Complete Private Vintergard Team Time EX Attempts Parley

[Ash Vargold]

Ash Vargold @ Area chat

Something stinks in camp, but I don't think it's the Commander. We think the rot goes deeper than that.

Hanno, if you're out there, let's parley. The sooner this fighting stops, the better.

No matter how slim the chance was, Ash tried to hold on to the hope that someone out there would be willing to listen. There was too much at stake here.

He stood outside the tent, ears twisting as he listened and watched. Anxiety fluttered in his chest, that discordant beat that all the deep breathing in the world couldn't calm, enough to drive him into retreat, to drive him to log out entirely-

But someone had died. Others could too. And sunrise got closer with every minute, and with it, the possibility of another attack.

Hopefully he hadn't just driven them all from one jail to another. If a whole squadron of Lions approached, he wouldn't be able to fend them off, even if the others were in better shape. Not that he wanted a fight, but everyone was on edge as is, and who knew how easy it would be to tip over the edge...

"I hope this works..."

@Raid Boss @Rael @Luthien @Kyra Vashtana @Hanno Futaba @Hyakin Heliodoros

 

[Hanno Futaba]

It was very 'lucky' on Hanno's part to be in Vintergard when he received a message to reinforce Lion's mission of capturing a supposed commander that was sabotaging the camp. Surely, it was an unexpected outcome, but not as unexpected as many people supporting and defending the commander with their lives.

Either they were all part of a big conspiracy, or the commander was a puppet master using all of his underlings for his own objectives, or...

Hanno, if you're out there, let's parley. The sooner this fighting stops, the better.

His mana wings fluttered at the new unexpected outcome, but at the same time, he couldn't ignore the latter part of the message. The more time passed, the more the chances of players killing each other, and even worse... UI Locking, perma-killing each other, or even getting Landers dead.

Hanno Futaba ➤ @Ash Vargold

So you are in this as well, buddy?

Incoming.

Without wasting a second, Hanno tried to hurry to a good spot to meet Ash and whoever else that would be there, not even once considering the possibility of an ambush. He knew his friend wouldn't play dirty like that, at least not with him.

As soon as he managed to spot Ash, he would greet him. "Hey, seems like we always meet when things go very damn weird," Hanno said, half smirking, half seriously, with the latter growing bigger as he slowed down and crossed his arms.

"You said something about the rot going deeper. Are you telling us we are going after the wrong skunk?"

 

[Rael]

After the initial attack, Rael was hesitant to let a member of their team step outside the tent without company, practically inviting herself to his side without a second thought. Thanks to the healing and other magics worked on her by her companions, though her wounds had healed until her HP bar filled to the top, the pain and visibility of the attack she had suffered remained.

Mimicking the one beside her, she also pulled her UI.

Rael
PSA @ Her Contact List (@Hanno Futaba @Hyakin Heliodoros )

Please, please, please. If any of you have any connections to the Lions and are in the vicinity of Camp Hope, please let me know! Something very bad will happen if we don't stop this!

Attached to the message was an offer to receive the current coordinates of the group, sent to everyone Rael had met so far in the game, which wasn't much of a long list to begin with. She stood slightly behind the beastfolk, purposely obscuring herself from sight by any onlookers who might think twice to pay mind to the adventurers by the blown-up prison, face twisted in a faint grimace as his magic helped to ease the pain suffered from her wounds.

Her hand grasped lightly at the sleeve of Ash's coat, tugging at it some as the faerin's frame came into vision, then growing more forceful with the gesture as Hanno spoke. Rael stepped out from behind him, giving a little wave to the faerin before pulling her grimoire out and writing on its pages.

"[ That is, in fact, what we are saying. It's not the Commander, it's someone else. ]" She wrote, turning the book around for @Hanno Futaba to read. "[ He just tried to kill us. ]"

 

[Ash Vargold]

Ash couldn't help but smile as Hanno approached. It was a relief to see him, and to see him alone - hopefully something none of them would regret.

