Fire Emblem: Curse of the Goddess [IC/PG-16/Not Accepting]

[Asriel Dreemurr]

Now that the battle was ended, Edrick took the time to look himself over...and realised that he was not exactly in the best of shape. Sure, the armor had done its job wonderfully in preventing his being cut to ribbons, but a cursory glance under his right arm was all it took to notice the surprisingly deep stab wound he had taken. Of course he knew it hadn't hit anything vital, he'd be dead if that were the case, but it was a wound that would be better off quickly healed than left to mend on its own. Especially if they kept getting into fights at the rate they were. Inera could return him to life, but he would much rather avoid tearing a muscle somewhere and keep his arm's function.
 
"Does anyone have-" Edrick's words died in his throat as he noticed the crowd approaching them. Well, crowd wasn't quite right. It looked more like a mob, given the looks they were getting. Looking around, he noticed that much of the party, including the girl on horseback, was gathering along one of the walls in the alleyway. Not the best position to defend themselves if the townsfolk rushed them, but it was better than nothing. It would also be better for them to stand as a group, and to that end he made his way over to them.
 
"If you are a healer, may I presume you are from Pontus?" He perked up a bit at that. The thought of not being the only one from his homeland in this group was comforting. At the very least he would have someone to pray with. Though another glance at the mounted woman left him suspicious.

 

"You could say that. A woman on a mission, that's what I am." Her accent only made him more suspicious. She certainly didn't sound like any Pontic he had heard before, and he had heard more than a few of the accents his homeland sported.
 
"Ah. Leader." Penelope's voice brought his attention to her, and he found himself surprised. Why did she look like she was going to be sick? He answered his own question, recalling a story his father had told him of his and his uncle's first real fight. Was today the first time she had killed someone? "We are a mercenary group of sorts, if you'd like to travel with, as long as you're pulling your weight, feel free...my name is Penelope, and this is Gunther. If you need anything and I am not around, ask him, he'll be happy to help." Well, at least she seemed to be getting back into the swing of things. He was about to speak up, when he noticed Link whispering something to Catriona and heading off towards the crowd.

 

"This is official city business. Move along. More guards will be arriving soon, and I suggest you make sure you aren't here when they do." Well, that certainly was an idea. Whether it was good or not remained to be seen, but there wasn't anything to be done about it now. In the mean time, he returned his attention towards...had she introduced herself? He wasn't paying attention earlier. In any case, now that he looked closer, he was quite certain that she was not from Pontus. That is not to say that her soft skin and slight physique could not come from the noble houses of his homeland. Rather, she claimed to be a healer. If she was from Pontus, that would mean that she had been part of the Church, and quite frankly she just didn't come across to him as a priestess. The way she was dressed was just another factor added onto his suspicion.

 

"Anyone else you think needs to be healed?" He made an effort to hide the bloody splotch under his arm. That could wait until they were in less danger from the crowd gathering behind them. "Don't want someone suddenly falling unconscious while we're inevitably running away from this city, no?"

 

"Yeah, I think your head might need a bit." Alois's words brought a grim laugh from Edrick, and the young lancer shook his head at the thought of their just being potentially implicated in multiple murders. True, they were responsible for the thieves' deaths, but they had also been defending themselves...or more accurately defending him.

 

"Well, before we start doing anything, I feel I ought to thank all of you for getting me out of that," his accent was much thicker now than normal, a little way of trying to remind their "priestess" what a Pontic voice sounded like. He turned specifically to Asura, and rested a hand on the man's shoulder. "You especially, Asura, and you too, Penelope. I don't think I could have fought off their leader on my own." It wasn't exactly an apology to the man, and it wasn't really something to comfort the shaken princess, but he hoped it would help at the very least. "So, do we stay here and wait for the guards to come so that we can explain the situation to them, or do we get moving and make ourselves look like a pack of murderers fleeing the scene?"

[Sethera]

 

"Listen, Penelope, are...Penelope?"

 

"I'm alright. Just a little...faint."

 

Catriona was shaken from her stare down with this "Ciela" at those words. The girl inspected her sister from head to toe in the span of a couple seconds. She caught Gunther's gesture to group together, which she followed. After all, there was no harm in doing so, and in fact, she couldn't help but worry about Penelope's mental wellbeing. And the expressions of the crowd didn't bode well for them.

 

Link seemed to notice this as well, edging closer to the lord. "I’ll distract the crowd. You all should get going. This won’t go over well with the rest of the guard."

 

The white-haired girl paused, shocked at the fact he actually spoke. The next second, she shook her head, as if to clear it of inane thoughts. "Got it," she nodded.

 

And then Link did something that surprised her even more. Clearing his throat, he started to speak to the crowd in an uncharacteristically gruff voice. "This is official city business. Move along. More guards will be arriving soon, and I suggest you make sure you aren’t here when they do."

 

The words managed to stifle some of the crowd, but not all of them. In fact, most were currently boring holes through the group with their eyes. "Yeah right!" a braver one spoke up. "Who are you tryna kid? These are all outsiders! They're not part of the city at all!"

 

Ciela's next words did nothing to calm the growing circle of people gathered around the group, and in fact, seemed to encourage them. "Yeah, get outta here! We don't want no outsiders in our city!" Privately, Catriona agreed with Alois' statement. That girl did not seem to have a good grasp of the situation at hand.

 

"Well, before we start doing anything, I feel I ought to thank all of you for getting me out of that," Edrick said, his accent a lot heavier than usual, prompting a weird look from the princess. "You especially, Asura, and you too, Penelope. I don't think I could have fought off their leader on my own. So, do we stay here and wait for the guards to come so that we can explain the situation to them, or do we get moving and make ourselves look like a pack of murderers fleeing the scene?"

 

Catriona glanced around. "We might not be able to flee the scene as you so call it. Seeing as we've become surrounded on all sides." She would rather leave in peace than through forceful means, as harming civilians went against her grain, but she wouldn't hesitate if it came to it. They had a goal after all, and that goal did not involve getting thrown in jail for fighting opponents who attacked them first. Well, attacked one of their own first. And wasn't that strange that she considered a Pontic one of their own? Still, it was the truth.

 

--

 

"And I move my piece to that corner, forming a line of three. Which means...I take your piece. You're now down to two, so you lose."

 

"No, how?! You cheated somehow!"

 

"Trumpion, it's almost impossible to cheat in Nine Men's Morris," Gelasius, his fellow soldier, grumbled. "Just accept your loss gracefully."

 

"Best twelve out of thirteen?"

 

"Nah, looks like we might be needed down there."

 

"Oh, right. That's a thing."

 

The two hopped down from the roof they were on, making their way to the commotion. "Hold on, what's going on here?" Trumpion asked in his best "official" voice.

 

One of the group, a white-haired girl, after casting a concerned glance at a familiar blond swordsman, stepped forward. "Hail, soldier. We just--"

 

"They're murderers!" one of the mob interrupted. "Look at those poor souls! Butchered and flattened, treated without mercy! It's obvious that these people are nothing more than monsters in human skins!"

 

"Humph!" Trumpion sniffed, waving a hand to forestall any explanations on the woman's part. "Just as I expected from outsiders. Nothing but criminals."

 

"I'd hafta disagree with ya there."

 

The crowd hushed at the sight of their local blacksmith walking forward to defend the outsiders. Lauded for being the best in all Ithome, if not all of Histia, he was also known for his kindness and generosity, making him one of the most popular people in all three sectors.

 

"What are you defending these here outsiders for, Jake?" one of the Ithome citizens questioned.

 

Jake smiled at the man. "Simple. These here outsiders done saved my life, that's why." He paused, taking in the mob's expressions. "Y'all know I'm a simple man. I go by simple rules. You scratch my back, I scratch yours. And if you save my life, why then it just shows you're a mighty fine person. So these folks are mighty fine people."

 

His words seemed to shake the crowd. No longer did they look like an angry mob ready to lynch, but a mill of confused, fearful citizens. "But what about them dead bodies?"

 

"Yes, what about the dead bodies?" Trumpion took that moment to interject, glaring at the blacksmith. "You can't just explain that away. Decent, upstanding citizens would never murder helpless innocents."

 

"Well, I think you should give them the right to explain themselves then," Jake replied. "So far it jes' seems like you've been picking the turnips from only one side of the field. You gotta listen to both sides of the argument afore you make any snap judgments."

 

"Humph, all right," Trumpion glared at the group, though he seemed to take exception with Link and Asura. "Speak your piece then, but I doubt it will mean anything."

 

[spoiler=OOC]

Diplomacy check time! Or not! You have a few choices here that you can go with. Talking is one of them. Fighting is another one. You can even do nothing! As long as that nothing is in the form of a post, and not literally doing nothing.

 

 

[Maeriberii Haan]

---

 

"yeah, I think your head might need a bit of it."

 

"Gee...saying that after I healed you..."

 

It was somewhat understandable of Alois to say that, in hindsight, although Ciela didn't really get the proper reasoning on why did he take a jab on her with that sentence. She looked at the Pontic lancer that had approached them, and from his reaction and how Cat whispered something to the axeman, she wondered whether she said something wrong. It wasn't really that rude, and it'd be weird for them to take offense to that one specifically, so why would they-

 

"Yeah, get outta here! We don't want no outsiders in our city!"

 

Oh, so she accidentally made the crowd more agitated. Ciela couldn't really fathom why would they be pissed at the group. They did good, didn't they? They're clearly just killing thieves, thugs that deserved to be cleaned off. To think that they're implicated for murder by this angry xenophobic crowd somewhat made Ciela angry, although she kept it to herself for now as she waited for the others to decide on what would they do next. But, the situation went worse soon afterwards once two guards arrived after jumping from the roofs (!!).

 

"They're murderers!"

 

"Hey-"

 

"Look at those poor souls! Butchered and flattened, treated without mercy! It's obvious that these people are nothing more than monsters in human skins!"

 

"Now can you-"

 

"Just as I expected from outsiders. Nothing but criminals."

 

"I-"

 

"I'd hafta disagree with ya there."

 

Ciela never really got the chance to talk in her anger for now, thankfully. Someone who apparently the local blacksmith appeared on the scene, and decided to defend the group. He mentioned how Cat's group saved him, and he gave his arguments on why they shouldn't be detained. The guard didn't really buy the defense though, and kept finding opportunities to deny what the defendant said, and accuse the group of murder. The crowd was, of course, in the guards' side.

 

"So far it jes' seems like you've been picking the turnips from only one side. You gotta listen to both sides of the argument afore you make any snap judgments."

 

"Humph, all right. Speak your piece then, but I doubt it will mean anything."

 

"Excuse me?!"

 

That was the worst kind of dismissal someone could give. No matter what anyone here would say, neither he nor the crowd would listen to them. They'd still see the group as murderers. They'd rather accuse the hated outsiders of murder rather than...rather than...

 

"...Are you all freaking insane or something? Are you blind? We? Murderer?

 

T-these guys, helpless innocents? That's an even worse joke than your government. Look at their corpses! No helpless innocents would just walk around carrying a knife like that! Because...you know what? They're t-thugs! Yeah, they're just that! Thieves, lowlifes!

 

'But they're just carrying it for self-defense!' you said. Then explain the arrows scattered around here! Explain the arrow wound on that axeman's side! If you can call that self-defense of an innocent citizen, then I'd rather not see you make kids to pass your ground-level intelligence. Innocent helpless civilians don't bring bows and arrows for self defense!"

 

Ciela took a deep breath. She hadn't been used to talking in long parts like this and it showed with her few stutters, but she was now fueled with her desire to rant, rant, and rant, and anger soon took back control of her lips and tongue, and she continued her explosion.

 

"We didn't even attack them first." Well, it's just an assumption of hers, but it was at least true in her personal case, since the escaping thief attacked her horse first when she arrived on scene. "It is us that's doing this out of self-defense. But none of you would listen to us anyway. As that helmethead of a guard said, it's not like what we'll say matter in this. Because what? Just because we're outsiders?!

