Zay nodded to himself quietly as he heard two of his teammates stirring up a conversation. Now if only the rest of them were comfortable with his little bonding exercises. Having a team that didn't know anything about one another was bound to lead them into disaster. It was a common misconception among new, and [i]prideful[/i] knights. This was just a job for many. Most people in Thoris' biggest nations have never had to step out into the wilds. They didn't know what laid out there. Even worse, newbie knights were prone to turning themselves into drones and treating their partners like co-workers rather than [i]teammates.[/i] If Zay was going to protect these kids, he had to get them to relax. Noru seemed pretty dead set on keeping to himself though. That guy was an enigma.

	Marilyn returned to the cart's interior and closed the door behind her. "Ready to go on your word Captain!"

	"Call me Zay."

	"Um-"

	"And we're not going anywhere yet. It's still 9:55 AM." Marilyn lowered his head with a single nod, and took a seat at the little table in the center of the room. Her sitting posture was totally shut off from the rest of the room. Zay wiped his face and sighed. This was going to take a while.

	"Can everyone take a seat in here?" He called out to anyone that might've lagged behind a little bit, or stuck around in the storage room. It was time to debrief them.

[center][h1][color=9e0b0f]* * *[/color][/h1]
[b]~Around That Same Time~[/b]
[i]???[/i][/center]

	Four people sat around a square table, chugging their ale back without restraint. One of them let out a hearty laugh that resounded through the entire bottom floor of the bar. Others glared in his direction for moments at a time as he shifted between laughter and putting away liters at a time. His features were rough and misshapen. A crooked nose, one half-swollen eye, and a jawline that looked like it was [i]compressed[/i] into the bottom half of his skull underneath his thin grey beard. For a human, he was quite the large fellow. His 3 compatriots on the other hand were not. One was of a significantly smaller stature, and wore a hood that hid their features. The other two were Eldi twins that wore traditional garb from the Nation of Kel, a man and a woman. Their eyes were narrower than those of Kel Natives and their hair took on intricate styles with mystic wood carvings woven carefully between braids. Displays like theirs were common in other Eldi Nations that resided far to the southeast, but their attire was human-made. It was a peculiar group to say the least.

	"Looks like it's about time!" The large man shouted while slamming his mug against the table. The cloaked figure tapped the table with their nails. 

	"Keep your voice down, [i]moron,[/i]" she hissed. the large man winced at the little woman's comment. "This isn't a game."

	"Bollocks! It's been a bloody [i]decade[/i] since-" The large man stopped himself and began to whisper, "-since we've tried something like this." The woman lowered her hood.

	"Last time things didn't go well, [i]precisely[/i] because of your rowdiness, [b]Blake.[/b]"

	"It was that Venbu's fault."

	"[i]You kicked it.[/i]"

	"By accident!"

	"Will you two [i]please[/i] stop," one of the Eldi twins cut in, while clutching a glowing stone in her hand, "Blake's blunders were not the only factor to our failure in the past. But [b]Sasha[/b] is right. You need to [i]reign it in."[/i] Blake crossed his arms and leaned back, clearly offended. The ladies were ganging up on him! The Eldi brother huffed through his nose with a smirk.

	"You got something to say [b]Ryua?[/b]" Blake leaned back towards the table, but the male Eldi rose a hand and shook his head.

	"Not a word" Blake rolled his eyes and grunted.

	"Enough." The Eldi female eyed her little stone, and a light blue aura encompassed it for a moment before fading. "Our timing will be perfect this time. We have all the essential tools to make this look [i]exactly[/i] how we want it."

	"Should I pack up Ole' Crooked'Jaw?" Blake inquired.

	"Yes. I'll contact our soldiers in west and north Marrenfall. Our [i]other[/i] contacts will keep us perfectly up to date, I'm sure."

	"I'll notify the [i]sisterhood[/i] as well. If the paladins catch word of this, we won't have [i]Lisa[/i] to fix things thing time, Lark rest her soul," Sasha added, "We have enough stones to deal with [i]one[/i] holy knight per squad. Any more than that, and failure will have our people dragged off to that dreaded [i]pillar.[/i] I refuse to allow that."

	"Then you need to keep your wits about you. Blake, head out now. And keep your [i]friends[/i] under control." Blake looked down at the female Eldi and nodded. Sasha lifted herself and drifted towards the bar's exit. Blake did the same, in a less [i]elegant[/i] manner, knocking his chair over in the process. The Eldi woman turned to her brother and looked at him. He nodded and left the tavern as well.

	"That lout will pay for his father's wrongdoings."