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Post by Clair Feldsky on Nov 18, 2011 14:17:46 GMT -6
No one ventured any ideas on how to get inside, and back out as she stood watching. In fact, the most Clair got from her companions was an "Aye aye" from Cefia. That counted for something, she supposed. It didn't help much with her confidence though. If no one had any ideas, it meant they really were flying solely on grit and improvisation. She hoped they had enough, and that it would pay off. They would really only know that once they were already inside though
"I'll have to come back for the pegasus later. Taking it in now will attract attention, which we want to avoid.... Let me change into something a little less flashy." She left the others, and returned to her pegasus. The thing was becoming a walking stockpile of assorted packages and the like. Both her lances were fastened to the harness, as well as several other packages lashed tightly down. She quickly unbuckled her armor, and tied it onto the saddle as well, before snagging a shirt, and a red cloak from her pack. This was her idea inconspicuous?... But it was better than bright and shining armor at least. Part of her felt at odds with leaving her protection behind, but then she reminded herself that they couldn't afford a prolonged fight here.... She was still taking a sword though.
"Let's go. Once we're inside, we should start looking for horses, and listening for anything that might confirm that Richter was brought here."
The caravan looked fairly good sized, as they began approaching the gate. And things looked clogged by it, rather than distracted. Clair was just wondering how they'd slip inside, when a youngish looking guard challenged them.
[Red]"Hold there. What brings you this way, travelers? The city is closed to those without official business here."[/red]
The Falcoknight took this as her cue to speak up, spilling an excuse she'd been formulating in case there was a need.
"It's our wagon, Sir." She made sure to add the "sir" in. Nothing had lifted her spirits quite like being addressed as "ma'am", when she was still fresh, as this man looked.
"We lost a wheel this morning, and the four of us went ahead to see if we could get someone to help."
The man looked thoughtful, but then shook his head briefly, and smirked a bit. [Red]"Misfortune struck you at the wrong time, but I'll allow you to come in. We've a good wood crafter here. You can wait till the caravan's made its way inside, then I'll let you in."[/red]
Success, or half success.
"Sir, it's taken us all day to get here.... Couldn't you just let us in now? Then we could leave as soon as the caravan has finished." Clair adopted a more hopeful sound. He'd cave. He liked being in good favor with people. She could tell.
The guardsman shifted on his feet a bit, before looking back to the gate, and turning back.
[Red]"You have a point. Alright. I'll take you through the side door this once. Just make sure I don't regret it, hmm? Come on."[/red]
And like that, he led them over to a smaller door, and opened it up for them, leading them through a short passage and out the other side. Around them were wagons and carts being parked, and cavaliers on their horses shuffling around. The streets around the gate were already filling up.
Noting her interest, the guard spoke up. [Red]"Word has it that the Herald himself is going to making a visit here in the next few days. Supposed to be coming to see the pink-haired traitor. Reckon you've heard of him."[/red] Clair's heart jumped at the news. Whether the news about the Herald, or Richter, she wasn't sure. [Red]"Yeah. We brought him in a few days ago." [/red] Wow, he looked pleased with his information. Clair was appreciative of it as well. More than he'd realized, in fact.
"Thankyou for getting us through, Sir. Our friends will appreciate it too."
[Red]"Please. It's Kyle for such a lovely swordmaiden as yourself."[/red] The man said, taking Clair's hand, and raising it to his lips. The Illian couldn't help cracking a smile, even if he was going to be an enemy shortly here. [Red]"Maybe once you've helped your friends at the wagon, you'd care to get me a drink or two in the tavern, eh?"[/red] A hopeful look of his own now danced in the guardsman's eyes.
Ahh.... Now to deal with this one. Clair thought to herself. Complications seemed to continue rising around this one.
"Sorry, I'm taken already." Clair said quickly, forcing an apologetic laugh out as she said so, and reaching back to drag Garith forward. She linked the blue haired swordsman's arm into her own as she did so.
[Red]"Well, treat her well."[/red] Kyle said to Garith, as he shambled off, back to his posting. Clair thought she heard a gripe under the man's breath as he left [red]"...I could still do with a few drinks...."[/red]
That didn't go as planned at all, she decided. But, it worked. Turning down a road along the outer wall, Clair started moving along it. Ahead there was a watch tower of sorts, and another even further around the wall. Those could afford a good view of the city, but they'd be restricted to guards and soldiers.... They also knew there were side doors. At least by the city gates.
