Return of the Emblem Chapter Six: Enemies Abound

[Mercakete]

"They can't be that bad," Norbert semi-quietly comented, "Worst I can think of for something like this is heritage." He was leaning against the wall, arms and ankles crossed, not far from Raquel though the table was between them and Cat. It's not like this is a medical test, so I doubt the questions are really all that bad. Maybe it'd ask about relatives, but that'd make sense since that could mean people running around with the same name.

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

"Lessee," Gytha muttered clearly -- that is, maybe it was meant to be a mere utterance, but it was said clearly enough that any mumbled effect it had before no longer applied -- "We should ask th' ones runnin' these things how t' play ther games, methinks. That tall'un looks fastest. We can start there n' try another'un after it." As soon as she finished speaking, she hurried over to the tall plank with the round bell at the top. The man standing there was leaning on a large, wooden mallot, waiting for customers. Gytha and Amon's approach made him smile before he greeted, "Hello, there and happy acension! Welcome to the Bell-Ring! Care to hear how it's done?"

"Aye! How's thos'ere game played?" Gytha excitedly asked.

"Hahaha! I like your enthusiasm! The Bell-Ring is a test of strength! See this mallot here? It's the only thing allowed to hit this leaver here at the bottom of the plank. At the top is a bell, of course! See that weight at the base of the planks? Hit this end of the lever with the mallot as hard as you can in order to hit the bell with the weight and make it ring! Simple, no? Only 20 silver to play! If you manage to make that bell sing out your victory, you win a prize! The greater the risk, the greater the reward, too! I have three settings for you! Easy, medium or hard -- any will do, 20 silver no matter which one you choose! Easy mode has the lightest weight. Medium has a moderate weight and hard has the heaviest weight. Would you like to play or do you have some questions?" half sung, half explained the man with the mallot, indicating the various parts of the game as he talked about them.

[spoiler=The Bell-Ring]In-RP mechanics: The character hits the leaver with the provided mallot to send the selected weight as high as possible, trying to hit the bell and make it ring.

Game stat: strength (not might)

Rules: There are three modes: Easy, Medium and Hard. The bell has 5def (being the distance between the weight and the bell; the bell does not shatter uppon being hit) on easy mode. The bell in medium mode has 10def and on hard mode, bell has 15def. To use the mallot, roll a 1d6. Add the number to the character's str stat. If the number is greater than or equal to the bell's def, then you win! If not, then the distance of the bell was beyond your abilities and you lose.

Prize: ???

Cost: 20 plot-silver (all 3 modes)

[Snowy_One]

Robin looked down at her third glass for a long moment. She had heard Veronika well enough, but she could feel the intoxicating effects of the brew fuddling up her mind, making it harder than normal to form a thought. "<I know that.>" she said at last. "<But I'm not a idiot. If I were to leave now, I would have to travel through Ursium again. Even if I was recognized as a friend of the nation or whatever, all it would take would be one overzealous person seeing the strange Skotian girl getting mad because of how some merchant treated her to end up with me on the run from the patrols. Right now, it's simply 'better' for me to follow Raquel. Does she fight demons? Yes. My odds are still better traveling with her than going alone. Though... Norbert and that pirate girl... I am starting to reconsider.>"

[-Cynthia-]

Veronika

<It would be easier to travel by sea than by land, but I see your point. Hiring the ship that took me to Ursium certainly wasn't cheap and traveling through central Sardius would be dangerous no matter what side you're on. As for our companions, they're...an interesting lot, though not intolerable to me so far. I suppose there are other routes you could take, you could consider asking Domovoi how he managed to travel from Neviskotia to Ursium. Perhaps he flew over the water on his wyvern, though he'd have to stop sometimes,> Veronika mused aloud to Robin.

Nadya

Taking some items out of Luca's saddlebags, Nadya set up a small stand with a sign that read "Palm Readin': 5 gold" in a messy scrawl. Trusting Luca to guard the money tin from any wiseass cutpurses, Nadya set her focus on making some money. "Want to know what you need to be wishin' for? Come get a real bona fide palm readin' before Ascension, 5 gold!" she shouted among the other dealers.

