And now on the next installment, I know many of you have been waiting for this day...This moment... I couldn't be any happier myself...today is the day of Rey's judgment...Will Swain spare him? Or are there other things going into work...? Find out now :)
Chapter 46
Judgment...
Feoh
Royal castle...
Swain's office
Now in the office of Lord Swain... Reynold sat at the desk, sweating bullets while Traysek, Celestine, and Rela sat around to observe what was to come from this meeting...
"Now... let's begin with the first report regarding your mission with Niall." Swain opened the first scroll.
Rey blinked twice, "Wait what...?"
"Oh? You were under Niall...? I feel bad for him..." The Redguard said, shaking his head.
"You showed good progress with him." Swain nodded, "An impressive progress, even if it caused the loss of someone. But you can't win without sacrifices..."
Rey paled at that, already knowing what that meant, "It...it wasn't supposed to happen like that..."
"Oho~? What's this? Your actions got someone else killed? Wow..." Traysek bitterly chuckled, "Do pray tell... What else does that report say, Lord Swain...?" narrowing his eyes on the holy knight.
"Apparently, he was asked not to interfere in the battle... but chose not to listen to orders." Swain replied before adding, "After all, they were dealing with the infamous Red Snake." shocking Celestine.
The Redguard frowned upon the nickname, "I can't think of where I've heard that before..." going into thought, turning to Celestine, "Do you know who that is...? Seems like you do..."
Celestine nodded before saying, "The first time I met her... was 150 years ago. She was the shinobi of the Emperor... one who showed a kind face and kind words... but is a fierce woman who initiated a slavery ring across the seven kingdoms..."
"She has some deadly skills... those that can cause so much trouble to beings such as Celestine or myself." Swain added, "In fact, the slavery ring is still operational, even after her fake death."
Trayek went wide in the eyes, "Hold up...would this be that Oboro-chick I've heard about?!" in shock.
"Indeed," Swain nodded, "It is her."
He blinked twice and turned to Rey with shock, "By the gods...I've heard from lady Kurenai how dangerous this chick was...Her power can affect gods...GODS...how in oblivion did you survi-" he paused, thinking on what swain said earlier about "Sacrifices" before narrowing his eyes, "Really...? Somebody died protecting you from her? Oh no, Rey...So wait a minute...When you mentioned my advice, getting you into trouble...did you mean this?"
"Who else do you think inspired me to take the "Right step" yeah, that's what I'm blaming you for...I tried to do that very thing, thinking I could help Niall gain an extra edge and it turned on me...which is why I find you even reacting to it...INSULTING..." Rey growled, baring his teeth at him.
"I'll admit...I didn't know shit in the beginning, but even so...was Niall being cornered? at least the report says that right?" Traysek asked Swain, knowing deep down what that answer might be...
"They were on even footing, one might say that Niall was slowly winning." Swain stated calmly, "In the long run, he would have won."
The Redguard closed his eyes feeling the headache, "So...what I'm hearing right now is...My buddy Niall had that woman on her knees and I wouldn't have had to worry about it if he won...but because he felt like being helpful at the wrong time...now I gotta run into this chick?" turning to Rey, "Oh you dumbass...oooooh~" holding his head, "Yeah, no, I can't take responsibility for any of that...no way in hell..."
"One...don't call me a dumbass, I don't care what rank you are..." Rey snapped back, "Two, what would you have done in that situation?"
"You could have taken the initiative to investigate the lair more." Swain said, "And take advantage of the distracted enemy to search at your leisure."
Traysek nodded in agreement, "And if you found someone or someones in there that needed the help, you could've gotten them out while he had her pressed, hell, you could've even stepped it up, and got a few of Niall's men involved with what you wanted to do and DEVISED a strategy TOGETHER... would've had a better outcome than...whatever you tried to do..." shaking his head, turning to Swain, "I assume his "Method" of help is in there too, right?"
"He cut cages..." Swain sighed, "Not only that it is stupid to try and stealth your way around a shinobi, but the fact that you knew her by reputation and still tried to do that... I don't know what to say."
"It was a mistake! And sure while I may have heard about her, I didn't think she'd be that fast...it was off-corner where I was!" Rey defended, or at least tried to...
Traysek blinked twice at him, "Doesn't mean it wasn't a stupid one...And from what I know about the Shinobi here, having met Masanari and all...I know they're stealth-trained, meaning they're also trained to Detect as well...So when you called yourself trying to sneak around, She could tell, feel it even..." With a sigh, "Knowing Niall, I know he took that hard...and so did the other knights working there...one scroll and I'm already tired, what else are we going to find out, man?"
"You can consider that as the... best one." Swain took a deep breath.
The Redguard and the goddess both were in complete shock...Meanwhile, Rey was starting to go pale...
"That...that was the best one...?" Traysek asked in a near-hushed tone, glancing at the holy knight, who was sweating bullets with a nervous expression.
"Now... let's begin with the one which was supposed to test your level of openness..." Swain took the second scroll.
Rey frowned until he remembered his mission with Ruthven, going pale again, while the others just stared at him.
"Your first action was to go to the church instead of going to Regis, any explanation for it," Swain demanded.
"I was using my position to get what I needed from the church, but I don't deny that things felt...weird in there..." Reynold informed, "Especially with the priest..."
"You thought that the church could be helpful while having doubts about it... either you're trying to fool us, or you're much stupider than what she said..." Swain sighed, shaking his head, "No matter, following that, you went and was sent to the village of Luckwarden, in which you had to investigate... how much did you blend in with the crowd?"
Rey remembered his time there, sighing in defeat, "I...I didn't...at first, until I realized how hated we were over there..."
"Oooo~ That's not good Rey..." Traysek sighed, shaking his head.
"There's also the fact that we've set you to 'meet' with a human hero of his world who joined Olga on his own accord... did you take that opportunity to meet him?" Swain asked as he looked up from the scroll.
"I...No...no I didn't...and he was there...I got nervous, okay, I'll admit that..." Rey truthfully answered, "I don't know how that would've gone...and I didn't want to take that risk..."
The Captain sighed, "But you'll walk straight into churches...despite "Feeling Weird" about it...really man...?" With a raised eyebrow, "Who was the guy you sent to meet him...? I might know him..."
"You do know him." Swain pointed, "he's most famous with the title of Hero of Kvatch."
Traysek blinked in disbelief, turning to Reynold, "You bomb a meeting with master Gronik? Talk about slapping the olive branch away, you slapped the GOLDEN branch away, by the nine..." shaking his head, "That man taught me the flying spear style...You've seen it in action, you couldn't break my defense once...How do you fumble that?"
"He taught you all of that?" Rey asked with a hard frown.
"Yes! And if you played your cards right in that situation, manned up, and talked to him, he would've given you the time, holy armor and all...Even would've got the crowd to hate you a lot less...he's nice like that," The Redguard said frowning at him, "Even better, my crew and I were taking jobs under him, meaning...we COULD'VE helped you with this...Gods, you're an idiot!"
"Not only that, but you were... unhappy by the fact that people don't like being deceived." Swain stated, "I wonder why you thought they'd smile... or rather, that he'd let that slide..."
Rey sighed deeply, "Now...I know who you're talking about there...Ethan- Er... Lorley...I will admit that was...underhanded...but knowing how he felt about holy knights...I did what I had to do there..."
"Wait...Ethan? We know him too...he helped us out with a contract involving a kidnapped daughter and even led us to Fort Horak where they were keeping her...it wasn't hard to get him to help us either, I just had to pay for his drink... Easy! what did you do...? Lie to him? Try to wear a damned disguise?" Traysek asked in a high-pitched voice.
"It seems like I need to add 'Detective' to the repertoire of skills that you have." Swain joked before adding while looking at Rey, "Disguise, voice change, and identity change... which could get you 2 to 3 years in prison if wrongly used..."
"I know the law concerning identity fraud...which is why I chose someone who...didn't exist..." Rey responded.
Traysek shook, "Does that matter? That Still doesn't change what you tried to do there...and when I met Lorley, he looked already tired of all that...that could explain why he needed a drink when he came into that tavern..." Turning to Celestine, "You got anything wanna say? you're looking pale, Celestine..."
