Return of the Emblem Chapter Eight: Affairs of the World

[Ether]

Fishing out a single Sun coin, Faatina handed it to the shopkeep, and afterward attached the now-sheathed knife to her belt.

<"Thank you, Kind Sir."> Faatina said to the man, before turning to see if the others had made progress.

[ReformBlade]

"Lemme counter with this, then, Miss." Taking one final drink from his mug, he placed it on the counter as he tried to think. "If you only had a years worth of memories on you, no real judge of how bad it is or how to compare it, would you care how dangerous something is? And it's not like I'm new to danger myself. I'm pretty able bodied and can adapt extremely well, have been for a good while now, but going back to my first statement, that's kinda where I am right now. Aside from general knowledge like speech and motor functions, there's no recollection of any events before a year ago for me. It all gets very hazy after I... hummmm... Yeah once I see my house I can't really see that far beyond aside from a few blurry pictures in my mind that seems to be a silly jumble and mix-up of things. So, yeah, it's not that I'm naive enough to think you don't run into danger." Taking a moment to think about his choice of words, Davod continued, "It's that I'm... not afraid of it. If I really want to forge on ahead and live my life it's not going to be easy, and I'll fully admit, maybe this isn't the best path but god damn it's one I know I can handle, all the little nuances that'd go into it, I know how it'd work." Sighing and leaning on a hand now, "I shouldn't lie, I shouldn't say I'm not afraid, but I am truly ok with it. Death is a natural occurrence but holy shit I'm going to be running away from the reaper as fast as possible. You know what I mean?"

[Phoenix]

No Past

"Huh. You too?" Gabbie replied with a bitter sweet smile. "I was a mess when I came to. Learned I knew how to foight when someone attacked me. Killed him ... easily ... too easily. Got into some mean work, but eventually Weyland found me. It's funny not having a past of your own. Well if you're willing to face danger, then I'm sure we could use your help. What koind of weapon do you use?" Me doing the interview ... ME, hahahahahah!

No Receipt

The man attending the shop accepting the coin and gave it a good examination. He took special notice of the goddess on the back. Huh. This is a Sancturan sun coin. Wouldn't have pegged her as a Sancturan ... though on the other hand, she probably isn't. I mean look at that armor. She's definitely a warrior. From there he sat in his chair and waited with his elbows on the counter looking bored.

[-Cynthia-]

Veronika

Aneda was surprisingly complaint and seemed to be recovering from her drunkeness well enough, while Gabbie was still discussing something with the stranger.

"Gabriella seems to be handling herself well enough, do we want to go to the Leverager now or bring her along with us?" she asked Raquel.

Estate

"Hey sis...this must be Simon or Darksider or whatever," Cloe said to Cecily, raising an eyebrow at the man attached to her arm. I think I was right about my guess of 'loser' she thought to herself.

"I think you could wear a hood if you wanted..." Clara began when suddenly she noticed the door open with Layla in the doorway looking unamused.

"I'm guessing since you're here, the deserter has been dealt with?" Layla asked Cloe, turning her head towards the pegasus knight. Cloe merely nodded in response.

"As for the rest of you, I have to ask why the fat one is with you. I don't recall asking for him to be brought here," she said, her violet eyes fixed on Simon.

[Phoenix]

Decisions

"He doesn't seem like Gabbie's type. Then again I don't know what Gabbie's type actually is. I guess we could leave. She seems alright." Raquel replied, glancing toward the entrance and back toward Gabbie at the bar a couple of times.

Debriefing In Hoods

Simon stiffened up as Layla appeared and quickly put his hood up. "I-I umm ..."

"He wants to h-" "I! ... I ... the Darksider, will assist these three sisters in their missions!" Simon interrupted Cecily, stepping back and flaunting his cape in a silly manner. "My dark magic is unmatched! With my support, those weak in magic shall be utterly and entirely destroyed! I will not fail them, more importantly, I will not fail you, madam~"

"Heeee wants to help. Like I said." Cecily clarified a second time with an exhausted look on her face.

