Return of the Emblem Chapter Fifteen: Alliance

[Xinnidy]

"...Eh?" That sudden stutter was unusual of haruhi... at least as far as Thales knew from their week of interaction. Had he intruded in a subject that was taxing for her? His eye shifted to the other Kigenese woman in mild curiosity. "<Uh, should wait for Hoshi. Hoshi talk to Amon, so will tell you.>" She was the one affiliated with Weyland's, from the looks of it, so it made sense she would be the one leading them there. Right?

"<How are you feeling?>" Thales couldn't help prodding Haruhi after that, curious how she seemed much less comfortable than when she messed with him on the boat. "<Not good near soldier?>" He could share that sentiment, at least.

[Nanami Touko]

"<Uh... Yeah. Not... Not good around soldiers... Or, here. Here at all. Not good...>" She didn't want to talk about it, hoping Thales would leave things alone with just that. She didn't know him enough to delve into her sob story... And hopefully she never would. That was something she never wanted to relive. <Being here is reliving it plenty though... Isn't it?>

[Toogee]

On 8/20/2017 at 5:03 PM, Phoenix said:

Business

"Huh?" Greta got the first part of what Jamilla had said, but the part about Pete threw her for a loop and her self assessment made the merchant laugh. "Hah, I guess ya would, but it's more about makin' sure I can do business here and be taken serious. I need one'a the guys to 'help' out with that," she explained, keeping her voice down as a precaution.

 

13 hours ago, -Cynthia- said:

Nadya

Nadya decided to lead Luca over to where Greta was to check on things- she seemed to be talking with Jam. Jam knows Greta from before she met us, right? Maybe she wants to help too.

"Hey y'all. Need any help from me? Not sure how much use I'll be tryin' to convince armies to help us, but I figured I should try and do somethin'," Nadya offered.

 

"Greta's gonna open shop while Shad distracts the locals with his 'manliness', I guess," Jam replied, still a little weirded out about how business was done in Kigen. "I'm sure Shad can have three cousins, right Greta?" 

[Ether]

"<It's just a lot to think about... don't mind me, it's good to see you letting loose for once. It just probably won't end up anywhere fancy unless something really good happens today.>" Angelica replied, giving Eva a light smile. Despite everything, stifling her enthusiasm when it was finally blooming wasn't a good idea.

***

"<You can choose not to believe if you want.>" Rin replied to Hoshi's disbelief with a shrug, continuing to lean further into said shrug as the woman lashed out, apparently rather protective of Haruhi, Rin supposed that was a good thing, if she was really to teach the young mage.

"<She knows I mean well, but fine. You seem to care, which is better than I expected when she first mentioned a new teacher.>" Rin eventually relented with a sigh, as that Thales fellow came back over, apparently they were going straight to... Weyland Enterprises? That made reasonable enough sense for a group of what seemed to be mostly foreigners, but the man's news caused a small relapse in Haruhi, causing Rin to scowl.

"<She's not good around soldiers, men, this country as a whole... that's just how things go here. Try to be more careful if you're a friend.>"

[Phoenix]

On the Way Down

The hold was a good ways below, though the trip hadn't taken long. When the trio arrived, the captain, Lexi, was standing patiently beside one of the customs agents while the other man inspected the ship's cargo to his satisfaction. "Excuse me," Joanna waved to get their attention, "When the both of you have a moment, we'd like to have a word with you."

The customs agent squinted at Joanna, his eyes darting around her waist at high speed, likely looking for signs of a tail hidden either just out of view, or beneath her dress. "Avian, I presume?" He got an immediate nod from Joanna, though he didn't look completely convinced. Naturally.

Lexi shrugged. "We can talk now, sure. That guy's still lookin' in every other crate, and we ran out of things to talk about a while ago."

