Return of the Emblem Chapter Ten: Converging Destinies

[Snike]

"I wasn't aware of any dossiers," Blake began, with a slight frown. "Though, the lack of information makes sense given that they literally hired me off the road less than a day before the whole attack on Weyland's residence. What matters about me is that I'm a mercenary, and that I plan on getting as many people out of this situation alive as I can.

"Last battle was a mess because of how disorganized we were, so that needs to be dealt with, but I agree that we do make a solid team. Though, you probably would have a solid team regardless of who you were partnered up with. But, to answer your actual questions," Blake said, returning to less distant tone "I think that we can and will rescue Jethro, provided that we fight smart. Beyond that, I'm not sure how much of a chance we have, but it doesn't matter to me. I'll protect Raquel, even if it costs me my life."

The man vaguely recognized that he may have gotten a bit too intense, so he decided to change the subject. "So, what do you think happened now, given that we're leaving so soon? My money's on the organization."

[GoD]

"Yaaaaaay~"- Chelsea exclaimed in pure unadulterated joy when she heard from Synthia that there were Steak Sandwiches. "Ah, I'm paying for the other black-haired girls so, I'll also order a Steak Sandwich and a glass of water for the three of us and the other woman with us."- she told the cashier her order. When the total came up Chelsea payed up and within a few minutes the girls received their sandwiches. They then chose a place to sit down and began nomming on the Sandwiches in silence, with a occasional remark or two.

And then as they were sort-of finishing up Norbert came up the group and told them it was time for everyone to meet up the Tower. Chelsea gave an indignant, un-ladylike whine "NoooooooooO~"- but quickly ceased and replaced her frown with a giggle.

"Ah well, it was fun. We should do this again sometime."- she told the females in the group with a grin. Then the troubadour faced Norbert "Yeah, I have no idea how to get there, so show us the way. Please~?"- she asked Norbert, her hands clasped together and giving him the girl's best puppy dog eyes.

[-Cynthia-]

Nadya's steak sandwich was filled with grilled steak, swiss cheese, and a tangy spicy sauce she couldn't quite identify but was extremely tasty. She was busy licking the sauce off the corner of her mouth when Bert arrived.

"Ya know ya ain't half bad Chelsea. I'll make a real effort to make sure ya don't collapse in the future," she said to her fellow troubadour. "But yeah work time now, lead on Bert."

Edited February 18, 2013 by -Cynthia-

[Phoenix]

Cold Welcomes

"Uh, you people work for Weyland, so what does that make you? What, does just making the weapons and selling them to bandits in uniform and anyone else who can afford them absolve anyone of any kind of responsibility? If that's the case then maybe I should join up with him too, clear my guilty conscience and all that~"

"'Bandits in uniform'? You're seriously comparing the military to bandits. This debate's just as well over and done with," Raquel interjected, not caring about the rest of what he said. She didn't want to bother given his interpretation of the military and his seemingly broad sense of evil.

"Okay, Raquel, whatever you say. I do respect your opinions, ladies, it's just ... they're as bias as anyone else's and I just can't resist a good showdown~"

Once they were close enough to the Dauntless, Shadrak spotted them and said, "Hey, what's going on? Who's he?"

Colin preferred the more hilarious option, and keeping Raquel and Veronika on their toes would be fun, so he pulled down his hood before either of them could do or say anything in response to Shadrak. "Hey, how's it going?"

Shadrak's face went pale. Why was the sword master here? Why was he walking so close to Raquel and Veronika without being attacked? "YOU?!!! Wwwwwhat the fuuuuu-!" "Whoa whoa calm down, man. I'm just here as collateral ... aaand to go on a date with Raquel."

"It's not a date!"

"Interrodation, whatever."

"What ... the ... FUUUUUUU-"

Get Higher

"You know, Ringo, I could have sworn I heard someone screaming just now. Probably just hearing things. I mean we're over a hundred feet up and the Dauntless is way back there. Though I guess, it wouldn't necessarily be one of ours yelling at the top of our lungs. Roight ... sometoimes ordinary people get stabbed too."

If Ringo had a human brain and some understanding of common, he would have agreed. "So, so far so good. Connor's aloive, you're aloive I'm aloive, and Raquel's aloive. Honestly couldn't ask for better results than that given what we've been through, but now that we're back in Ursium we've got a lot of crap to deal with, the Wrathoites, Sardis and friends, bandits ... ugh. I need Geminoi back."

