Fire Emblem: Alter [IC/Temporarily Closed] [PG-16] [Co-hosted by Sethera and Lord CowCow]

[LordCowCowCowCowCowCowCowCow]

Ow. Damn, ow, pain. Valerie couldn't focus on anything but the sudden pain that coursed through her head. As she was carried off she tried, and failed miserably, to struggle. Her Lord had sucker punched her, in a way, and that was not very cool. If her mind wasn't swimming and her head wasn't throbbing she'd probably be very, very angry. But for now all she could focus on was how bumpy her ride was.

 

They had reached their destination pretty easily and she was deposited onto some bed or some such thing, she had no damn idea what was going on anymore. But soon that fogginess cleared up as she was carefully and efficiently healed of her injuries. And with the healing came clarity.

She had been attacked, by Emil, from behind and forced against her will to let herself be carried all the way there. Worse, it was in front of EVERYone.

 

"Sorry about what I did Valerie. If you took that as coddling, then you have my deepest apologies. But I couldn't afford to risk losing an ally like you."

 

Oh, sorry is he? Couldn't afford a risk could he? No way Jose, that wasn't going to cut it. Valerie was not some frou frou princess that needed protection and was swayed by nice words. She waited for him to finish his rounds, talking blah blah this and that to everyone else. Apparently there were two new people who might be joining, good to know. Doesn't change anything.

 

"Emil, my lord." She said, getting his attention. Sure, he may be a Lord. And sure she may be a common soldier. But that ranking was neither here nor there in this case. They were comrades, nothing more, nothing less. And she would treat him as such.

She placed one hand on his shoulder and balled the other up into a fist. With all the strength she could muster she punched the young Lord in the gut. "Apology accepted." She said with a somewhat vicious, but genuine, smile.

Blowing a stray hair out of her hair and spinning around, Valerie turned to the new girl that Emil implied would be working with her. "Hey there, new friend, name's Valerie. Don't slow me down and..." She glanced at Emil, "Do NOT underestimate me." Flashing another, more cheerful, smile she extended her hand towards the archer.

[naoremonth]

Vica Raben

 

The young woman had shoved herself away from the red-head who had hired her, insisting that she was fine. Not long later, a Fighter attacked, and was taken out by the woman, proving her claim. However...

 

'I would not stake my life on it, but that axe...' Facing bandits, it was inevitable that at one point or another, she would have encountered some vile enough to use poison. It had been a while since she had encountered any such foes, but Vica was rather sure that this Fighter's axe was a Venin Axe.

 

Despite her injured and likely poisoned state, the girl attempted to push on. Her ally had none of it, however, rushing forward and knocking her out with a swift blow. He once again carried her, and Vica followed as the boy made his way to the Irisviel Estate.

 

Once they arrived, he cleaned and sheathed his Iron Sword, and drew-

 

Vica's eyes widened, before she mastered herself and returned to a neutral expression. 'Talma... The symbol of House Astrel. It seems I have encountered high nobility... I must be thankful my family was not well-known enough to have drawn the attention of a higher house, else he might realize who I am.'

 

When a Cleric noticed the blade being shown, their group was quickly welcomed in, and the girl's healing began immediately.

 

To Vica's surprise, Lord Irisviel himself showed up to greet them, and he and the Astrel noble began their conversation. Vica intentionally did not listen to the conversation between nobles, instead watching as the young woman's wounds slowly receded under the gentle glow of the Cleric's staff.

 

As if he had been paying attention the whole time, Astrel turned to the girl the moment her wounds were completely gone. He apologized to the girl - Valerie, apparently; Vica had not caught her name before - and then turned to the two Xiangese who had shown up at some point. Apparently, the woman was new, a 'friend' of some sorts to the male.

 

Then, with an oddly apologetic look on his face, Astrel turned to her.

 

"You fight as well as should be expected. I am Emil Astrel. I know I've little place to ask, but I would be glad if you would join our cause. We can't offer you much I'm afraid, but you'll at least have a place where others watch your back. I don't believe I caught your name though."

 

Although she showed nothing, Vica was amused. 'The heir of House Astrel, regardless of his heritage, reduced to asking a mercenary for aid... A sight I would never have imagined.'

 

Out loud, she responded, "If my Lord is willing to provide sustenance and proper work, then I shall fight for him. Mercenary I may be, but I will not refuse to fight for my country in such circumstances."

[Hälō]

 Riku Tsukiko

 

"I won't be telling Mei anything at present. I came here of my own volition to find you and bring you back to Mei Taifuu. As such, I will no go back to her unless it is with you in tow as well." 

 

Riku raised an eyebrow to this. He watched as her gaze shifted towards his comrades, and then back to him. 

 

"and so we will depart from this town, and we will return to Xiang Siu. I shall make sure to this by keeping watch over your safety and make sure you do not escape until then."

 

A chill ran down his spine. Her tone held the same horrifying inflection that all Taifuu women seemed develop when they were serious, and it was starting to become clear that woman was defiantly a relative of Mei, a cousin maybe?  Allowing his expression to lighten slightly, he returned Black Queen to its scabbard. Though it seemed she still intended to try to bring him home, this woman was human enough to realize that he couldn’t just walk away from this.

 

"now then, I believe you were going to aid those people running first?" 

 

“Damn straight.” He retorted before turning in the direction of his allies.  Offering the woman a final glance from over his shoulder, Riku then began sprinting across the rooftops towards the estate. 

 

Hastily ripping through the handful of guards that had lingered after Emil’s escape, he counted on his new ally to cover his flank as he pushed his speed to its limits. 

 

Arriving at the estate only a few moments after the rest of the party, he followed the group inside, taking a position near the door as Emil and a fellow Noble began their conversation. His gaze flickered between the all faces in the room, lingering particularly long on the two new member of their small group. It seemed that Emil had also found a new ally. “Great, more women…” Riku sighed. “And of course one of them would be with Mei.” He took a moment to glare at the Taifuu when he thought she wasn’t looking, before sighing again.

 

After Emil had finished talk with Irsiviel, the boy begun addressing the rest of the party. Riku was slightly confused as to why he had apologized to Valerie, but having known the young lord for about two weeks now, he could assume that he had done something to damage her pride. The boy had a habit of helping even when he wasn’t wanted. 

 

"You did well. Thank you for cutting off the soldiers advance. I'd like you at my back for the next part of the attack; if your umm.... friend here would join us, I'll have her with Valerie."  

 

“You know I cant let you have all the fun~” Returning Emil’s friendly smack on the back with a light jab to his shoulder, Riku flashed his trademark smile. “Just say the word, Mr. Hero.” 

 

Waiting for Emil to turn and addressed the white haired Mercenary, Riku himself turned to face the Taifuu women. His gynophobia no longer suppressed by rage, he starred at her awkwardly for a moment as if trying to gather his thoughts. Finally, he spoke in a tone that was void of any of the coldness he had displayed on the rooftops as his eyes shifted back forth between her and Black queen. “Mei… is she…” He begun but halted as he tried to find the words. Sadly, he never did. Shaking his head, he changed the subject. “I-It might be a pain in the ass if I don’t know what to call you…” It was a little late for introductions between the two, but this woman had been watching his back since they met on the rooftop. It was only right that he knew her name. 

