Fire Emblem On The Forums: Excalibur Infernus [IC]

[rokubiraijuu]

—Oh. Well, that works too. She lowers her lance, letting out a relieved sigh. She'd been prepared, but honestly it's nice to avoid engaging with the Cursed if she could. Sparing effort wasn't the only part of it, either. She tries not to look at the bodies around them, both those unconscious and those that are... in a more permanent state.

 

Iba doesn't seem to agree with her relief, snorting loudly and lashing his tail in indignation that the opportunity for a glorious last blow had been denied them. He glares sidelong at Nicolos, which goes unnoticed by his rider as she overhears Galen's remarks with a tinge of discomfort. Yeah, she doesn't like the flare much either, but being passive-aggressive like that? She doesn't really believe his dismissal that he's just joking, either. Awkward.

 

With a tired exhale, she dismounts from Iba's back, strapping her lance into its holster and taking his reins in hand.

 

"Um, good job, everyone," she says genuinely, if a little subdued. "I thought that went pretty well."

[Swordstar]

"Whooooa, that was awesome! Man, your magic is super cool!"

 

Ari bounced up next to Nico, looking over the blade as closely as the man would reasonably allow him to.

 

"And the way you just... blasted that guy away? Excellent! Man, I'm glad you dealt with him. Dark magic and me, we don't mix too well. It's cause I'm half-fey, or something like that. But it gets me a little harder than most people. So good job! You may have this whole leading thing figured out soon if that was any indication!"

[Aurorix]

"Really? I've been study Anima magic since I was a child so I'd hope my magical art would coo-" Turning slightly pink before his smile was wiped away.

 

"I mean, it's nothing really. All in a days work. What kind of future King would fall here?" He decided to not comment on the lad's back hand part of the compliment and take it for what it's worth. His face turned more angered, however, after realizing they had sparred some.

 

"Wait, you left some alive? That won't do. We HAVE to kill every single one of them. I don't think you understand how dangerous Feral can become if you don't cut them down while they're small in number. One well placed bite and another becomes cursed, whether they desired it or not. They destroy towns, lives and the peace of the world. Until we can find a cure it is best we give them the mercy of death since they've escaped from the Curselands. " The Captain said with a stern expression, before drawing his blade once more.  "If you all don't want to finish them, I'll take the burden myself. This is something that has to be done, however."

[Sentient Bowtie]

They... had to kill the Cursed? All of them? Oh, no. No, this wasn’t right at all.

 

“You can’t be serious, can you? They’re harmless right now. We do not have to kill them, we can tie them up and bring them back to the Curselands. I understand the threat that feral ones pose, believe you me that I do, but this is not the way we have to go about eliminating that threat.”

 

His voice was genuine, almost pleading, even.

 

”There will be a day when a cure for the Curse arrives, and these people will finally be returned to who they once were. We do not need to steal that opportunity from them now, Sir Nicolos.”

[Blasbo]

She's...honestly, she's a little uncomfortable chipping in on this. This seems like a complicated issue, one that she feels would be better off without her interjecting an ignorant opinion into the mix. But, she is a part of the team so she feels she should say...something.

 

"I...look, I understand that they're dangerous, and I understand there's probably a lot I don't understand about this issue, I just...I don't know how comfortable I am killing them. In a way, they're victims too, aren't they? None of them asked for what's happened to them."

Edited May 15, 2019 by Blasbo

[rokubiraijuu]

Quietly from the sidelines, she watches as the discussion takes a sudden turn at Nicolos' insistence that the Cursed have to be put down. Is it just that they're a danger, or is there something else there? She's realized since coming here that the way Cursed are handled... is different. It feels like maybe she ought to say something, too, but she holds back. They can come to some conclusion without her, right? It's best if she stays out of it.

 

Her gaze falls to the nearest body, one of those that Nicolos had felled, and she just looks at it, perhaps past it, as the rest of them talk amongst themselves, her thoughts empty, a thick, discomfited feeling in her chest. The sooner they decide on something and move on, the better.

