As a standard rule to Alex, it was to expect anything that could happen...
It should have not been a surprise for the rising jury member Maribelle to drop by, but it was as Alex kept his facts straight, leaning forward with his hands under his jaw. "So... Gaius had recently gone undercover to exploit a ring that wanted to disgrace your father and has yet to come back for several days, ill news as he was intended to report his findings daily."
"As ill-chanced as I wish to admit it, Alex, I fear that he has been caught and... I came looking for aid on unofficial channels to find him and bring him back." Alex had the chance to refuse as Gaius had been through hell and he would not leave Maribelle's side, but the way her hands shook with the parasol told Alex everything, she was growing worried sick and she wanted someone to check quickly before she despairs even more. "I just can't stand to lose him... not now..."
Alex breathed as he stood up and spoke, walking around the table to help her to her feet. "If that is your decision, then the Marauders will look into it, the Shepherds will need to stay out of this situation." Alex turned back to the window with hands behind his back. "As far as this has started, this conversation never happened here, inform Exalt Chrom if you can that I will be occupied for some time."
"Of course, Alex, and... thank you." The door opened and closed as Barlowe spoke up to Alex sitting back down.
"Are you sure we can trust her word?"
"If it was a simple matter, then I would have said no, but you heard her as well, a ring that is planning on ruining the livelihood of her family, a critical part of Ylisse as their daughter had helped stop the war, refined a thief that had made pence for his crimes and want to keep her safe from the same group that would have benefited from her father's fall." Alex hummed with a large ponder. "I am heard the same accusations against the Themis Duke and can only think that Gaius had got roped into a mess that needs some minor aid if any."
"Who should I involve in this errand?"
"I want a trustworthy healer, a capable thief, you, and a steady knight on our side if we are to breach the last place that Gaius was last at." The Grandmaster rolled out a map of Ylisse and moved a gloved finger to the ridge of Themis' realm. "Can I trust you to do this and we meet within two hours to head out?"
"Count on me, sir!" Barlowe bowed and headed out as Alex formulated a plan, preparing for whatever could be laying in wait...
Alex took his allies as he dismounted, addressing each of them with resolve. "Beatrice!"
The lovely red-haired woman saluted. "At your command, sir!"
"Leif!"
The Thief tumbled off his horse before he stumbled to his feet. "Y-Yes sir!"
"Barlowe!"
The Mercenary pounded his chest in salute. "What is your command!?"
"Titania!"
The knight bowed with honor as she returned the words from under her helm. "Yours to command."
Alex nodded as he ran through the plan. "Alright, Barlowe has already given the basics, but I will say it again for any who had forgotten." Alex pointed through the foliage and they all looked out to the realm of Themis." We have a missing ally, near the border of this province and it is our task now to find and return him back to the Shepherds, is that clear!?"
"Of course, sir!"
"All over it!"
"As you wish!"
"We will not falter!"
Alex smiled as he motioned them with. "The usual entrance that our ally disappeared to may be under protection, so we will need to find a new way into the place that is connected."
"Understood, sir, I will get straight to work!" Leif started to look about as the band watched, Beatrice slightly upheaved by how Leif went about searching until the thief smiled and waved him over to a ill-fitted panel in the soil. Titania lifted the plate up and set it against a tree and they looked down into the darkness before Leif jumped down. "Here I goooo!"
"Easy, Leif!" Alex shouted before following suit with Barlowe close behind. They landed into an echoic chamber as Leif caught Beatrice and Titania was saved by the tactician and mercenary, resulting in a slight soreness from the catch and a slap for Leif as he grabbed something in the dark before Alex struck a torch. "Certainly not part of Themis' domain, someone must have dug this to concoct secreted plans."
"You can say that, boss!" Leif said as he ran a hand across the walls while rubbing his now-red cheek. "If I had to guess, this was long before Emm's reign and has only seen recent action."
"This means that our foes have been using it for their own benefits, an action most unforgiveable." Titania said as she moved to ready her lance when Barlowe stopped and she returned the weapon.
"First things first, we need to find Gaius and learn what we can about our enemies here, that way, we are killing two birds with a single stone." Barlowe crouched as he studied the flooring as the passages would looked down, Alex taking the moment to ignite the touch post to see what could be seen. "Thank the lessons from Gregor, some of these steps are recent, but they don't go past that second passage at any point, they are keeping in here and back that tunnel." Alex and the band made to note that the passage did have a slight lack of dust in the steps of heavy armor and weapons, mostly likely knights and unmounted cavaliers.
Alex looked about before he spotted the difference in the room that should have made it a simple tunnel. "Leif, we need your lock-picking skills sooner than we had guess."
"Why is that?" Alex pointed and they all saw, one side of the wall was not stone, but an open space with metal bars covering, two figures in the two cells and one of them had orange hair.
"My god, Naga save us..." Beatrice whispered in horror as Alex approached the cell and spoke, hoping to get a reaction.
"Gaius, can you hear me...?" The Thief stirred as his chains rattled with the other being as he looked up, Alex grimacing the state of his body as he spoke.
