Angelcynn: The Myrcian Conflict - Act 4

[SB.]

With another Wykian bounding towards them, Claire couldn't help but groan. Is this real...? At this rate, they were going to run into Malpahar on the way to Sylvesters before they reached the darn shop... Thankfully, Esclabor didn't seem willing to stop and chat - although his departure left her slightly beffudled. "What in the world?" Of course, that was when Nona made her presence known. "We're going to die before we make it there, aren't we...?" Claire spoke in a strained whisper, finishing up just before the eldest Valter 'graced them' with conversation.

"Really? I wonder where he could have gotten to..." The mage was far from fond of Baron Esclabor, but if he'd jumped out of an upstairs window to avoid Nona in the past, it seemed like a cruel choice to sell him out now. "I'm sure that Ceirch and your sister will be fine. They get along well enough that I think Morta would be careful not to hurt him." That was, at least, the impression Claire had gotten from one of her conversations in Magon. "There can't be too many places for them to train in the city anywhere, can there?" Hopefully that push would be enough to send the ditzy rider in the right direction - or at least in one that differed from her own. 

[Vestige]

Alain nodded, taking the compliment for whatever it was worth. "Not enough really," Alain replied. It was a fair assessment, all things considered. What did he actually know about Malaphar? What did anyone know? Was the world the extent of his power, or just a small glimpse of it? "I've seen his... world. Been to it, rather. That's about the extent of my knowledge about him and it." He sighed. "I don't know if Claire told you this or not, but we've had a run in with him before. He swore his vengeance and disappeared and there's been no sign of him since. Emily mentioned something about getting a bad feeling about things... I wouldn't be surprised if he's planning on showing up again," he said. "You used to be his teacher, yes? Care to explain?" 

[riariadne]

"I didn't know if you want to go to my home still or the store right away, but this should be the right direction either way, I think," Sidney explained. Against all odds, two more people approached them, with one leaving quickly, but... Ahh! How are people so annoying all the time?! "Our morning has been fairly annoying, we keep getting interrupted trying to go anywhere." Her subtlety was swiftly vanishing. "Anyway, if they're doing training, it could be near the military academy. It's an exclusive place, but there should be places nearby that have places available to practice, I think." Well, it sounds believable. I was never behaved enough to go, so maybe that's completely wrong. "That's where I would head, and I think I know here pretty well. If not, there's a lot of open area near the library." That part was true, at least, even if she had no idea if Morta and Nelon would go there. "If I were you, I'd check those two places in that order." And I would leave now, so that anything at all can get done today!

[Juliette]

"The castle's dungeon?" Freya asked incredulously. "What could that be about? What a strange place for them to be. But, if you don't know, then I don't suppose any further questioning would be very useful. I'm not sure that would be a good place to start looking, seeing as I already tried to see someone in the castle yesterday to no success. If they're off looking for clothes, then maybe we should start at a clothing store? I wouldn't know much about any of those, but it seems much more likely to get us anywhere." She wasn't sure deferring to Serge's decision was actually the best idea, but it would be rather rude to retract her question now, and maybe he knew more.

[Jotari]

"Hmm. Teacher is probably giving me too much credit. He came to me once long ago asking about Belial. I gave him the information he sought and since then I've barely glimpsed him. Though I've heard many stories second hand of what he's done to people and what he's trying to achieve. I can't help but feel somewhat responsible." Constance once again glanced at the door. "Back to this girl Emily...Who exactly is she? Or what happened to her. I sense the same ill omen from her as I did from Malaphar."

[Vestige]

"The niece of Wyke's court mage Lord Edion. Although she was traveling with us for quite some time as a simple mercenary. I guess she's not fond of her title. Either way, she was fatally wounded in a battle we fought prior to our arrival in Raewald," Alain said, unsure of whether or not to continue. Telling every curious person about the elixir seemed problematic, but if Claire was prepared magic from Constance, perhaps Alain could afford to share the information.

