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Return of the Emblem Chapter Fifteen: Terra Incognita


Phoenix
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The only sounds were the food being prepared.  Both of them.  No trust.  Not even here.

She asked.  They all asked.

They knew why.  They all learned.

A meal ate in silence.

Always so chatty elsewhere.

Guilt?  No, never.

There was nothing more to be said.  One did not need to describe "green" grass.

No, there was one thing.

He set aside his rice.  "The fallen may be attacking soon."

"What."

"Make sure things are ready in case you need to leave immediately."  They should always be ready.  "If you don't see me again soon, leave.  Head south."

"No, seriously, even for one of your 'jokes' this is lousy."

"Stay if you want, that's your choice.  Just pass it along to Klara and Elena."

Maya slammed her bowl down.  "Dammit, you always do this!  Can't you have a meal that doesn't involve blood and death for once?"

"Never."

Maya grunted at the typical reply.  "Typical.  Absolutely typical."  She pushed her face into her hands in frustration.  "Fine.  We'll throw away our livelihood on a whim."  She peeked out between her fingers.  "Wouldn't be the first time."

"Your lives are your own."

She sighed.  "No, no they're not."

He finished his rice and left.

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Dining Hall

"It's hard to find anyone of completely unimpeachable reputation in the Conclave- politics and all. If we could get someone from the royal family maybe...but it is likely too dangerous to even ask," Veronika thought aloud.

Lysandra considered whether she would be more useful going on this hunting expedition or staying behind. I'm not as young as I used to be- and a little rusty as well. That axeman could have been the end of me if he had wished it. Perhaps I shouldn't push my luck with the demons if my assistance is not required.

Capital Sky

Weyland Enterprises could use something like a dragon delivery service. I don't think the military would be very happy about that though... "Nice to meet you Vali and Costin. So...do humans help you do the loading? It doesn't seem like it would be easy to grab most things with your hands," Connor asked.

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Dining Hall

"Yes," Tatiana almost chuckled as the absurdity that might ensue came to mind, "there would be an annoying but mostly harmless accusation or two thrown at us out of spite if we mentioned the royal family as potential witnesses. If one of them volunteered themselves or sent one of their representatives with us, that would be another matter, but I don't know where the Prince is at the moment, and the Emperor hasn't been willing to see most people, lately." She assumed a Guardian could still net themselves an audience, but other than that ...

Raquel couldn't add anything to the political side of things, but she suspected she was a mandatory asset for the scouting party. "So ... who else is going? I'm going so that means Dad is ..."

"Yep," Jethro nodded.

"Robin wanted to go ..." Raquel continued, "I think Lane should come with us too, but you should change into something that won't slow you down in the woods, first."

Reign wasn't sure what he was going to do just yet. He didn't mind going to help out, but he also had to look after Sirius. Bringing her could lead to any number of problems, and that was before considerations like magically induced wildfires. There was nothing like being a divine babysitter leave one with their hands tied. "I'll stay unless you think you'll need me. Sirius is probably going to be able to cast soon and that's not going to be easy to deal with."

The mention of Sirius gave Zachary an idea, but it wasn't one he could suggest. It was just too risky ... --yes Sirius was immortal, but that didn't mean they should risk letting any harm come to her. That wouldn't sit well no matter how powerful she might be. The idea was simple enough; since she was a fallen, perhaps she could interact with demons without being attacked. It was a long shot though, which was why he couldn't even suggest it. They would just have to make due with whatever demon tracking skills they could bring to bear.

Capital Sky

"Yes," Vali nodded, "They load containers, we and others fly them to destination or next warehouse. They also unload containers and we fly empty ones back. Long work days," he chuckled.

It sounded like the humans did all the ground work, while the dragons got bulk shipments moved to wherever they needed to go. They were basically flying cargo vessels. The best Ursium could do by air travel would be to give a pegasus courier an extremely light load and send out dozens of them. A service like that simply couldn't handle large or heavy materials. It made Gabbie wonder if this was perhaps one of the biggest factors in Neviskotia's fleet advantage. The military could probably use their dragons for more than just fighting. Perhaps what Vali and Costin here were doing, was the same thing the military did with some of their dragons when they weren't needed for battle.

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Erion was slightly surprised to hear Amalia question his powers and as planning turned away from faking a demon and more towards other alternatives, he quietly explained to her, "It's the power I gained from the Emblem. I used it once, during the whole fight on our way to Nyx, but I've been working on it some since then. Cassandra... Raquel's double. She helped me some. I have a better grasp of it now than I did at least. I still need practice though." Hopefully that would jog her memory. Not that he could really blame her for forgetting. It had been a rather stressful experience. Still, no need to focus on it now.

