Act Complete! Angelcynn: The Myrcian Conflict - Act 1

[Ether]

Ah, there it was. He had mentioned gunpowder... that was something interesting, rather than this drab talk. After all, anyone visiting another nation would have kind words for their own people and cuisine, as they had come accustomed to it. But this, this was new and exciting.

"A decent bit, though not as much as I would like, truth be told. And you are correct, many of us had no idea of Toulouse until recently, and even so, the common folk may be unable to tell you anything of it if asked. Now, I am rather curious, as you mentioned gunpowder. I recall, a good bit ago, baring witness to an extravagant demonstration of Toulouse' firearms... it was exhilarating to behold." Adele added with a smile, hoping to steer the conversation towards something more interesting.

[Shin]

The House of Herman

One of the servants to the side stepped forward, both Graham and Adele recognising him as Jeeves, one of her father's most trusted butlers. A man probably in his sixties, tall and slight of build, Jeeves had been around as long as they could remember - although he had far less hair than in their childhood. As trusted as he was, he never seemed to be able to tame to the siblings, always eventually giving in to them and their ways.

"If I may speak, mistress?" he began, a phrase that always meant he was going to continue talking anyway. "Your father recommended that you and your noble brother take our esteemed guest to the lakeside manor. He had already instructed me to begin packing for you... if that is what you would like to do."

[Tryhard]

"War always changes, and new discoveries are the propelling force. It is still rather primitive and not perfected, but it has the potential to be extremely deadly. Toulouse has noticed the possibilities with it, and so has started using gunpowder weapons in widespread quantities. Perhaps I could show you in use again some time, if you would like."

Jean paused for a moment, wondering why Lady Adele was even asking. "I must admit, though it is not the most common for a noble's daughter to take an interest in weaponry."

He blinked as the butler came in to relay the duke's plans, remembering when he had servants running after his every whim. He sighed slightly under his breath. We'll see what happens.

"Well, Lady Adele. It's up to you."

[Ether]

"Yes, I suppose that will be fine, Jeeves. Unless you have any objections, Brother? Otherwise, we can go as soon as you've everything prepared." Adele replied to the butler as he entered, and gave his suggestion. It wasn't a terrible idea, she supposed. Turning towards Jean with a bit of a shrug, Adele began to address his inquiry.

"Consider it an interest that runs in the family. My father is Captain of the Royal Guard, and my Lord Brother a fledgling Knight. As for your offer, I would much appreciate the opportunity, if you could." Adele concluded with a smile.

[Xinnidy]

"That's easy. If we do run into bandits, we'll fend them off." Owen replied, a bit of a smirk as he snapped his fingers. "I can't see any petty band of rogues being able to match a squad of the royal guard, even trainees should be a match. We will be safe, and might as well give reason for us to be well armed." Owen slowed his tracks, mind already considering the more dreadful. "Unless it's an organized attack... No. Too unlikely. We're leaving soon and we're not telling a soul more than necessary." Owen cast away his paranoia, surely Lionel would keep the mission secret as well.

Cassandra's remark did bring a soft laugh out of Owen, stopping in his tracks right in front of the armory's entrance --a tall, metallic door. "Well, let's hope Sir Angus has deep pockets, then. And if it turns out to be naught but a red herring..." Owen pulled at the ringed handle, pulling the door open, creaking against the stone floor. "...Well, Baron Dettard's lands should extend to the coast as well. Perhaps a port town would serve us better fish than we get here. Then... we could pass by the Herman's lakeside manor and make it seem as if you were there all along. Brilliant."

The door gave way to reveal the vast contents of the armory --racks of lances and axes put to rest after cleaned up, swords sheathed and resting in groups, as well as rows of bows and crossbows recently strung. Truth be told, they were all in fair condition from the low use in combat, but they were most on the old side. Proper keeping could only do so much against the effect of time on metal, and there was never a dire need to re-stock. Hopefully, that wouldn't mean much in the long term, it's not like the capital would be a high priority target.