"...We had a bottle with us filled with some foreign liquid. An elixir of sorts from wherever, created by whoever, that allegedly grants immortality," he said. "It might seem a bit far-fetched, but by all rights, I think the woman was dead. But here she is, a about a week later and about as fine as you can get after visiting the afterlife. It's not too surprising that you're sensing similarities between Malaphar and Emily. He recently obtained some of the elixir himself, and I'd bet that wasn't his first sample," he concluded.  

[Dandragon]

Serge shrugged, again. "Your guess is as good as mine. Truth be told, I don't know where any of the local clothes stores are, either. I haven't gotten the chance to explore the city, so I don't really know where anything is, besides the Guild, the Armory, the Coliseum, and the Castle." He placed his hands in his pockets, looking around the immediate area for some sort of sign or hint of what to do, knowing full well he wasn't going to find anything. Then, after a moment of silence, he chuckled. "Look at us. Two misfit fish outta water over here, standing around without a clue. You'd think we'd be better than this, both hired guards of royalty, but here we are. It's funny, really." And he kept on chuckling, somehow finding some humor in the situation. Only Engel knew how long it had seen since he'd been able to laugh like that.

Edited May 6, 2017 by Dandragon

[Jotari]

Constance's eyes widened. "That's not possible" she muttered. "No elixir is that potent. No elixir can be...But Belieal...He has known to have brought people back from the brink of death on occasion, or so they say. Malaphar already had his world when we first met, perhaps this concussion is the magic he worked with the knowledge I gave him."

[Shin]

Dress to Impress

"Wonderful, I can take you straight to our showcase. Hopefully there should be something that you would find suitable." the attendant replied, gesturing for Cass and Thwomp to follow him. The display was but a few dozen feet away, the mannequins were all elegantly clad in wedding gowns. All of them varying shades of blue, they almost seemed as if they belonged in a fairy tale. 

The dress at the centre of the array was likel to be said A-line, a flowing sapphire gown that rested gracefully across the floor. Even despite the rumours that the store was of a lesser quality than Lady Lidoine's, nothing in Cass' mother's wardrobe, or Cass' own, came remotely close to the garment. No doubt the price tag would be reflective of this.

Thwomp was rather perplexed, the delicate beauty of the sight was perhaps lost on him. "Thwomp never sees shiny dresses like this before." he marvelled, still trying to process it in his head. "Thwomp never been to fancy wedding, or any wedding."

The attendant smiled, amused by Thwomp's awe. "Dresses like these aren't too uncommon in noble weddings within Raewald." he replied." If I recall correctly, Queen Ethel herself had one selected for her own wedding to the late King Edwin. Our starting prices are around three thousand gold, depending on urgency and any specific requests."

Status Unknona

Nona seemed rather agreeable to Claire's logic, nodding with every statement she made. "I think you're right Claire, there's no way Morta would hurt him too badly. She's always looked up to him, daddy wasn't exactly the best at raising three daughters. If you think he's safe then my mind is at ease." she laughed, far more relaxed about the situation. "In that case, I may head to the city centre. There's been talk of a wonderful tailor's called Sylvester's. Decima has most of our money, but it wouldn't hurt to have a look, no?"

Letting out a fanciful sigh, Nona appeared to have delved back into a romantic daydream. "Just imagine, a wedding dress from Raewald and a wedding in Tytila Cathedral. I wonder if that's where Princess Cassandra and Baron Kearney will get married?" she added, a sly smile appearing on her face. "Although I can't imagine him getting married in a place like that, can you?"

[Nanami Touko]

"Wow..." Cass was left in a shocked state, staring at the wonderfully crafted dresses. She was tempted to touch, give them a feel, but assumed they were on display for a reason, stopping her hand. Her excitement, as well, stopped at the mention of price. She'd already paid quite a lot for the rings, unsure if they had the funds for something like this, as frivolous as it was to most of their members. 

"How unfortunate," she muttered. "We're on envoy from Wyke to speak with the queen, so our funds are limited. I know you might be asking why we're setting up a wedding in the first place, but... Well, there are reasons. I'll avoid getting into them unles necessary, but... Is there anything here less expensive? I'll take a drop in quality, I... Just don't know if I'm free to take that much." Cass nervously looked back at Owen, wondering if he had anything to say towards that. Can I spend that much? Would I be comfortable doing that? I don't know...