"I think this may be more 'dangerous' than weird, but it does seem that way, huh?"

Ash glanced Rael's way as she wrote a message for Hanno to read. That was... actually a smart idea. With all they'd learned of this "Vern" person and what he was capable of...

He opened up his palm menu. That status was still there, still unchanged - he shook his head, and sent an invite to Hanno.

Notice

Ash Vargold has sent you a party invite.

"There's been a lot of strange things happening in camp. We were supposed to go investigate a signal coming from Vintergard, but... well, things changed. It's a long story."

And at the same time, assuming Hanno accepted the friend invite, he sent a different message via text:

Ash Vargold @ Team Time EX

we might be watched. Not sure the sort of magic, but our whole party's "marked". the assassin can teleport through someone's eyes, or use them as a camera. I think party chat is safe.

It was difficult, keeping up two conversations at once. He was stressed and tired, after all, and it meant it took him longer to keep his thoughts straight. But his status was still the same, and that meant he was still at risk. Every measure counted.

"There's movement in Vintergard. The MIT apparently have the ability to predict magitech attacks, and there's been a lot of theorizing that they'll attack in the morning. In light of that, this whole 'commander is a traitor' business is incredibly convenient."

He bit his lip, and with his hands shaking, he tapped out another message.

Ash Vargold @ Team Time EX

someone was UI-locked

@Hanno Futaba @Rael

 

[Hanno Futaba]

It took a bit for Hanno to realize the blood on Ash's outfit, something that only caught his attention when Rael appeared, seemingly in an even worse condition. He had seen her message as well, that had a bit more of an urgent tone than his, but the fact now he could notice the two bleeding-

Why it was happening? It almost felt like they had just escaped a combat, even if the message has been a bit ago.

"Why are both of you--" His words were cut short by Rael's writing, making Hanno turn his face to read it carefully, with his eyes widening and his eyebrows furrowing, looking at the elf's eyes, then shifting to the beastfolk before he accepted the invitation.

"Long story, huh?" Hanno crossed his arms, looking at the two of them with concern, fluttering his mana wings to create a divine protective aura around them, trying to ward them from any outside effect.

Hanno Futaba ➤ Team Time EX

Marked? Who is this assassin, do you know who it is?

"An Magitech attack? That's no good. I should warn this to the Lions as well, if an attack comes in the middle of a conflict, nothing good will come out of it-" He tried to keep up the disguise, trying to not show too much on his face, in case someone was actually looking at them. However, Hanno couldn't help but clench his fist at the mention of someone being UI-Locked.

Hanno Futaba ➤ Team Time EX

Who was UI Locked? How are you so sure this assassin isn't just someone the commander is ordering to do the dirty work?

@Ash Vargold @Rael

 

[Siondhe]

Kyra Vashtana

220 / 220

Kyra had spent the last few minutes fawning over Rael, trying to view the girl's non-stop bleeding. The wound had failed to close over, even with Kyra having poured her Spirit magic into it, something that concerned the vulpine healer far more than she'd like to admit.

"Would you stay...stop...damn it woman, stop moving. It's hard enough to view a wound - I swear if you...I'm going to hit you."

She mutttered, both to herself and her patient, as she ducked around paper and pen, flailing arms, and obvious attempts to push her away. A growl growing in her throat as a soft hum, she pushed Rael's arms slightly out of the way, trying to see the wound on the girl without interference, when her eyes spotting the paper.

She quickly read the piece, noticing the message and wondering. It suddenly occurred to her that Rael's vocal cords may still be effected by the trauma that had taken away her voice - something that her magic may or may not have fixed.

"Hey Rael...you should try speaking again. The pain and damage should be gone. I think. I've never actually healed that sort of wound before."

A sudden click as she realised what the message had been talking about, and Kyra turned around to face Hanno - an individual that she hadn't seen in some time. Not since the summer at the lake, when they had first come into contact with one another.