 

As he waited for her response, his ears perked slightly at what sounded like a fist connecting to someone’s chest. Glancing over his shoulder he caught the she-devil, Valerie retracting her tiny fist from Emil’s stomach. Flinching slightly as the demon turned to greet the Taifuu woman, Riku not so gracefully swapped places with her. Now at Emil's side, he placed his hand the boy's shoulder as he sheepishly glanced back at Valerie. “You alright?” 

[Alaina]

As Riku Tsukiko had passed by her, she tightened her grip on her bow and readied her next arrow as she surveyed the area for any sort of enemies that might impede his progress. Firing a few arrows at any straggling enemies that dared to strike at the boy, she swiftly followed after him as he traversed the town. As they had caught up with the rest of the group, Yukina had simply stopped to observe all the happenings between the boy she presumed to be in charge of this team and someone else of high standing. After negotiations were done, the boy, who she had figured to be Emil, had went to address her, and while she was about to respond to him, he was then punched by the young girl with the group. 

 

Then, Riku went on to start trying to say something to Yukina, however there was something off about him. She raised an eyebrow and was slightly concerned as he seemed to now be  slightly fidgety and was seemingly a much different person than she had talked with a few moments ago. As he had asked her name, she was about to answer him, as the young girl Valerie had come over to her and introduced herself. With her face not nearly being as stern or as cold as it had been when she had been speaking with Riku, she gave a short bow once more before rising back and introducing herself to the rest of the group. "I am Yukina Taifuu, it is a pleasure to make all of your acquaintances." Turning more to face Emil she had continued saying, "under the time I will be working alongside I you, I shall lend what aid I can with my bow." She then turned to face Valerie, who had seemed to be a girl brimming with energy and confidence. She wasn't sure of how far either of these would take her, as she had seemed to be being patched up for whatever reason when she had initially entered the room. As such, were Yukina to work alongside her, she would have to care to make sure the girl didn't get herself hurt. As such, she had simply said to the girl, "and I will do my best to keep pace with you." 

[Gensokian]

Krazen Shulnera

 

Having lived with mercenaries all his life, Krazen could tell that there was something off with Asher's tall tale about himself, but he also knew to let it go, as there was no point in getting too attached to any mercenary partners; as the job tended to go, life could end at any moment, so it was best to use the one they had to get as much coin as possible. It was also reasonable for him to still be a little suspicious of Asher's promise he wouldn't attempt to turn him in, as he was sure that, should the price be right, temptation to cash in on that reward would prove too sweet to resist. Perhaps, though, he was smart enough to know that any bounty wouldn't truly be paid, given Rathmar's wicked ways, but the promise of gold made more than just a handful of men turn their back on their own brothers.

 

Krazen's line of thought was broken when Asher stuck out his hand, finally getting the chance to grasp and shake it after the bandits so rudely interrupted the gesture before. He smirked when Asher added that turning him in wouldn't benefit him in the long run, but refrained from making any further comments. He looked to the mage that had joined in the fray on his own volition, and just gave him a nod, but said nothing; it wasn't that he was trying to be rude, but more that he just didn't have anything to say. He followed Asher back to the inn and waited for their meals to arrive.

 

Despite his physique, it seemed that Krazen knew how to finish a plate. He barely touched his mead, taking only a small sip of it, but the pork didn't last very long in front of him. It was a little surprising how such a thin man could eat his meal so quickly, but within minutes, his plate was empty. He looked up afterwards with a contented smile on his face, and looked around. It seemed that the innkeeper's daughter had decided to take up residence on Asher's lap. Quite an unexpected occurrence, Krazen suspected, seeing how Asher, while a part of the village's saving party, was still a stranger to her, not to mention a native of the invading nation. While dashing, it wasn't like he was that attractive for the young girl to fall for him just for his looks alone. Perhaps she was just one of those women who liked the sight of a man with blood on his clothes. Whatever it was, it didn't bother Krazen, just gave him something to think about.

[Nightwinds]

Things were moving quite fast for Myth, because one moment he was standing above a bandit about to blow his head off, the next hes on the ground fighting to stay alive. Granted he had his share of run in with bandits and other groups of people, but it wasn't up close and personal. After the fighting was done, the steel ax person was soaked with blood greeted him, It shook him up a little because it reminded him of the bodies of his deceased parents. He could only choke out a low sound response that would amount to something like "Thanks".

 

Apparently the man's name was Asher, a bit odd name for a Merc, but he wasn't one to judge. Asher had before the battle made a deal with the local Inn keeper that in exchange for the extermination of the bandits he would have dinner and a place sleep. This was also shared with a what he could only guess to be a Shamen, users of sinister dark magic, something that his parents have always told him to stay away from. Due to this, Myth was a little edgy when he was invited to the dinner at the Inn with Asher and the shamen who introduced himself as Krazen. 

 

While eating with the two men, Myth hardy touched much of the food offered to him, even thought it was free the sight of today's battle rustled some butterflies in his stomach. He was suprised as well on how the shamen could pack away an entire plate of food. Apparently battles didn't bother him much from what Myth could guess, unlike himself who was trusted into this way of life without as much as a warning. He remained quite and only talked when spoken to, mainly because he was shy and partly because he wanted to be cautious. One time that he joined a group that offered him a quick job that offered a decent amount of gold, he found himself walking up to his "fellow group members" sorting though his possessions. This time it shouldn't be a problem because they all had separate rooms.

 

As the dinner went on, the Inn Keeper's daughter served another round of mead and food,

 

Asher said "My thanks fair lady. Why not pull up a chair and glass, and join us for our meeting?" 

 

However the daughter sitting in Asher's lap was another surprise to that already eventful day. The daughter reminded Myth of his childhood friend, Alcia who shared a frighteningly resembled. This resemblance  was only to be replaced with the image of Alcia in her barn, bruised and beaten to death. Shaking away the image he downed his mead and began to contemplate if he should stay with these two or try out traveling alone again, because today's events were only add to his anxiety of how he could survive in this hell known as reality.      

[Yosuke-kun]

[b][u]Emil Astrel[/u][/b]

 

For a second, Emil looked confused at Valerie as she smiled warmly at him. Everything seemed alright and she appeared to have forgiven him for his move, but this was all a trap meant to make Emil lower his guard. He didn't even have time to prepare himself as one of Valerie's fists sank itself into Emil's gut, sending a wave of pain through him as he keeled over and clutched his stomach. It was amazing how hard the girl could hit for having just recovered from nearly fatal injuries. On top of this, her hand being gauntleted did not help lessen the damage in anyway.

 

“You alright?” Riku asked. Emil could see him giving Valerie something of a fearful look too. For a second, Emil matched his look, then struggled o regain his composure.

 

"I'll be fine. At least we know Valerie's alright." Emil replied as he let out a sigh partially from relief and partially because it helped lessen the pain.

 

Now then. It was time to make their final move. Including Emil himself, there were a total of five of them moving. The guards wouldn't, or at least shouldn't recognize or stop Vica, Yukina, or Riku, but they'd certainly make a move against himself and possibly Valerie too because of her armor. Although the city was still in a haze of confusion as the guards were scrambling to meet Michael's diversion. That wouldn't last much longer, but Emil knew Michael would be able to hold them long enough for him. Beckoning the group around him, Emil began to lay down his plan.

