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Lord of Azure Flame Chapter 24x: Fires of Liberation


Phoenix
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In the end, Tas had to help Iris out a little if only to retrieve his supplies from Namid's saddlebags. Tas a few extra strands to secure Terance to Riggs' saddle without having to move him. It was an extra precaution, even though Terance's muscles were generally contracted from the electricity that killed him. The split eggs and hatchlings were already in place due to Terance's protective posture. It would be unlikely that they would fall. As Nikita and Drake carried the dead through the air, Tas and Namid flew closely to them to add support if needed. Many of Riggs' bones had been broken by his hard landing, after all. Flying in a straight line back to the ranch, it didn't take long before they were easily within sight of their destination. A few moments later and the corpses were set down in the front yard.

Tas silently went right to work at undoing the sling and securing straps without even looking up. Once that had been accomplished, he sorted out how much as his and how much as Iris' and returned his own supplies to Namid's saddlebags. Leaning on Namid for support, the courier looked over to the graveyard. A long moment later, he returned his blurry gaze to Terance, Riggs and the unnamed infants. There was nothing more he could do. While he was working, Irina and Iris probably already handled any questions the others had. Now was the time to farewell the single most influential person in his life: the one who had taken care of him and taught him all he knew, the one Tas trusted and looked up to more than anyone else growing up. He had always made everything better when Tas was hurt or upset and encouraged him when he was trying to achieve something. (I'll never forget you. I'll try to remember the lessons you taught me. I'll tell your story and I'll remember what you told me about mom. ... I wish you had lived. This is so hard for me... Thank you so much for everything. I want to become like you were. ... Fly safely, dad.)

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The Return

When the ranch group spotted the returning wyverns, Lev grimaced at the sight of the fourth wyvern. Wings and tail all limp, and carried by the others.

Lev: That's not good ....

Iso: (Tell me they're just injured ... urrrgh that's not actually Tas' father is it? Maybe it's just another person they found?)

Iso had given up on that once they had landed. Irina only served to confirm that it was indeed Tas' father they had recovered.

Lev: So that's him, huh?

Stephanie: Oh Goddess ... that's terrible ....

Irina: I wish things could have turned out differently. I can't believe Tas has this to deal with now after everything that's happened.

Lev: He just has to keep moving ... speaking of which ... we'll need to get to that soon ourselves, unfortunate as this is.

Irina: I know ... I know. You don't have to say it.

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While Iris had hoped to have made the harness without any issues she did need more than just the equipment she'd brought with herself, and retrieving the straps Tas had mentioned from Namid's saddledbags proved nontrivial; the beast seemed skittish around her, pushing her aside and waddling away in response to her efforts. She felt bad about it, but in the end she had to disturb the rider to get things underway. After the materials were in hand she managed the rest of the preparations by herself. The trip back had the feel of a funeral procession. No, it was one, and thankfully uninterrupted by accident or interference.

After they landed, Tas had begun to unload, and Iris decided to let him handle that as he wished, following Irina to where those that had stayed behind were waiting. The princess confirmed the news, though it seemed they'd already guessed at the most of it. As Lev alluded to the need to keep moving, Iris relayed the current state of the plans.

"I convinced Tas that a cremation would suffice, though he did want to send them off in sight of his family," she gestured to the area that had been indicated to be the graveyard. "It will take a little time, but much less than a burial, so it seemed a reasonable allowance. There's not a lot of fuel, the nearby area is mostly wasteland after all, and the bandits have already burned most of... the uh former residence, so there's probably going to have to be a fair bit of magical aid for this to work." Lt. Frederikov had already retrieved her tome and indicated it purposefully, "I can take the lion's share, but if it's no trouble... I recalled that Your Highness is also proficient, and thought it might be a nice touch if you took an active role in the ceremony? I would think your friend might appreciate it, though I haven't exactly asked."

