Return of the Emblem Chapter Fourteen: Fight

[Nanami Touko]

"Alright. I'll take that." She just wanted to make sure that Amon wasn't going to leave them high and dry once they got off the boat. If he left for this, and he had to, whatever, but until then, he was pretty much the closest thing to a leader that they had. Who would take over if he left, anyway? Joanna? Greta...? Ugh, there wasn't anyone really good for the role... Especially not the bird, she was far too Mercy-righteous for their group. If there was one thing Eva could respect of the Fallen, it was their lack of inhibition towards turning to fighting. It was just necessary, sometimes. Perhaps not on the scale of what she'd seen today, with magical maelstroms causing devastation, but a brawl between disagreeing factions, sometimes that was an unavoidable thing.

"I dunno what everyone else is thinking, Shaddy, but I'd really like to see if there's more we can do in Kigen about all of this before I sign onto any Vasilus business... It's just way too much to commit to, right now. And I don't think you're selling it any better by keeping it going... I'm confident we're all going to be thinking about it a lot, anyway. We're stuck on the boat until we hit land. Not much else to do." And if you want it that badly, then just work for it for yourself... You don't need us agreeing to it to push towards it.

[Mercakete]

"How, exactly, is becoming a lesser god less powerful than becoming an emblem wielder?" Norbert asked, despite Eva's attempted segue. Shadrak's reasoning made absolutely no sense to the pegasus rider, and honestly, he was a little concerned for the druid. This was a big decision he was taking alarmingly lightly. "And I'd say we know about as much about spirit springs as we do about the emblem, too, with the only difference being gaining new abilities or transforming into an entirely different kind of being. We don't know what the consequences of that would be to becoming Vasili. As far as I know, no mortal's ever become a Vasilus. We have seen people turn into emblem wielders, though. And maybe disagreeing with an idea on principle isn't a bad thing. I'm glad you're at least willing to ask a natural Vasilus' opinion on it first, but don't just ignore whatever that advice winds up being. They probably know what they're talking about on this subject."

[Phoenix]

Questions & Answers

"Too much to commit to?" Shadrak didn't know what to make of that, though he didn't really need to. His goal right now was to make sure his intentions were understood, and the reception up to this point had been far too dismissive. "If what we're hearing about Aisha is true, vasili can lose their spirit springs, since that's the source of their power. Anyone who doesn't want theirs after the gate is destroyed at least has the option to get rid of theirs. That's something we could easily have figured out by the time we get there. That's safer than hoping Wrath is fine with a dozen emblem wielders running around, especially since no one here has the foggiest idea how to stop being an emblem wielder," he said, his eyes scanning the room and daring someone to try to counter that particular point. "We at least know it's possible to lose a spirit spring."

"I didn't say it's less powerful," Shadrak replied sharply to Norbert, "I said there was no need to go overboard with the spirit springs. All we really need for this are abilities to help us take down the gate and keep ourselves alive. I'm not really interested in controlling the weather or bringing down comets, just getting us everything we need to destroy that gate and make it back alive. Once it's over, anyone who's had enough can get rid of theirs. As for advice, I don't ignore it, but I really don't trust the vasili to look out for our best interest. Our lives are so short compared to theirs, they probably have to put in a real effort to even remember our names."

Malik scowled. "Speaking of how insignificant we are, how helpful are these springs going to be if Obelisk tracks us down and takes them? He might even kill us while he's at it."

Shadrak was getting wary of these counterarguments and pessimistic observations. They seemed to materialize from so many directions. Was Malik suggesting the spirit springs would get Obelisk's attention and bring him straight to them? Maybe ... and if they weren't in possession of an emblem piece, the druid might concede that point to the sancturan. As things stood, the shadow dragon could attack them at any time, and had plenty of incentive already. If anything, that was even more reason to empower themselves as much as possible. Obelisk may have overwhelmed Aisha, but what chance did he have against a dozen or more vasili that were prepared to face him? "Joanna has an emblem piece," Shadrak said, nudging his head in the avian's direction, "and we know how popular those are getting. If we can't become emblem wielders and we're not even going to give ourselves a fighting chance with our own spirit springs, then I think Obelisk isn't worth worrying about; we're doomed the second he shows up. Joanna's ability's not going to do much more than let us know who's getting stepped on in what order."