[Snowy_One]

"<Our companions? Pha! What a load. Shooting helpless people, shooting other people in the back, consorting with demons, just by traveling in their cart we've probably committed enough crimes to unite Ursium and Neviskotia in a manhunt for us. They don't even seem to care about what they've done or making amends for it. Us Skotians seem to be the only ones with any degree of sanity... Well... Us and... Shadrak. Bah. What am I saying? I don't even know much about this medallion doohicky and I know that something like a medallion is probably very important and going around blabbing about it is stupid and he did just that. I'm surprised the Ursium haven't tried to kick us out by now. I also wish Domo would... well... He said he would give me military training and all that, and I haven't seen him about much since then. It's like he forgot all about me. Guess I'm just not military material enough to be worth his time.>" replied Robin to the musings, the vodka clearly having gone as far as to loosen her lips.

[Acacia Sgt]

<Huh? They've switched to Neviskotian?> John thought. <Wow, she sure is drunk. Wait, did she even drank enough?> He noted seeing Robin.

''<Is that how you see it all?>'' He finally asked. <No doubt the alcohol, though.>

[Snowy_One]

"<It's the only things I get to see. I spend most of the time huddled in the back of the cart while you guys do your Ursium things. It's not surprising. You spend five days on a hunt, the people back home distance themselves from you because you don't talk to them a lot I guess. Bah. I don't know.>" she grumbled looking down at the third cup. "<To drink or not to drink. Whether it is less painful to the mind to suffer loneliness in silence, or to get drunk and not care, but in doing so, become scum.>" she put the drink down before sliding it back to Veronika.

[Saturnine]

Siritov glanced up from her stallion at the white knight addressing her. With a calming pat on the snout, she turned to face Miri directly.

"Correct, white knight. I'm going to prepare for the meeting."

[Rothene]

"Prepare?" asked Mireille, "The meeting is to be held here...we ride out to enjoy the festivities while we can."

Walking to Zel Mireille saluted him and introduced herself with a lance on one hand held vertically, "I am Mireille Authine, a knight in employ of Master Weyland. I would know your name sir knight."

[Zsword]

Zelatus drew his spear and stride and matched Mireille's Salute. "Zelatus Drakthu'ul, Knight from Ursentius, currently escorting the you lady Raquel." He replied.

Shadrak nodded, sitting back in his seat, thinking about there options...

Krystal nodded. "If you're ready, I can start to take ya back, but I might have to fly up to check our positions, so I'm sorry if I'm sudden about it..."

[Rothene]

"Ah, escort duty. A noble task," remarked Mireille, "Drak'thul you say? What would a noble son be doing so far off from his estate?"

***

"Please do so," said Ranyin to Krystal, following her. Waving to Sammy, Ranyin said, "Hey, if you want to return to the group, feel free to follow us."

[Phoenix]

Answering Questions

Raquel kept mumbling until Bert commented about the questions. "They're intrusive, Bert. My exact religious following along with three detailed sentences explaining my world views, pretty much everything about my schooling. Whether I've got any diseases or illnesses. Some other weird unfitting questions. None of these are marked as optional by the way. The only thing about myself that I haven't written down yet are my measurements. This is ridiculous." she ranted as she wrote.

"People get fat, Raquel. No point in bothering with things like that. It did ask for your height though, right?" Cat asked.

"Yeah, all three of them." she said glaring at Cat for a moment.

Observations

Amon listened to the explanation and then thought on the matter. Hmm, that bell is kind of high. I'm not sure this is the kind of game I would do well at. I'm sure Gytha will hit it so hard the bell ringer flies off the rail though ... "So are you going to try this one?" he asked her.

Fortune

Luca didn't see any bodies lying around, and there were too many eyes so he didn't bother looking for gold. Since Nadya had set up one of those ... things she sometimes did, people would probably be simply handing their gold over anyway, so that meant less for Luca to do. He kept his attention at both his sides and anything within a few feet of Nadya.