 

"We've little time left, so Riku and I will take the rooftops to Astrel Manor. We'll meet less resistance that way and be able to move faster as a result. Valeria, you'll be leading Ms. Mercenary and Yukina below. Hopefully you'll see little combat, but if you do, only fight the enemies in your direct path and move on. Once we reach the Manor, you'll be storming the gate. I doubt you'll have trouble, but be careful all the same. Riku, you and I will be entering through a window near the rooftops. Once we're in, our main goal will be to first get the doors open if Valerie's hasn't already. It'll take them about fifteen minutes to figure out what's going on, so we need to move fast and barricade the doors once we're all in. After that, we find Lady Ashelia Irisviel, and my mother and sisters. Marida is a training Pegasus Knight, so we can expect her aid once we find her. After this, we leave the city and regroup back at the camp. Everyone understand?"

 

Once Emil made the group clear on the plan, he smiled lightly to them all and nodded to the group before making his way to the nearest rooftop ladder with Riku. It was fortunate that the Irisviel's kept once just outside their Estate too, else their plan may have taken longer than they'd expected. As he climbed, Emil began to weigh the situation. The majority of the guard must still be facing the diversion team, that much was obvious, but they had to know he was here now as well and would likely have predicted his move towards Astrel Manor. The questions he needed to ask were "How many would be waiting for him" and "How fast can they mobilize?" If him and the others could make it their before the reinforcement guard then everything would be fine. If not, then they'd be in for a fight. Surrender was not an option though.

 

The diversion plan was proving more than successful however, as the first thing Emil noticed was the lack of guards positioned on the roofs. Down the ways there was a Mercenary and a Lancer not far from him. That was all though. No Archers, nor anyone wielding a Javelin as Emil had expected. On an opposite roof path, Emil saw a Fighter, and could see a row Hand Axes dangling from his belt, but those would be no problem for Riku and Emil for avoid. With situation now surveyed, Emil drew his Iron Sword and began to rush across the roof path towards the Lancer. Before the guard knew it, Emil was on top of him and avoided a stab from the Lancer to sink his Iron Sword into the guards throat, leaving the less speedy Mercenary for Riku. The Fighter saw them, but by the time he had, the two were already out of range.

 

Not long after, Astrel Manor was in sight. From above, Emil could see a pig faced mustached Knight angrily barking orders to a group of soldiers, most of whom looked apprehensive or fearful. The had a hostage too, but Emil couldn't make out the persons face, as they were turning away from him. Once the mustached man whom Emil assumed to be Ludwig made his way back to the second floor, things became more clear for Emil as the soldiers began to escort the hostage away from the area.

 

"Ashelia..." The Gangalan troops, had captured her, and from the look of things, Emil had no time to lose. One of the men holding Ashelia, a Fighter, was close to him. taking little time to think, Emil backed up, then ran towards the edge of the roof and leaped through the window, shattering the glass and raining it down on the surprised soldiers, some of whom had dropped their weapons. The Fighter whom Emil aimed for did not even have time to react as Emil landed his sword in the mans chest and used him to break the fall. That one was down definitely, but due to the way Emil fell on him, the Iron Sword snapped in half between the stone floor and the combined weight of the dead soldier and Emil. The other soldiers looked on and regained their composure soon, but Emil had already pulled himself to his feet and drawn Talma from it's sheathe. He was somewhat reluctant to use it, but he had little choice now.

 

The other man holding Ashelia, a Myrmadon, drew his sword and thrust it towards Emil, but Emil was able to parry the attack with ease and slashed the mans chest as he fell forward. It was something beautiful to see how even after 800 years the blade still cut like a freshly forged Steel Sword, but still gruesome nonetheless. Turning to Ashelia, Emil swung the sword down, carefully cutting the ropes around her wrists, then held his hand out to her.

 

"Sorry I took so long Ashelia. Are you alright?"

 

[b][u]Asher Baraan[/u][/b]

 

Everything was fine now. The food was juicy, the mead was sweet, and the woman was beautiful and apparently willing. Sultry clearly, but Asher had no problem with a shallow and loose woman at all. In fact, those types were his favorite kind. The young prince smiled to the other two and then swallowed down a large gulp of his mead before speaking.

 

"So, I'll level with you two. I've come to Emerys not just to seek fortune in the field of battle, but also because I've a problem with the way Rathmar treats this land. I've seen Emerys quite a bit in my travels and can attest to it's beauty as well. However with the Gangalan regime in place, it's just the same as the sands and crags of our homeland. If what I've heard is correct too, then the House Pencast had a hand in fall of Emerys as well. I've heard rumors that they all seemed to benefit from this war, and that's one thing I cannot stomach. The idea that a noble house has lowered themselves to the level of us mercenaries; and worse that they betrayed their home."

As he finished, the innkeepers daughter wrapped her arms around Ashers neck and kissed him lightly on the cheek, blushing as she did. Asher left out the part where he felt it his responsibility to make right what his younger brother has done to the land, but explaining that would have been difficult even if he were not the prince. In truth he himself was not quite sure why he felt this way, but some deeper more altruistic part of Asher told him that he had to do something.

 

"What's more, you both handled yourselves rather well in that fight. I was impressed by your magic especially Krazen. It saved my back a couple times. You as well young Mage were impressive. So what say you we make our partnership official and make for Begneth o punish the Pencasts?"

 

Despite the realization of how completely insane his suggestion was, something within Asher told him that the two casters would accept. They'd both shown that they're willing to aid others, even if their pay is small. That much was good. But Begneth was the heaviest defended city in Emerys. Taking the Pencasts on would be difficult alone, but within Begneth was a suicide mission. Which was exactly the kind that Asher excelled in.

[LordCowCowCowCowCowCowCowCow]

Looks like her Lord is a man who knows how to take a hit. Valerie was pretty happy about that, she would remember that for the future. Hopefully he got the point.
And as he gave her command of a group to attack the manor it looked like he had. “Sweet! This is going to be great, you can count on me, boss!” Turning to her two allies she spoke in a faux-authoritative tone.

“Okay newbies follow me, don’t lag behind and keep your eyes peeled.” With that she headed out, lance at the ready, heading for the manor. Emil had said to only fight when necessary but as she saw it, EVERY fight was necessary. One less soldier for the enemy was always a good thing right? And therefore, while she didn’t veer off the path much, she didn’t go out of her way to avoid any of the enemies.
For someone who had been previously injured, Valerie was faring quite well. Or at least she felt like she was. It helped that most of the soldiers on the way were in a panic.

It didn’t take too long, though longer than Valerie had wanted, to reach the gate. Standing in front of it was a giant of a man. He was all muscle and had a serious and dour expression on his face. Valerie’s eyes were focused on the weapon in his hands. A large Hammer. Not the best match up against her and her Iron Lance. But she couldn’t let her allies take any hits from it. Her armor could at least withstand one blow from that thing.
And so she let out a battle cry and charged forward, hoping to land at least a single blow on the man before he counter-attacked.

[hr]

Michael was breathing deeply. Half of their forces were injured and forced to retreat. Thankfully hardly any had been actually killed. But it wouldn’t be long before they were forced to go into a full retreat.
Still, Michael fought on. No matter what he would be the last to leave. Dodging a pair of Lancer’s strikes that came at him at once, Michael wasted no time decapitating the pair of them.