[Ether]

These arguments weren't getting anywhere... whatever solution they proposed, someone was diametrically opposed to it for some reason or another. The fact of the matter was, Amon had become an Emblem wielder without any care for direct proximity to the Emblem, nor the box that was supposed to "protect" it... even inside, Angelica could still feel the anomaly of that thing's existence, juxtaposed against the regular feel of magic in the air. The container was just a formality, nothing more... and she had learned the basics of being chosen from a wielder in her talks with Amon... the Emblem would grant the wishes of those who found themselves with an undeniable drive... if it was drawn to you, it would grant you the ability to accomplish your goals. What a fickle thing it was.

But if the Emblem itself was searching for wielders, then now more than ever, it should pick up on those wishes. All that was really left to do was keep wishing, keep wanting.

[-Cynthia-]

"Since we are being hunted by dangerous beings seeking the emblem, I think the most sensible course of action would be to limit the use of emblem energies as much as possible. If we become famous as a band of people wielding extraordinary powers, news will spread. We want to be beneath the attention of the Wrathites, Lord Obelisk, and whoever else, at least for the time being," Liam argued. They think they can use powers they know nothing of, beyond their understanding, with no consequences...humans are very dangerous.

"Well, if ya do decide to back to Rex-Avaz, let me come with ya. I'm not lettin' some band of thugs have my gold without a fight," Nadya said to Amon. The arguments about the emblem and spirit springs didn't seem to be leading to any actual action so she remained indifferent.

[Snike]

Neither Amon nor Malik answered the question about Aisha, which made Pete wonder. But it didn't really matter, when the back and forth was getting nowhere.

"This is going in circles," he said, frowning. "Lemme ask a question: Can we, in all likelihood, break the gate and make it back, alive, without using either the emblem or spirit springs?"

[Mercakete]

Norbert couldn't agree that the discussion was going "in circles," as that archer said. Throughout it, more and more information, plans, and possibilities kept surfacing, and considering every option was no bad thing. It wasn't like they were quibbling over something small. They were discussing what should be done about options most people never had to consider. That archer, Malik, Nadya, and Liam all had managed to say something before Norbert could respond to Shadrak, but that didn't mean he didn't have his own opinions in mind.

When Shadrak explained his position to Eva, Norbert felt a little less alarmed by the idea. He didn't lose his caution, but if they were planning on getting rid of any spirit springs they made, after dealing with Obelisk, then at least their status as pseudo-Vasili wouldn't be permanent. That was, of course, assuming they could. Just because Aisha somehow lost hers didn't guarantee they could all go back to normal whenever they wanted to.

And then there was Shadrak's snappishness. Norbert wasn't sure how -- maybe he was just that focused on hearing what Shadrak had had to say -- but he hadn't responded in kind. At least not immediately. There was an issue here, too. One that was, actually a recurring theme in this plan of Shadrak's. Malik had something interesting to add, too. It was Obelisk who'd attacked Aisha. Was he the cause for her losing her spirit spring?

