Return of the Emblem Chapter Seven: Reunion

[Rothene]

The day's travel was long and hard, for Ranyin. If he could not summon up the magic to allow the wind to regulate his surrounding temperature, he suspected he would have collapsed under the heat of the desert even inside the wagon.

As soon as the group stopped for the night, the short mage wasted no time to resume studying the last few pages in his tome. He hoped to master the strange techniques of external empowerment as soon as possible.

***

When the camp was successfully set up, Mireille picked up her lance and made herself comfortable around the edge of the camp. Someone had to remain vigilant after all, who better than the knight?

[Snike]

Sadly, his escape from the Phoenix never materialized. The man and his rose-haired follower continued on behind the Vasilus and the younger man and into the conference room, where his head employer was waiting. Professor Seth Weyland looked weary, as he smoked one of his pipes from a rather spartan armchair. He inquired about who Blake and Lilith were, which was the former's queue to start talking.

"I was one of the mercenaries Raquel hired. We met earlier this morning in here, right before the estate was attacked," Blake explained, which in turn let the older man know why he wasn't surprised by the chaos. "My group pursued the aggressors all the way to Danton, where we engaged the enemy. After the battle, we successfully secured Raquel, but were teleported all the way down to Rex-Avaz. Raquel's fine, though a bit tired," he finished, with the intent of keeping the report short and concise.

Edited January 5, 2012 by Snike

[Phoenix]

Troubling Matters

"Rex-Avaz? What kind of warping tech could land them there? More importantly, why have only you two returned?" Weyland quickly inquired.

"I brought him with because I needed a guide." Lilith answered.

"And who might you be?"

"Lilith."

"Apparently she's some super avian." Rodrigo added.

"Super avian?" Weyland echoed. He didn't really believe Rodrigo but he needed to hear more to make any sense of this.

"Ugh." Lilith muttered. This was getting old. "Raquel's message is delivered, so our task here is done. We should head back."

"Back to the-wait. Hold for a moment, Lilith. How are they managing out there?"

"They're low on supplies and I'm trying to lead them to Sanctuary before they have anymore casualties." she explained in a hurried manner. She seemed to be in the motions of turning to leave which surprised Weyland immensely.

Weyland immediately threw up his hands urging her to remain still for a moment. "Listen, you can't just head back there empty-handed. It's rather obvious you had no intentions of delivering them back here, but you could at least give them a slight boon. Bring them some food and water for gods' sake. You don't even have to pay for it. I'll have what they need gathered in just a few minutes. Can you wait that long, Miss Lilith?"

"Fine." she replied.

Did the thought of bringing back some basic necessities truly not come to mind? She is certainly an odd one, with an odd name, as well.

"I still don't see why she can't just bring them back here. That'd be far more useful than running errands and delivering messages." Rodrigo chimed in, crossing his arms and leaning to one side. Perhaps he would have been less indignant about the whole matter if the woman's sword wasn't cloaked.

"I am not a tool. I only promised to bring them back to civilization with no other casualties since it is partially my fault that they wound up in the desert in the first place. They helped me, so I'm helping them. No more, and no less." she explained, clearly agitated.

"You're one of those 'in exact change' type of girls, huh?"

"Casualties?" Weyland finally became more curious about the matter.

"A young boy." Lilith clarified. Not clear enough given Weyland's immediate gasping reaction.

"It wasn't Connor was it?!"

"I don't know his name. He carried a bow and a quiver."

Weyland sighed in relief. It was sad that anyone died at all, but Connor's death would have trumped all of the others for him, even Raquel's. "Yes, let's try to avoid anymore needless deaths." he stated, putting out his pipe and wiping his brow. Once he was done recovering from the shock, he cleared his throat. "Alright, then. I'll be back shortly. There are supplies to be gathered. I'm assuming you're a powerful magician if you could fly here with another person with you ..."

"Gather whatever will fit in the wagon, and I'll carry it, I suppose. Do not have me bring back more than Raquel's group can actually carry." she warned with a glare.

"That's ... quite a lot. Are you certain?"

"You're wasting time, Weyland." she shot back.

Weyland shook his head and made off down the hall. Rodrigo however stayed. "So, then, what's the matter?"

"Is that directed at me?" Lilith asked, her head lowering and her expression growing dark in anticipation.