And then his heart throbbed. He bit his lip and pushed on. A young ally Mage was on the ground and bleeding, with a Myrmidon above him.
Michael dodged nimbly out of the way of a Fighter and reached the Myrmidon before he could finish off the fallen Mage. Michael blocked the blow and swung his fist at the Myrmidon, breaking the man’s nose and stunning him so that Michael could finish him with a thrust to the chest.
Turning to the Mage, Michael said, “Young man, are you okay...argh...” Michael’s heart throbbed once more, and again, faster. He clutched his chest as his vision turned red. No, not now, please not now...
Out of the corner of his eye he saw the Fighter from earlier approaching but all Michael could do was try and keep from his heart giving out totally. He couldn’t fall here, he had to...survive...

[Nightwinds]

Maybe it was just because Myth was born and raised in the country, but he had little to no knowledge about Emery's nobles. Staring at the rest of his plate of food suddenly loosing the rest of his appetite.

 

Myth thought to himself, "Did these "Pencasts" ever thought about the repercussions of inviting an invasion? Beh, anything to line their own pokects, never mind the people who bring the food to their plates at all."

 

In a more firm voice that he intended it to be, probably because he felt a bit tipsy, Myth responded to Asher, "Well, my village was slaughtered in the Gangalain invasion, everyone I knew and loved is long gone. I am looking to take revenge on the people who instigated this war. My magic is a bit rough but it gets the job done. This mission sounds like suicide, but for a man who has nothing, its just a another mission. I will travel with you, my name is Myth by the way."

 

This was a gamble like all the other times he joined in with strangers to travel. He just hoped that it wasn't like the last time he joined a group of adventurers, he could still faintly feel the hickey that the girl gave him right before she knocked him out and woke up to find all his gold and majority of his possessions gone along with everyone in the group. Shaking his head to forget the memory, he observed his companions. Krazen was his main concern, mainly because of his distrust in dark magic, but also because he could probably take Myth out before he could make a move. Asher though was physically strong, but resistance to magic didn't seem like one of his strong points. But he could also gauge that his precision is good as well from the fight with the bandits, either way if worse comes to worse Myth could sneak off when they sleep, even the strongest man needs their rest.

 

"I'll worry about the mission the moment we step foot in Begneth" he thought to himself.

 

"Well I think its about time I turned in, its been a long day, I'll see you two in the morning." Myth said this and then began to walk back to his room.

 

He stopped at his door before he opened it and just realized that he talked more then he had ever done since his village's destruction, thinking that he should drink mead more often Myth chuckled as his opened his door and closed it behind him.   

[naoremonth]

Vica Raben

 

After various... antics by Emil's group, he finally beckoned all those present to create a plan of attack.

 

He quickly explained that he and Riku, the Xiangese swordsman, would go by rooftops in order to reach Astrel Manor more quickly. Valerie, the young woman who had fought with Emil, would lead herself and Yukina, the Xiangese archer, in order to assault the gate of the manor. Once both groups had reached the manor, they would block off the entrances to prevent enemy reinforcements and proceed to get the Astrels (and an Irisviel girl, apparently) out of Flanoir.

 

As she listened, it struck Vica as odd that two Xiangese had joined Emil's ragtag group. 'But that is not important,' she rebuked herself. Instead, she should be focusing more on her part of the mission. And as such...

 

"Sweet! This is going to be great, you can count on me boss!" The young girl apparently in charge of Vica happily responded to Emil's orders. Valerie turned to Vica and Yukina, speaking in what sounded like a terrible attempt at an authoritative tone. "Okay newbies follow me, don't lag behind and keep your eyes peeled."

 

They headed out for the manor, and it was soon clear to Vica that Valerie did not intend to avoid conflict. The girl did not go out of her way to find enemies, but any enemy soldiers passed was brought into battle - regardless of whether they even noticed the small trio or not.

 

Finally, their group made it to the gate of the manor only to find it guarded by a large man. A Fighter like Vica, he had a large hammer that Vica knew as an effective weapon. Similar enough to an axe, it was a brutal way of effectively attacking through an opponent's armor.

 

Vica braced herself for a painful fight, but before she could so much as draw her axe, Valerie flung herself towards the man with a battle cry.

 

'Why would she...?' The realization hit Vica. 'The girl intends to protect us, since she has armor where we do not...'

 

Vica was not impressed by the girl's recklessness. Even if her armor gave her a slight advantage, the Fighter's hammer made that advantage almost moot. It was a weapon designed to fight against armored foes. Not only that, but Valerie's belief that she could fight him where Vica or Yukina might fail...

 

It was arrogance, whether conscious or not, and Vica had seen the ways arrogance could cause one's downfall. With an irritated frown, Vica finished drawing her axe and followed Valerie. If their luck held out, nothing would go wrong against this foe...

 

But Vica didn't believe much in luck.

[Hälō]

Riku Tsukiko

 

After watching as Emil quickly dispatched the enemy lancer, Riku dashed towards the accompanying fighter. Using his superior speed, Riku ended the man’s life with a brutal slash to his throat, tossing his motionless corps off the rooftop before rejoining his own companion in his trek to the Astrel Manor.

 

Upon finally arriving at their destination, the pair watched as a boorish Knight, whom Riku could only assume to Ludwig barked orders at his underlings before leaving the area to presumably handle other matters. 

 

Riku’s eyes narrowed as his gaze fell on the hostage. He could sense the tension beginning to well up within Emil without even bothering to look at the boy. “Go for it…” Riku had a sneaking suspicion the two were about to make a grand entrance, and he was more then ready.

 

His suspicions were almost instantly confirmed when the young Lord sprang from the rooftop, and through the window; engaging the enemy in his usual flashy and heroic manner.

 

Riku was right behind him, landing in the room with a skillful roll that placed him between his allies and the remaining guards.  The young swordsman’s fox like smile grew wide as he sized up his three new targets, two of which still attempting to regain their composer after Emil’s sudden appearance.   “Don't mind us~" He chirped as he quickly closed the distance between himself and one of the startled Myrmidons. Anticipating an attack from one of the three swords hanging from the boy's belt, the enemy raised his own weapon in a sloppy attempt to parry, only to be met with a savage elbow strike to face which sent him reeling into a nearby wall. 

 

Lowering his hand to one of his Katana, Riku then used the speed he had gathered from his last attack to unleash a twirling draw slash with the intent of beheading the remaining two men on the spot. Unfortunately though, the more experienced of the guards was able to to dive to the side and avoid the blades deadly arc; retaking his battle stance and charging Riku as the boy's blade cleaved through the less fortunate guard's neck. Caught mid-swing, Riku could do nothing as the husky Fighter barreled into him.

 

Slamming into the manor's wall with audible force, the boy groaned in agony as the all to familiar pain of a dislocated shoulder begun to wash over the left side of his body, and blood trickled down his now busted lip. But he didn't have time feel sorry for himself. Not when the enemy Fighter had turned his attention to Emil, as he attempted to free the hostage...

 

Letting loose a low growl, Riku hastily forced himself to his feet. His gaze grew dark as he watched the enemy silently raise his axe in an attempt to blindside the young Lord. "Emil!" The young swordsman barked his desperate warning as he drew Black Queen from it's scabbard and lunged forward, feverishly plunging it into the enemy Fighter's back with his one good arm. 

 

The large man fell forward, landing only inches behind Emil and the hostage with a loud thud. Oddly enough, it would seem he held a unique staff on his person, which rolled from his grasp as he began flopping around the manner's floor like a freshly speared bore. "Never mind. I got it..." Riku sighed as he yanked his blade from the man's back, his busted lip curled into its default smirk as he placed his heel on his victims neck. He wanted very much to repay the man for his now hanging shoulder with a slow and painful death, but realized that torture probably wasn't something he'd want his companions known for. Thus, going against his more carnal instincts, Riku swiftly brought his blade down on the man's large and muscular neck, ending his suffering. 

