They made their way down the path back to the house with some minimal chatting. The atmosphere still seemed friendly and cordial, but the weight of the situation could be felt by all of them. En opened the door and looked around. "Helloooo... Anyone here?" En asked loudly. He quickly ran and inspected every space and room of the house. "They're not here?" Asked Felkin. "No... But that's to be expected." Said En, walking down from the upstairs.
"So, what do we do now?" Asked Yuria. "Well, discuss a plan. At least for what we'll be doing today." Said Metas, sitting down in one of the chairs around the dining table. The others pulled a chair and followed suit. "So, we are going outside?" Yuria asked. "Are... you scared?" Ellyn asked her. "I am, a little, but... I'm also... excited? Is that weird? I mean... Not because we'll be seeing all the destruction and hiding from the knights, but... Another chance to see the town and the city. That... doesn't sound good, doesn't it?" Yuria asked.
"Well, it's... only natural I guess. You... don't have to feel bad about it, for someone who hasn't been outside of your village much, it's not surprising that you'd want to explore the city." Felkin remarked. "Just remember, we're going out for supplies, and information. Not for sightseeing." Said Metas, looking towards Yuria. "Yeah, I know." She answered, though she could not hide the disappointment in her voice. "Not too much sightseeing." Metas added, sighing. Yuria smiled in response.
"We? Why are you acting like you're coming along, aren't you injured? And you stick out like a sore thumb! A lumbering tower like you with your gray hair, immediately distinguishable." Ellyn exclaimed. "And you? With your missing arm? The wanted posters are sure to pick up on that." Said Metas.
Metas noticed Ellyn shy away and cover her arm's stump. He dialed back his demeanor and looked down. "Anyway, besides that... The kingdom's not too fond of... Foreigners. Of course the kingdom's always been a hub between places, but ever since the war with the Reshans and now with the Princess' rule... People have gotten a little more antsy. What I mean is... people are getting more suspicious and... observant. We have to be careful on who we're sending outside." Metas remarked.
"I guess... that counts me out?" Kieron remarked. "Well... Not necessarily, though you'll probably need to lose the armor, and find a way to hide your weapon. They probably won't suspect such a normal person in their midst to be a dangerous fugitive..." Said En. "Normal person, huh..." Kieron remarked.
"How about Felkin, his unusual sword's probably immediately recognizable, right?" Asked Yuria. Felkin took out his sword and shortened its blade to where the weapon became the size of a dagger. "There. It can fit in my pocket, or inside of a bag." Said Felkin. "And Yuria?" Asked Ellyn. "I'll leave my hat, behind..." Yuria frowned and looked outside and saw her cloth hat hung out to dry. "Without it, no one will be the wiser!" She exclaimed, optimistically.
"And you En?" Asked Metas. "Of course, I'm coming along! I know the streets like the back of my hand." The boy proclaimed proudly. "Don't you think you'll stick out like a sore thumb with hair like that?" Kieron asked. "Hmm, why is your hair that color?" Yuria asked curiously. "Hmm? I don't know, it's always been like this way. I'm not gonna ask why your eyes are blue or your hair is blonde?" Said En, touching his hair.
"Yeah, the issue still remains though." Ellyn remarked. "Well..." En snapped his fingers and his hair turned brown. "You... could do that the whole time?" Felkin asked. "Not for long." En's hair reverted. "Plus, I can do my mind floaty thing to scout ahead out of sight." He added. "Well, is that everyone that's going?" Said Ellyn. "I... might have an idea..." Said Metas, rubbing his chin. "Hmm?" Ellyn remarked.
"Is this... really necessary?" Ellyn asked, as she donned the metal plate characteristic of the Lodelethian knights. "It's an instant explanation as to why you don't have your arm. The opposite of a runaway fugitive is a knight after all." Said Metas. "Or maybe a fugitive disguised as a knight is what they'll have in mind." Ellyn answered. "Relax, once you say that it's from the war, they're likely to back off. No questions asked." Metas exclaimed, with a small smile.
"Alright, if you say so... Hmph." Ellyn said, raising her shoulders and shifting within the armor. "Is it... too heavy? I don't even know how I'll wear even one of those pieces of armor without falling over." Yuria remarked. "Not... to worry... When I was hunting, I became used to carrying wolf and deer carcasses on my back. Plus the heavy burden of all the hunting and camping supplies, so this is..." Ellyn remarked, buckling under the weight.
"You're shaking!" En exclaimed. "Maybe she should wear a few pieces less?" Felkin wondered. "Maybe..." Metas walked up to Ellyn. He was the only one there taller than her. "I'll just..." She went still as a rock as he took off the metal helmet from her. He removed her shoulder plates, and then the sole gauntlet she was wearing.