"No one's aggressive by default. What's got you so bent out of shape?"

"I could not begin to explain to an average citizen what has me 'bent out of shape'."

"Heh, average? That's what you think I am? Lady, I need to catch you up to speed because you've clearly been living in a cave."

"Of sorts ..."

The Phoenix

"I am Rodrigo Vasquez, known to Ursians everywhere as The Phoenix." he opened up with his arms out as if presenting himself.

"Did you have to set yourself on fire and fly around to earn that title or did they go easy on you?" she asked.

"No, the flaming glider was all my idea. People know a true reincarnated figure when they see one." he assured her, crossing his arms and smiling.

"So you've been reincarnated, have you? What were you in your previous life?" she asked, sounding serious but ... she probably wasn't.

"A beautiful soaring bird of the flame, of course. Those legends you hear about the flaming bird. All me."

"Is that so?"

"Of course. Notice there haven't been any reported sightings since before my birth." he explained, then sighed. "I only wish my previous self had been kind enough to let someone paint a true portrait, so I could more properly emulate my previous style. Oh well. I must have had my reasons."

"Heheh, I can understand wanting to emulate your previous self. This incarnation must be a terrible downgrade for you." she replied, lightening up. Of course Rodrigo gave an unamused look in return. That was cheap shot.

"Ahem, not at all. I'm proud to be able to walk among mankind. It's a bit of an honor, really. You should try it sometime, o mighty one. You might like it. Besides, I know I don't have forever before I turn back into a bird of the flame. Might as well spend a century among mortals, no?"

"Mortality is unattractive, but to each their own. I'd be more than happy to speed up your next reincarnation, though. All you have to do is ask."

Rodrigo turned his head, slightly, raised an eyebrow, squinted, and even pursed his lips a bit. All a reaction to her veiled death grant. Was she serious?

Supplies

When Weyland returned, he was being followed by several workers, all carrying at least two large crates stacked one on top of the other. "It's not as much as I'd like to send but they're packed to the brim. Is there anything else they need or are you not being negligent?" he asked the woman in a dubious tone. She simply shrugged. Food and water seemed enough to get them to Sanctuary. She didn't much care what they needed after that. They could deal with it themselves.

"If that's all, I'd like to get going, now."

"You are impossible, Miss Lilith. Very well, be on your way and please, make sure these crates arrive intact and in good condition. By the way, before you two go, young man, might I have your name? I've been trying to keep track of her mercenaries' names, but I hadn't gotten yours yet."

[Snike]

Lilith stepped in once Blake had finished his report and fended off the various travel questions. After a bit, she wished to depart, but Weyland, being the benevolent employer he is, convinced the Vasilus to bring supplies for the group. As he exited, the Dragon Slayer with an ego began to talk to Lilith. That was amusing. After a bit of playing along with Vasquez's fantasies of his ancestry, Lilith shut him up with a death threat. Just in time, too, as Weyland and his employees entered with the supplies - all eight crates of them. Excellent. They'd be able to survive the path to Sanctuary, after all.

As the duo was about to take the crates and leave, the Professor stopped them, to ask the human mercenary for his name.

"Blake," he said, rather hurriedly. He just wanted to get out of the mansion, now.

[Phoenix]

Departure

"Thank you." Weyland replied, simply.

"Let's go." Lilith instructed, turning to leave. Before Weyland could wonder when she was going to cast a spell on the crates, they floated off down the hall after the two of them. Rodrigo was left stupified, and Weyland was left wondering just what on earth she was.

"That level of telekinesis is ... unheard of. Not a single bodily queue and she's controlling that many objects ..." he assessed.

"Is it hard to do?" Reina asked.

"Look, I honestly thought she was around Raquel's age but there's no way she is if she knows how to do that." Rodrigo answered Reina. "Avians; they say you shouldn't ask a woman her age but I think we should make an exception for them."

"No exceptions." Reina corrected. "That's ... racist ... I think."

"Who taught you that word?"

"I'll leave you two to your ... bonding." Weyland said before turning to head back into the conference room.

"Oh hey, where's Siv?" Rodrigo asked, forgetting his previous question.

"She went ... the other way."

"Let's go find her. I wanted Siv to hang out with someone around her age so she can eventually come around."

"She's too tall. She's probably sixteen."

"She's around your age, I think. You're just still short is all."

