[Prologue - The First Mission]

-=Sanada Estates, Honimora, The Empire=-

"What?" Stephan exclaimed after Jing gave out the assignment. "I understand sending Alm and Shion to the B Team, but why are you sending me as well?" He said in almost a shout clearly displeased with the order. Jing shot Stephan a look, "Why? because I don't want anything going wrong with this assignment and I know you will ensure everyone makes it back even if you don't like it. Anyway you and Shion are only on loan for this assignment I'll need you two for our next job so use that as incentive to not drag your feet." Jing replied in a matter that forced Stephan to stand down. And after that little outburst Jing turned to Olivia. "Now don't listen to Stephan your team is by no means "The B Team" You have proven yourself in these last few months and so I am trusting you with a mission of your own. As I said Alm shall join your team as a second in command, he has been around long enough to know how we do things and has access to all our resources out in the field. Aside from him I will be handing you a few new recruits along with some of our other members. Make this team your own and I expect great things from you all." He said to her before concluding the mission assignment and sending everyone off to get prepared.

-A Week and a Half Later-
-=Lost Oasis, Black Desert=-

The Bloodrose Irregulars left the Silver Moon Citadel a little over a three days ago venturing into the Dread Desert. Their mission to find a lost expedition team, or more so a Sir Frances Darkwing, under contract by the Noble's worried wife. Simple circumstances base pay for information, better pay for proof of death, best pay for returned alive. As well as a cut of the expeditions findings if it returned, or whatever the Irregulars could carry on their own in case of the Expedition's untimely demise. The journey thus far was simple enough found by a few orc raid parties who were quickly put to the sword and avoiding a roaming clan or two.

As of now the Irregulars had found a rare thing the Desert, water, and decided to take a bit of a rest and restock their water provisions. Their goal was only a day or so away but the sweltering heat was enough that Alm decided to convince Olivia to let the group to rest as some of his company weren't used to these treks into the Desert just yet. Shion had opted to take first watch allowing the others the time to relax for a bit. Stephan had made himself a little make shift hammock taking a bite form an apple "So I'll take bets will we find this noble alive or dead? My money is on dead 50 Sovern at that." He said trying to egg on one of the others to take his bet. Alm scoffed at Stephan's comment, making a joke at the life or death of a client put a bad taste in his mouth. Instead he spent his time chopping vegetables doing the prep work for the nights dinner. So far things were quiet and nice but there was a bit of truth to Stephan's joke the expedition was more than a month late now, the chances of finding them dead was far greater then the expedition finding hitting a jackpot and still collecting valuables.

Iroryn had her boots off and her feet in the water as she filled various water skins for the team. Looking up at Stephan’s comment she laughed. ”That’s a sucker’s bet and you know it; it’s not a matter of if, but how. I got 25 that says ran out of water.” As she spoke, she finished filling the last skin and set it on the edge of the water.

Stepping out, she stuffed her feet back into her boots and retrieved her sword from where she’d set her gear when they first reached the oasis. Blade in hand, she focused on the Soul Stone in the hilt before raising her free hand towards the water skins and casting a brief burst of her ‘Ice Storm’ spell, chilling the water without freezing it to the point where the skins may have been damaged. That done, she set to returning the various skins to their owners.

While the others may have been feeling the heat, Irory seemed just fine; though she would freely admit to ‘cheating’ a bit as it were, using her ice magic on herself from time to time to keep herself if not cool, at least not as warm as some of the others. Having passed out the rest of the water, she returned the last one she had to Olivia before opening her own and swallowing a mouth full of water. ”Oh Your Grace, I’ve been meaning to ask,” She said, half teasingly as she ‘bowed’ to Olivia. ”Do you know why Lord Whoever was out here?”

Sanada Estates, Honimora, The Empire

"Now don't listen to Stephan your team is by no means "The B Team" You have proven yourself in these last few months and so I am trusting you with a mission of your own. As I said Alm shall join your team as a second in command, he has been around long enough to know how we do things and has access to all our resources out in the field. Aside from him I will be handing you a few new recruits along with some of our other members. Make this team your own and I expect great things from you all."
Olivia, once of House Blackmoore, raised a clenched fist to her breastplate in salute, "I understand, sir. I will deliver results that meet your expectations."
Having been raised to speak and act properly, the black knight often came across as rigid and even casually arrogant in the way that only those brought up among nobility can manage. Those who pushed past her practiced distance usually came to respect her deeply-rooted sense of duty, even if her dedication to laws and etiquette made her an oddity among mercenaries.
With a few final remarks, Jing dismissed those gathered to prepare for their mission.

A week and a half later, at the Lost Oasis of the Black Desert.

