Zay made an audible gagging noise as he looked over his paper a final time, before shoving it back into his pants pocket. "Very good, all present and accounted for. As I've already mentioned, I am Captain Zay Copp. A pleasure to meet you all." He gave Centaurus a little wave, and then directed them towards the giant Caravan them with the same hand.

"This is Caravan Centaurus. As you can see, it's a class-C Caravan. It is unarmed, but the interior is fitted with several cotton layered bunks, a storage unit, several lamps, and a lower power Mana shield for dissuading weaker creatures in the wild. You should know all of this, but I won't hold it against anyone who hasn't yet traveled outside of Arcadia. There were quite a few things to memorize on that quiz and most of it is pretty arbitrary." The giant construct of metal and wood towered over the team like little mobile fortress. The roof of the cart was shielded with plates of metal, and flattened so that people could easily stand on top of it without worrying about falling off. It even had a few metal bars wrapped around each side for support and safety, so that a bump in the road wouldn't send somebody flying off the edge. Getting up there from outside was no easy task, though. The right side of the Caravan that Zay and everyone else stood beside was built in such a way that made climbing difficult. The roof was at least 12 feet off the ground, and the walls were rounded with a single window peeking out of its center. The wall itself was roughly 40 feet across with three massive steel wheels that were about 5 feet in diameter lining its bottom, making the Caravan look more like a train than an actual cart. The wall on the opposite side shared the same properties, making a side-mounted attack all but impossible for smaller monsters.

"This thing weighs more than the Venbu that pull it. It's a hulking mass, so if you've never been inside of one before, don't worry. Anything jumping at us is going to be making a lot of noise before it even puts a scratch on the thing." He slowly made his way towards the back of the cart, expecting everyone to follow. Noru walked over slowly, while Marilyn skipped past most others to try and get in front. She'd never seen a Caravan up close. It was way better-built than she thought! At least it looked that way.

The back end of the cart was flat, unlike its sides. But it wasn't just a wall. A four inch thick metal gate reached nearly to the ceiling, leaving only a 2 inch gap at the top, where three sturdy latches kept it in place. Zay walked up to the back of the Caravan and pulled a big metal key from his pocket. "This is the Caravan Key. It's magically enchanted to resonate with every single lock on this vehicle." The key looked like it had several runes inscribed in it, but wasn't otherwise remarkable. Suddenly the slits in the key lit up with a bright white light, and the three latches on top of the caravan came undone. The massive steel door quickly began to swing open. Noru and Zay backed away, while Marilyn narrowly escaped being crushed by stumbling backwards. "Simply point, flood the key with your Mana, and the locks will come undone. There are locks keeping several things in place, including the back entrance to the interior, several compartments for maintenance, and the chains that keep our Venbu attached to the cart. I'll be keeping it most of the time. In cases of emergency though, anyone should be able to use it." When the rear gate fell, everyone could see the back room of the cart. It was a spacious 20x25 storage area, with shelves near the top of the room, an inactive mana lamp in the center of the ceiling, and a lot of barrels lining each side. The shelves contained boxes filled with various things, while the barrels were filled with compacted feed for the Venbu and clean drinking water. "Right on in. Don't mind the odd grassy smell. It's just Venbu feed." Zay didn't wait, taking the lead and walking right up the flat gate, which now served as a ramp. The storage room had a large door frame that separated it from the rest of the Caravan, and a thinner wood wall around it. If they headed deeper in, they'd get a view of the Caravan's only other room. It was the same size as the storage room, only far more spacious. Along either wall of the living quarters were 8 planks of wood with a simple hook&loop latch keeping them upright, positioned one on top of the other in sets of 4 on each side. They seemed large enough to hide something bigger than a human behind, but in reality, they were just fold-out beds. Zay unlatched one, and it swung open with a loud rattling. Two chains kept it from falling down, and a linen sheet padded with cotton covered its surface. But there were no pillows, it seemed. Not the most comfortable sleeping conditions, but while out int he deadly wilds with only your wits and your team to keep your alive, one couldn't really complain. In the center of the room, there was a rounded cylinder with several stools firmly attached to the ground around it symmetrically, 8 of them to be exact. The table itself had a few drawers where plates and cutlery were stored, along with playing cards, puzzles, and a few other entertaining little time wasters. On the roof, another mana lamp sat inactive. Zay reached for it and injected some of his mana into the contraption to keep it lit for at few minutes, before sitting down on the bunk that he opened.