"That's mean! I'm not short!"

"Sure you are ... but you're a growing girl and you'll catch up to the rest of us in no time. Now let's go find Siv. This is important."

"She isn't going to help you with your pyro ... pryotechnicals? Pyrotechnics ... fire stuff ..."

"Nonsense. Now, then. Let's go reform us a fallen, shall we?~" Rodrigo shot back cheerfully.

Round Trip

Once they exited the mansion, Lilith didn't waste any time and she and her passenger plus cargo floated helplessly into the sky. "Same as before." she instructed. And then they were off, heading back toward the southern end of the continent ... at tremendous speeds.

Just like before, it wasn't long before they made it back to the group, but still some hours had passed. There were a couple left before dawn, so Lilith had arrived in time to continue leading the group through the desert. She only hoped they had the good sense to sleep and not all wait up for her and Blake.

When they arrived, she and her payload slowly floated down into the midst of the camp. One of the Rexian's sprung up at the sound of the crates landing nearby. <"Who goes?!"> he yelled.

"I'm sorry, I have no idea what you just said." Lilith replied.

"Oh ... it is just you ... what are in the crates?"

"Food and water, courtesy of that Weyland fellow we left to visit." Right as she said this, her sword appeared behind her. There was no rhyme or reason to conceal it, now. They were far from Ursium and it was the very reason she'd left. She began a slow strolled through the camp while waiting for the various party members to awaken.

OoC:

This is a TS.

[Mercakete]

The talks around the campfire were fun, but had quickly quieted down. Eventually, among others, Gytha had gone to sleep and was still sleeping when Lilith and Blake returned. Likewise, Norbert remained asleep and Rizen was asleep standing up next to her rider, still. Maw had eaten a bit of meat here and there from the Rexain party's supplied and had eventually curled up in the wagon to sleep as well (after a good cleaning.)

Gytha's dreams were filled with sand ships, though these were full-blown galleons. Though it was now proven to be only fiction, it didn't stop her misadventures in her dreams. The Dread Pirate Damian had been defeated and she and her crew were sailing off towards Sanctuary: the armada-city her first mate Amon was from. They still had some travel to go before reaching it, but Amon was becoming more and more excited with every call of the heading. It did Captain Gytha good to see her first mate in such high spirits. A part of her was somewhat...nervous? No, that wasn't the word. She was excited to see the armada-city she'd only heard tales of. But her first mate's focus was becoming more and more on his old admiral, Admiral Aisha, and Gytha held some small bit of dread she hoped against. Would he leave the ship and return to the armada-city in the sand? Would this be their last voyage?

[Acacia Sgt]

<Well, I guess I should retire for the night as well. Tomorrow won't be any easier than today, so might as well.> John thought after seeing Robin left. Without a word, he left the campfire and walked over to Gil, who in turn was already asleep by the wagon.

<Well, at least he'll be in the shade once the sun rises again.> He noted. <Not a bad idea to follow actually.> Searching through the bags, he procured the feathered hat once more and put in on once more. Sitting on the sand, leaning on Gil's side not facing the wagon, he was all too ready to pass the night.

-----

People were starting to leave the campfire to get some sleep. I guess the night-talk is over. Sophia thought. ''Good night everyone.'' She said to those still present before retreating back to the wagon to sleep.

-----

Things were quiet until the return of Lilith and Blake. The resulting noise stirred Gil from his sleep, which in turn woke up John as well.

John yawned and stretched. <Huh, still not dawn?> He turned his head to look at Gil. ''Hey, why waking up so early?'' He said to the wyvern. Gil just grunted, looked around, and went back to sleep again. <Did something woke him up?> Looking around, he finally saw. <Ah, they're finally back. So that's the sword huh. Wait, those crates weren't here before. I doubt they're from the museum, so was it from Weyland's? Hopefully they're supplies. Eh, I'll wait for until it's actually morning.> He shrugged before leaning back against Gil and resumed sleeping.

[Phoenix]

Raquel

A short while after Lilith and Blake left, Raquel went into the wagon to try and rest. Since no one else had tried to yet, Raquel used the driver and passenger seat as a bed. Taking off her cloak and using it as a blanket was the next logical step. Despite the lack of comfort, she was soon off to sleep.