Though it didn't show through her carefully cultivated stoicism, Olivia was relieved when Alm came to her with a suggestion to rest. Since she was in command, her pride demanded that she be an example to her subordinates and not be the first to concede defeat to something as simple as the heat. If she was being honest with herself, she was probably more beat than most of her squad with their comparatively lighter equipment. Her armor was warded against magical fire, but did nothing against an overly-persistent sun and its black coloration certainly wasn't doing her any favors. If someone put their hand on her shoulder, they'd probably come away with minor burns.
As the group settled into their various roles, Stephan couldn't help but open his mouth, "So I'll take bets will we find this noble alive or dead? My money is on dead 50 Sovern at that," he jested. Olivia eyed him from behind her hair and a small scowl crept past her defenses. Her initial impression of the man, such as he was, was thoroughly negative and hadn't improved much since. To be sure, she understood that unconventional tactics and skills like his could well turn the tide of battle, or even avoid a battle entirely, but he was a mercenary in the truest sense. If the money ever ran dry, he'd quickly follow, and that lack of a sense of loyalty made him distinctly distasteful to the errant knight.
"Have some respect for the dead, soldier," Olivia ordered, pointedly looking at an apparently fascinating piece of horizon, "and if they're not, I don't want our employer hearing that we gambled over her husband's fate."
Olivia offhandedly accepted the waterskin from Varo, ”Oh Your Grace, I’ve been meaning to ask,” She said, half teasingly as she 'bowed'. ”Do you know why Lord Whoever was out here?”
"Practice more," Olivia started, "someone might think you were being facetious, and that will reflect on the company." She took out a small handcloth and wet it. "The whys aren't our concern. All that we need do is confirm their deaths or escort the survivors." She carefully dabbed her brow and cheeks with the cloth before wringing it out and stashing it away.

Ariel, who had joined Iroryn in the water, gladly accepted the water skin and drank deeply. The cold water felt like the nectar of the gods in the scorching heat, sweat clearly visible on her forehead. She had been under no illusions that her journeys with the Company would be any kind of pleasant, and this was clearly no exception. But she had swallowed her apparent discomfort, not wishing to be seen as weak by the more senior members who had accompanied them. This, however, did not stop her from releasing her hair from its leather tie, proceeding to dunk her head in the water. When she pulled her face back out, water streamed down her face, leaving wet spots on the back of her shirt as they dripped off the metallic shoulder plates.
Hearing Stephan's words, she scoffed. "I don't doubt that he's dead, but life is full of surprises. And I'll be damned if I lose out on drinking money because this nobleman happened to be some kind of Ice mage like Ioryn and was able to keep himself cool in this damned heat, or stumbled upon a cache of liquor." What she left unsaid however was that she silently agreed with Olivia. This nobleman's wife must have loved her husband greatly to drop the amount of money that would have been necessary to send them searching for him, and she knew how painful the loss of a loved one was all too well.
Shaking herself from her grim thoughts, Ariel wrung her hair out and pulled it back into its usual pony tail and tied it up with a leather strap, the tie almost invisible as it blended in with her hair. "Now isn't the time to indulge in self pity. We have a mission to accomplish." She chided herself silenty as she pulled one of her daggers from its leather sheathe, examining the edge for signs of dullness.

Black was probably not the best of colors, but it helped that there was so little of it as Kaeci had already dumped his coat and armor back in the tent, leaving him in little more than short shorts, a tanktop and sandals along with the collar section of armor. It was probably outwardly unnecessary, but he lived his entire life with one and felt weirdly naked without it. Compulsion had driven him to help Alm with assisting with prep for that night's meal. The beastman hadn't spoken much since they joined, just enough to acknowledge the oaths (since even mercenaries had honor, or these ones did, at least) and accept the orders. To be honest, he was greatly enthused by the mission being out to the middle of nowhere, a paranoid person that he was, fearing that he may be being followed. Still, the carousing alongside the desert's rippling mirror brought out a bit of him, especially with talk of their target being already dead.
Not wanting to contribute to the speculation, he delighted in a reason not to engage until seeing how his associate beside him reacted to such grim gambling. "S..." Kaeci started with his thick accent, his first attempts at words in the last week, "Sehr Elm...I pray zeht zehy are all safe."
His words were soft and concise with a wave of knowing worry, genuinely hoping things went well, a tone kept low in the hopes Oliva wouldn't hear him. The woman with her attitude and intimidating black armor scared him enough when they first met that, aside from formal introductions, he merely followed orders given with a nod. In all honesty, he felt a bit out of place with the stronger personalities even going about joining in on the bet before being barked down by Oliva with her sensibilities.

Between all of the talk of death and his recent courage to talk, Kaeci was spurred on to say more, still getting used to the idea of speaking freely. "A-and I vould be villink to place fifty ouf Soverns on zee hope zehy are blessed vith good fortune!" they added in an announcement to the rest, not wholly possessing a grasp on the concept of money but willing to at least rest his earned coin on the side of optimism. Their ears folded back as they shrunk down to continue their work on slicing produce. He wanted to make a joke about 'soldiers of fortune' and the irony of them finding the expedition group being a technicality that fed into the bet, but Kaeci had the draw to silence out of his self-perceived outburst. So much noise...

Stephan scoffed at Iroryn's bet. "They are a month late, running out of supplies is to easy a call to make. Keep your coin Knife Ear." he was able to get out before Oliva snapped at him. "Righto Boss Lady, Just remember that whole "respect the dead" thing when your telling me to search his corpse later on." he shot back before taking another bite of his apple. When Ariel started to speak up Stephan started to perk up then slouched back, "If you're not going to put your coin where your mouth is then I really don't care for your opinion." He said before starting to mumble to himself. "Stupid B Team... No fun at all... At least Gwen would of humored me with a bet..."

Alm had continued to prep dinner with Kaeciel the Beastman was small and seemed frail to the look. Although Alm knew he was tough from what he had head from Jing. And this frailness seemed to show even more when he spoke. "Sehr Elm...I pray zeht zehy are all safe." Alm smiled at Kaeciel, "I do too. But in our line of work, things don't always go the nice way. I wouldn't get your hopes up on finding them in a good situation even if they are still alive." He cautioned the young Beastmen. Alm liked Kaeciel he was a good kid and with him being a beastman Alm felt a bit more at ease, maybe this kid could relate to his animistic instincts that were awakened all that time ago during that ritual.