[Mercakete]

Well, Robin was looking at knives and talking to Sophia while Faatina made a purchase. Maybe she likes knives. She did give me one, after all, so she must've had a spare already. Don't see why she would've follow her own advice of always keeping a m-purpose knife handy. He was fine with keeping quiet and letting the women shop gosh that sounds sexist but he decided to talk to Faatina who seemed to not have anything to do now that they were basically waiting on Robin. "You like knives, huh?" Might as well stay on topic.

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

"Well, I trust 'er t' take care o' herself. If someone tried t' act less than courteousla t' her, she'd be willin' n' able t' defend herself. So, we can go look fer th' other captains now if ye want," she speculated, ending in giving her analysis to Raquel and waiting for the merchant to make a move.

[Acacia Sgt]

<Well, looks like they may come back soon.> John thought, seeing Aneda come out of the tavern. <Or maybe it was just her.> Well, that still meant some more waiting it seems.

-----

With the others kept to their knife business, Sophia was now trying to look at the nearby stalls. Hmm, this place really has many things to choose from. She thought.

[GoD]

"If we're talking about siblings, then I don't have any blood relatives... probably. But I had lot's of friends back in the chapel where I grew up... the village though.."- Chelsea paused and a grimace was apparent on her face, as if she didn't want to remember something.

[Snowy_One]

A small grunt of annoyance came from Robin at Sophia's reply. It had been a test, albet a small one, and she hadn't even replied? She placed the knife back before going over to pick up another. This was a long, wide knife with a curved tip, a small trench down the middle, and a concave edge running down it's side. Robin looked at it for a moment, then held her own up to compare, then put it back.

"<No. That's too combat-focused.>" she said before picking up another knife, this one short and wide with a similar curved tip. It's blade was thick before suddenly narrowing to a shallow edge and the hilt was held in place by bolts. She gave it a quick shake before putting it back and sighing. "Do you have any quality utility blades?" she asked the shopkeeper. "Most of these are common blades made to sell swiftly. I am looking for something a bit more lasting."

[Phoenix]

Shop

"What kind of 'utility blade'? ... or do you want me to actually get up and just bring you a box full of them?" he asked, sounding like he didn't like the idea of an item fetch in general.

[ReformBlade]

Another amnesiac? Small world, eh? "Weapon? Uh, nothing bladed, I usually use my whip if things get too crazy. I've grown quite a bit attached to it, I could nail any part of a body from quite a safe distance with it. But really, I digress, getting into detail about that kinda stuff just... eugh it weirds me out. I dabbled in healing for a while but I dropped it, it was just not something I was good at. Maybe if I got proper teaching or something, but eh."

[Snowy_One]

"I am looking for one that can skin and be used to cut meat as the main function as well as being durable enough to last outdoors for multiple uses. No bolts, one piece if possible." She held her knife up again. "Basically this, except in iron or steel."

[Phoenix]

Bar

"A whip? Now this I want to see." Gabbie replied with an interested look. She even leaned toward Davod a little bit. "So you could actually use just a whip in combat and ... do alroight?" she asked, trying to assess him.

Shop

He took a look at the knife and squinted a bit to take in the details. "You make that yourself?" he asked, though he disappeared behind the counter to get some knives that weren't on the display before waiting for an answer. The sounds of various metal objects being tampered with could be heard for almost ten seconds before he returned with several similarly shaped knives. "Have a look."

[Snowy_One]

"Yes. I did. I worked hard to make sure it was of fine craftsmanship." said Robin before she looked down at the knives. The first seemed very similar to her own before she picked it up. Something was wrong with its weight. Carefully she gave it a small swing, noting with dis-satisfaction that the tip seemed to carry through too much as she swung it, before putting it down. "Balance is off." she said before moving on to another. This one was of similar shape but holding a wider blade than the last. Carefully picking it she noted that the balance felt right before holding it up to her eye to look down the length of the blade. It seemed to be wonderfully made... until she caught note of a small warble in the edge. It was a fine blade to be sure, but it had been used at some point and had not been sharpened at any recent point. Grimacing she put it down. She looked at the next one, a fine-looking dagger with wonderful inscriptions on the handle and a lovely design upon the flat of its blade, smoothly shaped and looking as sharp as her own... before passing it up. It was likely a display piece, designed to be more art than tool, and not what she was looking for.

