Return of the Emblem Chapter Thirteen: Revelations

[Phoenix]

Boarding Call

"Well let's get going, then. I'll drop him off at the estate," Gabbie replied uncertainly. She felt she ought to stay here and keep an eye on things and try to get Tacito to fly the wounded man back on his own, but it would be dangerous with a blind, barely coherent passenger and no proper saddle in place. She supposed she would just have to be quick, going to and coming back from Weyland's estate.

"W-what estate? I still don't know who you are, either," Jethro said, struggling to figure out what to do with his free arm. He was apparently going to be riding somewhere, but he didn't sense an arm being offered to help him up and didn't even know where the mount was.

"She moight feel okay sharin' names roight now but I don't. Save it for later," Gabbie blew him off as she climbed up onto Tacito. "Let's get this over with," she grumbled.

Evacuating

"Interesting," Samael scowled. "Your motives aside, the only chance they had to kill me was when I was sending that mouthy idiot to his grave. Now if you're so interested in Cassandra's survival, keep her out of the line of fire while I deal with this."

He trusts you to look after me? No, maybe the situation's just that bad with the wrathites here, Cassandra thought, trying to figure out what to do next.

Silvia helped Colin over to Sardis and while the latter tried to get his strength back, Silvia looked her commanding officer over and tried to think of a way to move him. He wasn't that heavy, but ...

"He's not a suitcase, Silvia; this isn't going to work without a stretcher," Colin coughed. "Don't suppose you can conjure up something like that instead of a whip or a gun, could you, Cassandra?"

Cassandra hadn't thought of any nonviolent uses of her powers beyond the metallic casings she used to protect herself from high level spells. That was a little unsettling to realize, but she quickly suppressed the thought and nodded back. A golden stretcher for Sardis ... "That's way too good for him," Samael smirked as Colin took one end, Silvia took the other, and the two began hurrying toward the door.

"I need to go with them to make sure it doesn't disappear," Cassandra informed Samael and Uniter. She was already heading for the door.

"... then go," Samael said insistently, not sure what she was waiting for; as far as he was concerned, the only thing holding them up was her. "I'll meet up with you later." Hopefully this hooded character wouldn't still be looming.

Targeted and Firing

"Ah hell, solve one problem and another shows up like clockwork," Reign muttered, keeping his eye on Samael to see where his attention was. For a moment, he was convinced he and Faatina would have to run their asses off to even have a chance at evading the incoming aureola spell, but it soared over their heads, lashing out at the wrathites guarding the perimeter. Five were killed in the first blast and the entire line scattered. There was no sense trying to stand up to a spell that, if sustained for any length of time, could burn through tank armor, and so Reign didn't think scattering was a bad move on their part, despite it being born of desperation and panic rather than tactical insight.

"One person is casting that?!" Desmond said in surprise. Auerola spells usually weren't this large. He couldn't match it with his own light magic, and even if he could mirror the sheer magnitude, he wasn't a practiced hand at Aureola specifically. Still, he wasn't going to stand by and let his subordinates be wiped out like this. He was going to have to derive more power from Wrath rather than Mercy. "Clover, we may have to withstand a direct hit from that caster. Prepare yourself and follow me," he warned as he took off running away from the building.

"I'm not strong enough to deflect something that huge ..." Clover said, fear creeping into her voice. The only hope they had was Wrath himself. She chased after Desmond reciting a quick prayer as many times as she could. She positioned herself between Desmond and Samael the second the former stopped running. "He's about to cast again."

"Hooold," Desmond hummed as Clover's barrier flashed into existence. All of the energy was directed in front of them and they could barely see their attacker in the distance through the energetic shield. "He's not going to breach this barrier, Clover," Desmond assured her. "I won't let him. We're just going to make him waste all of that energy on us. The rest of you get inside and take him from behind!"

"Well the door's safe to rush for now, but I'm not going in there. Close quarters would be a bad move on my part in this condition," Reign muttered after hearing Desmond's order, an order he correctly assumed was for the wrathite's and their group alike.

Edited August 16, 2014 by Phoenix

[-Cynthia-]

Urgh if Jethro's in there, we could be missing the last opportunity to get him back- but no use going in if we're just going to get ourselves killed. Veronika didn't want to think about what happened to Gar, though she had a feeling that he was a very difficult man to kill.

