Chapter 33: A Not So Simple Errand
The next day they walked off to Lastonbell, however before they left Eguille stopped them.
"Sorey!" He called. "Since you and your friends are heading to Lastonbell can you give this to Gilmore?" He handed Sorey a package with a note on it. "Oh that's for any inspections that you might come across, just in case."
"… Will do." Said Sorey. After that they got there without incident. Though when they got there they noticed a rather long line in front of Lastonbell's gate.
"Excuse me!" Rose called to the person in front of the gang. "But what's going on?"
"Haven't you heard? They're performing an inspection of anyone that enters."
"…What for?" Sorey asked.
"There are rumors that the Shepherd is either dead or somewhere in Rolance. This is to check to see if she really is dead." They said. "Though that doesn't exactly mean that we can fuck around so we just have to act normal and not get arrested and we'll be fine."
"… We're boned." Rose muttered through her teeth.
"Well we're not lying telling the guards that we're delivering some goods to a client in town. We'll be fine as long as they don't ask too many questions." Said Sorey. So they waited in line for about half an hour. Then it was Rose and Sorey's turn to go through the inspection. A young woman with dirty blonde hair tied to the side with a silver wing clip, pale green eyes, and wearing an obviously more feminine version of the standard uniform stating that it was custom made with the armor on her knees, and elbows being a clear black glass like substance instead of the usual metal in an ensamble that set her apart from every other soldier, approached them.
"I am Alisha Diphda from the Platinum Knights." She introduced herself. "Thank you for complying with the inspection." Sorey gave a rather sinister grin that seemed to go over Alisha's head.
"You know she's a naïve little dip shit don't you?" Said Mikleo.
"Oh so nice of you to join us Meebo. Care to tell us why you flipped out yesterday and didn't talk to us for the rest of the day?" Said Edna.
"Listen, I'd love to tell the world all of my trauma but it would end up breaking my oath." Mikleo replied.
"Hello Alisha it's been a while hasn't it?" Said Sorey.
"Yes it has, we should catch up when I'm not busy." She said. "Though you're kind of holding up the line. What brings you to Lastonbell Sorey?"
"Oh I have to deliver this to Gilmore." Said Sorey holding up the paper that came with the package.
"Well knowing Gilmore and that is an authentic seal for the Light Sparks … you're good to go." Said Alisha.
"Oh thanks a bunch Alisha! C'mon let's go!" Said Sorey and he and the rest of the party started walking off.
"Wait!" Alisha called stopping the party. She looked over to Rose. "I don't believe I've seen you before."
"Well … she's new." Said Sorey. "I'm … I'm just showing her the ropes."
"Then why is she wearing a cloak that's similar to the traditional Hylandian Shepherd's garb?" She asked.
"She knew the style of Rose's cloak?!" Mikleo exclaimed. "Oh god we're doomed."
"She's less of an idiot than she looks." Said Dezel getting in position to attack her.
"Don't! There are people watching!" Sorey whispered. Dezel grit his teeth and growled. "Well … you know … reasons."
"Sorey please. I'm talking to your recruit." Said Alisha.
"Well … you see …"Rose started. "I'm his boss's daughter."
"Oh boy." Enda sighed.
"Look you may have fooled some Hyland guards and an innkeeper but I doubt you'll fool someone that knows you're basically wearing traditional garb." Said Dezel.
"I don't recall Miss Muse talking about you, or even seeing you around her." Said Alisha.
"Well that's because I'm her long lost daughter!" Said Rose in an overly dramatic way.
"This is so stupid." Said Edna while Dezel just sighed.
"You see when I was born to a single mother who had lost her husband in the war so I became her world. Mother told me I was the one who lit up her world after it became so dark from her loss. And we lived happily, and it was perfect for both of us for three years.
"Then one day a group of bandits invaded out village, tried to kill my mother, took me away and burned our the village down. I cried for my mother reaching out to her wanting to go back to her and at the very least have her last moments be with me. But little did I know she survived and looked for me and tried to track down the bandits that took me.
