---

Piper discovers a stone archway and beyond it, a green chamber lit by sunlight. It seemed hidden away. How easy was it for the others to overlook such a space and never question its existence? If she ventured further within, she would find pillars covered in vines, shrubs, trees, and a great hole leading to a shallow pool at the bottom. The chuff of a horse could have been heard, and if the sound was followed, she would come across a seated woman in a white gown. At her feet was a child with odd horns protruding from his skull.

---

Teams were generated using the decider machine.

Team One: Piper and Mr. President.

Team Two: Bentley, Delsin Rowe, and Tiz.

Team Leader names are in bold.

GM Note: XP has started. You are to keep track of your word count from here on. Remember, Alpha Academy uses a different XP system than PXO, the main game. So reference the OP/OOC of this game. Not PXO.

After retrieving his gold with a quiet thank you, the Mega Man turned to wait for the rest of his squad to catch up, appraising the area around them. Above the parapets, he could see some kind of flier soaring above, launching...something at the troops on the ground, who seemed to be engaged with both the flyers and "The hell are those things on the beaches?" The young man simply couldn't tell from that distance, and as he moved to find out, a passing midget-like man carrying a rifle stopped him.

"Hold on there, lad. Those undead Nerubians aren't somethin' to go an' gawk at from any distance, not with their flyin' pets above us." Vent glanced at the man and opened his mouth before the man continued. "Och, but where are me manners? Names Flint, Dwarven Ranger. You one of those that came with the Death Knight I saw headin' into the keep? Ye look a wee bit, well, scrawny, if ya are." For just the briefest moment, Vent could feel a flash of his old temper flare up at the mention of his obvious physical ability but he managed to tamp it down before he made a mistake.

"Well, I'm not sure what a Death Knight is, but I did come with a Darion Mograine, as did my team," he points over the dwarf's shoulder, "there. We're the help he brought back from Platform City." The dwarf glanced at the team and then back at Vent before nodding.

"Well, if the Death Knight, something you'll find out the meaning of soon enough, thinks you're good enough, tis good enough for me. Although ya might want ta pick up a weapon while you're here, those fists won't do much more than aggravate those Nerubians. Follow me to th' black smith where we ca' get you a proper weapon, lad." Or at least, the dwarf hoped that this was a lad, or he'd be in a world of hurt later. Vent started to object and then paused as he looked out at the beaches where the gunfire continued coming from. Perhaps being prepared wasn't such a bad thing, especially since he might not be able to megamerge right away.

---

The armored individual glanced at the only member of Darion's group to appear to be properly equipped before looking back at the icebreaker, a frown pursing his lips together as he appraises what she had said to see. He stroked his beard in thought before sighing and shaking his head. "Officially, I imagine it's likely just one of the mages retrieving some of their extra materials stored in the hold of the ship. It's part of why it's still docked here, as well as to act as an emergency departure system should the need arise. Unofficially," he steps closer to her and gestures towards a barely noticeably windmill atop a cliff on the other side of the beach, "the nearby town that was giving us a steady supply of supplies has gone silent and strange things are happening in the keep. I have reason to believe the Cult of Damned has something to do with this."

Stepping back as they all retrieve their gold, he gestures. "Feel free to do what you need. The black smith is over there by your friend, along with the armorer. Better winter clothing is available there as well. Our general supplies merchant has healing potions and such as needed. Take a look around the keep as well, this will be your home here on the Borean Tundra after all."



Post Order: Rubick, Cole Phelps, Blue, Constantina, Vent

"That's a viable option, Delsin. Sadly my knowledge of taming wild animals is limited to the process of feeding bad guys to a giant crocodile. And that isn't close to horses, I'm afraid." Bentley answered Delsin, lowering the binocucom and looking up at him, the physical embodiment of a collection of airborne solid and liquid particulates and gases. It was good to have one on the team who were nible, fast, dexterious and several other adjectives, Bentley knew that from having Sly...

Bentley missed Sly.