It wasn't long before a couple of soldiers passed by while talking. One of them slowed down to eye the so called fortune teller. His glare wasn't visible through his visor but his posture implied it. "What is it?" the other asked.

He shook his head. "'nother nomad."

"Why don't you get your fortune told?~" the other soldier said with a friendly jab.

"What the hell for? You know that stuff's fake. All they have to do is look at my hand or into a crystal ball and make up anything that'll get them some coin."

The other one shrugged. "Well maybe if you help the girl out, she'll reveal a real fortune reserved only for people like you~" he jabbed again.

"I tip no one operating an unofficial business."

"Ah, fine, I'll do it. Anything's better than just walking around all day." he said before coming closer to the fortune teller. "Hey there!" So it was five gold you said?" The other soldier hung his head a bit, feeling his partner had pretty much lost the gold for something he could have just made up for him. He immediately followed over though, if only out of concern.

Luca was getting bored now. Why weren't these ones handing over their gold yet? People walk by, notice Nadya's calls, and leave gold; that's how it worked. That or he hadn't been paying as close attention as he probably should have been.

[Saturnine]

Siritov noted with absolutely no dismay that she was done being spoken to. She turned her attention back to her horse, leading him out of the stable and climbing into the stirrups. They began to trot out of the animal pens and into the courtyard, towards her eventual destination in the city's markets...

[-Cynthia-]

Veronika

<That seems a rather harsh assessment to me. Raquel is doing what she thinks need to be done to rescue her father, and that includes running whatever errands Weyland wants us to I think. Were I in here position, I would do the same thing. Killing people is not an easy thing to do, but sometimes it is a necessity. I suspect our body count has just begun...> she replied to Robin.

Nadya

"That's right! I'll need your right hand, unless you use your left for writin' and such. Also take off any gloves or gauntlets," Nadya said to the soldier eagerly, ignoring the seemingly disinterested one for now.

Edited October 1, 2011 by -Cynthia-

[Acacia Sgt]

''<That's right. Most of us are here to help her out, no matter what we may have to do.>'' John added. ''<Not to mention, most of the time we are just defending ourselves, so it isn't like we're just picking fights because we want to. So like she said, it's not an easy road, but sometimes it's the only road.>''

[Snowy_One]

"<And that Ursium woman? The one that pirate shot? Was she attacking us by lying helpless at our mercy? Did you even slap her wrist for that?>" grumbled back Robin. "<Bah. I shouldn't even be talking. I'm just a country girl who made a stupid call and am now in over my head. I know more about skinning animals than magic, demons, or nobility.>"

[ReformBlade]

Following like a lost puppy, he made sure to try and keep up. It was odd for the kid, following an avian bird chick, namely because he had never seen one up close at all and second he had no idea of their telepathy in any way at all. Those wings, how the frick do they work? I mean, are like, her bones hollow or something? Isn't that how birds are able to fly, since bones would be too dense... or something? Or are those wings made of magic... magicness? Come on, mr. Argus, you can figure the fuck out of this, there's gotta be a perfectly logical explanation for this illogical looking phenomenon! "So uh... is that... that pirate chick still with you guys? Because all I have to say to that is how the hell are you still alive if that's the case?

[Rothene]

"Huh? You're afraid of Gytha?" asked Ranyin his face lighting up immediately. The kigenese mage was all too pleased to have someone out there sharing his sentiments. Beaming at Sammy, Ranyin said, "Yes, she's still around, but she's been less inclined to speak to everyone lately."

He suddenly thought of Gytha shooting the patrol leader the day before and shuddered. "Well, if you keep away from her, you'll be fine. I know, since that is what I do," said Ranyin reassuring Sammy. More people in the group need to be aware of how terrifying Gytha truly is. He just needed to gather more people...

[Phoenix]

Remove Thy Glove. Remove They Gold.

"Alright, sure thing." the soldier said, removing his gauntlet after a bit of unfastening work. He held it under his left arm and offered his right hand. It was a rough hand, but didn't have any notable features. The other soldier just watched with his arms crossed. Luca watched as well, waiting t see when the gold would appear.