 

With the threat now naturalized, his shoulder dislocated, and one of the hostages free'ed, Riku turned to Emil and the girl that would now be accompanying them. "So what now Mr. Hero?" Though he retained his light hearted expression, the boy's voice held obvious traces of fatigue. 

[Sethera]

In front of Flanoir...

--

"Emerysian rebels I ask for but a few minutes of your time. Soldiers of Gangala I call for a temporary cease fire. I wish to speak with the commander of the Emerysian rebels."

 

That single, commanding cry resulted in an exchange of words between the general and a mauve-haired woman in black robes (who looked to be the enemy commander). The enemy general seemed to be sure of her side's success, and, looking around at the cluster of enemies situated in front of the door, Derick couldn't help but silently agree. However, General Michael refused to back down, his words lifting the spirits of their side for a second as they cheered. Thankfully, there was no need to win this fight. They were only the distraction.

 

The enemy commander's departure served as a silent signal to resume fighting, as both sides quickly converged once more. Derick closed his eyes briefly before kicking the sides of his mount and entering battle once more, the woman's parting words ringing in his ears: "Let us depart from here Augustia. I have no wish to witness a slaughter." He could only hope that it would not end thus.

 

--

 

Time passed, and despite the winter's chill, Derick sweated under his helm. They had been fighting for far too long. Half of the soldiers on their side were injured, while the other side still seemed in full stride. Derick pursed his lips as he evaded a lance blow with half his usual vigor. We might have to do a full-scale retreat soon if we don't want any undue casualties, he thought, cleaving an opponent's arm with the sharp blade of his axe. Though that will bring the brunt of the enemy's focus on the prince and his companions. He watched the man retreat. There would be no more fighting for him that day.

 

Hearing a familiar cry, Derick turned to see his friend, who had saved him earlier, on the ground and bleeding, a Myrmidon standing over his fallen form. Cursing, the Bull Rider pulled the reins to the side, directing Tiberius toward his friend. This isn't good; I won't make it there in time...

 

And then the general was there, almost moving too fast for Derick to follow. The knight couldn't help but marvel at that. Most of us are dead on our feet, yet he seems as energetic as he was at the start. With a quick punch/thrust combo, the Hero laid the Myrmidon low before crouching to check on Derick's friend. “Young man, are you okay...argh...” The cry spurred the knight on. Had an enemy snuck behind the general and attacked him while his back was turned? But no, there were no enemies in the immediate vicinity except for a Fighter, but he was still too far away to have done that. Then what...?

 

Derick noted the Fighter moving forward purposefully, and shook his head. Tis not the time for speculation. Letting his instincts take over, the man charged the Fighter, half-trampling him under his mount's hoofs. The Fighter recovered quickly, however, and jabbed at Tiberius' jugular with his axe shaft. Bellowing, the bull shook his head and retreated, prompting Derick to leap off and stand in front of his steed protectively.

 

The Fighter grinned, a sharp, razor-edged grin, "Heh, never thought I'd see the day. A Xiang Siu Bull Rider in Gangalan armor fighting for Emerys."

 

Derick glared. "Just because my armor is red doesn't mean I fight for Gangala." He had received confused looks from allies and enemies alike for his armor, but the style was obviously Emerysian--Tullim work, specifically--and they hadn't been at war with Gangala at the time it was made. Many knights preferred custom armor. It could be used to show specific House loyalties, or a way to set yourself apart from the rest. Derick had chosen red armor, just like his old master had worn.

 

The Fighter gave a war shout and charged, angling his axe to reflect light into his opponent's face. The Bull Rider had expected that, however, keeping his eyes focused on the man's arms and torso to predict the trajectory. Swerving to the side, the knight took the brief window of opportunity after the strike--one of the downsides to using an all-out attack was that it would leave you wide open afterward, as he very well knew--and swung his own axe, the blade biting deeply into the man's side.

 

Swearing, the Fighter pivoted and swung the axe once more, a brief, defensive strike that forced Derick to step backward, eyes flitting between his opponent and the spot where both of his allies were. I can't let that man get between me and them--the thought was interrupted when his steed Tiberius plowed into the Fighter from behind. The brown-haired Bull Rider took that opportunity to deal the finishing blow.

 

The knight let his axe head hit the ground with a thud as he turned to where the general and his friend were, saluting. "Sir!" he greeted, before jabbing his axe handle into a Lancer trying to sneak up on him, nodding with satisfaction as he heard the man's screams shortly afterward. Tiberius had everything well in hand...er, hoof.

[iashiaya]

Ludwig seemed to ignore Sartoria’s orders and waited for her to leave. When she did he began to order the guards to lock down the manor and to take Ashelia to his chambers.

 

Ashelia watched as everything happened while she was sitting on the floor looking for a way out, until she heard Ludwig barking orders to take her to his chambers. She seemed panicked as she was forced to stand with her hands quickly bound. W-What is going to happen to me? She thought to herself as they were walking out of the room.

 

As the guards were dragging Ashelia to Ludwig’s chambers, they passed by a big window, where someone familiar to Ashelia jumped in and stabbed someone, killing him instantly. E-Emil?! I-Is that really you? She thought still afraid to actually speak.

 

The fight seemed bad when a strange myrmidon jumped through the window to aid Emil. He fought hard but seemed to get injured. Ashelia wished she had her staff so she could heal him. She saw a Fighter come up behind Emil and yelled out “E-Emil! B-Behind you!” By the time she finished yelling it, however, the young myrmidon had stabbed his sword into the fighters back causing him to fall over and drop her staff.

Ashelia watched as Emil carefully cut the ropes from her wrists and said “Sorry I took so long Ashelia. Are you alright?”

She smiled lightly and took his hand. “T-Thank you Emil, without you saving me just now I… I don’t even know what might have happened to me.” She hugged him tightly feeling very grateful and said “Thank you for saving me.” Then she looked up at the myrmidon and shook her head worriedly before rushing over to her staff and picking it up.

 

“D-Don’t worry I’ll get you healed up.” Ashelia held up her staff, Blessing, and casted mend on the boy’s wounds, healing him from the pain and fixing his shoulder. “Do you feel better now?” 

[Gensokian]

Krazen Shulnera

 

Krazen started to have doubts about the woman's intentions when she leaned in to kiss Asher, as she clearly went for a spot on his cheek that had just a little bit of bandit blood on it, though it was rather hard to avoid blood on any part of him. Father had always taught him to be wary of the women that were a little too forward, and it seemed that whoever raised Asher didn't teach him that lesson. Skepticism in his mind, he closed his normal eye to gaze at the woman with his magic-seeing eye, just to tell whether or not she was cursed or otherwise motivated by dark magic. The rest of the world turned to a purple haze, unable to see anything but any magic that would be around as he half-listened to Asher's proposition.

 

While Asher talked of taking revenge on an Emyrsian noble house, Krazen opened his normal eye again and looked over to the other caster, Myth. He just smirked as he watched him, unable to tell whether or not that was fear in his eyes as he looked at him or not. Perhaps he was planning how to double-cross them if the gold was right, but he knew that there would be no trouble with him should the need to fight arisen. All he knew at that point in time was that Asher wanted to take out the Pencasts for allegedly instigating the Gangalan invasion, or at least allowing it to proceed through the borders. 