Edited by Balcerzak
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Cremations Expert

Iso: Err ... (What do I say? That the very reason the group had to run around and fight or hide from the Elyisimians for a month was because I cremated a thug in just ten seconds inside of an inn and couldn't recall the flames before normal ones started to spread? ... yeah I don't think I'll saying anything.)

Lev: To be honest, Iso almost burned down an inn, and actually did burn down an entire forest not terribly long ago. He could probably handle something like this all by himself.

Iso: Leeeev ...

Lev just shrugged.

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Lev's comments were particularly interesting. Iris raised an eyebrow and rubbed the back of her neck in disbelief. "By 'forest' I assume you mean a patch of a few dozen trees, yes?" She flicked her eyes back and forth between Isotov and the wyvern lord. The story about the inn, that was plausible, given a particularly heavy night of intoxication and something to flip one's trigger. This other story though...

Edited by Balcerzak
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Stories

Lev: Nope, this prince here scorched the whole damn place. According to Irina it started as your run of the mill massive explosion and everything else caught on fire after that.

Iso kept his head down and mumbled quietly.

Irina: I don't think that's something to advertise here. We're trying to be respectful and efficient, not just grab the strongest mage and send them at the bodies to see how fast they can burn them ...

Lev: They can both do it if they really want to, I'm just saying Iso's crimson tome is probably more than enough for the job.

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"A whole forest... that is quite impressive, what is the word, volume?" Iris commented, then breathed a low whistle. "But, Her Highness is right, we should keep things, ahh, well-measured. No need for theatrics."

The prince had been keeping rather quiet, maybe he some unresolved issues he was working through. That was fine, she was prepared to have to handle the matter herself after all, as she would have when they had first found the bodies if that had been the decision. No need to force him. "Well, it's your choice, but I think we should begin soon."

Lt. Frederikov removed both of her gloves, and tucked them into a back pocket, then strode over to where Tas was still stationed, propped against his mount, in front of the unfortunate carcasses. Unobtrusively slipping a finger in-between the proper pages of her tome, she asked the rider, "Do you still need some time for your goodbyes?"

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"Thank you. ... No, I'm ready," Tas replied to Iris, appreciative of her consideration. (You'll be watching over the ranch now, won't you? I wonder if there were some truth in those ghost stories I sometimes heard... Is there a ghost ranch here now? Is everyone waiting, unseen, around us to welcome you? I hope so. I know you missed mom. Maybe you can see each other now in the unseen ranch, if those stories were even a little true.) "I expected my home to be gone. I never expected this..." Tas muttered to himself, eyes locked on the dead. Then, to his father, "It's a good day for flying." It was really the only farewell he could think of given where he was and whom he was talking to. He'd already said his goodbyes again and again in his mind so anything else felt redundant. It was so final, though, and those words didn't capture that. They didn't need to, though, really. The gravity of the situation was enough to fill that. And the fire would become the milestone.

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Ranch

Iso followed a ways behind Iris and got a bit of an eye full of the sad sight.

Iso: So ... how do you want to do this, Tas?

Iso had his normal fire tome in one hand, and Proxima in the other. Unsure how to go about it, he just thought to ask the 'survivor'.

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"I don't know how it's supposed to work," Tas replied to Isotov, "All I know is that cremation is a way of honoring the dead, much like a burrial, but by fire instead of by earth. It releases the spirit into the sky, if I remember right."

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Iso

Iso: (Well do you want enough left over to fit inside an urn? No, I can't ask him that ... urgh.) Well ... I'm not sure what exactly you're going for. N-normally burning a body leaves a lot behind. Cremation's only meant to leave behind ... bones.

He looked to his fire tome for a brief moment.

Iso: If you're looking for something more 'complete' ... then complete incineration might work better ... maybe.

There was a lot of reservation and careful, nervous speech as Iso spoke. He looked at Proxima this time, certain that it could take care of the latter option easily. That also put a grimace on his face though. The whole situation was a little awkward.