[Aurorix]

"Oh? So do you think they would do the same if the roles were flipped? What if along the way they somehow managed to escape again? Are you going to take responsibility for what it does after? Are you sure it won't try to bite at you while you take it back to the Cursedlands? I for one don't want to risk any more lives then necessary, and trying to take even one of them is a huge risk in it of itself. I know it's morally wrong to kill them while they have no control over their actions and they never asked to be like this. BUT I'm sure they'd rather have themselves killed before harming one of their loved ones or an innocent person. I am not budging on this matter. Period. Don't think for a second I ever was. Now you can either have me finish them off or you can do it. What's your choice?" His grip tightens on his blade and it gets coated in a light flame. He aims his speech more towards Galen rather than Owena because he knows she is quite ignorant on the matter.

[Sentient Bowtie]

“If our roles were flipped, I would already be dead. We both know that. But I don’t care. No one else gives any mind to these people except as far as they’re a threat. What’s wrong with showing them compassion?”

 

“If they’ve escaped once, we bring them back and put up a new fence. Station more guards. Whatever must be done to ensure it does not happen again. The failure is on those meant to contain the Cursed in the first place, not the Cursed themselves. Are we to kill them because the people responsible for making sure they can’t hurt anyone failed to perform that duty?”

 

“And so what if I am bitten? I already have the Curse, Sir Nicolos, and I’d hardly say I can get twice-cursed. If anything, it would keep the others out of any danger while we . . . “

 

The mage trails off, staring at Nicolos’ unmoving face. He knew that it was pointless to continue; nothing was going to change the man’s mind, whether he liked it or not. A sour look crosses Galen’s face and he shakes his head in disgust.

 

“Fine, then. Slaughter them if you wish, but you will receive no help from me while you do it. I did not join this team to kill innocents and I absolutely refuse to participate in the act, no matter how “necessary” you may think it.”

[Pyon Pyon Kyuu!~]

Vivianne on the meantime had perched herself on the ground, studying the body of one of their fallen opponents. She had a notebook out, taking notes at finger breaking speeds. Every once in a while she would nod, and write something else. This concluded, when she got up from her seat and turned to everyone else. "Oh but if it changes your mind, these are not normal feral cursed! Well they are there is nothing particularly unique about them, other than one specific unique fact that I, Vivi The Genius have found. These feral, are not from Tameloc." She bent down and raised the claws of one of the dead cursed. "You see here this bit of exposed skin? The bit where it's not burned to a crisp? Right there that symbol? It's a Tsukiochi letter, it's their word for cursed. However, when you add the line under it the word actually becomes 'warrior cursed'. Roughly translated." Vivianne strolled over to another body, turning it around with great effort and inspecting it until she exclaimed loudly again. "Ahah! See here? On this one's torso. The same letter. I had my suspicions as to how these ferals could get so far without being intercepted at the border." 

[Sentient Bowtie]

Galen’s head begins to spin. Tsukoichi lettering on the Cursed, calling them “warriors”? So perhaps they weren’t simply a loose pack of feral Cursed... He had no reason to doubt Vivianne, but full understanding was yet out of his reach, so he asks:

 

“My apologies, but... What are you saying, then? Do you think these Cursed were being influenced by a spell or a person? Or that—“

 

A horrific thought enters his mind out of the blue, and he stops abruptly. The idea was utterly vile and unthinkable, and yet he could not get rid of it. Galen struggles with himself for several moments before he can bring it to his lips.

 

“...Or that they were... manufactured, even?”