Reevaluation

With Daichi and his entourage heading out, Amon took a moment to reevaluate the situation. They had the ear--at least temporarily--of someone who answered directly to the Emperor. That was good. They still had the Ursians and Neviskotians to worry about. That, obviously, wasn't good. Then there was Ra. He could apparently make Amon say things as well as choke him out from a distance. That was potentially disastrous, regardless of Ra's motives. Worse still, Amon didn't know how to counter that kind of power. At present, the only option that even sounded feasible was putting the emblem at a great enough distance to cut off Ra's power source. If Amon could think of that, though ... surely Ra had, too. Come to think of it, perhaps Amon's ability to move freely, away from the ship, was why Ra hadn't appeared, yet. Maybe he was conserving what energy he still had, in case Amon actually tried that.

Shelving the nigh untenable Ra situation, Amon thought back to some more minor issues, chiefly Norbert, who was for all intents and purposes, missing. Hopefully he would come back on his own, but if he was still gone by nightfall, they ought to try tracking him down. Possibly even before nightfall. Maybe Joanna could help, there. Next to mind was the matter of Greta and her wagon. Depending on how long it took her to get a custom wagon built, they might be here more than a single day. It was probably better to simply convince her to purchase a normal wagon, and put off a custom built one until the situation changed.

With Hoshi's return, the time for wading through the current mess was over. They needed to head over to Weyland Enterprises, and soon. "The group's already a bit scattered, but we should still go, yeah. We'll treat it like a base while we're in town." Oh right, he hadn't mentioned the meeting, yet. "One more thing ... we're going to tell Daichi about the ... 'gate problem,' a little later. Talking about it out in the open isn't a good idea, so if we can set up a meeting room or something for that, we should." Ra had more or less designated Weyland's as the meet location, so there was no helping it, now.

Helping

"Shadrak can have as many cousins as he wants," Greta shrugged in amusement, "as long as it makes sense. I just don't wanna push our luck over a cover story." As for helping out, it still wasn't clear to what degree each member in the group would be able to contribute, but as a healer, Nadya was already set. Convincing the Kigenese to help might require more than just a familiarity with the language, though. For her part, and for her sake, Greta was more concerned with making sure she could get her business back on its legs again, and in doing so, she could support the group with supplies, and probably even information, as time went along. She had to start here in Arugai, though.

"I'm just handlin' supplies, really," Greta reminded Nadya, "but maybe. Ya never know how ya might get someone's ear." She pictured some important person getting injured and Nadya treating them herself. The imaginary official's gratitude couldn't be understated, and it was opportunities like those where, Greta knew, a woman could turn a bad situation around with ease. "For now I guess see if Amon and Hoshi can figure this out, but if ya see a chance to win someone over to our side, take it. That's what I'm doin'. Same goes to you, Jam."

Edited August 30, 2017 by Phoenix

[-Cynthia-]

"Makin' friends with Kigenese officials was never really my strong suit, but I'll try my best. I bet we'll be runnin' into a lot of folks who need healin' anyway," Nadya replied with a shrug.

[scorri]

