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Liliana

House Lorel
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Character Biography
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Southern Cortosi Isles - The Confiance

"Initiate Lorel. Would you like to join everyone else for the briefing?"

Liliana slowly turned her head towards the voice trying to draw her attention, lips thinning for a brief moment as she noticed Naval Captain Elbrecht standing expectantly in the doorway of her shared quarters. The woman had the most hawkish features Liliana had ever seen, her eyes always narrow and seemingly focused as though she were hunting prey.

It would have been imposing, had it not been for the fact that she was of peasant birth. "Not particularly, no."

She cast a disinterest glance over to the woman.

"But I suppose I will anyway." With liquid grace Liliana swept herself from the bunk she had been sitting on, scooping up the blade and whip which had been resting just besides her. She swept passed Capatin Elbrecht as though she were little more than a guard of honor, rather than her superior.

Even with the constant sway of the ship Lliana never seemed unsure of her gait, as though she had simply been born to the sea.

A rush of wind flowed through her platinum hair as she stepped onto the deck, finding half a dozen Anirian Corsair's and a few other Dreadlord Initiates already gathered in place. A man was standing ahead of them, clearly waiting for Liliana. His gaze fell on her, the Proctor's pins on his lapel gleaming brightly as he stared at the wayward scion of House Lorel.

"Now that everyone is here."

He stared at Liliana, who gave nothing more than a shrug.

"The mission hasn't changed from the earlier briefing. We're looking for the pirates that captured the Merchant Ship Fulfillment. Their base is on one of the nearby Isles. We'll be making landfall after sundown. It's not the cargo we're looking for, but the Merchant. His name is Idrig Tellim, a minor Noble. Understand?"

There were a few mutters of ascent, though Liliana was not among them. She still did not know why she was here, Cousin Elise had not told her the details. Supposedly that would come from one of the sailors aboard this ship. All she knew was that the Lady of House Virak had personally asked her to see to this mission, and she was the one person that Liliana would not defy.

At least not yet.

Most of the other Initiates on board had been surprised that she had elected to join this mission, but she'd simply denied them any explanation. After all, what business was it of theirs? Especially since she didn't really know the reason herself.

The Captain chimed in a second later, interrupting Liliana's thoughts.

"Remember, these aren't the ordinary sort of pirates. From what we know they hail from Cerak, and may have more than one mage among their rank. Though I'm sure you can handle it. Otherwise they would have given me real Dreadlords."
 
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After being out of commission for nearly three weeks, mainland tiger snake was definitely an experience to say the least, Everleigh was all set to go back out into the field. Despite the neutral, cool look on her face, she was excited, after all, perhaps she’d have a chance to try this new venom out. Or not. They weren’t here to kill, at least with what the Proctor was suggesting they were here to retrieve a captured Idrig Tellim… but were the pirates fair game? Using a hand and sleeve to cover her mouth, Everleigh yawned, and covered the wolffish grin. Oh the pirates were most definitely fair game, especially if there was a mage or two. When she lowered her hand, her face was as pristinely demure as ever.

Her dull eyes roved over around those around, remaining quiet despite their soft murmurs after the Captain spoke. She nodded her head once, that was expected to show she was listening, and clasped her hands behind her back as she continued to survey the room. Really, while it may have been no surprise that she would be on a mission such as this, she did have a sudden sense of curiosity as to why a particular someone would be. Well, other than the fact they were at the academy. Everleigh’s gimlet gaze didn’t linger long on Liliana, a student that she had never really interacted with much before but didn’t need to— her reputation truly did precede her.

After all, did it not suit her to arrive late and give sass? Everleigh would never dare be so rude. But speaking of rude, and while this didn’t show on her face, Everleigh couldn’t help but think how rude it was for the captain to suggest that she was not good enough. So what if she’s missed a lot of class time? Could the captain survive a mainland tiger snake bite? She highly doubted it.
 
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The Proctor dismissed them after once again reiterating that they would be landing once the sun went down over the horizon.

A plan of attack wasn’t exactly outlined, mostly because everyone had already been told whom they would be working with back home. Liliana assumed that it would remain as such, mostly because nothing to the contrary had been said. Assumptions usually served her well, particularly with how predictable most Anirians were.

