The Valiant

Sorrel's reinforcements burst on the scene to make the fight a bit more manageable and Sorrel draws his blade, "That, my Holy Knight friend, was a Lucavi. I've seen one before."

Zac grits his teeth a bit, "I hope you're right..." With that, he tries to help Lilith put out the flames.

--

Noctis kind of smiles to herself when she sees Euryale look away in what she imagines to be shame. "Anyway, we realize it is the symbol of the old empire. Do you think you might know why?"

~Fovoham~

*Oddly enough, they don't.*

Holy Knight<A Lucavi?! ...Maybe this is a warning to consider a new line of employment.>

*He looks back at the plains.*

Holy Knight<Yeah, I wouldn't wait up. They probably, ah, got lost.>
================================
~Sal Ghidos~

*Literally the second everyone makes it back into harbor, the boat falls apart from all of the structural damage.*

Peasant girl<So...are we free to go now.>

*Seraph is about to hit the kid when Lilith takes his rod away from him.*
===================================
~Orbonne~

<Why what? As I said before, I do not know who would be using the symbol, or why.>

"Or killed, or there's a jackass higher power at work" He swings his blade at the nearest undead enemy.

"Yes, you are free now," Zac said.

--

Noct kind of shrugged, "If it was actually the old empire, wouldn't they be attacking the church?"

~Orbonne~

<I don't see how the Empire could still persist. There are no records of a remnant of the Empire establishing a Kingdom that lasts to this day, no matter how small. And the Atkashas have relatives in most of the major states. I suppose it is possible a group converted back to Pharism, but I still do not know how they would come across such impressive powers. Though they would likely need them to survive, because endorsing the religion Saint Ajora denounced is almost surely the shortest path to heresy.>
======================================
~Sal Ghidos~

*She gives Seraph back his staff only after they've all dispersed.*

R"So, now that all of our super secret identities are blown, we should probably start travelling discretely. By now, I'm sure the Southern Sky in this town is looking for us."
=====================================
~Fovoham~

*The Holy Knight swings his weapon, a beam of light striking down one of the archers. The other gains some distance & fires at Sorrel. The knight Sora didn't attack attacks his flank. Two knights come up on Sorrel's rear to back him up.*

"Agreed," Zac replied.

--

"Then there is nothing else helpful you can tell us?"

"Sink into the cursed darkness, Abyssal Blade" Sorrel uses Abyssal Blade on the undead creeping up on him as he parries the blow directed at him. The arrow hisses dangerously close and had he not moved to block the flank strike the arrow would have struck him dead on.

*They walk over to him.*

Clyde: <I see... so, where are you off to now?>

~Fovoham~

*Unfortunately, that is not how arrows work, & he is still hit by it. One of the back-up knights also attacks the knight & it dies...again. While Sorrel was attacking the second undead, the first attacked him. The remaining archer retreats slightly more & begins pulling on his bowstring.*

*Nearby, the Holy Knight swings his sword at the knights pursuing him & crystals slam down on them. One of them is stunned. One of the Northern Sky Knights moves in front of his commander to intercept the remaining knight's attack.*

~3~
=======================================
~Orbonne~

<Unfortunately, not on this subject.>
=======================================
~Sal Ghidos~

L"Not quite everything's out in the open yet, we still don't know your last name, & old guy still has a secret origin."

S"Seraph. Just Seraph. I was apprentice to Elidibus back in the good ol' days of the 50 Years War. I joined the Knights Templar after he ran off, where I was somewhat popular, but wasn't much for following orders. At some point, they decided it would be best if I was simply forgotten. And murdered. Obviously, at least one of those didn't work."

L"I...honestly wasn't expecting...that...why are you just bringing this up now?"

S"First time anyone's ever asked."
======================================
~Balias Tor~

Gaffgarion<I thought I'd get a little mercenary group together, maybe some monsters, & sort of...take over the province. Since Ludovich died, the thief guilds are looking for a new leader to fill the void. It just seems to me like a quicker way to make a Gil or two than being a soldier-for-hire. I am also willing to bet it will be easy to keep the new Cardinal under my thumb. Care to join me, boys?>

Sorrel rips the arrow free after blocking the next strike and then rams the arrow into the face of the offending knight before lashing out with a sanguine sword.

Somewhere Sab feels like information she spent two pages looking for has just been spilled and she wasn't there to hear it.

--

Zac kind of looked around, "How about we go over life stories someplace that isn't out in the open area of the harbor."

--

"What can you tell us about the history of the church?" Mortal asked.

~Sal Ghidos~

R"And where might you suggest?"
================================
~Orbonne~

<Have you heard the story of Saint Ajora's birth, & his quest to banish the demon of Limberry?>
=================================
~Fovoham~

*When Sorrel tries to use Sanguine Sword, he finds his wounds deepening & those of the undead closing. The undead moves around him to try & attack again. The archer hits Sorrel with a much stronger arrow to the knee.*

"Undead, right, dark abilities won't work on them" Sorrel does his best to dodge that arrow shot.