"Shall we get some food then? They seem to have things figured out for now. Best to get some food while we have the chance, no?" He winked at her with a small smile, still holding loosely onto her hand, finding a nice comfort in the warmth of her skin against his.

~~~~~~~~

Uri had finished his small breakfast as the group discussed their options and finally spoke up, "If you're going out, you'll need a healer. I can join with you for that purpose. While you're not planning on fighting, if you're going to be anywhere near demons, it's not worth risking going out without a healer. Plus I can always do some scouting if needed." It was a dangerous proposition, flying where there might be Fallen, but if it was what the group needed, he'd be willing to help them out in a way that wasn't fighting.

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Xenia

She expected misinterpretation, but whatever.  XANTHIPPE wasn't much to go trottin' around in some forest.  "Think I'm gonna be sittin' this one out," said Xenia.  "I don't know if I can even get out of this arrangement, and XANTHIPPE, dear girl, isn't nimble enough to be walkin' around woods anymore."  She'd seriously have to start thinking of getting a new mount soon.  "I'll try and come up with something else, to earn my keep here at least."  Not that she could.

Talk is Cheap

There were other locations he needed to check.  Investigate.  Appropriate.  But there was only one other piece of outstanding business.

Last Rights.

All-day, all-night bar sitting at that perfect balance of affordable and clean.  One night a raunchy noble might drop by, or the next some common who'd gotten a bit of extra pay from shoveling shit.

At the moment, it was well-packed but even quick glance could spy open seats.  It wasn't late enough for the floodgates of melancholic commoners to come flooding in trying to drown their sorrows.  Just the ones without work.

He took up one of the three remaining seats at the bar, and a look at the bartender brought her over.

Bushy red hair, deep blue eyes, loads of make-up and a dress that accented her figure.

Vesta.

"What'll you have?" she asked, a wink with it.

Keep up the facade, always.  "Finger of vodka."

"Comin' right up."

She poured him into a dirty glass and he paid for the swill.

"Don't get many Rexians up here.  What's your business, hun?  If you don't mind me askin'?"

"I'm here to hunt."

"Certainly better pickin's than that desert."

Lousy desert.  "Something like that."

"Oh?  My, my, maybe this is a hunt of a different kind?  I know a girl or two with a thing for your types, if your types happen to have a lot of gold on hand."

"Stop teasin' the boy, Vanessa," some half-drunk slop broke in.

"Now, now, Dima, you know I only have an eye for the bar."

"To the wails of every man here!"

"Cheer!"

"And some of the women too!" some woman added in.

"Cheer!"

"You lot sure do make a girl feel loved."  She was probably blushing beneath the make-up.  "Drinks are half-off for the next five minutes!"

"ya-ha!"

Vesta got to pouring out drinks for the whole rest of the bar while Gar subtly poured away his drink.  "Had a hunter blow through, not long before you," she said after finishing her task.  "Strong, silent type.  Really loved his guns."

What was Boss doing here?  "And?"

"Maybe I know where he went if you wanna go huntin' together."

Something big was going on?

"I'm here to hunt ravens, I doubt he is."

"Ravens?"  The implication caught her off-guard.  "They're not... easy, around here..."

"Got a trusted source on this."

"I see... well, good hunting."

"Thanks for the drink."

He left.

The Guild would know.

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"That makes two healers, then, since I'm going. I'll change in a few minutes," Lane said, mourning the impending loss of his robes. They were really comfortable, even if they were cumbersome at times... "I'm bringing my bodyguard, of course. We're not leaving before the conclave meeting, though, are we?"

As for the escort problem, well, he didn't have an answer for that, to be honest. But it might not matter, provided they find the gate's location in a timely manner.

Edited by Snike
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Dining Hall

"Emperor Anton took the death of Empress Yelena hard," Veronika said sympathetically. "Not to get off the topic of the demon hunt, but has the rumor that Fox Antonov is actually the bastard son of Emperor Anton reached the capital? All lies of course, but it could be a lead into Queen Yelena's killer- and makes me worry for the safety of Prince Deniska."

The mention of Sirius caught Lysandra's attention. There is something odd going on here... "Well, I am an experienced magic tutor. I would be happy to give Sirius a lesson as best as I am able if her two fathers aren't too overprotective," she said to Reign and Zach with a small chuckle.

Capital Sky

"Humans and dragons working together to achieve common goals..." Connor wondered out loud. "So...do some dragons own property and have humans work for them as maids and cooks and such?  Or do dragons just live in the mountains and stuff?" he asked. He couldn't get the image out of his head of a dragon wearing a top hat and monocle that he knew was ridiculous but wouldn't go away.

Edited by -Cynthia-
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Dining Hall

"I hadn't heard anything about it until you all showed up," Tatiana explained. "All most people know about Fox is that he's abnormally dangerous for a fleet commander. The navy has been trying to capture or kill him for years and they rarely get him in their sights."

Jethro shrugged. "He's not much to look at, but Cygnus respects him. The guy was practically running the meeting when we were there."

Reign didn't even have a frame of reference for Fox just yet, so he focused on Lysandra's offer. "We'd both appreciate it, though ... I'm not sure how helpful it would be. Sirius isn't an ordinary magic user." Neither was he, but the devil was in the details. The fire mage had to acquire this strange Gestalt Order to become a mage that could teach the growing vasilus properly. If he hadn't gotten that rune, it was anyone's guess as to how effective he would have been. Even now, Reign wasn't sure he would be all that effective a teacher. It wouldn't be for a lack of trying, in either case.

Capital Sky

"Yes, we have lots of good things here," Vali answered broadly. He took a moment to put together a more detailed answer as they flew along. "Let's see ... some of us live away from cities. Others live in outskirts where property is spacious. Village dragons have best living conditions, I think. I remember a citizen being allowed to have two assistants paid for by government. Assistants do business for you and go to places too small for adults. Military servicedrakes can have ten assistants paid for by government. Costin has home assistant, but Tudor company helps us. 'Worker benefits.'"