Peeling herself away from the group, the scion of House Lorel moved towards the front of the ship. Her gaze flickered over some of the sailors, drawing across the Corsairs and lingering on the weapons on their belt.

Briefly she wondered how useful they would turn out to be.

The Guardsmen that she usually worked with on these missions almost always turned out to be less than useful, but she’d heard good things about the Corsairs. Even given that, she still wished that she’d had a contingent of her House Guard. It would have been much better.

Eventually her eyes flickered away from the soldiers and to her peers.

She knew all of them by name of course, but not for reasons of familiarity. Her father had always lived by a mantra; If you could not be the strongest or most powerful in the room, then you should be the most well informed.

Liliana had lived by that creed over the last few years. She had dug into nearly every student at the Academy. Coin had been used to pay off servants, watchers had been set into place, and carefully Liliana had crafted a mental dossier on nearly every one of her peers. Everleigh Ebersol was no exception.

She watched the other girl for a moment, rummaging through her memories to pluck some speckles of information about the girl from the back of her mind.

It would come in handy eventually. It always did.
 
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Upon being dismissed, Everleigh stood for a moment, waiting for others to disperse before she decided to follow suit. Despite already checking her equipment twice, she began checking it a third time. A multitude of throwing spikes, knives, even little darts and needles along with daggers had been strapped expertly underneath clothing. Hidden well enough, but still plenty easy to access. The most obvious thing other then a belt with multiple pouches attached to it were the bands around her thighs with more pouches. It was obvious Everleigh carried something, but to many, little needles tended not to frighten people. And they shouldn’t, until Everleigh enhanced them a little bit.

Her stare was blank, finger tips tracing over items, stocking the numbers up in her head and when she had finished counting, she looked over to gaze down at the sea until her gaze briefly met Liliana’s. With a saccharine smile, the poison eater waved at Liliana, a seemingly friendly gesture even if Everleigh’s true intent was more passive aggressive. She had caught her watching her and she wanted Liliana to know she had been caught. When she walked over to Liliana that was for a much different reason.

Hello,” Everleigh dipped her head, her gaze lowering briefly in a slight greeting to Liliana. She never tried to shake someone’s hand, made sure there was three steps of space between her and a person. Most people didn’t want to be too close to her nevertheless touch her. Especially after that history class incident ten years ago. “I believe we had a course together, perhaps a few years back? I may not have finished it with everyone else; it’s a pleasure to see you again. Oh, but I suppose you might not remember me, my hair was different back then. My name is Everleigh.” A slight tilt of the head, the hint of the smile before still evident. Just a friendly chat between classmates.

Liliana
 
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How was she going to play this little game?

Different people needed different approaches. That was a lesson she had learned early on. She had managed to pull Jaxan and Ignatius into her circle with entirely different means, and Charon? Well. That hadn't really been finesse, just a whispered promise of murder and mayhem. One that she'd managed to keep fairly easily.

It would have to be different with Everleigh. Her gaze flickered passed the girl for a brief moment, glancing at some of the other Students that had come on this missions.

They were all invariably useless. Either weaker than the girl standing in front of her, or simply too simple to be of much use. Everleigh was her best bet, and likely also the most useful shield when it came to fighting the pirates.

Not that she needed help. It was just nice to have. "Of course I remember, Everleigh."

Liliana said with a wide smile.

"How could I forget?" She mused. "Events like that tend to stick to the mind."
 
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Clasping her hands behind her back, the corner of Everleigh’s lips pulled up slightly. They did have class together before, or maybe even more than one. Inwardly she wondered if Liliana did remember, or if it was merely her name. Either way, Liliana was playing along with this, and Everleigh really couldn’t be more pleased, if only because when Liliana spoke to her she didn’t seem to shirk away like the others.

I agree,” she said sweetly enough, her dulcet voice smooth. “Only the academy can boast of class sizes dwindling each year. Or rather, they used to.” Everleigh was certain that those who were meant to succeed would still do so, tenacity and talent was always revered, it just had to be shown differently now compared to how it was before. “It’s hard to forget those who haven’t died.

