Fire Emblem: A Quest for Glory

He nodded cautiously. In all honesty he had little issue with the warlord, and would definitely not complain about another war. More violence, more employment. His rise to power and filled Alexander's belly many nights. Alexander knew he shouldn't be so cavalier about war and death but he didn't for some reason. What separated professional killers like him from the masses, he supposed. The thought of that huge disconnect between him and "normal" people concerned Alexander more than the prospect of another war.

"And when he makes his move? You'll fight against him? And against Plegia?"

Tycho

A valid question, one that he had spent several sleepless nights trying to answer. Back when he fought for the valmese it had been easier, as he was fighting to free them from the grip of Grima and the grimleal. Now he would be fighting them because of a madman, one who many agreed with in regards to revenge against Regna Ferox and Ylisse. Still, it was better to fight for peace than to march for endless conflict.

"When he makes his move we will make ours. It isn't Plegia we're fighting, it's him and the die hard loyalists who want the conflict that want to fight for the sake of it. Our nation should have had its fill of revenge when Gangrel had us march, yet here we are on the verge of starting another war on the orders of a man who wants conflict for no other reason than to sate his own blood lust."

Esria
She lsitened to their conversation with interest. A Warlord with plans to cause mroe chaos? Hmm...interesting indeed." It is indeed brave that you fled. Some might have hunted you down for fleeing...or resisting." She noted, smiling."Still...perhaps you will get your chance to change things one day." She said. "And yes...sometimes the only way to end war...is to fight. it is unavoidable in soem cases..."

Lucas

"ah, he was going at top speed? So exciting!" as he said that his face beamed with excitement. He has only read about such creatures and now he is traveling with a wyvern rider and an actual manakete. "Oh if you don't mind me asking what made you want to become a tactician?"

Kept silent for a moment. There was little he thought he could say to the man. He had committed to a cause, not unlike Archron, but unlike the inexperienced Lord he seemed to grasp the reality of the situation through and through. The cause seemed fairly hopeless to Alexander, the warlord's grip on Plegia was incredibly tight, but he didn't have the heart to say as much the tired looking countryman before him.

"Well, I wish you luck when that day comes."

The Manakete then interjected, speaking about the inevitability of conflict. Alexander certainly wouldn't argue with that sentiment.

Tycho

He couldn't help but shake his head at Esria's words. She had no idea just how right she was. "Oh he's been hunting us, the man isn't about to let the one group that could retaliate faster than either of the kingdoms get away so easily. Besides, if he wants to make the first move uninterrupted, he's got to eliminate us first. The leadership thinks he has been using bandits to do most of his dirty work, but we're still not quite sure."

Leon

While he could understand Lucas' fascination with flying, he felt sorry for him. He had no idea just how fast a wyvern could go if it was putting its whole weight into flying. "It's always been a dream of mine I suppose. Most young boys dream of being legendary warriors when they're young, I dreamed of being a tactician."

Archron

The young lord laughed at Leon's statement when he arrived.

"I would recommend it, but I owe you an apology as well. I forgot to make sure you were with us when we left. So, I suppose we can both learn how to better perform in our positions together, eh?"

In the coming minutes, Archron listened to each of the conversations. This Wyvern rider seemed to have some interesting thoughts about the Plegian warlord. Would he really strike against Ylisse? It would be in line with that nation's previous actions....

But that was his father's business, not his, until a war actually started. He was no diplomat. He was merely a warrior at this point. Speaking of which, they had spent enough time here.

"We still have a long road ahead of us, so let's try and make it before nightfall!"

Esria
She nodded."Right, lets get to it." She said, walking again. "I would prefer to get there and be gone in case those men show up again." She said, frowning slightly

Archron

The young lord waited until his men were finished talking before turning to the road ahead. His first job. It was actually quite exciting, though he wouldn't show that in front of his men.

Shortly before nightfall, the old fort came into view. It was decaying, and it would be better described as ruins. Still, the intact sections were stable enough to be safe. Archron turned to his men and called out.

"Alright men, we're here! I assume we will be staying the night, so prepare to sleep inside of the ruins! If you need to set up, do so now. Esria, shall we go ahead and gather your stuff?"

Tycho & Leon

The moment the fort came into view, Tycho knew Drasil would be thinking about where he would be sleeping. It was rare that they were given this kind of freedom in a place where Drasil could truly roost, if only for a short time, and Tycho never denied him that pleasure. He let out an amused sigh mixed with a short laugh when he felt Drasil squirm beneath him, dismounting and removing the various bags he saddled the wyvern with. "Just make sure you find a stable spot," was all he needed to say before he the wyvern took off, looking for a spot to rest.

Leon on the other hand was already trying to formulate strategies regarding how they would defend this place if the men chasing Esria did indeed find them here. They could possibly use the ruin itself against them if large enough sections were unstable, the high ground would be good for Lucas to rain down spells on their attackers, although the tight quarters might be a double edged sword. So many possibilities.

Esria
She nodded and walked into the ruins, only to see that it had been used recently. She frowned. "This was used recently." She said, nodding to a recent burned out campfire. "Interesting..." She said, and began poking about, curious. Who had these occupants been...were they coming back?