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It was painful talking about burning people to important to Tas. Though he understood that really, he was the only one who could supply these answers and everyone was being so considerate helping him out as they were. "I can't just leave their bones out here," Tas replied, "though -- and I know this may sound strange -- I'm still worried about them; I don't want them to be hurt. They can't stay like this, I know, so I have to find a way to help. Any ashes that are left behind will blow away with how windy it is around here. I think that's how it should go anyway, so it doesn't bother me. ... That probably didn't help much... I'm sorry."

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Iso: Proxima

Iso shook his head when Tas implied that he hadn't been very helpful.

Iso: (Proxima then ...) I understand. Just ashes, right?

He put his regular tome back onto its resting place on his belt and held Proxima up a little higher and closer to his chest.

Iso: I ... can handle that ....

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Isotov had been holding two books, but put one away in favor of the other. Tas assumed they were fire tomes. From the sounds of it, Isotov chose the more powerful of the two. It certainly seemed more powerful, what with its deep red coloring. ...Wait, there was something familliar about that description... Yes, they'd been attacked before because of a set of "crimson weapons" and as Tas recalled, Irina had said that Isotov was the weilder of the crimson fire tome. Apparently, the crimson weapons were demonic weapons, though their weilders were not necissarily evil. Still... "Um.. Isotov? Is that that crimson fire tome Irina mentioned before?" Tas tennitively asked. After all, demonic flames engulfing his father wasn't Tas' idea of a very thankful, eternal farewell.

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"Well...I know that the wielders of the crimson weapons aren't evil. Though the weapon its self...I don't know. It's demonic, isn't it? Please understand. I don't want there to be any side-effects to cremation by demonic fire that we might not know about," Tas replied. He trusted Isotov, just not Proxima.

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Demonic Weapons

Iso: Well ... the only side effects I've ever known to come from these weapons is fear and religious paranoia ....

Iso put his head down for a moment examining his tome.

Iso: (That's right; these things are seen as evil, and I guess that could be the case but ... I'm not going to overlook the good they're capable of. If Proxima was truly and purely demonic, then there's no way someone like me could ever control or wield it. Proxima was made from crystalized hellfire and light magic ... somehow. Light magic comes from the Goddess, right? So we're not just dealing with demonic weapons or holy weapons; we're dealing with hybrids ...) There are a few ways you can look at it, Tas. Proxima's 'base components'--if that's what you want to call them--were apparently hellfire and light magic. It's not truly demonic then if you ask me. So I guess it's up to you if you want to view Proxima's flames as a corrupt unholy hellfire or a divine purifying flame. Or you could view them like I do ... simply a more potent form of fire magic that's especially good for killing demons ....

By that time, Irina, Lev, and Stephanie had wandered over too and caught much of the conversation.

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"Okay. I'll trust you on this. I just don't want them to be in any sort of pain. If you're sure that it's safe, then..." Tas wasn't sure how to finish the sentense. It just sounded wrong in his head. A part of him was still in denial that Riggs and Terance were really dead: the part that didn't want to believe it. He had friends who were helping him, though, and that made things much easier. Not that it was easy, but easier.

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(Insert Fitting Title Here)

Iso: Pain? (I wouldn't worry about that much, and this will be a lot quicker than a normal cremation anyway ...) Well, if you're ready, then I'll ... get started.

Iso held out his tome and began to draw power from it. He closed his eyes and began working out the spell in his mind, something he wanted to do quickly and precisely. As he did this, the crimson fire tome's energy began to swirl about him in barely visible streams climbing all the way up the fire sage's form.

Iso: Are you ready?

He asked with his eyes still closed and head tilted back slightly, still forming the spell.

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The question was considerate and appeciated. One the other side of it, the process had already been drawn out. Several times before this, he'd expected the fires to consume what remained of those who had died trying to escape the marauders. Again, Tas' eyes ran along the impressive, distinct, dark green stripes on Riggs' back, saw the small, innocent forms of the infant wyverns...and saw Terance, frozen in his protective posture, trying to save as many lives as he could. "Yes."