Suzzy Q

"He cooks too? Wow, Suzume, you're as good as taken now," came a familiar voice. Suzume's glance immediately darted off to her right and she saw a heavily distorted vision of Alexandrina. "W-wha ..."

"Do me a favor, and don't cave and do this guy on the first date, okay? See you on the other side ... and bring that bastard with you if you can. We've got a score to settle ....

She turned back to Gar with all the confusion her face could express, slumped down, placed her hands to the sides of her head and said, "S-sorry, I'm just hallucinating, again. I think I spent too much time in that hold." I really hope my mind isn't unraveling here. "So you've got plenty of recipes under your belt. That's good. No, that's great, actually."

Waiting By the Tower

"Hey, those two are talking about Raquel. Are they on the dodgeball team too?" the child asked.

"This was over a year ago. Me, Raquel, Nadine, Wynn, none of us are on a dodgeball team anymore," Reign explained.

"Why not?"

"Well I'd be lying if I said not a one of us could find the time, but we are a little preoccupied these days."

[Ether]

With the commotion being caused by the dark mage, it was fairly clear that this previously hooded fellow was the cause of whatever disturbance happened to be connected to him... because that makes sense.

"Aye, who's this fucker?" Arietta asked, as she moved in closer to Raquel, Veronika, and whoever this newcomer that was giving darky the runs was.

*******

At approximately the same time, Faatina also heard the commotion Shadrak was causing, and opted not to follow after Zachary just yet. As she arrived, the new woman, a bodyguard was it? Well, regardless, she was questioning the identity of some new fellow sandwiched between Raquel and Veronika, and Shadrak was white as a sheet.

Walking Sharif over, she turned to Shadrak.

"What's going on, Shadrak? You seem horrified and confused..."

[roymbrog]

“Time to go already?” That was sooner than expected. Synthia had finished her sandwich already though, so she had no regrets at the moment.

“Uh, do were really need him to show us where the tower is though? I remember the direction and we should be able to see it after a few minutes walking. Did you have more people to find, Bert?”

-----

Well, judging by the noise Raquel was back and something was going on. Valter opened his eyes to find an odd scene. Shadrak had just finished his yelling fit at a guy the horseman had the misfortune of recognizing, and it was a bit disconcerting to realize the organization had managed to find them already. Saying nothing but looking rather wary, Valter approached with Phyllis to see how the situation played out. Colin hadn’t been attacked yet and seemed to have come here with Raquel and the others so there was probably a bit of explaining to be done.

[Phoenix]

Tension Maximum

"-UUUUUUCK?!!!"

"Easy, man, you don't want to make the redhead here a liar, do you? Then again I'm sure you people could justify just about anything at this point. Anyway, for those of you wondering, my name is Colin. I've fought a few of you before ... mainly the loud mage here."

"And you almost killed Chelsea, you son of a bitch! Raquel, what the hell?! What the actual hell?! Why is he here ... with you and Veronika?! Seriously?!"

"Veronika's idea," Colin quickly and mischievously pointed out.

"Veronika, what the hell?!"

"Colin, just shut up for a minute. Shadrak, I could explain if you would just stop yelling and let me," Raquel tried to quickly intervene. "Now everyone just calm down. Colin's a prisoner for the moment. Collateral isn't the word I would use myself, but we don't want to walk into this meeting with absolutely no leverage to speak of. He's not tied up because that was part of our agreement. I'm holding onto his sword as part of that agreement as well."

"Also I'll be letting her in on some useful information if she goes on an interrogation with me. It's like a date but you don't call it that~"

"It's not a-! ... Stop talking. Okay, so the reason he's a prisoner is because Veronika suggested it. We're ... going to have a meeting with Sardis and try to get my father back. We'll let Colin go after that, assuming they don't try to kill us."

"Pretty sure if things go wrong this time, you'll be the ones at fault~" Colin spoke up again.

"Stooooop."

[Ether]

"Wait so... this guy is a member of the organization that kidnapped your father... and here you are taking 'im on a bloody date?" Arietta confirmed, before burying her face in her palm.

