[u][i]4th of Gerna, 1200 A.U.
The Kingdom of Acitha
The City of Corzina
The Winking Mermaid Tavern[/i][/u]

"You do realize this is sketchy as fuck, right?" Anastassia asked as she and her companion stepped into the [i]Winking Mermaid[/i].

"Verily." Lucile answered as she pulled her winged helm off. "And this is quite possibly the tenth time you've said as much." She eyed the tavern's occupants warily, half expecting some lowlife to make an attempt on the two Valkyries. Honest people tended to stay away from this part of the docks. At least if they preferred keeping their lives and coins.

The two Valkyries certainly caught the attention of the tavern's occupants, though most present quickly returned back to what they had previously been doing. Anastassia shot Lucile a questioning look before shrugging and following her companion to the bar. Both Valkyries kept a hand close to their swords' hilts.

"Wha' can I do 'er for?" The barkeep asked as the two women approached.

"We are looking for a man known as Firan." Lucile said as she placed a piece of parchment on the bartop. Not a moment later they both heard the sound of somebody spitting cheap ale from their mouth and the clatter of wood as a chair overturned behind them. Both shield sisters turned as one to look for the source of the commotion just in time to see a figure in a darkened, hooded cloak tearing straight out the inn's door, a cloud of wafting playing cards falling to the ground behind him while the other patrons at the table he had just abandoned began to shout angrily.

"Hah!" Anastassia shouted as she dashed after the figure, Lucile close on her heels. "I told you this was sketchy as fuck!"

"I know!" Lucile shot back as they reached the door. The two shield sisters looked down opposite sides of the street. "There he is!" Lucile said, spotting the man just before he darted around a corner. The two women broke into a sprint after him, Lucile shouting "Halt!" as they caught sight of him again. Not even turning to face them, he stopped at an intersection, turning to look in both directions hurried.

Lucile and Anastassia were catching up to the man, slowly, but there was the very real chance that they could still lose track of him. Anastassia, spotting a pair of city guards further down the road shouted "Stop him!"

The guards shot her a look just as the man started running again and darted past them, not sure who they were supposed to stop. The Valkyrie's quarry turned left and ran up the left of the intersection, a causeway built for small pushcarts. Anastassia cursed under her breath, muttering about how the guards were useless as always. Lucile couldn't help but let a smile spread across her face. 

"Go down that way" Lucile pointed at an upcoming allyway. "I'll see if I can herd him your way."  Ahead of them, they heard several people shouting angrily from the direction they had seen the man run. "Be as the wind on my back," Lucile said. "And aid me in my chase."

The Valkyrie picked up speed, feeling lighter as a soft breeze pushed on her back, as her prayer took affect. The breeze seemed to propel her forward to speeds that seemed to defy how much force the wind could actually have. Lucile was catching up to the man and so would Anastassia, assuming she had used a similar prayer.

She turned the corner and looked up the causeway, the runner not too far up the path. To the side of the street, a woman was lying on the ground clutching a bleeding nose, while a hunch-backed elder was ineffectually shouting at the dark-cloaked man - as he overturned the pushcart the pedestrians had been drawing, upending the wooden barrels inside and sending them bouncing and rolling down the street Lucille's way.

"You have got to be kidding." Lucile muttered as the barrels hurdled towards her. She reached out with one hand as if to touch them, despite there still being quite the distance between her and the closest barrel, and shouted "Fall asunder!" The first barrel broke into pieces as if it had slammed into an invisible wall, spilling ale across the paving stones. Lucile then veered to the left, the next barrel just barely missing her leg. The other barrels missed her entirely, either smashing into other people or simply rolling down the opposite side of the road. The man in the cloak then turned to his right and ran down a side alley,

...only to crash headlong into Anatassia before he even fully cleared the street. Not being made as firmly as the muscled and armored Valkyrie, he fell to the side against the the alley wall in surprise.

"Don't move" Anastassia said as she pointed the tip of her sword at the man's throat. She kept her gaze locked on him, only averting her attention away as Lucile approached. "You uh... lost your helmet" She said, taking her own head.

"Wha- Oh! Ra-hun-ru take me!" Lucile cursed.

"Want to go back to the tavern for it?"

"No" Lucile said as she approached the man, resting a hand on the hilt of her sword. "Its probably gone already." She frowned as she looked at the man. "Now then... why don't we have this man tell us why he darted the moment we mentioned Firan."

"Pure coincidence, I just remembered that I left the fire going back home, and in my rush to get back I accidentally ran into that other woman in the street - she slapped me, and I got angry." The man was speaking very quickly, and as the two Valkyries got a better look at his face they saw that it was a darker hue than was typically seen this far up North - meaning he was likely from the Southern Coast, or maybe even the isles.

"Sounds like something a criminal would make up" Anastassia commented.