"Plenty of horses by the front gate, if we can find a way to make use of them." The Falcoknight said quietly, to the others.
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Derick
Soldier
A deserter from Bern, struggles to reign himself in.
Posts: 170
Profession: Amateurish Mercenary
Affinity: Anima
OoC Alias: Derick
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Post by Derick on Nov 18, 2011 15:06:20 GMT -6
"Let me change into something a little less flashy."
"I'll do the same, ma'am" Derick assented, he retreated a short distance from the group and quickly unstrapped his armor, leaving him with his standard issue under-armor clothing and the dark brown traveling cloak he had received from Caelica's mercenary guild. By going on this Etrurian expedition, it meant he was abandoning his duty to the guild, but he had no other leads. He muttered a prayer to Elimine, and walked back towards the group.
As he hid his armor and lance near the pegasus he took care to memorize its location. Their goal was stealth, so Derick had opted to use his utility knife instead. It wasn't designed for combat, but it was just large enough to do some damage if it was placed properly. Clair had donned a vivid, bright red cloak. So much for subtlety, he smiled, Clair could be more subtle than him if her hair was rainbow colored. They were marching along when an enemy soldier approached and demanded their business. Derick's arm shot towards his knife hilt, but Clair was already given some explanation about being merchants. Derick nodded along helpfully, it was a brilliant story, and all was going well until he asked her if she wanted to grab some drinks later. Derick felt a pang of jealously, which was compounded when she replied she was taken and reached back, grazing his arm, and grabbing Garith's instead. He ruminated on his thoughts before he caught himself and shook his head. He was being stupid, and he knew it, back to business.
The soldier was successfully deterred, and marched away, perfect. He observed the great wall in front of them. It was well secured, the only likely entrance seemed to be the watchtowers, but assaulting them would be ruinous to their objectives.
"Plenty of horses by the front gate, if we can find a way to make use of them."
Derick stared at them a long moment before responding, "You don't think we could spook them, do you?"
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Post by Cefia on Nov 18, 2011 21:33:46 GMT -6
Cefia looked at her armor and wear. She might get away without having to dress up. It was best to be on the safe side though. She managed to scrap up something that made her look relatively fair. It was a simple dress but her expressions ruined the disguise. With a deep breath she softened her features and the monocle did its own work, making her appear to fit in the dress some more. She followed close behind in a reserved manner as she was taught from her childhood.
She was taught to hold herself with dignity and elegance, her parents always dreamed of rising to as close to nobles as possible. It was horrible in more ways than one. It felt as though she was suffocates, perhaps that lead to her rash decision but she never regretted it.
"I'm sure a plan will hatch itself by some point," she said, looking around town.
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Post by Richter Abend on Nov 19, 2011 19:30:17 GMT -6
"I think we're there," whispered Richter, glancing back at Wyatt, a somewhat futile effort considering the lack of light in the tunnel, before turning his gaze forward again. With his limited vision, he could see their mysterious armored companion pushing up against the ceiling of the tunnel, rattling what appeared to be a wooden panel. It wouldn't budge. That meant...
"Locked," sounded the deep voice from within the man's helmet. There was a hint of frustration in his voice. "That, or something's been placed over our entrance." He paused, shaking his head. "I'd guess the latter." The armored figure clanked as he rotated himself in the small space to face Wyatt. "Hey, how versatile is that axe of yours? Can you control how strong it is or is it essentially explosions and no explosions?"
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Wyatt
Hero
The Volcano
How can someone win if winning means that someone loses?
Posts: 463
Etruria Fame: 2
Sacae Fame: -1
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Post by Wyatt on Nov 19, 2011 22:04:39 GMT -6
Wyatt rubbed his head at the question. "Well...I'm not too sure. I mean, I've used it as a torch before, so I guess using the power lighter is possible. Magic isn't really my strong suit. Why, what were you planning?"
The larger man gestured to a pair of metal bands on the trapdoor. [blue]"Do you think you could melt the hinges here? We can't push it up, but we might be able to slide it out."[/blue] Wyatt nodded, pulling the stone axe from his back, and held it up to the metal hinges of the trapdoor. The axe remained dark for a moment, and Wyatt scowled to himself.
Come on, work! What do you want a magic word? I just want the fire, burn that hinge!