Before she knew it, Raquel found herself sinking into deep and extremely cold water. No matter how hard she swam, she couldn't get back up to the surface. Something was dragging her down at an incredible speed. She felt her rear hit a soft sandy ocean floor before long and immediately panicked. As she opened her mouth to scream, a muffled cry came out along with a torrent of bubbles. This was not good. I can't breathe! I can't breathe! Someone ...

"Oh dear, Discovery, what have you gotten yourself into this time ...? came a familiar slew of voices. Raquel's gaze dart toward the source. A pair of blood red eyes piercing through the water. Was the dragon head?

"HEELELELELELP!!!" she called out, her voice being obscured by the water, unlike the dragon head's.

"Once again, I don't have any hands. You've still got the fire emblem so why not just use that?" Instead of answering, Raquel ran out of air and started struggling to keep her mouth shut. "Uh, emblem. Hello? You're not drowning, are you?" he asked, forming a barely visible frown in the background. Immediately afterward, Raquel lost her struggle and her body forced her to breathe. Her eyes widened in pain as the cold water rushed into her lungs. Several coughs and gasps later, and she found herself unable to move and slowly losing consciousness. "Oh dear ..." the dragon head repeated.

It's just a ... dream, right ... I'm not really ... dying, am I? It feels so real. I can't ...

"Hey, wait, come back!" the dragon head said as Raquel's senses faded.

"WHOA!!!" she screamed as she shot up from her sleep. "I ... I thought I was ... gonna ... ... drown ..." she trailed off realizing she had only been asleep for a very short while. Already Amon was wondering over to the wagon to investigate.

"Are you alright?" he asked.

"Y-yeah. Everything's fine. I'm sorry. I just ... had a little nightmare there." Drowning in my dreams while dying of thirst in the desert. That's just ... disturbing. she thought. "I'm fine, really. Sorry about the noise." she reassured him before slowly lying her head back down. It would be awhile yet before she could fall asleep again. Why was the dragon head in that dream? He only shows up in dreams I have in that one place. Come to think of it, why didn't he show up when we were actually there?

She eventually fell back to sleep ... ... ... "There you are." that same plethora of voices came. Raquel opened her eyes, and she was back at the bottom of the ocean. Again her eyes widened in horror. "Now just calm down. You don't want to have another accident. Just listen to what I tell you. Use the emblem, and keep yourself alive."

"How ..." she asked in a barely audible voice. Her energy was gone again, and she didn't look much different from a corpse.

"Well it certainly couldn't hurt to say 'emblem, please keep me alive'. After all, you said it yourself, you can't control that energy. Why not persuade it instead?"

That doesn't make any sense ... and I feel like I'm paralyzed ... my body won't move, my face won't move ... my eyes ... I can barely ... how do I do this?!

"Just try it. You don't want to be stuck like that forever, do you?" After several minutes of pained attempts to think at her emblem piece, she finally began to notice some changes. "That's it. A little more fervor. Get serious. Tell it to obey your commands and free you from the pain." he instructed. A few more minutes, and Raquel managed to undo most of the damage, though she couldn't figure out exactly, how. Her voice was no longer obscured in the water, either.

"I can't believe that actually worked ..."

"Why wouldn't it? Especially in a dream?"

"Wait, that's right! Why weren't you there when we got trapped in ... Purgatory, or whatever it's called."

"Was there a reason I should have been there?" the dragon head frowned.

"Isn't that where you came from? Oh there's so many questions. Why weren't you there? Why did I keep having dreams about that place with you there? Who are you? I'm not sure just how long I could go on listing them." she explained.

"You and your questions ... It's not as if I could have been of much use. I don't have any hands."

"Maybe you could have helped us escape. You seem like you're powerful enough." Raquel speculated.

"Whaaaat? I'm a floating dragon head. What makes you think I could force myself along with two dozen others out of the land of the dead? That Lilith woman seemed much more up to the task than me."

"But why weren't you there?! Why did you ignore my calls?!"

"The land of the dead is a pretty big place ..." the dragon head said shyly in its own defense.

"We're not going to get anywhere with this, are we? Fine just ... tell me why I'm in the ocean this time. There's a reason or something, right?"

"You fell off a pier, perhaps?"

"No I mean I'm dreaming about this place for a reason, right?"

"Let's hope not. You ended up actually visiting the first location you met me in, and you don't seem to handle drowning very well. Someplace dryer could work much better, next time."