"Or a spy" Lucile agreed. "Both of which we would be compelled to punish. Severely."

"Implying you tracked me down for some reason other than to torture and then kill me. Just get it over with already. At least I will not have to spend another rotten minute in this freezing shithole of a city fleecing petty criminals for their stolen money playing cards." To his credit, the man looked unafraid as he snarled the words at them - though his lips and arms were trembling.

"The city isn't that bad." Anastassia commented.

"Yes it is." Lucile countered. She sighed as she held the piece of parchment she had tried to show to the barkeep earlier in front of the man's face. "Does this look familiar? Some of my fellow sisters answered this ad. We haven't heard from them since." The scrap of paper was worn in tattered, both from exposure and from having been accidentally thrown away once by the sisters.

[quote=A Ragged Flyer of Parchment][center][B]WANTED
Seeking brave and valorous warriors of great merit and praiseworthy martial prowess to engage and shatter vilespawn hordes for great honor.
Minimum job payout (upon completion) is 500 Ammacre Pearls, will negotiate.
Contact Firan at the Winking Mermaid inn at Corzina for more details.[/B][/center][/quote]
"Oh. Yes, well, do you promise not to hurt me when I tell you what happened to them?" The man asked, the hint of a smile - albeit a terrified one - playing across his face.

"Have you done anything that is punishable?" Lucile questioned.

"I've been cheating at cards for seven years. Does that count?" He asked back.

"We don't give a damn at your card games!" Anastassia snapped. Lucile shot her a look before returning her gaze to the man.

"Firan is it?" She began. "We aren't interested in anything petty like that."

"Well, Firan is an alias, but yeah that's me." The man - Firan admitted, who was now starting to look relieved. "I know this whole business looks rather shady, but it's exactly what the flyer says. About three or four months ago your women came in asking after the job, and about two weeks later I got word they had all presumably been killed. Either that or cursed into living, abominable mounts using vilespawn magic."

"See, that wasn't so hard" Lucile said. She gave her fellow Valkyrie a look, prompting her to sheath her sword.

"I thought you were here to torture and then kill me for whatever it is you thought I had done to them! I hadn't gotten around to putting all the flyers back up, I didn't know you had the one they had used." The man got up from where he was sitting against the wall and started to rub the grime from the pavement off his hands as he spoke. "I mean, why else would you [i]possibly[/i] be here? I figured it would be obvious enough they had all gone to Kammeth, or that other god you Northerners like to worship."

"Well five hundred Ammacre Pearls is a rather tempting sum." Lucile commented. 

"So tempting the last two guys sent to host for the job got knifed on the assumption they were actually just carrying them aroun-wait." He frowned at the two Valkyries, perplexion briefly rippling across his face - followed shortly by disbelief. "You're here to take the job?!?" He asked disbelievingly.

"You know I was asking her something similar to that not too long ago." Anastassia commented.

"You shouldn't be that surprised" Lucile stated. "You are the one trying to hire people after all."

"You're serious." Firan half-asked, his tone turning flat. "What makes you think you'll do any better than the last group? The request for warriors to fight through hordes of vilespawn is not exaggeration. The last batch were probably overwhelmed, captured, tortured, and then sacrificed to Azueral."

"We are Valkyries. There is nothing in this world we have cause to dread." Lucile answered.

"I wish I shared your faith." Anastassia muttered under her breath.

"Yeah, me too. Not like this job has been posted for thirty years or anything." Firan quipped. "But if you really want to see what lies beyond this life, I can accommodate. I have a ship where we can discuss the job in more detail...I assume it's more than just the two of you? How long will you need to get your affairs in order? We can depart whenever you're ready, once the tide is flowing."

"We shall depart tomorrow then." Lucile answered. "How many can your ship carry?"

"The one can carry perhaps thirty passengers. The others can carry more, if we need them." Catching their looks, he added, "We were expecting large groups of volunteers."

"Perhaps we should see if we can wrangle up a few extra hands?" Anastassia gave Lucile a questioning look.

"No. Those under my command will be sufficient." Lucile answered with a shake of her head. "Tomorrow then Firan."

"Right then. Just come to my ship at the nearest dock to the Winking Mermaid. I'll be aboard [i]Deep Fires[/i]." Firan said, a bemused expression on his face. "Also, before you do that, make sure to tell the rest of your order not to torture and then kill me when you lot never come back."

[center][img]http://i.imgur.com/POZGDxX.png[/img][/center]
[u][i]13th of Gerna, 1200 A.U.
The Grand Duchy of the Kawachian Islands
The Island of Verbera
The City of Turris
Outskirts Port[/i][/u]

They had sailed for over a week, with naught but suspicions on where they were heading. Firan had proven exceedingly tight-lipped about his and now the Valkyries' employer, saying merely that they would become fully acquainted with them upon arrival at their destination.