Speaking of,” Everleigh said, her eyes lighting up as she clapped her hands together. “You know how these missions go when a mage is involved. Would you like to make a bet on whether an even number or an odd number of them survive?” With a subtle tilt of the head and her eyes moving to the side, it was quite clear she was referencing the corsairs. “It’ll be just for fun if you don’t enjoy making big wagers.
 
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"Bet?" She mused. "What do you have to bet with, my dear? Your pillowcase?"

Initiates did not receive gold. They were given enough to live, supplied with food, but rarely were they offered coin. Sometimes you could make money on your missions, and of course you could always steal, but such things were rare for most students.

For Liliana it was different of course.

It wasn't supposed to be that way, but the privileges of Nobility extended further than most wanted to admit. Though she was the youngest daughter of her family, Liliana still had access to more wealth than most other Initiates could even dream of.

A fact which she was not subtle with. "Though I suppose there are other forms of payment."

She mused.

"A favor? Perhaps." Liliana asked with a smile.
 
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Everleigh breathed out a short giggle, covering her mouth as she did so in a shy fashion. Her dull violet eyes gleamed with mirth. Would Liliana bite? She had no idea but she so hoped she would, if only for her morbid enjoyment of a gamble. And of course, she had a point. There were plenty of other forms of payment when it came to betting, and really, who wanted money? That sort of currency was useless to Everleigh. What delighted her the most was something people would actually miss and constantly be reminded of.

But Liliana was from a noble house, a pinky finger would be out of the question. What could she lose that she would miss but others wouldn’t take note of? Teeth? Perhaps a molar or two? But that would entail lots of pain that Everleigh wasn’t quite sure Liliana could handle. Could she actually handle any sort of pain other than the kind of brushing through knotty hair?

A favor?” Everleigh echoed, her eyes dilating for a moment before fixating directly into Liliana’s brown gaze. Everleigh could produce lots of favors, if someone wanted another person to have a hole burned through their throat, you went to her. Make someone slowly die in thirty days? Everleigh was the person you went to, and many other things sneaky sort of things. The initiate didn’t enjoy giving out favors, however… since this was a big thing from her, she’d want a big thing from Liliana.

Nothing excites me more than a big wager,” she said slyly, a mischievous grin appearing. “I’d be more than happy to offer a favor of any sort in return for… two of your fingernails. The entire nail. You can choose which ones of course.
 
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"Ew." It was an instant, and guttural response.

She couldn't ever imagine what someone would want with her fingernails, but then again she didn't really care. For all she knew the girl would want to eat them...or something.

Gross.

Why was it that everyone at the Academy save for her was just so strange? Perhaps with all the changes she could convince one of the Proctors to teach etiquette. That might actually allow some of her classmates to function in society.

Though for some reason she doubted even that would help some of them.

Liliana's gazed flickered up and down, studying Everleigh for a moment. "Fine."

Fingernails? What did it matter. It wasn't like she was going to lose the bet anyway. How could she? When she'd just end up thinning the number to whatever she needed.

Best to get rid of more of the chaff while away from home.
 
Delight washed over Everleigh’s face as Liliana did agree to the strange bet. Really, Everleigh would rather have another pinky finger to add to her little collection, but there were too many variables that Everleigh couldn’t control. Next time she could try again. A noble’s pinky finger? It’d be her most prized possession. But regardless of the fingernail proposition, Everleigh had to admit— she expected a far more visceral reaction from Liliana. Disgust was there yes, and maybe a mixture of irritation and exasperation, but the absence of fear was intriguing.

I didn’t expect you to agree.” Everleigh said with genuine honesty, the glee still gleaming in her dull eyes. “You’re dangerous. I like that. Now, odds or evens?” To adapt quickly was a key ability when it came to the many games and bets Everleigh indulged in secretly. Needless to say, she wasn’t worrying about whichever Liliana chose. She had done some sort of preparation and could easily do more.
 
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"Odds." There wasn't really a point in waiting to give the answer.

The game was rigged, no matter which way Everleigh tried to play it.