 

If you really hate outsiders that much, go make that damn wall outside taller. Go destroy the damn gate and build a damn wall over it. The rest of the world probably would appreciate you all dying alone inside of that wall of yours anyway with how you treat the rest of us. Hey guards, your job is to deal with these scums instead of us! What is your excuse? Your jail is filled too much with dirty outsider scum that looked at you in the wrong way? And you townsfolk would rather get mugged all night every night rather than showing some outsiders like us courtesy by actually dealing with your own criminals?!

 

If you all don't want to listen to me, fine! So be it! It's not my business if this town becomes an even worse place than it is now.  I don't think any of us here has any desire to be detained over some stupid conclusion making like this, so it's not going to happen, simple as that.

 

Now, Mars in pula mea! Shoo, go back to your own business!"

 

That came out smoother than her first attempt, but perhaps it was just due Ciela being even more focused at pulling it off due to her frustration at the sheer injustice at display here. She gave a glance at the blacksmith that started the defense, and gave him a bit of a nod of thanks for starting this. However, her gaze returned to stare at the soldier that approached the group, and her grip on Remy's girdle tightened. Whether her allies or the mob or the soldiers would take her rant well or not was something she couldn't care as of now. Although, it took a bit for her to realize that she slipped a bit of Pontic to her speech as she closed it earlier. That might make the situation a bit worse.

 

[spoiler=OOC]

Ciela rants. Pretty much it.

 

 

---

[LordCowCowCowCowCowCowCowCow]

---

 

Gunther sighed in relief as the group seemed to be gathering together just fine, and shot a look of appreciation at Link. This was a mess. He should have thought about how this could look to the civilians and guards. That was stupid of him, and he had no one to blame but himself. Glancing over at Penelope, Gunther frowned. She had known it, maybe a bit too late, or perhaps...She didn't realize what would happen? It was true that the most she was used to when it came to fighting were guards, who were generally trained to detain. Was he going to have to explain to her how this all worked? No, maybe Link would be better for that, Gunther didn't know what he was doing after all...

 

And mayhem followed quickly. The crowd grew aggressive, accusatory, and they were on all sides, so Gunther couldn't even place himself in between them and Penelope. His heart thudded a bit quicker as he realized what a bad position they were in. This wasn't fair. They may have gone...overboard, but to call them murderers? They were just protecting themselves, right? It seemed things weren't going well, even with Jake's intervention. They'd be fine, though, right? He knew all too well that Penelope was good at talking herself out of situations just like this. However, as he looked down at the girl, his confidence was shaken.

 

Penelope stared silently at the ground as the guard made their accusation, and Jake came to their defense. She felt she should feel relieved that the man had come to help them out. However...They weren't wrong. They killed all those people so needlessly. She glanced over at Edrick, so obviously covered in the gore of the battle, to her own hands, which had so violently ended that man's life. What kind of people were they?
They had to avoid trouble, and couldn't afford to be arrested,that much was true. Tactically her course was clear. She had to manipulate the crowd as best she could, had to explain logically why they did this...But could she really do it? When she herself didn't believe they had done no wrong? She pressed tighter against Gunther, shaking slightly, as she started to tear up. She couldn't do it. Even if it was self-defense...They were very clearly just local thugs, not trained soldiers. She should have given orders to capture them. This was her fault...

She barely even heard Ciela's rant, though every word she did hear pained the younger girl. She was defending them so adamantly, she actually believed they were in the right. But they had done it all wrong...

 

She felt Gunther shift beside her and glanced up. His face was pale, and it seemed he was sweating from his brow. He opened his mouth and closed it several times before taking a long, shuddering, breath.

 

"Excuse me, sir guard." He finally said at long last. "We...we just were trying to defend ourselves. These men attacked a member of our...mercenary company." He looked back and forth, eyes flicking over the crowd, and his heart sank. They were angered, and probably not even paying attention to his words. Gunther placed a hand on Penelope's shoulder. "Look at this girl, does she look like a murderer? Just...She's clearly not meant to be here, please, at least let me take her away from this." He was almost pleading at this point. He might not be able to do much for the group in general, but he had to get Penelope away. This was exactly the kind of confrontation she didn't do well with, and it looked like she could break at any moment. Gunther's eyes met Cat's for a moment. Surely she could understand, he had to keep Penelope safe before anything else.

[King K. Azo]

"You especially, Asura, and you too, Penelope. I don't think I could have fought off their leader on my own." Asura nodded to Farm Boy. He supposed he did have some sort of warm and fuzzy feeling. However, it was drowned out by the crowd that had surrounded them.
 
Asura listened to the accusations, the lies, and the insults the citizens hurled at them. He did his best to remain calm. Flying off the handle would not help here... but those lies... it grated at him. He wanted to lash out, to make them pay for the wrong they were inflicting to his group. That wouldn't help though. What did help was that Jake had came to help them out. Now they just needed to capitalize on this, and get the hell out. As he leaned against a wall, his arms folded, the new person started to rant, but he tuned her out to focus... how could he part of the answer instead of the problem?
 
"Excuse me, sir guard." Flower Boy spoke up. "We...we just were trying to defend ourselves. These men attacked a member of our...mercenary company." He placed on Penelope's shoulder. "Look at this girl, does she look like a murderer? Just...She's clearly not meant to be here, please, at least let me take her away from this." Good job, Flower Boy! Prey on their paternal instincts and hope they fall for it!

​"If you want someone to blame, the only people you can blame is the city guard," Asura commented from his spot. "A pack of murderers were attempting to take the life of outsiders, and only one city guard responded," He motioned to the roof. "And the way you dropped from the roof without being winded tells everyone you where here the whole time and did nothing. Plus, we aren't far from the building of your leader, so the noise should have travelled far enough someone should have heard it," He shook his head. "You would rather let a pack of murderers roam the streets, ones that could hurt the citizens of this fine city, than help outsiders. Someone's priorities are in the wrong,"

[Asriel Dreemurr]

Well, things weren't going quite as poorly as they could have. Sure the one guard that had decided to speak up was very plainly biased against them, but with Jake's arrival on the scene it seemed the crowd turned from angry to fearful. Maybe that was only a few degrees better, but it was better indeed. To that end, the young farmer realised that standing there covered in gore and holding his spear was not exactly the best of options. So, while the others took the lead in appealing to the crowd and the guardsman, he set about making himself appear somewhat less threatening. While the woman masquerading, badly, as a priestess went on her rant about the ridiculousness of the situation, he set down his spear, pulled off his head-protector, and had started undoing the straps on his cuirass. He did stop as he noticed her profanity, and looked up at her with just a tinge of disgust on his face. Well, at least her pronunciation is good, he thought. While he agreed with what she said, now was far from the best time to state it.

 

"Excuse me, sir guard." Edrick had just finished pulling off his cuirass, and was setting it on the ground next to his spear and headgear, when Gunther spoke up. "We...we were just trying to defend ourselves. These men attacked a member of our...mercenary company." Well, at least they had an explanation for going around the city with armor and weapons. "Look at this girl, does she look like a murderer? Just...she's clearly not meant to be here, please, at least let me take her away from this." Was he trying to leave the rest of them with Penelope? Of course that made a good deal of sense, considering how shaken she was, but it could very well hurt their image as a mercenary band if two of their own were trying to leave. Nothing to be done about it now, though.

 

"If you want someone to blame, the only people you can blame is the city guard." Asura spoke up before Edrick could, which gave the farmer enough time to realize that his shirt was soaked with blood. That...would not give him the best chance of appealing to the crowd with what he had to say. To that end, he removed it and stood there clad in only his trousers and armored leggings. Hopefully the bloody wound under his arm wasn't that noticeable. "A pack of murderers were attempting to take the life of outsiders and only one of the city guard responded. And the way you dropped from the roof without being winded tells everyone you were here the whole time and did nothing. Plus, we aren't far from the building of your leader, so the noise should have traveled far enough someone should have heard it. You would rather let a pack of murderers roam the streets, ones that could hurt the citizens of this fine city, than help outsiders. Someone's priorities are in the wrong." Well, it wasn't what Edrick would have said but it was a fair point. In any case, now that he had the opportunity to speak, he spoke up.

 

"Allow me to start by introducing myself. My name is Edrick, and many of you likely recognize me as the one who's been helping Jake around his smithy the past three days. I'm quite obviously not from around here, and the man saw fit to trust me enough to employ me in his shop. Beyond that, Link," he gestured towards the soldier-turned-guard, "has seen fit to trust the whole of us enough to essentially join our company. Wherever we've gone as a group, he's come along and joined us. He even taught me some techniques that saved my life today." The farmer paused for a moment to look over the crowd, hoping that he'd said enough to earn their trust or at least get them to listen to him. "Now, I can confirm what my companions have said about this lot," he pointed at Linus and the thieves, "were trying to murder one of our company, because I'm the one they were trying to murder. I was just coming up this very alley to meet up with the rest of the company when those three with swords ambushed me." At this he stooped down to pick up the sword that Linus had been using, standing up and holding it so that the crowd could see the blood caked over it. "This blood," he now raised his right arm to let everyone see the seeping wound in his side, "is my blood. Furthermore, when my companions came to my rescue, these three had every opportunity to run away. Instead, they called in reinforcements and tried to kill all of us. We were forced to fight, and kill, them just to keep our own lives." 

[Alaina]

Once Alois had gotten ready to leave the scene with everyone else, it seemed that that option was no longer available to the group. The crowd that was already on edge seemed to be exploding with rage towards them. Calling them things like outsiders, that comment really hit deep that it did. The boy wouldn't know how he was going to live with himself if this kind and receptive town thought he wasn't a natural born citizen of it. And murderer, well that one was a bit harder to explain away. Alois definitely thought that he definitely murdered those thieves that they were fighting. He didn't, however, think that what he did was completely uncalled for as his own, and others, lives were on the line. However, the crowd was clearly not going to listen to whatever he had to say on the matter. They were out for blood, and not the thieves's blood at that, and Alois knew all too well how isolationists dealt with outsiders. 

 

To make matters worse, the ever vigilant guards of this city, in their complete and total competence, decided that now that the fighting was all over and done with, now was the proper time to show their face. Truly ten out of ten guard work, Alois definitely felt like if he had to hire a group of people to guard anything important to him, these model guards, exemplars of what their job was, it would be them. Of course because these guards were so good at their jobs, they decided that the crowd was automatically correct and that the group was nothing more than murderous low lives, or something to that effect. Alois was very much aware how little they were going to listen to him, and didn't quite bother in speaking until a certain someone had come to their defense. 

 

Seeing that Jake, that guy from State Farm that they had saved earlier seemed to speak on their behalf and put in a good word for them. At that moment, Alois figured that they probably had a chance at talking to these guards, a slim one, but one better than what they had before. Of course, this was a more delicate situation than the others probably realized, especially with the large outbursts everyone had. The blue chick and Asura were, rightfully, angry but they unfortunately wanted to share that anger and frustration with the rest of the world. While Alois could have agreed with at least some of the things, he knew that when bull headed people were bull headed, you'd rarely ever win an argument with just stating something you believed in or "facts." Meanwhile Pansy Face did a good job at making himself, well more so Penne, completely and utterly victimized in this situation. That iron will of the knight as strong as ever, he saw. However, as he looked to Penne, the general smart remarker outside of himself, Alois noticed there was a surprising lack of...anything on it. While that was definitely concerning, it wasn't entirely pressing to the boy right now. 

 

As Eddy went on to explain his part of the situation, he seemed to take a far calmer approach then everyone else in his retelling of the story. It seemed to be a fairly reasonable idea to just reiterate things in a less furious voice, though Alois was kind of off put and confused as to why he was suddenly not wearing a shirt. While he had remained neutral in expression for most of the talk, a slight hint of confusion crossed his face as he realized this fact before trying to go back to as cool and calm as he possibly could muster. With everyone else having said their piece, naturally it fell to the silver tongued devil of the group himself to go and try and help the situation out. If only they had one of those. Regardless, Alois decided that it was his turn to say his piece on the matter. 