But the next thing Kaeciel said truly started a bit of a commotion "Thats what I like to hear!" Stephan said jumping up with a clap. "Looks like the Demi-Human has more balls then the rest of you combined!" he continued walking over to Kaeciel with a grin. "Alright Bud lets sign up this little contra..." He started before Alm stepped in between the two. "Stand down Stephan, you know as well as I do it's a rigged bet and the kid doesn't know what a bet really is." Stephan stopped looking annoyed now. "Ohh look who it is. The little pup is given some power by daddy and thinks he can play with the big boys. Let the Demi-Human do what he wants with his Soverns, its not like your his father or anything he is a big boy." Stephan Edged on Alm while slowly moving one hand to his belt. "I said STAND DOWN," Alm replied while licking one of his canine teeth and his left eye started to shine bright blue. "Fine, Fine I give." Stephan finally said while throwing up his hands after a tense few seconds. he turned and went to return to his hammock "Remember to control yourself Alm... Or else you aren't any better than a demi-human yourself." He warned under his breath low enough that the others would not of head but Alm was able to pick it up clearly.

After Stephan backed down Alm let out a breath his fist un-clenched and his eye returned to normal. After taking a moment to recompose himself he turned to Kaeciel, "Be careful around Stephan, and never take one of his bets." Alm said before returning to his meal prep.

”Oh I am so terribly sorry Your Grace!” Iroryn replied to Olivia with a mischievous gleam in her golden eyes. ”It won’t happen again, Your Grace.” She added, going into an overly dramatic bow for good measure. Her good mood frosted over the moment she heard Stephan call her a ‘knife ear’ however.

Standing from her bow, she gave Olivia a more polite, but short, nod as she watched as there was a minor ‘altercation’ between Stephen and Alm. Words were exchanged and tensions edged up for a moment before Stephan backed down and Alm turned his attention to young Kaeciel. Once Stephan had returned to his hammock, she headed towards him.

Shoulders loose, eyes up. She heard her father’s voice in the back of her mind. When in doubt assume they’re hostile and think accordingly. She still held her blade, but that might be taken as a greater provocation than she wanted right now, so she let it drop; the blade tip sinking in just deep enough to keep the sword upright.

”Stephan!” She called out with a smile that never reached her eyes. She looked totally relaxed as she got close, like nothing had gone one. ”Just a moment.” She was beside his hammock and lent over, dropping her voice to keep her words between them. ”Call me a fucking ‘knife-ear’ again and you’ll shit out your own teeth.” There was no anger in her voice, just a flat matter-of-fact delivery. With that, she smile once more before moving off to reclaim her sword, and retiring to where she’d shed her gear.

Ariel rolled her eyes at Stephan's words, beginning to inspect her other blade. It wasn't the first time she had run into a prick like him, and it was, depressingly, unlikely to be the last. In truth, she wanted nothing more but to send one of the throwing knives attached to her legs flying towards him, but she had seen the way he moved, and had deduced that her knife would likely not reach its target. Besides, even if it did, he'd just be more weight to carry back to Honimora, and she doubted either Olivia or Jing would be pleased about the incident. So, for now at least, she'd just have to put up with him.

Hearing his knife ears comment, she shook her head in disbelief. Not only was he an ass, he was racist to boot. "This is stupid." She muttered, fantasizing for a moment about shoving both her tanto's down the man's throat. Seemingly appeased by the cheery image, a calm smile appeared on her face as she unbuckled the daggers from her waist and laid down, resting her head against the trunk of a nearby tree. It felt like the temperature had dropped several degrees as soon as she entered the shade of the leaves, and she almost yawned. This was the most relaxed she had felt in weeks, after all the intense training she took upon herself to meet the physical requirements of the Company, as well as the long trek it had taken them to reach the oasis. While she had been in prime shape from her time with Nicholson, endurance had not been a strong point for her. After all, there was no need to run throughout the whole length of Golden Shores when there was plenty of hiding places, tucked away from the guards and angry shop keepers. Or in the case of the four years afterwards, it didn't take much endurance to chase after the children of the noblemen and women she had found temporary employment with as servant.

At the thought of her late mentor and protector, the smile disappeared. "Are you proud of me yet, Nicholson? I got out of the city..." she asked quietly, looking out over the glimmering waters of the pond. A faint smile reappeared on her face as she shook her head. "No, you were never easy to please. And I haven't even accomplished anything yet..."

Olivia eyed the potential altercation from her position even as Iroryn continued her wise-ass routine, ”Oh I am so terribly sorry Your Grace!” Iroryn replied to Olivia with a mischievous gleam in her golden eyes. ”It won’t happen again, Your Grace.” She added, going into an overly dramatic bow for good measure. This time, Olivia didn't bother correcting her. Sometimes, pushing too hard just caused more problems.
"Speaking of problems." Olivia mused as she walked over to Alm and his makeshift kitchen. "Everyone involved in that display is on half rations tonight," Olivia ordered, "If they complain, they don't eat. If they want someone to hate, I'll give them someone." They were out in the desert with no support aside from what they could carry, and orc raiding parties wandering the dunes. She was not about to tolerate in-fighting or even particularly loud arguments. Once they were off the job, they could carouse all they liked.
Concerns regarding orcs aside, Olivia's gut told her that an attack was unlikely so she stepped away from Alm and began the involved process of removing her armor, though she left the padding underneath it on. It would save some time in the morning, besides she couldn't bring herself to completely relax until the mission was finished.
That said, Olivia hadn't been able to really relax ever since the day she left her lord's service. Watching her childhood be slaughtered and having the lord she had served faithfully betray her and all his retainers had shaken her deeply. Oddly enough, learning that her loyalty had meant so little led to her retreating further behind duty and discipline, as if to reassure herself that her values had merit and that her upbringing had not been a waste.