"Fall back!" she ordered, breaking into a run back behind the Wrathites. Samael didn't seem to be focusing on them at the moment and the gunners had become incapacitated, so they may as well take advantage of the short window.

[Snike]

"Well, I guess we'll see if that confidence is just for show. Good luck," Uniter said, following Cassandra and the stretcher out of the destroyed room. "There's a hole on the first floor, at the back of the complex. Head through there, since it'll be a little easier to slip through there, than going right through the front entrance. It keeps us away from Langley, as well."

[Ether]

"Just relax for now, Jethro." Isabella replied, as she walked the man over to Gabbie.

"Would you prefer I accompany you to help keep him stable, or will my assistance be unnecessary?"

***

"Yeah going in there is a death wish right now..." Faatina noted with a scowl. If Reign wanted to hop on again, she would hold for a moment to allow him to do so, extending a helping hand if he chose to take it, but if he preferred to retreat on foot, that was his decision.

***

Damn, that was a blast. Atleast with the barrier up and the guns stopped, it was easier to back out with some urgency. And so Arietta did just that.

[roymbrog]

At Reign’s searing display, Kat threw up both fists and shouted, “WOOO!” Shortly after Arietta pointed out Samael looking down at them and the huge Auerola hit, her arms slowly fell as she gaped at the sustained light magic. She’d never seen a light spell that powerful in her life. When Veronika ordered the retreat, Katrina gladly did so, hopping on Volga to get out of there. “If anyone needs a ride, now’s the time to get on!”

---

If they were falling back, there was no way Synthia was sticking around and equally no way she was riding a wyvern, so she broke into a run after Veronika.

[Phoenix]

Flight Checks

"Tacito can barely handle two adults and all that armor he's wearing isn't helping matters," Gabbie replied. Low weight limits, more an issue with slender and nimble wyverns like hers than the more common types. "I'd head back and make sure no one else gets killed ... well, none of ... Raquel's, at least," Gabbie added, choosing her words with some difficulty.

As Jethro was guided onto Tacito's back, the lack of a proper saddle made things a bit uncomfortable; was he really expected to hang on to this stick of a wyvern while it flew over the city? He felt his good hand being grabbed and jerked around onto Gabbie's stomach, the scalemail beneath her tunic making him wonder if she wasn't part wyvern herself.

Still Evacuating

"We can't try to get him down through a hole in the floor; he's too injured for that," Silvia insisted as they made their way down the hall at a speedy pace.

"Why are you really helping us?" Colin chimed in at Uniter, coughing afterward and glaring off to his side. He sincerely wished he hadn't been hit by friendly fire like that, and he really wished his armor had done a bit more than hold up for merely a fraction of a second against it. "As far as I can tell, you're not with the wrathites or with Raquel's people, but I've never heard of anyone like you."

"Can we talk about this later, Colin?" Cassandra insisted.

"I just want to know this isn't some old enemy of ours and we aren't walking straight into an ambush," Colin muttered, nearly being interrupted by the urge to cough again.

Overwhelming Light

Robin was confused, but decided not to argue. She didn't want to fight right now anyway, and with Raquel in such poor condition, she wouldn't have been able to properly focus. She hoped that the merchant would be okay, but she wouldn't find out until they were far away from this place, so she ran. She ran as fast as she could.

"Come on, we've gotta go," Jericho urged. Now that the shooting had stopped ... some of it, at least, they had a window with which to retreat, and it couldn't have come at a better time, as that maniac with the light magic was frying people well beyond what he thought a light caster's range normally was. He still wanted to beat the living daylights out of Sardis, but he supposed he'd get the chance eventually. He just had to stick with Raquel a little bit longer and then maybe there would be another confrontation.

"Oh well," Reign shrugged before taking Faatina's hand and climbing back aboard. Better to slip away before Samael started gunning for them, too.

"They're retreating?!" Clover exclaimed.

"Focus," Desmond yelled, and his timing couldn't have been better. Clover reinforced her barrier right before a fierce beam of light struck it and was scattered. The ground just beyond the barrier's edges was reduced to a boiling soup and white streaks raced overhead and off to the side of the barrier, threatening to cause minor to severe burns to anyone caught in their path. "He can't keep up a spell that strong for long! Just hold on!"