"Bloody fucking dumbass pinky merchants no wonder she needs a fucking bodyguard..." Arietta muttered, shaking her head into her hand, before taking a deeper breath and stepping forward.

"Aight, since we're already bloody doin' this, give 'em 'ere. I'm not gonna sit back and watch ya get stabbed in the flank 'cause you were an idiot." Arietta concluded, hoping to get herself wedged between Valcyn and this 'Colin' fellow.

**********

"Well, this is different." Faatina noted, as Shadrak continued to fume.

"Well, he's already here, isn't he? Instead of getting flustered over it, just calm down and keep your head cool. If what Raquel is saying is correct, this guy coming out in good health is probably in our best interest, no?"

[roymbrog]

“Well, this certainly sounds like a trap. Splendid,” Valter spoke up after hearing the gist of the situation. “Why exactly are we meeting with Sardis?”

And then there was the matter of who was actually going to watch Colin. That job was volunteered by a woman who didn’t particularly leave a good first impression on the horseman, and really he had no idea who she was. “Who- … Is she qualified for that?”

[Phoenix]

Dauntless

"Stabbed in the flank? How's she going to stab herself with my sword?" Colin inquired, pointing at Raquel, who was still holding his blade. He hoped it was obvious he'd already been checked for other weapons but with these people it didn't seem likely.

Arietta was quick to comment on the situation and Raquel was trying desperately to remember what it was like to be some kind of calm and composed. "It's not a date, and who asked you?! For gods' sake, how many times do I have to say it?!" Raquel fumed.

"You don't have to say it at all; it's clearly not working," Colin noted.

"Look, my father's being held at the same fortress we faced our first group of bandits at, according to Colin," Raquel explained. "I wouldn't agree to meet like this otherwise and as for this d-date thing ... it's nothing like that. I'm just hoping to get some information from him. He said he'd only talk if he was 'comfortable'. And on that note, don't hurt him or restrain him or anything like that. It's not going to help anything now."

"It most certainly won't. Though, Raquel ... I'm pretty sure you'd be very interested in what I've got to share with you. If you'd indulge me just a little here, and try not to be too antsy about all of this, I'll happily share~"

"Why bother? We could just take the information from your mind," Shadrak threatened.

"You don't have any mind magicians; you would have used them by now," Colin confidently shot back in a dismissive tone.

[Eail]

"A rather admirable outlook on things if I may say so, getting everyone out alive isn't going to be easy but if people decide to listen I suppose it just might be possible. I plan on trying to protect Raquel as well, even if the thing with Lia ended up not working out I still owe her for trying and believing in me..." He trailed off, before changing the subject

"Wouldn't exactly say I'd work well with anyone though. Not the most popular guy in our little group at the moment." Zach said with a shrug. "Oh well, no skin off my ass. As long as I have at least two people I can trust to watch my back I'll feel comfortable."

"The Org? Possibly, they seem to be quite an active little group. I'd wager they know exactly who I am as well considering I was the protegee of the second in command cultist. It's nice to be popular. My money is on Wrathites though for the next thing we kill. Can't imagine Mom had this in mind when she taught me a bit of magic all those years ago..."

[Ether]

"You can never be too careful, guy." Arietta replied to the swordsman, before moving closer to Raquel.

"As for who asked me? Weyland did when he sent me 'ere to protect ya. I ain't gonna let somethin' like this be what kills ya five bloody minutes after I find ya." Arietta told the merchant, before eyeing Colin over.

"So if we're gonna do this, I wanna be close to ya while we're at it. I doubt he expected to be completely alone with ya regardless... and I've spent enough time in this 'ere town to know some lovey-dovey restaurants... so then, Colin, was it? Got any suggestions on who I should take to make this date a yours a double?" Arietta asked, her face shifting into a slight grin at the prospect. Sure, it was a little dumb, but hell, at the very least it should be interesting.

*******

"Well, she hadn't really gotten an answer, and things were certainly turning for the... well it was something at the very least... Faatina opted to watch for now.

[roymbrog]

Well both of Valter’s questions had been mostly answered, if not directly. There was one more thing however that he thought should be brought up. “Weren’t we supposed to be leaving town? If you’re going to waste time going on a date with an enemy, someone should let the others know that we’re not actually leaving…”

[Phoenix]

Dauntless

"We are leaving town," Raquel confirmed the second Valter brought it up. "Like I said, this isn't a date, and even if it was, we really don't have the time for this. We just came back to fill everyone in on the situation, grab the Dauntless, and head over to the tower. Then we can make sure everyone's gathered up and leave, preferably before any Wrathites show up to cut us down in the streets or whatever they're planning this time."