"Oh, yeah. That guy just came out of nowhere, attacked us and then disappeared into my-"

A collection of yips and growls followed, as Ash's hand planted itself across Kyra's face, grasping lightly but stopping any further words from escaping. The man's face didn't even appear to have changed, an almost bored expression as he subdued the vulpine's voice.

@Rael | @Ash Vargold | @Hanno Futaba​

 

[Rael]

.

Rael redirected Hanno's attention to the most recent wound she had sustained but moments ago, the ethereal image of Ash's energy covering the wound to keep it from bleeding any further more prominent as she slowly, but surely, put the book down and touched her fingers to her torso. There, the fabric of her attire remained torn where it had been pierced by Vern's blade, mostly healed by the two beastfolks' efforts. It seemed as if it was reopening slowly, sudden bouts of movement eliciting a tiny hiss from her.

Rael
To: Team Time EX

Vern is the assassin's name. He said three things, and that we should find which two of them were true.

One, there was a prisoner here who had returned from a mission to Vintergard, and had been locked up so they wouldn't talk.

Two, the Commander was a traitor bought by Falderen nobility.

Three, a Magitech raid would happen at dawn.

Kyra's sudden addition to the conversation, and Ash's struggle to quieten the words that flowed freely from her mouth without any care for their current circumstances gave her reason to pause, allowing for the Faerin to digest the information that was being given to him. At Kyra's behest, she tried to form a word, the result being that of a raspy breath mixed in with a dull ache at her throat, quick to silence any other attempt.

She sidestepped around the pair, careful not to put too much distance between herself and those feeding magic into her body to keep it stable. With a hand, she gestured to the flaming tent behind them.

Rael
To: Team Time EX

We are at the remnants of the prison. One of the rumors was true, and he tried to kill us because we found out which one was the lie.

@Ash Vargold @Kyra Vashtana @Hanno Futaba​

 

[Ash Vargold]

Pap.

The motion to cover Kyra's mouth was nearly instinctual. He hadn't exactly known her long, but he knew that some people were just... like that.

"...sorry, Kyra."

Ash Vargold
To: Team Time EX

rael, since kyra doesn't use ui chat, would you be willing to use your book to give her the cliffnotes? I don't think her letter pile will be quick

It was fortunate that Ash knew how to type one handed. Mostly. It took some fumbling with the palm menu and his thumb, and it meant throwing things like punctuation and capitalization out the window. It'd be easier to talk about it, but... well.

"It was the talk of the camp, before all this happened - pretty much the only thing I heard people talking about."

Ash Vargold
To: Team Time EX

I wasn't there when the others talked to vern - I logged out for bio. still not sure if we can trust anything he said, but

Ash took a moment to close the palm menu to free up his hand. He could feel the spell covering Rael's wounds growing weaker, so he fed it more EN. Hopefully it would still hold...

Ash Vargold
To: Team Time EX

what I do know is that the same guy who told us the commander was a traitor and the assassin that has us marked are the same person

and that hte person who got uilocked wasn't involved with that at all. luth talked t him, but she was asking about something else we saw

He glanced to the others, and then back to Hanno.

"...and it didn't help when we participating in some kind of... scrying ritual, to investigate something that was on Rael's mind, and we saw... something. A magitech egg, and a magia with it."

He gestured to Rael, and then took his hand off Kyra's mouth to pull up one of his sleeves. Despite the healing done by the camp's medics, there were still some angry looking scars left by the early attack.

"And then she saw us back, called us 'saviors', and attacked us all right through the astral plane. Didn't tell people what happened, but the attack became the talk of the town, after that."

Ash Vargold
To: Team Time EX

and that's when vern marked us. before we even knew he existed, or we heard anything about traitors at all

@Rael @Kyra Vashtana @Hanno Futaba

 

[Hanno Futaba]

Hanno shifted a glance at the purple-haired beastfolk, raising an eyebrow when Ash decided to cut her words short and then turning to face Rael and the explanation that came with her message. There was a frown, but he continued to listen and read patiently.