Hoshi winced slightly when Amon said that Daichi would be coming back to Weyland's but realistically she knew that had been a likelihood. He was their best chance at talking to the emperor. Hopefully things would go smoothly and she wouldn't be needed to talk to him too much. "Ah that... that shouldn't be a problem. I'm sure that there are plenty of, uhm, rooms to meet in." She smiled, hopefully covering up slightly just how nervous she was. "If you want to make sure we have everyone, we can go now though."

~~~~~~~~~~

Lumi followed quietly along behind the two avians, waiting patiently while they found Lexi. She did quickly speak up though when the captain said that she could talk now. "If you don't mind... I would like to ask you something too. It won't take long, don't worry."

[Xinnidy]

Well, Haruhi did seem to be bothered by something, as she affirmed. Thales came to expect a bit by this point that things were different in Kigen, and she didn't like it there, but to be bothered this much. "<Just... here?>" He repeated, a bit confused, though Rin quickly intervened, and explained the situation a little bit better. There was a bit of a pattern, but Thales was hard-pressed to accept it after such an understanding talk with a man that important to their military. "<Is it really that bad?>" He pressed on. It'd be better to clear up everything right now, anyways. It'd be good to know what he should be more careful about, in its certainty. "<What should I do and not do?>" The question was directed mostly at Rin, but Haruhi was free to answer it as well.

[Nanami Touko]

"<Eh? I'm letting loose? What... do you do, once the leash is on?>" She figured it was something perverted, but was it really that bad? :<Well, whatever...> Hey, Hoshi! What's the destination?" Eva decided to intrude on the boss' conversation, now that Daichi had walked off. She probably would've made some mistake with her anger if he'd been around.

---

"<Yes, it's that bad. So if we're talking to soldiers, and I get quiet, or try to look for a way out of the room, just... Just help me, please.>" She didn't think that her family would care, but she had run away from home. It was deeper into the country, so likely, no guard at port would notice, or care. She didn't want to chance any attention either way. "<You... Might have to pretend to be my cousin, or something. To keep me out of trouble. Or... Worse than my cousin.>"

[Ether]

"<Wouldn't you like to know? Don't worry, once things calm down a bit, I'll show you a good time.>" Angelica replied with a smirk, stepping back a bit as Eva asked Hoshi what was going to happen next.

***

"<I think cousin at best should be fine. I won't be having anyone taking advantage of my little Haru-run in a time of need.>" Rin interjected with a light scowl. At least people would raise an eyebrow if her 'cousin' started to feel her up, other forms of intermediaries were either too unbelievable or too exposed.

[Nanami Touko]

"<Cousin probably won't be fine, Rin... He's from Ursium. And if any of the other women on the boat are using the same excuse, then... He m-might have to pretend he's my boyfriend.>" Haruhi felt herself shake from the thought, looking at Thales for a second. "<If you're willing to help, that is...>"

[Ether]

Narrowing her eyes at the pair of them, Rin looked from Thales to Haruhi with a contemplative expression, alternating between nodding and shaking her head.

"<This guy? Your boyfriend? I dunno... doesn't look like boyfriend material to me.>" Rin retorted with a dismissive wave, before moving closer to Thales.

"<But let me get this straight with you, Longhair Boypants. If the situation does come up that you have to claim to be Haru-run's... anything, if I find out about any sketchy business out of you, I'm breaking your legs. Capisce?>"

[Xinnidy]

"<That bad...>" So Haruhi preferred to avoid contact with the soldiers if possible, huh? Well, pushing into the full reasoning would definitely not be good out in the open, so that would be a conversation he'd need to have later. What came as a surprise was Haruhi's proposal. "<Eh, cousin...? Worse?>" Thales blinked. It didn't need saying that trying to pass as cousins, or any sort of blood-relation, would be a stretch. He was a crimson-haired Ursian, and she was a mildly tan, black haired Kigenese girl. The only thing they had in common was their eye color, both a relatively light hue of blue. He didn't even speak Kigenese that well!