"You might want to get used to the reigned, Marilyn!" Zay called out, motioning towards a door at the end of the Caravan's interior. It lead towards where the pilot would sit. Marilyn rushed past everyone excitedly and pulled on the door fiercely. As she pulled, Zay rolled his eyes and pointed the Caravan key towards the door, unlocking it without warning. Marilyn almost fell over as she went outside to investigate her new work station. Noru walked in quietly, unhooked a low bunk and sat down. Zay sighed. "Don't be shy, come on in!"

Daelin leaned against the outside doorway and produced a foldable knife and trinket sized piece of wood. He went to whittling away as he commented. "If you ever wanted to know how a fish feels as it's steamed alive this contraption perfectly simulates it in the heat of the day."

Flin's polite posture seemed to fade away due to Zay's response, his left eyebrow twitching out of annoyance. Zay's words didn't sit well with him, and it was not at all what he'd expected to hear. He deeply enjoyed and was involved with magic himself, so he felt slightly disrespected. He shrugged it off as Pyra followed up to introduce himself and Zay led them to the back of the caravan. Flin smirked, looking at the caravan. He'd seen more impressive caravans, but it was still incredible to behold. It was fine craftsmanship, which he appreciated. The man stepped on board, staring at the key that Zay had. It wasn't anything new to him, as it wasn't his first caravan that he'd been a part of.

Flin glanced over at Zay briefly as he stepped beside him. 'Wonder if he'll actually be able to protect that key...' He thought, not feeling very confident in the captain. He seemed nice enough, but...he seemed to lack discipline. Well, he'd only just met him, so perhaps it was too soon to judge. He wouldn't have liked a man who was too strict, either. Flin leaned against the wall and crossed his arms, glancing over at Marilyn briefly as she ran for the Venbu before looking over at Daelin. He couldn't get it. What was so wonderful about those filthy creatures? Well, to each their own, he supposed. Daelin's comment made him smirk, though. "So, uh..." He muttered. "How many months have you been participating in caravan runs?" He asked Daelin. He seemed to know the captain well, perhaps he could reassure him that he was competent. Or vice versa.

Daelin paused his project to start counting fingers, still clutching knife and wood. He stopped counting and shrugged. "'Bout a third of my life I guess." Daelin went back carving. "Seen all kinds in this work. Of people and beasts. Even different machines too." A smile spread on his face just thinking of the different caravans. "Escorted this noble. He paid for the whole thing see, and he needed a good recon man. That was me." He added, jabbing a thumb to his chest. "Guy had this magicked steel tank inside his 'van. Hot as hell out an' this fancy thing breathes out winter air." Still holding the knife with thumb and index finger, Daelin fanned his hand out to emphasize the marvel. Then he slumped a little. "Unfortunately a big ol' lizard cracked the 'van like a squirrel cracks a nut and got a mouth full of winter. Or was that fortunate?" He scratched his head with two fingers. "Lizard sure didn't like that one, I tell ya. Scared 'em off actually. Probably saved that prissy noble too."

"So ya like music, Flin? Why's 'at? Playing music out there sounds like dinner'n a early grave. How's that work for ya?"

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 prideful 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 teammates. 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.



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 compressed 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, moron," she hissed. the large man winced at the little woman's comment. "This isn't a game."

"Bollocks! It's been a bloody decade 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, precisely because of your rowdiness, Blake."

"It was that Venbu's fault."

"You kicked it."

"By accident!"

"Will you two please 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 Sasha is right. You need to reign it in." 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 Ryua?" 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 exactly 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 other contacts will keep us perfectly up to date, I'm sure."

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

"Then you need to keep your wits about you. Blake, head out now. And keep your friends 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 elegant 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."

Flin listened to Daelin's story, somewhat fascinated by what he had to say despite his unrefined manner of speaking. And then he decided to question his music. It was a fair question, albeit asked in a somewhat blunt manner. "It calms my mind when I play songs. And sometimes, it does the same for others. When I mentioned that I am able to bend sound waves, I was quite serious. If I desire it so, I can make the sound only hearable to myself." He replied, taking out his guitar to show it off.

"It's poorly made, but it gets the job done." He spoke, with a grin on his face as he tapped the wood with some of his fingers. He put it back on his back as Zay called them over, and he took a seat at the table as well.

Pyra nodded, and stepped up into the caravan, sitting down in one of the unused chairs, and pulling a smooth, round, almost spherical rock from his pocket, turning it over in his hands, every now and then tossing it up in the air and pushing it one way or another, then snapping his hand out to catch it, cursing quietly whenever he may have dropped it.

"Hmmm.." Daelin considered just how useful such a trick could be. Could be used to affect the direction of sound which seemed irreplaceable if you wanted to distract a wild beast away from the caravan. "I expect you to show me up with that one." He said with a wry smile.