And the cavern became illuminated with the familiar red glow. Wyatt took a deep breath and held it to the hinges as the metal slowly began to melt away under the heat. Almost instantly, he saw the floorboard depress down, and moved back. It creaked more and more, giving precious inches with every second. It would seem that whatever was above them was resting fully on the trapdoor, and soon it would fall straight down through the trapdoor. If this was intended or not, Wyatt wasn't sure. Or maybe they could catch it on it's way down? Not like they had a lot of room to maneuver though...
A plan would need to be made quick, or it would rapidly be made for them.
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Post by Garith Valkyrie on Nov 19, 2011 23:11:41 GMT -6
Garith had remained quiet, he didn't do well when it came to these kind of things. They were in enemy territory and he was extremely nervous. Even when his Commander had asked him about an idea on how to get in he didn't have anything to say. In the back of his mind he was banging his head against a wall. When it seemed everyone was changing he went to go change to even though he really didn't have much to change into.
He decided to just go in his black sleeveless shirt, pants and boots. Garith had left his armor near where Derick had his, he had also left Fenrir and Uprising there seeing as the mission was stealth. Speaking of which Clair's bright red cloak didn't seem that stealthy but hey who was Garith to judge.
When Clair had told the man that she was taken Garith figured she was talking about some made up person not around at the moment. Garith turned bright red when she had dragged him over and implied that it was Garith that had taken her. He turned even more red when the man had spoken to him. As it seemed that everyone started moving Garith stood still paralyzed in embarrassment.
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Post by Clair Feldsky on Nov 20, 2011 1:08:46 GMT -6
Clair glanced over to Derick at his suggestion. "I'm sure we could spook them, but we'd almost certainly be caught, and I can't see a discernible reason for it." The guard in the caravan entering through the gate, and the cavaliers were plenty capable of catching them, or worse. Clair was certain of that.
Cefia was right. A plan would come together eventually, but... The information she'd heard from the guard had changed things considerably. Clair kept moving, but angled her path off the main road. They stopped near an uncrowded alley as Clair thought over events. As she'd expected, the situation had developed. Perhaps a bit quicker than what she'd planned on though.
"Alright. we know that Richter is held here, and we know that the Herald of the Prophet is on his way. Maybe already arrived." The Falcoknight spoke in a hushed but quick voice, summarizing for herself what they knew, as much as for the others.
"We also know that the caravan entering the town brought a lot of Etrurian forces with it. We need to break Richter out and escape, but...." She looked around, suddenly missing one of their number.
"Garith was here a moment ago. Where'd he get off to?" Bah! Right when things were starting to get difficult he seemed to have found a way vanish.
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Derick
Soldier
A deserter from Bern, struggles to reign himself in.
Posts: 170
Profession: Amateurish Mercenary
Affinity: Anima
OoC Alias: Derick
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Post by Derick on Nov 20, 2011 20:58:43 GMT -6
Derick bit his lip as the commander retorted, but his idea had at least a "last-chance" logic to it, "It would buy us a few seconds of chaos, if needed..." He continued thinking, then added, "it's only useful if we're detected, just a back-up plan."
"Alright. we know that Richter is held here, and we know that the Herald of the Prophet is on his way. Maybe already arrived."
If Etrurians acted the same way Bernese did, that meant this city was crawling with troops. Most of them would be grunts, whatever could be diverted to the city the quickest, but the official would almost certainly have an elite guard...avoiding direct contact with those troops would be paramount.
Derick closed his eyes as he continued planning in his head...The most direct problem was locating Clair's boyfriend. He opened his eyes, searching for a look-out point. He looked up and down the street and scanned the little horizon he could see, but to no avail. It would appear their only realistic option would be ascending the watchtower. He sighed in frustration and stared at the ground, Clair was looking for Garith, and it looked as though they would have to backtrack, then Sir Kyle walked by again, and Derick grinned wickedly. "Commander," he tried to restrain the mirth in his tone, "Cefia and I can find Garith...After all, you've got a hot date."
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Post by Richter Abend on Nov 21, 2011 13:01:35 GMT -6
There was a creak, and then a crack, and finally a loud crash.