Towards the end of the journey when they had sailed past one island in the distance and then started sailing by a coast [i]South[/i] of where the mainland should have been, everybody got a pretty good idea of who they had decided to sell their services to. When the ship pulled to port and they say palm trees, the notion became more definite.

"Right then you lot." Once they had disembarked, they were met by a man wearing a jack cuirass and a long leather cap. Those amongst their number more familiar with foreign military orders pegged him as a Kawachian Pilot. "You are all granted special dispensation and immunity while here, got that? But keep your heads down. The natives have no notion of chivalry or common sense. Treat women like cattle, and they may attack you if you're sending out the wrong signs. Not that you'll be talkin' with them - you're headed straight for the citadel, and there's nowhere on this earth where you'll be better off. Save Indignor of course. If you brought anything with you, be sure you have it here - that boat will be gone in a few minutes."

The port they had pulled into had been a smaller one, some distance away from the city proper for some reason. The pilot led them along a road past several fields of strange trees bearing foreign fruit, and as he had indicated the peasantry seemed to be eying them tensely. Perhaps more unnervingly, so were the women amongst their number. A few individuals even started walking up to the road, until the pilot barked at them in a tongue none of the Valkyries recognized, forcing the natives to flinch as though struck and retreat.

The city itself, which the pilot introduced as Turris, was different. There were armed soldiers everywhere, who uniformly stopped paying attention to the group of Shield Sisters once they saw the pilot leading them. The whole place looked like a massive barracks, which given the isles, it probably was. The citadel they were led to was of an unfamiliar design to any of them, different to those in the North or elsewhere on the mainland. The walls were squatter, seeming to come up shorter than was normal with concave surfaces, and they were arranged in a curious starburst pattern. Within, things were more recognizable and familiar. They were led to an inner keep and to a great hall within where they were told to wait. The place seemed curiously empty, although they heard distant bustling from other parts of the citadel. Some food and drink had been laid out for them in advance, but had been served somewhat cool. The only form of decor was the single enlarged crest of House Chalarensis mounted on the rear wall, the hall otherwise appearing barren.

"I'm loving the hospitality" Anastassia commented as she eyed the cold food. "Feels just like home."

"Ana" Lucile shot her fellow Valkyrie a disapproving look, "not today. At least not when we are in earshot of our hosts."

"What was up with those people earlier?" Anastassia continued.

"You mean the villagers?" Another Valkyrie asked. "Weird right?"

"Enough" Lucile said before anyone else could reply. "We'll talk about this later."

Her warning was aptly timed, as the double doors leading into the hall opened a crack and a finely dressed servant stepped in, and spoke - rigidly, appearing faintly terrified and standing straighter than an iron rod.

"Now announcing the arrival of Grand Duke Ormoneric Tribal, Lord Steward and Khagan of the Kawachian Islands, Malefactor Advocate to the Emperor of Ethica, Despot of the Island of Verbera, Khan of the Island of Acantha, Anax of the Island of Balatro, Emir of the Island of Iecur, Jagir of the Island of Cetus, Supreme Sentinel of the Southern Sea, True Ruler of the Province of Ignis, the Province of Dreiben, and the Sun Isles by Right of Conquest and Merit, Grand Admiral of the Kawachian Navy, Fleet Admiral of the First Fleet of Kawachia, and Grand Marshal of the Ducal Forces of Kawachia."

The door opened fully, and a small crowd of people filed into the room. First came a procession of four guards, all pilots like the first one. Then came two individuals wearing Kawachian kaftan, denoting them as members of House Chalarensis. Finally, the Lord of the islands himself strode into the room, dressed in full chain-mail and bearing a gilded heavy cavalry saber, followed by two more pilots who closed the doors behind them.

The pilot-guards all parted as Grand Duke Ormoneric approached the Valkyries, staring at them intently. It was hard to guage the man - his expression was one of faint irritation, although from the shape of his features that was likely his default expression. Finally, he turned and spoke to one one of the other house members.

"Why on earth are these women here?" He demanded. "I thought someone surely must have sent an order to desist after the last band failed."

"They apparently independently tracked down our agent." The woman replied. She looked somewhat harried, but her voice was both firm and clear. "Also, they are not quite like the last band. These are Valkyries. Sorceresses, and accomplished knights. They represent the elite of the Shield Sisters."

"I see." He turned back to the gathered Valkyries. "One should hope they will prove merely as impertinent as their predeccesors were effective." He advanced somewhat, the pilot-guards moving to flank the central table.

"Who amongst your number leads? Speak." Ormoneric demanded.

"I do your Grace." Lucile stepped forward. "It is an honor and pleasure to meet you. I am Valkyrie Commander Lucile of the Sisters of the Silver Shield." She swept into a low bow.