As Zay called them in, Daelin put his knife and trinket away. He went inside and slumped down into a chair for the debriefing.

After taking a quick run around the cart to take a good look at it from the outside, Lyullia climbs into the cart. Taking a look at it from the inside. The sight of the beds annoyed her the most, as she was used to sleeping on beds that were, at the very least, decent.

Her companions seemed to be having a fun chat about sound somewhere else nearby, and the guy who was playing with a rock earlier had now found a different rock to play with.

Then, the captain called them in. Sighing, Lyullia made her way to where they were supposed to meet, and sitting down on one of the chairs. She didn't particularly like the captain so far, but he seemed experienced enough that at the very least he'd know what he was doing.

With everyone seated, or at least in the common area, Zay cleared his throat and pulled another piece of paper from his right pocket. This one was just as crumpled as the Centaurus manifest, but the Captain could still read it just fine. "I would have liked to have a little more time for us to get acquainted, but there will be plenty of time for that on the road. Open your ears and listen carefully. I'm only going to read this once." He straightened the paper with a hard flap and looked it over. "Yvette's handwriting is god awful..."



"Oh, I don't need to read that p- Hmm..." Zay zoomed down the paper until he reached the body of Centaurus' mission report. For a Captain, he was awfully absent minded. "Ah, here we go..."



Zay paused and looked at the paper he was holding. It was completely crumpled, and the foil-seal bearing Arcadia's royal crest was cracked and torn. He continued shortly after, hoping quietly to himself that it wouldn't pose any issue.



Zay cringed. He was surprised that a Caravan with any new recruits at all would be included in the universal manhunt for stray Lok'Sha Barbarians. They weren't common at all. But what if they came across a veteran, or a Berserker? He shrugged off the thought, and skimmed several details until he reached everyone's favorite part of Arcadia's mission reports. The Threat and caution summary.



Zay read the rest of the document quickly before stuffing it right back into his pocket.

"Boring and easy, right?" Zay assured them, tilting his head sarcastically to one side.

Flin listened closely to the captain's words. He sighed. "Bah, if we're actually a competent crew, we shouldn't be having much trouble on the road." He stated confidently. "But the fact that we're to abandon our mission and head back to Arcadia if we happen to run into that collosal threat at lake Hyu, doesn't sit well with me. I'd much rather try to take it on..." Flin declared, leaning back on his chair as he looked at the ceiling. He sighed, and sat straight again. "...But I suppose we'll just have to accept this."

With that, Flin looked at everyone. "At least our trip won't be lame, from the sound of things." He stated with a smirk. Despite having participated in caravan runs in the past, the thought of exploring the world still excited him. He waited for everyone else's responses. This was a good way to see how disciplined everyone was.

"Colossal threats are no joke," Noru said with a stern grasp of Flin's shoulder, "Making a decision like that is likely to get your entire Caravan killed. It's important that you keep everyone in mind before letting your eagerness get the better of you. Otherwise you're no better than a child." Zay nodded quietly. "Captain Copp knows it better than the rest of it, though I hate to admit it. You can't be too careful in the wilds. The mana of creatures is hard to detect, and completely unpredictable."

"Yep. There are specialized Caravans for hunting dangers like that. Colossal threats are way above our pay-grade." Zay shrugged lightly and shoved his hands into both pockets. "Sorry to say, but if you make the reckless decision to jump head-long into battle against a colossal, a titan, a Leviathan- Anything bigger than the Caravan, I'm going to leave you behind."

"Seven Days until we get back huh? Guess it ain't that bad. But I'll have to agree with the Captain that I'd much prefer to avoid anything bigger than this cart, so you can go off to fight those giant creatures while we leave you behind."

Lyullia sighed. The fact that the trip would take only a week was a bit comforting, as she really didn't like the prospect of spending ages out in the wilderness in this cart, though there was still one part of the mission that was bothering her.

"I must say though, I'm assuming that 'Apprehending Lok'Sha' is a metaphor for getting rid of them in general? I don't see a way to keep prisoners in here after all."

Flin gently placed his hand on Noru's hand, gently removing it off his shoulder despite the slight annoyance on his face. "First off..." He muttered, pointing at Noru's nose with his right hand. "...Don't compare me to a kid." He said calmly, before lowering his arm and turning towards the captain and Lyullia. "I never stated that I would do it, I said that I wanted too. I know how to follow orders, don't worry about that." He stated. "I never intended to actually face the collosal threat head-on. Especially not on my own." He added, taking a deep breath.