"And there are signs of this potential, larger scale, attack?" Hanno asked, and his left hand continued to work on the written messages.

Hanno Futaba ➤ Team Time EX

I can't understand. Why the assassin would give you such an obvious hint about the truths they are trying to hide, and at the same time, they try to kill you when you find out? They are playing a game? Overconfidence?

Hanno didn't understand, all he knew was that this story was turning more and more suspicious at every word that reached his eyes and ears.

"A magitech egg... Do you mean it was a device? Or an actual egg?" He questioned, intrigued at the new information while his eyes brimmed, peering at the wounds that were showing on them. The results of the investigation weren't that exciting, and he turned his eyes to look at the three of them.

Hanno Futaba ➤ Team Time EX

My Investigation mode doesn't show any sign of marks in these wounds that are so tough to close. Is it something you can see in your party list?

@Ash Vargold @Kyra Vashtana @Rael

 

[Rael]

.

At Ash's request, he'd turn away from the two of them and to Kyra instead, briefly pressing a finger to her own lips as she came close, a signal for the woman to keep to herself for the time being. It was not only their well-being that depended on this conversation, after all, but that of many other players who had been brought to Camp Hope.

As beastfolk and Faerin engaged in further conversation, Rael would write a summary of what was, and what already had been, discussed amongst the party, relaying it back to Kyra by turning the pages of her book towards her.

He'd let the two of them answer for Hanno's concerns with their voice, the duality of the present conversation somewhat confusing for one who wasn't paying as much attention to it, instead limiting herself to answering the queries brought to them through their UI.

Rael found it increasingly difficult not to show the slight measures of frustration pulling at her features, fearing with every question thrown their way that the Faerin might not be the answer to their problems, perhaps a draft for a message to the Area chat would suffice as a desperate countermeasure.

For now...

Rael
To: Team Time EX

Because we weren't supposed to be here. We should've left with all the others who came to bring His Majesty back, but we stayed, started talking, and started going around.

Think about it. If you were trying to do something, alone, and a group of people unknowingly messed with your efforts... To fight them all at once would put you at an obvious disadvantage, and expose you.

Trick them, however, with a promise to reveal the dangers ahead and they'll busy themselves trying to prove which is true and which is false, leaving you time to work. He wanted to kill us because we found out, and it'd jeopardize his plan.

@Ash Vargold @Kyra Vashtana @Hanno Futaba​

 

[Ash Vargold]

Ash Vargold
To: Team Time EX

the 'mark' is a debuff. "Marked: You have been seen (???)"

for the others, it's become a timer. he can use it once on a person, and then it's got a long cooldown. at the moment, Meriam and myself are the only ones that Vern hasn't 'used'. thus the two conversation nonsense.

Ash looked away from his UI - this dual conversation was getting rougher as his anxiety climbed. He put a hand on his chest, taking a moment to breathe to slow the stutter, then covered up his wounds once more.

Amazing how one could be surrounded by allies and still feel alone....

"It was like... an egg, but made of magitech," he said, vaguely waving a hand as if trying to outline it. "Maybe some kind of incubation chamber. and whatever attacked us on the other ende wanted us to go there. It imitated Astor's emergency ping. If it weren't for Rael's investigations, we might have walked right up to it."

Ash Vargold
To: Team Time EX

and Vern saw this too. had the same wounds. we thought the debuff came from the magia, but we know better now. he's interested in that egg - and doesn't want the word getting out

Ash crossed his arms. Was there anything else worth conveying in either stream of conversation? Hanno, for all his friendliness, was hard to read. And Ash had already learned that while he was apparently excellent in a shit-talking contest, trying to persuade people was not his forte.

"...between that egg, all the Falderen nobles hanging around here, the sudden appearance of all this evidence at once, and the fact that Astorea's king is supposed to be coming here..." He tilted his head, glancing towards the bulk of the Dragonship. "...it looks like this place has been a powder keg for a while, and now someone's lit the fuse."