 

Once Asher finished his bid, Krazen interlocked his fingers, propped his elbows on the table, and leaned in, a smirk across his face; it was the pose he took after his mother when she was finishing a business deal. Myth mentioned how the Gangalans slaughtered his entire village, leaving him the only survivor, and how he wanted more Gangalan blood; it seemed to rationalize him potentially double-crossing the two Gangalan natives sitting at the table with him. With that in mind, Krazen chuckled, then said, "Alright, I'm in. Who's paying the bill and how much?" If it were a hit on an entire noble house, there certainly had to be quite a bit of coin to be gained from a successful mission.

[Alaina]

Yukina had been somewhat reluctant to let Riku leave her sights, as she had basically just spent the past few weeks trying to track him down. Nevertheless, now was not the time to take him back to his home, especially as he had somehow caught himself up in some of the affairs of the Emerysians. So, she simply decided to do as told and followed the lead of the...less than leader material lance girl. However, she seemed oh to eager to lead them, and as such, Yukina followed a slight bit behind in order to keep distance between her and any passing by enemies, yet still going alongside the orders that their current superior had given them to not fall behind. 

 

As it would turn out, a turtle would most likely not have any problems in keeping up with the trio, as Valerie herself seemed to have an incredible battle lust about her, wanting to fling herself, and subsequently the rest of them, into whatever enemies they might happen upon.Though, their advance was put to a halt as they came to the gate with the large hammer wielding fighter. 

 

Getting her bow at the ready, Yukina pulled an arrow back as she focused on her target. She was appreciative of the two others distraction of throwing themselves at him for her, as it allowed her to do her work unimpeded, and so Yukina was able to get her shot off with relative ease. As the man reeled back to go and swing down at Valerie, Yukina let loose an arrow directed at the hammer wielder's neck...though it veered slightly off course as it ended up hitting his arm instead.  Which was, hopefully, good enough. 

[LordCowCowCowCowCowCowCowCow]

The fight begins! An epic display of skill and power! At least that's how Valerie saw it. Her initial charge didn't do much however. Had she been on her mount it might have been a bit more effective but as it was the Fighter dodged out of the way. He was wearing little armor and Valerie was slightly more armored than most Cavalier and so her mobility was limited.

 

Luckily it was enough so that she could dodge the first counter-attack. The hammer was brought down hard and just barely missed connecting with Valerie's skull. She let out a whoop and gave a wild grin as she thrust forward. Her attack struck the Fighter's side. He let out a grunt but shrugged off the damage.

Valerie pulled back for another strike as the Fighter swung once more. She had to get her attack in first, she couldn't bother pulling back to dodge, she HAD him!

 

But she wasn't fast enough, the hammer slammed into her chest. She felt the crushing pain as her armor was dented severely and she was thrown off her feet.

As she fell she saw an arrow strike the Fighter in the arm. Valerie hit the ground with a thud and the air was forced out of her.

She was laying on her back, stunned, with a Hammer wielding, angry, Fighter above her. She's had better days.

[naoremonth]

Vica Raben

 

Valerie's first attack missed, as did the enemy Fighter's counterattack. Both of the following attacks landed.

 

The girl's lance just scratched the Fighter, but his hammer smashed into Valerie's chest, denting her armor and sending her straight to the ground. From behind Vica, an arrow flew and struck the man in the arm - not his dominant one, Vica could tell from the way he swung the hammer, but the weapon he used required both arms. It would weaken his blows, slow his attacks.

 

It gave her an opportunity.

 

As the Fighter loomed over Valerie, Vica rushed him. The brute moved to face her, shifting his attention away from Vica's downed ally. She swung her axe low, but he twisted out of the way. His hammer rushed at her from below, and she was clipped on the head even as she ducked to avoid it.

 

Dazed, Vica instinctively moved into a defensive stance. By some stroke of luck, she managed to partially deflect the next blow. Instead of crashing into her side, it once again only grazed her, and she backpedaled to avoid any follow-up attack.

 

After a second or two, she regained her wits and focused on her enemy. Rushing forwards at him once again, she ducked under her enemy's high blow and hacked into his unprotected side. He collapsed to the ground, bleeding heavily from the wound.

 

He wasn't dead, but there was no way the man was fighting any more that day without a healer.

[LordCowCowCowCowCowCowCowCow]

It was over in a flash, and Valerie got to her feet with a grunt. She had messed that one up but, she thought as she looked at her companions, it looked like she was in good company. "Way to get the job done, everybody!" She called out cheerfully. She cringed in pain as she took a few steps forward. The Hammer had done a number on her that was for sure. Nothing she couldn't handle though, of course. She couldn't let a little setback like a dented breastplate, and what is going to obviously be a very nasty bruise, stop her.

 

She approached the fallen Fighter. He was out of commission for sure. She hesitated as she stood above him. He was an enemy and it wouldn't do to let him live to fight another day. However killing someone that was obviously in no state to defend themselves was....

Images, memories, flashed in Valerie's head. Her former comrades, the men and women she trained with, killed mercilessly by the very same army this man belonged to. In a surge of unexpected anger, Valerie thrust her lance through the Fighter's chest. The man shuddered once and died.

 

Slowly, almost mechanically, Valerie crouched down and picked up the large Hammer. It wasn't something she could use, and it was quite heavy, however....

She turned to Vica. She didn't want to think about what her two companions thought of her action. She herself hadn't even begun to form an opinion of if it were the right decision. They didn't have time for that.
"Here, you can use that to bash the gate down right?" The chipper tone seemed out of place, and forced, but Valerie was pushing herself to move past this incident and go back to some sense of normalcy.

 

 

---

 

Michael's heart nearly got him killed and he cursed his own weakness. A battle like this should be nothing to him, he should have made it out of this encounter perfectly fine. Maybe a bit worn but otherwise unharmed. But he nearly died. All because of this damned heart. If it weren't for Derick...

Remembering the boy, he nodded in response to the young knight's salute. "Thank you, I must have gotten distracted." Michael looked out towards the battle raging around them as he helped the mage to his feet.

 

Things were going poorly. The enemy had managed to gain a surge of motivation and had pressed them harder than before. Several of their troops had fallen, lost forever to them. They had to get out of here now, and hope that Emil had been given enough time.

Michael sounded the retreat, using the horn that he kept at his hip, twice in a row before turning to Derick. "We must go, out position here is weakening and we will lose too many if we stay. Take this young man with you, and straight to a healer. I shall hold the line here but will follow you shortly." After giving the order, Michael pushed himself back into the fray. He would continue fighting until the last moment, and then retreat as well, giving his soldiers the opening to get out safely.

 

His heart was racing, more than even what was normal for the pressure he was putting on it in battle, and he worried it would give out once more. However he wasn't about to leave unless he was certain that every one of his men had a chance to get to safety.

His thoughts drifted to Emil, as soon as they left the soldiers here would return to the city to quell any trouble that had sprung up, and Emil would find himself facing an army if he didn't finish soon.

[naoremonth]

As Vica recovered from the brief fight, she heard her young leader's voice call out, "Way to get the job done, everybody!"