"Your 'plan' relies almost entirely on assumptions," Norbert flatly informed Shadrak. As he went on, he maintained his temper, but he grew more and more focused and fervent, filtering out the others in the room. "What will giving a mortal a spirit spring actually do to that person? Can Obelisk just get rid of any spirit springs we make? What kind of and how many powers would be 'enough to take down the gate and deal with Obelisk?' Can we even make spirit springs? Can we get rid of them whenever we want to? How do we make them? How do we make a spirit spring that does this or that? You only have vague answers and guesses to these, let alone ones like 'how many Fallen will we have to fight' or even where the blasted gate even is! You're playing with something dangerous without enough information and that makes it a bad idea. I don't like the thought of getting involved with weird magic like this -- whether spirit springs or emblem powers -- and I refuse to get in over my head in junk like this and, worse, pretend like I'm not. And if you were just trying to persuade me to make a spirit spring for myself, that'd be the end of it. But I'm also trying to make you think because I'm not the only one I'm trying to protect, here. Wanting to get stronger isn't a bad thing. And you can get stronger without resorting to stunts like this. Getting into a fight without knowing the details is bad enough. You're suggesting messing with powers far greater than that. Choose what you will, but consider the risks -- the unknowns. I don't want you filling yourself up with regret, and maybe even unintentionally hurting people you didn't want to."

Then, he indicated Pete, Liam, and Thales. "I agree with them. We went on this mission to talk to the Kigenese, find the siege gate in Kigen, and destroy it, without the possibility of spirit springs or more emblem powers being even mentioned. Let's keep acting on the assumption that we don't need any special powers unless it becomes obvious that we do. And if that time comes, hopefully we'll know more about both options so we're not just blindly diving into powerful, weird magic with no idea what we're doing or what the consequences might be."

[Snike]

"Don't lump me in with these two," Pete said. "Just answer the question."

[Mercakete]

It was a little odd that the archer was asking this, in Norbert's opinion. He'd already more or less answered the question by what he'd just said. Still, he didn't have a problem with being more plainspoken. So, giving the man a nod, he replied, "Yes. It's dangerous, and we're not entirely sure what we're up against yet, but yes. At least Steinn seemed to think so." Or at least that there was enough of a chance for it to be worth the effort. "The other two teams'll be handling the other gates, and they have a similar makeup to our own group."

[-Cynthia-]

"Well, I think that if we can agree on anything it is that we need more information about our enemy before we make any critical decisions. I know very little about what be in store for us in Kigen and from the sound of things you all are not much better off. We may have more options at our disposal than we realize," Liam suggested.

Bert mentioning the other gates made Nadya think of Raquel and company. I wonder how they're all doin'. I would say they can't do much worse, but at least most of us are still kickin'.

[Xinnidy]

In a sense, things have slowed down to a crawl, with their options narrowed. It seemed some people (well, one dude), was really insistent that they'd mess up without a spirit spring or emblem piece to aid, while others fell somewhere else in the spectrum. In the end... it was really a matter of how much they actually understood the situation, how much they were certain of, and it seemed at that point Thales was as certain as everybody else about their situation, which was most definitely not a good thing.

What came as a surprise was when it seemed like people had sort of clumped his opinion into a group. He still felt so new to the group, it was jarring to... just be acknowledged like that, though the group didn't seem all that tightly-knit, in retrospect. Now Thales understood the hesitation when he asked who was the leader better. "Yeah, I think finding out more about these things first is the best idea. If this spirit spring talk is clearly the better choice, it'd be nice to figure out more about them than just hear-say, no offense." And if they'd come up with a way to beat back the Fallen without resorting to that, then all the better. "It's not like we're out of time and have to make the decision now, is it?" In a sense, he was just parroting the avian now... but that wasn't a bad thing if he agreed with the avian's stance (concerning that much, at least).

"...How much time do we have, anyways?"

[Phoenix]

Questions & Answers

Amon couldn't help but feel some unease as Nadya insisted on coming with them if they left. Did she have any idea what that entailed? No, of course not. She'd be in Norbert's camp, otherwise, albeit somewhat grudgingly thanks to her missing gold. Again, Malik got in the first response. "The Tide aren't just thugs, Nadya," he said, scowling, "they're assassins. They're the people that trained Fizza."

Amon's eyebrows perked up. "Where is Fizza, anyway?"

"I wouldn't worry about her," Malik soothed, "if she was that easy to lose, we--" He stopped himself short, the question suddenly taking on a lot more meaning. "Never mind, Joanna, you should help us try and find her once this meeting is over," he said, trying not to let any urgency show. A simple nod from the avian satisfied the sancturan.