Nothing that could stop the prince from picking the finest fencing sword he'd kept there, anyhow. "Just take what you need, I expect the men Lionel chooses should already come armed." Picking up an extra sword for precaution, Owen turned to look at his sister. "That should be enough for me."

[Nanami Touko]

Owen was sure they could handle bandits. To be fair, so was Cass, but it was something to keep in mind. So she didn't ask anything else about that, wondering what bandits would even look like as they attacked. I wonder if any of the ride horses, or if they all just scream and charge at you... Hmmm. I wonder if they even fight well... They must fight a bit well, or they'd have been wiped out already. No matter~ We fight better. We're trained! They're savages. Cass nodded to her thoughts as Owen walked along, giving her his solution to if things were fine at the Baron's abode. "Oh, we can see Adele and Graham!?" Cass excitedly asked, ignoring the fish and diving straight onto that. "It's been so long, over a month, now~ Oh, how fun it'd be to spar with Adele, or get taught tactics by Graham... How I miss it." Cass sighed. Really, a month wasn't that long, but it was still something that bothered her. All these regulations and teachings her mother wanted her to sit through. What a bore.

At least those thoughts were broken by the doors to the armory opening, Cass smiling at all the weaponry. While Owen took a moment to remark over the room, she went straight towards one of the stands, sliding herself behind it and rummaging around. "It should still be here... Gods, tell me Father didn't find-- Ahah~" Owen grabbed some of the storage's regular weaponry, while Cass picked up a smaller, sleeker looking axe. "It's still here~ Wonderful! It would've been awful to have lost this, but I had no other good place to hide it. And..." As much as she loathed most lessons, there was one thing she'd been taught that would be useful. Picking up one of the staffs, she spun it around a bit, channeled what little magic she had, and made sure it was still working. "And that's enough for me. Shall we be off?"

Edited August 5, 2015 by I have opinions

[Tryhard]

Jean raised an eyebrow slightly. This girl was a lot more dangerous than he probably gave her credit for. Maybe allowing the girl in the vicinity of lethal equipment wasn't such a good idea compared to what he originally thought. Though Jean did remember briefing himself on the military nature of the Herman's... perhaps he should have expected it.

"I see," Jean's reply was short, though he did grin slightly, maybe to convince himself more so than anything else.

Edited August 5, 2015 by Tryhard

[Terrador]

Castle Gaffney

Angus beams, springing to his feet! His mouth gapes, about to shout in excitement, before closing again--this is no cause for celebration, and certainly not the place to be loud about such a thing.

"Certainly! I defer to your judgment--just tell me when and where the axe falls. I'm ready for the night ride, myself, though I imagine some of us aren't so inclined. Especially if a guest decides to tag along?" Angus chuckles at the bare secret before continuing on. "Odds are Sir Gerrard is on the sparring grounds at this hour--I'll pass the news. As for the bookworm, I'm not exactly privvy to her routine."

Angus begins to turn away, before one last thought springs to mind.

"Sir Lionel--don't worry about us. Catch traitors, not axes."

---

Sure enough, Angus finds Gerrard in short order, hailing him and breaking out into a trot, the sooner to deliver his missive.

"I've got a message for you, Sir Gerrard! One best delivered in short order!" Once the knight approaches, Angus begins to relay the orders. "You, I, and Lady Claire are needed--deploying in the morning, best I can tell. We're to accompany the Prince and his advisor off to the estate of one Baron Dettard. Word is that the good Baron has crossed the pond recently, drinking with a rough crowd at best." A hearty laugh before continuing. "We're to assist in case of bandits" here, accompanied with a wink, "and either way I'd bet on action. Smart silver says the old wildcard is coming, too."

Par for the course--the only time he's got a long wind is for a message or a tale. Just as well; Angus could never bother with those offal-stuffed windbags at court. He counts his lucky stars that he will never count among them--if ever House Kearney had the influence, he had brothers for that.