 

"Yeah about the whole criminal thing," he had started, trying to wind things back a bit. "I would just like to mention that we were just inside city hall, in fact you were even there as we left the gates to see us off. Now the fact that we were even able to get in there in the first place kind of speaks for itself on the kind of people we are," or if we were criminals how completely terrible you are at your job. Granted, Alois wasn't entirely sure exactly how hard it was to get into city hall and get an audience with the councilman was in the first place, but with the amount of guards around it, he figure that it was decently difficult to do. "And I don't think we made your lives any bit more difficult while we were in there. In fact, we followed your rules pretty well," cause taunting a hilarious man wasn't against the law. "Now getting back to the matter at hand," Alois realized he didn't have much of a follow up on it outside of what everyone else had said, and so he was just able to say, "so I think we've made it pretty clear that we've just been fighting for self defense here so far."

 

After Alois said that he then realized that the fact that they were pretty armed to begin with probably needed explaining away, "because you see, we're outsiders, as you lovely folk have been so kind to inform us of," Alois might've forgotten if not for the great people of Ithome and their lovely voices. "And you see, outside this mountain top and this wall, the world's a scary place. You got people who are armed and ready to fight and kill you just cause they can and cause they want to loot from you, quite like what happened to our friend Jake," he motioned over to the blacksmith, "over there. And so people like us, who are quite like people like you as it as our job to guard and fight off other threats," only without being quite as inept at it, "we have to be armed in order to carry that out. And when we saw our friend Jake be attacked by those robbers and bandits, well we went to defend him and were able to because of what we have on hand here. And so, when presented with a similar situation, you know a group of people trying to rob and kill others because they can with their swords and arrows, then I don't see why we shouldn't be able to protect our own from them. And so that's what we did. Now, here's the clincher of this whole predicament," he turned to the crowd, "you all ready for this? We, the outsiders you didn't want in your district to begin with, were trying to leave it before and were stopped because we got assailed by these thieves here. So," he turned back to the guards, "I'm sure we'd all be happier here, if you just let us stay as outsiders and leave this district of yours."

[Hakima]

---

---

It had to be Trumpion, Link thought, resisting the uncharacteristic urge to roll his eyes at the guard’s “official” voice. The green clad soldier considered himself to be a level-headed person (for the most part), and until taking the job a short while beforehand to work as a city guard, he hadn’t met anyone that could genuinely get underneath his skin. That, of course, changed when he met Trumpion; he was committed to his job, more so than many of the guards he had met, but he was a bit too proud of his city.

Link recalled their first meeting, not long after he had joined the guard. Trumpion had marched into the barracks, in a huff at the news that an “outsider” had been hired as a guard, and had turned Link’s bunk and personal items into a warzone looking for something that would prove he was a spy from Galtea who had been sent to sow distrust and disorder amongst their ranks. He hadn’t found anything, of course, but Link had been seconds from hitting him over the head with his shield for manhandling his ocarina when the Guard Captain had arrived.

That had set the tone for their relationship. Neither of them openly despised each other—Link respected Trumpion and his dedication to his city, and he seemed to have at least  begrudgingly acknowledged Link was qualified for the job—but there was no love lost between them. Link thought he was an extremist and full of himself, and Trumpion, of course, still viewed him as nothing but a dirty outsider.

Gelasius was with Trumpion as well, slouched over at his side, and Link knew him to be much more reasonable than  his companion (if not a bit lazy and apathetic).

Link glanced between his superiors—Catriona, Penelope, and Gunther—but none of them seemed inclined to issue any orders at the moment. Trumpion had already started shouting, and the crowd was getting louder by the minute in their frenzy for “justice”. He thought the group had taken the fight much too far, especially Edrick and the newest arrival, but they had been attacked first. Link tried to swallow, but his rising anxiety had caused his mouth to go dry, and it was almost painful. What was he supposed to do?

He was saved from his indecision by the interference of a local blacksmith. Link hadn’t ever heard of him, but it was probably because he liked to care for his equipment himself. It helped calm him down on his worst days, and held a lot of fond memories of his childhood. He defended the group against Trumpion, and he seemed to have quite a big reputation, because the crowd calmed considerably. He even convinced them to hear both sides of the story, which Link would have deemed impossible beforehand.

And then. . .

Ciela began to rant at the crowd, and by extension Trumpion and Gelasius, about how they were all ungrateful. Link wanted to bury his head in his hands, but he couldn’t even find the will to do that. Instead, he settled for staring for a long time in her direction. Was she. . . ? He reconsidered his earlier notion of her being noble. Everything he knew of nobility had painted them to be good talkers, at the very least, but she had made the situation worse both times. She had also seemed to believe that they wouldn’t be detained simply because “they didn’t want to be”, and if that was true, he wasn’t sure what to think. Was she implying they would fight the guards? The thought of fighting even Trumpion made him sick to his stomach. He knew most of them by name. He wasn’t sure what he would do if it did come to that; his duty was to the crown, and Catriona was his friend, but he couldn’t take any more nightmares. He just couldn’t.

Link realized he was breathing heavily, almost hyperventilating, and he squeezed his eyes shut and forced himself to calm down. Inhale. . . Exhale . . . He repeated that process several times before he was confident enough to open his eyes, and noticed Gunther pleading with Trumpion to allow him to take Penelope away. The sympathy he felt for the two—both greener than his tunic when it came to handling violent confrontations—was enough to pull him fully out of his mind before the panic attack could set in, but Link felt even worse when Gunther looked to the eldest princess to search for guidance. The younger princess and her knight were experiencing a life lesson firsthand; there wasn’t a “right” decision in moments like these, there was only the one you made.

Hopefully, they learned to handle it better than he had, but if Princess Penelope was anything like her sister, she was going to be alright. Princess Catriona had learned to cope with the viciousness of her life, much better than Link ever had his. He had become what he was now, a broken soldier with no war to fight in and no family to go home to, now that everyone he knew had passed away or forgotten him. Nobody deserved that, and especially not the youngest of the Galtean princesses, who had shown multiple times since he had recently arrived to be a very caring individual.

Link decided then that, when he found the time, he would talk to Gunther and Penelope. Maybe, if they didn’t mind, he could be the supportive shoulder he had needed but never had when he had gone through this.

But for now, he needed to focus on the present. Asura was hurling accusations that were (mostly) true, but wouldn’t get them anywhere. Link knew he needed to intervene, before anyone else made the situation any worse, but try as he might he couldn’t think of what to do. His position as a City Guard would only help them so much, and it wasn’t a card that could be played in a situation like this, because both Trumpion and Gelasius possessed seniority over him.

Link’s gaze wandered over the crowd—who had calmed down—and the rest of the group—who seemed to be… Link blinked; once, twice; dumbfounded when he caught sight of Edrick inconspicuously stripping his clothes off, to throw down in a heap at his side. What is he doing? the soldier asked himself, but found no good answer. Edrick was clad in only his blood-stained trousers now, standing there, and then he began to speak to the crowd. He told a decent tale, one that probably helped their situation more than the others had, but Link couldn’t move past the fact that he had felt the need to take his clothes off to do so. Must be some weird Pontic thing, was the only logical conclusion Link’s aching brain was able to come up with to explain the bizarreness of the ordeal.

Alois chose to speak up next, addressing both the guards and the crowd at separate times. Most of what the young, crass axeman said was true, but his voice was dripping with sarcasm, and he only got snarkier the more he talked. It was probably not the most effective way to coerce someone, but it certainly got his point across.

Link waited for anyone else in the group to speak up, but realized that everyone, save for himself and Catriona, had already spoken their piece. This was the time where decisions were made, he knew, and right now he wasn’t sure it would be a decision they liked. He would have to try and do something about that, if he could, so he gathered all of his courage and stepped forward.

 

“Gelasius,” he said softly. “I’ll personally vouch for them. This was self-defense. I’ll stay behind as a witness and talk to the Captain if you want, but let them go back to where they’re staying and rest.” He gestured with his arm to the group behind him. They were all looking worse-for-wear, even if some hadn’t sustained injuries. “They’re not in any condition to travel, anyone can see that. They’ll be here tomorrow, if it’s decided they need to be spoken to again.” His voice had grown a bit stronger, but it was still scratchy and raw. “Please, just let them go for now. They’ve all been through a lot today.”

[Sethera]

Trumpion listened to all of the responses with all the expression of a brick wall. To Ciela, he harrumphed and waved a dismissive hand, though his face started to purple when she mentioned them all dying alone behind their walls. He shook his head angrily at Gunther's plea, glared at Asura's accusation, twisted his face at Edrick's...somewhat reasonable explanation, crossed his arms at Alois' sarcasm, and responded with a vehement "No!" at Link's words. Regardless of which method used, it didn't seem like he would be amenable to a solution that ended in anything besides their absolute judgment.

 

Catriona watched all this with dispassionate eyes that hid her fear and trepidation. Unlike the others, she hadn't spoken up at all. What need was there to speak when everybody else had said everything there was to say? Ciela was right: the thieves weren't innocent civilians no matter how one wanted to paint it. And it's not as if anything they said would make a dent in this man's opinion. Her face twisted when Gunther met her eyes, and she gave him a nod of understanding as well as permission. His duty was to Penelope first, well, to the king first and foremost, but as he was absent, it was to Penelope. Perhaps he had a secondary one to her as crown princess, but as he was Penelope's guard, he would rightfully prioritize her.

 

Asura made a fair point too. Their fast reaction time meant they had to at least have been close enough to have heard the battle. It was suspicious, and she couldn't help but turn a blank stare edged in accusation on the guards. Edrick's calm explanation had her turning back to him in surprise, however. Wherever did he learn to speak like that? He speaks like one of the court almost, not something I would've expected from a simple farm boy. Then again, this "farm boy" seemed to be full of surprises, what with his zealous fighting style and his ability to kill so cleanly. Almost as if fighting is in his blood, she thought. And then she blinked. Oh. He's...not wearing a shirt. Honestly, she didn't know what to think about that.

 

Alois' comments, while sarcastic, were on point as well. They had been allowed into the city hall, so they weren't just ordinary strangers. Not only that, but they had saved Jake's life, and they had only been able to do so because they had carried weapons, weapons they had also used to defend themselves against the thieves. In addition, they were already trying to leave the city.

 

Link then addressed the remaining guard...gelatin? No, Gelasius. He appealed for them to rest before continuing with this tomorrow, which was looking more and more temping, honestly. The fight hadn't lasted for too long, not nearly as long as the bandit fight, but it had still drained her of energy. Not only that, but, though they had entered city hall at high noon or "sext" as they called it in Pontus, it was now a veritable painting of colors in the sky, as if the clouds had been set alight, candles floating in a vast blue sea. The marble-white walls of the city buildings glowed a brilliant gold, but the wind whistling between the alleys carried the chill of oncoming darkness. The lord suppressed a shiver before turning to inspect the other guard.

 

Gelasius was far different from his paunchy companion. Where Trumpion was all muscle and girth, well-rounded with wispy strawberry blond hair peeking out from underneath the dome-shaped helmet all Histian soldiers wore, the quieter soldier was all flat planes and pointy angles. Even his eyes were oddly angular, though they drooped downwards at the edges, which, combined with his generally sulky expression and ever-constant yawns, gave him a lazy look that he exemplified to the extreme. If he could get away with not doing something, he would. In fact, that was often why he was paired with Trumpion, because the man was one of the few that was stubborn enough to prod and poke him into action.

 

However, despite his ever-constant laziness, he was fair, took his job seriously, and judged people by their actions rather than their origins. While Trumpion might have been unaffected by the group's words, he looked troubled, glancing between the bloody battlefield and the tired victors, as well as their reactions. He seemed especially concerned by Penelope, who looked about ready to have a mental breakdown. And Link's words seemed to be the weight that tipped the scales into action for him.

 

"Hey, Trumpion," he spoke, catching the other guard's attention. "I think we should just let them go for now, yeah? It's not as if they're going to be able to leave the city without our permission, anyway. Plus, this isn't the best place for a--"

 

"What are you, taking his side now, Gelasius?!" Trumpion roared.