Interpreting the answer, Gabbie concluded that these assistants were personal aids assigned to dragons to handle their day to day business for them. Why a military dragon needed as many as ten of them was beyond her, but perhaps being away on deployment might require a larger staff to handle things back at home. Some of these assistants might even go on deployment with them, come to think of it. What stuck out most to Gabbie was that these aids were paid for by the government. Neviskotia's dragons seemed to get some extremely favorable treatment. It was no wonder, given their raw power and all around usefulness.

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Dining Hall

"Cygnus and Fox are definitely planning something big together... I wish I knew what it was. But one crisis at a time I suppose, who are we bringing from the Conclave to this demon hunt?  We need someone of unimpeachable character or at least with that reputation," Veronika asked.

"Oh it's quite clear she's no ordinary girl, dear. But we must try our best- any magical academy in Ursium or Neviskotia would have no idea what to do with her," Lysandra opined. 

Capital Sky

Assistants paid for by the government- I thought dragons might be treated like pets or servants but they're almost distinguished citizens. "So what are dragon families like? Are most dragons raised with their siblings by their mother and father?" Connor continued to interrogate Vali. It was difficult for Connor to imagine a group of dragons living under one roof- every dragon would need an estate or a huge series of caves for that to work. 

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Dining Hall

"I think I'm going to ask the Grand Marshall," Tatiana answered her sister, glancing at the floor, "She's the highest ranking officer in the army and she was the one that called this meeting. I'll take a little heat for being so forward, but it might work. She likely won't go with us herself, though. More likely she'll send someone she trusts to give a fair assessment. Maybe we'll get lucky and she'll pick Aleksey. Even if not, someone's better than no one. Whoever we take, we'll have to get the general discussion postponed, first."

Reign sighed just thinking about how the instructors at Horizon would botch Sirius' training. It wasn't enough for them to treat every student the same way, at their own detriment, but they would just have to try and give her that killer instinct, the army's mages were known for. Given how important Sirius' state of mind was, that was the last thing they needed. "Well, I do welcome the help," he shrugged.

Capital Sky

Vali looked a little perplexed at first. "Siblings are ... rare," he began, choosing his words carefully, "Parents raise child, then go separate ways. Sometimes they come back together. Sometimes not."

Dragons were purportedly rare, though Gabbie thought that had less to do with birthrates and more to do with the ridiculously high number of them present in the Neviskotian military. If siblings were rare, then most dragon pairings were only raising one child at a time. If not for their long lifespans, they likely wouldn't be able to keep their numbers stable over time. The constant wars couldn't be doing them any favors.

... were dragons an endangered species? Sure there numbers weren't on a rapid decline--there would be an uproar and they would have heard about it on the way in--but there were still comparatively few of them. It was an interesting thought ... a sobering thought.

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"Oh... I see. What a strange little gift to be given, especially by the Emblem... I wonder why it gave you that? Hmm... A-Ah, of... Of course..." Oh Mercy he was winking now, and Uriel was right there. There was no way she was getting out of explaining things now... Or getting lectured at. What a mess... Maybe something good from the kitchen would take her mind off of things. A nice fluffy pancake or... Or something. It was difficult to ignore how bright her cheeks were getting.

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"Mmm, if I had to guess? It fits my talents of the... less than legal kind, but also gives me versatility. It lets me help people. Helps me fight back. I can disguise myself, learn things that I couldn't otherwise. That sort of thing. Get places I wouldn't normally be able to get. But, of course that's all conjecture." She was blushing and getting flustered. Ah, right. There was Uri. He'd embarrassed her again. A small sigh of disappointment with himself, he nodded. "Right then. Lets go." He headed off to the kitchen with her, hoping that perhaps Uri was too distracted to notice everything going on.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Thankfully for Amalia, Uri was focused on the discussion at hand, and not his companion. "Would support from an Avian help in this discussion? I will be honest, I do not know much of how the Neviskotians view us. But if lending my voice to yours would help, I would be willing." Anything that I can do to help that doesn't require fighting is something I need to do.

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  • 3 weeks later...

Lane didn't get a direct answer to his question, mainly because the subject of discussion had shifted to another, equally important issue- that of Fox Antonov's heritage, to be exact. Regardless, it was answered when Veronika brought up the subject of who would be coming along. Well, it looked like he could delay abandoning his robes a little longer. But, would he?

"I'm going to go grab the search map, then," the Servant of Nyx said, as he got up from his table. "Just to get a head start on picking where to search. Raquel, could you stick around here a little longer? I might have an idea."

 

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Dining Hall

"An idea?" Raquel wondered if Lane wanted to do more emblem related tests. She supposed she was always fine with that. It didn't really take a toll on her on the whole. "Sure, I'll wait here."

"Looking for a shortcut?" Jethro half smirked at Lane.

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"Hey, turnabout is fair play," Lane said, as he started away from the dining hall. Valdimarr had cheated death by using the emblem, so it was only fair that he could be tracked by its presence. "I'll be right back."

And he would be, assuming he didn't get lost again...

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Dining Hall

Veronika thought for a bit on Uriel's idea. "I would generally say that avians are viewed the same way as humans are. I can't really say for certain though- there aren't many avians in Neviskotia to serve as an example." She trusted that Tatiana would do what she needed to do with the Grand Marshall and finding their group an "escort". I just hope we aren't stuck with some asshole who's going to try and run things themselves...