"Is this good? Can you move well enough?" Metas asked, raising his head. "Uh... yeah. Really, it's no problem." Ellyn remarked. "Lucky that this place had a set of armor from the Lodeleth knights. But, where did you guys get it from?" Kieron asked. "Well, Jura "borrowed" one from the knights so he could use it to sneak in if he needed to. Lucky they still haven't changed their armor since he nicked that set." Said En.
"So, what are we going to do once we're outside?" Yuria asked. "Or what exactly are we going to do once we get out." Felkin remarked. "Determining the situation is of utmost priority. Roughly how many knights are stationed in the town and in the cities, how tight the security is, if there are any checkpoints, and how alert and how driven the search is for us." Metas remarked.
Yuria raised her hand. "So we're trying to learn about this so we can prepare to move outside, right?" She asked. "Yeah, in a situation like this, it's important to know all the factors so we know how to approach surviving. After this, we'll still be worrying how to escape the kingdom." Said Metas.
"And so, we... Need to keep an eye out for some notable players. The shadow knights, their higher ups, Helia... Anyone that looks particularly strong. Their presence would... restrict ours." Metas remarked. "Even if it's a dangerous mission, I won't let you down!" Yuria said, saluting. "So, we should gather as much information as possible... But go and get supplies as fast as we can?" Asked Ellyn.
"Well, I have one idea. But it's not necessarily required of you all to do, and it might expose you all to more danger than necessary. Are you... all up for it?" Metas asked. "But first, what is it?" Kieron asked. "If it's going to help us, help you... Then we'll hear you out." Felkin answered. "Alright, so here's what you all also need to know..." Metas remarked, with a serious expression.
En cautiously opened the door to the outside. "Hmm..." He observed the condition of the sky outside. "So, how does it compare?" Metas asked, showing the time-mark on his arm. "It seems... roughly the same? Although, it could be another day had already passed. But that seems unlikely." En remarked.
"Could it be that the mark is altering the conditions of time so that they're synchronized somehow?" Said Ellyn. "Maybe. I've chalked it up to coincidence since the void between realms ebbs and flows like some sort of tide, and so realm travel time can be unreliable in the sense that time could behave unpredictably." En exclaimed.
"But?" Kieron remarked. "But this seems too convenient to be a coincidence. Maybe the magic that the flame matriarch used is more complex than we thought. Anyways, we'll be using to our advantage nevertheless." Said En.
"So, are you all ready?" Metas asked, turning towards them. "Mhm." Yuria exclaimed. "Ready." Said Kieron. "Ready, as well." Ellyn responded. "I guess we're all doing this then. In that case, I'm ready too!" En exclaimed. Felkin inhaled and exhaled deeply. "If everyone's ready, let's go." He remarked with a serious expression.
Yuria exited first. She wore the concealing necklace and crouched low to the ground as she exited the slightly ajar door. She hid along the shadow of the alleyway, listening close for the sounds of voices or footsteps just beyond the road. She looked back towards the entrance of the building. To her, it appeared like there was a small opening of space in the air leading into the other realm's house. 'Whoa, freaky.' She thought before turning bet head back towards the road.
'What's the situation?' En asked her. An orange crystal shimmered in Yuria's small pack she carried. It was a cloth bag slung around her shoulder. It was filled to the brim with different herbs and plant material, with bones, leather and other animal byproducts. There was also squirreled away pieces of dried meat and a waterskin, as well as a handful of silver coins for emergencies.
'It sounds like there's patrols of knights at both sides, but there's no one in the immediate street here. We should be able to sneak past them.' Yuria answered, the two communicating via thought transference. 'Are you free to proceed?' En asked. Yuria looked ahead cautiously. 'Yeah, I'll go ahead to our meeting point. And another thing, from outside... The opening of the door is visible. What are we going to do about that?' Yuria asked.
'The obvious course of action would be to close it, but that means we'll be cutting off communication.' Said En. 'Why? It can still work over long distances, right?' Yuria asked. 'Because once the door closes, the realms are once again separated. While it's open, there's a kind of interstice between realms that allows us to interact. But without it...' 'It goes kaput. I understand, and it's fine, I'll need to hurry up anyhow.' Yuria responded.
"We'll just have to send you in as soon as possible." Metas said to En. The boy nodded in response. Felkin, Ellyn, and Kieron waited eagerly near the door, listening in with their own respective crystals. 'Yuria, go for it. We'll alert you as soon as we're out.' En answered. 'Stay safe, Yuria.' Ellyn said, worriedly. 'Mhm. I will.' Yuria remarked, determinedly.