Shouting! Sudden shouting of the vagrant, Stephan, jolted the beastman's ears back up to attention. "Ah-I..." they tried to start, immediately overwhelmed by the man's approach, causing them to drop the vegetables on the table as they took a few steps back. His words were confusing before it suddenly sank in that Stephan was attempting to insult him, causing a tiny sting to rise on his cheeks as the comments hit their mark. Kaeci struggled to stay composed, not entirely used to or expecting being mocked for things he could not help. Their eyes went to Stephan's hands reaching to his belt, to his blade, the words dying out as his legs wobbled and he stumbled over his own appendages. Kaeci tumbled onto the mat that had been laid out under the established shading awning, scrambling quickly to his feet and hiding behind Alm as they stepped between the two, still clutching the knife.

The beastman hadn't even noticed how his hands held onto Alm's attire until they turned to face him. With the grip broken, Kaeci took a step back as not to give the impression that he was pressuring the man with his reliance. Being spoken to so forwardly by Alm made the beastman freeze while they were cautioned about Stephan's demeanor.
"Ye-" Kaeci began, his eyes quickly looking down, away from Alm's before continuing, "-Yes..."
A palpable moment filled the gap as Kaeci was unsure what to say; his beaten-in intuition screamed at him to call Alm 'Master' or 'Sir' or anything, but that was a different time that would be grossly inappropriate to dredge back up. He felt the direction and the faint scolding behind the words of caution and understood them, wholly.
Stephan was not his friend. Stephan doesn't have friends. Stephan is alone in his own world for good reason.
The thought made Kaeci tremble a little bit as he approached the table once more to continue his work on dinner, eyes locked on the man walking away. This is not how it should be, and he only hoped that he hadn't caused a scene for the rest of his associates.
Unfortunately, this worry became reality as Olivia then approached to order Alm to cut rations. 'Everyone involved', in Kaeci's mind included himself and he did his best not to show a reaction to the unfairness of the situation by occupying his hands and eyes with the work. "I-I apologize for my instigation, Ma'am," he began, feeling it was worth expressing his take on the sudden bout, "Vee should not be bettink on such tactless uncertainties. Iz immoral."

@Athol

This was Eris' first mission in quite a while, but she couldn't say it didn't bother her. The objective seemed like a pointless one, a missing party for such a long period in the desert was almost certainly dead. And they probably deserved it, the only spot of trouble they'd had was with orcish weaklings, so if they perished to those, then they almost certainly shouldn't have been out here. On top of this, there were few things in the world Eris hated in this world more than the heat, and the walking distance greatly bothered her. She was thankful that they'd stopped at the oasis, but it still didn't change her discontent with the climate and the shifting sands beneath her feet. It made for quite the uncomfortable walk.

One thing did make it better though. An ice cold water skin, given to her by a tall, elven looking woman. She was thankful, and smiled her way as she was handed it, before taking a drink. It helped keep the heat off her, a gift. That girl had a useful talent, she'd have to ask her how she did the spell to get the water cold. Perhaps it'd be useful for her future endeavours.

That's when things got interesting. Eris didn't usually have a penchant for drama, but she was amused how easily worked up this company got over coin. 50 soverns was next to nothing for her back at home, so seeing fights started over it made her smile. She decided she'd observe for this one rather than get involved. She found the demi's poor language ability and enthusiam somewhat cute though. In some way, he reminded her of one of her servants cats. She changed her gaze back to Stephan, or "Sneaky" as she called him. He didn't like non-humans very much, but that was something minor to note. The clash between him and Alm almost escalated but the tension was cut by Sneaky backing off. Their rations were halved for the foolish display, and Eris was glad that she had only been an observer. The portions they'd been having weren't enough for a growing girl like her, for it to be halved would be a nightmare for her. She took another swig of her water and wiped her brow, thankful she wasn't an idiot like the demi or Sneaky or alm.

Something had dawned on her now that she was comfortable. She was bored. Deciding to remedy this, Eris decided to get up and find someone interesting to talk to, given as she wasn't carrying a book to this wasteland. Some people flickered through her mind, but she remembered the tall elf girl who made her water cold. That'd be a good start. After a small walk, she found her picking up her sword from the sand and the rest of gear. Eris tilted her head in confusion before walking up to her, the first thing crossing her mind as she strained her neck trying to look at the girls face.

She's massive

Figuring no conversation got started without someone initiating it, Eris figured she may as well take the lead on this one.

"Tall one, how did you make my drink cold?" She spoke with curiosity filling her tone as she looked up at her.

Stupid, bigoted ass-hat… She thought grumpily. In one way she was surprised a comment like that still got to her, it’s not like she didn’t hear it on a regular basis or anything, maybe it was just that she thought being out here in the desert would let her get away from that kind of shit; on the other hand she was proud of herself for not simply decking Stephan, or blasting him with ice, maybe she was maturing as she got older. Laughing softly to herself as she lent against her gear with her eyes closed, she yawned and considered having a nap while she waited.