Quickly, Rin protested to the notion, which had Thales step back. "<I... I am not taking-->" It was a bit jarring to be suspected so suddenly. What had he done wrong now?! "<I... I mean, Haruhi has point. We not... look much alike.>" And there it was, she suggested he'd pass as her boyfriend... a very strange predicament. "<I...>" Was it really his business? He supposed Haruhi did end up being one of the people he talked the most to in the boat, even if she was a bit of a bully. All things considered, she did also end up having to follow the group around back to Kigen due to her predicament. "<If, makes Haruhi more comfortable. Can do.>" All things considered, there were people that could pull off the 'boyfriend' part much better, but maybe that was the point, so Haruhi wouldn't feel too uncomfortable by it.

And Rin... oh boy. "<What boyfriend material? Want to point out?>" Thales couldn't resist a bit of a scoff, crossing his arms in defiance. Rin's accusation felt a bit rude. Sure, he didn't look the part, but would she be fine with Haruhi playing pretend with a --f-for lack of better words only-- manlier man? "<What you think I will pull?>" Break his legs? Honestly, that... he didn't even know what she just called him. Was that slang for something? Was she making fun of his pants?

[Nanami Touko]

"<Do you even know what boyfriend material is? And would you just... Rin!>" Haruhi put herself square between Thales and the girl, scowling her down. "<Threats like that are not a game. And I don't want to hear anymore of them! You... You leave him alone. He's been plenty nice to me this past week, and he hasn't tried to 'pull' anything. So back off!>" Rin had been parading around like she was Haruhi's mother since she'd gotten back. She didn't have to take this level of coddling, or having people she'd considered a friend threatened.

"<I'm f-fine with it. I'll even hold his hand, if I have to... So just, step off.>"

[Snike]

"I hope Daichi doesn't lead the Ursians or Skotians right to us, though," Pete said, frowning. "It sounds like he's going to approach them next, so they might've just been handed our exact location."

Sure, it meant that they could try and resolve the situation all at once, but it also meant that they had nowhere reliable to hide out if things took a turn for the worse.

[Ether]

"Tch..." Rin muttered, of all the times for Haruhi to grow a spine, it was going to be now, when she had gotten just enough of a taste of fresh air to think she understood everything and could walk without worry. Only weeks before she had stumbled headlong into a group of highwaymen without a care in the world, and if it hadn't been for a certain passerby, she would have been a cold corpse by now. And nothing she had seen from the mage on their way out of Kigen told Rin that she truly understood everything going on around her... Rin had only let her go off on her own so soon because she was supposed to leave for a better place, and now this.

"<Fine. Don't say I didn't warn you.>" She eventually replied, rather coldly, as she turned around and rested her hands behind her head.

[Xinnidy]

Haruhi's sudden interjection was surprising but very welcome. If he was being honest, Thales would probably back down after a few more threats and leave the two of them --come on, she couldn't just throw shade on him like that then try to break his legs! He liked his legs... "<Haruhi been with us all ship journey long. Not want to try anything, would have before if wanted.>" It was a bit of a bad statement to be making, but wouldn't that be a logical thing to do? To give him some credit since he wasn't treating her poorly already? Thales sighed nonetheles. "<Not Kigenese man. Be more easy...>" Was he really that much of a potential evildoer in Rin's eyes? What did she think he would do, Thales wondered...

[Nanami Touko]

"<Warn me about what? He's had plenty of chances to try anything... Calm down.>" Rin could go and be this angry little pile all she wanted, Haruhi knew how Kigen worked. And you needed a man at your side to get through a lot of things. Having Thales around would work just fine. Why did Rin think it was such a big issue?

"<Sorry, Thales... I don't know what her deal is. She... Just really doesn't like guys, I guess. You'll never get a proper husband, even outside of Kigen, if you're like that though, Rin. A-Anyway... It'll be fine. If you want to help, then... You can do that, for me. Should be easy. Just, don't read too far into it, or anything.>"

[Xinnidy]

"<Alright...>" Haruhi didn't need to apologize for Rin's behavior, but Thales accepted it nonetheless. "<We should... only when you need to.>" In situations like now where she was safe, it'd make sense to just act as always. There was a bit of tension rising between the two Kigenese girls over this, which certainly made Thales feel awkward as the catalyst...