[Pyon Pyon Kyuu!~]

"I wouldn't know; I the Extravagant Vivi am the second most studied mage in the land. Surely you know who the first one is. And I know of no spell powerful enough to control a large pack of cursed like this. It's not impossible, unthinkable. Not at all! After all, our King has done the impossible and pulled out a secondary sword from the Fire Emblem! We live in quite impossible times!" Her hands came up and she waved her staff dramatically. In fact, everything Vivi ever did was dramatic, but that's besides the point. "I have a more simple theory. Tameloc is a very unique magical land; from the stories we hear from outside our little islands, there are no dragons or fey in the mainlands. Or cursed for that matter! Dark magic and by extension the cursed were created here in our very own little kingdom. And due to laws passed at the time of Nimue the Mage Queen's successor, any cursed wishing to leave our kingdom needs to do so illegally. Through pirates, or smugglers, or less nice people. No, not very nice people at all. Well maybe they are nice but... Not the types who follow the law." Vivianne coughed, and returned to the point. "The only other place to have discovered dark magic as well, is Tsukiochi. While their smaller island is rooted in a lot of mystery, we know that they also have dragons; although they look a little different from ours. We know that they have fey; although they look a little different. And they also have cursed, and they look just like our own!" Vivianne put one hand on her hip, and brought the other up to the brim of her hat. She slid this hand along the brim, slowly as she spoke. "And so my conclusion; I believe this was some sort of infiltration. Some trick; an illusion; a ruse, a ploy. They shipped their own cursed, wether their feral-ness was fabricated or not, and placed them at our coasts. Perhaps to keep us busy, perhaps to test our defences in these arduous times, or perhaps just to sew distrust. What matters is that we've intercepted them before they could cause any damage."

[Blasbo]

Her eyes widen as the implications of the entire thing sink in--'Cursed Warriors'? She didn't know (or care) too much about Tsukiochi, but she has heard of their forces starting to encroach upon Tameloc's lands...and, well, if they can handle Rosanne she's pretty sure they can handle them, so the issue has more or less been at the back of her mind. But this...

"Manufactured...? So, wait, they're...either they're deliberately giving people the Curse to turn them into foot soldiers when they become feral, or they're just shipping whatever they've already got over here? And..."

Her expression turns...remarkably sour as she thinks more on the implications of the reasoning Vivi's laid out for doing that kind of thing. "I'm guessing 'sow distrust' means 'stir up anti-Cursed sentiment'...as if they don't have enough to deal with. Either way, though, they're just throwing these peoples' lives away like they're nothing...that's unforgivable."

[rokubiraijuu]

At Vivianne's call, Juliett steps away from the sidelines of the conversation to take a look at what she's indicating. Curiosity enters her eyes as she looks at the marks that the mage points out. Yeah, that's Cursed marks, no doubt about that.

 

... Please accept my apologies.

 

The conversation that occurs behind her is largely background noise, at least until Owena speaks up, her words cutting through Juliett's idle thoughts like a knife point. The judgmental ignorance in them makes her stomach churn, and she hates discord more than anything, but it's impossible to just let this go without saying something.

 

"Hey. I... wouldn't make assumptions, if I were you," She turns around to face the rest of them. Her tone isn't sharp, but there's a clear note of irritation, as well as a hardness in her expression. Then she looks down at the ground, avoiding eye contact but still visibly discomfited. "Just. Please, stop."

[Blasbo]

Make assumptions? She...well, let's be honest here. Exactly what else is she supposed to be taking from what she's seeing here? Is this a charity offloading of feral Cursed onto someone they're looking at invading, then? But she can also tell that this line of conversation seems like it's making Juliett uncomfortable and...she doesn't want to act like the same assholes she had to deal with daily in the Winelands.

She's silent for a few minutes, glancing towards the ground herself, before speaking up again. "Sorry."

[Sentient Bowtie]

Galen silently considers what Vivianne had to say as the others continue speaking. A band of foreign-born Cursed (or, perish the thought, foreign-made), placed in Tameloc for what could only be the purpose of endangering its people, by someone from Tsukiochi. But why? What would someone have to gain by doing that? He can’t wrap his head around it...

 

At Juliett’s request and the apology that followed, Galen speaks up. He seems to have missed the exact nature of the exchange, though.