 

"You know I'm not," the guard shook his head. "But it's getting late, and it's about time for our shift to end, anyway. I don't want to be out here all night debating this and that."

 

"You never want to do anything! You're a lazy bastard who can't--"

 

"That's enough, Trumpion!" a third voice resounded throughout the area, overpowering even Trumpion's sonorous tones. With it, a familiar man approached.

 

"Marcus!" the ginger scowled. "What are you doing here? Aren't you supposed to be on guard duty?"

 

"Weren't you supposed to be on yours?" he retorted. "And yet look what happened under your watch. Shameless! At least Mirana's back there doing her job, but neither of you ended up doing yours!"

 

"Pah! Not my fault these dirty outsiders decided to stir up trouble."

 

"And yet you were supposed to be stopping said trouble from happening. I shall be reporting this incident to the captain. You too, Gelasius," he set a stern eye on the other guard. "You should know better than that, even if Trumpion doesn't."

 

"Keh. Troublesome," Gelasius muttered.

 

Marcus turned to the group. His expression was stern, but not hostile like before. "Having seen how the fight started, I'd have to agree with Gelasius and Link here. Best to let them get some rest while Link and I report to the captain."

 

Trumpion gave a disgruntled reply, but with three guards against him, there wasn't much he could do. "Fine," he harrumphed. "But I better not see them leave without a proper explanation."

 

I thought we already gave one, though, Catriona thought.

 

Marcus turned to Link. "Let's go," he said, then seemed to remember something. "Trumpion, Gelasius, you're in charge of dispersing the crowd." Then he started walking straight for the barracks.

 

"Who does he think he is?!" Trumpion raged after he left, but he started to clear the area anyway. Gelasius helped, and between the two of them, the stairway was soon clear of bystanders, excepting Jake.

 

The blacksmith clapped his hands together once. "Well, well, looks like that got patched up mighty nice, if I do say so myself." He looked over the group, whistling. "Whooee! Looks like you folks need some patching up yourself. You gonna be all right there, Edrick?"

 

Catriona dipped her head as a sign of respect. "My thanks to you, Jake. I don't know what we would have done without you."

 

"Aww, twarn't nothin'," he grinned with a touch of embarrassment. "Anyway, I best not be keepin' ya, but...wait, gimme a second," he entered one of the nearby houses, exiting a couple minutes later with a roll of bandages, which he thrust at Ciela. "Since yer with them now, and you seem to be the healing type, ye'd best be distributing these 'mongst all y'all, though that ability of yours prolly makes things a mite easier." He didn't seem bothered at all by her affinity for forbidden magic. "Take care now," he sent them off.

 

As they walked back to the inn, a burly man Catriona didn't recognize called out to Tarizo. She seemed to recognize him, and he pulled her aside to talk before giving an apologetic grin to the group. "Sorry, folks. My name's Pastow, and I run a mercenary agency. Anyway, a job just came up, and since Tarizo here's the only one available, I'll be taking her off your hands."

 

"Oh, that's fine," Catriona replied. "After all, we never paid for her services, and a mercenary can only do so much without gold."

 

"Yeah, and this job is particularly well-suited for her. I'm sure you understand. Anyway, good luck with everything, and I hope you didn't let this one incident sour your whole experience. Ithome's a great place, just, you gotta get used to it, is all."

 

"I'll keep that in mind."

 

"Good. Tarizo, time to go."

 

Watching the two leave, Catriona felt a pang of sadness. After all, though she hadn't been with them for very long, Tarizo had proved a valuable ally. Still, perhaps it was for the best. She had seemed to have her own style of doing things, and while it might work very well as a solitary fighter, in a group such methods would need practice. Glancing back at the two one last time, the lord headed for the inn.

 

They retained the same rooms as before: Catriona with Penelope, Alois with Gunther, and Edrick with Asura, though Ciela was also invited for an all-expenses paid room to herself if she didn't have somewhere to stay, in gratitude for her help earlier. If she took up the offer, she would find a stall set up for her horse as well, but the groom had a distinctly unfriendly look to him, brushing Remigius' coat rather aggressively. The innkeeper seemed fine with the group, but they wouldn't help but notice that many of his guests, most of them locals here for a meal, cast them wary looks. A couple even bumped aggressively into Alois, while another outright shoved Asura. None seemed to want to get close to Edrick. Whether that was because of his bloodied chest or the fact they could see it in the first place was up in the air.

 

Approaching her room, Catriona stopped before the door suddenly. Perhaps it would be better if Penelope roomed with Gunther instead? Though it broke the rules of propriety, she had no idea how to handle the girl in her normal state, much less this one.

 

--

 

In the barracks, Marcus weaved his way through the various corridors. "You might be Galtean," he explained to Link, "But you're also one of us, so I believe that gives you a chance to explain yourself." Eventually, he stopped in front of a large wooden door. "The captain's inside. Best be prepared," he warned before knocking thrice.

 

"Come in," a voice called from within, and, permission given, they opened the door, revealing a small office-like space. Behind the desk stood the guard captain. "Marcus? You don't usually interrupt me. What's going on?"

 

"Captain," Marcus immediately saluted, standing at attention. "There's been...an incident," his eyes glanced over at Link.

 

Familiar with their eccentric guard's condition, the captain quickly poured a cup of water, handing it to the green-garbed swordsman. "Drink this first, and then explain." They seemed curious as to what exactly had taken place.

 

[spoiler=OOC]

So stuff happened, it's evening-ish, we're back at the inn.

 

Room assignments are as earlier though Ciela has a room all by herself if she chooses to take it. Her horse also has a stall though the groom is a bit aggressive. In fact, most of the other guests are a bit hostile at the moment.

 

Link is with Marcus at the moment and about to meet the captain. Hakima, since you made lore for the Histian military, I figured you could come up with the captain too, so I left that part purposely vague. Basically, a little bonus for people who write lore, since it only makes sense they come up with a character or two associated with that lore as well.

 

 

[Maeriberii Haan]

---

 

Ciela's grip on her staff was still tense as the guards finally decided to leave the scene, although they also decided to bring the group's greenman with them, perhaps as a compromise or something. Her head was still boiling from her anger, and had she was actually skilled in actually using offensive magic of any kind, she would've lashed out. That was the thought that passed her fevered mind, but the fact that the bystanders and the guards had all left the scene slowly eased her mind more. It eased it enough for her to notice that the man that defended the group earlier was talking.

 

"Since yer with them now, and you seem to be the healing type, ye'd best be distributing these 'mongst all y'all, though that ability of yours prolly makes things a mite easier."

 

Oh right, she was supposed to be the group's medic. She grabbed the bandages that the man gave her, and placed them on her bag. Thinking about it, so far she didn't really get called out yet by anyone for using the goddess' brand of magic. She did put some effort to hide it, but even then like with this man, he didn't seem to mind much. Even the group she ended up being in too, although she did see that they weren't really that indifferent to it like how she used to see it treated over here anyway. Though, perhaps it's for the best if she held back on healing people until they're in a more private place of resting. One angry mob a day would be enough.

 

As she was busy jamming all the bandages to her bag, Ciela noticed that the archer was leaving the group after a man talked to Catriona. From what she heard, the archer was a mercenary employed by the group, though her mind went to the part where Catriona said that they never paid for her service. Ciela sighed. Well, at the very least if her suspicion of this group really being that rumored group, that would be enough to cover for the fact that she probably wouldn't get much here other than food and shelter. Perhaps...maybe she should find another way of getting money while she's there? Perhaps in the next town, she should do the usual elixir scam again...

 

 

The group headed to an inn not long after. Ciela got herself a pretty nice solitary room that had all of its expenses paid due to her help earlier, although with the others sleeping in pairs, Ciela wondered whether the fact she got a whole room to herself was supposed to be a gift or whether it was yet another instance of her getting excluded from people's lives. It's not really an issue though, she's already used to being excluded. She's new on the group too. If anything, she should enjoy the fact that she's alone in this room. Remy was fine on the stall she left him in earlier, and while the owner looked unpleasant, she knew he wouldn't try doing something too bad. Granted, she just remembered that she forgot to say that Remy could be pretty unruly when touched on a bad spot. Hopefully an incident didn't happen with him again.

 

Ciela stared at the ceiling as she lie face-up on her bed. It was rougher and less comfortable than the one she had yesterday, but it's passable enough for her bones to not cry out in pain yet. She had changed into her white nightgown earlier, and had ordered someone to get her previous clothing washed. The stain of a lowlife's blood on her favorite clothes would feel uncomfortable if it stuck around for too long. She's used to loneliness, that's pretty much most of her aimless journey the past year or so. Being alone here and having no one to talk to was the usual way she spent her nights. However, as she started to space out, she felt that how she's in a group now but still had no one to talk to, or even to share some warmth with made her feel more restless than usual.

 

"...Right, I still can play nurse with them."

 

Thoughts snapping back to reality, she grabbed her hat, staff, and bag, and started preparing herself. She could use the fact that she hadn't done a proper check up for the group and the fact that some of them might still need to be healed as an excuse to visit them on their rooms. That'd at least make the night less boring. As she walked around the inn, she tried to remember which rooms were the others staying in, Her staff created a certain tune of wood clanging to the floor due to how she placed it on her waist just as if it was a sword. Perhaps they'd be able to hear her coming, though most likely they'd just think that it's something else, like the inn owner doing some renovations or something.

 

Of course, her first thought was going to Catriona's room. She still need to see whether she could make the last of her doubts disappear by talking to the sisters for a bit, but then she noticed the young woman herself on the hallways, looking quite burdened with something. Ciela wasn't really the best when it came to dealing with actual issues of others, so she decided to visit another room instead.

 

Reaching the room that she felt might be the right room, Ciela knocked at the wooden door three times, before she attempted to come in herself.

 

"It's Ciela, just going to check up on you guys since I forgot to do so earlier.

 

Whether you two like it or not, I'm coming in."

 

---

 

[spoiler=OOC]

Ciela muses around aimlessly and decides to travel through the rooms with the excuse of checking up on their injuries mainly so she can feel less lonely.

 

The room is Edrick and Asura's room.

 

 

[LordCowCowCowCowCowCowCowCow]

 

"That...sucked." Penelope had barely taken notice of the events that led to them heading to the inn. She kept by Gunther's side, who she knew she was worrying, and who she knew she should say something to, and who she couldn't figure out what to say to. She felt guilty. He had just as much experience with killing as she did, yet, she was leaning on him for support during this time. Some tactician she was turning out to be.

She couldn't even keep her soldiers in a group. Even the mercenary left them almost as soon as they joined.

Penelope couldn't be sure how she found herself in her room again, sitting on the bed, staring at her feet, but by the sun's position she figured she was sitting there a while.

 

If that was the case, shouldn't Catriona be back by now? Unless she was avoiding her. But that wasn't like her sister, she tended to bluster into any situation with ease. Was whatever happened to Penelope that extreme that even the bullheaded older sister was at a loss?

Penelope sighed, realizing she was starting to project her issues. Maybe she should write up some reports on the performances of the others. It would give her something to do, given that she had left her book bag with Gunther.

 

She started to write, beggining with, of course, Catriona herself. "Reckless, behavior inappropriate for someone in her position. Managed to avoid injury, and has done well in regards to fighting skill and decisions, were she a regular soldier."

 

Penelope paused. She had a thought suddenly and, upon opening the door, she was proven right. Catriona stood there, hovering in front of the door. Usually this would be the point Penelope would scold her sister and perhaps fact drop. But she just couldn't bring herself to do it. She gripped Catriona by the wrist and tugged towards their room before heading back to her spot before.

 

Sitting down she said. "If you have something to say, say it...like you always do."

She couldn't be sure she'd be able to handle any confrontation but she owed it to her people to at least try and listen to anything Catriona might say that would help her serve them better.

---

Gunther was extremely relieved that things had gotten settled. He flushed as he realized that his words probably put attention on him. He probably only made it more obvious something was wrong, and that was likely why Penelope had just gone straight to her room when he tried to check on how she was. He bunked this whole ordeal up in the end.