Mostly because Liliana would do her very best to ensure that she won, and her best always triumphed over the others. Even if some did consider her to be little threat. "Sometimes I like doing the unexpected, Evey."

She said with a smile.

"Perhaps you'll come to see that the more time we spend together." Though she was not entirely sure that was where this would end. Some students at the Academy were...weary of her, but most could be cajoled into line.

Though it was up to them which way she chose. "Maybe even on this little trip."

Liliana said as she turned, regarding the islands that slowly came into view before them. Light from the the sun crept over the sea, concealing the Anirian ships as they moved towards their intended targets.
 
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Everleigh nodded her head as Liliana chose odds, that much was actually expected, many people chose odds. Heck, three times out of four, Everleigh herself chose odds. She didn’t mind being even, she felt there was a bit of irony in that regard.

Nobles doing the unexpected? That was unexpected. Despite never really being in that arena of life the way Liliana had been, Everleigh had deduced many nobles into certain stereotypes, and for the most part, they seemed to enjoy security, and did what they could to keep it, even if it meant being stagnant.

I enjoy your mentality,” another genuine comment from the poison eater, beginning to move her fingers over all the places she had checked minutes before. The setting sun was causing her to think more seriously, her playful chatter would be ending. “I look forward to this time with you. Now and perhaps in the future.” Everleigh’s face moved back into it’s neutral position. She pushed her long braid over her shoulder, and looked around them. Everyone seemed to be standing to attention, tension starting to fill the air with a slight buzz of duty.
 
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"Of course you do." Liliana mused. "Everyone loves spending time with me."

It was far too difficult to tell if Liliana was joking, or being utterly serious.

Her expression was an unreadable mask, and before a follow up question should come a shout went up over the ship. The approach to the island was called up, the ebb of the sun drawing passed the horizon as it truly began to set.

Liliana tensed slightly, touching the whip at her side and adjusting the short sword opposite. She filled her lungs with a breath, remembering something that her father had said about stray arrows. A moment later she whirled around, and with a smile bade Everleigh to follow.

Mere minutes later the two girls found themselves sitting in a longboat, six corsairs surrounding them and two other Initiates sitting directly opposite.

The Scion of House Lorel offered only petty smiled. "Lovely night for a boat trip, isn't it?"

She commented to no one in particular, somewhat more cheery than she had been on the ship.
 
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Everleigh followed, after all, it was just better if Liliana resumed her role as a leader with her. It was one many nobles were comfortable with but at least in Liliana’s case, she seemed to have a better head on her shoulders compared to some of the others. Of course, when it came time to being in the boats, the fact that Everleigh had followed Liliana meant that Liliana had to sit next to the poison eater. The other two initiates had steadfastly paired up so neither would be near Everleigh. Rude. But the worst offender to Everleigh was how obvious they had been with their glances and stares and tilting of their heads.

You pass gas one time and accidentally kill four of your classmates and this is how you get treated?

You can see The Hunter,” Everleigh commented on the starry sky, the closer they got to their destination the more her mouth started to salivate. It was just a natural response for her now whenever on a mission. Not wanting to waste the drool, Everleigh placed a single finger in her mouth, eyes glowing briefly with use of her magic before she took the finger out of her mouth and brushed the spit along the three, small outward spikes on her study boots. She wasn’t sure she would need to kick people tonight but nine times out of ten she did. “Isn’t seeing The Hunter considered to bring good luck?” She asked after the pause, almost absent-mindedly.

Liliana
 
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Ew. Liliana thought to herself as Everleigh wiped her spit on the spike of her boot.

She knew the girls magic well enough, at least from what she remembered and heard, but that didn't make the whole thing any less gross. A small shudder ran up her spine, and she shook her head to turn away for a brief moment as the boat continued it's path towards the island. "I have no idea."

The Scion of House Lorel said honestly.

"My heads usually filled with more important things." Like the fact that they were about to wade into a pirate base.

A few more quiet moments passed in the little boat, Liliana spending most of her time simply watching the other students. She could see the nerves fray beneath their skin, the slight skitter of their boots rocking the boat enough to annoy her.