"Whatever, just tell me why I'm here. What are you going to tell me this time about the emblem?"

"Oh ... we finished that part, already." the dragon head said smiling.

"What?"

"You used the emblem, just like I advised." he clarified, maintaining his cute smile.

"So that's it? Can I go now?"

"You were desperately calling for me when you were in that dreadful place and now we have time to converse and you want to leave?" The dragon's smile turned back into a frown.

"I don't mean it like that, but ... unless you're going to show me something else ... why else are you here?"

"You're hurting my feelings, Discovery. Not much but I feel a little unwanted right now."

"Why don't you show up when I'm awake, or something then? I'd be happy to talk with you outside of these crazy nightmares."

"Mmm no, I'd better not. A floating dragon head is bound to scare the sanity out of most people. Also that Lilith person is still in your group, and she frightens me."

Amon

After checking on Raquel, Amon kept his distance from the gathering at the fire. He couldn't figure out what to do about the looming danger, so he wandered to the edge of camp, at the top of a dune and lied down on his back. He began stargazing to distract himself from it. They're bound to reach us by tomorrow ... and I don't know what's going to happen or how to prepare for it. What if something horrible happens? Oh please, Lady Aisha, please don't let this turn violent ...

Gabbie

Gabbie didn't leave the campfire, but she did nod off to sleep soon enough, and she set up her bedroll right in front of it. It wasn't necessary for warmth, but she also draped Ringo's left wing over her before falling asleep.

Harsh Schedule

While the Rexians quickly got up to begin inspecting the new supplies, Lilith wandered over to the western end of the camp and began staring off toward Sanctuary, again. "... that's odd." she noted to herself. She quickly turned back and headed toward the center of the camp. "There are still a couple of hours before sunrise, but an early start will see you all in Sanctuary that much faster, so come on."

"Just four minutes and fifty two more seconds ..." Gabbie muttered.

"Something is coming and I'd prefer you were all at least on your feet by the time it gets here."

"What is it?" Gabbie mumbled, becoming a bit more coherent.

"It's difficult to tell ... but I'm guessing it's a very large concentration of power. Aisha's to be specific, and it's approaching at an ... odd speed."

"Oh shiiit, Aisha's snoipin' us. Quick everyone hoide behoind Amon." ... okay so she wasn't all there just yet.

"I doubt it's an attack ..." Lilith added.

Edited January 6, 2012 by Phoenix

[-Cynthia-]

Stuff

Noting what Lilith said, Veronika got to her feet and rubbed her eyes.

"Well, you said Aisha knew you were here, correct? This is probably some scouting force of hers or something. We should try to get temporary asylum in the city while you arrange an audience or...whatever you're here for," she suggested to Lilith.

Nadya listened to what Lilith said and went over to the edge of camp near Amon. "Bird lady says your goddess's power is approaching at an odd speed...does that mean she's sendin' a sandstorm at us or somethin'? I wouldn't think she'd harm her messenger boy, but maybe she doesn't like the other members in our group much," she said, shrugging.

[Acacia Sgt]

Or at least, that was the idea. However, it comes to one of those cases where once you're awake, you can hardly fall back to sleep again. Not to mention, the place was no longer silent anyway, and especially Lilith's words, was the final nail on that coffin. John opened his eyes again. <An early start huh. Well, it can't be helped.> Rising, he took off the cloak and hat and placed them back in the bags. <I'll let him be for now.> He thought looking at Gil, who had made it back to sleeping. He then walked back near the campfire area. <Hm? We're expecting company? Hopefully not hostile.>

[Snike]

The escape was made with little hassle after Blake gave his name to Weyland, what with Lilith floating the crates out of the estate with ease. On the way back, the man's thoughts became a bit scattered. Part of him was still tense because of his encounter with the Dragon Slayer, another part vaguely wondered about how fast they were going. Still another part of his mind thought about how everyone was doing back at Urcenter. It had been over a year since he had last been there.

As they touched down, Lilith talked to a Rexian, then began to walk through camp. After a while mentioned that everyone in the party needed to be up, as something was coming. So Blake waited. And he waited. And he waited. It felt like he was waiting hours, for some reason. Finally, after what seemed to be an eternity, only a handful of mercenaries rose. The man had had enough of this. With a firm stride, he approached the wagon, entered it, and yelled, "OI! GET UP!"