Everything had changed, today. Aisha was thought to be nigh invincible, but then she was defeated by Obelisk and captured by the Tide. That couldn't be a meaningless turn of events for Fizza, a woman who had left the Tide merely because Aisha seemed an impossible target. There were only three questions left to answer with regard to their assassin helper. One: Did this turn of events mean anything to her. Two: Did she know about them in the first place? Three: Where was she right at this moment?

"I've been considering all of this," Shadrak said, not even trying to hide how irritated he was becoming from the pegasus rider, "since it first came up. I even kept my own notes. The reason I'm not just letting this go is because up until now I'm the only one that's given spirit springs any real thought." Was that true? Shadrak really didn't care; let whomever correct him if they really felt the need to. "Look at the situation we're in, right now. Yes, we might be able to do this without the emblem or spirit springs, though I'm starting to doubt that since we couldn't even handle this battle without the emblem. The problem is that without some kind of agreement with our avian 'friends' over here, we can't even look into either of those options. You already heard it straight from Liam, he doesn't want any extra emblem wielders, so that means we can't even get too close to the thing, since that's how emblem wielders come about as far as we can tell. That means if we need to do anything in a hurry later, it'll be too late, and we still won't know any more about them than we do, right now. I don't expect everyone to huddle together and start trying to absorb powers right here and now, but we at least need to figure out how that would work, even if we have to start with some 'assumptions' here and there. If we don't, then the emblem isn't going to be an option, and neither are the spirit springs. We won't have put in enough research and preparation to get either to work when the time comes."

"If it's possible," Joanna spoke up, again, "please try to find a way to do this without using this piece of the emblem." Malik took special note of the avian's wording. "Things aren't as grim as you might think. It's true we can't challenge a vasilus, ourselves, but that's not why you left Ursium in the first place. Furthermore, Liam and I aren't just here to heal and advise you. Before the Goddess instructed me how to end the battle, she restored my connection to her. That means I'm a true avian, again."

Shadrak's eyes widened, along with some others, at the revelation. The druid didn't know it was possible for a dark avian to regain their connection to the Goddess of Mercy, especially so quickly. "That wasn't all she did, though. She's given me a gift, a new power that light mages can all learn to use. I'm going to be instructing Liam during the voyage, and I'll accept anyone else who wants to learn it, as well." She wasn't certain she should get into the details about the Goddess' other purpose for her just yet, if only because she didn't know how to properly explain it.

Edited June 17, 2017 by Phoenix

[Nanami Touko]

Eva was pretty out of the talk at this point. Shadrak was still pushing his spirit springs, Joanna was a true avian again... Well, alright, that part was fairly surprising, but she wasn't too big on avian culture (read: not at all), so it was more of a passing surprise, than anything. All this conversation was doing was showing her just how little she really knew of everything. She knew more now, of course, and the only way to get more informed was to listen in. Still... It was alarming. She figured it would be sword swinging and magic flinging the entire time, and now they were talking about Gods, minor Gods, the powers needed to fight them, making themselves into that...

It had her head spinning! So far away than her family's forge or their wyverns. So far away from Angelica, who she thought was the strongest mage around. Even so far away from Nyx... Too far. So she couldn't say anything on it, standing there quietly with her arms folded, trying to hold onto everything being tossed about.

[Snike]

Bert was missing the point. Pete decided to explain his point, especially since a certain feathered 'friend' was saying that they didn't have enough information. He hadn't been in Europa for very long, clearly.

"Right, so, if what Bert's saying is right, and it probably is because that Steinn guy's the crow prince, it's not really a choice," Pete said, bluntly. "If they are that dangerous, we should use the emblem. If not, it's pointless. I'd rather risk Obelisk and whoever coming after me than dying because the Legionnaire over here is too hard-assed to realize that it doesn't matter if they come after us if the Fallen kill us first. I'm not dying on your hill, Goddess-ordered or not."