[-Cynthia-]

Veronika

<If Gytha did not shoot her, she probably would have caused more problems for us later. Maybe there was another solution that we missed, but what's done is done,> she replied to Robin.

Nadya

Nadya gently grasped the man's hand and looked it over. "Square palm, coarse skin, length of palm to the wrist is about equal to length of the fingers. That's an Earth hand no doubt, means you're dependable, steadfast...maybe a bit stubborn," she added. "Now let's check out these lines shall we?"

Nadya put her index finger under the little finger of the soldier and traced along his palm under his thumb. "You've got a very chained heart line, which means you're ambitious and draw upon your emotions for strength. It also means that you can fall in love easily...or maybe you already have," she added, looking up at the soldier.

[Snowy_One]

"<So you would forsake your honor for a easy way out? Why not go groveling back to Ursium and lick their boots and beg them not to hurt you?> You are not of Neviskotia, you are a daughter of Ursium." replied Robin as she looked at Veronika in disbelief. Gytha had shot two people, one helpless and the other her own teammate simply because she thought it was 'easier' and now Veronika, a fellow Skotian unlike that pirate, was defending her action? Was she really willing to compromise her honor and strength to defend the actions of a vagabond who had clearly thrown aside what made her Skotian? It was disgusting, unthinkable, almost heretical. She realized the drink was clearly having an effect on her mind, but she doubted it would be different had she been fully sober.

"I think I am done here." she said, standing up from the table. She didn't want to hear Veronika grovel at the feet of the pirate girl anymore. She had been shot by her after all, and now, it sounded to her as if her actions were being commended.

[Acacia Sgt]

''<Oh, that.>'' John remembered it well. ''<Well, she's right. Having someone from the military captive wouldn't have done us good. And we didn't had like a spare empty box to stuff her in like we had to do with Siv.>'' He had began a laugh here, but quickly suppressed it. <Wait, this isn't a matter to joke about.> He thought. ''<Anyway, there's the fact she and her troops tried to kill us either way. Of course she's not getting that much sympathy from the start. If anything, it was better not have been spared during the actual fight.>''

''Hm?'' <Wait, now what is she saying? ... She sure is blind with her patriotism...>

Edited October 1, 2011 by Acacia Sgt

[-Cynthia-]

<Killing an enemy defeated in battle is no dishonor. And if anyone is not acting like a proper Neviskotian here it is you; I would expect most countrymen would be able to take an ounce of liquor without becoming an arrogant twat,> Veronika said back, biting her lip.

[Snowy_One]

Robin glared at Veronika with a furious glare. "So you would have me accept that the person who shot me is in the right? I will not accept that." she turned to leave to head to her room.

[Mercakete]

"Haharr! Aye, I'll try it. It's onla 20 silver after all, and it sounds like fun!" Gytha replied to Amon before telling the bell master, "I'll play."

"Ah, good! Which weight would you like to use?" he asked.

"Heharr, th' light one'd be no fun. I'm sure I could hit the bell with that'un. So, I'll try th' medium weight," she answered.

"Alright! 20 silver, please!~" the man extended his hand for the pay and Gytha supplied the 20 silver. Then, he handed her the mallot and quickly changed the weights. Apparently, the lightest weight had been placed before. It was probably the most common one used. "Okay! Just hit that plank with as much force as you can!"

Gytha nodded with her usual grin before facing the plank. Then, she swiftly raised the mallot over her head and slammed it down onto her end of the lever with most of her might.

(5+5)-10 = 0 = The bell rings out with a perfect pitch as the weight hits it. (Any less and the weight wouldn't have hit the bell at all...)

"HAHAHAHARR!" Gytha laughed victoriously as she swung the mallot around above her head, "I did it!"

"Hahaha! Yes, you did! Congradulations! Here you go!" the bell master handed over a smooth, round, blue gem. "Heheh... Seems perfect for you, miss, since you talk like them sea-folk."

Gytha took the gem and began turning it in her hands, admiring its beauty. "Aye, thank ye," she replied to the man.