[Phoenix]

Camp

"It's probably a 'force' of sorts. It's difficult to tell with so much energy in one place, but I think there are a lot of men and animals at the center of it. I believe Aisha is clearing a path for her men straight to us through the dunes. I wish she would be that courteous with you people ..." she replied to Veronika. "I'm bringing you to civilization like I promised. That's my main reason for coming to Aisha's sanctuary. With the way she's been acting, though, I doubt she'll be willing to help me stop Wrath. Five thousand years or no, she's probably still a stubborn brat ..." she clarified bitterly.

Amon slowly opened his eyes when Nadya started speaking to him. "If she was going to conjure up a storm, it would have started already and right on top of us. She's probably guiding a small unit to us ..." he replied sleepily. Of course thinking about it caused him to wake up quite speedily. "Uh oh ..." he accidentally said aloud. I guess there isn't much time left, is there? Hey, why is it still dark?

Gabbie looked up from her bedroll toward the wagon when Blake told those inside to come to. She climbed out began staring at it and Ringo for a good minute. She was trying to see if she could secure herself to the wyvern and still get some sleep for awhile during their trip. It wouldn't be the first time she'd slept on the wyvern, but while inside a bedroll? Ignoring everyone else, she got to work with trying to work it out. Eventually she decided to get in the bedroll, tie herself to Ringo's back with the rope she used to secure it to the harness and took hold of Ringo's strange steering grips to pull herself up just enough to be comfortable ... and to make sure she could steer reasonably well if needed. It looked silly, but Ringo wasn't dumb enough to crash midflight, so she only needed to secure herself and let him do all the real work. "Ready to go ... wake me when it's too hot for this sleepin' bag nonsense." she said to those nearby. Then she immediately put her head down on the wyvern and nodded off.

Raquel woke to the sound of Blake's yelling covered her ears weakly. "Ooooow ..." she moaned, before slowly rising up, pushing aside a crate that had worked to fill the gap between the driver and passenger seats, and shook her head. "It's still nighttime ... what's with the wake up call?"

[Acacia Sgt]

That sure was some yell. Sophia quickly sat up and grabbed her staff. ''Are we under attack!?'' She asked. The lack of light outside alerted her it was still night. Still night? Does this means...?

-----

<So Aisha is sending people to meet us huh.> John thought. ''Wait, they're coming at this time? It's still dark.'' He said. <Did they spent the whole night coming this way?> He was wondering.

Edited January 6, 2012 by Acacia Sgt

[-Cynthia-]

Veronika

"Forgive me, but I'm no history scholar- why do you want to stop Wrath anyway? And what does it have to do with Raquel's emblem?" she asked Lilith bluntly, figuring now was as good a time as any to ask such questions.

Nadya

"Some kinda rescue force then I guess? But you think that if Aisha actually wanted to see us, we would be glidin' along, not crossin' every dune in Rex-Avaz. Maybe it has to do with the group not bein' quite as devout as you are and our new 'friends' might not be up to her standards either. Still, she's not exactly stoppin' us either...seems kinda wishy-washy on wantin' us to show up," she commented to Amon.

Connor

Connor heard Blake's wake-up call, mumbled something incoherent, and went back to bed.

[Phoenix]

Camp

I could sure use a rescue ... Amon thought. "It's probably a patrol group coming to see what our groups are like. Then they'll decide if they're willing to let us into Sanctuary or turn us away. That's how it would work, normally, but with Lilith here, I can't help but think this is going to get out of hand ... the Sancturan military isn't known for being friendly." he explained in a cautioning tone.

"I despise tyrants." Lilith replied to Veronika. "The system of government the gods established is in danger of collapsing completely, because of the fire emblem. The individual who wields it can change everything. Submit to an unjust autocracy, or die spectacularly. If I can't put a stop to this, those are your options."

Edited September 28, 2012 by Phoenix

[-Cynthia-]

Veronika

"So, the one who completes the emblem has some sort of absolute power? I can see why you'd want to keep the pieces apart then...and why the Wrathites have been a problem for us. I suppose it would then become our duty to make sure Raquel's piece doesn't fall into anyone else's hands," she said to Lilith. I guess using the emblem as some sort of bargaining chip is off the table now...this is quite a lot to be wrapped up in, gods and vasili and who knows what else. Our goal hasn't shifted though thankfully.