"Well I was going to say Shadrak, but he looks taken, also there's this whole 'leaving town' thing," Colin answered Arietta. "Of course if you still want a partner to hang out with, there's always the guy with the glasses. It's thirty miles or so to the fortress so there's plenty of time for a little group get together, even if it's on the road, mostly."

[Snike]

Right... Well, Blake didn't particularly want to talk more about Lia, for the time being, so he decided to begin by addressing Zach's second remarks.

"... That's not what I wanted to hear, but noted," Blake said, making a mental note to check around to see who wouldn't work with who. "I hope you don't end up alienating everyone but two party members, as that makes team building rather difficult. Not that I'd blame you for getting into conflicts with some members, but you know, we're all in this together, so I feel like keeping your options open is a good idea."

"Anyways, to elaborate on why I think it's the organization, there's the fact that they didn't attack us last port, which means they probably decided to wait until the next port to strike. Which would be here. Plus, Head Wrathite Bradford isn't the type to send armed forces after a group, especially after they were apparently told that the 'emblem' was a fake by an expert, as they were after the first skirmish, if I heard that story correctly," Blake said, remembering some of the information he had been told before the estate attack. "...Though, Major-General Alexakis was awfully interested in Raquel... Anyways, as for the organization, I'm not sure I'd want to be on their list, if circumstances were different. Sounds like a sentence to paranoia."

Then, Zach brought up his mother and how she probably didn't have this scenario in mind when she taught the mage how to use magic some time in the past. Blake smiled a rather sad smile, as he looked away.

"I don't think anyone had this in mind a few years ago," he said, distantly. "I for one didn't expect to be on this journey, anyways."

Edited February 19, 2013 by Snike

[Snowy_One]

"Maybe we do not have a mind magician, but does he know that? We just got a brand new magician with powers he does not know. Maybe we could bluff it?" suggested Robin.

[Mercakete]

Norbert inadvertently leaned away slightly at Chelsea's plea for him to lead them. She was unnerving him again. If they really would get lost trying to get there, then I guess there isn't much choice, but this will probably make finding the others take longer and we really can't be wasting time... he thought. Nadya was the next to speak up, first to Chelsea and then she addressed him. It seemed like he was expected to lead the way now.

However, Synthia spoke up next and what she had to say was more of a relief than the pegasus rider had been expecting. He'd been visibly uncomfortable up until this point and now he even gave a quiet sigh or relief. "Yeah, there are still others I haven't found yet," he confirmed with a nod as he cast Synthia a silent "thank you."

[Script]

A Man Called Gar

"This is the part where I'd blame having an undercooked desert snake as the real reason for hallucinations, but you probably haven't had that since I'm the only one here dumb enough to even attempt to cook that," Gar randomly segued into a combination of giving his own answer for Suzzy Q's hallucinations by linking it to him cooking.

[roymbrog]

“Right.” So they were actually leaving. There was one piece of good news, the only one in the past few minutes at that. Valter mounted his horse in preparation to leave. Because, well, that’s probably what they were going to be doing next. When people stopped talking, anyway. He did hear what Colin said about him, but didn’t give a reaction beyond paling slightly and his mood souring a bit more. That swordsman was quickly scaling the list of his least favorite people.

-----

Synthia was a bit amused with Bert’s reaction to everything. Really, people were just asking him for help. She caught the thank you but didn’t acknowledge it as she got up and stretched before walking to her horse. “I remember where we came from, and the tower was visible from there. I can lead you guys if you need direction that badly,” she told the others, then waved Bert off. “Go notify people or whatever it was you were doing.”

[Eail]

"I know it's not exactly ideal but when you have people like a crazy pirate and dear Shadrak it's typically pretty hard to get along with them no? And I doubt I'm down to just two people that I'm able to work with, don't exactly have the back up like some other people do though."