"Heheh. You earned it, miss. See, my brother's a gem-cutter and sometimes he makes these and gives them to me so I can give them away as prizes," the bell master explained before looking over to Amon and asking, "So, how about you, sir? Only 20 silver to play! Want to see if you can beat your girlfriend in a contest of strength?"

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

"Those kinds of questions could be a lot worse. Still, they do sound pretty pointless," Norbert comented. Wait, did she just say they were asking about three heights?

[Phoenix]

The Mallet of Destiny ... Or Something

Amon practically sighed in relief when Gytha didn't destroy the contraption with the mallet. It was never likely but Gytha seemed to have a way with ... well, everything. The man running the bell ring game spoke to him next. Not unexpected but ...

"Girlfriend?" he echoed confused for a moment. He looked over his shoulder and didn't see any of the others with. Well that figures. My evasion and tracking skills were stressed just trying to keep up with Gytha so I guess the others got separated ... or maybe they had other things they wanted to do. "Uh ... I'm pretty sure I couldn't beat Gytha at this thing ..." Maybe if I fell on the plank myself from a couple of stories up ...

Paperwork

"I'm serious, that's pretty much all I haven't written down, here Bert. There have even been relationship questions on all three of these applications." she replied.

"They want to know what kind of people you associate with~" Cat defended for her own amusement.

"Ugh, they're nosier than you, which is a feat unlike anything I've ever seen. Whoever decided on these questions needs to be thrown off a building ... there. Finished." she said putting the papers together neatly and drying off the pen's tip before dropping it back into the cup. She then stood up with a sigh.

Skotians

Weyland listened to the conversation trying to follow it as best he could. What he did know of the language was rusty, but it was obvious that Robin was upset about how the mission had turned out, and apparently an execution that had taken place. When she stormed off, he took another drink and said <"Honor is a poor excuse for stupidity, I think.> So tell me, what does make a 'Skotian', Miss Rusayev?"

By this point Siv was leaning over from Shadrak to sniff at the vodka. It was a strange smelling drink and apparently caused humans to exaggerate on a physical level. She had witnessed Robin being loud and aggressive before, but the circumstances were extreme. This time it seemed to be because of that ... drink. <"What is that?"> she asked Shadrak in Kigenese.

Two Soldiers, One Fortune

The soldier stood there with a stupid grin on his face while Nadya fiddled with his hand. The other just watched waiting for her to say something he could use to make a case against her. Heheh, it almost tickles. Those soft hands. the soldier thought. When she started venturing into the soldier's love life, he blushed, though it wasn't visible, all the other cues were there, such as the subtle lean backward, and using his free hand to touch the back of his neck. The other soldier glared a bit.

Don't fall for it, you idiot. She's just trying to get you to let your guard down. he thought before noticing that Luca was staring at him for some reason.

Luca's gaze had left the soldier getting his fortune told awhile ago. Now that Nadya was interacting with him, he was certain the soldier would lose all of his gold soon enough. Now he was wondering about the other soldier with the stand off attitude. He supposed Nadya could only work on of them at a time, so decided to keep an eye on him and make sure he didn't leave or interfere. The staring match got intense.

The Wanderer

Standing on a hilltop and looking out over a massive expanse not too far from Urcenter(the city itself was in view as a gray patch of architecture in the distance) was Gabriel. The breeze had him fixing his hair a bit with his right hand while looking out at the rising smoke clouds. "What the hell is going on out there? I thought Ursium had Neviskotia on the run ..." he said aloud. "They're still fighting ... oh well. I was really hoping they would reach a ceasefire soon so we could cross into the country without incident. I don't wanna have to go the long way to be perfectly honest." he said with a deep sigh as he slumped forward a bit. "Well, I'm a little bored, so I think I'll see what's actually going on down there for myself. Better wait til nighttime though. Being the lovable 'abomination' that I am, I'm likely to get shot at by both sides if I'm discovered. Funny, sure, but I'm trying to keep a low profile here." he said with a chuckle before beginning a stroll down the hill.