That idea, however, was interrupted as she felt someone approach. A young female voice asked her how she’d cooled the water skins, and Iroryn opened her eyes to find herself looking up at Eris. ”You’re Eris right?” She asked, sitting up a bit and indicating that the girl should sit, should she feel so inclined. ”Iroryn, or Ryn if you prefer. Cooling the skins was it? That’s easy, just a simple application of the ‘Ice Storm’ spell, I used the Stone in the hilt as a focus for better control, didn’t want to damage anything after all.”

From her seated position, Iroryn studied Eris unabashedly; Between her paleness, small size and choice of clothes she would have looked more at home in some noble mansion, probably with little outside contact, than she did out in the desert. She must have some sort of personal connection to Jing; from what I’ve seen or heard about the man I doubt he’d let any random kid sign-up just ‘cause.

"Fine, Fine I hear you loud and clear. Iroryn it is then" Stephan said back knowing all to well that he wasn't in any position to defend himself if he decided to push this further. Then came Olivia's mandate. Stephan almost tried to call her bluff and argue, but he had caused enough trouble for the night and wasn't going to completely disrespect the "B Team's" Leader in front of her squad.

Alm on the other hand disagreed entirely with the idea. He knew she was trying to establish order and her standards but this was no time to be making people go hungry on a whim. So using the ingredients he had already prepared he tweaked the serving sizes so that those who were unaffiliated to the fight had larger than normal rations and those receiving punishment were only taken down by a third of ration size. He knew this wouldn't go unnoticed but didn't much care as long as everyone made it out of this trip safe. After meal prep was done Alm took his bowl and went off to relive Shion of guard duty.

It was quiet while Alm ate watching the desert as the sun disappeared. A quiet that was interrupted not to much later. "What you did with the rations won't go unpunished you know" Stephan said as he walked up, "But thanks for that. Miss Bitch sure has a way to make friends." He continued while sitting down next to Alm. "She sure does, but we didn't make that easy on her. Should of just let it go." Alm replied while taking another bite. "Nahh, Boss Man told us to test her and if she can't deal with the two of us bickering then how could she handle it if people got into a real fight." Stephan answered with a grin, "Nice job there went all beast mode and everything I almost believed it for a second." "You should of, I wasn't joking back off on the kid you know he doesn't know how the outside world works he has been nothing but a slave his entire life. let him get used to the outside world before scamming him." Alm said without missing a beat. "Ok I'll leave the Demi alone then. For now.... Now back to Miss Bitch. She is far to militaristic for this realm of work. I'm sure she has experience in those little Noble's wars where everyone has to follow the rules. But out here there are no rules. keeping your people hungry is an easy way to get someone killed in an ambush or night raid. You want to bring that up to her tomorrow since your the Vice-Captain and all that." Stephan asked and Alm sighed. "Yeah I'll bring it up to her after things have settled down. And speaking of pushing people, you should head back and get some rest don't you have the late watch shift?" Stephan let out his own sigh. "You are right about that. I'll leave you to this then. Watch yourself wolf boy." He said as he got up and wandered back to camp. The next few hours were quiet Alm took patrols around the camp looking for anything out of the ordinary.

It was almost Midnight when it came Alm caught their sent jest before he could hear the shuffling of the sand in the distance. In an instant he was up and sprinting back to camp. "Orcs!" he yelled out as he got close enough for others to hear, "Everyone get up its time to work!". Thanks to Alm's heightened scenes the Irregulars were able to prepare themselves before the orcs were upon them. And after taking up a basic formation. (Olivia and Alm making up front line, Stephan, Kaeciel, Ariel, and Iroryn making the mid line, and Shion, Glyndan, and Eris for the back line) With everyone in position and the Orcs moving into position Alm gave the signal and Shion let loose an arrow into the sky. The arrow exploded in the sky lighting up the desert revealing the oncoming Orcs. 15 in total Five shielded warriors, Three with some sort of two handed weapon, Two with only a one hand weapon, Three with a bow, one Shaman, and A black Orc presumably the leader.

The Flare kind of caught the Orcs off guard giving everyone that last bit of time to prepare before the battle started. The Irregulars stood ready for their leader's order to engage the enemy.

After his attempt at an apology to the woman who issued the orders, Kaeciel lowered his head back to his work with a well practiced expression of indifference. He'd rather not even hint to what problems he had with the call in fear of Olivia coming down on him harder for even so much as a hint of a frown. Order felt hollow without understanding, just a sweeping declaration that those involved have their food in the field, all dangers considered, be cut. Doing the math in his head, Kaeci reasoned out that this would include essentially everyone in the camp save for a small handful.
The young madam Eris worried him slightly, seeming more akin to the heirs that would frequent the estate through attempts at politically/diplomatically-charged arranged marriage rather than a mercenary. Her presence was truly strange, though it helped Kaeci feel less out of place, at least in the age department. A growing master would need all the food they could get, and she was wise to pick her battles.
Lady Ariel had actually surprised the demi for having not gotten involved as the way she carried herself hinted to a pent-up tension of sorts...or perhaps a shadow of it. She was difficult to read and often distant in a somewhat forlorn manner. Kaeci was hardly one to pry, however, and understood how actions could speak louder than words.

A faint cynicism danced in Kaeciel's mind, tangling with confusion about how Olivia's words applied to herself. Was she not also involved? The situation seemed just about solved through Alm's heroics, but the young bunny would fan himself over the gesture later, as he assumed Olivia had spoken with herself as an exception in spite of her assertion and interjection. 'So...power lets one tell others what to do...without following the context of their own rules?' he darkly thought before shaking his head of the meek simmering of confused contempt. The woman was this group's keeper and the rules were, in all reality, very simple.
He was just thinking of freedom wrong. It was hardly the first time he'd be wrong, and he felt thankful that there was at least something to eat.