 

The Fighter paid little attention to Valerie. It was her charge that had required Vica to rush in recklessly after her, and which had negated the advantage of having Yukina with them. The Archer had only loosed one arrow in the battle, and after that, both Valerie and VIca herself had been too close to the enemy and moving too much for the woman to shoot again safely.

 

Vica heard the noise of a lance pierce flesh, and turned in alarm. Her alarm quickly disappeared when she took in what had happened.

 

Valerie stood over the fallen Fighter, lance lodged into the man's chest. The girl's face was filled with anger, although it quickly faded to something Vica could not quite discern. The temporary leader then picked up the Hammer that had belonged to the now dead foe.

 

"Here, you can use that to bash the gate down right?" Blinking in slight surprise at the idea, Vica looked down at the weapon. The idea had not occurred to her, but it was a sound one. Hammers made for battle were designed specifically to deal damage through armor... And what is a gate but armor for a location?

 

With a nod, Vica reached out and grasped the Hammer, her own axe slung across her back. "Very well. Let us get this done quickly."

 

The white-haired woman strode up to the gate and stopped in front of it. She adjusted her grip on the weapon and swung it lightly through the air, letting herself become accustomed to its weight and balance. Before she acted, she paused for a moment. Then another.

 

Then, with a grunt and the full force of all of her strength, Vica slammed the Hammer into the center of the gate once, twice, three times. The gate stood strong, although it was clear the weapon had dealt minor damage to the structure.

 

She kept swinging the Hammer, slamming its not-insignificant weight into the same spot on the gate in a steady pattern of echoing crashes. It was slowly being damaged... but Vica could not tell how long it might take to get through the gate. Depending on the strength of the gates mechanisms, she might have to actually break down the gate itself in order to get through, instead of simply damaging its mechanisms through her attacks.

 

Taking a brief respite, she turned to Valerie and Yukina. "I am not sure how much longer it might take to open the gate this way, but I am willing to keep at it. I fear it might be wasted time, especially if Lord Astrel and his partner manage to reach the gate before I can break it open."

 

Unhappy at sharing something like this but not willing to keep information from her current 'superior', Vica added, "I... am also not sure how much use I will be in a fight if the gate is as strong as I fear it might be. Opening it this way, by use of brute force, will become rather taxing if I have to keep attacking for a long period of time."

[Yosuke-kun]

Emil Astrel

 

Ashelia was safe and they'd made it into the Estate, but in the process RIku's shoulder was badly injured due to Emil's momentary distraction. If not for Ashelia's healing the battle could have gone far worse than it would, and for that Emil was grateful. Still, he cursed himself silently for his mistake as a second Figher advanced on him; axe raised. This time Emil was not going to allow any of the soldiers to harm Riku or Ashelia.

 

Sprinting towards the Fighter, Riku leaped into the air and drop kicked the man in the chest, causing him to be pushed off his feet and onto his back nearly 2 meters away from where he initially stood. After the kick though, Emil fell to his back; only to quickly scramble back to his feet and rush the downed Fighter, stabbing him through the face to finish him. Next, a Mercenary swung at Emil, and the young Lord only barely dodged the blade as it skimmed of his chestplate and released a small amount of sparks. The next swing Emil parried by catching the blade mid swing with Talma, forcing it to the ground, and then bringing the sword up to decapitate the Gangalan. The remaining soldier, a Lancer, decided that he wanted no business with either Emil or Riku, as both had proven that they were completely able fighters and possibly a little insane. As the man fled the room, tossing his lance to the ground, Emil returned to Riku and Ashelia.

 

"I appreciate the aid friend, but next time be more careful. I'd rather not lose you or your sword arm for that matter." Emil said in friendly taunting sort of way. Addressing Ashelia too, Emil smiled and said "I'm glad you're alright. We're here to get you out of Flanoir now, but I won't leave without my mother or sisters. Do you know where they are?"

Before Ashelia could answer though, a loud banging could be heard coming from the gates, and Emil was reminded of his companions outside of the Estate. Leaving Ashelia to heal Riku's arm, Emil made his way over to the gates and opened them carefully, so as not to be accidentally struck by Vica's new Hammer.

 

"Ahh hello comrades. Care to join the party?" Emil said to them in a cheery tone he had not used since before the fall of Arkaia.

 

Asher Baraan

 

"I would imagine it to be the Pencasts themselves with these grand moves."

 

The innkeepers daughter, or at least who Asher thought was the innkeepers daughter, spoke now for the first time; and raised a sudden alarm in Asher's head. In her voice, Asher could have sworn he detected a slight Bandorite accent when she spoke. That didn't add up. The innkeeper spoke with a heavy Emerysian accent complete with the uneducated dropping the letter H that some of the common folk would do. With this in mind, why would the daughter have a Bandorite accent, even if it was only a slight one?

 

Several possibilities went through Asher's head, but the most likely on was that Rathmar had been looking for him, and now he found him. What was worse, this spy was already in the perfect position to finish Asher off. She'd seated herself on his lap with her hand not far from his throat. If she could reach her dagger, then Asher would not have time to avoid the killing blow. Right now the best option was to act as if he hadn't caught her slip up and wait for the best moment to strike.

 

"Well, my young, err, friend here is right. The Pencasts are not exactly a popular house with the people of Emerys. Even before their betrayal the Pencasts were seen as villains by the people. A large number of their wealth comes from placing Emerysian commoners in debts they could not hope to pay, then forcing them into working to make the Pencasts more money. They're not much different from the slavers back home. Guessing you had at least a couple experiences with slavers Krazen? Living as a mercenary you often do. Anyways he way I see it, that money belongs to Emerys, and a small portion should go to it's saviors -us- and the Pencasts should be left wanting. Seems fitting for the richest thieves in Krezia wouldn't you say?"

 

Hopefully his message of wanting to return some of the money the Pencasts had taken to the people in Emerys made it across, but more importantly Asher hoped the message that they'd essentially be stealing from the Pencasts was one that Krazen would entertain. In truth, it left a bitter taste in Asher's mouth, but what he said was the truth. That money was not rightfully the Pencasts, but the people in Emerys. It was only fair then that the Emerysian people play the role of their clients.

[Sethera]

In front of Flanoir...

--

"Thank you, I must have gotten distracted," the general nodded to Derick, subsequently helping his Mage friend, Hugh, from the ground. Shortly afterward, the white-haired Hero sounded the horn to retreat before addressing the Bull Rider once more.  "We must go, our position here is weakening and we will lose too many if we stay. Take this young man with you, and straight to a healer. I shall hold the line here but will follow you shortly."

 

The red-armored knight nodded crisply and saluted. Far be it from him to question orders, though he had his own misgivings at leaving even the famous general here alone. But he also had a responsibility to his friend, and it would do him no good to play hero. Lifting one of Hugh's arms, he staggered back to the tree line, foregoing Tiberius as it might jostle the Mage's wounds. Unfortunately, healers were rare in the army, so they had only been able to bring a single Priest, and he had stayed in the far back. The small, unbearded boy was currently surrounded by groaning soldiers, and more were trickling in even as the knight watched.

 

Setting his friend down on the nearest available space, Derick sat down beside him before taking out his vulnerary. It would at least help with the superficial injuries, though the deeper ones were what worried him. Hopefully the Priest would get here shortly. As soon as the knight knew his friend was safe, he would be returning to the front lines to check on the general.

