2nd Adventure: Proxy War (Archive)

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K wrote:: Mihai looks at Zelk, indicating she should obviously be a part of it.

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Rory wrote:: Konrad bows slightly. "I understand. What I want to talk with them about, it needs to be in person. Another time, there is no rush."

He goes back into his room. Patience. She is not going anywhere. If she escapes into the woods though, so help me, I will burn it all down to find her.

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Kolson wrote:

"I'll go." Steve steps up beside Mihai and gives him a nod. He looks at Zelk to see what she will do.

Snicker:

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Rory wrote:: While inside the room with Conan, Konrad decides to take it upon himself to question the boy. "Is this really the first time you've been told you're...hmm. That you're some kind of human golem?"

Sense Motive
Is he lying to me? Is he choosing not to answer because he's had this "talk" before?

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Zeiss wrote:

Steve only:

Lieutenant Freeron considers for a moment.

"I'll come," she declares. She turns to face Naomi. "Make sure he doesn't do anything reckless."

"On it, ma'am," replies the young soldier with a resolute attitude.

"I'll go with her," announces Fedler, who is still annoyed.

Without awaiting an answer, Fedler goes back to the room with Naomi, and the rest of the group is left with the three monks.

"Please, follow me," says the master.

He walks back into the dinner area, and once the group has went through the door, the two disciples guarding the south wing close it behind them. The door leading to the north wing is also closed, and the party notices two shadows from the other side, guarding it. The master waits for everyone to be seated at a table before he asks, "What is it you wished to talk about?"

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Careful Diplomacy

Konrad and Conan:

Before Konrad spoke to Conan, he stayed silent for a few seconds, until he laughed out loud for some reason. This is when Fedler and Naomi entered the room, and the soldier asked, "What were you laughing about?"

"Oh, nothing," replied Konrad. "A voice inside my head told me a very funny joke."

Fedler rolled her eyes, while Naomi was obviously concerned by the very possible literal meaning of this explanation. As for Conan, he was acutely observing Konrad. The two women sit down on the floor.

The red mage decides to take it upon himself to question the boy. "Is this really the first time you've been told you're...hmm. That you're some kind of human golem?"

The man in rags gives an immediate answer. "Yes, it is."

Fedler doesn't think much of it, but Naomi frowns.

Sense Motive

Konrad:

"Interesting." Konrad paces back and forth. "Have you met anyone else besides the pirates? Before us?"

"You'll have to specify," answers Conan.

"I'm asking you if Kira and her crew, or the Lorinthians, were the first people you met when you came into this world."

"No," reveals Conan.

Fedler and Naomi lean in for him to elaborate, but he doesn't.

"I see."

He paces back and forth. "Perhaps you were having a good time with people you thought were friends, until someone Scanned you and stuffed you in a box and tried to sell you off, without telling you why. Did you think I was going to keep it a secret from you? Like those ruthless Lorinthian tin soldiers?"

"I thought you might try to sell me off to someone else, or just take me to your superiors. Isn't it that your job?"

"Are you saying you're afraid of my superiors?"

"I'm saying you are the instrument of your superiors, and their will is unknown."

Konrad barely, faintly half-laughs, and smiles to himself. "Well, they're afraid of you. Everyone's afraid, that's why they want you. You're a powerful, unknown force with your own equally-unknown will. And beyond that, your strength could be used to tip the balance of power and start another war between the islands. Maybe there's more of you. People are going to want to bring you to their superiors, use you, lock you up, or just run away from you. And you just want to run away too. Where are you going? Nowhere, with no one to keep you company. Always running, always alone, always afraid. That's you. With the Lorinthians, you'll be mistreated, used, locked up. One or all of the three. Maybe, maybe the Free Feathers will do the same. And yet, there's a much better chance they'll treat you better than those other assholes. Just ask Naomi here."

"He's right," concurs Naomi. "We could protect you, if you cooperate with us."

Conan stays silent for a long moment, until he finally responds. "Limited freedom then. Is this what you are suggesting?"

"Deremonda's tits, it wouldn't be slavery,” continues Konrad. “Freedom is relative. There's no one in a better position than me to say that with more conviction. I knew true freedom once, or something close to it. And I was a complete bastard. Lorinthian soldiers have more freedom than I ever did, and they're complete bastards. I see a good man in you, Conan. A man willing to take chances, willing to try new things. A man who doesn't want to kill people who don't deserve it while trying to soar on the wings of freedom. Because one day, you'd fly right into the sun."

This leaves Conan pensive for a minute. Fedler and Naomi dare not to interject, and they prefer to listen to the two of them hammering out an agreement. The man in rags finally speaks up. "I have a counter offer."

"Yes?"

He leans towards Konrad. "You protect me from my captors, and I will put in a good word for you and your group when the others come find me."