"Hey... Bubbles, how have... you been?"
"More on pins and needles for you, you are one of the Shepherds." The tactician stood up and commanded. "Leif, get this cell open now, time is now of the essence."
"Right, boss!" Leif went straight to work as he started to tamper with the locked cell door while Titania looked at the other prisoner with a pause. Alex walked over to see the second prisoner, looking upon the figure that was huddled as it was covering cowering beings in front of it, its face cut in several places, but the ears were not much of a shock as Titania turned to asked.
"What are they?"
"Taguel, a species that is much like the Manakete, they are able to use powerful stones to transform into beasts of strength, speed, and durability, the Shepherds support one as an ally, but with the raze of her warren, she is distrustful of humans." Alex took a long look as Leif eased Gaius out and Beatrice started to heal what wounds she could. "I believe that these three were from a similar warren that faced the torch, but they look a bit older than her." Titania reached out and started to groan as her hands pulled at the metal, Alex simply watching before he turned to talk to Barlowe. "I can only hope that Gaius was caught by surprise, if these foes are organized and prepared, resorting to methods of torture, then they are willing to bring down the Halidom to obtain their goals."
"Sir, I would rather perish than let some upstart get what they want through... THIS mess?!" Barlowe angrily stated. "I would never wish this on anyone and I will make a bold statement to get my point across!"
"Peace, Captain..." Alex said as the prisoners were round up and fixed up as best as the group can do. "If we kill them all, we will be proving their resolve is just, we need to exploit their methods and reasons and for us to do that, we need to get the prisoners out of here AND obtain any plans they may have." Barlowe looked heated under the collar as he readied a hand to pull out his sword, but he breathed and released the hilt with Alex nodding as he addressed the group. "Alright, from this point, I want two groups to escort the prisoners out and create a distraction to ensure that they get out and steal basic plans from these foes, sound off for either escort or distract."
Leif spoke with a grin. "Distract, boss!"
Titania was next with a nod. "I will run Escort."
Beatrice smiled as she accepted her role. "Escort, sir."
Barlowe nodded with pride. "Distract, sir!"
"Excellent, Barlowe and Leif are will me, Beatrice and Titania, we will buy you fifteen minutes of time, knock out any lingering guards on your way out."
"Yes sir!" Alex turned as he started to lead the way.
"Come, we have some panic to cause for these fiends that would dare pull this type of thing."
"Got it, sir!" The trio headed in, drawing weapons to stop the reluctant and end the zealots, it was their choice and now they will reap what they sowed...
(~Three days later~)
Alex winced as Tharja took it upon herself to mend the tactician from his latest mission, though she was quite peeved that he left without telling her anything. "Easy, Tharja, I am not made of stone."
"Then don't push your luck further than I am willing to allow." Tharja returned to the mend as she had learned of the side mission and was nearly going to curse Maribelle for such a dangerous task be given to HER Alex, but as the silence started to hang, her hands slowed down and she started to make conversation to ease her mind. "So... the thief was not just captured, he was taken by the same people who threatened the girl's father, torturing him to break him and discard him as dead?"
"Yeah, there were a number of nobles that had vendettas, but they wanted to crack Themis so that infighting could allow a new duke to take Maribelle's father's place and guide the people on a warlike path, an old supporter of the fallen Exalt who wanted severe change and sees peace as a hindrance."
"I can not accept such a man on the country, his way would be of a purist method, only Ylisse blood would be allowed should he come to power." The sorceress squeezed out some water and resumed her clean, more personal than a standard heal stave, but she covered that base just in case. "You were wise in uncovering the threat and shattering his plans while showing compassion for those who were forced into the whole mess, not that I would care about a bunch of people who raised a blade against you."
"True..." Alex paused as he watched outside the window, Ylissian soldiers rounding up a recent incursion in attempting to free the rebel leader, his fate yet to be decided as Maribelle and the Duke pondered the options with Chrom. "The Themis family had thanked me personal for my service in revealing the danger and have also asked for a reasonable punishment for the leader, your thoughts?"
"Burning will stop his suffering short and keeping him will only cause more people to rise and make their attempts in vain." She tapped her jaw before she smiled at a good one. "What about banishing him to Regna Ferox, I hear that the Khans will always be willing to have more warriors to contest with."
"Hmmm..." Alex pondered the thought before deciding it was wise indeed, the Khans are brutal against treason and they can whip anyone into shape for their daily contests of control and strength, plus the cold weather would be a change of scenery that would teach the ringleader a lesson. "Thank you for the idea, I better organize his transfer so that we don't have any issues with him again." Alex started to scribe out his plans as Tharja finished up and headed out, closing the door before she breathed, sliding down the door frame as she mumbled to herself.
"Why is it so hard to just love him, is it so hard for me or... could I be afraid?" She wanted to shake her head that she wasn't so, but a pit in her stomach just could leave her alone, a deep feeling that she... was missing a valuable part of Alex that needs to be told, a fact that has her... worried...