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The prince had come over and decided on joining in after all it seemed. His appearance did pose an interesting and unexpected dilemma, when he brought up the subject of his Crimson weapon, and Lt. Frederikov listened in intently on his explanation of his understanding of the weapon. She would have to ask him about it in further detail when she managed to get him alone, she decided, as it sounded like something truly fascinating. Still, the lad seemed perhaps a little unsure, though he did express trust, it would be better in her opinion to simply go with the surely safe affair.

"I am sure that with the both of us, we will easily reach the temperature needed, even with non-augmented tomes," Iris chimed in. "For the most part it is just a matter of drying out the marrow inside. It is kind of like how..." she cut off her analogy of a wet log, realizing this wouldn't be doing the bereaved any favors. "At any rate, I've seen it done before, cooperation and sustained intensity is all that's needed, but whichever you're most comfortable with. I'll be starting now, " Having said her piece, she uttered the intonation to start her spell, fire flowing around her fingers, channeling out toward the corpses.

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And then the dead were engulfed in fire. As the blaze sprung up and began eating away at the man and wyverns, a rapid stream of fragmented memories flowed before Tas' mind's eye. The time when as a child, Tas fell into Terance's arms after having tried to ride one of the younger adult wyverns, holding Terance's hand as Tas' grandfather was burried in the graveyard, Terance's proud laughter and clapping as Tas took his first, short flight on Namid's back, a time when they were sitting on Tas' bed together, talking about what Tas' mother had been like, one of the foot races Tas and Terance had shared, Terance's knowing smile as he caught Tas sneaking Namid in to the dining room, a time when Tas and Namid were curled up at Riggs' side in the barn, one of the times when Tas would use Riggs' tail as a slide when he was little, nearly being blown off his feat by Riggs flapping his wings, a time when Tas, Namid, Riggs and Terance were star gazing in the fields, various snippets of advice Terance had given Tas, when Tas and Terance flew a wyvern over to a noble's house with other couriers and Terance was fretting over Tas the whole time...

They were all good memories. For a moment, Tas felt happy, but then sorrow would set in at the realization that that was all they were: memories. Following that, fortitude, only to break down again. The smell in the air was terrible. It was very similar to how the throne room had smelled back in Kalten after the battle. ("Sometimes things happen in life that we don't understand and wish we could undo. But the thing is, we can't change what's in the past. All we can do is remember and work toward a better future.") Terance's words from Tas' frandfather's funeral echoed in Tas' head as the fire before him began to dwindle and the wind swept up the ashes. As Tas lifted his wet eyes to the sky, he could still feel his heart's aching agony. (I don't know what to do, though.) He knew what his father would say. ("Sure you do. You're going to help your friends, aren't you? You're not alone or without resource.") Then, Tas remembered what some of the ranchers had said about Terance: that he had come to the ranch alone and no one knew where he'd come from. He learned everything he knew from them and began to live with them. (Am I...following in my father's footsteps? No, he didn't have anything when he came to the ranch... Father left me with some things. "Just remember what I taught you. You'll be fine.") Those words were always what Terance told Tas when he was about to do something he'd never done before and felt uncertain. It was fitting that they would be applied now.

Drying his tears, Tas took a couple, deep breaths and looked to the others, composed. "Thank you very much for all your help." Adding a smile, he continued, "I'm sorry for holding you up. We should get going now." He took another look at the sky he was used to seeing when first exiting the main building and finished, "All we can do is move forward." With that, he climbed onto Namid's back and waited to see if they would warp in the air or on the ground to Vaorin. Namid was feeling a bit better, too, having decided the very thing that Tas had: the best thing they could do now was to move on and that is what they were going to do.

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OOC: Posting in x because I can.

The wrong town. Iris felt partially responsible for the mix-up, but nobody was blaming her. Well, aside from herself. Still, it wasn't terrible, as they had, despite the detour, managed to make much better time than she'd anticipated. Unfortunately, this seemed to have resulted in the priestess being driven past exhaustion into full-on sickness. The decision was made to stay where they'd ended up until she could recover, so the lieutenant decided to use this time to collect a little bit of information.

