ACT COMPLETE Angelcynn: The Myrcian Conflict - Act 2

[Jotari]

What's Claire getting so worked up about Emmet wondered. Sure the Fountain of Ages was said to bestow great power in some legends but they hardly had to fear a single badger rising up against them. He subtly shifted his glance back to Malaphar. And had she just admitted of this sorcerer that they have a sample of the elixer? He hoped the context established before he arrived made her comment a lot more ambiguous to this Malaphar.

[Shin]

Roundup

Over the next hour or so, Owen's forces collected together within the fort. There were no forces left inside, nor many supplies - it was likely the forces they faced were all the barbarians had. Gathering in a makeshift meeting room, Malaphar, along with Owen, stood in front of their entire entourage, which wasn't too far from two dozen members. Many of their newer recruits seemed uncertain about the wizard, but assumed Prince Owen had made the right decision.

"I am the wizard, Malaphar, my story isn't particularly interesting, but I have come to hear of your situation." he began, his delivery flawless yet rather off at the same time. "I have extended my services to Prince Owen, and we have agreed to travel to Raewald as a group... however, there appear to be some business that requires attending to. A member of Wykian nobility appears to be held captive to the south, whilst your sea captain has been captured northwards."

Hans and Lars seemed particularly troubled by the mention of the captain, Lars gripping the handle of his axe tightly. The wizard paused briefly, scanning the room quickly with his eyes. "There is also a camp which would hinder your progress towards Raewald, which coincidentally is in possession of a stolen artefact from the college." he added. "If this camp were removed, it would greatly ease your journey. My proposal is for Prince Owen's forces to split into three groups. With my knowledge of the area, it would be a mutually beneficial arrangement for us all."

[Jotari]

Not particularly interesting. Yeah right Emmet said to himself. "Which group of these three groups do you want to travel with, Malaphar" Emmet said preferring to be quite direct.

[Dandragon]

Serge noticed the unease of Hans and Lars at the mention of the captain. No doubt they were concerned for his well-being. Serge spoke up. "Do you have any idea what might be waiting for us in each route? I'm particularly concerned with the group going to the North." He folded his arms. As long as they weren't facing the fires of hell, he was planning to volunteer his group of mercenaries to go to the north and rescue the captain.

Of course, Emmet being Emmet, he had spoken up about asking what group Malaphar was headed, not even trying to hide his intentions. No doubt Emmet would split from the group when he got the chance, even if Serge preferred to have the Guild stay together.

[Nanami Touko]

They'd all moved into the castle, and this Malaphar was beginning to act like a leader of sorts, addressing a few issues that they needed to deal with. Well, he certainly had the charisma to accomplish the task of leading. Cass listened in, and one solution came to mind. "So, should we split the groups, then? It might not be the best decision, considering the strength of these barbarians, but I doubt we'd have the speed to rescue this noble and then our shipwrecked captain at the same time." Cass looked around, hoping everyone was paying attention to the discussion. It seemed important. "I'm going with Adele. The rest of everyone can split themselves up accordingly." That was all she really cared about. It shouldn't be a huge issue, anyway. Adele was probably going with Owen, and Cass going with Owen made the most sense, as well~

[Vestige]

"I've no qualms with where I am sent. Assign me as is seen fit," Alain spoke up. Though this "artifact" piqued his interest, it went without saying that the artifact was probably the most guarded of the three locations. He wouldn't complain if he was sent there, but he wasn't exactly itching to go either. As long as I get back to Raewald in one piece, the rest of the details matter not.

[Toogee]

Doug was hoping to gather ideas for Castle Dougistan from their latest conquest. Sadly, the fortress was empty. Doug had joined the others in listening to the wizard. Also, they had a wizard now! All grand tales often had a wise wizard showing the heroes the way. With Doug right in the middle of it all, this could only mean good things for the legacy of Dougistan.

The wizard spoke of three separate objectives. Doug wasn't sure what all of them entailed, though rescuing the captain would haved seemed most important if they ever intended on leaving this country alive. Yet others were preparing to split. The archer Emmet was interested in the wizard's path, while Cass wanted to follow Adele, presumably for entirely different reasons. Doug wanted to hear more details, so he stayed silent while the wizard explained. All the while, Doug was jotting down more Dougistan ideas.

[spoiler=Doug's Notes on Dougistan]

1. Castle Dougistan: Three floors, public tours, secret room for Doug!

2. Need theme song: find bard

3. Mascot? Maybe pink pegasus character. Family friendly!

3b. Related: Legendary woman warrior: Alotta Titz. Hypnotic (topless) fighting style. Make giant statue in center of town. Family friendly???

The rest of the page consisted of sketched for the aforementioned statue, all of which were too crude to reproduce here.