"A thousand deaths that I might be spared your honor." The expression upon Ormoneric's face was utterly flat. "I have done nothing yet to earn such a thing. It should be I who is honoring you - accomplished warriors of the North, who keep the mainland safe...and now my islands, it would seem. Firstly, I must inform you that the bodies of your sisters were not recovered. Reports by my surveyors also could not identify their bodies. They have very likely been either eaten or...transformed. I am sorry."

"I appreciate the sentiment." Lucile answered. Several of her companions winced at the thought of their fellows being eaten, but for the most part the group of shield sisters remained impassive.

"Secondly, I am afraid that this quest will require your briefing on matters sensitive to the strategic bearing of my hold. As such, I cannot - should not, rather - inform you of the precise details until after you have formally agreed to the task and each individually signed a formal contract - though I will freely volunteer that you shall be facing overwhelming odds and numbers of vilespawn, without possibility of quarter or escape should you not prove their equal. Any negotiation for pay must also be done beforehand. Am I understood?"

"We understand." Lucile answered. She could hear Anastassia draw breath as if to say something, but the other Valkyrie chose to remain quiet. "We have fought vilespawn before and we are used to being outnumbered."

The Grand Duke favored her with a singularly unpleasant smile.

"You have never fought vilespawn like these before. Huaghray, if you would?"

The second oddly-dressed house member stepped forward. A somewhat obese man, his chest was clustered with army merits and awards, and in his arms were heaped a pile of tomes and parchment. Approaching the Valkyries without pause, he hefted the mound directly onto the great table, and then sat down right next to one of them at its end.

"A high honor to meet you fine lasses! I am Haughray Phano, and though my own merits are many, today I am the foremost expert in the land in concerns to the vilespawn creature known as a Mongerl. Do tell me, have any of you broads heard of such a thing, eh?"

"Skilled fighters and riders." One of the shield sisters answered. "I've fought against them once in the Heartlands."

"Aye, both of those are true." Haughray nodded jovially, as though they were discussing a the menu of a banquet. "Now, I would like you to empty that precious mind of yours of everything and anything you have heard of them - if not quite everything you saw of them. The Mongerls of the island are a breed apart from the louts on the mainland. As far apart from them as we are from Imperials! Ha!" He took one of the parchments from the pile before him and unfurled it, revealing an inscribed drawing of what was presumably a Mongerl - with a man drawn beside it for comparison.

The creature appeared to be a full two heads taller than any human, with arms thicker than a grown adult's body and almost as long as they were tall, with fists the size of beer kegs and claws the size of dirks. Their faces bore long snouts that bristled not only with teeth, but also with two long fangs near the front and another two long tusks that curled up from the sides of their mouths. Their body, covered in fur and lacking any kind of genitals, instead featured spines like those from a porcupine sprouting from their backs and along their shoulders. Far more worrisome though, was the third eye planted in the center of their foreheads - for though their normal eyes were drawn in the normal fashion, the third was drawn as a solid mass of pitch.

"Now firstly, do not permit their physical size give you any false impressions - they are better climbers than any man, and much, much faster. Even in the denser areas of the jungle here, they can move almost unhindered in a straight line at full speed, whether it be hurdlin' over it or else barrelin' through it. The only thing they can't do quite as well as us is turn - they can't really go on a copper piece, and you never have to worry about wild haymakers swinging around from behind. They need to build up a lot of power in order to swing themselves around. That said, I would not fancy trying to attack them from the rear unless you're usin' a mace - those spines on their backs are adhered to a skeletal plate thicker than skulls. No piercin' through that. Their arms block up a lot of their flank, they possess no vitals around the groin, and they just get angry if you cut off their legs. Their arms are too big to really be worth attacking. It won't kill them and it probably won't stop them from using it. No, you ladies will want to go straight for the throat and ribs - or the inside of the mouth, if you can get it. I know the eye looks like a big sopping wet spot, but don't try that unless you're desperate. A sure strike might not pierce the skull and get stuck, and then there's the bit where if you make eye contact you'll send them into a rage state. Not the best of experiences, let me tell you. I only lived because that one threw me out of the jungle, over a cliff, and into the ocean. Finally then of course, each one is nearly as clever as a man. I say clever, in that they can use tools and aren't afraid of fire, and don't fall for the standard sorts of tricks most animals and babes do. They aren't smart compared to the likes of us, rest assured, and unless they're mounted up they won't use anything resembling tactics, thankfully. Oh, except they will definitely ambush you. Yesse, that they will. They especially like doin' it from above. They'll either hang up in canopies or else jump straight off cliffs to land on top of you. Quite the sight if the shockwave doesn't knock you out." He looked up from the manuscript with something approaching ecstasy on his face. "Quite a thing, eh? Any questions? Aside from their magic. Even after twenty years of fightin' em I barely know anything about it. You probably know more about it than I do."