 

--

 

Some time had passed, and the Priest had reached his friend. Thankfully, there were no permanent injuries, and he would be fine after some rest. Derick let out a sigh of relief before rising, clapping the young boy on the back in thanks. He would have liked to have patrolled the impromptu rest area, checking up on a few of the men, particularly the ones who had come on this venture because of him. But he had no time--the general still hadn't returned, and the knight was starting to worry.

 

Hearing a snort, he turned to the side and smiled briefly. Tiberius, faithful as always, had kept pace beside him the whole walk back, lending his side for support. Patting the bull's flank gently, Derick jumped into the saddle with the ease of long practice. Nudging his steed into a trot, or the bull's equivalent, he rode, encouraging the still-retreating men he found while also keeping a weather eye out for the general. But his hopes sank with every second. The Hero hadn't returned yet. This...is not looking too good.

[LordCowCowCowCowCowCowCowCow]

Valerie was about to suggest that Vica keep at the attack, and help with an attack of her own if she could, when the doors opened up all by themselves. They must be afraid of her battle prowess and....Oh, never mind, it was Emil.

Valerie laughed at the tone in Emil’s voice. “Sounds like someone’s in a good mood, hey boss?” Valerie strode forward and clapped him on the shoulder. “I guess you heard us knocking and decided to answer the door yourself. You’d better have left some bad guys for me." Valerie still hadn’t quite recovered from the fighting up to this point but she was feeling a surge of energy and was all riled up for a fight.
She knew this was partially to ignore thinking about what she had just done but, right now, she had to focus on the task at hand.
And so Valerie boldly stepped into the manor, glancing around for any foe that might be foolish enough to test her lance.

---

Michael’s arms were burning. His heart was thudding erratically against his chest. The retreat was successful, for the most part all their troops were in the safety of the woods. Those that weren’t were on their way out. But Michael had vowed not to leave until the last soldier was out of harms way.
He had to be sure to keep the enemy occupied so that they could all get out safe. This required him to fling himself recklessly into battle. And so it was that Michael found himself against what was basically an army all on his own. He had killed nearly two dozen soldiers since ordering the retreat yet they were still coming. And they would keep coming. All that mattered was he hold out until the last moment.
He brought his sword down on a Myrmidon’s skull when a loud and deep voice sounded, calling for people to get out of his way.
The flow of enemy soldiers slowed as they all made way for the man. A young Mercenary man, muscular, with a brown headband and a large Steel Sword in hand.
Michael could tell at a glance this was the commander of this group, though he doubted he was the one in charge of the whole operation.
Had Michael not been worn down by the other enemies, and had his heart been working properly, he didn’t think he’d have much trouble, but now....

“So you’re the bastard that’s been giving my men such trouble. You don’t look like much. Let me show you what a real warrior fights like.” The man was brash, arrogant, and ready for a fight.
Michael readied his sword. As he did his heart throbbed again and pain shot through his body. He clutched his chest and fell to a knee. In that moment the Mercenary struck. Michael raised his sword to block the downward strike and shoved him back.
His heart raced, his vision reddened, but he struggled to his feet. If he could finish this one surely that would give everyone the chance to escape and he could leave. The only question now was if he could defeat the man before his heart gave out.
“I am not going to lose to the likes of you, come try me!”

[Gensokian]

Krazen Shulnera

 

Asher wasn't the only one to catch that accent coming from the girl as she spoke; Krazen, as well, caught what seemed like a familiar accent coming from her lips. He had his own suspicions, though, thinking that, perhaps, the girl was meant to find him, bringing forth the judgment of the angry emperor. As he thought of that, he felt his full stomach sink to the floor, remembering one thing that had happened; he had said his full, real name in front of her. Should she had been a spy, there would be no other option for them. It would, of course, mean that both she and innkeeper herself would have to be taken care of, seeing that they both attested to her being the innkeeper's daughter. He flashed Asher a look, trying to convey these thoughts to him without words, though of course that would be a difficult task. He slowly and quietly pulled out his tome, though, just in case, eyes ready to dart to it if he had to resort to violent methods out in the open.

 

With that in mind, he then listened to Asher's further explanation of his proposition, nodding as he reached certain points. It seemed the rumors of the Pencasts having forced their people into slavery through devious means were accurate. Krazen was certainly familiar with slavers, having dealt with them on three separate occasions, and having heard of plenty more through his parents, and knew enough to realize he detested the like of them. The fact that he planned on making the Pencasts themselves pay them was more than enough to make Krazen accept. "So, do we have a plan of action?" he then asked, eyes darting towards the girl before looking back as Asher. "Of course, though, it would certainly be best if we talked of such matters...less in the open."

 

As if to make his point more clear, Krazen stood up from the table, hiding his tome for the time being, yet keeping his hand on it underneath his cloak, keeping the girl in the corners of his eyes as he moved towards where their room would be. As he passed, he put a hand on Asher's shoulder, attempting again to tell him to be wary of the girl. He tried his best to look over the girl, as well, attempting to spot where she would be most likely to carry a dagger or some other kind of weapon; it would be a damn shame to lose his new mercenary partner before they actually finished a job together.

[naoremonth]

Vica Raben

 

Breathing out a sigh of relief, Vica lowered the hammer in her hands. It was greatly reassuring to know she would not have to fully break down the gates. 'Although,' the woman thought wryly, 'Should Flanoir ever be retaken, repairs most certainly will need to be made... Or perhaps the occupying forces will fix it themselves?'

 

Vica put the thought out of mind as unimportant, and watched her temporary leader cheerily stride forward to the Astrel heir and banter with him. For what the young fighter had gone through just earlier, Valerie seemed abnormally at ease. But perhaps Vica was just making wrong assumptions on what she'd seen. Regardless, it was not something worth troubling herself about.

 

Instead, the white-haired Fighter knelt down beside the fallen enemy Fighter. Her newly acquired Hammer was useful, but without something to hold it, there was no good way to carry it with her...

 

'Aha, there it is.' She found the clasp of the strap that had been used to carry the Hammer. Carefully avoiding the blood on the body, she slid the belt of leather off of the corpse and strapped it around her waist. Placing the Hammer in the appropriate spot, she frowned. 'Not the best way to carry it, nor convenient for fighting. But it shall do for now.'

 

Satisfied, she finished making the last of the small adjustments and stood to go and catch up with her current allies.

[Alaina]

Yukina had been standing around after having helped dealt with the fighter, and couldn't help but feel a bit useless in their current predicament. She wasn't entirely sure if using the hammer against the gate would yield any sort of pleasant result, and it seemed that the axe wielder of their group seemed to think so as well. At this point she figured that trying to figure out how to open the gate via a sort of mechanism would probably end up working better than the hammer. However, before she could do anything on that matter it seemed that the leader of this brigade had solved their problem for them. 

 

Opening the door that had thus far barred their path, Yukina looked to see that Emil was now accompanied by an unfamiliar looking female, who was most likely one of the females that he had set out to rescue, and that Riku was still alongside him. Feeling slightly relieved that it had appeared nothing bad had happened to the young heir, Yukina's attention was immediately drawn to the boisterous female that was Valerie. 

 

Despite the large blow from the hammer she had received, she certainly seemed to posses a large degree of vigor that would not deter her from the fight. While this may have been somewhat commendable, it was still first and foremost foolish. As such, Yukina decided to keep a watchful eye over the girl to make sure that she would not end up putting herself in far more danger than she could end up handling.