Edited July 31, 2016 by Toogee

[riariadne]

Sidney frowned- Malaphar still made her uncomfortable. Still, even she couldn't deny that there was merit to splitting up into smaller teams to accomplish the three tasks. It's a matter of managing time that we have to do this... "I don't care who I go with, but I can probably help most with the captive," she spoke up. Of course, she knew who she wanted to go with, but she decided to set aside personal reasons in the interest of helping the most she could. "There'll be thugs there with that noble. I'm the sneakiest if we have to split past anyone to try and rescue him, or anything else of the sort dealing with them. Just a suggestion, of course... I'll do whatever Prince Owen asks of me."

[Xinnidy]

Malaphar was first to talk, again displaying the same curious mix of charismatic and uncanny presence. Owen instead had his eyes drawn to the stone floor, picturing the split in his mind, ever wondering what he pulled the group into. Already others seemed to find a reason to stick with a group or another, with the prince yet struggling to find his foot in the conversation. "Malaphar." The prince slowly met the wizard's gaze, gulping reluctant words. "It would be of great value to have information on which of our objectives is most and least guarded, I assume you know that much. This way, we could split the groups accordingly." The idea would certainly save time, but it was not free of risk. For the prince, it wasn't a leap to assume Malaphar would have more detailed information to share, and he wanted all of it.

[Shin]

Malaphar seemed content at the cooperation from most of the group, they were more than happy to follow his plans. However, the princess was just as unruly as he'd expected - and he certainly couldn't have her ruining his hard work, not after all this time.

"I'm afraid that won't be possible Princess." he replied coldly, not willing to deal with any nonsense. Emmet had spoken up, giving him the perfect opportunity. "I will be joining the group heading towards the camp. It is most likely the most dangerous of the three, but with suitable planning and the correct combatants, it can be taken without any losses. However, I have already decided who I require. Prince Owen, Lady Herman, her butler, the bard and the scholar. You are better suited to rescuing your noble... I have a lot of information which would... strongly recommend it."

His eyes glanced smugly over towards Nelon and Valter's daughters, and back again to Cass, almost intentionally making sure she saw his gaze. "The forces towards the south are less hostile, but there's a greater number of them. Your... technique would be more utilised there. These aren't just regular brigands, people will die if there are deviations." His focus returned to the rest of the group. "The northern path towards your captain is perhaps a little more challenging. I was planning to slip past their forces, but a large sudden attack would be sufficient to make combat a possibility."

The Valter sisters appeared to be muttering between themselves, the mention of Esclabor had triggered some sort of discussion. "Nona, isn't he the one..." Morta asked, trying to be discreet. The eldest sister shook her head. "He's less fun than Baron Nelon." she sighed, still shaking her head.

[Jotari]

So he has some interest in me too even if he doesn't outwardly show it Emmet thought. Well if Malaphar wants me there's small chance I'm going to let the princess interfere. He leaned in closer to Cass and whispered to her. "I agree with him princess. I think I will be more suited to this mission and the other group will need a healer of some sort. Do not fear, I will keep Lady Herman and your brother safe."

Edited July 31, 2016 by Jotari

[Xinnidy]

Owen stared blankly at Malaphar, most of his questions glossed over as the wizard only went into detail on how he separated the groups. "Hmm..." Owen closed his eyes, pausing to gather his thoughts. Malaphar was passing along a good deal of information, but the fact that Owen had lost so much presence in comparison, as a prince regent, got under his skin more than he was willing to admit.

"The northern path... I'd recommend Baron Ky-- Kearney to head the group. Any cavalry they get would be appreciated, and I believe in Kearney not to back down under pressure." Owen caught his slip with some grace, but couldn't help worrying about what he'd said. To fill Lionel's shoes... I hope Kearney is developing a good sense of tactics from these skirmishes. He'll need it. I'll need it even more. "Sidney's suited for rescuing the noble for the reasons she's cited... I think that should round out the groups nicely." Owen was at least trying to have a final say on matters.

[Nanami Touko]

"What?" Cass didn't like this one bit. Who was he to waltz in here and decide everything for them? They'd just met him, and conjuring firestorms or not, that didn't give him sway over their decisions! Though the thing she didn't like the most was his smug drifting gaze. She'd caught it-- who wouldn't have? "Are you threatening me?" She didn't care who heard; she wasn't about to play nice with someone like this. "You listen here, Malaphar, I--" Before she could get far, Emmet spoke up, agreeing with him. She shot him an icy glare, about to continue, but Owen spoke up as well, ignoring her issue entirely.