"It's... it's just that I need time to... I need time to process that..." Celestine looked disgusted.
"After that, what did you do?" Swain asked, "What were your actions afterward?"
"I...I went back to Regis, asked for families of the dead nobles, and went to different houses...to get answers..." Rey answered.
Traysek narrowed his eyes, "So you went with another lead when those methods failed...I'm getting it, but something tells me, that went sour too..."
"Now, what was the first house you visited? And how did it go?" Swain asked.
Rey rubbed the back of his neck, "A family friend...the Calvinis family..." eyes going dark...
"And...? spit it out, come on, what happened?" Traysek coaxed, snapping his fingers.
"Albert was...beating on his workers...I chose to...stay out of it..." The young knight admitted.
The Redguard had an appalled look, slightly angry, "You fucking left somebody in THAT situation? What...the hell...? Really? YOU?! The guy who saves children for an orphanage, an adult was too much for you?!" standing up, glaring at him.
"It's not as simple as that, alright?!" Rey turned to him, "People and kids I find out there as strays are different, I can't pull the same shit, you and Inigo did in the lower districts!"
"You prefer saving kids..." Swain took a deep breath before saying, "That explains why you left Rela to suffer back there... you prefer children to prepare them..."
At that, Celestine understood what Swain meant before feeling sick and holding herself from vomiting.
Now it was Rey's turn to have an appalled expression, "What?! No...NO! it's not like that at all!"
The Redguard thought on that for a second, until a thought occurred, "Wait a minute, Lord Swain...No...I can't say that... That's not what that is... I can say, and with confidence, he's not up to anything like that...Knowing how father Anderson is, I think if he smelt it that off him... That would take care of itself...there would BE no Reynold right now...And I can always Ask Anderson for clarification on that front, I got a friendship with him like he does," nodding his head towards Rey.
The young knight sighed in relief, as well as Celestine did, "See? Even he believes I'm not up to anything that sick!"
"That's not the ONLY reason though, Rey..." Traysek cut in with, getting a gulp from him, "In fact, the only reason you're even cleared from that, is because the OTHER sin you've committed is even WORSE than that accusation..."
"Then why didn't you try to save that maid like you did to those children who were enslaved by the nobles... I'm. Waiting." Swain said with a cold and stern tone.
Rey took a deep breath, "Because...I was working at that church in Erdora as a side subsidiary...!" He answered..."I was HELPING in rescuing those children with Father Anderson and the sisters...He'd get wind of an orphan being out there and we were sent to...bring them back to safety...there used to be way more working there, compared to what you've seen there yourself, captain..."
After taking a deep breath, the atmosphere around Swain changed as his eyes began to glow, "I'll ask for. The. Last. Time: why didn't you try to save that maid as you did to those children who were enslaved by the nobles." the air began to become thick and some shadows began to appear around, "Give me a straight answer. What makes those children better than the rest."
"Nothing! it's the fact that the Calvinis family is a long-time family friend of ours and I didn't know what to do in that situation! I didn't...!" He finally admitted, "Their son, Albert, and I? were childhood friends...! It was hard to see him as some run-in-the-mill noble...especially given our history...I figured he was already suffering grief, I didn't want to add more to it, and keep losing friends nor make things worse for my family!"
Traysek shook his head at that, disbelievingly, "You didn't want to lose him...did you...?" getting a slow nod from the knight, "Rey...That's NOT a friend worth fucking keeping! Godsdammit...!"
"And for the reason you left Rela back in that household?" Swain asked after calming down as the said Dark Elf was sitting, eyes shadowed.
The young knight glanced at her, blinking twice recognizing her face, before his head sulked down, "I remember her...especially now...From the Stumpias household..." looking up at him, "I was training to be a deputy there with different officers at the household, and since I was still a Squire under trial period during my time there, once I was done with the training, it was time for me to leave..." turning to Rela, "As for why I left you there? I didn't have a choice, my training was done and since I had to go back with them, I couldn't sneak you away...There'd been no way to get away with that with them all there"
"Okay...I can see that, at that time, it would've been a bad idea with them all there...I can sympathize," Traysek concluded, with a nod, "But did you make them aware of what was happening there at least? with Rela here?"
Rey nodded, "Yeah, I told one of the officers there, Sir Michael...He was the nicest one out of the others and was mentoring me at the time, so I confided that with him and he told me not to worry about it and that he'd be back to take care of it," he admitted, "I trusted him, so I thought the situation was taken care of,"
"He did return, yes." Swain took a deep breath, "To punish her for appearing outside... whipped her and violated her to the point where she went numb for many months..."
He had a look of shock and horror, "I...I didn't know he did all that to her or had a hand in that...He certainly never came off that way to me...he seemed kind, honorable, and compassionate to a standard, I looked up to him during my time there...To hear that he did all this..." shaking his head.
Traysek took a deep sigh, "Horrifying right...? He groomed you into trusting him...that's why he was so "Nice" to you during your training...he needed you to trust him, and from your standpoint, he probably did look like a model knight..." Taking a deep breath, "You may as well have done nothing though... because you told one of her abusers that she needed help...he was most likely angry with you but chose to take it out on her instead... poor judgment kid...pooor judgment...you were better off telling Anderson than that smiling creep,"
Swain's eyes glowed as he looked at Rey, "You also promised a lot of people that you'd help them, but you did nothing. You gave them hope that end up crushed..."
Reynold nearly twitched at that one, "I...No...No you're right...I don't have an excuse there... Once I was deputized, I patrolled around different zones and plantations, I'd at least try to offer hope and encouragement to them...but I never had a plan to..." sighing in defeat, "Get them out of there..."
The Redguard went silent, giving a cold stare, "So...you'd give false promises you couldn't keep...just to keep their spirits up...?" blinking twice at him, "There...is a word for what you are...an ugly one..." with venom in his tone...
"Now, back to the maid you left, do you know what happened to her..." Swain demanded.
"N-no I don't...I assume she's okay? I heard a shattering sound and figured Albert dropped a bottle or something, I didn't think into that too much," The young knight pointed.
"Congratulations, that maid you left in that household is now dead." Swain said coldly before looking back into the scroll, "Following that, you went to the Remonnet household... got nothing to say about that... for the Brenadus family, nothing was wrong with them. However... in the Luvenlis residence, you've met a strange knight and fought her. After escaping the first time, you've met the last surviving member of the house of Luvenlis and then what happened after your second encounter with that knight?" Swain asked, his eyes sternly looking at Rey
Rey sighed deeply, "We fled that household, but...not together with the heiress...we got split up and...I nearly died on my way back from Scarlet rot..."
"You had the Rot...? No, never mind that you left an heiress out there...?" Traysek questioned, before bitterly chuckling, "Some knight you are...do you not know what's all out there...? Black dogs, random bandits, corrupt knights, and savage monsters...there's no telling if that woman is dead or alive...and she was the last of that family...? Why didn't you look after her? By the gods here and at my world..." groaning holding his head.
"I'll correct what you just said..." Swain gave Rey a cold stare before saying, "You told her to go away first, and told her that you'd join up with her... but you immediately forgot about her, or just didn't care about her safety, and left her to be found by an Ogre... of course, she was rescued by an Orc and taken to safety."
"I wasn't sure if I was going to make it out of there or not, and knowing that the strange knight and her mistress were trying to kill her, I'd rather her be OUT of that house than run the risk of her being killed THERE...I didn't even see where she went during all of that...I'm glad she's alright, I've been wondering that..." Rey pointed.
Traysek blinked at him, "Unbelievable...that's enough for you...? Gods, yeah...Greil and Jenelica were right, I can't take any responsibility for this...mostly...Because you DIDN'T even follow my advice...all that Swain has laid out, tells me you didn't..." shaking his head, "Is there more to this Lord Swain?" Coldy glaring at the holy knight.
"There's still his time in Feoh after that... as well as the fact that he tried to lie to Raymond, believing that the mission report didn't make it to him..." Swain stated, "Regis told you that the reason for the murders had nothing to do with those items you found... and yet you went and said the same thing to him."
Reynold said nothing here, rubbing the back of his neck in embarrassment...