"...the MIT tracks the movements of the machines in the city. For all their complexity and mystery, they're still computers - and computers aren't random. The MIT is... a little eccentric, they know what they're doing." Ash exhaled and turned back to Hanno with a serious look. "We shouldn't be fighting each other like we've all caught Red Fever - we should be working together to prepare for the attack they've predicted."

He hesitated, then broke the serious look to look away, fingers tapping anxiously along his upper arm"...though at this rate, we'll be at Camp Hope V before we see a single Sentinel."

@Hanno Futaba @Kyra Vashtana @Rael

 

[Hanno Futaba]

Hanno continued to listen to the words and concerns the group shared. He crossed his arms, nodding quietly. "Astor's? So it was a damn bait, huh?" He said, out loudly referring to the egg situation, but also peeking at Rael as an indirect acknowledgment of her suggestion. "Magitech eggs. I've never heard of robots making children. Even less of robots that mimic mammals having eggs." Hanno frowned.

Hanno Futaba ➤ Team Time EX

Whatever this egg is, and whatever this Vern is trying to do with it and this debuff and trick games Rael is talking about, I doubt we will figure anything out by just talking in here.

"It was the old capital, after all," Hanno said, looking at Ash and following the gaze to the Dragonship. "At some point, that thing needed to show its true colors too... Hell man, you are always where the trouble is in." He squinted at the beastfolk. "And you have been in trouble since you logged in." Hanno peeked at Rael, shaking his head.

"I have a vague idea of what is going on now... And I suppose you don't want to follow me to the Lions, yeah?" Hanno said, turning his back to start moving. "If you want, feel free to come. If not... Well..." He side glanced.

"Stay safe, and don't make this face..."

Hanno Futaba ➤ Team Time EX

Because everything will be alright.

Hanno tapped his UI off and began walking away, a bit hurriedly.

@Ash Vargold @Kyra Vashtana @Rael

---

Returning to the Lions, Hanno tried to catch Levi's (@Asch) attention. "Lord Commander!" He called, finally halting his steps whenever he managed to reach for him.

Taking a moment to recover his breath, he began: "I have some news. Two of my friends got in contact with me, and they had a few things to tell about the commander and the current situation of the Camp." He said, following to explain and detail everything he was told regarding Vern, the marks, the Magia Egg, the potential incoming attack, and the concerns shared by them.

"... This said... If I am to be honest, I have no reasons to think they are lying... Rael has just joined this game, I was the one who saved her when she logged in, so I doubt she would have any reasons to lie to me, or to be loyal enough to a commander to lie for him... As for Ash, he fought with us in many occasions already, for the greater good too." Hanno said, frowning.

"And even if the commander is a traitor, and my friends are being tricked somehow, we can't afford to risk an arrest that could even be interrupted by an attack in the camps."

 

[Raid Boss]

@Hanno Futaba - You caught Levi at a rather opportune time, the redhead was halfway through his dawn coffee, which scent wafted the Lion's operating tent at the outskirts of the Camp. As he usually does, Levi set his smoking cup down on a saucer and retrieved his stack of primitively-bound paper, and began inking down everything you told him, occasionally glancing up at you and giving an affirmative nod to indicate he was listening.

"Mmm... this is rather... messy, huh? There isn't a single piece of evidence from your friends, though disregarding their words as mere hearsay isn't an option either. If there truly is an attack mounted on the camp, then we definitely can't break ranks, or we're done for..." Levi remarked as he leaned back and crossed his legs. His foot bobbed up and down as he reflected on everything he had heard.

When Levi put his foot down and stood up from his chair, he walked past Hanno toward the tent's entrance, "Alright, I'll take your words for it, Hanno. Let's see if we can negotiate a non-restraining camp arrest just in case the camp gets attacked. There's always time to sort it out afterward."

To the other Lions at the ready, Levi gave a firm command as he adjusted his cape, "Greet the sun, Lions, we're heading out."

[ To be continued... ]​