Nadya

"Well that's more pressure on you to explain that you're on your sacred mission from Aisha or whatever and you need us to get into the city to complete it. I'd bet a chosen servant of hers is more important than some guy in a funny hat anyway," Nadya reassured Amon.

[Acacia Sgt]

<So that's why.> John thought. <It is certainly a big problem. All revolving around that Emblem. And this whole mess is bound to get even bigger I bet.>

-----

Gil grunted, and stirred once more. The noise had become too much for even him. Awake once more he moved a little away from the wagon before stretching his wings and body. Looking around, he grunted again before slowly making his way towards John.

[Mercakete]

Blake's yell immediately awoke Maw and sent the silver tabby into an instinctive panic, bolting out through the wagon's front and running as quickly as she could over to Gytha, kicking up little sprays of sand as she did. The feline ran right over Gytha and curled up behind the seafaring woman to wait out the loud noise that hard barked. Loud, sudden things were evil and without protection, you could quite possibly be eaten, after all. The little clawings, though, were enough to wake the sleeping mariner.

"Owow! Argh..." Gytha grumbled as she sat up and began running her fingers through her hair to get the sand out. "What is it?" she mumbled to the cat. Maw continued hiding, wide-eyed. Some veague sense of "it's morning" came over Gytha as she realized people were getting up and so drowsily decided it would be a good idea to start getting ready for the traverse. "Ye need yer eye socket tended to, aye?" Gytha asked as she began fishing out the supplies from her belt pouch...only to find the roll of gauze had been salted from when she'd fallen into the ocean. Heaving a sigh, Gytha stood up, stretched, and began making her way towards the wagon for a fresh roll to purchase from Raquel.

She wasn't exactly looking where she was going, though, and although she passed the sleeping pegasus, didn't see the sleeping rider on the ground and so accidentally rammed her booted toe into his belly and tripped, letting loose a yelp of surrpise. As the boot met his belly, Notbert was rudely and suddenly awakened from his dream and unanswered question, his lungs punching out a loud "OOF!" In an effort to correct her fall, Gytha instinctually stomped onto Norbert's side, arms having moved from his sides to his stomach when it had been kicked, and so were not protecting the ribs when the other offending boot stomped down. This time, an agonized yell exploded from Norbert as Gytha finished her fall over him and landed in the sand on the other side of the living speedbump. Though Norbert didn't feel like he was in any good form to get up and do something about his stomach or ribcage, the yells did wake Rizen up. She looked down to her pained rider, then around for an offender. Could it have been the woman on the ground? Nah. She was probably attacked by whatever hurt her rider, too, seeing as she was on the ground.

Gytha pushed herself up and dusted herself off and noted that her arms and chin were a little scratched up from the rough sand, but there were no serious injurries. "'R ye a'right?" Gytha asked the guy she tripped over. "No..." groaned Norbert in reply. Augh, MERZ this hurts!! His thoughts were a little more accurate, but he didn't want to talk.

Edited January 6, 2012 by Mercakete

[Snowy_One]

Within the wagon, a feral beast awoke at the sound of Blake's shouting. Having been resting peacefully in the back, Blake's call startled the hunter woman up from her sleep! She rose up, her eyes still gummed shut from rest, her hand reaching for her bow and arrow. Out of pure reflex, she sprung to the side, knocking the arrow to her bow as she rolled, coming up just short of the wagon wall, as she aimed at the source of the noise.

"<WAIT! IT IS BLAKE!>" some silent voice nagged away in the back of her mind, but it got quickly pushed aside. Wolves, bears, lions! Something probably wanting to eat her was in her cave! She aimed towards the source of the sound... and started to fire!

"IT'S NOT A WILD ANIMAL!"

A sudden twist of Robin's hand as her eyes snapped open at last and saw that she was not in danger was all that saved Blake as Robin's arrow shot past his gut, just to the side, before soaring out and landing harmlessly in the sand outside.

"<GODDAMNIT! DON'T WAKE ME UP LIKE THAT!>" she hissed before wiping her face.

"I am sorry! He startled me!" she said in common, praying Gytha wasn't around to blast her in the leg again.