Leaving Tas to himself, giving him some personal space, and with Stephanie resting, she asked the other three to fill her in on what she should be expecting. "I wonder if you wouldn't mind telling me about the rest of your traveling companions now, in the down-time, so it won't be quite so much of a shock or a rush when we arrive at the summit?"

Iso had been sitting idly at a dining table with Irina waiting for what was probably lunch when Iris asked about the other members of the group.

Irina: Oh they're a mixed bunch.

Irina opened up and Iso followed up with a slight grunt and lowered his posture closer to the table just thinking about it. Lev didn't come out until Irina spoke a second time though.

Irina: Well there's Morgan, kind of a leader but not very ... what's the wording ...? I guess I'd say she doesn't understand social behavior too much.

Lev: We talking about people behind their backs? I'm in~

He sat down at the table and spoke next.

Lev: True, Morgan's not social-savvy, but I view that as a good thing. The bullshit that other people get caught up in never even fazes her.

Iso looked Iris dead in the eyes with a dreadfully fatigued gaze and said his piece.

Iso: She's a statue ... a soulless statue. Lev just doesn't mind because that doesn't prevent 'bedroom bliss'

Lev: Nice wording~ (Eh he doesn't get it ...)

Iso then slowly put his head down.

"It wasn't really supposed to be a behind their backs sort of thing..." Iris started to defend before she realized it was all a joke, and Lev joined in on the 'fun'. She listened to the description and tried to put together a mental picture. A leader, but not good with people, hmmm. Was she born into it? Still from the description Lev gave, that it was more of avoiding frivolties and interactions, it could be just military discipline taken to extremes rather than an ignorant noble.

Lt. Frederikov waved her hand lightly, "I don't really care so much about her behaviour in the bedroom. But I guess if there are romantic... entanglements, just a brief uh... noting of their existence is fine. So that's your leader then? Have their been any who've attempted to undermine her authority? And how will she react to a change of status, now that you're heirs to the empire?"

Irina: Attempts to undermine her? Oh plenty. Reika in particular. She's also gotten into arguments with Esphyr and Damian on occasion though that's not usually about who's in charge. She and Iso also don't get along.

Lev: I probably wouldn't get a long with a woman who doesn't like me for me, either. Just look at me and Xenia.

Iso: Just shut up, Lev ...

Iso kept his head down, about as close to being out of the conversation as he could get without outright walking off. He was still waiting for lunch, though.

Irina: I don't think our new found status is going to change much, I mean there's already a princess and another prince in the group, Charlotte of Jerdon and Helios of Tora.

Iso: And Morgan of the wilds.

Lev gave the hidden fire sage a quick glare before regaining his composure.

Lev: Well, if you're worried about problem individuals, Iris, you don't have to look much further than Reika, I think. She's a knife wielder--whom I don't necessarily get along with--who's actually crossed blades with the group once or twice. Morgan's got her ... mostly under control now, though.

Irina: Well maybe she's the only one that would start trouble over absolutely nothing, but the group's still had some infighting that didn't even involve her.

Lev: Right, like when Damian's lance took over him or when Esphyr was in one of her moods. Oh I guess you might want to watch out for Viveka too, or at least keep Iso away from her. She's definitely a team player but she's not a big fan of the team, if you know what I mean, heheh.

Irina: Can't exactly blame her. The group's the furthest thing from functional there is and we've been kind of lucky so far.

The information was flowing fast and furious, and it was a beautiful thing. Iris made sure to commit as much of it to memory as possible, and actually resolved to―after lunch―head to her room and write it down as well.

"Who's Xenia, someone else I should be keeping an eye on then?" Iris was a little confused on this one. Most of the other names had at least been given a little bit more in the way of helpful elaboration. "And if that pretty much covers the list of who might be troublesome, I'm also going to need to know who His Highness does get along with, and Her Highness as well. There has to be some aside from Tas... right? Please tell me there are. Knowing who can be trusted is at least as important."