At that comment, the Grand Duke - looking faintly bored but otherwise standing at bay patiently - coughed notably.

"Oh. Err, except I'm to tell ya their magic only works by line o' sight. If they can't see you, you're safe. Even if it's just a big fern. So how about it?"

"What kind of magic have they been observed using?" Anastassia asked.

"Well I'm no mage, so I can't classify it to you by magical orders or whatnot, but they've got a couple of stage favorites. The big one is the thing where they hold you down, spit blood onto you, and then scream at you nonstop until your entire body slowly implodes and twists into an abominable thing they use as a mount. Here's a picture!" He unfurled a second scroll, detailing in brilliant detail each significant stage of transformation, the user's face realistically contorted in various stages of anguish - up until the thing that had been a human grew two more faces that shifted around to one of its undersides, somewhere thankfully out of the perspective view of the drawing.

"Almost as fascinating as the Mongerls are." Haughray said, practically enraptured in tone. "Not much stronger or faster than a human, and just as vulnerable. The curse multiplies their vitals as much as it multiples everything else I think. Just be aware, the multiple arms and hands means they have much better leverage for grappling. Very easy to underestimate their strength and then get pinned. Oh, and incidentally, if they were male before the transformation, they will also try to rape you if they pin you. Fair warning." He said cheerfully.

"Besides that crowd-pleaser, there's also this trick where they roar and produce some kind of shockwave - you won't feel it, but it corrodes a lot of metals. Castle-forged steel will usually be fine unless a lot of them use it over time, but lots of lesser metals - iron, copper, bronze, the lot - sometime they'll just crumble to dust. Worthless."

"Then finally, they can also do this thing with their third eye. It'll light up like the sun for a second. If you happen to be lookin' at their face, it's bad - can blind you for a bit. Sometimes moments. Sometimes hours or days. Sometimes permanently."

"There are more. Loads more. But those are the three I've seen more than once." He finished. "They're always springing new, awful things on us. Wonderful natural talent, aye? Any other questions?"

"I think that will do for now" Lucile answered after the Valkyries had collectively shared a look. "We may wish to speak with you again before we depart though."

"I'll look forward to it! I'll leave these materials here for your perusal, eh? Don't stay up too late reading them!" He laughed gaily as he rose from the table. Then performed a second take. "Oh, except this one, come to think of it." He said hastilty, grabbing one of the tomes near the bottom of the pile. The title 'Codex Malignance' was neatly titled on the spine in what was hopefully merely dark brown ink. "Er. Bye." He hurried from the room, the pilot-guards at attention near the doors opening and closing them for him.

"With that...[i]unique[/i] briefing out of the way," Ormoneric said in a neutral tone of voice, "We can now discuss the issue of pay. One of my accountants, Aechalchlea Argider, will negotiate."

"The reward was decided upon by the predecessor to Grand Duke Ormoneric, the then Grand Duke Brarnis Vagost." The woman in the kaftan stepped forward this time, though hers was unadorned with any king of merit. "He was noted for his...eccentricities. In hindsight, I still would not have agreed with a whole five-hundred, but since I was not made aware of that issue until four months ago I did not think to change it accordingly. The Grand Duchy of Kawachia is prepared to honor a minimum task payout of five-hundred Ammacre Pearls, due to the high risk inherent and due to the preclusion of negotiation upon acceptance. Even if," Aeschalchlea glanced back at Ormoneric, "most of the pearls we do have are what the worth of our chits and orders of balance are backed by and that outrageous amount reflects a significant worth of the entire Duchy. 

"Yes... Let's." Lucile agreed.

"Isn't just one worth an absurd amount of money?" Anastassia asked.

"I know I can count on you to state the obvious" Lucile muttered after letting out a sigh. "Your Grace," she returned her attention to Aechalchlea, "I would like to negotiate certain rights for the Sisters of the Silver Shield."

"I have no title and am not of noble blood. There is no need to call me grace. As to your request, I have been granted certain liberties of sovereignty for the express purpose of this negotiation, so I may officiate the establishment of some rights for your order here in Kawachia. Not, however, elsewhere in the world." Aechalchlea responded. "Although I do feel obligated as a practitioner of the court's law, some of what you ask for may either be impossible or else inadvisable due to local polity. With that out of the way...what did you have in mind?"

"First" Lucile began, "the right to establish a permanent presence in your territory. Second: the right to proselytize within your territory. Third: the right to recruit inhabitants of your territory to join the Sisters of the Silver Shield. And last of all we request that we be granted the right and authority to root out evil where ever it may be found in your lands."