"Raymond...the big older guy with scar and beard? I remember seeing him called up, he seemed like a chill guy, I can't wait to meet him later," Traysek nodded, "Geez kid...Guess that answers the question I asked yesterday huh? And...you've proven to be a liar...unreliable... too trusting and my favorite one... Full of shit!" with thick venom, turning to Celestine, "Here's the worst part about this, Celestine...he's not even the worst knight in your service, there are way more...Way WORSE than him...even with all this, that doesn't even compare to what most of your other knights do..." shaking his head.
"I... I'm going to need some time to..." and Celestine quickly left.
Rey watched her leave with a worried expression, turning back to Swain who...let's just say, had a more than displeased look on his face...
Traysek sighed, "I'll...check on her after this...see how she's doing, I imagine we're all pretty sick in the stomach right now..." turning to Rey, "But as for you, Rey...my image of you has been shattered ENTIRELY...I never want to hear you blame me for anything ever again...or I'll punch all your pretty teeth and that's a promise..." in a cold tone, "Is there more to those Scrolls, Lord Swain?"
"The last one concerns the last battle that happened here." Swain pointed, "But I doubt that you need to know what you already know..."
"Yup, stabbed glowing allies protecting the city, tried to get in my way during my Hunt for Beasley, yeah...And coupled with what Greil and I learned recently about what he ALSO did, this really couldn't go any worse..." Traysek said, sighing.
At that moment, a knock was heard.
"Lord Swain? It's me Klein, I'm back with the reports and I have information," a voice called behind the door.
Traysek frowned, "Klein? Who's he?" with an eyebrow raised.
Swain nodded at the door as Del opened it.
In walked a man with medium dark brown hair, green eyes, and a scruffy beard, wearing a dark armor covered in strange skulls, including the one in the middle with an emerald glow in its eyes, he walked in holding a large bag of scrolls, "I apologize for taking so long for getting back...it was quite the task, sir," going to the desk, setting the bag on the table.
"I take that you had the necessary experience that you needed." Swain took one of the scrolls.
Klein nodded, "Enough to say that I'm out of the church and holy knights for good, my missions all over the seven kingdoms have proved as much..."
Traysek whistled at his attire, "I can see you've been through it, diggin' the armor, nice~ Very nice~" with an approving nod...
"Uh...thank you? Sir...?" The former knight frowned, "I don't mean to be rude, but who's this, milord?"
"The newest member of the Birds of Prey." Swain replied, already reading the third scroll, "He's Traysek of the Red Dragons, appointed Sword Defender due to his achievements in the battle of Feoh... as well for all that he did before that."
Klein nodded in approval, "Ah~ new member...I see, well then," Offering a handshake to the Redguard, "Nice to meet you Traysek, the Name's Klein...Klein Norman~"
"It's a pleasure, thank you~" The Redguard grinned, completing the handshake, "Strong for a slender guy too!" laughing along with him.
Rey frowned, recognizing the former knight, "Wait...Klein...? I know you..."
"Hmm?" Klein raised an eyebrow glancing in his direction, eyes wide, "Reynold...this is...quite the surprise...what are you doing here?"
"I could ask you the same..." The younger knight asked, raising his eyebrow next, eyeing him up and down, "And...what's happened to your holy armor?"
"Oh that old musty thing, eh...I got rid of it, brought more than it was worth, and then realized what I was working for...during my missions around the kingdoms...I officially left..." The other knight pointed, "How've you been doing? It's been a while...you look...pale to be honest..."
Rey nervously chuckled, "Yeah...Not all that great..."
"Tell us about it..." The Redguard quickly agreed, making the former knight frown.
"Uh-oh...what happened? You get in trouble out there...? I do notice the atmosphere kinda feels...off here..." Klein noted, glancing around.
"Let's say that someone has... a mindset of his own." Swain commented, reading the last scroll, "I must say, this is quite the impression you made on the others... especially that old Isshin. I feel relief reading this..."
"I see..." Klein nodded, frowning at Rey, "I take it that means you were given the same test and you failed...? That's sucks..." turning to Swain, "To be honest sir, I'm not his friend...I didn't hang out with him like that, but his brother? Troy? He and I are buddies...I heard what happened to him...I know what he did to get there too... But it's still tragic..."
Traysek grinned, "Nice~ all complete missions eh?" nodding at something, "Say...Klein...would be looking for more work...? Once you rest up of course, but would you?
Klein had a curious expression, "I might be...depends, what do you need have done?"
"It's not about what I need done...I'm opening a new guild soon and... if you've got nothing going for yourself...I want to invite you to it...with your expertise from being in different kingdoms, and your efficiency, you'd fit right in...What do you say?" The Redguard smirked.
The former knight thought, "Hmm...I'll think about it, if lord Swain has no more missions for me, and I have no other offers, I'd be happy to join you!"
"Splendid~" Traysek grinned.
After taking a deep breath... Swain looked at Del and said, "Go store all of these scrolls in my library. I'll set them once I have free time."
"Of course, my lord." Del bowed before taking the scrolls of both Rey and Klein and then teleported away.
"Now..." Swain sighed as he turned to look at Klein, "You have many other opportunities now that you've passed all the tests: You can start your own company of fighters, you can join any force of the Birds of Prey, and you can even claim lands if you really wish."
Klein thought on this, humming thought, "Well...I don't have places in mind for land, even though there are nice places, my home is in Ken and I still need to check Brianna's condition, I know you and your healers have done well in that regard sir, but as for leading...that makes me a little nervous, I'm don't think I'm cut out for leader material..."
"What if you just started small, like three or four people...? a company doesn't have to massive number, some of the best companies are run by smaller numbers, so it's up to you... Either way, you'll be looked out for..." Traysek grinned, cutting an eye at a Sulking Reynold, "As will you be... Although, we'll discuss what THAT means when we get around to it..."
"Considering all that you've accomplished, you have other choices, but it's still early for you to choose now." Swain took a letter and handed it to Klein, "Once you get your sister, you can hand this to any Red Spear and they'd take you to a place where you can live in relative peace."
"Thank you, I would appreciate that sir, if you have a list of places open, I'd like that," Klein bowed, "As for you Traysek, your name is quite known in Ulak and Erdora, talked to a man named Mayek...he mentioned you...Nothing bad to say, but...he did mention that you had still a sin to clean..." frowning at him, "Not sure what he meant there...As for Ulak, the village leader and guardian are more than eager for you and the crew to return..."
Traysek thought on that, his eyes darkening remembering something, "Ah...oh fuck..." facepalming, "I know what he meant with that...yeah, I'll need to bury that hatchet as soon as possible..."
Rey blinked twice, "Hold on, that's right...I remember now, you held a Kletzkreig at gunpoint from behind and tried to ask information from her...and when she tried to ignite herself, you sent her into a damn tree..." narrowing his eyes.
"That can be your first mission as a member of the Birds of Prey," Swain said to Traysek, "Simply find her, and bring her to me. I'll take care of the rest."
The Redguard thought on that, giving a subtle nod, "Very well, I'll see to that...I was going to Erdora anyway to seek out my new guild house, and I'm familiar with that entire area, I've already got a few ideas where to start,"
"Assuming she's even alive...you didn't just simply shove her, no...you shouted her into that tree, she rocketed into it...and STILL exploded..." Rey reminded, "I'll be AMAZED if you can pull this off..."
"I wouldn't care if you were or weren't..." Traysek snapped back, turning to him, "You've got WAY too many sins of your own to come at me about any of mine... Nor does that change the allegations stacked against you..." narrowing his eyes.
Swain sighed before saying, "Now that's settled, you can go back to wherever you were." he then looked at Traysek, "I'll leave Klein with you, for the moment, I have some business that needs my attention."
"Understood, We'll leave you to it..." Traysek nodded, standing up, stretching, "But before I go...Will there be a deadline for this mission? And will there be a way to contact you in case I run into any bumps along my way?" he asked.
"Not really." Swain answered, "As for the way to contact me... that badge that I gave you would be enough."
"Okay, I can work with that, thank you," The Redguard smiled, "That said, I'll check on Celestine beforehand, she looked...sick when she left from here..."
"I get to work with the sword defender...? Neat!" Klein grinned, "And I think I saw lady Celestine on my way in here...She's...hunched over...did she get sick?"