"I might have to some preliminary testing first just to see how advanced she already is.  As a complex case I do not want to under or overestimate current abilities," Lysandra laid out to Sirius's caretakers.

Capital Sky

"Oh...that sounds kind of sad. My parents weren't able to raise me either," Connor offered as a way to connect with the dragons.

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So it let him be a more effective spy... As long as no one touched him? Did that invalidate the magic, or something like that? It must've been the case. Thankfully, she'd been given breathing room to continue thinking about it, as Erion brought her more into the kitchen and away from the curious eyes of anyone else there, Uriel especially. "Well, I... I'm not a very picky eater, so you're free to find whatever you'd like. I can have the same. I must say this is... About as difficult as I expected. That aside, it's quite a unique power to have. I'm not sure how the emblem decides these sorts of powers, but it must be important... Somehow."

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  • 2 weeks later...

A Return

After so many little walks away from everything he was an expert at walking right back where he needed to be.  Back in their delightful new home base it wasn't hard to know that everyone would be congregating in the dining hall, as usual.  "What's new?" he put out.

Xenia

Great.  Raj was back.  Xenia rolled her eyes at her girlish hope he wouldn't be around to muck things up.

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  • 3 months later...

For Want of A Guardian

<"A guardian ..."> Tatiana muttered the words as she made her way out of the Conclave building amidst a sizable crowd. She was at the rear of the pack among those attending from Rusoyev Manor, having elected to think on the matter alone for a few minutes. She and her sister Veronika would be taking the same carriage back to their home, but in terms of this guardian issue. There wasn't much to talk about. Tatiana had already reached out for help to everyone she knew, and even some she had no business reaching out to. It felt like some of the senior members of the Conclave were trying even harder to sweep the issue under the rug, now ...

Spoiler

<"Whom then, Representative Pajari?"> Grand Marshall Milena Sokolovna's eyes bore into the older man. If only someone reputable could give testamony to the fallen threat after having encountered it with their own eyes, then indeed, whom? <"Whom could Representative Rusoyev bring before you and not do so in vain?">

Milan Pajari, a middleaged politician, known for his stalwart defense of Neviskotia's draconic citizens, stood firm, but somewhat troubled, amidst his colleagues. He placed a hand on his chin, eyes breaking away from the Grand Marshall's after a moment. It was hard enough to think without her putting even more pressure on him. She was throwing her weight around in forcing them all into this pointless followup meeting. It wasn't unusual for her to abuse her authority on a whim, but it seemed as though she knew more than she was letting on. That or she was simply enamored at the opportunity to expand military operations. Either looked in line with her choice of career and personality. As for whom to send on this equally pointless search for lurking monsters?

<"... a Guardian, perhaps?"> Parjari scanned the representatives to his left and his right, gauging their reactions and their quiet murmurings.

Tatiana winced at the suggestion, having already tried to gain allies in that area.

Pajari caught her in the act, taking special note of her reaction. <"I see no noteworthy objections to the idea. What say you, Grand Marshall? Surely a Guardian's appraisal of the situation is something we can all agree on.">

<"Representative Pajari, if I may,"> Tatiana quickly cut in, <"Between the war with Ursium and the recent push the Separatists have been making, I doubt any Guardian is going to be able to help us.">

<"And why not?"> Pajari tried not to smirk, <"Is this not important? Why even the Grand Marshall saw fit to bring us all here, today. Surely there's at least one Guardian out there ready and willing to see to this matter.">

Tatiana sighed. There probably was, but even the Grand Marshall couldn't contact the entire corp, especially not with everything else going on. Resources everywhere were just too tied up at the moment. Just the same, she wouldn't let Pajari enjoy this more than he should. <"This may prove difficult, but we will find a Guardian to accompany the expedition team and give their appraisal.">

<"And just to be on the safe side,"> Milena interjected before Pajari could, <"I'll have several battalions set aside for an immediate attack, should we need them.">

Pajari scowled at that. The Grand Marshall really did want to expand operations, didn't she?

Tatiana tried to hide her gratitude, but only suppressed her smile enough to not seem victorious. Now ... they just needed to find a Guardian. Easier said than done.

<"Aleksey, why did you have to turn me down ...?"> Tatiana groaned as the crowd of officials and attendees made their way down the three sets of stairs leading from the Conclave's Meeting Hall to the streets of Kievan Rus.

<"Ma'am,"> one of Tatiana's aides, a young woman with short brunette hair and blue eyes, approached her from behind, <"should I gather up the others?">

<"Oh, right ..."> Tatiana remembered, now. That man, Jethro, as well as some of the others, weren't interested in attending the meeting in person. Tatiana couldn't blame them in the slightest. Still, that meant someone had to go inform them that the meeting was over and that it was time to head back. They could have stayed put like some of their companions, but Jethro's daughter seemed interested in seeing some of the sights of Kievan Rus while they had the chance. Fair enough, actually ... the capital was a large and beautiful city, particularly for its age.

Tatiana nodded at the slightly younger woman. <"Yes, let them know the meeting's over ... and that we've made something at least resembling progress. The expedition itself is going to be on hold for now, however.">

<"Ma'am,"> the aide nodded, and quickly picked up the pace, getting well ahead of Tatiana as the Meeting Hall continued its long release.

Waiting Around

Jethro was getting sick of waiting around, especially downstairs at the bar. He would have gone upstairs to keep an eye on Raquel while she trained or whatever she was doing, but on top of needing a drink now and then to take the edge off and keep it off, he wanted to mind who was coming and going. Plus, he'd spent the first half hour up there with her already, and talking to her seemed to be nothing but an unhelpful distraction. It was strange, seeing his daughter floating in the air, crosslegged or pretending to lie down, like some kind of bored goddess. She was apparently trying to keep her mind's eye on ... something. When he'd asked her about that, she said she was tracking someone in particular. He assumed it was just part of her training and eventually lost interest. He'd left her with a stern warning before he came downstairs: Do not warp to that person, no matter what.

