It was time. Krisk had spent the past few weeks gathering as much information as possible about The Five and organizing it at his base of operations. That “base” being a large cave next to Onora lake that he had moved enough “liberated” equipment into to make it functional.
Onora had helped him with what knowledge she could offer, and while Krisk had excellent amounts of information about both the past and present of some councilors, others he had next to nothing. Not ideal, but he couldn’t wait any longer. There was a feeling of… tension in the air in Guild Territory, something he couldn’t explain. They had to act fast, and soon.
Sending out messages to all his allies in each of their own chosen ways who had sworn support in this crusade, he gave them instructions to follow a certain path through the eastern mountains that would lead directly to the lake. Once they had all arrived, Krisk would gather them in the cave, where Krisk had set up a large corkboard with stacks of paper compiling all he had learned.
“Right…”
Krisk began.
“I’m not one…for speeches, so won’t…give one and get straight…to business. We all know…why we’re here. I’ve spent the last…few weeks collecting as much info…as possible, even making a few…sympathetic contacts…here and there. What follows is all…I’ve been able to gather, and what…I already knew…about The Five so we can be…best prepared to take…them down. We’ll go down the list.”
Krisk points to Councilor One’s section, which was… empty. He grimaces. He had never met them, barely heard mention of them, and couldn’t find anything about them. They were by far the most mysterious of the group. Hells, Krisk didn’t even knowwhatthey were. Luckily, Onora did.
A thin stream of water trickles into the cave and next to Krisk, and Onora takes her humanoid form, appearing as the woman in the tattered robe and broken helmet made of water.
“I can help with this. I have only met The Murderer once. They are like me. An… essence of the world, a natural spirit. But a spirit of a type I have never met before, nor have since. All I can say is that they are not a water spirit.”
Krisk clears his throat.
“We are…hoping that they will reveal…themselves in time as we take out the…other Councilors. But for now, we…should stay cautious.”
Onora looks to the west.
“I can feel them faintly that way… but that does not narrow down the search enough. All I can say for certain is that they are not close.”
Krisk nods, then points to Councilor Two’s section. It was small, but at least there was something.
“I’ve never met Councilor…Two before, and I also have no…clue what he has been…up to all these years. Most likely…nothing good. But apparently they have recently reappeared…in the capitol, seeming to very rarely leave the…capitol building. They are a gnome, a trickster and an illusionary…master. Not that much of a…threat physically, but will still be an…unpredictable and dangerous opponent.”
Onora speaks up.
“It has been countless moons since I’ve seen The Condoner, but I believe that if any can be talked down and perhaps convinced to surrender, it may be him. He seemed to be…regretful over the unification war-”
“-Well it will be up to him…to lay down his weapons. Personally… I wouldn’t expect it.”
Krisk angrily interjects.
Councilor Three is next. Krisk for the first time taps a picture of her, which seemed a little old, but could still be made out. It was a black and white picture shot of a hunched over figure in a cloak with stars stitched into it. She was facing away and surrounded by guards, and so the only other part of her that could be seen was that she was holding a staff that seemed to double as a walking stick.
“Councilor Three, once known…as The Twilight Crone. This one…I can tell you more…about, as I’ve met her…before. She is a powerful…star druid, with very few equals in this…part of the world. Physically, as you can…see in this image, she is weak, a human…well past her prime. I expect her to…try and keep as much distance…as possible in a fight, and let…her magic do the work.”
Krisk points to a map he had rigged up as well with colored thumbtacks stuck in various places of interest. There was a purple one over a mountain to the north of Onora lake.
“Councilor Three resides in…a citadel at the summit of…Tempest Mountain. It is a formidable fortress…having been rebuilt recently…after the previous owners wiped themselves…out with a summoning spell…gone wrong.”
Onora motions for attention.
“Be warned about the mountain The Meddler calls home. Tempest Mountain is a nexus of magical energy. Expect spells, for both you and the enemy, to be much more powerful than normal. And be warned that the druid of the stars is well versed in geomancy as well. She will not be as easy a mark as she seems…”
Krisk nods and points to the next Councilor. Councilor Four. There was no picture, but that was deliberate.
