The Grand Hall

Edgar Holden wrote:
Ed faced Evan first, and answered his challenge. "I care about all those who are innocent, and are punished for no reason. Eriko deserved to know her true self - and your association took that from her. No matter your justifications, you know this is a crime, and unjust. As to your threat, You will find no enemy of me. But I will ask you this - do you prefer a harsh truth, or a convenient lie? I can not lie to you, therefore I can only tell you the truth of the matter, even if it is a harsh and brutal truth, at least you'll know what I tell you will not lead you into the halls of the blind. If you percieve my words as a threat, Evan, perhaps you are protecting a truth for alterior motives... That said, even if you are, it no longer matters..."

With that said, he faced Ceras. "Then you doom them to the monsters he will face within that tower... Like me, they have psionic capability that spans this world. They will bore into his memories, searching for weaknesses, no matter how small. They will plague his fears, his nightmares. If I found her, they assuredly will..."

Edgar sighed not for the first time since coming to Galiavan. "The sheer extent to which this planet has underestimated the foes they face is simply staggering... One Above All, give me strength..." he sighed. "If you don't reveal the truth to them, and prepare them for what that means for the three of them. Then you WILL lose them all, If I honor your request, and let that happen. You two, as the current Head master, and you as her foster father, you both have a decision to make... And if the Demons do break them, then they truly will be lost. You must decide what is more important for your world now. Is it the dead tradition, or the life of three of your members, and the fate of your world."

Ed then took a step away from them. "The decision remains yours. I will not force your choice, but the Hell Demons certainly will, when they come for the girl to break Leland."

Evan remained silent, sweat rolling down the sides of his face. He remembered the swishing fuzzy tail of his master, lifting his chin the night of his exam, the final time they had tea together, she had said something similar about the halls of the blind... he didn't read his memories too, did he? He looked away, down at the polished tiles of the floor. He glanced back to Ed. "That would be very hard, considering he is not even aware of her existence... if he was trained like a true Gunslinger, he will not give in to the truths.. he'll just think they're fat lies." He thought, before wondering if that would be a benefit to the situation at all... if Leland was... He shook his head, not believing he even considered the idea or option. As for Yoko... a woman he had an interest in all those years ago... he had not seen her for nearly 19 years, and wondered if he still had feelings for her... but then there was the fact Leland's family was now gone... he could spoil his second chance with the woman, especially since he had taken care of Eriko like she was his own... he considered her the daughter he could never have with the woman who brushed him aside for...

He closed his eyes. "...I'll support whatever the Del Reina decides. I need to prepare a recon team to investigate that tower in Gazatine you spoke of 'Cyrus'." He grunted, before walking away. He discerned that Edgar Holden was no threat of the Head Gunslinger... as troubling thoughts began to spin inside his head.

Evan Patrickson wrote:

Edgar Holden wrote:
Ed faced Evan first, and answered his challenge. "I care about all those who are innocent, and are punished for no reason. Eriko deserved to know her true self - and your association took that from her. No matter your justifications, you know this is a crime, and unjust. As to your threat, You will find no enemy of me. But I will ask you this - do you prefer a harsh truth, or a convenient lie? I can not lie to you, therefore I can only tell you the truth of the matter, even if it is a harsh and brutal truth, at least you'll know what I tell you will not lead you into the halls of the blind. If you percieve my words as a threat, Evan, perhaps you are protecting a truth for alterior motives... That said, even if you are, it no longer matters..."

With that said, he faced Ceras. "Then you doom them to the monsters he will face within that tower... Like me, they have psionic capability that spans this world. They will bore into his memories, searching for weaknesses, no matter how small. They will plague his fears, his nightmares. If I found her, they assuredly will..."

Edgar sighed not for the first time since coming to Galiavan. "The sheer extent to which this planet has underestimated the foes they face is simply staggering... One Above All, give me strength..." he sighed. "If you don't reveal the truth to them, and prepare them for what that means for the three of them. Then you WILL lose them all, If I honor your request, and let that happen. You two, as the current Head master, and you as her foster father, you both have a decision to make... And if the Demons do break them, then they truly will be lost. You must decide what is more important for your world now. Is it the dead tradition, or the life of three of your members, and the fate of your world."