"Jethro, right?" A woman smiled at the elder Valcyn as she approached. She was just about average height for her build, but on the tall side, had a dark complexion, likely of nomadic or rexian descent, and her hair was a long collection of smooth waves, with a dark, silvery color to them. She dressed like a noblewoman, but between her likely heritage and tone of voice ... and even the fact that she was in this lowly tavern of all the venues around here, suggested to Jethro that he was dealing with someone who would go wherever they wanted to go, even if their shoes got a little grimy as a result.

Jethro turned from the bar to face her head on. "You've got me at a disadvantage. Have we met?" He was sure he would have seen someone like her somewhere before. Maybe.

"No," she gently shook her head, "I only know you by reputation," she explained. Her voice was disarming it was so soothing.

Jethro winced just the same, thinking of his reputation. They were in Neviskotia, so he was hoping no one around here recognized him. Just because he was retired from the Ursian military didn't mean some tipsy jackass wouldn't find a bone to pick. "That so ...?" he asked hesitantly.

He got a quiet, friendly nod.

"I'll take your word for it. I've got some embarrassing stories, so I wouldn't want any of them to come up here," he said, hoping this woman would take the hint.

"I'm Hero," the woman said, either taking the hint or moving on of her own accord, "I was asked by my benefactor to check up on you."

Jethro cocked an eyebrow. What was he, a child on a field trip? "Your benefactor?" Strange, actually ... "Check up on me?" And stranger, still ...

Hero smiled an apology, glancing away from Jethro for a moment. She seemed to be considering something. When she met eyes with him again, her smile had nearly faded, but she still had that friendly aura about her. "My benefactor instructed me to be here at this time and on this date ... about a week and a half ago. I was instructed to tell you that, specifically ..."

Jethro's eyes widened in horror. "Cygnus ..."

Surprise flashed across Hero's face. Jethro nearly missed it. "Mm yes," Hero confessed. She carefully took the empty stool next to Jethro at the bar. "You seem troubled."

Shouldn't he be? Jethro quietly pondered the situation. If he could send this woman to meet him at a specific time and place, then how were they ever going to outmaneuver him? How could they get around this ... clairvoyance he had so clearly demonstrated twice, now? Well ... if he couldn't beat him, he'd have to just play along for now. No need to take out his worries on this poor lass, not until she proved to be some kind of a threat, at least. Who knew? Maybe he'd be able to get something useful out of her.

"I'm over it," Jethro shrugged. He glanced at the barkeep, quietly summoning the man over. "So, here to check up on me. That's what you said, right?"

Again, Hero nodded.

"Alright Ms. Hero. How about a trade? My situation, plus a drink to make up for the boring parts, in exchange for anything you can tell me about you and what you do for Cygnus."

"My work isn't very interesting, but I suppose anyone would feel the same in my shoes. Very well, Jethro. Will your ... companions be alright with this?"

Jethro hoped so. This group had an awful track record with interrogations. "It'll be fine."

Edited by Phoenix
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One Word: Gar

Gar decided to waive his newest brilliant plan until after the latest attempt to convince people of the truth failed so he could overwhelm everyone with his brilliance once more.  Confident in the complete lack of forthcoming support from the highest echelons, he'd decided to stick near Raquel (and her father) while she trained.  It was far from the most exciting period in his life.  Raquel didn't need distractions (not that he was much of one when he kept silent), and her pops was by her side, so Gar set himself up in an effective location in the bar to keep tabs on things.  Said tab keeping would soon spot Raquel's father making a good attempt at a tab himself, before getting flagged down by some woman.

A normal person might take it for a bit of harmless talk or flirting.  A paranoid person would it was some sort of scheme.  Gar, knowing full and utterly well something like common reasoning had waved goodbye to the world a lifetime ago (it'd only been weeks, right?), knew this was something.  Since he fully trusted each of the goon squads trying to kill Raquel, this might be a distraction.  Even if his contract was broken, she was still a lighthouse of trouble guiding in shipholds of calamity and the same people Gar wanted flayed.

Gar left proper coinage on the table, signaled a barmaid and silently drifted towards Raquel's direction upstairs.  He didn't expect anyone to be keeping eyes on him, but if they somehow escaped his notice he wasn't gonna lead them directly over to her.

Xenia

Didn't matter where it was.  Didn't matter who it was.  Men in power always had that same deep scowl of 'screw everyone else'.  Xenia knew plenty of people who'd say the council would be getting their proper reward for letting the fallen threat dive them down.  But Xenia was more concerned with all the completely unrelated folks who'd go down with'em.  She sighed.  She'd no idea where to get one of those guardian guys and the looks given around meant it was a shared feelin'.

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  • 2 weeks later...

The meeting could have gone worse. It could've gone better, of course, but Lane was never really expecting that. The conclave reminded him of  one of the few times he had been fortunate enough to witness a large-scale meeting of Ursian nobility. There were some public theatrics, but he had the impression that most of the deals and discussions were made behind closed doors. All the same, however, the Neviskotian Conclave appeared to be more serious in nature compared to their western counterparts. At least, in the Servant of Nyx's mind.

In any case, the Conclave had decided that they needed a Guardian to witness the Fallen threat and deliver a report before they would take action. That was understandable and all, however the group was lacking one key element: a Guardian. Lane speculated as to how exactly they were going to find someone like that, as well as who exactly Raquel had found when they were trying to sniff out the location of the Fallen outpost.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Interruptions

It was just Jethro's luck that as soon as they got their drinks, Tatiana's aide stepped into the tavern and made a beeline straight for him. "Someone you know?" Hero asked, noting Jethro's frustration.