"How you holding up holy knight?"

OOC: I feel ostensibly fucked at the moment.

Noctis shrugged, "Perhaps. The gospels, and stories seem to all blend together after a while."

--

"The slums, where armed riff raff are usually overlooked by the locals, and figured to be locals by outsiders," Zac suggested.

~Orbonne~

<They are all connected. Ajora was proclaimed a Child of the Gods when, shortly after his birth, he miraculously saved a town from a plagued well. From this, he gathered a following of disciples. His disciples would later gather the Holy Stones to banish a demon summoned by the King of Limberry, which was at the time a kingdom in its own right. Having sealed an evil that ended an entire nation, the Holy Ydoran Empire began to fear his influence, & sought to have him executed. Then his disciple Germonique betrayed him for money. When he was slain, the Cataclysm struck, destroying Mullonde & cleansing the world. Ajora descended to Heaven, but instructed his disciples in spirit to reform the world. Thus was born the Glabados Church, with first Knights Templar & High Confessor chosen from amongst the ranks of the disciples. Germonique would later hurl himself into the Burgross Sea, out of shame.>
=====================================
~Sal Ghidos~

L"That sounds depressing & not-at-all safe."

R"For a self-styled solo adventurer, you're not very...what's the word? Adventurous."
=====================================
~Fovoham~

*Lightning strikes the undead knight as he's dueling with the Northern Sky Knight.*

<I will have this half cleaned up in just a few minutes. The real concern is if they begin to raise themselves.>

~1~

OOC: Which is fine btb. If I can transfer stuff over to a new char should Sorrel kick it since he hasn't done anything truly relevant atm has he? Just saying that if you kill him I wouldn't have a hissy this time so long as I know ahead of time/really have no options left.

"Well that's the crux of the problem isn't it? Is there anyway to stop them from raising?" Sorrel prepares to block any incoming strikes.

"Do you think Ajora forgave Germonique?" Mortal asked.

--

"We could go to an inn, but that is like saying, 'Hey, look at us, we're new here. Authorities, come ask us about our past travels.'"

~Sal Ghidos~

R"Inns tend not to ask questions, as long as you're not interfering with their customers. Especially the ones in the slum. So, that will be an extra layer of security, if you're really concerned about that."

S"I could use some booze."

R"You're not getting any. I'm fully expecting you to dump it on someone's head & cast Fire."

S"Heheh...you can't beat the classics."
===================================
~Orbonne~

<I would imagine, but only the Gods know that.>
===================================
~Fovoham~

Holy Knight<Petrify them, I suppose. Eventually, they will crystallize. You just often have to put them down several times.>

OOC: Let's prolong this conversation indefinitely.

OOC: Prolong or postpone? They are two very different things.

"So kill them a whole bunch?" Sorrel lashes out at the nearest undead knight with a swift slash.

"What I meant was if anyone is looking for us they'd most likely start with the inns, but it is about high time for a warm bed, so I can't be too opposed to finding an inn."

~Fovoham~

<Or beat them all down, then flee before any of them can get back up.>

*The downed archer & knight both get back up, though they look a little worse for the wear. The Holy Knight immediately takes down the knight & the reawakened archer with another Divine Ruinition. The knight Sorrel attacks also dies.*

~3,3,3~
=================================
~Orbonne~

"The storm outside looks pretty bad. Could we perhaps stay the night here?"

<Certainly. You can use the lodgings I had prepared for the Princess.>

"Are...are you sure that's okay?!"

<She won't be using them.>
=====================================
~Sal Ghidos~

*And so they walk into the slums until they find an inn. On a building near the outside, Roatha stops to look at a poster.*

R"Oh, what is this bullshit?"

*The poster is of himself, with a description about how the son of a Corpse Brigade general has started a new order to get revenge.*

R"Why do I get the feeling your friend in the Southern Sky is behind this?"

L"He's not my friend."

"That sounds like an excellent idea. Perhaps we should find your severed thumb so a healer of some sort can reattach it?" Sorrel prepares to parry any incoming blows.

"Thank you," Mortal said.

--

"I'm not part of your order," Zac said, "For the record, I'm more following Lilith than I am you. She was the one with the actual mission."

~Sal Ghidos~

R"There is no Order. And if there is, I'm not part of it. I do solo work."

L"What, working with us doesn't count?"

R"No."
=================================
~Orbonne~

E"So Lady Ovelia, Lady Agrias, and this Alma person all stayed in the same room?"

<Yes. There will be a bed for each of you.>
================================
~Fovoham~

*The archer starts pulling on his bowstring. The Undead Knights opt to go around him & break the swords of the Northern Sky Knights.*