Ed then took a step away from them. "The decision remains yours. I will not force your choice, but the Hell Demons certainly will, when they come for the girl to break Leland."

Evan remained silent, sweat rolling down the sides of his face. He remembered the swishing fuzzy tail of his master, lifting his chin the night of his exam, the final time they had tea together, she had said something similar about the halls of the blind... he didn't read his memories too, did he? He looked away, down at the polished tiles of the floor. He glanced back to Ed. "That would be very hard, considering he is not even aware of her existence... if he was trained like a true Gunslinger, he will not give in to the truths.. he'll just think they're fat lies." He thought, before wondering if that would be a benefit to the situation at all... if Leland was... He shook his head, not believing he even considered the idea or option. As for Yoko... a woman he had an interest in all those years ago... he had not seen her for nearly 19 years, and wondered if he still had feelings for her... but then there was the fact Leland's family was now gone... he could spoil his second chance with the woman, especially since he had taken care of Eriko like she was his own... he considered her the daughter he could never have with the woman who brushed him aside for...

He closed his eyes. "...I'll support whatever the Del Reina decides. I need to prepare a recon team to investigate that tower in Gazatine you spoke of 'Cyrus'." He grunted, before walking away. He discerned that Edgar Holden was no threat of the Head Gunslinger... as troubling thoughts began to spin inside his head.

"Evan..." She says, turning to the Master of the North, who walked away now to get a recon team together. She turned to Edgar and nodded. "I... will honestly consider your decisions. Feel free to stick around in your disguise, its awfully dreadful out there." She says, nodding to him. "I suppose things could change... as I hate to say it, with Leland's family no longer in the living realm... I suppose it could mean he and Yoko could have the life they were denied." She says with a warm smile. "Thank you for stepping forwards, though... you have need to work on your spy skills if you're askin' me." She winked.

Evan Patrickson wrote:Evan remained silent, sweat rolling down the sides of his face. He remembered the swishing fuzzy tail of his master, lifting his chin the night of his exam, the final time they had tea together, she had said something similar about the halls of the blind... he didn't read his memories too, did he? He looked away, down at the polished tiles of the floor. He glanced back to Ed. "That would be very hard, considering he is not even aware of her existence... if he was trained like a true Gunslinger, he will not give in to the truths.. he'll just think they're fat lies." He thought, before wondering if that would be a benefit to the situation at all... if Leland was... He shook his head, not believing he even considered the idea or option. As for Yoko... a woman he had an interest in all those years ago... he had not seen her for nearly 19 years, and wondered if he still had feelings for her... but then there was the fact Leland's family was now gone... he could spoil his second chance with the woman, especially since he had taken care of Eriko like she was his own... he considered her the daughter he could never have with the woman who brushed him aside for...

He closed his eyes. "...I'll support whatever the Del Reina decides. I need to prepare a recon team to investigate that tower in Gazatine you spoke of 'Cyrus'." He grunted, before walking away. He discerned that Edgar Holden was no threat of the Head Gunslinger... as troubling thoughts began to spin inside his head.

Ed frowned sadly. "The truth, no matter how covered up within the mind it may be, still exists... And the monsters will find it there the same way I did, in a much less subtle manner. They are not gentle, nor do they possess mercy for mortals. I'm sorry... I could not stop them from reaching your world. I wasn't strong enough back then."

Ceras Deltora wrote:"Evan..." She says, turning to the Master of the North, who walked away now to get a recon team together. She turned to Edgar and nodded. "I... will honestly consider your decisions. Feel free to stick around in your disguise, its awfully dreadful out there." She says, nodding to him. "I suppose things could change... as I hate to say it, with Leland's family no longer in the living realm... I suppose it could mean he and Yoko could have the life they were denied." She says with a warm smile. "Thank you for stepping forwards, though... you have need to work on your spy skills if you're askin' me." She winked.

Ed smirked a little as his flames shrouded him once more. Resuming his disguise as 'Cyrus'. "My disguise and story was merely a surface test. I had to see if you both could see through a simple deception, as Leland's memory suggested you all could do so. He is a good person, damaged, but not cold. He tries to take the weight of the world onto his own shoulders, but it's a weight he should not have had to bear alone, thinking there was nothing left for him."