Eventually they drew close, and the Guardsmen whispered.

"Get down as we approach."​

Liliana let out a sigh, but gently ducked down. "Make sure to stay close, Greggory. Wouldn't want you to get hurt."

Her whisper flowed with a weave, and her net cast over the other Initate's mind. The boy seemed to stiffen slightly, and then nodded his head quickly, a dull look having entered his mind.
 
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Everleigh nodded her head at the corsair’s words, which made sense for the most part. Let’s not be seen. It was also why after Liliana had spoken, Everleigh had shrugged. The Hunter may be unlucky actually, she couldn’t remember exactly, but luck played a part in it, she was sure of that. Would it mean anything for them tonight? Probably not, luck meant very little in the long run.

Ducking down low, Everleigh had caught on to the way that Liliana had chosen to say anything to Greggory at all, especially one about his safety. Not that Everleigh thought so poorly of Liliana and thought she was without empathy, but it just seemed more like one would say to one that spoke to often. Greggory was nothing like the pack of bullies that stalked the school: dangerous, arrogant, and useful. With her head bent, no one could see the scowl on her face. She just hoped that Greggory would be smart enough to stay out of her way when she put her toxins to good use. If he got a third degree burn she did not want to be blamed for it.
 
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There was something undignified about crouching in the bottom of a boat, sitting huddled like a rat in the the cargo hold of a ship. It was necessary, she knew, but that didn't mean she had to like it. Greggory was sitting besides her, shaking violently.

Her eyes rolled, and another weave was silently cast out over his mind.

Calm was an emotion she could control more easily than others. Shockingly, it was an attribute she was surprisingly used to. Dragging it onto someone else's mind was surprisingly easy, and useful. She'd used it to control Charon more than once. Subsiding one of his outbursts.

Slowly the longboat crawled further, all but disappearing within the night as the sun well and truly set. As they neared the island she could practically feel the tensions rise, and then suddenly a light burst out above them.

It shone brightly, casting a bright red glow over the entirety of the bay. Liliana looked up, and then let out a sudden curse. "Over the side!"

She barked, and then to their left one of the other longboats suddenly exploded in a burst of flame and shattered wood. Screams echoing out as Initiates and soldiers were burnt alive within a heartbeat. Liliana herself scrambled, diving over the edge of the boat as a fireball arched through the sky directly towards them.

It seemed those mages on the island where smarter than first assumed.
 
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One would think that despite having your face pointedly downward to look at your boots all you could see was darkness. And Everleigh did only just see darkness, until that fireball appeared out of nowhere. Everleigh raised her head after it had hit the boat next to them, and it didn’t take her long to jump over the side. She was sure she didn’t need to check and see if the others had followed suit. How lucky they were that they weren’t chosen first.

How unlucky it was that some mage on that island could throw intense fireballs with perfect aim at the boats. Hopefully it got rid of an even number of corsairs for her. Everleigh had swam a little away from the boat, waiting for that fiery blast to happen before she stuck her head up from the water, taking a deep breath before swimming again, roughly a foot under the water. She could only hope that the mages were going to target the boats first and that was because it would be too hard to see the corsairs and initiates underneath the waves. First thing was first, get away from the huge light sources.

Second, get to land, and fast. Each time Everleigh came up for breath, she quickly scanned the shore. She would need to find a good place for cover, but one that wouldn’t isolate her. She finally came to find a spot that fitted what she wanted— it wasn’t perfect, but it would be the best thing to head towards right now. She had to position herself a bit, veering off more to the right, but luckily now with a destination in mind she could swim much faster towards the set of rocks poking out.

Third thing to focus on: don’t get smashed against the rocks by the waves. Luckily for her, it seemed the high tide had dissipated into more of a low tide, allowing much easier maneuvering, which Everleigh took advantage of, finally near that outcrop of rock. And just as she had seen from further away, these rocks shaped multiple little pools that head to shore, with enough coverage from the build up of land. If the mages were at a high point, as long as Everleigh moved stealthily and low to the ground she was positive they wouldn’t catch sight of her. The waves jostled her against the rock as she poked her head up and allowed the waves to carry her the rest of the way. Hands out in front of her, she gripped the uncomfortably cold surface, finding a place to put her feet.