 

“Juliett is correct. We cannot afford to make any assumptions about this with how little information we possess. It seems quite likely we are the first to discover these such Cursed, and to act on false judgement could potentially jeapordize innocents... or anger the bear that may in fact be sleeping in this cave we have stumbled upon, as it were. I would not be so hasty as to construct a perpetrator for the act before we even know what its greater purpose is.”

[Aurorix]

"They're from Tsukiochi, huh? Why would they send a swarm of cursed onto our soil? This swarm is nowhere near large enough for it to cause reliable damage nor were they that strong compared to the cursed from the Curselands. Well, maybe except for the last one. They were still able to handle weapons too. This probably wasn't their first boat either since near feral cursed can't exactly report back..." The Captain rubs his chin with his freehand as he mumbles to himself. It was quite audible even if nothing really could be made out from it. He seems to have completely disengaged from the conversation and went off into his own little mind.

[Raindrop Valkyrie]

The witch had been keeping to herself as she observed the ongoings. She'd tired of the combat quite a bit ago, it was certainly exciting she supposed but hardly a matter she truly found pleasure in performing. Perhaps her distaste reawoken by the m... Galen's prior showings. She'd forgotten how interesting humans were up close... Though she wasn't the only non-human here. Owena and the half fae that had apparently intruded before her entrance certainly added some spice to the affairs. However nothing quite piqued her interest, she continued to lazily lounge in a cloud of darkness she'd conjured lightly perusing some manner of tome. Something bound in a thick dark leather, a covering that was made to last and keep such a book together. She lightly leafed through the pages, paying little mind to the play that was unfolding before her until a specific person spoke.

The words "The second most studied mage in all the lands." That peaked her interest, the following statement only moreso. She knew she referred to the mage everyone surely knew, a man that had supposedly been able to discover the secrets of dark magic without the influence of the Curse amongst many other achievements. None other than Merlin himself. Brinda watched her closely from this point out, her interest in her book suddenly much less than it had once been. The legend's own apprentice it seemed. She supposed it made sense he'd have such progeny, after all human life spans were tragically short, they needed to have successors surely lined up in the event of passing. From there the details would be much clearer to the witch of Knifewood as she gave the conversation of ounce of her attention. She noted the reactions of each individual. Especially that of the young pegasus knight, Juliette? Something of the sort. How she wanted the subject to end seemed interesting... She'd note it for later perhaps something to inquire about. It seemed strange out of nowhere, but there were more pressing matters that had gripped the Witch's attention. She floated over crossing her legs in a flourish as she sat up in her shadowy throne. "Second most studied you say? Being the apprentice of a legendary mage l suppose is quite strong grounds... for such a claim, but there's much more to magic then stuffy libraries and dusty tomes. Tameloc is a vast land, one where magic pulses through it's very veins. However, it seems Merlin has taught you quite well... l do so wonder what he's up to these days." she said directly towards the current target of her interest. Her tone some sort of playful... though whether or not was a good thing was yet to be seen.

[Pyon Pyon Kyuu!~]

Vivianne's good mood and smiles disappeared almost instantly at the mention of her former master's name. She even began to suspect if The witch's words had a double meaning, maybe she knew something about Merlin. Much like Vivi did. "Up to no good I'm sure. Merlin is just as much at fault for the old king's crimes as the king himself." She spoke normally and seriously, perhaps for the first time in a long time. "After all if a man as powerful as Merlin sits by not doing anything, he's guilty himself is he not? I've heard about you though, Knife Of The Witchwood correct? There are so many legends, and I cannot believe that you are actually real."  But it didn't last long, and the excitement slowly poured back in to Vivi. "We must share magical secrets! I'm sure a woman like you has plenty!"

 

[Raindrop Valkyrie]

"Something like that." Brida whispered under her breath based on the slight corruption of the name she'd received. She was sure there was countless versions, and the details probably weren't consistent from tale to tale. Worse was she usually wasn't truly sure how to take this. Humanity seemed largely... afraid of her. Most tales she'd come to know made her out as some sort of monster, a boogeyman to frightening young'ins from misbehaving. Others a figure that sought to destroy their vary way of living. Though, even she'd heard the ones that made her out to be some tragic romantic figure... most never were fully positive about the Witch however. 

