The Valiant

~Lake Poescas~

*Roatha invisibly strikes the archer and Lilith takes him down by blasting both him and the knight with Sanguine Blossom. Alph is much farther away than that, and Zac instead counters the Baron at the edge of the bridge.*

Baron<And where do you think you're going?>

*The other archer retreats after Alph blasts him with lightning, but not before firing an arrow at him. He does not get far before Seraph hits him with a second blast, critically wounding him. The other knight joins his fellow and uses a burst of blue/green energy to make his arms move again*

~3,1,1,0,0~
==================================
~Dorter~

*Euryale could not sleep the rest of the night, so just before dawn, she got a drink for the road and set out for the shops.*

Zac tries to slip past the Baron, using Plunder Weapon as he does, trying to nab that bitchin' spear.

--

Mortal spent the night weeping about her failures to Noctis who, particularly needing Mortal's love life to flourish so HER'S could flourish, did her best to soothe the sad dragon lady. In the end, Noct got Mortal to feel a bit better, and got her to try and talk with Euryale again about how she felt.

~Lake Poescas~

*The Baron blocks the way with his girth & jerks his spear out of the way before raising both weapons & slamming them down in front of him. He only scratches Zac, but a pillar of white energy and bursts of flame erupt from the point of impact.*

L"Rain of Wisdom!"

*After Lilith heals herself, the formerly disabled Knight is invisibly slashed. The new Knight then releases a burst of blue light to heal them both. Unable to do anything about Roatha, they begin advancing on Lilith's hiding place. Far outside of anyone's reach, the Time Mage and the Samurai turn to crystal. The woman archer snatches up what used to be the Samurai, fully healing himself.*

~2, 0, 0~
==================================
~Dorter~

*Euryale is standing in front of a shelf of perfumes. People are looking at her down their noses, but if she notices, she pays no attention.*

E"What do you get for the girl who has everything? She already has this one, and the rest don't seem as good."

*She then moves to a shelf containing female busts (grow up) wearing various headpieces. Her face lights up & she snatches one before rushing to the counter.*

Mortal wipes her still red eyes as she heads towards the door, "Thank you Noctis..."

Noct only smiled warmly, "It is alright. Now, remember, she is probably just as confused about her feelings as you were. Just give her time, and talk to her about it. I'm sure this will end wonderfully for the both of us."

"Don't you mean 'the both of you', as in, Euryale and myself?"

"Yea, sure I do."

--

Zac splits the damage with the Baron, then tries for an arm shot.

~Lake Poescas~

*Lilith swings, sending evil ghosts at the knights as she backs up. Unfortunately, the archer reverts to a crystal, and one of the knights is fully healed. Roatha attacks the other one from the back, & is hit with a counterattack. The Baron stabs Zac and hits him with a flaming mace.*

Baron<One more should do it.>

*The Baron is blasted back by a burst of white light after Alph swings his sword.*
=================================
~Dorter~

*Euryale enters the tavern and excitedly orders breakfast for five. She then takes a at the table, hiding her purchase behind her back.*

Noct and Mortal walk downstairs first. Noct smiled a bit when she saw Euryale, Mortal tried, but wound up blushing, and looking downward. Noct patted Mortal on the back, pushing Mortal a bit ahead as they walked towards the table. Both sat down, "Good morning Euryale, you seem in good spirits today," Noct saie, smiling.

"Hello, Euryale..." Mortal managed, "Did you sleep well?"

--

Zac used Plunder Weapon.

~Dorter~

*Euryale's smile droops a bit, but she forces it back. Overall, she looks slightly scared.*

E"Well...not really. But maybe today will be better, right?"
============================
~Lake Poescas~

*The Baron, of course, sees him coming & smashes him with a mace. A blaze of fire briefly covers his body as he collapses to the ground. Seraph walks up & kicks him over.*

S"Pathetic. And they say I'm crazy."