At last, she spotted what she wanted in the fourth knife. It was a simple-looking knife, sporting a single edge that curved inwards while bending up at the tip, like her own. A smooth and simple flat shone in the light as a long, wide bloodtrench ran down the center. A small, secondary, edge was on top coming down and over the tip of the weapon. It seemed to be made of a single, uniform, piece of metal with a soft grip of hide that had been carefully slid on and then secured by bending the metal over it. She picked it up, felt the pressure in her hand as she squeeze the hilt, and smiled.

"This one! This is the best knife here!"

Edited March 28, 2012 by Snowy_One

[Phoenix]

Shop

The man shrugged. "Best one for this price range, maybe." Unsure of whether or not she was going to buy the knife, he put his elbows on the counter to support his head and waited with an unmistakable look of boredom on his face. She wouldn't know what a sun coin is, would she ... right. "Ten gold if you want it."

Heading Out

Gabbie seemed preoccupied, so Raquel finally decided to leave along with Veronika and Gytha. Not many were still waiting around by the Dauntless, causing Raquel to frown. It was her idea to leave the vehicle here so people could return to it after they'd taken care of their business or done some exploring, but in hindsight, she realized how utterly unprepared for an attack they were. There was no reason that dreaded organization of assassins and duelists wouldn't attack them in broad daylight. Maybe it was the lingering paranoia, but she honestly felt like hiding. "We're going to go see a ship captain here at the docks. We'll be back soon." she told John, and even though she was talking to one of the group's own people, she still sounded apprehensive.

[Acacia Sgt]

Ah, there they were. <I take it they had either no luck in there, or are just looking for more options.> John thought. <Still...>

''Something wrong? No luck so far?'' He asked.

[Phoenix]

Paranoia Will Destroy Ya

"I-I'm fine I'm just ... a little nervous about this port. Th-that's all." she quickly replied. "We heard about three ships that are hiring, and we're going to see one of the captains at the docks, right now." Throughout her explanation, she would look all over the place for anyone who might be lurking. She knew deep down that they were being followed, she just knew it. Forget that they had only just come out of the Sandbar twenty seconds ago.

[Snowy_One]

"Best for this price range? What do you think is a better knife then?"

[Acacia Sgt]

<She sure got worked up so quickly.> John noted. <Then again, it was in a port where all this mess began, and in what a way it did. Well, I guess I should try to do something about it then. Lend her a hand, or more like, an eye, heh.>

''Well, good luck on that, and be careful.'' He said.

[Snike]

The group with the new Rexian had left for the markets just a few minutes before Blake had worked out preliminary combat team ideas. Oh, well, he could ask for input later. To pass some time, the Ursian found some parchment within his belongings and wrote the teams down, with ideas as to how each group of fighters would fit into the overall fighting squad. He had only made it halfway when Raquel had returned from the bar, in a worried state. She was worrying about the shadiness of this port, apparently. Which meant she might feel like she was in danger. Maybe he could at least alleviate that stress, and as a result be in her good graces. To introduce and implement the hypothetical teams, of course. The swordsman stood up, stretched his arms and legs, and moved outside, near where John and Raquel were talking.

"Do you mind if I tag along?" Blake asked. "I need to get some fresh air." Which was not necessarily true, but hey, it was a convenient excuse.

***

"Acknowledged," Axel said, and the room entered a bit of a silence. After a few minutes, he broke it again. "Do I still hold the position of armor tester? Also, I presume my shield and lance were destroyed in the blast, correct?"

[Phoenix]

They're Talking

"A few. Magically bonded knives are ridiculously expensive, but the blades never get dull and they're nearly impossible to break. My boss could only get his hands on about ten of them, which is a blasted miracle. We usually don't offer to sell those unless people are searching for them or look like they can afford them." the man explained. It seemed he was only an assistant, and not the shop's true owner.

