melodiesoflife | The Fete at the Observatory

Characters: All (hopefully) uncaptured Heroes of Light
Where/When: At the Heroes' Observatory, the evening of February 10th
Summary: Ashelia has called a meeting - under the guise of a party - to discuss the next steps forward for the Heroes following the revelations revealed in the shared dream.
Warnings: N/A
Note: Each part of Ashelia's speech is centred around a different topic. Feel free to indicate what in particular your character is responding to in the headline for your top level! Alternately, if your character is bringing up something on their own, or not in direct reply to something Ashelia has mentioned, feel free to out the subject in the Subject line! There's a lot going on and a lot of ground to cover, so let's keep it organized so things are easy to find later!

"I would like your attention, please." With her experience as an accomplished politician, Ashelia's voice cut through the din of the gathered Heroes. The high ceiling of the meeting room lent itself well to the sorts of echoes that could easily cause headaches, unfortunately. The Queen planned to bring in some fabrics to soften the effects, but there had been little time for decorating, and it seemed there wouldn't be anytime soon.

The Lady Ashelia stood at the head of the incredibly large wooden table that dominated a good chunk of the room. Wooden chairs lined the edges of the tables, straight-backed and unfortunately not cushioned. It was clear that the Queen of Dalmasca didn't want anyone getting too comfortable in this particular room. There were papers in front of her, books and file folders and ledgers, all organized into neat piles. She picked up one of the papers, clearing her throat quietly before continuing. "If as many of you as possible could take a seat, I can call this meeting to order - and yes, I would like to apologize.

"As you may have guessed, this is not a fete. It is important for everyone to know..." Ashelia paused, waiting for the last straggling voices to quiet down before continuing, "that Mognet has been compromised. There is no longer such a thing as private correspondence, if ever there was. Keep this in mind in the coming months. The war has begun."

Ashelia paused for questions and comments before continuing.

"As many of us have realized, and Markus observed earlier over Mognet, the usual appearance of new Heroes of Light at the Crystal of Fire around the fifth of each month did not occur. This disturbance of the established cycle may seem abrupt, but upon further examination, 'tis not so." The Queen took a sip of water. "The cycle has been disturbed previously, though not in such a drastic manner. Last month, crystal statues appeared and disappeared within the hour. Heroes awakened from the crystal stasis were unceremoniously dropped from the sky. So you see, this disturbance has simply progressed. I welcome your thoughts on this."

Ashelia paused for questions and comments before continuing.

"Next on my agenda is the true motivation behind my calling this gathering. The night of February 5th, I had a dream." She stopped, shaking her head. "No, a vision. It did not take me long to realize I was not the only one to experience this. I've written the contents here." Ashelia held up a file folder. "However, if I am correct, many of you need only read it to refresh your memory." She stopped for a moment, putting the folder back on the table. "The ramifications of this new information are clear. The Empire holds four of our number captive, as well as countless other displaced Heroes in crystal stasis. It is my belief we must act on this information. We must save them."

Ashelia paused for questions and comments before continuing.

"The last subject I would like to cover is this." She held up a small, worn notebook. "This is the diary of the Lady Kalki, one of the Empire's Triumvirate. This woman, more than any other, has made clear her intentions are in opposition to us as a group. I encourage everyone to read through this document." Ashelia put the notebook down on the table and held up another file folder. "I have written a transcription myself, as the original is quite delicate." She put the file folder down. "This document provides invaluable insight into whom we can only assume is our enemy. It , unfortunately, poses more questions than it answers, but it does make clear that it is she who holds the answers that we need."

Ashelia took another sip of water, looking around at the gathered Heroes. "I once again open the floor to questions and comments. I believe it will take all of us to rescue our comrades; however, I also believe that if we do work together as one, we shall not fail."

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"It's probably not very professional of me to say this, but...since there's gonna be so many people there and there are lots of people working on one performance, they might not notice if a few people sneak off. So I wouldn't worry about that too much, maybe."

She's not too sure. If they try to stick to the schedule...she doesn't want to put the troupe in danger, but at the same time other people moving freely would work best. She's not sure how to do it.

"Do you think you wanna be the leader or somethin' then? It sounds like you really know what you're talking about!"

"Ya got a point there. It's probably going to be crazy busy. But considering they just attacked Esdham, and we were there fightin' against them, they may have their eyes on us. Just stay aware of your surroundings."

When Hibiki mentions him being leader, he looks surprised. And then very unsure.

"What, me? Nah, I'm not-- There's probably someone better for that then me."