Edited June 17, 2017 by Snike

[-Cynthia-]

"Sounds like y'all are gonna need a healer then," Nadya responded to Malik. Weird how we're all talkin' about fightin' Fallen and Obelisk and Mercy knows what else and they're worried about a bunch of assassins. I guess they did somethin' to Aisha that threw 'em for a loop.

"Joanna has already expressed that she wishes to find alternative means to using the emblem piece. She is its holder, not all of you," Liam responded curtly, ignoring Peter's juvenile jabs and not feeling the need to repeat himself on the reasoning. 

[Mercakete]

Liam and that other guy were really talking sense. It was nice, really. Said other guy also brought to attention their limited time. It wasn't as though they had a set, known deadline, but time really was pressing down on them. What could they do, though, except keep pressing on? They were already going as quickly as they could, and even currently en route to Kigen. But then, more talk came from the Rexians, and...

"She's not here?" Events had been so busy and -- especially recently -- so heavy that Norbert hadn't really had the time to ask about her, but talk of Fizza had garnered his now-slightly-alarmed attention. It was good that Amon and Malik were going to ask Joanna to help them, though given Aisha's situation, a small suspicion began to grow on Norbert's mind that their reasons were more complicated than simple concern.

Shadrak began speaking again. He certainly was annoyed, though Norbert, himself, wasn't as inclined towards calm as he had been only a short while ago. Urgency had begun to color his responses, and as a result, he was getting significantly bending towards impatience, let alone not retaliating -- at least somewhat -- to Shadrak's irritation.

Why do you seem to think the only way to find out more about this is experimentation? You don't need the emblem to find out more about spirit springs or emblem powers! Start asking around -- we come across enough weird stuff that you should have plenty of opportunity later. Right now, you might as well drop it. The snappish reply was ready to leave Bert's lips when Joanna interjected. It was probably for the best; her response was far more patient, and Shadrak seemed to listen to it. That was something about her being a true Avian again. He didn't know they could do that, but good for her. He was also curious about what the ability was, but he decided to leave it be, for now. It sounded similar to regular magic, so it was either that or weird magic, and either way, it wasn't his field. He did wonder if that would provide any sort of solution to their speculative problems -- and if so, how -- though.

The archer spoke up again. The man knew his name, so Norbert probably knew said man's. Darn it, what was it again? Anyway, he went on to begin with something was was true: they didn't really have a choice in this. All they could do was their best at this mission. That, or wait for all of humanity -- and maybe the dragons and the Avians, too -- to be violently subjugated. But then he more or less said that he'd rather toss himself into an unknown power than die for this cause. Though the way he said it was enough to push Norbert into a peppery protectiveness of the Avians, not that Liam didn't speak up first. Liam's response reminded Norbert that he needed to talk with him later. The Avian man's response wasn't helping Norbert's mood, though it did momentarily help confuse his targets, especially since it hadn't been aimed at Pete, himself.

"You don't have to be here, you know. If you don't like this job, we'll drop you off in Kigen and you can stay in that country or take the next ship whatever else you want," Norbert somewhat sharply returned, partially fueled by his growing irritation and partially out of genuine consideration for the man's priorities, "Because having an emblem power can lead to dependency on emblem energy, and who knows what other side-effects there are? We know almost nothing about all this weird magic, especially spirit springs." Here, he tossed a pointed look at Shadrak before returning his attention to Pete. "There aren't any safe options on this mission, so if you're so worried about that, then you'll have better luck elsewhere."

Not missing a beat, Norbert turned his attention away from the two he'd addressed and asked anyone who would answer, "Now, did you all really leave Fizza behind? Didn't she catch up with all of you at some point?"