Bentley's sudden sad thought of where Sly possibly could be was strangely interwoven with Tiz's exclaimation of whishing to meet his original gang. The Gang. Bentley gave Tiz a brief look and a saddened smile, before staring off into the distance, deep in thought. "Me too, Tiz, me too. They're the best, everyone one of them. They're family." Bentley reminisced, but quickly shaking off the sadness that was about to overcome him. They had a job to do, a Mission to Complete! If they failed, it wouldn't matter where Sly was, as the whole world was at risk of ending!

The genius green turtle turned his attention back to the horses they were trying to tame, taking duly note of Tiz's excitement about said majestic beasts. "Great! Now we have someone who can tame them, Tiz." Bentley said while starting to roll further on down the bridge while Tiz gave his opinion on the plan. And he had a good point. "I see. I do not have anything specific that can be used to hinder the horses' movements, but could they be discouraged by smoke?" Bentley asked as if turning the gears in his mind, looking at his team and on his map. "Either that, or we have to act as the barrier if they can be guided to some enclosed rock formation. That might be dangerous though."

Bentley's wheelchair soon came to touch the soft grass and ground of the plain south of the Temple, taking in a deep breath of fresh air as he looked on out. "Mhmmm, nothing beats the wide open landscape and fresh air...no wait, that's pollen. Excuse me." Bentley pulled out a ventilator, breathing it in and out, putting it away again. "All right, Gang, let's get to work! Delsin and I attempt to corral the horses somewhere enclosed. Tiz, you think you can handle them?" Bentley repeated the ad-hoc plan concocted in his mind, pulling out his Shell-computer with the map and his Binocucom, scanning the horizion and map for a place that might fit their needs. If this worked, they would aquire a fine set of transportation.

Piper was in the middle of refueling herself after her climb when the Boss yelled up at her. She’d been leaning against the wall of the walkway she’d found as she did it, but clanked her furnace shut and walked back to the edge when she heard him making a nuisance of himself. At being spotted she got yelled at some more which was fun.

”Oh did ya get tired of sulking and want to help? Good. Well you wanted answers, so that’s exactly what I’m looking for. Looks like there's only a bit more to look into regarding this here temple, so I’ll be done in just a tick. Then I’ll come help with these horse things whatever they are. If I’m not back soon I’ve found something. Or I’m dead. Anyway. See you later Boss.”

She shouted back before turning away and making her way up a short stairway that lead to a stone archway. Inside she found an overgrown secret garden, filled with more types of plants than she had ever seen in her life and heard the sound of something strange living deeper inside. With one hand on her holstered frontier shotty she cautiously went to investigate the sound and the garden, picking her way through the greenery till she came across the gown wearing woman, her child and another horse. She had no idea how the hooved creature had climbed up here.

There was a moment of quiet in the garden as she got over the surprise of meeting someone up here, and the woman presumably go over hers at the appearance of a guest, before she greeted the woman with a friendly ”Howdy” and raised her hand away from her weapon to wave at her once.

”I’m Captain Piper Faraday and I ain’t here to cause you any trouble. I’m with a group investigating the possible origin of something called the mutagen virus in these here forbidden lands and I hope you don’t mind if I ask you a few questions miss...” she said, ending with an attempt at prompting the woman to offer her her name.

"R-right. Well first we gotta figure out where or how we're gonna corral these things."

Delsin rolled his shoulders as he moved a little faster, making headway towards the herd of horses ahead of them. His sneakers dug into the dirt as he got up to a slow jog on the plains, slowly taking in the scenery around him. The large, open plains and rolling breeze blew through his jacket made him smile a little as he raised his hands to the wind and let a few thin ribbons of smoke stream from his fingertips. The open, fresh air was pleasing to him, even though he'd never really been outside of his home city to explore the wilderness, not even at the reservation.

"Well the smoke and fancy light show's gonna be scary and startling for 'em, right? I could always use a bit of smoke to round 'em up, maybe make a smoke ring that shrinks around them? Yeah. Yeah that sounds like a plan."