Edited May 6, 2017 by Nanami Touko

[Xinnidy]

So it was a surprise to Adele too. Funny how Duke Herman kept these things secret to her, or maybe he thought she already had too much to worry about. "Indeed... well, he has good company there-- I just recalled it because of Captain Thwomp, the man seemed pretty intent on helping the boy when I was there." If Adele had faith in his own brother, then who was Owen to question? With his small concern answered for, he followed after Cass to the showcase, a small distance behind... though there was a passing mention from Adele that made him stagger his step.

"Me being off the table?" Owen repeated, furrowing his brows. He had poor luck figuring out the meaning of why, in part because he was holding himself out of making assumptions that would make the conversation... awkward. "I, hm... I don't get that... why that would worry him so much."

He caught a glimpse from Cass, needing some word from him. Drats, Owen wasn't paying attention to her conversation at all! That was embarrassing. "Ah, Cass?" He walked over to her side, "What's the matter, sister? These dresses look gorgeous, do they not catch your fancy?" Just at a glance, Owen knew they were pretty dazzling, and blue was a color Cassandra did enjoy wearing as far as he knew! What could it be?

Oh, it could be the price tag, couldn't it...

[SB.]

Claire smiled nervously as Nona seemed happier. She'd done the right thing, but had she done the right thing? By the sounds of things, the flighty woman was headed to same place as them - and she seemed to have a knack for making things awkward. She seemed to gloss over Charlotte's not-particularly-subtle hints to leave entirely, leaving them a little bit stuck. "Right..." Claire couldn't really think of what to say to any of that, but Nona wasn't finished just yet, it seemed.

"It's just a dress, isn't it?" She knew that the best made outfits could sell for ludicrous sums of money, but in the end it was just a piece of clothing. Was it really that important? The following smile was a little off-putting, but Claire did her best to shrug it off. "I don't imagine that they allow bears into the cathedral, no." That was of course, just the tip of the iceberg, but Angus getting married was... a strange sight to envision. Perhaps only because Claire knew it to be false, but still.

Edited May 6, 2017 by SB.

[Vestige]

So they say, indeed... "You think Malaphar is the one who created the substance? I'm not saying it's not possible, but it seems like far too much effort on his part to be collecting samples on something he knows how to craft," Alain replied. "Either way, I suppose it doesn't even matter who created it. Just that it exists, and Malaphar has some plan for using it that likely extends beyond the obvious." He sighed. This whole Malaphar ordeal was honestly more than he'd bargained for when he'd set out for Wyke. A simple diplomatic expedition had turned into a death sentence twice over. It would likely only be a matter of time before he'd be chatting with Belial once again, and he wasn't so sure if the demon would take pity on him a second time. 

"By the way, I wanted to ask you something. Since you managed to find me by tracing my aura, are there any others that you've come across? Here in the capital perhaps? I can't imagine you and I are the only ones... I've been meaning to get my hands on some more research notes--or scriptures even. It's hard to study the craft when I lack the proper material--and I have to go about it in secrecy on top of that," he admitted. 

[riariadne]

"Yes, Sylvester's has always had a good reputation... We were considering going there or somewhere similar to get ready ourselves, even though we got split up." Sidney did her best not to act annoyed at Nona- at least she was going to the same place, and it wasn't really her fault that they'd been interrupted what felt like infinite times beforehand. The details of the split-up scenario didn't feel very worth specifying, nor did correcting her on who would be going- but since dodging Nona seemed unlikely, perhaps extending friendship would work better. I guess Claire will be hungry for a while. "Maybe it would be good for us to all go together, in that case? I'm sure you'll be invited, wherever it is. Maybe someday soon enough, I'll get to be married at the cathedral..."