Samael's eyebrow twitched at the sight of his spell splitting off into dozens of smaller, decidedly less lethal streams. "... that's a hell of a barrier, I must admit." He quickly relented and let both of his arms fall down to the sides. "However ... it doesn't matter how strong your barrier is if you're already out of your depth." Samael glanced off at the wall to his right, beyond the table Sardis had been lying on. "There are techniques within the domain of light, techniques from which there is no answer, no defense, no hope of escape. Time to introduce you to one of them."

"He's stopped," Desmond noted, "We'll move in in a moment and I'll take him. Just repel anything he casts before that."

Samael quickly took up his short staff and aimed it at the wall. In little under a second, a light glyph appeared, and Samael aimed the fingertips of his offhand at the glyph. The glyph began to give off an intense light as a new aureola spell was formed right on top of it. The wall the glyph had been projected onto quickly caught fire, but Samael had accomplished his goal. Clover heard a pained groan and the sound of searing flesh and cloth behind her, but before she could turn to see what was happening, the inside of her barrier lit up with light magic, deflecting at random angles and assaulting her. She and Desmond both wound up on the ground, but Clover was still able to move, her wounds not really worth mentioning by comparison. When she crawled up to Desmond, and saw that the spell had materialized inside of his body, ripping its way through his sternum and out into the space within her barrier, she was absolutely horrified. "DESMOOOND!!!"

[Snike]

"The hole's on the first floor, and it leads directly outside. We're not dropping him or anything. Are stairs an issue?," Uniter asked, before Colin began to ask about his motives. " This isn't really the time for that, but rest assured I'm not an enemy to you. We can talk later, assuming you're still up to it."

[Ether]

"Understood. Best of luck, Seeker." Isabella replied, as she turned back around towards the complex.

"Jethro is being extracted. Uniter, what shall I do next?"

***

With Reign aboard, Faatina began wheeling around, making a bit of ground before Desmond was attacked.

"Did... he just...?" The paladin muttered, dumbfounded, as the Head Wrathite took a full on blow.

***

"Well holy shit... so much for backup..." Arietta murmured as Desmond's walking shield was bypassed and he himself was pretty well vaped.

[Phoenix]

Takeoff

"Same to you," Gabbie replied, looking a little distant. Once she was sure Jethro was ready for, or at least expecting an ascent, she got Tacito beating his wings. On the third beat, he leaped off of the building and caught hold of the wind. "Hang on," Gabbie instructed, guiding Tacito over the nearby rooftops.

So that's it, then. We have Jethro. The cost was a little high but we have him. Now what?

Changing Places

"I assumed stairs from the beginning," Silvia replied with a few nods. "We can handle that." Maybe she'd spoken a bit too soon. Colin was still having frequent coughing fits. If he had another one while bringing Sardis down a staircase, with the mortally wounded man precariously balanced between them, it could turn into a disaster. "On second though, Cassandra, you should take over for Colin."

"Good idea," Colin barely managed after another bout of coughing and wheezing. "This is so messed up ... I actually know what my lungs taste like; I've been hacking bits and pieces into my mouth this whole time. So hard to breathe ..."

"Then stop talking, and focus on getting enough air in your lungs to keep moving," Cassandra said as she stepped in and took his half of the stretcher from him.

Assessment

Clover's screams managed to reach Samael's ears and as the steam cleared from the crescent shaped puddle in front of them, he saw her with his own eyes. "She's still alive? Was she actually able to maintain a barrier around herself as well as the one she used to deflect my frontal assault? That's impressive. It's a real shame she's next." Samael looked at the palm of his hand and then slowly balled his hand into a fist. "On second thought ... this isn't a staged performance for the masses, and I'm sure a sizable contingent of guards will show up here at any moment."

"We're going to have a hell of a time figuring out how to deal with him, later," Reign said, glancing back at what looked like Desmond's corpse. He hadn't moved an inch after toppling over ... "For now let's just get back to the transport and get back to the estate."

[Snike]

Take him to the estate. He needs medical attention, though there might be a delay.

"...I'm a bit busy here," Uniter said, though it didn't appear as though he was talking to anyone present. "You remember the red-haired woman I told you about? Could you make sure she makes it out alive? I couldn't care less about the other mercenaries. From there, just stay with them until retrieval."