[Phoenix]

Lilith

"I hope the lot of you are up for that. If we're truly near the end of the current cycle, then things could get extremely violent soon. It's imperative that Raquel learns to wield the piece she carries, or your group will be at a gross disadvantage if other pieces start falling into certain hands." she added. "Don't let her slack off her training. I can't leave a piece of the fire emblem in the hands of such an easy target. I would have taken it already if I didn't think she had a chance of gaining some control."

Amon

Oh no, she just reminded me. It's going to be that much more difficult if they don't know why the group's here. They'll come here thinking they're interrogating refugees. I mean, that's less spotlight on me if they don't immediately tell us to hand over the emblem but it's still not good. I guess what could happen is they take us to Sanctuary, leave us in the inspection zone for a little while, and eventually let us in once Lady Aisha is ... satisfied? Hmm ... I'm not sure. "Well ... at least if they know who I am they won't do anything too disrespectful, but that's about it. Patrols are so suspicious that new people tend to get abused pretty badly." he explained.

Camp In General

And then there was some yelling in Neviskotian that drew Lilith's and some other people's attention. "Are you people always this cranky in the morning?" she asked Veronika.

"Gytha! Pistol, chop chop!" Gabbie called out lazily from her wyverns back. She even clapped her hands along with the saying before trying to go back to sleep.

[-Cynthia-]

Veronika

I have no idea of what to do with this emblem training, I am no user of magic, much less ancient artifacts. Maybe we should seek out that Chie person Shadrak was talking about... she thought to herself before hearing the shouting.

"Er, usually not quite this much, excuse me," she said, leaving Lilith and heading into the direction of the yelling, which was the wagon. She noticed the arrow next to Blake.

"Is there some sort of problem?" Veronika asked those near the incident, sighing inwardly.

Nadya

"Well, they're gonna be men right? Rexian women are the bosses of the men apparently, so I'll throw some weight around if things start gettin' dicey, don't you worry," she said to Amon with a wink.

Edited January 6, 2012 by -Cynthia-

[Acacia Sgt]

<If it's that important, and considering things, I guess it's something one just can't ignore.> John thought. Just then, the sudden noises and yelling happened.

For such a time of night, activity was plentiful. <What's with today? The sun isn't even here yet and all this happening.> He thought, looking over at the wagon. ''I think it's just the circumstances.'' He commented, shrugging.

-----

If the yell was unexpected, then this next part certainly was even more. Sophia backed away a little by the sudden actions of the archer. What is it with her?! She thought. Fortunately, the arrow didn't hit its intended target. She sighed. What a way the day was starting...

[Mercakete]

Gytha looked over to Gabbie when she heard her name and laughed a little. "Hahaharr! No, ye shoot with pistols! Ye don't chop," she explained lightheartedly. Her attention went back to Norbert, who, suprisingly, wasn't getting up yet. Maybe he was serious when he said he wasn't alright. "Uhh, I think this'un's hurt," she made mention with a raised voice to anyone in the general area who might want to have a look. She wasn't good with helping people to not be hurt, as Syntha had proven several weeks before.

[Phoenix]

Camp

Was Nadya serious? Amon wasn't sure and worried in silence. Meanwhile Lilith turned back toward the camp and headed to where the fire had been. "We should get going soon. Waiting for whatever's coming to reach us would be time wasted. It will still be some hours at this rate, and that's time we could be using to close the distance between us and Aisha's little kingdom."

"I'm ready to go, already ..." Gabbie mumbled.

Lilith sighed. How long were these people going to take? She could only wonder.

[Acacia Sgt]

''Might as well.'' John said. Fortunately, Gil had made it already to where they were. ''Looks like it will be an early start for today, eh Gil.'' He said with a laugh before mounting. Gil grunted. <So we'll first meet with those guys from Sanctuary huh.> He thought. <This can go either way...>

-----

Sophia made her way outside the wagon. Despite any apparent danger having passed, there still linger the thought that it wouldn't do good to stay there for the time being. So if we're not under attack, Sophia realized. Then does that means are we leaving this early? Well, at least the sun won't bother us for a while in that case.

Just then did she heard a call about someone being hurt. She looked around, and sure enough, there was Bert lying on the ground... again. Him again? She sighed, but nevertheless walked over to heal whatever injury he had this time.

Edited January 6, 2012 by Acacia Sgt