More was beginning to boil beneath the surface, but for now, he needed to remain focused on this. Fizza had mentioned in her black letter that she was busy, and that "old rivals" had been waiting for them at the ports. She must have doubted her ability to catch up to the group on foot, so...was she still back in Ursium? How was she supposed to catch up now that they were Kigen-bound on the strait? Then, he remembered that odd trinket she left behind on Abi's reins. The memory helped to cool his fire a little. Maybe the others would know something about it. Maybe it would even help them get Fizza back. Darcey had said it was the insignia of a messenger of some sort, after all. It was still in Rizen's saddlebags, though, so he'd have to describe it, for now. If it rang any bells, he could show it to people later.

[Snike]

This was getting annoying, especially since Liam was continuing on with Joanna being the chosen one spiel.

"I don't have a choice, Crusher," Pete snapped back. "Yeah, I don't like this job very much, mostly because so far, since I've been with the group we've been attacked by a dragon, the fallen, Wrathites, and the Neviskotian navy, not including that bandit raid most of you got involved with. This dove here-" he jabbed thumb towards Liam "showed up during the third of those attacks, without any real context about what's going on, and thinks he knows better because he's Cloud Legion. And you're standing there, worrying about what-ifs, when you yourself are saying there are no safe options. Even with the energy problem, I can't imagine it would be more dangerous to use the emblem against the Fallen and their emblem-bearing crow king, instead of not using it and taking them on. If there's an option that doesn't use a piece and gets the job done, great. Let's do that, even if it's like that wrathdamn twister. Otherwise, you're asking people to risk their lives over your fear-mongering. Some of the others might be fine with that, but I'm not."

"Even though I don't want to die on Corvus, I have to stick around. If the gate doesn't fall, Western Ursium's next after Kigen. And I have family there," the mercenary said, tersely.  "Y'all are dense if you don't leave the emblem door open, especially since other people's lives are riding on the job."

Edited July 13, 2017 by Snike

[Mercakete]

"Just because there are no safe options doesn't mean that we shouldn't try to find the safest and most effective one possible! We can still be smart about this, even with these odds against us! Becoming Vasili or emblem wielders is messing with powers way beyond us! I'm not fear-mongering, I'm trying to speak sense, here! And messing with those powers without knowing the consequences is just stupid! If we can find out more about them, fine! I'd even be happy about that! But I don't think we should jump to those extremes before we've even talked with the Kigenese!" Norbert snapped back at Pete, half-distracted by the archer's accusations, "And the Fallen are going to go through the gate in Ursium if it's not destroyed, whether we succeed in destroying this one or not! No one's safe right now. That's exactly why I'm going: to stop the Fallen and make people safe! Don't think I don't care about or consider other people's lives! In fact, that's why I'm being so cautious about this! What sort of long-term effects come with having power on that scale? Do you know? Don't you think it's possible that you might wind up becoming a weapon against the family you're trying to protect? We don't know enough yet to make these kinds of decisions. What I do know is that I'll fight as hard as I can, whatever winds up happening. You do what you will, whether you wind up trying to fight with your own strength or subject yourself to these unknown powers, but the responsibility of whatever happens next is on you. I'm advising you at least wait a while, though, so we can clear up some unknowns and understand the risks first. Or do you just go around testing things for poison by eating them?"

[Phoenix]

Questions & Answers

Malik frowned at Nadya. "I'm sure we could use a lot of healers given what happened in Sanctuary, but you really should stay with them," he indicated just about everyone else present, "even if Amon and I do leave. We wouldn't be taking a route back you'd be comfortable with." That was one hell of an understatement, Amon knew, but explaining the details here and now would just complicate matters. There was enough squabbling over the dangers of the emblem.

Now Norbert, to Malik's surprise, seemed interested in the whole Fizza issue. Maybe it was because he'd gotten left behind, too and sympathized with her. If that was all it was, then he needn't worry. As far as the sancturans were concerned, the only real problem with Fizza being unaccounted for was that she now had the element of surprise if she decided to renew old loyalties ... if they could really be called loyalties in the first place. "Don't worry about her," Malik said, "Joanna agreed to help find her. Wherever she is, I'm sure she can still find some way to meet up with us in Kigen, even if it takes her a little longer."