Another deep breath, and then, she set about the task of climbing up.
 
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Liliana swam as fast as she could.

Fire exploded in the waters around her, bursting apart the boats that had carried half a dozen men towards the shore. She moved as quickly as her muscles would take her, leather armor seeming to weigh her down as she drew closer and closer to the shore.

Muscles began to ache, her body began to hurt. The waves threatened to smash her into the rocks, yet as the pain nearly became too much, as she began to feel the agony of pushing against the tide she finally managed to reach the rocks.

Her hands reached around and clutched at a heavy stone, body dragging itself up onto the perch of a boulder.

Liliana could feel her chest heaving as she sat herself down, head spinning as she took quick short breaths and steadied herself. "What...the fuck."

She swore.

Above her she could still see the arch of fireballs, reaching down and slamming into the few remaining ships that still steadied their way through the water.

"Shit." Whatever had happened, she knew that this hadn't gone to plan. The enemy had known they were coming. Liliana was sure of it.

With another quick curse she began to climb the rocks, scaling the cliffs and hoping she wasn't the only one who'd made it.
 
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Everleigh began the perilous journey of moving along the rocky spot she had chosen. Her movements were quick and precise, and she was actually quite grateful for the sort of shoes that had been handed to her at the academy: the studs beneath her sole did allow her a decent amount of grip, even with wave water sloshing over the rock to perpetually to keep the rock slippery. She hid behind a large rock, looking out to see that where she was headed on the beach wasn’t the most well covered. Looking behind her at the boats turning ablaze, she knew her options were limited. It was turning her head again to face forward that she saw some scaling up the cliffs to her right.

Squinting her dull eyes, she wasn’t quite sure who exactly it was, but she figured they had to be on her side. She could try and brave it to land but that meant a higher chance of doing things alone. Until she figured out how many mages this group of pirates had, she didn’t want to risk doing things solo. It only made sense to climb up the short cliff. At least there would be much more cover as well considering the trajectory of the fireballs had Everleigh inferring they had been facing the boats straight on.

A deep breath and then she was on the prowl again, and as she got closer to the cliff, looking up at the single comrade, she could make out the shape to be that of a Liliana Lorel. Well. Perfect. She wasn’t dead. The bet could continue to commence. Keeping quiet, Everleigh pulled a throwing spike from one of her multitude of cases, throwing it up high enough and away from Liliana in what she hoped wouldn’t frighten her and instead make her look down. Without seeing what effect the throwing spike had, Everleigh began her ascension as well— hopefully by the time they made it to the top the fire mages would be elsewhere.
 
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A small ping resounded by her head, just quiet enough that it clearly came from somewhere unnatural. A frown touched her lips for a brief moment, and her eyes quickly darted first up the cliff. When she saw nothing there her head turned, glancing down to the plateau below.

There she spotted the slight figure that had thrown the needle.

With the mages having ceased their fireballs her eyes were now more adjusted, and after a few seconds of staring she spotted Everligh. A slight frown touched her lips, one hand releasing from the cliff side as she motioned for the other Initiate to follow. Whatever had happened, at least one other person was alive.

With a surprising swiftness Liliana scaled the cliff. She moved from hand hold to hand hold, taking the best and easiest path. Her muscles were still screaming from the swim, but there were no other options save to go up. As she reached the apex of the cliff her head peeked over the edge, gaze flickering over the side.

For a moment she searched, and then finding no mages pulled herself up onto the side.

A few moments later she stuck out a hand, grabbing at Everleigh and pulling her up onto the top of the cliff. ”It seems only the beautiful managed to make it.”

The noblewoman mused as she peered around the bare rocks.
 
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Everleigh climbed up the cliff as fast as she could without risking a mistake. It was an uncomfortable climb, her wet braid plastered to her back and her clothes stuck to her skin. But she focused at the task on hand: climbing. Liliana most definitely climbed much faster than she did, Everleigh wasn’t sure if it was because Liliana found footholds easier or if she was just not as moving as fast as Liliana did. However, just as she were to reach the top, she found that a hand had reached out towards her, offering her aid.