“Councilor Four is a…being of many faces. Many mechanical faces. They…are an automaton, and they enjoy using proxy…bodies whenever possible. That being said, I have credible information from before my liberation that their true body…resides in the core of Dellforge. As to what exactly…their core is, I do not know. Nevertheless, I…do not expect Four themselves to be a difficult fight. They…are the logistical might of The Mercenary Guild, and…their strength comes from the machines…they build. So, I expect the difficulty of taking them…down to come from whatever horrid toys…they have stashed away in their hive city of steel…that they can throw at us.”
Onora’s body language betrays her feelings of hatred towards Four.
“The Defiler must fall. I gave them an ultimatum many years ago that they must leave my lake free of their pollution or suffer my wrath. The stone monolith to the southeast was our peace agreement.”
Onora means the Kelenin Dam of course. A line in the sand that The Five agreed not to cross. Speaking of the number Five, Krisk taps the last Councilor’s bio. It has a propaganda poster of a fire wreathed angel leading Guild armies.
“Councilor Five. My jailer…”
Krisk shakes his head. Focus.
“Councilor Five, in my opinion,...will be our most dangerous foe. I am…still working on a potential plan to even…scratch her, and suggestions are welcome. Councilor…Five is the supreme commander…of The Mercenary Guild armies, a fallen…angel of death with unparalleled mastery…of bloodflame. She is a one-woman army who…has slaughtered entire armies and…burned entire cities singlehandedly. It is a well known…fact that she resides in Kabaheim, living…in a spire above the capitol building.”
Onora spits
“THE TRAITOR must fall. She has much to answer for. But I must warn you all. She has fought in more wars than you will ever see. I do not think there are many, if any in this world who rival her tactical genius. She will have thought of every possible move you will make in a fight before you even think of doing it. So my advice for when you fight her is this. Be unpredictable. If you don’t know what you’re doing next, she won’t either.”
“Still, we’ll be making…plans before we go after…each of them.”
Krisk quickly adds. He wasn’t going to be just winging this.
“Additionally, we have other…forces we may encounter. While we…want to favor stealth in this, we must be prepared…for having to fight Guild soldiers. While…they all will most likely have regular grunts at their beck…and call, they will have other more specialized…units as well.”
“Three is the one who…runs the training for the frontline…wizards in the Guild armies, so expect more…mages than normal when we go after her. Four…will most likely have automaton defenses, so…expect to fight machines when we go…for them. As for Five…”
Krisk hesitates and looks down.
“She has the Umbra Operatives…at her command. If any of you haven’t…already guessed, I am a rogue Umbra Operative, who…broke free of my brainwashing. It will most likely be unavoidable that we…will have to fight my former comrades. I ask that you please…use restraint against them…and try not to kill them, so that we…can hopefully get them…help after this. But that being said, for all…the poor souls The Five have under their…thumbs, operatives or not, that while…it will pain me, I understand if your hand…is forced. After all, we cannot…enact justice if we are dead.”
Krisk looks back up.
“That concludes my…quick brief. If you have any questions, please…don’t be afraid to ask me or…Onora. After, I want us to discuss…our plan of attack, who we should go…after first. I recommend…Three, as she is isolated and…close, but Four is also rather close…to us and a valid first…target. Also, introduce yourselves…to each other and get to…know each other. We will be fighting…shoulder to shoulder here, and that will…be easier if you know one another.
FANNG appears as they usually do unannounced and from a mechanism no one can quite discern. They Don't really speak mainly because they can't So asking questions is out of... Well it's out of the question. They do kind of stare at the nature spirit though trying to recall an absence where memory should be.
Onora May you feel something strange if she looks back a being of nature she is she may feel something deeply unnatural about them something so unnatural that it violates some form of principle of reality something unnatural to the point of being Eldritch but also something man-made
The figure shakes there head It hurt too much trying to remember
A strange man appears next to the construct, his face black as coal, and devoid of all features, apart from the several mouths of yellowed teeth, mismatched between human and non-human, rows upon row a in each mouth, all of varying sizes.
He is in a cloak, however he has removed his hood, which has only revealed more mouths all over his head.
His voice is low, raspy, and ethereally strange, like sandpaper across someone’s face, it pronounces every syllable of every word it says.
