Mercakete Posted January 24, 2014 Share Posted January 24, 2014 Indeed, he arrived very soon after Iris noticed him and, in fact, he noticed that Iris was already there, too, though Drake didn't seem to be around. "Hello," he greeted, though he decided to ask about Drake later. First thing was first. The courier turned his full attention to Irina and gave his report. "I delivered your message to the Grand Marshall, Isotov and Lev," he informed before somewhat apologetically continuing, "The Grand Marshall said it was okay, but we'd have to keep an eye out for demons while we were up, Iris here said that she and Drake would like to come with us and that it would probably be for the best to stay near the camp and to keep the flight to only one or two circuits, Morgan said that we should stay near the perimeter of the camp and Lev said to make sure you kept your armor and weapon with you." Now, it was only somewhat apologetic since he was still keeping his focus on the business side of things, though admittedly, at the end, he was fairly obviously feeling uncertain. He sighed and dropped the formality. "I'm sorry, Irina... I didn't mean for this to turn into a job. I'll still head up," I kind of feel I have to now. "but if you'd rather stay down here, I understand. Maybe you can still get some quality time with Kiev without having to worry about anything else that way." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phoenix Posted January 25, 2014 Author Share Posted January 25, 2014 Irina It was a little odd, but in a good way, Irina felt. She became a little worried when Iris noted Iso's condition. She already knew he wasn't in high spirits, but if others noticed, they might try and do something about it; Iris had apparently already tried, even. Soon, though, she retracted her request and left Irina wondering how to handle the situation. Eventually, she would have tried to speak with Iso again anyway, so she wasn't sure whether to delay, avoid that particular subject, or just not have another serious discussion at all for the time being. She was leaning toward slightly delaying when Tas arrived and gave his report. Not one thing in the report was surprising once she had a second to dwell on each bit. What did surprise her though was that Tas seemed to think this ruined things for her. She smiled and said, "As long as Kiev and I don't end up crashing in a lake or getting into any fights, this is just fine for relaxation. There's not much chance of the former. Seriously, though, don't worry about it, Tas. I was trained by my uncle and learned to relax whenever I can, wherever I can, and however I can. Patrolling's just fine as long as I can spend a little time with Kiev, I guess." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mercakete Posted January 25, 2014 Share Posted January 25, 2014 "Really?" Tas asked, somewhat surprised but mostly relieved as he brightened up, "I'm glad!" This really was the best possible outcome. "We can leave as soon as everyone's ready, then." His mood certainly had shifted with the news. He was a lot more confidant, energized and just over-all happy. It was impossible for him not to display some form of professionalism with his last sentence, though. He'd been raised to be a courier and part of that entailed courtesy, after all. That having been said, though, he took the few steps over to Namid. Both he and his wyvern were ready, and so he figured this was the most practical way to display that. I can't wait to get into the sky! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Inactive Account Posted January 27, 2014 Share Posted January 27, 2014 OOC: Just yell at me if I get details off, I was reading a lot of catchup late at night Arrin It had been a long day, and was shaping up to be an uncomfortably cold night. Dinner with the guides had been somewhat awkward, as Arrin had difficulty conversing with them, so he'd mostly stuck to talking to Tessa. Now, she'd returned, and was asking him if he wanted to go walking. "I suppose a short walk couldn't hurt, after spending most of the day in the saddle," he offered, getting to his feet. "We'd better not go too far, though. He looked over to Kelas, who nodded. "Don't go unarmed, don't get out of sight of the camp," she said. She made no move to follow after them; she appeared to have something else on her mind. Kelas After Arrin and Tessa had moved off, Kelas looked around the camp again. She hadn't talked to Isotov since the fight; she'd been riding with the guides first, to explain a little more of what was going on lest they misunderstand the situation and leave the group behind, and then, over dinner, he'd been talking with Charlotte. She wasn't sure if Charlotte knew not to talk about the issue of her relationship with Isotov while the Zaftran bodyguard was around and she didn't want to find out the hard way. Instead, Kelas had eaten dinner with the guides, and spent the entire time being entirely unsure of their opinion of her. Then, the bodyguard herself was talking to Isotov... then, finally, she moved off. Excusing herself from the slightly awkard conversation she'd been having with the guides, she wandered over and sat down beside him. "What exactly happened earlier? I heard things about Ixion and Shanice and Miranda but I wasn't there to see it, I just heard a lot of distant screaming. Are you all right?" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phoenix Posted January 27, 2014 Author Share Posted January 27, 2014 Iso Iso looked down at the flask he was about to drink from for a moment and then quickly but carefully sat it down beside him. If he started drinking right in front of her, Kelas might get a little worried, regardless of any reassurances. He was still at a loss for how to respond for a moment, though. "Miranda attacked Shanice earlier and both of them ... fused together or ... something. Ixion ran off with her after that. I still don't know what's going on or remember what Miranda warned me about back in Ilyphina ..." As for himself ... "As for me ... I'm trying to figure out what I'm going to do about Irina once this is all over. It's not as simple as I hoped it would be, especially not after kalten." Irina (Well as long as we don't run into any demons at least, heheh ...) "Well, I'm ready," Irina shrugged; Kiev was right there and saddled up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Balcerzak Posted January 28, 2014 Share Posted January 28, 2014 Iris pulled out a small whistle hanging on a thong around her neck and blew into it. It didn't make much in the way of sound, at least as far as the humans could hear, but before too long Drake came in for a landing, carrying his harness. "Sorry guys, it shouldn't take me more than half a minute to get this secured, then we can go ahead and be off." If the lieutenant looked apologetic that's because she actually was, she hadn't intended on being the slowest link, it had just sort of happened. Thankfully some of the training Drake had gotten during his time in the military helped her to save a little face at least, as he came quick when called and brought all the necessary equipment. "I suppose if you wanted, you could even get a head-start," Frederikov conceded, "We'll be taking a leisurely pace I expect, so catching up shouldn't be a problem." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mercakete Posted January 28, 2014 Share Posted January 28, 2014 Namid cringed and pulled his head back at the sound, backing up a pace as he shook his head and hissed. That had Tas both surprised and worried as he turned to face his wyvern; he both sounded and looked like he was in pain. "What's wrong, Namid?" The mountain wyvern snapped his jaws in the air a couple times and shook his head again before, as subtly as he could, began watching Iris warily. Tas followed his wyvern's gaze and frowned somewhat pitifully at the woman, not really knowing what to say at first. Maybe Irina would have a better idea of what happened. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Inactive Account Posted January 28, 2014 Share Posted January 28, 2014 "You're going to try to get out of going back to Kalten, right?" Kelas replied. She wondered how many people in the group actually knew what they were going to do with themselves after this was all over; she certainly didn't. She could go back to the Tuorchi and take Arrin with her, but she doubted he'd do well living on the move forever... and she wouldn't do well in Ilyphina without anyone she knew. "After the battle, there'll probably be some celebrating and other assorted chaos. You might be able to get away from your bodyguard if you head out into the city while that's going on." She sighed and leaned over to rest her head on his shoulder for a moment before pulling away in case anyone was looking. "I don't know where to go after this is all over either. I've spent the past few months wishing everything would go back to normal, but I'm not sure I knew what normal was to begin with." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phoenix Posted January 28, 2014 Author Share Posted January 28, 2014 Iso "Somehow," Iso nodded to the Kalten question. (I guess I'm not the only one struggling to find an answer to that question. Not even the only one with a sibling to consider, either.) "Did Arrin mention anything? I mean ... did he ever mention wanting to go somewhere or do anything in particular after this is over? I've been meaning to ask Irina, but I may have to put it off a while longer, and even once I know, I'm not sure I'll be able to figure out what to do. I can't force her to stay with me." Irina While the whistle was blowing, Kiev slowly and steadily tilted his head at Iris, wondering why she was screaming like that. He thought to come closer to see if she was alright or wanted something, but the other wyvern came over and at that point, it seemed better to just let the wyvern handle his own master, lest he come under attack for encroaching. Meanwhile, Irina noticed Namid's reaction. She noted Kiev's too, but he wasn't the wyvern that looked agitated. "He must not like the sound," Irina answered Tas. (Glad Niket's not here right now, that might have sent him into a frenzy at his age.) She didn't fault Iris for the minor incident