*He then drops a Phoenix Down on Zac. Roatha dodges an attack by one of the knights and delivers two retaliating slashes. Lilith then attacks with more ghosts. With the Monk-Knight down, the other Knight stabs Roatha, critically wounding him before making a run for whence he came. By contrast, the woman archer begins to march back up to the fort.*

"Maybe..."

Noct kind of nudged Mortal from underneath the table.

"I'm, um... sorry for my forwardness last night," Mortal said.

--

Zac stood up and cracked his neck, "Thanks, but there is no need to waste a phoenix down on me. I'll never stay down for too long." With that he empties a barrage into the Baron.

~Dorter~

E"Don't be ridiculous, I'm the one who pressed you to tell me. And I...well, uh...here."

*She pulls a hair ribbon from behind her back, holding it out to Mortal.*

E"I...didn't know what color to get. I wasn't sure what went with your hair, so I thought about what kind of dragon you are but I didn't know that either, so I went with blue, like your eyes. I hope that's okay."
===============================
~Lake Poescas~

S"I needed a meat shield."

*The Baron staggers back from the bullets. Lilith jumps down, taking down the remaining knight with a Sanguine Blossom. Roatha stabs him from behind and Seraph is shot in the shoulder. The Baron huffs, his stat boosts having worn off.*

Baron<How is this happening?! I had better equipment! More numbers!How can I have nothing left? Where did I go wrong?!>

*In a frenzy, he blindly swings his mace at Roatha and jabs at Zac before realizing the latter is nowhere near him.*

Mortal smiled, and felt a rush of feelings, but didn't quite know what to read into the gesture. Was it an apology, or was Euryale trying to tell Mortal something? Mortal let out a sigh, and smiled again, realizing that she stopped at some point when she was lost in though. Deciding to just accept it as a kind gesture, Mortal tied the ribbon in her hair and said, "Thank you, Euryale. It is beautiful. I love y- it."

Even Noct couldn't help but feel warm and giddy looking at Mortal awkwardly accept Euryale's awkwardly given gift.

--

Zac tries another plunder weapon on the Baron, really wanting that fucking spear.

~Dorter~

*Euryale frowns.*

E"I'm glad you like it, but...I hope your feelings about me haven't changed because of...how I acted."
===================================
~Lake Poescas~

*The Baron grips the spear in both hands, wrestling with Zac to try & keep him from taking it. While he's doing that, Seraph casually blows the archer away with a wave of his hand and a massive ball of fire from the sky.*

Baron<Mine!>

"They have not," Mortal said, a bit unsure of how to proceed, "I'm not sure if they ever will."

Noct felt like a fly on the wall, witnessing the birth of something beautiful, though she was probably biased on that.

"I'm just disappointed that my feelings are unrequited. It hurts to know that."

Noct frowned, this took a sudden nose dive.

--

Zac struggles back, trying to get the spear, "Dammit, you're going to die anyway, just hand it over!"

~Dorter~

E"I...honestly don't know how I feel. I've felt attracted to men before, and sometimes I sort of feel like that with you. But how can that be?"
=======================================
~Lake Poescas~

*He lets go of the spear and raises his mace.*

Baron<Take it! If I kill one of you, I can still get away!>

*A bright orange spike suddenly forms beneath him, impaling him just below the chest. When it vanishes, he sinks to his knees, coughing and sputtering up blood.*

Baron<Defeated not once but twice...who...what ARE you?>

Zac beamed, looking at his new weapon, then back at the Baron, "What are we? I don't really know to be honest, though I guess we're just regular people."

--

"A female being attracted to a female isn't an abnormal thing, Euryale," Noct said, "It isn't unheard of, and it isn't strange. If you're attracted to Mortal, perhaps you should explore your feelings, and simply listen to what your heart tells you."

Mortal felt as hopeful as ever, which was to say not very hopeful at all.