Without really waiting for anyone else to respond, Delsin started to move forward. He cut a wide circle around the herd of horses, keeping low to the tall grass to obscure himself. He didn't know much about horses but he at least knew that they spooked easily and the plan in his head was heavily reliant on that. As he made a half circle around the herd, guessing that it was between him and Bentley, Delsin made his move. First he stuck two fingers into his mouth and made a loud, shrill whistle to get his team's attention, and then he exploded forwards in a burst of motion and smoke. His entire body erupted into a plume of flaming, sparking smoke as he rushed forward over the grass, trying to scare the herd into moving towards the turtle. As the initial burst of speed abated, Delsin returned to his human form and a loud whoop issued from his lips.

"C'mon horses! Get a move on! Let's go! Whoop whoop!"

A barely visible frown found its way onto Tiz's face when Bentley mentioned not having anything specific to take care of the horses, but it quickly dawned on the boy that he shouldn't expect the turtle to coincidentally have something like that on him for this very moment. Plus, it would feel weird to watch Bentley do something to the horses since they're closer to the word 'animal' then him and Delsin were.
“Smoke should work, just something to keep them from running deeper into the plain, you know?” He soon responded as he messed around with the hem of his tunic idly. “It's better then you guys possibly getting trampled by some horses or worse.” He then muttered as the thought eventually dawned on him that he'd need to tame three horses at the same time. One was already a delicate process, like trying to stick a thread through the head of a needle without a thimble, now he had to worry about two more? The silverish brunette shook his head, immediately eliminating all the nervousness that started to swell up inside of him; it would only make the horses trust him less, they can smell that shit for sure.

As they found themselves walking on the lush earth, Tiz couldn't suppress the grin as the breath of nature invaded his nostrils, taking him to a home away from home. “You got that right, but I love pollen!” The boy hummed, watching the other curiously as he needed to use what looked like an inhaler to open up his lungs before giving the turtle a thumbs up to show he knew the plan. The motion quickly slackened however when the other human of their little party jogged ahead of them. “Hey, wait up Delsin!” Motioning their leader to follow him, Tiz bounded after the other with a small smirk. “Yep, sounds about right. But I have faith you'll figure something out with that smoke.” He smiled, watching the ribbons of smoke leave Delsin's hand and dance gracefully behind them.

At the mention of Delsin's idea, Tiz nodded eagerly, but as he opened his mouth to voice it was a good idea, the former scurried ahead, using the now taller grass as cover. Best not to bother him... not to mention they couldn't be loud in fear of scaring the wild beasts. Crouching as well to avoid making the horses nervous, Tiz remained where he was, waiting for the cue to do his thing.

After what felt like minutes (it was actually just a few seconds), a very pitched whistle startled even Tiz despite knowing who it was. It was time. The silverish brunette bounded forward so that he'd find himself within the makeshift circle of smoke and whatever Bentley had up his sleeve. Once the horses, each of which being black, white, and brown respectively, were close enough to him, Tiz held both of his hands, giving Delsin a quick glance over.

“Okay, no more noises. Only shout out when the horses stop looking at me or try to run away.” Voice barely above a whisper, Tiz slowly approached the wild beasts, calming himself down in hope to make the animals feel the same. “Aw, don't worry, I won't hurt you... come here okay? I won't hurt you. I'll protect you, all three of you...” Tiz whispered like a mantra, only halting his steps if the horses decided to look away from him.

Boss scowled at Piper, nose wrinkling, when she talked down to him like a cat on a fence. There she went. Trying to pull an Azura all by herself. Of course, he wasn’t going to allow her to make the same mistake—he believed the ice sorceress had made. Stepping toward the wall, Boss shouted up at Piper, “Hey! Don’t you walk away from me! Piper! For real? Are you really gonna be like this?”

He listened for a moment before exclaiming, “HEY!”