 

Thankfully they had Link with them. That guy was a real soldier, unlike Gunther, who was more or less a boy who had made friends with the right people.

Thinking on it, he wasn't even doing that right. Catriona's look came back to him. He wasn't sure what to make of it, it wasn't easy to read her, at least for Gunther. But she had been his friend as well. Catriona wasn't able to play around as much as Penelope but she had been there occasionally, and he considered her one of his only two friends in the world.

 

Perhaps he should go talk to her sometime, away from Penelope. Without bringing the younger sister up. Which, Gunther realized as he noticed he was still carrying Penelope's book bag, might be tricky.

 

Groaning, Gunther dropped his lance on his bed and walked out, not wanting to take his armor off quite yet.

He decided to go visit this Ciela girl. They knew nothing about her, and she was a healer, so he had to find out if she was a threat. He wandered about, trying to make himself not obvious, and, due to the armor, failing. The glares made Gunther blush and caused him to make roundabout trips to avoid clusters of people. Despite that they seemed intent, once they got a good look at his size, to avoid him as well.

 

He ended up finding Ciela as she announced her intent to enter Edrick and Asura's room. Gunther frowned. The healer and the Pontic boy? Well, he shouldn't jump to conclusions. The other healer they had met had little to do with the Goddess after all. And so Gunther stood there, awkwardly rocking back and forth, waiting for the girl's business to conclude so he may speak with her.

[King K. Azo]

Well, things seemed to be looking up for the group. Trumpion was trumped by the other guards, and they were allowed to leave. Thank the gods... Maybe he could get some rest. They headed back to the inn... The one he actually hadn't slept in yet. Ah, well, he'd sleep there today. He felt... Drained... He couldn't really explain it.

The people were very aggressive though. Some man actually had the gall the shove him, causing him to fall to the floor. If Asura was in the mood, he would have shoved him back... Down a flight of stairs. Luckily for the man, Asura was far too tired to actually do so. Instead, he picked himself off the ground and headed to the room. Oh yeah... Now he remembered why he didn't want to sleep here yesterday. He was stuck with Farm Boy... Oh well, he would be a good monster today.

As soon as he entered the room, he grabbed his shirt, quickly stripping it off and tossing it to the corner before flopping face first into the bed. Hey, it didn't feel too bad... Really soft. He heard the door open, which he assumed was Farm Boy. Oh yeah..., Farm Boy just a scar didn't he? Asura forced himself up, showing off how his back was decorated in scars, some old, some newer.

"Hey, Farm Boy, you just got a scar, didn't ya?" the wandering mercenary inquired. "We should celebrate it, yeah? Drink or do whatever it is you people do to celebrate," As he listened to Edrick's answer, he flipped over, revealing his chest. It also had small scars etched into his skin, however, the thing that would catch most people's eyes. A large jagged scar marred his chest, starting below his right shoulder and extending down to his left hip.

Three knocks at the door grabbed his attention, causing him to slip off the bed, heading to the wooden fixture. There had better be a damn good reason for--- "It's Ciela, just going to check up on you guys since I forgot to do so earlier. Whether you two like it or not, I'm coming in." Ciela...? Did he know a Ciela...? Wait, she was the one on a horse, right? Yeah, yeah, that was it. She come to play nurse?

"Yeah, yeah, keep your clothes on, Nurse," Asura stated as he grabbed the handle and pulled open the door. Surely the world wasn't so upside down that two scarred shirtless men were a cause for alarm, right? He hoped so, otherwise this would be a lousy first impression.

[Asriel Dreemurr]

Well, Edrick was actually just now considering picking up his spear and seeing if he could kill this Trumpion fellow before he decided to haul them off to jail for defending themselves. Between the fight itself and the amount of time they had seemingly wasted in their explanation, the day had worn down nearly to its end. Thankfully the other of the pair seemed to at least be partially on their side, if only because he was too lazy to really do his job. The same could be said of the right bastard that had decided to immediately jump on them, now that he thought about it. Worthless pieces of work they were. The only really good thing was the arrival of an actually competent guard to come and handle things.

 

"Aveți posibilitatea să luați 'explicație' și împinge-l!" He muttered as he set about gathering up his dirtied equipment for the trek back to the inn where they had been staying. While he was gathering his things, he noticed the archer would be leaving them. That was an issue, both because of the needed ranged support and the fact that he'd developed a certain amount of fondness for her. She'd demonstrated a level of ferocity that he could appreciate in a fight...which brought his thoughts back to Asura. He really ought to properly apologize to the man for snapping at him on the first day they'd gotten there.

 

"You gonna be alright there, Edrick?" Jake's voice snapped him out of his thoughts and brought his attention back to the present. When he looked at his singular injury in this fight, and then the mostly-healed injuries from when he'd met with the group, he could not help but let out a laugh.

 

"Jake," he managed just as he was catching his breath, "the day we met, I got cut up so bad I nearly met the Goddess. This is nothing." His mood improved, the young farmer returned to gathering up his gear. It would need a thorough washing to get the blood and gore out of it, but that wouldn't be too hard to manage. As they set off back for the inn, he put together a list of things he would need to manage it.

"I'll be out back cleaning my gear." He told the party when they returned to the inn, before he went and collected a large pot of hot water and a coarse brush from the Innkeeper. The man seemed to be put off by him, and the boy assumed it to be the heap of bloody equipment he was carrying, but at least still seemed willing to give him those two things plus a bit of soap. So it was that Edrick headed into the alley behind the inn once again, kicked the broken barrel he'd been using to practice his technique with a spear off to the side, and set about cleaning the gore from the battle out of his equipment. While he was able to handle the stain in his shirt, and get the worst of the gunk out of his armor, his spear was a different story. Though he cleaned it quite thoroughly, and the caked on layer of blood was thoroughly washed from it, he was not exactly thrilled to see that the blood had permanently stained the wood in a few places. Several reddish brown splotches covered the shaft, and would very obviously mark it out as having been used. Well, that was just something he would have to get used to. With everything cleaned, if not dried, he used the remaining water in the pot to rinse everything off into the gutter and made his way up to his room. Of course he returned the pot, brush, and soap on the way.

"Hey, Farm Boy, you just got a scar didn't ya?" Edrick nearly jumped out of his skin when Asura asked that as he was setting everything out to dry in the room. He hadn't noticed the swordsman on his way in, and hadn't expected him to be there either. "We should celebrate it, yeah? Drink or do whatever it is you people do to celebrate." It took him a moment to overcome the shock of suddenly having a room mate, and once he did a wide smile crossed his face.

 

"Drinking works as good as anything! Lemme see if I've still got something..." he trailed off as he found his pack and began digging through it, careful not to accidentally break the Elixir he had claimed that day. He looked up just as he was pulling something out of it, and noticed the truly enormous scar on the man's body. "Zeita de mai sus! You look like somebody tried to cut you in half!" Though before he could get any explanation for it, there was a knock at the door.

 

"It's Ciela, just going to check up on you guys since I forgot to do so earlier. Whether you two like it or not I'm coming in." Well, that somewhat soured his mood. The noble girl pretending to be Pontic for some reason. At least he could get her to mend that fresh wound of his.

 

"Yeah, yeah, keep your clothes on, Nurse." Now that was a strange expression indeed. Why would her clothes have been coming off in the first place? Well, in any case, the more the merrier...though they would need more than just the one cup he had in his pack. He got the feeling Ciela wouldn't want to share one.

 

"Just in time too, we were just talking about my new wound." Edrick shifted so that his side was towards the door, and raised his arm to give her a good look at it. "Now, once you're done with that, Asura and I were about to have some Zeilla! You're welcome to join us." With that, he removed one of the last few things in a pack that had been loaded with food for the road: a large glass bottle, stoppered with a partially broken cork, three-quarters full with a clear, slightly amber tinged liquid that sloshed around like syrup. "My Tată gave it to me when I left our village. Now seems as good a time as any to open it again. The more the merrier, right Asura?"

[Maeriberii Haan]

---

 

 

 

"Yeah, yeah, keep your clothes on, Nurse."

 

"Y-You...what the hell do you think I'm going to do here?!"

 

The very moment she entered the room, Ciela had already got the feeling that she was going to enter at an unfortunate moments. Especially hearing the talk from behind the door earlier, her mind started to wander as of what the two of the inhabitants of the room were doing. Opening the door wide, it became clear. The two were shirtless, and a bottle of a certain drink nearby. Of course, Ciela sighed as her face turned red gradually. She cursed her luck that she had to see this sight. Granted, it's not like she's wearing much either. With only the nightgown she was wearing for comfort, she wasn't really dressed well either. But putting that aside...

 

"Now, once you're done with that, Asura and I were about to have some Zeilla! You're welcome to join us."

 

"E..eh...I'd...probably I'll check the others first before I can accept your offer."

 

Two shirtless men, acting merrily with a drink like that, in a closed room separate from the others. The thought of that was deplorable, but drool escaped from her mouth a bit before she managed to regain her footing and focus. Whatever the two was supposed to be doing here, it's not her business, and she really shouldn't join them either. To distract her thought, she decided to immediately go focus at the two's..toned...bodies. First off would be Edrick's. He was definitely from the countryside, it could be easily concluded just from one glance of his body. She asked him to raise his hand so she could get a better look on him...his wound, and looking at the underside of the arm, she then spent a little time cleaning it from anything that might disturb the healing process. With that done, she took her sword-like staff, and recited a spell through it. The magic that flowed through her was channeled unto his body, and the wound was soon healed. She considered on whether she should give him bandages, but it didn't look bad enough to warrant it, and she was sure that the wound was fully dealt with using her magic. Not to mention, it'd obstruct the vie-

 

Wiping the drool from her lips, she moved on to Asura. He wasn't really injured from that battle, but the large amount of wounds from previous battles, especially the huge gash on his chest made her wince a little. She still find it hard to believe that people bragged about having the most impressive wounds to others. Getting hurt that bad so they could be prideful about something...thinking about it, perhaps men of the battlefield were really born a masochist. She considered to heal those marks, though looking at it again, she did kind of feel that those were attract-

 

She recited a spell to break her mind out of the distraction. While there were no major wounds she could find, she still channeled some of the healing magic to the swordsman. It would help him be less fatigued, and perhaps she missed some internal wounds. Hey, she's not a trained nurse after all. Done with the two, Ciela paused. What would she do now? The presence of the two was...somewhat alluring, and she did leave her room so she could feel less lonely tonight. After thinking about it a bit, she sighed and sat down.

 

"Yeah...I think I'll hang out with you two for now.

 

Err...Imi pare bine. You two already know who I am, but it bears some repeating.

 

I am Ciela Celestinia, a traveler from Galtea. I-"

 

Ciela paused. An awkward silence, her face became redder as seconds passed. She started to panic. She was carried by the flow, and blew out her lie as she introduced herself. She frantically tried to figure out a way to fix her mistake, but at this point it felt a bit too late.

 

"...Yeah...sorry for that. I really was from Galtea, but I was going to Pontus since I'm interested in being a priestess there. At least before I came across your group.

 

But that shouldn't matter...right?"

 

---

[King K. Azo]

"Y-You...what the hell do you think I'm going to do here?!" Asura blinked as he heard Ciela's indignant cry. What was with her...?

"I'm beginning to think Hatian expressions don't translate to other cultures," Asura muttered as Edrick began to pour a drink and offer Ciela a chance to stay and hang out.

"The more the merrier, right Asura?"

"Aye, so I've been told!" He stated with a smile before downing a cup. Whoa, that was some strong stuff. He could feel his head clouding up already. "Anyways, congratulations on surviving another battle, and gaining the proof that you did!" Ceila began to heal the two, starting with Edrick. Magic, huh? Seemed much more convenient than healing naturally. He should stay on her good side. It'd help his training.

She moved on to him, and he could feel his head clearing ever so slightly. He also noticed he didn't feel as tired. Magic was great stuff. Ceila had paused for a moment, thinking before declaring,

"Yeah...I think I'll hang out with you two for now,"

"That's the spirit!" Asura cheered as he slid his cup to Edrick for a refill.
 