"That's one way to put it..." The Redguard murmured, glancing down at Rey with a cold glare, shaking his head, "Anyway, Rela? Klein? Shall we?"
"Yeah...let's go," The knight nodded.
Rey rolled his eyes, standing up, and giving a quick bow before leaving...
"Um..." Rela nodded.
Back in the halls while they were walking, The Redguard glances at his new second, finding the smoke flowing around her from earlier, "Hey Rela...? How are you holding up...?"
"I'm used to this... to be reminded how little I'm worth..." the Dark Elf replied.
Klein had a look of shock, "Damn...what did I miss?"
"If you ask Swain, he'll tell you..." Traysek sighed with a headshake, "And Rela...We'll work on that...This the first time you've worked with us...So we have yet to determine what that is...And I've got a good feeling about you...a great one, we'll see," with a small smile.
"Uh-huh," Rela said in a cold monotone voice.
They reached the furthest end of the hall, finding Celestine bent over in front of them, the sounds of regurgitation coming from her.
"By the gods...How long has she been doing this..?" Traysek asked, shocked.
"No idea, she was already going when I got here...but it's been a minute now..." Klein said, equally shocked.
Rey who was behind them all, scowling saw this and got alarmed, "Is...Is she going to be okay?"
"Why are you worried about it now...? you caused this shit, she's physically sick from your report..." The Redguard reprimanded, "Just wait here, there's no telling how she feels right now, and the last thing she needs to see at this moment, is us hanging out..." going up to her, frowning deeply when he saw what she was vomiting up, making him sigh and gently place a hand on her bent over back, getting her to jump, "Easy...! it's just me Celestine...it's just...me..." with a sympathetic smile.
"S-Sorry... I know that I shouldn't be seen like that... but what I heard... it was just..." Celestine tried to word things up, but her state of shock made it so that it wouldn't be easy.
Traysek slowly nodded, "I know, but if you keep going, you are going upchuck a lung as hard as you're going there, dear," with a low chuckle, a green light coming from his hand on her back, giving a comforting rub, "But I understand...all that back there was stomach-turning...I'm sorry you had to find out like this..."
"Can you say that without touching her with your magic...?" Rey growled with a scowl.
"SILENCE!" Celestine snapped in a thunderous tone, nearly stopping his heart," Enough...Not a single word...Not from you...You've done enough...more than...and not enough where you should've..." in an icy tone, without even facing him, "Disappointed" isn't even what I feel for you...it's worse...I can't even look upon you...Lest I remain Ill..."
He felt his heart break upon hearing that, the environment around them growing cold...very cold, his heart in his throat, trying to find the words, but couldn't...To Rey, it was a rare occurrence to hear of her even being upset at something...now...? the anger he felt off from her at that moment, he'd swear it was a different person in place of the goddess he knew...And it was towards him...
The Redguard who still had the spell on her, had a small sweatbead, "That...That's why I was trying to calm her down...You, on the other hand, should probably go...She hasn't turned around to you yet and you don't want her to...trust me...it's taking a lot of magic to keep her this cool..."
"Y-yeah but..." He tried to argue...
but a couple of daggers found themselves locked under his throat.
What an uncanny sight." the Dark Queen sighed, "You need to steel yourself to be an effective leader."
Traysek blinked, turning around, "Ah~ Lady Olga, what a pleasant surprise~" giving a light bow, while keeping the calming going, "You as well, Cloe...been a while,"
"Olga...I was supposed to see you...I wasn't expecting all of what I heard..." the goddess said sullenly.
The Redguard nodded with his eyes closed, "She's...physically sick now...no thanks to dumbass knight-wonder over there," motioning his head towards him.
"I fucking told you not to call me a dumba-mmmh!" Getting cut off when he felt Cloe's daggers press harder on him...
"You mustn't always see everything in a golden light." Olga sighed, "Even Dark Elves aren't an exception... despite my father's and forefathers' efforts to clean the name of Dark Elves as a race..." She took a deep breath before saying, "Still, you need to learn more from Uncle Swain."
"I...I see that now..." Celestine slowly nodded, as Traysek ended the spell.
The Redguard gave a smile, "She's not wrong...this is the most we've seen of you because of it, that...that was just a taste...a small taste of...everything they kept from you...and there's bound to be more..." with a knowing look, "Don't be afraid to lean for that guidance, everyone needs it...from the angry fire-spitting Dragonborn before you...to the troubled goddess vomiting rainbows and gold," Playfully frowning, "Seriously, I've never seen golden vomit before... how many karats is that...?"
"Well, I'm here to talk with Celestine about some things." Olga sighed, "Once she feels better, I'll send someone for her." she then turned to leave, "Cloe, leave the girl be."
Klein frowned, "Girl?'" turning to Reynold, "Oh... pfft!" going into a snickering fit.
Rey had a sour look on the giggling men, while he was released "Yeah Keep laughing..." rubbing his neck, "Especially you Traysek, don't you have a dark elf you turned into a cannonball to find?"
Traysek narrowed his eyes at him, "Don't you have a broken fort to go occupy...?"
"You son of a-!" Rey growled, hand on his sword, before he thought about it, taking his hand off, "You know what? No...I'm not going to give that too, have fun chasing a ghost...sword-defender..." shaking his head, before walking off.
As he was walking off, he found Eric and Dargo waiting in the hall, not pleased to see him.
Reynold stopped, giving them an annoyed stare, "Can I help you guys with something?"
"You have a lot of nerve even answering us with that attitude, False knight...!" Erik growled narrowing his eyes, "What in oblivion is wrong with you?! you really left two people in that? one could be somewhat pitied, bad situation and all... but the other one and an heiress? How are you a knight, still? And that's not mentioning the OTHER fuck ups you've made out there...including recently...!"
"Whoa whoa...Erik, how did you hear about all that...? You weren't even there!" Rey defended with.
"My little sister is more courageous than whatever you're supposed to be... and not to mention that she doesn't sneak behind people to stab them like a coward... the more I look at you... the more I want to clean this world of your presence" Dargo stated coldly before drawing his blade, "How about a long... very long talk... backstabber..."
Rey held his hands up, "Okay...getting how you heard me, so he told you then...right, elves and their hearing..."
"And I thought you just couldn't get any lower, by the divines..." Erik said, shaking his head, "But it's okay Reynold, you see? It wasn't just me he told that too...but to everyone we were hanging out with...So...our newest member, Sylla, lent me a weapon for YOU..."
"Oh? And what's this weapon you've got Erik...Huh? Your axes, I've seen them, I can deal with a-" The holy knight went to finish until he saw Erik pull a massive club off his back, slamming it on the ground.
"This bad boy!" The Nord exclaimed, "She told me I can use it as long as I give it right back...and COATED..."
"Ah...I uh...I see..." Rey stammered, "L-look guys I'm sure we can work something out! There's no need to do this!"
"No..." Erik said, shaking his head, "The "Talking" was for up there, we're here for the action...and the county boy in me is demanding it, especially after how you tried to turn it around on the boss for the...how did you word it again? oh right... the "ELF CANNONBALL" incident... and don't even try to call for him or Celestine, we KNOW for sure they're done with you...Heard that part too, couldn't be happier..."
Reynold could only gulp...
"Don't worry, you won't die..." Dargo said with a cold dead voice, "As for any missing limbs... we can always heal it up using a special method I heard about."
"I uh..." Rey tried to find the words, but couldn't...
"Erik smash..." The Nord said in a deep nordic tone, making him dash out of there with silver winds, the former sighing, "Oh look that...he's running...that must be that holy speed I've heard about..." shaking his head.
Dargo stabbed the ground, creating a wall of pure ice in front of the fleeing knight.
And The holy knight ran into the wall, face first, barely cracking the wall as he slid down holding his nose, "Ugh..."
Insert doom music here...
"And now it's time for the Rounds, Reynold!" Erik challenged, walking up to him.
"Whoa whoa whoa, Chill out!" The holy knight screamed as the Nord went for a swing.
...
Meanwhile, nearby Traysek, Celestine, Klein, and Rela could hear all the VIOLENCE taking place there, the former chuckling...