As Haruhi started ranted over how Rin seemed to hate guys, Thales blinked, shifting glances between Haruhi and Rin. It seemed something dawned on him. It did make sense, with the way she addressed Haruhi possessively and with a nickname, but would it be smart to point that out? Well... probably not.

Still, "<Maybe Rin like girls.>" He stated out flatly, as casual as any other topic he'd addressed before. "<So would not look for guy.>" It wasn't jarring to him, as he explained it briefly.

Edited August 31, 2017 by Xinnidy

[Nanami Touko]

Haruhi looked at Thales fairly blanking, glanced at Rin, and then almost laughed at him. "<Hah. You're crazy... She's not like the tall idiot over there. There's no way she'd be someone like that. Geez, joke about that and she really will break your legs. Actually, don't joke about that at all. You could get into trouble talking about that sort of stuff here.>" She supposed Thales didn't know, or hadn't been paying too much attention to Hoshi's explanation. If he needed a refresher, she'd give him one.

[Ether]

Thales and Haruhi were discussing... something or other. Rin had covered enough distance by this point that she couldn't really hear what they were saying without explicitly trying to, which she didn't feel like doing at the moment. Had she gotten too attached? Possibly. She just didn't want to see another naive, innocent kid get swallowed up and eaten away, but would it be better to do things from the shadows?

Possibly. It was what she was good at, to be certain. At the very least, she knew where they would be staying, and a group that conspicuous couldn't leave town without her noticing.

[Xinnidy]

"<... Eh, really? But...>" Were things really this bad? Merz... Thales was going to argue it wasn't really a crazy thing, even use his example, but now it seemed like a terrible idea... "<...Nothing.>" He held the side of his arm, growing a bit uncomfortable as he pondered the social norms in Kigen. "<Will keep in mind.>" Best to stick with it, and keep his mouth shut. Rin seemed to be done talking to them as well. Huh? "<Did, upset her?>" Was assuming her of being gay really that offensive in Kigen? Oh dear.

[Phoenix]

Surprise

"How in Sardius ..." Shadrak couldn't even finish his thought. The last person he expected to see handling reception at Weyland Enterprises in this Kigenese port town was Anna, herself. How did she get here ahead of them? Granted, it'd taken them about two weeks to get here, but they were only on the water for half that time, a very fast trip even by conventional standards. Since he hadn't been the first to enter the lobby, others seemed to have had a little time to come down from the shock, and Anna was conversing with Amon and Hoshi about their accommodations. The druid made his way over to catch as much of the exchange as he still could.

"There's room on the property, even for the extra wagons, but just enough," Anna warned with an apologetic smile, "Try not to block the gate in that area, though."

"Right," Amon nodded, still a bit confused but committed to getting the important matters settled, first.

"Hey, Anna," Shadrak chimed in once he was close enough. The main discussion seemed to be wrapping up anyway. "When did you get here, exactly?"

"Yesterday. Why?"

She sure got around ... "No reason," Shadrak shook away the other questions forming. She got around more quickly than they could; that was easy enough to understand. "We just hauled it as hard as we could to get here, and you still got here ahead of us. That's impressive."

"Well I'm glad you're impressed, so I'll keep my travel routes a secret for now," Anna smirked, "It's more interesting that way."

Cargo

Just outside and on the street, Greta waited with her wagon for news. If all went well, they could just keep everything on the property while they handled their business in Arugai. Roughly half an hour had passed since she'd left the Darklighter Idolus and come down onto the docks with her wagon, and now they were waiting here, enduring the occasional interested gazes of the commoners, traders, and guards. Weyland Enterprises itself was something of a hybrid property, architecturally speaking. The gates surrounding the property were of Kigen's style, while the main building was distinctly Ursian, and the smaller, single story attachments and storage buildings were Kigenese. There were a lot of vehicles on the property, mostly wagons with a carriage mixed in here and there, and that had Greta wondering how much room was left for her group's accommodations.