"That is really bad timing," the elder Valcyn mumbled to himself, "Yeah, she's here to make sure everyone gets back in time for lunch. I guess we'll have to do this another time."

"Mister Valcyn?" the aide politely interjected, "The meeting is over. I can't discuss the details here, but the expedition may be on hold for the time being."

Great. More bad news. Jethro shook his head, then glanced at Hero, who seemed to be taking a sip from her cup. "Did Cygnus give you anymore instructions?" He got a smooth negative from Hero as she took another sip and turned his eyes back on the young aide. "Alright, message received. I'll pass it along, but I think I'm going to stay here for a bit and finish my drink if it's all the same to you." Raquel probably wasn't done with whatever she was doing yet, either. And naturally, this would give Jethro a little more time to look into Hero and where she fit within Cygnus' world reforming organization. She looked harmless, so he was genuinely curious, and there was no way for him to hide that, right now.

The aide nodded and turned to leave, glancing around the tavern for any familiar faces as she made for the exit. She didn't immediately notice anyone, and so continued on her way, leaving Jethro and Hero to their drinks.

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  • 4 weeks later...

It wasn't as though sitting around in the manor would've done him much good on solving that dilemma, so Lane decided to head over to the tavern, Tonya in tow, to see how Raquel was handling tracking the wielder. He ran into one of Tatiana's aides as he was approaching the tavern, and after explaining that he had been at the meeting and was just helping round up the group's stray members, he moved past her and into the bar itself.

The bar wasn't exactly teeming with customers, so it made it easy for the man in black to identify Jethro as he scanned the room. The elder Valcyn was sitting next to and conversing with a tanned, silver haired Rexian woman. Not suspicious at all. All the while, Raquel was nowhere to be found, but given that her father was around, and there was a second floor, she was most likely up there. Therefore, Lane made his way over to the staircase and up to the next level, ignoring Jethro for the time being.

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  • 5 weeks later...

Another Wielder

Spoiler

It didn't take long for Lane to find Raquel once he reached the second floor; even without her signature pink hair, the fact that she appeared to be laying on an invisible upholstery would have given her away. He took a look around the rest of the floor for a second, quietly cast a wind spell, then knocked on the door to the room she was floating in as he entered.

"I'm back, the meeting's over for today," the man in black said. "How's the tracking going?"

"I'm pretty sure she's a tourist," Raquel drawled. Death from boredom looked imminent. That was new information, though. This mystery wielder was a woman. "It's like she's just ... exploring the city." Slowly, Raquel pulled herself up into a cross legged pose and faced Lane. "If the meeting's over ... are they going to help us or ...?"

"It's a little bit more complicated than that," Lane said, as he shrugged. "Basically, the conclave wants us to find the siege gate, have a member of the Guardian Corps witness it, then report back to them before they move. I think our group's  next move is to find a Guardian willing to accompany us."

The information about the wielder was new and surprising. "Are you sure they're a woman? And that's in some ways good to know. We might be able to more easily approach her in that case."

Raquel suddenly wondered if she shouldn't be trying to help them find a guardian instead, now ... "So does that mean we're heading back, now?" Raquel gently came down onto her feet. It wasn't really an effort to remain aloft anymore, but if they were on their way out, she didn't want to be doing it in front of just anyone.

"I can almost see her. Not clearly, but she's definitely a woman. Long hair, a fancy dress ... things like that." She didn't want to get into any details beyond that if she didn't need to.

"Well, we should be on our way back to the estate soon, but that doesn't mean we have to go straight back," Lane said. "Also alright."

The fact that Raquel could picture the woman was a little surprising and possibly useful, further down the road. If they could find Valdimarr with that power, convincing the conclave could be so much simpler.

"How far away is she now?" The man in black asked.

"A mile and a half?" Raquel wasn't sure if that was right or not, but the direction was clear, at least. Unknowingly, she wound up pointing a finger northward, in the general direction of the Royal Palace. "That way."

"Hmm. Okay," Lane said, as he pondered the distance. That was a decent walk away, but it wasn't as though they had a pressing need to attend to matters at the estate.

"Let's go for a walk, then," he said, turning around. "We don't have to make contact but just locating who we'll have to deal with can be a start."

"Are we going to talk to her?" Raquel wasn't sure that 'tailing' her was really an option, not if there was a chance she could sense her. All the wielders could do that, right? What was the range limit on that, she wondered?

"We can," Lane said. "Even if only to get a first impression. I just want to have an idea who we're dealing with."

"I can't say I'm not curious, myself ..." There was only so much Raquel could glean at the moment.

"It also gives us more of a chance to take in the city, either way," Lane said, as he started out of the room and over to Tonya, who was waiting near the stairs. "Can you stay here and make sure Jethro doesn't leave with that woman?"

"Sure," Tonya nodded, not quite sure what Lane was up to. "I'll make sure she doesn't lure him off somewhere." An assignment was an assignment.

"Thanks," Lane said, as he headed down the stairs. It would be best not to have a repeat of what had happened at Sergio...


Walking more than a mile was something that would have been a real chore for Raquel in the past, since she rode around in a wagon most of the time, but now her stamina and alertness never seemed to wane. She hadn't had any real sleep in over a week now, and her sense of time was beginning to disappear. Her worst enemy these days was boredom. That's why, as they approached the Royal Palace, the heart of Neviskotia and the center of their whole world, Raquel felt a little bit of excitement come over her.