"Looks like someone's been listening, they're giving him that "Beat-me" at this very moment," The Redguard sighed with a headshake, listening to the all yelling and screaming, "That being said, it's about time we took off, your uncle has given me a bit of task, and we do need to see the guild house, so I'll be in touch,"
Celestine nodded, "I'll try to calm down before seeing where Ophilyana is..."
"Take your time on that, you'll need it," Traysek concurred, "I'll see you soon Celestine, take care~" giving the other two a nod, heading in the direction of the screams, before stopping short, "Also...I still have your call-stone as well, never lost it, so when I find this place, I'll let you know where we are, don't be a stranger~," with a wink before continuing on his way.
The goddess only smiled slightly.
...
In the corridors... he found Eric and Dargo on a familiar young knight.
"Oh hey guys, I thought I heard some screaming," Traysek announced casually.
Erik grinned, stopping his next blow with the club, Rey's armor covered in dents, "Oh hey boss~ how was your meeting?"
"Oh it went pretty well, I got to learn about our former friend down there and...I got my first task as Birds of prey to attend to..." The Redguard informed.
"Have mercy! You're a Sword-defender, help me!" Rey begged...
Traysek gave a smirk and eyebrow raise, "Ooooh~ so now you need my help...? Hmm" he thought about it, "You guys killing him?"
"Nope," Erik said with club wound up.
"Don't worry, we don't plan on dealing any fatal blow." Dargo pointed with a thumbs up, "It hurts, but doesn't kill."
"Oh...I see," Traysek simply answered, glancing down, "Then I'm not compelled to stop this, they're not going kill you, and it's not like you DON'T deserve to have your ass beat after everything we all just learned up there,"
"What?!"
"Oh don't act surprised...consider this...your punishment, and just be glad it's these two than Heltia, that's EVEN worse..." The Redguard laughed.
Rey blinked in confusion, "W-who's Heltia...?" he weakly asked.
"Someone that lost her sister because of you..." Dargo glared coldly, "And she just arrived in the city, better to take the chance before there's nothing left of you..."
Traysek went wide-eyed, "Wait are you serious...Heltia's here...? as in now...? Oof...I expected a few days before that...I'm...going to guess she left Bruk'daz in charge of the village...?" with a sweatdrop.
Dargo shook his head as he replied, "She left Captain Brathur in charge of the defense. Both Bruk'Daz and Keelia are here."
The Redguard blinked twice with the sweatdrop, "Oh by the gods...she brought the family on this trip...? She REALLY came out of retirement ...Oh that's frightening..." cringing at the thought, "On one hand, it would be good to see them again, on another..." glancing down, "That's gonna suck for you if she EVER sees you..." he whistled, "And the worst part, is that, despite being friends with her, I can't speak for you...and I'm not interested into getting turned into an art piece defending you..." turning to the other two, "You guys have fun, when you're finished, we're heading to the guild house after this..." frowning at the club Erik held, "But before I go...Erik...where did you get the club?" furrowing his brow.
"Oh, this? Sylla lent it to me, and told me to go to town, her words exactly," The Nord laughed.
"Ah, I see, okay, then, carry on..." Traysek waved dismissively.
"WAIT, NO NO NO! COME BACK, COME BAAAAACK!" Reynold cried out, as the Redguard kept walking.
"Don't worry... we just began..." Dargo's death glare was fixed on him, "The day is very long..."
Rey's pupils shrank in fear the further and further Traysek walked away, Klein having a concerned look while Rela...She had a glare as cold as Dargo's before following the other two...
Erik gave them a wave, "Okay guys, we won't take long!" laughing, before turning a glare back down at Rey, "Now...where we?"
The only response the holy knight had...was a whimper...
Narrator: It was at this moment that he knew...He fucked up...
...
Back downstairs, the rest of the crew were in the lobby chilling together, most in disgusted moods, that being Lucien, Endra, Sylla, Recorder, and Yuriana, turning their gazes on the approaching three.
"My friend! we've been wondering what was taking you, how was your meeting?" Inigo grinned.
"It went well..." Traysek nervously chuckled, "For me, that is...learned about something...Eye-opening today...also got a task to get to once we're out of here..." Turning his head towards the stairs, the sounds of heavy slapping and Rey's screaming echoed through the castle, turning to Klein who had a sweat bead, looked up there, "Also, this here is Klein, another new member with the birds of prey, and he'll be with us for a while, so treat him nicely~"
"Hello everyone, nice to meet you all~" The knight introduced, "I hope we get along,"
"Hello~ The Names Inigo, Klein, and I very much love your armor, you have taste my friend," The khajiit complimented, eyeing his gear up and down, "Just one thing, does the skull talk?"
Klein laughed, "Would you believe me if I told you that you were the 80th person that's asked me that? No! the skull doesn't talk, although it does look like it could, I will admit that the craftsmanship is insane,"
"You gotta put us with your guy when we get around there," Lucien added in, "Sorry about being quiet...was processing things earlier, I am Lucien Flavius, it's a pleasure to meet you!"
"Likewise!" The knight nodded, with a bright grin, "And if we get back around there, I'll have no problem with that, he was pretty nice with the pricing...Best part, is you get to choose your designs, so he'll hook you up for sure" turning to the girls, "What about you ladies?"
"Names Yuriana, sweetheart~ nice to meet you," The Redhead introduced with a wink, "Like the guys, I love your fashion sense there, not to mention, I heard somebody is a top student~, nice~" with a grin.
"Well I mean I wouldn't say all that but..." Klein nervously chuckled, "Thank you for the compliment though...I like your outfit too!"
Recorder smiled, "Hi there! I'm Recorder, nice to meet you, and happy you'll be working with us!"
"For as long as I do, Recorder, but I'll try to accommodate well," The dark knight slightly bowed, turning to Sylla, "And you, miss...?"
"Sylla," the Tarnished replied with a grin, "Tarnished and former Night Cavalry. Best one on horseback you'd ever meet."
"A mounted fighter huh? Nice~ and did you say you're a "Tarnished?"' Klein frowned, "I've met one of you out there during my time in Ur, quite nice actually...Her name was... Hildy? No...Hilda? Not it wasn't that either...Hmm," going into thought, "Oh right! Hildegard!"
Sylla froze and paled, "H-H-Hildegarde? N-N-No way that's her... it can't be... anyone but her..."
Traysek waved her down, "Whoa whoa! Sylla! Calm down! who's "Hildegarde" and how do you know her?"
"N-N-No, you don't understand how fucked we are if she gets to us!" Sylla pointed, "Even with all my skills, I was nothing to her! She has marksmanship, strength beyond mine, and uses Scarlet Rot to a scary mastery... she's the Recusant who killed me in the Lands Between."
Klein raised an eyebrow, confused, "Really? she's that bloodthirsty? She seemed friendly when we met, and I was just passing by..."
"This has to be a ruse." Sylla took a deep breath before adding, "Well to be honest with you... she doesn't attack without a good reason... either you're hostile to her, or you did something to her..." She went into thoughts before sighing, "But still, Recusants aren't usual types to be emotional."
Traysek raised an eyebrow, "So...she only attacks when she's attacked or wronged, that's not different than us...?" with a head scratch, "And you say she's stronger than you...knowing what you can do with your strength...? and she can use the rot?" with a wide-eyed blink.
"By the gods, we had a bad experience with that ourselves at a fort...ugh..." Yuriana added in.
"It can't be her." Sylla shook her head, "She isn't the type to get along with people like those Black Dogs and Holy Knights. She's one to hold honor in a fight; she'd come straight at you and would use anything that she has to put you down, poison included."
Lucien thought on that, "It wasn't her she was talking about, we ran into someone called Gideon there...Iji told us about him,"
"You mean Sir Gideon Ofnir? White armor with eyes and ears?" Sylla asked.
"Yeah...I saw him at the end of our Rescue mission," Traysek said with a scowl, "Bastard tried to sneak me from behind while I fought Volt and then when at the end of it, turned the area into a plague zone..."
Sylla narrowed her eyes, "That means it was indeed Ensha who was spotted... this is bad..."