Greta was also worried about Canaan. Her talk with Nena hadn't gone ideally, and the merchant was sure Nena regretted being completely open and honest with her about the contents of the chest she'd had loaded into Greta's wagon. In hindsight, it had been for the best. Their relationship as employer and employee would have suffered mightily if the girl hadn't been honest about it. That aside, Greta needed to know about anything illegal Nena was planning on doing ... especially this. They hadn't been here in Kigen for more than an hour and they had already broken one of the most important laws on the books. That would be downright laughable if it wasn't so blasted dangerous ...

"I'm going to have to move this chest up into my room so I can sort through it, again," Nena said, her words having more meaning to Greta than most, "It's really heavy, though ..."

"Our guys have had enough for now," Greta grimaced, "see if some of the people here can carry it up to a room for ya."

[Nanami Touko]

Eva sat on Sasha, slowly plodding up next to Greta's Wagon. They weren't exactly being let into Weyland's yet, but that was fine. Actually getting away from the docks and into the town proper, that was a huge boost to her morale. That damn boat had haunted her for that week. She never got seasick, but real land was just so much better. Pulling Sasha up to the front of Greta's wagon and patting him to stop and sit, Eva looked over at the woman. "Any news on when we're getting let in? Not that I mind all the looks we're getting, but... The lizard might be spooking some of the townspeople. Oh, hey. Who's this?" Eva didn't recognize the other woman there with her, wondering if she'd just missed her in the group or if she was a recent pickup.

---

Haruhi kept a close walk next to Thales through most of the town, heading inside alongside Shadrak and Amon. It was quite striking to see a building so distinctively not Kigenese in Arugai, offsetting enough to help her regain some of her calm. It was like a... Really tiny Ursium, right in the middle of the city. "<Nice building,>" she mumbled at Thales, as Shadrak got himself into a conversation with the red haired woman at the counter. She was really pretty, her hair very striking. Red wasn't a color you'd see on someone's head around here. But, they were all speaking common again, so she couldn't do much but wait and look about the reception area.

[Phoenix]

Introductions

"Sorry," Greta shook her head at Eva's first question, "no word, yet. As for my friend here, she's Nena. Joined up after we left Urquium ... got kinda caught up in everythin'."

"Carried into while unconscious, you mean," Nena clarified, "It could be worse. At least I'm not alone. Anyway, hi," she gave a small wave to the wyvern rider.

Meanwhile on the Darklighter

By the time the customs officials had looked over the Darklighter's cargo and decided to allow entry, Lexi had gotten the gist of Lumi's request. She'd also agreed to it, though had been quick to point out that her next destination wasn't Ursium, but Tracea. She'd been willing to make a short detour to Port Sergio first, but would need to know in advance. Lexi wasn't planning on leaving again until after the Ursians and Neviskotians finished shooting each other and the Kigen blockade broke up, which would probably be a couple of days at this rate, longer than she had planned, but well within her flexible treasure hunting schedule. The conversation had wound up moving to the dining area since the customs agents decided to address the avians there.

Things hadn't gone nearly so smoothly on that front. The customs agents insisted on checking for classic signs of fallen anatomy and affinity before allowing the two to move around in town. That amounted to checking for tails, signs thereof, unusual nail bed shapes common to the fallen on both hands and feet, signs of fang reduction, eye shifting tests, and even a demonstration of light magic from the both of them. These people were uncomfortably thorough, but understandably so, Joanna accepted. Once it was over, the two were asked to wait aboard the Darklighter Idolus while one of them would fetch some badges for them. Apparently these badges were meant only to inform the authorities that the avians had passed initial inspection and weren't demons or a notable threat. They could still be retested by any authority figure on the spot if they were found unsupervised, but it was better than nothing.

To pass the time while waiting, they returned to Lumi and Captain Lexi, to see how the former was doing, and to inform the latter that they would be stuck on the ship a while longer. They found the captain treating Lumi to a drink, there. "That was uncomfortable," Joanna admitted with a sigh. She'd had to nearly disrobe to prove she didn't have a tail hidden anywhere, and that was one of a series of checks Liam and she were put through. "We have to stay here until they give us our badges, Captain."

"That's fine," Lexi shrugged, "get comfortable, I guess," she chuckled.