"As for maintaining the deception moving forward, I think my story would hold up to others if backed by a little weight of truth. Deep cover operations is something I taught many students back on my home world, long ago. The theory behind it is for missions that require distinctly extended lengths of time without any contact. Usually these long term missions often require breaking the usual rules to maintain cover among enemy lines. Sometimes these missions involve acquiring high value intel, or assassinating specific enemy targets. Sometimes these operations can take many years of planning and development. These are not the kind of missions you can take an apprentice on, which is why if you want me to act as a trainer for someone for these specific roles, I would recommend no less than Enforcer rank or higher. Below that, and you run the risk of getting the newlings killed in the field far more frequently. They will need actual battlefield experience and express interest in stealth, espionage, and special operations. As you can imagine, such an operative will need certain special leave from the usual rules of a Gunslinger, which is another reason I'd advocate it only for those who have earned such a trust, and not just hand it out to the newly promoted."

Evan paused upon hearing the Head Gunslinger's response to the man reverberate off the walls of the Grand Hall. His back to them, everything still seemed normal... but his face had a worried expression of mixed fear and...betrayal? He felt an odd chill running through his body, and then he silently continued on his path, even as Edgar explained the details of a special force... a force that did technically exist within the Gunslinger Association. Or it had... almost fittingly remembered upon the topics of Yoko and Leland... nobody asked how the pair were apprehended. The Head Gunslinger Deschain didn't want his favorite Gunslinger going Rogue, so the Del Rey took a handful of his best Gunslinger Masters together, he and Evan himself included, to grab a hold of Leland. They applied the memory wipe to Leland first, and as an added bit of spite Leland was then contracted with them to hunt down and apprehend Yoko...

He closed his eyes and leaned against a wall, his head pressed against his forearm. The group had no official name... all the associated Masters had died in the FINAL RAID... all the records of Leland's involvement in this was removed by the sole survivor... himself. Evan had destroyed those files, left Yoko's there... perhaps out of guilt? He didn't know why... but now, he still had a second chance. A second chance to make things right, to bring Yoko and Eriko together... with him.

He pushed off the wall, his expression showing determination. He walked down the hall to the Dispatch Offices, he needed to assemble a team of Enforcers to recon the Gazatine Ruins, and get word out to Danton to start a city wide evacuation and have the Grey Mountain Academy's students and essential personnel shipped to Asmirnov.

(to here)

Ceras felt rather intrigued by the concept of the force, but some of the things he said were somewhat redundant. "Well, thats how things generally operate anyway, when it comes to Master Missions and such. We advise the Masters still training not to take their Apprentices out on missions with them, save of course when their training's almost complete. Still, for extreme missions such as these, I can understand the need to pull back a green blood. Hm... then there's the problem of Master's wanting to accept the work voluntarily... you know, something I would alter is that Enforcers who are not ordained with a true Master rank, upon signing up for this extended training can henceforth be ordained with the title of Master should they perform their jobs well. It'll rise the morale of the Enforcers and they'd definitely be more willing to join for a new title and position they were unable to attain before hand..." she says, rubbing her chin, her purple gloves rubbing her silky skin. "Hmm... we may have to deliberate more on this, but for now, feel free to act as a Master of Arms around here till we work out the kinks and such, sound good?" She asked, smiling.

Evan Patrickson wrote:Evan paused upon hearing the Head Gunslinger's response to the man reverberate off the walls of the Grand Hall. His back to them, everything still seemed normal... but his face had a worried expression of mixed fear and...betrayal? He felt an odd chill running through his body, and then he silently continued on his path, even as Edgar explained the details of a special force... a force that did technically exist within the Gunslinger Association. Or it had... almost fittingly remembered upon the topics of Yoko and Leland... no body asked how the pair were apprehended. The Head Gunslinger Deschain didn't want his favorite Gunslinger going Rogue, so the Del Rey took a handful of his best Gunslinger Masters together, he and Evan himself included, to grab a hold of Leland. They applied the memory wipe to Leland first, and as an added bit of spite Leland was then contracted with them to hunt down and apprehend Yoko...