Err...Imi pare bine. You two already know who I am, but it bears some repeating. I am Ciela Celestinia, a traveler from Galtea. I-" Asura raised an eyebrow at that. Even with his clouded mind, he could spot the glaring contradiction. It was quiet for a few minutes before she spoke up again.
 
"...Yeah...sorry for that. I really was from Galtea, but I was going to Pontus since I'm interested in being a priestess there. At least before I came across your group. But that shouldn't matter...right?" Asura paused to think.

"I'll say right now, I hate being lied to. Buuuuuuuuuuuut, you do good work, and you told us the truth before anything bad happened, so I suppose I could forgive you this once," he waved his hand dismissively. "Just don't do it again, Nurse. As where you're from or what you were doin', I don't give a damn. We're all the same in the end. Granted, I ain't in charge, so you may wanna tell the princesses eventually," he paused to stare at the glass they had.

"Then again, the group doesn't seem to mind liars. Just look at Flower Boy," he shook his head before turning to Edrick. "Flower Boy seems to think you're dangerous for some reason, though gods know why. He tried to feed me some bullshit line about you serving some Goddess, which made you dangerous. Dumbest s*** I've ever heard," he leaned back. "Like worshipping something automatically makes you evil," Was he already intoxicated...? He couldn't tell.

He really shouldn't drink...

[Asriel Dreemurr]

It did not take very long for Edrick to make sense of Asura's comment about Ciela keeping her clothes on to make sense, the way she was ogling the two of them. Goddess, she was literally drooling just from looking at them. Was that a common thing where Asura was from? In any case, there was healing to be done and then drinking thereafter. With the swordsman's cup filled, he turned to his own and raised it before taking a drink of it. The beverage was every bit as thick going down as it looked, and Edrick was feeling quite warm after just a few sips of it, though there might have been some other reasons for that.

 

"Anyways, congratulations on surviving another battle and obtaining proof that you did!" Well, at least the swordsman was doing a fair job of keeping his mind off the fact that there was a scantily clad woman seeing to his injuries. Thankfully, the itching sensation that came with the wound to his underarm being closed was enough to keep his attention off of other certain things.

 

"And once more thanks to you for seeing me through it!" He said, as he poured a little more into his own cup. Thankfully, the girl was now examining Asura. She was obviously some sort of nobility, so he was quite certain that she would be leaving and then this situation would be somewhat less awkward. He was cursing himself for extending the invitation-

 

"Yeah...I think I'll hang out with you two for now."

 

"That's the spirit!" Edrick had to work very hard not to choke on the mouthful of alcohol he was currently working with, so it took him a few moments to properly refill Asura's cup. Well, if this was going to happen he might as well have a bit more himself. He'd probably loosen up after just a bit.

 

"Err...Imi pare bine. You two already know who I am, but it bears some repeating. I'm Ciela Celestinia, a traveler from Galtea. I-" Well, at least everything was out in the open now. The princesses would probably be happy about that, as would Gunther. "...Yeah...sorry for that. I really was from Galtea, but I was going to Pontus since I'm interested in being a priestess there. At least before I came across your group. But...that shouldn't matter, right?" Certainly was an interesting story. They didn't get a lot of converts from Galtea to be sure.

 

"I'll say right now, I hate being lied to. Buuuuuuuuuuuuuuut, you do good work, and you told us the truth before anything bad happened, so I suppose I could forgive you this once." That was about as reasonable as the young farmer thought she had any right for anyone to be. Though to be fair, he couldn't exactly stay upset with such a beautiful- WITH THE WOMAN WHO HAD JUST HEALED HIM. Yes, that was what he was thinking. Another gulp of Zeilla, and he caught the very last end of what Asura was saying. "Like worshipping something automatically makes you evil."

 

"Yeah, they don't like me much do they? Ciela, do you have your own cup or are you gonna share mine?" He held out the now freshly full cup of polished wood, waiting for her to either take it or refuse it. "In any case, that's just the sort of thing they teach in Galtea. To hate and fear the Goddess." He scoffed at that, and took another drink, whether from the bottle or from his cup depended on Ciela. "I don't understand why, myself. I mean, she literally turns death backwards on itself. What's so terrible about that?" And then he remembered what he'd been meaning to say earlier, before all the distractions with the drink and Ciela coming in to share their company came up. "Uh, hey, Asura? I'm sorry. About the whole thing when we first got to this terrible city. I get you were just tryin' to protect me, and...yeah."

[Maeriberii Haan]

---

 

 

"I'll say right now, I hate being lied to. Buuuuuuuuuuuuuuut, you do good work, and you told us the truth before anything bad happened, so I suppose I could forgive you this once."

 

"Yeah, they don't like me much do they? Ciela, do you have your own cup or are you gonna share mine?"

 

That went better than expected. Ciela thanked the alcohol for lessening the tension of this situation, and went to accept the bottle offered to her using her own cup that she brought on her waist bag. Alcohol weren't usually her choice of drink, but since she's already there and it'd be a nice way to warm herself, she eagerly sipped the content of her cup as the other two boys continued to regale her with their stories. The boy was really faithful to his goddess, it seemed. And he did mention that one of them, the knight perhaps, was very suspicious of her. Though, it's something Ciela accepted as reasonable, and while it's annoying, it's not like she's making the situation easy for herself.

 

"Yeah...I don't know, really. Maybe the goddess isn't really as bad as people say. I was thinking on going there and study as a priestess-in-training to see if I can find another side of her that I can't find on Galtea. I mean...if she's fully bad, then why there's thousands of people that still worshipped her to this day?

 

That doesn't make sense, right?"

 

Of course, that's all was bullshit. Ciela really didn't care about the goddess, and the reason why she even considered going to Pontus was so she could find proper long-term lodging for little effort. Granted, it also mean that she wasn't really opposed to the goddess or the religion around her, though for the most part, her craft was fully secular.

 

She poured another round to her cup and drank it. The effect of the drink started to be more apparent on her. She felt a certain kind of warmth on her body, and she felt a little bit more restless than before. Even in her thin clothing, the room felt quite hotter than before. She envied the fact that the two young men could go shirtless like that to cool off.

 

"I really was only saying that I'm from Pontus because...well, first I already...I can speak Pontic well, and to people that already could see my ability, they'd assume that I'm from there anyway.

 

But it doesn't matter as you two said.

 

Heey, tell me more about you now~! It's not fai~r if I'm the only one talking here~

 

This merry night's just starting!"

 

She didn't really intend on leaving anytime soon. It's not like the others were wounded last she checked, and she had found the companionship she wanted to deal with the loneliness she felt for the night here. They're...supposed to be comrades now, right? Then it's best if she stay there to drink with them and chat and share warmth with each other. Ogling them is nice too. It made her feel dirty inside to be fixated on their toned, well-built youthful bodies, but it's a pleasure that she didn't bother to hide now as drool started to come out of her lips again. The room's getting hotter and hotter. She wished that she could cool herself off somehow.

 

Perhaps this wouldn't happen had she got more chance to look at shirtless men before.

 

---

[LordCowCowCowCowCowCowCowCow]

 

Gunther watched, and waited, and waited and..."What am I doing?" he muttered. It wasn't as if he couldn't show himself in front of those two. There really was no reason to stand outside like this. "What if I interrupt..." What would he be interrupting? Nothing that really was important, probably. He might as well go check what's happening just to be sure. Plus he was starting to get some rather unpleasant stares, standing out here in the hallway.

 

He took a deep breath, and walked to the door. This was it, he made it this far, he couldn't back down....There was a minor problem however. A door was in his way. His confidence, small thought it was, was enough to carry him through the doorway. But could he bring himself to actually knock?

Heey, tell me more about you now~! It's not fai~r if I'm the only one talking here~

This merry night's just starting!"

What the...Why was she speaking like that? Was there alcohol involved? He didn't know how these three handled such things but he did know they couldn't afford causing a scene...and on the off chance those two were planning anything Asura would be in danger. Gunther took a deep breath and gave a few firm knocks on the door.

[Sethera]

 

Catriona barely noticed Ciela's presence nearby, though she did manage to give a nod of greeting before the door was suddenly opened, and her meek, non-aggressive little sister grabbed the lord's wrist and tugged her into the room. Catriona only had time for one last, pleading look toward the empty space where Ciela last stood before she found herself sitting on the bed.

 

And then the silver-haired girl spoke. "If you have something to say, say it...like you always do."

 

It would be a lie to say that Catriona was rarely at a loss for words. In fact, she often was. She was no orator, so she let her actions do the talking. Perhaps one would call that uncivilized, but she felt no need to speak when it wasn't strictly necessary. She was trained in etiquette and politics but she had never enjoyed those classes.

 

Etiquette told her to apologize because she knew she had angered Penelope on many an occasion. Or for the fact that it was her fault they had to look elsewhere for information on the Great Dragon. Politics told her to not do so, because that would be ceding the higher ground. She had to manipulate things to put her in a position of power as the speaker. Perhaps draw from her experience in fighting to make Penelope feel the inferior woman.

 

She decided to do neither. The first option felt like a useless platitude. She had never been much good at apologizing. The second was unbelievably heartless and cruel, plus this was her sister. Not her father, whom she had verbally sparred with many an occasion in her efforts to learn how to cope with the court. This was her sweet, frustrating little sister.

 

"I..." she paused, annoyed with herself for her hesitance. "I...are you...well?" Because she had seen the expression in her eyes, the absolute horror, and that wasn't something you just got over. At least not without copious amounts of alcohol or somebody to talk to. Except...why does that somebody have to be me? she wondered with a sort of wild panic.

[King K. Azo]

"Uh, hey, Asura? I'm sorry. About the whole thing when we first got to this terrible city. I get you were just tryin' to protect me, and...yeah." Edrick apologized. Asura simply downed his second cup before putting a shoulder around the farmer.

"Don't worry 'bout it, Farm Boy~," Asura stated drunkenly. "I get it, I'm a scary monster. Hell, my own tribe seemed to think that, why wouldn't this group?" He slapped Edrick's chest in a friendly way. "Now, focus on flirting with the pretty lady. Because she is pretty and if you don't, I will,"

Heey, tell me more about you now~! It's not fai~r if I'm the only one talking here~ Ceila stated in a drunken tone, stealing Asura's attention. This merry night's just starting!"

"Oh, I have a blistering tale for aaaaaall of yoooou," he said as he stood up, throwing his fist into the air. "When I was a boy, about eight or nine, I went to train, and was attacked by a ferocious bear! Without a weapon, I had to beat it back with my fists, and---," the drunken swordsman was interrupted by a few knocks on the door. He froze and stared at the door.

"Liiiiiiiink? Is that yoooooou, Link?" he asked in a singsong voice. "FIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIGHT MEEEEEEEEEEE!!" He stumbled as he went for his Killing Edge. "I'm gonna go all out. Medea and I will overcome you! he grabbed the hilt of the sword and did his best to pull it out. After a few seconds, he stopped to think.

"Waaaaaaait... Link is doing his official mumbo-jumbo... The princesses wouldn't dare lower themselves to our peasant tomfoolery..., Alois is probably... Doing Alois things... That leaves...," With a groan of disgust, he threw his wooden cup at the door. "Flower Boy! Go away! Your princess is in another castle, and we don't want a party pooper here! Go comfort your princess, get laid with her, something!"

Asura really shouldn't drink...

[Hakima]

---

---

Link cast Marcus a grateful look when he silenced Trumpion’s protest. He owed him nothing, and the green cloaked soldier knew that it would have been much easier for him to simply keep his distance—in fact, he had expected him to after what had gone on in the City Hall—which made his interference a welcomed surprise.  

It would have been polite to voice his thanks, but Link’s throat was already raw and his voice scratchy and faint, and he settled on dipping his head at him and hoping Marcus picked up on the underlying gratitude of the gesture.

"Let's go," Marcus said, turning and waving a hand to signal Link to fall in line, which the soldier quickly did. He only delayed long enough to look over his shoulder and order Trumpion and Gelasius to disperse the crowd, and then he headed for the barracks at a brisk pace that forced Link to trot to keep up with.