"I certainly wouldn't have expected one such as yourself to believe in such... tales." her gaze serious as she leaned forward in her spectral seating. Tension hung in the air for a moment, before a soft chuckle escaped the Witch's lips. "Some of them get a bit lax with the details as l'm sure you are well aware, but there is indeed a kernel of truth at their centers. Myself." the witch seemed quite amused at the attention and the woman's excitement. Perhaps not as pronounced as one would be used to but even she couldn't hide the softness that washed over her features. She leaned back within her chair, though this time maintaining some air of energy and attentiveness. "I've lived alone around two to three centuries, I'm sure there's something of interest to you somewhere in there." she figured it went without saying that in all that time she was more or less uninterrupted. All those years of research were perhaps what many a mage wish they could've had. A single life time devoted to magical art and thinking, a powerful tool in and of itself in such company.

[Pyon Pyon Kyuu!~]

"I've devoted my life to studying the history of magic, instead of magic itself. And scholars have a tendency to explain away things they don't understand. If it's too powerful, too outlandish, too strange or weird; it's fantasy. Nothing more than fiction. But I don't fall for their petty tricks not I, Vivi the Revelator." She puffed out her chest, proud. "So I make it a point to investigate modern day legends. A lot of them have come out as false, but sometimes we get cases like you!" 

[Aurorix]

Nicolos shook himself from his own thoughts and got himself back to the present.  "While knowing these feral ones are from Tsukiochi concerns me, that does not change the fact that they must all be put to rest." He pauses for a moment and lets out a deep sigh,  "Everyone should get some rest, leave the dirty work to me. We'll head to Swapmill first thing in the morning. I suggest you all go to bed early tonight."

 

_{The Story Continues in Fire Emblem On The Forums: Excalibur Arena}

[Aurorix]

And the story continues from here

 

11th of Second Heat

 

It took 2 days of long and silent traveling to return back to Candlelight. Nicolos' head was drooped the entire way back. Once they made it to the city Nicolos dismissed the group for the rest of the day. That is until the next morning where they had a strange summons to a specific part of the woods nearby Candlelight. It was just a ten minute walk into the wilderness, where they would find an grove with logs circled around what looked to be where a camp fire was once lit. Nicolos seems to have been waiting nervously reading through a book waiting for everyone to arrive. He seemed to be back to peak condition now, even after starring death in the face mere days ago. Once everyone had sat down Nicolos closed his tome with one hand before speaking.

 

"I am... sorry everyone. It was cause of my carelessness that we almost lost everything. My incompetence almost lead to my death and the betrayal of all the faith anyone has put with me." The mage's eyes then began to burn with conviction,  "However, even so I still yet live. WE still yet live. And while this body of mine still breathes I refuse to give up! I refuse to leave this country in the hands of another power hungry monarch!" He takes a deep breath to calm himself before continuing.

 

"What really puzzles me was Lancelot's actions. Not that I am not grateful for him saving my life, I just can't understand his motives. Also his last condition strikes me as odd as well. What does he gain from having none us or the retainers of Rosanne die? What are all your thoughts on this matter?"

[rokubiraijuu]

On one hand, she felt kind of bad for not saying anything the whole way back. Nicolos had looked so disheartened... not that she blamed him. But on the other hand, she hadn't known what to say, or even if he wanted anything to be said. Words were cheap, anyway. It was no surprise when he dismissed them the moment they arrived back in Candlelight, and it was no surprise when they were all suddenly called again the next morning.

 

She decided to bring Iba to the gathering, partially because it was way less effort to just fly over the treetops to the meeting spot than having to slog through the underbrush, and partially because he needed the excursion after being cooped in the stables the whole previous day. After the Lancelot thing, he was back to his usual self, and she tied him loosely to a thick branch a little way away from the group.