As she and Lane closed in on the mystery wielder, Raquel found herself becoming increasingly distracted, and having to pull herself back on course, as well as keep her senses trained on that wielder. It got easier as they drew closer, but there were carriages and monuments and people everywhere. The men guarding the gates of the Royal Palace were as much a part of the decoration as everything else, and there was even a small crowd of approximately thirty or so gathered by one of the gates. The guards didn't look happy about it, but they weren't making a move against the commoners, either.

"Oh hey ..." Raquel pointed straight toward the crowd, "I think she's over there." Was she drawing in that crowd for some reason? Why? Raquel had a passing theory that the woman might be showing off some emblem ability, but it was indeed a passing one, as there was no visible light show dazzling all those people. "She might know I'm here, already ... ... should we try to get a look?"

As they walked towards the wielder, the servant of Nyx took in the aesthetic of Kievan Rus. In some ways it was like Ursentius, especially as they drew closer to what must be the Royal Palace. The monuments in particular seemed similar, with the exception of the overwhelming presence of wyverns and dragons.

In any case, more importantly, it looked as though there was a crowd near the palace gates, and according to Raquel, the wielder was somewhere within it. Perhaps she was even the center of attention?

"Yeah, let's see what the fuss is about," Lane said. "Stay close."

As the two approached the crowd, the once incomprehensible chatter began to resolve into wonder and astonishment. There was an awful lot of talk about Empress Yelena, but still no sight of the wielder, or whoever was responsible for drawing in all these people. Once they reached the edge of the crowd, it was clear that there was no way through without brute force ... not unless Raquel one upped the center of attention and floated over the crowd for a better look.

"Hey, what's going on?!" She barked at the closest man, who was trying and failing to slip himself between another man and a heavy set woman blocking his way through. He gave up and turned to face the newcomers. "What is everyone circling around?"

"I hear it's a woman," the man explained, frustrated that he couldn't confirm this himself, "They say she's the spitting image of the Empress. She's too young, though ... so maybe she's a bastard child or something like that. I've got to see for myself before even more people show up or the guards come and take her ..."

So, the crowd was there for someone who just happened to look like the late Empress, right where the emblem wielder was supposed to be. That was about part for the course for coincidences surrounding the emblem, Lane thought. He debated trying to deliver a message to the woman, but there were a few problems with that, first of which is that he didn't have line of sight to her; all the commoners were in the way. The second problem would be that if he casted wind magic he'd  make a mess of things and maybe even get them arrested. Which would less than ideal given what the group had been tasked with.

"We should wait and see if the crowd's to be broken up soon," Lane said to Raquel after a moment. "We shouldn't cause a scene  this close to the Palace."

"I don't want to cause a scene at all if we can help it," Raquel said, eyeing the crowd worriedly. What was this mystery woman going to be like, exactly? Would she even talk to them? It seemed likely, if she was a wielder. That didn't automatically make them allies, though.

The wait was longer than reasonable, with each person in the crowd eventually being replaced by someone new. Raquel was somewhat relieved when the guards got fed up and forced their way through the outer layers of the crowd, hoping to break the whole thing up. The armor and heavy weapons they used ensured that no one tried to resist them, and as the crowd began to break up, Raquel was finally starting to get a glimpse of the woman at the center of it all. The long hair, the dark dress. It was her, alright. She didn't seem to notice the two at first, but as the guards started gesturing with their weapons, and the people spread out even more, the woman seemed to take notice of them. She had the most aloof expression Raquel had ever seen.

"Erm, what now?" Raquel asked Lane, resisting the urge to wave at the woman and ease her tension.

"Well, as long as you're not floating, we should be fine." Should be was the operative there- if they actually spoke with the woman, they might not be able to avoid making a scene.

Well, the crowd was broken up, eventually. By the time that it was, it felt like half the city had come and gone. Yet, all the same, thanks to the dispersal, they were finally able to see the cause of the crowd- a Neviskotian woman with long hair and a dark, elaborate dress. Lane didn't have the prior experience to tell if she resembled Empress Yelena, but he would've believed it had she not been believed dead. He might still believe it, depending on how the emblem was affecting the situation.

"We make contact," the Servant of Nyx said, when Raquel asked what comes next. He approached to speaking distance from the woman in black, then spoke in Neviskotian to the stranger.

"<Good afternoon. What brings you to Kievan Rus?>"

Raquel followed close behind, hoping the guards wouldn't come for them, next. The closer they got to this woman, the more aloof she seemed, as if that were even possible. She even crossed her arms at them as Lane greeted her. Raquel couldn't help but frown, realizing this wasn't going to be the friendliest person they ran into, today ...

"Me? Hmph ... exploring my future kingdom, I suppose ..."

Raquel was ... surprised by such a blunt and dangerous response. The guards were just shy of hearing that clearly ...

The woman let her arms fall back down to her sides, but then her right hand came up and she pointed at Raquel and Lane. "What of you two? What brings you to Kievan Rus? ... and with one of the fragments, no less? Surely you know how dangerous it is?"

Future kingdom? That rang as alarming. This evidently wasn't Yelena, but who or what was she? Regardless, she did know of the emblem, so as of right now she might pose a threat, depending on the situation.

Though, she wasn't associated- or at least in close contact- with Fox, otherwise she'd know that Raquel was the fragment, rather than merely possessing one. All the same, best to tread carefully.

"You could say that we're here to deal with something that involves this entire land," Lane said. "And it's important enough that the dangers of traveling here outweigh the dangers of remaining idle."

"Something important ..." The woman pondered that as a pair of guards approached them. Likely realizing she wasn't going to get another word in before they joined the exchange, she turned halfway to face them. "I apologize for the disturbance."

The men suddenly loosened up and one of them asked, <"Hmm?--oh, right. The commoners.> ... what's your name, Miss? And where are you from?"

"Seraphiel," she answered, "You wouldn't happen to know of a place called Alexandria, would you?"