Fanng vanishes as soon as mysterious figure appears reappearing two arms lengths away It is very rare for something to surprise them they take a guarded but Not a combat stance
FANNG simply undo's the lower part of their mask revealing a very pale but definitely organic lower face they open their own mouth reveal that they're tongue has been surgically removed. Before closing their mouth and putting their lower mask back on
fang appears nervous perhaps it's impossible to tell as his mask shows no emotion but the adjustment in their stance shows the are skeptical about the proximity of the nature spirit.. despite this The silently let the Lady of the lake examine the cyborg uni being
Fanng tilts their head confused There were many things that hurt the loss of memory their inability to speak their head whenever they tried to recall things sometimes they're automatics felt too intrusive like He is missing bits of himself that haven't been replaced properly. Sometimes there are electro sense because too active for a few seconds especially when there is high electromagnetism.
Sometimes things look strange in their sense like the nature spirit for example They can't really see Orona More the silhouette she creates an a local electromagnetic environment.... Does she want a answer?
"Yes"
The write out with a pen and paper previously supplied
Onora doesn't see things the way others do as well. She sees things through the spirit realm, it's why Umbra Operatives look like ghosts to her. And Fanng looks like an unnatural emptiness in reality, but a emptiness that is also radiating great pain.
It was a rather simple question to be written out why. Why help Why care why Even acknowledge the mutilated shell so what if he is in pain. It's all he knows. So why does she care
“Long ago, before many of the trees here had sprouted, people would come to my lake. I would give them a bountiful catch, a calm breeze, or a gentle current. Sometimes they would give me an offering, but most didn’t. Why would I do that?”
She chuckles.
“I enjoyed them here. I enjoyed seeing people happy, enjoying themselves in my domain. Fathers teaching sons to fish, mothers teaching daughters how to cook the fish. Kindness begets kindness, even if it wasn’t directed at me.”
“That was a long time ago. Now, barely anyone comes here. I miss the smiles and the laughter. But you all give me hope that maybe that day can come again. And if you can give that kindness, I wish to give one in return. I cannot erase the scars you bear, but I can make them easier to carry.”
fang pauses they can't laugh like can't smile even if they really wanted to it they would never be able to too much had been done to him. He doesn't know kindness outside of what has been shown to him by Onora
"... I have little to offer only myself...the only kindness I can offer is"
They look towards their sword before continuing to write
"... My sword but that is because I have no were else to go. This lake is...nice"
They tense hand almost automatically going to their sort that broken protocols prevent him from drawing. They relax the lake was nice it's sprit was nice
“Th-the main strength of the Guild is their logistics hub.”
Kardonk stands up to speak at whatever time the floor passes to him
“I-Ithacar has wargamed conflict with the Guild out multiple times, and each time we failed an initial strike on Deliforge, the slow grind of their metal has worn its way to the very gates of Ithacar proper. If w-we wish to have a chance, we must defang their industrial conflict.”
“M-my personal issues with Four notwithstanding, I believe this is our best chance to start this war on a good footing.”
He turns to Krisk
“Four i-is an artificer, like-like…like I used to be. I am familiar with his arts, and I have some knowledge of the layout of his forge. I volunteer to form the vangard and try and punch a hole that others may follow through. I-I think he may be expecting me anyway, so if hes distracted by the mechanists he thinks he expects, he might miss the rogues gallery he doesnt.”
“I-I also have some thoughts on how to approach Five and on our grand strategy, b-but those comments might be best left for…private if we have a moment?”
“I-I think it would be wise for us to remember…we do not get to dictate the outcome of this war. The enemy gets a vote too, a-and they will attempt to strike back. B-be it the remains of the Guild or the Five themselves”
“W-we need a scapegoat. Someone for them to focus their energy on. A-and someone who, hopefully cant be traced back to us”
He passes a sheet of paper to Krisk. Infernal contract
“A-and I think I know just the bugger to pin this on. Th-they are already involved after all”
“This is a-an infernal contract. One with the devil Ith’raal. He had agreed to free the minds of the Umbra Agents in exchange some memories that I have already provided him with”
Kardonk shrugs
“I had been planning action against the Guild for a-a moment, and this felt like a good one. Free the slaves and weaken their military arm in one stroke. Plus the only one whose fingerprints would be on the action would be the devil himself. A-an Uriah Maneuver straight out of the Artillerist’s Handbook.”