Resolved to bear the burden of error, Kaeci frowned once she was no longer looking, an opportunity his associate apparently took advantage of to continue work in spite of the quota being met. Frozen with indecision, he swallowed hard, eyes darting between the woman and Alm while his own hands hovered, unsure if he was expected to continue working now that the task should have been complete.
"S-Sehr Alm?" Kaeci whispered, doing his best to look busy in the hopes of masking Alm's efforts, "I szink zeht vee haf enough." Alm had looked up from his work only long enough to comment for the demihuman to not worry about it, a statement that made their ears fold back as they insisted, "I do vorry, iz vhy-" being cut off as the man repeated himself, this time more sternly and with a sideglance to imply Kaeci's concern was not enough to stop him.
With that, Kaeci relented and went about quietly cleaning cooking utensils until Alm was satisfied with his work and absconded with one of the defiantly reproportioned bowls. Finishing the cleaning, Kaeci swiftly took to knocking a bit of the contents of one of the bowls into a few that were to remain untouched until being left with roughly a half ration which he took. He simply wanted to avoid conflict, especially from Olivia being spooky and intimidating. At the very least, he did not want to be a part of it.
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The food was...there. It was hardly a culinary feat, but Kaeciel would have preferred there had been more of it, regardless. Trudging through the desert and making camp was tiring work, and he'd taken advantage of the first opportunity he could get to collapse in his tent after getting cozy for the cold desert night. The climate was a wonder, having not expected somewhere so hot to turn around and become so cold, though it was all the more reason to make use to the blankets and his coat. His tent was packed like a nest as he got in perhaps five oddly restful hours of sleep before an ear perked out of the mess. Groggily, he was still only vaguely sure what an orc even was, but if it was something worth yelling about, than it was something worth getting kitted over, even before the order to get ready for work only hastening his pace.

Maybe a minute later and Kaeci stormed out of his tent, sliding a box of bolts into the top of his crossbow before tucking his scarf into the nearly tattered coat. Rubbing the weight of sleep from his eyes, he bounded over to Alm. His hair was a bit of a mess, but it was hardly a detail to consider as the distant shapes moving through the shadows of the dunes spelled out the situation. "Zeht iz...verk?" he asked before racking the lever and priming the string of his armament mere moments before the flare burst. The orcs, quickly realizing the jig was up, charged, giving Kaeci his answer. He took a deep breath, sighing out a few muffled words behind his scarf before proceeding to angle his weapon up and unload the first box into an arch loosely aimed in an area in front of the congregation.
Of the seven bolts that came cascading down on the group, many missed, though an effective handful somehow found their mark. Hearing the sound, one orc looked up just in time to have their head snapped back by a bolt piercing their skull through the eye-socket, causing them to limply tumble to the ground and briefly stumble their comrade behind them. Two others flinched, somewhat losing a few steps of pace as a bolt struck downwards into their hip and the third briefly paused to yank the spent ammunition out of their shoulder.

Kaeciel, however, hadn't been paying attention, already going through the motions of ejecting the now empty box and reaching into his coat to draw a fresh one and slide it into place. It took a few seconds longer than it probably should have as it was clear he did not have much practice reloading under pressure.

She’d always been alight sleeper, so when Alm’s cry on ‘Orcs!’ reached her, her eye snapped open and she scrambled to her feet. It hadn’t been the most restful sleep, but that was because she’d slept in her armour; a prudent thing to do if possible when in lands as hostile as the desert. As Shion’s Flare lit the night she took stock of their attackers and grimaced slightly, two to one odds wasn’t that bad, but still not fantastic. Her attention was focused on the archers and the mage; up close any orc was extremely dangerous, but most favoured raw power over skill, so keeping out of their way wasn’t too hard…so long as one could avoid getting blindsided by and arrow or a spell.

Leaving her sword sheathed for the moment, she pulled her grimoire and flicked it open, her thumb finding the right page with ease. Most mages needed finding spells woven into their grimores to save from hunting for the right page during heated moments; Iroryn had simply transcribed them enough times to have everything in one place. Book in one hand, she raised the other sharply as wisps of cold air gathered at her palm while her lips moved silently as she recited the spell; moments later a four inch long, razor sharp, piece of ice shot out towards the orcish archers. Two of them were paying attention, and as the light erupted, they were nocking arrows as they kept their eyes on the party so when her spell launched they saw it coming and moved; the third wasn’t so smart. Distracted by the light, he was still staring at the sky when the shard buried itself into his chest. The orc made a surprised grunt before collapsing like a puppet that’d had it’s strings cut.

She heard an unfamiliar sound and turned slightly to see Kaeciel firing that repeating crossbow of his out of the corner of her eye. Moments later the arrows came down, killing one and wounding two more. Smiling at that, she traded her grimorie for her blade and moved forward to support Lady Olivia and Alm as the orcs closed. Focusing on her blade, she let loose with a Tempest slash; though the orcs were still too far out to be affected by the cold blast, it had the side-affect of throwing a bunch of sand and dust up in their faces as they rushed the Irregulars.