"Eh? Really? You think so...?" She taps her chin. So far, it's just her, him, and Fayt...she has no idea that Midna is going to crash their party yet. As far as Hibiki is concerned, she'd like to have someone in charge until they get in and, presumably, meet up with the others. She's sure she won't be much use aside from. "Well, if you say so! It's not somethin' we have to worry about right now, anyways, I think."

Johnny rubbed the back of his neck, slightly embarrassed but trying to shrug it off.

"Yeah, uh, I mean, I got some experience with this kinda thing. But I don't know if that qualified me to be the one in charge. This could be some serious shit, y'know?"

"Mm. It's more serious than anything I've ever done. I get it." And Johnny knows it, too, since he got to see Hibiki in her firs fight ever. She fidgets before crossing her arms and turning to Fayt. "I don't know what the big plan is gonna be, but...until we can meet up with others, maybe you can be the leader?"

"Me?" He seems surprised at that, glancing from Hibiki to Johnny for a moment before shrugging. "I can't say I'm trained in covert ops or anything, but I'm good at fighting and keeping a low profile." Well, he did have experience sneaking across well guarded borders, at least. But maybe...

He glances about, searching for a flash of red hair. "....And if a friend of mine is interested, she might be a big asset to this."

She's right behind you before you even had to look, Fayt. Ninjas are good about that. Or at least Nel is.

"You should know by now I'm in," She acknowledges Fayt with a small knowing smile. On one hand... part of her doesn't like the idea of dragging Fayt into this. On the other, Fayt always had that tendency to get himself involved in dangerous situations whether she had a say in it or not. "I'm sure you're already aware of the potential consequences by now if we're doing this."

Hibiki started slightly when she noticed Nel. She hadn't realized anyone else was focusing on their conversation, but apparently she was wrong. It was just another reminder to the idol that she really didn't fit in most of the times, but she was determined to not let the surprise get the best of her.

"Mm. I wouldn't have brought it up otherwise. A lot of things could go wrong... we could be kidnapped, or...or worse. But it's not right to not do anything! We have to help rescue the others and see if we can learn anything!" But then again, she had this overwhelming feeling that... "It probably doesn't sound as convincing comin' from me, though, huh?"

Nel hadn't intended to speak up much to begin with - not until she gathered enough information about the situation at hand, and any possible plans that were up in the air.

"No, you're right. Simply leaving them behind isn't an option at this point anyway. ... To be honest, I had concerns that a rescue operation is probably exactly what the Empire is expecting from us," Nel sighs, averting her gaze. Then again, considering all the potential options was part of being a soldier. "Nevertheless... if it's covert operations we're talking about, I think we have a few willing volunteers with experience in the field - myself included. And from what I'm hearing so far, there will be three separate groups present for different events."

She didn't exactly know Hibiki, but her plan certainly wasn't a bad one at all. It'd be a lot smarter than walking right into a potential trap. Three or more separate groups would certainly be more difficult for the Empire to keep tabs on as well, if they were to become aware of any of them. ... That is, assuming none of them get captured. That was still a considerable risk, but they had little options at this point.

"Thinking about it like that, that would leave us with three ways in, wouldn't it? That very well may make things a bit more manageable for us, if we use our resources right."

"Even if they're expecting us, if we have multiple groups giving them trouble on different ends, it raises our chances of getting in. They'll be too busy occupied with everything else to focus their manpower any one place." He crosses his arms, considering for a moment.

"And it also allows different people to follow up on different leads. Tactics. Ways to enter the research facility. Some communication between the ground might be needed, though....." Otherwise, coordination might get messy.

“Yes, precisely. And if we’re going in ourselves, it’ll have to be through a means that won’t draw any attention towards us.”

Perhaps a boat. An airship likely would only draw more attention if they approached by that means. … Or perhaps by sheer luck, there’s someone out there with a means of teleportation – unlikely, but she couldn’t entirely dismiss the possibility. “… But of course, if we’re to secure the hostages, a quick means of getting out is another story.”

And then there’s communication as well. A noticeable sigh on Nel’s end, rubbing a temple. Without any coordination, this plan of theirs could easily fall apart into flames.

“I doubt this is something we can pull off in a single day – each and every one of us will need to put our own skills into gathering whatever information we can. … Of course, spreading misinformation is also an option. That would only give them more trouble to deal with, I’d imagine.”

A boat would probably be the most low key, if Fayt's opinion on the matter was asked. He hms to himself for a moment, before glancing over to Nel at the mention of misinformation.

"That could be useful. We might even be able to set up decoy situations in town to pull their manpower." small bombs or fires, perhaps, in less occupied portions of town. Or rumors. Anything to spread their forces too thin to keep track of the real rescue party.

The Fete at the Observatory

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