Once that was addressed, he returned to the situation at hand. "Sorry. Subordinate question. Anyways, the Wrathites should still be in a disarray, so, once we leave the building proper , we will head out into the sidestreets and take cover in one of the abandoned buildings. There we'll see what we can do about the injuries."

Edited August 18, 2014 by Snike

[Ether]

"Agreed." Faatina replied to Reign as Sharif began gaining a bit of speed... get the hell out seemed like a damn good plan at the moment.

***

"Red hair? Ah... yes, the swordfighter. Understood, her survival will be placed as top priority." Isabella replied, as she began making her way back to the complex.

"Am I to inform the mercenaries that arrived with Raquel that Jethro has been extracted, to expedite their retreat?"

[Phoenix]

In Transit

"Huh?!"

"Hmm?" Jethro flinched. "What's wrong?"

"... nothing," Gabbie replied, feeling awkward. "Forgot he was listening in," she muttered under her breath.

Still curious, but lacking in ideas, Jethro sighed and let his head rest against Gabbie's back. With no sense of where they were or how high they were flying, he felt as if he was sitting on a small island in the middle of an endless, dark ocean. "Let me know when we're landing ...."

Also In Transit

Soon enough, the stairs came up, though with Cassandra standing in place of the injured Colin, they managed to get Sardis down to the first floor with relative ease. Sounds like someone's got imaginary friends, Silvia mused, just barely managing smile in the stressful situation.

"We need to hurry," Colin said, bordering on a whisper, "Even if the wrathites don't rush in here, Samael's lightshow's going to draw attention from the city."

[Snike]

Sorry. I'm dealing with a few things right now and thought that was a question.

"No," Uniter said, distractedly. "We can't tip off the wrathites. Take it slow."

A moment later, he realized what that sounded like to the Organization members. "Subordinate. Go as fast as we reasonably can, but be careful. Last thing we need is more injuries or to drop the stretcher."

Commander, I'm going to need your help with this.

[Mercakete]

When Synthia decided they should go in to help rescue Raquel's father, Gytha grinned widely. Sure, it was dangerous, but she was glad that she could work to accomplish her goals all at once. However, when the shooting started, Gytha tried to pull Synthia to some cover. She missed, though, and wound up pausing long enough after that to see that the bullets, though nearby, weren't actually being fired at them. Though, she was nervous about when that would change. Due to some ranged combat, the gunfire ceased, then the Wrathites and the organization really collided, which eventually led to quite the light show. I'm not realla sure what's goin' on, but that looks dangerous.

Then, a command came: Veronika was sounding the retreat. Raquel was already being transported out of there, so Gytha turned her attention to Synthia. Katrina offered a ride, but the mage, evidently, refused, and so Gytha waved and nodded a thanks, but a refusal, to Kat before running after the magic-user she'd promised to protect. If anyone started firing on them, she'd just fire back. And so, in preparation for that, the mariner drew her pistol.

[Eail]

Zach didn't have to be told twice to retreat, already sprinting back the way they had come from, hearing Kat's offer of a ride, it was any easy choice to make to take her up on that. Clambering up onto Volga and sitting behind her rider "I can give cover fire from up high if I have to."

[roymbrog]

Synthia could tell things were going on behind her, something bright, but didn’t turn to look until Clover was screaming Desmond’s name. Witnessing the carnage caused by Samael’s spells had her booking it out of there faster than before.

---

When the last of the stragglers hopped on her wyvern, Kat gave Volga the order to go, and after a few powerful wingbeats they were airborne and overtaking those on the ground. “I don’t think you’ll need to,” she eventually replied to Zach. “Did you see that lightshow on the ground? I think that light mage guy got his target.”

[-Cynthia-]

Fortunately, the Wrathites and the Organization seemed more inclined to fight one another than focus on the retreating members of her group. After making her way behind the Wrathites, Veronika paused briefly to consider their options.

"Back to the estate! We'll regroup there!" she called out. If Gar or Jethro are in there, they are already beyond our reach. We're more vulnerable when split up regardless, she rationalized.