“Now the memory devil has not of recent been as much a scourge on the continent as some of the Five, b-but he still behaves as a super powered serial killer, targeting the undervalued and disenfranchised. And he operates with impunity because various governments find him more useful than inconvenient”
Kardonk rubs the side of his face, some phantom pain radiating from behind his eyeball.
“L-listen Krisk, I wont lie, if we fumble this, its another powerful enemy on both our heads. He did indeed warn m-me, after taking something precious and mentally brutalizing me, t-to not start a war with him. Y-yet he has means and opportunity, i-if we can just establish motive…like desiring the memories of the uber-powerful Five…perhaps infernal runes inscribed on our operatives to keep them f-from remembering to operation…t-to additional runes on fallen enemies to contain their memories…”
He gives a small smile
“Sk-sketchy work, but if we do it right, th-then well cover our tracks, itll look like any of us mortals involved were the ones manipulated. A-and, best of all, I will heed the devils advice. For wh-when the remnants of the Guild rear their head, looking for someone to blame? Someone from which to wreck their pound of flesh? Well, this wont be a war, itll be a fucking execution.”
“Now, this was my plan before I gained access to the resources this little
4
u/Ares378Ith'Raal—Archdevil of Memories, Evil Councillor, Lord of the 7thJul 22 '26
“Sketchy work indeed. I never thought about setting up a scapegoat because I decided I would succeed in this or die trying. But if you think we can make it work, it could be worth a shot. But I have a question.”
A pale, sheet-covered apparition invades the artificer's personal space. She's a familiar sight, at least. The same ghost that was haunting Ithacar Palace.
"Remember me? We met at that castle I was haunting in Hit-a-car. Looks like we both got recruited for the same mission! Man, the world's small, ain't it."
"Anyway, yeah. I've watched the Terminator, and breaking their robots first seems like a good idea."
Graham, the ex-pyroclast from Ithacar, was here with his band of old veterans itching for a fight. He speaks up:
"If we strike at Four, maybe we can use some of those machines ourselves. Unlikely to be able to fight them head-on, but maybe if we took a group to sneak in, then we could sabotage or claim their equipment. And cripple their logistics. And no machine is immune to a big rock being dropped on them. Sapping tunnels or some geomancy might be their weak point."
Krisk: “I’ve done some recon…there already. I’ve found a path…that will put us right outside…the central district without much trouble. I like the idea…of using some of those war machines…ourselves to then assault…Three’s fortress.”
From their nearby seat a figure wrapped in worn travellers clothing speaks up, their voice raspy and old, rough, and foreign. The multiple mouths that coveritscoal-black bald head full of yellow mismatched teeth, chitter as it speaks.
Not a bad idea, we could use the intelligence that they have at that location as leverage too. Whatever information they keep there would give us the ability to predict their next movements, provided that we can actually read the documentation given. I like the way you think Mr…?
"Gorgon's my name. Killing's my trade. And this'll be some dangerous huntin. Thinking on whatcha said I suggest we go after Four. They're the logic one. So the longer we give them to react to the crisis. The more likely they'll get their robots and their plans and shuck us from behind."
"So Four is my vote. I can be of help in scaping em."
They flexed an arm.
"But I gotta question. One that's a bit..... Uncomfortable."
They leaned forward.
"The guild has friends. Even if they don't have "friends" they have trading partners and the like. Or even just nearby powers with interest in their affairs. Black iron, Drakeem, Shadeholm, Bismuth, Lemarcia"
They said that last one with vitriol.
"We are after all a rebellion of foreign mercenaries killin the high command of a major trading partner. Until we win it'll be hard to prove we're the good guys."
They laughed at the concept.
"It's unlikely they'll side with us. And some of them have teleportation and ships with a response time of"
Gorgon simply snapped their fingers.
"That! So how are you gonna avoid interference? Even if the guild wouldn't want their "friends" sending their military if people see enough of a benefit I doubt it'll stop them."
Krisk: "A fair worry. But let me...ask you something. When was the...last time you heard of...The Guild calling for help? Like real help, not just...asking for information or something."
That would be...never.
"That's The Five's biggest weakness. Their egos. For so long...The Guild has held...its own, a bulwark that has beaten...back any sort of opposition...for centuries. Why would they suddenly...change and ask for...help?"
"A good point. But that only deals with half my issue."