"I can permit you rights to establish legal property in the eyes of House Chalarensis anywhere in the isles where its boundaries may not overlap with that of our own, and so long as its size and the number of such establishments do not exceed particular parameters to be agreed upon at a later date. You may proselytize as you see fit without its inclusion within this negotiation and I will not count it amongst yours term; the natives will likely attack you for preaching religion while being a woman however. We will not extend proselytizers protection by wit of force by House militias. I wholly reject your fourth request without possibility for appeal or revisitation." Aechalchlea rattled off her list of answers in a monotone, almost as if she had practiced the speech - or said the whole thing before.

After a moment of thought Lucile asked "Would the fourth item be acceptable if the Grand Duke had the ability to.... temporarily revoke it?"

"As Grand Duke of the Kawachian Islands, I overrule your motion to revoke the whole rejection of the fourth request. Proceed with your demands, and do not test my patience." Ormoneric said. He gave Lucile a sharp look.

"Very well your Grace." Lucile didn't quite wince. "Would it be too much to presume that the movement of any shield sisters between the islands of Kawachia and to and from the mainland will not be hindered in any way?"

"I am afraid that short of special dispensation for immigration and exportation to singular islands of permanent residence, no member of the Shield Sisters may move freely between the Kawachian Islands in accordance with preexisting polity. This will also apply to members of the native population inducted into your order." Aechalchlea issued in a clipped tone.

"What about between the island and the mainland?" Lucile asked.

"As I said, members of your orders shall possess special dispensation for immigration and exportation to and from the particular island of permanent residence. The whole order, including inducted members, may move between their select island of residence and the mainland freely and at their convenience. So long as it is understood, of course, that all members of and inducted into your order are necessarily women."

"Very well. I find these terms acceptable. Any complaints?" That last bit was directed at her fellow Valkyries, none of which spoke up. Turning her attention back to Aechalchlea she asked "Is there anything else we need to discuss?"

"Perhaps just a brief inquiry as to whether all your affairs are in order." Aechalclea smiled thinly. "Otherwise," she snapped her fingers, and one of the pilots came forward possessing a stack of parchments, setting them on the table. Each one appeared to detail a lengthy agreement, with two underlined spaces for signatures - one signed by the Grand Duke. "Each of you needs to sign one of these. As a friendly warning, this is your last chance to back out."

"Sure." Lucile said, signing the document without hesitation. Most of the shield sisters followed her lead, though a few were more hesitant. Anastassia carefully read the parchment with a cocked eyebrow, but was wholly overwhelmed by the contents. Even as a priestess trained to read all kinds of inscriptions and arcane symbols, the terminology of the agreement was so esoteric the larger meaning of it escaped her.

"I wrote the original copy myself." Aechalclea volunteered, the same thin smile still on her lips.

"That doesn't surprise me whatsoever." Anastassia mirrored Aechalclea's smile with one of her own. She went over the document several times more in a vain attempt to gain something nearing comprehension as to what it was actually saying. Finally she just sighed and signed the parchment.

"Now that you have all signed, I may finally brief you on the actual quest." The Grand Duke said, gesturing for Aechalclea to take the documents and leave. "Approximately thirty years ago, around the time aerial bladders were developed, one of our league surveyors of the time was brought low from the sky by means of arcane forces wielded by suspected Azueral cultists based in an old native ruin. At the time, and to this day, we have been unable to assemble a sufficient force to storm the ruins due to the intraversable nature of the Tafrit mountain range. The region is only accessible by individuals using highly specialized equipment, or else by aerial bladder. Although the bladder was downed, the surveyors of the time still required technical manuals needed for their operation and the mountains in the region are volcanic. It is feared that the cultists may or may already be working to attempt harvesting their own Helium in order to refill the bladder and send Mongerls into the air - at which point, they could potentially curse whole provinces at once with their magic by line of sight. Your instructions are to infiltrate the ruins, fight through the infestation of Mongerls therein, and destroy any trace remnants of the bladder, as well as any form of documentation you discover that might yield information as to either its operation or creation. You are also to kill any cultists you find, naturally, but destruction of the bladder and its materials is the foremost goal in order to limit the possible danger they represent. The twenty of you together cannot hope to actually wipe out the infestation of mongerls in that area, [i]and that is no failing or insult to your skill so do not argue with me.[/i]"

"Right so..." Anastassia spoke up before Lucile could draw breath. "Find this bladder. Destroy it and anything related to it, and return. Simple and probably excruciatingly difficult. Understood."

"Quite. You will be ferried to the area by bladder, at which point you will be on the own. You will have precisely a week to accomplish your task. Every day, the bladder will return and look for firelight produce by these." He made a gesture with his right hand, and another pilot advanced with a bundle of yellow, foul-smelling candles wrapped in string.

"Brimstone candles. They produce a clear, deep blue flame when lit. If, and only if, the pilot sees these burning, at the specific extraction point, will he land. I will not risk a second balloon falling into cultist hands. If you are not specifically there, at the right time, and do not light these candles within seven days - you will be left in that region. Repeat to me what I have just conveyed so I am sure you understand."