~Lake Poescas~

Baron<I...believe we went about this all wrong. If you spare me, I'll make you all Blackram Knights. You could be leaders of knights, great heroes.>

*Alph walks up while he's giving this speech before raising his blade & calmly stabbing the Baron in the back. Lilith & Roatha stare at him in shock while Seraph just looks bored. Alph then wrenches the sword out and tosses it off of the tomb.*

Alph<I have seen the so-called heroics of the Knightly Orders. I am not impressed.>

R"I--ahh--don't think he can hear you any more."

Alph<Nevertheless, the message was loud & clear.>
=======================================
~Dorter~

E"...It isn't? Well, actually...my heart has been telling me that I should go back home. But...I was hoping you might come with me?"

"I would like that," Mortal said, "But I'm not sure if it is smart to leave everyone else just yet. There an assassin on the loose."

--

Zac holstered his pistol, and twirled his new spear for a bit before resting the weapon on his shoulder and looking around, "So, Alph, why exactly did you help us out? If you don't mind my prying, of course."

~Lake Poescas~

Alph<Larg and Goltanna, the church, the crown, all of them are swept up in a mighty current they can neither see nor feel. I simply swim against it.>

S"Not likely."

*Seraph sits on the end of the bridge, kicking the air.*

The battle is won:

==================================
~Dorter~

E"The more the merrier! It's just that, what you said last night...it made me feel like I've been taking my family for granted. I haven't been back to see them for...it must be 7 years now. At least."

"You can't swim forever though," Zac said, "Sooner or later you're going to get dragged into that current as well, I fear all of Ivalice will."

--

"I'm sure they miss you then," Noct said, speaking up.

At that Iliad and Sab both come downstairs and notice the others at the table, each taking a seat at the table. Iliad next to Noct, and Sab between her and Mortal.

"Good morning everyone," Iliad said.

~Lake Poescas~

*Alph pulls a necklace out of her pocket.*

Alph<You could say that. I must go now. I have an appointment with Goltanna about a Princess.>
================================
~Dorter~

E"I miss them too...."

*She turns to Illiad when he shows up.*

E"Good morning. So, I was thinking maybe we should stop at Lesalia for a bit. And then maybe...keep going?"

Iliad looked confused, "Uh, alright. What about the plan with the celebrant at Mullonde?"

--

"Wait, who are you?" Zac asked, slightly shocked that this random guy had dealings with Goltanna directly.

~Dorter~

E"Oh, right, him...can't we just send him a letter, or something?"
=================================
~Lake Poescas~

Alph<Never mind that. We'll be in touch.>

*He removes a certificate from his pocket and hands it to Lilith.*

L"It says that I was falsely labeled a traitor. It has the Baron's seal and signature. How did you...hey, don't go!>

R"Forget him. Who the Hell is that?"

*Standing at the base of the tomb, inspecting the eye drawn on it, is a man in a cloak and an executioner's hood, an ornate golden "Y" acting as the clasp of his cape. He looks up to see that people are staring at him & teleports away.*

"I don't know, can we?" Iliad asked, "This is your contact." He looked at Mortal, who simply shrugged in answer.

--

"Alright, I'm lost," Zac said, "What is going on right now? Who was that, and how did that other guy know who you are?"

~Lake Poescas~

L"What makes you think I know?"

S"What, you think a powerful Holy Knight just happened to be in the area and just happened to want to help for no reason? Fools."
================================
~Dorter~

E"Besides, this guy won't expect us to be up north."

"Aren't you the one who is all 'there is no reason to anything, everything is chaos'?" Zac replied.

--

"Uh, alright then..." Iliad looked a bit confused still, "So, who are we addressing the letter to again?"

~Lake Poescas~

S"YOU people BELIEVE you can control the world. You think you can predict, and make logical plans. Only I 'help' people without thinking about what's in it for me. If you can call what I do helping."
==================================
~Dorter~

E"I...guess something like, 'the Celebrant Mortal spoke to.' He didn't give us a name, but if he told Mortal to get in touch with him, he'll probably be on the lookout for some kind of message."