"Lovely." He muttered, when he saw the state of the manor. In his mind the Manakete's home had been a bit less destroyed. Hopefully the skies would at least stay clear.

He followed Esria into the building, assuming she would lead them to whatever part of the manor still had a functioning roof.

When Alexander saw the smoldering campfire, he yanked his sword from its sheath. The flame was well out, and odds were that anyone who had set it would have moved on, but he'd rather be safe than sorry.

Archron

The young lord nodded and examined the campfire. It hasn't been long since it was used. So who had been here? Hopefully just some travelers seeking shelter. Still, just to be safe, Archron called out to his men.

"Everyone keep your weapons close at hand! We don't know who might be in this area!"

Turning to Esria, he expressed another concern.

"So, is all of your stuff here?"

Tycho & Leon

He tightened his grip on his axe when he saw the extinguished camp fire. The possibility crossed his mind that it could have just belonged to travelers looking for a place to stay for a short time, but the likelihood of that actually being the case and the fact that Esria had people hunting her down pointed more towards her hunters. "Drasil!" he barked, wanting to get his wyvern back here before he ran into something beyond his capabilities. These men were after Esria were hunting a manakete, they were bound to have at least one wyrmslayer with them, and if they had been here, they were a major threat to Drasil.

The tactician joined Achron in investigating the campfire. It wasn't that old, so he doubted whoever was here before had gotten that far. "We might want to hold off on setting up camp until we're sure whoever is here with us isn't a threat," he suggested to Sebastian. He then turned to Achron, "should we search the area? I doubt whoever set this up would have gotten far judging by how state of this fire and the surrounding area."

Esria
She shrugged."No...but some of their stuff is still here..." She said pointing to a pile of supplies she had discovered behind a somewhat collapsed wall."Perhaps they willl be returning?" She asked, frowning slightly.

Lucas

He went off on his own to look around but made sure he stayed within viewing distances so the others can see him. He kept a tight grip on his tome in case the ones that was here earlier weren't friendly.

Farore
She had finishd scouting for food and decided to head back to the ruins and wait on the others. She hoped that her son was safe and staying out of trouble back at the village while she was gone. On her way back she hear talking coming from the direction of the ruins but the voices didn't sound familiar. Not wanting to take the chances of getting in a fight barely arm, she hid behind a near by tree hoping she could continue to listen in without being noticed. Maybe even sneak up and pickpocket a few of them.

Esria
She huffed."Obviously not, else i would have an idea of who to expect...or at least, what the individuals would look like..." She sighed."Just be wary...thsoe bandits are a persistent bunch." She said ,frowning.

Erik and Auria
Erik grunted in annoyance, as they came up to a hill overlooking the old crumbling Fortress."That's just great...thats our food, most of our spare weapons..."He said, eyeing the group that had taken up residence there.
Auria frowned, shushing her pegasus, which have her an annoyed look in reply."So what now?Do we wait for them to leave? Are they friendly...?

Erik shook his heads."One of two look like nobles and several others look like a mix of soldiers and mercs. and that woman there, the one with the violet hair...she looks like a mage of some sort..." he said. "What a strange looking group, almost like misfits..."

Alexander sifted through the abandoned supplies, a few weapons, some food, none of it particularly good quality. He shook his head. "If these are bandits they're not very good at it. No spoils, not even trinkets really, just second rate supplies. Hell, I could afford most of this. We should still stay on out guard, but after what we faced in the town I can't imagine whoever left this hear being much of a threat." The myrmidon said confidently.

Archron

"Well, if they aren't bandits, then we have no reason to continue disturbing their belongings."

He stated, nodding to Alexander.

"If none of Miss Esria's items are missing, then I believe we should be able to simply leave here in the morning, should the campers not return. And if they do, we shall learn whether or not they're friendly. I'll take first watch, and we can switch out every, say, hour and a half. Alexander, you're after me, then Tycho, Leon, Lucas, Esria, and finally Sebastian. Any objections?"

Tycho & Leon

"Something tells me that if you can afford this then we aren't exactly dealing with bandits then," Leon noted, looking over Alexander's shoulder at the supplies of the previous occupants. "If it was indeed bandits who were here, I doubt we have much to fear from them then. Still, whether they are bandits or not, we shouldn't underestimate them."

While all this was going on, Drasil finally found the little group, although the moment he caught the scent he was more wary than anyone there. Tycho noticed this and began trying to coax his wyvern down. "Whoever they are, they can't have been gone too long, Drasil's never like this unless the scent is at least somewhat fresh," he said as the wyvern slowly began coming closer to the ground now. "And if we're going to go with that schedule, you better get your sleep while you can partner," the wyvern just curled up in response as he began to finally set his bags aside.

He bristled a bit at the Lord's rebuke, and went so far as to open his mouth about it, but quickly reigned himself in. If he was going to lose it every time he was spoken down to he wouldn't last another day on this job.

The sentry system would work well enough. The manor commanded the area enough that they wouldn't need everyone alert. Alexander himself would have done it two by two, since he couldn't completely vouch for any of his new companions competency or trustworthiness yet, but he had gathered at this point that Archron was running a more trusting ship. Luckily, Alexander was a light sleeper.

"Alright, just wake me up when its my turn." With that spread his cloak on the ground and stretched out, hoping to snatch some sleep before his watch.