"Come to think of it, there was a strange man in bone armor with strange arm bones as weapons, Endra and I fought him in one of the storehouses they had people in," Lucien thought, "Could that be this "Ensha?" if so, that would make sense, his weapons were not something you'd want get hit by, even with my hidden under armor, he still managed to graze me with a stab,"
Inigo thought, "Well, here's what we got, another Tarnished out there, who doesn't attack unless she's attacked..."
"But the main question is, why are you so scared of her? if that's the case..." The Redguard asked, eyebrow raised.
"She's a Recusant... If a contract set is by the Volcano Manor on you... You can bet your ass she'll or anyone on it will find and take you out..."
"So she's like an assassin in a way, that's...concerning..." Recorder furrowed her brow, "And she can use scarlet rot too...oh boy..."
Traysek snorted, "Assuming that ever happens, she can try...but that's if it gets to that point that is, but lately..." a smug confident smile grew, "I've been having quite an effect on strong women lately~"
Immediately after, a loud crashing thunder went off with a thundering "boom!" but outside making everyone jump along with that familiar divine rage felt through...
"Oh my, what a sinful man~" Celestine walked up to him, smiling.
"It...it was a joke...I promise...Just...just a bad one," The sweating captain nervously smiled, getting snickers from the others, "And weren't you going to see Olga? I'm surprised you heard me past..." turning his gaze upward to the sounds of the beating, "All of that..."
"Arrgh! What the fuck did you stab me with?!" They heard Rey yell out.
"I was searching for Ophilyana when I came here, hoping to find her before waiting for whoever Olga would send to call for me." Celestine replied, still smiling, "That said, I'd consider it as strike two... you'd better hope that you'd never get to strike three~" she then walked away.
He blinked twice, "I'm worried about what happens at strike three..." in a low tone...
"At this point, my friend, you may have to soundproof the walls at our new house..." The khajiit whispered near him, "I'm glad you two have worked things out but...the vibe my friend...the vibe..." getting an agreeing nod from the Dragonborn.
There was a loud crash and a groan from upstairs...
"And it sounds like they're done, finally..." Recorder added in, as Erik and Dargo headed down towards them, seemingly happy, with only the eyes showing happiness in Dargo's case.
"Hey, guys? How'd it go? Is he dead?" Lucien asked with a nervous smile.
Erik shook his head with a sigh, "No, I just settled for tossing him after D here got done giving him the hot acupuncture treatment,"
"He's still in one piece and alive," Dargo said with a thumbs-up
Traysek nodded with a grin, "Okay, now that you guys are finished with Trash Knight, it's time we vacated to our new location," opening a portal to Erdora, "What about you guys, Dargo and Endra, what you two doing after this?"
"I don't know what else to do." Endra shrugged, "Sent Thelys with Volya back home. Now, I have a lot of free time."
"I'm waiting for my brother." Dargo pointed, "He's coming with a band to perform."
"Oh, that's right! you did tell me about that," Recorder frowned, "Well then, guess I'm staying around with you then, and I did wanna hear how well he plays..." blushing a bit, "If...that's okay with you..."
"Um... I wouldn't mind." Dargo nodded with a blush.
"Aww" Yuriana cooed, "I mean it, that's adorable," getting agreeing nods from the others.
Traysek only grinned, "Okay you two have fun, and speaking of...Erik," he turned to him.
"Yes sir?" He responded with.
"You have four days off," He told him with a smile, surprising him.
"F-four days sir? Are you sure?" The Nord asked, shocked.
"I'm sure, enjoy your time off..." The captain ensured with a wave, "That's an order~"
Erik was in a daze for a moment, getting pats from the others, until he nodded with a bright grin, "Thank you, sir, I'll make sure too...and think I know where I'm going,"
"Tell her we said "hi" Erik," Inigo added, making him blush.
Lucien stepped to him, "In that case... if you're heading to the city, can I go on a one-time trip? I think they're done translating those blueprints now, it's been a few days,"
"Sure," The Nord simply responded with.
Yuriana thought about something... "But, before we all split off, did we find where the payment was?" she reminded making everyone blink.
"Oh shit, that's right, we still have to see Greil and Gronik before going and then, it's to the new house..." The Redguard sighed, closing the portal, "Let's go before we forget again," getting nervous chuckles in response, being the first to head up...
...
Meanwhile, upstairs, a certain knight was on the ground, throwing into a mess of chairs groaning with bruises, a black eye, a busted lip, and his armor smashed up, coupled with the many strange frozen needles stuck into him...
"Mmmhmhhmmm..." he whimpered in a groan, face down...
With Greil and Gronik...
Both men stood on a balcony, looking at the green plains.
"It won't be easy, huh?" Gronik asked.
"With the prime minister escaping to Ur, he would have asked for help to reinforce the army there." Greil nodded.
"I doubt that it would be easy... but I wish to win without a fight." the Imperial hero sighed, "Look at the damage to the city..."
"Sometimes, it doesn't help." Greil replied, "Those wounds can't be helped; a war can't be won with words alone, otherwise, it wouldn't be a war."
There was a knock on their door...
Both men looked at the door as a Dark Blade assassin opened it.
Traysek walked in with a grin, "Hey guys~ saw you all up there too, I'm surprised you didn't come to me, I'm hurt," he joked.
Greil chuckled as he said, "We had some things to discuss. Anyways, how can we help you?"
"We're taking off from here, but I'm just here for our payout for the battle," He admitted, "And I've already got my first official job as a Birds of Prey member, and you'll be surprised at what that involves," with a smirk.
"We needed a confirmation; do you want it gold or gems?" Gronik asked.
Traysek thought on that, "Hmm, you know what? Since we're going to be operating out here, we'll take gold this time, there's no telling what we'll have to use it for, and we still have plenty of gems, I won't be able to repair my scythe, but I'll live," he shrugged.
Gronik sighed before concentrating his powers with a divine aura around him. After a moment, a large bag of gold appeared in front of him.
"Here you go, one and a half million of gold made with the currency of this world." Gronik pointed, "Thank the nine that I have this spell..." under his breath
The Captain laughed, "Quite convenient, wish I had that spell...Much appreciated~ I'll let you know where I'm at once I'm done, it's...quite the manor from what I hear," picking up the large sack, holding it over his shoulder, "I'll see you gentlemen later, keep me updated when we're heading to Ur and Greil, I'll let you know when Meila's found, take care~" with a smile, heading out of the door.
"I think it's a good thing that we trusted him." Gronik pointed with a chuckle, "Wish that the others do..."
"We both know that it's impossible..." Greil sighed as Gronik nodded.
Back outside, Traysek walked up to the group, "Okay, we've got our payment, now we can go," opening a portal, "As for those not going, you'll find your cut in your rooms," turning to the six, "in we go..." being the first one through, Klein being the second one in, followed by Rela, Inigo and Yuriana...
As Rela set her eyes on the village, she noticed that there weren't only humans and Dark Elves, but also other non-human residents and merchants.
"This place is... nice," she commented, looking around.
Yuri stepped out of the portal, surprised by what she saw, "Oh my~ it almost looks like a city as well built up as it is now...So many markets too..."
Traysek nodded also glancing around, "I agree, it's even bigger than the last few times I've been here, the first time we came, I could see from beginning to end of it, it was a ruin before...rotting buildings, dead crops, starving people in torn clothing, but now..."
"It's vast! it wasn't this big last time I was around, looks like the Mayor stepped up on renovating when I left," Klein added with a smile.
Sylla stepped in after the others before freezing at the sight, "W-What's that place?! Never been somewhere like this before!"
Endra, being last, looked around before whistling, "Looks like it became better than last time I was here."
"Not to mention the food smells going around here," The khajiit said, sniffing around, "Lots of bakeries open now, can't believe we'll be living nearby,"
The Redguard chuckled, "Gods, well to be honest, those smells are pretty tempting, but let's find Ernie..." frowning when he scanned around, "If we can..."
"Where do you think he is?" Sylla asked.
Yuriana thought about it, "Let's see...from this direction, this is the town center so..." searching for the largest building, finding it in the northwest, being the tallest among the others, "Over there, that's the council building, the largest one here, damn...they've even built that up," heading in the direction.
"Are you sure that's a village?" Sylla asked the Dragonborn with a whisper.