"Oh I don't doubt the Organization isn't involved in some ways, I just doubt they'll be the next things we fight. Funnily enough I haven't actually managed to run into them yet, guess I'll figured out if I am known once that happens though. But a Major-General eh... Can't say I'm too keen on fighting the Ursian military. My old man would have approved but I can't say I care much about the dispute between this place and 'Skotia aside from the Dragons, Dragons are cool..."

"Don't discount paranoia though my friend. It's managed to keep me alive so far, speak softly and carry a big stick as they say. Or a few bolts of lightning, that typically works too.."

Zach started to think back to his mother though, and her early lessons about magic that they had gone over so many years ago.... Zach really missed Lilly at times.

"She probably though I'd end up replacing my father as captain of the town guard or something, maybe end up being a scholar or even join the military to become a desk worker. Not exactly going and killing ten men that I knew in a single fight then get stabbed through the shoulder." Referencing the cult battle where had had ended up as one of the last people standing

[Snike]

"Well, one can always choose to just ignore those people in most cases where said people irritate you, and that doesn't burn bridges," Blake said, evenly. "And duly noted. I was just concerned by your earlier phrasing. As for whatever's ahead, I truly hope that we don't have to face the Ursian military, given that right now we'd have to either run for the Neviskotian border, double back and try to escape through the Kigenese border, or find a ship off shores again. The first two options force us to face the military head on at a few points, and by the time we'd realize that we would have to try and find a ship, a squadron could've already made its' way to within striking distance. So, really, my position on the war doesn't matter, I would just rather not have the whole group and ourselves be branded as outlaws, because that would make life even more difficult than it is now."

Of course, now that he said that, the gods would probably screw them over, but whatever. Onto the rest of the conversation.

"A little paranoid is not necessarily bad, but being a marked man, more often than not, is not healthy," He said, in response to Zach's big stick remark. Lastly, mister Fairweather continued on with reminiscing about his parents, or at least his mom. Blake couldn't quite relate to that, so he tried the next best thing.

"Well, she'd be proud of you if she knew why you had done that," Blake said, once again avoiding eye contact. "Can't say that I know for sure that she would say that, but I'd guess if I were in the same situation and I actually knew my mother, My money would be on that conclusion, anyways."

[Mercakete]

I know th' way back, but if Synthia's leadin' I can just follow. Gytha thought as she finished off her sandwich and prepared to leave.

"I intend to," Norbert replied then proved it as he and Rizen bolted into the sky again to resume the search for missing party members.

[Click This]

Having been soundly ignored by the people that she had attempted to greet (Perhaps they thought she was talking to another group of people behind them?), Mao made her way back to the dock with her delicious jar of preserved peaches and the complementary wooden spoon the general store owner had given her for her rather extravagant purchase. It seemed Mao had made it back at the opportune moment; It looked like these people didn't waste time. It was sooner than she preferred, but people that didn't spend time dillydallying were efficient and she liked that. Efficiency is power, after all. Mao quickly made herself presentable as she approached the Dauntless, throwing the jar of peaches into a sack on Water's saddle and wiping her hands clean with a handkerchief.

Having nothing else to do but wait, she hung around the group, making herself familiar with the faces of the people that she would be traveling with.

Edited February 19, 2013 by Click This

[Parrhesia]

Rook was a natural rubberneck. His search for lost bastards had eventually bored him, so he meandered back to the docks at a snail's pace. And yet, as he walked there... he noticed a small cluster of people, circled around what appeared to be a confrontation, argument or other delicate situation. And... yes! It was those guys he was with! Time to help them with his immense charm and winningest smile!

He shoved an old woman out of the way, stood triumphantly in the middle of the situation, clenched a lit cigar between his teeth, planted his hands on his hips and took stock of the situation from his improved viewpoint.

[-Cynthia-]

Veronika

Colin had clearly paid little heed to her suggestion of not antagonizing anyone and had taken off his hood, prompting the expected reaction from Shadrak. The number of voices grew louder and more numerous, including a number of people she did not recognize.

"Excuse me!" she called out loudly and clearly to focus attention on herself. "Colin is MY prisoner- he will not be stabbing anyone in the flank, nor will we be performing mind magic on him or stabbing him in the flank or any other types of prisoner abuse. Any sort of interrogation will be between Raquel, Colin, and myself. Colin is to be released after our negotiations with his criminal organization are complete and any attempts to undermine this will be punished severely," she declared to the assorted members.