No more than a second after Wyatt had finished melting the last hinge, the floor panel, and whatever had been on top of it, came clattering down into the trio's formerly clandestine little tunnel, smashing into pieces and scattering armor plates everywhere. Richter could only cringe at the racket as he looked at the remains of the crate lying before them. Anyone in the tower would have heard that, and from the commotion that he could hear beginning to form above them, they all did.
"No time to dawdle," barked the armored soldier, knowing their covert operations were now clearly blown. He pulled himself up through the newly made opening as a few soldiers began to scramble down the stairs, weapons at the ready. "Let's move!"
His axe at the ready, the pink haired Ilian followed his mailed ally, yanking himself through hole in the floor, as the latter drew his sword and ran it through one of the nearest guards. "This is a horrible plan!," shouted Richter, moving in behind their current leader. The man took a step back, parrying a spear strike from another oncoming guard. "Unless you have a better one, shut up!" came the response, a break from the man's so-far ice cool demeanor. "Let's clear these men out and barricade the tower door!
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Wyatt
Hero
The Volcano
How can someone win if winning means that someone loses?
Posts: 463
Etruria Fame: 2
Sacae Fame: -1
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Post by Wyatt on Nov 21, 2011 16:00:27 GMT -6
"You're telling me!" Wyatt called to Richter. "Out of the frying pan...and into the fire!" Wyatt had no time to take his maul out, so instead did battle with the Magma Axe. "Ragggggh!" He shouted, lowering the axe which glowed red hot. His opponent raised his blade confidently, and his face turned to terror as the axe melted clean through it before landing into his shoulder. The mixture of freshly molten metal and scorching stone cut clear through the man like a hot axe through flesh, which was oddly appropriate. As the two pieces of the man fell into a smoldering pile, Wyatt noticed that he'd drawn the attention of several of the remaining guards, who were now moving in a panic to get away from the psycho with the axe that just melted someone in half.
Wyatt really hoped that the walls were thicker then they looked. If they drew the attention of the entire army they'd never get out of here alive.
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Post by Richter Abend on Nov 21, 2011 16:40:29 GMT -6
Richter looked on in sheer astonishment as Wyatt's flaming axe cleaved right through one of the Etrurians, splitting the man in two as he burst into flames. But as impressive as the feat was, he, yet again, needed to focus, as with two soldiers down and three soldiers scattered there were still four more angry guards rushing down the stairs.
The Ilian sprung forward, deftly planting his axe into the face of nearest soldier, while the fake-Etrurian cut down a soldier attempting to strike Richter from the right. The man then wheeled around and sliced off the hands of a spear-wielding soldier attacking from his own rear before disposing of the now handless man with a powerful thrust through the chest.
Impressed with his mysterious companion's fine swordplay, Richter followed up with his own maneuver, punching the final approaching soldier in the side before, disabling him, before wedging his axe in the man's other side. Not as fancy, but just as deadly.
"You alright over there, Wyatt?" asked Richter, turning around to see three soldiers cowering in fear before the redhead.
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Wyatt
Hero
The Volcano
How can someone win if winning means that someone loses?
Posts: 463
Etruria Fame: 2
Sacae Fame: -1
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Post by Wyatt on Nov 21, 2011 16:59:52 GMT -6
Wyatt now stood before three unarmed and terrified men who'd huddled into a corner to escape him. "Eh? Oh fine, never better." He said, pointing to the molten pile of slag on the ground that looked to have been weapons a few moments earlier. "Just finished disarming them. I don't think they have any more fight left in them." He said, turning back towards the three soldiers with a sinister grin. "Right?"
They nodded furiously, they were clearly not getting paid enough to deal with this. "All right then. We're in, now what? Unless you want me to blow out the side of the wall that goes outside..." He started, thinking that far too easy. He wasn't sure how long they'd have before reinforcements arrived, and he wasn't looking forward to finding out. Best case, they didn't attract attention and nobody would notice until a shift change or someone came in here for something. Worst case, there was an entire battalion surrounding the tower right now. Wyatt slipped up to a murder slit in the wall and peered out, trying to get a gauge of the situation.
"Well..." He said, looking outside. "Oddly enough, it doesn't seem like anyone noticed us. Somebody up there likes us, apparently." He turned to his two companions and the battle scared room, this was getting tiresome. "Still, being found here isn't going to be good for us. So what now?"