The Redguard chuckled, "It is, you should've seen it first under the holy order, they were run through so bad their buildings were crumbling and rotting, they were forced to pay a protection fee and that kept increasing, people going missing left and right...when they couldn't the final time, they sent five us to squeeze it out of them...We had a...change of heart after arriving here,"
"Huh... why am I not surprised..." Sylla sighed deadpanning, "I feel less and less compassion toward them..."
Inigo sighed, shaking his head, "Eh, neither did we...even when we were hirelings to them... So much so that when we saw the dark army taking care of them, we let them have it...they've been happy ever since,"
"Are you sure they should be called the 'Dark Army'?" Sylla asked, looking around, "There's nothing dark around them."
"We know that, but it's a good kind of dark, the cool kind... compared to the blinding light in the kingdoms, I don't think they mind being called the shade to that," Yuri added with a shrug.
"Oh... I see..." Sylla looked around, noticing villagers who were training in magic.
They finally arrived at the council building, finding a pair of Red spears guarding the entrance...
"Looks like they finally got security here, one second," Traysek halted, going up to them, "Hey guys, is Ernie in? Looking to chat with him, we're old friends," he smiled.
Both Red Spears looked between themselves, shrugging before one of them gasped.
"I remember you!" pointing at Yuriana, "You were with those two who asked about the Earthmother!"
The Red-haired woman blinked at him twice, frowning, "You do? Wait...come to think of it, your voice is familiar to me...yeah, you were Kletzkreig last time we met...weren't you?" she asked.
Both Red Spears removed their helms, revealing them to be the same Dark Elves who were around the altar of the Earthmother the second time they were there.
"We're not Kletzkrieg... yet." one of them pointed with an embarrassed tone, "After all, only the most powerful ones can become Kletzkrieg."
Klein rubbed his chin at that, "Only the most powerful ones huh?" causing them all to look at Endra.
The Dark Elf grinned before saying, "Do you think I'm weak?"
Traysek shook his head, "Didn't say that, seen your sniper skill to know that's false, you're good as he is," pointing his thumb at Inigo...who was in a corner with thunder cloud over his head.
"I used to be the best shot around..." He lowly sobbed, "I ain't feeling so good anymore..."
Endra laughed, "Don't sweat it, the only thing I have is being the fastest archer in all of Yamakhroz.
"That's true, and then there's Lina..." The khajiit remembered, "With that arrow storm..."
Traysek nodded, "Oh her! I remember running into her at Mayek's doing a delivery, elemental fans for his sister...So she was the one who beat you in shooting contest huh? Glad I got we finally met," he chuckled, turning back to the Guards, "That said, we do need to see Ernest, it's about the manor that's nearby from here and maybe to catch up, it's been a while," with a smile.
"He's inside with some people talking about the village." the second Dark Elf pointed.
"Okay, if there's a lobby, we can wait until he's ready to see us, it's not that immediate," The Redguard pointed.
"Riiiiiight..." the first Dark Elf looked around before pointing at a door, "Just go in and wait."
Traysek smiled, "Alright, thank you~" he nodded turning to the others, "That door over there," motioning his head towards it, before being the first to it...
Inside, were four long sofas had 4 places and small tables with books on them.
The crew looked around, marveling at the artwork that hung around the lobby, taking their seats on the sofa...
"I wonder who painted some of these...it's well done," Klein hummed, checking out the painting with a large horizon.
Traysek nodded, "Who knows, Some of these are weapons, others are people, recognize a couple of them even, speaking of paintings," went to his other bag, full of rolls, "Gotta figure out what to do with these,"
"Where did you get that?" Endra asked.
"From Feoh royal castle after we had won, your general Seized the other valuables, didn't care that I took these," The Redguard shrugged.
Inigo took one of the cut-out paintings, unrolling, finding an old man's face with a crown, "My friend...how much of a spree did you go on...? This is the king isn't it?" with a large sweatbead.
"That's the third king of Feoh." Endra pointed before shrugging, "And to be honest, only those who loved the person would pay for it."
The Redguard frowned, "Even as old as this is? Wow, Alicia bombed that...oh well, I don't just have paintings either, I have silk sheets and...very exotic and expensive alcohol...yeah, I went looting after the battle," with a chuckle.
"Your choice of actions." Endra shrugged.
Yuriana sighed, "I'm surprised you didn't take the banner while you were at it,"
"That...that was tempting, but I started running out of space by the time I got it," Traysek pointed, "Still it's not like I would've been able to sell it either way,"
"No, but we could start a collection of the city banners, think about it, each city we're successful in we get a banner of that kingdom," Inigo thought, "It would show our progress in this world too, besides our scores and takes,"
"That's one way to get hated by some people." Endra chuckled, "You know how important banners are for the people, so if you start collecting them..."
"Right, they might take offense to that..." The red-haired woman frowned.
The Redguard nodded, "Yeah, now if we ask and they GIVE it to us, that's one thing, but stealing one? Might not be the smartest move,"
"A state that's about to disappear wouldn't mind." Sylla pointed out, "Buuut, there might be some people that can hold a grudge... and those people can influence others..."
"I like what you're going for with that, but there's also another way... as your boss said, he also has expensive liquor too...if you found the most expensive one in every kingdom, that could be a way to do it," Klein added.
Traysek thought, "Yeah, like we've got the mead barrel from Ulak and the wine from here, okay, getting that," before the door clicked and opened.
"Let's have this done so that-" Earnest began to say before noticing who was waiting for him, he smiled before saying, "Well that's a surprise!"
The Redguard smiled, walking in "Well Well~ Long time no see, Ernie~ Anderson~" glancing at the elf, "And even you Mayek~ how you guys been?"
Both the mayor and the priest smiled while Mayek had a neutral stare.
"That's a surprise I wasn't waiting for!" Earnie laughed, "How are you doing?"
"We've had a good couple of days," Traysek started taking a seat, "The battle of Feoh has been won and now, I'm here for the manor that's nearby, it's been gifted to me,"
"That place we've been asked to stay away from? Strange..." Earnest said with both confusion and an impressed tone.
The Redguard raised an eyebrow, "Wait...stay away? Why? what's all there?"
"The knights used to tell us stories of dark magic and demons living them." Earnest answered, "There are more things but those are the most repetitive stories."
The Redguard hummed on it, glancing at Rela, "Is that where we're supposed to go?"
"Um..." the Dark Elf nodded.
"Okay, then yeah, that's where we're headed," Traysek confirmed with a nod to Earnest, "Do you know what direction I'd have to go? Normally I'd be able to tell, but this place grew up since we last talked, easy to get lost here now,"
"You need to head north of the village until you get to a crossroad, and then you get in the forest by a small path that heads west from the crossroad." Earnie answered, "It's quite deep inside."
"North from here...?" The Redguard repeated widening eyes, "The City of Ken is in the direction... okay, I know what crossroads you're talking about, and if they were scared of that manor, that would explain the danger sign that pointed in that other direction," nodding and standing up, "Alrighty, thank you, Earnest, that's all I needed..." with a smile, "As much as I wanna stick around and shoot the barrel, I have a prior engagement to get to immediately after once we all settle down there, I'll catch you gentlemen later," with a bow, heading out of the door.
"I'll be sure to look around in this town." Sylla pointed with a smile as she was following Traysek.
"It's a village, not a town." Endra corrected with a chuckle, "But to tell the truth, it's a sight to behold..."
Once they were back outside, Inigo caught up to Traysek while they made their way there.
"So, I take it you found where we're going?" He asked him, getting a nod.
"Remember our first time coming here from Ken? It turns out that other direction, the one with the skulls, is where we need to go, it leads into a forest too, a deep one, so there's no telling what we'll see in there," The Redguard informed, "However that's also good for us... if that forest is as dark as I think it is, it means the manor's well hidden and we'll be too,"
"Imagin if we add something to hide the entrance, wouldn't it help?" Sylla suggested.
"It would, but from what was on that sign, I'd say there are already things there keeping them out, but, that still doesn't mean we won't make any upgrades on that front," Traysek answered, "Especially if these times start getting bad,"
"Depending on what path we'll take, we'll probably have to guide the others through once they're doing whatever they're doing," Yuriana added in.
