melodiesoflife | Event || The Enemy Within

Characters: All characters who signed-up for the event.
Where: In their heads.
When: January 15th.
Summary: The Heroes of Light have a vision-- They are living through a hypothetical future where the Sage share his knowledge with them, and things went horribly wrong as some Heroes of Light became the villains in this timeline. Maybe they'll revise their thoughts on getting all of that knowledge.
Warning: The apocalypse, deaths, tragedies, overall a lot of very bad things.

Mingle Threads: The Antagonists || The Protagonists || The Others || General
Free Open Threads: The Two Years || Other Events

#01 Attempts at Negotiations || Trano Golsaucia
#02 Tactical Espionage Action || Aqures Ixen
#03 Judgmental Glares || Aerilon
#04 The Fight for the Crystallized Bodies || Aqures Tosf
#05 The Dusk of the Heroes || Mysidia
#06 The Fight for the Moon || Lunar Gate
#07 Conflict Above the Stars || Moon Base
#08 The Birth of a God || Crystal Life Tree
#09 The Death of a World || Moon Base
#10 Where Everything Ends || Pandaemonium

Conclusion || The Sage in Mysidia

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

It wasn't the first time Elsa had arrived in Aerilon astride a massive dragon, but it still made people nervous. Nonetheless, she couldn't afford to consider their discomfort, as most other means of travel were nearly impossible. Airships made easy targets against the better-armed forces of Aqures Ixen. People usually had fewer reasons to pick a fight with a dragon.

Once they landed on the outskirts of the island, she recalled the beast, and set out for the main city carrying a massive sack over her shoulder. The first place she went was the market, where she unloaded the contents of the sack: trophies from various dangerous beasts. Dragon scales, behemoth horns, malboro teeth, all of these things carried a high price. She traded them for gil, though she was dismayed to find that the value was steadily decreasing. Still, it was something to work with.

Bundled up in her leathers and furs, Elsa prowled through the streets, keeping her eyes open for any familiar faces. She didn't recognize anyone, so she went to the pub. There were many ways men could be bought. Not all were swayed by gil. Some wanted a shot at going out with a blaze of glory. Some could only be persuaded in a contest of strength, or a game of cards. She avoided the gambling when she could; her poker face was nearly uncontested, but there were many who could spin the cards and dice to their liking. She did not want to place their lives in the hands of liars and cheats.

She paid a gil for a glass of dark ale, settling in on a barstool to get a feel for the tavern's environment. It wasn't good. The laughter was strained and raucous. Barmaids no longer bothered to wear smiles for the customers, and even the rowdier sorts brooded sullenly instead of inviting a wench to rest on his knee.

Word of the dragon spread quickly through the town, and those words quickly reached Mary. After the schism among the Heroes she had gone off to do things her own way, which meant quite a bit more active piracy to try to make sure the two sides weren't dragging innocents into their squabbles. She didn't agree with those who wanted to use the Crystalized Heroes for their plans, but she couldn't stand the hopeful dithering of the others either. And that's why she went off on her own.

Focusing on what she was known for back on Earth had a similar affect in Aerilon. While a few people knew her two years ago she was now a well known name among the sailors and thieves. The words spoken of her as a Hero weren't always kind, both for what the Heroes were doing and how she tended to ruin more criminal bits of "fun", but she didn't care.

It was only a few moments after Elsa entered the bar that a familiar woman sat down next to her. Mary kept her eyes forward and her voice low. "I thought I told you last time we met to stop pulling that stunt with the dragon. People are panicked enough. The last thing they need is thinking they're being attacked."

"If this is your way of offering me a ride, I will gladly take it," Elsa replied dryly, and drank from her mug. Surely Mary knew why flying about on a personal airship wasn't a viable option for her. Honestly she wouldn't mind having someone ferry her around, but she doubted anyone had the time for that.

But enough japes. The fact that Mary was sitting beside her instead of sliding a knife between her ribs meant she probably wasn't holding a severe grudge over the past.

"How have you fared? Any news of interest?"

The temptation was certainly there, but Mary wasn't so petty a rogue. Someone had to truly betray her or be committing sins against humanity to be worthy of one of her blades. Her grudge against Elsa ran deep, but this world had already been proving that one had to keep their trust close. Personal revenge could be put on hold until after the world was no longer ending.

"Little beyond the encroaching Calamity. But that makes me suspicious. Information coming out of Aqures Ixen has dried up and my contacts have either been waylaid or are unable to leave the city. They must be planning something. It's not like we have much time left."

"Mm," Elsa grunted with a quiet frown as a means of agreement. She took another pull from her glass. "Desperation almost always leads to aggression. I suspect they will be turning their sights on Mysidia within the month, if not within the week. I would like to be wrong about this, but if they are planning something drastic that will prompt direct opposition from us, then the tactically sound thing to do will be to crush the opposition beforehand."

She'd already started working on city defenses in case that happened. It was what prompted her to forsake one of her favorite jobs in lieu of Beastmaster, as the skills and creatures she had access to were more strategically beneficial.

"You may wish to withdraw your contacts from Mysidia as well, lest they be trapped there when the attack comes. As a precaution." Elsa didn't know which operatives in Mysidia belonged to Mary, but she could guess that a handful of them were present for the same reason they would be in Aqures Ixen: to keep an eye on things. As Elsa did not think Mary would sell them out and betray the specifics of their defenses to the enemy, she had no objections to the presence of spies. There was little else for her to hide.

Mary's eyes went wide for a moment as Mysidia was mentioned. She didn't know all the details but she knew enough. She knew that the Heroes still carrying some desire to save this world had kept the crytalized ones there for safekeeping. It was a secret she had done well to carry.

"Aye...I may...Thank you for the warning." She could order them out, but she expected most would remain to try to defend the city. Good agents were loyal like that.

But still, there was something else to this that she didn't quite have yet. She had heard some rumors about shipments being brought to Aqures Ixen. And the amounts just seemed...too large for a simple invasion force.

"Any idea of what they may be planning? I may be able to send some agents to interfere where I can."

Event || The Enemy Within

Recruiting Neutrals | OPEN (not just to neutrals, anyone is welcome)

Re: Recruiting Neutrals | OPEN (not just to neutrals, anyone is welcome)

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