Shadrak listened intently during the next few passes in the discussion turned debate, noting Pete's take on the possible necessity of looking into their less popular options, in particular. While it wasn't fully in line with what the druid was saying, it was close enough to warrant reevaluating where he seemed to stand on the issue. In the end, he probably wouldn't be able to convince the Ursian to 'embrace' either option until it was necessary, but at least he was considering them in the face of the overwhelming opposition. The spirit spring approach would never gain any traction until Shadrak knew enough about them to adequately argue down the rampant speculation and paranoia surrounding them, which left the emblem. In many ways, the emblem was an even more contentious topic, because rather than fear of the unknown dominating the discourse, the avians simply weren't budging on the issue, Liam especially, though Joanna wasn't hiding the fact that she didn't approve, either.

"Okay," Shadrak chimed in again as Norbert made some more clarifications, "I don't think anyone has a problem with figuring out more before doing anything potentially dangerous, I certainly don't. The problem is that we've only got one option for learning more about the emblem and the spirit springs right now ... and that one option is studying the emblem piece Joanna has. In theory, we could try to find a vasilus and ask them about it, but there's no reason to assume we'll run into one before we find the gate. There's also no reason to assume the vasilus we find won't be Obelisk, himself."

That said ... "So, if you two," his eyes darted between Joanna and Liam expectantly, "aren't going to let us figure out how any of this would work, you should at least look into it, yourselves. During the trip. I don't mean any offense, but new light magic techniques aren't going to be enough to beat the fallen, and even if they were, it's not going to be any comfort if half or more of us die anyway because you ignored our best options and forced us to do the same."

[Snike]

Pete was getting more frustrated by the minute, especially since Bert took him for an idiot, and continued to fear monger while denying it. The mercenary was so irritated, in fact, that he didn't respond immediately to Shadrak's offer of a compromise.

"Here's what I know: the Kigenese have fought the Fallen for a long-ass time, and given Europa, the fallen are winning. I doubt anything they'll tell us will help that much. Meanwhile, here you are, calling the thing that saved us all a half an hour ago, poisoned? You.." Pete said, as he clenched his fists. He looked as if he was about to take a swing at the pegasus rider, but instead, after a moment, he sighed.

"Forget it," the Ursian said as he relaxed his hands and turned towards the Avian pair and away from Bert."I think Shadrak has a point about looking into the emblem, but do what you will. I'm going to go cool off."  With message and opinion delivered, Pete started to make his way through the crowd and out of the dining area.

Edited June 18, 2017 by Snike

[Mercakete]

You weren't acting that way a minute ago. Norbert irritably thought as Shadrak claimed to have no qualms with investigating spirit springs and emblem powers before diving into them. He was still leery of the druid as Shadrak began his limited ways of going about this research, but his hackles began to lower as the man acknowledged the avenue Norbert had been trying to point out. Shadrak had a point -- they couldn't very well rely on unknowns as though they were sure things -- but it seemed that, given recent experiences, running into another Vasilus was inevitable. Shadrak also brought up the fair point that the next Vasilus they might run into would be Obelisk himself. He went on to address the two Avians. While Norbert wasn't sure if these light techniques would be useful, he also didn't know if they'd be useless, seeing as he had no idea what they were. This new ability came from Mercy herself, so maybe it could help them after all. It'd be nice to let the gods handle the godly powers, rather than having to try to figure out how to use them, themselves.

The intrigue and sensibility had just about brought him back to a calm state, though Norbert was still a little wary, and especially so when Pete spoke up again. We're the ones telling the Kigense what we know, not the other way around. And I wasn't literally calling the emblem poisoned, you dolt; it was a metaphor for testing how dangerous something is! And of course they're losing! The Kiegense have more numbers than we can ever counter, even if the rest of Sardius all bands together! Shows how much you know about this operation, despite how much authority you're speaking with! He had to admit that he wasn't sure how the Kigenese's war related to the the Fallen who'd shown up in Europa, but it wasn't like Ursium was keeping a good eye out for the Fallen at the time. Still, it was irritating how many of the details this guy was getting wrong, but Norbert -- thankfully -- let him finish what he wanted to say and go off to cool down. Norbert could relate to that, and could even respect that he'd managed to rein himself in before things turned violent. He, himself, wasn't on that level of self-control yet, and he likewise needed his space when he was that steamed.