Konrad tilts his head. "'Others? What 'others'?"

Fedler and Naomi have now focused all their attention on Conan's words. "The others like me," he reveals.

Oh, shit. "Please. Is that all? We're here to kill your captors. You wouldn't mind coming with us though, would you? As, I dunno, an ambassador for your people?"

Deception
Konrad tries to downplay the beads of sweat rolling down his forehead

"You protect me from my captors, the others find me, and I leave with them. We'll make contact with your group at a later date to establish... an exchange of knowledge. Does that seem fair to you?"

"Hmm..." I suppose the Free Feathers mainly want to keep the "artifact" out of the hands of Lorinthians. "That sounds promising. I agree, we have a deal." He holds out his hand to shake.

Conan shakes his hand. "Glad to hear it." He looks at Fedler and Naomi. "I presume you will also agree to these terms."

Both women nod. "Yes, we absolutely will," says Fedler, a little nervous.

"I will strongly recommend to my superior that she accepts," adds Naomi.

"Marvelous,” concludes Konrad.

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Zeiss wrote:

Meeting with the Master:

Konrad and Kira:

OOC:

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Zeiss wrote:: The master opens the door to the room Fedler, Naomi, Konrad and Conan are in. Both women stand up.

"Pardon the intrusion," he says. "I would like to talk with the young man here."

He points to Conan. As soon as Zelk and the rest of the group enters the room, Naomi hurries to her superior's side.

"Ma'am," she quickly starts. "Konrad has managed to reach an agreement with Conan, and I think we should also consent to it."

"An agreement?" repeats Zelk with an inquisitive tone. "What sort of agreement?"

"We protect him from Kira Paddle's crew and the Lorinthian agents, and his people will leave us alone when they come for him. They'll also contact us at a later date to exchange knowledge."

Zelk turns her attention back at Conan, who simply stares back at her. The master has decided to observe the scene, for now.

"Do you think he was telling the truth?" asks the lieutenant.

"Yes ma'am," replies Naomi.

"I think so too," adds Fedler.

"Then that's what we'll do," concludes Zelk.

"Young man," interjects Avalon. "Could you please tell me what the people from the group in the other wing are in relation to you?"

"My captors," answers the man in rags with a flat tone, "and the ones who were going to buy me from them."

"I see."

The master falls silent for a few seconds, time that Breeze uses to float near Konrad and ask him, "Hey Wildfire, are you okay now? You're not going to fight the monks, are you?"

She is showing genuine concern for him.

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Rory wrote:: Ah, love the ring to that. There's a title worthy of my attention. "Everything's all right, Blue. I'm perfectly fine." Eyes are on the master now. 'I'd like to speak with the young man there,' he says.

"So Avalon, how shall we proceed from here?" he asks.

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Zeiss wrote:

The master swiftly turns towards Konrad.

"I believe what the young man just told me. If nothing else, my instinct is telling me that the people from the other group are the real problem. We should formulate a plan immediately."

There's a yell coming from the dinner area. "Master!"

"Oh no," says Fredrick. "I really don't like the sound of this."

There's a violent commotion happening over there.

OOC:

Combat Grid

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Zeiss wrote:

The Lorinthians and the pirates all converged on the dinner area with the plan to kill everyone that would stand in their way. The 113th adjunct and the Free squad allied themselves with the monks to repel the attack, and keep the man in rags out of their grasp. The battle started with the deaths of the two monks guarding the north wing, who were taken by surprise by the enhanced fortitude of the Lorinthian soldiers, and couldn't do much to resist the initial push.

What followed is a chaotic battle that lasted just over a minute. The adjunct and squad members all rushed alongside Conan and the Master to assist the monks who were fighting the enemy alone. Mihai, who led the charge, was immediately subjected to the effects of a yellow spell called Confuse, which unintentionally made him attack Conan. Fedler, who noticed that something was wrong with Mihai, warned everyone of what had happened. Conan was now spilling white blood, but the warning convinced him not to retaliate against his newfound ally, and he turned his attention back to the real enemy. This is when Snicker intervened, and canceled the magical effect cast on Mihai, with a simply explanation, "I've now protected Fedler, just as I promised I would."

Meanwhile, Konrad, Steve and Breeze were attacking the pirate flank. The little fairy could do nothing more than just cast minor spells at one of the pirates, but combined with Steve's Blizzard spells, the onslaught of the squad members, and Konrad's cunning usage of a thunderstone, they would soon manage to reduce their numbers to one. As for Kira Paddle, she turned her attention on the Master and the other monks who began to suffer a lot of damage at her hands, with the Lorinthians' help. This is when Konrad made good on Snicker's promise to assault Kira's mind with pain; she fell to her knees, screaming. During this time, the yellow mage cast Silence on Zelk Freeron, preventing for from using magic for a significant of time during this battle. The lieutenant didn't let that stop her from aiding her comrades, and she pulled out a dagger she fully intended to use on the agonizing pirate.