After awakening to the sound of Alm calling out about Orcs. He made his way to the back line. A wand in each hand. He didn't like having his sleep interrupted. He slowly shook his head as he walked up next to Kaeciel. He lifted his right hand and pointed his wand at the oncoming horde. "incrementum spinam." He said flatly, as he waved his wand. Drawing a line between the horde, and the front line. A row of thorn bushes sprung up out of the sand, in a line between the front line attackers, and the horde of Orcs. It would slow them down, allowing the front line attackers to further prepare for the onslaught. Glyndan sighed and holstered both wands on his hips. "It is too late for this," Glyndan said as his book appeared in his hands. He let go of the book, as it fluttered to a page. He stuck his arms out to either side. As orange energy formed a line behind his arms. The Eldritch weave forming into a spell. His right hand came up over, and his left hand under. To meet with his hands in the middle. Palm to palm. Index fingers extended. He let out a deep sigh. The orange energy line had spun, creating a large circle. He shot both arms upward, and the circle on energy shot upwards. This was to help the party. As anyone is aware, fighting while facing the sun is harder, than fighting with the sun on your back. His fingers formed a triangle above his head, before twisting into various other shapes. With each careful movement of his fingers, the circle grew brighter and brighter. Illuminating the battlefield, casting light onto the Orcs, and their eyes. Besides, at the very least, it would blatantly mark him as a spellcaster, prompting the Orc's ranged forces on him, instead of the ground troops.

At the sound of the call, Ariel jerked out of her tent, daggers already strapped to her sides. "I hope these orcs aren't pushovers like the last group." She grunted, a hard smile appearing on her face. She would have preferred to have gotten more sleep, but alas, orcs were never the courteous type. She rushed over to the line, almost tripping as she pulled her boots on. She took her place in the formation, standing next to Stephan as her daggers left their leather holders. Ariel took up an almost crouching stance, her left blade resting in front of her chest, its blade pointed outwards. The other one was held at the ready at her side, ready to either parry or go for a surprise strike.

"I'm not going to lie. I don't like you." She said testily to Stephan as Kaeciels' bolts flung forward from his crossbow. "But I hope you're a better fighter than you are a speaker." Her mismatched eyes focused on the oncoming orc attack party. And blinked as the sudden artificial sun from Glyndan illuminated the battlefield, as well as the thorn bushes he had created. Now that the ranged and mages among the orcs were hopefully drawn to him and Iroryn's magic, she could focus on the melee without worrying about an arrow embedding itself in her. Not that she had planned on making herself easy to hit. She'd had enough experience running and fighting in city markets that dodging a bunch of bumbling orcs shouldn't be an issue for her, especially ones already handicapped by Iroryn and Glyndan. Or so she hoped. She didn't fancy her chances if she got surrounded, and she had always had some difficulty with singular two handed weapon wielders.

She focused on the shielded warriors, narrowing her eyes as she turned her thoughts away from the pointless hand wringing she had been doing in her head. They'd be nearly impossible for Kaeciel to take out with his bolts as long as they had half a brain. "But there isn't much they can do about a knife in the back of their throat." She reasoned to herself. And no amount of armor could protect them from the white heat she could engulf her blades in, capable of melting through steel like butter.

Eris listened intently to Ryn. She'd done the liberty of giving herself a nickname so Eris didn't have to think, something she was greatful for given the heat. The method was simple and useful, a weak ice spell heavily controlled by a gemstone. She didn't give the vibe or the magical exertion of a full mage, yet she still was able to muster such precise control. She'd have to keep an eye on the tall one.

After the explanation, they were called for meal time. Eris didn't realize how hungry she was and not wanting to waste time before her meal, she decided to wrap up the conversation

"Interesting. But we'll have to finish this conversation another time, since I'm quite hungry. Perhaps you can give me a demonstration next time we talk, Ryn."

After a brief stroll, she waited around the kitchen and was handed her bowl of food by another mercenary. It wasn't anything special, but her portion size was larger than she'd been expecting. She added two and two together, and realized that he'd increased all the portions so that the halved rations were not as severe. This had also benefited her. She'd thank the wolf boy for this later, though she took to eating the rest of her food first.

After her appetite was sated however, all she wanted to do was sleep. Her body was heavy and she found little comfort in the idea of not being well rested for their journey tomorrow. She decided to retire to her tent and curl up into a ball wrapped in furs and blankets. She slept soundly, until there were calls for her to wake up as they were under attack. She ignored them for a minute before she came to her senses and realized she had to get ready. She rushed to put her clothes on and grabbed her grimoire before walking outside and standing behind her allies, looking at their numbers. Part of Eris couldn't be bothered to fight more orcs and wanted to go back to sleep, and part of Eris was pissed. How dare they wake her up? She needed 8 hours a day, at least that's what her grandmother said. She'd wrap this up quickly and go get her sleep. She looked for the strongest one, and she figured the fanciest dressed with a magical aura to them was probably it. Using split before moving forward to a more suitable location, she figured this was going to be a good testing ground for some of her newer spells. She began running two puppet strings on the ground, slowly inching towards the shaman who was also moving toward her. They'd connect before too long if both parties kept pace.

This was when the others got to work. The demi fired his crossbow and hit a couple of the stupid ones, Ryn had fired ice shards at the archers and kept them busy. The image she had of her made it seem strange in her mind that she'd use a grimoire however. Another elven mage began casting his spells, and he made something of a makeshift sun. This was both good news, and bad news for her. The good was that she had more direct shadows to work with from the source of light, the bad news was that it made some of her attacks weaker. She ignored him and shifted her gaze once more to the dagger girl, but she wasn't doing much. How dull

Her chain of thought was interrupted when she felt the strings connect. They were wrapped around the shamans feet, and she let out a devilish grin. She decided she'd release some of that anger she'd been holding in. She waved her arm through the air, sending a ruinblade straight through the shamans left hand. He tried to dodge but to no avail thanks to the strings. The hand was dismembered. She waved again, this time at his right arm. He roared in pain, but there wasn't enough strength to carve it clean off. He was left with a deep cut instead

Bad aim, but still not strong enough. Seems like it needs more power before it's practical. she thought to herself, as she figured she'd finish up the testing. A final blade was sent for his neck. Her aim was better this time, and there was a clean decapitation. She let out a yawn, figuring that if that was their strongest member, then the rest of the irregulars would have naught to worry about.