The plan to traverse was discussed by them earlier. "You'll have to leave separately, in intervals. A group of people with notable features will arouse suspicion, it's better to stay apart until you reach the crowds among the city. But our advantage is..." Metas looked towards En. "We can communicate even when we're apart!" He exclaimed holding his crystal high. "That's right, we'll be using it to our advantage. Yuria goes first, scopes out the situation and she'll be using..."
'This thing. It's handy, but it won't completely hide me. I'll still have to be careful.' Yuria thought, looking at the talisman around her neck as she crept through the alley. She raised the hem of her dress off the ground. 'I don't want to get this dirty. Wait, if I'm just an ordinary person here maybe it's going to be alright if I get a little mud on it?' Yuria thought.
She wore a faded light blue dress, but opted to keep the pair of boots she was used to wearing earlier. She looked up to see a few wild strands of hair atop her head. Even though her hair was washed and brushed, the blonde strands were still astray. "Mmm..." Yuria lamented the loss of her black hat which she had left behind. She reached the edge of the alley and looked around the corner.
Yuria faintly heard the metal footsteps of a group of knights ahead of her, and behind her. 'I'll have to move quickly.' She walked forward, maintaining a steady pace but still going from cover to cover. She looked up at the buildings and surroundings. 'The town's desolate, burned, and destroyed. Did we... do that?' Yuria thought, but she shook her head profusely. 'No, if we didn't step in, maybe more people would've gotten hurt...' She thought.
En slightly opened the door, only to gently close it shut in response to the sound of vigorous marching footsteps just outside. "Hmm?" One of the knights remarked. "What's wrong, see something?" Another knight said. "It's nothing. I just thought... I saw something. There." He pointed towards the empty space where the house used to be. "Hmm? There's nothing there." "And so it seems, let's keep going." The knights continued their march.
En and the others sighed in relief. "Whew. Well, we expected something like that. We'll wait a bit before going out." The boy remarked. "Let's." Ellyn said, wiping sweat off her brow.
Yuria walked forward still. She moved in between the two groups, but they soon reached the main road, where another patrol headed towards her, cornering her in between them. 'They're not here yet? Wait, they're not supposed to help, so...' Yuria stopped in her tracks. Thinking quickly, she took off the talisman. 'If I'm going to be seen anyway...' She remarked to herself. Yuria readied herself, and emerged to meet one of the patrols.
"You there! Halt!" The front most knight called out towards her. Yuria had her back turned towards the knight. She clenched her fists tightly before raising her hands and turning towards the knights. "Please help me! I... was trapped under the rubble, everyone's... gone, there was a fire and..." Yuria blurted out, tears in her eyes. "Stop right there, identify yourself!" The knight in front of the others exclaimed.
"Um... My name is..." 'A name, a name... Think of a name!' "My name... My name's..." Yuria remarked, through sniffles and tears. "My name is Ellyn!" 'Sorry, Ellyn... I couldn't think of another name that isn't mine...' She thought.
"Kid, where's your parents? You should come with us to help find them." A younger man from the knights remarked kindly, before he was stopped by the knight in front. "Wait! This may be one of the harmful fugitives we're searching for." They remarked. "Come on man, we've been doing this for every civilian we've come across. We were just pulled from doing guard duty, let's just finish up with this quickly so that we can go home." Another one of them pleaded.
"Hmm..." The knight in front remarked, narrowing his eyes. He walked closer and Yuria backed away a step. "We at least need to search your belongings for any contraband or dangerous weapons." He remarked. "Uh... sure." Said Yuria. "Sorry about that kid, this misunderstanding will be cleared in a bit." The kind young knight ahead exclaimed. "It's... It's no problem." Yuria answered.
Yuria walked forward casually. "Stop!" The knight yelled, surprising Yuria. "Throw your pack to me." He added. "Come on, we don't have to do all of this..." Another knight said. "It's no problem, mister knight. It's so scary and confusing outside, anybody could be dangerous." Yuria answered. 'I hope they're buying this. But, him... Hopefully he'll back off after this.' She thought.
"Let me just..." Yuria fumbled with the strap of the bag around her. "Ah. Sorry, sorry... I'm so clumsy..." Yuria dropped her bag on the floor and some of the contents spilled out. She awkwardly tried to pick up the various items that fell out, struggling with the bag and dropping even more of the items contained within. "Uh, sorry... It's just... been a really hard week. And uh... Here." She raised her bag towards the knight, trying to reminisce about her experiences to coat her words in actual glum emotion.