During all of this, they all heard a familiar laugh.

Now desperate, the Lorinthian mage shouted to Snicker that he wished to make a deal, which took the group by surprise. The bodies of those who had died by this point; one pirate, one soldier, and two monks; were suddenly animated like if they were puppets on strings, and they promptly attacked their enemies. One of the monks still alive was quickly beaten to death by what used to be her friends. The effects of the thunderstone were mysteriously removed, and the pirates renewed their attack. As for Kira Paddle, she wasn't in pain anymore, and quickly attacked Zelk with her short swords. The black mage slowly backed away, and she brought a hand to her stomach to stop the blood coming out of her gut.

Steve noticed that the magical technique used to animate the bodies was similar to what he had seen in Waterglass, but there was nevertheless a major difference. The style was too different to be the same person (or entity). But he had no time to analyze this phenomenon further, as one of Fedler's arrow flew by him to kill one other pirate. He asked Breeze if there was anything she could do against the puppets. While she pointed at one of the animated bodies, Breeze told Steve she didn't have the ability to stop this; but of course, the animated body immediately fell to the ground. Conan bought her enough time to deal with the other puppets, and punched one of them through a wall. It didn't take long for the fairy to regain her composure and banish these creatures out of existence.

Her survival instinct pushed Kira to shout at Snicker that she wished to make a deal. She gained unnatural speed, and attacked Konrad, Avalon, and Zelk at the same time, wounding all of them. The lieutenant was cut right across her face, and she fell down, unconscious. A small pool of blood started to spread around her.

The Master approached the yellow mage, and immobilized him so Mihai could finish him off with his magical sword. His death assured that his identity would be kept a secret. The last of Kira's minions, aware of how desperate the situation was, also made a deal with Snicker; he gained unnatural speed, but that wasn't enough to survive the combined attack of the three remaining squad members. Konrad, who after all this time was finally standing right in front of Kira Paddle, decided that enough was enough, and dual casted Fire on her. The last pirate burned alive, her screams echoing in the monastery, and her remains fell down to the ground.

Steve quickly spent the rest of his mana to cast Blizzard at the spreading fire, and stop the whole building from burning down. Once he had done so, no enemies remained, and Snicker remained silent.

___________________________

Fedler brought Zelk to one of the room in the south wing with Steve's help. The hunter, and improvised healer, reassured the rest of the squad that their lieutenant would make it, but that she had to stay with her to prevent any complication that might occur during the resting period. Zelk had lost a lot of blood, and her skin had turned pale. Fedler didn't stand on ceremony, and ordered Steve to go find a new change of clothes while she removed the ones that Zelk was wearing. Steve had to be told twice what to do, but he did comply to his companion's order, and the more he helped, the better he felt.

The hunter made sure she didn't miss any wound, and threw the bloodied mage robes away. Steve did find traditional monk clothes in the closet, which he and Fedler put on Zelk after they washed away the blood. Once this was done, they found themselves with nothing else to do.

"We can only wait," declared Fedler with a soothing voice. She was on her knees, checking Zelk's pulse with two of her fingers. "She'll be okay Steve. She just needs to rest."

The young redhead let out a big sigh, out of exhaustion.

___________________________

Once Fedler and Steve disappeared into one of the rooms of the south wing, Adam took command of the squad, and ordered Fredrick and Naomi to carry the bodies of the pirates and the Lorinthians out of the monastery.

"We'll burn them in the forest," he told them with a firm voice. "

The two younger squad members slowly nodded, and immediately got to work. The master and his disciples, heavily injured, nevertheless took a moment to pay respect to the bodies of their friends.

"Valor," said Avalon, "go check on the children. Make sure they don't see this."

"Yes master," replied one of the women, who then hurried through the back door.

"Leon, Suzy," continued the master, "help me carry their bodies to the clearing."

"Yes," answered the two other monks in unison.

"Let me help," added Conan.

Avalon looked down at the wound on the young man's chest, and the white blood slowly dripping out of it.

"Shouldn't you rest?" asked the master.

"Shouldn't you?" retorted the man in rags.

There was a small chuckle. "Yes, I should. But I don't want to right now. Thank you for your help."

OOC:

___________________________

Mihai has returned to the monastery in a sprint, just in time to see the squad members carry a pirate's body into the forest. None of the monks are around, nor is Conan.

"You back?" asks Adam. "You ready to help now?"

"You're injured!" suddenly realizes the fairy. "I'll take care of that, don't worry!"

"Oh, uh... thank you."

Breeze extends her small hands in front of a wound, and a warm multicolored light starts to emanated from them.