He closed his eyes and leaned against a wall, his head pressed against his forearm. The group had no official name... all the associated Masters had died in the FINAL RAID... all the records of Leland's involvement in this was removed by the sole survivor... himself. Evan had destroyed those files, left Yoko's there... perhaps out of guilt? He didn't know why... but now, he still had a second chance. A second chance to make things right, to bring Yoko and Eriko together... with him.

He pushed off the wall, his expression showing determination. He walked down the hall to the Dispatch Offices, he needed to assemble a team of Enforcers to recon the Gazatine Ruins, and get word out to Danton to start a city wide evacuation and have the Grey Mountain Academy's students and essential personnel shipped to Asmirnov.

Ceras Deltora wrote:Ceras felt rather intrigued by the concept of the force, but some of the things he said were somewhat redundant. "Well, thats how things generally operate anyway, when it comes to Master Missions and such. We advise the Masters still training not to take their Apprentices out on missions with them, save of course when their training's almost complete. Still, for extreme missions such as these, I can understand the need to pull back a green blood. Hm... then there's the problem of Master's wanting to accept the work voluntarily... you know, something I would alter is that Enforcers who are not ordained with a true Master rank, upon signing up for this extended training can henceforth be ordained with the title of Master should they perform their jobs well. It'll rise the morale of the Enforcers and they'd definitely be more willing to join for a new title and position they were unable to attain before hand..." she says, rubbing her chin, her purple gloves rubbing her silky skin. "Hmm... we may have to deliberate more on this, but for now, feel free to act as a Master of Arms around here till we work out the kinks and such, sound good?" She asked, smiling.

'Cyrus' smiled slightly. "I believe that will be more than acceptable. Just beware, I may need to attend my other duties from time to time" he said, before his green eyes faced the retreating Evan, and he frowned deeply. The man's memories painted a disturbing picture. A portrait of jealousy, abuse of power.... and ambition. Despite his own new status as the Archangel of Justice, part of him knew it would be hubris to simply solve all of the Gunslinger's problems for them. If he were to say anything, he would need far more subtlety for this.

"Beware that one, Ceras. Many dark secrets have been obscured, and in some ways, not for altruistic reasons. You may never find the physical proof anymore... but it does exist in the minds of those involved. I fear some ghosts of the past have yet to be banished from your association. I hope you can solve the puzzle before the Horde finds those loose threads in the Gunslinger's history, or the entire tapestry will be rent apart once they start pulling. And a word of caution - No matter how well trained the mind and body. No matter how strong the will, the demons will always extract hat they need from a target once captured. Like us Seraphim, the Demons can look into the very soul of a person, through any barrier. An ability they abuse rigorously to discern secrets or torture their prey relentlessly. Evan underestimates this threat - don't make the same mistake. At the same time, watch him... I am sensing much conflict in his heart, and he teeters a knife's edge."

"Heh, nor did I expect you to. Given the circumstances, properly ordaining you seems impossible, but you carry the weight of a Gunslinger on your shoulders and have managed to convince most of the others of your ploy. Consider this as a temporary deputation." She chuckled. However when he brought up his thoughts about Evan, she frowned. "Don't say that... he's been through a lot, I would probably be in similar darker thoughts if I was in his shoes. I didn't know Leland, Yoko nor Evan back in the day, but they used to be very close according to the records. Evan and Leland had joint training with their respective masters, but thing took a turn for the worse after Leland took in Yoko to train. There are reports of a duel over her apprenticeship, and they state Evan lost." She explained. "Evan was unable to find himself an apprentice to train, around the time Yoko was apprehended, he was given the position of the Master of the North, which is a lot of pressure and responsibility for a young man, anyone who is still a fresh Master Gunslinger, even for Veterans. And since Yoko's child was sent here, he's took care of the girl like she was his own... yeah, I'd say Evan is in a dark place right now. One I can relate with, given if I was in his shoes." She explained.

After that, she perked up again. "Well, enough of that, let's go see the training yard quickly. I think I still remember where it is." She chuckled, given this was like, her third inspection in 18 years. She really needed to implement yearly inspections in the future, but she didn't want to be bothered having to fly to opposite ends of the planet every year for a three week inspection.