[Ether]

"My my, don't tell me that such a slight thing has you cowed, Sir Jean the Red." Adele replied, her smile widening somewhat. She had seen enough court to be able to tell that much... this man wasn't all that skilled at masking his true self, was he?

[Oersted]

Gerrard watched as two squires, one still learning the ropes and the other moderately skilled, dueled. The greenhorn had the advantage of wielding a lance against the other's sword but the other had the experience to compensate. The two were locked in a stare down when suddenly the younger squire struck out with his lance, aiming straight for his opponent's head; however he couldn't have telegraphed his attack more clearly and his opponent easily sidestepped and tripped him. He was quick to get up and circle his opponent who mirrored his actions. It was during this that Angus caught Gerrard's attention and he got up to meet his younger peer.

He stoically listened to what Angus had to say, though his expression darkened when he learned Baron Dettard was suspected of treason. It wasn't that he knew him well or called him friend, but if the suspicions proved true the consequences could be severe for the whole of Wyke. "I see. I'll make sure I'm well prepared to depart on the morn then." While he was often accused of being a tad too serious, he had trouble unstanding how Angus had so much mirth in the face of such grave news. Whatever the reason, he tucked his thoughts away in the back of his mind and cracked a smile. "Ah yes, that one. It's all but assured that they'll tag along and they're sure to be an asset; however we must be all the more prepared for the task for that reason."

[Jedi]

As Sir Angus ran off, Lionel was confident he could leave the young squire to find Sir Gerrard, and started a steady pace towards the eastern part of Castle Gaffney.

"The tower of the Magi" Lionel muttered to himself when he arrived, the large spiral tower was home to many of the mages and classrooms for learning their basic magics, although you'd see some train with the Squires, the mages for the most part seemed to like the forest north of the castle for their magic practice, unless it was fire. Fire was a dangerous tool, but also a very helpful one.

He knocked slowly on door to the tower, hoping one of the Masters would heed his call. Or, if luck would have it, Lady Claire herself.

*Thump* *thump* *thump* went his fist into the door, somewhat more urgently this time.

When the door finally opened, a young teen, answered. "What do you need... Sir?" The boy paused awkwardly, which made Lionel a little uneasy, but he didn't let it show.

"It's Lionel, and could you get Lady Claire down here or tell me where she is?" "I have an urgent matter for her." He said quickly, hoping the boy got the urgency in his voice.

"R-right away" He ran up the staircase and you could hear the shouts of "CLAIRE, THERE IS SOMEONE HERE TO SEE YOU, SAYS ITS URGENT."

All Lionel could do was wait.

Edited August 6, 2015 by Jedi

[Xinnidy]

Speaking of the Herman's always did bring Cassandra's spirits up, Owen raised a smile at that. "Yes, we can go see them. I'm sure you'll have a bit of catching up, especially after we get this matter with Baron Dettard sorted." Sheathing his sword, Owen strapped it to his belt for comfort of movement.

"Are you done too? Alright, we'll take them in the chambers until the morrow. No need to make people suspicious, and saves us the time by taking them now." Owen looked back at Cassandra following the answer, surprised to see her weapon of choice. "Huh. A custom-tailored axe? I don't remember that one before. When did you get that one?" Past the curious look, Owen shrugged and led both back to the halls. "Well then, we should go back to our chambers now. Supper should be served soon, so I'd rather put these away prior. I'll probably have to speak to Lionel again later, but we should have some free time now." With a stretch, Owen made his leave for on of the corridors.

[Nanami Touko]

That was more than enough to get Cass through the day. Going to see the Hermans after this, whether it was a problem or not, was such an exciting thought. So exciting, that she'd almost missed his question about her axe. She came down from her high and nodded. "Right, well... Adele had it made for me, after I had some trouble swinging around the ones they had at their manse. It's lighter, so it's easier for me. I'm sure I'd be fine with a regular axe now, but when we started, this was perfect for me." She swung it onto her shoulder and posed, feeling silly, but strong. "Alright. I'll take care in making sure no one outside of our traveling group sees this before we leave. Thanks for all the help, brother~" Making sure she wasn't about to jam an axe into him, Cass carefully hugged Owen with one arm, letting him go on his way down the corridor. Supper would be soon, which meant evening cooking lessons, and then magic practice. She'd have to be quick about stashing these things, lest suspicions arise. So off she went, down the opposite corridor, doing her best to avoid anyone she came across.