The guards responded in the negative, but Raquel squinted. The first time she'd heard that name, it was when Cygnus greeted her and her father in person. Uh oh ...

So, the woman was named Seraphiel, and was from Alexandria... Lane should've known. Still, it was bold for one of Cygnus' children to march straight up to the Neviskotian palace's gates, alone, all the while being an enemy of the state. Lane didn't say anything just yet, and decided to see what the guards would do.

"Where is this Alexandria, exactly?" One of the guards asked.

Seraphiel smiled an apology. "I would really need a map for that."

The other guard shook his head, wanting to get past the pleasantries. "How long are you planning to be in the capital? Our superiors will want to meet with you." That uncanny resemblance demanded they see her in person. "In fact, if you would just wait here for a little while ..."

"I'm actually staying at an inn not too far from here," she explained, pointing them eastward. "Still, if you want to introduce me to someone now, I don't mind waiting."

"You'll wait then? ... good." The guards headed back to their posts. "We'll send someone for you, shortly."

And just like that, once the guards were no longer focused on her, Seraphiel went right back to having a cold exterior. She sighed and turned to face Raquel and Lane. "I probably shouldn't have agreed to their request, but I hate it when others plead. It looks like I'll have to decide what to do with the two of you some other time ..."

Raquel blinked. "Decide what to do with us ...?"

"Well, that'll depend on whether or not you're solely with your father, " Lane said, with a slight frown. "I'd agree though that now's not the time to discuss that."

If she wasn't helping the separatists, then there was a chance, however slim, that she wouldn't have to be an enemy. However, if Seraphiel was with Fox, she'd have to be dealt with. Without exception.

"Just what are you saying?" Seraphiel cocked an eyebrow, "Hmm ... it doesn't matter. If I change my mind, I know how to find you ... the fragment you're carrying, at any rate." She grinned, satisfied for some reason or other.

She definitely didn't know about Raquel's ... condition, which made the younger Valcyn wonder if she knew about their meeting with Cygnus or anything else going on. If she traveled the way normal people did, then ... she may have been out of direct contact for weeks ...

"I'm sure you'll figure it out. And likewise, since it's hard to be subtle with ," Lane said, before turning to  Raquel. "Ready to go back?"

Raquel nodded insistently. "Yeah let's ... get back." She had a bad feeling about this Seraphiel woman. Her cold and self assured attitude reminded her of the kind of sophisticated villains she encountered in novels. There was also a vague resemblance to Fox, though Raquel didn't think she was quite that dangerous, even if she was an emblem wielder. For now, best to get back to the others and let them know about her.

Options

"We have two options," Tatiana continued with the post-Conclave meeting, "One I hadn't considered. The other ... well, I mulled it over, but it could cost us a lot of time, and isn't any more likely to work than the former ..." Things were even more uncertain, now. They needed a Guardian Corp member specifically, but Tatiana could only think of two: Alyssa Ivanovna, and Peter Bosconovitch. The former was Neviskotia's most celebrated sniper, but more importantly, she was Prince Deniska's bodyguard. Bosconovitch was one of the few guardians more or less officially known to the public at large, and he was also a mysterious and powerful warrior. Tatiana's brother, Maksim, actually served under him directly, and that meant they had a direct line to him of sorts, but Prince Deniska was actually in the capital, right now. That meant Alyssa was here, as well. Depriving the young prince of his bodyguard wouldn't sit well with anyone, not even Tatiana, herself. It almost seemed like no option at all, which was why she was only now even giving an idea involving the royal family a fair shake.

The guardian situation wasn't the only thing that came up in the meeting: Jethro gave the gathering a brief summary of Hero and his time with her, confirming that she was indeed a part of Cygnus' organization, and a practiced alchemist. Raquel and Lane also relayed what they could about Seraphiel, the woman that wore Empress Yelena's face. Jethro wasn't happy the two had run off to make contact with the mysterious emblem wielder, but he could only press that point so far when he'd spent about an hour chatting with Hero. He had no evidence that she wasn't a threat. She knew enough about magic to be exceedingly dangerous.

"If we decide to contact Alyssa," Tatiana sighed, "I'll have to go to the palace in person and convince someone to contact the Prince. We should hear back from him today unless he doesn't want to talk for some reason. Contacting Bosconovitch will take much longer ... unless you can reach him using the method you used to get here. I don't know where he is right now, unfortunately. He isn't always with his men. You could head to Kursk. It's a fortress town not too far from here. Bosconovitch's family lives there. They might know something."

"What about that Empress lookalike?" Jethro asked, "Are we just letting her do whatever she's here to do? Cygnus might be using her for something big." There had to be a reason she looked like the late Empress. She was an artificial human, like Gabriel and Zerachiel. He had no doubt about that. Her appearance had to have a purpose behind it. Replacing Empress Yelena seemed a little too on the nose, but at the same time, it fit the situation. Whether it was feasible or not came down to whether the Imperials realized she was an artificial human ... or cared. Jethro couldn't help but wince when he thought about the situation a little deeper. The Emperor was grieving, even after all this time. Who among his inner circle was going to give a flip about the legality of Seraphiel's origins if she could snap Loginov out of his sorry state and get him back to governing the country? Would her being an artificial human really matter in the end? Jethro hoped so, but for the moment, concerns were mounting.

"If you head down to Kursk, you can leave a few people here to keep an eye on things and investigate Hero and Seraphiel," Tatiana offered. "Word is going to spread fast about Seraphiel if she's as a close a resemblance as people say, so it shouldn't be too difficult to learn more. That and ... you shouldn't need everyone at Kursk, just enough to handle any surprises."

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Xenia

Everything sort of fell into place for Xenia, all at once.  The puzzle was solved.  She announced, "They're gonna use the fake Yelena to assassinate the prince and give Fox his shot at the throne."

Gar snorted.

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