No answer. The robot had wondered off. Boss raised his head, pinched the corners of his eyes and groaned deeply, “Oh my god; oh my gooo~d…I want to just kill her. Why is she putting me through this?” Releasing his eyes, he continued to moan: “Why is she even on my team?”

He wanted to cry. He faked crying a bit to see if it would create a similar sensation, but it didn’t. He was just stuck with his feelings of great frustration. Sighing deeply, Boss closed his eyes and did his best to force all of the negative energy aside. Rolling his shoulders, he muttered to himself, “All right; come on. Get the monkey off your back. Yeah, we could be roundin’ up horses with the rest of the guys, but she wants to explore evil temples instead. Whatever.”

Boss craned his head up to the ledge he had seen Piper disappear from. She can’t fuck up if I don’t let her go by herself.

He took several steps backwards and away from the temple wall. When he felt that he had found a comfortable distance, Boss crouched, resting his palm flat upon the grass. If she thought I wasn’t comin’ up there, then she’s crazy…I’m just not gonna climb up there. The earth rippled like rings in a pool around his planted hand. Oscillating beneath him, there was a soft whir of charging energy before Boss leapt into the air as though propelled by a spring. He flew a few feet above the ledge and landed on it, frantically waving his arms as a few rocks escaped beneath his feet causing his balance to waver.

“Shit that was close!”

Stepping away from the edge, he gazed through the archway into a cloister of vines and other vegetation. It was like a secret garden. Boss cautiously wandered within, sweeping the place for anything unusual, dangerous, or demonic.

“Piper!” he called. He didn’t have to wander too deeply for he could see her red chassis shining—probably could have seen it a mile away too. She appeared to have found people, and a horse. Aw yes! A horse! Boss approached Piper in his eagerness to hopefully claim the creature. “What do you know? You found a horse all the way up here!”

---

The horses easily became spooked once they saw the three strangers creeping closer. They stopped grazing, raised their heads and stared at group. The Alpha female stepped ahead of the other two. She shook her white mane back and forth, stomped her hoof, and chuffed irritably. When Delsin started to release his smoke, she started to back up. The horses backed into each other, keeping abreast, as they stumbled and moved timidly together. The three eventually turned and attempted to quickly gallop away until Delsin exploded in a burst of fire and smoke. The horses whinnied in fright and turned away from him. They galloped away, appearing capable of running Tiz over, but they instead decided to abruptly stop. Whinning in fear, the horses reared and turned about, seeking an escape opening as Tiz attempted to approach and soothe them.

---

The seated woman had been giving Piper an odd stare before she offered a friendly greeting. In response, the woman quickly reached down and picked up the horned child, cradling him in her arms as she stared at the red machine as though she were a monster there to kill them. Her eyes were wide and even as Piper introduced herself, the woman seemed to start to creep away. With Boss’s approach, she stood and fled behind the rock she had been seated on. She ducked behind it and fearfully asked, “How did you get here?”

She was scared but not too afraid to hold a conversation. Piper had introduced herself after all. The red machine was strange and foreign, but it hadn’t tried to harm her. Neither had the man who approached behind her.

“Argo, come!” she ordered the black stallion.

The stallion ceased grazing and calmly walked around the rock to stand behind the woman. Holding the child in one arm and gripping the horse’s reins protectively in the other, the woman declared, “I won’t let you take him.”

---

Teams were generated using the decider machine.

Team One: Piper and Mr. President.

Team Two: Bentley, Delsin Rowe, and Tiz.

Team Leader names are in bold.

GM Note: XP has started. You are to keep track of your word count from here on. Remember, Alpha Academy uses a different XP system than PXO, the main game. So reference the OP/OOC of this game. Not PXO.

Unfortunately for Piper her attempt and initiating conversation did not quite as smoothly as she had hoped. Rather than responding to her questioning the mysterious woman grabbed her child and stared a her with fear in her eyes. Then the boss showed up, which was bad enough on its own, but it also caused the woman to retreat behind the rock she had been seated on. She did however seem to be at least vaguely interested in talking, if only because she didn’t exactly have any other options. The woman asking her how she had gotten here.