They're Walking

"Thanks, and we will." she said before Blake appeared with an offer to accompany them. "I don't mind at all!" Raquel shot back, not realizing how loud that came out. "A decent sized group is definitely safer ..." she reasoned with her gaze now aimed at the ground.

There were so many ships docked that finding a specific one with only a flag description was going to be a little tough. On the other hand, the ships had a lot of different sizes, and Raquel could tell at a glance which ones weren't the right size for the Dauntless and the animals. Now she just had to hope the Leverager was as large as the barkeep had said.

They're Stalking

Moments after Raquel and the others left, the three men from before exited the Sandbar and began looking around. One of them spotted Raquel and the others in the distance and pointed toward them briefly. "There." he said under his breathe. The three immediately began walking off in the same direction, both trying and failing to look natural.

They're Also Talking

"I don't recall them recovering your equipment, no. Probably too much of a rush, but basic equipment is far easier to replace. And yes, if it isn't too much trouble, I would like you to keep testing the armor for flaws." Weyland replied. He then crossed his arms and put a hand on his chin. He was apparently mulling about something.

[ReformBlade]

"Do alright? Yeah I'd say so. It's surprisingly simple once you get the hang of it, like I'd assume using a gun or a bow and arrow would be." Both surprised and kinda glad at the interest, Davod found himself smiling slightly again. "I mean yeah there's obvious limitations, such as fighting in crowded places, but I can do it. If nothing else I'm agile enough to get myself into a position in which I can make good use of it. And if I can't do that, I find a swift kick to the knee often gives me enough time to run my ass away, haha."

[Snike]

Raquel, rather loudly, said that it was no bother if Blake accompanied, which was unnerving. Her tone was sort of... off? Maybe the heat was getting to him, but the merchant didn't seem to be acting like this until after the bar. Had something happened? These questions whirled through the swordsman's head as the little group began the ship search. Every now and then, he'd glance back, to find three people off in the distance. The same three people, 'incidentally'. After about the third or fourth time he saw them, Blake clasped his left hand on the hilt of the sword concealed within his jacket, but otherwise said nothing, as to not worry Raquel.

[Mercakete]

So, they left the bar. Gytha felt...okay about leaving Gabbie back there. She knew the woman was tough enough to hold her own, even though being a woman by yourself in a rough place like this wasn't something she would usually recommend. After a brief exchange with John Blake offered to come along. That was entirely welcome and Raquel seemed to agree. "So, which ship're ye lookin' fer first?" Gytha asked Raquel, scanning the backs of the ships for one of the names they'd been given. That was when it dawned on her. "Ye know how t' identify a ship, aye? If it's not navy 'r pirate, it doesn't usualla have a flag, but ye can get somethin' of an idea of which ship is which based on th' size n' type. But th' real tell is that every ship has its name written in Common on th' back. Navy ships fly their country flag n' pirates have their own variations o' pirate flags. Ye'll know 'em when ye see 'em."

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

Well, that was a bit awkward. Maybe Faatina was distracted or something. Norbert decided to just give up on waiting for a reply for now and just idle. There sure was plenty to look at while Robin talked with the knife clerk, after all.

[Acacia Sgt]

Usually situations like those would require a good eye in the sky. John of course, had something just for the occasion... if only said something would cooperate.

''Hey, wake up!'' John called out. Gil grunted, but kept eyes closed. ''Just great...'' Turning, his gaze crossed the tavern's entrance, and saw 3 men emerging from within. Hm? He probably wouldn't have payed too much attention, but they had to go on pointing, and then walking off, in the direction Raquel and the others took.

<Coincidence or...?> John shook his head. Turning back to Gil, who hadn't budged an inch. Grabbing his lance and shield and putting them in place, he turned back, and began to walk away. ''Fine, I don't exactly need you anyway. I can look around the port without flying.''

<I'm sure those three couldn't pose that much of a problem... but if they happen to have 'friends' waiting around...>

At those parting words did Gil finally rose, grunting. He saw John walking away, and for once, didn't go back to sleep. He did resumed his lying position, though, but now he had a watchful eye at his surroundings.