Link cast one last glance over his shoulder at the group before he rounded the corner. He hoped that they made it back to the inn they were staying at without any further incident. The people of Ithome had a long memory, and a massive bias against outsiders that they would look for any excuse to display. He was sure that wherever they went, it wouldn’t be smooth sailing again until they had left and put the sector behind them.

 

 

Link continued to fret over the rest of the group until they arrived at the barracks, where it completely sunk in what he had volunteered himself to do, and his mind went blank. What was he supposed to tell the captain? How was he going to explain that he had hadn’t stepped in and stopped them because he was the one taking orders? Something told him that, “Remember those people I’ve been traveling around the sector with? Well, they’re Galtean princesses and their Pontic friend was being attacked by some thieves, and then they all got a little carried away, and now Main Street is gonna have to be renamed the Red Brick Road. My bad,” wouldn’t cut it.

 

“You might be Galtean,” Marcus said as they walked, “But you’re also one of us, so I believe that gives you a chance to explain yourself.” As he did, they came to a halt outside of a thick wooden door. “The Captain’s inside, best to be prepared,” he cautioned, giving Link a moment to compose himself before knocking.

Silence for a moment, and then, “Come in.” The voice that came from behind the door was deep and gravelly from a decade spent barking orders, but there was a certain amount of warmth behind it. Marcus took the initiative to push open the door, and the hinges groaned as it creaked forward to reveal the office. It was very spartan, save for the big desk in the back of the room, behind which sat Captain Aurelius. He was a large, well-built man with brown hair that was greying around his temples, and a short but well kept goatee that was almost entirely grey. He appeared to be in a deep focus when Marcus and Link entered, peering down his nose through a pair of thin, spindly reading glasses at some kind of parchment, but he laid it down on the desk when he saw them. “Marcus?” Both Marcus and Link came to attention instantly. “You don’t usually interrupt me. What’s going on?”

“Captain,” Marcus began, back straight and posture rigid as he saluted. “There’s been an. . . incident,” his gaze slowly turned to Link, who swallowed nervously and licked his lips in an effort to wet his mouth.

Captain Aurelius removed his reading glasses and tucked them into his vest, raising his head to look at the both of them pensively. “As you were,” he finally ordered, reaching for the pitcher of ice water on the corner of his desk as both of the guards relaxed slightly. He poured a glass of water and then extended the cup towards Link. “Drink this first, and then explain.”

Link took the drink with a shaky hand, and took a small sip. It took the sting away from his parched throat, and Link couldn’t stop himself from draining the cup completely before he laid it back on the desk. “....” He tried to speak up, to begin his explanation, but the only sound that came out was a soft, raspy croak.

Captain Aurelius refilled the glass and pushed it toward him once again. “It’s alright, Lincoln, take your time. I’m not in any rush,” he reassured the embarrassed blonde, and then turned his attention to his companion. “Marcus?”

“Yessir?” Marcus saluted once again.

“Go to the mess hall and tell them to bring three portions of supper to my office when it’s prepared, and grab some chairs for yourself and Lincoln while you’re there.”

“Yessir!” Marcus turned on his heel and exited the room, the door loudly closing behind him. Link suddenly felt that much more alone, now that it was only him and the Captain in the room, but the elder man made no move to get a conversation started. He seemed content to allow Link to nurse his glass of water and sit in silence.

Link went through almost half the pitcher before he felt ready to talk. “Captain,” he said. His voice was still raw and it hurt him to talk, but it was a bearable pain now. “I… I’m not really sure where to start, sir.”

“The beginning might be a good idea,” Aurelius suggested, raising the parchment he had been reading earlier up so that Link could see it. “I heard from a very upset Councilman Silas this evening. He seemed to believe that my guards allowed a group of ‘outsider ruffians’ into City Hall to interrupt him.” He fixed Link with a pointed stare. “You wouldn’t happen to know anything about that, would you?”

Link bowed his head to avoid the Captain’s stare, shoulders slumping forward. “Yes, sir. I… I  was responsible for that. Please don’t punish the others.”

Marcus interrupted the Galtean soldier before he could go any further, rapping on the door with his foot. Both of his arms were preoccupied, a chair tucked underneath each one awkwardly. “Go ahead,” the Captain called out, and the young guard entered with no small amount of trouble. “Put them in front of the desk, and then sit down.”

“Yessir,” Marcus said affirmatively, laying both of the chairs down. He took the left seat, and following suit, Link sat in the right one.

“Lincoln and I were talking about what occurred at City Hall during yours and my daughter’s shift today,” the Captain said, watching both of them for any sign or reaction. “Have anything to add?”

“I made the call to allow them in,” Marcus said without hesitation. “Mirana and Link were involved, but as the senior guard, I was in charge. I didn’t know who his companions were at the time, but that is no excuse.”

Captain Aurelius inspected both of them for a long, drawn out moment, but eventually, he looked back down toward his desk and sighed. “You two,” he muttered, “are too honest for your own good.” He began to massage his temples. “Lincoln, if you can manage, explain. And start from the beginning. Marcus, fill in for him where you can.”

And so Link recounted the tale, starting with how he had known Princess Catriona beforehand from serving with her. He was extra uncomfortable during this part, forced to recount the bare minimum of his time at the border, but both of the listeners didn’t say anything if they noticed. After that, it was much smoother sailing, though he had pause for a moment and drink another glass of water before he could continue at one point. He told them of meeting Princess Penelope because she ran into him during his shift at the library (“So that’s how you got that lump on your head…”), of scrambling for as many shifts at the library as he could to help them research (“I just thought you wanted the shift because it was quiet…”), and with the aid of Marcus, how he had helped them get into the City Hall. The Captain had asked a lot of questions about that, but Link himself hadn’t known the answer to most of them, so they moved on to the most recent: the fight with the thieves. Link described it very briefly, avoiding mention of his episode or just how gruesome the scene had been, and Marcus made sure to bring up Trumpion and Gelasius’ inaction.

When the tale finally drew to a close, the sun had long since set, and the only light in the room was from the candle the Captain had lit during the story. There was a pregnant pause where no one said much of anything, but only for a moment before Captain Aurelius cleared his throat. Both men immediately gave him their attention. He was a blank, inscrutable slate of emotion, scrutinizing them both without a word. Link could feel the familiar coil of apprehension winding tighter in his stomach, sure that the Captain was about to order Marcus to arrest him and throw him inside a cell. What use would he be to anyone then? Maybe it was for the best, all things considered. He hadn’t been very useful thus far; in fact, he had made things harder on Princess Catriona and her companions in the long run. No one would even notice he was gone.

“Lincoln,” Captain Aurelis’ deep voice pulled him from his ruminations. “You swore an oath to always have the best interest of Ithome in mind when you were recruited. You remember that, right?”

Link nodded meekly. “Yes sir.”

“And do you think that you’ve done that?”

“No sir,” he answered immediately. “I don’t think so, sir.”

Beside him, Marcus bristled, but the Captain raised a hand to silence him. “And why is that, Lincoln?”

Link hesitated to answer that question. Why had he so readily abandoned his duties to Ithome? For the crown, the soldier in him roared. To make a difference, the lonely part of him that always felt so inconsequential whispered to him. Both were good, acceptable answers, but they weren’t the truth. “Because, Princess Catriona was my friend in a different lifetime,” he murmured, so quietly he wasn’t sure they had heard him. “I… I owed it to her to try. I’m not the same person I was back at that border, sir, but… I’m not dead yet.”

Captain Aurelis nodded, as if he had been expecting something like this. “Stand up,” he said. Link complied, rising to his feet and standing to attention. The Captain rose as well, but for once, Link didn’t flinch away. “Lincoln Harkinian, effectively immediately, you are hereby relieved of duty for actions knowingly taken that endangered the security of Ithome and its citizens. I expect to see your bunk emptied by tomorrow at noon.” His words were harsh, but he said them in a steady, reassuring voice.

Link was numb, but he had the sense to reach up to his sleeve to pull the patch of the guard off. He had been given it as soon as he joined, to show his status, since he had requested to not wear the full uniform. The stitching tore as he pulled on it, and with one final tug, the patch came off. Link laid it on the desk quietly, and then took a step back. “Is that all, sir?” He heard himself ask quietly, his voice completely emotionless.

Captain Aurelius nodded, crossing his arms behind his back. “You’re dismissed,” he reaffirmed.

Link saluted one final time, and turned on his heel to exit the room. He was stepping through the door when Captain Aurelis’ bid him to halt. “Lincoln?” he said.

“Yessir?”

“You and your friends should be gone before dark tomorrow,” he told him. “I’ll tell the guards at the wall to let you past. It’s the least I can do.”

Link nodded. “Yessir, I’ll tell them.”

Captain Aurelis smiled somewhat sadly. “Good. Have a good night, Lincoln.”

The door slammed shut as Link exited the office, and began to walk, walk, walk. He wasn’t sure where he was going, but he needed away. Now.

 

 

Link found himself before his bunk in the barracks. He wasn’t sure how long he stood there, staring at the bed rarely used by him, before he decided it was time to go. He reached beneath the frame to grab the backpack he had used a thousand times, both when he was in the Garou and after he had taken to roaming, and threw it on the bed. It was a little bit dusty, weathered from use, but it was still intact.

 

He began to fill it with what little he owned. His ocarina, two changes of clothes, his bedroll and heavy wool blanket, and a week’s worth of rations. He hesitated when he saw the journal sitting at his bedside, then sighed and sat down on the bed beside his backpack and picked it up. Quietly, he began to leaf through it. It was an old, dusty journal that he had taken to writing his dreams down in. Never the nightmares, because he remembered those well enough, but the good dreams were easy to forget.

BGM

One was of Rusl, and the first lesson he had given the young Link in wielding a sword.

Another was of Epona, and the time Ilia had dared him to try and ride her while standing in the saddle.

His personal favorite was the day he had passed his basic training and been assigned to the Garou Regiment. He had expected his companions to taunt him for it, be jealous or spiteful, but they had clapped him on the back and threw a party in his honor to celebrate before they all went their separate ways. It was the last innocent memory he had before…

Marching like thunder… Curses in a language he didn’t understand… Blood, so much blood…

Link closed the journal and squeezed his eyes shut to hold back the tears that threatened to slip out. You’ll have time to cry when you’re dead, a voice in the back of his head cursed at him. What right do you have to sit here feeling bad for yourself when you’re ALIVE?! His grip on the journal tightened until his knuckles turned white, his arm shaking.

Man down!... You did it… Couldn’t save them… Infection…

Pounding hooves… Smiling face… Link, move!... So much blood…

Horrible winter… So cold… Found a healer… Nothing you could do… Too old…

He took a deep, shuddering breath, grasping the journal even tighter. It was his anchor to reality, a reminder that the things he was seeing weren’t real. When the intensity of it all had faded, Link dropped the journal and buried his face in his hands. His stomach was turning in knots, and he barely fought back the nauseating feeling that almost caused his stomach acid to paint the floor. How was he supposed to keep doing this? How could anyone keep living like this? He squeezed his head with his hands, nails dragging down his face and leaving bright red marks that he barely took note of.

Duty, his inner soldier reminded him, but for the first time in his life, Link wasn’t sure if his duty was enough. He had nothing left to give. He was worse than broken, he was useless. A soldier with a husk of a body; a peaceful soul with nothing to offer but death and murder. Even with his status as a city guard, he hadn’t been able to help them, much less now that he was less than the average citizen in most people’s eyes. A body, the soldier reminded him, and Link was unable to deny that. Even if it was ugly and scarred, he still had his life to give.

Link quietly picked the journal from where it had fallen and stashed it inside his backpack, rising to his feet. One last thing, that was all he had to give. One last thing and then duty could ask no more of him.

In death, he would hopefully know peace.

Without a word, he exited the barracks and slipped into the streets of the sector to head towards the inn.

 

 

Link made it to the inn quietly, hesitating outside the door. He had no room, and most would probably be asleep by now. He would have to wait until one of them found him to relay the news, he decided, setting his backpack on the ground and sitting down beside the door. Until then… Link took out his ocarina, and careful to keep it quiet enough to not wake anyone inside the inn, began to play.