"After they took me they threw me into a pit where I was nearly starved to death only to be taken out to clean for them and do horrible …HORRIBLE favors for them. And if I refused or misbehaved I was wipped or worse thrown intio the pit without any food! And I slaved away at the hands of my captors for years until just a few months ago. Where my mother with Sorey and Mupvet busted into their hideout taking down anyone that got in their way and by them I meant mom and Sorey. Mupvet went to the back to try to seduce a woman only to get punched because that was his daughter from a woman he had a one night stand with. So anyway they got information on where I was and she got me out of the pit. Sorey got a coughing fit and passed out and me and mom reunited after I thought she died for so many years. So a few weeks ago she gave me this cloak as a symbol that the light of her world has finally returned to her." Rose told. All the while Dezel laughed hysterically as Rose's story became more absurd and Edna moved her limbs around into increasingly ridiculous positions. While Sorey stood in the background with a smile and a stare that was a mix of murderous and despair. Zenrus looked over to Mikleo.
"I feel so sorry for you that she's basically butchering the story of you and Muse." He said to him.
"Well … she got the burning village, Muse trying to find me, and kidnapping parts right …" Said Mikleo hesitantly. "She just left out all the death and dumb luck." Even though the story seemed like there was no way it would work Alisha broke down sobbing around the part around the part Rose mentioned Muse finding her.
"Oh the things your mother did for you!" She cried then sniffing before continuing "So … so … be- aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!"
"Um … can we go?" Rose asked. Unable to speak through her sobbing she nodded and gestured them to leave and went back to the inspection. A little while later half way towards where Sorey needed to go everyone spoke up.
"Is everyone still not believing that worked?" Rose asked.
"Yes." Said Sorey.
"I mean due to her apparent familiarity-." Edna started.
"I don't mean to interrupt but that familiarity wasn't apparent." Said Zenrus.
"Straight up familiarity" Edna corrected "with Sorey and probably Muse we'd expect that she would see through the daughter lie you've been getting by with so far."
"Seriously consisdering her actual son was right there." Said Sorey. "Though I gotta say the Mupvet part is pretty accurate."
"She can't see me otherwise she would've known something was up when Dezel started laughing." Said Mikleo. "Though more than anything I think we just lucked out."
"No kidding." Said Rose. "Hey Mikleo if we run into anyone with resonance can we say we're brother and sister … even though you've died and all that?"
"No. And if we did, you're adopted." Said Mikleo.
"Oh was the adopted thing supposed to hurt?" Rose asked when they approached a building past the sanctuary and close to the opposite gate with a wooden unicorn sign haning off of it. Rose and the seraphim followed Sorey into the establishment where there was a man that looked pretty damn similar to the knight that they fooled during the inspection except he had short brown hair and blue eyes in front of a bead curtain over an open door which leads to the back where a seraph was putting a piece of jewelery together. Though the glassy beads obscured what they looked like.
"Oh Sorey, it's been a while. Though honestly I would've expected Muse or Eguille to come by." Said the man.
"They're busy." Said Sorey. "Is Gilmore around?"
"I'm afraid in Pendrago. So I don't know when he'll be back-." Said the man. But then they heard a door slam open.
"Do I hear one of my favorite suppliers?" They heard a voice say.
"How…?!" The man said under his breath.
"Oh. If only you can hear me tell you that I'm fairly certain he has a secret labyrinth of tunnels under his room." Everyone else heard the seraph in the back say in a monotone. A dark skinned man with long wavy black hair tied back, sporting a gotee that has a little braid in it, clad in purple robes with golden lining with an assortment of golden jewelery, went through the bead curtain parting the curtain in a way that made him look fabulous but would poke out anyone else's eye if they tried it.
"Gilmore!" Sorey cried excitedly.
"Hello Sorey. How is my favorite merchant's guild?" He asked pinching Sorey's cheek.