 

"..."

 

Carefully, she listens to what Nicolos has to say.

 

"Yeah, I was thinking that too," she ventures after a moment. "It's almost..." She trails off, though, and looks at all the others to hear what they might have to offer instead, conscious of the fact that she's not quite as knowledgeable about this whole thing as they are.

[Sentient Bowtie]

As Galen made his way alone to the meeting place he couldn’t help but reflect on the events of the previous day. The somewhat mythical knight Lancelot appears before them in the middle of their battle, delivers a none-too-subtle threat, and tells them to leave, just like that. He couldn’t possibly disagree with the man’s motives, though. In fact, he found it all too easy to leave Swampmill at Lancelot’s behest. The sheer strength of magic radiating off of him had shaken Galen to his very core. He was not going to provoke such a man if he could help it.

 

“Perhaps it is a precautionary measure,” he suggests after Juliett. “Knowing the depths of your... rivalry with Rosanne, I should think that if her group was to kill a member of our own you would not hesitate to enact your revenge on them; the same of her, as well. Such a thing could easily lead to either of your deaths, which is exactly what Lancelot wanted to avoid.”

 

He pauses, then adds:

 

“...Isn’t it?”

[GodofGamingRWBY]

If there was one thing Reeve could regret right now, it was not bringing enough rations to handle a few detours. Her trip to Candlelight was originally supposed to be a rather straightforward one, as it always was, but apparently someone had tipped off the local bandits to her normal path, which she had taken great care to make as risk free as possible, resulting in them deciding to take some time off to nab a noble. One or two bandit attacks Reeve could handle. She was an experienced mage after all, but when she was attacked every two hours on the road, sometimes more often, that was where she had to draw the line and get creative. So, she had begun to move through the wilderness itself… Except that general plan resulted in her getting turned around more times than she could count. She wasn’t even sure she was near Candlelight anymore, or heading in its direction.

 

“... I really should’ve brought a map with me, maybe a compass too... I could try to make a location spell and figure out where I am, but that would require making one from complete scratch...” Reeve thought to herself as she walked along the forest trail, or what could constitute as one, arms folded underneath her cloak as she struggled to think of a way out of her current situation. There was plenty she could do, but all of them involved either risks or good chances of failure. 

 

And then suddenly, as she stumbled onto the edge of a clearing, specifically a sort of grove… That was already filled with people surrounding a campsight. Immediately, Reeve stepped behind a tree, barely poking her head out to get a good view of them. They didn’t look like bandits, which was good, but they didn’t look like everyday civilians either, which was not good. It wouldn’t be much of a problem to just sneak her way around, and she didn’t have the strength left to risk a fight right now, not until she got to Candlelight. In fact, she was right about to start creeping around the grove to continue on her way, until she scanned a single familiar face within the crowd, a man with blazing red hair.

 

Almost everything about that one man was something she could recognize.The scar on the lower half of their face; the somewhat overall attractive, if rough, appearance they possessed; and most importantly, the hilt of a clearly magical sword, one so notable that she could feel even from here.

 

Nicolos.

 

In a fraction of a second, the realization of the importance of this discovery snapped to her. She had finally found NICOLOS, and it only took getting attacked several times by bandits in order to do so. He had already gotten a group of followers as well, which was to be expected of a future king. Regardless, she needed to make her appearance soon, otherwise she might miss the chance, even if they didn’t seem to be going anywhere soon. So, without warning, Reeve burst from her hiding spot, twirling around the tree she was hiding behind and expertly leaning on said tree with folded arms and a smug expression, even if her arms were still under her cloak.

 

“Well well, I didn’t expect to see a familiar face out here. Long time no see, Nicolos. It seems I’ve finally managed to cross paths with you and your little..."

 

“... I dunno, gang? Freedom fighters? I think I’ll go with 'group' for now, unless there’s something else you call yourselves.”