Phantos_Argent
2020-04-19, 01:21 AM
There is little in the large room beyond a well crafted table surrounded by a dozen chairs. Expensive shard torches, so called for the rare glowing gems that power them, line the walls. If it weren't for the most hated emblem in all of Vel etched in the table's center it would like an opulent, if functional, meeting room. Most of the inhabitants look nervous and a few are even staring at the chairs like they made from bone and covered in blood. A notable exception was the woman who had managed to gather all of you together, Medra Chell.
She looked more like a small town schoolmarm rather than a member of the infamous criminal guild in Vel, but also seemed completely at ease in a room full of Lancers that she was currently blackmailing. At least in her late thirties, Chell was dressed in a plain dark dress and had no visible weapons. Instead, she carried a small stack of papers. A few of the Lancers, clearly those that had lead harder lives or in one case had a lot more to lose, stared at her and thumbed their weapons. Still, no one moved. No one spoke.
Eventually the door opened one more to admit a newcomer. Dressed in an ill fitting hauberk and armed with a sword that he was clearly unused to having, only the company in the room could lead you to believe the plain looking man was a Lancer. With a careful nod the rest of the room he took a seat, seemingly too nervous to understand the implications of where he was sitting. Smiling pleasantly Medra Chell finally stood up and looked around the room.
"Thank you all for joining me here, though I'm aware most of you don't think you had a choice. First of all, to address any potential complications, the details of the parentage of everyone here will become common knowledge unless a do a very specific thing tomorrow." She turned to smile at a heavily scarred woman that glared back, though she then let the ax at her belt loop slide back in. "Now I'm sure I don't need to spell out who you all are. In a very real sense most of you here are family. Believe it or not, many in the Shadowring saw themselves that way, as a family bound together through purpose rather than blood."
Taking a moment, Medra slid a few of the small squares of paper around in her hands. "As for why I'm here, it is to fulfill a promise. Your parents believed in something and that's why they did what they did. They knew it was dangerous and to one degree or another cared for you. At least as much to make sure you were protected after they were gone. Not from the rigors of life", she stated as a one-eyed soldier angrily opened his mouth, "but from the very foes that insured their demise. Unfortunately, the threat has returned and it seeks vengeance for being denied twenty years ago."
The plain looking woman's smile dropped and her arms fell to their sides. For the first time, she looked as uncomfortable as everyone else. "This thing, is the reason why the Shadowring existed in the first place. It put the entirety of this world in danger and our rulers were too blind and divided to do anything about it. Now it's back and while your parents managed to destroy the artifact that would have made it invincible, this monster is powered as much by spite as it is anything else. It will seek you out, it will find you, and it will kill you. Your only hope is to present a unified front. Alone, death is certain. Work together and you might stand a chance."
"Now I'm sure many of you have questions, perhaps some that have been plaguing you your entire lives. I'll answer what I can in my room upstairs. It's been sealed for privacy, but there isn't much time." Medra placed the pages on the table and spread them out evenly. "A dozen Lancers from across all of Vel would raise far too many red flags if you all stayed in the same place. The adversary is arrogant and spiteful, but not stupid. Instead, I've reached out to several contacts in Freelancer guilds in most of the major cities. We'll split into teams of four and maintain regular contact. Hopefully, we can catch it off guard, kill it quick, and all of you can go back to your lives."
She looked more like a small town schoolmarm rather than a member of the infamous criminal guild in Vel, but also seemed completely at ease in a room full of Lancers that she was currently blackmailing. At least in her late thirties, Chell was dressed in a plain dark dress and had no visible weapons. Instead, she carried a small stack of papers. A few of the Lancers, clearly those that had lead harder lives or in one case had a lot more to lose, stared at her and thumbed their weapons. Still, no one moved. No one spoke.
Eventually the door opened one more to admit a newcomer. Dressed in an ill fitting hauberk and armed with a sword that he was clearly unused to having, only the company in the room could lead you to believe the plain looking man was a Lancer. With a careful nod the rest of the room he took a seat, seemingly too nervous to understand the implications of where he was sitting. Smiling pleasantly Medra Chell finally stood up and looked around the room.
"Thank you all for joining me here, though I'm aware most of you don't think you had a choice. First of all, to address any potential complications, the details of the parentage of everyone here will become common knowledge unless a do a very specific thing tomorrow." She turned to smile at a heavily scarred woman that glared back, though she then let the ax at her belt loop slide back in. "Now I'm sure I don't need to spell out who you all are. In a very real sense most of you here are family. Believe it or not, many in the Shadowring saw themselves that way, as a family bound together through purpose rather than blood."
Taking a moment, Medra slid a few of the small squares of paper around in her hands. "As for why I'm here, it is to fulfill a promise. Your parents believed in something and that's why they did what they did. They knew it was dangerous and to one degree or another cared for you. At least as much to make sure you were protected after they were gone. Not from the rigors of life", she stated as a one-eyed soldier angrily opened his mouth, "but from the very foes that insured their demise. Unfortunately, the threat has returned and it seeks vengeance for being denied twenty years ago."
The plain looking woman's smile dropped and her arms fell to their sides. For the first time, she looked as uncomfortable as everyone else. "This thing, is the reason why the Shadowring existed in the first place. It put the entirety of this world in danger and our rulers were too blind and divided to do anything about it. Now it's back and while your parents managed to destroy the artifact that would have made it invincible, this monster is powered as much by spite as it is anything else. It will seek you out, it will find you, and it will kill you. Your only hope is to present a unified front. Alone, death is certain. Work together and you might stand a chance."
"Now I'm sure many of you have questions, perhaps some that have been plaguing you your entire lives. I'll answer what I can in my room upstairs. It's been sealed for privacy, but there isn't much time." Medra placed the pages on the table and spread them out evenly. "A dozen Lancers from across all of Vel would raise far too many red flags if you all stayed in the same place. The adversary is arrogant and spiteful, but not stupid. Instead, I've reached out to several contacts in Freelancer guilds in most of the major cities. We'll split into teams of four and maintain regular contact. Hopefully, we can catch it off guard, kill it quick, and all of you can go back to your lives."