Would that have stopped her normally? Not really. But at the moment, with her head in disarray and feeling how she did, her brother not even acknowledging her plight quieted her down. Her hand balled into a tight fist, going white with impotent anger, quickly releasing as she gave up, not with the strength to argue further. "Fine," she muttered under her breath, finding a nearby wall to sulk against.

[SB.]

Claire was still not in a particularly happy mindset by the time they all gathered to discuss where to go next. She wasn't sure about how Malaphar had come across this information (as 'his travels' was a rather vague explanation) but she wasn't going to question it either. Rather uncharacteristically, she wasn't thinking about how incompetent Angus is and how she'd sooner trust his bear to lead them. Perhaps she would if she had the energy, as it was she felt drained and was content with just listening; face blank and shoulders slumped.

At least, that was what she was doing until the princess got peeved off by the sorcerer. It was probably an overreaction, but it was understandable in a way - the newcomer had essentially forced the group to listen to him and she could imagine that Cass wasn't used to being bossed around by strangers. The fact that she'd stopped herself was more puzzling to Claire. It was like she'd been waiting for another grenade to tick down, only for it to turn out a dud. She'd been expecting something explosive instead of this sullen resignation.

With this in mind, the mage slowly edged her way over to her liege, still listening in as she approached. "Are you alright, princess?" she asked, quiet concern in her voice. She didn't really want to make a scene, but her reaction had been odd, and if Claire could find a distraction from her own thoughts at the moment she would take it.

[Toogee]

Doug took a break from his doodles to watch the drama unfold. The wizard had objected to Cass' request. Doug leaned in towards Angus to share the entertainment.

"Dude, I think Cass is going to beat up the wizard," Doug whispered. Things got more heated when Emmet sided against Cass as well.

"Oh, Cass is going to beat up Emmet and the wizard! Also, I think Emmet likes the wizard." The whispers continued up until Cass retreated to a nearby wall. Doug wished all meetings were this exciting.

"Damn," Doug added before returning to his notes, having gotten his hopes up.

[Terrador]

Angus claps a hand on Doug's shoulder, staring at Cassandra, waiting for the hint of a swing. Waiting... nothing. As Emmet's words cooled Cassandra, Angus felt something similar laying eyes on Malaphar. Something that almost froze over his soul... like looking through the blackest winter into the face of Engel. He was so natural there, beside Owen. As if the two were brothers, in a way Dettard could never be...

Then, crying for moisture, Angus' eyes shut. They open, noticing, downwards... [Tits?!] The baron palms the page, unsure whether to be furious or intensely amused.

"Doug, mate!" A harsh whisper, all too easy to overhear. "Th'hell you drawin' tits in public for? Be decent, there's ladies about!" He thinks back--Doug had said something, hadn't he? About Cassandra, it was. Seeing her get into a scrap... it could only bring a grin to Angus' face, despite the events of the day.

"Though I gotta agree. Seein' Cass fight, that's th'best entertainment I've ever had."

[Nanami Touko]

"Oh, Claire... I'm... I'm f..." Cass started, clenching her fists for a much different reason, this time. "No. No, I'm... I'm not fine. But there's nothing to be done about it, is there?" The question was rhetorical, Cass glancing at Claire for a moment with a sad smile. "I'll stick around to hear if there are more details of these plans, but... I'll retire to one of the castle rooms for a bit, after, if we're not moving out immediately. If we are, then... I'll try to suck it up, as I have to, I suppose." What else was there to do, really? Talking to anyone about this situation helped nothing, and Owen hadn't disagreed with Malaphar, so she didn't have a leg up to protest with. Thinking about it further, her shoulders fell, sad smile dwindling to a resigned frown.

[riariadne]

Sidney rolled her eyes at some of what was going on. Cass was upset, Doug and Angus were beyond ridiculous, and here Emmet was pretending he really had a clue about what was up. "More suited... yeah, right, you just don't wanna get ditched by high-and-mighty sorcerer guy over here, which is if anything worse of a reason than she wants. You've practically been gushing ever since you saw the guy- don't lie about your intentions to the princess."

She huffed, pursing her lips and strutting past the rest of the group. "I need to clear my mind... Prince Owen, if you can spare some time, I'd like to speak a bit with you myself, but otherwise..." She made a small beckoning gesture before brushing at her hair and walking off.

