"
Hmm. Rather quiet bunch, now that you're all together. Well, I'm sure you'll get to know each other well enough in short order; fire-forged friends, as they say. Just remember, you're working together on this mission, and there will be no collecting a dead comrade's pay." Awkward silence falls over the cart again.
You arrive at the base of the hill mercifully soon, and follow Olan into the trees. He approaches the small hill, and as you draw near to it, you see a female figure, wearing a hooded robe, lying on her belly with a spyglass to her eyes and a piece of parchment next to her, with a faintly-glowing rune upon it. She appears to be staring intently at the dirt right in front of her, and the paper is weighed down with a small rock. Olan crouches and taps her gently on the shoulder; she responds without so much as glancing at him.
"
More of them showed up to guard the door. Two keep watch outside, and three more wait just inside the door. A Templar and his two lackeys showed up a couple days ago, too; they've not been outside since. Looks like we're using your contingency plan."
"
Damn. I'd hoped to go with the merc-" He glances back at you for a moment, an apologetic frown on his face. "
...With the adventurers, but if the door is guarded, I guess it's up to me to draw them off." Olan stands up and faces you. "
Let me fill you in. The monastery has only one entrance, the front door. My assistant here, Balmafula, has been keeping watch over the monastery for a few days now, tallying who goes in and out. When I put up the job posting, I expected getting into the monastery would be the easy part. For you, at least, that is still the case. Since I'm still a wanted 'heretic', I'll simply walk up to the door, announce myself, and draw them off; they won't be able to resist giving chase. And I've some tricks up my sleeve to make sure none of the door guards stick around. As for your part...
Once I've drawn the guards off, Balmafula will escort the six of you into the monastery and down into the library. Normally, the library is deserted, but with a Templar present, there's no knowing if he's in the monastery proper, or the library beneath it. So keep your wits about you, and keep quiet.
On the lowest level of the library is a... a summoning circle, of sorts. But it can be used to... uh, to reverse-summon..."
Balmufula snorts and interrupts him. "
It's a two-way teleporting circle, and it's guarded by a barrier. I can lower the barrier for you, but I won't be able to follow you through."
Olan regains his composure. "
Right. We'll provide you with some scrolls to activate the teleporter. Now, the receiving end was apparently destroyed; it's going to try to teleport you somewhere fifty feet above solid ground. So we've modified the scrolls to move you a few feet to the side, where there's a staircase, but you'll need to go through one at a time. The return scrolls are adjusted to place you just outside the barrier, so you needn't wait for us to let you out.
Once you're on the other side of the circle... well, to be honest I don't know what you'll find. But my father went through there, and hasn't been seen since. I want to know why. If you can find him, or tell me why he's... why he hasn't..." Olan stops talking to take a couple deep breaths. Balmufula spares him one glance, then turns back to her spyglass. Her face is hard to read in the second you can see it; it's hard to tell if she's feeling compassionate or cold. Olan steadies himself and continues. "
I need to know how he died, and why. Why Ramza Beoulve, and the others... Why they're gone. I can't reasonably expect you to divine every single detail, or fill in the whole story on your own, but... Spend a day down there, look around. When you come back, if you can tell me anything new, you'll have earned your pay." He hands you a knapsack with some supplies in it: a few weapons, some camping supplies, some rope, several days worth of food, and a few potions. "
It will be hard to turn back once you're inside, and after I've shown my face around here, getting back in later will be difficult. So be sure you're ready before you go. Any questions?"
"
Did you tell them about the reputation thing?"
"
Oh, yes. That. If you are caught- or even seen- inside that monastery, the Church of Glabados will likely brand you 'heretic' like me. That's why you're being paid better than most assassins. Any other questions?"
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Topic: Final Fantasy Tactics on the Forums: Back to the Roleplaying (Read 6252 times)