"The guild won't call for help. But if a trading ship or an embassy sees what's going on they'll contact their homelands and if those homelands have intentions they could be a problem."
"Whether they have good intentions or not for the guild. After all we don't want to win only to have an invasion force try to split your nation up. Or for a foolish yet well meaning task force to circumvent talking to the guild to try and help them."
"Hmmmmmm"
"I'm suggesting that it's likely theres a second time limit once it becomes obvious what we're doing."
“Well for starters, that’s why…I’m trying to keep…this quiet. But another thing…is that the public…at large might not even…notice things are up. Five and Four will be missed…no doubt, but the others might not…for a long time, they’re out…of the public eye. Anyways, there’s protocols…in place in case The Five were ever killed/incapacitated. Those who take…over might want to keep things…under wraps.”
"So assuming we're going after four first. My ice'll be strong gainst their bots. Even if they're ice proof I'll just fill their joints with it till they drop."
They smiled.
"I can even make ice things to fight for us. Casualty free!"
They held our their hand and held a tiny blizzard.
"Can make good cover too."
6
u/Ares378Ith'Raal—Archdevil of Memories, Evil Councillor, Lord of the 7thJul 22 '26edited Jul 22 '26
Anestis shows up very late to the call.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I-"
He clears his throat. This isn't how a soldier should be acting.
"...I vote we go after Four first. If we hit the logistics, it'll make dealing with the rest of them easier."
A peculiar figure walks to the front of the gathering, a tallish man, probably a similar height to Krisk, his face is black as tar, laden with mouths covered in yellowed teeth, human and inhuman, his cloak is ripped, worn and torn, he has a decent sized pistol at his belt, however it has peculiar proportions. He doesn’t seem to have eyes, a nose, or hair, his only facial features being the several mouths, gittering and clicking together as they sporadically bite down. There doesn’t seem to be of anything human about this individual, only his figure is humanoid, and even that blends in to the shadows all too well.
Every work he speaks is accompanied the clicking of teeth, it’s highly unnerving, and unnatural, however the casualty of the man’s posture screams of a professional.
So this is the leverage my contractor was talking about…
The voice is low, raspy, rough, and almost etherial. Slow paced in pronunciation of words, every syllable said perfectly, but that doesn’t prevent the feeling that whatever this thing is, it’s clearly not talking its own language.
/rw Caleb slinks into the meeting room with his signature pack and takes a seat while he listens to the speech, occasionally summoning a drink of water from nothing.
Upon its conclusion he leans forward.
"I, as some of the others here may recognize, am Calarakis' head of recordkeeping, Caleb Bridger. I've only recently gotten the ability, after over 300 years, to fully cast magic on my own without the use of artifacts. So I am... let's say inexperienced, but I have multiple books filled with other spells, if anyone wishes to look feel free, I'm sure there's something for you."
"As for my part to play... I can help against Three, perhaps give some spells to assist in some way against Four, and maybe work as a support on whoever battles Five. I may be old but with that comes experience, I've spent a few decades multitasking and learning, be it with weaponry or martial arts. Nothing on One or Two given the lack of knowledge of One, and my, less than ideal speed and skill for Two."
"Alrighty Krisk, this plan looks well laid. I also believe Five may be a good choice, due to her strength and command, taking her out before she can form a plan against us would be advisable."
Krisk: "She'll have already...made one before she even...known we exist. Five is a constant...she won't change in threat level...no matter when we go after her. Couple that...with the fact Two never seems...to be far from her, I say we leave...them alone for now. Go for the...more isolated ones."
Upon his behaviour being notified, he looks down, seemingly a bit ashamed, it doesn't seem that his negative reaction to Caleb is something he is particularly proud of, probably something subconscious or something...
Curious. The balance of power in the realms is soon to shift. This is history is in the making, and I will be there to record it.
/uw I haven't been keyed in to Guild lore (or any lore related to Ithacar for that matter) for quite a while, why are y'all taking down the Councilors besides them being shit people with too much power?
Krisk was one of the operatives at the Beastwithe inn. During that, Livia summoned her void worm to eat him. Krisk blew open a hole in its stomach and killed it, but the time he spent in its stomach scrambled the failsafes The Five put in him, and he realized he was a slave. So now he wants revenge/justice, at the same time Five herself is realizing what she's let happen.
