably another Templar, eyeing the newcomer. Wonder what the knight thinks of this?

Edited June 11, 2011 by the_whistler

[-Cynthia-]

"Farewell then Brother. May the Goddess watch over you," Xaver said to Raemond, eying the other strangers warily before riding off on Blitz. Perhaps it was Xaver's imagination, but Blitz seemed to move with even more vigor than before.

Edited June 11, 2011 by -Cynthia-

[the_whistler]

Doran:

The Templar frowned when the swordsman mentioned the extent of his blindness, but the problem was fast resolved when the girl offered her aid. "The capital sounds like a fine place to start. Depart as fast as possible, and may the Goddess speed your journey," he intoned respectfully. Soon Xaver and Doran himself had disappeared, again leaving the courtyard deserted, seemingly undisturbed and at peace.

"Brother Doran? I thought you were at Ursibus?" An inquiring voice spoke from somewhere on his left. "Oh? Yes, I was. I have a different mission now, though," he remarked, gazing fiercely ahead at the distance. "Are you a new Brother?" The young Reformist nodded. "Never forget you are serving in the name of the Goddess, boy. You'll make a fine Templar one day," Doran ruffled his hair.

Doran strode up the steps leading to the tower. Pushing open the door, he did a cursory bow to the man sitting behind the desk. "Welcome back, Brother Doran. Did you have a reason for this unexpected return?" he questioned softly.

"Of course. I would never request aid for anything other than what is deserving. Now, I need several men for this……"

Heinz:

"He a friend of yours?" the mercenary said wryly. "Why did you rush off from the inn, and where is Beau?" he asked, noting a small round shape on the ground. Might be the priest, I suppose.

[Mercakete]

"Beau is over there," Raemond replied, indicating Beau with the motion of his hand, "I rushed off because..." (... Well, this is a tad embarrassing... Not much of a reason...) "Well, quite frankly, it was because Beau suddenly comissioned me to do so. Since he is my whole reason for staying with the crimson weapons' wielders, I found no reason not to comply," Raemond finished, somewhat avoiding the question about his relation with Xaver while he thought about how he should reply. (I hope he doesn't take off to attack him... I'm glad he hasn't put his knife in my back again thus far, though.)

[eclipse]

Comforting darkness. I could stay here forever. I could--huh? Something called to me, from beyond the darkness. What use did I have for these voices? Please, leave me alone. I'm happy here, and I don't want to go back. No, don't get louder! What was happening to the darkness?!

The darkness had transformed into a ceiling. The "voices" came from below. I was in a bed? What was I doing here? I need to be--I need to be. . .where? I yelped as the top of my head accidentally brushed a wall. I tried to stand, but the room wouldn't let me. I fell down onto something firm and familiar. Was this mine? A wave of nausea stopped my thoughts. I'd sort this out later. First, rest.

[the_whistler]

Heinz:

"He decided to run off by himself?" The thief asked skeptically. If the priest changed his mind, then the monk is no longer under my guard. That other Reformist left as well. Might come back with the Templars again, but I was hired by Morgan to stay with the Crimson Weapons. Wouldn't want to lose my pay and they aren't essential. Healing was useful though, he conceded to himself.

"Hey, you okay?" Heinz asked, waiting for a response. When none came, he repeated his words a little louder. "You alright, Beau?"

Kaileen:

The priestess walked slowly on the roadside, accommodating for the slower pace of her young son. "We're here, Henry," she announced quietly, squeezing his hand and offering a tired smile. "Kreistieg, Heidelburg, Anglenar, Faehrmus, Nyosoya, Dynko, and Vorhonten," she muttered. The healer stopped in front of the church. "Take him. Please treat him well," Kaileen whispered as she deposited a small gold into his palm. Kneeling down before the boy she said, "I have some very important things to do, okay? Be nice to this man until I get back," imparting a stern warning.

Henry Jr. nodded and started talking at the priest. His mother had wandered off once, maybe more than once to do other stuff. It had been a long time since he had been able to enjoy that amount of freedom though. Perhaps those days would soon return.

[Mercakete]

Raemond had to stop himself from actually physically stopping Heinz from approaching his sister's old student, instead putting a finger to his lips and giving the thief a stern look to indicate for Heinz to be quiet. "If he's asleep, let him rest. Today hasn't been his favorite and he certainly needs his rest for the upcoming travel," the monk whispered to his overseer, adding to himself as a side-note, "He's going to wear himself out with worry if nothing else.."

[Phoenix]

Viveka

Viveka: Reika is a criminal, first and foremost. She's probably been beaten up and threatened plenty of times before running into us. That's not really enough to put any kind of fear in her. I'm betting right now, she thinks that she can't be replaced, and because of that, there's a lot of crap she can get away with doing. Given what I've learned from you, she's absolutely right and has no reason to straighten up. What's the worst we've ever done to her? Rough her up a little? For her I'd say that's a slap on the wrist. Whether or not you want to keep her around is up to you, Morgan, but what I think we really ought to do here is see if she can be replaced somehow. If we learn that it's possible, that'll be plenty of leverage to use against her, and in the event she still wants to act like a criminally insane maniac, we can just follow through, replace her, and move on.