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Post by Clair Feldsky on Nov 21, 2011 22:18:10 GMT -6
It took a moment for Clair to notice the actual meaning of Derick's comment. When she fully caught it though, she felt her throat tighten up in discomfort, as her pulse quickened a bit. She was quite capable of filling a role. It came with the control over herself she'd established years ago. This really wasn't something that she felt comfortable keeping up for long though. Derick was right though. Kyle was an opportunity to get something helpful: a view from the top of the tower. With that, she'd be able to know the inside of the city better. Here it was. Now or never.
"Ok. You two be careful, and I'll meet up with you later." Clair told them, already falling out of her normal character, and wearing the caravanner speech pattern she'd made before. This was crazy.
"Hey, Kyle, you have a few minutes?" Clair picked up the pace, and jogged to catch up with him. He was her "hot date", apparently.
[Red]"Oh. Hello, Miss. Are you finding the help you need for your downed wagon? And no. I don't have a lot of time. I've got to go carry messages to the watch towers."[/red] His face perked up a bit on seeing Clair again, though he looked reluctant to stop and talk. [Red]"My advice would be to get off the streets. A bit of a disturbance has been reported, but it's nothing you need to be worried over, miss...?"[/red]
"Clair. My name is Clair." The falcoknight told the guard, forcing something of a shy smile onto her face. He'd not been very resistant to manipulation before, she remembered. An enemy was the last thing he expected to find in her, and she could use that. Not to mention, he seemed very pleased with his "man in armor" image. She'd seen plenty of that though. She wasn't impressed by a soldier these days. Just by ones she knew to be dedicated to their cause. This welp seemed like a green horn, new blood. Which felt odd to think about, considering herown young age.
"I... do you think you could show me the city from the watch tower nearby?" Clair pointed to the building nearby. "I was hoping to see the city better, while here, but it's so difficult to see anything from these roads. And, I can hardly thing of a safer place to be than with one of the guard, if trouble breaks out. What do you say?"
Kyle looked a bit skeptical as he tapped his spear on the ground in thought. [Red]"...What about that boy of yours from earlier?..."[/red]
"Oh, Garrith? Well, we actually lost track of each other...., but he'll be fine. I'm sure. In the meantime, I just...."
[Red]"Look. I can show you the watch tower.... Just keep quiet about it, ok? Superior's around here will normally turn a blind eye to this, as long as it's not too common.[/red]
"Great! And you won't get a peep from me." Clair grinned, following the young soldier as he started walking up the way to enter the watch tower nearest them.. Clair's reflexes kicked up to high alert even while she attempted to hide it. Entering a watch post, where Etrurian Soldiers were likely to be found. She really hoped this didn't turn sour for her....
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Post by Cefia on Nov 21, 2011 22:51:42 GMT -6
It seemed as though Cefia was stuck with the other guy. She wasn't sure how she should act right now. Truth be told, she wasn't fully sure what to do.
"Would you prefer the pirate accent or without?" she asked Derick, might as well let the lad decide. She didn't feel like talking at all, if anything she needed a drink. There was something beginning to bother her. It was like an annoying yet distinct pain at the back of her head.
"Can we take it easy though, I think I might have a headache," she asked, holding the back of her head. She managed to shrug it off though, maybe it was nothing.
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Wyatt
Hero
The Volcano
How can someone win if winning means that someone loses?
Posts: 463
Etruria Fame: 2
Sacae Fame: -1
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Post by Wyatt on Nov 22, 2011 1:18:05 GMT -6
OOC: Taking some minor control of Clair, I hope you don't mind kicking my ass. XD
IC: Wyatt backed away from the murder slit. "Company." he said to the other two. "Two incoming. A soldier and a girl civilian. I don't even want to think about the why..." He frowned. This needed to be handled quickly, or it would rapidly get out of control. He and the armored ally stood by the door, and then it swung open.
The guard house became a flurry of activity. The unknown ally had moved deftly, pushing the door closed behind the pair of them and clocking the soldier upside the head with the pommel of his sword. Couldn't risk a death cry with the door open, so they had to keep quiet in subduing the enemies. Wyatt made his move, aiming to bring his axe over the head of the girl, and press the handle against her throat from behind her.
Somewhere in the execution of this plan, Wyatt found himself seeing stars as he was thrown down to the ground. Staring up in surprise, he found himself disarmed and dropped to the ground...though he still wasn't sure what exactly had happened. He tried to regain his senses and make some connection to what had just happened.
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