[Phoenix]

Return to the Battlefield

A signal from Gar really didn't seem necessary as the complex came into view. There were signs of battle everywhere and at least one intact body from what Lilith could tell. She quickly but carefully slowed down as she passed over the outer perimeter of the complex and began to slowly bring herself and Gar to the ground as the party fell back and the remaining wrathites tried to get to cover. "Well, this is a bit worse than I was expecting." As they drifted downward, she could hear Clover's pleas to Desmond, and when she heard them, she knew that the man lying on the ground was the one she wanted to see prior to this mess ... but he was almost certainly dead, avatar or no. "No ... I'm going to let you down and then I need to go to that man."

"Is that who I think it is?" Reign asked, looking back as the vasilus and bomber floated down behind them.

"What's this?" Samael mused, "that avian there can fly without the use of her wings. Who is she, I wonder?"

Trust Issues

"O-okay," Silvia hesitated. She wasn't as suspicious as Colin was, figuring the wrathites and whatever guards showed up to cut off their escape were the biggest threat to them at the moment, but she was still just as uneasy about the outside assistance. For now, though, adrenaline was in control, and she was trying with Cassandra to get Sardis out of the building. When they reached the breach, Silvia winced at the site of another dead ally.

"Wait, you came in through this wall? That means you killed him," Colin concluded, reaching for his sword only to realize he'd left it back in the room. "Dammit all ..." he coughed, "should have known there was something going on here."

[Snike]

"Collateral damage. I couldn't get in through the other entrance so I made one," Uniter said bluntly. "If you want to try and avenge him, fine, but wait until-"

Be careful. ANARCHIST is right there. Take them to the abandoned building just behind the one you're facing now. Hurry.

The hooded man swore.

"Nevermind that, we need to go faster. A vasilus just arrived," he continued, as he drew his bow and stepped outside, hitting an unlucky Wrathite in the heart with his first shot. "Make a break for the side street."

[Ether]

"Li... lith... that's... it has to be her..." Faatina half replied, half affirmed, as the vasilus descended with Gar. That was certainly the type of sight she'd never get used to.

***

"This shit just keeps gettin' stupider by the minute." Arietta swore, as things fell even further into the gutter. She didn't know who that woman was, exactly, but... well that kind of visage and descent was never a safe thing.

***

"Uniter... what... is that?" Isabella asked, stopping her return for a moment at the sight of the newcomer.

"Any change in orders?"

[Snike]

Just follow previous, Isabella. I am assisting Uniter.

[Ether]

"Ah, Atoner... understood." Isabella replied, giving her head a shake to clear it, as she continued back towards the complex.

[Script]

A Man Called Gar

"Yeah, sure, this place ain't gonna be here much longer."

[Phoenix]

Filling Herself In

Lilith spared Gar a curious glance before deciding to focus on the immediate issue, Desmond. Once Gar's feet were on the ground, Lilith ran over to Desmond and Clover. She slid onto one knee as she arrived, flinging a bit of mud at the two by accident. "Pardon me a moment," she said, as Clover rose up off of Desmond. Lilith quickly placed her hand over Desmond's face and began drawing in his memories.

"It's you," Clover fell back. "I've seen your face in old portraits. You're the last person that should be here. W-what ... what are you doing to him?" She didn't trust Lilith as far as she could throw her, but between her injuries and who she was dealing with, she really didn't have a means of interfering beyond simple words. There was also some hope, hope that she might be trying to save Desmond somehow.

Instead, Lilith gently closed Desmond's eyes, a move that terrified Clover, nearly causing her to break down on the spot. The implication was too much for her to bear. "I was trying to figure out what happened here. I'll let Wrath decide what to do with him," she explained, rising to her feet and pulling Ascension out to her front, wielding it in both hands. "I need to get rid of that man before anymore of you lose your lives."

"Just save Desmond! He can execute that man if we can just get him close enough," Clover pleaded.

"You people had no idea what you were walking into," Lilith scolded her, "He killed Desmond with a move I haven't seen since the rebellion; you severely underestimated your foe. Now take his body and return to the cathedral. I doubt the situation there is much better than it is here, but that's the best place to keep him."

On the Run

"What's a vasilus got to do with us?" Colin asked as they cleared the breach.

"I'm guessing collateral damage?" Cassandra offered as she and Silvia began carefully running with Sardis. "Which vasilus is it? She called back as they made for the break in the wrathite blockade.

