Prologue: Just another day

Mihai looks in horror as he realizes what's happening. Instead of saying a word, he tries to feel his left forearm for something that might be there.

Mihai can feel under his sleeve the weight of his concealed weapon. However, he is shackled, forced to sit on the ground and has his legs tied together.

"Fedler!!"

"Ugh..." Konrad stirs from sleep. He tries to stand, his arms straining against the chains. Futility. He looks up at their captors. Realization of what is happening snaps him awake.

"Then get out of her head and knock her out, you idiots."

Diplomacy

Steve comes to himself and stares in horror at another person speaking through Fedler. Mihai's shout shakes him from his inaction and he furiously starts taking stock of the situation. To check the shackles he tries to scoot so he can see the shackles on whoever is closer to him.

The redhead looks at Mihai with confusion. She then turns towards Edward and asks him, "Is that the name of this woman?"

She gestures at herself.

Edward nods, almost solemnly. This is when Konrad speaks up. The woman who now inhabits Fedler's body considers those words.

"It might be best to find other vessels," she says.

"There's no time." Edward immediately interrupts her. "Jacob is dead. The Enemy is on the move. We have to strike first."

Anne is shocked by the news. She can't speak for a few seconds.

Steve scoots over a little, but one of the kidnappers forces him back to his initial position. The black mage has enough time however to notice the runes on Konrad's shackled; they're woven, most likely meant to prevent any sort of casting.

The three party members notice Breeze slowly waking up in her cage.

Konrad only:

Mihai's eyes widen in horror before contorting into rage.

"Jacob!? You are...!!"

Konrad's face contorts into pure, villainous ire. "Sonofabitch. Where's a demon when you really need one..."

Mihai's voice goes cold - "You don't take that thing off of her, you're never seeing Caspar again."

"Caspar?" Anne recognizes that name. "Edward, what does he mean?"

"Can't we have this discussion later?" he asks.

"No, we're having it now."

Edward sighs, but relents. "A few months ago, something attacked the asylum in Highwind. Many people died, Caspar among them. Marcus told me the Free Army got hold of his orb, but..."

He seems uncertain.

"If they have Caspar's orb," Anne begins, "we should make a deal. We can't let one of us-"

"No," the leader replies. "Like I said, there's no time. Caspar is a scribe. He's valuable, but at this moment, we need you more than him. Besides, you can tell us where he is once you've taken full control of this body."

"But-"

"It's an order!"

Anne bites her lip - Fedler's lip - but lowers her head and says, "Understood..."

"Fedler?"

It's Breeze. She is now awake and is holding the bars of her cage, looking at her friends in chains.

"What- what's happening?" She seems terrorized.

"Breeze?" Anne appears shocked. "Is that you?"

"It's not Fedler! Her name is Anne and she's trying to steal Fedler's body!"

"Breeze..." - Mihai manages in breathless desperation - "please... don't let them take her."

He has never sounded so helpless before.

Diplomacy 19

Breeze's eyes start to well up with tears, but once Konrad tells her to do something and Mihai pleads her to help their friend, she frantically nods and raises a finger towards the cage to cast a cantrip. But nothing happens.

"What? Why!?"

"Please, calm down," Stefan tells her with a somber expression. "Just... don't move."

A sob escapes Breeze's throat and a few tears roll down her cheeks. She's trying to stop it and looks at her three remaining friends, at a loss on what to do.

"I'm sorry Breeze," Anne says, apparently saddened by this scene. "I..."

She lowers her head and stays silent.

"We should get going," Edward announces with a flat tone.

"Won't any drifting basket case do? Why us? Why perfectly healthy people?" Konrad starts deweaving his shackles frantically.

Weaving 16

Edward/Edwin looks down on the other red mage and doesn't even deign to answer him. Konrad uses this time to attempt to deweave his restraints, but he realizes that the magic is being repelled; he's surely wearing woven shackles.

"Edward! If we walk away from this, the next thing we're doing is killing Caspar. Fedler can hold out long enough, and i know your Orbs can be dewoven - i've seen it happen. And i won't stop there. I'll hunt down every last one of you and destroy you for good. I don't care what i have to do or how long it takes, your little boy in my head here won't stand a chance! Your too many people be damned!"

Mihai is activating Rage. Expending AP and trying to break free of the shackles through brute force.

15+3+4+5= 27

"Oh, you clever bastards." The fury in Konrad's eyes intensifies.

While Mihai yells bloody murder after Edward, Konrad tries his shackles...they don't bend. He tries to slip out of the tight manacles...he slightly bruises his wrists.

Strength 11
Acrobatics 7

"Who the fuck do you think you are, stealing people's lives like this! We served you honorably and well, and this is how you repay us? Damn you and your cause! You lost it the day you decided to start doing this, you fucking worthless ghosts!" He'll start gathering as much magic in hand as he can without trying to cast a spell, trying to build up enough to go Wild.

Konrad takes notice of what Steve is doing, and his eyes fly open.

Spellcraft 23

Edward flinches just a bit when he hears the word "dewoven". He frowns and keeps his mouth shut, even though it's clear that he wants to respond to Mihai's threat. Once Steve shouts at him, he gestures at his subordinates who then they take one step towards the party members and lean down on them.

Konrad's attempt to free himself having already failed, only Steve and Mihai are left.

With great difficulty, the black mage gathers as much magic as he can, but it's proving to be really difficult. He manages to gather up approximately two thirds of his mana before he loses control. Raw solid magic emerges from his hands and strike at one of the kidnappers' leg.

"Argh! FUCK!"

It seems to have hurt him. Steve can see a little bit of blood on the ground.

"Steve, no!" Breeze yells, horrified.

Witnessing this, Konrad understands that the shackles prevented his companion from going mad. Reassured by this, he gathers as much magic as possible to do the same thing, hoping to kill one of them as they approach him.

As for Mihai, he can feel the chains slightly bend at the pressure he's exerting on them. If only he had more time...

"Dammit, put them to sleep!" Edward orders.

The subordinates are now putting something on the mouth and nose of the party members; a wet piece of cloth? And it smells strange.

Konrad unleashes all the magic he has managed to gather, which isn't much. The energy goes wild, and Konrad almost doesn't realize that one of the soldiers has fallen to the ground. Whoever they are, they're not moving anymore.

"Leave them alone!" Breeze shouts.

"Stefan, help us!"

The Coins agent puts the cage down on the ground to replace his fallen companion.

In a matter of seconds, Mihai, Konrad and Steve all fall unconscious.

"I'll kill you... i'll kill all of you..."

I failed...I failed them... (He means all of his friends.)

A mad grin emerges on Konrad's face as he fails to resist in time, breathing in the odd smell. "For your trouble...bastards..."