"We're the only merchant's guild associated with you." Said Sorey rather bluntly Gilmore gave a laugh that had a 'oh if only you knew' tone. "But we're good."
"Wonderful!" Gilmore exclaimed following it up with a boisterous laugh. "I see you have the goods I need."
"Yep, here you go." Said Sorey. Gilmore took the package, he opened the package and rummaged through the contents which was primarily herbs with some gelbase plants, and a type of ore mixed in. He smiled then gave Sorey a small sack with gald in it. "Pleasure doing business with you."
"As always." Said Gilmore. "Though honestly I'm surprised that this was pretty undisturbed with the inspection searching for the Shepherd."
"Well … we managed to get really lucky …" Said Sorey trying to be careful with his words glancing over to the other man. "Considering some things." He then eyed Rose and Rose glared at him in return.
"You must tell me more but we should talk more but not in a place that's so … public." Said Gilmore gesturing to the whole place. "Let's say me and you two meet me at the sanctuary after I take care of a few things."
"All right." Said Sorey. "C'mon Rose." The two left the shop and headed to the sanctuary.
"Well … he's a character." Said Rose.
"Well he's pretty good for business." Said Sorey. "So I know Muse and Eguille are pretty happy to work with him. But some do wish that he's less shrewd."
"Why's that?" Rose asked.
"Well he's pretty picky on the quality on the goods but on the bright side he ends up really reinforcing our honesty policy." Said Sorey with a shrug as they entered the sanctuary which was currently empty inside.
"That Gilmore is an odd one." Said Zenrus. "I've heard him told various members of the Light Sparks that he's not from this continent and he has a seraph working with him."
"Think he could see us?" Edna asked.
"Yes I could see you." They heard Gilmore say. The party turned to see Gilmore with the seraph with him. They managed to get a better look at him, a fire seraph with brown skin, red hair, red eyes and in typical serph attire.
"Of course you have resonance." Said Rose.
"Honestly a bit of a surprise on my end." Said Gilmore. "As I grew up in a place with no seraphim."
"I see." Said Rose. "So who's your seraph friend there?"
"I am Senokir." Said the seraph in a monotone. "It's a pleasure to meet you Shepherd."
"… Likewise." Said Rose.
"I could say the same thing talking to seraphim other than my business partner here." Said Gilmore.
"Really?" Said Rose.
"I was wondering about that." Said Sorey. "Since you started up a few months ago and I keep seeing Senokir hanging around."
"He did some favors for me." Said Senokir in a way that sounded rather ominus. "So I help him with his shop, eventually using it as my vessel instead of the sanctuary when the last Lord of the Land left."
"What happened to them?" Rose asked.
"Either turned into a hellion or died." Said Senokir with a shrug.
"… Lovely." Said Rose.
"Okay is there any reason why you wanted to talk privately other than introduce us to the Lord of the Land?" Edna asked.
"Ah yes." Said Gilmore. "I wanted to come here to warn you Shepherd."
"On what…?" Rose asked.
"You should try to avoid the knights and church as much as possible." Said Gilmore. "Ever since the battle at Gleivland basin tensions between them have been more tense than they usually are. I don't know what happened between them as I moved here and started my business a few months ago. Something's happened that caused them to have such a rift between them and I'm sure both sides would want the power of the Shepherd in their powerstruggle. … Isn't that right Princess?"
So ... here's the character that I hate but everyone else loves ... Alisha ... yay ... okay I don't like Dezel either but with him I threw out a lot of the rapey subtext that's associated with him and replaced it with a more insane obsession with animals, a half assed inferiority complex, and snark. But Alisha ... I can't guarantee that she'll be treated fairly as I've seriously thought of killing her off but vouched for a Critical Role character that might not even appear in this fic but a spinoff be a mocking parody of the anime version of her. I am so sorry to any Critical Role fans that read this for what I will do to said character ahead of time because well ... he is kind of perfect for ripping the anime version of Alisha a new one. Along with (most of) Vox Machina being dead here.