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K wrote:: "I'm ready." - he replies, somber but resolute - "What can i do?"

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Zeiss wrote:: "Help me carry one of those bodies," replies Adam. "There's still four of them in there. We're taking them out in the forest."

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K wrote:: Mihai picks up one of the bodies and follows Adam.

Along the way, he asks - "How's Zelk?"

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Rory wrote:: -- During fight, after destroying Kira --

Konrad says nothing. He just looks on, like he's willing the fires to burn with his very gaze, just listening to the screams. "For the Capricorn," he mutters. "For Luther."

-- . --

Avalon does not respond after being thanked for the help, but Konrad does not have to wait long before the monastic master takes some initiative to order his pupils and carry bodies.

His adjunct is not okay. He's of a mind to speak with each member, but right now he chooses to carry bodies. "We're going to be okay, people. The hard part is over. Now we just have to wait for the next ship to arrive. I hope the Barracuda made it out of that storm."

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Kolson wrote:: Steve looks down at Zelk. He's never seen her so bad. He tenderly moves a lock of hair from her face and rubs his hand gently on her cheek. To Fedler he says, "Thank you for saving her. And for giving me something to do."

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Zeiss wrote:: Fedler watches Steve with gentle eyes, despite the arduous fight that ended not even fifteen minutes ago.

"No problem," she replies, tired. There's a short moment of silence, until she decides to add something. "I didn't think you would show that kind of affection for her. I remember those poems."

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Kolson wrote:: "Ugh, don't remind me. Those could have been the last things she ever got from me; what a disaster that would have been. We already wasted so much time."

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Zeiss wrote:: Fedler hesitates, but she chooses to do it anyway; she grabs Zelk's bag, and opens it.

"The contents fell on the floor while you were looking for other clothes," she explains. "I'm not sure if I should do it, but just like you said, you've both wasted enough time."

She holds towards Steve a small stack of sheets of papers. He recognizes his own handwriting.

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Kolson wrote:: He slowly takes them and begins checking them one at a time. "They're all here. She kept all of them." He wipes away a tear. "That's just like her, you know. She was never one to waste her time on things she didn't care about."

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Zeiss wrote:: "You both have strange ways to show how you care," comments Fedler, a smirk on her face. "I'm no expert when it comes down to... uh, relationships, but I think you should talk about it with her."

She stops herself from saying anything else.

"Sorry, I shouldn't meddle."

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Kolson wrote:: "Don't worry about it. You're not a meddler, you're family. Hey, hand me that rag."

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Zeiss wrote:: Fedler grabs one of the improvised towels she made out of bed sheets, and gives one to Steve.

"There you go."

Both of them hear a groan coming from Zelk. The lieutenant slowly opens her eyes, and tries to turn her head to look around.

"Stop," warns Fedler. "You've lost a lot of blood, but you need to rest. The members of your squad have not suffered any serious injury." There's a pause. "Three of the monks are dead."

Zelk closes her eyes for an instant when she hears these news. Her breath is slow, but steady. She opens her eyes again, and focuses her attention on the person on her left; it takes a few seconds, but she recognizes Steve. She licks her lips, and almost in a whisper, she says, "Hey, asshole... couldn't you have killed her before she gut me like a fish?"

A small smile crops up on her face.

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Kolson wrote:: "Probably could have if you'd trained your squad how to fight. You and me would have had them down in six seconds instead of eighteen," He summons a small storm into his hand and uses its rain to wet the towel. He moves next to her and gets the towel ready. "I'm going to dribble this water into your mouth. Ready?"

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Zeiss wrote:: Fedler stands up.

"I'll tell the others that Zelk is conscious," she says. "Don't let her stand up Steve."

The hunter slides the door open, and closes it behind her.

"...There better be only water in that towel," warns Zelk with a weak voice. "or you're swimming back to Zest."

_____________________

Konrad and Fredrick have just come back from the forest, having carried another body there. The red mage notices that Mihai and Breeze have reappeared in front of the monastery, and the fairy is currently healing Adam. Right at this moment, Naomi and Fedler come out of the building, and the whole group reconvene in front of it.

"Zelk just woke up," announces the redheaded hunter. "She'll be fine. I left her with Steve, and I assume she's smart enough not to start a fight in her condition."

"I don't know," quips Fredrick. "Even with 3 litters of blood missing, I would still bet on her to win that fight."

"Let's not test it," replies Naomi. "I don't want to explain to the Coins that we may have intentionally hurt one of their mages."

"Hey!" protests Breeze. "If you still want me to heal you, you better watch your tongue!"

"Sorry, sorry. Won't do it again."

"Good," replies the fairy with a nod. She then proceeds to heal Naomi. "Steve would definitely win."

Adam almost appear amused by this whole exchange.

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