[Juliette]

"I don't know much about here either. Tytila is a lot bigger than Hull, and I've gone many times further in this journey than I ever had in my life before," Freya admitted. Serge's sudden laughter caught her off-guard a bit, but she didn't particularly empathize with said emotion, looking rather cross with him by comparison. "I'm doing as good a job as I can... I'm a city guard who got a sudden, seemingly random reassignment to protecting royalty instead, not someone with training for traveling. Do you want to go looking or not? Surely it's better to start looking than to laugh about things. There's probably places to go near the center of town, for starters." She started heading towards the city center, waving her hand for him to follow. "Let's be decisive, not ponder our difficulties."

[Shin]

Discount Section

The attendant didn't seem too bothered by Cass' request, watching her hand pause before it withdrew from the garment. "My apologies, it was unfair for me to assume that nobility of a wartorn nation would have suitable finances for our top range." he replied, leading the group deeper into the store. "Please, do follow. Hopefully I can find something more within your budget."

The next display only took a matter of seconds to reach, and it was rather obvious that there was a step down in quality. The gowns were simple, lacking the same delicate craftsmanship that the dresses from before possessed. There was still a simplistic charm to them, they were by no means of poor quality. Howver, the air of a fairytale wedding was mostly lacking from the dresses, their blue fabric representing more realistic expectations.

"These are our secondary range, rather popular among young merchants." he explained, gesturing to the second display. "Whilst not the finest we have to offer, these are still rather acceptable even among the lesser nobles. Hopefully nine hundred gold is a price that is more agreeable with your current situation?"

Suffering Suckatash

Nona laughed, tapping Claire on the shoulder gently. "Clothes are only as exciting as you want them to be. If there's someone you want to see you wear them, they mean a lot more." Nona replied dreamily, twirling past Claire whimsically to lead them forwards. "I think it's not too far, right, Charlotte? I had a brief walk around town with Decima yesterday, it would be so easy to spend all our time wandering around."

-

Sylvester's wasn't too far, the trio only needed a matter of minutes to reach it. The city had reached its peak of activity. However, Adele could be seen near the entrance. "Oh? Is that Lady Herman?" Nona asked, trying to get a good look at her through the crowded street. "I wonder if Princess Cassandra is with her? They spend ever so much time together, they must be close... friends."

[Nanami Touko]

"Oh, nothing like that brother, just... Well,  know we didn't bring a lot with us, and I've already spent so much on the rings. I don't wish to drain you over clothing. Once in a lifetime or not, it... Feels greedy, of me." The attended seemed fine with her request, though she wasn't quite sure if his comment was meant as sympathy or being bothered. She didn't wish to read into it too far, as they'd gotten further here than elsewhere. It would be foolish to step on toes and stop their venture now.

The second line of dresses definitely didn't share the same majestic qualities of the first, but Cass had never been about that. Of course, it would be perfect to have the one dress, but still, the fabric on these was well cut, their folds simple and charming in that way. This would do fine, and so would the price! That was far better than a monstrous three thousand. "Definitely! Definitely... I'm not a stickler for looks, so simple is fine by me, as well. So... I wish to ask, have..." Should I ask now? Or should she simply get herself checked in for it after? I... I don't know, but... Ugh, this is the same feeling I had on the way here. Having to hide this... It's disgusts me.

"N-Never mind," she muttered with a small glance back at Adele. "Shall we see about getting me fitted into one? I think we can afford that right away."

[riariadne]

Someone to see... Nona sure knows how to make things awkward without knowing it. "Yes, it's very close," Sidney spoke affirmatively, not putting her thoughts to words. The three of them made it to Sylvester's easy enough, and Adele was there too, so their guess had been a good one, though she was almost surprised that nobody had interrupted them on the way there. "That's her, I'm sure. And..." She darted her eyes through the store, the Wykian siblings' pink hair being noticeable to her when focused on. "That's Owen and Cassandra, surely. Excellent, everyone can get ready at once for it." She wove through the street, tapping on Lady Herman's shoulder. "We've found you again! Claire and Nona are here, as well. Hope we didn't take too long that it's all done, did we?"