That matter settled for now, he could focus better on what Malik had tried to say during that exchange, about Fizza. He'd said not to worry about her, and that she would meet them in Kigen, or something to that effect. He didn't see how, really, but there was something about the woman that made him believe it, at least to a degree. It helped, knowing that she was an assassin. That alone wouldn't let leaving her behind sit well with him, however. But maybe she'd sent them another message in his absence. "Did that messenger tell you that? That she'd meet us in Kigen, I mean."

[Phoenix]

Questions & Answers

"Messenger?" Malik echoed, not sure what Norbert was on about. He shook his head a half second later. "It's just reasoning. If she's got any intention of staying with us, she's going to try to find a way to catch up. Even if she can't find a way onto this ship, she still knows we're headed to Kigen, and that's no desert, so she won't have any trouble tracking us down. Especially not a group this diverse."

Plenty of assumptions, but Amon agreed with all of them. Having first hand experience in Kigen and the desert, there was almost no comparison between the two; they had a far easier time navigating around the former. Furthermore, the reputation of the Tide's assassins weren't nearly over inflated enough for anyone's liking, so there was little point worrying about Fizza.

[Mercakete]

If Fizza was as creditable assassin as Malik was saying, then he was probably right. She did leave on her own, too. It still wasn't something he could fully agree with, though. What if she'd been expecting them to wait for her before crossing the strait? It wasn't an unreasonable assumption, after all. Norbert, himself, had assumed that the others would wait for him.

"Right. And on that topic," here, he turned his attention more to the group on the whole again, distrusting annoyance returning. As he spoke, his ire audibly increased. "would anyone mind explaining what made everyone think it was okay to start sailing to Kigen without me? And for that matter, why it was okay to completely abandon the plan to rescue the Ursaean pegasus knights, leaving me to guard their pegasi on my own, nearly die for my trouble, and then leave me completely alone without so much as a warning that everyone was pulling out of that Imperial-infested bandit camp? Only Fizza stayed behind, by the way, and it's only because of her that Rizen, the Ursaeans, and I made it out of there alive, and I was the only one of our so-called 'group' who completed the mission. How about explaining that? 'Cause I don't appreciate being left for dead when I'm trusting and relying on everyone else to perform their roles in a plan so that I can get out alive."

[Nanami Touko]

With their talks slowing down, and Bert once again being Bert, Eva decided she'd heard enough. Without another word, she sighed and left the room, having been through enough shit today, without getting into Bert's own. Maybe it would've been for the best if you did die... Gods, you're just insufferable. She didn't mean it, but with her mood, and how aggravating he was, the thought still popped into her head.

[Xinnidy]

Well, it seemed talks had devolved into aggression. It was a tell they wouldn't get much of anything else done. So some entrust this job on us, but the scale is ridiculous. If we have to fight a massive chunk of the Fallen army, then I guess things get unrealistic. I don't know what everyone here is capable of except for Amon... we can probably have a chance with his power? Well, not if said Aisha find her survival a bigger priority. Damn. There were too many ifs at that point. What was certain was that they needed a plan. Well, if the Fallen are anything like the Ursian army... who am I kidding, they couldn't be more different. Boy, things never looked more bizarre! Thales had a lot to learn about these Fallen, and probably about the Avians as well.

Sighing, Thales cast a glance towards Amon, hoping he could bring some closure to the reunion, or at least deal with the air of animosity ever growing. Speaking up completely unrelated after the pegasus rider made such airs about his question felt awkward. Besides, Thales had no idea the guy existed until now, the question clearly didn't apply to him or to the boat eavesdroppers.