"Even if I chose to disobey orders and do it, I'd be more clever about it. I was merely curious about them. There are plenty of ways to deal with or avoid dangerous creatures like that, as I'm sure you're aware of, captain." Flin stated, as a devilish smirk appeared across his face. "Don't worry, if any of you try to take it on by yourself head-on, I'll be sure to leave you behind too." He scoffed. "But, points taken. Don't worry, I ain't suicidal."

He remained lazily on his chair after all he'd said, looking over everyone. "Let's hope we don't run into that thing, or we'll have wasted most of our time since we're told to retreat. Besides patrolling the route, I suppose."

Pyra continues idly tossing the rock as Zay talks about their mission. "So we're just checking on grain production? Boring. Necessary, I suppose, but boring nonetheless. Lok'sha, however... interesting." Pyra had never seen a Lok'sha before, outside of a section during his learning about the various races of the land, but, of course, focused the most on Eldi.

"If we come across a Colossal class, you better be pretty damn clever, or hope you have a devil's luck, because there's no other way you're getting out of there." He says dryly in response to the idiot boasting. "But yes, somehow I doubt we could keep a Lok'Sha in here all the way back."

Noru backed away from Flin and sighed while gently touching his forehead with two fingers. Zay ignored the banter about Colossal class creatures. He knew Flin's type. They were headstrong and stubborn. Even if he assured everyone of his ability to follow orders, the right circumstances would likely end up overpowering his better judgement. Zay didn't want anyone to die, but when people join up with the knights expecting the wilds to be anything like their training drills, they end up dead sooner rather than later.

"Don't worry yourself about that too much. Lok'Sha bandits, barbarians - whatever you want to call them - aren't prowling around as often as the officials like to think. If we come across one it's better for us to keep our distance. We have a newbie on board," Zay stopped and pointed at Marilyn. She flinched and looked at everyone nervously. "She doesn't look too eager to die. If it comes down to it though, I can easily restrain a Lok'Sha with my magic of we can immobilize it first. We'll chuck his body in the back with the barrels if we manage to capture one. Prisoners are as good as cargo, dont'chya know?" Zay eyed Marilyn expecting her to get to her station. When she didn't respond, he motioned towards the front door that lead towards their Venbu and widened his eyes. She realized what he wanted and scrambled out of her seat.

"Sorry, sorry!" She mewled, "I'll get them ready." She might have been nervous and timid, but Marilyn was on top of her duties. She disappeared into the pilot's seat not a moment later, and started going through her personal checklist.

"But do keep in mind, if we are put into a position where apprehending a violent Lok'Sha becomes too dangerous, it won't be a problem if we kill it. Don't hesitate if it seems like your life is on the line. I intend on bringing everyone back alive." Zay fell back into his bunk and rested his hands behind his head. "I know this goes without saying, but I'd just like to remind you that I'm your Captain. If I give you an order, follow it." Noru looked away from the Captain and slowly backed away, making himself comfortable on his bunk. If he was going to sleep there for the next week, it'd be a good idea to work it in.

"This bunk is mine," Noru groaned.

"Left wall, top right!" Marilyn called out from the outside, claiming her bunk. Zay pointed to his bunk with his foot and closed his eyes. Claiming bunks was kind of an unspoken tradition among knights. It was supposed to be good luck. Some of them liked it, while others didn't care much. Considering Noru's disposition, it was surprising that he bought into the superstition.

"We'll settle duties when we leave Arcadia's borders," Zay said quietly, shifting around on his bunk until he was completely comfortable, or as close to it as he could manage.

"Y'all are underestimating true ingenuity. Loks are strong, sure, but there's ways around it." Daelin sat up and shuffled to the other room. He unbundled a box and pulled out a mass of cords to show everyone. "Beasties the size of the 'van can't break this wire cord. It's supposed to be used for hauling extra containers and pulling other 'vans out of muck or ditches." He stowed it back into its box. "So unless we deal with a 'zerker we're good. Course the easiest solution to a rogue lok'sha is a chop to neck." Daelin concluded.

Zay pointed to Daelin with his thumb, yawned, and returned to his resting pose.

Flin got in a bunk on the bottom right, and said nothing else. He gave a nod at Daelin and smirked. At least he had some respect for strategy, the ability to think on his own. The wilds were unpredictable, and this whole mission could go south at any point. They would need that skill. He simply wanted to learn more about the wilds, and this was another opportunity to do it.

After taking a quick look around at all the available bunks, Lyullia decides to settle for one of the bunks on the left wall, specifically the bottom right one.

"Well, what sort of duties are there anyway Captain? Do you plan on simply assigning us, or do we get to choose?"