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[USEC_OFFICER]

Abena grumbles to herself underneath her breath as she trudges towards the address listed on the flyer. Normally she wouldn't pay attention to such an unusual message but she was rather desperate at the moment and could use the money. Peace had broken out before she could find a replacement mount and so she was stuck on foot for the foreseeable future. Hardly a pleasant prospect when she was wearing so much armour. What savings she had were steadily being worn down as she wandered from town to town, picking up whatever jobs she could and all the time waiting for a war to break out. It was a situation she had experienced many times before, but that didn't mean that she liked it.

Despite the fact that she was quite late in arriving, Abena was vaguely hopeful that she would be hired. The flyers could not have been out for long and her prospective employer would surely wait a few days before setting out for this castle. Given her experience and equipment she had no doubts she would be hired, though Abena still approached the villa's gate warily. Though quite modest and respectable, the place still spoke of its owner's wealth and respectability. Abena only visited these places bearing fire and sword and thus had no clue what she was supposed to do to announce her presence. Just barging in or shouting for attention would be rude but she wasn't going to stay out all night in the hopes that someone would notice her in the morning. The mercenary's mind was a jumble of confused thoughts as she slowly trudged up the path, eyes fixed firmly on her goal. She'll deal with her problems one step at a time, like she always does.

[UXLZ]

As Abena approaches the manor, a somber looking man opens the door and steps out. He quietly informs her that she had arrived too late for the main explanation and would have to ask her fellows or the Lady - who had retired for the night but was still available - about what she had missed. She is also told that they are leaving at dawn tomorrow morning, and an early night's rest was recommended. Food - albeit cold - was available inside.

[UXLZ]

As the sun finishes setting and day turns to night, most of you are guided to your assigned chambers by Sebastian, where you experience a peaceful slumber - or perhaps it is marred by fretful dreams, an uncertain future looming ahead of you, just around the corner.

~~~Time Passes~~~

Three days hence, you arrive at the village your Lady had spoken of - Landoww. The trip had been relatively uneventful, save the first night where wolves had been heard howling in the distance, and you had been able to get to know one other somewhat better. Upon arriving, however, you notice that the village appears practically deserted and you can hear yelling in the distance. Upon reaching the central plaza, the source is made clear. A sizeable mob - probably most of the town's population - almost all of them arguing and talking over each other. You catch snippets here and there.



"That was two nights ago, we can't wait any longer! She must have been taken by the ruffians holed up in that old castle."
"We all share your concern, but what if we're wrong? We can't afford to provoke bloodshed over nothing..."
"Who cares? We all knew it was only a matter of time until they did something like-"
"Where is that place's lord? Is it not the lord's duty to take care of these things?
"Nobody knows. We sent a message, but we're not even sure it arrived..."

They haven't seemed to have noticed your arrival quite yet.

[SeriousConcentrate]

"Abduction? 'She'? It appears as if we are none too soon to eliminate these ruffians."

Ashlyssa crossed her arms, eyebrows knitted.

"What do you think, miss Liz? Should we announce your presence or not?"

"Personally I feel we should reassure the people that we are here to take care of this situation before the villains do anything worse. Taking a woman from her home is bad enough."

[Sirus]

: "Hmm. Sorry, I gotta veto that. I'll bet gold to gallons that the bandits will have at least one set of eyes and ears in the village, and announcing ourselves will give them plenty of notice to get some nasty surprises ready for us. Or threaten to kill the girl they kidnapped. We can bask in gratitude after we do what we came here for."

[UXLZ]

Liz tilts her head at Jazz.

"Is that really all that likely? They're supposed to be ex-soldiers who've only been here for less than a year... I can't imagine there'd be spies."

After a moment, she crosses her arms too.

"Well, I suppose we could pretend to be a travelling theater troupe or something like that. We certainly look eccentric enough... At the very least I'd like to be able to ask them a bit more about what's actually going on. "She" might be nothing more than a prize cow, after all."

[SeriousConcentrate]

"I could go forward on my own and ask what the commotion is about. I do have a bit of a reputation as a mercenary; perhaps they will be willing to talk to me. It is your decision; if you would rather I didn't, I'll defer to you."

[UXLZ]

Liz looks at Ash somewhat doubtfully.

"You're well enough known as a mercenary that you think they'd know who you were..?"

She seems to ponder for a second.

"Well, I suppose if we were a theater troupe I'd say you were one of the guards, so you probably look the part. If the others have no objections, you can go and ask."

[SeriousConcentrate]

"I've been sorting out problems like this on my own for a few years now; perhaps I'm not famous, but my name does carry enough weight in some circles that I can usually negotiate my price if I need to. Perhaps we'll be lucky in this instance."

Ash folded her hands, left over right, in front of her and waited to see what the rest of the party thought. Although she could, as she said, she usually didn't haggle on the bounty she was offered; often enough she was being paid by people who couldn't afford to part with the money in the first place, and didn't want to take from them any more than she herself needed to get by.

[Sirus]

: "Not 'spies', exactly. Just some local passing on information in exchange for not being targeted in raids. Or at least not getting hit as hard. It's not exactly uncommon."

[GiglameshDespair]

"N-no, I'd say it's best not, um, not to draw attention. _{I don't want a mob throwing rocks at me again.} We don't know what the bandits might have done to get informants among the peasants, and we'd make the best impression by appearing as their rescuers."

[Tiruin]

"I could go forward on my own and ask what the commotion is about. I do have a bit of a reputation as a mercenary; perhaps they will be willing to talk to me. It is your decision; if you would rather I didn't, I'll defer to you."

"I think this covers our earlier plans of 'scouting', don't you think? Shifty eyes, spies in the crowd, and otherwise. Let's break off from the rest now and check around a bit here? Ma'am Arachne has a good point."

[SeriousConcentrate]

Ashlyssa nodded.

"I would be fine with that, but perhaps we should wait for everyone to reach a consensus before we head off on our own. After all, we're under miss Liz's command right now, so we ought to have at least her consent beforehand."

[Tiruin]

"She knows the place better too--Say, Liz. What's your opinion on sympathizers? Have the local bandits been vocal or connected in anyway necessary? Can we get someone in the crowd to listen to what's being said fully? We can only hear those from the back (or at least the most general concerns from here). I can also come with you, Ash, as someone with a wooden sword backed up with someone who looks like they've got a real sword will really be better than if you go alone. Theater troupe seems best, too."

[GiglameshDespair]

"We're not a being theatre troupe!" She paused slightly, embarrassed at her slightly raised voice. "I can't see that being believed, like, at all, and it seems like if you're having to make, like, cover stories, it's totally blown anyway."