"Toss it." The knight remarked. "Hmm? Alright then." Yuria tossed it and the knight catched it. "Sorry about that, Ellyn. Really." The kind knight remarked. The knight in front knelt down and rummaged through the pack whilst keeping a watchful eye on Yuria. He took out and laid on the ground each individual item and searched for any hidden compartments inside. "You seem clean, too clean for supposedly being in rubble the whole time." The knight remarked
"Our roof... It fell over us and I was stuck, but... Not much dirt got on me because of it." Yuria remarked. 'Drat, now I'm too clean!' She thought. "Hmm." The knight answered, still suspicious. "Seems like it's nothing." The knight said, closing the bag up and returning it to "Ellyn".
"See? Come on, let's proceed with the patrol." The other knight said. "Wait, let's bring her with us. Drop her off when we pass the edge of town, this place is still dangerous, so..." The kind knight said. "It's fine. But you're responsible for her." The knight "leader" remarked.
Yuria kept her facade and her head down as she went along with the group. 'Yuria! We just got out of the door, are you alright?' En asked. 'Yeah, I'm fine. I'm with a patrol of guards.' Yuria replied back. "Guards?" Ellyn exclaimed. 'Don't worry, they think I'm one of the townsfolk. They're going to take me to safety. Let's meet up there' Yuria answered. "Alright, stay safe until then." Felkin remarked. 'I will.'
"Oof!" Yuria exclaimed as she stumbled over a rock and bumped into a wooden post. "Whoa, be careful there. Are you alright?" The kind knight remarked. "You looked to be daydreaming. You should watch where you're going." Another added. "I... was just reminiscing about the past and... before all this..." She remarked. Yuria bent down to adjust her boot. Unbeknownst to the knights, the orange crystal lie snugly between it and her heel and made her a tad bit uncomfortable as she walked.
En was in the alley just outside. He looked from side to side, and listened. 'It's clear, for now. Hmm...' En picked up handfuls of dirt from the ground. "I'd hate to do this, but..." En threw the dirt all over himself. "I'll have to make sure I don't accidentally remove the dirt from me..." He said as his clothes and person were dirtied. En exited from the right side of the alley.
'Everyone. You should cover yourselves with dirt as well.' Said En. 'Mhm.' Felkin said, as he exited next and readily showered himself with a handful of dirt. "Understood." Ellyn replied, emerging from the door as Felkin left the alleyway. She bent down and scooped up some earth, before throwing it onto herself. 'Although hunting in the wild isn't exactly clean... I would've wanted to stay filth-free anyhow...' She thought, making sure not to share that information with the others.
Ellyn adjusted her helm, and strode out of the alley, walking forward quickly down the road. She recalled Metas' instruction earlier. 'Walk fast, keep my head down, steer clear of the patrols but if I'm spotted...' "Soldier!" An aged knight called out towards her. Ellyn turned towards them. "Sir!" She swung around, performed the Lodelethian salute, and stomped her foot hard on the ground. 'Hope I did that right...' She thought. "At ease." The knight remarked. The other knights behind him looked bored and absentminded.
Ellyn lowered her hand but maintained a stern expression. She bowed slightly before proceeding to walk off once more. "Wait a minute soldier, what's the rush? And... where's the others from your patrol?" The knight asked, suspicious. "A few others and I had to leave from our patrols due to orders from Commander Elrond. They require more bodies to help, or so I was told." She answered.
"Hmm? I've haven't heard of this." The knight remarked. "They've only been able to tell a limited amount of people since we're lacking in number." Ellyn answered. "Hmm... Say, you look quite young. Yet I've haven't seen you around these parts. And that injury..." The knight remarked. "I was... One who was sent into the battlefield straight from being a recruit. I got this injury and... had to retire early. I... was called up to help here, there's other reserve knights that have been called to." Said Ellyn.
"Bah, you're right. Even the useless dunderheads left in the city are being called to action, and now they're using the retired as well? We've been really lacking, no wonder they're requesting more to help back there..." The knight exclaimed. "So it seems. If I may be excused..." Said Ellyn. "Ah, yes. I don't want to keep you from your duty. But... if more help is needed, have one of my men accompany you to Commander Elrond." The knight answered.
"Let us make haste then, to... the camp where the knights are operating." Said Ellyn. 'The knights probably have some sort of encampment at the edge of town to help with the current affairs...' She recalled Metas' words from earlier. "By the way... You say that you got your orders from Commander Elrond, but... I am him." The man exclaimed. Ellyn successfully maintained a neutral expression. 'Wait... The night was dark, and the fires were raging, surely... Surely I didn't just make a mistake, haven't I?' She thought.
Ellyn steadied herself, managed a smile, and then confidently answered. "Well, if that's the case then... I'm one of the royal nobles!" She exclaimed proudly. "Gahahaha! Good one! I was just pulling your leg, soldier! Carry on." The knight heartily exclaimed. 'Phew, I was worrying myself for no reason back there. Good thing I played it off...' Ellyn thought, sighing. She walked forward but looked back wearily.