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Claude and Ardid stepped down the hall hastily. The two had no time to waste, for the guild was clearly in peril. However, Ardid still found the time to make jokes, somehow. "Y'know, Claude, maybe they're all just taking a break. I'm sure those officers must be incredibly tired of being bossed around all the time. I doubt you even gave them lunch breaks."
Claude ignored the old man's banter and continued to lead the way to the Grand Council Hall. He had already sent several messengers around Port Rap and the Guild Hall in order to bring the higher ranking members of each of the Divisions to the Grand Council Hall.
With any luck, they would be able to discover the locations of all of the officers before the situation progressed any farther. His main concern was Victor. He was sent on false orders to one of the Council's militant camps just outside of Port Rap, but he had no idea if he had even made it that far.
Stepping up the stairs to the Division Seats, Claude found his way to the High Seat and Ardid followed behind him. Soon, dozens of people began to fill in the large room. As he waited, Claude glanced at the empty Seats around him. He could not help but to feel rather lonely, but Ardid's hand on his shoulder stopped the strange emotion.
When all of the secondary command of the Divisions were gathered in the Hall, the large doors were closed and blocked on the outside by four guards. Claude stood from the High Seat and addressed the crowd of confused guild members. "All secondary command of the Council of Virtuous Parley," he shouted over their voices, which eventually quieted down to listen, "your officers have been reported missing. Acting as the voice of the Grand Council, I declare that all our resources be invested in finding and recovering our Division officers -- Sylvestor, Henrik, Lorelis, and Victor."
Ardid made the next announcement, which came as a shock, even to Claude. "Our enemy is still on the Council of Virtuous Parley's property. They were spotted exiting the lobby less than an hour ago. They are armed and dangerous, and it is possible that more targets will go missing. Claude being one of them, and myself being another."
His voice boomed in the fashion that it had always boomed. It resonated with the crowd, who did not quite understand who was speaking. Whispers began to spread about the crowd, but Ardid ignored them and continued, "Port Rap is currently at the mercy of our enemy. They are still here, stalking in our streets. If any of you see a man with a repeating crossbow, take them into custody, but be wary, these are trained professionals."
Claude nodded slowly and considered all that was happening before him. The guild was under attack -- no, the entire city of Port Rap was under attack. If the guild fell, the city would fall as well. Without some governing society, the city would be a target for bandits and other militant groups.
Claude shook his head and addressed the crowd once more, "Defense Division, I will require your assistance in recovering your officer, Victor. He has been sent to the Rustkeep Camp, just inside the forest, at the old keep. It is incredibly possible that he is being led into a trap, and we must catch up with him immediately. All other Divisions, locate your officers!"
Claude turned away from the crowd and faced Ardid, "You are coming with me to Rustkeep. Don't argue with me." He stepped around Ardid and followed the crowd as it cleared out.
Ardid smiled and chased after Claude, laughing. "As if I'd want to be anywhere else."
Claude and Ardid made their way to Ardid and Arvur's room hastily. Without knocking, Claude passed by the guards and opened the door. Arvur was still sitting at the desk, reading his book. With a wave, he said to Claude, "Sounds like something's come up -- don't you tell me that Ardid has made a commotion again?"
Ardid peeked over Claude's shoulder and smiled wryly, "Of course not! When I said I was getting some air, that's what I had planned to do! Things just... developed."
Arvur turned to Claude and Ardid with a frown on his face. "Then what's going on out there?"
Claude pushed Ardid away and explained the situation to Arvur, whose frown turned into a concerned look. "The officers are missing, and you both are going to Rustkeep to investigate the whereabouts of Victor? Who will be left to order the secondary command?"
"That's where you come in," Claude said with a sigh. "I hate to say it, but since you are the most knowledgeable of the guild members here, you will be left in charge of the secondary command. You'll also be leading the investigation into the disappearances of the other three officers until I return with Victor."
The white haired twin leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms, rubbing his chin at the same time. "Controlling the secondary command shouldn't be a problem, but leading an investigation that I know nothing about might be difficult."
Ardid tossed a small, rolled up parchment to Arvur. "I've recorded some of the things that I've been hearing on this. Feel free to use it as some starter evidence. Just question guild members that last saw their officers, and use their knowledge to your advantage."
With that, Claude and Ardid closed the door behind them, leaving Arvur to his thoughts. When he opened the scroll, he saw dozens of lines of dialogue that rolled down the length of the parchment. With a frown, Arvur thought to himself, 'Just how did he manage to find the time to write all of this. How did he even remember it!?'
Rolling the parchment back up, he knotted a red string around it and shoved it in his bag. Gathering his things, he stepped to the door and opened it. The guard that was posted there had left as well. Arvur was free to roam the facility, but he did not feel the urge to. Instead, he headed towards the library, where he assumed that he could find some information about Sylvestor, who would be crucial in the search for the others.
Ardid saddled his horse professionally, wasting no time at all. Several other horses were saddled and ready to ride out, already. Looking around the stables, he could see Claude saddling his horse and preparing to mount. There were roughly a dozen extra horses being saddled for Defense Division troops.
"I suppose that if we're riding headfirst into a trap, we might as well come prepared, eh?" he shouted to Claude. Mounting his horse, he led the horse over to the wall, where his halberd was leaning. Grabbing it as he passed by, he rode the horse out of the stables and turned to wait for Claude, who came out a few moments afterwards.
Claude's left hand fingered his rapier anxiously, and his right hand held the reigns cautiously. "If we are riding into a trap, then we'll have already seen it coming, apparently."
Ardid spun his halberd around his head and caught it with his left hand. "Oh, yes, my boy, we'll be ready if it's a trap."
Claude eased his grip on the rapier at his side and let his smile return to his face. "You're right. Besides, I am certain that it would take more than just one ambush to take down Victor."
"That man has known battle for nearly two decades, now. Your certainty is not misplaced, Claude, but there is only so much damage one can take."
Claude waved the ominous suggestion away and turned towards the stables. The other troops were beginning to trickle out of the building. They were all armed with bows and spears, and their armor was half plate, just light enough for the horses to carry with speed.
Turning back to Ardid, Claude nodded eagerly. Ardid nodded back with a smile and turned to face the force behind him. Shouting, he addressed the Defense Division troops. "We ride out to Rustkeep!"
 Ty-Harukii · Thu Jul 27, 2017 @ 12:39am · 0 Comments |
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