Everleigh balked as Liliana pulled her up over the cliff edge, moving the wet strands of hair out of her face, composing herself. She then looked over at the water below, frowning as well. Well, that was an unfortunate turn of events. Perhaps seeing The Hunter in all of it’s glory did represent bad luck after all.

In this case, it’s those who are the most capable.” Everleigh said, despite the fact that while Liliana most definitely was complimenting herself, for a girl who had violet hair and dull eyes, beautiful was not something she was likened to often. Or being touched. Even if this was a dire situation. Both things were nice, though. Everleigh allowed herself to breathe freely for a moment, steadying herself.

It’s suspicious, don’t you think? That they were able to get all the boats so quickly?” Everleigh asked, looking back at Liliana with a raised brow. “Like they were waiting for us to get close enough.
 
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Liliana's muscles ached and her body screamed. She wanted nothing more than to lay back on the rock outcropping and go to sleep.

That obviously wasn't a possibility in that moment, but that didn't mean she couldn't wish for it. "They knew."

Her words carried such authority and strength to them that it was hard to doubt what she said.

"We were moving with the sun, going quiet. They shouldn't have been able to see us." A scowl pulled at her lips. Liliana was certainly not the strongest of the Initiates at the Academy. Her magics could warp minds, change nations, but didn't help her in a fight. She knew that, and thus she had studied.

Tactics, strategies. Everything that would help her on the field of battle had become precious to her.

There was no way in the seven hells that this should have gone the way it had.

"Someone betrayed us." Liliana hissed. "I'm sure of it."

The question was who, and what the fuck did they do now?
 
Everleigh nodded her head, undoing her braid in an attempt to wring some of the water out before her fingers deftly began to replace her hair in another tight braid. She agreed with Liliana, it was much to easy for the mages to decimate nearly all their numbers.

Upon hearing the mission I thought it was peculiar,” Everleigh murmured, eyes darting around. “Why someone with flashier magick wasn’t onboard.” It wasn’t a dig to Liliana, but to the all the initiates, herself included. “But despite the loss, I’m afraid this works out much better for me.” She had finished her long, wet braid and threw it over her shoulder.

I’ve always preferred being more stealthy, and based how no one is rushing to the shore to double check things,” Everleigh used her finger to motion the shore before moving it to where people should be coming out from to check, “they think we’re all dead. And if the enemy thinks you’re dead… well that’s better than sneaking in when they’re on alert. Whether someone informed them of our coming or not.”

Some initiates, if they were alive, would have argued that they should turn back. Get help. Or find the mole. Everleigh was most definitely being a good academy nerd in wanting to finish out the mission. After all, that was their original task, find the minor noble and then figure out how to get back to the ship. Find the mole later.

I think we’re in the perfect opportunity,” Everleigh’s eyes were shining, a frisson taking place. “Before the sun rises, we’ll have Idrig safely in our hands and every pirate on this shit pit laying in their own fucking piss and blood.” The poison eater paused, realizing her words. “Oh, pardon my foul language, I don’t know what came over me.” she murmured, raising a hand to her mouth to hide the eager grin that had appeared. The higher the stakes the more gung-ho Everleigh got.
 
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Liliana raised an eyebrow as she listened to Everligh prattle on. Despite her verbose response she did have a good point, one that even the scion of House Lorel had to accept. A few seconds passed with only the sound of splashing waves below, and then finally a nod dipped her head.

"Well I suppose so." She would have preferred an army at her back, but just because they had been sundered did not mean they had failed.

Everleigh had to be right in her assumptions. The Mages had been tipped off, and now likely assumed that the Anirians were dead. That assumption would be their downfall, and would open the gates for the two of them to take care of this little island and it's pirate problem.

Thus also allowing them to take all the credit.

Perhaps she was starting to like the other girl. Odd.

It was perfect, if they could actually survive. "Alright."

Liliana declared.

"Let's get down to the island proper then." She mused, pulling herself up to her feet. "Perhaps we'll find some of the others still alive."