"I got their mage, but I'm going back to the rear" she spoke to the frontline as she re-used split and found herself back on the rear guard. She didn't want to be in range of their assault, as even weakling orcs could hurt or kill her if they got a clean hit in. On top of this, she was very tired and didn't really feel like fighting anymore. That was when she saw fur. The demi from earlier. He was trying his best to reload his crossbow, but she was too tired to care and he looked really soft, so she walked to his side and sat down next to him. She figured she'd just rest her head on his fur, and relax for a bit. It was soft, and warm. She laid her head on Kaeci's side and closed her eyes, using him as a makeshift headrest as she sat on the sand. This was almost more comfortable than her tent.

"Wake me up if you're in trouble. I'll protect you for being so fluffy." Eris muttered, half asleep and groggy to Kaeci as she shifted her head slightly and began to doze off, even through the noise of the fighting.

As soon as the Orc's suprise of the flairs wore off their front line began to charge. In this time Kaeciel's attack went largely unnoticed allowing it to kill one of the shielded orcs, as well as injure one of the two handed orcs and one of the archers. before the Archers could react and send off their own shots another took an icicle to the chest dropping instantly. While the injured one also received an arrow to its throat sent off by Shion.

Next came the artificial sun from Glyndan and his trip vines. this combination slowed down the orcs even more But this break in the charge is exactly what the Orc Shaman needed. His own grimoire fluttered open as it chanted something in Orcish. A green fog seemed to poor out of the book quickly enveloping the Orc lines as the Orcs breathed in the gas their movements changed. It was almost as if they grew becoming stronger and faster. The Orc grinned at his work.

"I'm not going to lie. I don't like you. But I hope you're a better fighter than you are a speaker." Ariel had called out to Stephan who just grinned. "My job is to make sure you all come out of this alive, not make friends." He said back as he seemed to disappear from sight sliding into the shadows. Now the Shaman's staff began to glow as it started to cast another spell. this spell was cut shot though as Eris and her magic snuffed the shaman out with little issue.

With their numbers dwindling the strengthened orcs pushed forward. The final Archer let loose an arrow aimed at Glyndan thinking picking the mage as a prime target. It was now that Alm and Olivia wold meet their front lines. Olivia was able to pull in three of the shielded Orcs and gain their attention stopping their advance while Alm pulled in some more of their front line. The first to reach him was a Orc with a two handed sword. Its Sword came down hard, but Alm almost seemed to dance out of the way of its blade. With one fluid spinning motion Alm was able to dodge the blade and strike back bringing a diagonal slash from the Orc's waist to its shoulder nearly cleaving the orc in two. A second orc charged this one with a club. But it was stopped dead in its tracks as Alm just tilted his head allowing one of Shion's arrows to fly past and strike the orc between the eyes.

The third Orc to approach Alm was a Axe and Shield orc and although it approached a bit more cautiously Alm still was able to make a counter strike when the Orc finally came forward lobbing the creature's head while once again twirling out of the striking arc of the orc. Finally he stepped up the Black Orc made its way toward Alm. Alm smiled, "Guess warm up is over. Time to get serious." He said while readying himself dropping into a proper fighting stance. And now with the front line tied up the remaining Orcs rushed past to attack the second line of Irregulars. An Orc with a Sword scoped up the club of its fallen comrade and charged at Iroryn while one with a two handed maul made its way at Kaeciel and the final Orc with a two handed Axe making its way for Shion.

(current enemy force)
1 Armored Black orc - Engaged with Alm
3 Shielded Orcs - Engaged with Oliva @Nerdy Reference
1 two weapon orc - Charging at Iroryn @Athol
1 Axe orc - Charging Shion
1 Maul Orc- Charging Kaeciel @Milim@Lumiere
1 Archer Shooting at Glyndan @Sanity43217

Selovia

Orcs? Selvoia spread open the tent, barely suppressing a yawn as she does so. To meet those orcs at the night, but that was not out of expectations. Hastily, she moved herself towards the field, putting on the brown coat over the chilly desert. Nevertheless, that’s part of the job as a mercenary. She’d wished to have fought at a brighter, and of course a warmer place. Gathering herself along the mercenary band, Selovia positioned herself along the lines, pulling out her spear as she brandishes the cold iron grip with her two hands. Selovia was prepared to cast her magic at any moment, even though she isn’t well versed in fighting with that kind of thing, but it might come to use sometimes.

Following the first onslaught of attacks, each of the Bloodrose irregulars has been occupied in their battles.

Selovia decided to assist Olivia on the 3 shielded orcs. Putting herself in front of the one of the three orcs, Selovia lowered the stance of her spear, the spear slightly pointed downwards. As one of the shielded orcs enters into the reach of the spear, Selovia with one twist of her wrist, sended an upwards thrust towards the orc. That thrust was for two purposes. To disarm the orc’s shield, and even its weapon from below. And to pierce that orc’s neck, the neck is a very good spot to receive the full blow of the spear.