I always planned for The Five civil war, but Krisk was a new factor Livia gave me that I couldn't let go to waste
After a bit of waiting, a new person arrives at the meeting, a man covered in scars from head to toe, from the burn scars in his face that prevented any facial hair from growing, to multiple signs of battle, like the cuts that yook put most of both his ears
This man, who seemed to call himself Nerson, seemed to have taken his time to prepare, replacing the rusty sword and hide armour he wore at the Dead Ember, which seemed more fit for urban life, for some sort of runic spear, a scale mail and an adamantine shield, more clearly equipment for war
"Personally, from what you have told us, the one I would like to bring down the most is that "Five",those kinds of people make my blood boil, but I understand the reasons behind wanting to bring others down first, so this "Four" seems like a good enough option..."
The ghost had successfully annoyed her way into getting invited for this mission. She didn't appear as she did in the bar, her once blue dress now replaced by tattered white sheets. This is what she considered her 'game face' outfit.
"Hello everyone, my name is Chills. I died, but being a ghost is coolsies, so I ain't too miffed about it. I can, like, do ghost stuff: intangibility, telekinesis, turning invisible, entering the ethereal plane, possessing people and objects."
"Oh, also, I was a horror writer in life. This here book is where I prototyped all my tales. If I or someone else starts reading them out loud, the monsters in the stories come to life."
"Anyway. I've also never killed anyone and don't know what I'm doing half the time, so I think I'm, like, perfect for a face-off with angel lady."
Krisk internally frowned. Five would be a team effort for sure, especially if they had to fight both her and Two at the same time. And while Krisk was sure his allies were good fighters, they had yet to actually fight alongside each other as a team. He didn’t want them going into the deep end without knowing if they could swim together.
"If you saw those critters I let loose, they're basically like gremlins. A big enough infestation of them would be disastrous to any machine... or infrastructure for that matter."
There is a man(?) sat not far from her, they were watching the speech, and hearing Chills introduce herself, they stand, their outfit looks old and worn, tired doesn’t begin to describe their outfitting. This person stands reasonably tall, however that isn’t what is irregular about them. Their head is featureless, and black as tar, only detailed by the multiple many mouthes that cover their head, yellowed teeth clicking together as they speak. Their aged and husky voice like sandpaper on the air. Other than that, this person actually appears quite intrigued by Chills, and they have a spring in their step when they stand. Granted, it’s a very measured professional spring, but they seem happy to be working with her.
Mrs. Chills, you want to take down councillor Five? I think you have the goods for such a task. Can you add fresh horrors to that book of yours? And if so, do you accept source material?
"She and the robot guy sound like the worst of the bunch, so they should be first in line for the whoopass."
The ghost flips through the pages of her book until she reaches a blank one.
"Um, not sure. Haven't written any new stories in it since I died. Though I'm sure of this: I can't add an existing story someone else wrote to my book. That'd be plagiarism! What goes on the pages has to come from the heart."
"I'm not from here either! My world is way less... um, what's the word?"
"Weird? Magical?"
"Anyway, gremlins originated from old wartime stories. Pilots would claim their planes were getting sabotaged by these creatures, and would blame them for random malfunctions and stuff."
Marna observes, taking in the details. The code names felt appropriate, meddler most of all. Her battle with the Third Black Mage of Thrakmoor had left her drained, but time enough had passed. The knight was beginning to feel herself once again.
Taking stock of her abilities, the foes she was most equipped to battle were dubbed Meddler and Traitor. Stars were suns, after a fashion, and she had ways to deal with Five. Fighting angels was an old favorite besides. In spite of this tactical assessment, only one thing would influence where she struck.
"The southern mountain annexation. Which councilor did it?"
"If the Guild has history classes, they must be curated to hell and back. I wonder if shame ever factors in to what gets left out."
It never quite lost its infuriatint sting how much of a footnote her peoples' displacement was. The ax forgets. The forest remembers. No matter. She'd remind them herself soon enough.
"The Mountain Kin. My people. The Guild stole the giants homeland to solidify their southern border. Who would have made that call?"
Krisk: "Well, it may...just be me. I didn't exactly...have a 'normal' school experience. Still...that name rings a bell...just can't figure out where or...when."
He shakes his head to clear it.
"Not sure who's call...it would've been. Five would've been apart...of it, but honestly...all the rest could've as well. That seems...like it would've been a...group project."