[Maeriberii Haan]

---

 

 

 

The room was getting hotter and hotter. Ciela wondered whether the ventilation on the room was bad or not. She was sweating heavily to the point of her clothing sticking to her body. It was uncomfortable. Ciela's jealousy of the fact that the two guys could just go shirtless while she was stuck wearing such an uncomfortable and heated piece of clothing. The alcohol was getting to her mind now. She wasn't that intolerant to alcohol despite not usually drinking it, but even so her throat still felt weird. The warmth inside of her became a raging inferno, but even in the midst of all this, she still felt some form of bliss. At the very least she didn't wear anything else that would make her even more uncomfortable now.

 

"Oh, I have a blistering tale for aaaaaall of yoooou,"

 

"Gimme your best shot and impress me! Those scars aren't just for shows, right?"

 

Right, that was why she usually didn't do alcohol. Her self-restraint under its effect was usually quite bad, and the headache after it was even worse. Of course, right now Ciela wasn't in a position to think about the aftermath of this. She's too enjoying the company of these two men to think of much else. Looking like a starved dog, she awaited Asura to give his story, though with how she looked at her, it was like as if she'd jump at him at any moment and lick his toned muscles.

 

"When I was a boy, about eight or nine, I went to train, and was attacked by a ferocious bear! Without a weapon, I had to beat it back with my fists, and---,"

 

The story was abruptly cut by several knocks on the door. Ciela pouted, looking clearly not pleased. Asura went up to answer the knock, but even the drunk Ciela could tell that he wasn't even properly doing it. And thus she, still sweating heavily under her thin dress, decided to be the one to answer the door. She got up and went on to open the door, revealing the knight standing there.

 

"Eeeey, Gunther! Have some fun, will you?

 

Come in here! That's an ordeeeeer~! Take off your shirt so I can play nurse on you~

 

Come on, tear off everything you got! Your armor is hot, right? C'mon, don't be shy~ It's an order after all!"

 

It was an invitation for him to join the three of them. Ciela's hand went towards Gunther's armor, and made a motion that was like her trying to get them off him, though it's of course not doing anything. Despite being shy, the flower boy really seemed to be quite a nice looker, and the thought of Ciela seeing a good look on his trained soldier's body made her look even more determined to get him to join them. Really, for Ciela, it seemed the thought that she'd be able to see a third shirtless hunk in a night had taken over her sense of reasoning.

 

---

[Asriel Dreemurr]

"Don't worry 'bout it Farm Boy. I get it, I'm a scary monster. Hell, my own tribe seemed to think that, why wouldn't this group?" Well, at least things were square between them, though how much a drunken apology and a drunken acceptance of it counted for would be tested the next morning. Though before he could say anything he got slapped on the chest, and Asura said something that certainly made him blush."Now, focus on flirting with the pretty lady. Because she is pretty and if you don't, I will."

 

"W-what?" He was decidedly confused, but things did click together after a while. Unfortunately, he didn't get much chance to continue on his flirtations. When Ciela asked them to tell her more about themselves, Asura launched into a story about fighting a bear, which Edrick scoffed at, only for knocking at the door to distract him. Now, before Edrick could get the opportunity to invite whoever it was in, Asura beat him to addressing the man at the door.

 

"Flower Boy! Go Away! Your princess is in another castle, and we don't want a party pooper here! Go comfort your princess, get laid with her, something!" Now that actually set a bit of a fire under Edrick, and got him rising to his feet. Penelope had been pretty shook up about everything, so maybe they ought to go and see if she wanted to join them! Of course he had the, now half-full, bottle in his hand as he stood. Though before he could go to the door, he found his way blocked by the...tantalizing figure that was Ciela...who seemed to be more interested in Gunther given that she was practically trying to strip him down right there.

 

"Eeeey, Gunther! Have some fun, will you? Come in here! That's an Ordeeeer~! Take off your shirt so I can play nurse on you~ Come on, tear off everything you've got! Your armor is hot, right? C'mon, don't be shy~ It's an order after all!" Realising that he would never have such a chance to mess with Gunther ever again, and that it was a fine way to get back at him for all the suspicion and mistrust he had been treated to, Edrick patted the armored man on the shoulder, gave him a smile as he wiggled past the two of them in the door, and said:

 

"Hey, Doctor's orders, am I right? I mean she's here to keep us healthy, so it only makes sense she's gotta look ya over." With that, he worked his way out into the hall, did his very best to straighten up and walk properly, and strode over to where he remembered being told the princesses' room was. Maybe his memory wasn't the best, and maybe he had to explain to a few other patrons on the way that he'd gotten the wrong room by mistake, but eventually he found the right door. He could even hear some faint talking past it that he was certain were Penelope and Catriona's voices. Come to think of it, the elder Princess might be in need of some relaxing. So, after once again making sure he was straightened out and making certain that his pants weren't going to come off by accident, he took a deep breath and knocked on the door. He followed the knock immediately by speaking, and doing his very best not to sound like he was drunk. "Heeey, Penelope, Catriona, I figured I should let you two know that we're all cuttin' loose back in my and Asura's room. You two could probably use some relaxation too, so why don'tcha come over? I've got Zeeeiiiiiiiiiillaaaaaa!"

[LordCowCowCowCowCowCowCowCow]

"Flower Boy! Go away! Your princess is in another castle, and we don't want a party pooper here! Go comfort your princess, get laid with her, something!"

 

Gunther paused. He hadn't expected such a quick response. And his voice, the words he used...yes, that man was certainly drunk. He had seen it enough back in Nastre to recognize it almost immediately. Gunther took a deep breath, trying to keep the anger from exploding out at the last thing the mercenary said. Even the implication was absolutely horrid to the young Knight.

 

Before he could respond the door opened suddenly and revealed Ciela. In a state of..undress. Her clothes sticking to her and her breath smelling of alcohol. Gunther found himself standing up straighter as the girl began to speak to him.

 

"Eeeey, Gunther! Have some fun, will you?

Come in here! That's an ordeeeeer~! Take off your shirt so I can play nurse on you~

Come on, tear off everything you got! Your armor is hot, right? C'mon, don't be shy~ It's an order after all!"

 

Gunther may not be a true knight but he still had his honor and his code. And a drunken girl in a room with two similarly drunk young men...His thoughts went back to Nastre again. It was unfortunate, especially given how young he was, that he had born witness to this same sort of scene several times. A group of hooligans, with liquid courage in their bellies, luring a young lady to drink and...Gunther's fist clenched, he took an automatic step back. He remembered that it didn't always go well for the girl in question.

Before he could fall too deep into certain memories, Edrick approached him. Gunther cringed, half expecting the farmer to attack him.

"Hey, Doctor's orders, am I right? I mean she's here to keep us healthy, so it only makes sense she's gotta look ya over."

 

With that Edrick continued on, slipping past the confused and half-in-memory Gunther. As Edrick left Gunther realized he probably should have stopped him from leaving his room in such a state. But, Edrick had gone past already, and Ciela was in front of him, seemingly trying to remove his armor unsuccessfully.

"Lady Ciela." Gunther said, his knightly instincts, buried within him, emerging. He didn't have much experience dealing with women. Only what he had learned from his mother and from the noble ladies in the capital. "I think it's best for you to go, before you do something you'd regret." He spoke softly, soothingly, trying to keep the nervous waver out of his voice. He gently took her hand. "Come with me, milady, I will escort you to your room."

 

He looked back into the room at the shirtless Asura. A surprising amount of courage welled up in him as he spoke, in a tone that Gunther took from his days being reprimanded by the king himself. "What you do on your free time is your own business, but I will not have you take advantage of a lady while I'm around...And don't forget. Penelope is a princess and your employer, treat her with respect or suffer the consequences." Finished with this, he offered his arm to Ciela to lead her away from here.

In his mind Gunther's thoughts ran a mile a minute as he fought against the trembling that overtook his body. "Oh spirits oh spirits oh spirits I actually did that I did that oh spirits what am I doing?"

---

 

Penelope was prepared for Catriona to tell her she needed to face her fears, or something like that. It'd be just like the girl to force Penelope to deal with this herself, head on, without even considering that Penelope didn't know what she was doing.

"I...are you...well?"

The response, delivered with a rather unusual uncertainty, startled Penelope. Smothering the biting retort that was on the tip of her tongue. She paused. Is she well? Of course not. Even Catriona should be able to see that. So why was she asking? Was she actually concerned? Trying to help in a way Penelope could deal with?

 

"It's...I don't know!" Penelope said, her voice raising without her realizing. "I have no idea what I should feel, what I should do! I knew what battles were like, I read so much, why can't I handle them? I did everything I should have, what am I missing?" Penelope was almost shouting now. She couldn't understand how she wasn't prepared to deal with this. She had read all kinds of things about war, about fighting, about death, about emotions, but she just couldn't practice what she had read. Something that seemed completely preposterous to the girl.

 

Before Catriona could reply, however, there was a knock on the door. As Edrick's voice came in Penelope stiffened. How much had he heard? She was meant to be their tactician, the calm and collected mind that they could count on to deliver orders.

 

She went to the door and opened it roughly, surprising herself with the near aggression in the action. She couldn't deal with yet another confrontation. Especially not when she was laying her emotions bare, when she was in such a state of distress. Without replying to Edrick she rushed past him, into the hall, unarmed and barefoot, and out of the inn. Where she could hear...music? Coming from nearby.

[Alaina]

The days events had seemed to resolve themselves rather...well? While one of the guards had been adamant about being a complete and total twat towards them, the other of the two seemed to be more understanding of their viewpoint. And so, with the second guard, and the rather bossy one from earlier having arrived and backing them up, having defused the situation, the group had made it back to the inn as fast as they could. Of course, the journey there was none too pleasant as the locals seemed to be very much aware that they were outsiders. And if it wasn't abundantly clear that the kind people of Ithome did not like outsiders, given how they had been very blatantly shoving into the fighter, it was now. While Alois had half a mind to respond in kind to them, he was also very much aware how thin the ice he was already skating on was and simply bared with it until they had finally gotten back to their rooms. Once in his room, the male simply laid down on his bed, trying to get this day out of the way. 

 

Ithome was not a place he wanted to remain in for any amount of time longer. The longer he had remained there, the vaguely familiar feeling that he was getting from them was not one he wanted to be around any longer. While he was of course incredibly frustrated with how the people treated them, it also felt him with a feeling of discomfort, and one that he couldn't really just get rid of by trying to ignore it. Nevertheless, if he just went to sleep now, then he'd be able to get to the next day faster and able to leave this city all the quicker. And while he was content with this plan, he was completely unable to do so because some people were making a too much noise. 

 

Alois wasn't sure what the hell it was the others of the party were doing, but they were being way too loud about it. And as time went on, it seemed that they'd only be getting rowdier and so Alois stood himself out of bed immediately. With an annoyed look across his face, the boy opened his door and glared down to the room down the hall, which also had its door opened. Walking over to it, he saw that most of the others of the party were already there and seemed to be...entirely unsteady, with the blue haired healer they had recently gotten involved with was practically clung to the flower faced knight's chest. His annoyed expression mixing with one that also had a large amount of confusion, made Alois just walk away instead of having to deal with them at all. 

 

Walking away from the scene, Alois made his way outside of the inn, before letting out a bit of a sigh. If those idiots didn't settle down in there, he considered the idea of just sleeping outside of it for the night instead. Thinking more on it, he started to wonder where exactly it was that Asura had slept those nights that they had spent in this city. However, his thoughts were soon interrupted as he realized that there was some kind of soft melody coming from somewhere. Looking around he noticed the sound coming from  a familiar green clad person playing an instrument, and with a look of surprise on his face, Alois said, "hey." He soon realized it was odd at all that this guy was here, as he hadn't spent the night with them at all, and with out much of a follow up, he just asked, "what's up?" After he asked Link that, the door burst open again and out came the littler princess, he turned to her and said, "well, I guess we're just having our own party out here, aren't we."