[Jotari]

Emmet glanced over at the Lady Charlotte. Worse reason than what she wants Emmet thought. ​Does that mean she knows about the princess' affair? If she does then she'd be better off being more coy about it. I never should have been concerned about keeping this secret when everyone else is so flippant about it. "Forgive me miss Montana but what exactly have I lied about? Yes, our new guest interested me on an academic level, I have made no secret of that as you so kindly pointed out. Further more I do believe I am best suited to this group. Aside from my use as a healer, the camp is said to have an artefact of some sort. As I am a scholar I would no doubt be best suited to identifying and protecting such an artefact. Malaphar must agree, or why else would he have specifically asked for me? If you do not find that sufficient reasoning my lady, then I ask where you would send me? Do you really think me and my Pinaka are better suited for a covert rescue mission? It's irrelevant however." Emmet gestured at Serge. "I am in no position of authority, I'm nothing more than a mercenary after all. I'll go where my commander tells me, but I am entitled to express my own opinion, I believe. And I can give my full guarantee that I will do everything in my power to protect our employer, as I have displayed in the past."

Edited August 1, 2016 by Jotari

[Ether]

So they were to split up, were they? Owen seemed to be on board with the whole idea, even after Cassandra's protests. Adeltrudis had been about to say something, but was there even a point? In the end, final say fell with Owen, and if anyone were to sway him to deviate from this Malaphar's plans, it would have been his own sibling... what chance did she herself really have? Well, if they were to be separated for a time, then the least she could do was...

"I presume you have this under control, Owen. Fill me in later." Adele noted in Owen's direction, before standing and walking over to where Cassandra had begun to sulk against the wall. grabbing her hand and beginning to pull her towards the exit of the room.

"Come with me."

[Xinnidy]

Owen sighed, his attention finally shifting from Malaphar. It seemed the assignments had caused some distress to his sister, whom was now being taken aside by Adele. ...Tch. I didn't even address her issues, I got so caught up. The prince couldn't help but sigh, feeling that his authority was failing --that old insecurity, rearing its head even since his father was bedridden.

Well, he couldn't just sit there at that point.

"Are there any questions still?" He spoke to those still present. It seemed that most were too tired to bother, anyways. Owen had a few people on his mind to talk to privately, and the sooner this was done, the sooner he'd get to them.

[Vestige]

"Just one," Alain said, raising his hand. "Where are we to reconvene when all's said and done? Will we be returning back here, or do you have another place in mind, Prince Owen?" Meeting at some half-way point seemed it would be the most time-efficient, but returning to the fort meant there would be less complications overall.

[Xinnidy]

"We will be returning back here." Owen nodded, "If anything goes wrong, we'll have a better chance to react with this fort as our central point." It would take more time, but better to be safe than sorry.

[Frostivus]

The fort’s vestibule they had gathered in was . . . unlike any form of masonry Scuttle had ever seen. Or rather, it was unlike masonry at all.

The doorways and floor were unevenly built. The brick lay pattern resembled a spiderwebbed mesh of chipped, flaking stone. The walls bore scars of wildly-flung pickaxes — was that a skull?

There was a bit of skull lodged in the walls. Engel’s chin, if the walls were to crumble, would it bleed too?

This wasn’t a vestibule so much as it was the maw of a crudely-carved cave, with dead bodies and empty powder kegs and makers knows what else creeping across the woodwork. At least she thought that part of the room was wood. Barbarian craftsmanship. Her mind recalled the image of the ballista jamming, and the barbarians applying the comprehensive troubleshooting method of kicking it repeatedly.

Scuttle won’t be sleeping in here tonight, thank you very much.

Regardless, this had been the chosen venue for a meeting of heroes. Not really the golden hall filled with chandeliers and parquets and statues of heroes past she had wished for.

She stood with the others like a fly on the wall, listening intently. Observing. Recording.

Some she had never met. There was that caped man who had shot pillars of light with his bow. The Duchess of Dougistan was nowhere to be found; judging from the appearance it was probably her gelded centenarian mule, Old-timer, who was with Angus right now.

Malaphar.

It rolled off the tongue so strangely. It didn’t use any of the phonetics Scuttle was accustomed to in the older Wykian dialects.

For some reason or another, the wizard needed them. Or he would have done all this already by himself. They had a bargaining chip. They just didn’t know what it was yet.

“Gotta admire it, the lady has sass,” She commented to Emmett as she watched Sid walk off, “The way she acts you’d think she’s nobility or something.”

Against her better judgement, she piped up again, to the group this time, “I know a thing or two about casing buildings out. I'm not expecting much, but it'd be nice to know for sure if the barbarians didn't leave any pressure plates or rigged kegs behind. I'll do some exploring."

Edited August 1, 2016 by Frostivus

[SB.]

Claire gave Cass a sympathetic nod before she was apprehended by Adele, leaving the mage on her own again. As the only one of Owen's remaining vassals avaliable (with Angus preoccupied and the others absent) she supposed it made sense for her to accompany the princess. With the prince being protected by Malaphar, she wasn't particularly worried about his safety either. This just left Claire listening in on the conversation again, with no input to add, silently preparing herself for the prospect of something else going horribly wrong today.

Edited August 1, 2016 by SB.