Klein hummed in thought, "Well, it's gonna be a while before I find a place like this of my own, if yours is gonna be as nice, I'm even more eager to my own later," earning a chuckle from the Dragonborn.
"On that day, Klein, I'll help you out with that," The former assured, "I'm pretty good at choosing living spaces and I'm sure we'll find something for you..." as they headed out of the village.
Meanwhile, the holy army camp...
Upon returning, Reynold stumbled back into the holy camp, his armor covered in dents, and needles and him in bruises...He found Marquel and the others, slowly approaching them...
"R-R-Rey! What happened?!" Marquel asked with a shocked face as many knights went to help him.
He coughed when he was helped up, "The meeting...with lord Swain didn't go so well..." he huffed between breaths, "As...for who did this to me...it wasn't him...or the sword defender...but the latter let it happen...left me...to a one-eyed kletzkreig and one of his men..."
"What?!" Marquel had an outraged look, "He's supposed to protect you from them!"
"They were...his friends...he wasn't going to fight them...for me..." Rey panted, standing upright, "I'm okay, thank you...but we need to start making our way to Hroka fortress, hopefully, that goes better than everything here, does anyone know where that is from here?" he asked.
"It overlooks the sea that separates the Seven Kingdoms and the lands of the West," Marquel answered as a healer came tending to his wounds with bandages.
"So it's on the border near the sea, I figured as much," Rey concurred, "Do you or anyone have a map? that would help with locating it..."
"Just any history book would have a map of the area," Marquel stated.
The holy knight nodded, waiting until the healer finished, "Appreciate it, thank you Ma'am..." turning to the rest, "And I think I have a book in my pack, I'll check and once I find it, we'll move out, there should still be horses to use in the military stables, we'll take those there, until then, make sure you all have everything that you need, we won't be coming back here,"
"Going to be hard since the commander took nearly all the horses for his men." Marquel said, tightening his hands, "There should be three or four left."
Rey narrowed his eyes at that, "I see...I'm beginning to wonder what I saw in them..." shaking his head, "Well, I did spot one of our convoy wagons, we'll take it with the four horses,"
The knights then began to prepare and pack their things, preparing for the long trip they'd have to take while their new captain grabbed a book from his backpack and found the map, scanning it until he found a castle depiction near the sea wall and the western desert, "Found it, it's here...and far away from every other city...?" with a hard frown...
"Yes... I remember now... but, it was regularly supplied by merchants who came to look at the wonderful castle of the fort." Maquel grinned, "Claimed to be a gem compared to all the other forts of that time."
Rey smiled, "I see, so it'll be well lavished then...Good, I can wait to kick back for a bit..." with a chuckle, "We'll march out when we've got the horses and carriage..." looking towards that horizon...
At the black dog fort near Feoh...
In a decorated room with sheets around a bed, Volt lay there, covered head to toe in bandages...his two men were outside of those curtains...looking in from out of the door.
"How is he Kin...?" The scout asked with a worried expression.
"His mind is okay, but he's in a lot of pain...looks like Traysek got him again and good this time..." Kin sighed, "Luckily I was able to save his arm, but his metal one has been destroyed, it'll have to be remade..."
"Dammit...! Why the fuck won't they stay out of our plans? it's like him and that crew are getting off to getting in our way..." Hicks complained, "And now he's working with the monsters? What the fuck is going on anymore?"
"It would seem like you need... more than what you have," Gideon said as he headed toward them.
Kin gave a slight bow, "Gideon, it's good to see you, I trust you're here to see the boss?" motioning his head towards the room, "He's awake, just left from there, but I don't think he's in a good mood,"
"He will be much worse in a moment..." Gideon pointed with a sigh, "The hideout was attacked by a Rune Bear,"
"Oh, that's just great..." Hicks groaned, "Now we've lost our base to a damned rune bear..."
Kin sighed with a head shake, "More bad news...Yeah, I think that'll be better shared with him, because I know that's not just it, is it?"
"The girl has disappeared." Gideon answered, "Some men quickly got in and took her away."
"Shit...little Salma's gone...? Oh...he's not gonna be happy to hear that, he had some many plans for her too," Hick sighed, shaking his head next with a facepalm.
"If you don't regain momentum... everything will be lost." Gideon stated, "You need to get someone who can plan for you."
There was a cough coming from the healing room, "Is that...Is that Gideon out there?" Volt asked in a muffled tone, "Let...him in..."
Gideon walked in, staring at the downed Dog boss.
"You had seen better days," he commented.
The black dog leader weakly laughed, coughing after, "From you...I'll take that as a compliment..." slowly sitting up, "I...heard that bit...about my daughter...guess her mother...did teach her to hate me...in a way...I saw that coming..." with a sigh, "Your... god killer was effective, and so was the shackle... but that bastard had help from that singing jester bitch and even had a strong weapon of his own...plugged me full of red crystals... damn-near took both my arms..."
"That weapon was just a prototype, nothing that strong," Gideon replied before casting a great healing Incantation.
"W-what...?" He widened his eyes, as the healing spell went over, completely healing his wounds, "It...was a prototype? meaning...it wasn't as strong as it was supposed to be...? Goddamn it... why didn't you tell me it wasn't as strong, I wouldn't have gone at him otherwise..."
"I had to see how well it would work." Gideon answered, "And with what I learned from it... I would be able to make stronger weapons. Weapons that would bring him to his knees, but I would need some time to do it."
"I see..." Volt grinned under the bandages, removing the ones off his face to show it, "I'm counting on that day... assuming I can't get the help of the Red snake to do that as well... Your dagger was good, it helped evade a bit of that storm...although getting the feeling that we'll have to make more than just for HIM, he's got Greil and Olga at his back...and most likely that old Crow, Swain too..." gritting his teeth at that...
"I see..." Gideon thought for a minute, "For the time being, you'd need to stay hidden. You'll have to use weaker versions of yourself to appear, meanwhile, you'd prepare yourself for the next time you'd meet him."
"Not sure I follow on that...But I'm certain you've got something worked out there..." Volt nodded, "However, despite me wanting to focus on him...there's still Ur to try and capture, and luckily for us...that's mostly been done already with the absence of prim...The archbishop is our inside man there...a Good friend of Grisholm's...with that city halfway under his control, it'll be easier to take it..." a wicked grin forming, "Let's just hope...the Monster army feels like going big there...got a special surprise waiting on them this time..."
"I have an impression of Deja vu..." Gideon commented.
Volt shook his head, "Not this time...We didn't expect Olga's forces to show up at Feoh...But since Beasley made it there to Ur...I know for a fact, that he's told the archbishop of their coming...And knowing what I know about his mind-controlling ability...I don't see it happening like that this time...should Greil come full force..."
"You plan to have him take control of the general?" Gideon asked.
"If possible...If not..." The black dog leader grins widely, "His entire forces will do nicely~"
"I see..." Gideon sighed, "You'd better hope everything goes as planned."
"We better hope Beasely's on his shit this time, or I'm letting Owl or one of the shadows "Take care" of him, I mean that..." Volt growled, calming down with a sigh, "As for the girl, I have a good idea where she's gone back to...No need to keep searching, let her go...Whenever you finish the weapon you're working on...When I find her with her mother...I'll give it a..."Test" before challenging that bastard again..."
"Well, I'd better begin in my work then." Gideon walked out with the bloodied bandage.
Volt gave a wave with his good hand, smirking, before he started removing the bandages...with the plans for taking Ur in his mind, chuckling as he finished the full removal, finding his body fully healed, except his metal hand, however, that was an easy fix...and once his men were in full recovery everything set up, he'd move then...but to give credit to Gideon's advice, he'd stay low...At least for now...
Chapter end...
Oh no...Looks like Volt's still in the game and he's got plans for both Dragonborn and Eostia...What advantage does he have in Ur? and will it be effective in the next battle? We'll come to that when we get to it, but for now...Traysek and a few of the Red Dragons have begun seeking out their new manor while Reynold and his new knights search out their new fort, what will be in store for both groups, now that...that will be answered next chapter, stick around :)
Also if any of you have any reviews you want to leave, feel free to :) be it a good comment or criticism, all are welcome... See you all next time :)