since there was little chance she'd known how sensitive mountain wyverns were--Irina had only just pieced this information together, though it did seem obvious in hindsight. Not enough of the Zaftran military or Ivanko's mercenaries used mountain wyverns for an issue like this to become apparent. Still, the damage was done and Irina was mulling over whether to advise Iris to give Namid some space until he wasn't suspicious of her anymore, or just seeing if the wyvern would forget all about it once he'd spent some time around her without the whistle going off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Balcerzak Posted January 31, 2014 Share Posted January 31, 2014 (edited) "Oh, right, definitely not anywhere too far," Tessa quickly agreed. When Kelas gave her conditional support of their endeavor, after Arrin had grabbed his tome, the young girl took him by the hand, a move she almost regretted when she noticed that apparently nerves had been causing her palms to sweat a little. Still, maybe it was her imagination but she thought that the young mage's were also a little warmer than might have been expected on the chill desert night, so she decided to pay it no further mind. On Kelas's advice, their first stop was near Tessa's pack, so she could pick up her discarded sword and scabbard, and strap that back around her waist, which she did with a bit of a frown. It would just be the worst of timings if they had to fend off an attack when she was trying to have an important conversation, this conversation. Even so, it would be better to be prepared than to be dead. A small smile snuck its way back across her face as she thought that, then she turned to Arrin with a "How about this way?" before taking off with a bit of skip in her step. Unfortunately there weren't any real convenient hills, trees, or any other sort of useful landscape for leaning one's back up against while sitting or laying, to watch the stars and have a nice little chat, so eventually the pair were forced to just settle for pulling up and stopping somewhat haphazardly, a few stone's throws from the nearest of the camp's fires. Unconcerned about the dust of the blasted terrain, Tessa sat herself down, cross-legged, and patted the ground beside her, indicating that Arrin should follow suit. Shortly thereafter though, the healer hit with another unfortunate roadblock, as despite knowing full well what she was hoping to accomplish, now that it had come right down to it, she was finding herself struggling to bring up the right words. Yet luck had not completely abandoned the troubadour, as a particularly strong gust of wind provided an excuse to edge closer to her mage friend, snuggling up for a bit more warmth, and providing a topic at least, any topic, to start to get the words flowing. "I never would have expected this sort of weather from a desert. I suppose I probably should have grabbed an extra cloak while we were at my pack, huh? I'm not... bothering you any, am I?" OOC: I'm terrible for taking this long to get this out, so sorry kdanger. "Huh, well that's odd," Iris exclaimed as the courier's wyvern seemed to be going almost into hysterics in response to her whistle. "Can't say I've ever seen a wyvern react like that to a calling. I guess that's because most of them tend to not really care too much if it isn't their master's. Not sure how they can tell them apart, to be honest. You never got yours trained?" Frederikov directed the question to Tas with a quizzical look on her face. Edited January 31, 2014 by Balcerzak added Iris segment Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mercakete Posted January 31, 2014 Share Posted January 31, 2014 Tas' concerned look turned into a grimace. "We never used those things," he replied to Iris, "Namid -- along with all other courier wyverns -- was trained, though. Usually, wyverns and humans don't get along, so they have to learn to. For us, that means training our wyverns and couriers to show respect to our customers and to work together. In addition, we have to learn evasive tactics and what to do in an emergency, in case we're ambushed and in case one of the wyverns gets injured to the point of not being able to fly anymore. We all...used to work together." It wasn't a convenient time to be reflecting on his training at the ranch. Too quickly, the memories were beginning to bubble up to the fore of his mind again. "S-sorry," he managed, trying to keep his emotions under as much control as he could, "I'll see you in the air." With that, Tas hurried into Namid's saddle and both launched into the air. The courier only hoped he could regain his composure before anyone else got up there. I don't want to ruin this for anyone... Come on... Deep breaths... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phoenix Posted February 1, 2014 Author Share Posted February 1, 2014 Irina With the way Tas made his way up, Irina began to worry. Still, she couldn't do anything about it just standing around, so she got onto Kiev, taking her time since Tas wasn't going far anyway, and preparing to take off after him. "I'd have waited up for you instead of going off ahead, but it would probably be better if I make sure Tas is okay; he looked a little off just now ..." she told Iris before taking off, herself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mercakete Posted February 1, 2014 Share Posted February 1, 2014 Up in the air, Namid circled above the other two wyverns and riders. Tas was focusing intently on the back of Namid's head, breathing deeply and steadily as he pushed the unbidden memories of the ranch to the back of his mind. With it, came a question Tas found he wasn't ready to answer, and so struggled to force that off to the side as well: I've been trained as a courier, but am I one anymore? If I'm not a courier, then what am I? What will I become? No, I can't think like that right now. What's important right now is relaxing and enjoying this time before...before... Visions of what the upcoming battle might be like raced through his mind: all horrifying jumbles of what little combat experience he had. No, don't think about that either! Again, he focused on what was right in front of him: he was on Namid's back, in the night sky. The wind was stirring somewhat, cool and fluent. The stars were shining as serenely as ever. There were no battles raging below, no cries of pain or death... Death... Tas' throat tightened at the memory: his father, Riggs, the little hatchlings and eggs, all half-rotted and scorched on the ground. He refocused his vision again. I'm alive...Namid's alive... The night is peaceful. Nothing bad is happening right now. Right now, everything's okay... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Balcerzak Posted February 1, 2014 Share Posted February 1, 2014 (edited) Well Iris was feeling just awful. Clearly she'd said something to set Tas off, but she had never intended to, and still had a little bit of trouble figuring out just why it had caused such a strong reaction. At least the courier seemed to realize himself that he had let his emotions get the better of him, and flew ahead first, presumably to clear his head. When the princess mentioned she was going to head on after him, though she ordinarily would have waited, Frederikov fully agreed, nodding and waving her on. It was just a short bit of tacking and harnessing later and she was in the air herself. The lieutenant no longer held any pretenses of hoping to accomplish anything in the way of bonding or relaxing, at this point she was just there for surveillance and protection. Edited February 1, 2014 by Balcerzak Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phoenix Posted February 2, 2014 Author Share Posted February 2, 2014 Irina Once Irina and Kiev caught up, the former waved to try and get Tas' attention. "Hey, are you alright?" she called over. She would have preferred to be more subtle about it, but she just didn't see any way to do that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mercakete Posted February 2, 2014 Share Posted February 2, 2014 Tas looked over as Kiev and Irina came up alongside him and Namid. He didn't think much about her first question at first -- he was a little distracted. It wasn't until he gave as convincing a smile as he possibly could and answered, "Don't worry about me -- I'll be alright." that he realized that down below, he must not have hidden his emotional turmoil well enough. Frowning, he apologized, "I'm sorry if I made you worry... It's just, thinking back on my training... Well, it...reminded me of home." Not wanting to make that the focus, he hurriedly put in, "I'll get over it, though -- don't worry. It's just that for now, the good memories are the most...difficult to reflect on. The future isn't entirely encouraging either..." Well, trying to get the focus off of himself was failing miserably. Determined to correct this, forcing a smile in the hopes that it would become more legitimate as he relaxed, he finished, "So, for now, let's focus on what's happening right now. That's what I'm trying to do, anyway." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Inactive Account Posted February 14, 2014 Share Posted February 14, 2014 Kelas "Bit ashamed to admit it, but I haven't actually got to asking him yet," Kelas replied. Even though it had been a chaotic few months, she regretted not having tried to find out more about what her brother actually wanted to do with his life. "I think he wants to get back to his studies, though. And that may be better for him; it's what he's used to... I can't just leave him to that when he hasn't got anyone else, but I don't know what I'd do staying with him. I don't belong in Ilyphina. I'm not sure I belong anywhere, really." She sighed. "But Arrin and I at least have some time to decide where to go after this. We can stay in Asura until we've made up our minds. It sounds like you have to decide more quickly..." She thought for a moment. "Actually, you might not have to. Asura's a city, but there aren't so many people there as there used to be, and we honor guest rights-- if you wanted, you could probably hide out in the city until you knew where you wanted to go." And maybe we'd have a bit more time before we had to split up, she thought. Arrin "N-no, of course not," Arrin replied. He was, of course, blushing furiously, and he was glad that the dark hid that fact. Flustered, he went for his tried-and-true defense: spouting vaguely relevant information. "I don't know much about this area, but I think some of the northernmost stretches of desert here were the result of demons rendering the land barren, instead of normal weather patterns. So I guess it makes sense that it gets cold here in winter. Do you want to borrow my cloak, or anything?" He definitely didn't mind the extra warmth from Tessa leaning on him, but he didn't want to be rude. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Balcerzak Posted February 15, 2014 Share Posted February 15, 2014 Tessa smiled as Arrin began giving a bit of an explanation for the weather, and the familiar behaviour helped settle her back at ease. "Mmm, no, this should be fine for now. It's rather a shame the land won't just be magically healed after we defeat the Lord and the demons though," she offered, playing off of his trivia. It introduced rather decently an angle to play off of, and to try to get said what she really wanted, so she ran with it. "You know Arrin, we're so close now, and I know we've talked before about what the two of us would do after. Originally it was to search out answers as to what happened to your teacher..." she paused slightly, remembering how they'd already learned some of the tragic fate that had befallen Ilony, "And to look for survivors from my monastery. But lately, well lately, at least in my thoughts and my dreams I've been getting a little greedier. It might not be entirely proper, but I find myself wanting more." The confession was proceeding along in what was surely a confusing direction to her audience, and Tessa was a little flustered about that, and her cheeks and her ears were undoubtedly red not only from the chill of the wind. But she went couldn't stop there, she had to go further. "These past few months have certainly had their ups, their downs, but we've been their for each other, and it's been a wonderful time. I... I guess what I'm trying to say is... I love you, Arrin. I know, I know, I'm sure I've said that before, and I tell everyone I love them, I think of this whole group as my family, right, so you know, this isn't a surprise I'm sure. But no, this, this is actually something different. You... You're special to me in more ways than just that. And I don't want just another few months or years adventuring after tomorrow with you. Lady willing, I'd love to spend a lifetime together. Would... Would you marry me?" As the rambling, and sort of self-defensive exposition wound toward its conclusion, her voice would occasionally shake, or slowly trail down in volume. By the final few words, the healer was at slightly more than a whisper. At this point, she actually sat up on her own, and leaned away a bit, turning, so she could watch the nomad mage's face as he would give her her answer, something that would have been impossible in their previous snuggling position. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phoenix Posted February 15, 2014 Author Share Posted February 15, 2014 Sky "Right," Irina nodded. She had been ready to console the courier if needed, but he sort of fixed himself during the course of his reply, and now he just wanted to focus on relaxing. One couldn't argue with that. "Just let the breeze carry you away," she cheerfully added, closing her eyes for a moment and smiling. Kiev was enjoying the flight, though he felt a little weird flying at night, guided by nothing but the moonlight. The environment was also barren, barren to a degree he had never witnessed before. There was probably nothing substantial that could be hunted around here, but he kept an eye out for things just the same. He didn't expect that Irina would let him go after anything right now, but for all he knew, this was their new home. They had been wandering through this region for days already, so he couldn't shake the feeling that this place was important, barren or not. If it was their new home, he wanted to learn more about it at the very least. Campfire "Huh ... I hadn't thought of that," Iso admitted. This whole time he expected that he'd have all of five minutes to figure out where to go before Ivanko appeared out of nowhere and dragged Irina or both of them back to Zaftra. It wasn't completely far fetched with Ixion operating in the area. He may have had his own agenda, but he was still a Zaftran representative, someone working closely with Ivanko, but more importantly, someone working for Ivanko. Hiding out in Asura for a time seemed at least a little viable. "Irina might have ideas of her own too, but I can at least convince her to stay in Asura for a while ... at least until everything's sorted." (I doubt we'll be in full agreement about what to do in the end, though ... I've just got a bad feeling.) "Either way ..." he looked Kelas in the eyes, "once everyone walks away from this last battle, try not to wander too far, okay?" There was more to that request than he managed to say, but he hadn't found the words for the rest just yet. [spoiler=OoC]Probably my last pre-TS post. Was going to be the TS post but I don't have the tomb details worked out yet and the TS post would have been way too vague and I'm not sure 'Korriban' (what I've been imagining for YEARS) is a good route to go flavor-wise. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mercakete Posted February 15, 2014 Share Posted February 15, 2014 Irina's reply was uplifting to hear. In the first word alone, he felt a sort of...confidence in him. He could have been imagining it, but it certainly felt like Irina believed he had the strength to conquer the problems plaguing him. And from that very notion, he found himself feeling a little braver. He also achieved just what he'd been struggling with just a moment ago: focusing on the present. Any fears of the future or sorrows of the past were gone with her next sentence. It had been just what he'd been describing to Isotov a short while ago. That feeling he got around Irina filled him with warmth as he watched her enjoy the wind's embrace. She and he were so similar. Maybe it was that, or something related to it, but something about Irina gave him strength. Indeed, going up for a flight was just what he needed. All around him was the vast expanse of sky and the heavenly bodies shone above them. In addition to this, Irina was right alongside him, enjoying it all. And he didn't know or ponder whether his fears were blown away by the wind, or melted beforehand. But he was smiling gently, at peace. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Inactive Account Posted February 19, 2014 Share Posted February 19, 2014 Arrin Well, whatever Arrin had been expecting, that wasn't it. His jaw dropped and he was quite silent for several moments as various different things went crashing around in his head. He rather liked Tessa... he might love Tessa? Kelas had given him that talk a while back... Getting married? Was that even a thing he could do? Weren't they kind of young? He was quite the academic, but did he really understand "forever"? Eventually he decided that he had better answer, if only to reassure Tessa that he hadn't somehow fainted while still sitting up. "Well," he began awkwardly, "I think I'd like that a lot, but, well, aren't we a bit young? I want to stay with you... maybe we can stay together for a few years, and then get married?" He wasn't entirely sure that he wasn't going to faint, come to think of it. It was quite a shock. Kelas "I'll do what I can," Kelas replied. Up until now she'd been concentrating on survival; now, with the end in sight, and Asura on the horizon, she couldn't escape the various influences that would be pulling her in all different directions when the dust had settled. She wanted to make promises, but she knew she most likely couldn't. Hang the consequences; nobody was looking. She settled against Isotov's side, wanting the extra reassurance that she wasn't facing these impossible decisions alone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Balcerzak Posted February 20, 2014 Share Posted February 20, 2014 The time it took for Arrin to respond seemed an eternity, and Tessa briefly considering maybe backpedaling, at least to a degree. Maybe the rituals or ceremonies associated with the term were frightening him off, causing him to hesitate? Should she have suggested a simple peasant's handfasting or something instead? That had been good enough for her parents, it should be good enough for her too, if that's what it took. That and myriad other thoughts flurried through her head, and it wasn't until she began to feel a little dizzy that she realized she'd forgotten she was holding her breath while waiting for the reply. Watching her friend's face for hints had only been so informative, what with surprise and confusion dominating his expression. While there were worse emotions he could have been showing, it wasn't quite what she'd hoped for, and when he'd finally opened his mouth with a 'Well...' Tessa felt her heart drop like a stone. Fortunately, the next words were 'I'd like that a lot', but then there was a little more equivocating, and her mood went through a series of rises and falls that would make a rollercoaster jealous. It wasn't a 'Yes', but it wasn't a 'No' either. She... she could live with that. Tessa tried to tell him 'Thank you' but she found she was pretty choked up, so deferred to simply letting out some vaguely affirmative sounding noises as she caught him up in a tight hug. She wasn't crying, though tears were running down her face and she found herself fighting back the urge to sniffle. No, this was not crying at all, the troubadour thought, as she buried her face into Arrin's shoulder. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phoenix Posted February 20, 2014 Author Share Posted February 20, 2014 Tomb of the Lord of Azure Flame It had taken a great deal of time get here, but as the crimson wielders and their allies passed over the last of the dunes, hills, and crags, the tomb came into view, a massive stone complex littered with rubble, sky scraping statues of humanoid figures, and bleached bones half buried in the ground. It looked completely deserted, and yet still dangerous to approach. Ixion and his demon companion had beaten the crimson brigade here, unsurprisingly after the short rest in Asura. Since Ixion couldn't have this demon with him in the city, he stayed for less time than the crimson brigade did. Now, here, a short ways from the tomb, the two of them hadn't set foot on the grounds yet. They probably had no intention of being a convenient distraction for any tomb guardians, but maybe they would finally get some answers. Just maybe. Reese raised his hand up to get his men to halt, doing so himself from atop his horse. "We're going to be here awhile. Secure this area. We'll use it as our new forward base. Once we finish setting up, we'll cover the crimsons as they head into the tomb." Meanwhile, Conrad rode up to Morgan and Lev who were riding on Krinkov. "The diversion may have worked. The tomb may not be completely abandoned, but we likely won't be overwhelmed by enemy forces if we're careful. Keeping that in mind, let's use the Grand Marshall's forward base as a fallback point in case something goes wrong inside the tomb. Now that we're here there's little stopping us from regrouping and trying again later if we hit a 'wall' while trying to advance. There's too much at stake to bet everything on our first attack." "Sooo you want us to fall back to the Elyisimians if things get a little rough, revise our strategy and just keep trying until we win?" Lev tried to simplify things as well as figure out if that's what Conrad actually meant. "Yes, but as far as conditions for pulling back, I would only advise doing so if we're about to lose a crimson weapon," Conrad's gaze lowered a little. Lev smirked. "Think I won't whisk her out of there if something goes wrong? Don't worry so much." Iso meanwhile hopped off of Kiev and led the wyvern by the reins as he approached Ixion and the demon. (Ixion ... and Miranda. I still can't remember what she was trying to tell me. I guess it doesn't matter anymore, really. Ixion said he'd explain his plan once we got here.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
-Cynthia- Posted February 20, 2014 Share Posted February 20, 2014 (edited) Morgan "There will be no better time to strike than now, so I am loathe to call a retreat. We will either win or we will die, there is no middle ground," she said in response to Conrad's plan. "Am I expected to give a speech or something of that nature?" she whispered to Lev. Charlotte At the sight of the Lord's tomb, Charlotte decided that there was no better time to issue a prayer. "Lady, please protect us and allow us to finally end this evil. Please, let us return to our homes after all this is over and rebuild all we have lost," she whispered quietly. Tristan The Lord of Azure Flame must be a rather big demon then. Well, guess we don't need to worry about there being room for the pegasi... Chase Chase occupied himself with stretching his back, legs, and arms to keep himself limber for the upcoming battle. So the fate of humanity's on my shoulders? No pressure, none at all, he thought to himself, taking deep breaths in an attempt to calm his nerves. Edited February 20, 2014 by -Cynthia- Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scorri Posted February 20, 2014 Share Posted February 20, 2014 Tiria Staring at the scene in front of them, Tiria slowly summoned the Crimson Sword, breathing a deep sigh as it dropped into her hand. Soon. Soon it would all be over. She could stop using this damn sword and her life could go back to normal. Edging slightly away from Beau and Raemond, Tiria shook her head. One last time. One last time she would risk letting the sword take over her. Never again. Oh even if you never use me, you'll never be fully rid of me... I'll still be here. And some day... some day you won't be able to resist my pull anymore. Adena Riding up at the back of the group, Adena gulped at the sight in front of her. Nudging her horse over to where Alex was standing, Adena did her best to smile at the woman. "So... this is it, I guess. You'll be fighting with me again, right? I'll do my best to keep you alive, I promise." Reika Scowling as the group stood, staring at the tomb, Reika idly flipped one of the daggers she held. The slight red glow around the edges didn't seem out of place anymore. She'd had the daggers for so long, she barely remembered a time without them. All she knew was that was when she'd started being alone. No one ever wanted to be around me. So why should I try and make them like me? All they'll do is abandon me. They all hate you. Just like you hate them. Only fair. Why am I even with them? Stupid daggers are the only thing that have kept me here. And that's only cause stupid druidess over there would hunt me down if I tried to leave. It's true. What do you owe them? Why should you help them? I'm the only one who cares about me. And maybe the odd idiot. Those I just use until I don't need them anymore. But other than that... You're alone. I'm alone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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