[Ether]

Her suggestion had given Owen a bit of pause, though he was called over to help Cass before Adeltrudis could tease the Prince Regent further. Glancing over, it seemed that Cassandra had underestimated the price point on a fancy wedding dress. She was sure that the details would be shared later on, and Adele soon found herself with something else to draw her attention. It seemed that Charlotte had found her, with Claire, and Nona, apparently, close behind.

"Not quite, no. Cass is picking her piece right now... from the looks of it, the most elegant of gowns is a tad more expensive than she had thought... I'll... return on my own later on, to have my business taken care of. I think it's better that way." Adele replied, thinking of it after a moment. Charlotte didn't know what had happened past their arrest.

"As for earlier, Queen Ethel sorted that mess out, and assigned us one of the City Guards to deter... dissenters. He seems to have been effective so far."

[SB.]

"Is that it?" Claire thought that she got it, but there was only so much a reasonable person could spend on an object with no practical use. It was a relief, at least, to find that they weren't far now from their destination - and even more so once they spotted Adele near the building's entrance.

Nona's comment was curious, causing the mage to take a moment to ponder her reply. "Yes. She spends more time with her than she does with Angus, I think." The pegasus rider seemed more perceptive than she first appeared, but there was still no reason to blab about it in public - especially if the earlier events of the day were anything to go by.

Instead, she followed Charlotte into the shop, greeted by a sea of blue fabric. "Huh..." Claire had to admit that they were well made, even from the perspective of her ameteur eyes, but how expensive did that make them? Fortunately, it wasn't her wedding, and so it wasn't her problem either. Instead, she joined Charlotte and Adele, leaving Nona to wander along as she pleased. "I'm glad that you're both alright. That was quite a shock." Then again, with their newly assigned guard, Claire couldn't imagine that any of the citizens would want to mess with them again - and they obviously had some sort of approval from Tytila now.

[Dandragon]

"Alright. Alright. You lead, I follow." Serge had been able to stop himself from laughing, since Freya did not seem to appreciate any sort of humor at the moment, and soon regained his composure. And as they both walked to the center of town, Serge kept thinking about what Freya had said about her situation. About how her new role was suddenly thrust upon her, much like himself. They were two people who were given jobs that they weren't fully prepared for, and, in that sense, the two weren't so different from each other. Still, he kept silent, trying not to talk about his own problems, for the time being.

--

The center was full of many different shops, some of which full of lines of people trying to buy and sell, others were looking for customers that they desperately needed. But none of that mattered at the moment, as both Freya and Serge were looking around on all sides for their employers and companions. And Serge wasn't having any luck. "You see them anywhere, Freya?" He asked, still keeping an eye out for any familiar pink or red hair.

[Jotari]

"Hmm. Perhaps he's collecting it because he doesn't want anyone else having it" Constance speculated. "Though how someone else would get it in the first place is anyone's guess."

"I can't say I do know any other worshipers. At least not here. I've only recently moved to the city. My own scriptures I lose long ago. But I remember them well. If you have any questions then feel free to ask. I plan on attaching myself to your little group here for the foreseeable future. How do you fit into all this anyway? Prince's Owen's mercenary?"

[Jotari]

"Hmm. Perhaps he's collecting it because he doesn't want anyone else having it" Constance speculated. "Though how someone else would get it in the first place is anyone's guess."

"I can't say I do know any other worshipers. At least not here. I've only recently moved to the city. My own scriptures I lose long ago. But I remember them well. If you have any questions then feel free to ask. I plan on attaching myself to your little group here for the foreseeable future. How do you fit into all this anyway? Prince's Owen's mercenary?"

[Vestige]

"I suppose I'll be making use of your services in due time then," Alain muttered, somewhat disappointed by Constance's lack of contacts. "But no, I'm no mercenary," he said, giving Constance a skeptical look. Was that really her first impression of him? I'd make for a rather poor mercenary if I do say so myself. "I was working as an emissary to Wyke on behalf of Queen Ethel," he said.

[Jotari]

"Ah. I see" Constance muttered. "That makes more sense. Does that mean you are no longer attached to the prince and his entourage in any official capacity?"