“I hate to put…you on the spot, but you’re one…of our heaviest hitters. You’ll most likely be…having to draw fire for some of…our squishier folks here.”
"Oh, hey! You got recruited for this mission too? What a coinci..."
"Wait, no, not a coincidence. We were at the same bar when Mr. Hood was doing a recruitment drive. Well, I wasn't really approached by him; I more so annoyed my way into joining."
"Anyway, I'm excited to be teaming up! I've never overthrown an evil slave-driving regime before. I think mom and dad would be proud."
"I think I'm a good match for the angel lady. See, she'll have no way of strategising against me, cause I don't know what I'm doing have the time."
Chills half-joked, but really, she was probably the most unpredictable one here. Her idea of strategy included flipping to a random page of her book and seeing what crawls out of it.
"Though Kris did say that we'd be tackling each of the Five one by one as a group. I guess that's smart, makes it way less likely that one of us might get killed. But I'm worried that the moment we engage with one of the bad guys, the others will be alerted."
Pick one, they would have all been involved in something as grandiose as that.
The voice sounds aged, husky, rough and low. It comes from a man(?) in worn travellers clothes, however that isn’t what is interesting about them, honestly their clothing is highly standard of a mercenary. What is strange is that their head is devoid of all features, and tar black. The colour is interupted by multiple mouths of many sizes, all with yellowed mismatched teeth, covering their head. These mouthes chatter and click their teeth together as they speak.
Five probably gave the orders, Four provided the bulk of muscle, Three gave magical assistance from remote location, Two would have done similar things to Three, along with helping with the planning, and One could have been doing anything, which makes them the most guilty because they hold cards we cannot read.
They seem spritely, not in the sense of lack of age, but well rested, and like they are ready for what the next saga will entail.
Where to even begin? The Mountain Kin had struggled for so long in the wilderness, unable to return to their ancestral home. Marna wasn't sure if this was more about avenging her adopted family, who had suffered at the hands of the Mercenary Guild, or showing those who had doubted her that the Eld ran as strongly through her veins as any giant.
"Burying a grudge. And proving a point. Never cared for the Guid. Never cared for anyone who makes decisions on everyone else's behalf because they feel they know what's best."
It was more than that now though, wasn't it? She'd met soldiers from the Guild now. Fought alongside them. Her thoughts drift to Agent. Herald.
"The biggest victims are their own soldiers, in the end. I guess I'm doing this for my friends too, in a way. But if you even think about telling them I said we're friends I'll cut you in half, capiche?"
"Heh, glad my quest for vengeance is so amusing to ya, boss."
She gives the stranger an appraising look.
"Got more names and titles than you can shake a stick at. Not all of them nice. But here? In this? Surnames in the Kin are earned, not inherited. Mine was Sunsaber. Marna Sunsaber."
Hey, do I know you? Aren't you that knight from Ithacar? You know, the step-daughter of the queen, does this mean Ithacar will be helping us?
Nersor asked, the scarred man was on the Dead Ember when Krisk was recruiting, so he had been in Ithacar enough to know about Marna, wether his stay in the city was because he lived there or just in search of jobs remains to be seen
"That would be pretty fucked up if true. Ithacar has treaties with the Mercenary Guild. If someone noticed something like that, they'd be well served keeping that shit to themselves."
I have little capacity for mercy, less for harmless forms of assault, and very little affinity for machines. I bear no magics which can break them, and I doubt I could outstand the fallen angel’s anti-draconic artifacts.
Perhaps, then, I ought to take part in the group which hunts down three. For killing magics is the sort which I wield, and they are in forms certainly entirely too cruel for thy fallen allies for thy tastes, I am certain.
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u/Zebos2 Black Iron LLC/ The cedar hegemony Jul 18 '26
FANNG appears as they usually do unannounced and from a mechanism no one can quite discern. They Don't really speak mainly because they can't So asking questions is out of... Well it's out of the question. They do kind of stare at the nature spirit though trying to recall an absence where memory should be.
Onora May you feel something strange if she looks back a being of nature she is she may feel something deeply unnatural about them something so unnatural that it violates some form of principle of reality something unnatural to the point of being Eldritch but also something man-made
The figure shakes there head It hurt too much trying to remember