”I Climbed... oh. If you mean how we got to the forbidden land then we were transported here via a portal from Platform City. We’ll be leaving the same way if that’s what your interested in”

In order to avoid seeming threatening Piper made no moves other than glancing back at Boss in a mix of surprise and annoyance that he had somehow managed to get up here so quickly when she had had to make a painstakingly slow climb up here. She was also just a touch annoyed that he was more interested in the horse than the people she’d found.

”Hay Boss” she greeted him begrudgingly, before adding ”Yeah I wasn't expecting to find one up here neither. I ain’t got no Idea how she got the horse up here in the first place. Or how you got up here so fast. Please don’t tell me there's some super convenient stairs, ladders or an elevator that I missed?”

Horse and temple ascension talk was put on the back burner however, as the woman spoke again, saying that she would not let them “take him away” from her. Piper attempted to assure the woman that they meant no harm

”We ain’t here to take your kid miss, nor your horse, seeing as we ain’t kidnappers and there's already a bunch of free horses running around downstairs. Right Boss?” She said calmly, before reiterating ”We only here looking for answers to some questions about this place and the mutagen virus. None of us are here to take your loved ones and if anyone else happens to shows up to do so I’ll shoot them myself.”

Piper had a robin hood esque thing going on (not that she knew who robin hood was, but if she had she would have definitely liked his story) so she wasn’t going to go stealing horses from single mothers. Nor did she like the implication that there were people around who did want to take the horned boy away from his mother, so she was being entirely truthful when she said she’d shoot whatever slavers or scum wanted to take him.

It go unnoticed by Cole that the younger human, or kid for all he knew, perhaps a human-like alien from one of those Wallace Fox movies, stuck tight to him like a lost puppy finally returned to its owner. Now he couldn't fault him for sticking close, this was by far the strangest place the detective had found himself in, and who knew how little Blue and his..blue turtle felt. Now Cole Phelps didn't mind, he felt like an outsider himself, so he put on a smile as he tried not to shiver too much in a suit meant for warm California and not cold Alaska, or Northrend as it was called. "Poke…mon? Is that some sort of newly discovered race of turtles? I must admit I'm no expert in zoology, but never seen a turtle quite like that before." Cole Phelps asked Blue, then giving a nod of agreement to his last part and Constanta the Caesar-like lady', Constantia's assesment of the cold. "Agreed. It's freezing out here, colder than an icebox…" He shivered, going on with the group as they kept on moving forward.

Robed induvidual boarding a boat? Cole turned his head instintively to the side, finally registering what was going on at their side that he had failed to see before. Indeed, it was an odd sight. Cole looked back at Constantia and gave her an approving look. She was doing a good job for someone not in the Force. But it would appear that the boat was not the only eventful sight to behold, as Vent pointed at something happening on the beach. That's when one of those short fellas, calling himself Flint the Dwarven Ranger, stopped Vent from getting to close and giving some explaination. Cole Phelps looked at what was going on there, feeling a dreadful sense of familiarity with the sight. "Those flying things are their "pets"? Geeze, they're getting bombed down there!"

Cole Phelps then listened to Darion explaining what the robed figure in the boat was doing, both the official and unofficial story, the latter catching his most attention. He was no stranger to keeping things under the radar until sorted out, he was a cop in Los Angeles after all! And it sounded like this Cult needed to be dealt with. "What sorts of things have happened in the keep, if you don't mind me asking?" Cole asked Darion quietly, stepping up to him before being informed about the blacksmith and the general supplies merchant. Lots of approaches to investigate, but Phelps knew where to go first. "I'll be seeing the armorer first then. We'll be no good investigating or fighting if we are frozed popstickles. Want to check the armorer out, Blue? Miss Constantia?" Cole stated to the group, looking lastly at Blue and Constantia as they had adressed the issue of the cold. If and when they'd agree to follow him, Cole would start making his way to the armorer, already getting sick of the shivering cold. God, he missed L.A.