Room in sight, Cass quietly went in, and shut the door with barely a sound. She was finally free to let out a sigh. One of the house maids had almost busted her, but she'd been able to distract her vision with the healing staff, and a bluff about getting in some personal practice. She slid the axe under her bed, staff with it, and then collapsed. "Maybe I could get a nap in, before supper... Oh, but if I sleep through it again, I'll get in trouble..." She grumbled a bit, and sat up, placing her head into her hands. "Well... I suppose I'll just read, until it's time." She pulled herself over to the bookshelf in the corner of her room, pulling one of her old book on healing magic out. As loathe as she was to actually study, there was a practical purpose for it, now. So, might as well. Collapsing back onto the bed, book in hand, she started reading through the practices and how to properly channel magic.

[Tryhard]

Tch. This woman. Jean already knew she was going to be more trouble than she's worth, and was already regretting his decision to bother coming here, especially to have his pride insulted. He gritted his teeth slightly before replying.

"No such thing, my lady. It is an honour to be here, after all. I was merely... surprised."

[SB.]

Claire wasn't really expecting a visitor, but it was a welcome repreive from being surrounded by squires who could barely read a tome. She figured that she would be done with them after finishing her education at Wihtwar, but sadly that wasn't the case.

"I'll be down in a moment!" she called back, closing up her tome and carrying it under her shoulder down the winding staircase until she reached the foot of the stairs. "Sir Lionel?" her voice conveyed hint of curiosity. "Good afternoon. Is there something I can help you with? She didn't see the royal advisor too often, so she was surprised to that she was the one he wanted to find. Hopefully whatever he needed would prove be more interesting than babysitting the squires.

[Jedi]

He politely bowed before addressing her.

"Good Afternoon Lady Claire, there is a matter that requires your great magical talents." He paused for a moment, as if trying to find the right way to word his summons.

"Prince Owen is going on an expedition to the lands of Baron Dettard, to discuss about his recent travels into Magonsaete, he has been going into the lands quite often of late, and the King wants Owen to go chat to him about it."

"We need capable individuals, which is why I went to you, Sir Angus and Sir Gerrard, who are both on board as well." He paused again, before sighing at the small amount of time he was given to prepare for all this.

"It's only going to be the few of us, but I have some plans in motion, I wasn't allowed to have longer then today to gather the company for the journey. It begins tomorrow, do you have any objections?" He voiced hopefully.

[SB.]

I wouldn't call Angus capable if he can barely handle his throwing axe... The young knight didn't seem like the best choice Lionel could've made, but she didn't bring it up as they seemed to be under time constraints. They'd just have to make do and hope that he could pull his weight if they needed him to.

"I understand." she nodded. Regardless of what happened, it would probably be more interesting than just practicing magic in the tower for a while. "I'll start making my preperations then, if we need to leave so soon." It would've been nice to have some notice beforehand, but she could manage. As long as she could find someone to feed her cat...

Edited August 7, 2015 by SB.

[Shin]

Owen and companions

With his three vassals informed to their duty, the night went rather quickly and Owen's group soon embarked, joined by the very much determined Cass. The Wykian countryside was a nice change of scenery from the capital, with fields and hills stretching on for miles. As the group passed by a small village, it was clear things were not as they should. The cries of women and children filled the air, the sounds of breaking and battering joining them. Bandits were in town, and looked very much intent on taking everything they could.

"That's the princey fella an' his little chums, right? We could shake some dosh out of him alright!"