Lev: Xenia was one of Ivanko's mercenaries. She got hired to kidnap Charlotte awhile back but nabbed Viv first and that just kind of blew up in our faces. Later she actually took Charlotte and we didn't see her again for awhile. Wouldn't worry about her now unless she's still working for Jace.

Irina: Who we do get along with? Well mostly everyone in my case, but I guess you mean actual friends. Let's see, that'd be Aiya, Damian ... Heinz and I get along pretty well ....

Iso: As far as friends go, Kelas, and that's it. Others are all dead.

Irina grimaced at Iso who was still down low with his face buried in the table.

Irina: I'm sure you get along with Arrin and Tessa just fine too. Hmm ... that reminds me. Tessa and I did have that one fight one time. It was nowhere near as bad as some of the other squabbles though.

Lev: Forget Tessa. You've had it out with Esphyr at least three times.

Irina: Please don't bring that up ...

It sounded like she was probably going to have to get the full story about Irina's Esphyr encounters from Lev later. Isotov was continuing to to his best to shrink away from the whole situation, and if it hadn't been a source of concern, it really would have been quite comical.

Iris nodded her thanks to Lev and Irina for being cooperative and agreeable, then directed her next comments to him specifically. "It can't really be so bad as you're making it out, but if talking about your companions is really so terrible for you, you can always enlighten me about your external enemies. That would still be quite productive, don't you agree?"

Iso: Wouldn't make it any less depressing. Inside the group, there are nutjobs like Reika and Morgan, and outside the group there are demons, one of which is a shapeshifter who killed my parents, nearly all of my friends, my old teacher, and is incredibly difficult to kill.

Irina: Shanice. We almost got that monster one time, but it didn't work out in the end.

Iso: I guess there are the templars, too. You might want to keep a sharp eye out for them since they want me dead specifically, along with the other crimson wielders.

Irina: Kamilla ....

Isotov's dark mood was starting to be a little contagious, and it seemed she would have quite a bit of work cut out for her. At least she was sure that his opinion of his travelling companions was heavily slanted, due to the input from Irina and Lev, but demons and templars were serious matters indeed. She was about to ask more questions, but then lunch arrived, and it broke up the rhythm of the conversation. After lunch was over people dispersed swiftly, and Iris followed through with her jotting of notes, and then further lining up the various names into columns of good, questionable, and trouble.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Zaftra is still a place that exists

After finishing giving Iris orders, Borodin completed her errand, and the two Zaftran officials departed with Ixion.

There was still a lot to do, especially now that she was without her assistant. Normally one of her other top officers would fill in, but all three already had their orders, working on keeping the military organized and continuing rescue and salvage efforts in the citadels. Borodin wasn't about to fall behind, though.

The next few days continued to be hectic. Nobody got much sleep, and while the palace was beginning to look like it previously had except for a few glaring exceptions, an undercurrent of tension was almost palpable throughout. Among the nobility, intrigues ran rampant to a degree not seen in years. Arguments flew back and forth about joining the new emperor; little by little, more of the court came over to Ivanko's side, spurred by several factions, newer nobles especially, looking to restore Zaftra to what it had once been.

In addition to reconstruction, Borodin was helping to run different meetings between various nobles and the new regime. Next up was a meeting with some of the oldest and most ornery lords of the realm, her father among them. "<You're looking well, Anya,>" he quipped. The general had done an excellent job of hiding her fatigue, but her father could still read her.

"<Never been better,>" she replied, lying as expected. There wasn't much else to say, really; anything else and her father would likely start harping on her choice of career (or rather, choice in having one to begin with). She changed the subject: "<It shouldn't be long before everyone else is here,>" she observed; it was nearly time for the rest of the meeting to arrive.

OOC: Phoenix I am going to start pestering you about details for this as soon as you get online : D

Edited by Kiryn
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