And like one said in these sorts of situations, "The game is afoot!" Bentley's right robotic arm extended from the side of his wheelchair, giving Delsin a thumbs up of approval as he elaborated his smoke power's utility in their task. Taming horses certainly wouldn't be an easy task, but as the trio of unlikely comrades raced across the green, open plains, Bentley felt confident that their combined abilities would prevail! To Tiz Bentley extended his left robotic arm in the same thumbs-up gesture. Though not before Delsin had gone ahead and began their operation a little sooner than Bentley would have liked. They didn't even have a name for it yet!

But if there was someone who knew how to adapt a plan, it was Bentley. With Delsin surging forth towards the horses, Bentley looked at Tiz getting into position as well, a smile forming on his turtle face. "Operation Smokey Cowboys is a go!"

Tiz really knew what he was doing, Bentley thought, and Delsin was doing his part as best one could hope. Then it was Bentley, who as less than graceful in the overgrown grass they operated in. But with his two friends getting on the sides of the horses, who at this point were reacting cautiously to them and attempting to find an escape route with Tiz and Delsin blocking their path, Bentley had to act. But with what?

Bentley quickly realized he by no means had the size or strength to hold back the majestic horses, but his brain found another possibility. Bentley extended his robotic arms as wide as he could, effectively having a sizeable barrier between the alpha horses, her two flock members, and their escape. As Bentley rolled his wheelchair closer to the horses, assisting the others in blocking in the horses, both his robotic arms grabbed a sizeable robot-handful of grass and flowers. From the animals he and the Gang had dealt with on their adventures, offering food was far from the worst idea.

Blue stared at Constatina. He was unaccustomed to seeing a woman in armor. Although, she seemed to fit their current setting, and he wondered if she originated in this world. Realizing he was staring, he quickly nodded and replied, “I hope you’re right.”

She also spoke strange. It wasn’t exactly Old English, but it was still odd and he somehow got an idea what she was saying. Something about a strange person who might be dangerous boarding some ship. Even more action, there were flying things firing things at troops. Blue felt confused and was wondering if he had walked into a war. He still had no idea what was going on. With the appearance of the dwarf talking about Death Knights, the Pokemon trainer scratched his blond head. There was so much to take in, and he wasn’t sure he was understanding what was going on. It was as though everyone was speaking a different language.

“I need a weapon? My Pokemon won’t be enough?” Blue asked nervously.

Darion informed them of the different vendors where he encouraged they go spend their gold. Blue already had an idea to buy a fur coat for him and Squirtle to place over the warm clothes they were already wearing. Before wondering off on his own in the foreign land, Blue looked to Cole and Constantina to see what they were interested in first. Cole thought the same as him about getting some warmer gear. He followed Cole and Constantina—if she decided to go. As they headed over to the armorer, Blue shared his worries with them: “I’ve never held a weapon before. I only know how to use Pokemon.”

His brows then rose and a hopeful shine appeared in his eyes as he asked, “Do they sell Pokemon here?”

Delsin watched as Tiz and Bentley went to work immediately after he left them. Small streams of smoke dissipated from his still sparking and smoking form. He didn't know jack shit about horses so he merely watched as his teammates did their thing, hands in the pockets of his jeans as he slowly made his way around the trio of horses that they were taming.

"Huh. Now that we got 'em all calmed down, they don't look so bad."

He followed suit, grabbing a handful of the same grass that Bentley and Tiz had gotten and slowly, carefully approached one of the horses, being sure to let it sniff his hand first, following the lead of the others as the horses calmed down and investigated these strangers.

“Cult of the Damned? What a trite name. Not to worry, unlawful death magic cults are well within my jurisdiction so I’ll see what I can do. I’ll treat the matter with discretion of course.” she responded quietly to the man handing out gold. She did wonder why they weren't doing anything about it, but perhaps it was more rumor or personal suspicion than known element. Or there were politics involved. Or they were and where simply keeping quiet about the matter to avoid distracting the troops from the more pressing matter at hand. Regardless. She’d keep an eye out for these cultists and their foul deeds.