Chapter 1: An Unintended Delay

Objective: Seize the Village Hall

Adele and... some people

Accepting Jeeves' suggestion, Adele, Graham and her guest were lead by the butler to the lakeside estate, only a few hours from town. A stunning villa, situated besides a vast lake, there were no end of opportunities for leisure - assuming one enjoyed either fishing or sailing. Whilst the evening was not inherently unpleasant, nor the morning too troublesome, the mid-morning posed its own problems. Jeeves came in rather sheepishly, waiting for a moment to announce something to his masters.

"Lady Adeltrudis, we seem to have some rather unpleasant visitors. I've asked them to leave but they seem to having none of it."

He was very much correct, a horrible collection of various miscreants and thugs had gathered outside.

"It's got to be that Prince and his sister in there! The boss said to make a big a mess as possible, go wreck'em boys!"

Chapter 1B: Mistaken Identity

Objective: Defeat the boss OR survive 6 turns

Spreadsheet!

[Nanami Touko]

Luckily (or perhaps on purpose), Cass was able to sneak her way out of the castle without any trouble. Not a single guard showed up to try and stop her, and while it seemed weird, she didn't question it. Of course, before they could get anywhere near their destination, bandits happened. "Well, we're not about to stand around, are we? Let's have at them!"

Cass to 16,7, attack Bandit #3 with Razor's Edge!

[Shin]

Cass's attack goes rather well!

Cass moves to 16,7!
Cass attacks Bandit #3 with Razor's Edge!
12 Atk, 89% Hit, 7% Crit
(18 77)
Bandit #3 takes 12 damage! (13/25 HP remaining)
 
Bandit #3 counters with his Bronze Axe!
10 Atk, 77% Hit, 0% Crit
(96 100)
Bandit #3 misses!
 
Cass gains 10 XP!
Cass gains 1 Axe WEXP!

[Shin]

Posts apparently like to double themselves!

Edited August 7, 2015 by Shin

[SB.]

Well, I suppose this is going to be an eventful trip. She hadn't really expected that they would run into bandits, but she was going to make them regret getting in their way. She moved to intercept the ruffian to their left, to prevent a battle on two fronts.

Claire moves to (21,6) and attempts to set Bandit #2 on fire.

[Shin]

Claire introduces the bandit to the concept of fire.

Claire moves to 21,6!
Claire casts Fire on Bandit #2!
11 Atk, 94% Hit, 11% Crit
(75, 7)
Well, that certainly left a mark!
Bandit #2 falls!

Claire gains 33 XP!
Claire gains 2 Tome WEXP!

[riariadne]

"Now... what have we here?"

A young brown haired woman slowly slunk up to the gates of a village, much carnage already taking place. "Hmm hmm. I can't say I've much taste for pillaging, but it was such a lucrative offer. I suppose I'm just destined to be near trouble. Not that I'll be taking terribly many risks here, if I can help it!"

"What're you going on about?" the other thief near her asked. "Not interested in hearing your life-"

"Quiet! The show's about to begin," she interrupted him, spinning her dagger around fancily. "I don't plan on running out of luck yet, so I'll start with some... little mischief, yes." And so she started off towards an area that seemed to already have been pillaged, not wanting to expand too much effort if she could help it. "Yes, this is just a perfect way to start... not having to do much yet, and there looks to be treasure on the horizon! Sid is on the move!"

Sidney moves to (3, 13)... when it's her turn, of course.

[Tryhard]

Jean was relieved to be interrupted with something to do, though a few hours more travel was not exactly what he had in mind. He was still somewhat rattled.

After the situation had erupted, he concluded assassins had come to kill the great Jean the Red! He would not have it! No reason to hold back. He grabbed the cobbled together firearm from his pack, twirling it around in his grip, shouting a challenge and attacked.

"Blackhearts! You would not expect Jean the Red to fight back with such valour, but have at you!"

Jean moves to 11, 6 and attacks (pew pew) Brigand #5 with his trusty Handcannon.

Edited August 7, 2015 by Tryhard