"We have seven days to complete the task and light one of these candles" Lucile gestured towards the brimstone candles.

"At the specific extraction point specified by the bladder pilot." Affirmed Ormoneric. "Now, as I mentioned earlier, this quest concerns strategic information of import to my hold. You are to [i]destroy[/i] any documents you find. You are [i]not[/i] to bring them back with you. They contain information which cannot become public knowledge - for the sake of not only Kawachian, but Imperial safety. Do you understand?"

"Destroy, not retrieve. We understand." Anastassia answered. "We shall ensure that their contents are known to none beyond those who have already seen them."

"You had best." The words Ormoneric said were faint, but supremely clear, ringing like a gong in clarity and conveying with perfect transparency the threat of an undignified and lonely death.

With that, he turned and left the room, his guards trailing behind him.

"We will give you all three days to rest and prepare for the quest." Aechalclea said to Lucile. "I imagine being cooped up in a courier boat for a whole week is not the most conducive environment to staying fit if you are not a sailor. You have been given run of this citadel's central keep for the duration of your stay. Just..." She gave the Valkyrie a look. "Do not try to leave. I will attend your lunches and dinners, should you have any further questions. Do you have any before I leave for today?"

"I have one" One of the more quiet shield sisters spoke up. "On our way here the natives were giving us odd looks. Why was that?"

Aechalclea had the decency to look momentarily embarrassed. "The House families here all have dark skin. You do not...and they only associate ornate and fanciful clothing worn by women not of our house with a particular strain of unseemly practices."

"Wha-? Oh... Oh!" The shield sister's cheeks turn on a crimson hint as the implications sunk in. Anastassia couldn't contain her laughter, earning her a solid jab in the ribs from Lucile.

"I think" Lucile said, "that we are fine for now."

[center][img]http://i.imgur.com/POZGDxX.png[/img][/center]

[i][u]The Estate of Grevis Valarien[/u][/i]

[quote=Hiltruda]"And I see you have, valiantly, shown in your own special way how much your nation values its trade relationship with the Green Kingdom," She gestured to the man's wooden teeth. "We continue to appreciate your custom and place in this empire, naturally, but not your continual and I must say wearisome professions of hatred for a system from which you gain so much,"[/quote]
"You should hope so, but these are in truth from the province of Ignis. Their carpentry and craftsmanship are simply...[i]better[/i]. Diende replied matter of factly.

[quote=Allianna]“I’m sorry,” she started, putting forth a softly sympathetic smile, “but it seems to be clear to me that my letters did not reach you nor your house. I had desperately been trying to get ahold of the islands, and it would seem once more in a few days I’ll receive my own words in my own mailings. Terribly inefficient I’m afraid, but it does prove useful here in the heartlands, as it is common practice and inside humor to mail reminders to the Kawachian Islands so in a few weeks time we may be alerted by our own letters return to complete whatever we were trying to remember, and with a fine no less.”

Allianna shook her head as if physically throwing her words to the side, “but it is good we get to talk now. You can rest your head knowing that I ruminate about House Chalarensis as I do all the other houses of Ethica, and I can confidently say that the Empire would be happy to deliver all that the hard work and loyalty your house has earned it.”[/quote]
"The Grand Duke does maintain the title of Malefactor Advocate to the Phoenix King. We strive to service the Imperial Throne in keeping with how it has rewarded our house in the past." Diende treated Allianna to another smile filled with wooden teeth. "There must be equanimity in these matters, and the scales have been tipped for centuries now. You could be the one to begin mending relations. Do not spurn my offer out of hand - it is a serious one."

[quote=Allianna]“But if this man wishes to bully, bribe and corrupt the fair system of our traditions and politics, then perhaps he truly is better off in my brother Ralltene’s corner, because I for one do not stand for the corruption of politics or the deceit of blackmail and favoritism.” A lighted unsaid hint fluttered behind Allianna’s gaze as she connected her last words while looking directly into Diende’s elderly visage.[/quote]

"A spat of favoritism certain could do my house some measure of good. I must say you are not helping your case with your words." Diende commented, though his smile had faltered significantly.