She nodded at the armored man and Cole Phelps’s suggestion of heading to armorer. She already had the finest (mundane) armor Sceleria could produce of course, but could definitely do with a cloak of some kind. Or a cold protection magic item if they had those, rare as that might be. “A wise course of action Mr Phelps. My legs are slowly going numb as we speak.”

While they were on the way there Blue expressed concerns about acquiring weapons and his own lack of weapon experience.

“I don’t know anything about this ‘pokemon’ familiar you have, but it would be wise to have a weapon on you regardless of how strong it is. And armor. Any intelligent foe will go for you rather than your minion if they have the chance.“

She looked him up and down. Fairly young. Not much in the way of muscle but not unfit either. Probably a good runner. He could be made into a decent soldier if they had the time, which sadly they did not

“A spear might be wise, they are easy to use. You just stick them with the pointy end. Not great against skeletons though. Or an ax. Can’t go wrong with an ax. We definitely don't have the time to teach you how to use a sword properly. A shield could be wise if your priority is primarily to survive until someone helps you out. Or some kind of easy to learn ranged weapon like a crossbow if you want to stay quick and dissuade people coming after you.“ she said, mostly thinking out loud.

“Best bet is you try some things once we get there. See if you find something that suits you.“ she suggested at last, clapping Blue on the back reassuringly as they arrived at the Armorer.

Picking a weapon after reaching the blacksmith hadn't been a difficult, it drew his eyes the moment he saw it. It was a simple double-edged long sword and while it's weight wasn't something he was used to, using it more, as he did a few practice swings, would bring him familiarity. Sheathing the weapon on his back, the Mega Man heads back out to look over everything, entirely unaware of the conversation that had just taken place. After spotting a medical tent and a medic looking around urgently for aid, Vent returns to the group at the blacksmith, nodding to the man as he conversed with Flint. "Alright, so I figure we can split into two teams and since everyone seems to have their favorite member of the team," he points at Phelps and Blue, "you two are one team. I want you to head into the keep and speak with this General Arlos. I'm told he's the man in charge and will be able to direct you where to be the most help."

He then turned to Constantina and indicated himself. "You and I will be the other and we're going to take to the field outside. I spotted a medic who looked like she needed help and we're going to give it." He looked around at the group before pulling three ear pieces out of his pocket. "I'm no tech specialist, so I got these before I left home base. They'll let us stay in communication with each other. Hopefully we don't need it right away, but you never know." Handing them out to each of the three, the Mega Man smiles at his team. "So, any questions, comments, or concerns?"

Vent knew that splitting up was a dangerous move in unfamiliar territory, but at the same time, without knowning the lay of the land or where they were even going to be going from here to accomplish their objective, there was little else they could do to complete their mission. Darion hadn't been very informative either, so asking him was out of the question.

---

As the group made their plans within the safety of the Alliance keep, the battle outside it waged fiercely. The Alliance's troops fought their hardest to push the undead Nerubians off the beach, but they could get reinforcements almost as fast as the new troops from the keep rushed out to meet them. On a cliff overlooking the entire scene, a man in a blood red robe watched the carnage after having watched the arrival of Darion Mograine and his help from Platform City. "It is just as the Lich King expected, lord Kel'Thuzad," he spoke to an orb he held in his hand, an undead skull wreathed in black and blue seeable inside it, "the leader of the Ebon Hold Knights went for help. Shall I have the Cultists within the keep attack them?" The lich shook his head.

"No, for now, focus on keeping the villagers busy. They'll soon venture their way into trouble without help from the Cult." The image vanished as the robed figure bowed.

"Yes, service to the Lich King is the only way forward!"



Post Order: Cole Phelps, Blue, Constantina, Vent