[-Cynthia-]

"I will consider it," Morgan said to Viveka, before showing her out the door.

The next morning was like many other Jerdonian mornings, in that it was very foggy. Charlotte ate a quick breakfast and headed downstairs. She got her things (which seemed slightly lighter than usual for some reason) and waited anxiously by the door for the others so that she could leave.

[the_whistler]

OOC: Before TS

Heinz:

"Worry?" turning towards the monk. "If you want to leave with Beau, you can," he stated slowly. "But it must be his choice. I have only your word that he is leaving willingly," the thief said bluntly. "Where and why does he want to leave so suddenly?"

[Phoenix]

Jasmine

Having been close by, Jasmine listened to the two conversing. She was surprised Heinz was willing to let Raemond go if only for a simple explanation.

Jasmine: Beau's home was attacked. He's the sole heir so he's returning home to secure his title ... and whatever's left of his possessions I suppose. I'm serving as an escort for the time being.

[eclipse]

She groaned as something poked her hard in the back. She'd been lying on her. . .armor, was it? It looked like it had been taken off hastily. Off to the side lay her lance (or what she thought was her lance). Her fingers brushed something rough in the armor. She put the rough patch up to the light. "Midori"? Was that her name? It was better than the blank she was drawing. For now, she would be Midori.

Putting on the armor took more time than she thought it would. Her body seemed to remember where things went, for the most part, but it wasn't very easy to fasten things when the room wouldn't stay still. When she felt that everything would stay put, she slowly got up, then picked up what she thought was her lance. She gave the room one last look before staggering out, down the hall and stairs--into someone.

[Inactive Account]

Kelas awoke early, packing her things out of habit and heading out the door. Arrin, it seemed, had followed her lead in avoiding the inn's potentially diseased beds, and was curled up, wrapped in his cloak. She left him alone for now; he certainly needed his sleep.

She headed downstairs, ducking out to the stables, muttering a curse as she went outside: it had begun a slow, steady drizzle of sleet in addition to a blanket of vision-obscuring fog. She didn't anticipate lingering once everyone was up, so she got the tack for her horses ready, leaving her packs with Amari. She was relatively sure that nobody had tampered with anything; there was no evidence of Amari trying to kill anyone, for one thing. She made sure to leave the horses with a few treats and headed back inside to get breakfast.

Charlotte was waiting around for the others; after grabbing some of the less dubious-looking breakfast food, Kelas headed over to stand beside her. "You all right?" she asked, seeing Charlotte's worried look.

----------------------------------------------

"Why don't you be watching where you're going, missie?" the innkeeper snapped as a woman ran into him. Backing up, it occurred to him that she didn't look familiar-- he hadn't had the chance to try and wheedle some cash out of her. "Who might you be, anyway?" he added, a bit more honey in his voice; vinegar would likely not get him much money.

[the_whistler]

Heinz:

Title? Don't think he mentioned he was a noble before.. suppose he's a bit haughty, though I've seen worse. "Elyisima then, I assume? Escorting wasn't the job I was hired for, either way. Good luck," he responded lightly to the party.

"Oh, and Raemond? I don't make it a habit to take prisoners," smiling slightly. "You won't have a second chance," he warned. Religious types always tend to be stubborn. Mounting Ralf, Heinz sped off to return to the inn… and promptly ran into General Jackson.

[eclipse]

Midori swallowed hard. She could give her assumed name, she could admit to having no memories of her past--

--or she could pitch forward, as the room went topsy-turvy. Mumbling an apology to her impromptu cushion, she grabbed her lance and hightailed it through the common area as fast as possible.

[Mercakete]

Heinz's words had caused Raemond to realize just how lucky he had been. For a moment, he had to put is weight partially on Lantos since his muscles weakened suddenly and severely. (The next time I meet him, if I ever do again... By Oraisunyou I hope it's a sa friend...)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next day was misty but past sunrise, based on the little light from the white sky. Yes, it was entirely overcast, clouds darkening to the north and a light rain was coming down. Raemond was wrapped in his cloak, leaning against one of Lantos' legs until Beau came along to nudge his shoulder till he woke up. "We need to keep moving," the thirteen-year-old simply mentioned before wandering over to the pegasus-rider, to see if she was awake already or not.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"... ... ..." Esphyr tried to figure out what exactly happened as she woke up under one of the mess hall's tables. (I must've been tired... Maybe I fell asleep right after eating...) after she was standing again, she stretched, trying to get the stiffness out that had settled into her muscles.