Ceras Deltora wrote:"Heh, nor did I expect you to. Given the circumstances, properly ordaining you seems impossible, but you carry the weight of a Gunslinger on your shoulders and have managed to convince most of the others of your ploy. Consider this as a temporary deputation." She chuckled. However when he brought up his thoughts about Evan, she frowned. "Don't say that... he's been through a lot, I would probably be in similar darker thoughts if I was in his shoes. I didn't know Leland, Yoko nor Evan back in the day, but they used to be very close according to the records. Evan and Leland had joint training with their respective masters, but thing took a turn for the worse after Leland took in Yoko to train. There are reports of a duel over her apprenticeship, and they state Evan lost." She explained. "Evan was unable to find himself an apprentice to train, around the time Yoko was apprehended, he was given the position of the Master of the North, which is a lot of pressure and responsibility for a young man, anyone who is still a fresh Master Gunslinger, even for Veterans. And since Yoko's child was sent here, he's took care of the girl like she was his own... yeah, I'd say Evan is in a dark place right now. One I can relate with, given if I was in his shoes." She explained.

After that, she perked up again. "Well, enough of that, let's go see the training yard quickly. I think I still remember where it is." She chuckled, given this was like, her third inspection in 18 years. She really needed to implement yearly inspections in the future, but she didn't want to be bothered having to fly to opposite ends of the planet every year for a three week inspection.  

Ed nodded slightly, and smiled again. He started to follow Ceras out to the training yards, but as he got a few steps, he felt a new presence enter his perception. a presence that was very, very wrong.

Verial The Void Dragon wrote:Several days later, the very creature itself began to make it's presence known in this material universe. A breach began to form in the fabric of reality only a few light years out of Galiavan's solar orbit. Out of the darkness of space, the black rift opened like a fresh wound. Tendrils of darkness exploded from the hole, and pushed outward.

"So... This is the battleground father has chosen. So rich with life energies. so many souls ready to snuff out. And he even prepared the Hell Denizens for me too... Both sides of the balance, ready to be erased all at once. How delightful. My siblings... I will finish what I began."

The creature of absolute nothingness broke through the barrier, shattering it like glass, and streaked like a cosmic bullet right through the Hellish Armada. Instantly erasing a huge number of ships, and destroying or damaging scores more as it passed, heading straight for the planet.

Verial The Void Dragon wrote:The black mass of destructive void energy broke atmosphere, and streaked towards the forboding mountain of Risa. Out of the blackness emerged a humanoid figure, who landed perfectly upon the dusty peak of broken rock.



"Hmmm, interesting. This mountain. This desert bears scars of old. Chrono-distortion damage. And yet the others failed to detect it. I wonder what else my bretheren failed to find."

Eyes of malice scanned the horizon, and a smile filled with the promise of battle and destruction came across his features. "My siblings, the mortals you've cultivated. father, show me all of your strength. Show me everything you have to offer after all this time. Stop me, if you can!"

Ed suddenly stoped in his tracks, his head snapping towards the southerly direction. His eyes widened, and his bottom lip, and his arms started shaking.

"He's real.... and he's here...." Ed whispered.

It was a quiet night, the Grand Hall had been empty for hours, not a soul moved throughout the area this evening. In the darkness the glass display cases where the Gun, Silver Bracers, Coat and Hat of the First Gunslinger were, sat empty untouched no longer holding their prized trophies of the past. A pair of Apprentices stood watch at the entrance none the wiser to their missing historical pieces. A shadow drifted across the floor from one corner of the room, slowly meandering across the Grand Hall. As it slid across the room it settled upon the glass display cases for a moment, the darkness seeming to thicken and deepen, then in the twinkling of a night star, it was gone, the darkness returning to that of a normal Asmirnov night.

In the glass display cases they sat, restored to their proper places...

Returned to their former glory, whole once again after ages of being on display imperfect and in ruins. The Hat, the Coat, and even the Gun of the First Gunslinger, renewed by the hands of their owner himself. Though no one would know that little detail, they were whole once again. All save the silver bracers which were stolen by an apprentice turned rogue.