Misunderstanding

As their distance from the battle grew, Gabbie was able to see less and less of what was going on. Expanding herself again, was always an option, but she wanted to focus on Jethro; he was still an enemy for the time being and leaving herself vulnerable would be too dangerous prior to landing. Fortunately they were coming up on the estate, anyway. "Get ready to land. We're here."

"Where's here?" Jethro asked listlessly, keeping his head rested for the moment.

"That again ..." Tacito's feet came down onto the wet grass near the estate's front driveway. It was a very easy, very soft landing. Gabbie nudged Jethro trying to get him to hop off first so she would have an easier time getting down herself. She planned to explain the situation after that ... but in an instant the situation turned on its head. Jethro used his left arm to quickly pull Gabbie into a choke hold. With them still in the saddle, she couldn't strike back with her blade heels and her lance wouldn't be enough with just one arm; she needed at least one to keep him from knocking her out before she could even grab the thing.

"Where's here?" Jethro asked again, this time with plenty of energy and even impatience in his voice.

Suddenly it all made sense, Jethro's quiet and passive behavior throughout the whole ride, the ease with which she was able to shut him up when the subject of their destination actually did come up, the high level of control in his breathing, all of it. She even suspected he'd been paying special attention to her breathing as well, as he'd caught her between breaths. There was one mistake he'd made though, trying to interrogate her when his grip was so tight she couldn't even speak. With no other options left to her, Gabbie threw all of her weight to the side, forcing them out of the saddle and onto the ground. Tacito began sniffing at them to try and figure out what was going on, having never seen Gabbie in a struggle like this prior. Gabbie quickly took advantage of the fact that she could use her heels now and forced her foot up and behind her, planting the razor sharp edge firmly into the back of Jethro's thigh. He growled in pain from the move but his grip only grew tighter. Now he was just trying to choke her out and sort out where he was himself. Try as she might, she couldn't give Tacito any of the normal cues he relied on in dangerous situations.

Damn this girl can struggle ... how much longer is this going to take? Suddenly Tacito moved in and bit down hard on Jethro's right arm. The pain only compounded as his mangled, burned hand clinched on reflex. Tacito hissed and snarled as he dragged Jethro away from Gabbie. The wyvern recognized something from long ago that spurred him into action; he didn't need a cue when she had that helpless look on her face. "Argh! Dammit!"

Gabbie coughed and coughed some more as she lay there on her side. The rush of air was helping her to come down from the sheer panic of suffocating, but she was furious, now, and wasn't even sure she was going to stop Tacito from mauling Jethro half to death. While Jethro struggled, his arm bloodied and being jerked on relentlessly, Gabbie picked herself up and approached the two, nursing her neck with her dominant hand as she did. "We're at Weyland's you ungrateful bastard," she yelled as she kicked Jethro in the back of the head. "I was about to tell you that when you tried to choke me out. And then she kicked him again, this time in the side of the head.

"Wrathdammit," Jethro blindly waved his good arm at her after each kick, trying to defend himself and free his other arm from Tacito's jaws at the same time, "you should have told me that from the beginning! Get this wyvern off of me! He's scrapping bone! Argh!"

"Oh boohoo! I should let him eat you! Yeah, that sounds loike a wonderful oidea!" She wasn't going to let Tacito finish him off, she knew ... they had gone through too much trying to bring him back, but she was going to get some payback. "I'm going to start kicking you again ... I don't know when I'll stop," she said flat out before making good on her word and forcing Jethro to choose between guarding his face and freeing his bleeding arm.

On Standby

"Hm? Oh is this a full retreat?" the driver mused aloud as the others came into view. He quickly put away the book and waited for the others to get closer so he could catch up on what was going on.

[roymbrog]

Synthia heard some of the others discussing Lilith, and lo and behold, looking back over her shoulder revealed the vasilus taking up arms. Was she going to slice Samael to bits? The mage sure hoped so. They were nearing the wagon now and Synthia figured if anyone was going to tell the drive what was going on, there was no reason it shouldn’t be her. “We’re leaving!” she shouted ahead.

---

Volga had long passed those on the ground, and Katrina had her bank into a turn just as they went past the wagon. She wanted to stay level with them from the air if at all possible and was going to circle until they actually left. The maneuver gave her and Zach a decent view over the complex, however, and Lilith’s white wings stuck out like a sore thumb. “When did she get here?” Kat mused.