[quote=Sophsi]Sophsi was adorned in a legendary armored costume that any learned eye would recognize it as Laliafa’s own, if not just a very great recreation of her renown outfit. A armored leather corset hugged her torso and lined it with thick armored hides and canvas across the chest. Her abdomen was protected under black boiled leather with brown squares on each side, bearing the mark of the Valarien phoenix. Underneath a warrior’s white, gambit-style tunic hung out from under the thick belt that connected the bottom of the cuirass to her torso, and flowed into a loose split knee length gown that was trimmed with gold. The same white tunic stretched to her elbows and tapered into a golden trim with her lower legs begin covered by thick  white trousers and tall leather boots. Leather straps guarded her shoulders and were feathered with golden tassels, with the edge of the shoulder guards connecting to a long flowing silver cloak, split directly down the middle to resemble wings. Even her own honey colored hair was changed for the occasion to fit the silvery hair often associated with Laliafa’s and pulled back into a pony-tail.[/quote]

Diende's one good eye narrowed faintly as he turned to look at Sophsi with lips curled in irritation. He had no idea who this [i]harlot[/i] was, but he - as must have everyone upon the portico - recognized the outfit surely enough. Diende had made many acquaintances and studied many lineages in his time, and his memory was no longer what it used to be - but he made a point of knowing every army and navy officer of significant note in the realm, and this [i]floozy[/i] was not one of them. Yet she [i]dared [/i]to dress as a conqueror and project the visage of a warrior - in [i]his[/i] presence, with merits and awards of military orders hanging from his kaftan in plain view.

He had no idea who she was, but he would certainly find out - and he was going to make her regret her choice in dress. One way or another.

He turned back to Allianna, and saw the flash of pure contempt on her face as she also stared at the newcomer who had arrived with Jakinius. He opened his mouth to say that, perhaps, they could afford to put aside their animosity...

[quote=Allianna]Amid the shock and awe of the sudden arrival, Allianna took it upon herself to divert her eyes from her childhood rival and turned back to Diende, “we can talk later, excuse me would you?”[/quote]
Diende's mouth snapped shut as his thoughts of reconciliation vanished amid a flurry of ineffectual rage. He stared at her retreating head for a moment before calling out one final time to her.

"When Ralltene Valarien is elected Phoenix King, I want you to remember this moment!" He cried. Then, in a huff, he turned and retreated from the portico to the large garden surrounding the estate, heading for a stone bench underneath an awning of leaves in order to cool off.

Both Hiltruda and Aethlar bore witness to the entire sordid scene - though apparently, somebody had been watching them in turn.

"Your Grace." A light and airy feminine voice addressed Hiltruda from behind. Turning, the Dowager Queen would see Sarapis Tribal standing a polite distance away, holding a stein of wine in her left hand. With her right, she made a peculiar motion, drawing it from her left hip across her waist and then raising it through the air as it slid to the woman's right. It was the Kawachian equivalent of a formal bow presented to royalty, specifically made up so that the user did not actually have to incline their body. While predictably incourteous of House Chalarensis, they did tend to only use it in the presence of actual royalty - and Diende's omission of the same gesture had likely been another deliberate insult to Allianna. As far as gestures went, it was the closest anyone short of the Phoenix King or Queen was ever likely to receive.

"I am Sarapis Tribal, Governor of Acantha. I must apologize for my fourth-great-grand-uncle's impertinence. He is the eldest member of the House, and so is necessarily entitled to the position of representative whenever the Grand Duke is unavailable. I commend you for your honorable defense of Lady Allianna, and I am certain nobody expected anything less from your Majesty, as your pedigree and grace in handling such delicate affairs speaks for themselves." The woman paused briefly for effect.

"With the arrival of Prince Jakinius and his..." Sarapis glanced at Sophsi briefly. "...[i]chatelaine[/i], I imagine everyone else may be concerning themselves with their address. In the intervening time, if it is no inconvenience to your Majesty, there are a number of affairs I might speak with you of that may prove to be mutually beneficial to our houses. They would be necessarily external to the proceedings of the summit, but I shall endeavor not to unduly restrict your time. If it pleases your Majesty, there may also be some utility in including the venerable Master Graeton for our purposes." Sarapis' voice was like the same cool wind blowing through the portico. Soft, steady, smooth, and with an underlying chill of the now passing winter season. Her tone was the very definition of courteous, her expression neutral and businesslike - though was was something vaguely offputting about the way the woman seemed to be looking [i]through[/i] the Dowager Queen rather than directly at her.

Across the portico nearer to the doorway, Zola Thusini's contemplation of the frescos - or perhaps of the new entrant's outfits - was interrupted by the approach of Rame.

"You are Zola Thusini, yes?" He asked her as he stepped into her field of vision. "Sorry if I'm a bit forward; I was instructed to keep an eye out for you. The name is Rame Mountebank, Pilot." He nodded at her, once. A friendly and easy smile was on his lips, but his eyes and expression were both calculating. "I studied art at Eldva, specifically portraiture. I don't fancy I have a patch on the likes of your skills, of course, but my Lord determined I should be at hand to evaluate your materials and technique." He leaned forward and spoke in a falsetto whisper. "...And I am sorry about that. The House is somewhat suspicious of anybody from the mainland. I have heard the Grand Duke himself comment favorably in regards to your past work, if that makes you feel better."